Those Who Are Lost

Chapter 13

The Ritual

Hello there my fellow fanfictioners! It's been a while hasn't it? I have been exceedingly busy with university and exams so I apologise for my long absence.

Anyway I do hope you guys like this one and I did my best to use this chapter to set up a far more explosive next chapter. I think I need to stretch my legs in the action writing department.

I also know that this chapter still needs a lot of work but I wanted to get it out to you guys as soon as I could. Now then, enough of my senseless drabbles and let's have some fun!

Disclaimer: I do not in any way claim ownership of Naruto or Naruto Shippuden. These are both the properties of Masashi Kishimoto the true Sage of the Six Paths.

THE FROTHY PRAWN- BAR

It was with a heavy sigh that Sasuke sat down at the counter and threw a few notes on the countertop. The bartender took the notes with barely a glance before continuing to wipe the top with a surprisingly clean cloth.

"Sake. Leave the bottle." Sasuke told him shortly before resting his head against the cool wood of the bar. The past week had been long and exhausting to say the least. Not at all what he thought it was going to be.

How had he ended up here? How did it come to this? Originally he had been content to merely wander the Hidden Nations, going back and forth from region to region trying to do whatever good he could.

He had been wandering for so long that he thought he would never stop. That was what led him to the Unknown Lands. It had been his plan to head west and just keep going until there was nothing left to see.

That had been the grand plan. Keep moving until he couldn't move anymore and then rest his head down for the last time.

And then he ran into the girl. Skittish little thing despite her brief spurts of fiery… resistance? Aggressiveness? Sassiness?

Whatever it was the Uchiha knew one thing. It may have proven to be annoying at times but somehow, he found he still liked it. The girl got him engaged and for the first time in a long time he found that he was actually living his life again instead of just acting mechanically.

It felt good. Like waking from a long, deep sleep and now he was aware of the world around him once more.

He jumped, slightly more awake as the bottle of sake was placed before him. Thanking the bartender for the drink with a short grunt, the Uchiha uncorked the bottle with his teeth before taking a long pull, ignoring the sake box placed before him.

The alcohol was terrible and he made no attempt to disguise this as his face morphed into a grimace, not that the bartender seemed all that offended by it.

"Drink not to your liking?" Someone asked before taking the stool next to his, the seat groaning under the unexpected weight.

Must be wearing some armor.

"Hn" The Uchiha retorted before taking another sip, followed shortly by yet another grimace. The stranger barked out a short laugh before tapping the wood to gain the bartender's attention and then pointing at the sake bottle.

"That's too bad. I bet you've had a hell of a week and it's not about to get any easier." The stranger chuckled out. All too suddenly the Uchiha's senses sharpened and he became intimately more aware of his surroundings.

This one is dangerous.

"I'm guessing you're one of the Oto nin after the girl?" Sasuke probed shamelessly even as he swirled the drink around inside the bottle before taking another sip, followed by another grimace.

"You would be correct. My name is-" The man began only for Sasuke to hold up his hand and cut him off.

"I don't care." The Uchiha stated before lowering his hand and returning his attention to the alcohol.

"You don't care about me introducing myself?" The man asked, his tone coloured with a mixture of curiosity, confusion and mild amusement.

"Not if you plan on giving me your whole life story I don't." The Uchiha snorted.

"Why would I give you my life story?" This time the confusion was apparent in the stranger's voice as he scoffed before taking another swallow of his own drink.

"Isn't that what everyone seems to do? Introduce themselves and then explain their background and motivations before, during and after our battle." Sasuke drawled.

"Don't know what kind of morons you normally go up against but I promise you I won't be doing that." The man promised.

The two sat in silence for a moment and took sips from their respective bottles before the stranger let out a hacking cough.

"Toyohisa. My name is Toyohisa." The man told him, ignoring the Uchiha's annoyed frown and taking his own pull of the sake straight from the bottle.

"Shit, you're right. This crap is terrible." Toyohisa told him before beginning to chug the drink down quickly.

"So why are you here? Having a drink next to me?" Even as he exchanged small talk with the man, Sasuke's brain raced as he began thinking of ways to obtain information from the soldier.

"Who would pass up the chance to meet the infamous Sasuke Uchiha? Konoha's legendary military commander who's gone rogue so many times it has become little more than a running joke in the shinobi world." Toyohisa proclaimed in an exaggerated manner, gesturing his hand towards Sasuke as though introducing him to a non-existent crowd.

"I haven't gone rogue." Sasuke winced slightly at his own voice there. It was far too quick and defensive, something that the other man seemed to pick up on almost immediately.

