Explosions could be heard from the distance, more emergency services kept rushing in all directions unaware that just next to them on the tracks below Naruto's group was moving undetected, the sirens and overall the rush need made everyone ignore them, of course they had kept they disguises in case someone took a second look at them, not that it really matter anymore but it was better to avoid the extra attention.
Almost an hour had passed since their escape from the station and so far they could sense no one following them, Karin made sure of that at all times since her chakra reserves were far superior to Ino's, but they clearly had no sense of where they were heading, only as far as they could from the city. Ino took notice of this behavior and spoke as they kept moving.
"We need a place to rest, please put me down."
Naruto listened and halted just under a large concrete bridge with everyone, he knelt to let Ino off his back and she leaned against the cold wall letting out a sigh of relief, the pain had completely vanished at this point from her body but she still felt numb and lightheaded, not that she was ungrateful for being carried all this way but she needed to feel her limbs again and wanted nothing more than to move on her own instead of feeling like a sack of potatoes.
"How do you feel?" Karin asked as she approached her kneeling next to Naruto.
"Like my whole body went to sleep... I can barely feel my hands."
Karin took one of Ino's hands between her own "You're cold." she noticed sweat was forming on her forehead and placed her right hand on it. "What did that pill have exactly?"
"Honestly I don't know, it's one out of three pills used by Chōji's clan, it converts the body's fat reserves into chakra, that's why I could increase my sensing range."
"Those pills are designed for the Akimichi clan because of their physical constitution and body mass, you don't possess either of those but you just love being reckless don't you?" Sakura's tone was very unfriendly.
"Sakura..." Naruto looked at her asking for a some empathy but he would find none as she scoffed and looked away.
"No, she's right... those pills weren't made for someone like me so it's only natural the effects are stronger for a person who isn't used to them, the spinach flavor was a nice touch though." she chuckled, Naruto could not help but also smile at her optimism "Although if you guys don't mind I'd like a proper shelter, a bed would be nice don't you think?"
Right after she finished that sentence, droplets of water started to fall, slow at first, then a few more until a light rain fully materialized all around, despite having more than enough room to cover their heads and remain dry, each one of them knew they could not spend much time in the open, for now they were not being followed as far as they could tell but remaining still for too long was a dangerous maneuver, they had to keep moving even under those circumstances.
"Great... what now?" Sakura said frustrated.
"I suppose we do as Ino says and find refuge somewhere... any ideas?" Naruto asked.
"There's a place... I know someone who might be able to help." Shino suddenly spoke.
"Who?"
"A friend from high school days, I haven't seen him in a long time so I don't know if he'll be glad to see me..."
"Do you trust him still?" Karin asked.
"I do, his family is known for being trustworthy and loyal."
"Not like we have much choice, let's go." Naruto said.
The stone-made path across the mountainous and deeply covered forest area was the last step before reaching the hidden stronghold of Kurenai's allies, Sasuke and Suigetsu had to be blindfolded in order to be brought here while Anko and Iruka were allowed to see freely around the area, this mostly because Kurenai trusted them, it did not matter however as the location where they were headed had a secret entrance that was only able to be opened by ANBU members. Sasuke could only tell they were far from civilization due to his nose, the smell of humidity and moss around him was unmistakable but as far to where they were taking him he would have to wait and see, he was certain this was not a trap, he did not perceive any hostile intentions and it would have been unwise to harm him, certainly his father would seek retaliation no matter how much he showed that he did not care.
They suddenly stopped and waited, he heard a loud rumbling coming from the ground and then it stopped, then the group resumed their walk. Now they were heading down a tunnel, that's what the young Uchiha assumed due to the sudden lack of sound around him.
"Do you think he'll be happy to see me?" this was Anko's voice, she was talking to Kurenai.
"I don't know, he's hard to read but if you want an honest answer, no."
"Such a mood killer..."
"You left to pursue the life of a civilian Anko, he let you walk away without taking your life, with all that you know I'd say you won the lottery."
Sasuke was paying close attention to the conversation at this point, Suigetsu's curiosity also got the best of him but both remained quiet as they continued walking. After a few more minutes they stopped again.
