Disclaimer: Naruto does not belong to me.

Admit Defeat

Chapter 5: Fallen

By: Kisu

---

Naruto was filled with dread as his motorcycle roared down the street. He passed the cars and trucks on the streets with lightning speed. Orochimaru wouldn't dare!

He narrowed his eyes angrily as gazed through the protective covering on his helmet.

Hinata…Hinata, please be all right!

---

Hinata screamed as he fingertips brushed against the top of the metal fence. She felt herself falling and her hand reached to grab anything.

Anything!

Like Kami's answer, her hand found a window ledge and she furiously took a hold of it. Hinata swallowed thickly and forced herself not to look down. A view of a five-story drop wasn't what she needed right now.

"Shit! Look what you did!" She looked up through tear filled eyes at the four men that were looking down at her in worry. "Orochimaru isn't going to like this!"

"We can't just let her dangle there, can we?" The second man asked. He didn't want the pretty nurse to fall and end up in a bloody pile of guts and bone.

"She's the eldest daughter of Hyuuga Hiashi!" The first man yelled. "Do you know how much ransom, she is worth?"

"You're not going to get anything if I die!" Hinata screamed, hysterically. She could feel her grip slipping.

"Hold on. We'll get you." The third man said, as he disappeared from view. Hinata closed her eyes. She was too young to die like this.

She didn't even have a boyfriend yet!

"Naruto." She whispered. "Neji." She shrieked as her grip slipped again. "Anybody please help me."

Her fingers slid off the ledge and she screamed.

"Help me!"

---

Naruto's bike tore into the front of the hospital. Quickly, he kicked the kickstand down and dashed through the double doors and into the large building.

"What happened?" he asked, urgently as he grabbed a hold of a nurse in his division. The woman's eyeliner was smudged from her tears and she gasped.

"Doctor! It's horrible!" She cried. "A group of gangsters made a commotion on the fourth floor!"

"Gangsters?" Naruto repeated. He shook her in panic. "Hinata! What about Hinata?"

"I don't know!" She sobbed. Naruto handed her to another nurse and rushed up the stairs.

Please be all right. He prayed silently as he burst through the door into the fourth floor.

He looked around and ran down the hall. It was deserted.

"Hinata! Hinata!" He yelled. "Is anyone here?"

"Naruto." He turned around the corner and stopped.

A familiar man with dark hair and eyes like smoldering coals was sitting on the ground with his back pressed against the wall. He stood up slowly, his right hand favoring his left arm protectively.

"Sasuke?" Naruto blinked. "Sasuke, are you all right?" The Ryuujin gang leader nodded. "Do you know where Hinata is?"

"Don't worry." Sasuke smirked. "I got reinforcements."

---

"Help me!"

A hand reached out and grasped onto her Hinata's wrist at the last minute. Hinata looked up and gasped.

"Yo, Hinata." Kiba winked, as he grunted to keep his hold on her hand. "Reach up." He said, holding out his other hand. Hinata shakily gave him her hand and gasped as Kiba slid forward. "Shino! Shikamaru!"

There was a great pull and Hinata came through the window. She fell on top of Kiba and they landed onto the floor in a very compromising position.

"I won't mind this every day." Kiba grinned, their faces inches away from each other.

Hinata squeaked and quickly got off of Kiba, blushing a bright red. Kiba snickered and sat up, untying the rope that was bound to his waist. Shikamaru and Shino stood near the doorway and let go of the other end of the rope.

"Are you all right, Hinata?" Shino asked.

"Thanks for saving me." Hinata whispered, shakily.

"Did you find her?" Neji's frantic voice floated down the hall and seconds later, the man ran into the room. "Hinata!"

"Neji." Hinata gasped in relief. Neji quickly walked over to her and grabbed her hand.

"Are you all right?" He asked. He turned to gaze at Kiba. "He didn't do anything do you did he?"

"No, Neji." Hinata blinked as Tenten walked into the room.

"You're all right, Hinata." Tenten said in relief.

"Keep away from her, you dog!" Neji yelled. Tenten sighed in exasperation.

"This is the gratitude I get for saving your precious cousin?" Kiba shouted back. "I'll let her fall next time!"

"You do that and I'll skin you alive!" Neji shouted furiously. "Wait…you saved Hinata?"

"With our help of course." Shikamaru said. "Women are so troublesome." He backed off when Tenten shot him a dirty look.

"Hey guys." Sakura ran in breathless. "Have you seen, Sasuke?"

"Uh…we thought he was with you."

---

"I'm sure they got her by now." Sasuke said, thoughtfully as he looked at his watch.

Naruto sighed in relief. "I'm so glad." he managed. Then he turned and examined Sasuke's position. "Did you just get your cast off?"

