AN: I've never been to another state except Oklahoma but I was a kid when we went on a camping trip. Point being, my geography skills suck in general, never took the class and if you live in the future states the group will travel to, I'm sorry if it's stereotypical or nothing like how it's described. Oh if the random weather in Naruto's part of the country seems off to you, trust me its normal. So on his end one day could be cold and the other hot.
Warning: OC Sasori and Deidara, Not Beta-ed all mistakes are my own.
-I'm not writing Sasori and Deidara as a pairing. I do like it but it just doesn't seem right to implement it in the story.
Chapter 2-
No Escape
Dallas, Texas
"Jump," Naruto said simply finding no other alternative than to confront their fears head on. Eventually a zombie will reach them from breaking through their neighbor's window on the top floor. They couldn't stay longer or they'd have a bigger swarm below them waiting for them to fall. Kiba gave him incredulous look as if he'd gone mad. He had to agree, he was crazy enough to jump down and ignore the fear for now. If they could find help of some sort be it police or an adult to take them under their wing, they had a better chance of surviving or getting in touch with their parents. At least Naruto saw it that way.
"No way!" Kiba protested holding on to Akamaru tightly.
"If we jump to the alley, we can avoid being seen. There are less of them in the alley then the streets," Naruto explained observing there were only five ghouls in the alley and the others in the street starting to accumulate into a horde. "We'll run and…kill if we need to." Killing. It sounded easy. A swing with enough force could kill but never had he ever thought of killing anything.
"Ok." Kiba zipped his jacket up further to keep Akamaru from slipping out. The pipe gripped in one hand his eyes a mix of emotions. "Let's do this." Naruto nodded his mind set on landing without making too much noise or hurting himself. His legs carried him and then he was weightless as he soared through the air. It happened so slowly, like the world had stopped suddenly. He almost tumbled over when he landed but somehow managed to regain his balance. Kiba followed him landing on his butt.
"Ugh, remind me never to do that again," Kiba said standing up again. A low growl from Akamaru reminded them they weren't alone. Without a hesitance, they ran down the alley avoiding clawing hands, shoving the bodies away from them. The adrenaline coursed through their veins the will of surviving pushing them forward. Kiba yelped as one of the grey hands grabbed a hold of his backpack pulling him to the ground.
"Kiba!" Naruto shouted turning back his eyes wide. He could save his friend but at the cost of ending a life. No, the man was dead already. It was kill or be killed. Tightening his grip on the bat, Naruto breathed in deeply trying to find a soothing thought to calm him. The head was the ball, he thought and swung away. Naruto had broken bones before either from daring climbs or his own clumsiness but the loud crack of bones breaking still made him flinch. The ghoul fell behind Kiba his eyes staring at the sky.
"T-Thanks," Kiba stammered his whole body trembling.
Naruto only nodded his eyes fixed on the zombie sprawled on the floor, blood splattered on the pavement. Bile was rising up his throat from disgust. Kiba placed his hand on his shoulder shaking him a bit. "Hey, I get it, but we need to get the hell out of here." All Naruto could do was let his legs carry him, let his instinct take over, and survive.
Denver, Colorado
Sasuke packed a few of his belongings, taking only what he thought valuable. His laptop was carefully slipped inside its case, his clothes thrown carelessly into a suitcase, his cell phone in the pocket of his pants, a few snacks for the trip, and other essentials. At the most it could take them a couple of days to get to Dallas but if people were jamming the highways then it could take them a week or so. Sasuke swung his backpack over his shoulder, and his laptop case he carried. He was almost out the door before he turned back, his eyes scanning the messy room (his side was clean but his roommate never bothered to clean his side), almost as if he would never return. He wouldn't miss it if he didn't.
Kakashi was waiting patiently by his car, his own belongings packed in the trunk. "You're slow," Kakashi commented watching Sasuke load his own luggage in the back. The young man made merely snorted in reply. "We're going to take the long way, don't complain." There were numerous he wished to whine about but acting like a child was not only against his nature but it accomplished nothing. Nothing was said between them as they drove away from the campus though the tension was clear. It had been an understatement when Kakashi said the interstate highways would be filled. They watched as the city tried to escape to other states hoping to find a safer haven. You could hear the screams and shouts of fury of fighting.
'It's worse than I thought," Kakashi voiced turning to an empty road. They were taking dirt paths but now and then they could see families packing belongings in their car or reinforcing their house preparing for the worst. All of it seemed like a dream, the departure from the University to now small suburbs trying to reach Dallas before the chaos hit there.
