The Wanderers
Chapter 44 – Naruto/Hinata – Journey Home
A/N: And we have come to the last 'individual' chapter in this story. After this, we move into the last third of the story.
A/N2: Since I didn't get any direct feedback about my shift in writing style, I assume the transition wasn't that noticeable. That's a good thing for me; it means that you guys were focusing on the story. I'm essentially trying to be more descriptive, without being boring. A difficult task, but enjoyable.
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. If I did, there would be a proper timeframe for events.
***Previously-On***
After escaping the Hidden Village of Sound, the group was accosted by a warrior covered in white armour, bearing a frightening resemblance to the warrior from Kakashi's memories. After a short monologue, in which he confessed to compliance in the destruction of Konoha, the warrior dispersed the Konoha shinobi under orders from a mysterious leader, causing all of them to be sent to different parts of the world. Now, separated from their friends and comrades, each of the surviving Konoha shinobi are struggling to find each other again before they are found again by the group that had caused them so much grief.
Uchiha Itachi silently observed the Kumogakure army, taking mental notes of the dispositions of their leadership for future reference. The Cloud Village was under attack by a vast army of Quiraji warriors, and were outnumbered by a significant number. Itachi recognised the leader as Shouri, the man who had separated him from the others, deciding that it was his job to gather as much intelligence as possible. The two armies clashed and a massive battle ensued. The balance of power swayed from one side to the other many times, and even the Raikage was brought low by Shouri's unique chakra-cancelling abilities, though he retreated the army when they were counterattacked by the Two Tails container and decided he no longer had the tactical advantage. During the night, Itachi ambushed Shouri, and using the knowledge he had gained from the battle, was able to finally kill the first leader of the Quiraji army. With Kumogakure keeping the army occupied, Itachi suddenly found himself confronted by Sensou, the red haired woman he recognised from Kakashi's memories. Unlike her younger brother, the female Quiraji leader wasted no time in disabling and immobilising him with a strange method of metal creation and manipulation, before imprisoning him and declaring to nobody in particular that she had grand plans for him. With her prize in toy, Sensou ordered their army to retreat back to the Land of Fire, while taking Itachi back to her lab.
***End Summary***
***Two Months after Separation***
When Naruto went to sleep, his mind did one of two things. It either drifted in fantasy-style dreams about things that were no longer possible like him being the Hokage of a non-destroyed Konoha, or training with his father like he hadn't been killed by the Kyuubi.
That was a rarity though, for Naruto rarely had many bouts of unbroken sleep.
The other thing that happened was the same thing that had happened to him tonight. His eyes opened and he saw himself in a grand hall covered in red tapestries and golden ornaments. Every time he saw the palace he gaped in amazement, though once he remembered where he was it sobered him up.
He sighed with a roll of his eyes and looked down, grateful that he'd been allowed to keep his clothes on this time. His companion had a twisted sense of humour, and a temper that barely registered as thin.
"One of these nights, I'm going to have a pleasant dream. One of these nights…"
The grand open area was completely empty, though that wasn't irregular for his unintended visits. He turned around to see a tall man standing with a smirk on his face and the same frighteningly bright red eyes. Since he'd gotten married to Hinata, the Kyuubi had stopped messing with him in a sexual manner, but if anything that had made things worse.
At least the female Kyuubi had been decent to look at, though he'd never admit that to the tailed demon. It was a strange rivalry surrounding their truce, and one that both of them continued to step over the line on multiple occasions.
"We aren't going to play checkers again are we? Because I swear, I would rather that sparring match idea than other bloody game of checkers."
The male form of the Kyuubi smirked as he always did, clicking his fingers as he transformed his business suit into the Hokage robes that he so enjoyed tormenting Naruto with. He no longer wore the Fourth's cloak, mainly because Naruto had torn it from his back in anger. "No, boy. Tonight I have something serious to show you. It is extremely important."
Naruto glared at him with a suspicious look, the Kyuubi did nothing that wasn't for its own gain, or its own enjoyment. His gaze dropped slightly from its red eyes down its body, "You're not going to take off your pants, are you?"
To its credit, the Kyuubi was legitimately shocked at the suggestion, though it did make a mental note of the look of how concerned Naruto was that he would do just that.
That didn't stop him from being highly insulted though.
"Of course not! You pathetic little…"
Swallowing his anger, a difficult task for a creature made out of anger and hatred, the Kyuubi breathed through his fanged teeth and glared at his blonde captor.
"There are important things you need to know, boy. And we don't have time to mess around."
"So no checkers? Good. I've gotten tired of kicking your ass anyway." Naruto cracked his neck, he'd fallen asleep in an awkward position, and wasn't sure why that had translated into his mindscape.
The Kyuubi growled and glared at him, but waved a hand so that the area around them shifted to his specifications. Without a full seal keeping it in check, Naruto had allowed it a certain level of freedom within his mindscape, though he'd warned it against too much redecorating. Seeing an ocean of blood with dismembered bodies once in his lifetime was enough.
The grand palace around them disappeared in a swirl of colours before turning into a sea of white that nearly blinded Naruto for several seconds. He grimaced and blinked several times to try and adjust to the bright light, while the Kyuubi waited patiently, something it almost never did.
"So, why are we here?" asked the blonde shinobi once his eyesight had gotten better.
The Kyuubi bit at his lip with his long fangs, it wasn't clearly uncomfortable with the situation, but there were some things it had admitted to itself since Hinata's recovery from his 'attack'.
"It occurs to me that you haven't been…unkind to me…since we came to our arrangement."
"What the hell is wrong with you? Where's all the fire-breathing and spikes…stuff?" asked Naruto. This was a strange side of the Kyuubi, one that was entirely unsettling to Naruto. He preferred the Kyuubi when it was in its massive demon fox form. At least that he could manage from a personality standpoint.
He ignored Naruto's comment and continued his uncomfortable declaration, "My point is…it occurs to me that my fate is irrevocably tied to yours at this time. And as such, it is not to my advantage to withhold information from you."
"Enough beating around the bush, Kyuubi," said Naruto impatiently. "Get to the point."
The Kyuubi took a step towards him, extending a hand towards his head. "Before the Sage of the Six Paths decreed that we should be sealed…I fought against a great enemy. An enemy that you are facing now."
Naruto ignored the extended hand as his eyes widened at what he'd just heard, "You are talking about the Quiraji, aren't you? But you were first sealed centuries ago. That doesn't make any sense."
Taking another step forward, the Kyuubi placed his hand onto Naruto's head. The blonde shinobi had no reason to fear him, he was unable to hurt him without his permission within his mindscape, but it was still a degree of trust the Kyuubi hadn't expected from him. The boy continued to surprise him, but that didn't mean he had to like him. If anything it annoyed him further.
"I will show you what I mean. And why it is important for you to understand who and what you are up against."
The Kyuubi went to concentrate, but Naruto put up his hand quickly to stop him. "Hang on, before you do that. Why are you doing this? You've never wanted to help me in the past. Even curing Hinata and I was motivated by self-protection."
Glaring down at the boy's blue eyes, the Kyuubi was reminded of how naïve the boy truly was compared to the shinobi that had sealed him. He only trusted Naruto as far as he could metaphorically throw him, but the Kyuubi had come to a decision already surrounding this issue, and that meant going beyond his antagonism towards his captor.
