Chapter 4

Shinobi Lessons 101

Latest Holonet News

The New Supreme Commander of Imperial Forces

It has been confirmed today that Emperor Palpatine, first Galactic Emperor of the Galactic Empire, has recently instated a new face as the Supreme Commander of the former Republic Navy, now Imperial Starfleet. Lord Vader, a former Jedi who defended the Emperor against his corrupt brethren has been placed in command of the Imperial Starfleet.

While the Supreme Commander was not available for comment, the Imperial spokesman has informed us that Lord Vader is the best man for the job.

Continued Military Defence

"We may have won this war, but what about the next one?" These were the words that new Galactic Emperor Dantius Palpatine asked of us. "In order to protect our just Empire we will need the continued presence of the Army and Navy, because of this I will be adding extra funding to the military defence budget."

It has been confirmed that the funding for Military Defence will be quadrupled by the end of the year. It has also been confirmed that the Clone Legions will slowly be phased out, replaced by regular volunteer soldiers from across the galaxy. There has been some worrying news that non-humans will not be allowed to volunteer; this reporter asked the Imperial Spokesman Mas Amaeda to verify the claim.

"Rest assured the ban on non-human sentients from entering the armed forces is not permanent, and is simply a precaution which will be lifted once the Separatist threat is behind us."

Depths of Jedi Corruption Revealed!

For the first time since the Jedi rebellion new light has been shed on the devious methods employed by the Jedi Order, once proud warriors of peace and justice, twisted by their High Council into murderers and traitors. Thorough reports compiled and released to the press by Imperial Advisor Sate Pestage today show the depths of the Jedi Order's corruption.

The charges are varied and each more devious than the last, from the murder of innocents to the attempted assassination of our leadership, from poisoning water supplies to joining the Separatists themselves. Click on 'Jedi: From Peacekeepers to Traitors' to see the full story of the Jedi Order's fall from grace.

The night was fairly quiet, which in itself was strange. Usually in the Felucian jungle the night would be just as lively as the day. Calls of the numerous animals would echo through the darkness as nocturnal herbivores and hunters alike came out to begin their own day. It was nearing daybreak, the sun just dipping over the horizon.

The camp was quiet, packed up and placed under the protection of the camouflage nets. So when CC-9023, codenamed Clay, silently arrived at the edge of the tree line in a crouch, he knew full well that this was the place they had spent the last few weeks looking for. The General had been very hard to track, but now it was all over.

He looked around, raising his hand in the shape of a fist. Within a second his full squad of Clone Troopers were by his side, forming a battle line across the trees. All were ready, blasters held purposefully in their hands as they waited for the veteran sergeant's order. Clay lowered his hand, and as one the twelve Troopers rushed through the campsite with the speed of vipers and the silence of predators.

Their two targets, the General and the man who saved her were holed up in a hollowed out tree at the other side of the clearing. The Clones surrounded it expertly, leaving no chance for escape. Clay looked around, and nodded to the three clones by the entrance.

They in turn nodded, taking a step back, levelling out their blaster rifles and firing a concentrated salvo of blaster bolts into the tree, shredding bark and peppering whatever lay within. The barrage lasted for a full five seconds, and when it stopped the rifles were smoking from their discharges.

Clay walked forward, patting one on the shoulder, and opened the net. He looked down to see the bodies of the blond human, and their former General, her once unblemished cerulean skin peppered with the black marks of blaster fire. He walked in, checked the pulse of the human, then that of his general. Both were dead. The Sergeant took the time to close the young Jedi's dark eyes before turning to his Troopers.

"Send the report to the Inquisitor that we have successfully tracked down and eliminated General Aayla Secura and an unknown human male." He said, not wanting to face that man at the moment. He waited for a couple of heartbeats before the assigned clone responded.

"He wishes to view the body sir."

"Of course he does," the Sergeant grit out. "Well what are you waiting for, pick her up."

Two clones entered the trunk. Both carefully picking up the dead body of their General with great care, like she was asleep and they were moving her to her bed. The Sergeant sighed, hoping that they granted her a quick death. He looked at the male who tried to save her life, and bent over, closing his azure orbs. "You did well son, but not good enough."

The mood in the camp was sombre as Squad nine brought the dead body of their former General to the centre of the clearing. Clone Troopers stopped what work they were doing to survey the body as it was carried in, carefully, by two clones and surrounded by the rest of the squad. They walked to the centre, and set her down, allowing the Inquisitor a look.

The man walked towards the body, Major Garn and his four Red Guards in tow. The Major stopped a good several meters away, not willing to see his General in such a state. The Inquisitor and his guardsmen had no such reservations, continuing until they stood right over her. The man looked down at her stoically, steel capped boot giving her a nudge to make sure she was truly dead.

