Gentle Fist, Will of Fire
Hello, everyone!! I am glad to say that this chapter has a bit more action in it than the last, so those of you who were somewhat bored by the last chapter should like this one a bit better. I daresay I do, and the secret behind Tatsuki and Shinji's past is revealed! Ooooo it's killing me, knowing that you all are sitting here reading the Author's Notes instead of scrolling right down to the story, so I'm gonna cut it short and get right to the chase! Let the fic begin!!
Oh, and P.S.-- Gomenasai for the longer wait for this chappie, but I started school yesterday and I was really exhausted at the end of the day. Ugh, whoever invented Team Sports should be castrated!! T.T XD
Disclamer: I don't own Naruto or any of the other characters featured in the anime/manga, but I do own Shinji and the other Amegakure nin (And yes, we all know I don't even own the first chappie!!) No copyright infringement was intended when I wrote this fiction.
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The rainforest was harder to navigate than most of the teenage nin had thought. The level ground was lost in a sea of undergrowth, loose rocks, and stray roots that were all too eager to trip the unsuspecting ninja. After a few minutes of walking through the trees, they were all sweating, Naruto was complaining, and Hinata had tripped one too many times and sprained her ankle. Seeing the helpless kunoichi, Shinji offered to carry her, but Naruto, overcome with jealousy for some reason, got to her first. Both ninja blushed as he hauled her up into his arms, bridal style, but neither seemed too disappointed. After he'd picked Hinata up, Naruto also stopped complaining and began to talk animatedly to the girl in his arms, a relief to everyone around him. Hinata seemed overjoyed too, shyly wrapping her arms around his neck. Seeing this, Kiba elbowed Lee, jokingly saying that maybe he oughta carry Sakura, too. Lee didn't seem too disappointed with the suggestion, but a blushing Sakura threatened to send Kiba's face into the ground if he didn't stuff it. The spiky haired shinobi, obviously, complied.
After about an hour, something began dripping from above. Distracted from the girl in his arms for a moment, Naruto frowned upwards and said, "This better not be what I think it is!"
"It's rain, Naruto," Shino answered, raising an eyebrow at the blonde. "This is a rainforest, after all. Why, what did you think it was?"
Naruto blushed and replied by mumbling incoherently. Shino shook his head as Sakura frowned and Kiba laughed. Hinata giggled and tightened her hold around Naruto's neck, effectively getting his attention drawn back to her and their conversation. "So, Hinata-chan, like I was telling you, about Ero-Senin…"
Another hour passed and the group had almost reached their limit. Naruto had run out of stories about his perverted sensei that he hadn't already told to Hinata, and instead carried her in a comfortable silence. Lee still wasn't carrying Sakura, but instead had sprained his own ankle after getting caught up in a surprisingly thick bush. Sakura wouldn't carry him, but she was supporting him with an arm around his middle and one of his arms draped over her shoulders. The rain that had began to fall in a light shower had developed into a downpour, and the only one seemingly enjoying the event was Shinji himself. "You get used to the rain after a while," He called back to them. "You don't mind the rain when you grow up in it your entire life." A few of his followers cursed him under their breaths at his comment.
Another half an hour had passed, and finally Shinji turned around. "What you are about to see is one of the most difficult Hidden Villages to reach, and because of this we don't get many visitors."
"Hmm, well, I wonder why?" Kiba muttered not-so-lowly, and a few of his peers chuckled at his joke.
Shinji smiled too. "Hai, we get a lot of that around here. Well, follow me this way and we'll finally be able to rest…"
They walked a few more feet, where their leader stopped in front of a really ancient-looking tree-- the trunk was at least twelve feet long around, and some of the bark was stripped from the tree, revealing the green-brown skin underneath. With the tip of his umbrella, Shinji drew a kanji symbol in the green-brown skin that was unfamiliar to the Konoha nin, and then he slammed his free left hand onto the symbol, pumping his visible cerulean chakra into the tree.
The effect was amazing-- the limbs of the tree all reformed and slid down the tree, stopping at Shinji's feet and winding up around the tree trunk. It now looked like a spiral stairway wound it's way up the trunk, farther than any of them could see.
"Wow, that's really amazing, Nomura-san!" Lee cried, eyes wide as he looked the gigantic stairway up and down with approval.
