Chapter 23: Winter Storm
Naruto sighed as he shook his head at the sight of the Great Naruto Bridge being blown out at least three support pillars long. Did that mean the temporary headquarters for Konoha was gone too? Or was it a means to keep Walkers from reaching said headquarters? Naruto was torn between just turning around and returning to the prison or keep going. As Naruto thought about it more and more, he decided he wanted nothing to do with Kakashi, in fact, he felt he didn't care anymore and turned around to head back to the prison. At this point in time, he'd rather deal with Yamato.
Naruto reached the mainland of Hi no Kuni when he heard people coming ashore near the bridge, Naruto jumped up the first support pillar and hid himself and looked below. He realized two of them were wearing forehead protectors that had wavey lines on them, Naruto realized they were from Kirigakure.
'Yamato has ninja from Kumogakure so I guess Kakashi has help from Kirigakure.'
The two Kiri-nin were carrying large backpacks until someone that Naruto recognized came into view. He was wearing a bandana-style forehead protector that covered his head. His brown hair came out from the bottom of it, part of it covering his right eye. He wore a blue long-sleeved shirt that went up to his chin and a Chunin Flak Jacket.
'Hey, it's Izumo, Kotetsu's partner.'
"Come on guys, we're about a week late getting supplies to the Northeastern Outpost, we need to get this stuff to them quick before that winter storm hits!" Izumo said.
"Yes Izumo-san, right away!" one of the Kiri-nin said.
Naruto watched the three dart into the direction of the Northeastern Outpost and disappeared. Naruto looked to the north and saw dark clouds were coming.
'That's unusual, the winter's here are usually mild. The group's safety is more important than this right now so I better get myself back to the prison as quick as I can.'
Naruto climbed down from the bridge support pillar and raced across the ground to get back to the prison as quick as he could.
Tenten and Choji were on their usual daytime shift in the guard towers by the prison main gate. Nothing of importance going on other than a couple of Walkers coming by although the wind kicked up and it slowly turned cold.
"What's going on?" Tenten asked.
"I don't know, it doesn't usually get this cold here," Choji said as they began to shiver.
"Maybe Shinobi had a way of keeping the weather in check and now that civilization is nearly gone, Winter is free to do whatever it wants to," Tenten added. "Stay watching Choji, I'll go get us some winter cloaks."
Choji nodded as Tenten exited out of the right guard tower and headed towards the prison, leaving Choji to guard alone and freeze for the moment.
"It's getting so cold, so quickly," Choji said to himself as he moved around the guard tower to keep himself warm."
Tenten walked inside the prison, which was warmer then it was outside, and Shikamaru was walking out of the cell block the group used to as sleeping quarters.
"Tenten, anything wrong?" Shikamaru asked as it was rare for Tenten to leave her post when it was her turn on guard duty.
"Yeah, it's freaking cold and getting colder by the minute outside!" Tenten answered. "I came inside to get me and Choji winter cloaks to wear out there."
"Getting cold?" Shikamaru questioned. "It doesn't get very cold here."
Shikamaru stepped outside the prison and the cold air hit slapped him across the face, he couldn't believe it and he returned inside the prison.
"Sorry Tenten for not believe you," Shikamaru said.
Tenten just nodded her head and went into her cell and grabbed a scroll and unsealed a winter cloak and put it on.
"Hey Shikamaru, you know what scroll Choji sealed his clothing in?" asked Tenten.
Shikamaru entered Choji's cell and looked through his bag and grabbed a scroll, he walked out of the cell and handed the scroll to Tenten.
"I believe it's this one," Shikamaru said.
"Thanks," Tenten said and headed back outside the prison.
"Why is she wearing that cloak?" asked Kiba.
"The weather outside turned really cold," Shikamaru answered. "It looks like were going to have a hard winter here."
"Maybe we should go and get some wood to use in that furnace we saw so everyone can stay warm," Kiba said.
"What do you think Sasuke?" asked Shikamaru who was standing in front of the cell Sasuke was lying in.
Sasuke rose from the bed, "Yeah, I think we should do that, we don't know how cold it will get inside."
