Clash in the Snow Country: Legacy Version
Chapter 4–The Strangest Thing
Night was such a quiet time. Perfect for those who were waiting for the opportunity to pull of some…very satisfying revenge.
Han was running late. The others were waiting for him above deck. As if it was his fault! He had been as eager as the other seven, if not more so! After all, he had been the one stuffed in the stupid trash can for hours! Not any of the others! He had more reason to want to do this than any of them! He had been so anxious waiting for midnight, the time when most people would be asleep – especially that one eyed blond runt! – that he actually lost track of time! He was currently running through the hallways, hardly paying attention to his surroundings.
He nearly ran into it, looking up just in time to come to a skidding halt. Someone was standing right in front of him! With all the darkness, he couldn't make out who it was, and he didn't really care either. Quickly, he put on a false smile on his face (despite the fact that other person wouldn't be able to see it) and said an eerily cheering voice. "Hello. Nice night for an evening stroll, right?" He was in no mood to deal with this now! He had a VERY IMPORTANT matter to attend to.
The figure neither moved nor said anything. Han then took a moment and directly looked at the other figure. Now that he thought about it…something was not right. Something was…quite wrong. Very wrong. He felt anxiety and trace amounts of fear creeping into his mind. "W-who…who are you?"
The figure descended on him in a flash and Han never even got a chance to scream.
Kakashi
Kakashi was standing outside of Fujikaze Yukie's room. As he had told Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke, one of them would have to be near Yukie at all times. That's what happened when you and your team get assigned a guard detail. Currently, Kakashi was standing outside her door, causally watching the hallway. He didn't really expect any sort of trouble, but he was a Jounin of Konohakagure and he was a professional. He would do his job.
There wasn't much lighting in the lower decks, not that that was any surprise, so Kakashi wasn't able to read the Icha Icha Paradise. No matter. He had other ways of dealing with boredom while on guard detail. Most of the time, he just thought of the past, with Rin, Obito and Minato-sensei. Not this time though. His thoughts were comprised of his own team.
He hadn't gotten a chance to interact with them, any more than they had with themselves. He was constantly being sent on A and S class missions, Sakura he knew was now fully focused on her own training and he figured that Naruto and Sasuke would be working on new jutsus during their free time or pounding the hell out of each other. He felt himself smile underneath his mask. All three had immense potential. He wouldn't be surprised if all three of them surpassed him in a few short years. Whether it was through Naruto's unpredictably, Sasuke's genius, or Sakura's determination. Or perhaps…a combination of all three. After all, they were a team. He had no doubt the time would come when all three would be able to truly work together, to be able to cover one's weakness and play off another's strength.
He paused momentarily on his thoughts as he decided to start his routine patrol down the halls, noticing nothing strange at all…until his foot hit something towards the end of the hallway.
It felt like a warm body.
As if by magic, a kunai appeared in Kakashi's hand. He quickly surveyed the area, ready to intercept any attack that could come. He saw nothing. Quietly, he knelt down and noticed that men seemed to barely be breathing and was extremely pale. All the color from his face was completely gone. He then pressed two fingers to the man's neck with his free hand. He was alive. Kakashi then rose and cross his fingers, muttered the words and created a single Kage Bunshin.
The Kage Bunshin then immediately took off to continue the search, while the original put his kunai away, picked up the man and ran to find him some medical attention.
"Kuso! Where the hell is Han!?" One man whispered angrily at his fellow conspirators. "He's fucking forty minutes late now!"
"I say, we just do it anyway! Forget him! If he's going to forget, then that's his problem! Not ours!" another one agreed. There was a small chorus of 'Hai!' from the rest of the group. Then as one, all seven men began stealthy walking towards that brat's room.
All seven of the men (eight if you included the absent Han) were all in that first group that had been chasing after Yukie-sama and got slimed on by Naruto's frog summon. They eventually got free and made their way back to the movie studio, only to discover that the blond bastard was there too! As part of Yukie-sama's new personal bodyguard! So, not only had the blond Konoha nin completely humiliated them, but he and his little group had replaced them as well!
So, all eight gathered and conspired to get some very sweet and very personal revenge. They were all currently carrying several mischief items, such as toilet paper, paint, whipped cream and whatever else they could think of. They all were going to sneak into the brat's room and give him a taste of ultimate humiliation, where the entire ship would see! Show everyone just how pathetically and easily they could trash this shinobi at his own damned game!
