Chapter 19: The Land of Rice Fields
Chapter Summary: Sakura and Anko seek to surprise Naruto on his birthday.
Words: 5,769
Updated: 5/31/23
scotty26: I feel like your keeping a tie between naruto and boruto with a mix of soap opera like As The World Turns if that makes some kind of sense.. and I feel like the cabins aren't cabins but I've never seen a real cabin except for in tv shows. I'm only saying that cause of how you describe Anko cabin. I guess it's time for Naruto to come clean with his memory loss?
I have never heard of As The World Turns. I am also allergic to Boruto! When writing the cabins, I think I had more of a lodge type of thing in mind, which I guess can cause confusion. As for coming clean about the memory loss, well...
Roswelll: GODdd i love it, .stop.
I'm glad you enjoy it! I hope you meant "don't stop" :P
Cabin, Afternoon
Sakura looked at the calendar in the kitchen with her face scrunched up.
If I'm looking at it right...
She hopped over to Anko, who was eating lunch.
The girl asked, "Ms. Anko, do you think we can go back to the village for a day or two? It's Naruto's birthday tomorrow, and I think it would be nice for us to be there with him."
Anko raised an eyebrow. "Oh, right... His birthday. Maybe we can take him to the nine-tails death festival?"
Sakura replied, "No, I don't think so... I think he'd appreciate a smaller gathering."
"Hm... So, what are you thinking? We buy some cake, and drop in on him? Not like he's expecting us."
"I think that's a great idea! Come on, we should go quickly!"
Anko sighed, and before she could argue, relented, "Yeah, sure."
She rose, then stepped outside to inform Kakashi.
Kakashi was still standing at the edge of the river with his arms crossed, watching Sasuke. The boy was finally getting the grasp of walking on the water - at least, the part where one stands on the flowing water for a certain amount of time. All was well and good until Anko spoke.
She shouted, "Hey, Kakashi!", prompting Sasuke to break his concentration and fall in the water.
As Sasuke rose, cursing, Anko added, "Whoops - - sorry, Kid. I just wanted to tell your sensei that I'm going with Sakura to surprise Naruto on his birthday."
Kakashi looked up, not moving from his position. "Send him my best."
Sakura stepped out and questioned, "Won't you be coming, Sensei?"
"No, sorry. I've got my hands full with Sasuke's training - - he's fighting Gaara in the first round."
As such, only Anko and Sakura returned to the cabin, not bothering to pack some clothes, ready to return to the village for a while.
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Naruto's Apartment, Nighttime
When Anko and Sakura arrived to surprise Naruto with cake and a jacket wrapped in plastic, they were perplexed to find that he wasn't home.
As Anko set the cake on the dining table and Sakura hung the jacket on a chair, Sakura remarked, "It's half past nine - - you don't think he could still be training, do you?"
Anko replied, "I don't know... Let's see if we can find any clue to where he is."
As Anko checked the bathroom, Sakura walked around the kitchen.
Just normal kitchen stuff... No note or anything. Might as well put the cake in the fridge, though.
After putting the cake in the fridge, Sakura walked back towards the dining table, hoping to reach the living room, when something on the dining table caught her eye.
What's this? A card for Ichiraku Ramen?... And it's... Stamped all the way up to Tuesday - - that's today! Naruto must've been there earlier - - is he sticking to Kimiko's diet? Oh man, either she or these Ichiraku guys might know where he could be right now...
She called out, "Ms. Anko! I think I know how to find him!"
Anko closed a closet door and approached Sakura. "You think so? How?"
Sakura answered, "I'm thinking the people from this Ichiraku restaurant or Naruto's pediatrician could know where he's gone. I know the doctor, so I'll go to her."
"And I'll go to the ramen place. Call me if you find anything."
"Yes, Ma'am."
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Ichiraku Ramen
Anko found that the quaint shop had been closed for the night. A barred steel door covered the shop, but the floor above it had lights on.
