The Other Side Of Choice
Portrait
Things were going fine until the picture caught Sasuke's ebony gaze in the moonlight streaming through the window. Perhaps it was the knowledge that this would be his last glimpse of the people captured within the dark wooden frame that kept him there, one hand tucked into the pocket of his white shorts, traveling pack slung over his shoulders.
Sakura held center stage in her customary red, hitai-ite a headband in her long pink locks. A blush stained her cheeks and her eyes were shut, fist pumping the air as she grinned. Naruto stood to her right, arms crossed stubbornly over his garish orange jumpsuit, face set in a growl as he glared to the left at the bored image of Sasuke himself. Behind them stood Kakashi, silver hair sticking straight up and obviously smiling despite most of his face being obscured by a blue mask and lopsided hitai-ite. Gloved hands ruffling the hair of both boys in front of him, Sasuke couldn't help but think the man looked almost…fatherly. He almost smiled; team seven in a simpler time.
The voices began as he reached out, grasping the top of the frame.
"If you want to kill me then curse me, hate me. Cling to your pathetic life and live a long and unsightly existence. Only then will you be strong enough." Itachi's words rang in his head. He smelled the blood of his father and mother, felt the fear as his brother showed him how they had died…how the clan had died…
Sasuke wrapped himself in those images, feeding the hate burning in his gut.
"If you stay here, you'll always be weak. Playing games with your comrades—it'll make you rot. Don't forget your purpose," the sound nin had said.
Sasuke remembered the fight with the four sound shinobi, the power of the curse seal as it burned across his flesh, his power resonating with the sound four's own curse seals. "Come with us; Orochimaru-sama will give you power." The frame was low enough that he couldn't see the picture anymore. "This village; it will only hold you back. It's best just to cut those worthless bonds."
"You're still too weak, foolish little brother. Your hate isn't strong enough."
"You are indeed my son."
His lips back into a snarl, robbing the happiness from the moment of his father's acknowledgment. "Don't follow after your brother."
The picture froze. Father would want me to seek vengeance…wouldn't he? he thought. I am an avenger, he told himself, reaching for that hate again. I live only to kill Itachi; all that matters is gaining the necessary power. He closed his eyes to vivid memories: fighting with Orochimaru during the chuunin exam; his fight with Gaara during the invasion, and his failure to defeat the Sand shinobi; his fight with Itachi when his brother had tried to capture Naruto…
Naruto…, Sasuke thought grimacing. Another set of images played: Naruto, filling the forest with shadow clones; Naruto, summoning a giant toad; Naruto, blowing the backside of a water tower out during their fight on the hospital roof. No, the dobe just got lucky. I can't find true strength here, he assured himself.
"I understand," Naruto's voice rang in his head.
Sasuke found himself back in the forest, barely able to stand as sand glued Sakura to a nearby tree, slowly crushing her as the monster Gaara had become faced them with overwhelming murderous intent. "I thought…because he is the same as me…" Naruto was saying, "because he had the same lonely and sad past as me…In the presence of such loneliness he fought only for himself, and that's why I thought he was strong." In his mind's eye, Naruto was straightening beside him. He remembered thinking that something drastic had changed in the blonde at that moment. "But that isn't true strength. Fighting only for yourself isn't where true strength comes from." Naruto's voice was growing stronger. "And that's why," Sasuke re-experienced his amazement at the sheer amount of chakra Naruto had built, "I'll protect everyone no matter what!"
"To protect," Sasuke said, opening his eyes. He shook his head. I'm an Avenger—
"Even if you're successful in your revenge, all you'll be left with is emptiness," Kakashi's voice interrupted. "I know true pain and loneliness. We aren't very lucky, are we; but we're not totally hopeless. We were able to find others that are precious to us." Sasuke frowned at the picture. "You've been given the chidori because you've found people important to you. Because of your loss, you should understand what that power is for."
Sasuke's fist clenched at his side, voices and reason and emotion boiling down to a simple question: Can I let them go? The picture wavered on the thin line of decision and finally eased backwards, settling back into its place atop his dresser.
They're right, he thought. He took a step backwards, then another and another; he couldn't tear his eyes away from the picture. The backs of his legs hit the bed and he plopped down on creaking springs, shoulders slumping as he stared at his team. His family. I'm too weak.
"I'm sorry," he whispered.
The picture frame slammed down on the dresser, the sound of wood on wood ringing in Naruto's ears as he nodded sharply.
"Now maybe I can get some sleep," Naruto muttered, trudging back to bed, pulling the black stocking cap decorated with a goofy face farther over his blonde hair. He yanked the sheets up to his neck and closed his eyes.
Half an hour later found him on his back, hands behind his head and blue gaze flicking from his bare whitewashed ceiling to his dresser. He could still imagine those black orbs staring at him. He sighed and let his eyes slip closed, traveling back to the rooftop of the hospital, awash with swirling energy and the chirping of birds. Was it only me? he thought. Was I the only one? Did he ever—Were we ever—
"Who does he think he is, anyway?!" Naruto growled, flinging the sheets away. "He's nothing but an arrogant, self-centered broody prick! Superior my foot!" He marched over to the dresser again and yanked a draw open. "Showoff; always acting like he's so cool. I'll show him! Kakashi-sensei and Sakura won't be there this time to—!" He stared at the black shirt in his fists, the battle replaying in his mind. If Kakashi-sensei hadn't been there… He sighed, letting the shirt fall. He picked up the picture.
"I didn't want to fight you; not like that," he muttered to Sasuke's image.
His eyes wandered to Sakura; it was hard to believe that the smiling girl here and the downcast girl he had talked to just a couple of hours ago were the same. He snorted.
"I bet Sasuke doesn't even know how worried she is about him," he muttered. His jaw firmed. "Fine; from now on I promise not to fight like that in front of Sakura-chan!" He nodded, and placed the picture back in its proper place—though turned so that his bed wasn't in Sasuke's "view"—and climbed beneath the covers once again and went to sleep.
He awoke to the crash of Sasuke kicking down his door, yelling for him to get dressed.
Sakura lay on her bed, caressing the glass of a white frame, wishing she could step intothe picture and back to a time when her hair was long and her days were filled with giddy smiles. Her slim digits froze over Sasuke as black markings flickered across his skin, a maniacal grin on his face. A blink and it was gone, but still Sakura shuddered.
"He will come to me" a voice hissed from the not-so-distant past, and she trembled.
"Orochimaru…" she said, thinking of Naruto's tale about his search for the new Hokage and their encounter with the man. What can he want with Sasuke? she thought. She held the picture tight to her chest and curled into a ball
She didn't know how long her sobs bounced off the walls of her room, but eventually the tears stopped—or perhaps she simply had no tears left—and she lay there, staring at nothing.
"Don't worry; soon everything will be back to normal," Kakashi-sensei's voice rang in her head, full of reassurance and confidence. She envied him. Slowly dragging herself upright, wiping at her puffy emerald eyes with her hands, she stood and placed the picture gingerly on her nightstand. Then she opened the window and let the cool night breeze massage her face, leaning her forearms on the sill; the paper lanterns and streetlights of night stained Konoha stared back.
"Don't worry, Sakura-chan; no way Sasuke would go to that guy. He's plenty strong now. I promise." Naruto's words, said with that famous grin of his.
She recalled the glee on Sasuke's face as he tried to rip a sound shinobi's arms off in the Forest of Death.
She jerked upright, spinning on her heel.
Sometime later, she paced the path that led out of the village, trying to rub a night's worth of cold from her arms. She paused to laugh.
"What am I worried about?" she told herself. "Naruto was right; there's no way Sasuke would ever go to that creep." Of course, I probably shouldn't tell him that; his head is big enough, she thought with another laugh. She took a step back toward the village on the stone walkway and cried out, swatting at something crawling on her neck.
"Stupid Sasuke," she muttered. "He better appreciate all I do for him." Not that I'm ever going to tell him about it, either, she added.
The world suddenly spun and she staggered into someone walking the opposite direction.
"S-sorry," she said. She looked up but his face was blurry. "I guess I'm a little….a little…" She tried to swallow in a suddenly dry mouth.
"So you're plan B," someone said.
She frowned and squinted; three faces circled around a fourth, all of them dark tan with a scar slashed across his nose. The hitai-ite's around their foreheads bore a music symbol. …The sound? She thought. What is he…? Her legs gave out and fell limply against him, unable to move. Have to…get away... she thought as she was lifted into the air. She struggled against her drooping eyes as darkness crept in.
Not Easily Broken
"Stupid!" Sasuke growled, dashing across the rooftop in the pinpoint light of fading stars. He shoved chakra into his feet as he leapt off the edge, roof tiles cracking. He hit the next roof top running, blue coat and white shorts ruffling. Sakura. I should've seen it coming; I should've—
"Stupid, stupid, stupid!" he said. He increased speed, leaping again, not stopping until he skidded to a halt in front of Naruto's door.
