Rising Upon the Frosted Heavens
By: Andoryu-sama
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of its characters.
Special thanks to Holyknight5 for all his support!
Chapter 1: Yukiguni, the Country of Snow
"I told you it's not over yet." His determined voice sounded from between the rising steam.
It had been a few days after their arrival into the ice plagued country. After being assaulted, chased by trains, witnesses to a bloody massacre, captured by the enemy and finally stranded in the middle of the snowy mountains, it had finally come upon them. It was the final battle, where the final exchange of flashy techniques would determine the victor of the long epic struggle.
The enemy had used his and missed…now it was his turn.
He held out his right hand, surging chakra through it as a signal for the clone beside him to do its work. "If you say something is over, it means that justice prevails and evil loses!"
"It's obvious this story will have a happy ending!" The clone finished for him as it started to beat a rhythm onto the empty space above the offered palm. The chakra started to swirl and take shape, spiraling madly into the technique that would end her pain once and for all.
The rasengan.
"Naruto! I will believe in you! This unlucky princess has accepted you as the greatest ninja!" He heard her call out to him in the haze. It meant a lot to hear her so passionate about anything especially after all this time. He felt pride at having been the one to trigger her change.
"I've had enough of your mouth for one day!" Douto growled fiercely as he shifted his attention from him to the startled princess, mouth contorted in a snarl and his fists raised in anger as he charged with the intention to kill.
The teen's anger flared. As if he would let that happen. Mouth twisting into a snarl of his own, he unknowingly began to call on that 'special' chakra once more, forcing it into his palm due to the ministrations with his other.
There was no time…
His thought reached the clone beside him and it took of towards the princess, leaving him with an incomplete mass of uncontrolled chakra. He forgot about that for the moment as he took off not too soon afterwards. He would have to force its completion on his own on the way to destroying the bastard.
"Hey Bastard!" Naruto shouted when he was but a few feet away, thankfully gaining the attention of the man once more and allow his clone to reach the princess. Grinning, he dodged the haphazard punch that was thrown at him and threw one of his own.
One with a glowing orb of destruction attached…
"RASENGAN!"
As he slammed the sphere into bastard's chest he could feel it starting to twist and deform. It wasn't long before the red chakra in the mix began to rebel and force its way outwards.
"Get her out of here!" He shouted over the sounds of breaking glass and twisting metal and he relaxed somewhat when he saw his clone nod and made to make a run for it with the princess in tow. It couldn't have gotten away not a moment too soon as the technique picked that moment to collapse.
It exploded, sending the three of them rocketing off in opposite directions. Douto, being on the receiving end of the jutsu, received the heaviest impact and was sent spiraling into one of the massive glass panes that was being used for the generator. The clone managed to get Kouyuki a good ways away from the impact before they were affected by the shockwave and they were only sent flying a couple feet before they landed, the clone twisting their bodies so that it would take the brunt of the damage as they landed before dispelling in a puff of smoke.
Naruto however…
Kouyuki groaned slightly, rolling onto her side to remove her face from the biting cold. Coughing lightly, she sat up weakly and swept her eyes over the general area looking for signs of either combatant.
She saw Dotou…the man was lying face down on the snow with a few glass shards jutting out from his back through that weird armor of his.
Being stabbed in the back…what a fitting end for him.
Her blue eyes passed over his form without sparing the dying man a second glance, so far gone was he from her sympathy. It was only a matter of time until she realized however, that no matter how many times she willed her eyes to roam over the glacier, she would find that her blonde hero was not present anywhere on the massive expanse of ice.
"Naruto!" She cried out desperately in hopes of eliciting some form of response from him.
"Heh…The boy's dead…he won't be…coming back…"
Her head snapped back to the man who found it necessary to torment her despite his own pathetic state. She stood briskly and stomped her way towards the man, intending to let him feel at least half of the pain she experienced over the years. She was stopped short however when Kakashi appeared before her in a puff of smoke, effectively blocking her path.