"Nomura-san, isn't any jutsu associated with trees or any sort of earth considered Earth jutsu, not Water jutsu?"
"Hai, it is Earth jutsu I just used," Shinji replied, walking forward and looking up the trunk, following the 'staircase' with his eyes. "To hide our village a little better, though, all of our remaining nin-- all of our loyal Jonin-- were taught a few Earth jutsus to keep the village hidden. Confuse a few enemy nin, ne? No one would expect a water village to be hidden using a couple of Earth jutsu, see. Well, on we go-"
"Whoa whoa whoa, hold on a second," Sakura cried, eyes wide. Gesturing at her green clad friend, she asked, "Do you really expect me to drag Lee up those stairs?"
"You wouldn't have to, Sakura-san! I could walk!"
"Oh, you could?" Sakura asked in a sarcastic tone, raising an eyebrow at him. She was fighting to keep the corners of her mouth down, but she couldn't keep a slight twitch out of her lips.
"No, really, I can!" Lee declared, pushing away from her just to prove a point. He removed his hand from her shoulder and stood upright for about two seconds. Sakura had to catch him before he fell backwards, his injured ankle giving out. Shaking slightly, he grinned at her. "Well, heh-- guess I can't, huh?"
Shinji chuckled. "Well, at least we're prepared for something like this." Drawing another kanji seal in the tree's bark under the first one, he said, "Alright, Sakura, set Lee down on that little patch of short grass over there. Yeah, right there. Okay, Naruto, lay Hinata down right beside Lee."
"What? But I could climb those stairs with Hinata-chan too," Naruto protested, obviously hesitant to give up the girl in his arms. Hinata giggled and blushed at this.
"I'm sure you could, were they real stairs," Shinji replied, checking the kanji seal he'd made for any mistakes. "No, these are tree branches, and tree branches break. Plus, there's no railing, like normal stairs would have, so walking up these stairs screams 'balance', something you wouldn't have if you had Hinata in your arms."
Still frowning, Naruto relented. "Fine, okay? Fine." He walked over to where Lee sat and gently sat her behind him, her back to him. He smiled at her once more and then stepped back to stand with his remaining teammates.
"Okay, here we go," Shinji said, turning back to the tree trunk. "Okay, Lee and Hinata, one thing before I activate this jutsu-- don't panic." Before the teens could ask questions, the silver haired man had slammed his left hand against the tree bark, and his blue chakra was once again seen pumping into the seal.
Suddenly, something snaked out of the tall branches of the forest, serpentine-like. Lee gasped, Sakura pointed, crying out "What's that?", and Hinata sat there, looking horrified as the snake thing wound through the forest towards them. Naruto was
Instantly concerned and bolted forwards to snatch his friends away from the thing, but Kakashi held him back. "Hold on, Naruto. I think this is the jutsu Shinji activated."
The serpentine thing came into view, and everyone gasped as they realized what it was-- a thick branch, one that stretched out from the ancient tree itself. The branch snaked down and around Lee and Hinata, and to this Lee gasped. "Wow, Nomura-san! This is amazing!" The branch tightened it's hold around them, enough to where it allowed no movement whatsoever.
"Remember, you two," Shinji called out, and as the two brought their gazes over to him he smiled. "Don't panic."
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Easy for you to say, Hinata thought, screaming at the top of her lungs as the branch pulled her and Lee skyward at breakneck speed. The rain, already pouring, was like needles on the backs of their necks, stinging every time it hit bare skin. Along with the stinging rain, brown and green mixed in her vision as they whipped past the trees, making her somewhat nauseous. Behind her, Lee was the same way, though he seemed to be enjoying it: "WOOHOOOO!" was what he was screaming as they flew up and away from their comrades. Listening to him scream, she had a pretty good idea of what he looked like-- face red, long black hair flopping every which way. His eyes were round and wide, and his mouth was shaped like an 'o' as he screamed. Veins were popping up all over his forehead, and he almost looked like he had activated the Byakugan. This humorous envision should have made her laugh, but at the moment it did nothing to lighten her mood.
It seemed almost an eternity before they began to slow, and it was even longer before she could stop screaming. Lee's cries were also dying out, and the two watched in wonder as the thick branch set them down on a small wooden landing. Detangling them from itself, the branch disappeared, winding back down the way it came.
