"Sakura-chan, tell them to stop. Tell them my legs have quit. They handed in their official resignation letter."
Naruto dropped to his knees. The sand of the Land of Wind burned through the fabric of his pants.
"You've been walking for ten minutes since the last break, Naruto. Ten. Minutes." Sakura didn't even turn around. She kept moving with a firm step, adjusting her gloves. "If you stop now, we'll leave you here for the vultures."
"The vultures wouldn't want him. Too noisy even when dead," Shikamaru muttered from behind, dragging his feet with hands in pockets. "What a drag. The heat makes thinking a waste of calories."
Naruto ignored the insult and flopped onto his stomach, face pressed against the dune.
"It's the sun. It hates me. It's aiming right at the back of my neck." He rolled onto his back, panting. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"
A puff of smoke burst beside him. An identical copy of Naruto appeared, but with an even more miserable expression than the original.
"Fan me," the original Naruto ordered. "Use your hand. Or your vest. Whatever."
The clone looked at him with narrowed eyes.
"Are you kidding? I'm hot too. I feel the same thing you do, idiot."
"It's an order from the original! Fan me or I'll dispel you!"
The clone grunted, took off his forehead protector to use as a fan, and gave a single waft of air. On the second movement, the clone rolled his eyes, stuck out his tongue, and dispelled into a lazy puff of smoke.
Poof.
"Hey! That is insubordination!" Naruto yelled at the empty air.
A shadow covered him. It was Tenten. She looked down at him, hands on her hips and a backpack strapped to her back that exceeded her own volume.
"Up, Uzumaki. You are blocking the supply route."
Tenten gave him a gentle kick in the shin with the tip of her ninja sandal.
"Tenten... you know about things," Naruto moaned, lifting a hand toward her. "Don't you have a scroll for this? Can't you seal the sun for a while? Just put it in a little paper and we'll take it out when it's night."
Tenten snorted, amused and exasperated.
"Sure. Let me look in my pocket for my Turn Off Giant Star scroll. Right next to the one that produces mint ice cream." She leaned in a little. "Move or I'll seal you inside a teapot and carry you hanging from my pack. And I charge per kilo of extra cargo."
"So aggressive," Naruto muttered, accepting the hand she offered to help him up. "Sakura-chan, Tenten is oppressing me. It's abuse of logistical authority."
"You deserve it," Sakura and Tenten yelled in unison.
The group resumed the march. The wind blew hot and the sand whipped against their exposed skin.
"Shino," called Kiba, walking with Akamaru stuck to his leg. The dog panted with his tongue out, almost crawling. "How long to the next oasis? Akamaru can't take it anymore."
Shino adjusted his sunglasses. Not a drop of sweat rolled down his forehead.
"According to my kikaichu, the humidity in the air has increased. That indicates water about five kilometers away. If we maintain this pace, we will arrive before dusk. If Naruto keeps stopping to argue with his clones, we will arrive tomorrow."
"Hey, my arguments are vital for team morale," Naruto protested, shaking sand off his pants. "And speaking of morale... Tenten, how is the special cargo?"
Tenten rolled her eyes but patted a reinforced wooden box secured with straps to the top of her main pack.
"It's fine, Naruto. It hasn't moved. No one has touched your precious Diplomacy."
"It's not just noodles," Naruto said, getting serious suddenly. "It's the Limited Edition Ichiraku Ramen with seventy-two-hour pork bone broth. It's a gift. If I arrive empty-handed, they'll think Konoha is poor. It's international politics, Tenten. Politics."
"It's soup," Shikamaru said. "And you're going to make it spoil in this heat."
"It's vacuum sealed! I told you, it's state-of-the-art technology!"
"Watch out!" Kiba's yell cut the argument short.
They had reached the crest of a particularly high dune. The wind changed direction abruptly, a lateral gust that almost knocked them down. The sand under Kiba's feet gave way.
Akamaru let out a howl and slipped.
"Akamaru!" Kiba lunged to grab the dog by the harness.
The sudden movement hit Tenten's side. Loaded with double the weight of the others, she lost her balance for a fraction of a second. She stabilized by digging in her heel, but one of the top straps, worn by the sun, came loose with a dry snap.
The wooden box flew off, rolling down the slope of the dune toward a ravine of loose sand and sharp rocks.
Naruto opened his eyes wide.
"NOOO!" Naruto's scream tore through the air. "THE DIPLOMACY!"
He threw himself toward the edge.
Sakura reacted fast, reaching out.
"Naruto, wait! The sand is unstable!"
"It's the seventy-two-hour broth!" he yelled, reaching out uselessly. The box bounced off a rock and shot out into the void of the ravine. It was twenty meters down and falling fast.
"I can't reach," Shino said. "My bugs don't have the carrying strength for that."
"Damn it!" Shikamaru made a hand seal but stopped. "My shadow has no range with this vertical sun."
