INTRODUCTION
Thanks for returning to The Chronicles. As always I like to begin by stating that I don't own the story or characters of Naruto.
THANK YOU
I'd like to thank everyone who has added this story to thier favorites list and story alerts. As well as added me to thier favorites and alerts list. And a speacial thank you to those who reviewed my last chapter: GravenImage; Dragonshaun9; Kushina's Truth of Hell; podlizurko; theloverofanime; megaf0nz and Sayona13.
REPLIES
GravenImage: Thank you. I'm glad my fight scenes are working out.
Dragonshaun9: Dude....I think you need a new heart. I mean your a dragon for God's sake. Lol!!
Kushina's: Ohhhh, please don't do that. You really had me there. Lol. Pimp Master Madara huh? Lol. Well, not exactly what I was going for but I'll take it. And i hope you like/understand the reason for Naruto vs. Gaara. We'll see. ^^
Podlizurko: Well, that's one of the best compliments I think I've ever gotten. And I humbly thank you. DBZ influence? I wonder. Considering I'm not much of a DBZ fan I'm curious where you see similarities. Feel free to send a PM to me regarding this. I would like to discuss it further. Oh, and I consider no review as dull so keep 'em coming! :D
Theloverofanime: Glad I could help out with the Monday blues. TBH, when creating this fanfic I really thought about what day I'd like to release it and I chose Mondays because Monday is a day we get very little as far as canon Manga. The last chapter was released days ago and no spoilers (if you're into that) are released until at least Tuesday so I figured Mondays would be perfect.
Megaf0nz: Thanks. It was really important to me not to half ass this story and omit characters. If my goal was to create an alternate Naruto tale then all characters had to be included. I also wanted it to be believable. Not only was it important to me that all characters act like they do in the canon but to show that they've grown up a bit and that we see thier maturity. Especially within Naruto and Sakura.
Sayona13: *looking over my shoulder* So you're the one who's been following me lately!? Lol! Thanks though, and yeah I do miss a few misspells. I try to proof read it the best I can but some get past me. Anyway i hope you continue to enjoy....and review. :) *lokking over my shoulder again* Hey get out of my bushes!!!!
And now, I present Chapter Sixteen of New Dawn. So you know we're nearing the end of book two. At which point, like with book one, I'll be taking a little break (about two months) to work on other projects and just to relax a bit and gather my thoughts for book three. Thanks again and Please remember to review this chapter.
Naruto: Chronicles of the Seventh
Book Two: New Dawn
Chapter Sixteen: Piercing Wind / Crushing Sand
Sunagakure – Kazekage Training Grounds – Late Afternoon
A small group including Temari and Shikamaru ran down the path heading to the private training grounds of the Kazekage. Despite the fact that Shikamaru was their prisoner no one seemed overly concerned that he would try to escape.
As they arrived at the only entrance to the grounds everyone came to an immediate halt as they knew entering here without the permission of the Kazekage was forbidden.
"Temari-sama," one of the ninja said, "are you certain this is where they have gone? I don't understand why the Kazekage would do such a thing."
"Actually it's pretty obvious why he would," Temari said. "Gaara obviously wanted to speak to Naruto in private. And this place definitely provides privacy."
It was then, much to their surprise that they heard a large booming noise, much like a large object hitting the ground, come from within. "I don't know about you Temari," Shikamru said, "But that doesn't sound too much like a friendly chat to me."
What the hell is going on in there, Temari thought to herself as she began to head towards the entrance.
"Temari-sama," one of the ninja's yelled, "what do you think you're doing!? No one can enter their without permission. Not even you!"
"Whatever," Temari said. "Like I care about a stupid rule like that! My brother is in there and I plan to find out what the hell is going on. You guys stay your asses here."
Using the shadow that his body was making Shikamaru stretched the shadow into a thin pick like object and had it enter the lock of his chains. Within seconds the chain fell free and he ran off to catch up to Temari. "Hold it right there," one of his guards yelled and he ran after him.
"I thought I told you to stay you're asses there," Temari yelled as she saw what was happening. "Don't worry about him! He's no god damned threat. I'll take responsibility for Shikamaru."
"But Temari-sama," the guard said, "he's a enemy from Konoha and shouldn't be allowed to enter!"
Shikamaru turned back as he continued to walk next to Temari and shrugged. "You heard the lady," he said with a bright smile. "Stay your asses back there. She'll take responsibility. And that's just how I like it."
