Chapter 2 - Welcome to Hikaru

The night was as beautiful as the day that had preceded it. The stars were innumerable, and they cast a pale, flickering light down on the group of four Konoha ninjas. There was the hyperactive Naruto; skilled in his own way. There was the steadfast Rock Lee; quit was not in his vocabulary. There was Ekyt; the stoic ANBU agent, whose specialty was torture genjutsu (although he was well versed in taijutsu and ninjutsu as well). And there was Sakura, the perky medic-nin Kunoichi whose beauty was matched only by her skill. They were currently on their way to a town that was almost to Hamagakure. They were going to stop more out of necessity than desire. While Lee and Ekyt could have kept going, Naruto had started to complain, and Sakura’s lack of sleep was beginning to show with her constant stifled yawns, despite her assurances that she could keep going.
“Finally!” Naruto mumbled, enthusiastic upon seeing the small town for the first time.

It was indeed a site for sore eyes, er, bodies. It was a quiet little town, seemingly untouched by any modern technology beyond lights. There were a few stores, selling necessities and the occasional trinket. It was the kind of small town where everyone knew everyone else, and gossip traveled quickly. It seemed like the town hadn’t aged for fifty years, everything was antiqued. But everyone seemed friendly, to the point where it was almost creepy. There were even two girls waiting to greet the four ninja as they crossed the border!

“Welcome!” the two said in unison. Upon getting closer, it was revealed the two were twins, both with a distinct kunsai (Western Japanese) look to them. When they continued speaking, their accent matched their look.

“I’m Mia!” the one on the left declared.

“I’m Kirai!” the one on the right said, equally as enthusiastic.

“And welcome to Hikaru!” the two called, dancing around merrily, throwing flower petals around and putting a necklace made of flowers around a blushing Lee’s neck.

“Thank you,” the group said as one. Sakura noticed Ekyt’s eyes narrowing, but dismissed it as nothing. He would have spoken up if something was wrong.

“This is the place,” Sakura announced, pointing at an inn. She went to the front desk to secure the rooms for the night, and to ask a few questions about the town.

“Hey, Bushy Brow! I’ve got a plan! Let’s get those two to bunk together!” Naruto whispered with a schoolgirl-ish giggle, referring to Sakura and Ekyt.

“I do not know. Ekyt-san would kill us if he found out…” Lee mumbled apprehensively.

“Ah, come on, he doesn’t have to know we’re behind it. With any luck, he’ll think Sakura’s gotten so desperate (Lee’s face is now a mask of horror. He’s staring open-mouthed at something behind Naruto) for affection that…” Naruto’s voice trailed off. He turned to see what had Lee so spooked.
Sakura grabbed both of them by their heads, then cracked their skulls together.

“You perverted little trolls! Calling ME desperate! ‘Bunk together’, you’re lucky I don’t know which one of you you’re talking about!” Sakura shouted, storming off to her room.

Lee and Naruto were lying on top of each other, nursing injuries.
“Okay, scrap the plan…violent kunoichi, doesn’t she know we’re trying to help?” Naruto said, teeth clenched in pain.
“I will not give up!” Lee declared, leaping up. Then he had to sit back down; the pain in his head was too great to move just yet. Sakura could really pack a wallop.



Sakura sighed contentedly, a smile on her face as she looked around the room. Rice-paper doors on the inside, leading to another part of the room, a sitting area of sorts that included a comfortable leather couch and a matching armchair. A fire was already crackling merrily in the stone hearth that abutted the chair’s hassock. A thick oak door led to the outside hallway. The room was large, and had a large bed, which looked like absolute heaven to the weary kunoichi.. Upon further inspection, Sakura noticed a door out to a small deck, which overlooked a lush green garden. She decided she would check it out later, settling on hitting the hot springs instead. She pulled off her mud-and-sweat stained clothes and pulled on her gold and black checked cotton bathing robe, really looking forward to a nice long soak in a hot spring. She had just kicked off her sandals and tied the robe closed when a knock came at her door. Sakura made a small sound of surprise, but called “come in!” to the person on the other side.
Ekyt opened the door. He immediately blushed at the site of Sakura in a robe.

