Chapter 2 - Ryouko's Journal

A journal?

Ryouko shrugged. He had nothing better to do. The black book was as good a confidant as any. And unlike human confidants, this one could be destroyed, if necessary. Ryouko wasn’t the journal type, but it might prove healthy…

--
Ryouko’s Journal

So, you’re a gift from Sakura? That automatically makes you special. Sakura is one of the nicest kunoichi around. Even though I’m a little older, somehow I always feel younger with Sakura. Not like we’re brother and sister, but like we’re good friends. I don’t know how SHE feels, of course, I could never ask her. I guess I’m stupid like that.

So, yesterday I apparently saved Sakura from Sasuke. Lately, I’ve been teaming with my student, Katsuyori, as the “B Squad”, short for “Backup Squad”. Our mission is to compliment the existing teams when they need backup, hence the name. I only barely got Lady Tsunade to keep Katsuyori out of today’s mission. It would have been suicide. He’s gotten really good, really fast, but no matter what, he would have been one more person I would have had to keep my eye on while trying to fight Sasuke. He’s too inexperienced for this.

Although, had I not just had my @$$ handed to me, I might feel like that was a stronger argument. Who am I to judge strength?

Damn it…every time I think of that bastard trying to force Sakura-sempai into…THAT…it just burns me up. I wish I could have fought better. Time to up my studying and training.

It doesn’t help that I’ve really been thinking about Sakura-sempai lately. She’s just become such a beautiful girl…what would she want with an ugly thing like me, anyway? She’s out of my league several times over.

That doesn’t make it any easier to admit this, but I might as well write it here:

I think I’ve fallen in love. I just can’t say anything…Never…I can’t curse such a girl, bring her into my personal hell…Almost nothing will ever convince me that I’m in Sakura-sempai’s league.

Ryouko closed the book, staring at it. For some reason, it seemed the perfect gift. Ryouko vowed to thank Sakura once he got out of the hospital.

--

Tsunade and Iruka were sorting through the missions for the day. Nothing out of the ordinary. D-ranked, C-ranked, a couple B’s and A’s, and one S-ranked. The S-ranked required two people. The genjutsu specialist of the village was easily Kurenai Yuuhi, but Ibikki Morino and Ryouko Sarutobi had been the ones to crack prisoners. Information was crucial for this mission. Before Team Gai could be sent on this mission, information was needed. And it was up to Ryouko and Ibikki to supply it.

“Sakura, you have the clinic today. There’s too much paperwork to be done. If there’s an emergency, THEN call me. But there shouldn’t be anything you can’t handle.” Tsunade glanced at Sakura, making sure she was paying attention.

Sakura nodded, a little too quickly. Her face was flushed, and she REALLY didn’t want Tsunade to question that, so she bowed out of the room as quickly as she could, ready to go to work. Or so she appeared to the others, anyway. Her diary, however, told a different story.


Diary,

I’m feeling horribly guilty today. It’s nothing I did…consciously, anyway.

I had a dream last night. I was tied up with snakes again, but Sasuke wasn’t controlling them. He was fighting Ryouko. But Ryouko was…and Sasuke, too…they were both shirtless! I’ve never even SEEN Ryouko-san’s chest! I feel almost dirty for having that dream, even though I didn’t mean to. It was like that age-old fantasy of having two people fight over you. It just happened to be two cute, half-naked guys.

Maybe I’m just thankful that Ryouko saved me from a fate worse than death. Subconsciously, I want to thank him a little better for nearly dying on my behalf. But he insists on no ‘thank you’s’. He really worries me sometimes… Oh well, I have to go to work. I’ll think more about this dream later, even if I don’t mean to.


--

Ibikki and Ryouko, both clad in their trench coats, descended the stone slopes to the thick confines of the interrogation room.

“You or me today, sensei?” Ryouko asked. That was all he needed to say, Ibikki got the message.

“You’re going to do it, and I’m going to make sure you don’t screw up. You’re softhearted, Ryouko. Remember, these are enemies who’d just as soon kill you as look at you. They’re not going to be any more friendly to you after this than they are now, no matter how you act,” said Ibikki with his trademark delicacy.

“Understood. This one is from…the Sand Village? Our allies?” Ryouko’s confusion seeped into his voice as he gave his sensei a look out of the corner of his eye, not daring to say any more, and not needing to.

