A Different Kind Of Journey

Author"s Note: Hey readers! I"m back with a new chapter! I hope you guys enjoy!

Beta Reader: AnimeFanGirl2223

Arc 1: The Forest Part 2

By the time noon had arrived, the dark clouds that had caused the earlier showers were finally gone, and the sun had reached its peak. Citizens everywhere could go outside and do as they pleased without the unfortunate interference of rain.

Along the vast countryside of forests and fields, there was a long, lonely stretch of road. On that road was a transportation wagon heading to its destination. The wagon was small and only needed one simple brown horse to pull it.

Two people sat at the very front of the wagon. The first was a man in his fifties with grey hair, gla.s.ses, a large beard and dark eyes. He wore a sleeveless V-neck shirt with an obi, pants and a pair of sandals. He also had a towel hung around his neck and had a pointed hat on his head. The second was a boy in his early teens. The younger had spiky black hair and dark eyes; he donned a similar attire to that of his grandfather.

The two travelers were on a journey to a familiar village, their haul holding loads of wood and building equipment. They knew the road well and were only fearful of bandits or other random acts of violence.

"Grampa Tazuna, do you think we"re almost there?" Inari asked. He was obviously excited to see his friends from Konoha again.

Tazuna sighed and kept his eyes forward on the road they were heading down. "Don"t get too excited Inari, but yes, we are almost there."

They could just barely see the large and famous Hokage mountain coming into view, but they still had to make it all the way through the forest ahead of them before they reached Konoha.

"Hmm, looks like we are going have to light up the candles when we enter the forest," Tazuna commented, catching the boys attention.

"What do you mean; will it get really dark or something? Inari asked. Even though his grandfather had been to Konohagakure before, this was his first time traveling so far from home and he wasn"t sure what to expect.

Tazuna let out a small chuckle. "Well, the last time I went into that forest, the place was kind of eerily quiet and dark so we may have to be alert for any monsters in there." He jokingly said, attempting to scare the boy.

Inari, however, looked unamused. It had already been a long trip… and had been made that much longer from his grandfathers corny jokes; he was almost getting tired of them at that point. "Come on grandpa, monsters don"t actually exist! Those are just fairy tales that parents tell their children to get them to behave. Besides, if we are close to Konoha that means there are ninja around who can help us!"

Tazuna let out another chuckle, realizing his once young grandson was growing up. "Oh, alright. I was just joking. Though, we might actually get to see a variety of animals here; forests are the easiest way to go to a zoo without paying."

Inari just rolled his eyes. Sure, his grandfather was a respected master bridge builder and was a genius when it came to architectural knowledge, but he really needed to revise his dad jokes. The teen kept quiet, knowing that as the apprentice and younger of the two, he had to maintain at least some respect; the man was his grandfather after all.

As time pa.s.sed, the duo made their way through the forest and the full lights and rays of the sun slowly dwindled. The once beautiful view of a vast countryside became a quiet, gloomy forest with few rays of the sun penetrating through the trees.

Inari"s mind was reeling from what to expect inside the forest. Even if he didn"t believe his grandfather about monsters, he was still young and curious. This was the first time he would visit a real ninja area and wanted it to be a memorable journey.

He kept thinking back to his younger years, remembering the hyperactive blonde ninja and his team from Konoha—how they had saved him, his mother, grandfather and entire village from the clutches of a crazy mob boss.

It was only because of Naruto that he became the person he was now and after so many years, he could finally see that strange yet impactful person again.

"Well, if I"m going to see my role model again, I have to make it through this forest… No matter how scary it is." Inari thought to himself as he and his grandfather continued moving forward.

As the day continued on, Boruto found himself sweating through the back-breaking task of carrying two unconscious girls. It was like carrying a 500kg of rice in two sacks, only he couldn"t just throw them around.

He still hadn"t been able to discern where he was or how close to civilization he"d gotten. All he knew was that he had to find a way out or at least a road that he could follow along. He figured that there had to be one somewhere close by.

The blonde checked on Himawari and Sarada again for the umpteenth time, still finding them out cold. "Don"t worry girls, I"m going to get us out of here…" he thought with determination.

"Zzzzzzzz, Nii-chan I want some ice cream..." A dreaming Himawari unknowingly muttered aloud.

Sarada however, still hadn"t really stirred or said a word. She wasn"t even snoring her sleep was so peaceful. It was almost the complete opposite of the younger Uzumaki.

