Chapter 4

-=oOo=-

Sakura couldn't stop herself from shaking. The world felt like it was crashing down on her shoulders as the surrounding mist grew heavier. Every bush appeared like it could be concealing something scary. Something deadly. Am I going to die on my first mission outside of the village? That… that wasn't fair! They didn't prepare me for this!

A light touch of something brushed across her neck like a blade spilling her life into the dirt. She jolted and reached up to touch the spot with her free hand, but it was just her hair sliding against clammy skin.

"... eight choices…" The words shocked Sakura out of her thoughts. The voice had seemed to echo out from the mist from everywhere at once, leaving her with no idea which way to turn. Kakashi-sensei said he was master of silent killing. Is this what he meant? This is terrifying. Please somebody stop him...

"... liver, lungs, spine, clevical vein, jugular, brain, kidneys, heart. Which one should I go after?" The voice continued, growing more ominous as her eyes refused to piece the oppressive blanket of white around them. Suddenly the pressure she felt before faded to a memory as some invisible force reached through her chest and squeezed her heart into stillness. All she had to do was wait for the killing blow-

"Don't worry." Sakura didn't understand how Kakashi-sensei could sound so calm. "I'll protect you guys even if it kills me." He turned towards them until she could see the smile under his mask. "I don't let my comrades die."

Only a moment of speechless gratitude passed before she felt something move behind her. "... we'll see about that!" This time she could hear precisely where the voice was coming from. How did he slip in between us?!

Sakura desperately dove out of the way, only to see her sensei behind the terrifying missing-nin with a kunai buried in his back. Just as suddenly the man exploded in a shower of water and he reappeared behind Kakashi already swinging the over-sized cleaver. For the second time during this mission, Sakura saw Kakashi ripped in half, but thankfully this time she watched long enough to see her sensei's body similarly explode.

"Don't move!" Kakashi-sensei demanded from behind Zabuza holding a kunai to the man's neck. "It's over." Relief washed over Sakura and the buzzing in her head from her blood pumping started to diminish. In a gut wrenching turn, another Zabuza appeared behind Kakashi as the captive dispersed into water. Kakashi nearly folded into the ground to avoid the sweep of the sword, but Zabuza dug the tip into the ground and used the leverage to kick Kakashi across the clearing into the nearby water.

As Kakashi burst back to the surface, Zabuza closed on him. "Water prison no jutsu!" Sakura could see the panic across her sensei's face as the water rose up around him, encapsulating and suspending him in a ball of water.

Fear overrode her shock as Zabuza summoned another water clone to attack them while their sensei was trapped. The water clone stood up straight from the water's surface. "Hehe. Wearing those hitai-ate and acting like ninjas. You are not ninjas." The clone suddenly blurred into motion and Sasuke was sent flying backward from a kick to the chest, blood spraying from his mouth as he hit the ground. Sakura glanced at Hibachi and saw the same fear on her teammate's face. Sasuke was the strongest of Team 7, and it was clear that he was outclassed.

"Take Tazuna and run!" Kakashi shouted from his prison, though the water prison greatly muted the message. "He can't move as long as he's trapping me and his clone can't go very far from his body! Just run away now!" There was a tense silence as Sasuke climbed to his feet and the genin weighed their options.

Suddenly Hibachi screamed out something unintelligible and lobbed a pair of eggs at the missing-nin. Wait, no, those are just like the poison gas bombs he tried to use during the bell test! Sakura grabbed Tazuna's wrist and pulled him away as the water clone swatted the eggshells out of the air. He seemed to be expecting some kind of explosive tool, because the sudden eruption of purple gas took even Zabuza aback for a moment. Sasuke cursed and retreated, but Kakashi and the missing-nin were mutually trapped as the gas surge forward.

After the exam, Kakashi had force Hibachi to explain his poison gas attack to the team in the hopes of preventing friendly fire. The eggshells were plain enough to look like common smoke bombs, but his family had a technique for pressuring gas into a liquid state to get immense volumes into confined spaces. If they lived through this, she suspected Hibachi was going to get another scolding, but she didn't bother with that thought long as she dodged around trees pulling the bridge builder behind her.

They paused after a few minutes of running and no sign of pursuit, only for Sasuke to grab Hibachi by the collar and knee him in the stomach before walking to a tree to lean against and rest. Hibachi threw up a bit as he crouched on all fours.

Sakura gasped when a shape landed in the middle of the team, but it lasted only a moment as it was revealed to be an angry Kakashi. Until he doubled over and gave a gut-wrenching cough. Sakura ran over to support him, which he accepted after a moment's hesitation and waved the team onward. Tazuna nervously followed, just happy that the boy was taking some of the anger that had been directed at him.

