Forgotten

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Naruto (Shippuden). This is a story inspired by the original made up for entertainment purposes only. - Krystal

Chapter 65: Unwilling Souls

It was unanimously agreed that there was only two ways to stop reincarnations. They either had to be sealed or they had to let go of their soul on their own free will. The second option was most likely going to happen when unanswered questions were finally answered or when unresolved businesses was finally resolved. As the others were discussing this whole thing, Yuki couldn't help but feel sorry for the reincarnation. They were brought back against their own will and reminded of the pain they had to endure when they were alive. They are reminded of the regrets they might have had. Yuki couldn't help but wonder who she would have to fight. Although they were already dead, she couldn't help but hurt for them.

"We've just detected a large army travelling underground." Ao announced. "They are heading towards the Second Division. Actually, they seem to try to get pass them."

"They are probably headed for the headquarters." Yuki said as she stood up and focused back on the task at hand. "They are close to the Second Division, you said?"

Ao nodded. Shikaku stayed silent for a second. He then told Inoichi to inform some of the people from the Fifth Division to head over to the Second Division to lend them support. If he wasn't wrong, they would have to fight a large number of white Zetsus according to the reports. They would need all the help they could get. Yuki prepared herself to head over to the Second Division as well. It was where Neji was. She felt uneasy about him and the others having to fight off such a large number of enemies. However, before she could flash away, Shikaku held her back.

"Before you arrived here, there was reports that Kakashi's division are about to fight something or someone with a great amount of chakra." Shikaku told her.

"He's not alone. It sounds like there are a few more following them." Ao told them.

"You head there, Yuki." Shikaku told her. "Omoi and Sai are also heading there. You should join up with them. You guys are already used to working with each other. As strong as you are, working in a team is better during such times."

Yuki nodded. She flashed herself to where Sai was. He was on one of his painted birds, flying towards Kakashi's location alongside Omoi. As she arrived, she noticed that the air around them was cold. As she turned around, she noticed an iced like structure forming above them. She quickly used a fire jutsu to melt it. However, she was a second late as some needles flew out of it, causing the ink bird to disintegrate. The three of them fell from the sky towards the ground. Yuki pulled out some ropes and lassoed in both Omoi and Sai. She threw her kunai onto the ground and flashed them there, allowing for her feet to touch the ground gracefully while softening the landing for the remaining two.

"You're a lifesaver." Omoi said as he brushed the dirt of his shirt.

Yuki smiled, but did not reply. They had landed into a thick mist. It felt very familiar to Yuki. She closed her eyes and activated her sharingan. It was indeed a good idea for her to come here. She bit her lip and smiled sadly before saying softly:

"I didn't think I would see you again... Haku, Zabuza."

"Yuki... You remembered..." She heard Haku's voice say.

"I promised you I would always remember you, right?" Yuki asked as she took a few steps closer in their direction with her sword in hand.

"You've grown a lot." Zabuza told her. "How are they all doing?"

Yuki smiled before replying with a shaken voice: "They are good."

"I'm glad." Haku said with a smile.

Yuki bit her lip as her eyes started filling up with tears. Haku and Zabuza meant a lot to her. Haku was one of the purest human being she had met despite his difficult upbringing. He, just like Naruto, were simple minded in this complicated world. Until his death, he held on to the belief that he had to protect the person that was most precious to him. Zabuza was someone who was so misunderstood that Yuki grew to feel for him. He was tainted by the dirty shinobi world. He died, however, with a clean heart and mind. Yet, now, he was once again a pawn of the shinobi world through the reincarnation spell.

"Yuki, don't feel bad for us. We are dead after all." Haku told her. "Just stop us."

Yuki shook her head to snap out of her daze. As she did, she saw Zabuza lift his arm up and, with his other hand, form the seal to create a heavy mist around him and everyone else. Thanks to a great sensory skill, in addition to her activated sharingan, she was able to navigate in the mist fairly well. She, then, sensed the presence of two more shinobis. Their chakra was unfamiliar to her, but she could tell that they were just as powerful as Haku and Zabuza. She joined up back with Omoi and Sai who were not too far away from her.

"Sai, you've heard of Silent Killing, right?" Yuki asked him. "There's nobody better than Zabuza at it."

"Silent Killing?" Omoi asked as a sweat rolled down his forehead.

"It's just like its name. He kills without making a sound. The only sound you'll hear is from the person who has been murdered." Yuki explained. "Make sure you have each other's back."

She could hear Omoi swallow his saliva loudly. She didn't blame him. Anybody else would have probably passed out of fear. He was still standing. His grip on his sword tightened. Sai remained calm as always. In one hand, he had his paintbrush out and in the other a scroll.

"Above." Yuki said as she blocked the attack with her sword.

"Well played." Zabuza complimented her as he pushed down further.

