And now we come to the end of the first arc of the story. The next chapter will feature what most of you have been waiting for: Fuu's introduction. I don't really have much to say at the moment so, without further ado, let's see the conclusion of Naruto's mission, and Jiraiya's reasons for not intervening when he probably should have.
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
Haruna was on the run through another part of the mountainous terrain, far away from where the battle with Ruiga had taken place, guarded by four of the blonds' clones. The sun had made a quarter of its journey across the sky as it shined down on the land.
As she made her way to what she hoped was safety, she had to wonder why the blond was going to such lengths to help her. She'd been surprised when she learned of their plan to act as decoys for her. Why would he do this when it wasn't his mission? And when she'd made it perfectly clear she didn't want his help.
Her thoughts were interrupted when one of the blonds' suddenly grabbed her, jumping to the side just as a spiked ball flew through the air, slamming into the ground where she'd been just a moment ago.
Another clone sent a kunai where the weapon had come from, only for it to be deflected at the last moment.
"Well, I gotta hand it to ya, kid. You've got some nice reflexes." A voice said from above them. She and the clones looked up in shock to see the heavy set member of the Janin floated in the air above them, looking down with a superior grin, as if he was looking at insects he would step on for amusement. He released whatever the power that was holding him up was and fell to the ground before pulling his arm back, retracting the spiked weight attached to his kusarigama and spinning it above his head. "Must have some pretty large chakra reserves to use that clone jutsu so liberally."
The clones took formation around Haruna, each drawing a kunai as they prepared to fight and the fourth clone stood before the group. "I'm guessing you're another one of the Janin?"
"Heh, that's right, you must have run into my brother by now." The mission nin replied with a tilt of his head. "What an honor that our name's spread so far. Name's Jiga. Now if you'd be so kind as to hand over the princess…"
"Not a chance." One of the clones snarled in response as Haruna took a step back.
"Have it your way then." Jiga chuckled grimly before launching his weight again. Once again, they scattered, one grabbing Haruna as they dodged the attack.
The clones threw their kunai in unison, attacking him from four different directions, but they were all stunned by what followed.
Jiga simply withdrew the weight and, as it passed by the knives, they were drawn to and latched onto the spiked ball. Jiga simply pulled the daggers off his weapon.
"You're going to have to do better than that."
"What the- What just happened? It's like that thing's a magnet or something." One of the clones said.
"Smart kid, that's exactly right. When I was a runt like you, I ate iron every single day. Because of that, I have plenty of metal floating around in my body that I can use as a magnet whenever I want." The missing nin explained.
The clones growled in frustration, knowing that if that was the case, their weapons would be mostly useless, though one hand an idea on how to use that magnetism against him. Still, this left very few avenues of attack available to them.
As two clones charged forward, intent on bringing the fight to Jiga since they were short on long range attacks and their weapons were almost useless. Jiga threw his spiked ball again, but the targeted clone ducked under it as they closed the distance between them.
Jiga let out a bark of a laugh as he pulled the weight back. He ducked down when one of the clones launched a kick towards his face and swept out his leg as the second neared, causing it to burst into smoke. He then leapt into the air before throwing the kunai he'd taken from the blonds into the air. They hovered above him for a moment before shooting forward with insane speed, shooting through the clones and slamming into the ground with enough force to kick up a cloud of dust.
"Come on, your making this too easy." Jiga said while oddly patting his stomach after landing.
"Oh yeah?" One of the clones said as he leapt through the cloud with his arms crossed in front of him. "Well try this on for size!" With that, he swept his arms out, throwing four kunai at the gray haired man.
Jiga smirked… before his eyes widened when he noticed that the kunai all had explosive tags on them. His eyes widened but by the time he realized the blond was attempting to use his magnetism against him.
He deactivated the magnetism and took to the air to avoid the ensuing explosion.
"How dumb do you think I am?" Jiga questioned before looking to where Haruna was and finding her and the final clone were no where to be seen. "Oh, just trying to distract me huh? Clever, but not clever enough."
With a cry, the last remaining clone leapt out of the cloud at Jiga, twisting his body to dodge when he threw his spiked ball at him, rearing its fist back to punch him in the jaw.
Jiga simply manipulated his magnetized body and pulled himself to the nearby rock wall, his body tilting to land feet first on the vertical surface, before launching himself at the clone, slamming his fist into its stomach and destroying it in an instant.
He flipped through the air and landed on the ground before looking off where he was sure they'd run to. "Now, where do they think they're going?"
