Title: Rebirth
Author: Passionate Crow Rat
Rating: M
Pairings: Kagome/Itachi/Naruto/Sasuke
Warnings: Violence.
Summary: Uchiha Fugaku was returning from a mission when he stumbled upon a dying woman and her infant baby, but it was only because of his wife that they adopted her. Now instead of two children they have three. At least her brothers adore her, especially Itachi. Naruto/Inuyasha X-Over
Disclaimer: I still don't own either series.


Chapter Eight: Inner Demon


The chakra the two Shinobi were emitting was so intense that it sent cold chills down his spine. Since the mist had cleared, Sasuke had a front row seat of the battle that was raging before him.

Suddenly, he had an ominous feeling.

If Kakashi were to be defeated, they would all be put into a terrible situation. Against Momochi Zabuza, all the training he'd done - all the hard sessions he'd put himself through - would mean nothing.

Fighting Zabuza would result in his death; he would die and there would be no one to protect his Imouto.

Therefore...

She, too, would perish.

At that moment, he could feel the one emotion that he despised the most take root inside of him.

Fear.

He, Uchiha Sasuke, was so frightened that his body had begun to tremble.

There was solution to this problem.

He was intelligent. He graduated at the top of the class, his skills surpassed every other genin in the Academy, and to every problem, there was always a solution.

Discover the solution, and the problem can be solved.

'Run.'

Take Kagome, and run.

Leaving the rest behind would result in their deaths, but if they didn't have enough sense to escape, then it would be none of his concern. The only thing that mattered was his Imouto.

While Zabuza's attention was focused on Kakashi, he would grab Kagome- and flee. The deed would have to be done now, since waiting would make it impossible.

Still caught in his inner thoughts, Sasuke was disturbed when he suddenly felt the presence of another looming behind him.

His heart skipped a beat-

Momochi Zabuza was behind him.

That demented Jounin was right behind him!

Immediately, Kakashi, seeing that they were in danger, reacted. The Copy Ninja moved so quickly, that no one was able to track his steps. Wielding a Kunai, he seemed to instantly materialize before Zabuza, and, in one swift moment, had stabbed the Rogue right in the abdomen.

It would have been so pleasing if blood had gushed from their foe's wound, but instead? It was water. Water began to leak out from Zabuza's abdomen.

Abruptly, Zabuza exploded into water.

'Clone.'

It had been nothing but a clone.

The true Zabuza came from behind, and brought down his sword, slicing through what should have been Kakashi - but staying true to the title of Sharingan, Kakashi had already copied the Jutsu.

His body, too, exploded into water.

Re-emerging behind Zabuza, Kakashi pressed the cold steel of his Kunai against his adversary's jugular. In a callous voice, he spoke, "It's over. I suggest you give up; if not I will kill you."

All of them were stunned.

In a matter of seconds, Kakashi had subdued their enemy.

Sasuke would have felt nothing but relief had it not been for Zabuza's harsh chuckle. There was a knife at his throat, and he was laughing? Was the man truly deranged?

"It will not be so easy to defeat me."

And with those words, what all of them had assumed to be the real Zabuza was nothing but a clone that fell to the ground, leaving a puddle in its wake.

Kakashi was caught off guard, and just barely managed to evade this swift swing of the dangerous blade. Regardless of his successful avoidance of the first assault, he was unable to counter the kick that followed, aimed directly at his torso. That blow sent him flying backwards and right into the lake-

When he surfaced, the genin, as well as Tazuna, were unnerved to find Kakashi trapped in what appeared to be a prison of water. On the surface of the water, Zabuza stood close, his hand outstretched into the bubble.

Without delay, yet another water clone formed from a puddle that lay just a few feet away from them.

"Looks like you four are next." It sneered darkly.

In just a matter of seconds, the tides had turned, and their situation had grown dire.

Sasuke let loose a stream of vulgar curses.

Sakura was unable to form a proper sentence, therefore, standing with her mouth slightly ajar, while Tazuna had a few beads of sweat running down his temple. They were going to die...

Pointing at their trapped Sensei, Naruto stammered, "W-What just happened? I don't get it, how did he get in that thing?"

"I thought he was winning!" shouted a piqued Kagome, annoyed by the sight.

From the water prison, Kakashi firmly commanded: "I want you all to take Tazuna-san and run. His clone shouldn't be able to follow you too far."

Sasuke scowled, escape had become impossible the moment Kakashi got himself caught. He should have taken Kagome and fled when the idea first crossed his mind, but he knew that it was too late.

There was no way he could out run that clone.

He hated to feel fear - he hated to feel helpless - but at this point, those feelings were inevitable.

What could he do?

He had to do something.

He had to keep his Imouto alive. If he did nothing, she would die.

'Attack.'

He would attack and hope that somehow, his speed would be sufficient. However, he knew the truth- this enemy was out of his league- but that fact did not stop him from pulling his Windmill Shuriken out of his backpack.

