Escape to the Stars
Chapter 2: Supernova Girl
Breathing in, you give me air
I'm living off your solar flare
Could you be my Supernova Girl?
- Supernova Girl by ProtoZoa (Zenon)
"Queen Tsunade, Queen Tsunade!"
"Queen Tsunade, Queen Tsunade!"
Two men shouting overlapped one another's as they ran into her headquarters.
"W-wait! You can't go in there, she's -" Shizune put a hand on her desk as she tried to stop the two assistants from barging into The Queen's office. She did little as they slammed the door open, "...busy." A sigh came out from the overworked right-hand woman.
"What is it?" Tsunade barked at the two cadets that stood in front of her, clearly out of breath from running here.
"Airship Hiruzen..." One of the men trailed off. He had a bandage wrapped across the bridge of his nose.
The other man lowered his head as the forbidden words were spoken, "...has self-destructed."
Her caramel-colored eyes went wide with shock, she parted her lips to speak but all that came out was silence. She closed her mouth and clenched her jaw, her fist tightening and her nails digging into her palm. Tsunade took a small breather and closed her eyes. "What about Morino? Is there any communication?"
Both of the men shook their heads. "Kotestu and I tried with every ounce in our being. The communication was severed. It seems that...Ibiki didn't survive. But, we have come bearing good news."
"You see, before his final moments he had time to send a message. Izumo and I came rushing here for this purpose. It wasn't until we pieced together that Ibiki has passed on."
"Well, what is it? What did he say?"
"It seems that that Itachi Uchiha is not on a mission anymore. He is a part of MATS," their stares sent shivers down her spine. "He has betrayed us and most likely the one who destroyed the Hiruzen."
"Itachi? What the hell? Then, I guess that only means one thing..." She turned her head sideways and furrowed her brows together. "Shizune! Get in here!"
The faithful woman scurried inside and was beside her in less than a minute. "Yes, Queen Tsunade?"
"Send a message to the council members, I need to have a meeting with them as soon as possible." Before Shizune could leave her side, she grabbed her wrist and stopped her from moving. "One small note..." Shizune's head lowered so that Tsunade whispered into her ear. The only reaction Shizune had was a small nod, understanding her queen's orders.
•••
The alarm blared and her fingers found the button that shut off the annoying beeping noise. A groan followed as she rolled out of her queen-sized bed. She yawned as she rubbed her eyes; she did this so she could at least be semi-awake. The digital clock read 7:00AM, it was time for her to get up.
Sakura actually took note when Kakashi told her to arrive near 9. She was glad for that because she didn't exactly sleep early last night. She had spent way too much time gazing at the bright stars, more than she liked to. She couldn't help it though; it was her last night aboard Konoha.
Sakura started to run around her room, grabbing a black duffel bag which was stuffed with clothes and dropping it by the entrance door. The rest of her time was well spent as she showered, took the time to appear appropriately fit for her new adventure. Her pink hair was up in a messy ponytail, intentionally as she preferred to be comfortable as if she was in her own home. Her shirt was a crimson sleeveless shirt that accentuated the curves of her body accompanied by mid-length black spandex shorts that clung to her thighs and her little black boots that defined her toned legs. She was definitely ready to embark on an once-in-a-lifetime chance that would forever change her life. Although she could've argued for a better circumstance, but in time things get better, right?
She turned her head to look at the time; it was 8:30AM. Perfect, she picked up her bag and left her room. She wouldn't be coming back in a long time but until then, she was content so far. She was excited to say in the least. Not every nurse and doctor was chosen to be part of a team, a team that helped to save the Oturanian Universe. She walked away from her room and headed towards the path that would lead her to her destination. An apparent smile was plastered on her face.
All the elevators that she rode on, all the turns that she made led her straight to the Hanger 0411. It was the hangar where Ichiraku was placed in. She saw two figures standing right by the entrance of the hangar. She exhaled a deep breath and her feet dragged herself towards the two cadets that were placed in Kakashi's care.
"Erm, hello..." She stood beside Naruto and Sasuke. She had temporarily forgotten their names but she hoped that it would eventually come back to her.
"Ah! Sakura! It's nice to see you! You're even late as well, just like Kakashi." The blond-headed adult rubbed the back of his neck.
"Late? What do you mean? It's only 8:55..." Her eyes widened, surely Kakashi didn't tell her to arrive just to make her look like a fool.
