Well hello! Here is a new chapter of Naruko's secret-fanfiction. This chapter draws inspiration from the ERASED-manga, When Marnie Was There-movie, the Zodiac.P.I.-manga, Sopfia The First-series, My Little Pony: Best Gift Ever-movie, Mahou no Chocolate-manga, Let's Dance a Waltz-manga, and Avatar the Last Airbender-series, whose rights I do not own. See you in the next chapter.
"We've been looking for Naruko for three weeks now since we left Tsuki no Kuni. Now I remember that, that we saw Naruko at an inn, but I don't remember anything else after that, before we woke up in that linen closet. If Kakashi-sensei hadn't loaned us Pakkun yesterday, then we wouldn't have known the right direction, where we would have started our search for Naruko," Sakura said sitting by the campfire with Sasuke.
"Pakkun had to return to his home after, when we lost that path, along which Naruko traveled after leaving Tsuki no Kuni. Naruko seemed to be going west, and doesn't seem to have stopped," Sasuke said.
They had even asked some people about Naruko, but no one had seen Naruko. While wandering in this forest, they had completely lost Naruko's path, and it bothered them both.
"What should we do next? It's not at all like Naruko to leave Konoha. I know of course, that Naruko knows how to protect herself, but now Naruko has to protect even a baby. Unbelievable, that Naruko didn't tell us about her pregnancy," Sakura said looking at the moon in the sky.
Sasuke didn't say anything, instead trying to think of what Sasuke thought he had forgotten.
(Flashback)
Naruko was crying on her bed during the party in the living room of her home.
"Why aren't you at the party, Dobe?" Sasuke asked as he entered Naruko's room, and seeing Naruko crying.
"Parties aren't my thing," Naruko said, avoiding Sasuke's gaze.
"You once said you hated parties, Usuratonkachi, but why are you crying?" Sasuke asked seeing Naruko crying.
"Stop calling me Dobe, or as Usuratokachi. I guess I just have an eyelash," Naruko said sitting up on her bed.
"Is that why you've been here for half an hour?" Sasuke asked.
Naruko wiped her tears on her blanket, and then looked at Sasuke.
"There's a reason for that, which makes me hate parties," Naruko said standing up on the floor.
"What reason?" Sasuke asked.
"I'll explain sometime. Now just go enjoy your homecoming party, that your fangirls arranged for you," Naruko said avoiding Sasuke's gaze.
"That party will be held at your home, so you should attend that party too," Sasuke said.
"I already said, that parties are not my thing. Sasuke, Can I ask you something?" Naruko asked.
"What?" Sasuke asked.
"I have a crush on a man, but I don't know how to approach that man," Naruko said.
"Why don't you just tell that man, how you feel?" Sasuke asked.
"The man in question might just laugh at me. That would be embarrassing. Thanks for the advice though," Naruko said, and then ran into Sasuke's arms hugging Sasuke.
Sasuke looked at Naruko, but finally wrapped his arms around Naruko's hips.
Naruko looked at Sasuke, and then Naruko, and Sasuke approached each other almost imperceptibly, until they kissed.
(End of the flashback)
"Did you listen to anything about, what did I say?" Sakura asked seeing Sasuke thinking about something.
"I think I remember it now, that what I had forgotten. do you remember, when you threw me a homecoming party at Naruko's house after I got home from my penance-trip?" Sasuke asked.
"Of course I do. Why did you bring it up?" Sakura asked.