He hesitated despite the urgency pounding in his ears. There was a whole list of people he could've—and probably should've—gone to first: Kakashi, the Hokage; any number of chuunin, jounin or ANBU. Anyone would be better than him, he thought, scowling. Except that Kakashi had been in and out of the village on one mission or another lately, and the second he went to the higher ups talking about a ransom note written in spider-webs on his window, demanding his appearance in Otogakure, they were sure to lock him up "for his own good." Sasuke doubted they would risk a rescue mission for a single genin who, pink hair notwithstanding, didn't possess anything particularly special. Except that she cut that pink hair for you, remember? an unwelcome thought whispered. And he did; through the haze and blurred images and the sheer pain that dominated his memories of the forest of death after Orochimaru's curse seal set in, he remembered Sakura fighting, clawing, biting the sound-nins that had come for him. He hadn't asked about her hair afterwards, and she hadn't offered, but he remembered. He also remembered the feeling of unadulterated power that had come after.
The curse seal flared to life as if sensing his thoughts, calling to him through the thin layer of Kakashi's restraining seal. If he just reached out and touched it—if he could just banish the image of loose pink locks fluttering to the ground like dead leaves—
With a growl Sasuke kicked the door in. The crash was answered by a strangled cry from within as he strode in over splintered wood. Naruto came stumbling out of a hall to his right, flailing about in blue pajamas, the white puff at the end of his black stocking cap dancing about. His blue eyes narrowed as they met Sasuke's.
"Sasuke?! What th—"
"Get dressed," Sasuke snapped.
"Bas—"
"Sakura's been kidnapped!"
Naruto froze, eyes growing wide.
"Would yo—" Sasuke started.
Naruto tore his shirt open, buttons flying into the air as he scramble back down the hall. There was a series of crashes, some cursing, and Naruto reemerged, orange jacket hanging off one arm while he hopped on one foot, securing his sandal. Sasuke walked briskly outside, leaping onto the railing across from Naruto's door and then into open air.
"H-hey! Wait up!" Naruto cried.
Sasuke landed on the nearest roof and took off at a sprint without looking back. Naruto caught up on the next, the sides of his unzipped jacket fluttering behind.
"Didn't you hear me?!"
Sasuke snorted. "If you can't keep up, you're better off just staying here." He increased his pace.
"What happened to Sakura-chan?!" Naruto growled.
"I already told you,"
"Who was it? Why? Where did they take her?"
"You don't have to yell, I'm right here!" Sasuke said.
"Answer me!"
Sasuke glanced to the side, met Naruto's eyes and flinched as he peered into the black slits of Naruto's pupils, at the ferocity shimmering in their darkened depths. He felt suddenly heavier, tension creeping into the muscles of his neck and shoulders as his pulse quickened.
"She's safe. For now," he said. The weight lessened and he directed his gaze forward, wetting his lips. Just ahead of them, rooftops gave way to towering trees as he led Naruto deeper into the forest and farther away from the waking center of Konoha.
"It's way too early for this," Tsunade muttered, massaging her temples and staring at the stacks of papers strewn over her desk. Reconstruction reports, mission reports, threat assessments, security reports, reconnaissance reports—
"Kami," she groaned, leaning back in her chair, "Who knew being Hokage would be so boring." She swept her hands over her blonde locks, down to where they parted into two long tails at the nape of her neck, and tried to massage away the tension that had taken up permanent residence there and across her shoulders. It didn't help that she felt eyes piercing through her back, judging. Not for the first time, she resisted the urge to turn around. There was a knock on the door.
"Enter," she said.
A brown haired chuunin stuck his head in.
"What is it this time…" she frowned. Is it Dochu? she thought, trying to match the list of faces running through her head with another list of names. No, I think it's Kotane. Or maybe— "What
is it?"
"There's a woman who keeps demanding to see you," he said. "A civilian."
"Civilian?" Tsunade repeated, blinking.
"Yes ma—Hokage-sama," he said hurriedly.
Really, I'm not that old, she thought, and I certainly don't look it. She didn't have the energy to address it this time, though, so she let it go as she cracked her neck to the side, wincing.
"You handle it," she said.
"She, uh, was very adamant about speaking to you, Hokage-sama," he said, stepping farther into the room.
"I don't have time to be handling civilian complaints at the moment," she snapped. The chuunin didn't flinch, and Tsunade resolved to see that he attended her more often. "Tell her she'll have to wait," she continued, picking up another piece of paperwork.
"Of course, Hokage-sama. Only…" He hesitated as she glanced at him. "Well, she's very persistent. I'm afraid she might cause a scene."
Tsunade sighed and looked about her desk for the proper form.
"What's her name," she ground out, selecting a pen and giving it a shake.
"Haruno Sakumo,"
Tsunade frowned as she wrote the name.
"The nature of her complaint."
"Her daughter ran out of the house last night without saying goodbye and hasn't been seen since."
Tsunade looked up, blinking. "Kami, man; can't you find some genin to handle this? I can't have sent them all away."
"Her daughter is a genin, Hokage-sama."
"Kami!" Tsunade yelled, crumpling up the sheet. It bounced off the already overflowing trashcan. "Half the shinobi in this village are out there breaking their backs doing missions to keep up appearances, and the other half are running around here trying to rebuild and watching out for another attack!" She shook her head. "Tell her to let go; her daughter's a shinobi now—running off in the middle of the night is just part of the deal."
"Yes, Hokage-sama." The chuunin bowed and turned to leave. That gaze on her back intensified.
She sighed and closed her eye. "Wait."
"Yes Hokage-sama?"
Tsunade glanced over her shoulder, to the pictures of the former Hokage resting upon the wall; her eyes were drawn to the photo of the Third. He had always believed in having an open door, for villagers and shinobi alike. He was always so insufferably patient, she thought with a small smile. He had to be, to deal with us. For a moment, the dark, lined face staring back at her adopted the small frown of disappointment that she knew so well, his brown eyes telling her she could do better. Then his eyes were staring straight ahead again with his familiar half-smile. Are you going to haunt me as long as I occupy this chair?
"Show her in," Tsunade said.
"Are you sure, Hokage-sama?"
Tsunade drew herself up and took a deep breath.
"Yes. Positive."
The chuunin nodded and stepped out. He returned with a tall woman with long pink hair—and suddenly the lists in her head connected. Haruno Sakura. Naruto's teammate. And so is—She reached for a deck of cards on the corner of the desk and flipped the top one over. It was an ace.
Naruto's breath seethed out between gritted teeth, too-sharp nails digging into trembling hands as he clenched and unclenched his fist. His chakra smoldered, straining to be unleashed. Except there was no enemy he could battle, no goal to achieve or hurdle to overcome. There was only moving, bounding after Sasuke from one tree branch to another. At times they would stop for the barest of moments and Sasuke would examine a patch of grass, or a particular tree branch, his eyes sharingan red and a frown on his face.
"What's taking so long?!" Naruto snapped at one point.
Saskue paused in his inspection of an overturned log to shoot him a pointed look. "What do you know about tracking, dobe?"
Naruto's hands flexed and he resisted the urge to tackle the other boy and slam his fist into that pale face. I bet no one would find you so perfect looking then, he thought. He couldn't deny Sasuke's point, though: As with most things at the academy, and beyond, Sasuke had excelled in tracking while Naruto…
"Just hurry up," he said, crossing his arms.
"That way," Sasuke said, nodding; "Only—"
"'Only' what? Let's get going already!" Naruto said, leaping off in the indicated direction. Sasuke lagged behind for a few moments, and Naruto couldn't help a smug little smile at having reacted faster than his teammate.
They went on like that for some time, Sasuke intent on the trail that Naruto could not see, and Naruto glowering at Sasuke's back. The other boy still hadn't told him who had taken Sakura or where they were taking her. Or why. All that matters is finding her, Naruto kept telling himself.
Finally, though, he could take no more and opened his mouth to demand answers.
Sasuke stopped and Naruto cried out in surprise, wind-milling his arms and leaning back even as he jumped. He fell short of the next branch and swung his arms forward at the last second to grab hold of the rough bark. Claw-like nails drew furrows in the leafy limb as he swung himself around, hurriedly shoving chakra to his feet in an attempt to stick himself to the trunk. Wood cracked and splintered instead as the chakra sent him hurtling forward and down; twisting, he managed to land on his feet, pitching forward into a dizzying roll until a teeth-rattling impact brought him to a halt.
"Bastard," Naruto grumbled. When the world stopped spinning, he found his feet dangling over his head as he rested upside down against a tree, propped up on his shoulders and neck. Leaves fluttered down around him as he craned his head back, pressing it harder into the ground as he sought out Sasuke, still crouched on his own branch.
