Reclaim
"Are you sure you can walk, Kakashi-sensei?" It was Naruto speaking. He was answered with a glare. So what he couldn't stand up for long periods of time and just got the feeling in his legs back…again. That wasn't important. If they stayed here too long, they would get caught.
He almost forgot how it looked at nighttime. Mostly because he hasn't stepped out of his house for three months. He hasn't been healed fully, and all that alcohol to his system really wasn't helping. A hospital visit was long overdue. But who was really going to tell him that?
"Our only objective is Sakura. Kill anyone that gets in your way. Blow up a God Damned building if you have to. If she isn't dead, she's in the interrogation room of Anbu HQ. It's on the last level." Everyone nodded their heads.
"Then let's move," They all headed for the trees outside of their Village's gates. If this went wrong, they would be dealt with accordingly. It could have anything ranging from a strip of rank to death, depending on how Tsunade and the elders feel about their disobeying direct orders. The elders hated him, so it would probably not end up in his favor.
They've been badgering him since Sasuke ran away. So what he wasn't the best teacher? They didn't assign him the best students after all. And he did come back. But what did they expect when he had one ninja on the verge of running away with the slightest provocation of emotional distress, the other ninja ready to bust out in full fox mode if anything angers him, and Sakura, a bubbly, boy-crazy, book smart Kunoichi who wasn't really good in battle, but kicked ass on exams. So while his attention was focused on the more pressing pre-teens on his team, Sakura did pretty well by herself. She had the best chakra control and learned most of the basics by herself. Hell, he even got her to teach the boys every once in a while.
He honestly thought he was doing a bang-up job at this whole 'Sensei' thing.
But apparently, he was wrong. Sasuke still ran away, Naruto still turns into a fox if anything angers him, and Sakura went to someone else for teaching. Yet, he continued to swear that it wasn't his fault. Because it just wasn't.
He put his palm up to signal them to stop moving.
When they got to the ground, Kakashi pulled out his kunai and cut his thumb. When it drew blood, he quickly got his summoning scroll from his vest pocket and wiped his thumb across it. When the scroll was rolled back up, he heard a 'pop' and smoke appeared. When it was gone, he saw them in their usual assembly line.
"I need you guys to mark the area—"
"I don't understand why they always show up like that. I mean, don't you guys like change?" It was Naruto. Everyone sighed. Kakashi slapped a palm to his forehead. Did the boy have to be so dense?
"Like, look. Pakkun is small right? So maybe he should be in the front instead of on top of bull. He is the dog you use the most and he talks the most. And Bull should be in the back. And everyone should be facing you, 'cause Urushi and Guruko are always not facing you. So," Naruto started to walk towards the ninken. Kakashi sent him a pointed look.
"Naruto." He stopped walking and looked to Kakashi.
"Why don't you just not touch my dogs, and let me get on with their orders?" Naruto rolled his eyes and pouted.
"Sheesh. I was just trying to add a little change to their style but whatever…" Everything else wasn't comprehendible as Naruto started to mutter under his breath and rub his shoulder. Kakashi turned back to Pakkun and sighed. Pakkun gave him a sympathetic look.
"I need you guys to mark the area; this is going to be our base camp. I don't know how long it's going to take us to get Sakura, but I know that right now, their security is tight as hell. Today is the day that they finally extract her." He saw Naruto's eyes widen.
"How do you know? And why did they wait so long?"
"We have another spy from sand, Ren. We're not going to be rescuing him, though. They've been trying to beat it out of her; they don't really have the expertise in interrogation. You see, Grass hasn't really had any Great wars. They're excellent at diplomacy. So today, they've gotten a mercenary to extract her. We have to move fast. Pakkun," He watched as Pakkun spoke to the dogs.
"Its needs to be 2 kilometers west; towards Kusagakure. I need about 1 kilometer north and south, and 3 kilometers east; towards Konohagakure." He heard Bull bark, and they were gone.
"Kurenai has us backed up. I don't know how she's doing it, but she and Hinata are making sure Tsunade-sama doesn't find out we're gone. Tenzou,"
"Right." Everyone watched as he put his fingers together in a serpent hand sign as a wooden house came up from the ground.
Kakashi experimentally walked in. After taking short self-tour his head popped out of the doorway.
"It's empty, Tenzou." He put his hands together again and Kakashi watched as a separate cooking area and rooms were made before his eyes. Nodding in approval, Kakashi walked out and patted Tenzou on the back.
"Great job. Get settled everyone. There'll be a briefing in ten." He glanced at his watch and saw Tenzou doubled over panting from the corner of his eye.
"Come on, it can't be that hard. Stop being such a drama queen." He walked over to him with his eyes closed in a crease. When he lifted him up, he saw that his face was covered in sweat and he had bags under his eyes.
"You try…building…a house…from scratch…" He let out a tired breath. Kakashi got his pack and shoved it in his hands, then lead him to a room.
"Ten minutes, Tenzou." He found the last available room and set his pack down. His took off his sandals and sighed. Thinking about Sakura made his head hurt. Great job, Hatake. Way to get another female teammate captured. He thought while running his hands through his hair.
He tried to think about how the battle could've gone differently. But with every scenario he thought of, it always ended with Sakura being captured. Maybe it was because his subconscious was biased, what with Sakura already a prisoner in enemy hands.