"Excellent work Sergeant," the Inquisitor stated as he looked over the body. "You and your men will receive a recommendation for your efforts."

"Thank you sir," the sergeant replied half heartedly.

"So much for the unbeatable Jedi Knight Aayla Secura," The Inquisitor spat her name as if it were a vile poison, kicking her limp arm away, "Only mortal."

The body exploded into a puff of white smoke, blinding all who looked at it for a brief moment. When it cleared the General's body wasn't there, but a lump of bark instead. The Inquisitor looked at the 'body' in complete surprise. Then he heard a steady beep and looked to what was tied to the wood with widening eyes.

The thermal detonator exploded, turning the timber itself into shrapnel. The Inquisitor and his four guards were caught in the blast. The particle field released from the thermal nuclear fusion incinerating them to atoms before they could scream. The blast field stopped at five meters, and collapsed in on itself, leaving nothing but a crater.

Garn looked at the empty space in complete surprise, "Force me."

Aayla looked at the field in complete shock. Sure she knew the Kawarimi no Jutsu was useful to get one out of a tight situation, but she was unaware that one could basically turn a last second escape into such a counterattack. The Inquisitor and his entourage didn't know what hit them until it was too late.

"Shinobi lesson 101," she looked over at her on-again off-again sensei, who was watching the scene with a smirk. He was slouched beside her, body leaning against the trunk of the tree, a cigarette in his mouth. "Naruto's handbook, chapter five, pages fifty to sixty nine, the many uses of the Substitution Jutsu."

"You have a book?"

"Several," Naruto replied, taking a drag of his cigarette before putting it out against the bark. "In fact I'm thinking of taking up writing again, perhaps there's a market for Icha Icha in the greater galaxy."

Aayla just stared at him, finding something not quite right about his sheepish grin. She had known Naruto for the better part of a month, meaning that she now had a basic understanding of his quirks and habits. She considered him a friend, as well as a mentor.

"Now then," he said as he rose to his feet, dusting himself off. "I think it's time we got as far away from here as possible, don't you?"

"Yes," she agreed as she rose from her crouch. "The Clones will continue the search even without the Inquisitor to look over their shoulders."

"If we can hide out here in the forest how long would they look for you?"

"They are dedicated and unwilling to leave a job unfinished. They will hunt me until ordered otherwise." She replied. Naruto looked over at her, noticing the sadness and depression he had seen after their betrayal begin the resurface.

"Okay our options are to run until we get caught, or fight until we get overwhelmed." Naruto muttered before releasing a whispered curse, "Not very good options."

"There is a third option,"

"What?"

Aayla looked him in the eyes, and managed a weak smile, "We could get off the planet."

If she had made this remark a month ago Naruto would have questioned her sanity, but now with all that he heard from her he was willing to go on a little faith. He scratched the back of his head with a sigh, before nodding in agreement. "Okay, where do we go?"

"The only space port on Felucia is in the capital, Kway Teow." Aayla explained with a thoughtful frown, "They were shipping refugees off the planet when we landed, still were last time I checked."

"That was a few weeks ago, and the battle with the Separatists is probably over by now." Naruto pointed out.

"I'll be guessing there will still be refugees wanting to get off world." Aayla countered, "The water supply was poisoned by the Sep leader before she left. That was the main reason why we remained on the planet, to stop them."

"It's worth a try but there will be a problem in getting there. We'll have to make it through this jungle, dodge an army of enemy soldiers and smuggle ourselves onto a ship at a heavily guarded space port," he suddenly grinned, "That's what the Henge no Jutsu was made for."

Felucia's capital city, Kway Teow, was not what one would call a city in the literal sense. It was the largest settlement on Felucia, but was for all intents a purposes a simple port town. The town was an assortment of hovels, dwellings and other buildings ranging from a storey to two storeys tall, with large landing pads for ships scattered across the landscape. The settlement was encircled by a five meter high wall of stone and the protective bubble of a deflector shield to protect it from the planets deadly wildlife.

The local population was roughly twelve thousand including a variety of peoples from across the galaxy, not just humans but Aayla's own species, Twi'leks, and large hammer headed creatures which his guide called Ithorians. To Naruto, who would be considered a country boy, this was a surreal and incredible experience. The settlement was full of refugees from all over the planet. They lined the streets and took up space in every inn and hostel, literarily everywhere was booked solid. A simple settlement of twelve thousand now sported close to five times that number.

As the two unlikely comrades walked down the streets, their features covered by worn brown robes, Naruto's head darted left and right, taking in everything around him. The aromas of unknown concoctions was thick in the air from mobile kitchens set up to keep the refugees fed, from inns and taverns and the few street stalls which remained open even in a time of crisis.

