After almost a week of searching, Naruto almost thought of giving up searching.
"But only in Hyrule Castle Town. Too many weirdos..." Naruto sighed in annoyance. There was the bug princess and her butler, but the princess was cool. The bug butler on the other hand was just weird, what with his spasmatic bug dances. Then of course there was the smug-ass guy in the super expensive shop, now having been changed to the Udon Mart. There was also that cheep-ass afro-lady that made him do her spring cleaning, river-style. Then there was Gai and Lee, who weren't that bad, but Lee's sensei, Might Gai, was just a disaster waiting to happen. Both fashion and personality, as Midna had described him. He was thankful Midna was there to get him out of Hyrule Castle Town after his last 'nice guy' smile. Then there was the Goron who for some reason was sleeping in a rock, UNDERWATER! He didn't know Gorons could stand lava that well, as he was in the giant rock that he and Midna had used to thaw out the Zora tribe.
But the afro-bitch and the gill possessing Goron were outside of Hyrule Castle Market, so he couldn't really say much about them...There was still Kakuzu though. But although he was a REAL cheap-ass, he still gave Naruto a bigger wallet after taking out some more poes. So it wasn't all that bad.
Taking his hundredth sigh, Naruto stared out across Hyrule field, sitting on the bridge to Castle Town. He had been searching for any clues whatsoever about the Mirror of Twilight, but he couldn't find ANYTHING. And whenever he and Midna thought they found something, it just turned out to be a stupid errand for the 'client'. He wondered if they'd ever find it, as the rate at which they were finding clues was more like a snail moving BACKWARDS...
"YOOOO!" A voice cried, causing Naruto to turn around. He saw a tall man running out to meet him, wearing a white shirt and a red, stupid-looking hat. The most prominent feature about him however was the strange, orange-spiral mask he had on his face. He took deep breaths as he stopped in front of the blonde, who stood up as he was approached. Taking one last, long breath, making Naruto's clothes move backwards, the man saluted the blonde. "Greetings! Tobi. I am Tobi! Tobi. Naruto, right? Tobi. I have a letter for you! Tobi." The strange man pulled out a letter from his messenger bag and held it in front of Naruto, humming out a strange tune. The moment Naruto took the letter the masked-man snapped at attention once more, Naruto knowing that he was smiling behind his mask.
How did he know? Experience with Kakashi.
"Letter delivered! Tobi. Have a nice day sir! Tobi. Until we meet again! Tobi." The man slipped past Naruto before jogging off into the distance, Naruto swearing he saw him skip a few times while clapping his feet together.
Blinking a few times Naruto shook his head. "Like I said. Too many weirdos..." He sighed once more before noticing the return address of the letter. "Hey! It's from Grandma Tsunade!" Naruto exclaimed, his face lighting up. The Twilight Imp appeared next to Naruto, reading the letter over his shoulder.
"It says that there are some people she wants you to meet. Says they'll be powerful allies...pffft." She rolled her eyes, though cringed lightly at Naruto's glare.
"Grandma's always been nice to me. There's no way she'd say she has powerful allies unless they were powerful!" Naruto stated firmly. Midna held up her arms, motioning she didn't mean any offense by it.
"But I thought you hadn't even met her before..." Midna questioned. Naruto looked back at the letter, a warm smile gracing his face.
"In this world I haven't...but I know her from my past..." Midna quirked an eyebrow.
"Okay, I knew you were delusional before, but what exactly do you mean by 'this world'?" The imp questioned. Naruto flashed her a foxy grin.
"Sorry, can't tell you yet!" He cackled as he ran towards the town, Midna chasing after him demanding answers.
"Naruto! Perfect timing!" Tsunade said smiling as the blonde swordsman walked into the bar. Numerous heads turned to him, though Naruto paid them no mind. Walking over to the bar, Naruto leaned on the counter, grinning to his fellow blonde.
"What's up Granny Tsunade?" The older blonde sighed, shaking her head.
"You know I should smash you upside the head for calling me that. I'm not that old!" She glared at the swordsman, who merely laughed. Sighing in defeat, she flashed a small smile to Naruto. "Anyway, these are the people I was talking to you about. They try to solve the problems of Hyrule." Tsunade said motioning to a table in the back. The three people who stood around the table walked over to Naruto and Tsunade, only one of the three smiling lazily.
"So you're the infamous Naruto huh? You're probably a really troublesome guy...though I've met worse." He shrugged. "My name's Shikamaru. Nice to meet ya." Naruto grinned to the lazy young man.
"Let me guess. You'd rather be sitting on a roof, watching the clouds roll by?" Naruto grinned as Shikamaru's eyes widened in surprise. "Heheh, I'm kinda psychic like that." Another young man walked over to him, Naruto recognizing him and the girl behind him from when Midna was seriously injured. The kimono-style outfit was a dull white because of the lighting, but Naruto didn't doubt it was bright white outside in the sunlight.
