The Hidden Waterfall Village was a myth to most.
To Naruto, it was a ghost.
Hidden behind lush forests and roaring cliffs, the village had no natural path—just layered seals and illusions that twisted the very sense of direction. But Naruto wasn't a man guided by maps anymore. He followed presence. Chakra. Pull.
And Fū's chakra—though erratic and bright—burned quietly in the dark. Like a firefly that hadn't been seen in years.
He walked through mist and brush, his katana humming against his back, cloak whispering like smoke. No grand entrance. No explosions.
But the moment he stepped past the final seal, the trees bent backward.
A kunai shot toward his neck.
He tilted slightly.
It missed.
He looked forward, eyes glowing a muted red beneath the shadows.
She stood on the branch, leaning forward with a grin too wide to be fake but too forced to be real.
"Wow! You dodged that without even blinking! Who are you?"
Naruto said nothing.
Her smile faded just slightly.
"You're not from here, are you? You're not Akatsuki either... wait—are you here to kidnap me?"
Still no answer.
She dropped down lightly from the branch, arms crossed.
"You're creepy."
Naruto finally spoke, voice flat. "You're Fū."
She blinked.
"...Yeah. Who's asking?"
"The one who came to take the Seven-Tails."
Fū stared at him.
And smiled again—but this time, there was something in it. Not fear. Not defiance.
Resignation.
"So, it's finally my turn, huh?"
Naruto didn't draw his blade.
She didn't charge.
They stood beneath the trees like old acquaintances meeting under wrong skies.
Then, suddenly—
Wings burst from her back.
Blue-green chakra shimmered like beetle carapace as Chōmei's energy surged to life. She hovered midair, her eyes sharp now, no longer hiding behind cheer.
"You really want to try this?" she asked. "You don't look like the type to—"
Naruto flew.
No chakra burst.
No warning.
Just a blur, and suddenly he was behind her, blade unsheathed—but not swung.
She spun mid-air, eyes wide.
"Whoa, fast!"
Naruto's chakra flared slightly—dark crimson tendrils ghosting off his arms. Not Kurama. Not malice.
But focus.
And pain.
Fū weaved hand seals and launched a volley of insect-shaped wind projectiles. Naruto vanished between them, flickering like ash. Their fight danced between trees, through canopies, over waterfalls. Fū was fast—her agility enhanced by Chōmei's speed.
She glided through the air like a bird tasting freedom.
But Naruto matched her.
And for a moment—he forgot the mission.
Because he saw her.
Not her power.
Not the Tailed Beast.
Her.
The way she moved to be seen.
The way she smiled to be heard.
The way her chakra tried so hard to shine despite the isolation wrapped around her soul like chains.
He saw himself.
Fū landed hard, panting.
"You're really not Akatsuki, huh…"
Naruto landed a few meters away, expression unreadable.
Fū sat on a rock and wiped blood from her cheek.
"You gonna finish it?"
Naruto said nothing.
"Thought so," she mumbled, softer now. "Everyone wants it. Chōmei. Inside me. Not me."
He said something then.
Quiet. Cold.
But not cruel.
"I was you once."
Fū blinked. "...What?"
"I know what it means to be hated. To be feared. To pretend you're fine because no one ever cared enough to ask if you weren't."
Fū looked away.
"I'm not pretending."
"You are."
Silence.
"You smiled when you first attacked me," Naruto continued. "Not because you liked fighting. But because it meant someone remembered you were still alive."
Her hands clenched.
He stepped forward.
"I didn't come to kill you."
Her head shot up.
"Then why?"
"To offer you a choice."
Fū stared.
Naruto extended a hand.
"Come with me."
For the first time in her life, Fū couldn't speak.
Not because of fear.
Not because of rage.
But because someone had finally said it.
Not "Stay put."
Not "Don't lose control."
Not "You're a jinchūriki."
Just:
Come with me.
She didn't take his hand.
Not yet.
But she stood.
And nodded.
"You're still creepy," she whispered.
Naruto didn't smile.
But the storm in his eyes eased.
They vanished from the forest together.
Chōmei stirred inside her but didn't resist.
Because even the Tailed Beast felt it—
This boy wasn't a hunter.
He was a storm of old pain and new purpose.
And Fū wasn't a prisoner anymore.
She was the wind beside him.