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Chapter 4

The silence was beginning to grate at my nerves, something that shocked me beyond belief. Usually, silence was my sanctuary; it allowed me time to think without any irritating disturbances. Before leaving Sound, silence was my greatest weapon, because it made me an enigma, more dangerous for the fact that no one could guess my motives.

But now, my thoughts were plagued with thoughts of those long days training with Hikari in Sound, haunted by the memory of her voice, a voice that was low and slightly raspy, a voice that was more familiar than the sound of my own. I was left alone in the dark, struggling to stay afloat, struggling to find something – anything – to keep me from sinking into the abyss of madness.

In an attempt to distract me from my thoughts, I stole a glance at the boy beside me.

The idiot, his hair glimmering in the streaks of sunlight that pierced the thick canopy of leaves overhead, was a stranger. I had always assumed that he was just an idiot; how could I have been so blind? Now, as I stared at him, I realized that I wasn't blind, not really.

This Naruto…it was the side of him he chose to hide. Why, though? To help others feel better about themselves? To make himself feel better? Or was it just in Naruto's nature to be his usual idiot self until someone he cared about was in danger?

It just went to prove that in reality, I didn't know Naruto as well as I thought I did. I claimed to know everything about him, but in reality…I knew nothing.

His face was – to my relief – as transparent as always, his unease and his determination obviously displayed on his features, and he didn't spare me a glance as we ran along the branches. Cerulean eyes flickered up to the late afternoon light that streamed in through the branches, and nearly an hour of tense silence passed before we took a break, and it was the that Naruto chose to cut though the silence.

"What do you know about this Madara guy, anyway?" the boy asked, his blue eyes staring at me over the top of his plastic water bottle.

I let out a sigh, and sat down beside him, sipping at my own water as a cool breeze blew refreshingly through the trees. "I don't know much," I said, and Naruto's face fell. "but from what I do know, I can give a fair guess that he's the one behind the attack on Konoha."

"You mean that he's the leader of the Akatsuki people? I thought that Pain was!" the blonde said indignantly, and his voice impossibly confused, and I gave him a glare to silence him.

"Well, you were wrong, idiot. Pain was just a puppet. Now that he's gone, I don't doubt that Madara's planning something bigger."

"What is he planning, do you think?"

"My brother told me that Madara wanted to be the leader of Konoha back in the time of the First Hokage, but was defeated. This led him to abandon the ninja villages, and start his own organization, whose main purpose is to collect the Tailed Beasts. I don't know what his plans are, but a ninja that powerful…" I trailed off, my mind frantically processing that idea.

Hikari was with that man.

That horrible, powerful, evil man who had tried to turn me against my older brother, who had instigated the attack on Konoha with no thought for the innocent people killed in the process.

"Because I wondered what it would be like to kiss you."

Why was that memory suddenly overshadowing everything? It wasn't the first time a female had told me how "kissable" I was. It wasn't the first time a girl's eyes had risen up shyly to meet mine, sending a pang of reluctant smugness running through me, a feeling felt even back in my genin days. So why was that time with Hikari so significant?

Maybe it was the way her voice lowered to an uncharacteristic – undeniably appealing in it's softness – whisper at the word "kiss"…maybe it was because of the way her eyes seemed even bluer in the rain, as they always did.

Maybe it was because although I had been spoken to like that before, no one could reach my innermost feelings like Hikari could. She had it perfected down to an art, and it both pleased and terrified me.

Naruto seemed to sense my unease, because he gave me a small smile. "It's alright, Bastard. We'll get Hikari back, I promise." I didn't answer, and the blonde leaned back against the tree, his eyes staring up in concentration. "I mean, Madara wouldn't go to that much trouble to capture her alive if he was just gonna kill her. And that fish guy with the huge sword went with them, so–"

"Suigetsu?"

Suigetsu was with Hikari? Why would he–

But as quickly as the question formulated in my mind, it was answered. Of course Suigetsu would want to follow Hikari…the girl was his friend. Just like Naruto had never given up on me, Suigetsu would never give up on Hikari. As long as he didn't blow his cover, she was safe.

It didn't suppress the urge to scream and cry as a result of failing in keeping Hikari safe, but it helped me reign in the insane rage that threatened to unleash itself at any time. I could handle this. I was strong enough…I was strong enough…

My face must have revealed some of my turmoil, because Naruto spoke once more, his voice purposefully obnoxious – or so it seemed to my raw nerves.

