The Greatest Idea Ever
By Quick-n-Popular
Disclaimer: "Naruto" and its characters are not my property.
A/N: Thank you all for the words of encouragement after my long absence. Than you.
Chapter Thirteen: The Search for the Legendary Sucker, Part One
The Village's recovery after the invasion by the forces of the villages of Suna and Oto was progressing smoothly. Rubble was being removed daily and the overall total of loss to both the citizenry and the Shinobi was less than predicted.
Tenten, after having her leg healed, helped with her team scouting the area for hidden traps laid by the retreating foes. Her teammate Neji was instrumental in uncovering these with his doujutsu, while her other teammate Lee was busy relaying information about these traps with the Anbu patrolling, Tenten, in the meantime, had the duty of safely disarming these traps. While there was an importance in these tasks, the Weapons Enthusiast's mind lay elsewhere.
"There, that's the last one of this area. Report this to Gai-Sensei and the Anbu, Lee." Neji instructed his teammate. Lee gave a crisp salute before running off leaving his two teammates alone. Neji watched as Tenten carefully raised a trip wire with a kunai before disarming the trap underneath. It was smooth work of hers and she did it with no problem. However, he could tell that something was on her thoughts and, more than likely, it was involving THAT boy.
Recently, after recovering from his loss against Naruto and having a heartfelt understanding with his uncle, the head of the Main House; the prodigious Hyuuga had an epiphany and was slowly changing from the person he had once been. Arrogance, bitterness, and ego were leaving him and had him coming to understand things which was leading to some acceptance.
One of those things was the opponent who had beaten him and, in turn, helped beat some sense in. He was also, now, less critical of his teammate's activities with him, having found some respect for the blond teen.
Thus, he decided to address Tenten's problem now.
"You know, you can go see him, if you want to. We're at a good stopping point, anyway."
Tenten's head jerked up and then she smiled bemusedly, "Am I really that obvious?"
Neji got up and stretched before turning and walking away, calling over his shoulder, "Go see him. It'll probably do you both good."
Jiraiya, while nursing a swollen discolored part of his skin, on his right side, listened impatiently as Danzo and Homura were having a disagreement.
"We need strong leadership in this village and the council has already voted on Tsunade being the next Hokage, what more is there to discuss on?"
"We should discuss whether we should leave the village in the hands of someone qualified or someone who is, at best, mediocre. That woman, even if she should come here of her own volition; is a poor choice." The bandaged War Hawk grumbled before gazing at the Advisor with not too subtle hinting.
Homura sighed, "We can leave recruiting her to Jiraiya-kun, here. As to her abilities, she more than fits the requirements and it was in Sarutobi's own wishes that she might succeed him. We must honor that in anyway we can."
Danzo grunted before he stalked out of the room, leaving Homura alone with Jiraiya who was still preoccupied by the injury he got from Hanzo's sickle.
"You CAN find her, right?" Homura asked Jiraiya.
The Toad Sannin nodded, "She usually leaves a trail. Besides, it hasn't been that long since she left before the invasion started." He then stretched and turned to leave but then looked over his shoulder, "By the way, there are two Genin I want to accompany me when I go out to look for her."
Naruto was sitting on the stool at the Ichiraku Stand slurping noodles but with less enthusiasm than he normally did. He and his team had finished with their task of looking for survivors under collapsed dwellings. Luckily there were more people alive then there were crushed bodies, but the sight alone and the energy he put in to help unearth those poor people had almost killed his appetite. That and, well, the fresh passing of the Sandime Hokage.
Konohamaru hasn't shown himself around Naruto for awhile now. For some time, Naruto had isolated himself as well, so he understood his protege's grief.
Picking up the bowl and drinking away the broth of the ramen dish, Naruto gave a quiet thank you to Ayame and Teuchi before leaving the stand and beginning his trek home. However, halfway there, he suddenly felt a desire to go anywhere but where he was headed. Looking up into the sky for some clue as to where he wanted to go, he waited patiently for something to occur to him.
