Chapter Six: Prelude

The sun's rays had finally crept their way to the boy's eyelids. A short grunt was made followed by the sound sheets sliding against other sheets. The boy's blond hair was unruly having lost his cat hat sometime during the night. It was sticking out in many different directions, but a few stray bangs dangled in front of the his cerulean eyes. A thin line of dried drool trailed down his cheek. The boy's hand unconsciously wiped away the crusty saliva while he sat up in the hotel bed. He stretched his arms over his head. The powerful muscle under his chest, shoulders and upper back moved slowly with his arms, relieving the tenseness. An audible "pop" was heard as a bone slid back into it's correct socket. With that taken care of, the blond rolled his head around slowly to loosen his neck muscles. His vision blurred for just a moments as too much blood drained from his head with the early morning movement.

With his eyes once again refocus, the blond tiredly looked around the room. He saw his sensei sitting near the room's little table. The older man was reading his little green book in the dim light. The silver haired man moved to flip a page, seemingly haven't noticed his student, but Naruto knew otherwise.

"Ohiyo, Kakashi-sensei," the blond yawned, not bothering to cover his mouth. Naruto noticed that his lips were dry and quickly swiped his tongue over them to re-saturate the red/pink flesh.

"Ohiyo, Naruto," his sensei flipped another page.

Naruto shook his head trying rid his mind of the feeling of grogginess that seemed permeate throughout his senses. "What time is it?" he asked, his voice less shaky than before. His body was slowly becoming alive. Naruto felt a slight annoyance at just how long it was taking him to get moving. He shouldn't have been this tired. Suddenly, a spark went off in his mind.

Promise me you won't die.

He stayed up later than he thought he would, but he had needed time to think. Time that was well wasted as it seems as fatigue finally caught back up with him. Just when did he fall asleep, and what time was it now?

"It's earlier than you think, sunrise was only half an hour ago," Kakashi replied. This time he looked up from his back at his student. He observed his student closely, his eyes were still slightly lidded with sleep, and his movements were slow and forced. Something curious happened last night, but the older man didn't voice his thought. Naruto wouldn't give him an answer, and he was in no position to make demands. Even though it didn't seem that way, the boy was well rested; in Naruto's case a slow rise was a good sign. This boy's disheveled hair and the messy state of his bed didn't cause any alarm, everything seemed normal.

"Why don't you go wash up?" the silver haired man suggested. "I'm sure with a good shower you'll feel awake and ready to go."

"Good idea sensei," replied the boy as he stood up. He gave one final large stretch before limping slowly over to the inn's tiny bathroom.

The sound of running water broke silence in the room. Kakashi, no longer interested in reading, finished reading the page he was on. He took note of the number and flipped the book closed. He slid the book into the outer left chest pocket of his flak jacket before standing up. It was probably about time to check on Sakura. She was most likely awake, but it couldn't hurt to make sure. When Naruto was done he'd most likely want to leave as soon as possible. And Kakashi would be lying to himself if he said that he'd rather stay. Sakura was sure to be eager as well.

Naruto's orange jumpsuit was brighter than normal in the early morning sun. The smile on his face radiated with a unique passion. Kakashi saw one of the hotel's employees become swooned with Naruto's exuberance. The older man was thankful Sakura didn't seem to notice the other girl's behavior as it seems the rose haired girl was also taken in by Naruto's attitude. Even Kakashi let himself give a small grin beneath his mask.

"I'm glad to see you're fully awake now, Naruto, but I think it is time that we departed," Kakashi said with as much merry that the normally sedated shinobi would let show.

"Hai sensei." The three leapt into the trees.

It was quite a spectacular day. The sky was clear and the most magnificent shade of blue. The sun glowed with fierce intensity that breathed life into the forest. The birds were chirping and humming a cheerful tune. Many of the forest's little critters were playing. A few squirrels fought over nut by jumping from branch to branch to get the upper hand. Wild deer trekked through the underbrush, crunching dead leaves as they went. Every assortment of animal from the little tree frogs to the mischievous monkeys was out to enjoy the day.

