THANKS TO GINA TSUKIKO FOR BETA READING THE CHAPTER
RSFan:Yes now things are unlocking and moving forwards. Thank you for your kind words
Joey91731: It is painful and difficult to understand in his situation where he don't know anything of their past. Thank you for being here.
Guest: 'Stupid' is an interesting way to express you opinion. Can you define it more or is it just based on some biased tastes? Thanks to develop it.
BlindSaya:Don't worry I am an NaruSaku at core! But I am not sure you will like what will happened next ;) The dominio effect will begin soon. Thanks
Skillet:Hinata is just here to mess up more the plot *evil smirk* and show how much Naruto don't even look at her. Thanks
Eight heroes: Naruto have a bunch of bad memories… Thank you for your support
Maxslayer10: some answer will be coming soon. Thank you for being here
Aewina-chwan: Je n'aime pas Hinata, elle n'est pas mechante mais elle est tellement nunuche et inutile que j'ai envie de la claquer. La preuve, elle passe son temps a tomber dans les pommes. Les gens l'aime juste parce qu'elle a des gros seins, franchement quelle reduction de la femme! Au moins Sakura est forte et a un cerveau (enfin en theorie, parce que cette conne a voulu epousé Sasuke, j'en doute parfois). Oui Kiba a juste senti que l'odeur de Sakura avait changé mais il ne sait pas que c'est ça. MERCI!
Guest: Thanks! Sakura's secret will unweil but maybe not the way you think.
Guest: Thank you for your support. Why should I continue to write?
Guest: Thanks, at least I need a long long long break to find my motivation back. I don't like hatred and I received my share with this story. I worked for free and I received insults.
Sinedd662: very soon. Thank you for being here
Alphadark19: I hope you will like this chapter even more ;) Thanks
Slasher:I think he deserve to have his friend supporting him. Thanks
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Dpmaragoni: I will keep publishing as long as I have people reading and reviewing it. For a new work I need a long long long break to find my motivation back. Thank you for being here
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Tiny tanaka: Hanabi don't know that it's Naruto child indeed. Thank you for your kind support
YamiKitsune67: I hope you will like the next chapter too. Thanks
Donthedarkdragon26: It is possible that he learn about the existence of the crystal ball even if the third died. People talk about what the dead were used to do or able to do. He could have heard some stories about it. Thank you for being here J
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blueZ44: NaruHina is just to create more mess Thank you. I hope you will like the next chapter
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Touken:Thank you for being here. Yes the memories comes slowly but are always hard ones.
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Chap 25: In the name of our friendship...Passing by the rooftops, the group travelled with great speed. Sasuke was leading the way at a fast pace, keeping Sakura and Ino at his heels. They arrived in front of the Hyuga's gate to be received by the stern sentinels blocking their path.
"What's the purpose of your visit?" One of the guards demanded.
Not wanting to create any conflict with the Hyuga clan, Sakura took it upon herself to comply to the Hyuga's protocol and whispered to her teammates to let her deal civilly with the sentry. She was well-known and appreciated in the clan since she treated many of their members during the last war. She doubted that it was the case for Sasuke who was still looked with mistrust.
"We came because we are searching for Naruto Uzumaki. Our source has indicated that he was here. So please let us enter to see him." Sakura sweetly announced.
"I'm sorry, Sakura-sama. But we are not allowed to let you in." The guard refused.
"I guess you don't understand the situation. It's important." She insisted.
"We received strict orders concerning Uzumaki-sama and his teammates. You can't meet with h–" The man didn't get the chance to finish his sentence as Sakura had slammed his face against the wall.
"Listen carefully." She hissed, her temper flaring up like a barbecue teased with oil. "Here is my Hokage's Order naming me as Naruto's bodyguard. This means, I have to be with him at all times. So bring me to your master and we will see if he goes against his Hokage. Understood?" She pulled a scroll out of her pouch and put it just under the guard's nose.
"Yes Ma'am!" The man yelped.
"I'm glad that we arrived to an agreement so fast. It would be bad if the Hyuga clan was labeled as traitor because of a misunderstanding." Sakura said, her tone back to a more cordial one, before releasing the guard.
Sasuke observed his teammate in silence as they followed the guard inside. He couldn't really consider her method civil, as she dared to call it, but he wouldn't deny her effectiveness which was the most important element in this mission.
