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Chapter 2 – The End of the Mission

Over three years, Sasuke had changed dramatically; unknown to anyone. It was not his body or the sound ninja clothing that he had adopted, nor was it the large increase in his power or skills; these had been very noticeable to the few that had seen his progress. Inside, the emotions that he had been forced to hide had almost disappeared and he had long since realized that he was slowly losing the ability to show any emotion at all. After years of training and growing under Orochimaru, the power that he had gained had almost corrupted him and ruined the mission. The change had been so great that he had been forced to remind himself a number of times of his true purpose.

He sat in his cot this night looking at the deteriorated, almost unrecognizable picture of Team 7 that he had not viewed in well over a year. The names of the others in the picture ran through his head; they meant almost nothing. The picture no longer served the purpose that he had intended, but now only reminded him of his mission: to kill Orochimaru. 'This could have been done long ago,' he thought to himself, 'Why have I not completed this mission?' The answer to the question was known before he had asked it.

He had been forced to frequently move to new hideouts with Orochimaru and Kabuto. There were several in each country and upon each visit Kabuto would explain the layout to Sasuke only once. Each hideout was built for a sole purpose, no matter how large or small in size. Their current location was one that Sasuke had been in only once near the beginning of the mission and he knew its purpose: this would be where Orochimaru would try to take his body. The hideout was very large but consisted of only 5 safe rooms: A master chamber for Orochimaru and two rooms for Sasuke and Kabuto, a large, blood filled pit, and a small infirmary with only one bed; every other room had been booby trapped to release poisonous gas to its imprisoned entrant.

Sasuke could hear the footsteps coming down the hallway; they were very soft, but he had been expecting them. He continued to look at the picture in his hands. 'Now is the time,' he thought as he took the picture into his left hand and let it drop to his side. He waited as the footsteps neared and his door opened. Orochimaru opened the door and took only two steps into his room. 'He knows.'


Naruto awoke in the morning to the sun shining through his windows. He could faintly hear the bustle of the busy village below his apartment and sat up in his bed enjoying the once familiar sounds that he had not heard in so long. He walked to the balcony and rubbed his eyes before looking up into the sun and stretching his arms. He let out a loud yawn, 'This is the first time the sun has risen before I have in so long,' he let his arms fall to his side lazily as he recalled the countless dark mornings that he was so used to opening his eyes to. 'I can stand to sleep a little longer,' he thought as he walked to his bed and fell face first on his pillows. He had barely closed his eyes again as he heard knocking coming from his front door. He turned his head to the side and yelled, "GO AWAY!" He had never in his life wanted to sleep just a moment longer.

The knocking turned to pounding and Naruto thought that whoever was at his door was about to break it down. He pushed himself up and off the bed and proceeded slowly and drowsily towards the door. The pounding was becoming louder and louder as he approached. Naruto opened his door and let out a large yawn, blurring his eyes for a moment. Had it not been for the uniqueness of the pink hair, he would not have been able to make out the visitor. "Oh, good morning Sakura-chan…" He could not make out the look on her face, but he noticed was that she was not moving.

Sakura stood transfixed looking at Naruto from head to toe. He stood in front of her with nothing on but a pair of white sleeping shorts with the picture of a smiling toad face on the crotch. Although she had spent most of the previous day with him, it was not until this one moment that she realized that this was not the Naruto she had remembered. No, the short, blonde haired boy that made ugly faces and uttered loud, random nonsense was not the person standing in front of her. Holding the door open in front of her eyes was a man. No, not a man, but a human sculpture that had been carefully carved by three years of intense training. He was just a little taller than she was and his frame was small, but covered in muscles. His arms and legs were not large, but it seemed that the muscular tissue was so present that there was no room for bones in his limbs. His chest did not protrude from his body, but gave Sakura the distinct impression that no matter how hard she struck it, it would not be harmed. As her eyes examined every part of his body, as if she was planning her next move, they came to rest finally on his stomach, a well carved 8-pac that looked like it would cut your hand if you ran it across. Sakura thought that had she been forced to explain a flaw in the image before her, she would have been at a loss for words. Had her face not been pink already, this idea would have made her blush. She did not mean to, but a shy giggle escaped her lips as she pulled the green folder she was holding into her chest with both hands.

Naruto rubbed his eyes and the image of Sakura blushing in front of him became clear. "What?" He was confused for a moment until he looked down at his own body. Finally realizing that he was almost completely nude he nearly tripped over his own feet as he stepped back and hid all but his head behind the partially closed door. He let out an embarrassed laugh, 'SHIT!', his mind yelled.

Sakura tried to regain her composure. She let her hands drop down and tried to remove the little girl smile that had covered her face. When she spoke her voice seemed shy and very high pitched, "I… I just… ahem…" she cleared her throat and finally regained the use of her normal voice, "I just wanted to see if you wanted to get some lunch." The pink in her cheeks was almost gone.

