Haruto concentrated, brows furrowed, as he healed his patients. Even though he wanted to specifically fuss over Satsuki and kept pouring healing chakra into her, his mother had pounded into his head that he was to heal anyone injured before him (except the enemies) and not be choosy, don't let personal feelings get in the way.
Healing Lee was the last thing he wanted to do but he had no choice; it was the medic code. Heal as long as they're your allies, regardless of personal feelings and agendas.
Firstly, Haruto didn't know why Lee even showed up to help his teammates, and imagining Lee vowing to protect Satsuki or declaring his undying love for her, irked him greatly, which made him add unnecessary pressure when he bandaged the older boy. Secondly, the girls probably thought Lee to be more capable than him. And thirdly, he was still sore that he'd lost to the older boy earlier.
Finally, when he was done, Haruto slumped down onto the ground, trying to rest his body. When he laid down on the makeshift grass-made bed, he realized something: that Lee and Satsuki were sleeping next to one another and that they were far to close.
Seething, Haruto dived between them, pushing Lee further away; he made a mental note to throttle the person who placed the two so close to one another. When he was beside Satsuki—who's body temperature was cooler than before—and Lee was far, far away from both clan heirs, he allowed himself to calm and relax. Finally, rest!
It didn't take long for sleep to claim him; in his fuzzy mind, before darkness came, he registered Satsuki's smokey scent and the fact that maybe sleeping so close to one another would arose question amongst their peers.
He didn't care.
***
"They're cute together, aren't they?"
"Very."
"Ooh—especially how he's hugging her!"
"Er, I think that's just his sleeping habit of draping over something."
"Even in sleep, she can sense him and she's cuddling with him, isn't she?"
"I didn't know even Uchihas can be adorable in sleep."
"What are you talking about?! With the power of youth within her, Satsuki-chan is adorable no matter what!"
"…Whatever you say, Lee."
Haruto groaned, eyelids fluttering open but all he could make out through the crust of sleep was shadowy figures; the voices he'd heard earlier must've belonged to them and another part of his mind, the more shinobi him noted that they weren't attacking which meant that they were allies. Which meant that he was safe and that he could keep sleeping; also there was the fact that there was a very comforting warmth by his side, close to his heart and all he wanted was to snuggle closer to the source of warmth which seemed to be breathing—
"Holy shit!"
Haruto would've jumped twenty feet into the air if not for the added weight by his side. His face was burning hot like Satsuki had cast a fire jutsu on him. Right, he was probably exaggerating since being roasted by one of her fie jutsus would result in his demise. But only hyperbole could describe what he was currently feeling now.
What he was feeling now? Somewhere along the lines of embarrassment and contentment. He didn't feel like Satsuki's person from him but as his fellow genins were crowding around him, looking at him with expectant and disappointment varying emotions. He coughed awkwardly to diffuse the situation, gently removing Satsuki from him and standing up to face his friends.
Rubbing the back of his head sheepishly, sure that his face was still as red as tomato—Her favorite food, his mind supplied unnecessarily—he said, "Uh, you need anything?"
"Nope," said the bun-haired girl, giggling. "you can go back to cuddling your girlfriend." When the Senju was sure his face was going to explode from embarrassment, the girl laughed even harder. "Don't worry. You look cute together!" That only served to make him blush harder but this time, he felt strangely… happier and bubbly than usual.
But he doubted that Satsuki would be as happy. That thought eventually led back to the question: was his feelings mutual? He wished, hoped it was but Satsuki was very subtle about it whenever he flirted with her. She didn't react much but the occasional twitch of her face; whether to suppress a frown or a smile was a mystery to him. Truth to be told, it was disheartening, not knowing that the other was thinking. Man, he had to invent a mind-reading jutsu technique someday.
Haruto settled for grumbling when he noticed that everyone was staring at him; and the numbers of people had increased. "What happened?" he asked curiously when he spotted new wounds—but oddly, had already been healed and bandaged—and new faces. Then he looked past the genins's faces and saw a different landscape than before.
