AN: I do not own Naruto or any of it's characters.
Till date, Hinata has been the hardest character to write. I've seen/ read her with a stutter so many times it's almost impossible to dissociate that from her. I will try and make her less Naruto-centric, and more lacking in self-confidence in general, which is something I have gone through personally. One suitable solution (and also plausible) is her stuttering or hesitating at the first word of a sentence, as she is unsure of herself.
Border of Ame no Kuni & Kaze no Kuni (Land of rain and land of wind)
"May I ask for what purpose you have come here?" a burly security jounin asked them.
Asuma put away his cigarette "By all means. We are the envoy of the Fire Daimyo's daughter, and we are currently making our way to Sunagakure."
The Sand Jounin frowned at them "Then what are you doing here? Sunagakure is in the opposite direction."
"Indeed it is. However, considering it will be dark very soon we were hoping to find food and lodging here. After all, it is the closest town to the Land of Fire border."
The man scanned their entourage once, before nodding curtly.
Kakashi released a sigh of breath - Phase I of their mission was set into motion.
Once everyone had settled in and went to sleep, they started preparing themselves.
"What are you going to do about your face?" his partner questioned him.
"I'm going to leave the wrapping on."
"You're not worried it will fall off in a fight?"
"Not when it's been applied by Masamune-san."
"I should have figured" she smiled at him.
"Let's go" he nodded at her.
They'd seen the morgue on their way through the small town, and it would be their best chance at finding out what had happened.
The Sandaime had told them a contact would meet them there, and take them to the place they needed to be.
He held his breath when they passed the front desk, as an old woman eyed them suspiciously.
For their part they held hands, pretending to be a happy couple going out for a late night stroll.
Anko was carrying a small purse with her, which in reality had several weapons and tools sealed inside scrolls of sweet love letters.
They held onto each other even as they left the hotel, never knowing who was watching them.
After five minutes of walking through the shadows as inconspicuously as they could, they entered a dark alleyway.
As instructed to, Kakashi leant against the far wall and whistled a short tune.
A hissing sound emanated, and an opening emerged in the wall.
They both made their way through, making sure the entry closed behind them.
A short, balding man approached them.
"This way" he urged, "We may not have a lot of time."
The Konoha nin followed him down a set of lit stairways into a tunnel. At the end of the tunnel the man unlatched a door and took them into what appeared to be the town morgue.
"Which one of you is Iwabe?"
Kakashi nodded at him, confirming it was his assigned name. (Just to clarify, that's not his real name, just the name given to him for this mission)
He looked at Anko, "So you must be Namida."
"If the gentlemen could make his way to the door to the right, and the lady follow me to the left?"
They did as he asked, and Kakashi opened the door to find a man dressed in scrubs.
He gestured him to close the door, and when he did the man walked him to a workstation.
Atop lay a corpse covered with sheets.
The covers were unfolded and Kakashi had to hold his breath.
As a shinobi he was used to such scenes, but that never made it easy.
The mans insides were liquified, and the whites of his eyes had turned pitch black. It seemed the man's muscles had collapsed onto the skeletal structure, and all was left was a hollow, gaunt shell.
There were strange markings on the torso in a jagged pattern and yellow rings on the man's knees. The smell was unlike other corpses, and a green goop was dried around the nose.
Kakashi asked the man for copies of photographs for evidence, and the man provided him an entire dossier.
"You knew this man."
That was not a question, but an answer. Kakashi could tell from the anguished look in his eyes.
The pathologist answered without looking up, "He was my brother, and our head of security ."
Kakashi did not say he was sorry, because he wasn't.
He had never known this man, and he never would. To give false words of condolence would be the real disrespect.
Instead, he solemnly nodded at him and turned to exit.
The pathologist called out to him, "There is something else you should know."
"Yes?"
"Right after my brother...was gone; something happened."
Kakashi could guess what he was going to say, and decided to help him out:
"Who?"
The man breathed shakily, "Our father. He used to beat us as children, and soon after he left."
"Could he have had anything to do with this?"
The pathologist looked up at him this time, "That's the thing. Our father passed away five years ago. I buried him myself".
As he reached for the door, the man called out to him, "Promise me one thing. Kill the bastard who did this."
"I will do my best".
"Shit's about to hit the creek" Anko muttered angrily.
Kakashi could only agree with her assessment of the situation.
