Chapter 21: 5th Hokage, Sasu’s Bday, Mysterious Mission
Two long weeks had passed by the Leaf Village. The construction work from Orochimaru’s attack was almost complete as the streets filled the smell of newly cut wood.
ANBU and the other jounin were in a buzz, hustling to finish missions while trying to protect the village. What Konoha needed was a new Hokage… and that’s exactly what it was getting.
Four shinobi’s were walking on a dirt path a couple of minutes away from the village. The hot sun was bearing down on their skin; the youngest one wiped the sweat away from his forehead with a huge grin plastered on his face.
“COME ON, Grandma Tsunade! We have to get their quickly, believe it!” Naruto yelled with his fist pumped in the air. Tsunade rolled her eyes and chuckled under her breath.
“Calm down, Naruto,” Jiraiya spoke “We’re almost there. No need to rush. A good ninja always waits.”
Naruto pouted and crossed his arms over his chest. “Hmph!”
The four of them, plus TonTon, finally walked up to the main red gates. The guards yawned as another boring day passed by for them. Hearing a couple of footsteps, they looked up.
“Well well, look who it is! It seems that Naruto and Master Jiraiya have finally brought her.” Izumo said as he watched the four of them pass through the gates. “Indeed. It’s such a relief now.” Kotetsu agreed.
**Time Skip**
Konohamaru fumed on the top floor of the Hokage’s building after his encounter with Tsunade. Who does she think she is?! Naruto suddenly barged through the opening and crashed with him, both of them tumbling to the ground.
“Hey! Watch where you’re going!” Konohamaru yelled. Naruto grunted while rubbing his nose.
“You watch where you’re standing!”
“Huh? Is that you, Naruto? Long time no see!”
Naruto laughed and stood up. “Yeah! You see an old lady around here with a nasty temper? Actually, she doesn’t look old…. But she is!”
“I’ve seen her, alright! Who is she anyways?!” Konohamaru exclaimed at the same time Naruto said: “Where is she?”
“Well,” Naruto rubbed his chin “It’s a long story. Hmm… ahh! I haven’t got time for this! I’ve got to get her to the infirmary! Pronto!” Naruto screamed as he stomped off towards the office.
“The infirmary?” Konohamaru curiously asked.
“Yeah! She’s apparently some hotshot Medical ninja. Everyone’s making such a big deal about her being Hokage! Has she forgotten what she came here for?!” Naruto ranted pacing back and forth.
Konohamaru’s jaw slacked in horror. “THE FIFTH HOKAGE? You’re lying, Naruto! It’s not true!” he yelled with slight tears and ran out the door, down the stairs.
“Huh? What’s wrong with him?” Naruto wondered. He heard some voice down the hall and noticed Shizune and Tsunade coming.
“… drink just a hot cup of tea.” Tsunade trailed off from her conversation before she was interrupted.
“Not so fast, grandma! Aren’t you forgetting about something?!” He narrowed his eyes. Tsunade raised her eyebrows cluelessly. “What would that be?”
Naruto stomped his foot. “Come on! Are you kidding me? What about Kakashi sensei, Sasuke, Naomi, and Bushy Brows?!”
Blinking a couple of times she replied. “Oh yeah… I did forget about them.”
“Well if it isn’t Naruto. What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be somewhere stuffing your face?” Shikamaru questioned as he walked up the stairs with his father, Shikaku.
“Shikamaru? How about you? You’re usually asleep this time of day…” Naruto retorted.
“Very funny,” he spoke with a monotone, “My dad asked me to come along with him, but don’t ask me why….”
“Hm?” Naruto looked around Shikamaru’s head to see Tsunade talking with Shikaku. “Do they know each other?”
“Greetings, Lady Tsunade.” Shikaku bowed. “It’s been a long time.”
“You’re that kid from the Nara clan! Hope you’re still taking care of those deer, I made a lot of good medicine out of those antlers!” Tsunade grinned.
“Who’s the blonde girl? And why is she talking to my dad as if she’s his boss?” Shikamaru whispered to Naruto.
“Didn’t you hear? She’s the 5th Hokage!” Naruto replied back.
“Huh?” Shikamaru breathed with a surprise.
“And she’s no girl, she’s actually an old lady in her 50’s!” Naruto muttered back.
“WHAT?!” Shikamaru exclaimed with a baffled expression. Tsunade and Shizune walked down the stairs waving a goodbye to Shikakau.
“See you along, Shikamaru! We’re going to the infirmary! I’ll show you a killer new technique I learned! Later!” Naruto grinned and followed Tsunade.
***
Sakura sat on a stool with a solemn expression laced on her face. She longingly gazed at Sasuke as he was still unconscious from Itachi’s Genjutsu.
“May I come in?” She heard a voice. Looking up she saw a beautiful woman with blonde hair.
“U-uh, who are you?” Sakura softly asked. Whoever she is… she’s beautiful!
“Sakura! Sakura! You’ll never believe it! She’s going to make everything okay! Haha, don’t worry, Sasuke’s going to be alright now.” Naruto exclaimed with a grin as he barged in from behind Tsunade.