"It is in my interest to stay alive. And…I have my own personal stake in this battle, which you will see soon enough."
Sensing that he wasn't getting the whole truth, Naruto regardless allowed the Kyuubi to proceed, curious as to what had riled up the Kyuubi so much that he would be willing to cooperate so easily.
At least it beat playing checkers all night long.
Naruto blinked several times as he looked over the landscape the Kyuubi had taken him to. There was a familiar look to it, but he didn't recognise any of the landmarks of the area. There were mountains and lakes, but they weren't lively like he had been expecting.
The land seemed scarred from centuries of battle, yet Naruto couldn't shake the feeling he'd been there before. He opened his mouth to ask the Kyuubi standing next to him a question, but found his voice non-responsive.
Where are we? he thought to himself.
The Kyuubi turned to him with a frown, Quiet. You're about to see something that no shinobi truly knows about.
The world around them seemed to shift and twist, hurting Naruto's eyes as light seemed to spin around the two of them with no rhyme or rhythm.
What is going on?
The Kyuubi made no response, crossing his arms and indicating to the scene in front of them with a slight nod of his head.
In front of them stood a single man who appeared to be in his early thirties. He had short spiky hair that seemed to push up into horns, giving him a somewhat demonic look, but it was his eyes that drew Naruto's full attention.
The man had strange eyes that were comprised of several circles, each folding into one another. He was staring straight at the two of them, but by the look in his odd eyes Naruto knew he couldn't tell they were here.
This is a memory…
Yes, it is. Pay attention, and be grateful that you are seeing this.
The man had his hands together in a common ninjutsu handseal, but the amount of chakra he was moulding was beyond anything Naruto had ever sensed before. Even during the time he had exploited the Kyuubi's chakra in Suna had been but a drop in the ocean compared to what the man was doing.
A circle of seals appeared underneath the man's feet on the solid ground, Naruto unable to recognise any of the symbols, although there were several tomoe that reminded him of the Sharingan.
The cloak on the man's back flared up as an explosion of multi-coloured chakra expanded outwards from him, covered several kilometres in a single instant. Naruto instinctively blocked his eyes with his arm, though it was a futile effort as it blinded him for a few seconds regardless.
Once his eyesight recovered, Naruto looked over the area again, but could have sworn his eyes were betraying him. Standing in a circle around the man were nine creatures that towered over him, each of various shape and size.
His eyes were immediately drawn to the nine-tailed fox that stood directly in front of the man who appeared to have summoned them. It was clearly the Kyuubi, in a form he hadn't seen since Suna, although it looked like a comical baby version of the giant demon fox.
Naruto couldn't help but chuckle, aww, he's so cute…
SHUT UP CHILD! roared the Kyuubi in his mind. I was young then.
Flipping his head around, Naruto looked at the other creatures that surrounded the man. He recognised the raccoon-like demon that was residing within Gaara, but the others were unknown to him. But he could guess who they were.
He turned to the human-form Kyuubi beside him, these are the Tailed Beasts?
The man in the middle of the circle was speaking to the creatures around him, but his voice was muffled so Naruto couldn't hear him. He looked at the Kyuubi's face, noticing an unconcealed look of both pain and longing in its red eyes.
Are you okay?
The Kyuubi's mouth twitched, but he swallowed the retort he was preparing. I haven't seen him in so long…I'd almost forgotten.
I don't understand, why are you showing me this?
With a wave of his hand, the Kyuubi froze the memory. He walked towards the circle, with Naruto quickly in tow. The two of them stopped just before the man who'd summoned the beasts, with the Kyuubi tempted to reach out and touch the man, but held off and turned to Naruto with his normal angry expression.
These creatures are my brothers and sisters. What you just saw was our creation.
Naruto grunted in surprise, okay then. Congratulation, I suppose?
Cram it up your ass, Uzumaki.
Looking over the man in front of them, Naruto couldn't shake the sense of importance that the man signified. Who was this man?
You would have called him the Sage of the Six Paths. I had the honour of calling him, father.
Naruto's eyes widened, he'd heard the name in passing from Kakashi once. It was always spoken in such reverence, the man who created ninjutsu.
This is the first shinobi? The man who created chakra and spawned all techniques?
Shaking his head, the Kyuubi waved his hand and dispersed the memory back into the plain white background from earlier. He turned to Naruto; the Sage of the Six Paths was indeed the first shinobi, and the creator of ninjutsu. However he did not create chakra. That…was something else.
What has this got to do with the Quiraji? Or are you simply chest-beating?
His prisoner sighed; it didn't take long for him to get sick of Naruto's company. I'm getting to that. Let me break it down for you.
A silhouette appeared in front of them, standing so tall that even with his head arched as high as he could, Naruto couldn't see the top. It had a creature-like shape, but it appeared so alien that he felt uncomfortable just looking at its image, despite its lack of detail.
The Kyuubi pointed to it with a robed arm, that is the Ten-Tails. It is the creature that my siblings and I came from. I won't go into details, but the Sage of the Six Paths separated us to save this world from its destruction.
Sounds like a decent guy. So where did the Ten-Tails come from?
You aren't as dumb as you look, thought the Kyuubi with a smirk. He made the Ten-Tails' silhouette vanish from their sight, and he turned to Naruto. The Ten-Tails was created accidently, by the ones that once occupied this land. They sought to create a new weapon, but when they did they couldn't control it.
oOoOoOo
The next image he was shown was something Naruto wouldn't have expected at all. Outward from the two of them was a sprawling city that expanded as far as he could see, though there was no life and joy in it like there used to be in Konoha. Each building was rigid and straight, while there were no stalls or places like Ichiraku's Ramen that he could see.
What is this place? Naruto asked curiously.
The Kyuubi brought them to the edge of the city, where there was a large gathering of soldiers within the city limits. This is the city that the world forgot. At the moment we are standing at the biggest battle of the so-called Endless War. History left out this period for a reason.
Naruto kept his observations to himself, knowing that the Kyuubi would reveal what it felt like in time. He wasn't that patient, but this went beyond him and his own experiences.
Standing opposite the city forces was an army the size of which Naruto had never seen before. Tens of thousands of men and women stood in scattered ranks, with a variety of ninja-like weapons which seemed like earlier variations of the kunai and shuriken used today.
At the head of the army was the man the Kyuubi had called the Sage of Six Paths, though he looked about twenty years older than the last time he had seen him. In his hands were a large red and white fan that seemed quite out of place among the other swords and bladed weaponry used by his allies and a large pot that looked like it contained all the secrets in the world. Either that or sake.
Beside him were two men in their mid-thirties, looking like army generals with armour and swords by their sides. One of them had the same eyes as the Sage, while the other bore a striking resemblance to a face that used to sit on the Hokage Mountain. That of the First Hokage.
The Sage's sons, pointed out the Kyuubi, anticipating Naruto's question.
Naruto's eyes ran over the Sage's army, seeing something that stood out immediately. Where are the Tailed Beasts? Surely you guys would have been in this battle.
We were told we were not ready. There was clearly anger in the Kyuubi's voice, though it was difficult to tell from its usual angry demeanour. The Sage said this was their battle. Their war to fight and finish, win or lose.