They were being followed, and by someone pretty good.
Turning around and facing them would only let them know they were also skilled trackers, giving away their identities.
He spotted someone else on their 9 o'clock, and he was pretty sure they were armed.
Drastic times called for drastic measures.
Maybe it was the cold autumn wind that prompted him, or the loose strand of hair on her forehead, but the next thing he knew he grabbed her arm and spun her around.
Also, he would be lying if he hadn't thought of this since they were practically dry-humping each other on the camel.
"Please don't punch me" he begged her, and then he pinned her flush against the wall and tore off his bandage.
Her eyes protested her rage, but her anger was swallowed by his lips.
The rest came naturally.
Their fingers intertwined, and their noses bumped sporadically as they swapped saliva.
He could feel her tongue probing for entrance, and he allowed her in.
They moaned, part-fake and part-real from the feeling of being in another's mouth.
His hands left hers and started roaming down her side, teasing and tickling her.
Hers intertwined in his hair, and they deepened the kiss.
She leaned into him further, digging her fingernails into his scalp and he wrapped her waist in his arms, picking her up.
She moaned into his mouth and this spurred him on.
He was this close to slipping his hand under her shirt when Anko pushed him back.
"We can stop," she frowned at him, though he could see her blush as clear as day, "They're gone."
"O-of course," he semi-stuttered, his brain fried by the sensory overload.
Fuck
Fuck
Fuck
Fuck
No matter how many times he went over it, he reached the same conclusion - he'd fucked up. Big time.
What was he even thinking. Sure, it was all for the greater cause. But he couldn't stop remembering how her lips tasted of mango and strawberry and liquid fire all at once. Heck, he couldn't meet her eyes; or look in her general direction.
And they were supposed to share a room, much less a bed?
"Will you stop doing that?"
He looked at the wall and answered, "What?"
"That", she accused him, "stop looking at a wall and pretending I'm not here."
He hastily looked elsewhere, "Uh..I'm going to take a shower." A stone cold shower
Hopefully that would abate his erection.
He spent an eternity in the shower, hoping to wash off her aroma from his skin and mind.
He was considerably calmer when he came out, the hot water helping to relax and refocus on the mission.
A report of their findings would have to be sent.
Sitting down at the table, he turned on the little lamp and looked at his roommate.
She had recorded her findings on a scroll. Holding it under the dim light he went through her notes, where she mentioned of the three corpses she had seen, as opposed to just the one for him.
It turned out they had similar markings as the body Kakashi had seen, and all of them were someone of note in this town.
One was the mayor's assistant, another the Chief Interrogation Officer, and the third a prominent local businessmen.
They had all disappeared in the same week, and their remains had turned up within consecutive days of each other.
It seemed one by one, someone had taken out all the heavy hitters of the town.
Though to what purpose?
He continued reading, and was impressed by the level of detail to which she had described the condition of the corpses.
Perhaps her time with the Snake Sannin had helped her in this regard.
He looked back at her.
Her back was to him, but the periodic up-and-down motion of her chest told her she was asleep.
It always baffled him how some shinobi could get a good night's sleep.
He could never sleep for more than a couple of hours at a time, and on the rare occasions he did he was visited by the ghosts of past failures and mistakes.
Sighing, he procured some papers and a pen and set about writing, making sure to include Anko's report.
Once he was done, he packed everything up and bit on his thumb and performed a series of seals.
A small column of smoke appeared and dissipated to reveal Pakkun.
The ninken greeted him in his gruff voice and took the scroll container in his teeth, making sure not to damage it.
"Send my regards to the toads."
Pakkun nodded, and dissolved into smoke.
Next morning, The Hokage's Office
Sarutobi was busy going over the financial reports for the annual quarter when a burst of smoke erupted in his office.
Had this happened in any other room in the shinobi world weapons would be drawn and battle formations assumed.
Instead, Sarutobi smiled and opened up a drawer, taking out a basket-full of fruits.
"It's been a long time Kosaru-kun" he smiled.
As the smoke cleared, a small monkey bounded onto his desk and took his offering.
"I'm doing great, thanks for the fruit".
"Please, help yourself" Hiruzen smiled kindly, "How is the old man doing?"
"Speak for yourself" the monkey snorted, as much as an ape could snort.
Hiruzen folded his hands and waited until the fruit basket was emptied.
"Now, I believe you have something for me".
