Disclaimer: Nope not rich. Don't own Naruto.
Chapter Five: Exposing the Hate
Sai came in with Yamato. They were followed a few minutes later by Sakura and then by Sasuke. Two and a half hours later a taped and bandaged Kakashi came in.
"Two and a half hours Kakashi? After Jiraiya and I just got through showing you our appreciation you still make me wait. Would you like to play some more, ToyBoy?" she yelled.
Kakashi gulped as his eye flew wide. He waved both hands in front of his chest while backing up to try and use his students for cover. Sakura and Sasuke just looked at him in puzzlement. What had he done now? "I was at the hospital getting bandaged up," he sputtered.
"Hokage-sama, you called us here for something. Make I ask, now that we are all here, that you tell us what it is?" asked Yamato bowing low before the upset Hokage. It wasan't that he felt any sympathy for the one-eyed ninja. Any sympathy he might have felt for him had died a long time back when he'd been assigned to team seven and discovered for himself what kind of a ninja Kakashi really was.
Tsunade got control of her temper and said, "As you may already know Naruto has come home. He is not the same boy he was six years ago. Six years of hibernation will do that to a person, I guess. He doesn't talk so well now but he said something today about that battle six years ago that I need clarification of. So I want each of you to recount as much as you remember about it."
"Dobe probably lied but as I wasn't involved I don't see how I can help," said Sasuke.
Tsunade glared at him. "I doubt it. You have to actually understand speech and be able to speak well in order to lie. Naruto doesn't. Nor did I expect you to remember anything since you weren't victorious in that battle," she sneered, causing Sakura to gasp. "I'm well aware you only remember your defeats so long as there is something you can learn from them but since you never do learn you obviously remember none of them."
Sasuke blinked. He wasn't used to people talking to him like that and it shocked him to hear it. "I can't help it I'm more powerful than he is. Maybe I would remember my defeats if they were actually brought about by skill instead of cheap tricks and luck. But cheap tricks and luck are all one such as myself can expect from someone such as him. It isn't my fault he's a loser from the gutters of society. But as I said, since I wasn't involved in the battle I don't see why you called me here for this. I need to practice and get stronger." He turned to leave but Tsunade stopped him before he'd taken more than a step.
She spoke over Sai as he muttered, "Yeah and it's not his fault you are a spoilt brat either but he never held it against you." Sai and Yamato were the only two people in the gathering that had no axe to grind against Naruto. Neither of them had ever tried to hurt him or use him towards their own gain. Both had wanted to understand the boy and help him if they could and both had come to quickly understand the dynamics of team seven. Tsunade said, "I did not dismiss you. You'll stay right here until I am sure there is nothing you can add to this recounting."
As Sasuke got into a glaring match with Tsunade, Sakura intervened. "I will tell you what I know," said Sakura puffing herself up with a sense of her own importance. "But Sasuke-kun is probably correct. Naruto may be a Dobe but he does understand how to talk. He probably did lie about it. He was always trying to claim Sasuke-kun's credit for victories in battle." She shrugged and smiled at Sasuke.
"Well, as Sasuke just admitted he wasn't involved in that battle, Naruto couldn't very well have been lying to take his credit now could he?" snapped Tsunade.
"Well, he also likes to take credit for other peoples battles also. He doesn't care who actually won a fight if he can find a way to make himself seem important he takes the credit. I know it was probably Kakashi-sensei who won the battle there or maybe Yamato-sensei since Sai was with me and Sasuke-kun." She didn't notice the glares and narrowed eyes of the others in the room. Sasuke did and so did Kakashi but Sakura was wrapped in her memories. Kakashi decided, for his own safety, he'd better try to recall as much as he possibly could about that messed up mission.
"Let's see now. As I remember it, when we reached the Sound Village we split up. Sai and I went to find Sasuke while Yamato-sensei and Kakashi-sensei had to drag Naruto off to find Orochimaru. He wanted to go get ramen if I remember correctly. Stupid Baka smelled the stuff as soon as we got close to the village and that was all he could talk about as we entered the town. You know Naruto. He can't resist an opportunity to pig out on that stuff."
"Anyway, as Sai and I headed for the tunnel we assumed would lead to the housing quarters, we began to encounter enemy ninja. Although they weren't very strong or capable, we fought a great many of them before we were able to break through. Sai helped a great deal with his inked animals but even so it was I who got us out of those tight quarters. I remember thinking the others would have an easier time reaching Orochimaru since Sai and I seemed to be fighting the whole mess of rogue nins in the tunnels. I punched a hole in a wall and found Sasuke fighting more nins on the far side of it. I climbed through alone because Sai was injured and went to aid Sasuke. I helped him finish the fight but I noticed one of his enemies had gotten lucky. He was injured and his chakra was nearly gone so I had to heal him up before I could help him to the surface."