"We're supposed to be here at 0700, not 0900." Sasuke let out a small chuckle.
"B-but he said to be here at..."
"Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura," Kakashi's voice interrupted her from finishing her sentence.
"Kakashi," both of the men saluted and being the only female, she copied their actions. She mentally took note of her teammate's names, this time imprinting them in her mind.
"Ah, ah, ah. Sakura, you don't have to salute to me. Even though you do follow my orders now, you're a completely different rank than they are." He ruffled a tiny bit of her hair.
"Hey!" She swatted his hand away from her.
Kakashi chuckled and he straightened his posture. "Beyond this hangar is where our ship lies, awaiting us. The Queen has informed me that our mission will probably take about ten months. I do hope everyone bought all they could hold in their bags." He eyed their new team member.
He proceeded to the guard that was currently stationed and showed him a card that granted them access into the hangar. The guard had clear eyes and evened straight dark brown hair that was clasped together, Sakura could barely read his name tag but she was pretty sure that it read 'Neji'. After a nod from this Neji, the commander turned his attention back to them.
"Shall we go now?"
The three members followed their silver-haired leader into the hangar. As they passed through the doors, their eyes were struck with awe as ten medium airships appeared in front of their sights.
"W-wow! Sasuke! Look, it's a starship!" Naruto grabbed Sasuke's arm and waved his arm up and down, brimming with excitement.
"Starship? Ahahahaha!" Sakura started to laugh at her two teammates. "That's the old term; they're specifically called airships now."
Naruto and Sasuke's eyes squinted in a glare as they looked at her. "So what? We grew up with the term starship, so we're going to keep on calling the ships that!" Naruto barked at her.
"There's a reason why they changed it, idiot!" She slapped the backside of his head with little mutters under her breath.
"That hurt, Sakura..." He whined as he rubbed his injury. He looked up at Kakashi and with his baby blue eyes, he plead for some interference. All Kakashi offered was a shrug of his shoulders as he continued to pace to the right walkway platform.
Their differences pushed aside, they closely walked behind Kakashi until he stopped at the last airship. He cleared his throat and nodded his head, "Here we are, Airship Ichiraku." He was positive that he was going to regret saying these words as he closed his eyes, "All aboard!" It helped that he had such a rambunctious team, they were up for anything.
"All right! Let's go, Sasuke, Sakura and Kakashi!" Naruto hopped onto the bridge and made his way into the airship. Sasuke trailed his friend with Sakura behind him making Kakashi the last person to enter the airship. The excitement of their first real mission and helping the Otuarnian Universe was mind-blowing.
Airship Ichiraku wasn't built for a large occupancy but instead, it was best-suited for small-man teams. It wasn't like the Konoha which had total of 8 floors, it only had 3 floors. The control room otherwise known as the bridge and the escape pods was on the second floor, the floor that was considered to be the main one. In the floor below them, the kitchen and the bedrooms were placed there. In the floor above the main was a special floor, it came with a small fountain and clear oval window to shield them from the outside but also to provide a fantastic view. The paint job that Ichiraku had outside was orange and white, which deemed appropriate as the inside was metallic silver as everything was to remain neutral.
Naruto rushed to the pilot's cockpit and stared all the buttons with amazement. He could hardly contain his enthusiasm; it was finally time for him to fly a starship! No doubt that Sasuke would be his co-pilot, despite their differences. Besides, Sakura wasn't even a pilot so she couldn't be prepared for the pressure as co-pilot. "Sasuke! Take a look at this! It's everything we've learned! Ahaha! I can't wait to fly this baby!"
The dark-haired man let a smirk grace his face as he took the seat of main pilot. His hands were aching to take control of the levers, the buttons, and the control wheel. The radar screen was currently black but that soon would change. Sasuke closed his eyes and a small laugh came free from his lips.
"Hey Sasuke! I'm the main pilot! You're the co-pilot!"
"Who says? I scored better in the stimulation tests and the written tests, I'm the main pilot!" Their foreheads butted as they continued to list off the reasons why one deserved to be the main pilot.
Sakura sighed as she rolled her eyes in annoyance to their bickering. They were like wife and husband, really. Forget the label best friends, being a married couple was more their style. She snickered as she imagined one of them in a wedding dress...actually, she couldn't see that. They would be fighting as who would be the groom. Her snicker evolved into a loud and stifled laugh behind her hand.
