Title: The Mission From Hell
Author: JackieLupin
Disclaimer: Kishimoto-sama owns all!
Rating: Light R for suggestive language, swearing, and battle scenes.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR THIS STORY: This is an AU, which means an "Alternate Universe." In this story, Sasuke never left Konoha and never attacked Naruto at the hospital after the Chuunin Exams. Also, I'm making The Hidden Sand Village an ally of Konoha; therefore, Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro did NOT attack the Hokage Sarutobi with Orochimaru, and the fight between Team 7 and Gaara/Shukaku never happened. However, Orochimaru did manage to kill the Sandaime, so Tsunade is now Godaime. Sakura has trained underneath Tsunade for four years, so Sakura, Naruto, Sasuke and the Rookie 9 are now 17 years old, while Neji, Tenten and Lee are 18. Yamato-taichou and Sai are also around, but probably won't have major roles in this story. Akatsuki is NOT involved, so Itachi and the other misfits of the gang will NOT be in this story.
If you have any questions, please contact me and I'll do my best to set everyone on the right track! Thanks!
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CHAPTER EIGHT
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They ran.
Sakura followed Neji blindly as she fought to compose herself, trusting the Hyuuga to be alert and ready as they snuck into back alleyways and over the rooftops of the nearby buildings and around the shops and people, racing against time to get to the Western Gate. Her pink hair whipped her face, catching in between her lips that she kept rewetting with her tongue, a rather nervous tick she had never been able to break.
Her heart wasn't with her but with Sasuke; she prayed silently to Kami that everyone would make it out of Iwate alive.
Everyone except Maeno.
About ten minutes later, Sakura shook her head fiercely and raised her gaze, fixing it on Neji's back. She needed to stay focused, she needed to concentrate. There was too much at stake for her not to be in her best fighting state, too much that could happen if Iwate was never re-conquered. Not only would her team and friends suffer, but the people of Iwate would as well. She had not seen one smile when Team Beta was sneaking in, not one. There had been no talking and laughter in the air, just sadness and anger.
And it was all due to Maeno Montaro.
Picking up speed, she followed the Hyuuga genius into one of the office buildings that lay in their path. It was... empty. Their footsteps resonated against the walls, every sound echoing in the surprisingly empty void. But where was everyone? It must be close to 9 AM; where were all the employees?
"Sakura," Neji called out suddenly, grabbing onto her when she continued to sail past him, "The chakra signature is back! Do you feel it?"
Oh yes she did.
The chakra was like a malevolent fire that bled through the walls; the strength of the signature was so strong that her own chakra started to coil and bubble dangerously within her. Sakura, angry, forced it to continue its circulation around her body. Control over it might save their lives. Her mind raced out of control; who could it be? Who had that amount of power? There were only a couple handfuls of shinobi like this in the world. One was Kakashi, another was Jiraiya. Even Naruto's chakra was vast and powerful. But this wasn't familiar, nor comforting. It was... wrong.
"I feel it," she whispered back, "What should we do?"
But the Hyuuga didn't answer right away; he had his Byakugan trained down the corridor. One hand was slipping into his weapons pouch, the other touching the small button that would open the communications link with Team Alpha. "I don't think we can do this by ourselves," he admitted quietly, "I think I know who it is."
"Who?" Sakura demanded, the hair on the back of her neck prickling unpleasantly.
"I'm...I'm not certain, but I think it is Kabuto."
"Why the hell would he be-" But then it hit Sakura like a brick wall. Maeno Montaro was a Sound shinobi, therefore under Orochimaru's allegiance. A sinking feeling suddenly settled in her stomach. "Oh Kami..." If Orochimaru was here, things would become a lot more serious than they already were! It was bad enough trying to find and kill Maeno, but with Kabuto and Orochimaru also present, there wasn't going to be much that eight Konoha shinobi would be able to accomplish, no matter how skilled they were. The odds were against them. Again.
"Are you sure?" Sakura hissed back, and the bad feeling in her gut only intensified as Neji nodded.
"Positive."
"Team Alpha, do you read me?" Sakura whispered over the comm link, "Team Alpha!"
"What is it, Beta?" Shikamaru called back, "Did you find Maeno Montaro?"
"Negative," Neji snarled, "We need help, as soon as possible! We've run in to Kabuto Yakushi."
