Naruto: Sound Sisters

Chapter 9 - Mission: Sand Mystery

= 2 weeks later =

"NARUTO! NAAAARUTO! OPEN UP!"A familiar scream resonated through the door. Naruto grunted and pulled his blanket over his head to continue his sleep unbothered, though it was already past mid-day.

"NAAAAARUTO! If you don't open this door soon I'll break it open!" threatened Sakura. Naruto sighed and lazily got up. He stretched and rubbed his eyes as the demands of his fellow teammate continued to shout at him. He sluggishly made his way to the door and just as he was about to touch the doorknob, the door came crashing down on him.

"NARUTO! GET UP! WE GOTTA GO! Tsunade-sama has summoned us for a new mission. Hurry!" Sakura stepped on top of the door and looked around.

"Hello? Naruto?" A weak grunt came from under her. She stepped aside and pulled up the door to peek under it.

"Naruto, this isn't the time for your shinnanigans! Get up from under there and get ready. She's waiting for us. I'll wait for you outside." Sakura sighed and let the door drop.

"Oof... Owww..." Naruto whinced.

After a few minutes of waiting, Naruto finally came out dressed in his usual. Sakura nagged and rushed him all the way to the Hokage's building. They made their way inside and arrived at the Hokage's office.

"Tsunade-sama! I apologize for our tardiness." Sakura bowed shamefully. Naruto closed the door and immediately placed himself next to Sakura. Tsunade sat in her chair, arms crossed, glaring at him, assuming he was the reason they were late. Naruto smiled weakly as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Now then, I have gathered you all for a very sensitive mission." Naruto and Sakura finally looked around and saw that they were not alone. Kakashi, Sai, Kiba and Akamaru had been waiting on them as well.

"You are to keep this confidential. Nobody outside this room is allowed to know for it will implicate dangerous attempts of attacks." They all looked at each other skeptically.

"What exactly will we be doing, Hokage-sama?" Kakashi respectfully questioned. She looked down in thought for a moment and breathed in audibly.

"Your mission is to guide and protect a few travelers to Suna." They all looked at her questioningly.

"That doesn't sound too hard..." Naruto scoffed but then saw how serious Tsunade looked at him. He gulped and stepped back.

"You will be escorting a young woman betrothed to Kankuro. And you are to make sure she and her fellow escorts arrive safely and unscathed." Again the group gave each other slightly concerned glances.

"Why do we have to babysit for Suna?" Kiba crossed his arms in front of him bothered by the petty task at hand. Akamaru agreed with a small bark.

"Because, we have to assure Suna that nothing will happen to the travelers while they pass through Konoha land. This will help strengthen our bond with our allies." She stated with affirmation. She opened up a scroll on her desk; it was a map of the land of fire.

"Please pack your required necessities for this mission. You will be meeting the travelers in this general area," she pointed somewhere in the map, halfway between Konoha and the Suna border,"It shouldn't take more than half a day to get there but once you join them you will be moving at a slower pace. I would say a few days of food and water should suffice. You will be leaving tomorrow morning. Report to me the moment you arrive. You are all dismissed." She closed the scroll and held it in her hand pensively.

Kakashi nodded and she nodded back. "Well, let's get ready everyone. We'll meet at the main gate in the morning." The newly formed team bowed at the Hokage and started for the door.