Note:

I used a map that I randomly found online as reference to the countries or places I've mentioned all throughout this fanfic, but I couldn't post a link to the site since FanFictionNet removes all external URLs automatically.

If you wanna check it out, just type "Naruto Fanon Canon Geography" on your search engine. It's the top result you'll see so it's easy to find. I only used the map's picture posted on that site as my reference so you can ignore the rest of the info you'll find on the page since it wouldn't matter in this story.

I'm not sure about the map's accuracy so there may be inconsistencies with the locations or names compared to canon, but I'll still refer to it anyway.

Enjoy reading!

Sumire's POV

I've been going around the elemental nations for a while now, and the past months came in a blur since it's already December again.

After leaving the Land of Noodles, I rode a boat heading to the Land of Hotsprings before traveling by foot to cross the countries of Frost and Lightning. Thereafter, I proceeded to board another ship that sailed across the sprawling waters of Gaikotsu Bay and the Aisu Bay before it docked at the Land of Bears. I decided to continue my journey on foot in the countries of Mountain, Fang, Claw, Rain, Grass, Waterfall, Iron, until I arrived today in the Land of Rice.

Traveling in different places was fulfilling in a sense because I could see new places that I've only read about in books or discover unfamiliar things that interested me.

I felt free and very much alive.

Similar to a bird that gracefully flies across the vast blue skies, I saw the beauty of the world unfold before me as I went from one territory to the next. It made me feel out of reach from those who continuously tried to harm me.

But despite the liberating sensation I felt, there's still the constant sadness that tugs in my heart during times when I get lost in my own thoughts, just like what's happening to me right now.

I badly wanted to understand everything that happened to me so far.

I cannot help but pity myself because I'm trying really hard to get through the problematic situations I encountered in my life. I almost died from an ambush, lost my memories and identity, survived a relentless pursuit, and continuously outran the danger that I knew would soon catch up to me.

The most frustrating thing about it is that I don't even know why I have to suffer all these in the first place, but I still try my best to survive nonetheless.

It's like being forced to go through a tough obstacle course with a blindfold on. Every step I take feels uncertain because I don't even know why I was here in the first place, and I could only trust my instincts as I try to navigate the path towards a destination where I knew I would finally be safe.

I know reaching that destination would be an uphill journey, filled with challenges that would likely make me stumble and bleed, but I know nothing comes easy in life so I could only go forward one step at a time.

Eventually, I pray that I would be able to reach a certain point where I could live without worrying about my life being in danger anymore.

A foreboding sensation flooded my being, my danger senses kicked in, and I knew I wouldn't be able to easily leave this place without facing a confrontation. I mentally cursed for being too careless, I got too lost in my thoughts again and didn't pay too much attention to my surroundings.

It was barely even midday, and the morning sun still continued to rise on the horizon, so I never thought criminals or their likes would be wandering here during this time of the day, but it was my fault for assuming that.

My sensing ability helped me avoid people as much as possible in the past months that I've been traveling. It could've helped me avoid interacting with people here too, if only I was more alert, but I was busy entertaining my own thoughts and it's too late when I realized two chakra signatures that gave off a negative vibe were in the vicinity.

I'm currently traveling along the merchant roads of the Land of Rice when I was stopped by two men who were wearing forehead protectors with a slash on it. I do not recognize the symbol etched on it though, but I remember Kaito-sensei mentioned that a slash meant that they defected from their village. I'm not sure what they wanted from me, but I am certain these two were up to no good. So I remained calm and composed, not giving away the nervousness I felt at the moment.

A brown-haired man wearing a red shirt and a black vest spoke up first, "Look what we have here, a pretty face like yours shouldn't be traveling here alone."

"How about we accompany you?" The other one commented, he was a short man with jet black hair and wore all black in his attire.

"I am not interested." I replied then continued to walk forward, showing no interest towards their disrespectful remarks. I made two water clones though, sneakily placing them in the area in case they decided to attack me. I could either use it for substitution or coordinate it with my other techniques if a battle ensued between me and these two shinobi.

I heard one of them ordering me to stop walking and get back to where I was before, while the other man exclaimed that they weren't done talking to me yet. However, I ignored them and continued on my way, showing no intention of stopping or turning back to confront them.

The two flickered in front of me, abruptly making me halt my pace and preventing me from further moving away. One tried to intimidate me by pointing a kunai at my face, the man intentionally grazed the skin on my jaw and I felt my blood trickling down my neck. "Come with us while we're still asking nicely, or you will suffer worse than that. I'll pierce your skull with this kunai if you object."

The other man threatened me with an evil grin on his face, "Don't worry, we'll make sure you'll have a good time."

At that moment, I knew they wouldn't stop pestering me unless they got what they wanted. I would rather fight them off than let them take advantage of me, but there were two of them though, having no idea how strong they were or if I could take them on by myself meant that I needed to be careful with my actions. I should avoid battling the two together, so I must be clever with my attacks and finish this ordeal as quickly as I can to prevent any potential risks that could become more challenging for me to handle later on.