"Oh yes", Kosaru retrieved a small scroll from waistbelt and handed it over.
"Thank you for your efforts. I hope we meet soon".
Kosaru grinned before disappearing into a spray of smoke.
Their communication channels for classified data were ingenious.
The entire system depended on the sender and receiver's positive relations with their summoning.
The messages were never passed physically between shinobi; instead the sender would hand over their communications to their respective summoning animal, who would then transfer the message to the summoning animal of the receiver.
Such a pathway left no trails, and as far as Sarutobi knew it was one of a kind throughout the Elemental Nations.
This particular situation was a triangle transmission - where a middleman would receive the message and send it on to the designated receiver.
And he had the best person for this job.
Sarutobi enacted the privacy seals, and opened up the scroll.
It was blank.
Good, that meant a breach had not occurred.
Dipping his quill into the ink pot, he wrote down.
My name is Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Sandaime Hokage of the Village Hidden in the Leaves and merited Hero of War of the Land of Fire.
The written text disappeared, and was replaced by:
Greeting Old Man. What did the ape say to the toad?
Hiruzen smiled fondly at the inside joke and replied:
Insects make for a bad tummy, bananas are very yummy.
This was the first security protocol, and another took its place signifying that Hiruzen was correct.
How old was I when I first had _ _ _?
This time Hiruzen did laugh. His student always found a way to be funny during their secret communiques.
I do not know. I fear you started in the womb.
Why, you break my heart with your accusations. Though I am forgiving, and I allow you to enter.
This message was also erased, and its place appeared what Hiruzen had been holding his breath for the past few days.
One last thing was left; Hiruzen took out a mirror from a drawer and placed it along the scroll, and then started reading.
Entry 001
Captain Hatake and Tokubetsu Jounin Mitarashi Reporting From Location 2101
At 2300 hours we encountered our objective.
It was as told to us - the people were not who they once were. Some further observations were also noted and photographed and should be arriving separately.
We further investigated as instructed and discovered some intriguing occurrences:
1) The subjects were all key members.
2) A curfew was being imposed between Sunfall and Sunrise, which as far as our intel says neither of the two leaders are aware of.
3) The subjects all turn into someone from their personal lives, suggesting the perpetrators had known them, or at least followed them extensively.
The events described were similar to his former student's M.O.
Before his disappearance, many of his victims claimed that they were being followed, and all of them were of a high station either in their village or for the Daimyo.
He had no doubts anymore, this was the work of Orochimaru of the Sannin.
Closing his eyes he expelled a sigh, hoping to eliminate his guilt and anger.
Guilty for not noticing how far Orochimaru's dark streak had metastasized, and anger at himself for hesitating when he had the chance to stop him.
This information would have to be shared with the Council, and he alerted his secretary to gather all the members.
Before his time on this plane was over, he would make sure Orochimaru would not be a problem to his village.
One way or another.
Konoha Council chambers
"Now that we are all gathered, there is a topic I wish to bring forth to the esteemed council."
"By all means Hokage-sama," Tsume agreed.
"Word has arrived from our friends in the desert".
"What is their message?"
Hiruzen relayed the events of the letter to them, and once he was done they looked very grey and ashen.
Koharu tapped her cane on the marble floor, "The way I see it Sandaime-sama, is that we have two ways to proceed. The first option is to beef up our security and hope for the best, and the second option is to move the chunin exams entirely or partly elsewhere. Personally, I am favourable towards the latter. These developments are troubling and I personally feel uncomfortable at the potential consequences of allowing the Sand inside our borders."
Danzo looked at her sharply, "I cannot fathom how you arrived at to that conclusion Koharu. What on earth makes you think we should take such a drastic step."
Homura agreed with him, "To shift even part of the event elsewhere would be a blow to Konoha's prestige."
"Yet it would also be the safer option" Chouza said.
Tsume regarded the matter, "It would not be entirely inconceivable Lord Third. Last-minute host changes have occurred previously, and the last time we hosted the chunin exams it was a last minute step-in for Takigakure."
"That is a viable option Hokage-sama", Shikaku advised.
"What grounds could we use to justify this decision to the other Great Villages?" Inoichi asked.
"Considering that we haven't sent squads to the last three chunin exams we could reasonably state that we have an excess of genin and would need to hold preliminary stages to determine the best teams."
"A preliminary qualifier of sorts?"