"You know I've told you this once before, but, you REALLY WILL get covered by bird crap if you just stand there all day."
Naruto closed his eyes and smiled, despite himself. "Now where have I heard THAT before?"
Turning around, the Blond saw the Bun-haired Kunoichi standing there with a grocery sack slung over her shoulder smiling at him.
"You look lost." She said.
"I FEEL lost." He confirmed, sighing.
Tenten nodded before gesturing him over in the direction she was going to go, "In that case, come with me for a bit."
The two then walked through the village for a bit with neither of them starting a topic of discussion until they had finally arrived at an area near Tenten's Father's weapon shop where the ground was bare.
Naruto stared at the area for a moment before Tenten took out some cartons out from the grocery bag she had brought with them and opened one up. Taking out two skewers that had multicolored dango on them and put one in her mouth before handing one to Naruto.
"Here."
Naruto took the treat before sighing and starting to eat it, "Why all this?"
Tenten smiled, "A change of scenery. Besides, it's been three months since we used this area to train you on how to hold a sword."
Naruto's eyes widened, looking around before coming back to Tenten who smiled at him warmly.
He then closed his eyes and chuckled, "A bit early for an anniversary, isn't it?"
Tenten shrugged, smiling still with the skewer in her mouth.
Naruto huffed in amusement before putting on a natural smile as Tenten offered him another dango skewer.
"Why all the dango, though?" He asked.
The Kunoichi turned her head away and sighed, tiredly. "That damn woman got me eating them a lot. Now, they're hard to turn away from."
Naruto assumed she meant Anko, the Exam's second proctor and Tenten's temporary sensei who volunteered herself to train her. From what Naruto had overheard, Anko was enthusiastic about having a new toy, er, Student, to teach her methods to. Luckily she didn't have a lot of time to continue teaching Tenten, otherwise Naruto doubted his friend would keep her sanity.
After disposing of their used skewers, they were soon approached by Jiraiya much to both of their surprise.
"Here you two are. I've been looking all over. You two, pack for a two week journey, you're both coming with me."
While Tenten looked surprised, Naruto was a tad bit suspicious.
"I hope it isn't for your research, Ero-Sennin."
Jiriaya sighed, "Listen, Brat, I may be a Super Pervert but I know when to pace myself." Seeing his new student about to open his mouth to argue about that point, Jiraiya interrupted him; "But besides all that, this is a mission we've been handed. We're going to bring in my other teammate to be the next Hokage."
Meanwhile, in a hidden base near Otogakure, a red haired teen girl wearing a purple bandanna head cover and dressed in a white gi with a tied purple rope motif; Grumbled to herself as she made her way down the winding labyrinth-like corridor before arriving at a room that held medical equipment. Inside a be-speckled white haired teen was having a discussion with their leader who was being treated.
"I'm afraid, Orochimaru-sama, that the only person who can treat your arms is someone of Tsunade's caliber."
"I anticipated as much, Kabuto. Sensei seemed to keep his sense of humor as to how he would punish me before he died. But, no matter. Tayuya, you may come in please."
Kabuto turned and smirked as he pushed up his glasses as Tayuya of the Sound Four walked in side and knelt in submission before the Snake Sannin, completely ignoring Kabuto in the process. Said man chuckled to himself as he left the room.
Orochimaru waited until Kabuto was out before he gave the young girl his new orders.
"I'm going to have you stand watch at a distance while I recruit my former teammate. I sense there will be some interference from those who'll come from Konoha, possibly my OTHER former teammate."
Tayuya said nothing, still keeping her head bowed.
"Anyone coming with him, possibly that new student of his and any others...Do not hesitate to slaughter them and retrieve their corpses for new specimens."
"Yes, Orochimaru-sama." She finally spoke.
Much to Nartuto's relief, Jiraiya seemed to be focused on the mission so there was almost no teasing or mentions of of the Toad Sannin's perversion.