Sasuke dialed Itachi's work phone wondering if he could get in touch with the man as to where they should meet once they arrived. 'The number you have dialed is not in service,' said the cool female voice. Leave it to Itachi to turn his phone off during a time of crisis. Even as children Itachi would never be there when Sasuke needed him the most. He was used to it yet he had an unsettling feeling. "Not answering?" Kakashi asked his eyes never leaving the road.
"The usual," Sasuke replied simply. Neither of them said much for minutes but the anxiety clung inside the car.
A car alarmed brought puzzled expressions from both men knowing that people were desperate, even the simplest of cars were tempting for a quick getaway. Kakashi drove away from the noise wanting to avoid potential criminals."The government tries to prevent panic but it always turns out like this," Sasuke said scoffing.
"I doubt there was much they could do without informing the people," Kakashi replied earning himself a smirk from his student. "Now believing the claims is another issue." Sasuke glanced outside his window finding nothing out of the ordinary other than some people standing outside their homes watching the cars go by and a few confused by it all. "What business does Itachi have in Dallas?"
"He di-" Sasuke was cut off as the car drove over an unexpected bump in the road. "Kakashi! Pay attention!" Sasuke warned once the shock had passed. Kakashi stopped the car his face expressionless and turned behind him.
"We ran over someone," Kakashi said calmly. Again the man never seemed to panic or show interest in anything but Sasuke went wide eyed taking off his seat belt and turned to look through the back window. Kakashi was right, on the floor laid a woman without showing any response that she was conscious.
"We? You ran her over." His teacher was many things but a murderer? For seconds they stared out the window expecting the woman to get up or one of them to suddenly break out yelling for help but neither happened. "Go see if she's alive," Sasuke said nudging Kakashi to take the fall. The older man merely groaned finding the whole task troublesome but he knew that he should have seen the woman. He'd been distracted asking about Itachi instead of focusing on the road.
"Call the police. The last thing we need is going to jail for a hit and run," Kakashi said already out the door his expression hardly changing. The younger man rolled his eyes knowing when half the city is wondering what in the world was going, cops weren't waiting at every corner to see who ran over who. The woman probably needed medical assistance anyway and though Sasuke knew his fair share of basic first aid, he was an engineer not a doctor. Kakashi would only be good up until the actual medics came.
"Hello?" A female voice answered quickly. Sasuke paused finding the whole scenario wrong. For one the woman hadn't responded with the traditional "911 what's your emergency?" and the noises in the background were unsettling.
"A woman was just run over, she might need medical assistance. The address is Ra-"
"Dammit! Listen boy, we don't have time for small emergencies! Have you seen the news? I'm sorry but unless she's been bitten, all police are to be stationed from preventing people from leaving the city," the woman said frantically followed by a few shouts. Before Sasuke could even piece the information together, the woman hung up leaving an eerie sound of the phone losing signal.
It had been a waste of time. At least now he understood the city's main priority. Maintain and control. None of the two words sounded appealing or even the slightest reassuring that whatever was out there – disease or zombies, was going to be ok. He exited the car wondering how he should relay the message to Kakashi. The site was gruesome. Watching horror movies full of gore weren't his favorite mostly because it was unnecessary to film two hours worth of flying intestines. He hardly flinched when he saw people cut apart in movies but in reality the circumstances were different. He was overwhelmed by the blood, the missing arm, the grayish pale skin, and ripped out intestines. The bile was beginning to rise to his throat.
"She's been dead for a few hours at most. Go back to the car Sasuke." The gentle tone surprised him more than the corpse. Kakashi never used that tone with him before. As much as he would have liked to forget the dead woman sprawled on the floor with bloody clothes and glassy eyes, he couldn't find himself moving at all.
"The police aren't coming…no one is. They plan to block the main routes out of the city," Sasuke said his voice betraying his composed look. Kakashi sighed shaking his head in disapproval.
"Logical and rash. Keeping the infection inside one region prevents the spread rate from increasing beyond control and stupid because people will always find a way to escape. There will be more fighting amongst us than the infection with us. We'll have to find an alternate route even if it means walking on foot." Kakashi placed his hand over the woman's face murmuring an apology. Sasuke couldn't imagine how the woman ended up on a road near homes without someone else discovering her body. Just the stench was enough to have anyone wondering what was decaying.
