Chapter VI: Waiting to Die

"How much of human life is lost in waiting."- Ralph Waldo Emerson


Somewhere, deep down in a dark little place in his heart of hearts, where the last faintly glimmering speck of light that dared to believe-dared to hope-still flickered amongst the festering blackness that had long since consumed him, Naruto had always known it to be so.

The hair.

The eyes.

Kakashi's attitude.

Why his injuries healed abnormally fast.

Why the Sandaime treated him so.

It all came back to Minato Namikaze.

If Naruto were to be honest with himself, which he wouldn't of course, he would have to admit that he had been living in denial. No, the scared little boy inside him, the one thought long dead since the man in the alley, the one that rose from the dead during Kakashi's bell test, couldn't bear the thought that it was his own father that failed him so, shackled him to the Kyuubi, made him the wretch of an entire village- that his own father fucked him from the very start.

Mind-numbing though it all was, Naruto was honestly more stunned at what his "inheritance", as Sandaime put it, actually consisted of. Naruto didn't really need money, killing for the Brotherhood had left him rather well taken care of, but for some reason that escaped him Naruto had still been expecting a rather large check.

Some land.

Maybe even a few properties and businesses, too.

But that's not what was to be revealed when Naruto cut his thumb and offered the sealed envelope its blood sacrifice. Instead, the blonde jinchuuriki was presented with a set of trinkets and crumpled piece of paper.

The broken kunai, bracelet, and scroll lay discarded in favor of the aforementioned scrap, which Naruto was now holding as if it were holy scripture, shaking fingers reverently tracing the hastily scrawled note that proved his father had lived, once breathed and thought of him.

Son, I didn't have much time. It's not much, but I've managed to leave a little bit of everything that's important to me. Your mother and I love you more than anything, no matter what.

Naruto had not been prepared for this, anything but this- the blonde never expected to be cradling the sum of his father condensed into a few frantically scribbled sentences. How must have it felt, your imminent end pounding at the door in the form of the Kyuubi, forced to write down the only words your child would ever remember you by-

Naruto abruptly ended his traitorous line off thought, feeling uncomfortable at the foreign sensation of empathy now swelling in his breast and the many confusing thoughts and emotions it brought out in him.

"Money would have been sooo much simpler," Naruto sighed wistfully as he flicked his eyes towards the door Sandaime had quietly exited some fifteen minutes beforehand.

The old man had left Naruto with an envelope and a quiet apology buried in an invitation to meet and discuss things further when the jinchuuriki deemed himself ready.

The door had clicked quietly behind him.

It had been loud enough to reverberate throughout Naruto's entire being and shatter his already fractured world.

It hurt...

And that's why buried it. Brushed it aside to fester awhile. He could numb the pain now and let it explode later much more terribly, but at least it wouldn't be today. Not the morning he started missions, shitty, bottom-of-the-barrel menial tasks.

But D-ranks still paid.

And the world kept spinning, life never stopped.

Naruto Uzumaki didn't have time to reinvent himself.

He was in too deep, already. This was just more fuel for the fire, and now, with what he knew and what he had... maybe, if he was lucky, he could come out just a little further than he was originally intended.

The young genin gathered the three items, sparing an extended glance at the broken kunai, and placed them on his living room table. Naruto's eyes lingered on the intricate seals carved into the hilt of the bladed weapon, as he rose to fetch a sealing scroll from his room.

"Soon," he thought as he sealed the items, vowing to have a sealing tattoo inked onto his wrist in order to keep the scroll on him at all times. "But not today, not now."

Naruto hid the scroll in his closet and walked to the door, preparing to collect payment from Hiashi before he was meant to meet with his team for their first round of missions.

His thoughts strayed briefly towards how best to ignore Hinata and get out of seeing her, another problem he found himself unprepared for.

He stepped outside and strode off, the door quietly clicking shut behind him.


"So this is really happening, huh...?"Naruto thought as he stared dolefully at his jonin sensei.

"Does anyone have any questions about our first mission!" The masked man practically gushed, barely able to hide his joy at his mulish students' misery.

"...Seriously," Sakura started, again, "we have to do this? Someone is willing to pay us to do this?"

The pink haired girl glanced at her two teammates for support. "Why are you both looking at me like I'm the crazy one full of shit? They're paying us to plow a field! We're ninja, we-"

"Sakura," Kakashi smoothly interrupted, "and other students for that matter, these missions are vital in building the foundation for our teamwork and synergy. It's important that we learn to work together before we head out into the field, where, no matter how little, we run the risk of encountering enemy shinobi."

The masked ninja gestured to the farm surrounding Team 7. "It just so happens that nothing hammers the lesson home quite like rigorous training mixed with a healthy diet of farm labor, dog walking, pet retrieval, and fence painting."

Sakura looked around fruitlessly.

Naruto was contemplating a pair of children chasing a gaggle of chickens.

Sasuke... was Sasuke; his eyes were closed as he pretended to ignore the world around him.

A cow mooed in the distance.

"No one is complaining but you, Sakura," Kakashi pointed out, "Sasuke and Naruto are on board!"

Kakashi sighed as the Uchiha spared a moment to open his eyes and affix the jonin with a withering glare that conveyed loathing only Sasuke could muster, before quietly trudging off towards the plowing harnesses that they would use to get the fields ready.

Team 7's lone kunoichi looked to Naruto, only to find the blonde already resigned to following after Sasuke.

"Everyone's on the trolley but you, Sakura..." Kakashi offered, causing the girl to huff and angrily stalk after her teammates.

The jonin could only chuckle quietly, pulling out Icha Icha Paradise, as his student mumbled suggestions on where he could stick his trolley.


Seven days.

It had only been seven days.

Seven days that were a blur of overly tedious D-ranked missions that were insufferably, mind-numbingly boring.

Then there was the training.

The blonde jinchuuriki rubbed the quickly fading bruise from the morning's training session. "Training," it seemed, consisted of relentless three-on-one sparring until Kakashi was convinced that his students had been sufficiently beaten into submission. Every day, without fail, the genin cell sparred until one team member was made to yield.

Such training meant that the jonin's students often went home in a rather tender and battered condition, and its repetition ensured that Sasuke, Naruto, and Sakura were stripped of any potential inklings of grandeur; they were the exceedingly talented students, but Kakashi was still the teacher, and he made damn sure they remembered the fact.

It was bitter work, but the results spoke for themselves. The genin cell was learning cohesion as the three students were forced to constantly devise ever-evolving tactics to take down a stronger opponent, constantly straining their limits and breaking points, teaching them a lesson most shinobi were forced to learn at the mercy of an enemy nin.

Never relent.

Always adapt.

Never stop pressing forward.

"Even in the face of insurmountable odds,"Naruto added in his head, vaguely aware of the voice speaking to the room.

He still hadn't spoken to Hinata, Hiashi would say something soon if he began to suspect that Naruto was not holding up his end of the bargain.

The blonde genin's eyes affixed themselves on the genial Hokage. Sarutobi was making quite the show with Kakashi about which mission would best challenge his fledgling team. The two were drunk on the joy of torturing the genin with the excess labor demands of the village. Naruto watched as the Hokage extracted a lone scroll from the pile marked "D" and offered it to Kakashi. He grit his teeth.

He was wallowing, backsliding. It was time for a change of pace.

"...it shouldn't be too difficult, Kakashi, I'd bet they could have it done by noon if you pushed them," Sarutobi eyed Team 7 speculatively, "Yomitsu-san's orchard isn't that big-"

"No."

The temperature dropped ten degrees as Naruto found himself pinned under Hiruzen's icy stare.

"Let us try a C-rank mission, Hokage-sama, we've learned all manual labor is gonna teach us," the disrespectful genin hastened to add, gesturing to Team 7 as a whole, "My teammates and I feel we've earned our opportunity to prove ourselves." Naruto finished in forced politeness, his eyes betraying him and defiantly daring Sarutobi to contradict him, to deny him now after the mess he just shit into Naruto's life.

The old man glared at the stubborn genin, both disgruntled and impressed by the boy's cheek. Sarutobi huffed before turning his attention to the last Uchiha.

