AN: Hi everybody! Thanks for waiting a little longer for this update. Like I said last time, things are getting a little busier so updates are going to be a little more spaced out. I am definitely going to be updating at least once a week, ideally more if time allows. Thanks for understanding.

Also, thank you for all the reviews on the last chapter! It was the most reviewed chapter so far, so please keep that up. It means a lot to hear what you guys think, and reading them makes finding the motivation to write a lot easier!

For those wanting more NaruSaku moments, don't worry they are coming, I promise!

Enjoy!

Chapter 9

There was no feeling in Sakura's body. It felt like she was floating on endless nothing, conscious yet unconscious at the same time. No pain. No pleasure. It could only be described as truly empty. As she opened her eyes, she was greeted to an infinite plane of white stretching out before her.

'Am I dead?' She asked herself, taking a moment to recollect her thoughts. The last thing she remembered was Naruto calling her name, and being unable to break the spell over her body. She had touched that black orb and everything after that was a blur. She took a deep breath in though she wasn't sure if any air was actually filling her lungs. She felt calmer none the less.

A familiar Chakra signature registered in her system and her panic receded even more. It was warm and inviting and one that she was all too aquatinted with. Just having it around put her at ease.

"Naruto?" She called out, looking around the blank plane in every direction. He didn't respond, and her voice echoed a few times before fading away. Still, she was sure that he was here. Somewhere. And while the logical side of her brain told her he wasn't, she trusted her instinct. Even if she couldn't see him, Naruto was in this emptiness with her.

And she was right, for standing a few yards away from her was the very blonde in question.

Naruto was waving his arms over his head, trying to get her attention to no avail. He tried taking a step toward her but found he couldn't actually move. Technically, he could physically move his body, but as he did the space around them seemed to shift with him. He couldn't gain any ground, so he tried calling out again.

"Sakura-Chan! Over here!" He watched as the pink-haired girl didn't react to his voice. Panic briefly overtook him before a loud bellowing voice rang out in his mind.

"She can't hear you kit. I don't even think she can see you right now." The deep gruff voice of the Nine-Tailed Fox sealed inside him startled Naruto. Even though he had made peace with Kurama, the beast rarely spoke without being spoken to first and it continued to surprise him when it happened.

"What are you talking about? Where are we Kurama?" Naruto finally looked around and noticed the blank space as far as the eye can see. The image of the fox appeared in his mind as they continued to converse.

"It's Genjustu. Or at least something similar. That old sage's orb must have reacted to your friend over there touching it, and since you were touching her you got caught up in it too."

The image of white flames surrounding him and Sakura came flooding back, and he winced at the thought of her being hurt. He looked back at her, and let out a sigh of relief when she looked okay. He knew it wasn't her actual body, but the sight was enough to comfort him for now.

"Can you break us out of it?" Naruto asked, focusing his attention back to the demon inside him.

"I'm trying, but it's powerful. It's going to take a while. But the chakra of this place doesn't seem malicious. Listen kit, the truth-seeking orb is a powerful relic. Keep your guard up."

Naruto was about to ask Kurama to elaborate when the space around him suddenly began to shift.

"Sakura!" He called out but was relieved to see that she, like him, was unaffected by the shift in surroundings. He watched as the empty plane shifted and contorted. Eventually, the pair found themself gazing upon a familiar scene.

Sakura watched as the image of her younger self appeared in front of the village gate. She was crying and her head hung low. The real Sakura opened her mouth slightly before a frown found its place upon her lips.

"Naruto, please. Please bring Sasuke-Kun back." The younger version of her cried out.

She had seen this before. It was the day she asked Naruto to make the promise that would shape their lives for years to come. She felt tears forming in her own eyes, and watched as the childhood image of Naruto shot back a thumbs up and grinned. She didn't get to hear his last words, as the space in front of her began to shift again.

Naruto too was observing the scene. Not that he needed too. For the longest time he had played out those exact moments in his head over and over. He had desperately searched to see if he could have done anything, anything at all, different in order to comfort the crying girl. He so deeply wished that anything he could have said would have changed her heart and made her look at him, but he had long since come to the conclusion that was impossible. He turned to the real Sakura and noticed the water forming in her eyes. It was painful to know he couldn't reach out. He wanted nothing more than to wipe the tears away as he usually did. He watched on and was thankful when the scene began to shift.

