Summary: (LotR crossover) After the deaths of the Fourth and Rin, Kakashi joins ANBU to be a lifeless Shinobi tool. The Third who's worried of this, sends the young ANBU on an unlikely S-Rank Mission to the large continent known as Middle Earth…R&R!
Disclaimer: I do NOT own anything of Naruto and LotR, do not sue! They belong to Masashi Kishimoto and J.R.R Tolkein respectfully. I only own my twisting plot that intertwines with Tolkein's masterpiece, I doubt there will be any necessary OCs, but I'll see as the fic goes along…
Betas: Sherlockian Slytherin and Tsukiyomi the Yami
Re-Update: 11 February 2007, new format & Proof read. Thanks to my betas!
Author Notes: I wasn't expecting to have very constructive reviews at the start, but thanks to Megaolix, The Void of Death, Chinksta, Enchatress10 and Galaxya for reviewing the first chapter!
To Megaolix, Yes, I'd agree this fic has great potential to becoming a good crossover… and don't worry, I'll do my best to write it out and finish it. Even if it means going at a slow pace. Thanks for the tip Galaxya, I've experienced writing a fic I took on more slowly then usual 'fast paced' fics and it turned out really well. It turned out to have over 90,000 words plus over 100 reviews (currently)… I'm hoping this fic turns out that way! Don't hesitate to tell me if you found good fics with good fighting scenes! As for Chinksta and The Void of Death, thanks for making my fic an instant fav and alert… I promise I won't let you down!
As for what Enchantress10 had said:
"The only thing that is a bit problematic is that Middle Earth and Fire Country are in the same world. And that the difference between the Middle Age lifestyle of M. Earth and the technological era of Naruto is a bit hard to take. Isn't Middle Earth a whole world, like the word 'Earth' would suggest it? Maybe it would be better to make them exist in different dimensions, or something."
Oops, I forgot to tell this at the beginning of the fic. Gomen! (Sorry!) I'll make it clear so no one gets confused. Thanks for pointing this out! Since not many people are familiar with the book, it may be hard to take it in at first.
So, please, please, PRETTY PLEASE read this before we read on: (It saves the confusion and may broaden your general knowledge err… just say LotR and history wise…hehe)
1) Technically 'Middle Earth': was Tolkein's (and Peter Jackson's) reference to 'Medieval Earth' or the continent of Europe that existed within the medieval times where there were kings and knights. Location wise, it would be nearly like saying 'a continent that exists in the middle of the world'. The Lord of the Rings was also inspired by the stories of King Arthur; basically it's a large continent then a 'world'. Even Tolkein himself had said if Middle Earth was compared to the Europe we know, Hobbiton (The Shire where the hobbits live) is said to be Oxford, England in his biography. If you look on the map of Middle Earth, you'll notice the sea is only on one side of the map. It indicates that Middle Earth was not an 'island continent', like we see the on our own world map (all the continents are surrounded by water). You could say it's an incomplete map since it doesn't give information on what countries that might surround Middle Earth, when there were references that there were men called the Harad (Southerners) who were said to live further south.
In this fic, Kakashi explains he had to go around the country by ship. Just say he went through the Mediterranean Sea then going through Turkey.
2) The War of the Ring: was basically based on Tolkein's life when he was in World War One. So don't be surprised if the geography of the world and the forces that fought with one another remind you about history. Anyone want to guess where Mordor should be now? WWI Germany… get the picture? Yup, go look in your history books! World War One (1914-1918) Yeah, I know… I'm a history freak… U
3) About technology: The reason why Middle Earth is underdeveloped or lacks technology is mainly caused by the Elves. Remember that the Elves are immortal, they don't age, they can't get sick and they are the ones that preserve Middle Earth as the way it is… though they can be killed (which killing method you choose, e.g. killed by poison, crush them with rocks, blow em to bits…etc.). It's like this; if you were to live for thousands of years… you'd most likely want to live in a world that never changes. It's different for mortals… because we have shorter lives; we want to make a difference before we die... hence the development in technology. Not only did the elves preserved Middle Earth the way it is (culture, lifestyle, development), but also it's the constant war period that makes Middle Earth isolated from the other nations. Middle Earth tends to focus on its internal problems, then external… On the other side, other nations would tend to avoid getting into a war, seeing how unstable Middle Earth is… because as far as I remember there are no organizations like the 'United Nations' in the world of Naruto like we have… so the Naruto world does lack in international relations….
