Phew! Okay guys, I'm sorry about that long wait! This chapter eluded me, and I wasn't sure how to write it.

But I think it turned out pretty good, and I hope you guys enjoy!

So, without further adue, I give you...CHAPTER 9! YAY! :D

Please review and tell me what you think! :)


NINJA chibi

I gripped the metal in anticipation, feeling as if my knees would drop me if I didn't hang onto the large, brass handles located on the door to Shishou's office.

My anxiety was making me feel weak, and if I didn't get a grip soon then I would never be able to face them again!

Closing my eyes….I thought of Madara….he was the only true reason I needed to go into the room, and nothing was going to keep me away from him! Even my own fear!

Closing my tired and care-worn green eyes, I gulped as I tugged with all my might on the large doors, willing them to open for me.

"Are you serious….he couldn't bring them back?"

I stopped my actions before the door could open...something wasn't right, and there were only two chakras in the room. That wasn't right either; something was defiantly wrong.

" No Tsunade-sama…rookie nine and team guy could not be retrieved."

All the breath left my body the moment those words were said…..they hadn't come back. But…wait….what happened to Madara?

Opting to not care about the others for the moment, all my thoughts were now centered on Madara.

"Tell me then…how did this happen?"

"Well…..it seems that group decided to come back…originally…"

"Originally? So you mean to tell me, that they changed their minds?"

"Yes"

"When was this decided Riku?"

"It was decided when they were about 1 hour away from the village….it was then that they decided not to come back."

"Are your serious…they decided this when they were so close?"

"Hai Tsunade'sama"

"Dammit! Bastards….hope they catch pneumonia in this rain!"

My hands started to ring together nervously, the more I listened in. Come on! Get to Madara already! Where was he? Is he here? Is he coming home? Where is he!

A whimper left my throat as I thought of Madara, and I laid my hands gently against the doors, almost pleading with the wooden structures to have the two people within the office bring him up.

"Tsunade-sama…about…the boy…."

My head jerked upwards, and my heart started fill up with hope. They were talking about Madara! Finally! My green eyes never strayed away from the wooden doors as I listen intently to the conversation on the other side.

"Riku….what about the boy?"

"Well Tsunade-sama….from what I've heard…he went after them..again."

"He…went after them…again?"

"Yes…apparently…he didn't want them to get away…and ran back after them"

"Your kidding….he really went back after them?"

"Yes…Tsunade-sama….he did."

"Well! Where are they now! Whats the estimate of their location!"

"Well….for the others…their probable a good 4 hours away…but for Madara….he's only about 1 ½ hours away from the village by now. He's behind because the others had a head start."

"Dammit….this is just great!-"

At that moment I stopped listening….and time seemed to stop.

He was going back after them….even after they acted so cowardly , and changed their minds at the last minute. He wasn't going to let them go…because of what they had done to me….because I had been dying the last time he had saw me, and wanted them to realize what they had done to me. To make them realize how precious I was.

I looked forward at the wall that was opposite of the office doors, as tears started to slowly caresses my face.

He truly…cares for me….and….and now I realized….that the others no longer matter. No….Madara was the only one that matter anymore…only him….and I want him home….I wanted him to come home.

I….I had to stop him….I had to stop all of this.

Quickly wiping away my tears, I stood up on shaky legs, as I ran down the hall way and then made my way quickly down the stairs.

Cold air and damp rain met me once I was out on the street, and I shivered as I tried to decide where to go from there.

Shivering, I wanted to cry; I had no idea where to start. Which way should I go?

Trying not to cry, I decided to run down a familiar path that I had taken many times during my childhood. This path held many memories, and even though it may not be the right path….it was the only one my panicked mind could think of.

The rain was coming down heavier than ever before, and I was nearly blinded by all the rain. I was like wet veil, that made it nearly impossible for anyone to see, if one was walking in it.

Breathing heavy, I tried to keep running down the path I knew so well, but it was getting harder by the second to keep up the pace that I was at.

The rain was cold, and was slowly making my joints stiff up the longer I was out in the rain. My whole body was freezing, as the rain water continued to pelt down on me, and made it hard to breathe without shivering; this wasn't looking good….but I had to keep going….for Madara.

Madara, he was truly the only thing that kept me going at this rate. My whole body felt like a cold corpse, and I could hardly move anymore.

But he kept moving…he kept me running….and because of him..I managed to reach the main gate into the village.

When I finally got to the gate the rain was pouring, and no one was around. Even the guards weren't there in the rain.

I didn't dare move a single muscle.

