Naruto: A Red Eye Hidden by Shadow

by Tatanka4Life

On the fateful night of the Uchiha Massacre, a girl of Uchiha and Nara blood is spared and left with no memories of her past. Now she must walk on the path left by her family to help her build a new future for herself. Her path will be hard, full of struggles and pain, but as long as she has her friends and family at her side she will keep forging ahead, even if it was a drag.

50. Chapter 49: The Final Confrontation

Chapter 49

Desperate Plans, Dire Situations: The Final Confrontation!

Inevitability finally arrived.

The strange connection Amari and Gaara shared had whispered of an eventual confrontation between them, a battle in which their wills and purposes for existence would clash like dueling blades to prove undeniable dominance. Well, the day finally arrived. This moment in time, this battle where only one could stand tall as the true victor, would determine whose reason to exist gave them greater strength.

There would be no torn apart hearts in this clash of purpose. No held back killing blows for the sake of their bleeding hearts cry to stop fighting one another. Gaara was not Haku. No, their hearts were as different as the latter's ice and Amari's fire. Haku found no pleasure in killing; his purpose was to live and die for the person precious to him, even if that person only saw him as a tool.

Amari empathized with Haku. She understood his reasons, his purpose and his heart as well as her own, because they were so alike in the most frightening way. One moment, a singular experience dictated their sides in that clash and bound them to their similar but separate paths, forcing them into a duel to the death for what they deemed precious.

That single moment, that life altering experience to dictate where they stood on the battlefield, wasn't anything flashy or traumatizing. They had already been traumatized and alone before it, which made the hand to reach out to them when they had nothing—when they were nothing, bearing no bonds of family or friendship—a monumental, life altering moment. And as they battled, as they crossed blade, senbon and ninjutsu, every attack they landed was a self-inflicted cut or stab to their own hearts.

Their hearts bled for each other in their battle, begging them to do no more harm than necessary to this stranger a thread of fate tied them to. And when all was said and done, they even cried for one another and all the pain they endured.

When Hikari first showed herself, Amari's greatest fear had been a battle mirroring Haku's. She could feel that the Suna native and her were tied together by a similar connection, and that meant any battle with her would force Amari to open up self-inflicted wounds on her heart. Yet her greatest fears didn't become reality; Hikari offered a different path, a path she had leaped for in gratitude.

This time will be different, she believed. It had been in many ways. Rather than fighting against one another, she and Hikari were able to fight side by side as comrades instead of enemies, all in an effort to save the blind kunoichi's precious person. But as Hikari's battle against Gaara continued, as her precious person refused to open his eyes and see everything she was trying to do to save him, Amari's heart tore open differently than before.

No matter what they did, no matter how hard they tried, Gaara kept embracing his insanity. The darkness of solitude and isolation consumed his very soul. It transformed him into a monster, one who couldn't see the suffering of his precious person, even when she was right in front of his eyes, pleading with her broken heart to come home.

He felt nothing. He didn't care about Hikari or how he broke her heart. Gaara loved only himself. Loved only the bloodthirsty purpose he latched onto, for as long as other people existed, his couldn't be wiped out. Because his existence, his purpose, was to eliminate all other existences.

Amari hadn't seen how vast the darkness obscuring his vision had been, or maybe she hadn't tried to. To her mind, as a team with Hikari, all they had to do was pummel Gaara into defeat to show him the error of his ways. By failing to kill any of them, his purpose—and the strength he believed it gave him—would be shattered while theirs would be reinforced by Iron Sand like strength.

Most of all, though, her greatest hope was for Gaara's eyes to open, even for the briefest of seconds, so he could see Hikari's hand reaching out to him.

But you didn't open your eyes, you bastard! You shut her out! You broke her heart! And now I'm going to break you!

Like an arrow released from a fully taut bowstring, the chakra cloak enveloped form of Amari shot through the branches after Gaara. All her teammates saw was the flicker of a green flash.

One burning red eye scorched through the veil of darkness she refused to see while the piercing lavender eye gazed into the void of his soul without remorse or fear. Inevitability arrived, and she wouldn't run away from it any longer. I tried to pretend I could avoid this. I hoped you would just walk away from my home and never return. But that's because I was afraid of you and your power. I was afraid of the all-encompassing darkness I could see in your eyes.

I was a coward and a fool.

Amari reappeared on the trunk of the tree adjacent to Gaara and Hikari's position, red eye ablaze and two onyx blades in her hands, then she released her chakra from her feet, the green flicker providing the only evidence of her presence there. Gaara spun to face her previous position, giant sand arm already on a warpath, accented by his golden eyes alight with excitement and bloodlust. He could finally feel alive, if only he could kill her.

The Sand shinobi smashed his giant sand arm into the trunk of the tree to destroy her, but his eyes betrayed him, as did the eyes of her allies. The flicker of green and the image of her body they witnessed was an afterimage her new speed left behind. Amari, so consumed by the fury of what Gaara had done to Hikari, didn't even notice her sudden advancement granted by the concoction of sheer emotion, adrenaline and her chakra cloak.

Two blades, thrown when she landed on the trunk, whizzed past Gaara's sand arm, undeterred from their path.

"What?" Gaara hissed, stunned by the lack of any body. The hilts of the blades landed snugly in Amari's hands as she reappeared directly in front of Gaara. Satisfaction swelled at the widening of his eyes when their eyes locked. "How did you—"

But I won't be a coward or a fool any longer. I'll erase your darkness in agonizing fire!

Chakra emanated from her blades as they spun deftly in her hands to face towards the forest floor, then she struck. Blades strengthened by her chakra, she slashed two powerful strikes across his chest, cutting through the sand armor to the flesh below. Amari rolled her body low, ducking beneath Gaara's swinging sand arm to cut his exposed knees.

This was a battle between their chosen paths, their purposes for existence, with only one possible winner. There'd be no runner up prize. No second place trophy for merely showing up to this fight. No. Only one of them was walking away today with their purpose and body intact, she'd make sure of that!

Gaara, despite his new open wounds, jumped up to avoid another slash of her blade. The massive sand arm elongated quickly, prepared to smash the Uchiha through the tree branch into oblivion, but again she had already moved. Gaara faced a wielder of the Sharingan and Byakugan; she could predict his movements on subtle body language and see his high speed attacks as if they were moving in slow motion.

Now to get you away from Hikari!

The sound of her sandals clapping against bark caused Gaara to turn his head around in shock, but even then he was too late to react. The clap of her sandal against bark didn't give away her current position; it gave away her last position. As soon as he turned his head, he saw her foot inches from his face, and then they collided at full force, sending him hurtling away from the tree Hikari had been pinned to.

"You're speed in that form is impressive, I'll admit," Amari said, voice consumed by the fire in her heart. "But now we're going to fight at my speed. Think you can keep up when fractions of a second are all you get to evade or counterattack?" Gaara returned to his feet, a vicious snarl on his monstrous face, but it couldn't match the seething features of Amari paired with her smoldering red eye. "Let's find out."

In her Byakugan vision, she looked back at Hikari. Chakra flowed through her chakra network, proof she still lived, but the sand around her also flowed with chakra. While imperceptible to the naked eye at this point, it was steadily tightening around her unconscious body, slowly but surely it would crush the life out of her unless Gaara was defeated.

I'm going to get you out of there, she promised, then she bolted after her enemy.

"Sand Shuriken!" Gaara roared.

Sand from Gaara's transformed arms shaped into shurikens and launched in enormous volleys of powerful blades of sand as he swung his left arm at her. Amari could see every single sand shuriken. The attack covered a wide berth; it'd be impossible for an average shinobi without fine-tuned senses to dodge, which revealed its purpose—cut off an enemy advance through a massive assault the naked eye struggled to track.

His attack, however, could be countered by a wielder of dōjutsu and speedster. Amari created the clone seal, forming a clone directly under her to use as an impromptu platform in her flight, flickering away again. The clone dispersed on impact from the sand shuriken, but Gaara's golden eyes were already scanning the area in search of her. He was learning, adapting to her style of attack with every second they battled.

Their eyes met briefly, her new position on the bottom of a tree branch; her ponytailed hair gravitated towards the forest floor. Gaara whipped another sand arm at her, firing off another volley, but they only scuffed and pierced into the bark of an empty tree.

He turned and whipped his arms again and again, over and over, creating a seemingly inescapable and impenetrable attack that covered all three hundred and sixty degrees around him. An intelligent move. The speed Amari moved at overwhelmed him, especially in close range where his bulky size made him slower than his smaller, more agile enemy. To counter her superior agility, he was planning to keep her at range to avoid a close-quarters battle, all but guaranteeing one of these sand shurikens eventually would strike her.

Sand shurikens pelted every tree, every branch and every leaf in their wake. Green life gradually floated towards the ground beneath them, and between the falling leaves flashed the blue-haired shinobi.

There!

An opening. A small gap in the assault, similar to a door open just enough to slip through. Luckily she was small too, and with this opening she could close the distance and attack. Landing on the trunk of a tree, blades tightly held in both hands, Amari moved to attack. Sand shuriken tore up the tree around her, sounding like a hundred axes chopping rapidly into the tree one after another. Then she became a torpedo, launching off the trunk via chakra released from her feet. Blades of sand whipped past her and whistled by her ears; one grazed past her cheek to spill forth a bead of crimson blood.

Gaara, who had been throwing his arms around wildly after the quicker opponent, saw her at the last moment and brought one of his massive arms up to shield himself. His line of sight momentarily blocked, the Nara re-calibrated her line of attack, bringing up the clone seal with two kunais in hand.

I'll have to be careful using this jutsu with my other clone still out in the Leaf. Shadow Clone Jutsu!

Three separate pairs of feet pressed against the sand arm, halting their forward momentum completely with hard kicks. Amari's red eye saw Gaara's golden eyes widen at the increased numbers as he skidded slightly back. But he didn't freeze up. His tail lashed over his smaller body as sand particles tried to wrap around the trios ankles to end this battle here and now.

A startled sound wormed its way out of Gaara's throat when their presence all but vanished. He only had enough time to blink once before a solid fist slammed against his cheek, but he didn't see the source until the clone appeared on his right. A chakra coated blade cut across the sand on his back, through the armor to the flesh as a second clone emerged out of a Body Flicker on his left.

The real Amari came out of her Body Flicker above him, slamming her heel down into the back of his head, lips curled into a vicious growl.

You regenerated from Hikari's damaging attacks. None of my attacks alone are nearly as powerful as hers, which can only mean these ones are regenerating too. It won't be enough to cut you and hit you if I'm going to save her. I need something more.

Again the trio vanished, the only thing left of their presence being the fading flickers of green chakra. Gaara jumped back and away. His golden eyes flicked up and down, left and right in search of the missing shinobi so he could crush them into dust. He didn't find their presence until he landed, only because they launched another coordinated assault.

"You won't get away from me!" a clone of Amari shouted as she landed a hard kick to his sand covered face.

At the same time, the second clone appeared behind him, leg sweeping out Gaara's still normal legs. The combo did exactly as Amari hoped: The metaphorical giant had been tripped. He fell onto the branch of the tree and groaned, dazed by the hard hits.

Two kunai then pierced into the trunk at Gaara's sides, thrown from the branch directly above him. In his daze, he did not see the glint of light shine off the ninja wire attached to the hilts of the blades, nor did he see how the ends of those wires were caught between Amari's teeth.

"This is what happens when you piss me off!" she growled.

Fire Style: Fire Ball Jutsu!

Intense flames expelled from her mouth, shooting down the wires as if following an oil trail straight into Gaara, engulfing him in an intense inferno.

Out of the fire, a giant sand arm stretched to attack the real Amari. She quickly released the ninja wires and Body Flickered away just as the arm smashed straight through the thick branch she had been perched on, splintering it and sending it to the forest floor below.

Hmm, she hummed in discontent, it's good I didn't use Dragon Flame Jutsu or even the most powerful Fire Ball Jutsu I can muster with my chakra cloak activated like I wanted to. That sand armor of his protected him completely against my attack. Dragon Flame Jutsu may deal damage, but I don't know if it'll be enough. And if either I or Sasuke use it, we'll be drained of most of our chakra.

Mimi's food pills weren't an unlimited supply, nor were they a crutch they could overuse without consequences. Food pills didn't magically heal the fatigue their bodies endured or would continue to endure in this battle. The more they consumed, the greater the chance of the side effects rearing their ugly heads.

