Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Ghostly Eyes ❯ The Final Day Approaches ( Chapter 15 )

      Yuhi Kurenai picked herself out of the rubble of the roof of the treehouse she had been sent crashing into. Aside from a pain in her stomach and several splinters on her exposed skin, she wasn't seriously injured. There were two Nimmori in the room she stood in. Both were huddled against a wall, afraid. One of them a child and the other, Kurenai noted, a young woman with one of those tree symbols on her head.

     She didn't have time to think much about them, however. Her enemy would be coming after her soon. She needed to get into the open before he potentially trapped her here. She ran out of the hut's door, activating the Bunshin no Jutsu as she did so. The moment her body passed the door's threshold, she suddenly split into five Kurenais, only one of which was real. The five Kuno'ichi made a leap off of the balcony in different directions

     Kurenai's foe was not so easily fooled, however. His leaf shuriken made his way towards the divided enemies. Passing through and dispelling four as the fifth, the real Kurenai, dodged them. She braced herself, fully anticipating another strike from the man. She was not disappointed. The man came at her, waiting from above the home she'd emerged from. He leapt from the tree he had attached to, a spear at the ready for his foe. This time, Kurenai would not be caught off guard.

     She landed on a wooden platform and leapt again, throwing a single shuriken as she did so. The enemy, still in mid-air himself, just barely moved his body enough to dodge. The fact that he'd gone out of his way to dodge rather than take the blade convinced Kurenai she was looking at the man himself, not another of those leaf bunshin. That confirmation made, she signed to herself.

     She performed a genjutsu on the man, making him believe he was suddenly being bombarded from all direction by deadly weapons. Kurenai watched as he lost his balance and missed his landing on the tree branch he had been aiming for. He instead crashed onto a bridge between huts. Kurenai wasted no time in making her way to that very spot.

     As he got to his feet, she pulled out a kunai and shoved it as hard as she could into the side of the man's belly. She had aimed for vital organs, but he had regained just enough of his senses to dodge. Barely.

     Fortunately, he fell from the bridge and down the ground below. Whether or not he was dead Kurenai did not know, nor did she have any need or desire to find out. He was out of commission and out of her way, that was all she wanted. With him dealt with, she could get back to her students, who were hopefully all right.

     Kashghy u N'ga regained consciousness and picked herself up from the dirt. She staggered to her feet and saw that the two Fire shee'nobie had become distracted by other Nimmori who had been watching their battle. Doubtless they were none too pleased to see Kash'ghyu fall as she did. She wasn't too happy about it herself. She knew her brethren would swoop down to her aid before long. However, Kash'ghyu did not wish that. She would avenge herself.

     “Hey!” she called out. The two boys turned around to look, only to be bombarded the moment they faced Kashghyu. The moment they turned, she charged them and planted a flat-palmed hit right into the pits of their stomachs. Right into the strongest part of the Life's Flame. It would stun them for several moments, while their Flame was briefly weakened.

     She leaned herself forward, using her outstretched palms to perform a handstand. She bent her legs and kicked outward, hitting each shee'nobie in the jaw. The two were sent flying in separate directions. Kashghyu N'ga quickly judged as she descended from her handstand which of the two to pursue before they regained their senses. The blond, with his double ability, was the more dangerous of the two.

     The moment her feet made contact with the ground, Kashghyu ran to the blond, prepared for the finishing blow. Before she could reach him, however, she caught sight via her eyes of another attacker coming at her from the right side and above. At first she thought it was the other boy, but she immediately recognized the transformed Chakra of his dog.

     She came to an immediate halt and kicked out her right leg. The big toe of her bare right foot hit the altered animal just below the left shoulder. That toe hit a point disrupting Chakra flow and dispelling the transformation, rendering the beast a mere puppy once more. Kashghyu pulled her foot back, then performed a roundhouse kick that sent the dog to the ground hard.

     As she watched the canine fall, her eyes alerted her to movement behind her. She saw the blond getting up, recovering from his blow first. She wondered just how he could recover so quickly. Though it didn't matter. He was still fairly weakened, she could tell he wouldn't be able to evade very well. She charged, her index and middle fingers lined up to strike a finishing blow.

     Before she could reach him, however, something tried to attack her yet again. This time she back flipped out of the way. When she was on her feet again, she saw a man standing before her. He wasn't one of the shee'nobie who had initially entered the forest. He was someone new. He had long black hair in a style vaguely familiar to Kashghyu's mind. However, that didn't interest her. What did, were the bulging veined face and white eyes staring back at her. She scowled at the man, another of the Blessed Line.

     Kashghyu's eyes showed another, the shee'nobie boy who controlled insects, rousing the beaten fighters and helping them to escape. The blond complained loudly as he was practically dragged by the other two.

     “Hinata!!” he cried out. She did her best to ignore the unwanted name. She focused on the man before her.

     “Hinata-sama, I have no desire to fight you.”

