Alright. Let's see where this second and better version of this AU is going to bring us. For now, into familiar territory. Enjoy!
"No, Naruto."
"Oh, come on, sensei!" Naruto whined, resisting the impulse to also stomp his feet by a hair's breath. "The village is secure! Reconstruction is complete! Don't you think it's high time someone went out there and find out what's going on, since it seems like the rest of the country knows what's going on in our village?!"
"And that's exactly why we can't afford to have people leave the village." Iruka said, his brow furrowing. After Kakashi's attack, it had become clear to him that there was a security problem in their village, unsurprisingly. All their focus in the last few years had been on reconstructing and strengthening, preparing themselves for any attack. Direct ones.
They didn't have the luxury to also invest into intelligence, not the way the old Konoha did. Right now their focus was to analyze their forces, see who could be relocated. Strengthen themselves further. A village-wide evaluation of skills and he needed everyone in the village for that. "Right now we have to re-organize ourselves. With the village's reconstruction, we're going to have a number of people with a lot of free time on their hands. That includes you, by the way."
"Good! Then send me! Just me!" Iruka shook his head. Naruto gasped. "Why?!"
"Because you're one of our most powerful shinobi, Naruto. I need you here. Also, you're not exactly trained for recon, are you?" An insult and a compliment in the same sentence. Naruto pondered what to say for a few more seconds before pouting, his arms crossed.
"And what would you have me do, then, Iruka-sensei?" Iruka smirked. Naruto didn't like that.
"Something you have been skipping on because of your reconstruction efforts, Naruto..."
"Gate. Patrol. Duty. Inari fuck me in the ass." Naruto said as he let his head fall on his arms, leaning on the wooden fence of the wall.
"Oi, Naruto. Don't slack off!" The blonde genin pouted but acquiesced, focusing on the dark surroundings of their village which, after years of trimming just the necessary and not making maintenance on the roads leading to the village, had really earned the name 'hidden in the leaves'.
Naruto smiled as the stray thought of being on top of his first creation. The walls had been the very first construction Naruto had planned all by himself. At first glance it was just your average colossal wooden palisade but anyone trying to take a shot at it would get one hell of a surprise.
“Naruto, last I checked not slacking off doesn’t mean ‘gloat internally about your handiwork’.†The young ninja rolled his eyes at the comment from his partner.
‘Relax, furball. I can multitask. Everything’s under control.’ He shrugged the comments off, only to earn a dry chuckle.
“Really, now. Then I guess you didn’t miss the figure stumbling through the trees at 4 o’clock?†Naruto paused. No, he had definitely missed that. And he couldn’t see it even if he focused. Then he remembered his partner’s unfair advantages.
‘Bite my human senses.’ Focusing, Naruto summoned a bit of his partner’s chakra and focused it on his eyes and ears. A fox’s night-vision and superior hearing were sure useful to have. Now he could see what Kurama was talking about, and he realized that when he said ‘stumbling’, he had meant it literally.
He could make out a distinct lack of hair, ragged breathing and a staggering pace. Also, there was a continuous drip, like liquid dropping to the ground continuously. It was either sweat or blood. The smell confirmed the second hypothesis. He turned to his companion. “Hey, there’s someone incoming from 4 o’clock.â€
“Is there?†The ninja asked, focusing on the direction Naruto was pointing at. “I can see something, but not clearly.â€
“It’s a person, on foot. Probably male, and from his pace I think he’s injured.†Naruto told the older nin. "What should we do?"
"Wait, for now. Let him come to us." The shinobi raised a hand and signaled to their companions in sight to be ready. "Be ready for anything. Could be a ruse."
"Got it." Naruto crouched and went for his pouch, fishing out a kunai, keeping his enhanced eyes focused on the forest.
After a few more seconds, a figure stumbled out of the forest and one of the other ninjas turned on the spotlight mounted on the wall. Naruto regressed his minor transformation. The man they had ‘lightened up’ was, as he had seen, bald, and injured. He was wearing black and white robes, stained red around his midsection. He was breathing heavily, his gaze dazed. Then, he raised his head and laid eyes on the spotlight... Then, he fell forward and passed out.
“I’ll check it out.†Naruto said, and promptly created two Kage Bunshin who vaulted over the wall and landed in a crouch a couple meters from the passed out person. While one stood guard, the other approached the man and checked out his vitals.
‘The pulse is very weak. And from the amount of blood he’s lost...’ He couldn’t detect any trace of chakra being used on him, so no Henge. ‘Kurama, you pick up anything?’
“Nah. No malicious intent coming from the man or anywhere nearby.†That settled it for Naruto. The Kage Bunshin picked up the man bridal style and turned to the top of the wall.
