Warning: if you're not up to date with Itachi's "real" life, then spoilers are going to start now.
Chapter 7: Memories
Over and over and over and over. Sasuke opened his eyes and saw white. Vaulted ceiling. Soft bed. Hospital. He blinked and there it was. Just behind his eyelids. Over and over and over and over and over and over…. White was red, vaulted ceiling was a splattered floor and piled bodies. He opened his eyes and stared at the ceiling. Like Naruto stared at the sky when he realized his best friend really wanted to kill him. Sad. Such sadness. Complete surrender to sorrow. Like Sakura, stepping out of the shadows to stand in front of him That Night. Sasuke closed his eyes. He couldn't watch the ceiling like Naruto's world collapsing around him, like Sakura finding out the true meaning of abandonment. And behind his eyelids, again… Run. Run, and cling to life. Hatred.
Sasuke opened his Sharingan and the vaulted ceiling pulsed with light green and blue magic. It had absorbed healing magic. A lot of it. He glanced down at his feet and noticed his own dark purple chakra swirling and flickering violently. He was unstable, emotional.
He closed his eyes and tried to ignore his mother's quiet gasp as the blade slid through her. He tried to ignore the way his father's knees hit the floor with a solid, final thunk. Over and over in his ears, resonating in the hollowness of his chest. Cold, empty chest. Gasp. Thunk. Gasp. Thunk.
Meditate. Fix it. You're on a mission. Don't fall apart.
Don't fall apart.
Like Itachi, looking back on his little brother and his dead family with tears spilling silently down his face.
What?
Sasuke sat up bolt right, and he heard gasps around him.
Itachi… was crying?
He frowned, opened his Sharingan again, and closed his eyes, turning his Sharingan inward. He brought forth the memory again: Itachi. He was running. Why? Sasuke was chasing him- with the Sharingan, one tomoe awakened. In the moonlight- it was a full moon- Itachi looked back at his furious and devastated brother, and the pale light glittered on his cheeks. Yes. Itachi was crying. The he turned and disappeared into the night.
Sasuke's chakra was unstable, attempting to fix him, but it didn't indicate any sort of genjutsu.
The memory was real.
Sasuke let himself fall back into his pillows with a faint whoosh of breath.
Why… was Itachi crying? And had Sasuke really awakened his own Sharingan that young?
"Sasuke? Say something, please!" Sakura demanded, her voice breaking through his astonishment. He opened his eyes and saw her erratically swirling green chakra. She was distressed, practically out of her mind, but she held her shoulders square and her lips a tight line. Behind her, Harry, Ron, and Hermione hovered, their blue chakras steady with just a few fulgurations reacting to their thoughts.
He released his Sharingan and blinked a few times, absorbing the change. "You're annoying." His voice was scratchy but thankfully emotionless.
It was a sign of how worried Sakura had been that she simply smiled in relief. Usually, she would be shocked and immediately turn inward in speculation.
"Dementors?" he asked, his voice still betraying none of his emotions.
It was Harry who nodded. "Yeah. About a dozen of them. Ron, Ginny, Katie, and I ran them off with Patronuses." He hesitated and added, "Actually, Dumbledore asked me to teach you guys how to perform the charm. I taught it to a certain club last year, so I guess I have enough experience with teaching it."
Ron rolled his eyes and added, "And he's used it to run off over a hundred at once and saved me and Hermione's souls, so you know he's good at it."
Sasuke scowled inwardly but kept his expression blank. He had attempted the Patronus Charm whilst in Voldemort's apprenticeship. It was the one Charm he couldn't copy with perfect or near-perfect results. He couldn't get anything, actually. Some instruction might be welcome, especially if they had to fight dementors to protect their charge again. "We would appreciate that," he said and then froze. We. Naruto!
He twisted around to find the hospital bed beside his also occupied. Naruto was out cold, his usually tanned face whiter than Sasuke's. His brow was wrinkled slightly, showing his emotions even in unconsciousness, and when Sasuke thought about the dementors' powers, Sasuke didn't even want to know what Naruto must be going through in his dreams.