Sasuke sighed heavily wishing now to be stuck in his dorm reading over his material or gathering his gear for fencing. They took one last glance at the woman unsure whether to bury her or not but humanity won over. Kakashi was about to grab the woman to carry her towards the dirt path when a sharp gasp caught them off guard. Maybe someone found them ready to dump a body in a local neighborhood but there was no one but them and the woman in sight. "Kakashi." Sasuke's breath hitched realizing glassy eyes were moving yet remained unfocused and the chest rising almost as if taking a breath of life again. The woman's arm twitched, then legs, then she began to move with her mouth opening and closing before a low moan was released.
"Get in the car," Kakashi frantically said grabbing Sasuke by the arm dragging him quickly back to the car. He hadn't noticed how he'd been mesmerized knowing a dead human had revived all like a sick dream. Kakashi started the engine, stepping on the pedal without even hesitating to check his review mirror for the woman. Sasuke could still remember to this day the glassy milky eyes haunting him even in his sleep.
Dallas, Texas
South Dallas
Naruto held the bat tightly almost as if it were his only link to salvation. The night was dark save for some streetlights and the eerie glow of television sets left on by their owners. He was exhausted from running, from jumping at every small noise, when Akamaru growled lowly, or when he heard even the faintest resemblance to a moan. Kiba was in no better shape than he was but the boy kept a strong front for the both of them even if inside his inner turmoil slowly extinguished hopes of finding safety. Ever since they ran for the alleys, they hadn't stopped to rest even once. The fear of being caught off guard by unsuspecting zombies brought horrific ideas to their minds. Now they walked with limited supplies and no sense of direction.
Hardly the two of them spoke in case a nearby ghoul heard them. Could zombies hear? Could they see? None of these facts were certain nor had Naruto or Kiba come close to test the theories out. Naruto hated to admit it to himself but he was at his limit. From hunger, to fear, to dehydration, to exhaustion, his body was screaming for a sort of break from all the stress. His feet were numb from walking miles. So far they hadn't found a place deemed worthy of shelter. Suburban houses were out of the question. Who knew who or what lingered behind those closed doors.
"Where are we?" Kiba broke the deadly silence his voice almost a whisper. Naruto wished he could specify their actual location but Dallas was one of the biggest cities in the US and just walking a few miles hardly pin pointed a direction on the map as to where they were.
"I don't know…well we passed the bowling place so uh, somewhere close to a highway," Naruto replied his brain trying to piece together the familiar places they passed along the way. He hadn't actually taken the time to observe his surroundings and neither had Kiba. They ran for a while until their legs gave up and kept walking until the last of the moans was silenced. This had been a couple of hours ago. Now they roamed around searching a place to rest.
"Naruto." Kiba sighed when his friend didn't even show the faintest sign he had heard him. "Naruto." He tugged on Naruto's arm gently. He wasn't expecting his friend to flinch and pull his arm away as if Kiba's hands were burning him. "Are you ok?"
"I don't know Kiba. I wake up to whatever the hell this is, my parents are in the city trapped in buildings, we were chased, and I killed someone, yes Kiba I'm just peachy," Naruto exclaimed. As much as Kiba could relate to Naruto, he didn't appreciate the sarcasm of their situation. He asked out of concern not to start a stupid fight.
"I'm sorry, you're right none of this is good," Kiba replied his voice low. Naruto immediately regretted what he said and punched Kiba lightly on his arm.
"I should be apologizing, it's only been a few hours and already we're fighting. Unbelievable." Kiba grinned shaking his head and patting Naruto on the back.
"Is that new?" Naruto had to smile. Ever since Kindergarten the two of them were somewhat of rivals until eventually they came to a truce. They were like two peas in a pod. Naruto was grateful he wasn't facing demons alone in the darkness of the night. "Remember when my Dad took us camping?" How could Naruto forget the countless memories of their childhood? The camping trip Kiba's father spontaneously announced one lazy summer day when the heat had them sweating just by stepping outside for some sun. For a couple of days they fished, set up tents, hunted, and swam in the lake as if they had been born to be wild. This was before Kiba's father passed, the good old days Mrs. Inuzuka baked her delicious homemade pies for her husband and children. Naruto smiled weakly at the thought.
"Yeah. Hana was so angry she'd been dragged along. Oh and the fish traps we made were awesome," Naruto said excitedly recalling the few tricks Mr. Inuzuka taught them for survival in the wild.
"Dad used to say we learned more outside than inside…" Kiba paused then held his pipe high in the air ready to strike. The lights were the only comfort to the sudden ruckus around them. Sirens began to sound again, another explosion off in the distance but close enough they could see the flames shoot up into the air and the smoke become one with the night. A few helicopters passed overhead heading towards the direction of the city where the lights illuminated signaled "All you can eat buffet." His father worked close to West End where tourists always visited and restaurants lined a whole street followed by museums and close to the aquarium. The city was beautiful even if Naruto felt most tourists visited merely to snap photos where JFK was shot.
