NARUTO

Drifting

The Beginning of A New

After managing to haul his ass back onto the dam's main highway Naruto was quickly able to recover the sword dropped by the fallen Crow, the masked samurai he had just managed to defeat in combat, by the skin of his teeth. Sheathing the weapon into its scabbard, which he also found hidden amongst the rubble, the blonde then turned his sights toward the quickest route off of the ruined structure that was once Gato's stronghold and staggered his way down the main road. Clutching at the deep wound across his chest and every other area of considerable bruising and discomfort, Naruto promptly worked out his next point of interest to be the village down in the valley below.

As tolerant as he was towards severe injuries, he still needed to get some proper medical treatment.

Seriously. He had never taken a beating this badly in his life and his head was harder than a cannonball. That samurai was one tough bastard, despite not knowing any ninjutsu or techniques that even required the use of chakra. The guy was just a common thug and vagrant, but with an uncommon skill set. This was definitely a battle the boy was not going to forget anytime soon, and for a couple of good reasons.

One: the whole ordeal had been a whopping reality check. His adventure through this small land and the battles he'd fought showed that there were people outside of Konohagakure that were really powerful in many different ways, as well as cruel, terrifying, merciless, and were just as tough as he was resilient. Naruto came to the realization that if he didn't step up his game from here and started taking things like this a little more seriously; he was going to continue taking a beating on every mission that he went out on.

A little assistance would have been welcome too.

As a result, the jinchuriki vowed that he needed to work even harder to make better use of his skills so that he could avoid a trial like this again in the future.

As for the second issue: that Crow was one of the first people Naruto had actually managed to defeat and kill in a fight. Sure it was an indirect kill, but after his little demolition performance on the dam Naruto was certain that he was responsible for more than the taking of a single life today, and not just his. There were probably people that had still been inside the dam when he destroyed it and, summing up everything that had transpired today, that meant he too was a killer, an assassin…

A shinobi.

Naruto actually chuckled at this.

He was a damn academy student and he was already killing people. Though it would look good on his rep and it eased his conscious knowing that they were all working for the bad guy, it still gave him a funny feeling deep inside.

Anyway, upon resolving to work even harder than before to become stronger and being reunited with his companion Swift flying over from her resting spot to land on his shoulder, Naruto dragged the rest of his wounded hide to the other side of the causeway. Once he made it there and came within sight of the gates that would get him off of the crumbling structure, he was met with a very pleasant surprise.

The sounds of clapping filling his ears had Naruto look up in bewilderment, where from his limp state he saw Tayuya standing in the middle of the road and behind her a whole crowd of villagers. The entire town downstream had all turned out to greet him after hearing the first explosion ring out and, upon seeing the boy's return and his bewildered eyes fall upon them, they welcomed him back with smiles of approval and a hearty applause. The red haired musician joined them with a grin spread across her face as she felt the praise and gratitude from the liberated villagers pour over her head and down onto him.

Naruto looked between each individual cheering him in confusion, seconds before he was suddenly tackled by Tayuya rushing over to him and 'glomping' him in the tightest hug she could muster.

"You stupid, crazy jerk," the red head whispered into his ear before shoving him away. She glared at him with tears in her eyes, "I was worried to death. When I saw you get picked up by that guy…"

"Yeah… I was… kind of getting my ass kicked out there, huh?" Naruto chuckled while rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. "The guy was WAY stronger than me. I didn't want to use my new jutsu on him unless I was sure I could get him with it, so I waited for the best opening possible. Plus he had a sword. If I stopped moving for a second and didn't use my Jet Hand technique when I did, I would have been killed for sure."

"Well, lucky for you, you weren't, shithead," Tayuya exclaimed while punching him in the chest. The boy winced from the pain, but then watched the worried girl do a complete turnaround and begin checking his injuries.

While the musician fussed over the massive gash across his breast, Naruto was soon approached by the still cheering villagers headed by their town elder. Hiro appeared before the two children with his staff firmly in hand, to which he then bowed towards the blonde haired boy and silently beckoned the crowd into a quiet hush.

"Thank you so very much," the elder exclaimed in visible delight, giving the jinchuriki a warm gaze as did every other man, woman and child present, "Truly. Words cannot even begin to express how much I appreciate what you've done for all of us."

"Aww, shucks," Naruto waved a hand with a painful chuckle. The bruising in his side and the cut across his chest was really biting him. He even had to lean on Tayuya to stop from falling over from all of the damage and fatigue he'd sustained in his fight. "It was nothing. I just wanted to help."

"And you did a fine job. A fine job indeed. You drove Gato from this land and defeated his empire here," Hiro spoke again with closed eyes and a happy gleam on his face. "We are forever in your debt."

"To the invincible stranger!" a bar keeper from the crowd shouted.

"The boy in orange!"

"To the Land of the Great River's savior!" a woman cried out as well.

"We thank you so much!"

"Yes! Thank you!"

More cheers rang up from the people and a small chant was even started amongst the crowd. The downpour of praise had Naruto blushing and grinning in embarrassment, coaxing several chuckles from him as he bowed to the numerous groups of grateful villagers surrounding him.

It was while accepting their thanks he then focused his attention back on another matter, which was the sword he was still carrying.

Taking the sheathed weapon into two hands, he held it out in front of him to show to the elder.

"This was from that Crow guy," Naruto stated with a pleased smile, watching as the old man stroked his beard and analyzed the blade carefully. "He fell into the rapids and drowned. Even a man like him wouldn't have been able to survive a fall like that, and into a torrent as well. His body might wash up further downstream if you go look for it."