“I’m sorry! If this is a bad time, I can come back…” Ekyt managed, his hand already fumbling for the door knob, a furious red color rising in his cheeks.
Sakura giggled good-naturedly. “Ekyt-kun,” Sakura added the appropriate honorific to make the shocked Shinobi blush further, “It’s alright. I’m wearing a robe, it’s perfectly acceptable! Looks like you timed coming to see me just right! I hope you’re enjoying the view, Ekyt-kun…” Sakura played with her hair, trying not to crack up at the mix of horror and curiosity on her friend’s face.
Ekyt’s mouth dropped in shock. W-what does she mean by that?! Does she know…how I feel? About her?
Sakura shook her head, a smile on her face. “Back to earth Ekyt, come on. I’m just playing with you, relax! That innocence of yours…well, it’s a welcome difference from Naruto’s constant…pervertedness…I doubt that’s a word, but then again, there’s no words that do Naruto justice!”

“Yeah. His hearts in the right place though. Lee too,” Ekyt began. He was standing stiffly, still near the door. He had stared death in the eyes, in the form of Orochimaru, Kabuto, Itachi Uchiha, Sasuke Uchiha, and an angry, drunk Lady Tsunade. But a cute girl in a robe scared the hell out of him, while at the same time attracting him. He was fond of Sakura, no matter what her attire was. Something like this was new to Ekyt, and it clearly showed.

“Come in, have a seat, I don’t bite,” Sakura urged.

Ekyt took a few cautious steps in before he carefully folded himself into seiza (brutal position between sitting and kneeling) in the center of the room. He scratched his head and looked away. He had pulled his hitai-ate off, and was scratching at his thick brown hair, trying to get it back into shape.
“Sakura…I’m not sure, but did you notice anything…well, strange, about our ‘welcoming committee’?” Ekyt questioned, his eyes everywhere but on her.
Sakura narrowed her eyes. “Not really…why, what did you see?”
Ekyt shrugged. “It could be nothing…but I sensed chakra around them. A lot of chakra, like a genjutsu that was still in effect. And why would two kunsai girls be running an inn here, of all places? It just seems too convenient…”


Ekyt could practically feel his face burning from all the blushing. She’s so pretty, not to mention smart…with a sense of humor. For a minute there, I thought she could read how I feel about her…she probably can. Oh my God, she’s in a robe! I’m NOT a pervert, but this would still make for a bad scene if Naruto or Lee walked in! Oh crap! SHE might not care, but she could just destroy them if they said or did something wrong! Oh man, if I’m caught here, the ribbing will be endless

“Ekyt?”
Ekyt leapt up from his sitting position, cracking his head on the ceiling.
Sakura shook her head, a hand over her mouth in laughter. “Sorry about that, didn’t mean to scare you. You’re right, about the chakra thing. But why would they need genjutsu with us?” Sakura’s question held tones of dread, as if she already had ideas of her own.
Ekyt, rubbing his head, replied with “I’m not sure, it could just be them trying to hide their age or something…but it doesn’t FEEL like that. It feels like a threat, like they’re watching us or something.”


A knock came at the door. “Come in!” Sakura called. Oh, damnit! I don’t have my kunai on me! I hope Ekyt is armed!
The door swung open. Mia and Karai came in perkily.
“Oh-ho! Did we interrupt something good?!” Mia questioned, a hand over her mouth upon seeing Ekyt in the room as well.
“Hope we’re not in the way of…romance!” Karai added, her gaze finding Ekyt also.
Sakura blushed furiously. “No, not at all! What can we do for you?” Sakura replied, waving her hands dismissively. Sakura saw Ekyt, behind the twins, forming the “Release” handsign, then silently muttering the word aloud.
“Well, we just like to make sure our guests are comfortable. Right now, we’ve got two of our employees checking in on Mr. Uzumaki and Mr. Lee. You are the last two we have to check on…are you enjoying your stay?”
Ekyt said the word “release” to himself. He watched as Mia and Karai began to age. And… one of them changed gender?
Sakura stood up, switching into a guard position. Mia and Karai looked down at themselves, knowing their cover was blown, but good.
“Little brats! I’ll give you credit for reading our genjutsu, but you’re still gonna pay!” ‘Mia’ had become a boy. His hair came to his shoulders, a greasy brown rat’s nest of a mane. He wasn’t huge, but muscular enough to be a major threat, even without jutsus.
‘Karai’ stayed a girl, but aged, until she looked about twenty. She had blonde hair, tied back in a neat braid that fell to her waist. She was dressed in a kimono, looking more like a geisha than a kunoichi. That image changed when senbon appeared between her fingers.
“Sakura!” Ekyt tossed a kunai at her feet.

