Chapter 21 - The ugly side

"Sakura-chan," said Hinata before standing up to greet the girl leaving the operating room. "What happened in there?"

Sakura looked down. She did not know how to explain Kiyoshi's condition, and she was starting to wonder if 'condition' was the right word to describe Kiyoshi's being. She looked up and said the only words that came to mind. "I don't know."

Hinata saw Naruto step out of the operating room behind Sakura. He didn't look pleased one bit. "Naruto?"

Naruto turned to Hinata and gave showed her a weak grin. Realizing that his grin didn't lighten the mood, he wiped it off and replaced it with a expression of concern. "We had to sedate him."

"What?" asked Hinata.

Naruto sat down on a bench and sighed. "He wouldn't lay still."

"Why?"

He shrugged, "I don't know."

"He said..." said Sakura, but was interrupted by a team of doctors rushing by with a patient in critical condition. She rushed into the operating room after them.

Naruto took Hinata by the arm and pulled her away. They walked around several corners before Naruto became satisfied with privacy. Under any normal circumstances the privacy would lead them to making out. This time it didn't. They were both on edge after what happened to Kiyoshi.

"Naruto," said Hinata, "What's happening?"

Naruto sighed and leaned against the wall. "I need Kiyoshi to tell me," he replied, "I don't understand what's been happening to this village lately."

Hinata recalled Kiyoshi's lifeless corpse and her eyes started watering. "What could do that? What could do that to Kiyoshi?"

Naruto shrugged, "I don't know. It wasn't human."

"Kiyoshi can't be cut with a chakra knife, and his strength is almost enough to rival Tsunade-sama," she looked up at Naruto, "What could have done that to Kiyoshi?"

Naruto sighed and gave Hinata a hug, "I'm going to go try to figure it out at the office. I think you should go home and sleep. We've been through a lot."

"You get some rest too, Naruto-kun." said hinata and pecked him on the cheek.

"As soon as I have the time."

Sakura dipped a needle into a poisonous venom. "Prepare his veins," she told a group of medic-nin surrounding a young patient.

"What are you trying to do?" exclaimed one, "That's thundersnake venom!"

Sakura grabbed the medic by the collar and pulled him closer to make a point in authority. "This poison is the only thing that can neutralize his parasite! Now prepare his vein!" She let go of him.

The man backed up, breathing heavily, "Scary..."

Moments later, the child's was fever was starting to fade and his teeth unclenched.

Sakura stepped out of the operating room to find herself late for dinner with a guy. She sighed and started walking down the hallway. She passed several closed doors and one open one. After several steps she realized that the door should have been closed and turned around. Another thing she realized was that the door lead to Kiyoshi's room and it should have been locked.

Naruto slapped himself awake and went back to the documents. A loud knock came on his door, then the door was broken down. Sakura was standing in the empty doorframe with a concerned expression.

"What is it?" asked Naruto "And will you pay for the repairs?"

Sakura rushed over to Naruto, "Kiyoshi's gone."

Naruto jumped up, knocking over his chair and a filing cabinet. He rushed out, dragging Sakura behind him. "How did it happen?"

"I don't know. I was operating on a delicate patient. When I came out he was gone."

Naruto rushed down the staircase, Sakura followed him. "Do you have any idea where he might've gone?"

"I'm not sure," replied Sakura, "There's a team of professional trackers following him. He couldn't have gotten far in his condition."

Naruto wasn't satisfied. He saw Kiyoshi die in an explosion that took out several ships, disappear, then bearing those wounds sneak in and out of Konoha, almost undetected. "Did he leave a note or anything?"

"No, but..."

Naruto stopped and turned to Sakura, "You were going to tell me something that Kiyoshi said back in the operating room. What were you gonna say?"

"When we were sedating him, he said something," replied Sakura, "Akume, or Akana, or something..."

"Did he say 'Akane'?"

"Yeah, that's the one."

Naruto rushed down the stairs, leaving Sakura behind. "Find Kakashi! Tell him to meet me where we met the Lost Soul Army!"

"What?" Sakura screamed back. Naruto's voice was fading.

"Lost Soul!"

