Best Laid Plans
Arun
Chapter 9: Pawns On The Board
Disclaimer: Woof! Woof! Naruto went poof!
Readers be warned! There is risqué stuff ahead.
It was a little past sunrise, the day after the preliminaries and Team 7 were dutifully seated on the ground before their sensei. Ninja whose morning runs took them through or near Team 7's training ground goggled at the sight of the infamous copy-nin with his team so early in the morning. Of course, the passers-by did not know that Kakashi had set the meeting at four and showed up only a few minutes earlier.
"It's a pleasant morning and I see that my little urchins are full of vim and vigor," the jounin said jovially, flipping a page of his precious book. It was just bright enough for him to read his favorite porn without trouble.
Team 7 grumbled. They'd stupidly believed that their teacher would show up on time just this once and had roused themselves up in the wee hours of the night to make the rendezvous.
"So, what's the first item on the itinerary?" Kakashi smiled beatifically, ignoring the grumbles. If the brats were too stupid to understand his tardiness so many months after training under him, it was not his problem. They were supposed to look underneath the underneath and divine motives, after all. And this was one test they'd failed miserably.
"The AAR?" Sakura asked.
"Yep," Kakashi said, flipping a page.
"We will start with Sasuke first."
"I faced off against Inuzuka Kiba and his dog. Kiba's a taijutsu specialist who works closely with his pooch. I knew going in that I was up against two opponents."
"Doesn't take a genius to figure that out," Naruto commented from the side, evoking a guffaw from Sakura.
Sasuke glared at the blonde but seeing as how the Uzumaki was ignoring him, turned to Kakashi. The jounin shrugged and happily flipped another page.
"The weirdo's seal was causing problems with my chakra so I couldn't use my bloodline or any decent ninjutsu. But my taijutsu has always been better than Kiba's and I knew I had him beat at speed."
"What did the seal do?" Kakashi asked. He had an idea having reviewed the reports on Anko's seal the night before, but he wanted Sasuke's perspective on it.
"It sucks your chakra and then pumps it out again. Only what comes out is far more potent. It also makes me want to hurt someone." Well, it made him want to rend someone limb from limb to tell the truth, but Sasuke was sure that Kakashi did not need that information.
Kakashi nodded thoughtfully. With Anko, the thoughts were always murderous. Not that it took a lot to drive the half-crazy woman into a killing frenzy on the field. Perhaps Orochimaru had succeeded in taming the madness inherent in his technique? Whatever the case, the jounin had already made his decision regarding the seal and he would see it through.
Sasuke waited patiently for several seconds, hoping that his sensei and eternal fount of wisdom would have some sane advice to share, but if Kakashi had any, he was content to keep his thoughts to himself.
"Well, anyways," the raven-haired genin continued, hiding his disappointment, "I knocked out the dog at the onset of the fight. Kiba got in a good hit when I went after his partner, but I considered it a fair bargain. Once mutt-boy's dog was out of the equation, I was able to subdue him without much trouble."
"What could you have done better?" Kakashi asked.
"I could have used bunshins to confuse Kiba when I went after Akamaru."
Kakashi flipped a page and shot his ever-annoying grin at his student.
"May not have worked," he observed musingly. "Inuzukas have a highly developed sense of smell. You'd have had to bunch your bunshins very close to each other and to yourself, minimizing the technique's effectiveness and the false sense of security you'd get out of it would have potentially left you vulnerable. So, depending on how developed young Kiba's olfactory senses are, it may not have worked."
Sasuke nodded.
"Maybe, but I needed only a few seconds to take down Akamaru."
"And there are Inuzukas out there who can smell space-time jutsu," Kakashi replied, throwing a new fact in his student's face. For someone with very little data, Sasuke made a lot of assumptions about the world around him. Assumptions that for all the kid's skill at his job would see him dead someday. So, as the boy's teacher and leader, the jounin considered it his latest sacred duty to stomp that useless arrogance into the ground and crush it until only self remained. The fact that he got a few chuckles out of it was a welcome bonus, moreover.
"Really?" Sakura asked out of curiosity.
"Yes, it's common knowledge, actually. Not even restricted since the Yondaime's time after he created his signature technique," the Hatake replied without breaking eye contact with Sasuke. Sakura may have inadvertently ruined with her inquisitiveness, a lesson her raven-haired teammate needed to learn but that was how the world worked. Best laid plans of mice and men go awry, after all.
Sasuke looked away to the trees on the far side of the clearing. But Kakashi smiled a slight smile under his mask nevertheless. The boy's surrender told him a great many things indeed.
"So, what would you have done, sensei?" Naruto asked.
The jounin turned his attention to his two remaining students then.
"I would have faked an attack on the dog to draw in the young Inuzuka and taken him from the flank with a shunshin. I'm not saying that what Sasuke did was wrong here, mind – it worked, after all – but you guys tend to think in straight lines. That'll only get you killed. Think outside the box. Learn to approach the problem from an oblique angle." To the Uchiha, he said, "Sasuke, always remember that if Kiba had struck with a kunai, you'd have lost. Never forget that."
Sasuke nodded. He had realized that little oversight right after Kiba struck him.
"What else did you learn?"
"That all three of us are too accustomed to fighting as a team," Sasuke replied without hesitation.
"True," Kakashi agreed. "It was intentional. Build the team as you build the individual. The three of you have grown a lot but you've grown most as a team. As you saw in the forest and on the Wave mission, Team 7 is greater than the sum of its parts. The loss of synergy you have built with your teammates when you fight alone is going to be jarring until your individual skills catch up. The solution to this problem is to learn quickly until your individual skills are up to par, of course."
"Of course."
Kakashi did a weird little twirl of his fingers to signal that Sasuke's brief was over and turned to Sakura.
"Sakura, your fight."
Sakura sat up straighter.
"I ensnared Yoroi, my opponent in a genjutsu as soon as I entered the ground and even before the signal was given to start the fight," she said proudly.
