New Beginnings (Naruto Fanfiction)

Chapter 2: Meeting the Leaf

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After the group from the Leaf arrived, I was greeted by a few young faces, one in particular that stood out to me, a beast master. He had red triangles under his eyes, a feral look about him. Kiba was his name, and his dogs name was Akamaru, which meant ‘red’, so I wasn’t sure why he’d named him that.

“I’m Sakura,” A girl came forward, holding her hand out for me to take. I took notice of her bright pink hair and the soft look in her eyes as she waited for me to shake her hand. As I took it, I suddenly felt deprived of oxygen as images flashed in front of my eyes of Sakura.

Her childhood, her relationships, and the heartbreak she’d experienced in her life – all flowing through my body. I snatched my hand away, holding it with my other hand against my chest, trying to shut my mind to the overwhelming emotions.

“Are you okay?” She asked, clearly hurt that I’d withdrawn from her so quick.

“Y-yeah,” I gasped, getting a few strange looks from the group.

“Are you tired?” Kiba and his dog came forward, the dog looking rather concerned, while Kiba gave me a blank stare. “Akamaru can carry you home!” He put his fist close to his chest, his thumb pointing towards his torso, a huge grin on his face.

“That’d be awesome,” I was still out of breath from the handshake with Sakura. What was that? The images stayed in my head, multiple pictures of her as a child, crying to herself, and others of her teen years – one in particular that tugged at my heart.

A picture of her standing in an empty walkway and crying like she’d just lost a loved one. I shook my head clear of the pictures as Akamaru bent down so I could climb on his back, giving me a soft grunt as I pet his head.

Soon after we set out, the gentle thumping of Akamaru’s paws against the ground made me drowsy, and for the first time in my life, I was able to go to sleep knowing I didn’t have to suffer anymore.

“Hey, we’re here,” Sakura shook my shoulder gently, pointing towards the enormous gates looming over us. At the gate, there were two more people standing there, one with pointy yellow hair with his hands on his waist, waving wildly.

The other had a strange looking face, but gave me a very sympathetic look as I climbed off Akamaru with Kiba’s help. Sadly, the nap on the back of a large dog was more comfortable than anywhere else I’d slept in my life. Stretching, I watched the yellow haired guy run over to Sakura, waving his hands excitedly.

The strange looking man stared at me for a while, but didn’t come closer until Sakura called him over, excited to introduce him to the new addition to the village. I played with my hair nervously, suddenly aware that I was still wearing rags from the prison – I must look like a homeless person! I bit my lower lip and cried inwardly as I realized I really was homeless.

“Hi, I’m Naruto!” The yellow haired boy held his hand out, and I pondered for a moment whether I should accept his hand or not, considering what had happened when I shook Sakura’s hand…. I placed my palm in his, but no amount of mental preparation would have lessened the blow these flashbacks gave me.

So much pain and suffering… even as a child… How can this poor boy live with the agony he endures every day? I whipped my hand from his, holding it against my chest and gasped for air.

“Are you all right?!” Sakura grasped both my shoulders and shook, trying to get me to look at her. I avoided her gaze, feeling tears run down my face as I desperately tried to remove Naruto’s past from my mind. Nudging Sakura aside, I threw myself at Naruto, hugging him tightly.

“You’re not alone anymore.” I whispered, receiving a surprised gasp in return. He wrapped his arms around my back, bunching up my hair as he grasped the back of my neck.

“You still haven’t told me your name,” He joked as he pulled away from me, wiping the tears from my eyes affectionately, something I’d never experienced before.

“M-Mana,” Embarrassed that I was crying in front of a crowd of people I didn’t know, I quickly wiped them away and sniffled. “My name is Mana.”

“That’s a cute name, believe it!” He shouted, throwing his arms into the air dramatically, and then putting an arm around my shoulder like we were old friends. “Let’s go out for ramen, my treat!” I looked down at my clothing nervously, not entirely sure if I wanted to be seen by more people like this.

“Naruto you idiot!” Sakura yelled, smacking Naruto’s head and leaving a large red welt on the top of it.

“W-what did I do, Sakura-chan?!” She hit him again, letting him rub his wounds for a minute before motioning to my clothing.

“I need to get her something to wear,” I blushed, kicking my bare feet aimlessly as they fought over the issue. After a while Sakura stopped yelling and turned back to me. “Do you want a different outfit?” I nodded sheepishly, poking my pointer fingers together in front of me. “We’ll meet you guys at Ichiraku’s!”

Sakura grabbed my hand and pulled me off towards the center of town, causing more images to flood through me – but these were different. They put me at ease as we traveled through the crowded streets, making me oblivious to the constant stares being thrown my way.

We arrived at Sakura’s house within a few minutes, the house covered in pictures of Sakura and who I assumed were her parents.

“This way,” Sakura walked through the twisting hallways effortlessly, leaving me standing in the front hall with a confused look on my face. I followed the sound of her sock feet hitting the floor, coming to a room with a single bed, a dresser, a large mirror, and a nightstand with a picture on it.

I picked up the picture and stared at it for a minute, coming to the conclusion that this was Naruto and Sakura when they were kids… but the black haired boy looked familiar. Sakura rummaged through her closet and chatted about things in the village I should be aware of, while I ran my finger over the boy’s face.

“Sasuke,” I muttered. Sakura’s head whipped up and looked over at me, seeing me holding the picture.

“What?” She came over and took the picture from me, placing it gently on the stand before going back over to the closet and pulling out a black dress.

“The boy with you and Naruto… Is his name Sasuke?”  Sakura handed me the dress and helped me out of my current rags, slipping the black dress over my head and zipping up the back.

“Yes… he abandoned the village a few years ago,” She smiled, but I could see how pained she was.

“I’ve seen him a few times… he’s doing well.” I smiled at Sakura, placing my hand on hers and squeezing gently. Sakura gasped, looking down at my hand, then up at my face, confused.

“W-what was that?” I held my hand up, flipping it back and forth in front of me then placing it on my knee.

“I was just testing something out… when I shook your hand; I was able to see into your past.” She rubbed her hand in front of her, looking at me curiously. “I didn’t see anything too personal, but if I was able to see what you’ve seen, I figured it work in reverse.”

“I… I see.” She stood and wiped her eyes, giving me a genuine smile and helping me off the bed. “Thank you for letting me see him.” I turned as something hit the window, walking over and seeing Kiba standing there with a huge grin on his face, with Akamaru next to him.

“Let’s go, you two!” Kiba shouted, jumping on Akamaru’s back and riding off towards the center of the village.

“Let’s get going then, Mana-san, everyone’s waiting for us.”

“All right!”