“Thanks Ekyt!” she called back. Then she gasped. The forehead protectors on the enemies…Sound ninja…
‘Mia’ made a move toward Sakura. Ekyt seized him by the back of his neck and dragged him backwards.
“Letgoa me!” the sound ninja snarled. He aimed a kick at Ekyt’s shin. Ekyt had been expecting this, and had a counter in place. As soon as he felt the ninja shift his weight, Ekyt torqued his body violently to the right, in effect throwing the sound ninja to the ground. As the ninja moved, he found a kunai at his neck.
“Don’t even think it,” Ekyt snarled, putting the slightest bit of pressure on the opposing Shinobi’s neck. As the sound ninja gulped, the razor-sharp kunai dug in at the Adam’s apple, just enough to create small trick of blood.
Sakura dodged all but one of the senbon. The cold metal pierced her shoulder, but didn’t do any real damage. Well, except for pissing Sakura off. With a yell of rage, Sakura reared back and punched, using her chakra-enhanced fist to KO the kunoichi that threw the senbon.


From below, Ekyt heard a familiar jutsu being cast.
“Shadow Clone jutsu!”

Ten Naruto’s suddenly popped up through the ceiling, all massaging their heads and cursing. They were followed quickly by another Sound Village Shinobi. He had been rocketed up through the hole created by the Naruto’s, courtesy of Lee’s Konoha Whirlwind kick.

The sudden movement allowed ‘Mia’ to roll aside, away from Ekyt’s kunai, and grab his wrist. Ekyt dropped the weapon, then quickly fell to his knees, tossing ‘Mia’ over his shoulders, to the floor, hard, from a fireman’s carry position. This wasn’t enough to end the fight. The ten Naruto’s piling on top was, however.


The four packed up quickly and set out. They needed to rest, but would find none in Hikaru.
“At least we know who our enemy is now. This is information enough to prepare us,” Lee stated.
The night was a little colder than before. The wind had picked up, sending a stinging blast of cold air whistling through the tight nit group. The something-like-a-pine trees swayed slightly, their branches waving merrily at the passing Shinobi. The real annoyance was the dirt path they were walking on. Everyone, except Ekyt, was wearing sandals, and the gritty dirt and sand beneath them was starting to cause cuts on their exposed toes. Ekyt’s annoyance was rocks in his tabi shoes.

Naruto suddenly piped up.
“So, Sakura-chan wearing a robe, and Ekyt just happens to be there…kind of a suspicious coincidence, dontcha think Lee?”
“It is Naruto. I wonder what those two were REALLY doing up there? Ekyt-san, are your eyeballs dried out from staring at Sakura-chan?”
Ekyt rolled his eyes.
“Lee, I’m going to have to hurt you if you don’t shut up…” he warned.


The four made camp for the night. Not the quality lodging they would have preferred, but they found a nice cove that offered some protection from the wind, with enough wood nearby to make a fire. The wood was very good for burning; it crackled merrily and created gray smoke that twisted and curled happily up to the sky.
Lee was doing pushups. Naruto was commenting on how stupid it was to be doing pushups at a time like this. Ekyt had pulled out a scroll, but the questionable light from the fire wasn’t suitable for studying, so he left it open more out of habit than anything. Sakura had noticed one of the jutsus on the scroll and was questioning Ekyt about it. She knelt down next to him, pointing out that the handsign was wrong.
“I think you want “dog” there, not “dragon”,” she pointed out.
“Ah, you’re right! I always have trouble with the dragon hand sign, for some reason,” Ekyt told Sakura with a small sigh.
“Let me help!” Sakura grabbed his hands and formed them into the sign.
“Oh, I understand now!” Ekyt replied. He blushed, realizing that this was indirect hand-holding.

“WHOA! What’s next, are you two gonna make out?! Can I watch?!” Naruto exclaimed, laughing at his own joke.
Sakura wasn’t laughing. She was punching.
WHAM!
“Get your mind out of the gutter, you pig! I’m a girl with principles! Can’t I help a friend without perverted comments?! Grow up!”



