Chapter 7 - Keseki (Miracle)

        Naruto had decided to be the one to take Nara to see the others. Naruto knew exactly where she wanted to go first. They were going to go to the marketplace to find Hinata. Then they were going to find Lee in the stadium. After that, it was ‘Say hi to whoever you happen to bump in to.’ Nara and Naruto went to the marketplace, to look for Hinata and Tenten. After about fifteen minutes of searching, Naruto was complaining about how hungry he was, so they stopped at the Ramen bar. As Nara sat down, she noticed someone somewhat familiar sitting next to her. She couldn’t tell who it was, until they turned their head.


        “Nara-chan? Is that you?” Nara cocked her head. “T-tenten-san?” Tenten grinned. “No way! You’re back! Look at you! You’ve gotten taller! And you cut your hair. It looks nice.” Nara blushed a bit. “Th-thank you, Tenten-s-san.” Tenten wrapped her arm around Nara’s shoulder, and started yelling towards a shop across the street. “Hinata-chan! Come over here! You won’t believe who I just found!


        Almost immediately, Hinata came walking out of the other shop. Nara stood up, and ran to meet her, and they both hugged each other. Of anyone, Nara had missed Hinata most of all. Hinata was like a sister, and was her best friend. They stood in the street, hugging each other for a few minutes, until they both started getting embarrassed and let go. Both Nara and Hinata were smiling, and Nara had a light in her eyes that hadn’t been there for two years.


        “It’s s-so good to s-see you again, Hinata-ch-chan.” Hinata ruffled Nara’s hair. “It’s nice to see you too, Nara-chan.” Seeing the two of them next to each other, it was easy to see how much they changed. Nara had cut her hair, and Hinata had grown hers out. Both of them had changed their outfit, and both of them seemed taller and more mature. But they still kept many similarities. They both had the same kind look on their faces, and the same shy little smile. And they both still had the same voice. The soft, shy voice that they had shared since childhood.


        Nara took a minute to wipe away the tears that were starting to form in her eyes. “H-how have you b-been, Hinata-chan? I he-heard you’re a ch-chunnin now.” Hinata nodded, also taking a second to wipe her eyes. “You heard right. I am. And so is the rest of my team. So how have you been? I haven’t seen you in so long.” Nara grinned. “I’ve b-been good. I’ve been o-out training and su-such. I re-really am glad to be b-back, though.” These words stung like a knife through her chest. She knew that this wouldn’t last forever. She would have to go back to the Akatsuki one day, no matter how much she tried. But she tried to avoid it. She tried to think of the good things that were to come.


        “So where are you going after this, Nara-chan?” Nara smiled. “I’m go-going to find N-nii-san.” Hinata smiled. Nii-san was the nickname Nara had given to Lee a few years ago.



Flashback…..



        A group of older genin had Nara surrounded. For years, ever since she joined the academy, Nara had been a target for bullying. Nara’s shy nature did nothing to help her. That particular day, the group decided that physical bullying was better than emotional. They beat on her for a while, but as one was about to land a nasty hit to her chest, someone came running, and grabbed his wrist in midair. Then, they punched him in the stomach and sent him flying. The other genin ran away.


        Nara looked up. Standing in front of her was a boy, maybe a year older than her. He was wearing a green jumpsuit, and his black hair was styled in a bowl-cut. His eyebrows where humungous, and his eyes were …..odd. But Nara was grateful. As he helped her up, he began to introduce himself. “I am the handsome devil of the Leaf village, Rock Lee! And who are you?” Nara looked down, and started blushing. “M-my name i-is Nara. Nara Na-namida. Um….thank y-you for s-saving me.” Lee looked down at her. “Well I couldn’t let them hurt you, now could I?” Nara blushed even harder. “Well, th-thank you. Thank y-you so m-much.” Lee smiled. He seemed pleased at how happy he had made Nara. “Um….L-lee?” Rock Lee looked over at her. “Yes? What is it?” Nara stared at her feet. “Would y-you mind i-if I ca-called you Nii-san?” Lee grinned from ear to ear. “I don’t mind at all, Nara-chan.”



End of Flashback………



        The nickname had stuck with him ever since. Soon, Nara and Naruto parted with Hinata and Tenten and left for the stadium to go see Lee. As they were walking, Nara noticed someone else familiar. He was walking with someone she didn’t know, and was holding a small baby in his arms. Nara went up and tapped his shoulder, and he turned his head. Nara smiled. She knew exactly who it was. It was Sasuke.


