Here's the next chapter. I had a bit of trouble ending it, and most of you may notice that, but I didn't want to have it drag on and introduce too many new factors in a single chapter. I'm also in need of a beta, if anyone can spare the time. I'd really appreciate it. Please, enjoy the chapter.
Disclaimer: Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.
Chapter Three
Darkened eyes opened slowly, clearly showing the leaf-green orbs filled with confusion. There were quite a few things racing through Sakura's mind, and above all of them, she found the biggest thing for her was how much her back itched. Not bothering to think about it, she tried to move her right hand to scratch the annoying spot, but found she couldn't move her limb at all. She could neither move that part of her body, nor any other part, and she found this quite disturbing. Of course, in addition to that part of her predicament, she was tied up, but that was the least of her worries. Sakura had been tied up in several of her missions…and some she preferred to keep private. It was the fact that she couldn't utilize even a small amount of chakra. Even trying left her with an unbelievable headache, which led her to an ever mounting temper. Why couldn't she move, damn it!
She moved her eyes around, silently taking in her surroundings. Apparently, she was tied to one of the large tree trunks in Konoha's forests, but approximately where, she wasn't certain. The forest was decidedly silent, which tipped her off about something being very, very wrong. Directly in front of her were two men – one being her father, and the other was…Mizuki-sensei. Now, what was his reason for standing in front of her and talking in hushed tones with her father? Neither of them had seemed to notice her wake up from her unconscious state, and she was going to make sure it stayed that way. Sakura narrowed her eyes slightly, trying to remember what had happened before. Last she could recall, she had just yelled at her father for his attitude towards her fiancée…well, no. Wait, what was he now? Boyfriend? Lover? The time trip seemed to complicate more than a few things for her mentality.
In any case, her memory was beginning to clear, and she vaguely remembered her mother rushing into her room and asking whether she was all right and whether the thing had hurt her. All right, the "thing" attachment on Naruto's being had started to become very annoying, and so Sakura voiced her opinion on the matter. Again. Just like before with her father, however, Sakura found herself being slapped and glared down at, though seconds later, the infuriated expression turned into one of shock and disbelief. In the end, Sakura had kicked her mother out of her room and screamed loudly in frustration. Is this how she had been originally before she had grown to like the blond? Screw her past self, then, because she had been an ungrateful brat and bitch.
So, hours after that event, Sakura had found herself sitting at the table with her parents, her fingers always twitching for her nonexistent kunai. Haruno Michiru had served dinner quietly, giving Sakura large spoonfuls of the soup. Now that she thought back on it, she could remember her parents exchanging glances as she slurped her soup, but hadn't thought anything of it at the time. Well, now, that had been her first major mistake. The second was when she tasted a particular ingredient, but couldn't place the taste with anything else. Now she realized it had been a specialized poison which had a side effect of neutralizing chakra of all things, as well as causing a tranquilizing effect. Well, color her pink and call her Ms. Happy, Sakura figured out her situation. After reviewing all the recent events, she was certain of her sustained poisoning, and now realized she couldn't escape from her situation. That was…utterly fantastic.
So it was after this enlightenment that she found herself extremely grateful when her item of affection came flying down into the scene. Following directly after him came three more people with which her elation continued to rise: Sasuke, Hinata, and Kakashi-sensei. Just seeing them made her feel as if everything would be all right in the end. Sakura was forced to squint her eyes as a gust of wind flew through the area suddenly, cutting through the ropes restraining her. Sakura felt her weight slip as she touched the ground with both feet, before she realized she couldn't hold up her weight on her own. Within seconds, Hinata was at her side and helping her up, Byakugan eyes expressing worry.
Hinata stared down at her friend, feeling they had made it just in time. Placing one of Sakura's arms around her shoulders, Hinata rose slowly to help Sakura adjust to standing again. Hearing Sakura's gasps of pain and exertion, she gritted her teeth and glared across the clearing towards the older Haruno and his friend, Mizuki. Then, she switched her gaze over to Naruto's, nodding slightly. She saw Naruto relax visibly, and couldn't stop the small smile that came to her lips.
Kakashi laid a hand on Naruto and Sasuke's head, frowning slightly at the speed with which the young Hyuuga had used to get to the falling Sakura. Pushing the small curiosity towards the back of his mind for later examination, the silver-haired man looked at Mizuki and Minoru. Keeping his voice calm and collected, Kakashi said, "Amazing how we could meet here. Mind telling me why you had one of my genin tied up and…poisoned, it seems like?"
"Hatake Kakashi," Mizuki said, a bit of surprise and anger in his voice. "So, the brat double-crossed us and went to get you. Just like a demon is expected to do!"
"Well, now I don't know about all of that, but," Kakashi said, rubbing the back of his neck, "he did tell me of some pretty interesting things. First most being you kidnapping my cute, little genin and tying her up to a tree as well as making him get the Scroll of Forbidden Jutsu as a type of ransom demand. Of course, he told me that Haruno-san there was just a byproduct of this entire affair, and was just trying to get his daughter back. Pretty unbelievable stuff, huh?"
Mizuki shifted his cold gaze over to Naruto, who met the man's glare with one of his own. Patting a hand on the top of the scroll, Naruto's eyes widened slightly before he let out a roar of primal rage, causing chakra to suddenly burst intermittently, flowing through the forest clearing. Kakashi tightened his grip on the boy's head, feeling much the same thing, though he knew how to keep it reigned in. Sasuke crossed his arms over his chest, narrowing his eyes that had begun flash from black to red, and back again. Mizuki raised his hands in slight surrender before a smirk made its way across his face as he jumped back and up into the trees. The man spun around, grabbing a large fuuma shuriken and throwing it down through the clearing and straight towards where Kakashi, Naruto, and Sasuke stood. Sasuke growled slightly, shifting forward quickly and jumping into the path of the fuuma shuriken. He took out his own kunai and after just barely allowing them to cling against the shuriken, made it veer in a different direction. Before falling to the ground, Sasuke quickly formed the necessary seals, shouting, "Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu!"
From the Uchiha's mouth erupted burning flames which enlarged into a large fireball that flew straight towards the silver-haired chuunin. Gently placing Sakura down, Hinata also raced through a series of seals. Taking in a deep breath, she raised her hand to her mouth in a cone-like shape and yelled, "Katon: Karyuu Endan!"
Mizuki found himself completely surrounded by two blasts of fire, and took the only escape route he saw: the forest floor. At this point, he saw a flash of black before two Naruto's flew under him and kicked him back up towards the tree branch he was on. Two more Naruto's appeared, jumping off of the initial two and flying up to punch him higher in elevation. Mizuki screamed when he felt the pain of the flames as they began to lick at his skin and burn him. Kakashi merely raised his showing eyebrow, turning slightly upon the arrival of Umino Iruka. Iruka gasped when he saw the chaos that had erupted in the forest, and was none too surprised to see several ANBU appear behind him as well. Mizuki fell to the floor, his entire body more than singed from the firepower used against him. Kakashi held up a hand towards the ANBU behind him, and walked towards the fallen ninja. Mizuki was unconscious, but Kakashi felt it was in his power to kick the man's head slightly. Plus, it just made him feel good.
