Authors note: -Falls on the computer clinging it- I'm finally free from midterms! ahh… they joys of being free… -cough-cough- hehe sorry about that :-p how's everyone doing out there in fanfic land? Well if you're reading this I'd like to say thanks for sticking with me so far! I wasn't sure if this was going to turn out to be a good fan fic or not… but if you're still reading then I guess I'm doing something right then, right? Oh yes before I forget… incase you didn't notice… I REDID CHAPTER 8! I looked back over it and thought it needed some tweaking I guess… I dunno I think my writings getting kinda weak :( tried to fix it, but yeah… First off though I want to thank everyone for their reviews! And I'm sorry to AnimeFreaks13: that nothings making sense at the moment! That's probably because not much has been explained yet… but don't worry some things will be uncovered in this chapter! Or put simply I give you readers a better idea of what's going on Cool idea Tsugath the stolen charka goes to the weird ninja's? We'll just have to wait and see hm? oh yes, and thanks for you're suggestions on pairing And Dragon Man 180; don't worry Tao's still got a few fancy tricks up her foxy sleeves X) as for Hinata not knowing the Kaiten, well… don't worry I shall explain more as to what's going on… I hope I do a good job oo. and as for Tao falling for Kakashi… actually its kind of the other way around :-p Tao only leaned that close to Kakashi because foxes don't really have knowledge of personal space and such…
Ok hopefully I've been more informative and haven't just made absolutely everyone more confused… well enough of all this going on…I'm sure you want the next chapter hmm? Well you're going to get it. When? Well right now :-p just keep reading… and I hope you enjoy
Back in Konohagakure the 3rd lord Hokage sat at his desk looking at the papers that lay before him. Placing his pipe to his moth he breathed in slowly as he contemplated what to do with the papers before him. Lowering his pipe he exhaled letting the smoke linger in front of him. Glancing up at the clock he noted it to be around noon, Kakashi's scouting mission was supposed to end that morning at seven and he was supposed to report to him at nine. But the Hokage was no fool… he knew Kakashi well and didn't think anything out of the ordinary with his lateness. What did bother him though was the messages he had received from three different families in his village all requesting the same information. One was from the Haruno family, Sakura's mother; another from Hyuuga Hiashi, Hinata's father; and the final from Gai, Lee's instructor. While each letter was written by a different hand they all basically asked the same thing: 'Where did you send my child/student… what mission did you send them on…' The first time he read the letters through he thought that this might be a joke of some kind, but Hiashi was not one to make jokes of any kind. That only left him to wonder who had gone around claiming to be gathering people he requested for a mission he didn't have. No matter how he looked at it, it didn't look good. Sakura, Rock Lee, and the heir to the Hyuuga clan – gone… and no one it seemed had any idea where they went and who it was who took them or why. Why…the Hokage repeated over and over in his mind. Hinata was not too much a wonder he supposed… he could think of a few people or villages who might be foolish enough to take Hinata… its not like it hadn't happened before ether; but why Sakura… why Rock Lee?
"Lord Hokage?" looking up the Hokage saw Gai walking towards him. "Lord Hokage I did as you requested, it seems as if Naruto and Sasuke are no where to be found. However Kiba, Shino, Neji, and Tenten are all accounted for."
"So only team 7 is fully missing…" Hokage muttered as he raised his pipe to his lips again.
"Forgive me Lord Hokage but I'm afraid I don't understand… why did you not send the others with their team members like you did team 7?" Hokage placed his pipe down as he looked up at Gai lacing his fingers together he propped his elbows up on the table.
"What I am going to tell you… I trust you not to tell anyone else." Gai nodded his face serious. "The truth of the matter is that these young Genin were not selected by myself for a mission I needed them for."
"Lord Hokage?"
"It seems as if someone outside the village has recruited our young Genin, how and for what purpose I don't know… however I want you to go and question people, I want you to see what you can find out about the messenger, if anyone saw them gathering at the gate or elsewhere in the village. Once Kakashi returns I will send him to meet up with you to help with the investigation." Gai nodded and left immediately. Turning to look at the clock the Lord Hokage began to wonder what was taking Kakashi so long.
He was late… even for him.
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It had taken Kakashi quite some time; he wanted to be certain the room he chose was empty and was going to stay that way for at least a short while.
The room was full of crates and boxes, and everything seemed to be covered in a good layer of dust. Good, Kakashi thought to himself as he walked in and looked around the room, it looked like no one had been in here in a long while. Kakashi looked around a moment before stopping on top of a crate that was nearly completely surrounded by others. He placed Sasuke down and took a good look at him with his Sharingan eye. At first glance it seemed like it was just a simple hypnotism jujitsu, a simple technique that could have someone knocked out for a certain amount of time chosen by the caster. But then again… nothing had been 'simple' thus far. Thinking for a moment Kakashi wondered if he could transfer some of his newly acquired charka to Sasuke. Well, he had watched Tao as she transferred some of her energy to him so surely he could do the same. Thinking back he tried to remember if he had had his left eye open or not. He gave a sigh and decided he was simply going to try anyway. Placing his fingertips on each of Sasuke's temples Kakashi began to concentrate. His Sharingan eye began to spin as he tried to thread his energy to Sasuke in hopes of waking him. Kakashi's hands began to glow as the charka slowly began to split off from him. Before Kakashi could start to hope that it was working his vision clouded then went black.
