Ino and Chouji quickly became her new friends, just like Naruto had. It was interesting to realize how different they were from Shikamaru, and yet how well they worked together as a team. Every now and then she caught herself thinking nostalgically of Ron and Hermione, smiling as she watched Shikamaru and Ino bicker playfully.
"With reason you've been acting so strange lately," said Ino, smiling dangerously at her friend and then at her. "You wouldn't believe how different he's been. He came to meetings without us having to pressure him, he started looking for Naruto all the time, he even told me to spread the rumor that he's no longer with Temari!"
Harika raised an eyebrow at Shikamaru, who sighed, somewhat exasperated, but curiously didn't contradict his friend. She couldn't suppress a smile as she realized that everything Shikamaru had done was, essentially, a consequence of being with her: he had started socializing more because they'd talked about his friendships, he plotted with Naruto because he had more influence over the Hokage and could help him get out of Konoha, and the rumor about his breakup… it was because he wanted to cut ties with his ex as soon as possible. She couldn't help but give him a kiss on the cheek, to the astonishment of Ino and Chouji, which Shikamaru accepted with a smile.
"Huh…"
The day ended abruptly when they were called on a mission. Shikamaru said goodbye to her, giving her a kiss under the shade of a tree, ignoring his team's piercing looks, and then left. Harika was left alone in Konoha, since even Naruto seemed busy, so she decided to focus on her own matters. She reviewed the documents she had stol—she meant, copied—hoping to find nothing… until she did.
It was one of the scrolls she had copied from the temple. The paper was yellowed and dusty, like a relic from another time. She opened it very carefully, using a pair of tweezers.
"The Twelve Guardians of the Nexus."
Harika hadn't expected to discover anything special in the tiny scroll that had gone unnoticed in that library, and which she only possessed because she had copied everything without stopping to discern what was or wasn't interesting. She usually skimmed the contents of everything she copied, but she didn't stop to read in detail because she knew it would take too much time, more time than she wanted to spend. The scroll in question, however, had caught her attention since she'd read the title carved into a small wooden tag tied around the dark-coloured roll.
"Little is known about the origin of the Nexus, but it is speculated that its beginnings lie in the Other World. From the creation of the Nexus arose our Order and, with it, the formation of the Guardians whose only purpose is to protect this world from the dangers of the Beyond and to maintain the—"
With her heart in her throat, she unrolled a bit more of the scroll, but saw in horror that it had been half-destroyed by humidity and what looked like rat bites. She didn't even try to repair it since it was a copy. She needed the original. Something told her that the Nexus it spoke of was that portal she had fallen through. She looked around her flat, realizing she didn't know when Shikamaru would return, and decided to contact him through the coin.
"I fnd smthng. Rtrnng soon."
The letters vanished as if by magic. She waited a few seconds, but as she suspected, Shikamaru was too busy to reply. She summoned her backpack, ready to check her supplies before departing, and noticed she was running low on resources. With a sigh, she took her purse and went out to buy what she needed to refill her magical pantry.
She was so lost in thought, thrilled to have found a tangible clue, that she almost ignored that feeling. Almost… She slowed down while looking at the shop windows and food stalls, trying to spot whoever was watching her. Goosebumps rose on her arms when something deep inside told her that whatever it was, it meant her no good. She put on sunglasses, pretending to shield herself from the bright sun, and then used every reflection she could.
Her eyes found Temari's among the crowd. For an instant, even though she was wearing sunglasses and using a glass surface as a mirror, she almost felt as if they were staring straight at each other. She entered a shop, losing sight of her, and pretended to browse the goods while her mind raced, wondering what the hell had happened and why it seemed she'd seen hatred in those green eyes.
She hurried back to her apartment, locking every entrance and drawing the curtains tight. When everything was ready, a while later, she vanished.
…
The temple was just as imposing in the darkness as it was under the sunlight. She could see the sunset in the distance and knew it would be night soon, just what she needed. In her other form, she waited patiently atop a tree, hidden among the branches. No one noticed her as she watched the comings and goings of the monks and ninja guardians. Soon, the torches began lighting one after another, and moths fluttered near them, hypnotized by the flames.
