Whrrg….the more I read the reviews, the more I feel like I'm going to disappoint people (Y'all are really kind, by the way. Be mean to me! ^__^). Oh well, it is my story after all. I just hope you like it.

So I am actually posting more of the "fast-paced stuff" than I meant to because I don't really want to drag it out. But I kind of have to go slowly, as the ending isn't done and I'd rather not stop in the middle, like I mentioned before. Well, we'll just see how it goes.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters (though that would be nice…no, when it comes down to it, I'd have to have a jutsu with music involved, like Kogaku. Music is power!)

SPOILERS: If you have not been keeping up with the manga and you do not want any inkling of spoilers, you may not want to read. But it is up to you.

* * * * *

Run From You

            By Doskoipanda

Chapter 8: Lost

"I want ANBU on that giant snake. Do whatever you need to contain it. Go." Tsunade raised an arm in dismissal.

            The ANBU squad disappeared instantly. Tsunade turned briskly to the jounin assembled before her. "Some jounin have already started to dispense of the summoning beasts," she snapped. "Head for the living areas of Konoha, assist those who need it. I want those sectors secured as quickly as possible. Now!"

            A second puff of smoke left the Hokage's office rooftop empty. Tsunade let her gaze travel to the gigantic snake thrashing at the buildings of the village. Are we never going to be rid of you, Orochimaru?! she snarled inwardly.

            "Hokage-sama!"

            Tsunade did not turn around to face the young speaker. "Did you find him?" she demanded.

            Konohamaru shook his head. "His traces indicate that he's in the Fire country."

            "THAT GODDAMN PERVERT!" Tsunade screamed. "HE'S NEVER AROUND WHEN YOU REALLY NEED HIM!"

            Over in the next county's women's bath, a cleverly camouflaged sennin sneezed, was caught by several half-naked women, and was beaten soundly.

            Knowing better than to interrupt the Hokage in such a dangerous mood, Konohamaru waited for the screaming to end. As Tsunade paused for some air, Konohamaru spoke quickly. "Naruto-aniki is nowhere to be found either. I would think that Uchiha is with him. We must hurry, Tsunade-sama, the ANBU will need your help to—what is that?!"

            The Fifth Hokage turned and looked in the direction which Konohamaru indicated. Her blood turned to ice as she recognized the red glow of a chakra sealed nineteen years ago.

            Naruto, she thought. The Kyuubi…so that's what Orochimaru was after. He must've figured out some way to summon the demon fox, that's why he wanted Uzumaki…..but what would he want with the Kyuubi?

It didn't matter, Tsunade realized with growing dread. At all costs, the demon fox could not be unleashed, no matter what the sacrifice.

But that meant…

            Goddamn you Naruto….you swore to me that you'd keep your promise…now I'm the one that has to break it for you.

            "Change of plan," she snapped, though her heart sank in her breast. "Konohamaru, we need ANBU back. Looks like the source of our problems is with that red light. Get a hold of ANBU, tell them to head there and destroy whatever they find—"

            "No!"

            Tsunade did not need to look at the new speaker that had just arrived. Her teeth clenched. "Do not insubordinate me, Iruka. There's nothing we can do if the Kyuubi is released; we need to kill off the source before it fully emerges."

            "'Kill off the source'?!" Iruka repeated, his voice full of fear and anger. "Naruto is the source, you know that! You can't just—"

"I can't? You think this is about can or can't?" Tsunade's eyes met Iruka's, blazing with a similar anger and fear. "You think I don't know that Naruto could be killed for all this? You're not the only one that cares about him, Iruka, but I will not let that thing inside him destroy this village, these people, even you."

Iruka's hands clenched and he made as if to cross the rooftop, but he was held back by his silver-haired companion. "Calm down, Iruka," Kakashi said in a low voice. "They can't do it."

            "Not you too, Kakashi, please." Tsunade's voice had dropped with the weight of her thoughts. Kakashi merely turned his lazy gaze upon her. "Report. There are too many beasts to handle out there, Hokage-sama. We can't spare anyone to get out to Naruto, and we especially need those who have contracts with summoning beasts to bring their respective animals back under control."

            "Means you and me, huh? And that goddamn sennin, if he were around," Tsunade paced for a second, then turned back to Konohamaru. "You say Uchiha's with Uzumaki?" she snapped.

            Konohamaru straightened. "Yes, Hokage-sama!"

            "Fine." Tsunade turned her gaze onto Iruka. "We'll leave Naruto in Sasuke's hands then. But if that monster out there gets loose, we're going to have to kill it off, no matter what. You got that, Iruka?"

            The brown-haired jounin refused to nod, but he bit his lip to stem a verbal refusal. Tsunade let the light of mutual sympathy and understanding shine from her gaze. "It'll be all right," she said gently. "We'll have to trust Sasuke. In the meantime, you have your own job to do."

