Thanks a lot for all your reviews guys! I'm sorry to keep you waiting so long for this chapter, but I haven't really had time to write it in the wake of Megacon, where I bought all kinds of awesome anime and manga such as Appleseed, FLCL, and Neon Genesis Evangelion.
By the way, I had a couple comments on the ability of the sharingan to copy the Rasengan. I was under the impression by the description of this doujutsu (sharingan) on that it copied techniques based on the ability to see chakra patterns, not just hand seals. I could be wrong, so if some more people could do some fact checking on this to make sure, it would be greatly appreciated. This event seemed to fit in to the situation in the fight, so I just threw it in there. Again, Thanks a lot, now on to the chapter!
Chapter 7
It was windy outside, the kind of cool breeze that you are never prepared for when it hits you, the kind that mysteriously comes up during summer when you don't have a jacket on. It chilled her bones and shook the grass in the clearing like millions of tiny ballerinas all dancing their individual styles. The clouds moved speedily over the sun, changing the light that shone through the trees as the shadows shifted across the ground. The boy's blonde hair was shining like a beacon in the otherwise dim clearing, and Sakura could see him behind some bushes, and she called his name.
"Naruto! Naruto!" she called, dreamily, and seemed to float towards him, reaching out at him, longing for his comforting look, his deep blue eyes that held only love, only passion for his friends and all the people he knew.
She reached out…stretching her hand towards his crown of blonde spikes…
He was so close now, and he turned…
Now facing him, Sakura screamed and knelt down beside him. Naruto was bleeding, horribly, the brilliant red liquid streaming from every facial orifice, his brow matted with the stuff, his skin shredded and scratched. She closed her eyes and squeezed back the tears, wishing the vision away, wanting it to disappear so badly, wanting to never have seen him, never have met him, never had to be exposed to his personality so she would not have had to suffer at seeing him dead. It was then that his face transformed to one completely different, flawless, beautiful, with silky black hair that fell across his brow, held up by a Konoha forehead protector that was slashed with the evil passion of betrayal and hatred. Sakura's eyes widened and she screamed at the sight of Uchiha Itachi, screamed as if her soul was being ripped apart, as if she would never have to speak again, as if to raise the spirits of her ancestors to keep this man away from her, only if for a moment in time.
She screamed, and ran, and tripped, and fell…
The mud cold on her face…she felt someone looming over her…
"S-Sakura-chan…" a voice whispered tentatively, so close to her ear that she was awakened abruptly by it. She opened her eyes, trying to dispel the unease she felt as the same cool breeze floated across her bare arms and she stiffened. Looking up, Sakura saw that the person who had said her name was Naruto.
She scrambled up and away from him as she realized how close he was. Blushing profusely, Naruto sat back against a tree with a look of intense regret on his face. Sakura looked at him.
Naruto's face was dirty, and clumps of leaves and twigs were tangled up in his golden-blonde hair. He had taken off his jacket and was wearing a battered and torn T-shirt. It looked like he had been rolled through a meadow several times, then stuck his head in a mud puddle. His pants were torn in places, the blood from numerous cuts crusted on the hanging fabric. His bare arms were bruised and scratched, the toned muscles of a shinobi clearly strained to their limit. It was then that Sakura's gazed moved to his face. She gasped.
Light streaks where tears had fallen out of the boy's eyes were visible on his cheeks like lightning etched into a dark sky. However, it was not his face, but his eyes that were the most disturbing. The normally bright blue pools of happiness had lost their gleam and passion, replaced by a darkness that Sakura could not understand. They were dull, and Naruto had the look of a chased animal, beaten, defeated as his tired gaze met Sakura's.
Naruto winced. "G-gomen…Sakura-chan…It's just that I saw you crying in your sleep…and…and I wanted to wake you. T-to make sure you were okay." Naruto's face fell and he slumped.
"That's alright, Naruto-kun…listen…why were you…what happened? Where are we?" Sakura said softly, as if pushing him gently to reveal the cause of his trouble. She looked around her.
They were in a small clearing surrounded by trees, the sunlight etched in dabs of brightness through the leaves. A large moss-covered boulder took up a little less than half of the space, and the grass underfoot was bright green and long. She took her breath in sharply and strained to recall the last place were she was before the darkness overtook her. The last thing she remembered was seeing…that man…with the red eyes…
"Sakura-chan, we…ahhh….S-sakura…" Naruto stuttered, his speech broken up and stretched as if it had taken all his being to speak to her. Sakura saw that he was crying silently. She was taken aback, surprise creeping over her face as she watched his shoulders heave up and down with barely controlled sobs of anguish and pain, the tears dripping from his face to the leaf-strewn forest floor. She righted herself and shook away the surprise. If she wanted to know where they were and what had happened, she was going to have to help Naruto tell her. And this was obviously not something that would be too easy to accomplish. Sakura leaned forward and crawled to the emotionally drained young ninja with his back to the tree. She laid her hand on his shoulder.
"Naruto-kun…it's okay…if you don't want to tell me, you can…" Sakura was cut off.
"No!" Naruto suddenly snapped, and Sakura took her hand away from him, fast. Naruto was gazing up at the sky in defiance. "You have a right to know, Sakura-chan. It's just that I…it's like…if I tell it I'll have to relive every moment of it…and…I don't think I'll be able to…" Naruto's voice fell into a lapse of silence as his head fell and he grimaced. "But…I think that if…that if you're…if you're here, I might be able to do it, Sakura-chan." At this, he looked up at her with tired sincerity, and her heart skipped a beat as she saw that he kept eye contact defiantly and steadily.
