1Me *yawn*: Hello, everyone, today I'm alone. (Looking angry and gaze hatefully toward the closed door) The others are enjoying themselves downstairs while I'm here doing labor. *sighed deeply* Well, Ren did promise me that after I'm done tonight we are gonna eat BBQ, so I guess that's enough motivations. Not many read this new fanfic yet, but I did receive a review saying that the notes last time too long. So this time I'm starting the story right away. Please enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto but I'm thankful for that or I won't have time taking nap anymore!
Words=Thoughts
*All sounds are bold and italic.
Chapter 1
In the Hokage's office
With Team Seven and Kakashi stood in front of her table waiting for their special mission information, Tsunade sat in her chair with her eyes close as if still in deep thought. Finally, the blonde boy couldn't hold his horse anymore.
"Oba-san!" he slapped his hands on the table loudly. "Are you gonna tell us our mission or not?!"
As if just waking up from sleep, Tsunade opened her eyes slowly. "Uh?"
Shizune, her assistant, and the others sweat dropped. Quickly, Shizune got close to her teacher.
"Their mission details, Hokage-sama!" She whispered next to Tsunade's ear.
"Oh that's right," Tsunade exclaimed, woke up from her sleepy mind. Cough twice, she looked down at the scroll that contain information for Team Seven's newest mission which she had rewrote to make it seem like a normal mission.
Looking all serious now, Tsunade looked at the three young Genin carefully. She sighed at Naruto's over excited expression. Just as she about to speak up, Naruto jumped up and yelled with uncontrollable eagerness.
"Are we gonna guard someone, Oba-san?!" Naruto asked with glowing eyes. "Or is this a big mission like beating up some bad guys?! I definitely not gonna do some stupid mission such as taking care kids or pulling weeds!"
Sighing while rubbing her forehead in frustrations, Tsunade sure hope to give anything just so this brat will grow up.
"I'm so sorry, sensei!" Sakura grabbed Naruto and hit him on the head. "Naruto won't interrupt you again!"
On the side, Sasuke humped while looking on coldly at the dupe who's rubbing his abused head. Kakashi smiled behind his mask.
Give another deep sigh, Tsunade finally started to explain while deep down grabbing hard at her last patience. "Yes, Naruto, this time Team Seven is going to find and guard a person until you can bring her back to the village."
Head snapped to attention, Naruto once again interrupted. "Is it a King? A princess? Or—" Smacked! "OUCH!"
Sakura pulled Naruto's ear hard and hissed. "Pay attention and quit interrupting, Naruto!"
"Ok Ok! I understand!" Naruto yelled while trying to free his ear.
Sigh but hold back her anger, Tsunade said calmly. "This is an important mission, Naruto. Failure is not acceptable, so you listen carefully—"
Knock knock.
"Ah, that's right," Tsunade smacked her forehead as she just remember. "There will be another person on your team on this mission. Come in, Sai!"
In came Sai, who was Sasuke's replacement before he came back to the village. He smiled his usual smile. "Hello, Naruto-san, Sakura-san, Kakashi-sensei, and," he finally turn his gaze to Sasuke, "Sasuke-san."
For a second, Sasuke's eyes glow dangerously, but it disappeared just as fast.
"On this mission," Tsunade continued as if Sai has been in the room from the beginning, "Sai will be working together with you." Saw Naruto's mouth moving, she interrupted before he could say anything. "And no, this is an order."
Slide the scroll over the table to Kakashi who picked it up, Tsunade continued. "The person you are to find is an 18-year-old girl. We do not know what she look like, but we received a request to retrieve her as soon as possible. All you need to do is to find her, follow her, and then when she's done with whatever she need to do, bring her back to the village."
"Why do we have to something like this? And how in the world are we supposed to find her when we don't even know what she look like?!" Naruto yelled.
"Don't worry," Shizune said quickly just as the Hokage jumped up from her chair. "The one who made the request did give us an address as to where this girl is."
"Then why didn't they go and get her themselves?!" Naruto humped and turn his back to them. "There's no way I'm doing this stupid mission. I wanna do a mission that can show my almighty ninjutsus!"
"You stupid gaki!" Finally lost all her patience, Tsunade yelled angrily. "How many times do I have to say it?! A true ninja doesn't pick what he need to do!"
Naruto turn and stuck his tongue out at her. "There's no way I'm doing something this easy, Grandma Tsunade!"
Jumped next to Naruto, she hit his head hard. "If it's this easy to guard, would I have Sai included in this mission, gaki?!"
