Eyes of the Broken Soul
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor am I affiliated in any way with Naruto. I just like the show and mangas so I wrote this fanfic.
Beta reader: Kiiroi Senko! XD
Hey everyone, I managed to get this one out a lot quicker than the last one. I'm pretty happy about that!!! XD Anyway, this one is less action packed than the last one, but it was necessary to set the scene for what would follow. I am very satisfied with this chapter, however, because it just felt right to me when I was writing it. Naruto begins to open himself up to new feelings as well as the possibility for change...
Hope you enjoy the next chapter. ^ ^
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Chapter 29 - Lost
Hey, do you think he's alive? I mean he doesn't look very good at all if you ask me. It looks like he has bruising all over his body, and his skin is pretty pale as well."
"I don't know, you idiot! Why don't you shake him and see if he wakes up?"
"No way! I'm not touching him if he's dead!"
"Man... *sigh* you two are so troublesome. He wouldn't be breathing if he was dead."
The faint traces of whispers began to sound across the cool morning air, carrying over to the sleeping form of a young boy as he lay on the gravel besides the gentle stream. Naruto's ears began to prick up as he heard the soft murmurs around him and his body began to stir in response.
"W... who's there?" He mumbled incoherently, barely load enough to hear. It was easy to tell that his voice was strained, no doubt a result of the exhaustion that had its way with him as well as the cold that gripped at the edge of his throat. The boy then began to cough profusely, trying to free his throat of debris and clear the airway to his burning lungs. Every time he coughed, however, it felt like his body was about to fall apart and the pain was numbing.
"Look... I think he's waking up..."
Naruto could feel the soft gentle caress of early morning sunlight touching against his overly sensitive skin, brushing it with a warmth that sharply contrasted with the cold ground beneath him. His body felt like it was aching in just about every place possible, especially now that the bruises and injuries he had received the night before had time to settle in, and the sun's rays now felt like fire on his skin, although the sensation was more than welcome.
Two small eyes slowly began to pry themselves open soon afterwards, revealing the blue shaded iris as they scanned the area around themselves, searching for the source of the voices that surround him. The first thing that met Naruto's gaze was a bright light, that caused him to raise his hands to shelter his vision, followed by what looked like sets of human feet. It was really hard to tell because of how blurred his vision was, but it didn't stop Naruto from tensing up.
If there was one thing he knew, it was that anyone who he didn't know was immediately regarded as an enemy, regardless of anything. He had been drawn into trusting situations far to many times and hurt because of it, so he would not allow himself to be trapped again.
"Hey, Naruto..." Naruto's eyes suddenly shot up to meat the voice that called out to him, only to see a hand reaching towards his body. The boy immediately tensed up and shot around onto his back.
"Gaaahhhhh!!!!!" The approaching hand immediately withdrew itself as Naruto let out a cry of panic, before backing away from the incoherent figures that were still unrecognizable by his wavering eyes.
"Leave me alone!!! Don't touch me!!!" The boy quickly backed up as far as he could until his back met what felt like the base of a tree, causing him to huddle his arms around his drawn up knees while burying his head defensively. He then began to rock his body back and forth in a gentle sway, trying to ease the pain he felt inside.
"Please... just leave me alone. I don't want... I won't let you hurt me..."
"Hey, what's gotten into you Naruto? It's just us..." Naruto suddenly froze in his idle movements and slowly began to raise his head curiously. He recognized that voice, although it sounded a lot more relaxed and concerned than he would have ever normally given it credit for.
"Naruto-kun... it's alright." Another voice followed. "We aren't going to hurt you. We're your friends..." Naruto's eyes slowly began to peel open once more, only to catch sight of a familiar face that he had feared he would never see again.
"H... Hinata...? Is that... is it really you?" The young girl just smiled warmly as she knelt down in front of him giving an affirmative nod, just in case her voice betrayed her at that moment.
She could see Naruto's expression turn from a look of nervousness to one of complete shock and relief and couldn't help but choke up at the sudden change in his eyes. She even noticed the brief flash of gold that shone back at her before quickly dissipating altogether as though it had never occurred. Naruto carefully looked Hinata over one more time, now completely oblivious to the other bodies standing not to far behind her.
It was almost as though he was still trying to convince his own heart of her wellbeing, or searching for a possible genjutsu being used to trick him. Once he was satisfied that he wasn't imagining things or being mislead, he took a deep gulp that felt like it was going to choke him before letting out a wailing sigh of relief.
"It really is you!!!" he finally beamed, allowing a smile to smother his face. "I thought I lost you... I thought you were gone forever..." Hinata just smiled in return, happy to see her closest friend was still well despite how he looked on the outside.
"Yes, I am alright Naruto. I'm still here... but... but where is Ryuukimi? I thought he would be with you as well" Naruto's smile instantly faded away into a frown once more and he curled up into himself even more.
"I... I don't know. When I woke up... he was... gone. I tried really hard to find him, but I just couldn't stay awake anymore. I couldn't find him anywhere..." Naruto then locked his eyes with Hinata's, who was now growing concerned for her friend.