Kakashi, who was right beside her, raised an eyebrow. "Is something funny, Sakura?"
"No, no. It's nothing, Kakashi." She exhaled and inhaled deep breaths to calm herself down and push the image far away into the depths of her mind.
"All right, let's get down to business. Everyone come around this table." He laid a scroll that was in his black jacket and laid it out on the table. Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura gathered around him. Kakashi then placed a small device onto the center of the table; no doubt it was a hologram device. The device was capable of recording videos or relayed messages that were of the utmost importance.
The Queen's figure glitched until it loaded completely, the blond's ruby lips started to move.
"Team 7, you have been entrusted with an imperative mission. Your mission is to locate the mothership of MATS. I realize you may have a long journey ahead of you but it is the best solution to travel rapidly as I have suspected a traitor in our council. If we wish this war to be over soon, it will be because of your hands. Sakura, you have the responsibility to send us a video message every month describing what information you have found out. Do your best for the Otuarnian Universe and for the rest of us." The static crackled and the hologram dissipated.
"Wh-wh-what? A traitor? In the council? Kakashi, who could it be?" Naruto's arms flailed around him.
"That is why I said the mission details would not be revealed until we arrived on the ship. However, we have to start moving and get out of this hangar before I tell anyone anything." His eye turned to Sasuke. The cadet got the hint and moved towards the cockpit.
His hands tightened around the control wheel and with his tongue to coat his lips in excitement, he reached over to the navigation controls that laid overhead the commands and pushed the button to start up Ichiraku. The engine rumbled and hot air hissed out underneath the ship. Sasuke also pushed a button that had a T on it. The airship was surrounded in a blue aura as it slowly started to disappear.
The next thing that Sakura could remember was they suddenly appeared in outer space. The stars that covered the never-ending black sky left her mouth gaping. Ever since she was little, she had this strange obsession with the galaxy and the stars. They were always constant and rarely anything ever disrupted their shape. Her green eyes twinkled along with the stars as she stared through the glass panel in the cockpit.
Naruto's exclamations barely reached her ears as she continued to stare in awe at the stars. They seemed to zoom right past one and she swore in her life, she will never have the chance to see a star that close ever again. She closed her eyes and inhaled a deep breath. This was it, this was the adventure she was waiting to have, even if the company was quite questionable.
"Kakashi! It's not fair you let him be the main pilot!" Naruto huffed and crossed his arms across his chest.
"He had a point, Naruto. You're more fitted to be a co-pilot."
"Kakashi!" Naruto pouted as he took his co-pilot seat. The radar screen beeped in rhythm as no objects were displayed in their radius.
"Sakura."
She stood there in contentment.
"Sakura."
No response, not even a twitch in her body.
"Sakura."
Kakashi's calloused hands grabbed her bicep harshly as he turned her to face him. Her eyes fluttered open and she furrowed her brows together.
"Do I have your attention now, Sakura?" He gritted his teeth in front of her.
"Obviously." She snapped back at him.
"Come near the cockpit, I have to explain the rest of the disclosed information to Sasuke and Naruto. I don't know about you but I will not be making exceptions for you." He dragged her along towards the cockpit and pushed her into a seat behind Naruto.
Sakura growled in frustration. He was seriously pissing her off. She clenched her fists and bit her lower lip with glaring eyes at Kakashi. How dare he resort to physical abuse just to sit her ass down for a stupid mission-induced information talk. Since he was so high and mighty, he sat himself down across from her. She huffed and smacked her hands against the seat. She felt like giving up every time she was faced with his tactics.
"Now, as you heard The Queen, there is a traitor among the council. Apparently, he has been in close contact with MATS for a while now. He has been leaking crucial information about our whereabouts, our plans and our weapons to foil their plans. We are ordered to scope the enemy's airships and get vital data about MATS leader and their ally. We have the Konoha's burden on top our shoulders. Everyone is relying on us to bring back data. However," he turned his eye back to Sakura, "you are the one that will be cataloging this for evidence. As The Queen said, you will be making monthly reports to her.