Naruto rubbed his head while hissing in pain, but Tsunade's words stopped him. Curious more than angry, he looked up at her and asked. "Just who is this person? Is it that much of a deal to guard some girl?"
Realizing how dangerous this conversation is turning, Tsunade turn and said. "If you are so amazing, I'm sure you can do this mission well."
"But –" Naruto started, more curious than ever.
"Enough, Naruto," finally Kakashi interrupted. "We don't have time to waste anymore. Just listen to your orders."
"But I wanna know who this person is!"
Tsunade face palmed herself while Kakashi sighed inwardly.
For a few more minutes, unease rested in the air, but Naruto's expression shown clearly that he's not moving until he receives his answers.
Finally, one person's one sentence ended Naruto's stubbornness.
"Won't you learn who she is when we find her, you dobe?" Sasuke's voice rang clearly in the silence.
For about 30 seconds, Naruto froze. Then slowly, his face broke into a huge smile.
"Yep!" He exclaimed. "You are right, teme!" Turning around quickly and ran to the door, he turn back to the others just as he opened the door. "What are you guys waiting for? Let's go!" Then he was off. Leaving the others behind.
Tsunade shook her head while robbing her forehead; Shizune laughed softly behind a piles of files she was holding; Kakashi smiled behind his mask; Sakura was shaking one of her fist angrily in the air while mumbled something about "Stupid Naruto!"; Sai looking thoughtful while mumbling to himself, something like, "Ah, that must be how you trick someone into doing their jobs"; Sasuke merely humped while whisper a "Dobe."
Finally Tsunade sighed again. "All the info you need is on there," she said to the remaining group while waved at the scroll she gave to Kakashi. "Don't force her, but do try to bring her back as fast as you can."
"Where is she right now, sensei?" Sakura asked.
Turning to her student, Tsunade replied with a smile. "Just the forest outside the village."
Sakura looked really surprised while Sasuke merely shown slightly but then return to his usual bored face.
"That close?" Sakura asked, bewildered. "Why is she outside our village?"
"That," Tsunade pointed a finger at her, "is for you to find out. Which is why I said not to forcefully taking her back to the village." Picking up another scroll from her desk, she gave it Kakashi. "Give that to her. She will understand after reading it. You are now dismiss." Then without another look at them, she sat down and return to her works.
"Yes, my lady," Kakashi said while mention Sasuke, Sakura, and Sai to get out the room as he followed after them and closed the door on the way.
After a minute, Shizune spoke up hesitatingly. "Are you sure sending Team Seven is the right choice for this mission, Lady Tsunade? Can't we wait till one of the other teams come back and send them?"
Without looking up from the paper she was reading, Tsunade answered. "We can't wait. She may leave any second and then we will lose track of her again."
"Didn't one of the Anbu stay behind to watch out?" Shizune asked.
"I'm afraid the answer is no," Tsunade stopped reading and lean back in her chair while looked upward. "That person is no ordinary person. We don't know what she can do. If she became aware of the Anbu's presence, then she may have run away."
"But—"
"Let's leave this to them," Tsunade returned to her works. "We can do nothing worrying here."
At the gate that leading out of the village, Team Seven and Sai was still waiting for Kakashi. It had been one hour since they left the Hokage's office. They were supposed to meet half an hour ago.
"Where in the world is Kakashi-sensei?!" For the tenth time, Naruto yelled angrily. "He's late again!"
Sakura hit Naruto's head. "Just settle down already, Naruto! You know how he is! Just get used to it already!"
"Sorry, Sakura-chan," Naruto rubbed his head. "Just please don't hit me anymore! One of those days you will killed me or make me dumb."
"Aren't you already too dumb to become any worse, dobe?" Sasuke said from where he lean to the tree.
"What did you said, Sasuke?!" Swirled to him, Naruto yelled with his fists raised.
Just then, Kakashi arrived in smoke.
"Hehe, sorry sorry," Kakashi waved. "I was—"
"Don't lie!" Naruto and Sakura yelled together.
Sai, who was sitting up on the tree the whole time, now jumped down and smiled while mumbling something like "next time I should do that together with them." Sasuke merely humped again.
Kakashi smiled behind his mask. "Sorry, but let us go now. We should be able to find her before the sun goes down."
Together, the group left on village and head for the forest just next to the village.
On the way as they jumped from tree to tree, Naruto yelled to Kakashi so he can hear him from the back.
"Kakashi-sensei, if we don't know what she look like, then how do we know if we got the right person?"
