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Teamworkverse: .___. you guys probably expected that by now.
I'm not going to talk about the wedding fic because I might still want to write it, and it should be short and NOT FULL OF FIGHT SCENES AAAAA and provide a nice conclusion to the 'verse, but as for TW3, I'm now pretty sure it's dead.
So.
Plot summary under the cut.
Where we last saw our heroes...
The Kyuubi and then Itachi drama just happened -- Sasuke chose to shield Sakura even though he might die rather than attack Itachi -- big turning point, my new family > my old one. Then there's one month of training and hopefully mastering new jutsu, then the last tournament stage.
(I think by that point I was sick and tired of writing fight scenes for a hundred bazillion chapters, and I had blown the dramatic load early with the Kyuubi+Itachi combo (i came up with these events by asking myself what is the WORST thing that could happen to them and not be lethal and Sakura: get to feel utterly useless, Naruto, lose control and hurt someone with your own hands, and Sasuke: HI NIISAN) and everything that came after that felt anticlimatic, or had to be dragged on even though it should have been resolved for the sake of still having things to resolve before the epilogue like some naruti/sasuke conflict. I couldn't figure out how to fix it, how to re-up the drama levels high enough, and the fight scenes felt like such a chore but not writing them felt like a copout because plot relevant stuff happened in them and aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.)
Naruto has been refusing to communicate with Kyuubi after he killed this one dude and almost killed that kid and hurt Sasuke and Sakura, Sasuke is still mulling on his decision because Itachi has been his LIFE for so long that even after having decided for sure it still feels weird, and Sakura is completely GRRR with the need to catch up to them already and her constant worries about the both of them and the way they won't TALK ARGH.
I had Naruto have it pointed out that Sasuke's been acting "normal" even though Itachi, and he thinks it's a HUGE RED FLAG and decides to go running to find him and ask him point blank, and yes Naruto this is totally the discussion I want to have before a hopefully nonlethal tournament i want to think about my brother who i plan to kill it does wonders for my concentration. They have an argument and walk away all pissed off with each other. (kinda forced aaaa)
Meanwhile Sakura is fighting a Sand puppeteer dude and neither of them is watching, which she's pretty hurt about because she was sneaky-awesome and she wanted to see if either of them noticed. (basically she figures out his chakra strings on the fly. it's ALL about chakra control, which is playing right into her strengths, after all)
Naruto has a fight with some random person who cares, and then there's the return of ZENKO of Team Summon -- that's the bitchy one who summons wolves, she's in a team with amoral prettyboy who summons foxes and messed it up enough that Kyuubi got free, and their huge healer tank teammate who summons kitties got himself killed by Kyuubi. They met after the second test in the hospital and Zenko showed she was disdainful and not interested, which was good at the time because Sakura would have killed her very dead.
*Zenko / Aokusa (Grass) : they're both from the same country but he throws it because Zenko will maim him if he doesn't and he can tell.
Sakura is frowny as she watches, kind of notices the "throwing it" thing. Also fuck, Naruto'll have to go against Zenko next scene. She really doesn't appreciate that, because she knows Zenko leans hard on the side of blaming Naruto because she has to blame SOMEONE and Zenko can't find it in herself to blame either her surviving and dead teammates for accidentally helping Kyuubi get free when they didn't know he was in there.
*Inoru / Hyousa (Sand): not that interesting (Inoru doesn't know enough Yamanaka clan techniques), but meanwhile Ino and Sakura are watching and Ino comments on Sakura's new lesbian tendencies. Re: that time Naruto dragged Sasuke into the girls' showers and they got caught and he swanned out in sexy no jutsu and Sakura was left behind in a gaggle of kunoichi to deal with the fallout. Ino's little bratty cousin heard about it and dutifully told Ino all about it, and she is DELIGHTED to discuss it in more detail ohohoho.
Another random match, and then STAGE TWO.
*Sasuke / Asamoya
Sasuke is still pissed off at Naruto mentioning Itachi so he DESTROYS the poor guy. :(
*Kaido / Sakura : another medic! with wolverine claw weapons. :X he aims for her stomach or tries to use medical jutsu in a way that would hurt her organs, she gets injured a bit, but wins. (Tempted to pull on Kyuubi chakra to end it, she's that angry. But then she shakes herself out of it. also manages to take his weapons from him but she can't use the claws, they're too large to fit on her hand, she's sad about it. it would have been too much awesome sakura i'm sorry .___.)
Sasuke and Naruto are worried about her but they're still pissed at each other so it doesn't resolve jack shit.
*Naruto / Zenko: Kon (fox dude) is in the stands, still badly injured, cold hard stare at team seven. Zenko hate fear, Naruto ;_; (he feels so horrible about killing their teammate, wow, and he was the nicest of the three.)
