Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ The Road to Recovery ❯ Chapter 10

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

“What time is it, Sakura?” Naruto asked, already formulating a plan in his mind.

“Um…” Sakura hesitated, a little frightened by the sudden change in his mood. “It’s mid-afternoon, I think.”“Good, we still have time…”Leaving Naruto to his thoughts, Sakura looked down to study her grimy fingernails. She understood his reasons for declaring war on Kumo, but she felt that it was all happening too quickly. It would take months for the reconstruction of the village to be completed, and a war was the last thing Konoha needed.

Not only that, but the villagers aren’t prepared for another war, she thought nervously.

Although Naruto was certainly looking to secure the future of Konoha, the villagers were still in shock over what had happened the past few weeks. For God’s sake, they had only recently lost their homes and businesses, their Hokage, and the council elders. Now they were facing the possibility of war?It’s too much, too soon.

The majority of the village was still mourning Tsunade’s death, especially Shizune. Whenever Sakura wasn’t chatting with Naruto or tending to her patients, she was visiting the poor woman. She even had to treat quite a few people for depression and shock, including the former Hokage’s assistant.

It certainly didn’t help that Naruto had been visiting Sasuke so frequently. For the blonde’s sake, she would make up plausible explanations and tell them to curious villagers. Although she was happy for her friend, her feelings towards Sasuke remained unchanged. She had cared for the raven, even after he left Konoha, but the death of her mentor had changed all of that.

Personally, she could care less if Sasuke ever did clean up his act and become a citizen of Konoha again. He was still a murderer in her eyes, and there was nothing he could do to change that.

Sakura wiped the sweat from her brow with a silent sigh.

Even so, she regarded Naruto as a brother, and couldn’t stay angry with him for long. He genuinely liked and cared for Sasuke, and there wasn’t anything she could do about it. Although he never mentioned it out loud, she knew the blonde was lonely. Even after all of those years, he had still been determined as ever to track Sasuke down and drag him back to Konoha.

Of course, if Sasuke does anything to break his heart, I will gladly beat the living crap out of him, she promised to herself.

“Sakura.”“Yes?”“Please bring Sai and Kakashi to me.”“All right.”With a nod, she left Naruto’s side to travel swiftly through the village and to the gates.

“Naruto wants to speak with the two of you.” She explained to the two ninjas.

“We’ll be right on it.”“Thank you, Sakura.”Just as Sai and Kakashi left, Shikamaru appeared before her with a panicked expression on his face. His eyes were wide, his knees shaking, and was completely out of breath.

“Kurenai wanted me to get you.”“You mean-”“Yeah. It’s time.”Oh god, that is horrible timing! She has to be moved to a safe location before Kumo-

“Sakura!”“Where is she?”“In her tree house.”

“I’ll help her out, but I need you to do something for me.”“What is it?”“Ask Naruto where he is planning to move the women and children.”Shikamaru gave her a quick nod before disappearing.

Crap, crap, crap! She thought while running through the empty village. Although Tsunade had explained in detail how to deliver babies, Sakura had never personally delivered one before. She had acted as Tsunade’s assistant for births here and there, but she supposed it wasn’t the same thing as being the one to actually deliver a baby.

Get it together, Sakura! Tsunade-sama said that labor took hours to complete.

Unfortunately, she wasn’t sure whether Kurenai would have that time to give birth or not. She knew that the Raikage and his ninjas would be arriving by sunrise. However, Kurenai and her newborn baby wouldn’t be safe in a battle torn situation.

You better have a plan by now, Naruto, she thought as she arrived at the make-shift village.

“Where is Kurenai’s tree house?” Sakura asked a nearby group of villagers.

A young girl pointed to a tree house located to the far right.

While Sakura was busy helping Kurenai through labor, Shikamaru was explaining his situation to Naruto.

“…so?”“Sai will be in charge of relocating the women and children,” Naruto replied. “He will take Kurenai to the place I mentioned immediately. If she is unable to move, then I will assign ninjas to guard her tree house.”

Shikamaru flashed a stern gaze in Sai’s direction before leaving. “What will I be doing?”“I’m sorry, Shikamaru, but I can’t afford to have you stay with Kurenai. You’re a big part in my plan for tomorrow.”