The three shinobi couldn't keep themselves from relaxing in the picturesque environment they stumbled upon as they traveled through the forest's dark green and cool canopy. Even though they were a good day's worth of travel from home, it still felt like they had never left. It was peaceful just like Konoha and the three did little to ruin nature with their presence. The only evidence that the three were in the forest was the rhythmic sound of sandal meeting meeting tree limb. Maybe it was out of fear of disturbing the forest, but a word wasn't passed between the shinobi, but maybe words weren't necessary at all. The presence of the woods and the presence of each other was all that was needed.

Speech could do little to describe their feeling anyways. The forest welcomed them. The sounds animals and the wind spoke of friendship and camaraderie echoed the own thoughts of the shinobi. Their team had been fractured and hurt by betrayal; scorned by false promises and the lust for selfish desires. The woods whispered a different story, one of hope for a better future and forgiveness. The wind mentioned a desire for wholeness. The branches led to the right path, allowing for anyone who strayed away to find their way again.

Then something changed. The sounds became quieter; the forest grew patchier. The animals of the forest stayed away from the open spaces with less cover to hide from predators. The terrain was a little rockier and hills rose from the earth. Something was no longer right, but the shinobi didn't seem to notice.

Kakashi put up his arm, signaling that it was time to stop. "Alright, let's make camp here. We should be able to sense anyone traveling close to this area." Kakashi bit his thumb and with a practices ease went through a set of hand signs before slamming his hand into the ground. A seal made of black ink spread out from his hand before disappearing in poof of smoke. The silver haired man moved back to put some space between himself and the ball white smoke that was beginning to dissipate. Once the smoke was gone, eight ninken were left standing in a circle. Kakashi smiled at his faithful companions before waving them off. The command was understood and the eight dogs disappeared into the surrounding forest to begin tracking for any shinobi.

Satisfied, the one eyed man looked to see what his students were doing. Sakura was already beginning to set up traps as an extra precaution. Naruto on the other hand had already unsealed some camping equipment was beginning to set up two tents. Kakashi felt a small amount of pride overwhelm him. His two students didn't need to be told what to do and were diligently working together as a team. With that fleeting moment over, the proud sensei began helping his student set up the tents.

Normally, one would go gather firewood, but that luxury couldn't be afforded this mission. A fire would be too easy to spot from far away, and this mission required stealth and surprise to be effective. Hopefully, the temperature wouldn't drop too low. It had been a very warm day, but with the sky void of clouds, it would cool much more quickly. It wasn't quite winter yet. The conifer rich forest was always green, but the few flowering, wide leaf trees were beginning to change color, filling the scenery with patches of browns, oranges and yellows. With the acme of autumn only a breath away, the days in Hi no Kuni were still hot, followed by moderate nights—the team of shinobi were thankful for that at least.

Fall is always the most divided in terms of how people accept its coming. It is either scorned as the prelude to winter, or adored as the end of summer. Winter can be a harsh, bitter time of year, but a light snow can bring warmth and light to anyone's eyes. Summer is fun in the sun. Longer days allow for endless activities, but in the southern regions, the air is so warm in humid, the world becomes stagnant and dreary. This makes a division between seasons, and with many different opinions, it's those views that mark fall. Autumn is the harvest season, but for many who have access to stores of food year round, the laborious work of gathering crops and the delight of having finished doing so is lost on the masses.

Now, why isn't spring the same as fall? Spring has the benefit of being a time of new life. Everything blooms and somethings awaken from hibernation. The worst of winter is over by spring, and the best of summer has yet to arrive. The feelings are different. It's only a subtle difference one might argue. And perhaps that point is true, but don't think that that doesn't have great importance. It does. It always does.

