a/n: This is it, guys! The first chapter of my new Fanfic, The Broken Pieces! Yes, it's rather angsty for now and no 'interaction,' shall we say, but it'll get there. :)
And just a heads up, if you read my very first Fanfic (which I stopped writing), 'Lavenders, Kidnappings, and Lifelong Promises,' you might recognize some of the OC's. Their roles have changed along with their family relations, ages, and personalities. I'm sorry if it's slightly confusing, but I love the names.
Also, I'm using Akaruigakure and the Taiyookage once more, also from LKLP.
Just wanted to let you know.:D Enjoy!
disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.
kisses,
Iris:D
The Broken Pieces: A NejiTen FanFic
Chapter 1Tenten looked at the columns of fire that leapt towards the sky, greedily devouring all in its path. The buildings were aflame, the air filled with dark smoke. It was hard to see where one was going but fear kept her moving.
Rain was beginning to pour but the flames continued, regardless. It was that Uchiha Sasuke's work, his Fire Style Jutsu.
Damn him.
She wiped the perspiration from her brow, shifting the weight of the child she held from one arm to the other. He was sleeping but his breaths were coming out in ragged gasps. He must have breathed in too much smoke, the poisonous gases lingering in his lungs. She would have to take him to a Medical Nin soon or he would die.
Tenten tried to peer through the obscurations, hoping to find Mika, the Medical Nin, or at least one of her own that was still alive. There was no one who still had a heartbeat. She headed towards the outskirts of their village, near the rippling brook, a destination that was ingrained into her mind from years of playing by the waters' edge as a child.
As she stumbled through what had been a house and was now a pile of smoking, charred remains, Tenten heard a noise up ahead. She ducked behind a crumpling brick wall, soothing the stirring child. She hoped he wouldn't make a sound.
Through the smoke and rain emerged a figure, wearing the Konoha ANBU attire. Tenten's eyes narrowed dangerously. The ANBU took his mask off, revealing long dark hair and a pair of expressionless eyes.
Tenten hissed. Was he so impassionate and unfeeling that he had not even a single drop of mercy for the destruction and massacre he had caused? As she gazed into his white eyes for a moment longer, Tenten realized that the answer to her question was 'yes.' This man felt no remorse or guilt at the murders he had committed and the sabotage he had created.
Another Konoha ANBU walked beside the man. "I believe we're done here," he said, taking off his mask to reveal onyx eyes and spiky black hair. Uchiha Sasuke…
"I suppose…" The white-eyed man was staring at the brick wall.
"Something wrong, Neji?" Sasuke asked.
"I could've sworn…" muttered Neji.
"No one would linger," Sasuke told his comrade. "They are long gone."
Neji tore his gaze away from where Tenten was hidden. "Pain better agree to the treaty after what we've done for them."
"He won't be able to worm his way out of it this time," Sasuke replied confidently. "We ended a civil war for him with very minor casualties to our side."
What about my side? Tenten thought scathingly. Oh, that's right. You don't give a shit.
"Let's go," Neji finally said. "Hokage-sama is waiting for us."
Sasuke sighed as he put on his ANBU mask. "You can just call him Naruto, you know."
As the two Konoha shinobi took their leave, Tenten slipped into the shadows, covering the child's ears before muttering, "Fuck you…"
"Oh, Tenten, thank goodness you've made it back," Mika said, relieved, as Tenten handed her the child. Mika was a jovial middle-aged woman, plump and caring, her graying hair tied up in a bun.
"He's breathed in too much smoke," Tenten coughed, pounding her chest.
Mika gave a wry smile. "I think it's the same with you."
"I'm fine," Tenten insisted, letting out another cough. "How is everyone doing?"
"I believe we've saved everyone we could," Mika said slowly, glancing back at the huddle of villagers who stood by the brook's edge, fear reflected in their eyes. A family was huddled around a young man who was motionless, his flesh burnt.
Dead…
"Can I have a head count?" Tenten asked, forcing herself to look away.
A young man appeared. His dark blue hair hung casually on his forehead, his golden eyes making their way through the thick smoke and relentless rain. "One hundred twenty-six, Tenten," he cut in.
"Thank you, Haru," Tenten nodded.
