Chapter Six
"Uchiha… Itachi" Naruto voiced as silently as a whisper
"It's been along time Naruto-kun" was his short reply.
"Three years to be exact" Naruto answered, not showing he was intimidated at all.
"Are you going to come peacefully? I would like avoid fighting if possible" Itachi asked.
"I bet you would considering your nearly blind thanks to that Sharingan of yours" Naruto smirked.
Itachi's eyes narrowed dangerously at the blond who was smiling back at him. "So you know" he voiced softly.
"Of the fact you've been going blind since you got those eyes and the fact your Jiraiya's spy in the Akatsuki then yes I know" Naruto replied, getting out of the water and began getting dressed. "Pervy sage isn't in the village at the moment so what do you have to report?" Naruto asked. Itachi seemed to mellow out at bit as his form relaxed and his Sharingan deactivated. "Akatsuki are on the move, Leader dispatched two teams to go after two different vessels" Itachi voiced.
"Names and targets?" Naruto questioned. "Team one is Sasori of Suna and Deidara of Iwa, their target is the one tailed vessel Gaara. Team two is Hidan of River and Kakuzu of Waterfall, they have the two tailed vessel a young woman named Yugito Nii of Kumo" Itachi explained.
"Abilities?" was his next question.
"Sasori uses puppets that all use poison weapons, Deidara uses long range explosives. Hidan is immortal but can be stopped by cutting off his head. Kakuzu can use all elements, has five hearts and uses tentacle like strands as weapons that run throughout his whole body" Itachi reported.
"The other Akatsuki members?"
"Kisame is currently in Wave Country visiting a former comrade's grave, Leader and his partner are unknown, and Zetsu is searching for the Sanabi" Itachi finished reporting.
"Alright" Naruto sighed as he noticed the shift in the air. "Let's make this believable shall we?" Naruto smirked, chakra gathering into his palm. "Hai" Itachi's Sharingan activated.
"RASENGAN!"
Meanwhile…
Tsunade smiled as she looked out over the village. Everything was so quiet, so peaceful, so…
BOOM!
An explosion had erupted from the hot springs. She sighed it seemed she was going to put Jiraiya in his place again. She turned to call her hidden Anbu when Shizune burst into the room, a look of fright on her face.
"TSUNADE-SAMA, NARUTO-KUN IS BATTLING ITACHI UCHIHA AT THE HOTSPRINGS!"
She flew into action, ordering all shinobi to converge on the springs and rescue Naruto. Word quickly spread and everyone came running, most of them being Naruto's friends. When the arrived what they saw amazed them. Naruto was standing in a deadlock with Itachi. His eyes had shifted to a greenish yellow with a rectangular pupil. From nearby they saw three shadow clones standing perfectly still, just watching the battle. The ground was torn apart, the fences around the springs were burnt and broken, and Itachi looked a little worse for wear.
""Your growing" Itachi voiced softly.
Naruto grinned despite it being the middle of battle.
"But" Itachi smirked.
Naruto's eyes went wide when Itachi's eyes shifted.
"Mangekyo Sharingan: Tsukuyomi"
Everything went dark; the world shifted into a one with a blood red sky and blackened earth. Naruto found himself standing in the Final Valley, standing across from him was Sasuke in his curse seal level 2 form.
"You have so very much to learn… you understand so little"
He heard Itachi's voice before he got a Chidori slammed into his chest. The pain was just as he remembered and for a moment he thought he was going to pass out before the pain suddenly went away. His wound was gone and Sasuke was back on the other end of the valley.
"For the next seventy-two hours you will feel the sting of betrayal by your best friend. I hope when its over you finally understand what you must do should you encounter my foolish little brother again" Itachi spoke again before Sasuke charged again and stabbed him right in the heart.
"Only seventy-one hours, fifty-nine minutes, and fifty-nine seconds to go"
Then all Naruto knew was pain.
