Hullo! I'm back! This chapter is a good one. It's a little belated Christmas gift from me to you. Huge thanks to Ayrmed, YungHime and Guests for reviewing. Oh yeah Merry Christmas everybody!
Disclaimer: yeah, I wish...
Chapter 5: Friends
In a flash, Naruto was behind Sasuke with a fist aimed at his back. The avenger turned around just in time to catch Naruto's hand and twisted it around. Naruto winced and leapt back, creating a bunch of hand seals. Bunshin erupted from the smoke and charged at Sasuke. One of them made an upper-cut to Sasuke's face but he dodged it and punched the clone in the gut. It exploded in smoke and another clone came from behind Sasuke. It got elbowed hard in the gut and was sent tumbling back, eventually exploding. In front of Sasuke, another clone advanced with a kunai in hand. Sasuke pulled out his sword and dodged the kunai, thrusting a strike in his chest. The real Naruto emerged from the smoke created and punched Sasuke hard in the face. He tumbled back a few feet and crashed into a wall. Rubble fell around Sasuke as he stood up, Sharingan activated.
Hinata gently laid Sakura down and poured some chakra on her chest. She looked at the kunouchi's face and smiled. "Sakura-san, crying won't do anything. I know you love Sasuke-kun and I want you to be happy. But in this state, you can't convince him. You need to stand up and fight." She squeezed Sakura's hand and wiped her tears away. Sakura smiled bitterly.
"I agree. Thank you, Hinata." She grunted and got up but Hinata quickly pushed her down.
"Your breathing is severe, Sakura-san, please rest, Naruto-kun and I will take care of Sasuke-kun." With a reassuring smile, Hinata let go of Sakura's hand and stood up. "I'll be back."
Naruto panted and narrowed his eyes. Even though he had given his all in that punch, not a hint of pain showed in Sasuke's indifferent face. He brushed himself off and took out his katana. Naruto pulled out a kunai and the two rivals charged at each other. Both blades collided with immense force but neither let go. Eventually, Naruto's kunai broke and he was forced to jump back. Sasuke quickly took this opportunity and parried his blade forward, just under Naruto's chin. He smirked but that quickly vanished when Sasuke felt a threat just behind him. He forcibly dropped his blade at Naruto's feet and leapt away before Hinata could skewer him with her gentle fist. Hinata quickly retrieved Sasuke's blade and rushed to Naruto.
"Naruto-kun, are you alright?" She asked.
"Hinata! What are you doing! You shouldn't be here. Where is Sakura?" Naruto started blabbering.
"I healed Sakura-san and let her rest. I came to help you!" She answered.
"I don't need help! I can take care of that bastard on my own."
"I'm sorry Naruto-kun, but like it or not, I'm going to help you." Hinata's determined claim shocked Naruto. Who knew shy heiress was stubborn?
"Hinata, I have to fix this alone. This is my problem, not yours." He said concern on his face.
"Nothing can be done alone, Naruto-kun. I'll help you even if you don't need it."
They had a staring competition for a while until Naruto groaned. "Alright! But stay behind me ok?"
Hinata narrowed her eyes and smiled.
"Hai!" They both stood up and charged at Sasuke together. Naruto ran straight for him while Hinata went from behind. Sasuke eyed both of them with his active sharingan. He decided to charge at his blond rival first. Hinata took this chance to gather chakra in her hands.
Naruto blocked Sasuke's punch and brought his knee up to Sasuke's gut. Sasuke used his other hand to block the bony knee. Now, all of Naruto's limbs were in use. He brought his leg up to hit Naruto in the face...only to be smacked hard in the face by a blazing fist. The impact made Sasuke fly back and crash into another boulder, this time way faster and harder. When the smoke cleared, Hinata stood there with one hand outstretched and the other aimed at Sasuke's heart. If it wasn't for Susano, he would have been dead. Hinata brought her fist forward but met hard bone instead of soft flesh. Her hand penetrated through the hard bone of Sasuke's Susano and stopped just a millimetre before his chest. She quickly extracted her hand out of the skeleton and jumped back. Sasuke panted heavily and got up. I underestimated her. She's quite strong. I'm gonna have to watch out for those chakra filled hands.
Naruto was shocked. In a matter of minutes, Hinata had done more damage to Sasuke than he had in quite some time. Her fists were enveloped deeply with Chakra in the face of lions.
"Naruto-kun, have you finished preparing for your sage-mode?" She asked. "Huh? Oh, yeah! I have." He closed his eyes and released the clone he had hidden earlier. Orange rimmed his eyes and his pupils became horizontal.