Glancing around, Lee's eyes widened in surprise. "It seems as if we are up in the trees."
Hinata looked over at him, worry creasing her visage. "N-Nani?"
Lee nodded, his now windblown black hair waving along with the motion. "Hai. When the branch picked us up, it must've brought us up through the trees, and sat us down on some sort of octagonal platform." Rising onto his hands and knees, keeping his sprained ankle up off of the floor, he crawled over to the edge of the landing. Looking past the railing, he screeched. "H-Hinata-san, I think you should come see this…"
Biting her lip, Hinata did the same as her green clad companion, crawling over beside him. Looking over the edge, she screamed.
The ground was nowhere to be seen. Limbs of trees thicker than any the Konoha nin had ever seen snaked in between each other, blocking the forest below and beyond from view. Even up on the railing of their platform, small limbs wound their ways around the rails along with unfamiliar vines. Even the wooden platform they sat on seemed to be propped up by nothing but those limbs.
As Hinata rocked back on her good leg, eyes wide and feeling faint, Lee struggled to stand, pulling himself up with the railing of their platform. "Alright!" He roared, startling the shy girl beside him. He fell into the nice guy pose, and cried, "Oi, Gai sensei! The Flames of Youth have empowered me as I traveled, going where no Konohagakure Chunin has gone before! Congratulate me, for I will return with plenty of knowledge about this village's Taijutsu skills! Yosh!"
Hinata watched him, staring wide-eyed as he declared this to no one in particular. As she gazed on, she suddenly knew why Sakura hadn't liked Lee in the first place. He was loud, random, and he idolized his sensei more than was healthy. Though she saw his shortcomings, Hinata also realized why Sakura had began to fall for him. He had a good heart, and through his obnoxiousness she could see a quiet and reserved person inside of him, someone who was sweet and also slightly shy. She also realized that while he shouldn't worship Gai sensei as much as he did, he did it for a good reason-- without Gai he may have ended up not becoming a ninja, may have ended up as an ordinary guy in an ordinary life. She knew that a life like that would not have been enough for the Taijutsu master-- he was one of those people that enjoyed the rush of being so strong and capable. Kind of like Naruto-kun.
Suddenly, a small brown squirrel suddenly launched itself out of the trees surrounding them and jumped right onto Lee's shoulder, surprising the teen. Startled out of his reverie, Lee lost his balance and crashed to the floor of the platform, right next to Hinata. The squirrel did not leave in a panic, but instead stared at Lee as if mildly interested in the green clad nin.
Looking around him, Lee noticed that the squirrel had not run off, and his eyes got starry and glazed. "Ooooohh, Hinata-san, LOOK! A SQUIRREL!!"
Hinata was also infatuated with the animal, being someone who loved most small animals. Tentatively, she reached out and stroked the tiny squirrel's head. When it didn't run from her, she cooed, "Wow, Lee-kun! He's doesn't seem to be scared of people at all!"
"YOSH!" Lee thundered, his teeth glittering. When still the squirrel did not leave, Lee's eyes turned into hearts, a wide grin cracking his features. "Wow! Even the squirrels back in Konoha won't stay on my shoulder when I scream like that! I think I've found a new friend, Hinata-san!"
Equally intrigued and amazed, Hinata's eyes glittered as much as Lee's had. "If only Naruto-kun were here… Hey, Lee-kun, what are you going to name him?"
"I don't know Hinata-san… But whatever I decide to name him, it will be a name befitting my dearest companion!"
"What in the hell are you two doing?"
Startled, Hinata, Lee, and the squirrel turned to see a large man standing on the railing opposite them. He was wearing a poncho that matched the one Shinji had been wearing, and he wore a black headband with the Rain village's symbol on it. His spiky dark green hair swayed gently in the wind, and he frowned at them. His dark calculating eyes swept across them, and Hinata had the looming feeling of being X-rayed.
The man's frown deepened as he looked at them. "Well, are you two going to answer me, or do I have to beat the words out of you?"
Hinata almost fainted. Much as she tried, she couldn't get her tongue unstuck from the roof of her mouth. Beside her, Lee seemed to be having the same problem.
Sighing deeply, the large man jumped down onto the railing and began to walk towards them.
