Chapter 39 The predictable Shinobi
The moonless night did not help Kakuzu keep watch over their campsite, with the only real source of light was the camp fire providing both Akatsuki members warmth from the otherwise almost ice chilling temperature.
Kakuzu shot a glance at his partner, and his new addition, "What exactly are you planning to do with that thing Itachi?"
The hawk shot an angered glare at the disturbance from the other, as Itachi continued stroking its scarred wing that he had bandaged and partially healed.
Growing annoyed that he once again was being ignored, he continued with a suppressed growl, "The hawk belongs to Ronan, dispose of it before it gets the opportunity to inform him of our arrival."
Itachi still blankly looked at the older ninja, then finally payed him some attention, "Are you not familiar with the Uchiha hawk Kakuzu-san?"
"No...I am not. Care to explain?" Kakuzu growled, hating that he was being treated like a subordinate, when Itachi was the infant between the two.
"Uchiha hawks were bred and raised in house by the clan themselves, they were used all the way back in the times before Konoha ever came to existence. They are loyal to only the Uchiha, and listen to only the Uchiha. The sharingan permits us to communicate with the bird, and through it, allow us to set instructions and use them for surveillance, by reading their memories."
Losing interest in his task, Kakuzu now fully faced the sitting back Uchiha, "So, are you saying the hawk is now listening to your instructions because you are an Uchiha?"
"Ah...however, the hawk's form a link with the last Uchiha that used them, call it branding if you will Kakuzu-san. That was why disabling it was necessary, because it would only respond to Ronan, and nobody else."
Kakuzu knew he was going to regret this, but he asked anyway, "What is it that you have planned?" The Uchiha looked dully at his partner, then let out an 'hn' that inwardly infuriated the older ninja.
"Naruto-kun will be our bait to draw out Ronan and his accomplices. Then the situation will be at our advantage."
Kakuzu could see where the hawk came into this plan, and nodded, "But again, you are forgetting that not only do we have to deal with Ronan and his men, but we also have the jinkuriki, with his Konoha forces. The odds are not in our favour here."
Itachi did not reply, but Kakuzu couldn't help but feel some sense of mocking in the otherwise neutral gaze from his partner.
"...Ah."
'Kisame puts up with this?!' Ignoring his inner fuming, Kakuzu jumped to his argument.
"We should isolate the Jinkuriki, that way we can at least remove the issue with the very large opposing odds."
Judging from the lack of response, the older ninja continued his plot, "Capturing him will be complicated, but once done, we can use the jinkuriki to lure Ronan to where we want him...as much as it is tempting to just bring the jinkuriki back with us once our mission is over, we will capture him again once he is needed...since it seems he is quite a nuisance judging by your previous attempts of capture." Kakuzu felt a strange satisfaction when he actually saw what looked like a glimpse of annoyance flicker across the Uchiha's otherwise neutral gaze.
"...I see. But how do you propose Ronan becomes aware of Naruto-kun's new location?"
Kakuzu chuckled darkly at his opening, "Your new little pet will tell him of course. I assume that you can manipulate the bird's memory through genjutsu?"
"...That is correct."
Kakuzu smirk widened knowing his plan was the better of the two, "Then you edit out the fact that we actually apprehended the jinkuriki...make Ronan believe the boy ventured out alone, or something...he is your target, think of something believable. This way, we are the ones entirely in control, and best of all, we will not be fighting two different groups at the same time."
After a long stare off between the pair and surprisingly the hawk joining in, Itachi shrugged dismissively. "While your plan seems plausible Kakuzu-san, Ronan is not the type that can be easily deceived by such a trick. Then what is the purpose of capturing Naruto-kun if we can do as you say?"
"Consider it a failsafe. In case Ronan is as smart as you say he is, that way, if our plan fails, our target is still safe."
The Uchiha found interest in the roaring streams of fire flickering into the night sky, as he appeared to be in deep thought, "...As you wish then, Kakuzu-san."
Sleep was the last thing on Naruto's agenda from the news they had received from Shikamaru this afternoon. From what the Nara was able to tell them, he was going for two possibilities. The first was more pleasant, and that was that Suna never received a message, or were under the impression of a different whereabouts. The second was what all of them feared, and that was that Temari had been intercepted and could be injured or worse. Even though he knew that it wouldn't help, a sense of responsibility fell on the blonds' shoulders. If something truly had happened to Temari, he was the one at fault, since the ANBU were after him, but just as he feared, others were truly getting caught in the crossfire.
This was why Naruto volunteered to be the one to keep watch tonight, letting Shikamaru and Kakashi off the hook, despite an annoyed kunoichi's heated protests. The blond was grateful to have his way though, as he needed the isolation to think. He was beginning to wish there was some way he could just put an end to this, just wished these rogue ANBU would disappear, and everybody could move on. Naruto then had an idea that could end it, only he knew that the others were not going to agree with him.
'I know the others will be angry, but I could take it from here alone. That way nobody else will get thrown into this mess.'
He mused, while then coming across his next question. How would he find them? He then remembered what was discussed earlier with his two senseis.
'They are looking for me, and now it's obvious they are somehow checking our messages between ourselves and Konoha...all I have to do is get as far away from here as possible, and then send a message to b-Tsunade-sama. It may never even reach her...it will just be them and me.'
The blond was finding this idea more and more appealing, and to make it even better, he had all his equipment on his person already. He would just leave, and deal with this somewhere where nobody could get involved in this.
'Sakura-chan is going to kill me...but I have to do this.' Without paying any more thought, the blond jumped off the roof of the hotel, and landed with a soft 'thud' and there were no signs of alert.
'This will be easy-'
"Last time I checked, a guard is meant to actually 'keep watch', not plot to run away and solo an entire mob of elite ninja." The blond span around to see leaning against the hotel's wall was the shadow user, looking at him casually with his hands in his pockets.
"S-Shikamaru?"
"No, it's Sakura. Are you blind as well as crazy?" The blond ignored his sarcastic tease and got to the point.
"I wasn't going to-"
"Sure, you were just going to go for a little stroll were you?"
Shikamaru retorted, while pushing himself off the wall and walking into the blinding white street light over their heads, "Do you even think you stand a chance by yourself?"
Naruto was taken aback, he knew he wasn't speaking aloud...how did Shikamaru know exactly what he was going to do?
"I...Of course I can!"
The Nara snickered in retaliation, "There are times where I can believe your crazy ideas...but this time you are really wrong Naruto."