"Sasuke-kun," the Sandaime began, pausing when a pair of blood-red eyes cracked open to regard him, "do you agree with your teammate? Do you also feel that Team 7 is ready to attempt a mission of higher rank?"

The raven-haired teen's Sharingan whirled lazily while his calculating gaze swept over his team. "The manner in which Kakashi-sensei beats us leads me to believe that our duties are meant to encompass more than just manual labor, Hokage-sama," the Uchiha began flatly, his gaze pinning itself on his grinning sensei, affixing the man with its most loathsome glare. "I believe myself ready to begin instruction in those duties."

Hiruzen nodded and looked to the kunoichi. "Sakura-chan?"

"I agree!" She spilled out before nodding to herself reassuringly. "I have faith in Naruto and Sasuke, harvesting crops can only take us so far, anyway..."

The Hokage smiled inwardly before turning to Kakashi, letting the obvious question hang, unspoken, in the air for the man to consider.

Indeed, it was quite the spot for the jonin to suddenly find himself thrust into. Was his team ready? Sure, bullshit D-missions did little more than cover the village's unwanted jobs and provide Kakashi with what amounted to free money—it's like they paid him to read Icha Icha—but the field held many unforeseen dangers.

But what choice did he honestly have? His students couldn't waste away much longer. He was supposed to train the precocious little bastards, was he not? Surely beating them mercilessly had at least prepared them for the average violent confrontation, right?

"...I suppose my students have shown quite a bit of growth, Hokage-sama," the copy-ninja ceded painfully slow. Always one to be described as "casually aloof"-Sasuke had the look, but lacked the attitude-even Kakashi could not shirk the tugging of his heart strings upon hearing Sakura's words of faith. The cycloptic jonin wanted desperately to believe her, to be able to dump all his sparkly hope and belief into his student without fear of consequence.

Kakashi was very much the virgin desperate to throw her faith and belief at her first boyfriend right now.

The man looked to his three genin. Sakura was all smiles, practically glowing with eagerness, ready for her first foray into the world outside the village. Sasuke, the picture of insufferable indifference, leaned against the wall behind Sakura with his eyes shut to the world- the boy's stance might as well have been a ballot in a box. In front of them all stood Naruto, quietly smoldering at the Hokage, forgetting that he doesn't have petty emotions like "scared," "upset," and "uncertain" because he's too busy telling the world to fuck off at the moment. Kakashi should have been weeping with pride, he'd never seen his students so driven and united, but the man knew better. Having been the blushing virgin, once, he knew the truth.

"First times always hurt,"Kakashi thought wistfully.

No, he had graduated, he was now the lying boyfriend meant to teach these things, at least his genin would get their cherries popped on a simple C-rank, not in the heat of war with the bodies of their fellow shinobi collapsing into pools of their own blood all around them. Kakashi sighed audibly upon the realization that it was time to teach.

"I believe they can handle it, Hokage-sama." The jonin sensei assented.

Kakashi immediately regretted his actions upon seeing the evil grin that carved itself into Hiruzen's wizened face.

"I have just the one, Kakashi, a learning mission, if you will..." The Hokage began, extracting a scroll from his desk before pressing a button on his intercom that caused it to hum with static, "Could you please send in Tazuna-san...?"


Naruto scoffed as he examined the array of weapons laid out before him on his bed. He had two hours to pack and prepare to escort their... client to Wave. A simple task that shouldn't require more than the Ebony Blade, if the bandits even decided to bother attacking.

"Which they probably won't,"the genin thought ruefully as he put his excess weapons up, grabbing a few kunai and shuriken to use just in case he got bored. Naruto made his way to the front door at a sedated pace, not looking forward to seeing Hinata before he left. He owed it to the girl to at least try to catch her before he departed for the next week or so, and he owed it to Hiashi to at least leave her with a few jutsu to practice.

It was with an air of melancholy that the young genin locked his apartment up and departed for the Hyuuga compound. If he hurried, Naruto could make it over and still have roughly an hour to say what he needed to say and teach what he needed to teach. Thankfully, running atop Konoha's roofs made the trek to the Clan District rather pain-free and the jinchuuriki soon found himself arriving at the Hyuuga compound's main gate. A pair of strained nods later, and Naruto was shuffling through, heading towards the gardens where the sound of combat met his ears.

Upon rounding the corner, Naruto was greeted with the sight of Hinata engaged with another unknown Hyuuga. Byakugans activated, the two Hyuuga charged at each other again, the male Hyuuga, Naruto noted, was moving much faster than Hinata.

The boy ducked under Hinata's initial strike, delivering a pair of light taps to the underside of the girl's outstretched arm, causing her to flinch back in pain. Naruto grimaced as the unknown Hyuuga used this opening to deliver a juuken strike to Hinata's exposed side.

The girl recovered quickly, forcing the boy back with a succession of quick strikes aimed at his eyes and neck. The gambit paid off and Hinata was granted with a few more inches of separation that she used plant her feet and follow through with a series of strikes aimed at her opponent's midsection.

Hinata's initial blow was well placed, striking the boy at the base of his sternum, but her combination quickly crumbled when she gave a shuddering cough that forced her to retreat. The girl's breathing became labored as her sides quivered with every pained and shaking breath.

Naruto glared hatefully as he caught the grin on the boy's face when he advanced on Hinata, mercilessly striking the weakened arm Hinata was forced to throw up to defend herself. The grin grew wider when he saw her withdraw the limb, lashing out with a desperate strike that he capitalized on, batting it harmlessly away.

He smiled as she stumbled, exposing her side, and he took aim for that exact same tenketsu.

The wind blew and the leaves rustled softly as Hinata fell backwards, suddenly pushed away from her attacker, when Naruto steeled up his stance. The jinchuuriki's eyes narrowed dangerously when he felt the foreign chakra whistle past his face, heating his cheek.

"That's enough, I'll take over from here." Naruto leered, his voice brokering no argument.

Pale eyes regarded him mockingly. "Hinata-sama's lesson is not yet complete..."

Naruto stepped forward as the boy snatched his hand away. "Yes it is. Go the fuck away, asshole."

Blue eyes met milky white as the two boys sized each other up. Naruto's hands went to his katana, thumbing it free from its scabbard.

The opponent struck first, forcing Naruto to step back in order to avoid having his eyes put out from the other boy's juuken strike. The Hyuuga took advantage of this, stepping forward and using his left hand to push Naruto's sword back into its scabbard.

The blonde swung his free arm up to parry a fresh strike to his left side from his assailant's other hand, gritting his teeth as the foreign chakra invaded him with a needling sensation. Naruto gave an enraged growl as he again left himself open for the Hyuuga to grab onto the Ebony Blade and plant his other knee closer, ensuring that the two combatants remained closely locked together.

Naruto lashed out with his free left hand, his hook missing the Hyuuga boy's chin; the genin grinned viciously when his opponent attempted to parry his strike rather than simply dodge it, and grabbed the surprised attacker by his wrist.

The Byakugan user's eyes widened comically as a head of golden locks swung forward and smashed into his nose, causing him to stumble backwards and howl in pain.

Minato Namikaze's only living descendant drew his sword and leered victoriously as he watched his opponent's broken nose gush a stream of warm blood.

The Hyuuga quickly recovered his bearings and made to set upon Naruto one more time, pausing once his pale eyes regarded the drawn katana the jinchuuriki now held in his hands. Loathing boiled inside the young Hyuuga at the sight of his blonde nemesis, but it was not enough to completely overpower his better judgment.

Naruto whistled innocently as he toyed with his sword. "What's the hold up, Hyuuga-san? Our lesson isn't over, yet..."

"I will end your miserable existence, fool. I need no blade to cut you down." The boy challenged as he readied his stance once more.

"Stop it, both of you!" Hinata finally demanded, panting at the effort of rising to her feet. "Neji-niisan," she bit out bitterly, "thank you for the spar, but I need to speak with Naruto."

The girl put on her most defiant glare, secretly hoping that Neji would not put her in an even more awkward situation than the one she already found herself floundering in.

"Then I leave you in Naruto-san's... capable hands. Until tomorrow, then, Hinata-sama." The boy muttered silkily, turning on his heel and promptly striding off.

