I don't own Naruto, or any of the characters of the Manga or Anime. If I did I wouldn't have so many damn fillers.
A Price for Peace
Chapter 22: A New Home?
The small riverside village was for the lack of a better term, run down. The thick surrounding forest was encroaching at several areas, and the small wooden shacks had rotting walls and rusted roofs. It was a really sorry sight, but at the moment these dilapidations were useful to the blonde and red head. Naruto slowly crept through the village, makings sure to stay off the main road, that would lead to the centre of the village where the townspeople had been gathered by some unknown arrivals.
Regardless it did not take long for the blonde shinobi to arrive at the edge of the large clearing, his vision obscured by overgrown plants and and buildings. "We need to get a better line of sight, let's head up here." He whispered to his red headed companion.
"They will be able to see you up there." Karin hissed in response, she clearly was less impressed with Naruto's plan. They knew nothing about this world, yet without even being here for a day, Naruto had decided to stick his nose into something that she didn't think was any of their business.
"Something is happening here and I want to know what it is." Naruto replied in a determined yet hushed voice. Without further discussion Naruto walked up the side of the closest shack and crawled onto the roof, there were several holes in the building that had been covered by waterproof canvas and tarps to keep the weather out. 'Why don't they take better care of this place.' he wondered as he slowly approached the lip of the roof.
'Your guess is as good as mine. But I do not think they live in such a way voluntarily. Who would?' Kurama mused, he could already feel the anxiety and fear emanating from the villagers and a plethora of negative emotions radiating from the new arrivals.
Once Naruto had a decent view of the village centre he saw the townspeople; about twenty in total including children. They had been rounded up into the middle of the open town centre space, while a bunch of men in well worn and ragged uniforms stood around all the entrances. Several members of the uniformed group were sent to search the buildings 'I bet they're looking for any stragglers.' Naruto thought.
"I told you we already gave you everything we can spare." Cho declared loudly. He was addressing a very tall bald man that had three long scars that ran down the right side of his face, across his eye and down his cheek all the way to his jawline. Naruto was quickly reminded of the scars that Ibiki had back in Konoha, caused by interrogation techniques or in other words, torture.
"Well you haven't earned enough to pay the protection duty we supply this sorry village. Perhaps we need to collect our money a different way?" The tall bald man said in an aggressive tone.
"You take almost everything we make, our village is run down and the people are starving, you mercenaries have bled us dry. Most of the villagers here are forced to work two jobs in the sector capital just to pay your protection, preventing your boss from clearing us out. What is there left for you to take!? Our broken windows, or broken doors perhaps?" Cho replied angrily.
The scarred man walked over to Cho, drawing a curved dagger and holding it up to his throat. "Well that's what my men are looking for isn't it? But don't get me wrong it's quite an honour to be oppressing the grandson of the former ruler of the southern kingdom. Then again your grandfather was the first one to surrender to the first Emperor wasn't he? In the end your whole family was pathetic." he chuckled darkly before removing the blade, instructing his men to get back to work.
'That explains why this place is so badly run down, the population here are forced to pay these mercenaries to survive... They are more like pirates than mercenaries though.' Kurama said darkly.
'They need money to repair the village or to move to a wealthier, safer area. But they can't save any because of these people.' Naruto thought bitterly.
'It is probably a multi layered system. They either join one of these mercenary groups that collect money for the leaders who move up to the next region once they have exploited enough money out of these people. Then they start all over again. Control by tyriany while giving the people a shot at achieving decent life just to stop any thoughts of rebellion.'
'Then they replace the leaders with the next in line who keep the circle going, the only way to really get out of these slums is to join them.' Naruto realised. He was unsure now whether to hate or to pity the badly uniformed soldiers.
Back in the clearing the mercenaries had regrouped, it appeared that they had found very little of any value in the village just a few loose coins that had been lying around. "Looks like your still short on the payment. Line the villagers up!" The bald man ordered.