Suddenly, the house closest to them burst into flames and faint cries could be heard from within.
A sooty woman ran towards the house, screaming for her child. The shout was answered by more high-pitched squeals until the flames grew in height and the crying died away. Tears were pouring down the mother's face as her spouse clung to her waist, preventing her from the running back into the house.
Tenten walked over, placing a comforting hand on the mother's shoulder. "It's ok," she muttered soothingly. "It was fast. He was only crying because of fear. It was over quickly."
The woman gazed up at Tenten, as did her husband. "It was a 'she'," she whispered. "It was my daughter that died."
Tenten was silent as the woman's spouse tried to comfort her. He looked at Tenten seriously. "Tenten-chan, please do something so we won't ever have to go through this again. We're counting on you." He led his wife away, tears beginning to pool in his own eyes.
"It wasn't your fault, Tenten," a voice murmured into her ear. "We cannot change what has happened today. We can only strive for a better tomorrow."
She turned around and looked into the young, green eyes of Satoru. "That's the only thing we can do."
"So where do we go from here?" Satoru asked. The soot and smoke had settled on his silvery hair, dying the strands an unearthly gray.
"Far away, Satoru," Tenten answered flatly. "I reckon no one wants to stay."
"But where will we go?" Satoru questioned.
Tenten was silent, thinking. "To places that have not been claimed by other shinobi villages."
"Do you have a place in mind?" Satoru gazed at her.
"No." There was no point in lying. "I'll just wing it."
"You do realize that there is not one here who won't follow you?" Satoru offered.
"I was not aware," Tenten admitted.
"It is the truth." Satoru nodded. "Even though you are eighteen, younger than me by two years, I will stand by you, forever and always."
Tenten was moved by his dedication, her throat closing up with unwanted emotions. "Thank you, Satoru. That meant a lot to me."
They made their way back to Mika, who was tending to the boy. She looked up, her eyes saddened. "I'm sorry, Tenten," Mika whispered. "He had too much smoke in his lungs. There was nothing I could do."
Tenten's eyes watered. She had experienced so much death and destruction in one day. It was far more unnerving than being on the battlefield, clashing with shinobi enemy. The lives that were taken were innocent. They were not ready to go. They were not ready to leave everyone and everything they loved. They were not ready for death.
"I know you tried your hardest, Mika," Tenten said expressionlessly. "Is he dead?"
"No, but soon, he will be…" Mika answered. "Can you get his sister?"
"What of his parents?" Haru reappeared.
"Dead…from the fire…" A young girl stepped closer to the boy lying on the ground. The tears mingled with the rain. "Am I going to lose my brother too?" Her voice was shaky.
Mika hesitated before nodding. "I'm sorry, Mitsuko."
Mitsuko bent her head, her light brown curls blocking her face from view. Haru moved to comfort her.
The boy's eyes fluttered open as the rain began to stop. "M-Mitsuko?" His voice was dangerously faint.
"I-I'm here," Mitsuko cried, collapsing to the ground and taking her brother's hand.
The boy smiled innocently. "It stopped raining, Mitsuko," he whispered in his little boy voice. "Maybe the sun will even come out."
Mitsuko nodded frantically. "Please, don't leave me, Tadao," she begged.
Her little brother didn't seem to hear, his eyes slipping into glassiness. "I never liked the rain," Tadao remarked lightly. "It seems like the sky is crying…was the sky crying for me?"
Mitsuko was crying too hard to answer.
"Are you crying for me?" Tadao gazed innocently at his sister.
Wiping her eyes, she nodded.
"Can you stop, Mitsuko-onee-san? I don't like it when people cry…" Tadao's eyes began to shut.
"No!" Mitsuko shrieked. "Look! I've stopped crying! I have! Please! Don't go, Tadao!"
Tadao's lips moved minimally. "I want to go to someplace where the sun is always shining…" His voice died away and the hand Mitsuko was holding went limp.
Tenten looked sadly as the young girl began to sob uncontrollably. She remembered when Mitsuko was a strong, hard-headed girl of twelve. How quickly everything had changed. Even the strongest of the strong could be brought down to their knees when faced with death.
"He wanted to go to the Sun," Tenten whispered.
