Captive Brethren

Chapter Four

He heard something rustle near him. His blue eyes released and looked up into the vivid azure sky, it was like staring into himself. He could feel the youth inside himself again. He was six again and he felt very lonely at that age. Naruto inhaled some fresh air and sighed. The air was warm as the sun blazed down on him. It feels great to be young again. Well…I guess. He thought with a grin pasted on his face. Then he heard footsteps running towards him.

The boy's face came into view. He had sea foam green eyes with black rings around each eye and messy dark crimson hair covering somewhat of his forehead. He bore the same red mark on his forehead as always. His face was jumpy and he poked him in the forehead briefly. Naruto stuck his pink, little tongue at his friend and the boy laughed.

"Naruto, come on. Get up!" Gaara whined with a grin on his face. His hands grabbed at Naruto's wrist.

"Ah, I wanna just lay and look at the sky." Naruto complained quietly. His little fox grin made younger Gaara blush lightly.

"What's with the blushing?" Naruto teased him. Gaara gazed away and trying to hide it away it.

"Nothing…"

Naruto laughed and Gaara was able to bring him to his feet. He guided him from the grass and they were the village of Konoha now. There was an disconcerting, cool of fog surrounding in the streets and they were all deserted. No merchants, no ANBU agents, and no physical evidence of anybody at all on the streets or buildings. The street lights and windows all darkened by no support of light whatsoever giving them no closure. Gaara clutched his left hand forcefully as they walked down the street terrified.

Then little Naruto spotted two people ahead of them. Their bodies could be seen through the fog, they were laughing with joy. They ran up to them and burst through the mist and saw the couple holding hands. A man and woman.

The man had slightly long, spiky blond hair and cerulean rough yet kind eyes looking at the woman. He was taller than her by atleast a few inches and he was skinny. He had a dangerous interior surrounding him and tan skin. When he smiled down at the woman Naruto gasped - it was his smile, minus the whiskers of course. It was kinda distressing to the adolescent fox demon carrier, but they shared some of the same qualities.

The woman had long down to her waist red, lighter than Gaara's, hair and greenish eyes, but after blinking maybe bluish too. She had a lip piercing and her two ears had piercings too. The way she gawked up at the man and she was the one talking mostly. On her back was a sword in a sheath and there was no sign of any other weapons. They laughed at a joke the woman made.

"Who are they? Why are they the only people here besides us?" Gaara questioned inaudibly.

"I dunno Gaara, but…" Naruto paused in the middle of his sentence. The two adults turned to them silently. It was now silent again and they stared at eachother.

The woman let go the man's hand and kneeled down looking forthcoming. Her smile was comforting to them, but Gaara remained cautious hiding slightly behind Naruto.

"What are you two doing out so late?" The man asked them with a solemn tone. Gaara whimpered and sand started to move behind him.

"Minato, you're startling them. Their just little kids. I doubt their any threat to us, come one over." The woman reassured him. They gently moved over to her and stopped when they were two feet from her. She smiled. "Now, why don't ya tell us your names?"

"N-Naruto Uzumaki…" He motioned to himself and then pointed at Gaara really unsure. "…and he's Gaara."

The woman stood up properly and gazed at Minato with peculiarity. He studied Naruto for a moment then over to Gaara. He saw the rings around Gaara's eyes and the whiskers on Naruto's cheeks and his expression changed to repugnant. "You're both jinchuuriki aren't you? Naruto you home to the Kyuubi and Gaara, the Shukaku."

"H-How'd you know?" Gaara inquired with stern eyes now.

"The whiskers and those black rings around his eyes signal insomnia. But…you sleep though." His face changed to a smile.

"I sealed the Kyuubi inside my son, Naruto. You look exactly like him, in fact you probably are him." Minato added and then gazed at Gaara smiling soothingly. He approached Gaara and placed his hand on his top of his dark red hair patting it. "You look like a sweet kid."

He then saw Naruto and Gaara's hands locked together. Then Naruto got an immediate headache and he grasped his head. Gaara saw this and Naruto hit the ground closing his eyes. Then everything disappeared all around him and then he opened his eyes. He was now older again and blood sipped down his hands and lips. His hands trembling now at the sight of blood, but it wasn't his blood.

He turned to his left and glimpsed his body. Gaara's body. He lay there drooping and deathly paler than usual. Naruto began to bawl stridently and tears formed in his eyes then he cried out. No one heard him and no one responded to his cries. God…no! H-How'd he die…? Damn…He cried out in his mind in sorrow. …damn it. Gaara…please wake up. He grasped a hold of Gaara's hand and held his body against his.

"Gaara…why?" Naruto whispered in mourning. His desolation began to turn to wrath. His eyes changed to red and glared down at the ground. "I…wish I could've made it…in time."

-

Itachi saw Naruto's eyes start to flutter during their process. It meant his was trying to wake up, but that failed. The red liquid emerging out of Naruto's eyes, mouth, and nose sucked into the statue. A luminosity sapphire fluid surrounded his pale body. Why does this process even take three days anyway? Itachi wondered. He glanced at all the live members left. Him and Tobi were the only real ones there - Kisame, Pain, Zetsu, and Konan were all holograms. Heh, very small group now.

