Here's the next chapter of Legends of Two Jinchuriki. Hope you enjoy it.
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
Naruto laid on his back on the smooth face of a rock, one leg crossed over the other and his head resting on his hands as he watched the marshmallow islands float by on the blue canvas above, a small smile on his face as the tall grass swayed in the gentle breeze. He had to admit, he was beginning to see why Shikamaru found this hobby so enjoyable. It was a nice way to unwind; lying down, basking in the sun's warmth as you watched the ever-changing clouds, at least now that he knew how to sit still. Of course, he would never be able to just sit around and spend all day doing this like the lazy Nara could.
Things had gone fairly smoothly over the past few weeks. They'd returned to their usual routine of travelling and training. After their adventure in the Land of Rice Fields, Jiraiya had felt they could stand to improve their stealth skills and had decided to add that to their usual training regiment, combining it with their physical conditioning.
Naruto had to suppress the urge to grimace. That had been grueling. The Sannin had set up an obstacle courses that twisted through the forest they'd dwelled in, filled with traps, both of the normal variety and trap seals which the two Jinchuriki had had to traverse while carrying buckets of water connected by a stick on both shoulders and wearing weights on their feet. The entire thing was watched over by Jiraiya and a few clones and, if they should ever let their presence be known or spill even a drop of water, the observer would give them a harsh and usually painful penalty. It didn't help that this was usually after their normal physical conditioning, which, after push ups, sit ups, etc, typically involved something to the effect of swimming against a current while tied to something large and porous, such as a large log, and followed intense sparring sessions, which meant that they were already tired. Still, neither had complained and the training did its purpose.
They'd made good progress until two days ago, when the Sannin felt it was time to move on… into the Land of Hot Water. It was a pretty nice country with a climate similar to the Land of Fire, known to have lots of natural hot springs… needless to say, the perverted sage had decided that they should take a break from training while he goes and does 'research', saying that they needed a rest from their constant training, lest they burn themselves out. The two Jinchuriki decided to meet him half way, relaxing while their clones trained for them.
Now that thought caused the blond's lips to curl back into an amused smile as he recalled how Fuu reacted to learning the Shadow Clone jutsu's secret.
"So let me get this straight, you're telling me that everything those clones learn is transferred back to the user when they disperse, including new jutsu, skills they picked up, facts they learned from reading, everything, and the only drawback is the mental strain and the amount of chakra they take? Did I get that right?" Fuu asked in a perfect deadpan, ticking off the uses with her fingers, causing Naruto to nod.
The mint haired girl's face immediately lit up with excitement, stars shining in her orange eyes so bright the blond almost felt as if he was staring into the sun as she brought her balled up hands before her chest in anticipation. "Are you kidding me!? Think of all the books I could read at the same time! Romance, Sci-fi, Action, Adventure, Fantasy. I could read every book I want to even when I'm on a mission!" She shot forward, her face inches away from his as her arms flailed excitedly. "I have to know, I have to know, you have to teach me!"
He probably would have reacted the same way had he been told what he could do with the jutsu from the get go, though he'd have been more interested in all the amazing jutsu he could learn as opposed to what he could read.
And so, Naruto taught Fuu the Shadow Clone Jutsu, as well as its explosive variant, and she'd joined him in abusing the hell out of its information sharing ability. Unlike Naruto, however, while she had considered how to use the technique to train, she always devoted at least two clones to reading a book a day.
Today, he had asked her to meet him in that field for a surprise. She was quite anxious to find out what he was going to give her, but he'd enjoyed keeping her in the dark. He thought, with some amusement, that she'd probably be perplexed and underwhelmed with it at first, at least until she learned just what it was.
At that moment, he heard the rustling sound of someone moving through the grass and turned his head to the side to see the mint haired girl, running towards him.
"Naruto." She called to him as she neared him. She'd been wondering all day what it was he was going to give her. Maybe new cloths as a gift, or a new jutsu… or maybe he got snacks for them to share again, away from their perverted sensei and the people in the town… just the two of them…
… Why did that thought make her heart feel so warm all of a sudden?
Naruto sat up, coiled his body before springing forward, landing on his feet and turning to face the mint haired girl. "Hey, Fuu. Right on time."
The girl nodded as she came to a stop in front of the blond. Her mouth curving in a smirk, the mint haired Jinchuriki decided to tease him. "So, what is it you called me out here for?" Her expression took on a bashful air as she placed a hand on her cheek and looked away, keeping her coy smirk. "Did you want to get me all to yourself? Or were you were hoping to steal another kiss? Maybe Ero-sensei really did rub off on you…"
The blond genin's eyes widened as a he felt blood rush to his cheeks as Fuu chuckled. He shook his head rapidly before crying out, "Don't even joke about that, I'm nothing like that old perv!"
"Oh, really?" She asked, her coy smirk returning. "You sure about that?"
"Of course I am!"
"Then why are you blushing?" Naruto straightened at that, his expression taking on a look of shock. "You sure that deep down, that isn't exactly what you wanted?"
Naruto was suddenly reduced to a sputtering mess of denials as he struggled to come up with a reason for his body's betrayal as the mint haired kunoichi covered her mouth with her hand, trying to restrain her mirth before finally, she couldn't resist anymore and broke out in peels of laughter, causing him to give a frustrated growl.
"Relax, I was just kidding. Now seriously, what did you call me here for?" She asked as she calmed down.
Naruto took a breath, placing his hand on his forehead before turning back to his fellow Jinchuriki and saying, "Well… I've been doing a lot of thinking lately, and I decided I wanted to give you something really special to me."
The mint haired girl blinked. "Really?"
Naruto nodded, reaching into his vest. "Yeah, it's a jutsu that's really important, not just to me but to my village, and I want to teach it to you."
Fuu's expression lit up with anticipation at that. "What is it?"
Naruto unrolled the scroll and pulled it through the air, releasing the seal with his chakra as it passed by his hand, causing it to obscure his limb in a cloud of smoke. The female Jinchuriki's eyes eagerly trained on it, waiting to view its contents… only for all her enthusiasm to leave her as she slumped over when she saw it cleared to reveal… "… A water balloon?"
The white clad kunoichi stared blankly at the object the blond held as Naruto nodded; his eyes closed and a wide grin on his face. She met his gaze and gestured at the balloon. "… And what exactly are you going to teach me with these?"