They snuck to the blond brat's room, that Han of all people had managed to confirm earlier that day, and gathered around it, lined up against the walls with their backs to it, like some special unit. The closest man had his hand hovering over the door handle, and looking at the 'leader' just across from him. The 'leader' then gave a slight nod and the other man immediately flung the door opened and all seven quickly, but quietly, entered the room, usually small flashlights to guide themselves.
They saw the bed in the corner and how the blankets were humped up. The seven men grinned amongst themselves, getting their tools ready and eagerness at its full peak. Several hands reached out, grabbed the brat's blanket and pulled it off…
…only to reveal a small practice dummy of Kakashi.
The men's jaws all dropped to the floor on that. One man poked the figure a few times, as if not believing his eyes. He then carefully picked it up and got a better look at it. It was roughly the same size as the blond brat, though several areas had stuffing coming out, showing the constant usage that had been used on it. The men all began whispering among themselves, wondering where the hell that blond shinobi was at.
"Are you bastards looking for me?" Ask a very cheerful voice from behind them.
The men all froze in their position. As one, they all slowly moved towards the direction that the voice had come from. At first, they saw nothing, then out of the corner of their eyes, they looked upward and there on the ceiling was the blond bastard himself! He was in nothing but his boxers, looking at them directly and had a smile on his face that could has easily been mistaken for a sadistic one. "Well?" He started. "Out with it. What do you losers want now?"
"It's payback for what you did back in the city!" All the men shouted. "What the hell did you think it was!?"
"Payback," the brat repeated. He then nodded to himself. "Ok. Fine with me. But that means you're going head to head with the Prank Master!" The boy ended by cracking his knuckles at them. "And it's been a VERY long time since I've pulled a prank, so…I'm going to enjoy this…"
All the men then felt a sudden urge of doom and realized that maybe…just maybe…this wasn't such a great idea after all…
Yukie
Yukie's eyes opened slowly and she took in her surrounds. She was in a nice, soft bed in a large room, filled with fancy furniture and nice clothing. There were no windows, but there was a single door at the end of the room. Although the room seemed to be swaying slightly, much to her dismay. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a clock. 5:13 a.m.
"Is Yukie-sama waking?" she heard a familiar voice ask. Sandayuu.
She slowly sat up in her bed and immediately felt worse. She put a hand on her forehead, but the futile attempt was just that futile. She felt incredibly dizzy with all this swaying going on and it was just getting worse by the second. "Sandayuu. Can you get my a glass of water? It feels like the whole room is swaying." She gave a small laugh. "Sounds crazy, doesn't it?"
"It's…well…it's actually not that crazy…"
All thoughts of dizziness and thirst vanished from Yukie's mind. She immediately jumped out of the bed and room towards the door, pushing her assistant out of the way and ignoring whatever it was he was about to add. She reached the door and swung it opened…
"YAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!"
Sakura
Sakura's eyes flew at the sound of the scream. She didn't have a clue what the scream was about, but she was one of Yukie's bodyguards. She throw the covers off, quickly got dressed, strapped her kunai pouch to her right leg, tied her hitai-ite in her hair and run out of the room.
She nearly ran into Sasuke, but both skipped to a stop just seconds before running into each other. "You heard it, too?" She asked him in a hurry.
"Hai," he replied. They both nodded to each other and ran towards the source of the scream. "Where's that idiot Naruto?" Sasuke asked as they ran up the stairs.
"Maybe he's already ther…" Sakura started as they emerged on deck. She stopped when she saw the sight and her jaw dropped. Sasuke's eyebrow also rose at the sight.
Yukie was on her knees, with a very shocked look on her face. It wasn't fear or anything like the two Konoha nin expected. She was pointing a very shaky finger at the source of her scream. Up at that masts were seven figures tied and gagged upside-down to the sails, wearing nothing but their underwear. All had been 'decorated' in someway. One had been wrapped up in toilet paper, another had been shaved bald with the hair glued to his face, another had been painted on with lots of cussing and so on.
Sakura and Sasuke continued to look the sight until they both said. "Naruto…"
They had spent the next thirty minutes getting the seven men down and helping them to their rooms to rest and recover (the men kept ranting about a 'blond demon' over and over in terrified voices), while Sandayuu helped Yukie herself back to her room. Then they just stood there and waited for the other two to show up. Ten minutes later, Naruto himself came, grinning immensely at himself and in a very good mood apparently. Though Sakura knew he would deny it, that look was nearly identical to the one he had when he and Hinata-san had that small 'accident' not too long ago.
