Preparation
'Naruto you can hardly expect to run off like this without having to discuss it first with the rest of us.' Karasu spoke harshly as she leaned against Naruto's door frame, watching him throw a few essentials in one of his bags.
'This is important. If we hit him now when he's vulnerable it'll be easier to defeat him!' Naruto growled angrily. His eyes were constantly flashing from bright blue to dark red. He had managed to make friends with the fox spirit, and the two regularly shared the body and strength, even had lengthy discussions.
'But he's with his siblings, both are Junin. If you hit him now not only are you putting yourself at risk but all of us.' Karasu tried to reason with him, letting him pass her and into the narrow earth hallway.
Doors lined one side the hallway, the other had glowing, eerie red lights on it. Persian rugs dotted the floor, each stranger and more intricate than the last. Each ninja had decorated their own room as well, and fitted stolen furniture inside.
Naruto's walls were bare earth, with glowing lamps hanging on twisting, stretching metal holders. There were different colours, and they cast the room in an eerie light. There was a main light, large and spiralling, the washed the room in white light. His bed stood in the middle, a double bed with crisp white sheets and a light brown wooden frame. Shaggy white rugs littered the floor, and there were large, leafy green plants wherever there wasn't a better idea for anything else. A wardrobe taller than Kizame, a small television surrounded by beanbags and square glass tables that could only hold one bowl, and a large fish tank filled with tropical fish. It was Naruto's pride and joy, and Kizame was insanely jealous.
There was also a small flap for the local foxes to come inside. Naruto adored them, and they adored him. He'd spend most afternoons watching them, laughing and speaking with them as if they were friends.
He was a light-hearted ninja, dragged down by his past and the friends who had left him for dead without a second thought. Karasu understood his hatred towards them, she too could name a few that she wanted to bring down, but Karasu also understood the ninja's powers and abilities. If Naruto went now, he'd need backup and he was so close to refusing it.
'Naruto would you please just stop!' Karasu snapped running after him. His pace forced her into a steady jog. The hallway wound around like a giant circle, which it was in fact. It surrounded the main rooms, the living, dining and kitchen. The walls of the hallway were the walls of the kitchen.
There was no doorway, just a widening of space. If a ninja was unfamiliar with the living quarters of the Akatsuki they may have stopped in surprise to find themselves bathed in what seemed to be natural light, and facing a large space with ambling ninja here and there. Tobi and Deidara were at it again by the kitchen counter, Kizame was pacing about the waterfall angrily, probably waiting for Itachi to return from something he had had to take care of by himself, and Hidan was cleaning his blade while watching a strange episode where two ninja hunted down supernatural creatures. One was always getting killed, or finding out that they had demon blood inside of them, and there was always blood being spilled. It was no wonder Hidan found it so entertaining.
'Naruto!' Karasu snapped loudly enough for everyone to stop what they were doing and peer curiously at the two ninja. Konan flitted into the room on the opposite side.
'What!' Naruto snapped right back, eyes blazing with fury. Strangely enough they kept their blue shade. Perhaps the fox didn't feel like meddling with such puny affairs.
'If you're going to do this I'm coming with you and there's nothing you can do about that!' Karasu growled, hands balling into fists at her side. She was Naruto's partner after all, and earlier it had been decided that Deidara and Sasori were going to take care of this together. No matter how hard Naruto had been training, how much he had improved, he'd need Karasu along with him.
'I don't need help.' Naruto muttered, turning back around and pulling on his cloak. He looked down at his bag, decided against taking it, and threw it on the ground.
He'll be raiding some village for food then I presume. Karasu thought approvingly to herself.
'Yes, you do.' Karasu stated firmly, walking towards Naruto and the exit.
'What's going on?' Deidara asked, walking around the wide-eyed Tobi and towards the two arguing Ninja.
Karasu sighed in annoyance and ran a hand through her ebony hair. Naruto could be such a pain sometimes. 'Naruto wants to hunt down Gaara and take him on by himself. He's returning from Konahakagure with Temari and Kankuro.' Karasu explained shortly.
Deidara laughed and whistled through his teeth. 'That's a little dangerous un.' He chuckled, looking at Naruto with newfound respect.
Karasu slapped his arm harshly. 'It's nothing to be proud of! He's acting out of anger and needs to accept that if he's going, then so am I.' Karasu informed, narrowing her eyes at Naruto. He still stood just ready to leave, cloak billowing around him from the force of the waterfall. Spray misted his hair and cheeks, but he didn't even seem to notice.
'Looks like someone has a crush.' Hidan sang, grinning evilly from the plush couch.
'Ooh I hear wedding bells!' Tobi cried like a child, giggling with his hands in front of his mask. Karasu scoffed at them and decided to ignore them.
'This was meant to be for Sasori and Deidara, and they were going to go together. Yeah, we're Akatsuki and yeah, we can take on anyone but we're not idiots! We have teams for a reason!' Karasu snapped angrily.
She stared down Naruto with slitted eyes, and he returned the favour.