Tsuande walked towards Sasuke and placed her palm on his forehead. A sudden green light hovered around her hand as she focused her chakra within his mind. Both Naruto and Sakura watched Sasuke with anticipated expressions. They didn’t notice Tsuande looking at them from the corner of her eyes.
Sasuke’s face contorted with soreness as he slowly opened his eyes. He slowly sat up and rested his back against the headboard. “Sasuke!” Naruto grinned widely.
“S-Sasuke? Sasuke!” Sakura cried and immediately hugged him tightly around the neck. She began sobbing in his shoulders, relieved to see him awake.
Lol, at this moment I was like “bitch get off of Naomi’s man!”^^
Sasuke didn’t say anything or even move. His hollow eyes emotionlessly stared off into random space. Naruto’s grin faltered a bit as he noticed how hard Sakura was crying for Sasuke.
“Come on, you’re not done.” Naruto told Tsunade as he led her out to another room.
***
Tsunade sighed and shook her head. “Disgraceful. To be taken completely out of the game by two low life punks like that. I thought you were supposed to be the best.” She raised her eyebrows.
Kakashi looked down with a shameful yet deadpanned look on his face. “S-sorry to disappoint you…” he sighed with the bags under his eyes more prominent.
“Okay! Onto the next one!” Naruto exclaimed. Tsunade, Shizune, and Naruto went to the ICU to visit Naomi.
Beep. Beep. Beep. The constant ringing of the heart monitor echoed through the quiet halls. Tsunade’s heels clacked on the ground as they stopped in front of the room. Opening the door, they quietly went inside.
Tsunade’s eyes narrowed immediately as she noticed her health. Picking up the chart, she read over Naomi’s condition. As she did, Naruto’s eyes widened at her state and quickly sat beside her, holding her hand.
“Please, Mi-chan, wake up.” He whispered with a frown. Tsunade nodded towards Shizune indicating that the surgery that Naomi needed had to be discussed.
“Naruto, why don’t you go out and train. I’ll take care of Naomi from here.” She said. Naruto merely nodded and walked out the door. As soon as he left, Tsunade walked towards Naomi.
“What have you got yourself into, MiMi.” Tsunade whispered as she softly gazed at her god-daughter’s (Sora’s) daughter. She always felt like a mother towards Naomi since Sora had passed away. Unable to have kids herself, she had spoilt Naomi in place of her mother, showering her with as much love as she could give her. But of course, no love can replace your own mother’s.
“She’s brave for fighting it this face, milady.” Shizune muttered as she moved a stray piece of Naomi’s hair out of her face. Her relationship with Shizune was more like a sister one. Calling her nee-chan ever since she was little, Naomi had grown close with Shizune.
“Shizune, you can feel it, can’t you? Her heart’s slowing down day by day. The poison is affecting her muscles from the spinal cord, preventing movement. And the biggest muscle in the body, and the most important, is her heart. If we don’t have the surgery immediately, she’ll die.” Tsunade spoke with anger.
“When shall we do it, milady? This surgery could take many hours; we’ll need all of the medical ninja we can get.” Shizune replied.
“First thing in the morning.” Was all Tsunade said before leaving the room. Shizune sighed and tucked Naomi’s blanket in, before leaving the room.
***
Location: Unknown
“That’s impossible. No other Uchiha’s were alive ever since you killed them all during the massacre.” Kisame explained as both he and Itachi were sitting in his room discussing this. Itachi had sound proofed the room to keep the conversation private.
“That may be true; however, Sora could have been pregnant, without my knowledge.” Itachi mused as he gazed at the picture.
“One thing I don’t get, Itachi, is that, who is this Sora anyways?” Kisame curiously asked. Itachi froze as he heard the question.
“S-she was one of my teammates when I was in ANBU. We were childhood friends, actually.” Itachi said.
Kisame discretely narrowed his eyes. He’s hiding something. Although, Itachi was excellent at hiding his emotion and keeping his face passive, at this moment Kisame was able to see his feelings; just a bit.
“So what do we do about this, Itachi? Should we tell Leader and the other members?” he asked.
Itachi shook his head. “No. Don’t tell them anything. Keep this to ourselves. This information is dire, and if slipped into the wrong hands, there will be consequences.”
“What about the fact that Leader wants to recruit her?”
Itachi sighed with a slight frown. “We can only wait and see.” How come Sora never told me?
***
Next day…
Tsunade and Shizune were in a giant hall within the basements of the hospital where major medical techniques or surgeries were taken place.
A huge square sealing was written on the floor with black ink with a circle in the middle. Naomi’s body lay in the middle with four medical ninjas sitting at each of the square corners.
Sealing_Square
“Alright here’s the plan for today,” Tsunade’s voice boomed in the chamber as she began instructing “You four medics will be using the Healing Resuscitation Regeneration technique to regenerate her lost cells, bones, and muscles within her body.”
“Hai.” They replied in sync.
“I will also be standing on the side here to remove her poison with my chakra. Understand? Okay then, in 3..2..1..begin.” Tsunade made swift hand signs and slapped one of her palms on the ground. Green chakra emitted from it and swirled in the air until it reached Naomi.
