Over the Hills and Far Away

Disclaimer: I own only the obvious, the rest belongs to JK Rowling and Masashi Kishimoto.

Author's Note:As I promised the updates will be quicker now that the dang fight is over. I have also updated myself on the newest happenings and revelations in the Naruto manga. Unfortunately I find that to be some of the most cliché things I have ever read, and so I am pretty much in denial about it all. I shall spare you the full rant.

Correct chapter up when beta finishes.

Chapter Forty

The entire shinobi population currently in Konoha were dressed in black mourning clothes. They were all standing in neat rows, from academy students to genin to chuunin to jounin and the occasional ANBU. All of them were mourning those that had been lost during the fight, and the Hokage was holding a short, memorable speech as she stood in front of the pictures that were all that remained of the dead. The ANBU and the Hunter-nin had made very sure that the bodies had been properly destroyed by fire and then that even the ashes had been destroyed. Even now they didn't want an enemy getting their hands on any secrets.

The academy students were serious as was proper, but they didn't really fully understand yet. The genin were feeling uncertain about their futures and the futures of the comrades they had grown up with. The older shinobi already had their own special ways of dealing with death, and more than one of them would visit their old companion alcohol that night.

The sun was shining cheerily despite the sombre mood of the gathering. The sky was a nice blue, it was warm outside, and not a cloud was in sight. Most of the villagers went about their usual routines without ever really knowing that there was a funeral for dead shinobi going on inside the village. Mothers were dragging children around, children were screaming and laughing and running, people were haggling over prices, old crones were gossiping and the sound of hammers could be heard through the village.

It was a total opposite to the shinobi.

Harry didn't know any of this. He was still fully unconscious and once again back in the hospital. His ANBU-mask was gone, he was dressed in a simple pair of hospital pyjamas, and someone had pulled the cover up to his chest. There was a monitor on his finger, an IV-drip needle stuck in his skin, and an oxygen mask covered his mouth and nose. Various machines around him were beeping and keeping track of vitals, and he was the only patient in the room.

Several chairs around the bed indicated that he often had company around and more than one person at the time. Someone had even brought along a fresh flower and placed it in the small vase on the bedside table, the windows were open, the light curtains flapping gently in the soft breeze, and the room was bright and cheerful.

Too bad that Harry's eyes didn't appreciate the nice room when they opened. The light was too sharp and green eyes were clenched shut at once.

And that was about the length of his wakefulness that time.

He opened his eyes slowly the next time, but by then it was night – and he had absolutely no idea if it was the night following the day he had opened his eyes the first time, or a totally different night altogether. His internal clock was smashed to pieces and buried six feet under. In the darkness of the room Harry could still make out a shape in the chair next to his bed, and by the breathing pattern, the height, and by the seemingly light clothes and hair, the green-eyed male was pretty certain that his sleeping visitor was Naruto. At this point Harry decided that the boy had a good idea and went back to sleep.

The third time he woke up it was daylight again and a nurse was in the room, puttering about. It took a few minutes before she noticed Harry watching her, but then she was by his side and checking over vitals. "It's wonderful to see you awake again! Everything seems normal for now. I'll go get Hokage-sama. She insisted on being notified when you came to again. Just stay right here and I'll be back at once!"

Harry wanted to remark that it was unlikely that he would go anywhere, but the nurse was already out of the room. The Boy-Who-Lived spent some time looking around the room – nope, hadn't changed at all apart from a forgotten telltale orange jacket on a chair. He had to admit it was getting mildly annoying waking up and falling asleep at the drop of a hat seconds later.

The annoyance still didn't hinder him in falling asleep again before the nurse got back with the Hokage.

The next time he woke up raindrops were tapping against the window. And he wasn't alone in the room either. Hermione and Ron were there, sitting on each side of the bed, and they were already looking at him.

"Don't try to talk." Said Hermione in English. "You've been out of it for about two weeks. The wounds you got were serious and even Tsunade wasn't certain if she could save you. It was terrifyingly touch-and-go for a while in the beginning."

"You've lived up to your title again, and boy am I glad for that." Ron grinned, the Mizukage-robes flung carelessly over the back of his chair. "You gave the nurse a scare and a half the last time. She was terrified that you had died during the short time she was gone."

