Fallen Angel
Chapter 9
Naruto panted harshly, as he ran through the forest, he wished he could fly, but his wings were still to damaged for that. He was hoping that no one from Konoha was following him, but he knew that Itachi would likely have his Anbu teammates after him in a flash. Naruto didn't know how he was going to manage to protect Konoha from what his Master was planning, but Naruto knew that he had to find a way especially if he ever wanted to return to the village that he called his home. Pausing to catch his breath, Naruto strained to hear anyone following him. He knew he wouldn't be able to out run them, they were much quicker than his twelve-year-old self.
He hoped he could find Orochimaru's hideout before the man could go forward with his plans of destruction. He wished he could remember everything that had happened to him, but he'd been so young and a lot of what he'd been through had been traumatic to his young self. It was only natural that his mind had blocked out the things that had hurt. Only time would tell if he would ever fully remember all that he had been put through. Naruto briefly wondered what would have happened to him if Keita had been left alive. Would they still be the best of friends or would they be complete polar opposites, one wanting to destroy while the other only wanted to protect. Naruto couldn't stand the idea of having to fight his beloved friend, he couldn't imagine that Orochimaru could have possibly have eventually turned Keita against him. He supposed that it was a good thing that Keita was gone because just the thought of going against Keita was enough to make his heart ache. He would have done anything for his friend, had he still been alive. But Naruto had been there when Keita had been ripped apart by the other so-called angels. Naruto didn't think there was a way to fake those kinds of injuries, but then again Orochimaru had one hell of a medic that worked for him so Naruto supposed that anything could be possible.
Glancing back over his shoulder, Naruto silently hoped that both Kakashi and Iruka would fight for him. He knew that he was going to be accused of some rather serious crimes, but he hoped that his guardian would know him well enough to know that he wasn't the one that had committed those crimes. Then again, Naruto knew very well that Kakashi had been suspicious of him since that mission they had gone on and had gotten attacked, Naruto had protected his teammates, but it still led to his guardian mistrusting him.
"He could have been grateful that I didn't allow them to take Sasuke." Naruto muttered darkly. "I only had my wings shredded and shoulders messed up, was that not enough to prove that I'm not the enemy."
"Oh but you are the enemy, and everyone else is going to think that you were planning on destroying Konoha." Naruto paused and stared up into the trees where the familiar voice was coming from.
"Oh shit." Naruto breathed when his eyes fell upon that of his dead friend, or supposedly dead friend Keita. Keita offered him a twisted grin, before jumping from the tree and landing in front of Naruto.
"How are you alive?" Naruto asked stunned.
"Orochimaru, wasn't going to let someone like me die so easily." Keita replied. "He trained me to be one of his best hunters, and then sent me on the hunt for you. I was rather surprised that when I regained consciousness to discover that you had left."
"He killed my only friend." Naruto said. "I couldn't stay there, I didn't want to end up as a weapon to be used against a village that I had nothing against."
"Too bad you don't always get what you want." Keita said, his arm shooting out and grabbing Naruto by the throat. "Orochimaru wants me to kill you, after all no traitor can be left alive. You, my so-called friend, are nothing but a traitor and it will give me great pleasure to see your blood on the ground." Keita's voice was cold and harsh, the voice of a deadly assassin instead of the friend that Naruto once knew. Naruto grimaced as he felt Keita's nails sharpen into knife-like talons, digging into the side of his throat. Naruto opened his mouth to call out for help, but once quick insertion of a talon and Naruto's voice went silent. His eyes widened as he realized that Keita was damaging his vocal chords so that Naruto couldn't cry out for help. Before Keita could drag his talon across Naruto's throat, severing Naruto's life, a kunai flew through the air and pierced Keita's shoulder, forcing him to release Naruto so that he could pull the weapon out of his shoulder.
"Get away from him." A dark-haired man said as him and four other Anbu members approached Naruto.
"It's too late to get any information from the worthless piece of shit." Keita sneered. "He won't be able to tell you anything, and you're precious Hokage will have no choice but to execute him."
"The fact that we discovered you hurting him, is going to help his case." The Anbu captain replied, as he knelt down beside Naruto, who was bleeding from the sides of his neck, they could tell that a talon had gone straight through, and as the captain got a closer look, he noticed that the blood was starting to foam, red bubbles escaping the holes in his neck.
"What the hell?" The Anbu Captain muttered.
"It's called poison." Keita said laughing. "It's finishing the job on his vocal chords for me. Unfortunately for him, there is no repairing the damage, if he even survives it. Master has no use for traitors."
The Anbu captain shook his head and bent down and placed one arm underneath Naruto's neck, while his other arm went under Naruto's knees and he lifted the boy up easily.
