Book 2: The Three of Us

Chapter 31: A Long Journey

A double post because y'all deserve it. Also a new character being introduced!

***

When the news reached me that the infamous Kisame Hoshigaki was now loyal to the Village Hidden in the Leaves, I thought I was dreaming. I spent years trying to find him, hoping to find him and once I'd finally given up, this happens. The bitter part of me was angry with him but it wasn't his fault. He probably thought I was dead. I would to if our places were swapped.

I was in the far northern part of the Land of Earth when the news reached me. Listening in on the gossiping men at the bar, my current travel companion, Tsuya's face goes pale at the mention of Konoha getting attacked. I give her a look of sympethy, it can't be easy hearing that your village was attacked while you've been stuck injured and unable to travel.

Next they mentioned that a Five Kage Summit had been called. That in of itself was a surprise. When they mentioned that the Hokage brought along Kisame Hoshigaki as one of her body guards, the cup I was holding cracked under the pressure of my hand.

"Kina-chan, are you okay?" Tsuya asks.

"We need to go to Konoha now," I say, throwing down what I hoped was enough money to pay for our drink and meal.

Tsuya doesn't take a second to question my motives, simply stands up and follows behind me. The week long journey was agonizing as I traveled as fast as I could, grateful that of the few things I knew how to do with my chakra, channeling it into my legs to run faster was one of them. My naturally large chakra reserve kept me going, compensating for my poor chakra control.

We're no more then a days travel away from Konoha when Tsuya stops running. Stopping, I turn around to face her, "Come on, we don't have much farther."

She grips her injured leg while leaning against a tree, "I can't, my leg. I need to rest. Go on ahead, I'll be okay."

"Are you sure?" I ask, not wanting to leave her but feeling desperate to get to Konoha.

"Don't worry about me. I know these woods, I'll be safe," Tsuya says, sliding down the trunk of the tree until she's sitting on the ground. I give her one last look before taking off again.

Finally arriving in Konoha, I was quickly stopped by shinobi guards at the front gate. After the attack the village had faced, it was understandable that they wouldn't want outsiders here. However, that didn't stop annoyance from building up in me.

The two guards looked up at me warily, taking in the spear and knife I had on me. They stood confidently despite me towering over them. The man with spikey hair and a bandage over his nose spoke first, "Shinobi-san, you can't enter the village unless you have papers from your village approving of your travels."

I let out a breath of frustration, "I'm not a shinobi. I don't and never have had a village."

The other guard, wearing a silly looking hat, shakes his head and raises his eyebrows in disbelief, "I find that hard to believe."

"Tukinajek! I'm not here to attack. I'm looking for someone," I say, throwing my hands up in frustration. My exhausted state mixed with my frustration makes speaking there language difficult, and only makes me feel even more frustrated and desperate.

The men cross there arms in perfect sync and give me identical looks of exasperation, "That doesn't change anything. You can't enter without papers."

"Please, I'm looking for my brother, Kisame Hoshigaki, you may know him. He look like me," I say, gesturing to myself before continuing, "Escort me. I need to see him," I plead, feeling desperate. I've gotten this far, I can't stop now.

Something I said must have reached them because they look towards each other and seem to have some sort of silent conversation with each other. Silly hat man looks away and lets out a breath of defeat, "If Tsunade-sama gets angry, you're paying for the damage and making it up to me."

Bandage man gives a grin of triumph, "Sounds like a plan."

Silly hat man shakes his head and tries his best to hide his smile before looking back up at me, "Come on, 'I'm-not-a-shinobi'-san. Follow me."

I give the tiny man a glare, not appreciating him thinking I was lying. Despite my dislike for the man, I follow him through the village. The usual stares follow me through the streets but here they lack the usual fear. The stares were more out of curiosity and it makes me feel on edge. I was used to others being scared of me, I was not used to what ever this was.

"So, where are you taking me?" I ask.

"To Tsunade-sama," the tiny man answers. I give him a confused look, not knowing who that is. He clarifies, "Our Hokage. Since you didn't know that, it's a lot easier to believe you're not a shinobi."

"Blame the mistake on my genetic advantage. Tall, strong, and naturally large chakra reserve. It's an easy mistake but I don't appreciate when people think I'm lying," I respond.

Tiny man scratches his head sheepishly, "Sorry about that. Things have been difficult lately and it has us all on edge."

I look around at the busy village around me. It was obvious that not long ago everything was destroyed. New buildings were going up but large piles of rubble were still present. My annoyance towards the man lessens when I reflect on everything he must be going through. Everything this village is going through. It's not easy seeing your village destroyed.

I give the man a light smile, "I hope rebuilding has been going well. It can't be easy."

"It's going surprisingly well," he answers. We share a brief smile, finding some common ground soothing the originally rocky start. He looks up with a start, "I forgot to ask you your name! I'm Izumo, by the way."

"I'm Kina. It's nice to meet you."

"Like wise, Kina-san," he says at the same time we stop in front of a tower building. He shares a few words with another shinobi before turning back towards me, "Tsunade-sama is on the top floor of this building. I really hope you can be patient with her, she has just arrive back to the village and has been very busy."

I give an understanding nod before following Izumo into the building and up multiple flights of stares. When we finally reach the top floor, we walk through a hallway that looks down on the village. I stop to take in the village. From here I could see just how big the village was and how much was destroyed during the attack. I don't stop for long as I continue to follow Izumo through the hallway.

:::

Omake: Two days later

A woman stumbles towards the front gate of Konoha, a limp present as she nears. The gate guards, Izumo and Kotestu snap to attention when they see her, "Registration, please."

Leaning against the table the two are sitting at, she pulls out a Konoha headband from her pouch and shows it to them. They raise there eyebrows in question, "Mission number and departing date."

"TI-66549, date of departure February 3rd," she answers.

Kotestu flips through a log book, looking at the page in disbelief, "Tsuya Shibata. Labeled MIA February 26th. Two more days and you would of been labeled KIA. Hokage-sama will want to see you right away."

***

Tsuya is a character of ours from another book we are writing but have yet to publish. She won't make an appearance again in this book.