"We should get out of here and fast." To add emphasis to Naruto's statement, gunshots rang close by that had them both wincing.
"And go where?" Neither of them had remaining relatives at least not in the country. Naruto's grandparents were somewhere in Italy the last time they called and he had no cousins or aunts or uncles. For Kiba, the boy was surrounded by cousins and distant aunts and uncles but all were scattered across the country. Friends were plentiful and staying over at a house would safe them trouble but the disturbing thought their friends had either left the comfort of their homes or worse…infected killed that option.
"A shelter center," Naruto finally said after much thought. During a crisis or if a crisis ever were to happen, there were shelters for people to go to. Most were in gyms or churches and easy to find. Naruto crossed his fingers they would get there safely.
Dallas
Finger crossing as a prayer worked to a certain extent. Mapping out the area killed about ten minutes until Naruto and Kiba agreed they were at least in a different sector of the city. Each "sector" had names that kids liked to make gang signs at school as a representation on what part of the city they lived in. Lame as it was, Naruto found it handy remembering rumors or detailed accounts of the area they were in. It wasn't a bad part of the city but neither the most exclusive. Neither of them wasted time searching for a church or a shelter as more gunshots, screaming, and the sounds of windows crashing brought fear back to grip tightly on their chests. Akamaru growled sensing the danger but he made no struggle leaving the security of Kiba's jacket. For an October night, Dallas was unusually cold.
Naruto nearly screamed when two figures ran in the dark holding what seemed like a Molotov. What the hell are they thinking? Before he could even utter a word, the bottle sailed through the air and landed in between cars setting them ablaze. The two figures excitedly watched their handiwork with pride and high fived each other. Kiba poked him hard trying to regain his attention. "Let's go, those whackos are up to no good," Kiba whispered watching the flames spread. He nodded gulping in air before he turned to quietly sprint away unfortunately the two crazies heard the crunching of gravel.
"Run!"
"Hey come back here!" The two crazies called out. Naruto kept running, never looking back, and wished this was all a dream. Zombies weren't real. People didn't just throw Molotov's out of the blue at houses. They reached another street and came to a sudden halt that had them on the verge of tumbling over. The entire street was outside their homes, standing outside watching as police cars blocked the street up ahead with two military tanks by their side. What the hell was going on? The crazies stopped behind them sighing heavily almost in relief having caught up to Naruto and Kiba.
"If you kids are done being stupid, get the hell out of here," spoke one of the crazies. Naruto wanted nothing more but to shoo away the taller man though something restrained him from doing so. "See the government is keeping the entire city on lockdown. We are to evacuate to designated shelters." The man snorts and his partner says nothing.
"Why should we trust you?" Naruto challenged his eyes never leaving the army tanks and the people clutching their children close as instructions filled the air.
Crazy One shrugged. "You don't have to. Run back to your Mommy and Daddy and see if they'll let you leave. It's a scam. Evacuated the University but once we were close to Fort Worth, they sent us back." A scam? Then why give orders for evacuation out of a city none of them could leave? Crazy One continued, "Almost like they want to round us up. Scary ain't it?" Frightful. Naruto had hoped they'd reach shelter and wait it out before calling his mother and father again.
"Deidara, stop," Crazy Two said firmly. The second man was shorter than Deidara though his features remained obscure in the darkness, Naruto could tell he wasn't all too happy with Deidara's ramblings. The man going by Deidara scoffed and murmured something under his breath. "Sorry, he's difficult to handle."
"Sorry? Yo Sasori I'm trying to prevent these kids from seeing what we saw. I have some decency left in me," Deidara exclaimed waving his hands in the air.
"The zombies?" Kiba asked rolling his eyes but in the night nobody saw.
"Oh no, worse. Some cops are shooting people down if they think a neighborhood is infected. Jesus, at school we were lucky to be out dicking around instead of class. Lock downed the entire school then the sent in security to keep students from leaving. A girl had a fever, just a cold you know. Shot her down. That's when I wanted out," Deidara said his voice breaking. Sasori placed his hand on Deidara's shoulder whispering something to him that had the taller man sighing.