Zenko and Kon are both vengeful people, though on their own they would have remembered this and looked for an occasion down the road (like srsly YEARS later if necessary) because they already know they can't take Naruto and there are jounin everywhere between the matches. But a Grass Country leader or Danzou-like elder recruited them, they're supposed to discredit the hokage / deprive her of one of her big weapons / put a strain between konoha and suna, but really they're happy to help at this point.
As they're fighting, Kon sneakily tries to summon Kyuubi -- area summonings like he does, which call up any normal animal that's in the vicinity instead of targeting a special animal, are hard to detect. The plan is to get Kyuubi out and about again in the middle of the stadium so that the kages present have no choice but to slaughter him right there before he rampages.
this time they have no medic nin to force Naruto to sleep, so when fox guy summons Naruto, they're both awake and aware. Kyuubi and Naruto have to start talking again.
Kyuubi is all RAGE at everyone, naruto and kon and *everyone else*.
Naruto stands unmoving as they talk, red chakra seeping out everywhere but unseeing. Zenko gets him though the heart!!!! (and immediately retreats to the arena wall, not THAT stupid) Ghk. They yank out molten metal, heal over immediately, gonna kill her, gonna -- no they *can't*, Naruto doesn't want to be like that--
Kyuubi doesn't want to become that, I hate you, I hate you, it's not fun anymore if they can't fight you changed me, *you changed me* and (of course he had to prove he hadn't changed at all. hence the kiddie stabbitty) they're hurting the pink bitch (because of the backlash from kyuuchakra, she's in pain) and I *care* what the *fuck* (flashback to the fight and why he was so furious at her) => Naruto realizes Kyuubi is angry because Naruto's influence is changing him. He doesn't LIKE wanton slaughter anymore! it's not FUN if they can't fight him! He almost wants to LET WEAKLINGS GO??? over half of the evil shit he did to Sakura and the kiddie team during the second stage was basically Kyuubi being OH NO YOU WILL NOT CHANGE ME SEE HOW I AM STILL MYSELF HAHAHA ha ha it's not as fun as i remember somehow .___.
Naruto is still pissed off at him but this time he tops pretty decisively, and he can feel that Kyuubi is confused and lashing out at the things naruto's influence is starting to make him feel and terrified of that time when they'll have merged so much that kyuubi will have ceased to exist, which is the way the seal works in teamworkverse, so... mngh k. (so forgiving naruto why D:) "Oh. ... let's take her out."
(tails become real at the roots, the way he grows real claws and pads and teeth. Five of them. they charge up a Kyuubi chakra rasengan!! oh jesus zenko might have bitten off way more than she can chew here D: D: D:)
(suddenly the irritating constant tugtug call ends (kakashi & sakura found kon)
they're entirely in control and have a retty good synchronization going on, they can feel/see the Kages watching ready to fight but they only have eyes for zenko an the man she keeps glancing at for help. kyuubi is the one who's suspicious of that, naruto is the one who asks her who once they have her pinned? Or maybe he just asks her to tell that guy to give it up, konoha is theirs and they'll show anyone who tries for it what a monster is.
Meanwhile Sakura has felt the fox-summoning chakra tug/echo through her own chakra pipeline seal, and she and Kakashi find Kon and manage to stop his seal so he stops messing up the fight. Sakura is INCENSED because after what happened to Naruto because of them and how he was almost broken by the horrible shit Kyuubi did using his body she almost doesn't CARE that their teammate is dead okay no it sucks because she liked him and IF THEY GO AFTER NARUTO AGAIN IT WILL BE THE LAST FUCKING TIME. she is angry enough she doesn't care the dude is in a wheelchair, he's being dangerous to the man she loves and this will NOT FUCKING STAND. (ok one of the men she loves but at this point she is pretty aware that yes it's totally different from her feelings toward Sasuke but YES HE IS HER MAN AAAAAAAAAAAA SHE WILL BITE she just really can't stand it when Naruto gets emotionally hurt and it's so bad it SHOWS, it's just too wrong.) (also kon is a ninja, so wheelchair, whatever.)
So Naruto and Kyuubi stop being distracted by Kon's interference and win the match as cleanly as Naruto can make it (they didnt use the kyuubi rasengan cause uh yeah no there are people in the arena and also zenko would end up in so many chunks. Kyuubi is too disgruntled/sulky/depressed to really push for dismemberment and things. XD;;;) Zenko HATES them for winning so NICELY, tho. Shaking your hand? like *fuck*. but that's the last we see of Team Summons in this fic and probably ever; they tried, they were beaten, they can't try again without being obvious and being thrown to the wolves by their superiors, okay fine let's end it here for now.