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Opening his eyes again he noticed his vision was still blurry. Rubbing his eyes he mentally chided himself hoping he hadn't been out for too long, lowering his hand he blinked and took a look around. Something was wrong… something was very wrong… he was no longer in some abandoned storage room with an unconscious Sasuke. He was in a house of some sort; a house that looked very familiar… and yet Kakashi couldn't seem to put his finger on where he'd seen this place before. Hearing the sound of running footsteps he turned to an open door to see who was coming, his hand went to his shuriken pouch before he remembered he had been relieved of the earlier. A figure stumbled into the room whirling around as if to see if anyone was behind them.
"S…Sasuke?" the boy spun around eyes darting about; it was Sasuke… Kakashi breathed a sigh of relief.
"Sasuke, do you know where we are?" rather than reply Sasuke bolted right past Kakashi almost as if he didn't see him there. Kakashi called out after the raven haired boy but he didn't respond so he simply ran after the boy catching up to him with ease. Looking at the boy as he ran astride with him he saw his face was twisted with fear.
"Sasuke… Sasuke! Tell me what's going on here." Sasuke simply looked behind him then looked forward again trying his best to run faster. Before Kakashi could ask the youth again what was going on he heard the sound of footsteps behind them. They were slow paced, and yet the sound of footsteps seemed to be getting ever so slightly louder as if the person was catching up with them. The room they were running through seemed to be a large corridor that looked like it went on far longer than it should have. As they ran a figure seemed to appear in front of them with their back to them.
"MOM!" Sasuke shouted as loud as he could. Kakashi looked at Sasuke in shock; 'mom'? There's no way that could be right…
Running over to the woman Sasuke placed his hand on her shoulder.
"Mom, we've got to get out of here… mom…" as he tried to turn the figure around to face him the figure fell forward. "Mom… mom come on we need to get going… Itachi's coming we've-" he stopped short as he turned the woman over to look at her. Her face was deathly pale; her eyes were open in a death gaze. Kakashi knelt down beside Sasuke trying to figure out what in the world was going on. The destruction of the Uchiha clan happened years ago… the members had all been buried… Sasuke started shaking the lifeless figure that he believed to be his mother begging her to wake up. As he looked on red lines began to form on the woman's face than then split open creating deep slash wounds on her face. Sasuke nearly dropped the woman in horror as he stood up and took a step back. Blood began to pool around her as Sasuke stood rooted to the spot looking on in fear.
"Little brother…" a voice called out from behind them. Turning around the color completely left Sasuke's face. He inhaled sharply before turning to run again leaving the figure of his mother behind.
"Sasuke, Sasuke wait!" Kakashi called out as he ran after him. "Sasuke… you need to listen to me, I don't think any of this is real… think about it, none of this makes any sense it can't be real; Sasuke!" Kakashi reached over as if in an effort to grab the boy's arm in hopes of getting his attention. His hand passed straight through the boy's arm as if he himself were no more than an apparition. His mind reeled for only a split second before he it figure out what in the world was going on. When Tao had spoken to him in his dreams the night before… she must've used a technique to get there right? Was it possible that his Sharingan had tried to copy the wrong technique? If that was the case… then was he inside Sasuke's dream? More like a nightmare… Kakashi thought to himself as he looked around seeing the members of the Uchiha clan appear on ether side of the corridor, just as Sasuke must have seen them the day they died… he thought.
"You can't escape me little brother…" Glancing behind him Kakashi saw the figure getting closer despite the fact that they were running while the figure was walking. I've just got to get Sasuke to wake up from this nightmare…but how am I going to do that? For some reason I'm not even solid. Sasuke cried out as a hand grabbed onto the top of his head pulling him back. Kakashi stopped and turned around. Itachi held on tight to Sasuke as the boy tried to escape. Looking at Itachi Kakashi became almost certain that this was a dream… or nightmare… as he had thought. Itachi seemed warped somehow; he was larger than he should've been, his hands looked more like claws and his skin was a deep tan. Around him a black aura rippled and almost seemed to be drawing in everything around him. He had to make himself more solid so he could get Sasuke to wake up from this nightmare. Closing his eyes Kakashi concentrated on himself this time, hoping to complete the technique and make himself solid. Sasuke cried out and tried to break free from his brother's grasp, unaware that everything around him was nothing more than a terrible dream. Opening his eyes Kakashi reached out for Sasuke hoping to be able to grab the boy this time. His hand closed around Sasuke's arm tightly, the boy turned to look at him eyes wide.
"Ka… Kakashi sensei!" Kakashi grinned as he brought his arm down onto Itachi's hard and fast causing him to release Sasuke.
"Come on!" Kakashi yelled pulling the boy to his feet. Sasuke's feet slipped under him for a moment but he was quickly up running beside Kakashi.