She glared up at him. "Move…"
"No…" He replied softly yet firmly, keeping his stare level with hers.
She made to run past him and he grabbed her waist despite her kicking and screaming and deposited her on the snow in a manner that was considered to be civil.
"Kouyuki-hime!"
She stared at him with a mixture of anger and frustration.
"He's pierced in several vital points, so what you intended on doing would be nothing more than torture in his last moments. Don't sink to his level…"
Her eyes glossed over with tears. "B-But Naruto…"
"…Is a Shinobi of Konoha. Don't take him lightly." He stuffed his hands in his pockets and averted his gaze towards the cliff. "Although I doubt that he would succumb to a mere fall, even if he did die, he did it saving the lives of a princess and her country. He would be happy."
Somehow that statement didn't make her happy in the least.
"However, our mission is not over." He continued. "We still have to escort you back to the castle unharmed. The sooner we get you back, the sooner we can search for him." He said with a smile as he offered a hand though it was only apparent by the crinkling of his eye. "Shall we get going hime?
"Y-Yes…" She resigned as she grasped the offered hand and allowed herself to be pulled to her feet even as the snow melted away and images of her past life began to play, courtesy of the generator her father. She couldn't bring herself to smile however, her mind plagued by thoughts of a smiling hero.
-A few hours later somewhere in the Valley of the Rainbow Glaciers-
Naruto coughed a couple times, trying to get the water out of his lungs as he awoke pressed against a rock in the middle of a raging river. He glanced up at the cliff side and noticed it had a more gently sloping nature than he remembered.
Just how far had he drifted downstream anyway?
The water was frigid, despite having just been melted and it was leaving him shivering uncontrollably. He needed to get out of the river before he froze to death.
Drawing on the remains of whatever chakra he had left, he managed to stick to the surface of the water after countless tries before climbing out. He immediately then shrugged off his jumpsuit and wrung it dry. Despite the heating effects of the generator they were still in Yukiguni after all so the air was still nippy, forcing him to curl up into a ball to preserve his warmth.
"N-Not g-good…I-I c-can't stay h-here." He stuttered, his chattering teeth preventing him from forming proper speech. He couldn't wait for Kakashi-sensei and the others (if they were coming at all)…he needed to find shelter from the cold and the fast approaching dark.
Slipping back on his more than damp clothes, he trudged his way downstream in hopes of finding an alternate way out of the valley.
-Days later in the same Valley-
It took one and a half days of traveling at a comfortable pace for the team of one Jônin, two Genin to return the princess safely to the capital. Kakashi had decided that since the mission still hadn't concluded yet that one of them would have to stay behind with the young delegate.
Sakura was chosen of course so that left Kakashi and Sasuke to find Naruto.
"Yo Kakashi-sensei!"
Kakashi ran over to the boy who was being led by his lead summon Pakkun. He had no doubts in his mind that the boy they were searching for was still among the living seeing as they had yet to find a body up to that point and had managed to find traces of his presence along the riverside. However, as they continued into the forest and the snow began to pick up again, he honestly began to lose hope of recovering him.
The country had been comprised of two terrestrial biomes and from the looks of it, Naruto had moved north and wondered right out of the Taiga and into the merciless Tundra.
Why, oh why didn't the boy listen to him when they were going through this? The boy was now probably frozen solid somewhere in this unrelenting blizzard.
He arrived at the site of discovery only to meet Sasuke staring on silently as an eager Pakkun stood bent slightly with his head buried in the snow. It appeared as if they had finally found something after spending hours searching for their missing comrade in the storm.
Now if Pakkun would only remove himself from the snow…
"He's stuck…" Sasuke stated rather blandly as the dog continued to try rather futilely to remove himself.
"Hmm…you're right." Kakashi affirmed. "Aren't you going to help him?" It was cold and he wasn't about to go digging around in the snow. Apparently Sasuke had the same sentiment judging by the level stare that was directed at him.