Her eyes let her see everything from the shadows. The hallways gradually emptied, save for a few men doing their rounds now and then. The temple, silent as a tomb, seemed to warn her away from entering. Even so, she knew what she needed was inside, so she didn't give up. She flew silently, gliding with the help of her magic, until she reached the library. From the open window she could see rows of books and scrolls, waiting to be devoured by an eager mind.
She transformed back in the middle of the room without making a sound. She knew exactly what the scroll looked like, so it took her less than a minute to find it with a bit of magic. She took it with gloved hands, careful not to damage or stain it, and with tweezers and a slightly trembling hand, began to open it. The original was identical to the copy, just as she'd expected, but it contained more information that perhaps could be saved.
"Who's there!?" shouted a voice, approaching the library fast.
Harika jumped, horrified, and slipped the scroll into her bag before transforming again as quickly as possible. She escaped through the window before being seen, though they came dangerously close to discovering her. Beneath the tree branches she watched as a group of monks awoke and began patrolling the area in search of her. When they were distracted, she took flight again, using the cover of the trees to flee, and once she was far enough away, she vanished once more.
She arrived back at her apartment in the dead of night, her heart pounding and her veins full of adrenaline. Her hands trembled, even though they hadn't even seen her animal form, she was terrified they might catch her. Fortunately, she had what she needed, so she carefully placed the scroll on the wooden dining table and then searched through her collection of books.
She had no idea how to properly repair an ancient scroll, so she'd need to read quite a bit before raising her wand toward her only lead. The last thing she wanted was to destroy it by mistake. She spent the entire night reading, book after book, taking notes on the most useful spells or charms that might let her transfer the contents onto another blank scroll. In the end, the only thing she could do was try, so she prepared to do just that when someone knocked on her door.
She lifted her head, seeing through the curtains that it was already night, and wondered who it could be. To her horror, her mind conjured Temari's image. Could it be her? She peeked through the peephole and felt immense relief when she saw Naruto.
"Naruto? Is something wrong?"
"I just got back from a night training session. I saw your light on, so I brought you this," her new friend said with a grin. "I know it's not the best time, but I told you that you had to try it! And I always crave it at midnight!"
Stupefied, she accepted the bag of food—it was ramen. Naruto left, as if handing someone a bowl of noodles at three in the morning was perfectly normal, and she locked herself back inside. Ninjas… training and eating ramen past midnight. They were absolutely insane. She went back inside, yawning, and saw the scroll where she'd left it. She looked at the bowl in her hands and decided to eat.
"I know you've got what I need," she told the scroll in front of her while eating the best ramen of her life, "so don't you dare fuck with me, got it?"
Suddenly, she remembered the coin. She read Shikamaru's brief message, telling her to take care, and smiled.
"In Knh. Lv u."
She was so tired that she went to bed right after dinner. The scroll wasn't going anywhere, but she was exhausted.
The next morning, someone woke her again by knocking at the door. It was Naruto. Again.
"How do you do it?" she asked, still sleepy, seeing how radiant he looked.
"Do what?"
"Look like you've slept ten hours!"
"Oh, that. Habit," he shrugged. "I'm going to get breakfast. Want to come?"
"…I guess so," she sighed, glancing over her shoulder. "Actually, I need to talk to you about something. You might recognize it. Come in. I'll change while I tell you what I've found."
Harika got dressed, leaving the bedroom door half-open so she could talk to Naruto.
"What's it about?"
"I found an interesting scroll yesterday in my pile of copied scrolls from the Temple of Fire," she said. "It mentioned something about a Nexus—no, about the Twelve Guardians of the Nexus."
"Twelve Guardians of the Nexus? Huh…"
"What? Does it sound familiar?" she asked excitedly, poking her head through the bedroom doorframe while putting on her socks.
"No. Well, yes, but not really. Did you know that same temple has an order called the Twelve Guardian Ninja? It's been around for years. Their goal is to protect the Feudal Lord of Fire or at least, that's what the pervert told me."
"The pervert?" Harika repeated under her breath, shaking her head. "So, it's possible the Temple of Fire has two different orders?"
"Hmm… What's curious is that I don't remember ever hearing anything about a Nexus. But there's a lot I don't know. Maybe I could ask ero-sennin."
"Better let me try to figure out what's written on the original scroll before we tell anyone," she said. "A secret's only a secret if as few people know it as possible."
