Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto universe and everything included in said universe!
Enjoy!
Naruto sighed in satisfaction as he pushed the flaps aside of the ramen stand, located on the market. Trade was Nami's main income of money and because of it their economics had stabilized and grown. the difficult days for the small village seemed over. Of course raiding Gato's places and taking his money and other valuables certainly helped.
He walked towards to the mortuary that was situated next to the aid station.
"Naruto-san!" a high pitched voice shouted, causing the blonde to turn.
A small girl came running over, dragging her mother by the hand. "This is my mom! she wanted to say hi!"
Naruto instantly recognized the girl as the one he had saved mere days ago from being trampled. "Hey there! I'm happy to see you managed to find your mom!"
The mother placed her hand on the back of her daughter's head. "I wanted to thank you for saving my daughter's life. I got separated from her and I couldn't get back to her...I'm incredibly grateful for what you've done, Uzumaki-san." She bowed deeply. "Arigato!"
Naruto waved with his hands, trying to get her to stop. "Oh please that's not needed, anyone would do the same thing!"
She smiled at the blonde. "And you did! I can't thank you enough, I'm forever in your debt!"
He scratched the back of his head chuckling. "Well, if someone ever asks for me, who isn't of this village, please don't tell them anything, my stay here is kinda secret, hehehe!"
The woman nodded before grabbing her daughter's hand. "Your secret is save, no one in this village will say a word about your presence here, "She winked at him before turning to her daughter. "Come, Chia, let's get going, I'm sure Uzumaki-san has other things he has to attend to."
"Bye Naruto-kun!" the little kid waved as she and her mother became one with the crowd.
The blonde waved before turning left and around the corner. He saw the mortuary and swiftly walked over. He walked over to the front desk. The woman cheerfully greeted the young genin. "Well well! if it isn't our newest member of our small village!"
Naruto grinned at her. "Hi! I'm here to look at the bodies of the two attackers."
The woman frowned at his request. "That is quite an unusual request Naruto-san. However, you did save our village, so I think we can make an exception for you. It's to your right down the hallways, third door on your left. I'll call ahead to let them know you're coming!"
"Arigato!" And with that, the blonde followed her instruction. He had to get one last glimpse at the attacker's seal. Ever since Kyuubi's shocking revelation he had been trying to understand how it was even possible and if it could be reverted.
Naruto arrived and knocked on the door. An older man, in his late 50's opened the door. "Ah Uzumaki-san! I heard you want to have a glimpse at our two latest additions?"
He nodded. "That's right, one of them had a seal I wish to have one last look at."
The man motioned with his hand and he led them to two small metal doors and opened it. two slabs of metal rolled out with two bodies on top, covered by a white cloth. "I know you are a ninja, so I take it dead bodies aren't a problem for you?"
Naruto nodded at the man. "I'll be alright," He turned to the bodies and slowly removed the cloth. The first one was Hidai. He took a better look at the seal but he wasn't an expert. Reaching for a notepad, Naruto made a crude drawing of the seal before putting it away in his jacket once more.
The employee backed away slightly, giving Naruto his space.
Naruto swallowed nervously as he pulled the cloth down from the second body, Rigio. Images of his Rasengan slamming into the man flickered in front of his eyes. He shook his head and took a better look at Rigio. He didn't have the seal on his shoulder. 'That's weird, I thought they both would have the seal.'
Satisfied he covered the bodies and turned back to the man. "This may be a weird request. But I need to take these bodies with me."
The man looked at him with a surprised look. "I can't do that, these bodies belong to the families, despite the atrocities these men committed."
Naruto insisted. "These men were evil. And they weren't working alone! If their friends find out they have been killed here, they will attack the village again, and I don't know if I'll be able to stop them again."
The man scratched his chin, mulling it over. "Well...Okay but you have to do it with elegance because you can't just run around with two dead bodies."