"Kakashi sensei… what's going on I don't understand what's happening. One minute I'm with Sakura and Naruto looking for you… the next minute I'm running from my brother and this… this monster I don't know what it was is attacking the village - "
"What?" Kakashi asked turning to look at him for a brief moment. "You mean this isn't the only thing going on in your dream?"
"Dream? You call this a dream? I'd call it a nightmare." Sasuke said dryly. Rather than reply Kakashi filled him in on what he knew to be going on. He told him about Hitojo, the fact that they were being held prisoner, how he had managed to get free, and the technique on Sasuke that was now obviously not just a hypnosis technique; all as briefly as possible while trying not to leave out anything important.
"Now we need to get you to wake up Sasuke." Sasuke just looked at him blankly.
"Don't you think I would've done that by now if I could have?"
"Ah but did you know it was a dream?" With nothing to respond with Sasuke simply tried to concentrate on waking up. After a moment he simply sighed.
"I think we both knew it wasn't going to be that easy." Kakashi nodded and tried to think of a way to get the boy to wake up. He thought about going back to the waking world himself and trying to wake him up from there, but the fact was he hadn't seen Tao end the technique… and the last thing he wanted to do it try a technique he hadn't really seen again.
"Sasuke, imagine the village."
"What?"
"I think there's something there that might help us." Sasuke nodded and closed his eyes as Kakashi hoped that he was right. The continuing hallway of Sasuke's slaughtered family members blurred and the world around them seemed to take on a new form. The two stopped and looked around; it definitely looked like Konohagakure village… but something was very wrong. Kakashi inhaled and sneezed hard, the air was thick with the smell of blood and death and yet the village looked undamaged.
"Sasuke… Sasuke… Sasuke won't you come train with me please?"
"Sakura?" her voice sounded faint, it seemed to be coming from everywhere and nowhere at once. Sasuke looked around and was about to run off looking for her but Kakashi grabbed his shoulder.
"Oh no you don't, I am not going to have you playing into their trap… you are going to stick with me and we are going to get out of here." Sasuke nodded. His face had gone pale and his usual uncaring expression had gone and was replaced with a blank expression that was trying poorly to cover up the fear that reflected in his eyes. Something was going on here and Kakashi knew it. There was a point to all of this; he just needed to figure out what. Why have these visions repeat themselves over and over again, in the end they might have driven Sasuke insane if he had not intervened; but what good is an insane ninja? Kakashi began to walk forward making sure Sasuke was following. Voices of friends and people they knew called out to Sasuke constantly; from his teammates Sakura and Naruto to his teachers… they called out to him wanting him to come and find them. All the while Sasuke stayed by Kakashi. His fists were clenched at his sides as his fear continued to grow. Kakashi wasn't sure what had happened here before but something seemed to be terrifying Sasuke, and until now he had yet to see the boy truly scared let alone terrified. Sasuke stopped suddenly; he stared at the ground breathing heavily.
"Sasuke, come on we have to get out of here now."
"K… Kakashi?" his breathing was becoming difficult now. He looked up and around as if in a panic. "Kakashi! Naruto, Sakura where are you?"
"Sasuke? Sasuke what are you going on about I'm right here." Kakashi grabbed the boy by the shoulders and looked at him. Sasuke's eyes were unfocused. A black dot appeared on his forehead and then slowly began to spread out like a plant sending out its roots. Whatever technique was going on here Kakashi was willing to bet that it would be done once that symbol was fully formed. The voices calling out to Sasuke changed to jeers and taunts.
"You think you're so great Sasuke? How foolish you are."
"How weak…"
"How…alone…" The voices laughed and jeered as Sasuke seemed to drift further away despite Kakashi's grip on the boy. Hurriedly he picked up the boy and began to run. As he ran a dark red shadow started creeping over the village; to avoid it Kakashi took to the rooftops moving as quickly as he could. Up in front of him were the carvings of the Hokage's of Konohagakure. The dream seemed to be coming apart all around them as Kakashi made his way to the top of the monument. Once at the top Kakashi turned to look back down the way they came. A blood colored mist had gathered and was beginning to rise. Now or never… Kakashi thought to himself; and it better work because I have no idea what else to try.
"Sasuke, come on Sasuke its time to wake up." He said trying to put the youth down, he tried because Sasuke seemed to have no intention of using his legs to stand so Kakashi had to half hold him up. "Sasuke, come on Sasuke you have to jump." Sasuke's eyes were still darting around as if he was trying to look everywhere at once. "Sasuke snap out of it!" Sasuke seemed to stop for a moment; his breathing was still heavy and erratic, the black mark was still etching itself onto his forehead. How much time still remained before it was done Kakashi had no idea, but he wasn't going to stand around and wait.
"Sasuke, you need to jump, don't worry I'm going to be jumping right next to you." Sasuke didn't say anything but looked down then slowly started to back up but Kakashi came up behind him and stopped him.