"Naruto-kun…you're right, I'm here…" She said, and inched closer to him as he began to tell his tale. The words spilled from his mouth in stutters and snippets and grunts at first, but regained their passion as they came in a flow of emotion from his very soul, as if a burden was being lifted off it with every syllable he spoke. At times where he could no longer continue for tears, Sakura would put her arm around his shoulder and he would lean against her, crying his doubts and fears away into oblivion. He told her about all the people who had come to save them, how they had fought, so bravely, so instinctively only to protect Naruto. He told her about the end of the battle.
"…and he…he told me to run and take you with me, to hide…and he said…Sakura, he said…to not come back…" Naruto's voice trailed off until it picked up again, with a tone of bitterness. "They're probably dead now. Dead protecting me from Itachi. And you know why! It's because of this…this…god damn…" he broke off and bit his lip. "Never mind it. It's all my fault though. All my…fault…that Kakashi-sensei…Ero-sannin…Shikamaru…they're…they're.." Naruto slumped and put his hand to his face.
Sakura looked up at the dying sun through the trees, tendrils of dusk beginning to creep out from the clouds to claim the sky as their own. She shook her head and sighed. Naruto…the baka…how could he think that this was his fault? He shouldn't have to deal with this on his own…
She reached out to touch Naruto's shoulder. He tensed and backed away, scrunching his legs to his chest and putting his face to his knees. "Naruto-kun…Naruto…Kakashi-sensei cannot be…dead." She said confidently, even while shrugging away a tinge of doubt in the back of her mind. "Think about it. Tsunade-sama would have sent reinforcements, extra men, something…and Jiraiya-san is also very powerful, Naruto…it's impossible." She said conclusively and stood up. "Now, Naruto-kun, are you going to sit there all night and pout? You know that this was not your fault."
"But!"
"No. Naruto. You can't expect me to believe that it was your fault Itachi found you. You can't expect me to believe that Akatsuki wanting you for…some reason…is your fault in the least. Because it isn't. The Jounins that came for us were fighting for something against Itachi, Naruto, and even if I don't know what it is, I think you do, and it is time to accept the fact that you can't change it. Do not dishonor those that fought for you by taking responsibility for their actions. Now…are we going to set up camp or what…?" She trailed off from her string of angry remarks, gathering herself up as she stared sternly down at Naruto, who was looking up at her with a look of stunned disbelief on his face.
"S-Sakura-chan…" he croaked, almost inaudibly as a gasp escaped his lips. "You-you're staying here with me?"
Sakura could almost not believe her ears, until she realized the reasoning behind his irrational words, and her face fell in sympathy at the ragged boy staring up at her. He thought that…he thought I was leaving? Just because I'm not in danger…but why…how selfless…Sakura thought as she gazed back at Naruto.
"Oh, Naruto-kun…how could you think that I'd just…that I'd just walk off, and leave you by yourself…?" she uttered and put a hand to her trembling lips. "Kakashi…if what you told me is true…Naruto, he told you to take me with you. And you know what that means? That means I'm here. F-for the time being at least. Yes." She ended, faltering as his look turned to one of pure astonished joy.
"Sakura-chan! Thank you so much!" Naruto said as he launched himself into her arms, wrapping his arms around her and lifting her up off the ground. She tensed at first, surprised, until her feet touched the ground once more and she thought about all that Naruto had told her. This boy, he had had to see so much fighting, so much death…and they told him to leave his village behind…his friends…his teacher…to hide…and he had thought that he would have to do it by himself, creep from cavern to cavern, village to village in disguise and fear at what might be around the corner every step he took. It was then and there that Sakura made her decision. She would stay with Naruto for as long as it took. She softened and returned Naruto's embrace, laying her head on his shoulder and whispering in his ear.
"Naruto…I'm not leaving now…I'm here…"
He held her tightly, quivering with suppressed emotion until he drew himself up, sniffing and wiping his eyes.
"Yes…that's it…campfire…yeah, I'll get some wood, or something…" Naruto said as he walked backward, the light returning to his eyes and a grin on his face as he began to think about what he needed to setup camp. Stepping backwards, his foot caught on a stray branch and he staggered over backward, falling right on his behind. Sakura held back a guffaw as he recovered, holding his head and mumbling a long string of curses.
"Naruto, you BAKA! Don't get yourself hurt now, you need to help me set up camp! Geez, idiot…" She thought as Naruto regained his tentative composure, dusting off his pants as he flung her a look of resentment and stalked off into the woods. Sakura inwardly warmed and she smiled greatfully. This was spectacular. This was the Naruto she knew. She straightened and shivered at the loss of heat from the Naruto's fading embrace, the chill of dusk settling into her bones. Haruno Sakura rubbed her arms rapidly and began to search for kindling.
Ah, yes, everyone, I'm really really sorry this chapter took so long, but I've been glued to the television watching Evangelion and struggling to catch up in school. Now I know this isn't going to satisfy you guys for very long, so I'm already spinning a tale together. I promise the story will pick up in the next chapter and you'll see where I'm going with this. Stay with me, and remember: REVIEW! Much love, and adios.
