disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any characters I do own the plot, though!
Chapter 2: Konoha
Morning came way too soon.
I was woken up by Naruto prodding my shoulder with a stick. Wait a minute- where the hell did the stick come from?! "Sakura, get up! We have to go say our goodbyes." The kid looked really unhappy- even worse than that first night when we found out we had to leave. I sat up groggily, rubbing my eyes. "Where did you get that damn stick?" He glanced down at his hand. "Oh. This," Naruto said, before chucking it out the open window.
We dressed quickly and got our already packed packs before leaving my bedroom for the last time. I wouldn't be seeing it for a while, which sucked, because I had just gotten my room the way I wanted it- oh, the irony. We made our way down to the commons, quickly ate, and headed towards the gates. Already all the elders and our friends were there, waiting for us. I looked at Naruto – it almost looked as if he was trying not to cry. Izumi, Geminia, and Ami were all standing there, along with Kyo-sensei and a whole assload of other people who I won't bother to name.
Naruto and I looked at each other for a second before running towards everyone. We exchanged few words and there was an eerie saddened silence. It matched my mood perfectly. "Hey neko-chan, I made something for you and fox," Ami said trying to keep her voice from breaking. Then she held up two large packages. "You can open them when you get to Kohona, 'kay? ... Just don't forget about us, and call me soon!" I took a deep breath and thanked her with a hug that lasted for several minutes. Neither of us wanted to break the hug, because I knew both of us felt like crying, and breaking apart might just make us start. But we both knew we couldn't do that- it was like an unspoken code. It wasn't a law of our village – it was our code to stay strong, no matter what – and for us to start crying in public would be like breaking the code. I hadn't cried since...well, last night, but no one knew about that, so it was acceptable.
Gently, I pulled away, smiling gently. "I won't forget you," I promised with a nod, before moving on to stand before Izumi. "Hey, watch Blondie for me, will ya? He's stupid and will probably end up getting himself killed, so watch out for him, 'kay?" Said blonde gave a little "Hey!" of protest before smiling. "And you, idiot, stay away from the girls, mainly Ami. I don't want you corrupting her pure mind." "Sakura, my pureness is already tainted with my bi-ness." She gave me a grin, playfully whacking Izumi over the head. It would be so hard without them near me – but at least I had Naruto. Ami then handed me her mysterious presents. "Remember, don't open these till you get to Konoha," She said mock sternly, and I knew that this was her last goodbye. Finally we moved on to Geminia.
His hands were shoved deep into his pockets, looking cool as always. He said, "I'll see you guys later, 'kay? Keep your head in the fight, no matter what. And when you get back, you can help us destroy the Shadow Seekers." They were a rival gang that we had been fighting with for years, and it was so like him to think about gang fights at a time like this. I gave him a small smile, and so did Naruto. "Alright, we have to get moving to make good time. Konoha is weeks worth of travel away, and I want to reach the mountains by nightfall." Typical. Oh well, at least Kyo-sensei was organized. If it weren't for him, we'd probably loose all our things, get lost, or both.
"Wait!" I turned to see Ami, Geminia and Izumi. "What is it?" "Sakura, we know we have to make more allies, especially if we want to spread our beliefs, so we thought...if you find someone who you can really trust...you should give him this." Izumi said. He pulled out a sword –sheathed, but I knew whose it was. The color of the sheath was a light, bright blue, with a silver dragon wrapping around it – the emblem of our gang. It was Yukihiko's sword.
We always called him Yuki for short, and he was Izumi's older brother – an amazing warrior and friend. I still missed him after all these years – although he had been dead for 2, years. I couldn't help it as my eyes began to water, but I blinked back my tears. I took the sword gently, knowing how much it meant to Izumi. Carefully, I unzipped the opening to my pack and set the sword among a bundle of other scrolls that held my personal belongings. We had sealed them to make our packs lighter and travel easier- we needed a lot of stuff and Konoha was a long way away.
--Nightfall--
We did end up making it to the base of the mountain by nightfall, and now we were resting, a fire going in the middle of our makeshift shelter. Naruto was quiet, even during dinner, instead of being the total slob he is, wolfing down his food. Instead, he was quiet and ate slowly. It reminded me of when he first came to us...
Flashback
"Sakura, come here! There's someone I want you to meet." Kyo-sensei's voice called into my room. "Coming!" I called back, jumping up and rushing to where he was. Visitors were very rare in my village, so new people were always neat. I spotted Kyo-sensei, and he was alone. "Well?" I asked impatiently, putting my hands on my hips. "Where is this person?" Kyo-sensei merely gave me a look and stepped to the side. A small blonde-haired boy stood where Kyo just had been. He had wide, timid blue eyes and his blonde hair was wild and dirty. "This is Naruto," Kyo-sensei explained. "He's an orphan, just like you," He said softly. I stared at this 'Naruto'. "You bought me a boy?" I asked, excited. He could be, like...my servant! Possibilities were opening up in my eyes. "No, Sakura. He's going to live with us from now on, and I'll be teaching him, like I am you." I frowned – darn. I was totally hoping for a servant. "Oh," I said dumbly, suddenly curious. "Why did you bring him here? Why is he so special?" Kyo-sensei was quiet for once. "That is something Naruto will tell you when he is ready. Now, let's eat, shall we? We're having ramen." Naruto smiled timidly, and suddenly I knew that we would be friends.