With a shake of the wrist, the shuriken's four-edged blades shot open.

Naturally, Kagome was confused when Sasuke recklessly charged forward, heading straight for Zabuza's clone. She was bewildered because he had never been so brash. Her brother thought everything through, and always had a plan for each move he made. Her confusion quickly transformed into fear, when the sound of steel-hitting steel echoed throughout the field.

Sasuke's assault was met head on.

His Shuriken locked with the massive sword - it was a battle of strength. She could see him straining and hear him grunting as more pressure was forced upon his body.

In the blink of an eye, the sword was ripped away, and that sudden action caused Sasuke to stagger forward, right into the clones waiting fist.

The force of the blow had him coughing up blood. He then collapsed; the Windmill Shuriken fell from his hand and hit ground.

The clone scoffed. "Pathetic."

"Sasuke-kun!" came Sakura's desperate cry.

"Damn..." Naruto grimaced, shaking head.

This wasn't even the real Zabuza; nothing but a water clone and it had beaten Sasuke! As much as he hated to admit, the arrogant Uchiha had always been more skilled than he and for him to be defeated so easily wasn't reassuring.

He badly wanted to prove himself but if Sasuke couldn't do it, than did he even stand a chance?

Despite the odds, he couldn't just stand around.

Naruto placed his hands together, preparing to perform the Bunshin no Jutsu but out of the corner of his eye he saw Kagome take a bold step forward, kunai in hand. Her cheeks were flushed, hazel orbs dark, and her form visibly shook in anger.

He could feel the hostility coming off of her in waves.

For Kagome, the fear she felt vanished once Sasuke had been struck. The sight of her brother falling to the ground, in pain seemed to be on instant replay in her mind. She had always been the type of girl that acted on her impulses, and today was no different.

Knowing what she planned to do, Naruto reached out to grab her, but it was too late; she was quicker and he only managed to grasp air.

"No! Kaggy, come back!"

Kagome heard him, but chose to ignore him.

This was only a clone, but the odds of her striking it were slim to none.

Even though she knew this, the knowledge didn't stop her from attacking. Nothing else mattered, Sasuke was in danger, and she would do whatever she could to protect him-

and for her fearless attempt she was cruelly rewarded.

Sasuke could only watch as the clone struck Kagome in the abdomen, knocking the breath out of her. She quite literally crumbled to the ground, grasping her stomach and writhing in pain.

Obsidian orbs grew considerably wide, and he simply panicked.

Scrambling forward, Sasuke closed the short distant between them, and carefully-so as to not cause more damage-picked his Imouto up, cradling her tightly to his chest. He knew that this was the first time she'd ever been hit. While they had sparred many times over the years, he had never struck her, afraid that if he did, he'd break her. The blood, trailing down her chin, only added to his growing distress.

Some relief filled him when she gazed up into his eyes. With a soft smile she whispered, "Sasuke-nii, your Sharingan - you got it."

'Sharingan.'

The Uchiha clan's infamous Dojutsu was typically triggered during a time of emotional stress in the heat of battle. His Sharingan had finally activated, and he'd attained the first of the three tomoes.

'But...'

"How amusing, you're trembling. You see, this is what happens when little kids play ninja." Zabuza's clone mocked, rudely reminding Sasuke of its presence.

It would not be enough, even though his Dojutsu had emerged, he still could do nothing.

The clone raised its sword, and Sasuke, acting on instincts alone, turned his back- shielding his Imouto from the unavoidable assault.

What was seconds, seemed like hours as he waited for the pain to come, but at last he looked up, wondering why it never arrived.

Time seem to slow, Sasuke spun around-

and standing protectively over them was Naruto.


Kagome.

Sasuke.

Now those two were special.

They were his friends, his family, and because of them, he wasn't alone and now, right before his eyes, that crazed Shinobi was about to kill them.

Earlier, he had done nothing; he'd only lain on his back and been protected but this time he would be the one doing the protecting. He did not freeze; he merely reacted, and using speed he didn't know he possessed, threw himself before the clone.

Blocking the sword with just his arm.

Effortlessly, he shoved the weapon back, causing the startle cloned to stumble over its feet.

Blood freely poured from his wound but strangely, there was no pain.

'Why doesn't it hurt? It's supposed to hurt...'

Who was he?

Uzumaki Naruto - that was who he was.

However.

There was someone, or rather something else there.

On the inside, Naruto had never truly been alone; a harsh voice was whispering in the far corners of his mind, and the whispers were growing louder and louder as each second ticked by.

Until finally, he could clearly hear it.

'You poor, weak brat...' taunted the voic,e these words were followed by a deep sadistic chuckle.

The blonde watched on with morbid fascination as chakra as red as the blood that had ceased to flow from his wound crawled over his body. His nails lengthened, growing out into sharp claws, his skin felt as if was burning and yet...