Naruto had no need to wear any kind of disguise except for his brown robes, no one but Aayla would know his face. His Twi'lek guide on the other hand was another matter entirely. She was a well known Jedi Knight who had fought and won dozens of major battles. The very second they had entered the town he noticed wanted posters with her face strewn across walls and billboards.

So he had her caste a henge on herself, and was impressed by what she had come up with. Her Cerulean skin had changed colour to a deep red, with black tattoos etched into her lekku and down her arms. He almost didn't recognise her. She was a picture of serenity and calm as they walked down the crowded streets, their drab brown cloaks making them just another two refugees in a massive throng of refugees.

"You're going to need a new name if we're going to get off this planet in one peace." Naruto whispered to her.

"I've already thought of one," Aayla whispered back, "Jaayza Rar."

"You've never used it before?"

"I have, but only a few Jedi I trust know the name, so I'll be fine."

Naruto nodded and continued to look around as they walked down the crowded streets. He saw the odd duo or trio of white armoured Clone Troopers here and there, but other than that the army that was here a few weeks before seemed to have moved on. His hand moved instinctively to his kunai pouch when they got close, but they rarely gave them a brief glance. It seemed that Aayla's Henge was working just fine.

"So how are we going to get off this rock?" Naruto asked as Aayla stepped into a bar, walked through the crowded main room and took an empty table near the back, "I don't know about you but I doubt we'll be getting out of here anytime soon."

"It's true that the public transports will be full, but there is another way," his Twi'lek guide answered, ordering a drink whose name Naruto didn't recognise, he ordered the same. "We find a privateer, a smuggler or something and volunteer to temporarily join his crew."

"I'm guessing you need a skill to join a Starship crew," Naruto pointed out, "And I'm sorry to say that I won't be much use with working on it."

"You won't have too," Aayla replied, accepting her drink, a strange blue liquid and took a graceful sip, "I know my way around mechanics and engines. You can be a bodyguard or a mercenary for hire. I've seen your skills, even without using Jutsu you're a formidable hand to hand fighter, and I've already taught you the basics of handling a blaster."

The blonde looked down at the duo of blaster pistols, holstered in a black belt at his waist and frowned. He had relieved them of one of the ARC Lieutenants he had slain and damned near almost blown his own head off if Aayla wasn't there to grab them off him. It turned out that after a couple of days of target practise he was a natural gun fighter, and there were plenty of ammo cartridges scattered around the forest from the entrenched battles fought between the Republic and the Separatists.

"Even so I'm going to need more than a gun hand to serve my weight on a Starship," he replied, taking a gulp of the blue liquid, it actually wasn't bad. "So you teach me the basics?"

Aayla laughed lightly, "I was going to whether you wanted too or not."

"Very well," Naruto smirked, "I am at your command Jaayza-sensei."

"Sensei?"

"Means teacher in my people's language," Naruto explained with a simple wave of his hand, "So where are we going to go to join one of these smuggling crews?"

"Right here, this place is a centre for smuggler and privateer captains."

"They recruit in bars?"

"Their work is technically illegal you know, can't just rush out into the street and scream that they're recruiting." His guide pointed out as she took another sip of her drink.

"Good point." Naruto conceded, taking a nice long gulp of the blue liquid, "This is nice."

"Enjoy,"

"So, Mrs Rar, you wish to join my crew do you?" the man's name was Jaden Kora, and he was old and grizzled, a head of grimy white hair pulled back by a stained olive cap. He sat in one of the back booths of the small bar, wearing a stained dark green vest, matching pants and black boots, a blaster was holstered to his hip and a cigar was clutched between his teeth.

"Yes sir," Aayla replied respectfully, remaining calm and polite to the seasoned smuggler Captain.

Kora leaned forward, studying Aayla's form for a moment, "And besides your ample form what else can you bring to my crew. I've gained quite a few desperate men saying they can repair anything and end up not knowing what a hydrospanner is."

"Understandable, there is a war going on and people want to get away from it," Aayla replied, also leaning forward until the two were face to face. "And I'm not just a pretty face Captain. I know my way around an engine room, was a mechanic on a smuggler vessel a few years ago."

"Former smugglers are you?" Jaden replied, looking her with a new light. "And what about your friend over there, what can he offer me?"

Naruto finished his drink and looked the man in the eye. Aayla spoke up for him. "He's not a mechanic, but he's a fighter and a good one."

"I have enough fighters on my ship."

"Not like him you haven't." Aayla replied, taking a sip of her ale before continuing. "Naruto here is a master of hand to hand combat, he also knows his way around a blaster. He was trained by the Shinobi tribes of Konoha."

