Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ After the Dream ❯ Independence Day ( Chapter 10 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

Independence Day

At dawn the next day Naruto left his apartment and headed towards the front gate where he knew Genma would meet him in a few hours. He hadn't slept well the past night but he was too restless to stay in his apartment until it was actually time to meet. He reached the gate and watched apathetically as the early risers began preparing for the day. One or two villagers glared as they noticed him standing there but it was still too early in the day for most of them to pay attention to some random person on the street.

An hour later Genma and Sakura still hadn't shown up; Naruto glanced at his watch and realized that he still had forty minutes before they were set to arrive. He sighed and leaned against the wall about ten meters from the gate. He was far enough away to avoid scrutiny but he could still be spotted by those looking for him. Naruto shifted uncomfortably when he felt eyes on him and glanced around looking for the source. Much to his surprise none of the villagers were glaring at him or even looking in his general direction. He scanned the area once more but still could find no reason for his discomfort. He forced himself to relax and leaned back against the wall trying to get rid of his perturbance. The feeling receded slightly and he closed his eyes trying to come up with something to do until the others arrived. He wasn't in the mood to think so he finally settled on opening his eyes and looking at his watch.

And looking.

Ten minutes later Naruto was still looking at his watch. He sighed and his shoulders slumped as he looked back up. Someone was watching him again. He had been perfectly content observing his watch count down the minutes to Genma's arrival and now someone was disturbing him again. He took his time scrutinizing the area around him and still could find no one watching him. The traffic on the road had died down and he knew it wouldn't pick up again for several hours when travelers started trickling in. None of the villagers had seen him and the guards never paid him any notice.

He was just about to go back to his previous pursuit when he heard a light scuffling noise on his left. Naruto whipped his head around and had to stop himself from slapping himself. How many times had he told those brats that rocks weren't rectangular? The blond turned his preceding action into a natural turn of the head and nonchalantly leaned back against the wall. He watched the square rock out of the corner of his eye and wasn't at all surprised when it began inching towards him. If he hadn't been trying so hard to pretend they weren't there he would have laughed out loud. Naruto let out a sigh and closed his eyes; this was going to be a long wait.

Half an hour later Sakura and Genma arrived at the East Gate of Konoha. Genma had met her that morning to make sure she knew where they were meeting. The sight that greeted them at the gate gave Sakura a rather odd sense of déjà vu. She knew she had seen that rectangular rock before and after a moment she had to bite back a laugh. She had wondered how long it would take the Konohamaru Corps to beat some sense into their leader.

Sakura glanced over and Genma and noticed that he was also staring at the box. He seemed utterly bewildered and was glancing back and forth between it and Naruto as if wondering what the foxy blond was up to. Sakura grinned at him and walked up to Naruto, when he sensed her he opened his eyes and nodded in greeting. She glared at him and smacked him over the head.

Genma sighed and shook his head. He didn't know what he was supposed to do with the two Gennin in front of him, not to mention the odd box at Naruto's feet. Instead of trying to decipher the situation he turned and headed out the gate beckoning for the others to follow. A minute later he heard Naruto and Sakura catch up to him and peeked over his shoulder to glance at them. He stopped when he saw the box trailing after Naruto in what he supposed was meant to be a discreet manner. He blinked and turned to look at Naruto, the blond glanced at the box once before continuing on his way. Genma could only shrug; he assumed Naruto knew what was going on.

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As the group entered the tree line Naruto stopped dead in his tracks. He whipped around and gave the odd box a withering look. “That's enough Konohamaru. You, Moegi, and Udon need to go back to the village,” he said to the suddenly still box, “You have class today and Iruka-sensei won't be happy if you miss.”

Genma watched as the box suddenly exploded and three coughing academy students stumbled out. “Still too much gunpowder,” a tiny voice squeaked as the smoke began to clear. “Once again the man I have chosen as my rival has shown his power,” a second voice added. The smoke cleared a bit more allowing three small figures to become visible. “Naruto nii-san, why have been so cold lately,” a decidedly female voice added whimpering slightly. Genma raised an eyebrow when he recognized the three students standing in front of him. Sandaime's grandson was standing with two of his friends beaming up at Naruto. The other two looked slightly less confident as they gazed nervously at the blond in front of them.

Several moments of intense watching took place as the group studied each other. “What are you three doing here? Shouldn't you be getting ready for school?” Genma finally asked looking at the three in front of him. Konohamaru and the others looked away blushing in embarrassment. “We just wanted to see Naruto nii-san,” he finally confessed. Genma rolled his eyes and lazily looked over at Naruto. The blond was watching the three indifferently. “You're wasting your time,” he commented looking back to the three students.

Konohamaru ignored the Jounin speaking him instead choosing to continue grinning up at Naruto. “You did awesome yesterday. The way you kicked that dog boy's ass was soooo cool. Can you teach me those awesome moves and how you walked on water and how you created that cool whirlpool and-“

“No,” Naruto said abruptly cutting off Konohamaru's train of questions. “Go back to the village Konohamaru, Iruka-sensei will be angry if you miss class,” he said repeating his earlier statement.

Konohamaru's face fell as he looked up at Naruto. “Way lame, Naruto nii-san. Way lame,” was all he said as he turned to look at the other two. He was peeved to find Moegi not paying any attention to him instead she was gazing admiringly at Sakura. The pink haired Gennin was growing rather nervous under the starry eyed gaze of the pint sized kunoichi in front of her. She nervously laughed and scratched the back of head glancing pleadingly at Naruto. Konohamaru “hmphed” and walked over to Moegi, “We're here for leader not his girlfriend,” he said pulling one of the girl's pigtails. In response he got a smack in the head from Moegi and glare from Sakura.

Naruto sighed and looked pleadingly at Genma. The Jounin seemed amused with the scene but his face was so apathetic looking that it was often difficult to tell. “Are you going to send them back to the village or are they coming with us?” he said catching everyone's attention. The three academy students looked up at the Jounin expectantly. Moegi had turned her puppy dog eyes on full blast and had Genma tugging at the neck of his shirt nervously. Sakura was watching Moegi grinning rather evilly. Naruto looked at her nervously, he had caused enough trouble influencing Konohamaru if Moegi started acting even more like Sakura than she already did they would all be in trouble. Genma finally gave in to the puppy dog eyes and turned around beckoning for them all to follow. As they walked he said, “You three can stay as long as you don't get yourselves hurt by trying to interfere. Let these two do what they're out here to do.” The academy students nodded enthusiastically and continued following.

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After about fifteen minutes of walking Sakura looked up at Genma in confusion, “Exactly where are we going?” Genma didn't even bother looking back as he responded, “Naruto usually trains in a clearing not far from here. It should only take us another few minutes to get there.” Sakura nodded and turned back around to wink at the Konohamaru Corps. “It looks like we'll get to see what Naruto's been up to for the past couple months,” she said brightly causing the three behind her to grin wickedly. Naruto could only glare at Genma; he just knew that man had smirk on his face right now.

Ten minutes later the group arrived at Naruto's clearing. The area had been decimated; there were craters everywhere, most of the trees had been stripped of patches of leaves and bark, and random scorch marks littered the forest floor. Sakura swallowed nervously and glanced over at Naruto, the placid look on his face did little to sooth her. The Konohamaru Corps gaped at the scene of destruction in front of them, “So cool,” Konohamaru managed to gasp out.

Naruto chose to ignore all of them for a moment as he turned to Genma, “What are we supposed to do?” Genma looked over at him for a moment before turning to study Sakura. Normally Naruto just did whatever he felt like doing but it was obvious that with Sakura and here as well that wouldn't work. “For now why don't the two of you spar to get warmed up. After that I'll think of something.” Naruto rolled his eyes and walked to the center of the clearing and waited for Sakura to join him. The pink-haired kunoichi glanced nervously at him before straightening up and joining him.

Genma glanced at Naruto quickly before adding, “Taijutsu only.” Naruto frowned slightly but shrugged it off and fell into his normal stance. Sakura stood naturally seemingly content to just watch her teammate. After a moment Naruto sighed and looked her straight in the eye, “Are you going to fight or not?” he asked bluntly. Her only response was a quick smirk before she lunged at him. Naruto dodged the first two punches before moving to block the third with his fist. Upon impact his eyes widened and Sakura's smirk grew wider when she heard him whisper, “Damn baa-san.” He jumped back quickly and shook his left hand trying to bring the feeling back into it; he made a quick mental note to stick to dodging.

He launched forward and caught Sakura slightly off guard by aiming to take her legs out from under her. He succeeded but Sakura recovered quickly and Naruto found himself back on the defensive. After twenty minutes of trading blows Sakura was starting to get rather winded and was discouraged to note that Naruto looked like he hadn't done more than take a casual stroll through the park. Genma took note of the girl's state and decided that they had sparred long enough, “That's good enough for now. I'll have you spar again before we leave tonight, but for now we'll work on something else.” Konohamaru, Moegi and Udon, who had managed to behave themselves as they watched the two older shinobi fight, groaned in disappointment. The fight had been way more entertaining then class work.

“Why don't you two work on chakra control or something? Just see how long you can stay stuck to that tree branch,” he said pointing to a branch overhead. Naruto's shoulders slumped in disappointment but he recovered quickly and jumped up onto the branch. He allowed his feet to slip until he was hanging up side down; he turned expectantly to Sakura who was shaking her head at him, “Show off.” In contrast to Naruto Sakura ran up the side of the tree before joining him on the branch Genma had pointed to. “We'll be up here all day,” she heard Naruto mumble.

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An hour later Konohamaru sincerely believed Naruto's early statement. “If this is what training is like once you're a Gennin then I don't wanna be one,” he grumbled as he turned to wake up Udon. Moegi glared over at him and returned to watching Sakura hang from her perch on the branch. “How do you do that?” she finally asked.

