Chapter 4

Call My Name

About one hour later both Team A and Team B had been assembled at Konoha's front gate. Tsunade had joined them there too, as did Shizune, to wish them off. This was perhaps the most critical mission Konoha had faced as of yet, and most of the ninja that were assigned to it had been nothing more than rookies no more than three years ago. The Fifth Hokage still wished she could have sent more with them, but they just didn't have the resources.

"You all understand what your duties are, correct?" Tsunade asked one last time. They nodded. "Remember, the most important thing to keep in mind is teamwork. Without each other, you don't stand a chance alone. We're all counting on you to complete this, so do your best! I will be sending any ninja I can after you as soon as they are available. Good luck, to all of you." Tsunade finished. With this pep talk burning in their hearts, the Konoha Shinobi departed their hometown to protect that which they loved.

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"Sasuke, wait." Karin piped up from behind him. The group stopped and waited for her to continue, their shadows extending far from the setting sun.

"What is it?" He asked darkly. Sasuke had been in a foul mood ever since the battle against Sakura. Even though he had fought her one-on-one, he had won the fight easily enough. But still, he couldn't help but be bothered by the appearance of his old teammate, as well as the words she had said. He wasn't deaf, and he had internalized everything that left her lips.

"It's just..." Karin paused, closing her eyes, "I sense someone coming this way. Four to be exact. They're...they're still a few miles away, but they're getting closer. And..." She paused, not sure how he would react to her last bit of news, "They're coming from the direction of Konoha." Everyone looked at Sasuke immediately, but he made no reaction to the news. He just...stood there, silent, for a long time.

"Fine..." Was all he said finally, and started walking again. In his mind, he knew why they were coming, Sakura had told them, and he just knew he'd be seeing more familiar faces very shortly. Particularly one with gritted teeth and whisker-like marks on either cheek. Because he was in front, he let himself crack a small smile, since no one would see his face. Naruto.

After all of the battles he had fought recently, Sasuke couldn't help but feel proud of himself. He would even dare to say he felt...invincible. He had beaten Orochimaru, the one man that no one could beat. And not only had he beaten him, but he had beaten him at his own game. Sasuke had been the one to absorb the white snake's power, and because of it, he had become so much stronger. Then there was the fight with Itachi. His own brother, whom he had vowed to kill even as a child. After so many years of hard work, he had completed his revenge on the man that wiped out his clan. Despite the fact that he had learned the truth about his brother, and felt bad for knowing how Itachi had lived such a ravenous life just for his sake, it was still a major victory for him. Then finally, he had defeated the Jinchuuriki of the Eight-Tailed demon. Every single one of these battles were against opponents that were previously thought unbeatable. Yet, Sasuke had beaten all of them with his power. Needless to say, he was on a roll. And after learning about the secret power of his Sharingan, he even knew how to beat Naruto.

Now, he was headed for Konoha, to complete a much larger revenge, and restore the reputation of his clan. And no one, not even Naruto, was going to stand in his way. Even thinking this though, he had to admit he was feeling a bit excited about seeing Naruto again. Although, he wasn't sure if it was because he wanted to see the look on his face when Sasuke beat him easily, or if somehow he still had feelings of friendship with the dunce buried deep in him, and that the thought of seeing his old friends face would be pleasantly nostalgic.

Either way, if it was Naruto coming after them at this time, then Sasuke wanted to face him alone. So he came up with a strategy to do just that.

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"Hinata! Anything yet?!" Naruto barked from up ahead. The Hyuuga girl was at the back of their group, trailing a bit from exhaustion. All this time, she had not turned off her Byakugan even once. She had chosen to be with Naruto and his team, and she had to be as helpful as she could possibly be. She couldn't let him down. She couldn't let even one thing slip past her.

"Naruto! Stop pestering her! You're wearing her out!" Kakashi called from the right. "You ask that every five minutes!" Naruto was silent.

"I-It's okay. I'm fine." Hinata insisted. Even though she knew she wasn't. She could feel the drops of sweat running down her forehead and she was getting a headache from the strain on her eyes. Still, she focused as hard as she could to see everywhere at once, and finally shook her head once more.

"Nothing." She reported. Naruto gritted his teeth.

"Damnit! Where's Sasuke?! It's getting dark!" He complained, frustrated. Somehow, Hinata couldn't help but feel as though this was her fault. If she could just see a bit farther, maybe she would be able to see him, and then Naruto wouldn't be so frustrated. That's what she thought. Suddenly, Kakashi purposefully missed the limb of an incoming tree, and dropped to the forest floor. It took a moment, but eventually even Chouji was gathered with him.

