Yay! New chapter! Thanks for the reviews! Please review even more and let me know what you think! Ha ha.
I can't wait for this story to be finished. I already have an idea for a sequel! But I need to finish my other story first in order to start it… Sigh…
Enjoy!
Disclaimer : I do not own Naruto. They belong to Masashi Kishimoto.
Chapter 12
As Sasuke, Sakura, and Naruto rushed into the dark and looming Forest of Death, immediately they were on their guard for any attacks. Not even five minutes into racing through the thick forest, Sasuke abruptly stopped, signaling the other two to stop as well.
"Something's coming…" Sasuke blinked and his Sharingan turned on and he stared into the forest.
"Heh…so you sensed us already…" Three Rain nin jumped out from the surrounding trees and surrounded the group.
"Hn. Your lack of chakra control made your presence pretty obvious…" Sasuke snorted.
"Sigh…Sasuke-kun, you deal with them." Sakura mumbled, irritated that they were attacked not even five minutes into the second part of the exams.
"Unless you can't handle it, teme!" Naruto teased.
"Hn." Sasuke's hands flew in a flurry of seals and put two fingers to his mouth. "Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!"
A large fireball roared towards the Rain nin.
"N-nani?" The Rain nin immediately jumped away, but still got singed from the hot flames.
"Leave." Sasuke glared at them with his blood-red eyes. "Unless you're not afraid of getting your scroll stolen."
"Tch! Let's go!" the ring leader said and the Rain nin retreated.
"Hah! What a bunch of wusses!" Naruto laughed.
"Hn. Says the one who doesn't even lift a finger to fight the so called 'wusses'." Sasuke smirked at Naruto.
"What? Why you - !" Naruto growled.
"QUIET!" Sakura shouted at the two. "This is NOT the time to be fighting like two-year-olds! We're in the middle of the Chuunin Exams for kami's sake! We're going to need all of us to be on full alert, not just me!"
The boys just huffed, but silently agreed.
"Anyways, we should take some cautious measures just in case we get separated by sudden attacks. Like a password of sorts." Sakura said.
"That's a good idea…" Sasuke speculated.
"But…what kind of password?" Naruto asked. "Oh! What about 'RAMEN'!"
BONK!
"Little children shouldn't open their mouths when the adults are talking, ne? NA-RU-TO?" Sakura smiled evilly.
"Aha…ha…haha…Hai…Sakura-chan…" Naruto laughed nervously. 'S-s-scary…'
'Hmmm… The password should be something that no one will know or guess… Something not too simple or too complicated… AHA!' Sakura smiled.
"How about we recite a verse of the 'Nin Song'?" Sakura smiled. "A large amount of loud enemies is the friend of the shinobi, hide and remain silent. A shinobi must understand the proper time when the enemy is tired and ill prepared."
"Got it." Sasuke smirked.
"Sigh…why did you have to pick such a long password, Sakura-chan…" Naruto whined.
"Oh get over it Naruto." Sakura laughed. "Now the real issue – who's going to hold on to the scroll?"
"I will." Sasuke said.
"Eh? Why should you get to guard it, teme!" Naruto pouted.
"Hn. Because knowing you, you'd lose it in a second…" Sasuke stated.
"No I wouldn't!" Naruto argued back.
"Naruto…have you seen your room? Like…really take a good look at it…" Sakura sweat-dropped.
"What are you talking about? My room is completely fine!" Naruto said.
"Are you kidding? You have empty ramen cartons all over the place and your clothes cover every inch of the ground! And you're room has been starting to smell like a cat died in there or something!" Sakura scolded.
"…" Naruto blushed.
"Hn. And that's why I get to keep the scroll." Sasuke smirked.
"Keh. Fine. But I'm still better than you!" Naruto shouted.
"Whatever, dobe."
"Sigh…boys…" Sakura face-palmed herself. "Anyways, let's get going. We need to find the other scroll soon. We only have two days left."
"Aa. Let's move ou - !" Sasuke was interrupted by a large gust of wind.
"N-nani?" Sakura shouted.
"Where is this wind coming froooOOOOOM!" Naruto was swept off his feet and blown away, into the forest.