"I don't know if you can see me or not, I don't know if you can still hear me ether, but you have to jump. I know it sounds foolish or perhaps more accurately stupid… but I have no idea how else to wake up from a dream; well I do but I don't think a simple pinch or splash of water in the face is going to work. Come on Sasuke… do it for your teammates, they're looking for you right now and they wont be able to find you if you fail here. Don't be weak Sasuke; you know Naruto will never let you hear the end of it." Sasuke blinked a few times then shook his head squinting his eyes tight opening them again he looked down again with Sharingan eyes. Gritting his teeth Sasuke took two steps forward and threw himself off the cliff with Kakashi jumping a split second behind him.
The ground sped towards them and as they fell the red mist began to swirl and grow as if it was trying to reach out and grab them. Kakashi held his breath and prayed in hopes that his stupid idea just might work. Before the mist could encase them their world turned black as they continued to feel like they were falling. The fall seemed to last for only a breath before warmth and solidity wrapped around him as he felt everything stop. At first Kakashi kept still, as if judging whether or not he wanted to open his eyes to see if it had worked. Deciding there was only one way to find out he opened his eyes and looked around. Sure enough he was back in the storage room he had hid away in. Looking down at Sasuke he noticed the boy seemed to be still asleep, not only that but the symbol that was forming on his head in the dream world had carried over into the waking world. He picked the boy up slightly and shook him gently.
"Sasuke… Sasuke!" He hissed softly wondering why Sasuke hadn't woken up like he had. Sasuke stiffened in his grip and the boy's body started to move. Kakashi allowed a small sigh of relief as the youth started to stir. About to ask him if he was alright Sasuke's arm shot out to tighten itself around Kakashi's throat. Kakashi choked, taken by surprise he hesitated for a moment before he gripped Sasuke's wrist trying to gently pry his grip off. Sasuke simply kept tightening his grip on his teaches throat as he brought his legs under him his eyes still closed.
"You… you killed them… I'll make you pay Itachi…" Sasuke snarled. He seemed to be awake but still dreaming at the same time.
"Sasuke… damn it Sasuke snap out of it." Kakashi gripped Sasuke's wrist tightly at the joint intent on forcing the hand to loosen its grip. Sasuke opened his eyes to look at the person he thought was his murderous brother. His eyes seemed unfocused for a moment but as he continued to look he seemed to start to recognize his sensei. Raising his free hand he rubbed his eyes furiously before looking back.
"K… Kakashi sensei? He stammered releasing his grip as Kakashi released his hand. Sasuke stared in disbelief at his sensei as if he couldn't comprehend the fact that he had just tried to strangle his teacher. Kakashi gave an attempted smile at the boy; whatever was going on here just might be bigger than he had previously guessed. Next time he slept he had to try and get in contact with Tao and see if she could reach the Lord Hokage. While trying to reassure Sasuke, Kakashi informed him on what was going on and what they needed to get themselves out of.
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The four Genin's walked along in silence, a makeshift stretcher carried between them. After searching the nin's Lee and Naruto had managed to make a stretcher on which they could carry Tao. It wasn't much… but it seemed to hold well enough. Once Sakura and Hinata had bandaged Tao they collected their stuff, Naruto and Lee taking the stuff they found with them not wanting to leave it behind or take the time to discuss it. The four of them walked on without rest; even when the first ray's of dawn appeared over the horizon they didn't stop despite the lack of sleep. Even Hinata who had gotten no sleep at all and was trying to stifle a yawn every couple of seconds did not request a break. They knew they had to keep moving as fast and as silently as possible while being careful not to bump Tao around too much. Naruto kept looking at Tao's still sleeping form. She looked so still and pale… true after Kakashi had first fought Zabuza he had passed out from overusing his Sharingan eye and had recovered fully in about a week. But would the same happen with Tao? And did she have a week's worth of time to recover? Naruto frowned as he kept his eyes forward, something big was going on here… and whatever it was probably wasn't going to allow them the time they needed to recover.
They finally decided to stop around noon to have something quick to eat and for Hinata to have a lie-down before continuing. The whole time Naruto continued to watch Tao wondering if she was going to be alright. There wasn't much talk between the four of them; Naruto asked Sakura around how long it would take them to get to the sand village and she drew a small map on the ground to try and figure it out before telling him it would probably take them about twice as long now they were moving at less than half speed. Before they started going again Naruto drew his blanket from his bag and draped it over Tao.
"What's that for Naruto?" Sakura asked watching him curiously.
"I think she's cold… see she's shivering." He replied pointing to Tao. Walking over quickly Hinata placed a hand on Tao's forehead and cheek.
"She doesn't feel cold… we'll just keep a close eye on her as we go." She suggested. They all nodded as they each took a side and lifted the stretcher together, and with one last glance around them to be safe, headed off in the direction of the sand village.