Her eyes became harsh and business-like once more. "All right. Iruka, you're cover for Kakashi, he may need to use all his chakra trying to bring his dogs under control. I'll work on my slugs from here."

            The two jounin were gone in a puff of smoke. Konohamaru stood forlornly in the center of the rooftop. As an intern to the Hokage, he was often shuttled off to do grunt work, and he figured this time—even this crisis—would be no different. "I guess I should be going after Jiraiya-sama, right?" he said dully.

            "You stupid boy," Tsunade snapped. "You're my cover. Pay attention!"

            "What?!" Konohamaru stared at the female Hokage as she bit her thumb and began to perform the seals of her summon. "But defending the Hokage….that's SS rank…I'm not even a jounin—"

            "You'd better be better than one," Tsunade snarled, though a grin tugged at the corners of her mouth. "Prove your worth, boy. I'm counting on it."

            "Y….yes ma'am!" Konohamaru crouched into a fighting stance, unable to hide his proud smile. "I won't let you down!"

            The Fifth Hokage nodded, cursing inwardly as the summon was finished and she felt nothing. We've got a long night ahead of us. Kami-sama, protect this village.

* * * * * * *

            Hot, so hot.

            Naruto's vision seemed to swim through the heat, so much that everything before him twisted and undulated. Not to mention that with every passing second, the Kyuubi gained more control, and Naruto's view seemed to dim, as if the sun were rapidly sinking into night.

            With every passing second, Sasuke saw more of his terrible secret.

            He had to run. He had to get away from the village, away from what he knew and loved. The Kyuubi had never gained this much control before, so fast and so easily. This time…this time…he could lose himself in it.

            Heat. Fire. He was burning. Unconsciousness was the only answer, the cool sea in which to quench the burning power of the demon fox. And the Kyuubi was so seductive, it was speaking to him, coaxing him….

            "Give yourself to me, boy. The music summons me, and you stand in my way. Give yourself up, and you can rest in peace."

            The music?

            Yes…it was all around him, shrieking in his ears. He felt the demon fox surge through him, responding to the call of the music, desiring it.

            It sensed his confusion and snarled with impatience. "Release me, boy! I must go to the music's calling…I must follow it…"

            Follow?

            But you're the Kyuubi, Naruto whispered, or thought, or simply realized. You don't follow anyone.

            And as he thought this, as he voiced this, the fire seeping through his consciousness wavered….surged again…wavered.

            Then an almighty roar. Hatred soared through the Kyuubi, through Naruto. To think that someone would dare to attempt to summon him…to control him…

            "Boy," the demon fox growled. "Release me and let me taste the blood of those who dare manipulate me."

The heat and pain were fading; the music was losing its pull on the demon fox. As the fires receded, Naruto's confidence returned, so much so that his soul pulsed with his victory. He was regaining control. Fat chance, Nine-Tails.

            And then his vision cleared and saw eyes as red as his own, filled with shock and horror and—

            Sasuke.

            Not you…not like this…

            At that instant, everything crumbled and fell away, everything. Naruto gave up all abilities to feel, welcoming the promised embrace of nothingness, unconsciousness. The fire that he had struggled through overcame him in one swift moment.

            His heart was strong enough to brave the might of the Nine-Tails and keep up the emotional barrier that separated him from the beast. But it could not withstand this.

            His pain was so much bigger than a demon fox.

            Naruto fell, and the Kyuubi smiled.

It seemed like hours passed as Sasuke held Naruto in an iron grip, though it was only seconds. Then Naruto unexpectedly pushed forward, throwing his captor off balance. Sasuke gasped in some surprise, but his trained muscles responded immediately. With the grace of a cat, he rolled with the force of the push, bringing Naruto down with him and using the blonde's own weight to lay him flat on his back.

Holding his forearm across Naruto's neck, noses nearly touching, Sasuke sucked in a trembling breath. They were so close, so incredibly close, and yet Naruto was so far from him.

"Naruto…" he breathed, staring into the red eyes, not caring that something hot and desperate was shining forth from his own gaze. "Stop."

Come back.

Naruto said nothing, but his mouth curved into a wide smile, fangs glowing in the dark. Then in a burst of uncontrollable strength, he kicked out into Sasuke's midriff and sent him flying.

The Uchiha landed hard some distance away, struggling to refill his lungs with air. Naruto rose and stood still, shoulders hunched, hands flexing like claws.

I'm losing you—

"Ngh…Na…." Sasuke fought the urge to throw up, struggling to his feet.

The wide grin did not fade from the blonde shinobi's face. He let his head loll back as visible tendrils of red chakra suddenly began to envelop his body.