"What if he doesn't come back? What... what if I've lost him for ever?" He gulped.
Naruto then dug his head back into his knees and curled up into a small ball, trying his best to ease the frustration he felt building up inside. Hinata reached out to try and ease his tension, but quickly withdrew her hand again soon afterwards, knowing that he didn't like to be touched. It was hard to watch her friend go through so much pain without being able to comfort him. Instead, all she could do was offer her gentle words to ease his pain.
"Don't worry Naruto-kun, I'm sure Ryuukimi is fine. He's really strong and I'm sure he'll find us again before you know it. He is a dragon after all and they live in the wild all the time, don't they?" Naruto quickly looked up from his gaze to meet her once more and she did her best to give him a reassuring smile. It seemed to work though, because soon he was smiling back at her again.
"Yeah.... you're right. He is strong..."
"Alright guys, I'm really sorry to interrupt this happy reunion, but we really need to get back to everyone as soon as possible."
Naruto looked over Hinata to see who it was that spoke, only to catch sight of Ino standing nearby, tapping her foot impatiently. On either side of her was an equally annoyed Shikamaru, although it was probably for a different reason, and a very distracted Kiba, at least distracted by his standards. It was almost as though the young Inuzuka didn't want to look at Naruto and the blond haired boy suspected that it was his voice that had first spoken to him a few moments before. Hinata just glared back at the blond kunoichi in training, causing Ino to back up a bit and stifle her rant.
"In case you hadn't already noticed, INO, Naruto IS in fact injured, so walking is out of the question at the moment! It doesn't take my Byuakugan to see that he has sustained heavy bruising, probably caused by a severe impact, and he may even have internal injuries!"
Naruto was almost taken aback by the amount of anger in the Hyuuga's voice and if it weren't for the fact that he had spent the last three months around her during his breaks, he would have been completely shocked by the sudden outburst. But Naruto knew Hinata better than most people and he also knew that there was another side to her that most people didn't see, not even her own family.
Ino just brushed the long lock of hair from that sat in front of her face and placed her hands on her hips, displaying an air of confidence that was almost convincing... almost. She was trying to act calm, but even Naruto could see that she was just as shocked as everyone else looked.
"Look, I'm sorry alright." She finally stammered, her voice betraying her emotions. "It's just this whole 'being attacked and swept up by a river to only Kami knows where' thing is getting to me a bit. However, I still think we should move as soon as possible, even if it means one of us has to carry Naruto for the time being." The said boy just paled at the suggestion, making him look even worse than before. Touching him was one thing, but carrying him....
"No, it's alright Ino..." He quickly spoke up quickly in protest. "Just give me a few minutes to recover and I should be good to go."
Ino just stared at him curiously for a few moments, wandering why he was so against being touched, before turning her gaze to Shikamaru, noting the slight nod of his head as she did. She then turned her eyes back to Naruto before letting out a deep sigh.
"Alright, we'll give it a few minutes, but after that we'll make a move whether you are ready or not. I know it sounds harsh, but if someone is still after us..."
"I understand..." Naruto cut her off again. "I'll be ready, I promise." The girl then nodded her head in silent approval before turning to face the others.
"Alright, that's settled then. In the mean time, we should try to figure out exactly where we are and go from there."
"Um, if you don't mind Naruto..." Everyone looked over to Shikamaru as he spoke up. "... I'd like to talk to the others alone for a moment. We need to plan ahead if we want to survive until we are found. I also need to take count of the equipment we have so that we can ration our supplies."
"Why can't Naruto listen as well?" Hinata protested, already growing suspicious of their motives.
"Because, it's like you said Hinata. Naruto is injured at the moment and he needs to rest as much as he can for the next few minutes. As troublesome as it is, I don't want him to undergo any unnecessary stress, whether physical or emotional, in case he hinders the group's performance."
Although the Nara's explanation did make sense - in a lazy, under-toned kind of way - Hinata still didn't like the fact that they were excluding Naruto . It just felt like that was all anyone ever did to him and she knew how it felt to be disregarded by others. She had experienced that kind of pain for quite some time now.
"Alright, fine, but I'm going to stay here and watch over Naruto-kun. You guys can fill me in later." Shikamaru nodded his head in agreement before leading the others away from the two youngsters.
"Well, I guess I should have expected that." Naruto sighed in despondence. Hinata turned to face the blond and tried her best to smile, although she didn't feel too comfortable about the whole situation herself. She knew that whatever was happening, it most certainly had something to do with her blond friend.
"Don't worry Naruto, I'm sure they're just worried about you. Maybe they're really telling the truth." Naruto just shook his head.
"No... although whether or not they are worried about me I don't actually know, what I do know is that they were definitely hiding something. I could see it in their eyes."
--
"So, what is it that you wanted to talk about and what's with all the secrecy?" Ino began, gaining the attention of the two boys (and one dog) around her.
All three of them had since made their way down to the rivers edge in order to escape any possibility of anyone overhearing them and were now curiously awaiting the explanation. Shikamaru just rubbed his temples in annoyance, something that Ino knew to associate with him thinking deeply.