"NARUTO!" Sasuke and Sakura shouted.
And just like that, the wind died. Sasuke and Sakura had hid in the nearby foliage in case this was another enemies' attack. After surveying their surroundings for five minutes, they deemed it safe enough to come out.
"W-what was that? And where did Naruto fly off to…" Sakura whispered, worried.
"I don't know, but that was no normal wind…" Sasuke muttered.
"Oh man! What the hell was that!"
Sasuke and Sakura turned their heads to the right and there was Naruto, stepping out of the trees.
"Are you guys all right?" Naruto asked.
"Naruto! I was worried you got lost or hurt!" Sakura smiled.
"Eh-heh! I'm fine, Sakura-chan!" Naruto smiled.
Sakura was about to walk towards Naruto, but was stopped by Sasuke.
"What's the password, Naruto. The 'Nin Song'." Sasuke glared.
"Eh? You mean that long thing? Muo! I told you, Sakura-chan! It was too long!" Naruto whined.
Both Sakura and Sasuke smirked. Sasuke pulled out a kunai and threw it at Naruto, who dodged the attack easily to the right. But Sakura was expecting that and was waiting to the right, with her hand raised. She swung her fist and punched Naruto, sending him flying through the air and hitting smack into the tree opposite where they stood, a loud crack resounding through the air.
"N-nani? W-what are you guys doing!" Naruto shouted.
"You're not Naruto." Sakura glared.
"The dobe may be slow at times, but he's not a complete and total idiot." Sasuke smirked.
"…Heh." 'Naruto' smirked. "So I've been found out…"
The fake Naruto was surrounded by a poof of smoke. When the smoke cleared, it revealed a Grass Nin. He…or she…had long black hair, pale skin, and dark eyes.
"You possess the Earth scroll, correct? That means you need my Heaven scroll." The creepy guy smiled. "Well, let the battle begin…"
With that, the Grass Nin brought out his Heaven scroll and…
'Ewww! Gross! Did he just swallow the Heaven scroll? And what's with that abnormally long tongue?' Sakura scrunched her face up in disgust.
'This is no ordinary guy…' Sasuke gritted his teeth, muscles tensing in preparation for a fight.
Both knew this was not like the fight with the Rain Nin. The chakra levels alone was proof enough of that. Knowing they had a hard fight ahead of them, both pulled out their respective katana and got into a defensive position.
"Heh. Here I come…" The Grass Nin said, as he stared at them with the intent to kill.
Both Sasuke and Sakura instantly froze and their heads lowered, making their hair cover their eyes.
'So easy…' The Grass Nin thought, thinking he paralyzed them with visions of their death.
But in the blink of an eye, Sasuke and Sakura stood behind the Grass Nin on opposite sides, their katana raised and pressing dangerously against the enemy's neck. Both their heads were raised as the light streaming through the trees made the shadows dance on their face eerily.
"Such Genjutsu won't work on us…" Sasuke stated, his Sharingan shining in the sunlight.
"Do not underestimate us…" Sakura glared, her Hakkyougan gleaming with hate.
"Oh? To have reached such stages in your Kekkai Genkai at such a young age…" The Grass Nin smiled, as if he found a brand new toy.
He flickered out of sight and reappeared a couple of feet away from them.
'Fast!' Sakura thought.
- Meanwhile –
"Ahhhh! Man, that hurt! Are you two okay?" Naruto rubbed the back of his head, having crash landed against a tree.
When he got no answer, he lifted his head only to see he had been blown into a different clearing, with no sign of Sasuke or Sakura.
"Ah! It can't be! We got separated!" Naruto shouted.
"Ssssss…"
Naruto froze at the sound. Slowly, he turned his head and his eyes widened at the sight. Behind him was what looked like a twenty-foot long snake, leering at him like Naruto's his next meal.
"Oh. Shit." Naruto quickly jumped away as the snake dove for him with its mouth wide open.
But Naruto didn't notice the snake's tail coming from behind. The tail grabbed him and held him still before flicking him towards its waiting mouth. The snake swallowed Naruto whole.
'What the - ! It actually ate me! It freaking ate me!' Naruto shouted in his mouth.