"In the scroll Lady Tsunade gave me, there's a short description of how she's supposed to look like," Kakashi answered. "We got that information from combining the info we got. It's not much, but it's enough."
"Does the client also not know what she looked like?" Sakura asked from next to Kakashi.
"Not really," Kakashi smiled reassuringly at her, "don't worry. We will know right away whether it's a fake or the real one when we meet."
"How?" Sasuke asked from behind Naruto.
"Can none of you guess out the right answer?" Kakashi asked challengingly with a mischievous smile.
"The chakra," Sai suddenly said from behind Kakashi and Sakura.
At that word, both Sasuke and Sakura have an expression of sudden understanding.
"Chakra?" Naruto yelled. "How does that helps?"
"Good guess, Sai," Kakashi said approvingly. "That's right. We will know through the feeling of her chakra. The person we are searching for have some kind of special chakra that was supposed to be unheard of. By feeling her chakra out, we will know whether we found the right person or not."
"Special?" Sakura looked at Naruto once. "Is it the same kind as Naruto?"
"No," Kakashi answered her while he too looked at Naruto who's at the front of formation. "It's not a tail-beast." It's even worse than that power. He said the last sentence in his mind.
"Then what kind power does she have?" Naruto asked.
"We don't have any solid facts of it," Kakashi said shortly.
"You are lying, Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto swirled around to face him with a raised fist. "There's no way that we only know so few things! That old oba-san won't accepted such fishy mission without anything solid!"
He's getting sharp on those things. Kakashi thought. "Lady Tsunade accepted this mission because it's from someone important who has helped Konoha many times."
"Who?" Naruto yelled.
"Look at the front, Naruto!" Sakura yelled at him angrily. Inside, she thought to herself as she sneaked a look at Kakashi. There must be secrets involved. Sensei must have been told to keep most of the informations from us. "Stop bugging. We will know everything when the time comes!"
Sai, who was from Root, a secret branch of Anbu, said nothing at all because he could see right way that Kakashi have other instruction. Understood that, so he asked nothing.
Sasuke said nothing either. He doesn't seems interested in the talk itself. Looking with his usual coolness, he continued the pace and stayed in formation.
Doesn't want to be hit again, Naruto turn back while mumbling. "Hmph, there's definitely something he's not saying."
Kakashi thought with sweat dropping. That was close.
At noon, after stopping once, the team continued to entering deeper within the forest. At time they changes directions following Kakashi's orders.
At about 3p.m., the group had to slow down their speed because of the difficulty of how some trees have thorns on them and long poison vines dropping down.
Just as they finally crossed that part, all of them felt a shock and then the loss of their chakra connection. Luckily they were all standing on the ground at the time.
"Did you guys feel that?" Naruto asked tensely, pulled out his kunai knife and stood in battle stance.
The others too pulled out their own while facing one direction each with their backs to each other.
"Yes," the first one said that is Sakura. She faced the path where they just came out of.
"That was a strong shock," Sai said as his eyes swept through the direction he's facing.
"Dobe, of course we feel that," Sasuke said.
"Everybody," Kakashi said calmly as he inched his way back, "get closer and hold your breath for as long as you can. There's poisons in the air."
Quickly the other four hold their breath and covered their face with their sleeves. Their shoulders and back now touched one another's.
"When I count to 3, run and follow me," Kakashi whispered. "One, two, three!"
Quickly the group ran with Kakashi in the lead.
They ran about a mile when Kakashi suddenly jumped to a tree and used two of his kunai knifes to climb to the top. The others stood with their back to the tree.
"It is fine now," not even two minutes later, Kakashi jumped down.
The other four relaxed. Naruto and Sakura dropped to the ground. Sasuke lean to the tree and wiped away a stray hair in front of his eyes. Sai looked through his belonging to check if he dropped something.
"That was dangerous without our chakra," Sakura said exhaustingly. "But I should be able to sense it, Kakashi-sensei, but I didn't?"
"It's not your fault," Kakashi said. He pulled out a bottle and dropped out five pills. "Eat this, it's antidote for poisonings."
"But I'm a medical ninja, I should have sensed if there are poisons," Sakura said, looking at Kakashi with confusion.
"It's odorless," Kakashi smiled. "I only know because I saw small bones and carcasses of animal remains."
Realized she only looked at the area not the ground, Sakura looked down in her lap.
As they were talking, Naruto tried to summoning his chakra.
"Sensei! I still can't feel my chakra!" He yelled.
