DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN NARUTO

Italics mean what the person is thinking.

AN: This story has OOC characters in it. If you don't like, don't read. Pairings are SasukeOC. My first fic, so be nice! COMPLETED! Remember, nobody likes a flamer!

Arrival of Uchiha Kamasurao…

Whisked Away

Sasuke woke up from a night of troubling dreams. He immediately headed towards Tsunade's office. Before he even knocked, Tsunade had opened the door. She rushed him inside, saying, "Yes, I was just going to send for you."
Tsunade sat down. Sasuke noticed Naruto, Sakura, and Kakashi-sensei there. He wondered, Why are they here, too? Tsunade banged her desk to get the four's attention. She sighed. "Surao. Well, it seems that she's been whisked away by the Sound, and we're pretty sure they're bringing her to Orochimaru. This is an A-rank mission. You are to retrieve Surao alive…if it's not too late."

Sasuke stood up, eyes blazing. "Don't say that. It's not too late. We will save her."

Tsunade shrugged. "Accept facts, Sasuke. It will kill you one day, if you don't. Anyway, the sooner you leave, the better."
Sasuke said, "Let's leave now. We have to get Surao back."

He thought desperately, I'll kill Orochimaru and the Sound if anything happens to her…but…I can't kill them…I need power…Sakura must've sensed what Sasuke was thinking of, because she called across the room softly, "Sasuke-kun, don't worry. Surao will be fine."

Sasuke managed a small smile that seemed to cheer Sakura up immensely. Kakashi-sensei said placidly, "Well, I'll get our gear, and we'll leave before tonight."

Sasuke spent the rest of the day preparing his weapons. He sharpened all of his weapons to a fine point. He spent a half an hour preparing his food. Sasuke traveled to their meeting point a half hour early. Another half hour passed, and the regular team 7 was ready to go. Sakura exclaimed, "It's just like the days before Sasuke…uh…Sasuke left!"
Sasuke ignored her and continued on the way to where Tsunade's scouts had last seen Orochimaru. By midday, Kakashi-sensei called a halt. "This is where we will stop. We're really close to the place Surao was last seen, so keep your wits about you."

Sasuke gripped his kunai. He leapt up into the trees' limbs. Sakura's shocked voice called up to him, "Sasuke-kun, what are you doing?"

Sasuke just glared at her for an answer. He started jumping through the trees, looking below for signs of Surao. He barely noticed Kakashi-sensei, Naruto, and Sakura running behind him, trying to catch up. Sasuke glimpsed a clearing with a prostrate figure lying on the fringes. He stopped in a tree, concealed himself, and watched with horror and incredulity. He saw Surao first. It took all his willpower not to go rushing down there. Sasuke drew a sharp intake of breath angrily. Surao was unconscious, gagged, and bound at wrists and ankles. She was lying on her side with a layer of dirt coating her entire being. Her red-black hair covered part of her face. Sasuke moved his hand into his belt pouch for his shurikens. He gripped two of them and slowly brought them out. One of the Sound ninjas emerged from the trees. He growled, "So this is the one Orochimaru wants?"

Another Sound ninja's voice was heard in the deeper part of the forest. "Yes. Once the others have arrived, we will move on."
The first ninja asked, "So Orochimaru is done with the dark-haired brat?"

The other ninja sneered, "Yes, Sasuke is of no importance. Orochimaru has found a better-suited vessel."

Here, Sasuke was filled with anger. Orochimaru was using me as a tool all along! He shifted his position to let some of his anger out. Unfortunately, the movement caused some loose leaves to float to the ground. The Sound ninjas noticed the disturbance immediately, and took action faster than Sasuke. The Uchiha boy had already leapt from his hiding place and embedded two shurikens into the earth where the first Sound ninja was standing before he reacted. Naruto charged out from behind some bushes, Sakura leapt down from the trees, and Kakashi-sensei had stepped from behind a few thick trees. Sasuke yelled, "Give her back!"

One of the Sound ninjas had already thrown Surao carelessly over his shoulder like a sack. He grinned wickedly, "You mean this girl? Too bad, Sasuke, but Orochimaru has some special plans for her!"

