Accio.

Come on! Harry mimed a grabbing motion with his right hand. Accio.

When nothing happened, Harry unholstered his wand and waved it impatiently. Accio.

A fluffy pillow rose unsteadily from the bed, cut through the air roughly and smacked Harry in the face. He slumped dejectedly and rubbed his face in irritation. Depulso. The pillow landed on the other side of the room with a wobbly thump.

A hoot and a gentle bump against his leg made Harry smile. "You're bored? But I still need practice with silent spell-casting when my wand is holstered."

Hedwig turned and stared at the pillow.

"Hermione said silent spell-casting was sixth-year material. And Akira…well, I'll have better chances of surviving if no one knows about my wand. So I need to make this work."

Harry holstered his wand and concentrated on the pillow. Accio. The pillow twitched but didn't move. Hedwig hooted dismally.

"Obviously, I need a lot more practice. But it's better than shopping or reading. I've been doing a lot of that the past three days. I finished the books the Hokage sent…"

Hedwig didn't look impressed.

"It's better than going around with Ichigen. Something always delays his errands. The first time, the materials weren't there. Later the person he had to meet was sick. Who knows what happened today?"

Hedwig hooted loudly.

"All right, enough practising for now," Harry held up a wooden box. "Want to come deliver this?"

Hedwig flew to his shoulder as he checked the muggle-repelling spells on his scroll and backpack.

"Someone's become lazy!" Harry chuckled when she bit his ear. They travelled through dusty streets to a tiny store front and addressed the man behind the counter. "Yoshida-san, I've fixed your flute."

"Oh, thank you!" Yoshida played a few notes on the flute and said, "I'll definitely recommend your services to people I know."

"That's not necessary." I really need to stop fixing people's things. But Ichigen volunteered my ability…

"No need to be modest. I'll definitely send some business your way in the future."

Modest? Harry just smiled trying to ignore the Konoha elders' words that echoed rather mockingly in his mind. "Did you happen to see Ichigen today?" Harry listened to the man in silent irritation. "Thanks." When they returned to the dusty streets, Harry turned to Hedwig. "Can you find him?"

Hedwig confidently led Harry away from the buildings, through scenic greenery towards a small pond. She seemed as indignant as Harry felt when they found Ichigen napping by the water. "We definitely need to talk." Hedwig screeched noisily, waking Ichigen up with a start.

"Good afternoon, Ichigen."

Ichigen looked at them with wide eyes. "I'm… this isn't what it looks like!"

"Looks like you're enjoying a nap instead of helping the carpenter." Harry settled on the soft grass. "Also, the carpenter looked perfectly healthy when I passed his store."

Ichigen coughed awkwardly.

Harry watched the sunlight play across the pond's clear surface. "Why don't I guess the reason for the delays and your general anxiety around me?" He breathed in the slightly humid air and said, "Danzo."

"How," Ichigen paused with frightened eyes before he shook his head in embarrassed realization. "You're not one of Danzo's men."

Harry sputtered. "Of course, I'm not."

"It's just… he said Konoha couldn't be held responsible for your actions. And even though the Hokage said he was referring to your citizenship status, I wasn't sure."

How does that implicate me as Danzo's men? Harry grimaced. "You don't trust the Hokage?"

"I do. But Danzo, people always underestimate what he's capable of doing."

"You're speaking from past experience?"

"It doesn't matter," Ichigen said. "Danzo 's rather open interest…I didn't think taking you directly to the temple would be a good idea. I hoped to find out your true character by delaying the trip."

"You," Harry said, "didn't really think this through, did you? What if I was a good actor or something?"

Ichigen looked ready to argue.

"Whatever. Can we just resume the trip without these unnecessary delays?" Harry stood and dusted his pants.

Ichigen nodded. As they entered the inn, he said, "Why did Danzo …"

Harry sighed. "The elders want to keep me in Konoha because I'm a good business prospect. I took this trip to show that I'm free to do as I please."

"Is that a good idea?" Ichigen said.

"No, they're probably more annoyed at me now, but I doubt they liked me before anyway."

Ichigen sputtered. "That's not the right mindset to have!"

Harry shrugged and grabbed his things. They left the inn without meeting anyone and left the village in an uncomfortable silence. After hours of walking, Harry unwittingly restarted conversation between them when he pulled out his bag of dango.

"You have dango?"

Harry turned to Ichigen with a questioning look.

"Aren't you going to share?" Ichigen asked.

"You eat dango?" Harry clutched the bag closer to chest. "But you're a monk. A rather unreliable one, but still…"

"What kind of logic is that?" Ichigen said, "Besides, I'm not just a monk. Our temple trains ninja-monks. We never use genjutsu but we're good with hand-to-hand and we have our own unique ninjutsu."

Is he making up for the past three days worth of meaningless conversations? "Genjutsu?"

"The mind arts, you know, like creating illusions that affect a person's senses and perception or their thoughts."

Harry grimaced. "That sounds horrible."

"Yes, there are some really scary genjutsu," Ichigen said. "We don't use them because the mind isn't something to be harmed out of spite. Even our most offensive moves are only to be used in defence."

Harry watched Hedwig flying in the afternoon sky above them. "Basically, you're a really passive ninja?"

Ichigen clucked his tongue in annoyance. "Don't make it sound like we're weak! The founder of our monastery order had techniques that could defend against a bijuu's chakra."

Bijuu? That sounds familiar. "Those tailed-beasts actually existed?"

"What's with that doubtful tone?" Ichigen asked.

"My grandmother had a small figurine of a three tailed turtle. An older family member mentioned gigantic beasts with multiple tails but he didn't elaborate, so I thought they were just myths."

"Myths?" Ichigen blinked and then guffawed. "So sheltered people like you really exist."

Harry felt a mix of irritation and embarrassment.

"The nine tailed-beasts are very real. The more tails, the more powerful the beast is. A single movement from them can destroy an entire village."

"The three-tailed turtle…" Harry said, picturing the figurine sealed in his scroll.

"Not all that powerful in the hierarchy. The most powerful is the nine-tailed fox."

"Don't you mean turtle?" Harry said in surprise.

Ichigen snickered. "Tailed-beasts not tailed-turtles."

"What kind of monk makes fun of a misinformed person?"

"A ninja-monk who's still waiting for his share of dango," Ichigen said blithely.

Harry snorted.

"Anyway, thankfully the ninja created techniques to deal with the beasts."

"And they succeeded?"

"It's hard to imagine a human subduing a giant monster, right?" Ichigen said.

Remembering his own lucky victory over a large basilisk, Harry shrugged. Trained grown-ups would definitely achieve much more. "So the ninja killed them?"

"You can't just kill beings composed of lethal malicious chakra."

"Okay, they sent it away?"

Ichigen shook his head. "They seal it away. The most effective way to seal a tailed-beast is inside a person. A living prison that keeps the beast in check constantly."

"In a person?" Harry repeated feeling horrified. "Do they have the option to say no?"

Ichigen shrugged. "I don't know. Even with all the mandatory things we've had to learn at the temple, I don't recall Zenza-san teaching much about the Jinchuuriki."

"Jinchuuriki?"

Ichigen said, "It's what they call people with a tailed-beast sealed in them."

"It sounds degrading." Harry frowned. "Makes them seem less than human."