Could be worth a try.
She shook the steel door for a few seconds, and waited. Soon after, a man - Teuchi - stuck his head out of one of the top floor windows and asked, "Yes, what is it?"
Anko cupped her hands and replied, "I was just wondering if you know where Naruto is? Scrawny little blonde? Obscene amounts of orange?"
Teuchi told her, "He dropped by this afternoon for one last bowl of ramen before some big trip. I think he said he was going to visit his doctor - - Himiko, or something like that."
"You mean, Kimiko?"
"Yeah, yeah, that. Is that all?"
"Yes; I'm sorry to have bothered you at this hour, sir."
"Oh, don't worry! Just promise you'll come by some day as a customer!"
Anko smiled. "Yeah, sure. Good night."
"Goodnight!"
When Teuchi slipped back into his home and closed the window, Anko groaned as she walked away.
That darn doctor better know where he is...
Her phone rang.
"Hello? Sakura?"
"Yeah, it's me. Dr. Kimiko went home a while ago, but she was kind enough to tell me that Naruto dropped by to tell her that he might not be visiting for a while - - he's got a mission!"
"A mission? Alright... Meet me outside the hokage's office."
"Alright. Bye."
"Bye."
The phone clasped as Anko closed it.
If this is some damned goose chase...
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Hokage's Office
Anko and Sakura had entered the building together, and walked to the office the same way. When the hokage let them in, Anko took charge.
She smirked and licked her lips. Her voice momentarily went raspy when she greeted, "Good evening, Lord Hokage."
The hokage inquired, "I wish it were, Anko. How can I help you?"
"It's - - ahem - - it's Naruto's birthday tomorrow, but he's not at home. We were told he's on a mission, so we were hoping you would know where he's gone?"
The man answered, "Ah, yes. He's gone with his trainer, Ebisu, and Jiraiya to Tanzaku Quarters, in search of Tsunade."
"How far do you think they've gotten by now, Sir?"
"I'd say, if they haven't been wasting any time, they must be near the Land of Rice Fields by now."
Anko striaghrend up. "Permission to locate, Sir."
"Why?"
"To enact birthday celebrations, Sir."
"... Fine. Go."
Sakura cheered. "You're the best!"
After Anko and Sakura left, they walked to the outskirts of the village, outside of the walls - they hoped to catch up to Naruto quick.
Once they'd reached a few miles away from the village, Anko facepalmed. She turned to Sakura and told her, "Hey, I forgot I had to send a message to a friend - stop here for a second."
Sakura obeyed.
Anko bit her thumb, drawing blood, and slammed her palm onto the ground. In a puff of smoke, a serpent reared its head.
Sakura watched as Anko communicated with the snake, seemingly in their own language. She could only understand certain sounds like hissing, clicking, and the mention of something she perceived as being called, "Tayuya". After a few seconds, the snake disappeared in another puff of smoke.
Anko explained, "That was a snake summon, given to me by my ex-sensei, Orochimaru."
Sakura questioned, "But don't you think they might relay information to him?..."
"Nah, the summons are like lawyers. Sworn to client privilege - they actually get exiled for breaking that code."
"Woah..."
"Yeah, woah."
The girls took energy pills and continued their walk.
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Early Morning, Land of Rice Fields, Hashiriya Hotel
When Naruto woke up, the sun was so early in its rising that it was still creating a red hue over the sky. He rolled over, turning away from the window, and chortled at the sight in front of him.
Since each room had only two beds, and neither man wanted to pay for another room, Jiraiya and Ebisu opted to take the same bed. Whereas Jiraiya took the head, Ebisu took the foot-end, so each man had his feet almost up the other's nostrils. Ebisu, being well-groomed, presented no issue for Jiraiya. Jiraiya, on the other hand, released a scent so strong that Ebisu had to tie an air freshener around each of his toes just to neutralize it - and even then, he could catch hints of the odor. Even in sleep, and with his back turned to the evil feet, Ebisu seemed to be in pain from the stench.