Hiro nodded in understanding and leaned further forward. Upon inspecting the sheathed sword up close, he then looked at the child smiling up at him. "You do realize that on top of the reward we wish to give you for saving our country, should Crow's body turn up somewhere on the banks, you are also entitled to the reward for his bounty. That is five million and more…"

Naruto lowered the weapon in surprise. "Wait a sec…" He waved his hands in front of him, appearing startled. "Bounty? Rewards? For saving you guys? Oh, no… don't worry about it." The blonde folded his arms and looked away stubbornly, earning surprised blinks from the entire crowd, the elder and Tayuya. "No way. I can't accept a reward. Not for that. You don't need to."

"B-But…" Hiro spoke up, extending a hand in earnest, "Surely we must find some way of compensating you. This village and country owes you a great deal."

Tayuya gazed at Naruto in astonishment, her eyes shimmering in admiration as she looked at the defiant look drawn upon his face. "He's so selfless and humble…" The sight of his firm state on the matter had her smile.

"Nope!" Naruto shook his head again, earning more slack-jawed expressions from the villagers. "Can't do it and you can't make me."

Hiro, murmuring uncomfortably, withdrew his hand and placed it behind his back. This was going to take something else to convince the boy otherwise. After all, the elder was a man of honor and would go to the ends of the earth to see that even the smallest of issues was settled. He simply could not leave the one alone.

Clearing his throat, he stared down at the boy thoughtfully. "Nevertheless, even if you reject our first offer we must find some way of repaying you for all of the kindness you have showed us. If you need anything for… say… your journey back home or for your friends perhaps… please… feel free to ask."

Naruto continued to keep his gaze locked elsewhere.

However, once the words of the elder's insistence finally managed to sink in, the blonde looked back towards the townspeople and the old man contemplatively. He meditated on their words for a moment, allowing some time to consider both his current status as well as Tayuya, whom he could see was still dressed in ragged clothing and looking incredibly worn from a life filled with hardship. With their current conditions taken into consideration, the jinchuriki eventually settled on a request he'd hoped would settle all accounts and glanced back at the village elder and his company with a smile.

"When you put it that way, there are a couple of things I would like," Naruto exclaimed while petting the swallow perched on his shoulder on the head. "If it's not too much trouble for you guys…"

Hiro beamed down at him. "You may ask for anything you desire. My people and I will do everything in our power to see that your wishes are fulfilled."

Grinning, Naruto then raised a hand and tapped his finger against the sword he was still holding. "Then… would it be possible to get a hold of someone I can cash this in to?"

XXX

Five days later…

The bounty on Crow's head was known all around for being ridiculously high for an ordinary mercenary. It was surprising to a lot of people because he wasn't the leader of any gang, wasn't of pure or noble blood, didn't possess any special abilities or was insanely strong either. Oh no. Crow was just your typical wanderer, freelance assassin and vagrant for hire. He wasn't actually a samurai; he just knew how to fight like them and use their moves, so calling him your everyday common thug was cutting it a little short. Of course, upon further inquiry into his history Naruto eventually found out the main reason why the guy's bounty was so absurdly large in the first place, and that was because he had been incredibly hard to catch up until now.

The guy had always stuck to the shadows, hiding in the inner-most circles of criminal organizations, performing odd jobs for them and carrying out missions to their fullest without fail. He killed swiftly and silently like a shinobi, earned his cut, and then moved on. Additionally, unlike other typical killers, because he lacked certain personality qualities like an ANBU and was so committed to his jobs, he was never hesitant with any of his targets, which Naruto found out the hard way when he fought him. He had definitely been a highly successful run-of-the-mill claw hopper, and it was in a single afternoon Naruto managed to bag him fair and square.

The sole reason the boy had so much trouble against him throughout their battle was that he fought the guy head to head. Unlike with the three kunoichi he fought weeks earlier and with Jako, he didn't have trees, brush or buildings to hide behind in collaboration with any of his tricky moves, so in a way he was only fighting at fifty percent effectiveness.

A win was a win either way, so in the end Naruto walked off with not only the guy's sword in hand but also a valuable lesson about future contests.

Sure enough, just as the jinchuriki told the villagers, Crow's body washed up on shore a few kilometers downstream of the massive river. The corpse was brought back to the village, thoroughly examined and verified to be the assassin that Naruto had slain. When taken to the local hospital to have the autopsy performed though, the coroner received quite a shock at the amount of damage the guy had to his internal organs and outer body, and most of these weren't even from his fight with Naruto the day before or the results of the fall.

By his estimate, the guy should have died ages ago. The wounds Crow had sustained to his person should have left him dead on the side of a road in a country nowhere near here, but against all odds and defying every medical law in the book, the assassin had managed to keep himself alive through a steady diet of chakra and self-mutilation. His now mangled form devoid of all life showed everyone in the building that he had been incredibly hard-wearing above his superb swordsmanship skills.

By end of the day though, Crow was confirmed dead and cremated. As a reward for his successful kill, Naruto was paid the full bounty by the village leaders, who were able to reclaim all of the town's stolen valuables and treasures from the mansion Gato had built alongside the dam. The vaults were emptied, money was swiftly returned to the people, and order was slowly restored to the country. With most of Gato's men locked up and the 'general' himself absent, it was safe for the previously disbanded local guard under the daimyo to return and begin rounding up any crooks still adrift. Security points were set up all over the place to ensure that law and order was properly re-established and traffic was able to run smoothly once more.

Naruto had to give the people credit for a speedy recovery.

