(AT NIGHT)
When everyone had fallen asleep, I slowly opened my eyes and gently rose from the futon. Grabbing my katana, I quietly left the room and went outside.
The air was cold as I headed toward the woods. My breath turned visible under the moonlight.
Venturing deeper into the woods, I found a secluded spot to do my kata(型). The kata is a practiced form that helps you improve your focus and discipline. Drawing my katana slowly, I began to perform Zanei(残影)ーone of Enshin-Ryu's kata which requires a lot of footwork.
Zanei was designed to simulate a fight against multiple enemies. You must anticipate when and where they will attackーand adapt accordingly. They could come at you one by one, or all at once. Maintaining a sharp focus in such a situation is crucial in surviving the fight.
With each strike, the restless itch began to ease. Yet, no matter how much I tried to focus on the kata's movements, it gnawed at me. The family's troubled past with Gatoーand those who came before him kept lingering in my mind.
After Tazuna-san shared the tragedy that fell upon his family, he looked at me and reassured me that I didn't need to feel bad about it as it all happened in the past.
But how could I not when I learned what they had done to the people of this island? It was something that I had never realized the true depth of their cruelty until now.
Suddenly, a rustle from behind caught my attention.
"Who's there?" I called out calmly. Turning around to the source of the sound, I brought my guard up.
A spiky blonde figure emerged from the tree, scratching the back of his head. It was Naruto, my dear friend.
"Naruto? What are you doing here?" I lowered my weapon.
"I… couldn't sleep." he replied, "So I thought I'd come out here and do some tree-climbing to clear my mind. What about you?"
"Same." I replied, sliding my weapon back into its sheath. "I was just doing my kata."
"I see…"
A brief silence occurred between us as his gaze slowly drifted down. Stepping closer, his fingers fidgeting with a somber expression.
"So umm…"
"You don't need to ask, Naruto."I shook my head. "I am doing… fine."
He looked up, still keeping his somber look. "Are you sure…? When Tazuna-san told us about it, you looked… well…"
"I was." I admitted with a sigh. "I… didn't know they were the ones who executed Inari's father. Not Gato's men."
Scratching the back of my neck, I looked up and started to recall the tale Tazuna-san had shared with us. It was at that moment that I learned of what those Ijins did to the people of the Nami no Kuni.
A few years ago, there was a man who saved Inari's life from drowning. The man's name was Kaiza, a traveling fisherman from somewhere who came to Nami no Kuni. On the day Kaiza saved him, Inari had been ashamed of himself for not being brave enough to protect his dog, Pochi, from a group of bullies. In desperation, Inari jumped into the water to try and save Pochi, but since he couldn't swim, he quickly found himself in danger. That's when Kaiza stepped in, rescuing both Inari and Pochi from drowning.
Inari was embarrassed by his own weakness, but Kaiza didn't see it that way. Instead, he praised Inari for taking the risk and having the courage to act even when he wasn't strong enough. Inari was inspired by it and soon looked up to him as a hero.
From that day on, Kaiza became a mentor to Inari, taking him under his wing and teaching him the importance of courage—of standing up against injustice, no matter the odds. Inari, having never known his real father, began to see Kaiza as a father figure. Kaiza filled a void in Inari's life, giving him hope and something to believe in.
However, Inari's happiness was short-lived when a fleet of galleons arrived at Nami no Kuni. The vessels carried Ijins like me, but these men were clad in striking yellow uniforms, their triangle-shaped hats casting shadows over their stern faces. Each one carried a long metal rod in their arms yet none bore the shape of a spear. Its surface gleamed with cold metal, but the base had a wooden grip, ending in a small notch—shaped as if meant to steady one's aim.
As they landed on the island, a man wearing chest armor emerged from the group. Speaking in an unfamiliar language to the islanders, a translator beside him helped to explain the purpose of their arrival.
According to the translator, they came to the island to establish a base for their spice trade. The Nami no Kuni was a crucial territory for themーone that could help strengthen their influence over the other regions. For this, they would also seek to control the island.
The islanders did not take kindly to this proposition. They all demanded them to leave or they would face some consequences for trying to colonise the island.
Unfazed by the islander's protests, the armored man ordered his men to move into a formation. At once, the soldiers all lined up horizontally, with their strange metal rods ready. With a swift motion, they all lowered their weapons down, aiming directly at the crowd.
Without warning, they all fired at the islanders, killing them one by one with the sound of a thunder strike.
Soon after the incident, the lord of the island signed a treaty with the Ijins. With no army to defend the island, the Daimyo had no choice but to accept the invader's terms to govern over the Nami no Kuni. Under the invader's rule, the Nami no Kuni was colonized by a nation called the Imperio de Iberia.
From what Tazuna-san described about the colonial days, the Iberians had treated the islanders as second-class citizens. The islanders did not have the right to choose their leaders and had limited freedoms in public. It was as if they were constantly watched by the invaders, like prisoners in their homeland. Any sign of defiance was met with swift punishment.
Kaiza, however, was the only one standing. He was the islanders' hope and he had inspired them to take arms to revolt against the Iberian oppressor. The revolt went on for a week until the apprehension of Kaiza.
