Easily recalling Naruto's determination to protect his team against the Demon of Hidden Mist, Sakura wondered why it mattered more to Hinata-chan. Deciding then and there to train later, she asks a question she wasn't sure was appropriate earlier in the day. "Are we going to celebrate Naruto making it into the third test?" Sakura simply can't imagine Sasuke attending that gathering.
"Of course," Kakashi answers. "We're a team. We celebrate our accomplishments and our defeats together." Sakura isn't confident that's going to go as well as her sensei seems to imagine when she hears him add, "speaking of our team, as a precautionary measure, I want Team 7 to stay together."
Drawing her brows close in curiosity, Sakura asks, "precaution against what?"
"Not a what," Kakashi corrects but doesn't elaborate.
"...Orochimaru," Sakura easily guesses. As the only threat in her team's lives, the legendary missing-nin is the only answer that makes sense. Recalling Sasuke's fiendish transformation, she remarks, "I saw where those dark marks on Sasuke originated from. It's the same location Orochimaru bit him."
"I'll let you know when I decide where we'll be staying," Kakashi continues, subtly informing her that's all he'll say about that at the moment.
Curious about a certain point, Sakura asks, "is Haku coming as well? I can't imagine Naruto agreed to leave without him; and I guess, even Karin-chan."
"Naruto-kun is staying at Iruka's," Kakashi asserts.
"I don't understand," Sakura slowly states.
Her sensei casually answers, "he'll be fine on his own," instantly reaffirming her disparaging thoughts.
"...But I won't," she glumly voices.
"It's just a precaution, Sakura-chan," he tries to placate.
To Sakura, the thought of staying with Sasuke didn't seem as appealing as it would've been two or three months ago. He nearly killed Naruto and even if they're trained in the art of assassination, to casually do so against his a teammate... the raven-haired avenger has grown to become a source of confusing turmoil.
'But Sasuke always said as much,' her efficient mind always reminds her, making her wonder, yet again, how long she's been blind to this side of Sasuke.
She then asks Kakashi, "can't I stay here?"
"It's not advisable," he says with a head tilt. "Until we're certain there is no threat, strength in numbers would be for the best which is why I'd feel more comfortable if you remain with active shinobi. If she consents, you're welcome to stay with Kurenai-sensei."
"No. You're not strong enough," her father simply states, and Hinata easily hears, 'not strong enough to defeat your younger sister, not strong enough to defeat your cousin from the branch family, not strong enough to be the heir of this clan.'
With thoughts of what this means for Naruto, for how proud she wants to make him and her sensei, Hinata maintains with love-guided determination, "if I am not strong enough, then I must become strong enough. I must, Otou-sama, and there is room for nothing else."
She only heard her father hum deeply which all but told her she'll be able to help Naruto.
TEMARI
Laying in bed, repeatedly counting the wood beam and flat paneled ceiling, Temari concentrates on nothing but her breathing and her counting. It's a coping mechanism that was taught to her for dealing with stressful thoughts or being in agitating situations.
She's nearly certain there are a total of seven hundred and thirty-four hairline fractures on the ceiling when a knock on the door completely disrupted her tranquil train of thought.
Suddenly she remembers where she is, why she's there, and what she'll likely be ordered to do. When they wouldn't stop knocking, she yells to the ceiling, "what?" She doesn't turn to him as she hears him enter without permission, to which she declares, "Kankurō, I don't want to talk."
"Baki should be back soon," her brother quickly relays.
Eyes still on the ceiling, she can almost hear the hope in his voice, as if the world were black and white and good triumphed over evil. But he doesn't know or doesn't want to see how gray the world is because solutions to problems are rarely neat, moral, or fair.
'That's not how a country stays in power,' her mind hears her father repeat. 'By any means necessary.' Temari recalls her father's lessons before and after her mother died. 'Power is shaped by concepts and ideas for the express purpose of solving problems, whether selfish or selfless, and it is man that give meaning to ideas and concepts,' he would coldly tell them, post her mother's death.
Having thought of all relevant variables, Temari knows her orders before Baki even left to message a request of authorization from her father, and glumly asks her younger brother, "what's it matter? I already know the answer."
"You don't know that," Kankurō retorts, but he can't question her intelligence. "Tou-sama will tell Gaara no. He could get Gaara to change his mind and kill that brat another way."
"No. Otou-sama wouldn't even if he wanted to," Temari assures her little brother, having already thought of that possibility. "You don't remember how much destruction is involved trying to change Gaara's mind because it hasn't happened for a long time. He may be older now but if Gaara wants something, Otou-sama and the council have learned to just give it to him.
They're lucky he only ever asked to be left alone."
Hesitant grumbles from his throat tell her he wants to argue, to fight, to resist, like in those stories he liked to read when he was younger, but, as always, her sweet little brother is caught up playing the protector.
It's why his optimism can feel like thorns wrapped around her heart when Kankurō states, "I know you understand why they had to keep us apart a lot, but that doesn't mean Tou-sama doesn't regret it. He wants us all to be a family and he'll stop it because he knows this is going too far."..