Valley of the Wind
Chapter 2: The Familiar Symbol
By: Zashire
"Where is this Konoha that you spoke of?" the man repeated when he received no response from the blonde haired kunoichi. On his person, he wore a long dark brown robe that was tied around his waist by a thick piece of rope. Sticking out at the bottom of his robe were two black colored boots that were covered in fur, similar to the skins that were hanging at random points on his cart. His hair was a dark shade of grey, which made him out to be an old man. To Temari, he seemed to be an ordinary merchant.
The kunoichi was about to respond, but stopped herself when she felt something burn at her skin. She looked down and saw that a thin layer of dark red chakra was covering all visible points of the blonde's body. She needed to get him some help. Maybe the merchant knew where the nearest village was?
"I said, where–" the old man began but was cut off.
"Hey, do you happen to know the way to the closest town?"
He grunted at the disrespect, and was about to retort angrily at the girl, but stopped when he saw what she was carrying. "Girl, get him over here this instant!"
Temari obeyed without question. She had a weird instinct that always seemed to make her listen and obey her elders without complaint. It took her less than two seconds to reach the man as he shoved his cart the rest of the way across the bridge and stopped when he came up to her. She made herself seem jumpy to get him to start talking.
"I recognize that sort of chakra, and I know someone who can help your friend there," he quickly explained.
Temari's eyes widened, "Fine, but we need to move quickly!" She still wasn't sure whether to trust the man or not, but figured that it might be the only possible way to save Naruto.
The man immediately pulled off his dark robe to reveal some metallic armor that looked similar to the pictures of ancient samurai that the Suna kunoichi had seen back in her home town once before. She watched as he pulled out a short dagger, and tried to back away in case of an attack, but before she managed to do anything, he used the handle of the weapon to knock her across the back of the head.
She promptly passed out and fell into the man's arms. He kneeled down and placed the blonde boy on the ground. He grunted, but drifted off into a dreamless sleep only seconds later. The old man sighed before moving the girl onto his back. He expertly pulled the thick rope piece off his robe and tied the girl's wrists together once they were around his neck. He then bent over and lifted up the blonde boy once more and finally stood up.
He glanced back at his cart. I'll come back for it later… were his last thoughts before taking off into the trees that surrounded the valley.
xxx
Hareshi sighed as she leaned against a tall oak tree, and let her weapon fall to the ground beside her.
Patrol duty was sooo boring! Why did she always have to get stuck with it?
Oh, that's right, because she was one of the only ones in the clan who had senses that could almost rival that of the wolves. Stupid genetic inheritance.
She sighed once more as she pulled out her canteen that was now only half full. At least I'm on break… She thought with a smile as she let the cold, refreshing liquid run down her throat. That was probably one of the best parts of her daily life. Her break.
"Arf! Arf!" Hareshi turned to the source of the noise and smiled as a small black and white dog came running up to her.
"Hey, Maui-chan," the young woman greeted. "You can drop the act. Everyone knows we can speak to each other."
The dog grinned as best as she could and placed the item that was in her mouth on the grass. "Sorry, Hareshi-chan… I, uh, got caught up in the moment again," she explained, while looking about as embarrassed as any animal could.
"It's fine," Hareshi said with a smile.
Hareshi was a somewhat tall woman for her age. She was still in her teens, but was left with only two years before she could officially be called an adult. She had dark brown hair that matched the bark on the tree that she sat up against, with equally dark brown eyes. One red stripe was painted on each side of her tanned face, which indicated the clan she hailed from. Her outfit consisted of a tightly wrapped grey robe that went down to about mid-thigh. Beneath that, she wore a light brown tank top with dark black shorts. Her outfit could be considered bland, but for her, it was all she needed to be a successful ninja.
She glanced to her right – to where she had tossed her weapon aside. It was a finely crafted staff that she desperately loved. It had very ornate details, and she considered herself one of the luckiest people on the continent to have it. The staff had been a birthday gift for her when she had turned eleven, and through the five years in which she had owned it, she had never parted with it once.
Her attention then turned back to her dog. Oh, how she loved Maui. The dog was at least seven or eight years old right now, yet she still acted like a newly born puppy… only much more obedient. The fact that she could communicate with her on a very high level was an added bonus from her genetics.
"Murosaki-sama told me to deliver this to you. She also said that if you forget your lunch one more time, you're going to miss eating for the following two days," Maui recited from memory.
