A/N: OKay, so please suspend your disbelief. I know no one learns languages this fast but between the intellect of Team Seven, the sharingans, and being immersed in Westron...just ya know, suspend your disbelief please. Secondly, buckle up for Team Seven Shennanigans-I mean Kakashi is the biggest troll of them all and is definitely a bad influence on his former students. ;) Hope you all enjoy ~ love, DC

Chapter 16: The Search pt 2

September 27 (3018)

Dôranna was growing restless. He could move fine now, and while his chakra pathways still burned a little, it wasn't terrible. However, he wasn't sure he would be able to run to Bree or Crickhollow yet—not if he had to rely on his chakra to increase his speed or stamina.

Certainly, Dôranna was well enough to help the rangers in their scouting since that did not require chakra, but he wasn't allowed out of bed. No, Galasebdir was being overbearing and overprotective. Worse, he'd roped the other rangers into his…paranoia? No, worry. Worry was a better word, although it was frankly suffocating how much all the rangers worried about him.

Sure, his skin had been burning off of him and then regrowing in a constant cycle the night the wraiths attacked, but he was fine now! Okay, yes, he hadn't been using his chakra since that night, but that's because Mr. Fox said he was still healing his chakra pathways, and that the blonde shouldn't use his charka until they're healed. And Dôranna was going to listen to Mr. Fox; after all, the giant fox knew more about chakra and chakra pathways than Dôranna did.

So, really, all the rangers being overcautious was unnecessary. The blonde wasn't about to be reckless, but none of the rangers believed him even when he said he'd take it easy! So that meant he was stuck in this ruined watchtower south of the Greenway in a room with one of his mentors who was slowly dying.

Perhaps that was what was making Dôranna so restless and even…hopeless. Gilvegil was the oldest ranger among the Dúnedain—he even considered their chief young! He was the best swordsman—next to Aragorn in part because he helped teach their chief—and he had so many stories from his time in Mirkwood. Dôranna remembered long watches during which he had asked Gilvegil if the paths through Mirkwood did change or if the elvish family were as…peculiar as Bilbo had described. He was even present for the Battle of Five Armies, though he mostly helped in the aftermath.

Now, this vibrant old man was lay unconscious and growing paler by the day. The wound on his side was festering but not in the usual way. No, it radiated a sickly energy, an energy that was wrong and foul. It made Dôranna's skin crawl just being in the same room with it, and that energy was growing despite the overpowering scent of athelas in the room.

The blonde has spent the last two days (well more like thirty-six hours since he woke up so late on the twenty-fifth) trying to think of words which would let Gilvegil pass without becoming a wraith. The old man did not deserve such an awful fate. His people had fought the Evil of Angmar and now he would succumb to it, become its servant.

It was unfair.

Dôranna had to see the slow progression of this poison but was unable to help. It made him want to leave this tower all the more; it made him pace with unease and fear. He felt hopeless.

I wish I could do something, he thought almost desperately.

What do you sense, brat? Mr. Fox growled, and consequently shocked Dôranna out of his depressed thoughts.

Huh? He responded inarticulately. Mr. Fox had been quiet lately as he focused on healing the blonde's chakra pathways.

When Galasebdir checks the wound, sense it. Maybe help him in dressing it, Mr. Fox said almost leadingly.

Dôranna frowned and tried to parse out what the fox meant. He even directed his focus to that awful, foul energy radiating from Gilvegil; however, it made the boy's stomach turn. It was almost as icky as the energy trying to possess Papa. No, he had to get over the discomfort.

Dôranna shuffled over to Gilvegil's side and gently set a hand on the skin around the bandages. The skin was cool to the touch instead of hot with fever like it should be. The old man's pale skin was even paler now, almost translucent. Dôranna's fingers trembled as he felt the deathly cold skin because beneath the skin were pulses of that awful energy. It was like the corrupt energy traveled through the ranger's veins and capillaries. Like a poison from an adder bite, the corrupt energy spread out from the wound.

Dôranna closed his eyes and tried to trace the energy. Yes, he knew it originated from the wound, but why when it had been cleaned and treated? Follow, find, search. Find the source of this rot, he thought as his fingers traced over the skin and then over the bandages. In his mind's eye, Dôranna imagined the various veins in Gilvegil's abdomen, and the ones corrupted by this foul energy were blackened instead of blue. He followed the corrupted energy and found the wound, yes, but—there! A distinct shape of corrupt energy was centered in the wound. Instead of filling the capillaries and muscle tissue like Dôranna expected, he found an inorganic shape. It was a sliver of the weapon which pierced Gilvegil—it was still inside the wound!

Dôranna immediately shot to his feet but stumbled slightly as his head rushed from the sudden change in elevation. He shook the blackspots and dizziness away before running to the door of the room he'd been in.

By the time he opened it, Tirrandir was waiting on the other side with his eyebrow cocked and a disapproving look on his face. Before the quiet ranger could reprimand Dôranna for being up, the blonde blurted out his discovery. "Part of the Morgul blade is still inside the wound!"

Tirrandir's expression became blank, and he blinked twice before motioning for Dôranna to wait there. The ranger then went down the stairs of the decrepit watchtower to presumably get someone better equipped to deal with him. Soon, Galasebdir and Halbarad were racing up the spiraling stairs.

"Tirrandir said you discovered something?" Galasebdir asked between huffs.

"Part of the Morgul blade is stuck in the wound," Dôranna repeated. The two rangers quickly got into motion. Halbarad ran back downstairs to get more water and the like while Galasebdir went to his healing kit.

"I have some tweezers, but we'll need to cut the wound open a bit more before we can remove the blade fragments," the ranger explained as he unrolled his healing equipment.

"Wash your hands with that athelas there," Galasebdir ordered while giving a dismissive gesture to one of the many steeping bowls of athelas. The ranger was more preoccupied with peeling away the bandages around Gilvegil's wound.

"I'll rinse your equipment with it too," Dôranna offered as retrieved the tweezers and knife from Galasebdir's healing equipment.

"Good," the man said distractedly as he pried away the stuck bandages. Fresh blood began to ooze from the wound but there was a dark tint to the blood.

