Interlude 2: The Old Man on the Dock (Yadato)
A gentle breeze blew over the wooden dock and carried the noise of villagers preparing their boats to Yadato's ears. He'd be lying if he said he had gotten a full night's rest. The discovery he made yesterday upon walking into this tiny village was too interesting to sleep. The promise that today held had only added fuel to the flame.
Seagulls squawked overhead as he made his way down the gentle slope that led to the small fishing hut on the dock. He had prepared a list of questions but had no idea how to start the conversation. He was about to question the grandfather of the recently deceased Fourth Hokage. Would the man even entertain him? Would he be on his guard because of the nature of his grandson's profession? he wondered.
Yadato stepped onto the creaking wooden planks of the dock. The entire village must have been on the pier as it was bustling with activity. Men and women carried nets and poles. Children rushed about carrying supplies trying their best to help the older ones prepare for a day out on the water.
Yadato reached the hut, took a deep breath, and knocked on the wooden door.
"I'm out back. Come on through," an old gravelly voice rang out from behind the hut. Yadato didn't see a way around back, so he entered the house. Immediately he walked face first into a net hanging from the ceiling. He pushed it aside and got a better view of the interior the Fourth Hokage no doubt called home.
It was cluttered, and crates were stacked up against each wall. Nets hung chaotically from the ceiling along with what looked like curved pikes that must be for spearing large fish by the side of the boat and lifting them into the hull. The smell of salt and sea permeated everything, and the sound of the sloshing ocean below seeped through the worn floorboards.
Yadato followed what appeared to be a path through the cluttered maze of fishing equipment until he reached a door at the back of the wooden dwelling. He pushed it open, and the morning sun reappeared. Its blinding yellow light caused him to squint. He raised a hand to shield his eyes from the light, and through his fingers, he saw an older man sitting on a wooden crate. The man's hands and fingers were hard at work, delicately stitching a hole in a net. The old man's eyes didn't lift from his task, not even to gaze at the newcomer who stood awkwardly on his back porch.
"Have a seat. I'll be done in a moment." The old man said as his fingers continued their intricate task.
Yadato sat on a wooden crate across from the man and looked closer. He indeed was the same one from the picture in the tavern, just much older. Twenty years give or take a few, to be exact. The man's black hair with grey specks from the photo had turned entirely grey. His hands were weathered with callouses, a testament to all the hard work he had done in his long life.
But his most striking feature was still bright despite age. It was also the feature he most obviously shared with his grandson. The man's amber eyes glowed in the morning sun. They danced back and forth between the objects in his hand, following each movement intently to avoid missing a stitch.
After a minute of awkward silence, the man sighed in satisfaction and set the net down by his side. He then turned his gaze towards Yadato.
"You must be the traveler who arrived yesterday."
Yadato looked surprised back at the old man, "Yes, but who told you?"
"It's a small village. Quite hard to go unnoticed." The man said seriously but then smirked, "also, Enoba, the tavern keep warned me that you would be coming."
"Namura, correct?" Yadato asked and waited for confirmation from the man before continuing, "then you know why I'm here?"
The man seemed to age from the question. A sad look crossed his face, and he appeared to wilt into the crate he sat on.
"Yes, I do. You are here to ask me questions about my grandson."
Yadato nodded and pulled out his notepad. He opened it to the page of prepared questions. He looked at the man before him and decided against following the script. Instead, he flipped to the next page and prepared to write down details from the conversation.
"First of all, I am sorry for your loss." He said somberly. "I can only imagine what you've been going through these past several months."
The old netter picked at grime under his fingertips. His amber eyes grew distant as he stared at the floorboards.
"Thank you. I've had months to process it. But some days, it comes back, and I'm left without words." The man looked up from his musing and stared Yadato right in the eyes. "Kaito was…"
"Something special?" Yadato found himself finishing the man's words.
The man chuckled, "You could say that. He grew into a man on who the entire country placed its hopes and dreams. But above all else, he was my grandson."
"May I ask what he was like when he was young?"
"Kaito was well behaved for the most part. He was always ready to help around the docks. But he also inherited a mischievous side from his mother." The old netter smiled as if reliving a memory. "His quick wits and curiosity only played into his mischievous tendencies."
Yadato hid a smile. It makes sense that a future ninja would enjoy playing tricks.
"You must have been proud when he became a ninja."
The old man shook his head. "Proud is not how I would describe it."
Yadato's eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
"More like devasted. Kaito was supposed to become a fisherman. A man who worked hard every day to put food on the table for his and his neighbor's family. A peaceful career. But when that recruiter came, and I saw the look on my grandson's face. I knew any hope of a normal life for him was gone."
"But sir," Yadato started, "look what your son accomplished. He saved thousands of Fire Country citizens. He won the war for the Leaf."