Somehow-

It felt good.

A twisted laugh. 'I can help you, just let me.'

Suddenly, he heard movement.

That clone was making an attempt to attack and before the sword could even be raised, Naruto responded by taking his claws and tearing a wide gaping hole into its stomach.

The clone was instantly destroyed, falling into a puddle of water at his
feet.

A burst of adrenaline, coursed through his veins.

Blue eyes bled crimson, fangs protruded from his mouth.

'This feeling...'

"Dobe...?" and that was Sasuke, his voice laced with confusion.

Naruto's grin was feral and without turning around, he replied, "Teme. You take care of Kagome. I'll handle this."

It was time for him to prove himself.


Uchiha Sasuke didn't know what to make of the sight before him.

The Dobe, who could never seem to do anything right, was doing what he could not. What was going on? Was this the same idiot that had graduated with lowest scores in the Academy? This just couldn't be right!

Then, there was that visible red charka coating his body.

Naruto had immediately dropped down on all fours, and what could only be described as a tail of chakra waved behind him. He bolted, right across the water, heading straight for Zabuza, who still held Kakashi in the Water Prison.

Even with his newly activated Sharingan, Sasuke was having trouble following the blonde's unpredictable movements.

All he knew was that Naruto had punched Zabuza, sending the Jounin's body soaring across the water.

Somehow, Zabuza managed to scramble to his feet.

Kakashi was free from the Jutsu, but Naruto did not cease his assault. Sharingan orbs watched in awe as he quite literally beat the crap out of Zabuza. It was a one-sided battle on the surface of the water- Naruto's strikes were wild, and brash but every single punch connected with accurate precision.

While Sasuke was astonished, he was also jealous. Very jealous.

Jealous that Naruto was easily defeating the Jounin he could do nothing against.

That power. How has he attained such power?

"Evil."

Sasuke blinked, and gazed down at Kagome who he still held in his arms.

"What?" he asked, slightly puzzled at her word.

Frowning, Kagome quickly answered, "That chakra is evil."

Before he could question her further, Sakura spoke up from behind them. In a baffled, amazed voice, she stammered, "H-how is Naruto doing that?"

Sasuke glanced backward, quickly observing the three figures that stood there.

He wasn't surprised that he hadn't notice them, seeing as his attention was focused else where. While Sakura seemed just as astonished as he, Tazuna was silent, but there was a noticeable look of terror on his pale face.

Kakashi appearance was bleak, "I want you all to stay back." he order, not taking his eyes off the brawl.

Tazuna, finally finding his voice stammered out, "T-That boy... He's like some sort of demon!"

Hazel eyes widened.

Out of the bridge builder's entire sentence, she'd only heard one word, and that word echoed in her mind.

Demon.

Still on the surface of the water, Naruto watched Zabuza with a dark and scrutinizing glare, and from where they stood; all could tell that the once haughty Jounin was scared stiff; his body was shaking in fear.

Apparently this fact pleased the blonde, since he was madly grinning. He didn't have to move, he simply raised his hand and the red charka shot out like a bloody claw -Zabuza had no chance to dodge and was snatched up- lifted high into the air, and thrown across the lake.

He ended up on dry land, his body brutally connecting with a tree. At the sight, Kagome's form grew tensed- and than the laughter reached her ears.

Naruto was laughing, this deep sadistic laugh that didn't belong to him. He was killing Zabuza, and enjoying every minute of it.

It wasn't as if she cared for the Jounin; after all he'd not only hit her, but, more importantly, he'd hurt Sasuke. Therefore, she held no pity for him. It was Naruto who she worried for.

He did not look, or sound, like himself. That impure charka was changing him, taking over his body and her mind screamed that it had to be removed.

'Demon.'

Zabuza, having no choice, laid still as Naruto slowly stalked up to him. He crouched down some ten feet away; the fang-toothed grin had yet to leave his lips.

Spitting up blood, the beaten man choked out, "W-what the hell are you?"

Naruto cocked his head to the side; his crimson orbs appeared confused at the question. "You mean... who am I?" he smirked; standing up he proudly announced, "I'm Uzumaki Naruto-" with a murky gleam in his eyes he darkly concluded, "and you're about to be dead."

Surely Naruto would have followed through with his malicious statement had it not been for the new arrival.

In a whirl-wind of leafs, a boy, wearing a white mask materialized before Zabuza.

Naruto sneered, annoyed with the interruption. In a low growl, he snapped, "Who the hell are you suppose to be?"

The boy coolly replied, "I will not allow you to kill Zabuza-san." With those words, said boy and the battered Jounin were surrounded by a whirl of leafs... then they were gone.

It happened so quickly, and they were all a little shocked - but Naruto didn't seem to be taking it to well. For a brief second the blonde just stared, with a longing gaze at the spot where Zabuza had once laid and then-

Crimson orbs widen, precariously.

