"My arms are searching for you; my arms are outstretched towards you."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
It had been about 15 minutes since my team -and Sai, who I refuse to acknowledge as a member of my team- had departed from the gates of Konoha. It'd been a silent walk, consisting mostly of Naruto glaring at Sai. I had tried to get him to stop multiple times, telling him he looked gay, but he'd only flick my ear and then continue his glaring contest. Eventually, I just left him alone.
I caught Sai looking at me, and I raised an eyebrow. He only looked away from me, a smile on his lips.
I rolled my eyes. I knew that his smile was nothing but a fake.
Sai finally noticed Naruto glaring at him, and he looked at the blonde with a blank gaze. "If you keep looking at me... I will hit you," Sai stated simply.
"SAY WHAT!? I'm not scared of you, believe it!" Naruto announced, shaking a fist in the dark-haired boy's direction.
"Look, I don't have anything personal against you... I'm just trying out a certain personality type," Say explained.
"Yeah, well, you're doing a crummy job! Believe it!" the blonde countered. "We don't need someone like you on this team! We'd be perfectly fine without you!"
"Naruto, enough!" Captain Yamato interrupted. "Sai is your teammate, now. You're going to have to learn to trust each other. I know Kakashi taught you better than this."
"No! He's not one of us!" Naruto shouted. "The fifth member of this team... Is Sasuke Uchiha! All this loser will ever be... Is a Sasuke wannabe! He will never be our teammate!"
".... Fine by me," Sai replied easily, smiling his fake smile. "The last person I'd ever want to be compared to... Is some traitorous cockroach... Who left his village, his friends, and his girlfriend... Joining Orochimaru all for power, seeking things to satisfy his revenge-obsessed idiocy."
I felt a growl creep up my throat, but Naruto beat me to it. "How dare you...!" The blonde stepped forward, ready to hit Sai.
Sakura surprised us both by putting her hand out in front of Naruto, stopping him. "Look, no matter what the two of you think..." the pinkette began. "Sai, Naruto doesn't know you that well yet. He shouldn't judge you. I'm sorry. Please forgive him."
My eye twitched at her. She was just going to let it go?
Captain Yamato sighed in relief, muttering something about there being at least one level-headed person on his team.
"Fine by me," Sai said easily. Sakura smiled at him.
Then, out of nowhere, she punched him in the face, making him skid backwards and fall on his butt.
Captain Yamato stared at her, completely shocked. I, on the other hand, had never been more proud of her. I was even tempted to start cheering her on.
"I don't care... If you forgive me," Sakura growled, glaring harshly at Sai. "Next time you bad-mouth Sasuke... I won't hold back!"
"Heh... Okay... I'll shut up," Sai said, smiling as he wiped blood from his mouth. "That was a clever use of a fake smile... I'll have to remember that. Although... It never really seems to work for me."
His inky gaze fell on me. "No comments? I figured you would have punched me by now. I did, after all, insult your ex-boyfriend," He said.
I gritted my teeth. "Well, looks like I know how to walk away when I should," I spat. "You're not worth it."
Captain Yamato again sighed in relief, and Sakura and Naruto stared at me as if I had gone insane.
"I heard about you, you know," Sai continued. "The orphaned Takeda Princess who was the most promising member on her team. Abandoned by the one person she trusted more than anyone else... But what was there to expect from a revenge-obsessed traitor? Tell me, Minxie... Did it hurt when he left? I could only imagine the pain you went through. Knowing that Sasuke knew what he was doing, that he hurt you and left you, all for power... It must've been pure torture. Especially having the realization that he never loved you."
And that had done it. Before anyone knew what had happened, I was across the field, ready to strike Sai with my kunai.
He blocked it with his own weapon, but I knocked it out of his hand and pushed him back against the tree.
"You don't know us, Sai," I hissed at him. "You don't know my team, you don't know what we've been through, and you don't know Sasuke. Never speak as if you do, especially when you're not even half the person he is. And you sure as hell don't know me, either. So, why don't I give you a little 411?"