Naruto held his nose as he scampered past the bed to go to the bathroom. After finishing his morning business, he noted that it was still early morning, so he opted to simply watch TV and relax.
After a while - Naruto wasn't counting, but the red hue of the sky was gone by now - the phone on the nightstand began ringing. Although Ebisu quickly woke up, and lamented his position, Jiraiya snored through it.
Thus, Naruto picked up the phone.
"Hello?"
"This is your wake-up call from Sasame - - that's me! Are you awake now?"
Naruto yawned.
Sasame? That's... Oh, yeah, Sasame Fuma! The owner's daughter.
Naruto looked over at Ebisu, who was nearly in tears and crawling out of the bed, and Jiraiya, who seemed to have been stirred up by the faint sound of a woman's voice.
"Uhhh, yeah, we're all up. Thanks."
"My pleasure. By the way, can I speak to a Mr... Uzumaki, please?"
"That's me."
"Well, I need to see you in the lobby, okay? Be quick."
"Alright. Bye.". He hung up.
Naruto climbed out of bed and began to change his clothes. "Hey, Sasame wants to see me. See ya later."
Jiraiya groggily bellowed, "DID SHE MENTION MY NAME, NARUTO, DOES SHE WANT TO SEE ME?..."
Naruto gulped. "Er, no. Maybe next time."
Jiraiya instantly went back to sleep, and Naruto shuddered.
Creep.
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Lobby
Naruto had taken the elevator from the 9th floor down to the lobby, where he tried to spot Sasame - he was looking for a young ginger, only a few years older than him, sporting an elegant kimono or some other traditional garment.
However, the lobby was completely empty, besides the tall, plain-looking clerk at the front desk - some lackey or distant family member, no doubt.
Naruto walked up to the man and inquired, "Good morning - - do you know where I can find Sasame?"
The man answered, "I think she's taking a walk in the park."
"Thanks."
Naruto walked out of the hotel.
The park? Why would she say 'lobby' if she wanted me in the park?
He opted for a shortcut through the park - one which would take him through a tall thicket.
As he walked past the initial cluster of trees and found a small clearing, he was immediately jumped. Someone had grabbed him from behind and was attempting to apprehend him!
The boy cried, "RAPE! RAPE! HELP! RAPE!", as he struggled.
He kicked and squirmed until he was able to flip over, reversing positions with the attacker.
The boy grabbed the attacker's ski mask from the chin and pulled it up, but only got it up to the attacker's forehead before falling off.
When the attacker turned around, Naruto's face showed his perplexion clearly.
"Sasame?! That you? What the Hell's wrong with you?!"
The girl put a hand up to her face, and her eyes widened at the realization that her identity had just been exposed.
She demanded, "Just shut up, and come with me!", as she began running toward the boy.
Naruto rolled back up and began running. "I might've done that if you didn't jump me, bitch!"
As he was running back to the hotel, he continued yelling, "RAPE! RAPE! JIRAIYA! EBISU! SASAME WANTS TO RAPE ME!"
He ran all the way into the building, crashing through the lobby, crying "RAPE!" the whole way.
When he entered an elevator, he stood calmly, knowing that he was safe - besides, he didn't want to bother the other people with him.
He watched as the numbers on the elevator slowly went up to 9. When the doors opened, he zoomed out of the elevator, resuming his yelling.
He found his hotel room and began banging on the door, still wailing, "JIRAIYA! EBISU! SASAME WANTS TO RAPE ME! R-A-P-E, RAPE!"
Sasame then grabbed Naruto from behind again. The boy questioned, "How'd you get up here so fast?!", to whom the girl replied, "We have two elevators, moron!"
As Naruto kept on resisting, his room's door was kicked open from the inside - literally.
The looming figure of Jiraiya stood with his arms crossed.
