Author's Note: For those of you just joining us, this is the third part of my Harry Potter/Naruto trilogy. If you haven't read "Harry Potter, the Prisoner, and the Masked Man" or "Harry Potter and the Ninja of Fire" you may be more than a little lost.
This story takes place roughly 16 years after the events of "Ninja of Fire".
I do not own Harry Potter, Naruto, The Wizard of Oz, or anything else I make references to and I don't know anyone who does.
Without further ado, let's get this party started!
Chapter 1: On the Other Side
"Are you sure this was a good idea?" The dark man said as he and his companion walked through the village. Their cloaks swished as they strolled down the main road. "Shouldn't we just go back right away like we did in the last world?" He suspiciously looked around at the other people in the market.
The blond beside him moved along through the crowd as if she hadn't heard her associate. She was oblivious to the stares she was receiving from the ninja around her. Her silver eyes languidly took in everything around her. "What's the point of coming here if we aren't going to look around? Especially since we found people. We'll have nothing to report if we don't explore."
Her eyes fell on first one headband, then another. Many of these people wore the headgear, but the markings on the plates were different. "Do you see?" The man asked as they continued down the dirt road.
The witch nodded, the wand behind her ear bobbing with the motion. "They're the same but different. This is their world."
"Stop where you are," a man suddenly said. He stepped forward out of the crowd as he spoke. The villagers, who had already been giving the wizard and witch a wide berth, withdrew further.
Luna and Viktor stopped obediently. A ninja in black and silver attire approached the pair. Others, dressed the same way, surrounded the foreigners in the quickly emptying street. The people remaining in the market began to hurry down the road or run into nearby shops.
"State your business," the same man said, his tone hovering between official and gruff. He had a pale face and a dark goatee. "Where do you come from?" The man appraised their heavy robes curiously.
Viktor itched to draw his wand but remained very still, not wanting to provoke anyone. As it was, they were on neutral ground and he had no intention of changing that.
Luna seemed perfectly at ease. She smiled at the man as if he wasn't apprehending them. In her most polite tone Luna annunciated, "do you know Kakashi Hatake?"
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"Lord Sixth," Shikamaru said as he entered the Hokage's office, "we just got a very unusual message from the Cloud."
"Hm?" Kakashi responded, looking up from the paperwork he was finishing.
"This is going to sound crazy," Shikamaru said, scratching the back of his head. "It's a drag but they're insisting. The guys in the radio room are a little ticked that their new position is being slighted."
Kakashi set down his pen and leaned back in his chair. He tried to keep a sigh out of his voice. "What is it Shikamaru?"
"They thought that the Cloud transmitters were pranking them or something but then they insisted on talking to me," Shikamaru sighed, attempting to explain. "I'm sorry for bothering you."
"Shikamaru, the point?"
"Right, sorry." Shikamaru continued, "the Cloud transmitters said that there are," he paused to mentally kiss his new job goodbye, "two wizards in their village, looking for you."
Kakashi's reaction was not what Shikamaru had expected. The man's eyebrows rose up to hide behind his headband. The last Hatake sat there for a moment, stunned. Shikamaru was about to apologize again when Kakashi got up quickly, his chair spinning a bit at his exit.
"How long ago did they arrive?" Kakashi demanded, rounding his desk and making for the door.
Shikamaru started. "Um, what?"
"The wizards, when did they arrive? Are they- let me talk to the transmitters." Kakashi strode out of his office with Shikamaru at his heels.
"Kakashi-sensei, um, I mean, you know I said wizards right?" The Nara stuttered out, his shock making him slip into old habits. They walked down the hallway to the stairs.
"Yes, that's why we need to hurry. This could go very poorly. And they had to show up in Cloud too, the only place that might have been worse is Stone. They might have been killed on sight out of reflex. It's a good thing we're not at war."
Shikamaru's brain was going at incredible speeds. Either Kakashi-sensei has lost his marbles or… "Are you saying there are such things as wizards?"
"No, not from around here anyway," Kakashi answered distractedly as they continued up the flights of stairs. "They're from a different world. I have no idea what they're doing here though." Kakashi suddenly stopped. He turned to the jonin beside him. "Shikamaru, there's a file under foreign missions labeled Hogwarts, or maybe it's under British Ministry of Magic. Find that. Read it. I need Ebisu, Kurenai, Guy, and Yamato in my office in thirty minutes. No, forget that for now, I need Sai. I need to get over to Cloud immediately and assess the situation."
With that Kakashi rounded the staircase and was gone, leaving a confused jonin behind him. Sai huh? Shikamaru thought as he descended the stairs much slower than he'd ascended them. No harm in stopping by the mission records building first.
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Kakashi was pacing when Shikamaru and Sai walked into his office. The Hokage looked up.
"Sai, good you're here. Would you mind giving me a lift to the Cloud?" Kakashi asked.
"Of course Lord Hokage," Sai said with a small smile. "You're off to see the wizards."
Kakashi paused, an eyebrow arched. "Are you making fun of me Sai?"
Sai's smile dropped into his neutral expression. "No sir, Shikamaru explained…sort of." The artist turned to his companion.
"Why have I never heard about this before," Shikamaru said, dropping the thick file onto the desk. "Wizards? Interdimensional travel? You were there two years and none of you ever said anything?"