"Glad you asked." The Uzumaki answered, cracking open a single ocean blue orb and taking in her expression with amusement. If only she knew what he was going to teach her! "This is a secret technique that relies purely on chakra manipulation. There are no hand signs or any other mediums involved." He said, holding the balloon out to her. "This is just the first step, learning how to rotate your chakra. All you have to do is break the balloon by spinning the water, and you've got it."
With that, he summoned another and demonstrated for her. With a smirk, he pushed his chakra into the water, causing the surface of the balloon to roil and churn before finally, it burst. He shook his hand twice to dry it, sending droplets of water to the ground.
Fuu gave him a skeptical glance before nodding, grinning as she said, "All right, piece of cake." She said, not seeing what she could get from this but accepting the balloon. Holding it up, her brow furrowed as she tried to do as he showed her. The side of the balloon extended as she guided the water with her chakra but it held firm. Her frown deepened as she cut her chakra and stared at the still intact balloon, having expected it to be an easy task. "What the…"
Naruto laughed, reminded of when he'd learned the technique himself. "Not as easy as it looks, is it?" He asked, clearly amused as she tried again. However, his expression shifted to one of shock when he saw the surface of the balloon begin to roil as the water churn within it. She'd already figured out the rotation.
He shook his head with a small smile as he recalled when he went through this training. It had taken him a whole day to figure out the trick behind it. Of course, he wasn't half as perceptive back then as he was now. He'd probably have realized it as quickly as she had.
Of course, figuring it out wasn't the same as actually doing it. While Fuu had figured out the secret, she couldn't seem to rotate the water in enough directions and quickly enough in order to actually pop the balloon. It was easy for Naruto because he used his other hand, but Fuu, apparently, was determined to do it the same way he had. But then, had she tried it, he'd have advised against it. His old method of forming the Rasengan was more time consuming and needed either a clone or, later, a both hands to form, which removed some of the technique's greatest strengths: the speed and ease with which it could be formed.
Her grip on the balloon tightened as she put more effort into manipulating the water, but to no avail. She poured more chakra into it, and called on her previous experience manipulating water, the basic exercise for learning to control water chakra, but all she succeeded in doing was speeding up the water slightly.
"Damn it… Come on… pop you stupid…"
Naruto continued to watch her for about a minute before he tilted his head to the side, giving her an amused grin as he said, "I'm going to head back to the town and look around. Want to come with?"
"No… I can get this…" The orange eyed Jinchuriki replied.
"Suit yourself." Naruto replied as he turned, placing his hands behind his head and walking off towards the town. There wasn't really any advice or help that he could give her for this step now that she figured out the trick behind it, so he didn't see any need to stick around. "Don't give up. You'll get it sooner or later."
The next morning, as the first golden rays of the sun filtered through the window and cast their light on him, Naruto stirred in his futon, turning away from its radiance which stung his still tired eyes, mumbling in his sleep as he tried to eek out just a few more minutes of peaceful slumber before facing the new day.
Finally, he rolled onto his back and slowly opened one blue orb, his vision slightly blurred and his mind slow to fully awaken as he fought off the lingering drowsiness. He sat up, rubbing his still closed eye before stretching as he let out a yawn.
His eyes scanned the room. It was a fairly ordinary hotel room with wooden floors and a balcony. On the other side of the room, his perverted sensei lay sprawled out on his own futon.
Standing, he walked over and slid open the door to the hotel's balcony, briefly shielding his eyes from the morning light as he stepped outside to greet the new day. Stretching one last time, his bones in his arms and back popping as he did so, light returned to his ocean blue eyes as he finally shook off the remaining sluggishness and his mouth spread into a grin. He rested his elbows on the railing as he looked out at the sky.
An hour later, the blond walked back to the field. He'd seen Fuu heading that way shortly after he'd gotten himself up. Apparently, even if she didn't know what he was trying to teach her, she was either determined to get it right, or trusted him enough to continue trying.
When he arrived, however, he blinked when he heard the girl let out a cry of joy. She then turned to face him, a bright smile playing across her features.
"Naruto, look! I got it!" the orange eyed girl said as she summoned another balloon and ran to meet him. Holding it out between them, she began channeling her chakra.
The Uzumaki watched as the surface of the balloon roiled before it popped. He smiled as she pumped her fist in victory.
"Told you. It was easy once I got the hang of it." She said with a smirk.
The Kyuubi Jinchuriki nodded as he replied, "Great. You got it pretty quick. Now, are you ready for the next step?"
When she gave an affirmative, he reached into his vest and pulled out another scroll. He knew she'd probably get this one quickly too. Like the first step, the main issue with this one was how much control and focus it took to concentrate enough chakra into one's palm. This was easy for Jinchuriki like them, who had chakra in abundance. His issue with this step had been his lack of focus.
Opening the scroll with a poof of smoke, Naruto produced a pair of rubber ball and threw one to his fellow Jinchuriki, who caught it with her right hand. She furrowed her brow as she stared at it. "Ok then, try this on for size. Just do exactly what you did before and pop the ball, and I don't mean just let the air out."
With that, he held up his ball and channeled his chakra into it, causing it to pop like an overinflated balloon in the blink of an eye, scattering wisps of chakra from his hand.
Fuu tilted her head, her face a mask of curiosity with a hint of doubt. Before she could ask him again, wanting to surprise her, he raised his hands in a placating gesture and said, "Just trust me. You won't regret it."
She nodded and turned to the ball in her hand, concentrating. The ball expanded, before finally it popped, but the results were less than spectacular. A small hole opened in the side and let the air out, deflating the object.
Naruto crossed his arms, smirking as he watched as the Nanabi Jinchuriki summoned another ball and repeated the process, with the same result. Five minutes of failed effort later, the green haired girl growled slightly as she placed her other hand on top of the ball, forcing more chakra into it. Its sides bulged out more, but the result was still the same. Calling another to her hand, she growled out, "Not again…" when once more the result was the same.
Naruto, now sitting on the ground, leaning against the nearby boulder with his head tilted to the sky, turned one ocean blue eye to her and asked, "Having trouble there, Fuu?"
"No… I can get it…" Fuu replied. Though she still wasn't sure exactly what this would get her, she was now determined not to fail at this seemingly easy task.
"Sure you don't want any help?"
"No, I've got this. You'll see, I'll figure it out in no time." She replied, not taking her eyes off of the object of her frustrations.