Suddenly, he tossed his head back and roared out, "THE HELL! I WASN'T DONE YET!" The red chakra reacted with his anger; twirling around his body like a raging twister.

Hatake Kakashi didn't know what to make of this dilemma. Out of all the horrible, unexpected things that had happened during the mission, this would have to be the worse.

Clearly, the seal that kept the Kyuubi no Kitsune contained was damaged, the menacing chakra of the Kitsune was leaking out and judging by Naruto's erratic behavior his frame of mind was being affected.

Something needed to be done before the seal broke; the problem was that he wasn't sure of what to do.

"Demon!"

To his right, Kakashi spotted the owner of the voice.

A dazed looking Kagome was struggling to get out of Sasuke's arms; surprised at her bizarre behavior, he lost his hold and she dropped to the ground.

The Uchiha probably would have grabbed her had it not been for the strange pinkish glow surrounded her body.

A bead of sweat rolled down Kakashi's temple. 'What's going on around here!'

She leapt to her feet and bolted past them, heading right for Naruto.

Said boy wasn't exactly expecting Kagome, of all people to pounce on him.

That unanticipated ambush knocked him flat on his back, with the dark haired girl landing on his stomach. Her hands were pressed against his chest and the unusual glow on her body was channeling to her palms. Pinkish energy expanded, over taking the red chakra, which instantly turned into dust.

The dust was picked up and blown away by a gust of wind.

A extremely awkward silence followed.

Naruto blinked up at her, his eyes, once again bright blue. "Umm... Kaggy?"

She, too, blinked. "Hai?"

Confused, he queried, "Why did you do that?"

Kagome crossed her arms and flatly replied, "I got it off."

Precisely at that moment, Sakura decided to voice the question on everyone's mind. Loudly, she screeched, "Can someone PLEASE tell me what's going on!"


From the start, Kakashi had the eerie feeling that the mission would be rough, but he had no clue that things would become this peculiar. Out of all the day's events, the one thing that he'd been contemplating the most was the appearance of Kagome's mysteries ability.

He was a very intelligent man, so he'd already realized what had taken place.

Uchiha Kagome, destroyed the demonic cloak of The Kyuubi no Kitsune. That glow, or rather energy that emitted from her body overtook the menacing chakra with ease; turning it into meaningless dust.

Dust that was blown away by the wind.

It would be very simple to label her unique, but with an obviously powerful ability as a newly activated Kekkai Genkai - and it was mind blowing to even consider that such a remarkable blood limit could actually existed.

Did this mean that she could also destroy the demonic chakra of other Bijuu?

At the thought Kakashi's expression grew rigid.

Although, there was one problem with his theory.

A major problem.

Kagome was an Uchiha.

The Uchiha clan possessed the blood inheritance limit of the Sharingan and it would be impossible for her to have any other Kekkai Genkai but that.

His visible eyes broaden as realization struck.

'Unless-'

The Jounin was pulled from his inner musings when he felt someone tugging at his vest. Peering down, he saw the girl who had just been occupying his thoughts.

"Hey, Kakashi-sensei!"

"Eh?"

Kagome roguishly grinned up at him. "You've been staring at the wall for like, ten minutes, and your eye was really twitching. I mean REALLY twitching."

Well... it was nice to see that the day's events hadn't affected her playful demeanor.

Kakashi briefly gazed about the living room, observing each of his students. Overall, everything seemed normal, though Sasuke - if possible - looked more peeved than usual.

"Where did Tazuna-san run off to?" Kagome asked. He was their client, and that meant they were supposed to keep an eye on him.

Before Kakashi could answer, Naruto, sprung up from his seat on the steps. Tossing his fist in the air, he declared loudly, "He's probably tellin' his family how awesome I am!" Mischievous blue eyes focused on Sasuke. The brooding male sat in the far corner of the living room. "Ain't that right, teme? Cause I
so kicked Zabuza's ass."

With her hands on her hip, Sakura quickly chided, "Naruto! It's not nice to gloat!"

Ignoring her, the whiskered blonde leaned forward, slyly smirking. "I was awesome wasn't I, teme?" It was easy to see that he was simply trying to gall the already irritated Uchiha.

Sasuke scowled, his jaws clenched. "Dobe..."

"Teme..." Naruto answered back, eyes narrowing.

"Naruto-kun, stop pestering Sasuke-nii!" exclaimed an exasperated Kagome.

Naruto's shoulders slumped and his now cheerless blue eyes found hazel brown. "Kaggy, you don't think I did good?"

"Ugh..." Kagome was speechless. That question was somewhat hard for her to answer. Yes, he'd beaten the crazy lunatic and she was grateful that he saved her and Sasuke, but then, there was that chakra that he used to do it.

She had quickly come to the conclusion that she did not like the red chakra.

Still looking quite dejected, Naruto muttered, "Kag-chan?"

