Things don't make sense anymore, do they? I mean, a few years ago I would've never even thought about any of the things I do now. Boys, for instance. I didn't have time to think about them much less care about any relationships after that day…I promised myself I would fulfill my promise and die satisfied.
My promise…why did he choose Konoha of all places? Konoha, where Kakashi-sensei, Sasuke, and…and Naruto live. You're so cruel. I can't believe I was stupid enough to actually come to Konoha and agree to have my Chakra sealed. I've become such a weak ninja here. Before I felt that I was invincible and now all these hidden weaknesses are surfacing. Before I could fight anyone, man or beast, and win. Now I can't even defend myself from stupid, manipulative bastards…
I trained…yes I nearly killed myself for your sake. Is that not enough? Perfecting every aspect of my technique was not good enough? Why is it so hard to even become a ninja now? And now I've changed so much…all my training couldn't have prepared me for any of the challenges I'm facing now. I thought it would be easy. Just go to the village and pass the stupid test. But what's with these "circumstances" that just fell into place ever since I came to Konoha. Is this what you meant by my growth…as a human being? Well, just to tell you, it sucks.
At first light, Sora gently got up after a long restless night of trying to fall asleep and failing miserably. All through the night, she could hear Naruto's complacent breathing as he slept soundly without a care in the world and it made her jealous. She made sure that Naruto was still asleep as she slipped out of his embrace and silently walked to the bathroom to wash up. The freezing cold water made her feel somewhat more alive. She looked in the mirror.
You look horrible… Sora sighed and looked away. Her eyes were a little bloodshot from the lack of sleep. The bruises on her neck were still as dark as ever making Sora automatically buttoned her collar up to its highest so that they would be covered.
She stepped out of the bathroom and found that both of the guys were still asleep. She looked from one to the other and frowned. Thoughts about everything that had happened ever since they had started this little escapade filled her mind. Somehow everything had gone wrong.
Ok, enough being depressed, she thought to herself as she forced a smile on her face even though no one was looking. Now for breakfast. She left a note on the hotel provided notepad saying that she had gone out for food and that she would be back soon. Then she quietly took a key to the room and went out. Sora knew that a small breakfast was also included with their stay so she set out to find the eating area.
It didn't take long to find since Sora could smell the food wafting through the air. Her senses had improved drastically from the Taijutsu training with Kakashi so she could follow the trail easily. She gathered some fruits, breads, and other breakfast items then went straight back to her room. Upon opening the door, she saw that Jiraiya's bed was empty but Naruto was still sleeping ever so peacefully.
Sora sighed and put all the food down on the table. Then she went over to the bed and gently shook Naruto. "Hey, Naruto," she said softly.
Naruto turned around so that his back was facing her and mumbled something incoherently.
"What?" Sora asked.
More mumbling.
Sora sighed and tapped him again. "Come on. If you're gonna win your bet then you've got to get up," she said hoping that maybe the mention of the bet would stir him. But it didn't. Sora stood up straight and crossed her arms. "Naruto, if you don't get up right now, I'll-"
Naruto shot his arm up and grabbed Sora's arm cutting her off. "It was so cold when you left," he mumbled with his eyes still shut.
"Naruto, let g-AH!" Naruto pulled Sora forward so that she was now on top of him. "Naruto!"
Naruto hugged her as if she was a teddy bear. He nuzzled her cheek.
Sora's face flared up as she struggled to get free. Naruto's eyes were still shut. "Are you even awake?" she asked exasperated as she tried to get up, but Naruto's arms held her in place. Then she tried rolling off but that only made Naruto roll with her so that now he was on top. "Naruto! Baka!" Sora almost yelled.
Naruto's eyes shot open. "Huh?" he asked dumbly. He sat up freeing Sora who quickly got off the bed. "What happened?"
Was he…still… Sora thought as she stared at him. "Were you asleep?"
Naruto yawned. "Was I asleep when?" he asked thoroughly confused.
Sora put a hand over her eyes so she could rub her temples. New surprises every day, she thought sarcastically. "Never mind," she said as she proceeded to the table.
Naruto was about to say something when the door to the bathroom flung open. Jiraiya walked out looking surprisingly happy as opposed to a hangover. "Good morning, subordinates," he said as he walked over to the table where all the food was. "Ah, yes, nice wholesome, healthy foods for the morning," he said as he took an apple. "It's been a while, my friend." He was talking to the apple.
Sora sweat-dropped. "Uh, Sensei," she said.
"Hm?" Jiraiya answered with apple in his mouth.
She was about to ask him why he was talking to an apple but she decided against it. "Uh, what're you planning on doing today?"
Jiraiya raised an eyebrow indicating for her to explain.
"I mean, we found Tsunade-sama and the convincing thing last night didn't seem to go too well. How are we going to talk her into it?" she asked instead.
"Hm," Jiraiya said thoughtfully as he swallowed. "Well, I think the best way to convince her is to give her a little space right now."
"Are you sure?" Sora asked. "I mean, maybe if you'd-"
"My decision is final," Jiraiya interrupted. "Besides, if she saw me too much, she would most definitely say no to our offer." He chuckled as he took another bite of the apple.
Is he serious? Sora thought. If we leave her alone, then she might go and help Orochimaru to do whatever he asked her to do…or she might skip town! He's not thinking! She was about to protest when Naruto interrupted.
"In that case, this week will be totally dedicated to training!" He made a fist. "I won't lose this bet!" With that he ran into the bathroom and started washing up as quickly as he could.
Jiraiya sighed. She sees something in that kid, he thought. Her brother maybe. If Naruto can win this bet, then it might convince her.
If Naruto's going to be busy with training all week and Jiraiya's not going to keep after Tsunade, I've got to make sure she stays here until the end of the week at least, Sora thought.
Naruto was done washing and he ran over to the table and began stuffing himself with food.
Sora snapped out of her thoughts when she heard extremely loud gulping and snarfing sounds. "Naruto!" she said sharply. "Eat more slowly!"
But Naruto was already done. "Haha," he said as he wiped his mouth with his sleeve. "I'm going to win this one for sure."
"All right," Jiraiya said happily as he threw away the apple core. "In that case, I'll be around the town. Naruto, you might want to go to the outskirts to train and Sora, you can go with him if you want to but if you don't just stay within the city, ok?"
Both Genins nodded their heads. "Then I'll be going now," Naruto said. "You wanna come, Sora?"
"Uh, I think I'll check out the rest of the city before I come. Maybe later," Sora said.
Naruto nodded and ran towards the door. "I'll be on the west side, ok?" he called back to Sora as he disappeared from sight.
"Well, then I'll be going, too. Seriously though, Sora," Jiraiya said and looked her straight in the eye. "Don't go out of this city. If you venture out, I can't guarantee your safety."
Sora nodded obediently.
"Good, so I'll see you later," Jiraiya said as he headed out the door along with his many scrolls and bags.
Sora waited until she saw Jiraiya walk down the street through her window. Then she quickly went out and locked the door of the room behind her. Once she was standing in the street, she tried to calm her thoughts. Ok, I just have to remember where her hotel was, Sora thought. She tried to think back to yesterday's events and it slowly came back to her. She went into an ally and leaped up on the roof tops again to avoid any unwanted attention and she sped her way towards Tsunade's hotel.
When she got to the building, she saw Shizune running out looking pretty frantic. Sora leaped down from the short building she was on. "Shizune-san!" she called out before Shizune took off.
Shizune stopped and turned around. "Sora!" she said in shock. "Where did you-"
"Is something wrong?" Sora asked quickly before Shizune could finish her question.
"Uh, no, no, nothing's wrong, it's just…" Shizune trailed off. No, I need her help to convince Tsunade-sama, she thought. "I can't find Tsunade-sama anywhere and I'm afraid," pause, "that she might have gone to him."
Sora's eyes widened. She couldn't have made up her mind that quickly! Sora thought. "Then we-we need to stop her!" Sora said.
"But I don't know where to look," Shizune said. "She could be anywhere!"
"All right, then. We'll split up and then, uh, meet back here at noon," Sora said.
