Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ After the Dream ❯ Bridge Over Troubled Water ( Chapter 20 )

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

~b~ normal story

~B~ flash backs

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

Bridge Over Troubled Water

“Happy Birthday! Sakura-chan,” Naruto whispered, as he walked by the girl. Sakura sent him a thankful grin before she went back to turning the jump rope for Ayame and one of her friends. She honestly hadn't known if her teammates would remember her birthday, and even if they had she didn't think they'd say anything. Sasuke smiled and nodded once before hurrying to catch up with the former blond. She figured the nod meant `Happy Birthday'.

The two boys quickly hurried out of town. They had been stuck doing odd jobs for over a month and a half, which meant no time to train. They continued moving until they were at least a kilometer away from Utsuro, before they began looking for a clearing that would be sufficient for training. When they found one, they settled back for a spar. “Let's try not to lose control this time,” Sasuke said smirking, as he slid into a comfortable stance.

Naruto smiled in return and moved into his own position several meters from the other boy. Regrettably, their sparring match was cut quite short. In fact, they hadn't even begun when they were interrupted by three men walking into the clearing. “Not you idiots again,” Naruto mumbled, as he and Sasuke turned to face them.

For the first time since their first meeting, Zouri was among the bandits. He sneered at the two and said, “Been a while. You and your sister have done a good job of avoiding us.”

“We haven't been avoiding you,” Naruto replied, “We've been ignoring you.” Sasuke cracked a small grin as the bandits grew furious. If that was all it took to get them pissed off, then they were even more pathetic than they had thought.

“You know,” Zouri said, taking a step forward, “you don't have to keep fighting us.”

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Naruto growled.

Zouri glared at the smaller boy. He hadn't liked that boy the first time he had seen him; he was too much like the little blond they had run into in Wave Country. “We never intended fight you,” Zouri reasoned. “I'll admit we don't like shinobi; they get in our way. You three aren't shinobi; you may have similar skills, but you aren't,” he explained.

“Do you have a point?” Sasuke asked impatiently.

The samurai rubbed the back of his neck in remembrance of the blow that had knocked him out almost four months before. “You know what we are, and you're interfering in our trade,” Zouri said. “That interference is unacceptable. Normally we'd just kill you, but you three have proven yourselves quite capable.”

“Yeah, capable of kicking your asses every time you try,” Naruto snorted.

“Maki-kun, right?” Zouri said, turning to Naruto. Naruto glared at the man, and Zouri shrugged accepting the answer. “You said it yourself; you're an orphan. How long do you think this town is going to put up with you?” he asked.

“We don't depend on them,” Sasuke replied.

“Right,” Zouri said doubtfully. “You three are natural wanderers; you're also strong, but you appear innocent. You'd do well with us,” he claimed.

Naruto glared at the man and didn't even bother responding before he launched himself at him. Sasuke hesitated barely a moment before jumping towards one of the other men. He recognized this one as well from the group that had attacked Ayame and Yoha-san. Sasuke easily landed a kick to the man's knee nearly dislocating it.

As the man attempted to recover, Sasuke turned to the third bandit that had stayed out of the way till now. He was the only one in the group that Sasuke didn't remember encountering previously, which put him at a slight disadvantage. The man dodged his first punch with little trouble, and Sasuke immediately put himself on guard. Behind him, he could hear Naruto growl at his opponent but he couldn't follow the former blonde's fight.

His new opponent made the next move. He pulled a pair of brass knuckles out of his pocket and slipped them on. Sasuke cursed when he saw the small spikes protruding from them. He and Naruto had hidden their weapons the moment they had entered Utsuro and hadn't taken them out since. He glanced cautiously at the man he had wounded earlier and was relieved to find that he was still struggling to stand on his left leg. He couldn't take two at once.

Sasuke took a step back hoping to keep out of range of the man's attacks and tire him down. Even if he didn't have the stamina to keep up, Naruto would be finished by then and stamina was something the other boy had plenty of. Sasuke continually dodged the man's attacks. Although his reaction time was improving as his body fell back into its old habits, he hadn't trained more than five times since he had left Sound. Unfortunately, the man he was fighting obviously hadn't had that same problem; as the fight went on, his hits were getting closer.