Kagome sighed, one thing that she'd always hated was a depressed Naruto. Finally, she replied with a bright smile, "Hai, you did good."

Of course, he instantly perked up, and, with a victorious grin, began a hyper romp around the room, while announcing in a high pitched voice: "I did good! I'm so awesome!"

Inwardly, Kakashi sighed. Naruto was assuming that their client was impressed, but that was far from the truth. During the remainder of the walk to Tazuna's home, the man's behavior had become odd. His body was tense, his face pale, and he kept casting fearful glances at Naruto. It was obvious to him that the bridge builder had grown afraid of Naruto after witnessing the boy's battle. As soon as they arrived at his home, he'd rushed out of the living room, dragging his baffled daughter and grandson along.

Naruto just hadn't realized this. Neither did the others, but Kakashi had no intention of telling them.

No point of making an already complicated mission more difficult.

One thing was certain: he would have a major headache after this assignment was completed, and even more of a migraine when he reported to the Hokage.

"Kakashi-sensei, I was wondering," Sakura began, with a thoughtful look. "Who was that masked kid that saved Zabuza?"

"Ah, good question." Kakashi responded, "That mask is worn by Hidden Mist Hunter-nin, they are also called body erasers. Their duty is to completely dispose of a body without a trace." he explained.

Hearing this, Naruto's cheerful romp around the living room came to a halt. Frowning, the whisker-faced boy exclaimed, "How come he saved him, then!"

Unruffled, Kakashi stated. "Well, obviously he wasn't a true Hunter-nin since he saved Zabuza life... which is why you will all spend the next few days training."

Sakura face faulted, not really liking the sound of that. "Training?" she muttered.

"Hai." he began, arms crossed. "All of you still have a lot to learn, and if Zabuza recovers he'll probably be back-" Tapping his chin, Kakashi turned his attention to Naruto, "and I want you to remain close to Kagome until this mission is completed."

Sasuke, still sulking in his corner, released an aggravated groan while Kagome and Naruto appeared puzzled at the sudden order.

Though it didn't take Kagome long before she figured out his reason. Smiling sweetly, she piped, "'Cause I got rid of the evil red chakra with my pink chakra, right Sensei?"

Kakashi's eye crinkled. 'Pink Chakra?'

Naruto grimace at her choice of words. "Kag-chan... Why are you saying it's evil?"

Hazel orbs grew serious, and a frown marked her lips. She spoke slowly, but her voice was firm. "Because it is, Naruto-kun. It's evil."

Scratching the back of his head, he coyly glanced down at his feet not wanting to meet her eyes.

In his opinion, the red charka that had coated his body was not evil.

With the charka, he'd been able to save her and Sasuke. It had also healed the wounds inflicted on him by Zabuza and allowed him to defeat the Jounin with ease.

He, a mere genin, defeated a Jounin.

This was so very weird to him.

For the very first time, he actually didn't agree with her.

He had always agreed with Kagome, no matter what she said or did. To him, it was always right.

Naruto didn't know how to reply to her words, and he knew it would be a bad idea to speak his opinion. The last thing he wanted was for Kagome to be angry with him.

"You understand, Naruto-kun? It's evil, and you shouldn't use it anymore." Kagome said tilting her head to the side, patiently waiting for him to acknowledge her words.

He gazed up, but his smile was rather forced. "Hai, Kaggy, I understand."


It was pitch black, all that could be seen was an endless abyss of darkness.

Look at you. A concealed voice whispered.

You're so pathetic, so foolish, so weak. Worthless.

Soft laughter.

Inferior to me, you are, and it will never change.

Tell me, Otouto, what would you do if I chose to leave... taking her wit hme?

Kagome.

He woke in a cold sweat.

Chakra flooded his eyes, which bled crimson. A single comma circled his pupil. Immediately, Sasuke looked to his right, and he was relieved to see his sleeping Imouto, curled up underneath the covers of her futon, a few feet away.

She was still here.

It had been nothing but a hellish dream.

To his left, he heard movement. Impassive orbs gazed over and spotted Naruto. The blonde was sprawled out on his back, tangled in a mess of sheets; half of his body rested on his futon, the other half on the
floor.

Since Kakashi had ordered Naruto to remain close to Kagome during to the rest of the mission, the Dobe was sharing one of the spare rooms with him and his Imouto.

Sasuke, of course, knew why their Sensei had given said order, but he wasn't concerned about that. At the moment, Kagome's strange ability didn't really matter to him.

Instead, his mind was focused on his lack of performance.

He just felt so disgusted.

He did nothing but tremble, in fear, while Naruto, of all people, handled things with ease.

His fists clenched.

He was no longer feeling disgusted.

Anger filled him to his very core. He abruptly sat up, kicking the sheets from his body.

Sasuke stood and he gazed over at Kagome to be sure that she hadn't woken before focusing his attention on the sleeping Naruto.