However, as rough as Sakura could be, she still demonstrated good political skills as they encountered the Hyuga's head. She didn't lose her cool as she faced Hiashi's refusal to let them meet with Naruto which was proof that she knew how to compose herself when she had to. The negotiation was arduous and the clan's head inflexible, but she still managed to point out indisputable arguments to convince the man.
Sakura affirmed that Naruto was distraught due to his memory recovery, and Ino testified to it as well. Then she asserted that his distrust, as Naruto expressed it, could be sorted out with a cool head. It wasn't like team seven never had any arguments between them, but they always overcame every problem together. They were Naruto's family. And finally, she closed the discussion by mentioning Naruto's health. There was not a single medic in the five nations who could assure better treatment for Naruto than her; not even Tsunade, as she had been Naruto's personal medic this last few years and knew every little detail about his health.
Hiashi frowned, unhappy to admit that Sakura was making some serious arguments. As much as he would like to assist Naruto on his choice to stay away from his teammates, being reckless about his well-being was not an option.
"Talk to him and see if you can convince him. But he is under the Hyuga's protection and you're not allowed to force anything on him that he would not want." Hiashi declared.
The group bowed, ready to leave to search for Naruto. But the Hyuga Clan Head stopped them. "Only Haruno-dono will see him. You, Uchiha, can wait here or leave my estate."
Sasuke didn't show any particular expression on his face, not surprised by the reaction of the Hyuga's leader. It was common knowledge that the man had always been antagonistic with the Uchiha family. For now, he would bear the insult for Naruto's sake.
"I'll wait." Sasuke accepted, not without some reluctance.
"What about me?" asked Ino, hopeful.
"Your ability to possess a person's mind is quite troublesome. I told you that I refuse for Uzumaki-dono to be subjected to any form of coercive action. So I would prefer you to calmly wait for your friend's return." Hiashi declared.
Sakura followed a servant through the estate alone. The woman used her Byakugan to pinpoint the exact location of their guest and directly led her to the room he was in. All the blood left Sakura's face as the servant opened the door for her to come in. The pinkette hadn't expected this outcome. Naruto was sitting on the floor with Hinata in his arms. Hinata's obi was unfastened and it was easy to put two and two together as to why it was undone and why the dark-haired beauty was in his arms. 'It hurts...'
He too was shocked. He thought that it was Hanabi coming back, not that it was his teammate already finding him. How? How did she find him so quickly? What was he supposed to do?
Naruto was shocked at seeing his teammate here, but Sakura hardly noticed. Tears stung her eyes and Sakura felt on the verge of breaking. Her heart was clenched hard in her chest, so tight that she doubted it was able to beat. Her Naruto chose to be with Hinata. He had avoided her for days and immediately got intimate with another girl. The new Naruto never loved her. Her gut twisted in a vise like cramp, and she had to take support from the wall to keep her balance. She was feeling light-headed. Certainly the result of her lack of air.
'Since when did I stop to breathing?' She wondered.
She wanted to control herself, to be strong, but she wasn't master of her body anymore. It was like an invisible force was crushing her from the inside. Her throat was too constricted. Her heart hurt, it hurt like hell. She was in pain. Her eyes wandered around trying to avoid the sight of her lover with Hinata. It was all blurry, but she didn't realize that it was because of her tears.
So much pain. So much that it was unbearable.
Needles were piercing her from side to side. Her legs wobbled, and her head spun. She was suffocating. Sound felt muffled in her ears, and she felt that her brain was in a sort of cotton. 'It couldn't be...' Her reactions were slow and everything felt completely surreal. Her mouth was open, but she couldn't breathe. Her eyes were staring, but she couldn't see. She was there without being there. Her senses slowly came back to function as if her body were rebooting after a shut down. It took her awhile to make out sounds as if she was hearing them from under water.
"Sa – kwu – wa – chan..."
She heard her name and noticed Hanabi's hand at her back to support her. She felt ashamed. Ashamed to still be so weak after all those years of training. What was the point of being the strongest kunoichi of her generation, or having the best chakra control if, she couldn't even control her own body? She forced herself to breathe. Whatever the pain, she couldn't let her feelings affect her mission. She was a full-fledged kunoichi and she needed to gather herself and clear up whatever was troubling Naruto.
"Sakura-chan!" He called her, worried.
"What's wrong, Sakura?" Asked Hanabi, uneasy at the pale completion of the head medic.
Sakura straightened up and dried her tears with the back of her hand. She had a mission.