With very little resistance the townspeople were moved into a single line. Slowly the bald man walked along the line a few times he stopped to check one of them out before moving to the next target. Finally he came to a small boy with short brown hair. On the boys wrist was a digital watch, the bald man grabbed the boys arm and pushed him to the ground in front of several of the other mercenaries.
"What are you doing? You are not supposed to harm the people! Isn't that why we are forced to pay you!?" Cho said loudly.
"And you are not supposed to hide objects of value from us, we are both guilty of breaking the rules." The mercenary leader said darkly as he turned to face the small boy. "Kid, you shouldn't have hid that watch from us, we're going to be taking that now. You also have two choices as a form of punishment. You can either join our fine organisation... Or we will take two fingers off your left hand."
Naruto had evidently had enough, he moved to kick off the roof and interfere but was stopped by Karin grabbing his arm. "Don't." she warned quietly.
"What! Why not? I can't just stand still while they do this to a child!" Naruto replied clearly angered by the situation.
Karin had seen far worse than this while working for Orochimaru, but that didn't mean she didn't understand Naruto's position. "If you go out now, then you will be doing more harm than good."
"How I can save these people and get all their money back." Naruto replied.
"Yes you can do that, but think about it for a second. Do you really think that these are the only people involved with this mercenary group? They probably have a much larger organisation, if you attack now then they will think this village was responsible." She reasoned calmly.
"But." Naruto's will was weakening, Karin had a point but watching the scene play out while doing nothing was painful.
"I know it's hard, but for now we just have to wait. Once they are out of the village and have contacted whoever they need to... Then we can do something to help these people, just not now." Karin said almost pleadingly.
Naruto sighed, his shoulders slumped in defeat. "Fine, but I won't let them get away with this!" He said angrily.
"Well let's hear it boy what's it going to be, will you join us?" The scarred man asked. "I'll count to three... One" He pulled out a short blade that opened up to look suspiciously like a set of scissors. "Two!" he grabbed the boys arm and held his hand out, between the opened blade. "Thr-"
"Wait!" The boy yelled, tears running down his face. "I will do what you want, please don't hurt me" He begged.
The bald man smirked viciously "That's a good boy, a new soldier will satisfy our boss, make sure you have all the money the next time we come here!" He said directing his anger at Cho. The afro haired man had his shoulders slumped in defeat he could do nothing but nod his head in acceptance. "Come on men, let's go, this filthy village is making me sick."
Naruto was fuming, if Karin hadn't been there to stop him then he would have stepped in without a doubt, as it was he waited until the mercenaries had gone before showing himself. "What the hell was that!?" He asked the terrified villagers.
Cho looked at the ground. "I am sorry you had to see that, but I am glad that you managed to remain hidden." Cho said sadly.
"Don't give me that, you just let those people walk all over you. Why not stand up for yourselves?" Naruto yelled.
"You do not know how things work here. Resistance is not tolerated, they were members of the Kotei, the largest mercenary group hired by the empire to keep order in the outer quadrants of the old southern kingdom." Cho said flatly.
"But you outnumber them, if they treat everyone this way then you need to unite and stop allowing yourselves to get pushed around. You can defeat them!" Naruto replied.
"If there is an uprising then they will send soldiers from the empire down here. The last time there was an uprising one member of the royal family killed four hundred people with his bare hands. We can't compete with them." Cho reasoned.
"So you just give up? Look at this place, it is a mess because you have nothing to live for! Now, I am going to go get your property back from those thugs, and you can either join me, or sit here drowning in your own sorrow." Naruto said lecturing the villagers before walking off, Karin close behind.
"You were a little rough don't you think?" Karin said once they were out of earshot.
"I just said what had to be said. They are not living a real existence, they are just letting themselves get pushed around." Naruto answered.
"I know this is a sorry place, but you can't fight everyones battles for them. No matter how bad things look, somewhere else there are people worse off. If you get involved here then there is no telling how much they will come to depend on you." Karin replied.
"Is that really such a bad thing? We could make that run down village a place to live and be proud of. Instead of making people work endlessly in some failing attempt to move close to the centre of this empire why not improve this sector." Naruto said still a little bitter from the scene he had just watched.