"Me, Kiba and Shino will go get some wood then," Shikamaru said.
"Come on Shino, we're going out!" yelled Kiba.
Shino came out of his cell with his winter cloak already on as if he anticipated he would be going on a journey already.
"Shino? Did you just put that on or were you already ready to go?" asked Kiba.
"I was just prepared," Shino said, slightly embarrassed.
"Ri-ght," Kiba said.
Shikamaru and Kiba got ready quickly and soon, along with Shino, went outside. They walked to the gate where Choji opened it up and all were surprised to see Naruto standing right there.
"Naruto?" Shikamaru said stunned. "What happened in Nami no Kuni?"
"Nothing, I didn't go," Naruto said. "The bridge was blown out and when I decided to return, I hid because I heard some people coming ashore and I spotted Izumo and overheard him talking with some Kiri-nin about delivering supplies to the Northeastern Outpost as quick as they could before some winter weather arrived so I came back as quick as I could."
"Yeah, you should get your ass inside before you freeze to death!" Kiba stated.
"Where are you three going?" asked Naruto, choosing to ignore Kiba.
"We're going to get wood for to burn in the furnace so we can all stay warm tonight in case it gets real cold inside the prison as well," Shikamaru answered.
"Sounds like a good idea, stay safe out there," Naruto said as he walked into the prison grounds and Shikamaru, Kiba who was riding atop Akamaru and Shino walked outside the prison walls.
Naruto walked inside the prison to the cell block that was being used as the living quarters. He greeted Hinata and Sasuke and walked into the cell he was sleeping in. He sat down on the bed but it was long before Lee came into his cell.
"How did things go in Nami no Kuni?" Lee asked.
"I didn't get very far," Naruto answered. "The bridge was blown out and I decided I want nothing from Kakashi, he left me to die in that abandoned house so I decided to come back."
"I know you really don't want to face Kakashi because of what he did to you but you should of swallowed your pride and gone so you could of gotten more supplies for this place," Lee stated.
"I'm sorry Lee, but if I saw Kakashi right now, I'd probably punch him right in the face and we wouldn't get shit because of that," Naruto replied.
"I suppose you're right," Lee said. "But if the bridge is out, then maybe they're not in Nami no Kuni anymore anyway."
"No, the bridge was blown out to keep Walkers from reaching Nami no Kuni. Before I left, two ninja from Kirigakure came ashore along with Izumo and were talking about being late with the supplies that were supposed to go to the Northeastern Outpost and trying to get them there before this winter weather hit the area," Naruto stated.
"Well that's a good sign then," Lee said. "Will you make another attempt to visit Nami no Kuni?"
"Maybe once my anger with Kakashi is nearly gone," Naruto answered. "But as of right now, I don't even want to look at him right now."
"What about Sakura?" asked Lee.
"What does it matter? She never really cared about me anyway," Naruto said.
"I don't know about that, everyone knows she cares about you more than she even realized," Lee stated.
"Yeah, right," Naruto mocked. "If you don't mind, I'm going to try to get some sleep, I'm pretty tired as I traveled non-stop in an attempt to beat the weather."
"I understand Naruto-kun, I'll leave you be," Lee said and left Naruto's cell.
Naruto laid on the bed and stared at the ceiling for a bit before drifting off into sleep.
Naruto woke to the sound of people talking. At first it kind of irritated him since he was trying to rest after such a long journey from the Great Naruto Bridge to the prison but what he heard them talking about sparked his interest.
"I can't believe it started snowing this early," Hinata said.
"Yeah, we got caught up in it while we were gathering some firewood," Shikamaru added.
"I think we were out there a little too long," Kiba added.
Naruto walked out of his cell into the cell block, the cell block doors were wide open and he could see everyone standing around Shikamaru and Kiba.
"Oh, Naruto, did we wake you?" asked Hinata who's shyness to Naruto finally disappearing.
"Yeah kind of but that's okay," Naruto said. "What's this talk about snow?"
"Look outside for yourself," Shikamaru said.
Naruto walked to the front entrance of the prison and opened the door and walked outside. The courtyard was white and the trees outside the prison walls were white. Everything Naruto was white so Naruto questioned just how long he had been asleep.
