Disclaimer: I do not own anything except for my own characters.
A/n: This is a sequel to my other short story "Shattering Bonds" if you want more details of Naruto and Nina's story.
Chapter 1: Survival
Dark clouds loomed over the horizon as the sun started to rise, a young woman marched along the same familiar path she travelled for days, trying to return to some form of sanctuary. She walked along the dirt path, worn shoes kicked up the dust. She grind her teeth together, sharp pains shot through her body with each step taken. Her hand gripped her side, a deep wound from a previous battle showed on her delicate skin. Blood seeped on to her light fingers, the pale skin stained with the blood of a woman who was not worthy of saving yet she felt desperate to try and make amends for her foolish mistakes. She wanted a second chance although she believed she did not deserve one, she desperately wanted somebody to believe her. Thick, blond hair stuck to her sweat covered forehead, her lips dry from a lack of water. She could feel the strength slipping though her fingers, she was tempted to look at her wound to examine the extent of the wounds yet the fear that once her eyes saw the wound she would surrender to the exhaustion that was throbbing to consume the young battered body.
She continued forward, her feet dragged across the rocky dirt. A rock flew in between her toes and poked her throbbing heel as she walked. She took another step, a pain shot through her foot and she fell off to the side, catching herself against a tree. Sliding down the trunk, she plopped on the cool ground and ripped her shoes off, the rubber soles completely broken with holes showed through the bottoms. Her light blue eyes glanced at her feet, the skin around the small toes was crimson and blistered from days of endless travel, the balls of her heels aggravated from the old shoes and burned raw. Her bottom lip quivered with the realization she was falling apart and there wasn't anyone to help her, as a result from her naïve teen years for abandoning the morals of the ninja way to follow a path of darkness to achieve an objective she could never accomplish. This was her punishment for turning her back on her family, on the Hidden Leaf village and straying from the right path. A petite hand covered the feet, dry blood covered both hands and her body shook with sadness and despair. Her chest labored to inhale the air as her torso grew tight with anxiety, her hand rested on her chest as she inhaled once more, trying to calm her erratic nerves. Breathing in and out, she calmed her hammering heart, the tightness in her lungs subsided for the time being.
The strong scent of dried blood filled her nostrils and the taste of iron on her tongue, she clawed the cream coat off her shoulders, dumping the clothing on the ground. Taking a deep breath, she sighed with irritation and pushed her body up, balancing herself against the tall tree. Another painful stab radiated from her side, her head hid behind the shadow of the tree to conceal the agony she felt. She glanced at the sky, witnessing the rays of sunshine filter through the dark blue night sky as the morning began to shift into the beginning of the day. Panic filled her mind, she used the night to conceal her presence as she journeyed to her destination. She peeked over her shoulder, seeing a wagon nearing her position. The back of the wagon was open with supplies that she could easily fit in between items and hide her existence. She scrambled to her feet, ducking behind the large tree and hid the bloody coat under a pair of bushes. She propped herself up on her feet, knees bent and fingers rested on the ground as she prepared herself for an escape.
The wagon drove along with the power of a brown horse who was focused on the road and the driver oblivious to the young woman stalking in the dark shadows. Softly she counted until the wagon was close enough to her. The horse past by her, not sparing a glance and did not detect her presence. The young man directing the horse hummed a little tune to himself, enjoying the cool air and the scent of dewy pine trees surrounding him. Swiftly she bounded out of the shadows, ran across the small patch of a grass and made her way to the back of the wagon. She gripped the lip of wooden door and bounced on her feet, pushing her body over the barrier, hurled herself in the back of wagon. Adrenaline pumped through her veins, causing her body to shake with the natural rush as her hand trembled with nerves. Her eyes scanned the back of the wagon, searching for a hiding spot. Her eyes caught sight of a long black cloak and a floral bandana that dangled from a supply bin. She yanked the coat over her arms and pulled the bandana on her head, concealing her wolf ears that would give her away if anybody spotted one of the many wanted posters of Nina Aka across the region, they would surely turn her in to the higher authorities. She squeezed past a barrel of onions and a chest full of new clothes. She pushed herself into a tight dark corner and hid in the shadows of the supply wagon, her legs curled to her chest to keep herself from falling apart. The rickety wagon bobbed back and forth, Nina attempted to remain quiet and still, yet the deep injury in her side bothered her. She felt the stinging throbs sweep over her thin figure, wincing in pain, she dug her teeth into her hand to maintain the quiet environment.
Her sensitive ears caught the sound of voices being carried on the light breeze to her blond wolf ears that twitched beneath the bandana. The wagon came to a halt, the wheels screeched to a noisy stand. Nina released her hand and covered her mouth, full lips quivered with heightened nerves as she tried to keep the same composure.