"What?" she heard Naruto yelp over the link, "Kabuto? Are you serious, Neji? Does that mean that-"
"The enemy nins have been taken care of," Kakashi informed them, his cool voice sounding very strained as he interrupted Naruto, "We're coming to your position. If Kabuto sees you, try to stall him; we're on our way."
The link closed off.
Sakura sighed in an attempt to calm her body down. Her pulse was racing, sweat dripping down the small of her back. She shivered from the sensation, but she was focused entirely on the chakra signature. The signature had halted, flickered slightly, then expanded rapidly. Kabuto had sensed them.
"This just went from bad to worse," Sakura muttered in frustration.
"Agreed," Neji replied darkly, "C'mon, he knows we're here. We might as well begin."
They simultaneously took a deep breath, then walked out into the open courtyard of the building. The sunlight blinded them momentarily, but when their eyes adjusted, Neji's suspicions were confirmed. Sakura barely managed not to turn right back around. This was one rematch she had never wanted to occur again.
It was Kabuto.
The traitor to Konoha lounged disinterestedly against one of the pillars , inspecting the chakra blade forming in his hands. "Hello," he greeted them pleasantly, though his dark grey eyes were anything but pleasant, "So we've finally run into one another. But where are the other two on your little squad?"
"Who cares?" Sakura retorted angrily, carefully taking out the senbon that were dipped in the sedative, hoping that Kabuto would have trouble breaking down the sedative if and when she hit him. "Why are you here?"
"What, not happy to see me again?" Kabuto asked, getting to his feet lazily and stretching nonchalantly, "After all, we worked together during the Chuunin exams. That makes us acquaintances, if not friends. Is this how you talk to your friends?"
"You're a traitor, not a friend," Neji answered for her, settling into his Jyuuken stance, "You proved that when you attacked Konoha five years ago."
"How time flies." Kabuto, obviously done with talking, walked casually over to their left to pick up his weapons pouch. "I guess you're not here to reminisce. That's too bad. So I guess that leaves us to fight." His index finger pushed his sliding glasses back onto the bridge of his nose, the glare hiding his eyes completely for a second or two.
"Why are you here?" Sakura repeated, eyes glued on his hands. Opponent makes the first move, opponent makes the first move was repeating again and again in her head like a mantra. She sincerely hoped that all her skills in medical ninjutsu would help her against this master. Even Tsunade-sama had nearly been bested by Kabuto; how would they fare until Team Alpha with Shikamaru and Sasuke showed up?
Kabuto mock sighed. "I thought you were the brains of Team 7, Sakura-chan? No? No idea?" His grin sent shivers up and down her spine, it was so menacing and... inhuman. "We're here for your precious Sasuke-kun. Orochimaru wants him as his new project, his new student. He is here to make the offer for the second time. It would be most unwise of the Uchiha to turn us down again, for Orochimaru promises him power."
"If he didn't go with you the first time, what makes you think he will now?" Neji snarled, throwing himself at Kabuto.
"Neji!" Sakura cried as one of the chakra scalpels Kabuto wielded came far too close to the Hyuuga's abdomen than she liked. With an internal huff of frustration, Sakura threw herself into the fray. Twisting around the Sound nin's incoming fist, she threw Neji out of the way as the second chakra scalpel descended. Her eyes widened as she realized there was no way to stop the incoming blade... wait, there was! Chakra with chakra!
As quickly as she could, Sakura gathered chakra into her hands and grabbed the blade.
For a few moments, Sakura was afraid to open her eyes.
But there was no pain, only an interesting tingling sensation. Opening her emerald eyes, Sakura grinned when she saw that she had actually blocked the blade. Even Kabuto looked surprised, though he quickly hid it. "Ahh," he said, "I guess the Hokage has taken you in as an apprentice. Huh. I won't underestimate you again."
He pulled back to strike again, but Neji quickly took the chance and leapt in behind the traitor to Konoha, effectively closing off chakra flow in his left arm. Kabuto hissed angrily and jabbed instead with a kunai, managing to catch the Hyuuga across the chest.
"Neji!"
A sudden kick to her stomach threw her back against the stone floor of the courtyard. The pain was immense, but Sakura was more worried about the Hyuuga lying a couple of feet away, struggling to get to his feet. "C'mon," she murmured to herself as she fought to drag herself up, "Playtime is over." But her body failed to move.
