A New Path

Ch. 40 Team Naruto! Get Sasuke Back!

Naruto and Ino entered the Hokage's office, the Chunin wearing a look of confusion when seeing Tsunade sitting behind the desk with the Third standing next to her. The elder had his hands behind his back and a pipe on his mouth, seemingly relaxed. For a moment he thought that whatever they were going to tell him wasn't too serious but, throwing a quick glance at his girlfriend's urgent look, he knew that it wasn't the case.

Seeing the confusion on the young ninja's face, Tsunade cleared her throat. "I'm glad you came Naruto," she began, her gaze firm, "I don't have time for formalities but I need you for an urgent mission."

"What's going on?" he couldn't help but ask with a bit of worry.

"A few hours ago, Sasuke Uchiha left the Leaf Village," the medic announced. A look of pure shock passed through the Chunin's face, "Your mission is to get him back as soon as possible. I will let you form your own team of available ninja, however, since a large number of Jonin are out on missions we can't afford to send one at this time. Know that one will be on the way as soon as possible."

Ino watched as her boyfriend's face turned cold and calculating, the kind of face he would make when on a mission. It amazed her just how fast he could adapt to such situations but assumed that it came with the training he had gone through. Considering her own training, spending time with a sannin changed a person.

"We'll be leaving now," Naruto declared, turning to Ino and giving her a firm nod.

"Before you go…" the Third spoke up for the first time. The young couple gave the man their attention, "Know that I trust you'll accomplish your mission Naruto. Be very careful, Sasuke is not alone."

Naruto nodded as he and Ino left the room, running through the hallways of the building as fast as possible.

Tsunade turned to her old teacher with a frown on her face, "Do you think it was a good idea to send him?"

The Third let out a sigh as he turned his gaze to the window overlooking the village. "We can't spare any Jonin at this time but I believe that Naruto is capable of accomplishing this mission," he admitted, turning to his student one more time, "He'll be alright."

Naruto ran over options as he and Ino made their way through the village. This was a retrieval mission, which meant that they couldn't waste much time. Sasuke was getting further and further away with each minute that passed. He kept a scowl on his face as he thought of candidates for the job.

Ino was a given, even if he didn't want her to go he knew that she would end up going regardless. Not that it was a bad thing since she was a lot stronger than before. She had not only received training from Kurenai, a genjutsu master, but the legendary Tsunade. On top of that she already knew his strengths and weaknesses, which would make the mission a lot easier.

He next thought of Choji. The ninja was currently in the village and was, in his own opinion, the strongest when it came to raw strength. He was also one of the ninja he was familiar with and one of the few whom he trusted Ino with, just in case he got hurt and couldn't protect her.

Neji would also be a good choice. The two had worked and fought together before and he knew for a fact that his taijutsu was the best out of all of them. His byakuugan would also prove useful when pursuing the Uchiha.

Naruto also thought of getting Shino to come along. He was great at long-range fighting and was one of the most intelligent ninja from their year. Having him with them would make thinking of plans a lot easier and his ability to absorb chakra would help in restraining Sasuke.

Lastly, he knew that Lee was a must on this mission. Not only did he carry a lot of strength, but he was also very quick and agile. Having Lee and Choji on the same team would help just in case anyone intervened on their pursuit.