Maneuvering her hands, the Slug Queen, manipulated the chakra to enter Naomi’s body to extract he poison. While she did that, the four medics slapped both of their palms on the ground and a huge spark of chakra surrounded Naomi’s body.
They constantly applied chakra to her body as they felt cells re-growing and replacing the dead ones. A couple of hours had gone by before the technique was actually finished. All of the chakra lights disappeared and most of the ninjas sighed in relief.
“Good working everyone.” Tsunade complimented. “You may go and rest now, while I finish up things with Naomi.” The medics bowed to her and left the room.
Tsunade crouched down by Naomi’s body and cleaned her up with a wet sponge, wiping away all of the excess blood that was dried on her skin. She changed her into another hospital gown, and soon enough shifted her to a room that was right across from Sasuke’s.
“How is she doing?” Jiraiya quietly asked as he entered the room. Tsunade sighed while fixing her IV drip, before looking at Jiraiya.
“We were able to heal her well. It was successful; she’s just resting now, and will be able to wake up by tomorrow.”
“I see…” Jiraiya spoke “What am I going to do with her? Fighting two S-rank criminals by herself? She must be out of her mind.”
“Who are these criminals, Jiraiya? Why were they after Naruto and Naomi?” Tsunade questioned as they both closed the hospital room, and walked to the Hokage’s office.
“They’re known as the Akatsuki. Not much is known about them. All we know is that they’re after the Nine-Tails, as for Naomi, not a single clue.” Jiraiya explained.
“Jiraiya, we can’t let Itachi Uchiha get Naomi. If he ever find out about her… then I don’t know what we’ll do. You know he’ll come after her!” Tsunade worriedly thought as she bit her thumb in frustration. They both entered the office; Tsunade sat down on the chair, while Jiraiya stared out the window, leaning against it.
“No. Absolutely not. I’m not letting go of Naomi that easily. She’s my granddaughter first, before his. I would like to see him try…” Jiraiya gritted his teeth. Tsunade merely frowned and took out her first bottle of Sake for the day.
“But remember Jiraiya, he has much of a right to be with Naomi, just like you.”
***
Next Day
Sasuke was staring out his window around 8 in the morning the next day. The hospital wasn’t that comfortable and had kept him awake the entire night. The door to his room slid open, and he saw Sakura come in with more white flowers.
He mentally rolled his eyes at her antics. “What are you doing here?” His monotone voice asked. Sakura grinned as she saw him awake and quickly sat down next to him.
“You’re awake, Sasuke-kun!” her loud voice pierced his ears. “I came here to visit you!”
Sasuke silently groaned and rubbed his ear a bit annoyed. Does she realize that this is a hospital… not a place to be screaming? He thought and ignored her while she kept blabbering on about daily stuff. Suddenly a sudden thought interrupted his mind.
“Sakura, where’s Naomi?” he urgently asked. Sakura stopped talking and frowned. “She’s at the hospital room across from yours. She was also in a fight.”
Sasuke’s eyes widened in shock. How come no one told me!? He quickly pushed off the blankets and slowly walked outside, and across the hall to Naomi’s. He left Sakura hanging with a slight angry look on her face. Sasuke didn’t see her unconsciously clenching her fist.
Opening the door, Sasuke walked inside and noticed Naomi sleeping with a peaceful look on her face. He grabbed a chair and set it by her bed. Sitting down, he grabbed her hand with his own. He didn’t say anything and just held her hand; being there for her in any way possible.
His thoughts roamed back to the fight he had with Itachi. The hate, once again, began rising from the pits of his stomach. He didn’t realize he was squeezing Naomi’s hand.
She unconsciously moved a bit before her eyes blinked slowly open. Focusing her blurry vision, Naomi looked around the room before her eyes landed on Sasuke. A small smile broke onto her face and she squeezed Sasuke’s hand back.
He snapped his head to her in surprise. “You’re awake!” he quietly exclaimed.
“Mhmmm.” She nodded her head and tried to sit up. Sasuke helped her lean back on the bed’s headboard. “How long have I been out?”
Sasuke shook his head. “I’m not sure, I just found out about you now. I also woke up yesterday. Stay here; I’ll go get a nurse.” He kissed her forehead tenderly and left the room.
Naomi sighed a smile as she still felt Sasuke’s lingering lips on her forehead. She was just glad that everything was okay, for now.
**Time Skip**
Naomi’s POV
It had been about two days since I was finally discharged. I say thank kami, I was dying of boredom in that plain hospital room. The first thing I wanted to do was get home, feed Jun, take a long ass shower, and go to sleep.
And that’s exactly what I did. When I got home, I noticed that Jun wasn’t there. Worried for him, I searched the home, until I found a note.
Naomi,
So I took Jun Wait! That sounds like I kidnapped him… which I kinda did^^ Okay, believe it! @_@Since you were in the hospital, I gave Jun to Kakashi-sensei since he apparently takes care of dogs… Yeah… that’s it.