End Flashback
"Are you alright?" I asked Naruto softly, shaking away the memories. He glanced up from his food and nodded. "Yea. Just...nervous." He went back to his food, and finished his bowl of ramen. I could tell he was really nervous, because he only ate one bowl – Naruto usually ate like, 12 bowls of ramen. We said our goodnights and one by one turned to our sleeping bags. I could tell I was still the only one awake, and that got me thinking again. What would it be like in Konoha? Would they know anything about the Sight? I remembered when Naruto and I had our first lesson together...
Flashback
Naruto and I grew to be at a comfortable level with each other, although he was always very quiet and didn't talk much. He did eat a lot, though, and it seemed to please him that he could eat as much as he wanted without being told 'no'. After living with us for 3 weeks, Kyo-sensei approached us and informed us that we would be having our first lesson together – we would be learning about the Sight, what it is, and its origins. I was really excited - although I had the Sight, this lesson would be a new one. "Sakura, the Sight isn't near to your. You have it, so I'd like to know what the Sight is." I took a breath and said, "The Sight is the ability to see no-faces." Kyo-sensei nodded slowly. "Good job, but Naruto doesn't have the Sight. He doesn't know what a no-face is. Could you tell him?" This stumped me. How do you explain what a no-face is? I stopped a moment and thought carefully. When I had my answer I turned to Naruto and said, "No-faces are souls of humans or demans who haven't been able to move on from this world. Kind of like really angry people – ghosts, if you will." Kyo-sensei looked at me before shaking his head. "You're partly right, but not all no-faces are stuck here because of anger or revenge. Some willingly remain, or just have unfinished business they need to take care of. That's part of the Sight – being able to see the no-faces. It also means you have a better understanding of the world. When you obtain the full Sight, and when you face the obstacles to truly understand the Sight, you are granted with the gift of the Spirit Tongue – being able to talk in an ancient language that demons and humans used to use, and what the no-faces still use now. Do you understand, Naruto?" Kyo-sensei asked now facing Naruto. Naruto nodded slowly. And from there the lessons just got more and more complicated.
End Flashback
I finally managed to drift off to sleep.
Over the next few weeks, we continued to travel, stopping in a few villages here and there to get food, weapons, and more supplies. We may have only been gone a month, but I was already sorely missing my friends and family. Naruto's birthday came, and he turned 16, and although Kyo-sensei and I were happy, for some odd reason, he wasn't too overly happy. I never understood why the kid hated his birthday – he acted the same way every year, always really quiet and not too happy. And now his quiet behavior was even worse without our friends.
About a week after his birthday we reached Konoha. Naruto's mood sunk into something almost mirroring depression, and it really worried me. I tried my hardest to cheer him up. "Hey, Naruto, let's go get something to eat, 'kay? You can pick where." He seemed to brighten a bit – the food trick always worked. Naruto then led me around the city looking for a Ramen place call Ichiraku Ramen. "Hey look there it is!" He yelled happily- did this kid think of anything but ramen? I snapped out of my thoughts when he grabbed my hand and led me towards the ramen stand. Kyo-sensei had gone to report to the kage of the village leaving us some money for dinner. Although being in Konoha had made him sad, this particular ramen stand seemed to cheer up his mood immensely.
We plopped down on the stools, and a kind-looking old man came over. "Can I help you?" Naruto, being himself, ordered 7 bowls of ramen. I settled for just one bowl. By the time I finished my one bowl, Naruto had cleaned his 7. "Sakura, can I have more?" He asked hopefully, eyes shining. I sighed. My wallet was going to be empty soon, but I nodded, and grinning, he ordered another 5 bowls. The chef seemed a bit surprised when this one kid downed 12 bowls of ramen, but he looked happy with the business he had made. "I haven't seen anyone eat like you for years!" He said with a chuckle, collecting the empty bowls. Naruto stopped and got very, very quiet.
"Really? And who was that?" "His name was Uzumaki Naruto, and boy, that kid could eat! I sure got some good business from him." "Nani?! You mean that you ate this much back then as you do now?" My eyes were wide with amazement – this kid was a bottomless pit! "Wait a second, you mean...Oh my god, Naruto, you're back? Then I'm back in business!" Naruto looked at the old man, and gave him a sheepish grin. "Yea, I'm back, alright." Naruto and I now spent the next 20 minutes chatting with the shop owner, and it seemed as if the two were old friends. When we finally left the ramen stand, we began wandering around the city until Kyo-sensei found us and took us to our apartment. We unpacked some blankets and a movie we had packed away in our scrolls, only to fall asleep from the exhaustion.