So that's the naruto and kyuubi relationship back on tracks, though with a MAJOR setback to work on but at least it's not totally stalled at the NOPE FUCK YOU station any longer and after spending a month in the dark and starting to accept that yes after centuries of being an inchangeable monument of hate and chaotic destruction he IS evolving, Kyuubi is ready to cooperate more. he got used to using naruto's senses and chatting it up okay!!! XD
*Hyousa / Kasumi
Naruto should, because he'll be fighting one of them in the third stage, but he's not really watching because he's talking with team seven (maybe just kakashi idk depends) about Kyuubi. The consensus is a lot of "huh."
At some point before stage three but idk when sasuke and sakura have this conversation (without naruto around cause he'd make it way more confrontational XD):
Saku: Sasuke... are you okay?
Sasu: ...?
Saku: *frowns a little. She caught him brooding and they both know it* You know, I'm still angry at you. (she means about him using his body to shield her from itachi, and she's using it to mean YOU STILL OWE ME)
Sasu: ... I'm fine.
Saku: *narrows her eyes, then decides to try another angle* I haven't been saying anything -- you didn't seem to want it -- but you haven't been alright for a while now. I worry anyway.
Sasu: ... when have I ever been fine? *explosive sigh* I can deal, Sakura.
Saku: Deal with what? *soft, persuasive voice* Tell me what you're thinking about.
Sasu: *a little annoyed at being nagged* Just stuff. Various things.
Saku: *doesn't say anything*
Sasu: ... it'd be easier with the baby, if we knew which of us is the father. *quiet, not looking at her* even if it wasn't me -- I'd rather know.
Saku: Oh. *aware that he's using this as a misdirection over other issues, but this pain is real enough. But her pain...* ... if I hadn't been pregnant, would you still have done that?
Sasu: *blink*
Saku: that thing I'm angry at you about. *hard glare*
Sasu: Shielding you? *taken aback, hesitates* .. I don't know. *--no, shit* Sakura -- wait. If you'd never gotten pregnant. I don't know. I didn't -- want to let -- the two of you -- I didn't want that. *slightly agitated glare/avoidance* But if. If you lost the child -- you, as you are now, I. *goddamn it, goddamn it, it's so hard to say*
Saku: *cups his face in her hands and draws him close, to hide in her neck* ... shh, it's okay, you don't have to...
Sasu: *whispers* yes.
Saku: *... goes teary-eyed, hugs, eyes closed* *after a little bit* Ah -- I don't think we ever discussed this, but I always meant ... if the baby isn't... yours, or his... her next sibling would be. I thought that was so evident I didn't need to say it, but-
Sasu: yeah. I knew that. But. Mnhh. *nice to hear, he means*
and then they huggle. u.u~
STAGE 3
Sasuke / Sakura: they go a few rounds and Sakura shows off her PUNCHES OF DEATH some (way more fine control now! any part of her body with almost zero notice) and then her HEY SURPRISE CHAKRA STRINGS SEE YOU SHOULDA WATCHED MY MATCH, and Sasuke shows off his new cat summons (he got the scroll as payment for helping kon and zenko so they wouldn't feel indebted to him and then he was like the fuck do i do with that... oh why not kakashi said figure out a new attack no one'll figure out this one) haha look at that -- basically trying not to use the devastating skills straight away, but it's still a pretty technical and precise fight and they're both planning things way in advance with counterstrikes and I KNEW YOU'D DO THAT HAVE A TRAP IN THE FACE. It's the kind of fight you can only have with someone who you have observed and studied and analyzed in almost obsessive detail. XD eventually sasuke catches himself being NOT super tense anymore over accidentally catching sakura in the stomach and even finding it *fun*??? D; it's not fun in the same way as naruto and UNBRIDLED VIOLENCE but it makes for a srs workout for his brain.
When her lower endurance (much better than it was, but she will never be a bred-for-war fightmachine that way) catches up with her, Sakura eventually ends the fight, because Sasuke would win if he fought normally -- like okay if he was more serious with his fire jutsu? Nope, roasted Sakura. :/ (...or if she had put poison on one of her kunai or used healing chakra to fuck up his organs, buuuuut nope. it would only have worked precisely because he would never expect her to actually try to assassinate him, anyways.) She's satisfied, she wanted to prove she fought well and he took her seriously and respected her, and she might be starting to understand how fighting as a mark of positive emotions works for Sasuke on a more than academic level too.