Kakashi nodded, and Sasuke and Naruto grinned at their teammate's sneakiness. That was their Sakura, all right. She could never fight on an even footing with either of them and so she did not bother. She used every trick in the book and beyond to even the playing field and on a good day, made them eat humble pie with a panache that hinted at the genius that had lain hidden within for so long.
"I did not know if he was any good at straight up taijutsu, but his build and carriage suggested that he was a close range fighter."
"You mean his ass, Pinky," Sasuke guffawed. Sure, he hadn't seen Sakura check out the bastard's ass but it felt good to egg her so.
"Go blow a bull and fuck a duck, Uke," Sakura shot back instantly. As Naruto collapsed to her left, clutching his stomach and beating the ground in belly laughter, she continued without batting an eyelid, "I approached Yoroi from his left flank with two bunshins, while holding his attention on the other flank with the illusion. I was prepared to kawarimi away if it turned out that he'd seen through my genjutsu and was using himself as bait to entrap me. It turned out he wasn't and I put two kunai in him. One into the back of his leg and the other through his palm."
"Any lessons learnt?"
"He didn't put up a fight at all," Sakura replied with a shrug. What could one learn from a fight with a living dummy other than the different feel of real flesh resisting against metal compared to the fake stuff on a lifelike training model? She suspected a fight with Akamaru would have taught her more.
Kakashi nodded. It was true that Yoroi was a pushover in the match. But then, if the file he'd read on the suspected traitor was true, the boy's specialty lay elsewhere.
"He has a bloodline that's particularly suited for close combat. You're lucky he was a one trick pony who depended solely on his grappling skills," the jounin said. He wanted to say more but couldn't give voice to his suspicions lest his students ask uncomfortable questions that he wasn't prepared to answer.
Team 7 nodded.
"What would you have done if he had seen through your genjutsu, Sakura?" Kakashi asked, mainly so that he could teach his students a new lesson. And with this little kunoichi, there was always the chance that he could gain a completely new perspective on something old as well. They had all learnt from her unique perspectives in the past.
"I'm not as fast as Sasuke or Naruto," Sakura stated, "and I don't have their strength. But as you'd pointed out in the past, Sensei, my taijutsu form is very good for a genin, and I make excellent use of kawarimi and bunshin."
Sakura's three listeners nodded. Sasuke and Naruto had learned to use the two low level techniques to devastating effect from their pink-haired teammate. Kakashi himself acknowledged that he'd picked up a few pointers on the use of the two most basic of techniques in the shinobi's repertoire after seeing his "cute kunoichi student" in action. If Sakura'd been cognizant of the regard that her teacher and teammates had for her as a shinobi, she would have blushed crimson.
"With my physique," Sakura continued, "I can't exchange blows with my opponents and in a test of strength, pummel them to the ground. It'd be best to finish my fights in one blow, whenever possible."
"True," Kakashi agreed, transferring his Icha Icha to his right hand so that he could use his left to tend to the itch on his right elbow.
By this time, Naruto was getting bored out of his wits. Why couldn't Sakura say what she wanted to say outright and be done with it? As she grew more confident, the girl let out more of her scholarly self during these discussions and it was mighty boring to hear her prattle on and on.
"Enough with the analysis. Tell us what you were going to do already," he whined, earning an elbow to his ribs from Sakura, and a glare from Kakashi and Sasuke.
"Ignore the clown. Please continue, Sakura," the jounin said.
Naruto looked to Sasuke for support but the latter had already made his thoughts clear with the glare. With a sigh, the Uzumaki grumbled and resigned himself to enduring more boring talk.
"So, I've been working on my stamina as well as my chakra reserves, and been training to use chakra scalpels in a fight in my free time. So that I could deal out massive damage with touch alone."
"And you'd have used it in the fight?" Sasuke asked.
"I was really hoping I wouldn't have to," the Haruno confessed. "I would have hated to lose the element of surprise in the finals but if the situation were desperate enough, I would have. What good is a secret weapon for the finals if I don't make it that far?"
"True," Kakashi agreed.
"Is that why you've been focusing on redirecting our attacks these last few weeks during our daily spars?" Naruto pointed at Sasuke with his chin.
"Yes. I got the idea from the Wave mission. You know that rogue hunter-nin that used senbon in a fight? I don't know how to use them but I know how to form scalpels."
"So, how does it work?"
"Every time I grabbed your wrists or slapped you anywhere, I was targeting some muscle group or organ inside your body. If I'd used my scalpels, either of you would have been dead multiple times over."
Sasuke grunted.
"In other words, taijutsu with you is a losing proposition."
"Surprise is key," Kakashi observed thoughtfully, "Your innovation is primarily an ambush weapon, but with your expertise in genjutsu, you're an ambush fighter already."
Team 7 looked at their teacher expectantly, in the hope that he would elaborate more but Kakashi had other thoughts.
"Good work, Sakura. Naruto, share with us your thoughts on your fight."
Naruto shot a wide grin at his pink-haired teammate. Two can play at this game of pedantry. And he'd bore her as much as she bored him.
"My opponent, Temari of Suna, was a wind user. Her fans were a clear giveaway."
Sasuke groaned. Naruto was trying to sound like a scholar again. And as usual, he was failing miserably at it.
"Even before I entered the ring, it was clear that she was a long-range fighter specializing in area affect weapons."
Sakura threw up her arms and shook her head. Kakashi smiled behind his mask at the antics of his students. Hopefully, someday in the future, Naruto would get the hang of making speeches that didn't make him look like a nincompoop.
"Her clumsy weapon is a big disadvantage at close combat. But you don't use something like her war-fan unless you're really good at it."
Well, maybe not. The way the boy was going anon stating the obvious, it was clear he'd kill his own brain dead long before he learned wisdom.
"My best hope, I thought, was to decoy her into using her weapon until she started tiring out and close with her.
"As a ruse, I charged her position to learn her capabilities. Once I was reasonably certain, I used a shunshin to close with her as she was recovering from her swing and knocked her fan away. She wasn't much of a challenge after that. Her basic skills were all right but without her primary weapon, she was out of depth."
