A/N: Hello everyone! This will be my first story ever written and published here on this website. I'm planning on posting around 50 chapters before cutting it off to begin its sequel. This chapter is quite short but I will try my best in the future to include more material. Do not worry, the story will update with a new chapter every 2 weeks!

Although the main plot of this story is entirely original, it will co-exist with all canon material up until Boruto: Naruto the Movie. This means the events of this story occur "behind the scenes" of what Kishimoto has shown us post chapter 699 of the manga. That being said, my specific plot will take precedence which follows the life of new OC I've created. Along with this person, several other OC's will be included. Anyway, there will be a lot of effort going into this. My friends are helping me out with plot and editing and we're really working hard to deliver the community some quality content.

TO NEW READERS: I encourage you to push through the prologue even though it has little to do with the actual protagonist as of yet since it introduces one of the pivotal, new OC's and his journey to the now bisected Moon. Of course, there's a certain individual there waiting for him!

This first chapter may be slow due to exposition, but the story as a whole is guaranteed to be exciting and action-packed, with a touch of love and tragedy. So, sit back, enjoy the ride and thanks for viewing!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own the original series of Naruto, nor do I own its characters.

Prologue

The shallow steps of a feeble old man traced their way through the soil of the deep forest. His tarnished, hooded cloak dragged behind him. Underneath he held onto a collection of mysterious texts as well as carrying a single strapped bag over his hunchback. Around his neck was a golden drake pendant. His long greybeard danced in the wind and strands of his messy hair hung in his eyes. Hundreds of years of stress and strife were etched into his face. It seemed as though he walked endlessly and aimlessly along a barren dirt path. Eventually his journey would bring him to the end of his search. The slow gait of his sandals clicking their way across the cool forest floor came to an end as he passed through a thick layer of trees, the sight of clear ground trailing up to a sheer rock wall piercing into the heavens. To the normal eye, this man's trip had come to an end; circumvented by nature itself. For this man's eyes, though, he saw only a minor speedbump. Powerful barrier ninjutsu stood in his way. Clearly, someone was trying to hide something. However, he was not phased. The man placed his elderly left hand along the the barrier. His chakra spiked, a surprisingly potent display for a man his age, and wreathed itself across the structure. The defensive chakra supporting the barrier dissipated instantly, and the blockade collapsed. Beneath it was a pitch black cave entrance that appeared to dig into the earth. The old man continued on his path, plodding into an endless darkness. He lifted his left index finger and ignited a small flame to light his way. But there was nothing along the walls, just pure stone, stalagmite and stalactite. The reddish illumination made the path resemble a stairway to hell. Perhaps that was not too far off from where he was headed.

At the end of cave was a turquoise spring of water. There was nothing else. "Another dead end," he sighed in a patchy, senile voice. The man kneel by the pool in yet another defeat to quench his thirst. But when he tried to collect the water, he felt odd. His hands weren't wet. This amazed him. Why was this so? The water seamlessly dripped from his palm without leaving a trace of itself. In order to further test this discovery, he dipped part of his cloak. Once again, the water was not absorbed. It left the cloak as dry as desert sand. This water, upon a third observation, produced it's own light? Especially in such a dark cave, he no longer needed his finger torch. He came the conclusion that this water was probably not safe to drink. The man grew curious. "Maybe this is another obstacle," he thought. He was determined once again, his journey was not over just yet.