Oh Kami, this was bad. Neji was bleeding profusely, Kabuto showed no sign of weakness and her ability to halt his attacks had just been a fluke. He wouldn't dare to go easy on them now, especially with Orochimaru's goal of abducting Sasuke so close to its completion. Sakura sincerely hoped that Sasuke wouldn't agree to go to Orochimaru for the power he offered, for although she knew he cared about his team - and probably always had but just couldn't show it - Sasuke would not rest until Itachi lay dead.
Kabuto was watching her as she debated what to do with a wicked gleam in his eye. "I hit you with my Chakra Kyuuin no Jutsu. I just removed half your stores of chakra. That's why your body is failing to respond to what your brain is telling your muscles to do. Don't worry, you'll regain movement in a couple of minutes, your body just has to adjust to the loss. I'll wait for you." He grinned at his metaphor.
Her breath caught in her throat as Neji slumped onto his back and ceased moving. "No!" she growled at Kabuto, helpless, "You sick bastard!" The tingling in her entire body caused her to grit her teeth and pant to regain her breath; the pain was unusual and excruciatingly annoying. Despite the lack of control over her body, her mind was working overtime. What could she do? One wrong move and Neji would be dead. He was just only hanging onto consciousness and there was no way he could defend himself.
Alpha better be close, or she and Neji would be dead. Damn it! Where was Naruto when she needed him?!
Reaching deep inside herself as inspiration suddenly hit her, Sakura grabbed tendrils of pure chakra and directed them through her limbs. The pain was tolerable as she healed the damage done to her chakra pathways enough to regain movement in her body. She fling her recuperating body to Neji and gathered more chakra in her hand, allowing it to seep through his torn and bloody shirt and knit muscle and flesh together.
There. Now they could finish Kabuto together.
Kabuto clapped his hands mockingly. "I wondered how long it would take you to figure out what to do. No matter. We'll finish this, fair and square."
Neji stirred under her hands, his pale eyes settling on her face. He opened his mouth to say something, looking thoroughly confused, but then pushed himself into a sitting position to glare at Kabuto angrily. "You'll never get Uchiha. You won't even get to leave this courtyard."
His only response was a toothy, mirthless grin.
The skills of all the Hyuuga Clan members were not to be taken lightly. Despite being only eighteen, Neji was an exceptional shinobi. Unlike Sakura's hotheaded teammates, Neji's unemotional, detached approach to battling other shinobi was advantageous. He hardly ever lost his temper in a fight, while those who did go up against him eventually would for his seemingly apathetic nature. So when Neji slipped on his Koh face and began to fight, Sakura knew that Kabuto would be hard pressed to find an opening.
Sakura watched intently as Neji began his first attack sequence. It wasn't his most powerful attack, merely a test against Kabuto's strength and speed. His dark hair escaped its tie and flew around his face as the two ninja seized each other up for the second time, Neji jabbing here and there and Kabuto parrying his attacks and returning some of his own. But when, by sheer luck, Neji was able to connect with a well-known chakra pathway and close off the circulation to Kabuto's arm, Sakura knew her time had come.
With a roar of fury, Sakura threw herself into the fray. She rushed at Kabuto, throwing a flurry of kicks and punches his way in an attempt to distract him from Neji's powerful chakra counterattacks. If they could take out the majority of the Sound shinobi's chakra pathways, then they would have taken away one of his most powerful weapons: his medical ninjutsu prowess. But Kabuto was able to block all of her attacks, even going so far as to land a hit that threw her back a couple of feet.
Grimacing in discomfort, Sakura grabbed a kunai in her hand; in the other she held her senbon, tip just pointing out from in between her fingers. The kunai and the sudden flare of chakra in her hand would be distraction enough, and if Kami was on her side, the sedative dipped senbon would definitely slow down Kabuto.
Neji, having worked with her for so long, knew of her plan immediately. "Now, Sakura!" he cried, grabbing onto Kabuto's arm and wrenching him around.
As quickly as she could, Sakura created a clone of herself. While the clone rushed to Kabuto, an obvious attack, Sakura snuck around behind him.
