TWENTY SIX
War: Part IX
As Tsunade made her way through the Hokage tower with the rest of the group following behind her, she glanced back and noticed that Shikamaru was hanging back. Catching his eye, she sent him a glance assuring him that he was to follow them. Upon arriving in the large conference room, the shinobi had already been separated into their groups. On the far left was all the genin, the middle was Chunin and on the far right was the group of Jonin. Most of the ANBU were hanging back in the shadows while the rest were surrounding the Hokage. The new arrivals made their way to their selective groups. Tsunade made her way to the very front of the room.
"I am sure all of you here have heard of the Akatsuki. Recently I attended the Kage Summit along with the other four Kages. Now, during the Kage Summit, Naruto represented the Akatsuki and declared war on the five great nations. To defend against the enemy, the other Kages and I decided on forming the very first shinobi alliance called the Allied Shinobi Forces to fight the Akatsuki. There will be a total of eighty thousand shinobi from all five great nations as well as the Land of Iron. The alliance will be split into nine divisions based on the different types of abilities.
"The main regiment called the Great Battle Regiment will be split into five divisions each with their own respective leader- one from each village-, with Gaara, the Kazekage as the acting Regiment Commander. The other four divisions are supporting divisions for the main army, which are led by a captain. Within the five main divisions, there will be specialty teams, which will focus on the use of certain chakra natures. There are also various teams throughout the main regiment who will have specific jobs, like the communication teams, whose sole purpose is to stay in contact with the Headquarters as well as the other teams. The last team is a protection squad for the Daimyo."
"Over the next few days, you will receive your orders and your placement. In a weeks time, we will meet with the other villages on common ground, so be prepared to leave at five in the morning in seven days. Chunin and Jonin will be moving out, Genin will remain in the village under different orders.
"Any questions?"
"What about the villagers?"
Tsunade nodded, "all villagers will be evacuated by the genin and moved to a safe location."
"Who are the leaders for the main regiment and what are the groups?"
"Right, first division is the mid-range battle led by Darui from Kumogakure. Second division is short-range battle led by Kitsuchi from Iwagakure. Third division is short to mid range battle. Hatake Kakashi was originally suppose to lead this group, however he will be currently out of commission right now. So, Asuma?"
"Hai?" Asuma replied stepping out of the group.
"You will lead the third division in Kakashi's place."
"I would be honored to, Hokage-sama."
"Good, now, the fourth division is the long range battle led by Gaara the Kazekage. "
Shikamaru, you were suppose to be Gaara's right hand man, but I'm not so sure now…
"The fifth and last division is the special battle led by Mifune from the Land of Iron. With this information you can start to get an understanding of where you might be placed. Although some of you will be in special units that will be supporting the army. There is the surprise attack division led by Kankuro, Gaara's elder brother, the Logistical Support and Medical division led by Shizune, the Intelligence division led by Inoichi Yamanaka, and the Sensor division led by Ao from Kirigakure.
"Any other questions?"
"Any other positions and leaders we need to be aware of?
"Yes, Shikaku Nara will be the chief strategist. The Raikage is the Supreme leader of the alliance. All other information regarding positions will be come available once we arrive at the rendezvous point."
"Where will the Kage's be?"
"The Raikage, Tsuchikage and I will be at the headquarters, Kazekage will be with main battle regiment. The Mizukage will be with the Daimyo."
With no more questions, Tsunade wrapped up her speech, "all Chunin and Jonin are required to wear traditional Jonin uniform, genin you are off the hook. Make sure you have the appropriate attire.
"One more thing: I know there is tension between the older generation and those from the other nations due to the past wars; but the past is the past and we need to fight together in order to beat the common enemy. Put the past behind you and work with your fellow shinobi in the alliance. Understood?"
"HAI!"
000
Several hours later, Naruto was sitting up high on a tree branch, watching the bright moon in the clear sky. Although it was clear now, Naruto could smell the rain that was coming their way. Leaning up against the trunk of the tree, he thought back about what happened in Konoha earlier that evening.
