Н‘¾Ð‘¯Ð‘¬Ð‘Μ Ð‘»Ð‘¯Ð‘¬ Н‘¾Ð‘°Ð‘Μ𝑫 Н‘©Ð‘³Ð‘¶Ð‘¾Ð‘º €¢Ð’Ƒ𝒙Н’Ƒ• The race

Time passed and Team 7 was called to the Hokage’s office for a new mission. Akashi was kind of anxious, because he was going to see the new Hokage for the first time. Sakura did describe her as a beautiful woman, but Akashi wanted to see if it was true for himself.

The four of them were waiting in the office, but neither Kakashi nor the Hokage had arrived. “All right! A mission! A mission!” Naruto said, his body shaking with excitement. “I’m going to give it everything I have!” Sasuke ‘hn’d’ at him and Akashi shook his head. Typical Naruto, excited even when he knows nothing about it.

Naruto threw Sasuke a dirty look, before Sakura spoke up. “But I don’t see Kakashi-sensei”. Akashi looked at her from beside Naruto. Did that really come as a surprise? Kakashi was always late for every mission they had.

“Why are you even surprised at this point? Isn’t he always late?” Naruto hurriedly agreed to his brothers words. Before he could add something else, an unknown voice was heard.

“No, he won’t be coming”. Two women walked in.

Akashi was struck in place when he saw the blonde one. She was really beautiful, he could go as far as to say she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. “Old lady Tsunade!” Naruto called out, surprised. Akashi whipped towards him and brought his hand back. The slap that resounded wasn’t something unfamiliar to the other two members of their team.

“Naruto!” He hissed out and watched as Naruto held the back of his head. The blond started whining about how Akashi is always a brute towards him.

“Don’t call me an old lady”. Tsunade said as she took a seat in front of them. Sakura nervously shifted from beside Akashi.

“Um… Hokage-sama, what do you mean Kakashi-sensei isn’t coming?”. She timidly asked, asking the same question the rest of them were wondering about.

“As you probably already know, Kakashi and most of the Jounins are on a different mission. We will have just the four of you complete this mission this time”. She said, but Akashi was still stuck on the fact that Kakashi was on a different mission, with different Jounins.

What mission? If most of them had the same one, that meant it was something really important. What could be so important that they sent so many ninjas away, and left the village severely unprotected?

He was brought out of his thoughts when Tsunade continued. “This is a B-rank mission. You four will guard an important figure”. She said.

“Guard… an important figure?” Sakura asked, genuinely confused. Akashi snorted at her question. This seems somehow familiar, he sarcastically thought.

“I hope it won’t end like the last time we were tasked with guarding”. He could swear he heard Sasuke exhale a sharp breath at his words, but when he looked at him, he had no expression on his face.

“Of course, depending on the situation, it could also be classified as an A-rank mission”. She finished, looking at the Genin in front of her.

“And? Who are we guarding?” Surprisingly, it was Sasuke who had asked that question.

“No clue”. Tsunade deadpanned, and Akashi frowned at that. No clue? What is she talking about? How could she not know who they were guarding?

“What do you mean, ‘No clue’?” Naruto and Akashi asked at the same time, not even looking at each other. Tsunade was a little taken aback at their sync. She blinked and continued.

She explained that they will be guarding a runner who will run for a special ceremony that happens there every four years. Sakura still didn’t get the point.

“Well, for further details, go ask Boss Jirichou of the Country of Tea”. Tsunade added.

“Boss Jirichou? Ah! You mean the guy from back then!” Naruto suddenly exclaimed. From back then? From back when? Akashi wondered. How did Naruto know that? Did that happen when he was looking for Tsunade with Jiraiya?

“That’s how it is, now that you understand everything, depart right away”. Tsunade said, standing up from her seat. “You must arrive at the Country of Tea by the end of today. Hurry up!” She urged them, pointing at the exit door of the office.

“Roger that!” Naruto said and ran out of the door, the other three following after him.

_

After packing the things necessary for the journey, Team 7 proceeded on their mission. After that, they reached the Country of Tea. Naruto asked Sakura if she was hungry, and when she said she kind of was, he grew happy and ran towards a Tea House.

