Chapter 37
The next morning found Katy in one of the most uncomfortable situations she's ever been in.
She walked behind Seishi as they made their way through the forest. Seishi did not mind leading, although she was the one who was supposed to be doing so. Katy wasn't sure where she was headed in the first place. She didn't care he was leading them as long as they caught up to the Sound Four. However, she wasn't comfortable with following a man she barely knew. For all she knew he was lying. Not that she could tell. It wasn't like she was some human lie detector who could tell if someone was fibbing by their body or voice. Heck, no (Although, she thought that was pretty cool)! She was terrible at reading people. She couldn't tell a lie from the truth if it stared at her in the face! Or, that's what Sasuke tells her. He could be brutally honest when he wants to be.
Seishi had to have some ulterior motive, she was sure of it. No man would help a stranger just because said stranger was interesting. That's not how life worked. Life was cruel and full of hidden evils. With free will people could go towards the path of sin if given the right or wrong choice. Free will could be scary sometimes.
"Oi, would you quit glaring at my back? I can practically feel my back burning up," Seishi said, loudly.
"Sorry. Can't help it," she muttered.
"Then, stop it. I can hear you thinking too loud, too."
"Oh, so what? You're a mind reader?"
Seishi stopped. He turned to her to give her a look. "I don't need to be a mind reader to know you don't trust me."
"Can you blame me? You're practically a stranger! For all I know you might kill me and dump my body somewhere where nobody can find it," Katy ranted, gasping at the end. Oh, dear. Her condition wasn't helping the situation at all.
"...You're one paranoid kid, did you know that?"
"Well, when you almost get raped by a stranger you tend to be paranoid."
Seishi raised an eyebrow. "You're kidding."
"I'm not. Not to mention getting kidnapped and experimented on doesn't help my paranoia at all."
He stared at her for a mere second. One corner of his lips twitched upward. Before she knew it, he was laughing hysterically.
"You...You are a trouble magnet in disguise! You weren't kidding when you said you have the worst luck ever!" he laughed. "How did your friend put up with you?"
"He got mad at me at first. After I nearly got raped, he decided it was high time he taught me how to defend myself. He said he was sick of rescuing me and, frankly, I agree. I'm no damsel-in-distress! I can take care of myself!" Katy exclaimed, nodding at her resolve.
It was destroyed when Seishi snorted.
"Yes, you certainly can. It's why I'm leading you to help your friend," he said sarcastically.
"Hey! I know where we're going! You just decided to lead!"
"Then, you certainly don't need my help."
"No, I didn't! You offered to help. I don't need it if you don't want to help."
He tilted his head. "And why wouldn't I help? After all..."
In the blink of an eye Katy found Seishi in front of her. He leaned down so his face was close to her own where she could see the scars on the right side of his face more prominently. His lips were set in a familiar cocky smirk while his hand gripped her chin.
"I happen to like helping those in need. Especially the young and elderly."
Katy flushed. He was way too close! She slapped the hand away and took a step back to gain distance between them. "And you're a pedophile! Go take your help somewhere else, you creepy perv."
He laughed again. "This is why you're interesting. You have the funniest expressions and reactions."
"Jerk! That's it! I'm going to Oto on my own if you keep making fun of me!" she barked. She stomped her way past him to continue walking. However, she was stopped when he suddenly grabbed her wrist. Looking back, her breath was caught upon seeing his eye narrowed in a glare. Which, again, was familiar.
"Oto? As in Otogakure? You were trying to go there? Why?" Seishi demanded harshly. It was a sharp contrast to his easy going attitude seconds ago.
His tone made her flinch. The fact he was gripping her wrist too tightly added to her reaction.
"T-The people who kidnapped my friend were from there. They were heading there."
"Was your friend kidnapped on the orders of Orochimaru?"
Katy's breath hitched. Her initial mistrust of him doubled. "...Yes. How do you know Orochimaru?"
"Who doesn't know about Orochimaru? Everyone and their mother know and hate him. If your friend was taken by him, there's no point in trying to get him back," he informed her, releasing his hold.
"No! I know I can get him back! It's my fault they took him!" she argued. "They want me, not him. If I could get away, then so can he!"
"You..." Seishi studied her for a moment. She felt as if he was probing into her very soul. Shivering, she held his intense gaze. "You said you were kidnapped and experimented on. Were you experimented on by Orochimaru?"
Her lips thinned. That was not a question she wanted to answer. Even for close friends, she still had trouble telling it to those who didn't know.
"I'll take that as a yes." He sighed in frustration and ran a hand through his black spikes. "Geez, you're not only interesting. Your life is complicated. You do realize they're halfway across the country by this point. You would've never caught up to them on your own."
"I know that! But, I didn't want to sit around and wait," Katy snapped. "Do you have any idea how much it sucks waiting around being useless? I hate being useless! So, whether you want to take me to Oto or not is your choice. I don't care if I'm lost. I'm still going."
She started to walk off again. She would find Oto on her own. She didn't need some creepy old pervert's help. After taking but a few steps, she yelped as her feet were swept off the ground. Before gravity could pull her down, someone caught her and held her tightly. She lifted her eyes the moment a rush of air came from upwards to glare at the culprit.
"What's the big idea?" she demanded.