My tired, frantic looking green-eyes looked out into the rain; not daring to move an inch.

He had been so close to this point…only a few hours ago…..he had been nearly home.

As the rain came down on me hard, and made me colder than I already was, my body only remained frozen as I stared out into the distance.

The lonely rain, and the empty distance made feel so torn inside.

Why….Why couldn't he have just come home? Forgotten about the others….forgotten about everything else…and just came home…to me?

As my unblinking eyes continuing staring, I could feel a very familiar sting become more and more distinct behind my green eyes.

Tears…hot..sad..hopeless tears came not long after the awful, familiar sting.

But still…..I did not take my eyes away from the distance….almost insane with the thought that he had been so close to this point….so close to me.

After about 10 more minutes of staring, I could not no longer stare without having to blink. The tears were making it too hard, and by this point I finally understood he wasn't coming back.

He was going to fight until he literally dragged the others home. And that would take….a very long time.

Finally, with a shaky breath, I closed my eyes and focused on the sound of the rain around me. Trying to find comfort in its smell, and in its sounds.

Some say they like the sounds of birds more than they do the rain…..but for me….I liked the rain, I believed it was better than the birds. Its smell always helped me feel one with nature, and its sound was always oddly soothing.

I took a deep breath and realized that I was calming down a bit. The last hour had been so dramatic, that I was surprised I even remembered how to breathe properly…..at least I remembered to do that, and didn't end up passing out pathetically in front of Shishou.

"Ahaha! Aha…ha…" I let out a few giggles at the thought….that would have made things a quite a bit worse.

Suddenly…everything changed. Something in the air wasn't like it was before….and it got my attention.

My green eyes snapped open in surprise. Someone was out in the rain…..I could feel it…..their chakra.

Taking a deep breath, I tried to calm down and focus. If it was an enemy, I REALLY didn't need them to see me like this; that could only lead worse things.

Taking deep relaxing breaths, I closed my eyes for a moment before opening them again; trying to pinpoint where the chakra was coming from.

My eyes scanned the scenery through rain, and for a moment I couldn't tell where the chakra was coming from, because the rain was coming down so heavily.

But eventually….the chakra got close enough for me tell, and when it did I strained my eyes as much as I could to see where this person was, and see if I could tell what their intent was through their chakra. If it seemed threatening….well….shit; because I was NOT ready to do any sort of battle yet, and I would probably end up killed. But…if it wasn't….then everything would be okay.

I stood very still, and waited for the person to get closer….and as it did….what I found started to scare me.

The chakra….was completely indescribable…..it was very…very…DARK. It was enough to make people want to run away just by feeling it.

Under the rain my body shuddered…..this did NOT seem friendly….and I was all alone….what was I going to do? What was I going to do? I was completely defenseless.

I gulped as a wave of panic took over me; this was looking really bad.

I stared out into the distance again, trying not to completely lose myself to hysteria, and noticed something very odd about this chakra.

It was utterly MENACING, and yet….it was moving so slow….it was about a mile away from where she was, and yet it wasn't getting that much closer. It might take thirty minutes or more for it to fully get here!

Scrunching my eye brows, I tried to figure this whole thing out.

Why would a chakra that HORRIBLE be moving so damn SLOW?

Without even realizing it… I started to walk down the road that would lead one away from the village. My pace was slow at first….but eventually became a run, as all my thoughts were now focused on this strange chakra.

Before I even realized what I was doing….I was already more than 1/3 of a mile from the village.

My feet carried me down the mud-ridden road that led away from Konoha. My eyes looking everywhere for the owner of this amazing chakra. My eyes darted between the trees, and looked further down the road….but still didn't see anything.

I was running at a villagers pace anyway, so it would take me longer than usual to find this person.

I turned a sharp corner located further down the road, and when I did a full blast of dark chakra hit me square in the face.

I could feel my body tense up, as my whole body froze like a deer in head-lights. My eyes grew wide as I felt a heaviness sink on my chest…making it hard to breathe.

After a moment of shock, I finally let out a huge sigh, and started to breathe heavily; trying to make up for the lack or air I couldn't take in a moment ago.

With my eyes still wide, and body tense, I managed to look further down the rest of the road, and what met me...was the shape of a young boy.

From what I could tell, the boy, was walking very slowly. His whole body hunched over and his head slumped over facing the ground.

He looked to be around 12 or 13, and he had very long black hair. It was so long that it effectively covered his face.

His clothing was also dark, and seemed to be the same black as his hair. He had on jet-black shorts, that were rather baggy, and went slightly past his knees.