Agile for his age, the man dove into the aqueous substance. Sifting through the light liquid, the man was approaching an opening. The pool had no floor in which it ended. Soon, the man no longer needed to hold his breath, he'd emerged on the other end of the underwater cave into what seemed to be a separate plane. Intangible orbs inhabited this existence. There was no up, down, left or right. As he passed the orbs he could see fragments of his past reflect in them. Hidden memories that he himself might have forgotten about his childhood. Now he was reliving them, watching as a spectator. These were the orbs he took the time to focus on. One for instance, revealed the earliest memory he had with his parents, sitting in their decrepit, primitive home. The next orb was even further in time. Blood splattered across the glass like surface as he entered the memory. His parents were dead on the floor. Slaughtered by a group of ninja. He managed to escape, but his home was leveled. The burning embers of his home exhaled black smoke into the sky. The man noticed the men that departed the property. A red and white fan-like crest were embedded into the backs of their clothing. Flames engulfed the memory. His aimless wandering led to him to a later point in his life. He was walking as a young teen with a woman around his age. They appear to be intimate with one another. He was showing her a book with a draconic insignia upon it. However, this moment was short lived. He was attacked by two young children, both wearing the same crest on their backs. The woman cut down, and himself, surprisingly overpowered by the two skilled attackers. The book was stolen and his lover bled out on the floor. His young self would never forget the look in the child's eyes that struck her. Relentlessness. He held the woman as she died in his arms. She entrusted an object to him before her body became lifeless. The old man found himself clutching the drake pendant around his neck. The few orbs revealed his pursuit for similar books and the search for the child he could not forgive. One of them revealed a rather significant event. The old man's youthful self witnessed a confrontation by a river. The boy he had been following was with the same child that accompanied him as well as what appeared to be an older man. On the other end was another young, dark haired boy, an older man and a white haired child. Eventually they would depart the scene, but not before the adolescent witnessed an awakening in his enemy's eyes. It's crimson hue burned through his soul. The orbs revealed even more of his life during this period of turmoil. His first confrontation with the boy, who was now the leader of his clan, ended in failure. He barely escaped with his life. At this point the old man remembered this was when he began his disappearance from history. He searched secretly for lost texts, witnessed the bouts between two eternal rivals and the foundation of the first shinobi village. All of the recollection disgusted him. He witnessed himself grow old, witnessed the defeat of his nemesis, and the ascension of his rival. He witnessed the growth of a village, and several others. He witnessed four great shinobi wars, the death, destruction and loss that came from them. Now here he was.

There was a lack of air. It was as if he had just painfully awoken from a dream, shifting around in a body of water. He surfaced only to find himself no long in the depths of a cave, but in a completely different landscape. The old man creeped out of the water, carefully observing his surroundings. His gazed fixed on the sky. What was this spectacle? The blue sky was split all the way down to the horizon, revealing the empty darkness that was present during the night. "Where could I be..," he thought. He decided to get closer to the origin of the split in the sky. After several hours of walking, he came across an enormous gorge that split cleanly down the land. It was right underneath the split in the sky. The gorge upon second viewing was bottomless from his position. Gray rocks and dust adorned the edges of the grand chasm. The man reached for one with his wrinkled hand, observing it closely. It wasn't anything he'd seen on earth before. He looked to the sky again. At that moment, a similar stone crashed into the ground from the sky. "I see. I must be in the right place then," he said as took he a long leap over the chasm that seemed to split the world down the middle.

The old man during his exploration discovered the remains of a floating palace. Within it was a vast, dimlit library of books and text that could not be found anywhere on earth. He'd spent his entire life reading after all. This was what he was looking for. There were thousands of books on the drake topic. However, he was most interested with the ones titled "Ethuriel". All of these he skimmed, hundreds upon hundreds. He sat for hours. It'd been at least a day he'd gone without any sustenance. But knowledge was his diet now. The old man weakly dropped the bag he carried and withdrew a scroll. Its contents were a spacetime seal that allowed him to store all of the books he wanted for further notice. During his pilfering, he came across a decrepit wooden desk. Underneath one of the drawers were a collection of text titled "Ōtsutsuki Clan". There were several volumes. Perhaps they were misplaced. Lastly, the most interesting of his discoveries was a text titled "The Journal of Hamura Ōtsutsuki". The old man was fascinated, intrigued by his priceless discoveries. But he was interrupted. The paced footsteps of an individual approached from the hall. From the shadows of the library emerged a pale-skinned, lavender eyed man with short, curly hair. His black robes were just as tattered as the old man's clothing. "You… how did you find this place," he questioned as the veins around his eyes bulged. His expression intensified as he examined the old man's chakra. The knowledge seeking elder rose from his position and tucked the journal away. The young man spoke again, having recognized a familiar chakra type, "I never imagined I'd come across a Ryūkōtetsu. You do not belong here. And that book. It is not yours. Return anything you've taken and leave at once." The old man clenched his fist as the young man spoke once more, "Or else."