“Alert the hospital! We have a wounded person! Have them prepare for a transfusion!â€
“How is he, Ayeka-san?†Naruto asked as he watched the nurse wheel away the stretcher with the man he had brought in fresh out of surgery. Ayeka, the head surgeon and also the person who had attended to TenTen’s injuries a few days before, was currently removing her blood-stained gloves and head-cap, letting short cropped grey hair free.
“He found us just in time.†The woman answered as she walked to the lavatory, Naruto right behind her. “He lost a lot of blood because of a heavy injury to his abdomen. A couple more minutes and it would have been too late to help him.â€
“What kind of injury? Ah, sorry.†Naruto turned around as the older woman went to remove her hospital gown.
“A large horizontal cut, delivered with some kind of cutting weapon. From experience, I’d say it was a second-hand katana held by someone who treats it like a club.†Naruto raised an eyebrow but didn’t turn around. “I have been in this profession a long time.â€
“Okay... So, someone attacked him.†‘Well, until he wakes up there’s not much we can do with that information. We don’t have many details.’ “Anything else?â€
“His clothes.†The woman walked past him, now fully clothed again. She pointed at a plastic bag resting on a nearby table, containing the man’s garments and other possessions found on his body. “They’re sealed and prepared for the analysis team, but one thing I can tell you for sure. This man is a Fire Monk.â€
“A Fire Monk?†Naruto squinted his eyes. Iruka had talked about something like that during his lessons. Fire Monks, Fire Monks, Fire Monks... No, didn’t ring a bell.
“Oh, for the love of-The Fire Temple, baka!†His partner gently suggested.
“Oh, right. The Fire Temple.†Naruto voiced out loud. “... Wait, what is that?†An animalistic groan echoed in Naruto’s head.
“It’s a monastery located in the northern part of the Fire Country. They practice a particular kind of religion based on the Will of Fire, and the usage of a particular kind of chakra. Haven’t seen one in years.†Ayeka continued, her gaze moving to the direction of her latest patient’s room. “For one to appear so far from the temple, with that kind of injury too... I fear something bad may be happening at the monastery.â€
“... Then, let’s hope he wakes up soon.†Naruto sighed. Once again, their inability to know what was happening outside of Konoha’s walls was really irking him.
"Come on! Push onwards, you fools!" They had tried another tactic, this time. They had tried attacking by night but they had still found monks waiting for them, and again, they were pushing them back.
The monks were powerful. To take down one of them, they needed to sacrifice thirty of their men. Luckily they used non-lethal strike while they had no such compulsion, otherwise they would have been slaughtered days before. "The baldies can't keep this up forever!"
"Just who..." Suddenly the leader of the attacking group of bandits tensed when he felt a hand grasp the back of his head. He then knew sweet unconsciousness when that same hand slammed him face first into the ground. "Are you calling baldies, ahhh?!"
"C-Chief!" One of the aids of the leader noticed the predicament of his boss and turned to the perpetrator with rage in his eyes. "You bastard! You... Huh?" That's when he noticed that this monk was much younger than most of the others, and also that he had head full of long hair. "You're not bald... Guh!"
"So what?!" The young monk kneed the bandit in the face, rendering him unconscious on the spot. Then he turned around with a swerve, sending chakra to the metal claw he wore on his right arm. "I'm still a Fire Monk!" He swung his arm, releasing a gust of wind chakra that turned into invisible blades that hit another four bandits around him, injuring them and destroying their weapons. Landing back on his feet, he turned his eyes on the now remaining and retreating ones. He charged his chakra again. "Don't run, you-"
"Sora! Enough!" The young monk suddenly felt a hand gripping his shoulder. He turned around to see a 'normal' monk only a few years older than himself, sporting a vicious scar on his scalp. "They're leaving."
"But they will be back, Sentoki! You know they will!" Sora obeyed, letting go of his chakra, but he couldn't help but resent the orders they had been given. "If we don't take them out-"
"We don't have the numbers to take them all on our own, especially in their own territory." Sentoki replied, admonishing his younger companion, but not being able to hide a little anger himself. "I don't like it more than yourself, but we can't do anything else but let them go."
"... Damn it." Sora calmed down, and this convinced Sentoki to let go of him, finally. "We've been doing this for weeks, and we've already lost companions to them. They're tiring us out and you know it. Stragglers penetrate our ranks every day."
"We have no choice but to endure... And hope that Zenza finds someone willing to help us.†The young monk tsk-ed. If the fragmentation of the country had brought him anything good, it was an opportunity to prove himself to his fellow monks, but he would trade it all away for a bit of peace, by now. Also, to have to ask for help from the same people who brought them to chaos? It left a bitter taste in his mouth.
‘Damn you, Konoha ninja. Damn you for breaking this country!’