"Never heard of them," he growled.

"Suppose you haven't, considering the planet is fairly close to the unknown regions." Aayla replied nonchalantly, even Naruto couldn't tell if she was lying, and she put the whole thing past him first. "But they are some of the best. They claim to be able to take on anyone, Jedi, Sith, Mandalorians, anyone."

"Is that a fact?" the old man leaned back thoughtfully in his chair, looking to the man beside him. He was considerably younger, and Naruto guessed he was hired muscle by the double barrelled blaster on his belt. "I tell you what little missy, I've been having me some engine trouble, got caught up in that battle in orbit, fried my hyperdrive and sublight pretty good. You fix it for me and you're in my crew until we reach our destination, how's that sound?"

"Perfect, what about my friend?"

"He's also going to have to prove himself." Jaden looked at Naruto, then down at the dual blasters holstered to his utility belt. "Can you shoot son?"

"When the occasion calls for it," Naruto replied.

"Then follow me, I have a small test for you."

They followed him and his guard to the back of the bar, and through a worn door. Beyond was a backyard, completely empty sans for a few tables and chairs. Jaden and his two associates downed the last of their bottles, and taking each of them the old Captain walked towards the table at the far end, placing them in a line. "These bottles are a good twenty meters away from you kid, if you can shoot them all in three shots then I'll take you to the same destination as your little pretty friend, if not then we leave you here."

"Hold on a second-" Aayla began, ready to protest, only to be stopped by Naruto's raised hand. The blond grinned as he spoke.

"You're on old man."

Jaden nodded, before walking back to his two comrades. Naruto took a deep breath before placing himself in a ready position, fingers flexing as they neared the blaster holstered to his right hip. Aayla looked on worriedly. Naruto didn't know how to shoot a blaster. She had to confiscate them after he pointed the barrel at his face. He had done a couple of hours practise under her supervision, but that didn't make him an expert marksman.

In a blur he drew the blaster on his right hip, levelled it out and squeezed the trigger. Three bolts of azure energy went flying one after the other, forcing his military grade weapon to recoil. All three hit the mark, shattering the three ale bottles with pin point accuracy. Naruto smirked, before spinning the blaster in his hand and holstering it in a smooth motion. He turned, and bowed extravagantly before the three smugglers and his gobsmacked friend.

Jaden whistled, "Not bad sonny, can I offer you a job."

Naruto grinned, "Sorry old man, but I go where she goes."

The old man took a drag from his cigar, "Eh, if you ever change your mind. Now let's see if the little missy here is worth her salt, come on."

The three smugglers turned and walked back into the bar, followed by Naruto and Aayla a few steps behind. "When did you learn to shoot like that?"

He smiled at her expression, "Practise, lots and lots of practise."

"But I confiscated them from you after each practise session."

"Keep telling yourself that."

"You didn't sneak in and take them out at night, no, you couldn't have. I would have known."

"Sure you would have." He replied a little teasingly. "Whatever makes you sleep better at night?"

"You did steal them," she fumed, getting a little annoyed with his blasé attitude. He looked at her a little too intently, making her lean back. "What?"

Naruto grinned mischievously, "You're so cute when you're flustered."

Her cheeks darkened, "I am not flustered."

"Keep telling yourself that."

"Naruto!"

His first lesson in mechanical repair was when they were led into Jaden's ship. It was a massive thing, at least to his eyes. It was the first starship Naruto had ever seen, and although Aayla had told him all about them just seeing one for the first time was a surreal experience. It seemed to hit home the fact that he wasn't well, 'home' anymore.

The Starship was maybe around a few dozen meters in length, disc shaped with the cockpit located on one side of the ship. Jaden called it an YT-1300 Freighter, and its name was the Last Call.

Jaden led them up the ramp, through a corridor and into a small chamber he guessed was a sitting room of some description. It wasn't in the best shape, but the built in sofas were in fairly good condition. They were introduced to the rest of the crew as they were led through. A young man, probably in his teens named Jarvis Quinn. The guns for hire Jaden had with him in the bar were Solen Farr and Ken Lynx and the pilot was a rather sexy young woman of an alien species he would later know as a Zeltron, named Dani Relisa,

Jaden stood in the centre of the room, bent over and with an iron pike of some kind forced open a large metal grate, "Engines down there little missy, have a look at it and tell me what you think."

Aayla nodded her head before turning to him, "Wanna give me a hand."

He gave her a look, "Isn't this a little too important for you to be teaching me?"

She shrugged in response, "Better sooner than later."