Naruto didn't like the tone of his farewell, the blonde knew that Hinata would pay for his actions the next time she sparred with this "Neji." After his new Hyuuga acquaintance disappeared behind a corner, presumably to attend to his nose, Naruto turned around to face a frowning Hinata.

"I don't like him."

"No," the heiress sighed, "I didn't think you would."

"Are all of your sparring sessions like that?" Naruto asked as he watched Hinata favor the side Neji had struck.

She shrugged. "More or less. Neji has never been known to hold back, Naruto-kun."

It took all of Naruto's willpower not to grimace in frustration as he followed the girl to a bench a few steps away from the sparring area. Why did women insist on being so difficult? He knew that he was here to apologize, Hinata knew it too! The pale-eyed girl, however, seemed intent on her refusal to broach the subject, seemingly content to let the stifling awkwardness envelop them both until Naruto chose to break the subject.

"Goddamnit, Hinata," the Kyuubi vessel groaned, "why are you making this so difficult? You know why I'm here, I know why I'm here- I'm sorry, okay? I shouldn't have yelled at you like that."

Naruto plopped down next to Hinata with an exasperated huff, his eyes still locked on the area where Neji had struck her.

The girl turned a solemn eye to regard him quietly before finally speaking. "We both knew that I would forgive you, Naruto-kun." Hinata smiled sadly as she gripped Naruto's hand in her own delicate one. "You know I can never stay mad at you, no matter what- I'm weak like that."

The jinchuuriki ran his thumb over the silken skin before reaching over and gently lifting the side of Hinata's shirt, causing the girl to blush brightly as he revealed an expanse of creamy, white flesh marred by angry red and purple where Neji's invading chakra had been forced into her tenketsu.

"Does it still hurt?" Naruto asked, looking up at her, tearing his eyes away from her injury and locking them with hers.

"N-not really. Neji's chakra is already naturally dissipating." On cue, Hinata took another shuddering breath, clutching her quaking sides as she spasmed painfully.

Naruto committed the name Neji to memory as he watched his friend attempt a few shallow breaths to recollect herself, vowing to finish teaching the cruel Hyuuga his lesson.

"But breathing will be rather taxing for another hour or so..." Hinata added with a shaky laugh that died in her throat when she felt Naruto's knuckles ever so lightly ghost over the flesh covering her ribs as he slid her shirt back down, sending a shiver through the girl that resonated the very base of her spine.

The Hyuuga heiress sucked in another piercing breath and turned to find her blonde friend nodding to her contemplatively.

There was a pause where they merely sat, Naruto picking his words carefully, Hinata content with just being near him.

"You're not weak," Naruto finally began. The blonde jinchuuriki made sure he held her attention before continuing on. "No one else puts up with me like you do, no one tries like you do."

"You have Shikamaru-kun as well-"

"Not the same," Naruto interrupted with a shake of his head. "Shikamaru's great and all, but we both know it's not the same. You need to stop selling yourself short, Hinata-chan. It manifests itself in many ways; respect is important, and you have to demand it. From me, from your family, and from yourself."

Hinata nodded stiffly, finding Naruto's words rooted in bitter truth. "I'm trying."

"Good. And I've got some things for you to work on for your next spar with Neji as well."

That certainly piqued the kunoichi's interest. "Really, Naruto-kun? What do you have in mind?" She asked eyeing the scroll Naruto was now handing her.

"Sealed in that scroll are some reading materials for you to peruse while I'm away. Of particular importance is a chart of various nerve clusters and pressure points; memorize the ones I've noted and be able to identify them on an opponent's body." Naruto instructed as he checked through his other equipment.

Hinata nodded in understanding, vowing to impress Naruto when next she saw him. The notion, however, shone new light on Naruto's earlier words.

"...While you're away," she repeated softly, looking to Naruto questioningly. "Are you leaving the village, Naruto-kun?"

"Right in one, Hinata. Team 7 is off on its first ever C-rank mission! Why, whatever is a young, proper ninja to do outside the city walls?" the blonde gushed in mock sincerity causing his friend to giggle softly.

"You should be excited, Naruto-kun. I've only gotten to leave the village three times in my life, and I've treasured each experience. There is an amazing world out there, Naruto-kun, shinobi are some of the few people who will get to see an expansive stretch of it!"

The kunoichi paused, briefly considering her words to Naruto. "Just be careful, and come back safely," she added as an afterthought.

Naruto chuckled. "There's no need to worry, we're just escorting some drunk back home, protecting him from bandits and shit... that's if any bandits are brave enough to attack us..."

He shook his head, sighing. "...which they won't be."

"You should still take care to remain cautious, Naruto-kun," Hinata protested as Naruto rose to leave.

"You don't have to take care of me, Hinata, I'm a big boy."

The girl rose to hug him, catching his eye one last time before letting go. "I have to; if I don't, no one else will, not even you, Naruto-kun."

The two shared another look, neither knowing what to say next.

Naruto settled for a nod of his head.

Hinata sighed.

And then he was gone.


"...if no one else has any further questions on our objective for the day, I'll take the lead," Kakashi muttered sullenly, vowing to beat his students harder for saddling him with this mission.

Team 7 fell into step behind the jonin, Sasuke taking the rear while Naruto and Sakura flanked Tazuna.

"...Sooo, Tazuna-san," Naruto drawled, "what is that you do, again?"

The older man eyed the blonde teenager suspiciously. He was the type, down to a "T"- the kind that'd stand on a man's grass even though he'd been told to keep off the grass.

"Little bastard..."He thought darkly. "I work in construction, boy. I'm overseeing the bridge that's gonna connect Wave to tha' mainland."

"I see, makes sense enough. You got a family?"

"Daughter and grandson," Tazuna grunted. "Light of my life, apple of my eye, shining beacon... the whole nine yards." The bridge builder continued to eye his blonde escort speculatively. The boy proved hard to read, despite the odd manner in which he carried himself; like a man too caught up in other places to ever be truly invested in the present.

Tazuna noticed this trait in each of his hired guard, he thought it might stem from the paranoia that must be associated with being a ninja. They seemed to be in a constant state of barely controlled excitement, ready for the next ambush.

The next attack.

The next death.

The next kill.

"It must be a sight when they finally snap..."The old man lamented sadly, pulling a ceramic bottle from his waist and taking a long pull. The sake's familiar burn chased itself back up his chest, hugging him in that comforting way that no other human ever could. The simple act, much to Tazuna's chagrin, did not go unnoticed by Naruto.

"How 'bout you share the wealth, Tazuna-san, I'd sure appreciate it..." He fished, waggling his eyebrows suggestively while his grin strained the fabric of his mask.

"Aren't you a little young to be drinkin', boy?" Tazuna asked suspiciously, eyeing Naruto under closer scrutiny between swigs.

"Look, Tazuna-san, I'm gonna level with you-"

The bridge builder raised an eyebrow questioningly when the kunoichi of the group snorted derisively.

"Shut up, Sakura," Naruto hissed before turning back to Tazuna. "Ignore her, it's her period-"

"-fuck you, Naruto-"

"-and she's hysterical, first time out of the village, really tragic. But, to honestly level with you, it is a bit distressing to leave the village for the first time. It's taxing on the nerves to say the least. And, I don't know about you, but a decently stiff drink usually calms my nerves." The blonde jinchuuriki nodded sagely, impressed at his sound logic.

"In fact," he continued, hitting his stride, "it's really in your best interest, Tazuna-san. You want me at my best, I promise. I'd even go so far as to say that I could guarantee you a little extra protection! It's obvious that we're gonna get that job done, but I can guarantee you even better. No scratches. Bandits don't even get close enough to spit on you- got someone that needs killing? Let me know, I aim to please!"

"N-needs killing...?" The old man spluttered, spilling sake down his face in the process. "You'd kill someone, just like that, if I asked you to?"

"Well..." Naruto began before motioning towards the sake, clearly indicating that he would have to be pried for more.

The old man looked like he would continue to decline, but the young shinobi had already captivated his attention. "Go on, then..." He encouraged, taking another swig of the liquor and handing it to the blonde.

Naruto clutched the bottle greedily as he slid down his mask before taking a mightily impressive pull that he capped off with a satisfied sigh as the alcohol's burn swelled in his chest. "Normally, Tazuna-san, the taking of 'personal' assassination missions—missions not contracted through the village—is deemed an offense, some might even say it was murder!"