Even with the ideas of autumn only being a broad generalization, the shinobi knew this season was of great significance. Love or hate, beginning or end, for the better or the worse, something was coming that would change the very foundation of the world, and everyone knew it. Maybe the importance was lost to most, but the world was beginning to follow a sequence of events that would make all the difference.

The night was passing by painfully slow. The moon has already reached apogee of its ascension into the night sky and was beginning to set towards the western horizon. For the shinobi waiting at their camp, it meant four more hours until sunrise.

There was nothing to do. Sleep did not come easily, and very little had actually been had.

The small team was much too anxious. Tomorrow was an important day, but it just wouldn't seem come. Everyone was prepared. Years of training, months of thinking, days of planning and hours of checking equipment, it all boiled down to one moment. A single point in the future that fascinated every single member of the team.

The intelligence reports were specific enough. The mission objective could happen in mere seconds or could take more than a day. It was just so frustrating, causing everyone to get a little jumpy. Why couldn't the world just move on instead building up all of this unnecessary and painful tension?

The real problem was the night. The darkness permeated nothing but a dim silence. There was the occasional rustle of clothing or the crushing of leaves, but there was no conversation or sound of wildlife in the distance. The area was barren and devoid of life, and the three ninja there did little to prove otherwise. Unknowingly, and completely not wanting to do so, the small party had condemned themselves to watching the stars in the sky drift slowly in a counterclockwise circle around the north star.

At first, being quite ambitious, Naruto had silently tried to find new constellations within the great cosmic backdrop. He found amusement in this for first couple of hours, but the action had drained from him, along with his energy. An hour or two sleep had restored him some, but he had awoken once again to the same sky he had fallen asleep with. The blond had surrendered in trying to find anything productive to do, and even though he tried with all of his might, he was not Shikamaru. If only he could watch stars like his friend could watch clouds, all of his problems would be solved.

Sakura's time was more well-spent. At first, she had cleaned out her weapons pouch. She organized her many tools and double checked her blades. After filing would could be sharpened, she had neatly placed back everything in its proper spot. At that point, she tried to rest, and like Naruto, she was somewhat successful. Nerves had gotten the best of her. Once again awake, Sakura unsealed some of her medical textbooks and read them. Having read them before, she knew all of the material. Still, she reasoned that a rare condition could occur and reviewing her knowledge could be useful. The rosette wanted most to go train until she collapsed from exhaustion, but that was completely out of the question. Kakashi would never allow her to go, and fatiguing one's self before a mission had the tendency of being fatal.

When it came to the team leader, he had been in a peaceful slumber for quite a while and was showing no signs of waking up. His pupils were curious how the silver haired man was able to accomplish such a remarkable feat. Although the older man didn't show it, his students knew that their sensei was just as anxious as they were, but he had found himself within sleep's comforting embrace. It seemed like a riddle. In reality, the answer was quite simple. Kakashi had read his book for a while, but unlike Sakura who was trying to study to remember, the jonin had let the story clear his mind. With his mind clear, the man was able to finally sleep, having had many years of practice from being on tense missions—having been in ANBU helped. Sometimes rest was a necessity one couldn't afford to miss, not in their line of work.

Kakashi awoke an hour before sunrise. Between the time of the man stirring and daybreak, very little occurred within the camp. Conversation was very sparse; a very strange occurrence for a team that was more attune to a family than co-workers. A few random phrase like "Good Morning" and "Sleep well?" were mentioned, but apart from that, everyone just wanted to stare into space. It was probably the unified hope that if all three participated in doing nothing they would all fall into a trance and time would pass by faster.

Time decided that Team 7 would not have it easy.

Kakashi Hatake had experience with time—the good and the bad, but in this case, he was reflecting on some of his previous misfortunes. While during his time with ANBU, he experienced many stakeouts. Sometimes it was for assassinations, but mainly his missions dealt with reconnaissance. Those missions were boring and trivial when compared to the mental trauma inflicted by Itachi Uchiha's Tsukuyomi. If he were any lesser of a man, the famous shinobi would have shuttered at the thought of the pain he had endured while caught within Itachi's genjutsu. In the span of a second, the silver haired jonin had endured days of torture within his own mind. In that moment, time had become his enemy; when it had stopped, cursing him.