At that moment, Naruto was running through the forest, though at no where near top speed, with a blank look in his eyes. He'd spent a few minutes at a stream he'd found, washing the blood off of his hand. No matter how hard he'd tried, he could never seem to completely removed the stained feeling, but he'd eventually managed to tear himself away from the water, knowing that Haruna was counting on him.
This was one of the reasons jonin-sensei were so essential in the field. The mental conditioning the academies of the various villages imparted were rarely enough to prepare someone for the act of taking a life. Even now, his mind was still a little numb and there was still a dull pain in his heart from the knowledge that he'd killed someone.
Suddenly, his mind was snapped fully back to the present as he received the memories of the first clone destroyed by Jiga. Cursing as his expression shifted to one of determination, putting aside the thoughts on Yurinojo and Ruiga's fates, he took off at full speed, focusing on the fact that he had to save Haruna.
Meanwhile, the last remaining clone held Haruna's hand as it ran forward, dragging her along as quickly as he could pull her.
Suddenly, a familiar spiked weight flew through the air above them, slamming into the ground ahead of them and kicking up several chunks of rock. Rather than fall to back to the earth harmlessly, the stones levitated in the air for a moment before shooting towards them.
They moved so fast the clone only had enough time to push Haruna to the side before they tore into it, destroying it instantly.
"Naruto!" Haruna cried out as she saw her last protector destroyed, not out of concern, after all they were just chakra constructs, but because she knew she was now totally defenseless.
"Heh heh heh. Well, look at that. Looks like you're all alone." Jiga commented as he stepped forward. Haruna inched away, too afraid to even rise to her feet as the missing nin approached until he stood over her. "You know, it's too bad. You should have heard how your father went on about you before you died. How terrible he felt about sacrificing you for your people." He said mockingly.
Haruna froze at those words. She hadn't really thought about it… it hadn't really hit her until those words left the missing nin's mouth that her father was dead. But… he'd begged not only for their people's safety, but for hers? After he'd used her as a hostage?
"Oh well, at least you'll be together in the next world!" Jiga swung his kusarigama as Haruna raised her arm in futile defense… only for a geta sandal clad foot to suddenly collide with his head from the side. The world seemed to stand still for a brief moment for the princess and the missing nin before time resumed and he was sent flying through the air and into a boulder hard enough to shatter it.
"What kind of man treats a beautiful lady so callously?" The new arrival, Jiraiya said as he took a place in between Haruna and her attacker. "Not exactly a very manly way to act." He looked over his shoulder at the princess before pointing off into the forest. "I passed Naruto on the way here. He's over that way, go to him. It won't be easy to protect you against someone with his abilities in this kind of terrain."
Haruna, stunned by the events of the previous few seconds, took a moment to find her voice. When she could speak again, she asked, "W- who are you?"
"Me?" Jiraiya replied, pointing his thumb at himself. "I'm the brat's sensei." He turned back to his adversary, who was picking himself off the ground. "Now, why don't you head off? Careful, I don't know how many of these guys subordinates are still around."
Haruna nodded and stood, not even brushing herself off before running in the direction Jiraiya indicated.
"Heh, you shouldn't have bothered. All you managed to buy yourself is a one way ticket to the afterlife." Jiga said as he stepped forward. "In a place like this, full of magnetic rock, I'm invincible." He boasted with a laugh. "Besides, I just wanted to have some fun taking my time finishing them off. That caravan the kid was guarding? We've captured them and people in the next town. Get in our way and they're all-"
"You don't listen very well, do you?" Jiraiya cut him off, causing him to frown. The toad sage smirked as he said, "All those guys you left at the castle? I already took care of them, and some friends of mine should be about finished up in that town too."
"Wha- what?" The heavy set missing nin responded before rebuffing, "You're bluffing."
"You don't know who I am, do you?" The Sannin chuckled before holding his hand out in a dramatic pose. "I am a hero who travels the lands, vanquishing foes and saving lives. A man who goes by many titles. One who has mastered the ways of the ancient sages. One whose very name causes villains to beg for forgiveness." He said, going through a melodramatic kabuki dance before finishing in an equally overly dramatic pose "The legendary Jiraiya!"
Haruna ran through the forest as quickly as her legs would take her. While she had no desire to rely on anyone else, including the naïve blond, after seeing the enemy and their abilities, she knew that going on her own was pure folly.
But she couldn't get what she'd just learned out of her head. Her father… how had he really felt? She'd never even considered what had been going through his head when he sent her away, beyond the fact that it was for the greater good. Maybe because it was easier to blame him, she'd thought the well being of their country was all that mattered. She'd never thought… he'd been thinking of her as he died? He'd really cared about her?
