A Matter of Perspective

While Sasuke had mentioned to Naruto that he'd managed to hold off being killed during his imprisonment due to his Susano'o, what he'd failed to notice at that time was that his delayed death was actually due to their leader not being present. Shortly after his capture is when Tamaki had paid Konoha a visit. Naruto also wouldn't have noticed this detail if Kurama hadn't pointed it out to him…but the information came too late.

Their initial plan to wait for an opening had already been cracked when they realized they were being teleported; now it was completely obliterated as Naruto was carried into a room lit by distant firelight and deposited roughly on the stone floor. Instead of being left alone, the members began to form a circle, holding their hands up in a pose that made Naruto want to scream at the immense fear he felt by way of Kurama.

They're going to extract me! We don't have time to wait, Naruto, use my power now!

Without hesitation, Naruto instantly drew upon Kurama's energy and readied himself to transform. Whatever new hideout they were at would be completely demolished if he let Kurama grow to his full form. For half a second, he saw the welcoming red chakra rise faintly off his skin before he felt a familiar, bone-rattling jolt followed by his stomach dropping as he was unexpectedly lifted. Before he could fully process what was happening, he was slammed against a wall and while no visible binds held him there, his movements were limited by a crushing force.

"On the ground or on the wall, it makes no difference," Tamaki sighed with reluctance, as though it hurt him to verbalize that truth. Looking up, he gave a pitying smile. "You have three days for the extraction to be completed but let's not make this any more difficult than it has to be. The end result will still be the same. Like us, you had the element of surprise on your side when you attacked us back at the Land of Iron but we won't be letting our guard down anymore."

Naruto grit his teeth and pulled as hard as possible to unstick himself but nothing budged. Damnit, he'd completely forgotten that Sasuke had mentioned that Takami was telekinetic. Anyone he'd encountered in the past claiming telekinesis did so with the help of a device. Never had he met anyone that was a genuine user of it and as such, Takami was a wild card. Indeed, he wouldn't be able to rush an attack for this battle; strategy was probably his best bet. He'd gotten better at that over the last few years but plans were still his weak point. Still, he had three days left. And…Sasuke was on his way. Without a doubt, he knew Sasuke would be looking for him.

"By the way, don't think Sasuke will save you," Takami called over his shoulder as he rejoined the others, making Naruto sick with worry for a moment that he might also be psychic. "We're already expecting him. If you'd like, we'll even put him up on the wall right next to you, that way you two can say your goodbyes to each other. I suppose that's the least I can do for your sacrifices," he said consolingly with another sad smile.

He didn't mean to speak but before he could catch himself, Naruto blurted out, "This isn't a 'sacrifice', this is murder! I don't see how you can think everyone with a special ability is automatically dangerous!"

"Not all, just some," the man shrugged casually. "Remember, I let your Hyuga friend live. And yes, I'm aware that not everyone that comes from a lineage of dangerous kekkei genkai are dangerous themselves so there's going to be some casualties. That's unavoidable."

"And what gives you the right to make this decision on your own?" Naruto countered him. "The old Sage wouldn't have wanted this and you know it!"

A flicker of anger lit behind Takami's eyes and Naruto felt himself being crushed on the wall even more. "He wouldn't have wanted this world either. It took not one, not two, not three but four wars just to get this far and already I've seen signs of the peace unraveling. The peace you shed your blood for. And I did as well. Yes, even I was there fighting. And even after all of that, I see that it's not a matter of if but a matter of when the next big conflict will break out. I can't prevent it entirely…and neither can you. But if I can remove the biggest threats then my mission will be a success."

Naruto bit his lip to keep from screaming at the man. "What makes you any better than the ones you're targeting then? Do you think this," he used his eyes by way of gesturing to one of his pinned arms, "Is any less dangerous? Why should everyone else die and you live? You mention your agenda like you're the good guy but from where I'm at, you're the sick and evil one!"

"The world needs an anti-hero," Takami said quietly and Naruto's readied protests died in his throat as he wondered if he was being sarcastic. Continuing, Takami said, "I don't expect you or most of anyone else to agree with what I'm doing, at least not immediately. Our work is not meant to be appreciated in the short term but instead will be for future generations who will grow up in a world that's less dangerous."

Ever since Sasuke had given Naruto his information on Takami, he'd had a feeling of déjà vu that he'd heard of something similar before. Now, it finally came back to him. Pain, or more accurately, Nagato, had shared a roughly similar vision of destroying the world to rebuild it back up. Nagato's path was much more all-encompassing and didn't discriminate against anyone, no matter how much or how little chakra a person possessed, but the ideals of both still bore similar traits; mass slaughter in the name of peace.