Future Lost
Chapter 2: The Fire Temple Crisis
Chapter 2: The Fire Temple Crisis
"No, Naruto."
"Oh, come on, sensei!" Naruto whined, resisting the impulse to also stomp his feet by a hair's breath. "The village is secure! Reconstruction is complete! Don't you think it's high time someone went out there and find out what's going on, since it seems like the rest of the country knows what's going on in our village?!"
"And that's exactly why we can't afford to have people leave the village." Iruka said, his brow furrowing. After Kakashi's attack, it had become clear to him that there was a security problem in their village, unsurprisingly. All their focus in the last few years had been on reconstructing and strengthening, preparing themselves for any attack. Direct ones.
They didn't have the luxury to also invest into intelligence, not the way the old Konoha did. Right now their focus was to analyze their forces, see who could be relocated. Strengthen themselves further. A village-wide evaluation of skills and he needed everyone in the village for that. "Right now we have to re-organize ourselves. With the village's reconstruction, we're going to have a number of people with a lot of free time on their hands. That includes you, by the way."
"Good! Then send me! Just me!" Iruka shook his head. Naruto gasped. "Why?!"
"Because you're one of our most powerful shinobi, Naruto. I need you here. Also, you're not exactly trained for recon, are you?" An insult and a compliment in the same sentence. Naruto pondered what to say for a few more seconds before pouting, his arms crossed.
"And what would you have me do, then, Iruka-sensei?" Iruka smirked. Naruto didn't like that.
"Something you have been skipping on because of your reconstruction efforts, Naruto..."
-FutureLost-
"Gate. Patrol. Duty. Inari fuck me in the ass." Naruto said as he let his head fall on his arms, leaning on the wooden fence of the wall.
"Oi, Naruto. Don't slack off!" The blonde genin pouted but acquiesced, focusing on the dark surroundings of their village which, after years of trimming just the necessary and not making maintenance on the roads leading to the village, had really earned the name 'hidden in the leaves'.
Naruto smiled as the stray thought of being on top of his first creation. The walls had been the very first construction Naruto had planned all by himself. At first glance it was just your average colossal wooden palisade but anyone trying to take a shot at it would get one hell of a surprise.
“Naruto, last I checked not slacking off doesn’t mean ‘gloat internally about your handiwork’.†The young ninja rolled his eyes at the comment from his partner.
‘Relax, furball. I can multitask. Everything’s under control.’ He shrugged the comments off, only to earn a dry chuckle.
“Really, now. Then I guess you didn’t miss the figure stumbling through the trees at 4 o’clock?†Naruto paused. No, he had definitely missed that. And he couldn’t see it even if he focused. Then he remembered his partner’s unfair advantages.
‘Bite my human senses.’ Focusing, Naruto summoned a bit of his partner’s chakra and focused it on his eyes and ears. A fox’s night-vision and superior hearing were sure useful to have. Now he could see what Kurama was talking about, and he realized that when he said ‘stumbling’, he had meant it literally.
He could make out a distinct lack of hair, ragged breathing and a staggering pace. Also, there was a continuous drip, like liquid dropping to the ground continuously. It was either sweat or blood. The smell confirmed the second hypothesis. He turned to his companion. “Hey, there’s someone incoming from 4 o’clock.â€
“Is there?†The ninja asked, focusing on the direction Naruto was pointing at. “I can see something, but not clearly.â€
“It’s a person, on foot. Probably male, and from his pace I think he’s injured.†Naruto told the older nin. "What should we do?"
"Wait, for now. Let him come to us." The shinobi raised a hand and signaled to their companions in sight to be ready. "Be ready for anything. Could be a ruse."
"Got it." Naruto crouched and went for his pouch, fishing out a kunai, keeping his enhanced eyes focused on the forest.
After a few more seconds, a figure stumbled out of the forest and one of the other ninjas turned on the spotlight mounted on the wall. Naruto regressed his minor transformation. The man they had ‘lightened up’ was, as he had seen, bald, and injured. He was wearing black and white robes, stained red around his midsection. He was breathing heavily, his gaze dazed. Then, he raised his head and laid eyes on the spotlight... Then, he fell forward and passed out.
“I’ll check it out.†Naruto said, and promptly created two Kage Bunshin who vaulted over the wall and landed in a crouch a couple meters from the passed out person. While one stood guard, the other approached the man and checked out his vitals.
‘The pulse is very weak. And from the amount of blood he’s lost...’ He couldn’t detect any trace of chakra being used on him, so no Henge. ‘Kurama, you pick up anything?’
“Nah. No malicious intent coming from the man or anywhere nearby.†That settled it for Naruto. The Kage Bunshin picked up the man bridal style and turned to the top of the wall.