"I have zero tolerance for idiots like you who run their mouths without knowing anything," I growled. "So next time you have something to say, don't say it. No one wants you here, but we'll work with you, all because this mission is impossibly important to us. I'm here because I care about Sasuke, and because I'll do anything to save him. Yes, he did break my heart. But, no, that doesn't mean I'll stop trying."
"And do you want to know another interesting fact about me?" I inquired darkly, raising an eyebrow. With blinding speed, I threw my katana blindly, making it hit the tree on the space next to his head.
I leaned into his ear and whispered, "I never miss twice."
With a final grunt and glare at the dark-haired boy, who actually seemed shocked, I dropped my arm from his chest, grabbing my katana and sheathing it once again.
Suddenly, Captain Yamato made hand signs, and a large wooden cage appeared out of nowhere. I stared at it, an eyebrow raised. I was the only one, apart from the First Hokage, who could perform wood style jutsu... Who was this Yamato guy?
"We have five days to get to Tenchi bridge," Yamato began. "Keep this up, and you're all going into this cage."
Sakura, Naruto, and I exchanged looks, and I could tell that Sakura knew something was up with our new captain, too. Naruto was just disturbed at the fact that our captain was prepared to throw us into a cage.
"You have two choices," Yamato continued. "Enjoy a night at an inn with a relaxing hot spring... Or get thrown into this cage, working on your teamwork." He loomed forward, getting this really scary expression on his face.
"You don't know me either... I like the gentle approach. But I'm not against using more... draconian methods if I have to..."
My eye twitched. Okay, so today, I've established two things. One, Sai is a total jerk who I can't stand.
Two, Captain Yamato is a total weirdo.
~*~
My eye twitched as I tried to cover myself in the steam of the hot spring. Sakura and I exchanged looks, and I knew she and I were thinking the same thing:
What. The. Hell. Is. This.
We, as expected, could hear Naruto from the other side of the wall, which was where the male hot spring was.
I heard splashing, and I realized that Naruto had probably stood up in the water as a result of getting freaked out by our very nice, but very creepy captain.
"Well, look at that," I heard Sai say, "You do have some balls after all."
I busted out laughing at that, and I heard Naruto start flipping out. "SAY WHAT!? SAI, SHUT THE HELL UP!" He then continued on, ranting about how much he didn't like the hot springs.
"And as for you, Minxie... I KNOW YOU WERE THE ONE WHO LAUGHED!" Naruto barked suddenly.
"HOLY SH-" I never got to finish, since I had fallen into the steaming water out of pure surprise.
"Yeah, that's what you get, brunette," Naruto muttered.
I rolled my eyes, resurfacing. "Oh, shut it, blonde."
~*~
I woke up extremely early, which was very odd for me. The sun hadn't even fully risen yet. I contemplated going back to sleep, but then I spotted my bag that had my sketch pad peeking out from it.
I decided that I'd get some drawing time in, so I got ready and grabbed my drawing stuff. I walked out of the inn, taking in the beautiful landscape as I walked to the front.
There was a blue lake in front of the inn, trees bordering it. I paused as I spotted a familiar dark-haired boy sitting with his legs hanging over the edge, almost touching the water beneath him. The mere sight of him made me want to punch him, but then I remembered Captain Yamato's threat.
The reminder made me shudder. No matter how soft-spoken he seemed, Captain Yamato was actually terrifying, and I was not going to risk his wrath. So, swallowing my pride, I walked over to Sai.
"I see you took my idea," I began, looking at the sketch pad in Sai's hands and trying to use my best polite voice.
"Maybe we're more alike than we seem," He mused. The thought of that made me sick, but instead of commenting snarkily about it, I sat down next to him. I peered over his shoulder to look at what he had been drawing, and my eyes widened as I realized how beautiful it was.
"Wow... That's really amazing," I marveled, my eyes wide.
"Thank you," He said. He looked at my closed sketch pad. "You draw?"