        “Nara-chan? Is that really you?” Nara nodded. “Yes, S-sasuke-san. Its m-me.” Sasuke put his hand on Nara’s shoulder. “It’s nice to see you again.” Nara smiled. “ It’s ni-nice to see y-you too.” The other person looked over at Sasuke. “Sasuke-koi? Why did you stop? Who is that?” Sasuke turned so that Nara could see the woman on the other side of Sasuke. She had black hair, and white wolf ears. She was also holding a small baby in her arms. “Sofy-koi, this is Nara-chan. I’ve known her since the academy. Nara-chan, this is Sofy-koi, my wife, and the mother to the twins here.” Nara smiled. “I-it’s nice to me-meet you, Sofy-san.” Sofy nodded. “It’s nice to meet you too, Nara-chan.” Nara stayed there for a while, talking with Sasuke and Sofy about…things…until Naruto dragged her off, reminding her about seeing Lee.


        When they finally made it to the stadium, they were greeting by the sounds of cracking cement and boards being snapped. They walked in to see a dust covered Lee, Neji, with splinters in his hand, and a huge pile of rubble. Lee and Neji were both laughing at their ‘handiwork’, when they happened to look at the entrance. Lee’s eyes widened immediately, and he ran over and gave Nara a bear hug, but it felt more like a death grip.
      

         “Nara-chan! I’m so glad to see you! You’ve been gone for so long! I missed you so much!” Nara grinned. “I m-missed you too, N-nii-san. Um…c-can you let me g-go?” Lee looked at Nara, and let her go. “Sorry! I was just so exited and I guess I got carried away…..Heh heh heh…..So how have you been? You look a lot different now. You cut your hair. And you’re a lot leaner now. You have been eating enough, haven’t you?” Nara nodded. “I’ve b-been fine, Nii-san. Th-thanks for worrying a-about me.” Lee grinned and rested his hand on her head. “It’s not a problem. You know how important you are to me.” Nara blushed. For some reason, that comment always embarrassed her. She knew that it meant that he cared, but it embarrassed her anyway.


         Neji walked up to Nara and the others. He took a good look at Nara, and put his hand on her shoulder. “Welcome back, Nara-chan.” Nara grinned. “G-glad to be back, N-neji-san.” With these words, Nara winced. It was subtle, but someone noticed it. “Nara-chan? Why did you just wince? Are you in pain?” Nara looked at Lee, his eyes filled with worry. “I’m f-fine, Nii-san. No-nothing’s wrong.” Lee put his hands on her shoulders. “Are you positive?” Nara nodded. “Yes, N-nii-san. I’m po-positive.”
The group was talking for a few minutes when they heard some chattering coming from behind them. They turned to look, and they were surprised to see a group of people standing there, led by none other than Sakura, Hinata, Tenten, Sasuke and Sofy. Nara was shocked. Pretty much everyone she knew was there. Even Gaara and Kankuro were there, even though it was likely that the only reason they were there was that Temari brought them there with her.


            “Wh-what’s this? Why are y-you all here?” Sakura smiled. “Well, I thought we might go and tell the others you’re back, and they all wanted to see you. So we brought them all here.” Nara smiled. She really realized what great friends she had. They protected her, they cared for her, they loved her, and they’d do anything for her. Nara’s couldn’t really hold it in. She fell to the ground, her eyes tearing violently. Lee and Hinata ran up to her. “Nara-chan! Are you alright?! Why are you crying!?” Nara stood up, and hugged Hinata, crying on to her shoulder.


             “I’m j-just so h-happy. I n-now realized wh-what great f-friends I h-have.” Iruka came up to her, and started to rub her back. “Nara…” Nara looked at Iruka, then turned around, hugging him instead of Hinata. They just stood there for a while, trying to comfort the crying Nara. Slowly, the rest of the group started to come around, surrounding Nara to check if she was alright. Even Gaara seemed a bit concerned. It took a few minutes for anyone to notice that she had actually fallen asleep standing up.


          Iruka was the one who noticed. He simply smiled, and picked her up, holding her in his arms. He walked to his house, and laid Nara down on the couch to sleep. He smiled. In her sleep, Nara looked as innocent and gentle as she had 7 years ago, when he first found her in the woods. She was curled up in a ball, her arms folded up against her chest. Iruka was happy to see her so peaceful. He pulled the blanket over her sleeping body, and turned the light off, leaving Nara to rest in peace.


         Then he remembered Momo. When Nara had left 2 years ago, he took Momo with him. He was afraid that Momo was going to wake Nara. But when he went to check, he saw a wonderful sight. Momo was with Nara. He was sleeping, lying along the curve of her back. His furry head was resting on her neck, his nose pressed against her cheek. Iruka was surprised that she hadn’t woken up. But then again, she’d had the dog for years; she was probably used to the feeling.


         Iruka sat the chair opposite of the couch, watching the sleeping pair. He was soon asleep, lulled by the soft breathing that could be heard in the room. With the calmness of the room, no one would suspect that they were being watched. But they were. A black figure was watching them from the window, glaring in hatred and disgust. The figure vanished after another few minutes. Before he left, however, there were a few words that he said:



“These acts will not go unpunished.”

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