It was the Saturday of her week off and Akari walked through the deserted streets of Konoha whistling. Without warning the Village had been hit by a heavy storm, today marked the second consecutive day of rain.
Of course precautionary measures had been made as Village shinobi began erecting barricades and make spillways to ensure the village wouldn't flood.
Akari, realising that she might need some supplies had set down to the local store to gather a few basic supplies just in case she had to be locked inside for the next day or so.
The rain came down in think unrelenting waves reducing visibility to a few feet. Something in the alleyway next to her collapsed, usually she wouldn't have given it a second though, however over the constant pelting of the rain over her umbrella she heard a faint moan, almost like a person.
Curious she turned back and investigated.
A stack of garbage cans and boxes had collapsed due to the rain; the person taking refuge within them was sprawled out on the alley floor.
By the attire Akari guessed it was a boy, roughly her age. Quickly she set her things down and headed over to the boy rolling him over to get a better look at his face.
She gasped in shock and her hand flew to her mouth. "Azuko!"
Sakura had become more and more involved with the daily ins and outs of the hospital over the last seven years. After Naruto had been made a Jōnin Sensei and Sasuke had become a member of Tsunade's ANBU guard and eventually the ANBU chief, she had found herself a little lost; Team seven while reunited had seemingly disbanded overnight. So she did the only thing she could do, set to work at the hospital.
Her skill level and her dedication to the field had sent her rocketing up the hierarchy of the hospital, the only person higher than her was the Chief of Medicine and at the rate she was going Sakura had no doubt that she would have the job within the next few years.
Of course life so high up in the Hospitals chain of command – while having great benefits – was very demanding and it was rare to say the least that she had time to herself, let alone a few days.
But that's exactly what she had, a full week off and due to the rain the Academy had also been shut down until further notice and so Sakura found herself not only on vacation but also catching up on some very needed one on one time with Ino.
The two had had very little time to simply unwind and reminisce; this however was one of those times.
They were wearing their pyjamas, painting their nails and talking about nothing in particular when Sakura's apartment door practically flew off its hinges.
Both women jumped, startled by the suddenness of it all, heavy footsteps entered the house and both women readied themselves for a fight.
"Naruto!?" Sakura practically shouted both in shock and annoyance and the blood walked into her living room. He was soaked, trailing a nice puddle of water into her house. His spiky blond hair plastered around surprisingly worried blue eyes.
The look in his eyes gave her pause about shouting him down.
He slapped a wet hand against the wall leaving a swirling Chakra mark where his hand had been.
"I'm leaving that there in case of emergencies." He said in a rushed voice.
"Naruto what the hell are you-?" Sakura began but Naruto cut her off, getting to the crux of the matter.
"Don't have time, you can yell at me later, I need your help." He said sternly.
"With?" Sakura asked running into her bedroom to get changed.
"I got a call from Akari, she found Azuko passed out in an alleyway a few minutes ago." He told her.
"What!?" Both Sakura and Ino shouted, making Naruto wince slightly at the volume. She came out of her room a moment later, dressed in simple shirt and pants.
"Anyway, we gotta hurry, I don't know what condition he's in, Akari said she didn't find any injuries but I'm not taking any chanced." He said heading to the door.
"Right," She said following him. "Ino, just wait her for a while, I'll be back ASAP." Sakura called out as the two of them dashed out into the rain.
When Azuko woke up next he was in a bed, soft and warm, compared to where he had been sleeping for the last three nights he wasn't about to complain.
Upon remembering the events of three days ago he suddenly sat bolt upright startling Akari with his sudden movement. He turned to look at her but his stomach noted up and he doubled over in pain.
He felt hands on him as he realised Akari was rubbing his back. His cheeks flared and he shoved her back, getting out of the bead shakily, stumbling for the door.
"Azuko stop," Akari said suddenly trying to hold him back.
"Get off me you useless dunce," He spat at her venomously. Akari twitched in anger and sent a fist into the back of the boy's head.
Normally it would have done nothing more than make him stumble but in his weakened state he collapsed.