Well, ALMOST. Jiraiya had been staring at Tenten, writing in his little notebook which almost went unnoticed by the Kunoichi until he let out a perverted little giggle. Then a kunai came ripping through the middle of the notebook and the blade then buried itself right between Jiraiya's legs near his groin. The self-proclaimed Super Pervert, shuddered as he looked over to where Tenten was seated who was twirling another kunai in one hand while doing maintenance on her tonfas with the other.
"Shouldn't you be treating your superiors with a little more respect, girly?" He complained.
Tenten turned to him and gave him an almost Anko-like sweet grin, "Of course I respect you, Jiraiya-sama. So much so, I decided to miss on PURPOSE. My...Aren't YOU the lucky one!"
Naruto felt a little shudder run down HIS spine. However, his new sensei recovered quickly and got them rolling and back on the road again.
With the Icha Icha Writer's eyes on the road ahead, Naruto turned to Tenten.
"This is the first mission I've been away on since Wave. Do you and your team go out a lot?"
Tenten nodded, "Not always but our team specializes in speed so we end up doing a lot of information protection missions."
Naruto nodded then thought for a moment, "I wonder what my team's specialty is, then…"
Tenten shrugged, "I can't say. Whereas you and the Uchiha on your team emphasize on fighting, the girl on your team is kind of a support I guess. How does she normally get used in missions?"
Naruto opened his mouth to give an answer but soon shut it as one didn't come up.
Jiraiya didn't make any comment either but whether he was listening to this conversation or not the two teens couldn't tell.
In a town with a large gambling casino, Tsunade was at the Black Jack table finding to her utter joy she was winning steadily. Shizune was securing them a room and Tsunade lied to her saying she was off to find some good reading material and then slipped inside the Casino when she was out of sight.
Now, feeling utterly giddy after dodging her earlier misfortune of leaving behind her winnings when Konoha had gotten invaded, and being back on the a winning streak; she decided to head to another table when she suddenly spotted someone she did not want to see at this time.
The first town they came upon had some underground gambling rings to which Jiraiya said was a good indicator that his teammate, Tsunade, would have visited at least once, twice if she managed to win. Granted the name, "The Legendary Sucker" by the people she gambled with; her losses and the amount of debt she left behind was the reason behind the name.
This town she had spent a couple of days in before she, and her young attendant, who Jiraiya said was her student, Shizune; left quite suddenly.
Thus, Naruto, Tenten, and Jiraiya didn't stick around and left to the next town continuing the search.
At the next village, which had a festival currently in progress, turned out to not have her there either. However, unlike the previous town, Jiraiya decided they would stay here for the night before going on to the next place. Naruto knew it was more for the large onsen that had attracted him to the place more than anything. Though, despite the "sight-seeing" that his new sensei wanted to do, Naruto and Tenten were eager to sleep in doors for a change.
At the Inn they checked into, Jiriaya was organizing his "sight-seeing" gear before he turned around and addressed his student while Tenten was currently out of the room and out of earshot.
"Well, brat, I'm going to be away for awhile. Take some time with that girl of yours and see what this city has to offer. Think of it as training."
"Training, really?" Naruto deadpanned and then rolled his eyes before sighing, "At least, don't get caught with your research. They might accidentally have the two of us being associated with you. We're going to deny it, you know."
Jiraiya scowled before sighing, "Well, in any case, just going out and enjoying yourselves might lead you to hearing some valuable info. Which is what I AM going to gather while gaining some research material."
The door to their room opened and Tenten walked in with a dango skewer in her mouth, "So, what's the plan for while we're here, Jiraiya-sama?"
Jiraiya walked past her and then tossed a small bag of ryo at Naruto who caught it easily.
"No plan for now. Have fun kiddies."
Later, on the street, Naruto and Tenten walked down while closely observing their surroundings. The village was celebrating the season by the harvest deity most of the people worshiped. There was a lot of stands filled with various foods, beverages, and assortments of carnival games. Naruto soaked it all in as this was the first time he was witnessing such a spectacle. Being an orphan and avoiding the celebrations in Konoha because he was ostracized so much because of who he held within him, thus this had him filled with wonder.