Sharingan eyes narrowed.

Now Naruto, he was simply minding his own business; sleeping soundly and having a great dream that dealt with Ichiraku and chicken ramen. So one could only envision the poor boy's shock when he felt someone roughly take hold of the collar of his shirt.

That someone then proceeded to pull him off his futon; still being half-asleep, Naruto didn't have the chance to stand. Therefore, he was being dragged - on his butt - towards the door.

Groggy blue eyes shot open. It only took him a second to realize who the assailant was; he frowned. "Teme! WHAT THE HELL!" he screeched, grabbing hold of Sasuke's wrist, in an attempt to pry the hands off.

"Shut-up." Sasuke hissed, sliding open the door. He then tossed the miffed blonde into the hallway.

Fuming, Naruto leapt to his feet, glaring daggers at Sasuke, who had just slid the door shut.

This was a crappy way to wake up, that was for sure.

"What's your problem!" he growled out, waving his fist in Sasuke's emotionless face.

Sasuke swatted the appendage away, and took a dauntless step forward. The hallway was fairly narrow, thus he and Naruto were only inches away from one another.

"Dobe, we need to talk."

Naruto's brows knitted together. Talk? It was in the middle of the night and the teme had dragged him out of his bed because he wanted to talk! "Teme... you're starting to really-"

"Keep your voice down." Sasuke lowly hissed, not wanting the entire house to wake, or worse - his Imouto. "You're going to answer a question for me."

Naruto scowled, crossing his arms over his chest. He just wanted to go back into the room, lie back down, and sleep. Although, he could tell that trying to get past Sasuke would result in a brawl, and at this point, he didn't feel like tussling around with the bossy bastard.

Slowly, Sasuke began, "That red chakra. How did you get it?"

The scowl that had once been on Naruto's face vanished. For a second he blinked, as he realized what he was being asked. A lopsided grin appeared on his whiskered face. "Oh... So that's what this is about. Eh, teme?"

Sasuke's fist clenched, his eyes narrowed. "I'm not playing around with you." he darkly warned.

"Heh, I know. You're just jealous right? Cause I kicked Zabuza's ass." gloated the blonde. He didn't feel so tired now. After all, it was really great to know that Sasuke, of all people was envious of him.

The egotistical bastard, who usually out did him at everything, was finally jealous!

He thought he'd never see this glorious day!

"Naruto. I need to know how you attained that power." What could only be described as a look of madness entered his eyes. In a morose tone, he whispered, "I must have power... If I don't have enough, I won't be able to kill him."

The lopsided grin quickly fell away. Naruto squinted, his arms dropped to his side. He wasn't exactly expecting those types of words to come out of Sasuke's mouth. This was new. Very new. Bewildered, he spoke, "Wha? Kill who?"

Sasuke turned away, gazing at the door with a dazed look. Impassively, he began, "Our clan. You know the Uchiha clan was annihilated."

Naruto grimaced. This conversation had just turned really eerie. "Ugh... Hai."

He, of course, knew. After all, five years ago, Sasuke and Kagome had moved out of the Uchiha compound and into an apartment a few blocks away from his own.

For months, all the villagers whispered about was the massacre of the Uchiha Clan; he'd even heard that it was done by one of their own, but never had he brought the subject up. He'd wisely figured that Kagome and Sasuke wouldn't want to discuss it.-

but right now, at this very moment, Sasuke was talking about it.

Suddenly, he really wanted to go back to bed.

"Itachi."

The dark haired male had hissed the name out with such hatred that Naruto instinctively took a cautious step back. In the blonde's opinion, Sasuke was beginning to look a little deranged, and it was really starting to freak him out.

Detached Sharingan orbs connected with apprehensive blue eyes. Coldly, he spoke, "Our so called Aniki killed them all and, as if that wasn't enough, he threatened to take her away."

'Her?'

"... Kaggy? I don't get it..."

Glaring, Sasuke took a step toward him. The crazed look in his eyes had yet to fade.

Naruto's brow twitched. He was getting a awfully bad feeling. "Ugh, S-Sasuke?"

In one quick flash, Sasuke had reached out, and snagged him by the collar; lifting him a few inches in the air, he roughly slammed his body against the wall. Leaning forward, the enraged Uchiha snarled out, "He'll come back for her and when he does I need to be strong enough to kill him! I need power and you WILL tell me how you attain that power!"

Confused and exasperated, Naruto yelled, "Teme! What the hell!"

That was not the response Sasuke desired; he pulled Naruto forward, away from the wall, before ruthlessly slamming the blonde's body back into it. He wanted a proper answer and he did not care if he brought his fellow team mate pain in order to get it.

Now, Naruto was understandably fed up.

Yes, Sasuke was mad and he could see that, but it didn't give him the right to take his anger out on him!

Hence, Naruto decided to return the rough treatment.

