Disclaimer: Masashi Kishimoto is the creator and owner of Naruto and all related characters…and if anyone tells you different then I know a really good psychiatrist I would love to recommend.

Incase if you haven't already figured it out from the rating and the two characters that appear in the description box, this is a MinaxIta fanfic. Boy on boy. If you don't like then don't read. As an adventurous writer I love experimenting and delving into new, and sometimes unpopular pairings in the Naruto world. This fic is for open-minded people like me who aren't afraid of trying new things. If you don't fall into that category then I'll advice you to turn back now. Otherwise enjoy.

Chapter One

Success and Failure Equals Compromise

The Snake Sannin was feeling considerably weakened as he sat up in his bed listening to Kabuto, his most trusted follower, give his monthly oral report on the state of the Sannin's many endeavors. As Orochimaru listened, his brain unconsciously filed the information away carefully with the most important ones in front and everything else behind.

When the young medic finally stopped talking and lowered the clipboard, from which he had been reading the entire time, Orochimaru let out a tiny whisper of a sigh in frustration that Kabuto would have missed had it not been for his lengthy tenure as the Sannin's right hand man. The medic shifted his weight from one foot to the other as he watched his genius of a master process the information he had just received.

"Kabuto, you talk too fast." The Snake Summoner said finally. The younger man smiled as he pushed his glasses further up the bridge of his nose. Unlike most people, Orochimaru-sama rarely laughed, and whenever he did it was more in mockery than it was amusement. He was yet to see a genuine look of amusement on his master's face. He sighed inwardly at the thought and held his hands behind his back.

Geniuses like Orochimaru-sama spend their time wisely; constantly working towards their ambitions while the common man sought amusement and pleasure from his surroundings. Although, I wouldn't mind hearing Orochimaru-sama laugh every once in a while.

When he realized that his master had been speaking to him, Kabuto diverted his attention away from his thoughts and towards the man sitting on the bed. Although he seemed frail and weak, Kabuto wasn't foolish enough to be deceived, like many before him, by the Sannin's façade. He knew that Orochimaru put on convincing shows of weakness like this every once in a while to see if he would take the bait and fall victim to his trap. But Kabuto never did, not because he was too afraid to but because of his unwavering loyalty to the greatest of the Legendary Sannin. As Orochimaru's personal medic he had had many opportunities to end the pale Sannin's life. Although Orochimaru had an extensive knowledge of medical ninjutsu that rivaled that of his fellow Sannin Tsunade, Kabuto knew that the ambitious Sannin would have never appointed him in the first place if he felt he was much more skilled than the youth. Why not just do it himself and get it over with, rather than trusting someone of lesser or equal skill with his life. He could have easily laced his medicine with poison not easily detected and that was just one of the many ways he could have used medical ninjutsu to kill the Sannin. But he hadn't and by not doing so he had earned the Sannin's trust.

Kabuto had to admit that lately Orochimaru had been putting on the most convincing show of weakness he had ever seen. Sometimes it felt so real that Kabuto found himself thinking about peacefully dispatching his master in his sleep. But he always remembered that it was a trap and often laughed at his stupidity. Unlike that ungrateful Uchiha brat who always disappeared whenever he was done training with the Snake Summoner, Kabuto always remained nearby and hated being away from his master just in case something went terribly wrong.

That brat's become more unruly over the years. Nowadays he talks back at Orochimaru-sama and sometimes refuses to answer master's summons unless they are for training which he treats like some boring history class he's being forced to take. I just hope that he takes the bait pretty soon and Orochimaru-sama shows him why he is the greatest of the Sannin. Why can't that boy learn to accept Orochimaru-sama as his master? What is wrong with him? I would have thought that after all these years he would finally start warming up to Orochimaru-sama. Why do I get the feeling that he's up to something?

"Kabuto, focus." Orochimaru snapped irritably jerking the medic's thoughts back to the present.

