Sneaking down the alley, his beautiful blue eyes focus on a few items ahead, merchandise, not very valuable to some, but like jewelry to others. Around them, three men were talking loudly. All three in plain clothes, but burly and with somewhat frightening expressions.
- Where is that piece of shit?
One of them complained. He had black hair, part of his hair replaced by a large scar from the beginning of his forehead to halfway up his head. A simple lime green tank top, dark pants, also simple.
- He is late. We won't make much from today's merchandise alone.
Another said, this one slimmer than the previous one, similar clothes and straight brown hair.
Bending down a little, Naruto takes a few deep breaths, and then pulls hard on a rope that was beside his foot. As soon as he did, a huge noise happened, as if something hard made of wood had fallen.
The three men were startled by the noise, and their eyes immediately stared at a huge wooden box sliding down from the roof in front of them, hitting them extremely hard and breaking as it knocked them down.
Naruto thanked whoever it was that had left that box on that roof like that.
Sighing, he runs towards the goods and puts everything he saw into his bag, listening to the men screaming as he did so.
- What the hell, kid!
The largest of them shouted angrily, and Naruto looked at him for only a few moments before he started to run from there.
He was a long way from the center, which was not of much advantage to him. But on the other hand, his size allowed him to run almost anywhere between those houses and narrow alleys.
For example, he could throw his bag over a high wall and go through a small hole at the base of the wall, tight even for him, but wide enough to squeeze through.
- Damn it! Go around the sides!
Naruto heard the man shout, and a victorious smile broke out on his lips.
The men ran through the alleys, in which he purposely let himself be seen. At a certain moment, in the middle of that maze of narrow alleys, the three men found themselves face to face.
- What the... what are you doing here!?
The black-haired man said, almost shouting in anger.
- The same as you!
- The boy tricked us! He must be going downtown now!
- Argh, damn it!
The three men started running together down the alleys, and a smiling Naruto came out of a barrel in front of an old house not far from there.
He had done that and run through those alleys too many times already, he knew that place, he was used to it.
With a sigh, he fastens the bag on his back and walks calmly in the opposite direction from the men.
- It is a vase in good condition, newly purchased, and the blankets are of a great wool, made in the fire country itself.
Naruto sold his items with a friendly smile on his face. The people, of slightly advanced age, looked at his products with analytical eyes.
One of the men there took a coin purse and five copper coins for Naruto, who thanked him cheerfully and put the coins in his back pocket.
- These oranges were harvested this morning. They are fresh, as are the apples and lemons. They all have the same price, one copper coin for three fruits.
A middle-aged lady gave him two copper coins and took six oranges, and the small group of his newest customers slowly broke up.
When there was no one around, Naruto sighed and looked at his few goods. He had managed to sell a good portion of it, but most of it consisted of fruit, so even if he had gotten a good amount of copper coins, it still wasn't much.
Drying his sweat, he looked up at the sky. The hot sun burned his back, but something he was used to. The melancholy of the blue in his eyes was absorbed by the even more intense blue of the sky.
In those three months that had passed, he had not made much progress. Grief still surrounded him, although it was masked by a cheerful and gentle, even childlike, face. His biggest problems in the first few weeks were money and food.
It took him about a month to reach a town, on the way he survived on what nature provided. Thanks to his father's teachings, he was not in such great need.
However, his bridles ran out, his clothes were torn, and the forest was not a suitable place for a child to sleep, although he had grown accustomed to it.
To enter the city, he had to hide his sword in an abandoned hut a little way off, and had to sleep on the street while still looking for new clothes to steal. At least to look decent.
Looking at his situation now, he wondered what he would do a week from now... a month from now... a year... ten years. He still wondered how he got to that point.
He shook his head and picked up his things, wrapping his goods in a cloth and putting them in an old wheelbarrow that a woman was going to throw away some time ago.
Walking through the poorer parts of the city, he arrives at his temporary dwelling. A cardboard box in a damp alley. He found a way to make the place more... resistant, putting broken shingles over the cardboard box, two pieces of wood that supported a roof he built himself with scraps he found lying around. It wasn't much, but it was already safer than sleeping on the street.