"The battle had several casualties, I'm afraid. Shisui is dead, as are several others. The wizards have taken a heavy hit, but not as bad as the shinobi. The Cursed Seal-users decided to bring down the roof when Orochimaru died." Hermione could practically hear the question in Harry's eyes. "Yes, Orochimaru is dead. Kusanagi ripping out of him didn't kill him, and Jiraiya and Tsunade finished him off together."

Ron's smile stayed wide. "We got the Hokage's crystal ball and took it and the sword to a secret place, and then we proceeded to destroy them both. No more horcruxes. Well, apart from Nagini and that other one we never could track down."

Hermione brushed a wild strand of her bushy hair behind her ear. "Orochimaru had arranged a breakout from the Konoha Strict Correctional Facility, and though a few died and a great deal of others were hurt, they managed to beat down the uprising fairly quickly. Naruto is fine, Sasuke is fine, and all of the genin and younger are fine. The general public doesn't really know that there was a break-out."

"You trained your angsters perfectly, Harry, so no need to fret." Ron squeezed his hand. "I can see your eyes slipping shut, so go back to sleep. When you next wake up we'll have to call in the Hokage so that she can check you over, and you'll need all your strength for that. Konoha needs the best ANBU Squad Commander back on his feet as soon as possible."

"And we need to know what happens next. What we're going to do about Nagini and that last horcrux. But go to sleep, Harry, and we'll see you when you're rested again."

Harry obeyed. It wasn't like he could keep his eyes open much longer, all his meagre strength had gone into staying awake while Hermione and Ron gave him a quick update on things so far. He sighed and let his eyes fall shut. Ron and Hermione were speaking quietly somewhere but their voices were getting more and more distant, and, in the end, Harry fell into resting unconsciousness once more.

-x-x-x-x-

Two weeks after the conversation with Ron and Hermione, Harry was finally able to sit up in bed and be awake for more than five minutes at the time. The oxygen mask was gone, the same with most of the machines. The IV-drip was still there and Harry had to consciously stop himself from scratching at the skin where the needle had been pushed in. He didn't want to dislodge it again and go through another lecture from Tsunade and Hermione and Chihiro and Manji and pretty much everyone else who dropped by his hospital room.

Harry was certain that they had made a schedule for visiting him. No sooner had one party gone when another party entered, all the way through visiting hours. At least they were kind enough to smuggle in some real food. Used to it or not, Harry didn't want to eat too much of the muck that the hospital called food. Perhaps the hospital should hire some gourmet cooks? That would certainly help people get better and avoid food poisoning on top of whatever else ailed them.

He said so to Tsunade when she was checking him up.

"Hah! If you can come up with such ideas then you're definitely getting better!" the busty blonde grinned widely and pulled back from adjusting the IV-drip. "It'll take some weeks yet before you're out of the hospital, and after that I don't want you doing anything but paperwork for at least a month, maybe more. I'll have to see how it goes. Your body has been really strained for the past two decades, Harry, it can't take much more. It's a common ailment with shinobi, especially with those who spend most of their time in the ANBU or Hunter-nin corps."

"Well then, it's a good thing that I'm resigning from my position as ANBU Squad Commander." Harry calmly and without worry sipped the herbal tea Tsunade had brought him.

Tsunade turned serious, but not angry. "I thought you might." She said with a sigh. "It's high time for you to step down or take an extended vacation – like Jiraiya and myself did when we left the village. Learn to live again."

"So glad that we see eye to eye on this."

"But at least stay on long enough to give me a new ANBU Squad Commander." The Hokage grumbled. "I've gotten so used to your efficiency that the rest of them seem like bumbling idiots these days! Get me a good person to take over for you, and I'll let you go back to simply being a chuunin – for that official rank has never been changed. And think, you can end up in the academy teaching the upcoming generations how not to kill themselves with a kunai."

Harry shuddered and grimaced at the thought of himself as a teacher. "The horror."

"You'd be good at it. Just look at your angsters." She smiled.

Green eyes glared at the Hokage. "One more wisecrack out of you, and I'll be running away forever!"

She laughed.

A little over a week later Harry was finally discharged from the hospital.

"You're out of the hospital!" Naruto cheered and jumped around like a terrier on crack. Harry had to look away from the orange and yellow boy to keep himself from becoming dizzy and falling over. No one needed to know that he had blackmailed the Hokage into letting him out a little earlier than she had intended.

"A week's supply of the best sake in Konoha if you let me out today!"

"Two months' supply!"

"Two weeks!"

"A month, and no less!"