Naruto ≥*≤
I chuckled as I read the note. Only Naruto would scratch stuff out and put weird symbols everywhere. I guess he gave them to Kakashi since his summons are Ninkens. Shaking my head, I went into my room. Grabbing some extra clothes and undergarments, I went into the bathroom to take a shower.
Coming out, I dried my hair, and immediately went to sleep. My eyes snapped open when I noticed something from the corner of my eyes. Getting out of my bed sheets, I looked at the calendar on the wall.
July 23rd.
My eyes widened at the little note I wrote in the date box for tomorrow. Sasu’s Bday © Crap! I almost forgot! Thank god, I figured out just in time. With that I went to bed, and thought about what I would do tomorrow.
**Time Skip**
The next day, I was heading towards the weapons shop. I browsed the shelves and gazed at each of the weapons. “Ahh, Naomi! Here you are!” I saw the owner come out. He was probably in his mid 50’s, but nevertheless very kind.
“Ohayo Kentaro-san. I just dropped by to see whether my order was ready or not?” I asked as I browsed through the various weapons out of curiosity.
“Hai hai. Let me just get it.” He disappeared and then came out with a large box. Setting it down on the counter, he opened it for me to see. I grinned widely as I noticed that my present for Sasuke was in perfect condition.
“Here’s your payment, Kentaro-san. Thank you for doing your best for finding it. I know it was hard to find material for these kinds of weapons.” I gave him the money.
He rubbed the back of his neck and sheepishly grinned. “It’s no problem, Naomi. I’m honored of making these weapons.” Taking the box, I bowed and immediately left the shop.
I had the perfect idea for Sasuke’s birthday. Since I knew he hated socializing, I thought it would be perfect that we had a picnic, just Team 7. I had invited all of them over to the lake that was on the forest side of Konoha.
I teleported right outside of Sasuke’s home and barged through the door. I looked around and found the first floor empty. He’s probably sleeping. I was right as I peeked inside of his bedroom. I found him sleeping all disheveled up with his blankets.
“SASUKE-KUN!” I screamed his name like a rabid fangirl. He abruptly sat up with a kunai in his hand frantically looking for fangirls. His eyes were wide like an owl and you could see him breathing heavily as if he had a heart attack.
I started laughing and walked over to sit in front of him. “Come on! Get up! We have to do something today.” I explained.
“Naomi? Ugh, what the hell are you doing here early in the morning?” he groaned and went back to sleep. I glared at him and ripped off the blankets. I grabbed his hand and forcefully pulled him up.
“Come on! Up. Up. Up!” I pushed him towards the bathroom. I quickly went inside the closet and got him spare clothes. I handed them to him and locked him inside the bathroom.
“Hurry up and shower!” I yelled. I could hear him cursing under his breath. Chuckling, I went inside his closet and took out his swim clothes. I packed them away with my spare clothes. We were going to the lake to swim, but he didn’t know that.
He finally came out of the bathroom rubbing his hair dry. He raised an eyebrow at me as he noticed my tote bag, flip flops, and a dark blue sun dress. “Why are you so casual today?” he asked.
I just shrugged and grabbed his arm. “Let’s go! I’m taking you out today.” I exclaimed. I dragged him continuously to the forests and he followed with a bored expression. When we finally arrived, I stood behind him and covered his eyes with my hands.
“Now, no peeking Sasuke.” I told him. He sighed. “What’s going on, anyways?”
“Okay… you can open in 3,2,1, now!” He blinked his eyes open and noticed Team 7 standing by a giant lake.
“SURPRISE! Happy Birthday!” All of us yelled. Sasuke’s eyes widened as he looked around to see a picnic blanket set up with a basket full of food. I forgot it was my birthday…he thought.
“Mi-chan planned out a picnic for your birthday, teme! We’re also going swimming and just relaxing.” Naruto grinned. He was only wearing his swim trunks which were, of course, a bright orange color just like his ninja outfit.
Kakashi was sit down on the grass, leaning against the tree reading his Icha Icha novel. While Sakura, literally glomped Sasuke’s body. I could see his eye twitching furiously. He pushed her away and then walked towards Naruto and I.
“Hn. I don’t have my swim clothes, dobe.” He said to Naruto. But I interrupted.
“Not to worry, I brought them!” I gave a closed eye smile. He glared at me but then sighed in defeat. I guess he really didn’t want to swim.
“Fine. But just this once.” He growled and took the shorts. I giggled and then went by Kakashi to set up the picnic food and drinks. As I was laying everything out, Sasuke came back with only his shorts on. I tried not to drool over his toned body, but Kakashi’s ‘ahem’ cough pulled me out of my thoughts.
“Sasuke-kun!” I heard Sakura squealing as she came out with her bathing suit on. I raised my eyebrows at her attire and the first thing that came to my mind was…. SLUT!
“Do I look hot in this Sasuke-kun?” She asked as she posed in her swimwear. I glanced at Kakashi and noticed him shaking his head in annoyance and going back to reading. Naruto literally had stars in his eyes and was drooling at Sakura’s pinkish-red bikini.