"Why did we stop?!" Naruto asked impatiently, "We still haven't even caught sight of-"

"Hinata..." Kakashi said calmly, ignoring Naruto. She looked up, surprised. "Just once more...can you try to see where Sasuke is?" She nodded.

"Of course." With the last bit of chakra, she pushed her Byakugan farther than ever before. She had to see him this time. For Naruto. And then...she did. At the very limit of her Byakugan's range, she could make out the chakra of four people, and on closer inspection, found it to be Sasuke's group. She was so surprised it took her a moment to report.

"Uh...I...I see him!" She exclaimed. Naruto's face brightened, and finally Hinata had to let her Byakuga fade from exhaustion. Kakashi and Chouji looked surprised as well.

"R-Really Hinata?!" Naruto asked excitedly. She smiled, happy to see him happy, and nodded.

"Y-Yes. He's very far away. I'm not sure how many miles." There was an audible sigh of relief from Kakashi.

"Is he on the move?" The jounin asked.

"No. They've stopped too. Probably for the night." She answered. He nodded.

"I was hoping you'd say that."

"Alright! Now's our chance to gain on him! Let's go!" Naruto cheered.

"We're setting up camp for the night." Kakashi stated, straightening and stretching a bit. Naruto looked utterly defeated.

"What?! But this is-"

"We're exhausted Naruto." Kakashi's only remaining exposed eye looked at Hinata. "All of us are. We're setting up camp. That's the end of it." He slipped off his pack and let it fall to the ground. Hinata looked down. She knew he was right, that she was very tired, but she also hated that he was right. She hated being so weak. Kakashi looked at Chouji.

"Chouji, would you please make us some dinner? I hear you're a good cook, and I think we'll all need a good meal for tomorrow." Chouji threw up a hand in salute.

"Yep! I'll take care of it!" The Akimichi boy responded.

"Good. I'll help you do that." He turned to Naruto. "Naruto, I need you and Hinata to go get some firewood. Can you handle that much?" Naruto frowned.

"...Fine." He finally replied.

"And don't even think about running off to catch Sasuke by yourself. I can trust you to stop him if he does, can't I, Hinata?" Kakashi asked gently, a bit of humor in his voice. She hesitated, then nodded with a smile.

"Of course."

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"It's getting late. We'd better stop for the night." Kurenai decided. Her group had been traveling non-stop, even as the moon rose, towards Amegakure. According to the reports, there were only five Akatsuki left. Tobi, Pein, Konan, Kisame, and Zetsu. After hearing about Jiraiya's death, they figured their best chance at running into an Akatsuki member would be to head for village of eternal rain, Pein's domain, Amegakure. Jiraiya had gone in alone, and that had been his demise. But, if it was the four of them, and with Jiraiya's riddle answered, they stood a good chance at defeating Pein.

iThe real one isn't with them.../i

Kurenai repeated the words in her mind as she came to a stop on the ground. She had only just been informed of the code and it's answer shortly before leaving. By force of habit she placed one hand on her rather large stomach while she thought. Kiba, Shino, and Ino had gathered before her by now.

"Whatcha thinking about, Sensei?" Kiba asked, breaking the silence. Akamaru panted behind him.

"Oh," She blinked, "N-nothing. Just that code that Jiraiya left behind after he fought Pein is all. Do you all remember what they told us the answer was? We need to remember that if we're going to stand a chance at this."

"Tch, what's this 'we' stuff, Sensei?" Kiba asked with a smirk.

"Yes, you are merely here to lead, Sensei." Shino agreed, "You are in no condition to do any fighting."

"Yeah, you gotta take care of the little one." Ino finished with a smile. Kurenai responded with a smile of her own.

"I know." She said thoughtfully. "Still, you do all remember it, don't you?" They nodded.

"iThe real one isn't with them./i" Ino started.

"That means that Jiraiya didn't fight the real Pein at all." Kiba continued.

"And Jiraiya knew every one of the 'Peins' from earlier times in his life. Which means..." Shino relayed.

"That the real Pein, with his Rin'negan, infiltrated Jiraiya's mind, looked at his memories, and then replicated them into his opponents appearances using Genjutsu to make him relive his own 'pain'." Kurenai finished. That was indeed what had been told to them by the Decoding Squad before they left. Of course, it could be speculation, but it was their best lead.

"Very good." She continued. "Now, let's set up camp for the night."