Sakura looked down in shock at the academy students in front of her. She had been performing this exercise for so long with her team that she had forgotten it was something they had learned after graduation. She thought for several moments before grinning and turning back to red-head sitting below her. “It's an exercise in chakra control that Kakashi-sensei taught us on our mission in the wave country. Basically you have to gather chakra to the bottom of the feet and use it to stick to the tree, but it has to be an exact amount or you could fall off or crack the wood under your feet.” The students looked up in awe.

“That is sooo cool,” Moegi squealed. Sakura grinned down at her, “You'll probably learn it when you become Gennin.” Moegi rubbed her chin as she thought for a moment, “I -” she was cut off by Konohamaru before she could comment, “Think of how many more pranks we could pull if we could stick to walls and stuff.” Naruto glanced down briefly before smirking and turning away. Those brats had no idea just how right they were.

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Naruto and Sakura continued training for the next several hours and by the time Genma had them break for lunch Sakura was beginning to wonder if this was what Naruto went through everyday. She was exhausted; her training under Tsunade almost never left her this physically drained. It difficult because of how much chakra control it required but the normal focus wasn't on her physical abilities. Tsunade had only strengthened her enough that she could hold her own, after that it was her own responsibility to make sure she could fight. Tsunade had said that it was more important to solidify her medical skills at this time and that they would start incorporating everything else later. She sorely wished they had started earlier.

“Hey look,” Moegi said catching her attention. She turned to see her pointing up at the sky with one hand and shading his eyes with the other. She looked up and gasped when she saw what Moegi was pointing at. The sun was just past its peak for that day and there wasn't a cloud in the sky to block their view of it. Encircling the sun was a beautiful double rainbow. She scowled and glanced over at Naruto when she heard him say, “What of it?”

“Baka, it's pretty that's what,” Sakura responded while hitting Naruto over the head. “Who cares if it's pretty?” Naruto asked rubbing the growing bump on his head and scowling at Sakura. It had been so long since she had seen him act like his normal self that Sakura couldn't help but crack a smile at him.

“My grandpa said that a rainbow is a bad omen, especially one around the sun,” Konohamaru said glancing nervously up at the sun, “He said they represent snakes so they're bad.”

The others looked at him for a moment before Moegi finally spoke, “Do you think it's true?” Konohamaru glanced over and nodded, “I saw one the day he died.” Moegi gasped and the others looked slightly uncomfortable. Genma raised his eyebrow slightly as he watched them all become rather unnerved. “Bad omens are only a superstition; that incident was only a coincidence,” he said trying to relax the group of kids. He was already going to be in trouble when they learned he had let Konohamaru, Moegi and Udon stay with them; it would be worse if the kids were permanently scarred.

“How do you know?” Konohamaru asked bluntly bringing Genma back to attention. He groaned slightly as he turned to look at the young boy; he had hoped that he would be able to avoid any in depth conversation but apparently today wasn't his lucky day. “The full moon's a bad omen to,” he continued in his usual slow drawl. He rolled his eyes when he noticed that the Konohamaru Corps didn't have any idea what he was talking about.

“Last night was a full moon,” Genma explained. Konohamaru looked over at the Jounin still slightly confused. “Nothing bad happened last night,” he said growing slightly aggravated at the current level of stupidity they were showing. Moegi's face brightened in understanding suddenly and she smiled over at Konohamaru. She was about to speak when Naruto interrupted.

“Sometimes it's the day after that the full moon that the omen refers to,” the blond said without bothering to even look at anyone. Genma noted that the students were even jitterier now then they were before and turned to gaze at the blond in annoyance. He grew even more exasperated when he noticed that Sakura was nodding in agreement. “Name one thing that happened in either of those circumstances,” he challenged back.

“My parents died on the night of the full moon and I found out the day after,” Sakura admitted glancing sadly over at Konohamaru. The boy looked up shocked and then turned to glare at Genma. The Jounin shifted nervously and looked away before adding, “One accident doesn't mean it's a bad omen. That only means a full moon brings back bad memories for you just like a rainbow brings back bad memories for him.”

“Sasuke left the night of the full moon; the failed rescue mission was the day after,” Naruto added shocking everyone. Sakura turned away and stared at the ground trying to regain her composure. Genma wasn't quite sure what Naruto was trying to do but it was really starting to get on his nerves. There was no point to dredge all this up just to scare Konohamaru and the others. He took the needle from his mouth and twirled it around his fingers as he turned to look at Naruto. “Another fluke. Your team just has bad experiences with full moons. The other Gennin teams could find similar patterns if they looked,” he said trying to end the conversation.

Sakura and Naruto exchanged a quick glance before Sakura smirked and piped up, “The Uchiha Massacre.” Genma almost snarled as he looked at the two Gennin in front of him. “Another fluke,” he said rather uncomfortably. The Konohamaru Corps were starting to look very nervous and the smirk that had just appeared on Naruto's face made everyone in the clearing feel slightly apprehensive. “The Kyuubi's final attack was on the night of the full moon.”

Genma's jaw dropped and fumbled with the needle in his hand for a moment before he recovered and glared at Naruto. There was no way that brat knew for certain what phase the moon was in that night. He groaned when realized that Naruto had merely guessed and his actions had certified that assumption. “Brat,” he mumbled as he stood and looked down at Konohamaru and the others said, “Naruto is just trying to scare you.” Judging by the looks they all sent him no one in the clearing believed him but that didn't matter anymore. He turned to Sakura and Naruto determined to get everyone off the topic and declared, “You've had a long enough break. Get back to work.” The two groaned and stood to resume their training. After several minutes the Konohamaru Corps relaxed a bit and sat back to watch Naruto and Sakura train.

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After several more hours of training Genma announced that he wanted Sakura and Naruto to spar once more before they headed back to town. Konohamaru, Moegi, and Udon looked up excitedly as the two fell into position. They had stuck it out all day but hadn't seen much more excitement and now they got to see another fight.

Naruto and Sakura stopped what they had been doing and walked into the middle of the clearing. Sakura's breathing was a bit ragged but she seemed excited to spar against Naruto again. The minute Genma said “Go” Sakura lunged forth, once again making the first move. Naruto remembered his earlier mistakes and continued dodging being sure not to block any of her attacks. After throwing several punches Sakura shifted gears and kicked out at Naruto successfully knocking him off his feet. Unfortunately Naruto rolled the minute he hit the ground managing to avoid the punch she had aimed at his chest. He jumped up and glared at her before deciding to take the offensive. Sakura managed to block the first several hits but the fourth met her stomach with enough force to send her backwards into a tree. She stood shakily and looked at Naruto with determination burning in her eyes.

Just as she was about to attack she noticed Naruto tense up and whirl around to face Genma. The Jounin was standing as well and was looking around the clearing. It took her a moment to understand their actions but she finally sensed the chakra heading towards them. She didn't recognize any of them and she immediately understood Naruto and Genma's unease these weren't friends.

Konohamaru, Moegi, and Udon looked around nervously. All three of the older shinobi were tense and waiting expectantly for something. They all turned to their right as Sakura walked over to them and pulled out a kunai. Konohamaru noticed that Naruto had done the same; Genma had yet to draw a weapon.

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The attack started suddenly and even though they knew it was coming they were caught slightly off guard. Genma managed to dodge the kunai that had been thrown at him but when he paused his leg was snared by an odd vine on the ground. When the next round of kunai came he wasn't so lucky; two of the blades managed to hit his arm. Genma swiped at the vine with one of the kunai he had pulled out of his arm and jumped to avoid the next onslaught.

Naruto was already seeking out the source of the attack and was the first to see the vines shooting out of the trees. He threw several shuriken in that direction but frowned when he heard no signs of contact. Genma had managed to avoid the vines sent his direction and was oddly relieved that the attack was aimed at him. Even though Naruto was attacking he noticed that neither the blond nor his pink-haired teammate and the Konohamaru Corps were under attack.

The barrage of weapons and vines stopped abruptly and the Jounin took this opportunity to organize the others, “Sakura stay by those three. Naruto stay near them as well; keep an eye out and try to pinpoint the attackers.” A moment later more kunai were launched into the clearing. Genma was rather occupied with dodging but he didn't fail to notice that the kunai were coming from several directions. Naruto noticed this as well and immediately created four Kage Bunshins and directed them into the tree canopy to search out the attackers.

Four pops signaled the demise of the clones but not before Naruto caught a glimpse of one of the attackers. In a tree about fifteen feet behind Genma Naruto had caught sight of movement; he assumed that this was the person controlling the vines that had ensnared Genma earlier. He created three more Kage Bunshins two of them were sent after whoever was throwing the weapons and the third went for whoever was controlling the vines.

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In the meantime Genma continued dodging the weapons and trying to attack back unfortunately every time he went to move out of the clearing he was effectively blocked. The vines were becoming cumbersome and had caused him to get hit twice more; his right arm had been hit three times and was hanging limply at his side the fourth kunai had hit his stomach and he was bleeding rather profusely from that wound. He knew that he was currently the main target and chose to worry about himself for the time being while allowing Naruto and the others to do what they could.

While Naruto waited for his shadow clones to work he took a moment to quickly glance over at Sakura. She was standing in front of Moegi and had Konohamaru and Udon slightly behind and to the side. Everyone in the group had some sort of weapon out but the Konohamaru Corps wouldn't be able to do anything if even Genma was trapped. Glancing back and forth between Genma and the others he finally made a decision. “Sakura-chan, take those three and head back to the village. Get help,” he said out of the corner of his mouth while scanning the area for his clones. None of them had been hit but he didn't know where they were or what they were doing.