The blond was about to protest, but before even Naruto could react, the shadow user lunged forward and punched him square in the chest. Naruto felt the effect tenfold, as his chest felt a soaring pain as if he was slammed against a brick wall. He let out a cry in pain as he fell, gripping his stinging chest protectively.
"That is why you idiot. Don't act tough, or try to ignore the fact. You are hurt. You are practically going to them just to beg for them to kill you...very clever plan Naruto." Naruto coughed as a splatter of blood hit the dirt, and he heaved himself back up and glared.
"Shikamaru you teme-" Before Naruto could finish his retort, or rearing fist from making contact, the blond felt an unimaginably strong force hold him back, and his eyes shot to see the shadow connected between the two of them.
"Troublesome...do you honestly think I am blaming you for whatever could have happened to Temari?" Naruto's eyes widening was taken as a 'yes' to the Nara, and he sighed while leaning back onto the wall as he continued talking to the detained blond.
"You never cease to amaze me....I think I understand why Sakura calls you baka more than Naruto."
"Let me go Shikamaru!"
"Is it a habit for you to blame yourself for everything that goes wrong?"
"That's..." Shikamaru groaned at the blonds words trailing, once again implying 'yes'.
"What a bother...oh well, I guess since you have it stuck in your thick skull that it is your fault...I should oblige then."
The Nara then heaved off the wall and came visible into the light and held a glare Naruto didn't think was possible to form on Shikamaru's face. Just seeing that cold gaze brought back memories of looks that he succumbed to such a long time ago.
"This is your entire fault!" Naruto went agape at just how much venom rolled out of Shikamaru's voice, as he struggled to maintain eye contact.
"..."
"Temari could be hurt or even dead, all because of you! So many people's lives are on the line, just for you. What makes you so special?"
"...Stop it."
"Perhaps it would be better if you just left us, Sasuke's already ran off, why not do the same?"
"Stop it!"
"I heard Sasuke and Kakashi were put in a coma because of the Akatsuki...I guess they must have been angry at you for putting them through tha-"
"STOP IT NOW!"
"WHAT MAKES YOU THINK I SHOULD GIVE A DAMN?!" Naruto didn't care if his vision was murky from some substance in his eyes, he locked his own blue orbs with Shikamaru's cold stare.
"I...did not ask for this stupid fox to be put in me! I did not ask for my friends...my comrades to get hurt for my sake! And I don't care if you really hate me! I don't give a damn if you don't even want me alive! If I have to put myself in danger to keep those precious to me safe, I WILL DAMN WELL DO IT! THAT IS WHY I WILL BECOME HOKAGE , TO PROTECT EVERYONE THAT MATTERS TO ME!" The blond suddenly felt the presence that restricted his body movement lift, allowing him to drop to the floor in a coughing fit.
Once at least his chests pain had eased, he looked up in question to see a grinning Nara lowering himself down to his level.
"You? Protect everybody yourself? While you are a stubborn, surprising, and strong fool, you are not a god. Even the strongest person in the world cannot do such a demanding task alone...especially when he is the one being hunted."
The Nara ran a hand through his hair while his grin widened to a genuine smile, which was even rarer to see on the Nara, "Nobody hates you, as troublesome as you can be, you are just as precious to us, as we are to you. Do you think we smile at seeing you hurt when you throw your own life into danger for us? Do you think we don't want to protect you as much as you want to protect us?"
Naruto tried to reply, but couldn't form his words, so Shikamaru decided to continue, "Sakura has told you this already I am sure of it, or if you can't tell already you really are beyond help. She would give her life to save you, just like Lee would, or Kakashi, Jiraiya-sama, or hell, even ME. Anyone of us would, just like you would do the same for us. That is not something that you have a choice with, we would do it simply because we want to...it's the will of fire that flows in our veins that makes us do these actions...for our comrade...you."
The blond took every word in and rubbed his mouth of the blood that had tickled down his chin, only for the pain to be replaced with something else now. Naruto know knew, just how wrong, insulting and in a way, selfish he was being in his plan to his friends.
"...I am so stupid."
"No you aren't...You just aren't as bright as everybody else." The blond couldn't resist the warming laugh he shared with the shadow user. Once he had calmed, the blond smiled as a warming realisation finally sunk in...Jiraiya truly was right, and he was stupid enough to still hold some traces of doubt.
"Thank you Shikamaru...why aren't you always like this?"
Shikamaru shrugged, "Confrontations like this are beyond very troublesome...and honestly talking so much makes my jaw hurt." Naruto shook his head with a chuckle at the predictable response, but now glared.
"But did you REALLY have to punch me?"
"Well if I didn't...somebody else would have done a whole lot worse."
"Huh?"
The blond suddenly paled, when he became aware of another presence standing in the shadows, even in the darkness, her bubblegum pink hair still stood out.
'...Uh oh'
"s-s-s-Sakura-chan?!" Said kunoichi stepped into the light, and closed the distance slowly, each step causing the blond to pale more and more until he was purely ghostly white. When she came to only half a foot away, she lowered herself to his level and glared, causing the blond to jam his eyes shut. He knew just how stupid his plan was, and frankly felt he deserved whatever misery was coming his way.
Feeling the solid grip around his jacket made him wince, 'This is going to hurt.'
Naruto gasped though when he felt a rush of warm, and opened his shock filled eyes to see a smirking Shikamaru, realising he was held in a firm embrace.
"You...are such a baka, you know that?" she whispered under her breath in his ear.
"Get that knuckle head back inside Sakura, I will take over for the rest of the night." Shikamaru instructed through a sigh.
Sakura didn't let go but replied, "Hai...thanks Shikamaru."
The Nara gave a lazy wave over his head and held open the hotel door, only he sighed when he heard murmuring, "You promised you wouldn't do stupid things anymore...what were you thinking?"
She whispered again, her supportive hand constricting on his jacket to show her pain, "I-I just wanted to protect everyone, I know I was wrong now, I am sorry."
"Even if you had good intentions, how could you think of leaving us, leaving me?! Do I bloody have to spill how much you mean to me you idiot?!"
"I-I don't understa-"
"Clueless baka..." Sakura shook her head of the rush of past events that still haunted her from that very night, the wind tonight was even howling so coldly like it did that time.
"Sasuke-kun leaving was hard enough for me to pull myself together about...if you leave too..."
Naruto gasped now while shaking his head rapidly against her trembling shoulder, "I wasn't leaving for anything like that! I swear! I was going to come back too!"