"'Murder?'"

"Yup!" Naruto answered cheerfully before taking another swig and passing the bottle back to Tazuna. "Buuut, if I were to, say, 'murder' that landlord who's been hassling you because he or she was involved in the 'plot' to assassinate you, well then I'm just doing my job.

"With extreme prejudice." The jinchuuriki added, accepting the sake bottle when Tazuna passed it back to him.

"Ignore him, Tazuna-san," Sakura interrupted, finally reaching the end of her silence. "my teammate speaks of such matters as if they were simple black-and-white choices, not the incredibly complex legal—and not to mention moral, Naruto—situations that they would in fact prove themselves to be!"

"Mere details, Tazuna-san," Naruto waved off, irritating Sakura further, "that are for me, not yourself, to worry about. Like I said earlier, I intend to ensure that you get the best protection possible!"

The genin reiterated his statement with a sly wink and another swig of sake after Tazuna again handed him the bottle.

The kid made a halfway decent argument, despite being full of shit. Strange enough, however, the old bridge builder didn't get the impression that Naruto would have any qualms backing up his claims if push came to shove.

Plus, he was a decent drinking partner, for a kid. He could keep up, at least.

"So... your teacher isn't gonna be mad at you for drinking right now?" Tazuna asked as Naruto passed him the sake.

"Mmm... that depends, I suppose," he hazarded.

"Depends on what?" Tazuna demanded, passing the now precariously low sake bottle back to his drinking partner.

"On whether or not I hold my shit together—when and if—things get... sticky, Tazuna-san." Naruto answered, a blue eye peering into the sake bottle reproachfully. "'slong as I can perform my duties, I'm doing my job! Right now, keeping you alive is primary objective number one, and it's gettin' done!"

"I'll always have my eye on you, Naruto," Kakashi called from behind his Icha Icha book, "so I'd advise you to be on your best behavior at all times, because I'll be watching."

The blonde jinchuuriki repressed a shudder at his sensei's tone, the man could hawk him twenty-four/seven and Naruto would be powerless to stop him.

"Sasuke, take the lead for a while," Kakashi called, halting and waiting for the Uchiha to approach him before he continued to address his team as a whole. "Alright kids, I'm a firm believer in the 'hands-on' approach, it's something I've inherited from my sensei- you learn by doing."

The man smiled to himself as he watched his students brighten up. "That means," he continued, "that whoever is on point is calling the shots- to a certain degree. We all know what the mission is and everyone is going to have an opportunity to showcase how they think the team as a whole should get it done."

Tazuna watched as the tall man made his way to the rear of the group, masked face already buried behind his precious orange book.

The quiet giggles made the old bridge builder uncomfortable.

Naruto, on the other hand, was intensely scrutinizing his raven-haired teammate from the other side of Tazuna's sake bottle. The blonde boy was drinking in everything about the situation, sake included, in an attempt to divine its meaning.

Why did Kakashi-sensei choose that exact moment to change the lead.

What exactly fell under the jurisdiction of "calling the shots?"

Why did Sasuke get to go first?

Would Sakura get to go next?

"Fuck that..." Naruto mumbled darkly, his blue eyes burning a hole into his teammate's back. If Sasuke was nervous at all about being handed the reins, he was doing an exceptional job of hiding it, Naruto decided grudgingly. The Uchiha carried himself as he always did, with that insufferable air of uninvolvement, as he scanned the trees surrounding them with his Sharingan. Naruto allowed himself a few more dark, ego-stroking thoughts before turning his attention to the now empty sake bottle in his hand.

"Whatcha' doing over there, boy? Any left?" Tazuna asked, suddenly, breaking the genin's concentration.

"Nothing, just checking the label," he answered, indicating the bottle's red label, "I was wondering who made this stuff, it's pretty fucking good!"

"Made in good ol' Wave Country!" The man proclaimed proudly. "Wave's known for its sake, I'll show you a place or two around town, sake lover's delight, I promise!"

Naruto stiffened slightly, watching Sasuke, before continuing on as if he were uninterrupted. The blonde genin's free hand slipped surreptitiously to his waist. "I'm sure we'll have some free time once we get you safely back home, Tazuna-san; God knows we could all use a stiff drink, right, Sakura-chan?"

"You know I don't drink, Naruto," the girl deadpanned.

"First time for everything," he shot back pointedly, eyes flicking about as they scanned the area. "It'd be fun, ya know... you, me, and all the sake we would ever need."

Sakura turned in Naruto's direction, witty retort already poised to fire, and was stopped abruptly when she found the blonde suddenly invading her personal space. "N-Naruto! The fuck-?" She spluttered, confused by his actions.

The slightly inebriated jinchuuriki drew on the liquid courage coursing its way through his body and pulled the girl close, his bottle-free arm snaking around her exposed midriff.

"We would sit out on the beach, you know..." Naruto breathed huskily, his fingers causing a wave of goose bumps to bloom on Sakura's skin as they traced tight little circles just east of her navel. "the waves, crashing against the shore... birds singing as they floated by on the salty breeze..."

Sakura shivered when Naruto pulled her closer, her body mewling into his embrace of its own accord as he brought the pair of them to a complete stop.

"We could be so good together, Sakura-chan," Naruto whispered. The teen was all groping limbs, burning eyes, and breath heavy with alcohol that caused each word to tumble out, saturated in pure want, as if it were the last line tying her to existence.

Idly, the girl's hand fisted in Naruto's chest, grasping the black cloth of his shinobi shizokou with an iron grip as several realizations crashed down upon her in orgasmic epiphany.

Firstly, the girl realized how good it felt to be wanted. She had no real definitive feelings towards Naruto, she just kinda knew him, but there was no denying the excitement that swelled in her chest when he looked her in the eyes like she was the only thing he would ever care to see, held her like he'd never let her go, and touched her like he'd want nothing more than to put his hands anywhere and everywhere besides where one currently rested just above her hip. It sure as hell wasn't love and the reason behind it was lost to Sakura, but she knew he was genuine- he honestly desired her.

The second realization was the one that almost brought her to tears: Sakura was a very lonely person. The girl wanted love, affection, caring, someone to hold her, tell her she wasn't worthless and plain and average... the overwhelming hopelessness of it threatened to overtake her as she realized she didn't know what the fuck she wanted, she just knew she no longer wanted to feel and think the way she did, wanted to be anyone but herself.

It hurt too much, she needed it to stop.

But filling a God-shaped hole is a daunting task when you're thirteen, insecure, and still living with your mother.

Sakura decided that change was in order.

"At least I know what I need to do now..."she thought to herself, choosing to ignore that she had no ideas how to actually accomplish her goals and instead turn all of her brainpower towards addressing her third, and arguably most intriguing, realization.

Naruto's fingers.

They weren't wantonly caressing her exposed flesh like she had originally assumed, they were tapping her.

In a repeating pattern.

Same intervals, same amount of time between every pause and every tap.

The morse code message was clear:

Unknown threat ahead.

"...Get the fuck off, Naruto!" The girl exclaimed, shoving her teammate away and dropping her hand down to pass on the message to Kakashi. "Getting shit-faced less than three hours into your first real mission isn't very professional." The seriousness of the situation seemed to sap the blush from her cheeks that had originally bloomed under Naruto's actions as her eyes cleared into hardened jade chips that relentlessly scanned the surrounding area for the aforementioned threat.

The trees whispered quietly as the breeze flitted though their leaves, each one a hidden perch for anyone looking to get the drop on unsuspecting passers-by.

Innocent foliage had never seemed so sinister.

Sakura suddenly felt horribly exposed.

"Jeez, Sakura, you don't have to be so violent, a simple 'yes, take me now, Naruto-kun' would have sufficed," the blonde admonished as he passed along another silent message, equally as troubling as the last. "Genjutsu."

"I swear to fucking God, Naruto, if you don't shut the fuck up, I'm gonna take this kunai and-"

"Sakura."

"...yes, Sasuke-kun?" the girl blinked.

"Shut the fuck up."