"Hey, what's the big idea?"
Sasuke didn't answer as he swept his head from side to side.
"Could've at least warned me we were stopping again," Naruto grumbled, attempting to push himself into a backwards roll. He flopped to the side with a thud. Scrambling to his feet, brushing dirt from his clothes, he had a tirade prepared on the tip of his tongue for Sasuke's remark as the Uchiha dropped down beside him.
"Something's wrong," Sasuke said.
"Ya think?" Naruto snapped, feeling at the tender lump in his blonde locks. Sasuke didn't respond, but his sharingan continued to roam. Naruto frowned; he saw nothing but rocks and trees, Sakura emerging from between two of the latter and—
"Sakura-chan!" Naruto exclaimed, dashing forward as the pink haired girl stumbled out of the forest with a bloody arm pressed against her stomach. Her other hung limply at her side, streaked with more red, and she was practically dragging one of her legs with the handle of a kunai jutting out of her black clad thigh.
Sasuke shouted something but the rage pounding in Naruto's head drowned out the words. How dare they hurt Sakura-chan! he thought. She looked up then, and as his gaze met hers he was struck with an awful feeling of wrongness that made him miss a step. As he stumbled, Sakura's thin fingers began forming seals.
"Doton Kekkai: Doru Domo!" she shouted.
The earth heaved, then erupted around him; walls of rock rising and curving, melding together and closing over his head, shutting out the morning light.
"Naruto, stop!" Sasuke yelled as the blonde rushed toward the bleeding Sakura. Sasuke cursed and leapt after him. His training with Kakashi for the chuunin exams had made him fast, and even though he was tired from a sleepless night and the chase he still closed the distance between them in a couple of steps; a couple of blinks, wind whistling through his hair. His hand shot out, fingertips brushing the white fringe of Naruto's jacket as he tried to grab ahold of the boy before—
Walls of rock burst out of the ground all around them. Sasuke leapt, tucking and twisting in the air. He was upside down drawing kunai when the dome of earth closed over Naruto's head. Who is it? he thought, throwing two knives at "Sakura's" head. He could see the chakra of the genjutsu wrapped around "her", but couldn't pierce the energy cloud to the person within.
A glint of movement from up in the trees behind her caught Sasuke's eye as two kunai shaped blurs shot out of the leaves. Sasuke flipped himself upright as he began to drop, sending two more kunai towards the imposter's midsection as his first two were intercepted with the clang of metal on metal, tumbling harmlessly to the ground. A second pair of kunai answered, swerving down and around Sakura's form on either side to block his attack; Sakura stepped forward and plunged her hands into the dome up to the wrists. Sasuke landed atop the dome of earth; Naruto's yells echoed within. On the ground, his kunai lay with others of a strange, golden-metallic color. From the corner of his eye, he caught the motion of more coming in from the side.
Sasuke started to leap but lurched forward instead, forced to drop to one knee and slap a hand upon the dome; the rock beneath him had become mud, attempting to suck him in. Sasuke cursed and drew another kunai, stabbing down into the mud as he threw himself into a side roll. He tumbled down the dome, continuing to roll as more blades bit into the earth after him. The trail of exploding tags he'd left on the dome exploded, throwing up fire and smoke and chunks of rock.
"That's enough," a voice called.
Sasuke froze halfway to his feet, a pair of shuriken just clearing the pouch at his back. The voice's owner—the pale skinned, purple haired sound shinobi who, with three others, had attempted to attack/recruit him the previous night—stood next to another Sakura whose limp form was kept upright only by the ropes binding her to a tree. The sound-nin grabbed Sakura's pink locks and jerked back, gliding a kunai over the unconscious girl's throat.
"Such delicate skin," the boy said, black lips pulled back in a nasty smile. "What say we make it match her outfit?" The kunai tapped the red of Sakura's long sleeveless shirt.
Sasuke's teeth ground together and he cast a quick glance to the side; the smoke was clearing and the few holes he had managed to make in the rock were closing. He caught sight of Naruto through the largest one; the blonde had one of his clones beside him and together they were trying to form a familiar ball of energy. He could see the chakra being produced and their attempts to mold it, but instead of forming into a ball the swirling energy wafted upwards. With a start, Sasuke saw chakra running through the dome itself— the rocks were drawing the energy into a circuit of chakra that flowed through the dome, some diverting along paths towards the damaged areas while the rest flowed into the figure with "her" hands sunk into the rock even as she pumped more chakra into the jutsu. She gave him a very un-Sakura like smile as the last hole closed
"You're probably aware," pale-face said, "but don't expect any help from that brat. Jirobo's quite hungry, you see, and your friend is providing him a nice feast." He licked his lips. "Soon there won't be anything left of your little friend."
Sasuke's fingers twitched on his shuriken and the sound-nin drew a trickle of blood from Sakura's skin.
"None of that, now," he admonished with a shake of his head, shaking a free finger on his other hand. "Drop 'em."
Sasuke glared but let the weapons slip point first into the ground. "The eyes too." Sasuke let his sharingan fade. Sasuke felt the shift of a genjutsu being released, only becoming aware of the trill of flute music on the wind as it trailed off. Sakura was replaced by the hulking boy with the orange mohawk. And with a start, he also saw the trail he'd been following—how neat it had been; how measured. His fingers curled into fists.
"Shit Sakon, you're cruel," said the girl who emerged from the trees next to him, lowering a flute from her lips. "Fatso over there was actually skinny for a change and you just had to go and ruin it. Now we're stuck looking at his fat ass again."
"Too bad genjutsu can't help you speak more like a lady," Jirobo said.
A fourth dropped from the trees to join them, a golden weapon in each of his six hands.
"You should've just let that shit-head get skewered," the girl said.
Six-arms shrugged, giving one of his blades a twirl.
"Thought about it, but that would've gone against the rules of our co-op campaign," he answered.
"All of you can it," Sakon ordered, still leering at Sasuke. "Now then, Sasuke-kun," he continued, "Since you seem to be having a little trouble cutting these worthless bonds, maybe we should help you." The blade at Sakura's throat drew more blood.
"Wait," Sasuke said. The blade stopped. Sasuke let his gaze slip across the sound four to Naruto's prison, then to Sakura and back again. And then, before he realized what was happening, he was laughing. It was a harsh, bitter sound, bordering on the maniacal; it shook his chest and shoulders and refused to stop as he raised his head and closed his eyes, tears leaking from their corners.
"…Bat-shit crazy piece of…" he heard someone say. All that time debating, and here I am, he thought. He wiped the tears with the cloth guard on his forearm.
"Perhaps this is my fate after all," he said.
"I'm sorry; you'll have to speak up," Sakon said.
Sasuke forced the laugh down, but couldn't help the smile that stretched his lips. "I said I'm ready; let's stop wasting time and go."
"How stupid do you think we are, ya piece of shit?" the red haired girl growled.
"Enough, Tayuya," Sakon said.
"Really?!" Tayuya replied, turning her glare on her own teammate. "I knew ya had shit-for brains, you—" She cut off abruptly as Sakon turned towards her. After a moment, she huffed and turned away, dark pink—almost red—hair swaying as she crossed her arms over her chest.
So he's the leader, Sasuke thought.
"Ukon," Sakon said, "Watch her for me."
Sasuke glanced at the six armed shinobi, but another voice answered.
"You're waking me up for that?"
Sasuke's head snapped back to Sakon, eyes drawn to the bulbous protrusion on the back of Sakon's neck as it twisted about, revealing another pale face.
"Just shut up and get out here," Sakon said.
"All right, all right," the second head muttered.
Sasuke's eyes widened as the boy's body began to stretch and deform; an extra shoulder jutted from his side, followed by an arm and then a leg. When it was over, there were two Sakons, identical right down to the black shorts and off-white tunics they wore, belted with that thick purple rope tied into bows at the back.
"Man am I stiff!" said the one still holding the kunai to Sakura's throat. He cracked his neck. "You don't let me out enough!"
"Idiot; weren't you just complaining about me waking you up? And watch what you're doing!" the other Sakon said as his twin relaxed his grip on Sakura's hair. The girl's head jerked forward and the kunai bit deeper into her throat.
"Hoo boy, that was a close one," the boy said, recovering his grip and jerking Sakura's head back, smashing it against the tree. Sasuke took a step forward.
"You'll have to forgive Ukon," Sakon said, turning to Sasuke with that cruel grin. "He's a little clumsy when he first wakes up."
"I don't see what all the fuss is about," the other answered. "It's not like she's going to bleed out. Probably."
"You better hope she doesn't; that might make Sasuke-kun mad. Or would it?" Sakon cocked his head to the side as he regarded Sasuke with a dark gaze. "Are you finally ready to throw away this trash?"
Sasuke clenched his teeth and glared at him.
"So….am I killing her or not?" Ukon asked.
