Disclaimer: I do not own the series Naruto or any of the characters or concepts within it. I still don't own Onimeno-sensei or any of his 'acquaintances' either; all I lay claim to are the various relatives I've stuck Sakura with.

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Now You See It

Chapter 1: Smile

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"So, the Kazekage almost bit it," Kiba hummed, leaning a hip against Akamaru. "Okay, not exactly the weirdest thing; political assassination is like our third most common mission, in this business. But you really think that has anything to do with whatever Tsunade-sama wants with little old us?"

Sakura straightened from where she had been refastening her boots with a stretch and a few satisfying cracks, brushing back one long, silky pink lock. "Yeah. We usually get dragged into the political things. Something this big has to make some serious waves, so we're probably going to be expected to ride them out. Or maybe," she allowed. "We'll be expected to make sure people are giving Suna enough slack to recoup from the attack. We are allies, after all."

"Indeed," Shino agreed, opening the door and leading them out of his apartment. They nodded to the scant few Aburame bustling around the building as they climbed the stairs leading the roof. "If you recall, we were called to action almost immediately after there was an attempt on the Wasabi Clan Head's life last winter."

"Well, yeah," Kiba shrugged as they leapt off, sailing from rooftop to rooftop. "But that was just like, lining up an arrow and letting fly or something. Do they even know where the guys who did this are?"

"I'm sure we'll find out soon." Sakura touched down on a pole and kicked off, flipping gracefully through the air before landing in front of the Tower. She straightened up from her crouch as the boys joined her, and beamed when she saw a familiar figure approaching. "Kurenai-sensei!"

"Didn't you three just get back this morning?" The stunning woman they were fortunate enough to call their teacher gave them each a concerned once-over. "I didn't expect to see you three conscious until this evening."

"Yeah, we crashed at Shino's place for a couple hours," Kiba admitted without shame as he scooped her up into a quick bear hug. "But duty came a-callin' and here we are."

Her other side was quickly covered by Sakura, who dragged Shino along. "We had some ideas as to what the Hokage might want, but if you're here too then it's probably something different." Something decidedly more legitimate and on the record, at least. Such missions weren't exactly rare for Team Eight, since they needed to be shown as at least moderately competent, but they hadn't been the common fare for years.

"We'll see," was Kurenai's verdict. She extracted herself from her knot of students when it looked as though Akamaru was feeling left out and preparing to join in on the fun. "No matter what, it will be good to work with you again. I'm proud that you've gotten to be so reliable," she admitted. "But I do miss you three while you're away."

"The sentiment is returned, naturally." Shino adjusted his glasses as they ambled into the Tower, nodding their hellos to the receptionist and making a beeline for the Hokage's office.

The woman waiting for them there was no less stunning than their teacher, and by this point was somebody almost as familiar to them. "Hokage-sama," Sakura greeted, dropping into a respectful bow. "Team Eight, reporting as summoned." There weren't any chairs set out, she noticed, but there was a very thick stack of folders on the corner of the desk. Whatever she and the boys and their teacher were in for, it wasn't going to be any less rooted in intelligence than what they were usually expected to do.

"Early," Tsunade noted, subtly snapping a drawer shut as she quickly stood. "Excellent. I'm probably going to need more time to explain things to your support, so we might as well start now."

"Our support?" Kiba repeated. "Uh… Hokage-sama…" He visibly floundered for a more composed reaction, even with his eyes hidden behind his angular sunglasses.

Sakura couldn't blame him. "We've never needed support on our missions before." At least, not any support that wasn't already established in the area where the mission was based, at least. Again, it hammered in just how much their paths had differed from that of their comrades. "…I apologize, Hokage-sama. Please, continue." She bowed again, grimacing. She could tie her mind in knots, thinking about possible reasons, or she could make things simple and just not interrupt her boss.

Said boss snorted in amusement. "This," she explained, gesturing to them. "This right here is why you three are my favorites of your bratty batch. No shouting or grumbling or whining or getting lippy." She cast a warm look at Kurenai. "And always on time, without kicking in a door or window."

Personally, Sakura thought they were her favorites because they always brought back plenty of quality alcohol when it came time for their confidential debriefings, but she was too smart to actually say so.

"You honor us," Shino murmured, mirroring her bow. They rose back up as one, and Sakura fought back a smile as she heard Akamaru's tail begin to thump against the floor.

"Damn right I do," Tsunade agreed, leaning against the edge of her desk. She let her palm fall onto the stack of folders with a small slap. "In fact, I honor you so much I'm letting you come along to represent the village."