"Kurama, whats going on? Why can't she see me?" He asked as his surroundings suddenly shifted from the old village gate to that of a decimated Leaf Village.

"I think these are your memories, kit. Yours, and Hers. I don't know, I'm working on it. For now just bare it." Naruto frowned as he looked at Sakura again before he focused back on the images playing out before him.

His and Sakura's memories? The thought made him shutter. There were a lot of happy ones, but he had a sickening feeling that those would not be the ones he would have to relive in this experience.

Sakura meanwhile had also begun to realize what was happening. Scenes from her and Naruto's life were playing out in front of her, which only further convinced her that he was indeed present somewhere, viewing them just like her. She didn't understand why, but she was entirely certain of it. Confusion crept over her as she watched the next memory begin to play out.

It was right after the Pein attack. The village was still in shambles but the rebuilding had begun. She watched as her, Naruto, and Sai came into view, all walking down the street. She vaguely remembered the scene but recalled she left pretty quickly on this day. Sure enough, the mirage of her younger self left the group and she was now watching Naruto and Sai walk alone.

'This must be one of Naruto's memories,' she concluded, before intently looking at the men before her.

"Naruto?" The pink-haired medic heard Sai call her friends name, and watched as the image of him stopped and faced the pale man.

"Why don't you tell her how you feel?" Sakura's breath caught in her throat when she saw Naruto tense up and turn his back to Sai. This must have been before the Land of Iron, and what had triggered Sai to prompt her to make that god awful confession in the first place. Not that she blamed Sai, it was her fault and she took full responsibility for it. Still her heart sank at the memory of her actions. How could she have been so stupid, she thought. Naruto continued talking.

"I've long decided this Sai." The memory of Naruto said with a hint of pain in his voice. "I won't do anything to jeopardize her happiness. As long as she is happy, I will be too. Even if that means never telling her ." The mirage of Naruto's head turned to the ground.

"So you would just give up on her?" Sai asked. "That doesn't seem very like you. You might as well give up on being Hokage. What is the difference?" Even if it wasn't the real Sai in front of her, Sakura had the urge to punch his lights out. But it was Naruto's response that carried her full attention.

"This dream isn't as simple as becoming Hokage, Sai. Maybe one day things will be different, maybe not. But I've already made my mind up. As long as she is happy, I will be too." He reiterated

"Idiot..." Sakura said out loud, not considering the real Naruto could be listening. But he was, and it was killing him to see her like this. More tears formed in the edge of Sakura's eyes and she cursed at herself. 'Just how much did I make you endure Naruto.' She thought.

The images began to shift yet again, she forced herself to focus on what was to come.

Meanwhile, Naruto was looking on with stoic melancholy. He hadn't thought about that conversation in a long while, but it seemed painfully relevant to his current situation. His words were true, but with things as they were now he so desperately wanted to be the one to make her happy. It was getting harder and harder to hold in his feelings. Sai's words stuck with him too. Saying he wasn't one to give up easily was an understatement, so why was this the one thing he seemed so willing to do so. And watching the way she was viewing this memory was just confusing him even more.

The next scene brought the two to an even grimmer place. The rubble of the Leaf Village gave way to the smoke and debris of a battlefield. A giant flower bloomed at the top of a massive tree, and bodies charred the earth below. Naruto instantly recognized it as the battle with Madara in the Fourth Great War. Yet, even though he was there for this battle, he couldn't seem to place this exact memory.

A flash of beige and tan abruptly sped by at a crazy speed. The world shifted to follow the object in question as if it was a camera tracking it. His surroundings blurred and picked up speed as the object came into view. Naruto gasped when he saw his own body, beaten and badly damaged, lying on a floating cushion of sand. It was Gaara's, and said man stood a few inches away from him, navigating through the war-torn area. He wasn't paying any attention to him however, as his focus was on her.

Sakura was leaning over in front of his body, desperately pushing on his lungs. He saw tears forming in her eyes as she frantically tried to resuscitate him. She was just as beaten and tired as he was in that memory, but you wouldn't know it by the energy she was exerting.

"Nothing's working!" He heard her shout out as Gaara increased their speed.

"We're almost there. Do something, anything to keep him alive" the Kazekage yelled back.

