Time Away Chapter 6: Ghosts of the Past

Harashi sat in the small shack and took a deep breath. He was about to tell these ninjas the story of his homeland and how it had gotten involved in the civil war that was going to tear it apart. Then they would decide if they wanted to help him fix it. He felt the weight of a country on his shoulders as he prepared to speak. Naruto's body looked terrible, now covered in bruises that if you examined carefully, were already receding. Harashi let out a long sigh.

"Tell us everything," Naruto said. "We need to know."

"Very well," Harashi said. "Do not interrupt me, for the story is long."

"We will hold our questions until after," Naruto said. His companions nodded, and so the story began.

"Gozu and I grew up together. His father had been the head of our family, and the feudal lord of our region of the island. However, he died during a raid the High Lord had made on the mainland. Gozu became the next head of the family, but, since he was still young he was taken in by my father, who had been the previous lord's brother. We were like brothers ourselves, we trained together, ate together, went to classes together. Everything went smoothly. When Gozu turned 17, my father stepped aside and Gozu became the local lord, paying tribute to the High Lord. I stayed with him as a guard and close confidant.

However, a few years ago, the High Lord died. His son Hiro should have inherited the title, but as had happened in our family, the boy was too young. The feudal lords argued about who should rule in his stead as he pulled through the last few years of boyhood. It was decided that since a similar fate had affected Gozu and turned out bloodless, that he should hold the throne in confidence.

So he did. As time passed he became more and more violent and dissatisfied. To me he confided that he relished the job of High Lord and did not wish to relinquish it when the time came. He often wished for an accident to befall Hiro, so that he would have an excuse to stay as reagent. He spoke of marrying Hiro's sister and claiming the power permanently anyway. I counciled him against these things, as she was still a girl at the time, and that course would bring only war.

Then William came, the foreigner. As if an answer to Gozu's prayers he arrived and spoke at length with him. They were seen everywhere around the palace together. He told me that our families time had come, and that we would soon rule the entire island with an iron fist. We would replace the feudal lords with our own family members, and take the throne for ourselves. I warned him again of war, but again, he waived me off. He said that we could win any conflict. I do not know how Hiro found out about the plot, but to my shame it was not because I told him. I should have cut Gozu down then, knowing the monster he had become. Hiro, who was almost of age, fled the palace with his sister, giving the people a symbol to rally around.

Some of the Lords tried to fight, but William can do fantastic things with his power. He would rend the earth and call lightning from the sky. Hundred's dead, before even a blade is lifted. However, power is not without price. William's only request for his help in making sure Gozu kept the throne was slaves. Hundreds of peasants to be sent overseas to wherever he comes from. Gozu agreed.

Soon however, it became clear that the populace was not going to bow to him. Not when there was hope that the legitimate ruler would rise up and lead them to some sort of victory against all odds. Hiro's father had been a good ruler, and they wished for a reign like his again. When Gozu could not call him out, he sent me to hire a ninja from one of the hidden villages he had heard of from travelers. We did not know you came in threes. I volunteered for the mission, and searched for the village that would produce the kind of man that could do what I could not. I needed him to see the injustice, and help to right it, no matter what his orders were. When I saw you fight your way through an entire building to save your woman, I knew that that man was you, Naruto.

I did not expect Gozu to betray us however. I was hoping there was enough honor in him to pay you all and let you do your mission if that was what you chose. I was proven wrong though, and it seemed like he did not want to let you all live. I have no doubt that it was William that summoned the storm that blew us onto the rocks. The lives of the men on that boat are on my head as well. I beg you, regain your strength, and come with me to Hiro's side. I will make sure that the money to be paid to your village will be honored when the new mission is complete. Since I am the man that hired you, I can change the objectives, and choose to do so. Will you help me?"

Hinata looked towards Naruto as soon as the story was finished. In the end it would be him that decided, so there was no point voicing her opinion. They had been together for long enough that Naruto would know what Lee and her thought about it anyway. He was silent for a moment, thinking probably, or talking to Kit. Finally he spoke.

"This man Gozu, and his friend William, have caused me some great personal harm. He almost killed Hinata, and because of that me. He also stands to enslave these people. If there is one thing I can't stand, it's people mistreating other people."

Hinata nodded silently to herself and looked at Lee, who had a large grin on his face. The young man stood up and threw his fists into the air. "Alright!" Lee shouted. "Lets go kick this guys butt, and then we can go back to Konoha. Gai-sensei is going to love this story."