"So... Naruto. You think you can get the good stuff without me?"
Sasame and Naruto were both instantly dumbfounded. The simultaneously asked, "What?"
The man responded, "If anyone's gonna get raped by that hottie... IT SHOULD BE ME!"
Sasame's face contorted with disgust. She tossed Naruto aside for the time being, and tried to sock Jiraiya. However, the man simply swooped behind her, grabbed her, and tossed her over his head with a suplex.
Due to Jiraiya's immense physical strength, this was enough to slam Sasame into a wall and render her incapacitated for a while.
She wheezed, "I... Wasn't... Gonna... Rape... Anyone..."
Jiraiya shot a stern glare at Naruto, who meekly replied, "Sorry."
One of the elevators chimed again as the doors opened.
Anko and Sakura, both rough-looking and drowsy from having barely slept in their rented car, stepped out and surveyed the scene.
Too tired to say anything, they simply walked to their room - adjacent to Naruto's room - and went inside.
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That Afternoon
Sasame had been sitting in a chair with her mouth taped in Naruto's room for the past few hours. Jiraiya, Ebisu, and Naruto had attempted to interrogate her, but she refused to say anything, so she was forced to sit and watch TV with Naruto.
The girl had skipped dinner and breakfast, too, so when Naruto came in with lunch - a bunch of hotel burritos - she began to feel a nudging in her stomach. The boy approached the microwave, which incidentally was right near the girl.
Naruto microwaved the first burrito. It wasn't particularly the most appealing food, but Sasame would have been a liar to tell herself that it wasn't enticing.
Naruto walked over to a thankful Ebisu and handed him the burrito.
The blonde walked back to the microwave and warmed up another burrito. Now, the smell was compounding directly in front of Sasame, who began to feel a scratching pit in her belly.
When Naruto opened the microwave again, to give the burrito to Jiraiya, Sasame's stomach began to rumble.
It was when Naruto returned yet again to microwave a third burrito that the itches of hunger in Sasame's stomach developed into full-on pangs.
When the smell of the 3rd burrito reached her, she whined, "Mmmmm Mmm nmm!"
Naruto turned to her. He said, "Sorry, I don't speak that language.", and turned back to the microwave, watching the burrito spin.
Sasame cried, "MMM MM NMWNWN MMFMMFF MM!!"
Naruto turned to her again, with his hands on his hips, and asked, "So you're really ready to talk, huh?"
Sasame replied, "Mm mm nmmf mmngf."
Naruto's brow rose. "What?"
"Mmff bfgmg nfg mgfff!"
Naruto sighed. He stepped forward, loosened the tape on one corner, and began to slowly peel it off. Before he could even get it across her lips, she started screaming in pain, startling the boy.
He apologized, "Oh, right, right! Gotta go fast! Like a bandage!"
He grabbed the peeled end of the tape, and yanked as hard as he could. Unfortunately, he yanked off to the side, and caused Sasame to fall to the ground with the chair.
"Whoops."
He bent over and grabbed the chair. He began to pull up, but found himself too weak to do it successfully.
He asked, "How much do you weigh?", before facepalming. "That's right you can't answer..."
He tried harder to pull the chair, and managed to get Sasame up this time. However, he'd pulled too hard, and she was now leaning on the wall.
Naruto walked around and planted the chair firmly onto the ground, before making his way in front of the girl again.
He rubbed his hands in anticipation.
He slowly lifted the unpeeled end of the tape, then ripped it off as fast he could, eliciting a yelp from Sasame.
The (poorly fixed) door to the room broke once again when Anko and Sakura - now fresh - burst in.
Sasame whined, "You gotta pay for tha-a-a-a-a-at!"
Naruto put the tape back on her mouth.
He rose and asked, "Hey, guys, what's up?"
Sakura skipped over to him and replied, "What's up is that it's someone's birthday today! And we had to come all the way out here to give him a present!"