Naruto shrugged at her response and stood, briefly dusting himself off before walking off, waving over his shoulder. "All right. Come find me if you get it."
And with that, he made his way back to the town, leaving Fuu alone in the field.
It was three hours later that the blond returned to check up on the green haired Jinchuriki. After getting himself a few bowls of the heavenly dish that was ramen, the young Uzumaki had explored the town a bit and decided to step into the local gambling parlor and played a little han-cho. The venture had turned out surprisingly well. In fact, he'd been accused of using his ninjutsu to cheat somehow, which he hadn't. Still, he decided to leave, seeing as he'd overstayed his welcome, and walked away 18,000 Ryo richer.
The midday sun shined down as Naruto walked back into the field to find the green haired girl had created four clones of herself, all of whom were trying, and failing, to cause the balloon to burst as he did.
"DAMN IT! HOW CAN THIS BE SO HARD!?" The one the blond Uzumaki assumed was the real Fuu yelled as she threw another threw another popped ball at the ground, crossing her arms and puffing out her cheeks. "What the hell am I supposed to get out of this anyway? It's not even really helping with my control! This seems like a complete waste of time."
"I wouldn't say that." Naruto said, slightly startling her and causing her to whip her head around to look at him as he closed the distance between them. Her clones all vanished in bursts of smoke, giving her their experience, or lack thereof, as he neared. "Pretty tough, huh? Unlike with the last step, there's nothing but air in the ball, so you have to rely completely on your chakra, and the surface is a lot thicker than the balloon's. It's on a different level than the last step."
Fuu didn't change her stance as she regarded him. It was clear from her posture that she was irritated, both at what she viewed as a pointless exercise and her failure to do something that seemed so easy. "I still don't see what you're trying to teach me."
He shook his head in response. "You wouldn't think that if you knew what you'll get out of this."
"Then why don't you tell me."
He gave her a mischievous smirk as he replied, "Uh-uh. That's a secret, Fuu. You'll just have to wait." He had to suppress a chuckle when she gave an irritated squeal. His mouth widened into a smile as he decided it was about time to help her out. "Don't let yourself get frustrated. Trust me; you won't get anywhere like that. Look, you're making great progress; better than I did. It took me a whole day to get through the first step too, but I had to use both hands!"
Fuu uncrossed her arms and seemed a little reassured at that. "Really?"
The Kyuubi Jinchuriki nodded. "Yeah, but don't do what I did. Look, rather than continuously pumping your chakra into the ball, focus it. Draw up as much as you can and let it pool. Imagine it gathering together in the center of your hand then let it loose and send it spiraling out from center and I guarantee you'll get a better result."
The mint haired Jinchuriki considered his suggestion before nodding, reaching down to the scroll on the ground and summoning another ball. She held it in front of her and closed her eyes, doing as the blond told her. She could feel her chakra building up in her hand and imagined it pooling like water behind a dam. Once she felt it was enough, her orange orbs shot open as she pushed all of it into the ball and sent it spiraling as she had during the first test.
The result was instantaneous. The ball exploded violently, sending displaced aid and blue wisps of energy throughout the field, the intensity leaving her hand tingling and aching slightly.
Fuu looked at her palm, shocked by how easy it really had been, before turning to the orange loving genin with a bright smile. "I got it! Wow, I can't believe how simple that was."
Naruto gave her a fox like grin, causing his eyes to squint close. "See, I told you." He reached into his pocket and pulled out another scroll. "Now, this is the last step. Get ready, because this one's going to be tough." With that, in one swift motion, he whipped open the scroll, ran his hand along it, and summoned a filled air balloon. He stepped up to her and handed it to her. "The last stage is all about compression. You have to put the same power and rotation into it as the last two steps, but hold it in the shape of a ball. If you can pull it off without popping the balloon, you've got it."
Fuu blinked, her mind quickly working out just what he was teaching her, before her eyes shot wide open. "Naruto… you're teaching me the Rasengan!?"
"So, you finally worked it out." Naruto commented with a grin. "That's right, it was the second technique the Pervy Sage taught me. Just so you know how special it is, it was created by our Fourth Hokage and it was one of his signature jutsu."
Fuu's face became a mask of excitement, surprised and elated that he'd teach her a technique of such historical value to his village, no their village, as she shot forward and wrapped her arms around her fellow Jinchuriki. "Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you! I promise I won't disappoint you!" Idly, she wondered why her heart began to speed up and her cheeks warmed slightly when he returned her embrace and she felt his strong arms encircle her.
Naruto froze, his eyes widening as Fu pressed herself against him. Maybe it was because this was the first hug he had ever received, at least from a girl who was not crying her eyes out, but in that moment, Naruto had an epiphany.
He had discovered boobs.
Sure, they weren't all that developed yet. Just two small lumps of flesh that were probably no larger than grapefruits, but that hardly mattered. He was at that age where he was starting to notice girls. And as much as he loved Sakura, that did not mean he didn't notice when a girl was attractive.
Or when she had boobs.
Sakura did not have boobs.
He quickly all these thoughts off, deciding they were irrelevant and that it was wrong to feel like this about a friend (and to betray Sakura by thinking about someone else). and simply did what any good friend would do by returning the hug. With a laugh, he replied, "Don't mention it, Fuu."
The sky was painted a dark blue, the horizon tinted rose, as the sun dipped beyond its boundaries when the two Jinchuriki returned to their apartment. The moon was already visible in the darkened skies and soon, the stars would shine their light on the world.
The pair found Jiraiya waiting for them, leaning against the entrance with his arms crossed as he stared down at the two teens.
"Well…" The Sannin began with a smirk. "Looks like you two had a fun day." His eyes, practically shining with amusement, turned to Naruto. "So tell me, how was spending the whole day with just you and a pretty girl for the first time in your life? Do anything special with her?"
Naruto was about to retort when his blue orbs shot open, his mouth clamping shut as his cheeks reddened slightly. His mind suddenly returned to their earlier embrace and what he felt when she unknowingly pressed against him. Jiraiya arched a brow, his mouth widening to a grin. "Oh, what's this?" He teased. "Well well, looks like you did do something memorable. Come on kid, spill it."
Fuu looked at the blond curiously before shrugging, rubbing the back of her head as she tried to think of what could have brought about that reaction. "I don't know what he's thinking about, all I did was hug him."
Jiraiya laughed at that. "Oh, that's cute. You can't even hug a girl without blushing like a schoolgirl?" He shook his head. "Oh, kid. How are you going to get anywhere in life?"