The Kyuubi didn't mention that he was reconstructing this particular memory from information he had been told. He didn't want Naruto to have anything to gloat about over him.
And they were fighting against the Quiraji? Didn't you say this was at home though? Why were the Quiraji here?
The Sage yelled out several muted words before pointing to the city, charging forward with the army of people at his back, his sons by his side.
Naruto struggled to keep his excitement to himself; this was a battle he would surely remember. The father of shinobi against his current enemy, a battle on such an epic scale it hurt his head just thinking about it.
So the Kyuubi cut the memory off back to white, grinning widely at the look of sheer horror and disappointment on his captor's face.
What the hell was that for?! You could have at least showed me some cool stuff!
I don't have to show you squat, smirked the Kyuubi. I'm still mad at you, so don't think you are getting a free ride.
Naruto frowned, but conceded that he had gotten him pretty good. Fine. What else can you tell me?
The scene shifted again to the same city, though it looked completely different. The buildings were almost entirely demolished; there wasn't a single building that didn't show battle damage. It was strange at first, but after a little while Naruto could sense the wrongness of the city beyond the damage. It stank of death, even though there were no bodies that he could see.
The Quiraji came to the shinobi continent to conquer and control. When they arrived they found a people that had a skill they did not.
Chakra… It was hard for him to believe that the Endless War was against his current enemy, but from the evidence he was being shown, it made sense. The look on Shouri's face when they had fought him a few weeks ago was so full of hatred; it could only have been born from years of fighting and suffering at the hands of shinobi.
But Naruto couldn't make sense of the picture as a whole. If they were the instigators or conquerors, why does this matter? Weren't they beaten?
The Sage of the Six Paths helped the people throw off their oppressors and free themselves to live out their lives. His sons helped create the first shinobi clans and villages, and through them the shinobi world prospered.
The Kyuubi indicated to the ruined city, But he knew they would not take such a victory without seeking retribution. The Quiraji were not peaceful people, and he knew that there was only one way to bring about final peace for his people.
The scene began to shift again, and Naruto patiently waited to see what else the Kyuubi was going to show him within its memories. Everything seemed so complex and far beyond his pay-grade, but if the Kyuubi was entrusting him with such knowledge then he would need to absorb as much as possible.
oOoOoOo
The final thing the Kyuubi wanted to show him was different again, but it didn't disappoint Naruto's sensibilities one bit. What he'd been deprived of before, he knew he'd get in droves now.
This time he did recognise the landscape, though that was because he had seen it the day before. He'd been brought to the continent Hinata and he were currently residing in, which he had already begun to suspect was where the Quiraji had come from. In the distance he could even make out the castle they were currently staying at, although it looked far larger than it now was.
Looking like he was feeling the weight of time on his shoulders was an old man, who Naruto might not have recognised if not for the outfit he wore and the same circular eyes he'd seen twice before. However Naruto only gave the Sage of the Six Paths a quick glance before he gaped in amazement at the creatures standing behind him.
The Nine-Tails stood directly behind the Sage, looking as big and scary as the times Naruto had heard about when it had attacked Konoha, with each of its tails caused a shockwave each time they waved around in the air.
He also recognised Shukaku standing off to the side, with its massive single brown tail waving slowly and its arms balanced on its large belly. It hadn't been as big as the last time he'd fought it, and even though it was a memory he still felt the urge to defend himself against it.
Next to Shukaku was the smallest of the Tailed Beasts, though it was not any less fearless. It had the visage of a giant demonic cat with two long tails, burning in bright blue flames with a series of roars that hurt Naruto's ears to hear.
It seemed odd for Naruto to see a giant demonic-like turtle among the other creatures, but judging by its horns and dark gaze he figured that the three-tailed creature would be no less vicious than its brethren. It sat in the ocean just behind everyone else, bobbing up and down, looking at the continent with menacing eyes.
Just next to the Kyuubi was a beast with four tails that looked like a giant monkey covered in red fur, slamming its large fists onto its chest with a look that for some bizarre reason brought a smile to Naruto's face.
Standing with its head proud was a beast with five tails, one that looked like a mixture of a horse and a dolphin. Its appearance caused Naruto to wonder whether the Sage had designed them himself when he separated them from the Ten-Tails. If he did, there were a few things Naruto would have recommended.
Particularly with the giant slug-like creature standing near the Sage of the Six Paths covered in slime with six tails flapping about behind it. When Shizune used to talk about the slugs her master could summon, Naruto imagined they would look something like this. Even if it couldn't defeat an enemy with strength, it could certainly freak out the opponents enough to scare them away.
Flying just above its siblings was a massive insect with a large group of wings and a helmet-like head. Naruto figured it for the Seven-Tails, but that was only really because he couldn't figure it as anything other than that, its image was so confusing. It looked pretty out of place compared to the others, but little surprised Naruto anymore.
The last Tailed Beast among the group was also perhaps the strangest. Standing nearly as big as the Kyuubi was a creature with eight tails, it had the body and shape of a bison or an ox, but its tails were the same as an octopus would have, and it stood with its arms crossed with a serious expression that only looked comical on its face.
So these are your siblings, huh? Fully grown…you have some strange-looking family.
The Kyuubi glared at him angrily, but had to concede his point. Not all of us were able to get the kind of…appearance befitting creatures of our stature.
Where are the other people? If he pursued the Quiraji back to their homeland, where is everyone else?
He didn't tell them. The shinobi had won their freedom, and nearing the end of his life, the Sage wanted to end the threat by his own hands. Having been left out of the previous conflict, he couldn't stop us from coming along. If anything, he needed our help.
Naruto chuckled, it reminded him of the last time he'd been told not to fight by Kakashi or one of the other Jounin. It was strange to imagine the Kyuubi acting like him, though after that many years he had begun to wonder whether he'd been adopting the Kyuubi's traits rather than the other way.
Okay, so you guys invaded their homeland. I get that, but why do I get the feeling you're keeping something from me?
The Kyuubi grunted, motioning to the scene playing out in front of them with its head. Just watch this, boy. You might learn something you weren't expecting.
Riiiight…
oOoOoOo
With the ocean at their backs, and no indication on how they had travelled to the continent, the Sage of the Six Paths spoke several muted words to the Tailed Beasts. Each of them nodded in their own way and began trampling, or flying in the case of the Seven-Tails, towards the wide variety of villages and soldiers lay in front of them.
Having read the Sage's lips, Naruto could scarcely believe what he'd said. Snapping his head quickly to the stoic Kyuubi, Naruto didn't hide his surprise at all. He just ordered you guys to destroy their whole civilization! How could he do that?!
You were not there during the Endless War, boy. Neither was I, for most of it, but I saw some of the things they did to your ancestors. The Kyuubi stopped the scene in front of them, not wanting to miss anything from the memory he was most proud of.
But he ordered the destruction of a whole people! I thought the Sage of the Six Paths was a missionary of peace!
The Kyuubi swallowed what he was going to say to the boy and turned back to look at the frozen figure that he saw as his father-figure. The Sage…was a complex man. He…understood what had to be done, even if those around him disagreed with his decisions.
You disagreed with the invasion? I'm surprised by you, Kyuubi. This sounds exactly like you.