His shirt was black as well, and was also baggy like his pants.

But the thing that caught my attention the most was…..his high collar. It was an….Uchiha shirt….that he was wearing.

The rain filled my ears as I continued to watch the young boy get closer. I lowered my head, feeling my knees get weak. My heart began to pound.

..madara…..

I felt the young boy stop for a moment, and slowly I managed to look up.

Through the rain I could see his body become tense; his face still looking at the ground as his chakra gave off a sudden flare of malice.

"WHAT….ARE YOU LOOKING AT?"

My heart froze at his cruel words…..but the truth was….it wasn't the malice that caught me off guard. It was the other….surprisingly more vulnerable emotion…that I could hear behind the malice.

It was heart break….pure, raw, heartbreak.

My heart clinched at the sound of his voice….it made me want to just shut my eyes and cry.

He was right here…..in front of me….and I was at a loss for words. He seemed so upset….and I was so damn emotional right now, and felt like I was so helpless.

At this moment….I couldn't do anything.

"DO YOU? DO YOU….KNOW….HARUNO-SAN?" The world seemed to pause at the moment, as I looked out into the rain. The question made my stomach churn….he was asking about me? For a minute, I truly just wanted to run to him and….and just hold him.

But something told me that it wouldn't be right. Now was not….not the time for that….at least…not yet.

Slowly looking over at the boy again….I nodded.

He filched slightly at my answer.

"IS SHE….IS SHE STILL ALIVE? OR ….HAS SHE PASSED ON YET?"

My eyes filled with tears. Near the very end I could hear his voice crack.

'Damnit…..I…I can't take it anymore!' My mind screamed out in anguish, as I tried my best to use my voice.

It would be hard. Since the time I woke up in the hospital room….I hadn't take to people for a long time; I had just cried to whole time. So my voice was going to soft…..and I could only pray that he hear me.

"She's still here…in…..in fact…-" I felt something come from the young boy as I started to talk….and once I felt it, I tried my hardest to get my voice to carry out to him….but my voice was hurting….my voice box was extremely underused at the moment.

"-….in fact…she's…right….-" I could feel my voice failing me….I had to say what I needed to say! HURRY SAKURA!

"-…right….here. Madara….I'm here." Great relief filled me, as I swallowed my own saliva, trying to help my voice. That had been way harder than I thought it would be, and I was just glad I got to say what I wanted to say before my voice completely gave out.

Madara

Remembering him, I slowly looked over towards….and this time there was defiant change.

His aura was no longer menacing, and his face was no longer looking at the ground.

Deep red eyes….filled with an emotion I've never seen on his face before, greeted me as he took in the site of me.

His body no longer tense, and was instead lose in state of shock.

Before I could even take in anything else…..A blur of black tackled me to the ground….and his small, strong arms wrapped around me in a death grip.

His body started to shake, and to my shock….he was…crying.

"S…sakura?...sakura?...sakura?" He kept whispering my name as cried into my arms. Shaking with such emotion that it even made me cry.

Clamping my eyes shut, I held him tightly and cried into his chest as he hovered over me hugging me.

The rain continued to fall, covering us from the rest of the world, and creating a world of our own.

Madara….he was home….and I was never going to let him leave again.

Once he calmed down a bit, I looked up at him shyly, wanting to get a better look at his face.

When I did, I saw that he was looking intently down at me. His eyes now coal-black once more, and had an oddly gentle look to them.

"I thought you died…I thought…I would never see you again.-" His eyes grew dark and intense. His face getting a little closer to mine.

"- I didn't want that….so I….decided to come back." I bit my lip to try to keep from sobbing. He had come back for me….he had come home.

At my reaction, he slowly touched my wet and pale face and gentle put his hands on my cheek. Intently looking into my pale eyes, he slowly moved his face closer to mine, and without another thought….kissed me with intense, dominate passion.

Without another thought, I wrapped my arms around him. Trying to bring him closer, trying to bring his warm, strong body close to mine.

All the world's problems seemed to fade at that moment.

None of it mattered anymore. Not rookie nine and team, not Shishou, not Shizune-nii, not even Naruto…..none of it mattered anymore. Just the boy who was holding me so tightly, and kissing me so gently.

And in that world we had created in the rain, Madara and I kissed for the first time….and I prayed to god that it wouldn't be the last.


Weeelll! I hope this good! And I'll try to update the next chapter a LOT quicker than this one!

Please review and give me your thoughts, and I'll see ya next time!

Bye guys! :D