And now she'd never be able to ask him how he felt or why he did what he did. She hadn't been anything but cold to him and hadn't trusted him at all once she'd got back but… it still hurt knowing he was gone.
"Haruna!" The princess stopped and looked up to the source of the voice that called out to her and found it was none other than Naruto, who landed before her. "You're all right."
Haruna nodded. "A man claiming to be your sensei saved me." Naruto was visibly shocked to hear that.
"The pervy sage was here?" Seeing Haruna's questioning expression, Naruto quickly added, "That's just what I call him. He's a huge pervert, but he's one of the strongest ninja in our village. His name's Jiraiya and he's one of the Sannin."
"Jiraiya's your sensei?" Haruna asked before shaking her surprise off when she noticed someone missing. "Where's Yurinojo?" Seeing the blond suddenly become crestfallen, she closed her eyes. "I see." She then walked past him. "Well, let's be on our way."
Naruto's hand shot out and grabbed her wrist, holding her firmly in place. "Hang on one second! Is that it? He died for you and all you can say is 'I see, let's get moving'? What the hell's the matter with you?"
Haruna shook off his grip. "What are you so upset about? He was only doing his duty-"
"Do you really think that's all it was?" Naruto yelled back. "He told me what happened to you." Haruna's eyes widened at that. "He told me all about how the three of you used to be friends before your father sent you away. What, did you think he and Kikunojo only cared because of your position?" He took a step forward, staring right into her amethyst orbs. "Do you know what his last words were? He practically begged me to protect you!"
Haruna froze at those words, her mind full of thoughts of her deceased childhood friends. "You may not have cared about them, but those two were willing to lay down their lives for you, and not even because you were their princess, but because you were their friend! They died for you, and all you can do is scoff!?"
"…" Haruna was silent as she thought of Yurinojo, Kikunojo and her father. She had refused to trust anyone… but the boy's words reminded her that at the very least, she could have trusted them. As she thought about them, she recalled all the times they'd been there, or tried to be there, for her… and now they were gone. She felt her heart ache as she realized she'd never be able to apologize.
"If you think I'm such a terrible person, then why are you still helping me? Is it because I'm a princess? This isn't your mission, why are you risking your life for me?"
"Because I'm not the type of guy who'd just leave you on your own like that." Naruto answered. Before Haruna could respond, Naruto's danger instincts went off. He grabbed her and leapt away; throwing both of them to the ground just as something slammed into the place they'd been standing hard enough to carve a small crevice into the earth.
"Hm, how noble of you." A voice commented from above. Naruto and Haruna looked up, their faces becoming masks of surprise at seeing the eldest brother, Renga, hovering in the air above them. "I find such traits are vastly overrated."
"You must be the leader." Naruto scowled up at the final member of the Janin.
"You hit the nail on the head." Renga replied as he floated down to the forest floor. "I have to commend you for finishing off my baby brother Ruiga. You saved me the trouble."
"What?" Naruto hissed in disgust.
"Oh, don't be so surprised. It's only good business." Renga replied, waving off the blonds' response. "Hopefully, whoever your friend is will be able to take care of Jiga too, though I could always just take them both out from afar. After all, it's only a matter of time before he wants a bigger take. Three daimyos, or even two, are just too many, wouldn't you say?"
"You'd kill your own siblings out of greed? What kind of monster are you?"
"Hm. As I said, it's just good business, they're not all that useful to me, and if someone's of no use to me, then I have no use for them. But you have more important things to worry about than my family problems." Renga said, with a superior smirk as he looked down at the blond. "That town you sent that caravan to? I'm afraid it's now under my control."
"What?" Haruna breathed in shock before Naruto had a chance to respond.
"I'd hate to think what might happen to those poor peddlers you were using if you didn't hand the princess over." Renga stated, his eyes turning to the girl.
Naruto took a step back, unsure of what to do. He couldn't hand over Haruna, but he couldn't just let those people die either. "Naruto?" Haruna questioned fearfully.
"Afraid he'll abandon you to die?" Renga questioned. "Personally, I think it'd be rather quaint. You used them to cover your escape only to die for them. It'd be poetic justice, not that I believe in such a concept."
After another moment, Naruto stepped in front of Haruna. "No deal."
"Oh, what? Do you plan on defeating me and saving the town and the girl?" Renga scoffed. "Fine, if that's how you feel, then I have no problem killing you too."
"Well let's see you try it." Naruto drew his kunai and ran towards the eldest of the Janin, who simply closed his eyes and tilted his head further.