He thought about how, if they didn't get Sakura back, if they failed, they would all be stripped of their ranks. But Kakashi, Kakashi had a sneaking suspicion that the elders would have him executed.
He sighed. He wanted his plan to go perfectly. He wanted it done tonight, but he didn't know how long Kurenai and Hinata could hold out. Even if they did, Tsunade was bound to catch them.
He went into his pack and pulled out five separate microphone radios. He held them in his hand and left his room to find Ino. When he did, she didn't hear him come in. He could blame it on her skills getting rusty since she was cooped up in a hospital all day, but common sense told him it was because she was preoccupied.
When he found her room he stood at the doorway and watched her. He felt almost guilty for doing so, but he had to. It was mostly his fault she was sitting on the wooden makeshift bed with her head in her hands; crying her eyes out. He heard her silent sobs and walked over towards her and sat down. The sobs stopped, but she didn't pick her head up to acknowledge him.
"You know," She started. "I should hate you. I should hate you with every fiber of my being. I should be trying to slice into you with my kunai or trying to cut your head off. I want to hate you. I want to say 'Yeah, it's him. It's his fault. Blame him'. But—"
"I blame me too." Her head shot up from her hands and he could see her eyes were puffy. He could almost make out the salt trails that stained her flushed cheeks. Her nose was red and her lips were wet. Most likely from the tears that made their way to her mouth.
"I figured I needed someone to blame too. So I chose myself. I am the best candidate." She looked at him while he stared off at something on the wall. "It should've been me in enemy hands. I would've been better off. They can't get through my mind, and if they did, even the seasoned Shinobi would cower at all the things they'd discover. It would scar them for life. "He chuckled at that. "I thought of everything that could've happened differently, but surprisingly, it all ended the same."
"When I heard from Naruto that she threw the scroll at you, I couldn't believe it. I wondered why she would save your sorry ass instead of herself." Ouch. "But then I thought, 'That's Sakura'. She has a heart as big as the sky. He told me that you were poisoned and paralyzed. So I can almost hear her in my head. Hear her saying, 'He's worse off than I am.'" She laughed bitterly.
"All that crap they taught you guys in Anbu messed up her line of thinking. I can forgive you now, though." Her eyes softened as his one eye widened. "You disobeyed Tsunade-Shishou. You could be killed. Then you put a group together consisting of some of the most skilled Shinobi, who are also close to her. I have to admit, I didn't think you had the balls to go against orders, Kakashi-sensei." She smiled while he chuckled. He picked up the forgotten radio and handed it to her.
"You're going to need this. Out of all of us, you're job is the most difficult." He handed her a complex radio. The earpiece was small and nude, so when she stuck it into her ear, no one would notice, and only she could hear. There was a small wireless radio that she stuck into her bra. He checked his watch; the one Sakura gave him, and then looked back to her.
"Still a few minutes until the briefing. Can you keep it together?" He patted her knee.
"No, but I'll try. For Sakura…not because you asked me to." He got up and gave her a two finger wave before going to search for Naruto. He found him meditating with several different clones.
"Did you lengthen the time you could be in Sage Mode?" When he saw that his most current clone, the fourth one, had entered Sage mode, his eyes opened.
"Yeah, four hours at a time." Kakashi nodded, looking impressed.
"That's good; you've got a very special job." Kakashi went over to sit on Naruto's bed.
"What kind of job?" Naruto looked at him excitedly.
"It's a sort of collaboration with someone…" Kakashi reached into his pocket and pulled out another microphone. This one was similar to the one Ino had, but a bit bigger. Everyone knew Naruto had hearing problems when it came down to just listening and not just running into battle.
"With who?" He handed him the microphone and started out the door.
"Briefing in five minutes, Naruto." His facial expression was a mix between a frown and a grin, he supposed. He couldn't really tell either-or; the corners of his mouth were turned up, but his lips were stuck in a pout.
Kakashi started for Neji's room. When he stepped in, he saw that Neji too was meditating with his Byakugan activated and his eyes closed.
He never liked looking at a Byakugan. It always looked to painful to have your veins protruding your face in a less-than attractive manner. It was hard enough to have a Sharingan activated all the time, but a Byakugan? He almost felt sorry for Ao. The mist-nin favored an eye patch to a forehead protector.
"What are you doing?" He leaned against the doorjamb.
"Increasing my range." He said while still not addressing him. He placed the microphone on the table beside him and walked out. When he was gone, Neji cracked one eye open.
"Briefing, four minutes." Kakashi said as he peeked his head back through the door and gave him an eye crinkle as Neji glared.
He walked towards Shikamaru's room to give him his microphone and radio. He was pretty sure he was already thinking of a battle plan to counter Kakashi's. That would be good. He would take anything they could get. When he was done with that, he had three minutes left. And he had one more person to get to. Sasuke.
When he walked into his room, he saw him sitting on the bed facing the door with his Sharingan activated. He didn't know what he was looking at, but he looked pretty angry when Kakashi got in his way.
"What do you want?" He said in a clipped tone.
"I'm giving you your earpiece." He set it on the table and walked back out the door, but quickly stepped back in. "Instead of finding new ways to induce pain on me, you should be getting ready for the briefing in two minutes." He watched as he deactivated his Sharingan, but continued to glare. Kakashi felt he was overusing his stay, and left.