Naruto watched on as determination filled her eyes. She formed a small chakra scalpel with her fingers, and his eyes widened when she made a small incision in the side of his stomach and pushed her hand through. He could tell by the clenching of her forearm muscles that she was manually operating his heart. He was even more shocked when he watched her lips crash onto his. It took him a moment to understand she was giving him CPR, but that didn't knock the shock off of his face.

The real Naruto softy put a hand under his jacket and found the small scar on the side of his stomach. He had never known what it was from and wondered why it had never healed, but now he understood. It was a mark from her, and he hoped it would never go away.

Watching this memory hurt Sakura for a different reason than the others. This brought on a different kind of sadness. In the memory she had done everything right, she had saved his life and that made her feel a great deal of pride. The sour feeling was much more simple; she hated seeing that boy on death's door. In all of her life, this memory was the closest she had ever seen Naruto to dying, and that killed her. If he died, she didn't know how she would continue on. It was such a terrifying prospect that she had to push it away. A small blush filled her cheeks when she saw her past self's lips touch him.

'Not exactly an ideal first kiss,' she thought and let out a soft chuckle. This only served to further confuse the spectating blonde. He had expected her to react in disgust or, at the very least, indifference to watching herself kiss him.

"Almost there kit," Kurama's voice echoed in his head, but at this point Naruto was no longer paying attention. He continued to focus on the memories in front of him, and the girl who couldn't see him.

The plane began to transform again, although this time it seemed slightly less chaotic. The ruin and calamity of the war vanished, and in its place Naruto saw a small, quaint tea shop. It was the one by Sakura's house. She had taken him there a few times much to his dismay as he, of course, had wanted ramen.

Sakura's eyes widened when the landscape turned to that inside the teahouse. She watched as the images of herself and Ino sat down at a table, and a waiter brought them there drinks. She had just watched her friend almost die, but somehow this was making her more anxious. She knew exactly what memory this was.

'This must be another one of hers' Naruto thought. It must have been pretty recent too, as the Sakura in this image looked identical to the present Sakura. He noted the winter coats hanging on the back of the girls' chairs, and assumed this had to have taken place in the last few weeks.

"Little late to be hanging out with your boyfriend on a school night, isn't it?' Ino's words broke Naruto out of his thoughts, 'Boyfriend? Sakura doesn't have a boyfriend, does she?' He watched her reaction carefully and let out a silent breath when he realized Ino had only been joking. Still, who had she been talking about?

Naruto's eye's widened as he watched the image of Sakura recall the events of their night at the academy courtyard to her best friend. They were talking about him. Sakura was talking about him. His heart rate suddenly increased and he couldn't help a small glint of hope form in his chest.

The real pinkette was watching as well, as a small blush formed on her cheeks. It was so recent, but seeing it again was making her incredibly anxious. Maybe because she was almost certain the subject of their conversation was looking on as well.

"Sakura, you love Naruto don't you?"

Something inside the real Sakura snapped, watching the memory again. She knew should be afraid that the real Naruto might be seeing this, she knew she should be embarrassed about such an admission, she knew that she should be fearful of the future, but at that moment all she felt was relief.

"Yea...I...I guess I do..." she said out loud, finally admitting it to herself.

Poor Naruto's eyes almost fell out of his head when heard those words. His heart was beating so quickly he thought he was having a panic attack. He knew he couldn't move his body, but even if he could he would not have been able to. His mind was filled with an infinite amount of thoughts but he couldn't identify any of them.

"This cant be real." He said to himself, but it was the real. Sakura's soft voice that convinced him there was no way what he was seeing was a lie.

Sakura...loved him? Sakura...loved him! The confusion and anxiety were washed away, as the blonde hero's face stretched into a huge smile. There was a chance! He was still confused about what was memory and what wasn't, but at that moment it didn't matter. Even if it turned out not to be the case he finally allowed himself to have hope again. The feeling drowned him and he almost started crying.

Suddenly, the images around them imploded, all being vacuumed into a singular spot in the middle of the teashop. This time, however, Naruto was pulled with it. On her end, Sakura also found herself being pulled but didn't have any control over her body fight it. It took a few seconds for everything to disappear. When it stopped, Sakura suddenly found herself standing face to face with Naruto.

The real Naruto, she was sure of it.

"Sakura-Chan?" His voice sounded like it was asking a hidden question, and she intended to try and answer it.