"It's no use." Naruto leapt forward and stabbed with his weapon… only for it to hit an invisible wall.
"What the-?" Naruto jumped back and threw his weapon, only for it to bounce off of whatever barrier was protecting Renga.
Renga opened his eyes and placed a hand on his hip. "That's useless. There isn't a ninja alive who can defeat my ninjutsu. Here, let me demonstrate." He held his hands before of him, as if holding an orb, and threw out his hands. Naruto took to the air to dodge whatever it was Renga had unleashed… only to feel the wind knocked out of him when whatever the invisible force Renga was using slammed into his chest. He had no idea what it was other than the fact that it was extremely cold. Almost like ice.
Another hit him in the stomach and finally he was struck in the chest and sent flying through the air and to land on his back.
Before Naruto could even pull himself together, whatever had sent him to the ground slammed into him, kicking up a cloud of dust and leaving him in a small crater.
"Naruto!" Haruna called out, this time with genuine concern.
Naruto got to his feet a little shakily as he recovered from whatever had hit him, wiping a trickle of blood from his mouth as he glared at the last member of the Janin.
"You see, kid? It's hopeless. My jutsu is beyond anything you've ever seen."
Naruto pulled out two kunai with explosive tags and threw them at the brown haired man. Like all the other weapons, they bounced off the shield before detonating. Naruto took the opportunity to create five clones before grabbing Haruna and jumping back, using a tree for cover.
From his hiding place, he noticed the smoke ghosting across the shield and making it a little clearer. "What's that?"
"Is that… ice?" Haruna asked.
"That's right. I'm able to gather water vapor in the air and transform it into ice crystals, from there I can shape it in several ways and into various forms, including into an impervious shield." Renga explained with an arrogant smirk.
"You want to know something my sensei told me?" One of the clones asked as he and the others drew kunai, remembering something Jiraiya had told him when talking of defenses like Gaara's sand and Neji's Rotation. "'There exists no shield that can't be pierced, nor a sword that can't be broken.' I'll find a way around that shield and kick your ass!"
"Bold words. If you're so confident, come on and try." Renga beckoned.
At that, the clones launched their attacks, the first four charging towards him at top speed, all drawing their kunai.
"It's useless!" Renga cast out his arms and sent out another wave of invisible projectiles, destroying the four clones. When the smoke cleared, he was slightly surprised to see that the final clone had simply vanished. He knew he hadn't destroyed it, so where…?
Hearing a battle cry behind him, he turned to see the clone charging at his back, obviously hoping in vain it wasn't protected, however, what caught his interest and caused his confident expression to fall for a moment was what lay in its hand: a visible orb of spinning chakra.
"Rasengan!" The clone slammed the orb into Renga's shield and after a second, it cracked. Renga quickly opened the top of his shield and leapt into the air before sending out another ice blast and destroying it.
Standing on another ice platform, he turned to the blond and the princess. "Hm, it seems I underestimated you. That's the first time anyone's ever damaged my shield. I feel I've gone a bit easy on you. So, why don't we try this?"
With that, Renga made hand signs and… nothing happened.
No, something was happening. Naruto could feel it. But what? His eyes darted around, searching for any sign.
"Hey, kid. Would you like to know the forecast for the day?" Renga asked. "I'd say sunny with scattered clouds. Perfect weather for dying."
Suddenly, the light of the sun seemed to intensify and Naruto could feel the spot they were in get hotter and hotter by the moment. Anyone with half a brain would realize when that they needed to move. Now.
"Look out!" Naruto grabbed Haruna and leapt out of the way just as a beam of light came down from the sky and, causing an explosion where they'd been and setting the trees on fire.
"Is that… a lens?" Haruna asked as she looked to the sky.
"Pretty smart, aren't you princess? That's right; by forming the ice crystals into a lens I can focus the sun's rays into a powerful beam. Not the most accurate of weapons, but brutally effective." Renga explained. "You two have no where to run. If I want to, I can just burn down this entire forest."
Naruto grit his teeth as he stood in between the missing nin and the princess before he felt the area heat up again. He quickly grabbed Haruna and leapt away, into the trees and away from the Janin's leader.
"You can't get away." Renga said as he placed his thumbs and middle fingers together, making a circle with his hands. Before him, multiple ice lenses formed, making a makeshift telescope which he used to search out his quarry.
Naruto and Haruna hid behind a tree, the blond peeking out from their hiding spot for any sign of their enemy. "Listen." Naruto began. "I'll try to distract him. You need to get out of here and back to the Pervy Sage as fast as you can."
