.: It's been awhile! Sorry, I decided to finish my semester before writing another chapter. But I did a whole lot of planning during the brief hiatus. Because of that, I will hopefully be starting another fanfic soon, which I am very excited for. For this chapter, though, I wanted to do something long for once. 2,000-3,000 words per chapter seems to be my limit most of the time because I feel a strain if I try to go longer, but I wanted to see if I could overcome it. Leave a review to let me know if longer chapters are preferred or not. Writing for fun is all about finding improvements in yourself, after all :) :.

The Archangel of the Hidden Leaf

Chapter 18:

When the Sky Grieves

"No," Dolia quietly wailed, staring at Naruto's unmoving body. Regretfully, it was too much of a familiar sight. Images of her past suddenly flashed past her very eyes. First, it was her father getting beat down in front of her. The long-forgotten sound of his desperate plea before the door slammed shut rang in her ears as if she were hearing it live all over again. Then images of her infant son and daughter's lifeless bodies returned to her. After trying for months to push the memories away to keep the aftershocks of pain from clawing at her throat, there was suddenly no stopping it. She remembered nuzzling both into her breast to keep them warm, despite death's cold grip seeping through their skin insistently. She remembered it so clearly that she could almost feel them in her arms once more.

Her respiration quickened involuntarily. As Yamato's totems inched back to give Naruto space, she waited for him to move. With each beat of her heart, she counted how many seconds passed. Her patience was met with internal pleading. He had to move. He had to still be alive. Shaking inside her bones, she began feeling the rising sensation of chakra traveling up her back, through her neck, and into her face. She was aware of it but failed to rein in her transformation.

Kakashi and Yamato looked on with disheartened expressions. It was the first time Naruto lost control of the Nine-Tails since he began this training. Although it was alerting to see the orange bubbly cloak of the demon fox make its reappearance, Kakashi also found relief in seeing Yamato's Wood Style jutsu successfully work to combat it. The legend of the First Hokage taming the Nine-Tailed Fox was confirmed to be true. However, seeing Naruto get pummeled was an uncomfortable sight to witness, and it would not be the only time it happened.

"If Naruto keeps doing this, he'll…" Yamato trailed.

"It's the only way," Kakashi enforced, taking a step to go check on his student. But he halted when some of the tree branches creaked and Dolia's body launched into the open. It was like seeing a cat jump from it; she exited face-first with arms extended to break her fall. And it was a horizontal descent, so nothing about it was accidental. Upon it happening, he felt a sharp pain in his chest from worry. This was dangerous, not only for herself from the chance of injuring herself but also for Naruto. Her fangs were jutting from her mouth. She was going in for the kill.

With another step, Kakashi disappeared in the blink of an eye. He reappeared again in midair. Dolia had no time to react. Kakashi's arm hooked around her neck and he somehow used his free hand to restrain both her wrists in one smooth motion. The direction and momentum of her flight diverted with enough force to cause bruising. But Kakashi did not do it to hurt her; he did it to stop her and eliminate all risks of her brutally murdering someone all over again.

Dolia choked as Kakashi pulled his elbow deeper against her throat. They both landed on the grass a few feet from Naruto, Kakashi in a squat and Dolia on her stomach. She tried to pull her hands free, but his grasp was too strong to break. Her black eyes remained locked on Naruto, and the longer he refused to move, the harder she tried to thrash her way out of her trap. "Calm down," Kakashi told her, trying to keep his arm away from her teeth. "Naruto is your friend. You have to remember that."

"I know he is!" Dolia responded with her teeth distorting her speech. "I have to help him. Please."

Her pleads surprised him. He assumed that her mind was clouded, but she was proving him very wrong. When she tried pulling away from his grip again, he relented by releasing her. She stumbled to her feet, trying to get up fast but finding no traction at first, and went to Naruto's side after pushing away the remaining totems. She quickly rolled him over onto his back and pressed her ear to his chest. To her relief, there was a distinct, steady thumping that alerted the presence of his soul. Kakashi heard her choke back a sigh and sob at the same time as she gathered the jinchuriki into her arms and held him close. It was like watching a mother comfort her child. A pang of sympathy jutted in Kakashi's gut; this was not the first time Dolia did such a thing.

Yamato retracted the totems completely so that they sank back into the ground to be left unseen. Once done, he got to his feet and went over as well. Kakashi allowed her to intervene, so he would not separate her from Naruto, but she should at least understand why he had to use such measures to restrain him. "It's not as bad as it looks," he began, trying to find a lighthearted tone in his speech.

