送別 Soubetsu
Yoru smiled fondly at the boys, happy they were back.
Although they did not get much time together, the team was happy that everyone was back. They had gone on a few missions together and were back in sync. Naruto had mastered his rasengan, and Sasuke, his chidori. Sakura was still working on being able to heal, but she was most of the way there. She had even managed to heal a large gash Naruto had gotten from one of their missions.
The next chuunin exam slowly rolled around in those few weeks and the other genin, excluding Shikamaru (he was already promoted), decided to wait to take them. Kakashi and Yoru however, recommended their genin once again. The genin were ecstatic to hear this and asked where they would be held this year. There were going to be in Suna, to help maintain the newly found peace between the new Kages. Gaara, the jinchuuriki Yoru healed, became the new Kazekage after his father's death.
Jiraiya was sad, claiming he had wanted to leave with Naruto for a while to train him. Yoru told him he would just have to wait. They immediately departed for Suna, since the trip would take a while. Yoru had been there once on a mission with her father back when she lived in Iwa, so she knew exactly the type of clothes to wear. The genin, however, were not so lucky.
Upon arrival, Yoru requested to talk with the Kazekage, wishing to pay her respects and introduce him to Naruto. He had grown a little taller but was still a couple inches shorter than Yoru, and his hair had grown out some. He was pleased to see Yoru and invited them all to stay in his home for the time that they were participating in the chuunin exams. She was happy to find that his village and siblings had warmed up to him after he was made Kazekage. In their stay, Naruto had warmed up to Gaara after he found Yoru double checking his seals on the first day.
The same villages participated in the exams, with the exclusion of Otogakure. The tests were similar in a way, the first test was still a written, albeit they were different questions. The second exam took place in the desert, where the team had to survive for five days from traps, the sand, and with little food or water. The third exam was a team battle, one team versus another. Yoru and Kakashi were seated in the Kage area as the Hokage's personal guards and also as a friend to the Kazekage. Team Seven passed all three exams and were given the title of chuunin by the Hokage shortly after. It lasted a little over a week, making the trip around three.
Sakura was the only one that accepted her flak jacket, although she did hit the boys upside the head when they said they did not need one because they were too strong. Jiraiya took up the chance to ask Tsunade and Yoru if he could finally take Naruto to train him. Yoru said yes, but gave him the same threat as last time, which caused Tsunade to chuckle. Jiraiya made a comment about how Yoru was just like her, which made the women laugh more. Tsunade accepted the offer and told Naruto to go say his goodbyes before leaving. Sasuke was the first.
Two days after Naruto was gone and Yoru had no clue what to do. She could not train Sakura because she became a student under Tsunade since she was the best medic nin ever, literally. Sasuke moped around the house and occasionally went to go "sit in his sunny place" as he called it. She knew he was seeing someone, but she was not gonna push it. After three days she finally had it, something to do.
"Hey Sasuke, since Sakura and Naruto are both training, wanna go train with me?"
He looked relieved, "I thought you'd never ask. Where would we go though?"
"Well, it would be nice to visit my mother and father back in Iwa at least for a while, after that we can go everywhere. It'll be easy for you to learn new jutsu with those eyes of yours anyway."
"You'll have to tell your lover boy though, won't he be sad?"
She rolled her eyes, "You sound like Sakura, Sasuke-kun. Do you really want me to throw punches at you like I do with her?"
"No ma'am, I do not. But, you should probably go and tell him, I can go tell the Hokage."
"Fine, but don't expect me to be nice tomorrow."
"You love me nee-chan."
"Barely."
They both burst out laughing before departing for their destinations. Sasuke went to the Hokage's tower to discuss their ideas, while Yoru searched for Kakashi through his chakra. He had not come over the past few days and Yoru was kind of sad about that. Nevertheless, she let go of all of that when she knocked on the door. She felt that he made no move to get up to open the door, so she knocked again, with still no answer.
"Kakashi, I know you're in there!"
She heard a sigh from within, but he stumbled up and pulled the door open. He had his mask pulled up barely to cover his face in case anyone else was out there with her, but he pulled it back down when she entered, he was comfortable with her. She no longer blushed when she saw his face, so she took the time to study it. She would miss him and she did not know how long she would be gone. He stood in the entryway of his kitchen, facing away from her.
She was the first one to speak up, "How come you haven't come over since Naruto left?"
"I've had a lot of stuff on my mind," he replied, still facing away from her.
She walked toward him, "Talk to me, please. What's going on?"