"What? But… Naruto!" Naruto turned to see what had cut off Haruna's words to see the ice telescope had snaked around them and through the bushes. Renga's eye was reflected through the lens and they could see twist in malicious glee.
Knowing what was coming, Naruto grabbed Haruna and bolted away, just in time to evade another beam of sunlight.
Haruna breathed heavily, their most recent near death sending her heart racing from fright as Naruto looked to the sun for any sign that another beam was incoming.
However, none came and soon, Renga stepped out from the trees. "I really can't understand why you're so hell bent on sacrificing your life for her. I'd really rather not waste anymore time with this farce of a battle."
"I'm not going to quit and I won't lose. Yurinojo asked me to protect her with his dying breath, and that's what I'm going to do!"
Renga laughed derisively. "So you're trying to fulfill the dying wish of a friend? Is that it? Ha, you remind me of this countries former daimyo." Haruna perked up at that, listening intently. "'I don't care what happens to me, just spare my people'. He even had the gall to ask if I thought the princess could ever forgive him for giving her away when their country was on the verge of collapsed. Ha. People like you are such fools."
"You're wrong! He was a wise man!"
"If you think he was so wise, then go and join him!" Renga cast out his arms and threw more invisible projectiles. This time, Naruto knew better than to dodge and threw a smoke bomb at the ground before leaping out of the way. He could feel a chill as the attack past by. "I'm putting an end to this right now."
Once more, the blond felt extreme heat as the lens in the sky focused on him. He leapt to the side to dodge yet another beam and looked up at the sun, trying to figure out a way out of this mess.
But he was coming up with a blank. That beam seemed to be able to tear through anything, and Renga probably wasn't bluffing when he said he'd burn down the entire forest. At this rate, he'd run out of places to escape to, and fast, and Renga didn't have to worry since he could just create more ice platforms and stand above the blaze.
Once more the sun's light was trained on him. As Naruto moved to dodge, he briefly saw the area before him, shadowed by the forest canopy, being illuminated by the light reflected from his forehead protector.
Reflected…
That's when the proverbial light bulb went off.
Naruto dodged another beam of light and made a cross shaped hand sign and created two dozen clones, ten of which charged while the rest jumped and threw kunai. All the attacks were blocked by the ice shield and the clones who tried to get in close were taken out by more projectiles. Renga then manipulated the lens once more, preparing to fire another beam of light.
Just what Naruto had wanted.
He threw a kunai at the lens, angled slightly off. The light reflected off the metal and struck the ground before Renga.
"What?" The ice user spoke in shock, instinctively raising his arm to shield himself, even though his ice wall would protect him.
Gritting his teeth, he looked into the smoke before his eyes widened in shock as a blur glow could be seen through the veil.
The smog was cleared in a spiraling shape, revealing the source of the glow. Naruto was holding a Rasengan with the aid of a clone that was using both hands to help him wield it. However, there was something different about this Rasengan.
It was five times bigger than the last one he'd made.
As he couldn't find a way to get around the shield, the best way he could think of was to use a stronger attack. He'd poured more and more chakra into his technique while the clone helped him maintain its form, with the result being a larger, denser sphere of chakra with far greater destructive power.
All confidence faded from the missing nin's face. It was replaced by fear as the man knew exactly how dangerous the attack was. As there was no time to counter and at the speed the blond was moving, he doubted he could dodge; Renga raised his hands and channeled as much chakra into his shield as he could to raise its defensive power, a snowflake shape forming on it as it thickened.
It wasn't enough. The moment the attack hit the shield, it cracked. It took only two seconds to shatter completely.
The orb slammed into Renga's chest and a wave of chakra burst out in the direction of the attack, tearing a large crater in the ground behind the missing nin and sending cracks through the earth all around them even as Renga remained stuck on the sphere, his eyes wide and his mouth open in a silent scream.
Haruna could only shield her face as she watched in awe at the immense destructive power the blond had unleashed.
"Giant Rasengan!" Naruto cried as he continued to drive the orb into Renga's stomach before finally, it exploded, driving Renga through the earth, carving a deep path in the ground that went on for dozens of yards.
When the dust cleared, Renga laid at the end of the crater, blood oozing from his mouth as he stared lifelessly to the sky. His stomach was almost torn open by the attack, and even though his skin was still intact, though permanently left with a spiral shape carved into his flesh, his internal organs had been basically destroyed.
Naruto breathed heavily as he stared at Renga's distant body, feeling another pang of guilt as he realized he'd taken another life, even if the man was such a monster. He'd wanted to win. He needed to take him down an he couldn't see any other way to do it but now that it was over… he felt hollow.