'That certainly would attract a lot of unnecessary attention. I'll have to do it at night, when I leave.' He thought as he glanced at the two covered bodies. "I'll do it at night. Take them far away from here, making sure they'll never link them to the village."
"I'll leave the emergency exit unlocked so you can open it from the outside." The man pointed at the door.
The young Nuke-nin thanked him, bowing deeply before leaving. "I'm very grateful for your help!"
"I should be thanking you Uzumaki-san! You saved us after all!" and the man returned the gesture with a bow of his own.
Strolling down the street he couldn't help but feel saddened by the entire ordeal. Yet at the same time it was for the best. Thinking he could stay here wasn't only wishful thinking but also incredibly dumb. Once the Konoha found out that his tracks led them nowhere, they would start crossing off likely places where he could be hiding. Nami no Kuni would definitely be on their list. 'Once this is all over, years will have past and their search will have stopped. I can come back here and settle down.'
Naruto arrived home and saw Inari just stepping out. He high-fived the kid as a greeting. "What's up Inari?"
Inari pouted as he shoved his hands in his pockets. "Heading back to school, lunchbreak's over...Blergh."
Naruto ruffled his hair and walked past him. "Well good luck with that! I'm gonna go do some training in a bit."
"See you later Nii-san!"
"Later, brat!"
"Who you calling a brat, you're a brat too!"
"You're the biggest brat here, and you know it! Dattebayo!"
"GIVE IT A REST!" Tazuna shouted from inside the home.
Naruto walked around the house, waving at Inari. Trying to get some last minute training in.
xXxXxXxXx
Naruto closed the door to his room and started quietly packing his most essential stuff. 'I can't let them know I'm leaving. They'll just try and make me stay. I have no time for that.' He shoved spare clothing and extra packs of kunai and shuriken in his backpack. He had no exploding tags anymore so he had to buy those at a later date in another village.
The 12-year-old unrolled the map he purchased earlier. Looking at the map Naruto realized he had to take a boat towards Yu-no Kuno before travelling on foot into Yuki no Kuni. He had to create more distance between him and Konoha. 'They wouldn't dare setting a foot in Yu-no-Kuno! That should be my final destination, for the time being at least.'
After he was called for dinner, he made his way downstairs, taking place at the table where some bickering was going back and forth between Tazuna and Inari. He silently started eating his food which consisted of Katsudon and a bowl of rice.
Tazune picked up on his lack of enthusiasm. "Why are you all of a sudden so quiet? are you okay?"
Naruto looked up and waved one of his hands dismissively. "Yeah I still feel a bit weakened from the fight, hopefully I'll be up and running in no time!"
Tazuna's eyes scanned him over and nodded. "Alright, I'll stop bugging you. But if you ever have the urge to talk...Go to Tsunami, because I don't know how to handle that touchy stuff. He chuckled as he took a sip from his alcoholic beverage.
Naruto grinned. He couldn't help but wonder if this is what it felt like to truly have a family. "Ah but old geezer! Who's going to rock me to sleep tonight if you won't?
Tazunba grinned and Tsunama chuckled. Inari had images of Tazuna rocking Naruto to sleep and nearly choked on his food. "Yeah and when are you going to read him a bedtime story huh?" Inari added in, grinning like crazy.
Naruto pointed with his chopsticks at the young kid. " I'll let you keep that, don't want you to feel left out."
Tazuna let out a bark of laughter, downing the rest of his drink in one large gulp.
Naruto returned his focus on his food and ate it quickly, before helping with cleaning the table.
"You can go relax Naruto-kun, go watch some tv with Tazuna and Inari." She gave him a gentle nudge to the living room, smiling at him.
Naruto grinned back at her and settled himself on the couch, watching Inari and Tazuna argue about his bedtime.
"Naruto doesn't have a bedtime! why can't I stay up as late as him?"
"Because you don't kill people for a living!"
"So, if I kill people I'll get to stay up late?"
Tazuna snorted. "Yeah, if you kill people you can stay as long up as I want."