Those were the last words Toneri Ōtsutsuki spoke before the old man blitzed him with an unexpected display of speed and vigor. Looks sure did deceive has he caught the old man's striking fist. A thunderous shockwave erupted from their contact, sending papers flying across the room and books exploding against the wall. Dated parchment floated in the air as Toneri and the Ryūkōtetsu exchanged blows. Toneri could see how powerful this man's chakra actually was with his byakugan, eyes he'd salvaged from the destroyed Tenseigan altar. Thus, he aimed to immobilize him by attacking his chakra points. The man was quick, agile for his age, but Toneri outmaneuvered him. Two. Four. Six. Eight. Ten. All the way to 32, Toneri's strikes crushed the old man's frail body. His final blow struck the old man in his chest and sent him across the library into a shelf of books. The Ryūkōtetsu sat at the foot of the shelf collecting himself. His limbs were numb from the gentle fist. Blood painted the path along the shatter shelves in which he slid down. Wooden splinters were stuck in his dismembered back. The man wiped blood away from his mouth as Toneri approached. He was a scarlet mess, and Toneri felt unpleasant beating up on a defenseless old man. But it was necessary. Toneri examined his target. His chakra was slowly fading and his movements had ceased. "This fight is over," he proclaimed. A blur of movement cut off Toneri's next words, a massive corroding hole gaped in his body before he collapsed to the floor only a moment later. His lavender eyes were now bloodshot. What had just hit him?! Toneri's vision blurred and his breathing became irregular. A shadow loomed over him. It was the Ryūkōtetsu. "It'd be wise not to underestimate people," the old man scolded, "Youngsters like you never learn!" Toneri experienced an excruciating pain, as if every cell in his body was being torn apart. The blood on the shelf lifted from rest, spiraling into the old man's left hand and morphed itself into a jagged long spear. Toneri looked upwards, focusing his blurred vision on the point of the spear. The old man was in the middle of his motion. "Die," the elder muttered. And the walls splattered with a black crimson.

The old Ryūkōtetsu exited the cave entrance, the same one he'd entered. As he stepped into fresh oxygen, his tarnished cloak became wet with droplets. He looked up to see the beginnings of overcast. Drizzles fell from the heavens and thunder rolled in the clouds. An ominous atmosphere for a quite mysterious man. As he hobbled away as feebly as ever, lightning erupted, born from stormy skies. Anyone in the dark forest at that moment could see the devilish grin on his brilliant face, cascaded by his bloodstained hood.

Chapter 1: Troublesome Travels

Heavy rain droplets fell from the sky as the young girl gazed out the window, beating against the outer metallic hull of the gray shuttle train she was aboard. The outside world looked like a blur from where she sat, just a mix of the brown bark and emerald leaves from the massive deciduous trees that defined a majority of the landscape. Their roots bore into the grass-knitt earth, holding their trunks firm as powerful gales forced branches to sway violently. Each tree reached to scrap the heavens, creating a contiguous canopy of green foliage that concealed the forest's contents. There were several scattered openings that revealed the intensity of the elements along with the drab overcast shrouding any sunlight. Great rivers cut through the land in numerous tributaries, yet there were no signs of wildlife near their banks. They took shelter from Mother Nature's gentle chaos. Bright blue, contrary to the scenery, flashed veins of light and illuminated the dull atmosphere. It was immediately followed by a crackling roar that interrupted the clattering of the train against the rails, causing the girl to jolt from her position frightened by the spectacle. She had never heard something so loud before. "Calm down," a voice uttered just after the thunder ceased, "it's just a little lightning, Akua."