“Hn.” Was all Sasuke said until he grabbed the clothes bag and gave it to me. “Go change.” He ordered. I merely nodded and went back to change.
Third POV
Naruto and Sasuke were bickering as usual, while Sakura was trying to get all over Sasuke. Of course, the blondie was jealous of Sakura’s attention, and therefore let his anger out on Sasuke.
“You teme! Ignoring Sakura like that!” Naruto yelled. Sasuke glared right back. “Why the hell would I look at her when I have Naomi?” he asked with a cold tone.
“Eh?! Sasuke-teme, what are---- woah.” Naruto suddenly stopped as his eyes popped out of his sockets. Sasuke looked at him weirdly before following his line of vision, when his eyes widened also.
“N-Naomi?” he muttered. There, by the tree, Naomi had finally come out changing into her bathing suit. It was a beautiful, yet simple, sea blue crop top tankini, with a bikini bottom. It obviously covered more of her body than Sakura’s outfit.
Sasuke noticed how the swim suit sculpted Naomi’s body, showing off her long, slender legs. For some reason, he noticed how Naomi looked extra beautiful today. Was it because it was his birthday? Or was it just because he realized how important she was to him? He didn’t know, but all he knew was that she was his and his only.
Naomi’s_Swim_Outfit
“W-what are you guys staring at?” she asked as she sheepishly rubbed the back of her neck. She walked up to Naruto and shut his mouth for him. “Close your mouth, ramen boy, or flies will go in.” she winked and walked to Sasuke.
“*Cough* Slut *Cough*” Sakura loudly ‘coughed’ her opinion. Naomi paused in her tracks and stared back at Sakura with a raised eyebrow.
“I learned it from you bitch~~! You’re fucking contagious! Besides, it takes one to know one.” She winked and kept walking to Sasuke. Sakura stared at Naomi’s retreating back with her jaw dropped. Sasuke and Kakashi slightly snickered and turned their heads, while Naruto laughed.
Sasuke grabbed Naomi’s hips and brought her closer. “Just ignore her.” He whispered “You look amazing.”
She grinned at him. “Always.” Kissing his cheek, she pushed him into the water. He fell back with a splash, causing her to laugh out loud. Sasuke came back up and glared at her.
“Is that how you want to do it? Then fine.” Sending chakra to his feet he jumped out of the water and stood on top of it. Naomi suddenly screamed as she also fell into the cold water. Spitting the water out of her mouth, she saw a clone of Sasuke standing there with his arms crossed smugly.
“That’s it! IT’S WAR!” Naomi screamed. Naruto and Sakura joined in on the fun, and all four of them laughed, ate, and just had a great time.
**Time Skip**
It was around 9 pm and Naomi was sitting on Sasuke’s sofa, drying her wet hair, as she had just come out of the shower. Sasuke also came down with his hair smelling like fresh shampoo and sat next to her.
“Okay! Now it’s time for your present.” She grinned “Here’s the first box.” She handed him a medium sized box that was covered in green wrapping.
He ripped the wrapping and opened up to see what his presents were. His eyebrow started twitching as he noticed the gift. Naomi sensed an anger mark growing on his forehead, making her smirk with amusement.
“A dictionary? You got me a dictionary…?” he asked in a slow tone. She wiggled her eyebrows.
“NOT just a dictionary! I also got you a thesaurus! And it’s custom made! See?” she nudged him to open the book. Rolling his eyes, Sasuke opened the thesaurus book and gritted his teeth in annoyance.
“The only word that’s in here… is ‘HN!’” he exclaimed. Naomi nodded with excitement. “It’s awesome, right?! Since you say ‘hn’ a lot, I thought I would get you a book that would show you synonyms of that word only!” she giggled.
Sasuke sighed in defeat and shook his head. Naomi laughed for a couple of minutes before giving him another box. “I’m just joking with you Sasuke,” she kissed his cheek “Here’s your real present.”
Sasuke narrowed his eyes at the package, and cautiously opened. His eyes widened as he noticed the set of four kunai in it.
“I had these kunai custom carved for you,” Naomi softly spoke as she noticed the sparkling in Sasuke’s eyes “These four kunai are made out of pure Titanium, which is a considerably strong and durable metal. Most of our kunai are made out of either steel or iron, so I got a substance that was stronger than them.”
Sasuke gently picked up a kunai and noticed how one side was slightly heavy while the other was light, but it gave a perfect balance, having the ability to wield it accurately.
“Also, what’s unique is that this kunai has a special type of chakra in it. If you use this kunai, for example, against a fire user, then the kunai will automatically block the attack by using the chakra nature that is opposite of that. So water would be used against it, making the fire attack a failure. Pretty cool, huh?” Naomi smiled.
Before she even knew, Sasuke had come closer to her and given her a hug. She smiled as she wrapped her arms back and rested her forehead on his shoulders. “Thank you.” He whispered.
“Anything for you Sasuke. You know that.” She kissed his forehead. Sasuke had then realized that this was one of the best birthdays he had ever since the massacre and it was all thanks to Naomi.
