"What do you think Granny Tsunade wants with us...?" Naruto asked as they turned a corner.
"I dunno... something urgent no doubt though." Shikamaru replied, and then sighed heavily.
"Well of course it is urgent! Every mission must be treated with utmost care!" Lee said matter-of-factly.
"How troublesome." Shikamaru mumbled to himself.
"No, what's troublesome is that you guys took your time getting here!" came Tsunade's booming voice down the halls.
"Hey, Granny Tsunade!!!" Naruto greeted happily. "I-"
Tsunade swiftly walked past the three of them, in between Shikamaru and Naruto. On her way, she grabbed Shikamaru's hair and the back of Naruto's jacket. "C'mon! Hurry up!" she shouted as she dragged both of them behind her, Lee bringing up the rear.
Tsunade entered her office, letting go of both of them and quickly seating herself. Sakura was already in the room, with her hands on her hips.
"Do you three even know the meaning of urgent??" She asked with a dangerous tone.
"Hey, we were in the hot springs! It took awhile to dry up and Naruto kept falling on me." Shikamaru stated.
"I tripped! I was rushing, unlike you!" Naruto retorted, pointing straight t his face. Shikamaru's only reply was a 'psh'.
Lee took the initiative and promptly apologized. "I apologize for my lateness." he said, as he bowed low.
"Hmph. Suck up..." Naruto said quietly to himself.
"Hey, I-"
"Quiet!" Tsunade shouted as the room fell silent. Tsunade then relaxed herself and sat back in her chair. "I have summoned you four here for specific reasons, but you can be replaced, so anytime I'd like, I'll take you off the mission..."
Everyone nodded solemnly, and she continued. "Shikamaru, your skills have outsmarted even the toughest of opponents, making you an extremely valuable ninja." She said as she looked at Shikamaru, and then turned to Lee.
"Lee, your combination of power and speed can eliminate many enemies. In one kick." Lee grinned slightly. Tsunade smiled as she then turned to Sakura.
"And you being my apprentice, I really don't have to say much!" Tsunade and Sakura laughed. Truth be told, words really weren't needed.
Tsunade then turned to Naruto. He was extremely excited to hear praise from the Hokage. Unfortunately...
"Naruto....... I'm sorry, but your skills as a ninja are not needed here."she said as she turned away.
Naruto was confused. "Wait, what? Hey, why'd you call me out then!"
Well..... we've recieved some very recent reports. Two giant snakes were recently summoned southwest of Konoha, one was recognized as Orochimaru's."
"Oro....?" Naruto asked silently.
"I will be sending you four out to go on a 2rd, and hopefully final Sasuke Retrieval Mission. Sasuke was last seen with Orochimaru, so it'd be logical if Sasuke were out there too, and had been the one who summoned the snake, as the other was Orochimaru's."
"I have a question." Shikamaru said barely raising his hand.
"Yes?"
"And exactly how are we supposed to find Sasuke without anyone to help locate him? Last time we had Kiba and Neji, so who do we have now?"
Tsunade sighed. "Kiba and Neji are out on another mission, and are already out of the village."
"Hmm...oh!" Naruto said, "but Tsunade-baachan, what about Hinata? She's a Hyu-"
"Hinata is out on a mission of her own as well." Tsunade cut in. "She isn't eligble."
Naruto folded his arms. Ahh, that's too bad. Haven't been on a mission with Hinata for awhile...
"So instead of using our own ninja, I've decided to get help from our other allied nations." Tsunade said smiling. "I have called upon Kasumigakure and Sunagakure. One will be accompanying you from Sand, the other two from Mist."
"And just who from Sand...?" Shika asked.
Tsunade smiled. "Temari. She is an extremely skilled jounin and who be an excellent addition to your team. You will also be traveling with Shinji Tatenaka and Hikari Sayomi. The three of them should be waiting for you at the front gate. I expect you all to work together, and no trying to be a hero. If something goes bad, Naruto, I want you to be the one who come back here and calls for help."
"What?! Why not someone else, Tsunade-baachan! Pick someone else!" Naruto protested.
"No! Naruto, you have the least to offer, so you will come bck here, do you understand?!" Tsunade yelled back, slamming her hand on her desk, denting the floor.
Naruto looked the other way. He had just as much to offer as anyone else. Besides, he wasn't good at running away.
"Good. Alright, the four of you are dismissed." Tsunade announced as she turned her chair to face the windows.
Everyone left the room in single-file, Lee finally done drying his hair. He made a mental note to give back the towel after the mission was done.
Tsunade felt the presence of someone still in the room. "What is it?"
Shikamaru hadn't left her office. He had a question to ask. "You lied. You said 'eligible' instead of 'available'." he stated.
Tsunade raised an eyebrow, although Shikamaru couldn't see. "Did I? ...Yes, I lied. Is that all you stayed behind for?"
"I guess. Why'd you lie about it though? She would be a lot of help on this mission, especially her Protection of the Eight Trigrams Jutsu."
"I know she would be useful, but putting her on would be a big mistake."
"Let me guess. Naruto?" Shikamaru asked.
"Yes. Her feeling for him would most definitely get in the way." Tsunade said.
"But you don't know that." Shikamaru replied. "He's been gone from the village for 2 years and they haven't gone on a mission together since. You're afraid, aren't you? She's a good chunin, and I'm sure she can keep herself under control."
"...Why do you want her on the mission too? Seven people on a squad is enough." Tsunade stated, changing the subject.
Shikamaru paused for a second. "...Me and her have been working on some team attacks together. A Nara working with a Hyuga is a deady team." he said.
Tsunade shook her head. "Tch. Tch. Tch. Now you're lying."
"It's only fair." Shikamaru said with a smile.
Tsunade looked out the window and saw Naruto, Lee, and Sakura, all waiting for Shikamaru. "Shikamaru, we don't have time or this. I have no need for playing matchmaker during a Class A mission, so stop trying to prod me. Now your squad is waiting. Go."
Shikamaru stepped out of the office, but stopped. Tsunade then told him, "By the way, if you see her, tell her I want to have a word with her."
00000---00000
"Hey Shikamaru! Took you long enough! What were you doing in Tsunade-baachan's office?" Naruto asked, with a tinge of something in his voice. From outside, the three of them ahd heard Tsunade yell at someone, most likely Shikamaru.
"Nothin'. C'mon, we gotta hurry." Shikamaru said as he walked right past them all. He kept walking too, not waiting for his squad even for a second.
They followed him to the fron gate, Naruto mumbling about Shikamaru and rudeness, Sakura trying to keep up, and Lee jogging.
"Lee," Sakua sad in her 'annoyed' tone, "Stop jogging. It's anooying."
Lee promptly stopped and reverted back to walking as Naruto mumbled, "Damn, everyone's edgy today."
When they finally reached the front gate, Temari and the two Mist village ninja were waiting for them.
"Hey there! Looks like it's another-" Temari had shouted happily to Shikamaru, but noticing his face, she paused. "Is everything okay?"
"Yeah. Sure. Sweet as sugar. Let's go." Shikamaru said quickly, passing by Temari.
Temari grabbed the back of his chunin jacket and yanked him backward. Shikamaru fell on to the floor. "What's your problem? You know damn well we can't carry out a mission with you like this!" she shouted.
