Disclaimer:
I don't own Naruto, they belong to Kishimoto. I wish I owned Naruto though, or at least had permission to write for the filler arcs. Then I could get this story animated. Oh yeah, and Tora belongs to Briikittee.
Summary:
A new clan of shinobi wishes to settle in Konoha, but before they can a rescue must be mounted, to save one of their own who has been kidnapped. Takes place sometime after the Konoha Eleven Arc (and thus almost anytime during the other Fillers) and before the Timeskip. Rated PG-13 for action violence and some light cursing.
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In the shinobi world, most ninja fell into one of two categories. Those who worked for one of the organized Hidden Villages, and those declared "missing-nin" who were ruthlessly hunted and pursued by one of the former. Even those shinobi who had left their home villages with permission, on extended missions or simply tired of the ninja lifestyle, tended to fall into this category because they were on their own. They had no permanent base of operations, no access to funds beyond those they earned themselves, and had no comrades to back them up during troubled times.
However, over time, as a number of smaller Hidden Villages had popped up, so too had a number of wandering groups of ninja with their own agenda. Akatsuki, spoken of in whispers, was one such group, their members shrouded in shadow, their goals and abilities as of yet unknown. The Watari ninja, who'd tried to seize control of the Bird country, had been another such group, though they'd all but been destroyed by the intervention of Konoha's own shinobi. Fortunately, however, not all of them were bad. Some of them were groups that simply enjoyed the free lifestyle of wandering ninja, not being forced to answer to a damiyo or a kage.
And herein we find the tiny clan of Owani.
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"This is outrageous to even consider!"
"I am aware this will require a great deal of... change," replied the head of the Owani clan, a long-haired, wild looking man. "But this is ultimately what is best for our future."
The Owani clan lay gathered around a campfire, in a clearing deep in the woods of the Fire Country, where they currently resided. It's members shared a number of features. Long, bushy hair the color red, from a bright carrot-orange to a dark auburn. They were feral looking and lanky, thin and muscular. Red marks covered their bodies, though whether tattoos or some strange form of birthmark a casual observer couldn't tell. And their clothes were marked with the symbol of a paw, the crest of the Owani clan.
And, of course, there were cats.
Cats everywhere. Big cats, little cats. Massive beasts that prowled alongside their masters, standing as tall as their hips. Tiny little felines that perched themselves on heads or shoulders. Browns, orange, white and black, a myriad of colors splashed across their campsite, the air filled with the faint mews and quiet roars of their cats. Cats were the pride of the Owani clan, after all. Their members fought alongside their feline companions, much like the Inuzuka clan up north in Konoha proper. But they had worked independently, selling their skills to nearby villages, doing their jobs, then moving on, never settling in one place for more than a month.
Until now.
"I say again, this is outrageous!" roared one of the younger members of the Owani, a bushy-haired man. "We Owani have never settled anywhere. It is not our way!" Beside him, his companion, a stripy white tiger, growled in agreement.
The clan head frowned darkly at that, cat-like eyes narrow with displeasure. "It was our way. But our ways must change or our future will not survive. Now listen to me... all of you... I have been recently been in contact with the Hokage of Konoha herself," he said, holding up a scroll in his hand.
"She has assured our clan safety and prosperity if we choose to settle here, in the Fire Country. The Hidden Village of Leaves is as good a village as any for us to settle and raise our children and their children's children," he stated emphatically, well aware of the close family ties of the Owani clan. In particular, one whom had convinced the head to undertake this radical change to the family.
Sitting at the far end of the campsite, shrouded partially in shadow, his daughter, Tora. To his annoyance (and maybe a little amusement, he admitted privately) she wasn't paying much attention, she was playing with Tigtig, the tiny persian who'd recently been given to her as her companion. Idly, he wondered to himself how a six pound cat was able to pin a hundred-pound little girl while they tussled, but didn't bother to question it aloud.
To his relief, however, most of the rest of the Clan seemed to be agreeing with him. These were dark times, after all. Troubled times for all shinobi. Being safe and having a steady stream of income was a necessity harder and harder to find for wandering ninja.
"What about the Inuzuka's?" someone called out from the back, a grizzled veteran with a black and white tabby under each arm and more scars than he had skin (or so it seemed sometimes).
The head of the clan smiled, having anticipating that. "The Hokage assures me that our Clan will be settle on ground opposite that of our rivals, and that barring missions we should have no trouble from them. Beyond that, the head of their clan is anxious to put the old feud to an end and start fresh. If we are willing to do the same, I see no reason why we need let an old hatred stop us."
Murmured words and nodding was the reply.
"As always, I am willing to listen to objections... have we any?"
Silence greeted him, punctuated only by one of the tigers giving a loud yawn.
He chuckled at that. "I agree, it -is- late. Very well, get some rest, all of you... we set out in the morning for Konoha."
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The Owani tribe, usually on the move, slept in tents they carried on their backs while they traveled, set up in a semi-circle around the larger campfires. Older members bid their children and siblings good-night as they sat by the fire into the early evening, talking, playing, working. Food from hunting done earlier in the day was passed out, and Owani clan tore into it with canines and appetites as sharp as their feline companions. And about as much table manners.