Just to be safe, Sasuke activated his Sharingan… and Naruto's chakra was crazy.
The dark orange chakra looked like it was trying to strangle the blue- but the blue was fighting back in pained bursts.
"Sakura," he said sharply. "Why haven't you stabilized his chakra?"
For a second, Sakura just gaped at him. Then her face darkened. "Excuse me? I don't tell you how to defend against the Dark arts, do I? Don't you tell me how to Heal! Now eat this!" She shoved an enormous chunk of chocolate at him and stomped over to Naruto. Sasuke eyed the chocolate and bit off a small piece. He hated most things sweet, chocolate included, but if it was medicinal, he could get over taste. Especially if his mind was elsewhere- like on Naruto.
Sakura was running her hands above Naruto, her palms emitting a faint green glow. Her forehead scrunched as she concentrated on feeling his chakra, unable to see it like Sasuke.
Eventually, she shook her head and stood back. "I know what you're seeing, but I can't do anything without hurting him. Their chakras are too connected."
"Chakra?" asked Harry. He, Ron, and Hermione were watching Sakura's glowing hands with awe.
"It's life energy," said Hermione, surprising all present. "The combination of physical and spiritual energy. There are seven different centers and types named for earth, fire, water, air, sound, light, and thought. There are practices to meditate on each center to bring out those specific characteristics…. It's part of Hinduism and some Buddhism, not to mention practices like yoga. Right?"
"Essentially," agreed Sakura. "Although there are variations, like every practice. But it's what we call magic in our homeland. Chakra. Life energy." She wiggled her glowing fingers with a smile. "We practice certain meditations and techniques to draw it out in like this without the focus of a wand. But some European wizards can do it, too. Like Animagi and Metamorphmagi."
Hermione looked delighted with the intellectual thrill of the discovery, and she and Sakura talked about the details a little further. Sasuke ignored them. He trusted Sakura not to spill anything major, like their combat techniques or village secrets about their training. Instead, he switched back on his Sharingan and observed Naruto's chakra. While Sakura said she couldn't do anything, she must have done something. It had settled down a bit, and the two chakras merely spiked half-heartedly at one another every few seconds. Still, Naruto's face was set in a frown.
Sasuke frowned and leaned back into his pillows. He watched the pulsing ceiling absently.
Why would Itachi cry? He found himself wondering again. Itachi hadn't cared. He had done it just to measure his own abilities. He had left Sasuke alive for the selfish hope of a good fight later down the line. He had struck down his own parents, his aunts and uncles, cousins, his girlfriend, without flinching. Sasuke had seen everything in the horrible genjutsu Itachi had put on him that night and that day in the lodging town. His family being slaughtered like animals, over and over and over for twenty-four hours. Itachi hadn't flinched. His expression never changed.
But there it was. The dementor-induced memory. Itachi fled weeping silently.
If it hurt… why had he done it? Why hadn't he just stopped? Why?
"…Sasuke?" Sakura asked quietly. She was looking at him with concern. Her chakra was calming down, but it still wavered with uncertainty. "What's wrong? Why are you turning the Sharingan off and on?"
Indeed, Harry, Ron, and Hermione were watching him a little uneasily. He supposed they still associated red eyes with Voldemort. Funny. People in Konoha were usually relieved when they saw the red. It meant a Sharingan teammate was there, and their sorry asses were saved.
He deactivated it again to avoid alienating their charge and shrugged.
Sakura continued looking perturbed. So did the students.
Sasuke took a bite of chocolate and felt a little warmer. But not much. And it didn't stop his racing thoughts. He threw the chunk in the trash and ignored Sakura's protests. "Can you tell when Naruto will wake up?" he asked instead.
Sakura stopped, sidetracked. "Not specifically, no," she murmured, eyes glazing over as she looked back at Naruto. "It all depends on the horror of his past, though, doesn't it? Harry said he used to pass out around dementors, but he'd only be out a few seconds. And you were only out a few minutes… so I guess it should be sometime soon. I can't imagine how Naruto's past would be much worse than yours."
