It had been a couple of weeks since the new ANBU members had been introduced to Naruto and his friends. They were getting along like a house on fire. They were all having drinks at Aoi's bar again, laughing, joking, messing with Ai, once stopping Aoi killing Lee again and generally having a good time apart from Tsukiko who sat with a scowl on her face. The party was interrupted by the spikey haired dragon ANBU who appeared in a puff of smoke.
"Hokage-sama requests the presence of Squad Stella and Team Kakashi at once." He bowed once and was gone again in a puff of smoke. Members of both teams looked around at each other confused. They all got up dazed and headed towards the Hokage building. They reached Tsunade's room and Kakashi rapped his knuckles on the door.
"Enter!" They all filed in and stood in line. "Right you've all gotten to know each other pretty well now. Right?" Tsunade asked. Everyone nodded. "Good, because now you are all being sent on a mission together. This is Squad Stella first mission together as this squad, so Team Kakashi? You'll be backing them up. Everyone is under Hotaru's command, so cough Naruto don't do anything she doesn't tell you to do. Got it?"
Naruto scrunched his face up in disapproval and Sakura elbowed him in the ribs. Shizune handed Hotaru a scroll with the details of the mission on it. Hotaru opened it and scanned though the writing.
"So, you want us to re-cover information from a possibly hazardous group of rouge ninjas?" Hotaru questioned.
"Exactly. This information is valuable to the safety of Konoha and Suna. Once you've obtained it. Send it back to the village and to the Kazekage we'll then decide what further action to take. It may be the case that you have to take them out." Everyone looked at each other with the same expression. "You'll be leaving at dawn. Got it?"
"Yes ma'am." Was the collective shout.
"But Hokage-sama there isn't a location on this. Where are they based?" was Hotaru's confused tone.
"Right, well the thing is…" Shizune laughed awkwardly and broke out in a blush. "We're not exactly sure where they are."
"WHAT!" Naruto shouted annoyed.
"Calm down Naruto!" Tsunade raised her voice at him. "We know what general area they are in but we don't have the pin point exact location." She explained.
"And they call us ninjas and we don't even know where they are?" Naruto started arguing.
"Well every ninja we have sent has been brought back in paralysis of shock." Shizune said nervously obviously not wanting to piss Naruto off further. Aoi started staring into space with a blank expression. Kotori had to tug on her wrist a couple of times to bring her back.
"Everyone go home pack and rest for tomorrow." Tsunade commanded. Everyone bowed and spilled out of the office and nodded at the ANBU on guard. Everyone went their separate ways outside the Hokage building. Naruto started walking home and after some serious staring in to space he realised he was staring at Aoi's back. He ran to catch up with her.
"Hey!" He said startling her.
"Oh. Hey." She replied smiling.
"So do live up this neck of the woods?" Naruto said stupidly, grinning.
"Yeah, just up there in that apartment block." Aoi pointed at a large building.
"Cool live in the apartments just down the road." Naruto pointed at a building a little down from the one Aoi had pointed out. They arrived outside Aoi's apartment block and she invited him up. Aoi lived in a two roomed apartment the second room being the bathroom. The other room was massive with a window stretching from one end of the room to the other. The sun was setting over the horizon and the window framed it perfectly. There was a large built in wardrobe at one end of the room next to the bathroom and a kitchen in the opposite corner. Next to the kitchen was a square plot of dirt. Naruto went to inspect the kitchen after he'd pulled off his sandals.
"Watch it!" Aoi shouted making Naruto freeze. "Don't stand on my pumpkins." She said guiding him round the plot of earth. Naruto was looking a little confused and was begin to think she was weird all over again but didn't saying anything in fear for his life as he was alone with Aoi, no Hokage or Kotori to control her black side. What Naruto also found strange was that Aoi had no furniture apart from a bookshelf over flowing with books. No sofa, coffee table, stuff that normal humans need for every day life.