Alarmed but keeping his calm behind his mask, Kakashi silently tried calling forth his own chakra. Though he too fail.
"I can't either, Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura said, surprised as she too trying the same thing.
"What about you two, teme and Sai?" Naruto turn to the other two.
Sasuke shook his head coolly. Sai smiled his usual fake smile. "I can't either."
"What's happening, sensei?" Sakura turn to Kakashi, alarmed because this is the first time such thing happening to her.
"This is similar to the time when I fought Neji during the Chunin Exam," Naruto said while look around them.
Looking upward, Kakashi shifted his headband and tried activating his Sharingan eye. It worked for a second, but then it return to normal. Though it's enough for him to see whatever it is he need to know.
"There's a barrier around this area," Kakashi said, shifting his headband back in place. "It seems to be the cause of loss of our chakra."
"Why is there a barrier around here?" Sai asked.
Looking around them, Kakashi then took out the scroll Tsunade had gave him.
"She's close by to here," he answered. "The barrier must be her work."
Rereading the information he received, Kakashi sighed and turn to his students and Sai. "There's no choice. Without our chakra, we can't search for her. Let's split into two groups and search around the area." Looking at the three boys, he continued. "Naruto, Sasuke, and Sai be in the same group, while Sakura stays with me."
"How should we keep in touch?" Naruto asked.
"The barrier should only be for locking our chakra," Sai said. "The wireless radio should works fine."
"Yes," Kakashi said, smile. "Let's use the radios to keep in touch."
When they all equipped their wireless radio and done testing them, Kakashi warned Naruto's group, "One last thing, if you found the place first, don't approach it and immediately back away and contact us. Wait until we get to you. Especially you, Naruto, don't rush in and alarm her."
"Why am I the only one getting a warning?!" Naruto yelled angrily.
"Because you are the only one that's so hotheaded, dobe," snickered Sasuke.
"You want me to beat you up again, teme?!" Naruto shook his fist.
"Why don't we see who actually beat up who?" Sasuke snarled as he pulled out a kunai.
"Enough!" Kakashi stepped in between them. "This mission is important. If the two of you can't work together, I will have you two stay here until we are done finding her."
Naruto and Sasuke humped and turn away from each other.
Kakashi sighed. "Listen, if we fail this mission, in the future, none of us will ever be given any more important mission. Is that what you want?"
Naruto and Sasuke said nothing.
"You are still on warning, Sasuke," Kakashi looked at the black hair youth. "If you fail this time, there won't be second chance for you anymore." Turn to the other one, he continued. "And you, Naruto, you are always complaining that you weren't given any important missions. This time you are given one. If you fail, do you think you will be given anymore?"
For a while, neither boy said anything.
"Fine, we will work together," Sasuke finally said coldly.
"Me too," Naruto grumbled unhappily. "I understand. We will stop fighting."
Satisfied, Kakashi and Sakura relaxed. Sai mumbled something like, "Those two sure are competitive and similar, but they still have good relationships, right?"
Checking one more time that the wireless radios works, the groups finally separate.
No sooner than half an hour, Kakashi and Sakura's radios buzzed. In came Sai's voice.
"We found a house, Kakashi-sensei," Sai reported through the radio. "There are curtains that blocked the views of the windows. We have stopped near it out of view."
"We are coming now," Kakashi said.
About twenty minutes later, the groups are together again. Stood behind the trees while still able to see the house, they speak in whispers.
"This is the right place," Kakashi said after comparing it with the informations they were given.
"What should we do now?" Sakura whispered.
"There seems to be traps around it," Sai said.
"No choice," Kakashi said after a minute of thought. "Let's just approach it, but be careful and stay on guard all of you."
The others nodded. Stepping out from the trees, with Kakashi in the lead, the group approached the house while carefully avoiding the traps.
Knock knock. No one answered. Just as Naruto about to speak up, the door slowly opened a crack.
From the dark room, only a pair of eyes could be seen. The owner said nothing.
"Hello, please don't be alarmed," Kakashi said with a smile, though it could only be seen from his eye. "We mean no harm."
"Who are you?" It is a girl's voice with cautious in her tone.
"We are ninjas from the Village of Leaf," Sakura stepped forward and spoke in a gentle voice. "We are here on a mission looking for someone."
Silence.
"It's a girl with white hair and blue eyes, around the age of sixteen," Kakashi said. "Are you—?"
"Leave," the girl interrupted before he could finished his question. "You don't belong here."
Losing his patience, Naruto suddenly pushed forward and blurted out. "Are you the one who put the barrier around here and those lousy traps?"