"Right," Shizune said. The two sprinted off in opposite directions in the search for Tsunade.
Sora ran up and down the streets glancing into every shop, every market, every restaurant that had windows. She skipped over looking into bars and gambling huts but she marked in her mind where they were so that when she met up with Shizune again they could go in together instead of just her alone.
After hours of searching and finding nothing, noon arrived. Sora went back to where she and Shizune had parted ways hoping that Shizune had had better luck. When she arrived, Shizune was already there waiting for her.
"Did you find anything?" she asked.
Sora shook her head. "No, but I didn't exactly check out the bars or casinos or anything."
Shizune nodded in understanding. "I didn't either. I've never felt comfortable in those kinds of places," she said sitting down on a bench. She leaned forward putting her chin on her hands. "I should have never let her out of my sight."
Sora sat next to her and sighed. "This could be troublesome," she accidentally said out loud.
Shizune nodded. "Understand though, she has a lot to think about."
"Oh, uh, of course," Sora said a little surprised to realize that she had said "troublesome" out loud. "Sorry, I didn't mean for it to come out that way."
"It's all right," Shizune said. "Tsunade-sama wasn't always like this, you know. She only started her bad habit of gambling and drinking after she left Konoha. Before that though, she was kind and always concerned for the welfare of others."
Sora nodded. "Shizune-san?" she asked.
"Yes?"
"Can I ask you something about Tsunade-sama?"
Shizune paused but then nodded her head.
"Why did she leave Konoha in the first place?"
Another pause. "I thought you might ask that," Shizune said and gave a sigh. She should know, she thought. "You probably know that Tsunade-sama, Jiraiya-sama, and Orochimaru made up the Legendary Sannin trio back when they were all still Konoha ninjas." Sora nodded. "All three of them had amazing abilities and were greatly admired by all. Tsunade-sama for her Chakra control and healing powers, Jiraiya-sama for his strength and courage, and Orochimaru for his techniques and strategies. Tsunade-sama had a younger brother, Nawaki. He…" Shizune trailed off with her eyes slightly wet.
Sora didn't want to push her to continue. She put a comforting hand on Shizune's shoulder but kept silent.
Then Shizune got a hold of herself. "Tsunade-sama's had such a hard life, you've got to understand!" she said in a rush.
"Of course," Sora said nodding her head.
"Nawaki was Tsunade-sama's younger brother. He…he would be around my age now but he died when he was young," Shizune said looking down. "Tsunade's parents had also died early in her life so she was left to care for Nawaki by herself. They were incredibly close, even for siblings."
Sora could tell that Shizune had known him before his death since she had been fighting back tears ever since she mentioned Nawaki. "I'm sorry," she said gently. "I didn't know-"
"But that wasn't the end, for Tsunade-sama," Shizune cut in wanting for Sora to know that it would have taken more than Tsunade's brother's death for her to have abandoned Konoha. "Tsunade-sama had a…boyfriend, I guess you could call him, Dan. After Tsunade's brother died in a raid of the village, she wanted to have a Medic-nin on every team to increase survival rate. At first no one saw the importance of this but Dan supported her. I guess it went from there and they fell in love. Soon the Third accepted her idea and it so happened that she and Dan were placed on the same team. But during one of the battles in the Great War, Dan was fatally wounded and Tsunade-sama couldn't get to him in time to stop his death. She became crazed with guilt and loneliness that she couldn't focus anymore and she suddenly became a hemophiliac and was unable to deal with healing others even though she was the top Medic-nin in the country. Then one day, she decided to leave and never come back."
Questions began exploding in Sora's head when Shizune stopped. "But why did you go along with her?" she asked.
Shizune looked up at Sora. "I was close to Nawaki when we were kids and that's how I got to know Tsunade-sama. Ever since his death, all I ever dreamed of doing was following in Tsunade-sama's footsteps and become a Medic-nin so that I could help prevent more deaths like Nawaki's from happening. Once I passed my Chuunin exam, I immediately applied for apprenticeship under Tsunade-sama and got it. This was during the time when the climax of the Great War was going on so Tsunade-sama worked me hard. I practically lived with her, so I guess we became close. After Dan's death, I had to do a lot of her work for her in healing people because she had become so scared of blood. Then I really lived with her because she was also getting sick from not taking care of herself. Ever since then, we became more like a family so when she left, I left."
"Oh," Sora said thinking through everything that had been told her.
"In all my years of being with Tsunade-sama, I've never seen her make a bet with her necklace, though," Shizune sighed. "I thought she was joking yesterday but she wouldn't joke with something like that."
"Necklace?" Sora asked. Then she remembered. "Oh, the one she bet with Naruto?"
Shizune nodded. "That necklace was given to her by her grandfather, the First. She wouldn't just throw it away on a frivolous bet. She must see her brother and Dan in Naruto or something."
"Really?"
Shizune nodded. "He said that he wanted to become the Hokage," she said. "So did Nawaki and Dan. They both wanted to protect the village as Hokage one day just like Naruto. She had given her necklace to Nawaki when he had said that he wanted to become Hokage, and then to Dan when she found out that it was his dream to become Hokage. To Tsunade-sama, that necklace symbolizes her heart. She gave it to Nawaki and Dan meaning that she truly loved and supported them. It's not something to be taken lightly."
I guess that Tsunade feels that her heart has been rejected by the world since the two people she loved most, the two people she gave her heart to died without fulfilling their dreams to become Hokage, Sora thought. I understand now why she doesn't want to go back to Konoha. Any reminder of Nawaki or Dan would probably rip the last of her heart in two. "I see now," Sora said quietly. She looked up into the afternoon sky. "She lost almost everyone she's ever loved." Thoughts of her village formed in her mind and how she had been too scared to do anything at the time. Too scared to bury the bodies or try to pay the right respects for her village. She had just left it in shameful ruins because she was too absorbed in her guilt and anger. But I will go back once I'm able to, Sora thought clenching her fist on her lap. I swore that I would put right what I left wrong. "But you've got to realize, Shizune-san," Sora started.
Shizune nodded knowing what she was going to say. "I know," she said. "I want her to go back to Konoha as much as you do, but I'm afraid Orochimaru's offer might have twisted her mind."
"What did he offer?"
"If Tsunade-sama would heal his arms, then he said he could bring Nawaki and Dan back to life."
"What? That's impossible! No one can bring a dead soul back to life," Sora said shocked.
"I know," Shizune said. "I don't know why Tsunade would believe him, but he claimed that he had finally found a way to do it."
Sora stood up suddenly. "Then we can't stop looking until we find her!" she said with new determination. "If she heals Orochimaru…Konoha can't stand against another full assault!"
Shizune nodded and got up as well. Then the two were off to search the city bars and casinos.
They searched up until the sun set and the streets became empty. They were both exhausted but they had still found no Tsunade. Finally they both agreed that they should head back to the hotel and have a short break. Afterwards, they would search all through the night if necessary. Upon arriving at Shizune's and Tsunade's room, Tonton didn't run up to them as Shizune expected. Instead it was pretty quiet.
"What? That's not like Tonton," Shizune whispered. The two cautiously entered the room ready for anything that might pop out but then they saw-
"TSUNADE-SAMA!" they both shouted at the same time.
Tsunade, who had been asleep in a chair with her head on the desk in front of her, woke with a start as did Tonton who was sleeping on her lap. "Wha-huh?" she asked as her eyes shot open. Tonton squealed with surprise and fell/jumped off of Tsunade's lap.
Shizune ran towards Tsunade and almost cried out of happiness as she took her hand. "Tsunade-sama, you had us so worried when you had gone…I mean, uh…" Shizune let go of Tsunade's hand and stood straight. "Where were you?" she demanded.
Tsunade yawned and stretched before she spoke. "I was here ever since a few hours ago wondering where you had gone off to," she said.
Shizune's eyes went round and she looked like she was about to faint when Sora spoke. "Tsunade-sama, we've been looking for you for the entire day!" she said. "Shizune-san said that you had gone out before she woke up."