Sighing Akari picked him up and slumped him back on her bed. She blushed slightly at the sight of him and quickly put him under the covers again. His clothes had been filthy, covered in mud and God only knew what else, as a result she had put them in the washing machine, although she had left his underwear on. Touching him as he was, was awkward enough and there was no change in hell that she was going to put him in her bed naked.
Her door flew open and in walked a particularly soaked Sakura and Naruto.
"In here!" Akari called to them as she headed to the door. She got to the hallway just in time to see Naruto put a chakra mark on her wall.
"In case of emergencies," He told her. She nodded and directed Sakura into her bedroom where Azuko was lying unconscious once again.
Naruto preformed a quick Suiton jutsu to dry the both of them before Sakura pulled out several scrolls, making a make shift work bench as she pulled the covers off Azuko.
"I'll need a minute." She said to the two of them. Nodding Naruto lead Akari to her kitchen and sat down.
"So what happened exactly?" Naruto asked, trying to calm himself down. While Azuko was defiantly the lease likable of his students thus far he was still Naruto's student, and he found he couldn't help but worry about him. Especially in circumstances like this one.
"Like I said, I found him in an alleyway." Akari said taking a seat on her table. "I'd headed to the store to get some emergency supplies, on my way home I heard someone moaning in an alleyway, when I went to investigate I found Azuko, so I dragged him back here and called you." She said.
"You didn't call his place?" Naruto asked.
"I did," Akari said. "But no one was answering the phone, after the third try I just decided to call you instead." She said.
Naruto nodded and ran a hand though his hair, breathing deeply, nothing about this made any sense, and it wasn't going to until Azuko woke up to fill in the blanks.
"Is he going to be okay?" Akari asked him, the concern in her voice evident. Naruto gave her a reassuring smile.
"Don't worry about a thing," Naruto told her. "Sakura's the best medic in the Village, Azuko will be fine."
Akari nodded, reassured by her Sensei's words. Naruto smiled to himself, he'd even reassured himself with that.
Sakura had inspected every inch of Azuko's body for damage and run extensive scanning on his current physical condition. He had a fever, was suffering a minor case of malnourishment, his muscle tissue was severely stiff and over worked, and he had an odd bruise on the back of his head.
She given him some antibiotics and healed most of his muscle damage and was in the midst of packing away her things when Azuko suddenly woke up. He just seemed to jump to life coming up swinging.
His first strike missed and she dodged the second, yelping slightly at the suddenness of the attack.
Naruto and Akari quickly rushed over to see what all the commotion was about.
To Azuko thing's we still a bit blurry. His hunger and subsequent head ache made everything a bit fuzzy to his eyes. Being in an unfamiliar surrounding with an unfamiliar woman had panicked him and he'd lashed out.
Hearing the sound of footsteps he took a step towards the door just as Akari and Naruto arrived.
There was a moment where time seemed to stand still as Azuko recognised the familiar faces of his team mate and Sensei.
Similarly there was a moment of stunned – or in Akari's case horrified – silence as they two saw the state of undress Azuko was in.
Akari let out a particularly sharp squeal and all but dived around the corner out of sight. Puzzled by her reaction Azuko paused and looked down, only just realising he was completely naked. His face went a particularly bright shade of red as he grabbed the bed sheets to cover himself up, letting out his own startled yelp in the process.
"Not with my sheets!" Akari shouted in a panicked voice upon hearing the rustling sound.
To Naruto and Sakura that particular little charade had gone a significantly long way to lightening the mood.
Sakura being a professional Doctor and surgeon at Konoha's military hospital, and Naruto being a guy, were rather jaded to nudity in its most basic form, however Azuko and Akari were still young and naïve.
"Can I have some clothes!" Azuko demanded, his voice flushed with embarrassment as he kept his gaze fixed on the floor. Sakura nodded and looked to Naruto who looked to Akari.
"They're in the wash, they were filthy." She said. Naruto looked back to Sakura barely able to keep the humoured smile off his face. Sakura nodded and produced another sealing scroll; opening it she activated one of the seals and pulled out a hospital gown.