The woman sitting across from Akua kept her eyes focused on the book that rested on the table in between them. She held it open with her right hand, fingers spread unevenly across the pages. The rest of her arm hung loosely by her side while the left was propped upon the table, supporting her head which was tilted towards the window. Her hand was hidden underneath her straight crimson hair, which extended down past her shoulders. Akua's attention shifted to her, noticing the way she tucked her glasses comfortably on the bridge of her nose. The book must have been interesting, for her scarlet eyes jotted from left to right, reading line after line at a rather swift pace. "What are you reading?" Akua asked politely. She waited for a response but her mother remained silent, not once acknowledging her question. It was as if Akua wasn't sitting across from her. Akua's gaze shifted from her mother's eyes to the book and back until she was finally noticed.

Her mother caught her eyes for a moment before speaking, "What is it?"

"I asked what you were reading," Akua replied in a fragile voice.

"None of your business," she answered in a nasty tone. The woman's response was immediate and she delved back into her reading. It was clear that she would rather be somewhere else, but this was her normal behavior. Akua had gotten used to this misfortune. She sighed and turned to peer through the window once more. She became lost in her thoughts, confused as to why she was treated like this by her own mother ever since she could remember. She hadn't done anything disagreeable or worthy of resentment, yet her mother was often indifferent towards her. Akua would be scolded for miniscule actions. These punishments were accepted without any form of resistance, as she thought whatever her mother did to her had reason behind it. Her reflection was present in the glass. "Maybe it's because I don't look like her," she thought. Droplets scattered across the pane while she examined herself. She wore a white, sleeveless collared shirt with a small black tie, black shorts and black sandals. As for her features, Akua was correct. She did not resemble her mother at all other than the shape of her face, nose and eyes. Akua's face was rounder due to her age. Her hair was sleek and plentiful, extending down to the nape of her neck. Unlike her mother's red hair, hers was onyx with wispy bangs across her forehead. Akua's eyes on the other hand were the most distinct aspect of her physical appearance. She was blessed with the rare Alexandria's Genesis, considered by most to be a harmless genetic mutation, which granted her stunning violet irises. Despite how incredible they were, she disliked them. They made her stand out compared to other people and garnered unpleasant attention. "That can't be it," she sighed.

Lightning continued to paint the sky along the horizon and the thunder no longer startled Akua. In fact, she was now fascinated by its collective beauty. Her negative thoughts were quelled by the sound of the storm. It was soothing. The sound of paper being clipped between the tinkering of a metal mechanism were heard moments after. One of the attendants was making his way through the aisle, collecting tickets and examining passport information. They were approaching one of the Land of Fire's immigration checkpoints. Therefore, they needed to have their documentation ready in order to transfer onto another train. From there, they were headed towards the Village Dancing in the Leaves, Konohagakure. Akua didn't agree entirely to this change of location, one of the main reasons being that her twin brother, Senshi, had not accompanied them. Why he was left behind, she would ask herself. They didn't even exchange goodbyes. It was odd, but she did not question her mother's decision. Akua probably wouldn't have received an answer anyways.

"Good morning, good morning!" the attendant said enthusiastically.

"Good morning," Akua greeted the man warmly. He nodded towards the young girl, shifted his attention to the silent red haired woman. The man had a barcode scanner in his right hand and his silver hole-punch was hooked on his belt.

"May I have your itinerary and passports, please?" He held out his palm, waiting to receive what he had requested. It took a moment for the woman to acknowledge his presence, however still significantly shorter than how long it took to answer Akua.

"Here you are," she reached into the tan satchel that sat beside her and withdrew a pair of green passports and white boarding tickets, handing them to the attendant. He meticulously looked at the thin pieces of paper and booklets that she handed him, nodding once more.

"Your name, please?"

"Uzumaki Karin." Akua watched their interaction. Karin's facial expression had not changed in the slightest.

"And this must be your daughter, I'm assuming?" The attendant typed the hiragana characters of her name into his scanner.

"Yes," there was a pause, "she is."

There was a beep and the barcodes on both tickets were scanned. He rested the scanner on the table for a moment and drew his hole-punch, clicking twice through each piece of paper. Karin accepted the tickets as he reopened their passports, flipping to a certain page in each and removing a small ink stamper that resembled a stapler from his pocket. The page slid between the stamper before he applied pressure, imprinting red ink upon it. He repeated this with the other passport before returning them and collecting his scanner. "Have a nice day," he said before going on about his business.