In a second, the door slammed shut.
For a few seconds, no one moved.
"It seems you got your answer, Naruto," Kakashi sighed as he shook his head.
"Stupid Naruto!" Bam! Sakura hit Naruto's head hard, causing him to fall on the ground. "You just alarmed her!"
"Stupid dobe," Sasuke humped and looked the other way.
"As usual," Sai smiled.
Knocked the door again, the group waited, but this time nothing happened.
"See?" Sakura whispered angrily. "This is your fault if we fail this mission, Naruto!"
Sighed, Kakashi quickly thought. Then he pulled out the scroll that's for the girl and put it at the doorstep. "This is a letter for you from the Hokage," Kakashi said loudly. "We truly don't mean any harm to you, nor are we your capturers. We are only here because the Hokage wishes to see you and helps you."
"Wha–" Naruto yelled but Sakura quickly blocked his mouth with her hand.
Mentioning to him to be quiet with his hands, Kakashi continued. "We are here to protect you, not to capturing you. You may do whatever you feel like, but we also must complete our mission which is to bring you to the village." Turning away while mentioning to the others to go back toward the trees, Kakashi said in a quieter and gentler tone. "Of course, we will not use any force. The decision of when is in your own hands, but please decide soon. There are people who dearly missed you. Such as your guardian."
At that moment, there came the sound of broken glasses from inside of the house.
Sensed the killing intent which only appeared for a second, Kakashi smiled behind his mask, knowing that he finally caught her attention.
"He truly wishes your return," Kakashi whispered loudly enough for the person inside could hear. "We will be close by, Zukiku."
As the group went back to the edge of the forest of trees, they all heard slamming and breaking sounds from the house.
Naruto kept glanced back, but he said nothing.
Since it's already late, the sun went down since a long time ago. Quietly, Kakashi instructed the others to make camp for the night.
The sounds from the house didn't stop till well into midnight. Though lying down, no one truly slept. When it finally stopped, each member of Konoha silently breathed a relaxed breathe. At the time, Kakashi was the one standing guard.
"Sensei," Naruto suddenly spoke up.
"Yes, Naruto?" Turned his gaze from the house to Naruto's back, Kakashi answered.
"Is Zukiku her name?" Naruto asked sleepily.
"Yes," Kakashi said, returned his gaze back to the house.
"It's a cute name," Sakura spoke up and looked up at Kakashi with a smile.
Looking down at the only girl within this group, Kakashi's eye smiled. "Yes, it is."
"Is she alone in there?" Naruto yawned.
"Who knows?" Kakashi replied. "Go to sleep, all of you."
With that, no one spoke again.
The next early morning, the silence of the forest was broken by a loud yell from Sakura who was the last one standing guard.
"Kakashi-sensei! Come quickly!" She yelled.
In a second, Kakashi appeared next to her. Sasuke and Sai too jumped up from where they slept. Sakura kneeled next to a shivering paled Naruto who seems unconscious.
"What's wrong with him?" Kakashi put a hand on the girl to calm her.
"I think he is poisoned," Sakura said with a troubled look on her face. "But I can't seem to find any wound on him."
No one said anything. Kakashi thought quickly.
"He must have breath in some poisons yesterday near that vine trees," Kakashi said. "Can you not figure out what type of poison this is, Sakura?"
Sakura shook her head. "There's not enough time. His temperature is quickly lowering," she said with one hand on his neck. "If we don't figure this out quickly, then he will die in two hours."
Silence fall the area. Just when Kakashi about to speak up again, an unfamiliar voice spoke up.
"He's just having a seizure because of the poison vines you passed by yesterday."
In a second, everyone pulled out their kunai knifes and in battle stance facing the direction of the house.
What met their eyes is a girl with blinding silvery hairs with mix of white that glint under the sunlight.
One word from Kakashi stopped everyone's tension.
"Zukiku."
Me (dropped my head on the desk and sighed): Finally finished!
(Just as I was going to fall asleep, the door opened. In came Sakura.)
Sakura: You done with our chapter?
Me (sleepily): Yeah...
Sakura: Ren-san said if you want to eat your favorite food tonight, then you must finish their update too.
(A huge silence fell the room. Then Sakura quickly closed door as a thick dictionary flied toward her.)
Me (yelling and screaming): I AM NOT GONNA WRITE ANY MORE TODAY!
(Just then Ren's came from downstairs.)
Ren: No work, no food, Nala-chan!
Me: ...next update coming up is Skip Beat's Dream Jump.