He walked the path back to his room and dug into his pack once more. He pulled out his microphone. It was the one that was identical to Sakura's. The ones they got while they were at the Anbu base camps. They were transparent, and it fit in your ear. The microphone was built into the earpiece, so he didn't need another one. Once he stuck that in, he walked to the main room where he saw everyone was waiting.
"Alright." He sat in one of the chairs and leaned forward. He put both his hands on his knees and looked to Tenzou. He nodded. "Tenzou will give you each a seed. You eat it, and he'll know where you are at all times. If you're in trouble, release a small burst of chakra. He'll come to you." Tenzou had in his hands 6 seeds and everyone received one. He gave one to Kakashi last who stared at it while everyone looked at him expectantly. He placed it on the table.
"Shikamaru, since I already know you have a battle plan," He smirked. "I'll let you tell everyone yours, if you let me get through mines." He nodded.
"First, Ino. You and Naruto are going to be collaborating." Naruto's mouth flew open.
"You meant her? I don't want to work with her!" Ino scowled.
"You think I want to work with you, fox boy?" Naruto looked as if he was going to say something else, but Kakashi cut him off.
"When we're a few miles off from grass, Naruto, you're going to use you're Sage Mode and get to the interrogation room. I'm going to need you to keep watch until a certain point in time. If you miss it, we may not get another chance. Naruto will tell you when there are two people in the room. He's going to wait until one of those two people leave the room. When that happens, Ino takes over Naruto's body, then switch's to the guard's body outside of the gates. I need you to keep switching until you get inside the room, and take over Sakura's guard. I need you to unchain her, then leave the body."
"But won't the guard see her chains are gone and then restrain her?" Kakashi smirked at that.
"When you unchain her, I need you to say one thing to her." Kakashi stared at Ino intently.
"What do I say?"
"I'll tell you when the time comes." He gave her an eye crinkle and she glared.
"Why doesn't Neji collaborate with Ino?"
"Neji has this thing about personal space... Anyways, once she leaves your body Naruto, I need you to find someone else for me, and I need it fast. Her name is Takahashi Katsumi. Once you find her, Ino, I'm going to need you to again, posses someone near her, and knock her out. They won't ask questions. Take her to the first utility closet on the third floor of the building and Tenzou will be there to take her. She'll be brought back here. Then, I'm going to need you to put up a henge of her. She's a very important person in the war; You're going to have to sit in on all the meetings. Find Intel, and don't talk much. Listen intently, because if they ask you to say something, you're going to have to speak to the best of your knowledge." She nodded and he spoke to Neji and Sasuke.
"You two will be coming in with me. Neji, I need you to activate your Byakugan, and Sasuke, activate your Sharingan. I need to teach you how to move through the floors like Anbu." Neji had a perplexed look on his face.
"That's illegal, Kakashi."
"Well we're not doing a whole lot of legal here, are we?" They both activated their bloodline limit. Kakashi slowly moved through the floor and ended up behind Sasuke and Neji. Neji learned first; he saw all the chakra points that needed to be activated for the jutsu to work. Sasuke took two minutes longer. It took about fifteen minutes in all. When they were done, Kakashi was exhausted. He ran a hand through his hair and sighed.
"Tenzou, I need you to run around and do a little recon on the enemy. But you will mostly be helping out. I need Katsumi tied up and restrained to the best of your ability. Before she wakes up, you need to check her person. Make sure there's nothing on her that can alert the enemy who we are or where we are." He nodded. He turned and smiled at Shikamaru.
"I was just going to have you here to help restrain Katsumi. Or think up new battle plans if something goes wrong. I suppose you'll want to tell us yours?" Shikamaru smirked and put his hands behind his head and leaned back in his chair.
"I don't think I could've done it better, Kakashi. But I'd rather hang out here anyways. War is troublesome. If it's anything like the last one…well, we'll be in for it." Kakashi gave him an eye crinkle, but underneath the mask he wasn't smiling. Whoever healed him hadn't extracted the poison from his body all the way. He's been doing the best he could for three months, but he really couldn't ignore that feeling that crept up on him from time to time.
If it was Sakura, he wouldn't be having this problem. He'd just have to settle for Ino. He slowly got up and started to walk towards his room.
"Be ready on the hour. Ino?" He called her as he continued to walk. She came into his room after him. He slowly lowered himself onto the bed and put his hands on his knees. His head was lowered.
"Is something wrong?" He sighed deeply.
"Yeah. I'm not completely healed yet. The poison is still trying to take me over." He smirked despite his mood.
"Could you…" She was already there directing him to lie down. She unzipped his vest and was about to pull up his shirt, but looked to him first. When he nodded, she placed her palms on his chest and searched for where the poison was. When she found it, she closed her eyes in concentration as she started to flush it out. Sweat started to drip down her forehead, but she didn't remove her hands until she felt that the poison was gone and his immune system was up to par. When she was done, she lightly patted him on the knee and started for the door.
"Ino," She turned back around. "Tell her, 'You're a pussycat in need of tender care.'" Ino smiled and walked out of the door.
He felt his chakra starting to flow through himself at regular levels. That's when he got up to prepare. He dug into his pack for his Anbu uniform and started to put it on. He didn't have an Anbu mask anymore, so he settled on slightly henging himself.