As Temari and Shikamaru ran down the cramped tunnel that led to the training grounds they could here the unmistakable sounds of battle as they drew closer. "Any idea why Gaara would want to fight Naruto alone," Shikamaru asked.
"No," Temari answered. "To be honest my brother has been a bit….withdrawn lately. I think the stress of having to declare war has been weighing on him. Kankuro and I have been worried about him for the last few weeks. But Kankuro had to head out to our borders with troops to assist in securing them. I wish he was here right now. He and Gaara have grown closer than Gaara and I."
As they got closer to the exit they realized that the noise had stopped and all was still. And as they emerged they saw directly ahead in middle of the large area Naruto was standing facing Gaara, who had just removed his robes.
"Wow," Shikamaru said, "From the looks of things around here these two are only getting started. But I don't get it, why would Gaara decide to fight Naruto like this?"
It was then Temari remembered something her father had said to her years ago. It was during one of the few times Gaara was present in the same room with her and Kankuro. Their father had always limited their exposure to Gaara and usually when they were together it was solely for the purposes of training.
Of all the things her father had ever tried to teach them, Temari had later come to believe were merely the ravings of a bitter, power obsessed old man. But there was one thing he had said that she later learned had stuck with Gaara; a belief that he himself repeated to her a year before.
"I get it now," she said out loud to no one in particular. Shikamaru looked at her with a puzzled expression as he waited for her to continue. "Once," Temari said, "long ago, our father once told us that when there is a disagreement between warriors the most honest way one can learn the truth is true combat. Any man can lie convincingly. But one's true heart can never be faked in battle. This isn't about punishment. Gaara's trying to find the truth."
Meanwhile
Naruto quickly made several hand signs and yelled, "Shadow Clone Jutsu!" several clones appeared and rushed at Gaara.
Gaara quickly created hand signs of his own and said, "Sand Clone Technique." Several clones rose from the sand around him and intercepted each of Naruto's clones and dispatched them. It was then Gaara realized that one of the clones wasn't a clone, but the real Naruto who used his clones as a decoy in order to get close to Gaara.
Naruto quickly closed in, kunai at the ready and engaged Gaara who had to side step Naruto's first attack. Gaara quickly drew his own kunai and was able to block Naruto's second attack.
Needing space, Gaara released sand from his gourd and slammed it at Naruto who back flipped out of the way and again went created several hand signs and a puff of smoke engulfed his right hand and when it cleared and he was holding a large shuriken.
He then created several more hand signs and yelled, "Multi-shadow Clone Jutsu!" Several dozen copies were made and each held a large shuriken. Naruto along with all the clones ran at Gaara and launched all the shuriken at him simultaneously.
Gaara quickly created several hand signs and yelled, "Sand Sheild!" Suddenly a thick wall of sand rose up completely surrounding Gaara to protect him. Each shuriken hit the wall and was instantly stuck, unable to pierce through.
Much to Gaara's surprise, Naruto then blasted through the wall using a swirling ball of energy emanating from his hand. "Rasengan," Naruto yelled as he attempted to strike Gaara head on.
Temari and Shikamaru were forced to cover their eyes as a plume of sand, dust and dirt was launched in the air from the resulting explosion.
As the dust settled they could see Naruto standing in a small crater looking up at Gaara who was floating above him, standing on a platform made of sand. Again sand began to leak from his gourd and formed into small bullets. "Sand Drizzle," Gaara said as again Naruto was bombarded by Gaara's attack.
Naruto was forced to run as Gaara's attack closed in. Damn, Naruto thought as he looked around. There's no where to take cover!
As Naruto ran he quickly realized he had been forced to run back towards the pile of sand that was scattered about. As he reached the sand it began to move and take the shape of arms that rose up attempting to grab at him. Naruto quickly began to leap back and forth in an effort to prevent from being captured.
As he finally cleared the sand Naruto turned to see Gaara had thrown two sand shiruken at him. Without time to dodge, Naruto quickly made hand signals and said, "Wind Style: Living Tornado!" Again Naruto was surrounded by swirling wind that acted like armor.
As the sand shiruken hit the armor of wind they were repelled and pushed off to the side, crashing into the ground on either side of Naruto. "I see," Gaara said, "That armor of wind of yours doesn't block attacks but repels them by blowing them away."
Naruto slowly dropped into a crouch and said, "That's not all it can do." Naruto then leapt at Gaara, using the wind to create a rocket like blast behind him to increase his speed. As Naruto leapt away he left a small crater behind him and before Gaara could react Naruto was up in the air directly in front of him and punched him off of his pedestal.
