A Tale Of Grace

by SophieLhant7

The world is changing. A terror attack leads to chaos. Kara is on the move, their goals uncertain. The specter of a Great Ninja War looms large. Boruto & friends need to hold strong in each other to weather this storm, but not all of them will make it through the dark. This is a story of trust, betrayal, love, hate, life, and death. This is A Tale of Grace. Book 1/7 of AToG Series.

29. Homebound

Hello everyone! Welcome back, my awesome and faithful readers! I'm a week late, yes, so here's the second-to-last chapter of A Tale of Grace! ^_^

This sets up a lot more lore for the following books (like the Land of Rain, the Revolution in the Rain, the First Great Ninja War, Celica Croa VS the Second Hokage/the Duel of Kudarat, Velvet Croa, the Croa Massacre, and others), and I'll expand further upon them in Book 2: A Spark of Hope, all the way up to Book 4 (no officially-official name yet, hahaha) XD

I won't waste your time anymore! I hope you all enjoy Chapter 29!
If you like it, please leave kudos/likes, comments/reviews, follows/subscriptions/favorites/whatever else, thanks! Hehee =D

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Chapter 29: Homebound

Namida Suzumeno was discharged from the hospital around 1:30 in the afternoon, and she was accompanied by Sarada, Yan, and Wasabi in walking back to Michishirube, the Beacon Tower of the city, the old iron spike rising high in the Ame skyline, the building that used to be known more than twenty years ago as the Tower of Pain. The four girls shared two umbrellas, one with Sarada and Yan underneath, and the other providing protection for Wasabi and Namida, to avoid getting too wet from the constant downpour.

"Ame nowadays looks so different compared to how it was shown in the movie," Namida observed of the city. "It's amazing…"

Yan clarified, "By movie, you mean Liwayway? It was great!"

"Yes, it was so wonderful!" Namida nodded enthusiastically. "In the movie, Ame looked so dirty and polluted and impoverished during the Revolution of the Rain. But now, it's a lot cleaner and beautiful! It looks like Konoha in the rainy season, so it's improved by leaps and bounds!"

"It has been eighty-five years since," Sarada reasoned. "Lots of things have changed in the world in that time. Konoha changed drastically too. Heck, Konoha during our parents' time just 20 to 30 years ago was nothing like it is for us now. What more about Konoha almost a century ago?"

"You're right," Wasabi agreed. "Still, given the history of the Land of Rain, you can't deny how impressive their progress is."

As the four kunoichi neared their destination of the Beacon Tower, Yan thought out loud, "Progress indeed. Michishirube, the famous Beacon Tower of the Land of Rain, used to be the tallest in old Ame, the area of the city within the original Inner Walls. But since the modern expansion of the city under the Lady Konan the Fourth Amekage, Lady Risha the Fifth Amekage, and Lord Yahikonan the Sixth Amekage, many other commercial buildings have sprung up in the new economic zones that replaced the polluting manufactories. Lots of those new buildings now rise above the height of the Beacon Tower."

"That's a bit sad actually," Sarada replied with a pensive look on her face. "I feel like sometimes, especially with the rapid progress of our world, people forget where they came from, or what came before them. Quite a lot of people get so caught up in today's modern trends that they forget or even ignore their history. And if history is forgotten, then its mistakes are likely going to be repeated…"

"You do have a point," Yan smiled. "But on the other hand, with some issues such as poverty, time is of the essence in solving them."

"And homophobia, and sexism in general," Namida and Wasabi added in unison. Wasabi continued, "Impeding progress in finding solutions for these problems adds to the suffering of the affected peoples."

The young Uchiha nodded in agreement. "Of course, that too is definitely true-"

"Sarada! Wasabi! Namida! Yan!" The four kunoichi stopped in their tracks when the distinct and powerfully loud voice of Chocho called out their names one by one. They turned and saw the Akimichi bearing down on them, with her teammates Shikadai and Inojin following her. The chubby kunoichi grabbed Sarada's shoulders and shook her back and forth. "You went to the All-You-Can-Eat-Buffet without me! Why did you leave me behind?"

"Because you were knocked out from all the food you ate last night," Sarada explained while trying to escape Chocho's clutches, much to the giggling of Yan, Wasabi, and Namida. "A surefire food coma! Also, you've been quite the strain on Yan's wallet for the last week and a half, even though you miraculously paid for your own food last night at Pepper Dinner."

"But Sarada-"

"Hold on!" Shikadai interrupted his teammate. "This isn't important right now! Have any of you seen Boruto?"

"No," the four answered near-simultaneously. Sarada asked Shikadai, "Why are you looking for him?"

"He's missing," Shikadai groaned. "He left the tower around 11 and he hasn't come back yet. He didn't tell me or anyone else where he was going. Since we're leaving Ame in a few hours, Kakashi-sensei sent us out to look for him. It's such a drag…"

The four girls were left confused. Wasabi further asked, "Where could he have gone to? Any leads?"

"We don't know," Inojin responded. "As of now, there hasn't yet been any sign of him."

Namida wondered aloud, "Could he have left Ame already?"

"It's highly unlikely that he's left the city already," Inojin explained. "All of his things are still at his bedside."

"So," Sarada questioned them, "where are you guys going to look?"

"We're heading to Kirakira's home first," Shikadai answered. "I think that she and her three friends can help us search for Boruto, since they all know him and what he looks like. Afterwards, we plan to look for him at the Lakeside District."

"You mean the place where a lot of factories used to dump their toxic wastes into Lake Ame?" Yan clarified. "The zone that has since been rehabilitated by the Amekages?"

Chocho answered, "Yup, that one. It's a pretty famous tourist and leisure spot nowadays, with a beachside mid-density residential area, the famous quay walkway along the waterfront, lots of fishing spots, a prominent pier with viewing platforms and telescopes looking out at the lake."

Shikadai added, "It even has a shrine to commemorate the duel between Lady Konan and Obito Uchiha that took place there around 2 decades ago, as well as to remember the six-billion paper explosive trap that used to exist under Lake Ame."

"Lots of places to look there," Sarada said. "Good luck to you three. We'll go back to the tower and ask Kakashi-sensei where we can help out."

