A/N:

masayume here,

the long awaited continuation of Catching Fire is finally here.

Happy Reading!

Chapter 3. Hatsumei

Hinata. It was her. Her hands still securely wrapped around him, shielding him from the call of the dead. It was something he had never experienced—the moment the boy's haunting melody reached his ears; his mind went blank. It was as if he seized to exist and had no longer control over his body. He was no longer present, and his body moved on its own, eagerly wanting to dive into the foggy woodlands. The lack of control over his body— the idea that this… thing had such powers over man, frightened him.

He was sure that he was not the only man who was captivated by the call. The heavy doors of Hatsumei must have swung open with the help of the remaining samurai guard. And then they must have gone, disappearing into the thick of the fog, never to be seen again. Those men were unlucky.

Naruto glanced over to his side, taking in the sight of the sleeping black-haired kunoichi that slept peacefully next to him. He is unable to take his eyes of his companion, taking in the soft details of her features only to notice the subtle signs of exhaustion — no doubt she was tired from restraining him for who knows how long. How lucky he was. Lucky.

The sun has risen. Its bright rays bringing a hint of life into the cursed place. He sat up, realizing that they were inside their temporary living quarters— he glanced over to Hinata, realizing that in his madness she managed to bring him back into the lord's house. This was their temporary residence within the land of the Wood as honoured guests of lord Hidemasa and his son Nobutada.

His mind was rattled with thoughts of the child's deathly had to be an explanation to all of this — whether it would be a curse or something far more Naruto, this was something that he only read about in books. This was not something he ever expected to experience. And yet, here he was, the lone commander of his once three-man squad, the only man apart from the lord himself, his son Nobutada and the sick men within the Hatsumei infirmary.

His troubled mind ventured back to the forest. Those dark woodlands — leading, beckoning its victims to an untimely demise. There had to be something they could do to unravel its mysteries. His mind would not rest — not until they've come to rescue the ones they've lost... or to find whatever truly happened to them.

The door slid open, revealing a young servant girl, carrying in a tray of food. She bowed as she stepped in, and she made her way towards the low table. As she set it down, she glanced over to the blond man, currently sitting up from his futon, and still dressed in his black and orange attire from yesterday. He appeared in deep thought and was not alarmed by her presence.

"You alright Uzumaki-san? We thought we nearly lost you," the servant girl said, breaking the silence in the room.

The young man finally broke out of his thoughts and glanced at the young girl in front of him.

"Thank you... miss?"

"Ueno Masako. I'm all that's left of Lord Hidemasa's staff after last night. Here, drink this—it will help with the headache," she said as she passed him a tonic from the tray.

"Thank you," Naruto said as he took the cup and brought it to his lips.

Without hesitation, he downed the bitter taste, and he returned the empty cup to Masako. She placed it back onto the tray and instead, motioned for the blond man to take a seat.

"Hyūga-san kept her restraint until sunrise. She's quite the kunoichi," Masako said.

"Yeah, she is," Naruto agreed as his eyes fell onto his companion.
" Well, I will leave you to enjoy your breakfast. I have chores to attend to," Masako stated as she turned to leave.

When Hinata awakened, she glanced immediately to her side with fear laden in her eyes as she hoped to find her teammate.

"It's alright Hina-chan, I'm here," Naruto said softly, as if he knew that the young woman was distressed by his absence.

Hinata glanced over to the other side of the room. Naruto was sitting with his back pressed against the wooden wall, his eyes closed — as if he was in deep thought. In front of him was a large table filled with a variety of food. Hinata slowly made her way off the futon, and she rose to her feet. Then, she made her way across the room and settled across from him, reaching for the hot tea kettle to pour herself a cup of green tea. Naruto opened his eyes and gazed at his companion.

"Thank you... for saving my life Hinata," Naruto said softly, breaking their silence.

"I don't remember passing out," Hinata said softly as she brought the hot brew to her lips.

She took a slow cautious sip, before settling down the cup and turning her attention to their breakfast. Her hands reached for her chopsticks, and she collected her rice bowl. Naruto's chopsticks were resting near his half-eaten bowl, the several side dishes in separate bowls were partly eaten.

"Hinata, I want to explore the woods," Naruto said all of a sudden in the midst of their breakfast.