"I just went to get some time for myself is all," Tsunade said carelessly as she stood up. "I hope that's not a problem with you," she added sarcastically.
Sora knew that she was addressing one of the most powerful ninjas in the world right then so she held her tongue. How did Shizune-san stay so dedicated to Tsunade-sama if she acts like this all the time? she thought.
Tsunade gave a small smirk of triumph when Sora didn't respond. "It's already very late," she said glancing at the clock. "I think I'll go to bed, and don't worry," she said quickly when she saw that Shizune was about to speak. "I won't sneak out or anything. Really, Shizune. I am older than you are, remember?"
Shizune stayed silent but Sora could see that she was just thankful that Tsunade hadn't gone to Orochimaru.
"Good night," Tsunade said with a careless wave as she disappeared into the bedroom.
Sora and Shizune stood in silence for a while. Then Shizune slumped down on the chair Tsunade had been sitting in. She gave a huge sigh. "Sora, if you want, you can stay here tonight," Shizune said signaling for Sora to sit down.
"Thanks, that would be great," Sora replied and sat down. If I can just stay with them the rest of the week, I'll be able to keep a closer watch on Tsunade, she thought.
Shizune was thinking the same thing. "Sora," she said quietly.
"Hm?"
"I was thinking, maybe, if you want that is, you could stay the rest of the week until Naruto's bet is done. I mean, two pairs of eyes are better than one," she whispered.
"Of course!" Sora whispered back.
"Oh, good," Shizune said and leaned back in the chair. "We'll just tell Jiraiya-sama and Naruto tomorrow." The two were utterly worn out from their frenzied day of searching. They somehow managed to eat a bit and wash up and soon they went to bed.
The days passed by slowly for everyone but Shizune and Sora as they were constantly on their toes looking for or following Tsunade around making sure she wasn't going to skip town or worse, go to Orochimaru. Sora had told Jiraiya the second day that she was staying with Shizune and Tsunade and he seemed ok with it. He had also mentioned to Sora that Naruto hadn't come back from training the night before. Sora wasn't particularly worried since it was only one night and Naruto had stayed out before.
Every day Sora would check with Jiraiya to see if Naruto had come back yet but every day Jiraiya would reply in the negative. Soon she became worried and started searching for Naruto any chance she got apart from watching Tsunade but never found him.
Finally it was the day before the end of the week of the bet and Naruto was still nowhere to be seen. Sora finally asked Shizune if she could spend that day just looking for Naruto, and Shizune, also worried about Naruto agreed.
Sora raced towards the west side of the city to the outskirts where Naruto had said he would be training. When she was out of the city, she found herself in a grassless plain area with numerous small trees that looked like they had been twisted on purpose. "What happened here?" Sora asked herself out loud as she inspected the tree. She saw that not only were the trees twisted, they were all twisted in the same way: a counterclockwise swirl pattern. Then it hit her. He was using the trees as practice for the Rasengan, she thought as she pictured the attack in her mind. The Rasengan was an attack that made the user focus his Chakra into the palm of his hand but in a swirling circular motion so that when it hit its target, it would twist through the skin and attack the internal structures while sending the recipient off in a spinning motion.
Sora followed the trail of twisted trees and broken rocks. She saw that with every new area she moved to, the stronger the Rasengan attack had become. Did he actually do it? she thought as she saw that a very large tree showed the twisted pattern on it. I can't believe he could get this strong in just a few days! She began to pick up her pace as she saw that the attacks were getting more and more powerful and finally she saw a small lake. The morning mist was still covering it and the area surrounding it but Sora could make out a small lump on the ground. Naruto! she thought fearfully. She sprinted towards him as fast as she could.
"Naruto," she said as she knelt down beside his slumbering figure. He was lying on his side. She gently lowered his body so that he was now lying on his back. She gasped at what she saw. His hands were beaten and bloody from overuse and he had gotten much thinner from undernourishment but he still looked somewhat healthy. His clothes were extremely dirty and had occasional smears of blood among the dirt stains.
Sora lifted his arm around her shoulder and stood up. He was a little lighter than before since he hadn't eaten much so she was able to move more quickly. She sprinted with her load towards the city.
She went straight to the hotel she had been staying at knowing that Shizune and Tsunade weren't back from wherever they were yet. She entered the room and quickly put Naruto on the bed. Tonton was out as well with the two women so it was quiet except for the sound of Sora rushing around the room looking for medical supplies. She quickly took Naruto's jacket, shirt, and pants off but left his boxers on out of courtesy and threw them in the sink to wash later. Then she brought a basin of warm water and plenty of towels and bandages and sat down next to the bed. After hours of washing, Naruto was finally a little cleaner, his hands and cuts were wrapped, and his clothes were washed.
Sora slumped down on the bed next to Naruto's and breathed a sigh of relief. "Well, that's done," she said trying to cheer herself up. She looked over at Naruto who was still sleeping peacefully just as he had done through the entire process of his cleaning and bandaging. He can sleep through anything, she thought as a smile crept across her face. Then the door opened. Sora reluctantly got up to see who it was. Both women had arrived.
"You two haven't let me go anywhere by myself this week," Tsunade said obviously annoyed.
"But it's for your own good!" Shizune insisted as she closed the door.
"Hm," Tsunade grunted as she let Tonton down on the ground. The pig squealed with delight and ran towards Sora.
Sora bent down to pat him on the head. "Hello there," she said sweetly to the animal.
"Sora-chan, did you find Naruto yet?" Shizune asked.
Sora got back up with a smile on her face. "I did," she said. Then she turned towards Tsunade. "Actually I was going to ask you, Tsunade-sama, if you could see him," she said very meekly. She and Tsunade had gotten along better as the week went by but Sora was still very cautious when speaking with her.
"He's here?" Tsunade asked.
Sora nodded. "He's on the bed," she said pointing back into the bedroom. "I washed his cuts and wrapped them already but he looks like he really needs some professional help."
Tsunade sighed. "Fine then," she said. Over the week, Tsunade had done a lot of thinking about Naruto. The others were right when they said that she saw her brother and Dan in this young Genin and she felt that he might actually have what it takes to master or at least drastically improve the Rasengan in that short week.
Sora led Tsunade over to the sleeping Naruto. Tsunade looked him over and then pulled back the bed sheets so that she could check for any bodily injuries. She put her hands on his chest and let her Chakra seep through his body healing all the minor injuries and ameliorating the worse ones. After a few minutes, she covered him again and turned to Sora. "He's fine, but he might not be able to wake up until the day after tomorrow," she said.
What? Sora thought. After all his hard work this week, he won't be able to win the bet? "But-"
"I'm going to go for a drink," Tsunade announced as she swept passed a stunned Sora.
"But Tsunade-sama!" Shizune protested.
"I'm tired, Shizune," Tsunade said. "I need to clear my mind. You can come or you can stay, but I'm going." Tsunade made her way to the door.
Shizune quickly followed. "Uh, Sora-chan, just stay here with Naruto. We'll be back soon," she said.
Sora nodded and the two women left. Tonton whined at Sora's feet when he saw that something was bothering her. Sora took in a deep breath. "Sorry, Tonton," she said as she kneeled down to pet him. "I just…I just can't believe that Naruto would lose the bet after all he did."
Tonton blinked up at Sora.
"But I can't believe he could actually do it! I saw the trees, and how much he improved, and…I just can't believe it!" Sora said smiling. "If only Tsunade-sama could see that. I'm sure she would see that her brother, Dan, everyone else who wants to become Hokage…their determination and dreams live on in people like Naruto." Sora stood up laughing a bit and then turned towards the bedroom door to where her teammate was still sleeping peacefully, but then she looked down at Tonton again. "He really is amazing, Tonton."
Tonton nodded his head in agreement and grunted with satisfaction. Then Sora went in to watch over Naruto.
The next morning, Sora woke up to find that she had fallen asleep while sitting next to Naruto's bed but when she looked up to find Naruto, he wasn't there. Her eyes shot open in fear. "What?" she almost screamed. She jumped out of her chair and went racing towards the door that connected the bedroom to the main room when-
"Wait, Sora-chan!"