"Actually, the name's probably meant to make them seem more than just human to frighten enemies. You'd think twice about attacking if you had to fight against one."

Harry bit his lip uneasily. Was this why Akira never talked about the tailed-beasts? Then again, he didn't talk about many things.

"Ah! I keep messing up. I wanted to have a normal conversation, but I ended up… I'm sorry." Ichigen slumped. "Honestly, I never really paid much attention to Zenza-san's lectures. They're as dull as the dango he makes."

He's distracting me. Harry sighed. It's probably for the best. I don't want to hear more even though I broached the topic.

"Let's take a little break since we're pretty close to the temple. There's a tea shop that way." Ichigen said. "The tea there is perfect with dango."

Harry nodded and followed Ichigen off the main road to a wooden shack saturated with the smell of herbs and smoke.

Ichigen yelped when Hedwig swooped in and landed on Harry's shoulder. "When did you call your owl?"

"I didn't," Harry said and settled at a low table.

Ichigen waved to an old lady peeking from an inside door. "Two energy elixirs." Ichigen noticed Harry's confusion and said, "Ignore the weird names, the taste is top-notch."

Harry just shrugged as two cups of dark fragrant tea was placed at their table. At least now I can test the spell Hermione mentioned. He lifted the cup to his mouth, breathed in the tea's tangy scent and mumbled, "Specialis Revelio." He sipped as a list of ingredients filled his mind. "Berries?"

The lady smiled in surprise. "You have a sharp sense of taste to pick up the little amount I used."

"There's a lot more in here than just tea," Harry said. A whole lot more which explains the outlandish name.

"Of course." The lady laughed. "Tell you what, if you can name five ingredients I've used, I'll show you how to make it."

"You'll share your recipe?" Ichigen looked surprised.

"I can't ignore someone with such sharp sense of taste. It's a heavenly sign!" She turned to Harry, "I'll give you a few minutes to think."

"If I learn how to make one of these teas, Chiriku-sama will definitely deem me capable."

"Because you can make tea?" What kind of monks... wait, I just conned that old lady! I'm terrible.

"Well, that and…" Ichigen grinned sheepishly. "Zenza-san's dango will taste so much better. Have some dango with the tea and you'll understand."

Harry bit his dango, sipped the tea and promptly gaped at the cup. I'm terrible but… He pushed his bag of dango to Ichigen. "We're getting the recipe."

Minutes later, they stood in a cramped kitchen breathing in the thick fumes watching the old lady create her tea. "The thyme should be added and stirred three times until the colour deepens. Let it simmer on a slow fire…"

Sensing something familiar about the process but unable to find any connection, Harry remained silent and thoughtful even when they were back on the road after acquiring the recipe.

Ichigen interrupted his musings. "You're really brave."

"What're you basing that on?" Harry said, adjusting his bag straps so that Hedwig could sit on his shoulder comfortably.

"The past few days. Nothing intimidates you."

Harry snorted. "You're wrong. I'm always running away."

"Running away? From what?"

A prophecy. A war. My family's past. My cousin. "Sometimes," Harry sighed, "it feels like I'm running from everything."

"Why are you running then? What are you scared of?"

Scared of? Harry glanced at his feet absently thinking about recent months. Failure, maybe? I'm scared I won't be enough. And instead of staying and trying, I'll grab any excuse to leave so I don't have to deal with failure.

"It's completely human to be scared and run from whatever frightens you." Ichigen's voice was serious but understanding. "Do you think you're not allowed to be human?"

Harry shrugged.

"Everyone is allowed to run away sometimes. You have just as much right as anyone."

"Even when important things are at stake?" Harry asked.

"Especially then!" Ichigen emphasized with a firm nod. "People who run away are usually searching for a way to get stronger and defeat their problems even if they don't know it. At least, that's what the senior monks say."

Harry snorted. "No wonder you just sounded like a monk."

"Was there some doubt?"

"You lied and delayed this trip to nap," Harry said as they entered a grove of sweet smelling trees. "I wanted to confront you before, but it always looked like you were really doing something productive those times."

"You make me sound like a slacker."

Harry bit down his sarcastic reply and glanced around when Hedwig tugged his hair.

Someone laughed above them. "Less than a week and he already knows your true character, Ichigen?"

"Sentoki!"

Harry followed Ichigen's glance and found a monk crouched on a tree branch, his white and blue outfit surprisingly well blended amongst the green.

"You couldn't sense me at all!" Sentoki jumped down.

Ichigen shook his head. "You've gotten better at concealing your chakra presence. You'll be stuck with sentry duty forever now."

Harry watched their easy interaction with a mix of longing and fondness for his own friends.

"Harii-san, don't be shy."

Harry twitched. "I told you to call me Harii."

After brief introductions, they moved through the grove with Ichigen informing Sentoki about news from all their previous stops, news that Harry hadn't obtained even with magic.

Harry noticed the soft grass giving way to loose gravel as the land sloped upwards but was completely surprised when his foot landed on a smooth stone-step, the start of a winding staircase that disappeared around some trees. As Harry contemplated his dismal observation skills, Sentoki disappeared back amongst the trees with a quick farewell.

Harry scanned the trees carefully. "He's rather… abrupt."

"He's just duty conscious. He probably needs to switch sentry posts. Anyway, ready to climb?"

Harry looked up, failing to gauge how high the staircase and mountain actually rose through the tree-cover. "The stairs are a test, right?"

"Why does everyone think that? Come on, let's get going."

With each step, the mountain's stairs widened with both ends of the stones disappearing in to thriving greenery on either side. Harry finished his water canteen but persevered, through the stifling heat, to the top where two gigantic winged statues flanked an alcove containing large intricately carved metal gates. But it was the humanoid statue that grabbed Harry's attention.

"Captivated by Yamabushi's long nose?"

Harry hastily looked down. "Sorry."

"Don't be. They're meant to attract attention." Ichigen tapped the statue on the left as he entered the alcove. "Especially this human-like one with the long nose, the Yamabushi Tengu. After centuries of despising humans, Tengu took that appearance and became protective of humans teaching them to harness chakra for ninjutsu."

Harry slumped against the alcove's cool stone as Ichigen pressed a palm against the gate. Yellow light flared around Ichigen's hand, seeped in to the painted metal and spread across the carvings towards the hinges.

With a click, the gates swung inward. Curious about the gates' mechanism but unwilling to seem nosy, Harry asked, "Why the large nose?"

Ichigen explained the Tengu's hatred of arrogance and prejudice as Harry caught sight of the large oriental temple standing majestically amidst many trees. Large red pillars lined the temple's staircase and stretched high up to support an ornate roof.

"Where is everyone?" Harry said as they reached the temple's staircase. And why are there so many stairs?

Climbing to the top of the stairs, Ichigen said, "Probably meditating in the prayer hall. But Chiriku-sama will come out soon because of the gates."

The temple's walls, filled with indecipherable carvings, captivated Harry leaving him quite startled when a gentle voice said, "You're late, Ichigen. Did something happen?"

Harry turned to the newcomer. A monk whose strict countenance hid any peaceful sage-like aura he might have held.

"Just a misunderstanding, Chiriku-sama."

"I see." The stern-faced monk turned to Harry. "And your companion?"

"The Hokage recommended Harii to fix the statue."

Harry bowed politely, noticing the familiar sash at the monk's waist.

