Flash of Red and Black
Chapter XVI
"Hokage-sama! The teams from Suna have arrived!" a chuunin called. Then my door swung open and twenty Suna-nin filed into my office, Temari and Kankuro at the front.
"Thanks for coming, everyone! Good to see you again Temari, Kankuro."
"Good to see you too, Naruto," Temari said, Kankuro nodding in agreement next to her.
"How's everyone's condition from the trip?"
"Fine. Nothing a good night's sleep and a decent meal won't fix," Kankuro replied, and I nodded.
"Alright. Everyone, go get some rest. A chuunin downstairs will lead you to where you'll be staying. Temari, Kankuro, come see me again in the morning," I said, dismissing them. They all nodded and did as told, and I started reading through the files on my desk, filled with profiles of the Suna-nin. But shortly after, Shikamaru walked in.
"The Suna-nin are here?" he asked, looking at the stack of folders on my desk.
"Yeah. Five teams. Once I look through the files, I'm going to hand them over to Neji so we can decide where to put them," I said, glancing up at him. He just nodded and I buried my face in the folder again to hide my smirk.
"Of course, if someone were to talk to one of the Suna-nin, like Temari, for example, since she's a captain, we might be able to decide what to do with them sooner," I said, carefully keeping my eyes on the file in front of me.
"Right. I'll do that, then," Shikamaru said, walking out.
"Make sure she's comfortable with their housing arrangements while you're at it too!" I called after him, not bothering to hide my grin. He didn't say anything in response, but I could see the tips of his ears turn red as he walked out. I chuckled a little as I turned back to the files in front of me, taking notes occasionally to hand over to Neji later
By the time my office was filled with shadows, Kakashi appeared at the window and climbed into the room.
"Can you take a break?" he asked as he wrapped his arms around me and dropped his face into my hair.
"Sure. Just let me send these to Neji," I said, standing and calling in and ANBU. Kakashi perched himself on my desk as I handed the materials off, and I turned back to him once Dog vanished.
"How are the plans going?" he asked when I dropped into my chair again.
"They're going as well as they can for how little we know," I said, but I couldn't help feeling a little useless. I was going to send a clone on the mission too, of course—maybe even a whole team of them—but there was only so much that we could do to prepare for the unknown.
Kakashi gave a little sigh and put his hand on the side of my face, rubbing his thumb across the scars on my cheek. "You've pulled off bigger miracles than this, Naruto. Just leave this one to us," he said quietly.
I didn't say anything in return, but I just cupped my hand around his, enjoying the warmth and roughness of his hand. My anxieties were far from gone, but I knew that he was right. Surely Orochimaru couldn't be tougher than the Jyuubi, but then again, I didn't want to take any chances.
"Come on, you haven't slept in a couple days. Let's go home," he said as he grabbed my hand and stood. I nodded and followed him quietly, hoping and praying with all my might that we would have many, many more nights together.
oOo
"So, you all understand your roles, right?" Shikaku asked, looking around the room. Five teams were sitting around the table, and Shikaku and Neji were standing next to me. With just a few days left until the mission was set to start, we finally decided that we were satisfied with the plans and that we were ready to give out the assignments.
Of the teams around the room, only Kakashi, Sakura, Sai, and Shikamaru weren't in ANBU gear. They would be the bait team, after all, so they would have to be recognized. All the other teams were in Konoha ANBU gear, including the several Suna-nin that were mixed into the group. (Of course, I had several bunshin mixed in too.)
"Alright. You have three days to prepare and get rested. Let me know if I can help. Dismissed," I called, and immediately all the ANBU teams disappeared, and Sai and Shikaku followed them out.
"If that's all you need, I'll go prepare a team for back-up," Neji said.
"I want you on that back-up team too. Kankuro will take care of security if you have to head out," I said, and Neji nodded calmly, though he seemed slightly surprised.
"I'll see to it that he's prepared," he said before leaving. Sakura was nearly gone too, but she must have thought better of it before walking back up to me.
"Naruto, how many of those ANBU were your bunshin?"
"A few," I said, staring back at her with a look that was equally stubborn.
We just stared like that for a few moments, neither giving in until Shikamaru cut in.
"You know as well as anyone that Naruto won't let us go on this mission without him. Just give it up, Sakura," he said, looking exasperated. Sakura shot him a glare, but then sighed and looked back at me.
"Don't pull any more all-nighters and eat regularly. You haven't been taking care of yourself enough," she said, looking more worried than aggravated.