"Isn't it just a beautiful morning?" Naruto asked cheerfully, looking around merrily.
"Cloudy, dull, slightly chilly, way too early," Sasuke listed off, counting each remark on his fingers. "If that's your view of a beautiful morning, then you really are as stupid as you look."
"Look who's talking, Kizuato," Naruto countered. He then stretched back and let out a soft chuckle. "Nice try though, but that's not going to ruin my good mood."
Sakura decided to speak up before this got out of hand. "So…then you were the one that tied those men to the sails?"
"Who me?" Naruto pointed at himself dramatically while forging a look of complete innocence on his face, complete with an unnaturally high pitched voice for the one eyed blond shinobi. "What ever gave you that idea?"
"Where to start?" Sakura asked dryly, while Naruto just laughed louder.
So for an hour, Sakura and Sasuke listened to Naruto as he told about the incident, how they had been the same guys he and Gamayoyaku had slimed just yesterday. He then told them who all seven had snuck into his room with the full intend of garnishing him with their various tools and items. "So…they learned the hard way why you don't try to prank the Prank Master!"
"Is that so?" came Kakashi's voice from behind them.
Immediately, all three turned around and looked at their smiling sensei who was carrying his backpack and said. "Yo. Sorry I'm late. I'm afraid I had to help a man recover from…"
"LIAR!!" Naruto and Sakura shouted at the man, cutting Kakashi off. "Can you at least pretend to be sorry!?"
"At least it's different than that stupid 'road of life' thing," Sasuke said, crossing his arms.
"I'm serious."
All three genin looked at him, then Naruto laughed. "Yeah right! That would be a first!"
"Naruto…" Kakashi started, but Naruto kept on going.
"Like we'd believe some Kokuzoku after…"
"Naruto…"
"…having him appear late time and time again…"
"Naruto…"
"…with the same stupid lies that shred any possibly dignity and credibility for the said man…"
"NARUTO!!!" Kakashi actually shouted loudly, causing all three genin to flinch badly and ending Naruto's rant. They all looked at them and Kakashi was giving Naruto a hard glare with his own eye. "I'd like a word with you afterwards, understand?"
Sakura saw Naruto looked at a man hard, before saying a quiet 'fine.' Kakashi then looked at his three genin. "Now listen up you three. What I'm about to tell you is strictly confidential. Do not discuss this with anyone else. And I mean anyone. Understand?"
All three nodded, though Naruto added the middle finger when he nodded.
"Now listen. Last night, I stumbled on a man in the hallway while I was routine patrol. He was unconscious with no physical wounds, but was quite pale. He had a faint pulse, so he was still alive. I carried him to a spare room, where I found Sandayuu working and the two of us managed to give him some rudimentary first aid."
"Are you sure he just didn't pass out from stress or over work?" Sakura asked.
"Very sure. You see…his body had been drained of blood."
All three shinobi's faces fell at that remark. Sasuke recovered first. "What?"
"His body had been drained of blood," Kakashi repeated. "Not all of it, but a large amount. Sandayuu estimates that he lost about 80 percent of his blood, which probably explains why he was so pale. He's also currently in shock, no doubt do to the rapid loss of blood. And that's not the strangest thing either."
80 percent!? Sakura gulped loudly. "Are…are you going to t-tell us…that they're…bite marks on his n-neck?"
Kakashi gave a small smiling eye at his female student. "No, there were no bite marks on his neck, so you don't have to worry about any vampires or such creatures." He then grew serious again. "But that's the strangest thing…there are no bite marks. Anywhere. None on the neck, none on the arm, none of the chest. None anyway. As I said, there were no wounds. No place where someone could have drawn out the blood."
"None?" Naruto asked amazed. "But then…how? Maybe it just used a medical jutsu or something and closed it up…"
"I thought about that," Kakashi said. He pointed to his left eye. "But my Sharingan detected no lingering chakra signatures, so I don't believe that any medical ninjutsu was used. Which just puzzles me even more. In any case, the man is sleeping soundly right now. Sandayuu estimates that he will be out for three or four days and then be perfectly fine."
"Any idea why someone would need to do something like this?" Sakura asked, only to have Kakashi shake his head.
"Who all knows about this?" Sasuke asked.