But she was not having any of it. She held Naruto tighter and turned her head toward Yamato to let out a warning hiss at him. He stopped in his tracks in acknowledgment. All she knew was that because of him, Naruto was unconscious and possibly hurt. Although he hated to be so violent in restraining in the Nine-Tails chakra, there was no other way to go about it. He only worried about how Naruto could handle the treatment multiple times. This instance would hopefully have him walk away with minor cuts and bruises only.

Dolia kept her black eyes locked on Yamato as she waited for him to come closer instead of staying away as she wanted. She only stopped when she felt Naruto move against her. He blinked his eyes open with a slight groan, feeling residual soreness throughout his body where the totems had punched him. "Naruto?" Dolia said, relinquishing her grasp around his torso so he could lay back in the grass. He looked up into her monstrous face and saw the worry in her gaze.

"I'm okay," he confirmed. "Don't worry, either. I heal fast."

She did not understand what he meant or how it was possible, so she said nothing back. However, with her worries now repressed since he was alive, she eased her chakra's claim to her face and let it go back to normal. Kakashi and Yamato came up behind her to look down at Naruto. "Still good to keep going?" Kakashi asked him.

"In a minute," he replied, closing his eyes as a big cloud with a gray underbelly swept over the plain.

"Well, don't take too long. We still have a ways to go and not much time to waste. And we should count on you losing control of the Nine-Tails a few more times, too."

Naruto opened his eyes again. Losing control of the Nine-Tailed Fox would significantly slow down this training process. He had to learn how to manipulate the motion and nature of chakra simultaneously without it happening as soon as possible. Even though this was only his first try, there was still something about it that left him unsure if he could do it. Doing them separately, yes, he could do it easily now, but simultaneously was a whole different story and ball game for shinobi training.

Dolia got up and squeezed between Yamato and Kakashi to go to the basket of pills Sakura brought. Once she snatched one, she returned and offered it to Naruto. "Oh, no thanks, Dolia," he quickly rejected as politely as possible, moving his face away from his most hated snack on the planet. He knew she was just looking out for him, but she had no clue how horrible they tasted.

With a twinge of annoyance, she brought the pill to her own mouth, took a bite from it as if it were a delicious apple, and then offered it back to him. "Eat," she insisted before chewing.

Naruto gave her a wild expression. She ate a piece like it was nothing! Not even a gag reflex was initiated from the taste. But then again, she was probably showing him that if she could do it, so could he. Hesitantly, he took the food pill from her and took a rather small bite, immediately cringing at the taste. He would bear it this once to prove to his scary friend he was okay and willing to get his strength up enough to continue training.

When midday came, Akuma and his group stopped under the canopy of a forest in the Land of Fire. He told Sasuke that it was best if they only moved when the sun was not in the sky because then they had free range to fly rather than travel by foot. The night sky would act as their cover. With that being said, they all found a place to hunker down for a few hours to sleep and rest until that time came.

Sasuke was the only person who did not try to sleep, though. He stayed close by and leaned back against a tree trunk while Akuma and Kyojin snoozed. His ears listened for anybody passing by on the dirt road, but they instead heard the distant rumble of thunder. He instinctively gazed up through the branches to see spots of blue having been replaced by gray clouds. And now that he was thinking about it, the air was getting thicker from rising humidity. A storm was coming.

No more than an hour later, the raindrops started trickling through. The sky began letting loose as the minutes ticked by, pouring buckets upon the earth now. It penetrated through Sasuke's clothing. Not long after, Akuma emerged from his sleeping spot in the brush and found a tree trunk nearby to sit against as well. The rain made his chestnut locks stick to his skin, but he did not seem bothered by it. As he reached up to untie the cloth from around his forehead, Sasuke broke the silence. "Who are we retrieving next?"

"A woman this time," Akuma answered. "Her name is Yume. Kyojin has a history with her, but that's none of my business."

"Is she the last one?"

"No, there's one more after her. His name is Kemono. And if we can, I'd like to enlist the help of an old friend in the Akatsuki."

The mention of the terrorist organization piqued Sasuke's interest. The only member that came to mind was his brother Itachi, who joined after killing their clan. Akuma noticed the demeanor change in him and knew what was on his mind. "I don't mean Itachi Uchiha," he clarified.

Whoever he was talking about, he did not care. He quickly changed the subject without making eye contact. "Why is it important to gather all these people? I would assume capturing one girl is enough for one person to handle without causing many problems."

"Unfortunately, that is no longer an option," Akuma explained. "In order to know where the girl ended up, I went into the Hidden Leaf and directly asked the Hokage herself if she knew anything about her. She obviously lied to me by saying she didn't know, so now they're aware of me and my intent to return."