"Alright," Naruto shrugged. "Let me know if you find anything."
They walked out into the street, chatting about all sorts of things but avoiding any mention of the Guardian Order. Naruto talked about his training and the new member of his team, Sai. To say that Naruto was irritated by this new teammate was an understatement. Unfortunately for him, they ran right into the man around the next corner.
"You!" Naruto growled, gritting his teeth. "I can't even walk down the street without seeing your stupid face!"
"Hello, Dickless. Didn't expect to see you around," Sai said, making her burst out laughing before she could stop herself.
Naruto turned red as a tomato, glaring at his new teammate while she coughed to hide her laughter. Sai, who couldn't have been more different from Naruto, looked at her with a deliberately neutral expression. Too neutral. He was tall, like Naruto, but slimmer and more graceful. His black hair and pale skin reminded her of Sanguini, a vampire. Unlike Naruto, though, his eyes held a deep emptiness, as if he felt almost nothing at all. She didn't know what had made him that way, but a part of her pitied him when she sensed that… sadness.
"Is she your girlfriend, Dickless? I didn't think anyone would ever be interested in you."
"I'm not his girlfriend," she replied before Naruto could start shouting. Then she smiled mischievously. "Don't worry."
"Worry?" Sai asked.
"Yes, of course. I mean, Naruto seems to interest you, doesn't he?" she said innocently. The shared look of horror between both men made her grin, barely stifling a laugh. "If not, then why are you so interested in Naruto's penis? Don't you like small ones? Or do you prefer them… big?"
Sai somehow managed to go even paler, while Naruto pulled a series of involuntary faces—halfway between laughing and gagging. A snort of laughter to her right made her turn her head. There stood a man, slightly older, wearing the same uniform as Shikamaru. He was tall and lean, with messy brown hair, matching eyes, faint dark circles, and a kind of silver headgear.
"Naruto, Sai. Already fighting this early in the morning?" he said, then turned to her. "A friend of Naruto's?"
"That's right. I'm Harika. Nice to meet you."
"Yamato," he said with a sigh. "The new captain of this… team." He looked tired already.
"Let's go get breakfast. I'm sick of looking at Sai's face," Naruto cut in irritably, walking down the street. "See you later, Yamato-taichō."
"See you."
They lost sight of the others as they turned the corner. Naruto slowed down, muttering under his breath about Sai, Yamato, and someone named Sasuke. Harika didn't ask, seeing how exasperated he looked, but when he caught her puzzled expression, he sighed.
"Sasuke is—was my old teammate. Before he was replaced by Sai."
"Oh. I-"
"He's not dead," Naruto interrupted, then paused and added, "Though I guess you already knew that."
"Yes. Shikamaru mentioned something."
Naruto sighed again. They ended up at a small bakery with an outdoor terrace. They sat at a table, watching people walk past without paying them the slightest attention. Naruto seemed to be debating something in his mind, he was quiet, which was unusual. His eyes were unfocused as if he were somewhere else, and then he looked back at her.
"Sasuke was an arrogant bastard," he said finally. "He was always the best in our class, and everyone adored him for being so 'cool.' The girls, at least," he muttered, rolling his eyes. "When we got assigned to the same team… let's just say I wasn't thrilled."
"And what changed?"
"What makes you think something did?"
"Because now you wish Sai were Sasuke," she said softly but truthfully, following her intuition. "If you still hated him, you wouldn't want him back."
"…That's true," Naruto admitted quietly. "We went through a lot together, the three of us, Team 7. And yet, after everything, he left. He went with Orochimaru, who offered him power in exchange for leaving the village. And he just… went."
"Why did he need that power?"
"Sasuke wants to kill his brother, Itachi," Naruto confessed, taking a sip of his coffee. "Itachi murdered their entire clan, everyone except Sasuke. So Sasuke wants revenge. We faced Itachi once before Sasuke left, and… let's just say Itachi is on a whole other level. Sasuke couldn't do a thing against him. I think he realized that. Orochimaru offered him a faster path to power, and he took it."