"Uh… a fight broke out?"
"Yes," said Choji as he munched on another packet of chips. "Against Cloud nins. Sakura wanted to fight them for the Heaven and Earth scroll they got."
"Why do we need both?" asked Haruto, directing his question to Sakura who ducked her head.
"Well, when we faced off against Orochimaru, we lost our Earth Scroll as well." Before Haruto could explode, she hastily went on, "But the Cloud nin got both scrolls and a few extras, so we're good!"
"Oh," was all Haruto could say. "And all of this happened when I was asleep?" Great, another moment in time where it could be chalked up to Times When Senju Haruto Is Useless. He sighed heavily, mentally berating himself. "Great. I was useless."
"If it is any comfort, My Eternal Rival In Winning Satsuki-Chan's hear—" Haruto's teeth gnashed together rather hard and the idea of throttling Lee didn't seem too bad—"I slept through it too. I only woke up recently." Then his gaze landed on Satsuki's still unconscious form. "As punishment for failing to protect Satsuki-chan and friends, I shall climb a mountain with my teeth!"
"Don't be ridiculous, Lee," snapped the sole Hyuuga, Neji, throwing his teammate an admonishing glare. "Uchiha lost because she was weak—"
"She's not weak!" Haruto snapped, fists clenching. "Her opponent outclassed her; if you went against Orochimaru, you would've gone down too!" A cold smirk adorned Haruto's face but before he could think—he rarely ever used his head unless he was about to die anyway—about the consequences and how hurtful his words would've been, went on, "Oh, but then, why would he be after you? Orochimaru only wants me and Satsuki—only wants the Sharingan and Mokuton—but the Byakugan? Getting it off a Branch Member would be useless."
Neji sprang to his feet. "Are you looking for a fight, Senju?"
"What are you going to do about it?"
Lee glanced between his two "rivals" before flashing the thumbs-up sign, grinning. "It's good to see the both of My Eternal Rival glowing with the Power of Youth!"
"Shut up, Lee!" Both Hyuuga and Senju barked in unison.
Tenten smacked her teammate upside the head. "Come on," she said. "Let's go. We've lingered here long enough already." Then she shot a hesitant smile to Haruto who was still fuming even as Neji turned to go. "Thank you for healing our teammate. See you at the tower!"
"Hope not," grumbled Haruto childishly.
"Well," drawled Shikamaru as the chakra belonging to Team Guy faded into the distance. "I think we should go too. Our alliance ends here. Bye—"
"Get out of the way!"
"Huh?" the Nara heir fell flat on his ass, blinking, trying to comprehend the situation. "Wha…? Senju?"
"Haruto-kun!"
Shikamaru blinked again, scrambling backwards as Haruto crumpled to the ground, retching, clutching his gut. He couldn't comprehend what he was seeing. Then, instincts kicked in and he rolled away just as senbon needles—coated with poison, judging from the purple tint—embedded the ground where he last stood. He blanched, turning a shade white before he scrambled for his composure.
"Team, formation!" he yelled, voice forcefully higher than usual so that Ino and Choji whom were panicking will be able to hear him. The lazy genius assessed the new enemy warily, rather surprised but hiding it well, when he saw the silver-haired genin. "You're a Konoha-nin, why are you attacking us?"
"Sorry, Shikamaru-kun," Yakushi Kabuto said, smiling that cunning smile that practically exuded the aura of one you shouldn't trust. Shikamaru was right to be wary but when he was their enemy, there was nothing he could do. "I don't mean to hurt any of you. I was just doing my job," he said, glancing down at the defeated Senju. "I knew Haruto-kun would be reckless enough to save one of you so instead of targeting him, I attacked you. I didn't mean to harm you."
During his speech, in that annoyingly suspicious gentle and placating tone, three nins that Shikamaru recognized as Sound-nins, jumped down from the canopy of trees. It was also enough time for his allies to gather enough wit to speak again.