"Deal!"

Of course, Harry knew that there was no way Tsunade would have let him go if she hadn't thought that he wasn't healed enough. She may be an alcoholic addicted to sake, but he was first and foremost a healer and a Hokage.

And then, of course, Manji had the splendid idea that Harry needed a "getting out of the hospital and leading us to victory against Orochimaru" party, and everyone else agreed. So here they were, stuffed into one of the BBQ restaurants – much to Naruto's dismay, he had wanted ramen, damn it! – and Harry was watching all of them joke around and have fun. He himself was stuffed next to the wall with Naruto opposite him, and the others had claimed whatever seats they could get to before the restaurant staff brought out three extra chairs for the unlucky ones at the very end.

"We had to drag Sasuke here, the bastard! But I showed 'im, believe it!"

Sasuke scoffed. "Hn."

"Naruto, don't speak with food in your mouth!" ordered Sakura. "Some more bacon, Sasuke-kun?"

"-and there are dragons. Honest to god living, fire breathing dragons," Hermione was explaining to Kakashi, Manji and Itachi. "They're huge! About the size of the Hokage Tower when standing on their hind legs. There are, of course, several species and every one of those varies slightly, but the nastiest is the Hungarian Horntail. Trust me, dragons you don't want to face when you're alone, but the Horntail least of all."

"I wonder if I could change the emblem of the Uchiha to a dragon and leave the fan to the Uchiwa?" Itachi mused.

"I want to see a dragon." Kakashi was fascinated.

"I want to own a dragon! Chihiro, can we get one? We can raise it and name it Chuu!" Manji turned puppy-dog eyes on his wife.

Chihiro was immune. "No, we cannot!"

Hermione nodded. "It's illegal. We had a teacher who once tried, though his was only a Norwegian Ridgeback. We were eleven at the time." And with that simple sentence she had everyone's attention once again.

"Don't worry about your wife, Mizukage," Tsunade was telling Ron. "She's fine, the baby's fine, and soon enough you'll have to worry about a little devil getting into trouble all over the place."

"Can I help it that I worry about my future child? And the beautiful, wonderful mother who is the light of my life?"

"She has you trained alright!" Jiraiya laughed.

"Sakura-chan! Look at what I can do!"

"Naruto! That's not how you're supposed to use chopsti- Sasuke-kun! You too?"

"Defend yourself, Naruto!" Sasuke grinned and a chopstick-duel developed between him and Naruto.

Harry let his eyelids slide halfway shut and let the chatter wash over him, relax him, calm him, heal him.

This was how it should always be.

-x-x-x-x-

Harry, Ron and Hermione were gathered in Harry's apartment. Just recently Harry had nominated a new ANBU Squad Commander for Tsunade and had officially and unofficially gone back to his chuunin rank. This gave him a lot of new free time, so the trio had decided that it was high time to actually sit down and focus on how they were going to destroy Voldemort once and for all.

"So, to sum up, all the horcruxes are gone except Nagini and the last one that we have no idea about." Ron sighed. "That's at least something. How can we be certain Voldemort made seven horcruxes anyway? I mean, usually it's bad enough to make one horcrux, let alone seven of them!"

"Seven is an important magical number," Hermione lectured at once. "In all fairytales and in runes and everywhere you will find the magical numbers three, seven, twelve, and so on. Voldemort isn't going to be stupid enough to trust to luck. No, he'll guard himself against everything by any means he can. Besides, seven is about as much as a soul can be parted in. I don't think even he would survive parting his soul twelve times."

"Nagini will be relatively easy to take care of." Harry said. "Give her a poisonous mouse, chop off her head, and take away her oxygen with a spell, easy all of it. The only problem will be getting to her. From what I know Voldemort always has her near himself, so if we get to Nagini we should be getting to Voldemort at the same time."

"Again, I feel I must remind you both about that last, unknown horcrux." Ron pointed out.

"Well, the only thing we can do with that is research, research, research. There's got to be a clue somewhere about what it could be. As soon as I get back to my shop I'll start on the research. I'll call in some favours, too, to make it go faster. Voldemort has had free reign for almost twenty years, it's about time he was stopped."

Harry nodded to her suggestion and then leaned back and let Ron and Hermione brainstorm their way through which contacts that might help them with the upcoming research. He took the time to observe his two best friends, and it was almost as if he was seeing them for the first time again.