Sasuke sighed in relief when he realized that Zouri was unconscious and Naruto had moved on to the other man. The injured bandit would give the fox vessel no trouble whatsoever. His current opponent was another matter. Sasuke grunted when one of the man's brass enhanced fists slammed into his side.

Naruto glanced over at him in concern before his own opponent demanded his attention. He quickly kicked the man's head knocking him away and was about to turn to Sasuke when two more men stepped into the small clearing. He cursed, and not for the first time wished he had his weapons pouch with him. He started wishing even harder when one of them pulled out a katana.

“Shit,” Naruto muttered. None of the bandits they had fought before had been armed. He knew Zouri had used a katana in wave country, but he hadn't had it with him during their fight.

He really hated these guys.

XXXXXXXX

“This is quite an impressive group, Hokage-sama,” the Mizukage complimented. Tsunade smiled slightly and bowed respectfully in thanks.

“Nearly as many participants as a year ago,” the Kazekage added. “Quite an amazing recovery after losing Sandaime-sama and the attacks,” he stated.

“Yes well, they are remarkable young shinobi,” Tsunade replied, turning back to the field below them. Kiri's stadium wasn't quite as large as Konoha's, which allowed Tsunade to see the participants better. Neji, Lee, TenTen, and Shino had all trained non-stop for a month, ever since they had passed the preliminaries. It was the second time in two years that preliminaries had been required.

“Were any of those four friends with the young Genin that were killed?” the Tsuchikage asked a bit too mockingly for Tsunade's pleasure. It was the first time in five years that more than two of the Kages had gathered for a single exam. No one from Kumo or any of the smaller shinobi countries had made it to the final rounds.

“Our rookies were all very close,” Tsunade responded tightly, gazing at the Tsuchikage coldly.

“What a pity,” he remarked snidely. Itachi shifted slightly from his position behind Tsunade. The Tsuchikage turned when he realized that both of the Hokage's guards were watching him. He shifted uncomfortably and turned back to watch as the first match began; Tsunade fought to keep the smirk off her face.

“First match: Rock Lee of Konoha versus Goro Ichiro of Iwa,” the referee announced. Lee walked forward proudly and faced the other boy. Konoha's history with Iwa was well known to Lee; it definitely did not endear the usually forgiving boy to his opponent. “Match start,” the referee stated.

“I cannot allow you to win,” Lee stated seriously, gazing at the brown haired boy in front of him.

Ichiro snorted and smirked at Lee. “Right, from what I hear, you're nothing but a taijutsu idiot,” he said, as his smirk grew wider.

Among the Kages, the Tsuchikage snorted.

“That boy has no chance,” Gaara stated, from behind the Kazekage.

“Indeed. A taijutsu user stands no chance against Ichiro,” the Tsuchikage stated.

“I meant that he stood no chance against Rock Lee,” Gaara stated, turning to look at the Tsuchikage.

“And why is that?” the Tsuchikage asked.

Gaara simply smirked and turned back to the fight. “Winner: Rock Lee,” the referee stated in disbelief. The match hadn't even lasted two minutes.

“What on earth?” the Mizukage asked, turning to look at Tsunade. Unlike the others, he had actually been watching the match.

“Calling Rock Lee a taijutsu user is an insult,” Tsunade responded smiling. Behind her Kakashi stifled a laugh.

At the end of the first round, all four of Konoha's Genin, two from Suna, and one from Kiri had all moved on.

“Very impressive,” the Mizukage stated.

At the end of the second round, TenTen had been knocked out. Tsunade was fairly certain that the girl would be promoted anyway. It was just her luck to be put up against another shinobi from Suna that used wind and fans excessively. Shino lost in his match as well.

XXXXXXXX

The final fight of the day was unsurprisingly between Rock Lee and Hyuuga Neji. Neji had remained low key for the majority of his fights. He had held back a great deal of his power, including the majority of the techniques that he had learned in the year or so since his last Chuunin Exam. Of course he had momentarily lost his temper when the Genin from Iwa, who he faced in the first round, insulted Team 7.

“This should be interesting,” Gai whispered to Kurenai. The two had been watching from the stands as their students competed.

“He's wanted to fight Neji-kun for a long time, hasn't he,” she said.

