Chapter 20: Superior Precautions

Chapter 20: Superior Precautions

"That's enough, we should stop." Genma lowered his katana as he spoke to Naruto.

The jounin had been teaching Naruto for quite some time now and found that the jinchuuriki was very good at picking up the tips and advice he provided. Every time he looked into the younger shinobi's eyes, he could see a determined fire burning like no other. He coughed before sheathing his katana.

Naruto wiped the sweat from his forehead with his forearm, "Heh heh, you were just worried that I was gaining the advantage."

He turned to the side upon hearing a disapproving sound and saw Ten-Ten shaking her head. The kunoichi had become his sparring partner ever since Sasuke had stopped. He had primarily been reluctant to ask her but went ahead anyways since she did offer him help at the party over a month ago. She gladly accepted and began to help with his sessions of kenjutsu with Genma. "It seemed pretty even to me."

Naruto laughed, cancelling his technique as his weapons of wind slowly disappeared into the humid air surrounding him. "I have more stamina than the both of you. That's why Genma-sensei stopped." He looked at the jounin with a grin, "You were getting tired weren't you?"

Ten-Ten raised an eyebrow in the direction of the senbon chewing shinobi. Genma coughed, aware of the scrutiny he was under. Rolling the senbon needle in his mouth from one side to the other, he replied calmly, "Don't be so hasty."

Naruto began to laugh at the older ninjas failing attempt to defend his pride. He clutched his stomach as he felt his insides about to rip apart. The expression on his face was priceless. His laughter was reciprocated by Ten-Ten who let go of her unpleasantness at having the spar stopped.

Genma sweat dropped at the display but waved it off, "Whatever, I might have been getting tired but the real reason I stopped was because it's close to noon."

Naruto wiped the tears from his eyes, facing his teacher, "What does that matter? Normally we train for a lot longer."

Ten-Ten stopped laughing as she became aware of the real reason why Genma stopped. She addressed Naruto, "You're the one who asked to stop at noon."

Naruto looked at the weapons specialist quizzically, "I did?"

Genma sighed at his obliviousness, "Have you forgotten already?" The jounin assumed it was because of their training since Naruto seemed to concentrate extremely on their exercises and spars. "You wanted to greet Kazekage-sama when he arrives."

Naruto's eyes widened as he slapped his head. He couldn't believe he had forgotten about that. He had been anticipating the leader of Sunagakure's arrival ever since Sakura had informed him about the time of his expected advent. The last occasion he had met the former jinchuuriki was when he had been captured by Akatsuki and subsequently rescued by him and Kakashi. "Kuso, I'm going to be late." He turned running away from the training ground waving back at Ten-Ten and Genma.

The weapons specialist saw the eccentric blonde vanish from her line of sight before she turned to the jounin to her side, "Genma?"

The jounin fiddled the senbon needle in his mouth, "Hm?"

Ten-Ten folded her arms, "Don't you think he pushes himself too much?" She had been training with the hyperactive ninja for a month now and instantly realised the limits he would push himself to. At first she couldn't believe it but Naruto was worse than Lee when it came to training. Their spars varied from a two on one against him or she and Genma rotated constantly taking turns. Naruto would continue without taking a rest, his stamina seemed to be monstrous but she soon realised that he was just forcing himself to believe that he could continue as he would collapse at the end of the day.

Genma turned to look at the kunoichi who had a worried expression across her face. He waited a few minutes before answering, "He does…"

The kunoichi rubbed the side of her arm where she had a bruise courtesy of one of Naruto's attacks, "Why though? I've never seen someone push themselves this much. He walks away from us nearly dead and comes back the next day as if nothing has happened."

Genma rested his hand on the hilt of his katana, "Only through dedication and perseverance can a person become strong…" He paused slightly before resuming, "I found it strange as well when I received the mission to train him. I thought that there was an ulterior reason for him trying so hard…and yesterday my suspicions were confirmed."

