章節 213: Chapter Thirteen: Whispers in the Dark
Naruto grinned as his group was returning to Iwa. They had just destroyed a bridge and killed its architect, thus crushing the country's hope. Not only that, they had a small run in with Hatake Kakashi and managed to use political loopholes and bullshit to make the man not only back down but peacefully escort them out of the country when he wanted to kill them. In Naruto's mind, it was the ultimate insult and a very enjoyable mission. He was somewhat sadistic by nature, as was Hikari, and he enjoyed how he could taunt the Konoha elite without fear of retaliation. 'If only all my missions could be that fun.'
"It was rather entertaining." Kyuubi commented in his head.
'I know right? I hope we see them again in Konoha! I want to see his face when he sees he was mocked by genin!'
"It should be a rather enjoyable sight. Plus you can then humiliate him within his home village." Naruto and Kyuubi shared a laugh before Kyuubi turned serious. "Kit, will you be okay?"
'What do you mean?'
"Going to Konoha. To the place that exiled you because of me. Are you going to be alright?" Naruto was silent as he thought it over.
'Yeah. I'll be fine. I don't have any memories of Konoha to attach me to the place and I'm already going against my parents wishes by allying with their greatest enemy so hating the place they gave their lives for doesn't really bother me.' Naruto explained. 'I guess… I guess I just don't feel anything special about going to Konoha. Maybe I'll feel different in the village but right now it's nothing. The village is there, I'll be going to it, what's there to feel or get emotional about?'
"I suppose your right."
'Besides, what do you care anyways? I figured you'd be happy I'm going to possibly destroy the place.'
"Oh I am, that's for sure. It's just, I'll admit I've grown attached to you kit. I'm just a little worried about what may happen to you."
'Aw thanks fuzzy, that means a lot to me.'
"Scratch that, I'm killing you the next time you enter the mindscape" Naruto chuckled as Kyuubi broke their connection. None of the others around him commented on his random chuckle as Kurotsuchi knew he had likely been talking to Kyuubi while the other two just didn't care.
"So, sensei, what're we going to be doing to prep for the Exams?" Hikari called out. The older woman thought for a moment before replying.
"Well, no missions for one. I'm going to be running you three into the ground with training instead." The genin nodded their heads as she continued. "Naruto-kun needs a little work on controlling the Kyuubi's chakra and his taijutsu so I'll see if I can throw him to Roshi-sama for a bit. Kurai will just need a sparring partner for the month and you, Hikari, are going to finish your earth element training and then I'm going to let your clan handle the rest." The girl growled so Kurotsuchi faced her with an apologetic smile. "Sorry, but despite your hatred of them, they can train you in your clan arts better than I can."
"I know but that doesn't make I any better." She growled before shaking her head. "Why does my family have to be stuck in the clan era with all their sexist shit?" She asked getting Kurotsuchi to shrug even though she agreed with the girl.
"If I don't end up going to Roshi-jii then you can train with me Hikari-chan." Naruto offered. The girl smiled while the group continued onward.
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"You're far later than expected Kakashi. I take it there's a reason?" Sarutobi asked as Kakashi walked into his office with the genin following in behind him.
"A lot happened that you need to be aware of."
"Then by all means." Hiruzen motioned as the door was closed.
"First off, the client lied about the difficulty ranking. The mission was easily A in difficulty as he was being targeted by enemy Shinobi and knew it was a very large possibility that would happen." Sarutobi scowled and was going to say something but Kakashi shook his head. "Please let me finish Hokage-sama." The old man sighed but nodded. "We encountered the demon brothers formerly of Kiri and they told us everything. I then questioned Tazuna for the other side of the story. Apparently Nami no Kuni had been taken over by Gato of Gato Corporation and was being used as the man saw fit, which needless to say is horrible. He's run the country into the ground and essentially shut down their livelihoods through either outdoing them through business or by forcing them to through intimidation and violence. Most of the country's remaining cash went into the bridge Tazuna was trying to build and what was left only amounted to a C-rank payment so he lied to get the protection he could. Gato apparently found out he left for Konoha and hired missing nin to take the man out."
"And? Why didn't you return or send for reinforcements at this point?" Sarutobi interrupted as Kakashi had yet to get to the point.
"The demon brothers said they worked for Momochi Zabuza and as the two of us are A rank I felt I would be enough. Also, I could leave Tazuna to the genin while I dealt with the man, that is why. Sai brought up a good point that Konoha could help a recovering Nami and then procure a trade agreement from them to aid the both of us so I decided to go on ahead with just us. Upon arrival in Nami we were confronted by Zabuza but with a bit of help from Sai I managed to defeat him. However a hunter nin from Kiri swooped in and killed the man before I could and then left. However it turned out that was a ruse as the hunter was actually working with Zabuza and in reality saved his life. I left Tazuna to Sai while I trained Sasuke and Sakura as much as I could to confront Zabuza again once he recovered from the injuries I inflicted. It was a week later the man came back and tried to attack. The genin took on his hunter accomplice and managed to defeat him, Sai dealing the killing blow while Sasuke awoke his Sharingan. I managed to actually kill Zabuza this time so the threat was gone. It was then Gato himself showed up with a small army of bandits and thugs. However the people of Nami rallied against the man and together we drove them off, though Gato went missing during the scuffle. It only took a week more but Tazuna finished his bridge so we left to return home."