“Ever since he graduated from the Academy,” Gai responded. “He was a bit upset when Naruto-kun was the one who beat him first,” he added, glancing up at the Hokage and the silver haired Jounin currently guarding the Hokage.

“Why did she bring them?” Kurenai asked.

“I don't know,” Gai answered honestly.

On the field another conversation was taking place. “You have wanted this fight for a long time,” Neji said, as he slid into his normal stance.

Lee smiled at his teammate and nodded. “I will prove that hard work is just as good as genius,” he said happily, as he slid into his own stance.

“Does it really matter who wins any more?” Neji asked.

Lee looked at him in confusion for a moment before shaking his head. “I suppose it doesn't,” he stated, “however, I still want to win.”

“Match Start,” the referee said, taking a step back to allow the two boys space.

“Good luck then,” Lee said.

Neji merely nodded in acknowledgement. “Good luck,” he whispered.

When their fight ended fifteen minutes later, neither could be called the loser.

XXXXXXXX

“Well that went better than expected,” Kurenai said, as the group rested on the way back to Konoha. They had passed through the small seaside town of Himakan earlier that day and had turned west. The small group, consisting only of the four finalists, the Hokage, and five Jounin, had decided it was better to rest than to hurry through the territory. Rumors of bandits didn't bother them, but they preferred to be cautious.

“How many of them do you think will pass?” Kurenai asked, turning to Shizune.

“All of them,” Shizune replied without hesitation. Kakashi and Itachi nodded in agreement.

“Really,” Gai said hopefully.

“Tsunade was impressed,” Kakashi said, glancing over at the Hokage who was currently speaking with the four Genin. “The other Kage's were as well,” he added after a moment. Gai nodded at him in thanks, but Kurenai was watching Kakashi and Itachi cautiously. She still didn't think it was right to bring the two along.

That night long after the others had gone to sleep Itachi remained awake on watch. He wasn't at all surprised when Kakashi walked up and sat down at the base of the tree he was in. “They would have kicked those kids' asses,” Kakashi stated. Itachi smirked at the other man's attempt to comfort himself. The Hokage may have been making a show of power by bringing them along, but it had been done with complete disregard of the effect it would have on them. He could still remember Sasuke congratulating him when he had become Chuunin. When he had left Konoha, he had realized he probably wouldn't get the chance to do the same. Now he knew he wouldn't and the Hokage was unintentionally rubbing it in his face. He doubted it was any different for Kakashi.

Kakashi glanced at Itachi and was about to speak again when both men heard a limb break not far away. Kakashi nodded and Itachi took off in the direction of the noise. Kakashi remained on guard near the campsite. It wouldn't do for Konoha's newest Chuunin to be attacked before they really got a chance to show off their promotions.

As soon as he was away from Kakashi, Itachi activated his sharingan and scanned his surroundings. A man was poorly hidden in a tree's foliage barely five meters from him. He turned in the opposite direction and walked off. When he was out of sight, he rounded back so that he would end up behind the man. When he was a foot away from the man, he slapped a hand over his mouth and pulled him out of the tree. He shook his head at the man's foolishness and slowly moved away from the camp.

When he was at least two hundred meters away he removed his hand and glared at the man. “Who are you and what were you doing?” he asked.

The man glared back, although Itachi was sure there was fear in his eyes as well. He took a moment to look at target and realized that someone must have gotten to him first. The man's face was littered with bruises and he was favoring his left leg. “Who the hell do you think you are?” the man said angrily.

“Who did this to you?” Itachi asked; he wondered if his group wasn't the first from the Chuunin Exams to travel through the area. When the man didn't respond, he glared at him and pulled out a kunai. “Who did you attack before us?” he said.

The man smirked at him and Itachi rolled his eyes. “You're in the Yozoku's territory,” the man stated.

Itachi looked at him in confusion for a minute before punching the man's already broken nose. “You are in Konoha's territory,” he corrected, “and judging by your statement, you are one of the idiots who have been after the Chuuin siblings.”

“Those stupid brats,” the man muttered, trying to stop the trail blood exiting his nose.

“They did this to you,” he stated smirking. He took the man's glare for affirmation. “They have good taste,” Itachi said.

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” the other man said in outrage.