Akua remained speechless for the remainder of the ride, beginning to observe the other passengers. Within the car sat older men and women of various backgrounds, but what they all shared was the despair that was etched into their faces. She hadn't realized it before, but the entire car was deafeningly quiet. Most of these individuals were on the train when she boarded, so it was difficult to determine where they originated. No one seemed to be enjoying themselves. Even though she was desperate for someone to talk to, Akua wasn't fond of the gloomy vibes she was receiving from them. "I want off this train…" she thought to herself.

Frustration was settling in but soon disappeared after the conductor voiced himself through the built-in intercom, "Attention!" The speaker made him sound raspy, "We will be approaching Chiba Station momentarily! This will be the final destination for this locomotive! Please be sure to check your overhead luggage compartments for your personal belongings!"

Karin immediately began to gather their possessions, the first to react to the conductor's instructions. They didn't have much with them. Karin brought with her the satchel that she had sitting beside her along with a small black duffle bag on the floor. Akua had a tarnished gray backpack proportionate to her young stature. The main zipper that arced over the top of the bag was open, and a fuzzy beige teddy bear hung out. One of its eyes was missing, but Akua did not seem to care. She removed him from her bag and zipped it shut. The bear sat in her lap facing her while she waited.

"Approximate arrival time, ten minutes!"

Akua sighed a breath of relief, but it was too soon. They were still nowhere near their destination. Konoha was roughly 4000 miles away from their current location. If they took another train like this, it would take nearly another day to arrive. Akua took a quick glance out of the window once more, holding her bear close to her. The storm was still raging on, and a nasty gust of wind collided into the railed vehicle. Most of the shock was absorbed, but it still rocked several of the cars, which caused the lights to flicker. Many of the passengers in the car, including Akua herself, were startled. After the hysteria, Akua realized the forest began to thin as they closed the distance to Chiba. Grassy woodland steadily merged into a rocky terrain and within a few moments, darkness.

The train disappeared into the depths of a man made tunnel carved into a hillside. The voice of the growling weather was suppressed as they entered. All that could be heard was the steaming mechanisms of the engine and the chugging of tracks. The railway passage was lit by industrial fluorescence placed along the walls. Akua watched as they zoomed past her eyes. The conductor blared the horn several times; they were near their destination. Akua could tell that they were decelerating steadily and after a few moments the brakes squealed against the wheels of the cars. It was a horrid sound. A separate source of dim light became visible as the train emerged from the pass. The brilliance of the city of Chiba came into view underneath the gray rainy clouds. At its core towered an edo style castle that was distinguishable due to the more modern buildings that surrounded it. At last, the front car came to a stop. Ding! Red linear lights lit up along the frames of the doors as they slid open. "Welcome to Hi no kuni, the Land of Fire. We've arrived at Chiba Railway Station. Once again, this is the last stop. All must exit, thank you."

Chiba Railway Station, where the train halted, was a wide, two story travel complex located on the outskirts of the city. Being a primary immigration checkpoint of individuals from the northwest, it was subject to the departure and arrival of over one hundred rides each day. Such business required a significant amount of land that was not available within the town itself. Karin fetched the umbrella she stored within her satchel, allowing it to expand outwards as she stepped out onto the boarding platform. Akua followed close behind with her own umbrella. Both of them were shielded from the pouring rain that nearly obscured sight of the area around them. Each step they took splashed at the layer of water on the ground, soaking their open toed sandals. Shinobi were stationed around the bay and along the perimeter of the main building they approached. Each of them wore a Konoha forehead protector, and were cloaked by black raincoats with Chiba written along the left chest in kanji. As expected, this station was heavily guarded. Akua paid close attention to the ninja and their forehead protectors, recognizing their origin. One of the female guards caught her gaze, startling the little girl. She quickly broke her post and waved with a comforting smile. Akua felt welcomed. That, however, was short lived.