Naruto walked back into the prison with a surprised look on his face that everyone noticed. It snowed once in a while, but not this early in the winter.
"How long was I asleep?" asked Naruto.
"Just a couple of hours," said Hinata. "It started snowing an hour after Shikamaru, Kiba and Shino left."
"Oh man, I thought I had been out for days again," Naruto said.
"Now that you're back, what should we do?" asked Sasuke. "It's starting to get cold in here."
"Shikamaru, Kiba and Shino brought wood for a furnace they found, we can go there and get a fire started and all stay there to stay warm until this passes," Naruto said.
Shikamaru led the group to an elevator that took them to another basement, unlike the one Naruto and Sasuke had found on the outside of the prison. The elevator, of course, didn't work, so the group had to use their chakra to climb down the side of the elevator shaft to get to the basement where in the back of the basement lied a furnace with an exhaust pipe leading up and out of the basement.
Shikamaru, Kiba and Shino had the wood they collected stacked up in the basement prior to Naruto waking up and set a few logs inside the furnace. Shikamaru put a small amount of kerosene they had found and he pulled out Asuma's old lighter and lit the fire. Soon the few pieces of wood they put inside the furnace were engulfed in flames and heating the room nicely.
Everyone placed blankets they had grabbed from their cells and laid them out on on the floor. Niether one of them had any idea just how long they'd have to be down there to stay warm.
"So what do we do know?" asked Tenten.
"We're just going to have to wait out the storm and the cold weather in here to stay warm," Shikamaru answered.
"Who's going to watch the prison from the outside?" Tenten continued.
"I'll send some kage bunshin to the guard towers outside," Naruto said. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"
Two replicas of Naruto appeared and Naruto directed them to where they needed to go and what to do.
"Did anyone think about bringing the food down here?" Kiba asked.
"Everyone please, don't worry about anything!" Naruto said loudly, "If we need something, I'll just send a bunshin to go retrieve it so none of us have to leave this room, got it?"
Everyone nodded and silence fell the group. Hopefully the cold spell and the snow storm wouldn't last too long.
"Are you okay?" Hinata asked.
"Huh?" Naruto said, who was staring off into space, "Um, yeah, sorry I was just thinking."
"I was just making sure, you've been awfully quiet since you came back, are you sure everything is okay?" asked Hinata.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Naruto smiled. "No need to worry Hinata."
Naruto hated lying because the fact was he was torn between not confronting Kakashi and returning back to the prison. Naruto was starting to kick himself for not doing it but part of him was glad he didn't because it was so damn cold outside and he did not take his winter cloak because he never believed in a million years it would get so cold and snow so early in the season.
Naruto sighed and decided that once the weather got better, he would return to Nami no Kuni and confront Kakashi. Naruto got up and put his winter cloak on and Shikamaru noticed this.
"What's going on?" Shikamaru asked.
"Nothing, I need to get out for a minute," Naruto said.
Naruto climbed the elevator shaft to the ground floor of the prison and walked to the front entrance. He walked outside to the winter wonderland the prison had become. The snow was coming down much more heavy and the winds picked up yet again. Naruto's felt it, but it didn't really bother him yet. He saw his bunshin did exactly what he wanted them to do.
Naruto was about to go back inside when he heard a pop.
"Huh? What the hell was that?" Naruto asked himself.
Naruto walked further out into the courtyard and scanned the surroundings but he saw nothing. Naruto was about to walk back to the prison when he heard the same popping noise again and realized it was coming from the massive tree that was just outside the prison wall. He heard a third pop and his eyes opened wide when he saw half of the tree start falling toward the prison.
"Shit!" Naruto yelled.
He created kage bunshins as fast as he could, but the massive half of the tree crashed into the prison wall and prison itself, the weight of the tree caused the prison wall to collapse and the and hit the prison more, luckily the prison wasn't damaged as the tree slid across the prison and came to a stop. Naruto turned to two of the bunshin he had just made.
"Go inside and grab Choji and Sasuke and tell him to get outside now!" Naruto ordered and the two bunshin ran to the prison.