“Are you insane Naruto? They won't just let us leave,” Sakura hissed back.

“They won't have a choice. When you go your path will be clear,” Naruto said sparing another glance in his teammate's direction. Sakura looked at him nervously before glancing at the three academy students behind her. These three were sitting ducks if they stayed here. So far they hadn't been targeted but who knew how long that would last. She looked back up at Naruto and nodded.

The blond nodded back and looked around the clearing again, a “pop” above him signaled the death of one of his clones and he took this as his cue jumping up into the trees. While in the canopy he created another ten clones. Four clones were sent back down to the clearing; the others dispersed still trying to draw out whoever was throwing the kunai; and Naruto and one clone waited. A moment later his clones reappeared holding Sakura and the others; a cloud of smoke later the four clones were identical copies of their counterparts. Several kunai flew at them and the cloned versions of Naruto, Sakura, and the Konohamaru Corps dropped back down to earth to avoid them while Naruto turned the others and said, “Stick to the trees and get back to Konoha, they won't be able to stop you.” Sakura nodded and took off making sure that the other three were following her. Once they were out of sight Naruto headed towards the tree where he had seen one of their attackers.

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Genma was growing very irritated. Whoever was attacking didn't seem very strong but they were getting their point across. He had suffered two more hits and hadn't been able to make a single move in offense. He began dodging again as the next wave of kunai began but his eyes widened when he realized that these weren't just aimed at him. He turned and watched Naruto and Sakura manage to deflect all of the ones aimed at them. When the barrage paused once more Naruto turned to the others and said, “Go.” Sakura and the three students dashed to the edge of the clearing. Naruto was joined on the ground by three clones and they continued sheltering the others' escape.

Genma's eyes widened when more vines shot out not only blocking their escape but also holding the Narutos in place. He whipped his head around when he saw Konohamaru shout and point behind him; he barely managed to avoid the vines aimed at him but in the process wasn't able to avoid the next three kunai. Genma reached down and pulled two kunai out of his right thigh and a third out of his left calf. Those hits were going to slow him down a lot he needed to get Naruto and the others out of the clearing. It was possible that whoever was attacking was part of the Akatsuki, if that was so getting Naruto out of the picture was his top priority.

His eyes widened when a man suddenly jumped down from the canopy of the trees holding a squirming Naruto. A moment later the four Narutos originally on the ground were dispersed and Genma realized that one who had been caught was most likely the real one. He glanced over at Sakura and the others and noticed them watching Naruto struggle in horror. Once again he barely managed to avoid the vines creeping up on him; he dodged but looked up quickly when he heard a shot. He was just in time to see Sakura take a hit; luckily the hit was quickly followed by a loud pop as the girl disappeared. The man who was holding Naruto glared in the general direction of the three students and then threw three more kunai. None of them even bothered dodging and Genma smirked when each disappeared in a puff of smoke.

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“Idzumo,” the man holding Naruto called out. A moment later a teenager came out of the trees Naruto had been aiming at before. Genma assumed she had been the one controlling the vines. “The younger ones ran off while he,” he said jabbing a finger at Naruto, “covered for them. One of our targets is with them; eliminate her and the other three so that there are no witnesses.” The violet haired teen, Idzumo, nodded and took off out of the clearing.

Genma tried to stand to go after her but found that his right leg would no longer support him. He sighed and looked back up at the man behind Naruto and grimaced when he saw the musical note on his forehead protector. “What does Sound want with a Gennin like Haruno Sakura?” Genma questioned trying to buy Naruto and himself some time. This man was wearing the same uniform as the Sound Four had; if these two were of the same level as the last four then time was something they would need.

The Sound Nin glanced in his general direction and Genma got the vague suspicion that the man wasn't really looking at him. He tried to stand again only to be met with several shuriken headed his way. He wasn't quite sure where the Nin had stored them all but he was too concerned with dodging to really think about it. After dodging for several minutes he looked up to see Naruto lash out against his captor a moment later the blond was flung straight into the trunk of a tree. “Shit,” he mumbled as he forced his legs to hold him up.

A moment later he realized that he had no real reason to worry as Naruto stood up and glared. “You never answered his question. Why are you after Sakura-chan?” The Sound Nin looked at him impassively before turning and hurling more shuriken at Genma. Naruto quickly created about fifty clones and made sure that Genma was fully covered. The Jounin had taken a lot of hits while he had been working with Sakura and the others and Naruto wasn't quite sure how much more the man could take. He sighed when they started disappearing and made even more in preparation to attack. The man still hadn't answered their question.

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Once they were a bit away from the clearing Sakura slowed and allowed Konohamaru and the others to catch their breath. She looked over each of them to make sure they were uninjured and was happy to see that none of them had more than a small scratch or two. “We need to keep going, they need help from Konoha,” she said after their breathing had returned to normal. The three nodded and she ushered them ahead of her. “You three take the lead so I can watch our backs. Any attack will come from that direction. If something happens keep running towards the village,” she said as they took off. She was pleased to note that they were keeping a good pace and she hoped they would reach the village fast enough to send help back to Naruto and Genma.

She was also pleased that no one had come after them yet. It meant that Naruto and Genma were still handling themselves. When a kunai pierced the branch she was about to land on she missed the branch and let herself fall to the ground. “Keep going,” she shouted to Konohamaru. “When you get to the village Moegi and Udon should stay and tell the Gate guards what happened. Konohamaru, I want you to go to Tsunade and tell her,” she added as she faced the attacker in front of her. Her eyes widened when she saw the girls forehead protector. “Tell her Sound has attacked,” was the last thing Konohamaru and the others heard before the sound of metal clashing together and fighting took over the area. The three students glanced at each other and continued on.

Sakura dodged one the vines that grabbed at her leg and tried to get closer to the girl in front of her. The vines were making close combat very difficult and she couldn't use any of the medical techniques Tsunade had taught her how to use in battle. She didn't have any very good long distance techniques and so far the Sound Nin she was fighting had dodged everything she had thrown at her. The pink haired Gennin growled in frustration and looked hard at her opponent. This fight wasn't going anywhere and although it was keeping the other Nin from going after the Konohamaru Corps it wasn't really helping Naruto and Genma. It would be better to be by Naruto. Together they were stronger so taking on two opponents would be a bit easier.

She set about trying to find a way to herd her opponent back towards the clearing but it seemed the girl had had the same idea. The violet haired Nin suddenly spun around and ran back towards the clearing they had fled from earlier. Sakura hesitated for a moment unsure what her opponent was doing but then sprang forth after her and back to her teammate.

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She skidded to halt the moment she entered the clearing and her eyes widened. The clearing was filled with Naruto clones. They were being replaced just as quickly as they were being decimated by the two Sound Nin that she saw him fighting. One was the girl she had been fighting and the other was a man she hadn't seen before. The violet haired Nin growled out, “Masahiro, these clones are getting annoying let me get rid of them.” The man next to her, Sakura assumed this was the Masahiro she had been speaking to, nodded in ascent and the girl quickly stepped back. She raised her hand and brought it down in slashing a movement and shouted, “Tou Tsurukusa no Jutsu,” immediately the air was filled with sickle shaped vines that quickly cut through the many clones to reveal a panting Naruto, Sakura, and Genma.

Naruto growled at the two in front of him and looked back to make sure Sakura and Genma were okay. He noticed that, like him, both had received several cuts from that girl's jutsu. He assumed that she specialized with jutsu involving plants and realized that the habitat around them probably gave her an advantage, especially if she could draw on the existing resources. He wondered vaguely why she had asked permission to act but his train of thoughts was cut off when the other man attacked. The jackass hadn't shown any jutsu but his aim was trouble and he was already getting tired of dodging.

He growled again when he noticed most of the attack was still being aimed at Genma which incidentally put Sakura in the line of fire as well. If he used Kage Bunshin too much more he would grow tired and that left few options and right now the top one was to get rid of at least on threat. Right now the weaker one seemed to be the violet haired girl; he briefly remembered that her name was Idzumo. Completely ignoring the other man's attack he went after her. He was almost immediately intercepted by the other man and tossed like a rag doll into a tree.

While he was down the girl smirked at him and sent a number of vines at Genma and Sakura. Genma was unable to dodge and this time the vines didn't just grab his legs to hold them in place one of the vines crept up the Jounin's body pinning his arms in place and then going for his neck. The vine tightened and Genma's eyes bulged slightly at the sudden lack of oxygen. Naruto vaguely heard Sakura scrambling towards the Jounin but he didn't bother looking. He ran through the now familiar seals and brought his hand up to his mouth. The fire quickly cut Idzumo off from the vines and the burn it caused rendered her right arm useless. She hissed in pain and glared at the blond Gennin.

Sakura quickly removed the vine from Genma's neck and checked his pulse. She was happy to find it though it was rather weak. She glanced gratefully at Naruto before standing and glaring at the violet haired girl standing not far from her. She tried not wincing when she saw the massive burn on her right side but quickly steadied herself before performing several seals of her own before disappearing.

Naruto smirked when he recognized the jutsu she had used as Doton Shinjuu Zanshu no Jutsu. Idzumo looked bewildered as she glanced around the clearing but Naruto noticed unhappily that Masahiro seemed to be watching the ground intently. If the other man could trace Sakura underground it could endanger her so it was best to distract him. He quickly thought through all the jutsu he knew looking for something that would work to distract the other man. Coming up short he decided to resort to his old tactics. He created nine clones and quickly had them pair off and begin the Rasengan.