Far from the main fire, the head of the clan, sighing with relief after his long debate, relaxed on a log resting outside his own tent. He felt very, very tired indeed. It would be good to settle down and rest instead of being always on the move, he thought. Lying before his tent on the ground was Lynx, his partner. A great brute in appearance, but in reality a gentle spirit, Lynx had been crippled during a mission a while back, and now made it's way along on three legs instead of four.
"Father?"
He smiled, having heard her coming a while off. "Tora... please... join me," he said, indicating a log across from him.
Tora sat down, cradling Tigtig in her arms, and in the dim light her father studied her. Not too tall, not too thin, but seemingly having shot up like a reed sometime since he'd last taken a good look at her. Then again, at her age that wasn't much of a surprise. Had she lived in a Hidden Village she'd likely be graduating from the Academy about now. Her eyes were piercing green, like her father's, and slanted and slitted like a cat's. But her hair was definitely her mother's, a mass of crimson curls that splayed every which way atop of her head. She was dressed in the white linen wraps of a kunoichi and a green tunic and skirt bearing the Owani crest.
"Are we really going to Konoha?!" she asked excitedly. In her arms, Tigtig gave a happy mewl, clearly excited as well.
He smiled wearily, sometimes envying the seemingly boundless energy his daughter had. "Yes, we're going to settle in Konoha. The others agree. Those that don't will once we get there."
"That's wonderful! Oooh..." she said, suddenly thoughtful. "What about those Inuzuka's? I hear they don't like us. And... and they sound scary," she added in a subdued tone.
He frowned lightly. "Who's been saying that?"
"No one in particular just... stuff I hear," she said. "Is it true?"
"Inuzuka's bond with dogs the way we do with cats... so naturally our Clans have had some... er... animosity in the past," he replied carefully. "But they are not mindless animals anymore than we are. You'll see. Konoha's a wonderful place. You've never been, but I've done missions out of Konoha some time ago."
She smiled again, so easily. "I can't wait!"
"Get some rest then... both of you," he added for Tigtig's benefit, knowing the little persian was prone to wandering about all night. "We leave in the morning."
"Hai!"
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Lots of young shinobi in Konoha dreamed at an early age what being Hokage must've been like. Glorious, life-or-death battles against incredibly powerful opponents. Being regarded as a hero by the entire village. If many had known just what sorts of details the job entailed, their precious hopes and dreams would've been dashed aside in moments.
As it was, Tsunade still sometimes wondered what had possessed Nawaki, Dan, and Naruto to ever want this job, even as she stamped the last papers with her seal and approved the next set of missions.
Today was an especially busy day, unfortunately. But then again, ever since the Sound and Sand invasion, the village had been swamped in more than it's share of work. Too many missions, not enough shinobi to handle them all. If not for Shizune's ministrations, plus the assistance of Kotetsu and Izumo, Tsunade would've done the honorable thing long ago and killed herself before boredom and paperwork did the job for her.
She was shifting through the latest hospital expense sheets when Sakura came bursting into the room, slamming the door open. Seeing her apprentice in such an agitated state, it was clear something was up, and Tsunade quickly rose.
"What is it?"
"Trouble."
Not a word Sakura used lightly, trouble could mean anything from the Kyuubi breaking free of Naruto to another invasion of the Sound to an influx of wounded at a short-staffed hospital. Fortunately, as Sakura and Tsunade arrived, it turned out to be the latter, and they moved in quickly to assist, Shizune (who was on duty that day) pointing them out to the appropriate areas they could be most needed. What troubled Tsunade, however, was those they were treating.
It was the Owani clan.
Tsunade had been expecting them later today in her office (well, just their head and maybe his cat) but if they were all here, they must've been attacked outside of Konoha's borders and made their way back injured.
"Tsunade-sama! Tsunade-sama!"
Snapping her head up from her injured patient, a scarred veteran, Tsunade saw the head of the Owani clan come barreling down the corridor towards her.
"Tsunade-sama!"
"Yes, yes I'm here, we're doing all we can."
"No, it's not that... the attackers... they've kidnapped my daughter!"
Tsunade's eyes opened wide in shock, then narrowed angrily.
If today was going to be this bad, she vowed, it wasn't going to be just for her. Whoever had made this slight against Konoha and their new clan would be paying for it.
"Sakura!"
The pink-haired kunoichi's head snapped up as she set the bone for one of her patients, and she hurried over as quickly as she could. Tsunade didn't care for lightening their already short-staffed medical team, but she needed a runner, and Sakura was quickest, so there was no helping it.
"Go find Naruto," Tsunade ordered, then before Sakura ran off, glanced up at a the clock on the nearby wall. Noon.
"Start at Ichiraku's."
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Author's Notes:
The Owani clan, as well as their heiress Tora and her Tigtig, are trademarked to Briikittee. I saw some artwork on deviantart, we met, one thing led to another, blows were excha-... I mean -ideas- were exchanged, and this story spawned from it.