"Take him away," he said to the ANBU. "This man is to be branded a traitor, as he was the one to blackmailed Naruto into stealing the scroll. Mizuki has instigated this entire situation."
The ANBU moved towards the burnt man when someone began to shout, "Why are you doing this? Mizuki was trying to purge the village of that…thing!"
Everyone, including the now steadily-energizing Sakura, looked at the man who had burst out with such comments. Naruto frowned, eyebrows narrowing in confusion. "But, Haruno-san…he tried to hurt Sakura-chan… Why are you defending him?"
Haruno Minoru glared down at the demon, eyes furious because of Mizuki's failure. He walked towards the blond, and came up to within a foot of the boy. Training his green eyes on the blond's blue ones, Minoru stated, "He was simply trying to protect the village. He didn't kidnap my daughter, you foolish hell spawn, he simply used her as a part of his plan to purge the village of you. I am the one who put my daughter in her current position, but it was for good cause! She would have been known as one of the saviors of the village, but you just had to ruin everything. Typical."
Naruto continued to stare at him in confusion, and looked over to where Sakura was standing. He saw her face of shock, and found his confusion continuing to rise. Clutching the large scroll to his torso, Naruto looked back up at the man, softly pleading, "But, you wouldn't do that kind of thing to your daughter, right…? It was just a mistake…right?"
The boy looked over at the newly arrived Sandaime, and his fatherly figure, Iruka. Shaking his head, Naruto yelled, "You couldn't do such a thing to your daughter! What kind of father would you be?"
"Don't lecture me, you damned Kyuubi brat!" shouted Minoru in return, earning the collective gasp of all present. Naruto felt ice race through his veins, even as he saw several ANBU appear next to the man with their katanas unsheathed. His fingers twitching, Naruto whispered, "No…"
Sasuke and Hinata had both looked up in surprise upon hearing the older Haruno's words, and felt angered over the recent turn of events. Minoru appeared unfazed, even as one katana bore ever closer towards his neck. He felt it needed to be said, since he had already broken the Sandaime's law anyway. "Did you hear me, Kyuubi brat?" Minoru asked, eyes cold and unyielding. "Did you know? Twelve years ago, there was a large beast named the Kyuubi that attacked our village. People are supposed to think it died all that time ago, but it survived, and guess where it is?"
Naruto let go of the scroll, clutching his hands to his ears. "No!" he yelled, eyes wide as his body trembled. It didn't really matter so much to him that he had to hear it again – he saw the damned beast everyday after all. He also knew that Sakura had already heard of the demon, and Sasuke had met the beast on his own during one of their earlier encounters. Naruto had even given Sasuke permission to tell Hinata as well, but…
"Don't say anymore!" Naruto yelled, tears beginning to collect in his eyes. "If you do, you'll be executed… If that happens, Sakura-chan won't see her father again! Don't you care?"
Sakura felt shock race through her body, and a pressure begin to build behind her eyes. Her mouth trembled slightly, and she let go of Hinata as she stood on her own. Her eyes watering, she walked across the open space, saying, "Naruto, don't worry about something like that…"
"I have to!" Naruto shouted, turning around with tears flowing down his cheeks. "Family is family, is family! He's your father! If he goes, what will you have? No, I don't care what he's done to me…but…he's family. He's…your family. You…shouldn't have to be without a father. I don't want you to have to go through that pain…"
Sakura stared at the crying blond, her own tears falling without restraint. "Naruto…"
Naruto grabbed his head again, the tears falling even faster. "I…don't want anyone to lose anyone anymore! Ever again!"
He felt himself begin to hyperventilate, but before Sakura could do anything, Kakashi had appeared behind Naruto. The blond felt the presence and turned around to see Kakashi right before a pain struck the back of his neck. His eyes widened slightly before closing. Within seconds, Naruto saw only darkness.
Sasuke watched Sakura as she paced from one end of the hospital room to another, his eye twitching with each footfall. On the other side of the room, Hinata also forced herself to react to the pink-haired kunoichi's constant pacing. It also slightly irked her that she couldn't be near Sasuke, since they shouldn't have really been involved with one another, having been born of separate clans. She didn't even have to glance at her motherly role model Kurenai to know the woman was impatient with having no idea of what was going on. Perhaps Hinata could just tell from having been around the genjutsu specialist for so long, but she knew Kurenai was simply counting down to keep her patience reigned in. Turning her lavender eyes back to the pacing Sakura, Hinata coughed slightly. The three other conscious occupants looked at her with surprise and Sakura stopped her pacing. Looking up at Kurenai, she turned her eyes away submissively, softly saying, "S-sorry…"
Sakura stared at her, nodded so slightly Hinata almost missed it, and went to go sit next to Naruto's bedside once again. Yuuhi Kurenai let a frown cross her features, but thought no more of the Hyuuga's actions. Her red eyes scanned over the room, and eventually landed on the blond boy laying in the bed, unconscious. Somehow, due to the boy, she had been pulled out of her team's training session and called to wait in the hospital room as everyone waited for Naruto to wake up. She didn't hate the boy, she decided, but he did cause an undue amount of stress on those he was around. She also knew that Naruto hardly deserved all the horrible treatment he had been given…not that she had really helped his situation at all. Thinking back on her actions in concerns to the boy, she realized that while she had never shared a malice for the boy, she had never given him reason to be happy either. Annoyed with herself, she pinched the bridge of her nose.
Then, there was Hinata's crush on the boy…though when she had approached the girl about it after their genin test, Hinata hadn't spoke with the vehemence she used to. With every word Hinata had said, Kurenai felt the words were being forced, which made her wonder just what had changed in the heiress. Now that she had started thinking about the girl, she realized many things had changed, and not just the girl's attitude on the blond. While she had only been under Kurenai's care for perhaps a day, Kurenai saw many things that perhaps she shouldn't have seen…or heard – things such as Hinata cursing softly when the genins' plan to attack her during their test had failed. Another thing was when Hinata had balanced on the side of a tree trunk for longer than thirty seconds before jumping off and flying across the field with perfect grace.
The last thing was what concerned Kurenai the most: when she had reached to punch the girl, Hinata had activated her bloodline without hand seals and had quickly evaded the blow. What astounded Kurenai the most in concern to that action had not been the Byakugan part, but how easily Hinata had turned her evasion into a ploy for the genjutsu mistress to fall in. The Byakugan wielder had spun around quickly and vanished from Kurenai's sight before appearing behind the woman and delivering a quick blow to Kurenai's back. Shifting suddenly, Kurenai could remember the pain she'd received from the attack; even if Hinata had purposely attacked without killer intent and chakra, the attack still hurt…a lot. Spitefully, Kurenai had knocked the girl far away with a kick to the stomach, though it didn't make her feel any better overall.