He truly did feel bad about what he did to Kakashi. He prayed that he didn't kill him, but he knew the grey haired man was strong and would pull through, especially since they had Tsunade-baa-chan. Naruto let out a deep breath. It was one of hardest nights of his life. His fight with Shikamaru would probably be the end of their relationship. Shikamaru was extremely loyal, and Naruto hadn't realized early enough that what he had done with Itachi would shred the brunette's heart into pieces. Naruto felt horrible. It had been a long time since he felt this guilty about anything. He had done a lot during his time in the Akatsuki that he should have felt guilty for and didn't feel a thing. Maybe that meant his love for Shikamaru was a lot stronger than he thought.
"Naruto, I don't know whether or not I will be here waiting for you, know that…"
Shikamaru's words replayed over and over in the blonde's head. Neither Shikamaru nor Naruto, knew just how deeply those words would affect the future. Naruto scratched the back of his head trying to wrap his mind around the events at occurred between the two. Why has Shikamaru left him? He didn't understand the brunette's logic. Normally he was so easy to figure out, everything he did made sense, but this? Were his actions with Itachi that bad? He didn't even know what their relationship was.
"Fuck," Naruto swore.
"…I will always be right here waiting for you. Know that Naruto…"
Itachi.
They were so similar. Itachi and Shikamaru. They were both extremely loyal, caring, not to mention smart. Neither one acted unless they needed to. And they both loved their blonde or at least that's what the he thought. But why was Itachi willing to wait for him, while Shikamaru wasn't?
Naruto let out another deep breath. His head was starting to hurt. He glanced back up at the moon, and noticed something flying towards him. It was a raven.
Itachi.
Naruto held out his arm for the raven to land. When it did, it spat up a small scroll. Naruto looked at the scroll then back at the raven, and when his eyes met the little black ones, they spun into a pair of red sharingan eyes. He was pulled into the familiar sensation of Itachi's genjutsu.
"Itachi," Naruto whispered.
Glancing around he noticed they were in their room back at the base. Itachi walked towards him, placing his hands on Naruto's shoulders, and stared into those blue orbs.
"What happened?" Itachi asked.
"What?"
"Your eyes," Itachi explained, "they're full of guilt, and pain. What happened?"
"I… I spoke to Shikamaru…" Naruto whispered looking down so his blonde bangs shaded his eyes.
When Naruto didn't get response, he continued, "he knew… he knew about what we had done and he turned me in to the Hokage… I thought I could trust him, I really did. I feel like he betrayed me. He told me that he might not be there if I return."
"Naruto," Itachi whispered pulling the blonde close.
Naruto pulled back and stared into the deep black orbs that revealed more and more every time, "why are you willing to wait for me and he's not?"
"I don't know why he isn't willing to wait for you," Itachi's face-hardened as he spoke, then soften again, "but I am, because you are worth waiting for."
Naruto sighed, "thank you."
They stood in silence as they continued to hold each other until Naruto spoke up, "why did you send me a raven and scroll?"
"The raven was so I could see you," Itachi smirked, "and the scroll is the updates you are asking for. It includes in the Intel on the Shinobi Alliance."
Naruto nodded, "thank you, Itachi… have I told you that I love you?"
"I think you have mentioned it," Itachi shrugged, "the chakra in the raven is running out so our time is about up."
Naruto understood and started to pull away, but Itachi held him close. Naruto placed his hand on Itachi's jaw and pulled their lips together. The familiar shocking sensation shot through Naruto as their lips touched. He didn't realize how much he actually missed his raven. It almost made him think twice about his plan.
When they pulled away Naruto's eyes gave away what he was thinking.
"Sasuke will kill me, Naruto," Itachi said, "its only a matter of time when."
"I won't let him, not for a while at least," Naruto stated.
Itachi just smiled at him and pulled him in one more time before the genjutsu faded. Itachi snuck in three little words before his voice was gone and Naruto was thrown back into reality. Upon opening his eyes, he found himself staring at the same scene he left.
"I guess it really is just seconds in reality," Naruto muttered.
"What is?" a voice came from below.
Naruto looked down and saw Sasuke leaning up against the trunk of the tree. Sasuke glanced up and pointed at something. Following his line of sight, he found the raven was still sitting on his arm. Naruto chuckled and told the raven to go home.
"One of Itachi's?" Sasuke asked.
Naruto just shrugged, "your turn?"
Sasuke gave a short nod as Naruto landed gracefully in front of the younger raven, then promptly tucked the scroll away.
"Wake me up in four hours," Naruto instructed, "we will leave a sunrise."
Sasuke nodded hesitantly as being told what to do, but agreed then the boys went their separate ways.