"Naruto?" Haruna said as she walked forward, seeing his change in posture. When he turned to her, she was briefly taken aback by the look in his eyes. It wasn't the look of someone who'd just won a battle. Before she could ask about it, life returned to his eyes and his gaze quickly focused on Haruna.
"Oh crap! Haruna, we need to save the town and-!"
"No you don't." A voice cut through the blonds' rapid dialogue. Both turned to see Jiraiya and, much to Naruto's shock, Shizune, step out of the tree line.
"Pervy Sage? Wait, S- Shizune? What are you doing here?" Naruto asked.
"What do you think? Cleaning up after you." Another voice, one familiar to the blond, said. Out from the trees walked Shikamaru, who observed the crater and whistled. "Geez, talk about overkill. You sure did a number on that guy."
Naruto winced and shrunk back at the reminder of his most recent kill. Jiraiya noticed this and stepped forward. "You don't need to worry. We've already taken care of that guy's goons. All of them."
"Mater Jiraiya sent word to Lady Tsunade about the coup." Shizune explained. "As soon as she heard, she sent us to help. She likes the Land of Vegetables and its lord was kind to her in the past." She looked downtrodden as she added, "But unfortunately, by the time we got here, he'd already…"
"I know…" Haruna replied, looking downcast as her gaze fell to her feet and her hair shadowed her eyes as she thought of everything she'd just been through… and everything she'd just lost. "So… it's all over?"
"Yes." Shizune answered.
After a moment, a tear fell down Haruna's face. It was followed by another as she began to tremble as memories of her guards and her father filled her mind. She tried to hold back her emotions, but after restraining them for years she found she just couldn't.
"Haruna?" Naruto asked in concern, stepping close to her. She leaned down and wrapped him in her arms, needing a shoulder to cry on. Seeing this, Naruto allowed her to let out her sorrows on him, hugging her and patting her back as she cried.
In the aftermath of the Janin's failed coup, Haruna took her rightful place as the daimyo of the Land of Vegetables. Through those hardships and Naruto's words, as well as seeing that the Hokage had sent aid because of the kindness her father showed her, she'd learned once more to put her trust in people and decided to follow her father's example and be a kind and just leader.
That night, lodgings were prepared for the shinobi and Naruto and Jiraiya were allowed to stay in the castle. Everyone who knew him noticed that the blond had been oddly quiet since the end of the ordeal, but hadn't felt it an appropriate time, amidst the celebration that the Janin's short reign had come to a close and the attempts to aid in the rebuilding of the country.
And now, unable to sleep, Naruto, clad in a bed robe the castle's staff had provided, sat on the roof of the castle, staring up at the crescent moon hovering over the land.
Hearing footsteps behind him, the Jinchuriki craned his neck to see his sensei was standing there looking down at him with his arms crossed.
"Hey kid. Can't sleep?" Naruto didn't respond and simply turned back to the moon. With a sigh, Jiraiya walked up to him and stood next to him. Turning his head to look at his student, he asked the blond teen, "Got something on your mind?"
"… How long?" Jiraiya raised a brow at that question. Naruto turned to look his sensei in the eye, his gaze hardening. "You were shadowing me back there, weren't you? There's no way you could have gotten here when you did and sent word to Grandma Tsunade otherwise."
Jiraiya let out another sigh as he looked away and rubbed the back of his head. "You're sharper than most give you credit for, you know that kid?" After a pause he answered the question. "From the beginning. I wanted to see how you'd do if you were in charge so I let you think you were on your own as a test."
"A test?" Naruto asked in bewilderment before he shot up and brought his fist up before his chest, his expression furious as he snarled. "A test? You let Yurinojo and Kikunojo die just to test me!?"
Jiraiya, having expected such a response, remained calm. He simply closed his eyes and replied, "Geez kid, what kind of guy do you think I am? Of course not."
"Then where the hell were you!? If you'd stepped in sooner then maybe… maybe…" Naruto looked down to his feet as he eyes narrowed.
Jiraiya was silent for a moment before answering. "… You're right; I could have stepped in as soon as we learned the full scope of the situation. In fact, I probably should have"
"Then why didn't you!?"
"Because I wouldn't have done anything different. At least, not at first." Jiraiya replied with a shrug, causing Naruto's anger to give way to surprise. "Guarding that many people against an unknown enemy isn't easy for anyone and the caravan wouldn't have helped cover you at all against the kind of people they were running from. You needed to get those peddlers out of there and the decoy idea was a good one. On top of that, Kikunojo wanted to go, and I would have stayed with you and the princess anyway. Had I shown myself, I would have still sent Kikunojo to the help with the distraction. Nothing would have changed."