"Really?"
Tazuna slapped Inari upside the head. "Of course not! now go do your homework!"
Inari grumbled and starting walking towards the door. "Stupid bedtime...I'm almost 9 years old...stupid homework."
Naruto looked at Tsunami whom was reading a book. "I'm going to turn in as well. See ya tomorrow!" 'Yeah right..."
Tsunami looked up from her book and gave a loving smile. "Good night Naruto-kun."
Tazuna winked at the blonde, another alcoholic beverage in his hands. "See ya in the morning, kid."
Naruto walked up stairs and decided to take a shower. He didn't know when the next time would be when he could properly shower so he might as well make the best of it.
He undressed and turned on the hot shower, patiently waiting for it to warm up. With a satisfied sigh he stepped in, scrubbing his body from tip to toe. Whilst the blonde was showering, he couldn't help feel unsure what his goals were. 'For now the most important thing is to keep any threats away from Nami.'
He shut off the shower and stepped out, drying himself before crossing the hallway and into his bedroom. There he swiftly checked his backpack one last time, double checking if he had forgotten anything. After he was satisfied he got fully dressed and slid under the cover. He couldn't risk making any noise when he left. He couldn't risk sleeping either. The chance that he slept through the entire night was too big. 'Setting an alarm could wake the entire house…This is going be hell! Why am I even doing this?!'
Five hours later, 02:57 AM.
Naruto rubbed his eyes for what felt like the millionth time since he went to bed. He glanced at the clock hanging on the wall above his bedroom door. 'No point in waiting any longer.'
He silently stepped out of his bed and reached for his backpack under his bed, slinging it over his shoulder. Quietly, the youngster made his way to his door and opened it, hoping that the creaking sounds wouldn't wake anyone. He stepped into the hallway and closed it, once more wincing at the noise.
He tiptoed down the hall and to the stairs. 'the second, fifth and eighth will wake up the entire house for sure if I stand on those, so I have to make sure I skip them. With the elegance of a drunk cat he walked down the stairs, barely dodging the creaky steps.
Once he was downstairs he grabbed a piece of paper and a pen from the desk in the corner and wrote something on it, before placing it on the dinner table. He gave the letter one last glance and sadly smiled at it.
Dear Tazuna, Tsunami and Inari.
This wasn't the way I thought this would go, but after the fight I knew there was no other choice. I left Nami to get stronger. I can't gain the power I need if I stay here, it will slow me down too much. The two men who attacked weren't the only ones out there. I'm going to make sure that no one else is going to attack this village again. I wish you guys and the rest of Nami all the best. I felt more at home here this past month than I have ever had in Konoha. I hope that once I'm done I'll still be welcome in Nami no Kuni.
Naruto.
Ps: Dattebayo!
xXxXxxx
He walked out the front door and sprinted to the mortuary to pick up the bodies.
Luck was on his side for a change. There wasn't a soul awake and on the street, including an old man lying unconscious in the corner. He glanced to his right and saw the ramen stand. 'And there's another downside...After leaving Konoha and Ichiraku's, I found a decent replacement here. Now I have to leave yet again.'
after a couple of moments, he saw his destination and made his way around the back, noticing the door straight away, it was slightly ajar. He swiftly made his way to where the bodies were laying. He opened the metal doors and saw that the bodies were in two black bags. After confirming it were indeed the two attackers, he created two clones and ordered them to carry the bodies.
"Why can't you help?' one asked?
"Because I'm the boss! now carry it!"
"So you're that kind of boss? the kind that doesn't help?" The other asked.
"I'll be scouting and making sure we won't be seen, now stop complaining and get moving!" The creator hissed. 'Am I really that stubborn?'
His clones muttered something that sounded eerily like 'slave-labor' but they complied nonetheless.
