Quietus

by Seraphina Scribes

When first he laid eyes upon her, he thought her the very personification of spring. He watches, from the depths of shadow; waiting to steal her away from the land of the living. Waiting to make her Queen of the Dead. Hades/Persephone retold. SasuSaku/AU.

80. Chapter 79

Happy new year all. Enjoy!

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Chapter LXXIX

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Chaos, endless, is to be found,
In every living thing that's bound
to its element, it seeps within,
Corrupting earth, rock and skin,
Without a care it breaks and takes,
Leaving naught but ruin in its wake.
Watch your foot-falls - lest you sink,
Into the hands of chaos -
Dare not blink.

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The Underworld was born of chaos.

It was an element contained within every last crack and crevice, within every droplet of water, every circling river and behind every thick shroud of mist. It existed in the gentle breeze that sighed through the rustling blades of grass gracing the Elysian Fields, in the acid-spewing geysers that surrounded Tartarus's hostile plains.

Every corner of the Kingdom was forged of dark matter. Without chaos there could be no life. Without chaos, there was only death.

Such was the land that had eventually become known as the Underworld been when Cronus had first descended upon it, tasked by his father Uranus with the instruction to prove himself worthy of the coveted throne of Olympus, by demonstrating that he possessed the ability to create a world unaffected by the flow of time. His eyes had found only a barren, lifeless land. Bereft of any form of order save for the ravages of the elements themselves. A cold, dark, rich trove of hidden, untold, unmined treasures that had not yet been sullied by the hands of avaricious mortals.

What could be fashioned from such an environment? Cronus had pondered to himself when he had first laid eyes upon it. As he toured the desolate space upon his trusted dark steed, he found it to be vast, seemingly endless in the scope of its natural terrain, untouched by the warm rays of sunlight that nurtured life upon the surface. It contained great bodies of water, yawning chasms and towering cavern roofs from which hung enormous, icy stalactites in the darkness.

As he'd ventured deeper, Cronus had discovered an array of strange monsters that lurked within the shadows, the likes of which existed not upon the surface. It had not taken him long to establish dominion upon them by virtue of his Sharingan, nullifying the threat of any resistance they posed to his progress and reducing them to servants that obeyed his iron-will, that carried rock and stone for him and worked tirelessly to assist in realising his vision.

He'd found that the lightless, silent world readily responded to the chaos within him, was one in which he could manipulate time and shadows at will. But though he could command the dark, unstable element of chaos to shift the landscape and bend the water to form rivers, cause fissures in the stone and bottomless pits within the ground that opened up deeply to the earth's molten, fiery core itself, mine riches and construct magnificent palaces and other majestic building structures, he'd lacked the ability to create fertile lands with his own hands.

Expressing his frustrations to his younger brother Coeus, his most cherished sibling who favoured him for the throne, Cronus had found himself unable to continue with his work in changing the bleak, barren landscape. It remained cold rock, unyielding stone, no matter his efforts. How could he prove that the world was untouched by time's flow if no evidence of life itself existed within it?

The answer had arrived to him in the form of a beautiful surface goddess named Rhea. It was Coeus who had pointed her out to him at one of their father's assemblies, and when Cronus first set eyes upon her, he found his gaze lingering in appreciation. Her long, tumbling locks of hair had been a vivid amber, her long-lashed brown eyes as warm and soulful as the earth itself. Her rosy lips cast a musical spell upon all that heard the enchanting lilt of her voice.

Rhea had been well known upon Olympus. An important Titan goddess of fertility, life blossomed wherever her footsteps fell. Cronus's keen, calculating mind had recognised an opportunity in her and he had acted to take it. He had tracked her down to a brook within a verdant forest one fine summer day, made their coming across one another appear to be an occurrence based entirely upon chance. But every meeting that followed was deliberate on his part.

Rhea had been wary of him at first, for she had heard many a tale of the proud, ambitious God of Chaos and knew of his assignment beneath the ground, where the sun's hallowed light did not touch. She'd responded with polite formality to his attempts to solicit her into conversation, endured his company respectfully. He'd initially found her to be a goddess possessing a quiet disposition - but she was far from naive, or any manner of fool. His shrewd eyes had seen the bright intelligence shining in hers - and the thinly-veiled disapproval of his outspoken, direct manner.

She'd been determined to dislike him. That had made her a riveting challenge. And Cronus was nothing if not charming when it suited him to be.

His visits had begun with one sole intention in mind; to convince Rhea to venture to the Underworld to assist in completing his vision. He knew better than to force a goddess of her esteemed rank to comply against her will. Surely, he'd reasoned, the greatest, most fruitful of results would be achieved if she were fully willing to join him in his task.

He continued to chance upon her, and she continued to attempt to elude him, keeping their exchanges brief - until the day arrived when she had caught him off guard entirely by raising a spear to his throat and demanded for him to leave her be. His interest in her had magnified exponentially at the fire he had glimpsed in her eyes in that moment.

Here was no simple goddess, he'd thought to himself. Here was a fierce queen in the making.

Cronus had made short work of disarming her, and informed her that he would overlook the offence of her raising a weapon at a prince of Olympus - if she continued to meet with him each night. Rhea had had no choice but to begrudgingly agree. And so began much more regular meetings between them.

She was frosty with him at first, wary of his function. But as time gradually passed on, they were both surprised to find that they slowly began to sincerely enjoy one another's company. His company had emboldened her, encouraged her to speak out and express herself while he'd discovered that she was a gentle-hearted goddess of great wit. Her kindness in turn touched him, had brought laughter to his heart, the types of which he had not known before. A friendship blossomed between them, and so too, slowly, did sincere affection.

He showed her that chaos was nothing to be feared, but that it existed in every atom within the earth. That the shadows were what made the hushed stillness of the night. She showed him how she was capable of healing and bestowing life. Upon hills they sat in the moonlight as Cronus shared with her tales of the royal court and its corruption. How his own younger brother despised it so much, he chose to stay away from it as much as possible.

He spoke of his father's questionable decisions, how he always seemed to favour Crius in all things despite Cronus being the smarter and more disciplined of the two. Of his vision for the future: how he believed in an orderly hierarchy for the gods, that not all deities were born equal. Some had more burdensome, taxing roles. Some had to work harder whilst others wasted their days on wine and pleasure and yet were afforded equal privileges despite their marked lack of focus.

Rhea had listened to his views with great interest and found herself sharing many of them. Uranus had been a wise ruler - but time had taken its toll upon him and he had begun to care more for merry-making and festivities and less for the wearisome duties of the throne. The responsibilities upon his off-spring had increased as a result. It was apparent that a younger, more stable replacement had to be found - and though she knew Crius to be honourable, it was Cronus's passion, the way his dark eyes burned when he spoke of his ambitions, that had thoroughly captivated her.

The lines of friendship had blurred between them one night when he had gazed at her intently before abruptly leaning in to capture her sweet face in his palm and press his lips to hers, kindling into being a fire that was strewn alight in her heart. One that would eventually consume her.

Her hand in his, she eventually followed him beneath the surface, and there, in the darkness, they were united, joining as one, and by the grace of her touch and love, life bloomed in the barren land. Ethereal flowers and trees flourished that became home to creatures averse to the heat and harshness of the surface. Gardens blossomed into being, cultivated and tended to by Rhea's life-bestowing hands. In time, their passion gave birth to their own descendants, who filled the palace halls with the joyous sound of laughter.

Cronus's blood-line, superior to hers, fathered only dark-haired children. Some had remnants of Rhea's colourings in the brown tinges of their eyes and the brown-copper streaks in their hair. They had lived for a time in contentment and nobility, establishing their reign, bringing into being a Kingdom that arose from the shadows and chaos to be ruled with justice and order. A Kingdom to be admired. A Kingdom untouched by the ravages of time.

But though Cronus was distracted for a time as he built his family, he was no less diverted from his intentions.

When Crius had first put forth to his brother the idea of creating a scale against which to measure the deeds of mortals, and insisted that their father would surely recognise both their merits in this, Cronus had agreed to assist him and had been the one to suggest his newly built Kingdom be the judging ground. The cruel devouring of humans, unsupervised, by chaotic shadows at the ends of their lives despite their services to the gods had long since been an issue their father had failed to find a solution for - an issue that Crius, ever sympathetic to humanity, had been eager to correct. And clever Cronus, recognising another opportunity, had offered up his land as the place where souls could be sent, reasoning that surely this would give him the edge over his brother's accomplishments. To hold dominion over mortal spirits was a great power in itself.

When Cronus had first met the golden-haired, smiling young Zeus, he'd thought little of him. Too fast on his feet, too fast with his wit, his azure eyes twinkling with far too much knowing for his own good - but a god who respected boundaries and titles nevertheless and who had respectfully bowed his head to both princes while offering his assistance.

And so, alongside Zeus and Crius, Cronus had worked tirelessly on creating the scales of good and evil by which humans were to be judged following their passing. They took their proposal to Uranus, who had been immensely pleased and immediately informed Cronus that if he was able to implement the system beneath the surface then he would already be offered the first of crowns. Gifted to him in turn were the Helm of Darkness and the royal scepter, boons granted for his mighty efforts and to establish his command beneath the surface.

Cronus had swelled with pride. The first of crowns surely meant that he would be rewarded with the second most prized of thrones thereafter. Olympus itself. For a worthy ruler had to prove himself capable, and what better way to do so than to create and rule over another fully functioning Kingdom?

Eventually his land became known as the Underworld, the place where mortal souls were sent to be judged, their final resting places in a newly formed afterlife. Rhea dutifully created the blessed isles of Elysium and the Elysian Fields and followed her lord's every command. Whatever furthered his chances in being chosen as successor to the skies, she loyally did out of love for him. The balance of life and death became harmonious.

Crius and Cronus had then returned to their father, both pleased with their great accomplishments, eager to show that each of them respectively was the correct choice for the throne. Confident Cronus knew he had put in the greater effort - and surely their father would recognise it.

When Crius was chosen instead, however, Cronus had been enraged. He could not comprehend how, given that he had been the one who had fashioned an Underworld and incorporated the system of judgement so seamlessly into it, he could be slighted. He had worked far harder than Crius. And yet, their father Uranus had slighted him.

In recognition of the work he had put into creating the Kingdom, Cronus was formally crowned its King by Uranus, and Rhea was Cronus's rightful Queen. It was little consolation to Cronus. He had returned to the Underworld, where his Queen had watched, helplessly, as bitterness and paranoia began to gnaw away at him, consuming him.

Cronus felt used. Cheated. That he had been tricked into creating his Kingdom, a jest before the eyes of his father and Crius, who had both plotted behind his back and known that Olympus would never be his. Instead they had taken advantage of his abilities, used them to solve the issue of the afterlife, and rewarded him with a crown that had no influence amongst the surface. A crown that was tied to ruling over the souls of deceased mortals.

What use had Cronus had for such a thing? His dreams and wishes had been stolen from him, consigned to the shadows. He grew ever more resentful, secretly plotting revenge upon his father. He began to stop communicating with his wife, shutting her out as he schemed. By then their children had already grown, ventured to the surface to seek wives and husbands of their own who would be irreversibly tied to the Underworld by the forbidden crimson fruit Rhea's powers had cultivated, the trading of seeds used as an expression of eternal love and commitment between Underworld dwellers and their sweethearts. Their clan became known as the Uchiha, for all of Cronus's descendants possessed the blood-limit of the Sharingan, blessed from the pure lineage of Indra, the first son of Hagoromo, son of the feared Kaguya herself. The Uchiha began to multiply rapidly in numbers and soon Cronus had a Kingdom of servants who bowed to his iron-will.

But it was not enough. He could not make peace with the grievous insult of being slighted.

He had returned to stand before his father one final time, to ask why he had been denied the throne, one last attempt to understand the reason for being punished so unfairly. Uranus had simply replied that he was unfit for it. To be glad of his lot underground. That he was a King just as he had always desired - but he was better suited to the shadows and custodianship of the dead, than he was to sympathising with the living.

Uranus had gravely informed him that he'd always known Cronus could not lead the surface gods. That he'd had him create a Kingdom under the surface because he wished him to rule what he deemed it wiser, safer for him to do so. His Sharingan was simply too dangerous a tool if it fell to corruption. Too capable of causing harm and ruin, of manipulating minds and stealing away free will. As Indra's bloodline was susceptible toward and had proven to do in the past.

The words had severed something within Cronus. All his efforts, disregarded, because of the eyes he had been born with, through no fault of his own? He felt wronged on every account. In a fit of fury, he had murdered his father in rage, driving a fist straight through his heart. As he'd pulled his arm from Uranus's chest, Cronus had felt numb. Empty. But then had come the satisfaction. Then had come the elation of revenge.

It had been Coeus who had discovered the grizzly scene and urged Cronus, out of love for his sibling, to run. Then, in an act of devotion, he had turned his own Sharingan - a limit he had kept hidden from knowledge of their father up until that moment - upon the guards outside the throne-room and altered their minds to ensure none recalled seeing Cronus enter, thus ensuring their silence. Nobody remained who had witnessed it.

Nobody except Rhea, who, having grown concerned at her husband's increasing coldness, had used the Helm, unbeknownst to him, to follow him to the summit on that fateful day.

There was an uproar on Olympus as the search for Uranus's murderer commenced. Coeus remained silent, and for a time Cronus lay low, evading punishment - until the day word reached his ear that Coeus's eyes had been ripped out of their sockets in punishment for assisting in treason by hiding the actions of an usurper. The truth became known soon after; that Cronus was wanted for the murder of Uranus.

Enraged and distraught by the news in equal measures, Cronus had sought to identify who might have betrayed him, whose actions had resulted in his beloved brother suffering so greatly.

When he set eyes upon Rhea, and saw her tears, he had known.

Tearfully, she had pleaded with him. Told him that the god she had fallen in love with and had given herself to, was a god she no longer recognised in him. That he was changing beyond salvation and that if he continued further along his path of darkness, he would inevitably destroy not only himself but their very family. That she could not stand to watch it when he had already ended his father because of his insatiable lust for power.

She had told him that it had torn her heart out to betray him, but that she had done it because she wished for him to stop. To come back to her. To save him from his greed, his blindness to all things but the relentless chase for the acquisition of greatness. She had professed her love to him and informed him that she and their sons had bargained on his behalf for a sentence of imprisonment rather than execution if he only surrendered willingly.

She had told him that Coeus was alive still and they could heal him yet. That all hope was not yet lost. She had told him that what they had together was enough. Their Kingdom, their children and descendents were enough of blessings. She had begged and pleaded with him, tenderly cupping his face and vowing that she had only his best interests at heart. That he needed to forget about Olympus, before he became a monster and allowed hatred to consume him entirely.