A lot of the companies previously under Gato's heel were taken back by the original owners, particularly the water and electrical plants. Since the man had fled and taken nothing of importance with him in his rush to escape the wrath of the orange wearing devil Naruto, it left a lot of properties needing to be reclaimed. It was a sure welcome relief for the starving populace.

Naruto on the other hand was able to settle with Hiro and the villagers, who celebrated his victory the entire night following the beginning of the country's climb to recovery. In the morning after, all the jinchuriki requested for his actions was for Crow's bounty and nothing more. With it, he did something completely unexpected and gave almost all of it to Tayuya. This decision had everybody present at the time stunned and flabbergasted, especially the young musician herself.

He also bought her new clothes, sandals, a backpack, and food, plenty enough to spoil the befuddled girl. Even after all that, there was still enough left over for Tayuya to buy a property and live a comfortable life for the next few years without need for work. Naruto took most of the funds out of his own pocket to treat her.

All of these events led to where the pair was presently standing on the edge of the village.

Hiro and the people gathered to see the hero and his companion off. The crowd formed en masse along the road and gazed fondly towards the youngster with the swallow perched comfortably on his shoulder and the redhead carrying a full pack of goods for the journey ahead of them. It almost looked as though they were two travelers who had arrived here together and were setting off in the same manner, but everyone there knew that that was indeed not the case.

One thing was certain however; both of their paths had crossed here, which had them all wondering what was in store for them next.

Naruto was no longer wrapped in the bandages from his scuffle five days ago and was still clothed in the stuff he arrived in. Additionally, he also had Crow's sword strapped to his back, an item he was not going to part with anytime soon. It was his trophy damn it and he was keeping it. Tayuya on the other hand was carrying everything the blonde had bought for her on her person, and was genuinely quite pleased with her new attire and gear. It was clear she hadn't had this much stuff before in her life, so she was obviously more than grateful for it.

The two of them looked back at the crowd with smiles on their faces and warm glows emanating from their forms.

"We will never forget you or all the things you've done for us," Hiro exclaimed with a bow, while the rest of the people around him mimicked his actions. "We wish you all the best and pray for your safe return to Konohagakure, Naruto Uzumaki."

Naruto waved back to them. "Thanks a bunch. Try not to let some short guy in a shitty suit and glasses take over your country again. I'd really like to pay you guys a visit when you're all back on your feet and have some good attractions waiting for me."

The crowd laughed along with their elder. "Will do," Hiro stated before turning his gaze towards Tayuya, who was also smiling cheerfully beside the shinobi in training. "Take care of yourselves… both of you."

"Thank you," Tayuya nodded back.

With one last parting farewell, the two youngsters then took their leave once the mood permitted them. They turned to face the road ahead and began the long march away from Riverside Village, with a spring in their steps and all their thoughts set on the journey that lay in wait. The entire population of the small town saw them off, young and old alike, with Hiro at the front wearing the biggest smile anyone had ever seen on him.

Just before Naruto and Tayuya could reach the very edge of their sights, Hiro then took a moment to turn his gaze towards the ruined dam sitting on the horizon to their left.

Instead of seeing the terrible stone wall that had previously been the main cause of the land's suffering for the past years, the elder saw a glowing white bridge bathed in an ethereal light with archways stretching from one end of the causeway to the other. It was a completely different spectacle from the one that had plagued them before, something that tied the two pieces of land together. It now stood as a road stretching across to a new world as opposed to the soulless barrier it once represented preventing people from moving forward.

The elder contemplated the remains of the dam while stroking his beard. After a moment of careful thought, he then turned to the young man standing beside him.

"Marco, please let the daimyo know that we are reclaiming the estates up on the north ridge, and that he should send workers up there to help repair the dam's foundations as soon as possible," Hiro exclaimed.

The man acting as the elder's assistance looked towards him in surprise. "Hiro-sama?"

Turning to gaze down the road Naruto and Tayuya could be seen off in the distance, the elder inhaled deeply in relief. "I wish to have the dam restored as a proper bridge; a link that will help connect us to the future. We must reinforce the pillars so that it can stand as a new symbol for this country, one that represents the freedom we've managed to reclaim and will help us to rejoin with the rest of the world."

"Oh. I see," Marco replied, looking around to see that other villagers had also heard the old man's words. Noticing their smiles and nods of agreement, the villager then turned his attention back towards their voice of wisdom. "You wish to rechristen it as a monument?"

"Yes. A monument dedicated to the young man who saved us all." With that idea in mind, the elder raised his hand to the back of his head and turned toward his assistant with a sheepish gaze. "I believe a new name for it would be nice too. Instead of Mugen River Dam… how about The Naruto Uzumaki Big Bridge? That has a nice ring to it."

"Of course, sir."

OOO

Naruto and Tayuya made excellent progress climbing the valley out of the river land. On their way up the road they passed by several groups of people a part of a convoy. The pair only needed to give them a single glance in passing to tell that they were villagers returning to their home town, as all of them could be seen dragging carts and carriages filled with all sort of miscellaneous items from furniture to basic supplies. A smile was brought to the jinchuriki's face knowing that life in the region was steadily going back to the way it had been before Gato's interference.

While they were halfway through climbing the hill to exit the lowlands, Naruto then remembered another important matter he had to attend to in which he quickly addressed Tayuya with when he reached a familiar branch in the dirt road.

"What's wrong, Naruto?" Tayuya asked when she noticed the boy stop walking a few feet back.