"Well I noticed at one point that, that Naruko wasn't at that party, so I went to Naruko's room to find Naruko. I found Naruko in her room. Naruko cried then. I asked, that why Naruko wasn't at the party. Naruko said, that parties are not Naruko's thing. I asked, that why was Naruko crying. Naruko reportedly had an eyelash in her eye. Naruko said, that I should go back to the party, but i said, that Naruko should attend those parties, because those parties were organized at Naruko's home. Before that, Naruko said, that there is a reason, which makes Naruko hate parties. I asked the reason, and Naruko said she would explain it sometime. Naruko even asked me for advice on that, that how could Naruko approach a man, which Naruko had a crush on. I asked, that why doesn't Naruko just say Naruko's feelings directly to the man in question, but Naruko suspected that man was just laughing at Naruko, and that it would be embarrassing. However, Naruko thanked me, and hugged me. Next we kissed. The next time I woke up, I slept in Naruko's bed, but Naruko herself was sleeping on a tent-bed, which was on the floor of Naruko's room. I had previously called Naruko a Dobe, and to Usuratonkachi. Could I be the reason, that Naruko left Konoha? Maybe Naruko got mad at me for that, that I have called Naruko by those names. Naruko forbade me to mention Naruko, when I was talking to Naruko during the party I just mentioned," Sasuke said.
"Naruko is not the type to, who would bear a grudge. You should know that," Sakura said.
"But Naruko never told us anything about, that what Naruko feels. I do know, that Naruko used to be lonely, but now the whole village sees Naruko as a hero, because of Naruko's past actions. I can't stop thinking about it, that what Naruko wanted to tell me by leaving me that letter, where Naruko asked me to come meet Naruko at Ichiraku after that, when Tsunade had been appointed as the new Hokage. To think, that Naruko waited for me for an hour standing in the water-rain, until Naruko passed out on the street of Konoha. Teuchi, and Ayame took Naruko to their home, and asked Shizune to take care of Naruko. Naruko didn't get pneumonia, which is good of course," Sasuke said.
Sasuke didn't want to lose another precious person, like Sasuke had lost Itachi, when Itachi destroyed the Uchiha-clan, who had planned a rebellion to overthrow the village leaders, because the Uchiha-clan was suspected of causing the Kyubi's attack on Konoha, even though it had really been Obito's doing. As a result of that attack, Naruko had also suffered, for Naruko had become the Kyubi's jinchuriki. Naruko had to work hard to gain the approval of the villagers.
Sakura tried to hug Sasuke, but to Sakura's surprise Sasuke actually pushed Sakura away from Sasuke, so Sakura settled for just talking:
"Naruko left for a personal reason, and Naruko must now take it easy, for Naruko will have a baby. Naruko can't be mad at you".
"Did you find out anything, when you read Naruko's diary after we broke into Naruko's apartment with our own permission and wondered, that why is Naruko avoiding us?" Sasuke asked.
"I read the last entry in Naruko's diary, and Naruko's heart is said to be aching, when Naruko watches us together. I guess he thinks for some reason that we don't care about Naruko feelings in any way. I don't know, why Naruko feels that way," Sakura said.
"Who is the father of Naruko's child?" Sasuke mumbled.
"I don't know. I'm Naruko's best friend too. Naruko was sad that, that he wasn't able to bring you back to Konoha after fighting in Shumatsu no Tani. I should have been more supportive of Naruko, but I just couldn't look Naruko in the eye at first. I guess I was ashamed of it, that I wasn't strong enough to stop you myself then. Naruko has always been stronger than me, so I automatically relied on Naruko's help," Sakura said. "I didn't even ask that, that how your departure from Konoha felt about Naruko herself".
Sasuke looked at Sakura with a blank expression.
"Excuse me, but could we sit with you by the fire for a while, because my grandson, and I'm a little cold," Said a man, who came unexpectedly, and looked at the boy hiding behind him.
Sakura, and Sasuke looked at the two, but felt no threat in them.
"Sure. A little change of topic might make us think, what to do next," Sakura said.
"Great. Say thank you, Hon," The old man said.
"Thank you," Hon said, hiding behind his grandfather again.
"Sorry. My grandson is a little shy. I'm Truzu," Truzu said, sitting down on a stump by the campfire.
Hon sat on the log next to his grandfather.
"It's okay. Kids will be kids," Sakura said. "I'm Sakura, and this is Sasuke".
"Yes. Sometimes I doubt, that my grandson may never change. Are you on a hike?" Truzu asked.
"Not really now," Sasuke said. Like Sakura, Sasuke looked a little apathetic, and depressed.