Hinata set down her pair of chopsticks and waited for a moment to finish chewing her food. Then, she looked firmly at Naruto, her lavender eyes nearly piercing through him.

"You can't. We need to wait. We don't know what we are dealing with. We need help," Hinata insisted.

Naruto exhaled as he pushed his bowl of food aside even further away, and he stood, ready to pace around the room like an animal in a cage.

"I can't just sit around and do nothing. I can't. We lost more people last night. There's no more samurai. It's just us, and we are sitting ducks," Naruto said, unsure of what their next step should be.

Hinata remained sitting, still tired from restraining her Uzumaki teammate — she was thankful that he did not slip into his kyūbi form, for she knew there would be nothing she could do to stop him. The experience of him being under the influence of the boy's song was intriguing. It was as if he was vacant, an empty vessel simply walking towards a designated goal. And that thought seemed curious. What was the purpose of this supernatural entity? Why did the song only affect men? Why did it start once they entered the land of the wood? And why was it unable to enter the fortified city itself? It lulled them closer, beckoning them to their own demise.

Her thoughts ventured to young Tomoe, the daughter of the daimyō that they were hired to escort to this place to marry Nobutada. Her sudden disappearance in the middle of the night — is that what started this whole thing?

"Naruto, we must wait. If you go, you will be taken like Yamato and Tomoe. We cannot risk this. Please, let's just wait till the help from home arrives. We will have to tell them everything. It would be best to have fresh eyes look at this. You and I, we've experienced so many unbelievable moments since we've arrived here. I know, you want to explore the woods. I do too, but I'm not willing to risk our lives for mere curiosity," Hinata said.

"It's daytime. We should be able to try and explore the woods with minimum movement. We are shinobi are we not?" Naruto suggested.

"We are," Hinata agreed.

"Besides, your eyes would see the enemy coming right away. I'm not worried with you by my side," Naruto smiled.

"Alright, we will try. But any sign of the curse, we must return," Hinata stated.

"Agreed."

They packed their gear with haste as the first rays of the sun peeked through the tree branches. The night breezed them by as they patiently waited till daylight to cross into the land of the wood. As the team of six high-ranked shinobi walked across the river with ease— finally entering the mysterious land of wood, they came across an eerie sight. The edge of the forest was encompassed by a thick fog that seemed to hug the forest floor.

"Hey, you guys see that, right?" Tenma questioned as he pointed towards the fog.

"It's just a little fog, no need to get your panties in a twist Tenma," Shisui commented.

"We go on," Itachi commanded," we should reach the city by midday."

The group headed on in formation, disappearing into the foggy woods.

It was high noon when Naruto and Hinata dared to enter the thick woodlands. Its countless large green deciduous trees acted like a natural barrier for the hidden secrets of the land, creating an uneven landscape that barely let any sunlight through their bushy branches. There was no life fluttering about in the trees — no birds twittering about their day nor any trace of wildlife on the ground. The forest seemed empty, almost as if it was completely lifeless. The only sound that could be heard was the sound of their footsteps on the forest floor. With each step the earth beneath their feet crackled with the snap of the twigs.

As they ventured farther in, far from the safety of the fortress, Naruto glanced over his shoulder to Hinata, taking note of the dark-haired kunoichi's vigilance. Her lavender eyes seemed relaxed, no sign of her activated Byakugan. His glance flicked back towards the larger trees ahead. Instantly, he was moving closer to take a better look. He pressed his hand against the tall sycamore tree, only to recoil at its touch. It was soft as if the trunk was rotting from inside out.

"Do you see how the trees are leaning towards the east?" Naruto pointed out, towards the series of bent sycamore trees.

"It's as if they are pointing the way?" Hinata suggested.

"Seems like it," Naruto answered," let's keep going."

As the soil beneath their feet became muddy as they began to descend down a hill, Naruto braced himself against a tree, to avoid sliding down the path. He glanced at Hinata and he stepped back.

"Perhaps you should try to use your Byakugan. You can see far, perhaps it's best we know where we're walking," Naruto said.

"Yeah, the thought crossed my mind too. Alright, let me see," Hinata agreed, and she closed her eyes, activating her Hyūga kekkei genkai.

Hinata's eyes opened, the veins around her eyes protruding as she stared into the distance before them. Then, out of nowhere a whirl of fog spread around them, and a deathly rattle of woman's voice whispered into Hinata's ears.