"Classified and then forgotten about. I never actually thought I'd see any of the wizarding community again," Kakashi said frankly. He paused in thought for a moment. "In any case, I need to leave for Cloud and ensure no damage has been done. I can't do much sitting around here."
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A Cloud ninja unlocked the heavy iron door and rushed into the holding cell, startling the two guards that had been left inside with the wizard and witch.
One of the ninja who had remained stood. Viktor and Luna also stood out of politeness but the new ninja ignored them. "The Hokage is coming here himself," the man burst out, slightly panicked. He'd teased the witch earlier about the weird stick in her hair and was regretting it.
The two guards showed their surprise. "Seriously? These people must be important." The seated guard spared the captives a glance.
The two of them weren't restrained but Viktor understood perfectly, he and Luna were prisoners. They were in a dark cement room with only chairs as the furniture. The guards sat with them in the cell. Besides the guards there was only a locked door keeping the foreigners there, not that that would have been a problem.
Viktor adjusted his grip on his wand. Unbeknownst to him, the seated guard was keeping an eye on the man's wand hand. Since Viktor had done nothing, the ninja hadn't made a move either. For all he knew it was a custom of the foreigners to keep one hand in a pocket. Caution was key when dealing with someone you didn't understand. Misunderstandings sparked unnecessary conflict.
Luna put her hand on Viktor's arm. "Don't alarm them. It'll be alright, you'll see." Then Luna turned to the ninja who'd continued speaking. "I'm sorry, but what's a Hokage?" She used her most reassuring smile.
The ninja stopped and looked at her, then at each other. One of them shrugged and spoke, "the title Hokage refers to the leader of the Village Hidden in the Leaves, one of the five great ninja villages."
"And the Hokage is coming to see us?" Viktor confirmed. His dark brow furrowed.
The ninja nodded almost in unison.
"And this Hokage is powerful?"
One of the ninja scoffed. Another elbowed him hard and scowled, reminding him to be respectful, and said, "not as powerful as our own kage, maybe, but he is quite powerful in his own right, yes. How do you think he became the Hokage?"
"In any case he'll be here soon. He's flying here now." The ninja returned to their conversation, covertly listening to the prisoners.
Viktor turned to Luna. "Forget starting relations, we should leave immediately. I'm an International Cooperation Official but this kind of embassy is completely out of my depth. You remember how Hermione described their society! For all we know, the guards we knew are dead and we've already signed our own death warrants by using one of their names."
Luna smiled. "They will come. If they find out we're here, they'll come. We can speak with this Hokage and he'll help us; I'm sure he will."
"I wish I had your-" A door slamming down the hall cut Viktor off.
The barest hint of footsteps could be heard approaching as several ninja made their way down the hall. The three in the cell stood hastily and brushed imperceptible fuzz from their clothes. Luna and Viktor also stood. Viktor was tense and alert whereas Luna was relaxed. A key was inserted into the lock and the doorknob turned.
The door was opened for a man who stood in the hall. The fresh light obscured his features at first. His white cloak swished as he stepped into the room and stopped. Several others filed in and fanned out behind him. The harsh light from the cell fixture cast an imposing light on the lead figure. However, there was no mistaking that silver hair or that concealed face.
"Kakashi," Luna exclaimed stepping forward.
Simultaneously Viktor heard the guards greet their old defender with a respectful, "Lord Hokage." His eyes widened and cogs in his brain locked into place. He reached out to grab Luna's arm, to stop her from becoming a perceived threat, but she was already out of his reach.
Kakashi had her covered however. "Don't," he made the one word sound like a request but the steel in his voice left room for nothing but obedience.
Luna stopped immediately but Kakashi wasn't speaking to her. His hand was held palm out toward the guards, placating them. Their hands were already halfway out of their pouches clutching sharp implements. The group behind Kakashi had also tensed but did not move, waiting.
Kakashi returned his attention to the witch and wizard. "Luna Lovegood," he said, a smile in his voice. The name came to his mind easier than he'd expected it to.
Luna smiled in response. "Glad you remember me."
Kakashi almost laughed. "One would have a hard time forgetting you." He took her hand and shook it in the western fashion. Kakashi turned to the brutish looking man beside Luna. "Viktor Krum," Kakashi greeted and shook his hand as well.
The former champion nodded. "Kakashi, you're the Hokage?"
"That's what they keep telling me," Kakashi quipped. Then the silver haired ninja frowned, tilting his head. "You called me Hokage. Your translating spell must be different than the one Dumbledore gave us all those years ago."
"Well if Dumbledore gave you yours," Luna said, blushing. "Sometimes how well a spell works is all up to the skill of the caster."
Kakashi nodded. "I'd ask you what you're doing here but this isn't meant to be an interrogation." He turned to the Raikage, who'd stayed in the background up until this point, not wanting to interfere.
"You know these people then Lord Hokage?" The giant man ground out.
"Oh yes," Kakashi replied lightly. "They're old friends. So old in fact that they're probably wondering when I got so tall and-" Kakashi glanced down at his gray and black ensemble under his Hokage cloak. "Well actually this is pretty similar to what I wore back then." Kakashi looked back up. "In any case, I would very much like to know what they're doing here." Kakashi's eyebrows rose at the Raikage, a silent request.
The Raikage bowed shallowly. "We can continue this discussion in my office, of course."