"Exactly. And since Suna is still officially in alliance with us, and haven't hosted the chunin exams in a long time I don't see why they would be against this. Not to mention, if they are planning anything untoward it would be much easier to negate them than with envoys of multiple villages inside our walls, each just waiting for an opportunity to take us down."
Hiruzen announced from his dais, "We will put this matter to the vote."
"It is decided then" Hiruzen announced, "There will be a change to this year's chunin exams. We will hold a preliminary qualifier, and seek for an alternative host. I will notify the Daimyo of the changes, and our friends in the desert will also get this message."
"Great work Hinata!" her sensei praised.
It brought a warm flush to her cheeks and she almost stumbled.
Luckily though, Sakura-chan was kind enough to not notice it.
"I must say, that's some great taijutsu there Hinata-chan" Sakura panted.
"That's enough for now kunoichi." her sensei ordered, and they performed the Seal of Reconciliation. Not that they had to anymore, it was a gesture by either side.
"Your taijutsu has also improved a lot Sakura-chan."
"Still, it's nowhere near as good as you. I have a lot of catching up to do" she said sadly.
"I-I would like to help you. And I would also like you to help me where I need it."
"That's a great idea Hinata-chan," her fellow kunoichi smiled.
"Now that the ladies have given a little appetiser, how about the men take over?" Kiba-kun jested.
"You should not spar if that is the case then Kiba," Shino deadpanned.
"That's enough sparring for today," Kurenai sensei interjected sternly, eyeing Kiba-kun with a cross look.
Wanting to save her teammate from the dog house, Hinata uncharacteristically spoke up.
"H-how about we all have dinner together."
Looking at everyone's surprised faces she added, "If that's alright with everyone?"
Sakura agreed with her "Yes, there's this barbeque place in the market I've been dying to try."
"I dunno," Naruto-kun shrugged "I'm more of a ramen person."
"Some barbeque never hurt anyone. Lets go."
"Yes," Sasuke-kun agreed forcefully "lets."
For some reason, the two boys narrowed eyes at each other, before Kurenai sensei broke it up "It's decided then. We're going for barbeque - my treat."
Unfortunately for her sensei, she would regret that decision very soon.
They were just about to enter the restaurant when a voice called out to them.
"Hey guys wait up!"
They all turned around to see Team 8 coming towards them, sans Asuma-sensei.
"Are you guys going to lunch? We'll join too." Choji suggested eagerly.
Sakura could see Kurenai-sensei weep internally.
She didn't blame her; it cost a fortune to feed an Akimichi. And then there was also Naruto - he was an Akimichi in all but name.
Sakura was going to ask him one of these days where he stored all that food.
"Choji, are you sure you're going to eat all that food?" Kurenai-sensei asked.
"Are you kidding me?" Choji replied merrily, tearing into a chicken wing, "This is just starters".
He could see the jounin drop her head into her hands in sorrow, and Hinata patting her back comfortingly.
He moved his eyes to the other side of the table, where Naruto was also devouring food. Sakura looked on in amazement, while their other teammate was glaring at him.
Which was par for the course for the Uchiha, of course.
"Here Shikamaru, have some" Choji offered, moving a plate towards him.
He declined, stating it would be too much of a drag to digest everything.
"Ne Shikamaru, stop being such a lazy bum" Ino scolded, and he flashed her the bird. She stuck her tongue at him, and went back to chatting with Sakura.
He looked at Team Eight, "What has your training been like?"
Shino answered without looking up from his shrimp, "It's been a learning curve. A lot of tactics on infiltration. How to get in and out of places and follow someone without being noticed, and we've begun learning genjutsu, and how to shield ourselves from it."
"I suppose it makes sense for a tracking team," Shikamaru agreed, "Stealth over strength."
This time Shino did look up at him, "And yourselves?"
"We've been learning how to send secret messages, how to decode, analyse and use our individual abilities together, how to tell if someone is lying.."
The Aburame readjusted his glasses, "And can you? Tell if someone is lying?"
Shikamaru regarded his fellow clan heir, "And what if someone is lying at this very table?"
"Then I would ask you who he or she is?"
They both looked at the Uzumaki then, confirming their long-held doubts about the boy's background.
"What do you think they've been doing?" Shino asked.
"I don't know. But I know as of now they're the strongest genin team of our year."
"That's what happens when the Rookie and Kunoichi of the Year are in the same group".