Mitsuko looked up, tears still running down her face. "What is it, Ten-chan?"
"Tadao wanted to go to the Sun," repeated Tenten. "I will grant his dying wish."
"How?" Haru looked eagerly at Tenten.
"We're going to the Land of Sun," Tenten proclaimed. "Tell everyone to get ready," she ordered. "We've got a long journey ahead of us."
As she watched the villagers begin to collect themselves enough for the migration, Tenten took one last look at the smoldering village, the flames just beginning to die away. The clouds were beginning to mill away, allowing one ray to shine on the villagers.
A good omen…
The end was also a new beginning.
They would walk away from their old, tragic, terrible end.
They would reconstruct.
They would put together the broken pieces.
They would find their new beginning.
Two years later…
Tenten brushed her brown bangs out of her face, leaning against the wall, straining her eyes. The wall encircled the whole of Akaruigakure. The gate to the Hidden Light Village was closed and she was overlooking the landscape outside of the village boundaries. Large, blooming sunflowers filled the landscape along with lush green trees and vibrant blossoms. "No word from Satoru yet?" she asked.
"None," Haru answered, also looking into the greenery that surrounded the Hidden Light Village.
"He'll be back, Taiyookage-sama," Mitsuko piped up, switching the light blue parasol she was holding from one hand to the other, making sure that the shade covered Tenten. "Don't worry."
"I'm not worried," Tenten snapped impatiently. "It's just that Satoru told me that he'd be back in three days but he has yet to show up."
"It's not like he had any real close combat," Haru pointed out. "His mission was to just take ten shinobi and sabotage Konoha's weaponry."
"But you know how Satoru can be," sighed Tenten, wrapping her arms around herself. "If there's even one guard, he'll turn it into a massacre."
"It has been extremely helpful, Taiyookage-sama," Mitsuko said eagerly, "especially after you declared war on Konoha and the Hidden Rain Village."
Tenten was quiet. "I suppose, Mitsuko."
She turned around and headed for the stairs, descending back into the village. Mitsuko hurried after her, holding the parasol above their heads.
The majority of the Akaruigakure architecture was built from sun-dried clay and the supple flexible bark of young saplings. Apartments rose from the ground, seeming to meld from earth to home. The clay was a peculiar orange-yellow color, giving the appearance that the village was glowing.
When the refugees from the Hidden Rain Village had stumbled upon the stretch of land known as the Land of Sun, they had set to work building a great shinobi nation. They had dubbed themselves as Akaruigakure and appointed Tenten as the Taiyookage. She had refused at first and the other shinobi persuaded her, telling her that there was no one else they trusted more than Tenten. They were quickly joined by traveling nomads and Missing-Nins that had some quarrel with the other Five Shinobi Nations.
Soon, the hatred had built up and Tenten, listening to her people's desires, had declared war on Konoha and the Hidden Rain. At first, they were shocked. What did this mysterious nation have against them? But it was soon revealed that the Akaruigakure shinobi were from the Hidden Rain.
From then on, a bloody and fierce battle began, filled with sabotage, massacres, and losses to both sides. "There can be no peace," Tenten would always say, "until there is understanding. And to obtain understanding, they must suffer what we suffered." She and her people believed that their purpose of attack was justified and so they fought with reason.
The Akaruigakure shinobi had created their own Jutsu, manipulating the light and heat from the sun into a very powerful genjutsu, Hinome Ayatsuri no Jutsu. Many shinobi had adopted the Jutsu and began creating original Jutsu (Hizashi Nakami no Jutsu, Kika Fukiya no Jutsu, Fushicho Hi Hane no Jutsu) but Tenten opted to stick to her customary array of weapons.
It was apparent to Tenten that Pain and Hokage Uzumaki were at their wits' end. Every attack they threw at Akaruigakure was dodged and the retaliation was often even more brutal. She knew that they were planning something, a sinister plot, most likely one that involved cheating and cutting corners.
As Tenten walked into her Taiyookage Office, she prayed that Satoru would return safely.
"Hokage-sama!" The door to the Hokage's office swung open to reveal Neji, the ANBU captain, and his teammates: Sasuke, Sakura, and Sai.
