Okay, then, I'm trying hard to get this fanfic out quickly. Don't hurt me for spelling errors or things like that.

Half the credit of this chapter and many to come goes to "Trinky Yuko" Saruto, Kaikoku, Akizakura, Ayatori's past © Violet McMahon

Ayatori © Erin Moore

Hanami, her past, and all other things related to her © Trinky Yuko

Naruto and all related characters that weren't aforementioned © Masashi Kishimoto

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Right Here Waiting

Chapter 4

"The Past's In The Past"

"Why are you running away?" Hanami asked, quickly adding, "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

"Well, I'm not really sure why, but I know how it started," Naruke got a slightly spaced off look, trying to remember the event that had happened three years before, "My parents were hardly ever home, one was the Rokudaime Hokage and the other was an ANBU squad leader. Eventually, I guess, I just sort of... Mentally disappeared. I began to spend any time I was at home in my room, working on a very strong genjutsu that I had created. Well, when my squad finished the missions one day, the girl on my team, Akizakura was her name, took about to teasing me. She got to talking about my parents and I guess my anger just got out of control. That was when I first activated the sharingan," He signaled to his uncovered blue eye, temporarily turning it red and back, "I ended up using the full force of that technique against the other person in our group, thinking that it would scare Akizakura worse to see the effects of it on another person. The technique I used would have been forbidden if anyone had known about it. Now I just don't think I can go back to face anyone."

Hanami thought about his story, not saying a word at all, she just kept staring at him in amazement, "I don't have any forbidden past or anything, but if it makes you feel better, shall I share my story?" She asked Naruke, not once breaking eye contact.

"I guess it wouldn't hurt to know," Naruke said softly, "Don't force yourself to tell it on my behalf."

"Well, the last thing I can remember is getting lost in this exact same forest when I was around six or seven years old. I had been lost in the forest for days, with other ninjas beating me up most of the time. For some reason, I only fainted a few times. When a few weeks had gone by after living off lake waters and berries, Konoha had thought I had died, so they sent ANBU members out to find me. You already know that I don't trust people until I really get to know them, so I thought the ANBU members were just ninjas wanting to kill me. So I kept running away. One accidentally got carried away with a strong jutsu, and I fainted, because it was strong, and plus, I felt rather dizzy. When I woke up, I found my self in a solid cell in some sort of cabin, with the ANBU members still there. After they discovered I woke up, they began to yank me out of the cage and tied my arms behind my back. After they did, they took me outside..."

Hanami momentarily stopped there with a sigh, "This is the part that makes me so careful about who I trust. See, one of them began to throw a shuriken at me, poison at the tips. To this day, I still don't know it they were trying to put me to sleep with a type of medicine, or do me in. Anyway, I closed my eyes, waiting for the weapon to hit me, and suddenly, I heard this huge scream, then a squawk. You may not believe my next sentence, but everything was flashing, and this one, huge, colorful parrot with fiery eyes blocked the shuriken with some sort of force field and then it lifted me by the collar of my tunic, and lifted me away like it was saving me. It was just a ver huge parrot, and then once again, I fainted."

Once again pausing, she caught her breath, "When I woke up again, I was back at the village, and everybody looked like nothing at all had happened. That's when I became so eager to become a ninja because I realized how wonderful it could be. So my Grandfather started training me until I was sent to the academy at age twelve. After graduating the academy, I'm now here, once again lost in the forest, and I'm not sure what will happen," She explained to Naruke, now looking down to the ground.

"Well, that's a very interesting story. It's a good thing you got to go back to the village, though." Naruke sighed, "Now I have ANBU members, my father, and my younger sister after me. I really wish I could find her. She may be a very strong kunoichi, but she's still only seven." he looked over at Hanami, "Which village do you think we should head to?"

"Any village out of this forest I guess. I just want to get out of here, I'm afraid to be caught by the ANBU," She said quietly, still thinking of her past.

"Well," Naruke said, taking out a map, "The closest village from here is Ta no Kuni, The Rice Field Country. But their hidden village is Otogakure, so I don't know If they'd welcome us very kindly. The next closest is Taki no Kuni, The Waterfall country with Takigakure. I don't really know what they'd do if we showed up. We would have to do something with our headbands. Or the Akatsuki would be the only ones to accept and I don't really want to join th-" With his attention sealed to the map, Naruke had walked off the small pathway and tripped over a tree root, "Why does this always happen to me?"

Hanami once again smiled, holding in her laughter. Trotting over to Naruke, she held out her hand. "Need help getting up?" She asked him, "And plus, where exactly are we supposed to go then? Because we could always flip our headbands so they won't see our signsm but that probably won't work," She suggested.

"Yeah, thanks," Naruke said as Hanami helped him to his feet, "Hmm... The only way I think that we could get into any village would be to get disguises of someone. Or just try to be normal." He pondered this a while, "I know that we could get into the Akatsuki, but why does that come to mind so much?" He sighed, "We're probably going to have to get disguises. Somehow..."

"Maybe we could just canoe over to the Wave Country? Then maybe could canoe to an island that would welcome us in a friendly way?" She suggested once again.

"That might work, but we're a bit far from the Wave Country. And the first island is accessible by bridge. I wonder what island we'd go to, though. Because once we get to the first island, we're almost completely cut off from the rest of the world," Naruke stated.

Hanami closed her emerald eyes, a frown forming upon her face. "Well then what are we supposed to do?" She asked, "The ANBU could find us any second now."

"Hmm... I really have no idea of what we could do. I wouldn't be accepted into any village and, well, I guess the Wave Country's the best idea we've got to work off of. Unless we head to Otogakure. The only village that will accept either of us," Suddenly, three ANBU members jumped out in front of them, but this time, Naruke was ready.

Hanami leapt back, taken by surprise this time. Her eyes widened as she saw the ANBU members. She knew they were after Naruke, but she wouldn't take any chances. She didn't even seem to think about it. She leapt in front of Naruke, once again pulling out some pieces of shuriken. Naruke wasn't going to run this time. Rather than having Hanami scare off the ANBU member, then run from them, he jumped in front of her, forming a long string of hand signs.

"Akumu Yochi no Jutsu!" Naruke said as his eyes, once again, glowed bright red. The ANBU members collapsed in what seemed to be extreme pain. "Come on," Naruke said, "They're probably not going to be able to follow us for a while." His eyes melted from red to blue and he suddenly seemed extremely tired, "Uh Oh, I hope we can get far enough, I used way too much chakra."

Hanami stared, but then recovered in a nod, "Okay," She said, beginning to run with Naruke, "What the freak did he do just now?" She wondered, looking back at him. She stopped, "By the way, besides a cheetah what is the fastest traveling animal you can think of?" Maybe a hawk," She asked him, "See, I have a special jutsu I discovered on my own, it allows you to become any sort of animal for a limited time. Except it uses a lot of chakra, are you willing?" She asked, "I didn't mention it earlier because I didn't really trust you. I'm thinking a hawk or a fox could work..."

That didn't take very long. No more chapters for a while, now. Hope you liked it.