Chapter 14

"Actually I think I have that covered..."

Sakura and Sasuke each blinked three times, looked at each other, then back to the blonde who was sheepishly smiling before them.

"Explain." Both said in unison, as if it were the most natural thing in the world. A bead of sweat dripped down Naruto's forehead before he spoke.

"Well...right before Toneri kicked my ass, I was able to grab Hinata's ankle!" He said triumphantly, his arms crossed over his chest. His two teammates stood silent until it was clear that he wasn't planning to explain further.

"And...?" Sakura asked. She had to stifle a laugh when all his previous bravado deflated. Sasuke rubbed his temples.

"How did I get stuck with him for a brother?" He asked Sakura. The medic shrugged and Naruto deflated further and began to whine. He was ready to make more of a deal out of it but Sakura sighed and interrupted.

"Enough. Not now. Naruto, explain again. Better this time." She pushed her finger into his chest accusingly. Unfortunately for her, she forgot her teammate still didn't have a shirt on and her finger pressed against the hard muscle of his chest. Her cheeks grew warm as she pulled her hand away. "And put on some DAMN clothes!"

"Okay jeez..." Naruto pulled on his black jacket and adjusted his headband as he continued. "When I grabbed Hinata's ankle, I marked her with my dad's technique. I'm still new at it but I think it worked!" He explained, and Sakura and Sasuke finally understood what he was saying.

"Wait, so you can just teleport us to them whenever?" Sakura asked. Naruto's head cocked to the side.

"Let me check." And with that, he closed his eyes. They watched as he briefly transformed into his Nine-Tails form, before returning to normal a few seconds later.

"Yes and no." He said matter of factly. He wasn't being clear and Sakura was losing her patience. She felt ready to beat the answer out of him before he caught the telltale glint in her eye that warned of her coming temper and he tried again. "The mark is still intact. I used Kurama's chakra to make it so I had to be sure. But they're really far away...like another dimension far away. I'm not as skilled as my dad was, so it takes a lot more chakra to teleport. As it is, I can probably do two people."

Sasuke nodded his head in understanding and Sakura let out a sigh. She knew she would be the one to be left behind. The pinkette no longer considered herself an inferior shinobi to her two teammates, but in terms of raw power, she couldn't deny they were on a level of their own. It didn't make her feel good, but it didn't make her feel as useless like it had in the past.

"Okay. If that's how it is you and Sasuke shou..."

"You should take Sakura." The stoic Uchiha cut her off. She glanced at him surprised and he shrugged his shoulders. "We don't know what state Hinata and her sister are in, a medic would be more useful. And I don't think I could convince the loser to not go even if I tried."

Naruto let out a quiet laugh before turning to Sakura "That okay with you?" He asked, a little more suggestively then she would have liked. She pushed the butterflies in her stomach down and nodded back at him determined. It was still a great feeling, being acknowledged by both of them.

Sasuke spoke again. "If teleporting will take that much Chakra, use mine instead. With my Rinnegan I should be able to do it. You'll get your ass handed to you if you show up to the fight half empty."

Naruto's eyes widened. He hadn't even thought of that, but Sasuke was right. He scratched his chin as he thought and then nodded his head. "That should work, but you'll be pretty wiped afterward. So you can just stay here and rest while Sakura-Chan and I take care of everything!" Sasuke ignored at the half gloat half warning, and Sakura couldn't help but smile at the scene before her.

'Same old team seven...' she thought to herself.

After another half an hour of healing and recovering his chakra, Naruto and Sakura were ready. They stood outside of the cave with Sasuke in front of them. Naruto handed his father's Kunai to Sasuke and warned him if anything happened to it he would take his other arm off. He explained how the transportation would work, and Sasuke nodded in understanding. All he had to do was focus on the chakra signature Naruto shared with him. Holding the Kunai would serve as a bridge and using chakra he would push Naruto and Sakura through. After a moment of concentration, the Uchiha's eyes shot open, both of his Kekkei Genkai activated.

"Don't take too long." He snickered and put his free hand on Naruto's shoulder.

Naruto turned to Sakura and gave her one of his giant signature grins. He he reached out his palm open palm. "Ready Sakura-Chan?" He asked beaming down as her. She let a matching grin take over her face as she took his hand. She knew that she should be focusing more on the upcoming fight, but at that moment she was just glad he was okay. His smile really was infectious.