Sasuke focused his chakra into his feet and in a second, he was next to the Sound ninja. Sasuke swiped upwards with his kunai, but the Sound ninja had kicked Sasuke viciously in the stomach. Sasuke flew backwards and hit a tree, almost unconscious. He dimly saw Sakura charging the Sound ninja wildly. He thought distastefully, She won't land a scratch on him. Sakura was also thrown backwards. She crashed into a tree and slid down heavily. Naruto howled and summoned a bunch of clones. The Sound ninja let out a frustrated sigh, turned heels, and ran. Sasuke leapt up, immediately following. He yelled, "Come back, coward!"

After a ten minute chase, the Sound ninja had arrived in another clearing. He threw Surao on the ground and turned to face the teens. He snarled, "I guess I'll just take care of you right now!"
Sasuke wiped sweat from his eyes. He circled the Sound ninja warily, hoping to get closer to Surao. However, the Sound ninja knew what Sasuke was up to and remained slightly in front of Surao. Surao stirred and moaned. The Sound ninja heard it and turned around briefly to see whether she was fully awake. Sasuke took his chance then. He threw his shurikens. The Sound ninja jumped aside, but they tore his shirt. He snarled at Sasuke, "You're going to pay for that!"
Sasuke retorted, "The only thing that's going to happen is me taking Surao back!"
Suddenly, Naruto and Sakura distracted the Sound ninja. Sasuke dashed to where Surao was lying, slowly coming awake. He scooped up the feather-weight teen and ran into the forest. Surao was coming awake faster now, stretching, yawning, and blinking. Sasuke muttered, "Surao, if you could stop moving so I can carry you without tripping, then that would be great."

Surao obeyed sluggishly. After a few minutes of running, Sasuke dropped down in a small clearing with a tiny brook nearby. He laid Surao gently to the side before collapsing. Surao was fully awake, but the needles injected in her body hampered her movement. She crawled over to Sasuke, who was breathing heavily. Surao cupped Sasuke's cheek in her palm and murmured, "Sasuke…"

It seemed like he had trouble breathing, and that worried Surao. She pulled him up into a sitting position with his back against a tree. Surao damped a piece of cloth she had found in Sasuke's backpack. She wiped off the perspiration on Sasuke's forehead. After another five minutes, Sasuke had cooled down. Surao sat back on her heels, watching Sasuke curiously. Sasuke grinned at Surao's innocent face full of curiosity. He motioned to his backpack, saying, "There's food in there. I bet you're hungry."

Surao immediately fetched Sasuke's backpack. She made a face at all the ramen he had packed. When Surao made a disproving face at Sasuke, me said sheepishly, "Well, I was too worried and grabbed what was quickest."

Surao rolled her eyes and built a fire. She heated some water and prepared the ramen. Sasuke watched with admiration as Surao fixed the ramen deftly. She placed a bowl carefully in front of Sasuke. Surao sighed and sat down again. She commented, "I bet that the Sound ninjas haven't given up hope yet. They'll be back."

Sasuke growled, "And we'll be waiting. This time, we won't be asleep and unwary."

Surao shuddered momentarily and scooted to Sasuke's left side. She wrapped her arms around his chest, arms and all. Surao buried her head into his cheek. Her whisper tickled Sasuke's ear, but he heard her all the same. "Oh, Sasuke, if anything ever happened to you…"

Sasuke stopped her worries by angling his head and giving her a kiss that became more urgent. He pulled her coat off and wrapped his arms around her waist tightly, but Surao pulled away. Hot, angry tears poured down her face. Sasuke asked, "What's the matter, Surao? Didn't you like that?"

Surao sobbed, "Oh, Sasuke…You shouldn't love me…I…You should just forget about the past when…when we still…"

Sasuke grabbed her wrists and pulled her into his open arms. He hugged, her, whispering into her ear, "No. Don't say that again. Nothing will change my mind."

Surao pulled at Sasuke's shirt and buried her face in the small handful she had. Sasuke sat, hopeless, and anxious. Surao sat up slowly after a few minutes, drying her eyes. She smiled sadly. "Sorry…"
Sasuke shook his head and pulled out his sleeping bag. He said, "I didn't pack another sleeping bag…so…we'll have to share…if that's okay."