Sora nearly tumbled over from stopping so suddenly. She whipped herself around and saw Naruto struggling to get his shirt on. "Naruto!" she cried. She ran over to him and flung her arms around him, but since Naruto's arms were still caught in his shirt, he couldn't stop them from tumbling back on the bed.
"AH, Sora-chan!" he said in surprise. Finally he forced his hands through his sleeves. Then he wrapped his arms around Sora's trembling frame. "Sora-"
"Naruto, I was so worried," Sora interrupted as she moved her hands up to cup his face. "I found you in that field and you looked so, oh god, I don't want to think about it." She leaned her head down on his shoulder so that he couldn't see the tears forming in her eyes.
Naruto pushed them up so that they were in a sitting position. He lifted Sora up so that she was sitting on his lap sideways so that he could lean his head on hers. "I'm sorry to have worried you," he said softly. He kissed her forehead.
Sora closed her eyes for a moment but then realized what position they were in. She quickly got up.
"Sora?"
"Uh, sorry, Naruto-kun," she said turning away and wiping her eyes.
Naruto got up and was about to embrace her from behind when she suddenly turned around.
"But, do you know what day it is?" she asked loudly surprising Naruto.
"Uh-"
"It's the final day of your bet!" she said excitedly. "That means you can win this, Naruto, and convince her to come back to Konoha with us! Tsunade-sama said that you wouldn't be able to wake up until tomorrow!"
"Wha-oh yeah!" he said turning back towards the closet to get his jacket. "Yeah, I thought that I had slept through the bet so I was going off to find the perverted hermit to look for Tsunade. I didn't want to wake you up just yet though, you looked so tired."
Then it struck Sora. Wait, where are Tsunade and Shizune? she thought. Did they come back last night? Without saying anything she ran out of the bedroom to see if either of the two women were there.
"Huh-wha-wait! Sora-chan!" Naruto called and ran out of the bedroom after her while zipping up his jacket.
Sora frantically looked around the room and saw that Shizune was asleep on the couch. Oh, good. She looked more closely. No wait… She went over to Shizune and shook her gently. "Shizune-san! Shizune-san!" Sora called but she wouldn't wake up.
"What happened to her?" Naruto asked coming up behind her.
"I…I don't know," Sora said becoming worried. "Shizune-san!" She tried shaking her again.
"Wait! I've got it!" Naruto said and he ran to the kitchen.
Sora was too worried to notice where Naruto had gone. "Come on," she said. "Oh, no…what happened to her?"
"Here!" Naruto said and handed Sora a cup of cold water.
"Huh?"
"Dump it on her!"
"What?"
Naruto grunted. "Just, here," he said and took the cup back.
"Wha-wait!" Sora tried to stop him but it was too late.
The water came splashing down onto Shizune's face. "AHHH!" Shizune shouted as she shot up.
"Naruto!" Sora yelled.
"Hey, it worked!" Naruto said smiling at the cup.
Shizune got off the couch and reached for a towel but found none. "What…what just happened?"
"Sorry about this, Shizune-san, but Naruto just poured water on you to wake you up," Sora said with an embarrassed flush on her face as she went to get a towel for her.
"Well, you see, we were in a big hurry and you wouldn't wake up so the fastest way to wake someone up is to splash them with cold water," Naruto explained. It worked on Jiraiya-sensei so it should work on anyone.
Shizune then snapped back to reality. "Wait! Tsunade-sama! She-Sora!" she called frantically.
Sora came running up to her with the towel. "What is it, Shizune-san?" she asked worriedly.
Shizune wiped herself off. "Tsunade-sama-she…Last night…we were talking about her offer and, and I told her that if she tried to go to Orochimaru I would stop her at all costs, then she knocked me out. I guess she brought me up here then, but Sora, I'm sure she's going to Orochimaru right now!"
"WHAT?" Naruto yelled. "She can't do that! I haven't won my bet yet!"
Shizune then realized that Naruto was there. "Naruto!" she gasped.
"We've got to go right now then," Sora said. "Do you know where she'll meet him?"
Shizune nodded. "At the ruins."
With that the three took off running towards the ruins. They arrived in a matter of minutes and saw that nothing was there except a big mess of rocks. "What happened here?" Naruto asked.
Shizune breathed a sigh of relief. "There was a battle here," she said. "That must mean that she didn't take Orochimaru's offer!" She leaped off to follow the path of destruction which would lead to Tsunade.
Sora gave a short sigh of relief as well and leaped after Shizune.
Naruto followed suit. "Sora!" he called to her as they ran after Shizune.
"Yes?"
"What just happened here?"
"Naruto," Sora said smiling slightly at his naivety. "Since there was a fight, that most likely means that Tsunade was planning on not helping Orochimaru after all and wanted to probably trick him into thinking she did so she could kill him. But I guess it didn't all go as planned, but at least she didn't help him, right?"
"Oh," Naruto said. "I see."
The two Genins finally saw an open field of green grass scattered with large boulders. They could hear and, in Naruto's case, feel the battle ahead. "There they are!" Sora said as she picked up her speed.
Naruto followed and once they arrived, they hid behind a boulder to see what was going on. Tsunade was punching through rocks and making holes in the ground with her incredible strength while trying to get at someone who was dodging at an insane speed. When the dust settled, Naruto could finally make out who was dodging. "Kabuto-san?" he asked in amazement. What's Kabuto-san doing here? he thought.
Sora saw Kabuto as well. What? He's with Orochimaru? she thought. I can't believe it. She glanced around the area to look for Orochimaru and she found him. He was watching the battle with a wicked look of pleasure on his face but his arms hung lifelessly at his sides. Sora narrowed her eyes at Orochimaru and started planning a surprise attack when Naruto touched her arm.
"That old lady's in trouble," he whispered. "I'm going in."
"What? No," Sora said and grabbed his arm. "We can't just jump right in. We have the advantage since they don't know that we're here yet. We've got to plan this out or we'll lose."
"What does it matter if I can just pound them both into powder?" Naruto said clenching his fist.
"Naruto," Sora said patiently, "Orochimaru is a Sannin and Kabuto is probably his most trusted follower since he's the only one traveling around with Orochimaru. They're more powerful than anyone we've ever faced before."
"But-" Naruto was cut of by an extremely loud clash of metal that caught the two's attentions. Both peeked around the boulder they were hiding behind to see that Jiraiya had appeared and was blocking Kabuto's kunai from striking a bloody Tsunade who was shaking in fear at the blood soaking her clothes and skin. Kabuto was also bleeding but he didn't seem bothered by it. Then out of nowhere Shizune appeared and shot a shower of poisoned needles straight for Kabuto forcing him to jump out of the way.
"Go Jiraiya-sama! I can handle this one!" she shouted as she ran after Kabuto.
Jiraiya was a bit shocked but then recovered quickly. "Fine then," he said. He turned towards the boulder that he knew the two Genins were hiding behind. "You two, come over here and protect Tsunade."
Both Naruto and Sora were hesitant to come out but finally Naruto sprung out from behind the boulder. "Jiraiya-sensei!" he shouted as he ran over to them.
It's the Fox Demon boy again, Orochimaru thought as he watched with an evil smile on his face. Perhaps I can kill two birds with one stone. Then he turned his gaze back to the boulder expecting another Genin to come out but he almost lost his composure when he saw that it was Sora. She's here too? he thought. Then he licked his lips and regained his former smile. Make that three.
Meanwhile, Shizune and Kabuto were fighting a vicious battle. Shizune was desperately trying to keep Kabuto away from where Tsunade was but she was losing quickly. Just how good is this kid? she thought barely dodging his Chakra Slicer.
"You two stay here while I fight this battle," Jiraiya said again once both Genins were behind him.
"But I can fight, too!" Naruto complained.
"This is out of your league," Jiraiya replied curtly. With that he took a step but wobbled.
"Jiraiya-sensei!" Sora said and moved to help him keep upright but his hand stopped her.
"I'm fine," he said.
"What? No you're not!"
Jiraiya snorted and straightened himself up. "Well if someone hadn't slipped drugs in my drink last night, I would be," he said with a hint of sarcasm towards Tsunade.