"We have a total of 10 known MATS airships, we will be infiltrating them. However, only two of us can go at a time. We will be going undercover; you are to choose your own aliases. We'll get to that later. Sasuke and Naruto will act as one team and Sakura and I as the other pair." He paused in silence as he grabbed a beige pouch and opened it. He handed a jewel to Sakura, Sasuke and Naruto. "These devices, which are called ether jewels, sink into your skin. Hover the jewels over a place that's not noticeable but reachable. You have until tomorrow morning to find out where you want it to be. This device is crucial to your survival, should the need arise and you need to teleport back to Ichiraku, pressing the appointed location will transport you back here."
Sakura flipped the device as she scanned the exterior in confusion. Kakashi had to be willingly to explain how this device worked. Would it even work on her since she is a human? She had to have a word with him sometime later.
"That being said, our first destination is towards the Hyuuga star. There is a MATS ship that was stationed there and they're under a cloak of invisibility. Lucky for us, we have a source inside that ship so all we'll have to do is teleport there. We'll be there in a week as long as we don't run into any obstacles." He coughed into his hand as his eye lingered on his two pilots. It wasn't that he didn't have any faith in his subordinates, they just had a particular vibe to cause trouble and most of the time, they did.
"That's all cadets, nurse." He nodded his head and walked towards the elevator. He was over-due in alone time and he sorely needed it. Taking care of two eager cadets was enough workload on him but adding the medic, he couldn't quite keep his cool and aloof demeanor. Just as the elevator doors opened and he stepped into it, Sakura ran up to him and stood beside him.
"Where are you going?"
"Hmm?"
"What floor are you going to?" She huffed in disappointment.
"Oh, the 3rd floor." He replied nonchalantly.
"Oh, I guess I'm going there too."
The rest of the elevator ride was in silence. The doors opened and Sakura gasped. There were only two doors across from the hallway. That meant...she would be bunking with someone! Oh god, she hoped that it wasn't Naruto. She couldn't handle his lame jokes and ogling that he'd give her once she would put on her pajamas. A shudder came from her body.
"So, who am I going to be bunking with?"
Kakashi's eyebrow rose as he lightly chuckled, "Who said you were going to bunk with anyone? One bedroom has one bed and the other bedroom had three beds." He stepped out of the elevator and headed toward the right electronic door.
"H-hey! That's not fair, I didn't know!" She trailed behind him and smacked his shoulder.
"Aren't you an abusive one?"
"Shut up," she glared at him before she sighed. "I actually have a concern regarding...this device." She held up the device and twirled it in her hands. It was a small compact machine with a little crystalline jewel that came in a variety of colors that seemed to coordinate with their personalities. Naruto had an orange one, Sasuke a blue one and she had a pink-red one. She could only imagine that Kakashi got a silver or a clear jewel. "I don't think this can work on me, since I am...a human, y'know?" She whispered the last part.
He realized her concern and shook his head. Why didn't he think of that when he was addressing this earlier? Oh right, he hadn't counted on the fact that they were going to have a human teammate. He sighed, "It's a good thing that you are paired up with me, huh?"
Her expression went from worried to confusion once again, "Pardon me?"
"As long Naruto, Sasuke and I have this handy escape route, all you need to do is stay in close proximity with either one of us." His eye crinkled.
She turned her head away from him. "Y-you mean like hugging?" She slumped her shoulders downwards as he nodded his head in agreement. "You're really no fun, you should loosen up."
"I assure you, there is no fun to be had on an important mission like this." He swiped a keycard and the electronic door opened.
"Aren't you hungry? I could whip up something swiftly for you before you do whatever it is you want to do." She laughed nervously as she pointed at the kitchen. She really didn't understand her brain. Her bipolar thinking was beginning to get the best of her. She had no qualms that Kakashi was thinking that she was strange.
And her assumption was correct as he stared at her. He was rather famished...Maybe a quick bite wouldn't hurt.
He followed her into the kitchen. There was a counter that separated the kitchen and the dining table. It was almost set up like a mini-bar which probably helped the other inhabitants of the airship. Kakashi took a seat on one of the stools in front of the counter. Sakura pulled out two plates and settled it onto the counter. She opened the refrigerator and grabbed out a carton of milk with ham and cheese. The bread was stored on top of the refrigerator and sadly, she was a hand's length too short to reach it.
She cracked a smile at him and giggled, "Help, please?"
