What the Future Holds Chapter 11, a naruto fanfic

Chapter 11

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto

AN: Here is Chapter 11, I hope you enjoy.

Kai flew backward from the force of the blow as his assailant attacked once again. The Genin landed on his back a few yards away and felt his breath leave him in a rush before once again struggling to his feet just to be kicked in the stomach, causing him to double over and fall to his knees.

"You cannot win you foolish boy," a sinister voice said, emanating from the darkness all around Kai, "just give up. Surrender yourself to me and avoid more pain."

Kai just sneered in defiance as he rose to his feet again and took a defensive stance only to fall once more when his unseen attacker hit him again. Kai might have been alright if he could actually see something, but as it was, he couldn't see any more than he could manage to stay on his feet. If something didn't happen soon, Kai wouldn't be able to get up any more.

Naruto sat beside the hospital bed with Sasuke and Sakura. All three of them were worried about Kai, or at least acted like it. He had been in a coma ever since he collapsed on the bridge and the doctors couldn't figure out what was wrong with him. Naruto had explained to the doctors about Kai's personality changes during his fight with Mizuki and Gato's mercenaries, hoping that it would help, but so far, it had all been useless.

"I can't stand this!" Naruto shouted suddenly, causing Sasuke and Sakura to jump slightly as the silence was interrupted, "I need to help him, but I don't know what to do!"

"Do you think we feel any differently?" Sasuke said quietly, head in his hands, "I just wish that we at least knew what was going on." Squad 7 had been back in Konoha for three days, and Kai had spent all that time, along with the two day trip back from Wave Country, unconscious, with only an occasional moan or restless shifting to show that he was even alive.

"I'm sure everything will be alright Sasuke-kun," Sakura said, placing her hand on Sasuke's shoulder and noticeably brightening when he didn't brush her away.

Kai suddenly cried out slightly before settling back into his sleep-like state. Naruto jumped slightly before sighing, "If only someone could figure out what was wrong."

Kai still wasn't faring well. Every time he was hit, it became harder and harder to rise again. He had managed to get a glancing blow on his opponent once, but the hidden figure hadn't done anything more than laugh before knocking the Genin off his feet again.

"Just give up boy," the ever present voice mocked, "you cannot win! Continuing to fight will only increase your own pain and suffering."

Kai grunted as he rose again, "I cannot and will not give up! I have to fulfill my dreams! I have to help my Oni-san with his! I have to succeed!" Kai charged in a random direction and threw his fist out in front of him; miraculously managing to hit his attacker, causing the man, for it was a man's voice that had been speaking to him, to fall to the ground.

"It would seem that there is still some fight left in you after all," the figure said, accompanied by the sound of a person rising to their feet, "I guess I will just have to take it up a notch." Kai's eyes widened when he heard the unmistakable sound of a sword sliding free of its scabbard.

"What can we do Hokage-sama," Kakashi said, pacing back and forth in front of the old man's desk, "we need to help him, but how?"

Sarutobi took a few puffs from his pipe before answering the frantic Jonin, "Is he still unchanged?"

Kakashi turned to the Hokage, exasperated, "Yes! I just saw him a few hours ago. His teammates haven't left his bedside since the mission and they said that he is just shifting around and occasionally making noise, but other than that, it's just like he's asleep. Something is wrong with him though, because the doctors told me that his vital signs are very slowly declining. His heart is beating a little slower ever time they check it and it has come to the point where they can only barely tell that he's breathing. Something is going on with him but…"

"It's all in his mind," Sarutobi interrupted, causing the Jonin to stare at him in wonder, "come along Kakashi," Sarutobi rose from his seat before walking around the desk and out his office door, "we need to make a house call." Kakashi stood silent for a moment, before turning and following the elderly ninja out of the room, deep in thought.

Kai gasped as he gained another slash on his arm, easily cutting through his sleeve but only leaving a shallow cut that soon began oozing blood. "What's the matter boy," the voice taunted, "where did your fighting spirit from before go?" Kai just sneered. He was trying to extend his senses to detect the swordsman, but every time he got close, the man would just hit him again and break his concentration.

"I told you before," said the voice, "your only choice is to give up. That is the only way to stop your suffering." Kai just grimaced and shook his head wildly, "Very well," the voice said before laughing manically as Kai suddenly found himself on the receiving end of a flurry of slashes, which caused enough pain to send him to his knees once more.

"Oh, Hokage-sama, to what do I owe this pleasure?" said a blonde woman when she answered the door after Sarutobi's knock.

"Mrs. Yamanaka," the elderly Hokage said, "I apologize for my rush, but we have no time for pleasantries now. I must ask if your husband is here."

The woman shook her head before saying, "I'm sorry Hokage-sama, but Inoichi hasn't returned from his last mission yet, and isn't due back for several more days."

Sarutobi nodded his head slightly before looking vacantly into the distance for a moment and saying, "What about your daughter, Ino?"

The woman looked slightly taken aback, "Yes, Ino is here, but may I ask why you need her?"

The Hokage nodded his head, "Of course Mrs. Yamanaka, it is your right as her mother. If Kakashi and I can come in, and if you will get your daughter, I will happily tell you what is going on."