One more thought plagued Kurenai's mind, and this time, it concerned all four genin present in the room. Since when had the four become so close to one another? She'd heard from some chuunin and jounin about how the four would be crowded together before school hours, talking in hushed tones with one another. She also heard that Hinata had displayed signs of irritation, that Sasuke had been laughing, that Sakura had not been clinging to the Uchiha and instead clung to the Uzumaki, and that Naruto had been displaying an expression of utter seriousness. She had wanted to just write it off immediately and not think anymore of the matter, but something told her not to do so just yet. But, what if those people had only been trying to mess with her mind? Ah, she couldn't figure it out!
Hinata looked at her teacher with some concern, unsure of what to do when she felt the woman's chakra had begun to rise before falling, and repeating the same procedure again. She decided the best thing to do was move away from the woman and go sit with her friends. Sasuke let loose a small grin before covering it up with a face of indifference. Hinata sat down next to the raven-haired boy with a soft smile and then looked at the blond who had still not awoken. Sakura rose up from the other side of Naruto and went to sit beside Hinata, smiling at the pale-eyes girl.
"Hey, Hinata," she whispered softly, leaf-green eyes warm. "How are you doing?"
"I'm fine," Hinata whispered back, "but what about you?"
"It wasn't a long-lasting poison, and my body neutralized it naturally," Sakura said, her smile still on her face. "I'll just have to make sure to find a way to eject poisons from my body before they take toll."
Sasuke and Hinata looked at one another before glaring at the pink-haired girl. Sakura stared at them with surprise, and a frown replaced her smile slowly. "What…?"
The Uchiha rubbed his forehead in annoyance before stating, "We weren't talking about the poison. We know how proficient you are in that area. We were referring to your mental state concerning your father."
"Oh…well, that's…"
Sakura turned her gaze away from the other two and set it on the unconscious individual in the bed. "That," she continued hesitantly as she closed her eyes, "doesn't matter right now. I don't care that he did that to me. Hell, I don't even care that he worked with that bastard Mizuki – not as much anyway. What infuriates me the most is that he coerced Naruto into stealing that scroll and making him think my life was on the line! And, he used the pretense of being a family member that couldn't save his daughter because of another party. That…using that kind of thing against someone like Naruto, who doesn't have a family… That pisses me off more than anything!"
She stopped her ranting when the now composed Kurenai came walking across the room. The woman sat on the other side of the bed where Sakura had originally been. Not knowing what to say with the teacher is such close proximity, the three were silent and all four stared over at the blond. Sakura narrowed her eyes slightly. He had only been hit lightly – that shouldn't have been near enough to knock him close to a comatose state. She felt, rather than saw, Hinata shift slightly and turned her gaze to the Hyuuga. Hinata frowned as she watched Naruto's fingers twitch slightly, and wondered what was going on when the blond jumped up suddenly, screaming.
All four in the room jumped back from their chairs, having been caught off guard by the screams. Naruto rose from the bed where he had laid and jumped across the room, hands reaching for a kunai that didn't exist. Kurenai gestured for the three genin to stay still as she walked across the room towards the confused and delirious blond. She reached a hand out towards the blond and he glanced at it, nose twitching. Frowning, Kurenai stared into his eyes and saw a flicker of red before it went back to blue, and then back again. Gasping slightly, she turned around quickly when the door slid open to reveal several nurses and medic-nins coming in to investigate. This turned out to be a mistake on her part, for as soon as she turned away, Naruto screamed again and bit down on her hand. Turning her eyes back onto the blond, Kurenai gasped out in pain and forced Naruto to the ground.
As soon as he had been slammed to the ground, Naruto had tried to get up again, but felt a heavy pressure weighing him down. Struggling hard against his new invisible binds, he glared up at the genjutsu mistress who was racing through seals before stopping on one and saying, "Magen: Ori no Kyomu!"
She sighed when the boy visibly calmed, and looked at her hand. While his teeth hadn't cut through the skin, it still hurt quite a bit. The medic-nins present took her by the arms and led her outside the room for analysis. The nurses stared down at the now calm Naruto with apprehension, and Sakura felt irritation hit her hard. "Leave!" she said, walking towards the nurses. "You're no use to him if all you're going to do is stare. So just leave!"
The nurses glared at her, and Sakura glared icily back. Minutes passed as the tension between the women grew and then the nurses finally broke the contact. They bowed and went to the door, though not without one last glance at the unmoving blond. As soon as the nurses had left, Naruto jumped up and wiped himself off with an indifferent expression. Sakura frowned at him and Naruto looked at her with dull eyes. The two stared at one another before Sakura felt her anger take a hold and she slammed a fist into Naruto's face. "You idiot! What was with those theatrics!"
"I just finished talking to the Kyuubi," said Naruto softly, running a hand though his hair. "It didn't go as well as I would have liked, and he sent me some of his chakra with the purpose of trying to take over me."
"I thought he got over his hatred with you and was indifferent now," said Sasuke in as soft a tone as he walked up to the two with Hinata. Naruto frowned, rubbing his face gently. "That Kyuubi is gone, and now I'm stuck with the one I'd had originally, before he changed his opinion of me. I didn't know that, and walked up to him while yelling my head off about him depriving me of his chakra for no reason. He, eh, decided to give me what I wanted. As for the theatrics…"
Naruto looked at the ceiling, and shrugged. "I felt the need to get away, and when Kurenai came near, I wanted to bite her. I'm not sure why. She hit me with that genjutsu, and I'm grateful, but it felt good biting her."
Sasuke stared at him with disgust. "That sounds wrong in so many way."
Sakura glared at Naruto, saying, "All right, so he came out a bit and you had to force him back in. You just happened to take it out on Kurenai, who was there. Lucky her."
"Yep, yep. Actually, he wanted to kill her, and kept telling me to do so. I didn't even want to bite her. I'd rather bite someone else," he said, leering at Sakura, who ignored him. A fist came flying again at his face and he rubbed his nose as he whined. Sakura sighed, saying, "Well, now we know what happened. As nice as that is, now we have even more problems. Couldn't you have bit someone else? Like…Sasuke?"
"Hey!"
Naruto laughed, his eyes lighting up. "Hell no, 'cause then Hinata would get on my case. And she can screw with my chakra and my organs. Nah, think I'll stay away from pretty boy."
Sakura grinned at Naruto, saying, "So, what now? What are we going to say when she comes back, and when we're with Kakashi-sensei and the Sandaime?"
"We have some bullshitting to do," said Sasuke, his face contemplative. "Things would have been so much easier if Mizuki hadn't existed."