She ends the fight via launching a last totally unexpected ALL OR NOTHING attack à la naruto and then he ... predictably knocks her on her ass and pins her down with his foot and then he's like "... where's the counter attack" and staring down at her because she's sprawled in the dust and GIGGLING, and she's like LMAO you win XDDD i have bruises oh my buises oh lord. and then he's like "but we could have lasted longer" and she's like "but you still have your fight with naruto after me and he's going to whine if i exhaust you and I REALLY WANT THE TWO OF YOU TO FIX YOUR GRUMPIES SO STAY IN THAT ARENA UNTIL ITS DONE K i love you *Sakura out*
(she might have to explain her reasoning to judge afterward -- though that part was inspired by edenfalling's Guardian where an OC explained her reasoning to a judge before he judged it acceptable. Basically goes : "I'm pregnant. Even if i get to be made a chuunin, I'll have to waste months getting back into shape and won't be able to act as a chuunin straight away. Might as well let him win and have one more chance to prove himself and become a chuunin because I won't be able to get the good missions and provide for our kid for a while yet. We're a team. I have to think of the good of the whole team." What, sentimentality? OFFENDED they could suggest it.)
Naruto spends the whole match cheering for Sakura (he's still ksst at Sasuke some, but mostly by pig headedness now) yelling brawly advice and teasing BOOO when Sasuke has the upper hand and being all LOOK AT MYLOVTEAMMATES THEY ARE COOL I LIKE MY TEAMMATES to the point where everyone around him in the stands is like... can't he sit down and be quiet and shikamaru is all DESPAIR and Ino is giggling her ass off. Temari laughs too but ends up sitting him down and putting her war fan on his head menacingly XD
*Naruto / Kasumi : (still hammering things out with Kyuubi, dealing with augmented senses and trying to calibrate their chakra output, but he wins anyway with ridiculous ease. Sakura laughs at him but then cheers anyway when he preens.)
FINAL MATCH
"You can take a break if you want to, gaiz -- no? well okay then."
Naruto / Sasuke: yay. This is basically ninja porn, and the actors are having FUN and everyone can see it -- but they stop and concede to each other at pretty much the same moment because dude, the arena is not taking its beating like a man. XD they'd be endangering the spectators if this went on and they showed off enough for the judges to decide anyway.
they were using the fight to get out their fears and frustration and SHITFUCKHATE at kyuu/ita ;è.é; as always with them, once they beat each other up all is well and forgiven once again and they're reassured that the other dude is back in a stable and strong frame of mind and ready to TAKE ON THE WORLD.
(the last people who didn't yet know they were fucking know it afterwards, though, because the way they fight has "showing off for someone i want in bed" written all over it. -___-;; only a civilian would miss it.)
Spoiler: They all get to be chuunin.
Also two days later on the way back they almost sink Gaara's boat having a three-way rematch and Kankuro kicks Naruto and Sakura off the boat to swim it off and he doesn't quite dare kick Sasuke but Sasuke shrugs and jumps in after them and there might possibly be some groping involved under water level. >_>;;;;;;;; after that they jog on the waves after the boat for a while as light exercise and kakashi is all "... ahh, children" and quit determinedly does not find them adorable and terrible.
Then there was supposed to be a Teamwork 4 where the baby was ACTUALLY BORN
and also where they met other jinchuuriki
and akatsuki decided to start moving
but too much plot i can't ;___; the wedding fic deals with some issues that were going to reoccur in teamwork 4 so I should probably only write one of the two anyways because even if it makes sense in real life that even when gou thought you'd whacked a personal issue it comes back in fiction it can get annoying to have a concluded plotline progress backwards to be fixed yet AGAIN, and wedding fic is way shorter and NO FIGHT SCENES, and we will have to assume that after that their lives are awesome and they rule everything. I might tell people everything ever about all the kids they have and all the events in their lives up to age sixty, but that'll be ifwhen I finish the wedding fic, or decide i can't finish it either idk. But yeah.
So.
Plot summary under the cut.
Where we last saw our heroes...
The Kyuubi and then Itachi drama just happened -- Sasuke chose to shield Sakura even though he might die rather than attack Itachi -- big turning point, my new family > my old one. Then there's one month of training and hopefully mastering new jutsu, then the last tournament stage.
(I think by that point I was sick and tired of writing fight scenes for a hundred bazillion chapters, and I had blown the dramatic load early with the Kyuubi+Itachi combo (i came up with these events by asking myself what is the WORST thing that could happen to them and not be lethal and Sakura: get to feel utterly useless, Naruto, lose control and hurt someone with your own hands, and Sasuke: HI NIISAN) and everything that came after that felt anticlimatic, or had to be dragged on even though it should have been resolved for the sake of still having things to resolve before the epilogue like some naruti/sasuke conflict. I couldn't figure out how to fix it, how to re-up the drama levels high enough, and the fight scenes felt like such a chore but not writing them felt like a copout because plot relevant stuff happened in them and aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.)