He could feel the clone next him as it concentrated chakra into a spinning ball in his hand. When the clone was finished it jumped out of the way and gave Naruto a clear shot at Masahiro. At the same time that Naruto jumped forward another clone jumped forward holding another Rasengan in its hand. Masahiro dodged both of them and the two Narutos hit the dirt creating massive craters that would forever dot the countryside. He managed to dodge two of the others as well although he was hit by the debris when one of them hit a tree and tore it up. With three clones down the rest jumped into the fray and Naruto turned to look at the rest of the clearing. Masahiro seemed to have forgotten about the fifth clone with a Rasengan and Naruto hoped it would work. He smirked when he saw one of his clones grab onto the larger man and signaled to the last clone. It ran straight at the others and thrust the Rasengan through the clone and into Masahiro. At least he would have if Masahiro hadn't been able to dodge at the last moment.

He glared at the man in front of him and looked around the clearing. None his clones' hits were landing and he was growing concerned because Sakura had yet to resurface. Just as he was about to jump in and help his clones a feminine shout cause him to whirl back around. Sakura was standing behind Idzumo and it only took a twitch of the hand to tell him what move his teammate had used. “You stupid pinkie what did you do to me?” Idzumo screeched out as she tried to turn and glare at Sakura. This only served to unsettle her feet and topple the girl over.

Sakura glanced up Idzumo and looked between Naruto and Genma unsure of what to do. Sensing his teammates discomfort Naruto jumped away from Masahiro. Idzumo was still struggling and trying to stand back up when Naruto appeared above her. He glanced down before looking back at his hand and pulling out chakra as he readied the Rasengan. Idzumo's eyes widened when he thrust the swirling chakra into her chest. Masahiro looked at the scene dispassionately before destroying the rest of the blond clones.

Naruto fought away the revulsion and the impulse to throw up before looking back up at Sakura. “Make sure that Genma is alright,” he said as turned back to Masahiro. The man sent him a level look and Naruto fought to keep a straight face, he really thought he was going to be sick soon. Sakura kneeled next to Genma and noticed with some relief that he appeared to be conscious. She set about trying to heal some of his wounds while not thinking about what she had just seen. She had seen people die before. She had seen her sensei and many other older shinobi kill their opponents before. Seeing Naruto do it was different. Genma tried to sit up but she pushed him back down trying to ignore the tears running down her face.

XXXXXXXXX

“They told us you still needed two hands,” said a voice they were unfamiliar with. Naruto turned quickly to assess the new danger and saw a young woman with long brown hair and black eyes. She was wearing the same uniform as the other two had and the sound emblem was prominently shown on her forehead protector. He continued to watch her as she looked at him curiously.

“What happened to Urinuru?” the man next to him said suddenly.

“He's dead,” she responded nonchalantly while still looking at Naruto, “I asked you a question you know. When did you learn to perform that move one handed?” Naruto swallowed and continued watching the woman in front of him as she slowly lost her patience. This boy was so much like his teammate it wasn't funny. She decided to use the same tactic she had used on Sasuke earlier and goad the answer out of him “How does someone as weak as you learn such a technique?”

She grew even more aggravated when he continued to look at her levelly and asked quietly, “Who are you?” She looked at him and then glanced over at Masahiro. “I'm Gazan, that is Masahiro, and that” she said pointing at the Idzumo's body, “was Idzumo before you drove that technique of yours into her chest.” She noticed that he seemed to get light headed when he glanced at Idzumo's body and guessed he hadn't taken his first kill very well.

“I already knew their names and that wasn't what I was asking. Why are you here? Why would Orochimaru send you?” he said glancing over at Sakura and Genma. He noted that Genma was beginning to recover as Sakura continued to heal his wounds; although the other man was still pale he was watching intently waiting for the same answer Naruto was.

“Orochimaru-sama believes that you two are becoming nuisances. He wants you dead,” Gazan finally answered. She was a bit peeved that Naruto had never answered her questions but didn't see the harm in answering his. It was already obvious that this was going to be more difficult then originally believed.

“Why you?” Naruto added. He grew unsettled when she looked up and smirked at him.

“He didn't send us, at least not alone,” she finally said while Naruto watched her. He glanced over at Sakura once again; he really didn't like where this was going. “We were the new Sound Four. Unfortunately we lost one of our members on the way here so you won't face all of us.”

XXXXXXXXX

Naruto gulped as his mind raced. He knew there was something about the Sound Four that he should be remembering. He remembered the original Four that they had encountered when going after Sasuke. It probably meant that the new Four weren't as strong as the old Four because they wouldn't have been trained as long; it could also explain why none of them had activated a curse seal yet. Even the old Four hadn't done so until they were forced to. That still didn't explain why Orochimaru's personal body guards had been sent or what happened on the way here. It didn't make sense for them to come here after them.

Gazan watched as the small blond in front of her tried to discover what she was hinting at. She decided to taunt him a bit more before telling him. “Tell me was that your first kill? If so you did rather well everyone must be right about you to be able to kill a defenseless opponent so emotionlessly,” she said glancing back at Idzumo's body and then over to a very uncomfortable Naruto. She noticed vaguely that the pink-haired girl was glaring at her. “I'm shocked really, I didn't believe most of them and the one person I did believe said you weren't a monster. In fact he went so far as to call me a monster just for implying that you were one,” she continued. She was noticed his eyes go wide and glanced back and forth between herself, his teammate, and the Jounin who had been with him.

“Who did you believe?” Naruto asked surprising Gazan. She had expected him to panic by now but it appeared as if his curiosity was winning. She leveled a gaze at him and said nonchalantly, “Sasuke-sama.”

Sakura gasped and looked at Naruto. He noticed vaguely that she seemed to be crying and that more than anything was getting him angry at this woman. She didn't need to do this to Sakura if she was just going to kill them in the end. “What's your point?” he asked finally causing Gazan to turn away from Sakura and back to him. “You're lucky really; he stood by you to the end,” she said quietly causing Naruto to look at her in confusion until comprehension dawned on his face.

Sakura was looking back and forth between the two trying to figure out what was going on before she looked down at Genma for help. The Jounin was listening intently to everything being said. He could only hope that Naruto could keep them talking long enough for him to regain some strength or for help to arrive. He remembered what the last Sound Four were capable and didn't want Naruto facing them if they activated the curse seal or went on to level two.

“What do you mean?” Naruto finally asked praying that she wouldn't say what he thought she would. “He said he never regretted saving you from Haku. Who's Haku?” she asked innocently eliciting another gasp from Sakura. Naruto looked at her for a moment before replying plainly, “An opponent, Sasuke took a hit for me that almost killed him.”

Gazan looked at him for a moment before sighing. She had hoped for a better story than that but apparently this one was about as talkative as the Uchiha had been. “Would you do the same for her?” she asked pointing to his pink-haired teammate. Naruto nodded without hesitation and continued watching the black eyed Sound Nin in front of him. “What about him?” she asked pointing to Genma. He looked at her oddly before once more replying in the affirmative. “If Sasuke were here now, would you die for him?”

Sakura's eyes went wide. As much as she wanted to see her teammate she couldn't do this. If Sasuke was here… if they had sent him here to kill Naruto she couldn't… she started to hyperventilate as scenario after scenario ran through her head. She had heard about the fight between Naruto and Sasuke. He hadn't told her about it but Tsunade had. It had taken the Hokage two months to even get him to tell her about and when he had Sakura had managed to get some information from her mentor. She knew that Sasuke had tried to kill Naruto. She couldn't understand why but she knew it had happened and she wouldn't let it happen again. “Calm down Sakura,” Naruto's voice soothed as it broke through her thoughts, “Sasuke isn't here.” She didn't know how he knew what she had been thinking about but her breathing slowed as she looked up at him.

“That depends,” Naruto said honestly, “Six months ago I would have said yes without hesitation. Now I could die to save him, but…” he paused and looked up at her, his brows furrowed in thought. “Yeah I would,” he said looking straight into her eyes. She noticed they had a rather dead look in them but the boy was being honest. Even after Sasuke-sama had betrayed him he was willing to die for his friend. She glanced over at Masahiro, who had remained silent the entire time. “Funny, he was willing to die for you as well,” she said when she turned back to him. Sakura fell back from her position near Genma and looked at the Sound Nin in horror. “His last words were `at least they'll live',” she said looking Sakura and not Naruto. “Unfortunately we can't fulfill that wish,” Masahiro said cutting in.

As Sakura tried to regain her composure a barrage of kunai was sent at her and Genma. Apparently the Jounin had healed enough that he managed to move both himself and her out of the way without getting hit. When he set her on her feet she swayed for moment before standing up straight and looking at the two Sound Nins in front of her. “What makes you think we'll roll over and die?” Sakura asked looking straight at Masahiro. The next thing she knew she was flung backwards into Genma before the two hit the ground. She sat up and looked around trying to see what had caused her to fall only to be met with a passive look from Gazan.

Genma struggled up and pulled Sakura with him before pulling out several shuriken. Sakura followed his lead and turned to see Naruto forming seals. He jumped quickly towards Masahiro and before shouting “Yomi no Shoutaku,” a small swamp appeared under Masahiro but it wasn't deep enough to fully swallow the man. After a slight struggle the older Nin was able to make it out of the swamp before turning impassively back to Naruto.

The older man swung his arm and Naruto immediately brought his arms up to shield himself from whatever was coming his way. A shout to his left revealed that he hadn't been the target. Sakura was pinned to tree about fifteen feet behind him struggling to free herself from the invisible force holding her in place. Genma was looking at her in confusion trying to figure out what Masahiro had done. Naruto shared his confusion; he couldn't remember the man using any hand seals or anything that would signal a jutsu.