Ten-Ten waited for the jounin to continue, "What suspicions?"

Genma shook his head, "Gomen, I can't tell you why."

The weapons specialist instantly protested, "Why not?"

"Its classified information but what I will say is that it's to do with all the shinobi in the village being put on high alert and reporting anything out of the ordinary." He began to walk to leave the training ground. He stopped adopting a smile, "…Naruto…it's amazing the person he has become…especially after all he has been through." His voice was calm, "I am proud to have been the teacher of a shinobi like him…even if it has been for a short amount of time."

Ten-Ten listened to Genma as he spoke noticing the respect flowing in his voice. She dwelled on the jounin's last words. The one clear thing was that Naruto's diligence was connected to the village being on high alert. That meant the genin was expecting something. She made her way to leave, her mind on the most hyperactive ninja in Konoha.

XXXXXXXXXX

Gaara sat quietly with his arms folded and legs crossed. He was in a carriage bound for Konoha much to his discontent. The red haired teen preferred to travel the normal way however his council insisted that he shouldn't. Their journey to the village of Konoha was prolonged by an extra 2 days due to the fact they had to stop many times in order for the horses pulling the carriage to rest.

The environment was very calm and he could hear the various sounds from outside including the singing of the birds as well as the horses' feet hitting the ground. The carriage rocked steadily as he remained seated on a relaxing cushion with his eyes closed.

Temari looked at her brother who was tranquilly sitting without making a movement. She was always amazed at the amount of patience he had. She didn't like prolonged silences but she had gotten used to such an atmosphere since going on missions with Gaara as a child. During her childhood, going against Gaara's wishes or disturbing him was a dangerous action however she now stayed quiet out of respect for her younger brother. The title of Kage came with many responsibilities and Gaara was kept busy constantly with his workload hence when he got time for some peace, she would readily coincide with his wishes and not perturb him.

As cold as Gaara had been the past, he was steadily improving. There was now no need for her or Kankuro to fear approaching him and they did so comfortably. They found that he would even attempt to strike conversations with them at times even if they were just a few words on his part.

Her mind drifted to the events from months prior when Gaara had been captured by the organisation of Akatsuki. She was worried for her brother's safety deeply and in the end everything was resolved for the better. Due to the efforts of the leaf-nin, Gaara was saved from death. The shinobi who played a large role in his rescue as well as his resurrection was also the one who had inspired him to change in the first place.

In her eyes Naruto, at first, was just a noisy blonde with an enormous amount of energy but she slowly began to understand how big of a heart he truly possessed. During the chuunin exams 3 years ago, Naruto had fought with the red haired teen in order to save his friends lives. Even though they had such a great battle Naruto was ready to risk his own life to save Gaara before they had even encountered each other again.

She gazed at her younger brother who had yet to make a move. She knew how high Gaara held the Uzumaki. She had learned from Kankuro about their conversation where Gaara had told him of Naruto being the reason why he wanted to change the way he lived. She respected the blonde shinobi a great deal for everything he had done for Gaara but there was one thing she found intriguing. Gaara had said that Naruto had suffered like him. She wondered how he managed to stay as bright as he was if he experienced a similar childhood to that of Gaara's.

The carriage slowed in pace before eventually coming to a halt. She heard some rustling before one of the escorts came to the door of the carriage, "Kazekage-sama, we have arrived."

Gaara opened his eyes, turning to the older man, "Ok."

Temari picked up the large scroll next to her and her battle fan before exiting the carriage. Gaara followed suit already equipped with everything he needed. He landed on the hard ground before turning to face the entrance gate of Konoha.

The backdrop of Konoha greatly differed from that of Sunagakure. Its surrounding environment was covered in trees and vegetation whereas the village of Suna was encircled by a desert and organic life was very rare.

Gaara had been escorted by Temari and 5 jounin from his village. He walked towards the gate where the Godaime and a few other shinobi stood. The team from Suna which had qualified for the finals was also present.