Karin had her belongings gathered before the train screeched to a complete stop. She took a look around their car. There were several individuals that still had not moved an inch since the conductor announced the arrival time. There were no signs of any belongings that they possessed. She counted ten of them, males, and what was even more suspicious were the cloaks they wore. Each person had a different color cloak and one of them was hooded. They sat scattered along the car minding their own business. Finally, the train pulled up and passengers began to rise from their seats. The aisle became crowded with people as they waited for the doors to open. Karin noticed that the hooded person had disappeared all together. It was an odd spectacle. Maybe she was just seeing things, but her instincts told her otherwise. She reached into her satchel after seeing the rain outside and withdrew an umbrella. Her daughter quickly followed suit, accompanying her to the door before it opened to Chiba Station.

Karin sensed a malicious chakra steadily approaching them as they exited the train. "So they were following me after all," she thought to herself. The intent to kill cloud clearly be felt, but why hadn't the guards done anything yet? Perhaps the culprit couldn't be seen, thus Karin concluded it was the one whom disappeared before she and Akua left the train. Her walking pace slowed. She reached into her satchel once more, grasping the handle of a concealed kunai. Her hand trembled within the bag. There were several guards surrounding this loading bay and the door was a few meters away from them. They would surely apprehend her if she did anything sudden. But the chakra was approaching, and they weren't able to sense it. Something had to be done. Now.

Karin stepped around to her right, the blade of her kunai slashing two feet above Akua's head in a straight line across seemingly nothing. The guards, whom were confused at the action, instantly took notice and stood with caution. Akua trembled with her tiny umbrella in her left hand and teddy bear hugged in her right, staring wide eyed at her mother. A line of blood red liquid was drawn by the knife and splattered onto Akua's umbrella. Karin reached around to grab up a palm full of Akua's clothing and pulled her to safety as the bulky body of a six foot male became visible. He was stunned by the deep gash that extended along his chest. His arms were reaching out, hovering over Akua's previous position with a kunai of his own held in his left hand. "Gah! Damn...y-you," he managed to cry out before collapsing onto his back in the pelting rain.

The kunai he held clanked against the floor and sat in a growing pool of his blood. Three of the guards rushed over to Karin, demanding that she disarm and explain herself. They were braced with weapons of their own pointed at her. However, ten other figures who were passengers on the train dashed towards them. "She's discovered us! Get the redhead bitch! Now!" One of them yelled from the head of the rush. The three guards stood in their way while the rest of the platoon stationed in the area mobilized.

"CODE BLUE! CODE BLUE! Unidentified hostiles approaching!" shouted one of the leaf ninja. The scene broke down into chaos.

Each attacker wore a similar dark green long sleeved shirt underneath a black flak jacket with matching black pants. All had a different color cloak as Karin had already deduced. None of them, except for the man dead on the ground, wore a forehead protector despite being dressed like shinobi. Karin peered down at the one she had killed and noticed a Kusagakure insignia imprinted in the metal. She knew who her attackers were. The other passengers were being brought away from the battle by other shinobi and the attackers were held at bay, horribly outnumbered but skilled enough to fight back. Within the midst of the parrying steel, Karin grabbed her daughter's hand and slipped away. The leaf ninja were too occupied to notice them.

Karin discarded her umbrella and rushed into the building dripping in rain water. Her hair was drenched and matted to her face. Akua dropped her bloodstained umbrella outside of the door as Karin dragged her in. She watched her mother wiped her glasses clean while they ran through the corridor. However, their passage was blocked. "Ma'am," a new kunoichi, one who had not seen what she did began to speak, "Do you have anything to do with this situation right now?" She was well aware of what transpired in regards to the sudden assault on the station.

"No," Karin lied, "Just get me through to immigration." She could tell the woman was reluctant to believe her. "Look, I'm just trying to get my little girl to safety, now do your job, escort me." Her tone was stern and convincing nonetheless.

The woman sighed, "Alright, follow me."