Every now and then Hinata would look around with her Byakugan to see at least a couple of kilometers around to make sure the enemy wouldn't have the chance to find them without them knowing. Naruto kept an eye on Tao and the other on their surroundings. He couldn't help but worry about Tao; when Kakashi overused his Sharingan eye he had woken up that afternoon. Sure he was still exhausted… but he was conscious. It had nearly been over six hours now and Tao still hadn't woken up… did that mean the lightning attack was more draining than the Sharingan eye? Or was she injured more than they realized. Naruto shook his head at the last thought; Sakura and Hinata said that they had patched her up as best they could and they just needed to wait for her to recover. Tao's shivering seemed to come in waves. One moment she was shivering gently as if she felt a little cold and the next her face seemed taut and he half expected her teeth to start chattering or something. Maybe she's having a bad dream or something… Naruto wondered to himself. He then wished he could ask the others to stop for a moment while he tried to teleport himself into Tao's dreams to make sure she was alright. But then he would have to explain how he knew that technique, the one Tao had used to teleport herself in battle earlier. Rather than start thinking about that again Naruto tried to start up a conversation in hopes of reducing the anxiety that seemed to be drifting over everyone. It took him a bit, but soon everyone was talking at least a little bit, even Hinata… tired and shy as she was… joined in now and then.
"Hey hey, hold up a second…" Naruto said coming to a stop causing the others to do the same.
"What is it Naruto?" Hinata asked looking over at him.
"I could've sworn she just opened her eyes… just for like a second or something but…" carefully they all placed the stretcher down and watched Tao carefully. After a moment Sakura was about ready to call Naruto a dunce and that he must have been seeing things. However before she could open her mouth Tao's eyes fluttered open then shut again. They stayed closed for only a moment before she opened them again this time she kept her eyes open.
"Wh… what…?" Her voice was weary and slightly crackled. She coughed slightly before trying to sit up but with not too much success.
"Please Tao sensei; try not to sit up…" Hinata said pleading as she put a hand softly on the woman's shoulder. Rather than trying to sit up again she looked at each of them in turn as if trying to remember something.
"What happened… where are we?"
"We're still on our way to the sand village." Sakura said quickly.
"That lightning attack of yours made quick work of those ninja's it was great!" Rock Lee added grinning down at her.
"Oh the lightning rain… wait, I didn't hurt any of you did I?" she asked looking up at them afraid that she might have struck one of her companions. They all quickly shook their heads and reassured her that they were all fine mainly thanks to her.
"I'm sorry for being such an inconvenience… I can walk now." She said but they all refused to let her try asking her how she would manage to walk if she couldn't manage to even sit up. Finally they decided to camp for the night and Naruto and Lee would show her what they had managed to find on the ninja if she agreed not to try walking till tomorrow. That settled they found a good spot to set up camp where Tao could sit up with her back to a tree. While Hinata and Sakura were gathering fire wood Naruto and Lee dumped the various items they had collected in front of Tao for her examination.
"We searched them all like you suggested, but we didn't find much." Lee said as he rummaged through his backpack making sure not to miss anything he had gathered.
"Yeah, but they all had these weird pendants." Naruto said holding up one for her to look at. "They were all wearing one and we grabbed all of them just incase they were different." He handed the pendant over to Tao who examined it carefully for a moment before placing it down wanting to look at the other items before fully expecting any of them.
"I took three headbands; they all have different symbols on them. Not only that but the symbols keep changing." Lee handed her the headbands and paused for a moment before continuing. "There's more though… the three nin's I took the forehead protectors from… they all had this strange symbol on their forehead. Here…" he stuck his hands in both his pockets and pulled a crumpled piece of paper from one of them. "I tried to draw a copy of the symbol, just incase you knew if it meant anything." He said as he handed her the piece of paper. She looked over all the items as the boys handed them to her, then told them to help Sakura and Hinata once they had shown her all they had gathered.
The sun had set and dinner was being cooked over a small fire with the four huddled around it with Tao looking on from the side.
"Tao? Can I ask you something?" Hinata asked shyly looking over at her. Tao smiled and nodded. "Umm… when you were attacked by the ninja… you got hurt and umm… while Sakura and I were cleaning the wound on your back… um… that is… you see…"
"You mean the runes on my back right?" Hinata looked up surprised. Before she could start apologizing for something she was sure she wasn't supposed to bring up Naruto jumped in and asked. "Ruins? No no the marks on you're back."
"You idiot!" Sakura yelled hitting him over the head. "The symbols on her back are called runes."
"Owww… how was I supposed to know that…"
"She just told us Naruto." Lee pointed out to him before looking back at Tao. "I hope you don't think it's rude for us to ask, but they looked like burn marks so we were curious. How did you get them?"
"A long while after leaving my village I was fortunate enough to come across someone who was able to control lightning as I did. Though at the time it would not have been accurate to say I controlled it at all. His name was Inazuma Arashiasu, but those who knew him called him 'storm bringer'. For some time I became his student, and he taught me the many ways in which I could use and control lightning. Every time I mastered a new skill a lightning bolt would strike me burning a mark onto my back showing that my power had grown. Since I don't really feel any pain from lightning I never objected and was simply happy to be taught." Burning your own student to show they've done a good job? Naruto thought to himself, I'll take a pat on the back or a bowel of ramen any day!
"Is lightning control the only ability you have?" Lee asked curiously as Sakura began to pass out the food.
"No, before I left my village my mother and father trained me a little. My father taught me techniques of the mind, such as dream projection and teleportation. My mother tried to teach me healing, but she wasn't able to teach me anything past minor cuts and bruises before I left… but she also taught me how to sing."