"Succinctly put," Kakashi said but only because he did not want to shame his student further than the boy had himself. "Lessons learnt?"
"Always have something to fall back on," Naruto said with a shrug. He'd never understood why Kakashi thought there were lessons to be learnt from victorious battles, but he'd started cooperating after the jounin beat the crap out of him for the third time. What was there to digest anyway? He went in, kicked ass and took names, and that was all there was to it.
Kakashi inwardly breathed a sigh of relief. The blonde genin's observation was a valid one, this time. The Hatake still had hopes that Naruto would learn to dissect even the fights he won and look for areas of improvement. It was a lesson that the boy had stubbornly refused to absorb so far. He was a willing enough student studying losses, but forgot all about the ones where he emerged the victor. It was a shortcoming that most people had but truly effective soldiers and armies did not suffer from it. And if the Uzumaki wanted to be a Hokage ever, he needed to understand that victory is as good a teacher as defeat.
"Precisely," he said. "Your opponent was without doubt skilled with her weapon, but it was her sole ace. And since the fan was very visible, it was an obvious giveaway. Out on the field, when your strengths or weaknesses are that apparent, you better have a secret weapon for the rainy day, or you aren't long for this world. You probably saved her life in the long run with the defeat you handed her, Naruto."
"But you encourage us to concentrate on one field even to the detriment of others, sensei," Sakura pointed out.
"First, I never said ignore other fields. I'm training you three to become experts in at least two areas with average or better than average skills in all others. You can't become proficient overnight, of course, which is why I'm focusing on one skill set above all others," Kakashi paused so that his words would register.
"Second, you can branch out later on – in fact, all senior shinobi do – but for genin, being a one-trick pony is perfectly acceptable. You have your team for support. And your mentor is always there by your side, after all. And while it's always better to be master of many so that you won't get flatfooted like the Kazekage's daughter, especially on something as important as an S-rank mission, you aren't going to be running them anytime soon, skilled as you are. Right now, if your teamwork and your sensei aren't enough, it means someone way over your pay grade screwed up badly."
"And we all die," Sakura said with a thin smile.
"Probably. The Wave mission could have gone either way if you guys were any less capable."
"But we had you. You fought Zabuza and killed him," Naruto exclaimed.
Kakashi smiled but did not reply. The Wave mission may have been about Tazuna to begin with, but even halfway through, the parameters had changed and assumed national security level significance. The strategic implications were only now becoming clear as the political situation in Wave improved. But the jounin was not going to tell his students they'd completed an S-rank mission. It might get to their heads if he did. Especially when said S-rank was classified as an A-rank to throw interested foreign parties off-scent as to the magnitude of what had really transpired on the little island nation in that one month.
"So, training?" Sasuke asked.
"Yes, that," Kakashi said, flashing them his trademark smile. He paused a few seconds so that he could scan the last few sentences off the page. Once he'd read the porn-goodness, he flipped to the next page and addressed Team 7. "Sakura, your greatest weakness is your chakra capacity."
All three genin nodded. This was old news. Both Sasuke and Naruto had been helping Sakura with her chakra potential for months now.
"Granted, your reserves have improved considerably these last few months, but they're still small. You'll make a deadly fighter if they weren't so pitiful."
"I… We've been working on it, sensei," Sakura said a little defensively.
Sure, this was an AAR and you were meant to lay things out in the open as they are, but she really was giving her best.
Kakashi nodded.
"I know. The coming month, we'll focus on taijutsu, ninjutsu, genjutsu, medical jutsu and building your chakra capacity. The intent, and this is true for Sasuke and Naruto as well, is to make you more rounded fighters henceforth. You guys are advanced enough in your primary skill sets that I feel it's safe to diversify a little."
Team 7 felt proud at the acknowledgement, but they remained silent.
"Taijutsu and ninjutsu," Kakashi continued, "you'll learn from study sessions as well as spars with Sasuke and Naruto in your copious spare time."
The genin grimaced. They knew from prior experience what that meant. For the next month, they would have effectively little social life outside the team.
"You'll also learn Genjutsu and medical jutsu in your free time."
Another grimace. Make that no social life.
"The two of us will work solely on improving your chakra capacity and sharpening your tactical acumen."
Sakura nodded.
"Slacking off is unacceptable. If you have to work twenty hours every day to complete your workload for the day, then by God, you will work twenty hours and make do with however little sleep you get," Kakashi said, speaking broadly to his three little killers.
Sakura knew the coming month was going to suck royally, but for the first time in a long while, she felt content. For her, Kakashi's statement of intent today was the icing on the cake that confirmed what had slowly become obvious through the course of Wave mission. The jounin respected his students. And if his acknowledgement and approval came with an increased workload, she would gladly endure the hardships thrown her way. She would do no less for the man who'd made her a shinobi. And she was sure, so would her teammates.
Kakashi turned to Naruto.
"Naruto, your chakra potential is fearsome. Your control sucks to nigh heaven."
Sasuke snickered though he'd known the sobering truth for a while now. Naruto was strong in spite of his chakra troubles. If the Uzumaki could control it, he would become an absolute monster.
Kakashi narrowed his eyes at the Uchiha who realized he was on precarious ground, though he did not understand why and shut up. It was not as if he meant any harm with that dig, after all.
"Even still," the jounin continued once Sasuke shut up. There really was no reason for the look he'd shot the young Uchiha except perhaps that he'd felt like it. Let the boy think of it what he will.
"We will not focus much on your control. With the chakra you have, chakra control beyond what you have is not an immediate priority. And what you lack in this area, experience will teach you best."
Naruto's face split into a grin. He hadn't been looking forward to the chakra control lessons himself.
"We will concentrate on your ninjutsu, fuinjutsu and taijutsu as well as your genjutsu evasion skills," the jounin pronounced. "Fuinjutsu and taijutsu are for you to learn in your spare time. Sasuke needs training in the use of his sharingan's genjutsu capabilities and you're the designated test rat. Sakura will be testing her wares on you as well."
Naruto groaned. He hated genjutsu like he did nothing else. He knew he was weak in genjutsu applications, and he abhorred weakness like he did nothing else. His childhood experience had seen to that.