Please be quick, she thought anxiously, blinking the tears that welled up in her eyes. Stop crying like a frightened little girl. You made it this far, only a little bit more to go and you'll be fine. She tried to reassure herself.
"Good morning." The young man greeted with a friendly smile as the horse bobbed his head, shaking his long dark mane swished.
"Hi. What are you bringing to the Leaf Village today?" the guard questioned with a nice grin too, the fresh morning brightened both spirits.
"Just the usual, clothes and some food. Speaking of which? I got a great peach for you." The driver said, digging in his bag as he pulled out the ripe fruit, handing the peach to the young guard.
"Thanks. I didn't have breakfast this morning." The guard responded politely, smelling the fresh fruit as he rolled the peach in his rough hands. "But I still need to check the back." He laughed as he approached the wagon.
"If you didn't, you would lose your job and who would I have nice conversations with then?" the driver joked, a bright smile spread across his mouth as he relaxed his hands, waiting for the usual search to end.
"Exactly." The guard replied, he gradually rounded to the back of the wagon and opened the cloth door, peering into the back of supply trunk.
Suddenly another guard appeared next to the guard checking the wagon, "we have a disturbance in the village and we've been called to check on it. Another shinobi is going to take over for you." He informed quickly, waiting for the young man to finish his task.
"Alright. You're good to go and thanks for the food." The guard finalized and turned his full attention to his teammate. They raced back to the village, their bodies grew smaller in the distance.
Nina sighed with relief and rested her head against the wooden wall of the trunk as the wagon bobbed forward again, the wheels squeaked rolling along. The adrenaline pumped again in her body, her chest tightened with nerves for she reached her destination and entered dangerous territory too. She had not been back in the village for three years and in that time, she became one of the most dangerous criminals around. Her mind flashed to the training sessions with Sasuke and Orochimaru, the innocent lives they took in order to become more powerful weighed on her conscious. A bitter taste consumed her mouth, leaving her throat parched. She shook her head and focused her attention on the present, not having time to allow the guilt to eat away at her mind. Glancing through the parted drapes of the wagon, she noticed the streets were not busy as she predicted, the day too early for most people. She pushed herself up and looked out the little window, spotting an alley they were approaching soon. Nina squeezed passed the supplies and approached the edge of the wagon, bracing herself she jumped from the wagon and dashed into the dark alley before anyone spotted her figure. Her lungs burned with the oxygen that entered her system, quickly she rounded the corner and slammed herself against the brick wall of an apartment building.
Her body ached from her battle wounds and the injury in her side, she spared a glance at her side and her feminine face paled a shade of white, the wound started to bleed again. She knew she could not last much longer on her own, she needed somebody's help and the only person she thought of was the one she betrayed in the worst way three years ago. She grabbed her side and whimpered at the weakness she felt. Her natural healing was not assisting her during her desperate situation. Her brows furrowed together with anger, ignoring the pain. Standing back up, Nina ran to the edge of the alley and crossed the street to the other building that held a familiar young man. She rested against the wall, the loss of blood finally hit her body. She attempted to ignore the wounds and continue forward without being weakened by the past battles yet she could no longer ignore the severe injuries. Her blue eyes looked at the emergency staircase attached to the brick wall of the building. The steel bars fuzzy from her loss of vision as a result of the large wound.
Just one more thing to do and you have made it. Her mind echoed with encouragement to the rest of the body that was willing to surrender to the weak state. Her feet moved on their own, slowly walking towards the emergency staircase. She loosely gripped the railing, taking each step with care as her eyes glanced at the sky, the morning light completely chased the darkness away. She moved onward and climbed the stairs with frustration at the wobbly legs. Finally, reaching the correct floor, she collapsed on the steel flooring, her feet burned red with raw flesh, legs numb from the endless walking and the wounds stole the energy she had left, leaving her weak and vulnerable. Mustering the last bit of her energy, her hand banged on the window, not hearing any noise come from the apartment she hit the window again. A bloody outline of her hand imprinted the glass pane of the window as the hand slipped down the sill, roughly landing on the steel grate of the emergency staircase.
Her blue eyes grew heavy from the loss of energy, exhaustion from the long journey claimed her battered broken body. A black fog crawled through her mind and tried to consume her body in a deep slumber, she blinked a couple times to chase the bleakness away yet the haze continued to consume her. She sighed with defeat, allowing the darkness to envelope her thin figure. Her eyelids closed for a final time as her body entered a heavy sleep.