Surao slipped into the sleeping bag. She shrugged lightly and burrowed deep into the covers. Sasuke slid in and turned with his back facing Surao. After a while, Surao began tracing patterns on Sasuke's back. He turned over and faced Surao. She shivered and whispered, "It's so cold."

Sasuke wrapped the covers around them more tightly and slid his arms around Surao's shivering form. He murmured, "That better?"
Surao nodded sleepily. In a few minutes, they were fast asleep, holding on to each other in the middle of a forest. Sasuke woke up early in the morning, sensing a disturbance. He moved his hand to gently rouse Surao, but to his horror, she was not there. His head snapped to the place where Surao was lying last night. He leapt up, calling her name softly. "Surao! Surao! Where are you?"

Sasuke trembled with anger. "You had better not be taken away by the Sound ninjas again!"
He packed up everything we speed and picked up a well concealed trail. What tipped him off was the burn marks on each tree. Sasuke studied the burn marks, extremely fascinated. He thought, She must've used a charcoal stick from the fire…but there burns…they're…real burns! Sasuke didn't wait to ponder what had happened. He immediately took off after the trail. By midday, Sasuke was tired, and annoyed. He seemed nowhere close to where Surao had been taken. Suddenly, he heard low voices. He crept silently up to where he thought they were and spotted Naruto, Sakura, and Kakashi-sensei talking. Sasuke sighed and emerged from his hiding place. Sakura's high pitch shriek startled him motionless for a moment, and before Sasuke knew what had happened, Sakura had flung herself on him, sobbing hysterically. Sasuke pushed her away roughly. "Watch it, Sakura."

She sniffed a few more times and regained her composure. Naruto muttered, "Tough luck. I had high hopes that the Sound ninjas had finished him off."
Kakashi-sensei said in his regular monotonous voice, "I thought we had lost you for a moment, Sasuke. Have you found anything?"

Sasuke threw his kunai into a tree angrily. "I had Surao with me, then she was gone this morning. I'm following some burns on the trees. I think they're hers."

Kakashi-sensei nodded. "We saw you running away with her. The Sound ninjas followed you, but we couldn't keep up with them."

Sasuke slid down, tired. "What do we do now?"

Kakashi-sensei stood up, and brushed some leaves off his clothes. "Well, if you would be so kind to show us the trail of burn marks, we could start searching for Surao."

Sasuke agreed and lead the way. After another half an hour, Kakashi-sensei sighed. He tapped Sasuke on the shoulder and announced, "Sasuke, we're going around in circles."

Sasuke looked up from his intense scanning. "How do you know?"
Kakashi-sensei pointed out, "Well, I've been marking our trail just to be sure, and look. This tree is marked from the first time we passed it. Either Surao didn't know that the Sound were purposely traveling in a circle because they knew she would leave signs, or it wasn't Surao who left these marks."

Sasuke sat down heavily, disappointment lining his face. He suddenly felt tired. Sasuke muttered, "What do we do now?"
For an answer, Naruto had run up a tree and was at the top, peering about. Suddenly, he stiffened and slid down a great deal faster. Naruto gasped, "Surao! And the Sound ninjas! They're fighting her, and I don't think she can hold out much longer. This way!"
He ran through the trees, picking his way urgently. Sasuke followed at his heels while Sakura and Kakashi-sensei ran after them. Suddenly, Sasuke halted at yet another clearing. He saw Surao fighting both Sound ninjas. Sakura winced at Surao. The latter was a mess. Blood streaked down her face, and there were cuts all over her body. Surao glimpsed Sasuke with eyes that completely threw Sasuke off-guard. They were…loathsome. He ran forward towards the Sound ninjas and threw his shurikens with anger. They embedded into both Sound ninjas' back. Sasuke halted, almost tripping over his feet in surprise. It was one of the rare times when he had landed a wound on the Sound ninjas. One of the Sound ninjas turned towards him. He snarled and lunged at Sasuke. Naruto, Sakura, Kakashi-sensei, and Sasuke were occupied with the Sound ninja. Surao let out a desperate cry and hacked fiercely at the Sound ninja with her chipped kunai. Sasuke saw the danger of Surao being taken again, and with a huge leap, he landed next to her side. Surao whispered, "Oh, Sasuke, I don't think I can take this much longer…Nariga…help me…"

Sasuke almost stopped. He repeated, "Nariga? Who's that?"

