Chapter Two

The cries grew louder and louder as the yellow haired ninja stepped back in surprise. His teammate was watching, surprisingly happy for his victory. But her cheer was soon drowned out by the cries.

"FIXED!"
"FAKE!"

Words such as that filled the stadium. As Hyuuga Neji was carried off the battlefield by medical ninja the stadium was in an uproar. Uzumaki Naruto couldn't bring himself to continue look at them. He looked away as they shouted. A few ninja jumped out of their seats into the ring only to be held back by the security.
"COME ON! EVEN I CAN BEAT THAT BOY!" One of the men shouted.
"YOU'RE NOT EVEN REALLY A NINJA!" Shouted another man, restrained from attacking Naruto.

"Why…?" Sakura asked. She turned to Ino Yamanaka who was also in shock.

"I… don't know…"

Naruto slowly trudged out of the stadium. He leaned against the wall of the entryway and looked out at it. Security was escorting those outraged spectators out of the facility. He shook his head to clear it. They didn't know anything… He took a deep breath and started up the stairs. They would be proven wrong… He'd do it… He knew he could be a Chuunin. He knew he could get the respect of the village.

"He could make it." Sarutobi, third hokage of Konoha, spoke to those sitting next to him. They weren't outraged like the group below.
"Why do you think that?" Asked the Kazekage from the sand village, his face covered by a mask.

"Because I know who he is." Sarutobi laughed. "And I know how much he tries… I admit he requires a few more years to truly mature… but…"

Naruto could be seen in the booth shouting out at Kankuro who was walking out onto the field. It was obvious that he was cheering on Aburame Shino.
"That's why." Sarutobi said. "Because he can do that."

"… I see." The Kazekage muttered. "I see…."

"I see no better reason to promote this boy." Sarutobi said in a low voice, most likely to himself.

"GAARA!" Came the loud obnoxious voice of Kankuro. "GAARA!" Kankuro's footsteps could be heard coming as he tore through the building and called out for his little brother. Despite being leader of the sand village, Gaara was still a ticking time bomb. He was gaining control over his temper piece by piece. Even this change was enough to turn people's attitudes towards him around. Especially Kankuro. Kankuro was trying to have the relationship he believed that his family should have had. It got him into trouble a bit but Gaara wasn't opposed to it. He just needed to control his temper more. Temari was simply a Jounin and her most recent mission should end any time now.

Gaara winced as Kankuro's cries echoed through the building.

"WHERE ARE YOU!?" Kankuro cried, as if it wasn't obvious. Gaara was almost always in his room or in the office these days. The price of being the leader he supposed. Kankuro's footsteps became louder as his feet pounded the wood floors. Gaara kept his eye on the door with a single thought.

"Don't break my door again…." He muttered. A second later the door flew open and proceeded to break in half against the wall. Gaara stood, rooted to the spot, and stared at the door. He slowly turned to look at Kankuro who was panting and completely oblivious to the door. Kankuro struggled to catch his breath as Gaara surveyed the area. After a few minutes, Gaara broke the silence.

"You're fixing the door." Kankuro turned to look at the door and back to Gaara with a look of disbelief.

"G-Gaara…" He finally gasped out. "W-Water… Please?!" Gaara had several options. He could tease Kankuro by getting himself a glass of water. He could force Kankuro to fix the door first. Or he could actually listen. So he got Kankuro a glass of water. He wasn't trying to be a better person for nothing. Everything had changed after he had met with Uzumaki Naruto. Naruto's outlook would have completely gone over his head had he not defeated Gaara. It would have gone over his head had the village attitude towards him not proven wrong directly after… had his family not cared. It was a quick sequence of events that had changed his attitude. That's why Gaara fetched Kankuro what he needed.

"Thank you!" Kankuro finished drinking and set the glass down on a bedstand. He had set himself down on Gaara's bed.
"You have news?" Gaara asked, ignoring the gratitude. "Otherwise…" He trailed off glancing at the now twenty-piece door barely attached to the wall.

"Y-yeah…" Kankuro said. "Some scouts got the message from a city about fifty miles from here…"

"And?"

"It's about the Legendary Three." Kankuro said. "One of them is dead."