"I said I'm going to help you so I will," said Seishi. He nimbly landed on a tree branch to jump onto another in front of him. The leaves barely rustled from how fast he was running. "Even though it's completely suicidal, I'm seeing this through. Plus, I'll get to piss off Orochimaru. It's a win-win."
The reality of what he was hit her as she stared at him for the first time. He was a shinobi with no affiliation to a village as far as she knew. He also knew of Orochimaru. Uh-oh.
"Who are you?"
"Just a guy helping a little girl in need." He smirked. Again, it was so familiar. She couldn't put a finger on it though.
"Or, maybe a pervert with an agenda," she muttered.
"Keep calling the person carrying you a pervert again. Let's see what happens." He glanced down at the ground below.
Katy gasped. "You wouldn't!"
"Hm, I don't know. I've always wondered if little girls could land on their feet like cats can," Seishi hummed, contemplatively.
"Drop me, you perv, and I swear to Ka-MI!" She shrieked as he dropped her. Her stomach dropped the moment she began to fall through the air. Before she thought she was going to meet the ground, he caught her again. When he touched her once more she automatically wrapped her arms around his neck for security.
"Word of advice: don't call the person carrying you a perv," he laughed.
"You crazy old man! You psycho-"
Katy screamed again when he jostled his arms so he almost dropped her. She clung to Seishi tightly and buried her head into his shoulder, praying to God she would soon be rid of this strange, psychotic man. Her reaction drew a laugh from him.
This rescue mission wasn't starting so well.
For most of the morning Seishi continued jumping through the branches with Katy in his arms. It wasn't as silent as Katy would have liked because Seishi would randomly pretend to drop her. She would curse up a storm at his smug grin. It didn't help every time he did so she felt like she was going to faint. God, with all these random drops it was like a drop ride in an amusement park. She despised those rides.
"Will you quit doing that?!" Katy shrieked after he dropped and caught her for the fifteenth time that morning.
"Aw, but it's so fun," he said with a slight pout.
"You're a grown man! I don't care if you think it's fun. You're gonna kill me!"
"Yeah, because traveling through a forest on your own won't get you killed."
"I meant an outside cause, you jerk!"
"You need to lighten up," Seishi lightly commented. "Stress won't help you get any better. You're going to get wrinkle lines before you're thirty."
"And you need to be more serious. How the hell did you become a shinobi when you act like this?" Katy retorted.
""What makes you think I'm a shinobi?"
She stared at him incredulously. "Are you kidding me? You're jumping from tree to tree with chakra."
"Maybe I happened to learn it?"
"Yeah, and I just happened to have been experimented on. Dude, you're a ninja. I might be a kind, but I'm not stupid."
"I didn't say you were stupid."
"But you were thinking it."
"And you accused me of being a mind reader?" he retorted. He shook his head, stray leaves falling from his black locks. "Again, I say you're way too paranoid. Granted, you have the right to do so. But, you're just a kid. A civilian at that. Shouldn't you be enjoying your childhood while it lasts?"
"Maybe," Katy muttered. She used to have a childhood. That was before she was dragged her to help her friend from losing his own childhood. Now she wasn't sure if she had a childhood left to enjoy.
Before she could begin to lament her lost childhood, Seishi abruptly came to a stop. The motion caused her to jerk out of her thoughts violently. She was about to yell at him before she see the steely hard gaze he held. It was the one he scared her with earlier. Following his sight, her own widened at the several broken trees in their path. The devastation was terrible with several man-made holes in the trees, splintered branches, fallen trees, and even several gashes in the forest floor below. The amount of blood splatters didn't help to let Katy know a hard battle was fought.
"Tch. I should've figured," Seishi clicked with his tongue. "Orochimaru would use his best guards to escort your friend. And with nothing but Konoha genin to retrieve your friend I expected this to happen."
"What are you saying-" She stopped, looking down at the ground. Two figures were lying motionless there near one another. One, recognized as Kidomaru. The other was Neji. Both were worse for wear with blood pooling around them, Neji in particular. "Neji!"
"He's one of the shinobi sent to retrieve your friend?"
"Yeah. Oh, my God. Neji..." Katy wanted to cry and vomit at the sight of the Hyuuga clan genius. She may have disliked him in the beginning for how he treated Hinata, but she didn't wish that to happen to him. Hinata told her their relationship was getting better. She knew he would live. That didn't make her feel any better. It was harder for her to see him like this for herself.
"If this is how a battle ends with Orochimaru's men, we better hurry," he said. "As much as I dislike Konoha, I'd rather not see the young risk their lives like this. I doubt you want to see any of your friends die either."
She shook her head, a tear sliding down her cheek. Knowing most of the boys would end up in critical condition, she didn't want it to actually happen. Seeing Neji in his current state really shook her beliefs once more. These scenes were much harder to bear in real life.
"At this point I have no doubt Orochimaru will send back-up to ensure his prize arrives. I wouldn't put it past him." He looked down at Katy with a smile. She blinked at him. He never smiled at her before. "Kioshi, I'm going to ask you to close your eyes for a bit. I have a way to reach your friends much faster, but you have to keep your eyes closed the entire time. Got it?"
"R-Really? Why do I have to close my eyes?" she asked.