A look of shock passed over Surao's face momentarily. She gulped, "Uh, nobody. A slip of my clumsy tongue, that's all."

Sasuke's heart fell. He imagined Nariga as someone who Surao was in love with. Surao sensed what he was feeling and snapped, "Don't be stupid."

The two fought the Sound ninja, but soon, Surao was tired. She gasped, "I don't think…"

Sasuke dropped his guard. He turned to her, fierce anger on his face. "Don't say-aaargh!"

The Sound ninja had spotted his chance and grabbed Sasuke by the throat. He slammed Sasuke on the ground, put a foot on Sasuke's chest, and leaned forward as heavily as he could. Sasuke yelled with pain as the foot crushed down on him ruthlessly. With a burst of energy, Surao had slammed her kunai into the Sound ninja's chest. However, he just laughed and pulled it out. With a mighty sweep of his arm, he sent Surao flying into a tree. The Sound ninja took away his foot's pressure, but cruelly slammed it into Sasuke's chest again. Sasuke spat out blood helplessly. Surao's eyes were full of fire. Sasuke was intimidated by the look on Surao's face as she advanced. Surao snarled, "Let him go, or else I'll kill you."

The Sound ninja just laughed contemptuously. "I don't think a girl like you could!"
Surao took a glance at Sasuke's contorted face from pain and screamed. All the hairs on the back of Sasuke's neck stood up as he heard the deafening scream. He thought he could detect some words. Sasuke muttered, "What? Nariga…I unleash you? What the hell does that mean?"
Suddenly, Sasuke witnessed the most impossible event ever. From Surao's whole being, there seemed to be fire blazing. The fire was humongous. It took form of a fire dragon. The dragon settled his claws on the earth and glared at the speechless and terrified Sound ninja. His voice was a hiss, "Surao…whom do you want me to annihilate?"

However, Surao was on the brink of unconsciousness. She murmured, "Sound ninjas…"

It was a wonder that the huge dragon could hear her voice. However, it seemed that he did because after a flash of fire and heat, the two Sound ninjas were gone, and all that remained was a pile of ash. Sasuke sat up to get a better look at the demon, but Surao murmured and performed a few hand seals, and the demon became shapeless fire, and blazed back into Surao. A few moments later, Surao had collapsed on the ground. Sasuke ran to her and knelt by her. He shook her, calling her name over and over again, softly, "Surao. Surao, wake up. Don't die…don't leave me…"

However, Surao was limp, and her breath was shallow. Sasuke picked her up, and was scared by the lightness of her body. He cradled Surao, nuzzling her face with his nose as both his hands were occupied. After a few minutes, he turned back to an astounded Naruto, Sakura, and Kakashi-sensei. He saw their scared and awestruck faces, and asked, "What's the matter?"
Sakura's voice trembled as she asked, "Sasuke-kun, are you blind? Did you not see Nariga?"

Sasuke replied carelessly, "That fire demon? So?"

Sakura closed her eyes and shivered. She whispered, "Sasuke-kun, do you not know about the legendary fire demon?"

Seeing Sasuke's dumbfounded face, Sakura continued in a shaky whisper full of fear, "Sasuke-kun…that fire demon that…that came out of Surao…its name is Nariga. You know how the nine-tails demon is sealed in Naruto? Well, it seems like Surao has Nariga sealed away in herself. Nariga…it's supposed to be a legend that he was alive…but he really is existing. His powers are extraordinary, and it was once said that he was ruler of all demons…but that part isn't true. Surao has sealed him away in her!"

Realization dawned on Sasuke and he stared at the limp form of the Uchiha girl he loved. Sasuke thought, Surao…so that's why you said I should not love you…because you saw yourself as Nariga himself…Surao! Sakura whimpered, "Sasuke-kun? What are you going to do with her?"
Sasuke rounded on angrily. "I'm going to take care of her, and I will find out how this demon got into her."

Sakura whispered, "You know that the villagers will shun her, right?"
Sasuke shot back, "Not if they don't know!"

Sasuke turned towards Hidden Leaf and announced, "We're going back. Our mission is complete."

He did not notice the looks exchanged behind his back.