As for the Boruto, he just sighed and smiled in spite of his exhaustion and back pain. He knew that after the crazy fight that had destroyed Konoha and caused them to be warped here—wherever here was—he was at least safe and babysitting the two people that he loved as a sister and friend.

The only thing that the young man could do was keep his mind occupied by humming or singing his personal favorite songs. The blonde didn"t consider himself a good singer although some of his friends commented that he had a good voice, but he"d already gone through most of his mental playlist he"d been walking so long.

As his seemingly endless trek continued, he tried brainstorming new songs that he could sing to keep his mind from going to darker places. Finally, he found one that he thought would be nice. It was about peace and love.

Boruto checked his surroundings just to be sure but figured he was probably alone since there wasn"t a single soul in sight—save for the few squirrels and birds watching him from their respective trees. Concluding that the coast was clear, he began singing the first lines of the song in a carefully regulated voice.

"Sometimes I lay under the moon

I thank G.o.d I"m breathing

And then I pray don"t take me soon

I am here for a reason

Sometimes in my tears, I drown

But I never let it get me down

So when negativity surrounds

I know someday it"ll all turn around

Because...

All my life I"ve been waiting for

I"ve been praying for

For the people to say

That we don"t wanna fight no more

They"ll be no more war

And our children will play

One day One day One day

One day One day One day."

As Boruto concluded the first half of the song, he paused for a moment to catch his breath, his energy still drained from such a long day of fighting and walking. He didn"t even notice that he"d started to get a small audience from the various forest animals such as rabbits, birds, squirrels, and so on.

When he finished singing once more, he blushed as the animals almost seemed to applaud his display with cute chirps and squeaks. Even though it was probably just in his head, he couldn"t help but feel a bit embarra.s.sed and amused. "Oh… why did I have to sing…?"

(Interview)

"It was kind of a small hobby whenever things become too quiet. Whether you sing or hum, Music will often maintain the mood and I didn"t have regrets with the exception of me suddenly turning into some kind of fictional Princess."

-Boruto

After even more time had pa.s.sed, the blonde was still stuck in the forest. However, just as he was about to give up hope, the animals that had been watching him almost seemed to guide him out. He was suspicious and confused at first but was willing to just go with the flow if it meant finding refuge.

"Man, you guys are really something else," Boruto commented; he"d never seen animals behave in such a way. Maybe it was fate intervening to help him?

The different animals somewhat reminded him of each his deceased loved ones back home. One moody looking bird reminded him a lot of his Uncle Sasuke, while one cute bunny reminded him of his mom, Hinata Hyuga.
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"Man, what am I seeing?" Boruto wondered aloud. Was this the effect of his jutsu teleporting him, or was he suffering from some kind of meltdown after losing his home, friends, and family? It couldn"t be a good sign that he was seeing his loved ones in animals.

"I must be going crazy." The blonde added as his thoughts clouded his mind yet again. But he still kept himself sane as possible. The only thing that he could do is look on the brighter side. He, Himawari, and Sarada were okay. "Let"s just say their spirits are guiding me through this creepy forest."

Finally, Boruto saw the edge of a read a little distance away. He was so thankful for everything right then. Despite how odd it seemed, he turned to thank the creatures for helping guide him out, only to find that there was no one there anymore.

Not a single creature.

"What in the world?" Boruto muttered under his breath as gooseb.u.mps spread over his skin. That was probably the creepiest thing to have ever happened to him. He knew then that he was definitely suffering from too much stress all at once.

He turned back to the road and began walking, quickly coming across a scene. From what he could tell, there was a group of about six armed men looking like they were up to no good. He quickly moved to hide Sarada and Himawari beneath a bush, not wanting them to get caught up in the conflict when they had no way to protect themselves.

"You three will say in your positions while we go and halt that wagon and horse; understood?" the apparent leader instructed. His followers nodded, moving to do as they were told.

"A wagon and horse?" Boruto wondered as he looked around the area. Eventually, his eyes landed on the vehicle they were speaking about. He knew fairly quickly that these men were bandits and planned on attacking the unsuspecting travelers.

The blonde was tired and knew he needed to be taking care of his sister and comrade, but he also couldn"t stomach the idea of leaving what appeared to be an old man and his grandson to fend for themselves.