"This jutsu will make you a little nauseous and if you have your eyes open you might get sick. With the way you are I know it's a possibility."
"Is it that bad?"
"A bit. It helps if you keep your eyes closed. So, you ready?"
"...Yeah."
Katy quickly squeezed her eyes closed. She tightened her hold around his neck the same moment he tightened his hold on her own body. Suddenly, an unpleasant squeezing sensation wrapped her entire body. She couldn't breathe as it felt like she was being compressed into a smaller form. The experience made her stomach churn. Seishi was right. She would have lost what little breakfast she had that morning.
The sensation lasted for a while with a small break in the middle. She wondered what kind of jutsu could cause this kind of feeling. Definitely not anything she knew about. Finally, just as she was sure she was going to vomit, the sensation abruptly faded and she could breathe again.
Something cold and damp filtered into her nose that smelled like wet mud after a rainy day. Water droplets misted onto her clammy cheek as water crashed off onto water somewhere nearby.
"Alright. You can open your eyes now," Seishi said.
She did so.
Peeking her eyes open, Katy first saw Seishi's face. He was looking down at her with a blank yet strange expression. She shifted her head to the side and gasped. They were standing on the edges of a forest facing an enormous lake and cliff face. It wasn't the lake that amazed her. It was the cliff. The cliff was practically carved with two giant statues of men in armor. The two statues faced one another with a single hand curled into a seal. In between the two was a waterfall cascading onto the lake. She knew this place.
"The Valley of the End? How did we get here so fast? We could've have been close to the border," Katy wondered. As far as she knew they weren't originally anywhere close to reaching the border of Rice Country and Fire Country.
"That's my little secret." Seishi pried her arms from his neck where it was in a death grip to set her legs down for her to stand. She managed to stand but felt a little unsteady on her feet. After hours of tree jumping and not moving from a single position, her legs fell asleep. "Alright, kid. You're going to have to stay here for a bit while I go fetch your friend."
"Wait, you're leaving me? But I want to help," she said incredulously.
"No way. You're only going to get in my way."
"No, I won't!"
He gave her a look that said otherwise.
"Yes, you are," he said flatly. "You're a civilian. A kid, at that. You couldn't stand a chance against the Oto ninja. So, you're staying here and you'll wait here until I get back. Got it?"
"No! I don't! You're not telling me anything! How do I know you're going to come back at all?" Katy was getting frustrated with this man. How dare he tell her to wait there like a child while he retrieved her best friend? Why would he do that? She wanted to go get Sasuke or at least help Seishi. She wasn't stupid enough to take on an Oto nin on her own. He was doing all of this for her but expected no reward. Why on Earth would he do that? She loved mysteries yet even this this was too much for her.
"I'll come back. I promise," he reassured her.
She shook her head. "Nu-uh. I'm not trusting a guy like you with such a flimsy promise."
"I don't make flimsy promises," he argued. "When I make a promise to someone I always keep it. I understand you don't exactly trust me. I wouldn't either. So, I'm going to have to do this."
Seishi reached into some unknown pocket on his person. Withdrawing his hand, he pulled out a pair of cracked, bright orange goggles. If that didn't completely confuse her, then when he slipped them on her head it did.
"Um...?" Katy hummed, tilting her head.
"Those are my goggles from my childhood, so they're very important to me," he answered. "Consider them a down payment for my promise. I'll be taking those back when I return with your friend."
"Um, okay?" She didn't know what to think of this whole situation. He gave her his goggles as way to keep his promise? How strange. By this point, Katy decided to go with the flow. This whole thing was confusing her and hurting her head. It was better not to question it.
"Okay, then. I'll be right back." Seishi gave her one final smile. Katy blinked at the strangeness of it and he was suddenly gone. She found herself alone.
Katy couldn't believe all of this was happening to her and she didn't know what was going on. This man, Seishi, gave her a perfect chance to try to save Sasuke because she knew she couldn't do it on her own. When she realized he was a shinobi that made it all the more better. She should have realized this man would have his own methods and plans. All without asking her opinion in this. She wasn't sure what to do now that he left her here on his own without a way to get back home. What if he was leaving her here? What was she going to do? Maybe he wouldn't come back.
No, he will. A hand touched the old goggles lying on the top of her head. She saw how much he cared for these. She saw it in his eyes. It was the same way she treated her necklace-with fondness and care. It was very precious to him. He would come back to these and her with Sasuke in tow. She trusted him to do that much now that he left something special in her care. She gazed back up to the two statues, ignoring her whole body shivering violently. Please let him come back safe.
All she could do was hope at this point.
XXX
Sasuke cursed for what felt like the millionth time. With the bumping, sharp jerk, and sudden drops in a long period of time (it was hard to tell time in the dark) he was more than ready to kill someone. More in particular, the remaining Sound Four members. They were really starting to piss him off at this point. Why couldn't his friends rescue him? What was taking them so long?
This chase had been going on for hours, or what he assumed were hours. He would have been bored out of his mind had they not taken to throwing the container he was in like an American football. The way they threw him around not only gave him a migraine it made him want to spill his guts in a very violent manner. In such a confined space Sasuke was certain he would have. But, he tried hard not to and was succeeding so far. At this point he was getting sick of all of this. At the moment all he could hear were his remaining friends-Kiba, Naruto, Haku, and Shikamaru-yelling after Sakon, Ukon, and Tayuya.