"No, that's not part of the plan."
"Ah, I see. Then this is plan B, I take it," Ukon said.
"Kami, you really are hopeless," Sakon said, shaking his head as he walked forward, digging into the pouch at his side.
Sasuke tensed—Idiot!,he thought. What can you do in this situation?! His fists clenched tighter.
"If you're going to come with us, there's one more thing you have to do first," Sakon said, withdrawing a small jar filled with black pills.
"And that is?" Sasuke asked.
"Die," Sakon replied.
"…All this, just to kill me?" Sasuke said, arching an eyebrow.
"Of course not," Sakon said. "Orochimaru-sama has plans for you; this is one of them. This pill will awaken the true strength of the seal Orochimaru-sama gave you. Unfortunately, doing so will speed up the contamination of the curse seal and kill you. Luckily, we'll be here to make sure you don't actually die."
"…Fine, let's get this over with," Sasuke said.
"As you wish, Sasuke-kun," Sakon said, popping open the jar. He dropped a pill into Sasuke's palm; Sasuke held it up to his eyes, rolling it between thumb and forefinger. His curse seal began to throb.
"Jirobo, let him go for now and take your position," Sakon said.
Sasuke's eyes flicked to the other sound-nins as they surrounded him.
"He still alive, fat-ass?" the girl called, motioning to the dome.
The boy grunted. "He's a stubborn one. For trash, anyway."
"Well Sasuke-kun, are you ready to get started?" Sakon asked.
Once I take this, there's no going back, Sasuke thought, studying the pill for another moment.
"You know what would be fun?" Sakon said, "Since we only really need one piece of leverage, perhaps you would like to choose which one of your teammates gets to live."
Sasuke growled deep in his throat, but that only made Sakon's grin widened. Sasuke lifted the black pill to his lips. My fate, he thought again, opening his mouth.
A bird burst from a nearby tree, scattering leaves. A faint shadow among the green cloud made Sasuke pause; Sakon whirled, throwing a kunai. A senbon needle answered from the bird's tree; the weapons struck and bounced off one another. The kunai tumbled to the forest floor; the senbon drove point first into one of the miniscule cracks of Naruto's prison. The leaves swirled around the shadow and disappeared; Sasuke recognized it as something similar to the jutsu Kakashi had used to speed their way into the chuunin exams. Another figure burst from the trees—a shinobi with a blue bandanna, tied at the front. The proctor from the chuunin exams? Sasuke thought.
"Shit!" Someone yelled.
"Kidomaru!" Sakon said. Six-arms leapt into the air. He let fly with four of his weapons; the proctor answered in kind and eight kunai fell spinning, clattering on Naruto's prison as they tumbled down to the ground. Sasuke's sharingan sprang to life just in time to notice the seals wrapped round half of the hilts before they began to spark and hiss.
Sakon whirled; Sasuke sprang towards Sakura as Ukon stepped away.
Four bolts of lightning shot up into the sky, before arcing down with crackling screams to crash onto the senbon
"Naruto!" Sasuke called, step faltering. Bolts burst from the dome, writhing tendrils of blue-white energy cracking stone. The whole structure shuddered, pieces loosened by the lightning flying outwards. Is that his jutsu? Sasuke thought, searching for the proctor. Does he know Naruto is in there?
"Ukon! The girl!" Sakon yelled.
Don't die Naruto, Sasuke thought, slamming chakra into the ground and launching toward Sakura, drawing shuriken. Two forced Ukon to retreat, and two more sliced the rope binding Sakura on either side of her. The weakened bonds snapped as she fell forward into his arms. He let momentum and chakra carry them halfway up the tree, twisted mid-step so he was facing the ground, and pushed off. Wood snapped as he hurtled away from the battlefield; away from the increasingly intense flashes of lighting.
"Take cover!" someone yelled.
Hold on Naruto, Sasuke thought. As soon as Sakura's safe— He glanced back over his shoulder as the glowing rocks exploded in a brilliant flash; cryied out as the light seared his sharingan, forcing it from his grasp. Something hard struck him in the back; he gritted his teeth and spun, curling himself around Sakura as he tumbled to the ground, skidding across the forest floor. He found his feet somehow and kept going, stumbling away, trying to blink his eyes clear. Naruto…
Sasuke risked another glance backward, but could see nothing through the trees and the smoke that hung heavy on the air. His step slowed for a moment, but then Sakura groaned writhing in his arms.
"You better not be dead, dobe," Sasuke muttered as he kept going.
Ragged breaths rasped from Sakura's throat as she lay in the dark, listening to the sounds of thunder in the distance. She struggled against the web which held her suspended in the air, but the silken strands held fast, immobilizing her spread arms and legs, pulling at hair and clothing with every movement. She gasped as tiny legs skittered over a bare arm; she strained against her bonds to try and provide her wild green eyes with a view of her captors. Another crawled on her other arm and her head jerked that way, then down to where more clambered up her legs.
Light shone above her suddenly; a bright blue-white flickering between whirling clouds of orange and blue and purple and green, scattering leaf-shaped drops of rain. Sasuke's face appeared from a crack in the blanket of thunderclouds before the clouds reached out to one another once again. Wait, don't leave me! she thought, renewing her struggle. She opened her mouth to scream for help but was drowned out by a clap of thunder as the spiders continued to work.
Pride
"…overdid it, Genma," someone said.
Naruto barely heard the words as he lay in a puddle; the plunk of water drops falling from the leaky pipes above was much louder. One of them hit his forehead with a splat.
HOW PATHETIC, another voice boomed. Groaning, he rolled over and pushed himself to hands and knees, turning to look at the Kyuubi's cage in the dingy light of hanging lamps.
"What….was that…you bas-tard," Naruto replied, struggling for air. The black slits of Kyuubi's golden eyes regarded him from the shadows behind the door; it lay with its snout resting on its front paws, black lips pulled back from sickled teeth in what Naruto had come to think of as the fox's smirk. Naruto pushed himself to his feet, swaying.
"Why am I so tired?" Naruto said. He looked to the fox and raised a fist. "What did you do?"
The Kyuubi snorted.
YOU LET THAT SOUND BRAT DRAIN ALL YOUR CHAKRA, YOU FOOL.
"You piece of—" Naruto froze, eyes growing wide. "Sakura." He stumbled forward, gripped the bars of the Kyuubi's cage. "What happened to Sakura?"
WHY MUST I CONTINUE TO HEAR YOU PRATTLE ON ABOUT THAT SIMPERING MORTAL? ISN"T MY IMPRISONMENT IN SUCH A WEAK VESSEL PUNISHMENT ENOUGH?
"You—"
"Naruto," the first voice returned, stronger this time. "Naruto-kun, can you hear me?" The light around him began to grow brighter and he was pulled away from the fox and its bars.
HURRY, IF YOU WANT TO SAVE YOUR PRECIOUS FEMALE, the Kyuubi said as it faded in the distance.
With one last glare at his prisoner, Naruto turned and woke.
He blinked up at a pale face framed by short black hair.
"Shizune-san?" he mumbled, sitting and wiping his eyes. "What are you—Sakura-chan!" His head swung wildly from side to side, but all he found was forest and a shinobi with a senbon hanging out of his mouth, watching him over Shizune's head. Naruto grasped the woman's shoulder. "Shizune-san! Sakura's been—"
"We know kid, we know," Senbon-lip interrupted. "Now be quiet before you give away our position."
"Like hell I will!" Naruto shouted, scrambling to his feet. "I have to find—"
"Naruto-kun, please," Shizune said. "I understand how you feel, but shouting is only going to make things worse. Sakura's safe."
"Really?!" Naruto shouted again. This time he startled himself with his voice, and he glanced around quickly. "I mean really?"
"Last I saw, she was being carried off by that Uchiha kid," Senbon-lip said. Naruto sighed and plopped back down on the ground, breathing easier as he slid his hands through his hair.
"Good; we saved her. We…" Naruto frowned. "Wait, you mean they're still out there? Alon—"
Another shinobi dropped from the trees; Naruto's hand was halfway to his kunai holster before he recognized the leaf symbol above a cheek and nose warped by a ropy scar.
"Will someone tell that kid to be quiet?" the man said. "I'm surprised the enemy's not already here."
Naruto scowled and glared at the scar-faced shinobi.
"Any sign of them or the kids?" Senbon-lip asked.
Scar-face shook his head.
"Seems everyone scattered in different directions to get away from the blast. You overdid it, Genma."
"Everyone's a critic." Senbon-lip sighed, shaking his head.
"Where's Iwashi?" Scar-face asked.
Naruto's fists clenched as the man continued ignoring his glare, but he kept his tongue behind gritted teeth.
"On the way to report the situation to Hokage-sama," Shizune said.
"How's the kid?" Senbon-lip said.