"Oh? Then what do you call the last ten years?" Toyohisa replied, a teasing lilt to his voice as though he were teasing an old comrade.

"Holiday." Sasuke replied shortly before taking another swill of the sake.

Toyohisa stayed silent and seemed to be content with atmosphere of the room.

"You're not a normal shinobi, are you?" The Uchiha muttered, waving his bottle in the man's direction as he said so. Toyohisa frowned before swivelling back in his chair to face the bar once more, seemingly offended by what the veteran ninja had said.

"Whatever do you mean?" He eventually asked his voice betraying nothing.

"You don't have the same look as one." Sasuke told him simply, his face taking on an expression of longing when he shook the bottle only to hear silence instead of the sound of sloshing liquid.

"I don't understand your meaning."

"Yes, you do. You may have had some training in the shinobi arts but you're a soldier." This time Sasuke couldn't keep the irritation from seeping into his voice. Seems like the sake was beginning to take effect.

"Oh, you are a clever one but I'm afraid you're only half right." Toyohisa responded darkly, a dangerous grin on his face as he stared at him from the corner of his eye. Sasuke said nothing, patiently waiting for the man to elaborate but beneath his poncho he tightened his grip on the kunai he was wielding.

"I'm a battle priest." Toyohisa told him proudly, beating his breastplate as he said it.

"A follower of Jashin? Last I heard, Shikamaru Nara put together a small army to take you all out… and succeeded. Burnt your temple to the ground as well." Sasuke remarked, impressed despite himself before reaching over the bar when the bartender's back was turned and quickly grabbing another bottle of sake.

"The little prick almost did but there were a few of us on the road at the time. We managed to slip through the net and continue our work."

The two of them spent the next few minutes drinking in silence.

"I know that the girl is sleeping upstairs and that you have a shadow clone watching over her." It wasn't said in a threatening manner as one might have expected but rather just as a statement of fact.

"Then why haven't you made a move?" Sasuke asked curiously.

"I'm a warrior and a survivor just like you. It's only fair to show you the proper respect and allow you the opportunity to walk away from this before I start turning... bloodthirsty." Toyohisa informed him, that grin still gracing his face.

"How generous of you." Sasuke drawled out sarcastically.

"It is isn't it?"

"How did you know we would be here?" The Uchiha asked.

"I could say it was our trackers who found you or perhaps our seer that divined your location but that would be lying." The other man replied honestly.

"Then what is the truth?"

"We knew that you would head home to Hi no Kuni and that you'd have to come through the border at some point. So we sent men to each town and I suppose I just got lucky." Toyohisa explained, unconcerned with what he had just revealed.

"Funny how life works out."

"Indeed."

"Why are you after the girl? I've seen abduction operations before but you guys are really… dedicated to completing your mission." This time, Sasuke decided to take the direct approach instead. A risky manoeuvre but one that couldn't hurt at this point.

"Now why would you want to know that if I'm giving you the chance to walk away with your head attached to your shoulders?"

"Maybe I just want to know how far to run." Sasuke joked humourlessly.

"Ha! A likely story!"

"You're going to tell me." Sasuke told him definitively with a small nod of his head.

"And why would I do that?"

"Because I recognise the look in your eyes. You're hoping I don't run because you want to take my head."

"… Fair enough." Toyohisa told him, the grin ever-present upon his face.

"The girl is no ordinary Hyuuga bastard." Sasuke postulated, his eyes scanning his opponent's face for any particular tell.

"Once in every generation a special child is born with Hyuuga blood running through their veins. A child possessing some unique trait or other. They call this child the Byakugan Princess." Toyohisa replied after a few moments of silence. Clearly the man was still debating how much he should reveal.

"Who are they?" Sasuke pressed, eager to take this opportunity as far as he could.

"Some old fart who probably never held a blade in his life? I don't really know to be honest as the legend has been told and retold so many times." Toyohisa snorted before waving off his question. "Such a child has always been zealously guarded by the Hyuuga clan simply because they were a child."

"I'm not sure I understand."

"To be honest I don't understand it completely myself but from what I've been told their blood possesses special properties whilst the Byakugan Princess is still a child. Once they reach the end of childhood the blood loses this… property."

"What property?"

"It is said that if the blood is extracted from the child at the right time and in the right way then whomever consumes the blood shall become truly immortal."

What is it with this world and it's Kami damned immortality rituals!

"You have to drain a child of their blood and then consume it at a specific time? That's… sickening." Sasuke questioned, wanting to make sure that he understood the whole concept.