Although most would think that she and the young Nara were nothing more than an annoyance to one another, they actually had a strange friendship that most wouldn't understand or even dare to try and comprehend lest they suffer a migraine for their efforts. The two understood each other in a very weird kind of way and she knew when something was bothering him, even if he didn't show any other outward signs of his discomfort that wouldn't merely be mistaken for a bored sigh.
"Ino, you remember what happened the other night don't you? You know, when we were all sitting around the fire with our parents? Naruto and Iruka were there with us as well."
Ino just nodded her head in confirmation, while Kiba watched on in silent confusion. He didn't know what was really going on, so he decided it was best to just listen, something that was definitely not in his usual list of known behavioral patterns. But, then again, these weren't your usual circumstances either. Even Akamaru yipped in annoyance, but was quickly hushed by his companion.
"Yes I do remember." Came the reply. "In fact, now that I think about it, Naruto was quiet most of the night. The only person he ever spoke to was Iruka-sensei and that small dragon of his."
"Yes that's right, I also remember that." Shikamaru concurred. "What else did you notice?" Ino seemed to think on the question for a moment before finally answering.
"Oh yeah, when your dad was handing out the fish for all of us to eat, Naruto went all weird and stuff. He looked like he was about to have a heart attack as soon as Shikaku-san got near him." Shikamaru just nodded his head.
"Bingo. That's exactly what I'm talking about. The thing is, it looks like Naruto doesn't like to be touched at all, in fact it almost seems as though he outright avoids human contact all together if he can help it. Even just now, he panicked as soon as one of us tried to approach him and he got nervous when you suggested he be carried because of his injuries." Ino just scratched the base of her chin in thought, trying to absorb everything she was being told.
"Well, that could have just been a coincidence as well. I mean it could also be because of his wounds. Maybe he's just in pain and he doesn't want his injuries to be aggravated unnecessarily."
"No I... I don't think so..." This time, it was Kiba who had spoken up. "Yesterday... Naruto and I... well we kinda got into a bit of an.... argument..." He lied shamefully.
"My mom got kinda angry because she thought he started it, but as soon as she got close to him to reprimand him, he seemed to react the same way. I think he might actually be... afraid... of being touched, or maybe there's something else to it."
Kiba's words were unusually soft for the usually rowdy Inuzuka and the slight traces of guilt could easily be made out in his expression, which was something that definitely surprised the two listening to him. Shikamaru just absorbed the new information like a neglected sponge and then turned back to Ino again, already deducing his own hypothesis on the situation.
"I asked my old man about it the next day after that and he tried to explain it to me, although it was really confusing and I was too tired to actually listen to him properly. Ino, have you heard of the condition known as Haphophobia?" Ino nodded her head.
"Yeah, my dad makes me learn a lot about human psychology in the evenings after school. He said that our family jutsu rely on the extensive knowledge of the human mind so I have to know a lot about that kind of stuff."
"Well, I think that is what Naruto may be suffering from, or at least that's what the old man said. Care to explain it to us." Ino just nodded her head enthusiastically. It wasn't often she had people relying on her abilities and she wasn't about to lose her moment to shine.
"Alright, listen carefully!" She ordered boastfully, before giving them the textbook explanation that had been stuck at the back of her mind.
"Haphophobia is a rare specific phobia that involves the fear of touching other people or of being touched by other people. It's normally an exaggeration of a person's natural tendency to protect their own personal space or wellbeing and may even extend to withdrawing from people whom its sufferers know well, including family. Although most cases are less severe, with the victim simply becoming uncomfortable when coming into physical contact with someone else, and normally being more focussed on the opposite sex, some extreme cases may result in complete self isolation, where the victim takes drastic measures to avoid human contact all together."
Ino then took a small breath, while allowing everyone present to process the information she had given them so far, before continuing.
"The causes of this phobia can be numerous and the resulting symptoms are mostly related to the cause, but the most severe cases are usually a result of either extreme emotional trauma, whether caused by an accident or otherwise, or often even..."
At that point, Ino's enthusiasm quickly fell away and her smile disappeared outright. Both Kiba and Shikamaru noticed her sudden drop in mood as well as the brief pause in her explanation.
"... or even.... even physical abuse..." She finally concluded, with an unusually heavy breath. "But... you don't think... he... that wouldn't have happened would it?" Shikamaru just let out a deep sigh, before shaking his head wearily, confirming the likely situation for them both.
"Remember the bruises and cuts he used to come into class with every day? The blood he used to have on his clothes as well? Remember how he would get to the academy late almost every morning and how he would even fall asleep during the lessons from exhaustion? You don't think that there was something suspicious about it?"
Ino just felt her heart sink into her stomach and even Kiba seemed to cringe at the mention of those words. Akamaru's whimpering was the only real audible reaction amongst them at the time, although it was enough to 'speak' for all of them. Of course, child abuse was something they had heard of before and it was also something that they were taught about in their early school careers, but seeing what was possibly a live example of such an act was much harder to swallow than mere words from a textbook.
"I... I always thought... I just didn't realize..." The blond continued to stutter.