"Yes, I suppose that's part of the equation".
The Aburame had dropped all pretences by now, "And the rest of the equation?"
"That must be their third member, shocking as it may sound to all of us."
"Indeed, shocking as it may sound".
What neither noticed however, was Sasuke spying on their exchange.
It looked like he was not the only one suspicious about the orphan.
Just as they all were going to their separate ways, Kurenai-sensei called them back.
"One last task for the day."
She produced a stack of small sheets.
"These are called chakra paper. Based on your elemental affinity this paper will change."
"Can someone have more than one affinity?" Kiba asked.
"Certainly. The Hokage for instance, has three. However, just because you don't have an affinity for a particular element doesn't mean you can never learn it. It only means that you need to more extra harder. Team 10, you are free to join us if you like, there's enough for everyone."
They accepted and everyone took a paper.
For Choji, Kiba and Shikamaru, the paper burnt into ash - signalling a Fire affinity.
For Hinata and Ino the paper dampened - showing their Water affinity.
Sakura's paper crumpled into dust, meaning she had an Earth affinity.
In Shino's case the sheet wrinkled, expressing a Lightning affinity.
Sasuke's page wrinkled and burnt, exhibiting a Fire and Lightning affinity.
With Naruto, the chakra paper paper split into half, revealing a wind affinity.
Kurenai-sensei looked at him, "How peculiar."
"How so?".
"You have the rarest of nature affinities. So far as I can tell, Konoha does not even have a standing Wind teacher. In fact," and she gestured behind her to Mount Hokage, "the last known Wind user in Konoha was the latest addition up there."
His father.
One hour later, Uchiha clan residence
He was poring over the clan archives, trying to find anything he could about the Sharingan. With Kakashi out of the village, this was his only source of information.
The problem was that the source wasn't very extensive.
After the...incident the village had appropriated most of the archives, citing potential security concerns. He was promised they would be returned when had made genin, but like all administrative tasks it was buried under a stack of paperwork.
He gritted his teeth in frustration. If this was how things were going to be then he could not see a viable future for himself in this village.
Another issue egged away at his ego:
'That's not the only reason'
As an Uchiha, he had taught by his clansmen that he an elite, a member of the strongest clan to ever exist. Though that sense of superiority had dimmed since the slaughter of his clan, a small part of him still stuck to that belief like gum.
He should have been the strongest of his generation.
And up till he became a member of Team 7, he had believed that.
Now though, there was an obstacle in his path to that title.
Uzumaki Naruto.
The boy was an enigma.
He clearly had secrets he didn't want anyone knowing, and while Sasuke could certainly relate with that sentiment he had a nagging suspicion those secrets included how he was so strong.
And that was something he could not tolerate.
If he was ever going to avenge his clan, he would need as much power as possible, and the idea that Naruto horded so much to himself...did not sit right with him.
He could not, and would not allow himself to be surpassed by that loser.
He would get stronger by any means possible.
That was his only aim in life now.
Later that evening, Yamanaka flower shop
The bell above the door chimed and Ino looked up to greet their latest customer.
"Oh its just you."
Shikamaru walked over to the counter, "Is that any way to treat a paying customer?"
She stuck her tongue at him like she had since they were kids, and he gave a soft smirk as he raised his basket onto the wooden surface.
"The usual?"
At his nod she went to the back of the store and came out with an assortment of different flowers.
As she was busy sorting them out, Shikamaru asked her something.
"Have you noticed anything about Naruto lately?"
She tensed momentarily before answering in a monotone.
"What's to notice about him? He's a headless idiot."
"Oh, you'd be surprised."
She tried to steer the topic away, "I don't know. What does it even matter? I have better things to do."
"It matters because if he's hiding something important to the village then we have a right to know."
"Everyone is entitled to their secrets. Even Naruto".
"Then you admit he's hiding something?"
She bit her lip. He'd caught her.
"I don't know."
"That's bullshit. You know something don't you?".
"I, I don't know".
Shikamaru huffed in frustration before turning to leave.
"Fine. I'll just find out on my own."
She deliberated for a moment before stopping him.
"Wait."
His head turned back at her expectantly.
Releasing her breath she sighed, "If I can't stop you then there is something I have to tell you. Give those flowers to your mum and come back with Choji to my room. You know which one it is."
30 minutes later
She took a deep breath,
They sat in silence, attempting to grasp what they had been just told.