He changed his hair and eyebrow color to black and started to dig through his pack. When he found what he was looking for, he turned it around in his fingers and smiled.
It was a pink and green compact mirror with cherry blossom trees on the back. The name 'Sakura' was engraved into the side.
He didn't know why he stole it. It was just sitting on her stuff when she was in training. He was going to give it back, but she didn't know it was missing.
He opened the mirror and examined his hair. He didn't look much different. In fact, he looked almost normal...except for the scar on his left eye.
He snapped the mirror shut and strapped his katana to his back. He snapped his pouches onto his back and readjusted his earpiece before walking out of the room.
When he went to the main area, he saw everyone was already there and ready to go. He nodded to Tenzou and watched as he disappeared into the floors. He went back to the table and picked up the seed. He quickly popped it in his mouth and started for the door.
When they were about to walk out of the base camp, his ninken appeared before him.
"We've got it strapped down." Pakkun said in his usual gruff and lazy voice. Kakashi nodded and stuffed his hands in his pockets.
"Alright. Bull, I need you to take east. Stop anyone coming towards us. Akino, you do the same, but you're on west." The ninken nodded. "Shiba you take north, Guruko you take south. Pakkun, Urushi, Bisuke, and Uhei, you stay here with Shikamaru, keep him company." He looked back to Shikamaru, still in the chair.
"You're to keep an eye on them and use them as necessary." He put an edge to his voice on those last words. He thought back to the last time someone misused his dogs.
-Flashback-
"Uhei? Shiba…what the hell?" Kakashi looked on with widened eyes from atop a pile of wood. He saw some of his dogs trot by with wood in their mouths delivering them to civilians and ninja alike. He saw Pakkun panting and begging for water. He snapped his book shut and jumped down.
It was just after Pein's invasion on Konoha so everyone was helping out. Kakashi, he would help out in due time. He had to catch up on his reading.
"Pakkun!" The little pug came trotting over to him. "What the hell are you doing here?" The pug tried in vain to lick his nose and gather his bearings before speaking.
"We were…summoned here…boss."
"By who…?" His eyes widened in realization. "Damn it!" He ran past his ninken and found who he was looking for sitting on top of a small wooden hut…Painting her toenails green.
"Sakura, what the hell are you doing?" She looked down at him for a second, then resumed painting her feet.
"My nails," She finished her pinkie toe and switched feet. He saw her smirk.
"I meant with my dogs!" She looked down to him again, as if annoyed by his presence.
"Look, if you didn't want me to have them, you shouldn't have given them to me!"
"I didn't want you to have them! I specifically said you could borrow them for your solo!" It wasn't even that big a deal. All she had to do was find the type of wood used for the Hokage Tower. She no idea how to accomplish that, so when she came to him, he had his dogs smell what was left of the demolished building and accompany her on the mission.
"You never asked for them back…"
"That doesn't mean you use them for your dirty work!"
"Hey! I'm helping them! Have you seen Bull lately? Packing on those extra pounds because his girlfriend left him isn't going to alleviate the stress!" Kakashi slapped a hand to his forehead and sighed.
"I want my dogs back, Sakura." She pouted as he walked away.
"Bastard,"
-End Flashback-
Shikamaru nodded. The rest of them left and went to the trees towards Kusagakure.
"Naruto,"
"I'm on it!" Naruto was looking all around them for potential enemies. When he found none, he shook his head.
"Good. That'll only be a distraction." They were about a mile away from the gates when they stopped.
"Alright, Ino, Naruto. Get to work." Sasuke, Neji, and Kakashi concealed themselves in the foliage and waited for Naruto to give Ino the signal. She was currently sitting against the tree with her hands positioned in her Mind Transfer jutsu. He saw Naruto raise his hand. This is it. He thought.
"Go!" He watched as Ino's body went slack.
Hold on, Sakura. We're coming for you.
"It's a shame about poor little Akihiko." She heard someone say as her eyes slowly opened. "He was a bright one. In a few years, he could've been an elite." It was Daichi speaking. "He's paralyzed now. He can't move anything. I don't think he ever will." She smirked as looked on ruefully.
"If he...really thought...that he was...going to tame me...he deserved it." Her voice was small, but her words were true. She tried to lick her dried lips, but her tongue wasn't providing any moisture. It's been five days and they still haven't given her water yet. The bastards.
"I guess you're right. I couldn't really say the same for the others. They died after the first night. But here." He threw a bottle of water at her and realized too late that she couldn't catch it. It hit her face and she winced. She had more bruises on her body than she did when she was last awake.
"'Bout…damn time." She panted while glaring at him. It was nearing the end of the day, she could feel it. And they usually gave her water when she woke up on the fifth day.
"As much as I may want your head, you're worth a lot of money. And I can't have you dying before they extract you today. And when they're done with that…well. I win." Her eyes widened. So it was finally happening. She thought.
"But what I don't understand is, if you're so important, why haven't your leaf bastards come looking for you yet?" She bit her lip. Her shoulders slumped and her head fell.
"Touchy subject, huh?" He walked over and took the water bottle from her lap. He twisted the cap and poured some into her mouth. When she moved her head aside saying that was enough, he purposely splashed some on her face. He watched as she winced again.