"I know Naruto...but you know I can't help but worry." Naruto felt her trembling settle, and he patted her back.
"I am so sorry Sakura-chan."
"It's ok, I'm fine now..." Sakura eased her anxiety with a sigh and voiced her new concerns.
"...How is your chest?"
"Hehe, hurts like hell."
"Good, justice has been served then."
"I-umm, see..." Sakura chuckled while ruffling his spiky head to show she was teasing.
"I'll look at it when we are back inside."
"Bloody troublesome pair." Shikamaru mumbled under his breath, now cursing at just how cold it was outside. After a couple more moments, Sakura helped Naruto stand up. While coming out of the cold night and back into the comforting and bright room of the hotel, Sakura turned with a glare.
"Oh and by the way...why the hell did you punch him in the chest?! You said you were going to talk to him, not try and kill him?!"
'Women...they will never understand.'
"What ever happened to 'thanks Shikamaru?'"
"Hawww! That was so emotionally touching Shikamaru-kun!" Naruto turned back at the entrance to confirm that he indeed heard the shaky voice of Lee.
"F-F-Fuzzy Brows?!" said spandex wearer rubbed his teary eyes with a sniffle, causing Naruto to go agape as he voiced his disbelief.
"Y-you all...were waiting for me?"
"HAI! Kakashi-sensei and Sakura-san had a feeling you would try something ...so we decided to stop you Naruto-kun!" The blond was stunned and passed a look at all three of them in disbelief. "W-What was your part in it?"
The miniature Gai gave his nice guy pose, while his tooth sparkled, "I was to cripple you if you still didn't see reason...then Sakura-san said she would 'ensure he saw the right way'. " Naruto gulped and looked at the too innocent smirk on the kunoichi's face.
"Y-You weren't going to do anything...right?"
"Of course not...I wasn't going to hurt you...much" Naruto suddenly wished he was not in striking distance, and flinched when he felt her grip tighten as if she was enjoying his new found terror.
"...Thanks guys." Naruto mumbled with a soft smile that didn't suit his hyperactive character.
All three in the room grinned, "Anytime...baka."
"...I will go to my 'exciting' duty then." Before the Nara could make his exit, he felt a hand hold him back by his shoulder. He turned in question to see it was Naruto.
"Seriously though, how did you really know what I was going to do?" Shikamaru shared a look with Sakura and Lee, and then they all burst out into laughter, causing the blond to blink in confusion as if he missed a joke.
"You may be a number one surprising ninja, but you also can be the number one most predictable ninja as well."
"NEH?!"
'Almost there now.' Ronan mused, as he stood on top of the clay bird, with Deidara and Claara behind him. Once the bird had touched down, the trio jumped off and started walking through the shadowed forest.
"You call that thing 'art'? I stand corrected, you are beyond stupid."
"What did you just say?" Deidara growled, while trying to keep himself from reaching into his clay bags.
"Claara." Ronan scolded, finding it hard to believe he had to treat the situation like a fight between children. The kunoichi sighed, and picked up the pace, leaving being a fuming Deidara.
"So, tell me about this Jinkuriki, I am aware that he is the vessel for the Kyuubi Kitsune correct?"
Ronan nodded, "The boy is not really a matter of concern, while he possess an incredible amount of stamina thanks to his vessel, he seems to be reckless, and lets his emotions get in the way."
"What is his name?"
"His name is Uzumaki Naruto."
"Does he have any family?"
"He is an orphan, the mother and father are unknown."
"...what is his rank?"
"Genin."
Claara froze and blinked in surprise, "What is his age?"
"Fifteen years old."
"...Unusual for a shinobi with a Bijuu within them to be still a genin at that age."
"He has been absent from Konoha for two years now, travelling and receiving tutorage from the legendary Jiraiya."
"The toad sage?"
"Correct, do you know him?"
Claara scoffed, "He is a dirty pervert, other than that no...What about the rest of this Uzumaki Naruto's group?"
"It consists of a member of the Nara clan, who appears to follow in the clan's tradition of being great strategists, even though he also seems to be very lazy. His ability involves shadow jutsu's that is exclusive to his clan. Then there is this young man that we assume is a chuunin, he does not have any ninjutsu it appears, but is very strong in taijutsu. Then comes the real two problems, Jiraiya himself and Hatake Kakashi, the boy's team instructor."
Claara nodded "Ah yes, the copy ninja...anybody else?"
"Yes, the boys teammate, a kunoichi who specializes in medical jutsu, and is an apprentice of the current hokage of Konoha." Claara paused, now narrowing her eyes at the description that appeared familiar to her.
"Apprentice of the legendary slug sannin, Tsunade?" Deidara caught interest when he heard Claara's surprised question. Ronan too raised an eyebrow and stopped in his tracks and turned.
"That is correct." Claara's surprised expression moulded into a slit narrowed glare.
"What is this apprentice's name?" she demanded.
"Her name is Haruno Sakura." Claara took a second or two to respond, and gave a firm and dismissive nod while mumbling 'thanks'.
Deidara smirked, "Does she mean anything to you?"
Claara did not bite on to Deidara's bait, but the ex rock nin could see that she was agitated, and that alone made him satisfied. The roaring sound of waterfall could now be heard, masking the trio's footsteps as they came to a clearing, with a waterfall at least fifty meters in height. Waiting for them was the boy from ROOT, who was drawing in a book, and Thomas, who was by the water, testing out some newly formed tags.
"Any word from Danzou?" Ronan ordered.
The boy looked up at the new arrivals, then cast his head back down and continued drawing, while Thomas answered, "He is aware of our location, and is expected to meet us here by the late afternoon."
"Good, we have wasted enough time as it is."
"Was Danzou-sama's information useful to you?"
"He indeed was correct, there was a Suna nin heading to rendezvous with the Jinkuriki. She has been dealt with."
Deidara chuckled darkly, "She took the full force of my arts specialty, nobody will ever hear from her again."
"We did not confirm her death unfortunately...Deidara caused so much damage in the area, that we never could find the body. But even if she did survive, she must be fatally wounded."
Deidara clicked his tongue, "But she was such a nuisance hmm! Using that ridiculously large fan to propel my art back into my face...not cool hmm!"
"Heh, just shows how flawed your 'art' is, hmm." Claara mocked, earning a glare from the other.
"Enough!" Ronan demanded without paying either of the two his immediate attention.