They exited the mortuary and swiftly darted across the village. Naruto saw the gate and noted that the building next to it was already almost completely repaired. The original Naruto was the first one to exit the village, coming to a halt at the edge of the forest. Looking back one last time, he sadly smiled and gave a wave. 'It's for the best...' He abruptly turned and sprinted off, his clones following closely behind.
3 months later.
Naruto ran, his head held low. his face was adorned with cuts and bruises. from the corner of his lip a small sliver of blood was trickling down. his clothes were a mess, cuts and tears were showing how severe the damage was. But despite that, he ran and he didn't stop.
He jumped over a fallen tree, fluidly grabbing two kunai with exploding tags attached. He threw it towards his pursuers whom were mere meters behind him, obscured by trees and bushes. Looking ahead, the thirteen-year-old blonde could see the end of a low cliff coming up. He looked to his left and right, but the cliff reached far. With no other option left, he decided upon the course that would give him the biggest chance of survival.
He sprang.
As he fell down, his clothes were wildly flapping about. He reached for his pouch once more which proved more difficult than he thought it would. Finally, able in grabbing another exploding tag, the boy prepared for the impact. Fortunately for his legs he landed in a thick bush that broke his fall considerably. He rolled out of the bush and onto his feet, the exploding tag was placed in the bushes, awaiting detonation through physical contact.
The former Konoha nin resumed his dash, ignoring the pain in his legs, placing as many trees and other objects between him and his pursuers. 'This is ridiculous! They've been hunting me for three days. Don't they need to rest? The only reason I haven't dropped from chakra exhaustion is because of Kyuubi!'
The ground slowly took another sharp dive and he stumbled, tumbling down the hill. regaining his composure after a couple of seconds, he used his hands and front flipped himself back onto his feet, resuming his sprint. 'I need more chakra, Kyuubi!'
'This is the last I can give you, if I give you even more your body won't be able to handle it.'
Naruto grunted in response before snapping his head to the left as he heard the exploding tag burst, meaning that were down the cliff as well. He had managed to increase the distance between them when jumping off the cliff, but it wasn't nearly as much as he had hoped.
The blonde could hear something soaring towards him and quickly dove out of the way. A humongous fireball flew past him, scorching the left sleeve of his shirt.
"Uzumaki Naruto, stop running and face us." A calm voice cut through the air, chilling Naruto to his core.
He gritted his teeth and pushed himself to his feet. "Screw you!" resuming his flight through the forest of Kaminari no Kuni. He could feel another burst of energy erupting in his chest and knew that the Kyuubi had given more of his power.
He jumped over a medium sized rock and onto one of the higher tree branches, dashing from tree to tree, rapidly increasing his speed. He reached for his pouch and quickly counted, slightly hindering his movement. '8 kunai, 4 shuriken and only 3 exploding tags left. And I'm also down to my last smoke bomb...argh! I wish I hadn't listened to Itachi.'
"It's foolish, boy. Give up already; This running is only delaying the inevitable." A second voice said.
The blonde ignored their words and continued deeper into the forest, hoping that the swamp would help him in his desperate escape attempt. Dodging another large fireball, he tried to increase his speed even more, ignoring the stabbing pain in his side.
"Can't keep running from us, boy." The cold voice spoke.
"You thought you could get away with the murder of our comrades?" the second one cut through the air, definitely getting closer to the young pre-teen.
Fear coursed through his body as he threw his last smoke bomb and jumped down at the bank of a small river. He silently made his way through the river and hid behind one of the many rocks protruding from the river.
"We found you, Uzumaki Naruto!"
Barely able to cross his arms, the blonde could do little else before an explosion engulfed him.
Two dark clothed figures landed at the river bank, looking at the kid's hiding spot, waiting for the smoke to clear.
As the smoke slowly drifted away and thinned out, they could see a man completely dress in a black outfit standing on the rock with Naruto draped over his shoulder. His outfit consisted of metal vambraces strapped around his wrists. He had a dark red sash around his waist and a hood that he currently had pulled back, revealing his dark ruffled hair and green eyes. The man had a smooth skin, showing his young age. He looked at the two with a smirk adorning his face.