"I don't know what they're going to do to you, but I hope you get everything you deserve." He paused and she saw pain fill his eyes. "You know, that night when you and your partner escaped and killed more than twenty good men, me and my family wept. My brother was among them you bitch." He knelt down to her level and grabbed her face forcefully. "He just got promoted to jonin that day. So when they're done with you, I'm going to make sure you regret letting your partner live." She snatched her face away and felt the pain overcome her. Daichi walked back to his seat by the wall and leant his head on it. She then heard him inhale sharply and got up.
She squeezed her eyes shut and knew what was coming. She clenched her jaw tightly to soften the coming punch. When she heard the footsteps stop in front of her, she sucked in a large breath. Then she heard her chains jingle. Her eyes snapped open in surprise as she looked up to Daichi unlocking her last chain.
She glared at him. It was time. And she's going to fight until they have to sedate her again. She let her arms drop, but didn't move yet.
She watched as Daichi put his hands on his hips and gave her a toothy grin. She saw tears brim his eyes and fall down his cheeks. She couldn't say she was any more surprised than confused. Her eyes hardened into a glare, but now it was more at a loss of what else to do.
"He told me to say…that y-you were a pussycat in n-need of tender c-care." She didn't understand what was going on as more tears fell down his face and his shoulders shook. She scrunched her face up in thought. A pussycat in need of tender care?
A moment later, she was choking back a tear as she jumped to wrap her arms around him in a hug. The tears fall freely down her bruised face. It stung, but that didn't matter. She allowed the sobs to come out loud and unrestrained as she felt Daichi do the same thing.
It's them. It has to be. She didn't think Kakashi exchanged those same words with a grass ninja, and a man none the less. She risked it anyways.
"…Ino?" She said between sobs. She felt him hug her tighter.
"Oh, Ino. You guys came. You really, r-really came." She felt him nod and a lump formed in her throat.
"I t-thought I w-was going t-to die." She felt him release her and she weakly dried her tears. "What do you want me to do? I don't think I can just walk out." She said while trying to get her emotions under control.
"Kill him as soon as I transfer. They're coming." It sounded weird hearing him say his own name, but she nodded anyways. She prepared herself and waited. When Daichi fell to the ground, that's when she made her move.
"Wha—" She stomped on his neck and heard his bones crack. His eyes were widened and they stayed like that. When she figured he was dead, or at least, not moving anytime soon, she dragged him to the farthest corner of the room and left him there.
She went back to her spot on the wall and felt her lip quiver of its own volition.
"Ha, ha." It was uncalled for in her current situation, but she didn't care. Laughing was all she could do to keep from crying.
"No, Daichi. I win."
"What did you just say?"
"I—"
"Go to hell." It wasn't hard to act like Katsumi. Especially since she was so much like herself. She got half a glimpse of her act before she had to knock her out. But luckily that was enough. The hard part would be listening in on those Intel meetings and trying to give feedback. She gave a menacing grin as she sashayed down the long hallway. She saw a Grass Ninja coming towards her and she grabbed him by the shirt.
"Where's the meeting room?" She growled.
"T-the second door on your right." She pushed him away. Katsumi was a lot like her. Especially since the ninja didn't think she was acting out of character. She smirked as she followed the directions she was given and pushed both doors of the meeting room open. She was late, she knew, and that would give her a lot of attention.
"Katsumi, late, as always." She rolled her eyes and took a seat in the only available chair. She cross her legs and started to swing from side to side as she tried to look as though she wasn't paying attention, but in reality she was listening as hard as she could. She started to tap her nails on the clear glass table.
"While our captive is being extracted, we move out. I want our forces surrounding the village and ready to attack on my command. They just lifted their lockdown yesterday, so they'll be relieving most of their ninja that were patrolling the borders of the village for any runners." Ino clenched her teeth. So they're going to attack while Sakura is being extracted. When they get the Leaf's info, they'll move into the village. She really needed this meeting to be over; she had to tell Kakashi-sensei. But she was sure they too had pressing matters on their hands.
"I'm almost positive she was on the team that captured Nao. So most likely, she'll know where he's being kept. We take him back and kill the Godaime. That, my friends, will provoke a full out war." He picked up his glass and sipped it with a wide smile on his face.
Grass has never done anything on their own to provoke a war, so why were they starting now? They were usually good at diplomacy, talking themselves out of things. That's why they never had any problems. Peace treaties was their thing. Not wars. Something was wrong here.
"During that war, we must capture a Hyuga and take the remaining Uchiha. Then, when we restrain the kyuubi and Konohagakure falls, we'll be taking their place as the greatest Hidden Village." She knew something was wrong here. Everyone started to clap their hands while she continued tapped her nails on the table. When everyone was done, she started to speak.
"And how would you go about pulling this off? You do know that Konohagakure has raised the most powerful Shinobi in our generation and is one of the five great Ninja Villages. Remember the last war when the Akatsuki tried to restrain the kyuubi? They failed. And they had some of the most formidable ninja ever known on their side. The remaining Uchiha killed Shimura Danzo and Uchiha Itachi along with Uchiha Madara. And the Hyuga Clan, their Byakugan basically gives them 360 view. You're just setting Grass up for failure." She narrowed her eyes and kept his stare. She really hoped she didn't sound too awkward there. When the ninja started to laugh, she almost let out a sigh of relief.
