Tsunade slammed her fist onto her desk upon hearing the report, promptly destroying said object, " WHAT?"
" Calm down, Tsuna-" a white-haired man held up his hands, hoping to placate her anger.
" Don't 'Calm down, Tsunade' me! The entire group is gravely wounded, Sasuke hasn't been brought back, and Naruto is dead! What do you think-"
" TSUNADE!" Jiraiya bellowed.
The Hokage stopped mid-sentence, face-to-face with the other sannin.
" Listen, I know you're upset, but calm down, alright? Konoha doesn't need a hysterical Hokage right now who can't keep her temper in check. You have to keep strong for the village." Jiraiya paused, " Orochimaru sent the elite of his village to escort Sasuke. It's a miracle that any of the genins in the group are alive at all! Furthermore..." he looked down briefly, " ... There's no proof that Naruto is dead."
Tsunade's eyes widened, jolted by his words, " N-Naruto... is alive?"
" Possibly." Jiraiya replied, " We never found his body. There's a chance that he's alive..."
The Hokage became silent, and she stared at the remains of her desk. All the shinobi present in her office right now felt bad, guilty, like they should've been there to do something. Even though Naruto wasn't the most welcomed ninja among them, they all felt pretty bad about losing the last Uchiha.
" Go." Tsunade finally spoke, though it was unclear to whom. " Go. I don't care what it takes, but find Naruto right now! He's an important part of this village, and I'll have him back here... alive or dead."
The room was silent.
" GO!" she roared at them.
The effect was instantaneous, as if everyone had learned the Hiraishin. They were all gone in a flash, as each feared her temper.
Tsunade finally broke down and began to cry.
Little did she know that she wasn't the only one mourning the blond jinchuuriki.
Kakashi stared at the team photo of his students.
I'm sorry, sensei... I couldn't help your son...
A tear glistened at the corner of his eye.
I'm so sorry, Naruto... There were so many things I never got to tell you. I couldn't even teach you enough techniques to make you into a formidable ninja. I have so many regrets...
Jiraiya sighed as he leaned against a wall. I never got to know you that well, brat. I guess I'm letting Minato down...I sure wish I could've spent more time with you, kid. He shook his head. Wait, what am I thinking? Naruto may very well still be alive! I'm going to find him if that's the last thing it takes!
Hinata sat under a tree, knees tucked close to her body and crying.
N-Naruto is gone... and I never got to tell him how I feel... I could've been stronger and helped him!
The tears fell faster and sobs racked her body.
I can't go on like this...
Suddenly she could see Naruto in front of her again. She could see his determination and courage... and his will to never give up. His dream to become the Hokage no matter what it took.
That's it. Hinata was suddenly struck by an idea. Absurd, crazy... but...
I'll train harder to get stronger for Naruto... and I'll become the Hokage and protect everyone one day for him.
The Hyuuga slowly wiped her eyes dry and stood up firmly with her resolve in mind.
This I promise to you, Naruto! _
It was dark outside. Night had fallen, and bitter winds ravaged the forest. Millions of twinkling stars shone coldly through a thin layer of gray clouds coating the sky. A full moon was present, in its bright, icy glow lighting the heavens above. Pale rays fell silently onto the ever-rippling waters of a lake with the surface of a shattered mirror.
" Is it wise to bring him with us?"
The ebony-haired girl standing in front of the trio gazed up at the sky, " ... I think that he's the one of the prophecy."
" What?" the other male in the group exclaimed, hazel eyes widening, " Why didn't you tell us earlier?" he asked in incredulously in disbelief.
She shrugged, " I wasn't very sure at first, but I could feel the essence of the boreal lights in him..."
" As well as the dark, sinister demon." he pointed out.
The other boy spoke up, " Yuta, the oracle said that the chosen one would have two conflicting energies residing in him. It makes sense if he's the carrier of a demon..."
Yuta grumbled as another harsh wind tore past, further messing up his raven hair, " You could've at least told me..." he adjusted his hold on the young blond he carried.