"Do not groan. We will work at it until you can at least defend yourself adequately against mind techniques."
The Uzumaki nodded, if a bit sullenly.
"Cheer up. It's not all bad. I will teach you ninjutsu like you've always wanted. You won't need to beg and scrape at Sasuke to teach them anymore."
"You hear that, Sasuke?" Naruto needled his teammate with a cheeky grin. "I don't need you to teach me ninjutsu."
"Idiot."
"Yeah, well, fuck you, man-whore."
"Impotent prick."
"Now, now, Sasuke, Naruto, pipe down," Kakashi intervened, smiling benignly.
The two boys shut up by unspoken agreement. Several times now, since that first time on the Wave mission, the jounin had interfered in their fights. And in true Kakashi fashion, made them feel violated with only a few words. The last time had been particularly bad and made them feel dirty all over.
Kakashi chuckled at his cowed students. They were getting better at masking their feelings, but they were simply out of their league. This was certainly the time to drop the first bomb of the evening.
"Naruto, we will also begin work on accessing the Kyuubi's chakra. It is a potent tool and I feel it's high time you learned to use it."
Naruto looked slightly taken aback at Kakashi's announcement, but did not object. The jounin's training methods had worked so far, reaping great rewards for Team 7 and he was not going to question his commander's decision now. So, as a stoic would, he calmly went with the flow.
A part of the Uzumaki was excited by the thought, even. True to Orochimaru's broad statement regarding Team 7's lust for power in the Forest of Death, the young jinchuuriki's yearning for control and drive to dominate were great enough on their own accord to influence his thoughts decisively on the subject. Coupled with the respect and trust the jounin commanded in Naruto and Team 7, they overrode what little unease the boy felt at the prospect of harvesting his prisoner's chakra to augment his prowess as a ninja on the battlefield.
Kakashi let the silence at the end of his pronouncement drag for a few seconds in case Naruto had any questions or objections. Seeing that his student did not have any, the jounin frowned slightly. This was the first time he'd misread any of his students since he took them under his wing. It appeared that he had misjudged how far Naruto had grown and matured. Quite possibly because of all the stupid stunts the boy still pulled. He considered this incident as yet another sign that his charges were growing up and like any parent, he wasn't sure how he felt about it.
Dismissing that line of thought for later when he had the time, Kakashi turned his attention back to the present, to Naruto and his demon. He had his reasons, rational and not, for avoiding the decision to train the boy as a Jinchuuriki like a plague for months now. However, after that eye-opener of a meeting with Sarutobi, the council, Danzo and ANBU, he had realized he did not have any choice in the matter. Now, events beyond his control had forced him into a corner and with war waiting just around the corner, damned he would be if his students suffered the same fate as poor Obito and Rin.
Still, try as he might, the Hatake could not shake the shame at the thought of having failed his student in this regard, however inadvertently.
"No questions?"
"Whatever it takes to win," Naruto replied, laconically. It wasn't the complete truth but it would do.
"Yes," Kakashi nodded agreeably. He sensed there was more behind the decision than Naruto's stated reason, but it appeared that the youngster did not want to talk about it. "We will discuss this later."
Naruto shrugged, misinterpreting Kakashi's words to mean he doubted the genin wasn't one hundred percent sure. But the blonde trusted his teacher to make this assessment and since Kakashi was sure, so was Naruto. Perhaps most important of all, he felt neither hesitation nor doubt about the decision made. He was perfectly willing to stick to the plan so long as it did not derail. If it did, he would abandon the pursuit of Kyuubi's power until he was better equipped to handle it.
Kakashi eyed the blonde thoughtfully and could not help the smallest of smiles once he divined the chain of thought that culminated in that shrug. It felt good to know that he had gained the complete trust of one of his students and to know that his student was so confident. The jounin was all for confidence earned with accomplishments paid for with sweat and blood.
"Sasuke," Kakashi said, turning to address the Uchiha, "your Sharingan is powerful. But you are far from being its master."
Naruto threw Sasuke a raspberry, who masterfully ignored the childish act. Kakashi, however, felt no compunction to act so restrained and snickered.
"You will train your speed, genjutsu and ninjutsu. Learn speed from your spars with Naruto and Sakura in your free time. Work with Sakura and Naruto on genjutsu every minute you get. I charge you and Sakura with responsibility for teaching Naruto defense against genjutsu. I cannot stress the importance of this enough. Without it, Naruto is a dead man walking. Sooner or later, he will meet a genjutsu expert and he will die. So bear that thought in mind."
Kakashi paused and grinned inanely at his students.
"I give the two of you cart blanche to do whatever it takes to teach Naruto what he needs to survive."
Sakura became severity incarnate at those words. Sasuke grinned like a maniac at the thought of all the things he could do to the annoying blonde.
Naturally, Kakashi had to have some fun at the raven-haired genin's expense.
"Sasuke, master yourself. I understand you're an 'uke' and as your teacher, I accept you as the person you are, but really, I draw the line at creepy, gay daydreams in an AAR."
Sasuke's mouth flapped open. He tried to speak but words failed him. Naruto and Sakura roared in laughter, clutching their torsos.
Kakashi winked at them.
"I will teach you a few ninjutsu but henceforth, I expect you to copy it from your opponents in the finals and from your teammates. You and I will work almost exclusively on mastering and utilizing your curse seal in battle."
The Hatake paused as he had with Naruto before, but Sasuke was still out of it. The jounin nodded at Sakura, who punched the Uchiha in his shoulder.
"What?" Sasuke asked Sakura in an annoyed voice.
Sakura pointed at Kakashi.
"Joined the world of the living, have we?"
Sasuke glared.
"Want me to repeat my words?"
"I heard it, Sensei. You said that you're going to train me in the use of the curse seal."
"Yes. Orochimaru offered you power. I'm offering you the same as well. You will get loads of it. Here. As a member of Team 7."
Sasuke grunted in annoyance.
"I wasn't planning on joining the freak," he said pointedly.