"Sort of," I said, biting my lip. "I haven't really drawn in a while... But these are a few I drew a while back."
I handed him my sketch pad, and he flipped through it, his ink-colored eyes scanning through them blankly.
"You draw beautifully," He complimented, handing me the sketch pad.
"A compliment?" I teased. "Should I be scared?"
"No, but I should be," He said. "I might say the wrong thing, and you'll end up slamming me against a tree again."
I laughed. "Yeah... That. I have a really bad temper," I admitted, biting my lip.
"I don't mind," He said. "You knocked my weapon out of my hand quickly. You're good."
"So are you," I acknowledged. "Granted, I'm better, but I suppose you're not entirely bad. You have nice reflexes, at least." My tone was teasing, but it seemed to go right over his head. He continued to stare at me blankly, as if he was wondering what I meant. Clearing my throat, I decided a different approach, "You know, for someone who's such a jerk... I never would've guessed that you'd like art."
"Well, looks can be deceiving," He said. "I thought you were a fragile porcelain doll. It took me getting beat up for me to realize that you're not."
I laughed a little. "Don't worry... I can be nice. I won't push you against any more trees," I promised.
"That's a relief," He said, smiling slightly.
I stared at his drawing again. "I thought you'd draw a landscape or something... I mean, we are surrounded by beautiful scenery," I said. "But this is an abstract. Either way, it's really good."
"You know about abstracts?" He said, a little surprised.
I nodded. "I've never been really good at them myself, but I do admire them."
"Sai? Minx?" Sakura said, coming into view. She walked up to us, peeking over Sai's shoulder. "Wow. That's very pretty."
Sai nodded, thanking her.
I stared at the swirls on his paper, tilting my head slightly. "So... What are you going to title it? Your drawing, I mean."
"I don't know," Sai admitted, smiling.
"No ideas?" Sakura inquired.
"I've made thousands of sketches over time... But I've never named them, not one," He said.
"Huh?" Sakura and I asked in unison.
"Even I title my drawings, and they're just crappy things like trees," I said.
"Yeah," Sakura agreed. "Don't artists usually use titles to convey what they're feeling while they're drawing?"
"Whenever I try to title my drawings... Nothing comes to mind," Sai admitted. "I can't find the right words... I just don't feel anything."
"Is that why you're such an insensitive jerk?" A new voice snapped, and I turned around to see Naruto.
"It's time to go," the blonde said. He stepped forward, peeking over at Sai's drawing.
"Heh... That drawing is nothing special," Naruto sneered, scoffing.
"Of course," Sai said with a smile. "Just like you."
Naruto spazzed out. "That's it! It's official, now! I HATE YOU! If you have a problem, just say it! Don't use that stupid fake smile! And I'll fight you any time!"
"But I don't hate you, Naruto," Sai said easily. "I feel nothing towards you, good or bad." He turned back around, beginning to put his stuff away. "Go on ahead. I'll be finished in a second."
"We'll help," Sakura volunteered, and I nodded, so we both helped him put his stuff away.
I spotted a picture book on the floor, and I picked it up, raising an eyebrow and handing it to Sakura. The pinkette examined it.
"This isn't a printed book... You drew this, didn't you?" I inquired, and Sai nodded.
"Wow, your very own picture book..." Sakura marveled.
"That's really cool," I said, smiling slightly as I put my own things away. Naruto scoffed, rolling his eyes.
"While we're traveling, can I flip through it?" Sakura inquired.
"Sorry, but no," Sai said, taking it from her. "It's not finished. Plus... I've never shown it to anyone else... Because it belonged to my older brother."
I raised an eyebrow, watching as Sai packed. Could there be more to him than there seemed?
~*~
"This spot'll do," Yamato decided, and he made hand signs. A wooden freakin' house popped out of the ground! How does that even work!?
We didn't really complain, though. It was better than camping out. I started to admire Captain Yamato a little more, since he pretty much saved us the trouble of having to deal with all the bugs in the woods. So, we all entered the house, putting our stuff down and getting comfortable.
