Broken.
He lay on the ground silently, unmoving, almost dead. The feeling of his life slipping away paralyzed him, the shallow breath he drew only lengthening the suffering he now underwent. His skin felt like ice, the hairs standing in end, physically showing his fear in an instinctual way the same as his narrow dilated pupils. His muscles felt limp, and the blood flow throughout his entire body seemed slowed as the throbbing in his head pounded now at his skull.
How long would it be before he died?
Bloody cuts and bruises covered his face, his right eye almost unable to remain open. His blonde hair was not matted with blood, both dried and fresh, and it clung to his skull in messy tufts. The most recent gash lay under his left eye, and was bleeding out steadily still. Arms covered in blood and bruises just like his face, shirt ripped into pieces revealing evidence of internal injuries. The pain was present, but it seemed his nerves had been fried by the pain they had already been through.
He was numb.
A muscle in his left arm had a brief spasm, the pain fresh and notable, then nothing once again. His left eye came into focus, and he attempted to bring both eyes to his right, trying to get a glimpse of something out of view.
The presence of someone else in the silent clearing was obvious, chakra thick in the air; it weighed on his lungs and slowed his breathing even more. His stubborn will to go on set his body to auto-pilot, not letting his despair take over and begin letting his body shut down. Tears welled in his eyes, the weight of it all suddenly bearing down on him, giving way to all the raw emotion hidden under his training and preparation.
He was going to die.
Never again to see the ones he loved, the ones he fought to protect over and over again. How was it that one who protected others could not protect himself? The village he held so dear was a memory fading in his mind as he thought about it, the power lines and crowded streets clouding over in his mind. As if that was the breaking point, the tears flowed down his face, retaining a steady flow. Maybe he was finally ready to let go.
This is it. He could feel the chains loosening, his mind easing as is an old friend had appeared.
The chakra in the air shifted, and the being out of sight was moving towards him.
"So… I see you're still alive… pity. It must be painful, right boy? That chakra is taking its time to drain out of you, huh? I suppose I could have removed the seal all the way… but that wouldn't have been fun now, would it?"
The voice was laced with sarcasm and joy, whoever it was clearly enjoyed watching the boy suffer. A low cloud of chakra dusted the ground, different from the chakra that bore down on him. It slowly trailed out from the exposed abdomen of the boy on the ground, like it was being stolen away like his life. Amongst the bruises, barely visible, the seal that once protected its bearer was now broken, and now killing him slowly and agonizingly.
"Erh…"
A soft moan left the boys lips as his eyes narrowed. His vision was blurry, but the individual was standing over him now, a black blur on the gray sky.
"Too bad Itachi had an engagement to attend to prior to this, you probably would have gotten off easier."
There was a shifting of chakra again, then the boy felt the flow of the chakra being stolen from him move towards the figure instead if dispersing along the ground and finding way into numerous objects.
"He'll be so disappointed, Itachi. This demon chakra is quite interesting. I'll just have to make sure I get enough of it for the both of us, I'm sure Samahade will be able to do the job."
As the voice spoke, the chakra flowing from the seal thinned, seeming like it was running out. Inside of him the boy felt an enormous pressure, emotions mixed. The presence inside of him was furious, ready to manifest itself in any way possible to protect its host, yet wary of physical action due to the fear of them both being killed. Stemming the chakra flow was the only answer, to save both of them, even he was weak now from the beating his host had taken. Never had he felt the feeling of fear, it was he who made people fear, but now the possibility of him not surviving seemed too real to him, and he barely hung on to rational thought through all the panic seizing him.
I'm sorry. I think it's time for me to go. It hurts.
The words rang throughout the boy's entire being, his thoughts audible to one who dwelt inside of him. The statement froze him, mentally unable to comprehend that this would be his end after thousands of years of living. The panic began to spread, but then his mind cleared. Something was approaching, the intent catching his animal instincts of both self-preservation and protection.
Stupid boy, don't give up now. We're going to be okay.
Impossible. We're alone and we're broken. We're done for. It just… it hurts to much to go on.. I'm sorry.
The thought barely crossed his mind when he was seized by his neck, and hauled from the ground by one hand up into the air. The face of his torturer was now clear, the pale, blue skin illuminated eerily from the glow emanating from behind the clouds, accenting the gills on the stranger scarily. A smile full of sick, twisted pleasure spread on his face, razor sharp teeth glaring at him threateningly.