4) Different Dimensions: I wanted to do it as a 'different dimension' at first, but I just don't find it very amusing. Or I lack the 'reason' on how the character gets there. Too many authors have used that in many crossovers… and it's getting old… it doesn't even sound logical, even by Naruto standards… I find it more realistic if Kakashi was sent on a full-scale mission, then him 'suddenly getting thrown' into Middle Earth… If you try looking in the LotR Fanfiction, you'll get what I mean…
Sorry for the lengthy explanations, but I do my research for crossovers and try my best to balance the two. For me it's more challenging and fun to write a fic this way! References I get are from the LotR books, www wikipedia org, and other related sites. Well... let's see what's in store for this chapter…
Enjoy!
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Chapter 2: 'To Rescue and to Protect.'
"Life is a compromise of what your ego wants to do, what life experiences tells you to do, and what nerves let you do." – Bruce Crampton.
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The Land of Fire
Konohagakure, Ninja Tower
The Hokage's Office
At Night (Local Time…)
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Sarutobi, the Third Hokage of Konoha, smoked through his pipe on the balcony as he looked to the stars that peaceful night. It had been difficult recovering the village since the Kyuubi attack. Not only rebuilding the structures that had been destroyed, but the greatest of challenges was recovering the hearts of his people that had been dimmed from the once roaring flame. After the death of the Fourth, Sarutobi was forced out of retirement to lead his people once again. He would not let his village fall, which led him to be extremely busy meeting up with any of the villagers in hopes of boosting their morale. The full impact of the Kyuubi attack was felt by the children who had lost their parents, such as Umino Iruka, yet one of the people who the Hokage was most worried about was one particular youth…Hatake Kakashi…. A young-nin who had lost everyone that was dear to him. Both of his team mates and his sensei were now dead and all of that happened in just less of a year.
It didn't take long for the Hokage to notice that Kakashi was breaking down easily, crumbling into loneliness and his path as a shinobi darkening. Immediately after his sensei's burial, he joined the ANBU without any reason, took whatever mission was available… in many cases, he took the most life threatening ones or the ones that required an assassination in enemy country. Every time he requested a new mission the Hokage felt his sympathy rise for the child. The more missions he took, the more his gaze became hollow… empty… more inhuman… he was becoming a tool. And he wasn't stopping.
Now and then when the Hokage visited the Fourth's grave, he would always end up apologizing to him. Sarutobi wanted more than anything to help his people of the village and Kakashi seemed to be left out. Seeing that he couldn't do much of anything the young nin, Sarutobi put him on a mission that would hopefully help the child emotionally. The mission was indeed an Un-Ranked mission by ninja standards so that Kakashi was willing to take it. Surely, if the Hokage sent the child to a normal psychiatrist-nin Kakashi would have refused to step a foot into the hospital. Unwillingly the Hokage had sent the shinobi to Gandalf's care, in the hopes that Kakashi won't turn into another Orochimaru, who was now a missing-nin.
Then suddenly there was a change in the wind…
"It's been a while Jiraiya." The Hokage smiled at his student who 'flickered' and appeared behind him.
"Jiraiya's here!" the hermit made his appearance, which only made the Hokage sigh. "Ah, well. Just visiting. Something bothers you, sensei?"
"When was the last time you visited the Fourth's grave?" Sarutobi asked.
Jiraiya's cheerful mood dissipated and his eyes were cast down, "Three months ago." The Sannin paused. "You're worried about someone…"
"Kakashi." The Third replied bitterly. "There's not a time when I do not apologize to the Fourth when I visit his grave for the boy…"
The Sannin sneaked a glance towards his sensei. Sandaime's eyes were elsewhere, deep in thought and self-reproach. Jiraiya had to agree with his teacher that the boy was becoming more secluded and farther from help. He remembered how distraught Kakashi was when the Fourth had died; being the sensei of the Fourth it had occurred to the Sannin to help the young shinobi. Yet his help was to no avail, the child became distant and detached… He lived solely to work and kept on working in hopes to erase the past.
