Epoch
Chains restraining the enflamed body of a demon
The woman's form kneeling above a puddle of her own sweat and tears
The flailing and gutteral cries of the fox drowning the wails of the dying
Minato performs the hand signs just above his newly born son
The Shinigami appears and pierces through his chest, grasping forward
The hand shoots toward the towering incarnation of fear
It hovers above the back before plunging into its form
It pulls out a miasma of darkened blue that shudders and changes to a searing yellow
The energy is pulled and bound again through his chest
He steels himself and begins more signs
The alter below the small boy pulses and grows
A group of allies land down the path from these events
Just to witness both their beloved Fourth Hokage and their enduring Kushina-
Bleed around the monstrous claw with a smile, protecting their child from the desperate lunge impaling their straining backs
Final words are lost to the roar of chakra deforming and funneling into the paths of the small seal
As the blinding whirlpool of red disappears from the sky, all that remains is the strangely comforted babe gazing towards the brightening sky of dawn.
Cart wheels heavy with the merchant group's goods dig into the well traveled road. The ox plods behind the driver in the darkness of morning. Feet stumble or march along side the cargo. Whines of joints and hangovers drift with the small breeze.
"Otousan, will we be guarding until the merchants clear their packages or until the gates?" Aiko clenches her fan in her hand, creaking the handles. The heels and toes of half wrapped feet scuff along just behind the figure being addressed. He looks over his shoulder at her brightly patterned and colored dress being flapped out nervously further from the cartside. The white swirls on the red sleeves and golden hills on the matching skirt drawing the gaze of casual passer-bys.
The voices of the merchants provide a soft background with the trees and birds waking just before the sunrise. He motions for her into his side and lightly places an arm across small shoulders to tuck her to him. I'd summon Umi for her, were we not already so close.
"Just to the gates,Aiko-chan." Their strides match with the years of familiarity. Small observant eyes peek towards the treeline while he maintains facing the path. He gives her a nudge redirecting her nervous gaze. He closes an eye and tilts his head to her with a confident side smile."It shouldn't be too long now. Just think about what we have to look forward to! The doorway to change and possibilities is so close my stomach is practically growling for a taste!" He throws his head back to laugh at her deadpan glance. A few of the half asleep men shoot a huff or a pained glare towards them.
Aiko huffs,"More likely growling from stress." Just under her breath. She feels nudged again but he shows no change from before her muttering.
A sudden wave of yelling echoes just over the treeline. The cart is pulled to a halt while the men form a body barrier. Aiko separates to brace at the back of the group, facing away from the path ahead. Her body crouches out fan held almost like a kitchen knife and the other hand hidden in the fabric of the sleeve.
Her companion briefly tensed as she moves into position before a subtle settling. Already that time then. He rushes in front with his spear leveled. The fishing hooks long and wicked looking in the shadows of the morning. The sound is followed by a roar of air movement and more yelling. The force behind the air shift would indicate a herd of animals yet none appear through the treeline. They wait.
After several moments pass with no further indication of trouble The driver calls for them to proceed. "Probably, just some youngsters causing a ruckus about their graduations." The driver sighs with exasperated affection. The lines on his face are soft from a kind life. He easily coaxes his ox along the familiar foot-worn road.
"A graduation? That sounded rather violent in comparison to the stories the traveling scholars have spilled over their cups." The spear end is set on the ground briefly. His shoulders drop and expression is pinched with confusion. The barest rays of day begin to run across the hook steel, sun toned arms, and his own swirling vine embroidered shirt. For him, the cream color embroidery is shadowed somewhat between the open coat sides. Base red fabric contrasts the green, sleeveless coat just as strikingly as the pairs' hair. Sea bleached highlights in the scarlet frame up from his face like demonic horns of pale sunlight and Aiko's braided bun fades into the same delicate yellow.
