Chapter 8

"Lord Kazekage! Oh! And the legendary Sakura! It is an honor to …"

The leader of the small village noticed the strangers with them, but it was Sasuke that put a concerned frown on his face. Sasuke glanced away. Sakura was quick to come to his defense.

"My comrade, here, thought Amegakure was a good choice to help our new friends; Lord Kazekage agreed as well. As you can see, they are not from here and have had better days." She kept quiet on the fact that the village was also conveniently on their way. The leader eased up.

"The legendary heroes of the war are always welcome here!" He bowed politely, including to Sasuke. He then turned to Aby and her party.

"Welcome to the village hidden in the …"

He had not finished his sentence that a heavy rain suddenly poured on them. He laughed out loud and extended his arms to receive the water.

"Why, the village hidden in the rain! Ha Ha!"

The buildings looked familiar to Abigail, she kept looking around her. Everything was grey and very much industrialized. There was a statue of an angel with wings, adorning the grand entrance of the main tower.

"Here! Here! Let's get you dried up! My name is Jagu, please make this your home for the time being!"

"Your hospitality is very much appreciated!" Gaara said, lowering his head with respect.

Tori and Toshiko chased each other in the hall while Gaara was explaining the reason for their sudden visit.

"I see," Jagu said after hearing the story, "what a very strange thing to occur!"

"I see your buildings are still standing, what a lucky thing!" said Gaara.

"Ame's architecture is one of the strongest against the elements! Those earthquakes were barely noticed here! Although the last one was kinda scary."

"I guess that makes sense! You specialize in technology here. I had a lot of tech coming from Ame for our children's clinic!"

"And It has been an honor! Such a humbling and beautiful thing to be a part of!"

"Oh yeah!" Yashiko added. "Even Lord Gaara had Sakura senpai train some of our people in Suna!"

Sakura blushed at the mention of "senpai", which to her, was unnecessary. Yashiko continued.

"My eldest brother works in the newly set up department! He keeps on talking about her and praising her!" he said, smiling at her. Which made her blush even more. She giggled and waved her hand.

"Oh, ha ha, it's no big deal, really!"

"No seriously! You are quite popular among us in Suna, Sakura senpai! We have so many children who needed help!" he continued, "But now, part of it has been destroyed because of the earthquake."

They all looked at Aby and Sofia.

"Hey! Don't look at us! We have nothing to do with this!" Sofia said.

Gaara quickly changed the subject to bring up their main purpose.

"We need to go to the Land of Birds. The Tsuchikage awaits us there. However, we …"

"Lord Jagu! Sir!"

Two men came in a hurry, one of them carrying an unconscious man on his back. He too was also dressed in unusual clothes; All black. However, Aby and Sofia never saw him before.

"What on earth?!"

Sakura jumped down from the chair to assess the unconscious man.

"Another one!"

What she meant to say was: "another one without chakra". She proceeded to heal him, using her healing ability. In the meantime, a hawk came through a high ceiling opening, his wings were heavy from the rain. He went straight to Sasuke who took the tiny scroll out of its claws. The bird extended his wings on Sasuke's shoulders and stretched its tail before giving each feather a small shake to dispose of the water.

The man in his early fifties, slowly woke up, looking around, but he did not talk; If he was shocked by his surroundings, he did not let it show.

"Can you tell us who you are?" asked Jagu.

"We found him behind the slaughterhouse. We heard loud shouts there, so we went in the back to investigate, and there he was, unconscious."

The man did not answer. He looked around, examining his surroundings. His face showed no emotion, until he saw one of the men holding a bag; His bag.

"May I kindly ask to have my belongings back," he said, stretching out his hands towards the bag.

The Ame man looked at Jagu for instruction who in turn, looked at Aby and Sofia.

"Is he with you?"

The girls shook their heads. He definitely was from their world, but they never saw him before. Aby looked to Toshiko.

"You guys know him?" she whispered. He also shook his head.

"Search the bag first," Jagu finally answered to the man holding the bag. The newcomer let him do so without any protest, patiently waiting. They were all on edge, waiting to see what the Ame shinobi would pull out. It was only one wooden box, quite beautifully designed. The man opened it and pulled out a pen; a cheap one by the looks of it. In the box was also a five inch key: mostly simple, made of a dark grey metal.

"What is this?"

"Well, It's a key. What's it look like?" answered the man in black.

"A key for what?" replied Jagu, annoyed.

"A key to unlock a door," replied the man, nonchalantly. He took the box and the bag from the Ame man and put the box back in it.