The blond's eye twitched before he pointed at the Sannin. "Hey, shut up! At least I can spend time with a girl who likes me for who I am and not for my wallet, you old perv!"
The Nanabi Jinchuriki chuckled while Jiraiya's face twisted with annoyance. "He's got you there, Ero-sensei."
"Ha, shows what you know." Jiraiya replied, regaining a confident smile as he pointed to himself with his thumb. "When you've become a man of my stature, the women throw themselves before your awesomeness!"
"Yeah, because they've all just been lining up to spend time with you since I joined you. I'm amazed you have the time to do anything with all the girls flocking to you." Fuu quipped, rolling her eyes.
Now Jiraiya's eye twitched before he turned his head away. "Hmph. Whatever. Anyway, I just wanted to tell you to get ready. We're leaving bright and early tomorrow."
"What for? Did Grandma Tsunade send us a new mission?" Naruto questioned.
"That… is a secret." Jiraiya replied, amused when his student's gave an annoyed response. "Just know that we're heading out tomorrow, so pack your things and get a good night rest."
The trio of two Jinchuriki and their perverted sensei walked up a dirt path, nearing the top of a large hill. In any direction you look, you'd see large planes of short grass that seemed to stretch on forever. Jiraiya walked in front of the group, the blond to his left and the orange eyed girl to his right.
Naruto placed his hands behind his head as he looked out at the field, wondering, not for the first time, where the Sannin was taking them. Fortunately, he didn't have long to wait as the Sannin reached the top and turned to face them.
"All right, you two, we're here. Get ready to feast your eyes on this." He said, gesturing ahead of them. When they reached they could finally see beyond the hill's crest, their eyes widened. Fuu shot forward, her lips spreading into a wide smile as her eyes practically glowed with excitement. While Naruto was more restrained, having seen this before, his face was a mask of anticipation as he ran to join her at the edge of the hilltop. After all, this was so much grander than the last time he'd been to such a place.
Before them was a large port city, obviously one of the major ones of the country. The buildings were mainly a combination of western and eastern style, with several large shrines dotting the town and a large castle near the outer wall that encircled it on the opposite side from where they stood. A large river snaked through the village and led out to the sea.
However, what drew their attention were the colorful, red stalls that framed the main street that curt through city and the currently unlit red, blue and gold lanterns that were hung on wires that crisscrossed above the lanes, promising to paint the area in colorful light as soon as night fell. People were bustling and dancing about, some avenues seeming full to capacity, as everyone went about having fun. You could see scattered throughout the crowded roads several floats and miniature shrines being carried down the streets. Lantern lit boats could be seen travelling up and down the river.
"A festival!?" Fuu exclaimed, her hands clasped together in front of her chest. "Wow, I've never been to a festival before!" She'd seen a few at her village, but she'd never been welcome at any of them. The same went for Naruto, though he'd had the good fortune that one of the towns they'd travelled through during his and the Toad Sannin's search for Tsunade had been in the midst of one.
Jiraiya chuckled. "Well, today's you're lucky day. Tomorrow, we'll begin training in earnest once again, so today I want you two to enjoy yourselves to the fullest. Now go on and have a good time!"
If possible, the teens' expressions brightened even further before they both shot off towards the town. "All right! See you later, Pervy Sage!"
The toad sage simply shook his head in amusement as he watched their retreating figures.
As they crossed through the gate and stepped into the village, the blond's eyes searched the streets, looking at all the stalls, memories of the first and only other festival he'd ever seen flashing through his mind, trying to decide what to try first. Looking to his side, he saw Fuu was even more excited than he was.
As the pair ran down the street, taking in all the sights and trying to find what they wanted to do first, the green haired girl couldn't help but relish how the no one was giving her a dirty look. There was no feeling of hostility or menace in the air, no whispering behind her back, she was just another face in the crowd as far as everyone was concerned.
This was the first time she'd ever been to an event such as this, not to mention the first time she'd ever been to such a gathering where no one would glare at her. Here, she was just another young teenage girl enjoying the festival. She soaked it all in, enjoying being part of the festivities for the first time in her life.
As they ran through the street, the orange eyed girl took in all the bright colors and laughter that surrounded her. She was so eager that she had no idea where to begin. There was so much she wanted to do that it felt like there just weren't enough hours in the day. All she knew was that she wished that what she was feeling now; being amidst and sharing in all this joy alongside her fellow Jinchuriki, would last forever.
Most of the people wore kimonos but there were some kids playing shinobi dressed up in replicas of generic flak jackets or ANBU clothing as well, brandishing fake knives and such. Some wore masks while others wore costumes of their favorite characters from books, movies or manga. Naruto chuckled as he watched a woman dressed as Princess Gale, waving her blade while a boy who was obviously her child cheered, walked by.
The pair stopped when they reached a plaza built around a small tower like structure. Dozens of wires holding more multicolored lanterns crisscrossed off the tower and linked it to all the surrounding buildings. Naruto's eyes wandered the area, unable to help but wonder what it would look like tonight when the lights came on.
His eyes wandered the area, wondering what he should try first. There were so many stands with fun looking games and tasty looking snacks… nah, they should hold off on the food.
Before he could decide, his eyes were drawn to a group of people, kids and adults, dancing as a man expertly played a flute. Not really something he wanted to try himself, but still fun to watch.
"Hey Naruto, check it out." Fuu called out, drawing the blond's attention. He looked at her as she pointed to a nearby stall that hosted a goldfish scooping game. "Bet I can catch more than you!"
Grinning back at her, the blond replied, "You're on!" And with that, both ran towards the game.
In the end, Naruto won five to four to the mint haired girl's chagrin, but it was all in good fun.
As they stepped away from the stand, the blond pumped his fist in victory as the white clad kunoichi pouted and turned her head away before something caught Naruto's eye. There was quite a commotion coming from one of the side streets and the sounds of loud cheering and various instruments echoed from that direction. He reached over and tapped her on the shoulder, causing her to turn back to him before pointing in the direction of the noise.
"Hey, Fuu. I think they've got a parade going on over there. Want to check it out?" He asked and she nodded in response.
"Sure. And we can get the best seats in the house." He grinned slightly in response before both vanished in a blur of motion, reappearing on the rooftops. They moved from building to building until they found themselves a bird's eye view of the parade and sat down to watch.