Fool, Sasuke wanted to say. What kind of tactic was that? He only made the task harder by basically telling the Hokage that he would return to forcibly take her.

"I know she's somewhere in that village locked up," Akuma continued as the rain audibly hit the ground with a pitter-patter rhythm. "You're probably thinking I made a bad decision, but I only made things easier for us. They'll either have to give her to us, or we'll attack. Simple as that."

"I doubt a handful of us can easily defeat an entire village full of shinobi," Sasuke commented.

"I'm not dismissing that they'll fight back, but you have to remember, we have the advantage of the sky. And we have you, too, now. Not only are you an Uchiha, but you're also Lord Orochimaru's closest subordinate. I highly doubt you're weaker than any of us."

"Hm," Sasuke hummed with a brief smirk. He knew Akuma was trying to flatter him, but it would not get him far. He was not planning on giving Orochimaru more of a report than was necessary once all this was done.

"Now, if I could get Deidara on board with us, we'd have a party. His art would definitely be a big threat, and he could join us in the sky without a problem. Oh, one can only imagine how fun it'll be to toy with the Hidden Leaf."

Sasuke did not share the same feelings toward this plan. His old home was something he had no reason for attacking. Only Itachi was worthy of crossing a blade with him. But he would still follow Akuma's orders to retrieve this girl and bring her back, and he would be successful in it.

The rainfall grew heavier and colder, forcing the conversation to come to an end between them. Akuma tipped his head back against his tree and closed his eyes to relish in the refreshing sensation. It would not be long now. Soon, he would have everything he wanted back: his friends, the thrill of battle, and the mother of his deceased children.

That feeling he had during his first attempt, he began to think it was a sign. Naruto failed once again; a clone went berserk so Captain Yamato had to beat it down. Luckily it was not the real him this time. When all the clones dispersed into one big smoke cloud, he felt a wave of fatigue and fell to his hands and knees. How many clones have lost control by now? He had lost count.

Dolia watched on from the base of the tree. Kakashi did not make her go back up this time, so she kept bringing Naruto food pills so he would not be training on a completely empty stomach. When she was not doing that, she made sure to stay out of sight as much as she could and even kept the cloak's hood over her head. It may have been to hide her identity, but with the storm clouds looming overhead now, it was also to lessen how much rain soaked her.

Yamato brought back the totems with a pant of his own and looked up at Kakashi. "What should we do? Should we stop for now?" he questioned.

"If that's what he wants to do," Kakashi replied after a short moment. He glanced over at the tree to see if Dolia would make another round for him, but she stayed seated behind the wooden couch with her eyes locked on the jinchuriki as he rolled onto his back. Just as he did, the dark gray clouds stopped holding back their tears.

Naruto, in the middle of his self-pity, felt the cold raindrops hit his body. He found himself reminiscing about the last time he felt such cold rain in the middle of summer. It was not normal for the air to suddenly become chilly like this, so the memory had to be distinct. He was actually laying on the ground just like this, and someone was hovering above his face as he lay unconscious…

Sasuke.

With a jolt, Naruto realized he was doing nothing. The rain had become a complete downpour, so a puddle had formed underneath him. The number of droplets that splattered against himself and the ground was enough to create a slight haze. He jumped to his feet to shake it all off him. "Damn it!" he grumbled to himself as he found a firm stance. "I don't have time to just sit around!" Yamato, Kakashi, and Dolia watched as he refused to admit defeat by summoning a whole new bout of shadow clones and try one more time to mix a change in motion and nature to his ball of chakra.

That's it. Again, Dolia voiced to herself.

But yet again, a clone became overcome by the Nine-Tails' power and was enshrouded by its orange bubbly cloak. His blue irises turned red and his fingernails sharpened to points. The other clones immediately stood clear with alert. The sight disheartened all three as they looked on. Three tails waved behind him, causing him to roar out with the rage that consumed him. They even lashed out to strike the other clones. This failure was different from the previous ones; it was much more violent, a sign that the training was angering the beast inside more with each attempt.

Naruto's yelp for Yamato signaled him to send out the totems once again. The clone going berserk saw them coming for his cloak and tried to maneuver his way through the fray, but there were too many to fight off. They pinned him to the ground as hard as possible, causing him to poof away. The real Naruto sat a few feet away with the heavy droplets running rivers down his skin and clothes.

Kakashi appeared next to Naruto in a crouch to check on him, knowing that the surplus of clones coming and going was slowly putting a strain on his chakra and energy levels. Seeing Naruto look away from him with a frustrated expression made Dolia grab another food pill from the basket and come over as well. Perhaps another short break and bite to eat would lift his spirits.

