#naruto multishippers

Little Sasori was finding it difficult to hide his excitement. He squirmed in his seat and kept casting glances at Big Sasori.

“Are we there yet?” he asked once more.

“No. You can read the instruments yourself, little one. Their hideout is still 30 kilometers out.”

They had their own hideout. Little Sasori still found this amazing. He’d spent the past five years living on Sasori’s ship, which of course was now his home, and he thought about it as his own home, but still…

“Did they build it themselves?”

“No, of course not,” Sasori tsked. “Ame is nothing but abandoned structures—this place has drowned more human settlements than the rest of the Water Planets put together. They found a safe place and made it their own.”

This was a fact that Sasori had a hard time believing. The trio had been orphaned around the same age as he had, and left with nothing, no one, they’d found a way to survive on one of the galaxy’s most dangerous planets. On Suna, the desert could certainly kill you, but the heat, the venomous creatures and fearsome sandstorms were all manageable. Ame was endless ocean and endless rain, with barely a scrap of rock to cling to. How had the three orphans survived? How had they traveled? He was eager to find out. But he was even more eager to get away from this freakishly wet planet.

“They’re my age, right?” Little Sasori chirped, bouncing a little in his seat.

“You’ve asked that one before,” Sasori replied shortly. They were close. He could see it, the wide plateau of rain-sculpted rock, the jagged towers of stone, and built into the side of one of the larger ones, a little house of water-tight tile. There had to be somewhere he could land…

There, a wide gap at the base of one of the towers, almost like a hangar. Scanners detected nothing within, no shield or weaponry. The trio would not welcome them—from the stories Konan had told him, most likely he and Little Sasori would most likely find the hideout ‘empty’ if they approached.

“Okay, so they’re gonna fight in the Third Shinobi War, like you did?”

He inhaled the early spring air: no scent of flowers, just damp earth, burgeoning with life. It was a bright day: cloudy and cool, but through the clouds pushed pure, white sunlight. A breeze agitated the boughs of the trees; each little twig sported a tiny green bud. A trail of kikaichu marched up and down the branch, looking for something to do while Shino rested. A little smile curled his mouth.

Lowering his gaze to his book once more, he managed to read a few more lines on the climate of coastal Kaze before a tiny headache tapped on the spot between his brows. He looked up. The headache subsided. What could have caused it? It wasn’t the reading material: geography was a very soothing topic, with its descriptions of landscape, flora and fauna. Reading about foreign countries allowed him to escape the monotony of Konoha’s unvarying, temperate days. Now that he taught at the Academy, he rarely got the chance to travel for missions like he did when he was younger. He sighed and went back to reading.

The headache began again. He pushed through it, squinting at the words: Coastal regions experience higher levels of humidity than central Kaze no Kuni, and thus boast a greater variety of plant species. Prominent along—

Shino closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. He just wanted to relax. Why did his head hurt this much? He dropped his book onto his lap and reached for his tea cup. Finding it half empty, he topped it up with water from the thermos provided by the teahouse. With the warm cup of tea held in both hands, he inhaled its calming scent, steaming up his glasses.

Dapples of golden sunlight appeared on the courtyard pavestones. The sun was peeking out from behind the clouds, casting darker and darker shadows. The sunlight was nice, but it didn’t make the day any warmer. Shino decided he would try reading a little longer, but if the headache persisted, he would probably have to leave. He could take a nap. That sounded nice, actually.

This time when he cracked open his book and began to read, the headache began immediately, with full force, worse than before. Why on earth—

A shadow fell over his book and the headache disappeared. Oh. He finally made the connection: it was the glare of sunlight on the page causing him all this pain. Well, that was easily solved. He stood—

“Shino?” Of all people, Ino was behind him, her hand outstretched as if she’d been about to tap him on the shoulder.

“Hello, Ino,” he greeted calmly, although if he was being honest with himself, he was surprised to see her. “What brings you here?”

Ino smiled and tilted her head, her hands clasped behind her back. “I was exploring today on my day off, looking for somewhere quiet for a change…” She sighed heavily. Every part of her sagged with weariness. “Anyway, I saw you sitting out here and wanted to say hello…”

“I was just about to move inside,” he replied. He thought for a moment. “Would you like to join me? I’m afraid I won’t be able to offer much by way of interesting conversation, but you’re welcome to sit with me and read…”

She smiled again. On her tired face, it was not unlike the way the sun came out from behind the clouds just a moment ago.

“Sounds like just what I need,” she said.