“Keep your voice down or ten more shinobi will join us. They will not go easy on you,” Itachi said. “They were obviously aiming for your face, which means they were marring it to prevent others from having to look at it,” he added, as an answer to the man's question.

“Stupid brats, we were starting to think they weren't actually shinobi,” the man growled out.

Itachi pleasantly noted that the man was keeping the volume of his voice to a mere whisper. “They aren't shinobi,” Itachi assured. “However, we are looking for them; tell me what you know, and I'll let you go,” he added.

“Why should I?” the man replied stupidly.

“I just told you,” Itachi said losing his patience, “tell me what you know, and I'll let you go.”

The man studied him for a moment before asking, “What do you want to know?”

“When was the last time you saw them and where?” Itachi asked.

“About three days ago, outside of Karak,” the man answered.

“Why did you run into them and what happened?” Itachi asked, urging the man to continue by subtly bringing the kunai back into sight.

“We were looking for them. Our leaders wanted them to join us so that we could make use of them,” he said.

“What do you mean?” Itachi asked.

“They're annoying little brats. They've pissed off a number of us and gotten in our way,” he answered.

“What happened?” he asked.

“The littlest one attacked when we suggested they join us, apparently he didn't like the idea. He took out one of us and then turned to me. His older brother was fighting my partner,” the man told him. Itachi quickly reasoned that Naruto must be the littlest one, which left Sasuke as the older brother. “They weren't prepared and my partner seemed to be overwhelming the whelp,” he added.

“Keep going,” Itachi said.

“The little one kicked my head, so I don't remember much more. Reinforcements came and they were well armed. Somehow the little brat, Maki, managed to take a sword from one of them. He tossed it to the other one, probably didn't know how to use it.” Itachi didn't doubt that statement at all. Jiraiya wasn't known for using swords and Kakashi wouldn't have had time to teach him. “The older one fought back more once he had a weapon he could use.” Itachi wondered how the two could be stupid enough to go anywhere unarmed in the first place.

“Their sister showed up in the nick of time; needless to say the reinforcements lost as well. My partner got himself killed; so did the man Maki took the sword from,” Itachi wondered who had dealt the final blows; he doubted that either Naruto or Sasuke would have allowed Sakura to. “Zouri was pissed as all hell. He came to just as my partner got killed; if the girl hadn't taken his knees out he probably would've killed the brats. Before they left the oldest one just gave us this really cold glare, he said, `We will never stoop to your level. Stay out of our way or next time more will die.' Then the youngest walked up to me and leaned down. He looked at me like I was some stupid little kid and said, `Go back and tell whoever's in charge that he's messing with the wrong family.'”

“Did you do as he said?” Itachi asked.

“Course we did. They're stupid if they think we'll stay away though. They killed two of us and they'll pay,” the man stated.

“Two others lived through the meeting as well,” Itachi said.

“Yeah, Zouri and Saburo,” the man replied.

Itachi raised an eyebrow at the man's generosity before turning to go. He had walked about a meter when he turned around and threw his kunai; it struck the man's heart killing him instantly. “You messed with the wrong family,” Itachi muttered, as he moved the body further into the woods. When it was out of sight, he used a quick Katon to make the body unrecognizable and then made his way back to camp.

The next morning the group got an early start. Itachi ignored the looks that the Hyuuga and the Aburame were sending him. It was just his luck that they probably knew what had happened the night before. It was also just his luck that the Hokage chose to go through the woods instead of stick to the road. They came upon the burnt body ten minutes later.

“What on earth happened here?” Kurenai asked, walking forward to examine the scene.

“Spontaneous human combustion,” Kakashi suggested, not bothering to look up from his book.

Tsunade snorted and the Genin looked at him in shock. “Did anybody see anything last night?” Tsunade asked.

“No,” Itachi said.

When everyone else agreed with the Uchiha, Tsunade shrugged. “It doesn't have anything to do with us. A bandit probably crossed the wrong traveler,” she said. As they continued on, Kakashi wondered if Tsunade actually believed that.

That night, Pakkun set off heading south looking for Rin.

XXXXXXXX

“So who won?” Kiba asked as the rookies gathered to congratulate their friends.

“It was tie,” Neji said, shocking the group.