"Wait, before we go…" Shikadai pulled Sarada close and whispered to her, "I last saw Boruto in the morning… He looked even more depressed and out of it than before… It's worrying me to no end…"

"We'll find him," Sarada assured him. "Don't worry too much about it."

*******XXXXXXX*******

Leaving their drenched umbrellas at a drying rack by the steps leading up to the entrance, Sarada, Yan, Wasabi, and Namida walked into the lobby of the tower of Michishirube. There, they looked and listened on as Konohamaru and Hanabi gave instructions to Denki, Iwabe, Houki, Hako and her doll Tokenagi, and Enko. The first two were to be sent to the Ame Town Center, the grand mall situated roughly in the middle of the bustling economic zone in between the older Inner Walls and the newer Outer Walls of Ame. The latter three were ordered to go and check the nearby wet marketplace near the Lakeside District for any clues on Boruto's whereabouts. They obeyed and sprinted out of the doorway to their assigned locations, with Hako riding her enlarged doll and getting far ahead of everyone else.

Namida greeted, "Hello Hanabi-sensei, Konohamaru-sensei!" Their attention now called, Konohamaru and Hanabi turned to the four newly arrived kunoichi.

"Oh you're back," Hanabi greeted them back. "And Namida, I'm happy to see you're all better now!"

Konohamaru asked them, "Have you girls heard what happened?"

"Yes sensei," Sarada answered. "We bumped into Team 10 on our way back. They filled us in on Boruto's disappearance."

Wasabi added, "How can we help out?"

"We were just about to ask the same thing," said Gengania, who walked into the ground floor lobby with Panga, Conwi, and the five other ladies from Iwa. "Lord Kakashi told us about what was going on."

"We want to help," Panga nodded in agreement with Gengania. "We can ask on the streets if anyone has seen Boruto. We have his picture on our phones anyway."

"Wait, how?" Konohamaru immediately realized the answer to his own question. "Oh right, you girls are already connected with everyone here on social media."

"Yeah," Yamada and Tomoka giggled and nodded. Tomoka continued, "We're all friends now on OpenBook, Twit, and Picturesque."

"Going back to our offer," Conwi pressed, "would it help if we asked the people on the streets if anyone has seen Boruto?"

Hanabi nodded. "In fact, we were going to do that too. And yes, it would certainly be better if we had more help. Thank you so much!"

"No problem," Gengania grinned. "It's only right for us to help, since you're all helping us begin new lives in Konoha."

"Still, thank you for volunteering to help. Let's all go together, okay?" Konohamaru then looked at Sarada, Yan, Wasabi, and Namida. "And how about you four? You can come with us if you like, but you can also stay behind and help Lady Konan with the cameras on the CCTV system."

"Hmm… I think there's enough people physically searching for Boruto as is," Sarada responded. "We'll be more helpful staying here."

"Agreed," Yan affirmed. "We'll scour the CCTV video playback and see if there's any more useful information we can gather."

"With Wasabi's cat-eyes and perfect vision," Namida boasted of her girlfriend, "I'm sure she'll be able to spot anything out of the ordinary!"

The senseis of Team 7 and Team 15 accepted their decision, and they left with the eight girls from Iwa, who had become good friends with the group over the past three and a half weeks since their surrender.

"Ughhh, I'm sure my eyes are going to hurt after this," Wasabi sighed. "Staring at many small frames on a big screen for a long time isn't fun for me at all, especially when they're all playing at the same time…"

"I believe in you," Namida assured her. "And you're not going to do this alone, remember? The Fourth Amekage and all four of us are going to be there too."

Wasabi snorted. "You're right. We share in our sufferings-"

She was cut off when suddenly, another woman ran into her, sending them both crashing to the floor. "Ouch… Watch where you're going…"

"I'm so sorry!"

"Umm…" Sarada, Yan, and Namida all trailed off, with Yan in particular gulping nervously.

The woman reached out for her smartphone, which had landed a short distance from where they fell. She then stood up quickly and held out her hand when she recognized Wasabi, Sarada, and the others. "Oh hello there! You're also looking for Boruto, aren't you?"

Wasabi looked up and saw the Fifth Amekage, Lady Risha Brunel, offering her hand to help her up. The moment her mind registered who it was standing in front of her, Wasabi's eyes opened wide, her hands grew cold, and her face paled. "Oh no, Lady Risha! I… uh, I'm so sorry if I sounded disrespectful a few seconds ago! I didn't know it was you, Lady Fifth! I should have moved out of the way!"

"No, no, no," Risha shook her head and laughed. "I'm a real klutz, and everyone here knows it. Telling me to be more careful isn't disrespectful to me. Please don't worry, Wasabi!" She grabbed Wasabi by the wrist and pulled her up to her feet.

Risha's long green hair was dripping from the unrelenting rain of Ame, along with most of her exposed skin, though her clothes seemed to have a waterproof outer layer to keep her warm and dry inside. Still, the Fifth Amekage had a radiantly warm aura and a heartwarming smile plastered on her face, which indicated to the four young kunoichi that by virtue of all the forty-seven years of her life that she had lived and spent in the perpetually rainy city, she wasn't bothered by being soaking wet, she was already used to not using umbrellas, and she was in fact quite happy to be under the rain.

"Anyway," the Fifth Amekage looked at her phone, "I just came back from a meeting with the members of my group, the Rain's Watch. Not one of them saw Boruto from their posts and patrol routes along the Inner Walls. That must mean that he's still somewhere within old Ame… In other words, he's still somewhere within the original Inner Walls of the city."

Sarada sighed. "Where could he have gone?"

"Konan messaged me that Boruto was last confirmed seen on the CCTV cameras in the lobby," Risha informed them. "Apparently, he left the tower around 11 am."

"We want to see the CCTV footage ourselves," Yan told her, "just in case we can get more information."

Wasabi added, "Maybe we can figure out what parts of old Ame he could have gone to, based on where he headed after leaving the tower."

"So," Namida asked," can we please check the CCTV on playback?"

Risha agreed to their request enthusiastically. "Of course, follow me!" She walked over to the elevator and pressed the button with the symbol for going up. While waiting for the reflective metallic doors to open and the elevator to arrive, she pointed out, "And I think I can help getting the playback footage of the security cameras. After all, I was the one who had these cameras installed here."