Galasebdir then rinsed his hands in the athelas as well before holding out his hand for the knife. Dôranna passed the blade to the ranger who then began to cut into the edges of the wound and undo the stitches he had made there. "I will hold the skin and muscle back while you take the shard out," Galasebdir stated.

Dôranna nodded after swallowing. He grabbed the tweezers and set one hand on Gilvegil's abdomen. The old ranger had not stirred, not even after Galasebdir cut into his flesh. He was lost, but they could try to save his soul from an eternity as their enemy's servant. Dôranna repeated his process from earlier when he had sensed the blade shard. He then moved the tweezers forward into the wound.

The blood and flesh were cool and slippery. It was wrong—it all felt so wrong!

It took several attempts, but he finally had hold of the shard and he gently began to maneuver it free. It was nearly out of the wound when one end caught on the muscles around the opening. This caused the sliver to break. Cursing, Dôranna got that bit of blade still held within the tweezers out. He dropped it somewhere behind him before moving to retrieve the piece that had broken.

"I need you to cut this muscle, I won't be able to get the rest of the shard out otherwise," Dôranna stated.

"We have to move quickly. Gilvegil will pass soon," Galasebdir stated—the old man had likely lost too much blood already even after days of slowly bleeding from an unhealing wound.

Dôranna nodded and kept focusing on that tainted energy within Gilvegil. "Release him," the blonde commanded in old elvish as he continued to fish out the last bit of the Morgul blade.

"He is not yours to take. Free him, release him. His soul is not yours," Dôranna told that foul energy. The last sliver of the blade was freed from the body, but that awful energy remained.

"This soldier is your enemy / His spirit fierce and strong / He fought you for so long / He deserves one final serenity," Dôranna rhymed, his voice shaking. "Release him, release him. Let him be free." He poured his desire for Gilvegil to be at peace, to die as a proud Dúnedain and not become a wraith of the enemy.

The blonde's fingers were tingling and growing numb. There was this burning sensation throughout his body, but still he pushed his desire for the foul energy to release Gilvegil. As darkness began to creep around the edge of Dôranna's sight, he felt the foul energy release the old ranger, and then Gilvegil's heart gave its last beat.

…

Sometimes, Sakura hated being on a team with sharingan users. Sure, it made certain things easy like learning codes or recalling the details of a mission in perfect detail, but being the only person without photocopying eyes on the team sucked. Sakura glared at the two copy-cats as they repeated everything Bolger said in perfect intonation and pronunciation—once they had gotten used to the difference between sounds of "el" and "ar" of course.

Sakura was great with cracking codes and discerning patterns, so learning a foreign language was a stimulating and rewarding challenge. However, this was constantly overshadowed by the fact that Sasuke and Sensei could just mimic whatever Bolger said. Were they even learning the language? Cheats, the lot of them.

Bolger was delighted, of course. Although it did take him a moment to get over the red, spinning eyes. He was even fascinated to learn that the eyes allowed the two men to recall in perfect detail whatever they saw.

Still, here they were in the late afternoon a day after they had met the hobbit. They'd had at least twelve hours of learning (copying for her teammates) Westron. The hobbit likely thought they had gone to bed when he did, but Team Seven didn't have time for that. So, they took power naps early in the morning after memorizing the Westron phonetic alphabet. Then they resumed their learning of the language and practiced their Westron once the hobbit woke up.

"You've all picked up Westron so quickly!" he gushed in Westron. Sasuke's face was blank while Sensei eye-smiled. Sakura wagered they'd understood half of what Bolger said but could repeat it perfectly.

"Yes, we picked up Westron quickly," Sensei said. He could have said: Yes, we learned it quickly. Context indicated "picked up" meant to learn, and Bolger had taught them about pronouns so Westron could have been replaced with an "it" since languages were not people. But did Sensei or Sasuke challenge themselves? No, why would they when they could just parrot back whatever was said.

Sakura did her best to stifle her annoyance with her teammates and instead focused on Bolger. "Mr. Bolger, we…are ready to…earn…coin?" Sakura winced at the question in her voice. She believed "coin" was a word Bolger said could work for currency. Still, Sakura had to think about each verb and its conjugation before speaking. Moreover, her "el" sounds were a bit awkward and still sounded closer to "ar" than "el."

"Yes, I believe you all are. I have a letter of introduction here, but I've realized they might wonder why Merry isn't introducing you. We'll have to come up with a cover," The hobbit said quickly. Sakura caught all the words, but their meaning did not clarify yet. She knew her teammates were replaying what Bolger said over and over in their heads until they understood—stupid sharingan.

"Once more, please?" Sakura asked the hobbit. Bolger gave an apologetic smile.

"Of course, Miss Sakura," Bolger replied indulgently. "I said: I believe you all are—as in you are ready to interact with other hobbits," the hobbit repeated slowly. Sakura pushed down the embarrassment she felt—when Bolger repeated things with added detail, it made her feel stupid. "I have the letter of introduction here—" he patted the breast pocket of his vest "—but I realized Merry is kin to the hobbits of Brandy Hall. If he is not there introducing you, it will raise questions, which we cannot have. So, we will have to come up with a cover story."

When neither Sensei nor Sasuke jumped in with a response, Sakura knew they were still trying to understand what was said. Copy-cats.

"Mushroom pick-ing?" Sakura suggested a bit stiltedly. If there was one thing Sakura had learned in the last day and a half, it was that hobbits loved mushrooms. Bolger hummed a bit skeptically, so Sakura added, "In…the Old Forest." It was difficult to remember to include articles before nouns.

"Merry was never one to fear the Forest," Bolger said mostly to himself before he began nodding. "Yes, very good cover, and we can say old Frodo and young Pippin and Sam had joined him!" the hobbit clapped to either emphasize them coming to a decision or because he was just a naturally jovial hobbit and felt the moment deserved a clap.

"We should say then…?" Sensei trailed off. Sakura glared at the man. He just wanted a streamlined phrase to spout off at the hobbits. So lazy. The man was supposed to be a genius, surely, he could piece together what they were supposed to say based on all they'd learned.

"Mr. Fordo and Merry have gone foraging for mushrooms in the Old Forest. They will be back by evening, but you did not want to delay any further."