"I see. Then once Nami is back to normal I shall see to it they pay the appropriate cost and perhaps get that trade agreement young Sai suggested." The old Hokage started as Kakashi cut him off.
"I'm sorry Hokage-sama but that won't be possible."
"Why?"
"Because Tazuna is dead and his bridge destroyed so Gato's hold on the country remains strong."
"How?"
"We had only crossed the bridge five minutes earlier when multiple explosions went off behind us followed by screams. We rushed back to see what was the matter and found a trio of Iwa Shinobi and a destroyed bridge. They claimed Gato hired them and to have killed Tazuna, one even dropped the bloody kunai he used for the act. They used political loopholes to avoid a fight and instead be escorted out of the country. I'm sorry Hokage-sama."
"So even in success, Iwa turned it to failure." Sarutobi mused, wondering why the village would make a move now when they had been relatively quiet since the end of the Third Great War. "The Shinobi, did you recognize them?" He asked as he hoped to see who Iwa used to counteract them. Kakashi shook his head.
"No. The team was two Shinobi and a Kunoichi. One of the boys seemed to be a couple years older than my genin while the other two I'd place at around the same age. Judging from how they carried themselves and their chakra levels I'd say two of them were chunin while one was a jonin."
"Appearances?"
"The older boy had spiked black hair and gray eyes. He also had a scar around his right eye and wore gray and black clothes though strangely he didn't seem to carry any weapons on him. I'd estimate he either uses a unique type of jutsu we don't know of or is a taijutsu user." Sarutobi nodded so Kakashi continued. "The Kunoichi had dark purple hair except for a white lock that circled her left eye. She wore a black top with extra long sleeves and black short skirt over red shorts. When I had the three raise their hands over their head so we could escort them from the country her sleeves fell revealing twin red gauntlets with black rose symbols on them."
"Could you recognize the rose if shown again?" Hiruzen asked and Kakashi nodded so the Hokage snapped his fingers. An ANBU dropped down from above so he turned to it. "We should check to see if it's a clan marking just to be safe. Bring me all info on Iwagakure clans we have and be sure to include clan symbols in each file." The ANBU vanished without a word so the old man turned back to the jonin. "While the information is brought, describe the last one."
"He had on a hood that covered his face so I couldn't say what he looked like. However he wore a black jacket and pants over a dark orange shirt and had red gauntlets over his wrists styled to look like fox heads. He carried himself like the team leader and his chakra was on par with yours Hokage-sama." Kakashi concluded as the Hokage widened his eyes.
"Are you sure of that Kakashi?"
"I'd place it around your level sir as I've only felt one other signature that large and she's dead." Kakashi said referencing Kushina. The wife of his late sensei easily had the largest chakra he'd ever felt.
"Kakashi, it may be late in telling you but that woman you're referring to was a container, that's why her chakra was so large. If this boy had chakra on that level then he's a very serious threat." Sarutobi informed as the man's eye widened at the information. "Perhaps one of Iwa's containers has passed on and this boy was made the replacement. I'm unsure but it's a viable option." Sarutobi mused as the ANBU from before dropped down and set some files on his desk before vanishing to his place once more. "Ah, good. Kakashi, look through these and see if you can find that rose symbol." The man ordered so Kakashi took the folders and browsed through until stopping on one.
"This is it sir. The Hanamaru clan." He announced as he set the folder down to a black rose symbol. Sarutobi perused it with narrowed eyes.
"Of course it has to be one of the clans we have little information on." He grumbled. "The clan is mostly assassination experts, very few enter the front lines or go into open battle, preferring to hide in that shadows to strike and decimate forces from behind the lines. One of the few concrete facts we have on them is that the black rose is only allowed on members of the leading family, meaning that girl is directly related to whoever the Clan Head currently is, likely an heiress then. The rest of the clan get rose markings of the color of their choosing with black stems." Sarutobi concluded. He sighed as he rubbed the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes. "Is there anything else I should know Kakashi?"
"Right before they left, the hooded boy said he'd give us a couple warnings." Sarutobi perked his head up as Kakashi repeated them. "Beware the snake and the prodigal son will return for what's his." The Hokage narrowed his eyes and looked down as his mind raced over possibilities. "Hokage-sama, do you know what he meant?"
