This chapter tells the beginning of Sasuke's fight agaist theremaining shinobi. And Naruto's date with Sakura. Read and Review!

Chapter 8

Hero Hunting

Sasuke walked towards where the others were. Zaroff had already left, leaving Sasuke with the instructions to steal the scared scroll and kill the remaining Shinobi. Sasuke had only one thing on his mind. The only one who knew where the scroll was is Naruto, as he had stolen it before. Sasuke arrived to where the others were. Naruto was no where in sight. Sasuke kept on walking until he ran into Hinata. Hinata looked at him and said. "Hey Sasuke, what's up." Sasuke remembered his instructions well. He had to kill all of them. "Fine, just fine."

Sasuke took Hinata by surprised when he attacked. Sasuke in a flash appeared behind her and threw her to a nearby wall. Hinata fell but quickly stood up. "Sasuke, what's wrong?" Before she knew it he was behind her with a kunai at hand. But he was unable to catch her of guard this time. Hinata used her White Eye and saw his attack. She moved to the side and barely missed his attack. She then shouted. "Gentle Fist." Hinata hit Sasuke throwing him through the wall he had thrown her. "He is Sasuke, there's no doubt about that. But… why is he attacking me?" Before she could think of the answer Sasuke came back and returned her attack. His Sharingan had awakened, and he said. "Gentle Fist." Hinata was hit by her trademark attack and thrown back. She managed to keep herself standing by using chakra on her feet. Hinata then used the same attack. "Gentle Fist." cried both Sasuke and Hinata as the simultaneously hit each other, fist to fist.

The attack made the windows of nearby houses tremble as Sasuke quickly moved and positioned himself directly on Hinata's White Eye blind stop. Hinata could not see him. Sasuke silently hit her hard enough to almost knock her out. Hinata tried to move fast, but was stopped by Sasuke's hand as he grabbed her by the neck and held her between him and a wall. "Got you."

Hinata tried to set herself free but Sasuke had her. She could escape him. "W-Why?" Sasuke just laughed. "Why? Because I have to." Sasuke grabbed a kunai and was about to stab Hinata when a quick thought entered his mind, about him killing Hinata. Sasuke placed the kunai back on his pocket and thought. 'I… I can't kill her.'

Suddenly Shikamaru walked to where they were after hearing the commotion. Shikamaru was shocked to find Hinata grabbed by the throat and more to see who was grabbing her. "S-Sasuke! What's going on?" Sasuke laughed. Hinata quickly shouted as loud as she could. "He has turned bad, he attacked me." Hinata had used her remaining energy to talk and fainted by the loss of air. Shikamaru heard this but was unable to react quick enough to avoid Sasuke's incoming hit. The shuriken amazingly trespassed Shikamaru as he turned into a log. Shikamaru appeared behind Sasuke and kicked him as hard as he could. Sasuke flew a bit back and received another hit from Shikamaru, and another, but he avoided the next one. Sasuke quickly turned and punched Shikamaru on the stomach. He tried to use his shadow to capture Sasuke, but it became useless when Sasuke surprised him and knocked him out. "Pathetic."

The fight had attracted attention. Ino quickly came thinking the war had begun here, but found Sasuke with a kunai in each hand and Shikamaru and Hinata on the ground. Ino froze, but quickly attacked Sasuke not sure if he was Sasuke or not. Ino threw as many punches and kicks as she could, but Sasuke easily evaded each. Sasuke then attacked and Ino fell back. She threw three kunai knives at him, but he evaded them as if the were merely stones.

Suddenly Kiba, Shino and Chōji appeared. Chōji quickly looked at the scene. "What's going on here?" Ino looked at them and said. "Sasuke… is attacking us." Kiba looked at Sasuke and at the two fallen ninjas and said. "That son of a…" Before he could finish Sasuke attacked him throwing him about ten feet away. Shino quickly made a hand sign and said. "Bug Clone Technique." Shino made a clone made of bugs and both of them attacked Sasuke. Sasuke easily fended both attackers and with his kunai, still at hand cut both of them, making the clone disappear and throwing Shino back.

Ino then rushed at him alongside Chōji. Choji used his jutzu o make his hand bigger and hit Sasuke sending him flying back. Sasuke landed on his feet and smiled. "This is going to be fun." Sasuke jumped and flipped and kicked both of his opponents on the face throwing them back.

In a flash Kiba appeared behind him alongside of Akamaru. Kiba attacked Sasuke with all he had, which Sasuke easily evaded. Sasuke swung his kunai to hit him, but was stopped when Akamaru bit him. Sasuke looked at the dog as Akamaru held Sasuke's arm. "Good work Akamaru." Noted Kiba. "Double Wolf Fang." The hit threw Sasuke out of the street and onto a nearby park.

Meanwhile Naruto had taken Sakura out for ramen. Shikamaru, disguised as a girl, had also gone. Naruto pulled a chair for her as she sat and then went to order. Sakura looked at him and thought why she had said no all those times ago. Naruto came with her bowl of ramen and about five or six for him. He sat and started to eat. Sakura was also surprised by his manner. Although they weren't perfect, he was being pretty well mannered.

"Hey Sakura."

"Yes Naruto?" said Sakura, looking up from her bowl of ramen.

"I… Uh… Nice weather." 'Weather? You're a regular Casanova you know.' said the Kyubi. Naruto just ignored that as he started to eat again.

Sakura just smiled and said. "Yeah, it is a nice weather. Especially know that Sasuke-k…" Sakura froze, she knew Naruto would be bothered. But to her surprised he just smiled.

"Don't worry Sakura, I know how you feel about him, weather I like it or not." Naruto was lying, and she knew it.

"Naruto, you know you're a terrible liar." Sakura grinned, Naruto just blushed. "But… I do lo-like him, and I know because it hurts when he rejects me."