"Why are you targeting my Haruto-kun?" demanded Ino, irked and was slightly frightened but she assure herself that they have the upper-hand of quantity. "What did he ever did to you?"
"Not what he did, but what he would do," Kabuto corrected, adjusting his glasses and smiling coldly. "He is too much of a threat with his growing potential and does not have enough motive to join our cause, so he needs to be taken out. At least, for now."
"You're working for Orochimaru, aren't you?" Shikamaru's eyes darted to Kabuto's allies as he spoke, those Sound-nins (Kin, Dosu and Zaku) fitted the description Haruto gave.
"Traitor," Choji hissed, crushing the empty packet of chips in his hands. "We thought you were our friend!"
"Apparently, not, fatty. You misjudged," Zaku cackled, swinging down from a tree-branch.
"What did you say?" Choji sounded calm as he asked the question but Ino and Shikamaru knew he was boiling beneath that calm facade.
"Better run," Ino said as she darted out of her teammate's way. "Go get them, they called you 'fat'!"
Shikamaru sighed, placing a hand on his head to stave away the headache. Charging in without a plan unsettled Shikamaru but then again, ninjas were supposed to be unpredictable. Planning means they are being predictable and stand less of a chance. But charging in recklessly… ugh, don't think about that now, he told himself. His dark eyes turned their full attention on the Senju the moment the redhead pushed himself to his hands and knees, still gasping for breath.
"What… did you do?" he rasped harshly; Shikamaru jerked back in shock when he saw red eyes with slits instead of the familiar cheerful gold of the Mokuton-user's eyes. "How… I should've… sensed you… Gah!" Haruto went flying when the female Sound-nin kicked him in the ribs, cruelly intensifying the pain.
"You mean what the trees relayed to you?" she smiled. "Oh, that's easy. We just messed up the sound-waves around us, so that the sounds of branches creaking and leaves rustling would be just that: an action done by the breeze, no secret message."
Haruto groaned something incomprehensible. Kin advanced, too focus on beating the shit out of the Senju to concentrate on her surroundings, "I'm going to make you pay for that comment!" she snarled as she raised a poison-coated senbon, not noticing the shadow snaking out towards her own and attaching itself.
"What?" Kin stiffened unnaturally, putting her weapons down against her own will. "What's happening to me?!" she yelled in alarm but a moment later, slumped, the same time Ino did.
Zaku glanced at his female teammate. "Oi, Kin! What're you doing? Stop standing there and day-dreaming—" He was cut off when his teammate threw a senbon in his direction. He blinked, before he growled. "What the fuck!"
Instead of retorting, Kin grinned maniacally, putting her own poison-coated senbon to her throat. "If you want your teammate to be safe, you better get lost now."
Dosu leaped off another branch to another, merely toying with the Akimichi brat who was attacking blindly instead of aiming properly. How powerful a technique was useless when it didn't reach its intended target. He glanced at Zaku and Kin, having heard the threat; he nodded towards Zaku. They didn't need anyone, not even their teammate, dragging them down.
Zaku grinned as he changed direction and lunged at Kin, sending a shockwave towards the girl's body, cackling when she hit a tree, coughing blood. The possessed-girl sprang to her feet, breathing raggedly and trying to control her pain. "Are you crazy?" she snarled with Kin's face and voice, sounding almost like the original for a moment. "She's your teammate and you're willing to sacrifice her?!"
Zaku wanted to laugh at how pathetic these tree-hugging nins were; and he did. "Oh please, our village isn't like yours y'know? We sacrifice anything and anyone to get our mission complete. We're loyal; unlike you who ditched the mission to save some people you call friends. What does friendship mean in the world of shinobis?"
"Protecting and saving your friends means you care; it showed that we're still humans before shinobis!" Everyone's attention riveted to Haruto who'd spoken, even Kabuto, who was closing in on the Uchiha heiress—crap, Shikamaru didn't even notice the silver-haired guy move!
