Will be ending the fic soon! This is the second to last chapter! After this, then KimiNaru! Anyway, I'm sorry if the characters seem OOC...aaack, gomen...thank you everyone for your reviews and I thank Fei-sama and Momochi Zabuza for reviewing and sticking by me as well! I love you guys!
Chapter 14: Serene Triumph
The Next Morning
Naruto stretched and yawned, sighing contentedly as he rubbed his eyes sleepily. Running a hand through his already tousled blonde hair, he was about to yawn again when he caught sight of Kimimaro sprawled messily across the chair opposite his bed. Naruto quickly shoved both fists into his mouth, trying hard not to yelp with a mixture of barely suppressed hysterical laughter and awe at the sheer innocent aura Kimimaro seemed to radiate when he was asleep. Said Kaguya had his head tilted to the side, breathing with a slow, measured rhythm. Kimimaro looked so peaceful; he looked much like a child when he was asleep, the result being immeasurable amounts of cuteness from the Kaguya. It was hard to imagine that this being was capable of killing so quickly and easily.
Smiling, Naruto snagged a sheet from his bed and draped it softly over Kimimaro. He stirred, murmuring an incoherent phrase, and turned over, unconsciously wrapping the blanket around him even tighter. Naruto's smile turned into a full-fledged grin, and he quickly snapped a picture with a nearby camera he'd grabbed off his desk before padding quietly to the kitchen for his daily breakfast of ramen.
Naruto had just finished his ramen when there was a tart rap at the door. Visions of a Hyuuga flashed across his mind; Sasuke didn't bother to knock at the door, rather he went through the door and barged into Naruto's apartment at the most uncanny times, often coming in the godforsaken hours of the night to remind him of training. Being (somewhat) friends with an Uchiha (in this case, the only Uchiha other than the "other" Uchiha) had its disadvantages.
Naruto made his way to the door and opened it to find a very startled Neji with his hand poised to knock once more. Smiling, he stepped aside, and Neji let himself in, closing the door with a sharp snap. Walking further into the apartment, the Hyuuga noticed a lump on Naruto's recliner, and went to investigate. Upon seeing Kimimaro in all his innocent glory, Neji found it quite difficult to imagine him serving Orochimaru.
Smirking, he went back into the kitchen, wrapped his arms around the fox-child, and kissed him slowly on the lips. Naruto leaned into Neji, swirling his tongue around the other's mouth with slow circular motions, darting occasionally over the lips. A low, throaty moan escaped from the Hyuuga's lips and he bit down on Naruto's neck, nipping gently at the skin.
A sudden rustle made both boys part. Kimimaro was stirring, and the Kaguya showed signs of waking up. Yawning, he stretched and discarded the blanket, cracking his back as he stood. The sleepy look vanished quickly from his eyes as he fixed Naruto with an anxious look. Naruto peered inquisitively into Kimimaro's mint-hued eyes.
"What is it, Kimimaro?" The Kaguya's normally calm voice held a touch of anxiety.
"Come here, Naruto. I want you to see this."
"Something wrong? You usually aren't this urgent." Kimimaro continued to stare at the blonde.
"Be that as it may. You must see this." Kimimaro slowly undid the front of his robe to show the Gaia seal emblazoned on his chest. Far from normal, it seemed to write and squirm, fighting to spread. Naruto scrutinized it with apprehension.
"Why's it doing that? I though you controlled it." Kimimaro nodded.
"I do. But this indicates Orochimaru's status as well. If ever he was in some sort of stressful situation, this would warn me and I would rush to his aid. From what I'm feeling, Orochimaru has lost every one of his followers, with only Kabuto to aid him now. They must have rebelled after his body was disposed of." Naruto nodded.
"But that's a good thing, right?" Kimimaro shook his head.
"He will be using Kabuto's body now. Kabuto is a very strong shinobi, and his powers coupled with Orochimaru's can lead to great destruction." Naruto inclined his head, drinking in the information.
"Kyuubi can get rid of him. And besides, if he fails, Shukaku will be there to back up the job. And don't forget my little secret as well…." Naruto drew out his scroll.
"Kyuubi didn't entrust me with so precious a token to have it go to waste." Kimimaro's eyes widened.
"You still have that?" Naruto pouted.
"And just what are you implying?" Neji, blunt as always, got straight to the point.
"Anything that remains in your hands for more than three weeks without getting damaged, lost, or stolen has very good karma indeed." Ducking the punch Naruto threw his way, Neji addressed Kimimaro.