"Sorry Orochimaru-sama," Kabuto apologized bowing slightly to show his respect. "I got carried away…"

"Don't let it happen again." The Sannin hissed with a note of finality and the matter was dropped.

"When did Arashi say he would be done?" He asked watching lazily as his assistant hastily flipped through the clipboard searching for an answer to his inquiry.

"In about eight weeks Orochimaru-sama." Came the medics reply.

"And how much longer do I have until…" The Sannin trailed off and Kabuto instantly understood the meaning behind his pause.

"Six more weeks, tops."

"Tell him he has four weeks." Kabuto swallowed the argument that had been on the verge of slipping out when he heard the note of finality in his master's tone that left no room for discussion. Instead, he took out a pen and jotted that down on the top of his to-do list.

"It's been almost three years now and I think I have waited long enough." Orochimaru muttered to himself and he shifted in his bed into a more comfortable position. "Had it not been for Konoha and the Akatsuki breathing down my neck, I would have gladly done the procedure myself and been through with it by now."

"Orochimaru-sama, for a non-shinobi scientist he has done considerably well…" Kabuto said coming to the commissioned scientist's defense.

"I don't care how far he's advanced, I only care about how much he has done…or hasn't done as the case may be." The sharp tone in the Sannin's voice silenced Kabuto immediately.

The silence in the room remained in place for several moments as both retreated to the sanctuary of their minds with their individual thoughts. Kabuto looked up after a while and finally mustered enough courage to voice a question that had been plaguing him for several months now.

"Orochimaru-sama, I was just wondering, wouldn't it be a lot easier for you to just take the Uchiha instead and wait for the next vessel to be ready, rather than rushing Arashi-san during the delicate final stages of the procedure?"

Orochimaru had to admit the medic's logic was sound, he himself had strongly considered that option in the past. However, he couldn't shake the feeling that if he pursued the Uchiha first he would live to regret it.

A year ago when Arashi had finally hit a major milestone in his research, he had summoned Orochimaru to his laboratory in Lightening country. Upon getting there he had been impressed by just how much the man had accomplished in such a short period of time. He had estimated that it would have been at least eight years before the scientist was able to successfully transfer the Yondaime's soul into his restored remains. After presenting his theory and explaining the lengthy process he had developed, Arashi then proceeded to begin the operation leaving Orochimaru behind to watch through the observation window. As the Snake Sannin waited in bated breath for life to be breathed into the remains of his former teammate's student, he felt his anticipation reach a frightening level he had believed inhumanely possible until then.

It was then that it hit him that he was looking forward to claiming the Yondaime's body than more than he was Sasuke's. Two complications, one power outage, and nineteen hours later the operation was complete and Orochimaru held his breath as the civilian scientist finally pulled away from the table, allowing him his first glimpse of the man they called The Yellow Flash of Konoha. Because they had used the Yondaime's remains and soul to revive him, the man on the table was a spitting image of the person he had been so many years ago. However, despite the fact that he was the exact same height and the exact same weight as he had been before death, he looked a little different than Orochimaru remembered him. Sure he had the same handsome features etched on a slim face that made him popular with the ladies. Sure his fingers were as long and calloused as they had been the night of the Kyuubi attack. And sure his body still bore the scars he had acquired in his short career as a shinobi. But the fact still remained that his skin wasn't the healthy tan Orochimaru had grown accustomed to seeing on him, his hair wasn't the rich golden hue that had earned him his nickname. Instead the man on the table's skin was so pale it had adopted a bluish tint to it; his spiky blonde hair was the color of beach sand and hung limply from his head. He looked more like a cheap knockoff as opposed to the real deal.

Arashi had launched into some lengthy excuse of an explanation for the mishap Orochimaru hadn't cared to pay attention to. He ordered the scientist to fix the problem in a year and left the laboratory without a second glance at the blonde man blinking up at the blinding white light of the surgery room in confusion.

Orochimaru let out a low sigh of fatigue before turning to answer his assistant's question.

