Warnings: minor moral/existential crisis, paranoia, PTSD & flashbacks,
LAND OF WAVES ARC
I couldn't waste time like that.
I could think as I walked.
At least, my brain told my body that. I was shaking, my breathing labored, and I couldn't think straight, but I had to go on. The people who had tied those men up... were they the authorities? Should I turn myself in? Nonetheless, they were probably knowledgeable on civilization. They had to have the key to my understanding of how to get-
Home.
No, I realized that I couldn't go home. It would be insanity to try. I realized that. I had died on my way "home", and I am most certainly not anywhere near home, so I contemplated.
What is home? What is home to me?
30,094... 30,095...
I was barely walking, more thinking. The rate at which I took steps had significantly slowed ever since I laid eyes on the dead bodies of my former enemies. Ever since I saw the blood pour out from their wounds by the work of my hands; ever since I had sliced a man in half... As a doctor, I was required to swear an oath to never, ever bring harm to anyone. I was never to use my knowledge on the human body to harm it, only heal. But... I had broken it. It felt both constricting and relieving at the same time, a cruel reminder that I am not the same woman as I was when I died. I couldn't be; the people here were dangerous, if those two men were anything to go by.
I hated this; why couldn't I go in peace after I died? What was the benefit? Was karma pitying me- I didn't even believe in karma, no less reincarnation!
31,029... 31,030...
I have been walking since around noon, but now there was no light from the sun to be seen. Suddenly, I stepped forwards one more time to find no ground in front of me. However, I was well balanced on one leg(somehow) so I looked down curiously, wondering what my obstacles was.
Water. I looked up a little bit more. A lot of water. In fact, it smelt like a fresh ocean with a severe lack of stagnant water. It smelt... nice.
However, there was a thick layer of fog that hung over the water, making it hard to see how far the ocean goes.
"Hey! Hey you!" I heard an older man call. I jerked out of my thoughts, looking over to him. I then pointed at myself, not wanting to speak up to ask the awkward question of if he was talking to me. "Yeah, you, the only person out here!" He grumbled sarcastically. "What are you doing out here so late?!"
"I..." this man... was he like those thugs, or was he like who I once was? A civilian?
I knew deep down that I couldn't trust him, though. I cracked my knuckles. Quietly, fidgeting.
"I am looking for someone... sir..." I mumbled the last bit under my breath, but it seems that he heard it. He practically preened himself at the word.
"Ah, it's good to see the younguns these days still have respect!" He finally picked up his pride. "But, ah, little girl... it's kind of dangerous here alone... are you lost?"
Did he just disregard the fact that I have heavy weaponry? How peculiar...
"You could say that... say, is that an island over there?" I squinted my eyes as he turned to check. There was a hint of land mass in the far distance, peeking through a whole lot of mist. However, it was hard to say for sure. I mastered biology and chemistry, not geography.
"Why yes it is, young lady!" He smiled. "That's the Land of Waves. Do you wish to go there?" He gestured towards his rather small motor boat. That's when I noticed all of the nets with silvery movements in them- he was a fisherman. Slowly, carefully, I brought my head up and down in a nod. There was no other leads for me of civilization, just this...
Land of Waves? What kind of name for a place was that anyway? Is it the only civilization out there?
"Are there... people there?" I asked slowly. The man was obviously a bit put off by the question, but nodded the affirmative.
"Well, yeah, it's just not a good tourist spot. If you're looking for the closest people though, they're your best bet," he explained factually. I quite appreciated this man... "Also, do you have any descriptions of who you're looking for? I met an odd group of ninja today, so...?"
"Ninja..." I murmured under my breath. Ninja. Spies. Assassins. All the same thing. But... this man, a civilian no less, had met some? This was getting a bit odd... but then again, those men with claws... they had to have been beaten by some relentless force, so perhaps ninja aren't too farfetched. "...were they fighters?"
"Well, yeah, that's what ninja do... fight bad guys and protect us," the man was now very confused, but I was not much better. Ninja... vigilantes? If I am really in feudal Japan, that apparently has motorboats, then shouldn't Samurai be the respectable protectors? The police at least? But ninja, that was concerning. "Um, they went over to the island for some mission with some old man."
"I'll go..."
And that was how I had gotten a free trip over to the island.
Immediately, as I stepped off of the boat, my eyes landed on the village that was this island. Since it was now the middle of the night, there was no one outside to be seen. I frowned as I looked over the streets before turning around to look at the fisherman.
