Wind and Fire Chapter 3

Kankuro stumbled into the building where his brother's office was located.  

What was with that dream? he asked himself.  It had seemed so real and so recent, but in actuality the kidnapping, the fight with Sasori and the poisoning had happened quite a few years ago.  That event was when the Akatsuki had only started to take the tailed beasts from their jinchuriki.  Now, even the Fourth Shinobi World War was but a distant memory and most of the affected lands and villages were nearly recovered from its carnage.

He climbed the stairs to the third floor and ran into Temari in the hallway outside of Gaara's office.  
"He called for you, too?" she said to her brother when she saw him.

Kankuro grunted in the affirmative.  It wasn't a normal thing for him to be summoned to the office of the Kazekage.  

Temari noticed something was a little off with Kankuro.  After a brief silence, she asked, "Are you alright?  You look like something's bothering you."

He let out a slight smile at being caught - he had no idea he was showing any sort of expression on his face.  "I'm fine.  I just had a strange dream last night and for some reason, I can't stop thinking about it."
"Oh?  What did you dream?" Temari asked.

"It was when I was coming to in the hospital after being poisoned by Sasori," Kankuro explained.

"Well, you have to admit that was an emotional, desperate time.  We almost lost both you and Gaara that day.  I don't doubt that trauma will stick with you for the rest of your life," Temari answered.

"Hm.  I guess so," said Kankuro.  But he still didn't understand why it would pop up now of all times.

The door to the Kazekage's office opened and one of the senior members of the council emerged.  He looked at the siblings, nodded, and made his way down the hallway.

"Temari, Kankuro....," said a low voice from inside.  He must now be ready for them.   They entered.

Gaara was dressed casually as he normally did on regular business days.  He was standing behind his desk, looking through the windows at the expanse of the Village Hidden in the Sand that lay before him.  

"Gaara, you wanted to see us?" Temari asked.

Gaara turned to face his brother and sister.  "Yes."  He then took a seat at his desk.

"There are two international missions that have come to my attention and I have decided that they both require the involvement of my closest confidants," Gaara explained.  "However, before I inform the assignment desk of anything, I wanted to discuss them with you and get your thoughts."

Temari and Kankuro both nodded.

"That reminds me," started Gaara.  He opened up a drawer in his desk and took out a scroll.  He placed it on his desk and pushed it towards Temari.  "Here."

Temari grabbed the scroll and unfurled it.  She blushed a slight shade of pink when she realized what it was.

"The council member who was just here received it in error and while he was here giving his report, he asked if I would be seeing you soon and if I could pass it along," explained Gaara.

"Uh, thanks," Temari said, rolling it back up.  "I'll read it later."

Both Kankuro and Gaara knew who it was from even without looking at its contents.  Since the end of the war, a relationship of some sort had blossomed between Shikamaru Nara of the Hidden Leaf and Temari.  However, they weren't quite sure what the exact nature of the relationship was.  After all, Temari and Shikamaru hardly ever saw each other.  Most of their communication was done by sending  messenger hawks to one another.  Unfortunately, as in this case, many times those messages would get read by others as they tried to determine who the scroll was to be delivered  to.  It definitely wasn't a perfect system.

"So about the missions...?" Kankuro prompted.

"Yes," said Gaara, opening up a folder that was already on his desk.  "One of the missions is highly diplomatic in nature.  You are to be an ambassador of sorts for the Sand.  There is going to be a celebration held in the Village Hidden in the Clouds.  I cannot send just anyone for fear of offending the Raikage.  It must be someone who he knows is well-respected and associated with the office of the Kazekage."

"Do you know what the celebration is for?" asked Temari.

"Apparently, the Raikage's heir is on its way," answered Gaara.  

Temari shivered slightly.  The Raikage was a fearsome bull of a man and she couldn't ever imagine wanting to be with someone that aggressive and foul-tempered.  

"And the other?" Kakuro prompted.

"The other is much more like a real mission and I'm afraid there is potentially quite a bit of danger involved," said Gaara.

"That sounds right up my alley," said Kankuro.

"Hold on a minute, Kankuro.  Last time we had to split up like this, you got to pick which mission you wanted to go on.  It's my turn now and I'd much rather perform an operational mission than a diplomatic one," said Temari.