"The name's Naruto, you senbon chewing bastard," Naruto muttered.
Shizune frowned at Naruto. "Physically he's fine; his chakra is going to take some time to recover."
"Good; take him back to the village. Raido, with me."
Shizune started to rise. "Genma, I know you want revenge—"
"Like hel—!" Naruto said at the same time.
"There isn't time to wait for reinforcements," Senbon-lip said over both their complaints. "And yeah, we want a crack at these guys for what they helped Orohimaru do to the Sandaime." His eyes looked out into the foliage, lips pressing into a thin line against his needle. "But it's more than that. We can't let the enemy do as they please, especially in our lands. And we can't leave comrades behind; especially not that kid."
Naruto frowned, looking between the three shinobi. What does he mean, that kid? He shook his head and stood.
"Well I'm still coming with you," he declared, crossing his arms over his chest and jutting out his chin.
"Kid, if I have to knock you out so Shizune can carry you back, I will," Scar-face said.
"Try it," Naruto said, wishing his legs hadn't chosen that moment to start shaking.
"Naruto-kun…" Shizune said placing a hand on his shoulder.
"They're my team," Naruto said, looking into Shizune's dark eyes. The slim woman chewed on her lower lip.
"We don't have time for this," Scar-face said. "Please move, Shizune-san."
"…No," Shizune answered.
"Not you too," Senbon-lip said.
Shizune turned, hands on her hips.
"You're right; we can't let the enemy do as they please, and we are certainly not abandoning any of our comrades. More of us equals a better chance of success."
"…Eh, I guess so," senbon-lip said, shrugging.
"Genma, you can't be serious," Scar-face said.
"Hey, if you want to argue with her, be my guest. Just remember who she's been trained by," Senbon-lip said. He pulled a familiar earpiece and microphone combination from his flak jacket. "We'll form two teams. You and the kid will search for his teammates; Raido and I will find the enemy. And Naruto," Senbon-lip drew something else from a pouch at his side, "this soldier pill will restore some of your chakra. But look, I don't want any heroics. If you two come across the enemy instead, you radio for back-up and do not engage. Otherwise, maintain radio silence. Understood?"
"Understood," the other two said.
"…Understood," Naruto said. Senbon-lip tossed him the pill and he popped it into his mouth. Immediately his face began to warm and the edges of exhaustion retreated. He flexed his hands.
"Be careful," Senbon-lip said, hooking the headset around his ear.
"You too," Shizune answered. She turned to Naruto, "Stay close, Naruto-kun."
The blonde nodded and followed. Teme…you better keep her safe until I get there.
Sasuke plunged his hands into the river, bringing up streaming handfuls of cool water to wipe the dirt from his, to wash out his burning eyes. It was a brief relief, gone soon after he pulled his hands away; hands clothed in wavering flesh, as if they were still under-water. He blinked several times, but his vision remained blurry and he sighed before drying his hands on the dark grey shirt that hugged his torso. Sakura lay next to him, covered in what was left of his high-necked blue coat; he'd cut one strip off to bandage her neck wound, and another large section that served as a makeshift cloth lying atop her forehead, soaked with water. Her breathing was more ragged now, her skin flushed and warm to the touch. He didn't know what the sound-nins had done to her—Poison on the kunai that had nicked her throat? Some type of drug?—but she was getting worse. She had begun thrashing in his arms soon after their escape, and her continued convulsions had slowed his pace to a crawl. But we have to keep moving.
A slight rustle of leaves caught his ear; an all too common occurrence in the forest, save for the prickle at the back of his neck. He pushed himself up, reclaiming the kunai with which he'd shredded his coat as he did so, half turning to glance over his shoulder. The fuzzy form of the six armed shinobi stood on a nearby tree branch, leaning against the trunk. Why didn't he attack? Sasuke turned a little more in the sound nin's direction, hiding the kunai in a reverse grip pressed between the side of his leg and his inner forearm. Six-arms began to clap slowly, lazily, with his uppermost hands. "Hey, congratulations; you finally noticed me," he said, stepping off his perch and dropping down in front of Sasuke. "I was beginning to think I'd have to do this the boring way," he continued, rising from his crouch and dusting himself off. As he did, dull golden blades began to appear in his hands as if pulled from thin air. Sasuke's eyes narrowed. "…Where are the rest of you?" "Is that the question you really want to ask?" the sound-nin said, glancing at Sakura. He smiled, stretching the across his nose.
If he's alone I might have a chance. Or it could be a lie, Sasuke thought, keeping his face impassive as he searched for hidden opponents.
If Kidomaru noticed his subtle probing of the forest, he gave no reaction.
"Let me guess," Sasuke said, "You threaten to kill her again unless I come with you?"
"No, I think I'm tired of that game. Was never really into it in the first place. Chasing you has been much more fun, though granted, I had a little help," he said, holding a hand out upside down. A thumb-sized black and yellow spider hung from his palm. "Did you know that there are certain kinds of venom that spiders can track? Not normal venom from ordinary spiders, of course; but then, I'm sure you've noticed this is no ordinary spider. And I 'm sure you can guess the rest. Don't worry, she's not dying. Not yet, anyway."
"I thought you said you were tired of this game," Sasuke said. He tensed slightly. The other boy held up a small glass vial in one of his free hands.
"This is the antidote and here are the rules," the boy said. He held the vial out underneath the spider; it lowered itself and began to spin a web around it. "This is a special timed bonus round—time expires the second someone finds us," he continued. The spider completed its work and disappeared with the vial in a puff of smoke. "You beat me before that, you get the antidote. And don't worry, I have no interest in the girl. Though if she's caught in the cross-fire…" He shrugged and produced two more golden weapons from behind his back so all his hands were armed. "So…you in? Or are you just gunna let fate decide?"
"Fine," Sasuke said, "I'll just have to finish you quick."
"Bold words for someone not even strong enough to avenge his own clan."
"I will kill Itachi," Sasuke snarled.
"I wonder," the other boy said, flipping one of his kunai idly into the air, catching and tossing it back up again. More golden weapons appeared, so all his hands were armed. "I never understood Orochimaru-sama's interest in you; thought you were overrated." He fixed Sasuke with a fierce brown gaze. He tossed a kunai up again. "Let's find out."
He hurled a kunai in one of his other hands, then snagged the other out of the air and leapt forward. Sasuke drew his own blade and knocked the attack from the air, spinning away from Sakura while drawing another kunai. Six golden points flashed towards him as Kidomaru followed; another blade had already appeared to replace the thrown one. Sasuke hissed in pain as two strikes bit into his flesh. He quickly gave ground, leading Kidomaru away from Sakura, his blades blurring desperately to ward off the attacks, metal clanging together in a furious tempo, skin tearing and blood flying as Sasuke just missed the block or failed to get out of the way in time. His blind side got the worst of it, and he found himself slowing. His enemy smirked and pushed harder.
The boy's six arms coordinated well together, striking at various times and at various angles so that Sasuke couldn't get a feel for any kind of pattern. At this rate… Sasuke summoned chakra to his eyes. The shift was painful, especially in his bandaged eye; he gritted his teeth and willed his good eye to stay open. Even slightly damaged the sharingan brought his surroundings into crisp focus, and suddenly the blades seemed to be moving slower; his limited peripherals managed to catch incoming strikes to his blind side better. He saw it then; a split second opening. Sasuke surged forward, fitting himself between the arms; Kidomaru's eyes widened as he leapt away from Sasuke's strikes to his chest and neck. Sasuke threw his pair of kunai up and forward as he pursued, hands flashing through seals.
Katon! Hosenka no Jutsu! he declared, raising his right hand to his mouth as his left dipped into his shuriken pouch. He blew four times in quick succession; each breath became a fist-sized flame roaring through the air. He threw a deadly arc of steel after; the shuriken met the sound-nin as he leapt over the fireballs.
Kidomaru struck down Sasuke's weapons with his own, falling back against the trunk of a tree and holding himself there. Sasuke snagged both of his previously thrown kunai out of the air with his right hand as his shuriken were deflected; he let fly with both of those as well. The sound-nin flipped backwards up the tree, held fast with his feet, and let fly with all of his weapons even as Sasuke's thunked into the wood below him. Sasuke leapt, twisting and turning to dodge the oncoming blades. He ignored the pain of the two he couldn't avoid as he hurtled toward the other boy.
The sound-nin grinned suddenly.
"Not good enough!" he said, and swept two hands out wide. A thin white thread was attached to each of his fingertips; Sasuke was sure the other ends were connected to the weapons he'd just dodged.
Smirking, Sasuke tightened his grip on the wires wrapped around his right hand and yanked; anchored to the tree by his kunai, he was jerked out of the path of the weapons at his back. At the same time, he jerked the wires in his left hand; his own deflected shuriken at the other ends responded to his movement and the chakra he sent down the lines; they joined the hail of weapons that suddenly whipped by him, transformed into replicas of the golden weapons. Kidomaru made his own blades veered away, but he was forced to drop, cursing, as the fakes swept in. Sasuke was already on the ground, letting go of the shuriken wires and bringing the ones attached to the kunai to his mouth, forming seals.