"My name is Akio Daisuke," he said calmly. "You can call me Akio."

He waited for a reaction that didn't come so he shrugged his shoulders, put the bag on his back and helped himself to some fruits that were on the table. The children were already hiding behind Aby, which was not unnoticed by the newcomer.

"Oh please, do not be so worried; I am but a gentle soul who is quite lost, although … not really," he whispered that last part to himself, eating some of the bread on the table. "Mmmm, very interesting," he said, taking a quick look at the bread while eating it. He studied his surroundings once more. "This is the central building, the leader's tower in Amegakure, right?"

They all stared at him, puzzled. He acted so casually, to the point of rudeness, and yet, everyone was too shocked to say anything. He helped himself to another serving. The heavy sound of the rain stopped suddenly. He smiled and looked at his watch on his wrist.

"Change of plan," Sasuke said to break the silence, without leaving his eyes from Akio. He held the note that the hawk brought. "They are coming with us. And you too," he looked at the man in black who stopped chewing, surprised.

"Sofia, you said you were with two other friends besides Abigail. Konoha encountered a man and a woman, who were in bad shape; the man more than the other."

Aby let out a shriek and the children looked at her, surprised.

"Is it Matthew and Hazel?!" she asked almost certain of it. Sofia waited for the answer as well, anxious. Sasuke nodded.

"But you said they're in bad shape! How much of a bad shape are we talking here?" asked Abigail.

"Where are they now? " inquired Sofia.

"They're fine. Only shaken and bruised. The man had a broken arm but they are working on it. They are at the Konoha Hospital."

"So now what?" asked Yashiko.

"Now, we need to find out why they're here and how to bring them and their friends back. But more importantly, what the hell is going on in the Land of Birds.

I believe I can explain, somewhat." Akio exclaimed, to everyone's surprise. "But first, let's agree to rest here for the night. It was a rather long and uncomfortable few weeks for me, as I am sure you can tell by my appearance." Aby thought that he did, indeed, look tired and beaten. But why was he suddenly taking charge was beyond herself. He glanced at his watch again.

"Besides, it is too late to go out. A severe storm is coming in a few seconds."

"What? It just stopped raining! Look at the sky over there, you can see the sun coming through!" Yashiko said annoyed.

"Actually ..." started Jagu. But Yashiko was already moving on.

"What do you think, Lord Gaara? Won't we be wasting time if we stay? It's only mid afternoon!"

"I agree with Yashiko. We should leave …"

Thunder roared in the distance. The faint "drumming roll" of pouring rain started far off in the distance and grew louder and louder every second, until the rain savagely pounded on the roof above their heads. Tori cried at the loud thunder, which took Abigail by surprise, since she and Toshiko were living on the street. She put a reassuring arm around her shoulders, which was not unnoticed by the Kazekage.

"Well?" Akio inquired, grinning. "Where do I sleep?"

The next morning's sun rays woke Aby. The two children were peacefully snoring while glued to her. When was the last time they had a good night's sleep? The guest room was very large and so was the bed. There was a painting of the same lady with the wings. Then she remembered.

"Konan!"

It was an avalanche of realizations; This was Pain and Konan's hideout. This place was also where Jiraiya, Naruto's sensei, died, fighting with Pain, one of the Akatsuki group. She looked out the window. It was still raining. Somehow, after the war, the village must have been at peace with the other countries. She remembered, it used to be 'full security' just to get inside! Now, everybody was treated as friends. She wondered how long ago the war ended. She noticed that Gaara, Sakura and Sasuke looked a little more mature than in the show, but then again, they looked different in real life …

Was this even real life? She carefully got off the bed and walked passed the heavy doors; looked at the main hall, which was a circle on the very top floor, surrounded by all the other guests' rooms. She was in one of the east side. On the north side, beside one of the doors, the man named Yashiko was soundly sleeping in a sitting position, on the ground. Why wasn't he sleeping in a bed? She decided to let him sleep and went down the huge staircase. An older lady was cleaning the floor. She tried to carry the heavy bucket to a room. Seeing she was struggling, Aby took it from her and helped her carry it.

"Oh! No! My lady, you shouldn't! You are a guest of Lord Jagu …"

"I'm no one," she said smiling. "It's heavy, let me carry this for you."

"Oh my, my! You are so very kind!"

"No worries! Right here is OK right?"

Aby put the bucket down in what looked like a big conference room. Two people were sitting and chatting. The girl turned around when she heard the voices.

"Oh! Aby! 'Morning!" Sofia cheerfully said, holding a glass with some liquor in it. Aby laughed.