"I have a couple ideas Kakashi, but very few make sense or seem plausible with such vague wording." The old man sighed once more before waving his hand towards the door. "You're dismissed. Take a day off and come back for another mission afterwards. I feel you for earned it." The group nodded and headed out as Sarutobi thought back to the warning. 'The prodigal son… who could that be?'
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"Alright, we'll camp here for the night." Kurotsuchi announced as the team stopped in a small clearing near a cliff. They were about a day from Iwa and while Naruto was still ready and able to go, not everyone was a jinchuriki with near unlimited stamina. "Naruto, since you've still got most of your energy, you'll take first watch. Hikari can take second while Kurai takes third and I'll finish us off." The genin nodded before setting up their tents and camp overall. A fire was started and dinner was kept simple as it was just ration bars.
"Hey sensei, is camping by a cliff safe?" Hikari asked and the woman paused before answering.
"Under most conditions I'd say no. However this is a secret path known only to Iwa Shinobi. In addition to that, with how close to Iwa we are, bandits are practically non-existent so there's no threat of an attack. Honestly the only reason I have us doing watches is because I just want to be prepared in case someone stumbles upon us. It's doubtful but the possibility is always there." Kurotsuchi answered getting the younger girl to nod. "Anything else?" When nobody answered she smiled and went to her tent. "Alright then. Good night you three."
"Night sensei." Two of the genin chirped as Kurai got up and headed into his tent without a word.
"Anti-social bastard." Naruto muttered getting Hikari to giggle slightly at his attitude. "So, Hikari-chan, are you happy to be going to the Chunin Exams?"
"Hell yeah. I mean, we've only been genin for almost six months and we're already being sent to the Exams. Sure you've had tons of prior training, with being a jinchuriki and all, but do you realize what this means for me?" The girl asked as the blond shook his head. "It means I can shut the bastards in my clan up. Most look at me as weak despite being one of the strongest heirs the clan has ever seen, and all because I'm a girl. I'm sick of it, which is why I dedicated myself to being the strongest I could be. If I become a chunin after only six months of being a ninja, then that's a clan record. They'll have to respect me. I doubt it will change all of their opinions but it's a start. I'm going to change my clan, no matter what I have to do to do it." She finished and Naruto smiled.
"It's a good goal." He remarked as she smiled. "I really hope you can pull it off. I mean, with how strong you are it's insulting that they still try to look down on you. You know, I bet if Oji-sama stepped down right now and put a woman in the Kage seat most of your clan would try to revolt and would die. They're so far gone into their sexism I doubt they could accept a woman in power. That's why you have to change them. Not just for your own needs but for the future of your clan." The girl blushed slightly and looked aside as Naruto spoke.
"You know, that's the same thing my obaa-chan would always say."
"Really?" Hikari nodded so Naruto grinned. "Well that just shows that we're right. Once you're clan head, you'll change them for the better. I just know it." Hikari smiled and got up for her tent.
"Thanks Naruto-kun. Good night."
"Good night Hikari-chan."
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The hours under Naruto's watch passed without incident as he kept himself awake and scanned the darkness that surrounded them. They were near a cliff in one of the few forested areas of Tsuchi no Kuni. A glimpse down the cliff had told Naruto that there was a river running down it, though he could only see the moonlight reflecting off the liquid itself as it was too dark and too far to see the actual water. "Hey kit, time's up. Go wake the girl and get some sleep." Kyuubi remarked in his head as the biju was keeping track of time for the boy.
'Thanks Kyuubi.' Naruto replied before getting up from his spot near the small fire and went over to Hikari's tent. The blond poked his head in to see the girl sleeping peacefully in her sleeping bag so he poked her foot lightly. "Hikari-chan…" He whispered. The girl mumbled but didn't otherwise respond so he poked her a little harder and whispered her name a little louder. "Hikari-chan…"
"Mmm… what is it?" She mumbled as she rubbed her eyes and rolled onto her back.
"It's your turn for watch now. I'm gonna go to sleep." The girl nodded and yawned.
"Give me a minute Naruto-kun." He nodded and went back to his seat to wait as Hikari sat up and stretched before getting out of her tent. "Ok…" She yawned. "You can go to sleep now." Naruto nodded and was about to go to his tent when the kunai landed. Both Hikari and Naruto snapped to it and noticed the burning explosive tag on it before rolling out of the way. "SHIT!"
The tag went off with a bang, instantly waking the other two that were sleeping as they tore out of their tents and got out to see masked Shinobi rush into the clearing and attack. Naruto shoved chakra into his gauntlets to whip out his blades as Kurai called out his scythe and charged in with the blond. Kurotsuchi pulled out a kunai and clashed with a tanto being held by her assailant while Hikari ducked under a slash from her own attacker. The girl tried to kick her opponent away but was kneed in the face and sent back towards the cliff's edge before she could.