Sensei nodded, and then Team Seven (or was it Team Kakashi now?) thanked the hobbit and prepared to head off toward Brandy Hall to find work. Sasuke accepted the letter of introduction since he had the least to do in order to appear Middle-Earth-ian (was that a word? It felt wrong to keep calling the people of this world aliens.).

All of Team Seven were forgoing their sandals since the material was clearly alien. And while they all had wrapped their feet in bandages to provide some protection from the elements, Sensei had also altered the wrappings for the bottom of his pants so that they would cover up to the bottom of his winter cloak—which Sakura had sacrificed her cloak to lengthen. Underneath the lengthened cloak, Sensei was wearing his undershirt rather than the rest of his jōnin fatigues. He also made sure to fasten the cloak closed—they had added the fastenings—to prevent his non-Middle-Earth clothes from being seen.

Sakura and Sasuke were both still wearing Dôranna's clothes (or should she call him Naruto?), which did not fit all that well. Still, they were making do. Sakura had begun wearing her hair in a bun so that it would be more easily hidden by her headscarf—she was thankful she had decided not cut her hair short, even though she was tired of maintaining the long hair.* Lastly, Sakura found some charcoal and darkened her eyebrows.

She had been wracking her brain for natural ways to darken her hair to better fit in without relying on a flimsy piece of cloth, but most of the methods Ino had talked about with her took time or were for blondes; they didn't have time, and lightening Sakura's hair was bound to make her stand out worse. If only henna existed in Middle-Earth!

As prepared as they could be, Team Seven left Crickhollow and headed north toward Brandy Hall. It was a large sprawling estate that was filled with more hobbits than seemed possible. It was a bit unnerving to walk up to the large smial (hobbit-hole) with every hobbit stopping what they were doing to stare. Sakura fidgeted with the hem of the borrowed shirt.

Sensei gave his usual eye-smile and waved from time-to-time as he continued to hobble along with the branch they had procured the other day. Sasuke chose to glare, which actually scared one young hobbit, so Sakura smacked the boy upside the head. Sasuke just raised an eyebrow as if to ask what was wrong—he even had the gall to look offended.

"Stop that, you scare hobbits!" she chided in Westron.

"Yes, no scare hobbits," Sensei added chipperly, though since he was lazy and copying her, he said it wrong. Sakura felt her eye twitch—how could he copy her without his sharingan active, was he just that much of a copy-cat?

"They look," Sasuke said in defense of his actions.

"Stare," Sakura corrected. Sasuke shrugged like he didn't see the difference. Ugh! Lazy copy-cats!

Before Sakura could berate her teammates for being lazy cheaters, they were stopped by some Bounders—based on the outfit the hobbits wore. Bolger had described the Bounders in more detail while they were practicing their Westron.

"Hold, Strangers. What brings you to Buckland?" one of the Bounders said with his hand raised.

"We are kin to Dôranna Baggins," Sensei said—clearly copying what Bolger had said but changing the subject and conjugations from "you" to "we." "We have traveled for many years to find him but were attacked on the road by bandits. We have only the clothes on our backs."

"We hope to do work for Brandy Hall so we may replenish our supplies," Sasuke added. He was also clearly copying what Bolger had said previously.

"You're kin to Baggins' boy?" one Bounder said skeptically. Sakura could tell the hobbit didn't believe them and that her teammates were still parsing out what was said.

The other Bounder spoke before anyone from Team Seven could respond to his partner. "If you are kin, why doesn't Master Frodo cover your expenses?"

Her teammates knew the expected response to any question with the words "Frodo" and "expense" in it. Sasuke chimed in first, "We do not wish to be a burden upon Mr. Baggins."

"We are also proud people; we do not want charity," Sensei added next.

"We are…pre-pared to work for coin," Sakura added awkwardly as she carefully said the foreign words.

"Why aren't Master Frodo or Merry with you?" the more suspicious of the two Bounders asked with his eyes narrowed.

"Mr. Baggins and Brandybuck have gone foraging for mushrooms in the Old Forest. They will be back by evening, but we did not want to delay any further," Sensei said. Copy-Cat.

"Delay any further?" the more skeptical Bounder repeated.

"We must…re-plen-ish sup-plies before we con-tin-ue search for Dôranna," Sakura said carefully—perhaps over enunciating the foreign sounds.

"Dôranna is off on Ranger business, so we must travel far afield," Sasuke added once he had caught onto what was being asked.

"We have letter of introduction," Sensei added with a gesture toward Sasuke who was still holding the letter. Sensei had copied Frodo's script—the hobbit had left many samples of his handwriting—while following the words Bolger had written out previously. The hobbit had been comparing the letter of introduction to other pieces of Frodo's writing and then had sealed the letter using Frodo's wax seal (hence why the hobbit had been holding onto it earlier).

The two Bounders must have seen the Baggins seal or recognized the script on the outside of the letter for they shared a look and relaxed. "Very well, we will escort you the rest of the way to Brandy Hall," the higher ranked Bounder stated (or at least Sakura suspected he was higher ranked).

There were numerous clay, stone, and wood homes that lead up the pathway to Brandy Hall, which was built into the large Buck Hill. Sakura counted at least two dozen windows facing out from the hill in the direction they were approaching it from. She suspected there were at least as many windows on all the other sides of the hill. It was probably a labyrinth of halls and rooms within the hill itself.

They approached one of the main doors—a large green circular door with a lantern above it to light the way at night. Sensei and Sasuke had to stoop, one more than the other, upon entering the smial. The Bounders led them to a central area that appeared to be like a gathering hall. While they walked through the curved halls, Sakura was taken aback by how cozy and inviting the space was—even if it felt a little claustrophobic for her (given she head was practically touching the ceiling). There were numerous hobbits staring at them from side halls and rooms, and several even followed after them into the gathering hall.

There were several venerable looking hobbits sitting in comfy looking chairs near a large central fireplace—it was domed but had three openings which corresponded with the main pathways that led to this gathering hall (said paths likely corresponded with the main entrances to the smial). The cylindrical bricked flue was attached to the top of the large domed fireplace and likely traveled all the way up to the top of Buck Hill.

"Hello Elders," one of the Bounders greeted the group of venerable hobbits. "These Big Folk are kin to Dôranna Baggins and come seeking work. They were beset by bandits on their travels here and refuse to accept charity from Mr. Baggins."