Sasuke made a soft snorting noise. "Don't you remember the first thing your parents ever told you about 'that little blond kid'?" he asked tonelessly. Sakura frowned, obviously remembering but not seeing the connection. Sasuke continued, "Now, don't you think that's what every parent told their child? And what about the kids that felt strongly about that? What about the parents that felt strongly about that? Hell of an environment to grow up in. Different than mine, but horror is horror."
Sakura's frown softened into a look of pained sympathy.
Harry asked slowly, "What… did your parents tell you about Naruto? Why would they know about him when you were just little kids?"
Sasuke and Sakura shared a glance. Then Sakura said, "It's… against our village rules to tell anyone who doesn't already know. I'm sorry. I guess Naruto's the only one who can choose to say it."
"Hn," Sasuke agreed.
"Is he alright?" asked Hermione, brow knitting in concern. "I mean, he doesn't have a bad illness or something along those lines, does he?"
"Oh, no," said Sakura quickly. "His health is… better than normal, actually."
While Harry, Ron, and Hermione puzzled that statement out, Sakura turned back to Sasuke, her expression still pained. "They didn't… hurt him, did they? I noticed they were always… cold… but they never acted on it, did they?"
Sasuke shrugged a shoulder. "In little ways. I don't know how many times he's come to my house for a shower because his landlords cut off his water, or whatnot. He never said anything about outright violence, but I suppose he's still unconscious for a reason."
"Why would your villagers do that to Naruto?" demanded Hermione, shocked. "He's a good person! What reason could they possibly-"
"We just told you that's Naruto's secret to tell," snapped Sasuke.
Sakura, however, had caught on to a different point. "Hey, Sasuke-kun…. Can I come take a shower at your house, too?"
"…Please, don't."
"Damn it."
While Ron snorted at Sakura's antics, Harry and Hermione looked back to Naruto.
"This has to do with why Dark sensing devices go off around Naruto, doesn't it?" said Harry.
Sasuke and Sakura looked up, Sakura mildly surprised and Sasuke as emotionless as ever. Then Sakura said weakly, "Hai."
"I thought you said that was done when your school was attacked just a few months ago," said Harry, his voice taking on a sharper tone as he turned to Sasuke. "Not during his childhood."
Sasuke met his gaze evenly. "It was redone when our school was attacked."
Under the steel of Sasuke's gaze, Harry seemed to realize he wasn't going to get any new information out of them. He 'hmph'ed and looked away.
After half an hour, Harry, Ron, and Hermione left with Sakura's promise that she would contact them as soon as Naruto woke up.
Naruto hadn't woken up by the end of visiting hours, and Sakura shooed Sasuke away with an authority she only seemed to gain in hospitals. He and Sakura had sat beside Naruto until nightfall, sharing a companionable silence Sakura couldn't remember experiencing with this particular teammate.
Before their team had been broken, she had taken every moment she could be alone with him as an opportunity to flirt… but she had grown up in those years apart. She looked at Sasuke and she still loved him. She loved him with every fiber of her being, with every aching beat of her heart…. She saw his pain and she wanted to reach out and help him, take some of the terrible burden away… but he still didn't love her, and he still kept his ambition too close to his heart to let her help.
He could tolerate her, now, though. She had grown into a strong teammate, not someone he constantly had to protect when situations got dangerous. But he didn't love her like she did him. She was starting to realize he probably never would. He would never allow something as distracting as love enter his life until Itachi was out of it.
And so they had sat, an unspoken understanding easing the silence until Pomfrey appeared and informed them visiting hours were drawing to a close.
"I'll floo you if he wakes up," Sakura promised, and only then did he agree to go back to their charge.
He nodded, not looking at her, and swept out of the room.
Sakura watched him leave for a moment, feeling the straining muscles in her face as she tried not to look as worried as she felt. When she turned back to look at Naruto, she let the façade drop.
There was her best friend, unconscious and in pain again.
She sighed and retook her seat by his side. Without a word, she took his hand in her own and leaned her chin against his pillow. Naruto always took the worst beatings in their missions, it seemed. And somehow, he was still the one that always managed to save them.