Naruto sighed, but nodded and watched as she climbed through the hatch into the engineering room. He followed her, and fell into a mass of mangled wires and sparking machinery. "Shit, hey Jaayza where are you?"

"Down here," Aaylas voice filtered through the sea of cables, he saw her form in the low light, glaring up at the Captain. "This is the worst kept engine I've ever seen in my life!"

"I told you it was blasted good didn't I?" Jaden replied. "Anyway have a look at it and tell me if it can be repaired. The tools are besides the opening."

Aayla huffed, "Naruto get up there and hand me down the tools."

"Yes, ma'am,"

Aayla slaved away on the repairs for a full three hours, calling out to him for certain tools and telling him about the basics of a starships engine system as they went along. Eventually she began to swear, the words becoming more and more vulgar as she got a better view of the freighters condition. She resurfaced a few moments later and called for the Captain. He was there within a few seconds.

"What's the word sweetie?"

"I was able to replace most of the wiring, and get your droids brain up and running again, but the hyperdrive motivator and a few of the nodes are shot, you're going to need replacements if you're going to get off this planet." She explained, rubbing her oily hands with a rag.

The Captain looked at the members of his crew as they came, and a smile fell across all their faces. "Little lady, your hired."

"What?"

"This was a test to make sure you knew your way around a hyperdrive engine. We have all the parts but no one to do the repairs, how long will it take to get her up and running?"

"About a day," Aayla replied with a frown. "With Naruto's help I'd say half a day."

"Alright, I'll get the spare parts out of storage."

"So this is a hyperdrive motivator thingy?" Naruto asked with a frown as he examined the small device, a cube about the size of his hand.

"Yep, that's it. It's the main component of any hyperdrive. It connects to the vessels main computer systems to monitor and collect sensor and navigation data in order to determine how a ship jumps. Without it it's impossible to travel to other worlds." Aayla explained as she continued to unscrew bolts with her hydrowrench, she had undone her transformation Jutsu to store chakra; her body was covered with black oil smudges and sweat. Naruto lay beside her, watching her work. He had learned so much from her over the last few weeks, and he felt like he owed her so much.

"Could you hold this thing up while I unscrew this last bolt?" she asked.

"Sure thing," he replied, reaching up with his hands to anchor the steel panel as she continued to work. The panel fell into his hands and he placed it to the side as she took the motivator from him and set to replace it. She tore out the destroyed original, handed it to him and began installing its replacement.

"Throw that into the box will you."

"Okay," Naruto replied as he took the old motivator from her. "How far along are we?"

"Almost finished, just need to install this and the ship will be ready to go." Aayla continued to work, installing her replacement motivator in under a few minutes before taking the steel panel from him to bolt it back into place. "Hold this up, will you?"

He complied, and held it in place with his arms while Aayla continued to screw the bolts back into place. She was almost finished, just two more and they would be ready to depart. She reached over, placing her weight on Naruto as she began to screw in the final few bolts. A hand fell on hers as she moved to seal the final one and she looked over to see Naruto stare at her in surprise.

The hand felt so right against hers, so warm and comforting, but he found his error quickly and moved aside. "Sorry Aayla, didn't mean to get in your way."

"It's okay," she replied, moving to screw in the final bolt. She ignored the pounding of her heart, and tried to ignore her cheeks as they took on a darker shade of blue with his contact. She couldn't have feelings for him could she? No, impossible. She was a Jedi of the Order first and foremost, and she would continue to be.

She finished screwing in the final bolt and handed the wrench to her friend, before crawling her way towards the exit. "Right that should about do it, come on."

"Uh Aayla,"

"What?"

"Henge,"

"Cleared the planet's atmosphere sir," Relisa's silky voice could just be heard over the low roar of the old freighters atmospheric thrusters; "Switching from thrusters to sublight… now."

Silence reigned as the atmospheric thrusters died away, replaced by a louder growl as the more powerful sublight engines sputtered to life. The blond felt a pressure push him into the back of his chair as the engines came online, throwing the small ship from the planets upper orbit into open space.

This was Naruto's first time in a starship, obviously, and with everything Aayla had told him he thought he was prepared for it. He couldn't have been more wrong. Just seeing the ground disappear from your vision, watching as the ship passed by the thin clouds, and finally watching as the clear yellowish sky of Felucia was replaced by an eternal starry expanse. It was perhaps the most beautiful and terrifying thing Naruto had ever seen in his life.

He tried to reign in his emotions so as not to worry his friend, strapped into the rear cockpit chair beside him. But she wasn't called an empath for nothing. A slender hand covered his own, offering him support and comfort. Naruto looked at her with a thankful expression before looking back out the cockpit viewscreen at the expanse of stars.