The way it had consumed Indra before him, making him an enemy to all his kin.

Her words struck a nerve. They echoed his father's. Cronus could have endured betrayal from anyone but her. The idea of laying down his pride and handing himself in had incensed him. That was not the way of the Uchiha, and had recognised in that moment that Rhea had never been one. She had been a surface goddess, through and through, and that was where her true loyalties had always been. That was why she had betrayed him, surely. She had acted to damage his chances at acquiring Olympus, instead of shrouding his terrible secret as was her sacred duty as wife.

Her actions had led to his own brother being maimed, left sightless and suffering. A prince stripped of his honour and birthright. Those were crimes unforgivable and, deeply wounded by the immense pain of her treachery, he had lashed out in another moment of unbridled rage.

The last fragment of remaining tenderness in his heart had closed off when his hand had wrapped around her creamy, slender throat and pressed one final, bruising kiss against her lips. Cronus had then watched, numb to all emotion but fury, as the life had gradually ebbed from her tearful brown eyes, his chaos consuming all her chakra, her very life-force.

His sons had entered upon the throne room and witnessed it. He had given them one warning to stand down, to not intervene. In grief they had disregarded his threat and set upon their father, seeking desperately to save their motionless mother from his clutches, yelling that there was no soul in the Underworld or the surface they would not tell if he did not restore her - only to incur their father's deadly wrath. One by one, they were slain at his feet as he devoured their very essences, the chaos within him no longer contained but malicious. Undiscriminating. A wild and dangerous, destructive force.

The part of him that had loved Rhea more than anything, mourned her as he laid her body to rest. He mourned also their sons, as he buried them beside her. But instead of remorse, he felt anger. It was the Olympians who had turned her against him. And his sons, too, had proven loyal to their mother, instead of obeying him. He had convinced himself that he'd had no other choice. He would not lose the crown of the Underworld, also, and had his sons made the knowledge known throughout the Kingdom, then Cronus would have lost everything.

It was unthinkable. The world was his. Everything in it was his. He, who had laboured so long and hard to create it. He would suffer nobody to take it from him by force.

Nobody in the Kingdom dared to question how the Queen and her sons had passed. It was simply not to be spoken of. Cronus made it law, forbade it. He continued to rule on, biding his time and forces. Plotting to overthrow his brother.

News of further tragedy had reached him not long after. That Coeus had surrendered to hopelessness and willingly defied his own function to end his existence, succumbing to his misery. Grief had consumed Cronus, and enraged, he had assembled his kin and marched against Crius, seeking retribution.

Zeus had been Crius's salvation. A god with no right or business in their family affairs, had swayed the tide of the battle in the Olympian ruler's favour, moving with a speed that no deity alive could rival. He had blurred about the battle-field, striking Cronus's warriors with severity like the very bolts of lightning he commanded. Swiftly and with awful devastation he brought them down. Not a single life did his hand take, his intention to incapacitate them, not to maim and kill.

That same upstart had been named successor to the throne by a grievously wounded Crius before he faded, further infuriating Cronus. In an act of what Cronus deemed to be an insult to his pride, Zeus had, instead of retaliating, pardoned him, convincing the High Council to allow Cronus to remain the rightful ruler of the Underworld if he accepted a peace treaty enforced by the council. The young, newly crowned King of the Gods wished for those of the Underworld to exist peacefully with the Olympians.

Trapped and fuming, Cronus had had no choice but to begrudgingly agree to the truce and retreat, slinking back to the shadows of his Kingdom. A disgraced, defeated ruler. He grew ever colder, ever harsher as time flowed onward, an unforgiving, unrecognisable shadow of the noble prince he had once been. Loathing for the surface gods and mourning for the brother and family he had lost consumed him, festering inside. He held the surface gods responsible for all his anguish. The more he succumbed to hatred, the more powerful and unstable his powers and mind grew.

Wisely, Cronus had chosen to feign his cooperation, eventually passing the mantle of ruling the Underworld to Erebus and his young Queen Nyx. The High Council would believe that he had relinquished all power and authority and had finally abandoned all plans of vengeance. But Cronus never did. He continued to plot in secrecy, practicing the dark arts hidden away from the knowledge of all his kin. He continued to allow his clan to expand, to thrive and grow, allowed them to trade with the Olympians to continue the illusion of peace as he worked on his schemes to crush them once and for all.

He mentored his descendents in the arts of combat. Each one of them, he came to view as his rightful property. Their worth to him was not measured by the bond of blood or the cherishing of their kinship - for he had already lost his wife and immediate sons - but rather in the value of their gifts. Gifts he deemed his own, for it was his own blood-line that had bestowed the Uchiha with their Sharingan, and so they were rightfully his to command. He handpicked the most promising, the most talented and most brilliant amongst them, training them from a young age to become formidable fighters.

He had protected his clan fiercely, for though the only use he saw in them was to further his own selfish designs, they were nonetheless his own blood. His responsibility. If anyone tried to hunt one of them down, they would incite the wrath of Cronus. Nobody else possessed the authority to determine an Uchiha's fate, other than the patriarch himself.

Slowly, he had commenced his master plan; to manipulate the thoughts of his clan. To plant in their minds who their true enemy was. To indoctrinate them with hatred and promote ill-feeling amongst them for the deities he deemed responsible for their lack of glory, their lack of recognition, the consignment to the shadows away from the surface and its graces and bounties, un-worshipped and un-revered by mortals who saw the Olympians as superiors to themselves. Ungrateful humans, who recognised not that their afterlives had been secured by Cronus himself.

Was he not worthy of worship, more so than any other god? Had he not been wronged by all? He simply sought to take back all that had been stolen from him. Everything that had been his by birthright.

He had bided his time and played his family as pawns on a chest-board, caring not for the consequences to their own well-being, caring not for the sacrifices made, the blood shed whenever anyone dared to question him - until the day finally came when he had made his move on Olympus and Zeus at last.

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His hatred and lust for the throne of Olympus had consumed him for so long that it had become permanently ingrained into his psyche. His only remaining desires were to crush the legacy Zeus had left behind and have humanity bow to him as the one true, rightful god. No others were required. Once his plans came to fruition, he would have enough power, enough chakra, to rule the entire world unchallenged. There would be no more wars. No more conflict. No illness. Mortals would exist solely to worship, as they were made to do, instead of flouting their free will, wasting it on their worthless lives pleasure seeking, war-mongering, in greed and in sin, raping the earth of all its resources.

Under a rule of steel, there would be no more conflict. None would dare to rise up against him.

Madara planned to have Obito ascend the Underworld throne once he achieved world dominion. Yes, his mindless puppet would do well to manage affairs there, following his every order without question. Sasuke had merely acted as custodian over the duration of his imprisonment. Once the boy's body was inevitably lost to the curse seal, Madara intended to take all his gifts, and then he would be disposable. Unneeded.

But there was much work to be done before they reached that point. And the present news that reached his ears was yet another spanner thrown in the works of his ambition, testing his patience once more.

"You failed to acquire them?" Cronus's thunderous voice echoed through the throne-room, displeasure and anger evident in its deep, dark baritone. "Again! You test my patience!"

"We had them cornered, my Lord," Obito replied carefully. "However, they were aided by Poseidon."

Madara sneered down at him contemptuously from his seat atop the throne. "Fool. Have I not gifted you every power required to bring Sasuke and the human girl to me? The Sharingan, the Byakugan, the chakra of three tailed beasts sealed within you! And you now convey to me that you were foiled by that mischief-making child of a god?!"

"My Lord," Kabuto spoke reverently behind him. "If I may, Kakashi was able to perform Kamui to transport them to the ocean-side. There was nothing we could do to stop Poseidon from summoning his ocean beast and drawing them underwater in time."

"I tire of your excuses," Madara hissed. "How difficult can it be to use Kamui to draw them here? While the other deities are still sealed you have an easier chance of doing so, you incompetent imbeciles!" Shaking his head in disgust, he added, his dark eyes narrowing intimidatingly, "And what is the meaning of Poseidon's meddling? He is not partial to the Olympians and has long since been cast out from amongst their inner circle for his inability and unwillingness to conform to their standards."

"It would appear his cooperation was secured as part of his sentence, as decided by the High Council," Obito supplied. "In addition… I have further news."

Madara impatiently drummed his fingertips atop the arm-rest of the throne. "Well?"

"It would appear that Sasuke has some element of control over at least a portion of Orochimaru's Zetsu army. He was able to incapacitate them to their knees within seconds by merely willing it."

The Uchiha Patriarch's fingers stilled. He could scarcely believe his ears. "How is this possible?" he questioned coldly.

"It would appear the serum he traded was corrupted." Kabuto stated. "I informed Orochimaru-sama at once of this inconvenience and we will of course look into rectifying the matter immediately - provided it can be done."

"And if it cannot?" Madara demanded.

"Then… we will be required to create clones of the originals and modify the molecular structure-"

"That is unacceptable. I have granted you time enough to assemble your army. Did you not confirm its purity yourself, you half-wit?" Madara seethed.

"The tampering has been hidden to the extent it was impossible to detect." Kabuto replied, swallowing nervously in the face of Cronus's anger.

Madara's thoughts turned. So, Sasuke had found a way to outsmart them, to attack Orochimaru's army from the inside? He was an Uchiha indeed.

Sneering, he responded, "Then Orochimaru will have to deploy his subjects elsewhere, where they can do damage. Before the seals are undone. And as for Sasuke and the girl…" He glowered. "Since you have proven incompetent in acquiring them by force, you had better think of another ruse quickly." Leaning forward, he added ominously, "Dare to fail me again, and I will have your throats. Out!" He snapped his fingers.

His subjects departed without another word.

---

Suigetsu chuckled at Sakura's open shock.

"Oh, c'mon," he pouted, feigning mock disappointment. "I was hoping for a pretty smile, at least."

"You asshole!" Naruto pointed at him angrily. "You could've helped us sooner!"

Suigetsu rolled his eyes. "Or not at all? How about some gratitude? Fucking entitled Olympians."

Naruto bristled. "Hey. Watch your mouth!" he retorted.

"Or you could watch yours… as soon as I remove that bubble of air." Suigetsu tilted his head thoughtfully, as if he were seriously considering the idea.

Sasuke's eyes shifted from one deity to the other. If it hadn't been irritating enough listening to Naruto run his loud mouth, he was now forced to endure double the headache and aggravation. As expected, Suigetsu and Naruto had wasted absolutely no time in bickering amongst themselves. In a way, he supposed it was a better alternative to being the target of either of their verbal onslaughts, and wisely chose to remain quiet.

"Like that'd kill me, 'ttebayo." Naruto scoffed.

"No," Suigetsu smirked at the sun deity, his bright amethyst eyes glowing with mirth. "But it'd sure be funny as fuck watching you trying to run that smart mouth all the same."

Naruto blinked at him, opening said mouth to reply - when Kakashi hastily interjected before matters could escalate further.

"Suigetsu," he offered. "We are thankful for your assistance."

The ocean king snorted, and gestured toward the masked deity. "See? That's what gratitude looks like."

"Everyone," Kakashi nodded to his team. "Replenish your chakra now. We used up a lot of our reserves."

They consumed the ambrosia within the safety of the air bubble, and Sakura worriedly noted that her canister was less than half empty. She hoped it would be enough to last them until the end of their journey.

Suigetsu, who had waited for them to finish, next addressed Sasuke. "Oh, look, if it isn't the same fucker who cost me Samehada. I had to spend a whole day listening to the shittiest excuse of a rapper that ever lived because of all the shit you pulled."

Sasuke stared back at him, completely unrepentant and bored.

Naruto snickered. "I think his raps deserve a clap!" He rhymed, mimicking the hand gestures Killer B liked to use while spitting bars.

"Naruto!" Sakura whispered admonishingly.

"A clap?" Suigetsu sneered. "Want me to clap your ass back up to Cronus's pets?"

"You owe us transportation," Sasuke cut in, losing patience at the pointless small-talk.

Suigetsu sighed irritably. "Yeah, yeah. I haven't forgotten. I don't twist my end of any bargain." Glaring at Sasuke, he added pointedly, "Unlike some assholes."

"You don't?" Sakura couldn't help but chime in, reminding him of the instance when he had done just precisely that, the moment they'd escaped from the Underworld together.

The ocean deity's attention immediately settled onto her. A sly, toothy smile graced his lips - one that made Sakura feel grossly uncomfortable. A moment later, he had slipped off his stallion and in a movement too fast for her eyes to follow, appeared right beside her.

"Pinkyy…" he drawled, playfully tapping the bubble that Sakura was enclosed within. "That's all water under the bridge now, isn't it?" He folded his arms across his chest as he floated in the water before her, grinning toothily. "Everything turned out just fine, right? I mean, look at you all," he gestured to Team Seven. "One big happy family. I watched you guys working together just before I saved your hides. You actually get along like a real team." Smirking at Sasuke, he added, "It's cute, how you're getting along with the surface folk. Can we say whipped, much?"

"The horses," Sasuke deadpanned coldly, ignoring his statement entirely.

"Pfft," Suigetsu sneered at him, disappointed that once more, he wasn't rising to take the bait.

"There's no doubt that Obito and Kabuto will be searching for us on the surface," Kakashi addressed the pale-haired deity. "It'll be safer for us to get to the final relic sight if we travel beneath the ocean."

"Hmph." Suigetsu huffed. "I guess I don't have a choice. Where the hell are you headed to, anyway?"

Kakashi drew his map out from the inner pocket of his jacket and held it up for inspection. Suigetsu swam fluidly over to him and his eyes widened as he peered at it.

"Oh, shit." He pointed. "That's right under Lightning Country, huh? If that's what I think it is, then your destination is an underground tomb."

"Eh? You know it?" Naruto squinted at him. "Have you been there?"

"Not inside," Suigetsu folded his hands casually behind his head as he pushed away from Kakashi's bubble and hovered languidly in front of them. "It's solid stone, closed off by some weird runes. Guessing that's the only way to get in, but you can bet something ugly has to be inside there."

"What makes you say that?" Sakura asked.

"It's huge." Suigetsu shrugged. "If it held small-fry, I doubt they'd be cooped up in a stone fortress."

"We need your help to find it and get there," Kakashi entreated.

"Yeah, yeah," Suigetsu dismissed. "I signed a fucking contract, I know." Lifting a hand, he snapped his fingers together, and before their very eyes, the water bubbled around them, from which four majestic water horses materialised. They were similar in appearance to Suigetsu's, albeit slightly smaller in size.