"Are you sure you don't want to get some rest, too, dearie?" asked Madam Pomfrey gently, sticking her head out of her office. Sakura was pretty sure she was the only one that got endearing titles from the usually bustling nurse.
"I'm sure, Poppy-senpai," said Sakura softly. She had decided Pomfrey was more of a mentor than a straight out sensei, and the nurse seemed to like the foreign title, so it stuck. "I don't want him to wake up alone after whatever those dementors did to him."
Madam Pomfrey nodded in understanding. She had told them about the dementor guards from three years ago and seemed to sympathize with Sasuke and Sakura without saying much directly.
So Pomfrey returned to her office work, and Sakura returned to her vigil.
XXxxXXxxXXxxXXxxXX
Red eyes. Mesmerizing. Red eyes. Uchiha. Rage.
Rage.
His claws were fiery, steel spikes longer and wider than the trees he swiped out of his path. His tails, nine flowing and slashing in the wind behind him, lashed out at the earth and its people, its buildings and walls. They crumbled and shattered like china plates smashed to the ground. Warm blood splattered cold rubble that used to house their families.
Sadistic pleasure and rage.
He snatched up a few people in his jaws and bit down, savoring the crunch of their spines and skulls. Their warm, salty body juices slid down his throat in torrents, and he chewed up the rest of their crunchy bones before swallowing.
Sadistic pleasure and rage.
Little men charged forward with little knives, forming little patterns with their little hands. He smashed them all with his tails and continued destroying their homes and eating their loved ones.
Sadistic pleasure.
And then his voice rose above the others. The one Kyuubi had been warned about. The Yondaime Hokage. The only threat in the whole village. His hair was the pale yellow of the sun on a clear autumn day, and it whipped his face violently in the chakra-wind. His eyes, too piercing and intelligent for the Kyuubi's liking, were bloodshot and dark with pain – but determination set his face in pure steel and hid the pain behind a cold killer intent. He was a threat, yes. Kyuubi could feel it with his centuries of experience. The Fourth's intelligence combined with that unyielding determination could prove absolutely deadly.
…But he was standing on a toad.
"Alright, everyone pull back! I need a clear shot!"
The toad was enormous, Kyuubi admitted, almost as big as him, but it was still a toad. The Threat was going to fight him… with a toad.
Kyuubi let his ridicule show with a particularly vicious swipe of his tails, and the toad had to leap several hundred yards in the air to avoid being slaughtered by fiery chakra. Somehow, the Fourth remained standing on its head, clutching something to his chest. A small bundle. The Fourth seemed to whisper something to it, and then he looked back to Kyuubi, the determination in his eyes now blazing like white-hot iron. The pain had been shoved aside with such fierce resolve, the Fourth had within seconds accepted what was happening and moved on to action. No hesitation. No regret.
Kyuubi didn't know what made him do it. He stopped in his rampage to meet that scalding gaze.
Mistake.
He felt captured by the sheer intensity of the eyes. This was a man who would not stop; who would not be stopped. The Kyuubi, for all his hundred times more chakra than this weak little human, hesitated. This man didn't care about his impossible disadvantage. The Kyuubi was just one more obstacle to overcome, and he would not be stopped.
The Kyuubi barely noticed when the man set down the bundle and began the hand signs; he never released the beast's gaze, and his expression never once wavered. By the time the Kyuubi realized what was happening, his body was already ripping in half, fading, melting it seemed, sucked towards the Fourth as if in a vortex, and then towards the bundle at his feet.
He roared. He roared in rage and anger and flung out his chakra like lifelines towards the trees and buildings and earth, trying to stop this somehow astronomically powerful jutsu. He flung out his chakra at the man himself, trying to kill the source of the jutsu if all else failed. The trees ripped out of the ground. The buildings crumbled like sand castles. The earth cracked and groaned in protest. The man simply watched. He would not be stopped. His jutsu would not be stopped. The only thing left… was for the Kyuubi to be stopped.
"Not yet, beast," a voice reached him somewhere in the agony and rage. His voice. The Fourth. "You will live. You will live hating me, but you will help me. I'm watching you."