(Interview)

"In a series of unfortunate events, I quickly found myself in a very familiar situation. It"s either I watch those innocent people get rob and hurt or do something to prevent the situation from getting worse."

-Boruto

~Meanwhile~

As Inari and Tazuna continued towards their destination, they were suddenly halted by three silent and masked individuals. Inari glanced up at his grandfather nervously, feeling both surprised and confused.

Tazuna, however, was in a similar state to his grandson but had more fear. After dealing with the mob boss and his goons years earlier, he knew danger when he saw it. Still, he hoped that talking would get them out of the tough situation since he didn"t have ninja"s there to protect him this time. "Excuse me, can we help you?" he asked the three masked people.

To his dismay, the individuals didn"t verbally respond. They simply stood there for a few more moments staring creepily. Finally, the one in the middle took a step forward and brandished what appeared to be a large knife.

Tazuna"s eyes widened in shock and anger. He and Inari were no match for a group like this and he knew it. He took his grandson"s hand in his own and squeezed it tightly, willing him not to panic just yet.

The one holding the knife waived it to the side, silently urging them to abandon their haul. The two men beside him stepped forward as a warning for them not to run and attempt to get help while their other three accomplices stepped out of the woods, effectively surrounding the wagon.

Inari and Tazuna relented and made their way down, not missing that every one of the bandits had weapons they were clearly ready to use. They knew they couldn"t escape.

"We are simple carpenters and bridge builders. You will not find anything valuable inside other than the equipment we"ll be using once we reach out destination." Tazuna tried to explain as the members started ransacking his cart for treasures.

The leader of the gang refused to believe the old man though and sneered behind his mask. "How unfortunate for you two… Unless you tell us where you are hiding your fortune that is."

He then signaled for his followers to separate the two, making both Inari and Tazuna panic with fear and dread.

"No, grandpa!" Inari exclaimed as he was forcefully pulled away.

"Inari, don"t resist, just do what they say," Tazuna warned, still trying to keep the situation as under control as it could be.

"So old man, are you going to admit on where it is or are we going to have to push you a little harder?" The bandit leader asked. He simply couldn"t believe that anyone traveling near a village as affluent as Konoha could be without money. "This old man is playing stupid. He definitely has something valuable hidden in there somewhere…"

When Tazuna still shook his head, he punched him hard in the stomach, the force of the blow causing him to fall to his knees in pain.

"Grandpa!" Inari screamed in distress, struggling against his captor"s rigid grip without success.

The leader smirked beneath his mask, chuckling darkly. "Oh, your poor grandchild. I think I"ll "take care" of him first." He stated as he moved towards the boy, his evil intentions apparent. "Hmm. You don"t look so happy; what if I try to carve a smile into your face?"

"No, Inari!" Tazuna yelled helplessly. All he could do was watch and shout as the vile man waved the knife closer to his grandson"s face.

"Please somebody help me," Inari mumbled quietly to himself. He closed his eyes and shook with fear, waiting for the worst to come. But the pain never came.

Just as the knife was about to touch Inari"s cheek, it was stopped by a firm grip. "Hey! Why don"t you pick on someone your own size?" a voice growled.

The bandits, Tazuna and Inari all looked to the source, finding a blonde teen glaring at the leader. In an instant, the newcomer sent a harsh fist flying towards the masked man"s face, knocking him to the ground easily.

The two members holding Inari let go to help their boss, proceeding to attack the helpful young man only to be disarmed in a matter of seconds, their knives falling from their hands. Boruto gave them a taste of their own medicine, kneeing one in the groin and kicking the other"s legs out from under him.

Inari and Tazuna though grateful, were frozen in shock a few feet away, watching the young man take down three a.s.sailants without any effort.

"He looks familiar" Inari whispered, easily recognizing the blonde hair, vibrant blue eyes, and whiskered cheeks. "It couldn"t be…"

"Who the h.e.l.l are you!?" The bandit leader shouted, his remaining followers preparing for a fight they knew they couldn"t win.

Boruto just smirked. "Well, you guys can call me Bolt." He replied, citing his other nickname.

"What are you doing here!?" The still masked man demanded; their plan had been going so smoothly before his interruption.

The teenage blonde sighed but gave his signature Uzumaki smile. "Let"s just say that I"m pa.s.sing by."

CHAPTER END

Author"s note: Thank You very Much for reading this chapter.