Naruto quickly followed his first punch with another, and another and another before they could hit the ground. Shikamaru and Temari looked on in amazement as Naruto hit Gaara at least a dozen times before Gaara hit the ground.
Gaara's body hit the ground limply and rolled several yards before coming to a stop. Naruto landed on his feet and looked on, still in a defensive stance. Slowly Gaara began to get to his feet. He looked at Naruto and scowled as he wiped the blood from the side of his mouth.
"Naruto," Gaara said, "You should know the real reason I brought to this place. I plan to kill you here. This place will be your grave yard." Gaara then created several hand signs and began to concentrate. Suddenly the ground began to shudder and shake violently. Then much to the surprise of everyone the wall of rock that surrounded the area began to break and turn to sand.
"Naruto," Gaara said, "This is the end of you. Now you will pay for your crime." Suddenly the tons upon tons of sand turned into a large wave.
"Shit," Shikamaru said as he grabbed Temari, who stared dumbfounded at what was happening, by the arm. "Unless you want to be buried up to your neck in sand I think we'd better get the hell out of here!" Shikamaru pulled Temari and they leapt away to avoid Gaara's attack.
Naruto stood staring up at the wave of sand that, at its apex, stood a staggering ten stories high. Knowing there was no point in running Naruto quickly began to concentrate. Meanwhile, Gaara was once again on a new sand platform floating above him. "Sand Waterfall! Good-bye…….Naruto."
The sand then launched at Naruto and crashed down with a force that cause the surrounding area to shake violently.
As the dust settled, Temari and Shikamaru stood nearby and stared in complete horror at what Gaara had done. And with the wall surrounding the area gone the citizens of Suna also looked on in awe and terror at the power and wrath of the Kazekage.
Slowly, Gaara lowered the platform back to the ground and then reaching down to touch the ground he said, "Sand Waterfall: Imperial Funeral!" The sand then compacted and again the ground shuddered as what seemed to be Gaara's final move.
Gaara then stood up and looked at the ground. "You disappoint me Naruto," he said. "This can't be all you have. Where are you?"
Suddenly the ground began to shake again beneath his feet. And a large hole was blown through the sand nearby and a large spinning red tornado rose into the sky from within the hole.
Gaara stood in shock and had to shield his eyes, when he saw Naruto float up in the middle of the vortex, his eyes showing that he was now in Sage Mode. In his hand was a large spinning shiruken of pure chakra.
That chakra, Gaara thought. That's not just your chakra alone is it Naruto? It seems you've finally called on the Nine Tails. Even the tornado itself is infused with its chakra, amazing. To think you can control something like this.
Gaara, then struck the palm of his hand to the floor and said, "Absolute Defense: Shield of Shukaku." Suddenly a large toy-like replica of Shukaku rose from the sand in front of Gaara.
"That's," Naruto said as he was surprised to see that technique. Grimacing Naruto yelled, "Rasenshiruken!" and threw his attack towards Gaara.
As it struck Gaara was surprised that his Shield began to crack and break. Unbelievable, Gaara thought. He's actually going to break through?!
Dipping his hand back into the remainder of the sand Gaara began to pull forth a halberd from the ground. It was large and made of super dense minerals and was red at the tip. "Absolute Attack: Spear of Shukaku!"
Shukaku's Shield shattered finally under the strain of the Rasenshiruken and as it broke, Naruto leapt at Gaara, prepared to punch him. Gaara then threw the spear and it flew at Naruto, striking him squarely in the chest.
To Gaara's surprise Naruto disappeared in a puff of smoke. Shocked and wide eyed Gaara said, "Shadow Clone!?"
"Wind Release: Red Storm," Naruto screamed from behind Gaara. And to Gaara's amazement Naruto created a miniature red tornado and launched it Gaara, striking him head on and spinning Gaara around like a rag doll and finally launching him several yards away.
Naruto remained standing breathing heavily. Damn, he thought. I'm reaching my limit. I'm still not one hundred percent yet.
Naruto quickly began to create another Rasengan as he saw Gaara getting to his feet. He then ran at him at top speed and leapt at him yelling, "Rasengan!"
Gaara looked up just in time to see Naruto's attack mere inches from his face.