"I know. I'll be at full strength before the mission starts. I'm sending my bunshin to protect you guys, not to endanger you," I said. Sakura just stared back at me for a few seconds, but then she nodded and left, and Shikamaru followed suit after a small nod. Then I just stood there and stared at Kakashi for a bit. There were so many things that I wanted to say, but I didn't have any of the words I needed to say them. In the end, Kakashi was the one who broke the silence.
"Come on. Let's go get lunch," he said as he grabbed my hand and led me out of the room. We ended up eating at Ichiraku, but he said that he would cook for us for every meal after that so that we could get a better-balanced diet before leaving, so I savored the last bowl of Ichiraku that I would be having for a while.
Once we finished, we headed over to the training grounds to work off the meal. I suggested it, saying that I wanted to get some practice in before leaving, but since I'd had a clone on every ANBU mission since I became Hokage, I didn't really need it. Rather, I just wanted to spend time with him and move my body rather than have to think. Even I knew that it was the same as when I trained for weeks on end after the war to keep from thinking about killing my best friend, but this time it would turn out differently. I was going to make sure of it.
"You had at least five clones in that room, didn't you?" Kakashi asked. He seemed to have a habit of interrogating me every time we sparred, though we didn't use any jutsu this time since we didn't want to deplete our chakra.
"Something like that," I said, refusing to give him a straight answer as I threw some shuriken at him. I didn't want him to have to worry about protecting my bunshin, but at the same time I didn't want him to worry about me wearing myself out.
"You're sure you can handle it?" he asked, parrying the shuriken before dashing back into close-range to strike.
"I'll be fine. I'll be well-rested by the time the mission starts, so handling a few bunshin won't be a problem," I said, dodging his fists while throwing a few kicks myself.
So, we kept training for a couple hours until Kakashi called it, not wanting to tire himself out too much. From there, he headed home to get his gear in order, and I went to my office. When I walked in, though, the chuunin working at the front desk were making a ruckus.
"Hokage-sama! I'm so sorry! A child was here asking to see you, but when we told him you were busy, he started throwing a fit and then ran into your office and locked himself in!" said one of the chuunin, flustered.
"Several chuunin outmatched by a child, huh?" I teased. The three reddened with embarrassment, but I just laughed and headed to my office, knocking on the door.
"Hello~ I heard you were looking for me earlier?" I called. Immediately I heard little feet running against the wood floor.
"H-Hokage-sama?" I heard a little voice ask, and I instantly recognized it.
"Yuu-kun? Can I come in?" I asked, and then I heard the click of the lock and two little reddened eyes appeared as the door cracked open.
"Sorry," he sniffed as he moved away from the door.
"You don't have to apologize for anything," I said, walking in and sitting in my chair.
He followed me around to the same side of my desk, but didn't say anything as he fumbled with his shirt and stared at the ground.
"Yuu-kun," I called. He looked up and I opened up my arms. Not even a second later, he was in my lap and hugging my ribcage as tightly as he could, burying his face into my chest. I sat there and gently patted his messy blue hair, waiting for him to stop crying again.
"I'm sorry for locking myself in your office and causing trouble," he said quietly once he calmed down again.
"You don't need to worry about that," I said, and he gave a small nod.
"Dad used to train me sometimes, when he didn't have missions," Yuu mumbled, wiping at his eyes.
"Was it fun?"
"Yeah! Lots and lots," he said excitedly before going somber again. "I miss it a lot already," he said, staring at my desk. I nodded and just studied him for a moment. I could tell he was lonely. I knew that feeling well enough, after all. Suddenly deciding what to do, I picked him up and put him on my shoulders before heading out. He gave a little squeal at suddenly being moved like that.
"W-what are we doing?" he asked, obviously confused.
"Well, I would say that I would train you and hang out with you whenever you want, but I'm going to be really busy for a while, so I might not be able to keep that promise. So instead, I'm going to introduce you to all my friends, so that you can go to them if you want. And if they aren't busy, then we'll all play with you for the rest of today, okay?" I said, glancing up at him just in time to see him grin.
"Really?! Thank you, Hokage-sama!" he cheered. I grinned and walked out of the building, heading to Choji's place first.
"Choji! Ino! Do you guys have a minute?" I called when we arrived. I could sense their chakra inside, so I just waited for Ino to open the door.
"Naruto! What are you…?" She started to ask until she noticed the blue-haired boy sitting on my shoulders.