Kabuto hesitated for a split second, caught between keeping his eyes fixed on Neji or Sakura, both who appeared to be in the beginning of an attack sequence. Neji's hand hit the side of the nin's face, knocking off his glasses and sending them many feet away, shattered and now completely useless.
Sakura used that one second that Neji bought them well. Scrambling behind the shinobi, she jammed her hidden senbon deep into the muscles of his neck.
With a roar of fury, Kabuto knocked her clone away from him will a well-aimed blow to her leg. The clone disappeared with a poof. But that appeared to be the shinobi's last attack, for he too dropped to the ground, panting as he ripped out the senbon. A small rivulet of blood ran free, streaming down his neck and pooling in the collar of his shirt.
Neji landed beside her near the edge of the courtyard, his pearly white eyes fixated on Kabuto. "Good job," he whispered to her softly.
"Thanks for the opportunity," Sakura joked back lightly, then jumped to her feet in panic as she sensed multiple chakra signatures coming closer and closer at a break-neck speed. A split second later she relaxed; it was Team Alpha!
But Kabuto wasn't done. With alarming speed the grey haired man launched himself at them, one kunai clenched tightly in his usable hand, intent to connect with their bodies. Sakura hastily threw herself out of his path and whipped around as he sailed on by. Knowing that she had no other choice, she gripped her own kunai and slammed it down into his spine. With a agonizing cry of pain, Kabuto crumpled to the ground and lay still. His soft moans of pain were the only indication that he was alive.
Neji stood before him, his shoulders tensed. "What did you have to gain by coming here?!" he demanded angrily.
When Kabuto failed to answer, Neji kicked him over onto his back. Orochimaru's ally wheezed in agony, hands clenched into fists, though he took another deep breath and said hoarsely, "I had everything to gain. And nothing at all. It depends... depends on how you... see it..."
"Is Orochimaru here?"
Kabuto smiled, his teeth smeared with blood. "Heh... looks like you'll have to wait and find out, ne?"
"Sakura-chan! Neji!" Naruto shouted as soon as he, Kakashi, Kiba and Lee came barreling into the courtyard, racing over to wrap his arms around her and crush her to him, "Thank Kami!" His face was covered in scratches and blood; looking him over hurriedly, Sakura deemed that none of his injuries were life threatening, though most of the gashes on his arms looked painful.
One, two, three...four. "Where... where is Sasuke? Where's Shikamaru?!" Sakura cried to Kakashi desperately, already fearing the worst. Please Kami, please... let him be safe...
"We ran into more Sound-nin on our way here," Kiba informed her, trying to catch his breath, "Once Sasuke heard you guys were up against Kabuto, he told us to go while Shikamaru stayed for backup. They'll be here soon. Then we'll regroup and capture Maeno."
Kabuto choked up a mouthful of blood. It splattered down his lips and chin, and it took a moment for Sakura to realize that the odd gurgling sound emerging from the dying Sound shinobi was laughter. "You think you have it all figured out, little Konoha shinobi? You can't fathom how deep this goes. Sasuke will seek Orochimaru eventually; its only a matter of time. I will tell you a secret, though..."
"What?" they asked.
"I was Igarashi's contact... I allowed you to get into Iwate without coming across any guards... Orochimaru decided that putting Maeno Montaro into power here would be the best way to attract Konoha shinobi, since Sand and Leaf formed an alliance three years ago. And you walked right into the trap laid out for you. Orochimaru wanted Sasuke as a student... but he also planned for you all to die here... Just like I planned to die here. For my freedom... Keep Sasuke from Orochimaru at all costs..." Before they knew what the silver haired man was doing, he pressed one finger to a small button attached to a wristband on his left arm. The button beeped once, then was silent. Kabuto slumped listlessly against the stone pillar as the life fled from his body.
Kakashi let out a long, drawn out sigh into the silence. He closed his eyes briefly, deep in thought; the others knew not to disturb him.
Sakura stiffly sat down and wrapped her arms around her legs, still trying to catch her breath. She felt lucky to be alive and unscathed after facing off with Orochimaru's second in command. But Sasuke and Shikamaru were all alone... and Orochimaru wanted him. But Kabuto... what did he mean when he said he had planned to die? He allowed them to kill him? To release him from what prison? Orochimaru's control? Had Kabuto really been on their side the entire time? He had been toying with them, taunting them... and now he said to keep Sasuke safe?!