"Seriously? First thing in the morning?"

"Well Kangaroo here promised me it tasted better in the morning! I must say, he was right!"

"Urg, It's Kankuro!" he replied before taking a sip. He offered some to Abigail. She waved her hand in response.

"I'd accept food though!"

"Oh right, you didn't eat much since we found you!" He threw her an apple.

"Thanks! Why is Yashiko sleeping on the floor?"

Kankuro snorted in his drink.

"He is 'guarding' the Kazekage," he said, mockingly.

"He is still learning," Gaara said, coming from behind her. He took the glass away from his older brother and poured the liquid out in one of the giant plants along the wall.

"Oi! I wasn't finished!"

"You are now." he retorted with a serious tone.

"Yashiko is in training?" asked Aby.

"Yes," Gaara started, "he means well, but he has a lot to learn."

Kankuro laughed.

"Did he even flinch when you came out?"

"He kept snoring," he answered with a faint smile.

Sofia lifted her glass to eye level. The sunshine coming through one of the giant windows reflected in it like a beautiful crystal of many hues. The sun was now shining outside. Which seemed to be a rare event in Amegakure.

"We should probably leave soon!" Akio said, suddenly appearing from the main floor's balcony. The marbled floor was so shiny that they could see the reflection of his shoes as he was walking. The sun made the golden color walls shine. It was a beautiful large room! Aby wondered if they ever had grand formal receptions in it.

"Why should we go so soon?" she asked him.

"No particular reasons; only that it will be convenient before the rain pours down again … in about an hour or so."

Gaara watched Abigail stand up and walk towards the balcony. She took another bite of the "perfectly red and shiny" apple. She looked at the blue sky where there were no clouds in sight. She could hear Sofia in the background.

"Are you some kind of weather specialist or something?"

Sasuke came into the room, looking cranky. He obviously did not have a good night's sleep. He took the bottle on the table and attempted to cool his face with it.

"Are you OK? You look feverish ...", said Kankuro. Sasuke closed his eyes.

"No, no. I'm fine. Thanks."

Sakura cheerfully came hopping in the room, followed by a very red Yashiko, at last.

"Good morning Buddy!" Kankuro mockingly said to him. He mumbled a "morning" followed by an even quieter "sorry".

"It was probably my fault!" Sakura said, smiling. "I must have kept him up last night! We got carried away, talking about medical ninja stuff. He's pretty knowledgeable!"

She looked at Sasuke, surprised to see him, suddenly drinking directly from the bottle. His face was red.

"Hey! Are you alright?"

She touched his forehead. He jerked back away from her hand and nodded, while taking another gulp. Akio smiled at him and Sakura; so did Sofia, her hand under her cheek.

"Probably another sweet dream," she said casually.

"PFFFFFFFT!" Sasuke spit the liquid and coughed furiously.

"I SAID I AM FINE! THERE WAS NO DREAMS! OK? NO DREAMS!"

"Thank you for your hospitality," said Gaara, bowing to the village's leader.

"Not at all! I wish I could help more!"

Gaara took the lead, followed by Kankuro and Yashiko, Sasuke and Sakura and finally the girls, the children and Akio. Aby looked at the children, still amazed at how resilient they were. Tori, however, was walking funny. She stopped to look at her feet.

"Oh Tori! You should have told me!" Her toes had blisters from all the walking. She grimaced as she remembered how she used to hate having blisters when she was young; everytime she would get new shoes, she'd be suffering.

She sat her down on a big rock, and used some water to wash them. She looked around to find something to wrap her feet with. Sakura gave her a roll of bandages and a few green leaves.

"Here, put these on her feet first."

"Oh! Thank you! That's actually perfect!"

"Mmm," she watched Aby Wrap the bandage around Tori's little feet.

"... He's gonna have a baby …"

"What? Who?"

"Naruto"

"WHAT!?" Aby beamed excitedly. "Naruto? A baby? He's gonna be a dad?!"

"I know, right?" Sakura smiled.

"Well, good for them!" she said, laughing. That was unexpected!

"And yes, Shikamaru is helping him and apparently Naruto's driving him nuts."

"What a drag," Aby mocked, which made Sakura snicker.

"So ... How much of 'our story' do you know?"

"Uhm, from the time you all started at the academy until the end of the war. Oh, and some side stories" she glanced at Gaara, remembering Hakuto.

"I know Shikamaru and Temari were engaged! Are they married now?" Gaara glanced their way at the mention of his sister.