"High levels of stress and anxiety, insomnia, headaches, and a level of chakra exhaustion most shinobi don't even know exists," was Mimi's warning during the preliminary rounds. They couldn't risk being overcome by those, not now. Not when they had to win this battle.

That leaves Mimi's Water Style, taijutsu attacks, any weapons Tenten might carry and one more shot with Chidori if we give Sasuke a food pill. Maybe two shots if we're lucky.

How did she use all these pieces together to get the best result? None of them alone could defeat Gaara. To defeat him and save Hikari, they would need to coordinate every single technique and attack they had in a massive offensive his sand armor and regenerative abilities couldn't overcome.

But right now we're scattered. We're disorganized as I try to keep him busy.

Amari dodged through the trees to evade further volleys of sand shurikens while her clones moved to attack at close-range. She was furious, true; internally she was hot with rage, desiring nothing more than to tear Gaara apart. But she wasn't beyond reason.

Hikari's life hung in the balance. Their lives hung in the balance. Much as she wanted to be a hotheaded idiot who defeated Gaara by being so angry and full of adrenaline she blasted him into the next century with a single jutsu, this was reality. Not a dream.

This was a war where real lives could be lost based on decisions or actions she made.

I think it's time to call in Atsuko, Amari thought. She hoped to handle this without disturbing the Head of the Crows while she defended the Leaf, but she needed every bit of power they had to finish this fight.

Amari wiped her thumb across her cheek, painting it with the fresh blood and wiped it over her palm. Her senses spiked when the memories of her two clones defeat hit her. Red met gold as Gaara cannonballed directly at her.

"Uchihaaaaa!"

Her hands never stopped moving until she pressed her palm to her shoulder.

Summoning Jutsu!

"You wasted Hikari's sacrifice!"

The incredible power and speed of Gaara slammed the kunoichi directly into the trunk of tree, promptly making her disappear into a mess of splinters.

"I did it! I killed her!" Gaara cheered, laughing manically. His laughter ended when dozens of crows swept out from beneath his massive sand hand without any human body anywhere in sight. "What? What is this?! No, no, no! I killed her! I know I did!" he roared in disbelief.

The crows reformed a reasonable distance from the enemy into the still very alive Amari, now accompanied by a crow on her shoulder and without her chakra cloak.

"Well, I'd say that was cutting it a little close, wouldn't you agree, Lady Amari?" the calm male voice of Osamu entered the forest.

The kunoichi exhaled a soft and short laugh. "Yeah. Sorry about that, Osamu. This guy has been a real drag." She looked up at the black feathered crow, who stood the same height as Atsuko and wore a Leaf headband. The distinguishing difference between the two, besides the obvious difference of gender, was an iridescent blue to Osamu's feathers.

"I was expecting Atsuko, but I'm glad to have you here, Osamu. I owe you another one for saving me again."

"You owe us nothing more than you already give, Lady Amari," Osamu responded kindly. "Lady Atsuko is currently coordinating a massive assault operation. Until she is finished I will be your backup."

"I feel safer already," Amari said, smiling at the crow.

Gaara's golden eyes darted away from her, locking onto movement behind. She knew what he saw. Through her Byakugan eye she saw Mimi and Tenten heading for Hikari, likely in hopes to remove her prison with Water Style ninjutsu. The sight of them close to Hikari made Gaara harden the sand prison around her body.

"Not one step closer or I'll kill her here and now!" Gaara shrieked.

Mimi stopped and cursed under her breath. Amari grit her teeth together, rage spiking again. "You bastard. You've done enough to her already! This is between you and me now!"

Gaara's transformed face split into a wide and feral grin. "This fight will only end when one of us is dead. You either kill me and save Hikari, or I'll crush all of you into oblivion! But if anyone tries to save her before that, I'll kill her before I kill all of you. So you better hurry," he laughed. "With every passing second the sand will harden, inevitably killing her."

"What a twisted game he has concocted," Osamu said, revulsion in his voice. "I cannot tell if it is the Shukaku's influence, or if this child's life as a jinchūriki has driven him towards insanity."

The word caught Amari off guard. "A…jinchūriki?" she asked.

"Yes," Osamu answered. "Although the word may be foreign to you, you know quite well already the life jinchūriki's face. Yes, I can see it in your eye now that you are beginning to realize whom I speak of."

Osamu looked to her best friend, who stood out of earshot of their conversation. "Naruto, too, has lived the hard life all jinchūriki face. He should be considered a hero for the personal sacrifice foisted upon him as an infant. Nevertheless, Naruto and Gaara both contain within them tailed-beast—the Shukaku and the Nine-Tailed Fox—and because of this, they are ostracized. Feared and hated because people see them as the monsters they contain, not the individuals they are."

"I…see."

"Permit me to ask one question, Lady Amari." He met her red eye, curiosity within his infinitely dark orbs. "Who is this Suna kunoichi to you? I can sense your determination to save her. I heard in your voice but a moment ago seething fury for this boy harming her further. Why do you intend to risk your life for her?"

Amari glanced to her through her Byakugan eye, her mind playing back Hikari's final words.

"Why would you risk your life for her? What is she to you?!"

"Amaririsu is a precious treasure I was fortunate to meet. She has shown me more kindness than any other soul since you severed our friendship. She does not fear me. She does not ostracize me or treat me as a tool. Amaririsu treated me as a person…as a friend."

"Why do I protect her? Because I deem her life worth sacrificing mine for. You will never stop them, Gaara. Not even you possess the strength to sever the bond a pure soul like her can create." Her tear streaked face and sad smile hurt Amari. "Forgive me, Gaara. Even though you were my most precious person, I did not possess the strength to save you. But 'tis the cards I was dealt. I played them as best I could, but perhaps…perhaps in the next life we will meet as friends. I'd like to see you then."

She could feel Hikari's heartbreak coursing through her body. She could feel the ominous hatred within her heart wanting to snap loose to destroy Gaara completely for what he had done to her. But she reined in her emotions. To act on them without any thought or plan wouldn't save Hikari; she had to fight smart.

"That could have easily been me pinned to that tree. Hikari risked her life to save mine, because she deemed me worth sacrificing her own life for." Amari clenched her hands into fists. "Hikari…Hikari walked a path worse than mine. She didn't meet new precious people like I did. She's been alone for years, hoping, dreaming of a better future. One where the one person she considered precious would return.

"But he never did. He kept looking towards the darkness, and now we're here." Amari shifted her body to prepare to fight again. "I won't leave her to die. I can't. No, I refuse to let her die. We may not have known one another long, but in that short time we connected." Just like you and I did, Haku. "If he refuses to take the hand she reached out to him, then I'll take her hand instead. I'll keep reaching out to anyone who needs help, that's the path I've chosen. That's my ninja way!"

"I see," Osamu hummed in appreciation. "Your family's wills live on your heart, Lady Amari. But we cannot do this alone if we are to save Hikari."

"I know," she agreed. "We have to get the others to regroup and get organized. My blades and my Fire Style alone aren't enough to defeat him." Those two kunai I used were my last ones too, and the unfinished Seals I have aren't meant to be normal Explosion Seals, she thought, coordinating every avenue of thought possible. I'll need to finish those later. First step is to get the others to regroup. I think I have a plan.

"Genjutsu may not be effective either," Osamu informed. "If this child and the Shukaku are working together, then the sand spirit will release any genjutsu placed on his host."

"I was worried about that," she muttered.

"Enough talk!" Gaara growled. "If you're too scared to fight me, then I'll kill your friends and incense that fiery spirit of yours!"

Gaara bolted off the tree towards Mimi and Tenten.

"Osamu!"

The crow needed no other command. Amari's physical form burst into crows and sped through the forest, cutting off the Sand shinobi's path before he could get close enough to strike. She reformed as she kicked him, her foot colliding with his impenetrable sand shield made from his giant arm. "You won't lay a finger on anyone else, you bastard!"

The pair pushed off one another and landed back on branches before bolting back in. There was no time to coordinate a plan to her team. Just like with Temari, there was no time to stay stagnant. She had to fight and keep her team moving closer to their objective at the same time.

Amari created a clone beneath her, used her back as a springboard and jumped over Gaara, corkscrewing over his attack, seamlessly landing on a branch to then launch at his back. She connected with her kick, knocking him further down their elevated battlefield and away from her peers.

He recovered and used his sand arm to swing to a tree trunk as she landed on a separate tree, red eye fierce with resolve to stop him. Immediately he shot back in, forcing her to retreat in a backwards and diagonal run up the trunk of the tree, coiling around it with the monster on her tail, his heavy and powerful strikes crushing the bark he came into contact with.

"We are to be the distraction then," Osamu noted quietly for only her to hear.

She nodded and hummed in agreement, Body Flickering around the trunk to turn hunter into hunted, coming up from behind the Sand shinobi to strike. Air whished past her ears as she hugged close to the tree, narrowly dodging the tail of her opponent and jumping in feet first—literally. Two kicks crashed into his chest; nothing damaging, but furthering her distraction.

Using his chest, she jumped back onto the trunk, handspringing up it to avoid the wild punch Gaara struck at her with. Gravity, fortunately, was on her side in this battle. The two kicks removed his feet from the tree, sending his punch wide as gravity tugged him down while his prey retreated higher.

The Sand shinobi stretched the sand of his transformed arm out like claws as he fell. The tendrils snatched onto branches, and the acceleration towards the ground became acceleration towards the canopy.

He's cannonballing himself again.

Chakra flooded through her body as her eyes dialed in on his attack. He was faster than the last time, belting out a wordless banshee shriek at her with a wild look in his eyes. Everything he came into contact with tore apart, nearly Amari too, but the Body Flicker user vanished briefly in her escape, reappearing above him upside down to cannonball herself after him.

The unbelievably quick tail swung for her; how something so large could move so quick continued to amaze Amari. It collided against her body, intent on breaking every bone in her body, but the Uchiha and Crow were well prepared for it. On contact, the body of Amari dispersed into a flock of crows once more. The crows spiraled around him, pecking and scratching at the thick armor, annoying him more than anything else.

As Amari reformed out of sight with Osamu, she pursed her lips in thought. "Physical attacks alone won't deal nearly enough damage, but I noticed something back there," she muttered in thought. "I was sure my Fire Style and the wounds I dealt with my blades hadn't done anything, or at the least would be healed already. But I saw burn marks on his ankles, and the wounds to his knees aren't fully healed yet."

She glanced down at her enemy, who swung and cursed at the agile birds. "Could it be reaching a limit, or are they so minimal he doesn't even bother to heal them?"

"Far more likely to be the former," Osamu said. "The regenerative abilities he and Naruto wield are not a conscious ability they can act upon at any given moment. It is passive, granted by the beast they contain within them, but as you see, it has limits." Osamu's head turned to look at Hikari's pinned body. "For one so young, she already wields incredible power if she can strain the regenerative abilities of a jinchūriki."

Amari hummed. "I'll have to thank her when we're done for giving us a chance to win, but for now I need a new plan to keep him busy. I'm either slowing down out of fatigue, or he's starting to adjust to my speed. I'm betting the first, to be honest."

Dull aches attacked her shoulder and back; the recoil of her Ultimate Defense biting at her with sharp teeth. Fatigue made her limbs and body feel heavy. Even her larger intakes of breath were becoming more consciously noticeable. Amari tried to shake it off. This wasn't the time to slow down. She had to keep moving, keep attacking; it was the only way to save Hikari.

Osamu turned his head to meet her eye. "If we are to be a distraction, Lady Amari, then allow me to offer a plan."

"I'm all ears, Osamu."

"One of my specialties is Combined Transformation. We fight a creature of immense power, so let us become one ourselves."

Become a creature of immense power? Amari grasped the concept. Combined Transformation worked like the Transformation Jutsu, only it was a cooperation technique between two individuals to transform them into a singular new being. It could simply be a person or, as Osamu planned to do, a creature of any kind.

"But what could we be?" she asked, unsure of what animal could even wage a battle in the forest against Gaara's transformation.

"The sky is the limit, Lady Amari."

The sky is the limit. Amari looked up to the sky, brow furrowed deeply in thought. They needed mobility to move from tree to tree, so a powerful grizzly bear was out of the question, but they couldn't be a bird either because they needed strength. Lions or cheetahs could work in theory, but they were physically smaller than Gaara and not nearly as durable as a rhino or bear would be.

