A/n: Gah I hate this chapter…I'm loosing my ability to write action/semi-action. It's aggravating…
"When it comes to the pinch, human beings are heroic."-George Orwell
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"NARUTO!" Emiko yelled, all pretense of stealth abandoning from her mind and she hurriedly raced up the cracked stairs toward the source of the commotion. "NARUTO!" She screamed as she heard her friend's voice ring through the hallways.
"I'm here! The hero always arrives at the last minute!" 'Damn him!' she mentally screamed and clenched the railing while the staircase swayed beneath her heavy footsteps. Behind her there sounded more echoes of footsteps and shouts but she couldn't afford the luxury of pausing for whoever was following her.
Sinful mirth rang throughout the hall as Emiko stumbled onto the correct floor. Her heel screamed against the pain but she shoved it aside and ran towards the laughter now circling in her ears. 'He has to get out of there.' Emiko believed as she reached for the handle. As her fingertips grazed the knob Emiko felt her stomach lurch. Screaming wavered beyond the door.
'Naruto…' her eyes widened and she grasped like a drunken person for the door. Suddenly her body heaved back and she struggled against the person now holding her back. The handle's distance seemed to multiply forever and the sound of pain emanating from the room follow suit in her mind.
"No! Let me go! I have to help him!" She clawed at the arms pulling her away from the door. The sounds abruptly stopped and Emiko did as well, her eyes gazing at the door while her imagination played upon her fear and worst case scenario scenes flashed in her head.
"Barging in there isn't going to help anything." Emiko tilted her head to see Sasuke restraining her, his grip gradually lessening on her as she seemed to calm. Right as they both calmed Sakura and Megumi reached the floor, both panting and holding to the railing in an attempt to catch their breath. Sakura watched the two and opened her mouth to speak when Megumi covered it and shook her head, a small smile on her face.
It disappeared though as the door blasted from its hinges and Megumi watched as the pair was slammed into the railing. Her heart clenched and she began to run towards the two as the railing began to crack under the pressure of the two along with the door.
Emiko coughed, cringing while she felt the door handle successfully being a nuisance as it dug into her side. Her nails dug into the wood and she carefully jostled it off of herself and Sasuke. He sat up as though nothing had happened and turned to gaze through the doorframe into the room.
Smoke misted through the room but Emiko could faintly detect the forms of four people. It was a struggle as they continued to clash, almost melding into new forms as they wrestled around the room.
'Damn, they're moving too fast…' Emiko turned to Sakura and gingerly stood, her heel stung sharply as she was now unfortunately calm enough that her pain wasn't so easily erased.
Part of her was desperate to jump in and help while another part screamed for reason. These were criminals and she was an average teenage girl with no extraordinary fighting abilities. Before a compromise or decision could be reached a flurry of orange shot through the door frame and Naruto skidded to a stop in front of them.
"Are you going to just stand there!" Naruto readily jumped to his feet.
"Naruto, we don't know what's going on in there. And Kakashi-san is a police officer I'm sure-" Sakura was interrupted when Naruto bounded up to the group of teens, his blue eyes wide in a mix of adrenaline, desperation and delayed pain reaction.
"He lost his gun! We have to help!" Emiko nodded resolutely and glanced briefly at the others before she raced to the doorway.
"Sakura, get me the door. Megumi can you help?" Emiko's mind worked almost at a painful pace as she frantically tried to think of a strategy while Naruto distracted those inside with his wild antics.
'His yelling and careless fighting won't last long though,' Emiko thought as Sakura, Megumi and she each held onto a side of the broken door. It was their new weapon. They rushed in recklessly, swinging the door from side to side to hopefully catch at least one of the criminals off guard.
With a satisfying crack Emiko felt the jolt as they managed to smack Naruto's opponent in the back. The figure stumbled a few paces and Naruto lunged at the opportunity. The blonde quickly jumped at the figure and continued to punch and kick with ferocity Emiko hadn't ever seen of him.
Sakura let out a short shriek and Emiko turned in time to see a man looming over them. As he neared them his features came into sharper focus and Emiko noticed he wore simple clothes. It wasn't until his face was in view did she understand why the cop had such trouble with him.