"...it can't be helped, we will just have to sit and wait for Danzou. But mark my words, if he is not here by this afternoon, we will move without him, swordsman or not. The Konoha forces are already trying to move out, and if it wasn't for our intervention, they would be well on their way into sand territory by now."
'I understand Ronan."
Even though last night's event did not go forgotten, the matter was pushed aside, as the group sat in anticipation for their next course of action. Shikamaru believed it was best to hold a meeting the next morning, to allow him time to think, even if his night went unslept.
"Alright, we are all aware of the situation." the Nara announced through a yawn.
"It appears your suspicions were true Shikamaru. Somehow, the ANBU are monitoring our messages back and forth between us and Konoha."
"That does appear to be the case Kakashi, which is why I think it would be best if we keep Konoha in the dark." Shikamaru's statement brought mixed emotions fixed across the group's faces. The two elders held understanding to the logic, but the rest of the young did not.
"But keeping Tsunade-sama out of the loop could cause more concerns. What if she thinks we are dead?" Sakura shot out, with Naruto nodding his head in agreement.
"It makes sense I'm afraid Sakura-san." Both turned in surprise to see a very serious expression on the miniature Gai's face.
"While hokage-sama is left without knowledge of our status, so are our enemies."
"He is right, it seems that even using Kosuke's messages aren't safe. Tsunade will just have to remain without updates from now on." Jiraiya mumbled through a frown, knowing that somehow he was going to be blamed by Tsunade for this.
Feeling the odds against her, Sakura reluctantly nodded, she could see the reasons to this, but still was reluctant to fully accept it, "...Hai, I understand. What else do you believe we should do next Shikamaru?"
"We must relocate from Wave as soon as possible."
"But where would we go? Suna?" The blond asked, only to be further puzzled with a shaking of his head.
"Unfortunately that option is now ruled out. While Konoha and Suna are strong allies, too many questions will be raised if we arrive without our escort."
"w-what? But that's just stup-"
"He is right Naruto. While it seems really pathetic to our eyes, politics will practically be breathing down our necks the moment we arrive. They may even take us captive." Sakura replied with a groan, but continued when she felt a questioning gaze at her side.
"Tsunade-sama rants about things like this all the time, I just am unfortunate enough to be the target she vents out at."
The blond mouthed an 'oh' and frowned, "We can't even explain to Gaara what may have happened?"
"Even if the Kazekage is on your side gaki, his council won't allow him to overrule their decision....it is just the way it works."
'But I thought the hokage was in charge?!'
"I will explain it to you later." Sakura answered his silent question, earning a surprised expression from her teammate but he nodded and mumbled 'ok'.
"...What shall we do then?"
Feeling all eyes return to him, the Nara gave his answer, "We are still going to Suna..." The Nara would have laughed at all the blank expressions he saw in the group, but continued.
"...However not all of us, the rest of you will be concealing yourself up north in the swamp country." Kakashi could understand why swamp would be ideal.
The swamp country was in-between the fire country and the lightning country, so it was close. While a long time ago in the great shinobi war it was a warzone, the country had only recently restored itself to a healthy status with a Daimyou. The swamp country was allied with the fire country, however due to an agreement between the Sandaime and the current Raikage, no shinobi force was established within the small country, as a sign of peace to end a conflict during the second shinobi war.
The swamp country was scarce of population though due to the war, and mostly only consisted of traders and accommodation owners. This would mean the risk of civilian causalities was slim at best, which was very much the opposite in a town such as Wave. While this all was grand, the older Jounin now was interested at the 'not all of us' part.
"What are you thinking Shikamaru?" The Nara sighed and answered the question that was lingering on the others minds.
"There is still the tracking team coming here. While the rest of you will move to Swamp, I will remain behind...and with their help, I will track down Temari"
"You can't wait here by yourself! What if the ANBU come looking for us here, and only find you?!" Shikamaru shrugged at the kunoichi's stressed blurt.
"The chances of them arriving here before the Konoha team are slim at best."
"While I have been slack in my role as leader of this group, and allowed you to continue command, I am afraid I am stepping in and denying that suggestion Shikamaru..." Kakashi could see though that Shikamaru had made up his mind though, and sighed in defeat.
"...At least without either me or Jiraiya-sama tagging along with you."
The day was quite stale after the meeting, along with the conclusion that they would be separating after this day had dragged out. It was decided that Kakashi would be placed in charge of the remainder of the team as they hid in Swamp country. The reason for this is since the sannin and Naruto had been to the area once before in their travels, only one of them were needed to guide them the way. In saying this, Jiraiya was to remain behind with Shikamaru, and then lead the tracking team to find Temari. They were advised to pack, and if they needed any new items to purchase them from the stores at Wave before departing.
Naruto had long finished packing his possessions into his backpack, and was now resting on his moved in couch for most probably the last time. A knock at the door got his attention, as it opened to reveal his teammate in her attire, with her back pack slung around her shoulder.
"Wow, didn't think you of all people would be ready even before me."
The blond shrugged, "I moved from place to place with Ero-sennin all the time, so I might have gotten into the habit...since if I wasn't, he would moan about it like the old drunk that he is." The pair could have sworn they heard a 'IM NOT OLD YOU LITTLE WRENCH!' from an indeterminable location, but shrugged it off.
Sakura placed her backpack to the side and she made herself comfy next to him, "I wonder what swamp country is like."
"It is ok I guess, basically lives up to the name though. There aren't many people around, but there are a lot of trader guys looking to make a quick buck."
"You and Ero-sennin have been there before?" Sakura asked, wanting to find out 'why' more than a yes or no.
"Yeah, I had a mission there."
"You were doing missions on your time alone?"
The blond nodded, "Ero-sennin was convinced that training alone would get me nowhere unless I actually put it to use. So every now and then, he picked out some mission for me to perform alone, but with him watching from a distance."
Naruto rolled his eyes at the last bit, "More like watch over the nearby women instead of me. But I never confirmed that theory...I just knew."
Sakura felt so many questions rise in her head now, "What kind of missions were they? What rank?" were the ones she was interested in most of all.
"All kinds, some were so lame and annoying I think he chose them just to spite me. Then there were ones that were really hard, those ones were so epic! Ero-sennin never told me what rank they were, even if I asked him over and over again."
"Wow. You must have earned a lot then during your travels?"
The blonds groan caused her to raise an eyebrow, "I earned bugger all! That Ero-sennin took the whole lot for himself...I swear, that stingy pervert just doesn't want to spend a dime of his own money...and that check of his has more zeroes than I can even remember!"