Wait a minute, she paused, lips pulling up into a smile. I'm trying to pick a real animal when the sky is the limit. And if the sky is the limit…

Yes! The creature she had in mind would be the perfect combination of strength and agility for their elevated battle. Amari shut her eyes and created two clones, quietly sending them off to regroup the teams then made the Reverse Ram handseal. "Ready, Osamu?" she asked, more giddy than a lifetime supply of ice cream could make her.

"I am at your command, Lady Amari. Let us show him together what the combined power of an Uchiha and the Crows of the Leaf is capable of accomplishing."

"Right! Transform!"

---

Naruto stood frozen in place, watching the battle between Amari and Gaara take place right before his eyes as his mind scrambled to figure out something, anything he could do to help against their opponent. But what? What could he do? This guy, he brushed off Bushy Brows greatest attacks, he even took that Chidori move back in the stadium and he was still standing.

The crows to attack Gaara fled into the canopy of the forest, leaving him alone in his annoyance after swatting at them like flies. None had been hurt, but Gaara hadn't been either. His golden eyes searched the area for Amari, but no one had seen where she reformed at. Not even Naruto.

Amari's giving it her best, but that sand armor of his is protecting him even better than that other sand he used against Bushy Brows. Is there any way for us to even beat him?

"Where'd you go? Aren't you worried about your friends?" the boy turning into a monster taunted. "That's your greatest weakness! These pathetic insects you consider your friends haven't even tried to help you yet. They're too afraid for their own lives, while you waste your feelings on them! Fight only for yourself, Uchiha! Then and only then will you know what true strength is!"

Is…is he right? Is that why he's so powerful?

Was that where real strength came from? Selfish lust for power? Darkness? Was that the truest form of strength?

Silence hung over the forest for a moment. Then, from seemingly every direction, the loudest, ear-splitting roar bellowed through the forest, rolling and reverberating through the large trees. Naruto winced, heart jumping into his throat as he covered his hands over his ears, refusing to take his eyes off the battle but feeling a sense of fear he had never quite felt before. He sensed instead of saw his comrades mimic his reaction.

Wha- what the hell was that?

The answer came faster than he thought it might. Tree branches disintegrated as a large blur of green shot directly for Gaara; in its wake, wind gusted and pressed against those inhabiting the forest, ruffling their clothes. The two forces collided, breaking through an entire tree and into another with Gaara's cry of pain following their destructive path.

The dust did not settle from the attack. No, it was blown away as two huge and powerful looking wings expanded to their maximum width, pushing yet another pulse of air through the forest to whip against their faces. The dust scattered and revealed a jaw-dropping sight.

Naruto's eyes widened. Amari? Is that…is that you?

Standing proudly, or perhaps looming over their enemy, was a green dragon with one red Sharingan eye and one striking lavender eye. Four menacing horns protruded from its skull, the points aimed the opposite direction of its snout. Razor sharp teeth, revealed by a threatening snarl, looked poised and ready to devour their enemy. Its neck, body, tail and legs were all covered by the sharp yet glamorous looking scales.

Overall it was bigger than Gaara, but it wasn't monstrous in size; just small enough to fight and possibly even fly through the crowded forest. Her muscular front legs—arms?—and its talons held onto Gaara, pinning him down as it let out another piercing shriek into his face.

Naruto winced again, features pulled in a grimace at the painful noise. Gaara only laughed in his insanity. "Yes! That's it! Show me your true power!" Somehow, someway, he managed to push himself forward and the dragon back a step. "Only by embracing the monster you hold deep inside will you have any chance of defeating me! Hahahaha! Yes, Uchiha! After I kill you, I will finally feel what it means to be alive! You and you alone will prove my existence beyond any shadow of a doubt!"

He pushed the dragon back with a solid punch to its jowls and then crushed his fist into its torso, sending it flying back through the air. The dragon expanded its wings to decrease its speed and then flapped its wings, lifting up higher into the canopy with Gaara chasing after it as wind pressed down on the mortal humans below them.

Gaara met it in air, but this time the dragon blocked his attack. Blocking with one of its muscular fists, the dragon punched Gaara square in the face with its free fist; the connection of their powerful blows reverberated through the forest like thunder, almost as if the gods themselves were battling.

Gravity pulled them down, but the dragon proved more agile, using all four legs to simultaneously scratch and push off Gaara to land on a branch behind it. As the dragon landed, it recoiled its neck back, large nostrils flaring as it inhaled a large breath. The Sand shinobi laughed wildly and landed on branch of his own, only to look up and see the torrent of flames unleashed just as it crashed into his body.

Yes, a direct hit!

The dragon maintained the fire storm it unleashed a few moments longer before cutting it off, exhaling puffs of smoke from its nostrils with a snort. Even then, though, it did not lower its guard. Burnt wood and ash hit Naruto's nose, and as the smoke cleared, Gaara hidden within a protective sand orb appeared.

Damn it, he cursed. He used his sand to protect him, and it looks like those flames were as strong as Amari's normal Fire Style: Fire Ball Jutsu. Admittedly, he got caught up in the awe of the dragon's presence. In reality, though, the dragon was only a Transformation Jutsu meant to give Amari and her crow more physical size and mass to throw into Gaara. That meant this wasn't the checkmate of the battle. They needed another plan.

If only she was big enough to squish him. A light bulb flickered on in his mind. Wait, I know! Time I call in the chief toad!

Boar, Dog, Bird, Monkey, Ram. Naruto bit his left thumb, drawing blood, and swiped it across his palm. "Summoning Jutsu!"

A poof of smoke enveloped him, but when the wind took it away it revealed a small, palm sized orange toad with purple markings on his body, yellow eyes with dash-like pupils and a sleeveless jacket over his body.

Blinking in utter shock, Naruto was rendered speechless. This was definitely not the chief toad. In his absence of words, the toad spoke first. "What is it? What do you want, kid? Well, whatever it is you better have some treats, because if you think I'm doing something for nothing, you're wrongggg!"

Snapped back to reality, Naruto bellowed, "Oh give me a break!" Why were all of the amphibians such jerks?! "I've about had it with you stinkin' frogs!"

"Oh ho ho, anti-amphibian huh? Well take that you big bigot!" The toad stuck its long tongue at him and blew a raspberry.

"Listen, I don't have time to play games you tiny little squirt," he retorted through grit teeth.

Damn it. After all my training, is this all I am capable of? If he couldn't get the chief of the toads to come, then what chance did they have? He could have squashed him in one hit if I could have summoned him. Arghhh! Damn, I'll just have to make this work otherwise we're all toast.

But what was the little squirt going to do? He didn't have a weapon, let alone any size to actually fight Gaara. And based on his attitude, he wasn't about to do some kind of transformation to help him even the odds.

"This fight will only end when one of us is dead. You either kill me and save Hikari, or I'll crush all of you into oblivion! But if anyone tries to save her before that, I'll kill her before I kill all of you. So you better hurry. With every passing second the sand will harden, inevitably killing her."

Naruto looked worriedly towards Hikari. The sand hadn't crushed her yet, but it was still hardening, slowly suffocating her. We're taking too long. We're all standing by while Amari fights an uphill battle. And if we don't get our act together soon, that girl will die. I…I can't believe he'd just kill her.

Gaara's golden eyes flashed through his mind. Those eyes…

"Sand Shuriken!"

"Take cover!" Sasuke yelled.

Naruto's cerulean eyes bulged as he looked up. Everywhere. Sand Shurikens were raining in every direction, even more than the last time he tried this attack. Caught within them was Amari, the dragon wings and scales of her transformation providing some cushion to the blow as she weathered the storm. But they were coming for him too. Naruto quickly grabbed the orange toad and brought him close to his chest as he jumped to evade.

The toads had given him a lot of crap since he started summoning them, especially Gamabunta, the big jerk. But he had been the one to summon the little guy. The least he could do was try to protect him.

Unfortunately, Naruto's greatest asset was not his speed. A blast of Sand Shurikens connected and sent him flying back into the trunk of a tree, down onto a branch he landed back first against. The collision of back and bark sent him tumbling down to a lower branch, on which his shoulder and side crashed against.

"Ow," he grunted, one eye shut in pain.

"Wowww," the toad drawled sarcastically. "Aren't you pathetic."

Naruto glared at the small fry. "Tch, shut up."

The last thing I need today is lip from an amphibian.

"So, who the heck are these two freaks anyway?" the toad asked, motioning to Gaara and Amari as they duked it out in close-quarters combat. Gaara's powerful punch forcibly knocked her back a few steps, but as his arm retracted, the dragon sunk its teeth into it and yanked him off his feet to throw him through the forest.

"The dragon is a friend of mine using a Combined Transformation Jutsu. The other guy is our enemy," he explained quickly. There wasn't time for anything more than that.

He couldn't just leave Amari to fight this battle alone, and he couldn't let Hikari die. The things he had heard Amari say to the kunoichi, it made him understand why she was trying so hard to protect her.

I can see the similarities between them…and it's scary to see how similar their convictions are to save and protect the people precious to them.

What made it even more frightening for Naruto was he could easily see this battle playing out with two different individuals.

Who were the individuals?

Amari and himself.

With a few different paths in life taken, it could have easily been them fighting this battle against one another. It made him think of a conversation he had with Amari after their battle with Haku.

"Hey Amari, what was the deal between you and Haku in our fight? Why did you risk your life to save him?" he remembered asking her.

"Haku…he and I aren't so different, Naruto. Do you know what separates us?"

"He's a boy and you're a girl?"

Amari rolled her eye at him and smirked. "Besides that."

"Your kekkei genkais?"

"No," she shook her head. "What separates me and Haku isn't an ability we're born with or our gender. What separates us is one single moment. Just one."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"One moment separates me from becoming Haku. One single moment where the person who reached their hand out to me offered me unconditional love and support. All it would have taken was a different person and I'd be someone else. Had it been someone like Zabuza, I would have easily devoted myself to being his tool, all to have a purpose for my existence.

"And the same could be said for him. One moment changed where we stood on that battlefield. Had he met someone like my mom, he'd have followed a path just like the one I have been lucky to follow. One moment, one single change, and I'd be behind the mask, and he'd have been the one fighting beside his friends."

Naruto lowered his eyes. I never really understood what she meant back then. I could see how deeply the fight with Haku, the Lightning Blade and everything that happened was affecting her. I knew it was important to her, and I could feel her changing, but even though I knew it was important, I never really understood the depth behind what she meant.

Not until today. Looking into his eyes…

"I just…I just knew in my heart that we shouldn't be fighting. I knew, even before I saw him without his mask, that we shared the same eyes. That we had the same spirit. I couldn't let him die. My heart couldn't take it."

I get it now.

The dragon crashed through a few branches as Gaara plowed into its chest, but it spun out of the fall and kicked the enemy away. With another roar, it launched after him in an aggressive assault. Clawing, punching, kicking; Amari did whatever she could to hurt and damage their enemy.

He has eyes full of loneliness. I've seen that look before…in myself. And that sand spirit he has in him, it's just like the demon I have in me. Just like the Nine-Tails.

"People are fickle."

Three simple words. Three words full of an impossible amount of hatred and darkness. But he had understood it. Hearing Gaara say that, and everything else he said that day in the hospital, reminded Naruto of his own experiences with the villagers in the Leaf. How they all cast those looks his way, like he wasn't even human. Like he was just some kind of monster better off dead.

I remember how much I hated them, because they hated me and I couldn't understand why. Back then I wondered why I even existed. Why did I keep trying to live when everyone wanted me dead? Why did I put up with how they treated me? Why did I even bother to leave my room when all that was out there were those eyes always glaring down at me?

"The fox spirit that killed Iruka's parents and destroyed our village is in control of your body. You are the Nine-Tailed Fox!"

He hadn't forgotten that day. Naruto doubted he ever would. It's because of Mizuki I learned I had this demon in me. It wasn't my fault, but the villagers always acted like it was. And that made it so much worse.

How could they hate him? He hadn't asked to have this demon inside him. He wasn't the one who destroyed Konoha or killed its people. But they acted like it was him…Or maybe it was more accurate to say they didn't even see him. They didn't see Naruto Uzumaki when they saw him in the streets. They saw the Nine-Tailed Fox. Or they saw that kid who carried it within him, never once stopping to consider his feelings or his emotions.

Looking back on it, it was almost a miracle he hadn't ever lost himself.

But then…

"Oh. My name is Amaririsu."

Naruto extended a hand to her, smiling widely at his new friend. "Nice to meet you, Amaririsu!"

