"Talking"

'Thinking'

Flashback - "Talking"/ 'Thinking'

Chapter 9:

Finding the gold mine in the country west of the Land of Rice Paddies, was not hard, since Taya knew where it is. Getting his hands on it, well that wasn't that easy, but in the end, Naruto was able to 'buy out' the gold mine, after having the talk with the daimyo of that land. The talk went like, 'you either give me the mine, or I'll chop your head of'. Daimyo gave up right away and from that moment on, Taya was the proud owner of a small gold mine.

The reason Taya became the owner of the mine, and not Naruto, is because Taya can actually sign her own name on the ownership paper, while Naruto can't, since he still goes by Alessandro Starrk, which is not his name, and he doesn't want anyone to know that he is Naruto Uzumaki. At least not yet.

While they were there, Naruto and Taya ended up saving the small village, which was attacked by the remnants of the Shiin Clan of the Land of Rice Paddies.

Most of that clan ended up joining Orochimaru's Sound Village, while the remaining several dozen, ended up becoming bandits.

They were interested in taking over the mine which Naruto 'bought' and attacked the villagers so that they can make them move away. When the villagers refused to leave, the Shiin Clan went and started to kill them.

Unfortunately for the bandits, that was exactly at the same time Naruto and Taya were passing by next to the village, on the way to check out the gold mine.

Seeing what's going on, and since Taya told him who the bandits are, Naruto decided to save the villagers, dispose of the Shiin Clan, and if possible, convince the surviving villagers to move to the Whirlpool, since the place where the village is, would soon become uninhabitable once the mine ends up being opened.

Both Naruto and Taya were fighters and destroyers, but only Naruto is good in negotiations, though that was probably because he is scary and tends to threaten to those he wants something from.

In this case, it was decided that Taya will deal with Shiin Clan, while Naruto talks with the villagers, and try to convince them to move to the Whirlpool. He decided to have a peaceful talk with them, instead of threatening them, as he would have normally done.

That was the reason for why it took him longer to convince the villagers to join him, then it took Taya to deal with several dozen bandits, who were all ninja, and not just regular bandits who had no training.

By the time Naruto convinced the villagers to abandon their birth land and move away, Taya has already killed of every member of the Shiin Clan, and was waiting outside of one of the remaining unburned houses, in which, Naruto talked with the villagers.

Once the villagers were convinced to move to the Whirlpool, and the preparations for the moving has started, Taya asked Naruto how he plans to move all the people to the Whirlpool.

When he heard the question, Naruto realized that he can't take them there, as he doesn't know where it is, and while Taya does know, he doesn't want to send her alone with all those civilians, and he also doesn't want to waste time on going to the Whirlpool now, and plans to go there at the later time.

He also didn't have a way to contact Tayuya, so that he can have the villagers meet with her and the Fūma Clan somewhere, after which, she would take them all to the Whirlpool, while Naruto and Taya would continue the journey.

It took Naruto half an hour to remember that he can use Garganta to transport all those people from one place to another. Now, he does know that this way of traveling with frighten all those people, but he has no other way to move them.

Taya told him that in order to go to the Whirlpool, from the Land of Rice Paddies, Tayuya would have to pass through the Land of Hot Water, and go all the way to southern port. Once the villagers were ready, Naruto opened the Garganta, much to everyone's shock and fright, as all they could see is black nothingness.

Naruto then went and told them to think of this as a Space-Time jutsu, and that nothing will happen to them as long as he is here. He said that he will be going ahead, so he can create the path on which the other will walk on, while they will all slowly walk behind him. All they had to do, was be careful not to fall of the path. It's simple, right.

It took a little while to convince everyone that there is nothing to be afraid of, and after they were all convinced, about 40 civilians followed after Naruto and Taya through Garganta, which closed right after the last person walked through it.

XXX

Naruto and Taya were walking down the road in the Land of Rivers.

It has been a week since Naruto left the people he found in that last village he and Taya have been, with Tayuya, and then started his journey to the Land of Rivers, Taya still with him.

The reason it took them that long to get from the Land of Hot Water to the Land of Rivers, is because they were walking at normal, civilian speed, and had to cross the entire Fire Country in order to get from one country to the other.