"I am Neji. We can't thank you enough for what you've been doing for Hyrule. Is it true you're from Ordon?" Naruto nodded, smirking at Neji. He wasn't the stuck-up prick from his past. Looks like he's at the point when he was a Jonin.
"And I'm Tenten. I'm a weapons specialist, though I can do a pretty good job at tracking." She smiled lightly, keeping a good distance from the blonde, having caught sight of his sword. "I've also heard you're good with a blade." Naruto grinned cheekily as he scratched the back of his head.
"I don't mean to brag or anything," Naruto started, not noticing Tenten's scowl. "But I'd be lying if I say I only rely on my swordsmanship. I have other abilities too, though I'd rather not talk about them. Trade secret." Naruto stuck his tongue out as he gave a small peace sign. The three blinked rapidly, shaking their heads and smiling lightly. They couldn't help but feel that this was how Naruto usually acted.
"So, Naruto, word on the street is that you're looking for something?" Shikamaru said as the group sat back down, Naruto joining them.
"Yeah. It's called 'The Mirror of Twilight'. A friend of mine is desperately searching for it." Naruto said resting his chin on clasped hands.
"What? So she can style her hair?" Tenten scoffed. Naruto could feel his shadow bristle in rage, though he ignored both females.
"Yes, why do you need it so badly?" Neji asked, Shikamaru nodding as well. Naruto took a deep breath before shaking his head.
"Sorry, as much I want to talk about the reasons, I've made a vow of silence. I hope you understand my refraining from the details." He said sternly. Midna looked up at the blonde in awe. It always amazed her how easy it was for him to switch from clown to professional. It was like flipping a coin. The group of professionals nodded in understanding, dropping the matter. Tsunade brought a platter of drinks to the table, noticing someone was missing from her usual group.
"Oh? Where's Sarutobi? He's usually with you guys." Tenten was the one to speak up.
"He's out researching rumors about the dessert. Something about 'A presence that does not belong' or something like that." She shrugged without care while Naruto's ears perked in interest. A presence that didn't belong? Fishy maybe, but it was a better clue than what he had been getting lately. Shikamaru took another drink from his cup before shaking his head.
"No, what REALLY needs to be figured out is the mystery of the Ooccoo. Now THAT'S a mystery." Naruto's eyes widened, the image of the two strange creatures he had met numerous times on his journey appearing in his mind.
"The Ooccoo?" Naruto said, turning to Shikamaru. The black-haired man smiled when he heard Naruto's interested tone.
"Oh? So you're curious? The Ooccoo are the only things that I enjoy engrossing myself in, aside from cloud gazing of course." He smirked, ready to go into factoid mode. Tenten however, put a stop to it with her 'Hmph!'.
"Seriously? The Ooccoo? Come on, that's just bed-time stories for little children." Shikamaru bristled in rage at the Chinese girl's mockery. "No, what's REALLY interesting is the mountain to the North, Snowpeak. It's unlike any mountain I've seen before. There's a special feeling to it...I think it's controlled by an evil presence." Again Naruto's interest was perked, but Tenten sighed and shook her head. "But no-one can scale the mountain now, what with that blizzard roaring around it. I'd avoid it for now, at least until the blizzard dies down." Naruto sighed, but mentally wrote down 'Snowpeak' as one of the things he needed to check out.
However, remembering that there was a person missing from their group, he asked where the man named Sarutobi was. As Naruto got directions and began to leave, he wondered where he had heard that name before. It sounded really familiar.
Neji, Tenten and Shikamaru conversed with themselves for a few hours after Naruto left, only for someone else to enter the bar. Tsunade smiled and greeted the man as he walked to the back table. The three warriors smiled to him.
"Good to see you again Rusl. How have you been?" Neji said shaking hands with the swordsman. He laughed tiredly, gratefully taking a seat as Tsunade brought him his usual drink.
"Exhausted. Though I've received plenty of good news. You know of the incidents that have plagued Ordon, yes?" Shikamaru nodded.
"The children were all kidnapped. Right?" He said quietly, Tsunade putting a hand on one of Rusl's tired shoulders. The swordsman smiled gratefully as he turned back to them.
"Yes. But now they're safe at Kakariko village." The three warriors smiled at the good news. "Yes, if it wasn't for Naruto, they wouldn't have made it." He said proudly, Tenten's eyes widening.
"CRAP! I COMPLETELY FORGOT!" The Chinese weapon master clenched her head in irritation as the rest of the group stared at her in shock.
"T...Tenten?" Neji asked warily.
"I completely forgot to ask him whether or not Rusl trained him! It's a question that's been bugging me for weeks!"
"He? He who?" Rusl asked.
"Naruto! The swordsman we've heard about from Tsunade!" Rusl's eyes widened.
"Naruto? He was here?" The swordsman asked, shocked.