"NO! NOT YOU!"

Hinata's eyes widened in fear as blood began to trickle from her tear ducts.

"Nar-Naruto," she managed to utter.

"What's wrong?!" Naruto asked, scared for his teammate.

He rushed to her side, staring in horror of what was happening to her. The blood trickled from her eyes, down her cheeks and Hinata began to shake uncontrollably and her vision faded into darkness.

It was a sight to behold when the Konoha rescue team entered the Hatsumei meadows. In particular, Sakura stared at the magnificence of the ancient construction nestled in the middle of the green meadows. She had only read little about the land of wood and its crown jewel, but no text was able to prepare her for this sight. The tall walls of the fortified city were massive. They were at least three stories tall, and intricately decorated with golden paint from the outside. As the sun hit the walls, the light bounced off the golden details. There were elaborate roofs that towered above the tall walls were painted with the same golden colour, reflecting the sun with elegance. As they made their way towards the front gate, Sakura took in the detail of the massive wooden doors. They were painted a deep red colour and decorated with the golden drawing of a dragon on each wooden slab. It was as if the pair of dragons served as guardians of the entrance to this opulent place.

"Wow, this is impressive. Seems like they did not spare any expense," Shisui commented as they approached the front gate.

"Let's go. I'm sure Naruto is already waiting for us," Sasuke said.

"Agreed," Itachi said, and he motioned for the group to continue on.

The group moved forward, only to halt at the sound of a bell ringing wildly to usher in its residents. The doors to the fortress parted slightly, and a woman appeared, waving towards the group of shinobi.

"Quickly! Come! Before it rolls in," the woman called out to them.

The group of Konoha shinobi remained standing in their spot as they awaited the captain's command. Sakura glanced over to Itachi, who seemed deep in thought, as if he was assessing the situation that was placed before them — why wasn't Naruto at the gate? Why the alarm? Why is the land vacant of people? None were in the meadows; none were anywhere on their journey through the land of wood. This woman was the first they have seen since the left the land of fire.

"What do we do captain?" Sakura asked.

Itachi glanced over his shoulder, taking note of the rolling fog that seemed to emerge wildly from the nearby woodlands. Then, they all heard it — a neigh of a horse, followed by the clatter of hooves galloping with swift speed towards them. They all stared at the green wood, taking note of the flash of black and orange that appeared out of nowhere, carrying in his arms his teammate Hinata, who appeared to have lost consciousness or worse.

"RUN!" Naruto yelled at them, as he sprinted out of the forest.

Behind Naruto a tall horse emerged, upon him a ghostly samurai rider with his katana extended in the air and ready to strike.

"Inside, now!" Itachi commanded.

The group of shinobi plunged forward into the fortified city of Hatsumei, only to turn around to see Naruto narrowly enter with Hinata in his arms. The blond-haired shinobi was breathless as he collapsed onto the ground with his Hyūga teammate. He rolled onto his back, breathing heavily. Itachi's eyes widened as he stared onto the ghostly figure upon the tall horse, galloping with speed towards them. He activated his Sharingan, hoping to find the source of the supposed jutsu that created it only to find no chakra within the apparition. This finding unnerved him — what was going on here? The ghostly rider galloped forward, only to disintegrate into nothing at the threshold of the main gate. The Konoha shinobi stared in disbelief at what they had just witnessed.

"Please tell me that I'm not the only one who just saw that," Tenma said.

Shisui blinked quickly, as if he was attempting to clear his vision and he exhaled in disbelief. Then, he turned to look at the state of his companions and he patted Tenma's shoulder in comfort.

"Nope, not the only one," Shisui commented.

Then, he turned and looked towards their captain, awaiting instruction. Itachi seemed deep in thought. Sakura and Chihiro focused their attention on Hinata, taking note of the drying blood around her eyes. As Sakura took her vital signs, she motioned for Tenma and Shisui to help with Hinata — to carefully lift her and carry her to a safer place — Sasuke bend down to look at his former blond teammate more closely. Naruto's eyes squinted slightly as he recognized the raven-haired Uchiha and smiled.

"Oh, am I glad to see you," Naruto managed to utter.

"What is going on here Naruto?" Sasuke inquired as he offered him his hand to stand.