Naruto ran by the gate guards, then stopped and returned. "Did you guys see anyone leave in the last two hours?"

"Yeah," said one of the guards, "Tsunade-sama."

Naruto rushed down the path they took during the summer, the one that led them to the Lost soul army, the same path that Hinata confessed her love to Naruto on. The same path that Kiyoshi had to follow to get to his butchered hometown.

Naruto saw footprints every two meters, and a handprint with a big mess of dirt every now and then. Kiyoshi wasn't in any condition to run, he was barely in condition to lay in bed and sleep.

Naruto quickened his pace, and a few moments later Kakashi had caught up with him.

"Oi, Naruto, what's going on?"

"Kiyoshi's just about dead, and he's running to Akane."

"Akane? You mean his one-time guardian?"

"Yeah."

"Why?"

"That's something we'll find out when we get there," replied Naruto, "I think something bad is going on around Kiyoshi."

Kakashi agreed and recalled an old time when he, side by side with Naruto, was chasing the Akatsuki to retrieve Gaara. At the time Naruto was an enraged beast, incapable of containing the Kyubi enough for the even slightest rational thought. He looked at the teen, wondering if he'd grown away from rushing directly into combat.

"Naruto, be careful." Said Kakashi and stopped running. Naruto glanced back at Kakashi, who was standing and fading into the distance behind him. "I hope you can handle this on your own. I can't help you anymore."

Naruto didn't stop. He kept on tracking Kiyoshi. He made a sharp turn where the footprints led through a trampled bush.

He came out onto a burnt plane with nothing but a figure. Kiyoshiwas on his knees, facing away from Naruto. "Kiyoshi, is this..."

Kiyoshi stood up slowly. He lifted his head, but didn't turn to Naruto.

Naruto saw a bloody hand hanging over Kiyoshi's shoulder. He approached the boy with caution. "Kiyoshi..."

Kiyoshi turned around to face Naruto. Akane's torso was hanging off Kiyoshi's shoulder by the arm, head bobbing lifelessly. "You are about to step into the ugly side of the world." Said Kiyoshi. He had a blank face, no tears, no sadness, no joy. No soul left in his eyes.

Naruto made one more step towards Kiyoshi and the plane suddenly became filled with fire, destroyed houses, and torn apart bodies. "Wh... Wh..." Naruto's breath was caught by a hook that was slaughter. He closed his eyes and opened them again, half expecting for the massacre to go away. He saw it again, the fire and death. He started shaking. "Wh..."

"They're dead."

Naruto pulled himself together and ran up to Kiyoshi. He placed his hands on the teen's shoulders and shook him, "Kiyoshi! What on earth is going on?"

"The beast that I fought in Konoha was called 'Sin'."

"What beast?" exclaimed Naruto.

"His name was 'Sin', he's the one who filled Ino with lust. He's the one who filled Kiba with envy. It was a matter of time before Choji got gluttony."

Naruto shook Kiyoshi some more, "Why?"

Kiyoshi smiled. "He was just there to warn me."

"Warn you about what?"

Kiyoshi gave Naruto a crazed smile, "Don't tell me you didn't feel him," he leaned over to Naruto, "He was the cold sensation we felt outside Kiba's house."

Naruto shuddered as chills went down his spine. "Is he the one who attacked you?"

"He told me that Akane would be killed if I wouldn't give myself up."

Naruto realized something when a tear formed in his eye, "Kiyoshi, I didn't know."

"You put me to sleep when I was trying to come help Akane," replied Kiyoshi, "Don't blame yourself. I was the one who couldn't tell you in time. But now they're dead, and you're the next target."

"Me?" asked Naruto.

Kiyoshi chuckled, "Not you, Naruto," he said, "Kakashi, Hinata, Sakura, Konoha, and then you."

Naruto's breath disappeared. "Why?"

"To destroy my spirit."

Naruto scoffed through his delicate voice, "You? Why?"

"You don't need to know," said Kiyoshi. "I'm giving myself up to them."

Kiyoshi freed himself from Naruto's grip, turned around and crouched. He gently put Akane down on the ground and started digging with his hands. Naruto looked around, taking in the massacre one more time before hitting Kiyoshi over the head with a large stone and knocking him out.