Sighing, he hides his things and puts away most of his money. His first goal was to save enough money to get out of that depressing and dangerous city. Who knows, maybe he could join a mercenary group, or go to a bigger city and get a better way to make a living.
Although, if he was honest with himself, roaring his sword was what made him really happy.
Putting his hands behind his head, he walks through the dirty streets of the small town towards the center, heading towards his favorite restaurant, this being the cheapest he could find in the center. There were also restaurants in poorer places, but the last time he went to one of them, the plates and cutlery were still dirty from the previous customer. He would not risk dying from eating something on those plates, no chance.
When he arrived at the restaurant, he waved to the owner, who waved back with a friendly smile. The owner of that place was a good man, he gave him a permanent discount for any dish he ordered. And every now and then Naruto would order a slightly more expensive dish, in the vague hope that this pleasure might make his mind wander and focus elsewhere.
His father's face always appeared in his mind whenever he stopped doing something, whenever he was quiet, whenever he went to sleep. It was difficult to make that pain in his chest recede, since with each passing day it seemed to get stronger, more intense.
After lunch, his mind wandered to the things that worried him as he returned to his "home". He had sold all his fruit, and had nothing to eat for the rest of the day. There was no way he could steal more fruit from the place he had stolen earlier.
The boy ran his hands through his hair, briefly touching the bandage that covered the scar on his face.
After walking for some time, he reached his spot, and soon, his eyes widened as he saw two men standing in front of the alley he used to sleep in.
"Damn... they found me!"
Swallowing hard, he turned and started walking in the opposite direction. They could keep the few goods he has not yet sold, and the Blondie doubts that they have managed to find his hidden money.
As he turns around, however, he runs into the black-haired man with the scar on his head, and is greeted almost immediately by a loud slap across his face.
- Hey! I found the little shit!
The man shouted, grabbing Naruto tightly by the arm as the others approached.
- What the hell, kid! Do you know what we've been through because of you?
One of the men he couldn't identify grabbed him hard by the neck, and the boy groaned in pain as he felt another slap across his face.
- You robbed us and sold our goods! I could kill you right here and now, and no one would care about garbage! But I'll give you a chance, give me the money you got and we'll let you go.
The man with the scar said, stooping down and looking Naruto in the eye.
As soon as he did, Naruto spat in his face, ignoring the pain in his cheek, and kicked him in the groin. Turning quickly, he grabbed a pocket knife from his belt and stabbed the arm of the man holding his neck, finally throwing his knife at the third man. The blade stabbed into his shoulder, and the man's groan of pain was only muffled by the sound of Naruto's footsteps as he began to run towards the center of town.
- Son of a bitch!
The man with the scar shouted, getting up and running as fast as he could after Naruto, although he couldn't ignore the pain between his legs. The boy had a strong kick. Nothing more to be expected from a boy with a slightly advanced physique like Naruto's, who, despite finding himself in the situation he was in, never stopped training.
His father would kill him if he skipped a day of training.
However, the same did not apply to the man with straight brown hair, who was advancing rapidly toward the blond.
Naruto gasped, sneaking down an alley and throwing himself on the damp ground, letting his feet slide under a hole in the wall. Just then, he stood up and leaped on the wall, taking two steps on the smooth sloping surface and leaping over a higher wall.
"Use your surroundings," something his father had always told him.
He could hear the muffled voices of the men, who parted ways.
Naruto knew those alleys, so he clicked his tongue.
On the bright side, he would end up in the center if he went his way.
On the downside, all those alleys converged, meaning he would have to be faster than the men to get to the center. There was no way back, since the brown-haired man was still chasing him.
Letting his body slide again, Naruto's eyes widened slightly after jumping off a roof, and he rolled as he hit the ground, running as fast as he could to the end of the alley.
It wasn't long before he saw the end of the alley, people walking from one side to the other just ahead, as well as some guards.