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"Ugh… Why couldn't we take the other way up with Hinata and Lee?" Naruto asked, huffing and puffing his way up the staircase. He brought up the end of the group, following behind Akamaru, Kiba, Kakashi, Shino, Sakura and Shinji. He was slowly trailing behind the others, trudging up the stairs while slumping.
"Exactly!" Kiba cried, also slowing down. "Why do we gotta walk up all these stairs when we could have just been dragged up there by a root!"
Sakura turned and shook her fist at them, crying, "Naruto! Kiba! Would you stop complaining? I know it's not the best of situations, but you are ninja! You should be able to deal with this!"
While tears of fear poured out of the two boys' eyes, Sakura turned and began to follow Shinji again, muttering about lazy little boys under her breath. Her whispered curses slowly trailed away as they heard a scream from above somewhere.
Naruto's tears evaporated instantly as he recognized the voice the scream belonged to. "Hinata!" He whispered, his heart suddenly gripped by an icy hand.
Shinji reacted instantly. "Kakashi, take this!" He yelled, shoving his umbrella into the other Jonin's hands. He ran through a long series of hand seals, then thrust his hands skyward, yelling "Water Release: Water Geyser no Jutsu!"
"Wha-" was all Naruto had time to say before the stairs had began to shake. Kakashi roughly grabbed the front of his jacket and pulled him over to him, where everyone else was huddled under the umbrella. Suddenly, the platform underneath them shot upwards, and Naruto found himself on the ground, staring in between the makeshift stairs. Water shot up from in between the stairs, and Naruto had to cover his face to avoid being drowned.
Well, this is better than walking the rest of the way.
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The unidentified nin had walked over to us slowly, like he'd been calculating our movements. Then, lightning fast, he had grabbed me by the arm and Lee-kun by the neck. Neither of us had any time to react, and though I'd reached for a kunai, the shock of seeing the man move so fast had made me forget the action.
So fast… I don't think I've ever seen anyone move so quickly. His movements were even quicker than Neji-niisan's.
The man knew what I was going to do, and before he could drop Lee and get his free hand over my mouth I screamed.
He slammed his hand over my mouth, effectively silencing me. Leaning down to me, he hissed, "Stop it! You-Know-Who will show up, and that's the last thing the village needs right now! Wait a-- get off me, you stupid squirrel!"
Lee's squirrel had fallen off of his shoulder when the mystery nin had grabbed him by the neck . Now the squirrel had launched itself at the man's middle, trying to get it to let go of me. He tried to brush it away, but was instead thrown backwards away from me as Lee performed the Leaf Hurricane on him. Landing, he stood between me and the nin, falling into his fighting pose. "Our friends will come! They will aid us, and you will have no chance of winning!" The squirrel hopped up onto his shoulder and now stared at the other man. I could swear it was growling.
I looked around Lee to see his face. His features were scrunched up in pain, and I could tell he was fighting against the urge to collapse. The pain in my own ankle was almost too much to bear, and I wasn't the one trying to fight. I knew Lee was in excruciating pain, and I had to do something to stop the fight.
The man's eyes widened, shocked at Lee's speed, but then his dark eyes clouded with hatred. "You two are members of the UBNA, aren't you? You're here to terrorize the village again, aren't you?"
"NO!" I cried, surprising myself with the volume of my voice. I continued on, in a near panic. "W-we aren't members of the UBNA, we're running away from them! You've got it all wrong, we're coming to help the village!"
"Who's child are you going to kidnap this time around?" Said the man in a low hiss, apparently not hearing what I had said. "Who are you going to hold for ransom from a family with no money to spare? Who will die today?!"
"Didn't you hear Hinata-san?" Lee asked, frowning at the man's behavior. "She just said we weren't members of the UBNA."
"LIARS!" The man roared, jumping back up onto his feet. He launched a kick at Lee's head, who parried the attack and swept his left leg under the man's feet. The man jumped back, avoiding it.
"N-no, we're not l-lying!" I cried, nearly in tears. I knew standing wasn't good for Lee's ankle, and with him being injured he wasn't going to last very long. I had a feeling our time was almost up. "I-I swear, sir! P-please, b-b-believe me!"