The two missing nin didn't notice my water clones flickering behind them, ready to swiftly attack with the arsenal of water jutsus I have at hand.

I calmly called out the name of the jutsu as the clones finished the handseals for the attack, "Suiton: Suirō no Jutsu''. My water clones held out their hands towards the men, and in an instant, the two were trapped inside the water prison technique. The two spheres of water restricted any of their movements, immobilizing the missing nins in front of me, and allowing me to proceed with my next attack without difficulty.

The sudden water imprisonment left them in a state of shock. Their eyes widened in fear, and their faces displayed sheer panic as they struggled to breathe inside the water spheres.

I touched the crimson liquid dripping from my neck since my blood is required for me to successfully call out my summons. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu", the black markings instantly spread out beneath my hand with my salamander summon appearing in a puff of smoke afterwards. I said to my salamander, "Dokubi, let's end this quickly so I can leave this place."

The turquoise-skinned salamander nodded in response, then spat out a blast of water inside the water spheres which were confining the two men. The technique she used isn't a usual water jutsu though, it was filled with toxins that were very deadly to those who aren't immune to it. The water soon turned murky, indicating that it had already been contaminated with the salamander poison, and the two individuals soon succumbed to death.

"Thanks for helping me out." I expressed my gratitude to my salamander summon.

Dokubi replied, "I'm always glad to assist you, Sumire."

I dispelled my water clones, then turned my attention towards the corpses now lying on the ground.

I commented solemnly, "Dokubi, these two were my first kills. Although I did so with your help, their death was done by my will." Then I observed the limp bodies of my attackers, the discoloration on their skin due to the effect of Dokubi's lethal poison is evidently visible.

"We had to do it, Sumire. It's your life and safety against theirs", said the salamander summon, trying to lighten up my somber mood and giving me a sound reasoning for the actions we took against these men.

I didn't expect that I would experience profound sadness in this situation.

I was not mourning the demise of these people, but rather the burden of having to take their lives just so I could protect myself. If only humans weren't full of evil intentions, bloodshed and death could've been prevented.

This is one of the darker sides of being a shinobi though, killing is unavoidable if I wanted to survive this way of life.

I realized now that each battle that I would face is not merely a matter of victory or defeat, it would be my survival against the downfall of my opponents. Out here in this unforgiving world, it's always a life-or-death struggle, and I must always come out on top to ensure my safety and continued existence.

I couldn't help but think of the ill fate that these men had.

If they didn't attack me first, they might have avoided their misfortune entirely and would still be living and breathing at the moment. However, they would probably attack and harass other defenseless women they encounter next so I am not entirely apologetic for what I did. People like them who prey on the innocent and take advantage of weaker individuals must not be shown mercy.

Then and there, I made a promise to myself that I would help innocent people who were in need of protection against stronger enemies.

It reminded me of the kindness Kaito-sensei showed me when I was ambushed during my younger years as well as the aid that my silver-haired boy and his teammate gave me that enabled me to escape the Land of Sea. I would taint my hands and conscience with blood, even if I never wanted to kill and be the cause of someone's death, just to make sure those who were innocent would be spared from any danger and shown the same kindness I was given when I needed it the most.

There was nothing I could do but say a silent prayer as I looked at the corpses of these two individuals who both died by my hands.

My salamander noticed my solemn expression, it probably showed the sorrow I felt after I had my first kill. I noticed from my peripheral vision that Dokubi went to a nearby shrub, then went back next to my side and handed me two flowers. I understood what she meant by her action; offering flowers to the dead is one way to show tribute and respect even if they were my enemies. They may have done evil things in their lives, but a life is significant no matter what they might have become.

I placed a single flower on the hands of each individual, it's like they were cradling it during their final moments, they died because of me and the least I could do is show them an act of humanity through this small offering.

Only now I've recognized the kind flower I offered them, it was a camellia in a purple shade. It's already winter so there's only a few kinds of flowers in bloom during this season, and somehow, the camellia is a fitting offering for the dead.

In a spiritual context, the purple camellia is known for its ability to heal, particularly one's emotional well-being. It is believed to aid in releasing negative emotions and promote feelings of peace.

The quiet prayer and humble offering to the dead somehow lessened the guilt I felt inside.

I'm aware that killing and death is inevitable, shinobi or not, it lurks around everyone's lives no matter how much one tries to avoid it.

I consoled myself by thinking that if I hadn't killed them first, it would be me lying on the ground lifeless instead. It's a good thing these two underestimated me since I was able to catch them off guard with my attacks.

I decided to search through the belongings of the lifeless men in front of me, salvaging anything that would be useful for me in the future. Among their things, I found various weapons and a sum of money, which would definitely help me on my travels so I decided to keep them for myself.

Could my action be labeled as theft? Perhaps by some, but I consider this a reward.

I managed to defeat them and this is the consolation I'll reward myself with. I may be soft-hearted at most times, but that's not the entirety of my character. I could also be ruthless and unbothered if I wanted to.

