Hello hello. I hope you all enjoyed the previous chapter, cause now it's time for the next one.
With the entire group now at Yu, it's time to move things forward; show some more scenes with the pirates, bring Akatsuki into the picture, and see what's happened to Naruto.
As the man and his niece were bringing Naruto's unconscious body to their home, they were stopped by one man approaching them, a stray pirate.
"Hey, you think you can go on with your day without giving me a little something?" The pirate asked.
"Please, just leave us be." The man said. "You taken enough from us."
"And yet you decided to fight back by having shinobi here." The pirate said. "I don't think that's acceptable." The pirate charged at the man, forcing him to drop Naruto to the ground. He quickly picked up his dropped hoe and used it to defend himself against the pirates oncoming assault with the sword. As the fight carried on, the pirate managed to break through the wooden shaft of the farming tool. He then kicked at the older man, pushing him down to the ground.
"Ji-san!" The young girl ran to her uncle's side, the pirate grabbed her by her hair and pulled her back. "My my, look at you. What are you, sixteen, seventeen? The ripe age for men to have their fun."
"Get your hands off of her!" The man said. As he got up to fight back, the pirate kicked him square in the jaw, knocking him back down.
"Shut up you old fool." The pirate then brought his face to the girl's hair, sniffing in her scent. "No point in sharing my spoils with the crew, you're all mine." His actions were suddenly stopped when he felt something grab him by the back of his shirt and lift him up. He was then thrown to the side, landing hard on the ground.
Naruto stood between the pirate and the girl.
"Who the hell do you think you are?" the pirate asked in a snarling voice. "You really want to mess with me?" The pirate picked up his dropped sword and charged at Naruto. As he got closer, Naruto's right hand suddenly channeled some chakra and created the Rasengan. "What?" Before the pirate could react to it, the Rasengan struck him and in mere seconds the force of the attack sent him flying through the shore and off into the horizon of the ocean.
The man and his niece looked at Naruto with shock. "How...did you do that?"
Naruto didn't pay any attention to them. For some strange reason, he was shocked as much as they were about what he just did. He looked at his right hand, wondering what happened.
"Tell me, who are you? What's your name?" The man asked.
"I...I don't know." Naruto slowly responded. He then looked over to the man. "I don't know."
The villagers managed to repair some of the damage done to their village. The Konoha shinobi's presence helped prevent the damage from being too severe as well as making repairs go by quickly. While most of them tended to the village, Sakura and Ino stayed by Lee's side to tend to his injuries.
Meanwhile, Hinata had helped some of the village women with some repairs to their homes. At the time, she was completely unaware that Kakashi and his team arrived some time ago. The moment she knew of this was when she noticed Sasuke in the village.
"Sasuke-kun!" Hinata ran to him, calling out to him. "Sasuke-kun!"
"Hmm?" Sasuke looked over to Hinata.
"When did you arrive?"
"Almost a half hour ago." Sasuke answered. "How are things doing now?"
"The village is still recovering, but it should be better soon." Hinata said. "Where's Naruto-kun?"
Sasuke paused. Considering everything Sasuke had gone through, he completely forgot about Naruto's missing status. Now he didn't know how to explain it to Hinata. "I thought he'd be here. We got separated."
"Separated? How, what happened?" Hinata asked, concerned for Naruto's safety.
"Maybe we should sit somewhere to talk about this." Sasuke said, walking with Hinat to somewhere they could sit.
"Hmm...probably amnesia." The man said. "You probably hit your head on something."
Naruto ran his hand along his head, but didn't know if that was the case. "Maybe."
"Ji-san, we should keep him here." The young girl suggested. "He saved us from that pirate."
"Yuri, we just don't have the resources to have another person under our roof." Yuri's uncle said. "And with everything we need to clean up and fix, it's just too much trouble." He went out to resume his work on cleaning up the damage left by the pirates.
"He's not a bad person." Yuri said. "Normally, he would be nicer, but with the pirate attack, he's been really stressed."
"Pirates?" Naruto asked. There have been reports of pirate attacks. The village has been getting frequent visits from pirates, who show up in the village, stealing goods, attacking innocents, and kidnapping the women for only god knows what. Naruto shook his head to get the voice out.
"Are you alright?" Yuri asked, noticing Naruto's struggle.
"Yeah, I'm fine." Naruto answered. "So, you're saying that pirates come to this village?"
"Ever since they began pillaging our village, tourists have stopped coming here." Yuri said. "We've contacted shinobi to help us deal with the pirates. I only hope they can save us."
