Voice of the Wanderer 2: Eighteenth Wish
Naruto Fanfiction
Disclaimer: I don't own a single shred of Naruto.
Weeeeellll... hello there everyone. Yes I know, I pretty much bummed the first story after chapter 11. I thought it was going cool and all but after rereading chapters 12 and on, I realized that I could have just ended it at chapter 11. At first, I decided to keep chapters 12-17 on the first story, for my readers to juggle with at their leisure, but went on with removing it. I don't want new readers getting confused. If any new readers out there wants to read chapters 12-17, send me a PM and I'll get it to you. However, this sequel starts off from chapter 11 and will follow a much different direction.
NOTE: This sequel will not have the same ideas I once had for chapter 12 and on, from VotW 1. Basically, it's only a few weeks after the events of VotW 1; October-ish. There may be some returning characters from said chapters, such as the biju spirits. Still thinking about that.
NOTE #2: Why did I decide to write again? Well, I have had the first installment in My Documents since it was written and have been reading it and rereading it. I felt the first one was too short, which is why I'm continuing it.
NOTE #3: -reserved for future notes-
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Chapter 1: Invitations
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*beep*
*beep*
*beep*
*smack*
I groaned slightly as my eyes fluttered open but closed almost immediately. The sun's radiant beams of ultra violet light made its way to my eyes, practically blinding me for all of two seconds before reflexes kicked in, shutting my eyelids. I rolled off of bed and placed a foot on the carpeted floor to support myself. I tossed my covers to the side, vowing to make my bed later after the throbbing in my head ceased. What the heck happened last night to make me feel this bad? Let's see... I didn't drink, I didn't smoke, I didn't... sleep early either. I sighed to myself. Last night's events are a blur but I think I can recall bits and pieces.
Last night was October 10, my 518th birthday. Up to this day, no one but Ino, my girlfriend, knows about my dirty little secret and she's been true to her word by not slipping an inch of my past to anyone else. I sat on the edge of my bed, eyes half closed. My mouth was full of dried saliva and other things my brain can't seem to process. I looked to my alarm clock, seeing the dent on the top. I must have hit it harder than I thought. Forcing some chakra into my legs, I stood up and made my way to the restroom to freshen up as recurring memories slipped into my train of thought.
I came home fairly late last night, from school, and walked into a pitch black living room. I found that odd since I always left some sort of light source on when I leave my house. I supposed there might be some kind of burglar. Small-time crooks like those have been increasingly active as of late. I flipped a light switch to the side and was greeted by a bunch of screaming voices from my friends, all screaming "happy birthday Naruto!" I glanced to my watch, reading that it was indeed October 10, my birthday. I only told Ino, some time ago, but I guess she told everyone else.
Although a school day, my friends all came over to celebrate my birthday. It was one of the best experiences of my life. There was music, tons of food, dancing, blowing candles, karaoke, and people getting drunk. Kiba and Neji had a few connections with local liquor stores and snuck some of that crap into my house. They tried to force some on me but I politely refused. I've only indulged a sip of alchohol once in my life and hated it. Since then, I decided never to drink again. I got a variety of birthday presents from everyone. They don't know how loaded I am but it's the thought that counts.
Ino's present was the most interesting of all.
Lately, she's been acting very conservative with private or public displays of affection, more so than usual. For example, whenever I felt like having sex, which wasn't very often but happened enough times, I would ask her. Most times she would decline, saying she doesn't want to spoil the activity. She said if we do it too much, we might stop appreciating such a sacred bond. I understand, I suppose. Yesterday, however, her present to me was a boundary-less sexual activity. Interestingly enough, there was no need for a condom either. She simply stated it was a safe day.
Oh will the coincidences never cease?
A safe day on my birthday just sounded too great to be true. Of course we did it after everyone departed. I smiled at the thought as I began brushing my teeth. It felt incredible. Sex altogether feels great, but this time there was no physical protection. No condoms, no pills, nothing of the sort at all. I think it's a moment to remember. I nodded to myself as I spat the foamy substance out of my mouth and applied finishing touches to my brushing and stepped into the shower. I've gotten used to taking brief showers. I walked out after a few minutes with a towel wrapped around my waist.