"Was he ever afraid I would spill the beans on him?"
"You can ask him yourself..."
The group found themselves in a large room illuminated by torches on the walls, one large circular door in front of them suddenly started to open, both Anko and Iruka could see an emerging shadow using a cane as support to walk to slowly move towards them, Kurenai and the rest of the ANBU knelt with their face down.
"Anko Mitarashi... You are either very brave or very stupid to come here again..."
"You could say a bit of both, old man..." she responded with a smirk "But believe me, I wouldn't have asked for Kurenai's help if it hadn't been necessary, and right now..." she moved out of the way revealing Sasuke "It's really necessary."
"Remove the blindfolds." he ordered. Two of the ANBU closest to Sasuke and Suigetsu proceeded to fulfill his order, both took a second to adjust their vision inside the dark room. Danzō himself moved closer to them letting the dim light of the torches reveal a frail old man with shaggy black hair and an x-shaped scar on his chin, his forehead and right eye were covered in bandages, he wore a grey shirt, with a black robe over the top of it covering from his feet to just over his right shoulder, the robe conceals his right arm. His visible eye remained on Sasuke.
"Who are you supposed to be?" Sasuke asked.
"Watch your tone boy! You're speaking to our leader Danzō-sama-"
"Kurenai..." His tone was firm, solid. Kurenai went quiet and kept her head down again, he resumed studying Sasuke and then addressed Anko again. "Why did you bring him here? His father will be looking for him."
"He's already looking for him, we were attacked by his bodyguards so I had to call Kurenai for help, like I said, I wouldn't have done so unless I had no other choice."
"You disappoint me Anko..." He slowly moved towards her "Have you forgotten your training already? Or did your civilian life made you soft?"
"I don't work for you anymore Danzō, I wanted to do things the right way-!"
"How has that worked for you so far?"
She went silent, as much as she wanted to rebut him she knew deep down she would lose the argument, he was a methodical man, always thinking three or four steps ahead of everyone.
"You were one of our best Jonin yet you chose to waste your talents sitting behind a desk and flashing a badge..."
"You make it sound like it's a bad thing." She responded scratching the back of her head, the sarcasm in her voice almost made Iruka snicker.
"Jonin?..." Sasuke said to himself, he looked over to where Anko stood.
"And now you come here and place everyone in danger? You should return him to his clan, I'm not putting the ANBU in a battle with the Uchiha."
"You think I wanted to bring him here?! He made a choice! The kid's already given me information that could help me expose the corporation's activities under the table! I can legally bring them down, I'm not throwing him to the wolves again!" Anko responded firmly.
"You're a Jonin?!" Sasuke caught their attention, his voice started to get louder "You could've taken out at least one of them back there! Why didn't you fight back?!"
"Before my life as a cop I did things I'm not proud of kid, I don't intend to bloody my hands further."
"Then why come here?" Danzō suddenly asked, she could not reply immediately, Iruka, sensing the tension of the conversation opted to talk.
"Pardon me Danzō-san, I know I'm a stranger here but if I may, this is bigger than Anko-senpai or the ANBU, Fugaku Uchiha has caused a lot of trouble in the last couple of weeks because he's after a kid, we need to find out why, no matter what we have to do."
Danzō stared at him for a few seconds that for Iruka felt like forever, the man was intimidating despite his age and he could feel it, he approached him as if studying the young cop.
"Naruto Uzumaki is of no use to him, if he wants to pursue the boy then let him do so, the longer he delays doing that the better prepared we'll be when the time comes."
"He knows about Naruto Uzumaki?!" Sasuke thought a bit upset he had this information already, Anko, Iruka and Suigetsu shared a similar feeling.
"You kids are several steps behind, we already know what he's planning." Then he turned and walked back to where he stood before.
"Y-you do?!" Suigetsu spoke out loud, not really meaning to talk at all, everyone else paying close attention now.
"What he seeks is the Gedō Mazō, an ancient legend of the Shinobi world said to cause a catastrophe should it be found, there's few documented data on it, nobody really knows how old it is or how it came to be, what we know is the tailed beasts are necessary for it to work."
"The tailed beasts? Then why is he after the Uzumaki kid?" Anko asked.