A smile broke out on his lips at the sight of the guards ahead, and his chest was marked with relief. He would have to move out of his alley, but it was all right, he would deal with it later.
Before he could reach the end of the alley, however, two strong arms held him, one squeezing his waist, the other with a hand over his mouth.
- You little shit, I got you!
The man with the scar growled, violently pulling Naruto back, who struggled and tried to free himself from his grip.
There were several ways to take down a larger enemy, however, in that situation, Naruto couldn't do much. He didn't have a brute strength that could match that man's, nor a weapon to use. Maybe his teeth, but what he could do at most was bite his opponent's arm, before being completely overpowered.
But despite this, he didn't stop struggling. Not when they tied his hands and legs, not when they put him on their shoulders and took him to a secluded place. Not even when they began to beat him mercilessly.
On the ground, Naruto cringed. His body trembled, blood dripped from his mouth and from wounds on his face, arms and torso.
He was weak, but his hands and legs were free... at least.
The man with the scar on his head crouched down and pulled him by the hair. Gritting his teeth in pain, Naruto opened his eyes weakly, recognizing the place he was in.
The abandoned hut... hm.
- Look kid, I understand, okay? I understand, you stole to get something to eat, I can sympathize with that. But that's not why I'm going to take it easy.
The man punched him again in the face, and Naruto groaned softly as he felt his head hit the ground.
- If you had given us the money, we would have left you alone by now. We would have forgotten.
The man stared with cold eyes as the boy slowly crawled along the ground towards the side of the hut. A futile attempt in his eyes, but he allowed this small hope to settle in the boy's chest.
- But no... things turned out differently when you did that stupid thing. My friend Kan over there really wants to kill you for throwing that knife at his shoulder, and frankly, I'm tempted to let him.
The man almost smiled when he saw Naruto lying on his back, just beside a hole in the cabin. His small chest slowly rising and falling, his hand over his face, hiding his eyes.
Soon, the man approached, and crouched down right in front of Naruto.
- Now... we'll let this one go, I'll let you live. But you'll have to start paying, um... taxes... fifty percent of everything you get in your sales.
Naruto took a few deep breaths, clenching his left fist as his right passed through the hole in the hut.
- I could take more, leave you even more miserable than you already are, but-
He was interrupted by his own sounds of agony. Blood spurted from his mouth, and his eyes widened at the sight of Naruto holding a sword that pierced his neck.
The boy was staring at him. Cold, intense blue flames burned in his eyes as he watched the man drown in his own blood.
- What the fuck!
One of them shouted, and it was as if reality came back to Naruto. The blond boy gritted his teeth, his heart beating faster and his veins bulging as the rage spread through his chest.
Grabbing the knife from the man's waist, he threw it at the brown-haired man, getting up and running towards the other soon after.
The man's eyes widened and he grabbed his sword, attempting a side slashing attack on Naruto. However, he deflected and pierced one of his legs. The man cried out in pain and fell to his knees, perfect timing for the boy, who drew his sword hard and pierced his opponent's chest.
Dropping his sword, Naruto dodged an attack coming from the brown-haired man and kicked the side of his knee.
The man was off balance, but recovered quickly and kicked the side of Naruto's Naruto just ignored the blow and advanced against the man, leaping over himself and knocking him to the ground, strangling him.
The man gritted his teeth and grabbed the knife Naruto threw in his direction, stabbing the blade into the side of the boy's abdomen.
Naruto screamed in pain and rage, feeling his hot blood run down the side of his body, but the pain only made him clutch the man's neck even tighter, and the man began to struggle with a growing desperation in his chest.
He tried to punch Naruto, but the boy just ignored it, still clutching his neck. The man tried to reach for the knife again, but the blonde moved and put his two knees on top of both arms of the man he was strangling, still with his strong hands around his neck.
His intense blue eyes stared unblinkingly into the man's desperate brown eyes, until he began to grow weaker and weaker, and finally, motionless.
Naruto continued to squeeze the man's neck, panting, and with anger receding inside him, making the pain in his body even more evident. But by that point, he was beginning to get used to it.