     “Then, this will be easy for me…” Kashghyu quipped back.

     She ran at him and attacked. Though he did not wish to fight, he did have enough sense to defend himself from attack. Not surprisingly, their styles were nearly identical. Both fought in the style of the Gentle Fist, though both also had their own individual variations and techniques added in. This one was stronger than the others, that much was clear. It was all Kashghyu N'ga could do to parry or evade the other's attacks. She managed to take back the advantage when she parried one of his open palm attacks and knocked him off-balance. Before she could utilize that new advantage, however, the older man leapt away and retreated. She was puzzled until she realized that she was the only person remaining on the battlefield.

     They had run away.

     She cursed herself for letting it happen. She was about to order any able-bodied fighters to join her in the chase when someone suddenly began calling her name.

     “Kashghyu N'ga! Kashghyu N'ga!” a boy came. He was no warrior, far too young. There was an urgency in his shouting the girl couldn't ignore.

     “It is Da Iri'ga! He has been badly injured!”

     Just as this announcement was being heard by the assembled people, Kashghyu saw something above her. Looking up, she saw the shee'nobie woman Yuhi Kurenai, leaping through the trees. Coming from the very direction the boy had come in. Teacher and student looked one another straight in the eyes for a brief moment as she passed directly over Kashghyu's head. A few Nimmori threw whatever weapons were handy at the woman. But she evaded them easily. For a moment Kashghyu considered chasing her, but felt compelled to see to her foster father first.

     “Take me to him.” She commanded of the boy.

     “We were so close!” Naruto whined after everyone had regrouped following the fight in the forest village. They found a quiet area to set up a tiny base camp.

     “Not as close as you think.” Shino replied. Naruto “hmphed” to himself. He wasn't interested in the opinion of someone who'd demand they run away.

     “He's right, Naruto.” Kiba said, “We had her for a moment, but those other guys never would have let us take her away without a fight.”

     Naruto still grumbled to himself.

     “And, as we found out, that one hit didn't knock her out enough. She'd have been able to resist us as we took her. It was a lost cause.”

     “Don't say that!” Naruto yelled, who took the words to mean he was giving up on Hinata entirely.

     “We still have time, Naruto.” Kiba told him.

     “How do you know?!”

     “Remember when we were fighting? Hinata said that 'in a day's time I will be the goddess-made-flesh.'”

     “Y ou're sure of this?” asked Hyuga Tomoko.

     “Her exact words.” Kiba replied.

     “Good.” Kurenai said, “That means that now we know the 'when.'” she looked to the eldest Hyuga among the group, “How about the where?”

     Hyuga Riisen took up the discussion.

     “Aburame Shino-kun and I infiltrated the village as ordered.” he began, “Shino-kun had a hunch as to this ceremony's location. The area you were all held in during your captivity.”

     “That huge tree stump?” Kiba asked.

     “These are people of the forest.” Shino said, “They live with and in the trees. We were held on what was essentially a giant tree stump. A tree stump cut unusually high over the ground.”

     “As though it were done intentionally.” Kurenai posed.

     “Exactly. These people seem to live in harmony with their surroundings. Yet it seems they destroyed a tree, or at the very least made a point of altering the remains of a fallen one.”

     “So you believe that to be the location?” Kurenai asked.

     “We know it.” Riisen said, “We explored other areas of the village. But no other area had anything close to the amount of ley lines that the stump did. I would not be surprised to learn that nearly every trail of ley lines in this valley we're in doesn't at some point cross that stump. It must be our focal point.”

     “How about you three?” Kurenai asked of the other Hyuga.

     “We found small gatherings of lines on the outskirts of the village.” Hyuga Uaishi replied, “Though it is difficult to determine at this time if they will be used in the ceremony.”

     “Nothing special was done with or around them.” said the young Hyuga Genin, Kodomairu, “They were just there.”

     “That isn't good…” Kurenai said, “That means that we can't count on being able to disrupt the Chakra channeling portion of the ceremony. There's too much margin for error. If we guess incorrectly on the points, then there's no guarantee we could find another in time.”

     “So, what now?” Shino asked.

     “We rest.” Kurenai ordered, looking to Kiba and Naruto, who had been rubbing their chins raw since they left the village, “A few of us have some fighting to recover from. And we won't do any good whatsoever if we're exhausted or still nursing injuries a little rest would have taken care of. Tomorrow, all eight of us will infiltrate the Nimmori village again. We'll do so as early as possible. Early morning will give us enough cover to avoid detection. This is also necessary because we do not know the exact time of day their summoning will take place, and we can not afford to miss the right time.”

     Nobody had any arguments.

     “We'll assign watches for the night while the others sleep.” she continued. She listed who would watch and when, Naruto noticed he, Kiba, Kurenai, and the adult Hyuga were last to watch, to give them time to recover from their battles.

     “We'll set out at two hours before dawn.” Kurenai concluded.