"That is if they accept us. There will also be fighting, I don't think these mercenaries will just accept the changes you will make." Karin said.
"Then what? we just leave these people to their fate? We can make a difference here, help them improve their lives." Naruto questioned.
"It could also cost these people their lives. I understand your frustration, but our actions here will have major consequences. We are alone now, you don't have an army or even a full squad backing you up anymore." Karin replied.
Naruto took a moment to process what Karin was saying. He also recalled the words of the Snow Leopard elder, that he would make a difficult choice and his answer would effect the lives of millions. 'Damn it what is the right answer? What am I supposed to do?'
'Do what you feel is the right thing. Don't second guess yourself, and you can have no regrets. I believe in you, so keep believing in yourself.' Kurama said.
'Thanks Kurama, that helps a lot. I think I know what I have to do.' Naruto thought back.
'Don't get used to it, you're still an idiot.' Kurama replied a little lightheartedly.
'Yeah, yeah and your still an overgrown fur ball' Naruto chuckled. "I can't just do nothing Karin-chan, if they will accept me in this village, then I want to stay. I want to turn this place into somewhere that I can call home. If you don't want to stay, then I understand. But I think I have to do this."
"I just wanted you to be sure about what you wanted to do. I was always going to stay with you, Baka." Karin replied.
Naruto smiled and let a small blush cross his cheeks. "Thank you."
"Don't mention it. Now, we have a bunch of thugs to follow. I will use my sensory ability to find them, give me a second to find which way they went." Karin said closing her eyes. As always she felt drawn to Naruto's chakra but she pushed pass that urge and began scanning. It turned out the mercenaries has not gotten far. "They are a short way to the north heading in the same direction."
"Alright let's go, it doesn't look like anyone here want's to help." Naruto was eating his words a second later as Cho appeared with a small pack on his back.
"Wait, I wan't to help. You were right about everything, so please let me come with you." The afro haired village leader said firmly with a bow.
Naruto smiled, he had thought the man was stronger willed than he had let show. "Alright, we are going to track the mercenaries that came here back to their camp and then we're going to get back the stuff the stole."
"Alright, but why are you doing this for us?" Cho asked.
"Because I don't like seeing people treat others the way those thugs pushed your village around. Besides, it looked like you needed help, but didn't know who to ask for it." Naruto answered.
"That's just the way things are for us. Every couple of months one of the squads from that mercenary group comes and collects most of what we make in that time. It is supposed to be taxes, but the amount that actually goes to the empire would be far less than half. They keep everything that isn't part of the funds for the empire and live like kings." Cho explained.
"Isn't there anyone you can talk to about it? It sounds like the higher ups in the empire don't know what's going on? That bald man said that you were someone important, surely they will listen." Karin questioned.
"No they know what is going on, they just don't care. I am nobody important, father was sent here out of the so called mercy of the first emperor. When the Empire was rising to power they targeted this, the southern kingdom first. When my young grandfather eventually surrendered the Emperor was going to kill his family to end all hopes of a uprising. He begged and in the end he traded his life for information on the other nations strongholds and gave up his sister to be his first wife to make it easier for the civilians to accept a new leader. He was sent to my village to live out the rest of his days in exile." The afro haired man answered.
"Wait... First wife? How many did this guy have?" Karin asked rather put off by the thought.
"It's hard to say. But it is believed that he had over thirty children. The math adds up because ten of them are still alive. I think the royal family numbers close to fifty now." Cho mused.
"How do those numbers add up? I must be worse than I thought at maths how did the others die? I guess they must be old now though huh?" Naruto asked.
Cho chuckled darkly. "I forgot, you're not from this world, you came from over those mountains. Of the thirty children of the first emperor, only fifteen lived to see their sixteenth year."
"Why?" Karin asked.
Naruto seemed to know. He had heard of a similar practice put in place once before. "The children are paired up and live together like bothers before being forced to kill each other aren't they." Naruto growled darkly.