Hareshi gawked at her furry friend. "What?!" she shrieked. "You can tell her that I'm sorry for forgetting my food at FOUR IN THE MORNING!"
Maui's eyes widened as her partner raised her voice to new levels, and she back away slightly in fear. "Sorry, Hareshi-chan, but I'm just following Murosaki-sama's orders," the little dog explained while shaking.
The brown haired teen instantly calmed down. "Sorry, Maui-chan. It's just mom can be so pushy sometimes…"
Sometimes…? The dog stared in disbelief. That girl's mother was always like this.
"Anyway, thanks for stopping by, Maui-chan," Hareshi said before pulling over the cloth that contained her food. As she ate, she gave some of it to Maui, and they both managed to enjoy it while the sun passed over head, telling them it was just after noon.
Maui got up from the grass and shook herself. "I think I better get going."
The brunette nodded and said a quick goodbye before reaching over to pick up her staff. She gave a sigh. Time to go back to work. How fun.
Just as she stretched a bit, she saw something zip past her.
"Aw, crap!" she exclaimed before turning on a heel into the direction the thing had gone in. No way was this going to ruin her perfect record of keeping the border safe. She may have been on a break, but she took order patrol seriously, despite how much she hated it. She was the one who helped protect everyone inside the small village, and it was her duty to help keep it peaceful.
She tried her best to speed up, but the figure that turned out to be a man ran far too fast for her. Damn it!
Hareshi saw him weave his way through some people as he ran down the makeshift street. She tried to do the same, but wasn't nearly as skilled as the man, and focused more on not taking out anyone rather than catching him.
Once she made it through the group of people, she managed to spot him over twenty five meters away. It took only seconds to get there, but by the time she made it, he was already another thirty five away. She continued to trail him until he finally stopped at a building. It took her a moment to realize what it was, but once she did, everything made sense.
She hoped her leader wouldn't murder her later for this.
xxx
The grey haired man entered the building before him and called out to no one in particular for some help. A young woman came running out in response and stopped right before him.
"What is it you–" she started, but cut herself off when she spotted the young blonde in the grey haired man's arms. Her eyes widened at the blood on his chest. "Right this way!"
She offered to take the blonde boy, but the older man refused knowing he could carry him far faster than the young nurse could. She nodded warily and called for some assistance before running down the hallway, all the while urging the older man to follow her. He did as instructed and in no time, they found themselves in a small open room.
He laid the blonde boy down on the bed and several other nurses entered and began to take his jumpsuit off. It took them a while to figure out how to remove the foreign clothing, but they managed. None of them had ever seen bright orange on someone's outfit before, so this was all new to them.
The nurse that had brought him there asked him to go with her to just outside the room. He quickly followed and soon found himself under a death glare.
"I don't know what you ninja have been doing lately, but if we find out this kid got hurt because he was under your training, you're going to have to answer to me and all of the other employees here, including Shimu-sama," she left the last part as an open threat. She saw he was about to retort, but cut him off. "I've never seen a child of his age so close to death before, but still alive. He's going to be in a lot of pain when – if he wakes up." Her eyes softened as she looked back to the room.
The older man sighed. "All I can tell you–" He stopped when he heard something groan. He turned around, but realized it was the girl he had tied to his back. How had she wakened up so quickly?
Before he could do anything, he fell to his knees because the girl had used her foot to kick the back side of them. He quickly grabbed her hands and slipped them over his head to free her from his body, but quickly flipped her around so he was, in a way, holding her hands behind her back.
She grunted as she cracked her eyes open again and took in the room around her. A nurse stood next to a doorway to her immediate right and had a frightened look on her face. She glanced down and saw an arm wrapped around her stomach to hold her in place. She then looked up and saw the face of her captor staring right back down at her. He had an unreadable look on his face. No one was talking, so she decided to take the initiative.
"What do you want with me?" she asked, immediately feeling stupid for putting it so bluntly.
The man gave her a curious look. "I believe it was you who asked me for the assistance."
She grunted again. "I didn't think that would include getting knocked out."
"I have my reasons."
She sighed. She would have gave an angry retort, but once again, she'd had it beaten into her at an early age to respect her elders unless in a dire situation. Her life didn't seem to be at risk, so the rules seemed to apply. "What happened to Naruto?"
The grey haired man tilted his head to the side before a look of comprehension crossed his face. "The nurses here are trying to heal him as we speak."
She nodded thankfully. "Where's 'here?'"
His face remained impassive. "I'll tell you if our leader permits it. By the way, what's your name?" She turned away from him. "This will increase your chances of being allowed to live later," he added in a convincing tone.