"Shit! Hikari-chan!" Naruto cried before pushing wind chakra through his blades and carving through the kunai his opponent was using straight into the man's chest. With a growl he cut the man in half and rushed over to Hikari's side to see that she was unconscious and leaking some blood from her mouth. Naruto growled and spun back around just in time for another kunai to land in front of him, the explosive tag on it nearly burned through. "Fuck!"
The explosion was large and not only sent him and Hikari over the edge but crumbled the stone and sent it into the darkness below. "Naruto! Hikari!" Kurotsuchi screamed as it went off before focusing on killing the attackers. They were going to pay for that. And then she was going to find a way to get down and rescue the pair.
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"Ugh… what happened?" Gray eyes opened slowly as the world was mostly darkness and shadows, though to her right was a very bright light accompanied by a slight sizzling. Pushing herself to her knees Hikari looked around to see the sizzling light was actually a flare, burning a bright white in the pitch black that surrounded her. "Wait, weren't we under attack?" She asked as she looked around to see that she was in a cave filled with multiple stalactites and stalagmites. She was a few feet from a pool of water though there was a wet trail leading from it to her feet and she was wet as well though she had apparently mostly dried off a this point. The girl's eyes narrowed as she tried to figure everything out before her eyes landed on the figure a couple feet away from her lying spread eagle on his back. "Naruto-kun!" She shouted as she crawled over to him, grunting from a pain in her chest. She quickly checked herself to see that she was just bruised before heading to the blond. When she reached him she laid a head on his chest and heard his heart beating along with the steady rise and fall of his breathing. "Thank Kami." She muttered as she looked him over before gasping at his legs. One leg was fine save for the foot being twisted too far to be natural while the other was bleeding and had the pants torn off from the knee down. "Okay… Come on Hikari, you can do this." She whispered to herself as she reached for her pack but found that it was empty. "Damn. I'll have to improvise." She cursed as she tore off her left sleeve and wrapped it around the bleeding leg. She then tore off the other and soaked it in the pool of water nearby before coming back and cleaning the blood off and removing the rubble from the wound.
Once she had his leg as cleaned up as she could she turned to the foot. "I can't really do anything here but shove it back into place…" The heiress muttered before shaking her head. "Sorry Naruto-kun, but this is gonna hurt." She lightly grabbed his foot and glanced at his unconscious form to see if there was a reaction. When there wasn't she closed her eyes and grit here teeth. "Here goes…" With a strong twist she snapped his foot back into place even as a loud crack echoed out in the cave. When the boy didn't even grunt she grew worried. "Come on Naruto-kun… you've gotta wake up. I don't want to be all alone here." She muttered as she pulled him up against a stalagmite before grabbing the flare and moving over by him. She checked his pouch to see it still had a couple kunai as well as another flare in it. "Well at least we have some supplies." The girl muttered as she got comfortable next to the blond. She still didn't know what happened and hoped that Kurotsuchi and Kurai were okay as well as hoping that the blond next to her would wake up soon.
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"Who sent you?" Kurotsuchi shouted as she held the man up by his throat with his back against an earth wall she had raised during the fight. Kurai had a scowl on his face and was gripping his scythe in his hands. The man the jonin was shouting at was the only one left alive of the strike force a five masked Shinobi, none wearing identifying headbands or symbols. In fact all were essentially blank slates as they had only used taijutsu and ninja tools, with two having tanto's in addition to the standard kunai, shuriken and explosive tag.
"Fuck you."
"Wrong answer." The woman growled as she buried her fist in the man's gut, making him cough up blood. "Now tell me who sent you!" The man was silent so Kurai stepped forward and held the blade of his scythe against the man's throat above his sensei's fingers.
"It would be most wise to answer her scum."
"Go…" The man choked out. "Go to hell."
"Planned on it. But that trip is a long ways away so you will inevitably reach it first." Kurai responded in his monotone. "Who sent you and why did you attack us? Answer these questions and I'll ensure it's painless." The man refused to talk so Kurotsuchi growled and slammed him against the wall again.
"Answer us damn you!" When the man stayed silent she dropped him before punching him hard in the face to knock him unconscious. "Damn them. Damn them all! What the hell is going on here?!" The woman shouted in frustration as Kurai sent his scythe away and faced her.
"While relevant, I believe we should prioritize searching for Hikari and Naruto. The two of them fell down the cliff, however I know the river down below is rather deep. Naruto likely would have done his best to ensure Hikari's survival and with the regeneration Kyuubi provides him I believe there is a chance they are alive." Kurotsuchi stared at him for a moment before sighing and giving him a small smile.
"You're right. Thanks Kurai."
"I'm merely stating the obvious. If you were not so distressed you likely would have known this already."