"Or if I hadn't been poisoned," muttered Sakura. "Tsunade-shishou would have beat me black and blue if she'd found out that I'd been taken down so easily. Then she would have forced the damn poison down my throat until my body formed a natural immunity to it. Then she would have beat me down again."
Sasuke pointed his finger at her, laughing. "That's great! My master wouldn't touch me. Guess he knew I could kill him!"
"How did you kill Orochimaru anyway?" inquired Naruto, eyebrows raised. "What'd you do?"
The last Uchiha grinned evilly at the blond, chuckling. "He tried to take over my body and I wiped him away, like one would with a juice puddle on a counter. My brain didn't need his foul crap in it."
Hinata chuckled slightly and they all turned around when the hospital room door slid open and Kurenai came back in. Naruto stared back at her and bowed his head, silently apologizing for his earlier actions. The older woman graced him with a small smile and Naruto grinned. Hinata noticed Kurenai's hand and she said, "Kurenai-sensei?"
Kurenai glanced at her student before looking at her own hand with a frown. It was completely covered with white tape, and wrapped around so much it looked like she a had a white appendage coming out of her wrist. "They wouldn't believe me when I said it was fine, and decided to wrap it up completely with sterile bandages. They also gave me a few shots to ward against rabies, and miscellaneous other diseases."
Hinata stared at her, completely horrified, while Naruto just rubbed his pinky in his ear. He stopped however, when Kurenai said, "But, I'm glad that you got Kyuubi under control however, Naruto. Congratulations. At least I wasn't bitten too hard – for that, I am grateful."
The four stared at Kurenai with fear and apprehension, and she smiled slightly while making a few hand seals. The four felt chakra flow over them, and watched as the door was lined with chakra, barring any other person's entry. Before they knew it, the room around them disappeared and was replaced with a grassy field, and a slight wind. "Now," Kurenai said, frowning down at the genin. "I knew something was going on with you four, and now I have some proof. So, we're going to sit down and talk about it. All right?"
Naruto stared at her, completely aghast. Their secret was already known? Well, what the hell!
Kurenai glared at him with her red eyes, and he sat down in the "grass," unsure of what else to do. The other three genin sat down as well, each shifting uncomfortably. Sasuke was frowning and staring at the ground, while Hinata couldn't even bring her gaze up due to guilt. Sakura figured there could be a way to throw Kurenai off their trail when the red-eyed beauty said, "So, you two have been students under two of the famous sannin. Quite an amazing feat, considering you're twelve."
Sasuke and Sakura froze completely, and so Kurenai continued with, "And since they've been away from the village for the past…oh, ten or so years, I'm surprised you guys have met them. Or know of their tendencies. Amazing feat once again, since you're twelve. But then again, I'm sure many things could happen in twelve years, but I don't think Orochimaru's dead yet. So forgive me if I can't understand what you four are going on about."
Naruto grinned shakily, saying, "Well, yeah…amazing huh? Aren't we awesome?"
Kurenai smiled at the blond, tilting her head slightly. "Well, yes, you guys are pretty amazing. I'm also curious what you meant by having a different Kyuubi than originally, Naruto."
The blond froze as well, and Kurenai shifted her gaze to the apprehensive Hinata. "And as for you, I've been wondering about some things for a while. How did you progress your Byakugan so much, Hinata? And when did you learn tree walking, and to use such strategic evasion tactics as you did during our little test? Also, since when have you and Sasuke been together, like Naruto suggested? I thought you were smitten on the blond, really."
Hinata felt her heart quicken as her face paled, and she turned away quickly. Kurenai frowned at her student and turned to level her gaze on the others. "We've some talking to do, and I guarantee to you that we will. But for now, we don't have any more time to devote to being together on our own anymore. Please ready yourself for the Hokage," she said as the genjutsu disappeared and the chakra lining the door vanished. The four stared up at her, each with wide eyes, and she sighed, softly whispering, "I will tell him nothing of this, if you four will entrust me with your secret at a later date."
Kurenai bowed deeply when the door opened and the elderly man with the title of Hokage came inside. Each feeling slightly ill, the four genin bowed deeply as well, before all five rose as one. Flanked by two ANBU, the Hokage nodded at Kurenai and smiled gently at the four genin, who all managed a small smile in return. Gesturing for the five shinobi to stand down from attention, the Hokage took a few puffs from his pipe, and white smoke flew from his mouth as he sighed. He moved to sit on one of the available chairs and looked at his loyal ninja, saying,
"You have all been called due to the happenings of last night. As you well know, last night, Naruto took possession of the Scroll of Forbidden Jutsu. For what reasons, I am not certain, though I'm hoping to be able to find out those details during this session."
Kurenai glanced down and saw Naruto's grim and slightly guilty face, and said, "Hokage-sama, as I understand it, this solely concerns the people directly associated with last night's incident. However, I must ask you what my being here helps to prove."
"Ah, yes, of course, Kurenai," said the old man gently, "as soon as Kakashi happens to arrive, I will inform you of where you stand in all of this."
"Could be a while," muttered one of the attendants of the room, though Kurenai was unsure as to who it was, exactly. She forced down a sigh that tried to arise and softly asked, "As I'm certain Kakashi is aware of what took place last night, would it be too much trouble to fill me in as well?"
Readying a reply for the woman, Sandaime Sarutobi stopped when a bit of wind accelerated around the area and the silver-haired jounin appeared, hands in his pockets. His showing eye widened a bit upon seeing Kurenai, but he shrugged it off quickly and bowed to the Sandaime, taking his hands out of his pockets in the process. "Hokage-sama," Kakashi said in a formal tone, "I've arrived. If you could start the debriefing…?"
"Suppose I could call it that, yes," said Sarutobi, a shadow of a smile on his face. "Kurenai," he called, causing the aforementioned woman to quickly stand at attention, "I will now tell you what this incident has to do with you. It wasn't just Kakashi's team that was discovered at the scene, but also your student, Hyuuga Hinata. As such, this concerns you just as much."
I figured as much, thought the woman, nodding slightly. "Understood, Hokage-sama. Then please, continue."
"Last night, a messenger came to me foretelling of a horrible thing that had happened at the storage section of the tower. Upon arrival to this area, I was alarmed to find my men unconscious in front of the main storage area in the Hokage Tower. Upon discovery, I found seals broken on the wide-open doors, and chaos in the inner sanctum. Many different scrolls were left in an anarchic state, and the ANBU safeguarding the most powerful one were left in pathetic positions. Somehow, they had been knocked unconscious due to some unknown jutsu, though I dare not try to figure out what."