"He believes by holding the boy hostage his parents will come to save him, Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki already found the Nine Tails according to our sources."
Everyone looked stunned by the news, Danzō continued.
"We already located six other tailed beasts, all under their respective jinchuriki and being closely guarded by the other hidden villages."
"Uh, pardon my ignorance, what the hell is a jinchuriki?" This was Suigetsu's voice.
"Someone who can absorb and hold a tailed beast within them, one of the Uzumaki kid's parents must have already done it."
"Wait... so these beasts can be absorbed? How?"
"The beasts are made of pure chakra, only a few shinobi with the knowledge of seals can perform this task, in this case our assumption is the mother."
"Why her?" Sasuke interrupted.
"The Uzumaki clan is known for two things, their chakra reserves, and their skills in sealing techniques. Even if she lacks the knowledge in sealing, her chakra alone makes her the perfect candidate to become a jinchuriki."
"You said you know of the existence of six more tailed beasts, including the Nine Tails that's seven... what about the other two? Did they get their hands on them already?" Anko asked.
"Not that we know of, none of our sources seem to know where they are, if they were already captured then we'd know about it."
"You seem to know a lot about these tailed beasts, about other clans..." Sasuke said slowly walking towards Danzō, the ANBU stood up to surround him, ready to release their weapons but their leader stopped them to let him approach "What about the Uchiha clan? Do you know the name Itachi Uchiha?" he calmly asked.
Danzō remained with a neutral expression, a tension once again palpable in the little air that circulated the room, by then Sasuke knew in his gut this man had information about his brother.
"Rest for the night, you all must be tired. Tomorrow we will talk."
Asuma's team had successfully returned from their mission earlier that night, it took only two to find their target, a young local crime boss who had started to extort certain people around the Shibuya district in exchange for not harming them or their families, typical low rate mentality of someone trying to earn reputation, fear was an intimidating weapon. Unfortunately for him and his associates they did a very poor job at hiding, Asuma was very skillful at gathering information and with a few visits to certain spots and asking the right people it was just a matter of time before they found out where they hid.
That night everything ended swiftly when after a brief round of cards, the windows shattered by the bullets Shikamaru fired with a new weapon he called the Guided Ocular Device, or GOD for shorts, a small scope he wore on his left eye that allowed him to control several automated rifles from a distance and activate the triggers at the same or separate time, it was genius and perfect for disposing of several targets all at once. Asuma entered the fray once the numbers thinned and quickly dispatched any unfortunate soul who was still alive. Only Chōji remained at bay from the scene, despite being a trained shinobi he disliked violence, hence why he chose to become the team's pilot and support them with the getaway plans instead.
It came to a bit of a surprise to everyone when they arrived to deliver their report to the Hokage and found Ino's father in the office as well, both of them were attentively watching the television screen, the news channel showed footage of cars in flames, what appeared to be bodies falling seemingly out of nowhere and overall chaos in the streets of a city, most of the footage came from the cellphones of different civilians who remained close to the action, some of them too close for their own good.
"Inoichi-san...!" Shikamaru did a poor job at hiding his surprise "Something happened?"
"My daughter is there..." He said without looking at them, worry written all over his face.
"What do you mean? Where's Ino?" Asuma asked.
"Osaka..." This was the Hokage. He stood from his chair and walked around the desk, never keeping his eyes off the screen, he switched channels several times with the remote in his hands, all were broadcasting the same events and footage. "This happened hours ago, it's worse than I thought..."
"What do you mean Ino's there? What happened dad?!"
"She went after Naruto, they were supposed to find and bring a family relative of his back here, Jiraiya is with them but this... the bounty on him must be really high for so many shinobi to show up in one place...It's like Tokyo all over again."
"So that's where he went to..." Chōji said more to himself.
"She went after him after all... how troublesome." Shikamaru said also in a low volume.
"I spoke with her yesterday telepathically but something happened, she's not responding, I have to go!"
"Inoichi!" The Hokage said sternly "I won't send anyone to that city until I have news of them, Jiraiya will report back as soon as they have the chance."
Inoichi was not having it, he turned to face the old man almost in the verge of breaking down "This is my daughter! I can't lose her too!"