The box spun in the air.
Tenten took a step forward, pushing Naruto back with her elbow.
"Get out of the way!"
Her right hand went to her waist and, in a fluid movement, she pulled out a small scroll. She threw it into the air in front of her.
"Kai!"
She hit the center of the scroll with an open palm.
"Uzumaki Sealing Style Adapted: Recovery Vortex!"
A suction burst from the scroll. A pale blue chakra chain shot out in a spiral. The end of the chain wrapped around the box in mid-fall, just before it crashed against the rocky bottom.
Tenten gritted her teeth and twisted her wrist in the opposite direction.
"Return!"
With a high-pitched hum, the chain retracted. The box flew back toward them, riding the swirl of energy.
Clack.
Tenten caught the box with her left hand in the air. With her right, she closed the scroll falling gently. The chakra dissipated instantly.
Silence. Only the wind and Naruto's heavy breathing could be heard.
Tenten checked the box, tapped it with her knuckles, and blew a strand of brown hair that had stuck to her forehead.
"Merchandise secured," she said, turning to the group with the box under her arm. "Does anyone else plan to throw vital supplies down a ravine or can we keep going before I melt?"
Kiba blinked, looking at Akamaru and then at Tenten.
"I didn't even see it," Kiba murmured. "I didn't even see when you pulled out the scroll."
"That..." Shino adjusted his glasses again.
Naruto broke the silence with a burst.
"TENTEN!"
He lunged at her. Tenten lifted the box to protect it, but Naruto hugged her, lifting her off the ground.
"Let go of me, idiot! It's forty degrees out!" she yelled, kicking.
"That was amazing!" Naruto put her down but kept holding her by the shoulders, shaking her. "You went swish and then ZAP and the box came back! It was better than magic!"
"It's Fuinjutsu, Naruto. You gave me the notes," she said, trying to hide a smile by turning her face away. "I just applied it."
"But you did it super fast!" Naruto turned to Sakura, pointing at Tenten. "Sakura-chan, you saw it! It was faster than the old man... well, sealing soups! Nobody does that!"
Sakura smiled, crossing her arms with approval.
"I have to admit it. Your reflexes have improved insanely, Tenten. That box was lost."
Hinata nodded.
"The chakra control was perfect, Tenten-san. The rotation prevented the box from breaking due to the force of the pull."
Tenten adjusted her forehead protector. Her cheeks were red.
"Well, someone has to make sure we don't lose the food," she said, slamming the box into Naruto's chest. "Take your 'diplomacy'. Next time you drop it, I'm leaving it there for the scorpions."
Naruto hugged the box, pressing his cheek against the wood.
"You are the best. I will never doubt you. You are the boss of supplies. The goddess of inventory."
"Stop talking nonsense and walk," Tenten ordered, although the smile didn't leave her face. She turned to lead the march. "And Shikamaru, if you complain about the weight again, I'm putting you in a scroll."
"Understood," Shikamaru said, raising his hands. "Troublesome women with fast scrolls. Noted."
*****
The night arrived in the desert. The cold replaced the suffocating heat in a matter of minutes.
The team had set up a basic camp sheltered by a rock formation. The fire crackled in the center. Kiba and Akamaru slept curled up in a ball. Shino was on guard, motionless on a high rock.
Naruto sat near the fire, a blanket over his shoulders. Beside him, Tenten was cleaning her tools. The rhythmic sound of a cloth passing over metal filled the silence.
"Hey," Naruto whispered. He no longer had the hyperactive energy of the morning.
Tenten didn't look up from her kunai.
"What is it? If you're hungry, there are dry rations. We aren't opening the ramen box."
Naruto chuckled softly and poked the embers with a dry branch.
"It's not that. It's just... that spiral trick. Did it really work well? I mean, did it feel right?"
Tenten stopped her hand. She looked at the kunai shining in the firelight and then at Naruto.
"Better than I thought," she admitted. She rested the tool in her lap. "I always thought about throwing things. Throw, throw, throw. I never thought about... bringing them. Or keeping them ready in a state of rotation inside the seal so they come out faster."
She made a gesture with her hand, mimicking the swirl.
"Using rotation to speed up the exit and entry... changes things. It's instant. The weapon is already coming toward me before I finish thinking about it."
Naruto nodded, fascinated.
"I told you it would work. The Uzumaki knew a thing or two about spinning."
"Yeah, well." Tenten looked at him sideways. "Thanks for the idea. Although your explanation was terrible. 'You go brrr and then fium and spin the chakra like this'."
Naruto shrugged, smiling.
"You got the point, right? That's what matters."
"I guess."
Tenten gathered her things and began rolling up her scrolls. Each object had its exact place.
"You know," Naruto said suddenly. "I'm glad I asked you for help with logistics. Tsunade-baachan wanted to send some random chunin from administration. But I told her no."
Tenten stopped.
"Oh yeah?"