"Ready, Naruto."

Sasuke activated the Justu and Naruto and Sakura disappeared into a flash of yellow, orange, and pink. Instantly feeling the exhaustion of using almost all of his chakra on one move, Sasuke fell back down to sit. He looked up to the sky and smirked.

"Annoying Idiots." He mumbled before rising to his feet and returning to the cave.

—

Hinata took a long deep breath as she reached the center of the room. She wore an eloquent black dress that fit her frame perfectly. Gold trimming lined the sides and it was held together in the middle with a grey sash. The veil on her head matched, and she was surprised Toneri had gone through the effort to procure it. Black wasn't a color she usually wore, but she had to admit the dress was incredible. She planted herself as she reached her destination and stood in the middle of a giant stone cathedral that was intricacy decorated for the occasion.

For her "wedding."

The Hyuga hid a grimace as the face of a certain blonde popped into her mind. She took a pause to reflect on the situation she was now in.

The last forty-eight hours had been strange, sad, and hectic. She had awoken a few hours after escaping from her team. When she came too, she was in a large lavish bedroom, with Toneri sitting at the edge of the bed. After getting her nerves under control, she greeted the man and he smiled back at her. She was surprised by the warmth that seemed to be coming off him: the man seems genuinely happy and totally different from the night before. Toneri quickly began to show her around. He explained he had transported them to a castle in another dimension, It was massive and ancient, with complex stone architecture and advanced brickwork Hinata had never seen before. It stood at the end of a huge snow-covered field, and the realm they were now in appeared to always be dark. Toneri explained that this was Kaguya Otsutsuki's castle and that he had discovered it a while ago. It now served as his home.

The name "Kaguya" made her shiver, remembering all the pain the being had caused during the war. Toneri seemed to notice, and apologized immediately, surprising the girl yet again. Very quickly, Toneri brought her into another room. There, Hinata got to meet and comfort her sister, confirming she was safe. A blindfold covered the younger Hyuga's eyes, but before Hinata had time to say anything Toneri again reassured that as soon as the ceremony was complete, Hanabi would be given her eyes back. He then apologized that they had to be reunited under the circumstances, but promised that she would be safe. Again, his chivalry surprised her and she wasn't able to argue. After Hanabi confirmed she wasn't in pain, Hinata left with him to begin preparations began for the ceremony.

The ceremony itself was quite simple as he explained it. Hinata would give all of her chakra to Toneri by forming a hand seal, and that would heal his Tenseigan. When it was finished, he would use his power to restore Hanabi's eyes. Considering that this wedding was just for Toneri to regain his power, she was surprised at how seriously the man was taking it. He had provided her with a dress and matching veil and had kindly insisted that she wear makeup. He had gone so far as too retrieve a wide variety from the five villages prior to her arrival. It confused Hinata, but Toneri simply explained he wanted their union to start on a happy note. She just forced a smile and agreed.

Inside, however, she was nothing short of a wreck.

She felt awful. She had betrayed her friends, betrayed Naruto. She thought of her teammates back in the Leaf Village. It was her fault they were in danger. However, she still stood by her choice. She couldn't have Naruto, and the prospect of marrying anyone else out of love simply didn't exist to her. Growing up, her family had always been the most important thing in her life, despite their rough patch in her teenage years. Especially her sister. Hanabi was everything to her and she knew it was selfish but had come to the decision that she would give up anything and anyone to protect her. Even if it meant abandoning everything else.

The girl was brought back to the present when she felt Toneri's hand wrap around her own. She winced but forced herself to relax into the touch. Toneri clocked her discomfort, and gently squeezed before speaking.

"Hinata. I know this isn't how you imagined your wedding. And I do apologize. But this is the only way. Once we begin the ceremony there is no going back. I need you to say it again, will you be my bride?"

A small tear formed in the corner of her eyes as Naruto once again popped into her head. The image was quickly soured however as Hinata imagined Sakura grabbing his hand and pulling him away from her. The tears fell but she forced herself to speak.

"I will." She whispered. Toneri smiled and turned to the empty stone room.

"If there is anyone who object's to this union, speak now!" He joked loudly, not expecting anyone to answer.

