Fairy's Ace

'Thoughts'

"Normal Dialogue"

~ X784, with Naruto ~

"Do you have your sleeping bag?"

"Check."

"How about those weirdly shaped knives and throwing things that you had me commissioned for your birthday?"

Naruto skilfully retrieved one of his kunai from his thigh pouch. "Never leave home without them."

"How much jewels have you packed? This trip could last an entire month with what you've planned, you know?"

Shaking his purse, Naruto tried to judge the content by the sounds.

"Sounds like I've got enough. Besides, I'll mostly be camping and hunting for my own food. The jewels are just for insurances and if I see any souvenir that I want."

Another year had flown by as quickly as it had arrived. Currently, Warrod was helping Naruto with the final preparations for Naruto's first solo trip away from their home.

With his 12th birthday coming up soon, Naruto had decided that he needed to see and experience more of the world for himself.

Recently, he had discovered that the size of Fiore was bigger than the size of the Land of Fire.

Travelling from their home to Magnolia, where Porlyusica's home was based nearby at, had taken almost half a week to get to. This included more than half the distance being travelled by train.

Accompanied by Warrod, he had already been to Crocus and Magnolia.

This time, he wanted to see a little more of the places and towns along the way, before he would meet up with Porlyusica for a scheduled check-up.

He had even made plans to visit his third major town, Hargeon, during the trip. As he opened the door to their home, Warrod's voice grabbed his attention.

"They grow up so fast." Warrod teasingly commented, seeing Naruto all packed up and ready to leave, to spread his wings as he'd put it.

Naruto adjusted the straps of his pack, his daily physical training allowed him to feel the weight of the pack as if it were lighter than it should have been.

He took a deep breath, the scent of nature filling his lungs as he gave Warrod a confident grin.

"I'll be fine, Koboku-jiji. Don't forget, it's not my first time being out in the wild before." He said, slipping his hands behind his head.

Warrod chuckled. "That is indeed true, but the circumstances are different now. You've grown up well. I'm sure. . . if they could see you now, they'd be proud of you."

A comfortable silence hung between the both of them, but for Naruto, the silence spoke a thousand words. Giving a thumbs up, Naruto turned around to face the dirt path ahead.

His first destination? The capital city of Fiore, Crocus.

~ A few days later ~

The first two days of the journey were uneventful, but that isn't to say that Naruto didn't enjoy the stroll.

The forest trails and dirt road were filled with the magic of nature itself – from the chirping of birds to the frequent visits he'd get from small animals looking for food.

Naruto spent his evenings by a campfire, honing his shuriken throwing skills and enjoying the peaceful surroundings. On the third day, the scenery began to shift.

The dense forest gave way to open plains dotted with small clusters of trees. It was during this transition that Naruto's senses picked up something amiss.

The sound of heavy footsteps and low murmurs reached his ears, and he instinctively slowed his pace.

Ahead, a group of six rugged-looking men emerged from behind a boulder.

They were armed with crude weapons – clubs, rusty swords, and makeshift axes. The leader, a large man with a scar running across his cheek, grinned maliciously as he stepped forward.

"Well, well, what do we have here? A little kid alone on the road? Must be our lucky day." The man sneered, his companions chuckling behind him.

Naruto raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. "You guys sure you want to do this? I've got places to be, and you're in my way."

The situation was nothing new to Naruto.

During his trips with Warrod, they were always ambushed like he currently was. Most of the time, the duo looked like easy pickings – an old man and a young boy.

In those situations, Naruto would deal with the road bandits, but Warrod would have always been his safety fall-back in case he could not handle them.

He had learned quite a bit about how to fight, especially since the bandits always seemed so predictable.

Fighting alone was only possible because during his training, Naruto realized that the Chakra he could not access was also passively enhancing his physical attributes.

Paired with the frequent spars he'd get against Warrod's summons, Naruto was not one to be messed with. Especially not by simple bandits.

The leader's grin widened. "You hear that, boys? The little runt thinks he's some hot shit or something. I think we should teach him a lesson or two about staying humble. Get him!"

As the bandits lunged toward him, Naruto reacted accordingly.

He ducked under a wild swing from a club, countering with a quick upward palm to the attacker's chin. The man staggered back, dazed, as Naruto pivoted to his left, narrowly avoiding a swipe from a rusty sword.

Naruto grabbed the swordsman's wrist, twisting it, forcing the weapon to clatter to the ground. A quick spinning kick to the man's gut sent him crashing into the first bandit.

"Two down." Naruto muttered, sidestepping a charge by the bulkiest of the bunch.

As the man charged at him again, Naruto used the close proximity to grab one of the man's arm, and using the bandit's own momentum, threw him down over his shoulder, sending the man sprawling onto his back.

The sound of air being forced from the bandit's lung was audible as he hit the ground.

~ End of Chapter 10 ~

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