"It's what the ritual specifies." The other man answered with a shrug of his shoulders.

"Who ordered this?"

"My master of course." Toyohisa replied as though he were answering the most obvious question in the world.

"And who is your master?"

"Spoilers. Let's just say that he's very keen on getting his hands on your head as well. Just not as keen as he is on the Hyuuga bitch you're travelling with."

"Fine then keep your secrets. I will not however, let you lay a finger on that child while she is under my care." Sasuke threatened softly.

"You ready to die for that?" For the first time in their conversation Toyohisa's jovial attitude disappeared only to be replaced with a strange seriousness.

"I've been ready to die since I was a child." Sasuke informed the man.

"That's a good attitude. Last round?"

"Sure. Got to hit the road soon anyway."

"What makes you think you're reaching the road?"

"What makes you think I'm not? Do you really think you could stop me?"

"Oh I'd love to try it the old fashioned way but I already have stopped you." Toyohisa informed him.

"And how did you do that? You talking about the fact that all the sand shinobi in the town have mysteriously disappeared and how every one of the townsfolk has been acting… oddly since we arrived?"

"Ah that… we disposed of the town's inhabitants shortly before you arrived and replaced them with the Silent Step."

Something was wrong. His mouth was too dry and the tip of his tongue had become numb.

The Silent Step, the Sound Daimyo's personal shinobi army. Supposedly they're more lethal than any normal shinobi… What the hell are they doing mixed up in this?

Something was very wrong. The lights were far too bright and his fingertips were tingling.

"But that's just a security precaution. There's a reason your drink tastes so terrible." Toyohisa continued acting as though he hadn't just committed an act of assassination.

"Poison? That's cheap…." Sasuke hissed, falling off of his stool, arm wrapped around his stomach as he felt the poison work its way to his intestines, burning away at his insides.

"True shinobi use every advantage. Only fools use all their power in every engagement like a battering ram." It was said with such superiority that Sasuke couldn't help himself. Through the pain he slowly lifted his free hand and made a certain gesture which caused the other man to chuckle.

"You're right." The last words that left the Uchiha's mouth before he disappeared in a puff of smoke. A shadow clone.

Silence reigned for a brief moment as the Jashinist absorbed what had just happened.

"…. Bastard!" Toyohisa swore before polishing off the last of his drink. When he was done he turned his attention to the bartender and gave the man a slight nod.

With a puff of smoke, the figure of the bartender dissipated only to be replaced with a far more feminine figure. Brushing off some imaginary dust from her nametag, the waitress Motoko gave him a lopsided smile before leaning on the countertop, face in her hands and sent him a wink.

"Did they see through your disguise?" Toyohisa asked with a smile. She had always been his favourite amongst the Notes.

"No one ever has before. Maybe it was the fact that no one else in this miserable place said a word to them." Motoko defended, sending him a cheeky wink as she did so.

"The Silent Step were all we had on hand in the area. Deception isn't their greatest strength so I'm not too surprised." He replied, waving her off and getting to his feet.

"What do we do now? If this one was a shadow clone then it's a sure thing that the ones upstairs are as well."

Toyohisa merely nodded.

"Sae is already over the border with a full complement of the Silent Step to back her up. Get Toki to send them a message with that bird of his." He ordered before walking out the door.

"Got it."

HI NO KUNI- THE FOREST OF FIRE

Himawari's progress was... remarkable to say the least. The girl was a prodigy and had already mastered the basic forms with quicksilver swiftness.

She's definitely trained. Just shy of a third year Genin in terms of skill I'd say.

"Put more weight on your front foot. The Gentle Fist requires you to always move forward towards your opponent. Don't give the enemy a chance to so much as breathe so keep your weight towards the foe." Sasuke criticised, keeping his eyes trained on her form and making note of all the flaws in her stance.

For her part, Himawari only nodded and wiped the sweat away from her forehead before resuming her original stance, adjusting her footing as she did so.

"Alright." She finally answered him before beginning the kata again.

"When you strike you should aim to expel as much of your chakra as you can. Masters of the Fist can shut down their opponents body part by part but even the most basic beginner can stop a man's heart with enough chakra in the right place." Sasuke instructed her.

"How do you even know this style if it belongs to the Hyuuga clan?" Himawari asked as she moved from the first Fist kata to the second.

"Trade secret I'm afraid." Was the Uchiha's only reply before he turned rigid. He remained stiff and unmoving for a few seconds before shaking his head and returning to normal posture.

