The Last Chinoike [A NARUTO LOVE STORY]

Pseudo-Jinchūriki

Hayami's feet carried her toward the intense concentration of chakra she was feeling on the outskirts of the village. 'I'm feeling faster than before. This is just what I need right now...' The young woman picked up her speed even more. About a minute later she was closing in on her destination.

The first thing the sixteen-year-old noticed was bubbly red chakra in the middle of a crater-like hole in the ground. Nearby trees and shrubbery were leveled and upon closer inspection, it appeared that there were two harsh chakras suffocating the air. As Hayami's eyes continued attempting to figure out what was happening, she suddenly felt the air leave her lungs upon realization. One of the two young men in those intimidating chakra cloaks that felt like it was choking her where she stood was Naruto Uzumaki.

"W-What in the world..." The girl could only choke out a few words. Her confusion was getting the better of her. Before she could make herself known to the group of chunin that were huddled close by, she shoved half of her body behind a tree and tightly closed her eyes. 

'So this is why the villagers called him an outcast and treated him so awfully. But now,' Hayami tried to ease her breathing and relaxed her eyes from a harsh squint to just being closed. 'Now, he's worked so hard- I just know it. He's had to work hard to get people to look past something like this. But despite that,' Hayami opened her eyes and looked down at the two young men, both covered in the same chakra that was now forming bubbly tails behind them, and smiled. 'I still want to stand with him, he's fighting so hard for his village and it's overwhelming. I want to be someone that he can be proud of, just like how I'm proud of him. And I want to be someone he can call his friend, maybe even someday someone he can call his-'

"Hey, Hayami! Over here!" Sakura called out to the purple-eyed girl who was slowly peaking out from behind the tree. Hayami was yanked from her thoughts and ran through some of the trees that were still standing in order to reunite with the other teenage shinobi. All of them looked on edge, but listened in intently to the conversation between Naruto and the other boy covered in red chakra.

"Sakura, who is that? Why do him and Naruto both have that red chakra?"

Sakura ignored the second part of the question, as she realized it wasn't her place to tell Hayami about Naruto being the holder of the Nine-Tailed Fox. She was cognizant to the fact that Naruto cared very deeply for this girl and he might want to tell her in his own way. 'It's a shame she has to find out by watching this fight. I'm sure Naruto wanted to keep it from her for as long as possible...'

"Uh, Sakura?" Hayami asked, still eying the two boys in the middle of the crater.

"Oh! Well that other boy is Sora. He's been staying in the village for a few days, he was pretty standoffish at first but now..." She trailed off, her attention turning to the fight. Hayami was about to ask her to answer the second question she raised but Naruto's confident voice boomed over the group and answered her question for her.

"I know everything about it." Naruto started off. He stood tall, a tail of chakra swishing around behind him. "I know everything about it because I'm the jinchūriki of the Nine Tails!" 

Hayami's eyes went wide but her feelings for being proud of Naruto and wanting to be there for him never faltered. 'So this is the weight he bears, what he holds around with him... And he's been trying so hard to help me out?!' Hayami clenched her fists. 'I'm such an idiot. He probably needed someone to be there for him and here I come along, wallowing in my own pit of sadness and I didn't even consider...' 

She quickly composed herself when she noticed Shikamaru and Choji enter the fray. Shikamaru performed his clan's special technique, the Shadow Possession Jutsu. He weaved a hand sign causing a long black shadow to stretch out from his position to Sora's. Sora was stopped in his tracks, giving Choji the position that he needed to grab ahold of the young man. Choji's Partial Expansion Jutsu held the boy around his torso, providing extra security if Shikamaru's jutsu failed.