Amaririsu shook his hand and smiled back. "Likewise, Naruto Uzumaki."

I met Amari, and she saved me from that place of hatred and darkness. She looked at me and saw me. She treated me as a person. As a friend. Her best friend.

Even after she learned what he had inside him, that hadn't changed. She made everything okay. Although those other people never stopped glaring and whispering under their breaths, he didn't care because one really special person cared about him.

In time that one person grew to two in the form of Iruka. And two grew into five in the form of Team Seven. Even though sometimes they didn't always get along, Sasuke and Sakura were trusted friends and comrades. And although Kakashi's sense of time bugged him, his sensei was still really cool.

It took a while, and it wasn't always easy, but a few people came along and they didn't look at me like I was a monster. That made it better. It was all right then. Even though I had this monster inside me, even though everyone else acted like I didn't exist or like I was a monster, it was okay 'cause it meant I wasn't alone anymore. For the first time in my life, I was happy.

He grit his teeth, overcome by emotions he repressed and hid behind his exuberance. It made me…really really happy. They showed me how good life could be. They made me glad to be alive.

In Gaara's eyes, though, he saw the all-encompassing darkness he once faced. The same unbearably cold loneliness he woke up to every single day before meeting Amari.

But when I think back to the time before I had met any of them, it's frightening. Nothing but pain and darkness. What would I be like if I had stayed there all alone?

That's why I can understand him.

"It's all a distant memory now. 'Why do I exist,' I used to ask myself, but then I found out. I exist to wipe out all other existences!"

I don't know how it happened, Naruto thought, but this guy has been in that same place as me. He's still there, but…what I don't understand is he had someone too. Someone like Amari who cares so deeply for him, yet he disregards her. He fights solely for himself. Maybe he's right. Maybe it has made him stronger. Maybe it is a weakness to have friends you care about and to know happiness.

Doubt and concern flooded his mind. Can I really win against a guy like this?

The dragon and Gaara grappled fiercely with one another, but sand was accumulating around her hind legs, ensnaring the dragon as it desperately beat its wings to break free to take to the air again.

"It's over, Uchiha! Now you die!"

Naruto clenched his hands into fists. His mind was a mess of conflict. Wars waged over what real strength was and where it came from as a very real war played out before his eyes.

Amari…

"These pathetic insects you consider your friends haven't even tried to help you yet. They're too afraid for their own lives, while you waste your feelings on them!"

Moving on the purest of instincts, he lunged forward to attack.

---

Damn it. What are we going to do?

Sasuke's jaw tightened at the sight of Amari's transformation struggling to break free of Gaara's sand. Those monstrous sand arms grappled her front legs, or arms or whatever the hell they were. He wasn't a dragon anatomy specialist, and it didn't matter. Even transformed into a mythical beast, his clan-sister couldn't overpower the dominating and overwhelming power of this creep.

Worse, all of their indecision and inability to think kept them frozen in personal paralysis jutsus. And despite knowing it was happening, Sasuke couldn't get his damn body or brain to work properly. They were all too scattered out, too disorganized, too weighed down by thoughts of doubt to act.

Two Chidori's and this freak of nature is still alive and fighting at full power. He looked down at his left hand; his fingers trembled against his will, the tips almost fully numb. And one more will either kill me or activate the mark.

Fire Style wasn't effective, which left him with taijutsu—the most dangerous attack style against this opponent. He was fast, faster than he had been before thanks to Kakashi's training, but he wasn't as fast as Amari. And due to her Sharingan advancement and Byakugan, she had greater reaction speed than him.

What the hell do I do?

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

At the sound of Naruto's voice, he snapped his head up to face his teammate. Naruto and seven clones bolted through the branches directly for Amari.

"That's enough! Get away from Amari!"

Gaara barely even glanced his way, too consumed by his innate drive to kill Amari.

"I'll kill you later. Now stay out of my way!" Gaara whipped his tail and smashed every single clone and the real Naruto, dispersing the former and grounding the latter on a tree.

"Naruto!" Sasuke shouted in worry.

The dragon's red and lavender eye sharpened before it unleashed an earth rattling roar from the deepest pits of its stomach. Fire spewed forth from its mouth as it flapped its wings harder. The wind fed the fire, intensifying it without any end in sight.

Finally, the sand imprisoning her broke. Free to move and attack, the dragon spun her body around to slam her tail directly into Gaara; the attack and force of the blow sent him barreling away. Sasuke noticed the blood rolling down the neck of the dragon, the crimson stream led up her neck to her mouth, where it poured from.

"Sasuke, Sakura, I need your help. All of your help." He heard Amari's voice before she appeared on the branch, joined by a second clone as well as Mimi and Tenten. "If we're going to defeat Gaara and keep him down for real this time, then we have to work together. We can't run around like headless chickens without any sort of objective or direction."

The speaking Amari turned to look back at the battle her real incarnation was taking part in. The dragon chased down Gaara, plowed him and herself through a tree before pinning him down on a branch and unleashing another blast of fire at point blank range. The attack may have hurt Gaara, but it didn't end the battle. His giant sand arm extended and pushed her body up and off of him as she dug her claws into the bark in a futile attempt to hold her ground.

The clone of Amari turned back to the group. "The real version of me is doing her best to keep Gaara busy so we can perform a massive coordinated offensive to finish him off. First off, Mimi, give Sasuke a food pill. That will replenish the chakra you used from your Chidori, and should give you at least one more use without fatal consequences or the mark influencing you."

Sasuke nodded and took the offered food pill, but the determination in her Sharingan eye, it left him off-balance almost. She was taking full control of the situation, directing orders as a battle commander, not as the shy and docile girl he was used to. Even though the situation felt hopeless, despite the fact their attacks weren't dealing visible damage, she hadn't abandoned hope.

His clan-sister hadn't lost a shred of confidence in their ability to win this battle.

Her will never ceases to amaze me. It knows no bounds of strength.

"Tenten, whatever weapons or items you have in your scrolls that can deal real damage to Gaara, I need you and Mimi to prepare those for my signal, all right?"

"Okay," Tenten nodded.

"Get started on that now, both of you." Amari's red eye moved over to Sakura. "Sakura, do you have any paper bombs with you?"

"I have six."

"Good. That's good." Amari brought her hand to her chin. "I know we've been training on your speed and strength, but this isn't the battle for anyone except me to get into close-range at this point. Only I have the speed and reaction time with Mimi's ankle still injured. When it comes time to attack, I want you to use those strategically. Make every shot count by aiming for his tail or any other weak spot we uncover."

Sakura nodded and smiled. "You can count on me, Amari."

…What is this feeling building up inside of me? Sasuke looked down at his hands. It wasn't the food pills effects; it was something different, something greater. This feeling…I remember it. He clenched his hands into fists. Yes. I remember this feeling clearly.

The feelings of courage, defiance and power he felt when he faced Orochimaru and when he overcame the mark. The feeling of strength and burning willpower his clan-sister's scarred hand gave him when it pulled him from despair. Inside, he felt his will be set ablaze again. Gaara's words, his lectures on fighting for himself and abandoning those closest to him, they had wormed their way into his mind. Made him doubt himself.

But now he felt…

He looked towards Naruto and found him pushing himself back up onto his feet, the same resolve and burning will taking hold in his eyes.

My body…it feels like it's on fire. This strength I feel…it's flowing through me.

His gaze moved back to Sakura, to Mimi, to Tenten. Every single one held the same glowing flame, sparked and ignited by Amari.

How do you always do it? Sasuke wondered. How do you always find a way to rekindle the spirits of those around you?

"And if your strength ever fails you, you can always look to us to give you ours in its stead to overcome whatever obstacle is in your way."

For so long he walked alone. The path of an avenger, the path of solitude as he festered in hatred and darkness.

Before I learned you were an Uchiha, before the Forest of Death, I was so focused on my path as an avenger. I didn't care for any other bond except the single bond between me and my brother: our bond of hatred. But then you…

"You're a- an Uchiha and a member of Team Seven, after all. That makes you family."

That declaration changed everything. It opened his eyes, burned away the darkness so he could see the scarred hand reaching out to him. And as he grabbed onto it, she latched onto his wrist with a titanium grip and pulled him into the light where there were others. Other people she helped save like him or those who had saved her. People he never would have cared for if his clan-sister never existed.

Team Seven…it gave me something and I was never really sure what it was. I suppose I just didn't want to see it. I wanted to keep looking into the darkness where no light could reach.

"All she ever wanted was for you to open your eyes again. To stop looking away into the darkness so you could see her still standing by your side!"

Sasuke glanced in Hikari's direction. Hearing you yell those passionate words for a stranger, it made me realize how far you're willing to go for her, for us, for anyone you consider precious. More than that, it made me realize how far I'm willing to go to protect this new bond I have.

This new family. Our family.

His Sharingan activated in response to the swell of emotion before he returned his eyes to Amari.

We won't let him win.

"Sasuke, I want you to hold back with your Chidori until my signal," Amari continued. "If all goes to plan, Gaara's armor will no longer be protecting him fully at that point. That's when it'll be time to strike him. Give it everything you've got."

"Got it," he nodded.

"All right. Mimi, when you're done, you'll be a long distance fighter like Sakura. You're our team medic. We can't risk you in close range anymore, not at this stage in this fight. So hit him with your Water Style, weaken his armor so our explosives can chip it off fully."

"Sounds like you have it all figured out," Mimi quipped.

"It's not perfect, but—"

"I'm only kidding," the Inuzuka waved her off. "It's the best plan we've got, and it'll take the pressure off your real version while using all of our abilities in the best ways. Keep the orders coming; we need them right now."

Amari turned her head to look back at Naruto. "Naruto, use your password with a paper bomb to weaken him!" she ordered.

Use his… Sasuke shut his eyes and furrowed his brow. "Seriously, Amari?"

"It'll work," she stated firmly.

"I know it will, but that move? Really?"

"I can always tell you to do it."

"Naruto has it handled."

"Heh. Thought so."

Tenten gave Amari an overview of her best weapons she had prepared before the Nara gave a step by step plan for them to follow. Orders dished out, they all moved to prepare, waiting for Naruto's attack to land to launch the full power of their assault on Gaara.

Let's finish this.

---

The memories of her two clones flooded Amari's mind simultaneously. The long and sharp teeth of the dragon transformation twisted into a bloody grin. It took time, but her clones completed their objectives to the letter. Her peers' hearts were rallied, every single one of them prepared to unleash a full-power assault on their powerful enemy to win this battle definitively, and Naruto's attack would set the signal off with a bang.

Just in time, she thought, relieved through throbbing discomfort. We don't have much time left in this form, but…

"Uchihaaaaaaaa!" Gaara roared as he attacked from above, golden eyes full of crazed delight.

Red and lavender intensified, spirit renewed by a sense of urgency and surge of adrenaline. We're not finished yet! The dragon stood up on its hind legs, scaled and clawed fist colliding against Gaara's in a thunderous punch. Muscles rippled in the wake of the blow all across the dragon's body; her hind legs threatened to buckle beneath the force, but powered by her own willpower and Osamu's, Amari unleashed another roar. As long as Hikari and my friends need me, I won't stop fighting!

The clawed dragon fist opened, accented by the heterochromia eyes flashing dangerously. I can't use my Shadow Possession to hold you in one place for Naruto's attack. She sunk her claws into the depths of the sand arm. But that's fine. All I need are these claws… She pulled him down onto the branch—small craters of splintered wood cracking beneath their weight—and grabbed his sand covered body by the shoulder with her other clawed hand, digging them into his shoulder.

And my teeth!

Opening her mouth as wide as she could, the dragon bit down on his free arm. Gaara shrieked in pain and tried his best to pull free and push her away. He couldn't. This time she had greater leverage.

She grinned widely at her enemy, who growled fiercely as he tried to escape, aware of the incoming blond-haired knucklehead wielding a paper bomb kunai. This is the beginning of the end for you!

"Take this! Straight from the teachings of Kakashi-sensei: Leaf Village Secret Finger Jutsu!" Naruto pierced his paper bomb kunai beneath Gaara's tail, into the sand armor where it was weakest. "One Thousand Years of Death!"

Gaara, unamused and irritated, swatted Naruto away with his tail.

Amari immediately dispelled their transformation, ducking low beneath Gaara's arms as they swung, and shouted: "Osamu! Now!"

"At once!"