The jinchuriki smiled at her before pointing down the abovementioned path. "I just need to make one last stop. Can you give me a moment?" Seeing her nod of acknowledgement, Naruto then followed the perpendicular road down to the familiar farm on the hill overlooking the country and the massive river now back to its former glory. The blonde stepped up onto the patio of the main building and knocked on the door.

While he stood back and waited, he became aware of a rather strange sensation tickling the back of his neck and looked around. When he did, he saw that the cause of the mild coldness was a fine mist of moisture floating through the air from the sprinklers in the fields starting up. He stared across in surprise, but then smirked when he realized what the sight was actually entailing.

"The water system's back on, huh?" Naruto murmured, placing his hands on his hips while looking up to see his friend Swift flying circles above the crops before fluttering down to land on his shoulder again. She chirped happily when she saw him grin, "Pretty awesome, eh?"

"It sure is." Turning around, the boy was met by the door to the front of the building slowly opening and was greeted by a smiling Hanare. The woman now dressed in a casual kimono, leaned against the frame of her door as she beamed down at her visitor. "Good work, by the way. You really showed me something incredible out there, squirt."

"R-Really?" The blonde massaged the back of his head bashfully. "All I did was beat the snot out of a bunch of assholes and destroy a dam blocking a river. I don't see how any of that was incredible…"

The woman giggled at his casual downplay of the events. "Of course it was. You didn't just liberate an entire country. Your actions showed the villagers just what one person was capable of doing, and the courage you displayed gave the people of this country a renewed sense of hope and strength to keep moving forward, and to work hard to hold on to what they have."

"Is that so?"

"I never thought a brat like you would've been able to pull something like that off. It was unreal. At first I figured you were just trying to act tough and cool in front of a pretty young lady, but after seeing that fireworks display I knew it had to be you. I bet the entire region felt the blasts before actually seeing what had happened."

"It was that big?" Naruto murmured while fishing inside his pockets. After a moment of searching he upturned them to show how bare he had been stripped. "Geez… I used up everything I had to knock that stupid wall down and to fight that Crow guy. Now I have to restock all of my equipment again…"

"I'm sure it's not that big of a deal for you. You definitely seem like the resourceful type," Hanare pointed with a smile. "Chin up. It'll be fine."

"Yeah. Alright," Naruto replied before grinning up at the lady. "I just dropped by to see if you were doing okay. I'm heading back home now, so I probably won't be seeing you again for a while."

"Oh. You're leaving so soon?" Hanare queried before reaching behind her door. She then pulled out a box wrapped in cloth and passed it on to the boy, who took it with both hands and looked it over curiously. "Here's something for your trip then. I knew you'd be stopping by sometime after I saw the dam collapse, so I made you something special to say thanks."

Astonished, Naruto weighed the item in his hands gingerly while gazing speechlessly up at the farmer. Since this was the first time he'd ever received a boxed lunch from somebody and having only seen kids back home receive it from their parents, he didn't know how else to respond except out of delight. He laughed happily and bowed repeatedly to the kind farmer.

"Thank you. Thank you so much," Naruto exclaimed over and over.

The woman giggled again and laid a hand on his head, stopping him from hurting himself by accident from his exuberant show of thanks. "That's okay. You did well, squirt."

With that friendly exchange, the woman then looked up when she sensed another presence nearby and saw the red-haired girl that had accompanied Naruto all the way out here. When she noticed Tayuya tentatively looking over from the front gate, the woman smiled and nodded towards her. "Is she with you?"

Naruto looked between Tayuya standing a distance away from them and Hanare momentarily, before grinning back up at the farmer. "Yeah. I met her here a few days ago."

"She's pretty." Able to make her out even from her spot, the sharp-eyed woman decided to add a little more input for the benefit of the runt. "You two look good together. I'd hang on to her if I were you. Good company is really hard to come by these days."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"You'll understand one day when you're older," Hanare chuckled before giving him a gentle wave. "I guess I'll see you when I see you. Okay?"

Gear in hand and Swift sitting astutely on his shoulder, Naruto then set off from the property with one last grin that he sent towards the farmer and his sights fixed squarely on his home village. It was while he was moving up the path away from the property though he then heard Hanare call out to him, and paused for a moment to look over his shoulder to listen in.

"Hey, if you meet a man named Kakashi Hatake in Konohagakure, tell him thank you from me!" Hanare exclaimed loud and clear.

A little puzzled at first, Naruto quickly complied with an affirmative nod and moved on, leaving the young woman standing on her front porch and gazing after him. She then glanced back towards the valley below, where she could see the steadily flowing river and the decimated barrier that was once Gato's base of operations.

The sight brought another warm smile to Hanare's face.

OOO

Sometime later…

Tayuya was walking alongside Naruto and gazing across at him fondly, finding his expression and appearance under the sun incredibly captivating.

With nothing but silence occupying the space that was normally reserved for talking, it gave the musician plenty of time to study up on the young man that had saved her life, and to see how he operated when he wasn't focused on a mission or moving with intent or purpose. From the way he strode along with his hands in his pockets or resting behind his head and was constantly wearing that smile of his, he looked just like an ordinary kid.

As much as he was a hardnosed brawler and a superb shinobi in battle in spite of not being one on paper yet, he appeared just like any other normal ten-year-old boy. Tayuya just couldn't figure him out, which was why she was investing so much time and energy in examining him while they were still in motion.

Unfortunately for her, her little study session was to be short-lived.

Finally responding to the set of eyes boring into the side of his head like drill bits Naruto glanced across at his curious companion with an expression conveying his own puzzlement. "What's up, Tayuya-chan?"