"Where is he now?" the Sannin asked.
"On an S-Rank to Un-Ranked mission in Middle Earth."
"What! You didn't send him to that country did you?" exclaimed Jiraya.
There was a miserable mood surrounding the Third. "I did."
"But that country-"
"… is a war country. Yes, I'm aware of that Jiraiya. I may have made a mistake sending him into a war unknown to him, but I can only hope my friend may help."
"You've mentioned this to me before, that your friend was a wuzzerd."
"Wizard." The Third corrected. "An immortal being that has many centuries of wisdom. I would have directed and guided Kakashi in the right way myself, but the whole village needs me here. We have yet to recover from the Third Great Shinobi Wars, and disaster strikes our village with the Kyuubi attack. You have been following Orochimaru have you not? What news have you gotten?"
Jiraya quietly digested the information, and gathered his thoughts before he replied firmly, "I have. He's recruiting followers in order to make his ambition run smoothly. So far it's a small group, what group… I can't say yet. They're no ordinary shinobi, but it'll take more than that to take over Konoha. I doubt he'll do anything right now."
The elder ninja nodded gravely, "At least it'll give us time for the village to recuperate and let the numbers of the ANBU and Jounin increase."
Then there was a sudden knock on the door.
"Come in," the Third replied.
"There's a call from the Hyuuga Clan, Hokage-sama." The secretary said.
"I must be going."
"Don't worry, I'll stay here or I'll be at the inn if you need me." Jiraiya said.
The Hokage smiled, and immediately left. The Toad Sennin watched sympathetically as his former sensei closed the door, 'He should've been in a quiet retirement by now.' With nothing else to do, Jiraiya walked around the empty office looking at the situation of the room. Papers piled up in untidy stacks of stamps, seals, parchments and scrolls… the Hokage indeed had been busy. Many of the scrolls were mission descriptions, agreements and in some cases financial reports of the village. But the Toad Sennin wasn't actually interested in what was on the Hokage's desk at that moment, but his drawer that had been opened. Inside, there was a photo album carefully concealed.
Sensing that the Hokage wasn't going to be coming in the room for the next three hours or so, Jiraiya carefully checked the drawer in case there were any traps. Satisfied that he found none, he carefully took the album out and opened it. To his amazement, the photos that were inside were of all the teams that had ever existed in Konoha, from the past till present and amazingly they were all in teams of four. It wasn't till the middle of the album Jiraiya stopped flicking through the pages.
There was a photo of his former team, Team Sarutobi. Below it was his own team, which consisted of the Fourth and his other two-team mates. And the last picture below that was the Fourth's Team. Unlike Orochimaru and Tsunade who only had one person as their student, Jiraiya had followed the tradition of having the one sensei and three students pattern. Curiously, he looked at his own team (Team Sarutobi) and the Fourth's. The teams did have an uncanny resemblance, especially when it came to the students. Jiraiya eyed at the pattern, Kakashi the child genius, Rin the medic-nin and Obito no doubt the loudmouth. It was certainly a mirror image of his past; Jiraiya had been the loud mouth, Tsunade the Medic-nin and last but not least Orochimaru who was the talented one. The only thing that was different about the two teams was their life expectancy rate. Team Sarutobi had survived this far, as for the Fourth's Team… one was left.
The Toad Sennin sighed sadly at the photo. He had hoped at least there would be another new photo below it in the future…
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Middle Earth
Eriador, West of Middle Earth
Near Weathertop
Night time (Local Time)
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As the ANBU had suspected, he had reached Weathertop by nightfall. He had a feeling that the enemy was already there. Or maybe it was far too obvious they were there. His horse was reluctant to go any further, as if it was afraid; but what really stuck out the most was the silence of the forest and trees around Weathertop. Even for a ninja it was far too quiet. None of the animals made any sound, no owls, no grasshoppers… everything was dead silent. There wasn't any wind… it was as if Death himself were in the lands.
