Title: Holding My Own
Rating: K+
Summary: A Sakura-centred fic that will give you a new-found respect for our favorite pink-haired ninja.
Holding my Own
Chapter 2: Arrival
The warm yellow light from the porch lanterns cast long shadows in the dusky gray of early morning. It seemed to Sakura to be a cheery looking little home with white painted walls and a shingled sloping roof in the old style. However, the knowledge that it was Orochimaru's cheery looking little home destroyed any hopes for a good first impression.
Jiraiya-sama was the first person to land in the small clearing in front the house; Naruto and Sakura quickly followed landing a step away. For a moment they all stood simply staring at this well-kept house in the middle of nowhere.
"Hey, why are all these lights on, ne?" asked Naruto. "It's like they wanted us to find them. Are they are challenging us or something?"
"Naruto!" scolded Sakura in a hushed tone. "We don't want them to hear us out here!"
The toad senin just stood there with his arms crossed. He seemed to be trying to stare a hole right through the door.
"They know we are here, girl," he said arching eyebrow at her. "They've known we were coming for the last hour."
"That snake has always had a flair for the dramatic," he thought, "but he also always picks the battlefield to suit him."
The large man returned his eyes to the door of the house. In a cloud of smoke, Kakashi appeared next to them and reported what he had scouted of the area. "We appear to be alone, although I'm sure Kabuto is around. I guess it was a hard party to get invited to."
Kakashi-sensei's light tone caused Jiraiya-sama's stony look to break into a slightly wicked version of a smile.
"Ah, that's Orochimaru for ya! He probably forgot to put directions on the invitations. Fortunately, I've been here before."
"I'm not afraid of him. Let's go kick his ass!" yelled Naruto.
The team walked up the porch stairs to the building 's entrance. With little hesitation, the senin reach for the broad sliding doors and threw them widely open. Sakura and Naruto had to shade their eyes as the light from the interior poured out as they entered.
After long hours of running through the night, Sakura's eyes adjusted slowly. The haze faded and she looked around to see that the inside of the building was in fact just one big, long room, like a dojo or a shrine. The sidewalls were lined with reflecting lanterns and a pit hearth of blazing logs was set to the back at the far end. The warmth of it all seeped in the numbness of her chapped skin making her hands and face tingle.
Two people stood like statues at the opposite end of the house. One was Orochimaru slouched arrogantly with the sword of Kusanagi slung on his shoulder. He was dressed in a black silk kimono slashed with green. Its shimmering cloth gave off the distinct impression of a serpent's iridescent skin. The other figure was less impressive at first glance. A boy on the door of adolescence, he was dressed simply in a dark blue shinobi jacket with white shorts. However, his stance gave him the appearance of a coiled spring. His hair fell into his shadowed eyes as he stared at the ground with a fearsome aura that could be felt from a distance.
"Sasuke!"
"Sakura, wait! " commanded Kakashi grabbing her arm.
Jiraiya waved clownishly to Orochimaru. "Hi-ya Orochi-kun. Long time, no see," he bellowed. His voice filled the emptiness of the room briefly.
"I see you are still playing the fool Jiraiya," sneered Orochimaru. "I was wondering how long it was going to take you to find me here. You brought Kakashi. oh good choice, and your little pet the Ninetails brat. and his.cheerleader?"
Sakura's face flushed with indignation.
Jiraiya grunted dismissively hooking his thumbs in his belt. "You're the fool, snake. Did you really think the Leaf would just let you take the Uchiha boy without a fight? Right now half the Anbu are falling onto Sound Village like a tidal wave. You'll be lucky if you can call anywhere in the Five Countries home again."
"Sound Village? Well that's good then, they are probably doing me a favor. You see I've grown disinterested with that little project. I have my eyes' set on something now much more enticing."
The criminal senin took the Kusanagi from its perch and began to tap the flat of the blade on his open palm. "Well, enough with the pleasantries. After all Sasuke-kun here has been almost bored to death. Haven't you my beautiful boy?"
Sasuke finally raised his head to look at them. His appearance made Naruto and Sakura step back in surprise. His face was completely covered in scrolling pattern of the Curse seal. The counter seal obviously no longer checking the infection, Orochimaru appeared to have Sasuke in total control. All the while, the birthright of the Uchiha clan spun wildly in his blood-red eyes.
Tightness appeared around Kakashi's natural eye and he slid his forehead protector up to expose his own Sharingan. Not taking his gaze off of their opponents he spoke quickly and carefully to his charges in an intense voice.
"Listen. That is not Sasuke. Right now he is Orochimaru's weapon. He will not hesitate to kill any of us. Naruto, Sakura, do you understand that? If you want to save him you're not going to able to hold back. "
Naruto studied his friend and teammate for a moment before nodding grimly. Sakura's face meanwhile flashed with anguish, her eyes darting, but she too regained a determined look within a breath's time.