Naruto was left stunned that Jiraiya would have done the same thing, and it showed on his face. However, a moment later, the flame of his anger rekindled and he yelled, "Then what about after that? Why didn't you do anything when we were fighting that Ruiga guy?"
"I didn't say I was there the whole time." Jiraiya replied. "I thought you had it handled since you knew his abilities and had a plan, so I left to handle the coup and his two brothers while you guys took care of him. After all, worst case, they could try to hold the people hostage against us. From what I know of them, I wouldn't have put it past them. I scouted out the enemy and helped kick things off when the help arrived, then I came back to help you out." He closed his eyes. "Unfortunately, turned out the other two brothers had already left to find Haruna themselves, and by the time I got back, your fight was already over."
Naruto seemed to be pacified by the Sannin's answer and sat back down, his eyes on the peaceful village sleeping at the bottom of the hill. The toad sage waited for a moment, hoping Naruto would respond, before deciding to press the issue, "So kid, what's got you so down? You just took down a villain, rescued a princess, and helped save a country. You should be celebrating!"
"… I…" Naruto started, his face taking on a troubled look. The pain of what he'd done hadn't dulled at all. In fact, now that there wasn't a crisis to focus on or lives at stake, it had only gotten worse. The guilt of taking those two lives had consumed his thoughts and he found he couldn't enjoy the any the celebration or even the praises he'd been receiving. He just wanted to go back to Konoha, crawl into his room and hide away from the world. "I killed them. Those two missing nin, Renga and Ruiga. I didn't need to put so much power into that Rasengan to win. And Ruiga… when he killed Yurinojo, all I saw was red. I used my… my tenant's power and killed him with my bare hands. I'm… I'm a murderer."
Jiraiya gave a bitter laugh, staring out into the night. "Kid, if you're a murderer, than so am I." Naruto's head jerked in Jiraiya's direction, his eyes wide with shock. "Trust me; I felt the same way after my first kill. Most do, and the ones that don't are the ones you have to watch out for." He then turned to his student. "Let me ask you something, what do you think we did with most of those guy's cronies? What do you think I did with their other brother? This is a normal part of being a shinobi."
"You mean… this is supposed to be easy?" Naruto seemed slightly horrified at the concept.
Jiraiya shook his head. "No, it's not. It'll get easier, but the guilt you'll feel will never really go away. But that's a good thing; it means you're still human. It's not something that should ever be easy or taken lightly, but there are times when it's necessary. And some guys out there really just need to die. Tell me, what kind of people were those two? They weren't exactly what you'd call decent human beings, were they?"
Naruto frowned as he thought about the people he killed, "Those two were… awful. Ruiga… Ruiga seemed like he enjoyed every minute of what he did to Yurinojo and Kikunojo. And Renga was even worse. He admitted he was glad I'd killed Ruiga because that way there'd be one less person to split their gains with. His own brother! And he said he hoped you would kill Jiga too."
The toad Sannin nodded. "That's what I figured from what the one I fought said. What do you think guys like that would have done if left alone? They'd keep hurting and killing innocent people. You're actually pretty lucky that your first kills were scum like those Janin guys. As a shinobi, sometimes, for the good of your village or to protect your comrades or loved ones, you'll have to kill people who are just trying to do the same thing. People who are fighting for their village, their comrades and their loved ones." Seeing Naruto's eyes widen, he added, "Sure, sometimes fights between shinobi of different villages can go without one side killing the other, but other times that won't be the case. It's up to you to decide what kind of situation you're in. At those times, it helps to remind yourself that they'd do the same to you and your friends, given the opportunity."
While the thought of killing people who were fighting for the same reasons as him was a little appalling to the blond, the Sannin's words had improved his mood a bit. About a minute passed without another word spoken between the student and the teacher before Jiraiya turned and said, "Think about what I told you, alright? I'm gonna hit the sack."
With that, the Sannin leapt off the roof and entered the castle.
Naruto remained on the roof, still dwelling on the events of the day before he heard a door slide open. Curious as to whom it was, he slid down and peered under the slanted roof to find it was Haruna, wearing an expensive looking yellow kimono with flower patterns of multiple colors.
"Oh, Haruna."