The Nine-Tails glared at him angrily, seemingly growing in size in order to better intimidate his captor. The invasion had to be done! I never disagreed with him on that. That was…something else…
Sensing he'd hit a sensitive spot, Naruto dropped the issue, indicating for the Kyuubi to keep playing the memory. It was something he would try to find out later, if he could.
After a few seconds the Kyuubi saw that Naruto wasn't pressing his point, so he turned back and continued the memory.
Beings the fastest out of the Tailed Beasts, it came as little surprise to Naruto that the burning feline that was the Two-Tails was the first to reach its target. Leaping straight at a terrified group of soldiers, the demon sliced two apart with its claws in a single swipe before breathing out a wide blue flame that incinerated dozens of the soldiers trying to flee from its rampage.
Leaping high over the Two-Tails, who continued to tear into the groups of soldiers around it, the Five-Tails lowered its head and aimed itself at the closest castle to their entry into the land. With a massive burst of speed, it slammed its horns into the walls of the castle, causing a giant shockwave to pulse out from the strike as the wall crumbled instantly upon impact. Using the momentum, the Five-Tails continued pushing through the various defences, destroying wall and tower alike with little indication of slowing down.
Running on its four limbs was the Four-Tails behind them, slamming its shoulders through large groups of enemies at once, spraying lava from its wide mouth over its foes, melting them into the ground. It appeared to be roaring some kind of battle-cry, though Naruto couldn't hear it due to the muted memory. It boggled his mind at what he saw, and for once he was glad that he couldn't hear it, for he was sure that the sound of such a battlefield would be deafening.
From its ocean berth, the Three-Tails was as fast in water as the Two-Tails was on land. With its three tails flailing behind it, the demonic-turtle creature leapt onto the vast array of ships attempting to fire on the Sage of the Six Paths on the Quiraji continent. Its massive jaw bit the war galleys in two, while it fired concentrated bursts of water to destroy the transport vessels attempting to flee the battle.
Using its tentacles to launch itself forward, the Eight-Tails wasted no life in moving as far inland as possible, firing off small blasts of chakra from its mouth to pick off stragglers to each side as it flew through the air. Once it landed on the ground it began swiping left and right with its tails, destroying the reinforcements that were attempting to move towards their beachhead.
High above where the Eight-Tails had launched itself, the Seven-Tails buzzed through the air, using its wings to destroy forests and damage buildings to prevent the enemy force from hiding. Picking select priority targets from above, the Seven-Tails dive-bombed them with frightening speed, ramming the enemy force with its helmet-like head and flicking them high into the air, leaving them to a long fall and a painful death.
As the slowest of the Tailed Beasts, the Six-Tailed slug ponderously slithered towards a collection of enemies trying to shoot it down with physical energy-charged arrows, though they merely bounced off its dense skin. It left a burning trail of slime in its path, and once it got in range it breathed in and spat a toxic acid over a wide area, destroying anything it touched with a loud sizzling.
Standing by their father-figure's side, Shukaku and the Kyuubi worked in tandem to fire long range projectiles onto cities far off in the distance. Shukaku fired burst after burst of concentrated air from its giant mouth, rending stone and earth from the ground as each shot ran hundreds of kilometres to his targets. Gaping its mouth wide open, the Kyuubi accumulated massive amounts of red and blue chakra into a single dark ball, firing it in a gigantic burst of energy that travelled through the air at break neck speed before exploding far off into the distance.
Despite the carnage he was witnessing, Naruto allowed himself a chuckle at the odd scene. It's odd to see the two of you working so well. I still remember how much you roared at him in Suna during the last Chuunin Exam.
The Kyuubi grinned, he had enjoyed that battle. He was getting uppity. As the eldest, I had to keep him in line.
The two of them watched the carnage the Tailed Beasts wrought on the Quiraji defences, it appeared like there was nothing that could stop their rampage. Though he looked tiny compared to the beasts under his command, the Sage of the Six Paths was still a focus of Naruto's attention.
To the blonde shinobi's gaze, he looked like the weight of the whole world on his shoulders. Despite looking older than the Third Hokage had been the last time Naruto had seen him, the look in his eyes made him look nearly corpse-like.
Why isn't he fighting? He's just…standing there.
I couldn't tell you. At this point the Sage was very old, but he was still the most powerful shinobi I've ever seen. There's more to this conflict than you might think.
Naruto frowned as he saw the scene speeding up in front of him, as the Tailed Beasts destroyed thousands of Quiraji soldiers and demolished every settlement they came across. It was a slaughter on a scale he'd never seen before, and Naruto wasn't sure how to react to it. While he couldn't forgive them for what they did to Konoha, something like this...
Nobody deserved this, not even the Quiraji.
Eventually he decided he'd had enough. He turned to the Kyuubi, Enough of this. I don't want to see anymore.
Squeamish? The demonic fox chuckled at the idea. I'm disappointed in you, boy. I'd have thought your bloodlust would have progressed at least this far.
Naruto sighed; the Kyuubi was always trying to get a rise out of him. He went to tell him to take him back again, but a thought came to him that shook him to the core.
If you were able to do all this…how are the Quiraji still around? I thought you came here to exterminate them. He winced as his choice of words, but judging from the battle there was no other conclusion he could draw.
The Kyuubi glared at him for a few seconds before staring back at the scene in front of them. I was getting to that, boy. Patience is a virtue.
oOoOoOo
The scene changed one final time, to the same battlefield they had previously seen, though it appeared as Naruto suspected it would after that much devastation. The land appeared scorched and dead, and with the sea at their back it looked like the battle had been finished, though the outcome didn't look like Naruto would have thought.
The Three-Tails sat in the water as it had before, though it looked to be bleeding out of several battle wounds. On top of its back stood the Sage of the Six Paths, looking like he'd been through hell and back since Naruto had last seen him. In front of him were the other Tailed Beasts sitting on the Three-Tails shell, though they all appeared to be a tenth of their other size when they had landed on the continent.
What's wrong with you guys? Did you lose a ton of your chakra or something?
He got no response from the Kyuubi, though the reason became clear once he saw what was opposing the Tailed Beasts and the Sage. There was no army that had pushed them back, no massive weaponry that could have taken out such beasts.
Standing on the land were five figures with hate-filled looks on their faces.
One was a young man, wearing an armour set of white and gold and had burnished gold eyes with an energy-covered bow in his hand. Naruto's eyes widened as he recognised the similarities between him and Shouri who had separated him from his companions. They weren't the same person since he looked slightly different, but the similarities were startling.
Beside him stood a man in a blood red robe with bright red spiky hair and a set of hovering metal spikes around his head. Naruto didn't recognise him, but something about the look in his ice-blue eyes that made him want to run and not look back.
The third figure looked completely out of place with the other warriors. From what Naruto could see, it was an old woman hidden under a black cloak and hood, her skin barely hanging from her bones as she struggled to keep herself up with a wooden cane. He couldn't see her eyes, but a quick glance down at the ground he saw that the ground beneath her seemed to just be…dead.
However that became irrelevant when Naruto laid his eyes on the woman beside her. She also wore a black robe, but her face wasn't hidden at all. She had pale white skin and seemed almost statue-like in that she didn't move an inch despite the tense-looking situation. Her eyes were shut, but Naruto could feel something that just felt completely off about her.
