A heated haze covered the entire village as high noon struck the residents of the very exposed country of Weed. Those experienced with the harsh climate of limited shade, had opted to stay inside for the afternoon.
In fact, the only people that appeared to prefer to remain outside in the stifling heat happened to be a group of three hazy figures limping through the narrow streets and uneven pavement blocks.
In reality, however, only two of the three figures were limping. The third, a tall and slouched figure, walked between the two shorter children. Although he was obviously older than his charges, he still appeared to be of a young age himself. He carried himself in a casual, relaxed manner, and had allowed half of his headband to slip over his left eye. A form-fitting mask, now slightly creased, covered his mouth.
The two children beside him, although similar in height and stance, seemed to be limping in a very painful manner. The girl, her bright pink hair hanging in front of her face, could be heard mumbling quiet obscenities under her breath. The boy, on the other hand, had his teeth clenched too tightly to mumble anything himself. Each step the boy took seemed to be agony. Tiny droplets of sweat had begun to make their way from his face down to his already saturated dark shirt.
The sorry group continued determinately on their path, for what seemed to the children like forever. The three shinobi passed several shaded spots with anguish. Yet, they were resolute in their will to reach their destination. However, as in all of mankind's confrontation with Mother Nature, they eventually bowed to the power of the weather and found a cool spot in the shade to wait out the worst of the heat wave.
Kakashi found a shady wall, an easy spot to lean against, while his two students simply fell to the ground within seconds of reaching the inner folds of the relieving darkness.
"Kakashi –sensei," Sakura panted out, "where is the place we're supposed to be meeting our contact?" She stared pleadingly at her teacher, hoping for an answer that would mean they were close. So far their trip had taken almost an hour, and she was beginning to wonder just how large this village was.
Kakashi, who had taken this prime opportunity to break in a new book, glanced down at his weathered student and answered her in the most truthful and comforting manner he could, "I have no clue, I was following both of you."
Resisting the urge to hit her sensei and working harder against the urge to cry, the bright haired kunoichi turned to her other teammate, who was currently unable to resist either urges. He appeared to be struggling to rise and beat the stuffing out of the silver haired jounin. All the while, a steady stream of tears was running down his cheeks.
Sasuke's breathing was labored and his heart was racing. Every muscle in his body felt like it was on fire, and he felt like he was beginning to dehydrate. Still, he managed to raise himself up off the ground and stumble over to his teacher before his legs gave out.
Without raising his gaze from the book he was currently intrigued with, Kakashi managed to reach out and catch the falling Sasuke by the collar. He then, without seeming to strain himself at all, he slung the boy on his shoulder.
"He's probably unconscious," Kakashi threw out, causing Sakura to gaze weakly up at her crush. "His body has been under a severe amount of strain lately, adjusting-"
In that moment, the limp form of Sasuke convulsed, vomiting on the wall behind the unconcerned jounin. A weak voice made its way back afterwards.
"I'm still awake, you cruel bastard."
"Good to hear!" Kakashi smiled behind his mask again. "Definitely made of sterner stuff. I like that. Now, you're awake so you can walk on your own."
Without any more preambles, Kakashi dropped the battered Sasuke to the ground, eliciting a moan from the boy and a broken gasp from their only female teammate.
"Kakashi-sensei," Sakura mumbled furiously, struggling to rise up off the dusty ground, "Sasuke is tired, and he looks sick." Pausing a second as she finally rose, the sun caught her eye and the girl felt momentarily blinded.
In that time, she heard Sasuke struggling to stand. She heard his labored breaths and the rasp of his dry throat. She could almost feel the determination the boy was giving out in waves, focusing only on standing up.
Sakura slowly opened her eyes, once again regaining her sense of sight. In front of her, she saw the sprawled body of her teammate. So far he had made no progress in getting up off the ground.
The girl felt like a weight had been pressed upon her shoulders, weighing her down further. Sasuke seemed to be struggling with the simple task of walking and Kakashi was being downright unhelpful.
