Thanks for the reviews! Things start to get a bit complicated around this part of the story and I need a lot of reference from the manga, so sorry if I screw anything up...(sheepish grin) Here's the chapter! It's kind of shorter than the others I think...but it's decent. You know how life is. BUSY.
Whoohoo! Nami's B-day today! Let's all give a round of applause! (crickets chirp) Eh...I said LET'S ALL GIVE A ROUND OF APPLAUSE! (people clap loudly) That's better. Happy B-day, Nami!
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
"This isn't good…" Sakura muttered as she watched the battle with bated breath. "This isn't good…this isn't good…"
Nami shielded her face from the heat of the fire as Sasuke performed "Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu" in midair. A ball of fire gushed in the place of the mass of Narutos that filled the "battle field". As the fire cleared, Nami noticed two Narutos in the place of tens performing some sort of technique. Sasuke seemed to notice this as well, and his eyes widened in mystification.
Could it be…? Nami thought. "Otouto!"
Sasuke grimaced and held out his hand, blue chakra forming as he started to fall towards Naruto. "Chidori!"
"Stop…" Sakura whispered, sweat running down her face. "You two…stop…"
Naruto and Sasuke were shortening the distance between them rapidly.
"STOP!"
"Sakura!" Nami called as Sakura shot off towards her teammates instantly. That idiot! "Don't get involved, stupid!" She cursed under her breath and ran after Sakura.
"Both of you! Stand down!" Sakura screamed uncontrollably.
"Stupid! You stand down!" Nami hollered as she tackled Sakura to the ground before she could get pierced by Chidori or Rasengan. As she and Sakura hit the ground, Nami realized there was a pair of feet inches in front of them. Her gaze slowly moved upwards, recognizing the silver hair and mask. "Kakashi-sensei…"
Kakashi thrust both boys to the side before their attacks could hit and the rivals went flying, forcing them to hit two separate water tanks. "Hey! You two! What're you doing, fighting on top of a hospital?!" Naruto…there's no doubt about it…that was the Rasengan he just used…
Once the two removed their hands, water started squirting out simultaneously and the boys got drenched.
Nami stood up and brushed herself off. "Hmph. What a waste…" she said with disappointment. She glanced at Sakura who was watching Kakashi lecture Sasuke. "What, not even a thank you?"
"Oh, um, thanks," Sakura said speedily, though it was obvious she was listening to Kakashi.
Nami rolled her eyes. Last time I put my life on the line for her.
"You shouldn't have used Chidori against your own teammate," Kakashi said to Sasuke as he sat on the water tank which was quickly losing water, the hole in the structure enlarging. "Were you…trying to kill Naruto?"
Nami narrowed her eyes. "Uchiha…"
Sasuke scowled and flipped over the chain-link fence, ignoring Kakashi. He glanced upwards and his eyes widened.
Nami appeared next to him in a second and gaped. "Holy crackers and caviar! That's a big-ass hole!"
The Uchiha chose to ignore her comment and punched the wall, earning Nami's attention for a split second. Uchiha's pissed now…he knows Otouto's a stronger. She turned towards Naruto. A lot stronger… She clenched her fist and closed her eyes. I want to learn a new technique too…
---
"Tsunade-sama, you here?" Kyoko called as she poked her head into a room. "GAH!"
"ARGH!"
Glass shattered as Tsunade hurled a desk out the window. Kyoko sweat dropped as Tsunade dusted her hands off by clapping them vertically several times. "There! Now there's room to move things!" She noticed Kyoko standing in the doorway and said, "Who are you?"
"I'm Shimizu Kyoko, ma'am!" Kyoko said, saluting Tsunade. "And my sensei was supposed to help you out with this um…moving in and she had to go do another mission so she put me in her place!"
Tsunade blinked and said, "Okay…"
"Tsunade-sama!" a voice shrieked.
Kyoko flinched as a woman appeared behind her, panting like a dog. "Tsunade-sama! What was that—EEK! Why's the window broken?!"
"Oh. Shizune," Tsunade said flamboyantly. "A girl's come to help us."
"I noticed," Shizune said, looking down at Kyoko. "Hello, there. I'm Shizune."
"I'm Shimizu Kyoko," Kyoko greeted.
"Well, Kyoko-kun, you can help us by starting to clean up the mess that Tsunade-sama made…" Shizune sighed. "She's quite a slob."
Tsunade crossed her arms and harrumphed.
"Eh…heh…" Kyoko twitched as Shizune handed her a broom. This…really wasn't what I had in mind…
After sufficiently sweeping the room multiple times, Izumo and Kotetsu arrived, lugging Tsunade's semi-dirty desk into the room while huffing and puffing as if they had to walk an endless flight of stairs.
"There you two are," Tsunade said.