Behind those four was a single man who looked about Kakashi's age, though that was where the similarities ended. He had a shaved head and was covered in strange tattoos that looked nothing like anything Naruto had seen before. They covered the length of his body from his legs to his face, and only served to make him look more intimidating. He wore a simple light red outfit with armoured plates scattered across his body, and had no weapons to speak of, but Naruto could instantly tell he was the leader of the others.
It was his lifeless white eyes. He had single black dots for pupils, and looked almost completely alien compared to everyone else Naruto had seen before.
He appeared to be speaking to the Sage of the Six Paths with a furious look on his face, but Naruto didn't have to hear him to understand the general idea of what was being said.
You were beaten back? By those guys?!
Don't sound so happy. The Kyuubi walked closer to the five Quiraji enemies, indicating to them with a wave of his hand. They discovered a way to become immune to chakra. As creatures made purely from chakra with only chakra-type attacks, you can see why we couldn't stand against them.
Naruto's eyes widened at the revelation, that was something he would never had considered. And the Sage of the Six Paths wouldn't have much in the way of fighting that either…is this what you wanted to show me? That these five are the ones that destroyed Konoha because of the Endless War?
His prisoner glared at the five of them, remembering how quickly the battle had turned once they had appeared on the battlefield. That wasn't something he wanted to remember, but his survival depended on his captor knowing what had happened.
They swore they would return, and destroy us. We killed them almost to extinction, but they have clearly returned to destroy the world of shinobi. We started this battle, boy, but you'll have to end it. You proved a few weeks ago that you can fight and perhaps defeat those we could not.
Naruto watched the Kyuubi with a look of amusement; it was clearly uncomfortable by admitting that he had an advantage over the demonic fox.
He looked back at the Quiraji leader behind the four warriors, So who is that guy then? Their leader?
I don't know, replied the Kyuubi. But when he took charge…we couldn't do anything to stop him. I have no doubt he is the one that leads your current enemy.
Take me back.
The Kyuubi frowned at his statement, turning back with his hands on his hips. There is…
No, I've seen enough. I understand what I have to do.
Seeing the determination in his eyes, the Kyuubi sighed slowly and waved his arms over the scene, dispersing it quickly. Don't forget who told you this, boy. This isn't out of the kindness of my heart.
oOoOoOo
Naruto's eyes popped open and he shot up from under his blanket. His quick movement woke up Hinata who had been sleeping soundly beside him.
"Wha…'s wro…"
Her new husband helped her up with the same care he'd promised he would for the rest of their lives. Pulling the blanket to cover her front, Hinata stared at him with drooping eyes. "Are you…okay?"
"We have to go back, Hinata."
Blinking her eyes in an attempt to wake herself up, Hinata gave up and laid her head back onto their pillow, placing a hand on Naruto's chest. "In the morning…"
Naruto could only chuckle at her reaction and leaned back down, pecking her lightly on the forehead as she smiled at the contact. "Okay, in the morning then. But we've got to go back, Hinata."
Hearing her light breathing, Naruto chuckled again before adopting a serious expression and stared up at the ceiling of their bedroom.
"We have to go back home…"
"Have you got everything you need?" asked Hinata, shouldering her pack from on top of their made bed. Once he'd told her what he'd seen, she'd agreed with him that they needed to move on. She didn't agree with him on everything, but Naruto had a knack for sensing these kinds of things, despite how ambiguous his 'vision' had been.
Naruto popped his head out from their bathroom, running a towel over his blonde hair, "We didn't have much stuff to begin with, so I think so. Is there anything you want me to pick up from the blacksmith?"
Hinata considered asking him to see if they had shuriken or kunai, but stopped herself when she remembered the attitude most of them had towards shinobi, which made a frightening amount of sense now. They had come to accept the two of them, but there were boundaries that shouldn't be crossed.
"I'm good. Hurry up, Naruto, we don't have much time."
Her husband popped back into the bathroom with a chuckle, "Yes, so very pressed for time. I think the others can handle themselves until we get back."
"We can't afford to wait, Naruto, you know that." She entered the bathroom, amused by the fact that she was ready and he was fiddling with his hair.
Looking through the mirror at her, Naruto smiled warmly before picking up a shaver near the sink. It was a pain, and learning without assistance had been interesting, but Hinata apparently preferred the clean-shaved look for now, so he had to do it.
"I'll be out in a few minutes," he said, turning around to kiss her on the cheek before unceremoniously pushing her out of the bathroom.
Hinata chuckled and shut down the door. "It's hard to tell who is the husband and who is the wife…"
"I heard that!"
oOoOoOo
The two of them had wanted to sneak out, since neither of them were particularly fond of long goodbyes.
Unfortunately for them, the townsfolk had another thing in mind.
As they emerged from their temporary house, packed up and ready to go, the townspeople had lined up from the entrance of their house to the town's exit. None of them said a word, but the looks on their faces said more than enough for the two shinobi.
Leaning her head slightly so that she could whisper to him, Hinata wasn't able to hide her confusion. "Naruto, what are we meant to do?"
He was just as surprised as she was, but he understood the meaning behind the townspeople's action. With a smile he nudged her slightly with his shoulder, "We should go. Don't say anything, it'll ruin the moment."
His young wife nodded with a warm smile and slipped her hand into his, gripping it tightly. They came here together, they would leave here together.
They recognised the townsfolk as they walked towards the exit, but besides a smile they didn't exchange any pleasantries. The two shinobi walked slowly and felt quite embarrassed by the display, neither of them thought they had done that much to deserve the kind of treatment they had been getting.
I guess everyone needs someone to thank at one point or another.
Looking towards the open gate, Naruto's grin only grew wider when he saw the stoic-faced general standing at the end of the line of people, with what was left of the army under his command in full armour and uniform. The likelihood of the enemy army returning was slim from their estimates, but he'd assured Naruto during one of their conversations that he'd hold the castle till his dying breath.
As they passed the general, Naruto gave him the slightest of nods. The general didn't respond, staring straight through him without even acknowledging his presence. Naruto knew he was too proud to bid the two of them farewell, though he was a little disappointed that he didn't want to get one final scold in.
They walked through the town limits and looked at each other solemnly.
"What do we do now?" asked Hinata quietly.
"I guess we go south, to the docks."
"ATTENTION!"
The two of them jumped at the command and turned around, watching as the soldiers of the town stood as straight as they could, each facing the two of them with their faces in unbroken smiles.
The general took a slow breath, and with a slight grin he put his hand to his head.
"SALUTE!"
Every soldier saluted in perfect synchronisation, showing the newlywed couple the extent of their appreciation and acknowledgement of the fact they weren't like the shinobi from legend.
Both Naruto and Hinata's bodies swelled with pride, and in the same pose they saluted the soldier's with gusto. Shinobi weren't much for parading in Naruto's mind, but in this circumstance it felt wholly appropriate.
After a few moments they all put their hands down, and without saying another word the two shinobi turned around and left the town to their business.
The general allowed himself a chuckle as he watched their backs disappear into the distance. It was strange, but he was going to mess them. His father would've had a fit if he knew he'd become friends with a shinobi.