"And it cost him everything. My grandson, the boy who used to build sandcastles on the beach, who used to eagerly wait on the dock for the fisherman to return." The old man paused as his body racked with emotion. "Was turned into a killer. Taking a life sours the soul. And the Leaf made him do it a thousand times."
Yadato shook his head in disbelief. He couldn't understand. This man's grandson was a hero, a paragon of what a man should be. And yet...
"Furukawa, sir, your son may have killed. But he did it for his country. He did it for the very people your nets catch fish for. The Leaf turned him into a hero, and the world was better for it."
"Before you go claiming the Leaf created a hero, you should understand what a ninja is." Namura sneered. "The Leaf's so-called heroes are nothing but broken souls. Children turned into soldiers for a smokescreen they call The Will of Fire."
"I read every letter he sent back. I saw every clue of what they were turning him into every time he came home for a visit." The man clenched his hands tightly. The calloused hands shook with strain. "I held out hope, and I told myself lies. But it was destroyed when he came back after the battle of Asatori Bay."
"Asatori Bay?" Yadato questioned. That pivotal battle was a historic day when many first heard the name Kaito. "That was during the Second Great Ninja War. He must have been.."
"Fifteen. Kaito was fifteen."
Namura stood; a groan escaped his lips as knees battered by a hard life on the water strained in effort. He turned towards the ocean and watched the sunrise while leaning against a wooden pillar.
"After he sunk dozens of ships. After he dyed the bay red with the blood of all those Mist ninja. His comrades pulled him off his hawk and celebrated him as a hero."
Seagulls flew overhead, casting shadows as they passed between them and the morning sun.
"Days later, at dusk, Kaito showed up at my doorstep. As he whimpered in my arms, he told me he smiled with his teammates. He drank as they toasted him. But as his comrades reveled in the victory, all he could see were the faces of the mist sailors in the bay. He could only hear their pained cries as the fires engulfed them."
Namura looked down at his still shaking hands.
"He fell asleep in my arms that night. And as I caressed each nightmare away, I knew that all traces of my innocent grandson had been snuffed out. What was left was your so-called hero."
The old man turned. On his face were a mix of anger, sorrow, and regret.
"If you want to fill your notebook with heroic stories of my grandson. Don't come to me. Go to Asatori Bay. There you will hear endless tales of his grandeur. The annual festival celebrating the event will be held in a week. Plenty of time for you to make the journey."
After yesterday's revelation, Yadato already added Asatori Bay to his plan. Today's somber conversation only heightened that need.
"But if you're the honorable man I believe you to be. If you wish for the truth to be derived from your stories. Then please include my side as well."
The old man reached down and hefted the net onto his shoulder. Then, as he walked past Yadato, he paused and glanced down at him. Amber eyes pierced straight through Yadato's emerald ones.
"I am glad Kaito is viewed in the positive light that he is. But the world should be aware of a hero's true burdens. If not, then nothing of true value will be learned from my grandson's sacrifice."
Authors Note:
Hi everyone! Sorry for the late update. I moved across the country and picked up some other projects. So, updates on my two ongoing posted stories have taken a hit.
Another heavy chapter. I realized halfway through this one that the previous chapter is also serious. Unfortunately, I did not realize it may not be the best idea until it was too late. But I promise not all future chapters will be so gloomy.
After this interlude, it will be back to the main story from Kaito's and other main characters' perspectives. Therefore, expect an interlude chapter every 4 to 5 regular chapters.
I may not have updated my two posted stories, but I've actually been writing a lot. I've written several chapters on other Naruto stories I'm working on. I've also joined a team as a writer. It's a collaborative effort with editors, readers, lore masters, and writers with the goal of creating an all-original expansive Naruto story. If you're interested, take a look at my profile. I've added links to the collaborative group's FFN profile and a one-shot I wrote for the team.
There are several other Naruto stories I am working on. Some big, others small, all in different stages of work. Is it wise to divide up my time instead of focusing on one or two stories? No. Will The Wind Walker and The Last Wind receive slow updates because of this? Yes. But I get bored when I focus on one or two stories. Switching serves as a mental break and pause.
I still plan to update The Wind Walker and The Last Wind. I have several arcs planned and half-written for each of them. Just don't expect quick updates.
I am sure many of my future stories in work will fail, but I will probably still post them. One of them, a planned long one, I am particularly excited about and having a lot of fun writing. I am currently five chapters in. I do not plan on posting anything on that one until I get well ahead on chapters, and when I do post, I plan on posting a chapter every week or two. It is going to be a SI/OC-centric story.
I recently posted the first chapter of a planned short fic called Long Live the Leaf. This story is an entirely experimental one. It will receive updates irregularly and be low on the priority list. It may get abandoned, to be honest. But it was fun to write, and I wanted to post something different. I only have a rough outline for that story. So, I will improvise along the way for the majority of it.
Anyway, as always, leave a review with your thoughts and questions. I will always try to respond to each review.
-V3X