Seeing that his steed wouldn't go any further, Kakashi dismounted from his horse, calmed it down and told it to come if he whistled. He gently rubbed the horse's nozzle, took a few explosive tags, kunai, shuriken and one large folded windmill shuriken from his backpack to his pouch (the larger shuriken was tied to his back) and made his way into the trees. He leapt from tree to tree quietly, while he kept his eyes out for his enemies, and most importantly the ones he had to protect. Kakashi blended very well with his surroundings thanks to his ANBU cloak, no one could see him unless he wanted to show himself, even if he was wearing his white mask.
Apparently there was no moon at all or the ANBU could at least see black clouds had covered it. Since when did the clouds turn into shades of black? As far as the ninja remembered, nor had he ever seen clouds in those shapes. Kakashi cursed to himself, his eyesight wasn't helping him right now. Grudgingly he activated his Sharingan and let his left eye open. Normally when he wore a mask he trained his left eye to keep it closed to reserve chakra since he became a part of the ANBU. But he was figuring maybe he should use his forehead protector (hita-ate) in the future. When he looked through the Sharingan he couldn't believe his eyes… the trees in front of him had birds and their chakra flowed regularly. 'Strange, how could the birds be so calm in this situation and have a regular flow of chakra?' Kakashi thought. No animal would actually be this calm unless… they were enemy spies.
Kakashi stood with his back against a tree and focused on one of the birds. From its flow of chakra, it was focusing in one direction. The other birds around it that were sitting on separate branches also had a familiar flow of chakra that followed suit. Could they know where the ranger and the hobbits were? Then something moved…
Horse hooves… a sniffing sound…
'Sniffing?' Kakashi thought alarmed. It seemed he found his enemy first before he could protect his client's friends for that matter. He racked his brain for a ninjutsu to make sure he wasn't detected. He immediately formed a hand seal…
'Meiseigakure no Jutsu!' (Hiding Camouflage Jutsu)
The chakra flowed through his body, and just as he 'disappeared' into his surroundings and his scent was wiped out, a dark figure riding a horse came into view behind him. His right eye saw that the wraith wore a great large black hooded cloak, was clad in armour but the person wasn't there... it seemed as if nothing was supporting the helm or hood. Meanwhile the Sharingan had seen something else completely. The flow of chakra was distorted but there was no doubt a large amount and its colour was black as night. Oddly enough the chakra didn't come from the body, but the ring on its finger. Not only did Kakashi see the chakra of the figure through the Sharingan, but also where the face should have been there were two luminous, hypnotic eyes mixed with rage and power, a red and hellish flame.
A scream pierced through the air… The sound that the strange creature released made the ANBU feel as though someone had plunged him into artic water. Kakashi closed his eyes trying to focus so his body wouldn't tremble, or else it would have been a give away. 'Damn. I didn't think a Ringwraith was this bad…' the ANBU swore in his mind. Its heavy breathing was like a plague of despair that froze Kakashi's heart, and for what the ANBU knew about the pattern of its breathing it was searching for something hungrily. He felt dead at that minute. The moment it left and the figure disappeared into the distance, Kakashi was breathing heavily, his heart was thumping, and his body shook for a second.
'I might as well get used to the feeling.' The ANBU persuaded himself, unwillingly still affected by the cry. He couldn't quite believe that the wraith's appearance could suddenly weaken him emotionally, but he had to cast all those feelings away swiftly. It was necessary because if he couldn't stand one… how could he stand against five? And from what he had heard about Ringwraiths in Bree, they were the Dark Lord's most faithful and trusted underlings… not to mention powerful. 'So this is what it's like to go up against something that's not quite… alive.' Kakashi tried to calm himself. It looked like he had to be extra careful on his first task, or he would find himself dead. 'No wonder Hokage-sama said it was going towards an Un-ranked mission. I have to fight something that's supposed to be dead!' the ANBU thought sarcastically.