Harashi bent down low onto the ground, bowing to Naruto. "Thank you," he said.

"Don't mention it, but you should have been up front with us, honor be damned. You samurai are confused. If something is right, you fight for it. If it is wrong you fight against it. That is honor. Simple." Naruto said, while struggling to his already healing feet.

"You should rest," Hinata said, jumping to her feet as well. His eyes met hers and whatever he saw there made him sit down again.

Naruto cleared his throat. "Ok, tonight we rest. Tomorrow we start the journey. I should be healed enough to walk by then. Then we just find Hiro, convince him to trust us, raise an army, assault the palace, and defeat this guy who is strong enough to sink ships from long distances. Sounds easy." With those words he leaned back down on the cot and closed his eyes.

Hinata started to say something, but it was drowned out by Naruto's snores. How can he fall asleep so quickly? she wondered. Kit gave what amounted to a shrug and hopped up on the cot next to him. He curled himself up under Naruto's arm and closed his eyes. Hinata walked across the room and laid down on the floor next to the cot.

Naruto woke up before the sun rose. He sat up, and in doing so, woke Kit. The little fox blinked twice at him before hopping down off of the cot and over Hinata. He trotted to the door and stepped outside, and Naruto followed him. Harashi sat leaned up against a post, his eyes closed and his breathing heavy. Naruto couldn't quite tell if he was asleep or awake, but he finally decided it was probably something in between. Stretching his arms out he did a quick check of his body. Broken bones healed quickly for him. Real trouble came from internal damage and burned flesh. He formed a few hand seals and performed a small jutsu, testing his power. If he had to fight a ninja right now, he wouldn't do very well. If he had to fight a normal person, then they would probably die faster than usual, just because he didn't have the energy to play around.

Naruto looked around. Kit had ran off into the trees, probably hunting for some small game. He knew the Lee would not be asleep, for two reasons. The first being that Lee usually woke up around the same time he did. Naruto woke early because his demonic chakra had the side effect of keeping him more energized than most men. Lee did it because he liked to do lots, and lots of push ups. The second reason was that if everyone else was asleep, then Lee would be keeping watch. He was not disappointed when a whoosh of air to his left heralded Lee's arrival.

"You are up earlier than I expected," Lee said, jogging in place.

"Well, I couldn't sleep. I have been doing nothing but that since we got to this stupid island." Naruto's stomach grumbled loudly.

"I think we still have some fish I could cook," Lee said, still jogging.

"No thats fine. I really want some ramen. I didn't know I would be going so long without it or I would have smuggled some in with me." Naruto got down in the sand and started exercising.

"Should you really be doing that yet?" Lee said. The younger ninja leaped into a back flip and landed on his hands, feet pointing to the sky. He started to count under his breath as he pumped up and down into the air.

Naruto stopped in the middle of a sit up and raised his eyebrows. "Feeling especially energetic this morning?"

"Lost my weights," Lee said. Then, as if that was explanation enough, went back to counting. The two men worked out for a little while, neither saying anything.

"What happened to Hinata while I was out? She has been acting ... different." Naruto said finally. He stood up and faced Lee, who stopped doing what he was doing and looked sharply at Naruto.

"That is something you should ask her," Lee said.

"She won't answer me. She is afraid the answer will hurt me I think," Naruto said. He dropped into a fighting stance. Lee did as well and waited for Naruto's first move. It came slowly, setting the pace for the taijutsu sparring.

"You know how you look when you get angry?" Lee asked, blocking a particularly slow attack and responding a little faster, landing a kick that lifted Naruto off the ground. "She looked that way when I first saw her. It seemed like she was having a hard time holding back."
Naruto thought as he moved back and forth across the sand. His body had been laying broken and unused for too long, and his movements were still a little sluggish. He pushed chakra into his body, taking tighter control of it. He could feel his eyes dilate and his canines elongate. Time slowed for him a bit as his reactions began to happen faster and faster.

"That's the face she had on," Lee said. The 'Green Beast of Konoha' had to speed up his sparring to keep up with Naruto's new level. Finally, even with the extra control and speed Naruto slipped up, and Lee decided to end it. Grabbing Naruto's arm, Lee twisted sharply. Naruto spun with his arm to keep it from breaking again, and found himself flat on his back.

"Good job," Naruto said.

"It would be about the only time I could beat you. Barely 8 hours after I broke what seemed like about half the bones in your body," Lee said, helping Naruto to his feet. The sun had risen and Harashi had been standing off to the side watching for awhile.