"We need to find them," Lee voiced, his face unusually grave, "If what Kabuto says is true, then Sasuke-san will not be safe with just help from Shikamaru-san."
Naruto nodded vehemently, "C'mon, bushy-brows is right! Kaka-sensei, we need to find them, now!"
"Our top priority is finding Maeno Montaro," Neji cut across, face impassive as he crossed his arms.
Sakura felt her temper flare at his indifference, even though the small, cool and collected side of her mind knew he was right. "I don't care," she growled furiously, though her voice remained even despite her anger, "Finding Sasuke is just as important to stopping Maeno and possibly finding Orochimaru. Orochimaru wants Sasuke, and won't leave without him. And Maeno will risk everything to bring Sasuke to Orochimaru. Kabuto even said that Orochimaru offers power. Well, he'll definitely get it that way."
Naruto growled and ran his hands through his hair in frustration. "Dammit," he cursed under his breath, then straightened up abruptly and pressed his finger to the communications link. "Sasuke, Shikamaru, do you read me?!"
"We don't have time to waste!" Neji shouted, "We need to get to the Western Gate!"
"Find Sasuke and you find Maeno," Kiba retorted, one hand fisted in Akamaru's long, shaggy hair, "That's the only way that we'll win."
Finally, the comm link clicked back. "We're on our way to your location," Sasuke yelled over the comm, "Are Sakura and the Hyuuga alright?"
Sakura's heart skipped a couple of beats in relief. They were alright!
"They're fine," Kakashi called back, "Hang on, Sasuke. We're heading to the Western Gate now; meet up with us halfway, we don't have time to wait."
"Understood," Shikamaru replied, and then the line cut out.
"Okay," Kakashi stated, looking each of them in the eye briefly. Sakura nodded at him when his gaze passed over her. "This is what we're going to do. Kiba and Akamaru, you're up front; since you have Maeno's scent, you can lead us right to him. Lee, you're second, followed by Neji. Sakura, you'll follow Neji, while Naruto and I will take the rear." His tone hardened, leaving no room for exceptions. "If we run into trouble, Naruto and I will stay behind and stop them. You have to catch up to Maeno, understand? We can handle it, but you four will meet up with Shikamaru and Sasuke on the way and find Maeno. He'll have bodyguards with him no doubt, so be careful and be a team player. No heroics. Got it?"
"Hai!" they chorused. Lee even saluted, much to Kiba and Naruto's amusement.
And then they were off. Sakura followed Neji just as he followed Lee and Kiba and Akamaru as they sniffed through the air for any trace of Maeno. With a loud yelp Akamaru lunged forward, obviously on his trail. The six Konoha shinobi ran as fast as they could, delving into precious chakra stores to concentrate it at the bottom of their heels to further increase their speed so they had a chance to make it to Maeno.
But just as Kabuto had promised, there was trouble waiting for them.
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Ten minutes ago Kakashi and Naruto fell back to distract the three Sound shinobi that they met in the deep labyrinths that Kiba and Akamaru led them through. Sakura raced on with Lee, Kiba and Neji towards their destination, hoping for what could be the hundredth time that day that all of her friends survived this battle.
"We're close," Kiba snarled back to them, "Maeno's scent is strong. But he's not alone!"
"I didn't expect this would be easy," Neji muttered from ahead of her darkly, causing Sakura to chuckle weakly.
"We can do it!" Lee cried in determination, aiming a overzealous punch for emphasis, "Konoha youth will prevail!"
The four nodded and turned to continue their desperate hunt. Neji, Byakugan activated, sighed in relief as he glanced behind them, "Sasuke and Shikamaru are running to us from about a mile away; we'll meet up with them in this corridor."
"Too late!" Kiba yelled, skidding to a halt, "We've got him. We found him! Quickly, mask your chakra signatures!"
Sakura felt chills run up and down her spine as she locked her chakra deep inside her body. This was it. This was what they had been fighting for. If they failed... then all of Iwate would be lost, as well as Sasuke. Kabuto had even stated that they had been lured here to their deaths. Orochimaru didn't want Sasuke's old teammates tempting him to stay in Konoha, he would destroy them if he could! Cut off all bonds, all friendship... make Sasuke alone. Then, and only then would the third Sannin's goal be completed.