The air bubbles around them abruptly shrunk, moulding to their shapes, forming a thin, transparent layer around their bodies. The four horses moved toward them, gliding gracefully through the water. Sakura took hold of the reins of the one that came to stop obediently at her side, marvelling over its beauty, the way its mane rippled and glistened like a flowing waterfall.

"Congratulations," Suigetsu said sarcastically. "You get to borrow my royal steeds, as promised." He looked anything but thrilled over the fact as the three mounted the oceanic animals.

"Whoa," Naruto exhaled, settling into the golden saddle of his horse. "These are so cool!"

"They're beautiful," Sakura agreed, reaching out to touch her horse's mane, finding that it flowed straight through her fingertips.

"Heh," Suigetsu tilted his head, pleased by the display of open appreciation as he returned to his own mount. "Damn right they are. They're faster than surface horses and they can teleport through the waves, too. Pretty nifty, huh? You don't need to tell them when to; they're intelligent. They know where and how to move." He paused, watching as Team Seven adjusted to sitting atop the creatures.

"There's no danger of falling off, unless you're thrown off," he added. "While we're travelling together under water, I can sustain those air bubbles around you. But when you get inside that tomb? There's some weird chakra barrier around it I can't get through, so your air is gonna run out eventually."

"How long do we have?" Sasuke questioned.

"It should last you about an hour tops. As soon as you're outside again, I can replace it."

"Well," Naruto glanced across at Sasuke. "If we run out, you can help Sakura-chan, right? Your Susano'o will protect her from drowning?"

"Provided Sasuke has adequate chakra," Kakashi agreed.

"Don't worry, Sakura-chan," Naruto gave her a reassuring thumbs up. "We've got you!"

"I don't know what's inside there," Suigetsu repeated. "But I'm telling you now; if anything happens to any one of my horses, I'm gonna be pissed. My agreement was to help you get to where you needed to be. I didn't sign anything about not claiming compensation if you screw over one of my babies. Got it?"

"We understand," Kakashi replied evenly.

"I know you do," Suigetsu retorted, his vivid gaze flicking onto Naruto. "But does that dumbass?"

"Huh?" Naruto blinked. "Who're you calling a dumbass?"

Sasuke closed his eyes, swiftly smothering the smirk before it could materialise on his lips.

"The hell is your problem, -ttebayo?!" Naruto gestured animatedly at the sea deity.

"You think B's raps are great." Suigetsu rolled his eyes. "Gotta have a few screws loose up there."

"Why you-!" Naruto began.

"Naruto," Kakashi interrupted. "We're grateful for Suigetsu's assistance."

"But Kakashi-sensei, he's-!"

Naruto's steed suddenly tossed its head back, causing the sun god to wobble precariously atop its back, caught by surprise by the unexpected movement.

"Wh-whoa!"

"Lemmie rephrase what I said about there being no danger of falling off," Suigetsu commented. "There's no risk… unless you're this dumbass."

"Stop picking on Naruto," Sakura censured. "Are you going to help us, or are you going to waste everyone's time trying to rile us all up?"

"Aww, c'mon, Pinky," Suigetsu's lower lip protruded almost comically. "When did your sense of humour die?" He tilted his head tauntingly at her. "Was it when you hung out with the dead in Sasuke's gloomy haunt?"

Relishing the way both Sasuke and Sakura tensed at the words, Suigetsu went on, "I mean, that place is enough to kill any happiness, right?"

"Hey! Shut your mouth!" Naruto glowered. "Like anyone would wanna live here. Who're your friends, anyway? The fish? Eels? Whales?!"

Suigetsu flashed a sharp-toothed grin. "Sharks," he said emphatically. "Still way better than dead people."

"Are you done?" Sasuke demanded.

"We have a time limit!" Sakura exclaimed.

"What's the rush?" Suigetsu's eyebrows lifted. "We have days, and I can get us there in a wink. I rarely have guests down here. Gotta make the most of it, right?"

"I wonder why," Naruto mumbled beneath his breath, finding the king of the seas to be crude and lacking in hospitality.

"Sakura is right. We can't afford to waste time," said Kakashi. "We need to obtain the final relic as quickly as possible. And if this tomb is underwater as you say, then that means some of our elemental attacks won't be available for us to use."

"Wait. That's right." Naruto's eyes widened. "Fire and lightning!"

"Fire obviously won't work. And lightning? Not unless you wanna be electrocuted." Suigetsu tapped a finger against his chin. "Yeah. Sucks to be you."

"You have an arsenal," Sasuke's eyes narrowed. "An entire forge of weapons that can be used to bring sea creatures to heel."

Suigetsu tossed him a haughty look. "Yeah. So what if I do?"

"Lend them to us," Sasuke raised his eyebrows, implying that it was obvious what his point was.

The ocean deity blinked - then laughed loudly. "Hahaha! That's rich. You're really asking me for another favour? Why the fuck should I help you any more than I already have, huh, Sasuke? You screwed me over big-time. I don't owe you shit."

"Suigetsu-" Sakura began.

"The binding contract read: 'You will assist Naruto, Kakashi, Sasuke and Sakura in their quest, by providing them safe and speedy passage across any oceans they should encounter, by lending them your sea-horses, which you will give them the means to summon at will'." He droned out in a flat monotone. "Nowhere, in that statement, does it mention anything about weapons. So tough shit. However you defeat whatever's in there's really not my problem."

"It is your problem!" Sakura erupted angrily. "It's everyone's problem! Do you have any idea what Cronus's master plan is?"

"Sakura-chan," Naruto began nervously, his azure gaze shifting from Suigetsu, back to his dear friend. "I'm not sure we can trust-"

"Naruto," Sasuke interjected, shooting a warning look at him to keep quiet, and allow Sakura to continue.

"Take over the world? The fuck if I care," Suigetsu looked bored.

"Not just that! He doesn't just want revenge! He wants to unseal and control the ten-tailed beast! He plans to use it to enslave the whole world and everything in it! The surface, the Underworld, your oceans, all the realms will be his! He wants to be the only god left!" Sakura had the satisfaction of watching Suigetsu's expression shift from boredom to bewilderment. "We heard it from King Zeus himself! That's Cronus's master plan!"

"You're tripping, Pinky. Zeus is dead. What the hell do you mean you heard it from him?" Suigetsu scowled.

"My old man stored away some of his chakra in the first relic site and we were able to talk to him," Naruto informed him.

"What the fuck?" Suigetsu glared. "How is that possible?"

"My dad could make anything possible," Naruto retorted proudly.

"You're bullshitting," Suigetsu's eyes narrowed.

"It's true," Kakashi corroborated solemnly. "These are his intentions, which we heard from Minato himself. Olympus was only the first stepping stone. He used his entire clan as sacrificial pawns to win the throne."

Suigetsu's gaze darted to Sasuke, noting his grim expression.

"The only chance we have of stopping him is to unseal everyone's powers," Sakura continued desperately. "He's already got Orochimaru making him an army. That masked guy is powerful and dangerous and if it wasn't for Sasuke protecting us, we'd have been sucked into those vortexes. We can't afford to waste time sitting around while he makes his moves! We need that last relic and we need to break the seals so that we have an actual chance of defending ourselves! And the only way we can get the last relic is if we defeat whatever's inside that location! So it is your problem, Suigetsu! He'll come for your Kingdom, too and enslave everything in it! You have to help us!"

A heavy pause followed her words. Naruto added, "What she said. That bastard is an enemy to everyone!"

Suigetsu was silent for a long moment, all amusement removed from his features.

"Well damn. That son of a bitch," he finally said. "But wait. How can he even get to the Ten- Tails? I'm no expert on that historical shit, but wouldn't he need to have all the other tailed beasts too?"

"He's already got several," Sasuke stated, "if Obito's powers and chakra levels are anything to go by."

Suigetsu met his gaze. A thought then suddenly struck him, and his eyes widened as the gravity of the situation hit him full force. "Wait a minute. Killer B holds the Eight-tails, doesn't he?"

"It's likely Obito and Orochimaru will be going after B and Gaara, too, the other guardian who holds the One-tailed beast," Kakashi said. "It's only a matter of time until Cronus orders his forces to attack them."

The ocean deity folded his arms, his eyebrows drawing together in concern. They waited as he seemed to weigh his options, mulling over what to do next. Then, his somber expression abruptly walled off, and Suigetsu shrugged.

"Heh," he lifted a hand. "Alright, I've thought about it. I guess you guys suck slightly less than that psycho Uchiha does. Off we go, I guess."

He snapped his fingers together again, and Sakura gasped in surprise as bubbles suddenly exploded around her. When they began to ebb away, she saw that Suigetsu had teleported them to another location within seconds.

The air stilled in her lungs at the sight that met her astonished eyes. A resplendent, pristine white-marble palace towered up from the sandy sea-bed around them. It possessed grand archways, arched window-like openings, mighty spires and sweeping balustrade balconies, stretching out all around them, endless and vast in its impressive expanse. She glimpsed elegant courtyards adorned with a stunning array of seaweed and coral reef, the same aquatic plant-life forming gardens that surrounded the palace.

"Welcome," Suigetsu imitated a mocking bow. "To my humble home." He paused, before adding casually, "Well, this is one of them. I actually have a palace in each ocean. This way." He fluidly steered his horse around, gesturing with his head for them to follow.

They rode along after him and Sakura found that the proud sea stallions were truly marvellous creatures. They maneuvered effortlessly, without resistance, gliding seamlessly through the waves, their movements graceful and swift.

All manner of sea creatures swam through the high-roofed halls as Team Seven entered into the palace grounds, including colourful species of fish, dolphins and the very same sharks Suigetsu had joked about earlier. Some were species Sakura didn't even recognise. Mermaids and sirens flitted through the columns and staunch, armour-clad mermen stood on guard patrol, holding pointed spears in their hands. All the ocean denizens bowed their heads respectfully to Suigetsu as he rode by them.

They passed huge sea-shell beds set within spectacular gardens of coral, upon which sat beautiful long-haired water-nymphs, engaged in conversation. They turned luminous, curious eyes to Team Seven, and Sakura saw the way their gazes lingered on her handsome male companions as they giggled to one another. As they trotted along on their horses, they encountered further nymphs, playing musical instruments that drifted pleasant, surprisingly crisp notes through the water. Some were playing games in the gardens with giant crabs.

It was a peaceful, tranquil kingdom and more beautiful than anything Sakura could have envisaged. The fluted pillars were adorned with sea-foliage and pearls, and everywhere her gaze fell was evidence of the wealth Suigetsu possessed. Heavy treasure chests containing gold and jewels were scattered about the halls, gold coins strewn all over the glistening ground.

"Nice place," Naruto commented. "If you ignore the sharks, 'ttebayo."

Suigetsu gave him a lopsided grin. "The sharks are nothing. I'm going easy on you. Should've broken out my pet Kraken as part of the welcome wagon. That would've been a hoot."

Sakura gulped, recalling the mighty behemoth of a sea-monster she and Sasuke had worked together to defeat back in the Underworld. She wasn't in any hurry to encounter the real thing.

Eventually they arrived at a locked, shell-shaped door, with two guards stationed on either side. It opened at Suigetsu's command and they drifted inside to find an impressive armoury brimming with all manner of weapons. Spears, prongs, chains, mallets, swords and long, barbed whips… the collection was endless.

"No way!" Naruto exclaimed. "This is badass!"

"Whaddaya think, Sasuke?" Suigetsu boasted. "My armoury isn't too shabby, right?"

"Hn," Sasuke responded dismissively. He had already dismounted and moved forward to inspect the weapons, Kakashi following closely behind him.

Suigetsu pulled a face after him. "Can't ever admit when I outdo you, huh, Sasuke?"

"You never do," Sasuke retorted flatly.

Sakura rolled her eyes to herself as she inspected a collection of maces. It seemed even the gods weren't above acting like testosterone fuelled men in the pointlessness of their competitiveness.

"You know what you have in common with Cronus? Besides being an absolute douchebag? You're just as delusional," Suigetsu shot back.

"Hey! Cut it out! Sasuke has nothing in common with that asshole!" Naruto defended.

"What's this?" Kakashi turned to Suigetsu, hoping to change the direction of the conversation. His diversion worked.

"Oh, nice choice. See those rods?" Suigetsu nodded. "They're made of a special material which lets you direct long-range sting-ray attacks that are similar to lightning - without getting electrocuted or expending chakra. They only protect you, though, so everyone else will need to carry one if you're planning to use it. No fire weapons though… but that's a no-brainer."

"What's this thing?" Naruto picked up a steel sphere that was slightly larger than his hand in size.

"Throw it over," Suigetsu instructed, and caught it as Naruto did. "This is a projectile. Load a bit of chakra into it, and bam! It becomes a spiked, ticking bomb you can use from long range." He demonstrated, and the slicing spikes shot out from the ball, ready for deployment.

"Those may be useful." Kakashi noted. "Since Katon isn't an option for us."

"How are we going to take them with us, sensei?" Sakura asked, poking an unfamiliar looking weapon. They'd lost much of their supplies and capacity to carry things with them when their bikes had crashed. Sakura's most important valuables were still on her in the lighter bag she carried on her back - namely the ambrosia canister, her phone and charger which she hoped the air bubble around her was protecting from being completely ruined, the souvenirs she'd brought, one extra change of dry clothing, her chakra crystals and money.

She could see that the others had their lighter supply packs on them, too. Everything else, including their heavier provisions of food, sleeping bags and other clothing had been lost in the chase above land. Nothing that couldn't be replaced, Sakura knew, but a nuisance nonetheless.

"Hey," Suigetsu called. "Hal."

An armoured merman swam into the room and bowed low.

"My King."

"Get some nets and attach them to these horses. My guests will need them to carry some weapons."

The merman nodded reverently and called to another guard, moving to do as he was bid.

"Load up some bombs in there," Suigetsu indicated. "There's shitloads, and I can have more made in no time, so take whatever you want."

"Thanks." Sakura said sincerely.

"For you, Pinky? Anything." Suigetsu cooed. She gave him an unimpressed look and turned back to the collection of weapons, oblivious to the surreptitious side-glare Sasuke angled toward the flirtatious king of the seas.

"Those are like shuriken," the ocean god informed her. "Toss them, they hit their target, and fly right back to you. Most sea-creatures need to be tackled from a distance, so that's a good choice."

"And this?" Naruto held up a pronged spear.

"Poison-laced. Toss it. It'll stab into your target and weaken them with venom."

They spent a few more minutes selecting weaponry, and loaded them into the durable nets the guards had attached to their steeds. Sasuke selected a sturdy crossbow and strapped a quiver to his back.

"Oooh," Suigetsu peered over his shoulder. "You can charge those babies with any chakra you like… when they hit their target, they'll let the element loose. Cooler than your Underworld crossbows, huh?"