“No it wasn't,” Lee replied indignantly.

“I passed out not even minute after you did with a broken leg and two broken ribs,” Neji replied. “Not to mention the fact that you were holding back,” he added.

“I am most offended by your most egregious accusation,” Lee countered with.

“You never opened the gates,” Neji said.

The others watched in amusement as Lee stuttered trying to come up with an excuse. “You must have learned more than you showed; you have trained with your uncle for nearly a year and you only showed one new move,” he finally said.

“It wouldn't have been prudent to reveal all of the moves of the Hyuuga clan,” Neji explained a bit loftily.

Kiba eventually grew bored of their conversation and cut in, “What about your fights?” he asked the other two.

“Hn,” Shino replied.

TenTen rolled her eyes at him. “My first one went great,” she said happily. “It was some older Genin from Kiri, but the water didn't cause any problems for me. The second one must have been Temari's twin or something,” she growled a bit.

Shikamaru smirked at TenTen's indignation. “Another wind user?” he asked.

“Yeah, little brat used fans, too,” she replied scowling. “Even with the jutsu I learned after the last exam it wasn't enough,” she added.

“So how many of you do you think Tsunade-sama will promote?” Chouji asked.

“All of us,” Neji replied, “She told us so on the way back.”

“Really?” Ino asked.

“Yup, she said we really managed to impress everyone there,” TenTen said happily. “I wish you guys had been there on the way back though,” she added.

“What happened?” Shikamaru asked lazily.

“Uchiha-san and Kakashi-san were acting oddly,” Shino supplied.

“They always act oddly, what was different this time?” Ino asked.

“I distinctly heard Kakashi-san say `They would have kicked those kids' asses.'” Neji said his voice laced with amusement.

“Kurenai-sensei said that the Hokage shouldn't have taken them along. It was done to show Konoha's power, but it wasn't fair to them. Naruto and Sakura at least would have participated in it,” Hinata explained.

“The next morning a dead body was found barely three hundred meters from camp. It had been burnt beyond recognition; Kakashi-san's explanation was spontaneous human combustion,” Shino said.

“The night before, Uchiha-san had walked away from the camp ground in that direction. They both told the Hokage they hadn't noticed anything the night before,” Neji continued.

“Why lie about killing a bandit or someone who was most likely attacking the camp?” Chouji asked between mouthfuls.

“Exactly,” Neji said.

XXXXXXXX

“So where you headed to next,” Mato asked the young woman in front of him.

“Monogoshi,” Rin responded.

“Ah, you better be careful on that road,” he said, shaking his head.

“Why?” she asked feigning confusion.

“The Yozoku have been bothering travelers lately,” he responded gravely. “They haven't bothered any of the towns, but they stalk the roads,” he added.

“I hadn't realized they were this far west,” Rin said.

“They've only been in the area for a few months. Before that they had mainly stuck to the eastern coast line,” he explained. “They're rough men; I wouldn't recommend a pretty little thing like you taking that road alone,” he said, smiling down at her.

Rin fought the urge to hit the bartender and instead smiled sweetly at him. “What would you recommend I do?” she asked innocently.

“Well you could always wait for a couple of ninjas to pass through, but that could be a few weeks; we don't get them here very often,” he said, thinking out loud. After a moment he nodded his head and smiled kindly at her. “To be honest, if you're in a hurry, there are a couple of local kids that could help you out,” he said.

“Really?” Rin responded doubtfully; she prayed he was talking about Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke. She had headed to Karak after Pakkun had brought Kakashi's message. Rin had been checking out the surrounding towns for over month and had caught no sign of them. She was a hair away from sending Kakashi an exploding scroll for sending her south on a wild goose chase.

“I know it sounds crazy, but they've been hanging around doing odd jobs now and then. They can take on those thugs; they're a lot stronger than they look,” he said reassuringly.

“And how did you come across them?” she asked.

“My wife was traveling back from Tea Country, and she ran into some of the bandits. Luckily these kids were just down the road and saw what was happening so they came to the rescue. She brought them here so we could thank them properly and they've stayed since then,” he answered.

“Would they be willing?” she asked.

“You'd have to ask them,” the bartender responded honestly. “Just ask anyone for one of the Chuuin kids, and they'll point `em out for you,” he added happily.