"Oi! Let me out of here you damn snake!" Naruto's voice sounded muffled, having coming from inside the large reptile.
Naruto tried punching his way out, but it had no effect. Gritting his teeth, he put his hands together and formed a single seal.
"This is going to get messy… Tajū Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"
The middle of the snake started growing larger and larger, before it finally burst and pieces of flesh flew in all directions. In the middle of it, Naruto sat, with a disgusted face as he wiped snake guts off himself.
"Gross…" Naruto mumbled. "I better find Sasuke and Sakura, fast."
Naruto quickly got up and headed for where he felt Sasuke and Sakura's chakra.
- Sasuke and Sakura –
Pant... Pant... Pant…
Sasuke and Sakura heaved, as the stood facing the Grass Nin. They each had a few scratches and bruises here and there. But otherwise, was okay. The Grass Nin, however, was bleeding quite a bit from his side, courtesy to Sakura and Sasuke's combo move. They were able to catch him unaware and with Sasuke's speed and Sakura's plan, Sasuke was able to get past the Grass Nin's defense and nicked him pretty deep in his side.
'This is getting bad. Even with that wound, the Grass Nin seems unaffected. Sasuke-kun and I are running out of time. We need to end this soon, or else we'll be wasting our chakra…' Sakura thought.
"If you hand over your scroll like good little children, I'll think about letting you two go." The Grass Nin smiled, his long tongue coming out to lick his lips.
"No."
Looking to her right, Sakura saw Sasuke glare at the Grass Nin, Sharingan activated as he panted lightly. They needed a new plan, and fast.
'Just who is this guy…!' Sasuke gritted his teeth.
"Amazing… You two have exceeded my expectations…" The Grass Nin eyed them again with that creepy stare.
"What do you want with us!" Sakura growled out, trying to buy more time to think of a new strategy.
"Oh, wouldn't you want to know. But that would just ruin the fun, now wouldn't it?" The Grass Nin smiled.
"Enough talk!" Sasuke ground out as he darted off to make the first move.
"Sasuke-kun, dame (1) !" Sakura shouted, her eyes wide.
'If he rushes in like that…!' Sakura moved quickly, praying to the Kami above that she makes it in time to offer assistance.
The Grass Nin smirked. He bit his thumb before he performed a set of seals too fast to see, even for Sasuke's Sharingan.
"Sen'eijashu (2)!" The Grass Nin lifted his right arm and from his sleeves, a dozen snakes came slithering out before shooting towards Sasuke.
'Nani? Snakes? Then that means…!' Sakura remembered something from a book she read in the compound's library.
- Flashback –
Konoha's History.
"Hm. They might ask some questions on our history…" Sakura thought.
Reaching towards the shelf, she carefully slipped the book out of its place and went back to her seat. Making herself comfortable, she opened the book and commenced her reading. The first chapter spoke of the founding of the village and slowly progressed to the current time.
"The Legendary Sannin…" This caught Sakura's attention. Especially the 'Legendary' part.
"Trained by the Sandaime himself, the three pupils of our great Hokage-sama were deemed by an enemy shinobi as the Legendary Sannin. Their names shall be known throughout the lands as the strongest shinobi of their time. Jiraiya of the Toads. Tsunade, the Slug Princess and notorious Medic genius. And lastly, Orochimaru, the master of Snakes."
Sakura paused.
"Orochimaru…" She narrowed her eyes and skimmed to the part about Orochimaru.
"Orochimaru was deemed a genius, far more advanced than his peers. He was the most favored of the three students under the Sandaime. Being an orphan, he was very introvert and unsociable. But he had a dark side. Yearning for the Hokage's seat, Orochimaru's views became warped. During the shinobi war, Orochimaru was discovered doing illegal human experiments underground and was exiled. He is now known for his obsession for power and his snake summons."
Sakura stared at the picture of a young boy with jet black hair and eerie yellow eyes.
"Sounds like a pedophile…" Sakura muttered as she continued on with her reading.
- End –
Sakura concentrated chakra into her legs. Opening her mouth, Sakura was about to shout a warning to Sasuke but snapped her head to above her. A dozen kunai came flying from the top of the trees and pinned down each snake that came out of the Grass Nin's sleeve. Sasuke stopped abruptly, before looking up to the trees.