'Katon! Ryuka no Jutsu!' Fire erupted from his mouth and shot up the wires with a crackling roar, to the kunai and the exploding tags wrapped around the hilts.
"Shi—!" The sound nin's cry was drowned out by the explosion that engulfed him as he fell.
This is it, Sasuke thought, dropping the jutsu and the wires to form more seals. Lightning crackled to life in his palm; the sound-nin fell, trailing gray tendrils of smoke and embers. Sasuke flashed forward, hand held behind him trailing a cloak of blue energy and the chirping of birds.
The sound-nin rose, cheeks bulging. His mouth opened abnormally large; a dull golden spike erupted from between lips, thicker than Sasuke's forearm.
Sasuke dodged to the side, feeling the wind from the projectile against his cheek, ruffling his hair. A second of course correction, a second where he lost a hair of speed; in that second, the sound shinobi leapt back, familiar lines of glowing purple chakra spreading across his tan skin, resolving into black patterns like swirling vines. He clapped his middle hands together; when he pulled them apart a spider web stretched out between them. Sasuke thrust his arm forward. The sound-nin brought one of his upper hands to his mouth and bit his thumb; blood slid down the digit. Then he gave a jerk, his eyes growing wide as his bloody thumb halted halfway to the web. The chidori slid between flesh and silken strands, slamming into the boy's chest. Sasuke stared in surprise at the partial mask of that dull golden metal that had begun to form on his opponent's face; it was already crumbling away below still wide eyes, focused on something to Sasuke's blind side.
"Kagemane no Jutsu, successful," a voice said.
"Heh," Kidomaru grunted, blood seeping from the corners of his mouth. "Game over."
He coughed more blood, eyes rolling back. Sasuke reached out and grabbed his shoulder, bracing himself and, with a wet sucking sound, pulled his hand from the boy's chest. Around the jagged hole in Kidomaru's shirt he saw more of that golden metal crumbling away; bloody fragments jutted out from the gaping hole Sasuke had made. Some kind of earth jutsu ? Sasuke wondered, stumbling back. Kidomaru collapsed. No.
Sasuke turned slowly to find Shikamaru rising from the underbrush, pulling his hands from a seal.
"You ok?" Shikamaru asked.
"What have you done?" Sasuke said, jaw tight.
Shikamaru flinched and took a step back, raising his hands.
"What have you done?" Sasuke repeated, stepping forward. He sensed movement, and found himself surrounded for the second time in one day. He turned a slow circle, and realized he'd seen most of these faces before: Chouji, with his chubby face and beady eyes; Kiba and his too sharp teeth bared in a grin as Akamaru poked his head out of the boy's gray jacket. The blonde girl kneeling over Sakura was almost certainly Ino, though Sasuke remembered her hair being longer; now it was barely the stump of a ponytail jutting out of the back of her head. The boy standing next to her wasn't from his class, but he recognized the white-eyed stare of a Hyuuga all the same. Sakura... he thought, fist clenching. The antidote.
Suddenly a hand grabbed his leg; Sasuke stared down in shock as the sound-nin looked up at him with a blood stained grin.
"Shit!" Shikamaru yelled, bringing his hands together again.
Kidomaru had already raised his two middle hands, web still suspended between them. He smeared his blood on the web. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu."
Naruto smacked his head.
"I'm such an idiot!"
"Naruto-kun?" Shizune asked, pausing on her branch.
He grinned.
"Don't worry, Shizune-san! I know the perfect way to find them!" He rose from a crouch and pressed the first two fingers of either hand into the familiar cross seal, gathering chakra. "Kage Bu—"
Shizune was suddenly beside him, slim hand grabbing hold of his fingers. Her billowy, too-long blue sleeve draped over their hands as she gave him a stern look.
"Naruto-kun, stop," Shizune said. "You're still recovering from chakra exhaustion, and that pill Genma-san gave you is only a temporary boost. You can't push yourself too hard right now."
"…Oh," Naruto said, shoulders slumping. He lowered his head, pursing his lips.
"Hey!" he said after a moment. "I know! I'll just use—" He froze and glanced quickly at Shizune. Does she already know? he thought. Would she care? Ero-sennin knows and he doesn't seem to care, Naruto reminded himself. Hell, he even taught me how to use it. He thought about Jariya with his white mane of hair. Then again, he's kind of weird himself.
"I…I—I'll just take another of those pill things then!" he blurted. Shizune sighed softly and relaxed her grip.
"I don't have any, though I wouldn't give you more if I did. They're dangerous enough as it is."
"…Oh," Naruto said again, hands falling to his sides. If I use the fox's power I can fill this entire forest with shadow clones. How would I explain that to Shizune-san though? Would she figure it out on her own? Would she hate me for it? Would—Ah, What am I thinking?! He shook his head viciously. Now's not the time for that! I have to find Sakura-chan and Sasuke no matter what! He stood up straighter, took a deep breath and prepared to dip into the wellspring of anger and raw power trapped in his stomach.
"Besides," Shizune added, "Any technique we use right now could give away our position to the enemy. We can't afford to get into a prolonged battle now if we want to find Sakura and Sasuke first."
"…I guess that makes sense," he said. His fists clenched. So help me, if those Sound bastards hurt her—
"Hey that's right!" he said, looking to Shizune. "That snake freak and that four eyed traitor are from the Sound too, right?"
Shizune nodded.
Naruto gave a "hmph", crossing his arms over his chest.
"Hell, we beat those two, didn't we? These guys should be a piece of cake."
"I think you're forgetting that we had some help last time," Shizune said.
Naruto blinked. Oh yeah, Ero-sennin and the old lady fought them too.
"Still," Naruto said, "I say let 'em come. I'll kick their asses and then we won't have to worry about poking around quietly."
"It's…a little more complicated than that, Naruto-kun," Shizune replied. She was looking around as she spoke. "We should keep moving."
Grudgingly, Naruto followed as they continued their trek, arms behind them as they leaned forward, chakra and momentum carrying them through the forest.
"What do you mean by complicated?" he asked.
Shizune glanced back at him. "These aren't ordinary shinobi. They're Orochimaru's elite guards." She paused for a long moment. When she spoke again, her voice was even quieter. "They're the ones who helped Orochimaru kill Sandaime Hokage-sama."
Naruto jerked to a halt once more, mouth dropping open as Senbon-lip's words came back to him: "And yeah, we want a crack at these guys for what they helped Orochimaru do to the Sandaime…"
"Naruto-kun?" Shizune's asked. Her voice seemed a thousand miles away. Old man Hokage… Naruto thought as the sounds of the forest faded. Old man Hokage, who'd never looked at him with the cold eyes of the villagers and even showed up at his apartment to check in on him; old man Hokage, who had always taken the time to explain things to Naruto that even his instructors at the academy hadn't; old man Hokage, who had always been warm and friendly even beneath the frustration in his voice when he chided Naruto for his pranks.
Old man Hokage, he thought. He drifted back to the funeral, looking at the old man in his casket, so worn and thin, realizing just how old the old man had really been. I'm sorry, he had thought then. I'm sorry for all the grief I caused you. I'm sorry that I never got to say thank you for all you did for me. Sorry I didn't realize that you were family—before Iruka-sensei or Kakashi sensei or Sakura-chan or Sasuke. I'm sorry.
Old man Hokage, who'd sacrificed himself to save the village from Orochimaru and his elite guards. And now they have Sakura.
Naruto felt something warm trickle from his lip and down his chin, but he paid it no more mind than the sudden burning sensations in his palms as his fists tightened, or the feeling of Shizune's hand on his arm. Her voice, tinged with urgent desperation, was drowned out by the pounding of blood in his ears and suddenly, he realized that he could smell her—sweat and metal covered by the vague scent of lingering perfume washed away by dirt and grime and the faint hint of old blood and something else. Something… FEAR, a deep part of him recognized. There were others, too; scents wafting in from all around him—the wet fur of animals, the musky scent of some kind of flower or plant. For a moment they threatened to overwhelm him, and then he caught a scent that he did know. PREY.
Something was growling and Shizune's hand suddenly flew away with a yelp of pain. Naruto swung his gaze about until he found her on the ground, cradling her arm and staring up at him with wide eyes. DID THEY HURT HER TOO?! he thought. HOW DARE THEY! Naruto threw his head back and howled as his world became red.
