Chapter Ten: The Land Where a Hero Once Lived

Sasuke ran up the tree and managed to get a few feet farther than he had in the beginning. He sliced the tree, but slipped up and fell downwards. He barely managed to catch himself. Naruto, in the meantime, was doing quite well, rapidly getting higher. By now he was nearly overtaking Sasuke.

'Do you need help?' asked Sakura.

'No.' said Sasuke, though she could tell he was furious. 'I've got it handled.'

'You don't look like you have it handled Sasuke.' said Sakura 'If you get yourself killed it'll bring down the team. I could tell you how to do it, if you want.'

'I don't need anyones help.' said Sasuke.

'Fine.' said Sakura 'You're funeral.'

Sasuke rushed up the tree too quickly, slipped on the tree and ended up landing flat on his back. He lay there for a moment while Sakura watched.

3. 2. 1.

'…Alright, fine, how did you do it?' asked Sasuke.

'Chakra requires spiritual energy.' said Sakura 'So if you get all anxious and frantic it doesn't work. That's how you get a steady flow of chakra in your feet.'

'I already know that!' said Sasuke 'How is that helpful?'

'Were you focused on climbing the tree?' asked Sakura 'Or focused on being the best?'

Sasuke didn't answer.

'If you get all caught up with what other people think and are doing you'll just end up distracted and fail every time.' said Sakura. 'Focus on the tree and nothing else. Clear your mind.'

'Ah, Sakura.' said Kakashi. 'I see you're busy giving your teammates advice and not climbing trees.'

'Well I've basically completed the excercise a hundred times by now.' said Sakura 'I could do it in my sleep.'

'Well since you can do it in your sleep perhaps you'd like another duty.' said Kakashi 'Tazuna is heading to the bridge to continue the work. I need you to go with him and make sure he stays safe.'

'You don't really think that Zabuza could be up already, do you?' asked Sakura.

'Of course not.' said Kakashi 'But Gato might send less formidable thugs after him.' He paused. 'However if Zabuza or his associate do arrive I expect you to run.'

'Run?' said Sakura 'But-'

'You are a rookie genin.' said Kakashi 'You aren't qualified to fight someone on their level alone. At the end of the day Tazuna made this mission on false pretenses so we are under no obligation to die pointlessly to protect him.

You are there as security against thugs. Not ninja.'

'I understand.' said Sakura.

'And while you are there,' said Kakashi 'keep studying that jutsu okay.'

'Right.' said Sakura.

The sound of hammers on nails filled the air. Every so often Sakura would hear one of the cranes in action as it move pieces of heavy material to the places where they were needed. It didn't exactly make ideal conditions for studying a highly complex ganjutsu. Even so, she thought she was gradually getting the hang of it.

'You always this lazy?' asked Tazuna.

'Hey, my job is to keep you safe.' snapped Sakura 'And Kakashi sensei says I have to learn this to do that. If you didn't want your bodyguards to have to take a crash courses in ganjutsu you should have paid for an A ranked mission.'

'Fair enough.' said Tazuna 'Where is that blonde brat and the kid with the attitude.'

'They're training.' said Sakura 'Climbing trees.'

'Too tough for you?' asked Tazuna.

'No.' said Sakura 'In fact, I'm the best. That's why Sensei sent me here to guard you.'

'You're joking.' said Tazuna.

Sakura was about to say something very impolite to that. But at that moment another man wearing a blue headband approached him. 'Tazuna I need to talk to you.'

'Eh?' said Tazuna 'What about?'

'Ah,' said the man 'thing is, I've been thinking a lot about the bridge. And I've decided I've pushed my luck far enough. I want out.'

'Now you're going to quit on me, just like that!' said Tazuna incredulously. 'You're kidding!'

'You know,' said the builder 'I stayed on because of our friendship. But I'm putting my life on the line every day that I stay here. Gato and his thugs will show up eventually. When they do they'll kill you and the bridge will never get finished anyway.

It's a lost cause, Tazuna. Why don't we stop now while we can still get out of this alive?'

Tazuna seemed to consider it for a moment. '…No chance. This is our bridge. Our island is poor. And it will stay that way until this bridge connects us to the mainland. Commerce, trade and hope! That's what we're building here!'

'There's not going to be much hope if we're all dead.' noted the builder.

'It's already noon.' said Tazuna 'Let's break for lunch.'

'Tazuna, come on.' said the builder 'Let's not end it like this.'

'It's time to eat.' said Tazuna 'And Geichi, don't bother coming back after lunch.'