"Sublight engines nominal, dash shows all green." Dani's voice broke through his awe, and he looked over to see a smile on her face.

Kora, strapped into the pilot's chair, looked over at him and Aayla with a grin. "Well Mrs Rar, looks like you are worth your weight in salt after all."

"Please Captain," she said with a smile. "Just call me Jaayza."

"Well Jaayza, I promised both you and your friend safe passage to our destination, and I intend to deliver. Consider yourselves honoured guests."

"Thank you Captain,"

"Your very welcome little lady," the Captain replied as he unstrapped himself from his bucket seat, nodding to Dani who began typing in coordinates on the console.

"So what's your first port of call?"

"Esseles," was his reply. "Right in the middle of the Core Worlds. It should be a fairly safe place, what with the war ending and all."

She awoke with a start, sweating to the point where her night clothes were covered in it. Her breathe left her in short gasps, chest heaving as she tried to regain her composure. Aayla reached up with a slender hand to wipe the sweat from her brow and brought both hands up to cover the sides of her head as she tried with all her might to dispel the afterimages of her nightmares. She found herself in the dank sleeping chamber given to her and Naruto by the ship's captain. The blond was asleep on the decking, giving her the bed while he slept on the floor with a blanket.

She had suffered from them on and off since the massacre began. The first one she was aware of was watching her former Jedi Master and close friend die, so vivid she could have sworn she was actually there. The next one was watching Barriss' death through her friends own eyes, feeling her skin boil and burn as the coarse fire of a Turbolaser blast cut her down in an explosion of crimson. She watched as her friends master died on the Wookiee homeworld of Kashyyyk, shot in the back by the very Clones she was healing.

But this one was the very worst she had suffered from. It was so horrific, so traumatic that she couldn't describe it in words. She had seen the massacre at the Jedi Temple, through the eyes of a Youngling hiding in the Jedi Council Chambers. He felt her fear through the force, and it broke her heart to feel it. No one so young should have to go through that fear, and her death was one neither she nor Aayla ever expected.

She reached over to the youngling beside her, barely four or five with pale skin, blond hair and big blue eyes, and gripped his arm with a shaking fist. Blaster fire and explosions could be heard outside the Council Chambers, getting closer and closer with each passing second.

"Sors, I'm scared."

He looked to her, eyes wide with fear, yet still was able to place a comforting smile her way. "Don't worry Shia. They won't let them near us."

"But there's so many of them," she replied in a fearful whisper.

"Remember the stories; a Jedi Knight is worth a hundred foes." He replied with a smile.

Besides the severity of the situation she frowned at him. "You fell asleep half way through the lesson again didn't you? Mistress Nu told us that story to make sure we wouldn't become arro-arrog-"

"Arrogant?" Another Padawan, this one a little Bothan whose fur had just begun to grow, offered helpfully.

"That's it," she replied. "She said that Jedi of the era believed they couldn't die, and ran too their own deaths."

Before Sors could reply the great doors to the Jedi temple opened with a creek, light spilled into the darkened Council chambers. The younglings all looked up to see a single figure stride into the chamber. He was hooded and cloaked, garbed in simple Jedi garb, brown tunic and trousers, knee high black boots and an opened hooded robe of brown.

The darkness made it difficult for most to see, but the boy, Sors, seemed to know him, for his eyes lit up with hope and his mouth curled into a toothy grin. "See, it's going to be alright. It's Master Skywalker, Master Skywalker is here!"

Shia looked at Anakin. Then turned to Sors to see him get up and rush to his side. There was something not right about him, the Anakin Skywalker she remembered was kind and playful, playing force tag and other games with them when he had free time. This Anakin felt wrong, eyes were enshrouded by the darkness of his cloak, not looking at them.

"Something's not right." She whispered, shying further into the shadows of Master Ti's chair.

"Master Skywalker, there are too many of them! What are we going to do!" there was such hope in Sors eyes, in his voice; his idol was here to save them.

Master Skywalker didn't respond, didn't speak, he unclipped his lightsabre from his belt and thumbed the switch, azure blade coming to life with the weapons signature snap-hiss. Shia watched the blade with a horrified fascination as he moved with blurring quickness, killing Sors with a diagonal strike from his left shoulder to his right side.

"No,"

The younglings screamed, some began to huddle together, others like Shia shied further into the shadows of their hiding place in a vain attempt to hide. Anakin wasn't fooled, he calmly and precisely strolled through the chamber, cutting down the Younglings with quick and precise strokes. Aayla watched the whole thing, screaming at him to stop.