I left the Land of Rice as quickly as I could afterwards.

I am not sure why, but I wasn't really comfortable staying in that place for too long so I followed my instinct and left there as quickly as I could without really having a destination in mind and ran towards a random direction.

The recent encounter made me reflect on a lot of things.

I ran across the treetops while I thought about what happened a while ago, not just the ethical and moral context of killing and death, but also the tactical side of efficiently subduing my opponents.

The poison attack that Dokubi did proved to be really effective, it allowed me to conserve a lot of chakra and energy, and saved me a lot of time since using poison was really an efficient way of quickly defeating the enemies.

I could probably think of a lot of different ways to incorporate the use of poisons to my techniques like how my salamander summons do.

Of course I could just always ask for their aid whenever I needed it, but calling my summons out uses a good amount of chakra as well. Kaito-sensei taught me to conserve chakra as much as possible and always think critically when I am engaged in a battle because I'll never be able to predict how long a fight would last or how strong my opponent would be. He also reminded me not to reveal all the techniques I have at my disposal as much as possible, this would give me the upper advantage in the long run since my opponents would have no idea about the range of skills and techniques that I have.

This made me realize how much more I could improve if I put my mind into it.

So I mentally took note to start my research and experiments with poisons as soon as I started settling down, and eventually incorporate it in my training so I could use it in my future battles.

"Where are you planning to go now?", asked the salamander resting comfortably on my shoulder as I continued running along the tree branches in the area.

I stopped for a moment and sat down on a branch comfortably, "I don't even know, Dokubi."

The blue-skinned salamander jumped from my shoulders before hurriedly going after a spider crawling on the tree trunk, and then devoured the eight-legged arachnid as soon as she caught it.

"Can I tell you my honest opinion?", replied Dokubi while she went back to rest comfortably next to me.

I nodded in silence then waited for her words to reach my ears.

"I think you should find a place to settle down from time to time, running around from one place to the next gets pretty tiring, right?" The salamander looked at me for confirmation, so I nodded in response to show my agreement over her statement.

She continued, "You have the freedom to choose where you want your home to be, whether it's a big city or a remote mountainside – the choice is entirely yours. Just make sure that you have a home to return to after your travels across the world, so whenever you're feeling tired and exhausted as I can see you are right now, you'll have a place to rest, recharge, and prepare for your next adventure."

"Thank you for that insight, Dokubi." I gave her a smile then added, "I kept asking myself multiple times what should I do now and where should I go next since I do not have any plans yet for my future. I thought it would be easy to figure out what am I gonna do with my life, but it clearly isn't as easy as picking what clothes to wear for the day."

The salamander only nodded at my words and seemed content to know that I am already contemplating the next steps I'm going to make. "Just call for me whenever you need any help", my summon gave me a wave before she disappeared in a puff of smoke.

I am left to ponder about my life in solitude again, so I started running without any destination in mind while I thought about certain things I needed to figure out for myself.

Passing through different borders became a common occurrence for me because I still haven't decided what to do with my life or which place I should temporarily settle down and build a home while I wait for my silver-haired boy.

He told me he'd find me before he urged me to flee during our short meeting at the shores of the Land of Sea, so I just decided to wait for him rather than go back to the Leaf village like how I planned to do so previously because his warning not to trust anyone, even the people from Konoha, echoes repeatedly in my mind.

Naturally, I needed to stop moving around from one country to another if I wanted him to find me so I should stay put in one place, but I was still very undecided about where to settle down.

I honestly felt very scared about making big decisions like that because I knew it would alter how my life would be in the coming years.

I was just enjoying the freedom that comes with living by myself without being attached to any place, work, or anybody in the past months.

At first, I was thrilled because I was able to explore as much as I could about the world, but it slowly became tiresome as each day went by and got lonely at times too as I had nobody to keep me company.

Being alone and having no concrete plan on what I'm gonna do next made me think thoroughly about my future lately.

There were a lot of things I wanted to do, several aspirations I wanted to pursue, and a few dreams that I wanted to turn to reality.

I could be an artist, researcher, or apothecarist. Those were my hobbies anyway so having it as my main source of income wouldn't be a problem at all. There's also the possibility of me becoming a writer or an author since I've been into literature ever since I was young and I do have a natural talent with expressing myself through words. Of course, I could just focus on being a shinobi, it's what I've always wanted to do anyway. But doing so meant that I'll put my life at risk every time, so I needed to think it through first before I committed myself to that way of life.

Other than deciding about my career, I also have to pick a suitable place where I would be comfortable enough to stay indefinitely.

Which nation should I pick to settle down temporarily?

Should I pick among the ones I've visited already or continue traveling until I find a place that satisfies me?

But I could also just go back to my home country or settle down at Konoha since it's where I originated from, and avoid overthinking too much. But is it a good idea to do that though?

I sighed deeply as I thought which among my choices is the best to pick at the moment.

The decision I'm about to make holds considerable importance. It will be my primary source of income so I'll probably build a career out of it, and the place I'll choose would definitely influence my way of life in the coming years.