"Do you want a drink?" Naruto's attention was pulled away from the empty room to Aoi standing in her kitchen with her head in the fridge. At some point she had pulled off her shoes and pulled on a pair of bright pink fluffy socks with butterflies on them.
"Ermm….. Milk please? If you have any?" Naruto stuttered in her direction. She pulled out a big carton of milk and two glasses from a cabinet on the wall. She poured the milk and re-placed it back in the fridge. She walked over and handed Naruto both glasses and went over to the wardrobe and pulled two large cushions out and placed them in front of the window. She took one of the glasses back and sat down on one of the cushions. She turned and smiled and waved her hand at the other cushion inviting him to sit down. He sat down and sprawled his legs over the floor in front of him watching the sun set. They sat in silence for a while until Naruto broke the quiet.
"So what's your lot's deal?" He said seriously. Aoi gave him a confused look. "I mean your threatening some-one's well being each day, Kotori doesn't seem to talk about herself much, Tsukiko is always in a bad mood, Himeko seems full of it and Hotaru is always running after you lot." Aoi took a moment to think about it then started to speak
"Well we came from ANBU so we were under strict discipline and training all the time. We're all fairly normal I suppose we're just missing some sort of human formality I suppose. Like Sai when you met him had no emotions. We were all orphans, Kotori and I have been with the ANBU as long as we can remember. Himeko joined then Hotaru then Tsukiko she's the newest. We grew up together so we're like sisters and we all have back stories. Kotori was from a small village in the mountains that was burnt down by bandits, Kotori's mother brought her here to the leaf where she was put in the ANBU's institute. Himeko's parents abandoned her; the same with Hotaru and Tsukiko's clan was slaughtered. So we all became ANBU." Aoi replied feeling like a great weight had been lifted.
"So what are the human things or problems you have?" Naruto looking very interested.
"You really wanna know…?" Aoi asked hesitantly. Naruto nodded eagerly. "Well Kotori doesn't trust anyone with her problems. She trusts people but not with her own problems. She keeps everything locked away. Himeko doesn't know fear therefore she doesn't have common sense in some things and doesn't hold back in others. Tsukiko doesn't know happiness and Hotaru is over-protective of us all. We're her family and she doesn't want to lose us anytime soon." Aoi looked almost pained.
"So what's wrong with you?" Naruto feeling sorry for the burden they all had to carry of course he was an orphan too but he had a nice life he didn't grow up with out any emotions and he didn't have the hard life of ANBU training. Aoi looked him straight in the eye.
"I live in fear….. For everyone I love. I have a bad side, I know I do, and it does terrible damage, it will kill instantly if it wants too…." Tears were streaming down Aoi's cheeks. It was clear that something had obviously happened in the past. Naruto instinctively pulled Aoi in to a tight grip, holding her to him as close as he could get. He just let her weep on his chest until she fell asleep. He laid her down gently and walked over to where she had pulled her cushions. He slide the door open and sure enough there was a futon in there with pillows and a cover. He pulled it all out sorted it and placed her fragile body on the futon and pulled the covers over her. He wiped away a tear that was left on her cheek and let himself out. He went home and slept only for a couple of hours. He then sat and waited for the sun rise.
A/N Hey guys yeah this probably should have been at the beginning of the chapter but I forgot okay? n/n Okay so this one isn't in Naruto's point of view. Yes Aoi is growing pumpkins in her house. They get lots of light don't freak out tree huggers the massive window remember? She waters them all the time and sets jutsus on them when she's going to be away for a long time. So they are well looked after. There's no other reason for growing them she just likes the colour and like making Jack o lanterns. Yes I know she is me I'm a sad child. I am actually growing pumpkins. ^-^ This chapter was a funny one for me cause it didn't go the way I wanted it to go but I happy with the way it did. Next chapter won't be in any one's point of view either. The next chapter won't be up for a while I've got school stuff to do and I suppose it'll be a big chapter as well. This fanfic is longer than I planned :L
p.s. *spoiler* The slaughtered clan that was mentions was the Uchihas :O:O love you guys xxxx