"My old team, they're all dead. With the Akatsuki rising up, I fear there may be another war soon."
"And? There has to be more."
He finally turned to face her and there was a deep sadness set in his onyx eyes, "I don't know what I'd do if I lost you."
"Kakashi, I promise you, I'm not going to die. Even if there is a war, I'll be okay."
"How do you know?"
"You'll be by my side," she smiled.
"I couldn't protect Obito, Rin, or Minato. How can you expect me to protect you?"
"I don't need protecting Kakashi. I'm stronger when I'm with you, you make me want to live for something other than just living."
"Yoru..."
She hugged him, nice and warmly. He was immediately calmed when he wrapped his arms around her. But there was a question brewing in his mind, why did she care so much? Why had she actually come to check up on him?
"Hey, Kakashi?"
"Yeah?"
"I actually have some news for you."
He pulled away and instantly regretted it, his body no longer felt the warmth it did when Yoru was touching him. He felt cold.
"Which is?"
"I've decided to take Sasuke training. We're going to be traveling, and I don't know when we'll be back."
His eye widened, but he nodded.
"I promise I'll write to you whenever I get the chance, okay? I won't forget about you Kakashi, I couldn't."
He nodded once more, a lump forming in his throat. She leaned up to kiss him once more on the mouth before she left for good. He hugged her, cherishing her warmth for one last moment before she left. Then she let go, and he was left with the cold once more. All he could do was watch as she walked out of his door.
"Oh and Kakashi? I really do like you."
Yoru and Sasuke met back up at their home and he informed her of the Hokage's deal. Sasuke was to be of at least jounin level by the time they came back or Yoru owed her around fifty bottles of sake. Yoru laughed long and hard and told Sasuke to go pack. She started shoving clothes and basic rations into scrolls, along with her katana and writing utensils. Once Sasuke was packed, they made dinner and went to bed, prepared to leave in the morning.
Yoru made sure to ask Sakura to watch over their home while they were gone, which she happily agreed to. They made their way out after that, stopping to say bye to anyone that stopped them on their way out. Once outside of the gates, Yoru informed Sasuke that it would take around a week to travel to Iwa with minimal breaks, which he was okay with. They could do the sight-seeing later.
A little over a week later, they arrived in Iwa, just like Yoru said. Sasuke was amazed at the amount of people roaming the streets. Yoru skillfully weaved her way through the crowd, making sure to hang onto Sasuke along the way, to the Tsuchikage tower. He was even more surprised when there was a little, old man sitting behind the desk.
"Ahh, Tsuchikage-sama, Kurotsuchi-chan, Akatsuchi-san, nice to see you all."
Sasuke looked over to see another girl, who looked to be a few years older than him, glancing down at the ground, blushing.
"Yoru-san, I've asked you not to call me that."
"But Kuro-chan, we grew up together," Yoru pouted.
"Fine, fine. But what are you doing back in the village?" Kurotsuchi said as she looked between her grandfather and Yoru.
"I'm actually here to stay a while with my student if that is alright with you Tsuchikage-sama?" she asked with a polite bow.
"Eh, you know you're welcome here. Your father isn't out on a mission yet, go see him."
"Yes, thank you, Tsuchikage-sama."
"And as for you student of Yoru, if you cause any trouble in my village, I will not hesitate to lock you up."
Sasuke nodded while Yoru replied, "I promise you, he will not be any trouble."
They left and made their way back to Yoru's old home. They stopped by a graveyard on the way there and Yoru asked Sasuke to wait outside. He complied and waited for Yoru to pay her respects before they went off again. This time, Yoru was stopped by an old lady, that she kept calling obaa-san. When they entered the house next door, Sasuke made the comment about how he thought she did not have any grandparents, so she explained that her obaa-san used to watch her when she was little.
Yoru's father came running through the house when she belted out a "Father I'm home!" They excited began talking and catching up while Sasuke made himself comfortable. Yoru gave him directions to the bathroom and told him to go shower while she and her father were talking. He nodded and then left. Yoru caught her father up on her and Kakashi, Jiraiya and Naruto, and the fact that she thought Sasuke was seeing someone.
He laughed when she brought the last part up, saying that it was probably good for him. He told her to go shower in her old bathroom while he made dinner, then they would all talk as a family. He even promised to take her to her favorite sushi stall, Hi Hikari Sushiya. She excited went to finish her shower and discuss things over dinner. They all fit in like a family, Daichi even almost called Sasuke son once. It was nice.