Chapter Three: One Stolen Kiss
7 Days To Find Haruno Sakura
Uzumaki Naruto yawned as he stepped into the ANBU central armory.
He had had another nightmare and sleep was hard fought for, as was beginning to be the case with all of his nights of tossing and turning. Unfortunately for him, waking up today was a necessity, not a choice, as word related to Sakura's kidnapping returned.
And as Naruto made his way to the mission outfit room to collect the gear that had been issued to him, his footsteps seemed to resound with the briefing he and the rest of the rescue team had received that morning in the Hokage's office a few minutes ago.
And of course, the strange thing that happened afterwards…
"There is an old Buddhist temple located a few miles south-east of Konoha. Years ago, when our agents discovered it, it was occupied by an evil cult that would sacrifice innocent children to a dark god that was the object of worship there. After an ANBU assault on the temple, the evil cult was eliminated, but the temple was never fully exorcized of it's residual evil by our own priests. This is why we leave signposts on the road: so that travelers know that the temple is a potentially dangerous place."
The Hokage's assistant, Rei, got to work behind her, flicking a few switches and powering a small projector. The image that came on the roller screen was of a large, brown-brick building with several strange dome structures along the top of its roof.
Tsunade continued as if she wasn't aware of the images flashing behind her.
"This is where we think the kidnappers are holding Sakura."
The images cycled through the projector of its own accord, showing several angles and shots of the temple's entrances, walls and courtyards. Strangely, there were no shots of the inside of the building. The cycle promptly stopped at an image of three dark figures, two of which were possibly standing guard at the main entrance to the temple, while the third seemed to be discussing something with them.
The resolution of the image was barely enough for any of the party to make out any particular details on their faces or clothes.
"As I mentioned yesterday, the scouts that had been sent to investigate the suspects had returned late last night to report these images. Apparently, the trail that the kidnappers left behind them ends here. Also, I should mention, that the entire four-man squad did not return home last night. One of our scouts became missing shortly after the temple was discovered. This scout, Ichige Daisuke, was the one sent inside to shoot images of the inside. As of now, we have received no contact from him."
At this point, Kiba raised his hand to interrupt the Hokage with a question.
"Is there anything in archives that can tell us what the last team that went in there had to deal with? There must be old maps of the temple lying around or something, right?"
"Unfortunately," Tsunade answered with a sigh, "The new archives haven't been around for very long. Anything on the past mission had already been destroyed along with the rest of the old records a few years ago. All we have are some strange articles on travelers disappearing in its vicinity now and then: probably people who don't respect our signs enough and end up getting lost inside… or possibly something worse than that…"
"Something worse?" Ino scoffed with a crack in her voice.
"Like I said before, the evil temple has never been purified. Let that imply to you what it will. It would probably be reasonable to believe that you will be dealing with booby traps the minute you step inside. The suspect kidnappers either aren't aware of these traps or they have someone who does. If it's the latter, this mission could get very hairy."
"Because then they'd have an advantage over us," Neji added. "This whole mission sounds like an ambush waiting to happen. We could all die out there."
The crowd went solemn with his last sentence.
"Or maybe," Shikamaru suddenly said, "That it's the other case and that they don't know what they're dealing with either: that maybe they've already taken some losses of their own. The way I see it, we're dealing with death both ways. If we decide not go in and Sakura is in there, we're all going to die if they discover her techniques. At least if we try, we might discover more clues as to who kidnapped Sakura and what they intend to do with her abilities. The most logical thing to do would be to try."
The crowd nodded in reluctant agreement with Shikamaru's point, especially Choji, who seemed especially riled up after his friend's input.
"Shikamaru's right, guys! We've got to try and follow this lead, there's nothing else."
"Sakura is depending on us," Hinata chimed quietly.
"Depending on us…" Lee repeated in a whisper.
Tsunade had remained quiet while the entire team discussed the risks involved amongst themselves. When she had found that they had all reached some sort of agreement, she announced the mission plan and the rest of the small details.
"Shikamaru, you're the team leader. Would you be willing to check the temple to see if Haruno Sakura is being held inside?" She asked, with some tone in her voice implying that he didn't really have a choice.
Shikamaru took his decision seriously, remaining silent for a few seconds, then, for seemingly no reason, shot a somber glance at Naruto, as if his eyes were asking for his permission.
Naruto looked back at him with a steely gaze that betrayed nothing.
And finally, the leader of the rescue team gave the Hokage their loyalty to the mission.
"Yes, Hokage, we accept your mission."
And the team let out a collective breath of focus and cold fear. The mission was theirs now and it was their job to flesh it out.
Tsunade began in earnest.
"Okay, now, as it stands, you have two objectives: the first is to rescue Haruno. If it turns out she isn't there, it should be possible to at least secure some sort of clue as to where to look next. If you guys really discover nothing related to Sakura's disappearance, then she would've truly vanished without a trace, lost forever. Your next objective will be to find the missing scout, Ichige Daisuke, find out his status and bring him back if possible. If you find him dead, your orders are to destroy his remains."
"Weapons? Gear? Anything for us to collect?" Tenten asked plaintively.
"Yes, after this briefing, the ten of you are to report to the quartermaster's office at the armory to collect your issue. All of the items you will need are in named lockers in Outfit-One: Radios, provisions, swords and body-armor- all the usual items. Any questions before all you leave now for the armory to suit up?"