Over the roar of the rain, she heard Kakashi speaking words of encouragement. But Naruto faced him to release his frustrations. "The chakra control is too hard, and two-hundred shadow clones is my limit. I get the feeling I'll never be able to do this," he said as she came to his other side. He knew she was there but did not look. "It takes a ton of concentration to form the Rasengan in the first place. It's too much to try to create a Change in Chakra Nature on top of that."

Dolia took one of his hands to place the food pill in it, even closing his fingers over it so it was secure. He accepted it but did not go to eat it. Seeing how glum he was now made her shift her gaze to Kakashi, who noticed it, too. "You're unusually negative," he commented with the rain had completely soaked through his mask, turning the color from navy blue to black. "It's not like you. Is that the Naruto Uzumaki I know so well?"

He gripped the food pill harder. The water was already loosening its rounded shape, so the pressure being applied made it squish with indentions. "I just don't think it'll work," he insisted.

"You have to make it work."

"Then could you look to the left while looking to the right if someone told you to?"

Realization swept across Kakashi's face. Dolia read the change in expression despite just one eye being visible. "I see…That's what this is about," he stated, coming up from his crouch. "Then I guess it's not outside the realm of possibility."

"Huh?" Naruto responded, looking up at his sensei.

With the same set of hand signs Dolia memorized, Kakashi made a shadow clone of himself appear. One looked and pointed to his left, saying– "By looking to the left–" and the other did the same to his right, saying– "while looking to the right. This is what you mean, correct?"

Naruto watched the exchange, feeling his understanding develop a great idea. "I get it!" he exclaimed, jumping to his feet. He dropped what remained of the food pill into the grass and pressed his fingers together to make more clones, but Kakashi held his palm over them to stop him. Confused, Naruto looked up at him to see he was getting a glimpse at Yamato. There was another Leaf shinobi in Yamato's circle of totems speaking to him. Suddenly Kakashi vanished and reappeared at Dolia to pull her hood farther over her head as a precaution.

Yamato nodded at the shinobi and got up from his sitting position to come closer to Kakashi so he could be heard over the rain's steady roar. "Kakashi! We must stop the training for now and head back to the village."

"What?!" Naruto shouted.

"What's going on?" Kakashi asked, seeing the crestfallen expression that was not there before.

Dolia kept her gaze low, nervous that Kakashi would pull her hood down again if she got a look at what was happening. She could not see how Yamato was having an internal conflict with the news he had just received. Even though he never had close connections with this person, he knew Kakashi had known him for a long time. If anyone, it would him who took this revelation hard.

"Asuma Sarutobi…is dead," Yamato regretfully revealed.

Both Naruto and Kakashi deflated upon the words that exited his mouth. A pit formed in Naruto's stomach specifically. It was not too long ago (only a few days ago, in fact) that he conversed with Asuma for some tips on the Wind Nature of chakra. This was someone he had personal contact with. And now he was suddenly no longer alive? The concept was hard to swallow, more so than Sakura's mud balls.

Kakashi broke eye contact with Yamato. Out of everyone he had in his life, he never expected Asuma Sarutobi, son of the 3rd Hokage, to be one to fall at the hands of an enemy. They were students at the academy together growing up and continued being friends into their adolescence. He remembered running into Asuma at the hospital earlier in the week, and he had pulled him aside to tell him something, but they were interrupted by Kurenai's arrival. He never got to hear what Asuma wanted to tell him.

Even though he had lost many people in his life, the pain he felt from it was never lessened. He sighed with the rain drowning out the sound. "Very well."

Naruto gazed up at his sensei with almost clouded pupils. "Kakashi Sensei…"

"We'll continue with your training after the funeral," he assured him. "Let's be done for today."

Maybe Lady Tsunade will add Asuma to the chunins' funeral tomorrow…Then we can get back to your training soon, he thought with a lingering sting.

Kakashi slung a backpack over his shoulders that had his bedding inside. With the amount of rain they were experiencing, though, he would have to dry it when he got home. The same would apply to Yamato and Naruto. When he loosened the straps enough, he knelt to pick up the cuffs and rope he used to escort Dolia here. She stood next to him wondering if she would have to wear them again. But if Kakashi was being honest, he was not in the mood to keep up with such formalities right now. He reached back to stuff the cuffs and rope into a pocket in the backpack before looking at her. "Stay close to me," he instructed her.

With just the lower half of her placid face visible to him, she nodded.

