A/N: Hi everyone! Thank you to everyone who reviewed (or placed on alert or fav). It's because of people like you that I try to update regularly! Here is the new chapter of Towards the Light.

I stated in the previous chapter that I will use the English version for most words, but I will however use the Japanese words for the Villages (Konoha instead of Leaf, Oto instead of Sound, etc.). Blame it on fanfiction if you want to -_-, but I will never be able to think of the Villages as Rock instead of Iwa or Clouds instead of Kumo and so on. I'm too used to the Japanese version now.

As usual, please let me know what you think about it!

I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

Edit 07/12/2010: Changed some minor errors and added some words to make the chapter read easier.

Towards the Light

Chapter 3

The air was silent. All of the normal sounds of the night had ceased; it was as if the very forest itself was holding its breath in anticipation for the coming battle. The wind had stopped blowing and there was nothing to disturb the tense atmosphere surrounding Team Kakashi. Sakura held her breath almost reflexively, her entire body as tense as a coiled spring, begging for release. The sounds of the pursuers were steadily closing in; each second feeling like an eternity for the waiting members of Team Kakashi.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes slightly. "They're here," he told Kakashi and Sakura. Sakura strained her eyes, peering into the darkness for any signs of the trackers. The darkness was absolute: there was no way she could see them. She could, however, feel the presences of the trackers: there were two of them; one with chakra levels about low-chuunin level or so and the other one with jounin level chakra. The two presences stopped moving, hovering just outside their sight. Kakashi stepped forward.

"Come out," he demanded at the trackers. "We know you are there." There was a faint whisper of voices: it was quite obvious that the trackers were conferring with each other about their options. It was understandable: since they were trackers, their skills most likely laid more in tracking than fighting. From the uncertain tone that was faintly discernable in the faint voices, it appeared that they hadn't expected resistance either.

The voices suddenly stopped and silence reigned again in the forest. Sakura felt the impatience rise in her as she waited for something to change; anything. The silence was broken as a crunch on the snow alerted them that someone was coming closer. The darkness parted slightly for the figure approaching them and swirled closed behind him again, swallowing everything behind him in darkness.

The figure stopped just outside their camp, trying to assume a relaxed stance. Sakura could see, however, that he was definitely not relaxed. His muscles were tense beneath his skin, ready to spring into action. He was keeping his right hand close to the kunai holster on his leg, ready to grab a weapon if necessary. He stayed just outside their reach (not that they couldn't reach him in a second), looking at them with undisguised hatred in his eyes. His Oto forehead-protector was firmly tied around his forehead, proudly displaying the village he belonged to. He continued to glare at Team Kakashi, glancing only for a split second at the blonde laying motionlessly on the floor.

"Give him to us," he demanded bluntly.

Sakura felt the indignance rise in her. How dare he? She felt a nerve twitch in her forehead. He was sorely mistaken if he really expected them to hand the blonde over to him just like that. Kakashi merely lifted his eyebrow(s) at the chuunin.

"Why should we?" he asked disinterestedly. He looked relaxed, but Sakura knew that looks could be deceiving; especially since it was Kakashi they were talking about. The chuunin still glared at him, the hatred clearly discernable in his glare.

"Because he belongs to us," he spat out with venom in his voice. It was clear to the observers that he would rather kill them all than talk to them, but he knew that he wouldn't stand a chance against them in battle.

Sakura felt the fury rise in her at his words.

"What do you mean he belongs to you? He doesn't belong to anyone!" she declared in a voice filled with unrepressed fury. She was furious at the enemy for daring to imply that the blonde was less than human. After all, humans did not belong to others. She clenched her fists furiously, wishing to hit the chuunin all the way to the moon. The chuunin turned his attention to the fuming pinkette.

"Why should I tell you, Konoha scum?" he spat at her, the hatred in his voice intensifying. Sakura's eyes flashed in anger and she started to step forward, but Kakashi's hand on her shoulder prevented her. He leaned down slightly to her level.

"He's trying to provoke you: provoked people don't think clearly," he murmured softly into her ear, before straightening and turning his attention to the chuunin again.

"If you don't want to turn into a corpse, you should tell us," he stated pleasantly to the chuunin. The chuunin's eyes narrowed and his hand started to creep down towards his kunai holster, but there was suddenly a brief burst of wind and the other tracker stood next to the chuunin, his hand firmly clasping his wrist.