"Uzumaki Naruto! Here to save the day!"
"Naruto!" Sakura smiled, relieved that he was okay.
"Dobe!" Sasuke smirked. "You're late!"
"Keh! A hero always appears at the last minute!" Naruto smirked.
Jumping down, Naruto stood next to Sasuke, glaring at the enemy nin.
"You two! Regroup!" Sakura shouted and without another word, the two boys jumped back, each one flanking opposite sides of Sakura.
Lowering her voice so that the Grass Nin wouldn't hear, she whispered to the other two, "Be careful. I have an inkling of who he is and it is not good…"
"Aa." The two responded.
"Now, now, children. Isn't it rude to talk about people behind their back?" A voice rasped, right behind them.
Eyes widening, they quickly turned but was too late. The three of them were disarmed and kicked away.
"Gah!" The three of them screamed as they landed on the hard ground.
Naruto was the first to recover, having the advantage with the Kyuubi sealed in him. He charged at the Grass Nin pulling out both his katana and tanto.
"Naruto! Matte!" Sakura yelled.
But it was too late. Naruto engaged the Grass nin in a series of sword maneuvers. Slashing and jabbing, Naruto quickly settled into his combo routine as he alternated with using his katana and tanto. But no matter how many times he striked, the Grass nin seemd to slip away by a fraction.
'Kuso! Just! One! Hit!' Naruto growled in his mind.
As his anger escalated, a bit of the Kyuubi's chakra leaked out, transforming his once clear blue eyes into a fiery red.
'Hoh? So this is the fabled Kyuubi container…' The Grass nin noticed.
Quickly twisting his body like snake, the Grass nin got behind Naruto and smacked some points in Naruto's hands, disarming him. Landing a punch, the Grass nin knocked Naruto out.
"Naruto!" Sasuke and Sakura yelled.
The Grass nin grabbed the back of Naruto's shirt and lifted him off the ground. Grabbing the end of the shirt, the Grass nin lifted it up and there on Naruto's stomach, the Kyuubi's Seal stood stark black against Naruto's tan skin.
'He knows…!' Sakura interpreted.
'Shit!' Sasuke also came to the same conclusion.
They both got up and rushed to Naruto, trying to get him away from the enemy. But before they reached the two, the Grass nin raised his free hand and chakra surrounded each fingertip.
"Gogyō Fūin (3)!" The Grass nin then jabbed his hand right where the Kyuubi's Seal was.
Even though he was unconscious, Naruto still felt the pain and a heart-wrenching scream ripped from his lips. Slowly, Naruto lost consciousness and the Grass nin flung him aside.
"Not bad for the Kyuubi container. Now to see the fruits of the youngest Uchiha." The Grass nin smiled as he charged towards Sasuke.
Seeing this, Sakura quickly intercepted and threw three kunais to stop the Grass nin in his track as well as gaining his attention. Sakura gulped and the next five words got the Grass nin's full attention.
"I know who you are…" Sakura glared.
"Hoh? As expected of you, little Sakura-chan." The Grass nin smiled. "That sharp eye and vast knowledge is just like your sister's. But you are more controlled when it comes to emotions it seems. You're more…logical and reasonable."
"What are you doing here. You were exiled and showing your ugly face here, in the middle of the CHUUNIN EXAMS is enough to get you killed." Sakura stated.
"You can say something has caught my attention…"
"And what, pray tell, is that?"
"Well, rather than something, more like some thingsss…" With that, the Grass nin charged at Sakura instead.
Knowing this would happen the moment she opened her mouth, Sakura already had her katana raised. Feinting to the left, she quickly twister her body and brought her katana down in a swift strike. But the Grass nin dodged it and using the added force, he twisted his body to make the kick more powerful and knocked the sword out of Sakura's hand. Forced with no weapon, Sakura proceeded to taijutsu. Punches and kicks were traded and she was able to land a few hits in exchange for receiving some herself. But her speed wasn't like Sasuke's and she was unable to dodge the oncoming hit which knocked her to the side. But she wasn't finished as she got up to strike again. But the Grass nin had moved on to Sasuke.