"Exactly. They say that is what gives the royal family such amazing power, I do not know of anyone else that has attempted such a horrible thing though. Maybe one of the lesser noble families that the emperor selected to join them have, some of them can be almost as terrifying as the royal family." Cho said with a shiver.
"You seem to know quite a lot Cho, how is it you are so well informed?" Karin asked. She had been cataloguing every bit of information that the afro haired man said.
Cho nodded quite proudly. "Information is power, the more you know the easier it is to survive. Our village may be poor, weak and run down, but everyone is given a good education including a lesson on our history."
"What about learning to defend yourselves? It seems to me that it doesn't matter to the Empire how they get their money as long as they get it. So you don't need to start a revolution just to improve your living conditions. Send the money directly to the Empire and cut out the middleman." Naruto replied. As far as he was concerned being smart was good and all but if you couldn't stop yourself from being pushed around and exploited then those brains were not worth much.
"It's true I doubt that the empire would care, so long as they are receiving their payment from the outer colonies twice a year then they don't care what happens out here, but we have no weapons or fighters to hold back the mercenaries anyway." Cho sighed.
"Well if you will have us we can do that for you. I don't really want to brag but if it's numbers you need then I'm your guy. We can even train some of the villagers if they are interested." Naruto suggested confidently.
Cho was taken aback, he had not expected such a confident declaration, nor that the pair of travellers would want to stick around. He had already told them that they should leave but if they were really as amazing as the blonde claimed to be then perhaps it would be advantageous to have the couple stick around. "Unfortunately I cannot make that decisions alone, if we are successful in retrieving our villages supplies, then I will discuss it with the village." He said truthfully.
"Alright sounds good." Naruto said with a smile before turning to his red headed companion. "Karin-chan, how far away are they?" Naruto asked.
"Not far, even traveling at this speed we should catch up with them by nightfall." Karin answered while scanning for chakra signatures ahead.
"How can you be so sure?" Cho asked a little amazed.
"Karin-chan is an amazing sensor, she can find anyone!" Naruto declared enthusiastically.
Karin blushed from the compliment. "Th-thank you. But you could find them just as easily with your Sage Mode." she mumbled from the mild embarrassment.
Cho watched the interaction between the two and smiled. "Ah young love, even in the darkest places of this world love still finds a way to wriggle into the sunlight." He shighed.
"What!?" They both chorused. "I don't... I mean we're not." They both began staggering unable to complete any coherent sentences.
"Oh, I'm sorry I just guessed because you were traveling together." Cho replied with a chuckle. 'Looks like they are not ready to admit it yet.' He added as an afterthought.
"Just because we are traveling together doesn't mean that we're a couple... I would nev-" Karin started yelling incredulously. She caught herself at the end, she had no idea how Naruto would react if she had finished her lie. While she was claiming to be angered inside she was ecstatic. 'He thinks we look like a couple... Who knows maybe the thought will make Naruto-kun notice me more.' She hoped.
"I understand. Again I am sorry, I misread the situation." Cho apologised once more with apparent sincerity. 'Well I'm not buying that, she definitely likes him. It's harder to tell with him, but he does seem a little hurt at how she responded. It really might be amusing having these two stick around for awhile.'
"It's fine. Drop it Karin, he didn't mean anything. We need to focus." Naruto said his mood much more reserved and focused than before.
"Okay, apology accepted. Sorry Naruto-kun." Karin replied. Naruto nodded but didn't answer back. For the rest of the day very few words were spoken, although that was in part due to the close proximity to the traveling mercenaries. As night began to fall they passed just wide of a much larger village.
In comparison to the small riverside village Cho came from, this village was a thriving metropolis large stone houses were spread out over a large area, about half the size of Konoha. The forest had thinned considerably, and now there were large open fields that spread around the stone village, a thin winding river ran through the centre and off far into the distance. "That is Tahatamura, the second largest city in this region. The housing is much larger, and in better condition, but the crime rate is terrible. Many gang leaders use that village as a base of operations, which inevitably leads to conflicts. There are sections inside that I am told that anyone not affiliated with a gang will be killed on sight." Cho informed the pair sensing they were intrigued by the larger scale village.