Naruto was stressed out. Kai's heart meter had just started beeping frantically and several nurses had quickly rushed into the room to try and stabilize him. The only problem was, no matter what they tried to do, he never improved. Kai's heart was racing, and there was no physical reason for it to be happening. The doctors were baffled, and Naruto and Sasuke were worried, while Sakura just played along with Sasuke, hoping that sympathizing with him would get her noticed. It wasn't that she wasn't worried about Kai, it was just that she was in a room with Sasuke, and, in this situation, she must use all of her time and attention to try and get him to like her.

Suddenly, one of the younger nurses suddenly exclaimed, "Look! It's like he is covered in cuts!" Naruto immediately looked over and gasped. Kai's skin was crisscrossed with thin, red welts, which looked a lot like very shallow cuts or scratches.

Naruto quickly dashed over to the far side of Kai's bed from where the doctors and machines were and sat down next to the bed saying, "Come on Oni-san, don't give up. You can fight through this, whatever it is."

"Come on Oni-san, don't give up." Naruto's voice echoed from the darkness around Kai who perked up from his slumped position.

"Naruto?" Kai said softly, before stumbling back to his feet once more.

"Hmph," the voice grunted, "that fool cannot help you here boy. You must fight this fight alone, and there is no one that can help you now!" Kai's face firmed up as he steadied himself before trying to find his assailant again.

"So you see Mrs. Yamanaka," Sarutobi finished while Kakashi stood silently behind him, "that is why we need help from Ino." The old man had spent the last few minutes sitting on the Yamanaka's couch, explaining Kai's situation as well as the Hokage's suspicions on the subject. Kakashi had remained the silent watcher the entire time, hoping that this plan would work, while Ino stayed equally silent, sitting next to her mother.

Mrs. Yamanaka nodded and said, "I see Hokage-sama. I can understand why you wanted my husband or Ino," she then turned to Ino and said, "Do you think you can help the Hokage?"

Ino looked up, deep in thought, she wanted to help Kai, but she wasn't sure if she would be able too. She knew her family's Jutsu, but that didn't mean that she was completely confident that she could use them in the way that the Hokage was asking. Finally, she looked back down at the ninja elder, face set firm, and said, "I'll try Hokage-sama."

"Excellent," Sarutobi said as Kakashi let out a breath that he hadn't realized he was holding, "Kakashi, if you would."

Kakashi stepped over to Ino and placed his hand on her shoulder before looking over at her mother, "We'll meet you at the hospital; I have to get Ino there as quickly as possible." At Mrs. Yamanaka's nod, Kakashi and Ino disappeared in a swirl of leaves.

Kai was still trying to find his opponent, but his attempts at detection were continuously thwarted by the absolute darkness around him and the constant attacks that were still sapping his energy. "Why haven't you given up yet boy?" the voice demanded, now beginning to sound irritated, "You can save yourself a lot of trouble by just quitting."

Kai laughed softly, smirking, as he said, "But what you don't understand is that I won't. I cannot give up, because that would let down my friends, and I can't let that happen!"

The voice laughed ominously, the constant sound echoing from every direction, "If you feel so strongly, then you will die for your beliefs!" With that, the sword swipes redoubled and Kai was forced once again to his knees.

"Out of the way!" Kakashi shouted as he ran through the Hospital halls with Ino close behind, "Move it!"

"Sorry," Ino said as they ran past doctors and patients who had quickly moved to the side to get out of the semi-frantic Jonin's way, "Sorry."

Eventually, the two ninja reached Kai's room where Kakashi threw the door open before dashing in and looking once again at his student. Kai had worsened greatly since the last time Kakashi had seen him. He now had what looked like dark red scratches showing on all of his visible skin, and more were appearing as Kakashi looked on.

"Kakashi-sensei," Sasuke said, standing up as the Jonin burst into the room.

Then, as Ino came into the room and stepped around Kakashi, Sakura scowled, "Ino-pig," but Ino paid her no attention. Her eyes were on the boy lying on the hospital bed across the room from her.

She slowly walked over to Kai's beside, placing her hands on his arm and whispering something unintelligible before turning back to Kakashi, "Let's get started."

Kakashi smiled slightly when he saw Ino's reaction before he responded, "Alright, get in position, I'll watch your body."

Ino turned back around until she was facing Kai. Then, she stretched her arms out, with her first two fingers on each hand, as well as her thumbs, touching at the tips while her remaining fingers stretched upward, forming the hand sign for her family's Jutsu. She then lined up Kai with the opening enclosed by her hands and focused her chakra before saying, "Shintenshin no Jutsu!" and slumping forward as Kakashi moved to catch her and settled her into a nearby chair.

"And now," Kakashi said while his three students stared at him with questions written across their faces, "we wait."

Ino's vision slowly cleared as she appeared within Kai's mindscape. Her first thoughts were of how organized the room was. Kai seemed to have a very high level of mental discipline, but that made sense because someone would have to have that kind of control if they were going to make the kind of progress that Kai had in the short amount of time he had had to do it. Ino took a moment more to admire Kai's mindscape "room" before she turned around and gasped.

A hole had been blasted into the "wall" on one side of the "room," and beyond the hole was a pitch black void. Somehow sensing that Kai was out there, Ino steeled herself and walked out of the comfortable room and into the darkness.