"Oh, Katsumi. Always doubting our ninja. I'll have you know that tonight; we'll catch them off guard. They won't know what hit them. Dismissed." She snarled and watched as everyone started to get up and pile out of the doors. She watched with blazing eyes as the ninja came towards her.
"I really hope we can pull this off…for your sake." With that she pushed the chair back and got up. She walked out of the door and slammed it behind her. Then she let out a sigh of relief. She had to get this to Shikamaru. He had to get it to Konoha. Tsunade-Shishou's going to have a cow, but they would be safe.
"Your comrades are coming." Shikamaru paid Uhei no mind as he sat tuning his radio, waiting for someone, anyone to tell him there would have to be a change on plans. War is so troublesome.
He sighed deeply and dug in his pockets for a cigarette and his lighter. He stuck it in his mouth and with a flick of his thumb, it was lighted.
He inhaled and let out a deep breath as the sensation of the cigarette soothed him. He put a hand behind his head, closed his eyes, and leant back in his chair.
"Shikamaru, what the hell are you doing here?" His chair fell back on the floor as he took the cigarette out of his mouth and exhaled. He opened his eyes and they widened at the sight.
"Kiba?" Shikamaru turned to glare at the dog. "I thought you were supposed to be making sure nobody came in here?"
"These are your comrades, am I mistaken?" He cursed as the dog boy came closer and Akamaru growled at Uhei.
He watched as some of his other comrades filed in, but not exactly there for the cause Shikamaru was supporting. Damn it.
"Well, damn. Listen—" He heard four beeps in his ear and turned his radio up louder. It was Ino.
"Shikamaru, I knew something funny was going on here. All they want is Neji and Sasuke. They want their leader to be recognized as a Kage and they want to be a part of the five great Shinobi villages. They want to take Nao back and kill Tsunade. They're also trying to restrain Naruto. Basically, they want full out war." He heard her take a deep breath and he sighed deeply.
"Okay. I'll get that to Kakashi."
"They're attacking tonight while they extract Sakura." Her voice had an eeriness to it.
"Damn. Alright, lay low until your next meeting and await new orders."
"Hai." He turned his microphone off. He put the cigarette back in his mouth and blew the smoke from his nose.
"Listen, Kiba. We're here for Sakura. And we've uncovered even more then we've bargained for. You can take me back to the village and have me arrested, or you can listen." Kiba's eyes narrowed but he didn't object.
"Grass's main objective is to become recognized as a Kage. To do that, they're trying to take some of our best kekkei genkai. They're trying to restrain Naruto, kill Tsunade-sama, and take our place as one of the greatest military power and influence on the Shinobi world." Kiba looked on.
"So, they're attacking tonight while our village is the weakest. They're also extracting Sakura tonight. So you see, if we get Sakura back, then we're hitting two birds with one stone. They won't have anything to hold us to, and they won't have our secrets." Kiba sighed.
"Alright, what do you want us to do?" Shikamaru looked up in thought.
"How many of you came?" Kiba gave him a goofy grin.
"Tsunade-sama wasn't playing it safe. You have Team Seven with you, so she ordered out all the elites." Well that helps Grass's battle plan. All the elites are out of the Village.
"Okay, uh, hold on." He started tuning his radio until he found Kakashi's frequency.
"Kakashi," He waited a second before he heard a 'click' and he started to speak.
"Yeah?"
"What stage are you guys in?" Shikamaru rolled the cigarette around in his mouth.
"We're actually taking care of the guards right now," He heard metal slice into chest.
"We've got a change of plans. Tsunade-sama sent out all the elites." He heard Kakashi curse.
"Are they taking you in?"
"No, they've agreed on our battle plan, but I've got some bad news."
"That's good. Tell someone to take Katsumi back to the Village. Did Ino sit in on any of the meetings?"
"There's only one, but that's the bad news."
"They figured her out?"
"No. She actually figured them out. They want our bloodline limits. They want the Hokage dead, Naruto restrained, and they want to be recognized as a Kage when we fall."
"Damn it. I knew something was wrong. They never go into war." He heard a short yell on the other end of the radio.
"That's not all."
"No?"
"They're attacking tonight while they're extracting Sakura. Tsunade-sama sent all the elites out so the Village is practically defenseless." He heard silence on the other end.
"...Do you know what time she'll be extracted?"
"No."
"Well get Tenzou on it. If you have any new plans, get on with it. We're about to move in."
"Not yet. I'll get to you." He heard a 'click' of Kakashi's radio that told him he was gone. He turned his microphone off again and took his cigarette out of his mouth and temporarily placed it on the table. He let out a small burst of chakra then returned the cigarette to his mouth. He looked over at Katsumi's sleeping form and waited.
"What now?" Kiba said annoyed. Shikamaru nodded his head over at their prisoner.
"Get your fastest to take her back to the Village to be interrogated." Tenzou then appeared from the ground.
"You called?" He said while turning to check if Katsumi was still bound.
"Yeah uh, we've got some problems. To shorten up the story, Grass is attacking tonight during Sakura's extraction. You have to find out what time that is." Tenzou nodded then turned to look at Kiba.
"Are we caught?"
"Nah, they looked at it our way." Tenzou smirked.