People stood at the side of the streets as flag carriers wearing traditional, all white or yellow cloths led the display. Behind them others carried various floats, most shaped like red koi fish, and at the heart of the group was a mikoshi carrying a white dragon gilded with gold coloring.
The two observed for a few moments before something seemed to occur to Naruto and he vanished in a burst of speed. Fuu looked slightly confused as she looked at the space he'd occupied a moment earlier, wondering where he went. Figuring he'd be back soon, her orange orbs returned to the parade. Sure enough, he returned about a minute later, carrying a plate of mitarashi dango. He offered her a stick, which she took graciously and they watched the spectacle together.
After taking in the sight of the procession, they walked the streets, a souvenir stall drawing Fuu's eyes. As she looked over the various masks and ornaments sold by the shop, one caught her interest and in short order, it was hers. She spun around on her heel as she tried on her new ANBU like mask before she felt a tug on her armlet. Sliding her newly bought mask onto the side of her head, she looked questioningly at the blond, who was looking off at something excitedly.
"Hey, Fuu, take a look at that!" He said, pointing at off down the road. Following his gaze, the white clad girl couldn't help but laugh when she saw the sign 'Ramen eating contest.' The grand prize was 10000 Ryo. "Can you believe it?"
"Is that all you ever think about?" She asked, amusement clear in her voice as she shook her head at him.
Not even dignifying the question with a response, Naruto said, "Come on! We can both get a free meal and I'll walk away with that prize money easy!"
And in short order, the two were enrolled in the contest. While she didn't think that the noodle dish was kami's divine gift to humanity and the answer to all the world's ills like the blond did, it was still one of her preferred meals and he was right; it was free food, and there was nothing better than a free meal, no strings attached. It always seemed to taste better.
They were seated several rows across from each other, each table having one contestant.
Were it not for the sense of anticipation that he was about to enjoy the heavenly dish he loved so much for the first time in weeks, Naruto would have taken a moment to pity his opponents. He could hardly stop his mouth from watering as the first plate; his favorite, pork ramen, was laid before him, the delicious aroma of the steaming broth tantalizing his senses.
The host's eyes roamed the group before him before he raised his hand in the air and brought it down. "Begin!"
And with that, the contestants dug into their dishes, each shoveling the noodles into their mouths as quickly as possible. It only took a short ten seconds before the blond slammed his bowl onto the table. "More!"
And so the cycle began, each contestant gorging themselves on the food provided by the local chefs as the crowd egged them on. Fuu outlasted most of her rivals, eating a whopping 14 bowls, but that was nothing as she watched with a slight sense of fascination as Naruto ate his thirty fifth bowl. Normally, even he wouldn't eat this much, but that was the aim of the game.
Fuu rooted for her fellow Jinchuriki on when his last rival, now ten bowls behind, finally gave in, his stomach so full he instantly slipped into a food coma and fell face first into the bowl, and cheered for him as the host walked up to him and raised the hand of the champion.
Naruto rested on the slanted roof of a building, basking in the warmth of the sun as he held his stomach, slightly bloated from the massive amount of ramen he'd practically inhaled. As she hadn't eaten as much and was too excited about the festival to wait for him to digest, Fuu had gone off on her own.
As he lay there, watching the clouds go by as the sounds of the revelry going down below filled his ears, the blond's thoughts turned to his old friends, wondering what they were all doing now.
He chuckled as he thought what a few of them were probably doing, if they weren't on missions or training. Shikamaru was probably doing the same thing, watching clouds. Choji was probably eating his fill. Ino was probably at her family's flower shop or shopping. He laughed again when he thought that all of Team Gai was probably training. He wondered if Neji and Tenten had any trouble keeping up with their over-enthusiastic teammates. Kiba was probably hanging out with Akamaru. Shino was probably studying bugs. Hinata… he didn't know much about her, so he couldn't guess what she was doing.
Sakura… he frowned… was probably trying to get stronger so she could rescue Sasuke. That thought instantly brought down his mood, causing him to sit up and let out a sigh, recalling his recent thoughts on the Uchiha and his last memories with the pink haired girl. It still hurt a little, seeing how much she loved the Sharingan wielding genin. How much he wished that she could look at him that way. Looking back, he realized that he may have been a bit annoying, constantly asking her out on dates, but he wasn't going to give up. He hoped that if he showed her how much she meant to him and how devoted to her he was, she might start to feel that way about him. But in the end, it didn't matter, she felt how she felt and even if it wasn't with him, he wanted her to be happy. Just as much as he wanted to save his friend, he wanted to do it for her. How would she react if he failed to save Sasuke? If he was forced to break his promise?
He shook his head to clear those thoughts away, his eyes hardening slightly. Dwelling on that would do no good. When he got back to Konoha, he'd be strong enough to keep his promise and, based on what they'd learned during their last mission, Orochimaru would be at his weakest. And when that day came, he, Sakura, Kakashi and Fuu would rescue him together.
His thoughts turned back to the mint haired girl at that. He wondered what she was doing. He smiled again, sure she was enjoying herself, and he was glad she was after what she'd been through. It was nice having a friend that could sympathize with his past, his only other being Gaara who was currently on the other side of the continent. He liked being in her company, finding it fun most of the time, and what she'd said a few weeks ago, that she'd support and be there for him no matter what, had meant more to him than he could tell her.
After a few more minutes of rest, he felt ready to hit the town again. Rising to his feet and stretching out, he ran to the side of the roof and leapt into the alleyway at its side, landing on his feet before rushing out into the crowd.
Eager eyes wandered the numerous stalls as the blond thought on what he should try out next before his eyes settles on a clothing store. It was a fairly ordinary shop, though it had a wide selection. Signs of various different colors, as well as some hangers holding samples of their wares, surrounded the entrance and a large red billboard with the shops name in kanji hung over its doors.
Looking around, just about everyone around him was dressed for the festival. With a shrug, he decided he might as well too and so, the young Uzumaki stepped into the shop.
He walked around, looking through the various pieces of clothing. He held up and examined a men's yukata, when he turned away and his eyes lit up. What he beheld was just perfect in his eyes. With a grin, he ran to grab it and try it on.
Just a few minutes later, the blond walked out of the shop, looking down with a grin as he examined his new clothing. He was now clad in an orange kimono top with matching hakama pants, tied with a black sash together with white tabi socks and normal sandals as opposed to the blue, open toed ones worn by shinobi. The ends of sleeves and the base of his pant legs bore black flame designs which the boy liked, briefly thinking how he'd like to add such designs to his usual attire one day.