Suddenly there was silence. All you could hear with the waterfall crashing down to earth and the ticking of a clock in the kitchen. Everyone was watching now, waiting to hear what Naruto would say. Karasu was certain that if he refused her, Konan would step in, maybe even ban him from leaving before Gaara had his sand creature taken out of him.
'This is exciting.' Karasu heard Tobi whisper shrilly to Konan, who only glared at him. Tobi hopped down from his stool and made his way to the couch, arms swinging about him lazily. He sat down heavily, throwing his feet in the air and landing them right next to Hidan who growled and threatened to snap them off if he wasn't careful.
'Naruto.' Karasu spoke normally, eyes returning to their normal stance. Deidara moved behind her and began whispering painfully in her ear.
'He's going to say yes. You're going to go out together un, and he's going to propose. You're going to say yes, and get married un. By the time you come back un, you'll be pregnant. We're going to have our first couple un!' He exclaimed, knowing how much it annoyed Karasu when the others made assumptions about her relationship with Naruto. They were just teammates, friends who looked out for each other.
She swatted at the blonde like he was a pesky fly.
'Alright. Come along if you must. We'll take him to the closest base to Konahakagure.' Naruto spoke the name like it was poison on his tongue. Karasu smiled for the first time that day, and grabbed her cloak. She swung it on herself, checked her hips for weapons, and set off at a leisurely pace. Deidara returned to raiding the kitchen, chuckling and saying how Karasu and Naruto had saved him some time. Konan faded back into the shadows, Hidan nearly followed his promise of breaking Tobi's legs, and Tobi ran off to find something edible, possibly steal it from Deidara.
'Be ready guys!' Karasu called to the others, waving her hand excitedly. She was just like a child when she found out she was going on a new mission. It always gave her a thrill, especially when the ninjas they were going face were as strong as the Sand Siblings. 'Naruto, why are we going to the Leaf Base? We leave Temari and Kankuro alive, they go warn the Leaf and they come and find us. We're going to need some time to extract the sand creature thing, why risk it?' Karasu asked as an afterthought. She generally tended to trust Naruto with these things, but it just didn't seem sensible to work like this.
'Because, they're going to need to warn the Sand Village of what has transpired, and they're going to need to find us. With your skills we should be able to keep them at bay for some time. I also want to shock them. Seeing an Akatsuki who looks like me, when they think I'm dead, it's going to be terrifying for them. Then, in that instant that they see us, we vanish, leaving them without anything.' Naruto smirked at his own plan, walking out of the waterfall and into the bright sunlight.
Karasu rolled her eyes at the sodden state she knew he'd be in, and went around it her way, vanishing in a puff of black smoke and reappearing beside Naruto.
Gaara was walking along the pathway with Temari and Kankuro on either side. He had given his speech on Naruto three days ago, and now had matters to attend to at home. Apparently without him the village couldn't run itself.
Gaara casually controlled the sand at his feet, making it swirl around and twist by his ankles like a pet snake. It soothed him, and at this time every year he certainly needed a lot of soothing. His speech had been about how he had once been filled with hate and loathing to those that believed in love. Then he had meet Naruto, admittedly fought with him and turned into Shukaku. Only after he had battled Naruto had he come to realise what love, family and life meant. It had been long, and many had sniffled or cried during it. Sakura hadn't been able to hold in her tears, and Sasuke had been silent the entire time, his eyes never leaving a certain area of the wall.
Temari's hand was continuously reaching up to touch her fan, and Kankuro was clearly on edge, eyes darting to and fro and muscles tensed and ready.
Gaara wanted to ask them what was so wrong, why they couldn't relax in the early morning sunshine, underneath a pure blue sky without clouds.
The trees rustled on the side of the path, and Kankuro nearly jumped out of his skin. A startled rabbit came bounding out and ran like the wind across the path.
Kankuro let out a sigh of relief. 'Only a rabbit.' He grinned at the others. Gaara nodded in agreement, but Temari was unsure.
'Didn't you notice that that rabbit didn't even notice us? I think something scared it before it came out.' Temari observed, anxiously moving her fan around its holder so it would be easy to retrieve if it came to a fight.
Up ahead was a long stretch of rock bordered by dense forest. Either you chose to walk for three extra hours navigating the twisting, winding pathway through the forest or you chose to walk across the rock, in full exposure but needing only ten minutes.
For the Sand Siblings there was usually no questioning. Yet today, for Temari, something felt off. 'Gaara I think we should go through the forest. It's not as exposed, and it should be safer.' Temari whispered harshly. Kankuro glanced incredulously at her.
'Don't be so scared Temari, it takes so much longer going through the forest and there's no one here. The rabbit got freaked by us it's no big deal.' Kankuro chuckled, making his way easily onto the stone. He glanced around once, to satisfy Temari, and turned back grinned. 'There's not a soul in sight, SIR!' Kankuro chuckled.
Temari flashed him a glare and cautiously made her way next to her brother. She too glanced around and saw no one.