He quickly snapped out of it and released the swamp knowing it would just get in the way later. He quickly summoned more clones and left Genma to deal with the woman who had arrived earlier. At the same time the clones leapt up and hurled a multitude of shuriken and kunai at the Sound Nin; Naruto barely had time to dodge as they were sent spinning back towards him before they even got close to other Nin. Naruto's clones weren't as lucky as the loud pops that filled the clearing gave testimony to. A moment later he found himself in the same predicament as Sakura struggling against whatever Masahiro had used to bind him to the tree.

Genma paused momentarily and to glance at Naruto and that was all the opening Gazan needed to land another blow. The woman had gashed his stomach and quickly kicked him hard in the chest sending him skidding across the ground. He landed near Sakura's feet and she struggled harder to get out of her bonds so that she could help. Genma tried to stand but found his legs wouldn't support him. He sat up and almost panicked when he saw both Masahiro and Gazan standing in front of Naruto. He seemed to be struggling to breath and Genma only guess that whatever was holding him in place was growing tighter.

XXXXXXXXX

“What kind of fight do you think this is?” Gazan asked dispassionately, “Do your friends' lives me so little that you continue to hold back against us?” Naruto glared at her before wheezing slightly as his air supply was slowly cut off. Sakura was staring at the group trying to figure out what they meant. “You can't honestly be pompous enough to believe that you are a threat to Orochimaru simply because you are Jiraiya's pupil. The girl is dangerous for that reason but not you. Your death will achieve much more; even if he can't use you to gain the Mangekyou Sharingan he can destroy his enemy's plans,” Naruto's eyes widened slightly and Genma tried harder to stand after hearing Masahiro continue for Gazan.

“If you're going to kill me just do it,” Naruto spat out glaring at her. He didn't care why he they wanted him dead and her tone was beginning to piss him off.

“Under normal circumstances I would; after all the last Sound Four died because they spent too much time playing around. However you ruined Orochimaru's plan this warrants different measures to be taken,” Gazan said with a slight sneer at the mention of the previous Four. “I'll ask again; when did you learn to perform that move one-handed?”

Naruto looked up at her for a moment before turning and looking away. He had no intentions of giving her any answers. “Why are you holding back?” Gazan questioned interrupting Naruto's thoughts. “You're holding back as well,” he replied tritely. Masahiro looked down on him and replied curtly, “Not even the Kyuubi is worth our full power.” Naruto panicked slightly but Sakura just looked at Masahiro in confusion. She couldn't believe that they would be strong enough to fight a demon like the Kyuubi without using their full power. She also couldn't understand why they had brought a demon that had died twelve years ago.

Naruto glanced at Sakura and Gazan followed his line of sight. She studied the girl for a moment before realizing why he was panicking. She figured that by now the others would have at least learned of the demon he held. “I must say I am disappointed that someone with such legendary power has put up such a weak fight against us. Though I suppose you did show your true colors when you killed our comrade in cold blood.”

Sakura couldn't believe what they were saying to Naruto. They attacked them and then complained about the death of their comrade. “Shut up,” she growled drawing their attention. Naruto was looking pale and she was worried that whatever was holding him in place was injuring him. She also didn't like the placid looks of the two Sound Nin standing near him.

Masahiro turned to the annoying girl and she shrieked when she felt her bonds tighten. Naruto turned and glared at him causing Gazan to look at him oddly. “My understanding was that you had grown strong enough to pose a challenge to Sasuke-sama, but I cannot understand how one as weak as yourself could pose a challenge to him. You shame the demon's name,” she said glancing at Sakura from the corner of her eye. She dodged the kunai thrown at her and turned angrily to Genma. He had managed to stand and was glaring at her. Gazan turned to Masahiro and Genma was immediately thrown into a tree before he collapsed at its base. He tried to stand but fell backwards; he was forced to watch the rest through half-lidded eyes.

“Use the demon,” Masahiro said bluntly. Sakura continued to watch in confusion as she struggled to break what ever was holding her. She didn't know why they kept taunting Naruto about demons. “You look confused,” Gazan said walking over to Sakura. She lifted the girls chin up forcing her to look slightly past her at Naruto.

Naruto's eyes widened as Sakura suddenly screamed. Gazan continued to hold her head up and Naruto could see his teammate biting her lip to stop herself from screaming again.

Sakura watched Naruto while trying to ignore the pain as she was slowly crushed. She was suddenly reminded of the time Gaara had crushed her with his sand. Naruto had saved her then but she didn't think he'd be able to again.

“You don't know your teammate well do you. He obviously doesn't trust you,” she stated glancing back at Naruto. Sakura gazed at Gazan in confusion, who was she to judge how well they trusted each other?

“For him to keep something like this from you is preposterous. To be endangered by your own teammate. Of course your sensei would have known as well, he had to have been told what the boy was.” Sakura looked at Naruto desperately she could barely get enough air in her lungs and if this kept up she would pass out before suffocating. She couldn't get loose and this woman's taunting wasn't helping in the least.

“I must say I pity you for being subjected to the presence of something as vile as him.” Sakura let out a whimper and tried to look down but Gazan's hand kept her from doing so. “Please stop,” she whispered painfully. She couldn't stand listening to her anymore.

“He should have been killed years ago. I heard this village was wonderful once but I'd want to live here even less than the Hidden Village of Sand. Living with a monster like Gaara is one thing. But being forced to live with one who pretends to be innocent after the massacre he caused is even worse.” Sakura tried to block out what the Nin in front of her was saying. How could they compare Naruto to someone like Gaara? Naruto never did anything wrong.

“I don't blame your village in the least for hating the Kyuubi. All the pain he's caused reminding them daily of everyone they lost while grinning at their pain.” Sakura gasped as the bonds became tighter and she couldn't stop a tear from slipping down her cheek. She made the mistake of looking to Naruto for help and whimpered more. He was staring helplessly at the ground. “Naruto…please…” she said causing him to glance up at her. She had never seen his eyes that filled with pain. During the past months they had been either blank or angry but never that full of despair. She looked up and glared at the woman in front of her. “Shut up,” she repeated stronger than the first time.

“Your Yondaime was so strong he defeated the Kyuubi, that's what you were told isn't it?” she asked ignoring Sakura's statement. Sakura could only look at her in disbelief. What did this bitch think she was doing? What was she trying to get at? Hadn't they hurt them enough? She lost some of her fervor and fought to hold back her tears.

“He wasn't strong enough you know. No mortal can just kill a demon, especially not one like the Kyuubi, one of the strongest. So he sealed it,” Gazan said nonchalantly still watching Sakura for a reaction. A look of intense confusion crossed her face before she looked at Naruto horrified. He was looking straight back at her with an almost identical look on his face.

“Your friend there carries a lovely looking seal on his stomach. Whenever he wants he can tap in to that power. It's curious isn't it; he said he'd die for you but he isn't even using his full power to protect you.” Sakura could only stare at Naruto. He was gazing at the ground his shoulders slumped in defeat. She tried to sort through everything she had just been told but she couldn't understand. She thought through all the times they had been trouble when Naruto had suddenly managed to do things no Gennin ever should. Suddenly her memory landed on one incident in particular. He had stood up to Kisame and those eyes. Those eyes weren't his; those red eyes …were Kyuubi's. She could only look at her teammate in horror.

XXXXXXXXX

Gazan watched as Sakura realized she had been telling the truth. One glance behind told her that Naruto wouldn't be able to fight. Sakura was staring at him still thinking it seemed but the girl knew now and the rest of their job would be easy. Behind her Masahiro smirked and released Sakura allowing the girl to slump to the base of the tree. He glanced once at the Jounin before launching more kunai at him. Genma was unable to protect himself and was impaled several times, he slowly sunk into unconsciousness.

Naruto looked up sharply when he heard Sakura cry out. Masahiro had thrown her into another tree and was slowly choking her. He had left her arms under her control and she was clawing at her neck. If any of the others had been watching they would have seen his eyes flash red once. The next time Gazan turned his way she froze. The red eyes of the Kyuubi looked straight into hers and rendered her motionless. A moment later she saw him manage to twitch his right hand was shocked to see red chakra take the form of a hand and move straight for Masahiro. He turned just as the giant hand slammed into him.

Masahiro quickly released the girl and turned to the real threat. It appeared as if the boy had finally tapped into the demon fox's chakra seeing as how he was surrounded by it. He stood up only to be hit down by what looked like a tail of chakra. His eyes went wide when he felt himself lifted and looked down to see the hand he had been hit by earlier wrapped around his torso and dragging him towards the boy. Orochimaru must not have known the true capabilities of the Kyuubi's host; this wasn't something they had been warned about.

Masahiro countered by sending a wave of chakra at Naruto in an attempt to strengthen the bind holding the boy in place. Naruto easily stepped away from the tree and towards Masahiro. One his tails lashed out again blocking Gazan from going towards Sakura or Genma. Another tail of chakra lashed out at Masahiro driving him back slightly. Naruto finally lunged at him but Masahiro managed to stop him about five feet away. Naruto growled at the older man and swung his arm down anyway. The hand of chakra returned and swatted Masahiro forcing him to relinquish his hold on Naruto.

The hand acted on its own again and grabbed Masahiro drawing him towards Naruto once more. The blond created a Rasengan in his hand while the other was still extended in a fashion similar to the one of chakra. When the other man was closer Naruto lunged again holding the Rasengan out in front of him.

The collision left the others shocked. Masahiro was left with a gaping hole in his chest. His eyes glazed over as he crumbled to the ground. Naruto quickly flipped away and crouched on the ground holding on to his right arm. The Kyuubi's chakra quickly faded so when Naruto looked back up at them his blue eyes were shining with fear.