Karin and Akua arrived at the immigration center. On their way, an alert message was broadcasted throughout the building, "Attention! Track 23, gate number seven has been shut down. Stay away from the area, I repeat, all passengers stay away from the area." They avoided mentioning the attack that occurred, for it would cause mass panic among the civilians. The kunoichi escorted them to one of the many immigration desks. Karin eagerly presented the passports and tickets to the elderly woman who sat before her without request, "Here."

The lady was offended by her impatience. She took the passports as slowly as possible, examining their contents, then glanced at their tickets. "So...you're both from the Hidden Grass Villie are ya?" Her voice was thin and guttural. Karin couldn't bear with her much longer.

"Yes we are. Now will you hurry the hell up?" She slammed her fist on the desk, but the old woman wasn't threatened by her. That was until their Kunoichi guide gave her a stern glare. The old lady immediately, out of fear, went through her passport, stamped it once, and then stamped Akua's. They were cleared to go. Karin collected the passports while the lady disposed of their old tickets and pushed through the gate next and past the desk, "Oblivious idiot."

Akua had to run to catch up to her. "Mom...thanks for saving me there." She waited but received no response. Akua hung her head for a moment at the failed attempt of conversation. She wasn't traumatized by what happened, only confused as to why it did. Once again, she concluded she could receive no answer from the only person who seemed to know what was going on. The kunoichi no longer accompanied them due to being summoned back to the track by her superior. She would soon discover who she had just escorted.

The two approached a ticket booth within the heart of the complex. It was one enormous, circular congregation area. Along the perimeter were various restaurants along with consumer goods stores. Four gigantic television monitors hung from the ceiling, each pointed toward one of the four evenly spaced main hallways. Hundreds of people crowded the place, everyone seeming to mind their own business as they walked. Akua couldn't see over anyone and found it difficult to keep track of her mother. "Akua," she called to her and held up two new tickets, "let's go." Karin threw her duffle bag strap over the opposite shoulder of the satchel strap. Her hand was held out to her daughter. Akua hesitated but eventually took her hand.

"Are we going to Konoha now?" Karin nodded as she led her to their designated track. Conveniently, it was located on the same floor. The train was waiting for them and from the looks of it, it was a bullet train. Akua was astonished. This would be her first time to ever ride one of the newer, faster train models. The design of the hull was smooth, fashioned with curves at all edges and polished chrome paint. The japanese characters for 'Konohagakure no Sato' were printed over the hood. The Konoha insignia was also printed over each sliding door. Akua couldn't close her mouth when she stepped in the first passenger car. Its elegance had almost made her forget about what happened. Her mother wasn't very excited nor did she glance at the train much. All she had asked for at the booth was the fastest way to get to Konoha, and here it was. Before stepping into the train with Akua, she tilted her head around then up. She watched the hallway they came through behind them. She couldn't sense the chakra of the ninja that attacked. There also hadn't been any warning that they infiltrated the building. "They must've been dealt with, perfect."

The announcer for the track spoke with a disembodied voice, "Last call for the 10 train! Non-stop express service to Konohagakure! Doors will be closing in three minutes!"

Passengers began to file in. Akua was already prancing up and down the aisle of the car when Karin finally entered and took a seat. She halted and sat across from her mother, removing her bag and placing it on the floor next to her feet. Unlike the hard plastic seats of the shuttle train, these were cushioned and comfortable. Akua's rear practically sunk into the material as she leaned into it. Karin dropped her luggage on her wide booth seat and rolled her damp, crimson hair together to drain it of water. Ding! The doors of the train closed simultaneously and the front car jolted into acceleration. "Please fasten your seat belts," the conductor chimed, "we will be departing from Chiba Railway Station shortly. Our destination is Konoha International Train Station. Travel time will be approximately 14 hours and 33 minutes. Meals and drinks will be provided throughout the duration of the trip. As your conductor, I hope you're all able to relax and enjoy the ride, thank you."

Karin sighed a breath of relief as she tightened her seatbelt across her body, leaning back into her seat. Akua followed her actions and rested her teddy in her lap. Within a few moments the train bolted across the track, zooming out of Chiba and through the wilderness towards Konoha, where a whole new world of adventure awaited her.