“FORMER Sand Villager. NOW he’s scum, recruited by the Hidden Rain Village to attack us with Sunagakure knowledge. Traitorous scum…” Ibikki muttered. The last time he was in the rain village, he had been getting zapped with a sword that conducted electricity. Any time the Rain Village came up, Ibikki immediately shifted into attack mode.

Ryouko started straight ahead, organizing his thoughts. He knew his plan of attack right away.

-

“Former Sand Ninja…joining ranks with the Rain? What motivation did you have?” Ryouko asked, calmly at first. Some enemies didn’t have any great loyalty, and would just talk, all you had to do was ask.

“Get bent,” came the reply. Okay, so much for ‘calm’. Ryouko paced in front of the defiant prisoner.

“You know, it’s funny. I’m not naturally a hard-@$$, but some of you bring out the worst in me. I don’t ENJOY ruining minds. To me, it’s mechanical- a living. But I don’t regret it, either. The destruction of a mind can be satisfying, as in ‘job well done’. I’ve done that more times than I can count. One more won’t hurt…I know you have answers, and you’re probably allergic to pain. So we’ll trade: Answers for me, less abuse for you.”

“Screw you, you little fresh-faced twerp!”

Ryouko grabbed the prisoner around the neck.

“I warned you about that temper. Do you want to test my genjutsu again? This time, when I wake you up, the kunai I use won’t be in your arm. I’ll just throw it and let nature take it’s course…Perhaps my aim will stray lower…or higher…either way, your life will be ruined…”

Ryouko had been using a gradual genjutsu to plant the seeds of destruction in this prisoner’s mind. This was one of his favorite genjutsus, a mix of the False Surroundings, and the Demonic Illusion: Hell Viewing techniques. It gave the prisoner the illusion of being freed. Once that part of the jutsu had been engaged, the person was placed in hopeless situation after hopeless situation. What that was varied. For someone from the Sand, who probably didn’t deal with a lot of water, that potential fear played a part.

Walls were closing in…the tide was coming in, and he couldn’t move…he was falling thousands of feet into a canyon…he was running the gauntlet with hundreds of his former Sand comrades throwing kunai at him…the Kazekage crushed him in his sand…It never ended! Death would have been welcome!

-

“Looks like you’ve got your point across, Ryouko. Time to drive it home, and make the scumbag talk.” Ibikki nodded to Ryouko.

“Right. Release!” Ryouko called, tapping the man on the shoulder. Ryouko used his own chakra to break the genjutsu. The Shinobi flailed about, tied up. Ryouko let him go. Maybe they were muscle spasms from assaulting the brain and nervous system, or maybe it was anxiety. Either way, it worked in his favor.

“Now that you’ve seen your future…do you feel like talking with me? I’ve certainly got better things to do than wait for your mind to burst like a balloon…so I’ll hurry the process up…”

The Shinobi took a deep breath, and began to talk.

--

Ryouko landed outside the window behind Tsunade’s desk. SMACK!

“Damnit!” Ryouko muttered as he bounced off the window. Damn her stupid tricks…I should’ve seen that coming. I wonder what I did now…

Shizune opened the window, checking Ryouko for cuts. The glass hadn’t broken, but the roof tiles were sharp. And, being realistic, Shizune wouldn’t put it past Tsunade to put poison on the roof.

“Thank you, Shizune-sensei,” Ryouko mumbled, putting his coat away, revealing the button-up dress shirt and pants that exam proctors and off-duty ANBU agents wore. It was simple attire, suitable for fighting and rapid-response action.

“You’re welcome, Ryouko-san. Oh, are those for Lady Tsunade?” Shizune asked, pointing at the envelope Ryouko was holding.

“That depends…is her desk booby-trapped, too?” Ryouko muttered, dusting himself off. Shizune laughed, but shook her head.

“No, I think she’ll be happy to see you!”

Ryouko raised an eyebrow. “Happy?”

Shizune had to laugh again. “Or as close as she comes without being drunk. Come on, then.”


It turned out that Tsunade was busy, so Ryouko had to put the envelope on her desk and leave. While he had a few minutes, Ryouko pulled out the black book and wrote down a little more.