Kakashi's eyes narrowed.
"Orochimaru is not a joke, Sasuke. He is a genius of the highest caliber."
Not realizing the seriousness with which the jounin was treating the subject, Sasuke snorted dismissively.
"And I'm an Uchiha," he commented.
Kakashi chuckled, as did Sakura and Naruto. Then quick as a flash, the jounin was behind raven-haired genin, yanking his student's hair hard and painfully twisting his right arm behind him. Sasuke had sensed the movement but sitting on the ground, he was in no position to evade or defend himself against his teacher. The jounin knew the boy was helpless the way he was seated, of course, which is why he did what he did.
"I don't doubt your loyalty, Sasuke. But I will not tolerate stupidity."
Kakashi twisted the arm harder.
"I'm no Uchiha and I kick your ass every day. As does Naruto more often than not, for that matter. And when Sakura gets going, she makes the two of you look like rank amateurs."
Kakashi released the hold and stood up.
"Get your head out of your ass, boy," he growled. "That arrogance will get you killed one day."
Sasuke said nothing. Neither did Sakura nor Naruto. Kakashi's action was completely unexpected – he hadn't gone psycho on them since the start of the Wave mission and they'd gotten used to the mostly normal, pervert – and his reversion was all the more shocking for it.
The jounin cleared his throat to gain Team 7's attention.
"Anyways," he said, sliding back to laidback self, "I wanted to talk about something else. Naruto, Sakura, Team 10 witnessed your fight with the Sound team while Sasuke was out."
Sakura blinked and Naruto glared defiantly.
"Oh? What of it?" the blonde asked.
"They didn't see the whole fight. But they saw enough of it to frighten them. I must say I'm intrigued."
"The bastards said they wanted to kill Sasuke," Naruto growled as if that simple statement was explanation enough.
Kakashi knew why the Sound team were after Sasuke and he even had an inkling why Orochimaru sent them. But national security was involved and he had to play dumb.
"Did they say why they wanted to kill Sasuke?"
Naruto glared at the ground. He was too angry to reply straight and so, Sakura stepped in.
"They said Orochimaru sent them."
"Ah!"
"They just walked into the clearing," she continued, her eyes losing focus as she remembered her first kill. "They had the gall to threaten us. They said if we don't give up Sasuke, they'd kill us."
"We refused and asked them, why?" Naruto added.
Sakura nodded and took over the narration.
"They said Orochimaru sent them to kill him. I don't remember much of what happened next. I think that I lost control…"
"All that pent up anger from when the traitor knocked Sasuke out and gave him that seal," Naruto explained to Kakashi when the latter shot him a question glance.
Sakura shrugged.
"Next thing I know, I was splattered with blood and my kunai was sticking out of the Sound girl's eyes."
"She used genjutsu and laid into them like she laid into you that day," Naruto elaborated, referring to the final test where Kakashi had beaten them all senseless. "They fell like puppets."
"And what did you do?"
"The last bastard tried to blindside Sakura, but I kicked him away. He hit a tree and took off into the forest, the coward."
"And you chased after him."
"Not immediately. Sakura was done with the other two by then and was standing around dumbly. I shook her out of it and told her to guard Sasuke. Then I went after the son of a bitch."
"And beat him to death with the handle of your kunai."
"I puked my guts out, afterwards," Naruto said defensively. "But yeah, I did it. No one threatens my teammates while I'm alive and lives to tell the tale."
"I bet. The boy's face was caved in."
Naruto's defiant glare intensified.
"Well, good work," Kakashi said after allowing the silence to stretch for a few seconds.
Even Sasuke looked taken aback at the words of encouragement.
"That's it? No advice against committing needless murders?" Naruto asked disbelieving.
"Don't be stupid," the jounin replied. "Our profession does not allow such sentiments. I would have objected if Sound were our allies or your actions had endangered the mission in any way. You weren't on a mission and Sound isn't an ally. But most of all, I won't say anything because I'm proud of you all. It's nice to see you've internalized loyalty to one's own and made it an important part of your work ethic."
Kakashi peered down at his students.
"What do I care if a genin team from some village died like pigs in a slaughterhouse? They aren't mine in any sense of the word. I care that you don't regret it. Do you?"
Naruto and Sakura shook their heads.
"No nightmares?"
"No."
"Then this meeting is over. We'll meet after lunch. You have the morning to yourselves," Kakashi said before shunshining away.
Naruto got up and threw the pebble in his hands at a nearby tree.
"Naruto? Sakura?"
"Yeah, Uke."
"Thanks guys. I… appreciate it."
Sakura was too busy digesting Kakashi's words and was not much use at this point.
"Ah, shut up, Uke. It's not like you wouldn't have done the same yourself."
Sasuke turned his head to stare into the horizon, a genuine smile flitting across his face. He really had found a new family in his team.
"Breakfast?" he asked.
"Ramen by God or I'll gut you alive."
Yep, he had a family all right.
xxxxx
At first sight, Suna appeared to have fallen on hard times and was struggling for survival. This was no surprise, considering the ever-tightening noose the ruling Daimyo had around the village's economic mainstay.
The nondescript trader hawking his wares from a bull drawn cart knew otherwise. He was an agent of Konoha and while it was true that the situation in Suna had taken a turn for the worse, the Daimyo wasn't the cause of the latest turn in fortunes. To divine the cause, he'd made polite enquiries with the ostensible reason of purchasing goods to sell them at his next stop. He learnt that none of the essential materials of war – leather, steel, etc – were in stock. Going by whispered conversations between frightened civilians at shops and bars, they had all dried up mysteriously within the last few months. Calls had gone out for ninja reserves, and farmers and trade folk sensed that trouble lurked around the corner. Either fact, by itself was ominous, but together, they meant that Suna was rapidly gearing up for war.
As far as the spy was concerned, however, the clinching argument for the war theory had to do with donkeys. Several months back, the donkey market had been shut down by express order of the Kage and the asses requisitioned by the Suna Supply Corps. This was a fairly common event under the paranoid Kage's rule that two of the merchants had dared to break the law. They had been drawn and quartered in the village square by ANBU as an object lesson. Since then, a few civilians had seen the donkeys laden with goods and being led south towards the ocean under escort since then.