"Either way we need to get down there." Kurotsuchi walked over to the edge and peered down into the darkness with a frown. "But it's far too dark to search right now. Like it or not we have to wait until morning because I am not risking the cliff side when I can hardly see it. And Naruto-kun was the only one to pack flares so using them is out of the question." She growled as she looked at the unconscious man and pulled out her roll of wire. "Tie him up. We'll question him again in the morning and bring him to Iwa with us afterwards. I'm liable to kill him right now." Kurai nodded his head as he caught the wire and set about to follow his orders.
Truth be told he would prefer killing the man himself. While he didn't feel true emotions, he had grown attached to his latest teammates. Not only that but the logical part of him saw how valuable the were to Iwa. One was a jinchuriki and the other a valuable clan heiress. Losing the two was a blow to Iwa's Shinobi force, more Naruto's loss than Hikari's but the fact remained. If not for the fact they needed answers that now only this man could provide, Kurai likely would have killed him himself.
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His first thought was pain. Extreme pain in his legs to be exact. Naruto let out a pained gasp as his senses returned to him, evidently starting with touch and the feeling of pain it brought through his legs. The blond opened his eyes and looked down to see his leg had been treated while his other foot just throbbed in pain. 'Kyuubi? You there?'
"About time you woke up kit."
'What happened after I blacked out?'
"The girl treated your leg a bit and snapped your foot into place before dragging you against this rock. It's a good thing she fixed your foot because if I had let your regeneration near it then it would've healed like that and you would have had to snap it again for it to fix itself."
"Naruto-kun!" Hikari shouted from next to him as she woke back up. The girl quickly wrapped the boy up in a hug as she buried her head into his chest. "Thank Kami you're okay." The blond grunted from how hard she was hugging him but then wrapped his arms around her in return.
"I'll be fine. Kyuubi's already working on the damage. Thanks for fixing my foot by the way. He said it would've been more painful and taken longer if you hadn't."
"It was nothing." The girl muttered before pulling back. "What happened though? The last thing I remember is getting a knee to my face before waking up here with you having some fucked up legs. I did my best to fix them up and spent some time trying to figure out where we are but fell asleep."
"Hmm…" Naruto closed his eyes and sighed as he thought back to how they had gotten in the cave. And to think Kurotsuchi had said the chance of attack as slim to none before they went to sleep.
"Fuck!" Naruto shouted as the explosive tag went off, blasting him and Hikari over the edge while also sending a good portion of the cliff down as well.
"Naruto! Hikari!" The blond heard his name but couldn't spend any time thinking about it as he fell through the air. His head whipped around before he saw Hikari's limp body falling nearby. With a grunt the blond righted himself the best he could in the air before trying to think of a way to save them before they went splat against the river and ground below.
'Come on Naruto! You can survive this!' He thought before using a burst of wind chakra to push him to Hikari. Once he was close he grabbed the girl and wrapped her in his arms. 'Okay, now to get out of this.' He thought before realizing he had used a tad too much wind chakra as he was moving towards the other cliff side at high speeds. "Fuck!" He shouted before spinning around to keep Hikari away from the rock wall. With a grunt and pained scream his back collided with the stone. He tried to grip the wall by pumping chakra through his legs but the result mad him scream as one of his feet snapped out of place from the rapid jerk against the cliff. The blond leaned his head up, or in this case down, to see they were fast approaching the river and his painful and accidental attempt with the cliff wall hadn't slowed them down enough. 'Gotta get back over the river and slow us down more or we're toast!' He thought before drawing on the Kyuubi's chakra to from the one tailed cloak. His whiskers changed into jagged scars on his cheeks as his bright blue eyes went blood red. From his body a cloak of red chakra formed over him. It quickly came with a tail and 'fox ears' above his head as he focused on what to do. Using the tail to gently hold Hikari to his back Naruto used a pulse of wind chakra to get them back over the water. "This is gonna hurt." He muttered as he ran through hand-signs as fast as he could before shoving his hands forward towards the river her was approaching. "Futon: Tatsumaki no Hashira (Wind Release: Tornado Pillar)!" He called out as a twister shot out of his hand and slammed into the water below. The blond jerked as the slowing of his momentum struck him and he almost lost his grip on his jutsu but barely managed to keep his focus as even with that loss they were still too high for him to safely let the attack go. "More…" He muttered as they still fell towards the water at a fast speed. Naruto grit his teeth as he pushed more chakra into the jutsu, using Kyuubi's power as much as his own to keep it going. "Just a little more…" As Naruto and his unconscious passenger got within ten feet of the water Naruto let the jutsu drop and gripped Hikari tighter with his chakra tail.