"You're no good to me anymore. I'll just kill you now and then we'll extract it from your body later. As long as we get it, doubt no one will care how."
The hand that held his throat tightened while the other was raised, monstrous sword in hand, its teeth just as intimidating as the ones in his imminent killer's mouth. Muscles tightened in the bigger man's arms, sword posed the strike, and to finalize the theft of his life. The arms tightened once more, this time with a feeling of apprehensiveness.
Something, someone was out there.
His killer gritted his teeth, determined to finish his duty without interference. Sword posed to strike once again, then the arm was set into motion. The boy's eyes closed automatically, heart stopping, frozen with fear.
Nothing.
The pain didn't come, nor did the release. He was still trapped in his condemned shell of a body, his life still slipping away little by little. There was a gagging sound, and the grip around his neck slackened, and then disappeared. His body was hurled into the air, and it felt like he was flying by the entire world as he came closer and closer to the ground. He braced himself for the impact upon the ground, but it never came.
Arms enclosed around his bare chest, sending fear into every fiber of his body. A new torturer had come. It wasn't over. How much would follow until he could just die? Staring back at him from the blank recesses of his mind were a pair of familiar blue eyes. A face faded into view and he was greeted with a smile and open arms.
"It's okay, I'm here. You're safe now."
Gentle words flooded his ears and a sense of relief rushed in a wave over his entire body. It was over now. He was okay, he was safe. He was now with his father, free from the nightmare his life had become in a matter of only seconds. The terror from the hours before drained away, the familiar face now embracing him, warmth of soothing hands comforting his broken and battered body. Then the embrace was broken, and the warm eyes gazed at him, filled with both sorrow and happiness as he shook his head.
Why? I thought I was safe now, I was here with you?
You can't stay with me, son. I never said that, it's not your time yet.
But then…who?
His father embraced him once more, a kiss to his forehead, than the entire scene washed away in a sea of white, sending him back to reality.
The embrace remained, warm hands still on his torso, supporting him tensely. His senses came back to him slowly, eyes heavy, but opening slowly. The feeling coming from the newcomer felt familiar, almost nostalgic, and… filled with murderous intent?
The emotion emanating off of the one who held him was a protective hatred, directed fully at the one that had broken him. His body was rigid, self control holding only momentarily due to the precious article held in his arms, but wild emotion seething out if it's being fast and fluidly. The chakra that had pressed on the boys lungs now disappeared, and his lungs began gasping for air, blood flow steadily increasing throughout his entire body.
See? I told you we would be okay, animal instinct.
His body relaxed and an entirely new feeling began to wash over him. In tiny bits, the demonic chakra was leaking into his body, loosening his muscles, rewriting the sensory systems of the nerves in them all, programming them to grasp the pain once again. The boy let out a gasp, the feeling returning to his body once again, almost like he was on fire, even at a microscopic level. The arms around him tensed, and a hand made its way to support the back of his head, the fingers deftly stroking the base of his neck to calm him.
His body shook, but only for a brief moment, then he became still once more, his chakra healing him at a microscopic level, his muscles having been separated from his bones in parts of his body, fractures located all over, and nerve damage beyond comprehension. His eyes were almost fully open now, but the face of the person holding him was out of his line of vision.
Suddenly, three more people appeared in the clearing, one very close to him and his support. His holder's grip tightened in a protective way, but then loosened as it spoke.
"Here. Take him, but be careful. He's in a lot of pain."
The voice was laced with a mixture of concern and anger, inevitably towards the person who had done the damage. The newcomer came close and he was carefully placed in the arms of another, most likely a woman due to the delicate fashion he was handled and the softness of the hand that caressed his face.
"This is horrible… he looks terrible."
The male voice was quiet, but a sense of uneasiness was in the air, one so thick you could cut it with a knife. Then another new voice spoke.
"So, Boss… what do we do with this one?"
It was another male voice, and he could tell by the tone he was getting impatient. 'Boss' remained silent for a few moments, and then finally answered in a calm tone.
"I'm going to kill him."