Naruto nearly chocked. "It hurts. Try being rejected by getting punched on the face, being thrown to the side and then being called an idiot, over and over." Sakura lowered her head, she knew she had been wrong all those times she treated Naruto so badly. "Naruto." Naruto looked up at her. "I'm sorry."

Naruto smiled the same smile he always had had. "Don't sweat it, being hit by Kakashi-sensei or Sasuke hurts more." Sakura looked at him straight in the eyes and said. "Your lying to me again." Naruto just blushed.

Naruto remembered what he had told Konohamaru and he stood up. "Excuse me, Sakura-chan." Naruto was about to walk away when she held him by the arm. "Huh?" "Don't go, forget what you told Konohamaru." Naruto eyes widened. "How did…" Sakura smiled and said. "I overheard you guys. For ninja, you two are very loud." Sakura turned over to Konohamaru and said. "Isn't that right, Konohamaru?" Konohamaru covered his face and looked away. Sakura just laughed, as Naruto blushed.

Naruto had something he wanted to tell her. 'I'll just spit it out.' "Hey Sakura-chan." Sakura looked at him and said. "Yes?"

"You would still be my friend, no matter what, right?"

Sakura smiled. "Of course."

Naruto looked down. "This is something I should not say, but I have to. Sakura, you remember the Nine Tail Fox, the Kyubi?"

"Yes, I remember." She was confused, what did the Kyubi had to do with him.

"I… It… The Fourth Hokage had to seal the Kyubi in a newborn child." Sakura looked confused. "In a child, but what has this to do with you?" Naruto, still looking down, took a deep breath and said. "I am that child, the Kyubi is inside me." Sakura quickly stood eyes widened. "Y-you're the Kyubi, all… this time… you killed all those people… Naruto!" Sakura started to walk backwards. "Sakura, you said." Sakura nodded her head and ran out form the ramen shop. "Sakura-chan!" Naruto fell on his knees with his eyes all wet. Konohamaru, who had also heard, was still in shock.

After a few seconds Sakura reappeared at the ramen shop. "Sakura-chan." Sakura ran to him and hugged him, both with tears coming out of their eyes. "Sakura-c…" "Shut up Naruto." Sakura said, crying. "Shut up."

"That one hurt." Sasuke stood up, know in a park, as he saw Kiba and Akamaru walking towards him. "This may take a while." Sasuke rushed at them as Kiba and Akamaru got together and he shouted. "Double Piercing Fang!" Kiba and Akamaru attacked Sasuke, who made a couple of hand signs and said. "Fire Style - Art of the Phoenix Flower, the Touch-me-not!" Sasuke threw the multiple fireballs at his opponents beating their jutzu with his. Kiba and Akamaru both fell, not really hurt, but unconscious. Sasuke looked at both of them and said. "I think the dog was stronger."

Suddenly three shuriken landed on his chest as he fell, but it wasn't him, it was a log. Sasuke appeared behind his attacked, Tenten and said. "So, it was you." Tenten moved fast to avoid any attack Sasuke would make, but he just followed her movements. Tenten quickly shot a kunai at him, but he moved to avoid it. Tenten managed to scrape his shoulder with her kunai, much to his surprise. "So… you do have really good aim." Tenten smiled and said. "Twin Rising Dragons!" A lot of shuriken, kunai knives and many other weapons appeared above Sasuke and went down at him. He quickly attacked her, but was hit by the weaponry. Sasuke broken body was then replaced by a log and the real Sasuke appeared behind Tenten and before she could move, he knocked her out.

Suddenly Neji appeared behind Sasuke and hit him from behind. Sasuke flipped over and landed in front of him. "Neji, should have expected you." "Sasuke, why are you doing this?" Sasuke just smiled, sinisterly. "Just business." Sasuke threw two shuriken at Neji, who using his White Eye, easily evaded them. Sasuke attacked Neji from the White Eye Blind Spot, but was stopped by a kick on the jaw by Neji. "Do you think I'll be caught off guard that easily?" Sasuke flipped over and said. "Then I'll have to try harder then." Sasuke quickly attacked, but Neji attacked him using his Gentle Fist. Sasuke jumped back as Neji shouted. "Eight Trigrams One Hundred Twenty-Eight Palms!"

The attack went in a flash, but Neji found himself on the floor unconscious, and Sasuke behind him breathing heavily. "That was too close."

Sasuke then felt himself unable to move. He looked to the side and saw Shikamaru using his shadow to hold him. "Gotcha!" Shikamaru took out a shuriken and Sasuke was forcefully made to do so too. "If I can't stop you, I'll take you down with me, anything to stop you from hurting them." "What!" Sasuke shouted.

Shikamaru and Sasuke both launched their shuriken to each other. Ino, who had just woken up, saw what Shikamaru was planning to do. "Shikamaru!" Sasuke gathered his chakra and was able to break Shikamaru's hold. He rolled out of the shuriken's path. Shikamaru fell down, barely evading it himself. Shikamaru fell exhausted by the lost of chakra.

Ino jumped and attacked Sasuke, but was knocked out by his quick strike and thrown besides Shikamaru. Sasuke took a deep breath and said. "This is pathetic, the are so…" Sasuke couldn't even finish when Rock Lee appeared and kicked him. Sasuke held his leg and gave him a kick of his own, which Rock Lee held as well. They both fell and separated.

"Sasuke, I don't know why you did it, but you must be stopped."

"Please, you think you can stop me."

"Do not underestimate me, ever!"

Sasuke smiled. 'I might get a little more than just a warm up with him, the real battle will begin.'

Hope u like. R&R!

Next Chap: Sasuke's and Rock Lee's fight begins, as Naruto also enters the fray!