To make things worse, they were an entire day late in meeting their client. Kakashi had forgotten to tell them that they were supposed to be meeting the man yesterday. Things were already off to a bad start.
In her mind, an image of their currently missing teammate passed though her head. If this mission took too much longer…With a sigh and a moan, Sakura finally moved to Sasuke's side. Although he continued to struggle to get upright, he was having no success in getting his legs to move.
"I'm going to hate myself for this…" Sakura quietly breathed to herself before turning to her jounin instructor. "Kakashi-sensei?"
Kakashi once again raised his eye to meet hers for only a moment before returning them to his book. Sakura took a deep cleansing breath to regain her strength, to no avail. This would be easier if she had chakra available for use. She had used up all her reserves while practicing Kakashi's chakra exercise an hour ago.
"We might have passed the building a few blocks back, Kakashi-sensei. You seem to be the freshest; would you go take a look?"
Once again, without looking up from his book, Kakashi turned and trotted back to where they had just come from. The second Kakashi was out of sight, Sakura turned to the still determined Sasuke. Whispering an apology to herself and Sasuke, she ran her foot back a bit before swinging it straight into Sasuke's stomach, driving what little air he had from his body. He quickly collapsed, and this time he didn't get back up.
Kakashi arrived back at the scene to find a propped up Sasuke and a doting Sakura checking him over.
"Kakashi-sensei," she cried worriedly, "he collapsed again!"
As Kakashi came and took her spot to check the boy over, Sakura found her eyes drawn to the new figure that had accompanied their sensei back to their resting spot. The figure was a teenage girl, tall, slender and blond. Her hair was drawn up into two long pigtails, and her face smiled brightly. Motioning quietly, the girl placed three canteens on the ground next to her and winked.
As Sakura came to inspect the offered drinks, the girl smiled even brighter and whispered something that sounded very much like 'good luck' before turning and walking back down the path.
"That girl…"
Sakura spun to see Kakashi with the limp form of Sasuke on his back. He watched in interest as she walked off around a corner.
"She looked familiar, ne?"
"I…I guess so…"
"Well," Kakashi questioned gently, a smile hovering somewhere on his face, "aren't you going to pass those canteens around?"
"Of…of course!" Sakura quickly reached down and picked one of the canteens up off the ground, tossing it to her teacher, before taking the other two and clipping them to her waist. Sasuke wouldn't be able to drink well right now.
Unscrewing the cap to her own canteen, Sakura doused her head in the cool liquid before quickly drinking the rest. She stared disappointedly at the small canteen and resisted the urge to drink some from the other canteen clipped to her waist.
Her throat now feeling better, Sakura turned to Kakashi, who was now taking a sip of his own water.
"Sensei, did you find the meeting place?"
Replying simply, Kakashi motioned with his hands in the direction of the road he had recently emerged from. "Of course, we passed it some time ago."
Too tired to argue, Sakura merely nodded her head. Slowly the duo plus the sleeping Sasuke made their way back to their destination. However, before going too far, Sakura turned to her sensei, and finally asked him,
"Kakashi-sensei, who was that girl?"
Nonchalantly, Kakashi replied with an easy tone, "I've never seen her before in my life. She looked awfully familiar though, didn't she?"
Staring up at the towering building, Sakura found it hard to see just how they had passed it by. Tall and majestic, the structure was of traditional design, namely finely crafted wood and a very elaborate paper wall design. Certainly a fire hazard, but beautiful nonetheless.
Upon arrival, Sakura and Kakashi were taken by a regimen of armed guards to the audience chambers. Sasuke, who had yet to wake from his exhausted slumber, was taken to a place to rest for their visit. Although a bit uneasy, Sakura made no objections, although refusing a period of rest for herself.
Following Sasuke's unconscious departure, the final two members of Team Seven were lead into a small waiting room. Barely the size of a large bedroom, the waiting room was furnished sparsely. The only item that piqued any interest was an, ornately designed, antique table that rose only high enough to meet a standing person's knee. Arranged neatly around it were several cushions, of which the two shinobi took seat on to wait.