"So what's the mission?" Kankuro asked.

"I'm sorry to say that the Leaf has just shared some intel with us about a potential disciple of Sasori," said Gaara.

Temari and Kankuro weren't expecting that sort of news and both looked rather shocked.  They both knew how powerful Sasori had become and the thought of another one of him was concerning.

"Initial word is that he is quite powerful in his own right.  I'm sure you both realize that we cannot have another Sasori running around freely," said Gaara.

"But Gaara, the war ended a few years ago.  Why now?   Sasori's been dead for such a long time," said Temari.

"The Leaf didn't include a lot of specifics on why this person is coming forth now, or on what kind of Sasori-like potential they might have.  The first step of this mission is to head to the Leaf to get the full story, then help decide on the next actions to take, and finally, form a joint team with the Leaf to execute the plan," said Gaara.

"I'll go pack my things right away....," started Kankuro.

"Hold on.  I'm taking that mission," said Temari.

"There is no way I'm going to let you go after someone who has the same abilities as Sasori.  I almost died by that man's hand and now I have the experience to take someone like that on.  I even got to fight him in the war when he came back to life," explained Kankuro.

"Are you saying I'm not capable?" asked Temari.  "I fought the entire length of the war just like you did so don't treat me like I'm some rookie.  I'm a jonin just like you."

"There is one other thing I have neglected to mention," interrupted Gaara.

"Yes?" Temari questioned.

"Shikamaru Nara....," Gaara started.

Temari's ears perked up.

"...will be representing the Leaf for the Raikage's ceremony.  It makes sense since he is the Hokage's top advisor," Gaara finished.

"Shikamaru is going to the Cloud?" Temari questioned.  Her defiant insistence of going on the operational mission just wavered in a big way.  

Silence crept in as Temari thought about her choice.  

"Oh, all right.  I'll head to Cloud as well, but next time, Kankuro, I want...," Temari said.

Kankuro interrupted, "Oh no, this is your choice.  Next time I get first dibs on the missions."

She socked him in his upper arm, still feeling a little embarrassed that she had all but admitted she would rather see this Leaf shinobi rather than picking the more interesting, more dangerous mission.

"I'm going to go pack," said Kankuro.

"Take this file," said Gaara handing him over the folder with papers inside.  "Get acquainted with what we know already."

"Sure, little brother.  I'll say good-bye now...I'm going to get going at the crack of dawn tomorrow," said Kankuro.

Gaara nodded.  "Be safe."  Then Kankuro ran out the door.

Temari sighed.  

"So what is it with you and Shikamaru anyway," Gaara asked.

"We're just good friends," said Temari.  But she could tell that Gaara didn't believe her.

OlOlOlOlOlOlO

Tsunade had survived the war, but had decided that the five or so years she had spent as Hokage were enough for her.  Just as the Third had done when the Fourth took over, Tsunade decided to step aside to let a new Hokage - the Sixth Hokage - take office.  She would, of course,  stay on as one of the village's main advisors.

Although he was young, there was only one individual who could fill the void left behind by Tsunade.  That individual was Naruto.  Tsunade thought long and hard about allowing Naruto to becoming Hokage at his young age.  Although he had been through so much, the fact was that he didn't have a lot of life experience....and his common sense was not known to be the best either.    

On the other hand, Naruto's service to the Leaf had to be considered.  Not only had he saved countless lives during the encounter with Pain, the truth of the matter was, without him the Fourth World War couldn't have been won.  In other words, he had saved both the village and the world, all before the age of 20.  His greatest trait was his loyalty to his friends and comrades and now that he considered just about everyone in the world just that, he was in the perfect position to lead the village.  However, just to be sure everything went as smoothly as possible, Tsunade did insist on a few things.

With the death of Shikaku Naru and the good rapport Naruto had with his son Shikamaru, Tsunade recommended that Shikamaru become Naruto's top advisor and right-hand man.  Kakashi would also become one of Naruto's advisors.  Naruto didn't mind these conditions one bit and readily accepted them.  In fact, it was what he would have done without Tsunade's interference anyway.