"Don't worry. It must just be the stress from searching for Naruto." The pinkette partly lied to the Hyuga heiress. It was true that she had been stressed by it, but her tears were for something completely different.
"I'm glad that you're safe, Naruto. You know that you shouldn't have left the hospital without notice." Sakura amicably lectured him with a strained smile on her face as she restrained her emotions.
"Sorry Sakura-chan, I didn't think you would be worried." Naruto apologized. He felt bad seeing her cry just to find him. He was angry at Sasuke, not her.
"That's fine. It's all good now. We can go back home and, if you want, you can talk to me about whatever is troubling you." Sakura offered gently.
"Home..." He mumbled, pensive. Home was where Sasuke was. "I'm staying here." he announced, not meeting her eyes.
"Why? Why don't you want to come with us?"
Us, this word was so simple and yet so powerful. It mean her, her and Sasuke. It made so much sense, knowing how much she loved the guy. She was on Sasuke's side, all their secrets, those things they kept from him; she never was on his side.
For a while he didn't say a word, his eyes lowered to not look at Sakura's face. He wasn't really looking at Hinata, his head too troubled with his actual problem to look at anything in particular. But in the haze of his mind, he realized that his fingers were involuntarily squeezing the soft body in his arms. So he stood up, carrying the dark-haired beauty to her bed, and used the opportunity to put his back to Sakura. He didn't want to see Sakura's face and doubt his choice. The people he loved the most were not really his friends.
"I have nothing to do with you. Leave me alone." He declared, shutting his eyes tight.
"Please, listen to me..." Sakura insisted.
"Go away!" He screamed, his shoulders squared and his fists clenched at his side.
The servant's hand rested on the pinkette's shoulder. "I'm sorry to interrupt, Haruno-sama. But my master has been clear on the fact that Uzumaki-sama shouldn't be forced to do anything against his will. As Uzumaki-sama has formally expressed his desire to stay under the Hyuga's care, I must ask you to quietly leave him as he requested."
"Naruto..." Sakura whispered pleadingly, her heart shattering into endless small pieces.
"Go away." He repeated again, this time sounding exhausted.
"Please follow me, Haruno-sama. Don't forget your agreement with my master."
Sakura nodded, defeated. She raised her gaze to the silent Hanabi at her side. The girl looked sorry for her.
"Call me if anything happens. Night or day. Keep an eye on him at all times and ask one of your physicians to control the proper functioning of his chakra network before sleeping. I wouldn't want him to not wake up for the sake of being careless. I'll come back tomorrow to see if he has calmed down." Sakura told the youngest Hyuga heiress, her voice breaking in small tremors under the weight of her emotions.
The pinkette left, following the servant back to the main house, and Hanabi glanced at Naruto's back. He hadn't moved, he was still facing the wall with his body tensed.
"Are you sure this is what you want?" Hanabi asked and he nodded. "You know that she cares for you."
"I don't know – I don't know anything anymore." Naruto admitted. His head hurt and he was too troubled to distinguish friend from a foe.
Sakura kept her gaze low as the servant slid open the door to the meeting room. She didn't know how she could face her companions. Sasuke would certainly be angry at her. She had failed. She hadn't found the strength to force Naruto. She was feeling empty, wrecked beyond recognition. Naruto chased her away. He screamed at her as if he despised her.
It hurts...
It hurt more than Sasuke's indifference had from all those years ago. Maybe it hurt more because Naruto had always been there for her.
"Where's Naruto?" Asked her teammate.
"He refuses to see us." Sakura announced, defeated.
"That's it?" Sasuke demanded, sarcastic. "You gave up?" He stood up tall in front of her, his arms crossed on his chest.
"What could I do?" Sakura lifted her gaze, facing his reproach. Her green orbs were shining dangerously, but she kept strong to not break again. "He told me to leave... I couldn't – " Her voice wavered at the end, betraying her distress.
Sasuke frowned, noticing that she looked even paler than at the hospital. It couldn't be good to force more stress on her. "Go back home. I'll take care of him."
"What will you do, Sasuke?" Sakura questioned.
"I'm gonna make him listen to me." He affirmed, full of confidence.
"Wait, Sasuke, You can't! Not you!" Ino interjected.
"If you don't give me a valid reason, your plea is denied." Sasuke narrowed his eyes towards Ino as he challenged her to make him change his mind.