Time moved slowly for the jounin and his student. Because of the limited furniture, there was little to look at and they could hear nothing coming from beyond the sliding door that led to the audience chambers. Silence reigned for much of the wait. Sakura had just about fallen asleep in her sitting position; since she was both mentally and physically exhausted herself. Kakashi had simply begun reading another book from his extensive collection, the sound of flipping pages only coming periodically.
Sakura could feel all her control slipping away, staring intently at the beautifully crafted table, but seeing nothing before her. Patterns in the table's wood only served to remind her of all the events that had taken place just recently. Naruto was still missing, abducted from right beneath her nose. This mission was only serving to hinder their search for him, and the only clue they had to his whereabouts was the pack they had recently found in that strange little man's pawnshop. Their quiet blond teammate could be in real trouble, deep in shit most people would hope never to deal with, but for what reason?
Finally, Sakura had come upon a question worth pondering. Why was Naruto abducted? Kakashi was just plain unhelpful and Sasuke had yet to give some insight on that subject…
With that direction of thought, the dark haired gennin's face drifted through the girl's mind. His agony just hours ago seemed unreal, but what was he doing? Kakashi had mentioned adjusting to something in passing, but she still had no idea what was causing him such discomfort.
And I only made it worse, Sakura thought to herself, kicking him in the stomach. What came over me? Just seeing his determination, it…made me…
…angry.
Why?
Why was I upset by Sasuke-kun's struggle? I just thought of Naruto and…
Slowly the girl's head began to nod, falling into the small cave in her chest. Bubble-gum pink hair fell down to shadow her eyes from Kakashi, who sat across form her.
I thought of Naruto and it occurred to me…Sasuke was…
Sakura's thoughts began to swirl, draining away to be replaced by one solid observation. So solid, she felt as if she could reach out and strike it.
The thought disgusted her.
I thought of how…
selfish…
Sasuke was acting…
Finally Sakura's mind collapsed into oblivion, the fitful troubles of exhausted sleep.
Kakashi glanced only briefly at the man who announced their summons, instead focusing his attention on folding and hiding away the book he had been reading during the wait.
Placing one hand on the table on which his female student now lie, the jounin then levered himself up, his legs unfolding slowly, lazily, beneath him, his hand then moving swiftly to grasp the waist of his pants to tighten the belt he wore. He then lifted his hand to adjust the forehead protector that sat lopsidedly over his left eye.
Finally, after what seemed to the other man to be a fine amount of stalling, Kakashi stepped away from the table, moving towards the door with an air of finality. The jounin placed a single hand on the servant, a man that looked to be gaining years and weight beyond that which should occur in a man of servitude, and pushed him through the door ahead of himself, muttering softly in his ear.
"Leave her here. She's tired."
The firm texture in the jounin sensei's voice left no room for argument or protest. The servant merely nodded, at which Kakashi smiled jovially beneath his mask. Despite this, however, the air that existed in the corridor beyond the waiting room tensed dramatically.
Pacing down the dark hallway, the silver-haired jounin followed the other man closely, although lazily, as his single eye dodging left and right as he watched familiar doors pass by on silvery white walls.
Visibility was scarce; the corridor was pitch black, lightened only by the small bubble made by the single candle the man leading carried. Shadows flickered across the walls as the two walked carefully into the blackened abyss, a tunnel that seemed never to end. Their plodding along only served to further distance themselves into oblivion.
Slowly, however, there came change. A tightening of the chest, hairs standing on end, goose bumps; Kakashi felt a foreboding approach from the depths of that oblivion as the air around him grew cold. A darkness unlike what he had traveled through now surrounded the bubble of light. A pressure of great magnitude; he could almost feel it surrounding and pushing in on the light of the candle.
Suddenly, without seeming to emerge from the cold black, a wide door way stood before him, the doors open to allow the spill of darkness in the corridor. Looking left and right, he could see no other path, so the jounin followed the old man to the door.
However, upon stepping inside, the protective light from the candle vanished.