"The Hokage is always too kind to us." Though his voice remained gentle, his stern expression never wavered. "I hope you don't mind our small dorms."

Harry fumbled for a reply. "I'm never picky about where I sleep, sir."

The monk's lips twitched slightly. "Then I'll leave you in Ichigen's care." With a nod, he turned and disappeared down a corridor.

"That's it?"

Ichigen shrugged."I think after surviving the Daimyo's court politics and hidden agendas, Chiriku-sama can judge a person's true character within minutes." As they moved through the grounds, Ichigen's conversation jumped from one topic to another. "…they call our chakra the gift of the hermit group."

"So to use Genjutsu," Harry sifted through the information. "You need to switch to normal chakra?"

"Kind of," Ichigen said and opened a door. "Have you ever seen a medic-nin work?"

Harry followed Ichigen in to a storage room. "Their chakra is green."

"Only when they heal," Ichigen said weaving through packed shelves "Medic-nins convert their regular chakra to healing chakra by changing the ratio of physical and spiritual energy."

Harry recalled previous conversations. Chakra is a mixture of those energies.

"You'd need years of practice with meditation and exercises to be very aware of both energies before you fiddle with the energy ratio." Ichigen moved to an open space at the back of the room. "Anyway, here's the statue…"

Harry stared at the tabletop littered with chucks of carved wood. "A wooden statue?"

Ichigen nodded. "It was carved at the founding of this temple. It was already fragile and when I moved it, this happened."

"These are all the pieces?" Harry traced the detailed carvings gently.

Ichigen nodded. "I was going to get craftsman to make an exact replica, so I kept all the pieces. Luckily no splinters…"

x-x-x-x-x

"You could stay another day to bypass the evening rainstorms."

Harry shook his head. "I completed my job day before yesterday and I'm eager to get back. Besides, I'm prepared for rain." I've placed the Impervius on my clothes.

"Fine." Ichigen held up a small pouch. "But you've forgotten something."

"I don't want any money."

"Don't be difficult, you earned this." Ichigen pushed the pouch to Harry. "Leaving you in that storage room… we were shocked when you fixed everything."

Harry sighed mentally. I damaged those things practising my spell-casting. It's only right to fix them. "You've already paid me back by teaching me about meditation yesterday."

"I just talked about meditation. That's hardly teaching. Besides, I owed you for the tea recipe."

"Don't…" Harry stumbled as a loud crash shook the ground.

"That's the iron gates!" Ichigen steadied Harry and eyed their surroundings. "We should move." They joined other worried monks by the top of the temple stairs and stared around in worried confusion.

Through the curtain of settling dust, Harry saw a gaping hole where the large iron gates should have been. Two black garbed men jumped off the crumpled remains of the gates and moved towards the temple looking distinctly predatory.

Harry followed their gaze when they stopped and found Chiriku walking down the stairs. He moved to get a better look but Ichigen held him back with a pull and horrified whisper of "Akatsuki?".

"Will he be okay without a weapon?" Harry asked as the intruders shared a look and ran towards an unmoving Chiriku.

"Just watch," Ichigen said.

Yellow light surrounded Chiriku and solidified into something. But the sunlight, Harry's distant position and the glow of the technique itself made it difficult to see in the few seconds it manifested.

One intruder, with vivid white hair, jumped high and swung a scythe-like weapon down while the other masked-man ran with a raised fist. The light around Chiriku condensed, morphed and pushed back both intruders before they could land a hit.

"Chiriku-sama has mastered the thousand-armed murder technique," Ichigen said.

Glad that Hedwig was off roaming, Harry watched as both intruders immediately stood and raced forward for another attack.

Once again, Chiriku repelled them without moving but they flipped through the air and landed on their feet expertly. The white haired intruder laughed, a loud wild laugh, slashed his red weapon through the air viciously and glanced at his accomplice.

With another slash he ran forward, leaving his accomplice stationary, and stabbed the ground. Debris sprayed up, forcing Chiriku to move but he calmly repelled the intruder again.

An older monk pulled Harry back. "Ichigen, he stands out among us. If they misunderstand, it'll be twice as dangerous. Take him to safety until this is over."

Ichigen seemed apprehensive but nodded and tugged Harry away.

Reluctant to leave Harry asked, "Why are we going?"

"Let's not think about that. Come on, we'll use one of the underground passageways."

Annoyed, Harry followed keeping an eye on the fight till they left the area. The battle sounded more frantic the further they walked and minutes later, a distant deranged laugh made them pause uncertainly. Uncertainty gave way to dread when worried yells of "Chiriku-sama!" and frenzied running filled the air.

With a pained sigh, Ichigen walked away from the increasingly loud sounds but paused as something large fell and crashed in to a pillar near them with a splatter of red.

Ichigen ran to the mangled body staining his hands with red. "Usai-san!"

As he stood motionless, Harry winced with realization at the continued crashes. "They're being thrown."

"Move," Ichigen yelled as another white blur fell towards them.

Harry ignored him. Aresto Momentum. The body slowed and stopped near his outstretched hands. Harry steadied the monk, thrilled at helping but flinched at the blank lifeless eyes.

"They're being choked and thrown." Ichigen took the body from Harry's hands gently. "Even if you catch them..."

Harry gladly looked away.

"How did you? No, that's unimportant now." Ichigen shook his head. "Harii, I'm going back. The passageway is in the dorm garden by..."

"I'll go with you."

"No! Just get to safety." Ichigen turned and disappeared back the way they came.

Harry took one step and flinched away from Usai's body. "I'd leave but Ichigen's directions were incomplete." Steeling himself, Harry rushed down a side path through the trees towards the battle as the crashes continued.

He peeked from behind a tree, dismayed at the destruction, and found only the masked-man being attacked by numerous pairs of monks. But when any monk got too close to the intruder, something pushed them back easily.

Searching for colourless spells that wouldn't alert the man to dodge, Harry aimed for the man's back. Petrificus Totalus.

Nothing happened.

Well, nothing that Harry had been hoping for.

The masked-man stumbled slightly but otherwise continued to move unimpeded. The spell hit but didn't affect him... like a dragon. Harry ducked and ran as a monk's body crashed into the tree he'd been hiding behind. Okay, if I think of him as a dragon…

"You should just come out," a loud raspy voice said. "Sneak attacks are useless."

A tree close to Harry rose in the air and crashed and shattered against the temple even as the masked-man continued fighting the monks in the distance. Amidst his confusion, some instinct made Harry duck with an arm over his head just as long grey threads grabbed every tree around him and pulled.

The intruder stared directly at Harry as the uprooted trees crashed against all the monks. "You're not a monk."

Harry straightened himself, dismayed at the sudden turn of events. Nothing hurt me in all that...

"Maybe you're Fire Country's Jinchuuriki?" The masked-man turned, completely facing Harry who gaped at the man's outfit- black material marked with a stylized red cloud- a perfect copy of Itachi's outfit. Quiet, helpful, weird Itachi...

"No, such weak chakra. Perhaps a novice who hasn't started training yet." The masked-man's raspy voice interrupted Harry's thoughts just as the ground in front of him burst open with a flurry of threads. "Do you think you have a chance when your superiors failed?"

Pay attention, think later. Harry dodged to the side, the persistent threads rebounding harmlessly off his clothes. What the... Is the Impervius doing that? The threads multiplied and encircled him blocking out the surroundings while pulsing eerily. Protego only protects from spells.