Suddenly, a flash of yellow and pink appeared in the middle of the two. Everything happened so quickly. Toneri's eyes widened as a yellow chakra coated fist slammed into his cheek and sent him flying through the wall out into the field below. Naruto rubbed his fist and scowled towards the newly formed hole. "I do," He said before disappearing to follow Toneri. Hinata gasped as she saw the spiky blonde hair of her crush before she felt herself being lifted off of the ground. She looked down to see Sakura had grabbed her and was running towards the exit. Realization struck her and she quickly hit a pressure point in the pinkettes neck, forcing her to drop her and regain her balance. She turned around to face Hinata, and the two found themselves alone in the massive room.

"Hinata what are you doing!?" The medic asked as she regained her footing. "We have to get Hanabi and get out of here!" Sakura's brow raised when she watched Hinata drop into her combat stance.

"Haven't you taken enough already! I've made up my mind. This is my choice. Just leave me alone!" She shouted as tears she had been holding in began to fall.

Sakura was stunned. She knew the girl was hurting, but never thought that she would raise her hand against her comrades. "You know I can't do that Hinata..." she responded sadly before dropping into her own stance.

"I wasn't giving you a choice," Hinata whispered before activating her Byukugan and lunging at her newfound opponent. Sakura felt her heart hurt as she prepared for a fight.

—

Snow exploded off the ground as Toneri skirted across the fresh blanket of white. He stopped himself just before crashing into the rocky cliff behind him, jumping back to his feet and brushing himself off. Naruto landed swiftly in front of him, his lips pulled into a tight line and his brow furrowed.

"You just don't know when to stay down do you?" Toneri spat as he closed the distance between them. He launched a blow at the blonde's head, but Naruto quickly caught his fist before punching the villain in the gut, sending him flying back again.

"Nope. It's kinda my thing. I don't give up." Naruto said, although no humor was in his voice. "You hurt me. You hurt Sakura. You hurt Hinata. I won't let you get away with it." Toneri watched as Naruto entered his Nine-Tails form. He stood up straight and the two stared each other down. Snow on the ground began to hover in the air as their massive chakra signature's collided.

"I didn't hurt her nearly as much as you did," Toneri stated before the two ninjas jumped towards each other and met head-on. The two traded a few blows before hearing a massive crash come from the castle behind them. Naruto looked over to see a cloud of newly formed debris and his heart sped up with anxiety. Toneri took advantage of the distraction and slammed the blonde in the back, knocking him several yards back.

"Looks like our women are having it out too," Toneri said with a smirk. His eyes widened as he ducked just in time to avoid a Rasengan being pushed by a charka arm. While he dodged, Naruto appeared behind him and slammed a separate Rasengan into his back, launching him forward and wounding him.

"They aren't objects we can own, bastard." He mumbled. Still, he hated the thought of Sakura and Hinata fighting and hoped that his companion had the situation under control. He was pulled out of his thoughts by another attack from Toneri, and he focused his attention back to his fight.

—

Sakura jumped back on her hands, avoiding another one of Hinata's air palms. She was surprised at how well Hinata was keeping up with her. Granted, she was trying her best not to use her full strength. Despite the circumstances and Hinata's resolve she didn't want to hurt her friend and knew going all out at full power would overwhelm the girl. Still, she had to do something otherwise Hinata would prolong the fight and she wouldn't be able to help Naruto. She steadied her resolve and lunged forward, aiming a dulled down chakra fist at Hinata's stomach.

"Eight Trigram's Palm Rotation!"

Her eyes widened as Hinata gracefully spun around her fist. She continued spinning as she landed consecutive blows on the medic before she landed one final harder attack in the center of her chest. When Sakura tried channeling chakra again, she found the pathway was blocked.

'Shit, I was careless and distracted' she thought, before narrowly avoiding another attack from the Hyuga girl. Hinata kept coming, despite the doubt she was feeling. She knew it wasn't fair, but at that moment all the anger of Naruto not returning her feelings was bubbling up and she couldn't stop herself. Two twin chakra Lion heads took form around her hands and she aimed them for Sakura. The pink-haired Kunoichi dodged by an inch, and the Hyuga's attack slammed into the ground, leaving it splintered.