"You're the ones hired to guard us to a hidden village. I'm speaking of a shinobi graduation." The driver visibly brightens, age falling and disappearing into the air to his obviously fond musings. Everyone else besides the three guides have reluctantly returned to movement albeit much more awake." Which means we can expect ourselves some eager little helpers underfoot and buying from our counters with their shiny new wallets!" The merchants relax their formation, chuckling at the images.
"Yeah," another man pipes up" the best parts have always been hearing the chubby cheeked munchkins trying to think up ways that doing chores counts as ninja training! Haha-"
"Sweeping helps exercise shoulder groups!"
"Delivering packages helps improve navigation skills~"
The interjections weave between the group's chuckles. He and Aiko drift back together at the front of the procession. He jostles an elbow, shaking out a clenched hand sighing. Nearly there, nearly time.
The gates begin appearing around the corner of the trees. The guards stand on either side slumped and yawning at their approach. "Izumo! Kotetsu!" The driver yells over the ongoing debate. He pulls a stacked bento from the front of the cart as the two visibly perk from over the distance." Breakfast for two of my favor-" the gates slam open, knocking the two men against the wall. The ox jerks back with a thrown head. The cart jostles catching the edge of the bento and pulling it from the shocked grasp of the driver. The snap and crunch of the box under the large hoof is mixed with the startled outcry of the merchants. One gestures in panic at Aiko and their guard to do something, fear stealing his voice.
Both have already braced themselves but dust obscures much of their sight. Aiko's fan flicks open harshly with her crouching stance yet reluctant to complete the swipe with her eyes darting at the downed men. His spear again rises but is quickly flicked to a javelin grip. A darkly dressed man sails through the cloud to the harsh screams filtering past the dust.
"Traitor! Capture the traitor Mizuki! Traitor of the leaf!" The merchants stumble backwards,mingled cries startle the ox again in turn creating a jump of adrenaline.
"Aiko!" "Hai!"
She snaps her fan up as Mizuki jumps to gain more ground. His back turns half way through grabbing the giant shuriken strapped behind his head. That brief moment of preparing to strike gives the gust of wind the time it needed to travel to its target. Mizuki is sent flying further up, feet over head, causing the shuriken to slip. Its impaled to the right of the path landing just a few feet from the rising Kotetsu.
Mizuki tries to twist around. His legs swing to push him off the quickly approaching wall above the gate. Only he doesn't make it in time for the second attack. He is able to catch a glimpse of the girl with the fan and an empty handed man staring him away from the cart. Pain pierces his shoulder while the echo of a boom hits the ear. The pain gains intensity with him crashing into the wall. The spear is halfway through his shoulder and embedded deep in the surface.
Mizuki's scream reaches a peak as his full body weight pulls down on the spear's shaft. A set of Aiko's shuriken pin his flailing limbs from potentially retaliating as a wounded man and child run from the busted doors.
A senbon needle flies to Mizuki's throat, silencing his cries and forcing his slump into unconsciousness. Izumo relaxes from his throw, checking the gently bleeding scratch on his face.
The child skids to a stop looking around wildly. The wounded man sighs in relief. He sits on the broken door trying to catch his breath while reopened cuts drip onto his vest.
"Where'd he- WHOA YOU GUYS TOTALLY GOT HIM! I KNOCKED HIM OUT EARLIER, BELIEVE IT! But he got up somehow and WAIT IS THAT A STAFF STICKING OUT OF HIM!" The roughed up orange jacket flairs with the kid's movements. His near frantic shouts blend into an almost incomprehensible mess.
"Naruto, that's enough! Izumo and Kotetsu have him until the investigators can retrieve him." Aiko and her companion meet eyes.Aiko nods to the side of his face. She then turns to help the merchants and driver in getting the cart back to order. He remains braced in the middle of the road with hands level to his chest like they're clenched around something. His dark blue eyes remain set on Mizuki. Got loose from Naruto,huh...
