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A/N: POW = Prisoner Of War

Naruto hopped from building to building next to Sakura in deep thought about the mission. 'So we are to slip behind enemy lines and rescue some POWs from Kabuto's hide out huh…?' Naruto thought to himself in deep thought while hopping from building to building with Sakura jumping with him until Sakura ran into an invisible wall, so she landed on the ground noticing that they were at Naruto's place.

Sakura raised an eyebrow in confusion as she looked over to Naruto for answers, who laughed nervously a bit, and explained. "Oh, the Sandaime-sama thought the angry villagers would try to attack you in your apartment just because you are the Kyuubi Jinjuriki, but to think that they would actually try, and kill you…" Sakura trailed as Naruto spoke something under his breath, and the barrier slid away.

Naruto just shrugged, and walked into his apartment. "You get used to if after a while I guess, but now a day's I get apologies from everyone that ever hurt me, or tried to kill me." Naruto said as he picked up his ninja pack, and started putting scroll in it until he got to a scroll labeled 'Rations' and sighed a bit. "Looks like we have to go buy some more rations before we leave, because it's been god knows how long since I opened this scroll." Naruto said, and then opened the scroll, and then the rations appeared in a puff of smoke which was dried up, and inedible. "Well I have consumed worse, but I won't eat those." Naruto said at the memory of when he transformed into Sasuke, and nearly got a kiss from her.

Sakura nodded a bit not knowing what exactly Naruto was talking about. "Well let's get to the ninja store before it closes." Sakura said, and walked back out not bumping into the barrier again.

Naruto saw the questioning look on Sakura's face, and he figured it was why she hadn't bumped into the barrier again. "It lets you out no problem, but getting in is another story." Naruto said, and jumped to the nearest building's roof top with Sakura following close behind him keeping a good pace.

~After about ten minutes of travel at a comfortable pace the finally landed on the building they were wanting to, and dropped down to street level startling a few pedestrians in the process.

Naruto looked at the building's sign which read 'Ninja Emporium' and sadly laughed a bit "I remember when tis place would sell me nothing but faulty equipment, but now they would only sell me the best equipment they have in stock at the time." Naruto thought out loud with a somber sigh.

Sakura walked in right behind Naruto keeping quiet as the store clerk greeted Naruto warmly, and then started pulling out his best merchandise to show him. 'It's hard to believe that not even a month ago this guy hated Naruto's guts with everything he held sacred…' Sakura thought sadly to herself, and went to the section of the store that had rations in it, and she found it after a little bit of searching. 'Let's see now… This is a month or so long mission, so let's grab that much.' Sakura said, and grabbed a months' worth of Rations, and turned around only to be met by Naruto causing her to jump a bit in surprise.

Naruto ducked a chakra infused Baka punch before stepping back out of arm's length from Sakura. "Whoa that was close, but what was that for!?" Naruto exclaimed a bit surprised that he dodged it.

Sakura calmed down a bit, and looked at Naruto's suppressed face. "You surprised me, so I naturally did anything a scared person would do." Sakura said, and tried pushing past Naruto only to be stopped.

Naruto laughed a bit before pulling Sakura into an apologetic hug, and kissed Sakura's forehead lightly.

Sakura would have destroyed most that touched her forehead much less kissed it, but somehow this felt calming especially in his arms so she just relaxed a bit, and pushed away from Naruto lightly, and kissed him lightly before walking to the counter with the rations in hand about to pull out her money when Naruto stopped her shaking his head no lightly before pulling out his frog wallet stuffed full with ryo.

Naruto paid for the rations, and then sealed the rations in his, then Sakura's scrolls before walking out, and taking back to the roofs. "Well is there anything that you need to get from your apartment aside from your ninja pack?" Naruto asked Sakura while still looking forward still rooftop jumping steadily.

Sakura thought for a second, and then remembered she had to pick up some medical supplies that she had stock piled at her apartment. "Yeah there is, I need to grab some medical supplies just in case either of us gets hurt while on this mission." Sakura said, and landed on her apartment's roof then entered through a window that she had opened, soon followed closely by Naruto inside to the apartment.