The elevator doors parted open, and Risha, Sarada, Yan, Wasabi, and Namida all entered the spacious elevator compartment. Inside were only six buttons for the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, and tenth floors respectively. While the first five buttons were lit, the last button was left unlit. Beside the button for the tenth floor was an ID scanner, meaning that direct access to the tenth floor landing from the ground floor lobby was restricted to only those who had the necessary identification. The four kunoichi from Konoha watched as Risha held up her phone screen to the scanner. After a few seconds, the scanner accepted her clearance to the tenth floor, since she was the Fifth Amekage. The button then lit up, and Risha quickly pressed it. However, before the elevator could close shut, a pair of white hands slipped through and forced the metal doors back open. Sarada exclaimed, "Mitsuki!"

The people inside the elevator saw Mitsuki pulling himself to the elevator, retracting his outstretched arms in the process. Meanwhile, Kirakira, Velvet, Eleanor, and Magilou all ran in behind him. Mitsuki informed everyone, "Boruto's not in the area of Kirakira's subdivision. We checked every street." After they all entered the now-crowded elevator, the doors shut closed, and the lift began to move upwards.

"Team KVEM," Risha remarked and smiled upon seeing the foursome of Kirakira, Velvet, Eleanor, and Magilou. "I often see you girls training in Ame Academy from my tower post at the Inner Walls. I must say that from what I've seen so far, you four have great potential as a team."

Magilou thanked her in her unique singsong voice while bowing her head. "Thank you Lady Risha, for your kind words and optimistic appraisal!"

"But it's true. In any case, you're also helping out with the search?"

"Yes Lady Fifth," Velvet answered. "We were having a sleepover for our group project at Kirakira's place when Mitsuki came by and asked us to help look for Boruto."

Eleanor added, "Because he seemed like a nice person when we met him, and because Kirakira said that she owes Boruto a lot for helping save her from the Fourth Tsuchikage."

Meanwhile, Kirakira waved to the young Uchiha, who was both her former foe and her old friend. "Sarada! It's nice to see you after so long."

"Kirara! Yes, long time no see! It's great to get to talk to you once again. Oh, and your name is Kirakira now, right? I heard that from Boruto and Lady Fourth. The former fabrication that had become fully human nodded. "Good. When Shikadai told me you chose new name, I was worried that you went with Boruto's suggestion. I'm glad you didn't."

"Tiger Festival? I don't think it's that bad-"

"No need to defend it. It's not a good name for anyone. What you went with is so much better… Speaking of Shikadai, he was also headed to your place to ask for help."

"Really now? We didn't see him. Maybe we took different routes?"

The elevator slowed down and stopped, and the shiny doors opened to the main hallway of the tenth floor. Next to the elevator was the long staircase that connected floors five through ten together. "Just follow my lead," Risha reminded the others as she walked through the wide hallway, her long olive green hair and off-white clothing still leaving behind long trails of rainwater droplets behind her. Those who accompanied her followed close behind, and after a short while, they stopped in front of a large dark wooden door. "The Chamber of the Amekages," Risha proudly stated and knocked thrice on the door. "Konan, it's me-"

The door opened immediately, and Konan took one look at her best friend and sighed while tossing the green-haired lady two fresh towels. "Risha, how often do I tell you to take better care of yourself? I get that you love the fresh rain, especially since it's not polluted anymore like it used to be. But at least bring towels with you so you can dry yourself up. You might get sick or catch a cold, always being under the rain like that…"

"Thanks for always caring for me," Risha laughed heartily while going inside the room and heading straight for the CCTV system screen. "But you know I can take care of myself too… or at least, the bare minimum of taking care of myself…"

Konan rolled her eyes playfully, before looking at the people Risha had brought along to help. "Sarada, Wasabi, Yan, Mitsuki, welcome back. And Namida, I'm glad to see you've fully recovered." She turned to the other four girls, who began waving and smiling at her. "Kirakira Iwatani, Velvet Croa, Eleanor Shiribeshi, and Magilou Satsuma… Team KVEM. Hmm, it is a bit of a surprise to see you here, although I do understand why. Come in, everyone."

As they all walked with awe into the huge, warm, and well-lit chamber, the many shelves of which were filled with many books and memorabilia from decades past, Sarada wondered aloud, "Lady Konan, how do you know everyone here? Not just us, but Kirakira and her friends too?"

Konan smiled. "I know them because I'm the headmistress of Ame Academy," she revealed, to the surprise of Sarada, Wasabi, and Namida. "And they are excellent students with great potential to be modern kunoichis, so I keep my eyes on them…" She chuckled. "It also helps that they often end up in my office, one way or another. But don't worry, it's never anything that serious."

Risha spoke up, "I can vouch for their potential too! By the way, I'm working on getting the video playbacks, but it might take a while. I'll let you know when it's ready."

"Thank you!" Konan then continued explaining to the kunoichi from Konoha, "Kirakira Iwatani, the diamond in the rough, a gem of the rock hidden away, one who fought to actually live. Magilou of the Satsuma family: determined and persevering, unique, even mysterious, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. Eleanor Shiribeshi, the scion of the largest clan-corporation in the Land of Rain, yet still a brilliant mind and an all-around fighter. And Velvet Croa…"

Konan turned to the girl with the bandaged arm and the long black hair with a red streak on the side, and Sarada and the others followed suit. She was standing in front of the blue section of the wall where the busts and paintings of all six Amekages were lined up. The first bust and painting was that of Pugad Lawin, the First Amekage, who was painted along with his wife and partner Celica Croa. To the right of that painting was the Second Amekage, Hanzo of the Salamander, followed by the Third Amekage, Nagato Uzumaki, with his six Paths of Pain. The still-living Amekages came afterwards, with the Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Amekages being Konan Uzumaki, Risha Brunel, and Yahikonan Uzumaki respectively. Above Konan's marble bust were two frames, the upper one an oil painting of her in her younger days, and the lower one a colored picture that resembled her more as she was currently. In fact, the frames for Risha and Yahikonan were also no longer paintings, but pictures.

Sarada asked herself in her own mind, "Why does Lady Konan have two frames?" She quickly figured out the answer to her own question. "Oh, because she technically had two terms as Amekage, right. And that second term of hers as Amekage was in between Lady Risha and Lord Yahikonan… And its seems that Lady Risha is the one who started the trend of choosing pictures over paintings."