Azuko looked at it and glared at her, she raised an eyebrow at him. "It's either this or those sheets," She told him.
"Not happening!" Akari thundered.
Azuko growled in embarrassment and snatched the sheets out of Sakura's hand, he paused for a moment and offered the two of them a half glare until they got the message and left the room.
As Sakura closed the door behind her Akari let out a deep breath and moaned slightly, burying her face in her hands. Naruto and Sakura offered each other amused looks as they headed into the main room, taking a seat on the floor.
It was nearly half an hour later that Azuko finally left Akari's room and joined the others in the living room. His expression was glum and his eyes were down cast, like he was a child about to be scolded by his parents.
There was a tense and awkward silence in the room as no one could think of any way to start the conversation that needed to happen.
Taking the initiative Naruto spoke up, asking the first of many questions he had. "Why were you in the Alleyway?" He asked in a kind voice, trying to comfort the young man as best he could. Azuko flinched but didn't offer any answer, he just stood there eyes down cast.
"Do you have anywhere to stay?" Sakura asked.
Azuko only shook his head, not trusting himself with words at this point. The others all nodded and the silence once again over took the room as they thought about what to do.
"Well where are you going to stay?" Naruto asked, breaking the silence.
Azuko moved to answer but stopped.
"He can stay here for tonight." Akari said suddenly.
All three pairs of eyes locked on her and she looked back blankly. "What?" She asked them.
"Where is he going to sleep?" Sakura asked after a moment.
"He can take my bed for tonight." She said very matter-of-factly.
"What about you?" Naruto asked.
Akari shifted her gaze to him, "After tonight, I'm not touching that bed…Not until I get new sheets anyway." She added a little under her breath.
Naruto nodded as he thought about it. He was still in a tiny one room apartment like Akari's so there wasn't any space there, and considering Sakura had Ino over he couldn't stay there.
Naruto looked at Azuko, who had shifted his gaze from the floor and the boy nodded. Naruto sighed and looked at the floor. "Okay, Azuko will stay here tonight," He said in a definitive voice. "What about you?" He asked Akari, wondering where she would sleep.
"Floors better than a rainy alleyway, I'll be fine for a night or two." She said.
Sakura nodded. "I have a spare mattress you can use." She said.
Akari nodded her thanks as Naruto stood up. "All right then, know that that's all sorted I think we should all get some sleep. Sakura and I will be back with a mattress and some clothes for Azuko soon." He said grabbing Sakura's shoulder and vanishing.
As they were left in the silent and empty room Azuko shifted on his feet awkwardly for a moment before he looked at Akari.
"Th...Thank you." He said weakly.
Akari brushed it off with a wave of her hand, "Don't worry about it just get some rest." She said to him sweetly.
Azuko nodded and went back to Akari's room closing the door behind him. Akari let out a deep sigh as she waited for Naruto and Sakura to return.
They arrived a few minutes later with a mattress and sheets for Akari to use, as well as some of Naruto's old clothes for Azuko.
After they had both left again Akari lay down on her makeshift bed and dialled Taki's home phone. She had called up her friend and told her what happened just before Azuko had woke up, know she was calling back – like she had promised – to fill her in on everything that had happened. After all, as a member of the team she should be kept in the loop.
"Hello," Taki answered after half a ring. She must have been sitting with it for the last hour.
"Hey," Akari replied.
"So what happened?" Taki asked.
"Well he's staying at my place for tonight and Naruto Sensei will be coming by tomorrow to talk more about it." She said.
There was a pause and Taki gave the usual 'uh-hu' and nod. "What a minute," She said as not everything clicked into place. "Why is Azuko staying with you and not Naruto Sesnei?" She asked.
Akari just shrugged. "Well I said he could have my bed for tonight and we could figure it out tomorrow." She said. "After all I wasn't going to use it." She said to herself.
"Hu, why?" Taki asked.
Akari's face reddened with embarrassment as the image flashed through her mind. "Well he was unconscious so Sakura was giving him a medical examination, to check for injury." She said.
"Uh-hu,"
"And his clothes were really dirty so they had to be washed." She said getting more and more embarrassed with every word.