We gathered around the lantern, listening to Captain Yamato.
"Sakura... Although I received a file from Suna, I need more information on the Akatsuki member, Sasori," He said. "Considering that you're the only one who's gone toe-to-toe with him."
I let out a small sigh of relief. So Kakashi-sensei hadn't said anything about my ties to the Akatsuki. I hardly believed he'd just let it go, though. He'd probably be waiting when I got home.
"Why do you need to know that?" Naruto asked.
"If I'm going to impersonate him, I've got to act just as he does," Yamato explained. "I'll pose as him to meet with the spy, and then you four will come out on my signal alone."
"This spy... He or she will most likely be strong and accomplished," Sai noted.
"Yeah," Naruto said, "Well, so are we."
"Remember... We need a live capture," Yamato said. "Even if we have to fight them... The target can't be killed or injured. It's why this mission is so delicate and complicated. You four will be my back-up. If it is revealed that I am not Sasori... A battle will occur, and that's when, on my signal, you come in."
He looked between us. "We will fight in pairs. That's why you guys need to polish your teamwork," He said. "Sakura, you'll be with me, since you're the team's only medic, and you need to be guarded." He looked over at Naruto, Sai, and I. "You three will be the second squad."
"Come on!" Naruto whined. "Why do I have to be partnered with him!? Minxie's perfectly fine... Why can't he just work alone!?"
"This mission is very dangerous," Yamato explained. "Every one of your actions must be covered by a partner in order for us to succeed." He looked at each of us. "Tomorrow, before we head off to the bridge, we'll have a battle simulation. All I know about you guys is from your files... I'll have to evaluate how you fight, your jutsus, and your skills. Then, I'll forge you into a proper team. Be ready for tomorrow... Because the time for games is over."
~*~
I watched from behind a tree as Naruto headed towards Captain Yamato. He had used the Transformation Jutsu to pose as both Sai and I, so it looked like the three of us were fighting together.
Yamato taunted him, and the blonde glared, creating a Rasengan in the palm of the transformed 'Sai's' hand. His version of myself stood off at the side, taking out its katana.
Captain Yamato wrapped a wooden chain around Naruto's version of Sai, making it poof back into its original form. His copy of me charged at Yamato, who only used his wood to push it back and knock its katana out of its hand, making it poof back into Naruto.
The real Naruto flipped over his other two copies of himself, jumping on Yamato and knocking the captain down.
One of Sai's cartoon snakes slithered towards Yamato, and that was okay. You know, until he had wrapped Naruto in with our captain.
It turned out that 'Yamato' had really just been a wooden dummy, meaning that Captain Yamato was hidden elsewhere.
"SAI! GET THIS OFF OF ME!" Naruto barked, turning back to the tree where Sai was hidden.
My eye twitched, and I sighed, going back to locate our target. I knew Sai would get Naruto out of that situation. I would just find Yamato. That was my job, anyway. I would get the catch, Naruto was front assault, and Sai would cover us both.
I summoned one of my leopards, telling it to locate Yamato. It found him immediately, and I sprang into action, jumping onto its back and running out into the field.
I was completely confused when I saw that Sai hadn't broken Naruto out of his jutsu. The blonde was still bound, Sai's cartoon snake wrapped tightly around him.
"Sai! Get Naruto out of that! I'll find Yamato!" I shouted, but Sai wasn't listening. He disappeared, searching for Yamato, which was so NOT the plan.
I fumed, my eyes narrowing. I had just told Sai to help Naruto! Catching Yamato wasn't his job!
I directed my leopard towards Naruto instead, jumping off of its back and next to Naruto. With a chakra-powered slice of my katana, the snake fell onto the floor, and Naruto was released.
"That idiot! I told him to help you," I growled, putting my katana away.
Naruto rubbed his wrists. "How did he just leave!?"
At the end of our simulation, Sai had been the one to catch Captain Yamato.
"Nice work, Sai," Yamato acknowledged. "Simulations are over, now."