Shinobi... That word seemed familiar to Naruto, but he could quite understand why.
"Oh, I almost forgot; my name's Yuri."
"Uh...hi, Yuri..." Naruto sheepishly smiled. "Um...well, I don't really know my name. Sorry."
"Hmm, that's gonna be a problem." Yuri pondered for a moment. "How about Neko-chan?"
"Eh?"
"Well, you have those whiskers on your face, like a cat." Yuri said, pointing to Naruto's cheeks. "So, until you regain your memories, I'll call you Neko-chan."
"Well, better than being nameless, I guess." Naruto conceded.
Yuri looked out to the field to see her uncle continuing his work on cleaning up. "I should go help him." She got up from the bedside.
"Wait." Naruto pulled himself off the bed. "Let me help, its the least I can do for you two."
"Really? Well, thank you." Yuri smiled. "Actually, can you go the village main square? See if you can get some wood planks, about a dozen or so. We'll also need some nails; maybe the ones that are an inch and a half long. Oh, and we'll need hammers; three of them."
"Sure." Naruto said. The two walked out the front door. "I'll be back soon."
"Hold on, you're clothes are pretty wet. Maybe you should leave them here so I can clean them." She left to go to another room, returning shortly after with some new clothes. "These are my uncle's. He won't mind that you borrow them."
"Thanks." Naruto said.
"You can change in his room." Yuri said, pointing to the room she went into earlier. "Oh, and maybe you should wear this too." She reached for a straw hat that was hanging on the wall near the front doorway. "Just so no one has to see all the wrappings."
Jinzoku landed with a large slam into the ground. His landing left a fairly large crater around him with a large kick up of dust. His wings retracted into his body as his dark-grey skin slowly returned to its human tone. He looked around his surrounding; a river in front of him, forest behind him. He approached the river, dropping to his knees and looking into the running stream. In a quick flash, Jinzoku reached into the water and quickly pulled it out, holding a fish in his hand. Despite the fish struggling, Jinzoki grabbed it with both hands and ripped it apart. Blood dripped from the tear of the fish as it traveled down his wrists. He took a bite out of the half in his left hand, chewing into the bone, and chomping on the organs.
Sasuke sat alone by the shore, looking out to the ocean. With the help of himself and the others, the village was able to repair all the damage done today. He had spoken with Hinata about the situation that led to their separation from Naruto and it only made her worry. Though he reassured her that Naruto was strong enough to take care of himself and that he'll make it here safely, it did little to calm her down. With nothing else left to do, Sasuke took time for himself. Considering all that transpired with his brother, Sasuke was at such a loss. What did this mean? Was Itachi really not responsible for the death of his clan? Was he merely an unwilling puppet for a demon's pleasure?
Then what about all his hatred towards Itachi? Did he hate his brother, or the demon?
What was the real truth?
"Sasuke-kun." Sakura walked over to him. "What are you doing out here? Everyone's inside for dinner."
"Sorry, lost track of time." Sasuke got up from the sand, dusting his pants off. "Any word on Naruto?"
Sakura frowned. "No, nothing. I'm worried about him. Hinata must be feeling worse about this."
"Hey, Naruto's been through worse. Maybe he's just taking his time for a grand entrance." Sasuke said, trying to cheer her up. In truth, he was trying to cheer himself up as well. Even though he couldn't actually justify his theory, it made him feel at ease at the thought of Naruto being his usual self.
The two made their way back to the village and to where they were staying.
"Maybe some of us should go out there and look for him." Sakura suggested.
"It's too risky, what if the pirates return while that happens?" Sasuke asked. Walking through the main square of the village, Sasuke accidentally bumped into a villager, knocking planks of wood on the ground. "Sorry." Sasuke dropped to his knees to help him pick up the planks.
"No, I should've watched where I was going." The villager said. After picking everything up, the two got back to their feet. "Thank you."
As the villager walked away, Sasuke couldn't help but sense something about him, but he couldn't make out exactly what it was. He looked back to the villager. The blonde hair on the villager had Sasuke curious, but the clothes he wore seemed to contradict what he was thinking. No, it couldn't be.
As nighttime approached, the villagers were preparing for bed, exhausted from the stress of today. Pirate attacks and repairs to the village took a toll on them.
At the lodging that the shinobi were staying in, Sakura had just finished with checking up on Lee. As she left Lee's room so that he could rest, Sakura made her way to the kitchen to get some water. As she was walking towards the kitchen, she saw Hinata sitting outside.