"A-All schools are in lockdown?" Naruto's throat constricted as he thought of his classmates trapped in a school without an idea of what was going on outside. He should be at school throwing a fit security is keeping them locked up and no one could contact their parents. It's happened before, once some stupid kid had been caught with drugs. The entire school was forced to remain in their classrooms and not allowed to call their parents.
"Probably, ya'll are lucky but luck won't last if we are seen here. I can't say all cops are bad but c'mon bringing the military into a neighborhood…something's wrong. Stay here if you'd like and find out what they are doing or stick with us and we'll survive," Deidara replied his hand reaching for Naruto's. Should he join complete strangers? Their intentions weren't clear but they had no shelter, they were exhausted, and the scene in front of them wasn't appealing. Reluctantly Naruto shook Deidara's hand in truce. He could feel Kiba glaring but ignored him.
"Ok."
Deidara motioned them away from the scene into another street without as much attention. Under the first street light they passed Naruto made out that Deidara was a blond, his hair tied back though his bangs covered one eye, his brows drawn together in worry, and his shirt was soaked with blood. He felt his heart falter as he glanced at Sasori, a red-head, who also had blood splattered on his clothes. Kiba must have noticed as well because he raised his pipe and Akamaru growled. "Was it really the campus security?" Naruto asked through clenched teeth his fear threatening to overtake his confidence.
Deidara and Sasori stopped and turned to face them. "No." In an instant the blood coursing through Naruto's veins ran cold. He silently prayed in his head for strength but he had no resolve to kill living non-infected humans.
"Ever seen Battle Royale? It was a kill or be killed. You don't get it kid, we're fucking lucky to be alive," Deidara spat his anger flashing in his blue eyes. Sasori closed his eyes his body trembling slightly when Deidara began to push away his bangs. "Our school became Hell on Earth in a couple of hours. Thisis the price for surviving. For helping the fallen. Where does it get you? Nowhere." Deidara pointed at his eye, gauze drenched in blood covered it. Naruto flinched when Deidara removed the gauze revealing a bloodied eye even he knew would no longer serve him.
"Think about it and then tell me, do you want to kill those people? The world is ending kid and I'm sorry but I'm sure as hell not dying today." Sasori came towards Naruto his hand stretched out and a weak smile on his face.
"Deidara has a soft spot for kids so please come with us. There is a shelter center not far from here, we can take refuge there," Sasori said his voice calm. Sasori still trembled but he kept his stance not wanting to fall apart. They were all falling apart, slowly, but someone had to be the pillar of support. Sasori gladly accepted the role.
"Just get us away from here," Naruto said meekly glancing at the sky that now danced with smoke. Sasori nodded and no words were spoken for the rest of their trip. Exhaustion, fear, disgust, anger, sorrow, and relief had them worn out as if they'd been in this nightmare for years. As they walked passing under streetlights letting the darkness engulf their thoughts, Naruto could hear the distant sound of gunshots and bloodcurdling screams ringing in the air. He walked on feeling the hot tears streaming down his face leaving sense of the life he once knew behind.
Denver, Colorado
Sasuke pressed his head against the cool glass of the car window. There were countless thoughts swarming in his mind and none of them offered a positive outlook of their situation. He glanced down at his phone, the GPS pinpointing their exact location. They had traveled only ten miles out of the university and about to pass through a suburban area. People were out from their houses appearing either confused or panicked. Some were loading belongings onto their cars and others were just standing outside shaking their heads as if the world had gone mad. Kakashi stopped suddenly when another car rushed past them with luggage tied to the roof of the car. "Would you stay and fight it?" Sasuke asked out of the blue watching a man boarding up his house.
Kakashi closed his eyes for a second before sighing. "A house gives a sense of security even when there is none. Running requires you to abandon home, some people can't part with home. Hiding would be useless, I'll have to leave eventually so I would fight," Kakashi replied his voice indicating his thoughts were elsewhere. Sasuke couldn't recall a time Kakashi mentioned having any friends or family except Itachi. Sure Kakashi bedded different lovers but those hardly counted as some significance to Kakashi having any bonds. "And you Sasuke?"
"Hn. Depends, but we're already out fighting."
1 hour later
Sasuke tried to shrug the sleep away but his eyes were heavy by the time they reached a smaller county. He raised an eyebrow at Kakashi wondering what had made the man stray from his original plan of traveling. The older man only ignored him saying the roads were blocked and jammed. They were in heavy traffic with other people trying to leave Denver all at once. Sasuke peered through the window seeing some people get out of their cars in frustration. He could hear the blaring of the sirens, the angry complaints from the people surrounding them, and the whirring of a helicopter above them.
