Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Everything Remains in Memory ❯ Team ( Chapter 5 )

By the time that Naruto had reached the small village, the rain had ceased falling on the muddy road and the moon was only just beginning to rise on the horizon. His face held a look of thoughtfulness and reflection, emotions that were only seen to this degree once before; when it had been revealed to him by his own sensei that he had been holding the Kyūbi no Kitsune.

 

But now he faced an even deeper inner dilemma; it had been his own father that had caused him to live such a tortured and miserable life. It had been his own father who condemned him to the harsh prejudice and near degeneration of his very being. He had been in a very disturbed sense of self conflict ever since Arashi had revealed this information to him.

 

Should he forgive his father of his actions and embrace his existence or should he hate and despise the former Hokage just like how he himself was treated by Konoha?

 

“Naruto…I'm sorry…I'm sorry that I put you through that torture. If I had known…if I had known that you would have been treated so atrociously I would've found another way…another child…another something. I understand if you don't forgive me and if you choose to hate me. But just know that I've always loved you, my son, I've always loved you no matter whom or what you were, are, or will be.”

 

The first words spoken by father or son since the startling revelation were promptly ignored as Naruto approached the rusting gates of the small village, easily capturing the attention of the person on the gate, who was obviously bored out of his mind.

 

“Oi, you down there, what's your name?” the guard yelled down to Naruto.

 

“My name is Kuromo Iruka,” Naruto answered just as loudly. He had decided before he even left the village that an alias was necessary; after all, Uzumaki Naruto had an established track record and was well known throughout the shinobi underworld. Kuromo Iruka, however, had a blank slate; no organization was after his head, no missing-nin were after his head, but most importantly, no one knew any of his techniques.

 

“Do you have any affiliations with a hidden village?” the guard asked.

 

“Yes, Konohagakure no Sato,” Naruto answered.

 

“How long do you plan on staying if we decide to embrace your presence?”

 

“I plan on staying for three nights and two days,” Naruto answered, quickly becoming agitated with the guard's questions, but fully understanding that it was only protocol for travelers to state their motives.

 

“And what do you plan on accomplishing in those three nights and two days?”

 

“Finding meager work, nothing more.”

 

“Are you a shinobi, you who comes from Konoha?”

 

“Yes, I have acquired the rank of chÅ«nin.”

 

“Then welcome, Kuromo-san, to Maiga,” the guard said as he activated a mechanism that pulled apart the rusting metal gates that surrounded the entirety of the town.

 

Naruto entered the town quickly so that he would be able to find a suitable place for lodging. As he was walking through the town, he could feel rather than see or hear the strange looks people were shooting towards him; glares of apprehension. He didn't really care though, all he was concerned about at this point was finding a nice bed to sleep in; unlike the one he had at home.

 

Despite the seemingly energetic, happy expression the village seemed to house, Naruto sensed something deep within it. He sensed a heavy sense of dread and a deep, resounding sadness concealed under this happiness. This particular feeling resounded throughout Naruto's heart, as it was the only way he could survive in Konoha; keeping a veil on his emotions.

 

Naruto then felt something, or rather someone accidentally bump into him. It was a short person, they're head concealed by a beige cap overly large for their small head. It was dressed in clothes that looked as if they had been hell and back, not to mention a few sizes too large for the person's petite build.

 

“Sorry,” the person mumbled as they walked past the ninja, a little too quickly. Naruto's hand instinctively shot out of nowhere and grasped the person's arm and spun it around and drew their body closer to his. The small hand that he grasped tightly held his frog wallet in its clutches as the large cap fell off of the person's head, revealing pastel brown colored hair that fell down in dirty, uneven strands to the person's shoulders and two, muddy brown eyes that were widened in fear and surprise of the force that held her.

“Ami? Is that you?” Naruto gasped as the young girl struggled against his grasp.

 

“Let go of me!” the young girl cried as she struggled to pull her arm out of Naruto's grasp, but to no avail.

 

“Calm down Ami, but tell me why you're here,” Naruto said as he tried to calm down the girl. He couldn't help but notice how no one tried to intervene.

 

“Just let go of me!” she yelled as the small sound of crackling sparks began to emanate from her body as blue sparks began flying from her delicate, fragile fingers.

 

“It's me, Naruto; don't you recognize my eyes?,” Naruto hissed at her. For the first time she actually took the time to look into Naruto's eyes and almost instantly the girl visibly relaxed and the sparks stopped flying from her fingers as she noticed the shimmering blues of his eyes.

 

“Naru-chan? Is that really you? Your hair…it's darker,” she observed.

 

“Yeah, it's me Ami-chan. I just needed to change my appearance for awhile,” Naruto answered as the girl embraced him hard.

 

“It's been such a long time Naru-chan! Do you wanna see my home? Do you? Do you? Do you?” she asked as she began jumping up and down in her excitement, seemingly oblivious to the stares of hatred and astonishment aimed at the two of them.

 

“Yeah, show me Ami-chan; we've got a lot to catch up on, don't we?” Naruto said as he grabbed Ami's hand again, but this time with a friendly intent. The girl then practically dragged Naruto throughout the village.

 

“Yeah, lots to catch up on! But…what's wrong with KyÅ«-kun? I can't hear him,” the girl asked loudly as they walked deeper and deeper into the slums of the town.

 

“He's…gone Ami-chan.”

 

“You mean like on a vacation?”

 

“Uhmm…well…no…Ami-chan…the KyÅ«bi…he's well…uhmm…he's…how do I say this…he's…uh…” stammered Naruto as he fuddled for the right words.

 

“The KyÅ«bi's dead, isn't it?” Ami asked. But her voice was not the high pitched squeak it usually was. No, this voice was a deep bass, resonating with experience and wisdom that could only be attained through the arduous job of a being that has lived for centuries.

