I guess it's been two or three years since I updated... In case there are any readers who have stuck around that long, thanks for giving this story another shot. If anyone is reading this for the first time, then just thanks, period! Reviews are, of course, welcome. Or should I say necessary? I was looking over the previous chapters and had to groan in despair in a lot of places. Someday, I'd like to write a story for which I don't have to do that, but I need your help! Please and thank you! Hope you enjoy. Next chapter is coming soon.

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Tenzou

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I've really done it now. I've abandoned my mission in the middle of a dangerous situation, and now the worst has happened. Naruto has gone berserk. The first sign was the number on my palm, but now there are explosions sending shock waves through the forest, and a great dust cloud spreading in the sky before me. There's no question that a full on disaster is unfolding over there. My lips tighten into a thin line. If the mission fails, if one of the kids is injured… if one of them… well let's think about that if it happens… Anyway, whatever comes, it will be my responsibility.

Still. I can't really regret what I did. I'm pretty sure that if I hadn't turned back, Kakashi would be dead, and to me, that would have been the worst outcome of all.

All I can do at this point is try to get to Naruto as soon as possible, and minimize the damage. The speed I'm moving at is almost reckless, but I don't think I have to worry about things like ambushes. For better or worse, Naruto is undoubtedly keeping Kabuto and any other enemies busy.

At the breakneck pace I'm setting, it doesn't take long to reach the site of the trouble. The trees suddenly open up in front of me, and the ground drops off sharply, spiraling down into a giant crater. I skid to a halt at the edge and drop into a crouch, taking quick stock of the situation. Naruto, of course, is in the center of the crater. In the time it's taken for me to arrive, he's sprouted the fourth tail. There are two lumps of… something… in the crater with him. They might be bodies, but in the state they're in, it's hard to tell. I scan the area for Sakura and Sai. They're on the rim of the crater, a few dozen meters away. They're definitely not unharmed. Sakura is clutching a nasty looking wound in her side, and Sai's leg is clearly broken. I look around for Kabuto. There's no sign of him, so unless he's one of the meat lumps in the crater…

As I'm trying to size up the situation, Naruto, or should I say Kyuubi, set's its sights on Sakura and Sai and sends a massive blast of chakra their way. In that condition, there's no way they can dodge in time. I start to move, but Sempai is there before me, scooping them out of harm's way. Thank heaven. You can always count on Sempai for that kind of thing. When I join them a few moments later, he tells me steadily, "I've got these two. You focus on Naruto." And then he adds in a low, reassuring voice, "It'll be okay, Tenzou. Everyone will be fine."

My heart which has been valiantly hammering away in an effort to keep up with me and my stress, stalls for a moment, but when it manages to start up again, it feels a little lighter. Sensei's specialty is taking care of his teammates. But still, in all the years I've known him, he's never spoken so gently to me.

Well. There's no way I can let sempai down, now.

I turn my attention to Naruto. He seems to be building up for the next attack. Now's my chance. I weave the signs to activate my jutsu, sink into a stable stance, and thrust out a hand. I can feel the ground resonating under my feet. In another moment, several beams erupt from the surface and arch down toward Naruto. They strike home and coil tightly around him. Naruto lets out an ungodly howl, and thrashes against his restraints. Sweat beads on my forehead as I try to keep him contained. I won't be able to hold it for long. Quickly I change my hand sign, and a ring of spiked columns rises around the captive kyuubi. Good. Preparations complete. I lunge down into the crater, strike Naruto's chest with my palm, just where Shodaime's necklace should hang on him, and quickly jump clear again. Slowly but surely, I begin to siphon off the kyuubi's chakra. It's a long, dicey process, and there are a couple of times when I feel like I'm about to lose it, but finally, the last of the cloak falls away, leaving Naruto himself again.

I stand looking down at him, trying to catch my breath. As usual, he's in awful shape, the skin scalded from his face and hands. Fortunately for him, he's still unconscious.

By this time Sakura has come running. She ought to be healing herself, but of course she heads straight for Naruto. She's not crying this time around, but the expression on her face is painful to see. Whatever Sakura may say under normal circumstances, the bond between these two is something special. She loves him, if not romantically, in a way every bit as meaningful. I feel a fresh wave of guilt over allowing her to go through this again.

Kakashi, having lent a shoulder to Sai on his way down to join us, is examining the two bodies. "Hmm… What a mess. Hard to tell much about them, in this condition… But at any rate, neither one seems to be Kabuto. What happened here?"

Sai looks at Sakura. Sakura lowers her head, clenches her jaw, and continues silently on with healing Naruto. For a moment, no one tries to say anything further, but then Naruto begins to stir. At first, he just blinks slowly, dazedly, up at the sky. Then he suddenly shoots up onto his feet, regardless of his only half healed injuries.

"Kabuto!" he growls, looking around wildly. His legs almost give way beneath him, but he barely seems to notice. "Where is he?"