"Ah, Tanaka-san," the spy greeted, espying a fat woman in a traditional kimono. Both the kimono and its owner had seen better days, though it was hard to believe in the case of the lady.
"Toshihiro-san," the lady Tanaka bowed. "Do you have incense with you?"
Toshihiro Muraki, the spy, nodded. He did, indeed. Tanaka Yui was a pathological gossip and he had carefully cultivated her both as an information source and as a customer. She thought he was her friend as she was his.
"I have some saved up just for my favorite customer," he said. "Masaru-san two streets down wanted it, but I told him I'd run out of the stuff."
More than anything in the world, Yui liked to be granted preferential treatment and the spy always made sure she felt thus.
"You're such a dear."
"Anything for my loyal customer," Muraki replied, rummaging through the trunk for the incense. He pulled it out and handed it over to her. "There you go."
Yui smiled at him.
"Thanks," she said. "How's business?"
He smiled his well practiced and patently false, stoic smile.
"So-so but I'm making do."
"I'm sorry to hear that."
"I thought that I could make a few sales in Suna before I head out north, but the village is half-empty," he groused. "It's like the menfolk just up and decided to leave."
The Tanaka pinched her lips as she waged a losing battle against her nature. Finally, she looked around guiltily and walked to the cart, making as if she were examining the wares on display.
"It's because they have," she half-whispered, shooting a friendly smile at another matron hurrying down the street.
"Indeed!" the merchant exclaimed in a restrained manner. Playing the proper merchant, he moved closer to her and joined in her act. The two of them had done this countless times before.
The lady flicked a fleck of imaginary dust off her kimono and nodded.
"But who will protect the womenfolk?"
"There are ninja around," she whispered vaguely.
Clearly, the woman's mind was preoccupied with something else, but good as all this chitchat was, Muraki wanted final confirmation of a piece of intelligence. Intel that was of vital importance to Konoha.
"Even the Kazekage's children?" he asked, quietly.
"No, the monster and his siblings are gone. Hopefully, they'll die."
Yui Tanaka was quick to hate and spiteful as her kind usually are, which was why the spy asked the question. Now, he could direct the conversation where he wanted without appearing suspicious.
"The youngest one is creepy," the spy said, "but surely, he is not a monster."
"He's a killer," Yui spat vehemently.
"That little boy? I've seen him around a few times. He was a strange one, but he didn't look so threatening."
"He has the one-tail sealed within him," Yui whispered in a voice that was barely this side of audible. "He's a monster."
And Muraki had his confirmation. He would make the drop at the usual point seven miles north of Suna at night. Within the week, the Hokage would have the precious intel in his hands, but the spy did not care about all that. The decisions made with the fruits of his labor were not his concern. Only getting them to his control was.
xxxxx
Sarutobi glared at the Daimyo's messenger standing rigidly before him. Mizuki observed the conversation with feigned disinterest from his desk at the entrance of the Hokage's office.
"The Daimyo's request is impossible to honor," the Hokage said forcefully, faking anger himself. "I have an exam to conduct within village walls and foreign shinobi to monitor."
"Be that as it may, Lord Hokage, the Daimyo of Hi no Kuni wishes shinobi from his loyal Ninja Corps to execute his wishes within the time frame specified," the messenger repeated his earlier words, laying added emphasis on loyal.
Put that way, with that implied threat, Sarutobi could not rightfully refuse his liege the tasking request before him. The Hokage made a show of thinking long and hard, which Mizuki believed. The chuunin, skilled though he was in the ninja arts, had neither the talent nor the experience to differentiate truth from falsehood in the Third's words and actions. So, he took the bait, hook, line and sinker.
"I'll have to activate the reserves and send out my ANBU," the veteran shinobi general muttered aloud.
It never occurred to Mizuki that the Third had modulated his voice so that it could carry over to his desk. The chuunin was too preoccupied about the financial windfall about to come his way to really pay attention to the rest of the conversation, but the 'messenger' and the Hokage did not take any chances. They played their parts to perfection with such flair that even a skeptic would have been hard-pressed to disbelieve the apparent truth in the argument.
When Mizuki made the drop that night, no one tailed him. The location hadn't been a secret for months. ANBU had long since rented a house two down from the garbage bin and put it under constant surveillance. And when Kabuto made the pickup that night – his first time ever – he did not know it, but he was observed by two experienced ANBU working the stakeout.
xxxxx
Kakashi stood at attention before the Hokage as the latter gently eased himself into the couch in his living room.
"Kakashi, my apologies for calling you in at so late an hour," the oldster said.
"I live to serve, Hokage-sama," the jounin replied, more severely than he meant to.
The Third smiled and waved at a chair.
"Sit."
Kakashi took the proffered seat and glanced questioningly at his commander and general.
"I asked you here because I'm concerned."
The jounin raised an eyebrow.
"Please, Kakashi, allow me to explain. I learnt from my ANBU reports today that you are training Sasuke in the use of his cursed seal. I understand your reasons, but I'm concerned."
"Hokage-sama, if you're concerned the curse seal is evil…"
"Please, Kakashi. I'm not one of those fools blinded by fear. Power by itself is never evil. Neither is its application. It's always the user who is."
"With respect, Hokage-sama, there is no reason to doubt Sasuke's loyalty," the jounin said off-handedly.
Sarutobi, however, sensed the anger hidden behind the Hatake's words. No teacher liked to have his student called a traitor to his face, after all. The first order of business then, was to placate the jounin.
"I have utmost faith in your ability as a teacher," the Third said, "but I fear Orochimaru's hold on the boy."
Kakashi nodded.
"Unless Naruto and Sakura join him in exile, Sasuke will not betray the village, Hokage-sama. Naruto's loyalty to you is unquestioned. He will die before he breaks faith with you. Sakura's loyalty is divided between the village and the team, but she will put the needs of the village before that of the team. She will not leave because that would jeopardize Konoha. And Sasuke will not cross that Rubicon."