Sasuke did not respond. He picked up another crossbow, turned and pushed it into a surprised Sakura's hands, before tossing another quiver loaded with arrows to her. She caught it and slung it over her head without question, recognising its usefulness as a long-range weapon.

"I think this will be all," Kakashi decided.

Suigetsu mounted his stallion again. "When you get back, you better damn make sure you tell the High Council how extra helpful I was."

"We are much in your debt," Kakashi answered, as they also returned to their steeds.

"Alright." Suigetsu's eyes gleamed a brilliant amethyst. "Guess we're set." Catching Sakura's eye, he winked, "Wanna see how fast a sea-horse can fly?"

---

The royal underwater palace soon disappeared into the depths as their mounts carried them with blinding speed through the waves. To Sakura, riding upon a sea stallion felt akin to flying streamlined through the water. Her horse was easy to control and needed little guidance. As Suigetsu had informed them, the creatures were clearly intelligent and capable of finding their own direction. She couldn't help the laugh of delight that escaped her lips as they rode along fast, exhilarating, bubbling jet-streams of water, passing all manner of scattering fish along the way. Naruto howled with glee, clearly enjoying himself greatly.

Eventually they slowed to a more comfortable pace, trusting Suigetsu to guide them along their journey.

"So what've you come up against so far, anyway?" Suigetsu made conversation as they travelled on, passing all manner of aquatic life along the way. "Any scary shit?"

"My old man sure didn't pull any punches," Naruto muttered in response. "He threw Medusa at us, a freaky giant worm with gross worm babies, huge spiders, Karkinos, Arachne, the Minotaur…"

"To name a few," Kakashi confirmed dryly.

"What, did you shame your daddy by getting your ass kicked?" Suigetsu antagonised Naruto, smirking when the blond threw an irate glare at him. Unlike Sasuke, Naruto was easily provoked, and Suigetsu derived great amusement from irritating the outspoken sun god.

"No way," he scoffed. "We made it through three relic sites so far in one piece! My dad knew I could do it! That's my way! I never give up!"

Suigetsu rolled his eyes. "How fucking inspiring," he snorted sarcastically.

Then he fell back, re-directing his horse so that it drew up beside Sasuke's. Leaning in toward the death deity as the others rode on ahead, he began, "Looks like you're getting along just peachy with the surface gods after all, huh? You're best buddies all over again."

"We signed a contract," Sasuke reminded him frostily, keeping his eyes fixed firmly ahead.

Suigetsu's grin grew more predatory. "Who'd you think you're fooling? Like you'd need a contract to make you protect her." He nodded toward Sakura. When Sasuke did not respond, he added slyly, "Sooo, what's the status update?" He sniggered to himself when Sasuke abruptly spurred his horse to canter forwards, leaving the ocean deity hovering behind him.

But Suigetsu wasn't done. Effortlessly, his horse blurred out of sight and reappeared beside Sasuke's. "Hey, don't be a rude jerk. I wasn't done talking," he jibed. "What's the latest? Gimmie the gossip. You guys have all been travelling for like two weeks together now or whatever, right?"

"Your point?" Sasuke intoned, voice devoid of all emotion.

"Sooo… I wanna know." Suigetsu flashed him a wide, sharp smile. "You two hooked up yet? Or are you still emotionally constipated around her? Has she forgiven you for kidnapping her, yet?" He looked thoughtful for a moment. "Hey. You think maybe she likes my Kingdom more than yours?"

Sasuke turned his head, directing a chilling, withering glare his way. Something ominous glinted across his dark eyes, and Suigetsu snickered, relishing the reaction he'd dragged out of the death deity at last. The fact that it related to Sakura made it all the more significant and telling, in his eyes.

"Oooh. Scary. You can't do shit here, Sasuke. My world. My rules."

'You forget,' Sasuke replied telepathically. 'What I can do beyond here.'

"Heh," Suigetsu grinned toothily. "Still making threats? Don't think it's possible for you to screw me over any more than you already have. You owe me an apology."

"You knew what you signed up for."

"I signed up for a sword." Suigetsu argued.

"I upheld my end."

"You didn't do shit. I was meant to get a sword I could permanently keep!" Suigetsu complained unhappily. "Did you know I was going to lose it from the start? Did you plan that all along? Tell me the truth."

"A trial was not intended," Sasuke stated simply. That was the truth. The only reason Suigetsu had had to return the blade was because the surface deities didn't uphold their ends of the deal when he'd returned Sakura to the surface.

"Oh, so that's meant to make me feel better, that you didn't plan it?" Suigetsu scowled. "I lost Samehada, which means you still owe me. None of this shit would've happened if you'd not fucked everything up by catching feels for some-"

Sasuke blinked disinterestedly, not wanting to discuss the subject any further.

"Get lost." With that slicing remark, he spurred his mount forward once more, leaving Suigetsu glowering at his back.

"You're a dick, Sasuke!" The ocean deity called after him. Once more, Sasuke made a point of ignoring his existence.

Sakura, hearing the insult, glanced back over her shoulder. Suigetsu caught her eye - watched Sasuke for a second, then gave her a sickly sweet smile. A moment later, his horse had caught up to hers.

"So, Pinky. What's up? We're friends, now, right?"

Friends? Sakura thought that was surely the farthest thing from reality that they were. "You tried to kidnap me," she reminded him.

He rolled his eyes. "Yeah, but that was ages ago. Sasuke did way worse, and I don't see you hating on him."

"Sasuke never gave me his word," she fired back.

"Is that really why?" Suigetsu regarded her. "Or is it because we both know you kinda have the not-so-secret hots for him?"

Sakura bristled on her steed, feeling her face immediately warm and reflexively reached out to swipe a punch at him with her left fist. He chuckled, greatly entertained, and evaded it easily.

"Be quiet!" she hissed at him.

"Why? Scared he'll hear?" Suigetsu sniggered, noting with keen interest that she hadn't actually denied it in her flustered state. Before she could respond, he continued, "I think you need to get over all this bad blood between us. It wouldn't have been so awful if you'd come down here with me. I mean, look around you. It's way nicer than Sasuke's depressing old haunt. Look!" He gestured. "Colourful cute fish. You name it, the oceans have it. And dolphins. You like starfish? I have haunted sunken pirate ships, too."

She shook her head at him in disapproval.

"I've helped you out plenty of times," he pointed out, sulking to himself. "I sat in a shitty cell for months just to get you out when I could've escaped a lot sooner. And what'd I get for it, huh? A headache, that's what. I just saved you guys from being blitzed by Cronus's lackeys, too. What's it take to get a little appreciation around here?"

"I don't trust you," she narrowed her eyes at him.

"Ouch." He clutched a hand dramatically to his chest. "That hurts." They continued on in silence for a minute, before he quipped, "What about Sasuke? You trust him?"

Closing the distance between their horses so that he rode directly beside her, he leaned in and added in a whisper, "'Cause in a few more months, you're gonna have to go back to his depressing place, and it'll only be the two of you all alone, nobody else around… you gonna trust him then? You gonna trust yourself? You know what they say about putting two-"

He abruptly dissolved into bubbles of water as Sakura aimed an even more savage fist at him. Reappearing beside Kakashi, he threw an amused look back at the furiously blushing young woman, before turning his attention to the masked mentor of Team Seven.

"Hey, Kakashi." He greeted him. "What's new?"

The words he'd left her with sparked a storm in Sakura's mind, giving rise to worries she had locked firmly away. Anxieties she'd told herself not to consider until closer to the time suddenly resurfaced. They ran rampant and free, as a sudden wave of apprehension washed over her. There were only four more short months left until her allotted time on the surface came to an end. Suigetsu was right. She and Sasuke would be all alone together. She gulped at the thought. Six whole months, with no other outside interference. Six whole months in which she could do and be as she pleased.

Her heart quickened when she saw him fall back to ride beside her. She snuck a furtive glance at him, Suigetsu's words fresh in her mind, and was horrified to feel the heat intensify in her cheeks all over again.

"What did Suigetsu say?"

She blinked in surprise as he addressed her, keeping his gaze fixed attentively ahead.

"N-nothing!" she responded, her voice coming across too shrill, too nervous.

"..." Sasuke blinked, and his dark eyes shifted to regard her a moment.

"Nothing," she amended more levelly. "Just showing off about his Kingdom." After a pause, she blurted, "But I've seen better."

She felt the death deity's heavy gaze linger on her, and inwardly wondered what had possessed her to say the words out loud. But it was already too late to take them back, and she was relieved when her steed suddenly bolted forward, moving more speedily to catch up to the horses that rode on ahead, ending all hopes of interaction between them for that moment. They followed Suigetsu through what appeared to be a giant, swirling water portal and when they reached the other side, they had clearly been transported to a different area - and perhaps ocean- entirely.

"Aaaand this is it," Suigetsu gestured flamboyantly ahead of them. "The Unknown, Haunted Tomb of Doom."

"Whoa…" Naruto gaped. Then, angling a glance at Suigetsu, he added nervously, "Is it really a haunted tomb?"

Suigetsu shot him a brief grin. "Guess you're about to find out, huh?"

Sakura's eyes widened in awe. They'd arrived at a colossal stone structure and their horses began to glide soundlessly over a faded mosaic path set into the sea-bed, flanked by enormous fluted, stone columns. Pillars were built into the thick, towering walls of the fortress-like enclosure, the majority of which were cracked and worn by the flow of time and water erosion. Sea moss was growing on the enclosure, and long beds of seaweed surrounded its base. Seeing how high the building rose above their heads reinforced just how deep underwater they were.

It really did look like an impenetrable fortress, and Sakura anxiously found herself wondering just what was lurking inside there, waiting for them.

"We're in Lightning Country already?" she questioned in amazement.

"Fast, right? I told you I'd get you here in no time," Suigetsu winked. "Travelling by sea-horse beneath the waves is way faster than surface roads. Cuts days of time off any route."

The path led up to a rectangular entrance that was sealed off by a huge, heavy boulder.

"Look, Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto pointed to the engravings in the rock. "The runes!"

"No doubt this is it," Kakashi confirmed.

"And this is as far as I can go," Suigetsu informed them. "I'll renew the air bubbles around you now; you've got about an hour left. You'll know when it's out… that thin film around you will just vanish."

"Thank you again for your assistance, Suigetsu," Kakashi nodded.

"Yeah, thanks," Naruto said grudgingly.

Suigetsu smirked, his gaze lingering on Sakura, who muttered the same words with great reluctance. Sasuke, as expected, remained silent.

"If you guys don't come out, then I guess I'll assume you all just died, right?" He shot them a glittering smile.

"What's your problem?" Naruto demanded. "Whatever's in there, we'll kick its ass and unlock our seals, believe it!" He assured him, punching his fists together in determination.

"Yeah, whatever," Suigetsu rolled his eyes, thoroughly unimpressed. "Good luck. You're loud enough for whatever's in there to hear you coming from a mile off."

"Say what?"

"Naruto, don't let him get to you," Sakura interjected. "We need to focus. We have a serious job to do."

"Asshole," Naruto muttered under his breath, turning away from the chuckling sea god.

Suigetsu watched on with interest as Team Seven placed their hands against the runes, causing them to glow. Seconds later, the gigantic boulder rolled aside.

"Hey, Pinky," he called to Sakura, just as she began to follow Naruto through the opening. She paused, glancing across at him. "I hope you come out alive. It'd be a waste of cute if you're shark bait."

She shook her head at him in distaste and continued onward without a word. Suigetsu watched her go in amusement, his gaze then shifting to Sasuke, whose steed went in after her. His smug smirk deepened at the not so subtle, warning glare the death deity directed his way as he passed Suigetsu by.

A look that openly communicated: Back off.

Interesting, Suigetsu thought to himself, as the darkness of the opening swallowed Team Seven up whole and they disappeared entirely from his sight, venturing into the unknown where a chakra barrier ensured he was prohibited from following.

---

The opening led into a gargantuan structure littered with broken, fallen ruins scattered in the dense sand of the sea-bed. The expanse was vast, and hauntingly devoid of any signs of life save for a few floating schools of fish and the overgrown tendrils of seaweed that floated around. The visibility of the water itself was murky, and there didn't seem to be a clear direction for them to head in.

"Whatever's in here," Kakashi remarked with certainty, "we're going to need every ounce of chakra we can spare."

Sakura gripped tightly onto her reins, fully alert, straining to detect even the slightest movement or noise. The horses broke into a smooth canter, allowing their riders to guide them. They passed by giant columns that Sakura supposed had once been majestic but had since been reduced to decay.

"It's way too quiet," Naruto whispered. "There's nothing in here."

"Wait," Sakura pointed. "What's that up ahead?"

There was movement behind a thick cluster of seaweed. As their horses drew closer, they found a wall of vertically rippling water moving unusually against the flow of gravity within the water they were already submerged under.

"Huh?" Naruto reached out to touch it. "What's this?"

"It looks like a portal," Sakura guessed.

"Our way in," Sasuke confirmed, his Sharingan activated.

"Then let's not waste any time," Kakashi nodded, leading his steed straight through it. Naruto entered after him, and Sakura ventured behind, followed at the back by Sasuke.

The air bubbles around them kept them dry as they navigated through the rippling curtain and entered into a rocky, cylindrical underwater tunnel. A powerful, pressured stream of water pushed them along as their mounts cantered swiftly through the passages, maneuvering left and right until they reached the end, which threw them out into another large cavern. As they entered into it, Sakura felt her horse begin to speed up - and she soon realised why.

There, in the middle of the cavern was a swirling vortex that was pulling all the water that surrounded it through it.

"Kakashi-sensei!" she gripped tighter onto her reins. "That whirlpool is dragging us in!"

The horses fought against the pull of the current, warping positions in the blink of an eye in an effort to gallop around the ominous looking maelstrom and escape being sucked through it. Every time they blurred across the water, Sakura felt her stomach turn in cartwheels, the sensation akin to falling. She tried not to dwell on the fact. It was no time to experience motion-sickness.

"There's no other way out!" Kakashi called. "We'll have to pass through it!"

He guided his horse toward it and was swiftly sucked inside. The others followed after him, the raging tide within the vortex hurtling their steeds forward uncontrollably. Sakura gasped, struggling to see beyond the blinding bubbles that surrounded them as another powerful current pushed them along, carrying them through rapidly rotating funnels of water.

'Hold on, everyone!' Kakashi cautioned them telepathically.

Sakura bent low in her saddle and held onto her mount for dear life, squeezing her eyes shut, hoping the turbulent, untamed waters wouldn't throw her off. All of a sudden, to her immense relief, she felt weightlessness once again and opened her eyes to find that they'd been deposited out of the end of a narrow tunnel and into another gigantic, stone-walled arena.