Ino clenched her fists at her side. She didn't have much choice than to reveal the reason behind Naruto's strange behavior. "You tried to kill him – In his memory. You pierced his chest with your chidori." She confessed.
Sasuke was dumbstruck; he didn't expect that. Naruto never showed the slightest animosity toward him, even after all their battles. They never talked about it and he never apologized. Even after all he did, it never seemed to have upset Naruto. His best friend had been there, constantly, holding onto their bond for both of them even when he was running away from their friendship. And now...talk about karma biting you in the back.
"It's even more my duty to go after him." Sasuke declared.
"You don't understand, Sasuke. He's shocked. He doesn't know anything from your past together. This memory was just dumped on him with no explanation as to how or why." Ino latched onto his arm to prevent him from leaving.
"So I have to remind him that we're friends through thick and thin. I'm the only one who could prove that to him." Sasuke didn't divest himself of his determination.
He moved to search for his best friend, but the Hyuga Clan Head cut him off. "If Naruto refused to see you, you agreed to leave. So don't cause more trouble than you already have and leave, Uchiha."
Sasuke stopped, his large stature imposing in his dark cape. He couldn't care less for Konoha's politics if the matter concerned Naruto. His black eyes switched to the ominous red color of his sharingan, his whole body ready for a battle.
"Sakura agreed. I never said that I would leave without him. Naruto is my responsibility and I'm here to guarantee his safety. Don't try to get in my way." Sasuke retorted, his expression completely neutral.
"Are you threatening me?" Hiashi hissed, slamming his hand on the wooden surface of his table, making his teapot and cup clatter under the impact.
"No. It's a suggestion." Sasuke answered calmly. His eyes shifted to his teammate, and a smirk stretched in the corner of his lips. "Like Sakura, I have a Hokage Order to be Naruto's bodyguard. Whatever you say, you have to respond to the order of your Hokage. Don't make things more difficult."
"If I refuse?" Hiashi pridefully upheld his position.
"Please, Hyuga-dono! I take full responsibility for him but allow him to talk to Naruto! It's a misunderstanding. I know that Sasuke is special to Naruto. I swear that you have nothing to worry about. It may be our only way to help Naruto." Sakura pleaded, bowing at the waist toward the Hyuga Clan Head.
Hiashi huffed. What choice did he really have? Either he accepted their promise to protect Naruto or he let hell swallow his clan as he was sure that the Uchiha wasn't one to hold back in battle?
"He can go. But you stay Haruno-dono. If he tries anything funny, you will be the one in charge to stop Uchiha and kill him if needed." Hiashi proclaimed.
"I will." Sakura accepted without hesitation.
Sasuke frowned, but even if he didn't want Sakura to get dragged into it, he couldn't back down now.
Hiashi stood up from his spot. "I will accompany you to see him, as the Hyuga clan will also assure the full protection to Uzumaki-dono."
The silence was heavy between the two Hyuga sisters and Naruto. Hinata had quickly woken up only to witness Naruto's disconcerted face. She'd fastened her yukata and invited him to sit on her bed. The blond man didn't decline the offer and slouched like a dead corpse on the mattress. He didn't say a word, his back bent with his head between his hands. She didn't know how to comfort Naruto, and Hanabi's muteness wasn't helping her to understand what had happened while she was unconscious.
The two girls' heads snapped up at the knock on the door, but Naruto stayed numb to the sound. Hiashi was the first one to enter his daughter's room, and the rest of the group followed. Sasuke took in Naruto's apathetic demeanor and then glanced to the pinkette. She was slightly behind, her gaze lowered to the floor and visibly uncomfortable with the confrontation. He couldn't let things drag on anymore. It was his responsibility to solve this as fast as possible for them to go back home together like a family.
"I'm sorry, Naruto." Sasuke blurted. 'God, how hard it is to say such simple words!'
The blond recognized the voice. He heard it loud and crystal clear. Something in his brain shifted, unloading raw emotions. A shudder ran down his skin, not from fear, but from something darker. Slowly he released his head and straightened up, making his blue eyes stare straight at the man facing him only a few feet away. Sasuke. It boiled dangerously. Sasuke was here. It boiled to the point of rupture. Sasuke... His eyes turned into red slits.
In a flash, Naruto launched forward at an incredible speed. His fist collided with the dark-haired man's face at full force sending him flying backward and breaking the different walls until Sasuke crashed into the Hyuga's garden. The punch wasn't enough and Naruto jumped after his opponent, completely ignoring Sakura's plea to stop.