Yamato and Naruto had gotten their things as well and were left waiting for them. When they grouped up, they began to walk back to the village together. The rain did not let up one bit, so Dolia spent her whole walk next to Kakashi listening to the squelching and squishing of her sandals against the moist ground. By the time all four of them had walked past a patch of grass, it had become trampled with mud peeking out. She was the only one to have noticed it, though. Everyone besides her carried an aura of sorrow around them now. She did not understand since she did not know this Asuma person, but she knew that it was someone they all were fond of.

Their squelching and squishing footsteps began to cease when they got closer to the village. Yamato rested a hand on Dolia's wet shoulder before passing by her to go a different direction. "See you tomorrow," he said to her and Kakashi.

She looked over her shoulder at him when he properly departed, surprised by his gesture. Did he not remember that she practically threatened him earlier? Either that, or he did not take it personally.

Naruto tried to give a convincing smile to Dolia before he also departed down a separate road, but she could see how forced it was. Whether it was from a sudden halt in his training, or the loss of Asuma, or both, she could not read. But the sight still made her feel pity for her friend.

When it was just herself and Kakashi left, he directed her down the same road they were already headed down. As he instructed, she stayed close. The only thing she did not like was how reserved he was being. He was not as chatty as Naruto was anyway, but still, it felt odd to her.

He walked through the pouring rain with his hands in his pockets. Before entering the village, he had listened for Dolia's soaking footsteps to ensure she was there. The roads in the village barely resorted to a muddy terrain, so he could not do the same thing. He went ahead and extended an elbow toward her, gently prodding her with it. First, she looked up, but then down. Somehow, she understood the welcoming space he was offering her and wrapped her own arm around his. A part of him was impressed; he anticipated a little more coaxing than that.

When he relaxed his arm again, she drew herself even closer to his side. Her bony hand rested on his soaked sleeve and felt the firm muscle underneath. The feeling brought comfort to her because he was meant to protect her, and it was just affirmation that he was qualified for the job. But where was he taking her? The whole reason she was with him was to keep her hidden away from the village. Surely, he wanted to get out of the rain soon at least. It had felt nice at first, but now it was just giving her goosebumps and making her want to shiver.

In the middle of her thoughts, Kakashi suddenly paused in his stride. He had been contemplating how he would go about sharing his home with her for the rest of the day, but he realized that would mean she needed a dry set of clothes. Before Dolia could say anything, he turned the angle of his hips to take a small detour. "Come this way," he said.

If there was someone he trusted, it was Sakura. She was someone who not only was already familiar with Dolia but was also fairly nearby. He may have only visited her home once (back with the 3rd Hokage and right before properly meeting Team 7), but there was no way he could forget the location after the hospitality he received. But he just hoped the unexpected visit had the outcome that would benefit Dolia. She was shivering from the rain now, and some lightning was making appearances in the clouds.

When they stopped at the right house, he knocked on the door. "Are you hiding me?" Dolia asked him.

"For the night, but not here," he replied. Looking down at her with a friendly expression, he added: "You get to stay with me."

The door opened and shined the artificial light on them both. Sakura Haruno laid eyes on her sensei and friend, seeing them arm in arm and how saturated they were from the weather. Kakashi's white hair was no longer spiked up but instead sagged around his headband. "Kakashi Sensei?" she voiced.

"Hey, Sakura," he greeted. "Sorry to drop in like this. I was just wondering if you had some dry clothes Dolia could borrow for the night."

She looked over her former patient to see how the rain was causing every article of clothing on her body to cling to her skin. Even the black cloak she gave her earlier in the day was greatly revealing her thin frame. "Sure. Just one second," she replied, almost closing the door. "You want to get out of the rain?"

"We'll probably just make a mess," he admitted, scratching the back of his head.

"Then I'll be quick." She left to go up to her bedroom. As she pulled a small bag from her closet and began opening drawers of clothes, she could not help but wonder how Kakashi was handling the news of Asuma's death. He appeared normal to her just now, but she had her doubts. Also, it was odd to see Dolia holding onto her sensei the way she was. Although she would have rather seen that than see her cuffed up like a criminal, it was still odd. It appeared as if they were a couple! And clearly, she was not leaving his watch anytime soon, so that could only mean…

That's awkward. He's taking a girl home with him. Luckily she's probably in her early twenties…

Running back to the front door, she handed him the bag. "There you go. Have a good night, Sensei, Dolia," she said.

"You too," he replied before she closed the door. Then he passed Dolia the bag. "Now then. Let's get you indoors so you can quit shivering."

Dolia blushed as she held the bag under her cloak to shield it from the rain. She was really trying to not make it obvious that she was cold, but it did not seem to be working in her favor.