"Sing? How is singing good in a fight?" Naruto asked. Tao chuckled softly.
"Depending on the song and the amount of energy I put in it, I can ether put an enemy to sleep or hold them in a trance for almost any amount of time. It's proven to be quite useful on more than one occasion."
"Why did you leave home so soon?" Sakura asked "I mean… it seemed like you had a lot more you could have learnt before you left so…"
"I left because I had to, I made a promise I would… and I never break my promises." She quickly gave a reassuring smile to the others before continuing. "Now then, I'm going to try and get to sleep… since we cross to the desert tomorrow I need to be rested. Also, I plan to show Kakashi what you found on the ninjas." The four of them stared at her blankly mouths gaping as they all wondered if they had heard her correctly.
"What's the matter? I said I could dream project, since I have Kakashi's headband I can follow the scent of his blood and charka to the dream realm and find him."
"You sound just like Inuzuka Kiba, a guy in our class whose sense of smell is just as sharp as his dogs." Lee commented as he at his share of fish soup. Tao simply smiled and lay down carefully clutching one of each item in her hands wanting to make sure it carried over with her into the dream realm.
It took her longer than normal to get to the dream realm; she blamed it on her overuse of lightning. By drawing power that she still had bound within her had really worn her out. Next time I've got to try to unseal some of my power rather than yanking it through the seal. Looking around the dream realm she noticed that Kakashi wasn't asleep yet so she sat down placing the items next to her. She sat in a meditative pose and began to focus on the lightning that flowed within her as freely as blood in hopes of restoring enough of her physical energy to be able to walk tomorrow while she waited for Kakashi to fall asleep.
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"But I don't understand; why do you need to go to sleep right now? We should be trying to figure out a way out of here." Kakashi suppressed a sigh as he tried to explain again to Sasuke what he was trying to do.
"Look, I need to get in touch with the hokage, and the one leading Naruto, Sakura and the others has the ability to do this. How I'm not too sure, I'm more hoping to succeed in copying the technique required to get there really."
"Kakashi you act too relaxed for a situation such as this." Sasuke hissed. After his continuing nightmares and unconsciously trying to strangle his sensei afterwards Sasuke wasn't sure if he was going to be going to sleep anytime soon.
"Just trust me alright Sasuke, believe it or not I do know what I'm doing." Sasuke simply grimaced but decided not to point out the fact that Kakashi had just said he wasn't sure if he could get there. Instead the boy simply nodded as Kakashi sat with his back to a crate and closed his eyes concentrating. Slowly but surly he felt the world swirl around him as he felt himself being lifted away from his body. He could only hope that he managed to reach Tao's dreams and not someone else's.
He kept his eyes closed for a moment, even after he felt the ground form beneath his feet. He hadn't really succeeded the first time he had tried to copy one of Tao's techniques, and he was hoping that he hadn't gone and messed it up again. Opening his eyes he gave a sigh of relief; this looked just like the place he had first seen Tao in his dreams. So this should be the right place. Kakashi thought to himself as he looked around hoping to find Tao there. He spotted her almost immediately sitting peacefully on the grass. Walking over to her he sat down across from her.
"Glad to see you're asleep." Tao's eyes snapped open and stared at Kakashi in complete surprise. "My Sharingan eye allows me to copy any technique I see." Kakashi explained as he grinned at Tao.
"Wow that's amazing! How does it work?" Tao asked bringing her knees under her so she could lean forward to look more closely at Kakashi's Sharingan eye. Kakashi felt his face turn red under his mask.
"Um… well it's a blood line ability passed down through…" Kakashi cut himself short. He had noticed something in the back of Tao's eyes. Looking more closely he noticed that instead of his reflection in her eyes there seemed to be some sort of yellow fox looking back at him. "What the…" he muttered softly. Looking confused for a moment Tao was about to ask him what he meant before she realized what he must have seen. She sat back quickly nearly falling onto her back in the process. Kakashi looked at her slightly confused.
"Well I'm glad you managed to make it here, it took me a little bit of effort to get myself here so I wasn't too sure if I was going to be able to bring you here to so I – " Kakashi held up his hand in a request for her to be quiet.
"Tell me Tao, what are you?" Kakashi asked, his eyes were serious and focused on hers as if he planed to pick out any lie she might tell in response to his question.
"What do you mean?" she asked trying to keep her voice steady, but didn't manage to fully succeed.
"I'm asking what you are; there is much about you that doesn't seem human."
"What do you mean? I look every bit like a human; I walk on two legs just fine… I act just like a human –" Tao stopped short realizing her mistake a little too late. She had thought she was doing so well with her human disguise that she had been quickly offended when Kakashi had commented that she didn't seem like a human. And in her efforts to defend herself she had accidentally let slip the possibility that she wasn't human. Kakashi narrowed his eyes at her waiting for her to truthfully answer his question as she tried to cover her panic of having being found out. I can't let him find out… he will be just like all the others; and why not? Why wouldn't he? Although while she would have liked to have tried to convince him otherwise… to convince him she was nothing more than a human… it seemed like such a thing would be impossible now. Bowing her head down sadly she answered him.