"Hinata-san, he's not going to listen to us," Lee muttered under his breath. Just listening to him speak told me how much pain he was in. "He's blinded by his rage at this group, he can't see that we're not dressed like them. I guess I'm going to have to show him that we are not UBNA by for-ooop-!" Lee's knees suddenly buckled, too weak to keep going. He fell on his sprained ankle, and he howled in pain as a loud crack resounded through the forest air. I let out a low moan of revulsion as he began to sob, knowing that he'd just broken his ankle. There was no way we would get out of this situation alive now. The squirrel seemed to share my despair as it remained on Lee's shoulder, watching Lee tremble with the overwhelming pain in his leg, unable to aid his new human friend.
The man saw his chance. Smiling wickedly at us, his two injured foes, he whispered, "Now I will get revenge on the group that has terrorized my village for so long… Now I will finally land a blow on the group that took my siblings… FOR YOU, TOBI! FOR YOU, TEMA!!" He roared, launching himself at us again. I knew we were goners, and I prepared for death, wrapping my arms around Lee's waist and burying my head in his back.
"Water Technique: Typhoon no Ju-"
"RASENGAN!!!"
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The voice Hinata and Lee heard resounding through the trees was not that of their mystery attacker, but one that they knew all too well. Hinata looked up from her place behind Lee to see a certain someone, clad in orange garb, launch himself before them, a bright blue sphere of spinning chakra held in his outstretched hand. Their attacker flew backwards, protecting his face from the blow by crossing his arms over it. The wraps on his arms and chunks of his skin flew off as a result of Naruto's attack, and Hinata buried her face in Lee's back once again, sickened by it.
They felt people land on the platform around them, and as someone began to yell Hinata felt an arm on her shoulder. "Hinata, are you alright? What happened?"
She looked up into Kiba's concerned face. "I… I…"
"Lee? Lee!" She heard Sakura cry from her other side, and Lee was taken not-so-gently from her clutching arms. Before her, Sakura laid the green clad nin out on the platform, on the verge of tears. "Oh no-- your ankle! It's been broken!"
Lee tried for a smile to reassure the pink haired kunoichi, but all he could manage was a grimace. "I'm okay, it's not that bad-- AAUUGHHH!" He yelled as he tried to move his foot.
Sakura slapped him across the face, surprising him and the other shinobi watching. "Stop moving it, dobe, you're going to make it worse!!" A single tear fell from her teal eyes, rolled down her nose, and plinked onto his forehead.
As she set to work on his ankle, he didn't say another word, only hissed in the pain that hit him in waves. The squirrel sat beside him now, watching Sakura pour the green chakra over his ankle.
Hinata glanced up at the others, who were yelling and parrying attacks at the same time. Naruto, Shino, Kakashi and Shinji were blocking the four of them from the mystery man. Shinji was yelling at the man, the man was yelling at all of them and Kakashi and Shino were trying to hold a steaming Naruto back. The blond was yelling something about hurting his friends and paying for it no matter what.
Watching Naruto struggle so vehemently against the others, Hinata suddenly felt a rush of emotion towards him. The feelings she'd been holding back for nearly ten years all rose to the surface along with her gratitude towards him for saving their lives. She was barely able to restrain herself from yelling those three little words in his direction, three small words that meant so much. Hinata bit her tongue until it bled, trying to stop the words that were itching at her throat from being said. Finally, the urge had been quelled, and she eased her injured tongue away from her teeth. She lowered her gaze from her struggling love interest and focused on the others' yelled conversation, trying to keep Naruto out of her mind.
Shinji was shouting something at the other man, gesturing violently. "… you stupid, it's obvious these two underage Chunin aren't in the UBNA, what were you thinking?!"
"You don't understand! They were unfamiliar to me! I'd never seen them around, and yet they appear out of nowhere so close to the village, and without wearing forehead protectors! What was I supposed to think!"
Shinji lowered his voice only slightly, crossing his arms over his chest. "Yasuo, you know as well as I do that a group such as the UBNA aren't pressing for members. Why would they hire a couple of wet behind the ears teenagers to help them terrorize the city?"
Lee, still entangled in his own pain, looked up slightly at Sakura, who was still busy mending his ankle. " 'Wet behind the ears?' Who does he think he is talking about, Sakura?" He muttered. Sakura, though concentrated fully on what she was doing, chuckled lightly.