Meanwhile – Near Konoha's Northern Border
The kunoichi landed at the outskirts of the clearing and quickly hid within the shadows as she surveyed the area. The clearing was scarred with the markings of battle and smelled of death. As she confirmed that there was no danger she cautiously stepped out into the clearing and took a better look around.
After scanning the area for a few seconds she saw two bodies lying within several yards of each other. The kunoichi ran up to the first body that she immediately recognized as an ANBU ninja that was covered in a pool of drying blood. Removing the mask she was struck by just how young he was. And it was then she recognized him from the class that took part in the Chunin exams a few years ago.
He was the one who asked tons of questions and annoyed her to no end. All he wanted to do was become a great ninja and he wasn't above asking questions to gain as much knowledge as he could. To think he had become ANBU.
Too young, she thought as she closed the boys' eyes. He wasn't even eighteen yet. The Kunoichi began to investigate the wound on the boys' neck for clues. Hmmm, she thought. This was a clean cut by a blade; wait….no this was done by a kunai. Someone got the drop on him. But he was too well trained to be caught unaware this far from any cover.
Looking now towards the other body, the kunoichi walked over and knelt down over it. It was another ANBU that was on its back. Its body was sunken into a small crater and its chest was caved it. The kunoichi removed the mask and saw it was a ninja she didn't recognize. But his face was twisted in an horrid way.
Whoever this was he didn't die well, she thought. From the looks of things he was hit with such a force that his entire chest caved in and it left a crater underneath him. Hmmm…..There's only one person I know who could do something like this. Well, two actually. But I doubt Tsunade-sama was all the way out here. Why would Sakura kill her own man?
As the kunoichi looked around further she then saw another body laying on a nearby boulder. She quickly made her way over there and was shocked to see it was Yamato. She quickly knelt down to check his pulse and was relieved to see he was just unconscious.
The kunoichi quickly turned him over on his back and tapped him on his shoulder to wake him up. Slowly Yamato regained consciousness and the kunoichi helped him to sit up and as his vision cleared he was astonished to see who it was looking back at him. "What are you doing here Anko," he said.
"Well that should be pretty obvious Yamato," Anko replied. "Tsunade-sama sent word to me of your mission and told me that new information came to light that made her fear Sakura needed more help. I guess she was right. What the hell happened Yamato."
Yamato pulled a flask of water from his tool belt and drank steadily. Once he was satisfied he began to relay the entire story from beginning to end. Anko listened intently making sure to remember every detail and ask questions to help spur Yamato's memory.
"And that's everything that happened," Yamato said. "Sakura knocked me out and everything she said leads me to believe she's gone with Sasuke. But there was something…..off about what she said. There was something in her eyes."
As Yamato said this his hand nonchalantly touched the ground and felt a piece of cloth and metal. "What's this," he asked as he examined it. "Wait. This is Sakura's forehead protector."
"Hmmm," Anko said, "It looks like she left this behind. So it would not seem she truly has turned her back on Konoha."
Yamato stared at the cloth for a brief moment and considered the last words Sakura had said to him and smile crept on his face. "No," he said, "Not exactly. Sakura left this for me to find. She must have realized that as it was we were at a disadvantage fighting Sasuke and his group. So she came up with a plan. But I fear it may not end as she planned."
Yamato quickly got to his feet followed by Anko. He then bit his thumb releasing a small trickle of blood and he then wiped it onto his palm and slammed it to the ground. "Summoning Jutsu," he yelled as a puff of smoke was created just in front of him.
As the smoke cleared a medium sized dog with grey fur and blue vest and forehead protector around its neck, sat sitting in front of them.
"Wait," Anko said in surprise, "I recognize this dog! It's Shiba, one of Hatake Kakashi's Ninken. When did you learn how to do that summon?"
"Well," Yamato said as he smiled and nervously scratched the back of his head. "You see I've always been able to technically. Kakashi-t'aicho taught it to me but I was never particularly good at it. So I avoid using the technique. In fact Shiba here is the only dog I can summon."
Shiba then stood up and walked closer to Yamato. "Hello Yamato," Shiba said. "How goes things with you. It's been years since you last called upon me."
"Yes Shiba," Yamato said as he bent down and rubbed Shiba's head. "Unfortunately I wish I was calling you under better circumstances."
Yamato then produced Sakura's protector for Shiba. "You remember Haruno Sakura yes," Yamato asked.
Shiba thought for a moment and then nodded. "Yes I do," he said, "That's the loud girl from years ago; one of Kakashi's pack."