"Where is dear Frodo?" one of the hobbits asked as he smoked on a pipe.

"Foraging for mushrooms in the Old Forest with Merry, apparently," the more skeptical Bounder stated while side-eyeing Team Seven.

The first Bounder nudged his partner and then gestured to Sasuke, "They have a letter of introduction from Master Frodo."

Sasuke caught his cue and proceeded forward in a slight deferential bow (which was partially due to the low ceiling) as he held out the letter with both hands. An attendant or perhaps just a grandchild to one of the venerable hobbits, quickly grabbed the letter and brought it to the presumed community leader. The leader then passed the letter around before a spokesperson, addressed Team Seven.

This hobbit was younger than her peers but not by much. Her hair, instead of being snowy-white, was blonde with broad streaks of gray.

"Tell me, foreigners, if you are kin to Dôranna, do you share his speed and strength?" she asked. "We have heard how he can cross the breadth of the Shire in a day."

"Yes," Sakura answered for her teammates since they had not memorized such a question, and therefore had no copied response.

"Very well," the female hobbit said with a nod. "Farmer Maggot's sheep and cows were scared by something the other night and had broken free from their pastures. He has been struggling to bring them back to his fields. You will help him and mend the fences around his pastures," the hobbit stated.

Sakura agreed to the mission for her teammates who were still trying to figure out what was going on. See, this was why they shouldn't have relied on their sharingan so much! "Could you give…di-rec-tions to Farmer Maggot?" Sakura asked awkwardly.

"Bounders Hopps and Proudfoot will give you directions. If Farmer Maggot gives a satisfactory report, we will see about other jobs for you all to complete," the spokes-hobbit stated.

"Thank you for the opportunity," Sensei said—having finally found a space where he could use one of the copied responses—with a bow (not that it appeared all the different from his current slouch in the low-ceilinged room).

The spokes-hobbit wrote something on a piece of paper that she then handed to Sensei—it would likely explain to Farmer Maggot that they were to assist him.

As they were dismissed and Bounder Hopps and Proudfoot led them out of the Hall, Sasuke leaned in toward Sakura. "What is our mission?" he asked in their native tongue.

"Basically a Tora mission," Sakura replied with a shrug. "Plus fixing a fence."

Sasuke hummed and nodded.

"Maa, why don't you two work on wrangling the livestock while I work on the fences?" Sensei suggested.

"What are you lot saying?" Proudfoot (the suspicious hobbit) demanded.

"We are co-co-or-din-ate, ah, co-ordin-at-ing the ah…what is the word. Ah…job?" Sakura asked the Bounders.

"And what does that mean, exactly?" Proudfoot demanded while Hopps sighed.

"Master will f-fix fence, while we—" Sakura gestured between herself and Sasuke "—find miss-ing sheep and cow."

"There's more than one sheep and cow missing," Hopps remarked, and Sakura grimaced.

"Right. I…am…learn-ing Westron. Our…tongue have no count for word…words." Sakura remembered the plural suffix that time.

"So, you all are from far away then?" Hopps asked, and Sakura nodded.

"Knew that boy was from the far-East," Proudfoot commented with a sneer.

"Where is Farmer Maggot?" Sensei asked before the casual racism could get worse. Bounder Hopps told them to follow the Brandywine River to the Buckleberry Ferry, at which point they should cross the river, and then follow the road until they reached a farm.

As it was getting quite late in the day, Team Seven decided they would run to the Ferry and then the farm—though that also meant one of them needed to carry Sensei since he was still recovering from his chakra exhaustion.

Sakura and Sasuke stared at each other for a beat before they both raised their fists and began playing janken. Of course, Sasuke won by cheating with his Sharingan (he made sure no hobbits could see his eyes when he activated his dojutsu) because he was a cheating cheater who cheats. Ugh! She really hated having teammates with the sharingan sometimes. Sakura glared at her teammate before moving so Sensei could be carried on her back.

"Maa, Sasuke, hold my stick please," Sensei ordered with an eye-smile as he tossed the makeshift walking stick at Sasuke. The jōnin then got onto Sakura's back. There were several surprised exclamations from the hobbits around them that only grew when Sakura and Sasuke took charka-empowered jumps forward and began running.

Before long, they were at Farmer Maggot's farm where they learned that a rider in black had visited him a few nights ago. For some reason, this rider's presence had driven his livestock wild with fear. Famer Maggot had been deeply perturbed by the encounter with the mysterious rider as well and still seemed shaken. However, Team Seven had a mission to complete and couldn't ask the man about what he had witnessed, not if they wanted to finish before sunset, which was fast approaching.

Honestly, corralling a bunch of sheep and cows was easier than finding Tora, which maybe said something about the cat's owner. It probably also helped that Sakura and Sasuke could just pick up the animals without the fear of being clawed and carrying them back to the pasture. The first time Sakura had returned with sheep on each of her shoulders, Farmer Maggot had nearly fainted. The hobbit farmer actually did faint when Sasuke showed up with one of his cows raised above his head much to said cow's complete shock and fear—it kept trying to run away but couldn't based on how it was held. It was a bit comical.

Fortunately, most of the livestock didn't require such a hands-on approach. In fact, the chūnin discovered that if they ran quickly enough back and forth along the direction they didn't want the animals to go, they would flee in the opposite direction and thus back to the pasture.

Of course, Sasuke and Sakura were panting by the time the last of the animals were back in their pasture, and their feet were covered in manure, which was really gross. Sensei finished nailing the last plank on the fence into place and eye-smiled at them.

"Maa, look at you two, reminds me of those Tora missions," he commented before his expression faltered. Shin. They were all quiet for a moment, until Farmer Maggot and his wife approached them.

"Thank you all for your assistance," Farmer Maggot said genially.

Mrs. Maggot was staring in shock at the fixed fence and all their animals safely returned. She then took in the state of Sakura and Sasuke.

"Why don't I prepare some baths for you two," she suggested.

"That would be most appreciated," Sensei said—repeating verbatim a phrase Bolger had used before.

"We've prepared some supper for you all too, and I have payment for your speedy services," Farmer Maggot stated.