"Good morning," came the sweet and subtle voice of my loving angel. She lay comfortably on the other side of my bed. The blond opened her eyes to me and sat up, pulling the white covers to her chest. Her bare back was exposed but it's alright. We're alone in my room. I crept into bed and kissed her softly. Ino smiled into the kiss. "Mmm... sleep well?"
"Yeah. Last night was amazing," I said as she got up, taking the entire blanket with her. Ino made her way to the restroom and left the door slightly open.
"Cherish it, Naruto. The next one like that won't be until we're a little older," she said. Ino stuck her hand out of the door, holding a portion of my blanket. I took it and folded it before placing it on my bed. I heard the faucet water running as I pulled my school uniform out of my closet.
"Ino, tell me again why you're being so conservative," I said. I know the reason but I don't know why she's doing it so suddenly. One day, we were pretty much a happy-go-lucky couple. Now it seems like she's distancing the physical part of our relationship. My girlfriend stuck her head out, mouth full of foamy toothpaste. Her hair was surprisingly straight and well-kept despite last night's events.
"I want us to continue appreciating these moments together. I already told you this. If we do it too much, it'll become a chore and we'll both be tired of it. Next thing you know, we'll only want to do it to appease our sexual desires." she said, gargoling it all out. I pressed my lips together. Isn't that kind of the point of sex? I mean, aside from love? "I'm sorry, Naruto. You're a guy with needs. I'm your lover and I should act more like one. There is another set of reasons for why I'm doing this, which I'll divulge to you at a later time. For now, just trust in my decision."
"I guess. You've never led me the wrong way before," I said as I wore my black trousers on. Ino stepped into the shower and stopped talking. I glanced to a mirror and found my hair already spiking up on its own as the dampness went away. I opened my bottle of hair gel and applied a small amount on my hair. Entering the bathroom, I washed my hands and dried them. My eyes swerved to the mirror that reflected my girlfriend's beautiful figure. Unfortunately, there are curtains that hide her body.
Darn.
"Ino, I can still oogle at you, right?" I asked, scoffing a little.
"Yes I suppose, just not in public. I'm embarassed enough when we're alone," she said as I wore my shirt and tie. "Speaking of which, I noticed you've been doing that out in the open a lot lately. I know you're at that age, Naruto, but I need you to control yourself."
"On the contrary, I'm almost about five lifetimes past that age. However, I'll try to control myself a little more. It's really difficult when my girlfriend is super gorgeous," I said as Ino turned the shower water off and grabbed a dry, blue towel on the hamper to the side. She stepped out with dripping hair and the towel wrapped around her torso. The towel hugged at her beautiful frame. I couldn't help but to stare again. Ino rolled her eyes.
"Honestly, you don't have an off switch for your hormones, do you?" she asked. I shook my head with a smile and finished with my tie. I reached for a hanger behind my door, which held her school uniform, and handed it to her. "Thanks. Well, this is the part when I ask you to leave so I can get dressed."
"Aww.. but you said I could oogle when we're alone," I said with the voice tone of a child. Ino walked to me and planted a kiss on my cheek.
"Stop that. Now go. We'll be late for school if we keep holding up like this," she said as she shooed me out of my own bathroom. I let out a soft sigh and stepped out to grab my jacket, sneakers, and back pack. This is how life has been ever since Ino started sleeping over at my place more often than usual. Her father flew overseas to America to conduct his usual business. Ino's house is usually empty now. We swing by to clean up every few days or so, but most of our life takes place at my house.
I knocked on the bathroom door after I was finished putting the rest of my uniform on.
"I'll be downstairs."
"Okay. I'll be down in a couple of minutes."
I grabbed my back pack and left for the kitchen. I glanced to the microwave that sat comfortably atop the tiled-counter, about two and a half feet from the sink. The green digital numbers read 7:04am. Like hell we'll be late. School starts at 8:30am. We could have sex and still have a few minutes to spare. I shrugged my shoulders and instead started breakfast. With almost an hour and a half to spare, I decided on making some scrambled eggs, sausage, and bacon. Ino doesn't eat bacon, something about it being too oily and bad for her figure. I agree, to an extent. But I like bacon.
Ino came down, a little more than a couple of minutes later. I noticed her hair was still a little damp but tied up in its usual ponytail. It was low this time, as if she didn't take much time in doing her hair. I found that strange as Ino takes pride in her long hair. She has the longest hair in school, aside from one of Sasuke's friends; Kin. She snatched the strip of bacon I had in my mouth and threw it in the trash can. My jaw fell.