"Aren't you? It's your dog." The raven haired youth shot back.
"Yes, that's right. I'm also trying to teach you a valuable lesson about teamwork."
"I don't think he can wait that long…" Sasuke pointed out as he motioned to the dog that had had stopped moving a few seconds ago and was buried up to its tail.
Kakashi frowned and surrendered, already mulling through his list of punishment for the youth as he bent. "We'll continue this later…" He cleared away some of the snow before grabbing the small dog and yanking him out with a firm tug, watching as it twitched and jerked back to life.
"What the hell took you so long Kakashi!"
"Sorry…it was hard to find you buried underneath all that snow." He lied, picking up the now uncovered Konoha forehead protector. It was definitely Naruto's if the ragged cloth and dinged metal was any indication. "Pakkun, can't you trace his scent using this?" He asked, holding out the metal plate to his companion.
"That's just it Kakashi. The scent we were following up till now led to this." Pakkun said, his voice laced with regret. "There's nothing more beyond this point."
Kakashi sighed. He could only imagine what would happen the moment they returned to Konoha. He was sure that Tsunade was going to pound him into oblivion for losing her favorite trouble maker but first he had to break the bad news to Kouyuki-hime.
Hopefully she wouldn't take it too hard.
"Alright Sasuke, its time to go. There's nothing more we can do here." Kakashi said regretfully. He was just counting down the seconds before one of them protested but surprisingly no one objected. He was just about to ask why when Sasuke spoke up.
"You're right; we can go back and ask Tsunade to send better trackers." Sasuke said calmly.
Well…It wasn't the response he was looking for but it would do for now. The only problem left was with Pakkun, who was mumbling obscenities about ungrateful brats and biting jewels. Kakashi chuckled and Pakkun looked up and growled at him.
"Now now, no need to get violent. Can you please lead us back to the village? I'll give you something special when we get back to the capital." Kakashi asked hopefully seeing as if he declined they were most likely screwed. Pakkun just grunted and sped off with them following close behind. As they made their way back however, there was just one thing that bothered him…
"You're surprisingly calm Sasuke…"
The boy merely glanced at him and shrugged. "The dobe isn't dead…that much we know."
"I see…"
There was just no feigning strength in this instance he supposed…
-Back in Yukiguni's capital-
They returned to the capital after spending three days in the cold only to be greeted by the Samurai guard, requesting that they go to see the princess immediately upon arrival. Entering the meeting room after being officially announced, they came upon the scene of the Yukiguni delegate in her ceremonial robes chatting it up with their pink haired teammate and sharing a couple of laughs.
Though he had to wonder how much of it was truly genuine.
The elite Jônin heard the laughter dim suddenly and realized that all eyes were on them now.
"Kouyuki-hime…" He started, not planning on drawing it out.
"It's Ok…you don't have to say anything. I can guess from his lack of appearance that you were unsuccessful." She finished for him in a strained voice that he found hard to bear.
He sighed. "We found this…" He said, taking out the piece of worn metal. "It's his…not sure how long ago he was separated from it, but since we found no body there's a pretty good chance he's alive."
"So what are you going to do?" She asked.
"Go back and ask for assistance. My specialty is tracking but I can only do so much with others to look after. I'd be able to accomplish more with a fully capable team of Shinobi." Not that he was insulting Sasuke and Sakura, but he'd be able to move freely if he didn't have to babysit.
"Are you going back now? Won't you stay longer?" She half pleaded with him.
"I'm sorry…We've not too long ago come out of a crisis ourselves so we don't have any free time to spare." Not to mention the fact that he had most likely just blown his only free time searching for Naruto. "I'll probably be sent on another mission as soon as I return." He muttered darkly just thinking about it.
She bowed. "Very well…I'll make sure your reward arrives within a week's time. Please have a safe, uneventful trip."