"Naruto." She said, suddenly incredibly shy. She forced herself to look into his eyes and was shocked. She didn't know what it was but she had never seen this emotion in his blue orbs before and it thrilled her. On his end, he felt the exact same thing.

The moment was short-lived however, as Kurama's voice called out. "Alright kit, I'm ready. Time to wake up." Before Naruto could protest, his eyes slammed shut as he was yanked out of the world of memories.

—

"Try again!" Shikamaru shouted. For the last several minutes he and Sasuke Uchiha had been desperately trying to break their friends out of the cyclone of white fire that surrounded them. Nothing the Uchiha did was working. His fire style was overpowered, and the flames seemed to be immune to any of his other attacks. The only progress they had made was that Sasuke's Rinnegan had adjusted to the attack, and could now see inside of it clearly. The source of the fire appeared to be an Orb trapped inside the cyclone with them, and the fire didn't seem to be hurting Naruto or Sakura. The Uchiha still wanted to break them out as soon as he could as he didn't know how long that would be the case.

Shikamaru and Sasuke both felt a shift in the room, before hearing a familiar voice all out a familiar Justu from within the fire.

"Rasengan!"

A loud crash resonated throughout the cave as the attack slammed into the truth-seeking orb. After a few more seconds of hissing, the orb smashed apart. The fire cyclone disbanded outward, pushing Sasuke and Shikamaru back. When the dust of the blow settled, they could see an unharmed Naruto holding an unconscious Sakura in his arms. They both let out a relieved sigh.

"You dumbass!" Sasuke shouted at the blonde as he closed the distance between them. It shocked Shikamaru to see the usually clam and stoic man so worked up. Even if he didn't show it, those two really did mean the world to him. Sasuke was about to chastise his friend more before realizing that his gaze was focused on the sleeping form of the girl in his arms. He looked different, almost...happy? Sasuke knelt down beside them.

"Is she okay?" He asked seriously.

"Wha...oh, yea! We were trapped in a Genjustu. Or at least I was. I don't know if she was." Naruto suddenly laughed nervously. "Kurama broke me out. I think she'll wake up soon.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow at his rival's odd behavior. Looking at the pink-haired girl being held so close to his best friend, a small vein appeared on his forehead. 'You both are idiots' he thought to himself.

As if on cue, Sakura's eyes softly fluttered open. Her jade came into focus, and the first thing she saw was a concerned blonde looking down at her. The experience she had just gone through came crashing back into her mind and a blush formed on her cheeks.

Was that real? Was he really there with her? Did he see all those memories? Did he...did he know? There were so many thoughts attacking her at once. She was so sure of it in the moment, but now that she was awake she was doubting herself. His voice brought her back from inside her head.

"Hi..." Naruto smiled down at her gently. She softly smiled back, feeling a little less anxious. The thought of the memories she had just witnessed temporarily took a backseat as she went back into mission mode.

"Hey...what happened?" She shifted her weight and Naruto helped her to her feet. His eyes lingered on her face a little longer than usual, and it was something she picked up on. As she stood she wobbled from side to side a bit, before regaining balance.

"You touched a truth-seeking orb, and you both fell unconscious. Naruto was able to break out of it and freed you." Shikamaru responded, approaching the rest of the group.

"Oh.." Sakura's eyes looked back at Naruto. She wanted to say something, anything, but found words were evading her. She couldn't ask what he had seen. Not now at least. "Thanks, Naruto."

"No problem Sakura-chan!" He beamed at her. She usually enjoyed his straightforward and simple way of expressing himself, but right now she could use a sign as to whether or not he had seen her memories. She looked around the cave and her eyebrow shot up in question.

"Where's Hinata?" She asked. Shikamaru and Sasuke looked at each other, then around the cave. They had been so busy with the sudden attack that they hadn't even noticed the Hyuga girl's absence. They stated so to the group, but before anyone could panic the girl in question came through the waterfall, and made her way to them.

"Hinata, where were you?" Shikamaru asked. "Naruto and Sakura were attacked. Are you okay?"

"W...what? Naruto-kun! Sakura-San! Are you okay?" The girl was confused when a blush overtook both of the two's cheeks, and she got a sick feeling in her stomach. Just how much had she missed, she asked herself.

"We are fine Hinata. Are you okay?" Sakura asked before Naruto added on "What happened?"