While Risha was still typing away at the computer screen to bring up the relevant playbacks of all the security video cameras, Konan and the others approached Velvet, who was staring engrossed at the portrait of the First Amekage and his wife. "You look just like your great-grandmother," Konan commented and patted her shoulder. "You have her dark silvery eyes, the same skin, the same smile, and the same shade of black hair, even with your rose-red streak."

"I get that a lot… Thanks Lady Fourth…"

The gears began to move in Sarada's head, and things suddenly made sense for her. Her eyes widening at the realization, she rushed to Velvet's side. "Wait, you're related to Celica Croa?"

Wasabi put two and two together as well, and she too was astounded. "You mean Celica from the movie 'Liwayway'? The heroine of the Ame Revolution and the First Great Ninja War?"

Namida piled on with a lot of questions, "The one with the silver eyes? The one who used the awesome weapon that was a cross between a sword, a spear, and a musket? The one who saved the First Amekage and killed the Second Hokage in single combat during the Duel of Kudarat? The Angel of Death?" She held Velvet's hand. "Amazing… It feels like I'm part of history now too, just by knowing someone related to a great historical figure…"

Velvet sighed playfully and nodded to all their questions. "I am Velvet Croa, the great-granddaughter of Celica Croa. Though I don't think that I'm anywhere as badass as she was."

Yan gently pulled the stunned Namida away from Velvet and then moved her back to Wasabi's waiting arms. "Please forgive my friends. We all watched Liwayway recently, and Celica Croa was one of the two main protagonists in the movie. We certainly didn't expect to get to know or even be mutual friends with one of her descendants."

"No worries, I wasn't mad at them or anything at all. Thanks though." Velvet then asked Konan, "You know her, Lady Fourth?"

Konan nodded. "I know her quite well. Even at 103 years old, she's still quite active and witty."

"Wait a minute," Wasabi gasped, "she's still alive? The movie didn't say that in the end-credits."

"Not only is she still alive," Konan replied, "but she's still able to run her old store on the corner of Revolutionary Road and Elder Sora Avenue. Whenever I need some supplies, usually for Ame Academy, I go there. She still recognizes me, and we have long chats about the past, about the history of Ame, where the nation is going, and more."

"We've got to visit this store before we go home to Konoha! We have to get her autographs, and maybe even take pictures with her!" Namida said to Sarada, Wasabi, and Yan, who all agreed.

"That's where she lives actually," Velvet told the four of them. "I can lead you guys to it later!"

"Everyone, before that," Risha raised her hand and pointed on the large flat screen on the other side of the chamber. "The playback is up on the screen now." Konan leaned forwards onto the sofa's backrest, while everyone else sat on the sofa or on the floor closer to the screen. "Pay attention for any clues," Risha ordered, "or for anything that seems out of the ordinary."

The video playback began, and on the huge screen, 64 camera angles simultaneously played out, each on their own smaller rectangular frames. The people seen on the cameras seemed to be running weirdly or even warping from one spot to another, and their jarring, jerky motions were reminiscent of the first moving pictures, the black-and-white silent movies of old. "Our ground level staff reported seeing him leaving the entrance around 11 o'clock," Konan informed Risha. "To simplify our task, how about we narrow our search down to the relevant cameras."

"Unfortunately," Risha responded, "I either need to play all the camera angles at once, or only one camera at a time. That's how this particular CCTV system works, so just focus on the cameras inside the lobby and at the entrance. They're all on the right anyway."

Sarada glanced towards Yan. "Do you think you'll be able to see much in those dark-tinted glasses of yours?"

"All the more that I'll need these glasses," Yan chuckled. "It's a flat-screen TV emitting lots of light and electromagnetic radiation. My eyes are going to be really irritated if I don't use them while watching…"

"I'll play the videos at 4x speed," Risha clicked. After about two minutes of scanning the screen, the unmistakable figure of Boruto finally appeared in one of the camera frames. It was a camera at the corner of the ceiling of the ground floor lobby, and from there the elevator was visible. Risha paused the video and pointed him out to make sure everyone was on the same page. She then continued the video playback at normal speed, and from there five more cameras showed Boruto walking through the lobby, out the main doors of the tower, and to the right side of the stairs, where he disappeared from the view of the last camera to spot him. The time shown on the bottom tab was 11:08:37 am.

Risha paused the video again. "So he went right after leaving the tower. Look at the cameras where you can see streets, okay?" She resumed the playback, and for a minute they kept looking, but there simply was no more trace left of Boruto. After nobody saw anything, Risha replayed the last minute of the video and tried again, but the end result was the same. None of the people watching the CCTV playback saw Boruto after he left the tower, and none of them could figure out in what exact direction he went to.

"This is weird," Risha thought out loud. "We should have spotted him on either one of the two cameras looking out from the sides of the entrance, if he continued walking where anyone logically would along the road."

At the same time, Wasabi, Mitsuki, Kirakira, and Magilou all shared suspicious glances with each other, as if the four of them had noticed the exact same thing. "Lady Risha," Wasabi asked, "can you focus on Camera 27? The camera that's to the right side of the entrance?"

"Sure thing." Risha double-clicked the camera in question and replayed the last minute once again.

Namida glanced at her girlfriend. "What is it? Did you see anything?"

"Wait… pause it!" Risha immediately paused the video, and Wasabi, Kirakira, and Magilou stood up, walking closer to the screen. Magilou pointed her finger on a slight blur in the camera. "There, I think that's puff of white smoke rising in the cold rainy air…"

Risha hit play, and sure enough, the blurry cloud seemed to move upwards. "That's definitely not a raindrop," Kirakira commented.

"Holy shit…" Sarada realized what had happened. "We were watching his shadow clone the entire time."

"If that's his shadow clone," Namida continued the thought, "then that means that he may have left the tower by a different way."

Sarada suggested, "Or… he may not have left the building at all…"

"Let's scour the footage of the cameras inside," Konan ordered. Risha moved the timer back to 11:08:37, and put back all the camera angles on the screen at the same time, before hitting the play button and letting all the angles play out in unison at four times their actual speed.

Meanwhile, Yan turned her eyes to Sarada, and she noticed that her friend was growing visibly worried. "Sarada, what's wrong?"