As soon as she entered the void, she felt a cold chill run down her spine and shivered as a heavy feeling of hopelessness settled down. Ino quickly shook it off as she had been taught by her father before stretching out her senses to try and locate Kai's presence.

Kai was in pain; not that that was anything out of the ordinary, but it hurt all the same. He was covered in slowly bleeding cuts from his assailant's sword which were constantly sapping his strength away and slowly dragging him toward death. All the while, the Genin was tormented by this mysterious voice that emanated from everywhere and taunted him with his faults and limitations.

"You know that you can never amount to anything you foolish boy," the voice said maliciously, "you know that you will fail here as well, and when you do, I will rise to your place. I will take your body and your friends will suffer, and there is nothing you can do about it!"

Kai sobbed silently, caused both by his pain and the steadily building despair he was experiencing. He knew the voice was right. He knew that he was a failure. He knew that he had always been one.

The voice paused in its taunting for a moment before saying, "Oh, it seems like someone has decided to join in on our fun. But don't get it into your head that this person can help you. There is nothing that can pull you away from your imminent failure now!" But Kai could almost sense someone nearby now. He wasn't sure how he could; only that he did. Someone was here, someone that might be able to help him.

Then Kai heard a voice, not the taunting voice from everywhere, but a single, female voice coming from one definite direction, "Kai, where are you?"

Kai smiled slightly in relief while the figure in the darkness suddenly shouted, "NO!" and the attacks on Kai's hunched form redoubled once again, drawing Kai's thoughts away from anything but his pain.

"Kai, where are you?" Ino called out, following her ears toward the only sound she was able to hear, a very vague noise that was steadily growing louder as she walked. Then, just as she began to wonder if she would ever find anything, she practically tripped over a crouched form in front of her.

"Kai," Ino said hesitantly, reaching out a hand and placing it on the figure's shoulder, "is that you?"

The figure looked up, revealing a face crisscrossed with shallow, bleeding cuts, "I…Ino? Is this real?"

Ino was close to tears. Seeing Kai in this condition got to her in a way she hadn't anticipated, and she immediately fell to her knees and hugged him tightly, a hug that he instantly returned. "It's alright Kai," she whispered as he sobbed softly into her shoulder, "it's ok. There's no reason to be scared anymore."

Kai suddenly stiffened before rising from his position against Ino, placing his hands on her shoulders as he looked into her eyes, "Yes, there is. He is still out there, in the darkness."

"What do you mean? Who is out there?" she asked. Kai looked very serious, and his voice was even, which kept Ino from thinking he had lost his mind, but it still didn't help her understand what he was saying.

Kai grimaced, "I don't know," he slammed one of his hands into the ground before wincing and bringing it back up to rub it with his other hand causing Ino to lean toward him slightly due to the loss of contact, "but whoever he is, he is the one who did this to me. Where are we anyway?"

Kai's sudden question caught Ino off guard for a moment before she recovered and said, "We are in your mindscape. You have been unconscious ever since your mission to Wave, so the Hokage asked me to use my family's mind transferring Jutsu to enter your subconscious and try to find out what was wrong."

Kai sighed, "I've been in here getting the pulp beaten out of me. But, you said that this is my mind, right? Then why is it so dark?" As the words left Kai's mouth the area around the two Genin immediately began to lighten to a dark grey, and then to a lighter grey, until it finally became bright enough that the two Genin expected to see the sun shining overhead. The only thing it revealed, however, was a dull grey plain, extending forever in every direction except one where a small pinpoint of white could be seen that marked Kai's mindscape "room."

"Very well done," a man's voice said from behind Ino who jumped slightly while Kai stiffened, recognizing the voice, "it's about time that the pathetic boy figured out what was going on."

Kai stiffened as he looked over Ino's shoulder and finally saw the figure that had been systematically destroying him ever since he woke up in this place. The figure was about six feet tall and was wearing a long, grey cloak that hung open to reveal a red and black jumpsuit of a similar design to what Naruto wore, only not as loose. The man was holding a katana in his hand with a slightly bloody edge while the scabbard hung loosely from his belt underneath the cloak. The man's face was that of an elderly man, but the eyes showed level of vitality that you would expect to see in someone much younger, but never anyone as old as this man looked to be. The man's hair was grey and grew down from the top of his head to a beard that extended several inches below his face, which wore an evil smirk.

Kai immediately recognized the man standing only a few yards in front of him as the same one who had fought Kakashi back in the forest clearing where Kai had woken up. Wincing slightly, the boy immediately moved to place himself between his attacker and Ino. "Kai," Ino said, "who is that?"

"Oh how rude of me," the elderly swordsman said, bowing with an exaggerated flourish of his free hand, "I am Zanbifushi Hito!"

"Who?" Ino said, placing her hand on Kai's injured back as he stood protectively in front of her.

"I'll explain later," Kai mumbled before sinking once more into his fighting stance, "for now, we have an intruder to deal with."

Hito laughed, "Oh now Kai, don't call me an intruder. After all, I am not the real Zanbifushi Hito, just a memory-based version that you invited into your mind."

"What are you talking about?" Kai shouted while Ino just stood behind him, absorbing all this information for another time.