Naruto didn't know if he was working on instinct, if his body wasere still his own, or if he was [1] [2] [3] were possessed by something else. But he couldn't care less as his fist connected with Sasuke's gut.
"Listen to me, Naruto!" Sasuke tried to talk while evading Naruto's punches. "I'm sorry!"
'Sorry for trying to kill me and missing?' Burning chakra invaded Naruto's veins at the thought of Sasuke's betrayal. It was toxic, charged with hatred and pain, but let him feel incredibly powerful. Satisfaction washed through him as his kick smashed into Sasuke's side, sending the dark-haired man to crashing into an old tree.
It was one thing to fight with Naruto and another to just endure his wrath. Sasuke coughed up some blood as he stood just in time to dodge another hit from his best friend. He wouldn't retaliate, but it wasn't easy to defend himself as the blonde was relentlessly attacking with a velocity close to his former glory.
"Naruto. I – "
"Shut the hell up!" Naruto barked, furious, destroying the enclosing wall of he Hyuga property with a Rasengan.
'So he mastered the Rasengan again while I was away. He really did improve greatly in a short time span.' Sasuke noted. 'I should lure him outside or the Hyuga estate is as good as gone if he decides to use it more.'
"Come on teme, don't shy away from me – I'm sure you want to know what it feels like to see your best friend pierce your chest with his arm." Naruto sarcastically spat as Sasuke retreated through the hole made in the wall. The blonde followed into the nearby forest, chasing after his prey, his blood lust blinding him. "Sasuke-nii-san," he sang, his gaze sharp, searching in every tree for a trace of his enemy.
His animal instinct overtook him. It was as if his senses were heightened. Naruto could distinguish every sound of the forest, recognize the whisper of the wind in the leaves to the quasi inaudible crisp of dirt at the earthworm's crawling. Nothing escaped him, not even the imperceptible movement of the stealthiest shinobi.
"Found you!" Naruto affirmed with a smirk almost predatory. He launched forward, another Rasengan ready in his hand, only to crush a replacement log into millions of splinters instead of his supposed best friend. The surprise at seeing the log nearly caused him to get caught in a trap, but Naruto still narrowly escaped the wires attempting to latch around his limbs. He jumped backward a few times in flips and found refuge on a branch.
The quietness of the moment made Sasuke think that Naruto had stopped his erratic and uncontrolled assaults. He wondered if the blond had finally vented enough of his emotions to listen. He walked forward with no concern for being plainly exposed to attacks and looked up at his best friend perched like a bird.
"Listen, it was a long time ago, a lot of things have happened in that time..."
"I trusted you!" Naruto shouted, deaf to any explanation. He was hurt, deep in his heart. What hurt the most wasn't physical. It was that his best friend had wanted to get rid of him, to discard him as if their friendship hadn't mattered.
The blonde swooped down on his best friend as a raptor descended on its prey. Sasuke prepared for the head-on confrontation, ready to absorb the impact, but his gaze widened in shock at the surprise attack from behind. He hadn't seen it coming. He hadn't thought for a single instant that Naruto had recovered so much of his ninja skills.
Sasuke realized then, as fists plunged at him from all sides, that Naruto had finally mastered completely his kage bunshin no jutsu and the transformation technique. The blond had used his retreat as a cover as he hid his clones in fake pebbles.
As much as he wouldn't fight the real Naruto, Sasuke had no qualms about annihilating the clones. He grabbed one of the clone blond's arm and threw it at another. The dirt crisped under his heels as he spun around, spitting out flames and burning the rest of them. , He escaped Naruto's punch in a back flip and blocked his kick with his forearm. It was intense. Naruto's attacks were powerful, overwhelming like only a chakra monster like him could do. they were coming endlessly. The blond was organizing more and more proficient combos worthy of his title of future Hokage.
More than once, Sasuke spat blood under the violence of the hits. Naruto wasn't holding back whereas Sasuke refused to lift a hand against his near brother. This was his punishment. The just return for his deeds. He would bear with all of Naruto's hatred until all the steam was out. He would endure as Naruto had endured it all those years ago for the sake to save him.
It was a rain of blows that fell on the Uchiha heir, making any elaborate discussion difficult in between his blocking attempts.
"I was engulfed in darkness, blinded by revenge." Sasuke continued his story, swaying from right to left, dodging the furious hits.
