Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. If I did there would be a looooot more taijutsu scenes than we got
Chapter 14: Common Ground
"The man of knowledge must be able not only to love his enemies but also to hate his friends." ― Friedrich Nietzsche
With his bag strapped tightly against his shoulders, and his sword Kusanagi pressed safely on his right hip Sasuke walked with little speed to the red pillars that served as the entrance gates to Konoha. From his vantage point he could already see his partner waiting for him in a leisurely pose, with his hands in his pockets and his expression seemingly bored out of his mind.
Scoffing Sasuke stuffed his own hands in his pockets as he walked up closer to Shikamaru.
The two of them didn't bother to dress up in their ANBU attire because they agreed before hand that it would draw too much attention to what they were really in the Land of Rushing Waves for. Instead they opted on wearing their regular shinobi outfits for their mission. He wore his regular black shinobi slacks with bandages wrapped up to his knees, his black shirt was adorned with a white belt hidden by the black cloak he wore over them.
With sharp dark brown eyes Shikamaru acknowledged him with a nod before saying goodbye to the gate guards with a simple flick of two fingers and walking ahead.
Feeling his eye twitch at the blatant disrespect Sasuke stalked forward in annoyance at not being properly greeted as his superior.
The sunset tinted the green of the tall Konoha trees a golden yellow, as the two of them walked wordlessly in the quiet forest. The animals seemed to be scattering about looking for safe places to sleep until the morning, their little footsteps against the forestry providing the only noise in Sasuke's ears.
It wasn't a long trip to the Land of Rushing Waves- which despite its name resided within Land of Fire borders. It would take them less than a day to get there and another to get back, the actual mission days didn't account for travel time. The land was a nice tourist spot for Konohagakure families on vacation due to it's many hot springs offering a nice sense of relaxation.
They wouldn't have the opportunity to enjoy such luxuries however as their espionage mission needed to go seamlessly so that left them less time to enjoy the land they occupied as most travelling shinobi often did. He hoped that the tip Konoha received wasn't just a dead- end and though he was more than a little miffed that he couldn't kill those bastards on sight he understood that a simple piece of information could give any side the upper hand.
He was a living example of that.
They walked for a little way longer, the pink of the setting sky quickly shifting into a deeper purple. Shikamaru walked almost zombie like in front of him, those two legs of his dragging against the earthy terrain every couple of beats like he had just gotten out of bed only moments before. His shoulders heaving with breath every now and then was the only sound that escaped the shinobi.
Seeing the sun dip lower and lower Sasuke figured that the two would need to set up camp and then continue on in the morning. Otherwise they ran the risk of running into unsavoury individuals travelling at night fall, and they would undoubtedly alert others of their calibre of the presence of Konoha shinobi in the area.
"Nara," Sasuke bellowed. At the halting footsteps of his teammate, he continued, "Let's set up camp. We can continue tomorrow."
"Understood." He moved off the road and into the forest, not bothering to turn around.
They found a flat grassy area not too far or close to the road. He had given the task of setting up the tent to Shikamaru while he started the fire their site would be situated around. Just one look at the bags underneath the shinobi's eyes and he could already tell he would be having the first watch, so he didn't bother getting too comfortable.
A small spark ignited and caught fire to the other logs, the crackle of the flame bringing forth a nice sized fire that engulfed the air around them in its heat.
Sitting down near the flames, Sasuke laid his back against a severed log he had found not too far from where they were. He gently laid his head against the wood and closed his eyes, allowing the soft flutter of the fire's glow to dance dull flashes of light behind his eyelids.
There was a shuffling sound and a heavy sigh shortly after. The flickering of a lighter and the subsequent smell of nicotine wafted through the air as Shikamaru sat down for his routine cigarette.
"Hinata," Shikamaru exhaled, letting the smoke momentarily fill his nostrils. At a sharp exhale he returned to his previous sentence. "She's been asking for you."
Sasuke who had long since opened his eyes brought them to stare blankly at the fire before him. He was careful not to give too much away in his features or voice when he spoke, the Nara was a sharp one and he sure as hell wasn't going to tell him anything he didn't need to know on a need to know basis.
"Has she?" He said, feigning nonchalance.
Shikamaru simply tapped the end of his cigarette in response. Following Sasuke's lead and putting his attention on the campfire as well.
Resisting the urge to roll his eyes the Uchiha settled on crossing his arms instead. "I'll avenge her."
"You better," Shikamaru said, he took one last drag from his cigarette before throwing the rest into the fire in front of him. "I'm gonna' help you."
Sasuke lifted his dark gaze to Shikamaru. His eyebrows were drawn together and his eyes, while sluggish, seemed to be vibrant with flashes of determination.
Lifting the corner of his lips slightly Sasuke brought his focus back to the fire in front of them. The growing orange flames seeming to mirror the spark of determination he felt burning inside him. For the first time he didn't feel apprehension at the thought of working together with the Nara. Instead it fuelled him further, like he'd just poured a pot of oil into the flame. Though he knew they were far from friends and would most likely go back to hating the other when their mission ended, their mutual goal was enough to stop them being at each other's throats for the time being.
The two Konoha shinobi stayed solid in their positions until Shikamaru informed him he would be heading to bed first.
