(Author's Note: Ah, I apologize for another short chapter. I promise the next one is much longer (probably upwards of 2500 words, as I'm still writing it). This is officially the end of what I finished in November, and every time I go now to work more on the ending it changes on me again. The problem basically is that I've got too many tiny plot points converging all at one time and it's confusing even me... and it's really hard to canonically resolve a lot of the problems I've walked these poor characters into. I mean, Akatsuki's sort of hard to defeat, ya know? I'm sort of torn now between finishing up the ending the way things are now, and just doing the rewrite and putting the ending on that. I'm a little less partial to the latter simply because it makes everyone wait like, an extra month while I sort through schoolwork and try to finish this, but artistically (as far as I can call this silly little mess some kind of "art") it'd make me feel better if I went back and fixed all the mistakes first. (My spelling of Hohenheim being the least of my worries). So anyway, consider this update a small present from me on my birthday. Hehehe. Read, be happy, hooray! Condsider all hugs and glomps previously left in reviews to be returned).
A flare went up to the south of the compound. It was several minutes later than Hughes, Roy, and Havoc had expected. The fighting had started about five minutes earlier, and they'd seen Naruto scramble into a side entrance under a faint cover of genjutsu. It was lucky that the Sound ninjas had never arrived; otherwise his run would have been much more difficult. It was almost too easy for him, though they all knew that the hardest part of his mission would be inside, if he was really going to be able to bring Sauske back. Roy wondered what bit of information the Hokage had that gave her the confidence to go along with such a risky plan. Naruto by himself would barely survive a whole minute against any single member of Akatsuki. Tsunade was known to gamble, but those odds were far too high for even her.
The flare fizzled out over the battle at the south end, and the world seemed to shift. It was like a kick in the gut, and suddenly the last of the chakra seemed to zip out of the world. The sky turned completely grey, and peach-coloured clouds of dust and smoke hung in it. Roy recovered quickly, and urged Hughes and Havoc on. He looked again at the stone. There wasn't a speck of red to be found. Now was the time.
"Come on!"
"But… I just don't have the energy," Havoc complained, leaning against a tree and pulling out a cigarette.
"You don't need this world's energy to move, Havoc! Go!"
The three of them ran across the small clearing between the edge of the forest and the entrance to Akatsuki's hideout. It felt almost as if they were running in slow motion despite the fact that nearly everything else stood still. Only Hughes made the connection that it was because the extra chakra kick they usually used when running was now missing. Many of the ninjas looked lost at the sudden lack of chakra, and some of their opponents had simply dropped to the ground at the change. Roy guessed that those that were on the ground were the strange immortal ninjas that they'd heard passing squads whispering about as they ran through the woods to the battle – they'd probably been powered only by chakra. They reached the entrance. Fearing what they might find inside, Roy took the lead. He unconsciously started gathering alchemical energy to his fingertips, just in case whoever they found inside hadn't been effected by the power shift. It was strange to concentrate solely on alchemy again, after having spent so much time perfecting the combination of the science and the mental skill of chakra control. It was almost a surprise to find that alchemical energy could still be controlled in the same way. Roy forced himself out of his rambling train of thought, pushing himself back into his old military mindset. This was a mission, it was no time to be theorizing or patting yourself on your back for your research.
The inside of the complex was nearly as still as the outside. Maybe even more so, now that a few pockets of fighting had started back up as they ran inside. There was no sign of the actual members of the group anywhere. Perhaps they had escaped out the back or something right before the last of the chakra had disappeared. None of them could imagine what sort of plan they had where they'd be willing to take the risk of losing all the chakra. The three wandered farther into the cavern. Off to the right there was a long hallway where a strange red light leaked out from under the giant wooden door separating it from the rest of the rooms. After exchanging a quick glance and a few nods, the three walked down the hallway towards the light. Out of curiosity, Roy pulled the stone out of his pocket again. The closer they got to the door, the more red appeared in it. This time though, it didn't remain in flecks but mixed in with the blue and yellow, making a strangely shimmering purple colour. So they had preserved some of the power for themselves, after all.
Roy held out a hand to stop Havoc and Hughes behind him. They turned to watch both ends of the hallway and Roy relaxed a little, allowing himself to feel out the energy leaking from the other side of the door. It definitely had the red feel of concentrated chakra, but also the blue of alchemical energy. He took a moment to adjust to the new feel of the energy, making sure he was prepared should he need it once they opened the door. He motioned for Hughes and Havoc to do the same. The glow grew, spreading out from under the door and wrapping the three in an unusual warmth. They pushed the door open.
Al's hands had barely touched the outside of the array when the Gate appeared. There was already so much energy gathered there, it didn't take much more to summon it. The doors, however, seemed to be stuck shut. There was never even the slightest breeze in front of the gate, but now gusts of wind blew across it. The doors seemed to be held closed by some kind of suction. It wasn't its originally intended use, but Armstrong guided Winry's remote-controlled machine to the gate and attached its two suction-cup hands to the doors. They had all mocked the suction cups at first, "It's for picking up people, Winry! People don't stick to suction cups!" But perhaps she'd had some foresight that Al had lacked. Armstrong pushed the robot into reverse and it pulled backwards. The doors creaked and moaned, but didn't budge.
"Hurry!" Al screamed, unable to keep the urgency from his voice. If he let too much time pass, it would be too late and he might never be able to get near his brother again.
The machine's gears whined and smoke began to pour out under the tank tracks it moved along on. There was a pop and it fell over backwards, treads spinning uselessly in the air, then with a final dying moan the machine stopped. Al looked over at Armstrong, who was still helplessly trying to get the controls to work again. Armstrong finally looked up at Al, and by the look in his eyes and the sparkles levitating around his head he could tell what the man was about to do. Al tried to shout, tried to stop him, but it was no use. Armstrong ripped off his shirt and bounded into the centre of the circle, grabbing hold of both doors. He pulled with all his might, his muscles pulsing with the strain. Al tried to avert his gaze, but he couldn't help it. The gate slowly gave way to Armstrong's heaving, doors blowing open with a sudden shift in energy.
Just as suddenly, the force of the energy shifted again, pulling the doors closed. Al moved to wedge the machine between them, and watched its head fly through in the process. The doors slammed into it and stuck open barely enough to see inside. Al breathed a sigh of relief, and thankfully this time Armstrong remained on the outside of the circle. He peeked through at the scene on the other side. It seemed to be the only place the gate would lead.