"This is Yuu-kun. I'm introducing him to everyone. Is Choji awake?" I asked, smiling at her. A faint recognition washed over her face when I said his name, but she recovered quickly.
"I'll get him. I was just about to start making dinner, so I can make another spot for you two if you want," she said, ushering us inside.
"What do you say to going out for barbeque instead? I still need to introduce him to everyone else, so we could all eat out if you've got some time," I suggested.
"Barbeque? I'm in!" Choji called as he walked into the main room. I laughed, and Ino rolled her eyes, though she smiled a little too.
"Sounds like barbeque it is, then. I'll let everyone know," Ino said.
"You guys can come on in here and wait, then. I'll make tea," Choji said, heading to the kitchen. I nodded and lifted Yuu off my shoulders.
"How are you doing, Choji?" I asked, looking him over as Yuu and I sat down at the little table.
"Better. It'll still be another week or two before I can train again, but I can get around on my own now," he said, shooting me a smile. I nodded, though I still felt somewhat responsible. I pushed those feelings aside though and turned to Yuu.
"So, these are my friends Ino and Choji. Choji's probably one of the strongest shinobi in the village, and Ino is the head of the med-nin training school."
"Is it really okay for me to play with them?" he asked quietly, looking nervous but excited all at once.
"Of course it is, Yuu-kun," Choji said as he sat down next to us after putting water on the stove. Yuu looked surprised, but then grinned and scooted closer to Choji.
"Choji-san, you're from the Akimichi Clan, aren't you?"
"How'd you know?"
"Dad told me about the clans in Konoha sometimes. He said that the Akimichi Clan members have marks on their cheeks," he said, glancing between Choji and me. I grinned, and Choji smiled too.
"He's actually the next head of the clan," I said, smiling at Yuu.
"Wow! Really? Can you show me a jutsu?" he asked excitedly.
"Sorry, Yuu-kun, but Choji's actually recovering from some injuries, so he's not allowed to do any jutsu right now," Ino said as she walked into the room and sat down with us.
"But once I'm recovered, I'd be happy to," Choji said. Yuu and Choji kept talking while I turned to Ino.
"Is everyone meeting us there?"
"Yup. Kakashi and Yamato too," she said, giving me a knowing smile. I nodded my thanks and talked with the three until it was time to go to the restaurant.
When we got there, everyone was already sitting in a booth and calling us over. They all greeted Yuu-kun happily. Lee, of course, had an abundance of energy and swore that he would train with Yuu as much as he wanted. Then Yuu started telling stories about his dad training with him and happily guessing which clans everyone was from.
Once everyone was stuffed and Yuu started having trouble keeping his eyes open, we all parted ways and Kakashi and I walked Yuu home. His aunt apologized for him causing trouble, but I assured her that it was no problem.
After crawling into bed, I wrapped my arms around Kakashi and held him as close as I could. We stayed like that for a while until Kakashi pulled me on top of him and buried his face in my neck.
"What's on your mind?"
"I hope Yuu-kun won't be lonely anymore," I said quietly, burying my face in his hair.
"I think he'll be okay," he murmured. I nodded a little hoping it would be true, and we stayed there silently for a while until Kakashi spoke up again. "I'm sorry I never did anything like that for you when you were younger," he said quietly, but I shook my head.
"That wasn't your responsibility."
"And doing that for Yuu-kun tonight wasn't yours either," he said, hugging me closer. I just shrugged. I just couldn't help myself when I saw how lonely Yuu-kun looked. I knew that feeling well enough to know that no one else should have to feel that way.
"I just happened to think of it, and it helped me keep my mind off things too," I mumbled. I felt Kakashi nod and he gave me a little squeeze. There was another lull of quiet for a while.
Eventually, I couldn't stand the uneasy thoughts that slowly filled my head, so I moved around and left a trail of kisses on him.
"Naru—"
"Will you help me keep my mind off things for a while longer?" I asked, looking up at him. Almost immediately, I saw the darkness of his eye turn to an even deeper black.
"Gladly," he breathed. Then he pulled me close and kissed me until we were both gasping for air, but before he caught his breath, I continued where I left off on the trail, not giving him time to react or myself time to think.
I didn't have the words to tell him how much I needed him to make it through the mission, but I had always been better at getting my point across through actions anyway.
Sorry for taking so long! I'll try to get another chapter up this weekend, but after that I may not have another chapter up until May. (This semester is killer -_-)
Anyway, the next chapter is probably going to be mostly fluff, and then the real action will start! Hope you're looking forward to it!