"Thank you," Sakura said with a bow. Her teammates copied her and then they were ushered into Farmer Maggot's home—well, Sasuke and Sakura stayed outside until they could wash off the filth from their feet.

That night, they had a delightful meal filled with various vegetables and a hearty stew. Farmer Maggot and his wife talked about Frodo trying to steal mushrooms from their garden during his youth, and then they talked about how they had heard about Dôranna helping with various farmers around the Shire, but he had only ever baled hay or weeded gardens. The conversation was mostly carried by Sakura, who stuttered and stumbled her way through Westron, while her teammates only spoke when they had a copied response. Hopefully they were taking this unscripted conversation as an opportunity to learn Westron better.

By the time they left with a note for elder Brandybuck and payment for their work, it was well past sundown and nearly time for Dinner (according to Hobbits—apparently they had seven meals a day!), which meant it was nearly nine in the evening.

Sakura decided to just run before Sasuke could trick her into carrying sensei again, but apparently the boy had the same idea. They both paused several meters away from the farm where Sensei was still standing. They looked at each other and then back at their Sensei who raised an eyebrow expectantly.

"I'm not carrying him again," Sakura stated.

"I carried him from the Downs to the Shire. That's at least three times longer than the trek to Crickhollow."

He had a point but also… "He could just walk it?" Sakura suggested. Sasuke regarded Sakura for a beat before turning around to face Sensei with an eye-smile. Sakura immediately copied her teammate.

"Maa, my former genin are so cruel!" Sensei lamented in that childish way he'd do sometimes just to annoy them.

"Then stop exhausting yourself!" Sakura shot back at him before she and Sasuke raced away.

Of course, given the description of the rider in black Farmer Maggot gave them, the two Chūnin never strayed out of hearing range from their sensei, and so it took until nearly midnight for them to return to Crickhollow. This meant they had a worried hobbit waiting up for them, who then insisted they have tea and a snack to make up for their missed dinner—even though Sakura explained that they had already had supper with the Maggots. Hobbits were strange.

…

September 28th

Sakura slowed to a stop outside the pub The Green Dragon. She had a letter she was supposed to deliver to Rosie Cotton who was a barmaid at the pub. If the hobbit wasn't here, then Sakura was supposed to go to the Cotton farms which were south of Hobbiton.

There were several hobbits gawking at her now that she was no longer running. It was probably around Elevensies, so not too many hobbits were out and about, but enough stared at her with their mouths open. She grinned at them and gave a little wave.

She had three more letters to deliver from Buckland for in and around Hobbiton, and then she was supposed to stop by Postmaster Boffin's office to see if there were any letters for Buckland before she ran back east. She'd probably get back to Brandy Hall by Afternoon Teatime if not Supper. It was so strange that the hobbits organized their lives around mealtimes, but oh well.

Sakura opened the circular door to the pub and went inside. There were a five or so farm hands having their Elevensies at the establishment, two older hobbits smoking near a chessboard, and one younger hobbit who was scowling from corner as he glared at the other patrons (and who returned the glares).

There was a young female hobbit behind the bar. She had blond curly hair and wore a bright blue dress. Sakura went up the woman and smiled. "Hello, I have…a letter…for Rose-ie Cot-ton?" Sakura stumbled over the words as she pulled out the letter.

The hobbit brightened. "That is me," she said without any lie. She then held out her hand and Sakura gave her the letter. The barmaid then gave Sakura a few coins for the delivery fee.

"May I ask why a big folk is doing deliveries?" Cotton asked.

"I…am kin to Dôranna. We…search-searched for him very long time but, ah, attacked on road. We lost all be-be-long-ings." She hated how broken her speech sounded to her own ears. The young hobbit sitting in the corner scowled worse at her, and the other hobbits in the establishment all paused in their conversations or games to eavesdrop better.

"Why doesn't old Frodo pay for you if you're kin," the unpleasant hobbit said from his corner. "Always a cheap one," the hobbit added before spitting at the stone ground. "Him and his no good uncle."

All the other hobbits were expressing their displeasure with the hobbit in the corner. Sakura gave a strained smile since she wasn't sure what exactly the tension was here for. "We are proud people and do not want charity. We work for…for what we have? Did I say this right?" Sakura added the last part to Cotton, since the barmaid was kind. "Our tongue…is different."

"Yes, you did, and that is mighty noble of you," Cotton said cheerfully. "You shouldn't pay Lotho any mind," she added.

"Lotho Sack-ville-Bag-gins?" Sakura asked as she dug through her satchel and retrieved the letter signed for the unpleasant hobbit. Well, now she didn't need to go to Bag End. She approached the surly hobbit and set down the letter for him. He scowled at her.

"I'm not paying a foreigner," he sneered. Based on the reactions of the other hobbits, this was expected but far from appropriate. Sakura didn't let it bother her. She could always break into Bag End and leave some tacks in the unpleasant hobbit's bed if she was feeling petty enough. Maybe put some worms in his food stores—yeah, that was a better idea.

"I'll go with you to Postmaster Boffin and explain how Lotho treats those helping others out," one of the elderly hobbits playing chess announced as he stood. "Do you have any other letters to deliver?" the old hobbit asked her as he gestured for her to head to the door.

"Yes, a, ah, Mer-i-lous Proudfoot?" Sakura stumbled over the name as she double-checked the last letter she had to deliver. She had delivered letters all along the East Road (from the Whitfurrows and Frogmorton, to Bywater and now Hobbiton), and would probably stop at each Postmaster's office for any reply mail on her return trip.

"Aye, I know where the Proudfoot's hole is. It's on the way to the Postmaster's office," the elderly hobbit stated.

Sakura thanked him and proceeded out the door. She had a fairly heavy pouch of coins and hoped it would be enough to get boots—she might be able to heal her feet as soon as the sores and cuts appeared, but it still hurt to travel barefoot. She didn't understand how the hobbits could wander barefoot all the time, but she supposed that was why they were hobbits and not big folk.

As Sakura walked through Hobbiton toward Postmaster Boffin's office, she noticed there was a hobbit selling walnuts, which gave her an idea. She diverted from the path her escort was walking and approached the stand.