"The rest of us, let's get this tree cut!" Naruto ordered.
His bunshin jumped to the tree to begin removing it from the wall and before Naruto joined in, he created more bunshin.
"You guys go outside the prison wall and kill any Walkers that come near the fallen tree!" Naruto ordered as he handed each bunshin a kunai.
Everyone just sat in silence inside the basement as they kept warm from the cold. Suddenly two Naruto's came down into the basement.
"Choji and Sasuke, we need you outside now!" one of the bunshin yelled.
Sasuke and Choji sat up and looked at the bunshin confused.
"Why?" Sasuke asked.
"Part of the massive tree that's just outside the prison wall on the left side of the prison fell ontop of the prison wall and caused it to collapse," the other bunshin answered.
"Shit!" Sasuke said.
Sasuke and Choji quickly put on their winter cloaks and followed the two bunshin up the elevator shaft.
"This is not good," Shikamaru said. "I really hope to Kami that wall can be fixed so we don't end up having to leave this place."
Choji and Sasuke came around the courtyard to see all of Naruto's bunshin cutting the tree to pieces with his Rasengan and a few Rasenshuriken.
"I guess he needs us to fix the wall like we did the other part that was boobied trapped when we took this place from The Saints," Sasuke said.
"It looks like it," Choji said.
The bunshin outside of the prison, cut off a small group of Walkers from reaching the hole in the prison wall and killed the Walkers on the spot. Lucky for the group, it was the only group of Walkers to come. Naruto, who was watching a bit, was surprised the tree's cracking didn't lure more to the prison. Either way, he wanted to get this wall fixed as soon as possible.
"Naruto, what happened!?" Sasuke asked, yelling at Naruto.
"I came out here to get some fresh air, then I heard this popping noise and then half of that big tree came crashing down on the prison wall. It hit the wall so hard that it made it collapse!" Naruto answered.
"Okay, just let us know when you need us!" Sasuke yelled.
"I will!" Naruto yelled back.
After another twenty minutes, Naruto's bunshin had cleared the tree enough away from the prison wall to be able to fix it. This time it was going to be a bit harder since collecting mud to hold the stone together would have to be dug out of the snow and it looked like the snow was about 4 inches deep at the moment and slowly rising since it was still snowing heavily.
"Ok Choji and Sasuke, you can do your magic now!" Naruto yelled.
"Baika no Jutsu!" Choji yelled as he became ten times bigger than normal.
Sasuke readied himself as Choji began placing rocks back into place in the hole of the prison wall. He then grabbed snow and threw it out of the way to get some earth which was now wet from the snow that melted when it first started snowing and applied it to the top of the first layer of stone Choji had placed.
Meanwhile, outside the prison, another small group of Walkers came out of the woods and Naruto's bunshin got ready. As they got closer, the bunshin jumped in with the kunai the real Naruto gave them and quickly disposed of them.
Choji placed a second layer of stone and then more mud and kept going until he evened it out with the top of the prison wall. Choji returned to normal size as Sasuke began performing hand seals. He shot out flames from his mouth and baked the mud to hold the stones in place. After a few minutes, Sasuke walked up the wall and jumped down to the outside and did the same thing to the outside while Naruto's bunshin killed another small group of Walkers.
Sasuke returned inside the prison wall and Naruto allowed the bunshin he had killing Walkers, return his kunai and disperse.
"Good work guys," Naruto said.
"Let's go back inside, it's so cold out here!" Choji begged.
Choji and Sasuke returned the prison basement where it was nice and warm from the fire that was going.
"So did you get the prison wall fixed?" Shikamaru asked.
"Yeah, it's good," Naruto replied.
Silence fell the group until Kiba began a small cough.
"Kiba, are you okay?" Hinata asked who was laying next to him.
"Yeah, I'll be fine, it's just a little cough," Kiba replied. "Probably from being in that cold air too long."
Naruto was standing near the entrance of the prison looking out the glass windows watching the blizzard rage on. His thoughts went back to Nami no Kuni, and he decided once the blizzard was over, he would return to Nami no Kuni and face Kakashi.