Naruto has been refusing to communicate with Kyuubi after he killed this one dude and almost killed that kid and hurt Sasuke and Sakura, Sasuke is still mulling on his decision because Itachi has been his LIFE for so long that even after having decided for sure it still feels weird, and Sakura is completely GRRR with the need to catch up to them already and her constant worries about the both of them and the way they won't TALK ARGH.
I had Naruto have it pointed out that Sasuke's been acting "normal" even though Itachi, and he thinks it's a HUGE RED FLAG and decides to go running to find him and ask him point blank, and yes Naruto this is totally the discussion I want to have before a hopefully nonlethal tournament i want to think about my brother who i plan to kill it does wonders for my concentration. They have an argument and walk away all pissed off with each other. (kinda forced aaaa)
Meanwhile Sakura is fighting a Sand puppeteer dude and neither of them is watching, which she's pretty hurt about because she was sneaky-awesome and she wanted to see if either of them noticed. (basically she figures out his chakra strings on the fly. it's ALL about chakra control, which is playing right into her strengths, after all)
Naruto has a fight with some random person who cares, and then there's the return of ZENKO of Team Summon -- that's the bitchy one who summons wolves, she's in a team with amoral prettyboy who summons foxes and messed it up enough that Kyuubi got free, and their huge healer tank teammate who summons kitties got himself killed by Kyuubi. They met after the second test in the hospital and Zenko showed she was disdainful and not interested, which was good at the time because Sakura would have killed her very dead.
*Zenko / Aokusa (Grass) : they're both from the same country but he throws it because Zenko will maim him if he doesn't and he can tell.
Sakura is frowny as she watches, kind of notices the "throwing it" thing. Also fuck, Naruto'll have to go against Zenko next scene. She really doesn't appreciate that, because she knows Zenko leans hard on the side of blaming Naruto because she has to blame SOMEONE and Zenko can't find it in herself to blame either her surviving and dead teammates for accidentally helping Kyuubi get free when they didn't know he was in there.
*Inoru / Hyousa (Sand): not that interesting (Inoru doesn't know enough Yamanaka clan techniques), but meanwhile Ino and Sakura are watching and Ino comments on Sakura's new lesbian tendencies. Re: that time Naruto dragged Sasuke into the girls' showers and they got caught and he swanned out in sexy no jutsu and Sakura was left behind in a gaggle of kunoichi to deal with the fallout. Ino's little bratty cousin heard about it and dutifully told Ino all about it, and she is DELIGHTED to discuss it in more detail ohohoho.
Another random match, and then STAGE TWO.
*Sasuke / Asamoya
Sasuke is still pissed off at Naruto mentioning Itachi so he DESTROYS the poor guy. :(
*Kaido / Sakura : another medic! with wolverine claw weapons. :X he aims for her stomach or tries to use medical jutsu in a way that would hurt her organs, she gets injured a bit, but wins. (Tempted to pull on Kyuubi chakra to end it, she's that angry. But then she shakes herself out of it. also manages to take his weapons from him but she can't use the claws, they're too large to fit on her hand, she's sad about it. it would have been too much awesome sakura i'm sorry .___.)
Sasuke and Naruto are worried about her but they're still pissed at each other so it doesn't resolve jack shit.
*Naruto / Zenko: Kon (fox dude) is in the stands, still badly injured, cold hard stare at team seven. Zenko hate fear, Naruto ;_; (he feels so horrible about killing their teammate, wow, and he was the nicest of the three.)
Zenko and Kon are both vengeful people, though on their own they would have remembered this and looked for an occasion down the road (like srsly YEARS later if necessary) because they already know they can't take Naruto and there are jounin everywhere between the matches. But a Grass Country leader or Danzou-like elder recruited them, they're supposed to discredit the hokage / deprive her of one of her big weapons / put a strain between konoha and suna, but really they're happy to help at this point.
As they're fighting, Kon sneakily tries to summon Kyuubi -- area summonings like he does, which call up any normal animal that's in the vicinity instead of targeting a special animal, are hard to detect. The plan is to get Kyuubi out and about again in the middle of the stadium so that the kages present have no choice but to slaughter him right there before he rampages.
this time they have no medic nin to force Naruto to sleep, so when fox guy summons Naruto, they're both awake and aware. Kyuubi and Naruto have to start talking again.
Kyuubi is all RAGE at everyone, naruto and kon and *everyone else*.