The image of Naruto flashed in Sakura's head as she saw the tears flowing from her opponent's eyes. She thought about all the times he had comforted her. All the times he had turned a foe into a friend. Her teammate had a heart that was bigger than anyone elses, and she lost track of how many times he had achieved the impossible. She sighed. 'If he can do it so can I.' She raised her hands above her head and met Hinata's gaze.

"Hinata. This isn't you. Let's talk." Hinata's eyes widened and her stance softened a bit, but she didn't lose the pain in her eyes.

"There is nothing to talk about! You took him away from me! I have loved him my whole life and he doesn't love me!" The girl began to sob. "You were supposed to love Sasuke! Or anyone else. Why did it have to be him!?"

There was a brief silence as Sakura contemplated her next words.

"For the same reason it had to be him for you." Hinata finally met Sakura's gaze and saw nothing but truth in her jade eyes.

"I know it's not fair to you, Hinata. I know how it feels to be on the other end and I am so sorry. If I could change it I would." Sakura lowered her hands and slowly began to walk towards her. "The pain is unbearable, and you may never be able to totally forgive him, or me for that matter. And I am truly sorry. I have made a lot of mistakes with Naruto, but I am going to do everything I can to make up for them, for as long as it takes. He deserves that." Sakura was surprised at how easily the words were coming to her. "I'm not expecting your feelings to change, but deep down ask yourself..."

She reached Hinata and gently put a hand on her quivering shoulder.

"Is this really what he would want?"

Hinata looked into Sakura's eyes and broke. She sobbed harder than she ever had before and crashed into Sakura. The medic was stunned but wrapped her arms around the Hyuga heiress none the less. The two women fell to their knees, and Hinata mumbled incoherent apologies into her shoulder. Sakura rubbed her back gently and let the girl cry. She looked toward the hole in the wall and heard the sounds of a battle outside. She hoped that Naruto was okay.

—

Despite his earlier bravado and determination, Naruto was unable to gain much ground against his opponent. Every hit that connected was countered by own of its own, and the villain's chakra reserve seems to match his. He used a Rasengan to knock back a chakra blast Toneri launched, before jumping away and gaining distance.

From the castle, a giant rock came hurdling through the air towards his enemy. Toneri barely flinched as he extended his arm, destroying the flying debris in an instant. Still, the distraction was enough and Naruto launched two Rasenshurikan which collided and exploded around the Otsusuki. When the chakra cleared, Toneri's clothes were torn and he was bleeding, but he remained on his feet.

Sakura landed gracefully next to him, brushing dust off her hands. He noticed her clothing was less neat that when they arrived, and a few new scratches appeared on her face. She nodded at him shyly.

"Are you alright? I heard fighting..." Naruto asked and Sakura smiled sheepishly. She put her hand behind her neck, and Naruto happily clocked the way she mimicked his usual gesture without even knowing it.

"Uh...Yea. Hinata and I...um...had a talk?" She shrugged and Naruto felt his pulse increase. He had read of things like this in his Master's books and it didn't end well for the male in those novels. Sakura sensed his discomfort and felt the need to reassure him. "Nothing bad! She's hurting a lot, but I think she's okay now. She went to protect Hanabi." Naruto let out a breath. He would always be stunned by how well this girl could read him.

"How about you?" She asked.

"He's tough, but now that you're here, I think we can take him." Sakura looked into his eyes and saw nothing but pride and respect for her, and it made her heart speed up. She looked away as a blush overtook her cheeks.

"Idiot..." she mumbled and he laughed softly before deciding to push his luck a little bit.

"...Your idiot?" He asked quietly, and she felt her face heat up even more.

"N-Naruto! Not the time! Toneri's still here!" Her words came out less convincing then she would have liked, and Naruto couldn't help but laugh louder at her sudden shyness before he gave a half-hearted apology. When he laughed, however, he flinched a bit and Sakura noted that he was definitely getting tired. The pair suddenly felt their enemy's chakra shift and intensify.

"Focus up, he's coming." She said, getting her blush under control. He nodded before they both looked back at their opponent.

"How dare you corrupt her! She is mine! Humans are worthless and need to be eradicated! That was the mission Hamura left to me!" Toneri screamed, as white and teal chakra began to explode out of him. He was losing control.

"Human beings aren't your puppets, and that's not for you to decide! Hamura left that decision to you and your family and you abandoned them!" Naruto retorted.