"Has Orochimaru taken Kabuto's body yet?" Kimimaro replied negatively.
"Not yet, but he will, and soon. We must travel to Suna as soon as possible. Get Uchiha and pack, for Orochimaru isn't one to act over a long period of time when things turn desperate." Naruto nodded and began stuffing things in his back.
"You stay with Kimimaro, Naruto, I'll fetch Uchiha." With that, Neji leapt gracefully out the window. Naruto's gaze lingered a while longer on the Hyuuga's retreating form before he went back to haphazardly stuffing objects in his backpack.
A few minutes later
A very hassled Hyuuga dragged a very hassled Uchiha into Naruto's apartment and deposited him rather roughly on the floor. Naruto looked up to see a scowl on Sasuke's features.
"What's wrong, Sasuke?" The scowl deepened and Sasuke looked like he was out to kill.
"Hyuuga says we have another mission." Naruto nodded slowly.
"Yes we do. So why so gloomy?" Sasuke jerked a thumb towards the offending Hyuuga.
"The fact that he practically dragged me out of bed and down the street would be a clue." Naruto smiled.
"Don't get so uptight, Sasuke. Anyway, we need to go. I'll send Gamakichi to inform Tsunade." The frog was summoned and shoed out the window with a cookie in his hands as payment.
"Let's go." With that, the four leapt out the window and traveled out of Konoha.
A While Later
Naruto screwed his eyes shut, bracing against the sandstorm that was raging in Suna. Keeping his cloak wrapped around his body, he pushed determinedly on towards Gaara's apartment. His hands hit a wall and he instinctively climbed up, motioning the others to do the same. They arrived at the sill of Gaara's window and rapped urgently at the glass. Inside, Temari looked up from playing a game of go moku with Kankurou and opened the window, ushering them inside. Once in, the female kunoichi addressed them with a blunt welcome.
"I assume you are here for Gaara?" Naruto nodded.
"Orochimaru hasn't been too good lately."
Temari nodded, yelling at Kankurou not to cheat while she was away. Kankurou nodded and continued to think; it was his turn, and Temari's stones were extremely close to ending the game. Naruto wandered over and picked up a piece, pondering intently. After a few minutes, he set the stone down near the bottom left-hand corner. Pointing out the move to Kankurou, the puppet master nodded, a bit taken aback at Naruto's obvious talent. The fox-child smiled.
"Comes from playing Shikamaru one time too many." Just then Gaara entered the room, his features frozen in their perpetually calm look.
"We are ready to go?" Naruto nodded and jumped out the window. Gaara followed suit, and the five shinobi sped in the directions issued by Kimimaro.
Sometime later
The five boys stopped, landing gently on the ground in what looked like the world's deadest terrain. Dust floated lazily by, swiriling in slow patterns over the ground, and the only trees there were were large and knarled, their twisted branches seeming to reach out and take the life of the next living organism. Naruto shivered.
"Nice place, isn't it?" Kimimaro nodded.
"Orochimaru should be here." Naruto agreed.
"Kyuubi says he can feel his presence." And indeed, the air seemed to take on a malicious elegance that was pure Orochimaru. There was a rustling sound and a figure stepped from within the haze of the dust.
It was Kabuto. And yet, it wasn't Kabuto, for Kabuto didn't bear amber-slitted eyes. And when he spoke, Kabuto's voice was far raspier than the original tone.
"I thank you for being so very punctual." Another shadow stirred in the background, and Orochimaru's giant brown snake arose, hissing menacingly at the group.
Naruto wasted no time, unraveling his scroll and swiping his blood across the intricate kanji. A giant snake appeared, one that Orochimaru recognized well. The snake-sannin gasped and reeled backwards, eyes dilating in horror.
"Manda!" The giant snake nodded and spoke in his deep baritone.
"Yes. Me. I have decided to lend my services to this boy now. He treats me with respect and cares for my being, whereas you constantly tormented me and worked me to death from the time I was but a snakeling until now. You shall pay the price, Orochimaru, and you shall pay it dearly."
Orochimaru stumbled backwards as Manda advanced, scrabbling frantically over rocks and trees to escape the looming snake. Manda hissed and bared his fangs, venom oozing from the hollow teeth. Orochimaru backed away even more, a look of utter desperation and horror in his eyes.