Having been left alone with his thoughts Sasuke let them travel where they seemed to always go so naturally. He thought about what he would do when he got back to the village. He wondered if he would get the opportunity to see her again. Possibly even awake.
He shifted his eyes to the clear sky above him. The stars were brighter than usual that night, their luminous glow casting a small blanket of light over the terrain below them. The forest was quiet except for the sound of a few chirping insects and the burning logs before him.
What would he even say to her? What could he possibly say to her? He realized that he didn't want to thank her because even if it was an awful feeling to have, he didn't feel like what she did was worthy of his gratitude.
It pissed him off more than it made him grateful and he wouldn't feel right lying to her or saying something he himself didn't want to. Sasuke just wasn't that type of person.
He gritted his teeth together, careful not to bite his tongue that seemed to grow dry at the things his mind pondered over.
Would she get mad at him for it?
Sasuke didn't know why but he couldn't picture that scenario at all. It didn't seem like a Hinata reaction, but it was easier than the other scenario. The one where she smiled at him with that pained expression of hers and looked at him with clear iridescent eyes of understanding.
He realized he'd rather the first reaction because it was more cut and dry. Her anger didn't run the risk of unravelling him. It didn't run the risk of making him yearn for her even more.
Sasuke's hands tensed slightly at his reasoning. He inwardly cursed himself, he needed to show more restraint.
Pushing himself up by his palms he surveyed the area for the perfect vantage spot, noticing a tall branch that hung a little above their camp site. Walking up the trunk of the tree he settled on the thick branch as he leaned his back against the tree, focusing only on the task at hand. He clearly needed a distraction.
…
He had refused the Nara the second watch shift, instead Sasuke felt that it would be better if he stay alert the whole night. He couldn't shake the gnawing feeling of something getting closer to them and so he stayed in his hawk-like position on the branch the entire time.
As the flecks of sunlight rose across the forest Sasuke felt the dryness of his throat turn into a dull scratchy sensation. Glancing at the water bottle he had brought up with him a couple of hours in, he frowned at its emptiness.
Quickly he surveyed the area from where he sat spotting a small lake near the back end of their campsite. Jumping down from his spot he eyed the black tent in the middle of the grassy clearing. It wouldn't be long before Shikamaru woke up, that is if he wasn't already, and the lake wasn't too far from where they stood.
Nodding his head at his quick decision Sasuke made his way to the lake, his bottle sitting loosely in his encircled hand. The lush grass beneath his feet quickly turned into marsh as he hurried his footsteps, the tension he had felt earlier was beginning to worsen. The sparkling clear water before him momentarily drew away his attention as he leaned forward to fill his bottle, but as quickly as it came the calmness dissipated leaving him with a rigid back- the bottle he had held having been so carelessly discarded at the lake's edge.
Birds flew squalling above him as if they too sensed the danger. He pushed his feet further as the wind whipped past his accelerating body, the low hung branches of trees he passed before left slight scratches across the length of his forearms.
When Sasuke reached the campsite, he wasn't surprised to find it in the catastrophic state it laid in. The once erect tent was bent inwards at an odd angle, it would undoubtedly need to be replaced when they returned.
With a sharp eye he examined the area closely, there was clear signs of a struggle taking place but there wasn't anyone around. Turning an inquisitive eye towards the ground he could see no footsteps or lines that would indicate where Shikamaru and his assailant had gone.
"Shit." He cursed underneath his breath. His earlier decision having bit him in the ass. The grimace on his face deepened as he realized that Shikamaru's strength did not lie in his fighting ability meaning he had to find him before it became too late.
Sasuke felt a tingling sensation form at the tips of his fingers, the jutsu he craved to unleash sitting just beneath the surface of his hand. He knew exactly who it was that attacked. And he was itching to eradicate them.
He stalked forward quietly, letting his ears pick up any sound it could within distance. The footsteps of smaller forest animals running in the same direction caused him to hurry his pace in the opposite direction they were going. The squad captain soon found himself in a field of hydrangeas, an odd sight considering they weren't in season. His sharingan immediately sprang forward, as his senses alerted him of the nearing danger. Like a form of mist, the illusion lifted, and the hydrangeas morphed into the bodies of dead birds.
Unsheathing Kusanagi Sasuke's voice echoed out, "I know you're here."
A shrill feminine laugh floated in the air as the owner of the voice remained concealed from view.
"So, you do. I must say I'm glad you've finally come; your teammate wasn't much of an opponent."
Red eyes narrowed in anger. "Where is he?"
"Why don't you see for yourself." The voice laughed. A low groan was heard as Sasuke turned his head towards the source. There laid Shikamaru, back to the tree as his left side was slashed open. His shuriken laid bloody by his side as his face contorted in an unbecoming expression full of pain.
Bitterly Sasuke frowned, it sure didn't take him long to get himself badly injured. That meant the opponent was a lot more skilled than the one's they encountered before.
"Nara." Sasuke moved to step towards him only to slide backwards a few seconds later as Kusanagi clashed loudly with the long blade of the rōnin kunoichi's ōdachi sword. "Cheap shot." He hissed.