There was one condition that Naruto did have a hard time with.  It involved Sasuke Uchiha.  Sasuke had also been a part of the war, fighting alongside the Allied Shinobi Forces.  Once the war had concluded, Sasuke was once again declared a citizen of the Leaf in good standing by Tsunade.  There were some shinobi who had a very hard time getting over his betrayal, but given Sasuke's circumstances - how he was manipulated all his life, and his new desire to come home - Tsunade let him rejoin the village with little fanfare.  Naruto immediately accepted everything about Sasuke at face value and was able to flush away all that Sasuke had done over the past few years very easily.  When Naruto went so far as to suggest Sasuke be an advisor, she finally put her foot down.  

Although she also tried to believe that Sasuke was fully rehabilitated, she knew that trust could only be earned back over time.  As a compromise, she allowed Naruto to designate Sasuke an ANBU black ops operative who would report directly to Naruto.  It would then be Naruto's job to make sure he stayed in line.  Given a stellar performance in this role, Tsunade assured Naruto that more opportunities might open up for Sasuke in the future.  Naruto discussed this with Sasuke and they decided to accept these terms.  

The final remaining member of the original Team 7 was Sakura Haruno.  Sakura played an integral role in the war and was now recognized as one of the top medical shinobi in the world.  She did a lot of work training the other medical shinobi here in the Leaf, but was also asked to go on missions to train medical shinobi at various villages around the world.  It was an honor to be acknowledged in this way.
As busy as Team 7 was these days, they tried hard to meet with one another every so often, just to enjoy one another's company and tighten their bonds.

It was an evening just like many others when Sakura walked towards the sushi restaurant on the west side of the village.  The restaurant didn't look like anything spectacular on the outside, but Sakura knew it had the reputation of being one of the best in the Leaf.

She arrived and brushed aside the beads hanging in the doorway.  Immediately, she saw what she had come for.  As she stepped towards the table, she noticed Kakashi's single eye squint into a grin as he waved at her.  "Good evening, Sakura."

"Hi guys, did you order yet?" she asked.

"Not yet, but...," said Naruto.

A waitress stepped up to the table at that exact moment.  "Are you ready to order?"

Naruto looked at Sakura knowing that she literally just arrived and most likely wouldn't be ready.  "It's alright, I know what I want.  I love this place and come here often," she assured him.

The four shinobi placed their orders and started to socialize as they waited.

"So, were you at the hospital all day?" Sasuke asked.  

"Yeah," said Sakura stretching her arms above her head.  "It was really busy today.  A lot of training mishaps that had to be fixed and bandaged.  How about you guys?  I kind of feel left out since you all are basically still working together in the tower every day."

"It was busy for us, too.  We may all be together, but sometimes I wish we were outside training rather than trying to run the village from a small office.  The paperwork is murder!  I don't know what I'm going to do without Shikamaru for the next few days," said Naruto.

"Oh, where's he going?" Sakura asked.

"Raikage's having a kid," interrupted Sasuke flatly before taking a sip of sake.  "Some sort of official celebration is happening."

"Oh c'mon Sasuke, you gotta be happy for the guy.  I hope you're not like this when I have a kid," said Naruto.

Sasuke almost did a spit-take.  The thought of Naruto having children....or even all it would take for him to get to that point overloaded his mind for a second there.

"Then there is that thing going on near the western edge of the Land of Fire," added Kakashi.

"Kakashi, you aren't supposed to talk about that in public," said Naruto.

"I am aware of that, but under the circumstances, I think Sakura should be made aware.  She is the one who killed the original after all," Kakashi explained.  

"The original?" Sakura repeated.

No one said anything for a few seconds.  

"Oh, alright.  If you feel so strongly about it, go ahead and tell her," said Naruto.  "But keep your voice down."

"So what's going on?" Sakura asked.

"There is a meeting scheduled for tomorrow that I think you should be present at.  It's about an operational joint mission with shinobi from Sand," said Kakashi.

Sand? she thought to herself.  That's weird...I just had that dream last night...
"It's a rogue shinobi who is living in the western Land of Fire," added Sasuke.  

"Will you guys stop beating around the bush?" Sakura asked.

"He's....it seems he is an admirer of Sasori of the Red Sand," explained Naruto.  "And from what we've heard, he is just about as powerful."

Sasori? she thought to herself, quite stunned.  Another Sasori?

"And with your previous experience with Sasori himself, both Tsunade and myself think you should be involved," said Kakashi.