"What's wrong?" Himawari asked, a tinge of worry colouring her tone.

"They're onto us." He told her shortly as he moved towards Kamui and began preparing the steed for further travel.

"I thought we had more time!" Himawari hissed before letting out a string of curses she had learned from the old man and which made the Uchiha raise a single eyebrow.

"Frankly, I'm impressed that we got as much time as we've had."

"What do we do?" Himawari asked him accepting Sasuke's help to place her on Kamui's saddle.

"They're coming for you…"

"What are you thinking?" Something about the way he said that unnerved her.

"Maybe we should head for Konoha. It's not too far if we run the distance with some chakra involved and then we could get some real firepower on our side."

"No." Himawari couldn't help the rage that filled her veins at the thought of going to that place.

"You'd be safe there." Sasuke argued only to have the girl shake her head in disagreement.

"You said the Hyuuga take the eyes of bastard children." She hissed making it clear that that reason alone was enough to avoid the place.

"I won't let that happen. I have powerful friends there." Sasuke countered trying to convince the girl that it was the best option available.

I'd kill them before they take her eyes.

"I am not going to that place! You promised to take me to the Fire Temple!" This time she let out an audible growl.

For some reason the sound actually made the hair on the back of his neck stand on end. He felt surprise far more than he felt any sort of nervousness or fear."

"I know I just-" He tried to argue only to be cut off by Himawari's tantrum once more.

"You promised me! We had a deal! I will not risk my eyes and my life to some clan I've only heard horrific stories of!"

I guess there's no convincing her.

"…Alright." The conviction with which he said it was apparently enough to convince her.

It was a few hours later that he sensed them. Reigning Kamui to a stop he began feeling out for the source of the disturbance. Himawari, for her part, remained silent.

Either the girl had sensed that something was wrong or she trusted his instincts enough to know that he sensed something was wrong.

The two of them dismounted before Sasuke sent Kamui away into the forest. He didn't want to risk her with what was about to happen.

It took only a few moments for his eyes to spot the figures hiding in the darkness.

"Hello there." The voice was decidedly feminine despite sounding slightly muffled in its quality.

"Hn" The Uchiha replied making sure to stay in front of the girl and keeping his hand on Kusanagi's pommel.

"I must say that it is really an honor to meet you again Uchiha-sama." The woman even bowed low as though treating him as an important guest.

"… I remember you." The Uchiha drawled his voice seeming to drip with boredom.

"You do? I'm flattered." If she noted his tone she chose not to mention it.

"Nakata Sae. You were one of Kabuto's apprentices." Sasuke claimed with a snap of his fingers, seemingly pleased with his remembering her name.

"I'm honoured that you remember me." Sae answered, bowing low once more and her eyes crinkling with amusement.

"Wasn't by choice. I just happen to remember faces quite well." Sasuke retorted.

"A remarkable gift you possess Lord Uchiha."

"So why are you waylaying us then?" The question was unnecessary he knew. Everyone there knew what was happening.

"Out of respect for you Sasuke-kun I give you a gift." Sae told him with another smile if the crinkling around her eyes was any indication.

"And what gift would that be?"

"Why the gift of life of course." The words came out with such casualness that

"How generous of you. And what do you want in return for this gift?" The Uchiha drawled out, seemingly bored and unconcerned with the fact that they were both surrounded by a few dozen, armed shinobi and a psychopathic shinobi leading them.

"All you have to do is turn around and ride away into the forest. Back to your road and continue running away from whatever it is you're running away from."

"…and the girl?" The Uchiha asked rubbing his chin in thought.

"You leave her with us. After that it isn't really your concern Sasuke-kun." Sae told him with a fake sweetness.

"Yeah… you see I can't do that."

This was apparently the wrong thing to say as Sae stood up straight and the air around them seemed to heighten with danger and the constant presence of death.

"Why not?" Sae asked slowly.

"Because she hired me. Once hired, a shinobi sees the job through to the end." Sasuke informed her, almost casually, even as his hand slowly began inching its way back towards Kusanagi's hilt.

"Ah but you're not a shinobi anymore are you Sasuke-kun? You haven't been for over a decade. What you're describing then is mere mercenary work." It was those words that caused a strange thought to flit across his mind unbidden but not unwanted.

'I hate her smile' It was an odd thing to think considering that he couldn't see the lower half of her face, covered as it was by the top of her collar. It was just something about the way her eyes seemed to both crinkle in amusement and sharpen dangerously all at once.

Hate was a good emotion to feel before battle. It made it so much easier to not regret the taking of a life. At least that's what Madara would have had everyone believe.

