I don't own Naruto. Yet. .
An unfamiliar confusion bloomed on the Toad Sennin's face.
"Hold your horses little lady. First of f, who are you?" He asked, scrutinizing the little blonde sitting in the dirt.
"No time! We have to go back. He's hurt real bad, and- and- and I don't think he's gonna come back. Daddy always says that he'll come back for me no matter what. But there's so much blood ,and he won't wake up." The little girl rambled. Tears began to carve muddy grooves into her dirt encrusted face.
Jiraiya began to panic. Comforting curvaceous young ladies is one thing, but children? He was in very uncomfortable waters. He awkwardly crouched down and began patting her on the back. Next thing he knew he was being used as a combination pillow and giant tissue.
"Let's get going then. We can't waste anytime if he's that hurt. I need you to tell me where he is. Can you show me?" He asked, gently lifting her face to look her in the eyes. She wiped her eyes with her fist and slowly nodded.
"We're staying in a cave a few miles away from town. I think it's that way." The little girl pointed.
Jiraiya glanced where she pointed.
"I need you to trust me, kid. Hang on tight, and we can get there a lot quicker than on the road." He explained, picking the little girl up, and slinging her across his back.
"Daddy lets me ride him when he flies through the trees." She told him, before burying her face in his back.
Jiraiya quirked an eyebrow, 'Flying through the trees? So he has some shinobi training.'
A few quick jumps found them up into the treetops, moving swiftly through the branches. The sennin stretched his senses. On the very edge of his range, a slight flicker of chakra caught his senses. He corrected his course. The duo found themselves on the edge of a clearing.
"Daddy!" The little girl cried, as she scrambled off his back. Blonde pigtails flew as she raced across the grass into the trees on the far end. Following her, the sage was astounded to find a small opening in a rock wall, hidden by the dense thicket.
"Come on Daddy, wake up. I brought Ero-sennin." The girl babbled. She was shaking the prone figure that he supposed was her daddy. A groan issued from the seemingly lifeless bundle.
"Kid, come here. You stand outside, while I go in and bring him out." Jiraiya directed. He waited for the girl to pass him then knelt down by the figure. Carefully gathering him in his arms, the white-haired man maneuvered his way back out into the sunshine. As the figure's head rolled back, he nearly dropped him. Matted, faintly blond hair surrounded a face with six straight scars that only one person had.
Jiraiya had finally found his student. The man was right; Tsunade was going to kill him for bringing Naruto back like this.
0o0o0o0
"Hey, kid, I need you to grab everything you have out of the cave. I need to take your dad back to Konoha. Tsunade-hime can help him there. You got three minutes, understood?"
The kid nodded quickly before running back to the cave. Seconds later, faint rustlings could be heard coming out of the cave. While waiting for her, Jiraiya took his canteen and wet a cloth from his pack, wiping away some of the dirt and blood from the boy, no, man's face. A faint sound escaped his lips.
"Kai…" Naruto whispered.
"Kai?" Jiraiya was puzzled. Was he hit with a genjutsu?
A loud clatter broke him out of his wonderings as the girl dropped a pile of stuff on the ground.
"Got everything. Can we go now?" She begged, eyes on her dad. Grabbing a scroll, the sage swiftly stored everything. A few hand seals and a puff of smoke later revealed a large toad.
"We need to get to Konoha, fast. He's not gonna hold on for much longer." The toad nodded and then carefully picked up Naruto, and swallowed him. The girl's eyes went wide. She froze to the spot. Jiraiya picked her up and without waiting followed the injured blonde. Another puff of smoke and the clearing was once again empty.
0o0o0o0
Tsunade leaned back in her chair, watching the goings on outside her window. The village noise carried up to her in the tower. Life continued on. People lived .People died. Children still chased each other up the streets.
She sighed. The village may seem full of life, but it was still missing Naruto. Nothing could replace him.
A noise in front of her desk startled her out of her thoughts. She turned around to find her self face to face with a large toad.
"Jiraiya…I swear if you're trying to sneak in paperwork about co-ed public baths, you're not going to live…to…"She lashed out, only to lose her words as said man emerged with a small, wide-eyed child and an injured man.
"Tsunade, it's Naruto. Please." He begged, his face more serious than she could remember in recent years.
"Naruto…" She breathed, eyes darting to indeed find the familiar whiskered face.
Quick as a flash, she knelt down at his side and began to examine him. A green glow surrounded her hands, giving her feedback on what was going on inside. Not even a minute later, she hauled the young man into her arms, and ran out the door, yelling for the shinobi in the tower to clear a way. Jiraiya collapsed into one of the waiting couches, the young blonde still in his arms.
"Well, kid, I guess it's just you and me for now." He mused, eyeing the silent blonde whose eyes were still plastered on the toad. He dismissed the toad who had been patiently waiting. The pigtailed blonde's gaze turned to the sage before her eyes rolled back in their sockets and she passed out. Jiraiya tightened his hold on her before she could slide to the floor.
"Too much excitement for you, little one." He chuckled. Carefully, he laid her out on the couch beside him, and settled in for a long wait.
A/N: I feel a little strange. After having just uploaded a monster of a chapter for K-ANBU, I upload one for this that's barely even 1k. The sad thing is, that this was originally two chapters. You can probably tell . How much flak would I have gotten for that? lol.
This is the entirety of what I have written for this one so far. Just to warn you.
p.s. dont' you just love kids :P
Let me know what you liked/didn't like/ what needs improvement?
Have a Happy Thanksgiving!
Soprano~in~Waiting