"Inoichi-san..." Asuma's voice intervened "You know as well as I do Ino is far more capable than we know and if she's with Jiraiya-sama then I'm certain everyone is fine, let my dad take care of this one, please..." he reassured the man by placing one hand on his shoulder.
"Hokage-sama, if I may..." Chōji spoke "We just came here to deliver the report on our last mission, if this is an extraction I would like to help." his voice firm. Shikamaru knew where his friend was going with the conversation and smirked looking at him, he was glad Chōji had such a mentality.
"I would like to volunteer as well Hokage-sama."
"I'll go too of course, can't let the two of you fly alone." Asuma also added "What do you say dad? We can leave in the next hour."
Hiruzen had no other option, of course Ino's own team would volunteer to go after her and rescue their teammate, he felt uneasy about letting them go, more and more of his best shinobi were going out, it was not like the village was unprotected, there were plenty of them left in case something happened but some of his best were already outside and letting more go after them was not the best move. He was certain the kids were fine as long as Jiraiya was with them, even after witnessing the news so giving them an extra hand in escaping and returning safely was a no-brainer.
"Do you have a plan? We don't know were they could be right now."
"I'd like to ask Inoichi-san to come with us..." Shikamaru responded "With his telepathic connection with Ino we can establish a safe perimeter for the extraction of the whole team, I'd be an easy run Hokage-sama." Inoichi himself found this surprising, he had not been an active shinobi in years.
"With all due respect Shika, I haven't been on a mission in a while..." before he could go any further, Shikamaru stopped him.
"You'd be only coming as a tracker, we're not gonna engage in actual combat and if for some reason that happens, we got you covered." he assured the elder Yamanaka, confident that nothing out of the ordinary would actually happen.
Shikamaru was one of the smartest shinobi Konoha ever produced, only surpassed by his own father Shikaku, despite being know for his strategic planning he chose to serve in the field rather than go to Nara with his family and live a quiet life, the Nara clan was not particularly known for their combat skills, instead they took advantage of technology development and used their intellect to create weapons and gadgets to reduce the risk. Shikamaru was more interested in creating the weapons rather than firing them but with time he understood part of being an actual combatant meant he needed to pull the trigger every once in a while, he was relieved the next task only required him to think rather than kill someone again. If Inoichi managed to get through Ino then it would be a matter of time before they could coordinate a safe spot for the pick up, at least it sounded simple and easy enough to pull off.
"Can you contact her now?"
Inoichi nodded and focused, he reached out once again to his daughter but the same result as before came, no response. The connection was there, he could feel it still, but it was as if it had been shut down on her end, he could not get through no matter what he did.
"Nothing... I know she's still there but, something is blocking me."
"Perhaps she's asleep right now? Could that be a reason?" Asuma asked.
"Maybe, but even then the connection feels a lot different, this is new, like her chakra is in disarray."
"Then you all better get moving." the Hokage said.
"Here boy!"
Kiba Inuzuka hoped into his bed followed by a small white furred pup who happily wagged its tail drawing close to its master while smelling his hand, he lifted the pup with both hands above his head and smiled looking at his companion then let him down placing him over his chest, the pup licked one of his cheeks in sign of comfort, Kiba let out a chuckle and ruffled his fur some more. Soon after a young woman with black eyes and long brown hair tied into a ponytail poked her head behind the bedroom's door.
"I'm heading out to the store, need anything?"
"Akamaru's food is running out, could you bring me some sis?"
"They only sell the big sacks at the supermarket Kiba and it's already closed." The pup Akamaru whimpered slightly as if understanding.
"Then a small bag is fine, we can go tomorrow and buy the big one." Akamaru barked in approval as Kiba playfully scratched his head.
Kiba's sister soon disappeared, they could hear her heading down the stairs and opening the door, he relaxed back on his bed with Akamaru still resting over his chest. Both siblings found themselves alone that night, save for the company of their pets, both their parents had gone that week on vacation and let Hana, the older of the two, take care of the house while they were both gone. Neither of them had plans to do much during that time either so they both settled to spend the next couple of days watching a few movies and taking their dogs out for walks and some exercise during the morning and earlier night times.