The form of Amari burst into a flock of crows that shot through the forest after Naruto. Behind them, the paper bomb exploded, heat and air repulsing outwards as the loud burst drowned out any sound Gaara made. Amari and her crow companion reappeared floating behind Naruto's barreling body; the blue-haired kunoichi caught him with her torso and slammed back first into the trunk of a tree.

Ow, she grimaced, squeezing her eyes shut to null the pain through mind over matter. More aches, more pain. This whole day was turning out to be such a drag. Blood leaked down out of the corner of her mouth; her taste buds were overwhelmed by the metallic and terrible taste of her own blood. Osamu, too, bore visible wounds from the attacks they endured together. But they were alive, that's what mattered most.

"Lady Amari, I fear I've used up too much of my chakra between the defense of the Leaf and this battle. And you have sustained injuries under my care. I apologize."

She opened her eye and smiled kindly through her pain. "You don't owe me an apology, Osamu. It was thanks to you we were even able to hold Gaara off that long. Plus I was able to live a lifelong dream in being a dragon because of you. Thank you." Her eye shut, a small, bloody grin forming on her lips. "I finally got to be a wise dragon, just like me and Cousin used to pretend to be." Did you see, Cousin? I hope you did. "I can't wait to tell Mom about it."

Being a dragon was even better than she thought it would be!

Osamu exhaled a short, tired laugh. "You are welcome, Lady Amari. I am sure Lady Kurenai will be most pleased to hear this story from you." She opened her eye in time to see him bow his head to her. "I shall return to Lady Atsuko to inform her of the situation here, see if there is any way I can relieve her so she may aid you."

"Thank you, Osamu. Hopefully we'll be done before she shows up."

"I wish you all luck. Fair winds and farewell, Lady Amari."

"To you as well, Osamu."

With their farewells done, Osamu reversed summoned himself to Atsuko so she yet might aid the Leaf Genin and the chosen Uchiha.

Naruto turned to look at Amari seated frame. Worried cerulean eyes scanned over her injured and fatigued body. "Are you going to be okay?" he asked gently.

She gave a small nod—the simple act of which stung the muscles in her shoulder—paired with what she hoped was a reassuring smile. "I'm more durable than I look."

But she couldn't deny the extreme exhaustion clawing at her body. The entire day, starting from her battle against Mimi, through the clones that battled in the Leaf to this last duel between monster and dragon, all of it took a physical and mental toll on the Nara. Sleep called to her. It whispered in her ear, begging her to rest.

I may be more durable than I look, but I've already put my body through a lot today. Amari rested her head against the trunk of the tree. But that's why I put so much emphasis on everyone else's roles in this assault. I knew I wouldn't have nearly enough in the tank to do more serious damage.

Across from them, Gaara's sand crumbled off his right side. The attack worked. Now it was time to make it count.

Mustering up what scraps of energy she had left, Amari raised her voice to yell: "Mimi, Sakura, you're up!"

Mimi appeared on a higher branch with a direct sight on Gaara. One of her water scrolls unrolled around her while her hands sped through her handseals. "We're gonna finish you this time, ya stubborn bastard! Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!"

Three seals opened up and, as the water poured out as if shot from a cannon, Mimi reshaped the water to form into three separate Water Dragon's. Gaara, still stunned by the kunai blast, struggled to even evade the attack. The Water Dragons smashed into his sand covered body simultaneously; the force of the attack caused him to stumble close to the edge of the tree branch, but not fall off.

"I'm still ready to fight, Amari," Naruto said. "Just tell me what you need me to do."

His enthusiasm helped her focus away from the pain thrumming warmly through her body. "I need two of your kunais. I'm all out." He nodded and provided two kunais from his pouch. She thanked him and pulled out her final two unfinished seals. "Wait until we've taken down the rest of his armor to attack. When that happens you're going to unleash a move straight from our Amaruto Ninja Handbook."

The boy pumped his fist with a look of triumph on his face. "Yes! I've been waiting to use it on a real opponent."

His infectious enthusiasm kept her motivated and awake.

Sakura jumped through the branches and threw one of her kunais down at Gaara. Sensing the sudden new strategy and plan of attack from his enemies, Gaara shook the fog from his mind and jumped away in an effort to reach safety, an explosion trailing him. But as he landed from his jump, a second kunai pierced into the branch and exploded on him.

More sand fell from his body, revealing glimpses of the boy beneath the armor as he dodged out of the smoke in a retreat. His eyes scanned the area for the next paper bomb. Would it come from the shadows? Or from a place he could see and strike down?

Distracted by Sakura's attack and forgetting about Mimi completely, the Inuzuka changed positions to attack from behind, unleashing a Water Style: Water Bomb Jutsu as soon as she could. The attack hit him directly, and though the stream wasn't razor sharp, it possessed enough pressure to drive him chest first into a tree branch.

Gaara growled in frustration and pushed himself onto his feet. This wasn't going as he planned. He hoped for a one on one battle against Amari, but now the others were involved and using their distinct numbers advantage against his weakened body. Hikari's attacks hurt him on a physically deeper level than they realized, and now the worms he planned to crush actually were dealing damage.

Amari found satisfaction in his frustration. Now the sandal was on the other foot. Now he was the one being pushed.

He flicked his eyes over to Amari and Naruto and his growl become a full blown shout. "You! Uchihaaa! You're the one coordinating the attack! Without you, they'll be nothing!"

Ah crap. Amari struggled to stand up, cursing herself mentally as he dashed after their position. Of course he'd figure out her role as the tactical commander. She glued this operation together, but she was weakened. Injured and fatigued. An easy target that stood out in the open like an idiot to destroy the morale of the entire squad.

Stupid, stupid, stupid! "Naruto—"

A bolt of black struck from out of nowhere, kicking the exposed part of Gaara's face to knock him further away. The surprise attack tugged the rug out from even Amari's feet, especially when she saw Sasuke take a defensive position in front of them. As the Sand shinobi tried to recover, a kunai landed behind him and exploded.

Sakura took her position on the branch above them, her three remaining paper bomb kunais held at the ready in her hands.

"You won't lay another hand on my clan-sister," Sasuke stated confidently.

Gaara's face scrunched in anger. "Sasuke Uchiha, why do you bother to hold onto a connection like friendship?" he prodded heatedly. "Your eyes were just like mine. You thirst for vengeance and power; you look towards the darkness and don't bother with pointless bonds." The cruel lips of their enemy curled in a severe snarl. "Yet now you're eyes, they're different. You're forsaking the truest form of your strength."

"Heh, you're right. My eyes are different now. Before I only saw darkness, just like you said, but she helped me to see through that darkness." Sasuke's body steadily moved into an aggressive fighting stance. "It's because of her I can finally see clearly! I won't forsake my clan-sister or my trusted comrades to death. I lost everyone I cared for once before. I won't lose them a second time. This time, this time I'll protect them as a true Uchiha!"

"Sasuke…" Amari stared in awe at the back of her clan-brother.

"I…I get it now," Naruto said, voice full of revelation. Her best friend stood up and moved to stand by Sasuke's side. "He's no different than me, going through life with the same sadness and loneliness I went through. But he fought only for himself, forsaking the one true friend he had…and for a moment I thought that made him stronger. I really did."

Naruto shook his head. "I don't know. I guess I should have known better. That's not what real strength is. If you don't fight or care for anyone but yourself, you'll never be strong no matter what you do. That's what Haku and Amari taught me." He slammed a fist into his palm. "And that's why we're going to beat you!"

"As long as we're here, you won't be able to get within a few meters of Amari, Gaara," Sakura said. "You were right, we stood by and watched Amari fight you by herself before, but we're done standing in the background. Amari reminded us of where the truest form of our strength really comes from, and now it's our turn to show you that strength."

I'm…I'm happy I could help them understand what they taught me. Amari braced her back against the trunk of the tree, sore and overwhelmed simultaneously by her friends words. If Gaara's monstrous transformation was the power of darkness, this amazingly warm feeling in her heart was the power of light.

A small smirk pulled onto her lips. And with him focused on their presence, it doubles as a distraction.

"Tenten, fire at will," she ordered.

Tenten emerged from her hiding spot and unrolled her scroll, a smile on her face. "Let's see you walk this one off. Dragon Bomb!"

From the scroll, a large fire erupted shaped to appear as a dragon head. The appropriately named technique blasted through the forest and collided against Gaara's body, exploding on impact in a mess of flames and tangible heat even at a distance.

Gaara stumbled out of the smoke, burn wounds on the exposed parts of his body as more sand continued to crumble. Amari observed it and nodded mentally. His regenerative ability wasn't as effective anymore; they were dealing damage and finally getting somewhere.

Now it's my turn. Amari threw her seal wrapped kunai between her two teammates and directly at their enemy. Both boys looked back at her, surprised by the sudden blade passing between them, but they only saw her hands in Snake and her eye focused on Gaara.

Once it was within inches of him, she detonated the tag, but it did not erupt in a flash of light. A pulse of energy surged from it for a three meter radius, paired with a loud boom of an invisible explosion, knocking the blade off course and spiraling through the air into the dense forest.

Gaara screamed and grabbed at his head with both hands. "Wha- what did you do to me?!"

"Sakura, blow him sky high!" Amari ordered.

Sakura obeyed and threw her remaining paper bombs at the disabled boy who had fallen victim to her first Concussion Seal. As Genma told her, it temporarily disrupted his five senses: sight, smell, taste, touch and hearing, but she hadn't perfected it yet. They had about three seconds to take advantage of before his senses returned.

The paper bombs did erupt in a flash of light, chipping away almost the last of Gaara's armor. All that remained was one giant arm barely holding together.

Her fellow kunoichi surged in. She landed in front of the still disoriented Gaara with her fist already cocked back and covered by a blue hue of chakra. "Take this! CHAAAAAA!"

Fist and face met painfully. The solid blow sent Gaara falling off the branch just as his senses recovered; a narrow margin she hoped they didn't test again. Sakura back flipped away to retreat as Gaara's sand arm latched onto another tree to stop his fall.

He flung himself to another branch but didn't assault them immediately. Even if her dōjutsu weren't activated, the scrunched features of pain and bruise forming on his face would have been visible. Pain, real pain, was etched into his features. He panted heavily, struggling to maintain composure and turn this battle back into his favor.

What little breather he had didn't last any longer. Tenten emerged and twirled an open scroll around her, hands pressing against the seals along the paper to unseal the weapons stored within. Blades, polearms, javelins, clubs, spiked balls, any weapon Amari could imagine were thrown by the ninja tool specialist with expert precision expected of her skill.

Gaara did the only thing he could: he scrambled through the forest, all to evade weapons seeking to sink into his exposed flesh. "Hope ya didn't forget about me!" Mimi taunted before firing off sharp and precise water bullets as her clone had done back in the Leaf.

No way the Sand shinobi could handle both at this stage, but it wouldn't do to grow complacent and relaxed. Last time they did that, he broke free of Hikari's prison. Amari refused to make the same mistake twice. Too much was riding on this battle; Hikari's life, their lives, the safety of the Leaf, failure still wasn't an option available to them.

"Sasuke, prepare your Chidori," Amari said. "It's time to finish this."

He nodded. "Right." Then he jumped up into the canopy out of sight.

"Naruto, be ready to unleash a pounding like no other after he lands the Chidori. We're going to pummel him into submission."

"All right."

"Tenten, use this!" Amari threw her kunai at the kunoichi and pierced it into the branch at her feet. Gaara had more than a few weapons protruding out of his sand arm and his flesh, but he was starting to move just a bit faster. Desperation. Whatever faults he had, Gaara's conviction to his purpose was undeniable. It fueled his strength and was now fueling a second wind as he too refused defeat.

Tenten threw the Concussion Seal wrapped kunai with perfect accuracy. Once in range, Amari detonated the seal, disorienting Gaara again.

"Now, Sasuke!"

Lightning crackled to life, followed by the sound of chirping birds. "Now to end this," Sasuke said, then he released the chakra from his feet. Again he bulleted through the forest, path locked with Gaara as his final destination with a hand covered in lightning and crimson eyes zeroed in on his target. "Chidori!"

The hand of lightning stabbed straight through Gaara's sand arm and into his torso, destroying the last of his transformation and wounding him severely.