"Yeah." Sasuke replied, arching an eyebrow. "Why?"

"You didn't happen to use that arm to fight, did you?" Naruto asked in a disapproving doctor's tone.

"Well I can't really just use one arm to fight." Sasuke shot back. "It's just a little numb."

"Let me see." Naruto walked closer and closed the space in between them.

Sasuke watched as he took his arm in his hands and ran his fingertips up and down, checking the positions and the joints. "I think you'll need to take an x-ray later, just in case."

"Naruto…" Sasuke spoke up. Naruto looked up and met his dark gaze. "Naruto, am I doing the right thing?"

"What?" Naruto blinked, in confusion.

"Am I giving you enough space?" Sasuke asked. "I need you back, Naruto."

Naruto closed his eyes and smiled before raising his arm and slipping it around Sasuke's waist. Then so gently, Naruto brushed his lips against Sasuke's. He smiled against his lips and trailed kisses down his neck.

"You told me before that you still loved me." Naruto murmured as he brushed his lips against his collarbone. He felt Sasuke's pulse quicken and he drew him closer to him.

"So how can I stop loving you?" he whispered in his ear. Sasuke's eyes widened and he closed his eyes, smiling softly.

"If my arm wasn't numb right now, I would have ravaged you on the floor." Sasuke commented.

"You sure know how to kill a mood."

---

"Sakura! What do you mean you haven't seen him?" Shikamaru demanded. "Who was supposed to guard him?"

"I lost sight of him on the fourth floor." Neji said as he turned around.

"Hey, look what I found!" Chouji yelled out as he walked in dragging a wriggling bundle.

He dumped the contents on the floor and they found themselves staring at the four men that were on the rooftop. Neji walked over to them and planted his foot onto the man that was closest to him.

"Who's up for torturing them?" Kiba asked, a wicked glint in his eye. Hinata made a sound of discomfort and Neji backhanded Kiba in the side of his head. "Ow! You damn bastard!"

"Don't talk like that in front of a lady." Sakura admonished. She saw a shadow blocking out the light from the doorway and spun around. Sasuke stood in the doorway, his left arm wrapped in bandages.

"Good. You got to her in time." He nodded approvingly at Hinata.

"Sasuke!" Sakura squealed in delight. "You're all right!" Before she had a chance to glomp onto him, Sasuke moved away from the door and revealed a newcomer.

Naruto stood in the doorway, his golden hair catching the light from the hallway in contrast to the dark room. One of his hands was casually shoved in his pocket. The other hand gripped the doorframe and the silver ring on his hand caught the light. Tenten gasped.

That was Itachi's ring.

Naruto's frosty blue eyes flickered throughout the room and finally landed on Neji.

Neji's hope rose and his breath caught in his throat.

"I've finally decided on an answer, Neji." he said, quietly. But they could hear the quiet thunder rolling in the soft voice. Just like the calm before a storm. "I'm going to look for Gaara." He leaned over and whispered something in Sasuke's ear before turning around and walking out of the door.

Sasuke broke the tension by smiling, slowly.

It was one of the true smiles that they haven't seen for a long time on the young gang leader's face.

This smile reached up to his eyes.

Wait for me.

"The game has just begun." Sasuke told him. His dark eyes sparkled in excitement. "Itachi will be avenged."

---

The glass of red wine dropped onto the floor and shattered. The crimson liquid spilled onto the floor, staining it like freshly spilt blood.

"What did you say?"

"I'm sorry, sir! We lost Hyuuga Hinata." The trembling man said, from his kneeling position. "Please forgive me!" He pressed his face against the floor.

Orochimaru narrowed his eyes and held a hand to his nose. The man was sweating terribly and was emitting a foul odor. He reached over to the side table and brushed his fingers along the hilt of a handgun. Then, he grabbed the bottle of red wine next to it and threw it at the man. It smashed against the man's head and blood trickled down his forehead from the sharp glass.

"Get out!" he yelled. The man scrambled to his feet and ran out of the room as fast as possible. He raised his hand up and clenched it into a fist before slamming it back down onto the armrest. "Kabuto!"

"Yes sir?" His most trusted man quietly walked out from behind him and adjusted his glasses.

"What happened to Uzumaki Naruto?" He asked.

"He eliminated a number of our men while on his way out of the hospital." Kabuto said. "We couldn't capture him but he's heading out of town."

"Follow him. I want him dead!" Orochimaru yelled. He got up quickly and the glass from the brokenbottle cracked under the bottom of his shoe. "Uchiha or Uzumaki. He's dangerous."

"As you wish, sir." Kabuto bowed, humbly.

"If you fail, Kabuto." Orochimaru hissed, warningly. "There will be severe consequences."