"Hokage-sama?" Kurenai's brow furrowed in confusion. "I'm sorry, I don't quite—"

"Jiraiya's been busy," Tsunade explained, expression firming. "And so has Hatake. Between them and their trouble-magnets, they've managed to scrape together a pretty comprehensive picture in regards to what we're facing. And by 'we' I mean all of the Hidden Villages." She huffed out a sigh. "The attack on the Kazekage—while unsuccessful—is a sign that we need to pony up and share with the class a little earlier than we might have liked."

"I'm still not entirely sure why you're including us in this," Sakura commented, mind working furiously. Oh, certainly, she could see ways that her team would be useful—they had certainly raised enough hell over the past few years to make a meeting with Konoha look appealing, and a few minor nudges here and there could definitely be arranged—but none in a publically acknowledgeable way. "I would have thought that ANBU would be handling your protection details."

"They are." Tsunade affirmed. "Your team is going to be part of the diplomatic proceedings."

Sakura couldn't hold back a laugh. "Sorry, what?"

Kiba stuck a pinky into his ear and wriggled it around for a moment. "She just say what I think she said?" He asked Shino, sotto voce.

His teammate's skepticism was nearly palpable. "I cannot be sure, given that I do not know what you suspect you have heard," he said, slow and low. "But I must profess some uncertainty of my own."

"You heard me." Tsunade watched them, patient and unruffled. "You're going to be playing nice with the foreigners while we convince them to care about a bunch of missing-nin they've only known as two-bit terrorists and mercenaries up to this point."

"…these would be the foreigners we've been playing like a cheap shamisen for most of our professional lives?" Sakura asked dryly, pushing her dark glasses up to rub at her eyes tiredly. "I'm… touched by your faith in us, I guess," she hedged. "But I'm not so certain we'll perform as impressively up close as we do at a distance." That was a bit of a lie; she knew politics demanded about as much deception as they used in any of their normal, off-the-books missions. She just wasn't sure if they would managed to keep everything bottled up, with so many chances to gloat readily available. Team Eight was recorded as an average, dependable, but largely unremarkable squad.

If even half of what they were responsible for was known to the right parties, they would have made the Bingo book years ago, like Naruto. It was something Kiba still pouted over, from time to time.

"Well, lucky for you, I am certain." Tsunade hefted up the folders with one hand, somehow managing to keep them from spilling all over the floor. "You won't be alone in this, naturally, but if anything gets out your support will be there to watch your backs."

"We can handle ourselves," Kiba grumbled.

"Depending on just which villages are involved in this meeting, some assistance would be… appreciated," Shino ceded, reflecting upon one of their many misadventures.

"All of them."

"All—" Kurenai jerked her head up. "Forgive me, Hokage-sama, but all of them?"

"All of them," the Hokage said again, extending the files. "Well, plus our hosts, too."

A terrible suspicion niggled at the corner of Sakura's mind. "Our hosts." She repeated the word slowly, stretching it out. "For an international conference. An international conference for parties that have been at war with each other in some form or another almost endlessly since their formation. They must be pretty neutral, these hosts."

"They are fairly neutral in regards to shinobi politics, yes," Tsunade agreed, her red, red lips pulling into an almost vicious smile. "Well, most of the time, anyways. Their current leader graciously agreed to moderate, but I thought we'd have more time to get our ducks in a row."

Sakura heard a soft noise, and her head snapped to the side. "Shut up, Shino."

Her teammate stared back, impassive, as though he hadn't just snorted at her. "I haven't said a word. But I do hope you will guide us well in the days to come?"

"Guide us?" Kiba furrowed his brow, crossing his arms and jiggling one hip as he thought. "So, what, you know this place pretty well?" He frowned. "Have you been there without us? You're a little better at maps and customs and stuff, but… man, when would you have even gone, if we weren't with you? Where's this magical Land of Neutrality supposed to be, anyways?"

"Iron, Kiba," Kurenai clued him in gently, as Sakura finally stepped forward to accept the thick stack of folders. "We're going to Iron."

Sakura forced her lips up into a bright smile. "Can't wait," she said. "It'll be… something." She glanced at the top folder, emblazoned with the insignia of Kirigakure. "Definitely something."

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Chapter Word Count: 1,707

Total Word Count: 1,707

Targeted Word Count: 1,667

I'm a little nervous! It feels good, getting back into my first (completed) storyline. I'm sure you guys have plenty of questions, but, well… It's the first day, so a lot of things are yet to come, and a lot of things (namely what the hell Team Eight has been up to between the Chuunin Exams and now) will be explained. So please, bear with me! I'll do my best for everyday updates, like my last attempt at this, but I've also got a job and classes to deal with so I hope you'll forgive a little straggling, here and there. Beyond that, I have just one more thing to say, I guess.

Welcome back, everybody. Thank you very much for your support these last few years. I hope this ends up being worth the wait.