“When will we be required to be in our places?”“At least an hour or two before dawn. I’ve had a ton of rest already, so I will be able to contact all of you on time.”“So, does that mean-”“Fine, go visit Kurenai. Just make sure you get a good night’s rest and be here on time.”“Thank you, Naruto.”
The sudden sight of Kurenai’s transferal caused a stir among the villagers. Their nerves were already stretched thin enough by the conflict going on between the Raikage and their new Hokage. A few of the non-ninja villagers had overheard Naruto’s declaration of war against Kumo and told their friends about it. Thus, the rumor of war spreads through out the already cramped village like a raging wildfire.

“I disagree with Naruto-sama’s decision,” An older woman stated to a group of her family members. “A war against Kumo wouldn’t solve anything.”“No,” Her daughter disagreed. “The Raikage attacked our Hokage! He shouldn’t be able to get away with doing that. Anyways, we already did our best to solve this peacefully!”The discussion between mother and daughter soon became heated. Ino, who was lounging nearby, watched the two with worry. She gave a gasp of horror as the mother angrily slapped her daughter. Deciding to intervene, she stood between the two with a critical gaze.

“You guys can’t be fighting with each other,” She said. “Especially since nothing has officially been decided yet!”

“This doesn’t have anything to do with you,” The mother shot back. “Being a ninja doesn’t make you superior to me.”“That’s not what I-”

“If it weren’t for your kind, the village would still be intact!”

“Please, you’re misunder-”

“I’ll take it from here.” Sai promised, coming from the deep depths of the forest.

“People of Konoha,” He shouted, finally catching the angry villagers’ attentions. “Please settle down, for I have an announcement from the Hokage to inform you of.”

Still disgruntled, the old woman quietly backed away from Ino.

“It is true that we as a nation will be going to war against Kumo. Because they refuse to deal with us in peaceful terms, we are forced to fight for our own protection. In order to minimize the number of future casualties, all civilians will be moved to a secret base located deep in this forest. Be ready to leave by nightfall.”

“Why is Kumo doing this?” One villager asked.

“Won’t this be over if we give up Sasuke?”“Yeah! He only causes trouble!”“When will Kumo attack?”Before the roar of the crowd could grow any louder, Sai put his index finger and his thumb in his mouth and gave a shrill whistle.

“Kumo has planned to meet us at dawn! We will inform you of when it’s safe to leave in due time.”

“And what if Kumo does defeat us?” A man in his mid-forties yelled. “What will happen to the rest of us if you ninjas are killed?”“I cannot tell you what will happen tomorrow at dawn. I honestly do not know the answers to your questions. However, I do believe that Naruto-sama has a good plan on hand, and we should stick to it in order for his plan to succeed.”Once the crowd calmed down, Sai gave one last suggestion before leaving.

“There are only a few more hours left of sunlight. Anyone staying here will be left to die. I will be back with four groups of ninjas to help escort all of you. That is all.”With a grim farewell, Sai left the village to their mixed thoughts. The stunned villagers all looked at one another with fear clear in their eyes. They could tell from Sai’s strangely grave tone that he was as uncertain as they were. What could they do now? It seemed as if putting their faith into Naruto was their only option available.

But would faith alone be enough?An ominous chill set in the cooling air, seeping into their already troubled hearts. What would happen if the ninjas from Kumo did slaughter their own ninjas? What would be the fate of the unsuspecting villagers, left to simply sit and wait? For the first time since Pein destroyed Konoha, the villagers felt completely helpless.

At least we had Tsunade back then, the old woman from earlier thought. All we have now are prayers and an injured Hokage that is only a teenager!
Finally noticing the slowly setting sun before her, she tapped her daughter’s shoulder to get her attention.“We should start to pack as soon as possible.”“What?” Her daughter seemed dazed. “Oh yes, you’re right. The sun will be setting soon.”

Once the old woman and her family got up and left to their tree houses, the rest of the villagers began to leave too. Although their fear for their lives was overwhelming, they managed to pack their most important belongings without a fuss. By the time the sun had set, they were all ready to leave.

Meanwhile in the “hospital”, Naruto was busy speaking with Sai. He was the only patient left in the immediate area.

“Do you have any questions before you leave to hide away the villagers?”“Where will you be at dawn, Naruto-sama?”“I’ll be fighting, of course.”“Sakura won’t be there to heal you.”With a frustrated sigh, Naruto tried to explain his reasoning to Sai.

“I refuse to stand by and rely on my comrades to fight my battle. This is between me and the Raikage.”Knowing it would be pointless to try and change his mind, Sai gave Naruto one last nod before leaving.