"More senseless fighting, if the people here put aside their differences and learned to understand one another then they could make this a peaceful place." Naruto said with a scowl.
"Perhaps, but they are also victims of the mercenaries, even if it is to a lesser extent. They are really just fighting over what's left. There will always be squabbles in this world, as long as people have free will they will disagree with others." Cho said wisely.
"Desperation attracts vultures, the gang leaders live well enough I am sure, but keep their soldiers begging for the small taste of luxury they are given from time to time. It keeps people in line with their rule as well as breeding loyalty. Orochimaru used the same tactics, show initial kindness and from time to time gave gifts to those he desired loyalty from. In the end we were just being used." Karin sighed slightly depressed. Karin used to idolise the Hebi Sannin, but she could now see how she had been used.
"Still it doesn't look like these mercenaries are located in the village. They must have a camp somewhere nearby though, it's getting dark." The afro haired man guessed.
"We'll wait until they stop for the night before we make our move." Naruto suggested.
"Smart idea, it will be easier to steal the supplies in the cover of darkness." Cho agreed.
"I have no intention of stealing them, I will make then hand them back willingly." Naruto replied.
Cho looked at Naruto like he was insane. 'Even if we all fight together, there is only three of us. Any way you look at it, they outnumber us five to one. Then there is the weapons, each one of them is armed, for both long and close range combat. I have nothing to fight with, other than a small kitchen knife.'
A short ways from the village that they had passed the Mercenaries finally came to a halt in front of what on first glance looked like a small forested area, it wasn't until closer inspection that you could see that there were large wooden walls that were surrounded quite convincingly by a thin layer of trees. Only the keenly trained eyes of Naruto and Karin could make out the well fortified entrance as it opened to allow the travellers entrance.
"Looks like they have a fortress to keep people out." Naruto mused while observing the apparent forrest from a safe distance.
"If they have all the power, why do they need the walls?" Karin questioned.
"I don't know. Probably to try and persuade people against doing what you're trying to do." Cho guessed. For once he was in the dark, that said he had no idea where the mercenaries had been hiding out. "I think this will be just one of many bases though."
"Well then why don't we go ask them?" Naruto said cheerfully. Apparently without a care in the world the blonde began walking straight for the entrance.
Cho was in shock and quickly raced forward, grabbing Naruto's arm. "Are you insane, they will kill you on sight, you can't just go knock on the door!" He yelled.
"I wasn't going to knock, I was just going to destroy it, it's easier that way." Naruto said rubbing the back of his neck in mild embarrassment, he knew it was not the best thought out plan.
"While I am sure that would work, Maybe you could try something a little less... Suicidal?" Cho said while face palming.
"Why not create a diversion then slip in the back?" Karin suggested. She was confident that Naruto would be safe regardless of what he chose to do. Still if it calmed their tagalong down, then she was willing to compromise.
"Well I guess it can't hurt. Alright I know just what to do." he said while forming a familiar hand seal. A moment later a clone appeared. Cho couldn't believe his eyes, he was too shocked at what he was seeing to say anything. His arm limply fell, releasing Naruto from his grip. Naruto needed no more encouragement, he split off from his clone. The clone was heading for the hidden gate while Naruto ran around behind the to sneak in once his clone had completed it's task.
"Shall we go too?" Karin asked the still stunned Cho. When he didn't answer she lightly nudged his shoulder. "Um Cho, are you okay?" She asked slightly worried.
Cho looked like he had seen a ghost. "He can use Magic like the Imperial Army and the royal family... Who are you people?" He asked, clearly frightened.
"We are just who we said we were, travellers. We came from the other side of the mountains. We just want to help." Karin said calmly hoping to reassure the scared man. 'Sounds like whoever became the emperor here was from our side of the mountains. It makes sense, one person that can use chakra no matter how strong would be considerably more powerful than most of these people who haven't even heard of chakra.' She realised.
"You're not spy's from the empire?" He asked again still somewhat skeptical.
"Of course not. We have no idea about this land, do you think we have been lying all this time?" Karin asked.