"When I got there I saw Naruto just standing watching while Kakashi-sensei was standing guard over Yamato-sensei. I yelled at him to help Kakashi-sensei but didn't stick around to see if he listened. Kakashi-sensei probably didn't need his help anyway since we all know that Baka is more of a hindrance in a real battle than a help. I went back to where I'd left Sai and found another nin trying to sneak up on him. I dispatched that nin and healed Sai enough so that he could walk and helped him back up the tunnel. A couple more nins tried to attack us but I shattered the walls of the tunnel trapping them behind us."
"By the time we got back to the surface, the fight was over and Naruto stood in a mass of bloody bodies looking more like a beast of prey than a human being. He was all covered in gore and blood. Kakashi-sensei was trying to lift Yamato-sensei and carry him up to where Sasuke-kun was waiting. As I brought Sai over to the same spot, I yelled at Naruto. I remember there seemed to be a purplish haze over everything but I don't know why. Maybe it was just because I was nearly out of chakra after healing both Sasuke-kun and Sai, who should have been more careful. I told Naruto it was time to get his cowardly butt in gear since we were done now but he didn't move but I wasn't really paying much attention since Sasuke-kun's wounds had started bleeding again."
"Kakashi told me to help Sasuke-kun since he still wasn't up to moving far on his own and he picked up Yamato-sensei. Sai fell into step beside me and we left. The Baka didn't follow and I don't know why. When we made camp for the night I had recovered enough of my chakra to tend everyone's wounds. Sai was fine and I just needed to wake up Yamato-sensei but Sasuke needed some more serious care. His wounds had finally stopped bleeding but he was unconscious for some odd reason. Kakashi-sensei told me not to worry about him and to get some sleep. He watched over him that night while I slept. I expected Naruto to join us at the campsite, and was prepared to give him a piece of my mind for not helping Kakashi-sensei and Yamato-sensei in that battle they had, but when morning came, he hadn't shown. Sasuke needed medical attention so we decided to head back here and just reported him as missing."
Tsunade's eyes flashed. "So, basically, what I am hearing is that since you had the teammate you cared about, you wrote the other one off. Nice job, Sakura. Even I thought you had more heart than that and I know just how little heart you actually do have."
"But Sasuke-kun was injured fighting a much more difficult battle than any Naruto fought. Naruto should have been just fine. I'm still not convinced he fought anyone at all. When I saw him after I brought Sasuke-kun up, he wasn't fighting anyone. He was just standing there watching as the senseis fought. I've given it a lot of thought since then, Shishui. He betrayed us. He could have followed us if he wanted to but I guess he figured if the village would send us to bring back Sasuke-kun they'd send someone to bring him back also but he's not as important as my Sasuke-kun is. Just because they were both orphans doesn't mean they have equal status. My Sasuke-kun is way more important than that no-name Baka ever could hope to be. Stupid Baka."
Tsunade ignored the comments on Naruto's parentage and just addressed the rest of the statement. "How do you know? You never even checked on him did you? You just assumed he did nothing during the battle even though you admit he was covered in how did you put it? . . . Oh yes, blood and gore. You never checked to see how much of that blood was his, did you? You were the team medic. It was your job to make sure all your teammates were in an able condition to make it home again. But you didn't, did you?"
Sakura's eyes widened as she thought back and realized she hadn't thought about him being injured. Naruto was rarely ever hurt that badly in battles when she wasn't also. She had just assumed that because her battle hadn't been enough to hurt her that his hadn't either.
"Oh come on, Shishui. You always act like this where he's concerned and he is always just fine. That Baka is too stupid to get seriously hurt. That is, when you can get him to fight. Besides the only one he ever really does fight is Sasuke-kun and that's just cause he's jealous of him. My Sasuke-kun is the best ninja in this village. So no I don't believe he fought anyone there since Sasuke-kun was with me and therefore he wasn't injured at all."
"The only Baka I see is standing in front of me now making excuses for why she didn't do her job properly. No matter what you personally thought of the members of the team you were sent with you had the job of making sure they were all in proper condition to make it home at the end of the battle. That included Naruto. You were negligent in your duty. But we'll see what your teammates have to say as to whether he was also or not." Tsunade glared at her student with eyes that promised a world of pain for the arrogant girl in the next training session.