"Don't," the newcomer ordered the chuunin who was staring angrily at him. The chuunin scowled at the jounin and jerked his wrist away, scowling at the ground. The jounin turned his gaze to the Konoha-nin before it lingered on the bloodied blonde, like the chuunin's had. Dismissal flickered across his eyes and he turned his gaze back to the chuunin.

"We're going," he told the chuunin unceremoniously. "Let them keep their useless trash. We have no need for broken goods," he stated cryptically and the two of them disappeared in a whirl of dust and snow, leaving the Konoha-nin to stare after them in confusion. Sakura started to move forward, not willing to let the two shinobi just go like that, but Kakashi's hand on her shoulder prevented her again. He stared thoughtfully into the distance where they had disappeared before he turned his gaze on Sakura.

"Let them go. We have more important things to focus on," he told her softly.

Sakura frowned at Kakashi, but the Oto jounin's words suddenly came back to her. "We have no need for broken goods." Her frown deepened slightly. What did he mean, 'broken goods'? Did he refer to Naruto's injuries or did he refer to something else? She reluctantly turned her gaze back to the bloodied blonde, whose breathing was steadily growing more and more ragged. She turned her full attention on him again, trying to keep his condition stable. It was not looking good: it was as if his entire body was fighting her attempts to heal him. The only thing left to do was hope that their relief would come soon. Of course, there was no way of determining when or even if they would come. Sakura sighed slightly. She only hoped it would not be too late.

They sat in silence for some time: Sakura focusing on the blonde and Kakashi and Sasuke focusing on their surroundings. It wasn't until an hour later when their attention was diverted again.

Another faint crack sounded in the forest surrounding them and all three of them were immediately at attention again. They all tensed when they saw two figures approaching them from the darkness. Sakura readied herself for battle again, but sighed in relief and relaxed slightly when the darkness parted to reveal two familiar figures: Neji and Tenten.

Neji turned towards Kakashi. "We are your relief. We were resting for the night when your summon came up to us and told us that you needed to get back to the village urgently and urged us to relieve you tonight, if possible. He didn't say what the problem is, however. Guy-sensei and Lee are currently investigating an irregularity and will rejoin us at a later stage," he told Kakashi respectfully while Tenten surveyed the area. Her eyes widened noticeably when she spotted the blonde still lying motionlessly on the ground.

"Naruto-kun?" she asked disbelievingly. Neji's eyes shot towards her and he followed her gaze until it also rested upon the motionless blonde. His eyes widened and he glanced at Kakashi, the question in his eyes undisguised. Kakashi nodded slightly to the Hyuuga.

"We think so. Do you think you could take a look at his chakra-system?" he asked the Hyuuga jounin softly. Neji nodded and activated his Byakugan, focusing on the blonde. He frowned slightly and turned back to Kakashi.

"His chakra-system is the same as Naruto's, but the feel of the chakra is a bit different. It feels less...malignant, if that makes sense," he told Kakashi, who merely turned his attention back to the blonde.

"It does. It will confirm a theory of ours. We will be able to confirm his identity in Konoha," Kakashi told the Hyuuga. Neji nodded pensively.

"That would make sense why your summon asked us to hurry," he stated understandingly. Sakura interrupted them.

"That, and the fact that if he doesn't get proper medical attention soon, he will not live," she told them quite seriously. Neji looked at the blonde again.

"Then do not let us stop you. We will take over here," he told Team Kakashi. Sakura's eyes softened slightly as they relayed a silent message to him: 'thank you'. He nodded slightly, indicating that he received the message. They quickly broke their camp and set off towards Konoha; Sakura knowing that each minute they wasted now would be lessening the chances of their once-lost teammate.

_~...~_

A/N: So, what do you think? I'm not really 100% satisfied with the ending, but it's the best I could come up with. If my style is a bit different, please forgive me as I'm still trying to find my true style. As I said in the first chapter, this is my first fanfiction so I'm still playing around with styles, trying to find the one that fits me the best. Please tell me if there's anything you didn't like and please tell me if it is still realistic! As I stated in the previous chapter, realism is a huge issue for me. Also, please point out any grammar or story mistakes! Till next time!