Quite a bit of swearing near the end of the chapter; you have been warned. Please listen to song as many times as you can/want/need to throughout this chapter. Please. 

~Chapter Seventeen~

By the time the smoke cleared the explosion had been seen for several hundred miles, the brilliant flash of light a representation of destruction. Rubble. All that was left was rubble, dust and grains of sand floating down from the sky. Any human life had been incinerated, not even bones left behind to prove their existence. A gold necklace clattered to the ground with a ruby in the center- one that used to be around the neck of Judal. Two silver collars fell down as well- one used to be Winter's, the other more worn down one, Judal's- and there was a soft blue aura seeping through the air.

Crackling sounded out, a faint sound that was almost silenced from the deafening boom of the meteor crashing to the ground moments before, a circle cut neatly into the sand of undisturbed space.

Ja'far is standing with his arms thrown outwards, his blue solidified mist having formed a shield to ensure they wouldn't be reduced to ash, Winter kneeling on the ground by his feet with blood dripping out of her mouth.

Bit by bit the blue fades and he crouches down, worry flashing across his face. She waves her head dismissively with a tired, drawn look making her appear much older than she was. Grabbing her arm and slinging it over his shoulder he stands up letting her put most of her weight on him.

"You're still as reckless as ever."

She smiles weakly as they start to stumble away from the ruins of the coliseum. "Well some things just never change."

She glances up towards the sky as it clears, a soft azure blue taking the place of the ugly gray. They say that your eyes are the window to your soul. If that was the case, her lifeless eye made it appear as if she had no soul to speak of.

Ja'far guided her away from the mess of the past and to a nearby sandhole with the smoking ruins still in sight, setting her down in it before walking off to try and find some water. Wiping the blood off her face she does a few handsigns before summoning a small gray wolf pup who goes by the name of Mist. The mute wolf sits patiently as Winter collects her thoughts before starting to record when she nods her head.

In five different parts of the shinobi world, five powerful leaders lift their heads in their offices as a screen flickers to life in front of them. It's blurry before the static clears leaving a slightly grainy image of a girl with worn down features, a dead eye and ash coated on her skin. Tsunade got up, biting her nail as she takes in the destroyed- almost frail- state of Winter. The other leaders lean forward, each anxious in their own way to know what this was about.

She takes a deep breath before letting out a soft sigh of relief letting the words fall from her mouth with a hint of sadness, disbelief and surrealism.

"Three months, two weeks and six days ago precisely twenty-one minutes and forty-eight seconds ago I left the Leaf Village on a mission assigned to me by the Hokage who was instructed by the other kages to find someone capable of completing this."

The Mizukage runs a hand through her red strands of hair as she absorbs all the information being broadcasted to her.

Another shaky breath and she brushes some of the hair out of her face with trembling hands.

"Approximately four minutes and twenty-nine seconds ago I completed this mission. I, Yuki Ookami of the Hidden Leaf, obliterated the Coliseum, Judal and his guards included with no prisoner casualties."

The Tsuchikage scoffs lightly as he hears her words although something akin to approval rises up in him.

She lifts a hand and points in the direction of the still crumbling area. "That is all is left of that wretched place and I hope the ash is scattered across this world, never to reform again."

Lightning flashes outside his window as the Raikage raises an eyebrow. As much as he thought the Leaf was too lenient in the way of teaching their ninja it was obvious the girl, and perhaps some of their other ninja, were much more capable than he'd previously thought.

Clearing her throat, she lets her shoulders slump forward as tension leaves them. Even though she tried to prevent it her voice still cracks slightly as she finishes the message.

"Operation Arashi was a success."

Tsunade lets out a large sigh of relief, collapsing in her chair with her hand over her chest. She was worried that she'd been sending the young girl to her death, but it looked as if she handled it quite well.

The wolf stops recording, but not before there is a glimpse of Winter collapsing to the ground.

And the Kazekage couldn't help but let his fist tighten around the ceramic mug in his hand, crushing it to bits as anger and panic threatened to overtake him. That look in her eyes, the way she fell over... this was too much, even for Winter.

***

She had to admit, waking up in her old home was the best thing that had happened to her in a long time. The faint scent still resided there that she associated with her mother; fresh snow with a hint of pine. She pushes herself into a sitting position and looks around taking in the room that was her childhood.

The walls were painted a navy blue with one wall covered in carefully hand painted snowflakes, another with storm clouds complete with lighting and the third had an night sky spanned over an ocean. The fourth and final wall was just a plain color but covered with pictures. Pushing herself to her feet and noticing that she had been changed into an old nightgown of her mother's with bandages still wrapped neatly around her wrists and eye.

Her jaw tightened at the thought of Ja'far potentially changing her and she cracked her knuckles, shuffling to the door. Opening it she shuffled out and down to the main living room where she sensed chakra.

She is met with the sight of Emiko sitting triumphantly on top of two very dizzy males, holding a stick of dango in her hands. The purple haired woman gloats slightly as she starts to make a show of eating the final dango stick... well until Winter steals it from her and eats it all in one bite with a blank face. "I hope you changed me, because if not-"

Emiko interrupts her, "Shit will go down?" She nods and Emiko smirks softly. "Luckily for these two dimwits I did change you." She gets off of the almost unconscious Daiki and Ja'far, looking Winter up and down.