"Hinata?" Sakura gently closed the front door behind her. "Are you alright?"
Hinata didn't even look at Sakura. She just looked out over the ocean. "He still hasn't come. Where could he be?"
Sakura was unsure as to how to approach this. "Naruto will be fine, he's been through worse. You'll see him again, Hinata."
Hinata looked back to Sakura. "I want to believe you, but even through the worst of things, he's never disappeared like this."
Sakura very much wanted to try and help Hinata through this troubling time. She then got an idea. "Hey, I think I know what might lift your spirits a bit. Don't tell anyone else, but Ino and I got our hands on some ice cream from the village. If there's anything to help cheer a girl up, it's ice cream."
Hinata managed to grow a small smile on her face at the sound of the plan. "I suppose some ice cream would be nice."
"That's the spirit." Sakura smiled. "And maybe after we can go enjoy the hot spring while everyone else is sleeping."
The two kunoichi went back into their lodgings to get on with their plans.
Jinzoku tossed the last bone of his recent meal behind him. Piled up behind him were the carcasses of different animals that he had eaten; fish, birds, squirrels, raccoons, and even a deer. "Damn this body, why am I still so hungry?!" Jinzoku got up from the dirt ground and prepared to wander off some more. "There's got to be more around here." Before he could leave, he heard the sound of growling from the bushes. He turned to face where the growling was coming from and from the bushes, a small pack of wolves emerged. A total of five wolves surrounded Jinzoku growling and snarling at him, ready to take on their outnumbered prey. "Hmm, saves me the trouble of hunting." One wolf then charged at him, pouncing towards him. Jinzoku stepped to the side and as the wolf passed him, he grabbed the wolf by the head and slammed the canine to the ground. Pressing his knee on the wolf while still gripping its head, Jinzoku then ripped the wolf's head off, with a small part of the wolf's spine still attached. "You want to keep going?" The wolfs, though more cautious after what had happened, still didn't retreat. "...fine."
"Morning." Naruto said.
"Morning, Neko-chan." Yuri smiled to greet him.
"So, any work to be done?"
"Well, we don't have to worry about fixing the house anymore. But the farm needs to be tended to." Yuri said. "But Ji-san is still sleeping."
"Then I'll take care of it." Naruto said.
"But do you know how to farm?" Yuri asked.
"Um...well...I, I don't know." Naruto said. "Maybe I might've."
Yuri laughed. "It's ok, I'll help you." Before exiting the house, Yuri grabbed some farming equipment. "Follow me."
Naruto followed after her, picking up the straw hat and putting it on his head as he left the home.
The sound of screaming and crashing brought Sasuke into an instant awakening. He threw himself out of bed at the sound of the danger, startling Sakura.
"What's going on?!" Sakura asked, hearing the commotion as well "Are the pirates back?"
The shinobi ran out of the lodge and out to the village. However, instead of seeing the villagers running off in panic with pirates chasing after them, there was an ox rampaging through the market square, trashing vendor stalls.
"An ox?" Hinata asked.
Sasuke quickly got into action. He ran towards the ox, managing to get around the beast without meeting it's kicking hind legs or horns. Facing the ox head on, Sasuke spread his arms out to get the beast's attention. "Come on, come on, I'm right here." The ox managed to calm down, but still was on edge. Instead of jumping around and kicking at everything around it, the ox was attempting to charge at Sasuke. Luckily, Sasuke managed to grab the ox by it's horns. Relying on pure strength, Sasuke pushed back at the ox until the ox was finally subdued and gave in. Sasuke calmly released his grip on the horns and the ox remained calm. "That's better." He rubbed the head of the ox, further calming it down. "You sure left a mess here." The villagers all left their hiding places to see that the crisis has been solved.
"Hey, isn't this Jirou's ox?" One of the villagers asked.
"Who?" Sasuke asked.
"Jirou. This ox belongs to him." The villager answered.
"He lives with his niece further off the village." Togawa pointed in the direction of where to go. "It's not too far from here, just make sure you don't let that ox go free."
"There you go, now you're getting the hang of it." Yuri said.
"This is tougher than it looks." Naruto said, plowing the field, now doing it properly.
"Thanks again for helping us." Yuri said.
"It's no problem. It's the least I could do for letting me stay in your home."
While the two continued to plow the field, Yuri paused for a moment. "Umm, Neko-chan, I have a question. What happens if, well...when you remember everything again?"
"Hm?" Naruto stopped plowing the field. "Well, I'm not sure. I mean, I'd want to know who I am."