The kunoichi sighed dejectedly, vowing to break words with the blonde little shit once night fell and they made camp... it would be so easy, all she'd need to do was ask Naruto to take a walk with her to patrol and lead off with a little extra sway in her hips and she'd have Naruto's balls on a dish.

Hell, if she managed to track down some sake, the whole affair would be at least ten times easier and he'd keep paying till tomorrow afternoon.

Revenge, served cold with a side of hangover.

Anko would be so proud.

"She'd probably still have sex with him, though... eww..."Sakura thought with a shudder, as several unbidden images came to mind. Team 7's kunoichi quickly distracted herself with thoughts of how to best drown Naruto, sparing one last derisive snort for the blonde asshole as she watched Naruto carelessly drop his sake bottle on the ground.

The kunoichi quickly drowned out his ranting.

"Aww... what a swell leader," Naruto griped sarcastically, toeing around a puddle. He had caught the most recent exchange of orders between Sasuke and their sensei; he wasn't pleased. "I can see why you picked Sasuke, Kakashi-sensei, whatever would we do without him?"

Naruto was jealous, Kakashi's message had been clear.

"Follow Sasuke's lead."

"We might as well change the name to 'Team Sasuke,'" the jinchuuriki continued, poking the bridge builder conspiratorially in the ribs. "My talents are grossly under appreciated by the general masses, Tazuna-san."

He sniffed dramatically.

"Naruto," Kakashi began, pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration, "everyone's going to get a turn, I prom- urk!"

It happened immediately. Tazuna barely had time to start scrambling backwards before they leapt, exploding out of the puddle and twisting themselves about in the air before landing on each side of the masked join.

The terrified bridge builder's startled cry died in his throat as he felt himself suddenly fly away, shocked eyes mortifyingly stuck on the falling chunks of the former Konoha-nin.

Sasuke used his Sharingan to hastily cast a genjutsu on the chopped remains of Kakashi's kawarimi, making it appear as if the surprise attack had actually caught them off guard.

The Uchiha glanced back, making sure that Sakura was on top of their client.

He passed another round of hand signs with Naruto.

Sasuke could do nothing but scowl hatefully at the blonde genin as he refused to obey his commands.

"Littering, you disrespectful little shit? At least have some fucking decency, eh?" The taller of the two asked, his words burbling out of the respirator strapped to his face. "Your sensei shoulda taught you fucks some manners before taking wet genin out into the big bad world!" He threatened in a wet snarl.

"Ease up, there, Gouzu," Sasuke narrowed his eyes warily at the sinister claws extending from their chained gauntlets, "we could still work this out– maybe let them live…"

Gouzu blinked, turning his head. "…no we can't, Meizu, you know that…"

Sasuke idly noted that the Kiri insignias on both shinobi's hitai-ate had a jagged gash running through each of them.

Meizu seemed to reconsider, grabbing the sake bottle Naruto had dropped moments before from the ground. "You're right, we cant't– BUT!" he shouted warningly upon seeing the three genin tense in anticipation, "perhaps we can make it… humane, if you cooperate with us."

"It's the least we could do for a litter bug, ya know…" his brother tacked on helpfully, pointing at Naruto and jerking his head towards the empty bottle.

"…don't idiot!" Sasuke hissed angrily.

"Eat a bag of dicks, Sasuke!" The blonde spat back venomously.

"Goddamnit, Naruto, I said no! Listen to my–"

"And I'm telling youthat it'll work, asshole," the jinchuuriki countered heatedly, taking a step forward, "What part of that fucking statement are you having trouble listening to!"

"Can't you just follow directions for once, Naruto?" Sakura added exasperatedly, pulling out a kunai from her leg holster.

"It'll work, goddamnit–!"

"—that's not the point, you retard—"

"Ah hem!" Gouzu coughed thickly, "Do any of you greener-than-grass-stains genin have a fuckingclue who it is exactly that you're dealing with?"

Team 7 stared back blankly, their argument momentarily forgotten.

"It's a sad day when little genin are no longer taught to fear Kirigakure's finest, brother." Meizu simpered in mock admonishment. "Do they not spread horror stories of the 'Bloody Mist' in your village, litter bug," he asked, leering at Naruto. "Did your sensei not endeavor to warn you of the demons that lurk about before he was ushered from this world?"

"Did yours," the Uchiha sneered, pointing between the two nuke-nin, "never teach you to look underneath the underneath?"

The two brothers instantly tightened their stances upon seeing the mangled evidence of the jonin's kawarimi.

Meizu's grip tightened on the sake bottle.

Gouzu raised his gauntlet aggressively.

"Hey, asshole," the blonde spoke suddenly, raising his hands slowly "if that wasn't proof enough of your lacking education, double check that label."

The chunin barely had time to hurl the bottle away before–

"—don't, goddamnit, wait—"

"—KAI!"

Gouzu and Meizu were sent hurtling backwards by the sheer force of the explosion, a great ball of fire erupting just in front of them, peppering them with shattered glass and searing them with biting flames.

The older brother's world spun erratically on its axis while he hurtled through the air before finally landing on his side with bone-shuddering crunch. Gouzu's head rang as he stared dumbly at the trees spinning about, leaves disrupted by the explosion gently showering down all around him.

His suddenly heavy eyes dragged themselves sluggishly until they found his younger brother, arm bent at an odd angle, sprawled out in a disheveled heap some feet away from Gouzu.

The blonde one landed next to his brother.

Things were getting dark, fading away…

Meizu stirred groggily, the blonde rammed the hilt of his sword into his head.

His brother went still…

Gouzu felt rough hands turn him over and a pair of hypnotically red eyes was the last he saw before the ringed end of a kunai crashed into his skull and the darkness claimed him as well.


"…need to obey the chain of command for a reason, Naruto. If I put one…"

His head was still ringing, the world nothing but a garbled miasma of sensation.

"…plan was better, Kakashi-sensei! Sasuke wouldn't…"

The burn on his stomach was practically radiating heat, throbbing painfully as his breathing disturbed the glass imbedded into his skin.

"…wasn't the point, you idiot! Sasuke-kun wanted to see who they were…"

Things had gone wrong, he was now tied up.

"…obviously Kakashi-sensei, they went for him first…"

His heart rate increased. Was Meizu still alive?

"…one way to find out, children. Sasuke, Naruto, go fetch our new friend over there…"

Gouzu grunted and opened his eyes groggily when he felt the shinobi wire bite into his skin as he was unceremoniously dragged closer to the genin cell's sensei.

The captured nuke-nin found himself staring defiantly up at the tall jonin as the Konoha-nin cheerfully waved at him.

"Howdy! My name is Kakashi Hatake, and these…" the man gestured to the three genin standing mulishly behind him, "are my adorably cute little students!" The tall jonin crouched down in front of the nuke-nin. "And what was your name again…?"

"…Gouzu, one of the Demon Brothers of the Bloody Mist." The chunin stated wetly, head held up in defiance.

"Well, Gouzu, that slash in your hitai-ate tells me you are no longer under the employ of the 'Bloody Mist,' and that makes me wonder why exactly you and your demonof a brother over there," Kakashi jerked his finger towards Meizu's bound and still form, "went out of your way to assault us… in Fire Country land, no less!"

Only silence met the man's words.

"That's what I was hoping you'd say," the Konoha-nin practically gushed. "Sit tight, I'll get back to you in a moment." He turned to call his genin over. "Gather 'round students… you as well, Tazuna-san– never know who elsemight be out there!"

The four did as they were asked and walked over to the silver-haired man.

"What's our plan, Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura questioned. "Should we be sticking out in the open like this, what if they weren't alone?"

"Oh, I'm most sure that our new friends from Mist–"

—Gouzu grunted—

"—formerly from Mist—my apologies, Gouzu-san—are not unaided in their endeavors. Which, as I'm sure all three of you have at least gleaned this much," he grinned knowingly at his students, "raises the question of why nuke-nin are attacking us."

"So does that mean we get to… 'find out'for ourselves, Sensei?" Naruto asked with a pair of finger quotes and predatory gleam in his eye.

"Right you are, Naruto, right you are! However," Kakashi paused and turned towards Sasuke, "what do you have to report, Sasuke?"