Tenten, on the other hand, had a more schooled look. She gave a casual glance at the events but paid it little mind before she turned to Naruto.
"So far, all I am hearing is just what's going on at this festival. Want to get something to drink while we try to gain more info?"
Naruto nodded. He was feeling a little restless by everything going on in this square and he was also very noticeable because that he was openly carrying his sword while Tenten was, seemingly, unarmed.
The two teens went to a stall and bought some fruit drinks and settled into some chairs that had shaded tables next to them. Sitting down, Naruto noticed that the sun was setting and that the hosts of this festival were lighting paper lanterns, illuminating the area. Some musicians started playing and an acoustic music accentuated the area.
Couples soon entered the space made in front of the musicians and started dancing. Again, Naruto was mesmerized by the sights. His gaze was interrupted by a young teenage girl who shyly came up to their table.
"Uh, um, e-excuse me, But, could you dance with me?"
At first Naruto didn't think she was talking to him before Tenten stepped on his foot and pointed him at the girl. Blinking owlishly, he shook his head.
"Sorry, but I don't know how to dance so I'll pass."
The girl shrugged but went to another table to ask someone else, while Tenten started drinking her fruit juice looking a bit amused.
"Well, that ended fast." She then looked at Naruto curiously. "Was that true that you can't dance? Or were you just trying to turn that girl down nicely with a excuse?"
Naruto was jolted out of his observations as he wasn't expecting Tenten asking him a question as she was quiet earlier. Hearing her question, he nodded.
"Yes to the first part." He then looked at her, "How about you? Can you dance, Tenten?"
Tenten brought out another tray of dango, shrugging. "I can do it a little bit. Part of the Kunoichi training at the Academy was about infiltration and some seduction to be used on missions. So they gave us some dancing lessons."
Naruto wondered what was entailed in some of those "seduction lessons" but knew he'd be in trouble if he asked, so instead, "What were the dancing lessons like?"
Tenten chewed on her skewer before sighing as she got up, "It'd be faster to just show you."
Naruto looked surprised as she took his hand and lead him to the dance floor. First she took his right hand and clasped his hand.
"Now, put your other hand on the small of my back."
The Uzumaki teen blinked, "Uh, what?"
"Like I said, on the small of my back." Tenten said.
Naruto cautiously obeyed her instructions and started with his hand on her back and then slowly slid it down.
"Okay, good. Any farther down and I would have decked you, so remember not to go anywhere else." She grinned.
Naruto gulped but nodded. Tenten then put her other hand on his shoulder and then brought their bodies closer together. This kind of contact made Naruto freeze for a moment before he decided to treat it like their sword training exercises, thus turned his eyes to her only to see a bit of a blush on the girl's cheeks.
"Tenten?" He called to her.
She blinked and then closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Tenten then instructed him further, "Sorry. Okay, so, listen to the song and try to find the rhythm. I'll lead, so just follow me along."
Naruto nodded. With some awkwardness and some stumbling at first, the two Shinobi teens managed to find some rhythm and the did a slow waltz to the music. Both started to relax about halfway through, Naruto thought he heard some familiar perverted giggling in the atmosphere around them but when he turned his eyes away from Tenten and searched for the perpetrator, he couldn't find them. Turning to his dance partner to ask if she heard what he did, he saw that she too was looking at the crowds, concentrating on something.
The dance ended as the second musical number came on and Tenten and Naruto decided to explore some more of the village. Tenten, during that time, gave some sidelong glances at Naruto, and was about to say something when they overheard some drunks complaining about a blond pig-tailed woman beating them in a card game in the next town over just an hour ago.
Naruto grinned and looked to Tenten, "Finally! Now where did they pervert-"
"Don't you mean SUPER PERVERT!"
Tenten sighed, tiredly, before turning to find Jiraiya, grinning naughtily, behind them and suspiciously holding their belongings in his hands.
"I take it, you heard that too, Jiraiya-sama?"