"So in summary, you can read minds without any chakra and you saw a bright orange light inside Naruto's?"
"That's awesome" Choji praised.
Shikamaru looked at her sharply, "Why haven't you tried it again?"
"Because it's not something I can control. It only happened that one time and not since. And even if I could, I wouldn't."
"Why not? Because you can't control it yet or because you have a crush on him?"
"Ino has a crush on Naruto?"
"I won't do it because that's the right thing to do! I won't invade anyone's privacy on a whim."
"And suppose you had more than a whim, suppose you had compelling evidence? What then?"
"What is wrong with you Shika? Why are you asking me all these questions?"
"Because I see things that you don't. That's just the way I am. And I see that the Naruto we see is incomplete, and his secrets could potentially harm my village. That's why this is so important to me."
"But" Choji spoke up, "so could any other person's in this village. Would you be prepared to do the same as with Naruto?"
"Not everyone. Just think about it. He was a headless chicken all the way through the academy and now he's Mr Quiet Guy. I don't buy that for a second."
"Maybe he's just matured. What's so wrong about that?"
"What's wrong is the Naruto we knew could barely tie his own shoelaces, let alone predict the objectives and actions of experienced mission handlers."
"What are you even talking about Shikamaru?" Choji asked.
"Remember when we were all waiting before going to see the Hokage, Naruto said what was in my mind. That the mission was a test for us. How can the supposed 'Dead-Last' figure that out by himself. Either he has some help, which as an orphan is unlikely or he's hiding something important."
"If you had any respect for your fellow Konoha nin, you should leave this alone Shika. Naruto can tell us his secrets if he wants to, and when he wants to. We owe him that at least."
"And what about what we're owed? We're owed the truth."
Ino looked at her teammate distastefully, "I liked you better when you were a lazy bum."
Shikamaru replied dispassionately, "We all have to grow up someday. I suggest you get used to it."
"Don't do something you'll regret Shikamaru."
"I have to do something, anything else would be too troublesome."
The next morning
Naruto had arrived early. To his surprise, Kurenai-sensei was there. He didn't know whether or not to approach her.
He was saved from the conundrum by her.
"There you are Naruto-kun. I've been meaning to have a word with you."
"Good morning Kurenai-sensei. What is it you'd like to speak to me about?"
"Your genjutsu ability."
Naruto scratched his head in embarrassment, "I'm sorry sensei. I don't really have much of an affinity for genjutsu."
"That is quite alright. Genjutsu is very rare in our village. My question is why are your genjutsu skills in particular behind?"
He stiffened slightly, not liking where this line of questioning was going.
"I'm not sure what you mean, sensei."
"I wish to be straightforward with you. I am old enough to be aware of your...condition, and frankly it makes no difference to me. I still consider you a student and fellow nin of the Village Hidden in the Leaves."
"Thank you sensei. You have afforded me more respect than others would in your position."
"Now, before we start I must ask you something to do with your condition. It will help in assessing your true ability in genjutsu."
When he nodded, she continued "How much of the beast's power can you absorb?"
He thought for a moment before answering, "Intentionally, not too much. I have had very little contact, and even that has never been through my own intent. The beast has always controlled our interactions."
"I see. I'm not sure how aware you are of this, but your tenant could help with fixing your issues in genjutsu."
Two hours later
Everyone had arrived on time - even Kiba, if only just.
Kiba hugged his knees and panted vigorously, his tongue stuck out like Akamaru.
He wasn't the only one dealing with exhaustion.
For some reason Naruto was also struggling to breath, his sleeves folded up and a weary expression on his face.
Now that she thought about it, it was the first time she'd ever seen him close to tired.
She went to ask him if he alright, but before he could answer Kurenai-sensei gave them their tasks for the day.
They were split up into groups, and unless she had the wrong impression he seemed a bit happy at not having to answer that question.
She filed it away as another of the strange things about him, and went to her group.
Years later she'd think back about stupid and naïve she was for not realising it earlier.
Tottori town
Kakashi woke up to a warm sensation on his cheek.
He rubbed the spot to feel a wetness.
That made him open his eyes and see Pakkun slobbering all over him.
"Get off" he pushed his ninken away, and tried to remove the saliva all over his face.
At his other side, he could hear Anko giggle at the dog's antics, their awkwardness temporarily suspended by his summoning's antics.