The red head responded in alarm to suddenly seeing him turn to her and looked away quickly. "N-Nothing. Nothing at all."

Blinking, the jinchuriki placed a hand against his cheek, causing the swallow on his shoulder to hop onto the other one while ruffling her feathers. "Is it something on my face? You were looking at me pretty hard a few seconds ago."

Though Tayuya would normally be more composed for being found out for even worse things, she still couldn't help but blush brightly from the boy's inquisitions and gulped nervously. "I… I was just wondering what you had planned next? You know… after saving the Land of the Great River. Are you going to head back to your village or do you plan on traveling some more?"

Making a sound that indicated forethought, Naruto gazed up towards the sky. "Traveling does sound good right now. I never really thought about it much when I was in Konoha, since there was so much to see and do in there. I'm already all the way out here, so I guess it wouldn't hurt to visit some of the other countries surrounding the Land of Fire." He then scratched his head as he pondered on the idea a little more. "I've always wondered how different the outside world was compared to the hidden leaf… buu-t after everything that's happened; I think that's an adventure for another time." He grinned back at the girl whom tilted her head at him. "One unexpected trip's enough for now."

Tayuya gave a small smile and nodded gently. "So it's home then?"

"You got it," Naruto exclaimed, earning a cheerful chirp from the bird riding on his shoulder, who then fluttered up to perch on his head. His eyes blinked up toward the swallow. "Swift-chan wants to get back to her boyfriend as soon as she can. She's worried that the other girls across the street might start taking an 'unhealthy' interest in him… whatever that means."

The red head looked at the bird, "Really?"

Naruto shrugged his shoulders. Even though he didn't really get it, he still trusted the words of his friend and his heart, and all compasses from both were pointing him down the road back to Konoha. "I guess it must be tough being in love; you just can't stop thinking about the person you like."

Tayuya blinked at this and switched her focus toward his face again. "Y-Yeah," she mumbled timidly, not taking her eyes off of the blonde for even a second as they continued to walk along.

The girl watched him laugh out in delight when the swallow fluttering around him pecked at his head before landing on his outstretched finger. The sight of his actions had the redhead's stare unconsciously deepen and her cheeks warm, as if she was becoming entranced in some form of genjutsu. Tayuya didn't even realize how rapt her attention in the boy was becoming until minutes later and she looked away from Naruto with a start.

She brought her hands to her chest and clutched the space above.

Why was her heart pounding so much?

Was she coming down with something? Was she falling ill? The girl just couldn't explain it, even after fifteen minutes of more walking and pondering over her condition.

She'd never experienced anything like this before. All of these new feelings and emotions that have been happening to her all started when the blonde haired wonder walking beside her jumped in and rescued her from those gangsters. It was like the act itself tripped some sort of switch inside of her and was filling her with moods and feelings she never felt or thought she could feel before. After being all alone, hungry and cold for the longest she could remember, these warm buzzes filling her stomach and making her feel as if she was walking on air, it was beyond both explanation and comprehension.

Questions plagued her mind and continued to hold her attention as they strode along until they finally arrived at a 'T' junction that split their route in two. Using the map he had bought back at the village Naruto was quick to find his bearings and the road he needed to take in order to get home. He turned right, moving down it while Tayuya paused at the junction and considered both roads for a minute longer, her gaze averting left.

Realizing his friend was no longer walking beside him and was still standing at the junction Naruto stopped and looked back, where he saw Tayuya staring down the other road in deep thought. He looked back with concern, wondering if something was troubling the girl, while another part of him figured she was going to head off in another direction. Was she thinking about it?

It sure looked like it.

With that possibility in mind, the young jinchuriki inwardly started to panic. He didn't want Tayuya to leave, nor did he want to leave her behind either. No way.

"Hey. What's wrong?" Naruto asked, stepping forward when he saw the girl turn to look back at him.

He saw her conflicted expression transform into a confused one as their gazes locked. Upon meeting the boy's eyes the musician then lowered her head and looked away with red in her cheeks, Tayuya's face once again taking on an appearance of doubt, worry and uncertainty.

She didn't say anything for the next minute or so, but the jinchuriki was determined. Thinking it over a little more, Naruto then gave a smile when he figured what the problem troubling the girl could be and nodded her towards him. "Aren't you going to come back to Konoha with me?"

This question immediately got a rise out of Tayuya, her head suddenly snapping up to look across at him in astonishment. "What?"

Naruto grinned, "I asked you if you want to come back to my village with me. It's not far, it's just…" He looked down the road again, made a quick count, and then looked back with an unchanging expression, "Three days away. Sure it looks like a long trip, but it'll be a quick walk, I promise."

Silence fell, in which Tayuya used that time to stare at the boy and try to see if he was messing with her. When Naruto saw her unflinching gaze, in which he could see her mind working at a million miles an hour behind her eyes, his grin widened. "What? Did you think that I was going to continue my journey to becoming an awesome shinobi without you, Tayuya-chan?" He saw her blink. "Nope. I don't want that. I want you to be standing right there next to me when I become Hokage someday."

Tayuya gawked at him. "Y-You seriously want me to come with you?" She saw his grin widen and his head nod, "For real?"

"Believe it! I want you to be there by my side every step of the way. You're my friend, Tayuya-chan. There's no way in hell I want to leave you behind and there's no way I'm gonna. I want to spend as much time as I can with you and learn more about you."

The girl's eyes started to shimmer. "W-Why?"

"Why? Because you're an interesting person who plays awesome music," he said before ramming his fist into his chest. "If you want to become a ninja too, I can help you, dattebayo."