Their horses slowed to a gentle, floating canter, hovering high within the dark space. Sakura's eyes darted around them anxiously. Being in such an open area made her feel vulnerable. Like anything could attack them from any direction. And it was way too eerily quiet for her liking.

Kakashi lifted one of the rods he'd taken from Suigetsu's armoury, and the spherical end illuminated, casting a bright white light around them, allowing them to see their surroundings more clearly. There was nothing surrounding them except for deep, murky water.

"What now, 'ttebayo?" Naruto squinted.

"I can barely see a thing," Sakura shook her head. Kakashi's illuminated staff did little to provide them with a full measure of the humongous space around them.

Their horses drifted forward, but all they found was more water.

Naruto scratched the back of his head, looking nonplussed. "Uh, there's nothing here."

No sooner had the words left his lips, something whipped swiftly up through the water, displacing it, scattering Team Seven's horses in different directions.

"What the heck was that-?!" Naruto began, startled.

"Move!" Sasuke yelled out in warning, and their steeds galloped through the waves as something attacked them again.

Something luminous began to float slowly up from the depths below. Transparent, jellyfish-like creatures, Sakura realised in astonishment, providing luminous, glowing, turquoise lighting that afforded them better vision. They did not attack, merely drifted noiselessly and mysteriously through the waters, passing them by harmlessly.

She wondered whether Minato had purposefully placed them there, to assist her team in the fight against whatever horror it was he'd trapped within the stone walls to test their mettle.

As their eyes slowly began to adjust in the wake of the brightened darkness, Sakura realised what it was that had assailed them. She caught sight of uncurling tentacles, at least a dozen of them that her eyes could see, extending out from beneath them. They appeared a dark steel-blue in the water, their outlines clearly visible as the jellyfish increased in number around them, and were alarmingly long, scaled and slender. Without warning, they snapped out toward them again, seeking to ensnare their mounts.

"What is it?!" she gasped, panicking as bubbles blinded her vision once again.

They had no moment to react. The tentacles whipped out with astonishing speed and grabbed hold of their horses by their necks, yanking them unstoppably toward the bottom of the sea-bed. The distressed sea-horses struggled, before dispersing into water, warping safely out of the clutches of the appendages, bearing their riders away.

But Team Seven had been dragged far enough down to finally glimpse what it was they were up against.

"Damn!" Sakura heard Sasuke curse as he drew his horse protectively before hers, and that one exclamation sent her heart hammering fitfully against her ribcage. If Sasuke was alarmed, then whatever that was that was lurking inside with them was surely a most formidable foe.

She realised with a start, seconds later, what the death deity's eyes had already discerned in the shadowy depths below. Perilous rows of jagged teeth surfaced through the thick layer of sand that covered the floor of the arena, encircling a yawning, tremendous mouth that made the Skōlex worm they'd encountered in the previous relic site seem like a dwarf in comparison. It filled the entire expanse of the ground, an immense, gaping, horrific black hole that began to devour crashing waves of water into it, rapidly forming a deadly, spinning whirlpool, the force of which began to stir the entire body of water around them.

Sakura felt her entire body prickle with dread and revulsion. Just when she believed she'd seen the ugliest creature in existence, she was once more proven wrong. It was hands down the most horrifying, terrifying, nightmarish monster she had ever set eyes upon.

More tentacles shot out from the ground, and a blood-curdling, inhuman groan echoed off the walls.

"It's the Charybdis!" Kakashi shouted, the urgency in his voice making it paramount that this was a lethal enemy, not to be underestimated.

"Oh shit!" Naruto shrieked, his voice laced with panic. "What the hell was my pa thinking?! Look at the size of that thing! How're we even meant to attack it?!"

"Shut up and focus!" Sasuke reprimanded harshly.

"We hit it with everything we have that's long-range, and we keep moving! If we're swallowed into that mouth, we're done for!"

Their steeds tore through the water, riding the bubbling waves, rapidly warping upwards to restore distance and escape the strongest pull of gravity located just above the monster's gaping mouth.

Naruto clenched his teeth in disgust and threw a cluster of the bombs he'd taken from Suigetsu's collection straight down over the mouth of the behemoth monster. It exploded into shrapnel fragments, doing little damage to the beast. The violent waves protected it, and its oral cavern was far too vast to throw any ordinary weapon into. They would need something substantially bigger. Equivalent to a tailed-beast bomb, Sasuke thought to himself, or something of its equivalence in size and devastation.

Kakashi followed up with a javelin spear that was batted aside by a savagely swiping tentacle.

Sakura lifted her crossbow and loaded an arrow into it. Suigetsu had told her it was impossible to fall off his sea-horses unless one was thrown off. Trusting the aquatic animal to carry her safely through the unsettled waves, she concentrated, trying to aim down at the mouth. But spinning typhoons of water were forming, stirred into being by the Charybdis's tentacles, making it difficult to lock her crossbow on a specific target as her mount continued to gallop onward, fighting to stay on the outermost perimeter of the arena as the whirlpool below them gained stronger momentum by the second.

"Its tentacles!" Kakashi shouted. "We need to take them out first! Everyone, equip the rods so we can use lightning! That'll be its weakness!"

They all grabbed the electricity-insulating weapons from their nets, either holding onto them or attaching them to their belts to form an invisible shield around their bodies that would prevent them from being electrocuted.

A howling wind orb slammed against a tentacle, unleashed by Naruto, causing further spirals of bubbling water to form. The Charybdis released a roar of pain and clipped the back of Naruto's horse with another limb. The steed immediately blurred out of sight at contact, switching positions and bolted determinedly onward, zig-zagging to avoid subsequent attempts at being caught by the scaled appendages.

Sakura charged the tip of an arrow with concentrated lightning chakra and shot it from her crossbow. It sailed through the water and whistled past one of the tentacles. Switching strategy, she channelled chakra from the earth orb in her arm brace and unleashed clumps of rock, sending them flying at the destructive limbs like large pieces of hail - only to gasp when her horse abruptly surged forward at breath-taking speed to avoid another tentacle that had struck out from underneath her, unseen. It slammed into the wall, breaking off further bits of debris.

The monster was even worse and more dangerous than the Kraken, Sakura acknowledged, her heart pounding with fear and the surging adrenaline that was rushing through her veins. There was no way they could afford to keep still without being dragged down toward that ravenous, jagged mouth, nowhere to hide for cover, and their constantly moving mounts made it near-impossible to aim accurately. What could she possibly do to help against such a foe?

The swirling whirlpool beneath them had now fully formed, was a vision wrought of nightmares, terrifying to behold, a perilous, devouring vortex of water and darkness from which nothing could hope to escape. As she gazed down upon it, Sakura felt her blood freeze to ice.

Naruto sent a spinning disc of wind chakra at another tentacle. It smashed into it, causing a fresh explosion of waves to ripple outward. Dark liquid stained the water, and Naruto caught his breath. He'd wounded it deeply. One more hit would slice it apart.

Chakra strings flew through the water, commanded by Kakashi. They grabbed onto one of the limbs, and his whinnying horse was hauled toward it as the appendage struggled to break free. Kakashi lifted the rod from the net at his side and pointed it at the compromised tentacle, activating the weapon with a tiny stream of his own lightning chakra.

Electricity struck the tentacle at the point where Kakashi aimed, engulfing it with spiking crackles, the rod in his hand keeping him insulated at a safe distance. was followed up by a spinning disc of Amaterasu that set the tentacle alight with a flame not even water could douse. Sasuke shot out three further burning shuriken, directing them at three other tentacles. Two evaded, while another was clipped by the metal weapon and quickly engulfed with the inextinguishable fire.

More giant pieces of broken stone and debris fell around them as the Charybdis responded to the pain assaulting it, slashing wildly out at the walls with its limbs. Sakura attacked the tentacles that were caught in the stone, firing bolt after bolt from her crossbow.

"Sasuke!" Naruto yelled. "Here!" His steed warped swiftly beside Sasuke's, galloping alongside it.

Forming a Rasenshuriken, he held out the spinning disc of wind in his palm, allowing Sasuke to charge it with Amaterasu. Then his horse charged on forwards, warping ahead, and Naruto flung the devastating attack at the monster. It spun like a boomerang, connecting with two more tentacles.

Spying an opening, Sakura charged the end of an arrow with lightning energy and let it loose toward the base of a tentacle. The stored chakra was released as soon as it hit its target and electricity exploded along the Charybdis's limb. Kakashi sliced through it with a chakra string, severing another appendage from the behemoth's body.

Sakura alternated between firing bolts from her crossbow and flinging the bomb spheres contained within her net that exploded against the tentacles, stunning them and allowing her team-mates to cut through them more easily.

Water tornadoes tailed them, and the entire world blurred by in a cacophony of bubbles and crashing waves. Sakura felt her horse fighting valiantly against the pull of gravity, which suddenly grew stronger, dragging her physically backwards. Her mount managed to warp away, returning to the outermost perimeter but the wind speeds were now hurricane force, and the horses were struggling to navigate through them, tossed through the waves like little more than mere toys.

Sakura felt a surge of panic crest in her chest. She couldn't see anything but bubbles and the way the force of the water was throwing her left and right made it impossible to aim at anything. Frustrated by her inability to help, she tried to rein her mount in, but her horse suddenly lurched and released a whinnying shriek as it was hauled with great force and speed downwards. Sakura realised in horror that a tentacle had grabbed onto its hind legs and was dragging it - and Sakura with it - down straight toward the Charybdis's mouth.

'Sasuke!' she cried telepathically to him in alarm. Another appendage whistled toward her and Sakura found herself knocked off her horse entirely a moment later, spinning dizzyingly in the water with no way to stop her momentum as the tentacle closed in on her.

Immediately, familiar skeletal, glowing ribs surrounded her, a protective barrier that cocooned her body and smacked the tentacle aside. Sasuke was by her side in an instant and savagely severed the appendage with a well-placed bolt of lightning, Susano'o insulating them both from the electrical current at closer range. He then used his shield to pull her onto the back of his steed, and Sakura wrapped her arms around his midriff gratefully, struggling to catch her breath as his sea-horse battled to pull away, warping higher up, falling behind Kakashi and Naruto's, both of whom Sasuke had also enclosed in Susano'o.

Her mount re-appeared beside Sasuke's, ready to carry her once more. Sakura exhaled in relief, having thought the animal had been devoured, and with Sasuke's help, managed to climb back on.

'We need to finish this off while we're covered by Susano'o!' Kakashi telepathically shouted. 'Quickly, before we can't see anything else and Sasuke's chakra runs out! Don't waste time on anything else - use lightning freely - we can now that Sasuke has us protected!'

Sakura immediately let bolts loose from her lightning chakra crystal, striking every tentacle the compromised visibility in the water allowed her to catch sight of. With Susano'o protecting them from being hit by anything from all angles, they made quicker work of wearing the appendages down, throwing bombs, Chidori bolts, spears, arrows, everything they had at the monster with varying degrees of success.

"Naruto!" Sasuke yelled. "Your Rasengan! As large as you can get it!"

"On it!" Naruto shouted, already anticipating his intentions, and lifted his palm, summoning a howling, wind-propelled water bomb in his hand. It grew and grew, until it was a huge, devastating spinning sphere above them. Sasuke raised a hand, focusing, merging his chakra energy with the wind element, causing the spinning sphere to erupt into black flame.

"Now!" he yelled, and Naruto hurled it down at the monster's mouth with all his might. It crashed through the whirlpool, causing a violent, tsunami-force wave to explode upwards, sending their horses spinning uncontrollably. An awful, rumbling groan pierced through the water, an encouraging indication that the Charbydis had been badly injured - but at a great cost to the stability of the environment.

Sakura screamed as the waves thrashed them mercilessly to and fro, her stomach turning in on itself as she was sent into a blinding, head-reeling twister. Naruto's horse was suddenly enveloped in another rotating funnel of water. The barrier around the mount protected it as it crashed against the wall of the arena, but the momentum of the waves sent him spiralling once again.

"Gaaaah!" he shouted.

Susano'o was the only thing preventing him from being flung off the steed entirely, and he wrestled to regain control of the panicked animal.

Kakashi covered his back, flinging all his bombs toward the mouth of the monster in one go. They caused another great explosion and the Charybdis roared in fury, sending another twisting cyclone shooting upward from its yawning mouth. All the sea-horses were dragged backward and thrown ruthlessly through the waves once more.

The entire arena had become a vicious, bubbling whirlpool and their horses could no longer warp them away fast enough to escape the pull of gravity emanating from the eye of the storm raging beneath them - the eye of the storm that was the Charybdis's horrifying chasm of a mouth.

Their strategy wasn't working. If any other trial lay in wait for them after this, Sasuke would have to worry about restoring his chakra levels later. He had no choice but to materialise his full form Susano'o and take them straight to the mouth of the creature. To destroy it from the inside. The waters were far too turbulent, far too treacherous to travel through, affording almost no visibility at that point, no stability of movement. Their attacks were having little effect, and using humongous spheres of Rasengan would only displace their movements further and drain Naruto of his chakra needlessly to little effect.

Their horses had been rendered useless and there were still three more tentacles they had yet to disable. They couldn't risk delaying any further, when the entire battle ground had already been turned against them.

He gritted his teeth, his mind racing. He knew what he had to do. The quickest way to take this creature down, before his chakra depleted and he lost command of his impenetrable barrier.

Focusing, he raised his hands and used his command of Susano'o to draw all members of his team toward himself, fusing the separate shields into its full form, enveloping them and their steeds within one enormous barrier.

"Sasuke?!" Kakashi looked at him in alarm as they continued to rotate counter-clockwise over the menacing mouth of the beast, realising that the death deity was allowing the whirlpool to carry them closer toward it.

"We finish it from inside!" he informed them, openly sharing his strategy with them. "With Amaterasu!"

"What?!" Naruto squawked. "Sasuke?! We can't go inside that thing, are you crazy?!"

"What if we can't get out?!" Sakura cried. "Your Susano'o can fly, but we don't know what it'll be like down there!"

"With enough chakra, I can burn right through its insides. Out here, we're just wasting our reserves!"

The other members of Team Seven exchanged apprehensive glances.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura looked to their team leader. "Will it work?!"

"It might! Sasuke has a point!" Kakashi communicated over the howling of the maelstrom, displaying full faith in his plan. "We don't stand a chance of escaping this whirlpool. All the water here is under its control and even lightning isn't stopping it!"

"But sensei-!" Naruto began, his blue eyes dark with worry.

"We have no choice, Naruto, Sakura!" Kakashi shook his head. "The only way we get to the last relic, is to defeat this! It's worth a shot! We give Sasuke all the chakra he needs to sustain Susano'o and burn through it with Amatersau!"

