Chapter 35

Sakura sat in the common dining hall, waiting for Sasuke to come back from the front desk.

She held her head low, this uneasy feeling that a hundred eyes were watching her. Sasuke told her there would barely be a soul here; yet, three quarters of the tables were filled with curious lookers.

She heard a few folks talk; it seems the INN's bar became popular since a group of shinobis came in here;

One of the girls was pretty messed up! And apparently, some Kazekage guy came by; the stable guy couldn't shut up about it.

"I bet she's the one!" she heard a whisper to her right. She put her head between her hands, her elbows resting on the worn out table.

Where is this guy?!

She fixed her attention on the fingers under the table. She picked on the little piece of dead skin around her dirty pink nails; or at least, whatever is left of the pink. She seemed to notice them for the first time; Some were long, others were broken. The sight of them bothered her.

That's a pretty color though

But no matter how hard she tried to distract herself, the whispers made her head spin. She felt so tired. What happened to her?! Why did she feel like she fell from a cliff?

She gasped as the thought creeped in her mind: Did she try to commit suicide?! Why?! Was she depressed? Did she do something wrong? That Sasuke guy said that she attacked them … so maybe she was ashamed ...

No. She was mixing things up. He said she had been manipulated and she had been missing for a whole month. Where has she been all this time?

She jumped when two thick mugs slammed on the table.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you." Sasuke said.

The truth was, he was as tense as she was. He didn't like to leave her alone for too long. She looked so lost and confused, something that he was not used to seeing from her; and he felt an overwhelming desire to protect her. He slowly pushed the warm drink to her hands.

"So, are things coming back to you?"

"I don't know. Look, I can't do this; not here; all these people are talking about me, all the noise …"

"OK, OK, calm down. To tell you the truth, I didn't expect to see so many people. This place is always empty!"

"Excuse me?"

They both turned their head to look at a big man, holding what looked like sake. He was overly friendly, a consequence of one too many drinks, no doubt. Sakura turned away, disgusted by the man's bare belly that was too big to be contained in his soiled shirt. He had a dirty apron below his waist and the smell of spicy curry fish made her want to vomit.

He casually sat down at their table, despite the fact that he was not invited.

"Is it true that you guys are shinobis from the land of fire?" he whispered.

"Uh … yeah?" Sasuke said.

"Oh! Oh man!" the man turned to his friends a few tables away and gave a thumbs up. "See? That's definitely them!" He brought himself even closer to Sakura who glared at him, up and down. "Hey, I know that mark on your forehead! Everybody knows it here! It's a popular tale here! You must be Lady Hokage's pupil! Only she has the knowledge of gathering all her chakra and storing it in this way!"

Sakura's eyes grew bigger. She touched her forehead and looked at Sasuke.

"I have a mark?"

"Hey!" another guy asked at the table next to them. "The guy with the eyeliner that was here the other day? Old Toby from the stable ... he said that guy was the Kazekage! Is that also true?"

Sakura held her head in her hands and tightened her fingers. Seeing that Sakura was at her limit, Sasuke attempted to put in a few words.

"Yeah, look, I'm sorry, we need some quiet time—"

"This is so awesome! We never get visitors here; NEVER!" the first guy said. "I always told mama, this is such a crappy place! Why do we live here? Like, we're gonna die from boredom, if not from the cold! But I tell ya—"

"Back off!"

Sasuke removed the guy's hand from Sakura's arm by pure reflex. She was startled at Sasuke's sudden move, but was also taken over by anxiety. She didn't want to be here. She didn't want to be the center of attention. She pressed her hand on her forehead to try to lessen the pain.

Sasuke realized his sudden move might have been a little much. He took a deep breath and released the other guy's hand.

"I'm sorry, she's not … she's had a rather difficult time these past few weeks and she is still recovering. Please, I kindly ask that you leave us alone. For the time being."

"OH! Of course!" the man turned around and Sasuke sighed in relief.

"Can I get an autograph though?"

"What?"

The man was up and next to Sasuke, holding an old piece of paper and a pen. That was a first! No one had asked a shinobi for an autograph before; except for Naruto. He was quite popular with the girls back home, apparently.

"Look! I'll be on my way after, I promise! But I can't stay here and not ask! Nobody at home would believe me! My wife, she's always like, yeah yeah, you did this and that and you're just lying, but when she sees THAT, she's gonna flip, I tell ya!"

"Listen, we're not super stars, OK? We don't—"

"Hey! Is the Kazekage coming back to get you?"

"I don't—"

"Oh man! If I could just—"

"HE SAID TO BACK OFF! SHANAROOOOO!"