Sasuke retreated, leaving one final stage of the plan to unleash. "Our turn, Naruto," Amari said. She didn't have much left, but—

"Take a breather, Amari. You deserve it. I'll handle this." Naruto brought his hands into Ram. "HAAAAAAA!" She sensed the surge of massive chakra from him before it took shape as a blue shroud around his body; the power from it sent out a pulse of energy in every direction.

Amari lifted her torn apart mesh sleeve in front of her face to block the wind from her face. He's releasing an incredible amount of chakra. Naruto...

He brought his hands into the clone seal. Suddenly the entire forest area around them became shrouded in smoke. Amari sensed what he had done before her eyes and brain could process it. And even when they did, she wasn't sure if she had fallen unconscious into some sort of dream.

Her eyes darted around, wide as saucers. Ten, thirty, seventy. One hundred, one-thirty, one-eighty.

Her head continued to swivel around as she counted the never ending horde of Naruto. Orange clad shinobi covered every inch of the forest.

One thousand eight hundred and ninety-nine, one thousand nine hundred and thirty-three. There was no end to them. One thousand nine hundred and sixty-seven, one thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine.

"Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu!" the group of blonds shouted.

The real Naruto jabbed his finger at the wounded Gaara, who could only stare in the same awe overcoming Amari from a crouched position, heaving heavy breaths. "Gee, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to keep you waiting so long. So get ready for an original jutsu straight from the Amaruto Ninja Handbook!"

"In- incredible!" Amari stuttered.

"Hehehe!" He looked over his shoulder at her, a grin plastered on his face and his eyes closed. "I can't let my sister show me up all the time."

She gave a light laugh and a closed eyed smile. She loved her knucklehead. Troublesome boy always found some way to surprise her. You just keep growing, Naruto, she thought, relaxing further against the tree. I can't wait to see where you go in the future. I'll leave this battle to you.

"Way to go, blondie! You're showing a lot of promise!" the little orange toad congratulated.

"Don't worry, Amari. I'll take him down and save Hikari, that's a promise." He threw his hand into the air. "All right everyone, here I go!"

You can do it, Naruto.

The swarm of Naruto's jumped into the air. "Let's do this!" they all spoke in unison. "Straight from the Amaruto Ninja Handbook." The group grabbed and released a flurry of shurikens. "Ninja Tool Rain!"

In a futile attempt to regain control, Gaara tried to block the weapons with his slowly disintegrating arm. They pierced into it, but didn't do a whole lot of damage, which was okay. By blocking his face he was unable to see the large group of clones move into action.

Jumping up on all sides of his opponent, the horde of Naruto's aimed their kicks right at him. "Ama-Ru-To!" they chanted as three different sets of the clones kicked him off the branch, into the air higher and higher. "Two K!" a single Naruto landed a kick into the back of Gaara to send him higher up.

Simultaneously the two thousand Naruto's plunged in at their floating prey. "Yūzumaki Barrage!"

Amari couldn't fight the blush; she didn't have the strength left to do it. Troublesome boy.

Every Naruto landed hard punches to Gaara. It was impossible to track who was punching and when even with dōjutsu. There were just too many Naruto's to keep track of; she honestly couldn't even tell where the real one was anymore. Finally, the two last Naruto's of the two thousand slammed their fists so hard into Gaara, he barreled into the forest floor and imploded the ground into a crater the size of his body.

"Nice work, Naruto!" Amari cheered. "Keep it up!"

"This time we'll use both legs for a barrage of four thousand kicks!" the Naruto's announced.

There's no way he's going to be able to get up after this assault. The sand hasn't reformed and he isn't regenerating fast enough. She looked over to Hikari. You're almost free, I promise.

"There's just…absolutely no way I will be defeated by a weakling like him!" Gaara roared from the ground. Amari's senses spiked at an enormous surge of dark chakra exploding from the forest floor, and with it a giant amount of sand sprang up towards the sky like a magic tree reaching for a sky kingdom.

As it rose higher into the sky it took out every single Naruto clone and knocked the real one out of the air into a nearby tree.

"What the hell is that?" Amari awed. Within the smoke, a large looming shadow formed. Piercing gold eyes beamed to life and glared down at the group. When the smoke cleared, the giant creature's shape took full form, similar but larger to the transformation Gaara had been going through.

Now their enemy was practically the size of a mountain.

"So, that's the Shukaku," Amari muttered in quiet awe.

"Well, what do you know? I never thought you'd bring this out of me!" Gaara sounded as if he was excited and angry at the same time, strangely enough. Then he aimed his gigantic hand down at them. Sand pooled around Naruto.

At the sight of it, Amari's eye bulged in panic. "Naruto! Move!" She tried to go after him, but then she felt sand wrap around her ankles. Eyes darting down, she saw Gaara's sand beginning to consume her body as well. "Ah man, what a drag!"

This was not a part of her plan!

Movement caught her eye. Glancing up she saw Sasuke, Sakura, Tenten and Mimi rushing to their aid. "Stay back! You'll just get caught in it too!" she said. "Mimi, use your Water Style to save Naruto! I'll get out of this myself!"

Mimi obeyed and went after Naruto, expelling a huge stream of water to soak the sand. Amari, using the fresh blood on her fingers she used to create her Seals, wiped it across her palm and formed her handseals in quick succession as the sand climbed up to her waist. Her heart crashed rapidly against her chest but she remained focus.

She looked up to see Naruto completely covered by a coffin of sand, soaked but not falling apart fully. Damn it, damn it, damn it! How could she get him out of there? He just expended a massive amount of chakra to create a horde of clones, which made it entirely unlikely he could do it again to break the sand apart. Could she break free and somehow break him out before Gaara killed him?

No, how could she when she couldn't break in from the outside. There was only one way for him to get out.

"Naruto, use your second chakra! You need to break the coffin from within!"

"Got it!" his muffled voice called back.

"This is the end for you! Sand Burial!"

"Summoning Jutsu!" they yelled out in unison.

Yet another enormous surge of chakra exploded from Naruto as Amari burst into a flock of crows. Amari quickly reformed on a tree branch in a seated position, panting in part exhaustion and fear with a crow on her shoulder. "I'm really tired of close calls today," she groaned.

"I believe it is preferable to the alternative, Young Haya," Atsuko said.

Amari glanced up to the Head of the Crows, her Sharingan fading for onyx while her Byakugan remained activated. "Thank you, Atsuko. I'm sorry I interrupted your defense—"

"There is no need to apologize, Young Haya. I am where I am meant to be now, and it is far more important to me that I was able to save your life. My agents and our comrades will handle the rest back in the Leaf." Her eyes took in the environment, as well as the giant Shukaku and towering toad above them, the latter of which carried Naruto on top of his head.

Amari sighed. Troublesome boy about gave me a damn heart attack along with a shattered heart.

"Osamu informed me of the situation. It would appear you and your peers pushed this Gaara child into a state of such desperation, he had no choice but to manifest the true form of the Shukaku. However, had Gaara been any other opponent, this battle would have been finished long before my arrival."

"I think it's only in Naruto's and that toad's hands now," Amari said, slouching forward. "Even if I took another food pill, my body just isn't in any shape to fight. We'd only get in the way." The sudden surge of fear and adrenaline faded quickly. Replacing it was the sheer exhaustion of the day's events.

"Leave this to Gamabunta and Naruto," Atsuko said. "I will defend you and your peers, but this battle has escalated beyond the rest of you."

"I'm just sorry I couldn't end the battle before that," Amari sighed.

"You and your peers have nothing to be sorry for, Young Haya. You've shown great courage and strength in this battle. For now, rest. You may yet be needed in this battle."

"Right."

---

Meanwhile

---

Iruka stood at the ready, listening for any sign of a threat. In the safety of a room only a few meters behind him were his students. The evacuation of the Academy had been a success, and although a crack had suddenly appeared on Lord Third's stone face, he was certain victory would come shortly.

I cannot deny how ominous that is, he thought, worried about their Village leader.

Other than his bad feeling about the crack, the entire evacuation of the Leaf civilians was almost complete. There was only one team left led by Anko, who were sure to arrive any moment now.

I wonder how Amari, Naruto and the others are doing.

Had he been ready to let his students become ninjas? No, he hadn't. Over the years teaching them, he'd grown attached to each and every one of his students, even the troublemakers. Their lives weren't disposable to him; they were the future of the Leaf and they would bring so much light in the coming years, he could feel it.

Having war break out in their home left him worried over them. He hadn't seen any of them come with the evacuation units, though he hadn't seen every single team, so maybe they were all here and safe already. If not, he was sure they found safety in one of the other shelters.

Iruka let out a calm breath. They'll be okay.

The door behind him slid open. Alerted, Iruka spun around quickly and prepared to face whatever danger it could be. When his eyes found the source of the noise, he couldn't stop the flabbergasted sounds from escaping him. "Wha- Konohamaru?"

Konohamaru, Moegi and Udon all stood before him, staring up a bit expectantly, although he had no idea why. Banishing away his surprise, he put his hands on his hips and took a firm stance. "What are you three doing? We're in the middle of a crisis. Do you have any idea what will happen if they find us?" He pointed in the direction of the room they were trying to leave. "Now get back in there and stay quiet."

"Yeah, I know, but you don't understand. I've really got to go," the leader of the trio whined.

I should have seen this coming, but this is really not the time for it. We can't risk being found. "You'll just have to hold it," he tried to argue.

The boy looked like he was about to burst at the thought of it. "I don't really think I can, Sensei."

Iruka released a deep sigh. "Oh boy." He shook his head. "All right, come along with me."

"I- I'm not going to make it!" Konohamaru shouted and took off down the hall in search of a bathroom.

"Wait, Konohamaru!" Iruka gave chase. While he had gone the right way, there was no guarantee these halls hadn't been found by an enemy. Running as fast as he could, he turned the corner and found the boy sitting on his butt, staring up in shock at who he had undoubtedly run into.

"You troublesome boy, you're supposed to be hiding." Iruka slowed his run to a walk and eventually a stop right behind his student as he laid his eyes on the group.

Crouching in front of the boy, bearing a friendly smirk, was his former student Amari. Her long wild blue hair was tied up in the Nara ponytail, her forehead protector over her left eye, but other than that there were no notable changes to her usual outfit, other than the rips and tears from combat damage.

"Big Sis?" She poked Konohamaru's forehead with a closed eyed smile before standing up and offering him a hand.

Save for the torn apart clothes, the scratches to her body and a cut across her cheek with fresh blood leaking out of it, she looked no worse for wear. Standing close behind her was Mimi Inuzuka brandishing a small grin. She too bore similar injuries, but nothing fatal or life threatening. Behind the pair was a group of civilian women, while next to them was the leader of the group: Anko Mitarashi.

Moegi and Udon joined their friend as they each latched onto Amari in a hug. She looked down at all three with a warm smile, embracing them all as best as she could. In her arms, the fears of his youngest students washed away.

"Hey Moegi, Udon, Iruka-sensei," she greeted.

Letting his smile fall for a serious expression, he turned his eyes to Anko. "So, is the evacuation complete?"

She smiled confidently at him and stuffed her hands into her trench coat pockets. "Yeah, these are the last of them."

"So, this means it's time for the next stage, right?" Mimi asked.

Iruka and Anko nodded in agreement. Yes, she's right. With the last of the civilians here in the shelter, it's only a matter of time before we begin the next stage.

"Huh? What does she mean, Sensei?" Konohamaru asked.

He lowered his eyes to his student. They had yet to go over the full procedures of an invasion or attack on the Leaf, at least not beyond evacuation drills so they knew how to act should an emergency happen.

"If the village is ever under attack," he started, "then there are very specific guidelines we have to follow."

"First up is to wipe out the enemy's advancing forces," Anko continued off of his statement. "And if that isn't viable then we immediately move to phase two."

"The total evacuation of all civilians to safety," Iruka followed. "We move the elders, men, women and children into shelters that are strategically set up across the village. When that is complete we proceed to step three."

His student stared up in confusion. "So wait, what's phase three?"

"The complete elimination of enemy forces by any means necessary."

"In that case…"

Iruka nodded, a grim look on his face. "As soon as we're ready, our main force we'll launch a counterattack."

"That means our work here is done," Mimi stated. She turned to Amari. "Come on, we're running low on chakra already. We'll just get in the way now."

The blue-haired kunoichi nodded in agreement. "Yeah. You're right."

Anko slapped the pair on the back, nearly knocking the exhausted kunoichis over. "Good luck you two and try not to get yourselves killed. Wouldn't want my two favorite squirts getting hurt!"