Startled, Sasuke took a step back. "What's…going on?!"

"The Nine-Tail's chakra is bursting out," Kogaku clapped his hands and danced like a happy child. "Soon the transformation will be complete."

Sasuke stared at the seething mass of crimson, feeling the cold hand of fear grip his soul. I can't fight that thing, he thought wildly. This was so much bigger than Orochimaru, bigger than Itachi, bigger than anything he'd ever dreamed of. It seemed impossible to even conceive containing it with the entire village's help, let alone by himself.

But how could he let it reach Konoha? There were so many children, pre-genin, and the elderly that couldn't flee fast enough—he couldn't let it reach the village. But how could he stop the Kyuubi? He could die.

He would die.

Skin growing clammy, fingers beginning to tremble, Sasuke felt the electric signals of reason and self-preservation run down his body and into his legs, carrying the very simple yet effective message of "run away."

Run, just like Naruto had told him to.

Naruto.

What would happen to him if he left him alone?

            Sasuke refocused on what he was seeing. Naruto was almost lost from view, completely enclosed in a shroud of red. Only the swirling sound of rampant, out-of-control chakra could be heard.

            "What's going to happen to him?!" Sasuke demanded, throat dry.

"I'm not entirely sure," Kogaku shrugged. "The Nine-tails will either use his body as a vessel, or he'll destroy the body as he reforms in this world. Either way, your comrade is lost."

Lost.

A thousand images, a thousand words, a thousand moments of sunshine, earnest smiles and noise washed over Sasuke in a thousandth of a second. And it was enough to prompt the birth of something very familiar to the Uchiha, the need to win at all costs. But it was not a desire prompted out of arrogance, or promises, or even the innate wish to live. It was….it was…..

How can I think of living if you aren't going to be here?

I need you with me.

I…

"No," Sasuke said softly, putting one foot forward, then another. Another. Each step brought him closer to the writhing, swirling cloud of evil crimson hatred.

A memory of a deep dark blackness sprang unbidden to Sasuke's mind as he drew nearer, a shadow that dogged his dreams and leaded his heart. He had once given himself to it. But they had…

Naruto had…

You once found me in an abyss so foul and dark…the abyss of my weak heart….

I'm going to find you now…

Damn you, usura tonkachi, I will not let you go.

* * * * * * * *

Chouji turned from the tiger he'd been pounding into the ground and ran smack into a larger slug. "Geez! Is this ever going to end?!" he shouted as he grappled with the slimy beast. He, Shikamaru and Kiba were defending the main street into the south sector of Konoha, alongside ten more jounin.

            "Less talking, more fighting," Kiba grunted as he directed his family's dogs toward a pack of cats. "There's definitely more than enough animals to overwhelm us, so we can't give them any leeway."

            Chouji nodded, then backed away from his target with a shout as millions of tiny black insects swarmed over it. "Good ol' Shino!" Kiba crowed appreciatively.

Kiba's canine partner Akamaru loped over to the trio, whining and snarling alternatively. "What's he saying?" Shikamaru did not look at the dog as he trapped three large toads into his shadow jutsu.

"I sent him out for reconnaissance," Kiba's face darkened as he listened to the yaps of his dog. "Not good…"

"What is it?" Chouji asked, quickly swallowing a chakra-replenishing pill.

"Shino's on the west side with Hyuuga and Ten-Ten and about twelve more jounin…they're all right….Haruno's with a team of twenty on the north side…and that Rock Lee guy is coming our way."

"Then what's the problem?" Chouji held out a handful of soldier pills, which Shikamaru and Kiba grabbed and hurriedly stuffed into their mouths. A yell from another jounin sounded behind them.

"Let's go!" Chouji roared as he leaped towards the call. Shikamaru made to spring after him but Kiba stretched out a hand and held him back.

Startled, Shikamaru turned to look into Kiba's face. "What is it?!" he demanded.

Kiba's eyes were dark with concern. "Akamaru says that your girl is in trouble."

"…..huh?!" Shikamaru blinked. Kiba's expression did not change. "Your woman. She's in trouble," he repeated.

"What the hell….what woman?! Is your dog mentally gone like all the others?!" Shikamaru snarled. "We don't have time for this!"

"It's what he said." Kiba said calmly, seriously. "I don't understand it either. But he says you need to go to her. North sector."

With that, Kiba took off after Chouji. Shikamaru stood still for a moment, trying to fathom what he'd just been told.

A woman? My woman? North sector?

His agile mind raced. The north sector was the business district. No residences. His family certainly didn't live around there—

And then a horrible chill flooded his stomach as he realized whom Akamaru had labeled "his woman."

Kami-sama….and she IS stupid enough to go there….the store….

He was gone in a puff of smoke.