But now that they'd lost so many members to Konoha ninja and the Sound Four. It was insulting and humiliating. After three years, they finally had the carrier of the Kyuubi. It wasn't really disappointing after all, Jiraiya had trained up the boy very well. But all that training had really not helped him. He still got detained, but Itachi could confess persistently that he was harder to get than the previous time. Last time the thoughtless boy would've gone with them in a heart beat with dread. But that exasperating old man got in the way, as did Sasuke. He spat in his mind.

Then he saw Tobi turn to the rock like door. Except Itachi knew he wasn't really named Tobi is was Madara Uchiha, the fourth Uchiha only alive. Madara, him, Sasuke, and Raidon were the only ones left of that cursed family. Raidon was the only female Uchiha left of the clan now residing in Konoha with Neji Hyuga. Now that Itachi thought about it, him and Raidon grew up together until she was eight when he killed the clan. Then he was struck with a thought then. What would happen if the Hyuga's blood limit combined with the Uchiha's? He shook off the thought.

"Madara-sensei, what's wrong?" Itachi asked.

"Their here." Pain glared at the ground now.

"Damn," He cursed that they weren't done. "Madara and Itachi, handle them off." But it was too late.

Sand filled into the statue's big that let lose the blue liquid. It disappeared and red liquid retreated back into Naruto. He hit the ground with a thud. Just as that happened their stone collapsed into a thousand rock pieces. Itachi grimaced in irritation. Sakura Haruno held up her fist in triumph and it wasn't even bruised from that hard of a hit. Kisame criticized in a snarl that he'd just finish reconstruction that wall. Her lips curled into a smile. The rest of the holograms disappeared after they calling in anger. Madara and Itachi hit the ground.

"You came alone Sakura Haruno?" Itachi asked curious.

"No, actually I didn't." She replied. Five other teen nin appeared into the cave.

One among of them was Gaara of the Sand. I was right. Itachi thought noting he was right before. That boy is very much alive. His sea foam green eyes spotted Naruto on the ground then gaped back at the statue in resentment. He raised his fist and sand inside the mouth of the dragon began to shake from the overloud of sand. Madara threw a kunai knife at him, but Temari's fan blew it away and she turned to her little brother.

"Destroy that bloody thing already Gaara!" Temari yelled at him. He closed his fist and the statue crumbled into pieces and that was the end of that.

Hinata and Sakura were already beside Naruto trying to wake him up. Gaara ran in that direction, but Itachi stopped him. Gaara's blood boiled in anger at seeing him. Sand from his gourd emerged and encased Itachi was easily. He was struggling out of that imprisonment. But Gaara didn't care and ran to his best friend's side.

"He's breathing normally, but he won't wake up for some reason. But thankfully alive." Sakura told him as he approached them. Hinata stared down at Naruto very worried now.

"Hinata, go help my siblings and Shikamaru." He ordered softly. She had no choice and ran to aid them. Then he his eyes burned at Sakura. "Start healing him, I'll go join them."

Before Sakura could protest to go help, he touched her arm with his hand and she merely looked at him. She nodded in response and her hands began to glow green. He summoned up some sand and it encircled them so they could be protected. He saw that his sister and Shikamaru were fighting Madara. Shit. This isn't good. Two Uchihas to fight. Gaara thought worried. Shikamaru was performing his shadow possession justu, but Madara wasn't holding still, but Temari was trying to the Uchiha in the right direction.

"Temari, six paces to the left!" Shikamaru called out to her. She nodded and blew her fan. "Wind slash!"

A sharp wind blew Madara towards the shadow justu, but he decided to use this opportunity to use an ability. He preformed some hand seals. "Fire style; Dragon fire justu!"

A huge fireball emerged from his mouth and aimed at Temari. But Gaara's sand surrounded her and the fire made the sand turn into glass. She caught Gaara's eye and she nodded. Gaara's sand moved around Temari and built two replicates of her. They both held the same impatient look. They didn't notice hand seals were formed from Madara because two more of him came out. The two clones went at her, but then two sand Temari's performed their wind slashes. The clones were destroyed, but Madara laughed in their faces.

Shikamaru winced in pain of using too much charka. His shadow moved towards Madara again and he jumped into the air. Seven kunai launched at all of them. Temari was too late to evade the attacks and someone was hit instead. Her greenish-bluish eyes gazed in horror at the back of Shikamaru Nara. He had shield the attack from hitting her. He spit out blood while coughing and she caught him in her arms. The sand clones glanced at them but then concentrated back on Madara Uchiha.

"W-Why…?" Temari asked him holding him. His dark eyes gazed at her and he smiled thoughtfully at her.

"I guess I couldn't let anything happen to you. Loves a drag," He replied and coughed up more blood. "But you're worth it Temari." He lost consciousness.

Her cried at him to wake up, but he didn't answer. Madara laughed as he escaped into smoke. Temari stared into her little brother's eyes and he nodded. "Temari get him over to Sakura now. Then head to help Kankuro and Hinata."

The two sand siblings rushed over to Sakura entering past through the encircled sand easily. She stopped healing Naruto and removed the kunai knives. Temari rushed to help her brother and the Hyuga. The two sand clones of Temari faded back into the gourd. As Sakura removed the last kunai knife and healed most of the wounds she stopped feeling eyed.

"Gaara, watch them I'm gonna go help the others now." She said. He nodded and allowed Sakura out of the encircled sand. He gazed at Naruto now.

He smiled softly. Don't worry, you're friends are here.