Placing his hands against Sasuke's chest, he forcefully shoved him away. Not expecting the sudden retaliation, Sasuke lost his hold and staggered backward, right into the sliding door; before he could recover, Naruto had already closed the short distant between them.

Seizing Sasuke by his own collar, Naruto pressed him into the door and growled out, "Sasuke relax! I don't know how I got it."

Growling back, Sasuke harshly retorted, "You moron! How can you not know?"

At the insult, Naruto grip tightened, "I just got angry! That bastard was about to kill you guys! I got angry and then there was this voice..."

"Damn it Naruto!" Sasuke snarled out in infuriation, "You aren't making any sense!"

This craziness would have no doubt continued between the two had it not been for the door abruptly being slid open.

The two boys, of course, did not foresee this, consequently, they fell right into the room.

Kagome peered down at them. Thankfully, she was rather quick so she easily avoided their bodies as they came tumbling in.

Sasuke was sprawled out on the floor with Naruto lying on top of him, and if she hadn't been so tired, she probably would have been laughing, since the scene was rather funny.

Naruto blinked up at her, and he gave a sheepish grin. "H-Hey there, Kag chan! Did we wake you?"

She feigned a smiled, her brow twitching. "Oh, Naruto-kun, whatever gave you that idea?" she asked in an overly sweet voice.

"Ugh..." For some reason his sharp senses told him that she was upset.

Precisely then, Sasuke sat up and, with a disgusted look, shoved Naruto off his lap. The blond landed on his back, and after sitting back up he pointed an irate finger at the moody Uchiha. "Stop being such a bastard!"

Sasuke scowled and was about to reply but Kagome spoke up before he could.

She'd crouched down, rested both of her elbows on her knees and placed her hands on her cheeks. Batting her lashes in an innocent manner, she spoke, "So, were you guys having loads of fun out there?"

The two boys glanced at one another, but didn't answer.

Her jaws clenched. "You know. I was sleeping... So I think it's only polite for you two to tell me what you were doing."

Silence.

She stood up, cracking her knuckles. "Right. Since nobody wants to talk I'll just make a simple suggestion." She pointed at each of their futons. "Go to bed and if you wake me up again-" Hazel eyes grew dark and she coldly concluded, "I'll start spitting Katon Jutsus at you."

Without a word, Sasuke stood. He breezed past her, heading straight for his
makeshift bed.

Kagome stared down at Naruto, who was coyly twiddling his thumbs. She raised an eyebrow. "Naruto-kun?"

"Um, Kaggy, are you mad at me?" he queried, giving her the sad blue eyed puppy-dog look.

She crossed her arms, much too tired to be swayed by his attempt. "Just go to bed Naruto-kun... now."

He didn't have to be told again. Leaping to his feet, he rushed to his futon, and, once there, dove underneath the sheets.

Kagome stood, carefully eyeing both of their bodies.

Good.

Since that had been taking care of, she could get back to sleep. Lying down, she pulled the covers over her body and brightly sang out: "Good night, and no more getting up or I'll be mad at both of you!"

There was no reply; just silence, and that was perfectly fine with her.


"Okay. Turn it off." Sasuke glowered in clear annoyance , but did as she asked. The crimson faded, as did his single tomoe.

Kagome smirked, locking her hands behind her back she spoke. "Now... turn it back on."

A jerk of the eyebrow. "Kagome."

She fluttered her lashes and gave a rather sad pout. "Please, Sasuke-nii."

Inwardly he sighed, somewhat aggravated. Despite this, he still succumbed to her begging. Focusing chakra to his eyes, his Sharingan activated.

A mischievous smile worked its way to her lips. Brightly, she chirped, "Good, good! Now turn it off."

Sasuke scowled. Firmly, he spoke one word: "No."

Kagome gave him a very disappointed look.

Well, it was fun while it lasted.

Her shoulder slumped, it was just that this was all boring for her. For the past six days, she and the rest of the team had escorted Tazuna to the bridge. Once there, he and his workers would begin their jobs, leaving her and the others with nothing to do. Basically, they would simply sit around and wait for the day to be over with, and doing the same thing over and over again was starting to really annoy her.

She supposed that it wasn't all too bad.

Tazuna hadn't complained about anything - nor had he insulted any of them. Actually, now that she thought about it, their client hadn't said much during the past week.

It was like he'd gone mute. Well, that was fine with her. Not hearing him gripe was a good thing, and since the bridge would more than likely be completed today, their mission would be over and then it would be back to Konoha.

"Oh man..." Sakura's suddenly muttered-

The group had arrived at the bridge, but all was not well. Scattered about where the bodies of several dead workers. Obviously, they had been murdered, seeing as weapons were strewn about.

A familiar mist overtook the area, and at the far end of the bridge stood Momochi Zabuza, as well as the masked boy who had rescued him.