Harika and Naruto fell silent as they ate, each lost in thought. Harika couldn't understand what would drive Itachi to kill his entire clan, except for his brother. Had they abused him? Hurt him? Was he insane? She didn't know. The strangest part was that he'd spared Sasuke. If he'd been completely mad, he likely wouldn't have made distinctions. So, what had driven him to do such a thing? And Sasuke… she couldn't imagine living with the knowledge that your whole family was dead by your brother's hand. Not only that, but knowing that, despite your desire for revenge, you were too weak to kill him.
Though, in truth, she could imagine it…
"I think I understand Sasuke perfectly, Naruto," she confessed, studying the dregs of her tea with a critical eye. "I also killed the man who murdered my parents. He was older, more experienced, more powerful than me. If someone had offered me power or training to be able to kill him… I would've accepted. Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, no one ever made me that offer."
Naruto stared down at the ground, expression serious and sad, saying nothing. Harika knew he was an orphan too, but unlike Sasuke or herself, he didn't know who his parents were, or who had killed them. All he knew was that his master had told him they had loved him and hadn't abandoned him by choice.
"Naruto?" called a female voice.
Harika looked up and saw a girl with pink hair and green eyes, dressed in black shorts and a red shirt. She looked between Naruto and Harika with a confused, strange expression. Was she… jealous?
"Sakura-chan! What are you doing here?"
"I was about to ask you the same thing," she said a bit sharply, then turned to Harika. "My name's Sakura."
"I'm Harika."
"And are you two…"
"On a date?" Harika finished, laughing at the ninja's curiosity. "No. We're just friends."
Naruto flushed again but relaxed when he saw that Sakura seemed to believe her. Harika glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, amused, Naruto was clearly smitten with Sakura, judging by how nervous he was.
"Would you like something to drink, Sakura?" Harika offered, ready to return one of the many favours Naruto had done for her. "We're having breakfast."
"If you don't mind…"
"Of course not, Sakura-chan!"
Sakura joined them, but Harika made no mention of Sasuke. She let Naruto talk about his training and how he'd just run into Sai. Sakura, slightly exasperated, scolded him in front of her, though Harika could tell she wasn't being entirely serious. She smiled, watching the easy banter between the two members of Team 7, and wondered what it would've been like if Sasuke were there with them.
"I've got a few errands to run," Harika said, standing up. She pushed Naruto gently back into his seat when he tried to stand. "You're not going to leave Sakura to eat alone, are you?"
"It's fine."
"No. Food tastes better with company. Besides, Naruto hasn't finished his yet."
She said goodbye to them after assuring them she had to leave. Harika rolled her eyes as she walked back home. She couldn't wipe the smile off her face thinking about how she'd left Naruto with his crush, blushing like they were on a romantic dinner date instead of having morning tea in the middle of the village. She was about to turn the corner, nearing her building, when she appeared. Harika almost stopped in the middle of the street, surprised to find herself face-to-face with her boyfriend's ex, but she simply sighed and kept walking.
Temari's gaze locked onto hers from the other end of the street. As they drew closer to each other, Harika realized she wasn't trying to hide her sharp stare and those cold eyes. When they passed at the same height, Harika felt a shiver run down her spine at the almost invisible curl of Temari's lips and that piercing look that felt like knives digging into her skin.
When Temari was finally out of sight, Harika let out the breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding, feeling foolish for letting Temari intimidate her so much. Still… there was something about her that didn't sit right. She'd seen enough hateful looks in her life to know that one wasn't normal. Would she actually want to fight her over Shikamaru? She almost laughed out loud at the thought, it was absurd, ridiculous, but Temari was a ninja. What if she was right? What if she did want to fight?
Just as she was about to enter her building, something made her stomach twist. She slipped quietly into the entryway and shut the door behind her, peering through the small frosted glass as two monks she'd seen before walked past, heading toward what seemed to be the Hokage's tower. They were monks from the Temple of Fire. She was completely sure.
"Shit…" she whispered under her breath. "I have to hurry."
She ran up the stairs to her floor. The scroll was right where she'd left it. She gasped in relief seeing that she still had the only tangible clue she'd found. She locked the doors and windows again, drew the curtains, and peeked through a corner. As usual, there was nothing. Sitting at her table, she drew her wand for precision and picked up the scroll again.
"Please work, please…" she prayed aloud. Then, with a trembling hand, she pointed her wand at the parchment. "Incriptio rediviva."