"Yes, since last year! Sai and Ino are also going strong and oh! And Choji is dating Karui from Kumo! That one, nobody saw it coming ha ha!"

"Oh … Uhm … Karui?"

"Yes, you know, she was sent to get killer-B back from the Akatsuki, she beat Naruto to a pulp?"

"Oh! Yes! Yes!"

Wow! A lot has happened since the books ended. She looked at Sakura.

"And you? How are you doing?" Aby gave her a friendly smile.

"I started a program for the children who've been traumatized after the war. Some of them have lost their parents, some others have emotional traumas and behavioral issues, understandably."

Aby knew that since she was not talking about it, there was nothing new between her and Sasuke. She did not ask any further.

"What you're doing is pretty cool! Those children need the support the most, I think."

"I think so too!" Sakura smiled. "I see you have two under your care?"

"I don't really know much about them. We were visiting a hot springs and they just happened to be there. The boy was getting beat up by three men. I think he was stealing food or something. Apparently it's normal over there but I couldn't stand it. So I got in between…"

"Why?"

Gaara's interruption had startled Abigail. He was looking their way with a curious frown. It took a few seconds for her to reply, as she felt judged for something she absolutely knew she was right. Yet, it seemed all shinobis eyes were waiting for her response.

"What do you mean 'why'?!" she asked, defensive, "because he was getting beaten up by three grown men, that's why!"

Her sudden change of tone made the rest of the group uneasy. Toshiko did not like the way the conversation was turning. Angry people, especially men, made him nervous. Gaara, even if he didn't look angry, made him nervous. The silent anger, according to Toshiko, was the most dangerous. He grabbed his sister's hand and instinctively walked behind Aby, watching nervously. After all, they were talking about him …

Akio observed from the sidelines, seemingly interested in Gaara's reaction.

"He was stealing food, why did you help him?" Gaara asked.

"You don't beat up a kid because he steals food to survive! You help him! Or at the very least, you give him some slack! You can't leave a kid to fend for himself and then beat him up because he steals food to survive!"

"You were not even from there, you and your friends were visiting … why did you bother, this had nothing to do with you?"

"And there's the problem!" she pointed at him accusingly, or rather, she pointed at his words. "Everybody always turns a blind eye! 'Not my problem', right? I don't get it...why is caring such a freaking taboo? Is 'caring' some kind of … forbidden jutsu? Why is it so hard to care, Lord Kazekage?"

The words were harsher than she meant them to be. Especially the last part; which was an indirect accusation of not caring enough as the ruler of a village; which was pretty rude.

A few very uncomfortable seconds of silence followed and made Aby feel like an idiot. The blank expression he wore made her uneasy. Kankuro watched nervously as his brother walked slowly towards her; he stopped a few inches short.

"I do care, that's why I became Kazekage," he said quietly. He reached for Tori, lifted her up effortlessly and carried her on his shoulders, his gourd providing extra support on her back.

"Woaaaa! Tori so tall! Ha ha ha!"

Aby lowered her eyes. Of course he did care … he went through worse than that. People used to shun him just because they were afraid. His own father tried to kill him several times when he was just a child! He was treated only as a weapon and never had the love a kid should've had. She really felt stupid.

"I'm sorr …"

Gaara interrupted her and put his hand on her shoulder.

"I was raised in a society that gave no voice to children. It makes me happy that you gave them one."

He squeezed her shoulder before heading back ahead of the group; Tori was happily giggling. Aby smiled and couldn't help but to feel a pinch of jealousy as she watched her play with his hair.

"Dam, that girl is lucky!" she whispered to herself. Sasuke approached her.

"Naruto would have appreciated it as well," he said as he passed her to follow Gaara.

"He's right," added Sakura. You're a special girl.

"I'm nothing special; just have a big mouth."

"And a super 'care power'," added Sofia as she hugged Aby.

"A super care jutsu," corrected Akio with a smile.

Aby smiled back, while observing him. So he knew about jutsus as well. She knew he was definitely familiar with this world but he was still a mystery. He did not talk very much, rather, he observed. She was certain she didn't know him, but there was something familiar about him.

"I'm sorry about yesterday. I was rude." Sakura said, cutting Abigail's wonders short.

"Oh no! I was out of line … I'm sorry … I feel like I know you guys inside out, just from the anime and the manga, but I keep forgetting that I'm a stranger to you."

The new comrade followed closely, observing Abigail with a frown.

"You must also be scared," Sakura asked. "Not knowing how to go back …"

"Well, a little … I mean, a moment I was in the real world and now …" Sakura looked down as Aby visibly regretted her words.