Naruto took his hand and rose to his feet, his breathing returning to normal. Then, he pointed towards the largest house within the fortified place with his hand.

"I'll tell you when we're inside. That way."

The group of Konoha shinobi was sitting within the large guest quarters of the lord's house. Chihiro, Tenma, Sasuke and Shisui were unpacking their team supplies, taking their time to get accustomed to their surroundings. Itachi was leaning against the wall, his eyes focused on Sakura. The rosette teammate was sitting next to Hinata, who was lying on the warm futon. Her eyes were bandaged, the blood that only moments before decorated her face was wiped clean, as Sakura continued to keep an eye on the Hyūga teammate. Naruto was sitting on the other side of Hinata, his body completely stiff as he watched Sakura's every careful and precise move — how her hands came aglow with green chakra, how she delicately cleaned the blood of Hinata's skin, and how tenderly she wrapped the bandages around her eyes. He knew Hinata was in the best hands when it came to Sakura. His former pink-haired teammate was a force to be reckoned with, a medical prodigy of the former Hokage. As Sakura finished tending to Hinata, he glanced up at the pinkette with hope — they really needed some good news.

"Is she gonna be alright?" Naruto asked.

"Yeah, she needs rest, but she will be alright. Lucky, we came when we did," Sakura said as she pulled the blanket a bit more over Hinata, making sure the Hyūga remained warm during her recovery.

Upon Sakura's words, Naruto slouched forward in relief as the tension that seemed to carry with him disappeared. They dared to enter the woods today, and he nearly lost her. For him, this would be a second teammate taken by the forest and he was counting his blessings that Hinata still remained by his side.

"Naruto, your story," Itachi interrupted, as his gaze traveled from the pinkette to the blond shinobi.

Naruto glanced up at Itachi and nodded," Right, okay. Well, you might as well sit down."

Naruto's story

Well, I'll start at the beginning. I was summoned by Kakashi-sensei… err, I mean the sixth Hokage to complete a diplomatic B-rank mission. I was personally selected for this mission by the employer, the Fire daimyō. I was told to select two others to join me for the team and I chose Hinata and Yamato-taichou since you guys don't take B-rank missions. Anyways, that's not important. I was told that I am to travel with my team to the daimyō's estate and collect his only daughter Tomoe and escort her to the land of the Wood. As per the daimyō's request, we were to act as Tomoe's bodyguards until she was married to Nobutada, the son of the Wood daimyō Hidemasa. The land of Wood does not like outsiders, specifically they do not like shinobi. So, we acted as hired mercenaries. When we arrived, at first everything seemed normal. The city was busy, people were laughing in the streets, their ramen shop was open. There were guards on the ramparts patrolling throughout the day and night. In the fields, there were people farming and down by the lake they were busy fishing. Like I said, it was a busy place. That first night, we were introduced to Nobutada — pretty great guy actually, but he's been struck with the illness, he resigned himself to the infirmary two days go — and also introduced to Hidemasa who welcomed Tomoe to his family. Then, came night. Hinata stayed with Tomoe. The only thing she said to me is that Tomoe-chan seemed out-of-character. She was usually peppy, very chatty, but suddenly the moment we got here she became different. She was withdrawing from us, and we weren't sure of what was the cause. Then, come morning she disappeared without a trace.

FLASHBACK

"You alright Tomoe-san?" Hinata asked, as she took note of the fidgeting female companion.

Tomoe—dressed in the finest clothes with her lengthy chestnut-coloured hair braided into a single elegant braid, sat in the corner of the room, completely hyper-vigilant with her surroundings. Her eyes flickered across the room, as if she was watching something unseen with her eyes and keeping a safe distance from it. Hinata dismissed the odd behaviour, choosing to comfort the young woman instead. She collected a fresh blanket and offered it to Tomoe. Then, she pointed to the free unrolled futon on the higher level of the room.

"You should get some sleep. It was a long trip," Hinata said.

For a mere second, Tomoe hesitated before finally reaching for the blanket.

"Right, I will. Thanks, Hinata," Tomoe answered.