The whole room went quiet as the dust and debris slowly came back down. Sakura stared at the table with shock. A mug was in pieces, while the other still rolled around with several cracks. The content had spilled all over the broken table and floor.

All she did was slam her hand on it! Yet, it was now broken in two; needless to say, it was no longer usable.

The man looked at Sakura horrified, backed away slowly and returned to his friends table. Sasuke sighed, stood up, walked to the front desk, and seeing that the lady was too shocked to extend her hand and receive the money, he simply put it on the desk and returned to Sakura.

"OK, let's go back upstairs," he said, offering her a hand. She took it and felt a fuzzy feeling in her belly. She followed him, leaning on him all the way up, every single pair of eyes following them.


"Am I … are we married? Or dating?" she asked when she came back in the room. She had taken a long steaming shower. It made her feel better and relaxed. She still couldn't remember anything, but the quiet and hot water made her feel at peace.

The question took him by surprise and he hesitated to give an answer.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable." she added, turning around to pick up her cup of tea on the mantelpiece.

"No, it's OK, it's normal; you are trying to figure things out. No, we're not."

"Oh, OK," she said, feeling somewhat unconvinced.

"I thought it'd be better to come upstairs," he said to change the subject. "It's quieter here; you'll be able to think freely. Do you still have a headache?"

She didn't answer. Instead she made her way to the large windowsill that was placed near the stone fireplace and sat down on the cushion; folding her legs beneath her bum, sipping her tea.

Sasuke couldn't help but stare at her. Her fair skin was beautifully complemented by the light pink of her wet hair, sitting straight on her small shoulders. Her big green eyes which were once always smiling were now empty. She had lost her identity.

He turned his gaze when she looked his way. Feeling like he was caught doing something weird, he focused on something else. He removed his shirt to wash it; after all, it's been a few days on his back. Oddly, the first thing she noticed was not how fit he looked, but the bandage on his shoulder.

"How did you get that?" she pointed with her chin.

He hesitated, not sure if he should tell her. Then again, the truth might help her remember things.

"You," he simply said.

"Me?" she cried in surprise. "Why?"

"Well, I was hoping you'd remember something so you would tell me!"

"... Are we … close?" she said after a pause.

"... Yes, in a way."

She frowned. She had this feeling that they were closer than he was admitting.

"I feel … I feel that there is a long history between us."

"We are a part of a 3 men cell, and have been since we were kids. So yes, there is quite a bit of history between us."

She nodded, still feeling that there was more to it.

"You said three men cell … Who's the third person?"

"Naruto. Although Sai has been … replacing me for … some time."

"Replacing you?"

"It's a long story," he said, waving his hand.

"Did I do that thing before? The thing I did earlier, to the table."

He smiled. Which was something new to her. She found his smile quite attractive.

"Yeah, you did a few times, when you had to. You're pretty strong; to a point that no one wants to mess with you. Naruto used to call you a monster … affectionately!" he added quickly.

"... I don't like to be called a monster."

"Yes I know."

"No … I mean, I remember that. I remember that I didn't like to be called a monster."


They walked through the graveyard carefully, not sure which part was the person's resting place or path. The tombs were not well kept; it reminded Abigail of what Brent said. These people had once been some folk's loved ones; why did the people abandon this graveyard and left it unkempt?

Her mind went to her mother's resting place. She hasn't visited her grave this year. She wondered how she felt, knowing that she had not come. How did spirits feel? Were they afraid of being forgotten? She remembered someone once said that the dead couldn't care less; their souls were with God, glorified forever, so nothing else mattered anymore. They were home. But was it really the case? Did that mean that her mother didn't care about her anymore?

And since she was in another world, could her mother still see her? Was heaven accessible through this place?

She felt a tickle at the base of her neck and a bunch of very thin curved sticks when she reached out to scratch. When she pulled back her hand to see what it was, she shrieked in horror when the two inches spider ran around her hand and arm, trying to find a way down.

The creepy crawly landed on the two legged creature a few seconds ago. Descending from the tree the spider was planning on crawling down and away towards the tombstone. But now, the two legged hairless creature was being unreasonably agitated!

Sai, who was beside Aby, saw her struggle; violently shaking her hand while screaming. He managed to rub it off with his hand.

"It's OK, they're not dangerous. Quite the opposite."

Abigail shook uncontrollably and grimaced in disgust.

"What is this place anyway?" she asked, her heart still racing, rubbing her arms and the goosebumps away.

"The mountain's graveyard," Shikamaru answered. "On the North side of the Land of Fangs."

"Has it been abandoned? It doesn't look like it's been taken care of."

"This is not the village's graveyard. It's very old. When these folks here came around, they found what was left of the Land of Ancestors' villagers after the God Tree consumed them." Shikamaru explained.