Settling inside, Sasuke was next to Sakura, and across him were Akashi and Naruto. When it was time to order, they each said their preferred food.

“I’d like some Oshiruko”. Naruto.

“Then, I’ll take some Odangos”. Sakura.

“I’ll order a Tokoroten”. Sasuke.

“Can you get me some Sashimi?” Akashi politely asked and the lady noted their orders.

“Okay, please wait a moment”. She said and walked away, leaving them.

Once they were alone, Akashi carefully glanced at the only other person occupying the Tea House. He was sitting in the corner and his Chakra was spiraling inside him. Was that dislike Akashi sensed? Or something more. When he turned back forward, he found Sasuke was looking at him in question. He gestured behind him, making Sasuke glance at the man.

“I’m going to do my best!” Naruto exclaimed, making Sakura sigh in front of him.

“Naruto, make sure you don’t go acting on your own”. She lectured him, making him drop his shoulders in disappointment. He mumbled a small ‘yes’, before Akashi noticed the man had stood up and walked over to them.

He stopped next to their table, facing the door. “To be drinking oshiruko so carelessly on a beautiful day like this… Being a ninja must be an easy occupation”. He said, still not looking at them.

“What did you say?” Naruto demanded, clearly annoyed at them man. Sasuke was looking blankly at the man, not saying anything.

“The Village of Konoha must be a really peaceful place…”. He trailed off, before continuing. “They’re all stupid looking”. He glanced at them, revealing his arrogant face. Having had enough of him, Akashi stood up, slamming his hands on the table.

“What’d you say?!” Naruto’s enraged yell resounded inside the little Tea House, and he slammed his hands on the table, standing up in a hurry. His outburst was ignored by the man, making Akashi’s patience run thin.

“Oh, I never knew such cute girls lived there, I take back everything I said”. Akashi felt his patience practically disappear. “Missy, what’s your name?” He even introduced himself as Morino Idate. That crossed the line. Akashi slowly stood up, taking a kunai out of his pouch, a calm expression on his face.

“How about you step away from her?” He flipped the kunai around his fingers, carefully observing the man. He remained where he was, but looked up at the redhead. Akashi narrowed his eyes at the man. “I won’t ask a second time”. He threatened, making the man lean back from the girl.

“I was just joking”. He stepped away and looked at them all. “I hate you ninja, and if you remain any longer in the Country of Tea, I won’t let you go unharmed!” That seemed to fire Naruto up even more.

“How interesting, if it’s a fight you want, you’re on”. He and the man started glaring at one another. Akashi pocketed his kunai and sat back down, leaning on the chair he was sitting on. He concluded that the man was practically harmless.

“Hey, Naruto”. Sakura tried to reason with him, seeing that he was causing unnecessary commotion inside the Tea House.

“How trifling. We don’t have the time to play with hooligans”. Sasuke added, his eyes closed in boredom. Naruto whipped back around and glared at him.

“Sasuke, you stay quiet! I won’t forgive anyone who makes fun of ninjas!” Akashi sighed and shook his head at his brother’s behavior. He watched as Idate exited the Tea House and Naruto didn’t even notice. How expected of him.

“Naruto, I agree with him”. His brother cast him a dejected look, before he continued with his nonsense.

“I’ll teach this guy a lesson and–huh?” He turned back around to find that the man was indeed missing. “Huh, he’s gone”. He said, confusedly looking around.

“Yeah, the moment you turned around, he left”. Akashi deadpanned. Sasuke whipped his head around and trailed his eyes over the Tea House. Akashi quietly snorted. They didn’t even sense him leave…

Naruto started whining about how the guy left, before the lady arrived and gave them their orders. “Thanks for waiting”. She said and settled the dishes on the table. Naruto immediately sat down.

The lady placed the receipt along with their orders, but there were two of them. “Huh, two?” Sakura took them and looked at them. The lady turned around.

“Ah, that guy left and said you would take care of it”. Akashi felt his blood vessel pop. That guy… A tick mark appeared on Sakura and Naruto started raging.

“Damn it, that bastard’s toying with us!” He exclaimed, and Akashi noticed Sasuke had bent down under the table. Leaning back, Akashi looked underneath. Sasuke had his ear on the ground, probably trying to hear how far Idate got.