I’m going to be working with Team Gai today. Ordinarily, I love working with Tenten and Lee…too bad Neji and Linda will be coming. Damn. Neji always seems to have a chip on his shoulder. And one more long, boring speech about fate…

Although, lately, I’ve wondered if we DO have the power to change our fate…am I fated to be a genin, without a sensei or a real team? Am I fated to serve Konoha in silence? Am I fated to be without a girl? It’s depressing, but it may be true. Oh well, until my fate reveals itself, I’ll enjoy my work.


Ryouko put the book away, sensing the arrival of Gai. Or, more accurately, seeing him and Lee race, each of them carrying one person. Tenten was holding on to Lee for dear life, while Neji was trying to pry himself away from Gai. Ryouko, no matter how many times he saw this, couldn’t help but laugh. Gai screeched to a halt, followed shortly by Lee.

“Looks like this round is mine, Lee! Alright, Ryouko, are you ready?!”

Gai struck a comical pose, with Lee right next to him. Neji, Linda, and Tenten looked on, embarrassed. Ryouko nodded, drawing himself up from standing against the post he had been leaning on. He lowered his mask and reached into his pocket for a chakra cigarette. Ever since that sparring match where Lee had hit him in the throat, Ryouko couldn’t swallow pills. A chakra cigarette worked similar to a ration pill, though taken in advance, you could avoid the fatigue that typically came with it. Ryouko always wore his mask in combat, but outside, when anticipating combat, he would have the chakra cigarette in his mouth.

“Such a disgusting habit…” Neji commented. Ryouko had to fight not to roll his eyes.

“Don’t knock it, these things have saved my life. And, since you can see chakra, you can, of course, see that this is helpful to me, rather than harmful?” Ryouko never called Neji by his name if it could be avoided. Adding the ‘-sensei’ title showed respect, which Ryouko, frankly, didn’t have much of for Neji.

If he’d quit being a jerk, and just do his job, I could respect him. I wish he’d skip his lectures, too. You’ve heard it once, that’s as bad as hearing it one hundred times. I can respect his abilities though. But his lousy attitude just doesn’t lend him much in my eyes. He’s just about the only jonin I haven’t asked a question of.

“I still outrank you, you’d do well to watch your tone,” Neji mumbled.

“Guys, c’mon! No need to fight, right?!” Tenten said, almost pleadingly. She liked Ryouko; she loved Neji. But he COULD be irritating at times, she had to admit. She didn’t want to see either guy get hurt.

“Tenten is right, we don’t need to be fighting! Ryouko is here as a genjutsu specialist, which is the one thing our group lacks. You’ve got taijutsu with Lee, Neji, and me, of course! Tenten if our weapons expert, Ryouko fits like a glove here! So, let’s getta move on!” Gai started off enthusiastically, marching in the direction of the Sand Village.

Ryouko fell into step behind him, with Lee on his right.

“Are you well enough to be on this mission, Ryouko-san?” Lee asked.

“You don’t have to add the title, Lee-san, we’re friend of good standing, we have been for three plus years,” Ryouko admonished his friend, smirking as he did.

“YOU always add the honorifics,” Lee pointed out.

“Only because you do,” Ryouko shot back.

“Ah, youth!” Gai said enthusiastically. “Come on, let’s pick up the pace! We’ve got to be to Sunagakure by nightfall!”

“We can make it in three hours!” Lee yelled, to the chagrin of Tenten and Neji.

“Two if we really push it…” Ryouko said, smirking to himself. Neji’s gonna be pissed…good. Sorry Tenten, collateral damage! I’ll make it up to you, somehow.

Lee and Gai, of course, took that as a challenge. They took off running at full blast, while the other three stayed at normal speed. Neji and Tenten shot Ryouko dirty glances. Tenten was joking; Neji was not.

“I’m going to get you for this. You know damn well they’re like six year olds when you challenge them!” Neji admonished.

“Must’ve slipped my mind, Neji-tan,” Ryouko shot back, eliciting an outright laugh from Tenten. NOTE: the –tan honorofic is used by high school girls as a ‘cute’ moniker, similar to ‘-chan’. Can anyone pick out the manga that inspired this name for Neji? Or the character? –NG

“Don’t call me that!” Neji shot back. Ryouko put on a burst of speed, careful to make sure the cigarette ashes hit Neji, but not Tenten. If Linda got hit…oh well.