Hito laughed again before shaking his head, "Each time you used some of my memories to fight or train, you would awaken another part of my personality that was unintentionally implanted within your mind alongside those memories during the failed ritual that that fool Kakashi interrupted. When you accessed my Kenjutsu memories, you awakened the final part of my being and I immediately started taking over your consciousness. When I managed to breach the wall in your mindscape stronghold, you passed out and our one-sided battle began; a battle that I will now finish!"

Hito suddenly dashed forward and attempted to end the battle quickly by severing Kai's head from his shoulders, but found his attempt blocked by a katana that had suddenly appeared in Kai's hands. "I'm afraid not Hito," Kai said defiantly as he pushed the elderly man backwards, throwing him out of the deadlock and off balance, "this is my mind, and you no longer have the advantage here!"

Kai dashed forward and swung his sword horizontally, forcing Hito backwards before he reversed the stroke and brought it up toward the man's head. This stroke was blocked, however, before Hito used Kai's own move on him and pushed the Genin back before pressing his advantage once again.

Ino watched the Kenjutsu battle going on in front of her, completely in awe of the skill of these two fighters. On one side, there was Zanbifushi Hito, a man of unknown origin who had great skill despite his age, and seemed to have some kind of history with Kai, while on the other side was Kai himself, the Genin who was showing more skill with his katana than Ino had ever expected to see from him.

It didn't take long for Ino to realize that the two were evenly matched in skill. Although Kai was the weaker of the two physically, or at least as physically as things could get in someone's mindscape, he had a slight advantage over Hito since they were fighting in his mind. Hito, however, had the advantage of condition. Kai was beaten, cut, and bruised almost beyond recognition, and all of that had taken a toll on the Genin's body.

After a few more minutes of stalemated fighting, Ino realized that she would have to be the deciding factor in this battle; otherwise, the two would just end up fighting on and on, until one of them got too tired and made a mistake. Steeling herself for what she must do, shook slightly to try and snap out of her trance and drew out a kunai before waiting for her moment, the moment that she could turn the tide of the battle.

Kai fought Hito to a stalemate, neither of them able to overcome the other because of their mutual Kenjutsu style. Hito realized this as well and the man's face changed to an evil smirk during their next deadlock, "Did you ever wonder how I got you for my Tamashii Kirikaeru no Jutsu in the first place?"

Kai just sneered while Hito's smirk only grew before he continued, "You don't remember this, but your parents gave you up. They decided that they would rather lose their child than give up their lives. They took the easy way out I offered them, and then they ran."

Kai's eyes widened as Hito's words registered in his mind. That couldn't be true. Had his parents really given him up just to save themselves? Hito, sensing the boy's hesitation, suddenly pushed against him, sending Kai to his back while his katana went spinning across the floor.

"And now you foolish boy," Hito said as he approached Kai with his blade held over his head, "you will die."

Ino watched as Hito said something to Kai, which caused the boy to lose his concentration, before Hito pushed the Genin off balance and disarmed him. Hito slowly advanced upon the fallen Genin with his blade held over his head, at the ready for an attack that would easily kill Kai if it connected.

Thinking quickly, Ino threw her kunai at Hito, catching the man off guard and lodging it in his right shoulder. The elderly man let out a scream of pain and rage as he dropped his katana and rounded on Ino before stalking toward her and pulling the knife out of his arm.

"You foolish girl," Hito taunted, "you should have stayed out of this fight, but now it is too late. You have injured me, and for that, you will die." With a powerful backhanded strike, Hito smashed Ino in the face and sent her flying off to the side, away from Kai, and onto the

ground where she lay, dazed, as Hito advanced on her once again. This wasn't how she had planned for things to go.

This couldn't be possible. Kai didn't remember anything about his parents, but surely they wouldn't have just abandoned him to a madman like Hito just to save their own skins. They wouldn't have. They couldn't have. Could they?

Kai lay on the ground where Hito had thrown him, lost in his thoughts, completely oblivious to the fact that Hito had rounded on Ino until he heard her scream. He quickly jerked his head around in the direction the noise had come from and paled. Hito was standing over Ino's body, holding a bloody kunai in his hand while Ino's shoulder let out a torrent of blood from a fresh wound.

Kai felt a rage growing in him like he had never felt before. He could worry about his parents later, for now he needed to get over to Ino and stop Hito from killing her. Kai struggled back to his feet and looked up in time to see Hito preparing to plunge the Kunai into her again.

Ino screamed as Hito plunged her Kunai into her right shoulder as he stood over her. Laughing, the crazy man said, "You will not get to die a quick death, oh no. You have caused me pain, and that foolish boy is out of the way for now, so I can take my time with you and make you feel the same pain you gave to me!" Hito raised the kunai again and moved to plunge it down into her other shoulder, but suddenly stopped in mid attack.

As Ino watched, blood began to bubble from Hito's mouth as he looked down his body to see the sword point protruding from his stomach. Ino quickly used her good arm to scoot herself backward, away from the dying ninja, just as the sword disappeared back into his body with the sickening sound of flesh of metal.

Hito fell forward onto his face, revealing a panting Kai standing behind the dead ninja with a bloody katana in his hands, "Are you alright Ino?"

Ino nodded dumbly as he made his way over to her and used a quick Jutsu to heal her shoulder. "You didn't need to do that you know," Ino said, blushing, "I would have been alright once I returned to my own body."