"Uh-hu," Came Taki's monotone reply, telling Akari she would drop the matter until she knew everything.
"And well I left this underwear on, but she had to take it off…" Her voice trailed off as the mental image became predominant in her mind's eye, making her blush furiously.
"Uh-hu," Taki prompted, getting an idea of what happened.
"And, well, he kind of, panicked when he woke up…"
"Uh-hu,"
"And well I kind of…" She could bring herself to finish her sentence.
Taki gasped in shock as she realise what Akari was trying to say. "You didn't,"
Akari squirmed uncomfortably on her bed letting the silence speak for itself. Taki stayed silent for a minute or two as she took in everything Akari had said.
"So what did it look like?" She asked suddenly.
"Can we please change the topic!" Akari shrieked in embarrassment. The only reply she got was Taki's uncontrollable laughter.
Ino was sitting on Sakura's couch board out of her skull. She had been gone nearly an hour now and while Ino couldn't fault her for why she had up and left, she didn't have to like it. It was also the fact that as his former teacher Ino was worried about Azuko.
Naruto and Sakura suddenly appeared in her hallway and after quickly grabbing her spare mattress and sheets the two vanished again, only to return a minute later.
"You should have learnt the Hiraishin years ago." Sakura said absently as she went back into her room to change.
Naruto shrugged as he sat down with Ino, "Until the incident in the Kyojin no Gyokuza mountains I didn't see an absolute need for it, I could get from 'a' to 'b' pretty quickly with Kurama if I was in trouble or had an emergency."
Sakura nodded and sat down next to Ino.
"So how is he?" She asked.
Sakura gave her a comforting smile. "He's fine, sleeping right now." She told him.
"That's good, but what happened?"
"From what I can tell he's been kicked out of home." Naruto said as he popped his neck.
"That's aweful!" Ino gasped.
The others nodded. "He's got a roof over his head for now which is as much as we can ask for, I'll talk to Sasuke on Monday about it." Naruto continued.
Ino and Sakura exchanged glances, "Why would you talk to Sasuke about it?" Ino asked puzzled.
"Well," Naruto began. "Both of Azuko's parents are in ANBU and seeing as Akari couldn't get them to answer their phone I'm guessing that they're on a mission, at which point I need to talk to Sasuke about when they'll be back in the Village." He explained.
The two women nodded in agreement as Naruto stood up. "Anyway, sorry for interrupting, you two have fun." Naruto said with a smile before he vanished.
Monday morning for Sasuke Uchiha was like any other, up at an un-godly hour to go into his office and start managing the ins and outs of the ANBU black ops.
It was a little past seven in the morning when something interesting happened. He heard a minor commotion outside as his assistant Totsuki was having trouble with someone. The commotion only got louder and Sasuke was about to step out of his office to see what the problem was when his door practically flew off its hinges.
It hit the wall with a loud 'smack' as a very, very angry Naruto stormed into his office, Totsuki at his heels.
"I'll deal with this." Sasuke told her. She looked at him, unsure of what to do, but he waved her out the door and she – somewhat reluctantly – left the office.
Sasuke sighed he offered Naruto a seat. "So, what did my door do to piss you off this morning?" Sasuke asked as he began going over paper work.
"It got in my way." Naruto huffed. Sasuke smirked as he looked at his friend, something was clearly pissing him off, although why the blond had come to him about it was a mystery.
"So what crawled up your ass and died?" Sasuke asked, deciding that the sooner they talked about why the blond was admitting enough killing intent to kill a puppy just by looking at it the better.
"Nagashi Futoka and Nagashi Yurino, are they out on a mission?" He asked.
Sasuke's eyes narrowed slightly at the question, he knew every ANBU member by name and face so he knew exactly who Naruto was talking about.
"I can't disclose mission details to you Naruto," Sasuke began.
"I don't give a rats ass about the mission, are they in the Village or not?" Naruto asked pointedly.
Looking into his eyes, Sasuke knew that Naruto wasn't going to budge on this, with a sigh Sasuke relented, "They just got back, why?" He asked.
