The Strength of Humanity (A Naruto Fan Fiction)

Chapter Four ~ (Re)Training

I woke only a few hours after falling asleep—it couldn't be later than 2:00 A.M.—with a start, drenched in sweat and fist shoved in my mouth to stifle any possible noise. I'd long since learned how to wake silently from nightmares; the last thing I needed while away from the safety of the village and in the Bingo Book as a capturekillflee-on-sight assassin was to alert any possible ninja of my location while sleeping.

I removed my hand from my mouth, wincing at the bite marks. That was worse than usual. Because of returning to the village? Maybe. Slowing my breathing deliberately, I listened closely, trying to hear if I'd woken Kakashi. There was no movement or sound from his room down the hallway, and I relaxed minutely. It had been a while since I'd had such a violent nightmare.

My clothes were sticky with sweat, but I was unwilling to get up and go to the bathroom and make noise changing into the one spare pair of pants and shirt I had packed and risk waking Kakashi and facing his questions. Instead, I just lay on the sleeping mat, clammy and tense until I eventually drifted back asleep.

I woke only an hour or two later, the same fist shoved in my mouth, a scream caught and strangled in my throat. It was still too early for Kakashi to have gotten up, but when I sat up, the first thing I saw was a glass of water sat next to my sleeping mat.

I took it gratefully, wondering only briefly why I hadn't woken when Kakashi had come out (he was, I reminded myself, an incredibly skilled ninja), and drank half of it. My breathing calmed, parched throat quenched, trembling hands steadied. I fell asleep much more quickly, this time.

***

Kakashi, apparently, hummed while cooking.

I glared blearily at him before eyeing the bowl of steamed rice and the place of grilled fish that he set in front of me.

"Eat up. You'll need your strength for today." He commented as he handed me a pair of disposable chopsticks.

I raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

Kakashi shrugged. "It's been a while since we've trained, with everything going on and what not. But I think we're past the days where I have to warn you not to eat lest you throw up."

"Sure," I mumbled, not rising to his gentle taunt. "It's not like I'll have anything better to do as a genin."

Kakashi silently acknowledged my bitter grumbling and, despite my distasteful look, placed his hand on my head in what I figured was supposed to be an affectionate gesture of sorts. Or maybe it was just to make sure I was actually listening when he spoke. "I'm leaving for the war council now. Meet me at the base of Konohagakure mountain in four hours."

"Mm," I acknowledged, as I stuffed a decent amount of rice and fish in my mouth. It was surprisingly delicious for such a simple dish.

I set my chopsticks down as Kakashi closed the door, and contemplated what I would do for four hours. I could try to talk to Aisa again, now that he had calmed down from the shock of my return. He would certainly be more reasonable, now, right?

After washing the dishes and setting them in the drying rack, I gathered my jacket and left. I had no key to lock the door with, but I assumed that Kakashi would have other traps and seals and jutsus set to stop intruders.

Aisa, Kento, and Michiko would probably be doing some D-rank missions. I couldn't just go to the mission desk and ask to see what mission they were on; genin didn't have that kind of clearance. I would just have to find them the old fashioned way, tracking them down myself.

I didn't pull my hood up, knowing it would draw more attention than it would hide my identity. But I made sure to stick to busy streets, disappearing into crowds and slipping around corners; I didn't want to see any of my old teammates or classmates or sensei. I didn't feel ready.