He turned back to his men, who had begun to break rank and chat among themselves about the absurdity of the situation. With a pleasurable hint of amusement, the general breathed in loudly.
"Don't just stand there! Get back to your posts!"
Remembering the last time they had been given 'extra duty' from their general, the soldiers quickly went back to their jobs, though they were more content to do them than a long time ago.
It took them nearly two weeks to reach the docks of the continent they had been living on for the past two months. Considering how much the townsfolk talked about it, the two of them expected a sprawling hub of trade, with fishermen and sailors packed into a large area.
They were surprised to see that the large docks were mostly abandoned, with only a small section near the ocean's edge still holding any indicators of people living there. The two of them looked at each for a few seconds, both thinking the same thing before they moved into the area.
As they walked through the only district with people in it, they made some interesting observations. People appeared to be suspicious of their entry onto their turf, despite the fact that outwards they didn't look like anything suspicious, though Naruto's orange outfit may have garnered some of that attention on its own merits.
However there was a look in all the people they passed, one that reeked of dejection and frustration. From where they could see, the docks were not lively by any definition of the word, and there were no ships in the ocean that were anything larger than small rowboats with oars attached.
"I don't think we are going to find a ship here…" said Naruto quietly.
Hinata nodded in agreement, "Probably not. Maybe we should ask someone."
After several failed attempts at initiating conversation, they eventually found an old man sorting out squids in front of a wreckage of a house. He seemed to be suspicious of them like everyone else, but was happy to answer their questions nevertheless.
"If ya lookin for sailors, ya should go to ta bar down the street. They ain't had much work lately since the army left, so don't 'pect a nice welcome."
Naruto's eyes narrowed at his mention of an army, "When did the army leave?"
The old man spat onto a squid and began to wash it in his hands, "Oh, some time ago. Had me a wife and son back 'den. Army took me son, never saw 'im again."
"I think he's talking about the Quiraji," whispered Naruto to his young wife.
Hinata nodded and thanked the old man for helping them with a slight bow, unsure what the local custom was.
He waved his hand with attached squid with a wide grin, "No trouble, young 'uns. Been long since pretty thing like you come along, ya be careful with 'dem sailors. They might wanna take ya for a go around."
The two shinobi thanked the man again and turned around, with Naruto unintentionally clenching his fists at the idea of someone even touching her. Sensing his annoyance, Hinata slipped a hand into his, relaxing him immediately.
"Don't worry. I can handle myself."
He looked at her for a few seconds before smiling and pecking her on the cheek, "I know. Doesn't mean I can't be protective of you. You're very precious to me, you know."
Hinata's heart leapt at his statement. Even after this long, those kinds of things still impacted her so much she struggled to contain herself. Unsure what to say in response, she merely blushed slightly and they started to walk to where the old man had directed them to.
oOoOoOo
Even before they went into the bar, the two shinobi could hear the laughter booming outwards from the rundown building and smell the stench of alcohol. Naruto took a slow breath, he wasn't sure what to expect within, but it probably wouldn't be a welcoming experience.
"Let's go."
They walked into the bar, both of them scanning the rowdy place immediately for someone who could help them. It looked like there were about twenty people inside the bar, not counting the man behind the counter washing a beer glass with a suspiciously dirty-looking rag.
Unlike the people from the castle, these men all looked like they were at their wits end and were drinking away their sorrows, laughing at crude and unfunny jokes with loud snorting laughter.
They all seemed to notice their entry, but beyond leering at Hinata's figure for a few seconds they barely gave them the time of day, going back to their drinks.
The two of them walked over to the bar, with Hinata squeezing her husband hand slightly before putting her hands on the bar as they sat down. It wasn't a scared motion; it was a warning for him to be cautious. Naruto's temper had gotten better over the years, but Hinata knew it wasn't too hard to set him off when she was involved, and they had enough enemies in the world.
Naruto understood the motion immediately, smiling at her before sitting down beside her. The bartender slowly made his way over to them and stood opposite Naruto, ignoring his blue haired wife completely.
"What do you want?" he said with a gruff voice.
Naruto leaned forward slightly on the bar, "We're looking for a ship."
"Well you're at the docks. Good job."
The blonde shinobi tensed slightly, but still kept his cool as he smiled at the disinterested bartender. "We're looking for passage off this continent. Do you know anyone that can help us?"
If they didn't cause a stir when they came in, that single question silenced the room.
Until they all burst laughing that is.
Even the bartender couldn't hold in his amusement, walking back to the other side of the bar with a loud chuckle. He picked up another glass and began cleaning it, while still chuckling to himself.
Three men came up to them from behind, each of them circling around to stand beside Hinata.
"You guys don't know anything, do you?" said one of them, leaning on the bar with a wide grin underneath his beard.
One of them put his hand on the back of Hinata's chair, while his other companion stood between her and Naruto's seat, blocking his view.
"Why don't you come play with us, little girl? Spend some time with a real man."
"Yeah, we'll show you a better time than this loser…"
Hinata smiled awkwardly at their attention and tried to look at her husband, but her view was blocked by one of the sailors. "You're very kind…but…"
Standing up from his seat quietly, Naruto rubbed at his neck sorely and leaned his head over to look at his new wife. "I'm going to the toilet. You got this?"
Hinata smiled warmly at his confidence in her and nodded, "Yeah."
The three sailors all glared at him angrily, expecting him to fight them for hitting on the girl he came in with, but to their surprise Naruto did exactly what he said he would.
Walking slowly with his hands in his pockets, Naruto went to the bathroom, closing the door behind himself.
The sailors all expressed surprise for only a second before turning their attention back to Hinata, who continued to smile at their lewd suggestions.
Within the bathroom, Naruto tensed up and planted a fist into a nearby wall, driving straight through its brick frame. He retracted his fist and breathed out slowly, looking at it with a grin. Since the Kyuubi had revealed that it was still alive within him, his tissue regeneration had spiked up and the bruises on his knuckles were already starting to heal.
I can't start a fight here…we might need one of them. If Hinata can persuade them, then I can keep my cool.
He walked over to the basin and washed the small amount of blood from his knuckle, staring at his image in the cracked mirror. After a few seconds he grinned and dried his hands on his jacket.
I guess I had to grow up at some point.
Making his way to the door, he grasped the handle as he reiterated something to himself.
But if any of them touch her, I'm flipping this place upside down. No questions asked.
He'd only been gone perhaps a minute, but when he walked back into the main bar area he could see that the situation had clearly changed dramatically.
Hinata was still sitting in her chair, in the proper pose for a lady of her upbringing, sipping on a small glass of water while waiting for him to return for the bathroom.
Scattered around her chair were the unconscious bodies of all the bar's occupants, each of them either groaning in the foetal position or sprawled out across the alcohol and glass covered floor. Behind the bar the bartender was leaning against the back wall with a horrified look on his face, clutching his rag like it was the only possession he had.
Naruto chuckled to himself before walking up to the bar and placing a comforting hand on Hinata's shoulder, "No luck?"
She looked up at him with her usual calm smile before shaking her head and putting her glass of water back on the bar. "Unfortunately no. None of them had any information we can use."
Her husband sighed and turned around to lean on the bar with his back. "I guess we just keep looking then. You ready to go?"