Alarmed, but uneasily cool, Kakashi stood in the straining darkness, his hand hovering over the kunai pouch he had belted on his leg. He forced himself to breath, the cool air around him sending chills down his spine, although even hidden in the darkness he did not allow it to show.
Instead, he waited. Waited for some sign or signal for his meeting with the leader of Weed to begin. Although he could feel the foreboding in the air, he forced it to the back of his mind, instead concentrating on remembering where he had been in the book he had been previously reading. Actually reading the type in the darkness of the room was out of the question, but he could at least do something to calm his mind.
Crossing his legs, Kakashi allowed himself to fall into a cross legged sitting position, his arms clutched before him and his back arched forwards. He then closed his eyes, even though it made no difference in the amount of light admitted to his sight.
Patiently, the jounin waited, his mind occupied with thoughts of his novel hidden, and his ears perked for the slightest sound coming from the darkness.
Because his sense of time was skewed by the absence of light, Kakashi was unable to tell exactly how long he had been waiting before a voice finally made itself known.
"You were late."
The sound ricocheted around the room, impossible to pinpoint. A deepness of the voice gave an ominous and masculine feeling to it, hinting lightly to the speaker's characteristics.
Kakashi continued sitting, his eye closed, as he seemed to ignore or simply miss hearing the bouncing sound. Carefully, however, he did reach up and fix his limp hair to fall out of his face.
His eye remained closed.
After pausing for several strained minutes, the voice continued, still bouncing from the walls surrounding the room.
"Shinobi that are late are worthless. If you cannot be trusted to arrive on time, you cannot be trusted to follow orders quickly and efficiently."
Again, the jounin remained silent, ignoring the cold voice that focused on his shortcomings.
"The Weed has no need to deal with worthless shinobi."
Still, Kakashi remained silent, waiting patiently in the frozen darkness, the timeless abyss.
"It is a surprise, however, that such a powerful ninja of the Leaf is worthless, is it not…
Hatake Kakashi?"
Finally, Kakashi stirred, surprised at being addressed by name. Raising his head, the jounin calmly inquired about the use of his formal name.
"How do you know me?"
The voice replied haughtily, laughing in his tone.
"Who does not know of the famous Copy-nin Kakashi, the thief of over a thousand jutsu? The Hidden Village of Leaf's strongest jutsu master, and among their strongest jounin, you are famous.
…Yet you were still late. You are worthless."
Embracing once again a feeling of uneasiness, Kakashi stood.
"That's what my team says. It seems to be a problem I have developed over the years…"
"Your team is young, I have been told. Are they your students? Was the weed insulted by having been sent a wet-behind-the-ears team of brats? Were we not taken seriously in our request?"
Although the diction the voice used portrayed a sense of irritation, the tone instead continued to portray a sense of amusement, bordering on boredom.
Kakashi, once again, did not answer.
"I suppose it does not matter, the missing people have returned, and no one is the wiser. It seems the help of your team is no longer required.
Instead, I would like to think of them as a hindrance."
With the instinct born from his experience as a jounin, Kakashi swiftly snapped his kunai pouch open, blocking the unseen object that was headed towards him with a metallic clang.
"Attacking a Konoha shinobi. Does the Weed wish to start a war?"
"War does not concern me. What does concern me is your presence here, at this moment!"
Moving once again from instinct, Kakashi felt another object ricochet off of his kunai, followed by a wooden thud as whatever it was buried itself in the wall beside him. Kakashi took a few silent steps to the left.
"Don't I at least deserve to know why I will die here?"
"You interfered."
With that, Kakashi tried to again avoid the flung object, but upon blocking it with his kunai, it recoiled and sliced deeply through the cloth covering his face.
Almost immediately, Kakashi smiled and vanished in a brilliant plume of smoke.
Frozen curses followed the departure of the jounin's shadow clone.
Extending from the entranceway, a single shadow fell upon the sleeping Sakura. A messy haired, masked man entered the room, dragging behind him a large piece of polished wood.