"AH, Iruka sensei! You're still hurt..." Naruto spins clenching his hands repeatedly. He walks over searching through his pockets. "Ah-ha!" He holds out a clearly crushed, but unopened pack of bandages. "Knew this would come in handy some day!"
Everyone present checks themselves over. Izumo and Kotetsu stand at-the-ready under Mizuki. Hand signs pass under the majority's radar, indicating no more than some bruises and bumps to the head. Some of the merchants grumble about spilled or cracked goods but otherwise communicate their safety. The worst to suffer appears to be the teacher- Iruka. He has circles developing under his eyes and is just awake enough to tolerate Naruto's attempts at field medic-ry.
"Safe to pull to the side of the gate? We don't want to stay out in the center if this guy had a retrieval escort." Kotetsu peers at the known group of merchants, picking out the vibrantly dressed guards and zeroing in on him. He waits as the pair sign between them. "I'll remain here if that'll work. Besides," he tugs at the thin ninja line in his hands. It flashes from him to the spear, showing how taunt it is." It'll be better for me to keep this tight if you want to pull him down anytime soon." Kotetsu narrows his eyes but waves the group over. Aiko remains guarding the side as they pull it along the wall. The driver pats his shoulder giving him a "well done". One of the merchants tries to offer a healing balm sample while waiting, but let's it go after being rebuffed.
A few moments pass until reinforcements arrive. Seven masked individuals appear on the wall and in the treeline. Two fresh guards follow from the doorway taking Izumo and Kotetsu's places while a third feminine figure lands between them.
"So how did this happen, Iruka?" Hand cocked on her hip she raises an eyebrow with a dark red look. Her wrap-dress shift with her steps while approaching. Her eyes drift around catching on the wire line for a split-second. She crouches next to Naruto, giving him a small smile causing him to blush. Her hands hover over the bloody vest with a calming energy. She hums as Iruka's breathing eases with the dissipating energy. He gives her a thankful nod and stretches out his healed body.
"Was that rhetorical or should I give you a report here?" He gives a pointed look at Naruto and the merchants speculating to the side. She hums again before standing back up.
"You," a points with a snap, gaze hovering harshly down the line of her arm."with the line. What is your business."
A pause as people adjust to the shift in focus. His eyes reluctantly fall to meet hers. "I'm-well, We're bodyguards at the moment. If you'll excuse the presumption, Ninja san, I'd like to remove my weapon from your traitor before we continue any discussion at the present time."
She smiles again with an aggressive edge. "No." She purposefully looks over his figure, a light building in her eye with mischief. "How about you give me a name and then maybe I'll give you mine,hmm?" She shifts as if to stalk at him. Kai! Until suddenly he sees that she hasn't moved at all and the spark is gone. She takes notice of the twitch in his arms. He dips his head lightly acknowledging her caution. Naruto tries to whisper to Iruka with little success while the discussion is occurring.
"Chiyo. I, and my daughter Aiko, were hired to help our clients with their cart for the day."
Aiko closes her fan and gives a formal bow at the bulk of where the ninja audience reside. The woman glances at her, causing an observed twitch as well. The long hair of the woman runs like oil over her shoulder with a shift of weight.
"I suppose you may know me as Kurenai. As for your weapon, you may retrieve it now." She looks towards the anbu standing perpendicular on the side, ready to catch and stabilize their prisoner till further investigation can be completed. He nods firmly. His grip tightens and a small chakra flare passes invisibly over the string. A full body yank, dislodges the pointed staff from the body. Mizuki unconsciously whimpers while the spear regains the jagged head as it sails back to Chiyo's grip like a yo-yo. I don't know wether to be angry that they won't let Mizuki bleed out or happy to know he is going to be dragged to T and I.
Chiyo puts the weapon on the hook behind his shoulder, line end clipping onto a coat loop. He gives a polite smile with a respectful bow. "Thanks! Too long holding the line like that is killer on the hands." He slowly raises his hands lined with red indentations. He chuckles and drops them to his side as he walks to Aiko. His hand sways her head back and forth gently. "Right on target, Ai-chan. Very good job." Her small return smile encourages him into a happy grin.