Naruto cocked his head. "Whose birthday?"
Sakura sighed. "I'll give you a hint. Ten... Ten..."
Naruto's eyes widened. "Oh! Tenten? But she's not a 'he'! And she's in the Village!"
Sakura facepalmed. "No, you dolt, I mean the day; it's October tenth! Your birthday!"
Naruto blushed and stepped back. "Oh...", he chuckled, "Right... My birthday."
Sakura questioned, "You don't seem too happy about it."
Naruto scratched the back of his head and admitted, "Well, I've spent the last four birthdays in the Village, and they really don't like me on that day, so..."
Sakura rolled her eyes. "Well, we like you, and we're here. Just take the gift."
She tossed him a thin gift-wrapped box, which he caught.
He placed the box on the bed and peeled open the wrapping paper, and lifted its contents.
It was a casual two-toned jacket. Designed for the autumn weather, it was orange, with a blue rectangular design on the shoulders that curved onto the breast area. Beyond that, it was lined with pockets on the hips, ribs, sleeves, inside-ribs, and inside-stomach areas.
The boy gawked at the jacket as he spoke, "This-- it must've been expensive! It's so cool!"
Sakura pinched his cheek and responded, "Only the best for our favorite little guy!"
She looked past him and cleared her throat. "So... What are you going to do with that girl you've got hostage?"
Jiraiya retorted, "Hey, it's only holding her hostage if we're using her to get something from someone else! We just need to interrogate her."
Sakura sighed. "Right... Why?"
Naruto replaced his vest with the jacket and told her, "She tried to rape me."
Sasame shouted, "MMMMM! MMFMFGG! NNFFMMGF!"
Sakura side-eyed the boy and walked over to Sasame. With one swift move, she ripped off the tape.
Sasame began with, "I wasn't trying to rape anyone!"
The rest of the room's inhabitants closed in on her as Ebisu inquired, "Yeah, we know, but what were you trying to do, really?"
Sasame grimaced and stared at the ground. Through gritted teeth, she answered, "That sick son of a bitch, Orochimaru... He's got my cousin, Arashi, hostage. He said that if I don't deliver Naruto to his cave, he's gonna send me Arashi's head in a box!"
Jiriaya watched with pride when Naruto asked, "Well, why you? No disrespect, but aren't there more experienced people who can do that?"
Sasame hissed, "I'm the only one who gives a damn about Arashi. He tried to rebuild our clan and make us stronger after the attempted genocide, but our entire clan rejected him as a power-hungry fool! But they're the fools! All they care about is our hotel, defense be damned!"
"Okay... But how do you know Orochimaru?"
"He owns the building... The clan's mortgaging it from him."
Naruto turned around and called for the rest of the group to huddle.
They did as such, and Sasame watched as they conversed. They spoke in low whispers, some accusatory, some curious, some insistent. Every now and then, a head would pop up to glare at Sasame for a few seconds before returning to the huddle.
Eventually, the huddle broke, and Naruto declared, "Sasame, we're gonna help you save your cousin!"
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Outside of the Hotel, Half of an Hour Later
Naruto, Sakura, Ebisu, Sasame, Anko, and Jiraiya were ready to leave for Orochimaru's lair in the land.
Before making their way, however, Jiraiya stopped the group.
"Something about this whole plan seems suspicious; you guys go to the cave, I'll scour the land for some reconnaissance."
Anko smirked. "Good idea; I'll do the same , away from you, and we'll meet up later. The kids have Ebisu with them, and he's known for keeping his clients safe."
Ebisu nodded. "That's right; I'll defend them with my life."
Jiraiya replied, "Just make sure you avoid confronting Orochimaru as best you can, at least until we arrive - - he's the most vile man I know."
Anko chuckled. "Tell me about it."
With that, the group commenced their respective journeys.
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The Lair
Sasame led Naruto, Sakura, and Ebisu to the cave that held Orochimaru's lair.