"Kakashi, come in," she breathed into the microphone, "Naruto, Kakashi, we've got Maeno trapped in the next courtyard. Sasuke and Shikamaru are on their way, but we need you now."
"Okay, Sakura-chan," Naruto called back over the link, "Hang on, we're on our way. How many shinobi does Maeno have under him?"
"Neji?" she asked, and the Hyuuga nodded.
"Twelve shinobi," Neji replied after a moment, "And when you get here, twelve against six."
Lee inched closer to the doorway and peered around it. "Wait," he whispered urgently, "It looks like Maeno is falling back! He's leaving his shinobi to finish us off!"
Kiba sneered unpleasantly. "He really thinks that they will be able to?" With a bark of agreement, Akamaru sat down and waited for his master to give the command to attack.
"Kakashi!" Sakura began to call over the communications link again, "Maeno-"
But a sudden noise behind them interrupted her. There stood Kakashi and Naruto, both clearly winded as they slid into the shadows beside them. She looked them over critically, searching for any wounds that they might have acquired. Both men looked healthy though, just a little out of breath. Naruto smiled at her as he noticed her scrutiny. "I'm fine, Sakura-chan," he panted, giving her a thumbs-up.
She grinned. "Hai, hai!"
They all quieted down after that; the feel of the enemy just waiting for them in the next room was unnerving and exhilarating at the same time. Sakura itched to charge in there and have done with it, but she knew that going up against twelve shinobi would need some kind of planning. She glanced up and then smiled. Over the next courtyard, where the enemy was waiting, was a large supportive beam of stone that was just begging to be crushed into bits over their heads. And possibly Sakura could cause the entire stone roof to cave in and crush any unlucky shinobi caught in its way.
She poked Kakashi in the shoulder to get his attention, then gestured to the large beam. "I'm going to crush them," she whispered, a feral grin spreading across her lips.
"Okay," Kakashi said quietly after a few moments of silence, "Everyone ready? Hang back until the dust clears."
They all nodded their affirmative.
Carefully, Sakura jumped up and grabbed the top of the archway to haul herself up. She couldn't risk concentrating chakra to the bottom of her feet or the enemy would sense her and any chance of this bold plan working would go down the drain. Pulling her body up and into the rafters of the courtyard, Sakura glanced down; Neji was right, there were twelve. And the mean-looking shinobi carrying the scythe was from the attack in the cave! He must be the head of the twelve-man squad... or the captain of any commanders...
Not wanting to waste any more time, Sakura carefully made her way through the shadows towards the large rock holding up the framework of the courtyard. Worst come to worst, her plan would backfire and crush her in the rubble. But that would only happen if she crushed the beam from the wrong direction... so where to hit it?
Suddenly one of the shinobi ten feet underneath her sprang to his feet and whipped out his shuriken. "There's someone there!" he shouted to his comrades, peering intently in Sakura's direction.
It was now or never.
Focusing the chakra into her fist, Sakura recoiled her arm and hit the stone beam as hard as she could, letting out a bloodcurdling war cry as she did so. The stone crumbled, then shattered completely, and the stone fixated above it groaned as it shook and then fell to the ground as large boulders. Cries of pain and surprise echoed below her in the destroyed courtyard. But the enemy didn't have any more time to react, as Naruto led the way in with five clones. When the dust finally cleared, Sakura was happy to see that only nine Sound mercenaries remained. Three, it appeared, had been unable to move out of the way as the gravel crushed them to their deaths.
Sakura grinned, fixed her gloves more securely on her hands, then jumped down to join the fray. The dust hadn't cleared out of the way entirely, and the amount of it still lingering in the stale air made her eyes burn. But the unimportant pain was instantly forgotten as the telltale whoosh of shuriken sounded from behind her. Throwing herself to the ground, Sakura looked up; the shuriken had missed her by inches, but the shinobi who had spotted her earlier advanced quickly, a katana already in his hand.
Ducking under the shinobi's first swing, Sakura pulled back her arm and hit him hard in the stomach with as much chakra she could put into her kunai. She sighed in relief as the man fell to the ground, clutching a mortal wound in his abdomen made from her kunai. "That was too easy," she grinned to herself. Looking up briefly at the flare of two new chakra signatures, Sakura smiled: Sasuke and Shikamaru were here!
"Sakura! No!"