"Hey, you may not like bacon but I do," I complained, stuffing a smaller bacon strip in my mouth. Because of its smaller size, Ino was unable to take it from me. For the second time this morning, she rolled her eyes and took some scrabbled eggs into her mouth.
"That stuff is really bad for you, Naruto," she said. I shook my head slightly and pulled up my shirt from under my belt, revealing my toned abs to her. Ino's shoulders fell and smiled, licking her lips in the process. And she's the conservative one? I'm starting to get a little worried here. Ino reached out to touch them when I lowered my shirt back down. "Hey!"
"Saw all that? I've been eating bacon for years and it doesn't affect me in the slightest bit," I said as I stuffed two more strips of bacon into my mouth, and some rice.
"Naruto, not everyone can mold fat-burning chakra like you can," she retorted.
Fat-burning chakra? What is this blasphemy? If I could do that, I would have taught the Choji of the shinobi era. It would have saved him a lot of headaches during childhood from being teased because of his weight. Ino picked into my breakfast but didn't touch the bacon, avoiding it like a plague. When that was finished, she opened the garage and hopped in her car.
Since she "moved" in, we haven't been using my motorcycle. It just sits in my garage, collecting dust. She was complaining about how it was indecent for girls who wore such short skirts for school uniform. I never had a problem with it, but then again I'm not a girl. Because motorcycles travel so fast and have zero visual protection from the back, the drivers and people behind us can probably see Ino's underwear. I understood immediately why she would want to use a car instead. It's her father's car, which he entrusted to her; a 2009 red corolla. I entered the passenger seat and closed my garage door as she drove off.
"Erm... Ino, you seem like you're in a hurry. It's only 7:15am. It only takes half an hour to get to school from my house. Today is Thursday, so you don't have any student council meetings. Midterms are at early December and we don't have any tests today," I said to her. Ino kept her focus on the road. I noticed the odometer at 45 miles per hour. We had just passed a 35 mph sign a second ago. I looked to Ino once more.
"There's something I need to do before classes start," she said. I nodded slowly. "And no I can't tell you, at least not yet."
I raised an eyebrow and looked below her seat belt, to her mid section. Apparently, Ino caught my stare. She placed a hand on the front edge of her skirt and pulled it down a bit.
"Naruto, why are you looking down there?" she asked, her face flushing as she pulled her skirt down a little. "I know I said you could but I also asked you to control yourself. Don't make me regret last night. You already had your way with me."
I shook my head.
"I was just wondering if you had to go to the toilet. If that's so, it would explain why you're driving..." I checked the odometer again and instantly understood why my body was being pulled to my seat. "... 53 miles per hour on a 35 zone. This isn't a freeway either and although there are no cops, you really should slow down. If you really have to go, you can stop by a fast food restaurant."
Ino stopped at a red light.
"Idiot, that's not it," she said as she stepped on the gas pedal the moment the traffic light turned green. There were several cars in front of her but enough space to cut in. Instead of cutting in, Ino started drifting all around them. At first, I was pretty surprised to know that my girlfriend was an expert at drifting. Her '09 corolla isn't stick-shift, but automatic. Even so, she can drift with ease by switching from D to 4 respectively. This really reminds me of the American and Japanese movie; The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift.
We made it to the school parking lot in twenty minutes.
Ino pecked me on the cheek and stepped out quickly.
"I'll you at recess, Naruto," she said as she ran into the school with the key still in its slot and the engine still on. I removed the key and locked the car after closing everything.
"Hoy! Uzumaki!" shouted a voice behind me. I already know who that is. I can even smell him. Inuzuka Kiba caught up to me. Hinata wasn't with him as I thought she would be since they're dating and all. "That girlfriend of yours... her drifting is insane! I saw my life flash before my eyes when she drifted past me. Tell her to control herself, will you? And what's the rush, by the way?"
And she tells me to control myself...
"Hell if I know. She said she'd tell me later," I said as he and I continued to school.