"Ex-ex-cuse me, how…many for shells?" she asked the hobbit manning the stand while pulling out the foreign coins.

"Just the shells?" the hobbit asked.

"Yes, or both," Sakura replied with a shrug. She didn't really want the walnuts themselves, but the shells could be boiled to dye her hair.

The hobbit hummed, "Help me shell them and you can have as many as you can carry," the hobbit said after taking in Sakura's meager appearance.

Sakura smiled brightly. "I go to Postmaster office first, then I come here to help," Sakura said a bit stiltedly. The hobbit nodded and motioned for Sakura to go on her business. When Sakura finished her deliveries and retrieved mail going to towns along the East Road back to the Bucklands, she skipped back to the walnut stand.

The woman offered a nut cracking device, but Sakura just picked up the walnuts up and squeezed them between her thumb and forefinger (while keeping the seam of the shell as the connection point with her fingers). The hobbit stared in awe as Sakura cracked the walnuts between her fingers without hurting the meat of the nut. Within the hour, Sakura had shelled all of the hobbits nuts and graciously accepted a sack to carry the shells in.

"W-what are you going to do with the shells?" the hobbit asked as Sakura was preparing to head out.

"Ah, I do not know word, but um…color wood," she lied. Technically, yes boiled walnut shells could be made into a varnish, but she was planning to dye her hair with them.

"Good luck then," the hobbit said cheerfully if still a bit awed. Sakura bid the hobbit farewell and got ready to run back along the East Road.

…

Sasuke wiped his brow with the bottom of the rough spun shirt he was wearing. He had finished raking the various leaves on different hobbit properties, had replaced the mulch of several gardens, and had baled two fields of hay. It was Afternoon Teatime—odd that hobbits marked the passage of time with meals—and he had finished all of the odd jobs he had been assigned for the day.

He sincerely hoped he'd have enough to buy better fitting clothes. The hems of the shirt and pants he was borrowing were just a bit too short. He also desperately wanted boots or shoes. His feet were cut and bleeding, plus he had dirt and other unpleasant substances caked onto his feet. Sakura was lucky she could heal herself intuitively. Sasuke was afraid he'd catch an infection or some such at this rate.

Sasuke ignored the praise from the farmer he had been working with for the last two hours, but thanked him when the hobbit paid Sasuke. Sasuke then limped his way over to Brandy Hall. As he approached the outside, he saw Sensei was standing in the middle of the road and a veritable sea of hobbits were gathered in front of Brandy Hall. Oh, and there was an easel set up in front of Sensei.

Sasuke felt his eye twitch. So, while Sakura and Sasuke were breaking their backs with physical labor jobs, Sensei was painting. God damn lazy jōnin.

"You know, I could be doing this too," Sasuke growled as he limped up to the eye-smiling bastard.

"Not without revealing your sharingan," Sensei chirped as he finished the background of the painting. "I, however, am a master painter without using it."

"I'm going to get a staph infection at this rate," Sasuke snapped. "Or some other fungal infection."

"Good thing Sakura made penicillin," Sensei replied chipperly. "Besides, we probably have money enough to get shoes now."

"Hobbits don't wear shoes," Sasuke retorted.

"Maa, that may be true, but Bree is close by."

"I'm not doing any more labor jobs without protection," Sasuke hissed.

"Hmm, then you can join me in copying some of their books. The Brandybucks are trying to build a library but want duplicates of certain books so hobbits can check them out. They also have several periodicals they want to curate into a single volume."

"Anything's better than getting my feet cut up further."

"No Sharingan though—we'll have a librarian and scribe with us the whole time," Sensei added. He was rapidly painting the smiling hobbits now and would be done within the hour.

Sasuke was preparing to settle in to watch Sensei paint (while glaring daggers at the lazy man) when he felt Sakura's chakra at the edge of his senses. It stood out starkly compared to the charka-less world around them.

"Your feet are bleeding," Sakura stated after slowing down from her run. Sasuke noted she had a sack attached to her back but the mail satchel she had left with in the morning was gone.

"No, really!?" Sasuke snapped back sarcastically. "I can't heal myself like you can."

"Well, while you two refuse to interact with the locals, I have been and have discovered there's lots of similar plants including medicinal ones. Bolger-san even told me that there's this weed—king's foil—that can help heal and stave off infections when used in the water to clean wounds. Plus, Dôranna has collected a bunch of it and left it back at Crickhollow. So…" Sakura shrugged.

"Fine, we can try your medicinal remedies, but I'm done doing physical labor jobs, at last without shoes."

"You know we'll have to run to Bree, right?" Sakura retorted.

Sasuke glared at the girl and then stomped off toward Crickhollow. He was going to take a nice long bath with whatever healing herb that Naruto-kid collected. Sakura and Sensei stifled their laughter at his "dramatic" exit (according to Sensei, who was a hypocrite of the worst degree).

Sometimes…his teammates tried his patience. He also wished they could continue their search for Naruto soon

…

When Dôranna woke, his chakra pathways were aching. He also noted it was well past Afternoon Teatime if not going onto Supper time. His stomach growled and he slowly sat up.

Gilvegil was no longer in the room with him, but there were blood stains on the floor which indicated where the man had been. Galasebdir was resting in a corner of the room and looked tired—like he had been watching over Dôranna for more than just a few hours.

Dôranna stumbled out of his bedroll and began to shakily make his way to the door. His vision swam and spotted for a moment. Whoa, how hungry must he be? He didn't usually get this hungry after using a lot chakra.

Just as the blonde made it to the door, he heard and then felt Galasebdir startle and come to his side.

"Dôranna, what are you doing up. You need to rest, come—"

"I'm hungry," the boy said even as his stomach growled loudly. "I can smell the others cooking something downstairs, just let me eat around the fire, please?" he pleaded and even pulled out his puppy-eyes (as Papa called them).

Galasebdir sighed heavily and shook his head. "Fine, but rely on me, please," he said as he shifted Dôranna's weight so the ranger was carrying most of it. They then hobbled down the stairs. By the time they reached the campfire, the blonde was panting, and his vision was swimming more. He definitely needed food. He could probably eat a whole deer. Speaking of deer, there was some venison cooking over the firepit.

"I'm starving, is it ready?" he asked Langlas who was tending to the fire.