END OF FLASHBACK

We searched the city from top to bottom throughout the day hoping to find any sign of Tomoe but there was nothing we could find. It was as if she disappeared. Then, we noticed that people began to show signs of an infection. They were coughing blood, feverish, and swollen—it was madness. It seemed like an outbreak of sorts. Yamato, Hinata and I remained within the confines of this house, to avoid exposure. Nobutada took it upon himself to look after his people and we offered to stand guard at night so that he could use his guards to help with the ill. Hinata opted to help Nobutada with the sick. The following night, it came. It was past midnight when I was sitting on the edge of the wall, just talking with Yamato when we noticed a fog rolling in from the forest. Yamato told me to run inside to alert Nobutada about it, but once I entered the room, one of the maids shut the door behind me. I was not permitted to leave the room. All I heard was the gate opening and men rushing out of the city— as if they were going into battle. That was when I decided to send the black scroll. We lost Yamato, we lost Tomoe, and we had no way of getting home safely.

Then, last night, I saw what the fog brings. A boy dressed in a white kimono who sings in the meadow, and if you hear his song, he lures you away from this place and into the forest. I was lucky that Hinata was with me, otherwise the forest would have taken me as well.

And today—we tried to explore the woods, but once we got a bit too far in Hinata's eyes began to bleed and we were chased out by that horse rider you all saw. That's it. That's the story. Now, you're all caught up.

End of Naruto's story

"It has been days now. I have lost count on how many we have lost. This place used to be bustling with life and now… well you see how it looks like… desolate and lifeless," Naruto said with a solemn voice.

The young blond shinobi leaned back in his seat, unsure of whether he should continue. He was tired, exhausted even from the never-ending barrage of otherworldly experiences.

"There are three unexplainable things I have witnessed so far. At first, I thought it might be some forbidden jutsu but this is the land of samurai. They do not like chakra powered assaults here," Naruto said.

"What have you seen so far?" Itachi inquired.

"Well, the first thing I saw was the infection. Most of the elderly residents and children were ravaged by this plague. It causes high fever, coughing out blood and according to Nobutada, swollen lymph nodes around the neck. People have succumbed within three days of the infection, and we don't know how to stop it. So far, all that have been infected have been transferred into the secure infirmary on the orders of Nobutada," Naruto paused for a moment, letting his hand run through his pale-yellow locks.

"What about the other two things?" Shisui pried.

Naruto glanced at Shisui and exhaled," Well, you saw one. The rider. And the third thing is the boy in the meadow that appears at night. That's all the unexplainable things we've witnessed so far."

"And Tomoe's disappearance," Sakura added.

Naruto nodded in agreement," well yeah, and that too."

"So, there's something otherworldly at play here," Shisui said.

The group became silent for a moment, as if they were all evaluating Naruto's story over and over again. The idea of supernatural being at play here unnerved them. This was uncharted territory, even for the shinobi. Tenma rose to his feet and reached for his half-unpacked backpack.

"We should leave," Tenma suggested.

"We can't," Naruto answered.

"Well why the hell not? Let them fend for themselves! We're not responsible for the land of wood. We are Konoha shinobi!" Tenma argued.

The door slid open, revealing an elderly man dressed in the finest robed of royal blue silk. It was decorated with silver honeycomb patterns along his sleeves. The top of his head was mostly bare, with only a semblance of white hair present along the back of his head. His facial hair was short and unkempt.

"Lord Hidemasa," Naruto greeted and then he extended his hand to introduce his companions," these are my friends from land of fire. They will help us with the situation."

Hidemasa stepped forward, and glanced at Tenma, as if he overheard the young man speaking only moments ago.

"You wish to leave. Don't you know this land is cursed? None of us can leave. Not anymore. They won't permit it," Hidemasa stated.

"Who won't permit it? Why do you speak in riddles old man?" Tenma questioned — the young man was growing frustrated with the lack of progress with the situation.

"Stand down Tenma," Itachi ordered calmly.

The elder lord glanced from Tenma onto Itachi.

"The ones who dwell in the forest. They will not permit you to leave," Hidemasa answered," If you need anything, speak with Masako or my son."

"Your son is in the infirmary Lord Hidemasa," Naruto said softly.

"So, it is the end of my line," Hidemasa commented, as if it was only meant for himself.

Then, the elderly lord exited the room, leaving the group of shinobi

"What the hell does he mean that we can't leave?" Tenma voiced out in frustration.

"It means we are trapped," Itachi replied calmly.

A/N: Until next time.