Naruto Homeward Bound and Fighting Stuff

In the shinobi village of Konekagure, the day was stormy and full of wind. In fact, anyone who wasn't a shinobi was either inside, or trying to run their Emergency Relief shops while the hurricane screamed.

The ninja in the village had other ideas, however.

"WHOOPIE!"

The splash in the pool of water below the Yamato Waterfall could barely be heard over the screaming wind, but the kids who surrounded the waterfall cheered as Naruto Uzumaki made his final dive into the roaring waters.

Grinning like a fox, Naruto pulled himself out of the pool and walked across the water to the shore, where he was met with slippery mud and wind so strong it almost pushed him over. Naruto, however, paid it no mind and continued over to the giant Crater Lake that he had created during his Wind Style Rasenshurikan training nearly a year before. His friends, the Konoha 11, lounged on the banks of the lake wearing clothes more suited for a beach outing than the middle of an emergency situation.

"That was great, Naruto!" Kiba yelled and Akamaru barked. They were both running across the surface of the lake wearing nothing more than one pair of shorts between them, playing a certain type of Frisbee game that required gale-force winds and pouring rain for it to really be taken to the next level.

The girls-Sakura, Ino, Hinata and Tenten-were huddled underneath the shelter of the one big tree that had survived Naruto's training session. They scowled at the happy-go-lucky boys and tried to stay warm with a big fire that Tenten was trying to keep from getting put out from the rain.

Sakura knew that she should probably scold Naruto for his antics, but she also knew that with Sasuke playing along, everyone would ignore her. It had been nearly three months since Obito and Madara had tried to take over the world, and since then the Five Kage had pardoned Sasuke and team Taka from the death penalty, but they would be on parole for the next five years until they proved that they could be trusted with Konoha's safety.

Naruto and Sakura had been thrilled and welcomed Sasuke back with open arms, but it had taken the rest of the 11 at least a month before they warmed back up to him. Naruto hadn't let that get him down, though, and had taken great lengths to try to reestablish his friendship with Sasuke back to even greater heights. Sakura was waiting patiently, because if Sasuke needed time to reassert himself in the village, he certainly did not need her hanging on his arm until he could get his feet back underneath him.

So Sasuke lounged on the bank along with the rest of the boys, shaking his head at Naruto's antics, but Sakura could see the smallest lift on the side of his mouth that belied his amusement. She smiled and shook her head, but did not interfere when Naruto had the brilliant idea to create a Rasengan underwater and create a whirlpool that upped the difficulty on Kiba and Akamaru's Frisbee game.

"Naruto!" Kiba protested, struggling to keep his feet. Akamaru simply barked and kept playing, doing some spectacular jumps and flips to catch the Frisbee being thrown about wildly by the wind.

Grinning childishly, Naruto climbed out of the water and sat down beside Sasuke, shaking his head like a dog to lose some of the water from his blond spikes. It stood up recklessly until the rain forced it down again, making Naruto look like a wet puppy.

Sasuke half-smiled and whispered something to Naruto, who cocked his head before a devilish smile overtook his face. He abruptly cross his legs and assumed a meditation pose, but Sakura, who had been watching him closely, immediately understood what that pose meant. "Get down!" She screamed, diving at Hinata and forcing her away from the fire.

A massive Rasengan went into the water at the exact moment that Sakura hurriedly put the fire out. Ino and Tenten watched with awe-struck faces as the Sage Mode Naruto launched a barrage of Rasengans into the lake, creating a HUGE water vortex that made Kiba scream and Akamaru bite his ass before leaping out of the way, straight into the tree that the girls had been taking shelter under.

Next, Choji immediately used his Expansion Jutsu to rise to a colossal size, and screamed, "Cannon Ball!" Before he took a running leap into the lake, forming a massive wave that wiped out everything in a one-mile-radius.

The girls had clung to the big tree and therefore avoided getting swept away by the wave, but when they surfaced they were shivering, wet, and furious.

Choji and Naruto exchanged high-fives, and Sasuke was grinning widely now as the boys joined together and started joking about the amazing stunt that they had pulled. Sakura, Ino, and Tenten were NOT having it. Together, they stomped over to the boys where Sakura grabbed Naruto's ear, Tenten took Kiba's, and Ino took Choji's. Hinata and Sasuke stood by and watched the boys get scolded by the girls, but while Sakura was forcing Naruto's head into the dirt, Sasuke noticed something in the lake-which had been drained to a puddle-and touched Hinata's arm lightly to get her attention.

Hinata started slightly at the touch, but when she followed Sasuke's gaze she too noticed the strange object.

"Hinata, what is that thing?" He asked her, squinting through the rain.

She looked back to the object, focused her chakra and whispered, "Byakugan!" The object in the muddy lakebed below suddenly lost its color, but when Hinata focused her chakra, she could see the thing much better than before. Her eyes widened, the veins in her temples stretching when she gaped at the thing in the lakebed.

Sasuke noticed. "What do you see, Hinata?"

She stammered, "I-I-I'm not sure, but I think…it's a person!"


End file.

Naruto, Adventure, Humor