Kai blushed back, "That's alright, I wanted to. After all, you helped me get out of this mess." Ino was about to respond, but just as she opened her mouth to speak, Kai's eyes opened wide and a blade suddenly burst out of his chest, sending a light spray of blood onto Ino's face.

"Finally!" Hito shouted, rising from the ground and clutching his chest, "The boy is dead!"

"NO!" Ino shouted, becoming consumed with anger. Ino suddenly charged the near-dead Hito with tears in her eyes, her fury at Kai's death overwhelming any rational thought she might have had.

Hito chuckled and used his free hand to catch the young girl's fist before twisting it painfully, causing Ino to fall to her knees next to Kai's body. "Foolish girl," Hito taunted before once again twisting Ino's arm, "he's gone now, and getting angry about it will only get you killed sooner." Hito released Ino's arm and sheathed his sword, watching as she collapsed completely, her sobs filling the otherwise silent air around them.

Is that Ino? Why is she crying? Who is that laughing? What happened? Kai's body was paralyzed with pain, all of it centered on his chest, right over his heart. Kai remembered healing Ino's shoulder, and then the awkward silence, and then…Hito! Kai tried to move, he had to get up. Hito was still alive, and he and Ino were in danger! After a few more seconds of straining, Kai began to get frantic, he couldn't move, what was going on?

Wait, maybe he couldn't move, but that didn't mean he was powerless. They were still in his mind, right? Grasping onto that last thread of hope, Kai began to focus on healing himself and regaining his strength.

Hito was still laughing when Ino ran out of tears. Her eyes dried up and she looked down one last time at Kai's battered body. She knew what she would have to do. She needed to release her Jutsu so she could tell Kakashi to kill Kai's body before Hito assumed control. That was the only way to salvage this situation now, and she knew it. She didn't like it, but she knew it.

Ino slowly moved her hands into a seal, hoping that Hito wouldn't catch on to what she was doing, but just as she began gathering chakra to release her Jutsu, Hito grabbed her arms and yanked them apart. "What do you think your doing?" he taunted as he lifted Ino into the air by her arms, holding her at the wrists with each arm stretched out to her sides, "You wouldn't be trying to escape me now would you?"

Ino shivered, she knew she was in trouble, but couldn't keep her thoughts straight enough to figure out a way out of it. If she had been thinking straight, she might have tried to break free from Hito's grasp, but as it was, she just dissolved into tears again.

"Ino," a soft voice said, coming from all around the two ninja and causing Hito to look around in confusion, "please don't cry, not for me, at least not yet."

Hito was furious. He had just killed the boy. After the long, mostly one-sided battle they had been through, Hito had finally overcome the boy's spirit and killed him, and yet, he was

talking. Hito growled and grasped Ino's wrists tighter, nearly crushing them in his grip, as he looked around for Kai.

Suddenly, juts when Hito began to believe that he hadn't actually heard anything, he heard it again. "Hito," Kai's voice said, "you shouldn't have done that. By bringing me so near death you gave me the desperation I needed to finalize my control over my mindscape. And that is not good news for you, especially since you happen to be threatening a friend of mine."

Hito scowled slightly before he smirked and changed his grip on Ino, holding her close to his body and re-drawing his blade before placing it at her throat, "And if you do anything to try and harm me, I'll kill her." Ino was petrified with fear and on the verge of tears again. This was not at all what she had signed up for when she had agreed to go along with the Hokage's plan.

"Do you really think that you can do anything I don't want you to in this place? You are in my domain, the only place in the universe where I hold absolute power." Kai's voice echoed from all around, perfectly simulating the effect Hito had used earlier.

"That doesn't mean that you can stop me from killing her," Hito shouted out suddenly and savagely jerked his katana across Ino's throat. The only problem was that Ino was no longer in his grasp. She was lying several dozen feet away, with her head on the lap of the crouched form of Kai, completely healed as if he had never been attacked in the first place.

"H…How?" Hito stammered as his katana dropped from nerveless hands.

"I told you," Kai said, this time without using the echoing effect, "you're in my domain now!" Hito immediately felt a blast of wind hit him, causing the elderly ninja to fall flat on his back and pinning him there through sheer force, while Kai easily strode through the maelstrom as if it wasn't even there. "You tried to take over my mind, but you failed," as Kai spoke, Kai's katana appeared in his hand, "you threatened my friends, but your threats were proven to be empty," the sword in the Genin's hand began to glow the blue color of his chakra, "and to top it all off, you lied about my family," Kai held his hand in front of his face forming a half-seal before his blade burst into flames.

Hito screamed incoherently in rage and fear.

Kai scowled darkly at the now doomed ninja, "Because you threatened the people that I hold dear, you will die for it." Suddenly, the fierce winds simply stopped, leaving Hito free to move, but not quickly enough. As Hito jumped to his feet, Kai made his move, suddenly appearing in front of him, with his flaming katana carving a fiery arc through the air, before easily slicing through Hito at the waist.

Hito stood there, eyes wide open, before slowly looking down and then back up at Kai. The old man feebly raised a hand and grabbed onto Kai's sleeve before slowly falling backward, as his now nerveless legs collapsed beneath him, spouting blood as his body separated.