The stone was brown, nearly blending in with the dirt around it. The cave itself was massive, having a height of more than 50 feet, and the depth before the first door was at least a hundred feet from the entrance. The angle of the sun illuminated it well, and almost made this evil place seem as if it were kind, or welcoming. Perhaps it was, before the villain Orochimaru made it one of his bases. The door to the deeper base was some sort of steel, and was attached to a construction that looked like something one would expect from a space colony. That construction intruded the cave, and was clearly built into it, signifying that there must have been some sort of architectural space inside.
When the door opened, pressurized air blew out of it like smoke, and when the group entered, they found that the place had air conditioning. It made the already-cold air of this time of the year even colder, as the group descended through this cavern-like area.
When they entered an area that was comprised of wood, and when they saw sunlight coming through this area from another entrance, they realized that the base was connected to different parts of the same cliff. From this, they reasoned that the base was intended to be used to oversee the Land of Rice Fields. Orochimaru certainly had big plans...
The group elected to instead go deeper into the cave from the diverging point. They walked past a short tunnel, and came across another diverging point. There were two paths, one on the left, and one on the right.
Sasame found the others staring at her expectantly. She told them, "I haven't gotten this far before. Let's just have two of us go to the left, and the other two go right."
The group was in agreement, and Ebisu and Sasame both received a marked kunai from Naruto.
Naruto and Sakura chose the right path. They walked side-by-side, watching for any doors or pathways they might come across, scanning the left and right sides.
Where they weren't looking was up and down.
The ground began to shake, and Sakura finally looked up, seeing a large door fall from the ceiling ahead. Knowing that neither she nor Naruto could cross fast enough, she quickly grabbed the marked kunai and threw it at the next stage before the door fell with a large THUD.
Naruto seemed to understand what she had done, and wasted no time in using the flying thunder to reach the other side of the door with her. The door now had a hole in the shape of Naruto and Sakura.
The genin gulped and looked at each other. "Close call..."
Sakura recovered the marked kunai, and they continued walking, cautiously.
The ground began to shake again, and Sakura threw another kunai just before another door fell.
Naruto suggested, "Hold on... The same trap, twice? I should go check if this is really it..."
Sakura nervously nodded, and prayed when Naruto disappeared.
He came back a few seconds later, screeching in pain as he held his buttocks. "Ouch, ouch ouch ouch ouch!"
Sakura kneeled and questioned, "Naruto, what happened? Are you okay?!"
He answered, "Stupid Orochimaru! The kunai's in a wall, and my cheeks landed on some sharp pins!"
Sakura gruffly sighed as she whisked her hair back.
What can we do, then?!
After a few seconds of brainstorming, she looked through the Naruto-sized hole in the wall. She saw that the kunai was close to the edge of the new cliff, and had an epiphany.
"Naruto, the kunai's pretty close to the higher part of the floor!"
"Yeah, so?..."
"Okay, so all you need to do is hold my hand here, and swing me over your head. Then, when we get to the kunai, I'll be on the floor, and I'll pull you up!"
"Okay... You're pretty smart, y'know."
As planned, Naruto held Sakura's hand. He pulled as she leapt over his head, and spawned at the kunai.
Just as promised, she helped him avoid the pins, and pulled him up.
She retrieved the kunai, and commented on what she saw.
"Look, the next room's right there. I'll throw the kunai now, and then you can just zap us there!"
Naruto nodded, and so she threw the kunai. It landed on the wall in the next room, and Naruto promptly used the Flying Thunder to reach it with Sakura.
They found themselves in yet another entry point to the cave.
They also saw Ebisu, with some sort of green ball of chakra in his hand, running toward Orochimaru.
The snake sage, however, quickly summoned a snake to absorb the damage, before sending it back to its home.
He simultaneously used a jutsu to sprout cuff-shaped stones to stop Ebisu and keep his hands tied by encasing them completely.