Naruto stands unmoving as they talk, red chakra seeping out everywhere but unseeing. Zenko gets him though the heart!!!! (and immediately retreats to the arena wall, not THAT stupid) Ghk. They yank out molten metal, heal over immediately, gonna kill her, gonna -- no they *can't*, Naruto doesn't want to be like that--
Kyuubi doesn't want to become that, I hate you, I hate you, it's not fun anymore if they can't fight you changed me, *you changed me* and (of course he had to prove he hadn't changed at all. hence the kiddie stabbitty) they're hurting the pink bitch (because of the backlash from kyuuchakra, she's in pain) and I *care* what the *fuck* (flashback to the fight and why he was so furious at her) => Naruto realizes Kyuubi is angry because Naruto's influence is changing him. He doesn't LIKE wanton slaughter anymore! it's not FUN if they can't fight him! He almost wants to LET WEAKLINGS GO??? over half of the evil shit he did to Sakura and the kiddie team during the second stage was basically Kyuubi being OH NO YOU WILL NOT CHANGE ME SEE HOW I AM STILL MYSELF HAHAHA ha ha it's not as fun as i remember somehow .___.
Naruto is still pissed off at him but this time he tops pretty decisively, and he can feel that Kyuubi is confused and lashing out at the things naruto's influence is starting to make him feel and terrified of that time when they'll have merged so much that kyuubi will have ceased to exist, which is the way the seal works in teamworkverse, so... mngh k. (so forgiving naruto why D:) "Oh. ... let's take her out."
(tails become real at the roots, the way he grows real claws and pads and teeth. Five of them. they charge up a Kyuubi chakra rasengan!! oh jesus zenko might have bitten off way more than she can chew here D: D: D:)
(suddenly the irritating constant tugtug call ends (kakashi & sakura found kon)
they're entirely in control and have a retty good synchronization going on, they can feel/see the Kages watching ready to fight but they only have eyes for zenko an the man she keeps glancing at for help. kyuubi is the one who's suspicious of that, naruto is the one who asks her who once they have her pinned? Or maybe he just asks her to tell that guy to give it up, konoha is theirs and they'll show anyone who tries for it what a monster is.
Meanwhile Sakura has felt the fox-summoning chakra tug/echo through her own chakra pipeline seal, and she and Kakashi find Kon and manage to stop his seal so he stops messing up the fight. Sakura is INCENSED because after what happened to Naruto because of them and how he was almost broken by the horrible shit Kyuubi did using his body she almost doesn't CARE that their teammate is dead okay no it sucks because she liked him and IF THEY GO AFTER NARUTO AGAIN IT WILL BE THE LAST FUCKING TIME. she is angry enough she doesn't care the dude is in a wheelchair, he's being dangerous to the man she loves and this will NOT FUCKING STAND. (ok one of the men she loves but at this point she is pretty aware that yes it's totally different from her feelings toward Sasuke but YES HE IS HER MAN AAAAAAAAAAAA SHE WILL BITE she just really can't stand it when Naruto gets emotionally hurt and it's so bad it SHOWS, it's just too wrong.) (also kon is a ninja, so wheelchair, whatever.)
So Naruto and Kyuubi stop being distracted by Kon's interference and win the match as cleanly as Naruto can make it (they didnt use the kyuubi rasengan cause uh yeah no there are people in the arena and also zenko would end up in so many chunks. Kyuubi is too disgruntled/sulky/depressed to really push for dismemberment and things. XD;;;) Zenko HATES them for winning so NICELY, tho. Shaking your hand? like *fuck*. but that's the last we see of Team Summons in this fic and probably ever; they tried, they were beaten, they can't try again without being obvious and being thrown to the wolves by their superiors, okay fine let's end it here for now.
So that's the naruto and kyuubi relationship back on tracks, though with a MAJOR setback to work on but at least it's not totally stalled at the NOPE FUCK YOU station any longer and after spending a month in the dark and starting to accept that yes after centuries of being an inchangeable monument of hate and chaotic destruction he IS evolving, Kyuubi is ready to cooperate more. he got used to using naruto's senses and chatting it up okay!!! XD
*Hyousa / Kasumi
Naruto should, because he'll be fighting one of them in the third stage, but he's not really watching because he's talking with team seven (maybe just kakashi idk depends) about Kyuubi. The consensus is a lot of "huh."
At some point before stage three but idk when sasuke and sakura have this conversation (without naruto around cause he'd make it way more confrontational XD):
Saku: Sasuke... are you okay?
Sasu: ...?
Saku: *frowns a little. She caught him brooding and they both know it* You know, I'm still angry at you. (she means about him using his body to shield her from itachi, and she's using it to mean YOU STILL OWE ME)
Sasu: ... I'm fine.
Saku: *narrows her eyes, then decides to try another angle* I haven't been saying anything -- you didn't seem to want it -- but you haven't been alright for a while now. I worry anyway.