The Inuzuka clan was another Konoha allied family who opted for a life within normal parameters, they were not as old as other clans but they specialized in breeding and domesticating dogs to make them not only companions but combat partners as well, this was a trait no other shinobi clan had and because of it they were very valued. It had been known other rival villages had tried to acquire their services in order to convince them to switch alliances in the past, but that never came to be, like dogs themselves, they knew the meaning of loyalty.
A few seconds passed since he last heard his sister head out but then he realized the door was never closed and instead Akamaru's head perked in alert which only meant one thing, they had guests. He started to hear voices coming from the living room, including his sister's, the pup barked and immediately jumped from Kiba's chest to the floor and headed down the stairs as well.
"Akamaru! Wait!"
Kiba followed his partner outside of his bedroom but opted to use his sense of smell instead to figure out who had arrived and it did not take long to recognize one of them, he wondered what he was doing coming to his home at such a late hour. He peeked from a corner of the stairs and confirmed Shino was there along with another blonde guy and three girls, one of them who was laying down on the couch, they had been too busy talking amongst each other to notice his presence but when Akamaru came down barking he caught Shino's attention and realized his old friend was present now as well, Kiba felt a bit uneasy with the new guests as he resumed walking down the stairs.
"Shino... What are you doing here? Who are these people?" He asked with caution.
"Sorry to barge in like this Kiba, Hana-san let us in, we need your help."
Kiba looked over to his sister Hana hoping to get an answer that she did not possess, she always had a weak spot for helping strangers who seemed in trouble and even if Shino was someone he knew, the fact that he had brought four outsiders to their home made him feel on edge a little. Akamaru's presence in the living room made five more adult dogs, three of which Hana owned, come out to greet the group, despite having their own roof in the backyard they roamed freely inside to keep everyone company, aside from the fact that it was raining and the house was a much warmer environment for the canines. Hana's trio were all huskies with similar grey and white fur, all young and still growing, the other two were full adults and a lot bigger that regular dogs, one resembled a dire wolf with black fur, it was missing its left ear and strangely enough had an eye patch over its right eye, the other one was a large fawn sable shepherd with pointy ears. Unlike Kiba, they all seemed to be relaxed and curious as to to who these people where, smelling them and wagging their tails as they inspected each one of them.
"Who are these people Shino? What's going on?" He asked again almost threatening, Hana noticed the mood swing.
"Kiba! Shino is your friend! Save the questioning for later and help me get some water!"
Hana's tone certainly woke Kiba from his menacing trance as he jumped in surprise and did what he was told, he ran into the kitchen not before taking one last look at his sister who was tending the blond woman placed on the couch. He filled a glass of water from the tap and headed back to the living room handing it to Hana, she gave it then to Ino who was looking worse than before.
"What happened to her?"
"Food poisoning, she took something that wasn't meant for her to digest."
Kiba turned around to look at the person who responded, it was Naruto who by the look in his face, was also worried about the Ino's condition, she had only shown some weariness but now her temperature was spiking and the pain in her stomach started to worsen. Kiba paid no attention to his words and instead analyzed him, he had seen him before not long ago, he seemed familiar. The hair, the clothes, the eyes, then it clicked.
"You!"
He angrily charged and grabbed Naruto by the collar of his vest slamming him against one of the walls, Naruto grunted at the impact but did not act right away, he could see now better the features in his face, messy brown hair, wild sharp black eyes with vertical slit-like pupils resembling those of a beast, and gritted canine teeth, something characteristic of his clan. The action caught the team by surprise, Sakura, Karin and Shino all went into a defensive position around them, the dogs barked and also surrounded them both but never intervened.
"Kiba!" Hana called to no avail.
"You're that guy on the news! Because of you the whole world knows about out existence!" Kiba yelled.
"Like I had a choice!" Naruto countered, he grabbed Kiba's hand and tossed it aside making him take a step back "Everyone keeps blaming me for something I couldn't control! Put yourself in my shoes for a minute and tell me you wouldn't have done the same!"
"Like hell! A true shinobi would never do something that stupid in public! Shino! you better have a damn good reason to have brought this guy to my home!" He raised his hand to point at Naruto.