Sasuke unbuckled his seatbelt ignoring Kakashi's commands to stay put in the car. Other people were also exiting their cars wondering why the traffic had stopped moving. Surroundings became a blur, his main focus getting to the source of this traffic jam. In the back of his mind he knew it was illogical to wander away from the security of Kakashi's car but even an ordinary car crash couldn't possibly attract the attention or demanding shouts from other citizens. What seemed hours of walking, Sasuke stopped when a mob of people formed around. From his distance he couldn't see past the heads and swam through the crowd.
"Please go back to your cars," a voice echoed in the air. Sasuke managed to arrive at the very front where police cars barricaded the road. Their guns were out, a military tank stood behind them, and more army personnel lingered behind the barricade. Sasuke cursed under his breath, the woman on the phone had been right. Quarantine. The word came to his mind before the voice announced it to the others through a megaphone. From an entire defense on a road, the situation in the city was probably worsening.
"Why the hell should we! We have every right to come and go from this city as we wish!" shouted a man beside him. The crowd agreed with him their fists rising in the air as a threat.
"I'm sorry sir, but no one in the state of Colorado is allowed to leave," the officer replied shaking his head. It seemed the law enforcement wasn't too pleased with their task at trapping the citizens they swore to protect either. The crowd shifted and pushed their anger apparent and fists raising in the air as a threat they'd resort to violence. "Please go back to your cars." Desperation shone in the officer's eyes, his words ignored by the crowd. A shot rang out in the air silencing the crowd and one officer took the megaphone. "Until quarantine is established, no one can leave. Official orders from above."
Sasuke bit his lip then began to push his way through the crowd towards the back. Something wasn't right. True to his instinct, someone in the crown yelled and shot was heard. He whipped his head around to find people starting to scream and officers taking out there guns. Above the helicopter hovered as a reminder every move was being watched. He let his legs carry him away before he could become a victim in the line of fire. He ignored those who questioned him as he passed car after car. Kakashi stood outside leaning against the car his head in his hands. "We need to leave," Sasuke called out rushing to his door to collect his items. The older man raised an eyebrow in question and he still seemed irritated Sasuke had left.
"Don't give me that look, just trust me, ok?" Kakashi frowned making no effort to move from his spot.
"I heard gunshots, there aren't any of those things?" Kakashi asked finally moving away from his door and opened the back trunk. Sasuke gave a quick reply of "no" then sighed.
"They aren't letting us out of here. I don't know if some idiot pissed the cops off or if one of those things was in the crowd. Sticking around didn't seem like a smart choice," Sasuke said remembering the woman they had found earlier on the road. He pushed the thought away and focused on how they could leave. A loud explosion snapped him back to reality. Flames and smoke engulfed the sky and debris began to fall. He felt his body be dragged behind the car and warmth covered him. Screams filled the air as another explosion followed. The smell of burning oil overwhelmed him, his skin awfully hot.
"Gasoline truck!" Kakashi yelled into his ear. Sasuke recalled passing a truck carrying gasoline earlier on his short expedition. Some idiot must have missed a shot and unfortunately aimed perfectly for the truck. Kakashi let go of Sasuke and peeked around them. The cars behind them were fine but small pieces of debris still were aflame. He helped pull Sasuke off the ground and both of them could only gape at the scene. Houses were in flames and people were exiting out of them like ants when you kicked an ant pile.
The crowd was dead, Sasuke was sure of it. They had been too close to the truck and there had been little protection from the cars around. "Grab your things and let's go," Kakashi said clearly upset his car would have to be left behind. No options were left for the car since they were stuck in between cars. Walking enabled them to leave the road and not worry about taking routes.
Sasuke grabbed his backpack and Kakashi his own sports bag. The man was amazing when it came to sports. Kakashi lived and breathed on sports and Sasuke almost felt pity knowing his teacher abandoned the comfort of his home just to deliver Sasuke safely to Itachi. People were already making their way downhill when a few officers appeared with their guns out. "Stop or we'll shoot!" No one could leave. Sasuke exchanged a quick nod with Kakashi and they both ran downhill. Others followed them and in seconds gunshots echoed in the air. Whatever CDC or the government decided they were serious on keeping the infection contained even if it meant killing off innocents to protect other cities and states. Sasuke would not go down like this.
A bullet passed right by his ear but missed. The road they reached was scattered with confused people or those who were running back into their homes hoping to avoid the bullets. Flat ground never seemed so heavenly to Sasuke who almost tripped on his way downhill. Houses were their salvation against their pursuers who cursed when they realized other civilians were hiding inside their homes hoping no stray bullets ended their lives. Of course that didn't stop the cops from chasing after them. Sasuke pleaded for his legs to continue moving, there was no way he was going down without a fight.