* * * * * * * *

Kogaku laughed till tears came, holding his stomach. "You…you're serious!" he chortled. "You're going to fight the Nine-Tails!"

Sasuke said nothing, but kept moving closer. The sound ninja tried to contain his mirth as he breathed a few notes into his flute. A great burst of chakra flared out from the concentrated mass around Naruto and hit Sasuke squarely in the chest, knocking him back.

He was instantly back on his feet, but his eyes glowed red with savage anger and confusion. "What did you do?!" he demanded.

Kogaku smiled winningly. "I told you, Uchiha Sasuke, I control summoning beasts with my music."

Sasuke's eyes widened. "You can even control the Kyuubi?" he gasped.

The sound ninja threw his arms wide. "Yes, yes, I can! The most evil power in this land is under my control!"

"That's impossible," Sasuke whispered. "No one—"

"I CAN!" Kogaku roared, eyes nearly popping out of his head. "I have never been allowed to show anyone save Orochimaru-sama until this moment, but I can! See, I am doing it now!" Swiftly he brought his instrument back to his mouth and played a quick flurry of notes. The mass of chakra began to expand from its compacted state, spreading out into a whirlwind of power. "See!" Kogaku chortled. "See!"

He turned to Sasuke. The glow of the chakra illuminated his emaciated face, his deranged smile adding to the horrific presentation. "And do you know what I will do, Uchiha Sasuke?" he purred. "I'm going to destroy your village with the Kyuubi. Your precious Uzumaki Naruto will kill everyone and everything you've ever remotely loved."

Sasuke's face betrayed no emotion. "Oh, but I know what's going on in that wonderful talented brain of yours," the sound ninja grinned. "You're thinking of ways to stop me and that monster. You can stop me, surely, but you'd have to go through the Nine-Tails first." He grew pensive. "Or, you can let him destroy the village. Then he'd still be alive, but….no more Konoha." Kogaku smiled evilly as he lifted the flute to his lips. "Nothing except that monster who'd kill you anyway."

            Yes, there it was! Something had broken in the Uchiha's eyes, something was screaming, agonized, desperate. The plan was working.

            "Orochimaru-sama was brilliant, you know." Kogaku said admiringly. "You see the genius of his plan now. He needs your dead body, but it is hard to kill you. Fortunately, your precious comrade is as lethal as they come. Orochimaru-sama figured that you'd snap realizing that your precious friend was nothing but a monster. But it gets better, oh yes. Now you have the inevitable choice of fighting him or seeing everything else dear to you destroyed by him. And if by some miracle you survived, your mind and your heart would be too broken for you to fight Orochimaru-sama's influence any longer. Ah, Orochimaru-sama was always so good at mind games, these wonderful mind games."

            "Fuck you," said Sasuke, face still expressionless save for the hatred glowing in his eyes.

            "Oh, don't be so bitter," Kogaku crooned. "Don't worry. You're going to die either way. And then," he groped for something inside his belt. "Orochimaru-sama can finally have you."

Bile rose in Sasuke's throat as he beheld something blackened and shriveled in Kogaku's hand.

A human heart.

"Yes. Orochimaru-sama's soul is preserved in his heart." The sound ninja held the dead organ reverently. "Once you're dead, I will transfer the heart into you, and then Orochimaru-sama will be reborn inside you. He will become the last of the Uchiha clan! And then I shall be his right hand man, and I will reign alongside him over this country, over this world!" He laughed with increasing joy and intensity.

Sasuke did not say anything more, and did not take his eyes off the sound ninja. He simply waited, poised for the fate-closing, inevitable command.

Come on, Naruto.

Kogaku stopped laughing, raised the shakuhachi to his mouth, sneered. "It ends now," he said before playing a high-pitched, screeching melody. The red cloud dissipated instantly, and the blonde shinobi stared with deep red eyes at the flute player.

"Go!" Kogaku tore the instrument from his lips and raised an arm. "Go destroy Ko—"

A blur of crimson—

A sickening, cracking snap—

Sasuke's eyes widened in shock. Unjou Kogaku lay on the ground, neck bent at a right angle, a smile still on his lifeless lips. The shakuhachi rolled from his limp fingers on the grass, next to the shriveled heart of Orochimaru.

Remembering where he was, who he was with, Sasuke snapped his gaze back on Naruto, who was standing quietly over the dead body of the sound ninja.

"Fool," said a deep, rich, evil voice. "No one commands the Nine-Tails."

* * * * * * * *

Meheheheh….I know I am mean with cliffhangers, but that makes it more fun for y'all, right? ::runs in fear from those that don't agree:: I'm sorry!! I'm sorry!! But I'm really not done yet! You HAVE to wait!!

Thanks for reading! Please review!