Rin managed to school her reaction and nodded politely. “I'll do that then, thank you,” she said, before turning and walking back to her room. The moment she had locked the door she let out a sigh and smiled. “Found you,” she whispered; apparently over the years the seekers had gotten better.

XXXXXXXX

The next morning Rin began her search for the elusive Chuuin siblings. Despite what Mato had said no one seemed to be able to tell her where they were. “Sorry miss,” the elderly man in front of her said. “Normally those kids are loud as hell, but I haven't heard them all day. Didn't hear them yesterday either,” he muttered, “hope they didn't leave without telling us.” Rin resisted the urge to tell them that there was precedence of that happening. Instead she thanked him kindly for his time and walked off.

Five minutes later, lady luck smiled down upon her in the form a brown haired teen. “Excuse me,” he said walking up to her, “Osamu-san said you were looking for us.”

“You wouldn't by any chance be Chuuin Maki, would you?” she asked politely.

“Yeah,” he replied.

“My name is Shintei Yu,” Rin said, bowing slightly. “I spoke with Mato last night, and I heard you and your siblings were taking odd jobs. I'd like to hire you,” she added.

“What do you want us to do,” Naruto asked.

“I was told you could take on those bandits that have been bothering the travelers. If so, I was wondering if you three would be willing to accompany me to Monogoshi?” she asked

“How far away is it?” Naruto asked.

Yu raised an eyebrow slightly at that comment. “Not from around here?” she asked curiously.

“We're from farther north,” Naruto replied cryptically, realizing his mistake.

“Monogoshi is north of here,” Yu said.

“Well, I've never heard of it,” Naruto replied defensively.

“It's about a day's light travel away,” she said smiling at him.

“I'll have to ask the others,” Naruto finally said.

“That's fine,” Yu answered, “I'll be staying at the inn, just ask for me.”

“Alright,” Naruto said as she walked away.

XXXXXXXX

An hour later Naruto finally found Sasuke and Sakura sitting outside one of the shops. “Where have you been Maki-kun?” Sakura asked, glancing around at several of the villagers.

“Just walking around,” Naruto responded. “I think I got us another job,” he added sitting down next to them.

“What is it?” Sasuke asked.

“Some woman wants us to `accompany' her to Monogoshi,” he said.

“How far away is Monogoshi?” Sasuke asked, causing Sakura to sigh.

“You two should have studied geography more,” she said. “Monogoshi is a bit north of here. It should only take us day to get there,” she added finally.

“Yeah, that's what she said,” Naruto replied.

“Who is `she'?” Sasuke finally asked.

“She said her name was Shintei Yu,” Naruto responded.

“You don't believe her,” Sasuke stated.

“I don't not believe her,” Naruto answered.

“Well, I think we should take the job,” Sakura said, interrupting the impending argument. “How do we contact her to accept?” she asked once she had their attention.

“She said she was staying at the inn; we're just supposed to ask for her there,” he answered.

“What's wrong with her?” Sasuke asked when Naruto relapsed into silence.

“Nothing's wrong with her,” Naruto said, shrugging.

“But something's wrong,” Sasuke said.

“What is it?” Sakura asked, turning on Naruto as well.

“I think she recognized me,” Naruto said quietly, as he looked around nervously.

“That's impossible,” Sakura hissed out. “For one thing you're wearing contacts, we just re-dyed your hair, and you've grown two inches in the past four months. No one who knew you would recognize you now,” she added quietly.

“She was looking at me oddly,” Naruto said, shifting uncomfortably.

“Did you recognize her?” Sasuke asked.

“Not exactly,” Naruto responded. Sasuke sighed and Naruto shifted uncomfortably again. “She sort of looks like this women I met in Konoha,” Naruto added.

“Who?” Sasuke and Sakura both asked.

“Look, it isn't her so let's just go take the job,” Naruto said tritely.

“O-okay,” Sakura said, after a moment's recovery. “Let's go,” she added, standing up.

“Right,” Naruto said apologetically as he following her. Sasuke shook his head and followed as well. As they walked back to Mato's inn, Sakura thought back to what Naruto had said. Naruto tended to be a good judge of character. He had been the one to recognize Sasuke.

