The fighting in Suna had increased drastically. Loads of Konoha soldiers were being sent over into the fight everyday while twice as many were coming back in body bags.
The fighting had lasted almost a week and already the memorial stone was crowded with names and had a list of new ones waiting to be engraved.
It became normal to see all the bars in the village packed with shinobi. Some coming back from tough missions and others getting ready to leave. Many sat on the stools and had a party complete with screaming, shouting, and jokes. Some would say that it was embarrassing and childish to act like that in public but most shinobi knew that when a ninja got that drunk it was usually because a friend or teammate hadn't come home. Alcohol was good at numbing the misery and fear in everyone's hearts. Any minute spent drunk was a minute they didn't spend worrying about death or thinking about a comrade who had been missing for days.
In the end, no one bothered them.
But Konoha wasn't completely depressed. Word had spread throughout the village that Suna refugees had been found in a small camp miles from the infiltrated village. Most were civilians but there were a few genin sprinkled in. A group of Anbu had been immediately sent to escort the refugees to Konoha and protect them from bandits on the road.
When we had heard the news of survivors, no matter how small the number was, Gaara and I were thrilled. As they were escorted into the village by an unmasked Anbu pair, I had to stop myself from crying. They were certainly ragged and beaten but I could recognize every one of them as they paraded into town. Konoha citizens stood on the sides of the road with solemn expressions.
Out of the corner of my eye I saw Koharu Kikase and her son Saori.
Saori and Keno had frequently played together in the Kazekage mansion and it wasn't uncommon to see them sitting in the garden with little toy trucks while Koharu and I sipped tea on the lawn. We had been friends and confidants while I was still adjusting to life in Suna.
I remembered that Koharus husband had been a high ranking Jounin, always on missions that made her worry. I felt bad considering that despite Gaaras high rank; he almost never left the village. But when Gaara was named Kage, the need to protect him suddenly became top priority. He couldn't even walk in his own village without teams of Anbu popping out of trees and asking if he needed anything. Going on missions would simply be too much of a hassle.
I craned my neck to see if I could spot her husband in the small crowd of refugees. He wasn't there. I wasn't surprised. If there were any higher ranking ninja left, I doubt they would have fled the village. They would have stayed and fought even when severely out numbered.
Frowning, I jogged over to the small family. They were huddled in the corner with wide eyes, nervously glancing around at their surroundings. I remembered that neither of them had ever left Suna and I doubt this was how the planned to see new places.
"Koharu, Saori!" I shouted, stopping in front of the small huddled mass.
"N-Naruto?" Koharu whispered, eyes wide and disbelieving. "You're here. But I thought you were dead. The said you were dead."
"Huh?" I said, completely confused. Who had ever said I was dead? "Koharu I'm fine. I'm not dead. Who told you that?"
"The men. The men who entered the village and killed Kankuro-sama. They said that they had caught your convoy on the way to Konoha and that they killed you. They had a skull. They said that it was Kazekage-samas."
I nodded. It made sense. After we left, the villagers had virtually no contact with us. They had no way of knowing if we were alive and well or if we had been ambushed on the way there. I suppose the only ones who could find out were ninjas and I assumed those were few and far between after the infiltration.
"Well it's fine." I said, touching her cheek and giving her a small smile. "You're safe now and Konoha is sending ninja to fight the infiltrators. In a few weeks we should be able to go back home."
I spotted a rather burly women standing a few feet away and waiting for our conversation to end. Despite her startling resemblance to the Abominable Snowman she seemed kind enough. I nodded to her and she began to walk over.
Koharu nodded at my hypothesized timeline but I could tell in her eyes she didn't believe me.
I helped her to her feet and gently pushed her into the arms of the Chewbacca look-a-like medic nin waiting to take her to the hospital.
I turned and saw Gaara addressing a small group of what appeared to be genin. They wore expressions of pride on their dirty faces but the pure exhaustion showed through as they slumped, trying to stay awake as they listened to their leader address them.
I went to stand by Gaaras side as he commended them for protecting the civilians.
"All of you are truly brave ninja. You stepped up when Suna needed you most and for that I thank you. You can all expect promotions when we return. I'm proud of you"
The children were practically radiating with pride as they were escorted to the ninja hospital to get their wounds cared for. That was probably the first time Gaara had addressed any of them directly.
However, when he turned to me Gaaras eyes showed anguish and sorrow. He couldn't keep the disappointment off his face and he watched the pitifully small mob being ushered to the hospital.
"Seven genin. That's all we got back was seven half dead genin." He shook his head, sighing.
"Just be thankful we got any back." I murmured in his ear, softly petting his hair. "And besides, this should give us hope!"
He glanced up at me through his bangs. "And why is that?"
I smiled and lifted his chin up, looking into his sea foam green eyes. "Because if 7 genin and a handful of civilians could escape a full scale infiltration, then I think it's safe to assume they're not the only ones who got away."
Hola! I'm back!
Baby is sleeping and I am writing away!
So I just put up two chapters and I'm working on another one!
Think of this as my apology for tricking you all into thinking I had died or something:(
Anywho! Review and I'll update again!!