At that moment, Yuki noticed that there was an iced mirror just above him. She met eyes with Haku in there. She barely moved out of the way as needles went flying towards her. She rolled on the floor as to avoid getting slashed by Zabuza's sword. Omoi and Sai also moved out of the way, preventing themselves from being injured by Haku's needles.

Zabuza decided to push Yuki away from them as it would be easier to divide and conquer in this kind of situation. Yuki was left with no choice put to fight him head on. At that moment, she sensed a familiar chakra heading towards them. She moved closer to that source of chakra. Unaware of the situation, Zabuza followed her. As they got close enough, Yuki stopped Zabuza's movement with her ice jutsu. As she did, the owner of the familiar chakra made his appearance.

"It sure took you time, senpai." Yuki said, relieved that they now had backup.

"Not everyone can appear within seconds like you, Yuki." He told her as he pulled up his forehead protector to reveal his sharingan.

"Kakashi." Zabuza murmured.

He was about to say more, but his eyes started changing. He then pleaded:

"Stop this madness, please..."

He couldn't say anymore. He broke free from Yuki's ice and summoned, behind him, the remaining Mist Ninja Swordsmen. Yuki and Kakashi exchanged looks and charged forward knowing that they could no longer delay this fight. They went for Zabuza first, ignoring the remaining ninjas that had just been summoned. Zabuza lead them away from the rest of the Allied Shinobis that now had joined up with them.

As they ran across the field, Zabuza tried killing every living things that he came across. Despite trying their best, Kakashi and Yuki were unable to stop every single one of his attacks. In desperation, Yuki threw her kunai as hard as possible in his direction and then flashed herself right by him. She avoided his swinging sword as she appeared and broke it as pushed her lightning blade against it.

"Your blade has gotten dull." She said.

"I'll use your blood to repair it." He said without a hint of emotion.

She didn't let it happen. She kicked the sword out of his hand and held him down with an ice jutsu that started spreading all over his body. Kakashi appeared right at that moment and was about to strike him with his chidori. However, history repeated itself. Haku appeared right in front of them and was struck by the lightning ball instead of Zabuza, allowing him to escape away and to grab his sword. He, then, cut right through Haku and slashed Kakashi right in the chest as Yuki pulled him away to avoid fatal injury. She was then slightly cut on the cheek. It didn't really matter though. It was only a small cut.

"Are you alright?" Yuki asked Kakashi as they had taken a few steps back.

"Thanks to you, this is just an external injury." He replied despite blood dripping from his chest.

Haku fell to the ground. He should have been repaired, but he wasn't being fixed. He remained unconscious on the ground. Yuki knew it was only a matter of minutes before he did. Perhaps his conscience was taking over the reincarnation spell. He had once again successfully protected Zabuza. As Kakashi headed for Zabuza again despite his injury, Yuki walked over by Haku's body with tears in her eyes. She started sealing his body. She bid him goodbye once again, promising to see him in the afterlife, promising him to send Zabuza to where he was. She noticed that Haku seemed to have heard her promise. A drop of blood from Yuki's cheek fell onto his face and drew itself on his face like a tear that he had shed himself. Yuki closed her eyes as her heart felt all the pain that she had felt back then when Haku had died alongside with Zabuza. She remembered telling Naruto not to be too sad back then as they were now in a better place. She tried to remind herself of that statement in that moment. She stood up and turned her back to Haku's sealed body.

"I'll never forget you, Haku. Dead or alive, I'll always remember you."

Yuki then flashed herself to Kakashi and Zabuza. It was time to allow Zabuza to be with Haku once again. She couldn't let them be apart for too long.

As she appeared by her senpai's side, she told him that she had sealed Haku. Zabuza, despite being under the control of the reincarnation jutsu, seemingly reacted to that statement. For a second, he loosened the grip he had on his sword. Kakashi noticed it and took advantage of it. He charged ahead as he told Yuki to be ready to seal Zabuza. This time, Kakashi did not miss him. His lightning blade cut right through his heart and stopped his movement. He seemed to have regain some consciousness at that moment. He whispered:

"Thank you, Kakashi..."

Yuki spread her ice jutsu over him as Kakashi pulled away. As the seal was completed, the mist slowly dissipated as well. Behind them, Yuki saw the large army of the Allied Shinobis cheering. She should have been happy, but she wasn't. Her heart felt heavy as she sealed away two people she felt very strongly about. They had gone through so much when they were alive. Now, they had gone through a lot once again through their death.

"It's dirty, isn't it?" Kakashi asked her as he noticed the disgust on her face. "Let's put an end to this."

She nodded as they separated to fight the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Hidden Mist. Each of them took part of the Third Division with them. Yuki was more determined than ever to put an end to this war. She couldn't bare to see more souls, unwilling to fight, being slaves of the reincarnation jutsu. She couldn't help to wonder how many more they would encounter.

The moment she was distracted once again, she was attacked by an explosion. She barely dodged it. She blinked once and activated her Sharingan again. Lee appeared out of nowhere and fought the assailant. They separated from the group as Lee yelled out to Yuki that he could handle this.