"I'm glad you have recovered. I did not believe it when they told me you would heal so fast," Harashi said.

"You two make some breakfast, I want to talk to Hinata," Naruto wiped the sweat off his face, and headed into the small shack. Kit had returned while he and Lee had sparred, not bringing an animal with him. He must not have been hunting after all. The fox moved to follow him, but Naruto stopped him. "You stay out here too. For a guy that wanted his freedom you sure follow me around a lot."

Kit let a growl slip out and turned away, heading back towards the other two men. "Well, don't get so complacent, now that I can talk to everyone else I might just make some other friends."

Naruto laughed to himself as he opened the door. To hear the demon lord refer to him as a friend in a roundabout way was both entertaining and scary. Naruto had gone from considering him the worst thing in all of the universe to a friend as well in the last 10 years. It just went to show how much time changes some things.

Hinata was awake, and waiting for him. "Good morning."

"Good morning," he said closing the door behind him. He was almost sure that Kit would be sitting right outside the door soon, listening in, so he kept his voice down low. "I want to talk about what I did to you."

"You saved my life," she said. "Can we leave it at that?"

"No."

"Why? Do you really want to look for something to blame yourself over. If you hadn't done what you did I would be dead, and you would be very angry. At least I hope you would." Hinata smiled a little at the end.

"Of course I would be angry. However, I am more interested in your anger. Lee told me that you looked like me when you fought him, and I have noticed you have been a little more aggressive since I woke up."

"My body just isn't set to cope with the Kyuubi's chakra, thats all. I talked to Kit about it, and he said I will be fine. Just lost control in the beginning. It isn't a problem anymore, since I don't have the chakra , and the only reason I have these marks is because I closed off my tenketsu and the chakra couldn't escape," she said. He noticed the beginnings of some tears in her eyes. She was rambling.

"Thats all that happened?" Naruto said, "Because I heard you threaten to kill Harashi yesterday. That isn't like you."

"I'm just protective of you, thats all," she said sheepishly.

"Well I can't have you killing everyone I know just because they said or did something a little rude to me. You would have to kill a lot of people." That brought a strange expression on Hinata's face. Naruto eyed her sharply. She kept her silence. "Just do me a favor and let me know the next time you start feeling upset. I've been living with this chakra since I was born, so I am more able to cope with it. It can do a number on your temper, and I want to make sure there aren't any side effects."

"Sure," she said. She stood up and walked across the small room and hugged him. "I'm sorry I wasn't there for you earlier in life. I'm sorry that I was too shy to help you cope with the Kyuubi. If having it for a week can change me so much, I can't imagine how you stayed sane. I'm sorry," She was crying in earnest now.

"I got by, and things have turned out pretty good," he said. "Who knows, if I had someone to lean on early, I might not have turned out to be such a cheerful guy."

Hinata's tears became a short burst of laughter. "Yeah. So cheerful you don't want to kill any eavesdroppers?" she asked. The question was answered by the scuffling of feat and the distinct sound of little claws on wooden planks outside the thin door.

She ruins all the fun, Kit said in Naruto's mind.

Whatever, Naruto answered. Lets get ready to go. I'm ready to be done with all of this and go home. He looked down at Hinata. "Those whiskers really are kind of cute on you." Lowering his head a little, he gave her a kiss. "Although they are kind of hard to see when you blush like that."

She grinned and playfully slapped his arm, and he pretended like it hurt worse than it did. Holding hands, they walked back outside to the smells of cooking fish. Naruto ate like he hadn't eaten in days, mostly because he hadn't. Then they started to walk.

Hinata was very disappointed when the group finally arrived at the village that had kept her while she was injured and it was burned to the ground. Scanning the scene before her, she took in the full depravity of what had occurred. Almost all of the buildings had been completely destroyed, leaving piles of burnt out wood and rubble in their places. The smell of smoke filled the air, even though the fires had long been out. Piles of bodies caused her to avert her eyes as they walked farther into the village. She occasionally caught a glimpse of people watching out of the few surviving houses. "I wish I could not believe that Gozu was capable of ordering something like this," Harashi said, quietly. It almost seemed like a crime to speak aloud. Like you would dishonor to the dead to talk while their burnt and mangled bodies still cooled. The stench of death got stronger as you headed farther in. Hinata looked to the men that traveled with her. Lee and Harashi's eyes scanned the bodies. Naruto looked into the houses that still stood.