"Where are we headed?"

I forced myself to focus. This was vengeance. Plain and simple. This was my area of expertise; this is where I excelled. It was – no matter how I tried to deny it to Hikari and myself – the part of me that felt most natural; the hatred, the feeling of pure, unadulterated loathing. It was a friend – a dark, terrible, and yet comforting friend – that had been by my side when no one else had.

"You've done all you can do for your family…now it's time to let them go. Let them rest, Sasuke."

Hikari's words were the truth. At least…I desperately wanted them to be.

But under all the joy I felt with Hikari, under the tentative friendship I had re-kindled with Sakura and Naruto…a dark inkling of doubt was festering. Every time I thought about those…those two monsters that dared call themselves part of a "Council" – the word was much too humane, it contained too many good connotations for it to be linked to such abominations – a monster inside of my breast roared and screamed its mournful agony. I wanted to kill them. Not cleanly, humanely, or even quickly. I didn't want to kill them as a farmer wished to kill the suffering horse whose leg was so mangled that letting it live would be submitting it to a lifetime of agony.

I wanted to watch them scream in pain. I wanted to ingrain into their pathetic minds some of the horror that they had instilled into my older brother's life. I wanted them to burn, burn, burn and fucking die a million times over, and to Hell with where that would leave the stability of my own soul! I would take an eternity of Hell or whatever lay beyond. I would gladly serve my time there…as long as the Council members would be enjoying it right alongside me.

The feeling was only comparable to the mind-numbing rage that had filled me back in my fight with Itachi, when he had told me that Hikari was dead. There had been no bluff in those crimson eyes, no lie, and no mercy.

It was…rage like I had never felt before. To describe it with mere words would be pointless. I won't even bother trying.

I looked up at Naruto, and struggled to contain myself.

"We'll head west, toward the sea. There's something I have to do."

The air was still. There were no birds, no sounds beyond those of the recovering ninja village. Sakura Haruno and Kakashi Hatake stared silently into the endless maze of trees, his hands stuck deep in his pockets, her hands held loosely by her sides. They were both looking for the same thing, and both of them knew that that thing – or more specifically, the two original male members of Team 7 – would not appear no matter how much they wished it to. The tents were far behind them; there was no chance of being overheard, and that was an atmosphere they both cherished.

Sakura was done crying, but Kakashi could still smell them, just behind her eyelids and threatening to spill over at any minute. He always hated the smell of tears, especially when detected in the eyes of his former pink-haired student. They tugged at his chest and made him want to stoke his fingers over the deeply carved letters that made up his best friend's name.

But…then Kakashi remembered. The memorial stone was gone too.

The headstone was rubble now, and with it the almost tangible presence of Kakashi's best friend. No longer would Kakashi be able to visit the memorial stone that would inevitably be rebuilt, for it would not be the same. It would be a memorial stone, but it was not the same memorial stone that a teenage Kakashi had knelt before on the day that they carved Obito's name. Kakashi would look at it, and see it just as it was, a lump of cold, bitter stone that held nothing but countless names.

Kakashi's single gray eye was dark and brooding, and the sudden breeze that blew against his back tousled his hair gently. On the wind was the scent of a familiar soldier, and Kakashi turned to face him. There was no one around; most were grouped together at the meeting room found atop the Hokage Monuments. The temporary replacement for the title of Hokage – Tsunade was still deep in a coma – was being chosen right about now.

Kakashi knew that he should be there; it was his duty as an elite jounin. But somehow…the desire to obey rules fluttered just outside his reach. Sakura, overcome by loneliness, had left the comforting cocoon Ino and Hinata provided, and had joined Kakashi in his hopeless vigil. The jounin didn't say anything, but the fact that she had chosen to stand by his side made him want to smile.

Sakura had always been loyal, and that showed now more than it ever had. This was the young woman Sakura had always been destined to become, and Kakashi couldn't have been prouder as she turned with Kakashi to face the approaching ninja, her eyes the same vibrant green and full of life as the leaves as they danced on their branches.

Sai stood there, his dark eyes flickering from Sakura to Kakashi quickly. Kakashi tensed as the scent of nervousness reached him, and Sakura glanced at him in confusion. Kakashi ignored her, and Sai spoke softly.