And so, the blond took to the streets once again, now blending in with the crowd. His eyes roamed the various stands, looking searching for something else to draw his interest. He turned down a street and stopped, blinking in surprise before his eyes gleamed, knowing now what he wanted to do next. He started to run towards it when he felt a hand touch his arm just below his shoulder.
"Found you~." The familiar voice of his fellow Jinchuriki came from mere inches away from him. He turned and was mildly surprised to find Fuu had had the same idea he had. The mint haired girl now wore an elegant, white yukata kimono, covered with blue and yellow floral designs.
"Wow, looks like we think alike, huh?" Taking a step back, she spun on the ball of her foot, letting her kimono flare out. "So, how do I look?"
"Great. It really suits you, Fuu." The blond answered.
She laughed as she looked down at her robes. "I got it at a discount. The store owner thought I was cute and felt sorry for me when I told him I never had anything like this before." That made it particularly special to her. She wasn't used to random acts of kindness from strangers, having only experienced it twice before in her life. She'd been a bit suspicious of him, but seeing as he didn't ask for anything in return, she accepted. "Now, where were you looking just now?"
The blond grinned and grabbed her hand and led her through the crowd to a stand at the corner of the street. It had a simply game where the aim was to hit several targets, each having various point values, with a rubber ball. This stall owner had gone all out, going so far as to mechanize several of the targets. It seemed to be based on a war, the targets being shinobi and ninja animals. The higher the rank, or smaller the summon, the harder to hit and the more points they were worth. While some sat still, many moved and some were quite small. A civilian would have a hard time getting anything above the mid level prizes. Fuu raised a brow at this, thinking this type of game was laughably easy for a shinobi.
"Hey kids, see anything you like?" The stall owner questioned as he looked at the newest potential players.
Naruto nodded as he reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet. "Yep! Now hand me some of those balls, I've got a game to win! How much"
The man chuckled before replying. "Sure thing. 100 ryo per ball."
Naruto pulled out five 100 ryo bills and handed them to the man, who gave handed him a container of five rubber balls. As Naruto picked one out, the mint haired Jinchuriki couldn't help but ask, "Naruto, what do you want from this game?"
Naruto just gave her his fox like grin in response.
Minutes later, the pair sat on a roof top, sharing some taiyaki. As he held up one of the fish shaped cakes, the boy smirked and chuckled slightly as he adjusted his brand new sunglasses, the item which had caught his eye at the throwing game before placing the last of the bean paste filled treat in his mouth.
Fuu sent an amused look his way as she commented, "You know, I hear stuff they give away as prizes at things like this don't usually last that long. You're probably going to have to buy another pair sometime soon."
Naruto swallowed before reaching into his pocket and pulling out the rubber ball the stall owner had given him as a secondary prize, throwing it up into the air and catching it repeatedly as he replied, "I know, but these will do in the meantime." He caught the ball and held it between both his hands as he turned to Fuu, who was finishing off the last treat. "So, how're things coming along with the Rasengan?"
Fuu swallowed before giving him a sheepish smile and rubbing the side of her head, "Well… to be honest, I don't think I'm getting anywhere. I might even need more balloons, I'm going through them like they're going out of style."
The blond laughed. "Yeah, that sounds about right. It's a really advanced jutsu, after all."
"How long did it take you to get this step?" Fuu questioned, tilting her head to the side.
The blond leaned back, his gaze turning to the sky. "… I'm not sure I should tell you, I mean, I don't think you're going to be able to pull that off anyway." When he saw the look on her face, he quickly brought his hands up in a placating gesture and added, "I didn't mean it like that, I mean I don't think it's even possible to learn it that fast, it's a really hard technique." He looked out the village as he continued. "The only reason I pulled it off was because I wasn't doing it right."
Fuu's face, previously set in an insulted and furious look, turned to a questioning stare. "What do you mean?"
"Well, remember when I told you not to use your other hand like I did?" The blond asked and she nodded in response. He rubbed his head and looked away from her. "It was kind of like that. See, back then, I'd only just started chakra control exercises and I couldn't even do the first step without using my other hand."
"So you used both hands to form the Rasengan?" Fuu guessed, only for Naruto to shake his head and scoff.
"No, that worked for the first two steps, but it wasn't enough for the third, so I improvised." His gaze returned to Fuu, his expression a strange mix of pride over his ingenuity and embarrassment that he'd needed to resort to it. "I had a shadow clone use both hands to compress and spin the chakra in my hand, so I could use it even if I couldn't do it on my own."
The mint haired girl looked mildly surprised at that. "That's pretty clever, though it sounds like it makes it a lot less useful…" She added thoughtfully, considering the various cons to making it that way.
The orange clad genin nodded in response, his expression oddly serious. "Exactly." He raised his right hand as he closed his eyes, pointing his index finger to the sky as he went into his rarely seen lecture mode. "Two of the best things about the Rasengan are its versatility and the speed you can form them in. Without any hand signs or special gestures, you can make one in the palm of your hand. You can spring it on your opponent in the blink of an eye, with no warning no matter what position you're in. But the way I made it, I needed a clone to help set it up. That took time, since I had to get into position. I couldn't form one near my opponent because of that and they'd always see it coming from a mile away, not to mention that I actually needed to make a shadow clone to use it." He opened his eyes and shrugged. "So yeah, I learned it, and fast, but it cost me some of the Rasengan's greatest strengths. It wasn't until months later and weeks of training, with clones, that I could use it right."
"Oh." Fuu began, understanding dawning on her features. "And you want me to learn it the right way."
"You got it." He replied before he gave her a reassuring smile. "Then again, what do I know? I had no idea about the shadow clone's trick when I first learned how to do it. Who knows, you might prove me wrong."
The orange eyed girl smiled at this before she seemed to realize something. "Wait a minute, you said you learned the shadow clone jutsu the day you graduated…" Her face shifted into a look of amusement as she leaned towards him. "You went all that time without learning how it works?"
The blond rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Yeah, well, I only ever used them in a fight. All the memories I got from them was too much like what I went through to notice the difference."
The female Jinchuriki sat back, her orange orbs shining with mirth before she closed them, holding her arms up as if to say 'oh well' and shaking her head. "No matter how you spin it, it still sounds like you were pretty dense back then."