The other man, Yasuo, looked up, glaring behind Shinji at Lee and Hinata. "Who knows? They might have sent these two to fool us, to lull us into a false sense of security before they really launch another attack! Innocent l-lives might be lost!… Why am I bothering explaining this to you anyway, you wouldn't understand." The man looked like he regretted what he said just as soon as the words left his mouth.
Shinji unfolded his arms, a haunted shadow falling over his face. "Wouldn't understand-? I understand the situation at hand more than you even dream you could. Don't you think I know what the UBNA is capable of? I lost my entire clan, my entire family, just like you did. We're one and the same, and you think I don't understand what you're getting at?" Shinji was visibly shaking. His hands were clenched at his sides, and blood was escaping from his cracked knuckles as the worn skin broke under pressure.
Hinata could almost feel the howl of rage and pain struggling to surpass his lips, and she felt a rush of pity towards him. She didn't know personally the pain of losing an entire family, but she definitely knew the pain of being tossed out of one. She now realized why Shinji would want to kill his sister. She still didn't like it, but she understood the why behind his actions. She even felt a bit of hatred towards Tatsuki for what she had done to Shinji and their clan.
Yasuo watched the other man shake, fear and pity in his eyes. He knew what he had said had cut deep, and he was instantly sorry for it. He bowed, his hands clasped together. "I… I… Gomenasai, Nomura-sama. I was merely angry, that's all. My judgment was clouded with my own loss, and I failed to remember that my own was not the only pain felt by the wretched UBNA's handiwork. Please, forgive me."
Shinji, head still bowed, nodded slowly. "It… Your apology is accepted, Takahashi-san. I know you suffered well, and I understand. I grant you a full reprieve from your missions for a few days. Think of it as a small vacation, alright?"
Yasuo nodded, a hollowness creeping into his eyes that hadn't been there before. "Arigato, Nomura-sama." Bowing once again, he turned and hopped back up onto the railing and launched off into the trees, disappearing from sight.
Shinji sighed heavily before turning around to the group. "Gomenasai, everybody… Yasuo's a really good guy, he is, but sometimes his loss can get ahead of him, and he loses control."
"What happened?" Shino asked.
Another deep sigh. Then: "Yasuo and I were friends when we were children. When I was thirteen years old, me, Yasuo, and another Genin were on a mission when Tatsuki murdered my clan. I… I was the only one who survived only because I was gone, and yet I was the one she had really wanted to kill." He lowered his gaze, hiding his eyes from the rest of them. "Ano.. A year later, Tatsuki came back for me. She came disguised as an UBNA, which was still supposedly 'serving the Hidden Villages' back then, you see. They entered the village under the premise that 'a group of enemy ninja were hiding among the true citizens', and they had come to eliminate them or something. Naturally, the entire village was on edge the entire four days the group were there, but none more than I. For some reason, the group's leader seemed awfully familiar to me, and though they kept their faces hidden behind those odd masks with the red eyes, I knew that the leader was a girl. Her voice sounded familiar, and yet I couldn't place a name. Then, she came to Yasuo's house." Tears were pouring from his hidden eyes, and yet he continued. "She… She killed his parents, instantly and painfully. Neither of them were really strong, so she made quick work of them. Yasuo and I were outside in the woods when we heard something coming from his house. We went back and looked through the window, just to see what was going on.
"There, on the floor, was his parents, and on the couch were his little brother and sister, tied up together. The leader, she… She kept using some sort of medical jutsu on them to torture them, something that made them just scream and scream. She kept asking them where I was, did I live there, and those kids, bless their souls… They wouldn't tell her, wouldn't give me away. Finally, she just pumped a bunch of chakra into their bodies, and they slumped over. Yasuo screamed, 'No!' and the leader looked towards the window so suddenly that her mask fell away. I-I couldn't believe it was Tatsuki…"
Shinji remained quiet for a few minutes afterwards, trying to calm himself down. The Chunin plus Naruto were all looking at him with a mixture of pity and horror, and Kakashi had folded his arms and was staring at the wooden floor, as if the story still sickened him and he could barely stand to listen.
"She came at us. Right through the window. I pulled Yasuo out of the way at the last moment, and we jumped away into the trees. He kept struggling against me, wanting to go back and save his siblings. I told him it was too late, they were gone… But he wouldn't listen. Finally, I had to knock him over the head to make him come along peacefully.
