Hello everyone! I am currently in Ashiya in Hyogo Prefecture, Japan. I am spending Christmas here before I continue my travels. If any of you plan to ever visit Japan, try not to come in winter or summer, because it is very, very cold in the winter, and from what I hear, incredibly hot in the summer. In case any of you are wondering, I am planning to update this story once a week, but, it being Christmas and all, I thought I'd release a chapter early! Haha!
By the way, it is Christmas in Japan, so it may not be the 25th where you live.
P.S.: This chapter has nothing to do with Christmas.
"Himawari!" exclaimed Bolt as he awoke. Having just awoken from slumber, Bolt hoped to high heavens that, cliché as it would be, that the past night's experience was all a dream. But, finding himself in the training ground with Sarada's surprised face upon meeting Bolt with such an interjection fixed in Bolt revealed the truth. Himawari had been kidnapped.
"What's going on?" asked Bolt, looking at Sarada.
"You were under a genjutsu…" said Sarada shyly. "I just woke you up."
"Really!" said Bolt, "how did you manage to do that?"
"I know the release technique and I used it as soon as I felt the sleep genjutsu begin to fall."
"Oh…" said Bolt, "wait! You mean you were awake the whole time?!"
Sarada nodded her head.
"So you heard everything!? Did you see where he went? How much time has passed?"
"Well…" said Sarada, "it all should have been less than a minute ago."
"Then there's still time!" said Bolt, "we can go get her!"
"What!" exclaimed Sarada, "what are you talking about?! We have to get our parents!"
Bolt thought for a second while his eyes turned toward Inojin who was still sleeping.
"Did you wake him up yet?" Bolt asked.
"Yeah," said Sarada, "but even though you and I fell forward and were able to break our falls with our arms, he fell on his back and hit his head. So, even though the jutsu's been dispelled, he should be out for a little while."
"Okay," said Bolt, "then Sarada, take Inojin back to the village to get our parents. I'll go after the kidnapper."
"What!" exclaimed Sarada, "what are you thinking! You can't go after him alone!"
"There's no other way!" said Bolt, "while we're wasting time talking, the kidnapper is getting farther and farther away! We have no time to lose!"
Bolt tried to jump away, but was quickly stopped by Sarada.
"Bolt!" said Sarada angrily, "if you go alone…you will die."
Bolt gave Sarada an angry look. The two of them stood there for only a second when Bolt moved Sarada's arm out of the way.
"I don't care, Sarada," said Bolt, walking past her. "My sister is in danger and I'll be damned if I'm just going to fucking wait around."
Sarada stood, shocked. As she watched Bolt jump into the trees, she blinked for a while. Before Bolt was out of sight, she called, "Why do you care so much? I mean, I know you're her brother an all, but why are you willing to go this far?"
Before Bolt jumped any further, he turned his head back to Sarada. Bolt, with a large grin on his face, faced Sarada and said, "Because…I promised her…I promised my parents…and I promised myself, that I would take care of her with my own life."
Bolt turned back toward the trail of trees that lay before him. "And I never go back on my word," he said, "Because that is my nindo…my ninja way."
Bolt jumped out into the woods, hopping from tree to tree to catch the kidnapper. As he disappeared from sight, Sarada stood by in surprise.
She looked back at Inojin's sleeping body for a while. "…I'm sure he'll be fine," she said before following Bolt into the woods.
"So anyway!" said Naruto to his group of friends. "I've been busy as hell everyday recently."
"And when he says recently," said Hinata, "he means for the past couple of years."
Naruto rubbed the back of his head with his hand, a little embarrassed at his wife's comment.
"Even though I hate to admit it," said Naruto, "she's right." Naruto sighed as he leaned back in his seat, "To think that I've wanted to do this job all my life…"
Such a comment jolted surprise in Naruto's friends, as it began to seem that Naruto was beginning to regret being Hokage, which would be completely ironic and a total assault on the original Naruto story.
"Not to say that I regret it," said Naruto with a smirk.
Whew! That was close one.
"Well…" said Kiba, "Don't think we don't appreciate all the work you've done for us."
Naruto smiled at Kiba's comment. "Well thanks Kiba! I mean, you all shouldn't feel bad. I've enjoyed every minute of being Hokage. The only problem is that I'm a little disappointed that I don't get to see my family as often as I would like to…"
"Yeah," said Sai, "I imagine that would be kind of tough."