What? She drugged him? Sora thought. She glanced at Tsunade who was still trying to heal herself while shaking uncontrollably with fear. Then Jiraiya took off and began his attack on Orochimaru.
Naruto got out his kunai ready to fight if need be. "Sora," he said.
Sora looked up at Naruto and knew that he wanted her to get behind him. Inwardly she rolled her eyes but she obediently walked behind him. "Don't worry about me," she said as she passed.
Naruto sighed but didn't want an argument so he glanced around to see if Orochimaru or Kabuto was approaching. He spotted Kabuto walking towards them slightly panting but still smiling. "What? Where's Shizune-san?" he asked angrily.
"Well," Kabuto said. "She's not dead, I can tell you that."
"What?" Naruto shouted. He glanced behind Kabuto and saw that Shizune was knocked out and badly bleeding. He reverted his gaze back to Kabuto. "Kabuto-san? I thought you were-"
"I'm sorry Naruto-san," he said pushing up his glasses, "but if you do not cooperate, I will have to kill you."
Naruto was about to say something when Sora cut in. "We'll see about that," she said quietly.
Kabuto then looked towards Sora. He felt a slight regret in his heart that in order to fulfill his duty to Orochimaru, he might have to attack Sora but he looked away and shook off the feeling.
Jiraiya was trying all he could under the influence of the drug that Tsunade had given him but he was losing to Orochimaru. Damn his body, he thought barely dodging Orochimaru's fangs. His neck was stretched out like a snake's body so that he could attack with his fangs more easily.
"What's the matter Jiraiya?" Orochimaru hissed as his neck shrunk back to normal size. "It's hard to believe that you're still as weak as you were oh so long ago." He elongated his neck again for another attack.
Jiraiya said nothing and tried to dodge again but couldn't completely because the drug had dampened his perception. He was able to avoid being bitten but he was head-butted backwards and landed hard on the ground.
Orochimaru laughed at his former teammate. "Even if you weren't drugged, you still wouldn't be able to beat me."
"Summoning Jutsu!" Kabuto said as he crushed a pill that had blood oozing out of it into the ground. In a puff of smoke, two gigantic snakes appeared. "Orochimaru-sama!" he called and jumped onto one of the snakes' head.
Orochimaru leaped onto the other snake's head and the two began attacking Jiraiya simultaneously.
Dammit, Jiraiya thought. I have to summon Gamabunta. He ignored his throbbing headache and did the summoning seal sequence. "Summoning Jutsu!" he shouted. From under his hand came a puff of smoke then the tiny frog that Naruto had summoned during his fight with Shukaku appeared.
"Hey, I got summoned again?" the frog squeaked happily. Then he looked up and saw the two snakes. "AHHHH!" he screamed and leaped into Jiraiya's shirt.
Jiraiya sweat-dropped. Stupid drug…
Naruto saw what his sensei was trying to do. "JIRAIYA-SENSEI!" he shouted and left his place in front of Sora and Tsunade to run to his teacher. If he can't do it, then I'll have to! he thought. "SUMMONING JUTSU!" He slammed his hand on the ground and expected the huge Frog Boss to appear but then-
"Hey…what's going on?" a small, sluggish voice said.
Naruto fell over. What? I thought I could do this already!
"Did I just get summoned?" The small, sluggish voice belonged to an equally tiny blue frog who was sitting on the ground scratching his head.
Jiraiya leaped over and picked Naruto and the small blue frog up and quickly got out of the way of another brutal attack by the snakes. "Naruto, your Chakra output in that summon was horrible!" he shouted.
"Hey! I wouldn't be talking if I were you!" Naruto shot back.
"But I have a reason that my Chakra isn't working properly! You don't!"
Naruto was about to retort when Jiraiya dropped him to the ground. He landed with a thud. "Ow…"
"Tsunade-sama," Sora said cautiously as she took out a cloth to wipe the blood away. She's a hemophiliac, she thought. I've got to get this blood off of her. She gently touched her shoulder.
Tsunade whipped around and fell back. "Don't…don't touch me!" she screamed. Her eyes were wide with fear and her entire body was trembling.
"I'm going to wipe the blood away, just don't move," Sora said.
Tsunade could only stare at Sora in paralyzed terror as she gently took her arm and began wiping the blood off.
"It's ok," Sora said gently as if she were talking to a child. "I'm not going to hurt you." Somehow the words seemed to get through to Tsunade and although she was still trembling violently, she didn't try to run away.
"Doton: Yomi Numa (Earth Element: Swamp of the Underworld)!" Jiraiya shouted. He had saved just enough Chakra to get this attack out. The ground began to sink in on itself and soon a humongous swamp appeared around the two snakes. They began to sink and were soon too deep in to get out.
"Hm, this could be troublesome, Kabuto," Orochimaru mused as he stood calmly on the head of the struggling snake. "Just go and get Tsunade and the other girl as soon as possible."
"Other girl, Orochimaru-sama?" Kabuto asked hoping that it wasn't Sora.
"The one with the captivating, red eyes," Orochimaru hissed while licking his lips.
Kabuto's face flashed with jealousy and anger for a millisecond but Orochimaru's gaze was intent on Jiraiya so he didn't see it. "As you wish," Kabuto said. He leaped off of the snake's head and onto the ground. Then he approached the two ladies.
Sora saw him coming and stopped cleaning Tsunade off to stand in front of her. She got out her kunai ready to attack.
"NO!" Naruto's voice resounded through the air. "I'll handle this!" He leaped in front of Sora and Tsunade and rushed towards Kabuto.
Kabuto expected as much and conjured up his Chakra Slicers making his hands glow blue.
"Kage Buushin No Jutsu!" Naruto shouted and a clone appeared in a puff of smoke. As the two Narutos ran towards Kabuto, one began forming a small whirlwind in the other's hand. Soon the whirlwind became laced with Chakra and began to glow. "RASENGAN!" Naruto shouted and lunged his hand forward.
Rasengan? Kabuto thought in amazement. He quickly made a small Chakra ball and threw it at Naruto.
Naruto wasn't able to react quickly enough and the Chakra hit his leg causing him to stumble. "NO!" he shouted and managed to skin Kabuto with his attack but nothing more. The main force of his attack went crashing into the ground causing the earth to shake and the grass to be uprooted. A huge counterclockwise swirl pattern was now carved into the soil. Naruto was panting heavily from the amount of Chakra he had put into his attack.
Kabuto grabbed his arm which had only taken a small hit but it was still powerful enough to make a pretty deep wound. "Impressive, Naruto-san," Kabuto said genuinely. "You have grown a lot since we last met."
"Shut up," Naruto spat and pried his hand out of the ground. He winced as he tried to move but managed to stand up despite the pain in his leg. "I thought you were a friend, Kabuto, but now I see that you're only a lying bastard!" Naruto tried to step forward but stumbled on his bad leg.
"I was ordered by Orochimaru-sama to spy on Sasuke-san," Kabuto said ignoring Naruto's insult. "I'm sorry you had to get mixed up in all of this."
"Sorry my ass," Naruto growled.
"Naruto!" Sora shouted and ran up to him. "You can't fight like this! You just recovered from your training!" She helped support him.
"I can fight this bastard," Naruto said stubbornly.
"No, you can't! Not in this condition," Sora commanded.
Naruto looked at her questioningly. She had never been this commanding before. "But Sora-ch-"
"Go back and help Tsunade-sama now," Sora said giving Naruto a push towards Tsunade. "I can fight him."
"Sora-"
"Just go!" Sora shouted. She pushed Naruto harder causing him to fall backwards. "If you don't go now, I'll be forced to attack you," Sora said keeping her voice steady. "Please, Naruto-kun."
Naruto didn't want to let Sora fight. He knew that her Chakra wasn't back yet and that Kabuto was indeed powerful, but he couldn't do anything about it now since his leg was still not acting normally. If anything happens to her, Naruto thought as he scooted himself towards Tsunade, I'll never forgive myself. I've got to heal this damn leg fast!