The Uchiha glared hatefully at his blonde teammate. "BeforeNaruto began ignoring my commands, I had noticed that the Kiri-nin had clearly been waiting for us and wanted to see if we could determine what their intent was. Furthermore," Sasuke turned to regard Tazuna, "I had noticed that our 'client' had been acting rather odd, even before he started drinking with Naruto."

"Go on," the copy-nin encouraged.

"I began to suspect Tazuna-san knew more than what he had informed Konoha of; his actions appeared to indicate fear of something more than just common bandits, Tazuna-san's nervousness, combined with his skepticism at receiving a genin cell as his guard, led me to believe that he might have a more intimate knowledge of who exactly is after him."

"That doesn't mean we should let the enemy make the first move, goddamnit! Sure, information is the motherfuckin' bee's knees, but it's not worth risking our strategic advantage over– you can't ask questions if you're choking on blood after your enemy has slit your throat!" Naruto interjected vehemently, stepping forward aggressively past Sasuke to address Team 7's sensei directly.

"So you believed that our client's well-being was more important than any consequential scenarios that might present themselves, Naruto?" Kakashi queried. "You believed that the mission's primary objective superseded Sasuke's curiosity?"

"Of course, Kakashi–"

"Bull-fucking-shit, Naruto!" Sakura interjected furiously. "You don't give two shits about anything but getting your own fucking way with everything!"

"I… care… about, Tazuna-san, Sakura-chan." Naruto objected halfheartedly, glancing over at the old man from Wave. "We're drinking buddies," he seemed to add as an afterthought.

The old man blinked owlishly. "Gee... thanks."

Naruto gave him what amounted to a reassuring thumbs up as he pulled his mask back up to once again conceal the lower half of his face.

"And, why, Naruto," Kakashi sighed, "did you disagree with Sasuke's plan in the first place?"

"'Cause it didn't go 'boom'..." the genin replied in the sort of tone a teacher might use on the one child that always seemed to turn up to class late with his shoes untied and his shirt buttoned wrong.

Naruto eyed the incredulous looks his teammates were giving him, his eyebrows knitting together as he did so. "...and the shoes are on the wrong feet to boot."

"That wasn't the goddamn point, Naruto!" Sakura shouted, cheeks flushing in anger. "Now we don't know who these two–" she pointed at the trussed up prisoners "—were actually here to attack!"

"Why bother yelling at the moron, Sakura?" Sasuke sneered, words dripping in superiority. "Would you prefer to just be let loose upon the enemy like a rabid dog, Naruto? Perhaps you'd prefer Sakura and I to stay back so we can clean up the bodies after you've finished?"

The Uchiha's words caused Naruto to bristle visibly as alcohol and anger began to boil in his blood. "Fuck off, Sasuke. If your head wasn't stuck so far up your own ass, you'd see–"

"—and if youacted like a real ninja for once—just once—" Sasuke interjected, "—our team would already know its next move."

Naruto took a few heavy steps towards his teammate, eyes burning and jaw set. Sasuke's hand drifted towards his shuriken pouch, fingers eager to touch cold steel and spill warm blood.

"Enough." Kakashi interrupted, halting both of his genin with a withering glare.

Even Sakura shuddered at the killing intent that leaked from their sensei to caress them all.

"Enough." He repeated. "There will be no fighting amongst you three unless I say so. And, I assure you, that the next spar will most certainly be the three of you against me." Kakashi savored the sight of his students visibly paling before addressing them individually. "Naruto, you'll obey any and every order I give, understood?"

The blonde nodded sourly. "Yes, Kakashi-sensei."

"Sasuke," Kakashi turned towards the Uchiha, "When things go wrong or off track, don't try and resolve them by picking fights– don't goad your teammates on after they've been rattled. I'm the sensei, not you."

"Hn."

The copy-nin turned to address the final member of his team. "Sakura, you–"

"That's how you have to deal with him, sensei!" she interrupted, pointing an accusatory finger at her blonde teammate. "You have to be firm, Naruto needs a firm hand–"

"—I really do—"

"—and you can't let him verbally overpower you!" Sakura finished, glaring at Naruto for his interruption.

Kakashi blinked. "…I was actually going to say that you shouldn't let Naruto get you that riled up, Sakura."

"…oh." She blushed. "Okay, then…"

"Besides," Naruto added with a leer and his hands held up, "I'd much rather get you worked up with these, Sakura-chan."

Naruto mimed squeezing a pair of invisible objects and winked at the pinkette.

"…I don't know if you're an idiot, or just an asshole," the kunoichi growled vehemently.

"Hn. Can't it be both?"

"Go eat a bag of mashed up assholes, Sasuke!"

"Fuck you, Naruto," Sakura returned, forestalling Sasuke's comeback and flipping Naruto the bird in one smooth motion, "Fuck you ten times over, asshole."

"Ten times?" Naruto questioned, raising a brow and scoffing. "You wouldn't last. Please, Sakura-chan, don't even get me started on the things I'd eat out of you're a—"

"Naruto," Kakashi spoke, trying not to laugh upon noticing the murderous yet slightly nauseous look on Sakura's face. "That'll be enough, thank you. Let's stay focused on the task at hand."

"Yeah, Sasuke," the petulant jinchuuriki picked up seamlessly. "If youwere paying attention, you'd realize that we don't need the Kiri-nin's answers; we have Tazuna-san."

The old bridge builder went rigid in apprehension when the young shinobi turned his cold, cobalt eyes upon him.

"And you're going to tell us everything we want to know, aren't you, Tazuna-san…" Naruto let his words hang heavy in the air between them, the small palmed kunai clutched in his hand supplying the unspoken threat. "Or else…"

"Actually, Naruto," Team 7's sensei once again corrected, "I'm going to be instructing you three in the proper method of extracting and obtaining information from the enemy while still in the field." Kakashi looked down at the tied up Kiri-nin and patted his shaggy head. "Hands on, of course!"

All three genin grinned excitedly.

Sakura would put Anko's teachings to practical use and remove herself from under her teammates' shadows by impressing their sensei.

Sasuke's Sharingan spun faster in anticipation; this opportunity would prove most useful in testing the limits of his bloodline.

Naruto licked his lips, ever so slightly, while cruelty and a ruthless desire to win carved his face and marred his features behind the cloth of his mask.

Tazuna just looked as if he was going to be sick.

"Let's see… first it'll be Sasuke, then Sakura, and finally Naruto." The jonin announced, affixing each of his students with a stern eye as their names were called. "If I say 'stop,' you stop. When I speak, you listen." Kakashi looked them over once more. "And, most importantly, no one interrupts while someone else is taking their turn; critique will be left to enlightened individuals such as myself."

"Why does Sasuke-kun get to go first, sensei?"

Surprisingly enough, this time it was Sakura that objected. Though, Kakashi noted, Naruto was most certainly thinking along the same lines as his pink-haired teammate.

"He has the lead." The jonin shrugged lazily.

Tazuna chuckled nervously as the kunoichi extracted a scroll from her pouch and the blonde stalked over to the group's other captive, unsheathing the Ebony Blade and driving it into the ground beside Meizu's head in a single, fluid motion.

"Dibs." He muttered challengingly, before sitting down and intently eyeing Sasuke and Gouzu.

The Uchiha turned back for a moment to shoot Naruto a haughty smirk—to which the blonde returned a righteous finger—before walking towards their prisoner and crouching down to eye level with the chunin.

"You supposed to scare me, small fry?" the kiri-nin gurgled out from behind his respirator. "'Cause I've seen things that'd make you wet your cute little panties, boy!"

"…is that so?" his words a blade's edge wrapped in silk as he removed Gouzu's respirator to better understand the man. "Would you care to know what I have seen, Gouzu-san?"

"And what the fuck, exactly, could a little pissant genin like yourself have seen in this world? The fuck could you know about being a shinobi? What could you possibly–"

Gouzu halted his tirade mid-swing; the boy's eyes, they were spinning.

Dread quickly filled the chunin's stomach as realization crashed violently down upon him, washing him away in a sea of red as the famed Sharingan ensnared him. The world drained of color and faded out only to be replaced with the most sinister of blood-red moons.

Gouzu rose into the air, unable to move, trussed up on a wooden cross like a condemned man awaiting a slow execution in some eldritch horror story.