After his head knocked on the wood as the coffin tilted sharply, Sasuke had enough.
"Watch how you're handling this thing! There's a living body in here, damn it!" Sasuke growled.
"Shut up, Uchiha! Keep quiet and we won't have to kill you," Tayuya shot back.
"Bitch! When I get out of here I'll kill you!" He was never much for violent language, but these past few hours were really testing his patience. Thank God Katy wasn't here. She would call him a hypocrite. He punched the top of the coffin, or what he thought was the top, for good measure.
"I'd like to see you try."
"Let me out of here and we'll find-"
Sasuke was interrupted by another sharp jerk. He slammed his forehead onto the other side of the coffin. He cursed but noticed no outer movement. They had stopped.
"Damn it, what were those idiots Jiroubou and Kidomaru doing?" Tayuya cursed.
"Yeah, I'll kill them all within seconds!" Sakon shouted.
Sasuke heard Naruto's voice cry out. It was incredibly close by at least a foot. Whole he may have been deprived of his sight, his other senses like his hearing were enhanced. The sound of fighting, battle cries, and groans of pain filled his muffled ears. A sharp sound like whirling wind followed as Kiba's signature move, Fang-over-Fang, came into play.
"Damn it, he got me," Tayuya growled.
"Kage mane no jutsu, success," Shikamaru declared somewhere close to his right.
Suddenly, something hit against the top of the coffin and Sasuke found himself flipped upside down. With nothing to hold onto he slammed against everything until his center of gravity was righted once more. He cursed again but it was drowned out by Sakon's yelling. Then, with a jerk, he knocked into the wall behind him.
"Nice one, Kiba, Shikamaru!" Naruto praised. This time, he was annoyingly close as if he were right next to him.
"Sasuke, are you okay? Can you hear me?' Haku asked, also close.
"No, I'm not okay! You try being stuck in a damn coffin and thrown everywhere!" Sasuke yelled. His patience was being held by a threat at this point. He wanted out of this thing now!
"Well, he sounds fine," Kiba laughed somewhere from behind.
"Good. Everything went according to plan," Shikamaru said further behind Kiba. "They were talented, but they weren't good enough. We were one or two steps ahead of them."
"Good. We can head back to Konoha now," Haku sighed in relief.
"Yeah." Sasuke slumped in the same relief. Thank God. He knew his comrades would rescue him before they ever reached Oto. With the way things were happening he was certain he would actually be brought to Orochimaru to gain the curse seal. He should have never doubted everyone's abilities with Haku thrown into the mix. This was the second time he rescued him. Still, he couldn't help but feel uneasy. His retrieval wasn't this easy, he remembered. Not in the series. Everyone got hurt and some were put in critical condition. What was he missing? Then, he gasped with dread. He forgot there was one more person involved. "Damn it!"
Explosions and falling trees went off from behind. There were several shouts along with Akamaru's barking. But, Kiba cried out as another explosion occurred.
"Kiba! Akamaru!" Naruto screamed, panicked.
"Damn it!" Shikamaru cursed.
"I'll go after them," Haku said.
"No, Haku, don't-"
"Naruto, what's going on?" Sasuke demanded. He didn't like being kept in the dark.
"Haku's gone after Kiba and Akamaru. Now, the other one's come," Shikamaru said, frustrated. "We have no choice. I'll do something. Naruto, take Sasuke and go on ahead."
"Shikamaru?"
"Hurry up and go!"
Sasuke gasped again the moment he heard something land on top of the coffin. When it kicked the coffin (he was certain it was a kick) his stomach dropped and landed the same moment the coffin landed on another surface. Sasuke knew Naruto nor Shikamaru did anything.
"You're too late, Tayuya," said a new young man's voice. It was stoic and cold. "Where are the other three? We were the Sound Five."
Sasuke knew who it was. The missing member of the former Sound Five.
Kimimaro.
"What are you...? Your body..." Tayuya trailed off as if afraid to say anything offensive. Which was ridiculous to comprehend with her attitude.
"My body is broken. I am using my will power to move it."
"Damn you. Don't you know when to die?"
"I understand a little now. This conscious feeling of life after being released from the prison of my body. This feeling of touching a part of Lord Orochimaru's dream. This container is an important dream container. This is the body Lord Orochimaru really wants. But, you guys were late."
Sasuke scrambled to remember everything about Kimimaro. There wasn't a lot on Kimimaro outside of this arc. It all happened so fast before the first part ended. Plus, everything that happened in Shippuden overshadowed what he knew about Orochimaru and his men. It was hard to remember anything during these past couple months. All he knew was that Kimimaro had a bone kekkei genkai and he was dying at the moment. That's all he remembered. He wished he knew more.
"Hey, you! Quit babbling! Give Sasuke back!" Naruto yelled, enraged.
"Naruto, wait!" Shikamaru yelled after them.
Sasuke was unsure of what happened, but after two yells from Naruto and Shikamaru their voices were gone. The coffin shifted again. By the jerking underneath him, he guessed it was either Kimimaro or Tayuya who was carrying him. He was willing to be his life on the former.