"Right now, just us, Sandayuu, the ship's captain and the first mate. I don't want Makino, Kaijo and especially Yukie herself, to know about this. At least, not unless it proves necessary."
"So what do we do about it, Hatake?" Naruto asked.
"Right now, keep an extra eye out. Keep alert for any kind of suspicious activity; just don't make it too obvious. There's something…or someone…on this boat that doesn't belong here. Maybe even more than one. What his reasons and motives are, we can only guess. Now, go about your days as usual. Train. Rest. Relax. Keep an eye out. If any of you do discover something out of the ordinary, use your best judgment. If you feel you need backup, get it. Don't act alone if you don't have to." He then gave a smile. "I know that you are all strong…and growing stronger, but also remember that we are all a team."
"Hai," all three genin responded automatically.
Kakashi then reached for his backpack. "Now that that's out of the way, time to talk about what I originally planned on." He planned out several items, among them gloves, long cloaks, long sleeved clothes, gloves and some small footwear things. "We need to cover some basics on snow combat.
"First of all is that all your normal clothing, sandals, shorts, short sleeved shirts, isn't going to cut it. Keep as little skin exposed as you can." He started passing out the items to each person. "Second is don't you underestimate the cold. If you get lost, injured or anything like that, find some shelter ASAP. Don't try to force yourself to fight if you're too cold. You would only lose stamina and succumb to the cold that much faster. Understand?"
Sakura and the other two nodded as they all heard several doors open and people began coming out. "Looks like they're getting ready to start filming. Which means that Yukie-san herself should be out soon." Kakashi said. "Sakura. Sasuke. You two go and keep an eye on her for the time being."
Sakura and Sasuke nodded and they left Kakashi and Naruto alone to talk. They came up to Director Makino, who was currently engrossed in some papers. "Is there somewhere we can sit without being in the way?" Sakura asked him.
Makino's face didn't leave the papers. He merely pointed off to the left, where Sakura saw was an empty place by the side of the ship. "Thanks," She replied as she and Sasuke walked over, sat down and waited in silence. Though, out of the corner of her eye, she saw Sasuke rubbing his left cheek. She decided not to say anything as they both watched the men set up the scene.
Naruto
"What do you want, Hatake?" Naruto asked, leaning against the side of the ship and giving the Jounin a glare with his eye.
"What I want is to know what's wrong," Kakashi said, looking directly at his subordinate. "I thought that were clear with that talk a few days ago at the hospital."
"Well, you thought wrong," Naruto said flatly.
Kakashi gave him a hard look. "This attitude of yours isn't going to affect your performance on the mission, is it?" He asked in a hard voice.
Naruto looked at his traitorous sensei, before finally saying. "I'm a shinobi. I know when to act and when not too."
Kakashi nodded in satisfaction at the respond. "So…you're still angry with me teaching Sasuke the Oboro, aren't you?" That really wasn't a question, so Kakashi put his face into his hand and slowly shook his head, as if fighting off a migraine, "Naruto…in many ways you're more mature than someone you're age should be…but there are certain qualities that you possess that also show that you're still a child."
"What are you getting at, Hatake!?"
"That you can't forgive." Kakashi replied. "And that's going to bite you in the ass hard one of these days."
"What are you getting at?" Naruto demanded, rapidly losing interest in this conversation.
"That the day may come where one of your close friends hurts you…"
"Too late," Naruto interrupted, with a tone that made it sound like it was something perfectly obvious and that Kakashi was just being difficult and ignorant on purpose. "You, Sakura-chan, and Sasuke have all done that already."
"…what about Hinata?" Kakashi asked.
Naruto stopped and glared at Kakashi. "What are you saying?"
"The day may come where she may unintentionally hurt you, like Sakura, Sasuke and myself did."
"Hinata-chan wouldn't do that!" Naruto protested. No way would she do that! She was one of the few he could absolutely trust!
"Fine. What if you hurt her?"
Naruto could feel the Kyubi's youki emerging. "WHAT!?" How dare Kakashi even suggest such a thing!
Before, Naruto could say or do otherwise, he suddenly saw Kakashi wipe out some wire and Naruto felt his arms slap to his side and he was tied securely. "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING, TEME!!" Now both eyes were open and glaring strait at Kakashi.
"Let's just say, like Sasuke, I don't think you're the type to just sit while I preach. So shut up and listen. The sooner I say this, the sooner you can go."