"For the past couple of months now I have been noticing some rebellious behavior in Sasuke. At first I dismissed it as teenage hormones but I have come to realize that it might be stemming from something a lot more serious that. As much as I hate to admit it the child has surpassed me and is well on his way to surpassing Itachi. If he chose to strike now he would destroy me in half the time it took his brother to defeat me. I cannot let that happen. I have worked too hard for too long to let another one slip through my clutches." Here the Sannin paused and licked his lips slowly as his thoughts drifted to the blonde that had occupied his waking moments for several months. Even now he felt the anticipation building up inside at the mere thought of the man and the limitless power he would attain from him.

"By taking the Yondaime now I will have access to his jutsu and skill set enabling me to keep Sasuke under my control until I am ready for him." Orochimaru personally thought that that was a pathetic excuse for his wanting the Yondaime before the Uchiha. He even expected Kabuto to see right through the lie, but the young medic obviously saw some logic in his argument and accepted it as the workings of the mind of a genius.

As Orochimaru watched Kabuto leave to get his medications, his thin lips spread into a lustful smile and he ran his long tongue slowly over them.

All that power, all that raw, deliciously intoxicating power will be mine.

Had it not been for his seemingly innate ability to rid his countenance of all emotions, Orochimaru was pretty sure he would have a look identical to the one Kabuto was wearing right now. The medic's mouth hung slightly open and he was staring over the rim of his round glasses as opposed to staring through them. His dark eyes were wide and disbelieving as they drank in the sight of the man before them.

Meanwhile Arashi, a tall lanky man with a mass of filthy brown hair and sharp eyes, watched as the Legendary Snake Sannin stood speechless, marveling at his creation. To say that he was pleased with himself would have been a huge understatement. He had worked for Orochimaru on more than one occasion and never before had he received any reaction close to this. Sure the man had complemented him for his work on several occasions, but he had never rendered the man speechless before. In a strange way the Sannin's silence was the best compliment he could have ever received. He was on top of the world and there was no better feeling than this.

Orochimaru blinked slowly expecting the image before him to change or disappear altogether. But it remained intact and he felt his heart rate skyrocket as his anticipation spiked again. His slimy tongue peeked out of his mouth before slowly moving around his lips and then retreating back into the dark cavern it had come from. The man before him winced ever so slightly at the intensity of the pale Sannin's gaze, and Orochimaru almost pounced on him right there and then.

"Aren't you going to introduce yourself to your visitors?" Arashi asked in a voice that suggested that he was speaking to a child. The blonde man he addressed turned to look at him for a brief moment and Orochimaru didn't miss the dark look he cast at the civilian.

"I am Namikaze Minato." The blonde stated in a flat, professional tone. "And I am loyal to Kono—I mean Otogakure no Sato." Arashi turned to examine the Sannin and his apprentice and couldn't repress the smirk that took shape on his lips.

He had toiled night and day for over a year trying to fix the many flaws on the young man's body. He made sure the blonde ate a healthy diet and often accompanied his meals with several vitamin supplements. His hair returned to the spiky, bright yellow similar to way it looked in the picture Orochimaru had left behind during his last visit. When he started accompanying the blonde on several afternoon walks, he was pleased to note that the color had slowly but surely started returning to the blonde's pale skin. Pretty soon the blonde attained his golden glow and his sky-blue orbs returned to the sharp, bright color they had been in the past. In order to meet the stiff deadline imposed on him by his long-term client, Arashi had worked on correcting the blonde's internal flaws as well as his external ones simultaneously. Several of his organs were taking longer than others to reawaken, some even failed months after he finished transferring the soul back into its original body. The blonde had had seven near death experiences in the past year alone due to failed and unresponsive organs.