I walked up to Sai, completely ignoring our captain. "Sai! What the hell was that back there!?" I asked, my eyebrows furrowed.
"I completed our mission," Sai replied simply.
"Yeah, and you left me caught in your jutsu!" Naruto shouted, appearing next to me. "Don't you get what a comrade is!?"
"I told you to help Naruto," I said, glaring at the dark-haired boy. "You completely ignored me, left him behind, and disregarded our whole plan! I was supposed to catch Captain Yamato, and I already had a lock on his scent! All you had to do was help Naruto!"
"And then what?" Sai inquired. "You were late with acting on Yamato's location. I saw an opening, and I took it. If you hadn't stopped to help Naruto, you would've gotten to Yamato before me."
"I wouldn't have had to stop and help Naruto if you would've just listened to me in the first place!" I shouted. "What if that had been a real battle? You don't leave a comrade behind like that!"
"If this would've been a real battle, we would've all lost," He said. "Your emotions make you weak. Had Yamato been a real, dangerous enemy, I wouldn't have been able to handle him on my own. You wouldn't have aided me, however, because you were too busy helping Naruto, whom had gotten caught in my jutsu due to his own idiocy. In the end, we would've all ended up captured or dead."
I fumed, cracking my knuckles. "We wouldn't have failed!" I shouted. "If it had been a real comrade out there with us, doing as I said, we wouldn't have been in this whole mess! Leaving Naruto behind wasn't a good decision. It was stupid. Our master taught us the value of comrades... Maybe you should learn it, too. We never leave people behind on this team. And if you have a problem dealing with that... Maybe you were assigned onto the wrong team."
And with that, I pushed past Sai and walked towards the trees, searching for my bag.
"You shouldn't blame me for your own shortcomings," Sai said, and I ignored him, picking up my bag. "It's impractical to fight while covering two shinobi who can't keep their cool, nor sort their emotions from their missions."
"You're unbelievable," Naruto stated, glaring at Sai. "I will never accept you as a member of this team!"
Captain Yamato sighed. "This is so not going to work..." He muttered, sounding stressed.
"I mean, think about it," Sai mused. "Would Sasuke have fought while covering you? I doubt it."
I stopped my movements, my back turned to the black-haired idiot. If he said something about Sasuke again...
"He betrayed our village and tried to kill you," Sai said, looking at Naruto. "He broke your best friend's heart and ruined your team. And you still consider him a comrade?"
"Yes," Naruto said harshly, turning around to glare at Sai. "And I'd still do anything to save him. Even team up with you."
The blonde walked away, retreating into the trees to grab his bags. I walked past Sai, not saying a word. He began to talk with Sakura, but I tuned it out. Naruto was more important at that point.
"Hey," I said, leaning against the tree Naruto's bag was under.
"Hey," Naruto said, leaning down to pick up his bag.
"Don't listen to Sai," I said suddenly. "He's a douche. He doesn't get us." I watched the blonde pick up his bag slowly. "Look, Naruto... We're off to Tenchi bridge in one day. It's just one more day... And we'll be done with Sai's comments. Can you hold off for that long?"
"It's not about me, Minxie," He said. "I don't care if Sai's here or not. If he can help us get Sasuke back, he can stay."
I sighed, looking back at Sai, Yamato, and Sakura, who were still talking. "Naruto... When we get back home... Do you want to have ramen or something? Just the two of us?"
"Only us two?" He asked, his eyes widening. "Like... Like a date?"
I thought about it for a few seconds. Kylie's words echoed in my head: "Sometimes, you're so busy chasing everyone else that you're oblivious to what's right in front of you."
"Sure," I finally decided, smiling.
"But... You're dating Gaara," He said, sounding bitter.
"Not anymore," I said. "We broke up a few days ago. For reasons... Look, I just think it's about time we stopped avoiding each other. It'd be fun."
"Wait... You're serious?" He asked in disbelief.
"Completely," I assured. "Pick me up at 7."
He started grinning. "I will, believe it!"
I laughed. "Yeah, Naruto. I do."