A ninja must see underneath the underneath

Chapter 23 - Onwards to The Hidden Waterfall Village!

Naruto knew he had to keep moving non-stop in order to meet Jiraiya at the inn. He bit back the pain in his leg, shoulder, and hands. The wounds had closed up completely now thanks to Kurama, but he knew it would take a while before the muscles and nerves caught up, those always healed somewhat slower. He glanced over his shoulder and saw that his sensei was still asleep. It was to be expected. Naruto had heard about the disadvantages of ration pills.

After 18 hours, they had entered a thick forest. Another eight hours later, Naruto was able to hear the sounds of a waterfall. He closed his eyes and tried to figure out where the sound was coming from. He only had an hour left before he was supposed to show up at the inn, and he knew that he had still quite a long way to go. He rushed forwards in the direction of the sound.

Naruto was amazed when he reached the waterfall. The first thing he saw was a giant rock wall that ran straight up. The wall was easily a hundred fifty meters in height, and it had a crystal blue waterfall falling straight down off it. He could see trees peeking over the edge of the cliff. It was as if the forest existed out of two levels, one of which was raised way up into the sky with nothing to connect the two parts except for the giant waterfall. The water was falling from such a height that it spread tiny droplets all around, which soaked their clothes. Naruto found it an amazing sight. He understood now, why Takigakure had never been successfully invaded.

"I guess the entrance to the caves is behind the waterfall..." He murmured to himself, as he moved closer towards the stone wall. He couldn't see what was behind the waterfall without moving through it. He held Kakashi's arms tightly against his upper chest and jumped into the water. He tried to swim towards the waterfall, which proved difficult as he still had to hold onto his lover with one hand. The pressure of the water was so strong that it pushed him downwards. As he was smashed into the bottom of the lake, he felt the air escaping his lungs.

Frustrated with the situation, and a lack of breath, he decided on using his newly discovered water nature. He turned around, put out his palm, and created a small vortex which he used to push himself forward through the waterfall. "It's like creating a little tornado with my wind nature, but underwater..." He mused as he observed the technique. He quickly picked up on how to aim the whirlpool in order for him and Kakashi to surface.

As soon as he had crawled onto the edge of the lake, he saw a large hole in the wall, a tunnel, which lead to the city. At each side of the tunnel, there stood a shinobi guard. Each held a weapon, which was now aimed at Naruto's throat. The blond knew how to play his role well, so he looked upon the weapons with shock and fear.

"Who are you and what business do you have here?" The taller guard asked him.

"My friend and I are travelers. We come from the direction of Iwagakure. On our way, we were attacked and robbed by two men. That's how my friend and I got hurt. They stole most of our possessions and even our tent. We hoped we could seek shelter and safety here..." He said with a slight tremble in his voice.

The smaller guard lifted an eyebrow. "If that is so, then why are you both wearing ninja pants and a weapons pouch?"

Naruto swallowed a lump in his throat. "The robbers took most of our clothing. We got these from a shinobi we encountered on our way here. The weapons are merely to protect ourselves and to be able to skin rabbits and other prey."

"I see. What are your names?" The taller one asked as he grabbed a clipboard and a pencil.

"Narushi and Kaishou." Naruto answered without falter.

"Did the shinobi you encountered have a headband and a name?"

"I'm sorry sir. I didn't really pay attention to his headband. But I believe it was similar to yours. He said his name was Lee." Naruto mumbled, pleased with how well he had learned to lie.