"Anything to kill you." The woman smiled, her teeth visible in an animalistic way.
The force of the two swords pushed them both back. Sasuke sized his opponent down, she wore the same blank headband just as his other attackers had. Her orange hair hung in a low ponytail behind her and she had a long scar running from one brown eye to the next. It wasn't the only one has her slightly tan skin seemed to be marred with different scars all varying in length and depth.
She was definitely a fighter, that much was obvious. Her ōdachi sword was held with a confident grace, the blade gleaming in the dull sunlight. Sasuke's brow dipped in inquisition. There was something strange about the sword, his sharingan picking up a foreign energy from within it.
"You." Sasuke spat, "Where did you find such a blade?"
At his question the kunoichi's face lit up in an exaggerated grin, "Oh, so you've noticed? As expected of the last Uchiha."
"Answer me." His muscles tensed as he could feel the growing need to attack building inside him. He stilled himself then, something told him he needed to hear her response.
"The birds, how do you think they got there?" She answered him with a question of her own. Her haughty nature seemingly feeding off the energy that rested heavy between them. "My sword was hungry."
He filled in the blanks himself. The birds were bloody and without their insides, but the rest of their bodies were still intact. Spending his youth with Orochimaru he had picked up on a couple of things during tasks he sent him to complete in his stead. Namely the different kinds of forbidden justu the Sannin had an obsession with. This, the sword, it felt strange because she had cast a forbidden jutsu upon it. The familiar name resurfacing at the tip of his tongue.
'Iizuna Tsukai no Jutsu'
His grip on his katana tightened. He was certain then that God had it out for him. Of course, his opponent would be wielding a weasel demon sword, the same animal his brother was named after. The irony was almost funny, but still, he knew that he had to be careful.
The sword housed a demon inside, and it was one that brought with it misfortune. He risked a quick glance at his teammate, hoping he hadn't been cut open with the sword. Orochimaru had heeded him a warning when he sent him out to retrieve an identical sword from a wicked swordsmith. That sword, if you were hit by it and were lucky to survive at all, would cast a shadow of great tragedies upon its victim until they died, dragging the cursed soul with it to hell.
Sensing his unsaid question, the rōnin licked her lips playfully, "Oh don't worry he wasn't worth this jutsu. No, I've been saving it specifically for you and your bastard friends."
The Uchiha scoffed at her words. It would take much more than a forbidden jutsu to kill him, especially one wielded by a person as cocky as she. She was quite lucky she hadn't found him first or else she wouldn't have such a provoking smile on her face.
However, he was still mindful of time, knowing he needed to end it quickly. Shikamaru was injured and would need to be woken up to heal himself before he lost too much blood. Moving into position he waited for her too move first.
The woman charged forward with great speed, lunging her sword Sasuke matched it as their blades met each other again. Smartly she kept her eyes away from his own, so he couldn't immediately pull her into a genjutsu. No, he needed to bait her into looking at him.
She would move to attack and he would quickly evade her with his blade, carefully manoeuvring around his injured teammate and anything that would leave him trapped between her. If she hadn't been wielding such an irritating sword he could quickly subdue her without worry of getting a little scratched up.
He evaded another time only to the aggravation of the rōnin kunoichi. She growled at him before moving at a faster speed with less grace then before. Sasuke easily side stepped her, wishing he somehow had access to the transporting power he had possessed in the war. Unfortunately for him after his fight with Naruto had been resolved their newly gained abilities had disappeared as well.
Sasuke needed to get her to drop the sword, as their blades came in contact again he quickly raced through his mind for an idea, finally settling on a plan of action. She may have had an upper hand with her sword, but his intellect was his.
She was smaller than him, so he would use his frame to his advantage. He pushed Kusanagi into her sword with even more force, encircling chakra in his hand to aid with the power. The kunoichi slipped backwards a little as she struggled to overcome the pressure he was placing on her. She seemed to have caught on to his strategy as she placed chakra on the bottom of her feet to stabilize herself.
Luckily for him he was counting on that to be her next move. Sasuke swung a leg up quickly kicking her in the gut. Dropping her sword, she flew backwards as she clutched onto her abdomen. Her brown eyes quickly flitted to her sword lying in the grass a few ways from them both. Sasuke moved the same time as her, getting to the sword a few seconds after her he quickly placed his left foot on her hand as she grabbed at the ōdachi's hilt.
Screeching in pain the woman didn't retract her hand but instead tried to tilt the blade on its sharp side in order to pierce him. The Uchiha moved his other foot onto the blade of the sword before it could turn and cut through his sandal. She made the mistake of looking at him in indignation and Sasuke who had calculated this reaction allowed his sharingan to swirl as her bronze gaze filled with ire drifted into a far away haze.
She fell forward not long after, her hand still tightly clutched on the hilt of her cursed sword. Watching her still form Sasuke smelt the burning smoke that usually developed before chidori engulfed his hand, but he kept his hand dangerously still. He needed to take the kunoichi alive to question her, he reminded himself, repeating the thought over again and over again until he felt the tension in his fingers dissipate.
Remembering his injured comrade, he sheathed his katana and walked over to where an unconscious Shikamaru lay. His side looked a lot worse close up, the entire left side of his green flak jacket having been ripped to shreds as well as the black shirt underneath. The gash was quite deep, with the skin around it torn and bruised.