To rectify this, Arashi placed the blonde in a temporary coma while he searched everywhere for matching organs to replace the badly damaged ones. Even when he placed an order on the black market, it had taken a long time for suitable organs to be found. And then it had taken him even longer to perform the transplants. By the time the blonde was finally stabilized, the Snake Sannin was growing impatient and it had only been as result of all the progress he had made that Orochimaru had agreed to extend the deadline. While the blonde was recuperating, Arashi did as much research as he could on the man Orochimaru claimed him to be. When the blonde was strong enough, he began trying to jog his memory.

At first his methods proved ineffective as the blonde remained as clueless as he had been before. However, with time he learned more effective methods of jogging the blonde's memories and was able to stir the most important ones before his time ran out and he received word from the Sannin that he was on his way to collect his investment. Although he had burned the clothes the blonde had been buried in, he was able to acquire a navy blue, long-sleeved, shinobi regulation shirt and matching pants identical to the ones the Yondaime Hokage donned regularly as well as the dark-blue open-toed sandals most shinobi wore. He had been unable to secure the green, flack jacket he wore over his long-sleeved shirt like his fellow jonin due to recent laws passed by the Raikage in order to prevent people from impersonating shinobis. However, he had been able to acquire the ropes the Yellow Flash tied on his sleeves in order to make the sleeves fit him snugly.

All in all the attention to detail had been worth it; the effect it was beyond anything Arashi had imagined when he first started. As he stared at the blonde male beside him, he began to believe more and more that he was a shinobi rather than the model he had pegged him for at first sight. The way he carried himself coupled with how well his clothes fit him was enough to convince anyone that beneath that friendly face lay a silent and deadly killer.

Orochimaru smiled when he noticed the calculating look in those sharp blue eyes as the blonde studied every person in the room in turn. Finally tearing his eyes away from the blonde, Orochimaru turned towards Arashi and led him out of the room into the corridor leaving Kabuto alone with the blonde.

The silence that fell over the both of them was awkward and uncomfortable as both looked at everything but each other. Kabuto was busy imagining the spiral patterns on the walls of Orochimaru's underground hideouts on the white walls of the surgically clean room when he heard the blonde say something.

He turned to face the taller male and was met with a piercing blue gaze that seemed intent on examining the darkest recesses of his mind. Kabuto broke eye contact and found himself unconsciously moving away from the blonde. The Yondaime chuckled lightly at this but chose not to comment on it.

"How far is it to the hideout?" The Yellow Flash asked casually. Kabuto stared at him blankly for several moments marveling at the wonders of science. Sixteen years ago the man standing before him had lost his life in a moment of selflessness, and now here he was as fit as a fiddle making small talk with a complete stranger.

"About a two days sprint. Why?" Kabuto asked suddenly suspicious of the blonde's interest. He had heard that the Yellow Flash of Konoha was as smart as he was deadly. It was often said that in order to outsmart him one had to be a fox or as equally deceptive.

"No reason. Just curious is all." The man had such a calming voice that could lure anyone into a false sense of security. But Kabuto refused to be so easily misled and he doubled his guard.

He really is the exact opposite of a certain hyperactive, knuckleheaded blonde ninja I know…Sometimes it's hard to believe that they're related at all let alone father and son.

"I'm guessing that we'll be leaving today, presumably before nightfall." It was more of a statement than it was a question, and Kabuto couldn't fight the feeling of unease the blonde was stirring in him.

"Yeah, we wouldn't want you running away in the cover of the night now would we?" The medic said casting a shrewd look over his shoulder at the blonde who only shrugged innocently.

"Where would I run to?" He asked. It was a rhetorical question and Kabuto knew it. Although the Reviving jutsu had rendered him unable to recollect any memories of his life before his resurrection, Arashi had warned that his memories weren't wiped out, merely repressed by the jutsu. His little slip up earlier was proof of that. And certain things could trigger him to begin remembering. If the Yondaime's memories finally returned back to him he would pose a much bigger problem than Sasuke could ever hope to be.

So when Kabuto was unable to think of a reply that wouldn't compromise the delicate situation they were in he pursed his lips, turned his back to the blonde and didn't speak again until Orochimaru returned.

