Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, and am not obtaining any profit from this work.
AN: This story is based on speculation about what might happen in the manga's future. I do not think it's too farfetched. After all, Pein did say that he plans on going after Naruto, and this is just one way the fallout from that confrontation might turn out. As for the title, I'm not sure that it is really appropriate, but I could not think of anything better. If you have any suggestions for a better title, please feel free to offer them. Also, I am not really happy with this oneshot, despite reworking a few parts a number of times, so if you have any constructive suggestions for how I might make it better, I would love to hear them. I'm still not sure that my characterizations are even remotely plausible.
The Seventh Path of Pain
He had never expected that he would be attacked within the walls of The Village Hidden in The Leaves.
Naruto had figured that he had finally won. Sure, there were probably a few Akatsuki left, but he had beaten the leader and avenged Ero-Sennin. As far as Naruto had been concerned, it should all have been smooth sailing from then on. Sure, he had to go pick up Sasuke at some point, but that shouldn't be too hard for an awesome ninja like him.
Maybe he should have guessed that she would come after him after what he had done, but he did not see that he had really had any choice. He was trying to find Sasuke when he ran into Pein, after all, and then Pein was trying to kill him. What else could he have done but what he did?
That was not, however, how she saw matters. Naruto's first warning was the trio of shuriken which flew towards him from above as he stepped out of the hospital. Years of training made side-stepping the potentially deadly projectiles instinctual, and he swiftly leapt to the rooftops.
His assailant was easily identifiable. Atop Konoha's hospital, and now across the street from the smaller building's rooftop to which he had leapt, she stood tall and deadly, one of the few women alive powerful enough to send a shiver down Naruto's spine. He should have known that she would come after he killed Pein single-handed. That fight had left him barely alive. If it was not for Sakura-chan's medical skills, he would certainly have died. Even with the fox speeding his recovery, he had been in the hospital for more than a week. Yes, it made perfect sense that she would come to wreak vengeance upon him.
As fast as he could manage, Naruto began to run across Konoha's rooftops. If the two of them fought here, in the middle of Konoha, the property damage would be incalculable. Even if he survived, Bachan would murder him. Moreover, unlike most of his foes, he could not count on Kakashi-sensei or the ANBU to help much with this opponent. If he tried to settle this near his friends, he would just be putting the people he cared about in danger. No, just like with Pein, as little as he liked to admit it, this was a problem he would have to deal with alone.
She, of course, would know the state of his injuries. Gathering intelligence was a basic skill for shinobi, and one with which someone on her level would be more than acquainted. Moreover, it was not like, even in Konoha's hospital, it was all that hard to get a hold of a patient's records. No doubt, she had planned to attack him as soon as he was let out of the hospital so that his injuries would still be slowing him down. Of course, all the major and life-threatening damage was healed, but he was still weakened.
He was fortunate that she was following him so peaceably, Naruto supposed, but then again, the middle of Konoha was not exactly an ideal battle-ground for her either. Just like him, she would probably prefer to settle things on one of the training grounds, where there was no chance nearby Konoha shinobi would get involved. Probably, no battleground he picked would give him any real advantages in this confrontation.
He would need a plan, and it would have to be a good one. Against someone like her, there was most likely no escape. Running away would merely delay the inevitable, if escape was even possible. There was also no way he could really damage her – not in any way that might seriously threaten her anyway. No, against her, all his recently developed wind techniques and rasengan were useless.
A rooftop ahead, as he had been throughout their journey, Naruto finally reached training ground 7. This was the place where his team had first been born, and, consequently, was one of the most important places in Konoha for him. If he had to make a stand, there was no better place to do so. Catapulting himself into and then through the trees, he finally reached the clearing where he faced Kakashi's bell test so many years before. Just like then, he was putting his future on the line again today.
A short hop brought him to the center of the clearing mere seconds before the shinobi stalking him cleared the tree line, landing a scant two or three metres in front of him.
"You had to know, when you went after him alone, that this would happen," the kunoichi stated coolly, her casual words belied by the way her jaw clenched and eyes burned with righteous fury.
Naruto abruptly realized that the time to implement a brilliant plan had arrived, and he had yet to think of anything. Oh well, there was always the old fall back for situations like this one.
"Don't think I don't know what you're thinking. If you even think of substituting yourself with that shadow clone in the woods, I will just hunt you down again, and next time I won't be nearly so understanding."
Naruto stopped covertly making seals and scowled. So she'd guessed. It looked like he would have to take the more straightforward approach then. This confrontation couldn't be delayed any longer.
"So, do you have anything to say for yourself, Naruto, or are you ready to face the consequences of your actions."
There had to be some way he could get out of this situation alive. In his present condition, facing her was incredibly dangerous. He had so many hopes and dreams left to accomplish. He still needed to save Sasuke, go on a date with Sakura-chan and become Hokage. No, he couldn't afford to die here. As much as it would wound his pride, there was only one alternative remaining.
Naruto's hands clapped together as if to dispel a genjutsu or offer a prayer; he got down on his knees; he bowed his head; and Uzumaki Naruto, the number one most surprising ninja in Konoha, began begging for his life.
"Please Sakura-chan, don't kill me! I mean, I would have brought you and the rest of Team Kakashi with me, but I didn't want you to get hurt!"
Haruno Sakura ominously cracked her knuckles, and her glower redoubled in intensity.
"You think that's a good excuse," she began, stalking towards her frightened prey. "So, how do you think I feel having to perform emergency, life-saving surgery on my best friend because he's too stupid to get help when he needs it? How do you think I feel when I have to drag that friend's half-dead carcass all the way back to the village, wondering the whole time whether he will survive the night? How do you think I feel when I have to spend days sitting by your bedside, nursing you back to health?"
By this time, Sakura had grabbed Naruto by his collar and was shaking him like a rag doll. After all, if he was healed enough to leave the hospital, then he was certainly recovered enough for her to beat up.
"How do you think the girl who promised Uzumaki Naruto that 'next time they would do it together' felt when Uzumaki Naruto abandoned her to try and hunt down Sasuke-kun alone?"
"S-Sakura-chan," he managed to stammer between having his senses shaken out of him by his enraged teammate. "I'm sorry. I promise you can come next time, and this time I really mean it!"
Sakura simply chuckled darkly, sounding more than slightly deranged, as she held Naruto a half a foot off the ground by the collar of his jumpsuit.
"Next time, huh. That's pretty optimistic, Naruto, considering that YOU'RE NOT EVEN GOING TO SURVIVE THE NEXT FIVE MINUTES! ALL YOU'RE GOING TO BE DOING IS TAKING THE MOST PAINFUL PATH TO THE AFTERLIFE POSSIBLE!"
Needless, to say, Naruto did survive Sakura's gentle remonstrations (for a girl whose fists could crush mountains, they really were relatively gentle), and was then healed by her afterwards over the course of the next few days (so, considering he was able to move again after only 48 hours, compared to his condition after fighting Pein, it was practically a walk in the park). Nonetheless, that day would be engraved in Naruto's memory forever. He would always remember it as the day when he became like his deceased mentor Jiraiya in yet another way.
For the rest of his life, Uzumaki Naruto would bear the mental scarring (although no physical testament, thanks to the Kyuubi) of one of his closest brushes with death. Just like his mentor, the future Rokudaime would rarely again come as close to dying as after he incited the righteous fury of his female teammate, in Naruto's case, the second Tsunade, Haruno Sakura.
End