XXXXXXXXX

Konohamaru skidded to a stop at the gates. Moegi and Udon stopped just behind and looked around for the guards. When they couldn't spot any of the guards Moegi panicked and shouted, “Help!” before almost breaking down in tears. They had left Sakura fighting an opponent who was probably really strong. And they had no clue who Naruto and that Jounin were fighting. A guard landed in front of her and squatted down but she was too hysterical to answer anything. “What happened?” the guard asked turning to Konohamaru and Udon.

Konohamaru began frantically explaining everything as the guard called out to two others. “A group of Gennin in the forest was attacked; these two say it was sound. Round up a group and go in to help them,” at this order one of the other guards took off. He turned to the other guard and gave a second order, “Stay here with these three, I'll alert the Hokage.”

“Wait!” Konohamaru shouted when the guard took off. He sprinted after him as fast as he could; luckily the guard turned around and looked at him in confusion. “I have to go with you. She said I had to go tell Tsunade.” The guard looked at him for a moment before asking, “Who said this?”

“Sakura-san,” Konohamaru stuttered out looking at the guard fearfully. The guard's eyes widened at the mention of the Hokage apprentice. If she was one of the Gennin attacked it meant the other was Uzumaki Naruto. This was going to be trouble. He quickly grabbed Konohamaru and sprinted off towards the tower, praying that the others would be fast enough.

XXXXXXXXX

The Godaime Hokage sat in her chair and tried to pay attention to the others in the room. The elders and clan leaders had called a meeting to complain about something as usual - she wasn't paying enough attention to know what they were complaining about. This time the meeting had disrupted her training session with Sakura and tied up all of her time that day. She massaged her forehead and glanced at them in annoyance. She had better things to do with her time than listen to them complain about how she ran things. Not to mention she had missed lunch and it was already dinner time; she was hungry.

After five more minutes Tsunade decided that blatantly ignoring them might send them the right message. She sighed dramatically and turned to stare out the window. She glanced towards the East Gate and wondered if Naruto and Sakura were getting along. She had spoken briefly with Kakashi before he had left it seemed that Naruto might start to open up again. She almost regretted sending him on another mission so soon after his last but this time it really was necessary for him to go along. Maybe she should take Naruto and Sakura out to eat. That would give them time to talk things out and hopefully cheer everyone up; not to mention getting her food and maybe some sake.

“Tsunade-hime, you may be the Hokage but that does not mean you can ignore us,” one of the elders screeched causing Tsunade to turn around and look at them blankly. “We have received complaints from dozens of worried parents about what their children saw at the demonstrations you set up. Allowing that boy to participate endangered not only his opponents but also the bystanders.”

Tsunade narrowed her eyes at that comment and turned directly to the one that spoke. She recognized the old bat as Utatane Koharu had been Sandaime's teammate. She didn't like yelling at her elders but that comment about Naruto was really pissing her off. Though she did note with pride that several of the clan leaders there didn't seem comfortable insulting the boy she grinned there was hope for this village yet. “I'm not sure who you're talking about. There were…” Tsunade paused and took her time to count on her fingers and pretend to whisper to herself as she listed the boys that had participated, “Lee… I guess his skill could be a bit dangerous he has improved quicker than I thought he would after that surgery. Neji… no couldn't be him his attitude as improved greatly since he stopped being an insensitive prick to his cousin. Kiba… a little loud and that last move was overkill but I doubt they mean him. Shino… he is a little too quiet but I don't think he did anything dangerous,” she glanced pretending to be searching through her memories from two days ago. She noted that the Hyuuga and Inuzuka looked slightly uncomfortable. Aburame was as placid as always.

“Chouji did wonderfully so I know they don't mean him,” she continued glancing back down to her hand, “Shikamaru was lazy as always. I suppose they could be talking about him that laziness could land him in trouble one day but none of the academy students would be able to figure that out so I suppose they don't mean him after all.” After finishing she glanced back up and noticed Akimichi Chomaru looked proud at the compliment given his son and Nara Shikato just looked bored and little embarrassed.

“I really can't figure out who you're talking about,” she said smilingly at them sweetly. She would probably incite a handful of dumb blond jokes with this act but she was bored and couldn't help herself. If she was lucky she could give a few of them guilt trips.

“I meant Uzumaki's behavior,” Koharu said. The inflection behind the name was in no way kind. Tsunade immediately wiped the grin off her face and looked flatly at the elder. “I was there he didn't do anything wrong,” she said bluntly.

“He tapped into the demon's chakra and then attacked one of the students. The jutsu he is using are too high level for a Gennin; he shouldn't have taught those,” a man on her left said; Tsunade couldn't remember what his name was.

“He executed perfect control over the Kyuubi's chakra. He fought his assigned opponent and won the fight without seriously injuring Shikamaru. As for the jutsu, you can take that up with Jiraiya but I'll guarantee that he'll only laugh at you,” Tsunade snapped back. They were deliberately twisting the events to make it sound like Naruto did something wrong and it was really starting to piss her off. “Remember that Naruto isn't a normal boy. We can't hold back his growth just to suit his rank. If you feel that the jutsu he has shown mastery of are higher than Gennin level I'll promote him,” she thought for a moment before looking up at them thoughtfully, “I should probably promote him anyways. He defeated a Chuunin in the matches the other day and showed a great deal of maturity, restraint, and thoughtfulness that not even I knew he was capable.”

Those gathered around glanced around at each other before looking back down. They were suddenly reminded why Tsunade had become Hokage when she slammed her fist down on the table and it split in two. “And if I hear any more biased complaints against Naruto you won't like what I have to say about it.”

She stormed out of her office intent on finding Shizune, Sakura and Naruto. She was halfway down the hall when a small figure crashed into her legs. She looked down straight into the fearful eyes of Sandaime's grandson.

Konohamaru had left the guard behind when they entered the tower. He was supposed to tell Tsunade not all the other guards in the building. He ran straight into her when she was down the hall from her office. Without giving her time to ask questions he shot into an explanation of everything that had happened. The longer he talked about the initial attack, their escape from the clearing, and Sakura sending them ahead the wider Tsunade's eyes grew. When he finished he gasped for breath and she grabbed his hand before running down the hall and back into her office.

The elders and clan leaders looked up in shock when Tsunade stormed back in with a young academy student at her heels. “Nara, Akimichi, and Yamanaka get an ANBU teams and find Morino Ibiki have him take you to Naruto's training area. There was an attack by Sound. Aburame and Inuzuka get another team and head out the East Gate, Haruno Sakura was separated from the others and facing off against at least one attacker find her,” the others looked at her in shock as she began sending out orders.

“What the hell are you waiting for?” she snarled. The five she had given orders to quickly jumped up and took off to finish their designated tasks. The minute they were gone she turned back to Konohamaru and had him sit down in one of the vacated seats. “Who else was with you when you were in the woods?” she asked softly trying not to scare him more than she already had.

Konohamaru looked up timidly and responded, “Moegi, Udon, and me went out to watch them train this morning,” he scratched the back of his head nervously and she quirked an eyebrow at him she hadn't been aware that the academy had been off that day. “We sort of skipped class. We were going to head in after they sparred once more,” Konohamaru looked up when he saw Tsunade walk to the door. “Shizune,” she shouted into the empty hall.

A minute later Tsunade's assistant Shizune was seen scurrying down the hall towards Tsunade's voice. When she arrived she was immediately grabbed and Tsunade began walking with her down the hall. “At the East Gate two academy students are waiting with a guard. I want you to go get them and then go get Umino Iruka, from the academy,” she added making sure Shizune knew who she was talking about. “Bring all three of them here.”

Shizune nodded a looked back up when Tsunade didn't release her arm. “Tell the guard at the gate to wait there until everyone has come back in, he'll know what it means. When they arrive back I want him to send everyone back to my office, tell him not speak about anything to anyone. I'll explain when you get back.” Once she was sure Tsunade was finished she nodded and again walked off. She didn't know what was going on but Tsunade was paler than usual and looked incredibly worried. She hoped everything would be alright.

XXXXXXXXX

The minute Naruto looked over at her Sakura struggled to her feet. Without hesitation she ran to his side to make sure there was nothing seriously wrong with his arm. When she was an arms length away he shifted back keeping himself out of reach and watched her fearfully.

Gazan watched the two in front of her as they each tried to process the situation. The mission had failed miserably. Not only had they lost Sasuke-sama but also she couldn't defeat the two in front of her. If Naruto called out the Kyuubi's chakra again she would be killed immediately. She glanced at them again before making her decision. She would rather face Orochimaru's wrath than that of an irate demon vessel. She ran.

Naruto looked up sharply when the remaining attacker fled from the clearing. He immediately jumped up to chase after only to be stopped by Sakura. “Please Naruto lets just take Genma back to the village. Let her go,” the pink haired Gennin pleaded.

Naruto glanced back and forth between Sakura and the fleeing figure before turning back to Sakura and shaking his head. “She killed Sasuke; she isn't leaving here alive,” Sakura looked at him in shock. Naruto wasn't one for revenge this didn't make sense. “Make sure Genma is alright than take him back or wait for help,” Naruto finished and took off after Gazan.

Sakura looked after him for a moment before turning back to Genma. He was bleeding still and the new cuts were in more critical areas. She quickly knelt beside him and began repairing what damage she could. When all the kunai had been removed and the bleeding stopped or slowed Sakura sat back. She was tired and couldn't do much more. She looked down at Genma and checked his pulse once more; it was weak but stable. She looked again in the direction that Naruto had gone and her eyes slowly widened. He hadn't said he would be back. He hadn't said to send help. He had just told her to go back to the village. Without hesitation she sprang to her and ran after him. She couldn't lose him as well.