A few seconds in real time later…
Everyone winced when Naruto let out a pained filled scream as he fell to the ground and began convulsing. Tsunade tore herself away from the sight and ordered all shinobi to capture Itachi who was now fleeing as fast as he could. Several dozen Anbu and jonin gave chase while Tsunade and Shizune attended to Naruto, keeping his head steady as throughout his seizure.
Naruto's clones dispelled and the entire area suddenly went quiet as Naruto stopped convulsing. "Lady Tsunade we must get him to the hospital, that attack may have caused severe mental damage" Kurenai spoke. "Hai, prepare him for transport and alert the hospital he will be arriving shortly" she ordered. She watched sadly as Naruto was picked up by Neji and Lee and began leaving the area.
"I swear Naruto I'll get that bastard for doing this and then I'll smash the council for saying it would be a waste of resources to watch over you"
She thought as she headed for the hospital.
Several Hours Later…
Naruto had been treated for his injury and against Tsunade's wishes was released from the hospital. He had been escorted to his apartment by Hinata and much to her delight was ordered by Tsunade to watch over him for the night against the clan elder's wishes. She had been very angry with her father since that afternoon when he confronted her at the estate.
He used his Byakugan on her which was against clan rules and discovered her hymen was broken and demanded to know who she slept with. When she refused to answer he guessed it was Naruto's fault and forbid her from being near him, that turned out to be a mistake. Hinata exploded; delivering a chakra enhanced kick to the groin and fled to her room. He later learned from Neji that Naruto was the source of her confidence and apologized for his actions. She forgave him but told she would never willingly leave Naruto even if it meant she would have to be banished from the clan.
She smiled softly as she watched Naruto sleep on next to her. He was worn out and nearly collapsed when they made it through the doorway. She wanted to have some fun but now wasn't the right time, who knows was kind of trauma Naruto had gone through thanks to that bastard Uchiha. She vowed that if she even crossed paths with Itachi she would take a rusty kunai to his privates and make him beg to be killed.
Meanwhile…
Itachi felt a shiver down his spine that made him stop in his tracks.
"What's wrong Itachi?" Kisame asked.
"I feel as though the eyes of a deadly goddess are targeting me" he voiced.
"Isn't that the same feeling you got when you dumped that Ayame girl?" Kisame replied.
"Hai"
Back with Naruto…
"You just rest now Naruto-kun, I'll watch over you and keep you safe" she whispered as she kissed his cheek and snuggled into his chest. She knew there was going to be problems when she returned to the estate but for now she would enjoy the peace she had with her not so secret love.
Land of Tea: Orochimaru's Hidden Base…
"Kabuto I have a plan"
"What is it Orochimaru-sama?"
"Sasuke-kun is in need of a challenge before I switch bodies. Send some of our ninja to Konoha and kidnap Sakura Haruno. This will surely lead the Kyuubi brat out into the open" Orochimaru smiled evilly.
"Right away sir" Kabuto replied.
From the hallway they didn't notice the gleaming red Sharingan eyes narrowing at the sannin.
"That fool, as if I'd kill my best friend and end up like my brother"
Sasuke thought as he walked away, he'd have to step up his plans if the dobe was going to get involved again. He'd have to contact Karin right away and find Jugo's location.
Unknown Location…
In a dimly lit cave nine figures appeared.
"What is your status?" Pain spoke.
"We've found her location but the fucking Raikage is making it hard to track her down." Hidan voiced. "Yes he seems to be very protective of her despite his shinobi hating to defend her" Kakuzu added.
"Team two?" Pain asked.
"We've just reached the border to Wind Country and are waiting for nightfall to cross the desert. Damn you Deidara you know I hate waiting!" Sasori cursed. "What did you expect un, I'm not used to the desert heat like you are un" Deidara replied.
"Stop it both of you, proceed as planned. Itachi head to Wave Country and regroup with Kisame, then head to Tea Country and begin your search for Orochimaru, Zetsu has informed me he may be in the area" Pain ordered.
"Hai Leader-sama!" they all spoke before their holograms vanished.