Reducto. Diffindo. Reducto.

The spells blasted away and tore the threads to shreds.

"Explosives?" The raspy voice said as new threads zig-zagged unpredictably.

Impedimenta. Harry moved his hand in an arc freezing the threads and deflecting them away from him. He'd barely thought of his next move, when fingers grabbed his throat in a suffocating grip.

"Harii!" Someone shouted.

Harry's feet kicked up dirt as he was dragged forward. Amidst his struggles, Harry noticed that the masked-man was a fair distance away but his arm had elongated via the grey threads.

"This is the end."

Feeling inclined to disagree, Harry curled his fingers concentrating on the masked-man. Accio. Depulso. He didn't know if it was the lack of air, but his wand seemed to hum with energy. All around them, rocks and tree fragments shifted, floated in to the air and raced towards them.

"What…" The fingers loosened but didn't release his throat.

Harry desperately raised his hand. Relashio. Fiery sparks burst out of his holstered wand burning the man's wrist and forcing the fingers to unclench. Harry fell to the ground just as the summoned items crashed in to his opponent with a large cloud of dust.

He shot a barrage of different spells and ran just as monks armed with various weapons surrounded him to help. As Harry took in a deep breath and coughed, they were all thrown back carelessly.

Out of the dust cloud, the masked-man emerged uninjured, his dusty and torn and singed cloak littered with wooden splinters. Not a scratch on his skin! Didn't the Relashio burn him? Unless... his skin changes?

"Your power is different."

Harry stilled at the curiosity laced voice. A monk attacked from the side but the masked-man didn't move. He didn't even turn away from Harry.

But the threads moved.

They grabbed the monk and squeezed.

"No!" Harry aimed at the threads. Diffindo. The spell sliced cleanly through the threads but the monk fell lifelessly.

The masked-man gazed at Harry's hands. "You don't need to use chakra."

I should've hit him with a strong Stupefy when I was in that choke-hold. He wouldn't have dodged that. Why didn't I… Harry smothered a cough. He's not attacking, perfect…

A foot collided with his stomach.

As he flew backwards, Harry realized that the Impervius charm was still working on his clothes. It's repelling some strength from his hits, I definitely felt part of the force behind that kick.

Accio Rock.

A large rock hovered in front of him just as the masked-man aimed a punch at Harry. The rock exploded in a shower of dust.

Not getting hit has definitely risen in priority. Accio. He aimed down and murmured, "Aresto Momentum." Rocks of all sizes rose in front of Harry as he skidded to a stop. He sighed in relief as more monks armed with black staffs rushed to help.

"That's a very versatile ability."

Out of the corner of his eye, Harry saw a black cloth fluttering behind him. When?How? He gasped as the man kicked him up in the air and punched him away mid-air. His shoulder jarred painfully as he crashed against a wall with a sickening thud.

Through blurry vision, Harry saw other monks fighting the masked-man. He adjusted his battered glasses and rubbed his head gingerly. "Episky." The pain dulled and his vision sharpened but he felt weak.

"Bloody hell," Harry said as the man emerged unscathed yet again leaving behind a wave of dead monks.

Think of the dragon attack strategy, weak point of a dragon is… Harry grimaced as the hand elongated once more. He dodged to the side but his head throbbed and his vision blurred for a mere second, enough for the other man to get an unforgiving hold of his throat once more.

"How are your clothes deflecting attacks?" The fingers tightened.

Harry groaned. Come on, a dragon's weakness…

"Your ability only works with one hand. I wonder what'll happen when I tear your arm away." The fingers around his throat tightened. "This uniform will cost a lot to fix."

Wait, my spells, even weak ones, always affected his threads. And they're part of his body, so a strong spell meant for a specific area... Harry twisted his fingers, grabbed the threads and glared at the pupil-less green on black eyes. Weak point of a dragon… the eyes!

Conjunctivitis.

I can't die here. He's waiting for me.

I won't die here.

After a few nervous seconds, the man growled and blinked his eyes rapidly. Now's my chance, Stupefy.

What happened next was an incoherent and nauseating blur. After a bright explosion of red, Harry's body alternated between confusing sensations of flying, falling and fading away. The wind sped past his body with a roar and pain engulfed him when he finally stopped moving.

After many fortifying gulps of air, Harry lifted his head and opened his eyes warily. The storage room? How'd I…

Harry looked up with his dusty but miraculously still-present glasses, ignoring the painful twinge in his neck, and found large holes in the ceiling and walls. Was I thrown?

No, I wouldn't have survived that even with my charmed clothes. As more crashes sounded, Harry pushed himself up but his hand buckled and he fell face-first to the floor. His breaths became laboured as a metallic taste filled his mouth. What did my Stupefy do? How did I survive and end up here?

"Harii! Those injuries, how are you…"

Harry looked to the side. "Ichigen?"

A blood-stained Ichigen knelt beside Harry and prodded his shoulder. "Harii?"

Harry yelped and spit out some blood. "Of course it's me."

Ichigen opened his mouth to speak but a deafening groan filled the air as the ground shook. Harry looked up just as the roof cracked, shuddered and exploded downward. We're going to get crushed. Spell… I need that spell. Didn't I use it before?

As the roof fell, black spots clouded Harry's vision and cold engulfed his left hand. Ignoring his tiredness, he blinked rapidly to clear his vision, turned slightly and gaped as Ichigen glowed and repelled the falling debris away.

Ichigen slumped in relief when things settled. "Thank goodness. I didn't know how long I'd be able to use that." He smiled at Harry. "He won't find you here."

Harry gasped painfully, suddenly finding it harder to breathe. The black spots returned with a vengeance, clouding Harry's vision and seemingly stealing his hearing.

Ichigen leaned forward saying something but the darkness overpowered Harry's pain-filled consciousness.

x-x-x-x-x

Harry opened his eyes blearily and groaned as the blurred world see-sawed unsteadily in the daylight. It took a moment for him to realise that he was being carried on someone's back.

"Harii-san?"

"Ichi…" Harry took in a shaky breath. "gen?"

There was a pause in movement. "It's Sentoki. Don't tire yourself. I gave you emergency first-aid but you're not entirely healed. We're headed to Konoha."

Through his weariness, Harry noticed something odd on the monk's front. "My scroll?" I placed spells on that. How is he holding it?

"Your owl wouldn't let me leave without it." The man tilted his head. "I've sent your owl ahead to Konoha with a message. I would have asked for your permission, but I didn't want to delay news of the attack. I hope you don't mind."

"Did…" Harry coughed and his voice cracked. "Did Ichigen go with her?"

"Go back to sleep. Hopefully some Konoha ninja will meet us soon."

x-x-x-x-x

Harry struggled and screamed. Something was burning his body from the inside out and every movement felt torturous.

"Stop pushing chakra in to him!" A lady's voice cut through the pain-induced fog over his mind.

Harry opened his eyes blearily as the oppressive pain disappeared. "Thank... you."

The last thing his brain registered was a concerned voice calling him amidst the earthy smell of damp grass.

x-x-x-x-x

Haunted by images of an orange jacket soaked with blood, Harry woke with a terrified gasp. His head pounded, his eyelids felt heavy and his entire body throbbed. Even so he pushed himself up, surprised when black-gloved arms steadied him and held up a familiar pair of glasses "Cat-san?"