"You mean you didn't think about that before? Didn't you even notice?!?!" All three of them jumped at the sudden arrival of a new voice in their midst, before turning to see Hinata standing amongst them.
"H... Hinata, what are you doing here? I thought you were over with Naruto." Ino gaped.
Hinata just ignored the question, instead opting to stare belatedly at the other three in front of her. The girl didn't seem to be surprised or even fazed by their odd reaction to her presence though, mostly because she was already used to going by unnoticed by those around her. Instead she simply reiterated her growing annoyance.
"Did you guys really think that he was just getting himself into trouble all the time?" This time, her words were laced with a lot more venom than any of them would have thought possible for the usually timid Hyuuga heiress.
"Well... I don't know..." Ino stammered in response. "It's just, he always seemed to be such a trouble maker before, so I just thought..."
"So you just decided that instead of trying to ask him what was going on, instead of trying to actually help him, you thought it was better to just assume that he was the one to blame..."
This was not a question and the amount of animosity floating in the air was almost tangible. Hinata's exasperated glare wasn't helping the matter either and it was almost frightening how absent her usually gentle nature actually was. It was like seeing a cornered tigress fighting to protect her cubs from harm, only in this case it was Naruto being defended.
"And... and then you all wonder why exactly he doesn't seem to trust anyone anymore. I think it's obvious that he's been let down too much for that to happen easily. I mean... what kind of adult... what kind of human being... do you think would do that to someone, to a... a kid, even if they were causing trouble? I know my father can act coldly sometimes, especially towards me, but even still he has never done anything like that, whether as a punishment or not. That kind of behavior is reserved for beasts, not for human beings that should be looking after someone..."
The lavender eyed girl then turned on her heels and began to make her way back to where Naruto was waiting, allowing her words to sink in. She paused only briefly to look back at them once more with a hardened glare, but one that softened into a frown as she began to speak solemnly one last time.
"I... I used to see him cry during our break times you know." She whispered softly. "He used to sit on the swing in the playgrounds and just cry by himself. All everyone else could do was laugh at him and call him names, but no-one ever cared about how it made him feel to hurt alone like that, with no-one there to help him and pick him up from the dirt."
'No-one cared how it made me feel either...'
She then set on her way again, leaving the three other youngsters to their thoughts. Shikamaru, Kiba and Ino all watched on with heavy frowns as she sat down closely next to Naruto and whispered something into his ear, causing the blond's body to relax somewhat. Whatever it was that she said, it was obviously done so to comfort him and it seemed to have the desired result.
"Hey, how come she can get so lose to him?" Kiba gawked, pointing a shaking finger towards the two youngsters. Shikamaru just let out a deep sigh.
"Maybe it's because he actually trusts her. After all, out of all of us, it seems like she's the only one who actually tried to find out what was wrong. She's the only one who tried to get close to him..."
The Nara then turned to look up towards the oncoming flow of the stream, realizing that this would cause a lot more problems for them if something wasn't done about it soon. They would need Naruto's trust if they wanted to all work as a team and survive, but now that seemed to be out of reach, especially for them. Even one weak link would be enough to break the chain that bound them together if it wasn't fixed quickly and trust was an important bond between teammates. Unfortunately, it seemed that a bitter rust had formed around Naruto's trust in others and it was something that may have already been to late to mend.
"This is all so troublesome..."
--
"Iruka, everything has been arranged for the return trip. All that's left to do is wait for the ANBU to arrive..."
Iruka turned to face the voice that addressed him, taking note of a weary Choza as he approached the scarred chunin for his report. The young man simply gave a nod of approval and a deep sigh. To say that they were tired was an understatement and it was clearly visible on all of their faces just how much sleep they all had, or lack of thereof.
After waiting a few more minutes thereafter a number of cloaked figures suddenly arrived on the scene, each bearing a mask that bore the insignia of a different animal and a tattoo on the upper arm. One of them quickly ran up to Iruka's location and gave a short bow of courtesy.
"We got here as soon as we could Umino-san. What is the situation?" The said chunin quickly turned in his stead, until his entire body was facing the masked man.
"It's good that you arrived here as quickly as you did ANBU-san. So far, there have been no casualties that we know of and most of the children and parents are safe. However, some did go missing during the attack and their condition is still unknown at this point in time."
The ANBU nodded his head in understanding. "It is good to see that it did not turn out worse than it did. We will start moving the group back to Konoha within the hour and then we can begin our search for the missing students. I will leave some ANBU for you..."
"No..." Iruka cut him off.
"As it currently sits, we still run the risk of another attack and the enemy's position is unknown. Furthermore, the situation is more complex than that. I want all of the ANBU to escort the remaining parents and students back to the village. I will organize a search party with whoever else wants to volunteer to come with me. You, however, will personally travel ahead of the group and inform the Hokage of the situation as it stands, but I want you to also tell him that the Yondaime's legacy is at risk. He will know what I mean and he will also know what to do. It is of the utmost important that you make haste in this matter."
The ANBU just stared curiously for a brief moment, or at least what seemed like curiosity considering the expressionless masks, but eventually gave his consent.
