Naruto Shippuden: The Legend Of White-Wolf Shadow [Naruto Shippuden FanFiction]

Act 17: Just Remembered You

[After a week]

"Morning Mirai-san. Oh, Naruto!" Sakura called out, as she entered Mirai's room and saw Naruto was sleeping by her bedside. "Did you stay here last night?" she asked, as Naruto woke up and rubbed his eyes, sleepily.

"Ah... um... yeah... I think I fell asleep here last night," he said, as he stretched himself on the chair he sat. Sighing, he grabbed Mirai's hand. "When is she going to wake up?"

"I don't know. No one knows, even Hokage-sama. It's all depends on herself. Naruto," she paused, as she put her hand on his shoulder before continuing. "We can just hope for her to do her best in recovering, and get better. And that's for you too, Naruto."

"Eh?"

"Since the day Mirai-san got hospitalized, you're a bit gloomy even though you're smiling in front of everyone. You may have fooled them, but not me. I know you too well."

"Morning," suddenly a voice greeted. Both Naruto and Sakura turned around, and saw Yamato entering the room with Sai and Kakashi. "She's still unconscious?" he asked, as they walked towards the bed.

"Hm. No progression," Sakura replied, as she walked over to the room's window and pushed the curtains opened, letting in the morning sunlight, before turning around back to everyone. "Oh, is there anything, Kakashi-sensei?"

"Ah... Hokage-sama wants to meet us. It seems like there's something for us to do," Kakashi said, as he walked over to Naruto's side. "And it's now. So... let's go." Hesitating, Naruto stood up and pulled Mirai's blanket up to her shoulders.

"Get up soon, Mirai-neechan," Naruto whispered, before he turned around and followed the others, leaving the room, except for Kakashi. "Hm? Kakashi-sensei?"

"You guys go first, and wait in the Hokage's room. I need... to check her surroundings. For security." As they left, his eyes fixed on the flower vase on the bedside table, filled with tulips. After staring at it for some time, he walked towards Mirai and pushed away her hair that was covering the left side of her neck, checking it.

"Hm... Another tulip, and another mark," he confirmed, as he covered her neck back with her hair. He left the room, and sighed; the number of tulips were increasing, and the bite mark on her neck appeared after another disappearead. "Who did all this?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Ah! Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto shrieked, as Kakashi entered the Hokage's room. "Haha! You're not late this time!"

"Hm? What?" Kakashi asked, confused.

"Mirai-neechan told me to relax and never wait for sensei, so I leisurely went home and I even have time to take my shower, and breakfast!"

Kakashi walked towards Naruto, a bit amazed. "So... you just got here? Without waiting?"

"Nee, I'm not wasting most of my time, right?!"

A visible smirk crept up his lips under the mask, and sighed. "Tch. That girl... Ja, what do you have for us, Hokage-sama?" His tone became serious as he asked.

"One of our ANBU investigators had found a suspicious hideout in the Land of Rivers. Since he had took away his own life after he sent the report, that means... the one that owns the hideout had found out about him," Tsunade explained, before she unfolded a small piece of paper. "This information arrived before dawn today."

"Obaachan, who's the owner?" Naruto immediately asked, clenching his fists. "Is it... Orochimaru?" Tsunade went silent, so as the atmosphere in the room. "Sasuke... Is he there?"

"Yes." Her simple answer was enough to send the shock in him. Tightening his clenched fist, he looked down to the floor, as Tsunade proceeded. "But, we're not sure if they're still there-"

"That's why we have to go now!" Naruto suddenly cut her off. "We can't waste any more time! We need to go now-"

"Your mission..." Tsunade almost shouted, as she stood up with her hand on the table, trying to remind Naruto about the real mission. "Is to check out that hideout. Look for any clues, or anything that might related to Mirai's Wood Style jutsu."

The mention of Mirai's name had widened not just Naruto's eyes, but also Sakura's and Sai's. "Right now she's doing her best in recovering from inside. While she's doing that, we need to do something too. If it's true that she's one of Orochimaru's experiments, Konoha needs to take precaution steps because who knows that Orochimaru wanted her back, by force," Tsunade ended, as she sat down and crossed her arms, closing her eyes.

"Alright!" Naruto replied, after a moment of silence. "Mirai-neechan is one of us now, and this time I'll protect her. No one..." he paused for a moment, and looked down at his palms, before curling his fingers in. "No one will be taken away from Konoha anymore!"

"Yosh! That's the spirit, Naruto! The location of the hideout is in this paper," Tsunade said, as she slid the paper forward. Yamato picked it up, and read it. "Oh and also... Yamato will lead the team."

"Eh? Captain Yamato? Kakashi-sensei is not coming?" Sakura asked. Kakashi turned at them and gave him his significant smiling eye.

"He's going for another mission that I'll assign later. So then, you guys can do your mission now. And you, Kakashi... Stay," Tsunade pointed out, as the other were making their way out. As soon as the door closed, she immediately asked. "Any changes?"

"She's still unconscious, and a bite mark on her neck appeared again after another disappeared. The number of tulips increased too," Kakashi reported. Tsunade continuously tapped her table, deeply thinking as she closed her eyes.

"Who's giving all those to her? What's the main purpose? Don't you see someone suspicious lurking around the hospital or so?" she asked, as she looked up at Kakashi. He shook his head.

"Unfortunately, I don't."

"Is it okay if I assign you to look after her?"

"It's okay for me," Kakashi accepted, as he bowed his head down to her. "I will take care of her, don't worry. She's my student, remember?"

"Oh, right..." she chuckled at him, as she laid back against her chair. "Take a very good care of her, Kakashi. You know Shiroi is in her."

"I know..."

"Well then, if you don't have any questions, you can leave," Tsunade said, before Kakashi gave her a last bow and left the room. As he got himself out of the mansion, he let out a long exhale as he started to walk, thinking of going to the hospital.

Welcome home, Shiroi. I'll protect you and Mirai, and I'll never let both of you go, anymore. And I mean it, Mirai. He smiled, as he looked up at the clear, blue sky, and turned around, gazing up at the Fourth Hokage's head. No wonder you looked familiar to me, on the very first day we met. I just remembered you.

+++++++++++++++++++

Naruto: Oooh Nana-san! It's been a while since uh... well since your book gone. Did you regain it?

Nana: Well, not yet. And I don't care about it anymore. Why? Because I don't want to think hard of how it went gone. Besides, I have my own plan.

Naruto: So then, you're just going to directly type it out?

Nana: Yes. Why? Because I'd save some time. And look, I've finished 10 Acts.

Naruto: Oh... Ah right! Nana-san, I have question!

Nana: What is it?

Naruto: Ano sa, ano sa. Why did Mirai-neechan slap Kakashi-sensei? From his flashback story in Act 12, remember?

Nana: Ah... That... Ask her yourself! Why? Because I don't want to know. That's her business!

Naruto: But you put her in a coma state!

Nana: No I'm not! Why? Because Akatsuki did!

Naruto: Oh, and you've made Akatsuki to take away her life, right?

Nana: Well, I need those kind of storylines though. Why? Because-

Naruto: Argh! Nana-san! Your way of talking! It's annoying- Ah right, that reminds me of someone.

Nana: Hm... Me too...