"We're leaving now." The Snake Sannin said curtly. Both men nodded and followed him out of the room. Kabuto watched the blonde from the corner of his eye and was slightly disturbed by what he saw. The blonde had shut the door to the room he had inhabited for the past year without so much as a backwards glance, his face blank and impossible to read, his eyes an icy blue. In that moment Kabuto realized that he missed the chatty, nonchalant man the blonde had been only a moment ago. No matter how cunning he might have been anything was better than the frightening, icy killer walking behind him with a strange, fluid grace reminiscent of a predator stalking its prey.

Sasuke's head was pounding and he wanted nothing more than to just sink into one of those rare, blissfully dreamless sleeps he had taken for granted in his childhood. Ever since that night his dreams had been haunted by nightmares induced by his brother's Tsukuyomi, deepening the emotional scar he left behind when he first left. Despite his silent prayer to whatever deity people in need prayed to, his requests for a peaceful sleep had been completely ignored; either that or they had been denied. And Sasuke didn't know which angered him more. Said deity was now taunting him to insanity as it replayed the events of Itachi's cruel genjutsu in excruciatingly slow detail, amplifying the pain each image induced in him.

The young Uchiha tossed and turned in his sleep, silently willing himself to wake up, or someone to wake him up. Anything to stop the horrible images and silence the terrible screams of his kinsmen as they fell one by one at the hands of one of their own. Betrayed, just like he had been when he burst into that room and saw his beloved aniki standing over the broken bodies of his—their—parents.

It's almost over Sasuke, just hold on. Come on keep it together…the bloody nightmare's almost over.

"Aniki, why?"

"….to test…the limit of my abilities…"

Sasuke had almost killed him then. Seriously, that was it? The reason why he had slain everyone sharing the same last name and blood as them was all in order to test himself? The reason why his beloved aniki had spared his life was for his own benefit and nothing more?

"Ah, don't worry. You're not even worth killing…"

His dreams and aspirations of catching up to his aniki and fighting by his side as his equal were shattered by those words alone. Everything had all been a lie. Itachi had merely used him, and cast him aside when he no longer had any need for him. He had never loved him like Sasuke had adored him. Itachi had been Sasuke's entire existence, and in a way still was, but Sasuke had always been a burden to his brother, one he had willingly cast aside at the first opportunity. And now here he was tossing and turning in bed, tangling himself deeper and deeper into the thin bed sheets in a pathetic attempt to flee the haunting images and sounds of his nightmare. While his brother was sound asleep elsewhere, oblivious of his pain and misery unperturbed by any thoughts or schemes of vengeance.

When you curse someone, you dig your own grave.

Yeah, right. What a load of bullshit. Itachi had cursed and condemned him to the life of an avenger where he thought of killing him every waking moment. While he was free to continue living his life as he saw fit unburdened by no emotional or psychological scars whatsoever.

Sasuke hated him with every fiber of his being; but it wasn't because he had killed every single relative they had. No, it was because unlike him Itachi had moved on.

"Go away, you don't interest me at the moment."

Those words had pierced him and scarred him even more than the brutal beating he had received from the person he had unconsciously dedicated his entire life to. He had thought that Itachi had finally come back for him all those years ago. But alas he was merely there on Akatsuki business and refused to waste a single moment of his time dealing with him.

"Foolish little brother…"

Sasuke tried his hardest to block out the sound of his brother's voice taunting and mocking him for being so weak. He knew the speech all too well. Itachi had shown him no mercy, cutting and bruising his ego and overall perception of life; his weapon of choice? Words. Cold, cruel, uncaring, scathing words laced with malice delivering Sasuke's first true life lesson; never trust anyone, no matter what claims they make of love and affection. It had been a bitter lesson, but a lesson nonetheless and Sasuke took it to heart.