"I'm worrying about Boruto," she admitted. "Shikadai told me earlier that he didn't look good, that he seemed more down than ever."

"I saw him earlier this morning too, around 8 or something," Wasabi sighed without taking her eyes off of the screen. "He passed by me when I came back from hospital, and I heard him mumbling Sumire's name… I just didn't think of it much then because I was sleep-deprived, and the only thing I was thinking about was Namida…"

"I'm worried that he might have done something stupid…"

"Oh no…" Kirakira chimed in. "That is making me concerned too…"

"Truly," Eleanor sighed. "And it's been hours since he was last seen, so he may already have-"

"Pause it!" Wasabi shouted, finally closing and rubbing her strained eyes. "Camera 60!" Risha rewound the tape slightly to the time of 11:13:41 then paused, and she enlarged the frame to full screen like what she did to Camera 27. This time, there was a motion-blurred figure, partly black and partly yellow, that ran by what everyone inside the room recognized were the doors to the Amekage Chamber, the same doors they had entered through not even fifteen minutes prior.

"That's Boruto for sure," Velvet reasoned. "He's the only one here with bright blonde hair…"

Risha nodded in affirmation. "He was heading in the direction of… the outside viewing platform…" She turned to Konan, a troubled expression on her face. "You haven't received any reports of jumpers today, I hope?"

*******XXXXXXX*******

Ten stories above the concrete pavement that lined the streets and sidewalks of Ame, Boruto Uzumaki sat on the wet steel ledge, his legs dangling dangerously over the edge of the viewing platform outside the tenth floor of the famous Beacon Tower of Ame, Michishirube. Unbeknownst to him, that was also the very spot where Nagato and Konan used to sit together more than two decades ago.

The blonde shinobi let out a tired breath and quickly checked his waterproof watch. It was 2:12 pm, and it was still raining, as is most usually the case in Ame. Boruto was very careful not to slip or lose his grip on the ledge, even if every square inch of his body was fully drenched from having been under the rain for more than three hours. In that span of time, he had ignored all of his friends who were calling out his name from within the tower, outside the tower, and deeper into the city of Ame. After all, the whole reason why he had sent out his shadow clone to misdirect everyone in the first place was so that he wouldn't be disturbed. The last thing he wanted was for any of his friends to see him as he was now.

Closing his long-reddened eyes and balling his hands into clenched fists, Boruto let his tears once again flow down their now familiar route down by his cheeks, nose, lips, jaw, and neck, where they would be stopped by his shirt, which was soaked by both the tireless rain and the relentless tears. Over the past three weeks, he had tried to bury and suppress all of his negative emotions in his mind, but they kept returning and relapsing. Now he bore all of his guilt in his chest, which was in considerable pain from having sobbed for hours.

His regret was that of surviving, of not being able to do more for his friends, of not being strong enough to save the one who loved him, the one he loved too. He felt unworthy of life, partly because of his contributions to the deaths of Metal and Renga, partly for not recognizing Sumire's feelings for him and vice versa, and mostly for not saving Sumire, even if it could have led to his own death. In Boruto's eyes, Sumire's life and happiness and future were just as important to him as his own, but now she was gone and never coming back, and to the young Uzumaki, it was his fault.

Looking down once again at the street far below him, with the falling raindrops somewhat obscuring the view of the bottom, he was reminded of the black chasm that he saw Sumire fall into. It was the last thing he saw before he was jarred awake in the talons of Inojin's gliding paper bird. And each time Boruto looked down from his perch at the top of the Beacon Tower, his mind was pestered with regrets and what ifs, with thoughts of jumping after Sumire, with thoughts of taking a leap of faith into the darkness of the abyss and hoping that somehow he'd meet her there at the bottom and save her. These thoughts have eaten at him for the past three or so hours, but until now he had held them at bay.

All of a sudden, the doors to the viewing platform swung open, and Boruto heard many footsteps approaching him. He knew then that his diversion, although clever, had been found out.

"BORUTO!"

Boruto knew the familiar angry voice to be Sarada's. He sighed and turned his head to where he heard her call. "Sarada-"

"What are you doing here? Why didn't you tell anyone where you were? Why don't you tell anyone what you're feeling? Why did you even have to send out your fucking shadow clone as a diversion to send everyone on a damned wild goose chase?"

For a few lingering seconds, Boruto's near-lifeless orbs stared blankly back into Sarada's flaming Sharingan eyes. Then he closed his eyes, shook his head, and turned back to look over the edge once again.

Sarada panicked. "Wait! Boruto, please don't!" Boruto did not budge, nor did he react to her in any way.

Still, taking no chances, Konan formed a giant paper cord from the paper cells of her own hand, wrapped it around Boruto's waist, and gently pulled him away from the ledge. "It's okay… You're not alone… We're here…"

"Boruto…" Namida wrapped her arm around his neck and helped lead him to the others. She comforted him in her soft and empathetic voice, "I know that Sumire was important to you… She was important to me too, and to Wasabi and to Sarada and to everyone… So please believe me when I say this, but Sumi wouldn't want you to do this to yourself. We both know that."

Wasabi knelt on one knee in front of Boruto. "If I sound angry, I promise you that I'm really trying not to be. I'm more disappointed than angry, honestly. You won't even bother honoring Sumire's sacrifice, her single greatest act of love for you and for me and for every single one of our friends, because you were thinking of ending your own life."

"Please… Stop…" Boruto sobbed. "Please… I don't want to hear it… I don't want to see anybody or talk to anybody-"

"No, I won't stop!" Boruto tried to push Wasabi away, but she resisted him, throwing his arms aside and grabbing his shoulders.

"Dammit Boruto!" Wasabi defied him, lifting his chin up so she could look him directly in the eyes. "Listen you, we're all experiencing the pain of losing her! You're not the only one dealing with this excruciating pain right now!"

"Wasabi, calm down please…" Namida pleaded with her girlfriend, hugging her arm and making it relax its grip on Boruto's shoulder. "I understand what Boruto is going through right now. Remember when my parents disowned me a few weeks ago, all for loving you? I also felt so much regret and worthlessness, but you helped me through that night by showing me empathy and love. How about we do the same for the person that our Sumire loved most, okay?"