Lightly shaking at the man's shoulders Sasuke spoke loud enough to wake him, "Nara. Get up."
Shikamaru stirred with crumpled brows, his mouth opened in a groan as he came to and the pain registered in his consciousness. With a sharp breath his pointed eyes fluttered open only to quickly close as he winced in pain.
Crouching down to be at the same eye level Sasuke steadied Shikamaru with his own hands as he leaned to slump over clutching at his side.
"Get up," Sasuke ordered again. "You need to heal yourself."
"Trouble…some." Shikamaru wheezed. His eyelids rapidly blinking as he willed himself not to pass out from the injury. He took a few moments than Sasuke would've liked to bare the pain, but he eventually conceded to his captain's orders and his hand begun glowing the familiar mint green chakra used for medical ninjustsu.
The wound was shifting, the light odour of sweaty skin dissipating as the flesh around the gash formed to regenerate. After a long couple of minutes, the entire injury was closed with only the tell-tale sign of dried blood as evidence there was one to begin with. With a grunt Shikamaru moved to stand up but crashed against the tree again with a cry. His hand flew to his left side and Sasuke followed it to see that the gash which had just been closed had reopened again, the blood pooling from between the Nara's fingers almost angrily as if the wound was alive. Sasuke's eyebrow raised in mild surprise, he didn't know such a thing was possible.
"Damn," Shikamaru cursed, head slamming back unto the tree behind him in exhaustion. "Chakra…" He slid back down into his previous sitting stance. His clammy skin, growing pastier each second.
Wordlessly Sasuke unwrapped the bandages around his left leg and with careful precision wrapped it around Shikamaru's side to apply pressure to the wound. It was all he could do to calm down the bleeding, which had returned with a vengeance.
"Thanks," Shikamaru winced. He was awfully pale and sounded in pain but there was still an air of incredulity around his words. "When…?"
"Sakura." Was all Sasuke offered. The medical nin had practically yelled his ear off for not knowing the basics of patching up, only to shyly blush and offer to teach him later. "I have soldier and blood supply pills back with my stuff, you can use those to get your energy up and re-heal yourself." Sasuke turned his back around as he stayed in a crouching position. Although he'd rather not have to be in the predicament he was in now, the situation left little room to complain.
Understanding Sasuke's actions Shikamaru moved to get on his back only to slump back onto the trunk of the oak tree again. "Sorry. I… can't move."
With a resigned sigh Sasuke picked the shinobi up and carefully slung him over his back. Walking towards where he sedated his enemy, he eyed the cursed sword that was steadily emitting a dark aura from where it lay in the grass. Reaching for one of the empty lightning scrolls he always kept equipped on his side, his hand flew through instinctive hand seals as he drew the sword inside and placed the scroll in his pocket, mindful of the injured person laying on his shoulders.
"The...woman?" Shikamaru asked, his voice slow and quiet like he was on the verge of passing out.
The subject of attention lay dead still with her orange hair tussled all around her like strands of fallen autumn leaves. Her brown eyes were still open but there wasn't much of a presence in them, the sharingan sending her to a place filled with nothing but her own fears. When Sasuke was ready to talk to her she'd probably tell him everything he needed to hear. And even if her comrades were to get to her first she couldn't be roused from her condition with anything except another sharingan, which he was the sole possessor of. She was basically useless to them. They'd probably leave her to die. Hell, they'd practically sent her on a suicide mission by leaving her alone.
Somehow deep down Sasuke knew her allies weren't coming for her. He scowled at that, such behaviour was despicable. For all his faults as a sensei, Kakashi still managed to instil within him a sense of honour when it came to his comrades. That's why he risked ruining the mission if it could save his teammates life. Even with the hunger of knowledge clawing at him, the Uchiha knew somethings were of more value.
"Worry about that later."
Sasuke moved at a snail's pace, any faster and Shikamaru's side wound would open up more. He could practically feel the warm blood soaking into his cloak, momentarily grateful that his garment's black colour concealed most of the stain. The distinctly iron smell still sat heavy in his nose.
He hated that smell.
Admittedly, he did feel a bit responsible for leaving his post as squad captain. He frowned as he realized the attacks were getting more brazen each time and ultimately ended up hurting everyone else but him. They were getting desperate that much was obvious, but he wasn't exactly sure why.
They finally reached the campsite and Sasuke gently put Shikamaru down to search through his bag for the pills he had saved from Sakura some time ago. He watched as Shikamaru's face scrunched at the bitterness knowing that the unsavoury taste would stay for a few minutes longer than preferred. After a couple of minutes, the shinobi braced himself upright, stripped the bandages around his side and begun to re-heal himself.
Sasuke watched carefully crouched with his hands over his knees when Shikamaru made to stand up straight. At the sight of no blood the ANBU captain stood up himself and approached the shinobi.
"You can stay here if you still feel pain, I can question the woman myself."
"I'm fine," Shikamaru brushed him off. He leaned down in the mauled tent to pull out his own backpack. Grabbing a heavy rope, he stuffed it in his pocket and motioned towards the pathway they had just came from. "Let's get some answers."