Sakura suddenly found herself with new respect for the man. Tazuna wasn't a ninja. He was just an ordinary guy. A bridgebuilder. But he was risking his life for the sake of the Land of Waves. There was a lot to admire there.

She followed after Tazuna.

Naruto and Sasuke had reached the top of the tree. Kakashi sensei's response was to bring them to a bunch of even taller trees and tell them to climb those. Now they were sitting at the base, limbs aching and hearts beating.
Then they looked at eachother.

'I'm not going to lose out to you.' said Naruto.

They both began to climb again.

Later as the day was winding down Sakura followed Tazuna into the main town. The people here were mostly dressed poorly. Beggers were on almost every street corner and the buildings were even more run down than those on the waterfront. The whole place radiated despair.

'Where are we going?' asked Sakura.

'You want to eat tonight, don't you?' asked Tazuna. 'I've got to pick up some things for dinner.'

Sakura saw a man with a bandaged head carrying a sign that begged for money. His back was slumped and his eyes hopeless. She gave him some money and they walked on. Even as she did a young boy rushed into an alley carrying some money as a shopkeeper called thief.

Two young boys could be seen sitting by the roadside with their heads in their faces.

'Here we are.' said Tazuna.

They entered into a run down shop. The shelves had only a small assortment of vegetables. It was obvious that there wasn't a bountiful supply of food. This was a store? There was nothing here.

Suddenly Sakura felt someone taking hold of her bag. On reflex she turned around and struck the person across the face. The man hit the ground like a sack of potatoes. By this time Tazuna had finished his shopping and they made their way out.

'You really surprised me back there.' said Tazuna 'Girls around here don't fight like that.'

'They should.' said Sakura 'Something is seriously wrong around here-' She felt someone grab ahold of her skirt and whirled round. However she saw a young boy, looking far too skinny. He looked at her with hopeful eyes and raised his hands.

'Please?' he asked.

Sakura drew out some rations and gave them to him. The boy thanked her and ran off into the crowd. Tazuna looked on with her. 'This is how it has been since Gato came here. The children suffer, and the adults are afraid to stand up to him. They've lost all hope. That's why we have to finish the bridge. It will bring commerce and trade. But much more importantly that bridge is a symbol of courage.

We must restore the spirit of our people. When the bridge is finished people will start to believe again. They'll believe that they can live with dignity. We can't let Gato stop us.'

'Nice speech.' said a leering voice.

The crowd scattered as into the street stepped three huge thugs. They held clubs and knives and were approaching. 'What do you say we cut is short boss?'

Sakura stepped in front of them as they approached, drawing her kunai. 'Stay back.'

'Oh look at this. The school kid brigade is here to stop us.' laughed the thug as he approached. 'What a joke. Get out of here before we find something creative to do-'

There were three of them. Even if Sakura had better training they had the advantage in numbers and were more physically developed. She knew she must strike fast and without mercy. As they had been speaking she had been reaching for her holster.

In one swift movement she drew out three shurikens and hurled them at the men. One of them sliced the first man's left eye. Another tore the throat of the second. The last lodged itself in the final thug's leg.

Blood spewed from their injuries as they fell backward screaming, or gurgling in the case of the second. The third, however, drew out the shuriken and rushed at her with a roar. Sakura hurled her kunai and caught him in the heart with it.

He collapsed to his knees and died there.

He was dead. Sakura had killed a man. She'd driven a cold piece of metal into his vital organs and he'd died of it. She walked forward, staring in horror as the blood pooled all over the dirt streets. This was it. This was what she had signed on for.

The other two were still alive.

Sakura drew out her spare kunai and move toward the one who was gurgling. Blood was spilling from his neck and it would be only a matter of time before he died. She didn't know any of the medical jutsu necessary to save him. Even if she could it wouldn't be a good idea.

Raising the kunai she fell to one knee and drove it home into the man's throat, through to cut through his neck. He was dead as well.

Only one left now.

He looked at her in terror with his one good eye and scrambled to his feet, fleeing while screaming in fear. Sakura raised her blade to throw it into his back. If he got away he could bring more.

Then Tazuna put a hand on her shoulder. 'Let him go, kid. I'm sorry I underestimated you.'

Sakura relaxed. She also took time to retrieve her kunai and shurikens, beinng careful not to get blood on her skirt. She'd been lucky to escape without any red on her. Well any red she wasn't already wearing.

Two men were dead and she had killed both of them. It was strange. She felt so empty. As if there was a void where her emotions had been. She didn't know how to react. Of course she'd always known that killing was part of the ninja way but it had never set in.

Why had she even become a ninja in the first place?