"Here's…that…desk…Tsu…nade…-sama…" Kotetsu gasped as he and Izumo set the desk down.
"Geez, that thing's heavier than it looks!" Izumo whined.
"Good. Move it here."
Kyoko sweat dropped once again as the two chuunin struggled to follow the new Hokage's orders.
---
There he is, Midori thought as she spotted Lee standing on a bridge, dropping flower petals into the water. "Lee-kun?"
Lee looked up and dropped the flower, immediately smiling. "Hello again, Midori-chan. Sorry for leaving so early from—"
"It's okay," Midori interrupted. "Lee-kun, are you going to take the operation?"
"Tsunade-sama said that…" Lee said quietly. "That there's a large percentage that the operation would fail…and if it did…" He trailed off, looking distantly into the water, watching the flower petals slowly drift away. His expression was crestfallen, and Midori felt as sympathetic as she had ever felt before. Lee had always been the one with a hard drive and the worst luck in her opinion. He was the one who gave people the courage to push themselves to their best, and he had always pushed himself the hardest. But of course, that was his downfall…
"Are you going to give up being a ninja?" Midori asked straight-forwardly. "All your life's work and…the admiration you built up in other people?"
Lee looked at her sadly. "I don't know…"
"Well…what are you going to do then?"
"I don't know…"
Midori smiled half-heartedly. "Well, whatever you decide…just make sure you'll be happy. I'd hate to see you throw your life away…" She walked off, leaving the taijutsu master to his thoughts. Throw his life away… Midori thought as she looked back silently. That's the problem…which choice represents his life? His goal and dreams…or… Midori shook her head. Whatever makes you happy, Lee-kun.
---
"Dang! Where's sensei when I need her?" Nami pouted as she looked around. She searched high and low for her sensei since she saw Naruto and Sasuke's interrupted battle. She grimaced. I'm gonna fall behind Otouto and maybe even Sasgay at this rate… Looking up, she noticed the sky was dark, signaling that it was now night time. She sighed, figuring that she'd track down her sensei the next day and started to walk home. It wasn't long until she noticed a figure on a rooftop. What the…? A dead person?
Hopping onto the rooftop gracefully, Nami caught the attention of the person.
"What're you doing here?" Sasuke spat.
Nami narrowed her eyes. "That's my line. What are you doing here?"
"That's none of your business," Sasuke said as he stood up with difficulty.
"What's the matter, Uchiha? How'd you get so beat up?" Nami sneered.
"I said it's none of your business," Sasuke said sharply. "Leave me alone." With that, he disappeared.
Nami frowned. He's up to something…I know it… While still pondering over Sasuke's actions, she found herself at home. When she opened the door, she saw Midori putting an icepack over Kyoko's leg which was propped up on a low stool. Kyoko groaned.
"Man, what happened to you?"
"Battle-related accident," Kyoko said quickly.
"Oh."
Midori rolled her eyes. "Tsunade-sama was having her deliver some things for her and then she got made for some reason or other, threw a chair out the window, and Kyoko didn't get out of the way in time."
"Oh." Nami started snickering.
"Thanks a lot, Midori," Kyoko groaned.
"Couldn't you just have dodged it if you're such a good ninja?" Nami laughed.
"Not with boxes in my hands!" Kyoko said angrily.
"I, for one didn't know Tsunade-sama threw so many tantrums so easily…" Midori said.
"Yeah, well, she does," Kyoko mumbled. "I think I'm gonna hit the sack early today…" She attempted to get up, but moaned and sat back down. "And…sleep here…"
"Psh, I bet it's not even broken," Nami said.
"It's not," Midori piped.
"Again, you're not helping," Kyoko said.
Midori smiled innocently.
Kyoko's stomach grumbled. "Ugh…I almost forgot…I didn't eat anything since morning!"
"Well don't look at me," Nami said as she started towards her room. "I'm not getting you anything."
"I wasn't expecting it or anything!" Kyoko called, annoyed.
"Don't worry, Kyoko," Midori said as she got up. "I'll go get you something to eat. You must've had a hard day, aiding Tsunade-sama and all." She grabbed a jacket and waved shortly. "I'll be back soon."
"Thanks."
Knowing that Kyoko's favorite food was ramen, Midori checked to see if Ichiraku was still open. She saw Teuchi about to close the shop up for the night and rushed over.
"Teuchi-jiisan!" Midori called. "Um, if it's not too much trouble, could you get me an order of ramen to-go?"
"Of course!" Teuchi said. "You and your friends are always welcome!"
Midori smiled and thanked the man.
"Midori-chan, any news about Kyoko's potential you-know-what?" Ayame asked interestedly. "I'm really curious! She and a scary-looking boy from Suna came here a few days ago. Was that the special guest she was talking about?"
"Special guest?" Midori said, raising an eyebrow and smiling. "I suppose so. She has a thing for Gaara-san."