Akashi bent down and joined him. “He’s far away already, moving at a fast rate, he’s probably had some ninja training”. Sasuke looked up in surprise, his eyes widening once he saw how close the redhead was. “What? Is there something on my face?” Akashi asked, seeing the way Sasuke was looking at him.

He reached a hand up and wiped at his cheek, looking back at the hand. There was nothing on it. He glanced back at Sasuke, just in time to see him reach a hand forward and move that little strand of hair, he always had problems with, from in front of his eyes.

His heart started hammering inside his chest, and he unconsciously hurried to stand up, completely forgetting he was currently crouching underneath a table. His head hit the table with a bang and the whole thing rattled. He hissed and shuffled back to his seat, embarrassment creeping at the back of his mind.

Naruto was still whining about the man, but once Akashi looked at Sakura, he noticed she was glancing between him and Sasuke. He cleared his throat and stood up, squeezing past Naruto. The said boy stood up and said he was going after Idate.

He grabbed his backpack and ran out, Sakura left money and left after him. Akashi took his own backpack and ran after them, Sasuke not far behind.

Once they caught up with Sakura, Sasuke started speaking. “He’s quite fast. He’s been training quite a bit”. Sakura nodded at his words.

“I wonder who he is?” She asked and Akashi slowed down to run next to her.

“Did you not recognize his last name?” He asked, making Sasuke and Sakura look at him. He sighed. “The first examiner we had on the Chunin exams? Morino Ibiki?” Their eyes widen at his words.

From in front of them, Naruto spoke up. “I don’t care who he is, I’ll definitely catch up to him!” The four of them then jumped up at the trees. A few moments later, they saw Idate fly through the trees and slam into another one. He stood up. “Serves you right”. He said.

“You’ve sure got some guts to try and outwit us”. Sasuke added, standing beside Sakura on a higher branch.

“You tried, and you failed, that’s to be expected from someone like you”. Akashi sneered at him from the lowest branch.

Out of nowhere, the man dropped to his knees and started saying how his wallet was stolen and he was forced to make them pay for his meal. Sakura started pitying him, but something seemed off to Akashi.

Naruto also seemed to believe him, but his words were interrupted when something fell on his head. It rolled to the ground and when he bent down to pick it up, Idate grabbed it and jumped away from them.

“This is mine!” He growled out. Then, he bent down and took off some padding from his legs, raising them up. “On your mark, ready, set, go!” He yelled and dropped them onto the ground, making them break the ground from their weight.

Weights?! Akashi thought as he saw the man disappear when he dust cleared. The four of them started running after him, but they couldn’t catch up.

They decided to give up and head to their designated location. When they reached Jirichou, he explained that the event that they hold in the town is used for deciding the boss of the village, since there are two families, Wasabi and Wagarashi, who constantly fight.

On the last event, Wagarashi hired a ninja and that’s why they won, so he wanted them to help him win the race this time.

They agreed, but then, Idate appeared. It was revealed that Idate was part of the Wasabi family and that he was going to be their runner this year. After that, Naruto left with Idate. Sakura, Sasuke and Akashi went to see what the village was like.

Sakura went over to a little outdoor shop and saw little figurines. Akashi walked up to her and saw he looking at one of the frogs, a little wary since it was a little expensive. “Hey, do you like it?” He asked, already reaching for his wallet. She flailed her arms around, a tiny blush on her face.

“No, no, I was just looking at it!”. She spluttered, putting the frog back on the shelf. Akashi tilted his head, reaching for the money.

“Can I get one of these?” He asked the shopkeeper, who in turn, kindly smiled. She took a bag and the frog, nicely wrapping it up and putting it inside. He gave her the money and took the bag, handing it over to Sakura. “Here’s to our friendship, I know we started it badly, but I wanted to fix that”. She gingerly took the bag in her hands.

“Thank you, I’m sorry for how I acted before”. Akashi shook his head, a kind smile on his face.

Their conversation was interrupted when the shopkeeper apologized for the price. She said she doesn’t like selling it at that price, but since the Wagarashi family got their position, it ended up like that. Their conversation was cut short when a loud crash resounded from the streets.

Sasuke, who was close to them ran up to the spot along with Sakura and Akashi.