***
Naomi’s POV
I yawned and stretched my hands above my head as I barged into the Hokage’s office early the next morning. I noticed everyone staring at my appearance. “Whoops. Hehe sorry.” I muttered as I saw Tsunade obaa-chan rolling her eyes.
“Team 7, as you can see that Kakashi is currently busy on other missions. So you three will just have to handle this mission on your own. Naomi… you won’t be going on this mission.”
“HUH?! Why not?” I exclaimed. “I never get to go on a mission with them anymore!”
“I’m sending you on another mission, Naomi. Now be quiet and wait until I finish my talk with them.” Baa-chan said. I rolled my eyes and ignored their talk.
When she finally finished discussing the escort mission of some guy from the Land of Tea, I zoned back in. Team 7, minus me, was leaving out the door, but I quickly went up to Sasuke and kissed his cheek. “Good luck and be careful.” He nodded and gave me a small smirk.
Grinning, I also ruffled Naruto’s hair. “Kick some ass, Naruto!” I encouraged. He grinned and gave me a thumbs up. “Of course, Mi-chan! Believe it!”
Sakura tapped her foot, waiting for me to say something nice to her. I snorted with amusement. “Hope you don’t come back.” I insulted and then went back to stand in front of baa-chan. I could see smoke coming out of Sakura’s ear as she just harrumphed and left the room.
Baa-chan shook her head and slightly grinned. “Do you have to antagonize everyone MiMi?” she used my nickname since now we were alone.
I shrugged. “It’s part of my job, and besides I don’t know if you haven’t realized that I despise her guts. I didn’t like her before, I don’t right now, and I know I never will.”
“Anyway… I’m giving you a solo mission. It’s fairly simple, but it’s an A-rank. This scroll,” she took it out from her drawer “is to be delivered to the Mizukage stating what has happened to Konoha in the past couple of weeks and who the new Hokage is now.” She stated and tossed me the scroll.
I grabbed it and stored it away in my pouch. “Very well. When is she expecting me?” I asked.
“Hmm, well if you leave now, it should take you about four days since you have to reach the port where Uzushiogakure used to be and from there take a boat to the village. So she should be expecting you in four days.” She smiled.
I rolled my eyes. “Great… well since your highness has told me to do so,” I mockingly bowed “I’ll leave right away.” I could see baa-chan’s eye twitching with annoyance. I quickly transported to my home and packed all of my weapons
Readjusting my headband and genjutsu, I left through the door. Running out of the gates, I headed southeast towards the direction of where the ex-village of Uzushio used to be. As I was ninja jumping through the trees, my thoughts went back to thinking about this village.
Wait a sec… wasn’t this the village where the Uzumaki Clan used to live before it got destroyed? I thought as I dodged a tree branch.
**Time Skip**
I had finally reached the abandoned village. My eyes roamed the different buildings that were currently buried in water, half underneath, and half sticking out.
So this is where Naruto’s mother came from. If it weren’t for the destroyed buildings, the place would have been beautiful. Uzushiogakure I don’t know about before, but at the moment, the mountains were lush green and sparkled underneath the sunset. I decided to make camp here, even though it would be kind of creepy.
Shrugging it off, I took out a tent and set it up. Finding some logs, I huddled them together and cast a fire jutsu to make some flames. I sat down on the ground next to the fire and warmed up my fish and ate it.
Finishing it up, I went inside the tent and cuddled into my warm blanket, falling asleep.
**Time Skip**
I had finally arrived at Kirigakure, and the first thing I noticed was how fucking humid it was. Like holy shit… Suna is too dry, Kiri is too wet, Iwa is too rocky, Kumo is too high above the ground, and Konoha is just in the middle. Man, I wish I was back at home… I thought.
The guards at the front gate stopped me. “Who are you and what is your purpose here is in Kikigakure?” they asked. I noticed how they had sharp teeth like any other Kiri-nins I had encountered in the past. Was that a village trait or did the 7 swordsmen have that only?
“I’m a shinobi from Konohagakure, and was sent here by the Hokage to give this scroll to Mizukage Mei.” I replied. One of the guards looked on a clipboard and nodded. The 2nd guard turned his head to me.
“The Mizukage is waiting of your presence. I’ll have someone escort you there.” He said. I nodded and waited by the gate as my eyes roamed the huge village that was in front of me. I had to say, it was quite beautiful.
The buildings were a beige color and in the distance I could see the Mizukage building standing in the middle with circular pillars surrounding it. There was greenery basically everywhere whether it was small hills or moss sticking onto the buildings. But the distinct sign that showed anyone that it was Kiri was the mist and fog that hung in the air. It acted like a barrier, hiding the village underneath it.
Kirigakure
A sudden whoosh sound pulled me out of my thoughts. I looked at my right side noticing a man appearing, who seemed to be my escort. He had Periwinkle blue hair and dark rectangular rimmed glasses that were connected to ear protectors, with shark like teeth. He was wearing a striped blue shirt and camouflage patterned pants, with the symbol of Kiri right in the middle of his chest.
Chojuro
I inwardly smirked as I realized who would be our escort. “Well if it isn’t Chojuro-san, one of the 7 ninja swordsmen. I’m honored that you’re my escort.” I smirked at him.