Naruto just spat at the man, but the bastard didn't so much as flinch.
"People make mistakes, Naruto," Kakashi started. "Some times it's unintentional, but they still happen. We're all human, even shinobi. And humans always make mistakes. Sometimes they're large ones, sometimes they're small, but we still all make mistakes. What matters when those mistakes happen is if people can forgive the offender for those mistakes or not. If you can, then your bonds with that person will become stronger. If you can't…then you're going to find yourself alone again. No one will want to be around you. No one will even want to associate themselves with you. That can happen with even those you're closest to.
"While you deny it, it is possible that either you or Hinata could hurt one another. Something you don't agree on, such as her clan for example. And if either of you can't forgive each other, then you'll lose her. And that applies to myself, Sakura and Sasuke. Don't be so willing not to trust those around you. You'll find that life isn't as fulfilling without those closest to you.
"Now…if you still can't fully forgive me right now, I can understand why, but if you never even attempt to forgive, then you are truly a selfish brat that can't accept the fact that people, especially himself, aren't perfect."
Naruto let the words sink in while the demon's chakra faded away. A second later, he felt the wires loosen up and pulled away. "Think of what I said," He heard Kakashi say. "Especially the part about being alone if you're not able to forgive those closest to you." He saw the man put on his smiling eye. "You certainly won't get another kiss from Hinata if you do that."
Naruto felt his face go red, even as he shouted. "HOW THE HELL DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THAT!?"
"That is a secret," Kakashi replied, echoing the words that Naruto himself had used so many times.
Naruto never hated the man more than that moment right there. He was halfway through forming a Rasengan, when Kakashi casually grabbed his wrist, then Naruto felt himself lifted up and thrown over his sensei's shoulder like a discard shoe and sent flying through the air where he landed in a pile of large crates, with the man's words of 'temper, temper,' lingering in the air.
Thirty minutes later…
"I don't like that woman," Naruto said flatly, looking at Yukie, who was getting the finishing touches of her makeup put on.
"What are you saying, Naruto." Kakashi asked, not even looking up from his book. "Well, regardless of how much you like her or not, we still must protect her and we includes you." Naruto snorted, so Kakashi asked. "And here I thought you would like an A-ranked mission."
Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke all looked at the Jounin. "A-ranked mission?" All three asked simultaneously. Sasuke turned around and leaned on the side. "This mission shouldn't be too hard. We're only escorting an actress."
"It's not like that, Sasuke. There are lots of famous people who are always getting targeted. Assume that there will be enemies there, so don't get caught off guard."
"Lights!" one man called, getting all of the Konoha nin's attentions.
"Mike on!" another cried, nearly by Yukie.
"Camera ok!" the cameraman added.
Director Makino brought up the director's horn to his mouth and shouted. "Start from the test! Get in the act!"
All four members of Team 7 were standing off to the side, next to Sandayuu himself and watching the scene that was going to be filmed next. It was a battle scene and Hidero/Shishimaru had been fatally injured. He was currently lying on his back, and Yukie/Princess Gale was on her knees, looking off into the distance, as if not believing what he just happened.
Kaijo held the snapshot and said. "Scene 23, cut 6, take 1. Action!" He snapped the thing and moved away.
Slowly, she turned and looked at directly at the 'dying' man. Her eyes went wide and she began trembling. She then grabbed the man by the collar and shouted. "Hold on, Shishimaru!"
"Princess…it's…useless…" Shishimaru chocked out, each word weaker than the last.
"What are you saying!?" Princess Gale/Yukie demanded. "We only found our courage because of you!"
"Princess…I wanted to see…the other side of the…rainbow…with you…togeth…" He didn't finish as his head lay to the side and he said no more.
"SHISHIMARU!!!" Princess Gale/Yukie cried.
"Wow…" Sakura said. "That's…really amazing. It's entirely realistic and believable. That's incredible given who she really is."
Naruto reluctantly nodded in agreement. Even he had to admit (not out loud, of course!) that if nothing else, this bitch was a supreme actress.
"That's Yukie-sama for you," Sandayuu spoke up suddenly. All heads turned his direction as they looked at him. He continued. "As soon as the camera turns on, that woman's acting is amazing. Her only flaw is…"
"Hold on a minute!" Yukie suddenly shouted at the camera, waving her hand, earning a frustrated groan from the group. "Sandayuu. I need more tears!"