-=oOo=-

Naruto came to a dock along the shoreline and looked nervously across the channel separating the Land of Wave from the Land of Fire. Even at this distance, he could that there were remnants of fog clouding the far bank, but he couldn't be sure if it were natural or the result of him being too late.

Carefully placing his sandaled foot on the water surface to make sure he could still do this part, he leaned forward and grinned when he didn't sink. It took a moment to reteach his body precisely what he wanted it to do, but in a few minutes, he was sprinting across the water. Please, be alive.

Sprays of water erupted as he leapt from the crest of one wave to another. Is this hell? As if things weren't bad enough before, now I can't even protect my precious people! If Kami has any mercy, let me be on time... His foot slapped against rock before he realized he'd crossed the entire distance, and he took in his surroundings cursing himself for being oblivious. Now was not the time for carelessness.

He remembered the route to Tazuna's house being a lot longer, but hopping from tree to tree was a bit of a shortcut. He found the pond where he remembered first encountering Zabuza and Haku. There was definitely a fight, but no bodies. Did they get away? There wasn't much blood, but the grass and shrubs around the clearing looked a very unhealthy brown color. What happened?

As the frustration with the situation built, a shimmer of light caught his eye. A Konoha hitai-ate? He picked it up and wiped some of the mud off the steel surface. Right. Time to get some answers. Without another thought, he leapt back into the trees and made his way to Tazuna's house.

Minutes later, as he came into sight of the house, what he's done came back to him. Team 7 was on a mission, probably inside that house. He was not on Team 7. As if to remind himself of the flimsy excuse he'd used as he snuck out of the village, he reached up and adjusted the goggles on his forehead. If you're not a ninja, it's not desertion. Right? He had an uncomfortable feeling that Jiji wasn't going to see it quite that way.

Focusing on the task at hand, Naruto weighed his options. If Kakashi-sensei figured out he was here, he might order him back to the village. Again, not a ninja, so he could probably ignore the order, but… it's not as if he didn't intend on BECOMING and ninja. Not the best way to start things over again. He still wanted to become a chunin, after all.

Figuring that he could address that later, Naruto decided to send a transformed shadow clone first to find out what was different. To make sure they had survived.

Making the familiar cross handseal, he conjured a shadow clone. The clone quickly transformed into a small dog and trotted over to the bridge-builder's home.

The dog zigged and zagged through the area sniffing at whatever looked interesting before making his way to the base of a window cracked to let in the cool evening air. He hopped on top of a pile of nearby firewood and curled up to nap.

"Sensei ordered you not to use poisons above your level! Where'd you even get something like that?" Sakura was livid now that the adrenaline rush had left her.

"From my dad's supplies! Plus, I got Kakashi-sensei out of that water trap thing! I didn't see you trying anything!" Hibachi defended.

"You got sensei poisoned! We don't know if Zabuza was affected at all! Now that Kakashi-sensei is asleep in the other room, who's to stop him from finishing us off?"

Hibachi paled a bit at that. When he first sat down on Tazuna's couch, he allowed himself to be quite proud of what he'd done. Now it sounded like he'd only delayed the inevitable. None of them even knew medical ninjutsu that could help Kakashi-sensei push the poison out of his system.

Sakura relented, if only because her fear was only growing as time passed. She tried to get some comfort from Sasuke, who was… meditating? "Sasuke-kun… where's your hitai-ate?"

Sasuke glanced at her and, with only the minutest interrupted to his glower, reached a hand to his bare forehead. Not finding what he expected, he simply shrugged. "Hn."

I wish I could be as calm as Sasuke-kun. Maybe he'll be able to get us out of this after all! Without Hibachi-baka interfering. Sakura glanced at her other, now sulking, teammate. Why'd I get stuck with him? She sighed mentally. As if to cheer her up, a thought came to her. It could have been worse. It could have been Naruto-baka. She shuddered.

Sasuke abruptly stands up and walks to the door. "I'll trap the perimeter."

That's right! Sasuke-kun will save us!

-=oOo=-

The Naruto-clone continued meandering through the village. He was scheduled to have another appointment with Inoichi-san this afternoon and he'd skipped it. After all, it wouldn't take the man long to discover that he wasn't a real person.

Frankly, he'd been surprised that he hadn't been found out last night. The wandering clone had come back to the apartment when they were sure the boss had made it out and dispelled to inform him that the coast was clear. Now, he was just playing for time.

His train of thought abruptly derailed as he rounded a corner and walked directly into someone else.