"Very well, but who will be joining you on your search?"
"We will..." Both men turned to face the source of the announcement, only to see Shikaku, Choza, Inoichi and Kioshi approaching them. The scarred chunin couldn't help but smile before giving a grateful bow. He already knew that they wouldn't pass this up, but was still grateful for their readiness to help.
"I will come as well..." This time, it was Hiashi that spoke up and he quickly joined the group of would be rescuers with a stern frown. Iruka shared a brief glance with the Hyuuga clan head, noting the concerned expression on the otherwise stoic face, before settling his eyes back onto the rest of the group.
"Alright, that makes six of us so far. If anyone else wants to join, now is the time to speak." At that moment, Tsume Inuzuka, Itachi Uchiha and Shibi Abarume all stepped forward as well, neither one saying anything but all bearing the same objective clearly in their expressions.
Iruka knew that none of them would leave their children to wander alone and lost without sparing any effort to find them and it was comforting to know that they were all so ready to endanger themselves to save their loved ones. Although it was usually expected of a parent or relative to do so, not all families were so caring of their own young, that much was certain...
"Alright, that's everyone then. As soon as the others heads back to the village, we'll set off. Until then it would be a good idea to get anything you think you may need for this mission and leave behind whatever might weigh you down. We may be out for days, possibly even up to weeks if things don't go well, so we need to be prepared."
After that, the large group of stragglers slowly began to make there way back down the mountain path and towards the safety of the village. It would be a two day trek back to Konoha with the pace of the students, perhaps even longer if any of them sustained more debilitating injuries such as sprained ankles or torn ligaments. Once they were no longer in sight, Iruka turned to face his new audience and set about making a plan to commence their search.
"Alright, now we know that whoever attacked us was obviously trying to separate us from the academy students that they were targeting. The obvious reason for this was to isolate them from our protection and place them in a position that leaves them more vulnerable to attack. We still don't know exactly what they intend to do once they find them, whether it is to capture them or just kill them, but what we do know is that it is a dangerous situation regardless."
Iruka then turned to Shikaku, who was listening intently from the sidelines. "Is there anything you would recommend for this operation Shikaku?" The said Nara just nodded his head before standing address the rest of he group. It was well known that he was an expert tactician and strategist and any opinion he would grant to them would be gladly accepted and highly valued.
"Well, the obvious way to start out would be to try and find a trail to follow. Searching blindly will not only waste precious time unnecessarily, but it will also put us in more danger of running into a precarious situation. The ideal scenario would be for us to intercept our attackers before they reach the students at all and deal with them without any risk of harm to our children. Tsume, it would be wise for us to try and find a scent to track if possible." Tsume just growled under her breath, signifying her obvious annoyance.
"I already tried that last night, but our enemies have covered their tracks very well it seams. They were obviously expecting their present company because they would have never been able to plan so acutely otherwise. In addition to that, I can't follow any of our children's scents either, because they all end at the cliff's edge. The water would have washed away any other hope of finding a trail, especially if they were carried far by the stream." Shikaku nodded his head in understanding before resuming his analysis.
"Then the only other option would be to follow the path of the stream. If any of our kids washed up onto the river's edge, we should be able to find at least some kind of trail further own. It's the only other lead we have right now."
Everyone seemed to agree with the plan and it was decided soon afterwards to leave immediately to begin the search. They only stopped briefly in order to go through the travelling formation they would be using, with Shikaku addressing the entire group one last time.
"Alright I think the best positioning to take would be to have Tsume and Kuromaru leading the front of the group. If we come across anything suspicious, or happen upon a particularly interesting scent, she will be able to warn us sooner. Itachi and Shibi will take the left and right flank respectively, with Shibi using his insects and Itachi using his Sharingan to scan the perimeter for any clues using their maximum coverage area."
Shikaku drew a quick breath in his explanation, allowing himself the relief to his burning lungs, before continuing.
"Hiashi will take the rear end of the formation and use his Byuakugan to watch over the rest of the group, while also keeping an eye on our immediate surroundings in case of enemy attacks. Because of his all round vision, he will also be the only one watching our rear end as well, so any warning from him is to be prioritized as urgent, especially if we're expecting the enemy to ambush us. Other than that the rest of us will take positions in amongst the inner shell between the rest of you so that we can act on any other position if need be or if we fall under enemy attack."
Everyone accepted the plan without so much as a single complaint or protest, with none of them daring to argue about their respective jobs assigned to them. After all, if anyone knew how to get things done efficiently it was Shikaku Nara and his genius was renowned even amongst a village of so many talents.
"Now remember, the enemy isn't looking for us specifically, so we have the initiative right now, but they are no doubt expecting us to act regardless, so be prepared for anything. Haste is of the utmost importance at this point in time if we want to avoid the worst, but caution is just as necessary as well."
Once the plan was set in motion, everyone made off to find the missing students, following the flow of the stream in the hopes of finding any trace of their charges. It didn't take long for the group to fall silent soon afterwards, with everyone solely focussed on their new objective. As they made there way through the trees that followed along the rivers edge, Shikaku made his way up to Iruka's position and settled to the chunin's pace, travelling side by side with the younger scarred man. Iruka quickly turned his head to face the approaching visitor and let out a deep sigh, before turning his vision forward again.