Well… he might as well follow the wraith from a safe distance. Silently he leapt from the tree and landed on the one in front of him slowly and gracefully. The branch only creaked slightly and the good thing was… there was finally wind. If the ANBU could disguise his leaps as the trees' movements because of the wind, the birds wouldn't notice while he kept on maintaining his hiding camouflage jutsu. He may not get to his charges quickly, but it was safer.
He leapt from tree to tree synchronizing his landings with the branch movements and only one thing came into mind, 'No wonder the oji-san (old man) said it was folly to be followed by the Nine…'
Kakashi shuddered at the number nine. First, his village gets attacked by the Nine tailed demon fox… now he had to go against five of the Nine Ringwraiths… and if he was more unlucky… he'd have to face the Nine anyway…
Nine was certainly not the best number for this ANBU…
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Two Hours Later…
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So far, following the wraith hadn't been easy at all. Kakashi had to admit his enemy right now was far more intelligent than those orcs as it seemed the wraith was alert. Seeing they had existed for more than a thousand years… battlefield experience wise, the ANBU or any ninja (including the Hokage and the Sannin) in Konoha would lose a thousand to one. Yet, even the experienced ones could be beaten if caught off guard, and Kakashi's advantage was… the element of surprise. If Kakashi could remain hidden in the shadows while he attacked, at least he wouldn't have to face the wraiths first hand, and they wouldn't know what attacked them.
The moon came out and it was midnight; Kakashi kept to the shadows. Though he could see the whole place and his target with great clarity, what worried him was where his charges were. 'Possibly at the Weathertop fort.' The ANBU predicted. On top of the hill was certainly the best place to spot wandering or suspicious eyes but it did have a draw back… Although you could try and spot the enemy in the forests that surrounded Weathertop, the enemy had a plain view of you. 'Ironically stupid.' Kakashi sighed shaking his head. What were those people thinking about making a fort here? Yet, the place was hundreds of years old… possibly the forests weren't as thick as they were at the present and more people inhabited the region.
Now the ANBU was debating to himself whether he should follow the Ringwraith or find his charges. If he attacked the Ringwraith now, it would most likely scream and warn its friends. That didn't sound good, not only might the other wraiths attack him but… they would go faster in trying to kill his charges. That equated to… mission failed. If he found his charges first at the hill, at least it would give him a chance to direct them to a safer place and he wouldn't be alone in fending off the wraiths. There was that ranger with the four hobbits; the ANBU figured he was experienced enough to fight from what he saw of their kind.
Kakashi had managed to spy on the folk who had lived in Bree. From what the ANBU concluded about the town, it was a centre for crossroads. Many of its occupants were from abroad and only stayed for a while. It wasn't odd for such a small town to host a large number of inns for travelers. One of the most frequent travelers who came in and out was the rangers or what Kakashi heard them to also be called the Dûnedain. They definitely weren't ordinary men; to Kakashi they seemed far older and more experienced with the wild. Though many of the normal folk around them scolded them, the ANBU predicted they were watchmen or in other words the 'secret police'. They were the ones who guarded Bree from orcs and other black creatures without the civilians even knowing. Kakashi chuckled at that thought. They were nearly like the ANBU.
Again, Kakashi gazed back at the Ringwraith that he had followed. It was still as if waiting for a signal. From their position, they were getting very close now to the actual hill itself. The ANBU made up his mind; if the wraiths did find his charges they surely would go after them anyway. Like it or not… With his decision set, the ANBU turned his back on the main target and headed towards the hill. Hopefully he wasn't too late but he hoped too soon, something smelt in the air…
Fire…
'Kuso! (Damn it!)' Kakashi thought irritated. The wraith may might not have moved from his spot yet, but with the fire burning… he'll move to it like a bee attracted to a flower. The shinobi quickened his pace and extended his leaps, intending to get to the hill before any of the wraiths did. He was nearly there.
Chilling screams echoed through the air…
It was then followed by other screams that sounded more to be normal 'alive' voices, weapons being taken out and the clanking of the weapons making contact. Kakashi spat in annoyance, "A very good time to be late." This time he sped faster and used the 'Shunshin no jutsu' (Body flicker jutsu) a couple of times to speed himself up.