As they were walking through the Land of Rivers on the way to Katabami Gold Mine, Taya asked Naruto about his powers, and when he was going to give them to her, as he has promised.

"I will give them to you when we get to the Whirlpool," Naruto said. "We will stay there for a little while, and it will give you time to get used to your powers, and to do some training in a place where there is no one around, and we won't have to be careful, so that someone doesn't see us."

Taya nodded, before she asked. "What are you? And how are you going to give me those powers?"

Naruto sighed. "To answer the second question first. You shouldn't worry, because you won't feel anything, and I don't have to bite you or anything similar in order for you to gain this power."

Taya looked at him with raised eyebrows. "So you do know about Orochimaru's Cursed Seal?" She questioned.

"Yes," Naruto said shortly, but didn't explain how he knew that. Taya decided not to push her luck by asking him that. "As for your first question, well…" Naruto then went and explained to Taya about Soul Reapers, Hollows, Soul Society, Hueco Mundo and Hell.

He explained that he is a human/hollow hybrid, and then explained that he used to be normal human, until he died, after which his soul split up and each piece because a separate hollow.

Then he said about the deaths of those hollows, about him being given a third chance in life, and how he was fused back together to be the same way he was before his death, only older looking and with both types of powers. He didn't say though, who he was while he was human, and he didn't say who fused him back and gave him another chance. He thought that it was not important to mention it at this time.

"Lilynette used to be a normal human, but I turned her into a hybrid in order to save her life," Naruto said. "I saved her because we are cousins, even though we didn't know that when we first met." (Technically, the first time Naruto and Tayuya met was when Naruto and the others were chasing after Sasuke, and at that time, neither of them knew that they are cousins).

"As I'm sure you have realized it by now," Naruto spoke again. "My name is not Alessandro Starrk, and Lilynette's name is also different. Alessandro was the name of a Hollow I used to know back in Hueco Mundo, and Starrk was the last name of one of the pieces of my soul. Lilynette was the name of a Hollow, who was created when Starrk split his soul one more time, so technically, you can say they were the same person."

"Why did you change your name?" Taya asked.

"My real name is… famous… and I don't want anyone to know that I'm alive again. As for Lilynette's real name… well, you actually know who she is, but I will leave it to her to tell you her real identity."

Taya was surprised when she heard that she actually knows who Lilynette really is, and she wondered from where she could know her. She thought about it, and came to a realization, that Lilynette must have been someone who worked for Orochimaru at one point in time, which is why she knows so much about him, about the Land of Rice Paddies, and about the fact that Taya is on the same level if not even stronger than Orochimaru.

Putting all those things together, it took Taya about two minutes to figure out, who Lilynette really is.

She thought about asking Naruto to confirm it, but decided against it, and will just wait and ask Lilynette… or better said, Uzumaki Tayuya.

Figuring out who Lilynette really is, and remembering that Alessandro said that he and Lilynette really are cousins, it made her realize that Alessandro is also an Uzumaki, just like Tayuya. If she was right, and she was sure that she is, Taya now knew why Alessandro and Lilynette (Tayuya), chose the Land of Whirlpools as the place where they plan to build a village, and eventually a country.

'If Alessandro really is and Uzumaki, I wonder why he has blonde hair,' Taya wondered. 'All Uzumaki I have met have red hair, and I know it's a clan trait all Uzumaki have in common. Even half Uzumaki and those who only had one grandparent Uzumaki, had red hairs.'

Taya thought about it for another minute, before she decided to wait. She was sure that one day, she will know if Alessandro and Lilynette really are who she thinks they are.

After few more minutes of walking, Naruto asked. "What do you know about this next mine?"

"Not much," Taya said. "Before I joined Orochimaru, I knew that the mine was controlled by the government leaders, who imposed high taxes on the workers. What happened after I left the Land of Rivers, and if the things are the same or have changed, I don't know."

"I see," Naruto said. "That means that if the situation is the same, then the people there won't have a problem if we take over, right?"

"Well, I guess it would depend on the kind of deal you make with them," Taya said. "If you chase away the current workers to enlist new ones, or if you end up treating them just like the government, then they won't be happy about it."

Naruto nodded, and then started to think about, how he should approach this situation.

