Chapter 48: Planting Seeds

Having agreed to meet up with her again following their first meeting, Wu ate breakfast with Guren and Tayuya before heading out to a small market Temari had introduced him to the previous day. Suna had several bazaars in place of a commercial district, so it was possible to find and barter for commodities from all across the world while simultaneously enjoying food from various street vendors.

Spotting Wu quickly, as he was the only one dressed distinctly different from everyone else, Temari flagged him down, shouting, "Dadi-kun! Over here-!"

Though he had spotted the blonde well in advance, Wu pretended to be pleasantly surprised by greeting, casually raising his hand before making his way over to remark, "You changed your outfit. Is lavender your favorite color?"

As Temari had switched out her lavender robe for a comfortable-looking spaghetti-strap tank top, equally as purple, Wu correctly assumed it was the girl's favorite color. In response, an awkward chuckle emanated from Temari's throat as she combed back her bangs and answered, "I learned in the Academy that purple compliments yellow. Since then, I try to wear at least one purple item on me at all times..."

Nodding his head in approval, Wu asserted, "It suits you. Still, I can't help but wonder how you can maintain such a fair complexion? Just yesterday, we were roaming around under the hot sun for hours. It's a wonder you're not red as a lobster or brown as a baked potato..."

Shrugging her shoulders, Temari admitted, "To be perfectly honest with you, I'm not entirely sure. I do moisturize and apply sunscreen when I'm going to be out for an extended period, but I've never tanned or suffered a sunburn. A lot of girls in Suna are like that."

Never one to miss out on a perfect setup, Wu feigned shock as he replied, "I hadn't noticed. Guess a certain someone kept me distracted..."

Rolling her eyes, Temari remarked, "We should get going if we're going to catch the earliest screening. The theater here gets pretty crowded in the afternoon, and I don't like cramped places."

Adopting a faint smile, Wu responded with a carefree, "Hai, hai..." before extending his hand to grasp Temari's. She tensed as he did so but didn't attempt to break free as he seized the initiative to guide her through the bazaar. He had memorized the layout of every place they visited the day prior, so it didn't take them long to reach their destination, a tiny theater with a single matinee. Suna wasn't exactly the most prosperous country in the world, but the increasing popularity of motion pictures had led to the previous generation's Kazekage authorizing the construction of a theater.

While Wu didn't particularly care for movies, Temari's face practically lit up as she exclaimed, "Oh! They're playing one of Yukie Fujikaze's movies, The Adventures of Princess Gale! I love this series, and Yukie Fujikaze is an amazing actress."

Seeing the woman with raven-black hair and ice-blue eyes plastered on the movie poster, Wu remarked, "She certainly looks like a princess..."

Narrowing her eyes into a broad smile, Temari hummed, "I know, right~? Some rumors claim that the actress, Yukie Fujikaze, is actually a bonafide princess from a ruined kingdom. If she ever comes to Suna on one of her promotional tours, I'll have to ask her directly."

Seizing the initiative from Wu, Temari dragged him to the ticket stand to purchase a total of twelve tickets. She hated having people sit in front of or behind her during movies, so two tickets were for herself and Wu, while the rest were to ensure at least a one-seat perimeter around them. As for where she got the money? Being the daughter of the Kazekage meant she was practically royalty within the village of Suna...

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As his stay in Suna stretched from days into weeks, Wu's boredom began to compound with each passing day. He went through the motions during his outings with Temari, but Suna simply didn't have anything 'interesting' to do. When Wu asked her to take him to the most interesting place in the village, Temari used her status as the Kazekage's daughter to grant them access to a fucking greenhouse...

Though it was admittedly more scenic than the rest of Suna, Wu's visit to the greenhouse had affirmed just how pitiful the desert-dwelling peoples' lives were. Even more ridiculous was the fact that they didn't 'have' to live that way. They didn't have that many people living within their borders, so if they bargained with a peace-loving shill like Hiruzen, they could migrate and become a part of Konoha. Instead, even Temari 'resented' the people of Konoha because they 'could never understand' the hardships of people who called the desert home. Just like people who rightly avoided flames could never comprehend the misery of those who willfully set themselves aflame...

"Are you listening to me, Dadi-kun...?"

Blinking back to awareness, Wu met Temari's slightly judgmental gaze and admitted, "I should have been." before following it up with a smile and revealing, "I just got a little distracted thinking about the fact we wouldn't be able to see each other for a while..."

"Ah..."

Having succumbed to Wu's incessant charms during their time together, Temari actually felt guilty for glaring at him, an awkward smile developing across her face as she proposed, "You could always stick around until the Chunin Exams. We're going to be...'working together' a lot in the future, so I can introduce you to my brothers."

Though he did have an interest in Temari's youngest brother, the vessel of the One-Tailed Demon Tanuki, Wu shook his head and said, "I have a prior arrangement to attend. The next time we meet will probably be during the Chunin Exam Finals..."