"It's Racoon. Don't move around so much, you'll jostle your cast."

Harry frowned at the cast, running from his left elbow to the middle of his scarred palm, unsure of how or when it broke. But a bright red something hanging off his neck, near his sling, distracted him.

"The monk left that omamori as protection during your recovery."

"Protection?" Harry rubbed the golden 'Temple of Fire' script inscribed on the cloth and tugged at it's knot, but a gloved hand stopped him.

"Opening it will weaken the prayers. Don't scorn the monk's good will."

"I'm not scorning anything." Harry shook his head. "Anyway, why are you here... wherever here is?"

"You're in Konoha's hospital and it's close to midnight on 23rd August."

Harry grimaced. It was the 21st when I was leaving the temple...

The door slid open and the Hokage entered, the dim light from the window highlighting her exhaustion. "So you're really awake. How does your head feel?"

Confused. In pain. Tired. "It's hard to pinpoint what I'm feeling right now."

"That's to be expected." She grabbed the clipboard from the bed's railings. "We sedated you heavily after your body reacted badly to chakra trying to heal you."

Harry recalled vague memories of him screaming from pain. I thought we were outside that time.

"We feared you'd been poisoned by a new toxin. But later we realised that you were unconsciously fighting our healing chakra entering your body. So we couldn't heal your wounds."

"But Sakura healed me with chakra. Why didn't..." Harry paused uncertain of what to ask.

But Tsunade seemed to understand. She hung the clipboard and said,"That's what I'd like to test and find out. I'll stop immediately if it fails."

It would be best to have a professional find out if something is wrong.

As green chakra coated Tsunade's hands, Harry said, "You're a healer? I thought you were... never mind. Let's get this over with." With a brief look of warning, she placed her hand over Harry's right palm. Absently noting his wand-holster still on his hand, Harry flinched in anticipation of pain but the green chakra worked perfectly. "It's healing."

Tsunade frowned but moved her hands to his neck. "How were your previous injuries healed?"

Harry relaxed as the pain vanished. "With lots of herbal medicines, never chakra."

"Then let's leave the cast to see how you heal naturally." Tsunade prodded various points on Harry's head carefully. "At the very least, we'll gain some base information to work with if you're ever injured again."

"But will it explain why you couldn't heal me with chakra?"

"It will give me some clues to work with," Tsunade said.

"The temple... what happened?" At the ensuing silence, he looked down and fiddled with the omamori. "So it's a lot worse than I'm imagining."

"It may be too much to ask, but will you tell us about the attack? Anything you remember from the attack, however insignificant, can help us."

"Is anything I say reliable?" Harry stalled. "I mean, I am drugged."

Tsunade sighed. "We would have spared you a verbal questioning, but the drugs and your unusual reaction to intrusive chakra makes this the only safe option for everyone."

What does that mean? Harry twitched in surprise as Cat-san moved closer to the bed. "What do you need to know?"

"Everything you remember," Cat-san said.

Harry clutched the omamori tightly, searching for a way to start. "Ichigen and I were arguing when the iron gates were broken by two people. The monks knew them, called them Akatsuki."

"Did they have headbands? Can you identify which village they were from?" Cat-san prompted. Tsunade narrowed her eyes at the interruption.

"I only saw the masked-man's headband when he was choking me. He had this," Harry drew the symbol in the air with his finger sheepishly.

Cat-san nodded slightly.

" I never saw the other one up close. But when he attacked Chiriku-san, his white hair stood out along with his large scythe weapon. It was red, I think." Harry bit his lip struggling to understand his fragmented memories. "I can't…"

"That's all right." Cat-san reassure him. "Concentrate on what you do remember."

"One of the monks had Ichigen take me away." Harry grimaced and detailed their run, the crashes, the bodies. "There was so much blood when they were thrown. I didn't know bodies could break like that. I could have ended up as a splatter on the wall and..."

"Harii!"

Harry glanced at troubled hazel eyes, surprised to be called by his first name, and shrugged. "I went back. I could have searched for the passageway but I went back." He flexed his fingers, expecting disapproval but their silence comforted him. "I stayed by the trees."

"But it was useless. After uprooting all the trees around me, he mistook me for a Jinchuuriki." Harry noted Tsunade's sudden tenseness but continued. "The monks protected me but that made things worse. With my weak chakra, he realised I was just a bystander. Even so..." He detailed the masked-man's odd eyes, the unpredictable skin and the deadly threads that elongated his hand careful to omit any mention of magic.

"He probably thought he'd killed me when I was thrown." If I was actually thrown... Harry steadied himself with a deep breath. "I'm alive because he was an egotistical bastard."

Cat-san coughed politely.

Harry cringed and chanced a look at the Hokage.

She waved it off. "There's no doubt his ego worked in your favour."

"Probably," Harry said. "I woke far from the battle but Ichigen found me. He saved my life when the roof collapsed. I really need to thank him for that."

"That might be impossible," Tsunade said. "You're the only person who survived."

Harry frowned. "Ichigen said there were two hundred monks at that temple. Someone must have..."

Tsunade held up a hand. "Right now, you're the only survivor from the attack. But after your owl delivered Sentoki's message to us day before yesterday, Konoha's aid-team has been searching those ruins."

"What if someone..."

"Your owl led Sentoki to you among the debris that day. He left immediately because he knew that your information would be valuable," Tsunade said. "He made the right choice."

Harry would have argued, but a wave of sluggishness knocked him out.

Warm sunlight and bustling steps woke Harry up. Keeping his eyes closed, he said, "You drugged me!"

Harry's eyes flew open when a female voice 'eeped'. "Sorry about that. I thought..." Harry grabbed his glasses from the side-table. A white-clad nurse clutched a clipboard and eyed the door warily. "So it's the 24th already?"

The nurse shook her head. "It's the 25th."

"I slept through an entire day?" That explains the weird dreams about grand-mum… "I wonder if I can get out of here?"

"Most ninja just leave on their own," the nurse said meekly, almost to herself.

"That's nice." Harry adjusted his glasses. "But I'm not a ninja."

The nurse relaxed slightly. "Then sign a release form." She pointed the the chart on his bed's railings. "There's no notes to keep you sedated here if you woke up. I checked your vitals before and they're good. Your broken arm and bruises are the only major injuries..."

But wasn't I coughing up blood at the temple? Maybe Ichigen healed me! Harry listened as the nurse detailed how to deal with his cast.

"…pills until the check-up. Should I get the form?"

"Yes, please."

The nurse immediately returned with a handful of things- papers, two small bottles, a new set of clothes and the tattered remains of his old outfit. An entire sleeve was missing, blood and dirt stained the remaining fabric and it reeked. Harry grabbed his unscathed mokeskin pouch from an inside pocket with trembling fingers.

"Someone already readied your things," the nurse said.

Harry handed her the old clothes and examined his pain-killer bottles, wary of the unrecognisable names.

"If you want, I can bring some bruise-reducing creams too."

Harry shook his head and signed the papers with a flourish ignoring the warning about self-diagnosed releases. As soon as he was alone, Harry hurriedly dressed himself, wincing at the tender bruises littering his body. He'd just finished tying his shoes when the door slid open.

"Good afternoon, Naruto's older brother."

With a slight huff, Harry pocketed his medications. "Sai, I have a name."