Shikamaru and Temari were already there, playing a game of shogi and chess at the same time. Those two strategists will never change. A few unfamiliar students were around as well, but not a sign of Ino anywhere. I wonder where she ran off to, and for the matter, why? I don't want to pry but she only drifts when she needs to get somewhere quickly. As far as I know, there's no reason she should be rushing to school of all places. She said she'd tell me soon, so waiting is my only option. Kiba and I walked over to our usual table.
"Make your move already, Shikamaru," said a bored Temari. She had her head rested against her hand. Her elbow rested on the table for support.
"Pipe down, woman. Chess and Shogi are games of strategy and patience, both of which you're sorely lacking," he said as he grabbed a shogi and chess piece and moved them on the board. Temari's eyes widened. "I think this clears our 41-41 draw."
The blond gritted her teeth as the pineapple head looked to me.
"Ohayo, Uzumaki, Inuzuka," he greeted, looking particularly at me. "Hey, I saw your girlfriend running with the speed of a marathon track runner. Mind telling me what's up?"
"He doesn't know," said Kiba. "The chick drifted in front of me, going at least 55 something miles per hour at Kazama Street. She almost nicked the nose of my '06 Nissan. I know it's not the prettiest car in Japan, or America, but not everyone is made of money."
"50 miles per hour? Kazama Street is a 35mph zone. How strange," said Temari, placing the two board games and their pieces away. "Ino only drifts when she's in a hurry."
"Yeah, I said that too," said Kiba. I shrugged my shoulders. "Uzumaki has no idea either, and he's the girl's boyfriend."
Temari placed a finger on her chin.
"Well... it could be... you know," she looked to Shikamaru. The teen narrowed his eyes for a moment before his face lit up like a Christmas Tree. He nudged Kiba to the side, who had the same effect. The three of them looked to me simultaneously. I returned their glances without a word to say. "Gosh, if that's the reason, then no wonder."
"Alright, what the heck is going?" I asked, no longer able to take the fact that my friends knew what was going on about my girlfriend when I don't. Kiba shook his head.
"If blondie is right, then only Yamanaka can tell you. We all know because we've known her longer. Don't worry though, you'll find out soon," he said. I grunted at that, picked up my stuff and marched inside the school's main building, to my locker. I hate not knowing something that is so important. It makes me feel uneasy and increasingly agitated the more I find out people know what's going on while I don't. There was no one but one person in the senior hallway, aside from me. Hinata's locker was positioned at the opposite side of mine.
"Good morning Hinata," I greeted, approaching my locker. She smiled to me and opened her locker. A white envelope fell out. I watched Hinata pick it up with interest. With one glance, the pale girl nodded slowly.
"So it's finally time then," she said to herself but loud enough for me to hear. We're not that far apart and my senses are all heightened because of shinobi training. I pulled out the necessary materials for the first two classes of the day and stuffed the rest inside, shutting it. I walked over to Hinata, who was reading the contents of the envelope. I was only able to make out one or two random words when my shadow loomed enough for her to notice. Hinata pulled the letter away.
"Sorry, Naruto. You aren't allowed to read this!" the girl shrieked. I grunted again as I walked outside. What the hell is this big secret that everyone seems to know but me? Ino said she'd tell me later but it's getting frustrating when she's telling everyone but me. Why do I have to be the last one to find out? I heard footsteps coming from behind me.
"Naruto, please don't be angry," said Hinata. I said nothing as I found my path in the school library. I sat in front of a wooden, circular table and opened my history book to some random page. I'm too irritated to read or even do anything. Hinata sat next to me. I let out a deep sigh.
"You know what? I don't care anymore. If I'm going to be left out of the loop, then that's fine by me," I said in a hushed voice. There were a few people around, but not many. "Tell me something though, Hinata. Why am I the only one who doesn't get to know?"
"I... I'm sorry. I can't tell you anything," she replied softly. I could swear a vein popped on my forehead. I shouldn't let this bother me. It's their secret, not mine. Maybe Kiba is right. They've known her longer than I have. I've only recently entered their lives... in their sense of course. I glanced to my watch, reading 7:42am. The bell for first period will ring in a little less than an hour. I was hoping for today to be a normal day, or at least turning to my favor since it was just my birthday yesterday.
I have a feeling today is going to suck.