"I don't want to fight you, Sora-chan," Kabuto said quietly trying to avoid her gaze.
"Then why are you attacking Naruto and Tsunade-sama?" Sora asked clenching her fists and getting ready to attack. "You expect me to just sit back and watch?"
"I must follow Orochimaru-sama's orders," Kabuto replied calmly. His Chakra Slicers were gone and he hadn't made a move to attack yet.
"Well didn't he order you to fight?" Sora asked.
"Yes."
"Then fight me!"
"He didn't say to fight you."
That made Sora pause. "Then what did he order you to do with me?"
Kabuto didn't want to tell her the truth so he didn't say anything at all.
Sora hardened her expression and sighed. "I thought the same as Naruto…that you were our friend," she said. "The way you helped us out in the forest…but now I know that that was all a lie and you were just spying on Sasuke for Orochimaru. What a fool I was."
"I never meant to cause you pain," Kabuto said keeping his eyes down.
"How can you say that when you're attacking the people around me?" Sora asked incredulously. "I don't want to hurt you either but if you're on Orochimaru's side, I won't hold back." With that, she threw her kunai at Kabuto as fast as a bullet. Kabuto's head shot up and he quickly saw that the one kunai was actually three and he dodged them by getting in between their paths, but that was what Sora was expecting. The three kunais struck a boulder behind Kabuto but they had thin, almost invisible wires attached to them and Kabuto was in the middle of the web.
"What?" Kabuto said once he realized the situation.
Sora quickly tightened the wires constricting Kabuto so that his arms and hands were pinned to his sides. Then Sora took off faster than the eye could see and soon had Kabuto pinned to the rock with the wires. "You probably know that I can't use my Charka," Sora said after she finished tying the wires. "But I can still use my strategy and Taijutsu."
Kabuto smiled slightly. "I never underestimated your skills, Sora-chan," he said. The wires were cutting into his skin but he held back the pain. "But don't underestimate mine." Then his hands started glowing without any seals.
"What?" Sora gasped.
"I've trained myself to conjure up my Chakra for weaker attacks without the use of seals," Kabuto explained as he began to cut through the wire. "Since I was a Medic-nin, I needed to be able to use my Chakra in emergencies." Then he cut through the rest of the wire. Sora ran at him with new kunais out and the two clashed metal against Chakra. "In a way, these Chakra Slicers are like real knives," Kabuto explained. They threw each other apart and each landed safely on the ground. "They can cut through physical objects if I will them to but they can also cut through your skin without leaving a mark, only slicing the inner muscles."
Sora narrowed her eyes but said nothing. She ran at Kabuto again but she seemed to disappear and reappear behind him. Then she aimed a kick at his back but missed.
She's gotten much faster, Kabuto thought, and stronger.
Ok, as long as I don't get hit by his hands, I should be all right, Sora thought. She swiftly dodged a slice of Kabuto's hand and focused on her body energy. Just like training, she told herself. This is no different. Then she felt it. "Hah!" she shouted and began her combo with a sharp punch that came faster than Kabuto could sense. It hit.
Kabuto keeled over from the hit and didn't have time to react.
Sora didn't wait for him to fall and continued with her combo. She delivered a powerful spinning kick to Kabuto's side and sent him flying to the side. Then she quickly sprinted towards him and used one hand to catch him around the neck as he slammed to a halt against a boulder. With her other hand she pressed her kunai to his throat. "If you try to move, I'll kill you," she said dangerously.
Kabuto was panting heavily and blood was trickling out of his mouth but he just smiled. "Will you really kill me, Sora-chan?" he asked making his Chakra Slicers disappear. He wanted to make sure that she knew he wasn't going to try to attack her. He slowly moved his hand up to his mouth to wipe the blood away.
"Don't move!" Sora demanded pressing the blade more firmly against his neck. But I…I can't kill him and he knows it, she thought with fear. But if he's going to attack, it would be self-defense, right? But he's not attacking… She had never killed another person before in her life and she didn't want to start now, especially if that person wasn't attacking her.
Instead of wiping the blood away from his mouth, Kabuto confidently grasped both of Sora's wrists pulled her hands away from his neck.
Sora couldn't attack. She couldn't kill him. It wasn't in her heart to kill another person. She could only tremble revealing her weakness.
"I didn't think you could," Kabuto said in a low voice. "You've never killed another person before, have you?" He slowly began putting Chakra into her body through his hands without her noticing.
Sora didn't know what to say or do. She felt her mind freeze with the moment as she looked through wide eyes at Kabuto. She didn't react when he gently brought her around so that her back was against the boulder and he was pinning her wrists back.
Kabuto saw the fear and confusion in her eyes and he lost all thought of what Orochimaru had ordered him to do. He gave in to his desires and quickly caught Sora's lips in a fierce kiss.
Sora dropped the kunai that she had been holding from the sudden shock. He's…kissing me? she thought absently. His lips and tongue were pushing against hers wanting for them to part. Then Sora got a hold of herself and broke free by turning her head to the side.
"Sora-chan," Kabuto almost growled. He began caressing the part of her neck that was exposed above her collar with gentle kisses. He couldn't stop. The feeling, the taste clouded his mind from everything else around him. He began pouring his Chakra into her causing her to feel tiny shocks of energy throughout her body.
Sora gasped out of surprise, shock, and unwanted pleasure at the treatment she was getting from Kabuto. But when he tried to capture her lips again for another kiss, she willed her body to refuse. She shook her head. "No," she managed to gasp out. Her vision was slowly darkening.
Kabuto responded by dropping her wrists and moving a hand behind her head and another around her waist. He knew that his Chakra was beginning to weaken her so that she couldn't resist. He forced her to stay still as he took control over her lips again. I don't care if Orochimaru wants her, he thought fiercely as he pushed her lips open with his tongue. She will be mine.
"GET AWAY FROM HER, YOU BASTARD!" yelled an approaching voice.
Kabuto reluctantly but quickly released Sora's lips and turned just in time to see a fist coming straight for his face. He didn't have enough time to dodge and took a direct hit. He stumbled to the side releasing Sora in the process.
Sora fell to her knees shaking from what had just happened.
"Sora, oh my god, Sora!" Naruto exclaimed grabbing her shoulders.
Sora couldn't hear him. In fact, everything around her was going in circles. Things became blurry and doubled as darkness crept over her vision.
Naruto saw Sora's eyes go from their usual bright red to a duller color. He became insanely angry and started his subconscious transformation into the demon inside of him. "You…" he growled dangerously.
Kabuto wiped the blood and spit from his mouth and got back up on his feet with a smile on his face. He didn't have any regrets of what he did.
"I'LL KILL YOU!" Naruto snarled viciously and sprinted towards him claws out.
Kabuto calmly stood his ground and held out his hands in front of him one on top of the other with a space in between them. As Naruto approached, he conjured up his Chakra so that it was visible in between his hands.
Naruto, blinded by his anger, threw an extremely powerful punch at Kabuto.
While never ceasing to pour more Chakra into his hands, Kabuto easily dodged Naruto's attack and kicked him hard into the boulder that Sora was still in front of.
The force of the attack was so large that Naruto pounded straight into the rock leaving a large crack.
"Think before you attack, Naruto-san," Kabuto said calmly still holding his Chakra in his hands.
Naruto didn't respond as he was gasping for air but he managed to slowly get up again. His body had stopped transforming because of the attack as well.
"If you had taken the time to notice that my Chakra is within Sora-chan, then you wouldn't have acted so stupidly," Kabuto continued since Naruto didn't reply.
What? Naruto thought and quickly glanced over at Sora. She was still sitting motionless on her knees with her dullish, red eyes open. It looked almost as if someone had possessed her body.
Kabuto laughed slightly and then slammed his hand into the ground. A wave of Chakra spread throughout the ground. "As long Sora-chan stays within my circle of Chakra, I can control her body as I will it to," he explained as he stood up again.
Naruto's eyes widened. This is bad, he thought desperately as he tried to measure how big this circle of Chakra was.
"This is my specialty," he continued. "I can control any body, dead or living, although living ones are much more difficult." He moved his hand.