Kai slowly turned away from the gruesome scene in front of him and waved his hand absentmindedly, causing another wind to whip up and savagely tear at the corpse of the now dead ninja. As Ino watched, slightly shocked, the body of the once fierce warrior began to dissolve into dust before blowing away over the grey horizon. Ino's face paled slightly until Kai walked over to her and offered her his hand to help her up off the ground. Shaking herself slightly, she blushed as she took his hand and was pulled to her feet.

"Are you alright?" Ino asked after she steadied herself.

"Never better," Kai laughed, scratching the back of his head.

Ino's face fell comically, "Please don't do that, it reminds me of Naruto."

Kai laughed nervously before dropping his arm and saying, "I guess we need to get back to the 'room' so we can get out of here?"

"Yeah," Ino said, "let's get going." The two Genin set off toward the distant white light that marked Kai's mental "room" both of them searching for something to say to fill in the awkward silence.

After a few minutes of walking, Kai stopped suddenly before turning to the Kunoichi and saying, "Ino, I have a slight request to make."

Seeing Kai had stopped, Ino turned toward him and tilted her head slightly before asking, "What is it Kai?"

Kai's face reddened slightly as he turned back toward their destination before saying, "I need to find out if Hito was telling the truth or not, and there is only one way I can do it."

"What do you mean?" Ino asked before putting her hand on Kai's shoulder and turning him back toward her.

Kai's blush deepened slightly and he bowed his head before saying, "I need to look through the rest of Hito's memories and find the moment when he took me from my parents."

"Huh?" Ino asked, perplexed.

Kai paled slightly before looking back up to her face. He had never told anyone from class except Naruto, Shikamaru, and Choji about his past with Hito, but Ino had just saved his life, the least he could do would be to tell her the truth. Not only that but he had pretty much trapped himself into explaining everything to her. "Well Ino," Kai started before sighing and saying, "Let's get back to the room first, then I promise I'll tell you everything I can."

Ino nodded, still confused, but determined to help in whatever way she could, and continued walking, leading the way to their destination.

"…Then, during our fight earlier, Hito said that my parents had abandoned me and ran. I didn't want to believe him, but its going to nag at me if I don't find out the truth." Kai finished. When the two had finally arrived in Kai's mental safe house Kai had immediately exercised his newfound power to repair the room and set everything back to the way it should have been. Once that was complete, he had created two armchairs for the Genin to use while Kai explained his story.

Ino now sat in her chair, deep in thought, before looking up and saying, "And that is what spurred you on to defeat him isn't it? You were angry at him for speaking badly about your parents, even though you never knew them, but now you need to know for sure."

Kai blushed slightly and said, "Something like that, yeah." The truth was that it had only been a small part of his motivation, the majority of it came from seeing her in trouble, but that was just because she was a fellow Konoha ninja and had come to help him out. Wasn't it?

Ino remained in deep thought for a moment before sitting up straight and clapping her hands, causing Kai to jump slightly, before saying, "Well then, I guess we should get started huh?"

Kai blinked stupidly, staring at her in wonder for a moment, before recovering and stuttering out, "Y...Yeah! Come on, Hito's old memories are over here." Kai rose from his seat and motioned for Ino to follow him to a trunk on one side of the room. When Kai opened it up, Ino gasped as her eyes fell on dozens upon dozens of shining, white, baseball-sized orbs, Kai however, frowned at the sight.

"Are these his memories?" Ino said with her eyes full of wonder, "Somehow I expected them to be darker or something more sinister looking, but these are actually beautiful."

Kai's continued frowning as he said, "Originally they were, but I felt that I should change how they looked so I wouldn't get depressed whenever I reviewed them, but that isn't important now."

Ino looked over at him, partially upset that he had shot down her fascination, and partially curious as to why he was frowning, "What's wrong."

"There not all here," Kai said as he reached into the trunk, "this thing should be close to overflowing, but it's not." Then, as the two watched, one of the bright silver orbs pulsed momentarily before simply vanishing.

Ino wrinkled her forehead in thought for a moment before suddenly saying, "Hito! Since you destroyed his presence here, and he said he was made from these memories, you eliminated their essence. Because of that, they no longer have anything holding them here, and they're vanishing without that anchor."

Kai cursed softly, "Then we need to get to work then." With that said, Kai reached into the chest and took hold of a memory orb before pulling it out and focusing on it, immediately becoming immersed in the memory. Ino hesitated only for a moment before she followed Kai's example.

After a few hours of searching, Kai was beginning to lose hope. The memories in the chest had been steadily disappearing, always starting at the top of the pile and working downwards, and some of them even vanished while one of the two ninja were examining them. So far, they had had no luck, only finding an occasional reference to a search for a new body, but none that talked about Kai specifically.

Then, just as they were nearing their third hour of search, Ino suddenly exclaimed, "Hey! I think I've got it!" Kai looked over at her and dropped the memory he had been looking at, which promptly vanished, before placing his hands over Ino's on each side of the small orb.

Completely missing the girl's blush, Kai said, "Alright, let's go together."

Ino, still blushing slightly, nodded, "On three. One…Two…Three," and the two Genin plunged themselves into one of Zanbifushi Hito's most recent memories.