The two crashed into the raging rapids of the river as the current pulled them under. Naruto struggled to hold his breath as he was tossed around in the water before feeling him and Hikari get caught in a diverging current from the main river flow. He spun around and gripped Hikari with his physical arms even as his chakra tail still hugged her close to him. He banged against what he assumed to be the river bottom before being pushed out of the current and into a spot without any currents. Guessing they had been deposited in a lake of some sort Naruto did his best to swim to the surface even as he carried Hikari with him. He surfaced inside an underwater cave and quickly started paddling the best he could for shore with his arms wrapped around Hikari to keep her head above water. When he reached the rocky shore he pulled her out of the water, groaning in pain from the injuries to his legs before looking down at Hikari to check if she was still breathing. It was with a worried look he recognized that she wasn't. "No…" He placed an ear to her chest before getting back up. "No…" He quickly put his hands on her chest and pumped a few times before pinching her nose shut and breathing into her mouth, going through the motions of CPR the Academy taught. He repeated the process a few times before the girl started coughing and breathing under her own power so he sighed and fell back. "Good." He muttered before checking his pouch and growling at how most of his supplies had fallen out. "Damn, I'll need to get more when we go back home." Naruto mused before pulling out one of his flares and lighting it. He tossed it to the side before he crawled further away from the water and flipped onto his back. 'Kyuubi, heal me. Please.' He thought before dropping the cloak and losing consciousness.
"And then I wake up to my legs hurting and my back to this rock with you by my side." Naruto explained as his eyes were red and his leg was steaming as the wounds healed faster from the Kyuubi chakra he was running through his body.
"That's the second time you've save my life." Hikari muttered as Naruto just threw and arm over her shoulder.
"Don't worry about it Hikari-chan. You're my teammate, there's no way I'm letting you get hurt if I can help it." The girl just leaned into him with a small smile on her face.
"Thank you Naruto-kun." The two stayed in silence as they waited. Hopefully Kurotsuchi and Kurai could come soon.
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"Alright, you carry him." Kurotsuchi ordered as she and Kurai woke up the next day. The boy nodded before picking up the unconscious and bound man and hefting him over a shoulder. He then walked up to his sensei who was kneeling down and looking down the cliff side with a frown. "It'll be exhausting given how high up we are but I think it would be safest if we simply used our chakra to walk down."
"Do you have a spare soldier pill sensei?" Kurai asked and the woman nodded before handing it to him. He placed it in his mouth but didn't swallow it as instead he placed a foot on the cliff side and slowly started walking down.
"You'll just take the pill when you start feeling the drain huh?" She remarked before following down after her student. 'Naruto-kun, Hikari, please be okay.' She thought as she wondered where they were. One she literally thought of as a son since she raised him and the other was a younger sister/daughter figure to her. As such she was extremely worried about them both for her own personal reasons, Iwa be damned in this matter. The woman would never forgive herself if something happened to them while she was around to stop it. Her eyes drifted to the prisoner Kurai was carrying as she held back an angry growl. 'You had better hope they're alive you bastard. Otherwise when Oji-sama is through interrogating you, you'll wish he used his Jinton (Dust Release) on you.'
The two continued onwards until they reached the bottom and were on flat ground again. Kurotsuchi walked up to the river and looked around as she could see some of the rocks that had fallen from above littering the area, the largest sticking out of the river itself. "If only Hikari was actually with us, she's the best tracker out of our team." Kurai silently nodded behind her as he looked at the raging waters in front of them.
"The river's flow is not only strong but it's well documented that it feeds several small underwater lakes and pools. If Hikari and Naruto fell into it they may have been carried downstream or through one of those channels. They could be anywhere within a mile from this point on and we'd likely never know." The boy commented with a small frown on his face. Kurotsuchi growled at his pessimistic logic.
"I could care less if they're five feet or five countries away! We are not going back to Iwa until we find them! Am I clear?"
"Hai sensei."
"Then don't talk unless you think you've found something out." She snapped at him before she began to run downstream, the emotionless boy following without a word.
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Hikari groaned and rubbed her eyes as she woke up to find herself leaning across Naruto's chest. She quickly jumped back as if burned while accidentally shaking the boy to rouse him from his own sleep. The girl quickly calmed herself as she looked around. The flare had burnt out while the two were asleep but light wasn't a problem as apparently there was a large hole in the cave's roof a small distance away that brought in the sunlight of the morning. Naruto let out a yawn as he stretched his arms above his head and looked around. "Oh good, there's light." He muttered before he tried moving his legs. The one that had been bashed and bleeding moved around well enough, though was slightly sore. However when he moved the other leg slightly he gasped in pain and gently held his ankle as it had exploded in his mind. The foot was still healing and was extremely sensitive apparently as the slightest twitch had been extremely painful. "Damn. I'm not going to be moving today, even with Kyuubi working on that." He groaned before leaning back against the rock as Hikari came over.
"Are you alright Naruto-kun?"
"Yeah, just my foot's still out of it."