Her eyes widened slightly. "Temari," she blurted out.
He gave a small grin. "Well, Temari-san, let us get going." He lifted her up as he stood up. The man then turned to the nurse. "Sorry, but I'll be taking my leave now. Please do your best for the boy, and some ninja will be here shortly to watch him."
The nurse nodded dumbly, still surprised by the scene that had just played out. She shook her head and reentered the hospital room.
Temari looked back at the older man. "Can't I at least walk on my own?"
He shook his head. "Not until the leader decides what to do with you," he spoke in an authoritative tone. She huffed as they began to walk down the hall to the exit. "Besides, this is a little payback for that earlier kick."
Her eyes widened for a split second before a wave of anger flashed over her. "Ah, ah, ah… remember, here, your life means nothing as of yet." She grumbled, but quieted down. He then leaned over her shoulder and spoke quietly. "The only reason I even kept you alive is because of that symbol on your friend's headband."
She turned to face him, and he smiled slightly. "I'm sure you two will be fine as long as you're not spies. Given some of your reactions, I'm leaning toward the 'idiotic kids' suggestion."
Her anger returned in a moment, and he tightened his grip on her wrists as they continued walking toward… well wherever he was planning on taking her.
xxx
Senju Hashirama was not in a good mood. The normally calm and collected man was currently read to kill someone… and that was putting it lightly.
"Why did you not report this to me when they first crossed the border?!"
"I'm sorry sir, but Hareshi-san seemed to have a decent handle on the situation," the young girl in front of him explained in a nervous voice. She wore an outfit similar to Hareshi's, but hers was a dark shade of grey instead. Her hair was about as close to black as anyone's could get, and her eyes were light and pale.
He tried his best to calm himself down. It didn't work too well, but he felt a bit better. He was about to go on when he saw one of his servants come up to him with, presumably, some news.
The servant bowed quickly to his master. "Pardon the interruption, Senju-sama, but Kugiro-sama would like to have a word with you. He says it is very urgent."
Hashirama's eyes widened. Since when did Kugiro every want to see him while he was on the job? Something pretty damn important must have come up for this to happen. Hashirama quickly regained his composure and gave a slight nod to the servant. "Tell him to come in," he ordered before turning to back to the young woman. "I'm going to have to cut our time short, Kikyo-san, but please remember our talk in the future. I do not want to hear of this happening ever again. Are we clear?"
The dark haired girl nodded. "Hai, Senju-sama!"
Hashirama sighed. "Dismissed."
The girl known as Kikyo stood up and gave a brief bow before running over to the door. As she passed though, she had to slip off to the side because a man was in the process of entering along with a girl who followed behind him. He grunted as she almost ran into them, but waved it off.
Kugiro guided the girl behind him up to where Hashirama was standing. Instead of bowing like Kikyo had, he just gave a brief nod of respect. Hashirama did the same and took a seat on the floor. Once he was down, Kugiro followed suit and dragged the girl down with him, arms still tied in front of her.
Hashirama raised his eyebrows at the sight before him. "Am I correct to assume that you were the one that caused the border trouble earlier, uncle?" he questioned, revealing to the girl the relationship between the two.
Senju Kugiro rolled his eyes. "Not my fault the ninja here can't keep track of a person who's over forty years their senior. Honestly, Hashirama, you need to set up better training programs."
The younger man before him huffed. "I will take that as a 'yes.' Onto more pressing matters, what is it that you wished to discuss with me?"
Kugiro dropped all the masks of humor and put on a face of seriousness. "I found this girl," he began his explanation, moving a hand in the direction of the blonde kunoichi. "Calls herself Temari. She was carrying a blonde boy who is apparently named 'Naruto.' He was badly wounded so I knocked her out and brought the both of them back here to get some treatment. I was going to let them go once they got all fixed up, but saw something that I believe would catch your interest."
Hashirama's ears perked up at the last sentence. He watched as his uncle dug deep within his large pocket and produced a blue piece of cloth that had a plate of metal attached to it. Hashirama's eyes widened just before his uncle continued his explanation.
"See the symbol here? It looks awfully familiar, doesn't it?"
Hashirama ignored the question and turned to the kunoichi. "Explain this."
It wasn't a question, it was an order.
Temari shifted a bit. How much should she tell them?
After a few moments of silence, Kugiro grunted and before the blonde knew what was happening, there was a small dagger at her throat. She could feel the old man's breath on her neck.