Unaware of the hidden meaning within Wu's words, Temari exhaled a faint sigh, maintaining a faint smile as she said, "Look on the bright side. Once this mess has been settled, we'll have plenty of time to spend together..."

As her father had eventually made it very clear what his intentions were for her future, Temari began to look forward to her future 'independence.' She and Wu had kicked it off from day one, so most of her apprehensions about the future had disappeared. Her only complaint was that Wu didn't seem content with just a single woman, readily revealing he had 'several' and would likely 'acquire' even more. Hell, at one point, he had even joked about tracking down her favorite actress and having her join them...

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Returning a smile of his own, Wu surprised Temari by extending his hand to caress her left cheek as he asserted, "I'm looking forward to it..." in a deep, almost velvety smooth tone.

Feeling her throat tense and her mouth dry, Temari inadvertently licked her lips and swallowed. Wu was two, almost three years younger than her, but she felt like putty in his hands. When he began moving his face closer to hers, she could feel her heart pounding in her chest, her mind racing as she tentatively closed her eyes and inexperiencedly puckered her lips.

Though he was initially just planning to stare Temari down with his tried and true 'smoldering look,' Wu wasn't the type to pass on an opportunity to make considerable headway in an instant. The 'first kiss' of most girls was an incredibly significant moment in their lives, so, even if they weren't entirely sure of their feelings, they would 'convince' themselves they were in love after surrendering it to someone.

Feeling a moist pressure against her lips, Temari's eyes abruptly opened wide as if to confirm she was actually kissing someone. Seeing Wu's face at a near-zero distance confirmed this was the case, causing her swiftly beating her to beat even faster. She genuinely had no idea what to do, so all she could do was trust her instincts as Wu wrapped his hands around her waist and guided her first steps into adulthood...

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"Are you sure you don't want to say goodbye? Temari-chan isn't going to be happy when she finds out you left the village without telling her..."

Shaking his head, Wu insisted, "It's better like this. I would rather have her be angry with me than depressed. Besides, it's not like we'll be apart for long. Making a big deal over a temporary separation is just senseless."

Though she wanted to explain to Dadi that women, especially young girls, were delicate and sentimental creatures, Guren ultimately shook her head and sighed. She couldn't even be honest with herself, so lecturing others didn't feel right. Instead, she softly responded, "Well, if that's what you've decided, I have nothing else to say on the matter. Let's go home. I'm sure the Otokage is eager to receive us."

With Guren punctuating her words by placing her hand on his shoulder, Wu returned a nod before picking her and Tayuya up in princess carries. He also suspected that Orochimaru would be happy to have them back. Unfortunately for her, him, or it, Wu wouldn't be staying for long. He was planning to use his incredibly boring stay in Suna as an excuse to justify traveling to another village, this time alone. Then, instead of doing that, he would return to Konoha and explain his findings to Hiruzen. From the perspective of Orochimaru, it would be like he had dropped off the face of the Shinobi World when, in reality, he would be waiting for the scheming snakes to overextend and expose her neck.

With such thoughts on his mind, Wu elected to take a more scenic route, flying over the aptly named Lands of Rain and Grass before traveling East toward the Land of Sound. If not for the deadline of the Chunin Exams, he would have liked to explore both. Every nation had its secrets, and with his power, Wu was certain he could discover, expose, and take advantage of them all. For now, however, he had promises to keep and preparations for his future Clan, the fledgling seed of his future dynasty, to complete...

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While Wu was planning his future conquest, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura, members of Team 7 led by the 'legendary' Copycat Ninja, Hatake Kakashi, were returning to Konoha after their first away mission.

Though they had initially accepted a C-Rank Mission to escort an elderly Bridgebuilder by the name of Tazuna, things quickly escalated when the group was attacked by missing-nin from Kirigakure, the Village Hidden in the Mist. Shinobi from Kiri were famous for their brutality and capabilities as assassins, but Team 7 managed to dispatch the first group fairly easily. Things became infinitely more precarious when they reached the outskirts of Tazuna's village and encountered Zabuza, an infamous assassin known as the 'Demon of the Mist.'

As his opponents were a bunch of Genin and a Shinobi that had fallen off the face of the Earth after the Third Great Shinobi War, Zabuza severely underestimated the capabilities and teamwork of Team 7. He managed to escape at the last moment but ended up losing both his sword and one of his arms in the process.

Though things went comparably smoothly after their encounter with the infamous assassin, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura were in low spirits as they returned home. The former had never expected the outside world to be so 'grim,' a sentiment shared by the other two, even though Sasuke had once witnessed his Clan slaughtered by his own brother...

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(A/N: For those that are curious, both Zabuza and Haku are still alive in this timeline. Unfortunately, while Naruto received a wake-up call after meeting Inari and seeing what life was like in the Land of Waves, he never encountered Haku or got to use his Talk-no-Jutsu on Zabuza. As for what the future holds for the duo, only time can tell. However, so long as life remains, there is hope...)

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