Right now, he was wasting time by arguing with the man. Takami certainly didn't pose as much of a threat as Nagato had, but he didn't want to take him lightly. Going quiet, Naruto returned back to the initial plan, choosing to wait for an opening. Every jutsu had its weakness and it was a matter of time before Takami exposed his.

~.~.~

Sasuke was finding it hard to keep up. Per recommendation by Kakashi, his group had opted to keep to the trees to avoid detection but this meant that he had to rely solely on his own strength, which had been low even before the battle with the Fire Lord's ANBU. His attempted and erroneous attack on Orochimaru only made it worse. They'd been traveling for a steady two hours and as Sasuke's vision went black, he shamefully realized that was his limit.

He missed his next leap off of a branch and plunged to the ground, swallowed in the dark forest below. Watching as he fell, Orochimaru tsked before redirecting himself and easily catching him, bounding from side to side off of the trees until he safely touched down, laying a panting Sasuke at his feet. Orochimaru had noticed the instant he saw Sasuke that he wasn't well but he knew Sasuke enough to know that bringing it up would only earn him a dismissal. Instead, he'd kept an eye on him to be ready for when he inevitably gave out, gracious enough to at least catch him when he fell.

Pakkun barked once to notify Jugo, Karin and Suigetsu that they were taking a break and then leapt down to Sasuke's side. He nudged his face with his wet nose and took it as a good sign that Sasuke was still cognizant enough to pull away at the sensation. "Toldja you weren't doing too well, kid," he mumbled. "Guess we're just gonna have to rest here until you get your strength back. Or better yet…" He looked up at the other shinobi. "I'll stay here and guard Sasuke as he recovers. All of you can go on ahead."

"Oh, that won't be necessary," Orochimaru informed him. Looking to Karin he said, "Along with her sensory skills, Karin is able to share her chakra with other people. Karin, would you…?" he asked.

She grimaced but Orochimaru didn't relent on his intent gaze. He knew of her past and how she'd been forced to share her chakra almost to the brink of her own death but he figured that as she'd once been obsessed with Sasuke, she'd jump at any chance to save him. As instructed, Karin finally knelt beside Sasuke but not before casting an apologetic look to Suigetsu. Orochimaru had to force himself not to chuckle; he knew as well that when she shared her chakra, the sensation was both extremely painful and inadvertently erotic, something that was well known to her current dating partner. Considering her past infatuation with Sasuke, he could easily assume this would not sit well with Suigetsu.

Pulling back her sleeve, she held an arm out, fighting to remain impassive as she revealed the deep scars that covered the skin. Sasuke was just conscious enough to understand what was occurring, and he would've refused, though refusal meant delaying finding Naruto. He too gave an apologetic look to Suigetsu before biting down.

Karin used her free hand to muffle her cries and Sasuke decided it was best not to analyze too deeply if she was feeling pain or anything else. He pulled from her chakra source as quickly as he could, feeling its effects as a warm numbness spreading throughout. As it melded with his own chakra, he felt himself become more alert and the fatigue slowly receded. After only a minute, he pulled away, not meeting her eyes as he wiped his mouth.

"Thanks for that," he mumbled uncomfortably, pushing himself to rise to his feet. He wobbled for a second, but managed to keep his footing.

The movement didn't go unnoticed to any of the others but Suigetsu surprisingly spoke up first. "Sure you're alright? You still don't look that good."

In truth, Sasuke had stopped because taking chakra from her with him there felt dirty, like he was aiding her in betraying him. Instead, he voiced a second truth. "My chakra reserves are larger than most and I'd probably kill her if I tried to completely replenish my energy. I have enough for now, so let's not waste any more time."

He was just about to leap up into the trees again when a sharp crack of static sounded in his ear and a voice spoke to him via a communication device that'd been passed out by Kakashi. "To anyone that's within range, this is Sakura. We've managed to find one of the images in the memories. Page four of seven shows a village with a large statue of an aged shinobi near the entrance gate. It's probably a long shot, but Hinata and I will ask the villagers if they know anything about Takami. Killer Bee will remain hidden in case we need backup—"

"Aw, that's not cool at all with me! How can I call myself a man if I don't protect the ladies?" Bee instantly cut in.

"You're wanted for capture yet again," Sakura reminded him dryly. "If push comes to shove, we'll call for you, but it's probably for the best that you remain out of sight."

"Sorry, sweetie, not my style," Bee declined not unkindly. "I haven't had a good fight in a while. And maybe it's best if I let them capture me; they can show us where Naruto's at, don't you see?"