"What makes you think we are not real?" asked Kankuro, finally giving in to the insult. He was a few meters away, jumping from tree branches to tree branches. Sofia watched him, amused.

"Oh! No...I didn't mean...well...I know I said it, but even if you are not real in my world, you obviously are, here … in this world …" said Aby.

"Maybe you're the ones who are not real in this world … but real in yours …" he retorted.

"Our respective worlds were both created," said Akio, nonchalantly and they all turned to him in surprise.

"That cross around your neck should tell you this much!" he added, pointing to Aby's necklace.

The cross was given to her by her mother a long time ago. She never removed it; she showered with it, she slept with it; she practically forgot that it was around her neck. It was true; their world was created by God … but wasn't this a little different?

"Well, yeah, bu …"

"But what? Our world was created, just like this one. Each person is a character, the story of the savior was planned from the very beginning, by God. The "goal" has been achieved; we still live on, just like in this world. Our world is no more real than this one.

"Y-yes, I guess you are right, I didn't see it that way."

Wow That was deep, she thought.

"Well, as a gatekeeper, you still have a lot to learn," he said, smiling.

"... A what now?"

"A gatekeeper; a person who guards the gate between two given worlds, and there are many! Therefore, many gatekeepers. In this case, you and your friends have been sucked in when the gate opened."

"Huh?!"

"So it was her fault!" Suddenly said Gaara with a chill down his spine, although it could have been Tori who was pulling the hair on his neck. Aby spun in shock.

"No! I didn't open anything! I didn't even know that something like that would happen!"

"No,no … the gate was opened by someone, in a very unorthodox fashion; that is a fact. You see, only the gatekeepers have the power to go through the gate … but if the "door" is not properly managed and gets too wide, so to speak, then anything in its path will be sucked in."

They stared at him, eyes wide open, trying to filter this new wave of information.

"So you're saying, a gate, between our two worlds was somehow opened?" asked Sasuke, unconvinced.

"Yes … and no."

"What does that mean?" said Kankuro annoyed. "Was it opened or not?"

"Obviously, since we are here … but the gate can only be opened with 'the key' by a gatekeeper," he said, referring to the famous key from before, "However, this gate was somehow forced open … using the key, without the power of the gatekeeper. It's like forcing the lock on a door, but in this case, the gate will not be contained and its energy will spread in between the worlds in a chaotic way, which will create some … side effects, so to speak."

Gaara's eyes widened. He looked at Aby.

"Like … earthquakes"

"Yes … and lightning and heavy rain, possibly tornadoes, and other natural disasters of some sort; when the gate is open the right way, the energy is contained in a perfect limited boundary, resembling an oval shape, only through the power that the gatekeeper inherited from God. The gatekeeper can then pass through, without being noticed. But in the rare case of an non contained gate, the energy will suck in whatever or should I say, whoever is in its path, throwing them in random directions,"

"Like the path of a lightning!" It was now Sasuke who broke the silence. "I see! We saw two beams of lights during the last earthquake. Those must have been how you came into our world!" he said to Sofia.

"We saw one near Suna,'' said Gaara. He looked at Abigail, implying that the light he saw must have been her with the children.

"One of the beams seemed to be coming from Konoha!" Added Sakura, hitting her palm with her fist, "that could have been your other friends!" she said to Aby.

It all started to make sense, but Aby still had questions...when the hell did she become a gatekeeper?! A power inherited from God?

"Who opened the gate?" she asked Akio.

"That I don't know … and I don't know the reason either. All I know is a few weeks ago, I was on my morning run, on a secluded trail, and got abducted by men. Somehow, they knew I was in possession of that key and brought me to some weird places. I was blind folded so I couldn't see anything. But I believe there were three of them. They tried to open the gate several times, demanding I tell them how. They beat me and threatened me; eventually they succeeded. I couldn't see their faces, but I know that one of them is from this world. I heard him say it to the others."

"Huh? How is it possible? How did he get access to your world without opening the gate in the first place? And if he did find a way, why would he need the key to open it again?" asked Yashiko.

"This is where I am puzzled … I don't understand. Somehow, that person found a loophole and knew about this gate and our world."

Aby studied him.

"How do you know all that? What makes you so sure that I'm a … gatekeeper?"

"For the same reason you think there is something familiar about me!" he smiled.

Something in her head clicked and she suddenly felt that she knew who he was.

"And why do I feel that there is something familiar about you?"

"Because I'm a gatekeeper too!"