The (comparatively) young ranger gave Dôranna a disbelieving look. "I'd be worried if you weren't hungry," he said before taking a knife used for cooking and cutting off a piece of the venison for the blonde. The meat was too hot to touch and the grease coming from it definitely burned his fingertips.

Galasebdir began chiding Langlas for not providing a bowl, but Dôranna didn't pay attention to them as he began to eat the piece of meat. He licked the grease from his fingers and then looked to Langlas. "Can I have more?"

"Of course," Langlas replied as he began to cut away another piece of the deer.

Galasebdir had retrieved a bowl from their camp supplies and had put some waybread in it before grabbing the piece of meat from Langlas and adding it to the dish. "Only if you eat some waybread with it. You've been asleep for over a day," the ranger stated as he offered Dôranna the bowl.

"What?!" The boy stared at the rangers around him in disbelief.

Galasebdir always looked grim, so the boy regarded Langlas to make sure this wasn't a joke. The younger dúnedain looked as concerned as their designated healer and was already cutting another piece of meat for Dôranna. Langlas wouldn't normally look or act this way, which must mean it was true.

"Dôranna, twice now, you have fallen into a deep sleep after doing some feat of magic. You must take better care of yourself," Galasebdir said sternly as he set a hand on the boy's shoulder.

Dôranna swallowed and looked down at the bowl. "I'm sorry I worried you all," he murmured.

"Then do not act so reckless in the future," Galasebdir stated before he squeezed Dôranna's shoulder and pulled away.

Dôranna nodded rather than say he'd try. Instead, he asked, "Have you done a funeral for Gilvegil?"

"We had a pyre for him yesterday evening," Langlas replied. "We recited some of his favorite poems and sang his favorite songs."

"We will be sharing stories about Gilvegil tonight during dinner," Galasebdir added. He smiled a little sadly at Dôranna, "While I wish you had not pushed yourself yesterday, I am glad our friend was able to pass from this world and was not made into a wraith. Thank you."

Dôranna didn't know how to respond, so he just ducked his head and ate some of the food from his bowl. The more he ate, the better he felt, though his chakra pathways still hurt—or at least he assumed they were his chakra pathways.

As time passed, more of the rangers came over to the fire, and soon the men were recalling stories about Gilvegil while they smoked and ate. The rangers still ate in shifts, for they needed to keep watch in case the Nazgûl pursued them; although, scouts reported half of their enemy's number continued to patrol the Greenway.

It was nearly Dinner time when only a carcass remained of the deer and all of the rangers had had their fill. The rangers would likely boil down the bones into a broth and make a soup or stew tomorrow. They should have had more meat leftover from the deer, but Dôranna had been ravenous. He was almost tempted to suck the marrow from some of the bones, but instead he nibbled on some waybread and roasted roots (Galasebdir had insisted Dôranna have some kind of vegetable with his dinner, so he had foraged for some edible roots).

Halbarad was recounting one of his first training sessions with Gilvegil when something pricked at the edge of Dôranna's awareness. The blonde stood up and looked to the South-East. Halbarad stopped his story. "What is it, Dôranna?" the leader of their group asked.

"Gandalf?" That was Gandalf, and he was moving quickly. Stumbling forward, Dôranna began to move to intercept the wizard, only for Halbarad to stop him.

"Hold, child. You have been bedridden for days," he said in part chastisement and part concern.

"If Gandalf has come now, then…then something must have changed. Please," Dôranna pleaded.

"If you can feel the wizard from here, then surely he can feel you. If he deems it necessary to speak with you, then he will come here."

Dôranna gritted his teeth but didn't protest. He didn't think he could fight against Halbarad, and he definitely didn't think he could run out to Gandalf. The boy was starting to wonder if he had broken himself somehow—if he wouldn't be able to help his papa or the rangers anymore.

You just need to rest, brat, Mr. Fox growled tiredly. And you need to stop using chakra for a while. Let yourself heal.

Will using your chakra always incapacitate me this way? He asked the giant fox.

While it's unbalanced and we're in this world? Most likely. Mr. Fox must have felt how dissatisfied Dôranna was with that answer, for the fox continued speaking. My chakra can't exist outside of you, so my chakra cloak adapted itself to the fire you were manipulating which in turn hurt you. Normally using that much of chakra would harm you because its unbalanced, but maybe…maybe there could be a way for this world to manipulate my chakra into some other kind of magic—one that won't hurt you?

It was a thought and one to explore some other time, especially since it appeared Gandalf did "deem it necessary" to head toward Dôranna and the rangers' camp.

Dôranna waited at the edge of the camp, which was the farthest Halbarad would let him go, until a white shape appeared in the distance as it came up a hill. Atop the white thing—it had to be a horse—was a darker shape that was hard to make out in the dark. Before long, Gandalf was within shouting distance, and soon the wizard slowed the beautiful horse he was riding (without a saddle, mind you).

The white horse practically glowed in the faint starlight, and his body steamed in the autumn chill. He was a mighty steed and inspired awe in Dôranna. Of course, once the boy got over his shock and wonder at the horse, he noticed Gandalf's state. The wizard looked gaunt and dirty. He was missing his blue hat, his beard was matted, and there were deep bags under his eyes.

"Gandalf…" Dôranna began worriedly.

"Dôranna," the wizard greeted quickly. "Why are you and the rangers here and not at the Ford?" he asked.

Halbarad, who was still standing near Dôranna lest the boy had tried to run off, spoke. "All nine Nazgûl came upon the Ford and drove us away. Half of their number proceeded onto the Shire, while the others patrol the Greenway north of here." The ranger bowed his head. "I am sorry we failed."

"The might of enemy was upon you—you did what you could," Gandalf replied grimly.

"Come, join us at the fire. There's some leftovers," Dôranna entreated the wizard. The boy felt guilty for having eaten so much of the venison, especially since Gandalf appeared so thin.

"I am afraid I cannot tarry," Gandalf replied. "I have been delayed too long, and if the Nazgûl pursue Frodo then…" he trailed off, but his face was set in a determined if grim expression. His normally bright blue eyes that seemed to twinkle in the light, were now hard as cobalt.

