Never Forget

Silence

It's Spring Break! Time to update! :) 

P.S. the words at the end of the chapter were in fact exchanged between me and somebody else... I thought it fit. Although the roles are somewhat reversed. And I just love the song ^

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Chapter 14

' – and the program – '

'Ah, Kira, listen – '

' – Kazekage, you're not going to – '

'Listen up!'

'Oh, for Heaven's sake, it's like a war in here!'

'Indeed it is, Kira. Aren't you tired?'

'Exhausted.'

'Kazekage! Listen to your elders when they speak!'

'Yeah, Gaara,' I sniggered.

'I do understand that I may be younger and perhaps inexperienced compared to the rest of you – '

'So you're saying that we're old? How dare you?'

Amaterasu decidedly took control and screamed, 'Shut up!!'

They shut up. There was a moment of silence, so blinding that I was surprised.

'Thank you,' she said. 'Now, what we need to focus on is the upcoming dangers. Can we please, like good civilized children, share the information we have about Hidan and Kakuzu, who appear to be the two Akatsuki members we know something about?'

'Wait,' I interjected, 'What about Konan? And Pein? They killed Jiraiya. Konoha, Fukasaku, and Naruto are all working on that, so shouldn't we help out, instead of diverting our attention elsewhere?'

'Wouldn't this be a perfect chance to take down multiple Akatsuki members at once?' suggested Tsunade. I could hear the pain in her voice. 'Pein's time will come, but we've got a lot of people working that case already.'

'It may be a little risky, but perhaps the Hokage is right,' said Gaara. 'In any case, Hidan and Kakuzu appear to be easier to take down than their leader, Pein. If we're lucky, this can turn out to be a very good opportunity for us.'

'We could learn more about the Akatsuki and sustain a higher chance of survival,' added the Tsuchikage. I frowned. As though sensing the sudden tension in the air, the old man added, 'I'm sorry about Jiraiya. I apologize for my harsh choice of words.'

'It's the truth,' I said. 'What do you say, Naruto?'

Surprise was clearly evident in the way the mind links wavered. Naruto's voice was thoughtful and determined, a bit of a contrast from the way he usually was. 'I want to get revenge for Pervy Sage,' he said, after a moment of hesitation, 'but I don't want to lose anyone else. I'll help you defeat Hidan and Kakuzu first.'

'Oh, no, you don't,' I interjected quickly, 'you've got to finish your training first.'

There was a sort of sigh on the other end, and then a very quiet 'damn it.'