"We're counting on it." The team of Shinobi bowed respectfully and turned to leave, vaguely aware that they were being followed out by the princess. Kakashi felt a tug on his jacket and he paused, glancing over his shoulder with an odd look.
"Kakashi-san…Are you sure he would have been happy?"
Kakashi sighed before nodding. "I'm…quite sure, Kouyuki-hime." At least he was quite sure. Sometimes the boy's actions were a little besides him at times. The next question surprised him though.
"Even if he knew I wouldn't be?"
Kakashi paused for a moment to search for his words. "I believe…that if he though you were unhappy by any chance, he would come back from the afterlife just to keep you smiling. Though it's not just with you, he's like that with all the people he cares about."
Kouyuki began to sob. "I didn't…I didn't want him to save me. I didn't want him to risk his life for someone like me…"
Kakashi turned, forcing her to let go as he placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "He would have done it even if you didn't ask."
"What am I…supposed to do now?"
"Live, and greet him with a smile when he returns." He grabbed her wrist and placed the worn metal into her palm, watching as her eyes went wide with curiosity. "You owe him at least that much."
Her tears began anew as she clutched the piece of metal tightly against her bosom, collapsing to her knees after the weight of it all became too much. Two of her assistants ran up to her immediately to offer their assistance.
Kakashi turned and continued his trek outside where Sasuke and Sakura were waiting. Seeing the haggard appearance of the girl brought a chuckle from his lips.
"It was rough wasn't it Sakura?"
"Yes…" Sakura admitted heavily. "I didn't even know which one of us was having the harder time actually."
Kakashi shrugged. "I wouldn't worry about her too much though…She now has the weight of an entire country on her shoulders, she won't have the time to feel sorry for herself."
"Oh…" Sakura deadpanned before addressing him again. "Umm, Kakashi-sensei…Are you sure you should have left her the headband though? Hokage-sama might not…"
"I'll deal with Tsunade-sama when the time comes so don't worry about it."
He honestly hoped he sounded as confident as he appeared.
-A week later In Konohagakure-
Kakashi and what was left of Cell 7 finally made it back to Konoha. It took them a week to get back from Yukiguni via a sea barge since the film crew decided to stay and finish the movie. It was probably a plus now that the once emotionless princess had her life and her soul returned to her, saving them money on purchasing eye drops.
As they passed through the gates they were greeted by Kotetsu and Izumo who was on guard duty.
"Yo Kakashi-san, back from your vacation I see…" Kotetsu said with a smile.
Kakashi paled at the implications. His mission shouldn't have taken that long. They were only supposed to protect the Princess for 2 weeks while the movie was being completed but they ended up staying five extra days due to Naruto's 'mysterious' disappearance. That in itself was a testament of the trouble he ran into in Yukiguni. He just hoped that the two Chûnin would be able to over look that fact since news spread from the gates rather quickly. Kakashi paled even further as he remembered he would have to tell Tsunade he lost Naruto. Ah yes, he could practically feel the migraine setting in already. He motioned to his team to continue onwards when Izumo called out to him again.
"Hey Kakashi-san…where's Naruto? Wasn't he with you guys before you left?"
It took nearly all of his restraint to keep from slapping himself.
"Ah…we ran into some minor difficulties during the end so…"
"Minor difficulties…Oh…I offer my condolences to you and your…" Was all Izumo got out before Sakura cut him off rather fiercely.
"He's not dead!" She blurted out before she placed her hand over her mouth and caught herself. She glanced over at the other two members of her team and noticed Kakashi nearly slapped his forehead in irritation and Sasuke just shrugged.
Kakashi sighed. I wasn't like he hadn't been expecting it. The two had been emo central (Sasuke more than usual) ever since they left Yukiguni. Sakura moped around like a kicked puppy and Sasuke had something akin to a defeated look on his face. Kakashi guessed that the tension built up since they had no one to confide in. What…he was a sensei for goodness's sake not a guidance counselor, but now thanks to that little outburst the whole village was going to know about his team's condition within the hour. He sighed again, he really didn't want the news to reach Tsunade's ears before he himself got there…it would just mean more pain. He motioned for his team to begin moving again and hoped they got to the tower before any of the other Rookie nine members or team Gai noticed them.