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The day flew exactly the way I thought it would. When the first bell rang, I watched my friends closely as they opened their lockers and saw white envelopes fall out as they opened them. Actually, Sakura, Temari, Hinata, and Tenten received white envelopes. Lee, Shikamaru, Kiba, and Neji got black envelopes. They even had shared facial expressions upon receiving their envelopes. It's like they all knew what was going on. I checked my locker and still found nothing, no envelope.
I proceeded to my first class and second class; History and Japanese Literature. Sure enough, Shikamaru and Tenten didn't mention a thing about the envelopes to me. Hinata's lips were still sealed shut. I noticed Sai also had a black envelope. When I approached him about it, he quickly changed the subject. A girl at the back of the class, Rin, had a white envelope. Rin is one of the people who tagged along with the Sasuke of the past. In this era, she doesn't follow him. She has spiked-down, hot-pink hair and wears rectangular-shaped glasses.
When the bell rang to dismiss our second class, students filed out of their rooms and left for their lockers. I sluggishly left, waiting for everyone else to make it out of class. As I walked to my locker, I felt a bump behind me. I looked to see who it was. My jaw dropped for the second time today. I've been attending this school for a few months now and this is the first time I've seen this kid around here. Spiky-black hair and a blue scarf around his neck; Konohamaru. His eyes widened at me for a moment before he moved to the side and continued running.
There was a black envelope sticking out of his pocket. Behind him was Hinata's younger sister, Hanabi. She ran after Konohamaru, shouting at him for being a clumsy idiot. In the past, he kind of is. I saw that she was holding a white envelope on her left hand. So far, the ones with a black envelope are Lee, Shikamaru, Kiba, Neji, Sai, and Konohamaru. The ones with the white envelope are Sakura, Temari, Hinata, Tenten, Rin, and Hanabi. When I arrived at my locker, I was so frustrated at these stupid envelopes when one fell out of my locker.
At first, I was ecstatic to finally receive one. I noticed it wasn't white or black but yellow. I opened it and found a sheet of blank, white paper inside. There was nothing written on it. When I saw Hinata's letter, there were words on hers but nothing on mine. I snarled and tore the paper and the envelope to shreds, tossing the pieces to a nearby trash can. If this is a trick, it lost its humor hours ago. I stuffed my books inside my locker and walked outside, seeing my friends, even Ino, at our usual hangout spot.
I had the urge to go there but decided against it. I turned around and headed for the library instead, spending the rest of recess in there. I watched them from a window, having the time of their lives. I want to be with them but I'm just not in the mood. It's not funny that they're keeping some kind of secret from me. Hinata won't even let me read her letter, not even a peek. It's safe to assume that I'd get the same reply from the others who have an envelope. I turned away and felt a tap on my shoulder. The former Kazekage sat in front of me, watching the others have fun as well.
"You seem troubled, Uzumaki," he said.
"It's... I don't know. Was there ever a time when your friends all knew something that they kept from you, Gaara?" I asked him. His expressionless face reminded me about Sai. Back in the past, he would show very little emotion. Nothing gets to him, even at this era. The red-head continued to watch our friends.
"You're talking about those envelopes they've got, aren't you?" he asked. I gulped and nodded. Gaara shook his head and looked to me. He brandished a black envelope. I groaned to myself. "I found this in my locker. It's from Yamanaka. Matsuri got one too, but a white one."
"Really? Can I read it?" I asked with renewed enthusiasm, reaching for the envelope. Gaara pulled his hand back and took out a blue marker from his pocket. He placed the letter down and scribbled on it so the contents were full of blue except for one phrase. He passed the letter to me but pocketed the envelope. I read the phrase twice, three times, and I just don't understand. "It says 'don't mention anything to Naruto.' Why does it say that? Why doesn't she want me to know?"
"I haven't the foggiest," he said as he stood up. Matsuri, his brown-haired second year girlfriend, stood beside the door frame. I heard her speak to him in hushed whisper, asking if he told me anything. Gaara placed an arm across the backside of her shoulder, walking her away without replying.
"Gaara, wait!" I shouted after him, only to have him turn his back on me and walked away with Matsuri. The librarian and everyone else in the library shushed me. I sighed and looked at the letter Gaara gave me. The revealed print is colored blue. That means every word on this letter was blue. Because Gaara used a blue marker to cover the contents, there's no way for me to find out what any of it said. This is really pissing me off. I don't want this to ruin my day so I should just talk to Ino about it. I walked out of the library and made my way to the table where everyone was.