 

“Yeah, it's gone. My father sent him to some alternate dimension or something like that,” Naruto answered, not at all fazed by the change in the girl's tone of voice.

 

“Your father's alive, eh? What's the bastard's name?” Ami asked, malice ever so slightly tainting her words. Arashi mentally frowned as he heard these hate tinged words that only added to the mass of guilt settled on his shoulders.

 

“Kazama Arashi, HÅkÅ-sama,” Naruto answered.

 

---

 

The four of them jumped through the bending branches of the trees, being careful as to not break them as they jumped on and off them.

 

“So why is this mission so important sensei?” one of the younger ninja asked as he tugged on his hitai-ate absentmindedly. After all, he had only recently graduated the Kirigakure Ninja Academy. In fact, this was only his tenth mission.

 

“You're such an idiot, you know that squirt?” one of the other young ninja retorted. Despite the fact that they had graduated the same year, the first ninja was only half as big as the second, and was treated like a little kid for that reason.

 

“Shut up! I'm not a squirt!” the first ninja yelled the first ninja back at the second one. The third ninja, the only female in the group, shook her head as her teammates began to fight, again.

 

“Both of you, shut your mouths unless you want to be struck down here and now; I have no use for empty casualties and burdens such as you,” threatened the forth member, the oldest of the four.

 

“Sorry sensei,” mumbled the first ninja, his previously high spirits now doused with humiliation. His teammate said nothing but smirked at his teammate's humiliated look.

 

“This mission is important because the person we are assigned to escort is the Mizukage's daughter,” the older ninja, presumably the sensei, responded.

 

“But sensei, why would they send unseasoned genin (especially this team) to do something so important?” the kunoichi asked.

 

“Kids are too soft these days, and the only way that you'll ever change that is to know what kind of shit life can throw at you,” responded the older man. “So all of you shut up and concentrate on the mission,” he snapped, leaving no room for argument.

 

“I bet 50 ryo that you'll be the first to be killed Inari-bozu,” the second ninja whispered into Inari's ear, causing him to lunge at him indignantly. The two then began to brawl, punching and kicking each other while holding nothing back.

 

“Inari, Eiji, stop!” shrieked the kunoichi, who could do nothing but watch her teammates fight each other.

 

Their sensei merely stopped moving and uninterestedly watched the two brawl, seeming to not care at all whether the two hurt each other or not.

 

“Do you still want mess with me gaki?” growled Eiji as he repeatedly punched Inari in the face, who had been pinned to the damp, forest ground.

 

Breaths came to him in short gasps, each one taken only with great effort. Blood gushed from his nose as the larger boy's hands struck his face again. His mouth was on fire, pain erupting from his jaw while he withstood every hit, every attack, without so much as groaning pain.

 

“I asked you a question Inari-bozu,” demanded Eiji. He then stopped pummeling the smaller boy, waiting for the submission that he was so sure would come out of his mouth.

 

Now that Eiji stopped his assault, the full effects of the beating started to sink in. Inari's entire face erupted into even further, almost intolerable pain as the blood streamed from his nose just as steadily as before and his jaw seemed to erupt into an entirely new wave of pain. He could hardly fill his lungs with enough air to breathe with the boy sitting on top of him, much less talk.

 

“Answer me dammit!” he roared as he began to pummel Inari with a new-found vigor.

 

He couldn't take much more of this; he didn't have the stamina to go through this savage beating but he couldn't show weakness. No, he could not show anyone, especially Eiji, that he was weak. And so he did the only thing he could do in this situation; he bluffed.

 

“I'll…never...surrender…to…you…fat& #8230;ass,” Inari gasped out in between blows, smiling despite the new eruption of pain from his jaw.

 

“You little shit!” Eiji roared as he ceased pummeling Inari's face but instead began to throttle him, his face an angry red.

 

Inari could feel his teammate's large hands try to crush his windpipe, but he couldn't help but mentally smile. No, even if he was to die as a genin out here in the middle of nowhere, he would bring with him the knowledge that he had protected the only thing he had left with both of his hands; his dignity.

 

It was at this time that their sensei decided to step in. He walked over to the murderous boy and brought his hand down onto Eiji's shoulder.

 

“That's enough, Eiji,” he commanded in a threatening voice. Eiji slightly loosened his grasp on Inari's throat, not expecting the blow that would come.

 

With his last burst of adrenaline induced energy, Inari had thrown the larger genin off of his body and shakily got onto his feet.

 

“I…told…you…that…I'd…never 230;give…in,” Inari gasped. All three of his teammates were stunned; none of them had expected him to have the strength to get up, let alone through Eiji off of him.

 

But like the candle, Inari's greatest moment of strength just before his downfall. Blood from his nose had traveled back down into his lungs, and he was still struggling for even the slightest breath. He then sank back down on to his knees and began coughing up blood.

 

“Sensei, what's wrong with Inari?” asked the girl as she started tearing at the events that had just transpired.

 

“Just go collect some firewood Saaya. And you go with her Eiji,” commanded their sensei as he walked over to Inari and ran a diagnostic jutsu on Inari. The two genin stayed behind for a minute, but then left as their sensei began using more complex jutsu.

 

He wore a deep scowl as he began to heal Inari's injuries: a broken nose, a dislocated jaw, a damaged windpipe, and blood build up in the lungs. But deep inside, where no one could see him, he felt some pride that the genin that he had estimated to be the first to die in the field would show such determination.

 

`Maybe he'll survive after all,' he thought as he slowly moved the blood out of Inari's lungs.

 

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Sorry for the long update. Hopefully it won't be as long next time.