"Say... what did those ninja look like?" I asked.
"Uh... the oldest one was around twenty, but he had white hair... and there were three others that were actually around your age... and a rather fat man..." the man recalled as he trailed off. "They were a ninja team, so there was a Jonin and three Genin."
Jonin? Genin? Where have I heard of those terms before?
"I see..." I didn't, but that doesn't matter. "Thank you."
"No problem, kid!" The man bid his farewell then, floating off to somewhere I didn't care to know. I was alone... A sigh escaped my lips. I had no time to waste, and there were obviously no hotels here(nor did I have the money to rent a room), so I continued walking.
Eventually, I reached a heavily forested area. With a faint shrug, I walked over to a tree, and sat down. The gear I had was (probably) weighing me down, and it would be in my best interest to get some rest. I slid off the leather padding in my clothes and my armor, along with my helmet and weapons. And set them down to rest on the ground around me. I knew it was a horrible idea to sleep on a forest floor, but I was too tired to do much else, and the air was too humid to start a fire. I had to make do with what little I had.
So I slept.
Dawn came quickly, and I was woken up by the sound of birds chirping. Thankfully, I was completely without big bites. I got up quickly and put on all of my armor and such. Then I began my walk to the village.
Upon reaching it, the sun had risen more, and I learned that the village was populated by poor people. Hungry people. Malnourished kids. Immediately, my mood was dampened; this civilization would do nothing to help me, as much as I hated to say it. I was at a loss, but I couldn't stay there.
I had so many unanswered questions... but I was too afraid to ask. I gulped, and began thinking.
If I were to randomly pop up and ask a bunch of questions that should be common knowledge, that would be very suspicious. And, good lies require preparation, so I must figure something out... I am... an amnesiac teen who woke up in the woods, and am looking for someone to answer my questions.
Sure, that should work for now...
It was completely suspicious, but if I played it right I might get some sympathy from someone.
I willed myself to step forwards, the quiet bustling of the poor village continuing around me. It was almost comforting; I wasn't so out of place as to be the subject of disruption. My eyes scanned around the area, looking for at least someone to help me... wait, is that pink hair?
I looked closer, and saw that there was a girl, probably preteen, with legitimately pink hair. It was a bright bubblegum color, and her dress didn't help either; cherry red with white trimmings. Tied around her head was a dark fabric and a metal plate on it. What an odd fashion statement... but where have I seen that before? Some anime? Was she a cosplayer? Seeing as she looked just as out of place as I did, I decided to approach her.
"..." I didn't want to say anything, I didn't know what to say. But, as I drew closer, the girl noticed me. She looked confused to see me. Finally, someone who is unnerved by the amount of weapons I have! Or perhaps it's because no one dared to approach her. I had finally reached her, and the awkward silence between us was deafening. I finally began to talk. "...Hello."
"Hi...?" The girl greeted. "Who are you?"
Right. Time to act.
"Well, I was actually hoping you could answer that question..." I began meekly tapping my fingers together, forcing myself to look downwards and avert my eyes from her. "You see, I don't actually know..."
The girl drew in a gasp.
"You must have amnesia!" She took the bait. That was easy... incredibly easy. Maybe she just jumps to conclusions often? "Oh my gosh, do you remember anything? Like, a small detail or something that could help you?"
I paused to think. How long should I drag this on?
"Well... I remember there were these two men..." She looked apprehensive, scared as to where this story could lead to. "I think they had metal arms?" An obvious reference to their claws. "And they were tied up to a tree. Then, they weren't... um, the details are fuzzy." I acted annoyed with myself, but I discreetly checked the girl's reaction. She knew who I was talking about, and she was horrified. "That's all I remember. And these two words..."
"W-What are the words?" She squeaked, emerald green eyes wide.
"...Jonin and Genin."
The girl looked like all her thoughts had frozen for a split second. I noted this reaction as one of shock, but she was already beginning to answer.
Perhaps I'll finally know why those two terms seemed so familiar...
"Well, in order to understand what a Jonin is, you'll have to know what a Genin and Chunin are," the girl stated matter'o'factly. Well, she started awkwardly before gaining confidence. Kind of like a high-school honors student, finding her niche. Or, well, middle-school honors student if her height was anything to go by. "A Genin is a ninja fresh out of the Academy. They are the lowest ranking Ninja there is, but they can then be upgraded to Chunin if they show that they are capable of such. A Chunin is the second lowest ranked ninja out there. They are the rank of ninja that decide to teach at the Academy, but they can also take missions. A Jonin is an elite ninja that can then accept the responsibility of teaching and mentoring a group of three Genin. That's kind of what I'm doing right now- oh, I'm a Genin by the way," she smiled as she finished her explanation. "Are you a Genin too?"