Ino looked to me with a very slight smile. The others acknowledged my presence for a moment before returning to whatever it was they were doing. I looked to my girlfriend. I want to know what all this is about, seriously. I opened my mouth to speak but something totally different came out.
"Hey, did you finish whatever it was you needed to do this morning?" I asked. I couldn't do it. She said she would tell me and I guess my conscience is waiting for that. I don't want to pry the information from her, as much as I want to, without waiting until she's ready to tell me. I noticed her smile falter.
"Yeah, I did."
"I see," I said as I pulled out her car keys and handed them to her. "Here. I'm going home early today. Just tell me what assignments we've got for the rest of our classes."
"Is something wrong?"
"I don't want to talk about it," I said as I walked back to the main building to get my stuff. I paused for a moment. "I really don't want to go, I'll be honest. It's just that, with all that's been happening today... never mind. I'll see you tomorrow."
I didn't bother looking back to her. I heard silence among my friends as I walked away. I don't care for what they're talking about anymore. They can keep me out of the loop if they want to. I have better things to do than to run around blindly without being able to rely on them to guide me. I've been doing it for five centures so what difference will another one make? I knew it was too good to be true. These guys are nothing like their past lives.
I grabbed my back pack from my locker and conjured a shadow clone, instructing him to use the transformation jutsu to turn into an image of my mother, Uzumaki Kushina. No one in this school has ever met this woman before, so I should be safe. There's no recorded pictures about her face either and if there is, it's been over 500 years. There's no way anyone would believe her to still be alive. The shadow clone of my mother was dressed in blue jeans and a black sweater. Her red hair flowed down from her back. I wonder if her hair is longer than Ino's...
When I received the clear to go home from the attendance office, I dismissed my clone and stepped into the restroom to performed the Hiraishin no Jutsu, teleporting back to my house. I quickly changed into some spare clothes, a pair of black jeans, a blue long sleeve shirt, and a red sweater over it. I stepped out of the house with my back pack, hoping to get a bit of studying done while pondering to myself in peace. I went to some grassy plains, south of my house. I come here often when I need to be by myself. Not even Ino knows about this area.
I placed my back pack on a wooden bench and sat down. It's not very windy today, which usually helps me to fall asleep. Fortunately, there aren't any children playing around here. A few kids know about this place and I see them every now and then. I pulled out my history book and opened it to the chapter discussed in class today. I found myself reading for a few minutes before falling asleep.
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"Nnnggh..." I groaned as my eyes flicked open.
I thought for a moment I had gone blind when I saw my surroundings to be pitch black. I was corrected upon seeing the light of the moon looming above the sky. I felt myself falling asleep while reading my history book but I didn't know I'd sleep for so long. Some of my fatigue from last night must have persisted longer than I thought. I didn't get much reading done but I should head home. My watch reads 11:30pm. I came here exactly twelve hours ago. I can't believe I slept for so long. I hope the last bits of my birthday party's tiredness has left me. Twelve hours of sleep is an insane amount of time.
I packed my text book in my back pack and picked it up, only to see something fall out of it. I bent to the grassy ground to pick up an opened pack of magical sticks. I've seen these in recent commercials. You write with one marker but the ink can't be revealed unless you shade over it with the other marker. I don't remember ever purchasing markers like these. I have no interest in this kind of thing. If I'm going to write something with invisible ink, I'd rather write it with a normal pencil and make it invisible using genjutsu. There's no trash cans nearby. I guess I'll throw it when I get home.
I was about to pocket it when something struck me like a lightning bolt. This morning, when I opened my locker, a yellow envelope fell out. There was a folded sheet of paper inside it with no writing. I pulled out the magical markers. If my hunch is right then these markers were used to write a hidden message on the envelope. But what were these doing inside my back pack? I don't remember ever buying-
My eyes widened in sudden realization as I flipped through a set of hand seals. I gave Ino usage of my locker and its combination, a couple of months ago when she told me she gave her locker to a friend in need.
"Ii, ino, tori, saru, hitsugi," I whispered while molding some chakra. I jumped into the sky and set my palm below me, releasing my chakra into the empty space. "Ninpo: Kuchiose no Jutsu!"
In an explosion of gray smoke, the boss toad Gamakichi appeared. I landed on his head.