"NO WAY! YOU GOT MIZUKI!" Naruto jumps, pointing to a startled Aiko. "YOU LOOK YOUNGER THAN ME! BELIEVE IT! How did you get him like that!?" The orange clad boy rushes over, Iruka grabbing the air where he had been a second before. His eyes shine at her with his grin. She breathes out an ah, as blood rises to her cheeks. His energy almost obscures the tensing body lines of their non-civilian audience.
The body is near unseen as it passes back into Konoha. Five blurs leave with it.
"I-uh, the SPEAR! It isn't mine." Aiko stumbles out under the admiring gaze." Chichi is the one who hit your traitor." Naruto pouts but turns to eye closed confusion very fast.
"Eh? But your otosan said you hit your target. I heard that, ttebayo?" Chiyo raises an eyebrow chuckling at the kid's energy.
"Those are some good ears you have there! You are both right." Naruto turns a surprised face to what would be a strange adult, willingly - NO, HAPPILY(!) offer an explanation to him. "Ai-chan hit her target which gave me the opportunity to pin him with my spear. We've been practicing coordinating her wind-chakra: push, with my spear aiming. So this was the result of a lot of difficult practices. I'm proud of our progress together and her personal development." Aiko's blush deepens to Naruto's," so cool!" under his breath.
So they caught it, Kurenai's attention had snapped over at the mention of chakra while managing to not jerk her head. She appears behind Chiyo with a flicker where she had been.
"So these," a few of Aiko's shuriken are spread like cards in Kurenai's hand," aren't just a flashy skill under your belts,hmm?" She hands them over to Aiko, making eye contact with Chiyo. His unabashed smile draws aggressive edges on her eyes and mouth. "Nin from other villages are required to carry paperwork and have their Hitai-ate displayed openly."
Tension rises like a wave. The merchants shift on their feet. Naruto keeps looking between the two most present adults as she leans like they're about to square off.
"I assure you that we would do so if we had any to provide. Unfortunately, their lack of presence is the exact reason we took the job on our way here. It was going the way we were heading, so why not earn some extra pocket change on the road over?" He deliberately looks away at Aiko. Her face slowly paling from embarrassment to anxiousness. He gives a reassuring shoulder pat, ignoring the various assessments at the action. " I trained her as I had been trained. To defend ourselves-as Shinobi. Our village has been destroyed for many years now, but we wish to continue to honor the memory of our people." Kurenai reluctantly relaxes her stance. Izumo and Kotetsu start helping the Merchants move past for their goods inspection. "I have memories of being told that the Leaf Village was kind to our Central Clan in the generations since it's founding. We had hoped to stay in a temporary room until I might request a meeting with the Hokage."
"Are you both going to join the Leaf Village!?" Blonde spikes begin bouncing up and down above a massive grin. Naruto's eyes keep glancing back to Aiko without much subtlety. "I'LL PUT IN A GOOD REVIEW IF YOU WANT TO! IT'LL BE SO COOL IF YOU DO! BELIEVE IT! I'll totally be your best friend if you do Aiko-chan!"
"And, that's enough of you for today." Iruka interrupts Naruto from continuing his sales pitch. His arm sweeps up grabbing the jacket back. The whole thing rides up enough that the headband catches on the high collar and the face uttering complaints disappears. "We still have our own reports to make and neither of us has slept enough for anything else to happen before we make that up. Honestly Naruto, you need to think -" his voice fades with the view of dragging boots behind him.
Now the only visible people remaining outside are Kurenai and the vibrant guards. She continues to observe as the obvious separation occurs and is unable to see any body movement indicating fear of discovery. She considers the spear again. "Well, if you wish to meet with Hokage sama, jumping the line should be payment enough for the assist." Her grin turns sharp, and the two remaining shadows shift to anticipation. "Let's go meet him right now,hmm?"