The ANBU managed to arrive at the intended spot quickly. Apparently, one of his charges was wounded with a stab on the shoulder. The other three hobbits didn't seem to have any experience in fighting and were trying to stand at least in front of their comrade who was injured. The ranger of course was trying to ward off four… another piercing scream arrived… make it five Ringwraiths. The other four seemed to be letting the middle one fight the ranger; Kakashi predicted he was the leader. However, the four were also advancing forward in case their boss needed help. The shinobi hurriedly made his way with the cover of the shadows and readied his weapon. The ranger was smart to ward one off with fire, but the leader was tackling him down with his strength when his sword hit the ranger's. Kakashi rapidly opened the windmill shuriken and threw it at the leader.
It whistled, met its target squarely on its back, through the body and to the front. The leader screeched in pain. The other Ringwraiths were confused at the sudden assault trying to find its source. Even the ranger was surprised to be aided. The ANBU of course had moved away, hoping that the distraction would give the ranger time. Another screech was in the air and to Kakashi's amazement and utter horror, the windmill shuriken that was firmly stabbed into the wraith crumbled into dust. 'Shit.' Kakashi gaped. Not even the strongest body chakra was able to crumble metal into dust.
This time, while the he moved at a fast speed (still hidden in the darkness) he threw kunai to distract them and give time for his charges to escape. Every kunai that stabbed the wraiths did inflict pain, but it was futile as every weapon quickly decimated at an instant. It was a good thing the ranger seized the chance to get his torch and flamed another Ringwraith. Meanwhile Kakashi seized the same opportunity to use his exploding tags. He threw two at each of the remaining wraiths and the paper was stuck. Maybe metal weapons couldn't hurt them, but paper seemed to affect them just fine. Kakashi utilized his chakra from a distance…
"Jibaku Fuda: Kassei!" (Exploding Tag: Activate!)
Two wraiths burst into flames and retreated… one remained. This other one who in fact was the leader was chasing the hobbits away and out of distance from his utilized chakra. Strider the ranger, who had seen what this odd paper could do, in turn flung his torch at the leader. On impact the leader burst into flame and ran away just like its other followers. The ranger curiously looked around his surroundings, trying to find the one who aided him in the fight. Sadly his attention was averted to the hobbits that cried for his help to save their injured comrade. Kakashi sighed a great relief that the main threat was over for now and that aided by the dark night, his appearance was still hidden and unknown.
One of his charges was now injured, but it was beyond Kakashi's help right now. He had yet to get them to Rivendell… 'That reminds me, didn't Mithrandir say there was help from that elven realm?' the ANBU thought over his client's information. He looked at the hobbit that was injured, it seemed he was under a genjutsu. 'So, what Mithrandir said was true…' Kakashi thought analysing the affects of the wound from afar. The Ringwraith's weapons did have curses on them.
For now, all the ninja could think of was to aid them quietly unseen. Not that the ANBU did not want to help them; the attack did traumatized the hobbits… to make things worse, Kakashi was wearing clothes that were very much the same as the wraiths themselves. Not very trusting in the eyes of someone who was just attacked… or even one who had been aided in battle. Like a ghost, Kakashi made his way just below the ledge where the injured hobbit had been treated. He had used his hiding camouflage jutsu again. There he stuck like a gecko on the cliff ledge wall and listening to their conversation. It seemed they weren't going to move until the next afternoon… Which meant Kakashi could retrieve his horse and his backpack.
The injured and unconscious one was named Frodo, the one who was worrying about his master's health the most was Sam, and the other two were called Merry and Pippin. What had caught the ANBU's attention was Strider's real name. His name was Aragorn. Then Kakashi remembered the parchment that the wizard gave to him that had a poem, took it out, and eyed at one certain sentence…
'The Ranger goes by the name Strider, yet his real name is Aragorn son of Arathorn. He will most likely react to these verses, trust your judgement.'
Kakashi looked at the verses and compared it to the man he had seen. He wondered if the poem was true, certainly the man wasn't… then the ninja heard a crumbling noise above him. One of the hobbits had been a little too close to the crumbling ledge for his safety.