A man was on the ground, apologizing with a few men standing in front of him, angry expressions on their faces. One of the men went to punch him, but Sasuke jumped in front of him, and grabbed the fist.

“Who… who are you?” The man stuttered, looking at him in shock. Akashi walked up to him and stopped besides him, an annoyed look on his face.

“Get lost before you get hurt”. Sasuke threatened, making the other two men join the man in front of him. They stalked up to him, cracking their fingers. The cracks irritated Akashi.

“You better listen to him”. But, of course, the men did just the opposite. Akashi sighed and crouched underneath a hit which was thrown at him. He stood up grabbed the man’s arm and twisted it to the side. The resounding crack was kind of pleasant to his ears. The man screamed out in pain and dropped to the ground.

He stepped back and waited for Sasuke to take care of the other two.

Once he was done, those two grabbed the man with the broken arm and carried him away, they also threw money to the man they wanted to beat up. Akashi clicked his tongue when he heard Sasuke crack his knuckles. “Please stop that, it makes my skin crawl”. Sasuke turned around and faced him, eyebrows raised.

“You mind someone cracking their fingers, but not breaking someone’s bones?” Akashi shrugged his shoulders at his question. It was different… well… he thought it was?

Sasuke shook his head at the lack of reply and turned back to the man on the ground. Akashi sighed and stretched, the bones in his back cracking and he sighed in relief. Sasuke glanced at him from the side and Akashi smiled innocently. Rolling his eyes, Sasuke looked away.

The man on the ground thanked them when Sakura and the shopkeeper approached them. “That surprised me, we’ll have to have sir Jirichou win this years race”. Sakura nodded and turned to the two boys. They exchanged a look before a small ‘yeah’ left their lips.

_

The next day, at dawn, the race was about to begin. Idate got into his position along with the other contestant and when the whistle was sounded, Idate ran the opposite way. Team 7 quickly followed after him, wondering what he was doing. After catching up with him, he explained that the winds blow in the opposite direction than planned and if he went the original way, he would be slowed down.

While running through the forest, he was caught in an Illusionary Technique which he dispelled, not expecting there to be another one. He almost walked off a cliff when Naruto saved him, at the cost of all of his ninja gear. He was pulled back and they continued on their way. They reached the other side of the island and there was a boat awaiting them.

They boarded it, and it was then that Idate accidentally revealed he was a ninja of Konoha. Akashi was correct when he guessed he was Morino Ibiki’s younger brother. Their chatter was cut short when another ship attacked them. It turned out it was the team from Ame, which they fought in the second Chunin exam.

One of them cast a technique which rained black rain. It turned out not to be rain but some flammable substance since when one of the ninja fired a flaming shot at it, it burst into flame, easily lighting aflame the wooden boat they were on. Sakura was cut with a kunai while protecting Idate from it. Idate was then forced to abandon the boat along with Team 7.

They were separated from Idate when they went into the water. The four of them swam towards the nearest shore. Akashi went on guard when he sensed a Chakra signal from the water beneath them. “Wait! They’re here!” He shouted and Naruto was then pulled under. The three of them dived after him.

While they were swimming after him, Water Clones appeared and grabbed all of them, pulling them deeper down. Akashi sensed Naruto use his Shadow Clone Technique from above him. Then, an even bigger Chakra signal came from below him, and Akashi looked down. Naruto clones were standing in a circle, each holding a bright ball of Chakra in their hands.

Akashi’s eyes widen when he noticed they were making the water around them spin, soon after, a giant whirlpool appeared around him and the others. The Water Clones were destroyed by it, freeing everyone else. Akashi struggled a little with the current, but he managed to get free from the whirlpool.

Sakura appeared to be unconscious and Naruto grabbed her, pulling her to the surface. He used Chakra to run to the shore faster and settled her down. Sasuke and Akashi followed after him. Since Sakura wasn’t waking up, Naruto tried to do CPR. Luckily… or unluckily? Sakura woke up just in time to stop him.

She screamed and hit him. “We have no time to waste, we need to meet up with Idate as soon as possible”. Akashi heard Sasuke speak up. He and Sakura stood up and walked away, leaving Naruto and Akashi.