"I... No you both seemed genuine, but the empires magic can be confusing, it makes you see things that aren't there." Cho admitted.
"Sounds like Genjutsu. Don't worry, neither I'm not that good at that type of jutsu. Although, I am better at them than Naruto-kun." Karin answered.
Cho didn't seemed to understand a few foreign words, but seemed to get the gist of what she was saying. "So then what are you two good at?"
Karin rubbed her chin thinking of the best way to answer that question. "Well I guess I'm more of a support tracker and I know a few medical jutsu... As for Naruto-kun, well see for yourself."
Their attention turned to see Naruto's clone form a Rasengan before blasting right through the gate. The clone entered what appeared to be a highly fortified mini village, small buildings rose up in a circular pattern, framing the wall of the fortress. The middle was a large open space that appeared to be for training, or fighting.
The arrival of the blonde had hardly gone unnoticed, guards were yelling and even a large bell struck several times to alert any who had not noticed the far from subtle break in. "What the hell is going on here!" One of the biggest men Naruto had ever seen yelled. He was walking forward, clad in thick leather armour and was armed with a giant sword. He was flanked by two men, one of which Naruto's clone recognised as the scarred man that had tormented the village. "You got a lot of nerve breaking in here brat do you know what this place is!?" The giant boomed.
"I'm here to reclaim the property that has been stolen from villages in this area." Naruto's clone replied calmly.
There was an explosion of laughter, clearly they didn't think much of Naruto's declaration. "And what, are you just expecting us to hand you over our property? Still I like your balls kid, why not join us?" The giant man said. That was the last thing he said however, the next thing anyone knew Naruto had all but disappeared, traveling much to fast for their eyes and planted his fist into the giant man's stomach.
There was a loud yell of disbelief and a call to arms. That was when the real Naruto made himself known. He jumped atop one of the closest buildings and created several more clones. It was short work for the hardened shinobi, his clones sped around the fortress taking down anyone that resisted, those that he could he kept alive but a few more violent members of the mercenary group left the blonde with no choice but to end their life. This included the scarred man that had threatened Cho's village.
It was all over within two minutes, Naruto and his clones tied up the the survivors and dumped them unceremoniously in the centre of the clearing. "Who... who are you?" The giant man asked finally regaining consciousness. During this time Naruto found the boy that had been kidnapped from Cho's village and told him to hide and stay quiet until he called for him.
"Me, I'm just a passer by that didn't like the way you were exploiting the people. So I'm going to take back what you stole, there are people who need it more than you." Naruto said.
While he was talking his clones were running around gathering all the supplies and rounding up the mercenaries weapons and tossing them into a pile. "Yo boss, that's all of them!" One of the clones called out when they were finished.
"Good, take what you think we might need then destroy the rest. These people don't need them anymore." Naruto said flatly. The giant man glared at the blonde but said nothing, he knew that whoever this kid was he was not strong enough to take him on. This was the scene that Cho and Karin walked in on. "Yo! You guys sure took your time getting here." Naruto said with a friendly wave.
Cho gaped at the sight. Not only was the entire fortress defeated and either tied up or dead, but Naruto was entirely unscathed. 'Amazing... this boy, could he match up against the empire? No he is just one kid, and there is no comparison between these mercs and them.' He thought with a shudder at the end.
"Well Cho, isn't as fast as you. Besides your little display before was quite of a shock to his system." Karin reasoned. She looked around the small fortress somewhat impressed with the structure. She then noticed several of Naruto's clones carrying a few large bags that she assumed had been goods stolen by the mercenaries.
"Alright, now the question is what do we do with these guys?" Naruto asked.
"Kill them? If our roles were reversed they certainly wouldn't hesitate." Cho suggested.
Naruto frowned, he didn't like that idea, these men were now defenceless. "I can't do that, I won't kill someone that is tied up and helpless." He replied finally.