Nodding his head Sasuke led the way into the clearing where the woman's body remained still as a rock. Her eyes were watery with tears though none had fallen just yet. Sasuke looked upon her with a sense of satisfaction, she would most definitely have nothing but the truth to offer after she came to. Lifting her up he pulled her body to lean against the same tree Shikamaru was before. Pulling her hands to sit underneath her backside Sasuke stepped back as Shikamaru finished off the capture by restraining her quite tightly with rope.
It seemed Nara Shikamaru had a predisposition to revenge. Sasuke saved that piece of information for later.
"Done." Shikamaru stood back with an air of aloofness though his eyes held a cold look within them.
Roughly pulling the woman's head up to meet his own Sasuke brought her out of his genjutsu. He watched as the tears fell from her eyes as she desperately gasped for air, a soundless scream escaping her lungs in urgency. When she begun to register where she was the rōnin flung her head about wildly, teeth snarling as she aimed to bite at Sasuke's own face which hovered not too far from hers.
"Calm down." Sasuke ordered, his voice bellowing in an authoritative manner. When she showed no signs of settling he changed his tactics and threatened her. "If you don't quit moving I'll send you back to your nightmares."
That seemed to do the trick.
With a defiant scowl the woman sat still, her breathing was heavy and the anger she most certainly harboured towards him came off in waves, but she seemed to value self-preservation above all else.
"Now," Sasuke began, he moved away from her when she forcefully shook her chin from his fingers. "Tell us who sent you and their plans and maybe Konoha can work out a deal for you."
At the laugh that followed his question Sasuke felt his visage darken, looking towards Shikamaru he could see that he also was clearly irritated.
"Mind letting us in on the joke?" Shikamaru frowned, his hands were hidden in those deep pockets of his, but his stance still seemed ready should anything happen to occur.
"All you need to know is that we want to kill you." The woman spat, she directed her attention solely on Sasuke, not bothering to pay the other shinobi any mind.
With a humourless smirk of his own Sasuke kept his gaze level with the assailant. "How informative. And why is that?"
"You deserve it you bastard."
"And who exactly is giving out this order?" Sasuke asked ignoring the vitriol in her answer. He most certainly didn't warrant any of her misplaced ire and he wasn't going to indulge her like he did.
The woman shifted a little, she was clearly uncomfortable with the question. "None of your business."
"Tell us yourself or I'll force you to tell us, and you won't like that option one bit."
She seemed to understand where he was going when his eyes returned to their sharingan state. As if contemplating something she bent her head and then straightened back up. Her scarred eyes danced with mirth as she smiled at him once last time, and then with a swift movement he didn't foresee she bit down on her own tongue the blood gashing about as she begun to choke on her self-inflicted wound.
Both Sasuke and Shikamaru raced forward as they struggled to get her to let up on her assault, it wasn't long before her head titled over signifying she was dead, and all the two men were left in was a bloody mess.
Looking down at his red stained hands Sasuke stood up and punched the tree before him with such force he could feel the skin tearing at his knuckles. He ignored the pain and moved to turn his back on the woman with haste. He couldn't look at her any longer or would really see red.
"Fuck." Sasuke hissed. "Fuck!" He cursed again.
"Damn it." Shikamaru shared in his sentiment. "We should've seen that coming."
Sasuke exhaled sharply. He needed to think of their next move, they were half way to the Land of Rushing Waves but he wasn't too keen on continuing their mission after what just happened. As he ran over each option he could hear Shikamaru moving around in the background. Sharp sounds of moving fabric and zippers being pulled filled the silence.
"Looks like we got lucky." Shikamaru said. Looking over his shoulder Sasuke saw what his teammate was referring to, in between his bloody fingers were a black piece of paper and a map.
Huddled together the two of them examined the map only to come to the one conclusion they didn't want to find. The landscape the map was forming was one the two shinobi knew all too well.
"It's Konohagakure." Shikamaru said, the disbelief evident in his unusually expressive face. "This is bad."
Sasuke's eyes followed the hastily drawn red lines that marked the map of his village, lines leading to possible entry ways. Each possible access point was littered with a series of notes commenting on the amount of security placed in the surrounding area.
"Damn it." Shikamaru repeated. One of his hands went to pat the pockets of his pants where he kept his lighter and cigarettes.
Sasuke held out his hand after carefully rolling the map and placing it in his pocket, "The note."
Handing over the note Shikamaru turned his head to look at the woman lying lifeless against the tree beside them, "They knew she would die. Her death…it was nothing but a senseless message."
Sasuke grimly pursed his lips as Shikamaru said what they'd both been thinking aloud. His fingers held the black note tightly and the edges slightly crumpled underneath the pressure. There in the middle of the note was an even darker black hole, an emblem of sorts. And on the bottom of the emblem was the name of the group that was intent on using his past to haunt him.
The Abyss.
This changed everything. Sasuke stuffed the note in his pocket before he could ruin it any further. Kakashi would know what to do with the evidence and he needed to get it to him as soon as possible.
Quickly standing up he turned his gaze towards the orange haired abyss woman and let the flames of Amaterasu engulf her until there was no trace of her existence left.