“Naruto… get up”. Naruto was groaning on the ground, and Akashi shook his head. He grabbed him by the back of his shirt and picked him up “Let’s go”. He let him go and Naruto wobbled on his feet, but hurriedly followed after him. Akashi picked up his pace and ran past Sasuke and Sakura. “We need to hurry up, I can sense him close, but there’s an unknown person near him, and judging by their Chakra, they’re a ninja”. At his words, the others ran after him.

The rain was streaming down on them, making their balance a bit improper, but they somehow managed to reach Idate. He was on the ground, a ninja with an umbrella standing over him. Sakura ran up to Idate and crouched down to him.

Sasuke, Naruto and Akashi, got into a fight with the ninja, but he jumped over them and into the air. He swung his umbrella at them, using a Wind Technique to force them all into the ground. Akashi gasped as his body involuntarily slammed down. The man landed down. “Just as I thought… weak”. He said. “I will send you to your deaths, the same way as Idate”. He closed his umbrella and placed it at his back.

“There’s no reason for me to waste any Chakra”. Senbon needles were in between each finger and he jumped back, throwing them at the Genins. Akashi’s eyes widen at the speed they were thrown at.

“Sakura! Duck!” Naruto yelled as the needles impaled each of them. Akashi dropped to his knees as the needle in his shoulder sent a wave of pain through his body. He grabbed it and harshly ripped it out, the blood on it was quickly washed away by the rain. He threw it in the ground and stood up, along with Naruto.

The man said those needles were poisonous and that no matter how strong someone’s body is, they would die in minutes. “Don’t take us so lightly…”. Naruto gasped as he fell to his knees next to Sasuke. Distant cheering gave them notice that the other contestant reached the first location.

The man turned to them. “Die, gasping for breath”. He used the same arrogant tone as before. “That’s the perfect way for a Genin brat to die”. With that, he jumped away, disappearing.

“Damn him!” Naruto growled out, still on his knees. Akashi winced as the pain in his shoulder intensified and he harshly dropped down, knees knocking against the hard stones underneath him.

“Naruto, Sasuke, Akashi, use this”. Akashi heard Sakura say from behind them. They turned around and saw her holding a little bottle in her hand.

“Sakura, isn’t that…?” Naruto trailed off. Akashi recognized the bottles appearance. That looked like a medical bottle. When he was reading about medicine, he often came across a bottle that looked like that. Konoha medics used that bottle for storing antidotes and medical drinks.

She explained that Tsunade gave it to her in case something happened. She gave it to Idate, before she gave it to the others. She then told them that they should find some shelter, before they got sick from the rain.

_

After some time, Idate woke up and he told them what happened in his past. The ninja that attacked them was named Aoi and he was Idate’s teacher while he was in Konoha. Sadly, he failed the Chunin exam when he took it and in exchange for the title of Chunin, Aoi told him to steal a precious artifact from Konoha. After Idate brought it to him, Aoi revealed that he tricked him and that Idate is now an exiled ninja in Konoha.

After that, Idate escaped from Konoha and ran into Jirichou, who took him under his wing.

Idate wanted to give up now, give up the race, give up everything, but Naruto managed to retrieve the little hope he had and bring it out. Idate asked Naruto to carry him to the next location and Naruto agreed. The others followed after them.

_

Once they reached the next location, Idate asked Naruto to leave him now, since he wanted to finish this himself. Naruto reluctantly agreed. But, to be expected, Naruto followed after him, making Akashi follow after him. They reached just in time to save Idate from Aoi. As Aoi wanted to hit Idate, Naruto threw a mud ball at him, making Aoi block it with his umbrella.

“A mud ball, that’s how a kid fights”. Naruto grinned at him.

“Sorry, Idate, I’m a little short on kunais”. Idate turned around in surprise and saw Naruto and Akashi.

“Naruto, Akashi!” He exclaimed, not believing that they were there. Naruto smiled, and then turned towards Aoi.

“But, the next one you won’t be able to avoid with something like that”. He promised, forming the all familiar seal for Shadow Clones.

Naruto sent them at Aoi, but he slashed them with the Thunder God Sword, making them puff out of existence. From within their smoke, Naruto appeared with his Rasengan in hand. Akashi watched in disbelief, the amount of Chakra that was concentrated in that technique was immense. When did Naruto even learn that? During the short time he was with Jiraiya?