"You mean, the tree from the Infinite Tsukuyomi?" she asked with a shiver.

"These were the graves of the victims of the first genjutsu?" she thought.

"Yes. They wanted, at the very least, to respect the victims; bury them and forget about it. That is why it is remote in the mountains. But the mountain was not named after this graveyard."

"What? There is more than one graveyard?"

Shikamaru smirked and pointed ahead, as they all came through the thick forest, standing on the edge of a cliff. What lays ahead was a huge valley full of gigantic animal bones; everywhere, protruding from the ground, amidst some trees and bushes and rocks; last vestiges, explained Shikamaru, of what used to be monstrous beasts of the past.

Other smaller mountains and hills covered the horizon. Their point of interest, however, was to their left; A small village on the cliff where they were standing, about a mile away.

They followed Gaara along the narrow path towards the village.

"Be careful," he started. "The path seems treacherous."

He stomped on the edge to support his observation. It crumbled under his foot and the pieces of dirt rolled down the cliff, bringing more dirt with it like a mini avalanche.

His eyes met Abigail's, who was the most inexperienced of the group. She nodded in response and walked as far away from the edge as possible, followed by Sai, who was the last of the group.

"Do you think they have ramen?"

"Naruto!" Shikamaru said, shaking his head.

"What? A village is not a village if they don't have a ramen shop, is all I'm saying."

"How long are we staying here?" asked Abigail.

"Just for tonight. The ship should be repaired and ready to go in the morning." Gaara answered. "That's what the captain said anyway."

She observed the land around them, which didn't seem as cold as the one they travelled to get to the ship in the first place.

"Why can't we go home on foot from here?" she asked. "I don't know about you but this land seems more ideal than the one we came from."

"The only reason we are here is because we had no choice. The ship had a mechanical issue and we were lucky to be close to a port that was able to fix it; especially in this remote place. Besides, we still have to pay captain Akito, and we have a horse and carriage to get back, we can't just abandon those."

"Why would these people stay so far apart from the world?"

"Well, I suppose, to stay apart from the world!" Suggested Sai. "We have been in conflict and war with each other since the very beginning of time; I guess these people were happy to stay away from it all,"

Their little group must have been slightly intimidating; a few children who were playing near the edge ran within the village when they saw them arriving. Abigail was wondering where their parents were. There was no way she would have allowed children to play so close to a cliff!

No one greeted them at the entrance of the village, which was a red flag for Gaara. Shikamaru seemed to find it odd as well, but none of them spoke a word.

The few people who were standing outside were either staring at them or going back to their chores. Some went back inside their home.

"What a cute little friendly place," Abigail said, sarcastically.

"Not the most agreeable place, I'll give you that," Sai said.

"Something's off," Shikamaru whispered. "This is beyond "unfriendly", it's like a ghost town."

He observed a lone girl staring with worried eyes from a distance, holding a stick in her hand. The girl dressed in a long worn out and dirty dress was seemingly tracing something in the dirt prior to their arrival. She stood there, frozen, her dishevelled dirty blond hair moving with the breeze.

"Hey there," said Shikamaru with a smile he meant to be reassuring. "Could you let us know where the INN is?"

The girl's eyes grew bigger and she made one step back, dropping her stick at the same time.

The shinobis looked at her, perplexed from her reaction. Was the INN haunted or something?

"TARU?"

The door slammed open after the worried female's voice was heard. She looked left then right, and ran towards the little girl, upon seeing her. The frantic woman wrapped her arms around the girl and ran back towards the door. She turned the knob so quickly, thinking the door was opened, she bumped into it and cursed silently, turning the knob again with a trembling hand, until the door opened. She rushed in, dragging the girl inside.

Meanwhile, Shikamaru took a few quick steps towards the house.

"Wait! No need to be scared, honest! We just want to ask you where the INN is!"

They heard a loud double click from within; the door was now locked.

"M'am, "Abigail asked with a loud voice. "Is something in this village frightening you?"

There was a pause.

"No! Everything is fine!" the woman answered, locked in her house.

Abigail turned around and saw a pair of curious eyes in the window of a house across from the lady's. She looked at her friends.

"There is something in the village frightening them," she said.

"Clearly," Gaara nodded, looking around him. There was not a sound.

Abigail walked to the house and climbed the steps and knocked twice, softly.

"M'am? We know something is scaring you. My name is Abigail, I can assure you, we are not here to hurt you. Our ship had mechanical issues and we had to stop by for the night."

The house was still quiet, as if no one was ever there.

"We are shinobis … I mean, my friends are. Maybe we can help you?" she turned to her friends for confirmation. When they nodded, she turned her attention to the knob and put her hand on it.