Sasu: ... when have I ever been fine? *explosive sigh* I can deal, Sakura.
Saku: Deal with what? *soft, persuasive voice* Tell me what you're thinking about.
Sasu: *a little annoyed at being nagged* Just stuff. Various things.
Saku: *doesn't say anything*
Sasu: ... it'd be easier with the baby, if we knew which of us is the father. *quiet, not looking at her* even if it wasn't me -- I'd rather know.
Saku: Oh. *aware that he's using this as a misdirection over other issues, but this pain is real enough. But her pain...* ... if I hadn't been pregnant, would you still have done that?
Sasu: *blink*
Saku: that thing I'm angry at you about. *hard glare*
Sasu: Shielding you? *taken aback, hesitates* .. I don't know. *--no, shit* Sakura -- wait. If you'd never gotten pregnant. I don't know. I didn't -- want to let -- the two of you -- I didn't want that. *slightly agitated glare/avoidance* But if. If you lost the child -- you, as you are now, I. *goddamn it, goddamn it, it's so hard to say*
Saku: *cups his face in her hands and draws him close, to hide in her neck* ... shh, it's okay, you don't have to...
Sasu: *whispers* yes.
Saku: *... goes teary-eyed, hugs, eyes closed* *after a little bit* Ah -- I don't think we ever discussed this, but I always meant ... if the baby isn't... yours, or his... her next sibling would be. I thought that was so evident I didn't need to say it, but-
Sasu: yeah. I knew that. But. Mnhh. *nice to hear, he means*
and then they huggle. u.u~
STAGE 3
Sasuke / Sakura: they go a few rounds and Sakura shows off her PUNCHES OF DEATH some (way more fine control now! any part of her body with almost zero notice) and then her HEY SURPRISE CHAKRA STRINGS SEE YOU SHOULDA WATCHED MY MATCH, and Sasuke shows off his new cat summons (he got the scroll as payment for helping kon and zenko so they wouldn't feel indebted to him and then he was like the fuck do i do with that... oh why not kakashi said figure out a new attack no one'll figure out this one) haha look at that -- basically trying not to use the devastating skills straight away, but it's still a pretty technical and precise fight and they're both planning things way in advance with counterstrikes and I KNEW YOU'D DO THAT HAVE A TRAP IN THE FACE. It's the kind of fight you can only have with someone who you have observed and studied and analyzed in almost obsessive detail. XD eventually sasuke catches himself being NOT super tense anymore over accidentally catching sakura in the stomach and even finding it *fun*??? D; it's not fun in the same way as naruto and UNBRIDLED VIOLENCE but it makes for a srs workout for his brain.
When her lower endurance (much better than it was, but she will never be a bred-for-war fightmachine that way) catches up with her, Sakura eventually ends the fight, because Sasuke would win if he fought normally -- like okay if he was more serious with his fire jutsu? Nope, roasted Sakura. :/ (...or if she had put poison on one of her kunai or used healing chakra to fuck up his organs, buuuuut nope. it would only have worked precisely because he would never expect her to actually try to assassinate him, anyways.) She's satisfied, she wanted to prove she fought well and he took her seriously and respected her, and she might be starting to understand how fighting as a mark of positive emotions works for Sasuke on a more than academic level too.
She ends the fight via launching a last totally unexpected ALL OR NOTHING attack à la naruto and then he ... predictably knocks her on her ass and pins her down with his foot and then he's like "... where's the counter attack" and staring down at her because she's sprawled in the dust and GIGGLING, and she's like LMAO you win XDDD i have bruises oh my buises oh lord. and then he's like "but we could have lasted longer" and she's like "but you still have your fight with naruto after me and he's going to whine if i exhaust you and I REALLY WANT THE TWO OF YOU TO FIX YOUR GRUMPIES SO STAY IN THAT ARENA UNTIL ITS DONE K i love you *Sakura out*
(she might have to explain her reasoning to judge afterward -- though that part was inspired by edenfalling's Guardian where an OC explained her reasoning to a judge before he judged it acceptable. Basically goes : "I'm pregnant. Even if i get to be made a chuunin, I'll have to waste months getting back into shape and won't be able to act as a chuunin straight away. Might as well let him win and have one more chance to prove himself and become a chuunin because I won't be able to get the good missions and provide for our kid for a while yet. We're a team. I have to think of the good of the whole team." What, sentimentality? OFFENDED they could suggest it.)