There was an eerie silence following the statement, punctuated only by the sounds of breath being drawn. His senses coming back to him little by little, he could now approximate that they were all elite nin, something only slightly uncommon, a gathering like this. The uneasiness turned into alarm as the chakra from his initial rescuer became thicker, and heavier with killing intent. His torturer's chakra became cold, and thinned in response, even though he couldn't see him didn't mean he didn't know how he was reacting. Silence hung on the destroyed forest clearing, showing more than enough evidence of the battle that had occurred before. His ears amplified any sound made within a five foot radius, and made clear to him any in a five mile. The soft female hand stroked his hair and face calmingly, as if to distract he and herself from what was about to happen.
Then, without any words, he could tell seals were being formed by the controlled flow of chakra being loosed by each individual seal being performed. Something stung the air, and made it more alive, the sound of crackling and popping faint, even to his own overly sensitive ears. Then the voice he would soon come to remember spoke once again.
"You don't deserve to live. After what you did to him, I should kill you slowly, but you don't deserve the honor of being like him, so I'm going to make this fast."
A nervous tone spoke out, trying to mask his torturers own fear of what was going to happen. The spoiler of his plan apparently meant business, and the fact that he had back up while his partner was not around wasn't good for him.
"What makes you think I'll be so easy to kill, kid?"
"Because, if I know him, he probably put up one hell of a fight and gave you a run for your money. I'm just here to clean things up."
Silence once again. But the sounds of the motions being performed were enough to keep him clued in. The large sword was being hefted in a position easier to land a striking blow with, and the chakra flowing in the air was now pulling towards his savior, becoming subject to chakra shape manipulation. Suddenly, the swordsman shifted and lunged. The calm male stood, not caring about the oncoming assault.
His glare cut deeper than any blade of jutsu could ever, then he reached out his hand, as if pointing another sword at his attacker, the spoke calmly,
"Die"
There was a surge in chakra, electrifying throughout the air, and he shivered slightly in the arms of the woman holding him, and she responded by holding him closer, trying to keep him warm with her own body heat, There was a gurgle in the air, and the pounding of footsteps slowed, then halted altogether. After three seconds the advancing form fell to its knees, wheezing for breath. Soon after, the breathing stopped entirely, and the body slumped onto the ground, silent and still.
The air lifted and was laced with chakra no more, but the feeling of anger had remained, but was slowly cooling off at a good rate. Suddenly the person seemed by his side again, the other two making their way over leisurely.
"Well?"
"We're lucky we got here when we did. Another blow to anywhere on his body and he would be dead. Not even a maybe, definitely. I'll have to do something about his physical injuries right away, but you'll need to bring him back mentally and psychologically. Okay?"
The female seemed to take charge quickly as she laid him gently on the ground, and he could tell it was her hand that was removing what was left of his shirt. Gentle hands glided over the now tender flesh and splintered ribs, his eyebrows knotting in pain whenever they touch a particularly bad bruise or gash.
"This is bad. I mean, I can mend his ribs so they won't be a problem when we move him, but his blood loss in incredible. It's hard to believe that he's even slightly conscience right now, this kid is a medical anomaly in a lot of ways."
"Tell me about it." Came the male voice, the hands belonging to the voice now acting as if they had their own minds. One closed around his left hand and squeezed, as if trying to show he was really there, and the other gently pushed away his hair from his forehead in order to see how bad the injuries to his head were. Once he made the assessment, the hand started stroking his hair, and then moved to stroke his cheek reassuringly, "Don't worry… I'm here now." He murmured lowly, only the injured male's acute hearing could pick up the phrase, and something about it relaxed him, and another wave of healing chakra washed over him, now working on restoring his primary motor functions that had been wiped from his conscience mind after he was rendered helpless by the person intended to be his killer.
Baka. If the seal wasn't in as fragile a state as it is I could have healed you all myself.
But… we were about to die. Who are these people? I can't tell. Use those animal instincts of yours.
I'd rather not. Plus, I already know who it is. Do you think if I didn't I would be sitting here and letting them touch your body, I'd be doing something. Remember, if you die, I die too.
I'll remember that for future reference, y'know, if I ever want to kill you someday.
That's great. Thanks kid.
His stomach was suddenly free from pain for a brief second, then it resumed, but only slightly, something had been done to ease the pain. He would have to remember to tell whoever was helping him that he loved them, he didn't have the need to cry from the pain anymore, although it was still very intense.
"There's someone coming this way… the birds have been disturbed from their nests."