At this point, the older man slid his gaze over to the young blond, who pointedly ignored him. Frowning softly, Sarutobi sighed and continued with, "I found the scroll stolen, and immediately called upon able bodies to search and find for the suspect. By this point, my men had awoken from their unconscious states and informed me of the instigator. Surprised as I was before, this further developed my shocked feelings. Though I was happy a foreigner had not taken the scroll by some off chance, I was quite saddened to discover that one of my own genin had taken the initiative to do such a horrible thing."
With each word, Naruto felt more and more guilt fall on his shoulders, and he was soon having trouble standing up straight. Sakura passed him a worried gaze, but Naruto ignored as the old man continued by saying,
"I launched my force of chuunins and jounins in hopes of finding this genin, yet he appeared to have evaded each one, save for his jounin instructor. Shortly after Kakashi found Naruto and they went to do battle with Mizuki, I arrived at the scene. It was at this time with which the law I made was unabashedly broken, and Naruto was made aware of the prisoner he confined within himself. From that point on, Haruno Minoru was considered a traitor to the village…but alas, that is the reason I have called all of you here today. Though he has broken such a rule, he is guaranteed a trial by law. Because of this, I'm asking the victim, Naruto, to be present at the time of the trial."
Despite herself, Sakura found tears running down her cheeks, but she knew her father had been guilty in his crime. She was ashamed to have called him her father, and to have unknowingly followed in his footsteps the first time around. Feeling hands lightly touch her shoulders, she smiled softly and turned to hug who she thought to be the blond bundle of energy, but hesitated upon seeing Hinata's warm eyes. Understanding the rosette's trail of thought, Hinata hugged Sakura close, and the latter was forced to close her eyes so more tears wouldn't fall. Clinging to the warmth she felt coming from the dark-blue-haired girl, Sakura buried her head in Hinata's shoulder and stayed there, her shoulders trembling.
Hinata took in a deep breath, and turned her gaze to the blond boy who seemed to be wilting with the news the Sandaime had brought. His normally bright and happy, cornflower-blue eyes were dull with pain and sadness, and his entire frame seemed to be drooping down. She saw Sasuke walk over to the blond and try to say something to him, but Naruto pushed Sasuke away, his eyes sparking with anger in addition to the earlier pain and sadness. Seeing her – what was he now? Boyfriend? Lover? Still a fiancée? – confidante take a stubborn stance, Hinata knew the Uchiha was now trying to quietly persuade the blond into taking the best turn of action, but Naruto was having none of that. Naruto glared at the raven-haired boy and whispered something harshly that only the latter could hear, and stalked off toward the Hokage.
The Hyuuga heiress noticed Sasuke's shoulders tighten slightly, and felt herself tense as well. That absolutely did not bode well for their situation. Feeling more weight fall onto her, Hinata looked at the rosette, surprised. Sakura had fallen asleep as soon as her energy had left her, and now Hinata was the one fully supporting the girl. Grunting slightly, Hinata shifted back slowly towards her teacher, who finally took notice of the heiress's trouble. Assisting Hinata, Kurenai picked up the sleeping girl and laid her down on one of the hospital beds in the room. As soon as her burden had been lifted away, Hinata walked up to Sasuke and looked at him, frowning. His coal-black eyes shifted toward her flittingly before moving back away. No, Hinata thought, looking at the blond who was talking hurriedly with the Sandaime. Things do not bode well at all.
Across the room, Naruto forced his words out quickly, not pausing. Old man Sarutobi looked down at the vessel, surprise clearly present across his face. Though he appeared to want to argue with the blond, Naruto objected vehemently, eyes narrowed and hands flying as he explained his reasons more. The ANBU present behind the Hokage widened their eyes behind their masks, surprised at the boy's desires. Inserting the tip of his pipe into his mouth, Sarutobi inhaled the contents, sighing softly afterwards.
"You do know what this means, don't you, Naruto?"
"I know," Naruto said, frowning as he looked at the floor. "But, I don't care. That's what I want, and I would never have it any other way."
"What if she does not desire it?"
"She… I don't know, sir," said the vessel dejectedly. "However, this is my decision. I cannot let her influence me in any way."
"Very well, very well," the Hokage responded, looking over at the now reading Kakashi. "This meeting is adjourned, and while I do question why the Hyuuga was present, and what will happen to the mental structure of your team, I expect Team Seven present in the Assignment Room first thing in the morning."
Kakashi put away his reading material and bowed. "As you have commanded, Hokage-sama."
The silver-haired man watched as the Sandaime and the two ANBU walked out of the hospital room, and sighed to himself. Looking down at the sullen blond and then over at the tensed Uchiha and sleeping Haruno, Kakashi found himself being too old for such drama. Clearing his throat and capturing the attention of both the students and Kurenai, he said, "All right then – I'm off. I'm sure you'll see to it that Sakura is informed of our meeting in the Assignment Room at 0800 hours. Don't let yourself be so foolish as to think I'll allow you to slack off because of what happened last night, either. So, see you."
Kurenai glared at the space where Kakashi had been, finding the man to have been unsupportive of his team, as well as overly callous. Turning to the children, she cleared her throat, but only gained Hinata's attention. Naruto glared at the floor, muttering, "I need to go do some errands," as he left via the window. Sasuke stuck his hands in his pockets and left through the door, saying nothing in the end. Hinata looked up at her with a small frown, and Kurenai sighed, feeling her authority meant nothing in that specific instance. Hinata offered her a tentative smile as she said, "I'll watch over Sakura, Kurenai-sensei. I think she'll need a friend beside her once she wakes up."
"All right, Hinata. Don't forget, we also need to show up to the Assignment Room for our mission as well."
"Understood," said the girl with another smile. Kurenai felt her tension ease a bit, but a thought immediately presented itself within her mind. "Remember," the woman said softly, "I want that truth soon."
Though the Hyuuga paled slightly, she still nodded. Kurenai gave her a warm smile and looked out the window, her red eyes narrowed. "I'll see you tomorrow, Hinata," Kurenai said distractedly, walking towards the open window. Looking out, she frowned as she realized she couldn't detect the whiskered menace, and narrowed her eyes more. Hopping up onto the window sill, the genjutsu specialist jumped out into the air, focusing her senses as she went through hand seals. Locating a small power surge heading toward the east portion of the city, Kurenai let a small grin slip across her face.
Found him.
Hinata watched her teacher move out from the window and disappear and sighed. She glanced at the, to her great surprise, now fully awakened rosette laying on the bed, and blinked a few times. "Sakura-chan?"
Sakura sat up from the bed, and ran a hand through her hair, pulling off her hitai-ate in the process. Looking down at the glinting metal bearing the Konohagakure's symbol, her face contorted into an expression of wistfulness. "You know," she said, gaining the Hyuuga's attention again, "when I first got this hitai-ate, I felt that I was a woman."