Pausing, the man examined the strange pink hair of the female kunoichi, as well as giving her a quick nudge to check if she was indeed asleep.
Satisfied that she was indeed, the man grunted as he began to raise the polished wooden club above his head.
Asleep was one thing, but positively unconscious was much safer in his occupation.
Flexing his large arms violently, the man brought the club down with the wet thwack of wood connecting with flesh.
Sakura mumbled and rolled over in her sleep, oblivious to her near escape from a painful headache.
Behind the girl, the masked man paled as he stared into the single eye of another masked man. Silver hair lolled to the side of the face of a certain jounin sensei as he grasped the polished wood he had just caught in his right hand.
"I dislike it," Kakashi stated icily, "when people attempt to hit on my students.
You could have at least waited until she woke up."
Not too far away from his sleeping female teammate, another pair of eyes opened to a sense of peril.
Grasping the arm of the man who was currently attempting to strangle him into submission, Sasuke quickly squeezed until he felt a wet snap, resulting in the arm's immediate retraction.
Gently rubbing his slightly bruised throat, the boy took deep breaths as he swung his bare feet off the bed and onto the cold floor beside him. He then took a look in the direction of his assailant and smirked.
"So, you accomplished waking me up. Unfortunately, I've never been much of a morning person. What do you plan to do about it?"
Placing his weight on his two feet, Sasuke remembered the training he was currently enduring. He glanced at his wrist, tugging at the material. Hesitantly, however, he removed his hand, leaving the weight in place.
Instead, he turned his attention to the now cowering man in the corner, inching towards the door while cradling his broken arm.
"Well now, it seems I have yet to get used to these accursed weights," Sasuke announced carefully, as he walked slowly in the direction of the crouching would-be assassin. "I guess you should help me loosen up in favor for waking me early." Standing before the man, Sasuke smiled down him. "Rejoice, not just anybody gets a chance to fight an Uchiha."
Swinging his arm back, the dark haired gennin back handed the man through the wall, the force of his hit amplified by the weight he wore on his wrist.
"Don't you feel lucky?"
A single day's walk outside the capital city of Weed, sitting just beside a wide array of crumbled ruins, a single man stared across an ocean of weeds, riding back and forth in a protesting wooden rocking chair. Wrapped in a bundle of clothes, the obviously overweight figure seemed to be watching something out in the distance.
After a time, the man sighed and levered himself out of the creaking chair. Moving slowly, he limped across an old rickety wooden porch, and down a tiny flight of broken stairs, onto a dusty path, traveled rarely, but recently more often.
Continuing his limp, the man made his way down the path, staring unblinking at the surrounding mix of grass and weed. He took careful note of the many footprints that now covered the barren path.
When he turned, the man was facing a large wooded storm cellar door, concreted into the ground and covered in the overgrown weeds. Taking only a moment, the man stooped to unclasp the lock and to unbar the doors. Then, grasping the cool metal handle, opened the door without so much as a squeak.
Stepping down into the cellar, the light was almost nonexistent. Still, the man continued on with a sure step and a steady, unhesitant speed until he reached the back wall.
There he was greeted by a figure, asleep and balled up, chained to the concrete. Bright blond hair now dirtied after severe contact with the ground, connected to a whiskered face adorned the chained boy.
"It's finally started, boy." The figure spoke for the first time, his voice deep and rich. "The end of this nightmare had finally started…
Naruto."
From the Desk of Tyr'll
Apologies for this late chapter, but I did write it almost two weeks ago, I was simply waiting for my beta to return it...
He is new, so maybe he didn't have time, but it still ticks me off. So now I have two betas, and one of them didn't even get to see it this time. Feel glad that I did update today.
Rejoice!
Or whatever. I'm hoping that this chapter turned out okay. I hadn't planned on some of what happened here until it did happen...
Oh well, with this chapter I hope to reach 100 reviews. I'm so close. But one way or another, you know the drill. I will update when I feel it is time. My schedule when it comes to my writing is very obtuse. Please be patient with me...