"…Sorry… You're right…" The cat-like kunoichi exhaled loudly to relieve some of her building frustration. "Listen Boruto… I loved her too, and so did Namida and Sarada and Hanabi-sensei… Maybe not in the same way that you two grew to love each other, but she was an important part of our lives too! And you probably don't know this because you weren't with us that night, but we girls swore to always value and remember her sacrifice and to keep her memory alive, by making sure that we all live on to tell everyone her story.

"I wasn't going to jump," Boruto sighed to Wasabi. "I admit that I was been thinking of it, but I know that the fall won't kill me. I've survived much worse, and at worst, my shinobi instincts will still make sure to save me. If ever I did jump, I'll only injure myself badly, and I'll end up delaying everyone from returning home to Konoha and seeing their families again, which would be one more thing that I'd feel guilty of."

"I remember when we became friends a few years ago, when I was about to give myself up to Lady Tsuchikage," Kirakira reminded Boruto, paraphrasing his own words to her from the time she fled the Land of Earth. "You told me to value my life, to show that I value my life by living every second to the fullest, and to never give up my life without fighting to stay alive up until my final breath." She gently smiled. "I'll always be grateful for those words of yours, and I think you should follow your own advice too. Please Boruto, don't think your life is better off discarded, because it's not."

Before Boruto could even respond to Kirakira, Risha opened the door and motioned for everyone to come back inside the tower. Mitsuki and Kirakira dragged Boruto inside, while Wasabi, Namida, Velvet, Eleanor, and Magilou followed close behind him to ensure that he wouldn't go off to anywhere else. Only Konan, Sarada, and Yan were left outside. "At least in the end," Konan told the other two, "nothing bad happened, right?" Sarada and Yan nodded. "In any case, I should contact everyone and call off the search." She ran back inside and entered the room for the Amekages.

"We should go back inside too." Sarada began to walk to the door, but only took a few steps when she noticed that Yan wasn't following her. She looked at Yan and saw that she looked uncomfortable, like something was disturbing her. "What's wrong, Yan? Is it Boruto?"

Ayano nodded and slowly walked to the shelter of the doorframe. "Did you also feel the negative aura that surrounded Boruto? I could almost see it… it was like a shadow of darkness that entirely surrounded him…"

Sarada pulled her back inside the tower and closed the door behind them. "Yes… I did feel it too."

"It felt as if he had some sort of killing intent, but for himself," Yan told Sarada. "It scares me, how much anger he has towards himself."

Sarada looked at her friend's dark glasses, where she could see her own reflection standing out in the blackness of the glass lenses as if they were black mirrors. She breathed heavily and nodded. "I know that he's trying and failing to keep all of his emotions bottled up inside himself. He might not want to be a burden on anybody else, but he's still making us all really worried sick for him."

"He's like a dam that's close to failing, close to bursting open," Yan compared, "but is still straining with all of its might not to give way…" She then crossed her arms together. "What can we do to help? Do you think we can do anything for him?"

Sarada shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know. I feel that friends and family spending time with him more could help him, along with therapy sessions like what Sumire used to have with her psychiatrist…" She shook her head. "But we can only help Boruto if he too wants to help himself."

*******XXXXXXX*******

As per Kakashi's request, everyone headed home for Konoha and left Michishirube, the Beacon Tower of Ame, a few minutes past 3:45 in the afternoon. They were accompanied to the Ame Train Station by Konan and Risha, the Fourth and Fifth Amekages respectively, as well as a crowd of Ame citizens who cheered them and thanked them for all the effort and sacrifices they committed in defending their beloved nation, the Land of Rain, from the enemy invasion. The crowd honored them by throwing flowers at them, and so what used to be a mere rain shower became a dance between the cold raindrops and colorful petals.

"The train taking us to the city of Marumi is scheduled to arrive around 4:25," Kakashi mentioned to the younger shinobi and kunoichi under his charge. "It'll depart at around 4:30. We'll get to Marumi between 4:50 and 5:00 pm, and from there, we'll walk the rest of the way to Konoha."

"I talked to my father two days ago," Denki told his friends. "He told me he was fast-tracking the Kaminarimon Company's plan to build a Lightning Rail from Konoha to Marumi for both passengers and cargo. He said it was to help provide a faster and more direct line of connection between the Land of Fire and Land of Rain, and to further strengthen the economic and diplomatic ties between the two countries."

"I'm sure that my son would be thrilled to hear the details of your father's plan," Konan replied and strolled beside Denki. "I heard that the Shiribeshi Corporation also has some ideas for a railway between our two nations. Perhaps the two companies can enter some sort of arrangement regarding its construction." She turned to Eleanor Shiribeshi, who was walking two steps behind her. "What do you think, Eleanor? Would your father be open to the idea?"

The scion of the largest corporation in the Land of Ame smiled graciously. "I'm sure that if things go well, the Shiribeshi Corporation and the Kaminarimon Company can reach an agreement." She then rushed her pace slightly to catch up to Denki and Konan. "And I heard your name was Denki Kaminarimon," she grinned and extended her hand whilst walking. "I'm Eleanor Shiribeshi. You can call me Ellie though, if you want."

Denki blushed, looked away for a second, before looking back at Eleanor and shaking her hand. "You can call me Denki!"

As they neared the street named Elder Sora Avenue, Velvet noted to Sarada and Yan, "We're actually close to my great-grandmother's shop."

"Really?" They asked at the same time.

"Yeah, it's just three blocks away from the upcoming intersection. Are we still going there?"

"Right! We'll ask for permission first!" Sarada then asked Kakashi, "Kakashi-sensei, can some of us take a detour first?"

Kakashi questioned them, "Where to? And who's going with you?"

"Wasabi, Namida, Yan, and I want to go meet the old war hero Celica Croa. Velvet and her friends will lead us to her store. It's likely a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, since she's already 103 and all."

"Hey! Can we join too?" Chocho, Enko, and Hako ran towards the growing group of girls. "We watched Liwayway too, and Celica's like our idol now. We didn't even know she was still alive, so we want to meet her too!"

Kakashi thought about it for a few seconds, then nodded. "Just be back before 4:30, alright?"

"Yes Kakashi-sensei! Thank you!"