She paused as Hinata climbed onto the bed next to her, and smiled softly at her longtime friend. "I felt that I was an accomplished adult who could finally impact the world in my own way. I thought I knew everything, and thought that with the right amount of confidence, I could get everything. But, you know, I knew nothing. I was nothing but a self-centered, little brat who had a large amount of intelligence, but couldn't apply it to anything. I thought things had changed, but…apparently, I'm still a little kid."
She didn't want to go into too many details after Kurenai found out they were hiding such a huge secret, but Sakura hoped Hinata could still catch her meaning despite that. She wasn't let down when Hinata's eyes flashed quickly, and the Hyuuga said, "Perhaps not so much anymore, Sakura-chan. Realizing where you're at fault is half the difficulty of finding your place in the world. So, to think of it in another way, you are halfway to adulthood. Being able to look into your past, whether it be a day or a few years, and understand you carried a lot of flaws is a part of growing up."
Grinning slightly, Sakura said, "How do you know so much, Hinata-chan?"
Hinata pushed back her shoulders and lifted her chin up in pride. "Well, I'm a Hyuuga after all. What did you expect?"
Sakura laughed at those words, saying, "You're a dork, that's what you are. The biggest one since the Konoha Nine began."
"Just don't tell my father," came the sardonic remark.
The two girls burst out into laughter, and Sakura felt better than she had in years.
Naruto fell down on a tree branch, a frown crossing his face as he felt a presence appear in the tree behind him. His eyes shifted towards his left, and he slid his hands into his pockets. When the figure hit the tree branch directly behind him, Naruto said, "While I'm sure you have your reasons, I would rather be alone right now, Kurenai-sensei."
The genjutsu mistress chuckled a bit, and leaned against the large tree trunk of the branch she was standing on. Focusing her red eyes on the blond's back, she said, "That was a crazy thing you did, Naruto."
"I don't know what you mean," he said evasively, jumping off the branch and landing on the forest floor. Kurenai jumped down after him, and placed her hands on her hips as she continued with, "You're either a very foolish, or a very brave, young man, and I'm not so sure I would have been able to do such a thing, had I been in your shoes."
"It's what she deserves."
"And what about you?"
Naruto stiffened a bit, and to her surprise, a smirk came across his face. "Well, she'll probably be okay with it in the end, and I won't have to deal with the man any longer. So, it's a fair trade all around. Freedom for happiness. It works, I think."
Kurenai sighed a bit, but realized she wouldn't be able to squeeze anything more out of the boy. "All right then, if you insist."
Turning around, Naruto looked up at her with a serious expression. "I realize we promised to tell you that secret, but give us some time. After some missions and such, we'll tell you, and trust me, you won't want to believe all of what you hear. But only after you hear our secret will my demand make sense to you."
"Oh?" she questioned, tilting her head to the side. "And what demand would that be?"
"Teach me genjutsu."
Soon, days turned into weeks as Team Seven got back into the habit of things. In fact, the team had just completed their "Find Tora" mission, and Naruto was once again reminded of how much he hated that damnable cat. He glared at the struggling cat in his arms as the team walked to the Assignment Room, and said, "You know, I wonder if Cat Ramen tastes good. I've heard they eat cats in some countries. You know, I've even heard of this mythical country called China where they eat cats."
"Tease the cat anymore, and he may decide to use something else as a scratching post," said Sasuke in a bored tone as he walked alongside the blond. "And that something probably won't grow back. Even for you."
Sakura offered no comments from where she walked beside Kakashi, though she glanced at Naruto every so often. The latter struggled to keep the furious cat in his arms as he walked, his blue eyes narrowing in annoyance. He slammed his fist down onto the cat's head, which only led to it reaching up and scratching his face multiple times. Sasuke chuckled softly, and Naruto glared at him. "You think this is funny?" he asked as they walked into the Assignment Room.
"I think it's pretty hilarious, idiot," said Sasuke with a smirk. "Tora clearly adores you."
"Clearly…"
As soon as they walked in, the Feudal Lord's wife, Madame Shijimi, grabbed the cat out of Naruto's arms and began to squeeze it to death. Naruto glared at the cat with a demonic grin on his face. "And again," he whispered to Sasuke, "I think the cat damn well deserves what he gets. At any rate, I'm glad the mission's over."
"Now then," said the Sandaime, catching Team Seven's attention. "Your next mission is…"
"Going to be something better than whatever crap you had planned for us originally!" shouted Naruto, frowning deeply. "I'm not doing those menial chores anymore! That's child's play, and we aren't here to play kiddy games!"
Iruka stood up, about to call Naruto out on his words, but Naruto turned his glare to the chuunin. "I realize we are still novices, but I don't give a shit! Experience can't be gained by such little activities like the ones we've been doing! Team Ten's an assassination type team and Team Eight's a reconnaissance type team, but we're a combat type team! Hokage-sama, Iruka-sensei, we can't just keep doing this little chores and pretending that we're becoming more advanced."
Sasuke chuckled. At least he said it better this time around.
Sakura felt a small smile come across her lips, but she couldn't do any more than that. Kakashi found himself being slightly impressed with Naruto's explanation, but also found himself growing increasingly annoyed with the blond as well. "Idiot," he said, slamming his fist down into the boy's head. "What makes you think you have the right to demand such a thing from the Hokage?"
Sakura frowned softly at Naruto, whose expression looked to have developed a new meaning for annoyance. Hesitating a bit, she said softly, "Hokage-sama, with all due respect, I must agree with Naruto."
Sasuke looked at her, an eyebrow raised. Well, this is new.
Continuing on, the rosette said, "Though we are indeed new at the shinobi business, we are not at all new to the knowledge of how ninja missions are coordinated with the shinobi of a village. I, too, feel we won't gain any further experience doing D-Rank missions, and feel a C-Rank mission would be to our best advantage. We can gain more combat-style experience, and prove our worth. So, I ask that you allow us this one chance to complete a more credible mission."
The Uchiha scowled slightly, feeling as if he weren't contributing to his teams desires, which, of course, he wasn't. Rolling his left shoulder a bit, Sasuke said clearly, "If we succeed, then obviously we have what it takes to complete such a mission. If we fail, then you can keep assigning us D-Rank mission, and we'll take them without any whining on any one person's part. Even the blond idiot over there."
Naruto glared at him, and Sasuke smirked back. Sarutobi rubbed his short, white beard in contemplation. Even including Naruto's fierce case, Team Seven presented him with credible details as to why they were fit for an mission befitting those with higher experience backgrounds. Seeing no reason to refute their case, he glanced first at the jounin to his right, before glancing at Iruka to his left, who nodded slightly. Setting down the D-Rank scroll gently, the Sandaime gingerly picked up the C-Rank scroll and glanced at it, frowning.
"Very well," he said thoughtfully, glancing up at the team. Kakashi's eye widened slightly – he couldn't believe his unit would be participating in a C-Rank mission with so little experience. Had the Sandaime really bought their story? What was he thinking? Kakashi bowed his head slightly, staying silent though his thoughts were running wildly.