In the end, he decided to wait to get there and see with his eyes, what's currently going on in the Katabami Gold Mine, after which, he will decide on how to proceed.

XXX

Few hours later, Naruto and Taya were closing in on the Katabami Gold Mine.

From the distance of a few miles, they could see that the sky above the place where the mine and the small village are located, has been covered in dark thunder clouds, and they could also hear the sounds of thunder and lightning. The rain has also started to fall not that long ago.

Naruto turned toward Taya and asked. "What's that?"

Taya frowned as she was looking at the cloud covered sky. "I'm not sure," she said. "But I think there is some king of battle going on over there. I can feel a large amount of lightning nature chakra in the air, and its coming from where the mine is."

Naruto looked toward the mine for a few moments, before he said. "Let's go and check it out. Someone could be attacking the workers and trying to take over the gold mine."

Taya agreed, and so they ran toward the mine at the fastest speed Taya was capable of. Naruto could go much faster, but decided to run as fast as Taya, and not leave her behind.

XXX

Few minutes later, they arrived in front of what looks like a small house with a curry shop at the ground level.

Just as the two were about to enter into the shop, the door burst open, and out came an older woman, and man in his twenties, with a big cauldron on his back. Naruto and Taya also saw a young girl, along with an even younger boy, at her back.

Naruto took one look at the girl, and instantly recognized her. It might have been over a millennia since he has been in the leaf village and seen the people there, but he has the perfect memory of his original life, thanks to the goddess.

He decided to pretend he didn't know her, and asked. "Excuse me," Naruto drew the attention of the four people who just came out from the curry shop. "Can you tell us what's going on over there?" Naruto pointed toward the top of the gold mine, where the thunder and lightning are seen and heard.

Instead of answering the question, Tenten asked. "Who are you? And what are you doing here?"

Naruto and Taya looked at each other for a moment, before Taya shrugged. "My name is Alessandro, and this is my companion, Taya," Naruto said. "We came here on a… business… but as we were getting closer, we noticed the lightning and rushed her to see what's going on."

Now Tenten and the other three were looking at each other, and wondered who these two are and if they are friends or possible foes. Tenten actually voice this question, getting raised eyebrows from Naruto and Taya.

"Well, we are not looking for trouble," Taya spoke for the first time. "We just want to know what's going on here."

The old lady looked at the two for a moment, before she sighed, and told them that there is currently a battle between one of the Seven Swordsman of the Mist, against Tenten's teammates. She also explained what happened to lead to the confrontation.

When she finished, Naruto looked at Taya, and nodded at her. As soon as he did that, she disappeared in a lightning Shunshin, surprising the other four, who then looked at Naruto, wanting an explanation.

"I don't know what you were planning to do by coming out of that shop during a storm like this," Naruto said, "but if you we planning to go to the mine and assist to those two ninja in any way… well, you should just return to the shop, as my friend will deal with Raiga and save your friends."

"And why would she do that?" Tenten asked with narrowed eyes. "What do you get out of it?"

Naruto looked at her for a moment, before he sighed, and said. "Can we just enter inside of the shop, and I'll explain. I don't feel like standing on this rain and neither should you."

Since she is the owner of the curry shop, the old woman agreed to Naruto's suggestion, and they all went inside of her curry shop. Once inside, the young man took the cauldron into the kitchen, while Tenten, the kid she had with her, and the old woman, set with Naruto at the table to talk. The young men, joined them right away.

"So, who are you and what business do you and your companion have here?" Sanshō asked.

"I recently acquired a gold mine in the land north of the Land of Fire," Naruto started to explain his reason for being there. "But it's not very big mine, and I'm interested in acquiring more of them. I heard about the Katabami Gold Mine, and decided to come here and see the current situation and if it's possible to take over this mine as its owner."

This got him raised eyebrows from everyone in the room but no one said anything for a full minute. Finally, Sanshō spoke.

"You know, up until few years ago, no one really cared about the Katabami Gold Mine, but then the government of this land took over and started to exploit the mine. They imposed high taxes on the workers, and no one here was happy," Naruto nodded, saying that he already knew that from Taya, who was original from the Land of Rivers.