'Also, fighting in the forest would be nearly impossible. It is far easier to fight on open ground.' Gaara advised, walking up next to the two eldest siblings. He did not share his sisters misgivings, and felt completely at ease.
They stood there for a moment, staring out at the open spaces with the wind lifting their hair from their eyes. Behind them was the road with the open, grassy forests. Apparently there had been a curse here long ago, a curse causing the ground to solidify and the forests to allow no one to pass, only those with a black heart. The ninjas of Sunagakure and Konohakagure had managed to hack out a path after many years of trying.
'Let's get a move on. We want to be there early right?' Kankuro spoke cheerfully, holding his hands behind his head. His muscles were still tensed.
Temari looked around once more nervously before continuing with her two brothers.
No one noticed the dark form in the forest watching them, timing their every move.
Five minutes of the Sand Siblings walking on the stone and nothing had happened. The forest had grown thicker around them, and even Temari walked with a little spring in her step.
That was until they saw someone up ahead. A girl, with eyes as black as the night and hair as long as a short cape, its ebony hair seemingly reflecting the sunlight. She wasn't pale, and she walked along just as casually as Temari had a few moments earlier. The boys didn't seem to mind seeing another traveller.
'It's a well used route Temari calm down. It's just some kid.' Kankuro hissed in Temari's ear.
'Hello.' Gaara greeted the girl. She jerked her head up like she hadn't noticed them. She smiled a little absentmindedly.
'Oh hello. My apologies I did not notice I was not alone. Beautiful day for travelling is it not?' The girl spoke formally, her smile twitching to a polite one. Her eyes quickly roamed over them, taking in everything about them. The three felt suddenly naked.
'Indeed. But we are in an awful hurry sorry to be rude.' Temari spoke quickly and began walking again.
'Are you not the legendary Sand Siblings? I've heard so much about you, and especially you, Gaara of the Sand.' The girl spoke again, the smile lessening. Her eyes were roaming over their faces quite casually now, as if she had already memorised every detail.
'Well, legendary are we?' Kankuro asked smugly, turning around and flashing Temari a smirk. Temari huffed angrily and crossed her arms over her chest. She knew it was no time to be fooling around. Sunagakure needed them.
'Indeed. In my small village we have heard many tales of your adventures.' The girl complimented, moving closer every second.
Temari suddenly had a glance at her eyes, and felt the bottom of her stomach fall to her toes. Before she hadn't felt comfortable looking into them. They were so black, so unusual and they had raked them from head to toe. Now, looking into them for a split second Temari say an overwhelming amount of hatred smouldering below the surface.
'Kankuro, step away from her now.' Temari hissed dangerously. Kankuro instantly recognised the tone and stepped uncertainly away from her.
'Temari?' He whispered.
'What is it Temari? See something?' The girl asked innocently, tilting her head to one side curiously. Once again Temari saw those eyes, and a violent shiver wracked her body. How could someone hate so much? What was worse it wasn't uncontrolled, violent hatred. That could be dealt with, that was explosive but it went away. This was controlled, channelled and calm. This was hatred that lasted generations and hardly ever went away.
'She's dangerous.' Temari growled, flicking out her fan and holding it in the ready position. Kankuro, quickly seeing his sister wasn't lying, and trusting her instincts, quickly unwrapped Scarecrow. Gaara's sand filed around him slowly. All eyes were on the girl.
'Indeed I am.' The girl smiled, and flung a cloak around her body. The sun was directly behind her, and so the Sand Siblings didn't see the red clouds that dotted her cloak. But when they did, they quickly attacked.
But before them was nothing but black smoke. A dark chuckle was emitted from behind them.
'I'm sorry, but I'm only fighting Temari and Kankuro. Gaara is saved for someone very special.' The girl whispered, her eyes wild with anticipation and excitement.
'Who. Who could possibly have saved Gaara!?' Temari seethed. She suddenly felt cool burning anger towards this girl, who threatened her little brother. Who was part of the Akatsuki organisation, a girl that was more dangerous than any other ninja they had faced. She seemed to innocently dangerous as well, like someone who didn't even know the full extent of their abilities. It scared Temari, knowing she was up against someone so formidable.
'Hello, Gaara.' A cool voice hissed. The voice was so cold, filled with bubbling anger and hatred. Like the girl, it seemed controlled and sent violent shivers down the three ninjas spines. Only difference was, they all knew this voice. Or at least who it had once belonged to.
They all slowly turned around, fearing what they would be seeing.
There, in front of them, was a grown Naruto. Blonde hair the same, ruffled and spiked. His whiskers had also grown longer, nearly reaching his ears. But that's where it all ended. His hands were stuffed inside the Aktuski cloak's pockets, and his sparkling blue eyes were narrowed and directed at Gaara. He seemed to see no one else.
'N . . . . N . . .N-Naruto?' Gaara whispered, knees knocking together and breath failing him. Temari had tears shooting to her eyes, not even noticing how much he had changed. Kankuro also felt like he had been punched in the stomach, all air being taken from him.
Naruto tilted his head to one side. 'Long time no see, friend.'