Sakura stomped off, but slowed herself as she got far enough away to think without Naruto breathing down her neck. Why did I do that? Ekyt is so nice to me, and all I do is deny any feelings between us. He’s just a genuinely nice guy, I don’t even think twice about talking to him about anything. From now on, I’ll make my responses nicer…don’t want Ekyt to think I don’t like him…


After a half hour, everyone said their goodnights. They went to their respective sleeping bags and curled up. Ekyt was wide awake. He had a feeling that something was going to go wrong. That’s when he heard it. Sakura, in her sleep.


“Sasuke…no…don’t kill…please…the village…so much blood…”
Ekyt cursed to himself, leaping up and over to Sakura. No doubt about it, the nightmares were happening again. These were the kind of nightmares that meant something, a connection between Sakura and Orochimaru, with Sasuke’s emotions as a medium. Sakura had been plagued by these dreams before, and she had come to Ekyt. But the dreams…after being attacked by two Sound Ninja, it was too much of a coincidence to ignore. The Sound Village was their enemy.

Sakura woke up with a start, hyperventilating immediately. She pulled the blankets up to her chin, then let them drop, as though she didn’t know what to do with her hands. She started to smooth her hair, then stopped. Her eyes darted around, looking for something, but not seeing it.
Ekyt had seen her like this once before, so he kind of knew how to react.
“Sakura, it’s okay. It’s a dream. I’m right here, nothing’s happened,” he told her quietly, in a soothing voice.
Sakura’s head whipped toward him. She uttered a small sound with an unintelligible ring to it, then grabbed Ekyt around the chest. Her grip was so tight it was almost painful, but Ekyt didn’t protest. Gently, awkwardly, he put one arm around her shoulders, using the other to brace the back of her head. After a few moments, Sakura calmed down enough to realize that she was actually hugging Ekyt.

“I’m sorry!” she exclaimed, letting go.
“It’s alright, really,” Ekyt told her sheepishly, finding himself wishing she hadn’t let go, although he was happy to see her calmer. “Was it…one of THOSE dreams?” Ekyt asked, worry etched in his eyes.
Sakura nodded. “Sasuke…killing everyone…but this time, it was us, Naruto and Lee, too, and we were on a beach…Sasuke came out of nowhere with this army…and…”
Sakura fell back into silent crying. No matter how strong she had become, some things were enough to reduce ANYone to tears. Sakura found herself clinging to Ekyt’s arm. She looked up, surprised to see Ekyt wasn’t blushing or even moving. He sat steadfast, like a rock, looking straight ahead. The rare sight was enough to shake Sakura out of her trance.

“Y-you’re really a nice boy Ekyt,” Sakura told him. “I mean, putting up with me like this. I know…I mean, how easy it is for you to get nervous around kunoichi…but right now, you’re so calm…Why?”
Ekyt noticed that she was still hanging on to his arm.
“Because my friends mean more to me than any nervous feelings. I never had people to protect before, much less people that actually gave a damn about me. I mean, my parents were great, but I mean other people. Now that I have friends, I understand: Strength reveals itself in strange ways, at strange times.”
Sakura continued to look questioningly, so Ekyt elaborated.,
“It means a lot that you and the others have accepted me. Plus, I kind of took Kakashi-sensei’s words to heart. I won’t let my comrades die.”



Sakura shivered against the cold, her skin clammy with a cold sweat.
“I’m so tired…but if I go to sleep, I’ll have another dream…” Sakura said with real concern in her voice.
Ekyt thought for a moment, then said “Lie down. Think about the beach tomorrow. You’ve always wanted to go, right? No one’s going to ruin it for you, I’ll make sure of that if at all possible. Just breathe in through your nose for a count of three, out through your mouth for a count of four, and think about that beach. The endless sand, the peaceful waves…”
Sakura found herself relaxing. She settled back into her sleeping back, zipping it closed and putting her head back on the pillow she had brought.
“Would you mind staying…like last time?” This time it was Sakura’s turn to blush.
“No problem, I’ll be right here,” Ekyt answered, indicating with his hand that he wouldn’t move.
“Thanks. It really means a lot,” came Sakura’s truthful reply. She settled back into sleep, letting it occupy her being once more, secure in the knowledge she had a warrior protecting her.


Even the ever-stoic Ekyt had to smile. Good…she really needs her rest. I have a feeling we’re in for a rough day tomorrow…Those attacks were no accident. Besides, these idiots travel in packs, there’s never just one or two…

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