The Willow Maiden [Naruto]

{26} 2 Years Later

Ruka is now 16 years old and her appearance has changed. She no longer has brown hair because it has dyed to red it like her mother's. She is still with the Akatsuki, still having no memory of her old teammates. But, she hasn't forgotten about the boy with the blond hair and whiskers on his face. Naruto Uzumaki.

Right now, Ruka is in her garden, standing on the bridge while she sings one of her old songs as the wind blows with ease as the cherry blossoms floating down.

"Name of the wind. . .
Name of the wind. . .
I am breathing to answer your peace

The name of the wind. . .
The name of the wind. . .
Run through the ground and treat everything. . ." 

She stops midway of her song before sighing to herself since she has no need to sing anymore. Ruka walked around her garden looked down at her feet with a frown. 

'I have not forgotten about you, and yet you remain in my memories. . . Why is that? . . . Who are you? Why is it that I feel I have met you from somewhere? . . .' Ruka thought to herself. 

"Ruka. Deidara and I will be going after the 1 tails. Do you think you can stay here until we get back? Zetsu will keep you company." Sasori announces to her. 

Ruka slowly turns her head and nods, telling him that yes. "I will remain here until you and Deidara return. . . Good luck, Sasori. . ." 

"We won't be long." Sasori leaves Ruka in the garden, and leaves with Deidara to capture the 1 tails. As soon as Sasori left, Zetsu appeared beside Ruka. 

"You've been spending a lot of time here, Ruka. Is everything okay?" He asks her with concern in his voice. 

"I am not. . . Zetsu. . . Where did you find me? Did I really die? . . ." Ruka asks with a frown. 

"Dead isn't the word we would describe it, kid. More like withered into a flower. Not exactly dead. And we found you in the leaf village near the KIA stone. Remember? We told you this." 

"I remember hearing the name of this Leaf Village, but KIA stone does not come to mind. . . What does that mean?" 

"It means Killed In Action. That's where we found you." 

"Take me there." 

"What?"

"Take me to the KIA stone." Ruka repeats herself as she turns to face Zetsu with a cold stare. 

"You're not allowed to leave the hideout unless the Leader knows where you are going. It doesn't work that way." 

"I want to visit the KIA stone." She says once more. Zetsu sighs while shaking his head with his eyes closed and responds, 

"Alright. But if you get your head chewed off by the Leader, don't say we didn't warn you. It's your own damn fault if you get into trouble. Let's go." Zetsu takes Ruka out of the hideout and into the leaf village without being spotted by any leaf shinobi.

They went to the KIA stone and the first thing that Ruka saw was her old thorn crown lying next to the stone. "Is this crown. . .mine?" She asks Zetsu in a whisper. 

"It seemed that way when we found you." He answered. 

Ruka kneeled down to the crown and traced her fingers along the thorns. It felt rusted, worn out, and very rough because it has been sitting there for a log time. But she remembers her mother giving her at this grown when she was young. 

"Well? Does anything ring a bell to you, Ruka?" Zetsu asks her. Ruka shakes her head and stands back up. 

"The only that that I can recall is my mother giving this to me when I was very young. . . . I would like to know how and why I was found here? In this village. Why am I not back at home where my mother is?" 

"Do you want to return home?" 

"No." Ruka shakes her head. "If I return to my birthplace, everything will be rewritten. The past will repeat itself and I will become a murderer again. . ." 'But he is not here. . . I am not sensing his presence.' She thought the last sentence to herself.' 

The reason why she came to the village to find Naruto so she can talk to him. But seeing how she cannot feel his movements upon the earth, this lets her know that she is no in the village right now. 

After staying near the stone for a bit longer, Ruka decides to go back to the hideout, leaving the crown where it was. 

Meanwhile, after a few moments when Ruka and Zetsu left the village, Naruto had returned with a proud look on his face. "It's good to be back in the leaf village!" He shouts with his arms stretched out at the side of him, then he thinks, 'A lot has changed and I am back stronger than I was. I will bring back Ruka. I swear!' 

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