"What did I do to you!?" Naruto asked, destroying a tree with his Rasengan as Sasuke deflected the jutsu. "Why!? When I called you my friend..." The blonde accused him, his stare ablaze with ire.
Sasuke held the stare, not denying or making excuses for himself. He knew all he'd done. He knew it started there, that day, when he left Konoha; when he abandoned his friends and chose to walk down the wrong path. It began there, where he could have taken Naruto's outstretched hand but instead fought him.
"It's my fault." The raven man admitted. "I wanted power, ignoring that we would have been stronger together."
Naruto laughed darkly, the sound resonating in the calmness of the forest. He laughed but it carried nothing joyous. It seethed with pain instead, pain born from the gaping hole in his chest. From the place where Sasuke had pierced him with his chidori.
"So for that you've wanted to kill me..." Naruto stated, beyond hurt, kicking Sasuke with such force that even with a block the man still crashed through many trees.
"I did." Sasuke recognized, drying the blood at the corner of his lips with the back of his hand. "I did because you were the person who was the closest to me and I couldn't achieve my curse, these eyes, without cutting all bonds." He pointed to his sharingan. "I was wrong..."
"Tell you what," Naruto ran forward, followed by a group of clones as back up. "You did it! I'm cutting my bond with you." All the blonds declared, launching a simultaneous attack on Sasuke.
He deserved it. He had never really forgiven himself for all that he had done back then. So that's why Sasuke didn't try to wriggle out of the fray. The real Naruto latched his hand around Sasuke's throat. Squeezing. Squeezing. Tighter. Sasuke knew he was done for.
"I'm sorry. You're more than my best friend – you're my family. You saved me from myself and I don't mind dying by you or for you, as long as I die before you." Sasuke whispered in an ultimate confession, his eyes shut tight and ready to accept his fate.
Naruto gasped, the weight of Sasuke's words sending a shockwave through his being. He remembered the man staying with him when he recovered his first set of memories, the same man who came to stand in front of him when he discovered the beast inside of him and offered to sleep on the terrace with him so he wouldn't be alone.
His eyes turned blue again and his hands loosened a little on Sasuke's throat. It was so confusing. What was true? What was a lie? He didn't know anymore. It hurt to be betrayed. But why did it feel so warm to be called family by Sasuke? His head ached, the blood pounded at his temple, and it felt as if his brain were being squashed by a terrible pressure.
Sakura had bared with their fight until now, or more like the one sided beating. She stayed at a safe distance, witnessing Sasuke take blow after blow. It pained her, but she respected their strange way of solving their problems. She cringed when she recognized some nasty wounds to heal on her teammate and when her enraged boyfriend continued his incessant onslaught. She said nothing, just watching their foolish battle. But then she saw Naruto strangling his best friend, and Sasuke not doing anything to break off the hold. It was too much and Sakura decided to step in. She went between them, freeing Sasuke and immobilizing Naruto with a precise and powerful burst of her chakra into his chakra network. It was utterly effective. It shut down everything, making him unable to move a single finger even with the greatest effort.
It was an adaptive medical jutsu, transformed into a combative one by her research. It was originally used as a local anesthesia by only expert medic-nin like her, but she modified it to be able to render even the strongest opponent under her complete mercy with a simple touch. It was a great weapon, but it demanded incredible skill in chakra control and knowledge of all the ins and outs of anatomy, physiology, and chakra systems. The dosage had to be executed with utmost care as not enough would lead to the enemy recovering too quickly and too much could irreversibly invalidate or kill the subject. As for Naruto, there was another parameter not to forget: his secondary chakra paths connected to Kurama. But Sakura knew how to deal with that, too, which resulted in a complete and immediate paralysis of Naruto's body, spared his vital organs kept active at a normal functioning rate.
"Calm down, Naruto!" Sakura admonished the blond.
"Stay out of it Sakura." Sasuke mumbled to her, his throat still sore from the strangling.
"What the hell are you saying? Did you lose your mind!? Why are you letting Naruto kill you as if you couldn't escape his attack? Are you stupid?" She barked at her teammate.
The word stupid irked Sasuke's nerves. But he didn't say anything about it as he was more concerned about Naruto managing to overcome the paralysis. As much as he didn't mind receiving a good beating from his best friend, he couldn't risk getting her involved in it.
"Stop interfering and leave, Sakura!" Sasuke scolded her.