A sigh escaped his lips once more as he rose up from his seat and took a hold of the plastic wrapping around the loaf of bread. "Here you go." He left it on the counter and resumed his seat on the stool. He looked at her intently as she fixed him a speedy lunch with precision that rivaled his mother's. He chuckled with his hand underneath his chin.
"What's so funny?" She mumbled as she handed him a glass of milk and the plate filled with a ham and cheese sandwich.
"You handle the sandwiches the same way my mother does."
"You still live with your mother?" She sheepishly grinned as she sat in the seat next to him and faced him while taking a bite into her sandwich.
"Ah, no. She died; it was a long time ago." He waved his hand as a means to dismiss the topic.
"My condolences, I-I didn't know." She looked down at his feet in sadness.
"It's all right. I don't really have any family. No relatives or anything of that sort." He chewed a piece of his sandwich. He closed his eyes, why was he discussing his familial issues with her? It was almost like she had a vibe that he sensed he could trust her. Besides, who was she going to tell? Her boyfriend?
"You have anyone waiting for you back at home?"
"Hmm?" She gulped her piece and shook her head. "No, not really. I have no time to be dating. I don't think I've really dated either..." She laughed. "It's ironic, I have many guys that ask me out and I always flat out deny them. I guess I'm not into relationships as every 22 year old woman of my age is."
"That's a good sense of priority you have there. Men are a waste of time to ladies like you."
"What do you mean by that? That I'm not pretty enough to be in a relationship?" Her brows creased together.
"No, no. A boyfriend wouldn't do you any justice. Any boy wouldn't do you justice. You seem like a well-leveled woman with a strong sense of responsibility on her shoulders. That enough is an accomplishment."
"Well, gee...thanks...I think." She laughed as she plopped the last of the sandwich in her mouth. She grabbed his plate and set both their plates into the sink.
As they exited the kitchen, she stood in front of her bedroom door and he stood in front of his.
"Well, um, have a good time..."
"Relaxing. I'll be reading my book here." He magically pulled out his orange book and waved it in the air.
"Ah, then have a good time reading." She smiled as her door opened with her keypad on the left side.
His door was about to close until he popped his head out, "Sakura, what will you be doing?"
She turned around shocked at his curiousness, "I'll be doing the same, relaxing, looking at the stars in the galaxy."
"Have a good night." He bowed his head and the door closed.
"And you have a good night as well." She closed her eyes and slipped off her outfit, she was going to take a nice and slow hot bath just to calm her nerves.
It would be a week until they would reach the first ship and that was the real test. She bit her lip in worriment, would she be ready by now?
•••
"Tsunade, what is the meaning of this?" Rin's hands slammed against the metal table as she yelled at her superior's statement.
"I believe we have a traitor among our little circle of trust. However, I will not disclose who it is. Obito, Rin, Shizune and Jiraiya, I trust you guys to find out who it is. I have a feeling that I know who it is already but I can't help but to confirm my worst fears."
"But Lady Tsunade, if you tell who it is, then maybe by digging into their routine of their day wouldn't we find out whether they are linked to MATS or?" Obito replied calmly.
"No, no. That wouldn't work because then that said person would know we were onto them and we'd immediately look suspicious. " Jiraiya shook his head, his white mane following his head's movement.
"Just trust me on this. You are my most trusted comrades and we have been through a lot with each other. There is a reason why Kakashi's team received the hardest mission of all. Besides, with Itachi on the MATS side, Sasuke will feel betrayed at his brother forgoing everything they swore to protect." She pressed two fingers to the bridge of her nose. The amount of drama, hate and bloodlust was going to be insane.
"We'll do our best Lady Tsunade. Just tell us what our assigned targets are." Obito bowed his head.
"It's simple. Shizune will take care of Inoichi, Rin is assigned to Anko, Jiraiya with the three elders, Hashirama, Tobirama and Hiruzen. Obito, you have Orochimaru. Be careful with Orochimaru though; make sure he absolutely doesn't make your cover." She chewed her lips in the tense atmosphere.
"Very well, Tsunade, we will start tomorrow morning. Thank you for placing all your trust upon us."
The four bowed their heads and disappeared to their own rooms.
All Tsunade could do was hope for the best and that finding out who the traitor was would end the war peacefully. For some reason though, a cloud of uncertainty stabbed her in the gut. She had a bad feeling about all of this. She could only leave all her hope on her four friends and Kakashi's team.