"Let's do this!" He narrowed his eyes and charged at Sasuke. Sasuke got ready to block
Naruto's punch but he clearly underestimated Sage-mode's strength. Naruto's first went right through Sasuke's ultimate defence and into Sasuke's face. He stumbled back but quickly regained his balance. A huge skeletal hand came down on Naruto but he dodged it. Naruto jumped back and Hinata leaped from behind him. She struck her palm right in the middle of Sasuke's defence and it tore. Sasuke quickly backed up and started making hand seals. Searing hot fire blasted from his throat straight at Hinata. She quickly made a few hand seals of her own. Her palms that once held blazing lions turned into small beams of brilliant blue chakra. She waved them around in circular motion. The beams left trails of blue light everywhere. Soon there was a
Dome surrounding her. "Shugohakke Rokujūyon Shō!" The fireball hit the surface of Hinata's defence and immediately dispersed. Sasuke's eyes widened. What the hell is that Jutsu!?
Naruto grinned. That's amazing!
"Hinata!" She looked back and nodded. Releasing her Jutsu, Hinata stepped aside and Naruto rushed forward, Rasenshuriken in hand. Sasuke quickly released his Susano and prepared to dodge Naruto's attack. Naruto threw the huge shuriken at Sasuke's direction. He quickly side-stepped but the huge ball expanded further. Sasuke was quickly caught in the blast. There was a huge explosion and Naruto anxiously waited for the smoke to clear. When it did, Sasuke stood there, a hand covering his bleeding eye. His Mangekyo Sharingan was activated. "Time to get serious." He muttered. His eyes took a reddish glow and Sasuke glowered, "Amaterasu!" Suddenly, black fire erupted at Naruto's feet. He jumped back and started running. Hinata followed his actions and ran the opposite way. It seemed that Sasuke's aim was not so good. Each one if his blows were easily dodged by Naruto. Frustrated, he decided to go for a hopefully easy target. He was proved wrong. Hinata dodged every single one of his attacks with grace and fluid movement. He stopped to catch his breath but turned around quickly to dodge an incoming punch. Naruto quickly used his other hand to occupy Sasuke as Hinata struck him from behind. They both jumped back and got their attacks ready. Hinata's hands once again turned into beautiful lions while Naruto held a brilliant ball of blue chakra. They both charged at a panting Sasuke. He quickly activated the strongest Susano he could muster and waited for the blow. When their attacks met, a flash of blinding light filled the battle scene. Sasuke's defence was ripped to shreds and both blows struck him. Naruto and Hinata panted heavily but naruto smiled. "We make a great team! Hinata." She returned his smile and nodded. They examined Sasuke's body. Tear wounds were all over it and muscle and tissue was ripped out. It was quite an unpleasant sight. Having used an immense amount of chakra, Hinata failed to activate her Byakugan to check Sasuke's body. Instead, she knelt down to check his pulse and sighed. "He's still alive. Looks like this mission is a success." The fatigue of over exertion caught up with Hinata and forced her to go on her knees. Naruto quickly caught her before she could collapse. "Whoa! You ok, Hinata?"
"I'm alright..." She murmured, dazed. Naruto smiled and slung her arm over his shoulder. "Let's get you to Sakura-chan." She nodded and they both walked back.
Red eyes opened widely and surveyed their surroundings. Sasuke groaned quietly and turned his head. He saw Naruto and Hinata walking back slowly. Anger and hatred filled his mind and clouded his eyes. Why him? Why is he so strong? This isn't over yet! He lifted his head and focussed his Mangekyo on a single point, Naruto's right leg. "Amaterasu..."
Hinata jerked her head up when she felt dangerous chakra approaching fast. Acting without thinking, she shoved Naruto away from herself. "Wh-" Naruto watched in shock as Hinata pushed him away and winced in pain. It all seemed to happen in slow motion. Searing pain shot up her leg and Hinata stumbled, falling down. She bit her lip to hold down a scream. It was like someone was pouring lava on her left leg. Her eyes clouded; instantly Naruto was beside her. He saw the black flames and panicked. He had no idea how to extinguish them. Hinata! Hang on!" He started swatting them but no such use. Hinata shook her head to clear the pain and think. A desperate idea formed into her mind and she grabbed Naruto's hand.
"Naruto-kun...use a rasengan on my leg." she grunted painfully.
What!? He looked baffled for a moment.