"I am a Yatsune, one of the five tailed demon foxes." Tao had brought her legs up to her chest and rapped her arms around them. "Though I don't know why they always call me a demon fox… demons are supposed to be evil, and it's not like we've ever done anything evil…" Kakashi looked at the girl in surprise. Whatever he was expecting her to say, that wasn't it. And what she had said made him think. It was true she hadn't done anything destructive or demonic… if nothing else she had been trying to be as helpful as possible. A complete opposite to the nine tailed demon fox… Kakashi thought to himself. He looked Tao over as she sat there slightly curled up still sitting as if she expected something bad to happen.
"Tao…" he paused for a moment and repeated her name again when she didn't move. She lifted her head up slightly to peak at him over her knees and from underneath the stray wisps of hair that had fallen across her face. Her eyes showed a pleading fear which caused Kakashi to wonder for a moment if he had done something to cause her to feel such fear.
"Tao, why are you afraid?"
"I am afraid…" she whispered in reply.
"Of what?"
"Of what you will say…"
"What will I say?"
"You will tell me to leave, that you don't want to see me anymore and to leave the others alone… you will fear me or hate me… everyone always does…" she replied softly with a small sniff. Wondering for a moment how he could have given her this impression he suddenly thought of Naruto. Naruto had grown up with people through out the village hating him, and never knowing why… perhaps something similar had happened to Tao. If she had grown up with people constantly fearing and hating her for what she truly was… then wouldn't she expect it from everyone?
"Well… I can't really say that I hate or fear you. It's not like you've really given me any reason to anyway; though I am curious to know as to how you got mixed up in all of this." She raised her head to look at him her fear had been completely replaced by her curiosity to his reaction. She giggled softly.
"That one's really easy to explain; you see I owe both you and Naruto a life debt." She said as she managed to give a weak smile.
"What do you… wait… do you mean to tell me, the fox that Naruto and I pulled out from under a fallen tree… was you?" Tao nodded.
"That's right." She said as Kakashi's mind spun as he took in this new concept. Well it certainly does explain a lot…Naruto was always hanging around fox Tao…no wait this Tao… when they got attacked she must have been nearby, and since both Naruto and I needed help she quickly stepped in in hopes of repaying her debt. Kakashi looked back up at Tao as she raised a hand to cover a yawn. Looking at him she smiled.
"My mother always told me that if you're tired in you're dreams then you've overstressed yourself in the waking world; it's not very common to be sleepy in the dream world." She blinked for a moment then looked at him. "You… you're really not afraid of me? You don't hate me or…" Kakashi shook his head. Tao leaned forward again this time wrapping her arms around him nuzzling her face into his shoulder. "Thank you…"
"Hey… hey now… didn't you bring something's with you that you needed to show me?" Tao leaned back on her heels letting him go. First she brought him up to date with everything that had happened since she had talked to him last and tried not to notice the way Kakashi stared at her when she said she made it rain lightning. Kakashi in turn told her about how he had managed to break free thanks to her and how he ended up in Sasuke's dream and gotten them both out again. While listening to Kakashi story Tao picked up one of the forehead protectors and turned it over in her hands staring at it.
"I think… I think I have an idea as to what's going on." She looked up at Kakashi who looked at her curiously. "Kakashi, people from every village are being kidnapped by ninja's who wear changing headbands… so far it doesn't seem like anyone's noticed but… once they find out that their people are missing…"
"People will start pointing fingers; not only that… but it seems as if the captured ninja's are not just being drained of their charka but brainwashed as well… and if the person behind this all sends these brainwashed ninja's to fight against other villages." Kakashi frowned and shook his head. "I don't like where this is going… it seems as if someone is trying to start a war between villages."
"But why would someone do such a thing?"
"Perhaps the one in charge doesn't want to wait till they have enough power to overtake the villages on his own… so he's hoping that the villages will take each other out so they can just move in." Kakashi paused for a moment as he thought this true. If they were right… they were in way over their heads. "Tao, is there any way you could get in contact with the Hokage of Konohagakure?" Tao thought for a moment.
"I don't know, I was only able to find you because I had you're headband. Through the scent of blood and charka I was able to find you." She said pointing to his forehead protector that she still wore. "To try and find someone I don't know, don't know where they are…"
"They are in Konohagakure village, my home." Kakashi thought for a moment trying to figure out how to get Tao to bring the right person to the dream world. "Tao… when you go to search for the Hokage, can I come with you?" Tao looked at him surprised for a moment.
"I don't know… it's never been tried before. My tribe the Yatsune is the only one I know of that have ever been able to…"
"Can I at least try… my Sharingan eye was able to bring me here on my own, I'm sure it will allow me to follow you to Konohagakure." Tao paused for a moment then nodded.
"It's at least worth a try…" Kakashi nodded as he moved on to the pendants. Looking over one carefully Kakashi thought of something else.
"Tao… how many can you pull into this dream world of yours?" he asked not looking up from the pendant.