"So, do you really think we will find them if we follow the river?" Shikaku just smiled faintly, while still keeping a sharp eye on his surroundings.
"Well to be honest, if our kids are smart, they would stay as far away from the river as possible. After all, we aren't the only ones searching for them, so it would be best for them to make themselves scarce." Iruka just nodded his head knowingly, even though he didn't expect his gesture to be noticed.
"It's ironic isn't it?" The chunin finally replied, allowing a brief chuckle to escape his lips, although it was only half hearted at best. "We want to find them as quickly as possible, but at the same time we want them to remain hidden. It's a strange coinsidence that we don't want them to be found and yet we, ourselves, are searching for them." Shikaku aslo began to laugh softly as he thought about the chunin's words and the implications behind them.
It was, indeed, an cruel irony when one thought on it and it was made even worse by the fact that they were actually expecting, or rather hoping, for this to be hard. After a few moments of subtle relief through words, the two fell silent again, both returning to their once grim expressions once more. It was another few minutes before Iruka finally spoke up again.
"Do you... do you think they'll be alright?" The chunin finally murmured again. Shikaka just nodded his head before replying in a near whisper.
"Yeah, I think they'll be fine. They are a lot stronger than we give them credit for and they have strong parents that taught them as well. Out of all the students in the academy, I think it would be those nine who would give those bastards the most problems. To underestimate them would be a tragic mistake on anyone's part. In fact, I think that they have the most chance of surviving out of anyone."
Iruka allowed a brief smile to emanate off the edge of his lips. He knew Shikaku wasn't just saying that to make him feel better, because it was all very true. All of them were the children of some of Konoha's most renowned shinobi clans and all of them had extensive training in their family jutsu styles. Even Shikamaru had his father's genius to rely on, although he was mostly too lazy to display any effort regarding that area.
Naruto was strong as well, that much was certain, and even he was tied to an ancient lineage that no-one would have ever expected upon first meeting the boy. Even though the young blond didn't realize it himself, he was a lot stronger and more capable than people gave him credit for and Iruka knew that he would not allow anyone else to get hurt if he could help it. It was a strange scenario indeed, where the object of the village's hate would end up being the one who would try his best to protect everyone around him, even those who didn't deserve it.
His spirit was not twisted in the way the cruel villagers that condemned him had hoped and although it was indeed fragile and fractured, it still stood firmly against everything they tried to make him out to be. He still retained his humanity even though he was treated otherwise, or maybe.... just maybe... it was something even more than that...
--
"Alright, it's time to get moving now. Naruto... are you good to go?" The young blond quickly looked up as Ino, Shikamaru and Kiba made their way back to where he and Hinata were waiting.
"Yeah, I guess it's time to get up now." He then pressed his hands against the floor and began to lift himself up off the ground while everyone else watched carefully.
"Nggghhh!!!!" Hinta quickly jumped up to help him as he let out a small wince of pain, but quickly withdrew when he held out his hand to stop her. "No... don't, I'll be alright. I've just been sitting still for too long, that's all."
The boy then stumbled to his feet, while using the tree behind him as a pillar of support. After taking a few deep breaths he started to cough violently again, much to his own bodies protests. The others could only watch helplessly as he emptied his lungs of debris, but what was really concerning was the fact that it wasn't just dust or water that exited his mouth. There was blood as well.
"Naruto... are you sure you are alright?" Ino queried. "I mean, if your lungs were damaged internally, it might be too dangerous for you to be..." Naruto just shook his head.
"Don't worry about it, I actually heal pretty quickly. I just need some time to get back on my feet, but we don't have time to worry about my health, because as long as we stay here, all of us are in danger." Shikamaru just nodded his head in agreement.
"We should get moving as soon as possible if we want to avoid being found by our attackers. I took stock of our supplies and I must say that things are looking grim. We only have two kunai and shuriken between the five of us and a few meters of steel wiring. Other than that, I have some explosive notes packed away in a waterproof container, so they managed to survive my troublesome encounter with the stream and Hinata has some healing salve for any wounds we may aquire." The Nara then turned his gaze over to Naruto, who was already looking a lot better than he did a few minutes before. The bruises on his body were already starting to fade away and his posture was improving as well.
"Naruto, do you have anything on you that managed to survive unscathed?" The blond just nodded his head before digging into his pocket, only to retrieve four ration bars that still managed to somehow remain intact.
"This is all I have left from my pack, the rest got swept away by the stream. You guys should eat before we leave if you want to have enough energy." The boy then handed out one bar to Ino, Shikamaru, Hinata and Kiba respectively, gaining curious glances from them in return.
"But what about you?" Kiba enquired with a heavy gulp. He was still feeling guilty over what happened the previous day and accepting Naruto's gift of food made him feel even worse, although he was really hungry. He found it strange and somewhat surprising that the very boy he had tried to attack the previous day was so willing to help him in a time of need. Was this the Naruto he had failed to notice before now...?