I could see him blush a bit from embarrassment of being recognized. I mean who wouldn’t… this guy was legendary.
“O-oh… Um I-I will be y-your escort, N-Naomi-san.” He stuttered as he spoke in a small voice. I was a bit surprised that he was this shy! But the number one thing is that to never underestimate someone.
I followed him as he led me through the village streets. We arrived at the kage office, and he opened the door. I stood in front of the Mizukage and bowed.
“Ahh, I’ve been expecting you, Naomi-san. Please take a seat.” She motioned to the chair. She was beautiful! She had long ginger brown hair that came to her mid back with emerald green eyes. She wore a dark blue outfit that exposed her shoulders with a ninja skirt underneath.
“It’s an honor to meet you, Mizukage-sama. I must admit, you’re beautiful in person!” I smiled at her.
I could see her blush and sputter. “Nonsense. And please don’t be so formal with me, you may just call me Mei. Ah, Chojuro…?”
“Y-Yes Mei-sama?” he asked.
“Please get us some tea? We have to show our hospitality to a guest who has traveled this far.”
“Yes o-of course, M-Mei-sama.” He left the room.
“Now, Naomi, why don’t you tell me why the Hokage has sent you here?” she smiled.
“Well Hokage-sama sent me to deliver a scroll to you regarding the events that have happened in Konoha.” I placed the scroll on her desk. She unraveled it and read through the contents.
“Hmm, it seems that Tsunade, one of the Legendary Sanin has been announced Hokage.” Mei-san muttered. “That’s very interesting. But thank you, I shall keep that in mind, and have our treaty re-established with her.”
“Arigatou, Mei-san.”
“I have a question for you, Naomi,” she started as she leaned back in her chair with a mischievous look in her eyes, “As the Mizukage, it is my duty to keep track of all of the shinobi that have gone rogue from Kiri.”
Chojuro at this point came back with the tea and placed it on the desk. He began pouring it into the cups as Mei-san continued to talk.
“Well, from one of my sources, I heard…. That you defeated Ameyuri Ringo.” She bluntly stated. The tea that Chojuro was pouring suddenly spilt to the side, and the cup fell to the ground with a crash. The atmosphere became silent as the dripping sound of the tea only echoed.
“A-ah, g-gomen!” Chojuro muttered as he picked up the broken pieces and quietly began to clean up. He began listening to the conversation, and glanced at me once in a while.
I smirked. “You are right, Mei-san. It was during my mission when I encountered her. Turned out to be that she was behind the sole reason of the kidnapping I had to investigate.”
“Now that’s interesting. But what is more is that you have her swords, do you not?” she asked.
“Indeed I do. I possess one of the swords of the ex-ninja swordsman, Kiba.” I replied as I leant back into my chair and crossed my legs.
“If I were to tell you that I will take those from you… what will you do?” she leaned forward and rested her chin on her hands. I also leaned forward and stared back into her eyes, not showing fear.
“Then I would just say that I wouldn’t let you. Ringo-san had appointed me the wielder of these new swords, and I would trust her judgment since she knows how Kiba works. If she deems that I’m capable, then I will do anything in my power to protect these swords from anyone. Even from the village that was the original owner.” I darkly spoke.
She narrowed her eyes at me, and then suddenly a big grin broke out on her face. “Excellent! You pass!” she exclaimed with a clap.
“Huh?!” Chojuro and I exclaimed with confusion.
Mei-san laughed as she started explaining what was going on. “I was testing Naomi if she was truly the right choice of possessing Kiba. It seems that Ringo had made a good choice. Although she was a rogue, she was still once part of the Mist. I will trust her, and trust you too Naomi.”
A test…? A test?! I relieved the breath that I was holding on to. “I see… well then I thank you for putting your belief in me. I won’t let you down.” I winked. It was now time for me to leave so as I was walking out the door, Mei-san called out to me.
“Naomi! I do hope that we meet again in the future!” she waved. I laughed and waved back. “I believe we will, Mei-san! Sayonara!”
***
Location: Konoha
“Why Sasuke? Why won’t you ever tell me anything? Why is it always silence with you? You’ve never shared a single thing----” Sakura spoke but was cut off.
“Why should I tell you anything?” Sasuke asked with a venomous voice “Just keep your nose out of my business. It’s none of your concern.”
Tears rolled down Sakura’s cheeks as she saw Sasuke walking away from her towards the main gates in the middle of the night. What she didn’t know was that the Sound Four had offered Sasuke power from Orochimaru and also the power to control his curse mark.
“I know you hate me…even in the beginning you could never stand me. Remember when we made genin and were assigned to our squads? We were alone together that one day, right at this very spot, you got mad at me.” she reminisced back when Sasuke had yelled at her for not knowing Naruto’s pain. This was the time when Naruto had asked Sakura to lunch, but she refused.
“I don’t remember that.” Sasuke bluntly spoke.
“That’s the day where it all began, the start of you and me,” Sakura insisted “and Team 7. The five of us started going on missions. It was rough back then, everyday was such a challenge. But more than anything, it was so much fun!” she cried as more tears released.