Rising to his feet, he took his father's sword, which was still stuck in the chest of the man he had killed earlier, and stabbed it into the neck of the brown-haired man.
Naruto leaned on the sword still stuck in the body below him, closing his eyes with some force and letting his mind go. He was alive.
Three men dead... but he was alive. His father would be proud, maybe.
Proud that he had survived, but angry that he had let himself get so beaten by opponents who initially had no intention of killing him... it would be a shame for the mercenaries, even though it was a victory.
His eyes landed on the knife still stuck in the side of his abdomen. It hurt like hell... but strangely, he didn't mind the pain.
In fact, he was even happy to feel it...
Drawing his sword with some force, Naruto staggered a few times and groaned in pain as he ducked, scanning the bodies of those men. They didn't have much. Cigarettes, a lighter, and some copper coins.
Well, that was something.
Tearing off part of the blouse of one of them, Naruto took a few deep breaths as he looked at the knife stuck in his body.
He had no money to pay for a doctor. He doubted that any would be kind enough to help him for just a few copper coins. He barely had two silver coins, and a visit to the doctor cost five of them, that's the cheapest doctor.
A groan escaped his throat as he put his hand on the handle of the knife. Luckily, it didn't seem to have hit any major organs... but he would have to be careful, he didn't want to do any more damage removing the blade than he had suffered when he was stabbed.
Naruto gritted his teeth as he began to pull the knife out, his grip tightened on the piece of clothing in his hand, and he raised his head to the sky, his eyes closed tightly and he controlled himself not to scream.
After a few agonizing moments, he managed to remove the knife, and quickly began to tie that piece of clothing around his wound. He didn't have anything to stitch, and even if he did, he didn't really know how, although, it would be a good time to practice.
When he finished, he stayed on his knees for some time, his eyes fixed on the ground that was slowly being stained by his blood. His hands were stained red, and his mind wandered over what he had been through recently.
... What should he do?
Why?
What should he find? If there was something for him somewhere.
Getting up, he leaned on the sword almost bigger than he was, and began his slow and painful walk towards the city. He could not stay there any longer, someone would eventually miss those men, sooner or later their bodies would be found.
He had to go... hopefully, the little money he had would do something. That, in a very positive thought.
On the way, he didn't come across many people, and the few he saw ignored him. That place was cruel, people had their own problems and ignored the problems of others.
But the place he was staying was a little isolated, so he didn't run into many people.
Taking his money, he took a few more deep breaths before putting the sword back into its sheath, slung slightly behind his back.
He left the city without much hope, but he didn't know that the next few days would be so bad.
He walked alone on deserted roads. His money was not enough to buy arrows, and food, but with a little crying, he managed to buy enough. However, the food didn't last long, and he didn't think he wouldn't encounter a single animal during all those days.
Fruit occasionally crossed his path, and he kept it in his bag, but it was not enough. It was a long way from a town, and there was no going back from that point.
Rain became frequent, he walked with an old cloak during the day, and tried to seek shelter from the rain in the forest at night.
He didn't cross paths with any living soul in those days... maybe weeks, not one person, no animals, nothing. It was as if he was the last person on earth, doomed to wander endlessly through nothingness, alone.
The wounds on his body did nothing to help, they only made it worse than it already was.
On one particular day, however, he smiled when he saw horses on the horizon. Horses ridden by humanoid silhouettes. People, finally.
His chest filled with joy and he even forgot the chill of the rain against his body as the horses approached.
Three men, three horses, all well equipped, compared to Naruto, of course.
- Whoa, a boy? Here?
one of them asked, apparently surprised. Naruto was too tired to pay attention to him, he only paid attention to his shaven head with tattoos.
- Oe, kid, where are your parents? Your group?
Another asked, his long dark beard being the most noticeable thing.
- Who cares? It's obvious that the boy is in bad shape.
The third said, this one had short hair, no beard, and unlike the others, it was blond. Not an intense hair, similar to Naruto's gold, but different.