"We're going back to Konoha." Sasuke said. He headed on first not caring to stick around when he had so many new questions swimming his in mind and a bad feeling forming in his gut.
They were a little way from Konoha after rushing back at twice the speed than they had left. Their packing hadn't taken long as they mutually agreed on burning the tent which was bent at an angle way beyond fixing. Then the two shinobi covered their tracks and any other sign of their presence with immaculate detail, Sasuke could still smell the burning stench of the dead birds disintegrating within his fire jutsu.
Sasuke had made the two of them take a break from running on account of Shikamaru's earlier injury. Although it was healed he suspected it wasn't executed as properly as someone with Sakura's expertise could've done it. He would need to have it checked out as soon as they got to the village and debriefed Kakashi.
Sasuke felt Shikamaru's quickening presence before he saw him walk in step beside him. It was an unusual action one he had opened his mouth to question before being cut off by the explanation the Nara provided himself.
"I wanted to thank you for saving my life." Shikamaru gruffly said. He seemed to be uncomfortable as he kept his gaze steady on the pathway in front of him. "That woman side tracked me with that forbidden sword of hers, had me thinking she was going to hit me with it before throwing a secret kunai and catching me off guard. You can imagine what happened next. Before I knew it, I was badly injured."
"I'm the squad captain," Sasuke said. He nonchalantly shrugged his shoulders as if it could make the atmosphere any less weird. It didn't. "It's my duty to keep my team safe."
"Still," Shikamaru scratched at the small stubble forming around his chin, "That's not a common mentality among shinobi."
He knew what the man was implying. Sasuke rolled his eyes at the insinuation that rogue nins such as himself should be inherently heartless and cruel. There was honour among thieves, the Uchiha couldn't understand why that was such a hard concept for other people to grasp.
'More like accept.' He darkly realized.
"That day you left the village Tsunade-sama put me in charge of a retrieval squad to get you back. It was my first chunin mission and my first as squad captain. I was the only genin promoted to chunin after the exams and so I felt a whole lot of pressure on my shoulders at the Hokage's request."
Sasuke dumbly blinked at Shikamaru, more than mildly surprised at the revelation. He had thought only his Team 7 teammates were intent on saving him from darkness. Last he heard about the rest of Konoha's thoughts on the matter, they wanted both him and the Uchiha name put to rest.
Shikamaru paying his reaction no mind continued talking without prompt. "Our classmates voluntarily stepped up to join me, I didn't even have to ask. Whether it was because of Naruto or you I couldn't tell you, but they all obviously felt a strong sense of obligation towards your safety. You were one of the guys." He paused in his words a little, a small chuckle escaping him, "You obviously know how that mission turned out."
"Why?" Sasuke asked. He didn't understand what Shikamaru wanted him to learn from this information. Why he wanted to bring up such a dark time in his life out of the blue.
"The way your escorts left my teammates, the condition you left Naruto in…I felt like the biggest failure. Everyone almost died, and I thought it was my fault. I hated you after that, but I could still understand your sense of duty to your clan. And then we find out you were working with Akatsuki…They killed my sensei in cold blood. I despised you then. I was the one to gather everyone else and rule you out to be a liability that needed to be stopped. I had manipulated Sakura despite her feelings into agreeing with me, but I couldn't break through Naruto, he always believed in you and I couldn't understand why."
Sasuke stayed silent as the two walked back to their village. Shikamaru's continuous cold behaviour towards him, it was all starting to make perfect sense. He was right earlier, that Nara really did have a penchant for revenge.
"Naruto," Shikamaru smiled, "He is the only person I would blindly follow, no questions asked."
"Me too." Sasuke said. He allowed a small smirk to form at the mention of his best-friend. He definitely had that effect on people. It was the same feeling Sasuke once wanted to elicit in others, a blanket of warmth.
"I didn't understand it then, but I do now. Maybe you are just as redeemable as he says."
"I'm sorry." Sasuke offered, he kept his eyes trained on Shikamaru's hoping he could feel his sincerity. Because he truly was, and all he ever did now was try to atone for the mistakes in his adolescence.
Shikamaru rolled his shoulders in acceptance. Stuffing his hands in his pockets he stayed beside Sasuke, walking for a few minutes before speaking up again.
"Hinata sees it too you know? Your redemption. That's why I'll give you a chance like she asked."
"When did she do that?" Sasuke questioned, raising his brows in confusion.
"That time at the hospital. She told me I should cut you some slack. I was opposed to it then, but I guess my opinion has changed… for now."
Sasuke's jaw tightened in irritation. How backhanded. That somehow made him feel even more pathetic. She was always looking out for him and he couldn't even protect her. Hinata…she deserved more than that. He wanted to give her more than that.
He placed his hand in the pocket the black note lay in, fingering the crumbled edge of the paper. The Abyss would pay, he would make sure of it. Casting a quick glance to the shinobi on his left Sasuke calmed down knowing that he wouldn't be the only one working towards that goal.
And after he avenged her…
He would feel worthy of her.