“Alert the hospital! We have a wounded person! Have them prepare for a transfusion!â€
-FutureLost-
“How is he, Ayeka-san?†Naruto asked as he watched the nurse wheel away the stretcher with the man he had brought in fresh out of surgery. Ayeka, the head surgeon and also the person who had attended to TenTen’s injuries a few days before, was currently removing her blood-stained gloves and head-cap, letting short cropped grey hair free.
“He found us just in time.†The woman answered as she walked to the lavatory, Naruto right behind her. “He lost a lot of blood because of a heavy injury to his abdomen. A couple more minutes and it would have been too late to help him.â€
“What kind of injury? Ah, sorry.†Naruto turned around as the older woman went to remove her hospital gown.
“A large horizontal cut, delivered with some kind of cutting weapon. From experience, I’d say it was a second-hand katana held by someone who treats it like a club.†Naruto raised an eyebrow but didn’t turn around. “I have been in this profession a long time.â€
“Okay... So, someone attacked him.†‘Well, until he wakes up there’s not much we can do with that information. We don’t have many details.’ “Anything else?â€
“His clothes.†The woman walked past him, now fully clothed again. She pointed at a plastic bag resting on a nearby table, containing the man’s garments and other possessions found on his body. “They’re sealed and prepared for the analysis team, but one thing I can tell you for sure. This man is a Fire Monk.â€
“A Fire Monk?†Naruto squinted his eyes. Iruka had talked about something like that during his lessons. Fire Monks, Fire Monks, Fire Monks... No, didn’t ring a bell.
“Oh, for the love of-The Fire Temple, baka!†His partner gently suggested.
“Oh, right. The Fire Temple.†Naruto voiced out loud. “... Wait, what is that?†An animalistic groan echoed in Naruto’s head.
“It’s a monastery located in the northern part of the Fire Country. They practice a particular kind of religion based on the Will of Fire, and the usage of a particular kind of chakra. Haven’t seen one in years.†Ayeka continued, her gaze moving to the direction of her latest patient’s room. “For one to appear so far from the temple, with that kind of injury too... I fear something bad may be happening at the monastery.â€
“... Then, let’s hope he wakes up soon.†Naruto sighed. Once again, their inability to know what was happening outside of Konoha’s walls was really irking him.
-FutureLost-
"Come on! Push onwards, you fools!" They had tried another tactic, this time. They had tried attacking by night but they had still found monks waiting for them, and again, they were pushing them back.
The monks were powerful. To take down one of them, they needed to sacrifice thirty of their men. Luckily they used non-lethal strike while they had no such compulsion, otherwise they would have been slaughtered days before. "The baldies can't keep this up forever!"
"Just who..." Suddenly the leader of the attacking group of bandits tensed when he felt a hand grasp the back of his head. He then knew sweet unconsciousness when that same hand slammed him face first into the ground. "Are you calling baldies, ahhh?!"
"C-Chief!" One of the aids of the leader noticed the predicament of his boss and turned to the perpetrator with rage in his eyes. "You bastard! You... Huh?" That's when he noticed that this monk was much younger than most of the others, and also that he had head full of long hair. "You're not bald... Guh!"
"So what?!" The young monk kneed the bandit in the face, rendering him unconscious on the spot. Then he turned around with a swerve, sending chakra to the metal claw he wore on his right arm. "I'm still a Fire Monk!" He swung his arm, releasing a gust of wind chakra that turned into invisible blades that hit another four bandits around him, injuring them and destroying their weapons. Landing back on his feet, he turned his eyes on the now remaining and retreating ones. He charged his chakra again. "Don't run, you-"
"Sora! Enough!" The young monk suddenly felt a hand gripping his shoulder. He turned around to see a 'normal' monk only a few years older than himself, sporting a vicious scar on his scalp. "They're leaving."
"But they will be back, Sentoki! You know they will!" Sora obeyed, letting go of his chakra, but he couldn't help but resent the orders they had been given. "If we don't take them out-"
"We don't have the numbers to take them all on our own, especially in their own territory." Sentoki replied, admonishing his younger companion, but not being able to hide a little anger himself. "I don't like it more than yourself, but we can't do anything else but let them go."
"... Damn it." Sora calmed down, and this convinced Sentoki to let go of him, finally. "We've been doing this for weeks, and we've already lost companions to them. They're tiring us out and you know it. Stragglers penetrate our ranks every day."
"We have no choice but to endure... And hope that Zenza finds someone willing to help us.†The young monk tsk-ed. If the fragmentation of the country had brought him anything good, it was an opportunity to prove himself to his fellow monks, but he would trade it all away for a bit of peace, by now. Also, to have to ask for help from the same people who brought them to chaos? It left a bitter taste in his mouth.
‘Damn you, Konoha ninja. Damn you for breaking this country!’