The large group split into two, and Velvet, Eleanor, Magilou, and Kirakira led the way for Sarada, Yan, Namida, Wasabi, Chocho, Enko, and Hako, the last of which had her doll Tokenagi wrapped on her back and shoulders like a backpack. Velvet sprinted faster than anyone else, faster than even Wasabi, and with her red hood and clothes, she seemed like a blur that was red like roses. After a few minutes of running along the mostly covered sidewalk, Velvet stopped at the corner of Elder Sora Avenue and Revolutionary Road. As the others caught up to her, she looked up and gestured to the shop. The sign above the store read, "From Dawn To Dust."

"Here we are!" She opened the door for everyone, entered the store, and exclaimed, "Hello super-granny! You have lots of visitors right now. They wanted to meet you because they saw the new movie! The one with you as the central character!"

Everyone else followed Velvet inside the shop, and they saw at the counter an old woman with long flowing white hair, a wrinkly smile, and deep, piercing silver eyes gazing back at them. "Hello everybody," the old woman greeted with a strong albeit old-sounding and slightly raspy voice. "I'm Celica Croa-" She coughed twice and sighed. "My apologies, I have an itchy throat today, so my voice is softer than usual…"

"No worries," Wasabi stepped forward and shook her hand. "We're just glad to have the opportunity to meet you in person."

Namida continued, "We were actually just hoping for pictures and autographs with you."

"I can sign and take photographs," Celica agreed to their requests. "My hands aren't trembling yet, so at the very least, my signature should still be recognizable."

Chocho turned giddy. "We're going to have photographs with a living legend, a national heroine of another country! I'm so going to upload these on my Twit and Picturesque accounts…"

All of the girls present gathered around Celica for a large group photo, and Eleanor volunteered her smartphone for the pictures. "I'll make a group chat and send you girls all the pictures online," she assured them. "I have really fast Wi-Fi at home, so it won't take long to send." She placed it on a nearby shelf and entered a timer of seven seconds on the camera before running back to her place beside her friends. She made it with time to spare, and the flash that arrived two seconds after she got into position signaled that the photo had been taken. The group photo done, Eleanor then took more pictures, specifically of Celica with Hako and Tokenagi, with Chocho, with Enko, with Sarada and Yan, and with Wasabi and Namida. Finally, she handed off her phone to Sarada and joined her friends to pose for their team photo. Magilou was at the left end, with Kirakira beside her. Celica was in the center, with Velvet next to her, and Eleanor was at the right end.

After Sarada took the photo of Team KVEM with Celica Croa, the elderly war heroine of the Land of Rain took a permanent marker and signed, among other things, handkerchiefs from Chocho and Hako, since Tokenagi adamantly refused to have anything signed directly on him. She also signed a poster of the movie Liwayway, the recently released blockbuster war movie and love story that showed Celica Croa and her exploits during the Revolution of the Rain and the First Great Ninja War almost 85 years prior, which belonged to Wasabi and Namida. "We'll frame this when we get back to our home," Wasabi told Celica.

"I'm sure you will," Celica smiled, although her voice was rough from her coughing that day. "Did you know that I had a role in the movie too?"

"A cameo?"

"No, just a consultant role. My memory is still sharp even after all these years, and I remembered everything about Ame during my youth; how it looked like, how it felt like, how people and society were back then, how things changed after the Ame Revolution, and what my major engagements in the First Great Ninja War were. Lady Konan was also a consultant, but more for the facts and historical accuracy of the movie, since the Amekage Chamber is a treasure trove of books and artifacts from the era."

Celica then turned to Velvet. "By the way, how has school been for you? And are you still in that old apartment of yours that Amado pays for?"

"School's been great! Team KVEM is one year away from officially becoming kunoichis! And yeah, I still sleep in that apartment, but I also sleepover with my friends a lot too, mostly over at Kirakira's place, but sometimes at Magilou's and Eleanor's too."

"And where's your Uncle Amado at right now? How is he?"

"He's fighting along with the rest of Kara," she responded, "avenging our clan in the process."

"I just hope he comes home again, safe and sound…"

Meanwhile, Yan got a handful of things from the store, paid for it with the honesty system machine at the front, and approached Celica. She handed the elderly woman a postcard of the Beacon Tower, Michishirube, and a red and black wallet. "Can you please sign these, ma'am?"

"Sure thing! What name should I put on them?"

"Yan on the postcard, and Sarada on the wallet. Thank you!" Celica jotted down the names and her signature onto the two items and gave them back to Yan with a smile.

"Sarada…" Yan gave her the wallet. "This is my parting gift to you, something for you to remember me by. A wallet with your colors, and signed by a war heroine too!"

"Thank you so much, Yan," she replied. "But you didn't have to get me anything! And I'm not going to forget you! We're friends online now, remember? We can chat anytime!"

"I mean, you're right… But I wanted to give you something anyway!"

*******XXXXXXX*******

"We're here," Eleanor gestured as she led the others through the revolving doors and front glass façade of the city train station. "Ame Metro Train Station, designed and built by my father's company. And you girls have time to spare. It's only 4:24, and it looks like the train hasn't arrived yet."

Walking through the heated interior of the station, the kunoichi from Konoha saw Shikadai, Inojin, Denki, and most of the group sitting on several long benches, eating burgers and ramen from the food court inside the station, and conversing with each other. Chocho ran towards the cafeteria-style food court and immediately ordered multiple burgers from Tropical Burger, while Enko and Hako joined the eight ladies from Iwa at Ramen-Ramen, and Mitsuki, Kirakira, Velvet, Eleanor, and Magilou all sat down at Shawarma Shack, ordering one shawarma pita each.

"I'll go to the bathroom first," Yan excused herself from Sarada, Wasabi, and Namida. "I'll be right back."

"Wait," Sarada held her by the arm, "what do you want to eat? I can pay this time."

Yan looked at the stalls. "Hmm, the yogurt will do, if the three of you are okay with it."

They agreed, and so Sarada, Wasabi, and Namida ordered four large yogurt servings with various fruit toppings. However, upon sitting down, the three of them noticed that, separate from everybody else, Boruto sat alone in utter silence on the other side of the waiting area. Sarada felt bad for him, and she was sure that everyone else felt the same way. But they could not help him any more than they've already tried to, since he refused to open up to them or anyone else any further.