"DON'T YOU DARE TOUCH SASUKE-KUN, OROCHIMARU!" Sakura growled/shouted as she pushed herself off the ground and kicked the Grass nin in the side, effectively catching him off guard.
"Sakura! Watch over Naruto! I'll take care of him!" Sasuke ordered.
"But, Sasuke-kun! He's - !"
"I know! Now that I know who he is, this will be a lot easier…" Sasuke smirked, reassuring Sakura. "Now go."
Hesitating for a bit, Sakura reluctantly went over to Naruto's fallen body and proceeded to look over his injuries for any serious ones.
"Orochimaru." Sasuke seethed as the Grass nin got up.
"It sseemsss little Sssakura-chan hassss revealed my true identity. How boring. It was more fun when you didn't know who I wasss…"
Orochimaru, now identified, ripped off his mask to reveal his true visage. His white skin and gold eyes framed with purple shading and long black hair held back by a hitae-ate with a note as the emblem was revealed.
"Naruto-kun and Ssakura-chan had put up a good fight, like the good little prey they are. Now it'sss your turn Ssasuke-kun…" Orochimaru smiled.
- Meanwhile –
"Report." Anko said as she stared at what lay before her.
"Anko-san. These three were found just now. I've never seen anything like it." A Jounin said.
"There weren't any major injuries, but they're all missing their faces…" another Jounin reported.
"Wait! Missing their…faces?" Anko froze.
'There's only one person who can do that…!' Anko thought, panicking.
At that moment, two ANBU appeared. Anko already knew who they were, their Hawk and Raven masks plus the traditional red scarf for captains gave it away.
"You know." Anko said.
"Hai." The two ANBU replied.
"Let's move out." Anko said as she headed for the Forest of Death, the two ANBU captains following after her.
- Back at the Forest of Death –
Sasuke quickly dodged attack after attack. His Sharingan allowed him to anticipate every movement Orochimaru made.
'Shit! At this rate, the bastard will wear me down and I'll be overtaken from exhaustion!' Sasuke gritted his teeth.
Dodging another attack, Sasuke ducked and kicked Orochimaru away. He threw a windmill shuriken and kunai at Orochimaru, who dodged easily onto a tree branch.
"You'll have to do better than that, Sssassuke-kun…" Orochimaru smiled.
"Hn." Sasuke smirked and his fingers twitched.
'What - ? Wires?' Orochimaru noticed almost invisible wires attached to the weapons that were thrown.
With a few twitches of his fingers, Sasuke manipulated the weapons to trap Orochimaru against the tree. Putting his hands together, he did one seal and fire started to line the wire and went straight for Orochimaru, burning him into a crisp.
Taking this as a chance, Sakura quickly grabbed Naruto and went to Sasuke's side.
"Did we get him?" Sakura whispered.
"…No." Sasuke glared at the fire in front of him.
The fire extinguished and Orochimaru still stood there.
"Ke ke ke… Asss expected of the Uchiha blood. Your Ssharingan hasss developed well…" Orochimaru hissed.
"Sasuke-kun, here." Sakura said as she handed him a pill.
"What is this?" Sasuke whispered.
"A soldier pill. It'll replenish our chakra reserves for the time being." Sakura explained as she popped one in her own mouth.
Sasuke did the same. "If you're giving me this now, that must mean you have a plan."
"Aa. When I give the signal, we flee. Right now, with Naruto unconscious, we can't take Orochimaru on. Besides, he's not even using his full powers right now. Meaning we never stood a chance in the first place. The only reason why we've survived so far is because he's only playing with us. He doesn't intent to kill us. He needs…no wants us. Remember?" Sakura said.
"Aa."
"Let's move." Sakura said.
Feeling her chakra reserves fill back up, Sakura engaged in the second stage of her Hakkyougan. Her hands quickly flew through familiar seals. Her eyes shined an icy blue and Sakura whispered, "Magen: Chō Shinka… (4)"
Butterflies instantly surrounded the area.
Performing another series of seals, she whispered, "Magen: Nijū Kokoni Arazu no Jutsu…"
The surroundings changed.