Shia was the last; huddled against a corner with her knees curled up to her chest and her eyes starring widely at their supposed saviour. Anakin walked up to her, looking down at her with eyes which were not his own. Instead of his usual lively blue orbs his eyes were a sickly yellow, dark and vicious with sickle pupils befitting a predator. Aayla continued to cry at him to stop, even as he raised his lightsabre and brought it down.

Tears streamed from her eyes as she remembered the dream down to the last terrible detail, no, it wasn't a dream. It was a vision of the past. Those younglings, those poor, helpless younglings were all dead. He killed them, Anakin killed them all. He had led the assault on the Jedi Temple, and aided in the killing of every youngling, Padawan, knight and master within its walls.

She didn't know that she had been sobbing, and was surprised when Naruto sat beside her, placing an arm on her shoulder to gain her attention. Aayla looked up at her friend, unaware of the tears streaking down her cheeks until Naruto showed her. "These dreams are killing you Aayla. What did you see?"

"Younglings," she replied, angry at herself for her broken voice. "He walked into the chambers and killed them all, to the last boy and girl. Naruto, he murdered children."

Naruto's face softened at her distress, and then hardened at her news, "Who murdered children?"

Naruot was an orphan, and because of that there were crimes that he would never allow a person to get away with. He considered anyone who preyed upon defenceless women and children his enemies right down to the bone. It was the reason why he didn't kill Gale straight away. When he saw her defenceless with a pistol pressed against her forehead he snapped. Naruto crushed Gale's chest armour, made him suffer, and then took off his head. It was a very un-Jedi thing to do, but he wasn't a Jedi. He was a Shinobi, and from what he told her Shinobi were bred on the field of battle, they utilised their emotions to survive, yet unlike the Sith he didn't let his negative emotions control him.

He made her look into his eyes, and she saw his eyes darken ever so slightly. His voice was calm, yet held a storm of negative emotions boiling under the surface, "Aayla, who murdered children?"

She took a deep, shaky breath, and looked him in the eyes. "I can't… it couldn't have been him… he was the best of us all."

"Aayla-"

"Anakin Skywalker," she replied, slowly regaining control. "The one who murdered them was Anakin Skywalker."

Naruto frowned, "You told me stories about him. The Hero with no Fear who won many battles, who killed the Supreme Commander of the Separatists, it was him?"

She nodded, giving into a sudden sob as her memories once again threatened to overwhelm her. "He didn't feel right… Anakin was always one of emotion, but he felt like a blank slate."

Naruto frowned at her, "A clone?"

"Or he cut himself off from his emotions to the point where he became a blank slate to the force. I've seen it happen on the battlefield many times before." She replied, now once again in full control of herself. She reached up to wipe the shed tears from her eyes.

Aayla didn't lie to herself, she had been an emotional mess ever since Order 66 was given, seeing visions of your friends and family dying around you was slowly tipping her over the edge. Without Naruto's help and support she would have lost herself by now. She had only known him for a couple of weeks, but he was now one of her dearest friends.

He pressed his forehead against hers, letting her take in his warmth from his touch. It calmed her. "I promise you this Aayla, I will protect you and everyone I can from this Empire. You have my word."

"And your way is to keep your word," she replied with a broken laugh.

"And for you I will keep my word, to my dying breath." Naruto said with a crooked smile, foreheads still touching. Aayla was calm again, eyes closed and a small smile curling her lips upward, "My dear friend and guide."

Neither was aware that they were being watched. Dani Relisa watched the two with widening eyes, before she silently crept away.

"I'm telling ya, I know what I saw."

"Seriously, that hot Twi'lek gal is actually Jedi Knight Aayla Secura," Ken asked with a teasing smile, before turning to Solen and grinning. "Our little babe has lost it man, been in the cockpit too long."

"Dani for one thing she is not red, Aayla Secura's skin colour is blue, and she didn't have any tattoos last time I seen her either." Solen added for his friend.

"Maybe she used a mind trick to make us think she was someone else, I mean we've heard of the Jedi doing it before." Dani argued back, not willing to give in.

"She does have a point," Lynx spoke up. "What are we going to do about it? You saw the wanted posters on Felucia. The Empire is offering a ten million credit bounty on her head, something about helping in polluting Felucia's water supply."

"Please, I bet you've heard the other stories about her. You know the ones about saving whole peoples, whole communities, and whole planets. Putting her life on the line to save anyone from her own Troopers to innocent people caught in the crossfire. That doesn't sound like someone who would poison a planets water supply." Solen shot back with a frown. "Those charges stink."

"What does the Captain have to say about it?" Dani asked, suddenly feeling a little apprehensive.

