Disclaimer: See previous chapters
sonicx94 - (grinning) "Hm, now that would be telling."
SulliMike23 - "Funny you should say that now…" (smirking)
-0-
The sun soon began to set and nightfall settled in over the seaside village. On one of the docks by the water, the team of shinobi awaited the arrival of the ship that was to be coming soon. As they waited, a few groups of people began lining up by the dock, awaiting the ship as well. To Naruto and Sakura, it reminded them very much of the time where they were waiting to start the Chunnin exam. Some of the people who were arriving were ninja from other hidden villages, mostly Cloud and Stone, with even one or two from Rain. And also, there were a few samurai there and also fighters neither of them really recognized.
Yet none of them matched the description of the stranger that they had met earlier in the ramen shop. They knew the person couldn't have been an ordinary customer. His presence as well as the way he disappeared from them told them that much. Kakashi didn't seem too worried about it though and that worried them. Their sensei -former sensei- wasn't the type to be overly confident. At best, he would be at least cautious of the fact. But he was as relaxed as ever or at least he seemed relaxed.
For Sakura, it was even more confusing. How could he be relaxed on a mission of this caliber? While the mission hadn't yet started, she knew well enough that they should at least be prepared for it. But then again, she didn't know what she had to prepare for really. Kakashi had only given a vague description (typically) which didn't help her really (and annoyed Inner Sakura). At least she wasn't alone in this.
"How long is this thing going to take to get here?"
"Stop whining, Naruto." she replied, trying to keep things professional. "We have to wait. So we wait."
But that didn't stop Naruto as he simply folded his arms and pouted. "But how long? I'm getting tired of all this sitting around doing nothing."
"Well..." Kakashi said suddenly. "It looks like you won't have to wait long."
Both teens blinked and looked out over the water to see a thick fog had settled in over it. 'Where did that come from?' The sky was clear for the most part; there was nothing for the mist to form from. It just came out of nowhere. From the midst of the fog, a large black object emerged, slowly making its way toward the bay harbor they were at.
"That's...the ship?"
The ship that settled into the harbor was a dark, almost pitch black vessel. From the looks of it, it appeared to be really old, with tattered sails that looked as though it could fall apart at any moment. At the front of the ship, a black dragon's head carving was set forward, with an open mouth full of sharp teeth and blood-red eyes. As the ship settled in, Naruto slowly turned his head to Sakura.
"You've got to be kidding me."
The medic-nin nodded in agreement. "I'll say. It sure is creepy looking." Turning to Kakashi, Sakura questioned. "Hey, Kakashi-sensei, where do you suppose our client will be?"
"I don't know. But I'm guessing they'll find us." As the plank came down for them to board, the copy-nin began to move toward the ship. "In the meantime, let's go."
Although a bit nervous, the two steadily followed the elder shinobi up the plank of the ship. Once onboard, they looked about. Just like its outer appearance, the ship was a dark shabby mess, as though it was a tangle of spider webs. Lighting was scarce and the only person they saw onboard was a single figure in black robes high up by the wheel of the ship.
"So now what?"
"We wait." Kakashi replied simply.
Soon enough, all the other passengers came onboard and the ship set sail. Strangely enough, it seemed to return into the fog that it had come out of and now there was nothing to see but the deep mist around them and the dark waters below. On the side of the deck, Naruto looked out into the fog, bored out of his mind. It had been roughly ten minutes since they set out, but their client had yet to show themselves. 'Maybe Grandma made a mistake...?' But that was unlikely. Missions were something every Hokage took seriously and Tsunade was definitely no exception. And she had been particularly concerned with this mission. Still, the genin had yet to know why this mission was such a big deal.
'Huh?'
Naruto blinked as his saw a silhouette on the other end of the ship. It didn't mean much at first; after all, there were a few others around him besides his team. And despite the darkness of the night and fog and the obstruction of the tangled lines, the silhouette struck him with a sense of...familiarity.
'Who?'
His legs moving, Naruto made his way to the other end of the ship, crossing over the middle and ducking around the lines until he found the entrance that led to the area of the ship. They would have gone in there before, but Kakashi thought it best to wait for their client on the deck. Still, that was no reason for Naruto not to go. Curious, he entered inside and moved down a short hall, finding a chamber at the end of it. It was a dark room, again with minimal lighting and and deep shadows hiding the walls. The genin looked about, seeing no one else in here and wondering if he had even seen anyone at all. But that was soon answered as he heard the sound of light steps coming from the shadows and emerging where he could see them. His eyes widened with shock as the figure spoke to him.
"It's been a long time, Naruto-kun."
"You!"
'You just had go wandering off, didn't you?'
Fuming mentally, Sakura made her way toward the entrance leading to the lower level of the ship. Earlier, she and Kakashi had noticed that Naruto had disappeared and guessed that he had gone wandering about instead of staying put. So naturally, it was up to her to find and retrieve him while Kakashi awaited their client. Truth, be told, she had simply wanted to wait with Kakashi, since this ship gave her the creeps.
'Naruto is so going to get it when I find him!' Inner Sakura replied. 'Cha!'
Upon reaching the hallway, her ears picked up the faint trace of a conversation followed by a shout that she recognized was Naruto's. A moment after that, a spike of killing intent shot through her. It didn't take much for her to realize something was wrong and Naruto was in the middle of it. Following the dread energy, she arrived in a dark chamber where she easily saw Naruto, bent low and growling. His chakra was beginning to flare enough where she saw wisps of red chakra beginning to flow around him.
"Looks like we have some more company."
Looking up, Sakura gazed at the speaker and found two figures. The one who had spoken was tall, with blue skin and beady eyes. Sharp teeth glistened with the light and a massive sword was tied to his back. Her eyes widened as she took in both the man's uniform; a dark cloak patterned with red clouds which revealed him as a member of the Akatsuki.
Her gaze shifted over to the second figure, which Naruto was solely focused on, who wore the same cloaks, but wasn't as strange looking. But there was no mistaking his identity; facial features very similar to their lost comrade and the crimson spiral of the Sharingan he constantly bore.
Itachi Uchiha...
Sasuke's older brother...
Her fist began to clench as she remembered that he was the reason Sasuke left them to begin with. A man who tormented his own brother and made him so lost that he was now driven only by revenge. A part of Sakura was ready to charge in and fight, but her more rational side kept her back. As strong as she and Naruto were, there was no way they could take on Itachi, much less him and his companion, whom Sakura recognized as Kisame Hoshigaki, the Scourge of the Hidden Mist. But that didn't stop her from reaching back to her pouch to grab a set of kunai, at least until Itachi's voice broke through.
"We're not here to fight you."
"Like hell!" Naruto growled, causing the red charka flowing around him the flare even more. And now Sakura could see his hands were curving...into claws? Regardless of this, Itachi seemed unconcerned and simply went on to speak
"On the contrary, we're here...to protect you."