"I need to talk to them." Naruto said. "I went to their house but no one answered."
Sasuke nodded, he knew that their son was on Naruto's team so he guessed this had something to do with him.
"Totsuki!" Sasuke called. A moment later the woman came through the door, albeit nervously. Upon seeing the calm and civil demeanour of the previously murderous blond she calmed down a bit.
"Yes sir?"
"Could you bring Futoka and Yurino Nagashi here?" He asked her.
She nodded. "Right away," She said.
There was an odd silence in the room as Naruto waited patiently for the two of them to arrive and Sasuke went back to his paper work. Roughly five minutes later there was a knock on the door as Totuski came in with Futoka and Yurino.
"You wanted to see us sir?" Futoka asked, not giving Naruto a second glance. Sasuke looked at Naruto and the blond turned a hard blue eye to the two.
"Your son was found passed out in an alleyway on Saturday." Naruto began. Futoka and Yurino didn't react while Sasuke's eyes went wide for all of a tenth of a second.
"He said he didn't have anywhere to go. Care to explain?" He asked.
Futoka just turned back to Sasuke. "Was this it?" He asked. Even Sasuke trembled as Naruto's killing intent went from aggravated to overwhelming in those three words. Futoka and Yurino stumbled as Naruto came to his feet gripping Futoka by his collar.
"What!?" The blond shouted, loud enough for the entire village to hear him. "Why the hell did you kick him out?" Naruto asked dangerously.
Futoka level callous green eyes at Naruto's, "It's no concern of yours," He said.
"Bull shit!" Naruto shouted, "As his Sensei his wellbeing is my responsibility, so I'll ask again, why did he tell me he didn't have a home?"
"That failure is not my concern." Futoka said trying to remove Naruto's hand from his collar.
Hearing enough Sasuke intervened before he was witness to a double homicide. He stepped in between the two of them and pushed Naruto back a bit.
"You two can go." Sasuke said.
They nodded politely to him and left without a word. Naruto went to go after them, clearly not happy with how events had transpired but Sasuke shoved him back.
"Don't," He said curtly.
"Oh come on," Naruto pleaded, "I won't kill them, I just beat the living shit out of them, they'll be in a coma for a month, two tops."
Sasuke sighed and began swatting Naruto over the head repeatedly. "No, bad Naruto, no murdering my underlings."
"I said I wouldn't kill them, just injure them...permanently." The blond said trying to fight his way past the ANBU Chief.
"No Naruto." Sasuke said. He shoved Naruto back into a chair and levelled his Mangekyō at him. Naruto glared at him and finally relented. "Fine," He huffed. "Though I don't know why you're against me beating up that ass hole." He whined.
"Because the paper work is a bitch and I don't what to have to testify that you out and out murdered to ANBU agents." He said.
"They had it coming." Naruto shot back angrily.
"I don't doubt it." Sasuke said. "But as your friend I should try and stop you from making horrible life choices like murder."
Naruto sighed and slammed his head against Sasuke's desk.
"So what happened?" Sasuke asked.
Sup Friendlies.
So here's another chapter of woe and comedic relief. Their personal lived deepen and some truly awkward and memorable moments occur, the kind of ones that get brought up ten years later when you're all sitting around a table only slightly drunk and feel like sharing stories that just get funnier with hindsight and the gradual loss of childhood innocence.
I know I keep saying I'll get to the Chunin exams soon, and I will, only another two chapters tops before the exam actually starts, though I can probably do it in one big super chapter, I'll leave it up to my "dedicated" Fan base to decide, it's just training and what not, so actually, yea, I can totally do that in a chapter.
As far as updating goes, I'm trying to get as much out before I get a 'proper' job which if I'm lucky will be soon, at which point I will try my hardest for once a week until its done.
If you have any comments or queries' about how I'm running things or you just feel like stroking my ego :P don't be afraid to leave a review, I like it when you guys leave them, it lets me know I'm doing a good job, or failing to do a good job. Depends on how you write the comment. :)
Until next time I wish you all the best.
Yours truly.
Nicolai Grey.