"We're really going to let it swallow us?!" Naruto gulped, complexion paling. "Oh man, that's gross, 'ttebayo!"

"Do you have a better idea?" Sasuke glared daggers at him as the world continued to spin around them in tumultuous waves of water and they rapidly continued to descend toward the monster's waiting mouth.

"Naruto, Kakashi-sensei is right," Sakura steeled her nerves. "We trust your plan, Sasuke!"

"I trust you," Naruto agreed, "I just don't trust what we'll find inside that freaky thing!"

Sasuke, Naruto and Kakashi dismounted their horses, and Sakura took their reins, keeping them close to her own.

"Alright," Kakashi nodded, as Sasuke stood before him and Naruto. He reached out to grip the death deity's left shoulder, while Naruto clasped his right. "We'll give you all the chakra we have!"

They pumped a steady flow of chakra into him, and Sasuke redirected it through his internal chakra pathways immediately toward his eyes, preparing to unleash Amaterasu on a large scale, at the right moment.

Susano'o spiralled lower and lower, drawing increasingly closer to the centre of the tempestuous whirlpool where water was being devoured into a bottomless black crater surrounded by impossibly sharp canine teeth. Sasuke used its mighty blade to cleave through the remaining tentacles that lashed out at them, severing them with ease. The Charybdis's infuriated, deafening roar caused the barrier around Team Seven to vibrate, and Sakura felt the sound permeate through her bones. Her heart wedged itself in her throat as the centre of the horrific maelstrom loomed before them.

There was no telling how deep it was inside, whether there even was an end to it. Their lives were quite literally entrusted in the death deity's hands.

The sea-horses, startled, stomped their hooved feet, recognising the danger that was drawing ever closer to them. Sakura kept firm hold of the reins, doing her best to soothe and reassure them, even as her own heart thundered uncontrollably inside her.

The closer they drew to the edge, the more powerful the gravitational pull grew. They were flying toward the mouth now, skirting over the endless rows of jagged, razor-sharp teeth protruding through the whirlpool. Bright sparks flew off Susano'o as it deflected all damage.

"Here it comes!" Naruto yelled, as Sasuke finally pushed away from the swirling tide of water and plunged them straight into the terrible abyss of the Charybdis's mouth. The air caught in Sakura's lungs as they fell into rapid descent, causing her heart to somersault in her chest.

They plummeted into pitch-blackness, water cascading violently all around them. Sasuke clenched his teeth in concentration, his Sharingan darting left and right, seeking out the inner walls of the gargantuan monster's body in a frantic race against time to take it out as quickly as possible.

There! He could see them, his ocular gifts discerning the different textures in the darkness. Drawing on the chakra being lent to him, his winged barrier tore through the crashing current of water, heading closer toward his target.

Sakura felt like she was riding in a plane that was being thrown into the most violent turbulence. The force of the water cascading all around them caused Susano'o to shake, its armour rattling. But it held firm.

Sasuke closed his eyes as they neared the wall, focusing a huge burst of chakra into his Sharingan. Then his eyelids flew open and black flame ignited along Susano'o's mighty blade. Steering his armoured warrior along the wall, Sasuke slashed into it with the sword, setting it instantly alight. He flew along, commanding the path of Amaterasu with his eyes, setting a blazing trail spreading across the sea monster's body that no amount of water could extinguish. The Charybdis released an agonised groan and began to writhe in pain, incinerating from the inside.

Sasuke continued onward, carrying them through the falling walls of water, his winged shield weaving left and right, slashing outward with the black-fire burning blade, sending forth further spirals of flame, increasing the damage radius.

Sakura lifted her arm, flinging flying spheres of wind energy from the chakra crystal in her arm brace that helped to fan the flames further. She could barely make anything out beyond the blue-purple glow of Susano'o and the crashing of cascading water, but she didn't need to aim accurately as she emptied the crystal entirely of its contents, causing as mighty a gust of wind as possible to assist in aggravating the flames further. When she'd depleted it, she fired lightning charged arrows outward, knowing that they would embed into the beast's walls and injure it further through electrocution.

Naruto and Kakashi continued to lend him their chakra, and when Sasuke was satisfied that he had burned through enough of the Charybdis's insides and that the flames would continue to spread of their own accord, he abruptly changed course, flying against the rush of the tide, pushing onward and upward at great speed.

Naruto gritted his teeth, sending wave after wave of chakra into Sasuke, a cold sweat forming on his brow as he steadily maintained the flow. The death deity was consuming monstrous amounts to fly them up against the flow of gravity and the drag of tsunami-force strong walls of water.

But instead of burning apart and steadily disintegrating, the Charybdis unexpectedly began to collapse in on itself, sending an even more violent tsunami crashing down over them, its tentacles pouring inwards, seeking to grab at them once more in a last attempt to destroy them. Sasuke's Susano'o was pushed back, the sheer, incredible force of the overwhelming pressure of cascading water all around them dragging it down deeper inside the monster's belly.

Sasuke's crimson eyes widened in horror and disbelief. No matter how much chakra he consumed, he couldn't force his way through. Why? How could he miscalculate so dreadfully?

With a start he realised that another whirlpool was beginning to form inside the Charbydis's belly. Somehow it was encircling them directly, defying the laws of gravity itself, and the swirling water was once again transporting them toward a pitch-black hole so vast, even Sasuke's eyes couldn't discern its edges. Where was the creature's body? He could no longer see anything beyond the shadows.

"Sasuke!" Sakura exclaimed in terror. "What's happening?!"

It was impossible to make out anything but the endless gush of falling water that was howling and lashing like an enraged tempest all around them. Susano'o was struggling against it, battling to fly upward but the typhoon that had formed all around them was making it impossible to move against the flow of the waves. Their barrier was thrashed left and right, spinning in a wild, erratic circle.

Without its protection, Sakura knew without question there was no hope of surviving.

"Shit!" Naruto yelled. "We can't get out! I told you, Sasuke-!"

"Shut up!" Sasuke snarled back. "Let me concentrate!"

"Sakura!" Kakashi's head turned toward her. "Get all the ambrosia we have left! We need it, now!"

Without hesitation Sakura slipped off her mount and retrieved the canisters from each of their supply packs, handing them out to the three. They downed all its contents as well as Sakura's, replenishing their chakra reserves, and immediately Susano'o grew brighter and stronger. It pushed harder against the flowing water and Sakura held her breath, daring to hope as she felt some of the resistance above their shield lessen. Sasuke steered them upward, the wings of his fully-armoured barrier batting against the endlessly pouring gush of water.

"Damn it! It's like it's sucking in the entire ocean on top of us!" Naruto shouted.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura cried. "Isn't there any way you can Kamui us out?!"

"No use!" He answered. "The tsunami is too strong! I can't control where the portal appears here!"

"Come on, come on, dattebayoooo!" Naruto howled, squeezing his eyes shut as he desperately pumped wave after wave of chakra into Sasuke's pathways.

For a few minutes, they appeared to be making steady progress, pushing upwards faster, forcing their way higher - but it was short lived. An even stronger, more catastrophic wave assaulted Susano'o, jarring it aggressively and once more they were flung back, falling deeper and deeper, plummeting into the unknown.

Sasuke inwardly cursed. He could no longer steer his armoured shield without consuming horrific amounts of chakra. If he did that, then they'd soon have none left and the barrier would falter entirely, sending them all into a liquid tomb. He knew he and the other two could endure it for a time. It was Sakura who could not, and they needed to retain at least some chakra to maintain Susano'o around her at the very least, to keep her from drowning. Suigetsu's air bubble had long since vanished from around them, indicating that the frantic melee with Charybdis had already stretched on for far longer than an hour.

Accepting that they were fighting a losing battle and that breaking free was completely beyond his control, Sasuke realised that he had no other choice but to maintain Susano'o until the water eventually stopped. It had to stop, he told himself. Amaterasu couldn't fail him. They had no alternative but to ride out the storm in order to win.

The raging tempest suddenly turned to deep water all around them as they finally plunged into the body of liquid the Charybdis had engulfed through its monstrous mouth and sank lower into it, into impossible darkness. Bubbles blinded their vision, surrounding them.

Then, with a suddenness that was frightening, the bubbles froze in the air, suspended and unmoving, and the water stilled with it. Everything grew eerily silent. Team Seven stared around them in bewildered confusion - when the water around them then vanished entirely and they were falling through bottomless black space once more.

"What the heeeeelll!" Naruto yelled.

"What's happening?!" Sakura screamed, frightened and struggling to keep a hold of the panicking horses' reins.

"Everyone, hold on!" Kakashi attempted to calm them all down, though he, too, was afraid and had no semblance of what was unfolding around them either.

They plummeted further and further into an endless void - until Susano'o finally touched down on solid ground once more, and Team Seven found themselves standing in a wide, waterless cavern. For a long moment, they all remained silent and still, completely stunned by what had just transpired.

"Wha- what just happened?" Sakura gasped, feeling her body trembling from head to toe.

Kakashi turned his gaze upward. It was pitch-black above them, and he was at a loss to explain just what they had experienced. He leaned back against the wall, finally allowing himself a minute to relax, folding his arms as he wondered what in the world had possessed Minato to throw such a formidable enemy at them.

Clearly, he had saved the best until last. Or was that the worst, Kakashi wryly thought to himself.

"I… uh… guess you were right, Sasuke. My dad wanted us to go inside its mouth, after all," Naruto said sheepishly.

Sasuke shot him a pointed, scornful glare and the sun god offered a tentative, apologetic smile in return as he removed his hand from his shoulder, finally breaking off the chakra flow.

"I guess he also wanted to scare the living daylights out of us," Sakura pressed a hand over her galloping heart, never so glad to be out of water in her life.

"Yeah," Naruto released an almost hysterical little laugh in response. "Jerk," he added emotionally, his eyes welling with tears as he collapsed onto the ground, sprawling out onto his back. "I could kiss this floor, 'ttebayo!"

Sakura sat down, just as glad, marvelling over the glorious solidity beneath them as they took a few minutes to allow their frayed nerves to recover from the overwhelming stress of their ordeal.

Relief seeped through Sasuke's limbs, and he finally relinquished Susano'o and crouched down on his feet, visibly exhausted as he, too, fought to catch his breath. Since they'd fully consumed their ambrosia supply, there was no way to replenish his energy levels but to wait for them to steadily return. It wouldn't take long, he knew.

Their horses stomped their feet, released from their confinement. Sakura gripped onto their reins, the adrenaline still spiking through her blood. How had they survived? How had the water just disappeared? It was a miracle.

Kakashi nodded toward the wall, upon which were etched elemental crests. "Well, looks like we've found it. You were right, Sasuke. Your plan was risky, but we're lucky it worked."

"Hn," Sasuke grunted, pushing himself back up to his feet.

Wasting no time in releasing the crests, they mounted their steeds as the wall opened up, allowing them entry inside. They rode through a long passage and on the other side they found a familiar, tranquil relic chamber waiting for them.

Sakura felt her body sag at the sight of it as all the tension plaguing her melted away, leaving her almost giddy with relief. They were safe. It was a reassuring sanctuary following the awful experience they'd endured of being battered around by tumultuous waves as if they'd been little more than ragdolls. They'd only had to fight their way through one monster this time - but it had been more than enough trouble and Sakura told herself she didn't want to willingly swim in any large body of water in a hurry ever again.

They dismounted once more, leaving their horses by the entrance, and made their way up to the platform that held the relic fragment. Following the necessary steps required to unlock it, they waited with bated breath for a memory sphere to materialise.

To their surprise, it didn't. There was nothing but silence and stillness, punctuated only by the peaceful cascade of the luminous waterfalls surrounding the walls of the chamber.

Team Seven exchanged uncertain glances.

"What's going on? We unlocked it," Naruto scratched the back of his blond head, perplexed.

"Strange," Kakashi mused. "Something surely has to appear before the relic does, or else the relic itself should be-"

He was interrupted by a sudden unexpected movement as something burst into existence in a plume of black smoke before them, traveling in a flurry of movement far too swift for them to distinguish what it immediately was.

A loud, echoing caw then filled the room and Sasuke's entire body turned to ice. He froze in disbelief, his incredulous eyes lifting to the ceiling of the room, trying desperately to seek the flying bird out as it flitted high above them. The flapping of black wings caught the corner of his gaze but as he spun around, there was no sight of it.

He knew that sound. It was unmistakable. A crow. They had been his brother Itachi's summon companions - and he was certain that one had just been released instead of a memory sphere.

The implications of that set Sasuke's heart pounding within his chest.

"Whoa!" Naruto exclaimed. "What was that bird? Where'd it go?"

They looked around, trying to relocate it. Sasuke strained to hear it, to pick up on even the faintest ruffle of feathers, but his Sharingan could not find it anywhere. The room fell silent again.

"Sasuke," Kakashi glanced at the death deity. "If I'm not mistaken, that sounded a lot like a crow. Your brother kept those birds as familiars, if I recall?"

"Huh?" Naruto blinked, perplexed. "I don't get it. Why would that be here?"

"Odd," Kakashi agreed.

"Is it gone?" Sakura whispered.

When another few minutes passed without incident, Kakashi sighed.

"Whatever it was, it seems to have disappeared."

Sasuke's jaw clenched tightly, his mind overrun with confusion. Why would a crow be locked in a relic site, released by their hands only to vanish into thin air? Where could it have escaped to? The area was enclosed. What was the meaning of it?

Frustration crested within his chest. He had held hopes that one last memory sphere would finally reveal to him what had happened to his brother and cousin after they'd escaped the summit. Bitter disappointment gnawed at him instead. It seemed that particular mystery would cruelly remain unresolved, and he had no idea how else he could possibly find out what the fates of his kin had been.

"Aren't there any more memories?" Sakura asked, as they gazed at the spot where the sphere ought to have been hovering.

"I suppose not," Kakashi contemplated. "After all, we saw what happened in the last one. Minato's memories ended there. We've found out the truth about Cronus and what he did to his own clan, what his true plans are-"

The sudden loud flapping of wings caused them all to tense.

"The bird!" Sakura pointed upwards.

Sasuke's heart leapt. The crow was still there! His head turned in desperation, and he glimpsed only a brief, blinding blur of shadowy movement, streaking by with the speed of an aerial projectile above them - when a sudden, indescribable pain assaulted him, akin to a physical blow. It was so intense that it caused him to blink, stunned, as the air arrested in his lungs, causing him to stagger backwards a step. He pressed an alarmed palm to his chest - but the radiating agony quickly ebbed, reduced to nothing more than a dull ache almost as suddenly as it had manifested.