"So...you're broke?"
"More or less...Someday, I will get my money back." reluctantly letting go of his misfortune, Naruto now held interest of his own.
"You didn't do the same?"
Sakura shook her head, "Well not alone, but I did partake in all sorts of missions to help me with my training...but I am really curious, what was it like doing missions alone?"
"It is so awesome, yet such a pain at the same time. I will admit I thought it was really cool at first, being the one in control of the situation, getting to make all the decisions, but now I understand that can also be the biggest down fall. There were some missions where I was completely stumped, and had nobody to bounce ideas off of. Then there is just the whole 'alone' thing...err you know what I mean? When there's nobody watching your back, nobody to depend on if a situation goes bad..."
"I get it...did you have any close encounters?"
"Hehe...a few too many at first, but Ero-sennin always was there to call me an idiot and save my neck...even if he got amusement sometimes at just how sticky of a situation I used to get myself in."
Sakura chuckled, "Well...looks like you still haven't learnt your lesson yet."
Naruto's sweat dropped, "Sakura-chan, I had a legit reason the other night."
"Yeah, whatever you say baka."
Naruto shrugged, "Ok...maybe not a very well thought out reason."
"Oh? What gave you that impression?" The conversation stopped after that, as the pair just enjoyed each other's company in silence, both reflecting on Naruto's attempt the other night, and was relieved to see they were laughing it off like it was so long ago.
"...I still don't understand why we can't go to Suna. We could even search for Temari on the way."
Sakura shook her head, "I know Naruto, but you really don't understand how it works. Even though you have a strong friendship with Kazekage-sama, the council members of Suna do not."
"Who are these council members?"
"Well I am not sure how it works in Suna, but I can explain it for Konoha." Sakura cleared her throat and began.
"The Hokage is in charge of the villages defence and shinobi force, however they are not a ruler or dictator if you may say. The Hokage alone cannot command the entire village, they just have a significant say within the council. Tsunade-sama for example, has day to day fights with two elder advisors which have been around since the times of Sandaime-sama. Any action Tsunade-sama wishes to do usually requires one of the two's approval, and if the situation needs to be escalated, then the council becomes involved. The council are representatives of both the civilian population and chosen shinobi clans within the fire country." Sakura could see that the blond was intently listening to her explanation, so she did not disappoint.
"Overall though, the Hokage still reports to the Daimyou of the fire country. Because without the Daimyou, we would not receive missions, which would mean we would fall into poverty." The blond shook his head as if he was missing something.
"I don't understand, the hokage is meant to be the strongest ninja in the village?"
"That is still true, however what happens if the strongest one in the village is a madman? There needs to be some restraint on allowing so much power, and the council is the answer to that."
Naruto still did not agree, "But I...I am so confused."
"Welcome to politics Naruto, a world that very few understand...and I am no exception to that either."
"You serious? If you don't even get it, how the hell is someone like me supposed to get it?"
"Hey! I'm the one that is allowed to call you a baka, not yourself. In time you will get a grasp of it, since you will be involved in it one day."
"Wow...ba-Tsunade-sama must get driven nuts by all that, no wonder she is obsessed with sake."
"Hehe, now that I can agree with."
"...I think it makes sense, kind of. So we cannot go to Suna without Temari, because the council of Suna might suspect we are doublecrossing our alliance, and we have been sent in for infiltration?"
Sakura was taken aback, but nodded, "Y-Yes, that is exactly right Naruto...see you can make gist of something, once somebody explains it to you."
"Hehe, I just have somebody very smart and patient to explain it to me." Sakura mumbled a 'thanks' while looking out the window.
"..I am sure Temari-san is ok, Shikamaru still seems pretty worried."
"Yeah...it's rare to see Shikamaru to show such concern though, I mean he is not a bad guy but...well it just is not him."
"You never know how important something truly is to you, until there is fear of losing it..."
'That's what I thought when you fell unconscious after saving me from Sasuke-kun.'
"...Shikamaru and Temari-san must be close friends."
The blond narrowed his eyes in suspicion, "Neh, maybe they are dating."
Sakura chuckled in disbelief at his claim, "Shikamaru...dating? Ha! That would be far too 'troublesome' for him to deal with, since he has so 'little' time as is...with his precious clouds."
Naruto shrugged in agreement, "Just throwing it out there."
Sakura recalled all the moments she had seen the two together back in Konoha, when Temari had come to Konoha in regards of the alliance between the two countries. She distinctly remembered one time where there was a frown on the Nara's face, as the other was holding a sadistic smirk as she would tease him left and right. Then the tables would turn when Shikamaru thought of a witted reply back, making him the one with the victorious smirk, as the fuming Suna nin trailed behind.
"You know Naruto...that might not be as farfetched as it sounds."
"You think so?!"
"Yeah...just a hunch though." The conversation once again died down into silence, while the kunoichi dwelled on to another variable, themselves.
She felt like she knew where they stood now, but that itch at the back of her mind about the Uchiha would not let go like a hungry dog refusing to release a fresh lump of meat. She told Kakashi the truth the other day, she really felt something different and warming regarding the blond next to her. It surprised her how less blurred and fogged things were becoming as time took its course.
She knew better than to compare her two teammates side by side, but it helped reinforce her beliefs more. Once upon a time, the mysterious Uchiha was something that she saw no fault with. The Uchiha could do no bad deed, and anything that rolled out of his mouth was the law. That was until the blond truly came into the picture, when team 7 was put together. She remembered how all her beliefs on the hyperactive boy being just a bother, were turned upside down the moment he said the words 'Kage bunshin no jutsu'. It was only then, that Sasuke's 'perfection' aura began to slowly crumble away in her eyes, and she realised how little she truly knew Naruto.
One particular case would be the cold and dark memory of her first time inside the forest of death. Inside that murderous testing ground, was where she saw a side that she never expected from either of her team mates. First there was Sasuke, who defied her false image of his bad boy, die hard attitude, and revealed his mortality that he felt fear, and would consider defeat an option. Then there was Naruto, who demonstrated to her something till this day that everybody knew well. He was a reckless, fearless, determined, and strongly willed baka.
Moving down the road of time, there was then when Naruto saved her from Gaara. She never saw it coming, when Sasuke denied her thanks and pointed to the blond instead. She couldn't even believe it, and the sensation she felt that time still retained in her mind fresh today. Respect, gratefulness, and an amazing wash of warmth, all of which she gave in a soft smile that the knuckle head never saw to receive.