They had grown older. Wrinkles and laugh-lines and crow's feet at the corner of their eyes that hadn't been there twenty years earlier. Their faces were mature and both held themselves with a sort of attitude that came with age and wisdom and power. They were both alike and different from the young teenagers that Harry remembered from before all of this happened, before he had ever met up with Orochimaru. That was actually the last time that Harry had had the chance to slow down, observe his friends and really look at them both.

To tell the truth Harry couldn't really believe that he had spent more than twenty years of his life fighting a war on two fronts – Orochimaru here in the world of the shinobi and Voldemort in the world of the wizards.

He felt exhausted.

"Have you guys ever thought of what you want to do after everything is over?" Harry suddenly spoke up.

The other two, who had been in the middle of a minor argument, turned and looked at him.

"I mean, it's obvious that this war can't last forever. We just got rid of Orochimaru and soon Voldemort will also, hopefully, be dead as a doornail and without any chance of coming back ever again. But what are you going to do after that? I suppose that the matter is settled if you die during the battle against Riddle, but if you survive? What will you do?"

"I…" Hermione trailed off. "I suppose I didn't really want to think too much about what comes after the end, I didn't want to end up too cocky and make a mistake that would have gotten all of us killed. I've just spent the last twenty years of my life working to take down two majorly evil men; I'm not really good for much else. Sure, I have a little store, so I suppose that I can always stick with that, but I'm not sure that I want to continue doing something that will simply bring back memories. But…" she trailed off again, this time thoughtfully. "I think I would like to go home and visit my parents. Before I came here I told them I was working on a secret government mission, and they were okay with that. I have exchanged some letters with them, and the Order's agents have checked in regularly and send me updates on them, but it's not the same as seeing them. Yes, I think I'll go home and spend time with my parents once this is over."

Ron smiled and leaned back in his seat. "Visiting parents sounds good. I have parents and brothers who have all been nagging me about bringing along my Rukia and the child, too, if it's born by then. Hum, I think Rukia would like my family, and mum would have another little tot to go all gaga over. I'm not sure if I can manage that much time away from the village though. Being Mizukage isn't all fun and games you know? The paperwork alone… Ah, well, I suppose I can arrange to have my family come to the shinobi world for a vacation and then meet up with them. Though, I would like to see Hogwarts once more. I miss the old castle."

Hermione sighed happily. "Hogwarts, Hogwarts, hoggy warty Hogwarts! Teach us something, please! Oh, I can't believe I still remember the school song that we sung on that very first time we entered the magic castle, right after our sorting. Yes, visiting Hogwarts is definitely a must. I wonder how much it has changed since we were there. What about you, Harry? What are your plans?"

The green-eyed man hummed, a small smile on his face. "Who knows? It will be… different not to have to fight anyone anymore."

"So you're giving up the life of a shinobi?"

"Yes, Ron, I am. I'm giving up the life of a shinobi and the life of an agent for the Order of the Phoenix. Once Voldemort is dead I don't want to have anything to do with death unless someone attacks me personally."

"What are you going to do then? If you stay here in Konoha you will be dragged into something that has to do with shinobi – teacher, supervisor, you name it. If you move to another village then word will spread and shinobi will come and challenge you for you are the Wolf of Konoha and Orochimaru's grandson."

"And if you go to the wizarding world you won't get a moment of peace. According to all reports from the twins the wizard newspapers have gotten some really vicious reporters and paparazzi of Rita Skeeter's ilk." Ron winced at the very thought. "That will be hell. Not a moment of peace alone."

Harry just smiled some more. "I have a place in mind, far away from wizards and shinobi alike so fear not."

Hermione's eyes narrowed thoughtfully. "Hum, based on maps, locations of wizards and shinobi and your personal preferences, I think I know what possible places you have in mind, but I won't say anything yet – or to anyone if you really wish to be left in peace."

He nodded to her in thanks.

"Well, I could probably figure it out if I had some maps to look at and some more time to think – not all of us are geniuses on par with Hermione's standards, after all – but I do have another question for you." Ron looked at him. "You going to tell Naruto and the rest of your little angsty group of people about your plans, or are you just going to up and disappear on them?"

This time Harry sighed and shrugged. "I'm not really certain about that," he said and shifted slightly in his chair. He'd had almost constant muscle aches across his body where he had been wounded during the fight with Orochimaru, and he was really feeling tired of it, but Tsunade said that it was a good thing. Apparently it meant that he was still healing and that his body wasn't so damaged that it had given up, and a lot of medical jargon Harry hadn't bothered to listen to.