XXXXXXXXX

When Sakura finally heard sounds of fighting she had reached the edge of the river, the same river where they had faced Kisame. She tried to control her breathing as she looked at the scene in front of her. Naruto was fighting an opponent that she barely recognized. Gazan's skin had darkened and was now mottled gray and black. Her hair had grown past her knees and was wild and jagged with white streaks placed sporadically. Her eyes were white and pupil-less like the Hyuuga's Byakugan; Sakura couldn't tell what direction they were gazing in but she almost certain when Gazan turned to look at her.

Naruto followed what he thought to be Gazan's line of vision and saw Sakura standing at the edge of the tree line. Before he could stop her the Sound Nin took off towards his teammate. Without thinking he called for chakra from the Kyuubi and moved in between the two to block the hit. He was pleased to note that it hadn't been necessary as Sakura had already dodged.

Sakura had dodged the hit and looked up to see Naruto blocking it anyways. If this hadn't been such a serious situation she would have smiled at him. Instead she jumped over him and landed kick to Gazan's face and following that with a hard punch straight the chest. Gazan landed roughly and clutched her chest; she had most likely just broken a rib or two. She looked around the clearing and noticed in annoyance that the two had disappeared.

She quietly pulled out a small calligraphy brush she held it in both hands and concentrated. The brush began to grow and quickly became its full size, almost five feet tall. She raised it above her head and sketched several kanji designs in the air before saying, “Kuchiyose no Jutsu: Koumojutsu Oni.” The beast that appeared in front of her was about two feet taller than her, had horns, three eyes and a wide mouth filled with vicious, sharp teeth. She pointed to the woods and said, “Find them.” The Oni stomped off swinging his club in search of his prey.

XXXXXXXXX

In the woods Sakura turned to look at Naruto. Her teammate had pulled her out of the clearing once their opponent went down. He had wanted to kill her earlier and now he had left her alive. “Why did we leave?” she asked quietly.

Naruto turned to her and looked at her for a moment. “I told you to take care of Genma and head back to the village or wait for help. Why are you here?” he asked.

“You didn't tell me to send help to you. That meant you weren't coming back,” Naruto turned away when Sakura said this and she closed her eyes trying to gain her composure. “I've lost Sasuke and my parents. Kakashi sensei is almost never in the village anymore. My team was just as much my family as my parents were. I can't lose more family. You can't leave me,” Sakura begged trying to get Naruto to understand.

He turned back and gazed at her in confusion, “You heard what she said earlier. You know what I am,” he said in disbelief, “and you still consider me family?”

Sakura smacked him over the head, “Of course you're still family. It wouldn't be as much fun if we were all sane and normal. Sasuke's got that stupid revenge of his. I'm weak. And you've got a demon inside of you. I think that makes us all suited for each other.”

Naruto could only stare before straightening up, “Sasuke is dead. You aren't weak. Don't sell yourself short,” he commented while trying to sense if anyone was around.

Sakura looked up at him, “What happened to becoming Hokage? If you die here just for revenge, what will happen to your dreams and promises?”

“I never said I planned to die here. I just don't intend to go back to the village. I wanted acknowledgement, with the title of Hokage I would have gotten it. I don't need that anymore. I had Sasuke's, I had Kakashi's and now I have yours. I don't need it from the village,” Naruto said. “Go back to the village. I'll take care of her-“

Naruto was cut off when Sakura grabbed his arm. “You aren't leaving me here. I wanted my team back. If you're gone I can't get that. If you're leaving I'm leaving with you.”

“Sakura-chan, you don't-” he was cut off again when a club almost four feet long smashed through the tree they were standing on. He grabbed Sakura's hand and took off back for the river bed. The crashes in the forest behind them meant that thing was still following them.

XXXXXXXXX

They broke free of the tree line and were immediately face to face with Gazan. The large calligraphy brush she was holding was new and they knew she was finally showing her power. A minute later the beast that had been following them crashed out of the trees as well and landed behind Gazan. She flicked the brush through the air in a slashing movement and the Oni disappeared.

She gazed calmly at Naruto and Sakura. She had wanted to flee but now she wanted a peace offering. She turned to Naruto and studied him for a moment before speaking, “Why do you put up with all of it?” she asked. Sakura looked between the two in confusion and was relieved to note that Naruto seemed as confused as her. Gazan sighed and continued watching him. “You don't honestly believe that Sasuke was the only one Orochimaru watched in this village do you. He was part of the Akatsuki before he founded Sound; you were his initial target,” she continued.

Sakura grew more confused; she had no clue who the Akatsuki were or who was after Naruto. Gazan continued watching Naruto and continued, “He had you watched from such a young age. Waiting for the day you would break or snap, no one ever believed you would actually be able to live like you did.” Sakura looked down and realized she was still holding onto Naruto's arm. His hands were fisted and she could feel his arm shake but his face showed no emotion.

“The hatred that you could never explain. The threats that you could never justify. You never knew and yet you stood strongly; Orochimaru admires that.” Naruto continued to stare blankly at a spot behind Gazan.

“I've heard Kabuto speak of you to Orochimaru. Everything he saw and heard about you. When did you begin receiving death threats? When you four, five? The village waited until you were old enough to read them and then expanded their torture.” Naruto was struggling to control his breathing and he heard Sakura gasp behind him.

“Were you ever beaten? Ever hit? How often? To put up with such violence from a young age and still smile everyday as if nothing is wrong.” Sakura was trying to stop herself from crying. She was praying that what this woman was saying wasn't true, but deep down she knew it was. Naruto was shaking now but refused to respond in any way.

“You've been glared at and taunted since you first stepped outside. No one to care for you. No one to show you how to live correctly and yet you still do. You still care. How can you protect a village that would turn you over in an instant?” Sakura wasn't paying attention to Gazan anymore. She had all her attention focused on Naruto. She could see the pain in his eyes now. He wasn't refusing to respond; he was reliving his memories. She could almost see them scroll across his eyes as his body continued to shake.

“You saved your teacher's life and became a Gennin. You saved your teammate's life. You fought Orochimaru when he came after Sasuke. You almost died. You fought and won against a genius who many said couldn't be beaten. You defeated Gaara and saved her. You saved your entire village. You gave them a new Hokage. Protected her and almost died when you fought Kabuto. You risked your life and fought your best friend. Do they know what he did to you? Did you tell anyone about that fight?” Naruto's breathing hitched and Sakura could see him struggling. She glared at Gazan but she knew the woman wouldn't stop, not until she got what she wanted.

“He used the chidori. The move your sensei taught only to him. He shoved his fist through you chest. If you hadn't possessed the fox you would have died. And still nothing changed. It only got worse.” Naruto closed his eyes trying to stop the flow of memories. He didn't need this now. He had made up his mind; he didn't need these memories now. Sakura felt Naruto shudder next to her and looked at him helplessly.

“Do you think you would have ever graduated if not for that situation? Did anyone congratulate you for your success? Did anyone thank you for all the times you risked you life for them? Did she ever thank you for saving her? Does the village acknowledge how much you've given them? How much you've given up for them?” She smirked when she saw him clench his fists again and stop shaking. He opened his eyes revealing a cold stare. There would be no more fighting if the pink-haired one would just go away.

“No,” Naruto finally said. Sakura looked at him confusion but Gazan nodded. “I never would have become a Gennin. No one ever congratulated me. No one ever thanked me and none of the villagers have acknowledged me.” Sakura choked on her tears. The fury in Naruto's eyes frightened her. If Gazan offered to take him to Orochimaru… he couldn't accept. She couldn't lose another teammate to Orochimaru. She lunged at Gazan landed another blow before someone caught her arm. She turned and found Naruto glaring at her. She whimpered and his eyes softened slightly before pulling her back away from Gazan.

Orochimaru's servant stood up and smirked at them. “He'll acknowledge you. He can give you power. Orochimaru will accept you. He doesn't care about the Kyuubi.

Sakura looked over in fear when she heard Naruto laugh. “As much as you watched me you didn't watch enough.” Gazan's eyes widened slightly when she heard him. “I don't want Orochimaru's power. Orochimaru cares about the Kyuubi because you wouldn't be making this offer to me if I wasn't his vessel. Orochimaru will only use me against the village and others.”

“How can you continue to protect them? They hate you. You're nothing but a monster-” she was cut off by Sakura, “He isn't a monster. Sasuke was right you are more of a monster than he ever could be even if he tried.”

“You can fulfill your dreams.” Gazan said trying again. She thought she had snared him but he was proving more difficult than expected.

“What dreams?” Naruto spat out. “I'd end up serving the same purpose Sasuke had.”

“It's an honor.”

“I've already got one bastard trying to take over my mind I don't want another. Besides I hear foxes and snakes don't get along well,” Naruto quipped. Sakura gave him an odd look. It was a rather desperate time to be using sarcasm.

“Why do you insist on protecting them? There is no one in that village that cares for you.” Sakura made a move to speak in the negative but Naruto cut her off. “Maybe so, but there are people there that I care for. I won't let the rest of the village be hurt because that puts them at risk as well.” He glared over at Gazan and she watched as the blue eyes faded to deep red. She once more made the mistake of meeting his gaze and was frozen in place. A moment later he leapt at her with a Rasengan but stopped when Sakura shouted at him.

“Wait!” Naruto looked at her in confusion but she quickly shook her head and continued, “Don't kill her. Take her back to the village.” Naruto looked at her as if she was crazy. “She killed Sasuke,” he spat out.

Sakura ignored his angry stare and turned to Gazan. “You're one of the Four, right?” Gazan looked at her and nodded. “One of Orochimaru's bodyguards?” she questioned again. Gazan's eyes widened slightly but she nodded anyways. Naruto gazed at Sakura before turning to look at Gazan. “She knows about Sound and Orochimaru. She could give Konoha information that could help us,” she said finally to Naruto.