A sudden boom halted both the great snake and the sannin, and they turned to see a huge cloud of smoke arising from the terrain. It cleared, and Kyuubi stood in all his magnificent glory, surveying Orochimaru with a mixture of annoyance and utter contempt. Flicking a nonchalant gaze over the snake, he turned and addressed Orochimaru.
"As much as I dislike working with snakes, I will do anything it takes to destroy the man who almost killed my kitling." Orochimaru shuddered and scrambled back some more.
Kyuubi roared and gave a mighty bound forward, growling ferociously. He landed behind Orochimaru and snapped fiercely at the sannin, biting off one arm before slamming him into the wall of a cliff. Manda followed and spit corrosive acid at the snake-sannin, dissolving most of his clothes. Orochimaru's snake reared and tore at Manda, drawing the snake away so only Kyuubi was left.
A nasty squelching sound was heard, and a river of sand covered Gaara, materalizing into Shukaku. The tanuki shrieked and plunged into battle as well. Orochimaru flung attack after attack at Kyuubi and Shukaku, wounding the fox in the shoulder and the tanuki in the leg. Kyuubi hissed and slashed viciously at Orochimaru's chest, leaving three deep gouges in the flesh. Orochimaru screamed in agonly, rivers of blood spilling from the wound.
Kyuubi reared and shot a giant fireball at Orochimaru. It hit him full force and blew away, leaving a burnt log as the result. Shukaku turned and hurled a blast of wind at a nearby tree, exposing the true sannin. Both animals pinned Orochimaru's battered and broken form against a cliff and reared back to strike the deadly blow.
"Stop."
Kyuubi's eyes widened and he turned to Naruto.
"Why?" Naruto had a fiery glint in his sapphire eyes.
"Keep him pinned. Let me handle this."
Naruto closed his eyes and concentrated, hands clasped in a seal. Slowly they moved, engaging in more seals, slowly at first, then eventually a blur as Naruto's nimble fingers performed the katas for the technique. Muttering wildly under his breath, a shimmering white light appeared around the fox-child, brightening until Naruto shone with a white-hot light. Everyone squinted, shielding their eyes from the sheer power of the blaze. Naruto's voice emitted from within the light.
"It wasn't like this in the beginning. Orochimaru was a good man, a good person, until one day he was possessed by a snake while training in a cavern. The snake took control of his mind, and devoured his soul, using his body to perform evil doings. Many years have passed, and still he is possessed. I am here to cleanse him of his evil."
The blazing white light took the form of a fox. It surveyed the sannin with a serene look in its eyes, then reared and plunged itself into Orochimaru's form. There was a shriek, and Orochimaru dissolved completely in an awesome explosion of white light. For a moment, just within, his face appeared, smiling gratefully at Naruto. Long gone was the evil glint in his eyes. Orochimaru bowed, and addressed the fox-child.
"Thank you, Naruto. It is hard to believe that you, of all people, who bears a demon within you, were able to cleanse me of that spirit. I am greatly indebted to you, Naruto. Now I can rest in peace." The white light dissipated, and a wisp of lavender floated lazily into the air and vanished.
Naruto sank to the ground, completely exhausted. Calling to Kyuubi, the fox retreated back in the seal, and Naruto unsummoned Manda. Sasuke, Gaara, Neji, and Kimimaro rushed over to help the blonde. It was the Uchiha who spoke.
"Where did you learn that technique?" Naruto smirked.
"When can you ever get rid of your competitiveness, Sasuke-teme? It was just something I had to do. My body moved by itself. I guess I had it stored away somewhere in my mind, and I still think I can use it again." Naruto looked towards the sky.
"I'm actually gonna miss that snake-bastard. It was so much fun when he was still around." Everyone laughed. Naruto turned and smiled at the group around him.
"I'm tired. Let's go home. Besides, I'm HUNGRY!"
Everyone sweatdropped, then laughed and hoisted Naruto onto their shoulders, bearing their precious burden back to Konoha.
By the way, the part where Naruto says Orochimaru was possessed by a snake is a part ofan ancient Japanese legend. There was rumored to be a man named Orochimaru way back in the feudal era that was supposedly possessed by a snake, which is why Masashi Kishimoto-sama created Orochimaru in the first place! I love the guy...(Orochimaru)...he's soooo deliciously evil! And he's hot as well!Oro in shower issoooo schmexy! Drool...Waahhhh...I made him seem sooo evil in my plot...poor Oro-kun, but I still love you!
Author grabs Oro and snuggles the nightlights out of him
Oro: Leggo you...gaack! Can't breathe...gaaaahhhhahahahaaaa...Oo