"If you don't want me to interfere, don't get yourself killed! I can heal wounds, I can't revive dead people!" She screamed. "What is this about? Feeling guilty?" She punched his arm, angry with his stupidity. "How do you think he'll react when he comes back to his senses if he kills you?" She punched him again. "Do you think that he would feel happy?" She added, her fist hitting stronger with each question. "Were you really that satisfied when you killed Itachi?" She made her point, tears flooding down her cheeks. "Don't give him such a burden to carry!"
Sasuke received her punches. They hurt. She was such a brute. But what hurt the most was how right she was. She knew him better than he gave her credit for. He took his punishment from Naruto, letting his best friend unleash all his rage on him. He took all of it without defending himself, sure that it was his payback. He was fine with dying by Naruto's hands. He was fine as long as he died before him so he wouldn't have to survive another death of someone precious to him. But Sakura was right. He was selfish. Naruto shouldn't carry this sin.
Then, Sakura spun around to face Naruto. She grabbed his collar and shook his limp body like a rag doll.
"And you! Calm down and use your brain for once!" She vociferated. "Do you think you would live with someone who isn't dear to you, Baka?!" She shook him once more. "You don't know anything yet you jump to conclusions. Yes, you two both fought in the past! You fought for your own reasons and your own ideals. But I'm done with your stupid male way of talking! I'm fed up with your selfishness at leaving me behind, scared to death that one of you might die. Stop using your fists and start using your head! You are both precious to me. We are more than family. Whatever happens to one of us, impacts the whole group. That's why we went after Sasuke at that time when he fell into darkness. That's why we forgave him when he apologized. We have an indestructible bond. Understand?! "
"My head hurts..." Naruto winced in pain.
"Oh sorry! I didn't mean to harm you." She apologized.
"It's not you. It's from before. Make it stop..." Naruto pleaded.
She laid him on the ground and applied her mystic palm to his head. It wasn't a side effect of her jutsu nor a trauma from the battle. It felt completely different, as if a tumor had grown inside his skull and pressured the cerebral tissue. But instead of a real tumor, the space was empty. Sakura concentrated her energy to encapsulate the potential threat. It reminded her of her first contact with the invisible matter as she treated Naruto back in the fort. She tried to extract it, taking it as an opportunity to get rid of the remnant of the invader. Unfortunately, before she could complete the process, the thing shifted and dissolved, completely melting with Naruto's cells. It was as if the thing had a proper consciousness and remembered the first removal treatment.
Naruto sighed contentedly, he felt strangely lighter and calmer. "Thank you." He mumbled.
"Since when did you have this pain?" She asked to validate her theory.
Naruto frowned, trying to remember when it began. "After I got today's memories. I thought it was because I was upset and it became stronger when I saw Sasuke, and more during the fight."
"I see." Sakura scratched her chin. "You're not upset with Sasuke anymore?" She questioned to dig further.
Naruto pouted like a kid who wouldn't recognize his fault. "I'm angry at that bastard. But not like before. He apologized after all." His tone of voice had nothing of his previous animosity, proof that his anger was a basic formality and would be gone in exchange for a bowl of ramen.
"Hmm. So it's like that." Sakura muttered as she put the dots together. "The pain in his head was due to something pressing against some neurons, increasing his aggressiveness, and was possibly linked to his actual feelings of anger. That could explain why he reacted so strongly to the sentiment of betrayal and why he really tried to kill Sasuke..." She looked at Naruto, hopeful. "So you agree that we're all friends?" She inquired.
"Ah – yes, I suppose. I mean, if you guys want to..." Naruto hesitantly accepted, and both his friends nodded.
"Good! Let's go home and get Sasuke treated. You didn't show restraint with Sasuke's beating." She suggested, relieved that the problem was solved finally.
Sakura undid Naruto's paralysis and he stood slowly on shaky legs for the time it took for his chakra to find his normal flow. The blond glanced at the bruised face of his best friend and felt ashamed for his excessive reaction. Even if Sakura explained that it was the thing in his head that made him lose it, he had been close to killing his best friend. It wasn't much better than what Sasuke had done in the past.
"Sorry, Sasuke." Naruto extended his hand with the shinobi fraternity sign and Sasuke nodded, extending his own hand to link his fingers with him.
I MIGHT NOT HAVE INTERNET NEXT WEEK. I WILL PREPARE THE CHAPTER AND I WILL DO MY BEST TO PUBLISH IT ON TIME. SORRY IF I CAN KEEP THE DELAY.
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