Both smirked and chuckled before poofing into smoke.

"I hope they'll be okay," Iruka said.

Anko waved him off. "Ah, don't worry about them. Those squirts will be fine. They handled themselves well out there."

She's right. Amari and the others will be fine. Iruka let out a sigh, but stay safe all of you.

---

Yet another tsunami wave of fatigue crashed into Amari at ramming speed. Her steady breathing faltered. Memories of her clone's battles, the destroyed structures and dead shinobi, it burdened her already burdened heart to a greater extent. Looking up at Mimi, who promptly collapsed onto her butt as she too was overcome by the fatigue, she wondered how she was handling what they witnessed.

Tenten rushed to her teammate's side. "Mimi! Are you okay?"

Sakura and Sasuke crouched next to Amari and cast worried glances between the two kunoichi as well as up to Naruto, who was locked in battle with Gaara from the head of his giant toad. The Leaf shinobi, Pakkun, Atsuko and Aoko were all soaked to the bone thanks to the massive Water jutsu used by the toad, but the fight was nearing its end. Amari could sense it.

"Our final clones just dispelled," the Inuzuka panted. "I…I don't think I have much left in the tank."

"You're pushing yourself too far again," Tenten scolded out of concern.

"I know…I know," Mimi admitted. She lifted her gloved hands up to stare at her trembling arms. Amari kept her arms braced on her knees, but the muscles in her legs and her back trembled fiercely just like Mimi's arms.

The war pushed them to their absolute limits.

Their three comrades, Atsuko, Aoko and Pakkun all observed the two kunoichi who took part in the frontline battles via clones. No one said anything at first. But they could see the weight of their experiences in their eyes and their slouched shoulders; they could see how little strength their strongest comrades had left.

Finally, Sasuke asked the question on everyone's minds. "What's the state of the Leaf? Is the battle almost over?"

Amari wanted to tell them everything was fine. That the destruction done wasn't too bad and everything would be back to normal in no time. But it would be a lie. Despite their defense, despite the Crows and Jiraiya destroying major threats, the Leaf suffered incredible damage. Buildings, people, there had been so much destruction. Perhaps it could have been worse, especially given what Gaara transformed into, but…

"The counter-attack is about to begin," Mimi spoke first, voice quieted by solemnity. "All the evacuation teams have reported in; our forces saved a lot of people. This battle against the Sand and Sound won't last much longer once the counterattack begins. It'll be a full deployment to crush them by any means necessary."

The absence of any mention of the Leaf, as well as the tone of her voice, said enough for everyone to understand.

"…We'll have a lot of hard work ahead of us," Amari said. "But this attack will only strengthen our Will of Fires. It has and will bind us all closer together so we can be stronger than before." She looked to all of her friends. "They can destroy as many buildings as they like. We'll rebuild them with stronger foundations." She shook her head. "The lives they stole cannot be replaced, but they will never be forgotten either. Their Will of Fires will become one with ours, passing on their strength to us so we can become the new guardians."

She looked up to the titan battle taking place before them. "Like a phoenix, the Leaf will rise up from the ashes of this war stronger than before. The Sand and Sound haven't broken us; they can never break us."

That's why I know you'll win this, Naruto. Like you said, a Hokage never fights alone. You have the wills of the entire Leaf behind your fists.

This is your fight to finish. Show him the power you hold.

---

Naruto couldn't budge. His feet were buried in sand, but he may as well have been wearing cement sandals. He grit his teeth and tried to think while the chief toad held the giant monster in place. There had to be something he could do. If he didn't act this instant, Gaara would kill him without blinking and all hope would be lost.

My chakra…I barely have any left. Summoning Gamabunta took up almost all of his second chakra. What do I do? What would Amari do? Glancing over his shoulder, his eyes picked up the sight of Hikari pinned to the tree, the hand holding her there hardening to the point of squeezing all the life out of her.

To his eyes, it may as well have been Amari.

I…

"Before I only saw darkness, just like you said, but she helped me to see through that darkness," he recalled Sasuke's words. "It's because of her I can finally see clearly! I won't forsake my clan-sister or my trusted comrades to death. I lost everyone I cared for once before. I won't lose them a second time."

I feel the same as Sasuke does, he thought. We may not be clan-siblings or anything, but Amari is the one who saved me from my darkness. She's my best friend. And Team Seven, Mimi and Tenten, they're my trusted comrades too. I won't let him kill them.

Naruto felt his inner fire reignite. Hikari, I can't say I know you all that well, but I can tell Amari cares a lot about you. Even though she was tired and hurt, she kept fighting with your will as her source of strength. You entrusted your hopes and dreams to her, and since her will is behind my fists, that means your will is too. I made Amari a promise to save you, and I never go back on my word. That's my ninja way.

Naruto turned his head to glare back at Gaara. That's why there's only one way this fight ends. Everyone is counting on me to finish this, and I will. For Amari, for my comrades, and for you.

Gaara's piercing pale blue-green eyes glared right back at him. "Now your eyes are like hers too," he growled.

I'm running out of time, though. He closed his eyes and brought his palms together. Come on. I just need a little bit of your chakra, Nine-Tails.

"I will kill every last one of you. I will not cease to exist!"

"HAAAAAA!" The Nine-Tails chakra surged through his chakra network and created a reddish-orange chakra cloak around his body. Its immense power broke apart the sand holding his feet in place, freeing him of the prison.

I won't fail!

It continued to surge through his body, flooding his veins and renewing his strength for this final move of their battle. Power irradiated off of him, knocking off his forehead protector and breaking the zipper of his jacket to reveal his black shirt beneath.

Opening his eyes again, the hard and determined gaze met Gaara's furious eyes.

I am going to protect everyone!

"Die!" Gaara yelled as he brought his hands into the Ram seal.

Launching forward in a flash of speed, Naruto's fist and upper body were snatched mere inches away from Gaara by his sand. Both shinobi struggled, fighting to finish off their enemy or to break free to land the decisive blow.

"I…" Naruto grunted and gnashed his teeth together as he tried to break free. His fist refused to budge.

No. I refuse to die here. I'll protect my friends!

"I've had it with you!" Naruto shut his eyes and slammed his head forward, connecting their skulls with the wills of those depending on him behind his thickhead. He immediately felt warm, fresh blood drip down his face. Gaara's forehead, too, had been busted open, and behind him the creature of sand he turned into started to break and shatter like glass, cracking loudly. It shifted into soft sand then fell back down towards the ground.

Utterly exhausted, Naruto had no strength to do anything except fall down with Gaara towards the ground and trees. As they plummeted towards the earth, Gamabunta reversed summoned himself back to his home in a large explosion of smoke; the gales of wind caught the two boys and pushed them onto the tops of two separate trees opposite of one another.

At least the landing wasn't a splat on the ground, Naruto thought optimistically. Panting heavily, he sat himself up with a grunt of pain to stare at the ninja sitting up across from him.

Between the two of them was the gigantic tantō left behind by the chief toad. The steel of the blade showed him his own reflection, as it showed Gaara his, perfectly splitting them in half to make them mirror images of one another.

They weren't so different. Both had been given no choice but to contain these monsters others feared. They'd been shunned, outcasted and hated for a decision made without their consent. Yet, despite the hatred of their Village, they found people who saw beyond their monsters to see them as Naruto Uzumaki and Gaara. Not the Nine-Tails. Not the Shukaku.

They found two individuals who saw them as people, comrades, friends and family.

Maybe it was just one for Gaara, but one was enough. One saved Naruto from his darkness, and one eventually led to others.

If you didn't discard Hikari, you may have found others. You may have found a different purpose. Naruto tried to frown but his heavy breathing made it too hard to maintain. If you had only taken her hand, we wouldn't have to fight each other. You and I, we should be able to understand one another. We shouldn't be fighting.

"That's it, I can't go any further. I've used up all of my chakra," Naruto spoke through his labored breaths as he watched Gaara breathe just as heavily. "And from the looks of it, so are you. You and I are a lot alike, more than you know. We shouldn't be doing this."

But they were, and he would finish this. No matter what, he would stop Gaara from hurting his friends and killing Hikari so callously.

Calming his breaths and taking on a stern look, he pushed himself onto his feet, preparing for the next attack. Gaara followed his movements. The two deep down knew their next move would be the final attack.

Whoever landed the first punch would be victorious.

Whoever won would prove that their purpose was stronger.

This is it.

With the explosion of the tantō disappearing, the two launched at one another with their fists cocked back. They met at the center of their flight. With growls of resolve, they each threw their punches.

The sound of a fist colliding with a face resounded through the silent forest.

Naruto's fist found its home first.

With the rest of his energy taken, everything went blank.

---

"He did it."

Three simple words full of relief. Although battles would still be fought in the Leaf, the young Genin's mission and part in the war had finally reached its epic conclusion. They still had to restrain Gaara, as well as figure out where Temari went and what Shino's status was, but the major battle was over.

Naruto defeated Gaara.

Searching deep for her final wind, Amari stood up and dished out orders to her team with Atsuko and Pakkun backing them up in their search for the enemy shinobi. Once this was all settled, they would need to secure an area to bunker down in until the battle reached its official conclusion. Until then they couldn't let their guard down.

But first…

Amari caught Hikari's limp body bridal style as the sand holding her disintegrated away. She hopped back over to Mimi, who looked about as exhausted and mentally fried as Amari felt, and held Hikari up as the medic's green hue covered hands ran a Diagnostic Jutsu over the Suna native's body.

"Is she okay? Does she have any critical injuries?" Amari asked in concern.

Mimi shook her head. "Besides the knee, no. She has some contusions from the sand trying to crush her, nothing that can kill her, though."

Amari sighed in relief. Phew. It would have been a real drag if he killed you after all of that hard work.

"I'll do what I can to ease the pain. It won't be much, unfortunately, but I need to check over Goofball too."

"Just do what you can. We're both at our limits."

Mimi did her best to help before heading off to join the scouting teams. Amari made for Naruto and Gaara. Despite the fall they took and completely exhausting their chakra, the pair were still very much alive. And I thought I was durable.

With one last sigh of relief, Amari jumped along the branches towards her exhausted friend.

"Amaririsu…" Hikari's tired voice and her stirring body brought her gaze down to the Sand kunoichi.

"Take it easy. You're safe, but not unhurt," Amari tried to soothe.

Hikari continued to stir in her arms, seeking a comfortable position for her aching body. Amari stopped when she about wiggled herself out of her arms on accident. "Here, wrap your arms around my neck and tell me what you need me to do."

The girl nodded and wrapped her arms around her neck, resting her head against her chest as she whispered commands to make the ride more comfortable without added stress on her knee. Once fully settled, they were off again.

"Did you stop him?" her passenger queried quietly into her chest.

"Everyone helped to defeat him. Together we proved that his purpose was weaker," Amari answered.

The arms around her neck tightened as Hikari embraced her. "…Thank you, Amaririsu. You are truly a precious treasure."

Amari smiled softly at the girl and turned her attention back towards the journey. "You don't need to thank me, Hikari. Helping each other is what friends do."

Glancing down, she saw a warm smile make its way onto her new friend's face.

For all the pain and fatigue she felt, that smile made it all worth it.

---

Naruto's senses returned slowly. Chief among them was pain on about every inch of his body. Sheesh, even his fingers and toes hurt. He cracked his left eye open to find himself face down on the ground in dirt and grass on the forest floor. I guess I did go splat, hehehe.

Breathing was challenging. Pain attacked him with each inhale and his muscles trembled from the slightest movement. But he still lifted his gaze upwards. Gaara laid on his back ahead of him by what seemed like miles, but what was probably only a few meters. His eyes were barely open, but they were both awake and both still in the middle of a war. A war between their Villages. Between their ideals. Between them and the darkness they both experienced.

I…I have to finish this. I have to show him…how wrong he is about his purpose making him strong.

He didn't have any strength left to stand, let alone move his arms. All that remained of his energy were itty bitty scraps torn and shredded through an unholy disintegrator called war. But tiny as those scraps were, it was just enough to inch his way forward by shifting his body with his chin, the tips of his toes and shoulders.

Each movement was struggled and hurt really, really badly, but he still had something left to do. One last fight to finish.

As he inched forward, the memories of his childhood hit him hard. All those tears he shed, the mean words, the fearful and hatred filled eyes always watching him. It was so hard, harder than anyone around him really knew. But he wasn't the only person to suffer in this world. He met others who bore their own burdens of suffering, just as heavy on their shoulders as the weight he carried on his shoulders.