The shrill, inhuman snarl of Sasuke's yell caused Sakura's heart to stop. She hesitated in her attack combination with the enemy shinobi just long enough for another shinobi to fling her back against the ground with a chakra-enhanced kick that connected with a sickening crack. Sakura felt her ribs snap in the impact, and with a guttural cry of pain, slammed against a very solid, unmoving mass of brick wall. She was unable to do anything more than scream her agony and settle in a mass of tangled, aching limbs.
Then Shikamaru's hands were on her, grasping her close as Sasuke cornered Maeno's bodyguard. The world spun around her, and the sudden yank of gravity against the lazy genius' hands caused her to groan in pain. She couldn't be out of the fight, they needed her! But her chakra was too low to heal herself enough to fight right now. She was out of commission, though if she admitted it to herself, the pain was too intense to even concentrate on healing herself if she had the chakra to use.
She could feel Shikamaru stay close to her side as she lay, immobile and quiet, on the ground, fighting off unconsciousness and trying to conserve her energy. It was a battle in itself to keep her eyes open and focused on the Nara genius as he fought in front of her. For them. For her...
Her right arm slowly inched down to the pouch on her leg. Slipping a hand inside, she gingerly searched for the small bottle, and when she found it, withdrew her arm with a cry of pain. Sakura tipped off the lid, took out one of her last soldier pills and swallowed it, waiting with bated breath for her energy to return.
"No one will have to save me," she muttered furiously as she recovered her strength and her chakra levels blossomed. With deft hands, she set her broken ribs easily and then stood, binding her chest tightly only seconds later despite the searing pain. "I will not be a burden!"
Shikamaru grinned at her. "Kami, Sakura, calm down, you'll scare Maeno away."
But Sakura was not in the mood for teasing. She wanted his blood for what he had done. She never took pleasure in killing, but she would not miss that bastard! And she wanted to be the one who brought him down! For putting both the people of Iwate and her friends in danger, she would take her revenge from him. But where was the bloody coward?
A large chakra signature suddenly blossomed into being, and despite her outward confidence, inside she was slightly wary. Though by no means as large or powerful as Kabuto's had been, this one was chillingly cold. The fighting ceased as the signature grew, both her teammates and the Sound Hunter-nin looking around for its source, temporarily forgetting about fighting one another. With this pause, Sakura took a moment to gaze around; the seven Konoha shinobi all appeared healthy and able-bodied. The most injuries were carried by Naruto, but they were only superficial cuts all over his body. Besides, looking closely, the flesh already seemed to be knitting back together, courtesy of the Kyuubi. Kakashi-sensei ran a close second; his mask was hanging on by a mere thread, and though Sakura wished to gloat that she had seen his face, she knew now wasn't the time. Lee and Kiba appeared to be in tip top shape; she couldn't see any cuts on them at all. Neji sported a large cut on his forearm that bled profusely, but it didn't seem to be paining him as he flexed it this way and that.
Shikamaru and Sasuke, new to the battle, were more than ready to go. While the enemy nin hesitated, they swept in, swift and efficient killing machines. Within seconds, three of the Sound-nin fell and died instantly. The remaining shinobi gave a cry of fury and attacked once more, but a quick Kage Bunshin no Jutsu from Naruto effectively occupied them. Minutes later, all of Maeno Montaro's bodyguards were dead.
Echoing footsteps drew their attention. From the darkness of the corridor came the silhouette of a large man, walking slowly towards them. He was about six feet tall with dark blond hair pulled back in a severe top knot. A small mustache on his upper lip accentuated the hard, ugly angles of his face, and judging from the wrinkles framing his eyes and aristocratic mouth, he was in his early forties. Maeno Montaro.
"Well well," he said in a deep, scratchy voice, "What do we have here?" His icy blue eyes landed on Sasuke and immediately drew in the Uchiha Clan symbol. "Ahh, Sasuke. I'm glad you're here; saves me the trouble of hunting you down. I guess Kabuto failed. The stupid whelp."
Sasuke laughed. "And here you assume I'll go with you without a fuss. That I actually want to join Orochimaru."