"Hoh? Genjutsssu, ka?" Orochimaru smirked. "Let'ss sssee how advanced you are on your bloodline limit, Sssakura-chan…"
"Sasuke-kun! Now!" Sakura shouted.
Sasuke quickly grabbed Naruto and jumped away. Sakura followed after him. Using her Hakkyougan, she made a rip in the genjutsu, allowing her, Sasuke, and Naruto to safely escaped. Sakura was the last to leave the genjutsu. Looking behind her at the tied up Orochimaru, Sakura released her first illusion.
"Kai…" The butterflies shimmered before revealing their true form – A series of floating explosion tags. They all exploded, one by one, combining into a bigger explosion. The smoke and noise allowed the three of them to escape as Orochimaru was delayed by the explosion.
'Plus, the second illusion I placed will buy us even more time to put some distance between us. The double layer surroundings illusion will confuse him enough, hopefully…' Sakura thought as she caught up with Sasuke, who was carrying Naruto.
"We need to find shelter, and quick so that I can tend to our wounds." Sakura said.
"Aa."
- Orochimaru –
"Ke ke ke…Amazing! Ssakura-chan hasss masstered her Hakkyougan enough to ssset up sso many layersss of illusssionssss…" Orochimaru smiled in glee. "At thisss rate, they will prove to be very… ripe for the picking…"
Orochimaru quickly dispelled the illusions Sakura put up and was about to leave before he was stopped by two katana at his throat and a kunai in his face.
"Anko…Itachi…and Yuuki…" Orochimaru smiled.
"Orochimaru…!" The three hissed.
"I knew there was a snake lurking here…" Yuuki growled.
"What are you doing here…" Anko hissed.
"Aww. Are you mad that I didn't take you with me, Anko?" Orochimaru smiled sadistically.
"Orochimaru, you are under arrest and will be taken for betraying Konoha." Itachi recited, before the other two would lose their tempers.
"I'm afraid I can't let that happen. You sssee, I jussst met some interesting children and I wisssh to sssee them again…" Orochimaru chuckled darkly.
"I won't let that happen!" Yuuki growled as she pushed her katana against Orochimaru's neck further.
"It's too late…" Orochimaru smiled as he slowly melted into a puddle of mud.
'Substitution!' The three thought as they witnessed their prey disappear.
"Damn it!" Yuuki cursed.
"We should report this to Hokage-sama…" Anko glared at the puddle of mud.
"Aa." Itachi said and the three leaped to the tower.
- Team 7 –
They had found a tree with a hollow area under the roots and decided to set up camp. Sakura ripped a part of her shirt and went to find water to wet it. Bringing it back, she placed the damp cloth on Naruto's forehead. Sasuke had went to find some wood to start a small camp fire and brought it back.
"Sasuke-kun, where's the scroll?" Sakura asked.
"…During the fight with Orochimaru, the scroll was taken and the bastard burned it." Sasuke said through clenched teeth.
"I see…Well we still have two more days to get two scrolls." Sakura said.
"I'll go set up some traps." Sasuke sighed as he silently agreed with Sakura and got up.
Sakura went to Naruto's side and lifted up his shirt. She looked at the seal Orochimaru placed on Naruto's Kyuubi Seal.
'It looks like…a lock of some sort…' Sakura mused as she analyzed it, mentally taking notes. 'Nii-sama or Nee-sama may know how to revert this…maybe even Kakashi-sensei…'
Sighing, Sakura placed Naruto's shirt back down and flipped the cloth over on Naruto's forehead.
- Off to the Side –
"So it's those three?" A guy smirked. "They don't look that great…"
"That girl pisses me off. What's with the ridiculous pink hair?" a girl huffed.
"Hush. Do not underestimate them. He said to just test them out. See what they're capable of…" a male voice rasped.
"Hmph."
(1) Dame – don't/ you can't
(2) Sen'eijashu - Hidden Shadow Snake Hands
(3) Gogyō Fūin - Five Elements Seal
(4) Magen: Chō Shinka - Demonic Illusion: Butterfly Evolution
(5) Magen: Nijū Kokoni Arazu no Jutsu - Demonic Illusion: Double False Surroundings Technique