Oh right. Ino had been her only friend. She'd been entering the academy and Sakura hadn't wanted to be separated from her. She'd begged and pleaded with her parents to send her to the academy and her parents had relented. Why not? Being a ninja was a prestigious job.

Which involved killing people.

She looked to Tazuna who was looking entirely too comfortable. 'Has this happened before?'

'Yes.' said Tazuna 'Anyone who stands up to Gato ends up dead. Frankly I'm just glad this time it happened to his goons.'

That was right. These had not been good people. They had been thugs. Probably murderers. They would have killed Tazuna and probably her in a heartbeat. And their death was necessary for the mission. A shinobi was not supposed to let their emotions cloud their judgement. And she wasn't.

'Tazuna,' she said 'can we not mention this? Back at home?'

'Why not?' asked Tazuna.

'It just isn't something I want to discuss.' said Sakura 'It would make things awkward with Naruto and Sasuke.'

She cleaned off her weapons on the way back. She didn't want there to be any sign of what she had done. As they reached the house they opened the door and entered it. They were welcomed by Tsunami who set about making dinner.

Sasuke and Naruto ate ravenously. Far too ravenously. Sakura wasn't hungry.

'This is fantastic.' said Tazuna 'It's been ages since we last had so many guests around our table.'

Naruto and Sasuke finished their food before raising their bowls. 'I want some more!' They said at once. Then their eyes met in silent challenge. Then they looked as if they were about to puke from wolfing things down.

'Don't eat so much if you're going to throw it up.' snapped Sakura.

'I have to eat.' said Sasuke.

'And I have to eat more than him.' said Naruto. 'It's the only possible way I'll get strong enough to beat him!'

'That's true.' said Kakashi 'But puking won't help you.'

Sasuke wanted to flare up. To scream at them that there were people starving to death in the Land of Waves. But it was pointless. If Kakashi sensei wasn't chiding them she shouldn't be. She started to eat her own food.

As the meal was completed Sakura saw something. A picture on the far wall with four people in it. Tazuna, Inari, Tsunami and a man whose face had been torn out of the picture. Sakura made her way over to it and focused on it so she didn't have to think about the blood pouring out over the street.

'Excuse me,' she said 'this picture is torn. Is there some reason for that? Inari you kept glancing at it all through dinner. It looked like there was someone else in the picture but they got torn out. I mean that's kind of strange isn't it?' Yes she was being insensitive but she had to hear something else.

'It's my husband.' said Tsunami.

'They used to call him a hero in this land.' said Tazuna.

Inari walked out.

'Inari where are you going?!' cried Tsunami, rushing after him. As she reached the door she glanced back. 'Father you can't talk about him like that in front of Inari. You know that!' And she stormed out.

Tazuna was silent.

'Inari's so…' Don't think about the screams of the dying men. Don't. 'I mean what happened to him?'

'Is there a story behind this?' asked Kakashi.

'He wasn't his real father.' said Tazuna 'He came into our family later. And he brought so much happiness. He and Inari were very close.'

Inari was smiling in the picture. Smiling.

'In those days Inari used to laugh all the time.' continued Tazuna, voice breaking up .'But then… all that ended. He never laughs or smiles anymore. The word courage was stolen from this island. We were left feeling powerless, hopeless, and Inari suffered the most. Ever since that day, ever since it happened…'

'Tell us,' said Kakashi 'what happened to Inari?'

'First you need to know about the man who acted as his father.' said Tazuna 'The man who taught us the word courage, who was a hero in this land.'

'A hero, really?' asked Naruto.

'You can decide that for yourself.' said Tazuna 'He came here about three years ago. Inari had been drowning, but he leaped into the ocean and pulled him to safety. He brought Inari home safely, telling him to live his life so he has nothing to regret.

His name was Kaiza. A simple fisherman who'd come here from another land to follow his dreams. After that Inari and Kaiza were inseperable. The boy had never known his real father so you can imagine what it meant to him to have Kaiza in his life. He looked up to him and followed in his footsteps like a real father and son.

Kaiza spent more and more time with us until he just naturally became a member of our family. And then when this town needed him he became something more.

A great storm washed over the island, threatening to drown the lower distract. The floodgates failed to close and the water was rising. But Kaiza leaped into the churning water and attached a rope to it. Hauling on the rope, the whole village managed to shut the flood gates.

From that time on Kaiza was considered a hero in this land. He taught us all the meaning of courage. And Inari was so proud to be his son.

But it wasn't long after that Gato showed up and took over. He terrorized the whole village. got away. He hired Zabuza to abduct Kaiza from his bed. Even he couldn't stand against the rogue ninja and he was taken to an abandoned warehouse.'

'Zabuza?' asked Sasuke 'Isn't that a bit excessive.'