'I really am over looking things too much.' She inwardly mused.
On the other side of things, Naruto was pondering about if he had forgotten anything. He had double checked his packing before sitting down, so it was not an item. It then clicked what he was forgetting.
"Hey Sakura-chan?" The blond turned to see the kunoichi deep in thought, with her gaze fixed on the window as if searching for something.
"Err...Sakura-chan?" when the blond waved his hand in a blur in front of her zoned out expression, Sakura jumped in her spot.
"e-eh?! S-sorry Naruto, did you say something?" The blond perked an eyebrow in confusion at her outburst, but brushed it off.
"We should say goodbye to Tazuna-jiji and his family before leaving, and thank them for their kindness."
"O-oh...that's a good idea."
"So you are leaving? Such a shame it was super having you here, given the circumstances." Tazuna beamed, while adjusting his glasses.
Tazuna had not changed much over the short period, safe for his change in financial status, which his new, expensive clothing showed. The grandson next to him however, was almost like meeting a stranger. Inari was at least a foot and a half taller, and wore attire similar to his step father. Gone was the boy's hat, and enwrapped around his neck was a towel, again similar to his would be father. Tsunami was absent to the teens shame.
"Neh? Are you drinking again you old geezer?"
The older man frowned, but burst into laughter when the blonds pink haired teammate scolded him, "Is that how you say thanks to Tazuna-san for his unbelievable kindness and generosity?"
"B-B-But Sakura-cha-"
"Apologize!" The blonds' shoulders slumped in defeat, and he then turned to the self controlling old man, who was fidgeting at his deflated demeanour.
"I am sorry for calling you an old geezer..." The friendly nudge next to him prompted for the finishing 'Tazuna-san' at the end of his stale sentence.
'Hehehe she has the brat wrapped around her finger.'
Feigning innocence, the older man replied a bit too cheerfully to be genuine, "Why that was so kind of you to come out of your way to thank somebody as super as myself."
'Oh get over yourself geezer!' The blond retorted, but grinned anyway.
"I still wish it was better catching up on a more err...less wild time."
Tazuna shrugged in a dismissive nature, "Who cares. It was great to see the town's saviours again...even if one of you is missing."
Sakura could feel the tension rise in the once cheerful room, but before it became intolerable, the blond shot it down, "No problems, we will just have to drag him back here once we bring him back."
That brought a soft smile to her face but she chose to leave it there.
Soon after that, the teens were escorted to the door, and bid their farewells, "I am sure Naruto-neechan and Sakura-neesan will be alright."
"They will Inari...Sakura's become pretty cute hasn't she?"
The younger boy flushed at his grandfathers suggestive tone, "Y-Yeah ...I did ask her if she wanted to get something to eat, but she turned me down."
Tazuna shook his head and laughed, "That's because you aren't as charming as your grandfather my boy! Why if I asked, she would be unable to resist my charms."
Inari was beginning to wonder if Tazuna really had been drinking again, actually he was hoping now.
"She is too old for you anyway...and it appears she already has her eyes on somebody else." Inari went quizzical at that point, and noticed his direction was at the two retreating forms.
"H-Huh?! Ojiisan...you can't be serious!?"
"Hehe...you will understand Inari...when you're older."
Meanwhile back with Naruto and Sakura, "That was nice."
"Tazuna-jiji really is a cool guy. If I had some money, I'd pay for as much of the tab as I could."
The kunoichi shook her head with a giggle at her teammate's mumbled curses at the sannin. Sakura decided to admire the scenery as they journeyed back though the streets of Wave. It was a working day, so there was quite a large amount of new faces they hadn't encountered on their stay yet. The sky overhead was clean blue, with not a cloud in sight, allowing the bright sun to warm their backs. A shadow swooping overhead caught her attention, as she looked up to see a lone bird flying around over the top.
Her trained eyes were able to determine it was a hawk, although it must have been confused with a vulture, since it was circling around in the sky above their heads.
"Sakura-chan!" All interest of the bird was lost when she heard how serious Naruto's whisper was as the small distance between them almost closed.
"Do you...feel like we are..." Sakura now felt the spine chilling sensation that was bothering her teammate, and casually nodded her head cheerfully in an act.
'We are being followed...'
A quick glimpse of eye contact was all that was needed, and the plan was set. The pair then pretended as if nothing was amiss, while internally both minds were racing.
'Who could be following us? Maybe it's the ANBU or even...' Sakura shook her mind clear of speculation and got to work.
"Hey Naruto?"
"Yes Sakura-chan?" The blond replied in his usual ecstatic manner.
"We better get a move on, Kakashi-sensei is waiting."
"Neh, he probably will be late again."
"That doesn't give us a right to become like him!"
"Ok ok, my bad."
Both suddenly felt the presence pick up speed as well, but neither dared looked back, knowing that if they did, they would lose the advantage of surprise. Sakura felt a shift in her teammate's direction, and noted he was heading towards the park.
'I see, so there are no civilians around...nice Naruto.' Sakura changed her course and followed, noting that whoever was following them was now catching up. With the trees now blocking direct sight, Naruto acted. "Kage bunshin no jutsu!" He whispered, as a lone clone poofed into existence, and as quickly as possible, the clone made itself scarce.
Sakura's eyes widened in surprise at his actions, but inwardly smirked, 'Nice thinking again Naruto! Sending a kage bunshin to alert the others.'
When they had reached the centre of the park, and they were certain now that whoever was following them was at least within plain sight, both sprang to action and turned around kunai in hand. Their suspicions were correct on it being just one person following them, judging by what they could tell it appeared to be a male. He was wearing a thick, long forest green jacket, with a hood covering his facial features. Underneath that was a black shirt, with a long turtleneck like collar, blocking the lower part of his face from being seen. He also appeared to be wearing black shorts, and sandals. To the pair, he seemed to fit the profile of a shinobi...and he somehow gave off a creepy aura that made them shiver on impulse, but neither was willing to admit it aloud.
"It's been a long time...Naruto." said a deep and monotone voice, although his hood still covered his face making it impossible to determine where he was looking. The blond tensed at the strangers words, disturbed that this person knew who he was. Sakura on the other hand, had adrenaline rushing through her system in worry.
'He knows Naruto?! '
"Who are you?!" Naruto demanded, not releasing his whitening knuckles on his kunai.