"Good." Shikamaru nodded his head towards their captive, and Tenzou did a hand sign and the bounds disappeared. She stirred in her sleep as Shikamaru quickly got up and dug in his pocket. What he pulled out was a syringe Ino gave him filled with a purple liquid. He stabbed it into her arm and went back to his seat.
Tenzou disappeared into the floorboards. Shikamaru rubbed a tired hand across his face and took the cigarette out of his mouth. He reluctantly smashed the stub against the table and leaned forward as a ninja came to take Katsumi.
He tuned to Ino's frequency again and clicked four times.
"Yes?" She said annoyed.
"New plans."
"Shoot."
"I need you to find a way to the last level. You're going to be extracting Sakura."
"What?" She whispered a yell. Yet the whispering did nothing for the octave she just hit.
"You're not actually going to be extracting her. Instead, I need you to strengthen the barriers in her head."
"I don't—"
"Don't lie." He heard her exhale.
"So strengthening the barriers is going to do…what?"
"You heard them, they're extracting tonight. So if the extraction is prolonged, then the attack is prolonged."
"Shikamaru, this is a big risk. I've only seen my father do it a couple of times. I'm not sure—"
"Don't lie. He taught you. This is very important Ino. Don't fuck up." Before he turned his microphone off, he heard her huff in annoyance. The earpiece was snatched out of his ear. War was really troublesome.
"So what do we do next?" Naruto kicked the last guard off his kunai and wiped it on his vest.
"We go get Sakura. But we have to get through the rest of them first." Kakashi nodded towards the Village gates.
"That should be easy, we just float to the level she's on." Kakashi sighed.
"It's not that easy. You see, Anbu HQ was reinforced with this…well, its chakra enforced. Then with the room Sakura's being held in, you can only get in using the door, and even then you need either a key or chakra to get in there. Or monstrous super strength."
"You mean like Sakura and granny."
"Yes, but that is also where you come in Naruto." He looked confused. He doesn't have super strength. He doesn't excel in taijutsu. And most importantly, he's not Sakura.
"How am I…?"
"You see, what I need you to do is transform into your nine tails mode. Use your rasen shuriken to blow up the door."
"Then we get in and get Sakura,"
"Not exactly." Naruto's brows were furrowed.
"Then how…"
"Listen, Dobe. If they're extracting Sakura tonight, they're going to have extra tight security. And if they're also attacking us tonight, then a lot of ninja are going to be coming and going through the Village. Getting her and getting out won't be that simple." Naruto sighed and leaned on the tree he was standing beside.
Tenzou's face then appeared in that same tree.
"Kakashi, Shika—"
"Ahhhhh!" Naruto had his hand over his heart and was breathing heavily. Everyone else just looked at him like he was stupid. Kakashi sighed.
"You were saying, Tenzou?" Said ninja rolled his eyes in annoyance.
"Shikamaru is getting Ino to strengthen the barriers in Sakura's head. He's trying to prolong the extraction."
"She can do that?" Kakashi said with doubt in his voice.
"Her father is Inoichi. Besides, he taught her." Kakashi scratched his head.
"Alright. Did you find out the time of the extraction?" He nodded.
"Yeah, Midnight. When all of our people are asleep, they'll sneak in and attack." He said before leaving through the same tree.
"All we have to do is get to the front of the Anbu building with the jutsu I taught you. Then, well, we're going to have to fight from there."
"So…we don't have a plan."
"Give me a second." Kakashi started to tune his radio. "Shikamaru." He heard him exhale a breath.
"Yeah?"
"We're moving in."
"'Bout damn time. What's the plan?"
"I'm leaving Neji on the ground floor, Naruto two floors down, then Sasuke on the last level."
"That won't work. Sasuke can't get through that door. Put Neji on the ground floor. Sasuke should be two floors further down, then Naruto should be on the last level."
"Sounds about right. But they're extracting Sakura at midnight. Make sure the elites are ready to move out when we get back."
"Copy." He heard Kakashi clear his throat.
"Is that all?"
There was a pause. "Kakashi, are you okay?" Concern showed through his voice.
"Yeah." Shikamaru heard the doubt, but didn't push it.
"Alright. Take care of yourselves." Kakashi turned his microphone off. He rubbed his hands over his face then sheathed his Katana.
"Let's go."
"How the hell did she get out of her chains?" A ninja came in with Katsumi. She looked over at Daichi's dead body and growled. The unnamed ninja came over and grabbed her face.
"How'd you get out of ya chains, you little bitch?" She saw Katsumi's face was flushed from anger and her fists were clenched at her sides.
"Get out, Hiroto." He smashed her face against the wall. When he got back up, she was taken by surprise when he kneed her in the face.
"Uh!" She felt her jaw go slack and closed her eyes.
"We're gonna attack tonight, little slut. You ain't doin' a thing 'bout it."
She wouldn't kill him.
"And when we're done, I'm gonna take you up to my room,"
She wouldn't kill him.
"And show you a nice time,"
She wouldn't kill him. Three times is the charm.
"'Cause they say I'm amazing in bed."
She has not practiced peace for nothing. He's a jerk, is all.
"And you could do wonders with those hands of yours..."
Maybe he's an exception.
She grabbed his shirt and pulled him down to her level. When she saw he was still in shock, she punched him in the face, then in the stomach.