"It's him, what do we do?" One of the two asked.
"We have to retreat and form the rest that they have arrived."
"Understood." As soon as he said that, they disappeared in a whirl of leaves.
The man dressed in black, turned around and dashed away, taking Naruto with him.
Hours later, in a small village on the border of Kaminari no Kuni
Naruto groggily opened his eyes. He looked around the small room he was residing in before he suddenly remembered what had happened. 'How the hell did I survive! Last thing I remember is the explosion. How am I even alive? They could've easily killed me!'
He placed his feet on the ground and stood up. Looking down at his clothes he noticed he was wearing a white shirt with black knee-length pants. Apparently someone had changed him while he was out. 'The one who saved me, no doubt.'
He walked to the door and slowly opened it, peering in to the hallway before cautiously entering it. He noticed the stairs down the corridor and silently walked down the stairs, ending up in a living room.
"About time you woke up."
Naruto looked towards the direction of where the voice came from. He saw a man with dark hair and green eyes, wearing a black shirt along with black pants. The man looked at him in return, seizing him up. "Who are you? are you the one who saved me?" the blonde asked.
The man took a sip from his drink and nodded." Yep. I'm the one who saved you. The name's Hawke. Those two were hunting you for quite some time. Until they found you at Tsuyuaka Village. You did kill two of their buddies so I can't really blame them."
Naruto's eyes widened in surprise. "You know who they are?!"
The man nodded. "Yes I've been tracking them from a country across the sea. That land used to be a peaceful place where disputes with other countries were rarely solved through military action. Negotiations took place. Their army was worthy, no doubt about that. But they didn't experience a lot of action, they weren't like shinobi. But it all changed. They came and slaughtered everyone. No one was left alive. Men women and children were all slaughtered in a matter of weeks."
"And now they've come for us." Naruto breathlessly whispered, staring at Hawke.
Hawke shook his head. "Not yet. The ones we have encountered are mere scouts. They are most likely here to gain information about the locations of all the hidden villages, as well as to assess our military strength. They've also scouted ahead to find a Tear."
Naruto looked dumbfounded. "A tear?"
"Yes, or more accurately a Chakra tear. A Chakra Tear appears when enormous amounts of chakra is being used in a short period of time. Or If large portions of charka is used over time. Think of battlefields where wars used to rage. Arena's or even possibly, training grounds," Hawke stood up and opened a window, letting fresh air into the room. "These Tears aren't visible to the naked eye so very few people know of this.""
Naruto absorbed the new information. "Then why are they looking for them if they aren't visible to us? what's so special about a Chakra Tear?"
Hawke grinned. "Glad you asked! Chakra Tears allow demons to be summoned to our world."
"W-Wha?" A wide eyed Naruto gaped. "Like the Kyuubi?"
"Similar, yes. We've always thought that this was how the Nine-tailed beasts came into being. These invaders want to suck demons, from who knows where into our world," He stopped momentarily before resuming, "But that doesn't stop there. They have a way to merge their bodies with that of a demon, becoming immensely strong. How they are doing this, we don't know yet."
"Then we have to stop them!" Naruto shouted as he pumped his fist into the air.
Hawke grinned once more. "Really? I wouldn't have thought of it! I'm glad you're here to tell me this!"
Naruto stuck his tongue out. "Teme..."
Hawke continued. "As I said before, it will take quite some time before they actually arrive, so during that time we'll have to get you stronger, strong enough to go toe to toe with the Unknowns."
Naruto cheered, jumping up and down. "Alright then! let's do it!"
Hawke nodded. "One more thing..."
"Sure! Anything."
"Stop shouting, it's making my ears bleed!" He suddenly shouted in Naruto's face.
Naruto sweat dropped. "THEN WHY ARE YOU SHOUTING?!"
xXxXxXx
Coming up, chapter4!