He looked down, bewildered, but there was nothing there. Nor had he seen anything approach him.

"Sasuke?" Sakura stepped toward him in concern. "What's wrong?"

"Are you okay?" Naruto's cerulean eyes were wide with alarm.

Sasuke swallowed, rubbing at the strange, lingering discomfort, his gaze still turned searchingly to the shadowy ceiling above them. He couldn't hear the crow anymore. Had it truly vanished, this time? The silence that reigned around them seemed to confirm the fact. He blinked once more, confused and distraught that it had disappeared again before he could catch it, hold it, look at it.

Had Itachi sealed the crow inside this relic site with Zeus's assistance? But what had been the purpose and point of that, if it had disappeared before Sasuke had even been able to interact with it? What was the strange pain that had stabbed through his chest? Did the crow have anything to do with it?

He had no answers and slowly lowered his hand back to his side. Realising that everyone was still staring at him in concern, he quipped shortly, dismissively, "I'm fine."

"Uh. You sure…?" Naruto's eyebrows drew together. "It kinda looked like you were-"

"I said," Sasuke interrupted him curtly, "I'm fine."

"Okay, okay, geez," Naruto lifted his hands in surrender. Underneath his breath, he mumbled, "No need to get so grouchy, 'ttebayo."

"Looks like that crow's gone for good, this time," Kakashi remarked.

Sakura quickly averted her gaze from the death deity, directing a worried glance at Kakashi, who stared at Sasuke a moment longer, before turning his attention to the relic that had just materialised before them. They looked on as the masked deity claimed it and copied the instructions contained within it with his Sharingan, before storing it safely away with the other fragments inside his backpack.

"Well, this has been quite the gruelling experience," Kakashi began wryly, "but we made it. Well done, everyone." He gave them a thumbs up, his lone eye crinkling into a smile. "Mission accomplished, with more than enough time left to spare."

"We did it," Naruto exhaled in wonder, the magnitude of what they had accomplished washing over him, setting his features alight with excitement. "Alright! We really did it! Way to go, Sakura-chan!"

Sakura grinned as her friend pulled her into a joyous bear hug, lifting her off her feet as he spun her around with enthusiasm. She laughed, sharing in his happiness. They'd survived the most difficult and dangerous of trials within each of the relic sites, come out on the other side a more solidified, unified team and finally had within their possession the means to unseal the constraints on the surface deity's powers.

A subdued Sasuke watched them silently from the corner of his eye, not partaking in their celebrations. What did he have to be glad about in comparison? The revelations they'd discovered had put his mind to rest in some respects - but mostly delivered even greater heartache now that he knew the truth of his family's passing.

"Can we unseal it now?" Naruto asked eagerly, setting Sakura back down as the circle of light formed behind them, ready to whisk them back to the entrance of the relic site, confirming that their task was complete.

"Danzo and the others instructed that we're to perform the unsealing at the High Council's quarters." Kakashi shook his head. "They want to oversee this, with everyone else present, I presume."

"We're really gonna take it straight back to them?" Naruto queried dubiously, resting a hand on his hip.

Kakashi was silent for a long moment, recalling Minato's words about the High Council and its members. "I think we should take it back to the others, first." He confided honestly. Then, he opened the decision up for their opinion. "What are your thoughts?"

"I think we should, too," Sakura folded her arms. "If we can unseal it on our own, why do they need to be involved?"

"Right on," Naruto raised a fist. "They're way too controlling, sensei! My dad said I could use the powers I have, and all this time they've been telling me otherwise. Something about them stinks."

"A fair point," Kakashi agreed. "They've certainly made some questionable decisions in the past. But we'll need to inform them of everything we've discovered in any case. They aren't expecting us back for another few days though - so let's head back home first and regroup before we do anything else."

"Right," Sakura nodded.

"It won't take us long to get back to Konoha if Suigetsu transports us back to the coast. I'll send a message out and as soon as we're back on the surface we can head straight there. Either way, we should have our full powers back in no time."

"You think Obito will be waiting for us?" Naruto frowned.

Kakashi was silent. "It's likely." He responded at length. "We're out of ambrosia and low on chakra, so will need to replenish our reserves before I can use Kamui again. If we lay low at the closest town, I should be recovered within a few hours to warp us right back." He looked at the death deity. "Sasuke. I know you've been contracted to stay with us for the full duration of twenty-one days, but I'll speak to Chiyo, see if we can't get you released from your binding agreement sooner. You've done more than your share in helping us out. I don't think any imprisonment is necessary, and we'll fight to have that overruled for you."

Sasuke did not respond.

Sakura turned her head, and waited to catch his gaze.

"Thank you, Sasuke," she said earnestly, when his eyes flicked briefly onto her. "For working with us. We wouldn't have made it this far without you."

Wordlessly, his eyes slid away.

"Sakura is right. We owe you our thanks, and our lives," Kakashi agreed sincerely.

"Yeah! You were totally cool, Sasuke!" Naruto enthused. "Team Seven makes a kick-ass unit, believe it!"

"Alright!" Sakura agreed, as she shared a fist bump with her mentor and close friend.

Sasuke said nothing, and when Naruto extended a fist out to him, the God of the Dead simply turned away.

---

The circle deposited Team Seven and their horses at the entrance of the relic site, where they found a very bored looking Suigetsu waiting for them. Immediately, he renewed the air bubbles around them, and grinned at their appearance.

"Heh. Look who it is. Looks like you all made it out in one piece, huh? Took you long enough. I was starting to think you'd had a bad accident."

"We fought a Charybdis," Kakashi informed him. "As you can imagine, it took a while to bring down."

"No shit?" Suigetsu blinked in surprise. "That's a pretty brutal one. Didn't I tell ya you'd face something huge in there?" Then, after a moment of consideration, he mused aloud, "Wait. How the fuck did Zeus even get one down there? Must have stolen it from my oceans with his fancy-ass warping skills. A thief and a show-off."

"Hey! Shark-Teeth! Watch what you say about my dad!" Naruto shot back protectively.

"Shark-Teeth?" Suigetsu echoed snarkily, teleporting effortlessly through the water to hover right beside Naruto. "Wanna see a bigger set on one of my pets?" He nodded over his shoulder. "Look behind you."

"Wha-!" Naruto stiffened and jerked his head around, only to realise that Suigetsu was laughing at him.

"What a dumbass," the ocean king snickered. "Hard to believe this is Zeus's-"

"Suigetsu," Sasuke cut in harshly. "Enough."

The platinum-haired deity blinked at him, the remainder of his words swallowed up by shock. He was defending Naruto?

Interesting, Suigetsu thought once more to himself, highly amused.

"Wow, we really are a cozy team here, huh?" he jeered at them. Then, losing interest quickly as he was prone to doing, he rolled his eyes. "Anyway, whatever. I see all my sea-horses are intact and served you well. I'll be taking those back, now - and any weapons you didn't use."

"We thank you again for your assistance," Kakashi offered.

"Like I said, you can thank me by telling the High Council what I did. When Cronus is finished, I want my seat back on Olympus."

"We'll be sure to communicate your aid to them," Kakashi duly noted.

"Hmph," Suigetsu sniffed. "You better. I've helped you surface losers more times than I care to count, and what have I got to show for it, huh? No shit, that's what."

"The satisfaction of knowing you're doing the morally right thing?" Sakura sweetly intoned.

"Oh, that's cute," Suigetsu tossed back sarcastically. "Such a goody two-shoes," he cooed. "You know, you're not exactly the type I would've thought-"

"We're ready to leave now," Sakura interjected hastily, anticipating where his conversation was heading, and refusing to allow him the opportunity to finish it.

Suigetsu chuckled.

"What's the rush? Y'know…" he steered his mount around them, inspecting them thoughtfully, a mischievous light twinkling in his vivid amethyst eyes. Sakura recognised that look. It usually didn't bode well for others. "I could make a deal to get Samehada back for your safe return. Now that I've got you all under here, I've got some serious leverage. Zeus's son? The Underworld's King? Wonder how much they'd pay to get you all back?"

"Shut up!" Sakura exploded. "You want a seat back on Olympus, you better stop screwing us around!"

Sasuke smothered the smug smirk that threatened to grace his lips before it could materialise at the stunned look on Suigetsu's face.

"Damn." The ocean king whistled. "Pinky. You've gotten so feisty," he complimented.

"Take us back," she glared angrily. "Every moment we waste, Cronus has time to plan out another move. Don't you care about anything except yourself?"

Suigetsu tapped a finger against his chin, feigning a pensive expression. "Hm. Let's see. How about… no?"

"You're an asshole," Naruto threw him a disgusted look.

Suigetsu cackled. "That's rich, given you have the King of all Douchebags right next to you."

"More a King than you are," Naruto fired back. "Least he keeps his word."

"Naruto, Sakura, that's enough," Kakashi said. "Suigetsu, if you could return us to the coast closest to Konoha, we'd be much obliged-"

"Oh, I'm keeping mine," Suigetsu glowered, cutting the masked deity off. "In fact, I can't fucking wait to toss you surface trash back out my oceans." He snapped his fingers together, and the horses immediately disintegrated into bubbles, vanishing from beneath them.

"W-wait!" Naruto sputtered, caught off-guard by the abruptness of change in Suigetsu's mood. "Before we go, is there any chance you could give us a tiny bit of ambrosia? For the road? When we get back to Olympus, I'll totally remember you helping us, 'tteyabo!"

Sakura cringed. Kakashi lifted a hand to his forehead, and released a heavy sigh.

Idiot, Sasuke thought derisively. It was far too late to negotiate anything else. The knuckle-headed sun deity should have pre-considered his request before choosing to antagonise the mercurial god of the seas.

"Not a damn drop, not on your fucking life," Suigetsu sneered. "Figure the rest out on your own. Now I'd say you've outstayed your welcome here." He snapped his fingers again and bubbles surrounded Team Seven, whisking them at breath-taking speed back up to the surface.

---

They were all but unceremoniously dumped out of the ocean and onto the beach of an unspecified village, and splashed with a shower of water for good measure right afterward. Sakura gritted her teeth as she pushed herself up to her feet, her hair and clothing completely drenched.

"That asshole!" Naruto raged, ringing water out his jacket. "Is he always like that?"

"Oh, yeah," Sakura pushed the limp strands of hair out her eyes. "And worse." She added in a mutter, as they trudged along the sandy shore.

The sky was a dark blue, indicating that it was late in the afternoon. Sakura inhaled deeply, relieved to be out the ocean, then held her breath as she drew out her phone from her supply pack, but was not surprised to find that the battery was completely flat.

"Where are we?" Naruto turned his eyes upwards, but it was difficult to tell where they'd landed based on the landscape around them. Green hills and mountains stretched out ahead of them, dotted with houses.

"Given the climate, not too far from Konoha, I hope," Kakashi responded. "Let's find a place to recharge. I'll have Jiraiya meet us once we find out where we are."

It turned out that Suigetsu had deposited them in Yugakure, the Village Hidden in Hot Water, which was a neighbouring town to Konoha. It was a quaint place, bordered by lush green valleys and plenty of trees. As Team Seven made their way into the town, they found it to be immaculately clean, with white paved roads, tidy brick houses and well-kept floral gardens. It wasn't as heavily populated as Konoha was, and people seemed to prefer to travel around by bicycle.

Sakura wondered where all the cars were, when they discovered from a friendly baker who sold them some bread that the only transport allowed in the village by law were bicycles and horse-carts. It was the lack of pollution that kept the local hot springs and verdant trees in top condition, the baker insisted.

They stopped at the first hotel they found, where they took turns to shower, change out of their wet clothes and freshen up. Sakura recharged her phone, relieved and amazed to find that it was still operational, and took the time to catch up with all her missed messages and calls. Naruto and Kakashi did the same, and they phoned the others in Konoha, reassuring them of their well-being and detailing the news of their success after they'd settled in.

Sasuke listened to their happy conversation in silence. It was a victory he did not belong to, one that felt hollow to him. When Sakura spoke to her mother, he found himself remembering his own family. Wounds he'd deeply buried away, re-opened over the course of their quest.

Jiraiya informed them that he would be arriving within the hour, and so they set to waiting for him, taking the time to rest and recharge.

"Naruto?" Sakura turned to her friend after they'd hung up the call. "Do you want to check out some stalls before we leave?"

"Uh…" Naruto fumbled, appearing oddly embarrassed all of a sudden. "A-actually, Sakura-chan, I uh… I was thinking of going to the hot springs."

Sakura stared at him in confusion. "What? We don't have time. Jiraiya will be here soon." The penny then dropped, and her mouth hung open. "Wait a minute- are you serious?"

"N-no!" His face turned tomato red, and he waved his hands, horrified at the suspicious look on her face. "Sakura-chan, what's with that look? That's not why!"

Sasuke, who stood leaning against the wall, angled a surreptitious look at the blond, and inwardly told himself that Naruto had to be the worst liar, and biggest buffoon of a deity to have ever existed. He half held out hope that Sakura would give him the walloping he so-deserved for thinking of relaxing at such a critical time, and was satisfied when she did not disappoint, smacking the sun god upside his head.

"You pervert!" Sakura admonished. "Haven't you told me the stories of Jiraiya in the hot-springs?! How can you think about that at a time like this?!"

"N-no, I swear, that's not it!" Naruto howled as she pulled punishingly at his ear. "I just haven't been to one in ages, and well, Sakura-chan, we're in the village named after hot water, we can't leave without trying out the hot springs! We have time for a quick dip. I swear, it'll only be quick! We've earned it after all the freaky things we've fought. Right? Right?!"

"But the enemy could be onto us at any moment," Sakura exclaimed in exasperated disbelief.

A reassuring hand on her shoulder drew her attention to Kakashi.

"It's unlikely they'll try anything in daylight, in a village populated with this many people," he informed her. "That's why they attacked us on the open road. Besides, Yugakure is known for its tight security and powerful military presence. They trade heavily with Konoha, and both police forces keep watch on both borders. If there was trouble headed this way, we'd know about it already." He nodded at Sakura encouragingly. "It's alright to unwind. You have an hour free, Sakura. Sasuke will stay with you."

"Wait, you're going with him?" Sakura gaped in dismay. She didn't know what she was more anxious about. The fact that they were wasting the hour away outside or that she was being left unexpectedly alone with Sasuke again. In a hotel room, no less.

"I deserve a vacation for pulling this mission off," Kakashi sighed. "But since I won't be getting one any time soon, allow your old sensei an hour off, eh?" He smiled, ruffled her hair affectionately, and then he nodded at Sasuke before taking his leave. Naruto released a nervous laugh and all but dove out after his mentor before Sakura could direct any further withering, disapproving glares his way, closing the door quietly behind him.