Tsunade waited as the Kazekage approached, "Well, they arrived exactly on the time they expected to." She looked to her side at her apprentice, "I'm sure they've got the information we asked as well."

Sakura tilted her head, "Hai, hopefully."

Tsunade took a glance around her, "You said Naruto was coming. Where is he?"

Sakura gave a small laugh, "He probably forgot."

Tsunade wasn't surprised as such behaviour was common for the genin. She turned to face the Kazekage and his escorts as they arrived at their position. She adopted a smile. "You're not late which is good."

The escorts of Gaara were taken aback at the unorthodox greeting whereas the Kazekage remained with an impassive expression, "Yeah."

Gaara looked at the shinobi surrounding the Hokage. He recognised Sakura but the other two were unfamiliar. He looked to the side as the team of Suna bowed and their instructor spoke, "Kazekage-sama, we will make our village proud."

Gaara stared at the team and their jounin instructor. The genins participating were around his age. The female genin looked up towards him but quickly averted her gaze downwards when she realised him looking at her. A slight tint of red was across her cheeks, "Try your hardest."

Temari smiled as she heard him speak some encouraging words though they were few in number. She faced Sakura before holding out a large scroll towards her, "This is what you asked for."

Sakura looked at the large scroll before taking it off the sand-nin, "A sealing scroll?"

Temari nodded, "It's got a few books on medicine and some scrolls to do with kinjutsu. We'll be expecting them back."

Sakura smiled thanking her, "No problem."

Their conversation was cut short as they heard a yell from the distance. She turned to find Naruto running towards them at a rapid pace.

Naruto paused seconds before he made contact with Sakura. Brushing himself, he failed to recognise a fist heading towards his head. "ITAI!"

Sakura pulled back her fist, "Baka! Calm down."

Naruto rubbed his head, "Gomen, I thought I was late."

He looked past the kunoichi to see Gaara, Temari and the rest of the escorts staring at him. He walked forwards coughing before putting out a hand towards Gaara, "Welcome."

Gaara took his hand shaking it appreciating the gesture. Tsunade inwardly smirked at Naruto. "I think it's time we head off. We have things to discuss for the finals tomorrow."

Gaara nodded before turning to the rest of his escorts, "Take a break."

Tsunade walked away from the people in the direction of her office. Gaara followed but stopped before turning to Naruto, "It was…" He paused momentarily finding the right words, "…good seeing you."

His words left the people of the sand stunned since they weren't used to him being pleasant with anyone. The Kazekage left them following the legendary sucker.

Naruto scratched the back of his head, "He's opening up slowly."

Temari folded her arms, "He is…but you're an exception."

Naruto didn't understand what she was talking about but didn't pay much attention as he heard his stomach rumble. "Heh heh, time to eat I guess."

He turned to the two kunoichi, "You want to come?"

Temari shook her head, "I'm going to go ahead to the Hokage. Gaara may want us to take a break but it's best for me to be present." She walked away leaving Naruto and Sakura.

Naruto turned to Sakura, "You're not going are you?"

Sakura shook her head before wrapping her arms around his neck, "Of course not." She gave a grin before leaning into kiss him. Naruto gladly complied before deepening it. Their little escapade was cut short as they heard a loud shout.

"NARUTO-NIICHAN!" The Konohamaru corps stopped, their eyes bulging as they took in the sight of their beloved leader embracing and kissing a girl.

Naruto and Sakura separated and turned towards the three genin. Naruto stared at their unresponsive forms with a confused look, "What?"

Konohamaru's countenance slowly turned into a sly grin, "Very smooth, I knew she had the hots for you for a long time."

Naruto began to sweat knowing exactly how Sakura would respond to such a statement. The pink haired kunoichi had already put on her gloves, the scroll she was previously holding now on the ground, "What did you say?"