And his students thought that they had it bad.

The jonin had at some point during his musing had moved to lean his back on the trunk of an old Oak. There adequate space for the man on the low branch he occupied, but he let his left leg sway off to side anyways. His right leg was curled up to allow his little green book a spot to rest as he read. A strange muse caused him to look up from his current passage and study the tree and nature around him once more. For an Oak, it was quite tall. The bark was a rich, dark brown. The leaves were still a rich green that clung to thin, but strong branches.

This part of the forest was thinner, filled with holes from plants that had died long ago. Only the strong remained in this isolated area, and that's what the oak was—a survivor. Being so close to the rocky hills further ahead, this area suffered from random droughts to sudden flashes of storms. Kakashi knew from experience, when it rained in this area, it poured.

Speaking of storms, the man looked up into the azure sky. A few thin, wispy clouds fluttered by on a light breeze, but other than that, it was empty. It was peaceful. The man narrowed his lone eye as he studied the air. Perhaps it was instinct, possibly his many years, but something was giving him a feeling.

Looking down at his students the man said, "it looks like a storm is coming."

His students didn't say anything, instead they looked to the sky to draw their own conclusions. It didn't matter if he was right or if his students students believed him. The sinister feeling kept crawling up the single-eyed Sharingan user's spine like a kunai slicing through his flesh.

A single, stray thought crossed his mind causing his heart to sink down into his stomach. Maybe it wasn't the thought of the storm that was bothering him, but he prayed that it was.

Time moved on.

Kakashi was suddenly jarred by his senses. He quickly put away his book and stood up on the branch. Reaching out with his chakra, the jonin searched for the incoming disturbance. After narrowing in on the source, he began searching with his lone, uncovered eye. He could see something small and brown, running on four legs. The familiarity of chakra finally washed over him and he knew what was coming, Pakkun.

"Naruto! Sakura!" Kakashi called out to his students. He spared a quick glance at them and noticed that they had already sensed his ninken and were already scrambling to prepare.

Pakkun landed on the tree branch that Kakashi was standing on. Looking up at his master, the little dog spoke clearly and concisely, without a hint of weariness in his low, gruff voice, "We found him. He's approximately 30 klicks northwest of here. The others are already forming a perimeter to contain them until we arrive."

The jonin nodded in understanding. He looked down at his students who were packing up the supplies. "Leave everything we don't need," he ordered, "we can come back later. Sasuke could leave at any moment. There's no time to waste." With one look at Pakkun, the little dog understood the message and began leading the team to their target.

His students answered with a quick, "Hai." They scurried to catch up with their sensei, but soon filed in stride with the furious pace Pakkun was setting as the four dashed through the thinning forest. Adrenalin was being pumped ferociously through each of their veins. This was it. This was their moment, and the feeling was unlike any before it. A sense of the jitters was mixed a strange of serenity that seemed to halt everything but the mission. Each step, every breath, was for one cause, to bring back Sasuke Uchiha.

A battle was being waged in each mind of the shinobi. It was battle of control, or a lack thereof. Would they stay cool and level headed, keeping the ability think, or give into emotion, losing judgment for the sake of a short burst of energy?

Naruto knew he had to stay in control. Emotion always meant the Kyuubi, the demon, pain, suffering. If he lost control—he didn't want to think about that. It would never come to that again. If they were going to fight Sasuke, they needed a plan, something to keep them in control. A plan begins with information, and that was something they didn't have yet. Using his chakra, Naruto manipulated a small amount into his eyes. With his sense already enhanced by his unruly tenant, the ability of the blond's eyes were increased ten fold. With the sight of a falcon, he searched the area up ahead, and that's when he noticed something, traps.

They looked like exploding tags, no doubt armed to explode at any sign of movement.