Again, there's silence. Finally, Sakura says grimly, "He got away, Naruto. He met up with two other shinobi in the forest, and left them to slow us down, remember? Then…" She trails off.

Naruto takes in the crater, the bodies, the state of Sai's leg, and the wound in Sakura's side. "Dammit," he croaks in a weak voice, then again louder: "DAMMIT!"

Tears leak from his fierce blue eyes.

And then those eyes turn to me. "Yamato-taichou," he says desperately, "Why didn't you stop me, dammit! Where were you?!"

There's nothing I can say. It was my job to stay with him and control him in just such a case as this. And I didn't. He has every right to be angry.

But then I feel a warm, steady hand on my shoulder. "Give Yamato a break, Naruto. He turned back to help me. If he hadn't, I'd be dead."

Naruto's eyes widen in shock. He stares at Sempai for a moment, and then drops his eyes to the ground. "Sorry, Yamato Taichou. I didn't mean it." He pauses, then grits his teeth. "This is my fault. I know that." He glances at Sakura, then Sai, then shuts his eyes tight. Tears leak from the corners as he repeats hoarsely, "Dammit."

Sempai gives my shoulder a final squeeze and then walks by to take up the work of comforting his student. "Don't be too hard on yourself, either, Naruto. We ran into some difficult circumstances. Well, I can't say we played everything perfectly, myself included, but this won't be the last chance to get to Sasuke."

"Um, Sensei…" Sakura stands up. "Kabuto can't have more than twenty minutes head start. If you could summon Pakkun and follow his trail, it might not be too late to catch up…"

"Ahhh…" Sempai laughs weakly and rubs the back of his head. "Sorry, Sakura. I'm afraid I don't even have the chakra left to summon Pakkun. To be honest, I'm barely standing."

Sakura pauses a moment, and then turns appealingly to Sai. "Sai?"

Sai nods, and Sempai supports him as he lowers himself to the ground, spreads out a scroll, and starts to scribble a legion of mice. The animals begin to rise from the surface of the paper and scamper off into the forest.

As we wait for the results of Sai's search, Sakura continues to slowly work on healing her teammates. There's not much she can do about Sai's leg besides brace it and ease the pain. She finishes healing Naruto's burns, but I can tell from the way he's exuding do or die determination just to stand that he's in no shape to fight. As for Sakura herself, she's not saying anything, but the wound in her side was clearly caused by the kyuubi. It's barely responding to her treatment.

I glance over to where Sempai is slouched on a convenient hunk of rubble, hands dangling over his knees. He meets my eyes, and I can tell we're both thinking the same thing. Even if we can find Kabuto, can we really catch him? Frankly, I'm the only one who's still in halfway decent shape, and I just blew more than half my chakra stopping Naruto's rampage.

I try to step back and view the situation objectively. We know roughly where Kabuto's heading. In order to get off these islands, he's got to head North, and he'll have to go somewhere where he can swipe a boat. Frowning I try to pull up a mental map of the island. I'm pretty sure there are only a couple places like that. Should I go on alone and try to catch him at one of those places? If Sai's mice manage to pinpoint his location in the meantime, he can always send the info on to me by messenger bird.

Even supposing that I could find Kabuto, am I in good enough condition to stop and hold him? I can't say for sure… But actually, I think I've got a fighting chance…

"Tenzou."

Surprised, I snap out of my thoughts and stare at Sempai. There's something out of the ordinary in his tone of voice. It's sharp, which isn't like him, and there's a weird undercurrent of anxiety in it, which is even less like him. "If you're thinking what I think you're thinking, then the answer is no. I'm not sending you after Kabuto alone. Not in the shape you're in. We have no way of knowing if those two were the last of his subordinates. He may be on his way to rendezvous with others. It's not worth the risk."

For a moment, I just stare at him. Then something snaps. Cheeks burning with rage, I stalk over to his rock. Since he's sitting, or should I say flopped over like a pillow that's lost most of its stuffing, I tower over him, for once. "Sempai. Excuse me for saying so, but that's bullshit." His eye widens in surprise, but, I keep going. "Really, Sempai, who do you think I am? A rank beginner? If I run into a situation I don't think I can handle, then of course, I'll retreat. But right now, there still may be a chance, and as long as I'm reasonably careful, the risk is not prohibitive. We've both seen worse, so pull yourself together."

I think I've shocked Sempai pretty thoroughly, because he keeps staring at me with a kind of dazed expression. Under the mask, I'm pretty sure his jaw has gone lax. I shift uncomfortably, and then before I can relent, I turn around and head for Sai. Crouching down next to him, I say quickly. "I'm going on ahead. If you find Kabuto, send word to me, okay? And… If Sempai tries to do something stupid, like move, …stop him."

Sometimes, Sai's lack of emotion can be really refreshing. He just sends me off with a nod. No arguments. No questions.

A moment later, I'm heading top speed in the direction of the Northernmost fishing village, and the crater, our probably unwelcome gift to the island, is rapidly disappearing behind me.