Sasuke leaned back against a tree, cleaning the blood off his hand with the remains of his blue coat, gritting his teeth against the bile that rumbled up his throat. He'd thought he'd been prepared for it, but seeing the life fade from somebody's eyes…He shook his head and flexed his hand, rolling his wrist, as he turned his gaze to Ino who, having administered the antidote, knelt beside Sakura in silent vigil. The Hyuuga—Neji—stood beside them, the veins on the side of his face bulging as he watched the process, as did Shikamaru. After a moment Neji said something and Shikamaru nodded, then turned and walked over to join Sasuke.
"Looks like she's going to be ok," he said.
Sasuke nodded.
"I thought we were goners there for a second," Shikamaru continued, turning slightly and resting a hand on his hip.
Sasuke followed his gaze to their enemy, who lay prone in the dirt. His last words echoed in Sasuke's head: "It's my role as a boss to leave rare drops. We have our pride, too."
"Sasuke-kun?" a voice asked.
Sasuke blinked the image of the sound-nin's death-smile away and looked to Ino, purple crop top and apron skirt that Sasuke had always guessed was supposed to seem revealing, though the bandages around her midriff and upper legs kind of ruined the effect. Not that he had spent much time studying her. He half expected her to start drooling over him like their academy days and frowning slightly when she looked at him with blue eyes more serious than adoring.
"Let me take a look at your hand," she said.
Sasuke hesitated.
"She did tie with Sakura for the highest grade in first aid," Shikamaru said. "Something about dreams of tending to your nake—"
Ino nearly sent him sprawling with a blow to the back of the head.
"Hand please," she said to Sasuke, a bit more forcefully, her gaze lingering on Shikamaru.
Sasuke silently obliged.
"I knew I shouldn't have brought you along," Shikamaru grumbled, rubbing his head. "Face it; you're hopeless without me, chuunin or not," Ino said without looking.
Sasuke stared at Shikamaru, taking in the green flak jacket he wore with the usual grey shirt and dark pants. A chuunin? Him?
"A minor sprain, some chakra burning. I'm going to wrap it, but you should be good for now," Ino said.
Sasuke opened his mouth to protest, but he caught Shikamaru's warning look over Ino's shoulder, and when he turned back she was already busy with her roll of bandages.
"…Thanks," he said when she tied the binding off. She blinked at him, mouth opening. "…You're welcome." They stared at each other for an awkward moment, then Sasuke cleared his throat and looked back to Shikamaru.
"Can you—Take Sakura back to the village for me," he said.
"Been awhile since you asked someone for a favor, huh?" Shikamaru said with a slight smile.
Sasuke felt his cheeks warm slightly.
"…Please," he said.
Shikamaru's smile faded.
"Ino, give us a second," Shikamaru said. Then, when the blonde was gone, he said, "Naruto, right?"
Sasuke nodded.
"Ah man," Shikamaru said, sighing and scratching the back of his head. "That kid is always getting himself into trouble." He locked eyes with Sasuke. "Unfortunately, my orders are to bring you back immediately." By force, if necessary."
Sasuke started to frown, but understanding dawned quickly and his eyes narrowed.
"I see you understand the situation," Shikamaru said.
Sasuke looked into those half-lidded eyes and found an awareness he'd never noticed before. How much does he know?
"Naruto is still out there," Sasuke said at last. "I'm going to find him. I have to. That's all I know."
Shikamaru nodded slowly.
"I suppose that, if you left, I'd have to chase you. After I figured out what to do with Sakura, of course." He held Sasuke's gaze a moment longer, then walked away.
Sasuke slipped out of the clearing.
"Sakura…" Naruto said, moaning as his red dream faded. His eyes fluttered open, away from lingering images of smashing through the forest, pieces of trees and earth flying in his wake, a desperate hunger driving him toward a hulking figure of white and purple and tufts of orange. THe earth beneath him now was hard and unforgiving; he drug his fingers through dirt and stones as he slowly pushed himself up on shaky arms, gasping. He opened his eyes again and kept them open despite the throb, though there was nothing to see but shadow and rock walls surrounding him, rising and curving—
His eyes widened.
"So you're awake," a distant voice rumbled. "Usually, when people fall into the abyss while in my jutsu, they never escape.
Naruto's head whipped towards the sound; black spots exploded across his vision.
"Who's there?!" he called out.
"It's rude to forget someone after attacking them," the voice continued.
"What the hell are you…talking…about…?" Naruto fought to control his breathing.
"You really don't remember?"
Naruto frowned, brow furrowing. I was in the forest with Shizune-san, he thought after a moment, and then…and then… Naruto pressed a hand to his head.
"Don't strain too hard," the voice said. "It won't matter soon, anyway."
"What are you…talking about?" Naruto asked, attempting to stand and quickly failing.
"I'm not sure what that red chakra was, but it's gone now." The voice paused to sigh. "It's a shame; it was so…delicious."
Something in that voice made Naruto shudder.
"When I get outta here…" Naruto said, crawling toward the nearest wall.
"You don't get it, do you," the voice said. "There is no escape. Soon your chakra will be gone—I will consume your life."
Naruto braced himself against the rock and tried to stand again.
"What did—" Naruto got himself to a kneeling position. "What did you…Shizune-san…" He swayed from side to side.
"Don't know who that is, but you should think about yourself," the voice said. "Trash should just lie down and let go. It'll be over soon."
Naruto was already falling backwards, grasping at air.
"Saku..r.a…"
His heart throbbed painfully in his ears once. Twice. Three times—
He stood before the cage again; on the other side of the bars, a great golden eye appeared, with a void in the shape of a slit focusing on him. The fox was on all fours this time, snarling, the shadows of his tails slashing the air behind him. A hot rush of wind blew into Naruto's face, pulling at his hair. PATHETIC. HOW OFTEN MUST I GIVE YOU MY POWER? HOW OFTEN WILL YOU MAKE A MOCKERY OF IT?
Pop. Naruto frowned and looked down at the red bubbles gurgling through the bars at the bottom. The mass spread out towards him and Naruto went to move, only to find that there was already a puddle popping and gurgling up his feet.
THIS TIME, I WILL MAKE SURE YOU CANNOT LOSE.
Pain hit him; white-hot searing pain as the bubbles moved up his legs. He threw his head back and opened his mouth, but no scream came out. His body froze as the bubbles burst and climbed up him, searing every muscle and bone. The fox was pressing as close to Naruto as he could through the bars, looming over him.
THIS TIME, YOU WILL DO MY NAME JUSTICE.
Naruto found that his mask of pain had turned into a smile as the power filled him, covered him, burning into his eyes and pouring down his throat; the fox threw his head back.
SHOW THEM HOW STRONG I AM!
Naruto opened his eyes, on all fours instead of falling. He opened his mouth, and those red bubbles poured out, exploding into the red chakra he had become so familiar with. He flexed his clawed hands and the burning chakra formed claws of its own around them. He was vaguely aware of a tail of pure chakra flicking about around him, longer than he was, and his incisors ended in wicked points at mid chin. This time when he threw back his head, he did not howl—he roared, and the whole earth trembled.
The sudden explosion of power within his dome caught Jirobo off balance, and the orange haired boy nearly let his technique collapse. So much, so fast! he thought. It was faster than the walls of his jutsu could absorb; nearly faster than he could absorb.
There it is again! That red chakra—so sweet, so filling! Glowing lines of triangles spread out across his skin as he activated his curse seal, increasing his capacity. He lifted his face to the sky, eyes wide and mouth watering. The chakra continued to flow into him. And continued.
Jirobo's smile fell away as he lowered his head, brow furrowing in concentration. His arms were shaking now, worse than the stones which continued to funnel chakra to him. So strong; so constant.
"What a pain," he muttered as his curse seal flared to life again. He felt it burn even deeper into his skin, felt his muscles expand with the new power as his skin hardened. Round, rocky protrusions burst forth from his forehead and arms as his hair grew together into an orange mane down his back.
Within seconds, however, he had recovered the energy it had taken to reach the second level of the curse seal, and then the energy it took to maintain it. And soon he was trembling again, gasping as the chakra continued to roar. He fell to one knee, bowing his head.
"Im-Impossible…"
Suddenly it wasn't so sweet; suddenly it hurt. His face twisted with the pain as he squeezed his eyes shut. Fiery red hands exploded from the rock in front of him, grasping his arms, pulling them deeper into his dome, forcing more and more of the chakra even as he tried to stop absorbing. He let the technique go, dust blooming in the air as his stones crumbled and fell away, but the hands held fast, the chakra forcing his tenketsu to stay open. Once, his ability to absorb chakra and turn it into his own had made him strong, unique; it was one of the reasons Orochimaru had chosen him for a curse seal, and a spot on his elite team of sound shinobi. Now, as the dust cleared and he saw the blonde boy covered in hissing, seething, writhing tendrils of red chakra in the shape of a fox, he cursed that power.
"What…are you…" he panted.