Naruto stood behind the door and spoke the first words that came to mind, "Yeah, sure…" He closed the door and turned to walk to his room. He stopped as a thought darted across his mind, 'Did you see the way she looked at you?' he asked himself. As the sudden shock of Sakura seeing almost all of his body faded, he thought that he could have a little fun with the situation. 'She's seen it all already, right?' He turned and opened the door. Sakura had been expecting to wait and had her eyes closed, letting the images of what she had just seen replay in her mind with a smile of what could only be described as pure ecstasy displayed openly on her face. The sound of the door opening brought her out of her daze and she looked wide eyed at Naruto holding the door open with nothing but the white undershorts and a smile on his face, "I'm sorry Sakura-chan. You don't have to wait outside." He stepped to the side to let her in. For one brief moment Sakura did not move, she stood there debating whether she should enter or not. She stepped into the apartment very cautiously, and as she walked past Naruto she tried her hardest to keep her body as far away from his as she could; had her body brushed against Naruto's in this moment she feared she would lose all control. As she pulled past him, she sat on the couch and inhaled deeply, "I'll just be a second." Naruto closed the front door and walked across the couch and into his bedroom, laughing loudly inside his head. Sakura did not dare look at him as he walked away and felt safe to move her head only when she heard the bedroom door close. Slowly, Sakura's shock diminished, 'It was nothing, we're just friends' she kept repeating to herself. When Naruto finally opened his door she was herself again, forcing herself to not picture what she had just seen when she looked at him. The two walked out the front door and into the streets.


Orochimaru stood at the door with an evil smile on his face, "Sasuke, why do you look at that picture? You knew you would never see them again." There was no sense of surprise in his voice at this revelation.

Sasuke did not move. Any other ninja would have trembled uncontrollably at the callous in his voice, but Sasuke simply moved the picture so that he could see it again, "It reminds me of my purpose." His voice was very calm.

Orochimaru let out a hollow laugh from the doorway. The laugh echoed along the hallways of his hideout and within the room that the two were in. "Your purpose? You mean the mission that old bitch gave you?" Sasuke betrayed himself, letting his eyebrows rise for a split second. Orochimaru let out one single all-knowing howl, "Oh yes, I've known all along. Tsunade knows me better than anyone. Leave it to her to use my own obsession to try to stop me." He looked at Sasuke in an almost saddened way, "Too bad… she could have made such better use of your talents." His eyes were locked into Sasuke's; the picture of team 7 remained still and unwavering.

Sasuke struck first. Before Orochimaru could dodge the attack, Sasuke had leapt from his cot, pulled his sword, and sliced through the abdomen of Orochimaru. His movements were so fast that Orchimaru's mouth remained open, stuck in the beginning of a new sentence. The air remained frozen for a moment. Sasuke sheathed his sword as the body slid apart; the two pieces falling in opposite directions. He turned his back to his fallen master with a smile on his face, "Shall we continue?"

There was no sound. Suddenly, Sasuke could hear a rustling noise behind him and he turned around. Orochimaru was standing there; the two pieces of his body as one. The evil smile remained on Orochimaru's face as he spoke in an almost mocking voice, "Certainly." A sword appeared in his mouth and, in one swift movement, the blade extended into Sasuke's chest. Sasuke stood awestruck, looking down at the sword that had entered his body. He fell to his knees as his eyes closed. "Do not act so dramatic Sasuke," Orochimaru's words were very clear despite the sword extending from his mouth, "that was not a lethal strike. What good would you be to me dead?" Sasuke's eyes opened, just as Orochimaru expected. Unexpected, however, was the smile on Sasuke's face. He stood up, sword still penetrating his body, and swung his right hand across the blade; breaking it. The end extending from Orochimaru's mouth was recalled, "Genjutsu, you are so predictable. Such an unattractive quality." Orochimaru goaded.

In a split second, Sasuke pulled the remaining part of the sword from his chest and thrust it into Orochimaru. Orochimaru's mouth opened wide, allowing his new body to escape the unusable shell that had been penetrated; his new body was halfway out when he froze; a look of horror crossing his face. Sasuke could only tell the emotion by the fact that he had never seen this look upon his master's face before. "RELEASE!" Orochimaru tried to keep his voice calm as he pressed his hands together to release the genjutsu. The look of utter horror returned to his face as he looked into Sasuke's eyes; the three tomoe spelling out his demise.

Sasuke walked towards Orochimaru; his upper body trying in vain to crawl out of its shell. Slowly, Sasuke pulled out his sword, allowing his victim to watch its removal inch by inch. "This is your end…" he said with no emotion at all. The motion of his swing and resheath was one fluid movement of finality. As he watched the true image of Orchimaru's body standing upright for a split second while the head rolled along the floor the only feeling he had was that of a mission completed. As the body fell, Sasuke stuffed the Team 7 picture into his bag. He put the bag over his shoulder, stepped over the still bleeding body, and proceeded down the hallway. The infirmary was the last door before the exit. Sasuke opened the door to see Kabuto with his back turned to him, obviously preparing for the body transfer. Sasuke spoke to Kabuto's back, "Orochimaru is dead…" he was prepared for an attack, but as he expected none came; Kabuto simply stopped in his actions, "I have killed him," Sasuke answered Kabuto's unasked question.