"You look terrible." She states bluntly going into the kitchen. "I've been better, but I've also been worse." Winter murmurs softly as she starts to stretch, her sore muscles aching from protest. She closes her eyes briefly but quickly snaps it back opening not being able to bear with the images that present themselves to her. Letting out a low sigh she rotates her shoulder blades and her neck, her eyes down cast.

"I'm going to go for a walk." She announces as she walks back into her old room to change into something more suitable for walking around in the cold outside. Clad in black pants and a love sleeved shirt she opens her window (and with some difficulty though she'd never admit that) Winter managed to haul herself out of her room and into the small snow mound outside her window.

The hard crystallized white snow crunched underneath her feet as she trudged deep into the woods, carefully descending the mountain. If she planned everything right she might just be able to pull this off... and if not, well she could be looking at facing a man with scars and the ability to make anyone cry and beg for mercy.

And four hours later when Ja'far set out to look for her, all he could find was her footprints being steadily filled by snow falling from the sky heading West.

***

A light switch was flipped on. A door was shut and locked, a tired mumble following as well as the sound of shoes being kicked to the side. Seconds later another door shut and the sound of a shower starts.

After a good half hour one very exhausted blonde walks out wearing his orange and black pajamas, rubbing his eyes sleepily. It was raining outside very lightly, a soft drizzle with just enough volume to make him feel a growing need to crash in his bed. So that's what he decided to do; Naruto Uzumaki walked over to his unkempt bed, flopping down onto it only to land on something... breathing.

His eyes widen with horror and he springs up, noting somewhere that is apartment was the cleanest it had been in a couple years.

Grabbing a spare kunai, he carefully grabbed his comforter and flung it back, only to drop the kunai from pure shock. His world faded in and out of focus as his gaze settled on the person sleeping in his bed, hugging one of his slightly worn pillows.

Her black hair was spread out and she breathed softly, no bandages surrounding her eye with her face scrunched up as she curls up into a small ball from the sudden rush of cool air. His hands started to shake as many buried emotions started to crawl their way out of their graves. He struggled to comprehend this situation, no real logical explanation coming to him how and why Winter was in his bed.

But then he saw the tear stains.

His lips parted slightly as he takes in the harsh redness surrounding her eyes and on the tip of her nose, her face shining from tears that had yet to dry fully. Slowly but surely another tear leaked out of her eyes and fell down her face, painfully slow.

So he reached forward with a shaking hand and wiped it away before glancing around once more. It all made sense now, why his apartment was so clean, how fresh food found its way onto his counter top and then his eyes finally settled on the small letter clutched in Winter's hands. He slowly and carefully extracts the letter from her loose grip and looks at it.

Blondie.

I wish I could talk to you. I wish I could sit down and explain every thing that has happened to me these past few months. But I can't. And it hurts.

God, it hurts so bad and I can't stand it.

Every day my chest has been filled with a dull aching pain, a void that grows every hour that has been consuming me bit by bit. I am so scared and lost and alone and frustrated and I can't even tell you, talk to you or even see you.

I'm leaving this note here for you not because I want to throw a pity party for myself, but mainly so I can let you know I'm alright. There is a reason I had to leave Konoha but in the future I will be returning.

I promise. (And I never break my promises blondie)

I'm going to stay for a few minutes like the slightly homesick person I am, oh my god... is the Leaf village truly my home now? Ugh damnit I wish I could just make up my mind. ANYWAYs, I hope this will bring you some peace... and if it doesn't I'm sorry for fucking everything up further.

Stay safe x

His ocean blue eyes soften and he carefully folds the letter back up before placing it on his desk, next to the one she left when she went to train what seemed like forever ago. Then he layed down on the bed next to her and put his arms behind his head, the two separated by an inch or two of space. He stayed awake, humming softly to try and calm the emotionally wrecked girl next to him.

Bit by bit Winter stopped crying, stopped making a face of misery and soothed down. At some point in the night the two found themselves face to face, one with their eyes closed and the other with their eyes open. Fingers interlocked and stayed in between them. Naruto felt his eyes drooping shut and allowed them, succumbing to sleep.

For the first time in years, both shinobi slept soundly using the other as their support to stay tied to sanity.

And when the sun rose, casting gentle rays down onto the bed, blue eyes opened slowly. A yawn contorted his features and he ran a hand through his messy hair out of habit. Naruto sat up and looked around, alone.

But the letter on his desk let him know that last night wasn't a dream. 

I figured a more uplifting chapter was in order :) or at least slightly uplifting

How did you guys like it? Let me know! 

QotC: I am planning on making a Christmas special for Naruto and Winter (because a lot of you seem to ship them together but I don't want to turn this into a fanfic centered around romanic ya know? A little will be put in here and there but not a whole ton) and I was wondering if you guys would prefer it as an AU (alternate universe where there is no chakra and they go to high school together) or if you'd just like it to be in the Leaf Village?

Unfortunately I may not be able to update until Sunday because I am heading to Idaho for Thanksgiving. And I don't get wifi there :( but I will try my hardest to update before leaving tomorrow (or at least work on the next chapter)

AND I recently reached 300 followers! Okay you guys, this is a HUGE deal to me because it means that people think my stories are worth while to read and vote on and comment on and fan over, and I love to read all of your comments! Even if I don't respond I do read each and every comment :) and I seriously thought all of my stories were going to reach 10 votes max xD.

 I love you all so much. Thank you.