The foreign chakra surged and searing pain flashed through him. He threw his head back and screamed as it ripped through his chakra coils; he felt the white-hot pain of tenketsu throughout his body, and the organs beneath them, burst as ragged lines of fire shot from his skin. The curse seal healed his body even as blood spewed from his mouth and eyes, but the sea of power flowing into him had no end; it brought him to his knees, howling, tears and blood streaming form him in equal measure until there was nothing left but agony.
Sasuke found the battlefield again; all that awaited him was cracked ground and the jagged, blackened remains of the earthen dome which had once held Naruto. He leapt into the trees and continued his search, looking for something, anything, to point him in the right direction. Finally he paused on a branch and slammed his fist against the trunk. Where the hell are you, Naru—
An explosion shattered the silence of the forest and Sasuke's head snapped up. He immediately shaded his red and black eye from the blast, but he still winced at the intensity of the red chakra that blazed out of the trees nearby.
He arrived at a torn battlefield littered by fallen and shattered trees, breath catching in his chest as at the sight of a prone figure that lay smoking on scorched earth. He cursed and leapt down; hit the ground running. The stench of burning flesh made his eye water as he scanned the body, picking out the flayed skin, holes burned straight through muscle and bone and—A patch of orange caught his eye. No, he thought, and made himself bend down to touch it. Hair, he realized after a moment. It's hair. He caught a glimpse of a path leading away from a pile of rocks, as if someone had been dragged. He followed it with a wary step, not really breathing until he found Naruto, orange clothes in tatters, attempting to crawl away from the scene.
"Sak…ura…" he was whispering, pulling himself forward. The dirt smeared over his skin did nothing to hide the angry black chakra burns spread over his body.
"Naruto," Sasuke said.
"…ch…an…" Naruto continued.
"Naruto," Sasuke said again.
Naruto planted his arm in front of him again, but didn't really go anywhere.
"…Sakura…chan…" he continued on, eyes locked on the distant horizon. Sasuke sighed and knelt down next to his teammate, releasing his sharingan. He slumped over, blinking as his vision suddenly became blurry.
"Sakur.a…cha…"
"She's ok," Sasuke said.
Naruto looked at him, then.
"She's alive. And safe," Sasuke said, louder. His shoulders sagged. She's alive. Naruto's alive. Sasuke hung his head, squeezing his eye shut. He felt himself sway, and steadied himself with a hand on the ground. Moisture clung to his lashes.
Sasuke wiped his face and snorted.
"You really are an idiot," he muttered, rkneeling down and, as gently as he could, pulled one of Naruto's burned arms across his shoulders. The motion brought his cheek uncomfortably close to the other boy's, and a terrifying image of him lip locked with the blonde flashed through his head. It started as a rumble in his chest, then moved to a shaking in his shoulders; then the laugh tore out of his throat, hard enough to bring new tears to his eyes. A laugh that had not come out of him since he'd been a child; a laugh he had never expected to hear again.
"Sasuke…?" the blonde asked, blinking at him.
Sasuke quited the laugh to a chuckle. "Who else." He straightened, lifting the blonde with him. "Would save your ass so many times?"
"You…owe me…" Naruto wheezed.
"Owe you?"
"I did…all the fighting," Naruto whispered as he all but hung off Sasuke's shoulder. Sasuke huffed and took a small step forward.
A New Beginning
By the time the Hokage fell silent Kakashi's visible silver brow had almost disappeared behind his hitai-ite as well.
"That is…interesting."
Across the desk, an elbow propped on the wood and chin resting on her fist, Tsunade's own brow rose.
"Interesting," she said. "That's the best you can come up with."
He shrugged. "It's not the first time they've left me speechless."
Tsunade scowled.
"Well, at least it's more than your brats had to say on the subject. If it weren't for Shizune and the others, I wouldn't have a clue about what went on out there."
"Still, all things considered, it sounds like it could've gone worse," he said.
She glared. "We got lucky. If Shizune's team hadn't come along when they did, if I hadn't sent Shikamaru out…" She leaned back in her chair, suddenly looking very tired. "What Orochimaru turned those kids into—Even with superior numbers, even with the enemy being separated from one another, it was a struggle." She shook her head. "At any rate, I have another mission for you." She dropped a file on top of the papers strewn around her.
"I'll get to it soon as I'm done," Kakashi said turning.
"Kakashi!" she yelled as he slipped out the door, but it didn't sound like her heart was quite in it.
At the hospital, he found three familiar shinobi of the Sand waiting at the front desk. Their garb was somewhat different, but there was no mistaking that giant fan, or the boy in black with the purple painted face. And then there's him, of course, Kakashi thought, catching the eye of Subaku no Garra. Heavy black rings still circled those green orbs, but Kakashi could sense none of the madness that the boy had exuded throughout the chuunin exam. I doubt very much that the others can sense the change, though, Kakashi thought as his eyes flicked around, noting the nervous stares and sometimes glares that patients and staff alike shot their way.
"And I'm telling you," the blonde girl was saying to the nurse behind the desk, banging her fan on the white tile floor, "That the Sand and Leaf villages are allies now; we are here at the personal invitation of your Hokage. All my brother wanted—"
"Enough." Gaara said, and the girl cut off immediately with a nervous glance. Garra frowned. "It is…all right," he said in a softer tone that probably felt as awkward to use as it did for Kakashi—and, he wagered, Gaara's siblings—to hear. "We cannot expect them to forget about what we have done." He turned and stepped up to Kakashi.
"You are Uzumaki Naruto's instructor," he said.
Kakashi nodded.
"It seems I am…unable to visit him at the moment," Garra said with a barely noticeable grimace. "Would you give him a message?"
"Of course."
Garra was silent for a moment, gazing at nothing with those unblinking eyes.
"Tell him that I used to be alone," he said at last. "Now I am not." He gave Kakashi a nod and strode past and through the door.
"Man, we came all this way and didn't even get to stick it to any of those snake freaks," Kankuro grumbled as he passed.
Temari sighed and threw Kakashi a small wave before following.
Kakashi found himself watching the gourd on Garra's back as the people milling about the hospital entrance hurriedly parted to let him through. Naruto's work? Kakashi thought.
He turned back to the desk and got the appropriate room number. An ANBU in a red striped cat mask stood guard just outside the room; Kakashi gave him the smallest of nods as he passed and received one in kind.
Sakura was seated between two beds; one held a snoring Naruto, face and arms bandaged, and the other and an utterly still Sasuke. Rock Lee stood beside her in his green spandex, hands clasped behind his back. The pink haired girl looked up as he entered, face paler than usual.
"Sensei," she said, starting to rise.
"Sit, sit," Kakashi said. "Shouldn't you be in bed, too? I heard you were poisoned. And you," he continued, glancing at Lee, "Didn't you just have surgery?"
Lee snapped to attention.
"I have vowed to stay here at Sakura-chan's side for as long as it takes for her teammates to awaken! If I cannot, then I will run fifty laps around Konoha! And if I cannot do that—"
"You will not be doing anything," Sakura said. "Or I will tell the nurses to strap you to your bed."
Lee looked at her. "But Sakura-chan, I—"
Kakashi didn't see the look Sakura gave Lee, but he closed his mouth quickly and turned his gaze to the far wall.
"Well it's good to see that you didn't lose any of your…enthusiasm," Kakashi said to the boy.
Sakua rolled her eyes. "What he needs to do is go back to his own room." She eyed Lee. "Aren't you supposed to be taking some kind of medicine?"
"…I forgot it," Lee said.
Sakura stood again and forced Lee's free arm around her shoulders despite his protests that his leg was fine.
"Why do boys have to be so stubborn," she said, half dragging him towards the door.
She paused by Kakashi.
"Thank you," she said with a tired smile. "You were right; everything's going to be ok."
Kakashi studied Naruto again for a moment as she left, then took her vacant seat and pulled it closer to Sasuke's bed by the window. He straddled it backwards, letting his arms dangle over the back as he looked at the boy's arm binding and the bandages wrapped around his head.
"So does this mean you've made a decision?" Kakashi asked.
Sasuke continued to lay there; Kakashi continued to stare. Finally, Sasuke sighed and slowly sat up.
"…I'm here, aren't I?" he said at last, looking out the window.
Kakashi studied what he could see of Sasuke's reflection in the glass—the light frown on his lips, the mixed emotions in his visible eye. Well, it's a start at least, Kakashi thought. He stood.
"What happens now?" Sasuke asked as Kakashi reached the door.
"You take one day at a time," the jounin said.
He left the hospital in the fading light, conscious of the ANBU guarding the place; the sun had almost disappeared by the time he reached the memorial stone.
"Well," he said, after briefing Obito and Rin. "It's not going to be easy, but those three?" He couldn't help but smile. "Those three together are capable of great things." He closed his eyes and lifted his face to the wind. "It'll be interesting, to see how things play out now. Don't you think?"