-Hokage's Tower-
They had managed to reach the tower without anymore complications. They just had to tackle the Hokage and they'd be out of there and he'd continue reading his book. "Yup…all will be well. I'll live through this and then I can find out what happened to Aki when Roy found her making love with Hisoka on the kitchen counter." He thought as they climbed the tower to the Hokage's chambers.
"Ah Kakashi-san…Hokage-sama has been expecting you. Please head right in." The Chûnin at the reception stated as Kakashi and his team emerged from down the hallway.
Kakashi gulped, she was expecting him and that was never good since he was always late. He knocked twice on the door then entered slowly with team 7 in tow. When he fully entered the chambers it appeared to be as if the Hokage was looking over some files. She glanced up at him for a second or two before she turned back to her papers and spoke.
"I trust your mission was successful Kakashi?" Tsunade asked casually, not looking up from the scrolls she was looking over. When she received no answer she glanced up at him again, her eyes falling on him and the rest of the room for much longer the second time around.
"Kakashi?"
Beads of sweat started to form on Kakashi's brow. If he had only answered her when she asked he wouldn't subjected his group to her stare. Hell, he figured they could have gone through the whole process and she still wouldn't have noticed until the end.
"Kakashi…"
Now he had to live with the consequences…The potentially painful consequences.
"Where's Naruto?"
Kakashi turned to look at his students for a little assistance when he noticed Sakura was looking down at her feet and Sasuke was tuning out the conversation, opting to stare out the window instead. Kakashi sweat dropped…he was going to make them run laps around the village for that or better yet…make them do it with Gai and Lee. Yes…it was divine punishment for not helping out their lovable sensei.
"Ka-ka-shi…" Tsunade growled menacingly, getting highly irritated at his Copy-nin's evasiveness.
Said Copy-nin chuckled nervously. "Well you see, there's a funny story to that…"
"Sasuke! Sakura!"
"He went M.I.A. in Yukiguni." Sasuke said curtly and Kakashi winced when he could feel her steely gaze on him once more.
"Explain…"
And so they did, spending about fifteen minutes alternating between themselves to recap the events of the mission, Tsunade keeping her features surprisingly neutral throughout. Eventually they came to the end and they waited for the blonde Hokage to voice her thoughts.
"I'll see what will happen…" She begun after a moment's silence, chin resting on her clasped hands. "The council might be reluctant to send out any trackers due to our circumstances but they shouldn't be against it. They might vouch to give Naruto the standard one week period before…"
"One week?! Hokage-sama that's unreasonable, Naruto may not have that much time!" Sakura cut in tersely, protesting loudly against the implied method of choice.
"My hands are tied Sakura! Anything dealing with rogue Shinobi or those that may become rogue has to be ran by the Council first." Tsunade's hands were shaking, signifying the amount of pressure being applied to them. "I want a written report on my desk from each of you in the morning, other than that you're dismissed. Kakashi, you stay behind."
"Tsunade-sama, your hands…" Kakashi trailed of as he eyed the blood that was now running rivulets down her arms from her knuckles. He watched as she just made an "Oh" sound before running her glowing green hands over the abused areas.
"You said that he just disappeared…what does that mean?" She questioned him.
"Just as it sounds Tsunade-sama…There were no bodies to be found and Pakkun said his scent just disappeared." He replied.
"Was there a chance that someone could have found him before you had?"
"Probably…that would be the most likely scenario."
She seemed to mull over the information silently before waving a dismissive hand in his direction. Taking it as his cue to leave, he made to do just so before she addressed him again.