He shut his peers at the academy out, seeking solitude as he retreated into the safety of his mind trying to figure out a way to break this cruel genjutsu where his family was dead and his beloved nii-san didn't love him. But the genjutsu remained and so did his aloofness and disillusionment of people. He had been put in the same team as the loud, annoying, hyperactive class clown and an equally annoying, shallow, love-sick, insufferable fan girl who had only her looks going for her.

"…by all means flee…cling to your wretched life…"

He had pushed them away, unwilling to forge any ties that would drag him down, but they had persisted and forced their way into his life. For several months he had deceived himself into believing that he was truly happy with them in Konoha. But then Itachi struck again, once again dealing him a heavy dose of reality; opening his eyes to the foolishness he had allowed himself to sink into. Without wasting anytime, he had accepted the Snake Sannin's offer and left the village in search of power, not caring if he returned or not, as long as he fulfilled his ambition.

"And when you finally have these eyes, come back and face me."

Personally he never saw himself surviving his final battle with Itachi. And for some reason he preferred it that way. He didn't know what his life would be like without any ambitions to aspire towards and fulfill. Itachi was the final hurdle and the finish line at the same time. He was the beginning and the end. There was nothing beyond that for Sasuke and he knew it too.

Sasuke opened his eyes as his nightmare came to an end. If he still knew how to cry he would have at that moment. Instead he stared up at the blank ceiling above, enjoying the silence of the hideout at night. One thing he liked about the Sannin's lair was the fact that although nightfall didn't automatically signal the end of the day's activities, the lair was always considerably silent regardless of how many people were up and what they were up to.

Basking in the silver shade of the peeking moonlight, Sasuke closed his eyes and enjoyed the silence that was engulfing his entire being. He felt something light fall on his chest and he cracked open an eye to see just what it was. He frowned when he realized that it was a tiny piece of the ceiling above. He felt a slight rumble of vibration coming from the general direction of Orochimaru's private quarters. Another piece of the ceiling fell to his chest again prompting him to seat up and glare at the wall waiting for the vibration to repeat itself.

Oh for the love of—what's he up to now?

He felt the tremor shake the bed beneath him and jumped to his feet in an instant. He grabbed his sword on his way to the door without falling out of step once and was out of the door in a flash.

Is it just me or are the vibrations getting stronger.

He felt the tremors getting stronger and louder with every passing minute and picked up the pace immediately. As he got closer to the source of the tremors, his senses were assaulted by the spiked chakra signals scattered all over the place signifying a battle.

And a fierce one at that. Who's Orochimaru fighting? And how did an intruder make it this far into the hideout? Where's Kabuto?

Sasuke was beginning to feel uneasy about the absence of Orochimaru's right hand man. Where had that annoying little fucker wandered off to, he wondered? When he reached the door he paused for the briefest of moments with one hand on the knob and the other on the hilt of his sword trying to detect any other traces of chakra in the chamber that would alert him of more intruders. Feeling none, the Uchiha prodigy turned the handle and walked into the vast chamber of Orochimaru's bedroom.

He blinked in disbelief for several moments, unable to take in the sight before him.

Maybe this is one of those dreams within a dream. Yeah, that must be it. What else could explain why Naruto is here fighting Orochimaru?

He unsheathed his sword and pressed the tip of it to his thigh until it pierced the flesh there and drew blood. His eyes widened in shock as the realization slowly sunk in. This wasn't a dream, or even a genjutsu, this was cold, hard reality. And so as much as he didn't want to believe it, he knew he had to because it was all too real.

The vast chamber was barely able to contain the great, white snake snapping viciously at the much smaller form of a tall, blonde, male who was skillfully ducking and countering every one of the snake's moves. Although the man might have looked like Naruto in almost every way, Sasuke noticed many differences between the imposter in the chamber and his former hyperactive teammate.

Whoever this guy was had a very good idea of what Naruto looked alike, but was either severely misinformed or simply forgot one very important detail; Naruto's favorite color was orange. The imposter was wearing a long-sleeved navy-blue shinobi shirt and matching pants. Naruto hated fitting in and therefore would never trade in his garish, orange jumpsuit for anything else, no matter how much better he looked in it.