"Really? Y-You…" She then realized her upcoming response and bit her tongue. Frowning, Tayuya attempted to feign a little more indifference to his proposition and looked away with her nose in the air. Sure she tried to pull off the snobbish act now, but this failed to cover up her previous reactions to his leaving and offering of companionship, and so the power she had with her gestures were only half of what they could've been when she retaliated. "And what makes you think I want to become strong like you, shithead?" A cocky smirk appeared on her face. "Honestly. Getting into fights, saving villages, putting your life on the line for complete strangers… why the hell would I want to become a shinobi like that?"

Able to read her like a book, Naruto let out a boisterous laugh and slipped his hands behind his head. The swallow on his noggin chirped happily at the exchange. "It's more fun when you have somebody there to share your adventures with." He extended his hand towards the musician, whose expression visibly brightened. "I want to share this with someone who is precious to me. You're my friend Tayuya-chan… and you're one of the people I want to protect and share great adventures with!"

"He… He really wants me to go with him?" Tayuya thought, feeling excitement quickly well up inside her. "He… wants me to be with him." Staring at Naruto silently for what felt like an eternity, the visibly cheerful girl brought her hands to her lips and attempted to hold back an exclamation of glee. Failing in that effort but managing to hold back tears with a quick shake of her head, she then grabbed the straps of her backpack and literally sprinted the distance between her and Naruto.

For the longest time Tayuya remembered being by herself. An orphan who ran away, lived on the streets, surviving anyway she could. People kept their distance from her because of that. But this boy, this… stranger from a far off village who knew very little about the world and nothing about her, approached her without hesitation, saved her, protected her, gave her food when she was hungry, and made her smile. He dragged her out of her damnation, a world she once thought was going to suffocate her and keep her miserable forever, and pulled her back into a place where there was hope.

After all that, Tayuya realized that it wasn't just a world of possibilities that she was brought back into, but she was brought into it by a person whom she realized right then and there that she wanted to stay with forever.

He was the first to acknowledge her and recognize her existence, and there was no chance in hell she was going to let this amazing person go.

She left the junction in her dust, immediately deciding on the path she wanted to take. "Thank you, Naruto-kun!" Tayuya thought joyfully as she hopped to a stop and smiled warmly at the blonde, her cheeks showing color and life that previously did not. "If it isn't too much trouble, I'd like to stick with you, shithead."

Naruto chuckled and raised a hand into the air for a high five, "Same here, Tayuya-chan."

Two names they scorned and loved, from two people who couldn't stay a part. With smiles on their faces and fires in their hearts, they sealed their friendship with a clap when their hands met in the air above. The bird on Naruto's head chirped happily when she saw the final mark made and the pair came to stand side by side.

With Naruto leading on and the redhead right beside him, Tayuya couldn't help but simply gaze across at the boy admirably and smile, her heart pounding against her chest.

Though she didn't want to admit it and it wasn't clear whether she saw it, but there was some truth in what the jinchuriki said to her…

You couldn't stop thinking about the one you like…

Four days later…

The Third sat at his desk with his well recognized stoic expression in play and finger tapping a monotonous rhythm against the surface of the desk in front of him, as he glared across at the persons he was currently in conference with. The cause of his current state of part displeasure and part interest stood nervously in front of him alongside the package he'd also conveniently brought along with him following his near two week disappearance from the village, and had just finished wrapping things up in order to come to an understanding with his Hokage.

After having almost every able bodied Jonin and Chunin on the hunt for him the entire time he was 'missing', you could say that Hiruzen Sarutobi was less than jubilant when the boy finally rocked up at the front gate after twelve days of futile searching. All questions regarding his absence were quickly answered upon having the boy dragged up to his office and stood right in the middle of the highest authority's place of work.

Naruto chuckled and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly while gesturing towards the equally nervous red head also standing in the presence of the village leader. "And that's that, oji-san."

"So summing up everything you've told me, after getting knocked out during a training run you somehow wound up inside of a traveling merchant's wagon making a shipment for the Land of the Great River, where you just so happen to end up after a three day journey you slept through, and then found yourself in the middle of an annexation of a country being led by the industrial giant Gato. During which time you spent in said country, you then end up rescuing this young girl from a mob of common ruffians, defeated an entire army of mercenaries, destroyed the dam cutting off all water and power supplies from the region's villages, and single-handedly defeated the assassin Crow, a B-Rank criminal known for murdering a feudal lord and his entire family, in a single day, before making your way back home with the abovementioned damsel in tow. Is this correct?" Hiruzen asked.

"That's… pretty much it, oji-san," Naruto chuckled. Now that he heard the whole thing from the old man himself, he couldn't help but find the entire thing a little bit farfetched despite having lived it.

Was his life a work of fiction or something? It was plausible.

The village leader furrowed his brow as he gazed sagely across at the youngsters. "You do realize that not a single person in this entire village is going to believe this story."

Naruto shrugged at the man's statement. "A lot of legends are born from truth."

"Yes and other legends are exaggerations of actual truth. That or are rumors started by individuals looking to bolster the fame of the protagonist in question," Hiruzen recited as if he'd had this particular discussion in the past once before. He breathed out a sigh and leaned back in his chair, his image lit up by the sunny day of the village sitting outside the window behind him. "As you'd probably expect, I'm finding this very hard to take in, Naruto."

"Trust me, the whole thing looks so much better on paper," the jinchuriki exclaimed while scribbling in the air. "You had to be there, oji-san. It was incredible."