Suddenly, Naruto called something out in a language she didn't understand. He spoke slowly, as though he was reciting something he had memorized. Slowly, tentatively, a woman poked her head out from behind a building. She called back to Naruto. He answered her again and she left the safety of hiding to speak with the strangers.

"How did you know what to say to her?" Hinata asked quietly as the woman made her way across the square to them.

"Kit is translating for me," he said, tapping his forehead. Hinata nodded in understanding. That was the reason they had been sent in the first place, the hope that Kit could understand the language these people spoke. It seemed like a really good idea now. If something happened to Harashi, then Naruto and the team would still be able to survive without him.

Naruto turned to Harashi and spoke quickly, "I will be too slow to talk to her if she gets excited, so you handle this. Find out if Hiro is dead, and if he is alive where he went." The older man nodded, and went to talk with the woman.

Hinata held back the tears that she wanted to shed for all of these people. She looked at Lee, and could see the torment in his eyes. Lee usually had an exuberant energy about him. A certain bounce in his step and a total confidence. In a way he was very much like Naruto. Now she could see he was troubled.

"This isn't your fault," she said, trying to calm him. She knew he probably blamed himself for this.

"If I had only put the pieces together beforehand," Lee said. "Then maybe they wouldn't have found that boy that told them where to find Hiro."

"You probably saved his life," Naruto said. "From what I understand you and Hinata made quite the scene that night. He would have found the poison that you left in his kitchen, and he undoubtedly fled this place weeks ago. You can't blame yourself for this. We will make Gozu pay." There was fire in his eyes. Naruto was very angry, a mood he usually reserved for combat. Rarely had they dealt with such disregard for human life.

Finally, Harashi joined them again. "He left after an attempted assassination," Harashi pointed at Lee. "That means he has a weeks head start on us, and Gozu's raiding force will be headed back to report to the palace that he wasn't here. They will likely be mounted on horseback, so we should hurry before they return to the area."

"Do we know where he went?" Naruto asked.

"She said if we really wanted to find him, that we should follow the young men who travel on the roads. She said they had all left to fight by his side."

"An army of untrained farm boys?" Naruto asked.

"It looks that way. Gozu won't give them time to assemble. Once he finds out Hiro is raising an army, no matter how feeble, he will attack." Harashi said. Naruto scratched his head in thought.

"It is too bad Shikimaru isn't here," Lee said. "He is much better at this kind of thing."

"I have had some experience in the wars of men," Kit said once the woman had gotten out of earshot. "They are delightful affairs that," he began before Naruto cut him off.

"Do you think you can convince the nobles to support Hiro?" Naruto asked, facing Harashi.

"Perhaps, but it will take time. I would have to do too much traveling, and even by horseback I would not make it in time to stop the royal army."

"What if I had a way to travel that was much faster than horseback?" Naruto asked, looking at Lee.

"Please tell me you aren't thinking what I think you are thinking," Hinata said, eying Harashi and then Lee.

"You have been complaining that your weights were lost. You up for some training?" Naruto asked. Lee's face brightened immediately once he caught on.

"I will carry him around this island four times before the messengers even get to the palace to tell Gozu something is wrong," Lee said, a huge grin splitting his face.

"Excellent. Hinata, Kit, and I will track down Hiro and offer him our help. If he doesn't want it, then we will wait until he needs it and give it anyway. Lee, you carry Harashi to wherever he needs to go and get as many trained troops as you can manage and bring them to Hiro," Naruto said.

Harashi interrupted, "You want him to carry me?" he said.

"He runs faster than you think," Naruto said. To make an example Lee vanished from sight completely. Harashi looked around for a moment before Lee tapped him on the shoulder.

"Oh," was all Harashi said. "What happens if Gozu already knows what is going on. He sunk the ship we were on without news of our location getting to anyone."

"Then we have to hold out until you arrive. Don't be late."

"My Lord, my messenger birds bring news of an army of peasants growing in the south."

"I see. It would appear that destroying the village that had harbored him was not enough of an example. Rally our full forces, and let us crush this rebellion once and for all. Perhaps you would care to join me? I will be attending in person this time."

Authors Note: I am trying to get this fic done by January because I am participating along with some of my friends in the area in a 'National Novel Writing Month' escapade. I have to write a 50,000 word novel in 31 days, so I will need all my writing energy for that project. The updates will hopefully be coming faster than even before the computer burnout while I practice writing quickly for the challenge.

Anyway, wish me luck, and I hope you are all enjoying the story as we gear up for the final clash in Swan Country.