--

Sakura sat down, exhausted from the rush. It had been a busy day, and the clinic was understaffed. Most of the problems could have been handled by anyone with the right medication, but staff was lacking, so ‘anyone’ wasn’t available. And, annoying though it was, it was still valuable experience for Sakura.

“Naruto, what were you thinking?!” Sakura asked in exasperation. Naruto had come in with burns all over his body. He was grinning sheepishly, unaware, apparently, that some beef was stuck to his cheek.

“Well, I wanted to see the old man make ramen. I just kinda…tripped and fell into my order. Best mistake I ever made, believe it!” Naruto scratched at his head, noodles falling off his head, landing on the floor. Sakura grimaced, knowing she would have to clean it up.

“Naruto, what’s our next mission, anyway?” Sakura questioned as she brushed another noodle off his shoulder.

“Uhh…let’s see. Oh, that’s right! Kakashi-sensei had a mission for us, starting tomorrow! He says it’s B-ranked, but not Akatsuki-related. Kind of nice to get a break,” Naruto commented, rolling one shoulder.

“Yeah…alright, you’re set, Naruto. Try not to hurt yourself until the mission, okay?” Sakura waved goodbye, then sighed happily as the clinic was closed. Finally!

“Very nice work today, Sakura!” Tsunade complimented the tired kunoichi. “I just got Ryouko’s report about the Sand Village. And his report on Orochimaru’s hideout. An entire section is blacked out, though…I thought you might know what that was about…”

Sakura froze. Was she ready to talk about this? There was no better person than Lady Tsunade, her mentor. All the same…

“Can I tell you later, Lady Tsunade? It’s…kind of…embarrassing,” Sakura admitted, blushing. Tsunade smiled kindly.

“Okay. Just talk when you’re ready, as long as it’s not witholding vital information.”

Sakura bowed. “Thank you, my lady!”

--

Sakura curled up in bed, wearing her two-piece red pajamas. Short sleeves and shorts were nice during the warm Konoha nights. Sakura kept her room cold, because it felt nice curling up under the blankets. That, and she hated the heat at times. She hated waking up with her hair plastered to her forehead, all sweaty and grimy. Usually, in the cool air, Sakura could fall right to sleep. But not tonight…Sakura decided to make a diary entry.

Diary,

Today was hectic, but it kept my mind off what happened. Tomorrow, we set off on some unknown mission. It’s funny to think I would have once shied away from danger and excitement. I can’t believe I’m the same girl sometimes.

All that time spent, chasing Sasuke. I don’t think anyone would date me now, after the way I spurned some of the boys. Lately, I just…well, I want someone I can trust. I’m tired of being alone. But who would want me? My forehead isn’t so big anymore, but I really got shortchanged in the T and A department. Maybe I’m a late bloomer or something.

(Sigh) I wonder if anyone finds me attractive?

I’m going to tell Lady Tsunade what happened tomorrow. I’ve got to tell someone! I almost told Ryouko-san, since he was involved, but he was off on a mission. Thank God, it would have been embarrassing! Even to a boy as nice as him, the conversation would have been akward. No, for this, I’ll stick to Lady Tsunade. She’s very wise, and she can make decisions. I envy her.

So, back to my dream. Sasuke-kun and Ryouko-san, both shirtless. I thought about the dream more. They WERE fighting over me. I’ve seen Ryouko-san take knives, but never without his shirt! Same with Sasuke-kun! And what Sasuke tried to do was disgusting, so why is this dream so…I don’t know…pleasant? I mean, CHA, two cute guys, but still…

Oh no. I just realized something. Valentine’s day will be coming up soon! That means a celebration. That’s all fine and good…but it also means chocolate! More precisely, the GIVERS and RECEIVERS of chocolate! I don’t know who to give to! I mean, Kakashi-sensei, Naruto-kun, and Sai-kun, oh, and Yamato-sensei, but who else? Ryouko-san? He DID really help me out. I guess I should give him some too…

The only good thing about Valentines Day is a month later, on White Day! I love it when the guys return the favor in chocolate!

Still, wish the romance was there…

Oh well. Time for me to get some sleep.

Sakura closed and locked the book, then blew out the candle she had been working by and went to sleep.

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