"I don't know…probably a few; how many did you have in mind."
"We need to talk to the Hokage for sure, but there are some others I was hoping we might be able to bring here as well."
"Uh huh…" Tao said stifling a yawn.
"If this theory proves to be true; the other villages will need to be warned of –" Kakashi stopped short as he felt something soft fall on the front of his lap. Looking down he saw Tao's head resting on his knee, her shoulder half on his leg as if she had simply fallen forward. Kakashi froze not sure what to do with the fox-girl who seemed to be too tired to stay sitting… nor did he know what to do about the fact that she was half resting on his leg.
"Um… Tao? Humans don't… I mean…" Tao turned slightly so she could look up at him.
"Oh… well you said you don't mind me being a fox right?" Kakashi nodded but wasn't sure why she would ask. Before he could ask anything about it her hair fell forward over her face. Reaching forward to brush the hair out of her eyes he paused noticing that it wasn't hair… but fur. Her ears grew long and pointy as they moved up near the top of her head now covered in yellow fur with black tips at the ends. Her hair… or more fur washed down over her covering her from head to toe. And for a brief moment, when Tao was half way between her fox and human form, she seemed to hold an eerie beauty about her that Kakashi had never seen before. It lasted for the briefest of moments before her human form melted away leaving a yellow fox where a woman once was. Squirming slightly she gently rolled herself over into Kakashi's lap where she curled up seemingly content. She looked up at him curiously from where she sat.
"Now, what where you saying before? You wanted me to bring some other people to the dream world besides this Hokage person right? Well it shouldn't be any trouble I guess, although it will be easier if they are all in the same place." She paused for a moment and when Kakashi didn't answer she pressed her black nose to his causing him to blink and move his face back slightly. "Are you ok Kakashi?" she asked her mind voice sounding slightly concerned.
Was he alright? Well sure, why not? He was just sitting there with a fox lying in his lap. But… just a few moments ago she was human. Kakashi wasn't sure he had felt more confused at any time in his life before than he did just then; or awkward for that matter…
"I'm fine…" he managed to say "Tao… didn't you say you had five tails?" looking down Tao wavered two yellow black tipped tails.
"I only have two at the moment because my power is bound together. Because lightning can be a bit obvious at times my teacher showed me how to bind my tails together using energy from lightning. When I bind my tails together it's a lot harder for anyone to notice how much and what kind of power I have…"
"So that's why you looked just like an ordinary fox before… you had all your tails bound together didn't you?" Tao nodded.
"That's also why I couldn't get myself out from under that log… I had sealed up just about everything so I had nothing left to get me out with."
"Can't you unbind it?" she nodded.
"I can unbind it… I have to be in my fox form or half-human form to do it. I couldn't do it before because my lower half was stuck under the tree... I couldn't reach my tail to unbind it. I've got two now because I unbound them before to turn into my human form. Remember? It was the first time I met you in my human form, you were talking to the one person with furry eyebrows." Kakashi laughed at the comment on Gai's eyebrows.
"Yes I remember, but getting back to what we were talking about before… yes; you said you could get anyone here right? Bu its easier if they are in the same room or something right? So what I think we need to do is give them a reason to all be in the same room, once hey are all there you can make them fall asleep and bring them here right?"
"You got it!" she said with a yip. "Just not tonight though is all I ask… I don't think I've got enough energy to be able to."
"Couldn't you just unbind your tails some more?" Kakashi asked but Tao shook her head.
"Since this is only the dream world it will not have an affect on my form in the waking world… basically it wouldn't do any good." Kakashi nodded then went over his plan with Tao for a little longer before he decided he should get back to Sasuke. He didn't want him to think that he wasn't going to wake up or something. Tao told him to take the two headbands and pendants with him, she said they should come with him to his side of the waking world she wasn't sure but perhaps they might be helpful in the ways of a disguise or something. Kakashi gripped them tight as Tao leaned up and pressed her nose quikly to his forehead causing him disappear.
Looking around for a moment Tao turned to wash one of her tails as she began to think of the next day. Tomorrow they would reach the village of the sand, and she had to think of a way to convince the one they needed to come with them. From the small glimpse she had seen of this person from her foresight it was going to take a lot more convincing to get them to come with her. Now how am I going to pull this one off? She thought to herself as she smoothed over some of the rough patches in her fur.
Authors Note: I am so sorry this chapter took so long to complete! Also I apologize for it being so long too . all I ask is that you blame it on my finals and not me… yep the writing of this chapter took me from midterms to finals… Oo;; ah yes, but while it has taken me a bit to complete please R&R and since my finals will be wrapping themselves up soon the next chapter shouldn't take too long in getting here ah, and till then please stick around, I promise to make it worth the wait! Also this chapter was probably as long as it was 'cause I didn't exactly want to leave it at a cliffhanger or anything. I wonder if I'll get it at the right length eventually :-p Or at least try anyway :-p Oh yeah, and with Tao? Gotta remember she's an innocent little fox-girl who might know a lot about everything… but still sees no harm in curling up in a comfy lap. Well… see you all in chapter 10!