Kitsune no Akuryō

When Bridges are Broken!!

Kon'nichiwa minna! Welcome to the next chapter of  Kitsune no Akuryō. Naruto has been laughed upon and scorned, but he has born those insults without reproach. Throughout all the mockery, Team 7 has struggled. Now the day has come for the mission to reach it's climax when foes meet and bridges are broken!

    The sun rose on the sleeping forms of Team 7, and Kakashi smiled to see all of them safe and sound. Today would hopefully be a better day. Naruto would be able to practice his words for a little after they had all worked on the bridge for the most part of the day. They would be able to rest up and finish this long mission.

    Everyone was in for a rude awakening...well except Naruto. He was the rude awakening. Kakashi should have seen this coming. He just supposed after all these years he must have forgotten: Naruto could be a heavy sleeper when he wanted to be.

    Kakashi had already woken up Sakura and with a little pressure, Sasuke came up easily enough, but for the second time in the week, Naruto would not wake up with the others. Sakura had already kicked him once, and he still laid like the dead.

    "Sakura," Kakashi caught her shoulder, "Let him rest."

    "But sensei! He should be getting up like the rest of us. He shouldn't be with us if he doesn't know what it means to be a shinobi."

     A powerful word, a strong accusation.

    Kakashi had to refrain from contradicting her. For all intents and purposes, Naruto had only just decided to become a shinobi, only just tried to attempt being one who endured. As far as she knew, he clearly didn't know mission protocol, which she was right about, but not how she was thinking of it. After last night's episode, he ran off by himself, away from his squad into the danger of the unknown. He deserved discipline, not grace.

    However, Kakashi had seen Naruto train last night aside from everything else. He knew about the skipped dinner, and in all honesty, he had been surprised that Naruto had even held out so long into the wee hours of the morning. As he observed Sasuke, he noticed how drooping his motions were as well, how carefully and subconsciously slowly he was cleaning his space.

     "We'll let him rest. He's had a long night."

     "But sensei!"

    Kakashi turned his eye to Sakura, "What are you going to do?"

    Sakura stood stock-still before looking down, "I'll, I'll let him rest."

    Kakashi nodded, "Now move along to breakfast."

    She scampered off after seeing hearing her sensei's tone, seeing his expression.

    Kakashi sighed after she went and turned to Sasuke, "Do you want to rest up? You were up late last night as well."

     Sasuke looked flabbergasted before quickly recovering, "I'm fine. I can work."

     Kakashi could tell that he was trying to "be a shinobi," but Sasuke didn't know that sometimes being a shinobi meant resting so that he could endure a little longer.

     At breakfast, Inari had come to the table, late as usual, and when he looked around, he asked, "Where's Naruto?"

     "Inari!" his grandfather intoned, but Kakashi responded hearing the sincerity in Inari's voice, "He's resting right now. Would you tell him to come to the bridge when he wakes up?"

      Inari was surprised, "You want me to tell him?"

     Kakashi smiled and nodded, and Inari returned it.