"Hai!" Sandayuu shouted, taking out a small eyedropper from his jacket and running towards the actress. She bent backwards and let Sandayuu squeeze a few drops into her eyes. Naruto felt himself surprised that all of the problems she could have at acting, it was crying that she apparently couldn't do. The more Naruto thought about it, the more…appropriate it seemed for her, given her real, bitchy nature.
They continued watching for about ten minutes, before Kakashi told them that they could go if they wanted to. All three genin immediately jumped up and walked away, with Sasuke heading towards the front of the ship, Naruto the rear and Sakura her room. Kakashi felt himself smile as he noted that all of them were clearly going to go work on their skills and techniques.
Naruto
Naruto walked to the rear and activated his Oboro again. He spent another twenty minutes working on his Kunai Soufuu Atsu and perfected it. He grabbed his scroll and reworked on the entry for another hour before he nodded in satisfaction.
He then put the scroll away and got into his thinking poss. Now…how should he combine Nature and Shape manipulation? He thought about it for a few minutes and then decided to just give it a try and see what the hell happened. He stood up, held out his right hand and formed the Rasengan. Once it was complete, he added a little wind to it.
Immediately, he felt the strain on his mind and his hand throbbing. It hurt! Naruto's left hand immediately grabbed his right and squeezed on it, as if that would lessen the pain, while he gritted his teeth and focused as hard as he could. He kept applying wind for several seconds until…
BOOM!
The Rasengan literally exploded in his hand and Naruto felt himself blown into nearly wall. Naruto groaned in pain as he staggered out. He couldn't believe what had just happened! He barely added any wind to it and he already failed! His hand was throbbing less now and his head seemed to clear up, but the memory still lingered.
He immediately understood just who difficult this task was. No wonder that baka-sensei, and even his hero, the Yondaime, couldn't do it! Or even…he stopped at that. He briefly wondered about the super pervert, as he recalled the scene in his mind.
"Yes," Kakashi said, a smile spreading across his masked face. He could already see the interest of the subject making both boys' minds begin spinning. "The Yondaime had originally intended to create a jutsu that was composed of both types of chakra, shape and nature."
"But that's impossible!" Sasuke said, reluctantly awed by what the former Hokage had tried to do. He knew firsthand how difficult it was to manipulate nature chakra, especially an explosive power like fire.
"Yes, it most certainly was for him and I," Kakashi said good-humouredly. "Neither of us had been able to accomplish it. The Rasengan was the best we could come up with."
"But if you had both shape and nature chakra in one jutsu…" Naruto said, his blue eye hazing over he reviewed the possibilities. "that jutsu would…be the…ultimate jutsu!"
His eye was widening and a large, giddy smile spread across Naruto's face. He now had a new goal. He'd make the next stage of the Rasengan that neither his idol or traitor of a sensei could finish!
Why about ero-sannin? Naruto wondered. Kakashi had said that neither him, nor his sensei, had been able to complete it, but Kakashi hadn't even mentioned the super-pervert. Naruto was positive that Kakashi knew Jiraiya knew the Rasengan, so why hadn't ero-sannin been included in the list of those that tried and failed to mix nature and shape manipulations? Did Kakashi just casually forget to mention the old pervert? Or…was it possible…that ero-sannin…
Naruto shook his head at the thought, not willing to finish it. Who cares! That wasn't important right now. Naruto regained his bearings and tried again.
For two hours, Naruto tried and failed to make any real progress. He tried adding wind slowly, he tried adding it all at once. He even created at Kage Bunshin and tried it with the bunshin adding the wind for him, and it still didn't work! At most, Naruto felt that he had made the Rasengan about 20 percent complete and that had been with the Bunshin helping. Only 20 percent! Naruto sighed in frustration and fell on his back and just laid there. There had to be something more he could do. What was he missing?
Unable to think of anything, he let the Oboro fade and he just stared at the sky, as if expecting it to give him the answers he needed.
Sakura
Sakura finished her self sparring in her room. She gave a small sigh of defeat as she sat down on her bed and put her head in her hands.
She knew she was doing well. She knew she should be proud of what she was accomplishing, but she wasn't. She knew that she wanted to test herself. See just how far her training had progressed her. Her thought process stopped at that.
She was a bit stunned at that thought. But then, she slowly smiled to herself. That must be what those two boys felt like. Why they so desperately wanted to fight each. They wanted to know just how good they were, and what better way to find out with than beating their own rival?