Kabuto stood still for a moment before turning slowly. There was a sly smile on his face when he finally spoke, "How did it feel Sasuke-kun? Killing Orochimaru?" There was no anger in his voice, only sheer curiosity. As a light flashed across Kabuto's glasses, Sasuke couldn't help but sense that behind those glasses was something unspeakably evil; something not of this world. Kabuto, however, had nothing to do with him now that his mission was complete.

"I felt nothing." Sasuke did not lie; he had no need to. He turned and walked out; Kabuto did not try to stop him.


The two friends walked through the streets of the village joking and talking of random things; as if neither the three years of separation nor the awkward scene they had just shared had ever occurred. "Naruto would you mind coming with me to the Hokage's office before we eat? I have to drop something off." Naruto didn't mind at all, he nodded. In fact, he had wanted to see Tsunade since the moment he had stepped into the village. He wanted desperately to go on a mission, to put his years of training to the test. "Don't worry, we'll just be in and out." Sakura remembered the constant fighting between Naruto and the 5th Hokage, 'He's a new man,' she told herself.

The two stood in front of the Hokage's tower. Naruto was ready to jump to the window of the Hokage's office as he did so many times in his youth, but Sakura, sensing this, quickly opened the door and led Naruto up the spiral staircase that led to the office. Before Sakura knocked on the office door she turned to Naruto, "Behave, Naruto." Her voice was lighthearted and her face implied that this was nothing more than a playful comment, but inside her head she prayed that bringing Naruto here was not a mistake. She straightened her face as she knocked softly on the door.

"Come in," Tsunade's voice did not sound any different than Naruto had remembered; which was probably because, he told himself, she had made herself appear younger yet again. The two entered the Hokage's office and took only two steps inside before Naruto paused. His heart seemed to stop beating as he could sense many figures within the room, but only that his eyes could remain focused on: Hinata Hyuuga. She stood straight and proud in front of the Tsunade's desk, her eyes closed and her head held high. The image he had seen the previous night was not what was portrayed in front of him. It was not only the heavy grayish jacket that she wore that was different; there was just something about the way she looked: confident, strong, unbreakable. "Welcome back, Naruto." Tsunade's voice seemed to travel across the room, her word's only purpose seemed to be to bring him back to reality. "I hope my necklace has brought you more luck than it did me," she laughed. Naruto did not take his eyes off Hinata as he reached into his jacket and pulled out the light blue stone, playing with it absentmindedly between his fingers.

This drew the eyes of everyone in the room save Hinata, whose eyes remained closed. Hiashi and Neji Hyuuga both turned their heads to look at Naruto, both seemed to be conflicted between a sense of increased respect for Naruto and a sense of disappointment in Tsunade. Sakura's eyes grew large as she eyed the stone in Naruto's fingers. She had heard stories of her master Tsunade's most prized possession: the necklace of the 1st Hokage; but she had never felt that she was in a position to ask why she had never seen it. To see it around Naruto's neck was not as stunning as the question, 'Why did Tsunade give it to him?' Sakura quickly remembered where she was and her purpose. Despite her close personal relationship with Tsunade, she knew that within these walls she was to conduct herself with the dignity that being in the presence of the Hokage demanded. She walked to the desk and laid down a single piece of paper from her green folder.

"Thank you Sakura," with these words the eyes that had turned to Naruto were once again on Tsunade, who picked up a pen and signed her name on the paper. She looked up at Hinata who, only Naruto had noticed, had just opened her eyes; he could not help but believe that his presence was the reason her eyes were closed. Inside, the sudden urge that had occured in his last meeting with Hinata returned. As the urge grew an anger grew with it, 'Look at me!' his mind yelled. 'Look at me now!' He did not know why he was suddenly so angry; all he knew was that he wanted her eyes on him more than anything right now. More than going on a mission, more than saving Sasuke, more than being Hokage.

"Hinata, your signature on this paper confirms your status as a Jonin. The responsibilities of protecting and nurturing the Leaf are now yours," Tsunade's words seemed to wait for Naruto's mind to stop screaming, as if she knew he would not be able to hear her over his own thoughts. Naruto, now confused and angry, watched as Hinata nodded and stepped forward to sign the paper. With the signing complete, the three Hyuuga turned to leave the room. Hinata eyes were closed again as she followed her father out of the office. He wanted to rush at her, to grab her and force her to look him in the eyes, but he remained still as the door closed behind Neji. He looked at the back of the door for only a moment, he could feel the urge of his body and the anger in his mind fading quickly.


Chapter 3 - "Still Untitled" (No that's not the title!)

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