Hinata took a deep breath and looked down at the floor before meeting the waiting gazes of her teammates. She hesitated before continuing on.

"Yes. I'm fine. The waterfall wouldn't let me in, but after a few minutes it would. Sorry to worry you." The Hyuga girl pushed down her emotions. She didn't know if her team could tell she was lying, but at the moment she didn't have a choice. Her mind wandered to the conversation that had just taken place.

—

"Hello, Hinata-Chan. Let's talk."

Hinata immediately assumed her fighting stance, her byakugan activating. As soon as it did, her heart rate sped up. Looking at the man in front of her's chakra for the first time she was overwhelmed. He was incredibly powerful, with the sheer amount of chakra in his system rivaling that of Naruto's. What surprised her the most, however, was the raw power that he emanated. It was like she was looking at a raging storm that was being forced into submission. Her resolve faltered as she realized there was no way she could beat this opponent.

"You can relax, princess. I have no intention of harming you." Toneri said, as his gaze met hers. Hinata almost threw up when she saw that the blindfold was absent and in its place shined two byakugan eyes.

"Are those Hanabi's?" She asked quietly, body shaking with rage. When he didn't respond she knew the answer. Before she had time to think she lunged at him. She launched her gentle fist technique directly at his head, but at the last second his arm turned into a blur and he caught her wrist, holding her in place.

"Yes, these are your sister's eyes. But, rest assured I am only borrowing them. As soon as I get what I want I will return these eyes to her. I clearly have the ability to do so." He let go of her hand, but she didn't move.

"What is it that you want?" Hinata asked. There was less tension in her voice but she remained on guard. She was surprised when Toneri smiled back at her.

"Your hand. Hinata, let's get married."

The girl's mouth dropped open and her jaw hung low. Despite herself a blush covered her cheeks "Wh...what!?" She stammered out.

"Listen to me. I have been watching humankind for as long as your history goes back. After centuries of observation, I have concluded that human beings are not worthy of inhabiting this Earth. Kaguya wished to enslave them, I wish to exterminate them. When my plan comes to pass, no human shall remain on this earth.

Hinata looked visibly confused, but Toneri cut her off before she could speak.

"In order to gain the power needed to achieve this, I must unlock the power of my ancient ancestors. Our ancient ancestors. The Tenseigan. Once I have that power, I can put my plan into motion. In order to unlock this power, I am required to bond with another of Otsutsuki blood. I am required to bond with a Hyuga. Do not misunderstand me, however. I have chosen you."

"W...why me?" She asked, dropping her fighting stance and putting her arms at her sides.

"In all my years of observing the decedents of my father, you are the only one to be truly kind. All the rest have been perverted by the rest of humankind in some way or another."

Hinata's anger spiked again. "That's not true! My sister is kind. My father is kind." A small tear formed at the edge of one eye. "Neji was kind." She looked towards the floor.

Toneri reached out and took her hand in his, surprising the girl and forcing her to look back at him. "They became kind due to outside influence. You are the first truly kind being among them. Born kind. Once I complete my plan, you and I will build a new world. A just world, where the mistakes and sins of this current one will not matter. I will spare the Hyuga clan, and we will convince them to help us."

"I will not abandon my family. I will not abandon my friends. You are crazy" the Hyuga pulled her hand away from him and took a step back.

"The choice is yours. I will come for you in three days for your decision. I suggest you take a long look at what you really have by then. If you refuse, I shall keep your sister's eyes and she will become my bride."

And with that, Toneri vanished into a cloud of white fire, leaving Hinata alone with her thoughts.

—

"Hmm. Odd" Shikamaru said. "We had no trouble entering. This place is troublesome. Everyone keep your guard up."

Naruto was the first to notice, quickly followed by Sasuke. "Do you guys feel...wind?" He asked. The group turned their attention to him, before realizing that a breeze was coming from deeper within the cave. Naruto began to walk towards it, with Sakura at his side. She didn't realize it, but she was walking closer to him than she normally would. The others followed suit. As they made their way deeper into the cave, the breeze got stronger and they could hear to sound of crashing waves. After two more minutes of walking, they found themselves at an exit.

As they walked through it, they were shocked at what they saw. In front of them was a massive lake, with lush forest surrounding it on either side. The sky was bright, and the wind was soft against their skin.

Naruto turned to face his squad. "Where...where are we?"