Haku, Hikari, Amari, they all understood what suffering was like, and they weren't the only ones either. Gaara, too, had suffered.

How many people turned their backs on him I wonder? Yet he tried to kill the one person who tried to save him.

Why? Why did you keep looking into the darkness?

"It's all distant memory now. 'Why do I exist,' I used to ask myself, but then I found out."

"But something else had been taken from me. Something even more important, and that is when I truly despaired. My purpose. In all the world there was no one who needed me. I was…unnecessary," Haku had explained back on the bridge.

"I…I was so lost, Hikari. I was lost in an unbreakable darkness. My dying friend gave me a purpose to hold onto, but without them, without the only two people who made my existence mean something…life seemed so empty, dark and unbearably lonely."

"Why keep going on?"

Naruto grunted, eyes stinging with tears. He knew those words and the pain in them so well. He had been there just like Haku, Gaara, Hikari and Amari—lost in the darkness, feeling unnecessary, wondering why he even existed and why he kept trying to live.

And if he felt that way, then some part of Gaara had to feel it too. If they lived the same hard life, if he understood loneliness, pain and darkness, then he should be able to see the light Hikari tried to shine into his life.

When it's dark like that, it makes the lights people like Amari and Hikari have shine even brighter.

Seeing him get closer and closer, true fear pulled onto Gaara's face. His eyes bulged in horror. "No! Stay away from me!" he screamed, frightened by Naruto's constant advancing.

Naruto wouldn't stop, though. He couldn't. "It's almost unbearable, isn't it?" He lifted his tear filled eyes to look straight at Gaara. "The feeling of being all alone. Being treated like some sort of monster and freak for just being alive. I know that feeling. I've lived it! I've been there in that dark and lonely place. I know the pain you've gone through!"

Gaara stared in awe and fear.

"But now there are others. Other people who mean a lot to me. It wasn't always like that though. Not too long ago I was all alone, just like you are. But that's when I met Amari. She was the first real friend I made. The first person who opened her arms to me without fear or hatred in her eyes."

He inched forward. Even if these moves were small, every inch would count up in the end.

"And that's what Hikari did for you. We were all lonely, all afraid because we weren't sure what our purposes were or what the point of a tomorrow was when no one cared about our existences." He inched forward again and grunted. "That's why you should see how important Hikari is! She cared more about your life and your future more than she cared about her own. The bond we share with them isn't just a one way street. They saved us from our darkness and we saved them from theirs!"

He had to stop. Just for a second to catch his breath then he'd keep moving.

In that pause, Naruto shook his head. "But you forsake her to the loneliness we all feared. You turned your back on the hand she reached out to you. Even at the end, even as you tried to kill her, she never stopped caring about you!"

"Forgive me, Gaara. Even though you were my most precious person, I did not possess the strength to save you. But 'tis the cards I was dealt. I played them as best I could, but perhaps…perhaps in the next life we will meet as friends. I'd like to see you then."

"It's so damn wrong." Naruto grit his teeth together to fight his tears. "You were her most precious person. Every time you turned your back on her or forced her to attack you, you broke her heart more and more. Unlike you…" Naruto forced himself forward again. "I care about Amari more than I care about myself. And I will never let anyone hurt her or our friends."

His tears didn't fall, but his eyes did intensify with his conviction to stop Gaara. "That's why I'll never give up. I will stop you, even if I have to kill you!"

Gaara looked so lost and confused at his statement and determination to stop him. "But why? Why would you do this for anyone but yourself?"

The answer was so simple.

"Because they saved me from myself!" Inch by inch, he was getting so close. "They saved me from my loneliness. They were the first to accept me for who I am. They're my friends!"

So…close.

"Naruto, stop." Amari's command stopped him. He struggled to look up and meet her eye. Smiling down at him with all the warmth of the sun, Hikari safely secured in her arms, was his friend. "Hikari's okay and so are the others. The fight is over; you saved Hikari and protected us." His teammate glanced at Gaara. "Gaara's chakra is all used up. He won't be an issue."

Crouching down next to him and resting Hikari's back against her knee, his first friend placed her free hand on his shoulder. "Take a breather. You've earned it. Leave the rest to us."

He gave Amari a genuine but tired smile. "You got it, Sis."

Lowering his forehead into the dirt he let exhaustion take him to a nice well-deserved sleep.

---

Troublesome boy makes me look like I don't push my limits.

"Sleep well, Naruto," she told him.

Two chakra sources landed next to Gaara and across from her, but she sensed them before they landed. Amari hardly glanced at Gaara's siblings; they weren't a threat either, but she was worried about one particular person.

Shino, I can see Kankurō is practically sucked dry of all his chakra, but where are you?

"Well, well. Look what we have here." Mimi's katana laced voice cut through the forest. Her fellow Leaf shinobi joined Amari next to Naruto as an entire platoon of Crows covered the trees around them. "Looks like the numbers game is back in our favor. So who wants to dance first?"

"That's enough." Gaara's gravelly voice was quiet but also had a sense of finality to it. "It's over."

"But Gaara, we can't just leave Hikari in their hands. Who knows what they'll do to her," Kankurō said.

Amari bristled at his comment. "And what did your people give her, huh?" she questioned fiercely, arms holding Hikari protectively. "Why should I give her back to Suna when all you and your people have ever done is treat her as a monster? Why do you even want her back? Is it because you have some sense of honor towards your fellow Suna shinobi? Or is it because you're afraid she'll spill secrets?"

Their silence was telling. It made Amari sick. "You all disgust me," she spat. "She's a human being! She's not just some tool you can mistreat or eliminate because she's outlived her usefulness in your eyes! She—"

"Amaririsu." Hikari's gentle hand rested on her cheek. The kunoichi smiled at her. "'Tis okay."

Amari clenched her teeth together. Her eyes watered at her casual acceptance and the swell of emotions the day left her with all coming up at once. The death, the destruction, she stomached it all to defend her home, but Hikari's acceptance tumbled her house of cards.

"No it's not, damn it. It's not okay. Why should you be given any less kindness than anyone else? Why should you have to continue to suffer?" She shook her head fiercely, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Why, damn it, why do you have to continue to bear this burden all alone? Why can't I help you?"

Hikari wiped one of her tears away. "You have helped me, Amaririsu. 'Tis because of your actions and that of your comrades I live. 'Tis you who showed me kindness and warmth when no one else did. And 'tis you who cries because you care for my fate." Hikari's smile did not leave her face. "Before today I merely existed. But 'tis your light that has made me feel alive once more. Thank you. You owed me nothing, yet you gave me everything you could."

Amari choked on a sob and lowered her head. "I can do more. Damn it, let me do this. Let me help. You don't have to walk your road alone anymore. Just…Just let me help you more," she pleaded weakly.

"And this is why you are Konoha's greatest treasure," Hikari said warmly. "But my fate calls me back to Suna."

"But I—"

Hikari wrapped her arms around Amari's neck and held her tightly. "You are truly a pure soul, one I am grateful to have met," she whispered in her ear. "But please, allow me this chance to see if he has changed. I need to know if the boy I came to save can see me again."

Amari squeezed her eyes shut but nodded reluctantly. If that's what Hikari's heart wanted most, she wouldn't hold her back, even if it made her heart ache.

"What's the play, Amari? Are we letting these chumps leave or are we taking them all out here and now?" Mimi questioned.

Slowly, Amari rose. She wiped her tears away with her shoulders, heart still aching, and said, "Let them go."

Every step she took towards the Sand shinobi came even more reserved and reluctant than the last. This wasn't what she wanted. Suna had done nothing except give her kindred spirit tremendous heartache. They didn't deserve a second chance, but…Hikari's freedom to choose her own path was more important than her own feelings. Without that freedom, they were all caged birds, chained down by those who stole their freedom.

And a life caged was just an existence.

I…don't want to do this. But I won't make you my prisoner.

"Are you sure, Amari? They're not in any shape to fight," Sasuke pointed out.

"We completed our mission. We stopped the threat and the Sand and Sound will be defeated, if they haven't been already." She stopped a few feet away from the trio of Sand ninjas and looked over her shoulder back to her friends. The watery onyx eye gave her comrades' pause as they witnessed the full toll of everything she experienced on the frontlines in her reflective eye.

She was barely holding together. Pushing her to continue this war would break her.

"Enough blood has been spilled today," she said. "Let them retreat. This battle is over. Atsuko, can you come here, please?"

Atsuko swooped down to her shoulder. "How may I help, Young Amari?"

"Please send a few of your agents to monitor their retreat to the border between our Lands, and should they try to attack the Leaf or Hikari, kill them."

Temari and Kankurō tensed at the seriousness of her order.

Atsuko nodded. "Of course. Should such a foolish action be taken by your fellow Sand shinobi, Hikari of the Sand, my agents will protect you and return you to the Leaf. Young Amari's offer of help has no expiration date, as you have no doubt inferred."

"I know. I appreciate her offer and your protection, but there should be no altercations. My Iron Sand is still fully capable of defending me."

"Mm. My agents will monitor you all the same. Young Amari deems you precious, and so you will be protected as such. I will return momentarily," Atsuko said before departing into the canopy again.

Amari's Sharingan eye pinned onto the three, but mostly Temari and Kankurō. Gaara didn't appear to be on this planet anymore. "Abuse my mercy or harm her in anyway and your last breaths will be gasps of fear. That I promise." She trudged forward the final steps and crouched down to set Hikari in their care. "Take care, Hikari. I hope we can meet again someday."

Hikari smiled. "As do I, Amaririsu. Your light, 'tis something I will never forget so long as I draw breath."

Amari set her down and stood up, stepping away from the Sand shinobi as proof of her mercy. Kankurō picked up Gaara while Temari picked up Hikari, then they both jumped away. A handful of crows followed after them, as ordered. As for Amari, she watched them disappear into the dense forest, a sad look on her face and heaviness in her heart at letting Hikari leave to an unknown future.

I hope he can see you…but if he can't, I'll be waiting.

The kunoichi straightened her emotions out then turned back to her own team. Sasuke had Naruto's arm slung over his shoulder and his unconscious body brace. Mimi stood nearby with Tenten bracing some of her weight. They all looked tired, but they weren't safe yet. Rest would only happen when she knew they were safe.

Amari lifted her chin in the direction where they had left Shino. "Come on, let's go find Shino and find a place to bunker down until we're sure the village is safe."

All of the Genin shared a nod before jumping up into the trees on their trek back towards Shino's last known position. Hardly a minute into their journey and the full toll of exhaustion hit Amari's battered body. Mid-jump her vision fogged, and as she landed from a jump, the kunoichi lost her footing.

What a drag, she thought tiredly.

"Amari!" she heard someone cry.

Arms caught her before she hit the ground and continued back in step with her friends.

"You always push yourself too far, 'Risu," a voice chastised.

Amari cracked her eye open to see her cousin staring down at her with a smirk, Atsuko resting on his shoulder. "And…you're always lazy, Shika."

"Get some rest. I'll take it from here."

Wrapping her arms around his neck, she nestled into his chest. Maybe just this once she'd listen to him. "Wake me up…if you need me."

"I will. Now get to sleep, you troublesome girl."

---

The four Sand shinobi traveled in utter silence. Hikari sensed the general uneasiness of Temari and Kankurō, likely the result of the birds sent by Amaririsu. Her decision to leave the Leaf kunoichi, it had not been easy. Especially when her new friend cried for her. Her heart wanted to stay, but it also wanted to return to Suna, not for anyone except Gaara.

She traveled all the way to Konoha to save him. 'Twas only right to travel back to Suna for the chance to renew their bond. If not, well, Amaririsu's offer had no expiration date.

"Temari, Kankurō, Hikari…I'm sorry," Gaara's tired but honest voice broke the silence.

The Suna native wasn't sure how to react to his words. 'Twas the first apology he gave since turning down his current path. 'Twas a small step, a small ember of hope that their bond may yet be restored.

Maybe things would be different when they got back home.

"Don't worry about it," Kankurō responded, sounding as surprised as she felt.

Maybe they could be friends again.

---

Review Response to ChillinInKonoha: Thank you for the review! I think they could have interesting conversations as well, especially later on in Shippuden. But, alas, I cannot confirm or deny it. We will have to wait and see if she gets those conversations, as well as if she learns the truth about the massacre sooner rather than later. Hope you enjoyed the final confrontation!