"Can I come in?"

There was a long pause and a very faint clickety-tak was heard. She waited a few seconds before turning the knob.

"I'm coming in, ok?"

She entered the door and was followed by the shinobis a minute later.

The woman had her daughter in her arms, crouched down against the farthest wall of the room.

"I apologize if we frightened you. Can you tell us what is going on?"

The woman trembled, her eyes peeled on Abigail and the shinobis.

"Is someone here?" asked Shikamaru.

The woman shook her head, still holding on to her daughter.

"Help" the woman mouthed, then looked at a framed photo on the kitchen table. Abigail followed her gaze.

"Your husband?" Gaara whispered. The lady nodded.

"Is he the one threatening you?" Gaara asked.

The woman shook her head violently.

"Is he dead?" askedSai.

The woman closed her eyes and cried silently.

"Where are they?" asked Abigail, "The people who killed him, where are they?"

The woman observed them a moment.

"The INN," she barely whispered, afraid someone else would hear.

The shinobis looked at each other and made their way out.

"Where is the INN?" asked Abigail with a gentle voice.

She pointed to the right with a trembling hand and closed her eyes, expecting something terrible to happen.

Aby walked out and closed the door softly behind her.

"It's that way," she said to Naruto who was ahead of the others.

"All right then, let's give a visit to these butt-holes."

The INN wasn't hard to find. As expected, no one was around and two doors guarding the entrance were half opened, creaking as they moved with the wind.

The shinobis made their way in, but Abigail was stopped by Gaara.

"No," he said.

"Oh come on! Let me have a go too! I never fought against real thugs!"

"First, we don't know if they're thugs. They could be other shinobis and you're no match for those yet."

"How am I going to get experience if I don't participate in the fights?"

"Are you serious?"

"You guys will be with me anyway, right?"

They heard laughter inside the INN. Gaara watched Abigail and pulled her to him, unexpectedly. She accepted his embrace with relief. All this time he acted cold, as if he was still angry. Or maybe he was still; she didn't know for sure what was behind these green, turquoise eyes of his.

"You're not going to listen to whatever I say anyway, will you."

"That's not fair, I usually do!" she said, pouting. He raised an eyebrow that made her smile. Clearly she didn't sound credible.

"Stay by my side," he said.

"OK!"

"At all times."

"What if—"

"AT. ALL. TIMES."

"OKAY!"


Naruto glared at the folks sitting at the two tables near the bar. Seven he counted. He walked to the bar and met the bartender's eyes. He was cleaning a few fancy crystal looking glasses.

Shikamaru sat at the bar in silence, waiting for the bartender to acknowledge him. The latter glanced at one of the guys sitting at the table to the right. The laid back bearded man smiled generously, showing white teeth. He nodded and waved the hand that was resting on the back chair as an approval.

"What can I get you," the bartender asked with a tired voice.

"That's seriously fancy stuff you got there," he answered, showing the squeaky clean glasses he was over-scrubbing. "Doesn't quite match the state of this village."

The bartender glanced once more at the man who chuckled.

"You got a problem with our supplies, newcomer?" the man asked.

"Is this your INN?" asked Naruto, stepping toward the man. All the chairs moved back; the other guys were ready to act if Naruto got too close. The man didn't even twitch. Still laid back, he answered with a shrug.

"Yeah sure, though business hasn't been good lately, at least, not that kind of business," he said with sparkling eyes before he took a noisy gulp of sparkling wine. The other guys chuckled in answer.

Abigail grimaced as she watched him put down the crystal glass on the table; tainted with dirty fingerprints.

The bartender, whose chin was adorned by a neatly groomed short beard, sighed and kept on cleaning the glass, a slight nervousness at the tip of his fingers.

"Ale is it?" he said, putting down the glass. He got to a lever near the side of the bar and filled three glass mugs of a dark brew to the rim.

"It's home brew," added one of the men sitting at the other table on the left. He looked at them while playing with a silver dagger adorned with small colorful jewels.

"That's a nice dagger," said Sai with a friendly smile. He was rolling his eyes in his mind. The man was obviously showing off his treasure.

"Hanabi would like that kind of stuff," added Naruto. "That's my wife's sister," he explained to the man holding the dagger. The men at the table fidgeted. They didn't like the fact that the newcomers didn't seem nervous one bit.

"What's your business here?" asked the bartender, with a hint of hope in his voice.

"Hey, beer guy!" interrupted the laid back man with a threatening voice. "I ask the questions here!"

At that moment Abigail and Gaara entered the room. One of the men frowned when he saw Abigail. He leaned in closer to his friends and whispered something.

"What did we miss?" Abigail said, excited