Unbelievable, he growled. He punched a wall with a curled fist. Shit. Here's where things got complicated. Kimimaro may be dying, yet he was still stronger than all of the other members of the Sound Five. In the series the Uchiha (whom he hasn't referred to in awhile. He hated to admit it but he couldn't tell the difference between him and the series Sasuke) would break out of the coffin to run off to the Valley of the End to have an epic battle with Naruto. Meanwhile, Kimimaro would try to stall Naruto and end up fighting Lee and Gaara where Kimimaro would die in the middle of an attack. Of course, none of that would happen because Sasuke wasn't here of his own free will. Sasuke didn't have a curse mark to rely on to reach the final stage and break out of this damn coffin! He really hated this coffin at this point. He hated it. Almost as much as he hated Orochimaru. If I ever see that bastard, I swear I'm going to rip his head off and break it into a million pieces. I swear to God, I'm gonna do it!
Sasuke couldn't understand what went through all of the Sound Five's heads when they decided to go to Orochimaru. Containers, hosts, and living weapons-Did these people not realize their lives meant nothing to that man? He was willing to toy with their bodies and manipulate their minds however he wanted like he was playing God. How could they have such loyalty to such a monster? Who has committed heinous acts against nature itself? He knew they were all orphans. They had no one in the world who wanted them. Orochimaru, who did, came by and gave them a reason to live. But, still…How could they die at the command of a pseudo-god? And this was one of the many reasons he was glad Itachi decided to take away his memories. He would have reached the level of insanity they all reached if he had a thirst for revenge and decided Orochimaru could give him power.
For awhile he forced to sit in the darkness and in silence. Apart from the soft bumps underneath him Sasuke was sure he would have fallen asleep. This was the first time in hours there was silence. All he could hear previously was yelling and curses. Now, there was complete silence. Since he had been awake for a better part of a night and day, the bumps were slightly soothing. It reminded him of long car rides he took with Mari. Any car ride longer than an hour and he would be out like a light. The darkness didn't help either. Even now, he felt his eyelids slipping closed and his head beginning to nod.
Damn…I should probably stay awake. Despite his thoughts, he slumped against the wall. He was reaching his limit. Maybe, just a few minutes…won't hurt.
Sasuke was about to slip into a sleep where he would be dead to the world. However, he jerked back awake as the coffin was dropped back down onto a level surface. Sitting up as best as he could, he shook away the sleep the moment he heard Naruto.
"Hey," he heard Naruto faintly growl. He sounded pissed. "What does Orochimaru want? Why is he after Sasuke?!"
"Lord Orochimaru has already completed the jutsu of immortality," Kimimaro said with a faint voice. "In order to acquire all jutsu and the entire world, he needs time."
"What does that have to do with Sasuke?"
"Immortality doesn't necessarily indicate the immortality of his body. He must replace his body with a newer and stronger one before his current one succumbs. That girl was once the one who would become Lord Orochimaru's new body. But, she wasn't the exact body he wanted. She was far too weak in her resolve. This one is a sufficient replacement."
"You…That's why Katy went through all that pain? That's what Sasuke's for?!"
"Yes. Exactly."
"You bastard! Katy isn't some puppet! And I'm not a damn replacement for anything!" Sasuke yelled. That heartless bastard. How dare he call Katy weak! She was anything but! She was a strong girl who cared for her friends. She was anything but weak.
"I won't let you do such a thing!" Naruto roared. "I won't let you take Sasuke!"
An epic battle was certain to unfold. Sasuke knew it. He watched this arc so many times he knew how the battles turned out. He only liked this arc for the battles because it showed the true strength of some of the Konoha genin. They did almost die, but those battles were what made them stronger. Naruto would be able to have easier time fighting because Kimimaro couldn't match Naruto's strength. Knowing this, Sasuke expected to lean back and wait for Naruto to finish this battle with Lee and possibly Gaara. He expected it would take awhile.
But, as he found out, nothing went according to the series.
He was caught off guard the moment the coffin flipped over once again. In a split second he was righted back up as it landed with a slam. The world suddenly fell silent like it was put on pause. Sasuke couldn't understand why the fighting would stop before it began. What was going on out there?
"Yo, sorry, I'm interrupting your little play date," said a deep voice. It took on a playful and sarcastic tone. "Don't mind me. I'm just here to take a little present back home. I'm sure this will be the perfect present for the wife, don't you think?"
"Who the hell are you?" Naruto demanded, his syllables ending in a growl.
"Oh, no one special. Just passing by when I heard a little commotion here. And, lookie at what I found! A little blond brat with a tiny temper and a snake's little skeleton display about to have a fun play date. Oh, I'm finding a lot of fun things lately. Must be my birthday!"
"Don't joke around! Give Sasuke back!"
"Who's joking around? All I see here is a joke of a fight. Really, fighting against a walking dead man? And you're both fighting over another dead person inside a coffin," the man scoffed.
"Sasuke isn't dead! Give him BACK!"
A large wave of evil and strong chakra penetrated all around Sasuke. Even inside a coffin where he couldn't exactly sense chakra, he felt the rage-filled chakra reach him. Sasuke couldn't breathe. He's felt the Kyuubi chakra when Naruto gets mad. That didn't mean he was used to it. Because the chakra was like a beacon, he sensed the chakra come charging towards them and suddenly underneath him the moment the mysterious man jumped.