"But with your near-death experience, you've probably forgotten about Naruto."

"Nothing can make me forget Naruto." Harry said. "Why are you here?"

"I had a check-up and Sakura said I should volunteer to take you to Naruto for food." Sai frowned. "Or maybe to the food first…"

How did Sakura know I'm leaving? "Food sounds good. I can't remember the last time I ate."

"They didn't let you eat?"

Harry shrugged.

"Then, what would you like to eat?" Sai said, "I read…"

Harry interrupted him. "What's your favourite food?"

Hesitantly, Sai said, "Momen tofu?"

Why is his answer a question? "Then let's have that."

Sai seemed surprised. "We should get take-out and eat with everyone… I think."

"Food and friendship fit well together," Harry said. Sai seemed reassured and peppered Harry with friendship-related questions until they bought the food. Hedwig joined them as they walked with the food.

"I can hold a bag, you know."

Sai searched his numerous bags and pushed a juice bottle into Harry's uninjured hand. "Now you can't."

Harry shook the juice bottle in amusement. "Have you dealt with injured people before?"

"I'm not a medic."

Harry chuckled at Sai's genuine confusion till they reached a wooded area. He slowed on the uneven terrain careful not to aggravate any bruises while Hedwig hovered and hooted constantly by his head.

As they exited the tree-line, Harry gaped at the sea of gold and orange. "Sai, I'm hallucinating. I see an entire field of Naruto out there."

Sai balanced his bags carefully. "Naruto's shadow-clones help him train."

"Shadow-clones?" Harry looked around. That would have helped at the temple. Clones of me firing spells simultaneously from different directions, like taking down a dragon…

"Harii nii-san?"

Harry's thoughts stopped and his body tensed as orange-clad arms engulfed him in a hug.

"You were sleeping yesterday when they kicked me out and nobody told me you were leaving today. I would..."

"Naruto." Harry winced as the hug tightened uncomfortably. "We'll have to survive on restaurant food for a while." I'm not going anywhere.

It took a minute, but Naruto understood Harry's sentiment and pulled away with a snort.

"And look, Sai conveniently brought food!" Harry smiled and Naruto's grip relaxed.

"How is that convenient?" Sai said. "You knew I was bringing food."

A brown-haired man, who Harry vaguely remembered, sighed. "Sai, he's just… never mind." He turned to Harry. "We've never met properly. I'm Yamato."

Harry nodded a greeting to Kakashi and shook Yamato's hand. "I'm Harii. This may sound rude, but can we eat? I'm starving."

Naruto frowned. "Sai didn't let you eat?"

"I wanted to get here first," Harry said, "He was nice enough to humour me. He wouldn't even let me help carry the bags."

Naruto rolled his eyes. "He doesn't need help."

"Is that how you treat your team-mate?" Kakashi said.

Harry turned around, worried about Sai's reaction, but found him occupied with removing the food. Harry followed Sai's example and sat on the grass, helping him pass out bowls. After hurrying through the required pre-meal etiquette, Harry emptied his bowl barely tasting anything. Even so, Kakashi had finished eating earlier and was busy reading.

While Yamato and Sai took their time, Naruto swallowed his last tofu with a slight shudder. "That was… nice."

Sai held up a box. "Want some more?"

"No!" Naruto bit his lip and immediately turned to Harry. "Nii-san, Heduwigu-sama gave me your scroll and bag. I've kept them there." He gestured towards some trees.

I didn't even remember... wait, Harry glanced at Hedwig. "She did?"

Kakashi interrupted them. "How did she earn such respect?"

Naruto shrugged and rubbed Hedwig's head gently. "She's a queen!"

"Queen?" Harry repeated.

"Of owls. But other animals have to listen to her too. No need to hide it, nii-san."

Yamato aptly voiced Harry's thoughts out loud. "Huh?"

"The other day I accidentally hit a cat. It was about to attack, but she gave it one look and hooted." Naruto leaned forward with a secretive air. "The cat bowed and ran away."

That's... unbelievably ridiculous. Harry sighed. She's never done anything like that before. But more than anything, Hedwig sounds like a tyrant.

"She'd definitely make your dogs obey her, Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto said, nodding confidently at Kakashi's sceptical look.

Harry tensed when Kakashi's hands shifted, moved and slammed against the ground. A circle of script flashed for a brief second before familiar smoke blanketed them.

Even as a seeker, I barely saw his hand's movement. But did he unseal something? The smoke dispersed revealing a small brown pug, fitted with a blue jacket and a ninja-headband. It lifted a paw. "Yo! What are we doing?"

Harry turned to Hedwig who immediately hooted. I wish she'd talk like that.

"Pakkun, what is she saying?" Kakashi asked.

The pug tilted it's head. "Apparently Naruto's a pro with the rubs and stealing his attention would earn me her wrath."

On second thought, I'm glad she can't talk, that tyrant. Harry tensed when Pakkun jumped close and sniffed his hand.

Pakkun turned to Kakashi with the dog equivalent of a disappointed glare. "When were you planning on telling us that Naruto had a relative?"

Harry glanced at Hedwig as Pakkun berated Kakashi. So, even ninja have bossy animals. I'm twice as glad she can't talk... "I should probably head back. I don't want to delay your training any longer."

Naruto frowned and made an odd hand gesture. With a puff of smoke, another Naruto emerged by the trees, grabbing Harry's scroll and bag without any ill-effects. "Nii-san, I'll keep you company!"

"Don't worry, nii-san. My clone can help you."

What happened to the spells I put on my things? Harry looked between both Narutos. "That's really convenient."

"Convenient like the food I brought?" Sai asked and held up an unopened tofu box.

"Yes, exactly like that," Harry said in amusement.

By the time Harry reached his apartment with Naruto's talkative clone and Hedwig, he was glad to be indoors safe from the sudden gusts of wind and dark looming clouds.

"I'm off to have a long shower." Harry tapped his cast. "A very long one."

"You need any help?"

Harry shook his head. "No, I can't get spoiled like that."

"But," Naruto said, "I'm here."

"Yes, you are. So, you're on food duty while I tackle this shower."

Naruto frowned at the cast. "Fine. If you need any help, call me."

Harry just nodded and headed to the wash-room with his things. He leaned against the heavy door, listening carefully. The Imperturbable charm, I can't remember when I put it on here but it's still working. Assured of privacy, Harry pulled out his two-way mirror and listened to the rambling messages. "I wonder what they argued about, if she's calling him Ronald Weasley now."

The mirror's surface rippled and a sleepy voice groaned.

Harry pulled the mirror close hoping to hide his injuries as Ron's bleary face came in to view.

"Harry, where have you been? She's been irritating…" Ron squinted and sputtered with realization. "That expression. You're injured! What happened?"

What expression? "It's nothing, really."

Ron rolled his eyes. "Harry, I've seen you injured a lot over the years and we're both terrible at hiding things."

Certain that Ron would persist till he got answers, Harry moved the mirror away from him.

"Please tell me you fell off your broom."

"I did fall," Harry said, "after being thrown."

Ron cleared his throat uncertainly. "Why did the monks throw you down their stairs?"

Offended on behalf of the monks, Harry blurted out every detail of the attack before he could stop himself. Ron's expressions shifted between disbelief and horror as Harry finished. "It's probably horrible to say, but I'm really glad I survived."