'Gato is a sore loser.' said Tazuna 'He has no real need for money. He's already one of the richest men in the world. But just the fact that someone stood against him made him willing to go to any ends to destroy them. The man has no pride.'

'What happened to Kaiza?' asked Sakura, dreading the answer.

'Gato crucified him.' said Tazuna.

'What's crucified mean?' asked Naruto.

'It means that he was nailed to a cross by his hands and feet and left to hang.' said Sakura, feeling sick. 'You have to choose where you support the weight. Either your arms or legs are in complete agony.'

'You mean he bled to death?' asked Naruto, horror in his voice.

'No.' said Sakura 'You don't die from blood loss. Instead your lungs gradually collapse in on themselves as you suffocate.' Now she felt like throwing up.

'It was a small mercy that Zabuza stabbed him.' said Tazuna, looking down at the table. 'Right in an artery with a kunai. It meant it was over quick. The man never gave in, even until the end. But it didn't matter becasue everyone was cowed.

After Kaiza died Gato had his arms cut off and left him to hang there. Inari watched the whole thing.'

'I'm sorry I asked.' said Sakura 'I didn't mean to-'

'You couldn't have known.' said Tazuna 'Since then Inari has changed. So did Tsunami and all our people. We lost our will.'

Silence fell over them. Naruto had put his head on the table and was staring at the picture. His gaze was bitter and very sad. Suddenly he got up.

'Where are you going Naruto?' asked Sakura.

'You'd better take the day off.' said Kakashi 'No more training. You've used too much chakra.'

'I'm going to prove it.' said Naruto.

'Prove what?' asked Sakura.

'I'll prove that it's true.' said Naruto 'That in this world there are real heroes.'

Naruto was out late that night and got back near midnight. Sakura hadn't been able to sleep. She'd been lying down on her bed, just thinking. She remembered the blood of the men she had killed. The way they had screamed and it haunted her.

As Naruto lay down he looked up at the ceiling as well.

She turned her mind to Naruto so she didn't have to remember what she had done. The conversation about Inari had brought to mind her own parents and how she would feel if they die. And that brought up another question. Something was bothering her about her friend and she kept glancing at him when he wasn't looking. Finally she mustered the courage to speak. 'Hey Naruto, mind if I ask you something?'

'No, I don't mind.' said Naruto 'What is it?'

'Do you remember your parents?' asked Sakura.

'No.' said Naruto 'My mom and dad died in Kyuubi's attack. Or that's what Old Man Hokage told me. He said they were protecting me. I grew up in an orphanage, but I kept trying to escape. Eventually Old Man Hokage got me an apartment.'

Sakura looked at him in surprise. She wondered if he was joking. But she didn't see any deception in his eyes. 'Why?'

'Huh?' asked Naruto 'What do you mean?'

'Well I mean, Naruto, you don't think that the Hokage gives out apartments to every orphan that escapes.' said Sakura 'It would bankrupt Konoha. There has got to be some kind of reason why he decided to do it.'

'I dunno.' said Naruto, looking up. 'The Old Man has always looked out for me. He's the one who paid for my enrollment in the academy.'

'Maybe your parents were friends of his.' said Sakura 'It would make sense.'

'Old Man Hokage has a lot of friends I'll bet.' said Naruto.

'Maybe you should ask him about it when we get back.' said Sakura. 'The worst he can do is not tell you.'

'Why wouldn't he tell me?' asked Naruto.

'I don't know.' said Sakura thoughtfully. 'If he has a personal interest in you he probably should have told you by now. Maybe your parents were someone really important.' But Sakura didn't buy it. It seemed to her that if the Hokage knew about his parents and wasn't telling him about them, he wouldn't withhold the information if it wouldn't hurt him. 'Naruto, what if-' She paused.

'What?' said Naruto.

'Nothing.' said Sakura. 'I'll talk to you about it later.'

She didn't remember when she drifted off to sleep.

Authors Note:

One serious problem in the Naruto storyline is that Naruto's lineage isn't really followed up on. Which would have been fine if he'd just been a nobody with no special lineage. Actually it probably would have been BETTER if he was a nobody since at least then the whole aesop about screw destiny wouldn't have been quite so broken. But if his lineage is going to be a big deal then it should be dealt with and foreshadowed. Frankly I think it should have been revealed much earlier.

On a separate note I now regret that I was quite so harsh on Sasuke in the first part of the story. Part of the problem is that in the original story Naruto was the butt monkey of the cast. In this context it was partially swapped to Sasuke. I'll admit I don't really like Sasuke much, but I'm trying to do his character justice.