A shiver of anticipation ran down Naruto’s spine as the last rays of the sun faded away. This was his chance to end things between Konoha and Kumo once and for all. This was his chance to prove that he, Uzumaki Naruto, son of the Fourth Hokage, was a capable leader for his beloved village of Konoha.

Just you wait, Raikage. I’ll teach you to not mess with Konoha soon enough. I’ll give you a war that you’ll never forget.

Even so, he was still pretty nervous about the upcoming battle. He had never started a war before, and wondered whether his plan would be sufficient enough. He had learned from Pein how truly destructive war was, and how much sorrow and hate bred from it.

Am I making the right decision by sending Konoha into war? He thought, asking himself this question for the millionth time that day.

It was quite maddening for Naruto to be so indecisive over one action. No matter how many times he would convince himself that he was doing the right thing, his mind would always review back to his conversation with Pein. How many people would die in this war? How many broken hearts would result from this overall pointless war?

You know, war isn’t the only option, a voice reminded him. You could solve this by giving up Sasuke to Kumo.

Naruto immediately cringed from the abominable thought of giving up Sasuke. He couldn’t do it, especially after seeing the true Sasuke behind the cold, unfeeling mask he had worn for most of his life. It would simply be too cruel for him to give up a lifelong rival and friend to a ruthless enemy.

Anyways, it was the Raikage that stirred this crap up in the first place, he figured. Konoha can stand our own ground when needed.

Since he was too anxious to get any sleep before dawn, he decided to visit Sasuke again. To his extreme annoyance, a heavy fog had settled into the forest, obscuring his vision. Praying that he’d be able to find his way back, Naruto wandered warily through the fog. Although his wound was miraculously healing quite nicely, his abdomen was still tender.

Stupid Kumo ninjas…

“What are you doing here again, dobe? Are you here with Ibiki to interrogate me some more?” Sasuke’s almost bored sounding voice pierced through the concealing fog.

“No, I just felt like talking.” Naruto replied, sitting on a nearby boulder.

“What did you use that information I gave Ibiki for?”Without even giving it a second thought, Naruto explained to him of what was happening between Konoha and Kumo. It took at least ten minutes for him to explain, but he really wanted to hear Sasuke’s reaction.

“Why would you go to war over me?”“I’m not going to war over you!” The blonde said, his face turning red. “I can’t allow the Raikage to do whatever he wants without a fight!”“Still, why not give me up to Kumo? You wouldn’t have to go to war if you just gave me up to them.”“I can’t just give you up since you’re innocent. They would kill you.”Naruto gave his thanks to the gods above for placing a fog in the woods so Sasuke wouldn’t be able to see his deepening blush.

Why is Sasuke asking these weird questions in the first place?

“What are you planning to do at dawn?”For the rest of the night, Naruto and Sasuke chatted about various subjects. In a way, it was very surreal for Naruto to establish a kind of relationship with Sasuke after all they had gone through. He wouldn’t go as far as to say they were friends again, but they seemed to be getting there. Although Sasuke wasn’t as hostile as before, he still continued to keep to himself.

Naruto hadn’t realized that it was close to dawn until Sasuke mentioned it.

“Naruto, you idiot. It’s dawn, and you haven’t even realized it yet.”Looking up, Naruto was surprised to find that the raven was right. The sky was a light blue, and the first rays of the sun were beginning to peek through the treetops.

“Aw crap, I gotta go!”Naruto muttered a string of curses at the fog as he sprinted through the wet forest. Ignoring the pain in his throbbing stomach, he continued to race through the forest and into the empty village.

Soon enough, he reached the gates of Konoha and found all of the ninjas at their designated spots.

“Is the Raikage here yet?” He asked the nearest ninja.
“No, not yet.”

Letting out a sigh of relief, Naruto stood in between the gate.

His relaxed state began to fade, replaced with a strong feeling of anticipation. Even as the sun continued to rise, there were still no signs of Kumo. It only made things worse that the fog refused to dissipate.

This is a little too eerie…

Agreed. There’s something fishy about this entire situation, another voice added.

As the minutes passed by, Naruto was tempted to invade Kumo instead, if they weren’t going to stick to their own promises. Even a few of the ninjas were starting to get restless.

Naruto was about to say something to his neighbor, when the ninja shushed him.

“Wait. Look!”With the squint of his eyes, Naruto saw the outlines of three shadows coming from the white fog.