"I'm…not supposed to tell you this," he said slowly, his eyes staring steadily into Sakura's eyes. Her face furrowed in heightened confusion, and the boy went on. "but I couldn't…I couldn't not warn you, Hatake-sama."

"What're you going on about, Sai?" Sakura asked sharply, her wariness increased by Kakashi's inexplicable tenseness. Kakashi didn't know why he was so on edge, but he had a bad feeling about what Sai was about to tell him. The boy's scent was uncharacteristically nervous and wary, as if he was expecting to get caught any second. That sent alarms in Kakashi's head, and Kakashi always – always – trusted his gut when it came to situations like this.

"I…" Sai paused, and then hissed it all in one breath. "My leader wishes to see you dead. When he is elected the temporary Hokage…" His eyes never left Kakashi's. "…it is the job of Root to eliminate you."

Kakashi felt a rapid shock of disbelief pulse through him, and Sakura gasped in shock, stepping forward threateningly while at the same time putting herself in between Kakashi and Sai. Sai, having felt the power of her punches numerous times before, took an automatic step back.

"What the hell? Why would he do that? Kakashi is on our side!"

Kakashi put a hand on Sakura's shoulder. "Enough, Sakura."

Sakura gaped up at him. "How can you just calmly–" she stammered, but immediately quieted at the quelling glare Kakashi gave her. Sai was still holding his hands up in surrender, and his eyes glanced at Sakura before returning to the silver-haired jounin.

"Danzō feels that Sasuke Uchiha and the girl Hikari have become too much of a threat to his plans. The girl now in Madara's hands – a willing act on her part, Danzō plans to say, and therefore your death, as the only witness to her kidnapping, is essential. Sasuke and Naruto are also gone – Danzō plans to frame Sasuke for the act of kidnapping Naruto in order to exchange the power of the Nine Tailed Fox for Hikari's life. He plans to mark Sasuke and Hikari both as missing-nin, both assassination-on-sight cases."

Sakura's green eyes had grown wider and wider as Sai went on, and now she burst out in a shriek of fury. "But even if Danzō does become Hokage, he's just a replacement! Replacements don't have that kind of power! How can he hope to…?" she trailed off, her eyes narrowing in concentration, hands clenched in an effort to remain still.

But Kakashi was slowly beginning to realize how exactly Danzō expected to gain complete power. It would be so easy, no would even begin to suspect that Tsunade's sudden death was forcibly induced. She was already so close to death as it was…

Kakashi stared at Sakura, willing her to understand, and it was at that moment that it pieced itself together in her mind. Her eyes widened, and her hands flew to her mouth.

"No!"

In a flash, the girl was sprinting to the medical tents, chakra glowing around her feet to hasten her travel. Kakashi caught the mournful scent of her tears, finally spilling over her eyes at the sudden horrifying idea that Danzō might be trying to murder her beloved sensei.

Kakashi was left staring at Sai, who was staring at him just as intently. There was silence for a few moments, and Kakashi took that moment to glance around them. They were completely alone, and his eye narrowed ever so slightly.

"Why did you tell me this, Sai? You're under Danzō as well, shouldn't you be following orders?"

"Danzō is not yet in office, and he clearly stated for the action to occur after he came into the title. He also forgot to enforce the secret with my seal, most likely because of his focus on winning the election. Also, I seem to have become something of a nobody to Danzō lately, not one he would think able to betray him. Not that I'm complaining." Sai said, shrugging his shoulders ever so slightly.

Kakashi glanced toward the forest, and Sai held up a hand. "Don't tell me of your plans. If Danzō decides to ask of your disappearance, I can't have any information about you to give."

Kakashi nodded, and Sai slipped off his pack, handing it to Kakashi carefully, his eyes flickering to the Hokage Monuments. Now is the best time, while everyone is distracted, the boy's eyes seemed to say.

The jounin didn't need to be told twice. He slung the pack over his shoulder, and nodded briskly to Sai.

"Thank you, Sai. Keep Sakura safe, please."

Sai smiled in that strange way of his, and Kakashi took that as an affirmation. The jounin turned, and put his hands together. Sasuke and Naruto couldn't have gone far, and Kakashi could use his dogs to track them if they had. He needed to warn them; he wasn't going to stand back and let people precious to him walk into danger.

Not this time.

The last thing he saw before the jutsu consumed him was the stone-carved face of his deceased sensei, Minato Namikaze.

And then, everything was gone.