Sakura stared around her brother as Kiba walked in front of her. Shikamaru was lagging behind them, yawning occasionally. She listened for Asuma, breathing quietly.
"Wait," she said. Kiba glared back at her.
"Why?"
"Because I just heard something," she whispered, throwing out an arm as Shikamaru tried to walk past her.
"What was it?"
Sakura scowled at her brother. "Does it look like I know?"
"I don't know."
Kiba grinned and dropped to a crouch, petting Akamaru. Coco was sniffing behind a bush a few feet away.
"Hey, boy, can you smell what it is?"
Akamaru sniffed the air and barked. Kiba smirked. "Asuma-sensei is nearby," he said, standing up. Coco trotted over and sat next to Sakura's feet. The chocolate lab barked quietly.
"Be quiet." Sakura scooped Coco up into her arms and gestured for Kiba to do the same with Akamaru. "We'll try to sneak around him."
Kiba stared at her. "When did you become team leader?"
"When Shikamaru gave his leadership to me."
Kiba groaned and started forward, leaping into the trees silently. Sakura and Shikamaru followed.
/\/\
They were ten feet from the river when Asuma finally showed himself. Sakura dropped Coco and raised her arms in a defensive position.
"I'll hold him off!" she called to her brother and Shikamaru. "You two get to the river!"
Kiba looked like he was about to argue, but decided that he didn't want to deal with her anger and started towards the river again. Shikamaru sprinted after him.
Asuma chuckled. His hands clenched and unclenched. She glanced down at them briefly and wondered what kind of ninja he was. Genjutsu user? Taijutsu?
She heard Coco bark at her feet and stared down at the lab. The dog wagged her tail and slyly tilted her head to the side. Sakura smirked. This is why she was half Inuzuka.
"Hey, Asuma-sensei?" she said. He hummed, his dark eyes focused on lighting another cigarette. "How's Kurenai-sensei doing?"
Asuma choked on smoke and stared at her wide-eyed. "H-how do you know about that?"
Sakura nodded to Coco. "She's a ninja hound. You really didn't think about that? She's been trained to find your weakness."
Asuma's eyes flickered behind her, and Sakura could hear the sounds of Kiba celebrating as he reached the river. She smirked again, scooped up Coco, and before Asuma could even blink was sprinting towards the river. She was there before Asuma could react.
She dropped Coco to go play with Akamaru in the shallow water and hugged her brother. He laughed and wrapped his arms around her.
"We did it!" he shouted. Sakura laughed and turned back to Asuma, who had calmly walked forward.
"Okay, you made it. Your first mission will be two days from now. Meet at Ichiraku's at noon." Asuma sighed and replaced his cigarette. "Congratulations."
/\/\
Naruto whooped as he and Sasuke walked home with Kakashi. As promised, Kakashi was taking him to Ichiraku's. And they had passed. This was one of the best days of Naruto's life.
He didn't know how Sakura and Kiba's test had gone. He didn't know how Hana's mission was. He didn't even know where Itachi was, or his mother. But he didn't care about that right now. Because he passed!
By the time they left the ramen restaurant, Sasuke looked sick from all the ramen Naruto had eaten, and Kakashi was about ready to forbid Naruto from eating ramen ever again. That dinner had taken a lot out of his wallet.
"Hey, Dad," Naruto said suddenly. Sasuke coughed and leaned against his father. Kakashi wrapped an arm around his shoulders.
"Yeah, Naruto?"
"When are you and Mom getting married? We've all been trained with our dogs, and we've all passed."
"Your mother and I decided that we should start planning the wedding in a few days. With Isamu showing up like that yesterday, we thought that it would be best if we did everything in our power to keep him away from us."
Naruto smiled sleepily. He yawned as the bright lights of the Inuzuka house came into view. "I'm gonna go to bed."
He trudged up the stairs with Ramen when Kakashi pushed open the door. Sasuke groaned.
"Dad," he croaked. Kakashi glanced down at him worriedly.
"Yeah, Sasuke?"
"I don't feel good."
"Okay," Kakashi breathed. "Just hang in there. We'll get you up to bed and see what's wrong with you."
He helped his son up the stairs; Rusty followed curiously, panting with his tail wagging.
Kakashi dropped Sasuke on the bed and looked at Naruto, who had fallen onto his bed fully clothed and fallen asleep. He sighed and pulled the comforter over the blonde.
He turned back to Sasuke, who had collapsed on his side; Rusty curled up close to his chest. The golden retriever had his head resting on Sasuke's shoulder, whining low in his throat.
Kakashi crouched next to the bed, running his hand over the raven's forehead. His son's face was flushed, yet sill pale, and his forehead was hot. Darn; he might have a fever.
"Sasuke," he whispered. Sasuke whimpered. "I'll be back. Do you feel like you're going to throw up?"
Sasuke shook his head weakly. Kakashi straightened and walked back down the stairs, passing Sakura and Kiba. He pressed a finger to his lips.
"Don't wake Naruto up. And Sasuke is sick, so try not to bother him," he warned. They nodded and retreated to Sakura's room, closing the door quietly.
The silver-haired shinobi continued to the downstairs bathroom, where he hunted around until he found the thermometer. He poured a glass of water and went back upstairs.
Sasuke hadn't moved from his spot. Kakashi sighed and shook Sasuke gently, coaxing him into a sitting position. "Come on, Sasuke," he whispered. "I need to check your temperature."
Sasuke obediently opened his mouth and Kakashi stuck the thermometer under his tongue. Kakashi sat down on the edge of the bed and checked the thermometer when it beeped.
"Yep," he muttered. "You have a fever."
Darn it.
A/N: Okay, so this is hopefully the last chapter for a while. I really need to work on my other stories. Anyways, remember to send in reviews if you want that story! 42 reviews!