"I have a mission available for your team, Kakashi. You will be escorting a certain person," the older man said, his face not revealing any emotions. Kakashi sighed softly, feeling a bit better. If it were an escort mission, there wouldn't be too much trouble for his team to get into. Naruto gave the Hokage a calculating glance, unsure of how he should act. Deciding to be an idiot like he used to be, he exclaimed, "What, really? Who are we escorting? They must be pretty big! Maybe a princess, or a feudal lord? Come on, tell us already!"
The Sandaime let loose a few chuckles, glad to see Naruto feeling in better spirits already. "Don't be too hasty, Naruto. I'll introduce him to you now," he said, waving a hand towards the door. In a louder voice, he continued: "You may enter the room now."
All three genins' eyebrows twitched in annoyance, but they turned to look at the door anyway. Naruto felt his mood plummet even more when the door was pushed open, and they were left staring at an old, slightly muscular, man. Tazuna, Naruto thought to himself, his frown threatening to turn into a scowl. The bridge builder. If he threatens to call me a short brat again, I'm going to really punch his lights out this time around. I don't care how buddy-buddy we become later on.
Tazuna looked into the room, and his eyes narrowed slightly as he saw the ninja who were meant to accompany him. "What?" he said loudly. "They're all kids!"
Taking a gulp from his sake bottle, he frowned at the blond shrimp in the middle, saying, "Hey…"
Naruto gritted his teeth and leveled his gaze upon the bridge builder. "If you call me a 'small kid with an idiotic face,' then I will make sure to kick your ass. Doesn't matter whether you're our client or not – show some respect!"
Kakashi slammed his fist into the blond's head again, more than slightly annoyed. "The same can be said for you," he murmured softly. Then, in a lower tone, he muttered, "Man, but you're hard to deal with today."
Naruto glared at the bridge builder, his blue eyes bright with anger. Sasuke nudged him slightly, frowning at the blond. Leaning down close to the blond's right ear, he whispered, "What's your deal today? You've been pretty irrational for a while. Anything to do with Sakura?"
"None of your business," Naruto growled, waving the raven-haired boy away. Sasuke sighed softly and began to glare at their client. "And? Your name and profession. And reason for escort."
Tazuna was slightly miffed at the blond's antics, but decided to just ignore it. "I'm the bridge building expert Tazuna. Once back in my country, you ninja will protect me with your lives while I complete my bridge."
"Fantastic," sneered Sasuke. "We'll get back to you tomorrow, when we leave. Let's go, Naruto, Sakura."
Kakashi stared at his retreating students in disgust, unsure of what the brought on the change in attitude. He had a feeling it laid with Naruto, due to the emotional toll of being told what he was, but that had been weeks ago! He was still upset at being told he held the Kyuubi? Maybe Kakashi shouldn't have passed the three kids after all.
Turning to Tazuna, he bowed somewhat, softly saying, "I apologize for my students. We had a cataclysmic event take place not too long ago, and it seems they're still a bit under the weather. Many apologies, Tazuna-san."
The old man shrugged as he drank down more of his sake. "They work well with one another, or at least the two boys do. If they can work together to keep me safe, then let them be nasty, little brats. My life is on the line, and you better make sure nothing happens to me. Now," he continued, raising his voice slightly, "where can I get some rest for tonight? It was a long way here, and this old man needs his beauty sleep!"
Kakashi bowed again, and turned to guide him toward the table where the Hokage was situated.
"Ah, that just, pisses, me, off! Damn, I couldn't stand that guy the first time we met him!" yelled Naruto from his place on top of the Hokage Monument. He began to pace to and fro in front of a frustrated Sasuke and uncertain Sakura. Grimacing slightly, Sakura looked away from the raging blond, which he noticed offhand, though made no mention to. Sasuke sighed and shook his head, saying, "What's with you anyway? I don't understand your problem."
Naruto stopped pacing and directed a very pointed look at Sakura before looking back at Sasuke quickly. Cocking one eyebrow up in surprise, Sasuke shook his again, but said nothing further on the matter. "Oh," he said, looking up at the sky due to his sudden revelation. "Hinata said that Kurenai is starting to become a 'bit' impatient. We should probably make due to our promise, unless we've got some way to get out of this."
Looking down at Sakura who paid him no attention, Sasuke shrugged and looked at Naruto pleadingly. Scratching his blond head, the whiskered boy growled softly. "Looks like we don't have a choice. We've some time before we have to buckled down for the night. I say we hunt her down now and tell her. 'Sides, I'm more than ready to get this crap off my chest."
"Hope we don't regret is all," muttered Sasuke. "Kurenai is trustworthy, yeah, but, how trustworthy?"
"She hasn't told the Hokage yet," supplied a soft, feminine voice. The two boys glanced down at the frowning Sakura, whose eyes were still averted. "It's been weeks. If she's not going to take her case to the Hokage with what she's got, I would say we've got a pretty good shot at her being a trustworthy person, who may be for our cause."
"Lots to lose, though," argued Sasuke, but slide his hands in his pockets. "Fun stuff. Let's go inform the genjutsu queen then. Sakura, think you can scout her out?"
"I'll try," the rosette said, standing up and clapping her hands together for the Ram seal. Concentrating deeply, her eyes closed as her chakra flowed away from her body and towards the village. Naruto turned away from her and looked over the Hokage Tower, his face bearing an expression of boredom. Sakura's eyebrows narrowed slightly, and her eyes flashed open as the chakra quickly dispersed. "Found her," she said, letting her arms fall to her sides as she turned to look at Sasuke. "She's over on Training Ground Eight with Hinata-chan, Kiba, and Shino."
"Great, so now we have to get rid of dog-boy and that Shino kid." Naruto let his head fall back and he looked up at the sky, thinking of a maneuver that would rid them of the extra ears. He noticed Sakura's hands begin to run through a sequence of hand seals, before she settled on the Horse seal, and a beam of blue chakra began to blaze where her index fingers met. The chakra began to change to green, then yellow, orange, red, pink, fuchsia, and finally purple. The two boys watched her in confusion as a bead of sweat made its way down her left temple, before sliding down and her cheek and onto her red one-piece dress. The chakra began to shimmer slightly, and a near invisible path of light beamed down in the direction of the training grounds.
Gasping, Sakura fell down onto the hard rock, where Sasuke assisted her. Naruto looked on, but said nothing, and turned his gaze away when Sakura glanced up at him. Feeling the same emotion she'd been feeling for weeks tease her in the back of her mind, she shook her head hard, and rose up slowly. Dusting herself off, and smiling at Sasuke for his help, she said, "Hinata is now aware of our need for privacy. By the time we arrive, she should have found an excuse to relieve her and Kurenai-sensei of the boys."