Naruto grew annoyed at the sight, "He's actually alive..." he grumbled in disbelief, a little shocked that Zabuza had survived their fight. A shrewd grin crossed his lips, and taking a brazen step he declared, "I'll take him!"

After all, he'd easily handled him before, so of course he could do it again.

If possible, his grin grew even more when he observed Zabuza's body tense.

The Jounin was scared of him!

"No." Kakashi grabbed the already excited blonde by the collar. Frowning, Naruto peered up at him. With a shake of the head, the older man quickly explained, "Remember, you are to stay by Kagome's side."

"Haku."

"Hai, Zabuza-san?" Replied the masked male.

Inclining his head in Naruto's direction, Zabuza quickly ordered. "You take care of that brat, kill him quickly. We can't afford to play around."

Haku obediently nodded, "Hai, I shall."

So it began.

In a small twister, Haku materialize before a surprised Naruto. He barely managed to dodge an onslaught of needles, but was unable to match Haku's speed- and ended up being kicked in chest. The impact of the strike knocked him a good distance away from the group, and he landed on his butt in a large puddle of water.

Haku did not waste any time, he began to rapidly go through several hand seals-

"Secret Jutsu: Demonic Ice Mirrors."

Numerous mirrors of ice formed from the water on the ground, and they surrounded Naruto, trapping him inside. After that, Haku literally entered one of the mirrors.

From Kagome there came a horrified gasp.

She had no clue as to what Jutsu that boy had used, but it didn't look good. She'd already pulled out a Kunai and was preparing rush in when a hand seized her wrist. Blinking, she glanced back to find Sasuke glaring at her.

"Don't even think about." he muttered, already knowing what she'd planned to do.

Kakashi was more than ready to aid Naruto, but was halted by Zabuza who
appeared before him.

"No. This time we'll finish our fight." Zabuza stated with a arrogant look in his eyes.

Kakashi didn't really pay attention to the man's words. Instead he observed the Rogue's figure and it didn't take him long to realize Zabuza wasn't fully recovered.

The Jounin's body was obviously still badly damaged from his fight with the Kyuubi-induced Naruto six days prior.

That wasn't surprising.

The only reason Zabuza was attempting an assault was because he'd simply ran out of time.

This battle would not take long.

Kakashi lifted his Hitae-ate, and without taking his attention from his foe, he ordered, "Kagome, Sasuke. I want you two to aid Naruto, but do not enter the mirrors. Sakura, you guard Tazuna."

Kagome nodded, feeling quite eager to get on with it.

After all, she had to stay close to Naruto, just in case that... Chakra came out again. She'd told him he shouldn't use it and he said that he understood; but for some reason she felt that it would be wise to remain at his side- just to be on the safe side.

Momochi Zabuza immediately performed the 'Hidden Mist no Jutsu', and the thick mist clouded the entire bridge, putting them in a state of zero visibility.

Unable to clearly see Sasuke became quite aggravated. "Kagome." he said, looking to his right. She was still close enough, so he was able to make out her figure.

"Yeah?" She replied, wryly.

He opened his mouth, intending to tell her not to run off, but somewhere behind them, Sakura shouted out, "Guys! This is really bad!"

Any other day, Kagome probably would have teased Sakura for her show of fear but at this point she actually (for the first time) agreed.

This was bad.

She and Sasuke couldn't help Naruto if they couldn't see where he was!

Taking a deep breath, she tried to calm down her racing heart. Closing her eyes, she inwardly began to convince herself that he would be fine-

It was then that she felt it-

The intense evil charka.

"Sasuke-nii..." she whispered, her voice shaken.

"I know." he hissed. He, too, could feel it. That power. Naruto was somehow using it again.

Kagome bit back a moan. This was all very horrible. While she could feel the chakra she still could not see a thing.

Hazel eyes, broadened. Straight ahead, there was this eerie reddish gleam and the longer she stared the more visible it became.

"I see it!"

No sooner did she speak those words did she take off and Sasuke -because of the mist - quickly lost sight of her.

"Kagome!"

She heard him. He knew she did, but she chose to ignore him.

Kagome was focused; eyes locked intently on the twisting, menacing mass of red chakra ahead.

Her run came to a slow walk as she came upon a sickening scene.

Scattered about was what appeared to be fragments of shattered glass; a mask laid on the ground, broken in half. Standing over the lifeless, bloody corpse of Haku was Naruto, his body cloaked in red chakra; one tail-like appendage wave passively behind him.

Naruto, of course, heard her arrival, and turned to greet her.

Instead of blue, crimson orbs gazed into hazel.

For a moment, the two stared mutely at one another until finally, Naruto gave her a very feral, fang-toothed grin, and like a feline on the prowl, he began a slow stalk towards her.

In a low, throaty voice he growled, "Ka-go-me."

As he came closer, the pinkish chakra instinctively focused to her palms.

Kagome's eyes narrowed in determination.

Naruto-kun, I'll get it off...


XD