"We're all fugitives Kiba!"
"What?!" He looked at his former classmate in disbelief, there was a brief pause, Shino knew his next words could mean their stay that night or going back to the street.
"We all made a conscious choice when we decided to help Naruto, including to stop hiding from the world! I don't know if you're aware of the mess we caused downtown but not just the police, a shinobi force of bounty hunters are after us as well so if you want to be angry at someone, be angry at me, not him!"
"We're not here to ask you to join our cause, the reality of things is none of us are going back to our former lives and we gladly accept it but this is not the time to be complaining for past actions, yours, my cousin's, or anyone else's for that matter." Karin also said.
"We just need enough time to recover and we'll go, we won't bother you again after that if that's what you wish..." Sakura added.
The room went silent as Kiba thought on what to do, he could not believe a former classmate of his was also on the run because of shinobi affairs, ever since he was little, he and his sister were taught better than to use their abilities for everyone to see, it was a golden rule not just for them but for every ninja, yet these four people joining Shino did not seem to care about keeping their identities or their lives away from the public eye and he wondered why, was there a particular reason they followed the guy in front of him? He needed to know.
"What... what is so special about you?! Why are others risking their lives to defend you?!"
"Because that's what friends do..." This was Ino's voice, she was now seating on the couch with Hana's help.
Naruto's eyes widened when he heard her, he never thought the those words would mean so much to him in that moment, in all honesty he did not even think Ino would say something remotely similar ever again so it took him as a surprise when her shell finally started to crack, his own being already gone without realizing it. Ino continued.
"You and I have different views of what a shinobi is, perhaps my thoughts were similar to yours at some point but now, because of him, because of Jiraiya-sensei, I know we're not meant to be just tools of war and die following a doctrine that doesn't belong to us, we can all choose to fight for what we believe in, and I believe..." She rose from the couch with some difficulty, Hana tried to help her but she refused. "I believe with all my heart now that Naruto is worth the trouble..."
"Ino..." That was all Naruto could say, he really had no other words.
Kiba looked at her trying to understand the link between them, he could tell when someone was lying but she genuinely meant what she said, still those words were not enough to convince him at that moment, from his perspective, Naruto was simply a perpetrator who had brought trouble to his doorstep. His rash nature took over again as he turned to face him and raised a hand ready to strike him, Naruto read his intentions and prepared to do a similar action but both were suddenly paralyzed when Hana stepped in between the two, she was already grabbing both their fists with each hand and looked at her little brother in disappointment.
"She's fast!" Karin thought amazed.
"So this is what a Jonin is like..." Shino also thought. Everyone else was just as astounded as he was, not really seeing when she moved.
"W-when...?"
"That's enough Kiba! This isn't your house only, I live here as well and as the elder of the two I am in charge until mom and dad are back! Now if you're gonna be rude with our guests I suggest you go to your room and cool it! Are we clear?"
Her voice carried an authority Kiba was not used to hearing that often, the bossy person around the house was usually his mother, Hana was sweet and upbeat most of the time but it seemed some traits had been acquired without notice. He pulled his fist from her hand and grunted under his breath walking away from everyone and going back up the stairs without saying another word, Akamaru barked and followed him, then they all heard a door slam.
"I'm sorry about that, he's very impulsive sometimes, kinda like mom." Hana said with an apologetic smile to Naruto "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine..." He responded dusting himself a bit "I'm sorry for causing everyone trouble Hana-san, seems everywhere I go now people want to hurt me."
"Hey, no one's judging you now." She assured him and placed her hand on his shoulder, then she addressed the group "You guys can spend the night here, I'll bring over some blankets and pillows for everyone."
"Will Kiba be okay?" Shino asked.
"Let him clear his head, he's just not looking at the big picture right now, he'll be fine."
Then everyone heard a thud and looked horrified.
"Ino!" Naruto rushed to her side.
-0-
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto
Hello again, yes, I've been procrastinating a lot with writing these chapters, seems like some of George RR Martin's laziness got a hold of me and I'm not even rich, anyhow, here's the new chapter, enjoy and Gomen for the delay!