Smiling, Tayuya stepped forward in full support of the boy. "Shithead was incredible! You should have seen him yourself. He battled Gato's men like they were nothing and squared off against the strongest of all the killers he had under his employ. It was unbelievable!" As magnanimous as she made her heart filled statements, when the old man glanced towards Tayuya the musician suddenly lost whatever small amount of confidence she had in the elder's presence and shrunk back to her spot directly beside the jinchuriki. All the while she tried to make herself look as small as possible.

The musician was well aware of the individual she was addressing and it was shaking her nerves something fierce.

Looking the girl over, Hiruzen then glanced back at the blonde and smiled. "Well, if everything you said to me is true then you should feel very proud of yourself, Naruto-kun." He saw the pair blink in surprise and continued. "It wouldn't be the first time you managed to astound me with something outrageous and bewildering. Chronicles like this are worthy of a future Kage."

Naruto chuckled. "You should read my autobiography once I get it published."

"I'm looking forward to it," the Third laughed, lacing his fingers together before once again propping his elbows on his desk and leaning forward. He smiled at the two kids starting to look more relaxed and opened up with the next item on the list. "Now… I understand you wish to have this young lady apply for a citizenship?"

"That's right," Naruto exclaimed, stepping away and gesturing to the girl, who stiffened considerably when all eyes fell upon her. "I would also like for Tayuya-chan to come live with me and to start training at the academy to become a shinobi. Is that okay, jiji… or would that be too much trouble?"

The village leader gave a very thoughtful expression to the inquiry. "Considering she has a talent for producing genjutsu like you said means that she probably also has a certain level and understanding of the basic concepts of shinobi conduct. With her abilities, it's certainly possible to have her inducted into the system," the Third stated. Just as smiles were beginning to brim on the two children's faces though, the old man raised his hand to stop them. "However, to have her sign up for the academy is too late now. She'll need to be given an apprenticeship in order for her to catch up on some of the material if she intends to follow-through with the curriculum."

Looking a little crestfallen, Naruto and Tayuya glanced at each other worryingly. However, in spite of being told that they would not be able to attend the same school together, they still found light at the end of the tunnel in the form of the alternate arrangement and looked back towards Hiruzen with merriment.

"That's okay with me," Tayuya stated.

"Same here," Naruto also said boisterously.

"I'm glad to see that you're willing to go along with it. I already have a handful of Jonin looking for prospective apprentices, so it shouldn't be too hard to find someone who's compatible enough to start training you," Hiruzen exclaimed, rising from his seat and bowing to the adolescent musician, "Welcome to Konohagakure, young ms."

An overwhelmed Tayuya bowed back respectfully to the elder before embracing Naruto seconds afterwards in triumph at being accepted into his home village. All attention was then slowly returned to the present and to all matters concerning the orientation, which would understandably be the next topic to be dealt with.

It was then when all the metaphorical handshaking was over and done with the third then remembered something else of importance regarding his resident troublemaker, and quickly turned to him in order to address the issue.

"Oh yes, and Naruto. Speaking of the academy…"

OOO

"This sucks!" Naruto yelled out from his corner in the room while holding two buckets out in front of him. He gritted his teeth and looked across at Iruka sitting behind his desk, currently grading tests while the rest of the class was going through their notes. As loud as he was screaming in outrage, the punishment being dealt to him right now was within good reason. "Sensei, why am I being reprimanded for something I couldn't help?"

The scar-faced man looked up in amusement at his venting student. "You were absent from school for nearly two weeks without giving prior notice to your homeroom teacher or the school's administration. I'm sure you of all people understand the severity of this crime, Naruto. Failure to notify the academy of a prolonged absence from class warrants the regular treatment upon your return."

"By getting me to hold these heavy-ass buckets the entire day? Seriously?" Who still practiced this medieval shit? Obviously Iruka. That man looked like he was enjoying dolling out this chore WAY too much for the blonde's liking.

This wasn't his first punishment either. After the usual lecture from the old man following his return, Naruto was then dumped back at the academy to be processed by Iruka in the regular manner; scrubbing, mopping, sweeping, cleaning, stocking, heavy lifting, sorting, and every other detestable task he could possibly conjure up. He had shift work at the school on top of his classes, so the jinchuriki wasn't going to expect any time to sneak any training in until the end of this week. There was no other way to express his disappointment other than through his vocals and the occasional stomping like a child.

He was still ten. He had two more years till final graduation, so only time will tell if he'll really mature enough.

"I told you why I was absent!" God, he wished Tayuya was here right now. He needed irrefutable proof of his innocence.

"And I keep telling you, I don't believe you," Iruka replied with an amused smirk. "Honestly… saving an entire nation from an industrial tyrant, who was none other than the world famous Gato of Gato International, in one day? I knew you were an imaginative character Naruto, but that's just going too far…"

"Yeah. Stop daydreaming, slacker!" Kiba shouted from up in his row. "You should know better than to mess with us already."

"We're already wise to a lot of your fooling around," a girl student called out, earning a round of nods from the class.

"Quit acting so high and mighty!"

"Yeah!"

Naruto seethed angrily and shouted at them. "SHUT UP! I SWEAR IT ACTUALLY HAPPENED!"

"Ever read 'The Boy Who Cried Wolf?" Iruka asked with a chuckle before returning to his work. "You've led us along with your stories long enough. Now just stand there and take your punishment like a man."

"This isn't punishment. This is torture!" Naruto snapped back, grinding his teeth. "I'm bored to death over here."

"Then use your time wisely to contemplate on your misdeeds," Iruka replied off-handedly, keeping his eyes on his work and his pen on the paper.