XXxxXXxxXXxxXXxxXX
Screaming, wailing, sobbing. Crashing, breaking, crushing, gasping. Roar. Roar. Roar. Like the Earth itself was being cracked like a china plate. Fire raining like hail. Like Hell. Screaming. Crashing.
Roar.
Quick motion, panic. "But, Sensei, Rin was in there! We have to go ba-"
"And so was my wife! They're gone, Kakashi! Gone. We have to focus on the village!"
Silence. Quick movements. Crashing. "H-hai, Yondaime-sama."
"Kakashi, I'm promoting you to captain, don't argue! Take as many jounin and ANBU as you can find and push It back to the northern gate! Hold It there for me! Do NOT let It any farther into the village!"
"But Minato-sensei, you can't use that jutsu! Jiraiya-sama said it would-!"
"DO IT, KAKASHI!" Silence. More motion. Crashing, roaring all around. He felt himself being held tightly, and he felt safe and secure. This was right. A young man's face suddenly came into view, spiky blond hair, bloodshot eyes. Tortured eyes. A strained but heart-wrenchingly honest smile. "Naruto. My little Naruto." Eyes the color of the sky closed, and the young face scrunched up in absolute agony. "I'm so sorry!" Tears coursed down his cheeks. And then there was motion.
Motion. The roaring and crashing and monsoon of fire were getting so loud, so loud, but he was being held so tightly, he was safe. He didn't have to worry inside this embrace.
The motion never really stopped, but his Comforting One did. The earth rumbled and shook.
"Alright, everyone pull back! I need a clear shot!" Shouting. Motion. A tight hug and shaking breath. A whispered, "Forgive me, Kakashi-kun. R-Rin-chan. Jiraiya-sensei. Kushina. N-Naruto."
And then he was being laid down and the comforting voice was saying even stranger words, his voice in so much pain. And then agony exploded in Naruto's stomach, blinding, rushing pain. Naruto cried, his wail adding to the already deafening roar. And then the comforting embrace took him again, holding on as if he never wanted to let go, holding on as if the Comforting One's life depended on the embrace. The last embrace. His sweat-soaked forehead pressed gently against Naruto's, and his tears splashed on Naruto's feebly reaching arms.
"I love you, Naruto. I love you so much," his voice broke, mixing with sobs and pained gasps. "I- I wanted to watch you grow up-… I w-wanted to be there-… I'm so sorry… I won't see you st-start the Academy… or- or graduate… or become the best shinobi th-this w-world has ev-ever seen-… And y-you will be. Y-you have to- to stop him- when he c-comes a-again-…" He pressed Naruto to his chest and held on, even as Death- yes, Naruto recognized Death, his wild mane of hair and gaping, leering mouth- grabbed his shoulders and pulled. The Comforting One resisted, never letting go of his son, holding on as if he could live through his own suicide jutsu if he just didn't let go. "N-Naruto…!" There was rushing wind, and golden blond hair flowed in his face. They were falling, but the Comforting One didn't let go. He never wanted to let go. Roaring.
Roar.
"NO! MINATO-SENSEI! NOO!"
Roar.
Thud.
And Minato let go.
XXxxXXxxXXxxXXxxXX
It was close to midnight, and Sakura was beginning to droop wearily when Naruto gasped like a man returning from Death. He sat bolt upright, eyes as wide as Rasengans and in twice as much turmoil.
He stared straight ahead, unseeing as Sakura sat up. Then, before Sakura even realized what was going on, rivers streamed down his cheeks from his wide-open eyes. He didn't move but for his coursing tears and ragged breaths.
"Naruto?" Sakura whispered, standing up and leaning into his bed. He still didn't move. His tears didn't stop. If anything, his mouth opened slightly in an expression of blank shock and horror. "Naruto, it's okay! It's me, Sakura. Naruto, can you hear me?"
Then, suddenly, he curled up on himself, ducking his face in his knees and sobbing uncontrollably.
Sakura jumped in surprise. "N-Naruto! What's wrong?" She quickly pushed her chakra to her hands and held them over Naruto, concentrating on his chakra for any hints of injury.