"One more thing…" She said innocently before her eyes glinted and her features turned dark. "What's this I hear about you giving away Naruto's forehead protector?"
Kakashi whimpered slightly as she neared him.
-Outside of the Hokage's Tower-
"I need a drink" he muttered to himself. "And I might as well be relaxed when the other Jônin (or more specifically Kurenai and Gai) assault me with questions later." He thought as he exited the tower, fully prepared to get stoned. He looked up from his muse to find Sakura and Sasuke waiting for him.
It was a good thing too as he just remembered something important. He motioned to the brooding boy. "Sasuke…I want you keep Sakura's company for the rest of the day."
Sasuke looked up to Kakashi and paled…considerably. If there was one thing he hated more than Itachi, it was the exclusive 'I love Sasuke' fan club and Kakashi just asked him to go on a date with the president. Sasuke immediately turned around to make a run for it when Kakashi grabbed him firmly by the shoulder.
Kakashi had to admit…seeing the boy try to make a break for it was hilarious but he figured laughing now would make him act worse than usual towards Sakura so he stored that little scene in his mind for when his depression would surely set in later. For now he had to convince Sasuke to take Sakura out.
"Sasuke, I know you don't like Sakura very much but she's depressed over losing Naruto and you're out best hope of cheering her up. Our teamwork was already bad to begin with but with Sakura literally out of it, she may become more of a liability to the team now. "
"I don't know what you're talking about." Sasuke lied. If he had to he was going to deny the hell out of everything. He was NOT going on a date with Sakura.
Kakashi just smiled under his mask. Sasuke just unknowingly walked right into his trap.
"Sasuke just look at her." Kakashi said, the sorrow in his voice cranked up to the max as he pointed towards Sakura. She was lying on the ground in the fetal position with a huge, dark angst cloud hanging over her. If that wasn't depressing he didn't know what was. He looked back at Sasuke with a sparkle in his eyes as he saw Sasuke cringe. Ok…just one more push and he was going on that date for sure…and I know just what to bait him with. He leaned in close to Sasuke and whispered in his ear.
"Think about it…if the other girls see you're taken, your fan club would disappear and you'll be free." Kakashi said, making sure to put emphasis on the last word.
Sasuke's frown straightened out a little but then returned in full force. Even if his fan club would go away he would still have Sakura and he didn't feel the need to have a bright pink highlighter shadowing him daily so therefore that aspect cancelled itself out.
Seeing Sasuke's doubt return full force he decided to bring out the big guns.
"Securing Sakura now will almost guarantee the revival of your clan when you're older."
Sasuke's frown evened out some but he didn't give in since he figured that according to his genes he'd be even more attractive when he was older so securing a wife would be no problem.
Kakashi sighed, he really didn't want to do this but he figured this would be best for the both him and the girl. Plus he still had his Ace. He chuckled darkly…Sasuke didn't stand a chance. Kakashi leaned in close and whispered in Sasuke's ear again.
"If you take out Sakura for the entire afternoon and she enjoys it…I'll teach you a new technique that's even stronger than the chidori." Kakashi smirked behind his mask. He had this particularly fat fish hooked now.
Sasuke perked up and spun around to face Kakashi in approximately 0.25 seconds. Killing Itachi was number one priority right now after all.
"I'll do it."
Kakashi chuckled…Apparently Sasuke didn't hear the first part of the deal since he responded so quickly. Sasuke deserved this blow Kakashi was going to land next and oh was it going to be sweet…well…for him at least.
"It's good to see you so readily agreeing to kiss Sakura at the end of the date. For a second I thought you were actually against it." Kakashi said, barely suppressing the urge to outright laugh when he saw Sasuke froze and his mouth gape open. "I'm definitely saving this expression for later." Kakashi said with gleaming eyes as tears threatened to fall from amusement.