Immediately the room was plunged into unnerving, stifling silence. Sakura glanced at where Sasuke stood leaning nonchalantly against the wall, to find that his arms were folded across his chest and his eyes were lowered. She was glad. At least when he wasn't looking at her, she could breathe more easily.

That all changed a second later however, when, sensing her gaze on him, those dark, sinfully enticing eyes swept upwards, locking straight onto her. Pinning her in place.

"Will you go out with me?" she blurted unthinkingly. It was only after she'd said the words, that she realised just what had passed from her lips, and felt her face explode with heat.

"I- I mean outside with me!" she stammered in amendement, her heart galloping wildly within her chest.

Sasuke, however, didn't seem to notice her questionable choice of words. Perhaps it was because he hailed from the Underworld, but Sakura had never been more thankful for the different worlds they came from than she was at that moment, standing mortified beyond measure before him.

In response, he wordlessly opened the door, allowing her to go through first, scowling slightly in confusion at her flustered state as he followed after her.

---

Sakura released a quiet breath as they stepped out into the pleasant afternoon sunshine. Sasuke walked quietly beside her, hands in his pockets. Fidgeting with the long sleeves of her cream-hued top, Sakura peeked a glance at him. He wore his usual, aloof expression, and at one point she would have thought it uninviting, intimidating. But now, over the span of two short weeks and after enduring endless trials together, where Sasuke had continuously shielded her from harm, carried and protected her, cooperated and worked with her and the others, Sakura felt significantly more at ease in his company than she had at the start of the journey.

They still had a lot of things they needed to discuss. Subjects that wouldn't be comfortable for either of them to talk about. There were so many emotions they needed to work through. But at that moment, she was simply content to be beside him. To walk in the sunshine together, something she knew Sasuke rarely ever did by virtue of his role and responsibilities.

For just a brief few minutes, Sakura could pretend that she was just a girl, and he was just a boy, enjoying a casual stroll in each other's company.

"I've never seen any of these villages," she confessed, wanting to fill the silence between them with conversation, no matter how pointless. It didn't matter to her if he didn't respond. She knew he was listening, and in that moment, that was enough for her. "My mother never really let me do any travelling before."

Sasuke listened to her chatter on, about nothing in particular, idle talk that, coming from anybody else, he would have been quick to tune out. But with Sakura, he heard every single word. She told him about which of the countries had been her favourite, which climate had been the most annoying, which of the monsters had been the most terrifying. When she came to a stop by the market stalls at last, Sasuke simply stood back and watched as she laughed and smiled at the merchant, lighting up the very area she stood in as she purchased some wares.

"Want a tomato?" she asked, a light, teasing edge to her voice, pointing as they passed a food cart.

He shook his head slightly.

"You sure? They look good. Really juicy."

He blinked and stared back at her. Raised a dark eyebrow at her insistence, perplexed as to what, exactly, she was doing. Watched curiously as her cheeks were stained a charming shade of pink, and she quickly ducked her head, as if embarrassed from the weight of his scrutiny.

"Nevermind," she breathed, and crossed over to a stall on the other side of the street, looking at some pretty, hand-stitched bags, suddenly feeling the need to place distance between them again.

"Sakura?" A voice she didn't immediately place gave her pause, and she lifted her head to meet wide hazel eyes. "Sakura! No way. It really is you!"

Sakura blinked at the familiar face in astonishment. "Kenji…?"

"Hey!" he beamed, rushing over to her from a neighbouring stall. He was carrying a bag of groceries in his hand, and was dressed in a crisp, pale blue shirt and grey jeans. "What are the chances of meeting all the way out here? It's so good to see you."

"You too," Sakura shook her head, nonplussed. "What are you doing here?"

He laughed at her visible surprise. "My old grandma lives out here. I'm just in town for the weekend visiting her. What about you? What are you doing out here?"

"Just passing through," Sakura supplied. "With some friends. We're actually leaving shortly."

"You come here often?" He asked.

"No, it's my first time."

"Isn't it great?" he looked around appreciatively. "A lot quieter than Konoha."

"Yeah, it's something," she agreed.

His gaze returned to her, and his expression was a blend of incredulous and concerned. "Sakura, I haven't heard from you in ages. I haven't seen you around at the university, either."

"Oh," Sakura lifted a shoulder in a half-hearted, sheepish shrug. "Yeah. I've been a bit busy." She glanced around her, seeking out Sasuke through the trail of walking civilians, and found that he was still standing by the stall on the other side of the street, his unfathomable onyx gaze fixed intently on Kenji. His eyes then flicked briefly onto Sakura, before he turned his face disinterestedly away, leaning casually back against a wooden post as he resorted to people-watching while he waited.

He was purposefully hanging back, she realised, to allow her some privacy and space to speak to her friend.

"Have you even been coming to classes?" Kenji was going on. "I called around at your house a few times, but your mother just said you were out."

"I…" Sakura's mind raced to find a plausible excuse. "Yes. I've been busy, like I said. I had to take some time out of studying. I've just been going through some issues lately."

She supposed 'issues' was the most accurate way to describe what was going on in her life.

"I'm really sorry to hear that, Sakura." His expression was warm and he looked sincerely sympathetic. Sakura felt a twinge of remorse. She knew that Kenji cared deeply for her, but she also knew there was no chance of anything ever happening between them. Friends were what they were and all they could ever be. Now, more than ever, she was certain of that fact.

"But hey, I have some old first year notes at my grandma's. I left them here when I'd come visit last year. I could go grab them and give them to you, if you wanted to catch up on some reading."

"Oh, no," Sakura waved a hand. "Don't worry about it. I'll catch up whenever I'm ready."

"C'mon. It's no trouble at all," he insisted. "My grandma's house is literally a five minute walk from here. Just along that path down there." He indicated with his head somewhere behind her. "We can walk down. It'd be good to catch up a bit, and she makes the meanest fresh dumplings. You can take some back for your friends."

"Kenji, really," she shifted uncomfortably, conscious of the fact that Sasuke was probably watching them again. She didn't want them to meet. That was the last thing she wanted. All she wanted was to get rid of Kenji as quickly as possible, as unfair as that was given that all he was doing was being his usual, nice, thoughtful and sweet self. "There's no need-"

He reached out and gently took her forearm, tugging at her to walk with him. "Sakura, it's a five minute walk. Stop being so weird about it. If you fall behind on med school now, it'll be really hard to-"

"Let go."

Sakura's heart leapt into her throat at the sound of the silky baritone that cut in behind her, its tone icy, hard-edged, a clear warning to the young mortal man who instinctively dropped Sakura's wrist as if the uttered words had charred his hand.

Kenji blinked in surprise, looking over her shoulder at the taller, dark-haired, unfamiliar youth who stood right behind Sakura, his eyes glittering like hard black-diamonds. The intensity of his glare was alarming, and Sakura could see that Kenji immediately felt intimidated, for he took a slight step back.

"E-excuse me?"

"She said no," Sasuke deadpanned. "So get lost."

"No! It's fine!" Sakura cried anxiously, angling a glance back at Sasuke. "He's a good friend from my university. It's fine."

Sasuke's eyes narrowed skeptically at Kenji, clearly unconvinced, before shifting back wordlessly onto her.

Sakura sucked in a breath, returning her gaze to the bewildered, sandy-blond haired man, appalled to find herself in the very situation she had sought to avoid.

"Kenji, I'm sorry." Feeling terrible that Sasuke had likely frightened him senseless, she rushed on, "Let's get your notes, okay? I have time."

Kenji's eyes darted back to Sasuke nervously. "Uh… no it's… my bad. You said no, I thought - I mean, I didn't want to make you uncomfortable."

"No. You haven't!"

"I'll see you around at university, maybe." He gave her a strained smile, nodded politely at Sasuke, and then turned away.

Sakura stared after him in horror. Their meeting was a disaster, just as she had known it would be. Whirling around to face Sasuke, she whispered in dismay, "Sasuke! You scared the life out of him!"

"Hn," Sasuke snorted, fully unrepentant, failing to understand what the issue was, or why she seemed to be so upset.

"He's my friend. We study together. You didn't need to come over and do that!"

He regarded her aloofly down the barrel of his aristocratic nose. "You said no." His eyes narrowed in disapproval. "He grabbed you."

"He didn't grab me, he was just trying to-" She broke off, frustrated, her agitation increasing as she watched Kenji hurry further down the path. She couldn't leave their encounter at that. She needed to apologise, smooth things over. It was just a five minute walk, she told herself. She owed a friend who was worried about her that little of her time, surely.

"Please just wait here and give me a minute!"

"Sakura-" he scowled, irked that she was asking him to remain behind when his assigned job was to shadow her at all times.

"I'll be right back!" she hissed, and hurried after her friend. "Kenji!" she called, catching up to him. "Hey, Kenji! Wait! Please, I'm really sorry!"

"It's fine," Kenji shook his head, but didn't look at her, the tension clearly palpable in his shoulders. "Don't worry about it, Sakura. That guy was right. I shouldn't have pushed it."

"No, I'm really sorry about that. He's not a very social guy, he didn't realise you were a friend," Sakura continued to walk beside him, feeling awful, guilty and embarrassed.

"Who is he, anyway?" Kenji asked tightly. "Your boyfriend?"

"What?" Sakura blushed fiercely. "No! No. He's just-" What was Sasuke to her? Her mind raced to supply the correct answer. Her bodyguard? She couldn't say that without opening up a fresh can of questions. The guy she had to spend six months of every year for the rest of her existence with? Her former lover in her first life, turned kidnapper in her present life, turned team-mate, turned- she didn't know what they were, exactly?

"A friend," she got out, deeply flustered.

"You sure that's all he is?" Kenji shook his head, clearly not believing her. He'd seen the protective look on the dark-haired guy's face and begged to differ.

"Yes. Ken, please wait a minute," she followed him around a corner, down another stone path lined with buildings that she presumed led toward his grandmother's house. "Hey, stop."

He halted. Finally lifted his eyes to her.

"I'm really sorry," she echoed sincerely, reaching out to touch his shoulder lightly. "That was rude of him. I only said no because I feel bad. You've been trying to get in touch with me, and I've not returned any messages or calls. I've just been going through a lot and-"

"You don't need to apologise. Really, Sakura." Kenji answered. He lifted his hand, and took hold of her wrist, gently removing it from his shoulder. Then his expression lightened, as he gave her a wide smile. "Actually, I should say sorry."

He slipped his hand into hers, and Sakura glanced over his shoulder, to find that Sasuke had slunk over to the beginning of the path. He remained at a carefully calculated distance, hands in pockets, watching them like a hawk from afar. Sakura's heart fluttered. She could feel the intensity and weight of that heavy-lashed stare, even from where she stood.

"Don't be silly," Sakura shook her head, returning her attention to Kenji as she squeezed his hand reassuringly. "You've done nothing wrong. I'm the one who should-" she broke off abruptly, blinking in confusion when the air around him suddenly began to ripple and distort strangely. It was a sight so unexpected, that she lost a few precious seconds, in which her mind struggled to process and come to terms with what, exactly, she was seeing.

Instinctively, she tried to draw her hand out of his, but his grip was tight. Firm. The smile on his face widened, and suddenly it was empty. It did not reach his hazel eyes. And it was only at that second, that Sakura realised, horror exploding within her, that something was very, very wrong with him.

"Sorry, Sakura," Kenji repeated hollowly, and there was no way or time for her to escape.

"Sakura!"

The alarmed shout of her name was the last thing she heard before she was sucked back into the unstoppable gravity of a space-time Kamui vortex. Sasuke's wide, panicked dark eyes were the last thing she saw in the distance as he flash-stepped to her, his hand outstretched, diving to reach her in time before everything faded away to blinding white.

---

She came around to a high-pitched ringing sensation in her ears and a dull throbbing pain in her skull. Sakura groaned and blinked blearily, struggling to focus through the blur of her disorientated vision. She was laying down on something cold and hard. Something white.

Slowly, she came to register that she was staring at rivulets of red that were oozing toward her. Her hands were bound tightly behind her back, rendered useless, and she blinked through the foggy haze of her vision, willing herself fully conscious.

When her eyesight finally settled and sharpened, an immediate scream caught in her throat. A body lay still before her, neck slit, bleeding all over the white marble she lay upon. The blood was still fresh, indicating that it had not been long since it had been spilled.

Kenji, she realised, her eyes welling with horrified tears. His hazel eyes were open, lifeless, unblinking.

He was dead.

A choked, terrified sob escaped her lips as she struggled to lift her heavy head, recalling that she had gone after him in the village, and he had taken her hand and then-

And then he had sucked her straight into a portal. She couldn't understand how. Or why. They had been friends. In that moment, she had never felt more confused, or more displaced. She had never felt so disorientated and afraid.

Her gaze then settled on another figure, slumped motionlessly on the ground to her far right. Her heart constricted painfully within her chest. Sasuke. He was lying on his stomach like she was, bound in thick, glowing metal chains, and his eyes were closed. To her relief, there was no pool of blood around him, and he was still breathing, but clearly unconscious.

Sakura struggled against her bindings, tried in vain to move, croaking out his name hoarsely.

"Sasuke…!"

The sight of Kenji's glazed eyes fixed on her, as if she had been the last thing he'd seen before departing the world, was making her feel sick to her stomach.

"Sasuke," she sobbed, needing him to wake up, willing him to regain consciousness. But he did not move. She whimpered softly, telling herself that she needed to be strong. Even if she didn't feel it, she had to be. He was out cold, and she was awake, which meant that it was up to her to-

Her heart slammed against her ribcage as she heard a set of doors open from somewhere behind her. The heels of boots struck loudly, powerfully, and unhurriedly upon the marble floor, echoing in the large expanse of whatever room they'd been transported to. They soon stepped into her line of sight, and a shadow fell over her. Sakura struggled to twist her head, to look up at the person who was now looming over her.

When her eyes met fathomless, cold onyx, her blood froze over, turning to ice. A chill befell her, and it seemed to Sakura that her thundering heartbeat had stilled entirely.

She knew exactly who he was, without a single word spoken. She knew it from the smugness of that wicked, contemptuous sneer. The unmistakable arrogance of those aristocratic features. From the way her entire body screamed at her in warning, recognising him, somehow, on some innate level, from a lifetime long gone. A lifetime he had stolen from her.

Uchiha Madara smirked cruelly down at her.

"We meet at last, Haruno Sakura."

---

Author's Note

Bet you all didn't see that coming :) Feel free to scream into the void (AKA my review board) until the next chapter. It's going to be a REALLY juicy one. Watch my profile for info as to when I start on it. Thanks for reading!