- I... I am on the road... for some time now. - Naruto said between gasps. - Please, do you have food? Can you tell me where the nearest town is? I haven't seen a sign for a long time.
The men stared at Naruto for some time, digesting the words spoken in his weak voice.
- Yes... we have food.
The bald man said, getting off his horse.
- We can give you food. Better yet, we can give you a ride to the next town, if you do something for us.
He said, getting closer and closer with each word.
Although tired and wounded, Naruto moved a few steps away, preparing to pick up his sword, just in case.
- We-
- Oh, who cares? Fuck, we don't have to do anything. Just get it over with and leave the boy behind. There's no one around.
The man with the long beard said with an irritated tone, also getting off his horse and crossing his arms.
Naruto blinked in confusion, but soon, his eyes widened as the man advanced towards him, his arm already touching the hilt of his sword.
He wasn't fast enough, however, and the man knocked him to the ground, flipping him onto his back and pinning him down.
- Whoa, look at this sword. It's beautiful.
He said, analyzing the blade for a few moments, before throwing the sword to one of his companions.
Naruto, below his feet, was trying to fight off the man who was starting to throw his things to the side.
- Hold still.
Those were the words Naruto could hear, before he was hit with a punch strong enough to stun him. His vision blurred and the noise around him became muffled. His body became weak, but this did not inhibit some sensations.
Like, for example, the feeling of his pants being pulled off his body and him being pressed against the ground.
His blue eyes widened widely as he realized the man's intentions, and a scream escaped his throat. He struggled harder, spitting out a certain amount of blood as he tried to escape his grasp.
Tears began to form in his eyes as he felt a finger. But he refused to let them roll down his face.
Another finger.
He gritted his teeth, and the fear in his chest slowly turned to anger. His eyes focused on a nearby rock, and as he picked it up, Naruto screamed as he spun his body around.
He kicked the man in the face as he did so, and acting fast, hit the rock in his eye.
The man cried out in pain and walked away with his hand on his face, blood quickly spreading through his fingers.
Without stopping there, Naruto picked up the knife that had fallen to the ground beside his pants and stabbed it into the man's stomach, who widened his eye and knelt down.
Slightly widening his eyes, Naruto uses the bald guy's body as a shield for an arrow, and takes the crossbow that was on the man's back.
Resting the crossbow on the shoulders of his dying opponent, he fires at the long-bearded man, hitting him in the arm.
Gritting his teeth, the boy runs toward the short-haired man after grabbing the bald man's sword. He feigns a horizontal slashing attack, and the man prepared to defend.
However, Naruto cancelled his attack and held the hilt of the sword with both hands, piercing the groin of the man, who cried out in pain. A scream that didn't last long, as Naruto drove his knife into his neck.
As soon as he did, however, the boy also cried out in pain as he felt an arrow pierce his shoulder, and as he looked to the side, he uses the horse as a shield as he saw the long-bearded man approaching him with the crossbow in hand.
With his sword, Naruto cuts off part of the side of the horse's body, which neighed loudly and began to move violently, kicking in the air and running over the man as he rushed.
The man became unstable and fell, but recovered quickly and turned toward Naruto with his crossbow.
Not fast enough, however, and the next thing he saw was Naruto's sword coming down hard on his head. Everything went dark, and in a moment, he could no longer feel anything.
Naruto stared at the man's body still wide-eyed. Gasping, aching... blotchy.
His chest hurt every time he breathed, his legs were weak, and he felt... dirty. He hugged his own arms and his fingernails scratched at his skin, tearing a few trickles of blood from the outer side of his biceps.
His throat was closed and tears almost rolled down his face. But he stopped them. He would not allow himself to cry.
Closing his eyes tightly, he took several strong breaths, until he calmed down. The rain washed away his blood, but it did not wash those sensations from him.
His empty blue eyes looked at his father's sword on the ground. Crouching down, he groaned in pain as he picked up the sword from the ground.
... He now had a horse, at least...
But he didn't feel like it was worth it.
My sister scares me, is there a way to buy another one?