"Do you think that...when you remember your past, would you forget me? And Ji-san?" Naruto wasn't able to think of a proper answer to it. Yuri, aware that he wasn't able to say something, decided not to push him. "I hope that you do remember everything again. But I don't want you to forget us. You've been a good friend to me."
"Well, you've been a good friend too." Naruto smiled.
"Well, I think you're ready to do the plowing by yourself, while I go and sow the seeds." Yuri said, getting back up in spirit again.
Sasuke, Hinata, and Ino had agreed to take the ox back to its owner. Sakura remained behind to check up on Lee again. After the wreckage of the ox's rampage, Kakashi, Gai, and Sai stayed to help clean up. While the three continued to walk, Ino slowed her pace to walk next to Sasuke while Hinata led the group.
"Still nothing on Naruto?" Ino whispered.
"Nothing." Sasuke whispered back. "I don't like this. Naruto's dense at times, but I don't think he's stupid enough to disappear this long for a joke."
"Should we say anything to Hinata?"
"No, she's worried enough. The best we can do is keep being hopeful." Sasuke said, quickly looking back at Hinata who was still unaware of their conversation.
"This looks great." Yuri said. "Thank you so much for the help Naruto."
"Of course." Naruto smiled. He looked over to the whole field. "Well, I guess we still have a lot more field to plow."
"Yeah, but I think we can get things done soon." Yuri then noticed that there were some people approaching. "I'll be right back." Yuri said. She left the field to see who the visitors were. "Can I help you?"
"We're the shinobi from Konoha." Sasuke said. "I understand that you lost this?" Stepping to the side, he allowed Yuri to get a look at the ox that they had brought over. "Some of the villagers recognized the ox and told us where to find you."
"Oh, thank you." Yuri smiled. She jogged over to the ox. "Are you alright? You must've been scared because of those pirates." She turned to the face the three and bowed. "Thank you, my uncle is going to be happy to know our ox is safe."
"Your uncle?" Ino asked. "Is he the only one taking care of you?"
"Yes. Since my parents died, Ji-san had taken care of me." Yuri said.
"Is that him out on the field?" Sasuke asked, pointing to the lone farmer.
"Him? No, my uncle is still resting inside." Yusi answered.
"Yuri?" Yuri's uncle called out to her from inside. "What's going on out there?"
"Ji-san, the shinobi from Konoha are here, they found the missing ox."
"Really?" Yuri's uncle came out of the house. "Oh, you found him. Thank you very much, I was worried that we lost him for good to those damn pirates."
"If that's your uncle, then who is that?" Ino asked.
"Who, Neko-chan? Well, actually, we found him unconscious by the shore."
"Figured he was a pirate at first, but I didn't think a pirate would be injured like he was." Yuri's uncle explained. "But then when we were bringing him in, a pirate attacked and almost took off with my Yuri. But then that boy saved her."
"He hit the pirate with this bright blue ball that sent him back to the ocean." Yuri said, smiling. "It was amazing. I thought maybe he was a shinobi like all of you."
"Wait." Sasuke was struck with a sudden thought. "Did you say a bright blue ball?"
"Yes?"
"Did it look like it was spinning in his hand, sort of spiraling?" Sasuke asked another question.
"Yes, why?" Yuri asked.
Sasuke didn't even answer, his first reaction was to bolt towards the field. "Naruto!"
"Sasuke-kun?" Ino and Hinata followed after Sasuke.
Sasuke ran up to the villager that was out on the field. "Naruto." He didn't turn. Sasuke approached him, grabbing him by the shoulder and spun him around. "Naruto."
Ino and Hinata reacted with shock when they saw who it was. While the straw hat hid his blonde hair, the whiskers on his face were indistinguishable. To Hinata, it was his eyes that had her instantly realize the truth. "Naruto-kun?"
Naruto looked at the three, a little upset. "What the hell? I spent all afternoon plowing this field."
"Naruto, it's us." Sasuke said.
"Why are you calling me Naruto?" Naruto asked. "And who are you people?"
"What?" Their shock took an extra leap forward at Naruto's remark.
"Naruto, don't you recognize us?" Sasuke asked.
"How could I? I've never met any of you before."
And there you go.
Naruto's amnesia issue won't be on for long, but it will be quite important. After all, the title of this story is called 'The Forgotten'. You've already seen what was secret about Itachi. That was one aspect of what was forgotten. As the story continues to progress, more forgotten things from the past will be uncovered.
Until then, let those reviews flow.