Zaku's lips curled. "No one asked you, Senju, so shut up!" he snarled as he stomp his foot, a larger shockwave following the gesture and though Shikamaru couldn't see it, he could feel the invisible attack hitting Haruto dead on.
Why didn't the Senju dodged was the question. And also, what was the seal Kabuto had slammed into Haruto's stomach? What did the seal contain to immobilize, cripple him so badly?
Haruto groaned in pain, but gritting his teeth, he slammed his fist into the ground, intending to create a crater as large as before, no doubt but instead of great damage to the landscape, Haruto's fingers twisted at unnatural angles, his chakra backfiring instead of assaulting the enemies. He cried out, then accusingly, he glowered at Kabuto, snarling, "You—that seal messed up by chakra pathways!"
Kabuto smiled. "Impressive, it seems that you hold a certain amount of knowledge concerning seals. I would love to stay and discuss this particular topic with you but Orochimaru-sama has demanded this girl's presence so I must—"
"Kidnap her, you mean," Haruto spat, anger coursing through his veins as he stumbled to his feet. "well, I won't let you…"
"And, pray tell, what can you do?"
The redhead smirked. "Distract you."
Instincts sharpened through many hard battles allowed Kabuto to easily dodge the newly-awakened Uchiha heiress. He jumped a few feet back, smiling, "Well, it seems like you're awake, Satsuki-chan."
The pale girl did not answer. Instead, she calmly assessed the situation, coal black eyes turning into the familiar red of the Sharingan. Her lips were pressed into a thin angry line, obviously displeased; finally, her eyes landed on Haruto's beaten form. In a chilling and deadly voice that didn't fail to silence the battle: "Who hurt him?"
Zaku, proving himself to be the most idiotic of the gathered ninjas, sneered right back. "I did it, chickie—I was the one who hurt your boyfriend. What're you going to do about it, huh?" he challenged, scoffing.
"This."
The Sound-nin stiffened, when he realized that the voice had came from behind him. "Wha—" He never got the chance to whirl around to see his assailant when slender hands grabbed his forearms, forbidding him from moving even when he struggled with all his might. Before he could register what had happened, pain registered.
Rending, bone-breaking pain—literally in the latter's case.
He screamed, as his already broken arms were strained to the max in the pale Uchiha's grip. "I'll snap your neck, next," she hissed. "It's called payback." Through the haze of pain—it fucking hurts, he wasn't trained for pain tolerance!—he registered that she was being deadly serious. Emphasis on the deadly; and she was seriously going to snap his neck. Heck, if he'd known that hurting the Senju would be this, he wouldn't have said anything!
You always act before you think, he could imagine Kin's voice, telling him, berating him again. You're going to get yourself killed someday.
Shut up, he wanted to tell the mirage but relief washed over him; sensation taking over as he crumpled to the ground. Only later when his team had retrieved him and retreated did he realized that the boy he'd hurt, that blasted Senju had tackled the thrice-damned Uchiha into a hug.
Satsuki, was at first, startled when she felt arms wrapped around her. She stiffened, mistaking it as an enemy attack and was about to raise her arm and beat the shit out of the assailant when she registered the red hair and familiar scent of home and wood.
At first, she had a hard time pronouncing his name; the sheer power surging through her was unimaginable. But when he pulled back and smiled at her—a bruise forming on his right cheek and bleeding from the forehead and a cut on his chin and a split lip, but he still looked as radiant as ever—she managed to calm herself down. That calmness lasted until she saw that Sound-nin who had claimed to hurt Haruto rose to his feet, nearly crumpling down, would have if not for his teammates's support.
Dosu, was forced to carry both his teammates on his shoulder as they were already soundly—puns aside—beaten and decided to make a run for it. That bloody Kabuto had fled the moment everyone's attention was on Zaku when he was getting his arms rearranged by the Uchiha.
Cursing, he ran.