Blonding

Chapter 34 : Arrival at Mist

The place was as deserted as it sounded.

Not a soul moved through the streets, no children playing with one another between the buildings as shopkeepers and civilians made their way across the village. No stalls were set up, or vendors to tend them, and the windows and shutters were all drawn in and secured firmly to the buildings that lined the road leading from the docks to the village proper.

It looked like a complete ghost town, and it unnerved Boruto to no end.

"Isn't this place supposed to be huge?" he asked quietly, as he walked between his father and his grandfather – well, the man that would become his grandfather.

It was strange, seeing his mother's father younger than she was in his own time. Boruto was used to the man being some sort of ever-present figure of class and dignity, considering the man was nothing short of royalty. Being the father-in-law of a Kage, let alone a retired clan leader, was certain to turn heads. But now, as a young jounin, Boruto's image of the man as some kind of omnipotent sage had shattered like a sheet of glass.

"It is," Naruto said. "But it's mostly hidden behind the fog right now."

"Something seems amiss here," Hiashi said with a frown, turning from building to building to check for chakra signatures. "I can see people inside the houses, but they aren't moving."

Naruto froze midstep, the blood draining from his face. "Are you saying they're dead?"

"No," Hiashi replied smoothly. "They look as if they are hiding from something. As to what that 'something' is, I have no idea."

Naruto took a deep breath and nodded, turning back to the long, flowing streets with narrowed eyes. That meant that the villagers were still all here… they were just locked up in their homes.

"Wait," Hiashi murmured, pointing towards a side street that went down a small hill. "There is a building down there that is still open. Whoever is inside is moving around quite a bit."

"Let's check it out," Naruto decided, steering the group down the alleyway.

When they arrived at the place that Hiashi had pointed out, Naruto breathed a heavy sigh of relief. "Good. Maybe she'll know what's going on."

The small corner market had all but one of its shutters closed and latched tight, but the door was open, and Naruto could see the figure of a short and stout old woman moving around behind the counter, storing things away in preparation to close down like everyone else, it seemed.

They made their way through the door, which opened easily. A bell chimed as they crossed the threshold, and the woman froze, her wrinkled eyes darting up from the rows of cans she was placing behind the counter.

"Who are you?" she stated quickly, moving her hands under the counter as if she was looking for something.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Hiashi warned, and the woman froze, turning to glare in the impassive Hyuuga's direction. From the looks of it, the woman had been searching for a weapon, then.

"We don't mean you any harm," Naruto said gently, as he held his hand out as a peace offering. "We're just travelers making our way through the village, and we noticed everyone was gone. Do you know what's going on?"