Naruto and Sakura had been running towards Orochimaru, but the man was able to grab him by his throat and lift him, while tossing her to the side, without even looking.
Orochimaru reared his head to the genin, hissing, "Well, well, well, you're here..."
He shifted Naruto into a full-Nelson, then turned to Sasame, who had been watching from the side. "Kill the blondie, then I'll let you see dear Arashi."
Sasame gasped. "What?! No, the deal was that I just bring him!"
The man snapped. "Should I kill your cousin?!", he shouted.
Sasame cried, "Please, no..."
Naruto continued to struggle, but could not escape.
Orochimaru chuckled. "Then kill him. With your clan's kekkei genkai."
Sasame fell to her knees. "You-- you monster!"
The man cackled. "Yes! I am a monster! Beyond humanity! Did you really need confirmation?!"
Sakura shouted, "Don't do it, Sasame! Don't let him do this to you!"
Orochimaru's head snapped to look at her. He admonished, "My only mistake... For whom were it not, I would be well on my way to learning all ninjutsu by now!"
The pink-haired girl felt a sudden, sharp pain in her neck. Her entire body bent, unable to contain the pain, as she shrieked to no end and wept.
Sasame, sniffling as she cried, slowly rose. She inched her way closer to Naruto, shuffling, barely lifting her feet. Her breathing became ragged, and conflict ravaged her mind.
Will I really do this? For Arashi?...
She reached the boy, and placed a hand on his chest. She patted around until she felt his heart, and rose her head toward him.
"I-- I'm sorry..."
Naruto spat, "You got nothin' to be sorry about, unless you actually go through with it!"
Sasame choked up, and pressed her palm onto his chest. She applied chakra - colored a deep yellowish orange - and focused it onto his heart.
Naruto didn't know what was happening, but his heart ran cold as Sasame slowly pulled out a yellow webbed-thread from his chest. Golden - the color of his chakra...
Orochimaru began to explain. "The Fuma Clan's kekkei genkai... Contact chakra - sesshoku. Simply put, they are able to pull out another individual's chakra system and use it as if it were chakra strings. It's quite versatile... It's why I knew I needed them on my side."
Naruto asked, "What're you gonna do, Sasame??"
A tear rolled down her cheek.
"Something I'll regret..."
She pulled her arm back, as if she were drawing a bow. "I hope you rot in Hell, you twisted monster."
With a hard thrust, she shoved the chakra back into Naruto's chest, blowing the wind out of him. The chakra pushed through Naruto's body, reaching Orochimaru, who was tossed back into a wall, unconscious, as the chakra rebounded into Naruto's body. At the same time, Ebisu was released from his restraints, and Sakura's pain ended.
Naruto had fallen on his hands and knees. "What... What just happened?"
Sasame tried to smile as she wiped a tear away. "The human chakra system is a source of pure energy. The sesshoku allows us Fuma to handle this energy, but for any other person, it's a literal overload of energy. And someone whose chakra is as pure as yours produces more potent energy than others."
She fell to her knees once more. "I'm sorry, Arashi..."
Naruto kneeled next to her. "Hey, he said he'd give you your cousin if you brought me, right? Arashi must be somewhere around here."
Ebisu's voice announced, "Sasame... I'm sorry..."
Naruto helped the trembling Sasame to her feet, and spotted Ebisu at a door. At the same time, he saw Sakura rising. With a nod, he confirmed that Sasame was okay to walk herself, and approached Sakura.
Sasame reached the door, and looked past Ebisu.
She yelped.
Ebisu grabbed her and reluctantly informed, "He's been dead for nearly a day..."
Sasame wailed in Ebisu's embrace. "Damn it! And I was given the deal yesterday! Damn it! Damn him!"
She openly weeped, knocking her head into Ebisu's chest.
Naruto had finished checking up on Sakura, and finally helped her stand up, as well.
"Hey - where's Orochimaru?!"