"Yeah, what gives, Ero-Sennin? How long have you been back there?" Naruto said narrowing his eyes.
"Don't sweat the small stuff, runt. We've got our lead and now we need to go." He tossed Naruto and Tenten's belongings to their owner. Once he confirmed that they had them, he lead the two teens out of town all the while grinning.
'Minato, Kushina, if only you would have been here to see your son dance his first dance with his girl.'
In a bar in the town of Kageshiro, Tsunade was peering into her cocktail glass as her student and companion, Shizune looked on worriedly. A pig dressed in a vest was grunting in restlessness.
"Tsunade-sama?"
The granddaughter of the first Hokage closed her eyes for a moment before briefly standing.
"Pack our things, Shizune. We're going to change towns."
The chestnut haired younger woman nodded in affirmation and got up to attend her master's orders. As she was leaving she said over her shoulder, "It wouldn't sit well to treat that man. Please, Tsunade-sama don't do anything drastic."
Tsunade waited until her protege was out of sight before looking at herself in her reflection from the mirror in the back of the bar. An hour before her ex-teammate had arrived and nastily sweet-talked her into hopefully healing his damaged arms he had been inflicted with by their Sensei during their final battle with each other. That snake knew how hurt she was, still was, by the loss of her little brother and fiance stolen from her by them losing their lives in service to Konoha.
'Nawaki...Dan….'
Tossing the drink down her throat in an effort to stem what was going on within her, when she put the drink down she found, musch to her irritation, that she wasn't alone now.
"What brings you here, you old goat?"
Jiraiya smirked as he flagged down the bartender and put in an order, "Whatever do you mean, Hime? I'm just enjoying being together with my long lost love."
Tsunade scowled and closed her eyes and huffed, "You're obviously talking about the booze, you old lech. Honestly, first Orochimaru and now you. Can't all just leave me the hell alone."
Jiraiya looked momentarily surprised at the mention of the their teammate but soon it morphed into an exhausted frown.
"What's he offering you?"
Tsunade ignored him and sipped on her newly poured drink.
"Hime, I know you and I know what you have lost. If that bastard is trying to bring you over to his side with promises of reunions, think again."
The healer huffed, "So what if he is? Do you have a say in what I do or don't do, Jiraiya?"
Jiraiya took a drink before sighing, "No you're right, I have no say at all. But...I do have to say this. If you side with that snake and attack our Village, I. Will. End. You. That's a guarantee."
"So you say." Tsunade said.
Suddenly two more people arrived, they actually were teens. One with sun-kissed blond hair carrying a sword and a bun-haired brunette. They joined Jiriaya at the bar with the blond sighing.
"Hey Perverted Sensei, istead of trying to pick up women in this filthy place, why aren't we looking for your teammate?"
Tsunade looked at the two from the corner of her eye before looking forward again.
"Hey brat, this IS my teammate."
"Huh?!"
Meanwhile the girl froze with a gaping mouth, "Th-The Tsunade-sama?"
Jiraiya indicated them and introduced them to his teammate.
"Tsunade meet the brat and his girl."
"We have names, Ero-Sennin. Use them. Anyway, isn't your teammate supposed to be an ancient has-been like you?" Naruto smirked.
Tenten face-palmed while Jiraiya went pale as a murderous bloodlust filled the bar, making the scant few other occupiers leave in a hustle.
Naruto, obviously not reading the atmosphere, turned to look as Tsunade got out of her seat and gave him a drunken glower.
"Say that again, if you dare."
Unfazed, Naruto looked from her to Jiraiya. "Are you sure this person is who we want as the next Hokage? She's hard of hearing and a withering old drunk on top of it."
Tenten sighed and stepped away from the blond while Jiraiya stepped in between him and his old teammate.
"Now, Hime, calm down. The boy's a moron he doesn't know what NOT to say."
"Both of you, out side, NOW" She growled.
To be continued…
A/N II: I have direction! Yay! Lol. This one will be a two parter so I hope it will be enjoyable.
Thank you all for reading!
Q-n-P