Naruto spends the whole match cheering for Sakura (he's still ksst at Sasuke some, but mostly by pig headedness now) yelling brawly advice and teasing BOOO when Sasuke has the upper hand and being all LOOK AT MY
*Naruto / Kasumi : (still hammering things out with Kyuubi, dealing with augmented senses and trying to calibrate their chakra output, but he wins anyway with ridiculous ease. Sakura laughs at him but then cheers anyway when he preens.)
FINAL MATCH
"You can take a break if you want to, gaiz -- no? well okay then."
Naruto / Sasuke: yay. This is basically ninja porn, and the actors are having FUN and everyone can see it -- but they stop and concede to each other at pretty much the same moment because dude, the arena is not taking its beating like a man. XD they'd be endangering the spectators if this went on and they showed off enough for the judges to decide anyway.
they were using the fight to get out their fears and frustration and SHITFUCKHATE at kyuu/ita ;è.é; as always with them, once they beat each other up all is well and forgiven once again and they're reassured that the other dude is back in a stable and strong frame of mind and ready to TAKE ON THE WORLD.
(the last people who didn't yet know they were fucking know it afterwards, though, because the way they fight has "showing off for someone i want in bed" written all over it. -___-;; only a civilian would miss it.)
Spoiler: They all get to be chuunin.
Also two days later on the way back they almost sink Gaara's boat having a three-way rematch and Kankuro kicks Naruto and Sakura off the boat to swim it off and he doesn't quite dare kick Sasuke but Sasuke shrugs and jumps in after them and there might possibly be some groping involved under water level. >_>;;;;;;;; after that they jog on the waves after the boat for a while as light exercise and kakashi is all "... ahh, children" and quit determinedly does not find them adorable and terrible.
Then there was supposed to be a Teamwork 4 where the baby was ACTUALLY BORN
and also where they met other jinchuuriki
and akatsuki decided to start moving
but too much plot i can't ;___; the wedding fic deals with some issues that were going to reoccur in teamwork 4 so I should probably only write one of the two anyways because even if it makes sense in real life that even when gou thought you'd whacked a personal issue it comes back in fiction it can get annoying to have a concluded plotline progress backwards to be fixed yet AGAIN, and wedding fic is way shorter and NO FIGHT SCENES, and we will have to assume that after that their lives are awesome and they rule everything. I might tell people everything ever about all the kids they have and all the events in their lives up to age sixty, but that'll be ifwhen I finish the wedding fic, or decide i can't finish it either idk. But yeah.
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(It was always intended to be about Team 7 and teamwork in general - but I just realized it could apply to your fic too! ^^ *is silly*)
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Team Kunoichi keeps on being fabulous and kickass and spoiler they totally show up in the wedding fic because naruto needs more people to invite and why not XD so you might see them again!!!
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Then I got to read all the awesomeness; and while it's not "the same" it is still rather satisfying to read your intentions. I feel just shy of 'closure' - which I'm sure will come with 'Wedding Fic'. ^^
Teamwork was my first NaruSakuSasu and it brought me to you; it will always be special to me. Thanks for giving us this much, Asuka. <3
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*petpetpet* .__.
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is definitelyhappening*I can only imagine it on your end.
I've had pets that didn't last that long. >.<It's been awesome, and I completely understand and respect you and your decision. Again: it's been a great ride, thanks for bringing us along with your awesome. ;)no subject
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*socoolbutomgyoucouldn'tpaymetowriteallthosefightscenesrunsawayscreaming*
So yeah, completely understand now, lol XD Sorry to see this fic go, but I look forward to maybe more of Teamwork Wedding in the future :D
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(Anonymous) 2013-09-18 02:53 pm (UTC)(link)But AUGH whose baby was it!?
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I'll spill the beans after the wedding fic, along with the summary of how Teamwork 4 should have gone, and then I'll probably open up questions, like srsly any questions from that 'verse at all, since who will care about spoilers by that point.
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Thank you for writing so many (maaany) amazing pages of story! "Teamwork" is what got me obsessed with team7 in the first place, back in 2008 (ahah so nostalgic XD) and it's very special to me. I'm still impressed at how well you nail characterization, that will never change.
I'm so satisfied with the way you'd have ended the story that I don't think I want to know who's the father now. But of course I'm going to read (avidly) any supplementary info you should decide to share with us int he future. ;)
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TEAM SEVEN FOREVER ;_____________________________;
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What you have outlined sounds awesome too (but yea...I totally understand how you feel...that would be a lot of fight scenes to write...).
:D :D I hope you success in whatever you do in the future and thank you so much for writing Teamwork in the first place.
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Thanks for everything!
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who do I have to tournament-style fight to get a scene of NaruSasu fighting in a way that makes it obvious that they are fucking. I guess that is the double-edged sword of writing things in a satisfyingly long way. Continuing wouldn't have been just a quick, easy end, it would have been a process.