I blinked at the question, mental gears turning. There was something missing from that explanation, something odd. I could vaguely remember that each title was Japanese for a type of ninja, but the next title was something weird. Like, Kane or something... no, that can't be right... what's 'shadow' in Japanese again? I should know this. Mom would be mad that I'm losing my touch on Japanese...
On the other hand, I was also thinking of the girl's question. Was I a Genin? I don't know, I don't look like a ninja but take after Samurai more... and I don't exactly understand this world yet, so I'll just remind her that I have no memories.
I gave a halfhearted shrug.
"I don't know... hey, what is your name?" I asked. It would be helpful to identify her later, if as an ally or an enemy. After all, Ninja were well known for their art of deception, but she seemed harmless enough... it was also a bad idea to underestimate anyone though.
"Haruno Sakura!" She smiled, bowing slightly at the waist politely. "But you can just call me Sakura!"
"...I'll figure out something to call myself soon enough," I muttered, looking over her before bowing back. Even though her name was Japanese, her bright pink hair did nothing to prove her Asian heritage. Nor did those large green eyes... "...I..."
"Here, since you don't have anywhere to go, you can just follow me!" She chirped, cheerful look on her face. "I'm on a group where I'm the only girl. It would be awesome to hang out with you, and I'll introduce you to my team."
"...Alright," I furrowed my eyebrows. She was a ninja. Was there a hidden motive? Was she planning on bringing me to a private spot to harm me? If worse came to worst... my grip on the locks of my pouch tightened. I didn't want to think of it... but this world was a kill-or-be-killed world, I could feel it.
...I don't want to kill...
Sakura led me through the streets of the poor, rundown village- it seemed that they had no money for repairs, so there were cracks on all of the buildings and obvious bricks missing from walls only to be patched up by a shabby substitute of wicker windows. I almost pitied them, but even in the city, the homeless were even less well off. I had grown used to beggars on the side of the road, and knew the feeling that I could never truly get them off the streets. I knew that there was no way I could help these people as a child if I couldn't help them as an adult with a full-paying job.
Eventually, we got to a house that was pretty secluded compared to the others. It was on the water, connected to a dock. The place seemed to hold a simplistic beauty to itself, though it was grand when put in comparison to some of the other houses. A good, two stories of bamboo wood walls and a red thatch roof. No trees were around it, so it was fully in the sun. I looked over to Sakura, who regarded it the same way that I did; nothing special about it. So, she was either used to it, unimpressed by it, or lived there. I didn't bother asking.
"You're here early, Sakura," a man's cool voice suddenly cut my observations off. I turned around, more fluidly than I ever had when I was a doctor, when my eyes landed on the new person. The first thing that I got out of his first appearance was his black mask, covering the lower portion of his face in a shroud of darkness, and the second was 'he has white hair...'. Well, actually, it was more a light silver color, but I could see why the fisherman who had brought me here thought it was white. Or at least I'm pretty sure that this is the Jonin that the man had referenced.
Honestly, for a young adult, he wasn't nearly as tall as some teenagers I knew as patients, even if he were slouching to use crutches. Thinking back in it, it regionally made sense; the Japanese were known for not being very tall... and yet no one looks Asian. The man had a laid-back, almost calming demeanor that reminded me of a tiger, or a wolf, peacefully waiting in hiding before striking its prey. And then I finally noticed the last big peculiarity about the man.
He had one eye covered by a metal plate.
A small hint of a scar trailed down from under the metal plating, suggesting that he had suffered an injury rather than being born with some deformity. Despite being only in his twenties, the man looked like he had enough trust issues to last him a lifetime, from the detached manner he regarded everyone and everything(except me; he held suspicion in that black eye)to the amount of coverings his body held.
He was familiar though. Why? Why was he familiar?
"Oh, Kakashi-Sensei!" Sakura peeped as she spun around. I looked over at her, then back to the man. So his name was Kakashi... "I found her in the village. She was lost, and I didn't exactly know what to do..."