"Yes," Yamato said, "She's missing and we need to track her. Can you do it?"
Shiba quickly smelled the item and turned to the North. "Follow me," is all Shiba said as he sprinted away leaving Yamato and Anko to follow.
Meanwhile – Sunagakure
Gaara stared in stunned silence as he saw Naruto's Rasengan inches from his face. Knowing he had no time to counter or dodge, he quickly braced himself for impact. Suddenly Naruto's Rasengan faded to nothing and Naruto simply placed his hand no Gaara's shoulder.
"Are we done here Gaara," Naruto said with a bright smile. "I think we have more important things to do than this don't you?"
Gaara merely stared at Naruto for a moment and then looked down at the floor with his fists clenched. "You still don't get it do you Naruto," Gaara said.
Still smiling Naruto removed his hand from Gaara's shoulder. "Of course I understand what all this was about," he said.
Without warning Gaara punched Naruto hard in the face causing him to fall back and land on his butt. "Shut up," Naruto Gaara said. "You are so damned naïve it sickens me. You know just as well as I that every technique I used on you was with the express purpose of killing you. Yet, throughout it all you still held back, even if it cost you your life.
Naruto rose to his feet and remained silent as Gaara continued. "Naruto," Gaara said, "Before I met you I never understood what it meant to have a friend or to fight for something beyond my own gratification. You taught me the meaning of friendship and sacrifice. For that I will forever be in your debt. But there is something you need to learn. That anything good in this world must sometimes be attained or kept by making hard choices.
"Naruto," Gaara said, "from the day I met you your goal has always been to be Hokage. But you, someone who has never been asked to lead, still fail to realize what the cost of being Hokage is."
Naruto's hands clenched and he grimaced slightly then said, "You're wrong Gaara. I know damned well the cost of being Hokage is and what would be asked of me."
Gaara quickly grabbed Naruto by the collar and said, "If you knew that you wouldn't have come here and put me in this situation now, where I have to choose between my friends and my duty."
Gaara let Naruto go and his features seemed to soften as he continued. "Naruto," he said, "Being a Kage isn't all about receiving the respect of your comrades. It's about protecting your people. Even if it means having to make decisions you don't like to do so. It's about making hard choices. I was willing to kill you and you held back. You made a choice to do so even though you could've died because you couldn't bring yourself to do what was necessary."
"That's what this fight was about," Gaara said. "I need you to see that sometimes tough decisions must be made for the greater good. You came here thinking your smile and some fancy words would be enough to end a war. You were foolish and naïve and reckless. And that is something you can never afford to be if you wish to be Hokage. And the sad part is that you would treat this just like you treat Sasuke."
Naruto tensed, and opened his mouth as if ready to say something. But no suitable words could come to him, so he remained silent. "I've been keeping track of Sasuke as best I could," Gaara said, "And you know as well as I that Sasuke has done terrible things Naruto. Do you honestly think your smile would be enough to convince your village to accept him back? Do you think that he is still the person you knew or more than that someone who wants to return home?"
Naruto clenched his fist and looked away. "What would you have me do Gaara," Naruto asked. "I can't just give up on him. I have to believe I can help him."
"But at what cost Naruto," Gaara asked. "How far are you willing to go to help someone who does not view you the same way you do him? You need to ask yourself just what are you trying to do for Sasuke. Are you doing this for Sasuke's benefit or your own? You're going to have to make a tough decision Naruto, whether you want to or not. Hopefully you'll realize this while you wait to be dealt with."
Gaara then raised his index and middle fingers into the air and motioned them towards Naruto. Suddenly two guards appeared behind him and grabbed him by both arms, pinning them behind him. "As I told you Naruto," Gaara said. "You shouldn't have come here." Gaara then looked at the guards and said, "Arrest him and place him and Nara Shikamaru in our prison to await trial."
"Naruto," Gaara said as Naruto was being led away. "In five days you will be tried, where you'll have the chance to prove your innocence. If you're found guilty however, the punishment is death."
Gaara stood as Naruto and Shikamaru were led away silently. He remained as his sister left and onlookers began to disperse. Within time, Gaara was finally alone with his thoughts, his decisions and his regrets.
The weight of his people was heavy on his shoulders. But he would carry on, because he had to. He is Gaara of the Sand, The Kazekage of Sunagakure. He had choices to make, choices that affect the lives of many, hard choices; choices that somehow he'd have to learn to live with.
End of Chapter Sixteen
Next Time: Wilting Cherry Blossom