The fox boy calmed down and nodded before turning to Gazan. “You're lucky the only person I want dead more than you is Orochimaru,” he spat out. “And the Chidori can only be used correctly when combined with the Sharingan's ability to predict an opponent's moves; Kakashi-sensei didn't play favorites he did what was best for our team. Come up with better jibes next time,” he quipped again turning around. Sakura actually smiled at that before turning to Gazan and then back to Naruto. “Let's go then,” she said quietly. Naruto looked desperately between the village's direction and the open forest before closing his eyes and nodding. He turned to knock her out to find her holding her calligraphy brush again. He had sworn Sakura had knocked it out of her reach.

Gazan gazed at him before drawing the same symbols as before and repeating, “Kuchiyose no Jutsu: Koumojutsu Oni.” This time two Oni appeared in front of her. Naruto glanced over at Sakura before immediately calling out the Kyuubi's chakra. He bit his thumb and summoned one of the stronger toads he had met while training. “Help Sakura,” he said while turning to the other Oni. The toad jumped over and landed in front of Sakura. She glanced indignantly over at Naruto only to see him glance at her and then Gazan before turning back to the Oni in front of him. He ran through the hand seals and tried to hit the summon with a stream of fire - much smaller than usual of course. It missed but the smoke seemed to be disorienting to the Oni.

In the meantime Sakura had guessed what Naruto seemed to be doing. She ducked behind the toad and quickly created a bunshin. It wouldn't hold up against anything but that was what she assumed the toad was for. A moment later she had left her clone behind and was making her way underground towards Gazan. She popped up behind her opponent and attempted to hit her with Chuusuusei Biribiri only to have it blocked. Gazan must have seen her snag Idzumo with the move earlier. She lashed out again and managed to land a solid blow. Gazan glared at the girl and called over the Oni that was fighting with the toad. These idiotic summons would fight anything and lose track of their real prey. The Oni immediately appeared in front of them and Sakura began dodging again. The toad that Naruto had summoned tried to make it to her side but the other Oni ignored Naruto and went after it.

Naruto glared and ran towards Sakura. The Oni managed to land a hit that sent Sakura flying back into the river. His eyes widened when he heard Gazan say, “Kuchiyose no Jutsu: Koumojutsu Kappa.” He saw a webbed hand shoot up and drag his struggling teammate down. Without hesitation he dismissed the toad and dove in after her; Gazan smirked she released the Oni and summoned more Kappa. A cloud of bodies appeared in the river and she could see the two Gennin struggling. A moment later a few dozen orange bodied appeared and began countering her Kappa. She glared at the water and waited for the fight to finish. She saw Naruto and Sakura surface once before they were pulled back under.

XXXXXXXXX

Under the water Naruto struggled to get to Sakura. When more Kappa appeared he immediately summoned clones to help out. When he finally grabbed Sakura he came up with an idea. He surfaced once to gain air and then allowed them to be pulled back under. Sakura was barely conscious and he prayed this would work. Once they blended in with crowd of clones he handed Sakura to one and pointed to her forehead protector. He then took off his jacket and forehead protector before creating another clone. The new clone put on his jacket and forehead protector and grabbed the other clone. This one looked just like Sakura and was sporting her forehead protector as well. He thought a moment before taking off his necklace and handing it over as well. He grabbed Sakura again and pointed up. The clone swam upwards Naruto formed a quick seal before performing a double Henge. A moment later in Naruto and Sakura's place sat a small orange frog. He swam down the river a bit before surfacing and allowing his clones to pop.

He watched from the shore as his clones, in disguise as himself and Sakura finally surfaced and reached the shore. Gazan smirked when she saw them and walked over before dragging them onto higher ground. She glanced at Sakura and checked her neck for a pulse before pulling off the girl's forehead protector and turning to Naruto. He watched as his clone mumbled something and attempted to sit up as Gazan spoke briefly. It finally flopped back down and Gazan walked over and pulled off his forehead protector. It snarled at her and attempted to summon the Kyuubi's chakra but was unable to so it collapsed again, this time into unconsciousness. Gazan reached down again and took hold of the necklace as an after thought she checked his pockets and found Sasuke's old forehead protector. She looked at it curiously before turning to look at the Kappa playing in the river.

She swept her brush through the air again to dismiss them and then turned back to look at Naruto and Sakura. The girl was dead and Naruto couldn't even summon the Kyuubi's chakra anymore. She shrugged before drawing some more kanji in the air and saying, “Kuchiyose no Jutsu: Koumojutsu Hiryuu.”

Naruto watched as Gazan was suddenly air born on the back of a large dragon. He heard it growl and jumped into the river just as a large jet of fire consumed the area. He grimaced when he realized that there would be nothing left.

He watched as Gazan and the dragon left before panicking slightly. He could leave now but he didn't know what to do with Sakura. She had said she would leave with him but did she really understand what she was getting herself into. Had Naruto not been in the form of a small toad he would have frowned. He couldn't go back to the village, but he didn't know if he could leave her either.

XXXXXXXXX

Morino Ibiki led his group quickly to Naruto's training ground. They were disconcerted by the silence within clearing. Genma was collapsed against a tree; his clothing was tattered and blood soaked, but when one of the ANBU checked him he could find no visible cuts. “Someone healed him, that means Haruno-san was most likely alive before leaving the clearing,” he said turning to the others. Ibiki glanced around the clearing taking in the two Nins opposite Genma before turning back. “Spread out and find them, one of you take Genma back to the hospital,” he said to the ANBU team. One of them carefully lifted Genma and took off.

The others were about to leave the clearing when the second team came through. “Haruno-san's trail leads back here,” an ANBU wearing a cat mask responded. Ibiki nodded and added, “Where to after that?” One of the Inuzuka's dogs picked up the trail and quickly led them out of the clearing. “Someone stay here with those two,” he said pointing to the bodies, “Once we find Naruto and Sakura we'll take care of them.” Both teams then turned leaving a masked ANBU member behind and followed the dogs; as they went along many recognized the path as leading towards the river.

As they neared the edge of the tree lines the heat became stifling and several of the dogs began whimpering. Leaves were withered from heat and trees had scorch marks on them. “A large fire-jutsu must have been used near here,” one of the ANBU said. Ibiki and the others kept their thoughts to themselves but many were hoping the Gennin hadn't been caught by it.

By the time they reached the beach they had to walk channeling chakra through their feet to avoid burning themselves on the ground. Almost the entire beach within close to one hundred yards had been turned to glass by the heat. Ibiki carefully made his way to the rivers edge and dipped his hand in. Even through the glove he could feel the scalding heat of the water. He sighed and turned back around to the others who were cautiously surveying the water's edge. “Nara, Akimichi head back and report to the Hokage. Everyone else spread out and look for any signs that they managed to escape being hit,” after giving the order most looked at him skeptically but Shikato and Chomaru did as he asked. He knew why the rest were doubtful. It was unlikely that even using Kawarimi would have gotten them out of the line of fire.

XXXXXXXXX

Tsunade was waiting impatiently at her desk. Konohamaru was fidgeting in a chair about five feet away. She had pulled Iruka and Shizune aside the minute they had returned and had explained the situation. Iruka had looked like he was about to pass out but he quickly recovered and was currently trying to calm down his students. Moegi was still crying and Udon didn't seem sure what to do. The other elders and clan leaders had yet to leave and she was growing very aggravated.

She wanted more than anything to run down to the forest now. She couldn't stand waiting and she couldn't stand leaving Naruto and Sakura's lives in the hands of others. She couldn't stand having to keep up a calm façade like she wasn't about to cry or scream. She couldn't help but develop a certain fondness for her pink-haired apprentice. After all, the girl had shown as much promise as Shizune and that was just her medical skills. Naruto had done something few others had ever done. He had given her hope. She hadn't had any since Nawaki and Dan had died and out of no where Jiraiya shows up with some bratty apprentice who manages to piss her off and impress her at the same time. Naruto was like family now; she even liked his nickname for her no matter how much she denied the fact and yelled at him for using it, it had broken her heart the first time he had called her Hokage-sama.

After several more minutes Tsunade finally got up and went to the window. Everything looked perfect; there wasn't a sign that the lives of a number of shinobi were currently being threatened in the forest outside the gates. “Don't die on me Naruto,” she whispered looking sadly towards the forest, “You're this village's future. Don't give up on your dream.”

XXXXXXXXX

Three miles down the river Naruto released the Henge and stood up in the water. He looked down at Sakura and was relieved to find her still breathing. He glanced towards the village once and then back down at Sakura. He set her down, making sure her head was above water, and then glanced down the shore again. When he turned back around Sakura was gazing up at him, “You're leaving aren't you.” He nodded to her and turned to walk away. “What about your dream?”

“I can't fulfill them here anymore,” Naruto said, “stay here; tell them I created a clone to get you out of the way. Tell them I didn't make it.” He turned around to find Sakura glaring up at him. “Uzumaki Naruto, you are not leaving me here,” she growled out. “You don't know what you're getting into Sakura, go back to the village.”

Sakura stood weakly and wobbled over to Naruto. Her legs still weren't quite strong enough to hold her. She smacked him over the head once. Naruto took one look at her determined face and didn't even bother fighting; he simply nodded and sighed.

With one last glance up the river Uzumaki Naruto and Haruno Sakura disappeared from sight. Leaving only a whisper…

“Goodbye”

“I'm sorry.”

Agent's Spiel: Note about the Sound Four, I didn't really go in depth in characterization or explanations so I'm sorry if they confuse you. There will be some information about them in future chapters but for the most part I didn't really spend much time creating them so they kinda suck.