"Hey, take that back!" Naruto shouted indignantly at the now laughing girl.
Fuu put a finger to her chin and looked to the sky and humming in thought before shaking her head. "No, I don't think I will."
Naruto growled and shot to his feet before lunging at the girl, who laughed as she leapt back just fast enough to avoid his grasp before she bolted away, leaping to the next building with the blond in hot pursuit.
Naruto chased the giggling girl across the rooftops. As the blond chased after her, she vanished as she crossed over the crest of the pointed roof of a large building, but the blond quickly reached its peak himself and spied her on the next roof and quickly launched himself after her.
A few moments later, when the two were almost out of sight, Fuu leapt up to the roofs and held her hand over her eyes to shield them from the sun's rays as she looked at the tiny figures of her fellow Jinchuriki and her clone before chuckling to herself.
"Bet he'll regret teaching me that jutsu when he realizes he's chasing a shadow clone."
"Think so?"
Her eyes shot open and she twisted her body around to look at the source of the voice before she was tackled by an orange and yellow blur. The pair of young teens rolled across the tiles a as they tussled.
"Take it back!" Naruto's shout could be heard over the sounds of their scuffle and the festival below.
"Never!" Fuu's mirth filled voice replied as both struggled for dominance in their play fight.
Finally, Naruto came out on top, literally sitting on her waist and pinning her arms beside her head, looking down at her with a playful, victorious smirk. It only took him a moment before his expression shifted to one of uncertainty, his cheeks taking on a red tinge as his brain caught up the fact that he was currently straddling a rather attractive girl and his hormones kicked into overdrive.
Fuu, meanwhile, felt her heart rate speed up and the muscles in her stomach tighten, but not in a way that suggested fear, as she looked up at the blond. She turned her head away in a futile attempt to hide her own flushing face.
Was it getting hot out here, or was it just her?
"Think, uh, think you could get off of me?" She asked in a meek voice as she tried to figure out what she was feeling.
Shaking off his stupor, the blond replied, "Not until you take back what you said."
Fuu took a deep breath while mentally screaming to get a hold of herself before she looked up at him with a teasing grin. "Make me!" And with that, she kicked out, using the slanted surface of the roof to her advantage to successfully dislodging the blond and sending them into another playful tussle, the tension between them broken as their laughter filled the air.
Hours later, the sky was beginning to darken, turning a deep blue while the edge of the horizon was painted a vibrant orange by the last rays of the setting sun, which had since vanished out of sight. The moon could be seen hovering over the land as the two Jinchuriki walked down the street, Naruto had his hands on the back of his head as he looked around, searching for something else to do.
The day was coming to an end. According to what they'd heard, soon most of the stalls would close and the people would gather together in the village's plaza for the last hours of the festival, meaning they had little time left.
"Hey, you there." A voice cut through the crowd. "You two in white and orange." They both turned at that and saw a young man looking at them from a booth, giving them a sly smile while holding up some tickets, eyeing what he'd hoped would be easy marks. "Want to buy a lottery ticket? It's only 50 ryo a pop. You could double your investment in one ticket."
He couldn't help chuckling internally. Kids like the two teens before him were almost always too easy to fool. Let them know what they could win, and all too soon they'd spend all their money and have nothing to show for it.
Poor sap had no idea who he was dealing with.
Fuu scoffed, closing her eyes and turning her head away. She may have been the butt of many jokes about luck, considering how 7 was supposed to be a lucky number, but there was no way she was going to waste her money on the odds of a lottery. "Yeah, right. Only an idiot would-"
"One please!" Her eyes shot open as her head jerked in the direction of the booth to see her fellow Jinchuriki had just bought a ticket.
"Thanks, kid." The owner said as the blond grinned and began to scratch off the covering on the ticket.
"Naruto… why would you waste your money on this?" Fuu asked in disbelief before she closed her orange orbs and continued, "Do you know the odds of-"
"I won!" Naruto called out, holding the slip of paper up in victory while the eyes of Fuu and the stall owner bulged.
"What!?" They both cried in shock.
Naruto handed the ticket back to the man he'd just purchased it from, his mouth stretched into a shit eating grin as he held out his hand and made a gimme gesture. "Read it and weep. Now pay up!"
"Damn it, you gotta be kidding me!" The man growled as he stared in disbelief at the ticket.
Naruto laughed as he and Fuu walked away from the booth, holding his frog wallet which was once more full to bursting. Unfortunately, rather than the lottery it had been a sweepstake specifically for the festival, so the payout didn't even compare. Still, he'd made 50 times what he'd paid.
The white clad kunoichi was still staring at her fellow Jinchuriki in disbelief. "I can't believe you won off of one ticket…"
"Yeah, just like last time. Can you believe my luck? I must be the opposite of Grandma Tsunade or something!"
Fuu arched a brow, wondering what he meant by that comment about Tsunade, but her eyes shown with interest as she focused on what he'd said before that. "Wait a minute, last time?"
"Heh, yeah. Remember when I told you that the Pervy Sage stole all my money?" He asked, turning his head to look at Fuu. "Well, afterwards, I won it all back with a single ticket."
Fuu's jaw dropped before her mouth widened into a smirk. "I've got to take you to a casino one day. Think of all the money you could make me."
The Uzumaki survivor frowned as he turned his head to look at her. "Now hang on. Why should I give it to you? I'll let you borrow some, but I'm not just going to give you my money."
Fuu's smirk took on an air of superiority as she asked, "Did it ever occur to you to put your luck to good use and try out a casino?"
Naruto smiled sheepishly as he rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. "Well…"
Fuu placed her hands on her hips and held her head high as she said, "Then consider it a finder's fee."
The Kyuubi Jinchuriki scoffed. "Finder's fee nothing. I'm not just giving you my money. Besides, what are you going to spend it on, books?"
"Yeah, and what's wrong with that?" She retorted before both focused an intense stare on each other, sparks flying off between them as they stared each other down in a contest of wills.
The battle only lasted a moment before a voice so close it could only have been referring to them called out, "Hey, now, this isn't the place for a lover's quarrel." Both turned to see the owner of the stand, a man who looked to be in his late fifties or early sixties, grinning down at them as he leaned on the table in front of him. "Come on, kid. Admit your girlfriend has a good idea."
Their faces became masks of shock as their cheeks flushed. As one, the pair quickly pointed at each other and shouted, "She's/He's not my girlfriend/boyfriend!"