"I say we keep quiet about it," Jaden said as he strolled into the central room of his freighter, dressed in his night clothes. "I have also heard about what that women has done, a true Jedi she is who follows their original mandate to protect and defend. I will not hand someone like that over. You've heard the rumours about what happened at their temple, about Troopers killing child and adult alike."

"The official story was that the Knights and Masters at the temple did it." Lynx frowned, before hearing a snort from Solen.

"She did repair our engines for us, both of them." Farr added with a smile. "And she is arguably one of the hottest women in the galaxy, so I vote for the Captain."

Dani frowned, but hung her head. "Alright, alright, I'll go with you guys."

"Shame about the reward though, could have put our money troubles behind us." Lynx muttered, before shaking his head. "Alright I'm with you too."

"Good lad," Kora replied with a nod, before turning to the door leading to their guest's bedroom. "You can come out now."

There was a moment of silence before Naruto entered the room, fully dressed, arms folded and a frown on his face as he looked at the three men and one woman of the Last Call. "So what happens now?"

Jaden pulled a cigar and match from his waist pocket, popping it into his mouth and lighting it as he spoke. "Not a damn thing. See, I was always a Jedi Sympathiser, so to speak. In a Republic of corruption and injustice they were the only shining light. So the little lady behind you has our protection."

Aayla appeared through the hatch behind the blond, garbed in a simple nightgown, but her lightsabre was still at her side. "Thank you, Captain."

"Nah, don't thank me." Kora replied as he took a deep drag of his cigar, and blew the smoke into the shape of a ring. "We'll keep our end of the bargain, as long as you're on my ship your safe. Any time you need a ride you just call. Sure I can't offer you two places on my crew?"

Aayla shook her head, tails swirling. "We will not place any of you in danger on my account, Captain, nor will we divert you from your business."

"Suit yourself sweetie," Jaden shrugged, clamping his cigar back between his teeth. "But my offer still stands, any time."

Esseles, third planet in the Essesia system, population just over twenty four billion sentient beings, located in the Core Worlds region of the galaxy and renowned as one of the most civilised and cultured worlds in the Galactic Republic. It was a rugged world, covered in steep cliffs, mountains and caverns, and also possessed a heavy atmosphere leading to a warm, yet wet climate.

Naruto took a deep breath to calm as he looked down, the Last Call had just reentered the atmosphere, and the blond had to physically control himself from panicking when he saw the flames of the upper atmosphere lick against the ships cockpit windows, trying to find a weakness in the freighters structure. If the entry into the atmosphere didn't scare him, seeing the ground several thousand kilometres down certainly did, just a massive expanse of greens and browns which got closer and closer at an alarming rate.

The blond flinched as the Last Call levelled out, and he heard Jaden laugh boisterously from his pilot's seat. "Not much of a flier are ya kid?"

"It's his first time," Aayla spoke up in his defence.

"Sage, help me," Naruto breathed as they slowed, and Aayla was actually worried that he might go into a panic. "That was awesome! Can we do it again!"

Both Jaden and Dani laughed at that, "A daredevil eh?"

"You bet," Naruto grinned like a madman.

"Well sorry kid, but if ya want to do it again it'll cost ya extra," Kora grinned, before pulling forward on the throttle. "We're coming up on the capital, just over this ridge."

The freighter went over the top of the mountain, and Naruto stared at a city he would consider a utopia. Calamar was a city dominated by grand architectural buildings of smooth lines and easy colours, stretching from one side of the considerable valley to the other. Its landscape was dominated by not just beautiful buildings but vast gardens and parks. It made Konoha look like a backwater city.

"Wow," he found himself saying. "It's beautiful."

"Yea, that it is kid. One of the most cultured and beautiful cities in the galaxy Calamar is."

"Calamar control, this is the Freighter Last Call, caller identification three, nine, seven, six, five, nine; requesting permission to dock." Dani's sweet voice spoke, and for a moment Naruto wondered what she was doing. He nearly jumped in surprise when he heard static, and an accented male voice answered her.

"Last Call, this is Calamar control, permission granted. Set her down at docking bat number eleven."

"Copy that, thanks control."

Author's Note 1: Naruto and Star Wars are the property of Masashi Kishimoto and Lucas Arts respectively. I make nothing from this story.

Author's Note 2: Thank you to everyone who continue to show your support; not just by reviewing but by placing this story on C2's, authors alerts and favourites. It means a hell of a lot when I log in and see how many people are following this story. Thank you again everyone, thank you.

Author's Note 3: On a sadder note this is as far as I have gotten at the moment with the story, so updates may slow to once every two weeks. I'm not saying it will happen, but I'm just covering my ass here in case it actually does happen. Hope you all enjoyed the story thus far, and I will try to continue updating every Sunday. This one and A Long Way From Home take first place in my book.