Naruto soon arrived at Lake Hylia, looking up at a tall tower. He had arrived at Tsunade's Bar in the evening, and the trip had taken quite some time. As a result, he saw the moon rising higher and higher into the sky. He felt his eyes beginning to droop as he watched the moon rise before slapping his face, desperately trying to keep himself awake. He snorted in determination as he scaled the tower's ladder. It had been a good two days since he had a good night's sleep, though he refused to close his eyes. He yawned as he neared the top, however, losing his grip.
"ACK!" The blonde flailed as he tried to regain his balance, but continued to fall backwards. A hand suddenly lashed out at him, grabbing his shirt and yanking him up to the top of the tower. Naruto sighed gratefully as he caught his breath. "Th-thanks..." He looked up, only for his eyes to widen as the moonlight outlined the man's form. Naruto's lips began to quiver as numerous memories flowed through his mind.
"Hmm? What's the matter child?" An old man said, raising an eyebrow at the blonde swordsman in front of him. He was quite surprised when Naruto suddenly tackled him, tears pouring down his face. The old man stared at the swordsman in confusion, but felt his heart give out to the boy, wrapping his arms around him and gently rubbing his back.
Naruto gripped the man tightly, his arms quivering. Midna wondered why in the world Naruto had reacted in such a way to the man, as the two had apparently never met before. She slowly put a hand on Naruto's leg, out of the old man's sight. Her eyes flashed as she saw a series of images.
A kind old man in red and white, leading Naruto into a happy looking noodle shop.
An old man gently scolding Naruto for pulling a prank.
The wise Hokage teaching Naruto about the Will of Fire.
The gentle and beloved Hokage's picture in front of a casket, numerous other pictures on desks next to him.
Midna blinked as she looked up at the old man named Sarutobi. She felt something slide down her face, and touching her cheek, felt it was stained with tears. She wiped her eyes, wondering how she knew the words 'Hokage' and 'Will of Fire', as well as why she felt such strong emotions about the man. She wondered if had been relayed to her from Naruto.
A few moments passed, Naruto finally calming himself down. He scrubbed his eyes before looking at the man, who smiled kindly. Naruto couldn't help the happy, quivering smile he had on his face. His mind tried to tell him that this was a different world, and that the old Hokage he knew was long deceased. But Naruto still felt like this man knew him.
And knew him he did, though he wasn't sure how or why.
"So you're saying there's something out there?" Naruto said, staring off into the dark blue horizon, Sarutobi standing next to him in a strange set of armor. It looked like he had a cannon on his back, though Naruto didn't doubt he could use it as a staff, as he had heard hundreds of stories from Jiriaya about the old man's legacy.
"Yes. All of the clues I've gathered indicate that there is something going on in that dessert. Although few have returned to tell the tale." He said quietly. Naruto continued to stare out to the dessert before nodding his head.
"All right. It's settled then." He turned to the shocked face of the old man, grinning brightly. "Wish me luck!" He jumped off the platform, the old man somehow knowing he would be fine. Naruto waved to the old man as he ran to the cannon on the lake.
"Good Luck Naruto!" Sarutobi smiled to the blonde, silently wondering how he knew his name. He had not even asked for it, yet he felt he knew the boy well.
Quickly getting annoyed at the clown, Naruto glared at him, starting an argument before he found himself hurtling towards the dessert in the distance. As he flew through the air, his eyes widened as he realized two things.
One: He had not had a good night's sleep in about two days.
Two: He was going into a dessert with no water.
He was screwed.
As Sarutobi watched the young blonde-haired swordsman fly off into the distance, he couldn't help muttering, "Weird kid..."
Kenta: Not much action at this point, but now that we've gotten out of the evil hole known as 'Filler' we're back to the story! As I said last chapter, I'll be updating MUCH faster this summer now that I'm out of school. (TIME TO HIT THE POOL!) A few things will also change from the story now that Midna can move around in the 'Light'. A few ideas had been bouncing around in my head, but a review made me think about them in a more direct manner.
As for the next two chapters, we're hitting THREE areas of interest.
1.) Gerudo Mesa (Desert) - Bandit's Camp.
2.) Gerudo Mesa - Pit of Trails.
3.) Gerudo Mesa - Arbiter's Grounds.
Arbiter's Grounds will contain a scene that has been making me think for quite some time now, and I'm still rolling!
I can't thank you all enough for sticking with me (And Naruto and Midna of course) through this story. I know there were quite a few moments that you could have done without, and there were TONS of scenes that could have always been done better, but the fact that you all are still reading (and you New readers too!) as we're nearing the 30 chapter mark makes me tremble in both joy and excitement! I can only hope that you guys will follow me to the end! Plenty more plot twists are coming up and a few more character appearances are still in store.
Granted that Ganondorf and Zelda are still in character, alot of other characters will not be. If this displeases you...well, you should have taken a closer look at the Prologue. XD
Again, thank you all so much!
Kenta Raikiri
