Anthology

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Naruto's breath hitched and caught as he cracked open his eyes, slowly waking up. He was sore and he could feel the tight pain that shifted as he breath in his chest. 'Brillant. Something's messed up with my rib.' He thought as he brought his arm forward to push his wobbling and sore body up into a rough sitting position. 'Of all the things to freaking go wrong, and i had finally had a good night's sleep last night too.' He frowned then. 'Kiba had better take care of my ship until i get back. And if Sasuke breaks its, im kicking his butt in some sparring matches.' The blonde had to stifle another groan as he reflexively clutched at his pounding skull trying hard to remember how he had woken up where and was and even where or maybe it was when he was? He gasped and tried to focus, relief flooding him as it all starting coming back.

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With the soft humming of mechanical parts whirring as the FCS KONOHA carried three thousand people deeper into the reaches of space, Naruto was left to stand silently staring out the large viewing screen on deck 14. The lights were low and there was little in the way of entertainment as most everyone was asleep. The starship's time showing up as 1:30 a.m Earth Standard time and with a sigh the blonde ran his fingers through his hair. 'I am not going to be getting a sleep standing here. Shikamaru will have something, i need to get some sleep before tomorrow otherwise i might as well be useless.' Naruto thought before sighing and making the trip to deck 12 where he hoped his friend would still be busy in the clinic.

Shikamaru gave the blonde a swift glance over, checking for anything to cause the sleeping issues (as always) before grudgingly handing him a small bottle with thick blue goop in it. 

"Here. Drink this when you go to bed. I already took care of the dosage so you should be up before Alazonia Shift ends."

"Thank ya beautiful thing." Naruto replied easily, flashing a wide grin to his lazy but well meaning friend. He got a frown in return.

"You are the most troublesome of all of the people on this ship." The words were dismissive and a bit cold but he could see the concern in his darkened eyes. "Now get your butt to your cabin and go get some sleep." Shikamaru said already turning away and dismissing him. 'I'm the captain he can't order me around.' He thought almost ready open his mouth when he thought better of it. 'Whatever. I'm too tired and he'll pull his Doctor's rank to get me gone and in bed away from him.' He left for his quarters when he flopped out on the covers of his bed, chugging the goop in the bottle as he rolled over to stare at his ceiling. 'That was a bitter and gross.' he thought as he waited for the effects to kick in.

"Kurama, read out parameters for mission Augustus/2.0.17.2.1" Naruto said, not looking away from the ceiling. He was still finding it hard to believe that the FCS KONOHA was assigned the mission it was. 

"Request Acknowledged." Came the deep and rough disembodied of the computer. "Mission Parameters For Augustus/2.0.17.2.1 ; Observe and record data regarding Solar eclipse. Including magnetic field fluctuations and shifts in the Earth's gravitational pull on the previous Moon. Minimal contact is to be made with planets population. All personnel whom are to be recording and observing planetside are to be humanoid in appearance. The use of the Time Devolution Unit is limited to a number of two uses. Failure to follow procedure and remain within mission parameters will result a full investigation by high command."

"Fantastic. Just what i didn't want to hear." He said aloud, falling silent at the sharpness of his own voice in the air. 'Lets send a bulldozer to move a pebble.' He thought. 'Oh wait, they basically are. Full investiga....' But his thoughts trailed away as what Shikamaru had given him took full effect and he fell into a deep sleep.

Blinking his eyes to clear away sleep as the computer's morning alarm chimed at him to get up. "I'm up, geez.  Kyuu, stop the screaming finger nails on chalkboard sound." Naruto grumbled. 

"Voice command not recognized."

"Kurama cease alarm." 

"Alarm ceased." Came the swift efficient reply of the ship wide computer which the crew had taken to calling Kyuu rather Kurama. Unfortunately the computer didn't always respond to Kyuu something to do with the coding and the set up which Kiba was trying to fix. 

Personally Naruto thought the computer just enjoyed watching them get irritated if he didn't respond, and had said as much to almost anyone who would listen. Most shrugged off his words with a laugh, though Gaara the KONOHA's chief science office had directly stated such behavioral capabilities were not present in the model of ship they were and therefore the conclusion he came to was wrong. Sakura had laughed when she heard him say that. 

Naruto dressed quickly making his way to the pit where he would hopeful get to sit in his capitan chair before he got chunked backwards in time, to humanity's twenty first century. Luck was not on his side however as Kiba had caught him and snagged him in some sort of vacation intervention and then their window of use was starting to open and he had to meet the ground team at the pad. 

"Captain," came the firm professional tone he had come to know and depend upon from Sakura an alpha woman with no desire for command, an unusual combo. Naruto sighed.

"Save it. You're not coming." She quirked her brow and smirked.

"I don't want to go." She replied. "I have," she glanced over to her long time boyfriend and the KONOHA's first officer Sasuke. "Better things to do." Naruto wrinkled his nose and as she laughed. 

"Really didn't need to hear that." 

"Mm. Look Naruto. Communications are going to be on the fritz when you get down there. We can't interfere too much with Earth and humanity since it will be in such a delicate balance. You get into trouble and you guys will be on your own until the close strikes witching hour." She said cocking her hip. 

"Don't die before Midnight, got it." 

"Are you sure you don't-"

"Lieutenant. Smaller team, smaller impact. Gaara and i will be able to handle this type of thing ourselves." The blonde said turning around to take his spot inside the Time unit. "Crap i'm starving. Should eaten some ramen before I got down here." She pinched her nose but said nothing. Gaara entered swiftly behind him, and with a nod in Kiba's direction the engineer started the counting sequence. 

That was as far as he could recall