Kaiza was taken to the public square, where he was hanged before the fearful crowd. Inari happened to be there when the execution took place. From a cheerful kid who always believed in heroes, he had changed when he saw his father's lifeless body being hanged in a noose.
Tazuna-san was outside of the island when he heard this. It brought his knees down to the ground and for the next three days, he couldn't walk at all.
After the execution, the Iberians no longer saw the island as worth their trouble. The governing cost of the island and the repeated uprisings led them to withdraw their force and sell the island to Gato.
Gato gladly took over from the Iberians as he had been eyeing an island like Nami no Kuniーone with a broken spirit. It made him a lot easier to rule, with no worries of an uprising from the islanders.
Returning to the present after recalling Tazuna-san's story, I slowly sat on the ground, looking down. "When Sakura and I accompanied Tazuna-san through the streets, they all looked at me differently. It wasn't the same insulting looks I had received, it was something I had never experienced."
Naruto sat beside me, quietly allowing me to continue.
"There was a kid who begged for food from us. Sakura gave her a candy bar and I was about to give her the same. But the girl didn't take mine. She only took Sakura's. It didn't bother me at first cause I thought I should have given her something else like an apple. But after learning of what happened to this island, I realized that girl was… trying to protect herself from me."
With a long sigh, I slowly shook my head. My dear friend hooked his arm around me, bringing me closer.
"I am sorry," he said quietly.
Raising my head, I looked back at him with a wry, small smile. "It was just a matter of time before I found out how cruel my kind could be." Taking a deep breath, I gently removed his arm and stood up. "But it doesn't matter. All I can do now is to show them that there are good Ijinsーlike me."
Naruto's eyes blinked, deeply surprised at me.
"How did you…"
"Move on?" I asked, finishing his thought.
Naruto nodded.
"There's a saying from where I come from." I began. "It helped me to keep moving forward through tough times."
"And what's that?" he curiously asked.
"Laissez le bon temps rouler." I smiled. "It means 'Let the good times roll.' We must find the good things in our life, mon ami."
His eyes blinked rapidly when he heard me speaking my native tongue for the first time. "Wait. Was that your…"
"Yep." I nodded.
"So, you are telling me you couldー"
"Yeah," I replied. "Though, I chose not to. Cause no one could speak the same language as I am. And umm…" I scratched my head embarrassingly. "I don't like how I sounded so… snobby."
"Snobby? No way!" Naruto shook his head. "You sound so cool! Like the epitome of cool! Way cooler than Sasuke!"
I chuckled. "If you said that to Sakura and Ino, they'd punch you first and then lecture you on why Sasuke is the coolest."
"Yeah, right." He scoffed as he crossed his arms. "As if that's gonna happen. Ino would do terribly to convince me when it comes to Sasuke. I bet she would do it well when it comes to you."
"Wait, what?" I blinked, my heart started to beat. "What makes you say that?"
"Well, it's because, during the exercise, she would not shut up about you. Every five minutes, she would say 'Darren would do this,' 'Darren knows what to do,' or 'Darren told me'. It was Darren, Darren, Darren! She wouldn't stop!"
"R-really…?"
"Yeah!" He replied confidentially.
Feeling my heart racing a bit, my cheeks were getting warmer in a second. Before I could say anything else, a rustling sound came from behind the trees. We both turned our heads toward it, bringing guards up.
"Who's out there?" I called out.
But there was no response. The rustling soon faded away, swallowed by the silent night, making us lower our guard.
"So, what did you do to her?" Naruto asked.
"Come again?" I turned back.
"Oh, don't play dumb, Darren." He had a skeptical look. "I had never seen her talk so much about you. Back in the academy, it was always her and Sakura fighting over Sasuke's attention. I thought she'd be all over Sasuke as usual, but weirdly
enough… she seemed totally calm and cool around him…"
"Oh, uhh…"
"Well?" He pressed further, eager to know.
"I umm… I don't know…" I answered.
"You're kidding."
"I am not!" I shot back. "I don't really know what I did to her!"
"Oh yeah? What about the boat ride?" He pressed on. "I'll never forget how flustered you got when Ino winked at you."
I gulped. I never thought my dear friend would catch on to such a small detail. "It's… it's nothing."
"It's not nothing!" His voice raised. "Darren. I've known you for eight years and you are terrible at lying to your best pal. I can already see your cheek is getting red like a tomato."
Sensing there was no way out of it, I sighed. "Fine… I'll tell you what happened. But don't make a big deal out of it. Promise?"
"I promise." he raised his hand and crossed his heart.
With a bit of hesitation, I opened my mouth. "When I was feeling sick, I… slept on her lap during the boat ride…"
Naruto stayed unusually silent after I answered him honestly. There was no outburst, no immediate reaction—just a quiet pause.
But then, slowly, a knowing and mischievous grin spread across Naruto's face.
"So, that's how it is."
"W-what do you mean?" I asked.
"Oh, nothing. Just nothing." Putting his hands into his pocket, he started to walk away.
"Where are you going?"
"Heading back to sleep," he replied.
"But what about your tree-climbing exercise?"
"Yeah, well… I felt more cleared, you know. After listening to the truth." He stretched his arms behind his head, grinning. "Man, I can't wait for tomorrow."
"Tomorrow…?" I frowned, piecing it together. And then it hit me as I realized what I had just done. "NARUTO, DON'T!"