"Wow, would you look at that? Blondie's pretty pissed now, isn't he?" the man mocked with a slight high-pitch tone. Something about that tone was familiar somehow. Sasuke didn't know how. "Whelp! Sorry, Blondie. But, the dead guy inside this coffin is wanted by someone else. I'm not telling you who, though!"
"YOU BAST-" Naruto's roar of rage was abruptly cut off. His chakra also suddenly disappeared.
Sasuke didn't know how or why he was cut off all of a sudden. That entire scene was strange because of the mysterious man. He sat there in a stunned daze, unsure of what to make of this entire thing. Who was this man? Why did he want him? What the hell was going on? He had all of these questions but none of the answers until he got out of the stupid coffin. Maybe then he would understand who this man was and what he wanted with him.
But, his questions were wiped from his mind when he heard a voice.
"Seishi? Is Sasuke in there?" Katy's voice said, drifting closer with each word.
Katy? What the hell? Sasuke thought. Now, he was confused. Why was he hearing Katy's voice?
"Yup! Told you I'd come back with your friend in tow," chirped the man in a peppy tone. What kind of decent man would willingly sound like that, Sasuke wondered.
"Um, yeah. Looks like you were right. But, um…" Her voice stopped directly next to the coffin so it was almost crystal clear. "If he's in the coffin, how are we going to get him out?"
"Hm, good point. Lucky for you I think I know how to get him out. You might want to stand back for this."
"Is whatever you're doing going to hurt Sasuke?" Katy asked, worried.
"Not sure. Let's find out!"
Sasuke suddenly found himself worried as well. He didn't know who this man was, though Katy seemed to, and he may use a technique that may kill him. He was afraid for his life. He squeezed his eyes closed in the case of whatever did happen he wouldn't be killed in the process. With a tense body he waited for whatever to happen.
There was a light surge of chakra. The dark chakra above him (which he felt constantly but tried to ignore during this whole time) pulsed strongly for a few moments. Then, it dissipated. All of the stale air he was in for several hours swept out to allow fresh, misty air into lungs. It smelled as if he were by a lake, which wasn't as far-fetched when water crashed onto another water source in the distance.
Sasuke opened his eyes. He had to start squinting the moment he did because he was in the dark for several hours. While he waited for his vision to refocus, he straightened back up to find his head not hitting the low ceiling from before.
"Sasuke? Sasuke, are you alright? Can you hear me?" Katy asked, frantically. A gentle hand touched his shoulder.
"I…don't know," he groaned. He rubbed his eyes and blinked repeatedly. His eyes soon focused and he looked up to see Katy hovering over him as she leaned over the opening of the coffin. He let out a sigh of relief. "God, I feel terrible."
"I'm sure," she said with a shaky smile. She grabbed underneath his arm to lift him to his feet. "Come on. You need to stretch those legs. Hours inside a coffin couldn't have been comfortable."
Sasuke nodded. He allowed Katy to help pull him out of the coffin. Stepping onto a soft ground, Katy let go of him while he raised his arms to stretch out his back and arms until they popped. Once they did, he sighed in satisfaction and started to stretch out the rest of his body. His legs were asleep, his thighs ached and his lower back was tense. As he stretched, he examined his body. He wasn't surprised to see on his bare arms and legs bruises littered them.
"Wow. Being in that coffin must have been rough. You were painted black and blue," Katy commented.
"Just a bit." Once Sasuke finished stretching out, he straightened back up from bending over to face Katy. She looked worse for wear with bags under her eyes while a black cloak covered her. On her back was her bag. What he found strange were the orange goggles on her head. Sasuke would have thought it was nice to see Katy again after everything that happened. Instead, anger and frustration bubbled inside him. He slapped her upside the head. "You idiot! What are you doing here? You should be in a hospital, not here in the middle of nowhere!"
"Ow! Okay, that hurt." She whined, holding her head. "Glad to see you're completely fine. Ow."
"You won't be if you won't tell me why you're here," he growled.
"After you left me on a stone bench in the middle of the night," Katy snapped with a slight glare in her eyes, "I woke up to tell Tsunade you were gone. Shikamaru got together the retrieval team and Sakura, Lee, and I watched them leave and I…I couldn't just stay in the village while they were getting you. You were kidnapped because you tried to save me. If anything happened to you because of me, I wouldn't have forgiven myself. So, I grabbed some stuff and left the village to come after you."
"My God, you really are an idiot." Sasuke shook his head while his anger calmed down. However, the frustration remained along with exasperation. Katy…Oh, Katy, what would he do with or without her? She could be sweet in her attempts, but she was a complete moron executing them. This was most likely the worst plan she could have ever made. "You left the safety of the village to follow after me, despite my sacrifice to keep you in there? Do you see the problems with that?"
"Of course I see the problems with that. That didn't change how guilty I felt for making you do that. You're always protecting me, Sasuke. I understand that. I usually don't mind but this was one time I did mind."
She cares too much, he thought with fondness. Katy was the type who would never stop caring, especially with him. Through all of their faults and their constant teasing, they knew they cared for each other. He may love to mock and tease her, but that didn't mean he hated her. It was the one way he showed he loved and cared for her. Was it really her fault she wanted to save her? Damn…I really can't blame her.