"I'm fine." Naruto assured them. "I had one earlier while you guys were talking." Of course, this was all a lie. The truth was, he was actually starving, but he would not allow himself to eat while someone else went hungry.
"Hurry up and eat it already." He finally pleaded, throwing off their curious glances with an exasperated sigh. "I already said I'm fine so don't worry about me..." The boy then left abruptly and made his way from the group, travelling towards the edge of the stream and taking a small drink from the water with cupped hands.
The other four shared a few estranged glances between one another before finally tucking into their makeshift meals. It wasn't much by any means but it most certainly helped regardless. Kiba even shared some of his own helping with Akamaru, who gratefully accepted the bite sized morsel with an approving yap. Only Hinata left hers untouched and quickly made her way down to where Naruto was sitting at the edge of the stream. She promptly landed next the young blond and opened her wrapper, before breaking the bar in half and offering a share to him. Naruto just stared at her curiously.
"Here... I know you must be hungry as well and you are also injured. All of us need to be strong and ready to move and we can't have you collapsing from exhaustion." Naruto was about to open his mouth to protest, but Hinata quickly silenced him with a raised hand and a stern expression. Today was just full of surprises.
"And don't think I'm going to buy that nonsense about you having eaten already. I'm your friend Naruto and I know you well enough to know you always put others before yourself, even if it means disregarding your own well-being. But if you really want to help everyone, you also have to help yourself first, otherwise you are never going to be able to protect them."
Naruto just gaped like an overgrown fish for a few moments, surprised by the gentle yet stern wisdom in Hyuuga's voice, before shutting his mouth once more. He slowly reached out with a slightly shaking hand, more from a lack of energy than anything else, and then took the offer with a grateful smile.
"T... thanks Hinata..." he mumbled gratefully, before setting into consuming the bar slowly.
Hinata quickly plonked herself down next to him and began to eat her own share as well, taking brief glances over to the boy beside her to make sure he finished his meal without problems. It was then that she noticed the small glimmer of gold in his eyes as he stared at the glimmering ripples of the water's surface as well as what looked like a small smile on the corner of his lips. It was hardly noticeable, but this time she was sure she wasn't imagining things and the warmth she felt at the time was immensely comforting.
But instead of asking him about it, she simply let the moment pass. After all, if Naruto wanted her to know about anything, he would have told her already, so instead she allowed him to open up in his own time. She knew that there were some things that were too difficult and painful to reveal, no matter how much trust was formed between two people, and she would not push him for answers ahead of his time to give them. Besides, the silence shared between them was all hey needed right now and it was comforting just being in his presence, to know that someone cared for you so much without expecting anything in return.
'Naruto... what is it that makes you so easy to be around? Why are you the only one who makes me feel happy?'
After a few minutes had passed the two eventually finished their meals and were joined shortly afterwards by Ino, shikamaru and Kiba. Naruto and Hinata quickly picked themselves up off the floor to meet them, before they began to discuss their plans.
"Alright..." Shikamaru began, taking an unusual amount of charge over the situation for the usually lazy boy. "I think it's obvious that we should move away from here as soon as possible. If we can travel up against the flow of the stream, we should be able to find the rest of our group even quicker. If they are already looking for us, then it will make it that much easier to regroup with them as well." All of them seemed to agree with the plan, although Naruto seemed a bit distant at the time. After a few brief moments of silence, the blond eventually spoke up.
"I... I think we should move as far away from the stream as possible. It would be better if we headed further inland and then travelled up once we're far enough."
"What do you mean?" Ino gaped. "That means it will be even harder for our parents to find us."
"That's the point." Naruto answered quickly, gaining a curious glance from the other blond.
"He's right..." Shikamaru finally interrupted. "If we stick to the river, it would make it easier for us to be found, but it will also make us even more vulnerable to attack as well. If our pursuers are still looking for us, following the river would be the first thing they would do to find us. We should head further into the forest as Naruto suggested and use the woods as a cover while we are travelling."
"But then how do our parents find us then?" This time it was Hinata that spoke up and it was a rather valid question as well.
"We could always leave them a trail..." Kiba interceded. "If my mom is with them, then she'll be able to pick up our scent and follow it to us. I could have Akamaru mark our tracks from the edge of the river so that if they come across this section, they'll be able to follow us in." Shikamaru just shook his head.
"No... although that is a really good idea, it would be far too obvious and our enemies would be able to follow it as well. We need something more subtle, something only our parents or a loyal Konoha-nin would notice."
Everyone seemed to think on the problem for a moment, each trying to come up with an answer to their situation, but none succeeding. After a few moments, Naruto suddenly perked up again and gained their attention with a small grin.
"I think I might know a way. It's a long shot, but if it works, it would be something only my dad would notice, or at least I hope so." Everyone turned to face the blue eyed boy with curious eyes, wondering what exactly he had in mind.
The boy simply walked over to a lone tree standing at the river's edge and began to run his hands over the surface of the bark, allowing it to tickle the surface of his hands Shikamaru quickly walked up to his side and watched his strange interaction.