"Dead?" Gaara was unchanged by this news. "And?"
"Isn't that enough to worry?!" Kankuro stood up and thrust his arms out in a form that suggested that this was the apocalypse.
"No." Gaara said. "They're old." Kankuro stood there for a few seconds trying to understand this.

"… He didn't die of old age…" He finally told his little brother.

"Orochimaru?" Kankuro shook his head.

"I wish…. It's Jiraiya." Gaara pondered this for a few seconds..

"I've never met him." He said. "Was he strong?"
"They weren't called the Legendary Three for nothing Gaara!" Kankuro sighed. "But… that's not really the big news."

"What is then? Stop beating around the bush." Gaara said, getting annoyed.

"Jiraiya was killed by Uzumaki Naruto."

Gaara stood there without any reaction. He seemed to be frozen like a statue unable to decide what to do.

"A-Are you sure?"

"Dead sure. A lot of towns and villages are in an uproar and want the guy dead."

"…"

"Gaara?"

"…"

"You okay?"

"I have work to do…" Gaara finally said. "It seems we… have a new criminal on the loose…" Gaara stumbled out of the room almost as if he wasn't fully aware of what was happening. Kankuro chased after him to help. When Gaara fell into his chair behind his desk he nearly knocked the chair over from carelessness. Kankuro kept him steady as he mindlessly shuffled through papers on the desk. Kankuro hurried and grabbed a blank one.

"This what you need?" He asked. Gaara nodded and took it and began writing.

"Are you sure?" Gaara asked, after a while.

"Yeah…" Kankuro pulled out a piece of paper and handed it to Gaara. It was an order for Naruto's arrest. Gaara finished writing and attached that to it.

"Give this to anyone who can make the journey… It's going to Konoha."

"Naruto… what?" Sakura asked. She stood in Tsunade's office feeling completely numb. Just moments before had been excited for any news of Naruto and now… she wished she hadn't heard this.
"Gaara got the original arrest order and sent it to us… He said he issued one himself…" Tsunade muttered.

"It could be fake"! Sakura blurted out. "Naruto wouldn't! He couldn't! NOT NARUTO!" She shook her head and clenched her fists. The laughing kid in the picture she had taken years ago flashed before her head.

"There were eyewitnesses." Tsunade said. "A lot of people... "

"SCREW THE WITNESSES! THEY DON'T KNOW HIM!" Sakura roared. "AND ANY NINJA CAN DISGUISE THEMSELVES!"

"Calm down!" Shizune said, hastily gesturing to Sakura. Tsunade didn't answer. She wanted to mimic Sakura. Sakura stared at the wall with a mix of emotions running through her head. She was horrified at the idea of Naruto killing Jiraiya. She was scared of what they would do to Naruto and scared that she'd never see Sasuke again. She felt furious at Tsunade for telling her and furious at Naruto for not doing anything to prove this wrong… furious at herself for not going with him. She didn't know how she felt because she felt so much.

"Gaara called the letter back Sakura." Tsunade said. "Because he received word that the other villages are hunting for him now."

"What?" Sakura tore herself away from her feelings and back to the conversation.
"It means," Said a rather know-it-all toned voice. "That we have to find him first and get to the bottom of this." Tsunade groaned.
"I thought I told you never to hide in my office again?" Sheepishly Hatake Kakashi stepped out into view.

"Sorry, they used a technique I knew in the latest Icha Icha book. I wanted to know if it worked." Everyone stared at him. "What?"

"What would you get from hiding in Tsunade's office?" Shizune asked, puzzled.

"Why, news of any A-Ranked missions that I could then claim before Gai. We have a big rivalry you know." Kakashi answered. Sakura slapped her forehead.

"You ignore that rivalry whenever Gai brings it up!" She spat.
"Oh…" Kakashi looked up at the ceiling. "Then why would I hide here…?"

"YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW?!" Sakura roared. Kakashi sheepishly shrugged.
"Nope." Tsunade stood up, her eyes closed in thought.
"Tsunade-sama?!" Shizune asked.

"Fetch Gai… and his team… And Kiba from Kurenai's team." Tsunade said.
"Why not all of Kurenai's team?" Sakura asked.

"Because we need strength. Rock Lee and Neji… and you." Tsunade said. "If Naruto really is a criminal then those going have to be able to defend themselves."

"You mean?!" Sakura cried.

"We're going to find him." Kakashi gave a smile like a young child.