"... Ah… G-gomen'nasai"

The clone righted himself. "Hinata-chan? OH, don't apologize, that was all my fault!" The heiress' face went crimson, which only further flustered the clone. Did I really offend her? Boss will be upset if I hurt her feelings!

As Hinata pushed her fingers together nervously, she paused and tipped her head and leaned forward. Something felt wrong. The Naruto clone leaned back a bit in response, unsure of what to do.

"Uzumaki Naruto." Already nervous, the clone slowly turned to the new figure. ANBU? Why would ANBU care… oh, right. Can't get distracted. "The Hokage would like to see you in his office."

The clone nodded firmly. And waited. He could swear the ANBU, not Tenzo this time, was rolling his eyes behind his mask as he jerked his chin in the Hyuuga heiress' direction.

"Oh! Yeah, sorry Hinata-chan. Guess I have to get going! I'll see you later, right?"

Hinata seemed nearly as confused as he was. "T-that's fine, N-Naruto-kun... L-later?" The ANBU placed his hand on the clone's shoulders and activated a body flicker. Hinata sagged her head thinking about how she'd handled that, but brightened at the the honorific Naruto had used. But why was his chakra so weird?

The near-instant change in momentum nearly upset his stomach as the pair leapt to the base of the Hokage Tower. From there he was escorted up the stairs at his own pace. He only hoped that the rest of this conversation would be as civil.

At the door to the Hokage's office the ANBU knocked on the door once and vanished. The door opened smoothly, revealing the Hokage behind his desk, along with Tenzo and Inoichi sitting in the moderately comfortable chairs provided to visitors.

Hiruzen smiled pleasantly. "How are you doing, Naruto-kun? Please, have a seat." The older man gestured toward the last chair in front of the desk. The Naruto-clone uneasily made his way to the chair and sat down, cursing in his mind that he never developed a poker face. "We're here to make you an offi-"

The Hokage paused for a moment before reaching up and pinching the bridge of his nose. "Naruto, did you send a shadow clone to meet with your Hokage?"

"Um…" Things would only get difficult if he lied here, but the temptation was childishly strong. "... yes?"

Flicking ashes out of his pipe, Hiruzen continued, "Where is the real you?"

"Well, you see…"

Hiruzen held up the palm of his free hand to cut him off. "Naruto. Where is the real you?"

The clone gulped audibly, informing everyone that he knew he was doing something bad. "Wave."

"Excuse me?" At this, Hiruzen leaned forward. It wasn't often that Naruto had a chance to observe real menace coming from his jiji. When he wanted to be, he was a very intimidating man. "Elaborate."

"You see, Inoichi-san helped me fix my memory, so now I remember all about my first C-rank mission. The one to escort the bridge builder to Wave. Except this time I'm not on Team 7, so I had to go save them from Zabuza-"

"Zabuza Momochi?" It was Inoichi who interrupted this time. Hiruzen raised an eyebrow and Inoichi explained, "The Wave mission was the first memory episode that Naruto described to me. That was before we were sure what they were. Zabuza Momochi is an A-rank missing-nin from Kiri. Attempted to assassinate the Mizukage."

Hiruzen nodded firmly. "Why didn't you discuss this with me before you left the village?"

Naruto flushed. "Well, Inoichi seemed so interested in the memories of the chunin exam, I thought you might forget." He understood the best lies were half-truths, but even he admitted that one was pretty transparent. Hiruzen simply stared back in return.

"... I wanted to save Team 7, but I also wanted to save Haku. And maybe Zabuza too. There's no reason why we have to fight them. They got hired by a scum bag, that's all. The guy doesn't even plan to pay them! No one needs to die! Right?" Naruto's voice had risen in volume, right up until the end. He felt embarrassed how childlike it came out, but he couldn't take it back now.

The Hokage's fingers were steepled in front of him as the two Jounin watched on. "Naruto, I need you to understand. As you are currently not a registered Konoha ninja, I will not punish you directly for this action. When you return, you will be receiving your hitai-ate, and doing this again will have severe consequences. Understood?"

The clone nodded meekly.

"We will discuss the rest when you return, but your primary mission now is to return to us safely. Agreed?"

The clone hesitated. "But, what about-"

"I will send reinforcements, who will handle the situation as they must. Not everyone can be saved."

"Will you try?" The childishness was gone. Naruto's back was up against the wall over a pair of missing-nin he met once. Hiruzen couldn't help but see an older blonde in his place.