"How long has it been since our scout went missing?"
The entire room looked at Naruto, who had not spoken since the briefing had begun. He was truly beginning to become a quiet member of the team, someone not noticed.
"It's been about twelve hours. Why?" Tsunade replied, after her initial shock.
"Assuming that the kidnappers discovered our scout there and killed him, our situation has the potential to become a bit more problematic…"
"How do you mean?" Shikamaru asked, genuinely curious.
"Well, I'm saying two things could've happened in the twelve hours between then and now: Either they've realized we're on to their tracks and that they can't take another minute resting at that temple, so they've retreated further away from Konoha, possibly outside the country by now or…"
"Or…?" Neji asked sardonically.
"Or they've fortified their positions and are expecting us to send people in there. Both situations are bad, with the latter one being pretty damn lethal."
The team immediately began debating amongst themselves whether or not a point had been made. Naruto himself chose to remain silent and allowed them to discuss the realization amongst themselves as if all he wanted to do was stir trouble.
Then, the Hokage cut them all off.
"So," Tsunade cried, in mock disappointment, "Is that to say that your are unwilling for this mission to go ahead? Afraid of the risks, Uzumaki?"
Naruto just stared back at her and replied:
"No, I'm going. I just wanted to justify you giving me permission to carry two swords for this mission. You know, so the quartermaster doesn't give me a funny look."
Tsunade stared back at him, a hateful frown nearly touching her lips before a strange smile illuminated her face with a steady glow.
"Done. This briefing is over. Collect your gear and leave through the main gates when everyone is ready. My assistant, Shizune-san, will be waiting at the gates to bid you goodbye. She'll also be waiting there tonight to welcome you back and to receive your reports and findings for me… Good luck."
And as the team scrambled to get up and leave the room, Tsunade added:
"Oh, and Naruto, remain behind to collect your permission papers."
Naruto did as he was told and, instead of walking towards the closed doors of the room, headed towards his commander's desk to wait, as she wrote something down and handed it to him. She looked back at him with pursed lips and said:
"Really, Naruto? Two swords?"
"Well, I was going to suggest that this mission shouldn't even be attempted but I saw how willing everyone else was to kill themselves. Can't let them have all the fun…"
Tsunade stared at his face until he turned to face her royal eyes with his own. They stared deeply at one another: Tsunade with her pleading, troubled Hokage look and Naruto with his cocky, cynical mischief. In the end, it was Tsunade who broke the three-second silence that seemed to span for hours. Her lips were slow and deliberate.
"Is there really no place left in your heart for Sakura?"
Naruto looked away, grit his teeth, then lit up with a fake smirk.
"There's no place left in my heart for foolishness, Hokage."
"Really?" Tsunade asked, before grabbing the back of his neck under his long blonde hair and physically forcing him to stare at back into her face and see the worry and concern burning underneath her skin. She was close to tears, but did not cry.
"Hokage…" Naruto gasped.
And then Tsunade kissed him.
Her lips were warm and moist and entirely upon him. For a few brief seconds he tried to believe that it was the kiss of a mother, but it felt more than that. It was the kiss of a woman stricken with self-pity, of someone lonely, of one who could see her only hope and how far away it was from her. No, this kiss was nothing like a mother's.
It was the kiss of a lover.
"Call me Tsunade."
And as her tongue snaked its way inside his mouth, Naruto tried to think for a way to conclude the engagement without embarrassing himself or the Hokage. Truly, he was confused, unsure of how he had ended up here and still trying to trace the events that led up. The Hokage on the other hand showed no sign of letting up.
Her hands wrapped themselves around his scalp, began pulling on his hair, urging the kiss to go further and further until…
Hinata.
Suddenly, the female Hyuga just stormed back through the closed doors into the office, words preparing to burst out of her mouth when she suddenly gasped at the scene she beheld at the sight of the table: Naruto was kissing the Hokage!
"Naruto! Ho-Hokage-sama! I was just coming back to discuss something about my gear… I-I didn't know you two were kiss- In the middle of something. I'll come back later?" She stammered, looking embarrassed and turning to make her way out.
Naruto hastily broke the kiss and turned to her, finding nothing to say.
The Hokage was flustered and slightly uncomfortable, knocking herself back into her powerful, leadership posture, salvaging what dignity she could and called to Hinata:
"Hyuga Hinata! Come back- you interrupted nothing! Let us discuss what your issue was with the gear? Hinata! Come back!" She called without losing control of her voice.
But Hinata was gone, pretending not to hear anything.
Naruto turned to his commander and saw the exasperation on her face. Despite her embarrassment, she seemed to be looking alive and well again, far from the sadness of a few seconds ago. She was normal again… for now.
"Why did you just…?" He said, with no clear emotion in his face.
The young man didn't remain to hear an answer, thinking better of it, as he turned to leave and chase after Hinata in an attempt to clear up certain 'misconceptions' she might've been having. And anyway, he knew he'd rather be anywhere else.
"Goodbye, Naruto-kun…" She murmured to his fading figure.
"Hinata! Wait a second!" Naruto called outside the doors in his deep, dark voice.
Somehow, both Naruto and Tsunade knew that what happened that morning would be unfinished business for another day. But for now, there were more pressing concerns in Naruto's mind.
Sakura was still missing and the long hike to the temple was due to come.