And now…Sakura was infected with that same feeling. And she had to admit…it was hard to ignore. She briefly wondered who her own rival would be? Ino? Tenten? Maybe even Naruto's girlfriend, Hinata? She couldn't help but laugh at herself. Her? Having a rival and both fighting just like boys did? She shook her head. Like that would ever happen!
Still, a sparring partner would be helpful to her now. She went through the brief list of possible candidates. She wasn't going to go ask him, Kakashi-sensei was busy watching Yukie…so that left…Naruto. She immediately felt a wave of hesitation. She wasn't sure how Naruto felt about her. She knew he didn't forget, and he would never forget her theft of his personal jutsu scrolls, but he had also been willing to let her show him the Haruno Sakura, not to mention that they had been on good terms since that time. Maybe…just maybe…he would agree.
Well…it's couldn't hurt to ask. She got off her bed, slipped on her sandals and walked out of the room. She first went down two doors and knocked softly on the door. No answer. "Naruto?" She asked loudly. "Are you there?" Still no answer. She backed away from the door. "Guess he's not here. Probably the mess hall then."
She walked down to the mess hall and didn't find him there either. Curious now, she walked up deck and began searching there. Nothing. She then walked towards the back of the ship and finally found him. He was lying on his back on the deck, looking directly at the sky. Sakura immediately became a little worried. Was he working on more of his jutsu? The last thing she wanted was him thinking she was spying on him. Softly, she started to back away.
"Where are you going?" Naruto suddenly asked, not moving his position.
Sakura stopped. She shouldn't be surprised. This was the number one unpredictable ninja after all. She shouldn't be surprised. Must be that nose of his. Softly, she spoke up. "Well…I was going to ask you something, but if you're busy…"
"I'm not at the moment," Naruto said, sitting up and turning around. "And I could use a break." He patted the spot next to him.
Sakura felt herself smile slightly as she walked over and sat down. Naruto then looked at her. "Alright, what's on your mind?"
"I was wondering if you'd be willing to spar with me."
Naruto fell on his back. Sakura felt slightly annoyed at that. Did he think that she was joking about this?
Naruto pulled himself up and dusted himself off. "Gomen about that, but…that was pretty much the last thing I expected to say."
"Is that a yes or no then?"
Naruto looked at her. That mask he usually wore was still in place, but Sakura could tell that he seemed genuinely confused about her request. "Why are you asking me?" Naruto said finally. "Wouldn't Sasuke…"
"He's busy."
She could see Naruto jump back a bit at that. He stood up, stretched and said. "Ok. Let's do this then."
"Thanks, Naruto." Sakura said, standing up as well. "I owe you on this."
She could see Naruto's foxy grin appear and a sense of doom lingered over her. Guess I'll be paying his next ramen bill… She shrugged. Oh well. She was getting what she wanted.
Sasuke
Sasuke was in the bathroom, washing his face off. The cold water brought an immense relief as it touched his face, even as it passed the three scars over his right eye. He had just spent the last two hours working on the Shuurai and finally came to the point where he could do it without making any more of those stupid, amateur mistakes. If he could just concentrate better…
He shook his head as he splashed more water on his face, trying to forget his uneasiness. He reached over and shut off the fault, then grabbed a towel and dried his face. He then walked out of the bathroom and back towards the deck. As he did, his eyes casually scanned the hallway, just looking around. A stowaway on the ship, huh?
A stowaway who was after blood. Literally. Sasuke paused as he thought about that. What could anyone want to take a large amount of blood for? Sasuke had no answer and he knew that Kakashi and the others didn't either. What was this…freak's goal? Was it to just steal blood? That couldn't be it. There were more…fruitful places for the freak to do that. Scare the shit out of everyone? Sasuke shook his head at that. That didn't seem likely, as most of the group on the ship was still in the dark about him.
So then…what was his goal? Why take the blood? Sasuke gave a small groan of frustration as he rubbed his head. He'd think about it later. Right now, he had more important things to worry about.
He climbed to the top of the deck and gazed around. The movie crew was still working hard on the scene, where apparently Princess Gale, Burikinto, and Sukeakuro were giving Shishimaru a burial at sea. He decided to walk the other way, as the entire set was blocking his way to the front of the ship. Nor was he interested in walking through during a funeral scene. It was giving him some bad memories. Turning around, he walked the other way.