The man just chucked in response. "Whatever you say. Hey, while you're here, why don't you try out my stand? That money must be burning a hole in your pocket."
Naruto looked to the game in question. It was similar to gold fish scooping, but using bouncy balls instead of actual fish. He was kind of glad for that. The only prize for goldfish scooping were the goldfish themselves, which they couldn't keep because of their travelling, so they hadn't gotten any kind of reward aside from the fun they'd had.
Nodding, Naruto said, "All right, your on." He turned to Fuu. "What about you?"
She shrugged. "Nah, I'll sit this one out."
Naruto opened up his wallet and bought a poi paper scoop before pocketing it and beginning to play the game. In about two minutes, he'd succeeded in getting five balls. He'd managed to get the sixth ball out of the pool and over the bowl just before it broke. While the ball fell into the bowl, scoring him another point, it ended the game as he'd only bought one.
Naruto clicked his tongue in annoyance but the man whistled, clearly impressed. "Nice job, kid. You got enough to win the grand prize." He extended his arm, gesturing to the prize wall. "Go ahead, pick out anything you like."
Naruto's eyes wandered over the wall, looking at what he could get with his score. As opposed to several toys, he decided on just getting one. He examined the top row, looking at the various prizes before his gaze settled on a white fox plushie. While his life had been made… difficult by a certain fox demon in his gut, he didn't dislike foxes in general, actually liking the mythological trickster spirits.
Shame the Kyuubi wasn't a thing like them.
Also, white foxes were said to be envoys of Inari and a good omen, supposedly possessing the power to ward off spirits. He pointed to the toy and the man nodded. He waved and bid them farewell, which they returned as they walked away.
Naruto grinned as he held up his new toy before he seemed to think about something. After a moment of thought, he turned to the mint haired Jinchuriki beside him. "Hey, Fuu."
"Hm?" She turned her head to look at him.
He held out his newly won plushie to her. She'd like it more than him, he was sure. After all, it was her favorite color. "Want it?"
Fuu blinked, clearly surprised at the offer. "You mean it?"
The blond nodded and Fuu took the toy, holding it in front of her before smiling and turning to him, hugging the white fox plushie to her chest. "Thanks."
He smiled back but before he could reply, lights shined down on them. The pair looked up to see that the lanterns hanging all across the village had finally lit up. Both looked on in amazement at the brilliant display of multicolored lights that bathed the village in their glow.
An hour later and the Jinchuriki sat at the edge of the village's main plaza, watching as people danced around a bond fire and various instruments played all around the area. The sounds of flutes, Shamisens, Kotos and drums, among others reverberated throughout the area, melding together into a uplifting melody that fit the festival perfectly. However, neither felt like dancing, so they just watched. Night had fallen and stars lit up the sky, though their majesty was obscured by the bright lights of the festival.
"Wouldn't it be nice if we could come back here every year?" Fuu asked, craning her neck to look at her fellow Jinchuriki.
"Hn, you got that right." He nodded. "I wouldn't mind making the trip."
She then tilted her head to the side, her expression becoming curious as she asked, "Does Konoha have any festivals?"
Naruto jerked at the question, causing Fuu's face to shift to concern as his eyes fell to the ground. "Yeah… one. Every year, on the day of the Kyuubi's defeat, we celebrate how we survived the crisis, and to remember everyone who died trying to stop it."
The mint haired girl grimaced at that before frowning as something occurred to her. "But… wasn't that the day you were…"
"Born? That's right." Naruto answered, his face downtrodden as memories from all the past birthdays flooded his mind. It was on that day that his treatment was at an all time low. He'd never been beaten or chased or anything like that, but if he even went out on that day, the people would make their opinions of him clear. Their sharp tongues would sting the unknowing child more than any blow and so, he'd stay cooped up in his apartment on that day. Worse still, Iruka and the Third had obligations due to their positions as an academy instructor and the Hokage, and the festival was one of the times when business was at its highest at Ichiraku's, so aside from the times the ramen chefs tore themselves away from their work to spend the day with him, something he'd told them not to do knowing how much their business would suffer for it, he spent what should have been one of the happiest days for a young child alone and miserable.
Fuu winced, suddenly finding her feet very interesting as she hugged her plushie tighter to her chest. "Sorry… I shouldn't have reminded you of that…"
He shrugged. "It's fine. You didn't know."
He didn't know what else to say after that, and neither did she, and so the pair sat in silence, their thoughts wandering to their pasts as opposed to the festivities that surrounded them.
"Hey, why so glum?" A familiar voice asked. Both turned their heads to see Jiraiya of the Sannin, looking down on them with a smirk as he folded his arms over his chest.
"Pervy Sage?" Naruto asked. "Where've you been all day?"
The man just chuckled. "Oh, you know, I found various ways to enjoy myself." He eyed the pair. "Looks like you had fun too. So, how'd you like the festival?"
Their expressions brightening at the change of subject, Naruto said, "It was great! One of the best days of my life! If I could, I'd come back here every year!"
Fuu nodded fervently. "Same here! I don't think I've ever had this much fun!"
Jiraiya gave a short laugh before he kicked himself off the wall. "Well, it's about to get even better." He walked away, gesturing for them to follow. "Come on, I've got something to show you."
The teens looked at each other, wondering what he had in mind, before getting up and following the Sannin.
The toad sage led the pair out of the village to a large hill looking down on the town. All the lights from the festival melded together, making a bright jewel in the center of the darkness of the night.
Naruto looked to the town curiously. It was a beautiful sight, but it didn't explain why their perverted sensei had brought them out there. He turned at the sound of a scroll being opened to see Jiraiya summon a large, white blanket, which he promptly laid flat on the ground before nodding to himself and looking out to the village.
"Yeah, this is perfect. It should be just about time."
The Kyuubi Jinchuriki raised a brow. "Time for what?"
As soon as those words left his mouth, he heard loud pops behind him and with each burst of sound, the area around him was illuminated by a brief flash of colored light. He felt Fuu tug on he sleeve at his side.
"Naruto, look!" The former taki kunoichi called out. Naruto turned and saw what was making the sound and the light; fireworks. Now he understood why the Sage had brought them out here, this place had the best view.
The Sannin gave a bark of a laugh as he at down, looking at the amazed and joyful expressions on their faces.
In short order, the teens had lied down on the blanket, laying on their backs with their hands cushioning their heads, soaking in the beauty of the fireworks and the light of the village.
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