The Hokage looked up around. "I've told you to just call me 'Naruto'," he sighed.
Neji frowned but continued. "I'm here to report some grave news."
"Proceed…" Naruto nodded.
"We went to check up on our weapons supply and we found that they had been destroyed," Neji explained. "The five guards were also killed along with three shinobi who came to help." He shuddered at the memory of finding eight headless bodies drowning in a sickeningly red ocean, some missing limbs, the metallic smell filling his nostrils.
"It was the work of Akaruigakure shinobi," Sasuke added. "Their chakra was everywhere along with one of their forehead protectors. You know, the one with the setting sun…"
"This is grave indeed," Naruto leaned forward in his desk, his fingertips pressed against each other.
"Excuse me for saying so, Naruto," Sakura started, "but these shinobi are playing dirty. We can't keep attacking them with morals. We must bend the rules a bit if are to survive this war."
"That is true," Sai agreed. "They have the upper hand right now simply because they choose to not obey the rules of fair play. They sabotage. They kill unnecessarily. They have no ethics. If we are to emerge victorious, we must use strategies that fit their own."
"We're not going to win if we play clean…" Neji started.
"Very true…" muttered Sakura darkly. Sasuke glanced at her then looked away.
"It's been reported that their ruler, the Taiyookage, is none other than the Weapon's Mistress Tenten," Neji went on. "She was famous back in the Hidden Rain Village for her deadly accuracy and wide expertise on weaponry."
Naruto surveyed the ANBU squad. "Very well…" He turned to look at Neji. "What do you suggest we do?"
"Do?" Neji repeated. "We will focus on the Taiyookage. We must get rid of her."
"Are you sure we are not pushing outside of our limits? Even immorality has its boundaries," Naruto pointed out.
"Have you heard her justification?" Neji snapped.
The door opened once more and Hinata entered, carrying a folder of reports. "Actually, yes, he has," she said quietly.
"Hinata," Naruto greeted, "Come here. We were discussing how to deal with the current war."
"I see," she coughed, blushing slightly, ruffling through her stack of papers. "Well, as it says here in the official proclamation of war that she is seeking to gain understanding. She says that there will be no peace without understanding. Taiyookage Tenten intends to do to us what we did to the Hidden Rain Village."
Naruto glanced at the ANBU captain. "You are aware of what she suffered?"
Neji's face hardened. "Her side was the one causing trouble, thinking they could overthrow Pain. She brought this on herself."
"And what of the destruction you did to her village?" Naruto prompted. "You and Sasuke…"
"With all due respect, Naruto, it was you who ordered us to do so," Sasuke added.
"Maybe I did…" Naruto shrugged. "But people make mistakes and have changes of heart. Just try to understand her."
"But I don't," Sai piped up. "If she went through so much terror and devastation and she truly grasps the horrors of war, why does she bring this upon others?"
"Revenge," Sakura answered, "She wants others to feel what she felt in order to feel better."
"So, what do we do about the Taiyookage?" Naruto asked once more.
"Tenten-sama is obviously the soul commander in this operation, even if there are generals or ANBU captains," Neji replied. "I say we kidnap her, bring her to Konoha, and demand ransom. The ransom would be the end of the war and the payment of all the expenses."
"Do you really thing that would work?" Sakura demanded skeptically. "If Tenten was chosen as the Taiyookage, then she must be an incredibly strong kunoichi."
"We have to try something," Neji snapped. "Or would you rather we all die because of a little girl's desire for revenge?"
"We shouldn't underestimate them," Hinata told him. "You do realize that we are talking about the Weapon's Mistress. Her name should be premonition enough."
"You don't understand, Hinata," Neji protested. "We have to do something. We have to or else we'll all end up dead. Wasn't it you who told us just yesterday that we predicted over half a million shinobi would die?"
Naruto nodded slowly. "Very well. You leave tomorrow. This form of action may be extremely unethical but it's the only thing we can do now. I'll send word to Pain and you four can go kidnap the Taiyookage."
a/n: intense, eh? Haha! Please review and let me know what you think of it! Feedback is always, always welcome!:)
Chapter 2 will probably be out on Wednesday or Thursday!
Please review!
kisses,
Iris:D