"You mean you do not recognise me?" The man spoke in a whisper that only added to Sakura's predicament.
The blond narrowed his eyes in confusion, 'Who the hell is he?' Naruto was about to bark out something, only to have Sakura practically jump in front of him protectively, with a kunai being gripped tightly in her hand.
'If this person is after Naruto, I have to protect him! If he gets hit in the chest it could be fatal!'
"Identify yourself! Why are you following us?!"
The figure seemed taken aback, as if Sakura's shout and addressing him like an enemy had startled him...maybe even hurt him. The figures shoulders slumping, made the hurt clear.
"So not only has Naruto forgotten me...but Sakura as well....Naruto forgetting a comrades voice is hurtful to said comrades feeling...But Sakura forgetting a comrades appearance-"
It suddenly hit Sakura like a freight train, 'OH MY GOD!'
"S-S-Shino?! I am so sorry!"
"WHA?!? Shino?!!"
The figure lifted his head to reveal his goggles and Konoha forehead protector, as he continued his monotone speech, although Naruto could have sworn it sounded like a sulk.
"It hurts a comrades feelings when they call out to you, and you don't know who they are... but to mistaken a comrade for an enemy when you have seen them so many times-"
Both teen's sweat dropped as the bug user continued some rant like a recording, "Umm...how did you not recognise him Sakura-chan?"
Sakura rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly, as she put away her kunai, "Err...I really don't know...heat of the moment?"
'Although not showing your face doesn't help!' seemed to be what both were musing.
Putting aside their shock, Naruto tilted his head up as if something had clicked, and he nervously scratched his head as if he did something wrong, "Umm...I think I have done a bad thing."
Sakura turned her head in question, while Shino was now sulking about 'not listening to your comrades' hurts their feelings'.
"What do you mean?"
"My kage bunshin might have umm....exaggerated."
"Wha-"
Before she could finish her question, a violent explosion on the opposite side of the clearing caused the three bystanders to watch.
"I WILL PROTECT NARUTO-KUN AND SAKURA-SAN FROM THE ASSASSIN WITH ALL OF MY POWER IN YOUTH, IKIMASHOU!!!"
"YOU TOLD LEE-SAN SOMEBODY WAS TRYING TO-LEE-SAN, NO!" Something told Sakura that Shino was going to do more than just sulk by the end of this day.
While Sakura tried to stop Lee from attempting to decapitate Shino with his spear, Naruto heard a surprised gasp hit his ears, but when he turned to see who it was, he was met by a large white, fur ball.
"GAHH!" Sakura instantly turned in fear, only to then sweat drop when she saw Naruto's face was being assaulted by a gigantic man sized dog.
"Akamaru! Naruto is hurt! Don't do that." The dog responded with an apologetic whimper to Sakura's heated order, and released the stunned blond from his pinning to the ground, although he had more shock on his face than pain.
"T-T-T-That's Akamaru!? What the hell has Kiba been feeding him?!"
"What the hell has Jiraiya-sama been feeding you is the real question Naruto!"
The blond then finally saw the other two figures that he had no trouble in recognising. One was a pointed tooth grinning Inuzuka Kiba, and the other was a smiling softly, pink hued Hyuuga Hinata.
"Hey Kiba, Hinata!"
"H-Hello Naruto-kun!"
"Not only did Naruto recognise Hinata and Kiba...but Sakura remembered Akamaru instantly." Sakura felt her sweat drop again at the bug user's otherwise neutral sulk, while Naruto never even heard it.
"Seriously! What the hell happened to Akamaru?"
"Answer my question as to why you aren't a midget anymore and I might tell."
"WHAT DID YOU CALL ME DATTEBAYO?!"
"Heh...it looks like your still a loud mouthed idiot though." Sakura couldn't resist the laughter to the reunion, but she stopped when she heard a sob come from her side.
"This is all so moving and a touching moment that will remain attached to our youth's for all eternity!"
'Lee-san...I think you must miss Gai-sensei or something...you weren't this bad with the youth talk to start off with!'
While this reunion was really great to see, a concern washed over her, and when the blond shot her a glance, she could tell though his happiness to see more old friends again, he too was thinking the same thing. The Kyuubi. Once Kiba had settled down teasing the blond for his miraculous growth spurt, and changed target to Lee, Sakura allowed her interest to drift up to the sky. She noticed that the hawk from earlier was still flying over head, which before she didn't really pay much thought to, but now she was getting curious to their follower. Hearing footsteps on the grass made her bring her attention back to what was happening in front of her, and she noticed that the blond was walking over to her. Sakura read her teammates body language like a book, and through his very genuine grin, she could see he was anxious through his shifty eyes.
'Even though he wants to tell them, he still is afraid...' When the blond came to her side, she decided to voice her concern.
"Hey Naruto, if you want to, you can tell them later-"
"Hey guys, there is something very important I need to tell you."
She should have known better than to doubt the number one surprising ninja once again.
Sakura could have sworn the blond had rehearsed this, and she didn't even need to help him this time with anything. What amazed her was even when the expressions on their comrades changed to shock or disbelief, Naruto didn't even flinch. Once he was done, there was the same tense and suffocating atmosphere that was present when Shikamaru and Lee were told of Naruto's burden.
After what seemed agonising minutes, Kiba was the first to fix his agape expression. "W-Well....that makes sense."
Naruto now was the one that held the surprised expression, "I-It does?"
Kiba shrugged casually as if the news he was just told meant nothing to him, "Akamaru and I smelt some strange essence in the air during the chuunin exams...it smelled similar to that sand guy...err Gaara wasn't it?" Kiba voiced, while shooting a questioning gaze at Akamaru who barked in acknowledgement.
Kiba then snickered, "Explains the whiskers too...but where does the fact that you are an idiot come into play?" The blond seemed to not even hear the insult as he broke into a wide foxed smile. Sakura could have sworn his eyes were going watery, but she was just as relieved as he was.
"Naruto..." That was until Shino spoke in his neutral tone that she was really starting to hate in situations like this.
The bug users' goggles flickered a strange colour, as Naruto gulped, "You...are supposed to trust your comrades. If you do not show trust to your comrades with secrets, how are they meant to trust you in battle, when you do not trust them?" Naruto's anxiety practically vaporised into back into a great smile, but this time not to push his luck again, he faced the silent Hyuuga, while Kiba sent Shino the signal to 'shut up'.
"...Hinata?"