Sasuke made a low whistle, and Naruto felt somewhat inclined to agree. "What was that technique," asked Sasuke, almost wishing he'd activated his Sharingan. "Never seen it before."
Sakura glanced at him, and nodded her head in the direction of the training grounds. Within seconds, she vanished from her spot on the Sandaime's monumental head, and Naruto and Sasuke were directly behind her as she explained, "It was a technique Shikamaru and I developed shortly after the fall of the Iwagakure. This was before Tsunade-shishou vanished suddenly when Akatsuki launched their violent attack on Konoha."
She paused when she made an odd landing on the roof of one building, but continued as soon as she had steadied her pace again: "Shikamaru and I felt there was a need for a type of correspondence that couldn't be read by an enemy. Of course, we never developed it enough to display any words – all we could maintain was a beam of light. And, even then, a person has to know what they're seeing isn't just the sun's rays shining down on them. Because a lot of shinobi from Konoha had to leave to aid the Sunagakure, we didn't have a chance to really use this technique, however. No one had enough chakra for that, and by that time, it was just easier to use a carrier falcon."
The three genin jumped off of one house and started to run across the ground quickly. Continuing, Sakura said, "I remember Shikamaru had made a breakthrough one evening, but when Temari was taken as a hostage, I couldn't very well have kept him there."
"That was when…"
Surprised that Naruto had spoken up, though it had only been three words, it encouraged Sakura to continue by saying, "Yes… That was when Temari of the Sunagakure fell to that Tobi guy. So, I'm pretty glad that we did manage to come to the past, since I know he was still alive. If Pein hadn't killed us off, he surely would have."
Sasuke ran in pace with the pink-haired girl as they neared the training grounds. "Did you ever name the technique?"
"No," she said softly. "I didn't feel I had the right, as it wasn't entirely me who made the technique. I won't name it unless he tells me to do so, and…"
She was saved from having to finish her sentence as they broke into the lush grass of the training grounds and passed an exuberant Kiba. Kiba noticed them rush off, and frowned at his teammate Shino before looking back at the three. Naruto looked back at him and waved as he continued running. Still frowning, he picked up Akamaru and began to continue walking with Shino.
Sasuke burst into the clearing first, and since they were ridding themselves of all pretenses with Yuuhi Kurenai, tackled an unsuspecting Hyuuga to the ground. Naruto stopped as soon as he was in range and burst out laughing at the expression on Hinata's face. Kurenai chuckled a bit when she saw her student go flying backwards when the Uchiha tackled her. They had slid across the ground, and Sasuke laughed at Hinata's face as well before standing up, and helping her as well. Sakura gave a half-smile at her friend's expense, though she immediately became serious as soon as she saw Kurenai. Turning to the woman, she narrowed her leaf-green eyes and placed a glare on the woman. Kurenai was soon frowning down at the genin, and raised an eyebrow. "Yes?"
"We're ready."
"Ah," said Kurenai, uncertain of what else to say. "I'm sure you'd rather have a private place to discuss…whatever it is we're about to talk about, right?"
"Preferably," said Naruto, his blue eyes looking at her intensely. "You've got somewhere in mind?"
"Everyone, please maintain contact with me," she said, holding up the half seal of the Ram. As each genin grabbed an edge of her shirt, she concentrated, and they soon disappeared and reappeared in an apartment somewhere. Gesturing towards the couch in the living room and the several chairs available, she said, "Please make yourself comfortable. Beverages, anyone?"
Upon receiving several glares, Kurenai held up her hands in a defensive motion, muttering to herself, "Just being courteous…"
As soon as she sat in one of the chairs at the dining table, she rested her chin her upraised hands, looking at each genin with a frown. Leaning back, she went through various hand seals and the five again felt chakra flow over them as the entire apartment was sealed for privacy. Sighing softly, Kurenai looked at Naruto silently. The blond nodded slowly, eyes narrowed.
"It's time then. Now, before we start, I'm going to warn you again," the vessel said, his voice growing slightly deeper. "What we say, is going to sound very, very odd, but you need to believe everything. We also need to know that you will hold us in great confidence, and will not act against our wishes in the future. Good intentions or not, doing something against what we regulate may cost you, and we don't have that kind of time. Or patience."
Kurenai narrowed her blood-red eyes slightly, and a kunai seemed to magically appear in her hand. Naruto didn't make any movements as Kurenai stripped the bandages from her left arm. With her right hand, she quickly slid the kunai down her wrist, her eyes narrowed in concentration. She looked up at Naruto with her right hand in the half seal of a Ram, and he sighed, taking his own kunai and pushing back the sleeve of his left arm. Sliding his own kunai down his left wrist in a similar motion, he also made the half seal of the Ram with his right hand.
"Keiyaku no Ketsueki!" the two said at the same time. Hinata let loose a little smirk at Sasuke, who rolled his eyes. Naruto frowned at them, confused, but he turned his attention back to the woman. "Thank you," he said, watching their skin burn black and reveal a kanji bearing the word "blood". Naruto smiled at the teacher, and nodded slightly. "I feel I can trust you now. So, let me just get this out real quick," he murmured, catching Kurenai's advent attention. She leaned forward slightly, and he whispered, "We're from the future…and I'm the sixth Hokage."
She stared at him in disbelief, her blood-red eyes wide. "You're kidding!"
"Well, yeah, but…you don't have to act like it's not credible," muttered Naruto. "Anyway, the future part was real."
"Oh?"
"Yeah, okay, okay. It all started like this: in another time, in another place, in another reality…"
Sakura glared at the blond, yelling, "Naruto! Shut up already!"
Turning to the woman and ignoring the now fuming blond, she said, "The fact of the matter is, for us, we are relieving our past. We are actually twenty years old each, and, with the chakra reserves we carried before, were quite capable in killing off ten Orochimarus, quite easily. Of course, as it is, we can't do crap…damn, I'm botching this…"
Kurenai hoped she didn't look as confused as she felt. "Well, why don't you just start from the beginning."
Naruto waved away Sakura, saying, "It all starts with Kyuubi."
Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu – Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique
Katon: Karyuu Endan – Fire Release: Fire Dragon Blast
Magen: Ori no Kyomu – Demonic Illusion: Cage of Nothingness
Keiyaku no Ketsueki – Blood Contract
First completion: 12/29/2007 11:39:57 PM
All right, I don't usually leave end comments, but I wanted to clarify something: I added several new factors into this chapter. I'm sure you're going to want to question a HELL of a lot here, and go ahead - I'll answer your questions to the best of my ability. You may, at many points in the story have wondered, "What the hell just happened here?" If you did, then I have to say that's great, because that was what I was hoping for. If I have too many overlapping questions, I will answer them with the next chapter, just so everyone understands as a whole. All right, thanks for reading. And once again, I would like for someone to beta for me. Anyone who's available, great! See you next chapter!