Kaze no koibitō

2

As Naruto trudged along the path, his thoughts went back to what he had learned earlier that week. His parents were good people, honorable people, and they had loved him. He was not happy with his father's decision to stick a demon inside him, but it was a hard thing for a man to decide to do. Do you decide that the life of your child is worth more than an entire village or do you take the adage that 'the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few' to heart? It was a troubling question and he didn't know if he had an answer to that. His father had been in a compromising position and if he were placed in the same, he didn't know what his solution would have been.

People stared at him as he passed them by. He had forsaken his orange jumpsuit. It was a reminder of what he had left behind in Konoha, a childhood that needed to end as soon as possible. It was time for a fresh start and he had started that with a change of clothing. Wearing beige baggy pants, a black long sleeved shirt, black sandals, and his father's battle coat with the sleeves shredded, he was quite an imposing figure. The tall collar of the coat shielded him from prying eyes somewhat, and for that he was grateful. He wasn't out of Fire Country yet, and there were undoubtedly some people from Konoha who would recognize him. He shifted the pack on his back and straightened up slightly.

It was hard for him to cancel his contract with the toads but he felt it needed to be done. That contract had been in Konoha for quite a while, and it just felt wrong taking it away. Even if Jiraiya never found someone to summon them again, the contract would stay in the vaults until someone was deemed worthy. He mourned the loss of his friends from the toads but it was for the best. He wanted a fresh start in everything. Perhaps he'd find a new contract somewhere and it would rival the toads in power.

After a couple days of walking, Naruto found himself at the border of Fire Country and River Country. He grimaced when he remembered that that was where they had found Gaara, dead on the ground with Deidara on top of him. It was not a happy memory, even if his friend was saved in the end. It was just a reminder that those bastards were still out there, even if they were weakened at the moment. He growled deep in his throat and some people walking by him turned and stared. He didn't notice and just kept walking. Thinking about Akatsuki wasn't going to help any. He needed to keep his thoughts about him, and look toward the future.

He stopped about halfway through River Country for the night and made camp. He suddenly wished he hadn't been so hasty in giving up the toad contract. Gamakichi would've made a good companion on the trip. He sighed and rested his chin on the folded arms supported by his knees. He hoped that his new life in Suna would be a happy one. At least he already had some friends there to make the transition easier. But going from an environment full of life and flora and fauna to one filled with never-ending sand and wind was quite a system shock. He stared into the fire and watched as the flames crackled and danced. He'd done so much in the past few days and it made his head spin. Deciding to try to bore himself to sleep, he summoned one of his mother's scrolls and began to read.

Several hours had passed and he still wasn't asleep, but that was more from excitement than from a need of rest. This particular scroll was all about his mother's gardening ability. So that was where he got his affinity for botany. She had several tips for dealing with several different types of plants. He was intrigued with the idea of imbuing plants with chakra to make them grow and sending chakra into the ground to make grassy patches. If he saved up enough money to buy a plot of land in Suna that would most definitely be a useful tactic. Snapping the scroll shut, he laid down and was soon asleep.

Morning came earlier than he wished and he went about his morning ritual. He got out the picture of his parents and prayed that their souls were safe. He had heard over the years about the fate of his father and only hoped that Kami would have mercy on his and the other Hokage's souls. It wasn't fair that such noble men were forced to suffer while monsters such as Akatsuki roamed the earth with no repercussions. He ran his fingers over the faces of his mother and father and let a single tear fall. His dream now, besides living a full life and having a family, was to meet his parents in the next life. He stared at the faintly twinkling stars in the morning sky and wondered if perhaps two were his parents. Shrugging off those thoughts he wolfed down his breakfast of fruits and bread, sloshing it down with water.