"Please! Trust me!" Hesitating, he quickly formed a rasengan with the help of a clone and smashed it on Hinata's leg. Surprisingly, the two Jutsu cancelled each other and the flame dispersed. However, the damage was done. The muscle and tissue was ripped to shreds. Blood was all over the leg and still pouring down. The burn was so deep that even the bone had blackened. The pain was too much for Hinata and she fainted. Naruto's eyes widened and he clenched his fists. Taking his sleeve, he ripped off the cuff and started tying Hinata's injured leg. Her unconscious face scrunched up in pain. After tying the cloth around her leg, he carried her away from the field and stood up. "Sasuke!" Naruto's head jerked towards the said shinobi and his eyes turned blood red. In an instant, Naruto was in front of him. He picked him up and growled viciously. "You bastard! What you did to Hinata will never be forgiven!" He gave a well-aimed punch to the gut and Sasuke grunted in pain. Naruto punched Sasuke square in the face and he was sent tumbling. Just before Sasuke could hit the pavement, Naruto was there, both arms interlocked and ready. This time, he slammed his hands on Sasuke's chest and he crashed down, creating a huge crater. Naruto was there, grabbing a hold of Sasuke's collar, fist aimed at his face. "Any last words?" He asked almost mockingly. Bangs were covering Sasuke's eyes, his expression blank. "Why..." He whispered so hoarsely that Naruto had to lean even closer to hear. "Why is it that you grew so strong? It was me who abandoned you. Me who got the Mangekyo. So why is it that you are stronger than me?" Sasuke yelled anger on his face. Naruto stayed silent for a moment before answering. "It's because i have people to protect. People precious to me. Friends that care about me. You can't do everything alone, Sasuke. You are bound to fail if you do. When you have something to protect, someone to cherish, then you grow stronger." Sasuke's eyes widened at Naruto's answer. Friends! That's what made him strong? I'm no match... He whispered quietly "i lose..." Naruto's eyes softened in understanding but narrowed again. "What you did to Sakura-chan and Hinata is unforgivable! How do you plan to fix it!?" He yelled. Sasuke answered after a few moments. "I'll repent in Konoha." Naruto let go of his collar and glared at his former friend. "Oh you are going to Konoha alright!" He spat.
"Naruto!" He turned around to see Sakura running towards him with the rest of the group. Everyone gathered around Sasuke and Naruto. Tears welled up in Sakura's eyes when she saw Sasuke. No matter what he did, she just couldn't bring herself to hate him. "Where's Hinata?" Neji started to activate his Byakugan but Naruto stopped him. His eyes were full of pain. "I couldn't protect her" he whispered. He led them to a little boulder in the battle field. Hinata was propped against the wall, unconscious. The wound had bled through the cloth binding and blood was pouring down. Sakura's eyes widened and she quickly crouched down beside her. "What happened?" She asked as she carefully removed the bandage to look. Lee's eyes widened at the familiarity. Sakura's breath left her as she looked at the damage. There was nothing she could do. Hinata needed to be at Konoha hospital. She took a roll of bandage from her pack and quickly started wrapping it around the wound. "The bleeding has stopped so there will be no further damage but we need to get her to Konoha. She'll die otherwise." Sakura informed. Kakashi nodded and quickly assigned Sakura Naruto and Neji in charge of carrying Hinata. "Everyone else, let's move out. We have to make the path clear for Hinata. I'll carry Sasuke." Everyone nodded and got to work. Naruto gently held Hinata in bridal style and Kakashi slung Sasuke's body over his shoulder.
"Tsunade-sama! There's news." Shizune barged into the Hokage's office frantically. An angry look crossed the plump blond women's face.
"What is it?" She asked, annoyed.
"They have returned! And they brought a really damaged patient." Tsunade's face grew serious. She quickly got up and headed out the door with Shizune in tow.
Tsunade stopped when she surveyed the hospital entrance. The whole group had returned. Kakashi was standing awkwardly with an unconscious Sasuke. Sakura was shouting at the lady in the reception desk to get them a hospital bed. But the most ruckus was around Naruto. Everyone was gathered around him, or rather something in his arms. Tsunade pushed aside various members of their team and strode forward. Everyone else automatically moved. She looked at Naruto's sad face then looked down at the small form in his arms. Hinata was curled up and unconsciously clutching Naruto's shirt. When Tsunade saw her leg, she snapped to medical mode.
"Someone get me a stretcher NOW! You! Prepare a room for several injured shinobi and you, clear out everyone else. You! Prepare a room for operation. Everyone else, get to work." She snapped orders left and right. Everyone obeyed and the Konoha hospital became a huge rush.
Team 7 had a bruised Sakura, a miserable Naruto and a really battered, unconscious Sasuke. Team 10 had a perfect Ino, Perfect Choji and complaining Shikamaru. Team Gai had a perfect Tenten, an anxious Neji and a thoughtful Lee. Team 8 had an okay Kiba, ok Shino but a very hurt Hinata. Tsunade allowed no one near her ward. After getting checked out, Team 10 had given their wishes to Hinata and left. Tenten had left too but Neji and Lee stayed. All members of Team 8 were present along with Naruto and Sakura. Everyone waited anxiously outside Hinata's ward. Lee was unusually quiet. Sakura felt bad for him and decided to attempt a conversation. "Lee-san, you can go home, I will deliver the news to you." She said. Lee shook his head. "I know what it's like to lose a leg. I want to stay by Hinata-san and hope for the best!"
"Lee..." Neji was touched and allowed just a silver of a smile to cross his face.
Suddenly, the ward door opened and Tsunade emerged from it, solemn. She looked at the people in the room and decided to tell them all.
"I haven't told this to Hinata yet ... but I believe her career as a shinobi... is over."
Review!
~Thejollyhyuga