"That's fine, Sakura," he breathed in, glancing over me with a hidden, critical eye. "Well, I suppose introductions are in order," he mumbled to himself before his eye squinted shut. He was giving a smile only visible by his eyes... how... peculiar. "My name is Hatake Kakashi. My students call me Kakashi-Sensei, so I guess you can too. What's your name?"
I was about to answer on autopilot before I paused. I wasn't supposed to know... My eyes trailed over to the water, then over to the markings on my armor. What was the name for a tidal wave in Japanese again?
"Tsunami..." I answered slowly, testing out the syllables before nodding in agreement with myself. "You can call me Tsunami." The man's eye flashed with something akin to amusement.
...why does he find my new name so funny?
"Huh," his eye twinkled. "Alright." He looked back over at Sakura, eyebrow raised. It dawned on her.
"Oh, right, I think she has amnesia. She can't remember anything before the Chunin tied up in a tree. Well, at least I'm pretty sure it was those rogue nin that were after Tazuna," Sakura trailed off. "She also remembered only the words 'Jonin' and 'Genin', so I'm guessing she was looking for someone that had those ranks. And, since there are no ninja in the Land of Waves, we are probably the first Genin Team to come through here for a while, so she might have been looking for us before she lost her memories... or something..."
Kakashi merely hummed before turning back to me.
I felt another pressure from the air around me, but it wasn't the godawful feeling of when I set the two monsters free. Instead, this felt more like I was being observed closely. Suspiciously.
"So you don't remember anything else?" He asked. I took a moment to think, reveling in the fact that the atmosphere had emotions(?), before shaking my head. I didn't know if these ninja actually killed, since they were most likely the ones who tied up the two men to the tree. I also didn't know if they accepted killing, so I was most definitely not going to broadcast that I murdered two men even if in self-defense. "Mhmmm..." he either didn't believe me or didn't care. "I'll tell you what, once we get back to Konoha - our home village - I'll file in a report to the Hokage so that we could get started on a mission to regain your memory."
I most definitely was not convinced that I could gain memories from this world, nor did I believe it possible. Also, the sound of a leader who ruled over ninja? The leader of what looks like a military dictatorship? No thanks. I'm not trusting whoever the heck that is.
"...perhaps my memory is gone for a reason," I countered quietly, trying on a philosophical tone, or at least I hoped it sounded philosophical. I was a teen, rejoined for being angsty, after all, so it probably just sounded slow or cheap. Kakashi rose a single silver eyebrow(or maybe both, as one was covered by the metal plating)
"So you don't want your memories returned?" He asked. The cloud of suspicion had gotten heavier in the air, and I didn't like it.
"All I'm saying is I don't know if it's worth it," I replied, as neutral as possible.
"...Tsunami..." Sakura breathed, eyes filled with pity. "It's okay to want your memories back... just..." She trailed off, not knowing what to say. If I regained memories from whatever life this was, would I remember my old ones? That was what I feared; my last life fading into an oblivion. That's when it dawned on me, though thoughts may be fleeting, materials can be preserved.
I could journal my memories. Of my life as a doctor, and as my new life.
"...I'll think about it," I settled. 'I'll write down my true memories, then work on regaining all of the lost memories of this body'. Sakura gave a pleased smile, almost like a doctor proudly watching the recovery of a patient. She almost reminded me of me...
...
...
...
She most certainly did not remind me of me.
A boy, her teammate, with black hair and an icy cold personality was her crush. When he was around, she would melt like putty, but when her other teammate appeared she hardened into a petty warrior of stone. I almost felt whiplash at the change in her personality, from a helpful caregiver to a fan girl, to a borderline psychopath if her murderous glare to her blonde teammate was anything to go by.
She was much too emotional, much too childish to ever remind me of me, even when I was a child myself.
That was when things finally set in my mind.
I had heard Sakura snap at the boy named 'Naruto', which had sent my mind reeling. I felt my heart drop, eyes widen, and I swear that everything around me had paused, watching my reaction like a hawk.
Naruto Uzumaki, the main character of an anime that I hadn't watched since I was a child.
And this scene of them running up trees only to majorly fail was now as familiar to me as anything.
A/N: So, what'd you think?
Some of you guessed correctly what arc this was. I just wanna say congrats! Well, I suppose I was kind of obvious... I tried though! ^.^
Hope you guys enjoyed, and I'm sorry about being late. Also, what the heck is Novel Star and why do people keep writing about it in the reviews? Are they bots? they look like bots.
Q: Who's you're favorite Naruto character, and why?