"Call me whatever you want but I'm not letting you have her." The words were short and to the point as would be expected from him. Despite sounding familiar Sasuke found that he was surprised at himself when he spoke the words. They came out with far more force than he had intended and he meant them more than he thought he would. It appeared that it did not go unnoticed either as he felt Himawari stiffen in surprise from behind him.

"Why are you doing this? Surely you don't think that you –" Sae began only to be stopped.

"I remember you." Himawari said the words just loud enough for the group to hear her, cutting off Sae's words. What little sound there was in the clearing fell away as all attention was now placed on her.

"I'm flattered my dear."

"You killed Kouda." Slowly but with great certainty Himawari raised her hand and pointed a single finger at Sae who cocked her head curiously. Nodding to herself as if doing so to confirm her own suspicions, Himawari's hand began to shake slightly.

"I'm sorry?"

"The old man you killed that night in the snow." The shaking grew worse with each word and Himawari didn't know if it was from rage, terror or grief. She didn't know a lot of things at that point in time… except one.

There was one thing that Himawari knew and it was all she needed to keep her courage. The young girl knew what was going to happen in the next ten minutes or so. It was this foresight that made what she envisioned a potential reality.

"Ah yes, Kouda-san. Forgive me my dear but when you've killed as many people as I have then the names and faces tend to blur together after a while."

"He was a kind man and my friend and you killed him."

"I'm sorry for your loss." Sae drawled, her voice dripping with amusement.

"I'm going to kill you." Himawari didn't mean for the thought in her head to pass from between her lips.

"Excuse me? Was that a threat, child?"

"Right here in this place. You're going to die tonight and I'm going to be the one that does it." Himawari promised the woman darkly, dropping her hand to reach for the kunai at her back. The one she had taken from the ninja she had killed.

"Big words from such a small, weak and defenceless girl. I'm a trained killer after all." Admittedly the girls words were unsettling to hear but it hardly mattered at that point.

"That doesn't matter. It doesn't matter how it happens but you're not leaving here." Himawari assured her pulling the knife from its hiding place and raising it to show the woman.

No more words needed to be said between the two of them. The message was clear. It was the knife that Himawari intended to use to take Sae's life.

"Looks like my job description just got expanded." Sasuke spoke up, drawing attention to himself once more.

"You're going to stay?" Sae asked him, sounding disappointed with his decision.

"No. I'm going to help her kill you." He kept his tone light and conversational as though he didn't just promise to help a little girl murder someone.

"And why would you do that?" Sae asked, trying to keep her voice from betraying her increasing anxiety. Sasuke Uchiha was not a shinobi to be trifled with after all.

"Let's just say I'm a big believer in the concept of revenge."

"Kill him and bring me the girl." Sae ordered coldly, stepping back to allow her men to advance.

"Not fighting with your footsoldiers? That's a big mistake."

"Make it quick. I don't want Toyohisa stealing the glory for this one." Sae spat whilst continuing to retreat.

"Don't worry." Sasuke told her even as he gripped Kusanagi's hilt tightly and slowly unsheathed the blade. Sae's eyes widened considerably at this action, her eyes following the gleam of the blade as the pale moonlight reflected off of its surface making the blade shine silver.

"I'll make it quick." He promised her. His tone conveyed no malice, only a quiet promise. He knew the legends and stories that others told about him. The horrors that veteran shinobi tell to their children to get them to behave.

'behave or Sasuke Uchiha will come for you in the night'.

An odd thing but very effective from what he had been told. The truth was in fact altogether different. Sasuke Uchiha wasn't a cruel person nor was he a sadist. Every move he made in combat was efficient and done with the aim to dispatching his opponent.

Only fools and madmen prolonged combat longer than they had to and he was neither of those. That's why his promise was a genuine one.

At least… it would be if he got to Sae before Himawari did. The girl may have less than basic training but she was unpredictable and if Naruto had proven one thing to him over the years it was that unpredictability was a very dangerous thing.

Drawing his blade and activating both his eyes at the same time he drew a deep breath and waited for the inevitable assault. Himawari stood behind him for protection but her posture remained as determined as ever.

It was time to be unpredictable.

I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. I hoped to move the plot forward some more and hopefully that's what I accomplished with this chapter.

Please let me know what you think of the chapter and the story as a whole by leaving a review for me. The next chapter will focus more on Himawari's perspective of things than Sasuke.

Until next time.

Those Who Are Lost Chapter 14

A Promise Of Vengeance.