"Oh, that's so cute!" Ayame giggled. "She has a weird taste in men, though…"
It took a few minutes for the old man to make the ramen and package it neatly in a bag for Midori, and once she retrieved it and paid the right amount of currency, she headed home. She stared upwards into the starry sky absent-mindedly as she walked through the deserted streets. It was a cool and quiet night, and most of the occupants in Konoha were in bed now.
As Midori turned a corner, she stopped in mid-step. A feeling of strong chakra nearby caused her to shift her gaze right and left alertly. "Who's there?"
Behind! Midori darted to the side quickly as a large figure created a crater in the spot she had been previously.
"Not so loud, Jiroubo," said a voice. "You'll wake up the whole village with that stomping around."
Midori held the bag tightly and jumped backwards a few feet to have a view of the people attacking. She saw four figures, three males and one female all older than herself. The shadows formed from the sickle moon traced their silhouettes, creating an eerie mood.
"What do you want?" Midori demanded.
"We are the Sound Four," a man who seemingly had two heads (one on the back and one on the front) stated. "I am Sakon, West Gate."
"Kidoumaru, East Gate."
"Tayuya, North Gate."
"Jiroubo, South Gate."
"We were actually on our way to your place to kidnap one of you while you were asleep," the figure with four arms said. "But you made it easy. Now we can meet up with the kid and capture you all in the same trip."
Midori narrowed her eyes. Why would they want me?
"Okay, little girl," the figure with a head front and back said. "We'll give you two choices. Come on your own accord or fight."
"That's such a hard decision," Midori said, bending her knees. "I choose…" She shot off into the air, dropping the bag and all of its contents. She waved her hand vertically, creating a bright light that consumed the darkness for a split second and called, "to fight!" Taking the end of the broad line of light she had created, she snapped it like a whip towards the small group who scattered.
Kidoumaru's mouth bulged for a second then he spat, a webby substance flying out of his mouth.
Midori waved her hand horizontally and a long force field appeared, stopping the attack successfully. As the shield faded, she spun around, bright sparks flying from her finger tips. The Sound Four, who were surrounding her, leapt backwards to dodge the multiple attacks. Sakon charged forward a second after and threw a punch. Midori leaned back and tried a kick. However, the man intercepted her attack with his arm and flipped her over.
Seeing an opening, Kidoumaru shot another string of web toward Midori who held her arms up for protection. However, that wasn't quite enough and she felt herself being pushed back from the blow. Finding herself securely fastened to a wall, she grimaced.
"Well, well, she certainly didn't put up as much of a fight as Uchiha," Sakon remarked.
They fought Sasuke earlier then… Midori thought.
"Now to make sure you don't scream…" Sakon said, coming closer.
Midori closed her eyes, feeling her chakra growing throughout her body with the power of the crystal hanging around her neck. Sakon realized what was happening immediately but was suddenly pushed back by the force of the girl breaking the web.
Kidoumaru narrowed his eyes.
Midori made several hand signs and visibly bright chakra formed around her hands. Placing her hands together in a clapping motion in front of her, a beam shot from her hands, aiming for Sakon.
Sakon leapt into the air, but the attack was able to connect with the tip of his foot. He landed gracefully on the ground and his eyes traced down to his foot. That attack took some of my chakra away…interesting… "My, you're an annoying little gnat."
"Hurry up and finish, Sakon!" Tayuya ordered impatiently.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Keep your skirt on." He attacked her with his elbow, forcing her backwards.
Jiroubo came from behind, grabbing her by the legs and tossing her into the air then Kidoumaru shot multiple volleys of web towards the vulnerable girl. The web encased Midori's entire body, disabling her of escape. As she fell towards the ground, Kidoumaru caught her, a cocoon-like case from every angle.
"Heh, heh…" Kidoumaru chuckled. "Orochimaru's gonna love his little present."
"Hey, even if she's unconscious, she still needs air to breathe. We don't want her dead," Sakon advised.
"That would be bothersome," Kidoumaru agreed, tearing away the web that covered Midori's face carefully.
"Let's get going," Tayuya said. "That Uchiha Sasuke kid'll probably show up soon."
"Yeah."
That being the last word said, the mysterious Sound Four disappeared with the unconscious Midori to meet Sasuke. Whence he arrived, Sasuke noticed Midori and said, "What're you doing with her? What's she doing here?"
"Orochimaru gave us orders. We don't know why," Sakon said. "It doesn't matter."
Sasuke stared at Midori for a moment. Midori…she's from Nami's team. And yet she seems to be the weakest out of her teammates…so why would Orochimaru want her? I don't understand but… "Well whatever. Let's just get out of here already." And it begins…
DUN. DUN. DUUUUUUUUUUN. R&R please! See ya tomorrow!
-HM