He reached the back and froze at what he saw. Sakura and Naruto were staring at each other, not moving, then Sakura moved fast. Much faster than he had ever seen her move before. Apparently, Naruto was just as surprised as her fist slammed into his face completely and sent him rolling back a bit. He gave a small laugh, jumped back up to his feet and rushed their pink haired teammate, throwing a left hook. Sakura blocked it, then throw her own punch, which Naruto easily caught with his free hand.
Sasuke wanted to pierce Naruto's heart with a Chidori. And that bastard Michy too, while he was at it. He then fought off that damned urge again. It felt stronger than ever now.
The more Sasuke looked at the sight, the more…angry he got. And the more he thought of that anger, the more confused he got. It was just the strangest thing. What's wrong with me? Why should I care? They're just sparring! That's no big deal! Nevertheless, he felt anger rising with him as he clutched his right fist. He then felt a sharp pain in his neck, where that damned seal was located. The seal was starting to activate. He took a couple of deep breaths and stopped the process. He then turned around and walked way. His two teammates were sparring with each other and enjoying themselves while doing it. Who the hell cares! Not him!
The funeral scene was still going on, but this time, Sasuke didn't give a damn. He walked right through, much to the protesting of the actors and staff. Michy himself put a hand on Sasuke's shoulder and tried to ask what was wrong. Sasuke calmly placed his hand on the man's chest and pushed him off the side of the boat into the ocean, and then shot a look that said 'anyone else?' After receiving a furious shake of the heads from everyone, he continued on and he felt strangely better. A little anyway.
Kakashi looked at the angry teenager walk off, as several people hurried to the side of the ship and lowered a rope to help the poor actor out of the water. Did Sasuke need a lecture now? He gave a small sigh, wondering what the problem could be. At least Sakura was behaving and acting normally.
One of the figures in the movie crew looked at the Uchiha storm off with expressed interest. Oh…things were getting very interesting. Very interesting indeed. Despite this form, his eyes were still sharp and the Uchiha's emotions were as clear as day as to what was bothering. At least for one such as he.
He had noticed the Uchiha going towards the back of the boat, where the figure knew Uzumaki and Haruno were currently at before storming back in a clear rage. So, Uchiha was angry that his two teammates, was he? Perfect. That would make his mission so much easier. He had thought that the Uchiha would be his typical self, emotionless, calm, and arrogant. But instead, the Uchiha was becoming easily flustered, angry, and envious. Though he had not seen what had happened, he could infer as much. Due to the fact that there was no yelling, or explosions, he knew that the Uchiha had not actually talked to either of his peers. And that meant it was highly likely that the Uchiha merely spied on the two and walked away before the other two noticed. He couldn't help but laugh mentally. That meant the Uchiha was angry over the simple fact that his two teammates were simply together. He could only imagine what chaos would had been unleashed if all three had actually interacted. If such a minor thing set the Uchiha off, the possibilities that offered were limitless.
But the time to act was not now. No, not as long as that obstacle was in the way. No. He would wait. The opportunity will come.
Bakeru, the shapeshifter, allowed himself to grin outwardly as he refocused his attention on the movie scene.
(Author's Note). And so ends Chapter 4. All members of Team 7 are training, and poor Sasuke is getting angrier and angrier over reasons he can't understand himself.
I must confess that I'm not entirely satisfied with this chapter. It feels as if…something is missing. Specifically, the scene where Kakashi and Naruto talk about Naruto's attitude. But I've rewritten that twice and still not satisfied, so maybe I'm just overreacting.
I deliberately wanted to post this chapter today for Halloween, as it kinda fitted well into the whole theme behind. Though…I personally don't think I write horror, thriller and suspense very well, but it's the theme and intentions that counts, right?
Kizuato - scar.
Kokuzoku - traitor
Bakeru - (1) to appear in disguise; to take the form of; (2) to change for the worse; to corrupt; (round of applause to jared13000, who correctly guessed it!)
Also thanks to Tellemicus once again, he suggested several possibilities that could happen and I went with them. The main one being where the men were tied to the sails post for a prank. Though, the circumstances that lead to it were my own, but still a big thanks anyway!
No jutsu list this time. Sorry all.
HAPPY HALLOWEEN EVERYONE!
I do not own Naruto. It belongs to Masashi Kishimoto. Also, any jutsu that Tellemicus created that are used in this story belongs to him.