Blue chakra swirled and rushed about her green-glowing hands, in a panic, but there was no source of a wound. Emotional turmoil, then. Fucking dementors.
She released the medical chakra and did the only thing she could think of- she pulled Naruto's curled up form into an embrace, resisting tears of empathy.
Feeling the action, Naruto uncurled himself and latched onto her, immediately sobbing into the nape of her neck and holding onto her so tightly she couldn't breathe. Sakura ignored that and held him tighter as well, resting her chin in the nape of his neck in return.
"Sshh," she whispered. "Sshh, it's okay. Everything's okay, now, Naruto. Sshh, sshh."
She didn't know how long they stayed like that, and she didn't care. This was her best friend. He had done the same for her countless nights when she couldn't stop crying for Sasuke; she would rather pitch herself to rabid nin-dogs before letting Naruto down by not returning the favor. She hugged him as tightly as she could without chakra-reinforced arms. "Ssh, Naruto. It's okay…"
More time passed. Gradually, the tears began to lessen, and he began to hiccup between heaving bursts. After a few more minutes, the tears on his face began to dry, and he pulled back, not looking at her, though she could still see the trauma lurking as shadows in his eyes.
"Hey," she whispered, attempting to smile. She rubbed his upper arm comfortingly, unable to let go of him entirely. "You okay now?"
Naruto just stared at a spot behind her, that same quiet horror darkening his usually bright blue eyes. His expression was weakly anguished.
Sakura frowned, beginning to get seriously worried. She hurried over to her giant slab of chocolate and broke off a piece with super-strengthened fingers. She placed it in his dead-limp hands. "Here, Naruto. Eat it, please. It'll make you feel better. Warmer. Please, eat it."
He just stared.
"I wanted him to die," he breathed. "But he… he d-didn't want to let go. H-He didn't want to d-die."
Sakura froze. "What? Who?"
Naruto blinked a few times. "The… my… he…"
"…Naruto?"
Naruto fell back into his pillows slowly, eyes wide, still staring at something she couldn't see. "He loved me. But I… I killed… everyone…"
"What, Naruto?"
Silence echoed in the hospital wing. Without warning, tears once again began spilling from Naruto's eyes. "I killed them," he whispered. "I destroyed the village. I liked their blood…."
Sakura's eyes widened in sudden comprehension. The Kyuubi's chakra had spiked along with Naruto's. The dementors had affected it too. Could Naruto possibly have seen the Kyuubi's worst memories?
Naruto leaned forward again, now laying his forehead on his knees, which he had drawn back up to his chest. He cried quietly, and Sakura rested a hand on his leg.
"You are not the Nine-tails, Naruto," she said quietly. "Listen to me. I know you must have seen it like it was you, but it wasn't. You are a good person. You would never want to destroy Konoha or kill anyone. I know you. You've been my best friend since we were twelve. You're a good person, and you are not that monster inside of you."
Naruto sniffled for a few seconds. Then he looked up at her with clouded, bloodshot eyes. "Best… friend?"
Sakura tried not to roll her eyes. "Well, yeah, dummy," she murmured. "You were always there for me, weren't you? That's what friends do for each other. …And you're the best at it."
Naruto watched her for a moment, clearly unable to comprehend what he heard. And then he smiled weakly. "Wow, Sakura. Thanks. You're a really good friend, too."
Sakura rolled her eyes shoved him. "Baka," she said fondly.
Naruto glanced around, finally taking in the unfamiliar surroundings. "Where are we? What happened?"
"We're in the hospital wing. Dementors showed up, and you and Sasuke passed out. But Sasuke woke up a few hours ago, so he's with Harry now."
"What's a dementor?"
"From what I understand, it's a Dark creature that sucks all the happiness out of people and only leaves them with their worst memories. Um, Harry said that people with horrific pasts are affected the worst, which is why you and Sasuke passed out."
"Who sent the dementors? Voldemort?"
Sakura hesitated. "I don't know. Sasuke and I haven't had a chance to get all the information just yet. I'll need to contact Tsunade-sama as soon as we do, though. I don't like this situation at all."