Naruto was often times a bit too trusting, but with the exception of Kabuto, those he had trusted had turned out to be alright in the end. As far as Kabuto was concerned, even the Hokage had been duped. Despite the fact that she couldn't figure out who he had met in Konoha, if he said he possibly knew this woman and that she may have recognized him, then there was a very large chance that he was right.

Despite appearances Naruto actually had a fairly good memory, when it came to people at least. It was unlikely that he had actually forgotten anyone in Konoha that had been nice to him. Since his reaction to her wasn't bad, then she couldn't have been someone who had been mean to him. The fact that he couldn't remember her name meant that he probably hadn't heard it very often. Unfortunately, Sakura couldn't think of anyone that applied to. Hopefully Naruto would turn out to be wrong.

“You looking for the Shintei woman?” Mato asked when the three walked in.

“Yeah,” Sasuke replied. “She told Maki we could bring our answer to her here,” he added.

“She's upstairs in room seven,” Mato replied. He didn't notice the shudder that ran through the siblings in front of him.

“Thanks,” Sakura replied, as the three turned to head upstairs.

“You kids gonna go with her?” Mato shouted after them.

“Probably,” Sasuke replied.

“You coming back?” he asked.

Sakura turned to look at him in confusion. “Maybe,” she finally said.

“Good luck then,” Mato said nodding to each of them, “Come see me before you leave.”

“Thank you,” Sakura replied sincerely, before following the other two up the stairs.

Naruto paused in front of room seven's door before finally knocking. Rin opened the door a moment later to find all three Chuuin siblings standing in front of her. She ushered them into her room hiding the grin that was trying to break out on her face.

“Maki-kun said you wanted us to accompany you to Monogoshi,” Sakura said when they had all been seated comfortably.

“Yes, normally I wouldn't need it, but Mato-san said that road had been plagued with bandits. I'd rather not take any chances,” she explained.

“When would you want to leave?” Sasuke asked.

“I'd like to leave tomorrow, but if you have business to finish up here I can wait,” Rin said.

“Tomorrow is fine, Shintei-san,” Sakura said.

Rin smiled at them, “Call me Yu.”

“We'll meet you tomorrow morning then,” Sasuke said.

“I'll be waiting for you downstairs,” Rin agreed. This time when Team 7 walked away, Rin knew it wasn't permanent. “Now I just have to figure out how to get them to stick with me,” she said when the three had disappeared down the stairs.

XXXXXXXX

“Do you still think you know her?” Sakura asked when they walked away.

“Yeah,” Naruto responded.

“Why?” Sakura asked.

“Her smile,” Naruto said, “she just looked at us like she knew who we were.”

Their short conversation ended when they arrived back in Mato's bar. “So are you going?” he asked.

“Yeah, we leave tomorrow morning,” Sasuke replied.

“We'll miss you around here; you've been a lot of help,” Yoha said, coming out of the back room.

“Thank you,” Sakura said not quite knowing how to respond.

“I told you we'd help you figure out where you headed,” Yoha joked, watching the three a bit sadly.

“You were right,” Sakura replied.

“Anyway,” Mato said cutting in, “we got you these.” He pulled out three sets of oddly shaped kunai. “Once you figure out the balance of these they'll aim true,” he explained.

“I thought you said you didn't know anything about shinobi,” Sasuke said in confusion. “How did you come across shinobi weaponry?”

“This ain't shinobi weaponry. It's specially made by craftsmen in the area. We don't send shinobi candidates often, but about fifty years ago we did. He had a son that ended up becoming a shinobi too. They both used these and swore by them,” Mato explained. “They're a bit heavier, but like I said once you get used to the change these'll work out fine.”

“You send shinobi candidates to the academy?” Sasuke asked.

“Not very often, but the academy in Konoha takes candidates from the surrounding villages and Wave Country sometimes to keep up relations. This lad was about the same age as my father; I think he attended the academy at the same time as the Sannin. His son might have studied with them at some point, but I can't really remember,” Mato admitted. “Actually, about a year ago a shinobi came by, wish I could remember his name. `Said his sensei gave these to him as a present for a promotion and he wanted to do the same for his students,” he added laughing a bit.