"Yes, I understand," she said quietly, though inside she felt like her heart was itself tearing apart. The protests rolled through her mind unbidden.
"This can't be happening!!" she thought. "No! No! I can't! I can't fight Sasuke here. I came here to save him! Why didn't I see this coming?"
"Ok, Old Toad," sneered the villain. "Why don't we go outside to catch up on old times? And don't worry, we can just leave the children here to play."
The words died on his lips as Orochimaru left in a puff of nin-smoke. Jiraiya vanished in similar fashion a second later. Kakashi-sensei, looking torn, hesitated with a quick glance at his students before he too departed.
Sakura felt frozen, this was all happening to fast.
The possessed boy at the other end spoke for the first time. "Kakashi is wrong by the way. I have been wanting this for a long time, Naruto."
Both Naruto and Sakura's mouths dropped open. They had assumed wrongly that he was muted by the full curse. His mind was evidently there as well, twisted too by Orochimaru's spell.
"It's finally time to prove once and for all who is the stronger ninja, " he said walking toward them in a slow, menacing way.
Naruto stepped in front of Sakura.
Accepting the challenge he barked a laugh. "You were always a prick Sasuke. This curse seal thing has just made you a bigger prick. Come on! I'll beat your ass and save it at the same time!"
Sasuke halted. The tension built as a standoff started. They both waited for the other to move.
Sakura had decided before this journey started that she would become a different person and a better ninja. It was now or never as her greatest challenge loomed ahead. She whipped a kunai out her weapon's pouch.
"Naruto, I'm fighting too," she said. "You won't have to protect me." Pausing slightly she finished, "And don't worry, I have your back."
He turned slightly to look at her out of the corner of his eye. He studied her for a second, before his big toothy grin appeared. She smiled back, relieved by his quick acceptance.
"That's my girl! Ok, then let's do it. Kage Bushin no jutsu!"
Three flesh and blood doppelgangers appeared in front of Naruto.
At first she was surprised at the small number of kage bushin, but the intelligent kunoichi caught on quickly. "Good plan, Naruto" Sakura thought to herself. "Sasuke may be quicker and have more jutsu, but he can't outlast your monster stamina. Play it conservative and we've got him."
Sasuke's dark smile suddenly got a little bigger. He flew towards them at lightning speed. He reached the first clone and dispatched in an instantly in a puff of smoke. He got to the second one, before the clone could even defend, his spinning leaf taijutsu style ripped through it. The possessed nin seemed to only get faster with the kills.
"He's too quick!" she panicked. She began to raise her trembling hands to form a seal, what seal she didn't know. Suddenly a drop of something warm and wet splashed on her cheek. She blinked. The real Naruto was gone from in front of her and now flying towards the sidewall. His body crashed into its surface, then slid down into a pile against it.
She tore her eyes from Naruto's still form, realizing she couldn't see Sasuke. A whisper came to her ear.
"Oh, Sakura."
Her kunai was knocked from her hand as an iron-like hand grasped her throat. She fought instantly for breath, clawing uselessly at the hand that held her. Sasuke picked her up by the neck and turned her in the air to face him.
"I was so happy to see you show up, Sakura-chan," he said mockingly. " I expected to have some difficulty with Naruto-kun's little summoning tricks, but with you here he can't risk it."
Sakura felt lightheaded. She struggled weakly "I can't give.. no." .
He smiled and then touched a finger to his lips in a mischievous way.
"You know I never realized how easy it would be to snap your pretty little neck before. I should have noticed this way sooner, but."
Two shuriken flew past her eyes them cutting into Sasuke's outstretch arm. Naruto was back on his feet.
"Hey asshole! I'm not done with you yet."
Sasuke's grip of her throat held firm as he casually plucked the throwing weapons from his arm. He seemed frighteningly impervious to the injury. Turning towards Naruto he looked briefly at Sakura as if annoyed she still occupied his hand and then threw her over his shoulder towards the back wall.
"Sakura, why don't you rest over there? We'll talk later."
Her body arched through the air in its trajectory. The flight felt syrupy slow as the stabbing pain of suffocation still coursed through her body. She could not control her body at all as she slammed against the wall, collapsing to the floor.
Wrapping her hands around neck, she writhed in a ball of agony on the floor Choking and gasping, she felt the waves of pain slowly diminish to a raw ache. Fear and spasms of aftershock glued her to the smooth panels of the floor. NOT NOW! I WON'T LOSE!
"I need to move.to help Naruto. I have to get past this," she whispered to herself.
She forced herself to roll over and leaned her head against the floor. Sakura squinted still coughing to see how the battle progressed. The breaths came short and hard through the burning tenderness of her windpipe.