Sora's body slowly stood up and turned towards Naruto. Her eyes were now half closed as her body moved in accordance with Kabuto's hand. She pulled out a kunai.
"Sora!" Naruto shouted. "Fight it! I know you can still hear me!" He cautiously pulled out his own kunai.
"Can you fight her?" Kabuto asked in a mocking tone. "Your own teammate?" He directed Sora to approach Naruto.
Naruto ignored Kabuto but didn't back up as Sora advanced. "Sora, listen to me!" he pleaded. "You've got to snap out of it!" Then suddenly Sora seemingly disappeared and reappeared behind him. "Huh?" Naruto said just as he realized Sora was behind him, but it was too late to stop her attack. Her blade sliced through the air cutting through Naruto's clothing and into his stomach. Naruto stumbled backwards clutching his new, bleeding wound. "Sora!"
"It's no use," Kabuto said. "She can't hear you. She's under my control now."
"Shut up!" Naruto shouted. He was now trying to dodge and block numerous lightening-fast attacks from Sora.
She attacked in a continuous fluidity making it extremely difficult for Naruto to even keep track of with his eyes much less his body. She landed a punch in his stomach stunning him and immediately followed with a multitude of other punches to his stomach and head. Naruto couldn't have stopped her even if he wasn't holding back. The attacks were too fast and too numerous to react to. Then Sora grasped Naruto's neck and lifted him in the air so that his feet weren't touching the ground.
Naruto struggled to breathe and tried to unclasp Sora's fingers from around his neck. He attempted to speak but couldn't.
"She really is amazing, Naruto-san," Kabuto said. "It's most impressive that her body can actually keep up with my commands. I've never seen anyone as fast she is."
Naruto gasped for air but couldn't respond.
"Not even Sasuke-san," he added quietly. She's much stronger than either him or Naruto, he thought. But she hides her power well. Even with my observation skills, I wouldn't have been able to guess that she was this powerful. Since Kabuto had taken over Sora's body, he was able to somewhat measure Sora's real power because he could feel her power surge through his Chakra connection into his body. Then he remembered that Orochimaru didn't want Naruto to be killed just yet.
Sora, under Kabuto's control, released Naruto but kicked him in the side before he touched the ground sending him crashing completely through another boulder.
Kabuto smiled with satisfaction and walked up to Sora. He gently placed his hands on her shoulders. But no matter how powerful she is, once my Chakra is inside of her, she won't be able to break free, he thought. He planted a soft kiss on Sora's neck and then left her to see where Naruto had landed.
He expected Naruto to be completely knocked out but to his surprise, Naruto was shakily standing back up again. Blood was running down his face and his jacket was getting soaked with blood from the cut that Sora had given him. "You're harder to beat than I thought," Kabuto said mildly impressed.
Naruto got to his feet. "Don't underestimate me," he spat. "Kage Buushin No Jutsu!" he shouted.
Impossible! Kabuto thought taking a step back. He's not going to attempt the Rasengan attack again, is he?
Two Narutos appeared with one busily making the air and his Chakra swirl together in the palm of the other.
He should be too weak to use any of his Chakra at all! Kabuto thought. He began gathering his own Chakra for a defense but his earlier technique that he used to take control of Sora had definitely cut his Chakra level down.
"RASENGAN!" Naruto shouted and ran at Kabuto even though with every step he left a trail of blood on the grass.
Kabuto moved to put up his hands in defense but felt something keeping him down. "What?"
"Gotcha, you bastard!" a clone of Naruto said from behind him. Then numerous other Narutos took hold of the rest of Kabuto's body forcing him to stay still as the real one approached.
How could he make so many clones and use the Rasengan now? Kabuto thought as he watched the real Naruto approach rapidly. I could feel that he was out of Chakra and body energy. It's not possible.
At the last second, the Naruto clones disappeared but it didn't give Kabuto enough time to get out of the way and the Rasengan struck straight into his stomach. "AHHH!" he yelled out in pain as he felt his internal muscles and organs twist from the attack. He spun backwards making a furrow in the dirt, then he slammed up into a rock almost breaking all the way through.
Naruto's attack stopped Kabuto's control over Sora and she woke with a start but collapsed on the ground. "Huh?" she asked as she looked around. What the…? I…I can't move! She tried to get up but her body was completely paralyzed. When Kabuto's Chakra left her body, it had drained the last of her body energy and stamina as well. She could barely stay conscious let alone move. No, this can't be happening! she thought as she continued to fight this losing battle against her body. Where's Kabuto? Is Naruto-kun all right? Blackness clouded her vision and she felt the approaching coldness of unconsciousness creep upon her as she unwillingly closed her eyes.
Naruto was panting heavily after he saw Kabuto crash into the boulder. His Chakra was at its minimum and his body was paralyzed from overexertion. He collapsed to the ground. With every breath, more and more blood was forced out of the gash in his stomach. The pain was almost unbearable. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Tsunade watching him with fear in her eyes. Please, he thought, I need your help, Tsunade-sama… He finally passed out.
Tsunade had been watching the whole thing. Her body was shaking uncontrollably when she saw the way Naruto was taking the beating. He had lost so much blood and yet he still hadn't run away, and he was still able to use a reasonably powerful Rasengan even in his condition. He didn't run away because he loves her, a voice inside her head said. How can you just sit here when he needs your help?
"I…I'm too afraid," Tsunade whispered out loud. "There's so much blood."
He didn't run from his fears, the voice said. His fear of losing someone he cared for. How can you be so weak to give in to your petty fears?
Tsunade covered her ears and clamped her eyes shut. "No! Stop talking to me!" she shouted.
You're no Sannin, the voice said more loudly. You're not fit to be called the granddaughter of the First Hokage. All you do is run away when people need you most.
Tears fell from Tsunade's eyes and splashed to the ground. Her heart was racing and she dug her fingers into the ground to calm herself. No, I am the First's granddaughter, she thought. She looked up at the unconscious Naruto again and clenched her hands taking dirt and grass into her fists. I can't run away. Not when people need me. She forced herself to stand. "I won't run ever again," she said out loud.
She got up and went over to Naruto and immediately began pouring her healing Chakra into his body. "Please, Naruto," she said as she desperately tried to heal him as quickly as she could. "Don't die. Not now."
Meanwhile, Orochimaru and Jiraiya had been fighting their battle on top of the trapped snakes but even without Orochimaru's techniques, Jiraiya was quickly losing. The poison that Tsunade had given to him was dissipating but extremely slowly.
Orochimaru was able to not only fight Jiraiya but glance at the other battle going on occasionally. He was only able to see the fight between Naruto and Kabuto since Sora was further away. He saw that Naruto was able to use the Rasengan against Kabuto even though he was completely out of his own Chakra and body energy. He could prove to be very dangerous later on, he thought as he easily dodged Jiraiya's attacks. I guess I must get rid of him now. He quickly caught Jiraiya off guard and instead of going for him, he dived off of the snake straight for Naruto. His fangs elongated as he neared his target.
Tsunade saw his approaching figure. "NO!" she yelled and stood in front of Naruto.
What? Orochimaru thought but he couldn't stop his attack. His fangs sunk into the arm Tsunade had used to block his attack. He quickly released it. "I had no intention of killing you, Tsunade," he hissed as he stepped back. "But I guess now you're going to die because you protected him."
"Tsunade!" Jiraiya shouted as he jumped off the snake he was on and began running towards her. That poison's too powerful, he thought. No way will she be able to heal herself unless…
Tsunade knew that his poison was now running through her veins slowly disintegrating her vessels. "Because," she said ignoring the burning sensation she felt in her arm. "I am the Fifth Hokage. I will defend him and Konoha with my life!" With that, she placed her hands in a seal. "Ninpou Sozo Saise (Genesis of Rebirth)!" The purple diamond on her forehead began to glow.
What? Orochimaru thought in alarm, I didn't think she would use this one.
Jiraiya stopped in his tracks. She used the Genesis? he thought. He knew that this technique was in the highest class of any jutsu ranked along with the jutsu that the Third had used to seal Orochimaru's arms, and that it also shortened the user's life every time it was used.