The girl sighed, briefly closing her lilac eyes, " How were we supposed to draw conclusions so quickly?"
" Mikomi, you're the next Guardian! How could you not-"
" I'm still in training." she snapped at him.
Shouhei watched the two with interest, a gleam in his golden eyes. Their arguments never failed to amuse him. He carelessly brushed back a strand of brown hair from his face.
" -But you-, hey is it time yet?" Yuta broke off abruptly, gazing up at the sky.
The silver moonlight glowed brighter than usual, and the stars seemed to swirl closer.
" ... I think so..." Mikomi studied the heavens with her companions for a few moments.
Shouhei nodded and adjusted his glasses, " Open the gate, then."
She drew the sword on her back and held it out in front of her horizontally and closed her eyes as she began to concentrate. The shimmering blade of multicolored light slowly started to glow; first faintly, then getting brighter and brighter.
" Unlock!"
The gathered light burst up towards the sky, and the outline of an ancient set of doors flickered in the sky.
" Hurry, let's go!" Shouhei bit his thumb and began a series of hand seals.
" Summoning jutsu!"
A large white dragon appeared in the usual poof of smoke, completely obliterating several trees in its wake.
I assume that you need me to take you to the gates? the dragon addressed Shouhei.
He nodded, " Yes, please."
The dragon stretched his wings. Climb on. The train won't be waiting for you.
The small group clambered on hastily, and the dragon took off into the air, headed for the doors.
Who is the other with you? he questioned as they flew.
" We think that he is the one of the prophecy." Yuta answered, tightening his hold on the boy.
Are you sure? Bringing one of the people here into our world would be disastrous.
" Mikomi sensed the aurora blessing in him. It should prove to be accurate." he answered confidently.
" Besides, if we don't bring him back, he could very well die of his injuries. We patched him up the best we could, but it seems like he went through some sort of mental trauma as well. He was bleeding his life out when we found him at... the Valley of the End, was it?" Shouhei looked to his comrades at the last part.
" Yeah, that was the name." Mikomi nodded, " We couldn't find anyone looking for him, and there was no time to follow the trail of the person who did this."
I see. I hope that you have made the right decision, in that case. May he live to become a true hero, remembered through the ages!
" You copied the last part from the oracle's words." Shouhei said accusingly.
The dragon huffed. Did not! ... Well, maybe a little...
Mikomi reached out to the doors as they arrived and channeled her chakra through the lock.
Click.
The heavy set of doors swung open and revealed a grassy emerald field coated with gentian flowers.
Looks like you didn't miss the train yet. The dragon commented.
Yuta smiled, " Yes!"
Saying their thanks and biding farewell to the summon, the trio trudged over to the wooden bench planted beside the railroad tracks.
" Whew." Shouhei sank down into the seat, " I can't wait to get home. This mission has lasted far too long for my liking..."
Yuta settled the blond kid down before taking a spot himself, " Yeah. I had no idea it would be this long when Chikao gave us the details..."
" 'Elusive' isn't exactly the best word to describe those people." Mikomi sat down beside Yuta with a yawn.
Shouhei glanced at the two beside him before turning his gaze in the direction where the train would be coming.
Now we wait... Man, I can't wait to get back!
Okay, I got this idea for the story when I was looking at some of Kagaya's pictures... and that's going to be what one of the main scenes for the story is based off of.
If the second part of the chapter doesn't make sense, then I apologize, because I know it's not very descriptive. I'll try to clear things up in the next chapter, because that'll be when Naruto is officially coming into the story! :) Oh, and you won't know what I'm talking about for the train unless you see some of the pictures I mentioned.
I'm planning on splitting the chapters, one of Hinata in Konoha, and one of Naruto... in the world I'm going to write about!
You don't have to look at the pictures, since I'll be doing some descriptions, but they're very nice.
Oh, and it would be nice if I could get some opinions on the personalities of Sakura and Sasuke... like, as in the "good guy" or "bad guy" thing, because I haven't made up my mind yet.
Please review and tell me what you think! ^^