When was the last time Sasuke forced himself to physical labor? He couldn't think of a recent recollection of even running or exercising on his own free will. Unfit and without preparation, he was having trouble keeping up with Kakashi. Sure the man showed no more energy than a snail but years of athletics had eased his body for any strenuous task. Of course pride swallowed any ideas of asking Kakashi to slow down. Even with fear and adrenaline pumping in his veins, Sasuke was growing tired. His feet were losing their balance and his side was starting to ache from the lack of oxygen.
Maybe if he focused on something he'd forget his body's pleas for rest. Calculus? Yes, taking a few derivatives, made the fog from his brain clear up in seconds he conjured a simple function. Unfortunately Kakashi didn't think the same and called out the younger man's name for attention. "What?" Over the chaos Sasuke was forced to yell out in reply. Kakashi stopped suddenly his sport bag almost taking a deadly aim for Sasuke's ribs. They were on the side of a house with plants of all kinds growing.
Kakashi pressed a finger to his lips motioning Sasuke to come closer but to keep his distance. They were out of the line of fire and the police had given up rounding up those who escaped between the houses or trees. A tall shrub covered them well from those wandering on the street. People were scrambling for belongings or arguing with each other who had the best idea on what the hell was going on. Others let curiosity lead them outside their homes and gaze at the mayhem around them in wonder and shock. A question began to form on Sasuke's lips when he spotted a little girl about six years old holding a Barbie by the arm. It wasn't the fact Barbie had become a dangling chew toy that disturbed Sasuke, it was the bloodied hands of the girl, the sunken cloudy eyes, grey skin, and her blond hair matted with dried blood. She slowly walked to a man who was too busy minding the helicopters passing overhead to notice her. Her pale blue lips opened emitting a low moan. Sasuke wanted to shout a warning to the man but Kakashi must have read his thoughts to shake his head and grip his hand tightly.
The man turned, surprise apparent on his features, but managed to smile weakly. He gently asked her what happened to her. If she was hurt but all the girl did was stretch out her free hand in want or need and moaned. Before the man could register the abnormality of the girl's appearance, the girl took his hand, Barbie long forgotten on the pavement. He tried to shake her off gently asking, no, pleading for her to let go. She bit into his flesh in response drawing a scream of pain from the man.
"Damn," Sasuke cursed in disbelief at the scene he was witnessing. It was too real. The man managed to reclaim some defense mechanism and kicked the girl off of him screaming a storm of profanities. "She's just a girl," Sasuke said his voice distant. Kakashi nodded in agreement, his eyes reflecting sympathy. Now the girl grew irritated the man had escaped her grasp and she came running at him, her hands menacing. The man ran away yelling for some form of help, thankfully his prayers were answered. Another man held a pistol in his hand, without hesitation, he shot and the girl fell forward. Bull's-eye. Right on the center of her forehead. What was the world coming to?
"C'mon kid." Kakashi nudged him snapping him from a trance. Before he followed Kakashi away from the scene, he glanced back only seeing the girl lying motionless in the middle of the street people gathering around her. For an instant he felt anger towards the man who shot her but she hadn't been human anymore. That's right, the infection made you anything but human. He trudged behind his mentor the bile threatening to rise at any moment.
"Hey, Sasuke are you ok?" Was he? Sasuke could hardly describe his emotions and it wasn't like he was going to have a sappy moment with Kakashi in the middle of two houses. Instead he shrugged and kept walking on knowing he was leaving behind his old life behind.
"Where are we going?" Sasuke asked keeping his mind off of the horrors they just saw. Kakashi always had answers even when he honestly had no clue if the answer sufficed.
"Leaving the state but we'll see how much ground we can cover until nightfall. The sooner we reach Oklahoma the better," Kakashi replied though there was an air of uncertainty to his reply. "Might have to stay at a motel." The plan sounded simple: reach Oklahoma then Dallas would become a more realistic destination. It could take days before they could reach Oklahoma on foot and judging by today's road block, traveling by car became the last option of transportation. Maybe if bikes or motorcycles came across their path they'd have more of a chance arriving to Oklahoma. Whatever happened they'd deal with it. Sasuke just wanted to find Itachi. Then he'd settle his anxiety for good.