"Soon, I made it to one of only three entrances to the village, a platform much like the one we're standing on now. Tatsuki was instantly upon us, having trailed us from Yasuo's house. I laid my unconscious friend over to the side and prepared for battle-- I knew I was going to have to fight her.
"Tatsuki had always been better at Genjutsu than me, but I had been more skilled using Taijutsu than she was. I ran at her, and all of the fury I had bottled up inside of me from a year ago just came out. I started attacking her relentlessly, pausing only to take a breath. She was barely able to block and parry my blows, and soon it was just too much for her. I got her right in the face, and she'd flown backwards, back slamming against the railing. She stood back up, and I was about to launch another flurry of attacks when she used her talent. First, she transformed into our mother.
"That stopped me. I just stood there and stared, my heart frozen, as she changed again into our father, and then into one of our cousins. It was like I was seeing their bodies all over again, reliving that hell from a year ago. I fell onto my knees, holding my head and screaming 'Make it stop! Make it stop!'" He sniffed once, then continued. "She saw her chance. Transforming back into her old self, she walked towards me and began charging up her chakra. 'I'm finally gonna destroy the last of the Nomura clan, and then I'm going to inherit the secret of our bloodline!' I was confused, so she explained…"
A few years ago, I heard father talking to one of our uncles in a hallway of the Nomura Compound. I hid in the closet and listened in, curious as to what they would be talking about. After all, you know father and his brothers were never very close. Why would he confide anything in them?
Anyway, father was saying something about a hidden skill of the Nomura clan, and how he really wanted to find a way to earn it. Our uncle, who was a little older than father, slapped him. "You imbecile!" He cried. "Do you not know what it takes to receive that bloodlimit?!"
"I… I… No," Father had answered, sounding a little sheepish as his elder brother glared at him.
Uncle growled low in the back of his throat. "A Nomura who wishes to gain the hidden bloodline limit must first spill the blood of their entire clan."
"You aren't serious?"
Shinji raised his head, no longer crying, and he looked around at them all. "The only reason I was able to escape that day was because I was saved by the village leader, the . He intervened as Tatsuki was about to deliver the final blow. He knocked her away from me and told her to leave me alone. She tried to get back at me, but the wouldn't let her by. Finally she gave up and jumped off into the trees."
All were silent as Shinji finished his story. Hinata was nearly in tears as she looked up at the man, and Naruto and Kiba were staring wide-eyed at him. Lee had sat up when Sakura had finished with his ankle, and was now staring up into the sky, frowning slightly. He leaned slightly against Sakura, and she had wrapped her arms around him and buried her face in his back, horrified at the story.
After a few minutes, Shinji shook his head slightly, then smiled weakly at them. "Well, everyone, I guess we should get to the village now. We'll go straight to my house and get you all out of those wet clothes. Does that sound good?"
His suggestion was met by many eager faces, and he led the way to the edge of the platform, Lee walking stiffly and Hinata in Naruto's arms. Shinji climbed up onto the railing and motioned for everyone to follow.
"Okay now, on my mark, you jump into the trees," He commanded, his voice echoing over all of them. "Follow behind me, and for your own safety, do not fall off a limb. Am I correct?"
"Hai," Echoed the teens. Kakashi chuckled lightly at this, and Shinji smiled.
"Alright, and… JUMP!!"
Jumping through these trees was not what Kiba had expected, and definitely different from jumping from tree to tree back home in Konoha. At home, you didn't have to duck and really pay attention to where you were going. The trees had enough distance between them that you were confident that you would get there without hitting anything. Here, the limbs were closer together, there were vines and everything hanging in the way, and it was really hard to see. Kiba kept thinking they'd get lost, or they'd get tangled up in something, and they'd never see Konoha again--
-- and they burst out into light. Fresh, deep sunlight shone down on them, and the dark mood from earlier seemed to vanish along with the darkness.
≈
Sorry to leave you hangin' there at the end, but I've gotta have a little more time to work on the village. Luv ya, hope ya luv my story!! See ya! (P.S.-- I made the entire village up. I really don't know anything about the village or it's whereabouts, so I apolegize if it's not exactly canon. I can at least say I tried!! XD)