That's when a plan formed in his mind. It was an unfair one. He would have to break a promise to keep another, but it was something that had to be done. This was his burden to bare, and he would face the consequences of his actions.

The orange clad ninja reached into his bag attached to the back of his waistband, and grabbed a kunai. When he tried to take it out, the blade snagged itself onto the khaki colored material of its holder, shaking itself from his grip. With his hand no longer attached to the tiny weapon, gravity snagged it instead, pulling it to the forest floor below.

Kakashi noticed his students actions, and just as Naruto was about to go retrieve it, the older man told him no. "Forget about it, we need to keep moving."

Naruto smiled. The grin did not go unnoticed by Kakashi, but the man knew better than to say anything. His student was planning something, but the jonin was unaware of what that entailed. Ignoring the problem for now, the man decided it would be for the better if he let things play out. At least his blond student had a plan, which was surprising to say the least. Naruto having a plan? Much had changed in the past few years.

The team was soon upon the traps. With Pakkun at the lead, the three-man squad was able to avoid or at least quietly disable all of the devices meant for their death. The tiny dog stopped on a branch that allowed a hidden lookout over the clearing. Kakashi, next in line, stopped beside his little summon. The jonin heard Sakura land on the branch below him. She had a hard gaze, and her lips were pressed together into a firm line. To her sensei, it seemed like she was trying to mask her emotions by burying them underneath raw determination, but the kunoichi was always very fragile. The masked man was worried that at any moment she could crack. He still had faith in her. He would have to watch her carefully though.

Naruto could take care of himself. He always had, but at that moment, the knuckle-headed ninja wasn't being himself. Instead of following the rest of him team into the same particular tree, he had landed in the one directly adjacent. Kakashi and Sakura barely had time to think when the sound of a spark flicked into their ears.

The small fire on an exploding tag seemed to erupt slowly to both of their sets of eyes. In the split second that followed, Kakashi knew it was too late for Naruto, but for Sakura and he, they would still need to escape or else risk getting caught in the explosion. With years of training and all the speed and dexterity he could muster, Kakashi jumped down to grab Sakura. Hooking an arm around her small figure, he prayed that he wouldn't be too late.

Sakura's emerald irises never left Naruto's cool sapphire ones. In the short time the two had, their emotions played across their eyes like the reflection on a lake's surface. Surprise, then disbelief and, finally, an overwhelming sense of hopelessness and fear pooled in the kunoichi's eyes. As Sakura looked to Naruto, she could see only one emotion being displayed to her. It was enough to make her shatter—a little message, contained within his deep and clear azure orbs, that said, "I'm sorry."

After that, flames ripped, slashed and clawed at everything in sight. Bright oranges, golds and reds blinded Sakura. Her arms unconsciously covered her face as the heat quickly climbed to scalding, unbearable levels. The air expanded rapidly into a giant shock wave that overtook Kakashi and Sakura rocketing them away epicenter of the explosion, right into the clearing.

The two hit the ground hard, but Kakashi had shielded Sakura from most of the collision. The man's back would hate him, but they were alive. For the pink haired girl it felt like something had died within, and that feeling rose within her into a single emotional outburst. Her mind was blank, and as she felt completely overwhelmed by her inner turmoil, she screamed as she had never before.

"Naruto!"

But the world never stands still. Life keeps moving on regardless of the loss. Perhaps, Sakura's world stopped for a moment, but another man's kept moving just the same.

That same man only grunted at the sight of what occurred.

A storm began to flare up beyond the crest of the hill where the black haired man was standing. Sasuke Uchiha cared nothing about what happened, but what was going to happen. The potential rain and lightning didn't phase him. If anything, it excited him; it was his element. His Sharingan eyes spun rapidly as they surveyed his old team. His only sensei stood back up to face him with an intelligent determination in his stance. Kakashi, even with back up, was going to be a difficult opponent. Sakura was still. The weak, annoying fan girl was a different story from her sensei, but there was still one more problem to worry about.