"I see. So you're not on any normal trip," Truzu said after seeing the ninjas expressions, causing the ninjas to nod.
"We...are looking for our friend. Our friend went missing about a month ago. We may have pissed off our friend somehow, so we want to reconcile with our friend. Our friend is strong, and knows how to protect himself, but our friend will have a baby at some point, and seemed sad to see our friend last, which surprises me," Sakura said.
"Your friend seems to be important to you, if you once went looking for your friend. I hope you manage to reconcile with your friend," Truzu said.
"We are worried about our Friend. Our friend is really important to us. Our friend was lonely at first. Our friend's parents died, when our village was attacked, and our friend was to deserve the friendship of others. Our friend has done much for us, and for the sake of our village. Our friend never gave up, but struggled, and suffered to achieve his goal...and finally managed to save us all. We owe our friend a lot. I do not know, can I ever repay that debt to our friend. Our village feels dark without our friend, and i'm not sure that, that we can do without our friend. Our friend left without saying goodbye, and without telling us. That's why I doubt I pissed off our friend somehow. I should have tried to befriend our friend much earlier, if only our friend hadn't been so lonely," Sasuke said clenching his hands into fists looking into Truzu's eyes. "Our friend is irreplaceable and if our friend needs our help, so I want to help our friend. The friend in question is the type, who is not very good at expressing all emotions, which our friend has, but that friend hates loneliness, and would do anything to protect his friends".
Sakura felt the same way. Naruko was more to Sakura, like just a best friend. Naruko was an irreplaceable person to Sakura, Sasuke, and Naruko had inspired Sakura to become stronger. Naruko's sudden departure from Konoha had made the village feel like, as if it were raining non-stop:
"Our friend is an important person to both of us. If I have accidentally done something bad to our friend, so I want to apologize to our friend. A long time ago I could do almost nothing to help our friend".
Truzu looked at Sasuke's visible, right eye:
"Truly amazing. You believe so much in this friend of yours. Your gaze is so honest, and a little sad at the same time. I've seen that look recently. I didn't think I'd see that look again so soon."
"Really? Well what are you doing here? This is way off the main road, isn't it?" Sakura asked throwing some twigs into the campfire.
"We were going to Nami no Kuni recently. We got lost a while ago while gathering herbs. We tried to stay in a cave earlier, but then the Oni suddenly attacked us. Then a young woman arrived, and put us both up on a tree, and next that woman destroyed Oni by creating some blue ball in her hands. Oni turned into a spirit being, which moved to the necklace crystal on the woman's neck. A woman went to check that cave, where we were going to spend the night, and returned after a little while, announcing that the cave was safe, and that we could climb down from the tree, and that, The Oni that attacked us was guarding something, in that cave," Truzu said. "Such a story. Then the young woman left the place. That woman had an honest but sad look in her blue eyes".
Sasuke, and Sakura looked at Truzu in disbelief. A hopeful look began to appear in their eyes.
"Tell us more about that woman. Were those women's eyes really blue? Did that woman tell you her name, or where was that woman going?" Sasuke asked.
Truzu looked at the two, until you realized, what they meant:
"The woman we saw is your friend, what are you looking for?"
"Sounds just like our friend," Sakura said.
"That woman didn't tell us her name, or where the woman in question was going. But that woman was coming from either Hoshigakure no Sato, or from the direction of Uzuchiogakure no Sato, which was destroyed long ago," Truzu said scratching his head.
Sakura, and Sasuke looked down at their feet dejectedly, and disappointed.
"Where should we look next?" Sasuke asked.
"We were so close to finding our friend," Sakura said.
"Would you have a photo of this friend of yours?" Truzu asked.
Sasuke showed Truzu a picture of Naruko.
"The woman who saved us had the same face, and eyes, like the woman in that picture. But the woman, who saved us had black hair, which were not combed for chaparral," Truzu said.
"If Naruko had dyed her hair, so we can't find Naruko?" Sakura murmured curiously.
"Arguments are hard. Who can apologize, but actions are taken into account," Truzu said getting the ninjas attention.