"But, as a great man once said…," said Naruto with a nostalgic and somewhat sorrowful smile, "'a ninja is one who endures!'"
The group nodded in agreement, small smiles on their faces. Those with children imagined what life would be without seeing them as often as they did, and even though it seemed like it would be a lot less work, it was also kind of depressing.
"I imagine Bolt takes it pretty hard," said Shino, "considering that he does most of his pranks to get your attention."
Naruto gave a depressed nod. "I just wish that he used his time more productively…he could be such a great ninja…"
Hinata sighed as well as the group looked around for some sort of response to Naruto's statement.
Meanwhile, Bolt and Sarada continued jumping through the trees following the kidnapper as fast as they could.
"This'll show my Dad!" said Bolt as he sped up.
Sarada raised an eyebrow toward the yellow haired menace. "You got something against your Dad?"
Bolt was surprised that Sarada had heard his mumblings. He didn't really know what to say, so he just resorted to his fall back plan: answering questions with questions.
"What's it to you?" said Bolt, a little annoyed at the threat of having to explain himself to someone.
"…I just wondered is all…" said Sarada, "I mean…I never expected anyone to have anything against Lord Hokage. Especially not his son."
Bolt was a little surprised, and Sarada shared the same sentiment. Now that Sarada wasn't trying her best to be pleasant, she was actually able to be real with Bolt, even communicating effectively with him, something that she was usually unable to do with other people.
Bolt shrugged. "I dunno…" he said, "It's just, I'm tired of Dad ignoring me! I mean, I get that's he's Lord Hokage and all and he's the leader of the Village, but why does that have to be at the cost of being leader of his own family! I'm sick of it! I never get to see him!"
With that last line, Sarada's interest peaked. Here was Bolt arguing that he never got to see his father, yet it seemed obvious that Bolt had just been with his father, unlike…
"You know what Bolt!" exclaimed Sarada as they were jumping through the trees. "I'm almost offended hearing you talk about how little time you spend with your father. I mean…yeah…I know it can't be easy but you have to stop using it as some excuse!"
"What!?" replied Bolt angrily, "Do you even know what it's like to have a Hokage for a father? Every single time I try and do something all I hear about is 'How disappointed your father will be" this and "Is this the behavior of a Hokage's son?" that, and I'm sick of that shit! I mean, what good is it to have a father if he won't even take some to times to spend time with you! Hell! If all he wanted to do was to work all day, he shouldn't have had me in the first place!"
Sarada stopped, standing on a tree branch while Bolt continued. Seeing that his companion had stopped, Bolt turned around and hopped toward her.
"What are you doing!" he exclaimed, "the guy who took Himawari is getting away!"
Sarada stared Bolt dead in the eye for a few seconds. "Bolt…" she began, "how many times a day do you see your father?"
Bolt furrowed his eyebrows. "Can't we walk and talk?"
"BOLT!" exclaimed Sarada, "how many times a day?"
Bolt shrugged. "I guess I see him in the morning and catch a glimpse of him at night…look what does this have to do with anything?"
There was a loud slap as Bolt's face became intimately involved with Sarada's hand. Bolt, surprised at his companion's sudden action, quickly put his own hand up to the mark on his face.
"What the hell was that?" asked Bolt.
"Shut the fuck up!" exclaimed Sarada, "just shut up!" Small tears had begun to appear in her eyes. She took off her glasses and wiped away her tears with her sleeve.
"You see your father every day! Every day! And you still complain about not seeing him enough! And then you go and say that I don't know anything?! I never see my father! I haven't seen him for five years! It's been so long that…I can barely even remember what his face looked like…"
Bolt's jaw dropped as Sarada began to cry. He really didn't know what to do in this situation, and honestly, what pre-adolescent boy knows how to deal with a crying girl his age.
"Sarada…" Bolt said quietly, trying to comfort her.
"Look Bolt…" said Sarada, "I know that we both have issues with our Dad's…but don't let that be an excuse for being stupid."
With that, Sarada continued leaping along the tree branches, intending to find the kidnapper.
Still surprised and stinging, Bolt followed suit.
Naruto and the gang continued chit-chatting, but the conversation had taken a depressing turn as it now centered on Naruto's busy schedule and all the time he was unable to spend with his kids. Naruto spoke the entire time with a look of disappointment in his face, which was completely contrary to his usually energetic demeanor.