The princess craned her neck to look at the young Uzumaki. "Naruto? You can't sleep either huh?" Naruto flipped under the roof and landed on the roka beside her, after a moment, she stepped up to the railing and placed her hand on it as she said, "When I close my eyes, I see everyone I lost… I keep thinking about how I acted towards them for so long… and how I'll never be able to apologize to them…"
Naruto gave her a soft smile. "I'm sure they understand and forgive you." He joined her at the railing and looking up at the stars. "Your father was a wise, kind man. He thought of you even at the end, and Yurinojo and Kikunojo gave their all to protect you. I'm sure they're looking down on you with pride at who you're becoming now."
"Thank you." She replied with a smile of her own before turning to look at him. "You seem to have troubles of your own. May I ask what's on your mind?"
Naruto's expression became a blank mask before finally, he answered with a question of his own. "Do you think I'm a monster?" Haruna was surprised by the question as Naruto turned to look up at her. When she didn't respond, he reiterated, "You saw what I did back there. I killed that guy, Renga. I used something way stronger than it needed to be and destroyed him… do you think I'm a monster for that?"
To his surprise, Haruna knelt down and wrapped her arms around him. She could remember when Yurinojo and Kikunojo had their first kills and, though she herself had never taken a life, knew that the blond was going through. "What I saw, was you take down a villain who murdered my father and countless other innocent lives, ravaged my country for his own gain and would have killed his own siblings just to have more power for himself." She pulled back and gave him a reassuring look. "Naruto, the man you killed was a monster, not you. Understand?"
Naruto smiled, his heart now mostly at ease. "Thank you, Haruna."
The next day, after the funerals for Yurinojo and Kikunojo, Naruto, Jiraiya, Shizune and Shikamaru had gathered together at the gates of the castle. Though there was still work to be done, many of the repairs were finished, word had gotten to the other countries that the land had a ruler, and most of the leaf shinobi who'd accompanied them now awaited outside the village. It was time for them all to be on their way.
It really was a wonderful place, they all had to agree. Now that many of the scars were healed, it was so peaceful, so… relaxed. And the aroma of the flowers hung in the air, putting everyone at ease.
"Well, I think it's time for us to head out too. We've got a lot of work to be done." Jiraiya said as he crossed his arms.
"Before you go, I have a request I'd like to make." Haruna stated, looking to the sky. "I'm not sure I'm wise enough to lead this country on my own yet, so I'd like the aid of your people, if you don't have a problem with it."
"Whatever you need. Lady Tsunade feels a debt of gratitude to this country, and she feels there should be more places like it in the world. Just ask." Shizune said.
"Very well." Haruna nodded before turning to the blur eyed blond. "Naruto… you remind me a lot of my father. You carry the same desire to help and protect that he did and so… I'd like to ask you to become my advisor."
To say everyone was shocked by this would be an understatement. Everyone turned to the Jinchuriki who could only stare at her with wide eyes. After a few moments, he said, "Sorry." He'd like to help her, but Konoha was his home and he had too many people he cared about there. Besides… this was such a serene place… he didn't want to think what Akatsuki might do to it trying to get to him. "I'll lend a hand whenever you need it, but my hearts with Konoha. And when I become Hokage, I'll do everything I can to help you protect this pace."
"I see." Haruna said, smiling despite her disappointment. "Thank you for the promise. In return for that, and as thanks for your aid in this crisis, I'll do what little I can to aid your village."
"You have our gratitude." Shizune nodded.
"Well, guess this is where we head off." Shikamaru commented, rubbing the back of his neck. "Man, you have a knack for winding up in troublesome situations, don't you?"
Naruto grinned at the lazy Nara as he replied, "What can I say? I guess I'm just a magnet for adventure."
"Hn." Shikamaru grunted in response. "I'll tell everyone back at Konoha you said hey."
And with that, the two pairs departed, waving to each other and the princess as they left, Shikamaru and Shizune on their way back to the village, and Naruto and Jiraiya to continue their training trip. Naruto swore to himself that he would do everything in his power to ensure that he nothing like what happened to Kikunojo and Yurinojo would happen to any of his other friends. Not if he could help it. He knew now he couldn't protect everyone, but that didn't mean he wouldn't try.
The toad Sannin smiled at the determined look on his student's face. While it wasn't the way he'd hoped it would happen, he felt the blond had grown a lot during this mission.
Haruna vowed to herself to make her father proud as she watched them fade into the distance until they disappeared into the field of flowers.
And that concludes the Vegetables arc. I hope you enjoyed it. Please review.
Oh, and sorry to anyone who wanted to see the Jiga fight, but, let's face it. While it would have been difficult to protect someone against a person with Jiga's abilities in that kind of terrain, otherwise the battle was horribly one sided.