     Everyone set about their given tasks. Those who needed rest rested. Those meant to keep watch watched. Naruto and Kiba lay side by side on the ground near the campfire. Neither could rest much.

     “Naruto…” Kiba said as he lay on his back, Akamaru sleeping on his chest, “You realize that tomorrow will be our last chance?”

     “Yeah. If we don't get her back tomorrow, then Hinata… Hinata'll…” he couldn't bring himself to say it.

     “Despite what everyone says,” Kiba continued, “I think our best shot is to try and get through to her. Otherwise, we'll have to take her down and keep her down long enough to escape. After today, I don't think we can count on that.”

     “Any ideas on how we get her to listen to us?” Naruto asked. Kiba was silent.

     “Nope…” Kiba said sadly, the frustration clear in his voice.

     “Me either.” Naruto admitted, “But… I'll figure out something! I don't care what I have to do!”

     “Good, we actually agree, then?” Kiba asked. Naruto mumbled a affirmative. Both eventually fell asleep, each of their minds preoccupied with finding a way to make Hinata see how she was being used.

     The girl known to all but her people as Hyuga Hinata sat in her room in the home she shared with her foster father. His injuries were not serious. Kashghyu N'ga had gotten him to healers immediately upon finding him, collapsed in an area where small children often played. The healers had repaired the worst of his injuries. The rest he was currently sleeping off.

     There was a light knock on her door. Kashghyu answered it to see the old Ki'ge standing before her. She immediately dropped to one knee and averted her eyes.

     “Rise, child.” he instructed. She did so, resuming her seat on a small cushion that served as a chair.

     “How is your father's health?” he asked.

     “He is doing well. With rest, his wounds will heal. The healers said he should be fit for tomorrow.”

     “That is good news.” the elderly man said, “The shee'nobie will almost certainly attempt to reclaim you again before the time of the ceremony.”

     “I should have pursued them…” Kashghyu muttered to herself, ashamed of herself for her failures up to this point.

     “But Da Iri'ga would have been lost.” the Ki'ge replied, “Would you have wished that?”

     “No!” she said adamantly. She cared deeply for the man who had cared for her since those first few confusing days as Kashghyu N'ga. From the moment the Purification had taken place, he had instructed her in the ways of the Nimmori. Their customs, their techniques, their beliefs.

     “You chose your family and your people over your injured pride. Feel no shame for that act, child.”

     “Thank you, Ki'ge.” she said, blush rising in her cheeks.

     “Now, you must rest. You yourself have a battle to recover from.”

     The Ki'ge held out his hand and helped the girl to her feet. At his insistence, she lay down on her futon and, exhausted as she was, fell quickly into a deep sleep. The old man lingered a moment before leaving. His eyes fixed on the sleeping adolescent before him.

     In all his years, he had never seriously expected to be able to bring forth the Mori no Megami into this world. It's summoning to this plane was a dream upon a dream for the Nimmori. But then, the earthquake had brought them a new path into the outside world. That path had led them to the Fire Shadow's shee'nobie, and among them was the girl. The moment her presence among the enemy was reported he ordered her capture.

     To actually have one of the Blessed Line among them was a sign. The Goddess was ready to be reborn, she wanted to come to this world, and brought her faithful servants this child to perform that task which. The girl was the ideal person for the task.

     First and foremost, she was female. The Goddess could take any able vessel, but all the tales passed down among the Nimmori said she wished for a girl or woman to take possession of. Secondly, Kashghyu N'ga was strong. She could easily best the strongest Nimmori of her age and provide challenge to even Da Iri'ga himself. Finally, she was especially susceptible to the rites of Purification. The process which buried a person's memory so that they could become Nimmori.

     Those who fell to it easiest were often dissatisfied with their lives Before for one reason or another. While performing the ceremony on the girl, the Ki'ge saw into her past. He saw a powerful warrior with no faith or pride in her own talents. A daughter who desired the love of a father who appeared distant. A child who craved the acknowledgement of those around her. Through her Purification, he knew what to provide Kashghyu N'ga to ensure she would perform as her people needed.

     It was why he chose Da Iri'ga to be her guardian upon her awakening. He was best at encouraging those Purified in the past into accepting their place among the People of the Forest. With Kashghyu, he praised her with every success. When she failed, rather than berate her he would instruct her on any mistakes and encourage her to continue her efforts. This support quickly won the girl's affection. Da Iri'ga was known to become fond of those he raised. A father-daughter bond formed quickly between them. These gave Kashghyu the confidence necessary to win the respect of the other warriors among their tribe. So long as they provided for her most powerful desires, Kashghyu N'ga would do anything for her people.

     The Ki'ge watched the sleeping girl a moment longer before leaving the home and returning to his own. He had preparations to make. Tomorrow would be the day. He had much to plan for, including the inevitable interference of the shee'nobie. Tomorrow as too important. He could not fail.