"Boy, it really can't be easy, huh," said Lee, "I mean, I don't know what I would do if I wasn't able to spend enough time with my son…"
"Lee!" exclaimed Tenten, "you're being rude. Don't keep rubbing it in!"
"No…" said Naruto, "I understand. I mean, I really wish I was able to spend more time at home. I still remember before I became Hokage when the kids and Hinata and I would play in our backyard. And the meals at Ichiraku. And the trips to the Cloud Village back when I was the diplomatic envoy…but…even though I look back at those memories a little sadly, I can't help but think that this'll be good for Bolt."
"How do you mean?" asked Sakura.
"Well…" said Naruto, "I mean…I know that I was alone a lot as a kid, but I think that it all kind of …well…made me stronger. Don't get me wrong! I don't wish the same treatment for Bolt, not at all! That would be totally horrible, but unlike me, Bolt has friends…it's just that…I think that having some conflict in his life will empower him to be a little stronger…"
The rest of the group thought back to the old days. Although they were born into a time of peace, it eventually turned into a period where there were constant threats that included everything from Zabuza to Kaguya, which in fact made them stronger, even if it wasn't exactly the best situation for the world.
"I just hope that Bolt can learn to overcome it," said Naruto, "but I also want to make sure that I'm there for him just enough that he doesn't feel the need to fall into darkness."
"Or get targeted as Orochimaru's new body," suggested Kiba, earning him a dirty look from Sakura.
The group was silent or a while, letting Naruto's words sink in, when suddenly, Shikamaru spoke up.
"Hey Naruto…" said Shikamaru.
"Yeah?" said Naruto, a dreamy look on his face as he was proud of his mini-speech he had just given.
"You didn't have any friends growing up, right?" said Shikamaru.
"Uh…yeah…" said Naruto with a skeptical look in his eyes, "that's kind of the most definitive part of my life…I mean, except for that fox…I guess…"
"But…" said Shikamaru, "if I recall, you actually spent quite a bit of time with Choji, Kiba, and I…"
Naruto's eyes widened as he thought back to the past. "Oh yeah…I did actually…back in the academy…"
"I mean," said Shikamaru, "we weren't exactly the Ross, Joey, and Chandler and all, but you could argue that we were kind of a group. I mean, we used to get in trouble together."
"That's right…" said Naruto thoughtfully, "wow…that is a major hole in this story…"
The rest of the group laughed since it really didn't matter.
The kidnapping ninja, carrying Himawari on his shoulder, stopped by a road for a little while.
"Let's see," he thought looking for a sign or something to indicate which way he should head. As he looked around, he heard something clutter behind him, forcing him to turn around.
"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" he said as he saw Bolt and Sarada emerge from the forest. "The children of the leaf. To what do I owe the pleasure?"
Now, not threatened with unwanted sleep, Bolt and Sarada could see the kidnapping ninja clearly. He had neck length, white hair with a Mist Village headband on his head. On his body he wore a deep blue flak jacket as was common with the Mist Village ninja. On his back he carried a huge, black sword and he also possessed a set of sharp, shark-like teeth.
Upon seeing him clearly, Bolt was shocked. "W…wait…" he said, "you're a Mist Ninja!"
Sarada's eyes widened as she realized Bolt was right.
"But…" said Sarada, "we're allied with the Mist Village aren't we?"
"Why has the Mist Village attacked the Leaf Village?!" inquired Bolt.
The Mist ninja began to laugh loudly. "Don't get me wrong," said the Mist ninja, "I'm not here on behalf of the Mist Village. The alliance is not threatened in any way."
He set down Himawari and grabbed the hilt of his sword.
"I am here of my own volition," said the ninja as he crashed his gigantic sword onto the ground.
Bolt and Sarada were shocked at the sword. It looked incredibly heavy, and the way it looked like a butcher's knife intimidated them to no end.
"Ha!" laughed the ninja as he saw their expressions, "your generation that knows nothing of war. So scared of a simple weapon…or perhaps…maybe you're just well versed enough in your history…"
The ninja disappeared and reappeared behind Sarada, placing the blade of his sword along her neck.
"…to know that Kubikiribocho is no ordinary weapon!"
I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! If you wish to leave a review, please do not hesitate to do so. As for me, I'll do my best to update this story as consistently as possible!
God bless us everyone.