Hito walked calmly along the mountain path underneath the searing noonday sun. His worthless underlings had once again failed to acquire the boy, so he had decided to just get the job done himself. It had been a relatively short distance to travel for a ninja of his skill, but he would pay for the exertion over the next few days. He had more than enough chakra to allow his body to make the journey, but even he had to pay the price of old age.

Hito smiled as the arch marking the entrance to the village he was heading for came into view. Quickly getting himself into character, Hito hunched over and flung his traveling cloak over his head, taking on the appearance of an old traveler, one that would probably be seeking shelter for the rest of the afternoon and night.

As he approached the archway, a guard dashed out of a small building set just inside and hailed him from a distance. "Halt!" the lightly armored man shouted, "state your business!"

Hito put on his cheerful old man smile and said, "Oh, hello there sonny. I'm just an old traveler, seeking shelter for a while. I've got some distance left to go, and I don't think I will be able to make it out of the mountains to the next town before night falls. I'm willing to negotiate for some supplies as well, if you'll have me."

The guard turned back toward the building he had come from and said something inaudible before turning back, "Alright old-timer, come on in." Hito waved before continuing on his way, moving with the slow, carefully intentional gait of the elderly.

Once Hito had passed within the boundaries of the village he began to look around, carefully keeping his face vacantly curious to avoid suspicion. After a moment, he recognized a few of the buildings that his minions had described to him and set off toward his destination, a small house on the far side of the village from his present location.

About halfway through the village, a middle aged man walked up to Hito, "Can I help you sir?" the man said, smiling widely.

"Oh it's no trouble young man," Hito said, seething behind his fake smile, "I'm just looking for a hotel or somewhere I can stay for the night."

"Oh, in that case, you should come over this way," the man said, gesturing to his left. When Hito looked, he silently cursed when he saw a large building clearly marked as the village Inn. "In fact," the man continued, completely oblivious to Hito's anger, "I am the owner of the Inn, and I would be glad to get you settled in if you would like."

Hito turned his painfully forced smile back on the man, "Oh you don't need to bother with me…"

"But I insist," the overly cheerful man said before moving to Hito's left side and placing his arm around the old man's slumped shoulders, applying just enough pressure to get him moving toward the building, "It is not a problem at all."

Hito sighed inwardly, but his fake smile became a real smirk. It looked like he would get to have a little fun with this village after all. His minions may have been stopped by their pathetic defenses, but nothing they could possibly muster would be able to overpower Zanbifushi Hito.

Hito stopped short, resisting the innkeeper's push on his back, and stood up straight, reaching his full height around six feet, putting him up higher than the chubby man who was trying to serve as Hito's escort. "Actually," Hito sneered, "I think I will find my own way now." Hito extended his right arm and waved it absently, causing a hole to open in midair, before reaching into the opening and pulling out a black katana.

"W..W…Who are you?" the innkeeper stuttered, backing away as Hito's KI started radiating out in waves.

Hito chuckled darkly before drawing his katana from its sheath, "You foolish man, you should have left me alone. Now, die at the hand of Zanbifushi Hito!" Hito brought his katana around in an arc, severing the man's head from his shoulders and sending a fountain of blood into the air before he turned and continued on his previous path.

Soon however, a plume of smoke appeared in front of him, halting his progress, as a ninja in a dark red jumpsuit appeared, holding his hand in front of him, "Halt! Drop the sword or I will

be forced to use lethal measures." Hito merely smiled as he quickly decapitated the man before stepping over the bleeding corpse.

It didn't take long for more ninja to appear, but Hito dealt with them all in a similar, and equally bloody, manner as he had with the first. The result was that by the time he had reached his destination, his sword and right arm were equally covered in the blood of half the men in the village, while Hito himself remained untouched.

As Hito approached the door to the small house, he heard a loud barking and turned in time to backhand a large dog that was charging at him. When the dog hit the wall next to the door, it suddenly burst open, and a man with dark hair and a purple vest with white pants dashed out with a shovel held over his head. Hito smiled as he formed a one-handed hand sign and brought his hand up to his face, before exhaling a large fireball that consumed the man and left him flailing on the ground, trying futilely to extinguish the flames. Hito merely laughed and stepped over the screaming man and stepped through the door of the house.

The first room was clearly a common area, where the family entertained any guests they might have, but there was no sign of any people there now, so Hito just moved along through a door across the room. This door opened into a hallway with four doors leading from it, one on each side of the short hall both at the beginning and the end. Hito shrugged and turned to the first door on his left and kicked it open, revealing a kitchen.

Hito looked around the room for a few moments before exiting and repeating the process across the hall, finding a bedroom. Hito heard a barely audible gasp when he entered the room and smiled as he turned toward a closet. Slowly, the elderly ninja reached for the door handle while his other hand held his katana at the ready, just in case there was any kind of threat. Just as his hand rested on the handle, the closet door burst open and Hito was kicked in the chest by a red-haired woman dressed in a black jumpsuit with a little purple trim.

"Ah," Hito said as he got up, "so the last of the Wareta clan is a fighter."

"I don't know who you are," the woman said, "but you will not have my son!"

Hito launched himself forward, hoping to end the battle soon, before the woman activated her bloodline, but saw with disappointment that he was already too late. It was with a small amount of surprise however, that Hito saw his blade pass through the woman's body without her putting up any kind of a fight. Maybe the Miraigan wasn't that useful after all.