Maeno's smile was frightening as he took out two large swords. "We'll see." More shadows came from the darkness following Maeno; there were five left. Six against eight. Sakura let out a low breath. The odds were on their side, but due to Maeno's large chakra reserve, he would be much harder to beat than Kabuto, but then again, Kabuto hadn't even really tried. He wanted to die here... and he would have been killed anyway if Orochimaru had found out he allowed them into the city undetected. Suddenly Sakura felt a sickening feeling in her stomach; Kabuto had been playing devil's advocate. He took neither side and both sides at the same time. He had helped them...
Kakashi turned to look at them over his shoulder. "Stay back," he commanded, "I'll handle Maeno. You take his sidekicks."
Sakura watched feverishly as Kakashi raised his forehead protector from over his Sharingan. For a few moments, nothing happened. Only when they didn't move for an entire minute did she realize that Maeno must be caught in a genjutsu. But just as Sakura realized it, the five shinobi fanned out behind Maeno realized it. They rushed forward together to Kakashi and were just about to strike when Shikamaru, Kiba and Akamaru leapt into the fray. Two of the nin's were caught in Shikamaru's Shadow Bind Jutsu, completely unable to move. Kiba quickly killed them and turned to the remaining three with Akamaru at his side. The oversized canine ducked under a shower of kunai and jumped on one, killing him instantly with a well-placed bite to the jugular.
The shinobi with the scythe was taken out by an enraged Naruto and his clone. The clone threw the bodyguard into the wall, crushing his body; the shinobi lay unconscious as blood flowed out of his body and pooled underneath him. Naruto killed him mercifully, ending the pain. The unfortunate remaining shinobi was caught in Sasuke's fire jutsu and slowly burned to death. His cries and screams of pain were horrible.
Maeno laughed wheezily as he plunged one of his swords into his leg to finally release Kakashi's genjutsu. "You think that would keep me under?"
His icy eyes widened as Kakashi leapt into action. With two hits, the swords had fallen to the ground. With two more swipes, Maeno was bleeding precariously from his abdomen and thigh. "And the bingo books labeled you as dangerous," Kakashi taunted cooly, raising his kunai to finally kill Maeno.
"Orochimaru-sama commanded that I take his precious little Sasuke-kun to him, forcefully," Maeno said hurriedly, obviously trying to buy time, "I was to invade Iwate, wait for Konoha to send their precious little Team 7 to take me out, then alert Orochimaru when the brat was taken by Kabuto. I guess that bastard failed on purpose. It doesn't matter now... now it's my turn. Orochimaru wants the last Uchiha as his young protege, to teach him all he knows. And I'll be the one rewarded for delivering him."
Sasuke snarled. "I want nothing to do with him!"
"Then you are a fool, Uchiha Sasuke. A fool."
Almost too fast for Sakura to see, Sasuke threw his shuriken. Before Maeno knew it, a three-foot blade buried itself deep inside his chest.
Sakura watched triumphantly as Maeno Montaro fell to the floor, though she didn't whoop for joy like Naruto did or sigh in relief like Sasuke did. Like Neji, she merely watched, silent and grave. Kakashi heaved a sigh and turned the body over, kneeling down beside the corpse to check its pulse. "Dead," he pronounced, straightening up and stepping away from Maeno with a scowl visible on his face even under his mask.
Her joy, however, was short lived. Mere moments after Maeno fell, dead, Shikamaru lost his footing and stumbled to his knees, a curious dark red stain coloring his back. "Shikamaru!" Sakura cried, momentarily forgetting her exhaustion as her body raced over towards her friend before she was aware she was moving, "Shikamaru, hang on!" Her hands were already wet with blood; the wound was deep. "Oh Kami!"
The Nara genius was already unconscious.
"Shikamaru!"
-
-I've found the perfect theme song for this story: 'No Estaba Acostumbrado' by Don Tetto. It's not Japanese, but it sounds like one of the Naruto openings. And besides, I love it (even though I don't know what it means D:) You can find it on Youtube!
-I drew a picture for the last chapter: you can find it at my deviant art account posted below: This is the scene where Sasuke bids Sakura farewell...-insert dramatic sigh-
jackielupin./art/Be-Safe-95385000
-Also, I don't know if Kabuto's Chakra Absorption Jutsu causes temporary paralysis. For this story's purposes, it does. :D
-The next chapter, if all goes according to plan, will be the last, but there WILL be an epilogue, so I guess that means there are 2 chapters left until the end. Exciting, isn't it?
Love, Jackie