"What are you going to do Naruto?" The boy didn't answer and instead began to close his eyes.
He then pressed his hand against the surface of the tree and began to increase the flow of his life force, allowing it to leave his fingertips and travel into the other living form that touched against his skin. Everyone watched in astounded wonder as the leaves on the tree began to liven up, turning a deeper shade of green than they had been before. Even the bark itself seemed to grow less brittle and more youthful, adopting a leathery smoothness that seemed younger for its otherwise obvious age. Flowers also began to bloom in amongst the otherwise colourless branches and glowed with vibrance in the slowly increasing sunlight.
After a short moment, Naruto then removed his hand from the tree's surface, before stumbling on his feet. Everyone quickly moved to catch him from falling, but he managed to right himself before they could get to him. After correcting his stance once more, he turned around to face the others, only to notice the bewildered expression on their faces.
"H... how did you do that?" Ino mumbled, her voice laced with both wonder and curiosity. "I mean I don't remember learning any gardening super growth jutsu in the academy..." She added sarcastically. "And believe me, if there were such a thing, I would now about it, what with running the flower shop during the afternoons and all." Naruto just shrugged his shoulders while drawing short, heavy breaths to stem his sudden exhaustion.
"I guess... I've just always been able to do this." He panted, trying to find the best excuse that wouldn't reveal his bloodline to them. "I left some of my... essence, I guess you could say... in that tree. It's something only I can do though, so hopefully my dad notices it if he comes here. He should know that it was me who did it and it may allow whoever is looking for us to maybe pick up our trail."
"And you're sure no-one else will be able to pick it up?" Shikamaru asked. Naruto just nodded his head in response before speaking in a near whisper.
"Not unless they know me really well. It's... it's something that only my dad and I share with one another. It's a bond only he would notice..." The blond then turned to face the top of the stream, or at least as far as his eyes would allow.
"I just hope he's coming, otherwise I don't know what to do. I can only hope he notices it..."
After that, everyone began to make there way into the forest, travelling away from the edge of the stream and into the safety of the trees. Ino turned to look back at Naruto as he and Hinata strolled next to one another. The boy seemed to be searching the area around himself very intently and she suspected that he was still trying to find his missing companion, or at least any signs of his presence. Naruto had been a source of many surprises over the last few days and they just seemed to keep on coming as time went by.
First it as the miracle of his water walking and then the fact that he managed to walk up the vertical edge of a tree, all the while defying the laws of gravity. Add to that what she had just witnessed him performing a few moments before, as well as the intelligence he displayed despite his apparent lack of skill he had always shown at the academy and you had one very curious Yamanaka on your hands.
"You know Naruto, I never saw you as someone who was so smart. I mean, you came up with some pretty good ideas back there and it was really impressive to witness. I never expected you to be so knowledgeable before now." Naruto just looked up to his fellow blond with heavy eyes, but ones that did little to hide his tension, or his disdain.
"Maybe that's because you just never took the time to look properly before..." He finally snapped back. Both Hinata and Ino were slightly taken aback by the unusually cold responce, but Naruto quickly diverted his eyes back to the floor in shame. "I... I'm sorry Ino, I shouldn't have..."
"No..." Ino cut him off. "You're right... I guess I wasn't looking properly. Maybe it's time I started paying more attention to the people around me instead of what I assume to be true." Naruto was taken by surprise by her words, completely shocked by the sudden revelation.
He had expected to be scolded or even shouted at outright, much like he had been in the past, but never had he thought that she would so readily accept such a fault in her own actions. Even Kiba and Shikamaru spared a curious glance back at them, almost as though they were expecting the world to turn upside down at any moment now. The blond haired Yamanaka quickly turned her attention forward once more, completely refocussing on the area around her and the path they had set out.
Although most would see Ino as nothing more than a simple girl with single minded goals, that usually revolved around a certain dark haired Uchiha, she could definitely be serious when she wanted to be. This was one of those moments where she surprised everyone and it was also the first time Naruto had seen this side of her. After all, she may have been dense, but she wasn't stupid and she knew when she made a mistake despite how hard it may have been for her to admit it.
The rest of that time was spent in eerie silence, as the group made there way deeper into the shroud of trees that made up the looming canopy of the forrest. They would need to find a way through the dense countryside as quickly as possible if they wanted to find their way home and they would need to be prepared for any dangers that might be waiting for them. Naruto could only hope that they would happen upon a certain small dragon before they moved too far away from the stream.
'Ryuukimi... buddy... I hope we find you soon. I hope you're alright...'
--
If anyone is wondering where Ryuukimi is, well you will just have to read the next chapter and maybe find out. I'm not gonna tell you anything!!! Muahahaha... Muahahahahahaha!!!! *Cough* X_X
Yes, Hinata is a bit OOC in this chapter, but I really don't feel like following the same formula that just about every other Naruto fanfic adheres to. Anyway, a new battle starts in the next chapter so things will spice up a little more from then on!!!! Hope you enjoyed!!! ^ ^
Credits:
Writer - Me of course!!! XD
Beta - Kiiroi Senko.
