The three Chuunin watched from a top a cliff, as the girl below stood and faced her attacker. Not single weapon drawn, her hands at her sides. "Why do you not fight? Your life will end here." The shinobi threatened, his voice cold and calm. "This is not my fight." She coughed; blood trickled from the corners of her lips. "So be it." the attackers voice was low, the black wheel in the center of his eyes spun inside the red Sharingan. The hand signals were preformed fast, but clear, the Chuunin gasped.
"Chidori. He copied it from me." The youngest Uchiha cussed under his breath. The two others glanced from Sasuke, down the cliff to the clearing.
"Haruko!" the other man called, the girl below them slowly turned and looked to the top of the cliff and glanced at the blue eyes of the man who called her name. A single tear rolled down her cheek as she smiled, and turned back to her enemy, now running at her, blue lightning held in his hand. "No!" the blonde with blue eyes screamed, his low voice echoed off the cliffs. Haruko fell to the ground, a hole torn through her core. Naruto jumped from the cliff without thinking, he silently prayed it wasn't too late. The others followed, the three touched down, a good distance away from the lifeless figure of Haruko.
"Itachi!" Naruto was the first to speak.
"She was a fool. She didn't attack, not even once." He chuckled, dark and low, looking at the blood that covered his arm. Sasuke stepped closer to his older brother. "Your fight is with me, Itachi." Black eyes morphed into his own Sharingan. He calmly walked past Haruko; closet to the only man he wishes to kill. The two left behind waited for a sign to tell them she was okay, but nothing was given.
Naruto almost began to run, but upon realization that he didn't want to see the damage done to this girl her cared for so much. Every step he took he seemed no closer. Slowly the blood stained sand came into view, a steady flow of tears fell from his eyes. The pace of his steps sped up. At her side he gawked and fell to his knees, forever staining his clothes with blood. He gently cradled her broken body in his arms, and he screamed, a scream that could be heard all across Konaha. The final Chuunin heard the scream and rushed to the man with the motionless body in his arms, her wild green eyes looked over every inch of Haruko's body.
"Sakura, help her." Naruto's voice was low and pleading, no longer a gentle purr. Her gaze was ripped form the dying girl to the man whose blue eyes had turned the color of the sand he kneeled upon. The markings on his face grew darker and thicker, as he lost control of himself and the Nine Tailed Fox demon began to take over.
"Sasuke!" His growl echoed. "Finish this quickly, or I'll do it for you!" the Uchiha glanced to the source of the demanding growl, and saw Naruto on his hands and feet, crouched over Haruko, three tails of red chakra whipping wildly behind him. Sasuke nodded, he knew that he must kill Itachi while Sakura needed Naruto. Sasuke reached behind him and, for the first time since coming home to Konaha, unsheathed his katana.
Sakura now kneeled in the bloodied sand. "Naruto, move." She demanded. He did, and kneeled across from her, his eyes blue again. She unzipped the ruined white jacket that Haruko wore, to reveal a deep V-neck black shirt, torn in a circle around the still bleeding wound. Sakura looked down into the puddle of the blood surrounding the three Shinobi. She knew if Haruko lost any more blood, she would die.
"Naruto put your hands where mine are and apply pressure. We have to stop the bleeding." His hands slid under hers, Sakura pressed on his hands, and slowly applied pressure about the tear in her body. She took her hands away and began to focus her chakra to heal the deadly wound. Sakura worked to save her for two hours, Haruko never opened her eyes. Naruto watched the rise and fall of her chest slow to a normal pace, before he noticed the Jounin radio pressed to her neck.
"Sakura, she has a radio, we can call Kakashi-sensei for help." He slowly moved his hands and unclasped the necklace, and put it to his own throat before pressing the button. "Sensei? Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked. "Naruto?" the puzzled voice of the man he was trying to reach filled the earpiece. The blonde man quickly let out a sigh of relief. "It's Haruko, she's hurt, bad. We need help." His voice was almost frantic. It seemed like forever for Kakashi to say something, and the longer the blue-eyed man waited; the more his hope for help seemed to diminish. Finally, Kakashi spoke, his voice was grave, "Wrap the wound tightly and bring her to the village. We're all busy with the Genin teams and paper work…" Naruto said nothing and took the radio off; he looked into the green eyes staring at him.
"We have to take her home, no one can help us." His voice trembled with sorrow. He looked down, for the hundredth time, at the solemn face of this dying woman; his eyes filled with unshed tears. Sakura had already begun to wrap the wound with things from her pack. Naruto looked to Sasuke, the battle between the Uchiha's was no closer to the end. He stood and walked closer to Sasuke, "Sasuke! We have to go! She won't make it if we don't!" he yelled, the Uchiha heard him and only nodded.
The blue eyed man turned and walked back to the two women in the blood and mud. The pink haired woman looked to him, "Can you carry her?" He nodded and picked up Haruko. He began to walk across the clearing, back into the trees. Sakura could no longer see him, before she turned to wait for Sasuke. The man with black eyes had disappeared from the battlefield, she franticly looked for him. He was nowhere to been seen, her eyes welled up with tears.
"Sakura!" and airy whisper of her name forced her to spin, staring into the forest again. Tears fell from her terror filled eyes, and mixed with the blood and sand under her feet. "Sakura, come here!" the same voice whispered again, this time she recognized it, it was Sasuke. He had escaped into the forest. She ran into the trees in front of her and kept running until the clearing could no longer be seen, and the smell of blood was gone from behind her. She stopped and turned the direction she came from and watched as a man in black loose fitting pants and a white T-shirt with the emblem of the Uchiha clan down the left side come through the trees. Her eyes met his, Dark yet so full of warmth and comfort. He stood in front of her, staring into the beautiful depth of her emerald eyes. She felt the warmth of his skin, and it calmed her frantic heartbeat. She finally blinked and he was shaken back into the reality of the situation.
"We need to catch up to Naruto." He spoke and his voice was quiet. He grabbed the woman's wrist and began to run. He slowed when the figure of a man wearing a white shirt with a black spiral on the back and blood stained pants came into his vision. Naruto heard them approach; he knew they were coming to his side, to Haruko's side. This Jounin, they all admired, this woman years younger than them, this friend, each of them cared for. His blue eyes stayed fixed on the features of her face, a tear fell from his face, onto her cheek. He clenched his teeth.
Sasuke stopped walking, he watched Naruto's solitary figure staring| at the limp woman in his arms. He could see his friends' muscles tighten, and he heard him sniff. Sasuke turned his gaze to the pink haired woman at his side; she had tears in her eyes again. The words from his lips were so quiet she almost didn't hear them: "Sakura, don't cry." She looked into his eyes again, seeking the comfort she found there. It was gone, and in it's place she found his own worry, his own sorrow. She smiled, a small fake smile, and tears fell from her eyes, she wiped them away. "I just wish I could have done more for her."
Naruto looked to the trees in front of him. "She's going to be fine, just fine." He said in a low, quiet trembling voice. After a moment Sasuke said, "Everything is going to be okay." His voice was only meant for Sakura to hear. "I know, Sasuke." She whispered, lying to herself.