Naruto: A Second Chance

Chapter V

"Alpha, in position. Over."

"Beta, in position. Over."

"Gamma, in postion. Over."

". . ."

"Delta? What is your status? Over."

". . ."

"Naruto?"

". . ."

Kakashi looks at his radio skeptically before deciding that the tool isn't the problem. He looks out over the bush he's hidden behind.

He's hit with disappointment when he sees the cat nowhere to be found.

"Alpha," another, more monotone, voice came through the radio, "target has been retrieved. Requesting the convene of the team. Over."

Kakashi sighs before appearing in the middle of the clearing. Sakura and Sasuke join him soon enough, and Naruto and Ki have yet to be seen. Where are they?

As soon as the thought passes through his mind, Naruto and Ki appear in a flash. To his surprise, a large tabby cat lounges composedly in Naruto's arms.

A large grin makes its way onto Naruto's face. "We caught the old lady's cat, dattebayo! Let's go return it to her!" Kakashi just nods, still somewhat out of sorts.

- - - - -

He sits on the fence and Ki sits beside it. They watch as Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke work in the heat of the day, ankle-deep in water. The fresh genin have been tasked with clearing all of a farmer's weeds from his rice paddies.

He observes the way Naruto heatedly plows through the field, plucking maybe just a little more than weeds. At the sight of Naruto's startling progress, Sasuke begins to do the same.

Eventually Sakura is able to get the idea that she doesn't have to work anymore, and she walks over to the fence where Kakashi sits and Ki stands. Kakashi has to commend her for her sly cleverness.

"Eat my dust, teme!"

"In your dreams, dobe!"

Kakashi sighs as he watches the paddies become more and more bare. He considers telling the boys to stop, but then decides that the situation is what they make of it. If they want to continue blindly pulling plants,  then he isn't going to stop them.

He thought at least Sasuke would have a little more control, but clearly that wasn't the case. He had sorely overestimated the both of them and now he very sorely regrets it.

The farmer was so angry his face was red.

- - - - -

The water from the river is cold, but steadily warming in the hot Konoha sun. Minato could honestly say that he missed the heat and warmth of Konoha's summer day.

Though by looking at his son and his teammates, he could tell they were just about done with Konoha's constant heat. The sun's rays beat down on them as they cleared the trash from a river high in the mountains. It was an odd request, but not one he hadn't seen before.

Sakura was diligently at work, her usually loud mouth silenced by the peacefulness of the river and its surroundings. Naruto and Sasuke were bickering again. He could see she was trying to find her zen.

Kakashi was sitting by the riverbed, legs crossed, while reading his, as Minato recently learned, perverted book. It was still a shock to see him reading it sometimes.

He himself was helping Naruto and his friends clear the river of junk. The wicker basket on his back seemed out of place next to his ANBU uniform, but he didn't mind. It was a comfortable weight he bore if it meant he could help his son.

Naruto was animatedly shouting at Sasuke when he accidentally slipped and fell face-first into the water. Alarmed by the splash, Minato siftly turned around to see what happened.

For a moment, there was nothing, until Naruto's head came above the rapidly rushing water and bobbed helplessly as he shouted for help.

Minato ran towards his son quickly, hoping to prevent him any injury. Just as he caught up to him, he grabbed his hand, keeping Naruto from falling over the edge of the waterfall the river led to.

He pulled Naruto up and over the edge, then trudged against the flow of the river back to the rest of the team. His and Naruto's trash had been emptied and scattered across the water, and his son was soaking wet. He sighed.

They were going to be there for a while.

- - - - -

"Aaargh! I've had it!" Naruto abruptly shouts, startling his team. They all give him angry and questioning looks, irritated with his volume. Kakashi raises and eyebrow at him. "You've had it with what?"

Naruto throws down his rake, scattering some of the surrounding leaves and causing Sasuke to glare at him for ruining his pile, glaring at the wooden tool before exclaiming, "These random jobs! All we're doing is chores and our time is being wasted! What's the point of training if we never use it?" Naruto voices his anger and displeasure with their missions.

Kakashi sighs and he closes his book, standing up from the lawn chair he had been sitting in. Minato watches as Kakashi tries to reason with his son.

"What is it that you feel you're supposed to be doing? You're just Genin." he states matter-of-factly. Naruto seethes at being looked down on. "It doesn't matter that we're Genin! We're ninja, and ninja are supposed to fight for the village! Not clean for it! Can't people do their own damn chores?" Minato frowns a little at Naruto's vocabulary, but looks it over for the time being. His son is having a dilemma.

"There are things that aren't any one person's responsibility. Like keeping the parks and rivers free of litter. Everyone is responsible, but no one wants to do it. Being a ninja isn't always fighting for the village. Sometimes it's providing for it." Kakashi explains to Naruto in an attempt to make him understand.

"People need to just throw their trash away in a trash can! I'm tired of cleaning up their messes! Park owners should just hire somebody to rake the damn leaves! Isn't it good to create more jobs? It just ain't fair, dattebayo! We deserve a C-Rank mission!" Naruto continues to complain.

Kakashi sighs dejectedly in defeat at Naruto's words. "If I ask Hokage-sama for a C-Rank mission, will you stop shouting about chores?" he asks helplessly. "You better believe it, Kakashi-sensei! I won't ask for anything else! Please, please can we ask to go on a C mission?" Minato has to keep himself from chuckling at his son's ability to irritate the hell out of Kakashi.

"Fine. Now finish raking these leaves. The sooner you finish, the sooner we can report to the Hokage and ask for a higher ranking mission." Kakashi reasons.

"Yes! Let's go Sakura-chan, teme! If we hurry we might get one today!" With renewed vigor and enthusiasm, Naruto begins to plow through the remaining leaves covering the ground.

Minato smiles as his son's contagious energy sends the team into action. Sakura and Sasuke also seem to be a little more excited about getting the work done.

Behind his mask, he smiles at his son's eyes, vibrant and full of life. He picks up a rake of his own to help out.

He has your eyes, Kushina.