Suddenly, a loud warning horn was heard approaching, and the telltale screeching of applied brakes was heard shortly after. Soon, the blue train came into view inside the station and came to a stop. The doors opened, and a flood of people came pouring out of the sleek rainy-blue Rain-ways train.

"Sarada!" The young Uchiha barely had time to turn her head before being enveloped by a hug from her Aunt Karin. "I'm glad I caught you before you left!"

Sarada laughed and deepened the hug. "Aunt Karin! We haven't gotten to hang out that much, like we wanted to."

"I know, and I'm really sorry about it. I've been so busy… It was tough to treat some of the injuries and illnesses, like the ones Iwabe, Namida, and Chocho had."

"Doctor Karin," Wasabi graciously thanked, "I can't thank you enough for all the help you gave in treating Namida."

Namida nodded her head. "Miss Karin, I owe you so much! Even back then, during the joint mission of Team 7 and Team 15 at the Land of Rivers, you helped us a ton!"

Karin shook her head. "I only helped the doctors in whatever way I could. But Wasabi was there for you nearly the entire time. Her constant presence and encouragement helped you recover better too, I'm sure of it!" She rummaged through her purse. "By the way, try this on, Sarada!" She pulled out a brown case with a new pair of glasses for Sarada, ones with a more accurate grade and the same red frame.

Sarada put them on and smiled. "Everything's even clearer! Wow!"

"I'm glad you like it! It's yours now, after all! Just tell me when you need new glasses, or when your grade changes, okay?" The redheaded Uzumaki then glanced to Boruto's direction. "I wish Boruto will be okay too… He's been like this for the past couple of weeks, right?"

The three friends followed Karin's eyes and saw Sasuke now sitting beside Boruto, trying to talk to him, but evidently not having much success. "Yeah," Sarada lowered her eyes while eating the last of her grape-flavored yogurt. "I hope so…"

"I'll try to talk to him too." Karin stood up and jogged across the station to Boruto and Sasuke.

After a minute passed, Kakashi and the other senseis motioned for everybody to begin lining up to board the train. Most of the group followed, though Mitsuki chose to keep talking with Team KVEM for the time being, while Sarada, Wasabi, and Namida decided to wait for Yan, since they had ordered yogurt for her. "Wait for me!" And right on cue, Yan ran towards them, caught her breath for a few seconds, and then devoured the entire cup of yogurt so fast that she finished mere seconds after Namida did. "That was nice! Mango and banana and graham crumbs, a lovely combination!"

Afterwards, Sarada took selfies of the four of them posing with their empty yogurt cups in front of them. "I'll send this on our group chat when I have the time and the Wi-Fi," Sarada told them.

The clock read 4:28, and the outbound passengers were trickling into the Rain-ways train. Those homebound to Konoha turned to the two former Amekages who accompanied them. "Thank you Lady Konan and Lady Risha," Kakashi bowed to them, "for being such wonderful and hospitable hosts."

"Thank you Lady Konan and Lady Risha," the younger shinobis and kunoichis added in unison.

"It wasn't any problem at all," Konan replied. "You all are welcome to come back to Ame whenever you like."

"You are all heroes here," Risha smiled. "We owe you a huge debt of gratitude. Just tell us in advance when you're coming back, so we can prepare the tower for your visit, okay?"

With that, they began to board the train. Kakashi, Konohamaru, Hanabi, and Moegi led the way into their designated compartment, followed by Gengania, Panga, and the others who wished for asylum in Konoha, then by Enko, Hako and Tokenagi, Houki, Denki, and Iwabe. Shikadai, Chocho, and Inojin took some last minute photos before boarding, while Mitsuki shared a surprising group hug and corresponding group picture with Kirakira, Velvet, Eleanor, and Magilou.

"I guess this is farewell for now," Yan remarked sullenly and frowned. "We've become close friends over the past three weeks too… and I'm glad while it lasted…"

"Goodbye Yan," Sarada embraced her new dear friend, the one person who had been a constant pillar of support and care and joy in what should have been the three worst weeks of her life. "If you ever get the chance to go to Konoha, we can meet up!"

The embrace persisted for longer than either expected, but neither of them wanted to let go yet. "I promise that I'll come visit you when I go to Konoha," Yan vowed. "And yes, that means that I can go to Konoha sooner than later. I just need to ask permission from my mom, and knowing her, she's usually very chill about these things-"

"LAST CALL TO BOARDING!" The PA system of the train blared. "LAST CALL TO BOARDING!"

"Oops, I need to go in!" Sarada and Yan were finally forced to break their long and warm embrace, and Sarada walked through the open door of the train.

"Wait a second!" Yan called out, "What's your address though? Where will I meet you there?"

"Don't worry, I'll send it to you in our online chat!" Sarada was able to respond in time and give her thumbs up before the doors of the blue Rain-ways train closed shut.

---

How was Chapter 29? If you liked it, please leave kudos, likes, non-troll comments, reviews, follows, subscriptions, and favorites! They all help me grow as an author! =)

Lots of references and parallels to both Filipino history and to RWBY here! Check if you can spot them all! ;)

Team KVEM (yes, that's going to be their name, and yes, it's a RWBY reference in itself with regards to the naming using initials and that it's an all-female team), Celica Croa, Beacon Tower/Michishirube, Risha Brunel and Konan Uzumaki and Yahikonan Uzumaki, the eight girls from Iwa, Ayano/Yan Kashiwabara, etc! All of them will play medium to large parts in the later books of this saga! Just you wait to see what I've got planned hahaha huhuhu =D XD

The next chapter, Chapter 30, is going to be titled, "Loved Ones Will Always Watch Over You". It's going to be a tearjerker (I hope), and it will feature Sarada trying to deal with the loss of her best friend, Boruto in a VERY bad place (should I put a trigger warning for this?), and a lot more things are going to happen that will set up the next book, "A Spark of Hope".

As for Book 2: I'm almost going to work on it (sooner than later? Maybe I can start building up the frames more before the end of 2019/the end of the decade hahaha huhuhu, I feel old at 21 =(). Still, I will also start other projects, like a RWBY fanfic that I've been thinking of for a few months now, a Bloom Into You story that I've been planning for even longer, and a few other works for Boruto and other series that I'll upload soon! =D

Until next time (I'm really hoping for next Sunday, but I can't make any promises. I'm also hoping before the New Year, but again I can't make that promise yet!)