The blond asked anxiously, feeling his stomach turning as her stunned expression did not leave her face.
'I was telling myself this before...I have to accept it if people do not believe in me anymore.'
"...It's ok, I understa-"
"Naruto-kun!" The blond practically froze on the spot when he felt the Hyuuga lock him in a firm embrace, and cried over his shoulder. To Hinata, it now made all sorts of sense, the glares, and the insults...few to little friends. It made her really see how amazing it was for the blond to put up with so much crap she had observed over the long years alone, and yet here he was, and this was how he had turned out. It only solidified her reasoning why she admired him so much.
"You're really amazing, Naruto-kun!" Naruto still wasn't reacting, this was probably the first time Hinata had ever said anything to him without stuttering, and even more bizarre, actually touching him.
"...Thank you Hinata." Naruto finally replied, as he returned the embrace. While this was not everyone of his friends, it was more than enough to give him a sense of comfort he had been wishing for such a long time, and it felt incredible to him.
The touching moment was ruined though, when he heard a highly perverted snicker, "POPULAR WITH THE LADIES NOW ARENT WE GAKI!"
'Oh good god!'
"ERO-SENNIN!" Surprisingly not only Naruto, but Sakura shouted in annoyance at the snickering sannin, while Hinata's cheeks were turning unbelievably red, but even to her own surprise, she didn't faint.
"Troublesome...I trust you all have heard from Naruto why you are here."
Shino took charge, "Hai, Hokage-sama refused to tell us anything, and told us Naruto would explain the situation to us when we arrived...then we would be given a choice to accept or decline from the mission." Shikamaru raised an eyebrow at mention of that, while the blond looked concerned.
'Hehe, I see...revenge.'
"So what is your answer?" Shino turned his head to look at Naruto, causing the blond to pull his head back at the creepy gaze that he was feeling was a glare directed at him.
"I would have been happy to say yes...but since Naruto-" He then looked at the raising eye browed Sakura "-and Sakura have issues Identifying comrades, I feel we will ha-"
"He is sulking again." Kiba sighed with a sweat drop that was shared between the teens.
Kiba decided to cut to the chase, "We aren't going anywhere, right Akamaru!?" The dogs loud bark added the 'period!' at the end of the statement, with the Hyuuga nodding her head in agreement. Team 8's actions only brought a smile to the blond yet again.
Shikamaru nodded, "Very well...as much as this is so bothersome to do, I will fill you guys up to speed."
Shikamaru decided it was best to continue the mission briefing back inside the walls of the hotel, just to not take any chances. Sakura decided to take the opportunity to exit alone and get lost in her thoughts of today. It started off terrible with the meeting, but then ended in the possibly the best way she could imagine. The expression that was on Naruto's face was more than enough to light her days for a long time to come.
Sakura would be lying if she didn't feel a strange, yet very familiar surge perk when she saw Hinata hug Naruto, but she put aside what she felt. Today, only Naruto's feelings are what mattered in her eyes, and if he was in bliss, she would be in bliss for him as well.
"You seem to be blooming with sparkling glee Sakura-san." Sakura turned her head to the familiar voice she identified as the spandex wearing Lee.
"As much as this day started off terrible, it is great to see how well it turned out." Reflecting on her teammates almost crying with joy smile from earlier was making her smile on impulse.
"I don't think anything better could have happened to bring Naruto the comfort and confidence he needed." Lee was now at her side as they continued walking down the less busy streets.
"True, but I believe it's all thanks to you Sakura-san that Naruto-kun is where he is at now."
"Why? He did a good job without my help today?"
"You didn't notice Sakura-san?" Sakura now stopped in confusion to what Lee was saying. She was listening intently to Naruto's explanation word for word, she could even recite it if she had to. What is it that she did not notice?
"I don't understand what you mean...Naruto did everything today without my assistance?"
Lee grinned, "Who did he walk over to before he started talking?"
"M-..."
'Me...'
Almost as if the miniature Gai had heard her musing, he nodded, "You gave him strength Sakura-san, with your presence close to him. You should be proud that you have such a strong affect on Naruto-kun's confidence Sakura-san."
Said Kunoichi was agape in surprise, but recomposed with a sheepish grin, "...I never even noticed...that coward." she muttered, although her soft tone showed her words meant little to her true belief.
A sniffle caught her attention to see Lee with water running down his face, "How wonderful that two people can give each other such a build up in will power and strength to do grand things!"
Sakura felt her sweat drop at his antics, "Err...thanks lee-san...but isn't that the same thing with you and Gai-sensei?"
That froze said spandex wearer in surprise, until he suddenly exploded into more tears, "HAWW! That is so true Sakura-san!"
'Yep...he misses Gai-sensei.'
When Lee had finally stopped his ecstatic crying, Sakura sighed, "Anyway, what are you doing out here Lee-san?"
"...Oh that's right! Shikamaru-kun has finished his briefing, and sent me to come and retrieve you, because we are moving out soon."
Sakura now stopped and looked around to see where they were and cursed, "Lee-san...why didn't you say that first before we walked to the other side of town?!" putting aside her annoyance, they doubled back. On the way, she asked if there were any changes to the plan.
'So Ero-sennin will still be travelling with Shikamaru? That makes sense, since there is the possibility of them being attacked.' she concluded. Eventually when the hotel was in sight, Sakura was glad not too much time was wasted. She halted though when she saw a familiar animal perched on the veranda of what looked like Naruto's room. It was the hawk, now for the third time in a row. The bird seemed to be looking right inside the room...as if it held interest to whoever was inside.
Now being able to see the creature more clearly since it was stationary, she could note that it had a great long scar going down its right wing. From what her medic-nin trained eyes were able to determine, had been healed poorly by an amateur in medical jutsu, yet the injury did not appear to cause any trouble for the bird to fly. The bird then turned around from its viewing, and its deep black irises met her surprised emerald orbs. The cause to her surprise was the hawks fixed gaze was not at the scenery in general, or even surveying anything else...
...the animal was staring at her, and nothing else, it was as if the hawk was aware of her interest.
"Sakura-san?"
Lee's sudden questioning tone broke Sakura's eye contact as she jumped in surprise, "e-eh?!"
Lee raised a curious eyebrow, but Sakura cursed and looked back only to find the hawk was now gone.
'...am I losing it?'
"Is something the matter Sakura-san?"
Sakura shook her thoughts clear and mumbled a 'no'.
'I must be going paranoid, yes...that must be it.'