"Then maybe you should just leave them like this. They wouldn't be foolish enough to come after you. Would they?" Karin said letting the question hang in the air like a threat. There was a loud call of 'no maam' from the prisoners that were awake. "In fact they probably think that it's a good idea to retire from this line of work don't you?" Again the prisoners all chorused an affirmative.
"Then we'll leave them like this. Resourceful people like these should be able to escape before any harm comes to them." Naruto replied with a smile at how well Karin had used some intimidation.
"Wait, where is Komaki?" Cho asks suddenly.
Naruto and Karin look at the afro'ed man questioningly. "Who?" They both ask together.
"The boy they kidnapped from the village." Cho replies.
"Oh right, him." Naruto replies a little relieved that there wasn't someone else missing. "Hey kid you can come out now!"
A few moments later the young boy appears from the entrance of one of the small wooden houses. "Is it safe?" he asks.
"Yes it's safe, we can go home now." Cho answers happily.
"Yeah we should be off, I don't think I need to remind you all that it would be unwise to come after us." Naruto said, turning once more to the tied up mercenaries. Predictably they all shook their heads to say that they understood. "Right, well it would take too long to get back if we walk so Cho, Komaki, I'll have one of my clones carry you, we're taking the express rout." He said.
Neither complained, well Cho did say it felt uncomfortable being carried by someone shorter than her was. But the blonde payed him no great attention. Within moments they were speeding across the fields back towards the thick forest that held Cho's village. "This is amazing! Can you go faster?" Komaki asked eagerly.
"Sure hold on tight." Naruto's clone yelled before putting on a large burst of speed.
"Show off." the original Naruto scoffed.
"You do realise that he is a perfect copy of you right?" Karin asked with a deadpan. Naruto blushed and remained quiet.
The trip that had taken them several hours earlier was over in under ten minutes with Naruto and Karin running at a decent speed. They came to a halt at the edge of the village and let both passengers off. While those two clones dispelled. Now only a few that were carrying the bags of stollen goods were left. "It's a shame I don't know where most of this stuff came from. I would like to return it." Naruto said glancing over at the full rucksacks.
"Or you could use the money to repair this village and build a nice home?" Karin suggested.
Naruto nodded, Karin usually had some decent suggestions and they were always worth considering. "I guess that would be a decent investment. It still kind of feels like I'm stealing though. Besides we don't even know if we can stay yet, Cho has to talk to the others."
"I don't think you will have all that much to worry about, I will give you my backing, besides I doubt they will complain to much about having someone to help protect us. But first I promised you both a place to sleep for tonight. The house I took you to before is mine, it would be my pleasure if you would stay there, I have enough bedding for the three of us." Cho said.
"Thank you." Karin said with a small bow.
"Yeah thanks, I sorta forgot all about finding somewhere to stay for the night." Naruto chuckled.
"I can't imagine why." Cho replied with a sweat drop. "Now go put your things away and come to the village centre, I am sure everyone will want to thank you for rescuing Komaki." He added leading the way to his home.
"Sounds like a plan." Naruto replied in typical lighthearted fashion.
End Chapter!
Hope I didn't make Naruto seem a little out of character in this chapter, or at least not too much, I am hoping to portray him as someone that is tired of seeing needless violence and want's to live a peaceful life, but circumstances keep getting in the way, while still remaining true to who Naruto is... Granted I do try to make him a little smarter than he is in cannon.
Nobody dies in this thing anymore. People, quite rightly, pointed out to me that Hirzuen was destroyed the same way that Minato's arm was a few weeks back when I asked where the Sandaime went... And then he comes back. Then we have Tsunade, her body was ripped in half sure she has that amazing rapid healing seal, but at the same time she has had to basically revive and reenergise four other Kage while not showing any signs of fatigue. Then we get onto the other characters that have just disappeared .. Gai and Kakashi. correct me if I am wrong but didn't Obito release Kakashi from his internal world? I would have expected some sort of reunion scene with Kakashi and Minato fighting together or something, didn't have to be long just two frames... Or in Kishi's terms three chapters. This is not really a criticism of the Cannon, just some rather odd oversights where all the laws that he built, to keep the world he created believable, have been thrown out the window.