The voice was gentler as is spoke, the tone like porcelain, fragile and sounding easy to break. Then the familiar voice spoke again,
"Who is it?"
"Familiar people, ninja. I think it might be his teammates."
There was a silence, and the female took it as disrest, so she spoke up.
"We shouldn't just leave him here. We found him, well, you did… but still, I think we should take him with us. At least we definitely know we can get him care if he remains with us. He needs attention immediately."
Her voice was firm with resolve, but had a slight hint of trying to please. Apparently, that was exactly what she did, and from what he gathered, the familiar voice was also their leader, then he spoke.
"Let me speak to him alone for a moment, then we'll go to the next town. Are his injuries healed enough for me to carry him safely?"
"Yes." The female rose from her position kneeling on the ground beside him, and he could hear footsteps dully walking away from him. He heard the weight of the leader shift, and an arm was draped over his chest now, only lightly resting on him, but enough to know it was there. The person shifted again so that his mouth was next to his ear, apparently needing to say words only meant for him. A breathe was drawn in slowly, and then a whisper greeted his delicate ears.
"It's okay, I'm here. You're safe now, because… I came back for you. I didn't mean to leave for so long, I'm sorry. If I was here I could have protected you from this… But it won't happen again, you're too important, no matter what people want to take from you, they'll have to go through me first."
A pause, then he continued.
"I'm here… Naruto."
His savior's head tilted to rest against his own, but Naruto's eyes began to slowly open. His senses came back online all thanks to that statement, and now his sense of recognition sparked to life. His eyes shot open fully and he sat up so fast that he knocked away the other person in his excitement and happiness.
"Sasuke!"
The blood rushed to his head, bruises on his torso screamed, and his eyes slid out of focus once again, but right then and there, he knew something had gone right. His body instinctively relaxed due to the trusted presence, even after all the years apart his trust and faith in Sasuke had never waned.
He blacked out, and began falling back to the ground but was caught by comforting arms, the face they belonged to a mixture of joy and concern. He rose from the ground, carrying Naruto bridal style to avoid from agitating any of his injuries. His team gathered around him seeing him ready to set out. A new voice spoke, this one more nonchalant.
"So he recognized you. That's good, but we should really get going, Juugo's animals told us his second rescue team is on their way."
"But wait, what should we do with the corpse? They'll know you were here. They'll also know we took Naruto."
This female was the voice of reason to Naruto's unconscious ears. He definitely would have to tell her he loved her, it seemed she was the only one who expressed logical thought about the situation they all inadvertently were in. Sasuke finally spoke.
"We'll leave it. It doesn't matter, they might think that Itachi took off with him after Kisame died. Let's get going, I don't want to risk a confrontation while I have to protect him."
There was a murmur of consent in the air, then they took off at the pace only shinobi are able to keep up to. Before blacking out entirely, Naruto spoke with his tenant.
Hey you, fox bastard, why didn't you tell me it was Sasuke?
I didn't think it was relevant other than the fact that he was saving us from a certain death… Plus, I thought you might have liked the surprise.
What, so now you're going to be nice to me? What are you up to, sneaky fox?
Nothing. As said, I need you alive for me to continue living. At least until I'm released at least.
Yea. Like that's gonna happen.
Why not? You already removed the seal? The actual seal is in pieces now too, it might be easy for me to escape now brat.
If you tried to, I'd die. You heard that girl, I'm really messed up fox bastard, you do anything like that and we're both gone
Truce then.
The fox was silent as they stared at each other in the recesses of his mind; they had come a long way from where they started. Granted they weren't bosom buddies, but they could work together easily now, especially now that he could control the fox more or less, with or without the seal. Falling into the steady rhythm of Sasuke running along the tree branches, Naruto settled himself in the crook of the Kyuubi's front leg, resting his head in the thick fur of his neck. The gigantic demon settled himself and laid his head down, the ruffs of his neck fur now covering most of Naruto's body for warmth. On a deep subconscious level, the fox and boy both identified each other as family, the only company they each had for a long time at extended intervals, and Naruto could even identify his presence when he thought he was alone as a child, not then, but now. Together they settled down for a much needed rest, the Kyuubi's chakra hovering over them both like a healing mist, seeping deep into Naruto's body to aid with the extensive assistance he would need to be able to function normally again.
Together they faded into the shadows of sleep.