"I'm coming with you," Dôranna stated. Halbarad began to protest but the blonde turned on the ranger. "My papa is in danger. I cannot stand aside."

"You're still recovering," Halbarad argued, but Dôranna shook his head.

"It will be days yet before we catch up to Papa, that will be enough time for me to recover," the boy retorted. Gandalf watched them with his gaze narrowed slightly. Dôranna turned back to the wizard. "Please, Gandalf, let me travel with you."

"What are you recovering from?" the wizard asked slowly.

"He created a wall of fire and held off the Nazgûl from the Ford for hours," Halbarad replied before Dôranna could think of some way to downplay what had happened. "He passed out on top of a fire and did not wake. His skin—" Halbarad cut himself off and shook his head. "It was burning away and regrowing before our eyes."

"I'm fine now," Dôranna protested.

"You just woke up from another—child, you have been pushing yourself too far." Halbarad sounded scared for Dôranna, scared and frustrated with him. The boy had never thought the stoic dúnedain could be capable of fear for another's safety, not to this degree.

"I won't use any magic until Mr. Fox says it's safe. He's healing me right now, and if I ride with Gandalf, then I won't be putting any more strain on my body. I promise."

"I will watch over young Dôranna and make sure he does not overexert himself again," Gandalf announced.

Halbarad closed his eyes in defeat for a moment before straightening. "Very well. I know I cannot change your minds," the dúnedain said. "Please stay for a bit longer so we might properly outfit you both," he asked, almost pleaded them.

Dôranna looked to Gandalf who appeared antsy to get back on the road, but his horse certainly appeared to appreciate the break—it was grazing at some of the grass. "Please do," Dôranna answered before the wizard could rush them on their way. It was best to get some supplies, at the very least some food for Gandalf.

The rangers likely had been eavesdropping, for, within ten minutes, Dôranna had his pack refilled—mostly with food. His quiver was restocked, and his bedroll was rolled atop his pack. Galasebdir held out some waybread to Dôranna before the boy could mount the horse behind Gandalf. The ranger gave a pointed look at the wizard as Dôranna took the traveling rations. The blonde nodded at the unspoken message, and soon he was saying goodbye to his mentors.

As Gandalf dug his heels into the horse's side, the wizard said, "Come Shadowfax, let us make haste." What a cool name for a horse! And boy did he move quickly. The blonde held on tightly to Gandalf and tried to relax his hips while keeping a firm grip with his thighs on the horse—he had never really ridden horseback before.

Within a few hours, they were crossing the Sarn Ford, and Dôranna witnessed the charred evidence of his fire wall. Once they were beyond the Ford, they made camp within a copse of trees off the side of the road. Gandalf appeared too anxious to sleep or eat, but Dôranna reminded the wizard that while he might be able to push on, his mount could not, and so now they sat while Shadowfax rested and ate.

"How tall were the flames you summoned?" Gandalf asked after a tense moment of silence.

Dôranna, who was still holding the packet of waybread, shrugged. "Man height." He then tossed the waybread to the wizard. "Eat."

Gandalf frowned down at the slightly damaged travel rations but ate some of the thick bread. "How did you make this wall of fire? Why were you burning and healing at the same time?" the wizard asked between mouthfuls.

"Mr. Fox heals me all the time, see," the boy said as he quickly sliced his palm with a knife he kept in his boot. Mr. Fox grumbled at the back of Dôranna's mind about not being a party trick—whatever that meant—but still healed the blonde's hand. It stung more than usual, and the boy wasn't sure if that was Mr. Fox being spiteful or if it was the strain on his chakra pathways. Mr. Fox's telling silence suggested the answer was both.

"And the burning aura around you?" Gandalf asked.

"Well, Mr. Fox can protect me by giving me lots of his energy, but it's a lot of energy and I'm just me, you know?" Dôranna explained with another shrug. "It made me faster and stronger than normal, but it also made it so that his energy was trying to cloak me. But then, well, with the fire wall, I was channeling the magic of fire and that sort of translated to the cloak too, I think." Dôranna furrowed his brow as he tried to articulate what had happened and what Mr. Fox had told him.

"But channeling so much magic, it hurt you—it exhausted you, didn't it?" Gandalf asked with a sad expression—one that was certainly too sad for talking about how awesome Dôranna had been the other day.

"Well, yes, but Mr. Fox is healing that damage, and the only reason I passed out again was because I had used too much magic trying to release Gilvegil from the Nazgûl's…uh, huh, no one told me what it was exactly."

"What happened to Gilvegil?" Gandalf asked in muted alarm. The wizard was definitely tired and should rest.

"He was stabbed by a Morgul blade and part of it was stuck in the wound, so it was turning him into a wraith. I got the blade fragment out of him and then, um, excised? Is that the right word?" he asked the wizard who just regarded Dôranna with a disbelieving look. "Well, I excised the foul energy from the wound which I think stopped Gilvegil from becoming a wraith!"

Gandalf blinked several times before shaking his head. "You have come a long way with your magic, Dôranna. Those are most impressive feats, though I am beginning to worry too. If casting spells takes so much out of you, you must be more careful. If not for yourself then for Frodo or your allies.

"If you were to become incapacitated during a battle, your allies would need to protect you which could endanger them as well. You must learn to balance your use of magic, and you must understand your own limitations."

Dôranna ducked his head. Gilvegil had been wounded because he had been protecting Dôranna. The blonde nodded. "I know, Gandalf," he whispered.

The wizard was frowning again, and that sad expression crossed his face once more. Before the wizard could say something else, Dôranna spoke: "We should rest. We have a long ride ahead of us." The boy then lay down and curled onto his side with his back facing Gandalf.

While he said they should rest, the boy's mind was too busy to let him sleep. He kept thinking about the concern the rangers showed him the last few days, and how it was his fault Gilvegil had been injured. He could only imagine how worried Papa would be if he ever found out about everything Dôranna had done. Eventually, sleep claimed him, but it was troubled.

A/N: * Recall that Sakura wasn't in the Konoha Chūnin exams and so was never held by Kin and thus never had to cut her hair. As such, this Sakura still has long hair, but she definitely wants to cut it.

Hope you all enjoyed the chapter, I hope to update August 15th. Stay safe, y'all ~ DC