"Why are you here you slob?" he grumbled.
Pakkun directed him to a scroll container tied to his back.
Kakashi removed it and gave him a few sweets.
After Pakkun went away, he turned to Anko and opened the message.
From: The Office of the Hokage
To: Captain Hatake and Tokubetsu Jounin Mitarashi
Upon review of your initial correspondence, the following changes are implemented immediately.
The chunin exams are no longer to be hosted in Konoha.
A preliminary qualifier will instead be hosted, to which our friends are invited.
The daimyo's daughter is to be guarded by your fellow jounin at all times.
I trust you know who I refer to and will inform this individual of their new role.
Find out as much as you can about the disappearances
We are all impressed with your work, and are convinced you will continue in this vein.
P.S: Burn this as soon as you have read it.
Finding Asuma alone was easy enough - the man was afforded his own room. The perks of being a Jounin and a former Guardian of the Daimyo.
The difficult part was getting away.
They were to leave for Suna in a few hours, which meant there was little time to gather information.
And after yesterday's incident it was too risky to go back to the morgue.
Which meant they would have to go to the streets, and find out whatever they could from civilians.
They managed to get away on the pretence of wanting to buy some gifts for each other.
Entering a beauty parlour, they found the owner gossiping with some ladies.
He urged Anko to find out what she could, and left the place.
Looking around, he saw a seedy bar open.
Though it was still morning, there was bound to be someone inside.
He held his breath and entered the place, doing his best not to let the pungent stench force out the contents of his breakfast.
A few drunkards had assembled near the centre of the bar, and he automatically avoided that area. They were unlikely to be useful.
He spotted someone at one of the corner barstools, and regarded him.
Wedding ring. Weapon holder on his thigh. Most importantly, a sober expression.
Kakashi approached him, making his best effort at a newly wed civilian.
"Hello, is this seat occupied?"
The man shook his head and he sat next to him.
After ordering a drink he looked at the man.
"Hi, I'm Iwabe. How do you do?"
"I'm Hiro. Nice to meet you."
After downing his drink in one go and pretending to be buzzed, he asked, "What brings you here this early in the day?"
"I could ask you the same."
"Oh, I'm just waiting for my wife to finish at the beauty parlour. You know how long women can take at these places."
The man huffed in agreement "Tell me about it. You don't seem from around here?"
"No, we're actually here on our honeymoon" he showed his ring and fake-smiled, "What about you? Where are you from?"
"I'm one of the security personnel of the town."
Kakashi acted impressed, "Wow, are you one of those ninja? I've always wanted to meet one. But what are you doing here?.
"I'm on my break".
"I see. I bet you have a lot of great stories about your adventures. Could I hear some?"
The man puffed up and began narrating stories of his great power and strength.
Unbeknownst to him, Kakashi slipped truth serum into his drink.
In the next twenty minutes, Kakashi had found out everything he could, and helped the man to the bathroom where he backhanded him behind the head, knocking him out for the next couple of hours, ensuring he would make up with no recollection of how he got there and a killer headache.
It was time to get out of here.
It's hard. No not that, you horny perverts. I meant writing kissing scenes. And even more so a fake kiss. Or was it a fake kiss?
One thing I remembered just now - I didn't include Ino and Sakura's rivalry over Sasuke. Sure, I briefly touched upon it in the second chapter, but IIRC it continued well into the series.
Here's the thing, it isn't that I neglected it - I just...forgot about it.
And TBH, I think it is for the best. They have enough of a handicap as it is without having to fight over a boy, and I want to respect kunoichi by not making them lose their heads over a pretty boy.
I tried to add a reference to the modern world with Shikamaru wanting to know Naruto's secret.
Apart from another dimension to his character it also alludes to surveillance and abuse of privacy, something which happens all too often in the real world.
That doesn't mean I'm going to turn Shikamaru into a draconian autocrat, but it's just something to look out for with him
Before I forget, the 'Hero of War' isn't an actual title in the anime/ manga IIRC. At first 'Master of War' came across my mind, but then I remembered that's already taken up by George R R Martin. I just thought it would be cool, and give the Third a feat, if somewhat unexplained. I feel he and Tobirama are the most neglected amongst the Hokage, maybe since Saru was too old and the plot was not yet fully developed, and Tobi is the only one without any direct link to the titular character.
Thank you and Stay Safe!