The scroll seemed to pulse for a second before the damp stains slowly began to fade. She inhaled in delight as a few faint sentences emerged where the water had once blurred the ink. Still, there were spots too far gone to recover. She raised her wand again for a second try.
"Memoralis evoco."
The black words, written in ink who knows how many years ago, appeared as if by magic. The memory of the parchment was strong, and it restored itself completely. She had to stifle a squeal of joy when she saw that the text could now be read from beginning to end. She copied the scroll again, making sure the information was stored safely inside her bottomless bag, and then read the inscription.
"So that's what it was…"
…
Shikamaru didn't return the next day, but he did contact her through the coin. As much as he could, at least. She didn't tell him what she'd discovered, knowing it would distract him and the last thing she wanted was for him to get hurt again while on a mission.
She was so nervous and thrilled to have the answer in her hands that she could barely sleep. Still, she didn't want to leave her protected apartment, not with those monks around. And not with Temari either, if she was being honest. Just when she most wanted to see Naruto, he didn't show up for days. She found herself pacing her apartment like a caged tiger, waiting for something, anything.
When she heard the sound of keys in the door, she ran toward it, flinging it open, too excited to hold back.
"Naruto! You won't believe it! I finally figured it out!" she exclaimed, not realizing what time it was. She stopped short when she saw how utterly exhausted he looked. "Are you okay?"
"Eh, hey, Harika. I've barely slept a couple of hours in the last three days. I've been working on a new jutsu."
Harika sighed, suppressing her excitement at the sight of Naruto swaying on his feet, dark circles under his eyes. She left him waiting in the hallway for a moment and went to fetch a tray of food she'd already prepared. She handed it to him, leaving the annotated copy of the scroll she'd been studying for days on the table.
"Take a look when you can, will you? I think this might be the key to going home. Out of all the documents I've read… this is the only one that has a solid lead."
"I'll… I'll do that," Naruto yawned, leaning against the doorframe. "Good night."
"Good night, Naruto. Get some rest."
She let him into his apartment, closing the door behind him as she shook her head in mild exasperation. Ninjas. She closed her own door, sighing at a sudden wave of fatigue, then sat down at the table. She felt strange without her copied scroll, the very scroll she'd repaired and that now held her path home. She took out the original, running her fingers over the fabric that kept it rolled up, and set it on the table.
"Tomorrow I'll take you back to where you belong. You'll be good as new," she whispered, turning off the light to go to bed. "That way those monks will finally leave me alone."
She woke up suddenly, realizing she'd only been asleep for what felt like five minutes, though the sun hadn't yet risen. There was another knock on the door, calm and unhurried, so she assumed it must be Naruto. She looked through the peephole. It was Naruto. He was holding the scroll and turning it in his hands with a thoughtful expression. She stepped into the hallway, closing the door behind her.
"Already read it? I thought you'd need more time to analyse it. Or, you know, to sleep."
"A few hours are enough for me to recover," her friend shrugged, then lifted the scroll. "Is this what you were talking about?"
"Yes. I think one of the portals mentioned there must still be active. And there's one really close to Konoha!"
"I think this portal corresponds to one of the Uzumaki temples," said Naruto, musing aloud. "But… if you leave, how will you come back?"
"That's the thing. I still need to figure that out. For now, this scroll only shows the locations of nexuses to my dimension, but it doesn't have the coordinates for the ones leading back here," she sighed, scratching her head. "Shikamaru was right, though: I can only use a portal in one direction once, and then it takes a whole year to recharge. That's why that blasted painting showed an annual cycle."
"So, without this scroll, no one could follow you to your dimension, right?"
The question caught Harika off guard. There was something in his tone she didn't like. She didn't say anything as she tried to figure out why those seemingly innocent words had unsettled her so much. Before she could reach any conclusion, Naruto spoke again.
"And once you're there, if you can't locate the nexuses from your side… you'd never be able to come back, would you?"
"…I think we should leave this for later, Naruto. First thing I'll do is explain everything to Shikamaru. He'll know what to do, how to keep investigating. Besides, I have to return the scroll to the Temple of Fire to get rid of those monks."
"Too late. I'm not letting you do that," Naruto muttered coldly behind her.
Alarm bells went off in her head, but it was too late. A hand clamped over her mouth, and before she could scream or fight back, a needle sank into her neck. The world went black.