"I'm ENDING this!" Toneri yelled back, before forming a few quick hand seals.

All the surrounding chakra was focused into a thin teal veil around him. He began to hover above the snow as his wounds evaporated like nothing. When his eyes shot open, the usual pale white was replaced with shining, flickering blue, and the ground below him began to shake. He punched the air in front of him, and a pressured wave of air shot forward towards Naruto and Sakura. The pair jumped apart, just narrowly avoiding the attack.

"Tensaigan! How? Sakura asked and Toneri smiled a wicked grin back at her.

"It may not be perfected, but it's enough to deal with trash like you two. I'll deal with Hinata after you're dead." Another airwave shot towards Sakura but was intercepted by a shadow clone who proceeded to disappear into a puff of smoke. The real Naruto appeared next to her, his face serious.

"You heard him, let's end this." Sakura shot him a questioning look before he continued. "I'm gonna give you an attack, then distract him. When you see the opening, hit him with everything you've got, okay?"

"Give me an attack?"

He smiled down at her. "Hold out your palm. Trust me."

Sakura didn't need to be told twice. She trusted him with all she was and did as she was instructed.

Naruto cupped the air around her hand and closed his eyes. Sakura blushed at the intimacy or his gesture. A small orange ball of chakra formed in her hand and began to rotate. Her eyes widened as she recognized his signature technique. As it grew in size and speed, Sakura swore she could feel the emotion Naruto was putting into it. It was like brief snippets of their times together were passing from his head to hers. It wasn't like the cave, it wasn't specific or nearly as detailed, but rather an overall sense of comfort and familiarity that made the Pink Haired Ninja smile wide at her companion.

"Add your chakra too" he whispered softly as his gaze focused on her. She listened. The mark on her forehead spread out to her limbs, and her palms began to glow green as she tried to pore her own thoughts into the attack. The Rasengan began to change. The orange color flicked to green, then back to orange, then back to green. The process repeated until finally, the colors mixed into a dazzling pink. Sakura's mouth formed a silent "oh" and Naruto smiled proudly at what they had accomplished. He moved his palms away, and Sakura's hand lowered a bit under the weight of their combined chakra. After a second, she adjusted and nodded at Naruto.

"One-shot. That's all you get." He said seriously.

"That's all I need." She replied with a grin. Naruto mirrored the expression briefly before leaving in a blur of orange before her.

The blonde ninja appeared in front of Toneri, and their gaze met. Teal and Orange collided as they exchanged blows too fast for the eye to see, forming a small crater around them. Toneri's eyes flickered as his left arm became engulfed entirely in white flames. He smiled when Naruto's brow rose and slammed the technique into his stomach. An explosion of white fire surrounded the two, and Sakuras face contorted in worry. It was short-lived. When the fire cleared she saw Naruto standing tall, holding Toneri in place by his arm against him. With his free hand, he formed a hand sign, and four clones appeared around the duo before grabbing each of Toneri's limbs, holding him in place. The real orange ninja disappeared in another flash before reappearing behind Sakura. He crossed his arms in an "X" shape in front of him as he met her gaze. She didn't need him to speak, she knew what to do.

"Go," he said firmly.

Without missing a second, Sakura jumped up and pushed off against him, flying towards Toneri at a speed that would have made the fourth Hokage proud. Jade Iris's clashed with Shimmering blue the second before she slammed her Rasengan into his chest. In true Naruto fashion, she shouted the name she came up with as the blow connected.

"Cherry Blossom Rasengan!"

AN: Hello Hello Hello! Thank you guys so much for your continued support and for being patient with me.

I know it was an extra week wait for this chapter. Truth be told, I had a severe case of writer's block combined with very little time. Writing two action scenes in a row turned out to be very challenging as well. I know this battle might have been shorter than some hoped and maybe a little cheesier, but I wanted to get it done so we could move on to the romance most of you are really here for!

I had originally written more about Hinata's feelings but decided to shorten that as well as it's time to move the story forward.

It is still insane to me this has gotten the following it has, and I am here to reassure I am continuing it! Your messages checking in on me and my progress were so kind and welcome.

Please please please leave a review if you haven't already! I know it sounds trivial, but god does it make writing easier to hear what people are enjoying about my story. I read and take every review to heart, so it's the best way to get updates sooner.

Thank you again for all your support