"Then," Sanshō continued, "about six months ago, the Kurosuki Family led by Raiga, took over the mine and chased away the government leaders. At first, everyone here was happy because we thought that it will be better. It wasn't' better, it was worse.

"Every time he doesn't like someone, or if someone angers or disobeys him, Raiga would seal them alive inside of a coffin, and then burry them," Naruto's eyes narrowed at this. "He would then go and cry and tell the sad stories about those who are buried, making it look like he was actually sad, but he in fact, enjoys it.

"Dozens of mine workers have been buried alive. People who had family, friends, they are all gone, and for what? For nothing. For a sick fuck to bury them alive and cry on their funeral. It's terrible."

Tenten, Ranmaru and Karashi all looked at the floor, Ranmaru and Karashi in shame, since they had a hand in the death of those people, while Tenten because she was sad for all those people, all that life lost for nothing.

Naruto was quiet and looked calm on the outside, but in his head… he is also clam and quiet. Stuff like this don't really bother him, as he is not really people person and doesn't care much about anyone except those close to him.

Now, while he isn't bothered or angry, he feels sorry for all those innocent people who died because of a maniac. The good thing is, that this story, reminded him of the fact that there are many people in the EN who deserve to be eviscerated and he will make sure they all are taken care of.

"So, how did it come to the battle between Raiga and the Leaf Ninja?" Naruto asked while looking at Tenten.

"Well, one of our Shinobi found three unconscious people in the river outside of Konoha," she said. "They were taken to the hospital and when they woke up, they said what's happening, and the village leaders decided to send a team here and deal with the Kurosuki family."

Naruto looked at Tenten with raised eyebrows and confused look on his face. "Let me get this straight," he said. "The Fifth Hokage sent three genin, to deal with one of the Seven Swordsman of the Mist, and the former member of Mist's ANBU Black Ops," seeing Tenten no, Naruto asked.

"Is she insane?" Tenten was offended by the question, as to her, it seems that Naruto is doubting her and her teammates skills, and has even offended her childhood hero, Lady Tsunade.

"She didn't send us," Tenten all but yelled at Naruto, while coming closer to his face, and glared at him.

Naruto just set there, completely calm. He wasn't bothered by Tenten's outburst, nor was he afraid of her.

Tenten was calmed down by Ranmaru, Karashi and Sanshō. She took a deep breath, before she continued to speak. "We were sent by the village elders. Lady Tsunade is currently… incapable of performing her duties as a Hokage, so in her absence, the Elders are the ones who are leading the village, and are sending ninja on the missions."

Naruto went into deep though as soon as he heard that Tsunade is indisposed, and remembered that she ended up in the asylum at some point, but he wasn't exactly sure, when. He decided to find a way to keep a close eye on the Leaf, and see what he can do about Tsunade once she is sent to the asylum.

"Well, your village elders, are complete morons," Naruto said with a straight face, making the eyes of everyone in the room, widen in disbelief. "You can be angry at me for saying that, and say how I shouldn't underestimate you and your teammates, but three genin have no chance against highly skilled Swordsman like Raiga. Deep down, I know you know that, even if you don't want to admit it."

Tenten wanted to say something, but nothing came out. It was like her own voice betrayed her, and made her keep quiet. Of course, it might also be a rational part of her brain, which prevented her from speaking and embarrassing herself. Naruto is right when he said that deep down, she knows that Neji, Lee and she wouldn't be able to take out Raiga.

"And do you think that friend of yours would be able to take out Raiga," Tenten asked after she remembered that Taya went to face against Raiga? "She doesn't seem to be much older than me and my teammates."

"You are right," Naruto said. "She is only few years older than you and your friends, but she is also much stronger than any of you. Her power and skill, easily make her a Kage Level fighter."

Tenten's eyes bugged out from her head when she heard how powerful Taya is, as she couldn't believe it. The same goes for the other three people in the room, who were also shocked, while Ranmaru was also scared that Raiga will really be killed by Taya if she really is as strong as Naruto says she is.

The first gold mine is in the same land where the Mountains' Graveyard is located. I didn't mention the name of the land because it was never mentioned in the manga nor the anime, so I left it open, in case it ends up having a name and is mentioned sometime in the future of Boruto anime and manga.