Sakura's mic fell silent as she thought about it. Instead, Pakkun walked up to Jugo and placed his front paws on his knee, pulling himself higher so that he'd be heard. "That might not be such a bad idea, actually. Right now, we're stumbling in the dark. A mission like this would ordinarily take months. Instead, we have days, maybe even just hours to find Naruto. And…let's be honest. We're all probably banking a lot of stock on Naruto rescuing himself, aren't we?"

A ripple of guilt marred the group's faces. His droopy eyes looked around at their shamed expressions, before again directing his voice to be heard through Jugo's headset. "I figured I wasn't the only one. Considering everything Sasuke has told us about them, we can't afford to think like that. I say allow Killer Bee to investigate and you, Sakura and Hinata, will be his backup. It's probably the easiest way to draw them out."

"And what if they do attack?" Hinata's voice came through. "Do we engage them? Considering you're the only ones that are responding, Kakashi and Gaara's groups are out of range from us."

Now it was Pakkun's turn to fall silent. Sasuke considered the question as well. If Killer Bee allowed himself to be captured, how would he send back word about his or Naruto's location? But then he remembered something that'd been mentioned during the end of the war…

"Hey, Bee, a piece of each of the Tailed Beasts is in Naruto," He spoke swiftly, feeling his hopes rise despite himself. "Try seeing if the Eight Tails can contact—"

"It's a no-go, bro. I already tried and couldn't reach Naruto," the jinchuriki said sadly.

"Then maybe we could ask the other Tailed Beasts if they know something?" Jugo suggested. "They might have more information than these memories which may or may not mean anything."

"I agree," Sasuke announced firmly. "Takami said that he was protecting the Tailed Beasts. I'll go speak with them to see if they know anything else."

The others showed their agreement but Killer Bee's voice quickly doused that idea. "Naw, friend, they don't trust you."

"What? Oh…right." Sasuke thought about it. The incident at the end of the war when he'd nearly sealed them away. "Fine, then come with me," he said impatiently, irritated at how long this one decision was taking.

"But then I can't do my mission here," Killer Bee said, no sing-song lilt to his voice. "Here, how about this." From the headset, they each heard the distinctive expansion of air that usually accompanied using jutsu. "I'll keep a clone back so that if I'm captured, it can tell you where I'm at. If I'm not captured, I'll meet up with you and we can go talk to the other Beasts. Deal?"

"Deal," Sasuke sighed with relief.

"Alright then, we'll keep in touch and let you know how this goes," Sakura concluded and the line fell quiet.

"Well then, now that that's settled," Orochimaru huffed as though it were him that was being inconvenienced, "Sasuke, you'll stay here and wait for the verdict. Karin, you too stay behind and continue healing Sasuke." He didn't even look at Suigetsu, rationalizing that it was time the boy got over his insecurities, which had no place in the current conflict. "The rest of us will continue searching for the locations of the other memories as we shouldn't rule those out just yet.

"That also brings us down a sensory ninja though," Jugo pointed out, but looked down at Pakkun, reaching to rub his ears. "No offense to you, of course."

The dog tilted his head so that the best spot could be scratched. "None taken. However, we need to get going so we can communicate this with Kakashi or Gaara's teams. Depending on how this goes, this could make or break everything." Looking behind him to Sasuke, he added, "I know you're a tough one and that's admirable, but you're no good to anyone if you run yourself into the ground. Let us handle some of this; you're not the only person that cares for Naruto."

It was unspoken, but Sasuke got the sense that he knew about his and Naruto's relationship, likely through Kakashi. That was fine though, then he knew what Sasuke stood to lose if all of this failed. He nodded in understanding and Pakkun began to once again lead the rest of his pack.

Suigetsu lingered behind for a moment, looking at the two of them before turning around and running after the others. Sasuke had seen that look of conflicted heartache all too often here recently on Naruto's face and he hated to be the cause of it to someone else.

He felt relieved when it was Karin that finally addressed the elephant in the room. As she sat down in a shaded spot, she muttered, "He's acting like I'm going to screw your brains out or something. Even if I wanted to, there's a time and a place for everything," she offered with a deviant smile. Rolling up her sleeve again, she once more held out her arm. "Here, take a little bit more. You still look like crap."

Sasuke grunted but sat beside her. "Thank you for your delicate words," he said before intentionally biting just a bit too hard into her. She raised her hand to land a good hit, but instead just shook her head and turned her face away from him.

They sat quietly together with him sipping on her chakra, each lost in their own thoughts as they secretly worried and waited.

Writing with a myriad of characters at the same time has never been my strong suit, but what started as small character cameos has turned into wanting to keep them around…for just a little longer. Naruto usually does a decent job balancing Naruto's development and those of the people around him and I hope I can add even a semblance of that here without going completely off-track.