Ebisu turned back.
Sure enough, Orochimaru was gone. Nowhere to be seen.
"Shit. Shit. Shit!"
He let Sasame go, and she walked over to Arashi's corpse as Ebisu ran to the edge of the cave to see where Orochimaru could have gone.
That snake! I should've killed him when I had the chance!...
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Graveyard, Night
Arashi was given a speedy funeral - he was dead without a doubt.
No one showed up.
The only people there were Sasame, Naruto, Sakura, Ebisu, Anko, and Jiraiya - neither of whom were in funeral attire.
They even had to bury the body themselves - a shallow grave, with a sheet over his body - as was the custom worldwide.
Even the gravestone had to be made by them. With no proper materials or tools, they could only retrieve a small boulder, and used a sharpened kunai knife to etch the stone.
HERE LIES THE BODY OF ARASHI FUMA
They felt it would be inappropriate to add anything else, besides his lifespan, for fear of disrespecting how the Fuma Clan truly felt about him, and attracting defilers.
Sasame provided the eulogy.
After the burial, and a prayer for Arashi's soul, Sasame approached the rest of the group with a proposition.
"I have no home here. I am ashamed of my family. May I take refuge in your village?"
Jiraiya and Ebisu looked at each other.
Ebisu - the more articulate of the two - replied, "Sasame, your clan's kekkei genkai is something they wish to protect. If we bring you to the Leaf, it could cause tensions between our lands."
Sasame looked downtrodden.
Naruto suggested, "Let's fake her death."
The group looked at him.
"We could put another stone there, write her name, and sneak her out."
Jiraiya countered, "What if they dig up her grave?"
Sakura retorted, "We could burn something and put it in a box, then use the top of the box as the fake gravestone for her."
Sasame looked at the adults with pleading eyes.
Ebisu sighed. "Alright, let's do it..."
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Midnight
The group had snuck out and set up camp at a hill a few miles outside of and above the Land of Rice Fields.
They set up two tents, three people in each. Naruto, Ebisu, and Jiraiya were to sleep in one tent; Sakura, Sasame, and Anko were to sleep in the other.
Just before it was time for to sleep, Sasame asked the group - excluding Anko, who slept early, "So, what will my new surname be? I can't use Fuma, for obvious reasons."
Ebisu thought about it. "How about... Uzumaki? It's a unique name, and it's safe to give to 'clanless orphans' - which you will be masquerading as - due to the clan's lack of a kekkei genkai."
Sasame blushed. She looked over to Naruto. "Guess that makes us brother and sister, doesn't it?"
Naruto smiled and nodded. "Yeah..."
Is Uzumaki truly my name?...
His smile faded. "Actually..."
The drunken Jiraiya winced. "Hm? What?"
Naruto looked at him. "When we met last time, in the pagoda, I told you that I remembered everything... That was a lie. I still have no memory of before I first woke up in the General Hospital four years ago."
Jiraiya sighed. "I think... Deep down, I knew."
Sasame was taken aback.
Ooh... Tea?
Jiraiya confessed, "Naruto, I lied about your parents. Your mother was Kushina Uzumaki, and your father... He was the fourth hokage, Minato Namikaze. Even he couldn't defeat the nine-tailed fox, so he sealed it in the only viable option - - you, his own newborn son. Only a newborn with an undeveloped chakra system can adapt to a demon like that."
Naruto froze. "Kushina Uzumaki... Minato Namikaze..."
Jiraiya coughed. "And your birth name... It was Namikaze."
Naruto rubbed his eyes.
Sakura put a hand on his trembling shoulder, as tears began to fall. She enveloped him in a hug as he silently cried.
Jiraiya drunkenly fell over and passed out.
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The Next Morning
Sasame left for the Leaf with Anko and Sakura, as Naruto was set to continue the search for Tsunade with Jiraiya and Ebisu.
This was originally two shorter chapters; I stitched them together.