The second flaw in the imposter's appearance was his hair. They had managed to get the exact shade of Naruto's and had made it spiky just like his hair had been last time he saw him. Anyone who didn't know Naruto as well as he did would have seen nothing wrong with the hair. But Sasuke noticed the hair's only flaw.

Since when did that annoying troll have enough common sense to grow side bangs to better frame his face?

The difference was very small and easily missed, but the effect was staggering. The spiky blonde bangs completely covered the man's ears in front, perfectly framing his face in a way that made him more appealing to look at. As he studied the man's face, Sasuke felt a flash of anger when he noticed the many things wrong with the man's appearance.

For fuck's sake! How did this guy ever make Chunnin if he can't even perform a simple transformation jutsu right?

The man's cheeks were free of the six, ever-present whiskers Sasuke had grown accustomed to seeing on his former teammate's face. Speaking of his face; the imposter had made the face a little slimmer than the person he was supposed to be impersonating. The man's sky-blue orbs were the perfect shade of blue he remembered; however they were not as wide as a certain hyperactive, knuckle-headed ninja's. The last time he had seen the Kyuubi container, he had grown considerably since their last encounter before that. While he had finally surpassed Sakura's height, Sasuke could tell that he was still about an inch shorter than he was. The man fighting the Snake Sannin easily towered over him.

As he watched the fight progress, he tried to decide whether he should intervene. Despite his lengthy stay with the Snake Summoner, Sasuke hadn't quite warmed up to him enough to step in and defend him like several of his minions willingly did on numerous occasions. He weighed his options carefully and finally reached his decision.

Unsheathing his sword Sasuke charged at the impostor as his hands flew through a series of rapid motions; forming the necessary seals for his jutsu. Sasuke swung his lightening-reinforced blade at the man and watched with amazement as the man easily dodged the attack at an inhumane speed.

He might be a terrible impersonator but he's a more than capable ninja.

As he traded blows with the blonde, Sasuke realized that he was breathless from the effort it was taking him to keep up with the man. Even with the Sharingan Sasuke couldn't predict the man's moves fast enough to avoid them; he was much too quick for him.

He's even faster than Lee. Who is this guy?

The man, who had for some reason remained on the defensive the entire time, carried himself with a fluid grace sourly lacking in most shinobi; reminiscent of his former sensei's fighting style. Sasuke's frustration with each missed attack grew with each passing moment. He hadn't even so much as scratched the guy and now the man was returning every blow Sasuke aimed at him with blows of his own.

His muscles screamed from overexertion and his breathing was labored and shallow, as he gulped in mouthfuls of air that somehow never really reached his lungs. His body ached everywhere the man had struck him, and he could taste blood in his mouth. He was in such a pathetic state and wanted nothing more than to just sink into the ground; never to resurface again. He felt even more beaten and broken than he had been after his second encounter with Itachi three years ago. However, despite the state he was in, he was silently grateful that he hadn't abandoned the Snake Sannin like he had been planning to earlier.

Turns out that I still have a lot to learn.

As he watched the tall man prepare to finish him off, Sasuke remembered wondering why the man hadn't dispelled the henge already. He reached out towards the man and thought he saw a flicker of recognition in the man's eyes. The man watched, seemingly mesmerized, as he reached out towards his face. Sasuke watched as the man leaned towards him. As soon as his fingers came in contact with the man's skin, Sasuke dug his nails in and dragged them across his cheek with enough force to draw blood. The man gasped in shock and pulled away, one hand cradling his bleeding cheek.

"You missed a spot." The Uchiha said weakly, chuckling at his own joke referencing the make-shift whiskers he had just created on the man's face.

He felt something hard collide with the side of his head, knocking him down to the floor. He was out cold before he even hit the ground.

I've done my part, now do yours. Review please and make my day.