"Yes." Hinata turned her white-eyed gaze to the bartender, who was on the verge of wetting himself under her stare. As was proper for the situation, she bowed her thanks to the bartender before the two of them walked over the bodies and out of the bar.
As they closed the door behind them, the two of them immediately noticed a presence standing to the side, but neither acknowledged it as a threat so they tried to ignore it.
Fortunately for them, the presence had another idea.
"I heard you two are looking for a ship."
They both turned to see a young woman leaning on a rail near the bar, staring at them through a single dark eye. Her other eye appeared to be covered up by a set of white bandages. She wore a strangely coloured outfit for the people of the land, and Naruto almost lost count of how many daggers and blades he could see on her person.
"We are," he replied quickly. "Can you help us?"
The woman shifted her head curiously, staring at the two of them for a few seconds before seemingly coming to her own conclusions about them. "Not from here, are you? There are no ships; the army took them all when they left."
The two shinobi sighed, that stifled their plans considerably.
"Damn…we really need to get back home."
"To the shinobi continent?"
Both Naruto and Hinata were both immediately on edge; they hadn't mentioned their true destination for fear that nobody would help them as shinobi.
Naruto glared at her through his blue eyes, "You know who we are?"
The woman chuckled and leaned her hands on the back of her short hair, "It's hard to be in touch with goings on around here without hearing about the two shinobi who saved the only castle and settlement left in this land."
"Yet you would help us?" asked Hinata cautiously.
She shrugged, pushing herself off the rail. "I always thought the idea of shinobi as bogey men for a crock of shit. Something that hasn't been seen for centuries can't be that dangerous." She indicated to the two of them with a tanned hand, "Besides, neither of you look that tough."
As they were talking, an idea struck Naruto so hard that he mentally kicked himself for not thinking of it earlier. He turned to Hinata with the widest grin he could muster, "Why don't we build a ship?"
Her eyes widened at the idea, she hadn't thought of that either. With their abilities it was certainly possible, though a problem came to her as quickly as it did to Naruto.
"But, we don't know how to build a ship."
"Ah…that is a good point."
Watching their interaction, the one-eyed woman shook her head for a few seconds before throwing it back and bursting out laughing. The two shinobi stared at her, wondering what was so funny to cause such an outburst.
Once she'd calmed herself down, she wiped a tear from her eye and continued to chuckle, "You guys are hilarious. You really want to go back, don't you?"
"That should be obvious," said Naruto impatiently, struggling to work out why this woman was even talking to them.
Finally recovering from her outburst, the woman let out a long breath and smiled as she walked slowly towards them. "Alright. I've got a shipwright, though you won't be able to find the manpower in this land even if you had a year to do it. There aren't too many people around here that are worth a spit on a boat."
Naruto grinned when he heard that. He pointed to himself with a thumb, "Leave that bit to me."
"Um, not to sound rude…"
The woman turned to Hinata, anticipating her question, "Why am I helping you? It's simple, little girl. Nothing happens around here anymore. Something tells me you guys will be far more entertaining than the drinking and screwing I'm doing currently."
Hinata couldn't help but blush slightly at the woman's brash attitude, but she was grateful nonetheless for her assistance.
"Okay, so here's the deal. You build the ship, boy, and I'll sail it for you."
"You're a sailor?" asked Naruto, looking up and down her with a suspicious gaze.
The woman shook her head, pulling out one of her daggers and twirling it on a finger before slamming it into the ground so fast that it was difficult to keep up with her movements even for the two of them.
"I'm a pirate, though it's hard to be one without a ship. I've got a small crew, but we can run anything you guys come up with."
Naruto could only shake his head, while Hinata laughed softly into one of her hands before extending an arm.
"We're happy for your assistance, Miss…"
Their new companion pulled up one of her own hands and spat onto it before shaking Hinata's hand, laughing at the look the Hyuuga heiress gave her at the action. "Name's Grace and it ain't Miss."
"Well…Grace…we are happy for your help," said Naruto, resisting the urge to chuckle as Hinata frantically tried to wipe her hand on her jacket.
"No doubt. Now about payment…"
Both Naruto and Hinata stared at each other for a few seconds, trying to figure how they would bluff their way past this issue.
"That's a bit…mercenary of you," commented Naruto.
"All pirates are mercenaries. We aren't in it for sunshine and daisies. Do you guys have anything? Or am I wasting my time?"
Hinata almost went to apologise for them doing exactly that, but she felt Naruto tug at her hand to stop her. Her husband smiled as he thought of the perfect solution.
"How about this. We make you a ship, to your specifications, and you know that we can because we are shinobi. You take us to our homeland, and you get to keep the ship."
The pirate's eyes widened at the proposal, not concealing her surprise whatsoever. Her initial plan had been to kill them at sea and take it anyway, but this way she didn't have to risk herself or her crew against two shinobi.
Spitting on her hand again, Grace extended it towards Naruto with a wry grin, "You got yourself a deal, shinobi. If I can sail again, you won't hear me complaining."
Naruto shook her hand, hiding his reluctance better than Hinata did before they let go of the handshake and Grace took a step back to look over the two of them.
"Right, well. Let's get started, shall we? Ain't no time like the present as my mother used to say."
A week later Hinata stared over the plans that Grace's shipwright had drawn up for them. She could easily tell that the pirate was exploiting their abilities to her own ends, but since none of them knew where the shinobi continent was they would need the sturdiest ship they could make.
Such as it was, the army of Naruto clones were building a war galley for their trip.
She looked up as she saw their pirate captain walk into the rundown building, taking a long draught from her flask before wiping her mouth and looking at the young Hyuuga.
"I've seen some weird stuff in my time, but that boy…it's scary to think what he could do with such an ability."
Hinata smiled at her, "Naruto is always surprising people. I gather you didn't think we could actually do this?"
Sitting down opposite Hinata, Grace put her boots on top of the table just at the edge of the plans, "Didn't think you could? I dunno, it was all very spur of the moment. But now that he's starting pulling down buildings for the frame, I have to admit I am impressed."
Hinata stood up from her chair, leaving the plans on the table for Grace to look over. "We are grateful for your help. I don't know how we'd get home without you, neither of us know how to sail."
Grace barked out a laugh as she scratched at the bandages over her face, "You've got to stop thanking me. I ain't in this for charity, I'm getting a ship out of the deal, and a whole new land to enjoy. Don't underestimate my greed, girl."
I definitely won't, thought Hinata, maintaining her relatively innocent smile as she left the building to see how things outside were going.
The shipwright was nowhere to be found, but that wasn't terribly surprising to Hinata since he didn't have much to do after drawing up the plans for Grace's ship.
Scattered around the area were nearly fifty clones of Naruto, performing various tasks to prepare the large amount of lumber they had collected to be put into the ship's frame. From Hinata's estimation, it would probably take a few weeks to build the ship they were planning to, though it wasn't due to a lack of effort.
Since he was working to a very specific set of plans, Naruto needed as much concentration as possible for each of his clones, since even a single error could spell disaster for their ship. As such he was only able to maintain fifty clones to cut and shape the lumber he had taken from the nearby abandoned buildings and the few trees he had found. Under the beating sun it was hard work, but Naruto was happy to do it if it meant they would be able to get home.