Konohamaru regretted ever speaking, not believing he had forgotten the medic-nin's temperament even if it had been for a few seconds. He pulled Udon in the way to protect himself. Naruto swiftly moved to Sakura, grabbing her from behind. He concentrated on Konohamaru, "Tell me what you want before she kills you."

Konohamaru sweated as he saw Naruto try and control Sakura from breaking free, "I just wanted to make sure you come to see my match tomorrow."

Sakura struggled to break free from Naruto's iron grip, 'Shannaro! Let me go.'

Naruto nodded, "Don't worry, I'll be there."

The Konohamaru corps smiled before waving and running away from the volatile kunoichi aware of the dangerous atmosphere. Naruto smirked as he still had Sakura in his arms. "Until you calm down, I'm not letting go…" He leaned down breathing on her neck and kissed it softly, "And I don't mind holding you for a long time."

Sakura sighed, "Fine. Let me go now, baka."

Naruto unenthusiastically let go of the pink haired medic, a disappointed look on his whiskered visage. His stomach growled viciously, "I need some ramen."

XXXXXXXXXX

Tsunade sat at her desk with a serious demeanour having explained the situation to the Kazekage. Jiraiya was also in attendance, standing against the wall.

Gaara was intrigued with the information but he outwardly appeared the same. Tsunade broke the silence, "The whole village is on high alert and all jounins and Anbu know the full details of the situation."

Gaara nodded thinking over what he had been told. The same organisation that had come after him was going to attack Konoha and they were after Naruto. Everything fell into place as he realised Naruto wasn't just a lonely child but just like him, he also had the burden of a tailed beast.

Jiraiya rubbed his temple, "I wasn't told what time exactly they'll attack in the letter my informant left for me. But I think the most likely time will be once the final matches have already started. A lot of people will be in attendance this year because of the old mans grandson."

Tsunade leaned back in her chair, "I've put jounins on security to guard the village. The last thing we need is for them to get inside the village."

Jiraiya closed his eyes, "I doubt they'll be able to stop them for long. But if they make a big enough commotion to alert everyone else, that's good enough. According to my source, there are only two attackers coming. The plan could have easily changed though."

Gaara listened intently absorbing all the information. "Does he know about this?"

Jiraiya understood he was talking about Naruto, "He was the first person I told."

Gaara turned to the Hokage, "As our allies, you have my support."

Tsunade smirked, "I didn't expect anything less." She opened her drawer and placed a bottle of sake on the desk. Withdrawing a pack of cards, she looked at Jiraiya and Gaara. "Who wants a game?"

Jiraiya shrugged before taking a seat and pouring himself some sake. Tsunade began to hand out cards as Jiraiya took a drink. Gaara sat still, confusion etched across his face. He wasn't used to such things nor was he anticipating this to happen. As a Kage, he spent most of his time completing paperwork and in meetings. He was kept busy constantly and in his spare time he trained himself.

Tsunade recognised the awkward demeanour of the Kazekage. "Jiraiya will explain the rules to you, it's simple."

The frog hermit placed his cup of sake on the table, looking through his cards, "You'll pick them up as you play."

Gaara stared at the cards in front of him that he had yet to touch. He hadn't accepted to take part but was rather somehow dragged in. He slowly picked them up, observing the pictures drawn on them. He had no idea of what to do.

The entrance door to the office opened taking all the occupants by surprise. Tsunade didn't have enough time to react as she thought she had been caught red-handed by her assistant. She looked towards the doorway to find a kunoichi with blonde hair staring in their direction.

Temari didn't know what to make of the sight in front of her. Tsunade was wiping her forehead sighing whereas Jiraiya continued to drink not bothered. What caught her attention was Gaara had a number of cards in his hand, holding them incorrectly. His expression was blank as he stared at his older sister. Temari raised an eyebrow, "What's going on?"

Tsunade sorted out her cards, "You want to play?"