Aoi slashed at him with the sword and, unexpectedly, it managed to cut through the technique, making Naruto fly away. While Naruto was on the ground, Aoi threw his umbrella into the sky, making it rain needles. Trying to save his brother, Akashi jumped in front of the needles, a couple impaling him along with Naruto.

“This Thunder God Sword will cut through anything… even through a ball made out of Chakra”. Aoi walked over to Idate, prepared to cut him down for good. He started talking to him about Ibiki, saying how Idate left him for dead. Idate argued that he thought he was dead, but it was no use. Akashi took a step forward, making Aoi look at him.

“Seems like I’ll have to cut this chit-chat short”. Aoi raised the sword and harshly brought it down.

Akashi forced his legs forward, ignoring the numbing feeling caused by the poison. He was too far away, he couldn’t reach Idate in time. He reached his arm forward, hand extended towards him. And then, it happened again. He felt the already familiar feeling of the Adamantine Chains wanting to get out, so he did just that. He let them out.

The chain burst out of the palm of his hand and impaled the ground across Idate, making Aoi’s sword hit it. The man’s arrogant smirk grew into a panicked one when he felt the sword bounce off the chains, making him stumble back. He turned to Akashi, eyes wide open.

“What did you do?! What are these chains?!” He demanded, pointing the sword at him. Akashi winced, the chain used more Chakra than he thought it would, and he wasn’t used to using it at all. His knees buckled underneath him and the chain returned back to him. He fell onto the ground, harsh breaths escaping him. The needles had hit him close to his heart, making the poison spread faster. He could barely concentrate on breathing properly.

Aoi chuckled at his state. “Doesn’t matter now, you’re going to die anyway, might as well start with you first”. He walked over to him, sword raised over his head. When Akashi saw him swing it, he clenched his eyes shut, prepared for the finishing blow.

Before it could connect to him, Akashi felt it change its path. He opened his eyes when he heard a clank. “Akashi! Idate!” Sakura yelled out from behind Naruto. The blond turned around in happiness.

“Sasuke! Sakura!” He exclaimed in relief.

“Take some rest Naruto, I’ll deal with him”. Sasuke glanced between the redhead on the ground and the man above him, his gaze hardening into a harsh glare.

“Don’t be a show-off now”. Naruto reprimanded him.

Aoi chuckled at their words. “No matter the number, you will not be able to defeat me”. He arrogantly said, pointing his blade at Sasuke.

Sasuke’s Sharingan blared to life as he held his wrist, prepared for the Chidori. “Let’s see which is stronger, your sword, or my Chidori”. The Chidori flashed in his hand and he dashed forward.

They collided, but the Chidori was soon extinguished. Sasuke slid back and jumped back in, kunai in hand. They started slashing at one another, before they collided, struggling to overpower one another. “So the rumors are true… the last surviving Uchiha member is also the worse of them”. Sasuke was momentarily surprised at his words, making his concentration falter. He was harshly thrown back.

Idate yelled at them to run away, saying how Aoi wouldn’t spare anyone. In return, Sakura stood her ground, Naruto getting to his feet next to her. Sakura promised she was going to protect Idate. Before they could start the fight, Sasuke got up to his feet. “Take it back”. He whispered. “Take it back!” He repeated with more force.

“Take back what?” Aoi inquired, looking at Sasuke.

“What you said just now”. The Chidori in his hand came back to life. “Don’t you dare underestimate me, the last surviving member of the Uchiha Clan!” He screamed out, lunging forward and thrusting his Chidori at him.

There was a bright flash, and after it receded, Sasuke was shown being thrown back onto a frail-looking bridge. Akashi struggled trying to get up when he saw the bridge rattle, swinging side to side. Sakura threw a kunai at Aoi, making him jump away from the bridge. She ran towards Sasuke and grabbed him by the wrist. Aoi raised his sword and slashed at the ropes which held the bridge.

The ropes easily snapped and Sasuke fell, dragging Sakura along with him.

The last thing Akashi heard, was Naruto’s scream, as he dived right after them.

AN: If you have any questions about the story, feel free to message me.