"Yeah. I said: 'Nobody knows where everything goes better than Tenten'. If we're in a mess and I need an explosive kunai, or a bandage, or a box of stupid soup... I know you'll know where it is and give it to me before I ask."
Tenten looked down at her hands.
"After the exams... after Temari wiped the floor with me..." Her voice was low. "I felt useless. Neji is a genius. Lee is a force of nature. And I just threw things that people dodged."
She clenched her fist over the fabric of the scroll.
"But this... this feels different. It feels mine."
"It is yours," Naruto affirmed. He leaned a little toward her. "And you're going to be big, Tenten. Seriously. When you have your own shop of legendary weapons and all that, you're going to have a line of people waiting."
Tenten snorted, but this time it was a genuine laugh. She gave him a friendly shove with her shoulder.
"I hope so. I have to pay the bills somehow."
"You will," Naruto assured, regaining his balance. "And when you're famous and everyone wants your custom weapons, I'll tell everyone I was your first client. The Great Naruto Uzumaki, client number one."
He gave a thumbs up.
"So you better give me a discount."
Tenten shook her head, smiling as she put the last roll in her bag.
"In your dreams, Uzumaki. I'm charging you double. For the trouble and for making me run after your soup."
"What a scammer!" Naruto complained, laughing. "That is consumer abuse!"
"It's ninja capitalism. Learn."
"You'll see. When I'm Hokage, I'll forbid charging heroes double."
"When you're Hokage, you'll have enough money to pay, cheapskate."
They fell silent for a moment, watching the fire. There was no more discomfort. Only two teammates sharing the warmth.
"Good night, Tenten," Naruto said, settling into the sand.
Tenten finished closing her backpack and lay back in her own sleeping bag.
"Good night, Captain Ramen."
Naruto let out one last giggle before falling asleep. Tenten stayed awake a minute longer, looking at her right hand, remembering the feeling of the spinning chakra. For the first time in a long time, she couldn't wait for the sun to rise to try it again.
******
The next morning the sun shot over the horizon.
"Water," croaked Kiba. "I'd give Akamaru for a glass of water with ice."
Akamaru barked weakly in protest.
"It's a figure of speech, boy," Kiba apologized.
Naruto walked shuffling his feet, but strangely, he wasn't complaining as much. He carried the ramen box tied to his chest with one of Tenten's spare straps.
"You're carrying that like it's a baby," Shikamaru commented.
"It's VIP protection," Naruto replied. "Tenten said if it falls again, she's not picking it up. And I believe her. That woman has a look that's scary when she gets mad."
Tenten, who was in the vanguard next to Sakura, turned her head.
"I heard you, Uzumaki."
"It was a compliment!" shouted Naruto.
Sakura laughed and wiped sweat from her forehead.
"Hey, Tenten," Sakura said. "What you did yesterday with the chakra chain? Do you think you could do it with medical supplies? Sometimes, in combat, throwing an antidote to someone far away is risky. If I could... send it with precision..."
Tenten looked at her, interested.
"It depends on the weight of the flask. If you apply too much rotation, the glass will shatter. But if we adjust the seal to cushion the impact upon exit..."
Tenten pulled out a small notebook and started scribbling while walking.
"It could work. We'd need reinforced vials. But yes, the theory is the same. Speed and precision."
Sakura smiled.
"We should test it when we get back to the village."
"Count on it."
From behind, Naruto watched Tenten and Sakura talk, with Shikamaru and Shino adding occasional comments about physics and trajectories.
"Hey, Hinata," whispered Naruto.
Hinata, walking beside him, gave a little jump.
"Y-yes, Naruto-kun?"
"Tenten looks cool today, right? She doesn't have that 'I hate everything' face she had when leaving the village anymore."
Hinata looked at the girl with the buns, who was now gesturing explaining how to seal a tent.
"Yes," Hinata agreed. "It seems she has found her place."
"Yeah..." Naruto adjusted the box on his chest. "Her place."
"Naruto!" Tenten's scream snapped him out of his thoughts. She had stopped and was pointing an accusing finger at him. "Did you drink my spare canteen? The one marked with red tape."
Naruto froze.
"Uh... that was yours? I thought it was... public domain?"
"Uzumaki!"
"Run!" Kiba whispered to him. "Run before she seals you!"
Naruto shot off up the dune.
"It was for emergencies! Come back here!" Tenten took off after him. "If you don't come back, I'm going to throw a rain of frying pans at you!"
"Help! The Tool Mistress has gone crazy!" Naruto yelled, laughing while running.
Sakura sighed, but she was smiling.
"They are like children," she said.
"They are noisy," Shikamaru corrected. "But at least they aren't complaining about the heat anymore."
"Let's go," said Shino. "If Tenten catches him, we will need a medic. And I do not want to write the 'death by frying pan' report."
The group sped up after them, laughter and shouts getting lost in the vastness of the desert.
*******
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