Sarutobi thought it over for a while in silence.
"And if you're wrong?"
"I'll do my duty by the village, Hokage-sama," the jounin spoke harshly.
"My apologies, Kakashi. Best of luck with your team."
xxxxx
"Jiraiya-sama."
The gray-haired sannin turned askance at the ANBU who'd appeared at a non-threatening distance before him, wondering why the operative was making contact now. He was less than an hour's walk from the village and the least the man could do was wait until he was refreshed and within the walls before announcing his presence. Unless…
"Sarutobi-sensei send you?"
The ANBU nodded.
"Urgent message?"
"I bring movement orders, Jiraiya-sama."
"For me?"
"Yes. I was told to convey this. You're to stay hidden outside the walls of Konoha till the night before the finals. On that night, you will report at the location described in this scroll."
Jiraiya collected the scroll. He ensured that the seal was not tampered with and breaking it, read the contents. The sannin made to pocket the parchment and leave once he was done, but the ANBU interrupted him.
"My orders are to ensure the scroll is destroyed, Jiraiya-sama."
The contents of the scroll certainly warranted such paranoia, containing as it did, not only the rendezvous but also the outline of the Op Plan for the Chuunin exams along with other relevant and highly sensitive information. He would have preferred to study it further, but the ANBU was right. The information was just too important to carry around in a physical storage medium especially after said medium was unsealed. His memory would have to do.
"My bad," Jiraiya said with a wry, apologetic grin and handed over the scroll.
The masked shinobi nodded gratefully. He'd been afraid that the sannin would throw a fit over some stupid point of pride like a few of the older shinobi were wont to, but the veteran hadn't. The ANBU collected the scroll and burned it immediately. He crushed the ash under his feet and left without another word.
xxxxx
The early morning rush at the market was at its peak as people bustled about, buying fresh produce for breakfast. Mizuki was one of the hundreds out bargaining with the merchants this morning. A chuunin's salary did not allow such luxuries as hiring genin to do your housework for you. Not if you wanted to save money, at least. And Mizuki, though he was rich beyond dreams and would soon have the power to match, had donned a role as a loyal chuunin of moderate means and had to play it to perfection.
As the traitorous chuunin navigated a particularly crowded mass of people standing at a fish-monger's and blocking the road, he felt a little prick like an insect sting on the back of his left thigh. It was sharp, but in his exuberant state of mind, he did not pay much attention to it. Not that it would have helped him if he had anyways.
The final symptom came as a sharp jolt from his thigh and rapidly turned something much worse. Mizuki fell to the ground, clawing, as his jaws locked and his body went into seizure. He was dead within the minute. His assassin, a kind old lady who'd once been ANBU during the Second Shinobi War had long since left the scene of the assassination by then.
xxxxx
The oldster used a cane to get around. But it was clear that he did not really need it just as it was clear that he was a veteran shinobi and a survivor of many battles. The men manning the security post on the Tea country border gave him their full cooperation after he produced the Daimyo's and the Hokage's orders before their commandant.
"Is that all, Master Koichi?" the young conscript asked. He was as much in awe of the investigator as he had been afraid that the man had come to investigate their little unit for corruption. They'd only done it because everyone else did and the bribes were a nice supplement to their income. It wasn't as if they had let enemies of the state pass through or anything, after all. Just a few merchants without the proper papers now and then.
The old man smiled. He sensed how agitated the garrison was, but that was no surprise. It was really impossible to stop smuggling across the border and it would take the rare honest individual with the courage of conviction to refuse his comrades to stay off the take. He had discovered a few discrepancies in that regard while auditing the current post, but he wasn't interested. His job wasn't to put an end to "trade across the border," after all. The Daimyo and the Hokage recognized that it could not be stopped and only intervened when the scale of operations became too large.
No, the veteran had found something much more interesting. He had three more posts to inspect but the movement orders he'd gleaned from the merchant donkey trains was all the information he needed. Konoha now knew where the main body of the Suna-Oto force was headed and even had a rough timeframe of the schedule the invaders followed.
"No, I've found nothing interesting," Master Koichi said. "I will lunch and be on my way, if it isn't too much of a bother."
xxxxx
Tsunade glared at her ANBU escort, her companion and guard, Shizune, her pet pig, Tonton and of course, the old geezer seated before her.
"Old man, I demand an explanation," she growled at her teacher.
"Explain what, Tsunade?" Sarutobi asked, making himself comfortable in his couch.
It was late night and Tsunade had been kept sequestered in the Hokage's basement since she showed up at the gates of Konoha that morning.
"Your ANBU accosted me a few miles from the village. I was to disguise myself in non-descript clothes, they said. Shizune and I were to split up and report at specified times at your doorstep. I followed those inane instructions, but when I showed up, your housekeeper showed me the den and locked in. What is the meaning of this?"
"The meaning, newly reinstated jounin and special advisor of the Hokage, Senju Tsunade is this. Konoha is at war and has need for your services again."
Tsunade spluttered.
"How dare you?" she seethed vitriol. "I lost everything I've ever loved to this village. Isn't that enough for you?"
Sarutobi stared passively at the blonde sannin. Tsunade slumped, seeing that her anger wasn't having any effect.
"Aren't all the sacrifices I've made for this village enough?" she asked, trying a different tack and pleading. "I don't have any more to give, sensei. I'm useless. I can't even work as a medic."
"You will overcome your fear of blood in due time," he decreed imperiously. Then, softly, "I'm not asking you to fight on the front lines, Tsunade. I'm not even asking you to operate on the wounded. The first is a no-no and the latter is up to you. But the village needs you. It needs your medical expertise and the hope your presence will bring to the hearts of our shinobi on the frontlines."
Tsunade bit her lip and thought about it. But there wasn't any choice here and she knew she could not refuse. There was the threat of debt and life as a nukenin hanging over her head.
"What do you want of me?"
"Take over the administration of the Medic Corps. Teach them. Share your wisdom. Save lives."