He just wanted the aches to be over.

"I'm not certain if I should tell them now," he continued. "I mean, I don't even know if I'm going to survive the battle with Voldemort – remember what the prophecy said, one of us has to kill the other – so I don't want to give anyone false hope or anything like that. Besides," Harry grunted and shifted again, "these aches and the chest-wound won't let me into any sort of battle for at least another month, perhaps two. So we have more than enough time to get information, figure out what that last horcrux is and how to get to it and to Nagini."

"And I'm going to have to go back to Kirigakure soon. This trip to Konoha was… unplanned to say the least. I only came to make sure that Harry survived the battle – the reports of your wounds were worrisome – and I dropped pretty much everything and was gone during the night." Ron frowned. "Rukia supported me, but others won't. There's this up and coming kunoichi, Mei Terumi, who seems to be gaining popularity as the next Mizukage. She's a good woman and a kind one, but I'm not quite ready to give up the reigns yet."

"Perish the thought that you become one of us poor, mere mortals." Harry remarked dryly.

Ron threw a pencil at him. "Says the one who is a hero and major figure in note one but two – count 'em! Two! – worlds! Let me have my moment in the spotlight, damn it!"

The former ANBU Squad Commander snorted. "By all means, take it! Take all the spotlight you want! I don't want anything to do with it!" he threw the pencil back at the redhead.

The Mizukage stuck out his tongue.

"Oh very mature!" Harry said, then produced a senbon needle from… somewhere, and threw it at Ron. "If you want a tongue-piercing that much I'll give it to you!"

"Hey!" Ron easily deflected the senbon and returned a shuriken.

Harry drew a kunai.

"Boys!" Hermione shouted. "Act your age! What would people think upon seeing the Mizukage and the Konoha ANBU Squad Commander acting like little children?"

"They'd think we were happy about Orochimaru's final downfall, and we are." Ron muttered.

"Is that really okay with you, Harry?"

"I'm no longer Konoha's ANBU Squad Commander. I'm a simple chuunin and I have all the right in the world to act however I wish. Besides that, I don't really care about what they think or about Orochimaru." Harry grumbled, but put away the kunai.

Hermione looked at him. "Really? After twenty years of working for and against the man who is your grandfather, and you feel nothing?" she obviously didn't believe him.

Hell, Harry didn't really believe himself when it came down to it.

He sighed and shifted – again! – and looked away from her.

"Harry-"

Ron cut her off. "Leave it be, Hermione. It's obvious that he has some feelings about the situation, he isn't Voldemort after all, but he can't give you an answer right now. He needs time to figure things out and then, when he's good and ready, he'll tell you. Or he won't. Just leave it be for now."

"I'm just-"

"Worried, I know." Harry smiled slightly.

Hermione sighed. "Alright. I won't say a word about it unless you want to talk. But don't expect me not to worry!"

"We wouldn't dream of it." Ron quipped.

"I'm starting to feel like we're back at Hogwarts in our early years. I jump into things, Ron tags along as a sidekick, and Hermione does the real work, has the brains of the outfit and worries about us all."

"Sidekick? Who are you calling a sidekick, Potter? I haven't been a sidekick for nigh on twenty years! Say that to my face if you dare!"

"So you admit to being a sidekick before?"

"Argh! You're dead when I get my hands on you!"

"Ron! Harry! Stop tha-! PUT DOWN THOSE WEAPONS, YOU TWO! ARGH! MEN!"

-x-x-x-x-

There, done.

An easy, relaxing chapter with a silly little ending. Hope you like!

Yes, Itachi got the Mangekyou Sharingan. This was my take on it.

Now, several of you have asked me why Harry didn't simply accio Kusanagi before. Well, here are your answers:

A) It was a desperate last attack which was done half-unconscious, it wasn't planned at all.

B) Harry didn't know about Kusanagi being a horcrux until very recently and didn't have the chance before.

C) Harry wasn't stupid enough to fight Orochimaru on his own, and even when he had help it was difficult.

D) Harry didn't use his own Curse Seal to siphon strength from Orochimaru because there was no time for it.

E) If Harry had known and had done it earlier, there would have been no story.

F) The author needed a way of getting rid of Orochimaru, and that was the only thing the author could come up with.

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