All around him people were screaming.

They would run, but it did no good.

The kiri-nin watched them die.

Spatters of blood consumed by the shadows.

"…Now," Gouzu's captor began, withdrawing a black ninjato from only God-knows-where, "would you like to tell me who it is that you and your brother are working for?"

"Fuck y–"

The chunin coughed up blood as the Uchiha ran his blade through Gouzu's right lung.

"Who sent you to kill us?"

"Nobody!" he answered back, blood pooling inside his wounded lung. "We were just—"

The blade found his left kidney on the next thrust.

"Who was your actual target? Kakashi-sensei? Tazuna-san?"

Gouzu's only answer was a scream of pain bathed in fresh blood. Why wasn't he dying yet?

"Just fucking kill me al—"

Another stab. This one right between the ribs.

"I will, Gouzu-san, once we've finished talking." Sasuke replied, raising his ninjato once more. "Now, how many others are you and your brother working with?"

"Why won't I die…?" The mist-nin thought weakly, more blood dripping from his mouth. "The Demon Brothers work alone, you little shit!"

The ruby-red of the boy's eyes seemed to glow all the more brighter, and Gouzu's world seemed all the more darker for it. "I don't believe you, Gouzu-san…" Sasuke raised the ninjato once more before driving it into his captive's belly. "Are you ready to supply me with the truth, yet?" he asked, twisting the blade slowly. "Our little chat lasts as long as you want it to."

And that's when it clicked for the nuke-nin.

Why he wasn't dying.

Why he hadn't blacked out from the blood loss.

Why he was wallowing in this hell of hells.

And why some scrub genin seemed to be quite adept at playing God.

"Genjutsu…"

"—asn't actually the same thing was it? You can't reproduce Itachi-san's jutsu, can you?"

"No, Kakashi-sensei," Sasuke answered, eyeing Gouzu's now split lip, "I can only make someone think that it's real. I lack the ability to make it reality inside someone's head; to make the pain real."

"Still…" the jonin pondered thoughtfully, "its effects seemed rather pronounced for just a suggestive genjutsu, Sasuke-kun."

"It helps that I've actually seen—lived, for that matter—what I was showing him," the Uchiha elaborated, "Felt it. Feared it. Experiencedit. It certainly helps add to the realism."

"What the fuck did you actually show the poor bastard, Sasuke?" Naruto asked in wonder.

Even now the blonde was staring, transfixed, at Gouzu's trembling frame; he could still hear the chunin's screams of pain and anguished pleas for cessation

"Itachi's last stroll through Konoha– nothing I haven't already done myself." Sasuke answered.

"...Ah, I guess that'd do it."

"A well thought out plan, Sasuke-kun, but you should concern yourself with the credibility of intel obtained in such a fashion," the jonin lectured, motioning Sakura over with a gesture, "every individual has a unique threshold– push them too far and they become unstable and useless. Start with a lighter touch next time."

Sasuke turned back as he walked away, his face a perfect performance of stability. "Do I not appear 'stable' to you, Kakashi-sensei?"

"Point to you, Sasuke-kun." Kakashi chuckled, deciding not to point out that the Uchiha's eyes said otherwise about his stability. "Alright, Sakura-chan, you're up!" he encouraged, ruffling Sakura's hair, much to the girl's annoyance.

The kunoichi padded silently towards the captured shinobi, stopping only a foot from him and laying out her scroll. A drop of blood from a cut thumb and a dissipated smoke cloud later, and she was unfolding a rather large piece of leather.

Gouzu watched curiously as the girl unfolded the leather, revealing a set of tools that had never and would never be used for building or fixing anything.

"So," she began, reaching forward and snatching a few twigs that had fallen from the tree Gouzu was tied to, "they say I'm supposed to give you a chance before we begin– in case you change your mind." the pinkette continued, pilling the sticks in a neat order and reaching for a few dried leaves littering the ground.

"Not gonna happen, pussycat," Gouzu drawled. "Just be thankful that it ain't me that's got youtied up." He licked his lips sinisterly. "You wouldn't like that; I don't play nice."

"Oh, dear me, Gouzu-san," the girl simpered, picking up a pair of flint stones and striking them, "surely you wouldn't hurt an innocent little flower such as myself!"

The kiri-nin growled vehemently as he watched a fresh shower of sparks found purchase amongst the tinder. "You don't wanna know the half of it, girly," he responded, now eyeing the flames crackling merrily. "And what do you plan on doing with such a small fire– that thing could barely burn a rabbit alive, much less me!"

Sakura picked up a rather dull kunai and began sloppily cutting holes in the fabric of Gouzu's clothes, exposing tanned skin to her ministrations.

The chunin hissed quietly as he felt the blade nick him here and there, the kunoichi not bothering herself with the prematurely spilt blood. A few moments later and Sakura was regarding the fresh cuts oozing blood into the split seams of Gouzu's outfit.

"I wouldn't even bother sharpening that paper cutter of yours, pussycat." The mist-nin taunted, "Thing looks like it's been through the ringer already, anyway."

Sakura caught her subject eyeing the black burn mark that consumed the majority of her kunai's surface area. "I promise you, Gouzu-san, 'Truth-teller' is tougher than he looks," she answered, setting the aforementioned kunai atop her small fire, enjoying the audible sound that followed Gouzu swallowing the lump in his throat once he realized why it was exactly that Truth-teller looked so. "Do you have anything you'd like to tell me now?"

"Fuck off," Gouzu spat back, eyeing the blindfold the girl now held warily.

"I tried," she apologized, slipping the blindfold over the chunin's eyes and tying it tight. "but you've opted to be difficult."

Gouzu heard something rustle against leather before an extremely sharp blade pierced the crook of his arm, drawing blood and carving a rather deep gash.

His breathing picked up, chest heaving against the ninja wire.

"By now, I'm sure you've realized—and seen through, no doubt—the obvious attempt to destabilize your hierarchy of needs." Gouzu heard her lecture, the pain in his arm letting him know she wasn't done slicing up his arm. "We've ticked past physiological and safety by my count, but to completely psychologically deconstruct you, we would need much more time than we currently have."

"Guess we should get on with the show, then," Gouzu grit out, ignoring the pain in his arm. "Wouldn't wanna make blondie wait too long for his turn."

"Fair enough, Gouzu-san," the girl breathed, finally satisfied with the amount of skin she had removed from the chunin's arm. The grass rustled and Gouzu felt heat near him. "Don't worry, I'll start out slow…"

He was screaming now, the white-hot kunai now pressing into his arm and the stench of his own cooking flesh burning the hairs in his nose.

"Nice and slow, right?" The girl repeated, turning the blade agonizingly slow. "Just the tip."


"You didn't tell me I was going to be limited to only three questions, Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura shouted as she folded her tools back into their leather wrap.

"That's sorta the point, Sakura-chan," the jonin responded, checking over Gouzu's burns and cuts, "you never really know what will happen in the field; interruptions are quite common."

"Fair enough," the girl grumbled, sealing away her tools and tucking the scroll back into her pouch. "But now Naruto has an advantage, doesn't he?" she tacked on. "Knowing he only has three tries, he can make his questions count for more, can't he?"

"I suppose…" Kakashi hazarded, satisfied in that Gouzu wasn't going into shock from his wounds. "so, to make it fair, Naruto," the jonin turned to his blonde student who was currently dragging Meizu towards Gouzu, "you only get twoquestions."

Naruto dropped Meizu like a sack of potatoes and glared at Sakura before acknowledging his sensei. "Fine. That's all I need, anyways."

The jinchuuriki walked up to the panting Gouzu, squared up his aim, and clocked the bound man with a mighty right hook.

"'E' for effort..." he coughed, spitting out blood, "but you lack creativity, kid."

"Remember that feeling, asshole." Naruto replied, removing a bottle of smelling salts and a field mirror from his pouch. "You remember that, and then let me know when you wanna talk..."

The genin walked slowly over to Meizu, thrusting the salts under the unconscious shinobi's nose; the chunin gave a grimace and his eyes suddenly snapped open.

Naruto watched him struggle against his bonds a bit before speaking. "Rise and shine!" he exclaimed, holding the tiny mirror for everyone to see. "Your brother and I are in the middle of a game, and we need your help!"