The glow spread throughout Tsunade's face and neck creating patterns of ancient symbols on her skin. Her wounds were healing so rapidly, smoke was rising from her body as the poison escaped to the air.
As Tsunade was healing herself, Kabuto had also healed himself and was now able to stand again. He had used his cell multiplying technique to counter the effects of the Rasengan since it still wasn't a full powered one. He now watched in awe at the power of Tsunade's healing technique. She really is the Legendary Medic Sannin of Konoha, he thought.
When the technique was finished, Tsunade stood, fully charged, with no hint of any fear in her eyes. "You won't get away with what you've done, Orochimaru!"
Orochimaru saw her eyes flash with power making him back up even more. But then he sensed that Kabuto was ready to fight again. "We'll see about that," he sneered. "Kabuto!" The two jumped up onto the head of one of the snakes still trapped in the swamp. Kabuto bit into a blood clot pill and used it to make a straight mark on one of Orochimaru's arms.
Both Jiraiya and Tsunade knew what Orochimaru was going to do and each immediately made the summoning seals.
"Summoning Jutsu!" all three Sannin called at the same time.
The ground shook as three gigantic clouds of smoke appeared on the field. After the smoke cleared, three monstrous animals could be seen facing off. Orochimaru's two snakes had disappeared but a new, bigger, king of snakes, Mando, had come out. Jiraiya had finally been able to summon Gamabunta and Tsunade had summoned the leader of all slugs, Kitsuii.
"What's going on here?" Gamabunta asked immediately after eyeing the situation set before him.
"I'm sorry to have had to call you out," Jiraiya said calmly. The drug was finally beginning to completely fade away. "But I need your help once again."
Gamabunta looked at Mando. "To fight him?" he asked in a slightly annoyed voice.
Jiraiya ignored the annoyance. "Yes."
"Orochimaru," Mando hissed dangerously. "Why have you called me out to fight these two?"
"Please, Mando-sama," Kabuto answered for Orochimaru. "We will make the necessary sacrifices for-"
"Keep your tongue in your mouth, boy," Mando spat as he hissed again. "You don't seem to know to whom you are speaking."
Kabuto winced slightly from the sharp words but kept silent. He doesn't want to talk to me because I lack the power Orochimaru-sama has, he thought. If he finds out that Orochimaru can't use his arms, though, we're dead.
"Orochimaru," Mando said again. "I demand 100 human sacrifices for compensation."
"Yes," Orochimaru replied curtly. "You'll get what you want."
"Kitsuii," Tsunade said.
"Yes?" the giant slug replied.
"Could you please take Naruto over to where Shizune is. I believe she is awake now," Tsunade asked.
"Of course," Kitsuii said. She made a small clone of herself and the clone carried Naruto over to Shizune.
Shizune was still a little groggy but upon seeing Naruto, she forced herself to completely wake up. She quickly continued the healing process that Tsunade had started.
"Then let's end this quickly," Gamabunta said taking out his gigantic sword. "In fact, I've always wanted a snake skin bag."
Mando narrowed his yellow eyes at the red frog king but said nothing.
Tsunade took the opportunity to make the first move. "Kitsuii!"
"Zeshi Nensan (Acid of a Thousand Fangs)!" Kitsuii yelled and sprayed the deadly acid straight for Mando.
Mando dodged out of the way just in time. The acid flew past him and landed on a boulder which began to melt down under the acidity. Mando then lunged forward as quickly as lightening and caught Kitsuii in his coils.
"Tsunade!" Kitsuii shouted. Tsunade knew what Kitsuii meant and quickly leaped off of her fighting partner. Then Kitsuii burst into a thousand tiny clones of herself escaping the coils of the giant snake.
"Combo attack!" Jiraiya shouted to Gamabunta. Gamabunta nodded his head and leaped into the air. "Katon: Gamayo Emudan (Fire Blowing)!" Jiraiya yelled and put his hand up to his mouth to shoot his flame.
"Gamabunta Oil!" Gamabunta said at the same time and took in a deep breath. A stream of oil followed quickly by a stream of fire shot through the air at Mando who was distracted by the many tiny slug clones that had escaped his grasp. The attack hit Mando right in the chest but both Jiraiya and Gamabunta knew that he wasn't out yet.
"This is getting troublesome," Mando hissed and shed his singed skin revealing perfectly unharmed, new skin. "I'm going underground."
Orochimaru and Kabuto leaped back right behind Mando's head so that they wouldn't get pushed off when Mando started burrowing.
"Oh no you don't!" Gamabunta said dropping his sword in a hurry. He grabbed onto the snake's tail just as it was about to disappear into the earth, but Mando's head was starting to break through the surface behind Gamabunta.
Tsunade ran for Gamabunta's enormous sword and using some of her Chakra, lifted it up into the air. "AHHH!" she shouted with a surge of energy as she leaped up into the air with the sword in her grasp.
Just as Mando's head broke through the ground, Tsunade pointed the sword straight down and plunged it into the roof of the snake king's mouth pinning it to the ground.
Mando hissed and writhed in pain but couldn't get his head unstuck. "Orochimaru!" he screeched in agony. "Next time we meet, prepare to face the consequences!" Then with a puff of smoke, the giant snake disappeared.
Orochimaru was furious that Tsunade could defeat his summon. He whipped out his tongue and elongated it. In a split second, he had his tongue wrapped around Tsunade's neck and he began pulling back trying to choke her.
Tsunade gasped for air as she felt her wind pipe being constricted. But as she flew through the air towards Orochimaru, she was able to get the tongue off of her neck and she held on.
Orochimaru realized his mistake but it was too late. Tsunade came flying towards him with a fist pulled back ready to punch. There wasn't enough time for either Orochimaru or Kabuto to stop her attack and her fist came in contact with Orochimaru's face sending him off backwards.
"Orochimaru-sama!" Kabuto yelled but the two Sannin were already too far away for him to get there in time to do anything.
Tsunade pulled back on Orochimaru's tongue causing him to spring back towards her and her waiting fist. She kept punching and kicking him over and over again, never releasing his tongue so that she could always pull him back to her. Finally she grabbed onto Orochimaru's tongue with both hands and swung him around. Orochimaru went flying towards Gamabunta's upright sword and he collided with the handle of the gigantic weapon completely paralyzed. Tsunade had lost a lot of energy from all the techniques and attacks she had done and slumped down to the ground panting for air.
Kabuto finally caught up to Orochimaru and knew that they had to retreat. "We've got to retreat, Orochimaru-sama," he said as he swung his master's arm over his shoulder.
"Wait," Orochimaru rasped as blood flowed out from his mouth. "Just let me say this, Tsunade."
Tsunade looked up with loathing in her eyes to listen to her former teammate.
"You were not the only way I could have my arms healed," he said with a weak laugh. "Don't think you've stopped me just yet."
Tsunade tried to move towards Orochimaru but couldn't since her body was completely exhausted.
With a final laugh, Orochimaru and Kabuto disappeared into the ground.
"I'll be going then," Gamabunta said to Jiraiya once they saw Orochimaru leave. "Along with those two." He was indicating the two tiny frogs that Jiraiya and Naruto had summoned earlier. With three puffs of smoke, the frogs disappeared. Kitsuii could do nothing more of any help here so she disappeared as well.
"Tsunade-sama!" Shizune called and ran up to her leaving Naruto who was now much better than before.
Tsunade smiled weakly at her assistant as her face began to age.
"What's happening?" Shizune asked worriedly.
"Oh, don't worry about this," Tsunade said. "Once I rest up, I'll be back to my youthful looks again. Now help me up, please."
Shizune breathed a sigh of relief and helped support her to stand up.
Jiraiya had gone to get Sora and came back with her unconscious form in his arms. "We should go," he said to the two women. "Everyone needs a good rest and some time to heal."
Tsunade nodded in agreement and looked from Sora to Naruto. They're both going to be ok, she thought. Then the group began to walk their long journey back to Tanzaku City since no one had enough Chakra to transport them all.