"Oh…" The girl settled back down next to him as she glanced at him out of the corner of her eyes. 'He's so warm… Is this him or Kyuubi?' She wondered before sighing and relaxing a bit more against him. 'You know what? I don't care.' She mused as Naruto chuckled at how she was starting to lean against him. "What?"
"Oh nothing much. Just wondering why you're leaning against me is all." He stated as she blushed and looked away.
"You're really warm and I'm cold."
"And here I thought you might like me Hikari-chan." Naruto joked as she blushed even brighter and refused to meet his eyes. The boy just chuckled but then closed his eyes and relaxed as Hikari shifted against him.
"Naruto-kun?"
"Hm?"
"Why do you care so much about me?"
"Wha…?" The blond muttered as he leaned forward again and stared at the girl that had brought her knees to her chest and was resting her chin on them. "What do you mean?"
"You say it's just because we're teammates but yet you aren't even half as protective over Kurai, even before we found out about his immortality." She pointed out before ticking off points on he fingers. "You'll spend time with me outside of training and missions even when you have something to do, you always go out of your way to be nice to me, you've even hurt yourself to extreme levels just to protect me. Twice now. Why? What it is it about me that makes you do this stuff?" She asked as she looked into the blonds' bright blue eyes. Eyes that looked away as Naruto tried to think of his answer.
"I…" He stuttered out. "I think…" The blond then shook his head and sighed. "Back at the Academy, I was still trying to figure out who I was and what I was supposed to be. It was hard to do when half the village wants me dead and the other half can't wait for me to be strong enough to fulfill the role Oji-sama laid out for me from the day I was brought to Iwa." Naruto explained, Hikari listening but wondering how it pertained to her question. "By the time our final year swung around, everyone in class had filed into two groups concerning me; either they hated me or they thought I was alright. All but three, you, Aiko, and Leyla. The three of you just seemed to accept that I was there and part of the class but never anything more so I was wondering what your thoughts on me were. I asked Aiko and Leyla and they just said they were lesbians and simply saw me as another, albeit powerful, addition to Iwa's Shinobi forces. Then I asked you and you said you didn't care about me. To be honest, it confused me. How could you not care? Everyone has an opinion on others. Good or bad, you just can't truthfully say 'you don't care' and leave it at that." Naruto explained as Hikari nodded. She remembered when he had questioned her. "It was confusing so I decided I'd try and figure you out. I wanted to know what you really thought. But at the same time with everything going on in the Academy as well as the plans being made for my future as a jinchuriki, I could never put a lot of thought or effort into it. That's why when we became teammates, deep down I was really happy. I thought 'here's my chance' and decided I could solve the riddle you had ended up becoming to me."
"I was a riddle to you?" The girl interrupted, a slight grin on her face as Naruto scowled.
"Don't interrupt." He quipped as he playfully smacked her arm. The girl just laughed and stuck her tongue out so Naruto grinned but continued. "Anyways, we got placed on a team together so I figured I'd do my best to figure you out. I'd help you out when you needed it, invite you to get some food with me after missions and practice just to talk and even ditch chores occasionally when I knew you'd be away from your clan compound just to spend time with you." Naruto looked down with a small smile as he kept talking. "To be honest, I wasn't sure myself why I saved you from Kurai's little freak-out that day. I used the teammate thing as an excuse because I couldn't think of anything else. And then when you added -kun to my name, I don't know why but I felt happy. So I started calling you Hikari-chan and it just felt right to me. Later when we got back and I was catching up with Dei-nii-san, he noticed it and even joked about it for a bit but I still wasn't sure so I blew it off and just started messing with him to change the subject. Then we kept training together and doing missions together and we just kept getting closer and closer and then this happened." Naruto waved his hand around in emphasis before closing his eyes. "When you first got knocked out, the only thing I thought of was 'were you okay?' I rushed over to check on you and then the tag went off that blasted us over the edge and I was more worried about keeping you safe and alive than I was about myself. I just thought that you were more important and that if I didn't save you then it didn't matter if I lived, I would've hated myself forever. I was really worried when you weren't breathing at first and was scared you had died. When you coughed up the water and started breathing again the only thing I felt was relief that you were okay."
"Naruto-kun…"
"I guess what I'm trying to say…" Naruto kept going, not noticing how her face was red or how she was staring at him now. "…Is that I, I like you Hikari-chan. I really do. I want to keep you smiling, keep you laughing. Help you when you're hurt, comfort you when you're sad. I think I've really fallen head over heals for you Hikari-chan." Naruto finished before opening his eyes and facing the girl. "That's why I care so much and go out of my way for you. Because I'm completely in love with you."