"Talk later, move now!" I commanded. The toad raised an eyebrow but complied. "Kichi, I need you to jump about twenty-five miles north. Make them big jumps and try to land as softly on the ground as possible. I don't want you to make any tracks."
"Moron, you're insane. I weigh over a hundred tons. I'm bound to cause tracks whether I want to or not," he said as he lowered his body. "But alright. I trust you have some kind of jutsu to hide my tracks. Five hundred years must have done some good in improving that empty skull of yours, I hope."
With a massive leap, Gamakichi soared into the sky, traveling in speeds impossible to any ground-based modern vehicle. I formed a hand seal for an earth style jutsu. Whenever Gamakichi stomped on the ground, my jutsu would mend the spot, removing any signs of his giant footprints. In about five minutes, we arrived at Kono High School. I jumped off of him and dismissed him. As he vanished in a puff of large smoke, I jumped the fence and ran to the main building. The trash can I threw the shreds of paper, this morning, is inside. There's a metal lock and chain on the entrance.
I looked to see there was no one around but me. I then conjured a Rasengan on my right hand smashed it into the lock. The small typhoon destroyed the steel with relative ease. How I'm going to explain this one is better left a secret. There are no video cameras or anything so I should be fine. I ran over to the trash can and saw piles of trash inside. This morning, when I threw the shreds of paper, there wasn't much trash but now there is. I figured this would be the case, so I came prepared... or rather somewhat prepared. I focused some chakra into my fingertips.
"Please oh please don't let me suck with this puppet master jutsu," I begged to myself. Kankuro was the one who taught me this, in secret of course, back in the past during a visit to the hidden sand village.
Applying chakra strings isn't only for puppets but for grabbing things with the user's residual chakra still embedded. When the blue chakra threads came into view, I inserted my hand in the trash can. Piece by piece, I was able to pull out the shreds of paper I threw in there, and placed them in my pocket. Because I touched them earlier, bits of my chakra remained, allowing the puppet strings to stick to them. When there wasn't any left inside the trash can, I wrapped my hands with my shirt and closed the door. This way, I wouldn't get any finger prints on the metal handle.
I ran out of the school and to a safe place. I laid the pieces of paper on the ground. Now comes the hard part. I pulled out the magical markers and uncapped the one that reveals hidden words written by the other marker. I shaded the unseen ink on each side of piece piece of paper. There were ten pieces in total. When every side was applied with revealing ink, my theory was proven correct as pink words began to show up on some. I flipped over the ones that didn't have any words on them and saw writing on the other side. I then pieced them together like a jig-saw puzzle. When that was finished, I was able to read the contents properly.
To my dearest Uzumaki Naruto
I know you're a bit slow on things like these but I'm glad you were able to figure out the little doo-dad that I did here. If you're reading this, you might have already noticed most of our friends with white and black envelopes. The guys have black ones and the girls have white ones. They all had a fixed message written on their letters; invitation cards.
Yours is special, like you are to me, so I wrote it by hand unlike their computer-typed messages. Now, you might be wondering what the cards invite the person to. I never told you this but my 18th birthday is coming up at mid March. It's almost mid October now so there's about five months in between.
My father and I have been talking on the phone for a few days. He's been working with my mother to set up what is called a debut. It's something he's adopting from the Americans but with a bit of Japanese culture in it. A debut is basically a special 18th birthday party celebration for young American women.
I'm allowed to choose sixteen members for my court; eight guys, eight girls. For a while now, I've already had fourteen people in mind, which left me with two more invitations. It was only recently when I decided they should go to Kankuro and the daughter of the ramen chef you took me to on our first date; Ayame. She's an alumni from Kono High School, one year ahead of us, and was happy to accept my invitation.
The members of my court are: Lee, Sakura, Shikamaru, Temari, Kiba, Hinata, Neji, Tenten, Sai, Rin, Gaara, Matsuri, Kankuro, Ayame, Konohamaru, and Hanabi. I'm what is known as the debutante, as it's my birthday celebration. You have a part to play in here but it's your choice if you want to come.
Basically, your decision determines whether this party will take place or not. Naruto, I want you to be my escort. You are the one my heart treasures the most. My father knows it and he'll probably tell my mother. It was formerly Sasuke, but you know how that turned out. The others weren't allowed to tell you anything at all, regarding this celebration. It was my mother's idea, to see if your heart beats with mine.