The fighting had turned to the close combat she knew they both preferred. Naruto and Sasuke traded blows evenly. She couldn't help but marvel as they released huge amounts of chakra in their battle. A red demonic aura seemed surround each of them.
"It's like that time Naruto fought Neji."
Naruto appeared to the stronger of the two, but Sasuke moved as if he knew his every attack before it was launched. She knew the curse gave him added strength and the Sharingan's ability kept the fight at a dead heat.
They broke apart, jumping back in stalemate. Before his feet landed, Sasuke's hands had formed a seal of the tiger.
"Fire jutsu.. Naruto look out!" screamed Sakura.
"Katon Housenka!"
Balls of fire sprung from Sasuke's mouth and streaked toward Naruto. The fox boy stood there confidently making no move to dodge the attack. Sakura was dumbfounded.
"Are you crazy? Move you."
Naruto brought up his hands with his flat palms facing the blast. As the fireballs reached him they swerved away like they had bounced roughly against an invisible wall. Sakura just stared in amazement. Even Sasuke looked taken back.
"I'm impressed, Naruto, I see you can manipulate the air around your hand with just your chakra."
"Well I didn't just sit around while you were laid up in bed, Sasuke," Naruto shot back. "You don't know half of what I can do."
Sasuke threw his hands up again in a new seal. "Ah yes, but I can learn. Kage Bushin no jutsu!" Three solid clones of Sasuke appeared around him. They were exact copies and all wearing the same sardonic grin. He had copied shadow clone technique from earlier.
Naruto quickly did his own Kage Bushin of three and the two groups launched themselves at each other renewing the match. Sakura watched the free-for- all in disbelief.
"They must be burning huge amounts of chakra keep those Kage Bushin going in full combat," she thought. "This is my best chance." TIME FOR MY ULTIMATE TECHNIQUE, BABY!
Sakura had not let her time off during the Chuunin tournament go to waste either. Kakashi had arranged for special tutoring for her while he had taken Sasuke into hiding and it was finally time to put that training to good use.
Rising up on her knees she steadied herself, finding her center. With this jutsu she could not afford to make one mistake. While gaining mastery, she still had yet to do it twice in a single day. She formed the seals for it preparation quickly. Three in quick succession repeated four times: hare, dog and phoenix. Feeling the potential build and then stabilize she held it tightly, perspiration breaking out on her face She stared at the contest unfolding in front of her waiting for her chance.
Naruto was the first to gain advantage by taking out one of the Uchiha's clones. Now with the added attacker he had Sasuke almost completely on the defensive. Another opening came against a Sasuke clone and all of the Narutos, clones and original, pounced on it. Springing their trap, Sasuke and his remaining clone jumped back to either side of the opponents seals forming in their hands.
"Katon Goukakyuu no Jutsu!"
Thick gouts of flame slammed into either side of Naruto and his assembled clones. The flames enveloped everything as it reduced quickly to a single small heap. Naruto's orange jacket was just visible in the blackening smolder.
"No! Naruto? It can't be." Sakura reeled from the apparent quick defeat. "I need to do this now!"
Sakura intoned, "Mind Cage no jutsu!" An inky ball of darkness appeared above head her. She focused her mind and sent the high level genjutsu towards its target. A smoky tendril spun off from the black mass and drifted slowly towards Sasuke,
"I see you, Sakura."
His fight with Naruto over, Sasuke had turned towards her. "I'm not sure what jutsu that is, but I think I'll enjoy making you show it to me again later." The tendril was still feet away from its target.
"This is bad," she thought desperately. "He can easily avoid this." I WAS SO CLOSE!
Sasuke's hands came together with arrogant slowness as he readied his next attack.
"Hey! Sasuke-chan!" called a voice above. A jacketless Naruto jumped towards Sasuke from the rafters.
He looked up snarling and sent the fire jutsu he was about to send at Sakura at his rival instead. Fireballs began to pelt the airborne boy who was unable to dodge the jutsu while in the air.
Through this all Sakura had not broken her technique. A small smile of satisfaction crossed her lips as the tendril finally brushed Sasuke and she felt her mind cage connect with its target.
Its effects on both of them were instantaneous.
"I got you, you bastard!" she mumbled, causing a rare instance where her thought's echoed those of her inner voice exactly.
Sasuke's look of bewilderment as he turned towards her gave her great pleasure as her eyelids began to sink like shutters down over her eyes. She caught one final glimpse of his limp form falling to the floor as the genjutsu took it effect on them, knocking them both unconscious
E V I L A N G E L N U M B E 1 3
Hi pplz hope u enjoyed this Chapter Keep reading and reviewing and pwez help me think of something 2 do 4 the ppl that review pwez thx a million! =) Luvlles!
EA#13