“I know about your clan, Sasuke, I do. But seeking revenge, that won’t bring anyone happiness. Nobody at all. Not you… and not me.” she spoke.
“I knew it,” Sasuke said as he got Sakura’s attention “I’m not the same as you. I’m travelling a path the rest of you can’t follow. I know that the five of us have worked together, and for a while I thought I could take that road instead. But in the end, I’ve decided on revenge. That’s always been my reason for living. I’ll never be like you and Naruto.” He finished.
“Don’t do this Sasuke!” Sakura exclaimed “You don’t have to be alone! You told me that day how painful it can be! I understand that pain now! I have family, and friends, but if you were gone Sasuke… it wouldn’t be the same!”
“This is a new beginning. Each of us have a new path lying ahead of us----”
“SASUKE!” Sakura cried with grief “I’m so in love with you! I can’t even stand it! If you would only be with me, I promise, I would never let you regret it! Everyday will be a joy! I can give you happiness! I’ll do anything for you! So, please, I’m begging you, don’t walk away!”
“Sakura,” Sasuke growled, now annoyed a bit “I don’t know why you can’t get it through your head that I’m not in love with you and never will! Even when I had Naomi, you always flirted with me in front of her! What kind of person does that in front of someone’s boyfriend? Get with the fucking program that you’ll never be like Naomi. You can’t give me joy. Don’t try to say you understand my pain, because no one does! Only Naomi! Don’t you dare fucking say that!” Sasuke was now fuming with his fists clenched.
“It’s ALWAYS been Naomi this, Naomi that!” Sakura yelled “Why her, huh?! What’s so special about her?” she exclaimed.
“It’s just because she’s Naomi. She was the only one who got to know me better and learned about me before loving me. She didn’t have a useless infatuation with me like you did, Sakura. She’s genuine.” Sasuke emotionlessly spoke as he glared at Sakura. “Don’t try to be like her… because you never will.”
“But,” he flashed behind her and quietly spoke “Thank you for everything.” He referred back to the Chunin exams. Jabbing her in the back, she fell unconscious to the ground. Sasuke stared at her, and then discretely walked away.
He looked back at the village gates one more time, then turned away.
I’m sorry, Naomi.
***
Naomi’s POV
It was around 11 pm when I was walking through the forests of the border of the Land of Fire and Water. I quietly hummed as I looked at the full moon in the sky.
It was a peaceful night, but I was getting the most unfortunate feeling in my guts. Was something wrong? Why do I feel this way? I thought as I felt butterflies in my stomach.
I shrugged it off thinking I probably ate something bad. My thoughts were interrupted when I heard the sound of tree branches crunching on the ground.
I put my guard all the way up and stopped in my tracks. Sensing around for chakra, I couldn’t find any trace, but I knew someone was there, doing an excellent job hiding it.
“I know you’re there. It’s no use of hiding.” I loudly spoke to the empty parts of the forest. I heard the sound of clapping behind a specific tree. My head snapped to that direction and my eyes narrowed.
“Well done,” a deep voice spoke “Just as I was expecting. You being able to sense my presence, alone, a skill well worth.” He spoke. The man finally came out, and my eyes first went to his mask. It was quite odd.
Masked_Guy
His mask was a beige color with black thick stripes across it. There was only one eye hole for the right eye for him, which is left in my view. He had jet black hair that came down in choppy layers. And he wore a dark black cloak. All in all, he was hidden well.
“Who are you?” I cautiously asked as I carefully took out a kunai from my pouch.
He chuckled a bit. “It’s nice to finally meet you. I’ve been looking all over, and it must be my luck to find you in this forest, alone.” What a creep… I thought.
***
Location: Unknown
“Why are you pacing so much, Itachi?” Kisame asked as he fed Samehada some chakra. He was reapplying the bandages around the sword, when he noticed Itachi slowly pacing back and forth.
“I’m thinking about Naomi,” Itachi’s calm voice spoke. “We know that she’s an Uchiha, but no one else in this hideout knows. It won’t be too long before others find out. She and Master Jiraiya have done well to keep her hidden.” He said as he sighed.
Kisame grinned. “I was surprised for sure. I mean, who would have thought, that one of my students was an Uchiha. Not only that, but my partner is an Uchiha. Either its fate or a genius coincidence.”
“But one thing is for sure, Kisame… we must not let him find out about her…” Itachi stopped, his eyes narrowing.
Kisame’s eyes furrowed in confusion. “Who are you talking about??”
***
“Who exactly are you and what do you want with me?” I asked as the clutch on my weapon tightened.
His dark voice laughed, sending shivers down my spine. “Quite the curious person, are you? Just like your mother…”
My eyes widened as I stared at him in shock. What?!
“You know my mother?? Who are you!?” I growled with anger. I could practically feel the grin radiating off of him, behind his mask.
…
…
…
…
“You, Naomi Uchiha, can call me Tobi.”
Dun Dun Dunnnnnnnn. ^^ Hope you enjoy! Were coming real close to Shippuden soon, guys! Very soon! J Stay tuned!