Naruto nodded blankly. Thinking of Tsunade made him remember Konoha more clearly than anything they'd said so far. Konoha. In flames. The roaring and crashing and screaming. Kakashi-sensei. The Fourth.
He groaned and rubbed his head again. He had seen it, the day of his birth. But how? There was no way he should be able to remember anything about that day. No way.
But the Kyuubi could. It had been the worst day of his life, too, hadn't it? The day he was finally defeated… by the stubborn blond hokage Naruto had always admired the most.
His father.
He closed his eyes and leaned back into his pillows. "My head…" he moaned, covering his face with his hands.
There was no way.
No. Way.
He could not be the son of the most respected hokage of all time. The son of the man that put the freaking Nine-tails inside of him. Why would a father do that to his son?
So, logically, the memory was false or so misleading it wasn't even funny. There was no way.
But it felt so real. The safety in his arms. Running through a crumbling Konoha, and he'd never felt so secure.
Of course, even if it wasn't his father, it was the fucking Fourth Hokage. Who wouldn't feel safe in his arms?
It was more than that, a part of his mind argued stubbornly. I felt so close to him. I loved him, too.
You were a day old, the other part of his mind shot back. You didn't know what was going on.
He felt Sakura press a goblet into his hands, and he grasped it automatically.
"Calming Draught," she whispered, watching him worriedly. "It'll help the headache and let you go back to sleep. I think you need it."
Naruto hesitated, letting the goblet hover near his lips uncertainly. "Will it- will it make me forget?"
Sakura frowned but shook her head. "Not specifically, no…."
After another eternal second, Naruto gulped down the potion. Within seconds, he felt his mind and emotions slow into a steady, pulsing calm. Within minutes, his eyelids closed and his world faded from view.
XXxxXXxxXXxxXXxxXX
Sasuke had been thinking. This could be either a good thing or a bad thing. Sometimes, when Sasuke thought, he ended up creating brilliant battle strategies to save his life and /or the lives of his comrades. That was good thinking.
Other times, when Sasuke thought, he ended up brooding about his clan and his revenge, which had been known to lead him away from Konoha and into the hands of the enemy – whom he had simply dubbed 'new allies in training.' That was bad thinking.
This thinking somehow spawned from both. He was thinking about the dementors, brooding about his family while pretending to read a book for Ancient Runes homework. He, Harry, Ron, and Hermione were the last Gryffindors awake, and they were all at least feigning working on homework.
But Sasuke was thinking about dementors and how they made him pass out.
Voldemort knew dementors made Sasuke pass out. Hell, every Death Eater knew they made him pass out. He'd done it in front of God and everyone the very first week he was left with Voldemort. The wizard snake bastard had summoned the creatures from Azkaban to give them orders, and Sasuke had just happened to walk out of the manor with the Meeting Graveyard in view. He'd fallen like a fly in Raid, and when the Death Eaters and Dark Lord figured out why, he'd been forced to Crucio every one of their asses to get them to stop laughing.
He smirked at the memory and only realized he was doing so quite evilly when Harry gave him an odd look. He cleansed his expression and returned to his book (and thoughts) without explanation.
So someone had to have sent the dementors; and someone also had to know Harry had guards – guards who passed out in the presence of dementors. Voldemort knew his weakness. Had Snape told him of Sasuke's presence at Hogwarts, and his obvious function? Or had Akatsuki really been in Hogsmeade and gotten in contact with Voldemort? Had Akatsuki let the snake bastard know of his presence, and Voldemort had provided the dementors? Or was it just Death Eaters at Hogsmeade, and they had easily recognized Sasuke from his months as an honorary Death Eater-foreign ally?
"Harry," he said, still staring at his Ancient Runes book as he contemplated. "Did you see who sent the dementors?"
Harry, who had been tapping his quill thoughtfully against a Potions essay, froze.
Bingo, Sasuke thought.
A/N: Sorry I didn't post this yesterday! You wouldn't believe the crazy week I've had. If I told you, you'd really be like, "You're lying! Stop making up excuses!" ...Kakashi flashbacks. Anyways, sorry again, and please review! =D