"Don't be ridiculous. I'm sure Hermione would agree that you'd be a horrible friend if you died." Ron rubbed his eyes. "You know what I mean!"

Harry stayed silent for a moment. "Maybe Hermione shouldn't know about this."

"One look at you and she'd know." Ron narrowed his eyes. "And I'm not keeping the mirror to hide it from her."

Harry huffed. "Right, I wouldn't want you to end up in even more trouble."

"I'm not in any trouble."

Harry smirked and said, "I've seen you in lots of trouble over the years and we're both terrible at hiding things."

Ron rolled his eyes. "Anyway, if they find a monk, wouldn't your magic be exposed?"

"Probably not." Harry explained how useless his magic felt against the ninja. "My magic wasn't really noticeable and I just couldn't physically keep up."

Ron frowned. "You're not a ninja but you are a wizard, Harry. There's got to be a way to use magic and cheat against those ninja to keep you alive."

After a few minutes of silence, Harry said, "That's true, the Impervius charm helped me when I least expected it. There must be a way to use other magic that's more…"

"Ninja-proof?"

Harry nodded. "I guess I just ignored how dangerous ninjas could be. Never imagined I'd be unable to cast a spell fast or strong enough in battle."

Ron looked incredulous. "You know, after everything you've survived, shouldn't you have been a bit more cautious?"

Harry shrugged.

"And about Itachi and those Akat-people..."

Harry interrupted him. "Itachi... he might have been returning the favour, but what kind of criminal has that high morals? If those two at the temple were anything to go by, he should have just killed me."

Ron frowned. "Then maybe you're remembering things wrong. Maybe Itachi just had a similar looking design on his clothes."

"The cloud was too distinct to mistake." Harry pieced together another connection. "You know, I'd forgotten until now, but Itachi's headband is from Konoha."

Ron stared at him.

"The village I'm living in, Ron."

"Oh, right." Ron nodded. "Wait, so Itachi..."

"Is from Konoha!" Harry confirmed. "Someone here is bound to know about him."

"But?"

Harry looked away. "Sirius."

"What?"

"My intuition might have been clouded with grief, but something about Itachi reminded me of Sirius," Harry said. "And I can't shake off that notion now."

"Well, you intuition has kept you alive till now. So maybe," Ron said, "Harry?"

Harry scoffed. "It hasn't kept people around me safe or alive. Ron, if I hadn't gone back to the fight, maybe some monks would have survived."

"If Hermione were here, she'd have the perfect thing to say to you. Something like..." Ron bit his lip in thought. "You're not Merlin and you can't stop bad things from happening."

"You're right," Harry said, "Hermione would have known what to say."

Ron snorted. "If you miss her scoldings that much, you could just come back."

"And what about Naruto?"

"He's obviously coming with you. Just Stupefy as needed." Ron mimed a ridiculously exaggerated wink.

"I can't imagine that going over well," Harry said with a slight smile trying to ignore Ron's badly hidden worry. And I don't really know how to get back yet. "I better go, Naruto's in the kitchen and I don't want to worry him by being in here too long."

All traces of worry disappeared and Ron grinned. "I'm going to be the first to see him! I knew it."

First to see him? As if they have a bet on that... "Not today. I still haven't told him anything." And it's Naruto's clone. Ignoring Ron's pleas to see Naruto, Harry said goodbye and hid the mirror in amusement.

After an awkward struggle with his cast and a few almost falls on the wet tiles, Harry left the wash-room with slightly damp hair. He walked across the apartment to the kitchen and stared. "How's the cooking?"

Naruto yelped and a wooden spoon flew through the air, clattering to the floor but not waking a napping Hedwig. Harry stifled a chuckle and turned to his photos hanging on the kitchen wall.

"I thought I'd help and put the incense shelf there," Naruto said sheepishly, wooden spoon back in his hand.

A shrine? Not what I expected when I hung the photos. Harry stared at the incense sticks. "Is this all that's needed?"

"I think." Naruto looked away. "I've never made one before."

"Neither have I. But it's probably good enough." Harry walked forward and looked in the pot. "Soup?"

"It seemed like the easiest in the recipe book," Naruto said and stirred the bubbling broth.

"It's weird."

Naruto panicked and checked the soup.

"Not the soup! I mean, you're a clone and…" I'm confused about your existence. Harry grabbed a spoon and tasted the soup. "This is good. But maybe a lot less salt next time?"

Harry moved out of the kitchen as a weak but annoying alarm rang through his mind signalling that the spells around his apartment still worked. Then, why did the spells on my scroll and backpack disappear?

The main door banged open and evening-light spilled in to the apartment.

"Kotetsu, what happened to you?" Harry stared at the numerous bandages.

"About that…"

x-x-x-x-x

Harry fiddled with his black clothes, feeling distinctly out of place among the people gathered at the cemetery. Asuma-san died on the 24th, they brought his body back yesterday and today is the funeral. It's so abrupt.

At the end of the funeral, as he waited for Naruto to finish consoling a young boy, Harry caught faint whispers from the dispersing crowd. Akatsuki? Was Asuma-san…

"I thought you'd still be hospitalized."

Harry twitched. "Painkillers are a wonderful creation, Nara-san. I left the hospital yesterday." He watched Naruto, curious about his relation to the sobbing kid. "Shikamaru wasn't here."

Shikaku said, "He's free to do what he wants."

The sniffling boy clung to Naruto's arm. "Tell him breaking things is very therapeutic," Harry said.

"Creating business?"

Harry shook his head. "Just… being helpful."

As Naruto ruffled the younger boy's hair, Shikaku said, "You shouldn't think like that."

Harry looked away from Naruto in confusion.

"There's nothing you could have done to prevent this. Even ninja are hard-pressed to win against missing-nin and you're just a civilian."

I'm not. I'm a wizard. Harry turned back to Naruto. Wait, how could I have prevented this? Unless those Akatsuki whispers were true... that explains why I was invited here.

Shikaku patted Harry's shoulder and turned away just as Naruto headed towards them.

As they walked to the cemetery gates, Naruto said, "Asuma-sensei was Konohamaru's uncle, his only living relative. It's really painful to lose family, isn't it?"

Harry looked around the large cemetery. You can't have been the only Uzumaki in Konoha.

"Nii-san?"

But wouldn't you have already checked this cemetery?

Naruto grabbed Harry's arm. "Nii-san!"

Harry patted Naruto's fingers gently. "I'm just tired, Naruto. We should eat something before we get back, hmm?"

"I'll get the food." With a slight puff of smoke, another Naruto popped up beside Harry. "You two go home and rest." Before Harry could argue, Naruto ran down a street with a self-satisfied grin.

At Harry's insistence clone-Naruto, a term Harry used to mentally differentiate the Narutos, talked about Konohamaru till they were settled comfortably in the apartment and interrupted by a visit from Izumo and Kotetsu.

Izumo glanced at clone-Naruto and said, "I hope we're not intruding."

Clone-Naruto shook his head. "Boss will be happy nii-san's not alone if I dispel suddenly."

"Another clone?" Kotetsu said.

"Boss is getting dinner. I better tell him you're here. You'll stay till he returns, right?" When they nodded, clone-Naruto turned to Harry. "I'll see you in a while, nii-san." And with a puff of smoke, he disappeared.

