It was night time when she opened her eyes. Sai was resting while Kakashi and Sasuke sat around a small fire. She ached all over and she was still a little dizzy but she managed to ask, "What happened?" It was Kakashi who answered, "We managed to eliminate 2 of them, Sai captured the 3rd. We managed to get him to tell us where their hideout is, but it took a lot. Sai's resting now." "So that fire guy, he...he got away." She asked "Yeah, he got away." She used most of the strength she had left to sit up. Sasuke had made a move like he would try to help her but stopped at her glare. "Damn" She said shaking her head. "When can we go after him?" "In the morning. You and Sai need to rest." "I wouldn't need to rest if that Sasuke bastard hadn't interfered." She saw him flinch a little at her words. "He was only trying to help, and you looked like you needed it."

Kakashi was defending him, he couldn't stand that. "I didn't need your help! I can take care of myself all on my own! I'm not a child that needs protecting!" Naruko shouted directly at him. "What was I supposed to do? Just let you die on your own?! Idiot!" He shouted back. He knew he had caused her to get hurt. If he hadn't left Takeshi alone to try to help her, then Takeshi wouldn't have been free to attack her. He had never worried about her before. He never really cared what she was doing when she fought along side him. As long as she was alive and helping he had no reason to interfere. What good was love if it made them a weaker team? What good was it if she got hurt because of it? He noticed she was either to angry or to tired to come up with words anymore and just sat there slightly growling at him. "Alright, Alright. You two calm down" Kakashi intervened putting his hands between the two of them.

"Am I right to assume something happened between you two since that day in the Hokage's office?" Kakashi continued. She just turned her head away not wanting him to know he was right, but Sasuke had looked down at his hands at the same time. "Right then," He trailed into silence looking them each over in turn. He sighed. "I take it you both realized you were in love with each other?" She could feel her anger fading at his correct guess. "It's going to change how you work together, but it doesn't have to be a weakness! It's going to take time for you two to learn how to work together again, but we don't have time for you to figure it out if we're going to save Sakura and Hinata. Understand?" "Right." She replied, "Sorry, Sasuke." He responded by getting up and quickly closing the distance between them. He got down on his knees next to where she was sitting up in her sleeping roll and hugged her tight. "I'm sorry Naruko," he replied. "I should have believed in you." He pulled back and kissed her on the lips. She couldn't believe it. He was kissing her right there in front of Kakashi and everything! "Get some rest Naruko." Kakashi said blushing and looking away. Sasuke sat down and pulled her close, she fell asleep with her head in his lap as he ran his fingers through her soft blonde hair.

When she awoke in the morning she was still cut up and burnt, but nothing worried her like the lines of darkness crisscrossing around her skin. They had grown during the night and burned cold against her skin. It felt like she had been infected by whatever dark power it was those Yami guys had used to attack them. She worried if she said anything Sasuke would get protective again and send her back to the village. If she was going to save her friends she had to be there to fight. Nothing was going to stop her. They packed up and set out to the spot Daichi had said, a large cave between the land of fire and the land of wind. They neared the entrance and hundreds of dark ninja poured out. She could feel the dark energy rolling over them like a wave. "Get them!" one in front yelled as they began to charge. "I'll handle this," she said with a smile. She looked at Sasuke. He didn't say anything but wrapped his susanoo around her as she used the Kyuubi's chakra to form a wind style rasen-shuriken. She took a few steps then threw it directly into the middle of the crowd. The explosion was immense. It knocked every last one of the dark ninja's down, leaving a large crater in the middle of the group. She felt the dark bands across her body shift and grow but she ignored it. She walked up to the nearest ninja who was trying to get to his feet and grabbed him by the collar. The dark bands were making it hard for her to breathe. "Where are they? What did you do with Sakura and Hinata?" The ninja looked at her with a maddened expression.

Whatever this darkness stuff was it had ruined his mind and that same stuff was even now infecting her body. She could feel Sasuke walk up to stand by her shoulder. "Sharningan" he said and the ninja started talking. "The boss heard you were coming so he took his pets and left." Pet's? She thought to herself as Sasuke asked "Where'd he take them?" Her vision was getting blurry and it hurt to breathe. She remembered what Shou had said earlier about the Kyuubi's power. Somehow Kurama's chakra had fed this thing that was infecting her. It's feeding off darkness she thought. Kurama still had so much darkness in him. He had made significant improvements but from the feel of it he still had a ways to go. She had completely missed what the ninja had answered. She was now in so much pain she was holding her ribs and doubled over trying to breathe. Sasuke grabbed her around the waist shouting for Kakashi. She went into herself to where the kyuubi lived and used up almost all of her chakra creating a shield around the fox to keep the darkness from feeding on him. She hoped that was enough to keep the dark thing from growing. She knew she would have collapsed if not for Sasuke holding her up.

He felt her legs give out from under her and swung her into his arms. Kakashi arrived at his shoulder. "What is that?" he asked Kakashi looking at the dark line at the edge of her jacket trailing up her cheek towards her whisker lines. Kakashi took a deep breath and un-zipped her jacket. The back lines were all over the exposed skin of her shoulders and chest. Overwhelmed with worry Sasuke dropped to his knees pulling her closer to his chest. "Why didn't you say anything you idiot!" He asked her. "I didn't want you to worry" she said weakly as he noticed the black lines seemed to be both in her and yet around her. He could see them where they were cutting into her flesh restricting her movement. He sighed and bent his down to hers so their leaf headbands touched. He enjoyed having her close, like he could make her safer in arms. "Sasuke," Came Kakashi's voice as he felt a hand on his shoulder. "There's nothing you can do for her, she has to get medical attention." "Right" "Sai's made a bird to fly her to the Sand village since we're closer to there than the leaf. I've sent a message to the Kazekage informing him that the leader of Yami has fled to their country and we are in pursuit." "See, Gaara will take care of me." Naruko said her big blue eyes smiling as she struggled to catch her breath. "Right." He said again lifting her onto the drawn bird. "I'll be fine Sasuke. Trust me" She said as he bird took off carrying her away. He was going to save her. He was Sasuke Uchiha, no longer an avenger, a protector.