A Kunoichi At Heart

Chapter 49: Friendship

Going to challenge Kakashi-sensei openly sounded like a good idea to you. It wouldn't do any good hiding and waiting for the alarm to ring. Kakashi's keen sense of hearing and jounin ninja abilities rendered sneaking up on him a bad idea. You might as well go for a direct assault. With that thought in mind, you straightened from your crouching position and made your presence known.

"And you're also a weird one," Kakashi commented, watching your advances with a flicker of amusement and surprise crossing his face. You refrained from answering, knowing that he was only trying to divert your attention. And you couldn't afford to be distracted. Slipping a kunai from your sleeves into your palm, you charged your sensei head-on.

Barely a second later, he had your arms twisted at an uncomfortable angle and his own knife pressed lightly against your collarbone. Hanging limply by the scruff of your neck, you glowered vehemently at the ground, well aware that Kakashi couldn't see what you were doing.

"Do watch where you are going, [Name]," he said companionably, releasing his hold on your aching wrist. Again, you said nothing. Shifting your stance, you changed tactics. You would use wire strings to entrap Kakashi first rather than fight him in close-quarters combat.

It was as if he could read your attacks. The moment you pulled them out of your pouch, they were snatched from your surprised, unresisting grip. Your sensei shrugged innocently, your wires dangling from his fingers.

Your next attempt was foiled, as was the following one. Finally, exhausted and unable to carry on, you let Kakashi melt into the shadows, not before offering you some advice.

"You're a ninja. You're supposed to stay hidden, not throw yourself carelessly in front of your adversary like that," he informed you. He didn't leave you time to respond. Left alone and fatigued, you tried to catch your breath. You weren't sure what to do next, but a direct frontal assault was certainly out of the question. Hearing a distant rumbling accented with a strange crackling that sounded suspiciously like a forest fire, your eyes searched the vicinity for the source of the noise. Your gaze fell upon a thick column of smoke curling conspicuously above the tree tops, an unsightly smudge the bright, cerulean sky. Almost certain that it was where Kakashi-sensei would most likely be, you began to make your way towards the rising acrid fumes.

You only had to walk a short distance before you came across your first obstacle. Sakura was sprawled out on the floor, seemingly unconscious in the middle of your path. Her pink hair was splayed out around her, and her eyes were closed.

"Sakura…?" you asked uncertainly, prodding her shoulder with your toe. You were worried she was a projection, a genjutsu that concealed a spiky weapon of sorts. You wouldn't put it past your sensei to set a trap like that.

"Don't bother, she's out cold."

Your eyes flickered from her lifeless form to the spot where the voice was coming from. When you saw Sasuke's head stuck in the ground, you gave a little gasp. His eyes darkened.

"Don't faint," he threatened, sounding embarrassed and angry at the same time.

"What happened to you?" you asked, glancing from him to Sakura and back again.

"I'd rather not say," he replied stiffly. He closed his eyes. The ground beneath him shuddered and vertical cracks appeared on the surface. You scooped Sakura's limp body into your arms and pulled her into the safety of the trees just as an area of several metres around Sasuke exploded, sending dust and rocks flying everywhere.

You raised an eyebrow. "Must you be so melodramatic?" Without waiting for a response, you went back to check on Sakura. Her eyelids fluttered, exposing a sliver of vitreous green beneath her lashes.