Disclaimer: Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.

09. Change

And then there's chaos.

One minute Sasuke had been fighting the freaky sound nin (who looks as if he could use some sleep), the next he is outside the stadium and giving chase.

He caught up with the siblings, only for the sister to escape with her unconscious brother. Then her teammate showed up, the Aburame, and the chase continued.

After that, it was all a blur of motion. Of anger. The thrill of the fight.

Excitement on testing his power on a strong opponent.

Then there was the loud chirping of his Chidori, the feel of rough sand on his skin, the smell of smoke…

Then numbness spreading from the cursed seal.

Gaara had come at him and he was helpless to do anything. His body had refused to budge.

But Naruto and Sakura arrived suddenly.

He then had to watch Naruto and Sakura get hurt trying to protect him. Finally, when he could move his muscles again, it had just been in time to cushion Naruto's form from hitting a tree.

He has had enough.

Thank you, S-Sasuke-san…

"Hey Naruto," he pants, his body still heavy, "save Sakura no matter what."

"Eh?"

"Take her and run. As fast as you can." Sasuke grits his teeth and stands shakily on his feet. "It's only for a while, but I'll hold him in place."

…for c-caring about Naruto-kun.

Does he? Care about the Dobe? Sasuke isn't really sure himself. But…

"I'll be damned if I just watch those dear to me die before my eyes again!"

Maybe he could accept her gratitude after all.

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A/N:

Hei gais! Quite a short chapter here, but necessary for character development (I think). Plus the story is supposed to be made of connected drabbles so expect short-ish chapters in the future again. This means that there would be long-ish chapters too, yey!

Anyway, thanks a bunch to all my lovely reviewers! You peepz make writing worthwhile and your reviews inspire me to go on with this story :D So again, shout outs go to girl-of-anime, XxshippingsMfreakxX, Hinata6, MissLuppi, Saki-Hime, Lastine, FallenRaindrops, UchihaMistress723, Mitternacht, and MeltYouWithOneKiss!

Some of you have expressed interest on hearing Hinata's thoughts, sadly though, this story is only meant to be told from Sasuke's view. I might make outtakes in the future though, or one-shots, based on Hinata's perspective…but I can't promise anything at this point.

Thanks for reading! Review and tell me what you think :)