Just as Hito turned back toward the closet, he was hit from behind and knocked into a bedside table, causing the lamp on top of it to break. He angrily jumped up and spun around to find the woman was once again on her feet with her bloodline active.

"How?" Hito demanded, just as the "dead" body on the ground disappeared in a cloud of smoke. Hito growled and moved in with his katana swinging, only to have the woman dodge a few swipes before Hito managed to catch her with a glancing blow on her arm.

The woman fell to her knees as she clamped her right hand over her wound. "Kai," she said as Hito advanced to finish her off, "please be safe." Those were the last words that she ever spoke before Hito ended her life with a single decapitating sword slice. Smiling, Hito turned back to the closet and saw the twelve year old form of the young Wareta Kai, cringing away from his mother's killer.

Kai and Ino stood next to each other with their hands clasped together where the orb had once been. It had disappeared just as they came out of their trance along with the last of Hito's memories in Kai's trunk. Ino looked up at Kai's face, watching as the tears flowed freely down his cheeks. "Come on Kai," she said, hugging him, "let's get out of here." Ino formed a hand sign and released a burst of chakra, sending her back to her body and putting Kai on the road back to consciousness.

Kakashi watched, concerned, as his student remained lying in his hospital bed, still showing no signs of improvement. Ino had been in his mind for several hours, and Kakashi was getting worried about her as well. Kai had stabilized shortly after Ino had entered his mind, but Ino remained away from her body and Kai remained unconscious.

Sarutobi and Mrs. Yamanaka had arrived around thirty minutes after Ino had performed her Jutsu and they were both concerned as well. Well, maybe concerned isn't the right word. Mrs. Yamanaka was becoming frantic with worry for her only daughter. "Do you think Ino is alright Kakashi-san?" Mrs. Yamanaka asked for the tenth time since she had arrived.

Kakashi sighed before turning to her and saying, "Yes Mrs. Yamanaka, I'm sure she is fine."

The woman didn't seem convinced, so Sarutobi decided to step in, "Mrs. Yamanaka, Ino is a completely capable ninja, and you should be proud of her. That being said, you should also trust her to be able to handle herself. This is just like any other mission; only this time, she has gone somewhere that no one else can go. You have to believe in her skill and that she will return to us safely."

Mrs. Yamanaka slumped slightly and sank into her own thoughts for a few moments until Naruto suddenly exclaimed, "Kakashi-sensei! It's Kai, he's crying."

Kakashi quickly turned back to his unconscious student and, just as Naruto had said, a few tears were slowly running down his face. Kakashi jumped yet again as he heard a groan behind him and turned in time to see Ino sitting up and rubbing her head before she was practically tackled by her mother.

"Mom," Ino said, struggling against her mother's grip, "please. Stop it." Ino managed to get free and stood from her seat before stumbling over to the bed. Just as she reached the

bedside, Kai moaned again and his eyes fluttered open, which brought a gasp from Naruto who jumped from his seat and dashed to the bed, opposite from Ino.

Kai looked around as he slowly sat up, his eyes looking confused until they settled upon Ino. Kai almost seemed to recoil as his eyes gained a haunted look as the tears began flowing again. With a strangled sob, Kai buried his face in his hands.

Hesitantly, Ino reached out and lifted Kai's head from his hands before enveloping him in a hug. Kai stopped sobbing for a second in shock before giving into his grief and flinging his arms around Ino and burying his head into her shoulder. Ino awkwardly patted him on the back, hoping it would help.

Kakashi looked on, mixed emotions showing on his face before he caught Naruto's eye and jerked his head toward the door. Naruto, getting the hint, got up and tapped Sasuke on the arm before leading him out of the hospital room, with Sakura following Sasuke like a trained puppy. Kakashi then turned to Ino's mother and gently took her arms before leading her out of the room. Sarutobi smiled slightly as he looked upon the two Genin before turning and leaving the room himself, softly closing the door behind him.

Down the hallway, Mrs. Yamanaka was nearly hysterical with worry about her daughter while Kakashi and the Hokage tried to calm her down. Naruto and Sasuke were deep in thought, still wondering what had happened to Kai, but glad that he seemed alright, and Sakura was still staring obsessively at Sasuke. In the hospital room however, it was all about two people who had just shared a life altering experience. It was about two friends, one comforting the other in their time of need.

AN: Yay! Another chapter completed! Just to make sure no one gets the wrong idea. Kai isn't going to suddenly become completely badass now. He was just really mad and in his own mind, and nothing limits us in our own minds except for ourselves… or something sappy like that… He is also not going to lose his Jutsu and Kenjutsu skills he got from Hito's memories now that they are gone. He assimilated most of them before they disappeared. Also, that was not the real Hito. Just in case someone missed it, which is entirely possible, the Hito that Kai killed in this chapter is basically an alternate personality that Kai unconsciously developed through using Hito's memories. It was trying to take over, and so Kai was forced to battle for control. Also, KI stands for Killer Intent, just so you know.

Jutsu List:

Tamashii Kirikaeru no Jutsu: Soul Transfer Technique

Shintenshin no Jutsu: Mind Body Switch Technique

This chapter was my first attempt at writing any kind of relationship scenes so I would appreciate any input that you are willing to give. Please review.