Three Years Previously.
"Come here, Poochie!" calls Inari, desperately.
"No!" yells the kids who stole Inari's puppy, Poochie. "His name is Shooting Star, and he's MY puppy now!" Poochie, who is tucked under the other boy's arm, does not seem at all bothered by what is happening.
"NO HE IS NOT!" yells Inari, struggling against the two boys who are holding him back. "He's MY Poochie! GIVE HIM BACK!"
"SHUT UP!" Yells the kid holding Poochie. Silence reigns for a few seconds, then the kid grins wickedly. He throws Poochie into the ocean. "HA! What are you gonna do now?" the kid laughs.
Poochie lands in the ocean with a splash.
"POOCHIE!" screams Inari.
"Well it's your fault for not handing the dog over when I ordered you to!" sneers the kid. "It's just a dumb dog, anyway."
"You can't drown my puppy!" screams Inari, breaking free of the other two kids.
"If he means so much to you, why don't you jump in and save him?" sneers the kid.
"But…" Inari is frozen with fear.
"What are you waiting for?"
Inari stares into the water below him, terrified to jump in and get Poochie. Poochie is his best friend, but Inari cannot swim. How can he save his puppy if he cannot swim?
"Hey, if he's your dog, why aren't you jumping in?" demands the other kid and pushes Inari into the ocean.
"Hey, what if he can't swim?" demands one of the other kids.
Inari flounders around in the water. "HELP ME!" he screams.
One of the other kids moves to help, but the ringleader stops him saying, "Leave him be, unless YOU want to perform a little pet rescue."
Inari flails about, calling out for help and swallowing some sea water. As he sinks below the surface of the water, he sees Poochie figure out out to dog paddle and swim away.
"Shooting Star's getting away!" Inari hears the other kid yell as he sinks into the ocean.
I don't wanna die, Inari whines to himself.
Inari wakes up to the smell of fish cooking over an open fire. He sits up and looks around, seeing a man sitting nearby roasting said fish.
"Are you awake, kid?" asks the man. He turns around, showing Inari the roasting fish he is holding. "I dealt with those kids who were picking on you. Here, have a fish."
Inari wonders if this man is a god. He probably is not. "Did you rescue me mister?" asks Inari, staring at the man.
The man hands him a fish and says, "You've had rough time, haven't you?"
Inari does not reply, he eats the fish, realizing how hungry his ordeal has made him.
"Even your dog deserted you," continues the man. "Where I come from, dogs are loyal…"
(At this point in the story, Sasuke gwaffs, attracting the attention of everyone else.
"What's so funny, bastard?" demands Naruto.
"Dogs are stupid, cats are way better," says Sasuke, sticking her chin out. "Anyway, that dumb animal never came back, did it?"
"No, Teuchi says. "Now can I get back to the story?")
"Where I come from, dogs are loyal," says the man. "You can count on them. But you did let him down first, so he had no reason to help you."
Inari keeps munching his fish, wondering if Poochie would have been happier if Inari and jumped in and both of them had drowned. "I was too scared!" Inari whines. "Besides, I can't even swim…" he mutters. "I wanted to save him!" Inari stars crying. "I'm not brave enough!"
The man puts his hand on Inari's head and says, "Of course not. Any kid your age would have been terrified. But you must remember: when you become a man, you must live a life you won't ever regret."
Inari stares up at the man through teary eyes. What does the man mean?
The man grins and continues, "If something is precious to you, no matter how painful or how hard it is, no matter what it costs you, you have to persevere and protect it with all the strength you have - even if you must risk your life!" The man flexes his arm and puts his other hand on his bicep to illustrate his point.
Inari is so impressed he feel giddy.
"If you protect what's important to you," continues the man, "Then even if you die in the attempt, at least the world will be left with the memory of a man who lived a life worth living! It would be a great legacy to leave behind… Right?" The man laughs and scratches the back of his head, suddenly embarrassed. "That sounds super cheesy, doesn't it?"
"Yeah!" Inari smiles happily.
(Naruto smiles, his head resting on his arms. He is enjoying this story.
"The man's name was Kaiza," Tazuna explains. "Inari's father died when he was a baby, and Kaiza soon became like Inari's father even though he was a foreigner who came to the Land of Waves to seek his fortune. He found his fortune and a new family.")
"The rain is overflowing the dams!" Tazuna yells, bursting into his house from the torrential rain outside. Kaiza is sitting at the kitchen table with Inari, who wants help with his homework. "Kaiza, at this rate, D-section will be flooded!"
"WHAT?!" Kaiza turns to Tazuna, a look of horror on his face. "Inari, get a rope!" Kaiza adds as he runs out the door.
"Yes, Dad!" Inari runs to get a rope and takes it to Kaiza at the river.
Down at the river, the floodgates are being forcibly kept open by the swollen river. No one has been able to work out how to close it yet.
"If only we could get a rope around the gate," whines somebody despairingly. "Then we could all pull it closed and stop the flooding!"
Kaiza marches up to the frazzled crowd, a picture of grim determination. "I have a plan," he says.
"Here's the rope, Dad!" Inari calls, running up to Kaiza and holding up the rope he was sent to fetch.
"Thank you," says Kaiza and ties one end of the rope to the dock and the other around his waist. "Make sure this rope does not come loose!" he tells the bystanders. "I am going to sim out and tie the other end to the gate. Once it's secure I need you all to pull the gate closed."
"But you might get swept away!" protests a bystander.
"Dad you might die!" cries Inari, scared. "Why are you so willing to put your life at risk?"
"Because I love this town," grins Kaiza, placing his hand on Inari's head. "And because this is the town where my little boy lives."
Inari stares at Kaiza, beyond impressed.
Kaiza turns and jumps into the freezing river. For a few tense seconds, the river is in control, pulling at Kaiza and drawing him downstream. Then Kaiza takes control of the river in a burst of superhuman strength and surges toward the gate. The people on the dock cheer Kaiza on as he swims through the churning water to the flood gate and ties the rope to it.
On the dock, the townspeople grab ahold of the other end of the rope and pull the gate and Kaiza towards them.
It is a fine day in the Land of Waves. The sun is shining, the air is warm and a crowd is gathering in the center of town. They have gathered to see what the new businessmen in town has to say. But more than that, they are there to learn why Gato took Kaiza into custody.
"People of the Land of Waves," says Gato. "This man has done the unforgivable: he actively and openly went against my company and our policies. He is a disturber of the peace and an active terrorist. The penalty for his crimes is death!'
(Sasuke frown at this and says, "But they can't execute him without a fair trial…"
"Nerd!" Says Naruto. "You know WAY too much about law."
Sasuke scowls and mumbles something about wanting to be a policewoman.
"But then again, your Dad is the Nice Police Chief," Naruto shrugs. "Go on with your story, Mr. Tazuna.")
"This man will die as an example to any who might be tempted to act in such a way," continues Gato, gesturing dramatically to the cross where he tied Kaiza after cutting off his arms.
"DADDY!" screams Inari, clinging to the wire fence that surrounds the spectacle and keeps people from trying to save Kaiza.
Kaiza simply smiles as he is put to death in front of the whole town.
But as Kaiza dies, Inari screams out "You promised to protect me! You're a liar!" and in that moment Inari changed inside, as did the rest of the people in the Land of Waves. They all lost the courage to fight. All except one.
I will build my bridge, Tazuna promises. I must. It is the only way to save us now that Kaiza is gone.