"Be careful!" She yelled out to him as she knew she would be unable to follow him as another chakra owner was coming towards them.

Before she could take action, she heard screeches from the Allied Shinobis. She turned around and saw many being mummified by a woman with her hair in a bun.

"Pakura-sensei..." said one of the shinobi who was beside Yuki.

"Pakura? The Scorch Release Kunoichi?" Yuki asked her.

She had read about the technique once when she was in the Hidden Sand Village. The only known user of the Kekkei Genkai was Pakura. She was famous during her prime time thanks to unique abilities. However, nobody knew what had happened to her. She simply vanished off the surface of the Earth.

"Maki?" Pakura asked as she turned her head towards them.

She looked at the shinobi next to Yuki with a kind expression. Her hands lowered. She was no longer in a threatening stance. The one named Maki had tears in her eyes. She couldn't believe that her lost sensei was now standing right in front of her. She took a step forward, but Yuki stopped her. Maki looked at Yuki and nodded, recognizing that this wasn't the sensei she knew, that this was merely a reincarnation of the person she once knew, that this was the enemy.

"You are actually working with shinobis from other villages." Pakura said with a slight disgust in her tone.

"We are allies now. We are all fighting together for the future..." Maki started.

Pakura laughed hysterically.

"Allies? There's no such thing in this disgusting shinobi world. Do you know what happened to me?"

"If I'm allowed to guess..." Yuki began.

"Go ahead." Pakura told her.

"You gave your all to your village. You were loyal until your death to the village. However, they decided to use you. They used you as a sacrificial pawn. They were the reason for your death." Yuki said as she readied herself to seal Pakura.

"You are right!" Pakura said. "I died cursing my village. I died cursing this shinobi world. I died regretting having given my heart and soul to them. Now, I'm given a chance to destroy them."

"Sensei!" Maki cried out.

"Stay out of this, Maki. Don't get involved." She told her former student.

"The world isn't the same as it used to be." Yuki told her. "Everyone now stands together for the sake of the future."

"And then one betrays the rest." Pakura said bitterly.

Maki shook her head. At that moment, Pakura charged towards them and kicked Maki out of the way in order to fight Yuki one on one. Yuki used her ice jutsu to protect herself but also to be on the offensive. She avoided at all cost to be touched by Pakura as she knew there was only death if contact occurred.

"Maki! The moment she is immobilized, you are going to have to seal her!" Yuki yelled out as she wanted Maki to be ready for the event to happen.

Maki nodded despite not wanting to erase her sensei's existence once again. She knew there was no other way though. She had to put the success of the war before her own feelings. Besides, this wasn't the person she once knew. The Pakura-sensei she knew was warm, positive and loving. She was fierce, but gentle towards her subordinates. She believed in the future. She worked hard for the future to happen. She wanted to remember Pakura under such light. As she kept her eyes on the fight between Yuki and Pakura, she didn't sense that someone had approached them. She only realized when an explosion occurred right in front of her eyes. She thought it was all over. However, as she opened her eyes, she saw an ice wall in front of her. It was Yuki who had, with great timing, protected her. Through that wall, she saw her sensei who had created an earth wall to protect her as well from the attack. Pakura, however, received damage from the attack. Maki's eyes filled with tears again.

"Do it now." Pakura mumbled. "Or else you won't get a second chance... I can sense my consciousness leaving my body."

Maki unwillingly released her cloth binding technique to seal her sensei.

"Gari, let them live for a bit longer. They need to understand this themselves." Pakura told the ninja that had attacked them with the explosion.

"Out of respect for you, I'll come back later." He said as he disappeared into the forest.

Yuki blinked again as her sharingan disappeared. She walked over to Maki and placed her hand of her shoulder to comfort her as they both watched Pakura being sealed away.

"You, from Konohagakure, I'm entrusting Maki to you. Don't let her die in vain."

"I promise I won't let anybody die in vain." Yuki replied firmly.

"I guess my fight is truly over." Pakura said as she sighed. "I wished I lived during your times. Perhaps, then, I would have not died in vain. Perhaps I wouldn't die cursing this world."

"Watch us from the heavens." Yuki told her. "We will show you that this world is better than what you have known."

Pakura smirked as the cloth covered her face. She was tired of fighting. She only fought because she believed she had to. However, when she knew that what she wanted was beyond that, she stopped it. She didn't want to fight. She wanted to protect what she believed it. She wanted to protect the future just like they did. She simply forgot that fact. She simply lost faith in it for a while. She still knew love, she still knew care. As her sealing was complete, Yuki looked at Maki who was devastated from the loss of her sensei once again. Yuki patted her on the back once again before heading towards where Lee was, leaving her alone for bit to mourn her sensei's death.

End of Chapter 65

Thank you again for reading this story!

I know the order might be off for the fight... Hopefully you won't be too affected by it.

Let me know how you feel in the comment section!

xox

Krystal