Kabuto nodded and walked out of the room. Once he shut the door, he heard the Shinja gang leader throw several objects around the room. Kabuto's lips curved into a smile.

Maybe revenge wasn't a bad idea after all.

---

Naruto didn't know how hard it was to find one man. He had followed leads and finally ended up in the Drylands, a few days away from Konoha. Drylands was a nickname for this part of the country because of its lack of rain. In fact, it was almost a desert.

Perfect for Gaara. Naruto thought with annoyance as he continued walking to the small town a few miles away.

He was covered in dust from head to toe and every footstep he took stirred up even more dust. Before he reached the town, he saw giant clouds of dust being stirred up in the east. So, trusting instincts he headed to the activity.

He discovered that there was a yearly drag race that was hosted in the Drylands.

He walked through the crowd of foul smelling men and women in very revealing clothing. He sighed, when he found no sign of Gaara.

"Haven't seen you around, before." A gruff voice interrupted his thoughts.

He turned around slowly and slipped his left hand into his pocket. Well of course he stood out here in his white long sleeved shirt and torn jeans. Well, the shirt wasn't white anymore.

He raised his right hand up and slowly pulled the rim of his cowboy hat up,gazing at the man before him.

He looked like the rest of the men. Dressed in leather with chains and spikes, with a short scruffy beard and unkempt hair. He was covered thickly in a layer of dust and looking like he didn't mind it.

The man glared at him.

Didn't they get hot in leather out here?

"What you staring at?" The man spat.

"Sorry." Naruto replied, with a pleasant smile. "I'm looking for someone."

"Oh yeah?" The man asked. "Who are you looking for, city boy?"

City boy? Naruto raised an eyebrow. "I'm looking for Gaara." He saw recognition flash through the man's eyes and he found himself suddenly held up by the shirt.

"Who are you looking for the Boss?" The man sneered.

Boss? "An old friend." Naruto said, evenly. The man tossed him back onto the ground and Naruto quickly found his footing. "You know where he is. Tell me."

"I'm not answering any questions from a city boy." The man said. "Get lost. Shrimps like you shouldn't be out here in the Drylands."

The man turned around and found himself on the ground in a blink of an eye. Naruto had his arm pulled back and he narrowed his eyes, darkening with anger as he leaned closer to him.

"Please tell me where Gaara is," he said, venomously.

The man gulped. Who was he? The ring flashed on his left hand and his eyes widened as he recognized the symbol on it.

"U-Uchiha!" he blurted out. This brought hundreds of curious stares to be focused on them. "Get him, now!"

Naruto quickly stepped away as a gunshot was fired. A group of men pulled out their weapons and Naruto stumbled back, holding on his shoulder where a bullet had shot through his shoulder.

"Don't let our client down!" The man yelled. "First person to bring me his head gets a bonus!"

Oh shit.

Naruto backed up as the men advanced on him.

This was not good at all.

---

Sasuke's grip tightened suddenly on his glass of vodka and he stared down into the liquid in mild curiosity.

"Sasuke?" Sakura touched his shoulder.

"Naruto." Sasuke whispered.

"I'm sure he'll be back soon." Sakura said, helpfully.

"I'm worried." Sasuke replied. "There's something wrong."

"Sasuke, he's that someone you like, isn't he?" Sakura asked, softly. She drew away from him and folded her hands in her lap.

"Yeah."

---

Naruto had managed to take down a number of men but they kept advancing. He frowned and was caught unaware as a swinging hook brushed against his right shoulder. He jerked quickly so the hook missed him by a few inches but managed to tear a large rip down the back of his shirt.

Why do they insist of tearing up his shirts like that?

He ripped the shirt away without a second thought and there were collective gasps in the crowd. They had seen his tattoo.

The tattoo of the Kyuubi.

"I won't be taken down easily." Naruto told them. "I'm here for a cause and I will fulfill it."

Those words that should have made even a hungry predator wary had the opposite effect on the men because they rushed in and Naruto quickly gave up the role of Uzumaki Naruto.

And took on the name of Uchiha Naruto, the Kyuubi.

He felt blood splash onto his face and heard the sickening crunch of bone underneath his fists.

It was the adrenaline that rushed through his veins that gave him a natural high.

And they kept coming.

A hard blow on his head made his vision swim.

"What is going on here?" That voice was so familiar.

"Boss!" The beefcake of a man from before sounded frightened.

He felt blood dripping down his neck from the wound on his head and he reached up dazedly to confirm it. Indeed his fingers came back smeared in crimson red.

His legs gave away and he fell back.

A pair of strong arms caught him and he stared up into a pair of light green eyes.

He reached up and found a name on the tip of his tongue.

Those eyes…

…were so familiar.

Then he surrendered to the overpowering darkness.

---

Kisu.