A few miles outside Denver
Colorado: Almost sundown
About after a few miles the two companions took a quick rest stop near a gas station. The city seemed so far away to them, the escapade from the University just a dream now. Cars left no room to breathe on both the road and gas station. At this rate, the station was bound to run out of fuel in a matter of a couple of days. All kinds of people exited from the glass doors in business attire or even in pajamas. A few teenagers huddled together in a corner munching on snack bars while waiting in line to pay for gas. Kids roamed around close to their parents asking questions the parents could only weakly smile and say "Don't worry about it honey." Sasuke found a grassy area available for people to wait out the lines.
"What a pain, the line goes on forever," Kakashi said frowning when more people joined the end of the line. Thankfully gasoline was the least of their worries though food, water, and a map of the United States. Perhaps he could find a pack of batteries or a container for water. Realistically Kakashi had a feeling all the supplies he wanted were probably gone because they were the basic necessities. Sasuke fished out his phone from his pocket finding no missed calls, well no important missed calls. The rest were from a few girls from his class and texts of hopes he was ok. He held no grudges against his admirers but right now wasn't the time for storytelling and he couldn't think of a single thing to text back except the word "Goodbye".
"Hn." Sasuke placed his hands over his face wondering if sleep would claim him and by the time he'd wake, the line would be short. An hour or so painfully passed before he came to terms sitting here accomplished nothing. He walked around asking people for directions, some complied merely, and others rudely shooed him away. The girls festered over him, their eyes watching him wherever he went and with some luck they gave him candy, their numbers, water, a flashlight, and batteries. By the time he came back to Kakashi, the line moved no more than a foot from where Kakashi stood. He smirked showing Kakashi the items.
"I'll be damned, Sasuke used his charming good looks for something useful," Kakashi said pleased with the results of Sasuke's scavenge.
"Better than sitting here reading porn," Sasuke replied rolling his eyes when he saw the familiar erotic novel in his mentor's hands.
"Touché. No maps?"
"No maps," Sasuke confirmed. "But we can take Interstate 25 and then from there take Interstate 40 and it should lead us to Oklahoma."
"Bad idea my youthful friend!" Kakashi and Sasuke both turned to find a man wearing an outfit suited for Saint Patrick's Day than for everyday clothes. A young boy wearing the same outfit and bowl haircut stood next to him. You'd have to be blind to miss the resemblance between father and son. Sasuke had a hard time trying not to cringe away when the son who seemed about his age stretched out his hand greeting him and saying his name was Lee.
"Why is that?" Kakashi asked masking away his surprise of the man's appearance. The man who introduced himself as Maito Guy, laughed full heartedly almost seeming like he hadn't noticed the chaos around him.
"They're closing the interstates and main roads," Guy said smiling widely. It was unnerving just seeing both men too cheerful for a zombie apocalypse. Sasuke tried to avoid Lee's gaze but the younger man was persistent in getting Sasuke to talk or show some kind of emotion.
"Interesting," Kakashi replied. "What news besides that is there?"
Guy's smile disappeared now frowning and his brows furrowed together in worry. "Telling us to keep calm and stay in our homes. Of course people want to leave and the government says they're going to establish a few safe shelters where we can wait this out."
"But you don't believe them," Kakashi said nodding. Guy sighed and agreed placing a hand on Lee's shoulder. "Are you traveling on foot?"
"Too many cars and sitting isn't our thing. Wasting away our youth driving," Guy responded a smile playing at his lips again. "We're headed up North."
"Us South," Kakashi replied unsure why he even considered telling the man where they were trekking to. Maybe so that at least someone knew what became of them. He doubted Guy would remember them but he wanted someone to know that he and Sasuke had existed.
"Then I wish you luck my friends. One day I hope we'll meet again," Guy said nudging his son to follow him and they steered away waving at them. Sasuke watched them disappear among the sea of cars and wished them luck. If anything they all needed luck.
"We're leaving," Kakashi said suddenly and Sasuke bothered not to even argue. In the orange glow of the sunset they parted into the trees bidding their own farewell to Denver and to the lives they once led. They embraced their mission ready to fight or go down fighting until they reached Dallas and were reunited with Itachi once again.
AN: Uh so yeah…comments? I stuck to writing "Guy" instead of "Gai" and it seems both ways are right? Naruto is having a tougher time but next chapter won't be so merciless to Kakashi and Sasuke. I realized I misspelled Sasori's name but it's fixed now.
I understand if you think trusting Deidara and Sasori is naïve because truly it is but both Naruto and Kiba are still teenagers and after all the crap they've seen, being stuck with two strangers can't be as bad.