Sasuke's brain shut down completely except for the part with the job of deciphering what the ears were receiving. If what his brain interpreted was correct, he was just suckered into a relationship with Sakura. He really needed to kick himself now. He looked over at Kakashi's sparkling eyes and he realized that this whole thing was staged. Sasuke's left eye started to twitch horribly and the Sharingan was ablaze. He made to start some hand signs for chidori when Kakashi quickly stepped in.
"Now now Sasuke, no need to get hasty in your decision after all, you have all afternoon to prepare." Kakashi joked again but then he paled as he noticed chakra started to gather in Sasuke's palm. The boy seriously needed to learn how to take a joke…when one was given of course. Kakashi sighed and placed a hand on Sasuke's shoulder.
"Sasuke, calm down. You and I both know how high of a pedestal Sakura holds you in her mind, hell…you've heard her dreams and aspirations when you graduated. You should know how happy she would be if you show a little more affection than your usual grunts. She likes you and if you showed her that you actually give a crap whether she lives or dies she might actually take being a ninja seriously. Plus its about time you got a girlfriend, I'm beginning to wonder if those rumors going around about you being gay were true." Kakashi said as Sasuke began to calm down.
"Maybe Kakashi-sensei is right. Maybe I should really…wait…THEY ARE RUMORS ABOUT ME BEING GAY GOING AROUND?!" Sasuke exclaimed as he thought about what the hell Kakashi just said but unaware that he voiced his thoughts aloud.
Kakashi sweat dropped…it seemed as though Sasuke's thoughts were preoccupied more often than not recently. He was usually way more aware than this. "Probably has something to do with Sakura…" He concluded as he continued to watch Sasuke closely. If that was true then there might be hope for the boy yet.
Sasuke looked towards Sakura again who was still in the fetal position but on her side and now sucking her thumb. She was really starting to look pathetic so he decided to act quickly before he changed his mind about the whole thing.
"That jutsu better be pretty damn spectacular." He muttered as he made his way over to Sakura as Kakashi's one eye sparkled.
"Sakura…I was…wondering…" He said as he mumbled the last part so softly that Sakura couldn't hear.
Sakura got up to face him now. "Sasuke-kun?" she asked genuinely surprised that Sasuke was actually approaching her but then the surprised turned to shock as she noticed the extremely slight blush on his cheeks. Sasuke was everything but shy and to see him sporting that blush turned all her teenage hormones on and into overdrive.
"Would you…like to do something this afternoon?" Sasuke asked again.
Sakura's eyes blinked once, and then blinked again. Her fan girl sense was decoding everything he just said and it sounded like he, the Uchiha Sasuke was asking her out on a romantic date for two. She nearly squealed but then remembered that Sasuke absolutely hated his fangirls so she settled for a blush and a shy nod of her head.
Sasuke promptly grabbed her had and made to leave with a furiously blushing Sakura when Kakashi motioned to him again. As Sasuke released Sakura's hand and made his way back over to where Kakashi was, he noticed gleam in Kakashi's eyes before it disappeared and his expression turned serious.
"Sasuke…don't divulge any information about Naruto's M.I.A status…We'll wait until Tsunade feels the need to spread that information but until then it is on a need to know basis and no one needs to know…especially Iruka. I'm asking you because Sakura is a terrible liar which means you can't let her out of your sight and you must answer before she has a chance to. Consider this a mission Sasuke…" Kakashi stated firmly since he knew that if the scar-faced Chûnin found out Naruto had gone M.I.A he would rush over to Yukiguni by himself and tear up the landscape in hopes of finding the blond. Kakashi waited for acknowledgement of his order and then made to leave towards one of the local bars.
Sasuke nodded and turned to leave with Sakura following closely behind, the pair not holding hands anymore to Sakura's disdain. "This is going to be one hell of an afternoon."
Yukiguni - Snow Country
A/N: Well that's it for chapter 1. New and improved and hopefully less annoying to some people. Similar edits will be made to the other earlier chapters (say till up to chapter 6) so look forward to it.
Andoryu