"You're Hokage won't allow him to live." Keita said as the other Anbu members started approaching him, he spread his wings and took to the air. "He'll most certainly be executed, especially since he won't be able to give any kind of information out."
"The Hokage is smart enough to know that something would have happened." The Anbu captain replied as Naruto began thrashing in his arms, he tightened his grip and hoped that he would be able to get Naruto back to the village in time for him to be saved.
"Good luck saving the worthless traitors life." Keita smirked before he disappeared into the night air.
"We have to hurry back." Phantom(captain) told his group. "He's probably not going to make it too much longer if he keeps having seizures." That being said, they took off running towards the village, they were thankful that they weren't too far from the village gates, it meant that Naruto at least stood a chance at survival. Whether that was a good thing or not, Phantom wasn't sure. He knew that Itachi was pissed at the boy for supposedly having something to do with his clan's death, but Phantom didn't think it was physically possible for the boy to have had anything to do with it, Naruto wouldn't only have been a few months old at the time. Unless Naruto was able to change his size there was no way he would have been there.
Within thirty minutes the small group of Anbu agents had reached the village, Phantom taking Naruto straight to the hospital while Mouse went and got the Hokage. They both knew Naruto wouldn't get any treatment without the Hokage being present, even though Naruto was showing the physical signs of having been poisoned.
"He needs helps quickly," Phantom told a nurse that passed him, the moment he entered the emergency room. The nurse glanced down at the boy in his arms and turned up her nose.
"Fat chance, I'll help that little demon. I heard what he done to Sasuke Uchiha. You would be better off leaving him at the village gates and allowing the poison to work."
"He's a child. That despite what you may think may not have had anything to do with that attack on Sasuke." Phantom hissed, pissed beyond words at the nurse. She wouldn't have allowed any other child to die from poison even if they were an enemy of the village. So why was she willing to allow this child to suffer and die? Phantom didn't know anything about the poison, but he could tell by how Naruto's body was quivering that it must have been painful. He could see the tears running down Naruto's face and it made his heart clench, whatever everyone else thought about Naruto, Phantom believed him to be innocent of what he was being accused of. Even if it was his cousin that Naruto had supposedly attacked, there was something strange about the other angel like creature that had been attempting to kill Naruto when they'd arrived. Phantom could see the hatred burning in the blue eyes of the creature as he attempted to silence Naruto. It made Phantom wonder why Naruto was being silenced, he knew the boy didn't remember much about his past before he was brought here. Was he starting to remember things that his creator didn't want him to, or was it as the other angel had said and the creator was trying to get rid of the one, he saw as a traitor? How Naruto was a traitor Phantom wasn't sure, but he knew that the kid needed protection, not only from his own kind, but from the villagers as well. Maybe it would be better once Naruto recovered to send him somewhere outside of the village. It wasn't a good idea to have someone like Naruto in the village if all they were going to do was mistreat him.
"Regardless of what you think he is." The nurse hissed at him. "I will not treat that abomination without the Hokage's orders." Phantom shook his head, he couldn't understand how the people of Konoha could treat a child so poorly, whether the child had something to do with the demise of his cousin's clan or not, this particular child was innocent, Phantom had absolutely no doubt of that.
"You will heal him," A harsh voice spoke from behind him. "You will heal him and you will not cause him any more problems." Phantom turned to see Mouse and the Hokage standing there behind him. A grim, and serious look on the Hokage's face. "He hasn't done anything wrong for you to treat him this way."
"That you know of." The nurse huffed before ordering Phantom to place Naruto on a gurney. "What kind of poison was he given?" she asked, taking note that it looked like something had been shoved through the sides of Naruto's throat, leaving holes on either side.
"No, I don't." Phantom replied. "I was just told that he was poisoned and considering his condition I would say that it's pretty serious."
"Why don't you go get cleaned up." Sarutobi told Phantom. "I'll stay here with Naruto and see if I can get him to say anything about what happened to him and why he attacked Sasuke out of thin air."
"With all due respect, I don't believe that he did attack Sasuke, sir." Phantom said. "I believe that there are others like him, that can make themselves look like anyone they want to."
"What reasons would they have to disguise themselves as Naruto and attack the Uchiha's?" Sarutobi asked and Phantom shrugged.
"I don't know. It's just a gut feeling I have that, he is innocent." Phantom replied.
"I need more to go on than just a gut feeling." Sarutobi said. "I need information that only he can give."
"But.." Phantom started to say but was quickly interrupted by Naruto's body beginning to flail about on the bed.
"If you two are finished discussing the matter, he needs immediate treatment." The nurse said, before pushing Naruto's gurney down the hall. She had her own plans for Naruto, hopefully it would include the death of the little bastard that had infiltrated her village.
Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter even though it was so short. I can't promise when it will be updated again, but I can assure you that I have not given up on it. Liz