"How on earth did you get here in-" He took a moment to look around. His surprise mounted when he saw they were standing on a cliff facing two giant statues with a waterfall between them. No way. "The Valley of the End?"
"Oh. A…friend helped me get here. Well, he wasn't really a friend," she stammered. "He found me last night in the forest when I got lost. He offered to help me find you and he kept his promise. He brought me here while he went to go get you."
"Are you telling me a random stranger you didn't know offered to help you rescue me? A random strange man you didn't know offered to do that?" Sasuke asked, incredulously.
She nodded with a sheepish smile.
"I don't believe it. Your stupidity knows no bounds."
"I was desperate! I was scared and lost! What else could I do? He offered to help and I took it. Other than acting like a creepy old perv, he didn't have any bad motives for me."
"Katy!"
"What? You saw him! He's creepy but nice. I think."
"Katy, I didn't see the man you're talking about," Sasuke stated slowly. "He came in and took the coffin right from under Kimimaro's nose. I couldn't see or anything from inside the coffin at all."
"What? But, Seishi-" Katy stopped. She looked around the area with disbelief. Sasuke didn't even sense the man she spoke of. Were it not for for hearing his voice himself earlier, Sasuke would have thought she made the man up. Her jaw dropped. "I-I don't understand. Seishi was just here! He opened the coffin himself! I swear I didn't make him up! I swear he-"
She cut herself off when her breath hitched. Her face screwed into one of pain as a hand grabbed at her chest. Alarm bells rang in Sasuke's head. He grabbed her wrist to pull away from her chest. Then, he pressed two fingers against her wrist. He cursed at the too fast heartbeat pulsing under his fingertips. Her breathing was also way too fast to be normal.
"You shouldn't have left the hospital. You still have severe sepsis and being out here isn't helping you," Sasuke sternly said.
"I-I'm fine," she panted. She tried to smile, but it came out as a grimace.
"No, you're lying to yourself. You're not fine."
Something inside Sasuke snapped. After the frustration of the last few weeks where he worried about Katy's illness and the added kidnapping a few hours ago, Sasuke had enough. He knew a way to fix all of this. He wouldn't have to deal with anymore kidnappings or diseases or even Orochimaru because he had a single solution that could fix all of this. Only, it would make him infinitely melancholy for the coming few weeks.
"That's it. You're going home," he decided, definitely.
"Excuse me?" Katy asked, caught off guard. "Of course we're going home. Come on. Let's go back to Konoha."
He shook his head. "No. That's not what I meant. Katy, I'm sending you back where you belong. You don't belong in this world. You're putting yourself in danger if you stay here?"
"Danger? What danger? Everything's fine."
"If you hadn't noticed, you're in a world full of shinobi. Everyone here is a trained killer where they can easily overpower you. Tsunade said you're the only civilian Uchiha. People will come to take you away be it Orochimaru or someone else."
"Bu-But how am I going to get home? We never found a way to get back!" she exclaimed with astonishment.
"You didn't. Before any of this happened, I found a scroll containing a technique that messed with dimensional space. It allows the user to send anyone they choose to another dimension," he lied. In all honesty he found no scroll like that. The technique was true as it was the one Itachi used to send him to the United States. Itachi kept his promise and taught him the jutsu when he was still sick in bed.
"Really? But, do I have to go home? I want to stay here with you and Haku and everyone."
"No. You're in too much danger here. You need to go home."
Sasuke could have sworn his heavily guarded heart cracked when her expression fell to one of devastation and anxiety. The look she gave him was so heartbroken. Her bottom lip quivered as she swallowed.
"I'm going to miss you, Sasuke," Katy said, quietly. Her voice shook, eyes beginning to glisten. "You're my best friend."
He reached out to her. His arms wrapped underneath her arms so he could pull her into a hug as tightly as he could. She did the same, clenching her fists on the back of his shirt.
"I'm going to miss you, too, Katy," he muttered with great sincerity. A pit formed in his stomach at the thought of ever using this technique. He asked to learn the jutsu, yet he was afraid to use it. He wasn't ready to say goodbye. At this point he didn't have a choice. "You're my best friend and like a sister. We've been through so much together. You're the only one I can truly trust. No one could replace the hole you're leaving behind."
She choked up. He began to feel a wet spot forming on his shoulder. "No one can replace you, Kuya. I promise you that."
He did not say anything, but his comforting embrace said it all. He was never going to see Katy again. He might be lucky if he could should Katy ever returned. However, that might not be for years. If he returned after five years, who knew about Katy? She might never come back here again since she wasn't born here. It was hard to tell if that was a good thing or a bad one. He was torn.
After a moment of silence and tears on Katy's part, Sasuke released her. She rubbed away at her tears, smearing on her face. She sniffled.
"Are you going to send me home now?"
Sasuke nodded. He reached into his pouch to pull out a small scroll. Placing it on the floor, he unrolled it. A puff of smoke emitted as it rolled open and cleared away to reveal the stack of Naruto manga they brought here. Katy stared down at the manga questionably as if to ask why he would have those in a scroll.
"I was planning this for the past few weeks. I thought it best to keep these close at hand instead of out in the open," he explained. He grabbed Katy's bag from off her shoulders. He unzipped it, upended it to allow her provisions fall out, and replaced them with the manga. Zipping it back up, he handed the bag back to her. He swallowed. It was time. "Right. Time to go home."