Tattoos covered his face, from his chin to the bridge of his nose. Emiko secretly wish the snake tattooed coiling around his face had been real. 'Choke him,' she thought for a second before she dropped to the ground and pushed away from him to appear on the other side of the door with Megumi and Sakura who both looked rooted to the spot in terror.
A malicious smirk spread the man's face, the cruel amusement failing to reach his eyes which remained almost demon like. As his smirk widened Emiko couldn't help but feel agitated, here she was with another stupid smirking jerk and all she was doing was standing.
'As if,' she growled and vanished from view before she appeared behind the man. Before she could attack the man spun and Emiko flew backwards as his foot collided with her stomach. She clutched her stomach and her eyes closed as she tried to ignore the pain. 'This is what I get …' she coughed harshly but pushed herself to her feet. As her gaze moved she noticed the absence of the man. Nerves pricked and she felt her senses rocket. Something moved and her ears immediately moved to pinpoint the small sound. Moving furiously her mind realized the sound was coming from behind her and she spun in time to see the man standing behind her, smirking sadistically as he slashed at her. She dropped to the ground in a crouched position.
'What are those things Yukito taught me…' she furious ticked through the list of attacks her brother had taught her years ago. Her time was cut short as Zabuza lunged at her, his attacks were almost too fast to see and she relied on purely jumping away and dodging to avoid the force.
Suddenly the man lurched forward, his eyes wide as he tilted on his feet like a swaying statue. Behind him Emiko glimpsed a tuft of silver hair and she released a shallow breath.
"Zabuza, this is over." Kakashi's voice was clearly audible and Emiko staggered away from the scene. Naruto and his opponent had both stopped fighting, it was then Emiko noticed that Sasuke had finally entered the fight with Naruto. He looked beaten but too proud to admit his wounds as he stood tall despite the gashes and bruises.
Emiko took the moment to fleetingly glance over both Naruto and Sasuke's opponent and felt a spark of shock. 'It's a woman!' She thought loudly. Her features were youthful and young and she didn't seem much older than Emiko. Make-up delicately masked her face.
The click of a gun dragged her attention back to Zabuza and Kakashi. Kakashi stood behind the man, his gun cocked and aimed at the man's head. Despite Zabuza's exterior of pure strength and cruelty it seemed he was unwilling to be shot as he stood still.
'He's actually going to give up?' Emiko wondered but paused as she looked between Zabuza and his female partner. In a flash the woman pulled something from the folds of her outfit and Emiko almost fainted as she saw the needle. Kakashi paused, his visible eye shifting between the two before he pushed the gun further against Zabuza's head.
"Give up Zabuza it's over." He warned only causing the man to laugh heartlessly.
"So, you can see the future now?" He taunted despite the gun's order to be silent.
"Yes and if you move you're going to die." The calmness in Kakashi's voice as he spoke sent a wave of anxiety though the room.
"Naruto," The woman spoke softly and the blonde turned to her. Emiko switched her gaze and watched them, catching Sasuke's gaze briefly before the woman spoke again. "If it furthers Zabuza-san's dreams…I will." The underlying message was shrouded to all except Sasuke, Naruto and the woman. Naruto's blue eyes widened in honest surprise and his mouth hung slightly ajar before anger swelled into his face. Emiko's gaze turned to the weapon now lying dormant in the woman's hand and she realized it was a medical needle. Her stomach churned and she felt queasiness passing through her as she stared at the sickening yellow green color liquid residing inside the needle.
'Why needles,' of all Emiko's fears, age, insects, spiders, dentists, paper cuts, the dark, being alone or forgotten, death and needles, needles were in the top three. The thought of being in the same room made her yearn to be on the other side of the world.
"Bu-" Naruto's yell was drowned out as Sasuke rushed forward, mimicking the woman as she raced at them. They clashed for a second and Emiko's mind was scratched clean as she saw, as they pulled away, the needle jutting from the Uchiha's chest. He stumbled back and Sakura screamed. The shriek echoed through the room and Emiko felt a rush of wind as Zabuza attempted to run.
Bang!
A/n And now you know why I detest it so…