He had to get through to this boy somehow, and what better way than the usual means of physical and mental torment…

OOO

That night…

"So this is your home?" Tayuya asked while looking around the corridor of the apartment she had just entered. After the long day she'd had up in the Administration Building getting all of her information sorted through the Hokage and his staff, it was a welcome change to find herself in the residence of the person she would be staying with. "It's nice."

"Thanks. Fair warning though, most of everything you're going to see in this place is brand new," Naruto chirped, kicking off his shoes and leading the way down the hall. He tapped against a wall as they passed it.

Tayuya took note of the area he had touched and saw that there was some exposed woodwork in the wall, some new and some dilapidated. She was able to guess from the new wood that the boy had yet to repaint the area from a recent household accident, which had her giggle.

"Even if you've got nothing else going for you; you sure clean up well."

"I'm a man with multiple colors on his pallet. It's… more like a habit than talent; I suck at everything I don't practice. After destroying an apartment over a hundred times and ruining the village a thousand times more, you'd be surprised how many things you soak in when you're pretty much ordered to clean up after yourself," Naruto informed while gesturing her into a room, which she then took a peek into. "This is the lounge, complete with couches, coffee table, television, window, and my snake plant." He pointed at the potted plant sitting quietly nearest to the sill. "I water it once a day and fertilize it every few months."

"How thoughtful," Tayuya exclaimed with a bright smile before moving on.

"Bathroom and toilet are back there, laundry is over here, kitchen links up to the living room and the corridor, and my bedroom is back here," Naruto informed, opening up said door to the sleeping quarters and showing her in. They stood at the entrance and took stock of its overall appearance. "Sorry if it's a bit of a mess. I haven't been here in two weeks and I had no idea I would be having someone over."

"No, no, I think it's great," the musician replied quickly, taking a few steps into the room and looking around. Of all the chambers inside of the flat Naruto's room appeared to be the most decorated. He had a desk with all his little trinkets on it, a wall of photographs chronicling many of his grand escapades, a few cupboards, closet, drawers, bedside table and of course his bed, sitting right underneath the window giving him a fantastic view of the village. If nothing else, this third-story home certainly let in a lot of natural light. The girl nodded expectantly, "It's just as I thought." She looked across at the blonde and gave him a warm smile. "I think I'm going to like it here."

"I'm glad you approve," Naruto said with a grin, slinging off the katana he had hanging from his shoulder and propping it on the nearby desk. The Third had collected it earlier that day for inspection and to verify the boy's story, which meant the blonde was unable to use it to plead his case to Iruka. That meant that he had been forced to endure the near endless hours of punishments the man had lined up for him, much to his dismay.

Yep, this was definitely going to be the prize of his personal collection, for sure. He was never letting it out of his sight.

"So uhh… where am I going to sleep?" It was obvious that there was only one bed and since it had been officially recognized that Tayuya would be staying in this place for an extended period, the sleeping arrangements were top priority.

This apparently came as little issue to the blonde host, who merely shrugged at his guest's question and nodded towards his comforter.

"On my bed of course," the jinchuriki said with barely any hesitation whatsoever, causing the girl to blush upon processing his response and the straightforwardness of his tone. Naruto blinked at her incredulous stare. "What? You thought I was gonna take it and let you sleep on my cold hard floor?" He turned and set his sights down the corridor. "I'll grab a futon from the laundry. I'm sure I have one stuffed in the overhead that I can use."

"O-Okay…" Tayuya murmured, watching the boy hurry out of sight and begin rummaging through the washroom for the item in question. He returned with it later on and laid it out on his bedroom floor, pillow and all.

After the tour was over and Tayuya was given a rundown on all the essential areas and things she needed to remember, the pair then went about business as usual. While Naruto prepared dinner for the two of them with whatever was still good, the newcomer went to take a shower. They would then later have tea around the dinner table, consisting of cups of ramen that had managed to survive in the blonde's extended absence and orange juice. Though it wasn't much, there would be plenty of time for shopping later.

Once that was all done the pair then headed off to bed.

It had been a while since Naruto had used his futon. He remembered buying it a while ago with the express purpose of using it if he had any friends sleeping over. However, with everything that had happened in his life up until now and with his popularity around the village being the way it was, he never got that chance…

Until now.

Funny thing was though, instead of a guest using his futon he was using it, while the new resident in his apartment called shotgun on the bed. True it was by his own decision, it was just good manners. Tayuya had had it rough for a while now so he had absolutely no problems in sacrificing his memory foam mattress for the floor.

After letting Tayuya take the bed first Naruto then switched the lights off and hit the hay himself. Soon enough, there they were; laying back to back, one elevated above the other with the one on the floor keeping his eyes locked on the door until the sounds of white noise filled the room. Within minutes the jinchuriki felt his brain get pulled into sleep.

However, about an hour into it, the blonde was suddenly woken instinctively by the feeling of his bed covers being moved. A few light shuffling sounds later and Naruto felt a timid figure crawl onto the futon, pulling the sheets back over them carefully before coming to lie behind him. Upon feeling a pair of gentle arms wrap around him and a warm body press up against his back, the jinchuriki's eyes blinked open and he looked behind him.

When he did, he saw Tayuya with her eyes closed and a smile on her face sleeping peacefully behind him.

Seeing her content expression and how her red locks fell gracefully over her face and the pillow brought a warm smile to Naruto's face. He then turned back around and nuzzled himself into his previous state of rest.

For some reason, he had no problems with this. None at all.

"Good night, Tayuya-chan…"

"Good night, Naruto-kun."

TO BE CONTINUED…