“Is it normal for children of non-shinobi parents to be able to become shinobi?” Sakura asked. She couldn't remember anyone from her class being from anywhere other than Konoha.

“It doesn't happen too often. Every couple of years they'll take in one or two; we'll probably send Ayame next year,” he explained.

“You want your daughter to be a shinobi?” Naruto asked.

“It's not as bad as it sounds,” Mato replied. “The job may be dangerous, but there's always the chance she'll choose to a medic or something with administration. Really whatever she did would eventually benefit the village.”

“And we don't want what happened to happen again. Bandits like the Yozoku aren't normal around here, but apparently we need to be more prepared,” Yoha added seriously.

“Oh,” Naruto replied.

“We'll see you off tomorrow morning,” Yoha said, smiling at the three.

“Thanks again for everything,” Naruto said.

“No need to thank us; you three really have helped us. You probably won't be heading back here, at least not immediately. If you ever happen to be in the area sometime, stop by and say hello.

“We will,” Sakura replied.

“Yeah, Mato really does cook really good food,” Naruto joked, gaining a laugh from the two adults.

Once the three siblings disappeared, Mato turned to Yoha and smiled. “They aren't coming back,” he said a bit sadly.

“I know. He really is just like them,” Yoha responded.

“All three of them would have gotten along great with that family, but little Maki. It's amazing, isn't it?” Mato said.

Yoha simply nodded.

XXXXXXXX

As the sun set several hours later, the Chuuin siblings could be found on the roof of Mato's inn speaking conspiratorially. “We should leave early,” Sasuke finally said.

Naruto nodded immediately and Sakura followed a minute later. “We shouldn't have stayed this long already,” Sakura said.

When the sky was dark the three snuck back in through the window. Sakura walked down the hall and knocked on room seven's door. When Shintei Yu answered with a questioning look, Sakura smiled apologetically. “We were wondering if you mind leaving before sunrise. We can handle the bandits, but we'd like to at least try to avoid them,” she explained.

“Of course,” Rin replied.

“Thank you, we'll meet you outside around four thirty,” Sakura said.

Rin nodded and closed the door when Sakura walked away. “What are they up to?” she asked herself.

Sakura entered her room and closed the door sighing. They hadn't thought they would grow attached to anyone; it wasn't the smart thing to do in their position. She knew that Naruto and Sasuke were already packing so she got to work. She was shocked by what she had accumulated in the few months they'd been there. As she was putting her things in her bag, she happened across a red ribbon. She had picked it up in one of the towns they had passed through; it had reminded her of the one Ino had given her when they had become friends.

Sakura took a quick glance out the window and was pleased to find a crescent shaped moon in the May sky. She didn't want to set out on a full moon. She gazed at the ribbon for several more minutes before setting it aside; she knew of someone else who could use it.

XXXXXXXX

Before dawn the next morning, the Chuuin siblings left Utsuro in the company of Shintei Yu. When Boke Ayame woke up several hours later, she found three kunai and three flowers sitting beside a note on the small desk in her room. She studied them curiously for several minutes before walking over and picking up the note. When she opened it a red ribbon fell out, and she picked it up before reading.

Ayame-chan,

We were talking to your mother last night and she mentioned that you might become a shinobi. If so these kunai should help you; they'll also help you remember us. Use them only when you have no other choice.

The flowers aren't for you. If you have time when in you're in Konoha, drop these off at the Hero's Memorial Stone. You'll know how to find it. You don't have to worry about the flowers dying; they'll keep until they've been placed at the memorial.

When I was six, my friend gave me a red ribbon. When I left home I lost mine, so I bought this one to replace it. I want you to have it, wear it until you get your forehead protector, and then pass it on.

Thank you and good luck. We know you'll make an excellent shinobi.

Haru, Maki, Chi

Agent's Spiel: Timeline stuff:

Naruto and Sasuke's fight with the bandits, the Chuunin Exam scenes, and the stuff in Konoha all takes place within several days span. Sakura's birthday is listed as March 28. They've been in Utsuro for about two months.

Let's say it takes Pakkun two weeks to find Rin. She looks around for a month. That makes her meeting with them in Utsuro around the middle of May.

Everybody follow that? If you didn't or you're confused by something just drop me a line.