"Yes. If it can be done, we will try." Hiruzen reached over to where Naruto had put his hands flat on his desk and placed his older hand over the boy's. "Now go back to your master and tell him to be safe." With that, the Hokage channeled chakra into the shadow clone and disrupted it's shell, causing it to dispel.

-=oOo=-

Memories crashed into Naruto, staggering him as he landed on the next branch. He flailed about and kept from falling by slapping a hand on the trunk of the tree. It was always harder to absorb memories from clones that he'd left around for so long. Jiji's response was both highly gratifying and unsettling. He couldn't help but feel he'd failed one test and passed another.

But more importantly, the clone didn't know what he knew. Zabuza had already attacked, and this time he wasn't beaten by Kakashi before being rescued by Haku. For all he knew, he could be fully healthy and ready to attack now. That he hadn't already attacked again meant he must have been exposed to some of Hibachi's poison, but probably not as much as Kakashi-sensei. And wasn't Haku a bit of a medic? He definitely remembered the ice ninja collecting herbs last time around.

If Zabuza attacks while Kakashi is still out of it, they're done for. He couldn't drop his guard for an instant, but even if he was ready, could he stop the demon of the mist? Kakashi-sensei once told him that being a ninja meant knowing when you could face someone and when you have to find their back. He wasn't good at this part, but he had to do something.

Gato. The enemy's weak point was the scum with the fat wallet. If he could show Zabuza that Gato wasn't going to pay him, they wouldn't have any reason to kill Tazuna!

Naruto gathered himself and leapt to the next perch in the crowded woods. He hoped the clones he left watching over Tazuna's house would be enough, but he couldn't just sit back and wait for things to work out. He couldn't let Iruka happen again.

The guards were numerous, but that only seemed to increase their carelessness. Naruto slipped into the alley between a warehouse and the tallest building in the compound. Sure it's only three stories, but Gato didn't seem like the kind of guy to live in a… short building, given the choice.

After a quick glance to each end of the alley, Naruto placed a foot on the wall of the taller building and crept up the side toward the upper floors. The most likely window was the biggest, but it was also on the front face of the building. Too much chance of getting noticed there. Eventually, he came to a narrow window that looked promising. The whole experience reminded him of the night he stole the forbidden scroll.

He made quick work on the simple window lock by scraping the grout away from the frame and dislodging it with his kunai. As he slipped into what appeared to be a small bedroom, he knew something wasn't right but, like a sunburn, there are degrees of not right, and this felt like the skin melting off kind.

"You're not who I expected. I apologize." The soft voice came along with a stabbing pain in his neck. On instinct, Naruto summoned the chakra to create a shadow clone, but for some reason it wouldn't come. It was only when he realized he was laying on the ground that the numbness spreading through his body registered.

But I don't want to sleep!

-=oOo=-

The light was blinding, and the steel at his wrists and ankles didn't make him feel any better. Mizuki swallowed nervously as he lay on a steel table trying to make out what Kabuto was doing at the counter on the other side of the room.

"You should be aware that this gift is only given to those that have shown themselves to be valuable to Orochimaru." Kabuto didn't bother turning to his patient to give his speech. Mizuki knew better than to accept anything said to him in this place at face value anyway, but some people just like to hear themselves talk. "Whether the gift accepts you, however, is another question. It can be... picky." Kabuto gave a hollow giggle.

Suddenly Kabuto was standing at the side of the table with a large syringe in hand and an inappropriate smile on his face. "I'm as curious as you to know whether or not you'll pass the test." Mizuki reminded himself that this was power. In that needle was the power to live. The power to keep on living. Nothing was more important than living to see tomorrow, and to do that he needed to be useful. He blocked out the sharp pain as the needle penetrated the skin at the base of his neck.

That's not so bad.

At least it didn't start that way. The needle was out and put away somewhere before the real pain hit. It felt like his bones were trying to twist their way out of his body, and he howled in agony as he thrashed against the restraints. Nothing in the world existed aside from the fire crawling over his body. In a rare act of mercy from the universe, numb unconsciousness followed shortly thereafter.

-=oOo=-

Author's Note:

This chapter has been split up. Blame my re-reading of A Song of Ice and Fire for the cruel cliff-hanger, but there wasn't a better time to make the cutoff. I'm a bit afraid that I've shorted some scenes by being too terse. This is my first fic, so I'm welcome to constructive style advice.

Regarding pairing, I just don't feel that seeking out (or being receptive to) a relationship is appropriate for where Naruto is at mentally and emotionally. The future memories of friends dying combined with the present death of Iruka (that wasn't "supposed" to happen) means that no romantic partner is going to get the kind of attention they deserve. That being said, I will probably consider the question again later on, but don't expect it for a while.