Sakura flipped on a light, and found what she was looking for, a bunch of medical supplies stacked in a neat pile on top of a desk. 'Right where I left them, now we are nearly ready to go.' Sakura thought to herself, and sealed the supplies into a scroll, and put the scroll in a ninja pack before exiting through the door this time with Naruto following close behind as they took to the roofs heading for the main gate.

-N-

After about thirty minutes of travel with the occasional light conversation they made it to the main gate

-N-

Naruto pulled the scroll they had gotten from Tsunade, and showed it to the guard gate, because Tsunade said that if they had presented the scroll to the gate they would be allowed to leave. "Thank you, and see you again soon." Naruto said as he, and Sakura gave the guard a light bow before they left.

Sakura was wondering why Naruto was walking down the road like a civilian, but when they got out of eye shot of the village Naruto suddenly became enveloped in a golden clock startling Sakura a bit, but she relaxed soon after she felt the chakra, it made her feel all warm, and fuzzy all over. 'What is this new ability he has!?' Sakura thought, and before she could even blink she was off her feet in Naruto's arms.

Sakura was about to knock Naruto's lights out for surprising her again, but before she could do anything the world started whizzing by in a blur so she clung to Naruto for dear life cause she was scared she would fall, and at this speed no matter how much healing was done there was no getting up, and the warm, and loving aura that was coming off him, was calming to her, and she loved the feeling.

Naruto knew they would get there faster if he just did it like this, but he should have warned Sakura before he picked her up. "Sundown is coming soon; we need to set up camp somewhere soon." Naruto said before stopping, then stopped in a somewhat big clearing, and started setting up their camp.

Sakura smiled lightly, then nodded, and started helping set up camp with Naruto. "I will take first w-." Is all Sakura could say before Naruto shook his head lightly, and then pointed to himself.

His trademark grin came onto his face "You get some beauty sleep, I'll take the first watch" He said, and kissed Sakura sweetly, then lay against a nearby tree, facing in forwards the camp.

Sakura nodded, then unrolled a sleeping back, and slipped into it, falling fast asleep soon after.

? Chuckled evilly, sitting in a nearby tree, and then after a few quick hand signs, cast a sleep Jutsu over their camp.

Naruto struggled to stay awake as the sleep jutsu started to affect him more than he expected. "Show yourself!" Naruto exclaimed, going into golden cloak form, feeling the effects of the Jutsu start to leave him, but he was still going to be lethargic for a few minutes. "Ok… Since you won't show yourself… I'll find you myself…" Naruto said, making a clone to stay with Sakura, as he lept into the trees in the direction of the evil aura, and malice was coming from. "You…" Naruto let out a growl as he looked into the slitted eyes of Kabuto's from behind his cloak. "How are you so close to the village without setting off the security systems!?"

Kabuto's adjusted his glasses, pushing his glasses back up his nose. "That's the thing… I tripped them, and since this is the Nara forest, they came at me, look around." Kabuto made a sweeping motion with his arms below them, where Naruto noticed downed Nara members.

Naruto examined their limp bodies, with his enhanced sight thanks to Kurama, he saw no immediate wounds, assuming they suffered from what Kabuto attempted to use on him. "If they are dead…" He said with a deeper growl, but was cut off by Kabuto.

"That would be too easy… They are merely sleeping at the moment, but they have a drug now in their system, that… If you don't come with me, quietly, I will activate, killing them instantly…" Kabuto said, knowing that Naruto would never put anyone else in danger, if he could avoid it.

Naruto clenched his fists, but nods, releasing his chakra cloak.

Kabuto laughs triumphantly, then catches Naruto as his body goes limp from the effect of the sleep Jutsu finally getting to him.

Naruto blacks out, his last thought was 'At least Sakura's safe…'

((Gomenasai for the insanely slow update *goes down into a dogeza*, just had a lot of stuff happen IRL, so the last place my mind was, was updating my fan fictions, but I bet, I let you guys down in the process. But I'm back ^^))