"I'm never getting used to that." Harry sighed. "Can you two make clones like that?"

"It takes a lot of chakra to create even one shadow clone. Not many ninja can make numerous clones like Naruto," Izumo said. "He's got way more chakra than the average ninja."

"Really?" So I can't make a clone? "Anyway, it's good you're both here. I've got your gifts."

"Gifts?" Kotetsu repeated.

"I bought some stuff before…" Harry ignored his memories and unfurled his scroll. I'll give Naruto his stuff later. With a puff of smoke, dozens of boxes popped out. Harry pushed them off towards Kotetsu, "That's all thirty-five different flavours of syrup I came across."

From another seal, he pulled a small silk fan. "Here's the fanciest fan I could find, Izumo. And lots of herbal tea that doubles as headache medicine when all that syrup makes Kotetsu irritating."

"Hey!" Kotetsu protested. "Just for that, see if I give you your gift."

"Actually, it's recovery food." Izumo opened a familiar box.

Harry stared at the sweets in front of him and felt his stomach clench painfully. He hurried to his feet and ran to the wash-room. Within seconds, he emptied his stomach as his mind replayed horrifically vivid memories and nightmares. Hands patted his back gently as he dry-heaved painfully.

When his stomach eventually settled Harry said, "Ichigen liked dango."

"Who doesn't?" Izumo said and handed Harry a towel.

"We got this tea recipe that he thought would make the other monks take him more seriously. It was weird but he was a good person." Harry huffed in embarrassment. "And now the sight of dango reminds me of that attack. How does that connection make any sense?"

"Triggers never make sense."

Triggers? Harry rinsed his mouth vigorously, glad for the distraction of Izumo's words.

"You never know what'll bring back unpleasant memories. After my first failed mission, I puked every time I smelt mint," Izumo said. "Worst month of my life, especially since Kotetsu thought the best way to cure me was to keep springing mint on me. My only consolation was I ended up puking on him a lot."

Harry snorted.

"You should nap until dinner." Ignoring Harry's protests, Izumo expertly manoeuvred him to the couch. "Naps don't allow as many nightmares."

Deciding to give it a try, Harry closed his eyes."I'm glad you two came back."

It felt like seconds later, Izumo was shaking him awake. "You've been sleeping for three hours. Even your owl left to hunt a while ago. Come on, time to eat."

Harry groggily followed Izumo to the kitchen and gawked at his food-filled dining table.

"I don't see why I have to sit beside you," Naruto said sounding annoyed.

Kotetsu shrugged. "Izumo would say my elbows are too dangerous to be allowed next to an injured person."

"And why can't you sit next to Izumo?" Harry felt inclined to ask as he sat beside Izumo.

Kotetsu shrugged again. "He hogs too much space."

Harry shared an amused look with Naruto and grabbed his chopsticks. With a murmured 'Itadakimasu', they started eating with Kotetsu and Naruto seemingly competing to be the most entertaining person at the table.

Halfway through the meal, Harry snickered at Naruto's latest story. "Bullies in an exam?"

Izumo scoffed and placed more vegetables on Harry's plate. "We were helping out. If you can't detect a simple genjutsu, then you're not ready for the Chuunin exams."

"Bullies!" Naruto reiterated between bites.

Dinner carried on in a similar vein till Izumo and Kotetsu left close to midnight.

"Can you drink tea so late?" Naruto said watching Harry warily.

"There aren't any rules against it." Harry pushed the tea cups to Naruto's hand. "You're in charge of transporting these."

"Where are we going?"

"Somewhere airy." Harry grabbed a blanket, walked out in to the warm night and slowly clambered up a side-ladder to his roof.

"I could have taken you up there."

"Just bring the tea." Harry looked up and his eyes unconsciously focused on the brightest star in the sky. To its side he found a familiar constellation. The angles are different but the night-sky is the same. Why didn't I notice before?

"Why are you staring up like that, nii-san?"

"Just remembering some," Harry paused awkwardly, "stories."

"Stories?"

Harry nodded as an idea struck him. "The stories behind the constellations."

Naruto looked at the sky. "There are stories?"

Yes, those Greek mythology stories… Harry faltered in uncertainty, realizing those stories wouldn't exist here.

"Tell me."

Harry stared at Naruto. "What?"

"One of the stories," Naruto said, "tell me."

Noticing Naruto's eager expression, Harry said, "See that bright star there, that's the Dog Star." He lay down, ignoring the roof tiles digging in to his back and traced out a constellation. "If you look a little above it there, you'll see the Hunter. These three stars form the belt and when you go up, his arm…"

Naruto shuffled close to Harry and raised his own hand. "Ah! He's holding a weapon."

"Yeah. He was very proud and…"

x-x-x-x-x

Harry woke up in his living room comfortable and well-rested. When did I get off the roof? "Naruto?"

A head peeked out from the kitchen. "I was just about to wake you," Kotetsu said. "Naruto left for training earlier and asked me to keep you company."

"But you're injured too. And where's Izumo?"

Kotetsu waved his hand dismissively and disappeared back in to the kitchen.

Harry ignored the odd behaviour and rose to prepared for the day. He'd just entered the kitchen when Hedwig flew in through a window, dived towards him and tugged on his sleeve.

Harry stared at Hedwig. "I thought you'd be with Naruto."

Hedwig hooted impatiently.

"Maybe she's telling you that Naruto is leaving for a mission."

"What?" Harry gaped.

"He probably didn't want to worry you. He'll be leaving in an hour. So we should probably head to the gate." Kotetsu shrugged, grabbed a bag and opened the apartment door. "You cousins would be hopeless without help."

Harry walked as fast as he could. "Kotetsu, when you say mission…"

"I can't tell you what he's doing. That's classified, Harii." Kotetsu teased.

"He's not going to be fighting, right?"

Kotetsu turned to him. "Did you think only the older ninja fought? A ninja is a ninja, no matter how old they are."

Harry reached the gate in a daze, his mind creating a rather bleak picture. So soon after the temple attack and Asuma-san's death, wouldn't missions be related to those Akatsuki? He shook his head. No, there must be other missions. Like searching through the temple's rubble...

"Are you here to send us off, Harii?"

I really need to pay attention. Harry turned in surprise and stared at Sai. "I just wanted to talk to Naruto."

Naruto immediately moved a fair distance from the others.

Thinking carefully, Harry followed. I can't stop him, so I should make him want to come back. "You won't impress anyone with a torn sleeve." Harry discreetly held Naruto's shredded sleeve between his fingers. Reparo.

Naruto shook his hand experimentally when the rip disappeared.

Ichigen, its slow progress but I've stopped running from one thing… Satisfied with Naruto's fascination Harry pulled out a small red rectangle from his pocket. "And you need this omamori more than me."

"But…"

Harry shoved it insistently. "I forgot to give you the stuff I bought. So, you need to come back."

Naruto clutched the omamori with wide eyes.

"Go on then, or you'll be late."

Nodding, Naruto pocketed the omamori and joined the others by the gate. With a wave, the team set off at a run. Harry watched the spot of orange disappear in the distance within seconds.

"They'll be back by the end of the day so we'll wait at the watch station." Kotetsu lifted his paper bag as they entered a small building. "We can eat till Izumo gets here. See, I've prepared the food."

Harry looked in the bag. "Everyone's been hiding their cooking skills."

"They're actually leftovers."