Naruto glanced at his empty frog wallet, shaking the wallet in hopes extra money would fall out yet nothing but lint fell from the pouch. He sighed with defeat as his stomach growled loudly. He put his hand on his muscled belly trying to quiet the noise it made. He would have to wait until he received another mission for payment and he didn't know when his next mission would arrive. A frown formed on his thin lips as he pout over his situation, a situation he should be used to after so many years. For the work he did he needed a pay raise yet the village faced financial difficulty and everybody pulled the purse strings tightly, so the occasional free meal he got at the Ichiraku Ramen Shop did not happen as often as they used to occur.
"Figures this would happen to me. I haven't even started my day and already I don't have any money for breakfast." He explained loudly to himself, he shoved the empty frog pouch back in his pocket and shoved his hands into his jacket.
He found a rock along his walk and kicked the little stone as he made his way back to his apartment. He wondered what his next mission was going to be, an escort to a spoiled princess or an animal tracker. He pondered on the missions he received lacked the action he was looking for and the action he needed to test his skills for his ultimate jutsu. He approached the apartment building, taking the front stairs with ease as he reached the top floor. He pulled the key from his pocket, walking down the long hallway he stopped before the door. Sticking the key in the deadbolt, he turned the key in the front door. Gripping the door knob, he pushed the door and slammed the blockade behind him as he locked the deadbolt. Naruto put the key back in his pocket and glanced at the empty apartment, three years of not seeing Nina was still fresh in his mind. The pain of their separation still fresh in his broken heart.
Suddenly his eyes caught a crimson hand print, he cautiously approached the window, reaching in the weapon pouch and grabbed a kunai for a ready attack. He controlled his breathing from the nervous shakiness that ran through his lean body. His eyes remained fixated on the window, he paused before the closed glass and peered outside. A thin figure laid unconscious on the steel grate, the face covered by the black cloak. He took a deep breath and unlocked the window, shoving the window up, he stretched through the opening and used the kunai to lift the cloak off the young face. His deep blue eyes grew wide with shock, amazement and resentment. He recognized the familiar platinum blond hair, the delicate eyelashes and the thinner figure than he remembered yet the person seemed familiar. He brushed the bandana off her head to witness the wonderful wolf ears were gone, regular human ears replaced one of her unique features.
"Nin-Nina! Oh my god! Nina!" Naruto exclaimed, glancing around the surroundings for nosy neighbors and gently pulled Nina through the window.
He carried her to the smooth wooden floor as he rested against the wall, Nina's head propped in his lap. His heart beat faster against the inner walls of his tight chest. His mind could not wrap around the realization Nina was back in his life. His eyes scanned her body, noticing blade wounds on her arms and legs, yet he shifted to bring her head up on his chest, he pulled his hand away that was covered in blood. Panic chilled the warm crimson rivers in his veins, Naruto scanned Nina again to make certain she was real, that his mind was not replaying memories he thought about so many times or conjured a false memory to ease the pain of losing her all over again.
"Nina, you can't leave me. I won't let you. You finally came back to me, what am I supposed to think if you leave me now?" Naruto panicked, tears welled in his eyes and he could not stop them from spilling over.
He embraced Nina harder, he wasn't ready to let her go, after three years he was still in love with her. The pain of her betrayal was still fresh yet in this moment he could not hold the past against her. She was the woman he still adored the years that past did not cloud his faith in her as the opinions of others changed of her when she decided to leave the village in a brutal way.
"Nar-Naruto…is it really you?" Nina asked with exasperation, her body too weak to lift her head and the lack of energy to keep her eyes open.
She relaxed when she realized she was in his arms, her heart melted at the kindness he still possessed for her. Nina did not deserve anybody's kindness yet by some miracle she had not burned the trust Naruto still held for her. He still had faith she would do the right thing and that was enough for her. All she needed was somebody to have a little faith in her and she had that.
"Yes I'm here. Tell me. Tell me what I can do please?" Naruto begged, his voice pleaded with her and he rested his face in her long blond hair.
The short hair she once had grew to the middle of her back, everything about Nina changed as Naruto transformed too, yet there was a hint of the younger Nina he fell for and he knew she was still in this woman who laid on the floor, resting on his lap. When she decided to return to him that was the little hint of the old Nina he once knew.
"It's okay. I need a couple days of rest and then I'll be fine." She explained softly, her body completely relaxed as she fell back into the deep slumber.
"Nina. Nina." He urgently spoke, seeing Nina's chest slowly heave up and softly go back down, the silent soothing rhythm of her body.
He contemplated on how to handle the situation, should he take the chance of someone seeing her if he took her to the hospital, nurse her back to health on his own and hope she recovered based on her own strength? He realized he needed somebody's help, yet who could he trust with such a secret he was willing to keep.
