Reborn!

21: The Solstice

"...and whatever happened after that was a complete blur. I certainly remember meeting an ice phoenix that Oswald called the Great Elder and being proclaimed the Saintess, but I actually have no clue whatsoever about what happened next," Sakura concluded her long explanation.

"I see," Sasuke murmured thoughtfully.

"Anyway, what in the world happened to Naruto? It's like he disappeared off the face of the earth all of a sudden. I couldn't even contact him through our telepathic connection!" Sakura queried, her eyebrows knitted in concern.

Sasuke remained silent, unwilling to answer her question. To be honest, he had no idea what truly happened. Naruto had been agitated when he left and though Sasuke presumed that it had to have been due to something he had said, he did not know for sure. Moreover, Sasuke had absolutely no clue where Naruto might have gone.

Noticing Sasuke's discomfort and knowing that the other would definitely inform her if Naruto turned out to be in danger, she changed the topic.

"Anyway, perhaps you should go get a summons of your own. I mean, even I got a summons that is supposedly superior to the Vermilion Birds of legend. Naruto must have allowed us a shortcut of sorts. I didn't even have to undergo any testing. The Ice King Oswald told me right after seeing me that I would become their summoner just because Naruto, or the Master of Mugetsu which I think he referred to Naruto as sent me whether or not the Great Elder decided I was a Saintess. I just need to call and he would come. Sometimes, I just find myself wondering... who exactly is Naruto?" Sakura tried to persuade her friend, though she ended up trailing off when a familiar question once again appeared as if to cast doubt on her faith in her friend.

"I mean, we both know who his parents are. We know about the circumstances of his birth, about his status as a jinchūriki and even about how he had been fooling the world into thinking of him as anywhere close to normalcy. He's a genius whose innovations are beyond groundbreaking and who never runs out of ideas. He makes the impossible. His very existence is close to impossible," Sakura ranted with a scowl.

Sasuke sighed. "Right. So we have the Genius, the Saintess and the ordinary Uchiha. What fun. I doubt I would come anywhere close to you no matter what summons I get. After all, something like what happened for you with the ice phoenixes cannot happen twice. Coincidence will not be enough to explain it if such a thing happens. I don't believe in fate, so I'll have to say that Naruto had rigged everything right under our noses without us ever noticing a thing."

"Just do it anyway. No harm trying, right?" Sakura goaded, having to expend all of her willpower to not throttle the so-called "ordinary Uchiha" before her.

Sasuke rolled his eyes as he grumbled, "Oh well, whatever."

He followed the same steps as Sakura and the moment he smeared his blood onto the scroll, there was a blinding light and a large puff of smoke. Just like that, he disappeared without a trace. It was similar to how Sakura had vanished before.

"Come to think of it, this place does not feel as unpleasant anymore. It's not like it's any warmer than before, but I don't feel like I'm on the verge of getting frostbite, at the very least. I might even be able to wear my normal clothes in here like Naruto was doing. Well, I'd really like to get my hands on a few sets of clothing from that heat regulation line that has been circulating in the shinobi market. I just know Naruto was the one who invented both the concept of it and the technology behind it, but I have never had the chance to bring it up with him, after all," she mused to herself as she watched Sasuke go.

"All you needed to do is ask," Naruto remarked as he walked up from behind her, giving Sakura the greatest shock in her life.

Her eye twitched as she hissed, jabbing a finger in Naruto's chest, "If you're not going to make any sound as you walk, can't you be a little less inhuman and emit some chakra from your body? I'll certainly never be able to match up to you, but it is just unnerving to not sense anything at all when you approach."