"You better do what Hashirama orders you to do, otherwise there might be one less blonde in this country by the end of the day," he whispered into her ear, so quietly it sent a shiver up her spine. This was worse than what Gaara could do with his sand. She looked up toward Hashirama for help, but found him wearing an impassive stare. "He's not going to help you out here," the whispering continued.
Temari felt another tingle begin to make its way up her spine, but suddenly stopped. She sat up straighter and looked Hashirama in the eye. She paid no attention to Kugiro, and cleared her throat. "Would it be possible to make a deal?"
The man who looked to be in his early thirties eyed her warily. "That may be possible. It depends on what you can bring to the table."
Temari nodded, and her gaze briefly flickered to Kugiro. Hashirama understood and waved for his uncle to stand down. The man nodded and moved back over to his seat. Damn, he's creepy! Temari finally allowed herself to think.
Hashirama coughed and she looked back at him. "State your offer."
She nodded. "In return for the information on the headband plus any other questions you have that– Holy shit!" Temari exclaimed at the end, but slapped her tied up hands over her mouth as soon as the swear left it. "I'm sorry, but did I hear you correct in that your name is Senju Hashirama?"
Said man frowned but nodded.
Her eyes widened. "B-but you're supposed to be dead!"
Kugiro slapped a hand over his face. "Not something you say to a man who just passed thirty."
Hashirama glared at Kugiro briefly, but turned his attention back to Temari. "What do you mean by I'm 'supposed to be dead?'"
"You're the Shodai Hokage of Konoha! They're on their Godaime right now, so how are you still alive?!"
"Please lower your voice and explain," Hashirama commanded quietly. "And start with the beginning."
Temari did so, but was still fidgety. She began the tale starting with the mission to retrieve Sasuke and gave the man all of the background he needed. She even told him about the demon Naruto contained; not realizing it was an S-class secret, punishable by death. She didn't know which demon he contained, but knew it had to be pretty powerful. The blonde had no idea why, but she felt she could trust the man given that he was one of the founders of the most powerful village on the continent. She could tell that he was the real deal based on the symbol that was marked in various places on his outfit.
As she finished, Hashirama and Kugiro stared at her in disbelief, though Hashirama hid his far better.
Finally, Hashirama spoke up. "While your story is quite enthralling, I believe one of the verifying points will be to examine this Naruto that you spoke of." Temari nodded. "And for now, you are welcome in our village. I know for a fact that you are no spy." She then tilted her head to the side. "If you had been, I would have picked up a difference in your chakra signature with my Mokuton bloodline."
She nodded briefly and held back a yawn.
Hashirama noticed this. "Kugiro, would you please show Temari-san around the village for a bit? Once you are done, I will have a place for her to sleep for her stay."
Temari quickly put two and two together and realized that the entire town, albeit small, had been built using Hashirama's ability with wood. That was an impressive feat. How many people could say they built their own village singlehandedly and actually mean it?
Kugiro nodded and stood up. He asked Temari to stand, and she did so too. He quickly untied her wrists and put the rope away in a pocket before leading her to the door after his nephew had dismissed them. He sighed briefly. It still didn't feel right taking orders from that man. That was life…
Once they reached the doorway, Temari turned around. Hashirama, as if reading her mind, instantly responded, "Tomorrow is another day." She gave a small smile and followed Kugiro out the door. She was going to ask him when they would talk again. Tomorrow it was.
When they were outside, Temari suddenly stopped when she realized something. She turned to the grey haired man. "Where's my fan?"
Kugiro's eyes widened as he started to sweat. "Uh… that thing on your back was a weapon?"
She nodded as a deep frown appeared on her face.
"Definitely not in the garbage… Nope! No way!" he said as he took off running.
Temari grit her teeth before taking off after him. "Wait till I get my hands on you!"
xxx
Hashirama grinned as he heard the screams of absolute terror coming from outside. Tomorrow definitely would be another day. Apparently, Kugiro wished for it to come sooner rather than later, if his cries of pain were anything to go by.
xxx
A/N: And it ends on a light note.
Don't worry, everything will be explained in the next couple of chapters. The next one will be the first one where things are going to start settling down a bit. Oh, and if you think you know what clans Hareshi and Kikyo are from, you're probably right. That will be explained as well in the next chapter.
Also, things in this story, like when events take place, may be at different times in this story because of Naruto and Temari's sudden appearances.
I think that's about it… Just wanted to throw that out there. ^^ Hope you liked it.
Zashire