"Go eat a dick, you little fuck– I 'm not telling you shit."

"Perfect, 'cause I'm not gonna ask you a single question, Meizu-san," Naruto returned, reaching down and removing the chunin's respirator. "I'm afraid I only have eyes for your brother over there." Naruto jerked his head in Gouzu's direction. "But I'm afraid I need your help…"

Here, the blonde made a show of cracking the mirror in two, once again reaching for Meizu's face.

"All you have to do is be as loud as possible, okay?" Naruto asked, forcing open the older ninja's mouth and placing the broken glass along his gums and teeth. "Remember that punch, Gouzu-san?"

The chunin was nervous for the first time; Meizu was his brother. Sure they'd never be bosom buddies, but they were all each other had left from their formed life. From before the failed coup d'état.

"What kind of stupid game are you playing–"

Meizu's words died as Naruto's fist came down on him in a sickening crunch of knuckles, soft flesh, and broken glass.

He didn't stop at one.

Gouzu watched as punch after punch rained down on his brother's unprotected face, cutting the insides of his mouth more and more. The chunin seethed in rage, helpless to do anything, as the genin viciously brutalized his younger brother's face.

A few minutes passed and the heaving blonde dropped his brother's mashed up face to catch his own breath. "That's quite a workout, isn't it Gouzu-san?" he asked, watching the broken glass fall from Meizu's mouth in a deluge of blood.

"…ughnn…" Meizu moaned pitifully.

His outburst earned him a kick to the ribs from the blonde. "Quiet, you." And quiet they did when Naruto extracted a kunai from its holster, and, unlike Sakura's, this one shone deathly sharp. "So… ready to talk yet, Gouzu-san? I've got a pair of fully loaded questions for ya." he asked once more, crouched halfway between torturing Meizu and questioning Gouzu.

The chunin in question deigned not to answer, though neither did he come up with a disrespectful comeback either.

"…I see…" Naruto muttered, grabbing his canteen and unscrewing the top. "Damn shame it had to come to this," he sighed, pouring the water from his canteen over Meizu's body. "He's gonna start screaming a lot," The blonde said, speaking to everyone around him as a whole. "'cause of this nerve cluster that I'm about to jam this kunai into."

Gouzu watched Naruto place the tip of his kunai into what he knew to be a cluster of nerves located near the shoulder and below the clavicle.

The kunai's tip penetrated Meizu and the chunin began screaming aloud once it found its home amongst the sensitive cluster of nerves. "Raiton: Jibashi," Naruto muttered, his right hand now pulsing with electricity, little arcs of lightning shooting from fingertip to fingertip. "Last chance, Gou—"

"Don't listen to him, brother! Fuck these worth—"

Again, Meizu was cut off mid word, his brother watching in morbid fascination, as the blonde jinchuuriki grabbed the hilt of the kunai lodged in Meizu and began running a current through it.

The water soaked into his clothes smoked as the electricity's energy danced all around him, throwing Meizu into a horrible fit of spasms as his screams blended into one long shrieking howl stuck between begging for mercy and pleading for death.

"I've got a lot of chakra, Gouzu-san," Naruto said, pausing to watch a few wisps of smoke rise from Meizu's twitching form.

Gouzu could feel the information on his tongue, yearning to escape his lips.

The blonde could see it clearly as well, not breaking eye contact with Gouzu as he resumed electrocuting Meizu.

The younger Demon Brother's pain now seemed to be beyond screaming as he appeared to only be capable of twitching and convulsing as tears leaked from his eyes and bloody drool frothed at his lips.

"The bridge builder, goddamnit, it was the bridge builder!" Gouzu shouted, finally at his limit; Meizu's brain might very well be partially cooked mush by this point. "A lot of people in Wave don't want that bridge built– one of those people hired us!"

"Excellent!" Naruto exclaimed, dropping the smoking Meizu and retrieving his kunai. "That wasn't so hard, was it?"

"Just leave him alone, asshole." Gouzu answered, loathing the blonde's very existence.

"Well done, Naruto," Kakashi praised as Naruto made a pair of shadow clones to drag Meizu over to Gouzu. Without their chained gauntlets they were indeed considerably lighter, but heavy still.

Their job done, the two clones dispelled in twin puffs of smoke leaving the original to stride over towards the rest of his team.

"…Forgot your kunai," Sakura muttered grumpily, pointing over towards Meizu.

The blonde retrieved it, pausing mid step as a nearby rustle drew his attention. Lightning fast, Naruto hurled the kunai at a nearby tree, the projectile burying itself in the tree's bark.

All the members of Team 7 watched with baited breath as the bushes around the tree rustled and a small, and extremely terrified, rabbit scampered out and retreated further into the safety of the trees surrounding them.

"Lucky guess…" Naruto muttered, once again walking towards his teammates.

"…so I kinda had to lie to you guys to afford the protection." Tazuna was explaining to Kakashi. "We need this bridge, please!"

"We don't abandon missions, Tazuna-san," Kakashi sighed heavily. Why was God tormenting him so? "Besides, I doubt my students would let me abandon this mission, now that they know other ninja may be involved."

"You guys will do it? Really?"

"Does everyone agree to keep going forward?" The jonin asked.

A trio of nods later and it was settled.

"Good a day as any to die," Naruto said brightly as Tazuna helped him secure the wire around Gouzu and Meizu, "'Cause it's just a day like any other day. A beautiful day for an accident, let's say. Yes it's just a day, like any other day; just one step closer to the end of the buffet…"

Tazuna looked at the boy strangely as he continued singing, the two of them walking back towards the other Konoha-nin.

"La la la la la la, 'cause we're waiting here to die– it's an old ditty they used to sing in the academy, supposed to calm the nerves." Naruto explained mid verse while his teammates checked their equipment.

"Now it's a good time for a tasty glass of wine, let's not burden our minds with carbon dioxide –"

"Why won't he ever shut up?" Sakura questioned rhetorically.

"—And everyone hurry, don't sit and abide, yes, everyone hurry, we're running out of time! La la la la la la, 'cause we're waiting here to die!"

"It's kinda catchy," the old man offered as the group walked past the kunai Naruto left in the tree. "I'm more concerned about leaving those two back there."

"ANBU will be by to pick them up, Tazuna-san," Sakura reassured the man as they continued forward, doing her best to ignore Naruto.

"Look what a terrible mess that we'll make; the sun beats us down as we search for the shade. And, yes, it is true—"

It was at this moment that quite a few things occurred simultaneously.

Kakashi shouted "Down!" as he pulled Tazuna to the ground with him.

Sasuke shunshin'd away and Sakura dove down as Kakashi did.

And, interestingly enough, a gargantuan blade soared through the air, perfectly level to lop off a person's head, coming to a halt as it imbedded itself in the tree near Gouzu and Meizu, just above their heads.

Naruto, however, suddenly found a vice-like grip upon his neck, a heavily muscled arm lifting him from the ground.

The blonde looked up into a pair of mad eyes.

"That was catchy, runt, I kinda liked it," the man chuckled, even as Naruto stabbed a kunai into his forearm in desperation.

"Say, small fry," the man continued, pulling the kunai free and holding it to Naruto's neck, "how's it end?"

"—death is everyone's fate, but we've made it this far, it's time to celebrate—"

"Ha ha ha ha ha! That's perfect, kid, just perfect!" The tall man answered, burying the kunai in his blonde captive's heart. "It's ironic that you'll miss this party, kid, it's gonna be a rager– fireworks and everything!"

The ninja's gruesome grin that threatened to tear the bandages wrapped around his face disappeared once he saw the blonde's smirking face.

"The fireworks are the best part, ninja-san," the blonde muttered. "wouldn't miss 'em for the world…"

A hairless eyebrow rose in concern.

A pair of hands made a seal, right in front of the tall man's face.

"The best part," Naruto wheezed, "is when they go 'boom.'"

The world exploded and the battle began.


A/N: Sorry for the horrible delay, folks. Real life and all that jazz, you know how it goes. Here's an extra long chapter to make up for it!

This one's dedicated to Eipok Kruden, for helping me with the beta work. Couldn't have done it without you.

"Waiting to Die" by Zero7