Walking through the clones with a proud smile on her face, Hinata made her way to a Naruto that was working one of the few saws they had managed to procure. She put her hands on his shoulders and kissed him lightly on the neck.
The Naruto smiled and stopped sawing momentarily, taking one of Hinata's hands into his own. "You know, you never did tell me how you can pick me out from my clones."
"And I never will," replied the girl with a grin.
"Everything okay?" he asked, wondering if something had gone wrong with Grace. The pirate was nothing if not unpredictable, though he had to admit her personality had highly amusing.
"I was just going to get some lunch. Do you want anything?"
One of the clones went to open his mouth, but remembered that ramen didn't exist in this part of the world and shut his mouth in disappointment.
"I'll take a break in a few minutes. It's taking longer than I thought to get the frame ready, since the measurements have to be so exact."
Hinata nodded, understanding how strenuous his work really was. She was offering what assistance she could, but her role came later on in the construction phase. "How long do you think it'll be?"
Her husband sighed and wiped his forehead as the clones continued to work around him, "I don't know. We've only got three saws, and we're having to make the nails and bolts from scrap metal. I won't lie; this is going to take a while."
Hinata reached out and kissed him lightly, letting the touch linger for a few seconds before pulling back and leaning her forehead on his. "As long as you are here with me, I don't mind. It'll take as long as it takes."
Naruto chuckled and stroked her hair for a few seconds before pulling them apart, "I should get back to work. I don't want another riot on my hands; the last one was difficult enough."
His wife had to nod in agreement; it hadn't been a pretty sight. She patted him on the arm affectionately before turning back to the place they were staying, "I'll bring back some rice balls, okay?"
The original Naruto nodded and turned back to his saw work. He didn't have to tell her he loved her, it was something both of them knew each other felt on a daily basis. Though he did take pride in surprising her at times with how he displayed his affection for her .
***Four Months after Separation***
Checking over the ship one last time from her high aerial position, Hinata slowly floated herself back down onto the deck and nodded to their captain.
"Everything looks good. I think we are ready to go."
Grace stared at her crew, still amazed that the two shinobi had been able to make such a ship in only a month and a half with the materials they had. Besides the two of them, she had her shipwright and two deckhands in addition to her cook. It was a tiny pirate crew compared to her last vessel that was taken by the army, but it was better than nothing.
"Not yet. We still have to name her."
The captain of the newly built vessel ran a hand over the sanded railing. It had been built better than she would have imagined, and with the right crew she knew that it was the kind of ship that was going to make the pirate she claimed to be.
The crew stared firing off names, as did her two shinobi passengers, but Grace had already decided on a name. She turned to her deckhands, "Hoist the sails and prepare to launch. We have a favourable wind, and we'd be remiss to not follow it."
Knowing what would happen to them if they didn't follow her orders, the crew went about their duties, while the pirate captain looked out over the open sea.
"The first voyage of the Dread Lady. Sounds almost poetic."
Walking up beside her, the shinobi couple smiled as the war galley slowly pulled out from the dock.
Grace turned to them with a knowing grin, "If your continent is out there, we'll find it. Hope neither of you get seasick by the way, particularly you, Naruto."
The blonde shinobi nodded with an amused smile, "I know. Just yell out when you want rowers, and I'll get it done."
Grace nodded and watched as Naruto walked off to do his own part, while Hinata lingered behind to speak to the captain.
Turning to the white-eyed girl, Grace could already predict what she was going to say. "Going to tell me to stay away from your man?"
To her surprise, Hinata shook her head and leaned on the rail to watch the ocean ebb by beneath their ship. "Naruto wouldn't do that. He may enjoy your company, but he isn't that type."
Grace chuckled and pulled out her flask, twisting off the lid. "That's true. He's a bit young too, but that hasn't stopped me in the past."
She turned to her blue haired crew member, "You know we might never find this place."
"Even if it takes years, we have to try. Our friends are waiting for us, and they need our help."
"Fair enough," said Grace with a swig from her flask. "But in the meantime, let's just focus on getting to the next piece of land. Go help your husband with the rigging."
"You're giving us orders?" asked Hinata, feeling amused by the idea of what her father would think of her doing such a task.
"I could yell at you to do it, if you'd like."
Hinata chuckled, "That won't be necessary, I'm happy to do it."
The pirate captain watched as the quiet girl went about her duty, shaking her head as she saw Naruto scrambling up the mast like a monkey, without even using the rope to hoist himself up.
This ought to be interesting…
A/N:
So.
Let's do a recap, because there was a lot to keep track of in this part of the story.
***Recap of characters at end of their Separation chapters***
Naruto = Sailing back to the shinobi continent on boat from Quiraji homeland.
Hinata = Travelling with Naruto back to shinobi continent.
Neji = Current head of Otogakure, working on building his forces.
Tenten = Neji's weaponsmith and armoursmith for Otogakure.
Shikamaru = Working in Suna as Gaara's personal advisor and tolerating Temari.
Ino = Residing in Suna with her adopted daughter Airi, after fleeing the hospital battle.
Chouji = Living under assumed retirement in a small village in the Land of Hot Water.
Lee = Conducting one-man attacks on Quiraji forces while collaborating with Suna.
Sakura = Working and helping run Suna's hospital after fleeing the hospital battle.
Sasuke = Helping Cascading Flow fight their rebellion in the Land of Earth with Fiore.
Kakashi = Retired with Konan to an unknown location after the Slaughter of Amegakure.
Itachi = Captured by Sensou for her experiments after defeating Shouri.
Kiba = Assisting Suna with Akamaru and Nagisa.
Shino = Deceased. Killed by Iceheart in a forest in the Land of Fire.
Shizune = Taken by her summon Byakko to his land for 'peaceful' retirement.
Asuma and Kurenai = Deceased. Killed by Iceheart in their homes.
Gai = Deceased. Killed by Kakuzu after Kyuubi was extracted from Naruto.
Author's Note:
First thing I'd like to say. After next week, I will be spending the next six months in Japan, studying, observing, and having fun and whatnot. Don't worry, I'll still be writing, though I doubt I'll be able to keep up with the 10,000 words a week that I have been doing so far, since there are other things I will be writing as well (non-fanfiction related). Essentially this means that I'll try to put out each chapter as soon as I can, but it'll likely be a fortnightly thing now.
I'm also taking a week off from writing so I can get prepared for the trip. So the next chapter will be either two to three weeks away.
Since there was virtually no information on the Endless War in the manga, I figured something like this might have actually happened. As you might ascertain, I like the idea of rebelling against an oppressor on such a scale.
Since I started writing this story, I haven't really done any reading of other Naruto fanfictions, and that's more to my detriment. I have the chance over the past few days and there was something I had noticed. The chapters that were over 5000 words were long to read. Not in a bad way, but in a noticeable way. Are my chapters too long? I know this story is ridiculously long, mainly because I bit off more than I can chew, but I'd still like your feedback on this area.
We move now into the final third of the story. Don't ask me how long it'll be, because honestly I have no idea. But let me put it into context, going past Chapter 60 is quite likely. It's a damn long story.
Please review and tell me what you think. I try to take each review into account, and believe me I read them all. Tell me what can be improved, what you liked, what you didn't, everything. I'm a writer so I'm always open to criticism.