Kakashi kept his dark gaze trained on the two in front of him, the evidence from the dead woman laid out on his desk. His gloved hands were clasped in front of his lips which Sasuke assumed was formed in a taut line. Sasuke had just debriefed him along with Shikamaru on the disaster that was their mission and he had sat in contemplation for a long while. In moments like these Sasuke could clearly see how tired the old man was.
"You made the right decision by cutting the mission short." Kakashi addressed him. He hunched over his desk with a sigh. "I'm guessing this information you've gathered will prove to be something useful in the future. Until we can be sure however your squad is officially taken off the active ANBU list. Instead you guys will be restricted to doing regular shinobi work within the village walls. This is just a precaution to keep you safe of course."
Though somewhat disappointed Sasuke could understand where his former sensei was coming from so he didn't protest. "Understood." If Kakashi was surprised at his reaction the old man hid it well.
The Hokage then turned towards Shikamaru with a trained eye, "You can have Sakura check out that wound of yours. I don't think a reopening healed wound is normal."
"Yes Hokage-sama." Shikamaru nodded. His back was a little straighter and his focus was a lot more evident in the presence of the sixth. Sasuke inwardly scoffed at that, though they had gotten past their initial issues he knew that he'd never get that same level of respect.
"I'll let Taka know of these developments and together you guys can see if there's anything you can dig up about The Abyss that would point to their whereabouts and identities. I'm trusting that you'll only be giving this information out on a need to know basis," Kakashi paused to shoot Sasuke a look that screamed 'I'm talking about Naruto and Sakura.'
"Of course." Sasuke grumbled, narrowing his eyes at the Hokage. If it was any one of them that needed to worry about their big mouth it was him. Everything Naruto and Sakura knew about this situation came straight from the pervert's mouth.
"Great!" Kakashi's countenance suddenly perked up as his one eye closed in satisfaction. "Now then, I have other matters to attend to but if you have anything else that could be of importance you can give it to Ibiki down at the information headquarters, I will be putting him in charge of this as well."
'How nice.' Sasuke sarcastically thought. He frowned at the prospect of working closely with someone as standoffish as the scarred reconnaissance shinobi, but he didn't voice it aloud. Knowing Kakashi he'd probably find some sort of amusement in it.
"Well then this meeting is adjourned."
The two ANBU exited the office after a quick bow. As they reached outside, and the door closed Shikamaru signalled in Sasuke's direction to get him to wait.
"Hinata's being let out of the hospital in five days." Shikamaru quietly said, letting the sensitive info slip. "Kakashi-sama put me in charge of discharging her and bringing her home. He knew I disliked you, so I guess he thought I'd do it discreetly with you having not as much as a clue."
"How very intuitive of him." Sasuke muttered. Using his strained relationship with Shikamaru to his advantage, even the Uchiha had to admit that the old man was smart. Though that fact just made him resent his sensei even more than he currently did. Sasuke examined the shinobi with an inquisitive look, "Why are you telling me this? It's not like we're friends now."
Shikamaru slouched as he stifled a yawn, "I guess my view on you as a person has changed. Consider this pay back for your earlier act of kindness."
"Thanks, I guess."
"Guess I've got to go see Sakura now and then meet up with Ino and Chouji. How troublesome, all I want to do is sleep." He stalked forward then, clearly not in a rush as he threw a lazy wave over his shoulder. "Later."
Sasuke only smirked in response. The Nara was a lot more bearable now that their bad blood had been drained, he'd give him that much. Turning in the opposite direction Sasuke dragged his feet towards the Uchiha compound suddenly realizing his own tiredness.
He felt the layer of dirt, grime, and blood peel on his skin and all he wanted was to go home, have a bath and let sleep consume him. He was sure he smelt like death and that was no exaggeration.
With heavy feet he finally made it home, discarding his shoes at the front he walked further into his house only to be met with the sight of his teammates huddled together on the couch in his living room.
Looking up with worried crimson eyes Karin's expression softened as she laid eyes on him, "Sasuke!" She shot up first from the couch and closed the distance between them with a hug, causing his sword to press uncomfortably in his side.
Sasuke kept his arms open in bewilderment and then used them to push her away from him, holding her shoulders and checking her for any strange injuries. When he found none, he brought dark black eyes to meet her own which were starting to fill with tears.
"Karin what are you doing?" Sasuke questioned. He was still holding onto her shoulders and she hadn't moved from the spot he held her at despite the awful smell that was probably coming from him.
"We're so sorry Sasuke." Karin cried, she shook her head and her wild red hair flailed around as she did so. "We should've told you."
Getting up from the couch Suigetsu removed Karin from Sasuke's grip and pulled her into her own separate space. "Your Hokage told us about your mission."
"How?" Sasuke inquired, he was slightly annoyed at the previous hysterics and wanted nothing more than to be sleeping. "I just got back."
"We've got phone's now," Suigestu raised his own blue phone in Sasuke's face to prove his point, "We don't need to go all the way to his office to get debriefed anymore."
"I'm sorry he took your ANBU squad off of the missions list." Juugo voiced, towering next to him as he patted him on the back. Sasuke rolled his eyes at that sentence, so much for his sensei keeping certain things on a need to know basis.
Shifting away from the three with a step backwards Sasuke couldn't help but glare at his ex-teammates.