"Hiroto, you are dismissed!" He got up and wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and spat. He swung the door open and closed it with a slam.
See, she didn't kill him. Her anger was perfectly controlled.
"Couldn't you have refrained from hurting him, Sakura?" Her eyes widened when she heard Ino's voice come through. She shook her head. Ino smirked.
"I'm here to strengthen the barriers in your head. This'll make it harder for them to get information out of you, thus prolonging the attack on Konoha." Sakura's eyes widened again. She poked her jaw and felt a sharp pain. Ino watched as she started moving her jaw around. He must've broken it.
Her hand started to glow green. It took her a few minutes, but when she flexed her jaw and felt it was alright, she started to talk.
"They're attacking Konoha tonight?"
"Yeah. Sakura?"
"Huh?"
"If you ever think about doing that shit again, I swear I'll kill you myself. I cried every single day, praying to Kami that we would be able to get out and bring you home." Ino glared.
"Kakashi?" She frowned.
"Kakashi didn't visit the hospital since the first day he returned. Now that I think about it, he didn't leave his house until today. He let the poison sit in his system half-healed. He cares about you. Too much for his own good." Sakura bit her lip. "That's why he went against orders and got us together to bring you back." Sakura let her head fall.
"But it doesn't matter anymore; it's over, Sakura. We're going to kill these bastards, and we're going to win whatever shit they're trying to pull." Sakura smiled and nodded. Ino patted her on the shoulder and put her hands on her head as a burning sensation filled her mind.
Sakura let out a deep breath.
There was only one thing that she anticipated now. She didn't know what to think. Every single emotion that she could think of swelled inside of her. Every dream, every fantasy, everything she wished with Ren, it would all disappear once she saw him.
She knew that when she saw Kakashi, that's when it would truly be over.
"Greetings Leaf Shinobi. I'm so glad you could make it." Kakashi heard the voice before he saw a man walk with Sakura bound in his arms. He snarled.
"So. As you may know, this is Sakura. Say hello, Sakura." Her eyes and mouth was covered with a cloth. The parts of her face he could see that were visible were bruised, and she was balding. He could smell old blood seeping off of her in waves and saying that she was dirty would be an understatement.
"Say hello, Sakura." Her captor said with an edge to his voice as he pulled her hair. He heard her whimper.
"Perfect. So this is how it's going to go. You give me the Byakugan and the Sharingan, and you can have her back. If you don't…well, she dies." He saw Naruto step forward.
"I swear, if you touch her again, I'll—"
"Ah, ah, ah." The ninja pulled out a kunai and held it to her neck. "You take another step forward, kyuubi, I'll slit her throat." He smiled as Naruto took a step back.
"Copy-nin. Isn't it such a touching reunion to be here again? I mean, after you killed all those faithful Shinobi just trying to protect their Village. But, I suppose, the tables are turned. I'm going to kill your ninja. I'm going to kill your partner, and I'm going to kill you." He heard Naruto scoff. Kakashi's eyes narrowed.
"Now, now Setsuna. We wouldn't want to do that, would we?" Kakashi tilted his head to the side as he spoke. Sasuke and Naruto turned to him. The ninja named Setsuna smiled.
"Copy-ninja. You'll be amazed at the things I would do." Before anyone could blink, Setsuna had already raised his arms high above his head, and he let them crash down without a second thought.
It was then a loud crack and an anguished scream was heard.
"I did have her in my arms, didn't I?" The ninja smirked while Kakashi appeared behind him and slit his throat. He didn't pay attention to Setsuna disappearing. He was more focused on the broken girl that laid in a large crack in the ground, whose blood was now slowly pouring from her battered and bruised body.
"Agh!" He didn't really know what to think of that. Rather, he couldn't really think as a metal rod was being stabbed into his back and a sharp pain resonated throughout his body. Maybe he should've been more aware of his surroundings. Maybe he shouldn't have paid so much attention to Sakura, and let some of his focus fall on the ninja that disappeared before him. Maybe. But it was too late now. He could feel warm blood fall down his back, and he knew the same was happening to her.
He barely heard Naruto yell 'Get Sakura!' before a mini rasen-shuriken came whizzing over his head. He barely made the hand signs for his barrier jutsu in time. Otherwise, they would've both been dead. He could barely feel Sakura being lifted from his grasp, and his arm being slung around a shoulder. He wasn't focused on the pain that came when the rod was pulled out of his body.
It would be later that he felt it. The weight of it all. The solemn faces as they informed Ino to rush back, that they're leaving now. How no one talked as they raced back to the Leaf Village. How horribly pale Sakura looked, slung over Naruto's back. How Ino's sobs were the only things heard, and the green pouring from her hands into Sakura was the only thing illuminating the night. How every breath he took was achingly painful. How yes, Hatake Kakashi. You've done it again. You've lost a teammate.
And, yes, Hatake Kakashi. It was all your fault.
Sorry 'bout the delay. I've been really caught up in how this story is supposed to go. I appreciate every pm sent to me, thanks for the support! Anyways…Any ideas people! Any ideas at all are welcome. I'll accept them and give them great consideration because yes, I appreciate you and your thoughts.
Well, I hope you enjoyed this chap. Hopefully another will be up soon. Keep reviewing (Please?)!