The offer was much more kind than she had expected. Tsunade nodded.
xxxxx
He groaned as he ground into her and she moaned softly into his ear, her legs clamping around his waist in a death grip as it strove mightily to pull him deeper inside. The bed creaked as they played the age old game under the moonlit night, their union illuminated by the pale light of Earth's little lover streaking through the window.
A soft breeze blew strands of her unbraided hair across her face and as he quickened his thrusts to match her urgency, he brushed them aside and kissed her full on her lips. She groaned into his mouth and his tongue found hers.
The room filled with soft moans of her pleasure, the wet slurps of their kissing, the heated grunts of his passion and the smacking of two bodies moving against each other in the simplest and purest expression of love there is.
Afterwards, as he laid on her, his head against her bosom, her fingers running through his hair, their sweat glistening on their bodies and him still inside her wet depths, she patted him on his shoulders and he looked up.
"I love you," she whispered.
This time, when he replied, there was no hesitation like the three nights before.
"I love you, too."
"I wish we could spend more time together."
"Well, it's a hectic time at work right now."
"Will you ever be free? I want a few days all to ourselves without your job coming in between."
He hesitated. He wasn't really supposed to talk about his work to anyone outside the armed forces. However, her request was a minor thing. Surely, it had no security implications.
"Most of the fleet will retire to the port for shelter, repair work and provisions at the cusp of winter three months from now," he said. "Security will be routine and I'll have trained my newbie adjutant by then. I should be able to get a week or two off then."
"Could you?"
"I'm sure I can. I'll talk to the base commander and get it approved."
And yet another piece fell into place.
xxxxx
"Why the forlorn face, Kabuto?" Orochimaru asked in his sneering voice. Kabuto was the most talented of the exiled sannin's playthings and Orochimaru liked to egg him on so. Mostly because he loved mind games with someone who was his near intellectual equal.
"Mizuki's story checks out, Orochimaru-sama," the spectacled spy replied.
"And you feel bad because…"
"Something doesn't feel right. Why would the Daimyo want an ANBU detail of all times now? There are foreign shinobi around and Konoha is in a heightened security state especially with the assassination of Mizuki, yes, but the reserves give me a bad feeling."
"Ah, but there's a reason for the reserves, dear Kabuto," Orochimaru drawled.
The spy adjusted his glasses.
"Indeed?"
"Yes. The Fire Daimyo is preparing for war with Tea within the next few months."
Orochimaru did not say that the information was reported by the deceased turncoat, Mizuki. It was a minor oversight but an inexplicable one since the sannin's mind was preoccupied with the dead chuunin in the first place. But he was also focused on Kabuto and their game, and he erred.
"Have we shared this with Tea country? You shouldn't keep such vital intelligence out of my hands, Orochimaru-sama," Kabuto admonished. "Not if you want me to make the best decisions coordinating our forces for the Chuunin exams."
Orochimaru grinned as a predator eyeing prey.
"You have the information now, Kabuto," he said, avoiding the infiltrator's question.
"Hmm… Have you considered that our troops are using Tea to smuggle themselves in Hi no Kuni? Will Fire's troop movements coincide with ours?"
"It's almost autumn, Kabuto. Fire will not declare war until next summer."
"But they are preparing and we haven't informed our allies in Tea," Kabuto mused aloud.
"Yes. We don't want to panic them and Fire's plans suit us just fine. Let them prepare for the future. We'll steal their present momentarily."
Kabuto smiled broadly.
"I'm concerned, Kabuto," Orochimaru continued in a more serious tone, "about Mizuki's death. Who ordered the assassination?"
Kabuto adjusted his glasses again.
"The Hokage's office is in bigger disarray than we are because of the killing. My sources tell me the Third is livid. It's common knowledge that ANBU have been streaming in and out of the MP HQ all day long and the MPs themselves have been scurrying like mad, calling in lots of people for questioning. They even appear to be making some headway."
"So it checks out."
"All is as you would expect when someone who worked with sensitive information is assassinated like Mizuki was."
"We did not liquidate Mizuki and it appears, neither did Konoha. Who else had it in for him?" the sannin wondered aloud.
"It's quite possible he was selling secrets to other nations as well, Orochimaru-sama," Kabuto said, offering an alternate explanation.
Orochimaru thought it over.
"Investigate along those lines. I want whoever killed Mizuki found and I want them liquidated in return. I don't like my pets being messed with especially when the pet was an useful one."
Kabuto nodded and marched off to execute his master's commands.
xxxxx
Author's notes:
Please leave reviews. And my apologies for this long author's notes.
So, big chapter. For those who have reservations about the prelim fights or the absence of them thereof, you should know that it was never my intention to dwell on them or the encounter with the Oto team in the Forest of Death. My idea was to create a meld of plot and characterization that would throw some light on Team 7's growth as a team and as individuals and yet cover an event that's crucial to the plot. I'll leave to you to guess which one. I hope that I succeeded in the execution of my idea…
As for training… Well, I'm not going to do it. I don't see the point. I don't want to ruin a surprise in some fight by talking about the technique beforehand. I also don't want to tie my hands by handing over the list of techniques that each character knows. It'll reduce my freedom of movement, so to speak.
The rest of the stuff… A battle is like a big game of chess. You position your pieces, deduce the other guy's intentions (gather intelligence), counter his actions and when you're ready, you pounce on him like a demon from the depths of hell. We've seen the pieces being moved, the intelligence being gathered and the countermoves being plotted in the preceding chapter as well as this one. Guess what's going to happen next?
For the old veterans that I've used in this chapter… Just because a shinobi is too old to fight doesn't mean that he/she can't be on the active duty rooster. It only means they can't fight pitched battles and it would be a real shame to lose all that wile and wisdom honed through decades of practice. So, shinobi do not grow old. They become intelligence officers or advisors to the lords like Koharu and Homura are for Sarutobi.
Finally, I've never written lemon. I'm not sure how one should write it. That little "scene" with the female spy and the Tea officer was the best I could do. I hope you find that pale imitation palatable. It's not exactly a lemon, but then, I didn't want one.