The girl was stunned at the admission as her entire face was burning a bright red and she found meeting his eyes to be near impossible. He loved her? He had really fallen for her? Even though he knew her clan would try killing him at every shot they got? Even though she seemed more worried about changing her clan than anything else? He could really fall for a girl like that? "Naruto-kun…" She started before giving a small chuckle. "You picked the worst place for a confession you know that?" She remarked dryly as Naruto scratched the back of his head.
"I guess, but it's still better than never telling you." The girl just nodded absent mindedly but was really thinking about him. If she was worried about looks then there was no problem. She thought Naruto was one of the most handsome in the village and his whiskers were cute. Plus when his eyes were red and his whiskers thicker from the Kyuubi's chakra she thought he looked feral and wild which was attractive to her. If it was personality then again she didn't have to worry. The blond was one of the most loyal people she knew of and was always trying to keep his friends happy. Plus his sadistic side that came out for missions or people that bugged him was similar to her own attitude towards her clan and she liked that about him. In fact the only downside she could think of was her clan wouldn't approve but she hated them anyways so it was just more incentive to be with him. She believed whoever ended up with Naruto would be an extremely happy and lucky girl, and he was offering her the chance to be that girl.
"You know…" She started as she moved closer to him. "You technically took my first kiss with the CPR stuff last night."
"I guess…" Naruto muttered as she pushed him back against the stone spike behind him. She gently placed herself on top of him so that she was straddling him and he looked up to her face in confusion to see she was blushing a bright red. "Hikari-chan…"
"I kind of want some compensation for that."
"Like what?" Naruto asked as he girl leaned in slowly.
"How about…." She started, her breath hot on his lips. "….letting me enjoy it this time?" She asked before closing the distance and kissing the blond. Naruto's eyes went wide for a second before he closed them and just focused on the lips pressed to his. He set his hands on Hikari's hips even as she wrapped her own around his neck to pull him closer. Eventually the two had to pull apart for breath but they stayed close with their foreheads pressed together.
"Enjoy it?" Naruto asked as he had a blush of his own now. The girl just smirked.
"I don't know. Why don't I try again?" She teased before closing the distance again and kissing the blond. Naruto responded eagerly this time and kissed back, pressing his lips against hers before getting an idea. With a mental smirk he slipped his tongue out and ran it across Hikari's lips. The girl gasped at the feeling and that was the only opening Naruto needed as his tongue darted forward and began to explore her mouth. The girl moaned slightly at the feeling before firing back with her own tongue. To the blond, the girl's mouth tasted much like her favorite food of shrimp while Hikari was tasting ramen off the blond. Eventually they separated again panting for breath, both blushing. "Wow…"
"Yeah…" Naruto agreed before deciding he had stopped long enough and initiated the kiss this time. Hikari didn't argue and instead just went with it. She moaned as she felt Naruto's hands start running up and down her sides before she pulled her own away from his neck and started feeling up his chest. Emboldened by the shift Naruto brought his own hands to her chest as she moaned into his mouth. Naruto gently cupped and rubbed her growing chest through her clothes as the girl slipped her hands under his shirt to feel his chest directly. She had also started lightly rubbing herself against his hardening member. "Is this…" Naruto started just for Hikari to silence him with a kiss.
"What's the matter?" She teased. "Is the big bad Kyuubi jinchuriki scared?" Naruto smirked at the challenge and took a hand off her chest to grab her by the back of her head and pull her into another kiss. While he did that his other hand slipped under her shirt and started rubbing her breasts directly as he slipped it under her bra as well. Hikari gasped at the feeling but didn't pull away so Naruto took his hand off her head and slipped it under to join the other. The heiress moaned and pulled her hands to Naruto's hair as she kept him locked to her lips, losing herself to the feelings his touch was bringing. The girl could feel her pleasure mounting just from the kissing and how he was rubbing her chest and couldn't believe how good she felt. 'If this is just the foreplay, then I'm going to love the real thing.'
"Well, it looks like you're both fine." The two instantly snapped apart and looked to their right where standing about ten feet away was Kurotsuchi and Kurai, the latter having an unconscious man over his shoulder. The woman had an amused look on her face while Kurai's was as blank as ever. Naruto paled and pulled his hands out from under Hikari's shirt before he started trying to explain his way out of the situation but no words would leave his mouth. Hikari however growled at the interruption.
"Damnit sensei! Couldn't you show up in a couple hours?" Hikari complained getting Naruto to gape at her while the woman just started laughing. "I was this close damnit!" The girl yelled as she got off Naruto and started chasing after the laughing woman. Meanwhile Kurai walked up to Naruto and dropped the man roughly next to him.
"I'm so confused right now." Naruto muttered as he was expecting Kurotsuchi to yell at him or attack him. He wasn't expecting her to seem amused by their situation or for Hikari to get up and start chasing the woman for ruining the moment. Next to him Kurai merely nodded in agreement.
每周推薦票狀態
-- 推薦票
榜單 
-- 推薦票