A Stuttering Flame

Chapter 2

Kakashi was nearing Naruto's location when suddenly an overwhelming chakra overcame him.

'What power!' He exclaimed in his mind. 'This huge chakra, could it be the Kyuubi?'

He felt out the chakra with what limited sensor ability he had.

'No this chakra doesn't feel the same as the one from 12 years ago... Another jinchuriki perhaps?' He speculated.

He pressed the talk button on his wireless radio, contacting his comrades outside the barrier.

"Captain, do you feel that?" He asked.

"Feel what exactly? All I feel is the same chakra from earlier." Came the reply.

"Then you don't feel how massive it's become?" He questioned worriedly.

"No. What's going on in there? Situation report." JACKAL said.

"I'm not sure. Suddenly I felt a huge burst of chakra coming from where Naruto has gone. I'm still following- wait! She's stopped! Coming into visual range soon. I'm establishing radio silence. I can't risk alerting any possible enemies." Kakashi said as he stopped just outside the clearing Naruto had finally halted at.

"Continue to observe, but be cautious. If at any point you deem the situation too dangerous, extract yourself and the target." Came the quick reply from the ANBU Captain.

'Easy for you to say, but if touching her still has the same effect as before, I'll likely be signing my own death sentence.' Thought Kakashi as he focused on one of the few people he would be willing to die for.

Making his presence as undetectable as possible, more than he had been already, as was standard ANBU Procedure, he peered out at Naruto from behind his DOG mask.

Naruto looked towards the sky and stared into the hues of the encroaching dawn that painted the sky an ocher color.

Just as dawn broke, the massive chakra Kakashi had been feeling finally localized in one spot, creating a small flame, that was slowly getting bigger, just above the clearing.

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As the Hokage sped towards the location where Naruto was, he took some time to think.

Based on his and BEAR's current trajectory, there was only one place that held any significance in this direction, and that was the site where the Kyuubi was sealed into Naruto 12 years ago.

Leaping from branch to branch, he put on the wireless radio, turning the dial till he reached channel 134, coming onto the end of a conversation, as he came into view of an ANBU standing sentinel up ahead.

"Continue to observe, but be cautious. If at any point you deem the situation too dangerous, extract yourself and the target." Was the transmission he heard as he reached MOUSE's side.

"What's the current status of the mission?" He asked MOUSE as he reached the squad of his ANBU.

Quickly explaining Kakashi's latest report, the ANBU stationed in the clearing awaited the Hokage's orders.

"Spread out and surround the barrier as far as you can. MONKEY, your task is to return to ANBU headquarters and gather reinforcements. When you come back with the others, spread out and join the others in surrounding the area. We can't let anything slip past us." Hiruzen barked out, dispersing his soldiers with a wave of his arm.

Hiruzen took the moment of silence to contemplate the various events that had happened today.

'Somehow I feel like something big is about to happen.' He mused to himself as he stared grimly in the direction he knew Naruto had disappeared.