"I'm tired." He roughly stated, motioning towards his clothes for good measure. "Whatever you three want to say, say it to me tomorrow. I don't have the energy."
"Told you he'd still be mad!" Karin harshly whispered. It wasn't as quiet as she intended it because the Uchiha still heard every word.
"Of course he'd be. Even after we went drinking and I gave him advice. How arrogant." Suigestu muttered, he crossed his arms in a childish manner as he pouted in Sasuke's direction.
Sasuke's eyebrow twitched at the blatant disrespect to his presence. "I'm still here."
"Sasuke, we're sorry we didn't tell you about the rogue organization sooner." Juugo calmly voiced. He stood not too far from where Sasuke was with a soft expression. "We didn't think to involve you. If we had known things would end up this way our decision would've been much different."
So that's what it all was about. Sasuke looked at each of his house guests separately. They all looked regretful and somewhat nervous, like they were waiting for him to go off on them.
If he was being honest Sasuke had completely forgotten about his current feelings towards Taka. He was too busy with his mission to dwell on it. But if he really thought about it, he couldn't deny that there was still a sense of betrayal surrounding the issue, he felt more hurt than anything. He didn't know why they hid it from him in the first place.
"Why didn't you tell me?" His own voice was rough, almost dejected even. He didn't bother putting on false bravado.
"You weren't apart of Taka anymore." Suigetsu explained. A tuft of loose white hair hung lowly in his violet eyes but he paid it no mind. "We wanted to respect your decision."
"But still," Sasuke frowned. "You don't think I deserved to know?"
It was Karin who spoke up next, "We saw how hard you were working towards leaving your past behind Sasuke. Your dreams, we wanted you to achieve it without having to worry about what we originally thought was a small ordeal. We never thought it would blow up in our faces like this."
After a momentary minute of silence Sasuke brought obsidian eyes to stare into Suigetsu's own. "And now?"
"You'll know everything down to the last detail." Suigestu assured him. His purple eyes held steady and showed no sign of shaking. He was serious about this.
With a resigned sigh Sasuke shut his eyes in compliance. When he opened them again he saw three gazes of steel fixed onto him.
"We'll do everything we can to take The Abyss down." Suigestu said.
"We all want to move on from Taka," Juugo went on in unison with his leader's statement. "This will be the last loose string to tie up."
"And then all of us can have new beginnings," Karin smiled. Her red eyes held such warmth in them, like she believed they all truly deserved to be happy. Sasuke didn't know if he could agree with that just yet but he couldn't deny that ultimately, he wanted to.
With a nod of his head, he swallowed down his pride. "I guess I forgive you then." Sasuke simply replied. He winced at the cheers of excitement that sounded from his former teammates, more Karin and Suigetsu than anything. "I'll definitely kill you if you think of doing something like this again."
Coming beside Sasuke and throwing a brotherly arm over his shoulder Suigetsu sighed in contentment. "This is just like old times!"
Though he harshly shook the swordsman off of him Sasuke couldn't help but agree. It felt nice to have a sense of common ground again, especially when everything else around him was turning on its head. It made him feel somewhat peaceful.
"Let's go out to eat!" Suigetsu suggested. It seemed he was back to his usual cheery self as he jabbed Juugo in the side. "It's Juugo's treat."
"You can't just plan an outing and get someone else to pay you moron! That's rude." Karin berated him with a mean snarl as she pushed her glasses up in indignation. Suigetsu merely matched her glare with one of his own.
"Whatever four-eyes I doubt big guy even minds, right Juugo?"
"I guess not." The gentle giant supplied, his face was blank yet he still managed to look somewhat content.
"It doesn't matter if Juugo doesn't mind," Karin huffed, "It's common decency!"
"You saying I'm not decent you ugly wench?"
"Because you're not, you stupid shark shit!"
As soon as he felt his temple pulse Sasuke took it as his cue to leave. Those two would be arguing for however long until they actually left so he would use the time to get ready instead. He stripped himself from his filthy garments letting them drop unceremoniously on his wooden floor when he heard an unusually loud 'smack'. Knowing his clothes couldn't have possibly made that much noise Sasuke searched through them for the origin of the sound, going through every pocket until he found the scroll he had carried with him from his mission.
It was the one with the demon sword inside and he had meant to give it to Kakashi, but he had somehow forgotten. Examining the scroll with a critical eye he weighed it within the palms of his hand, the heavy ōdachi blade giving the seals it was held within some heaviness. Naturally Sasuke should've brought the critical piece of evidence down to the intelligence centre as soon as he found it, but something within him couldn't part from the sword. It was most likely an irrational feeling on his end but his intuition was telling him he would need it in the future, so he took the scroll and placed it in the locked box he kept underneath his bed full of things he preferred to keep from the eyes of others.
With a steamy shower and a set of new clothes Sasuke was ready to go. He walked at a relaxed pace towards the front door where the other three of his company stood waiting for him. With a nod of his head he acknowledged them before leading the way to the bar they usually frequented when Taka was in town.
In a few minutes they had a booth and drinks in their hands as they tried to find some solace in the midst of the bad storm. Still Sasuke couldn't shake the feeling that the worst had yet to come, so he let himself be at ease only a little, the other half of him in a state of alert.