'Crack!'
The eroded rock under the small hobbit snapped, and he wailed as he fell. The ANBU thankfully caught the hobbit in mid-air, yet wasn't bothered to put up his hiding camouflage jutsu. He wasted enough chakra that day… and wasn't in the mood to waste more. And on the other hand, he might as well make an introduction to at least one of his charges.
Peregrin Took, or Pippin whimpered when he saw his saviour. The person was wearing a white mask and was clad in black. He had enough of going against the Ringwraiths… now he had another stranger trying to get him. He wanted to scream…
"Shut up." The ANBU cut the little hobbit off in mid scream. "Let's see, small folk, short, curly hair, and hairy feet. It seems the wizard was right." Kakashi mumbled to himself.
"Gandalf?" the small hobbit squeaked.
"The one and only." Kakashi replied calmly. As he studied the hobbit, sniffed him, and realized the hobbit had bread with him. With no doubt, he took it away from the hobbit.
"Hey!"
Before Pippin could complain any further, Kakashi tossed the hobbit uncaringly up onto the ledge like unwanted baggage, where his friends had just starting to look over the ledge thinking Pippin had been in mortal danger. They only ended up crashing into Pippin. The ANBU looked at the bread hungrily, it just occur to him his own food provisions were running out soon, and to top it off… that hobbit seriously was heavy for his size, Kakashi figured he (Pippin) might as well cut his weight down. It was another reason why the ANBU tossed him up… or else he wouldn't be sticking on the wall by now since his chakra was thinning. Little did the ninja know the hobbits indeed were famous for taking six meals a day (if they could), so it wasn't a wonder the hobbit weighed so much.
"Pippin! You're alright!" said Merry worried. "How did you get back up?"
"There was a man with a black cloak and wearing a mask down there! And he stole my bread! And my favourite napkin!" Pippin exclaimed.
Kakashi sniggered at the comment. 'Favourite napkin huh?' Quickly and sufficiently he took the napkin off the food and hid the bread in his jacket. The napkin was tied to a kunai, he wrote a small note on a fake exploding tag, and he sent it back upwards. As quickly the kunai was sent up, the ninja 'body flickered' from his spot and left the scene without a trace. Now… he needed to get back to his horse, rest to recover his chakra, have dinner, and prepare for tomorrow. The task wasn't finished just yet…
"Down there?" Sam asked worriedly.
Strider only raised a curious eyebrow, "Well you certainly didn't bounce back up did you, master Took?"
Then their answer came as a kunai came up, and embedded itself on the floor in front of them with Pippin's napkin tied to it. There was also a white tag with a foreign language on it. The ranger looked at the weapon carefully. It was the same type of weapon that was hurled at the wraiths that had aided him in fending off the dark beings. Immediately, Aragorn looked down the ledge to find nothing in sight. What had bewildered the ranger the most was how the mysterious helper was able to escape the place so quickly, not to mention a very steep ledge.
"Hey, Pippin, Strider! There's writing on this!" Merry exclaimed. "In the common tongue too!"
The ranger quickly took the weapon from the hobbit and read the paper. It read…
'Here's your napkin back. Thanks for the bread; I'll take it as payment. You should go on a diet.'
Aragorn raised an amused eyebrow at how blunt the stranger's memo was for Pippin. The other two hobbits laughed while Pippin was trying to remind them the stranger was wearing a black cloak and had mentioned Gandalf. The ranger only looked at the weapon with interest; since it was the first time in his life he had ever seen one. Who was their saviour exactly? Could Gandalf have sent the stranger?
TO BE CONTINUED…
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Another chapter done! 4600 words to boot! (No AU Notes included) I can't believe I wrote this in three days. I guess I had a lot of 'plot bunnies' on my mind. But as you can see the scenes are at a slow pace… I don't want to rush it and make a mess out of it. There goes Kakashi's bad habit on saying someone should eat healthy food, like when he said to Naruto to eat more greens (laughs) Hopefully the fighting scene was okay… Comments, ideas and opinions? Please review!
Chapter 3: 'A Problem Equals to More Problems.'