Please give me your answer before tomorrow. I will not allow anyone else to be my escort but you.
With all the love in my heart,
Yamanaka Ino
"Oh shit..." I gritted my teeth as I glanced to my watch.
The time read 11:50pm. Ino doesn't have the keys to my house so she's probably at her place. Ever since she started sleeping over at my place, she returned the three-pronged kunai from her house, back to me. I won't be able to teleport there. I can't summon Gamakichi yet. Summoning him and hiding his footprints with my jutsu took a massive toll on my chakra reserves. I don't have the fox in me anymore, which brings my chakra total to an amount equal to a jonin-anbu shinobi. The Rasengan and chakra strings also added to the depletion of my chakra reserves. My not-so-good chakra control is another detriment to my current dilema.
I have ten minutes to get to Ino's house, which is half an hour from school via motorcycle. I could run there but I wouldn't get very far as I'm quite exhausted. Without the fox, along with my chakra reserves at an utter low, there's only one thing left to do if I'm to reach Ino in time. I still have enough chakra to conjure a few shadow clones, and then I'll have reached my limit. I formed a hand seal and summoned three shadow clones. The clones sat still for a few moments, as did I. We closed our eyes to meditate. The trees, the leaves, the ground, the sky, the air, everything around us can be used to conjure nature chakra.
My eyes snapped open after a few seconds, feeling reinvigorated with the Sage's chakra; I entered Sage-mode.
Lowering my body slightly, I sped forward at a speed that darted passed any moving vehicle. I haven't had much use for the Sage-mode except for times of war. It's one of the key reasons why I'm still alive. With Sage-mode, all of my physical attributes are increased exponentially. It's what I've been relying on during tight situations, now that I no longer possess the fox's spirit. During Sage-mode, not only are my physical abilities heightened, I no longer have to rely on my own chakra for power. I can use the nature around me.
Having gone through intense training over the years, I can now dismiss my clones from any range without any difficulty. I had to learn to do this during the Civil War. The technique would either be perfected or I'd have been shot in the face by enemy gunfire. I wasn't at my prime during the Civil War due to the Kyuubi's power inside my body. It was then that I was forced to further master my Sage-mode. It carried me through my toughest ordeals and I'm going to use it again tonight.
I checked my watch, reading the digital numbers to reveal the current time; 11:52pm.
I have exactly eight minutes left but I've already covered a good distance, at least a third of the way is behind me. I increased my pace once more, now entering mach speed. Normally, I'd have no time limit on my Sage-mode but after the Kyuubi's power left me for good, I realized there was no time limit because of the demon's chakra. Sage-mode, in retrospect, is a power meter that drains not only by the duration of its activation but depending on how much nature chakra I'm consuming. I formed a hand seal on one hand, dismissing a clone to refresh my Sage-mode.
I soon arrived afront Ino's main door without any clones remaining. I rang the door bell once and glanced to my watch. It's 11:58pm. Please, please, please don't let me be too late. When there was no answer, I figured she would be asleep. I stood back and blasted the door down to tiny bits of splinters with two Rasengans, one on each hand. I conjured two shadow clones and had them transform into random people to stand watch outside while I ran to Ino's room. The Sage's chakra left me. Those two clones were the last of whatever I still had left. Ino was fast asleep in bed. I placed a hand on her cheek and kissed her softly in the lips.
The female blond grunted a bit before her eyes fluttered open.
"N-Naruto? What are you doing here so late?" she asked as she sat up.
"Sorry about earlier but my answer is yes. I will be your escort for your debut," I said. Ino's face lit up like a lantern and tackled me to the floor. "I said no earlier and I hope you didn't take that as my answer to your debut request. It's only 11:59pm so I'm not too late, right?"
"You're right on time," she said as she smiled to me. "You had me worried though. I couldn't reach you by cell phone. Was it off?"
"Yes, I apologize for that," I said as I locked her lips with mine for a few seconds. "Oh and, I'm sorry about your front door too. I'll fix it later."
Ino narrowed her eyes at me.
"What did you do to my front door?"
"I love you, Ino."
"Yeah, yeah, now what did you do to my front door?" she repeated. I could only smile innocently at her.