A man in tan coat emerged from the trees landing in between Kakashi and Sakura. Porcelain mask and stone cold face met, and the temperature dropped. Rain began to fall, soaking everything. Lightning and the resounding thunder gave a raw display of nature's power and fury, but the standoff between Sasuke and the masked man continued undisturbed.

Then something happened. It was unexpected, but almost completely unnoticeable. The edge of Sasuke's mouth moved into a smirk. He closed his eyes, his precious, unmatchable eyes. It was a sign of disrespect, a shinobi should never take his sight off the enemy. The man didn't stop there.

"Poor Sakura. Still as weak as ever. You should have spent more time training."

It was an obvious bait. The Uchiha just wanted them to attack. Sakura didn't reply to the verbal jab immediately. She was too shaken to even respond, but she had heard the remark. The girl with pink hair knew she had to say something, anything, to defend herself. She had to be strong, but as she opened her mouth, another voice spoke instead.

"Hatake-san, please escort Haruno-san from the premises."

No, she wouldn't let that happen. This wasn't just her fight. It was Naruto's battle as well. He couldn't be dead. He promised he wouldn't die. She wouldn't just abandon him because of a foolish order.

"No, what about Naruto?" she demanded from the concealed man.

When she didn't get an answer she took another look. It was the same ANBU from the other night. What was he doing here? Something clicked in her mind, he couldn't have been here for that? No, it was impossible. Tsunade-sama would never allow it. Her master would do something other that this, wouldn't she? She needed answers.

"Fine then, why are you here? What do you plan to do?"

The man said nothing. That answer would never be good enough. A fire began light light within her.

"I won't let you kill Sasuke. I have to get him back for Naruto. Is Naruto okay? Please, where is he?" She practically yelled those words, her voice straining to overcome the storm. She couldn't take much more of this. Everyone was silent, but this time she got a reaction from the ANBU.

He slowly turned to face her, and the girl awaited his answer. Even though she was sure he was going to give one, there was this feeling that he wasn't going to tell her what she wanted to know. She was right. His answer was short, diplomatic almost. Naruto is fine he told her. Return to the village he ordered. The ANBU would fight Sasuke Uchiha.

She wanted to say something, argue with him, but before her mind noticed he moved, she fell unconscious.

Kakashi knew exactly what was happening. When he was ordered to take Sakura, he did so without protest. This was not his time to fight. The man could handle himself he reasoned, but his mind told him that this was wrong and was confused as to why didn't want backup. Still, a feeling in his gut knew this was the only way. Taking Sakura over his shoulder, the silver haired man jumped back into the treeline. He planned to go as far away as he could. Who knew what kind of damage the two men fighting would cause?

The ANBU, codename Kitsune, looked up at his opponent. Sasuke had his chokuto drawn and at the ready. Kitsune just looked back at him, but Sasuke was unaffected. With a slight cock of his head to the side the Uchiha said, "That was quite a performance, but I'm afraid it's time for you to end your act, Naruto."

Glossary:

Ohiyo- Good Morning

Ninken- Ninja dogs, essentially dogs that have a decent chakra supply and thus are able to work with ninja. Kakashi's are Pakkun, Bull, Urushi, Shiba, Bisuke, Akino, Ūhei and Guruko.

Author's Note: I know sorry isn't good enough. I took a really long time. If you're an older reader, thanks for sticking with me this long. I don't really have a good excuse, so I'm not going to try to use one. It's pretty clear I'm not a professional. This isn't my job. I honestly couldn't motivate myself to really get this chapter out on time, but it's finished now. I've been wanting to write this next chapter for a while. That's not a promise, but it's a better sign.

You guys should know the drill by now. Do what you want, review, send me hate mail, like it, hate it or just do nothing. I do save all of the reviews, alerts and favorites in my e-mail until I finish a chapter. I had to delete 53 e-mails this time. For me, that's not bad.

Published: 10/2/11