Katy hesitantly nodded.
Sasuke made a single hand seal with his right hand like his brother shown him. In his mind's eye he pictured her mother's home where she was sure to find her daughter and seek medical attention. The moment he thought of it, his hand flashed white. Then, he placed his hand on Katy's chest. When it made contact Katy was engulfted in a flash of bright light. He had to cover his eyes from going blind. The light soon disappeared and when he uncovered his eyes, Katy was gone. He was alone with but crashing water in the background. He stared at the space where Katy once stood. Grief washed over him like a gentle wave.
I'm going to miss her.
He would surely miss Katy. He was honest when he once said Katy made his day pass by. Her bright personality would unconsciously brighten his day like the dawn. It was the start of a new day when she was around. He hoped with all his heart she would be all right on her own. She never did get along with the girls at school. Who knew what could happen without his protection? She could barely protect herself. Deep down he knew she would fine. She may look weak, but she had strong, compassionate heart he could never hope to have.
Sasuke shook his head, slapping his cheeks together. No. He couldn't get depressed about this right now. He had comrades who needed help from the Sound shinobi-Naruto in particular. Who knew how long he could hold off Kimimaro until Lee came to his rescue? He could throw himself into the pits of despair later on. He had friends-ones he gained with Katy's help-who needed him right now. While he may have lost one friend, he wasn't going to lose more.
With a slight stronger resolve Sasuke bolted back into the forest in the direction of Kyuubi's chakra flaring wildly around. He never noticed the stare of another watching his back as he disappeared into the greenery.
From atop the head of one of the statues, Seishi sat with an amused smirk. He watched the little girl, Kioshi, converse with whom he identified as Sasuke Uchiha. His single grey eye held a spark of interest when the little Uchiha performed a jutsu for Kioshi to disappear.
I knew she was interesting, he pondered, chuckling. Originally, he was on his way to Konoha when he found the little girl alone in the forest he was going to leave her to the wildlife. What did he care about some brat? But, when he heard her crying it reminded him too much of her. If she were here, she would never abandon someone in need. So, he approached the girl with a false name. Then, he found the girl was more than what she appeared as she acted with fierce determination to rescue her friend despite her condition. He would have called her stupid and childish were it not for her obvious loyalty she had for her friend. She would do anything for her friend. She reminded him of himself at that age just as he said. His intrigue only grew when she told him Orochimaru experimented on her and her friend was kidnapped by that lousy snake bastard. It reached its peak the moment her friend was actually Sasuke Uchiha-the very boy he came to see. Well, well, well. Kioshi is just full of surprises.
He knew of Orochimaru's little experiment. The snake got his hands on the corpse of an Uchiha and used the body's DNA and eyes to create the first successful non-born Uchiha. It was not an overall success as he heard the child was not a shinobi and the eyes were not a full-Sharingan. Yet, it was enough for the child to be labeled as an Uchiha. So, it was lucky for him as he went to Konoha to investigate the rumors of the only other Uchiha survivor being alive that he stumbled onto the little experiment. The little civilian child known as Kioshi. Not only that, she was friends with Sasuke Uchiha. Seeing him inside the coffin confirmed his suspicions. There was another full Uchiha alive. He would have never hit this gold mine of information had he not found Kioshi.
Kioshi Uchiha...You will be useful to my plans. Kioshi was an unknown factor he did not know about. He planned on finding out more about her before he could track her down. Whatever the little Uchiha did he was certain he wouldn't find the girl anywhere here again. But, that was okay. He desired the challenge. With the unknown variable known as Kioshi Uchiha he knew he would be able to achieve his goals. Little Kioshi Uchiha, you will become my future pawn in my plans with or without your consent.
With a smirk he stood back up to his feet in one swift motion. Reaching into his weapon pouch, he took out a bright orange and swirled mask with only one eye hole on the right. He slipped the mask on and swiftly was sucked into a swirling space until nothing was left.
Tobi would meet Kioshi again someday. No, if he had anything to say about it, he would most definitely meet her again.
Okay, sorry this chapter came up late. I would have finished this last week but life literally got in the way. Not only did I have to deal with Finals, I had to deal with a grieving mother because our dog, whom my mom loved dearly like her own child, suddenly died last week. She was our first dog and she suddenly died the night before when we found her. It was like a punch in the gut when she died and it wasn't a fun time. I can't even think of Pokemon anymore without feeling terrible (we named her after a Pokemon who she actually somewhat resembled. Go figure). So, I had to deal with my mom crying on top of studying for my final the next day that was largely fact based. Yeah, not fun.
Anyway, this is the second to last chapter of this story. Yay! I'm almost done with this! Finally! There was a lot that happened in this chapter. I absolutely hated writing most of Sasuke's point-of-view because he was stuck in a freakin' coffin. I hated writing 'this happened' and 'that happened' without Sasuke actually experiencing it. And now that the story's almost done, here's a question for you readers. I'm debating on whether to do a Shippuden sequel for this story. I'm really not sure because I kind of want to but it would largely involve the Akatsuki. I can't say more than that without ruining what I might have planned. So, should I write it? Please tell me what you want!
Please review!