[GUtW]—❈—39:: Statues and Cuffs

Not needing to make two trips, since I was already home when Kakashi told us to pack and I only needed to do that and come straight here, I reach Serenity Park before either of my teammates.

Or my sensei.

Serenity Park is… serene; a smallish space for relaxation with a handful of trees, lots of green, low-cut grass, and a tiny pond in the middle.

Comfortable, wooden benches are scattered around the park, and by one of them is the statue of the sannin Kakashi had told us to meet him at.

I settle on the bench to wait, idly observing the statue.

It's very well-made; life-sized and carved out of stone in intricate detail, it portrays the three S-rank ninja in their early twenties.

They stand together proudly; Jiraiya with a wide, toothy smile, Tsunade with a confident, almost smug, one, and Orochimaru… well, he just looks amused. Almost like he finds the whole thing a little silly.

I wonder why the village has left the statue, what with everything that's happened with two of the three people it honours.

After all, I doubt the few surviving victims of Orochimaru would be happy about it; I mean, I sure as all hell wouldn't want to see a statue of Itachi standing around the place.

Then again, not even Orochimaru broke ties with the village as… bloodily as Itachi did.

Mood soured, I do my best to ignore the statue as I settle in to wait for my teammates and my sensei.

—❈—

Naruto and Sakura show up well before the hour mark Kakashi gave us, both of them packed and ready to go. Not that any of us have any clue where we're going.

"Good, you're all here," Kakashi says, walking out from behind the statue of the sannin.

Neither of my teammates jump (I guess they're finally getting used to our sensei's 'sudden' appearances), but they do look at the jōnin oddly.

"So, were you hiding behind that statue the entire time, or did you only walk back there so you could make a dramatic entrance?" Sakura asks, then adds: "Don't you feel silly doing things like that?"

"Not even a little bit," Kakashi says shamelessly.

"You know, one day you're gonna do that with someone jumpy and they'll throw a kunai into your remaining eye," Naruto says.

"Keep dreaming, kid," Kakashi says, smiling amiably.

Naruto sticks his tongue out at him.

More interested in getting started than on Kakashi's penchant for dramatics, I ask; "Where are we going for the training?"

"Somewhere none of you have the clearance to know the location of," Kakashi says. "Ergo, I need you to put these on."

So saying, he tosses three objects at the three of us.

Even before I snatch mine out of the air, I already know what they are; chakra suppression cuffs.

"What do we need these for?" Naruto asks.

"Procedure," Kakashi says. "Now put them on."

My teammates and I stare at each other, then Sakura shrugs and she begins to put on the cuffs.

"Wait," I say as a suspicion hits me, then I activate my sharingan and stare at Kakashi… it's him.

Huh, for a moment I'd really thought it wouldn't be him, and that this was some sort of test.

"Aw," Kakashi says as I turn off my sharingan, "you thought to check." He sniffs and wipes a fake tear from his eye. "My little baby is growing up."

"I didn't even think about that," Sakura says, sounding embarrassed.

"You should," Kakashi says. "Trusting people is fine, but you should always ensure that the person you're putting your trust in is the person you put your trust in."

"Why do we even need these?" Naruto asks again.

"I told you; procedure. Now, put 'em on," Kakashi commands again.

We comply, and as soon as I slip the cuff on, I feel the expected buzz run through me as it activates and my body suddenly feels… pathetic.

My senses suddenly feel not as clear, my motions not as smooth. Even breathing feels harder. Worst of all is the very noticeable feeling of suddenly not feeling my chakra thanks to the cuffs effectively disrupting my chakra flow.

Naruto groans, staggering a little before righting himself. "I hate these things," the boy complains.

I fully agree.

We've worn chakra suppression cuffs before, several times even, back in The Academy so we could familiarize ourselves with their effect.

Well, it had mostly been to teach us how to break out of them, but honestly, I still wonder about the usefulness of that lesson, considering that the only ways to get out of chakra suppression cuffs in less than three hours is either by having someone help you, or by saying goodbye to at least one of your arms.

"You might want to save your whining for when training starts," Kakashi advices Naruto. "Don't want to be running out before you truly get uncomfortable."

Naruto shoots our sensei a nasty look.

"Is the training really going to be that bad?" Sakura asks with some trepidation.

Kakashi looks her right in the eyes. "Likely worse," he says brightly.

The girl swallows.

"Don't mind him, Sakura," Naruto says. "We can take whatever he throws at us."

Sakura doesn't seem to share in Naruto's confidence, but she says nothing.

"Right," Kakashi says. "Best say your good-byes, cause you won't be seeing each other again for the next two weeks."

"Wait, what!?" Naruto asks. "Why?"

"Because 'individual training' is done individually, Naruto," Kakashi says.

"Oh," Naruto says, then looks at Sakura and I for a few seconds before smirking. "I guess it's better this way; when we get back we can see who's improved the most." He laughs. "I'm gonna blow you guys out of the water."

"Keep dreaming, shorty," Sakura says.

"Why? Cause you think it's gonna be Sasuke?" Naruto asks in a tone of voice that practically screams that he knows for a fact that that is what Sakura thinks.

Sakura begins to speak, but then she stops and looks at me, and I mean really look at me.

Almost like for the first time she really sees me.

It's a little unsettling.

After several seconds, Sakura speaks again.

"No," she says, her green eyes seeming to sparkle in the light. "It'll be me." And while it sounds like she's talking to Naruto, her eyes never leave mine.

"Let's bet on it then," I hear myself saying before I even realize it's me speaking.

Sakura's gaze sharpens, and her lips quirk in the tiniest smile, as though she's just confirmed something she suspected. Not that, for the life of me, I have a single clue what it is.

"Hell yeah," Naruto agrees excitedly. "The loser feeds everyone else for a week."

"Is that good with you?" I ask Sakura, neither of us even glancing at Naruto.

"Yeah," Sakura says, and her smile widens. Something about that smile makes my heart beat just a little bit faster.

"I'm going to show you what I'm made of, Sasuke," Sakura says.

"Alright, that's enough 'Power of Youth' out of the lot of you," Kakashi says. "Nighty night."

Huh?

Kakashi blurs, and I feel something pierce my neck right before I collapse into unconsciousness.