An Extra Edge
Last time on An Extra Edge, Naruto and Sakura were promoted to Chunin, their first mission as Chunin being to escort Shibuki back to his village, only to find that the Akatsuki had come looking for Shibuki's wife, Fu, the Seven-Tails Jinchuriki. By the time they got there, it was too late to save Fu, as the Seven-Tails had already been extracted from her, killing her. Dante engaged Four-Tailed Naruto in a brief battle to collect data before fleeing with Deidara. Now, let's catch up with our heroes. Enjoy this new chapter.
Legal stuff: I don't own Naruto or any of its characters. Just my fics and ocs.
Naruto was sitting on one of the branches of the giant tree that covered the Waterfall Village. Fu's funeral had ended a while ago, and as far as he knew, Shibuki was still grieving.
"Naruto-kun, can I talk to you?" Sakura asked, coming up behind Naruto.
"Sure, Sakura-chan," Naruto said.
Sakura knelt down behind him. "I'm worried, Naruto-kun."
"About what?" Naruto asked.
"I'm worried about you," Sakura said. "Using the Nine-Tails' power hurts you. It burns your skin off and heals it at the same time, accelerating cell division in a manner not unlike Mitotic Regeneration. That power shortens your life, Naruto-kun. And to top it off, the Akatsuki want to extract the Nine-Tails from you, and that'll kill you," she said, wrapping her arms around his neck. "I can't stand the thought of losing you. You're one of my most precious people."
Naruto put his hand on one of her arms. "Don't worry. The Nine-Tails said that the more I train, the more tails I can add to the Version 2 form without getting my skin burned off."
"What about Sasuke?" Sakura asked. "I think he envies us for making Chunin before him, and I wouldn't put it past him to tell all our friends your secret just to spite you."
"That won't be a problem," Kakashi said from an adjacent branch.
Sakura pulled away from Naruto, blushing darkly, as was Naruto. "Why is that, sensei?"
"The fact that Naruto is the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki is an S-Class secret. The punishment for even whispering about it is severe. The only one allowed to divulge the secret is Naruto himself," Kakashi said.
"But Sasuke has most of the council wrapped around his finger," Sakura said. "I doubt they'll let their precious Uchiha be punished for it."
"That's true," Kakashi said. "You two need to get some sleep. We're setting out early tomorrow to get back to the village."
Naruto and Sakura nodded.
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After returning to the village, Sasuke went off on his own to train, while Kakashi went to deliver the report to Tsunade.
"Hey, Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked as they walked toward Ichiraku.
"Yes, Naruto-kun?" Sakura asked.
"If Sasuke tells the others, what if they hate me too?" Naruto asked.
Sakura put a hand on Naruto's shoulder. "You should have more faith in them."
"Hey, Naruto!" Kiba called as he ran toward them, Akamaru laying on his head.
"Hey, Kiba," Naruto said.
"You two mind coming with me?" Kiba asked, gesturing for them to follow.
"Sure," Naruto said, following Kiba along with Sakura.
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Kiba led them to a secluded area where the other rookies, minus Sasuke, were waiting, along with Guy's students.
"Hey, guys," Naruto said. "What's going on?"
"Why didn't you tell us?" Choji asked.
"Tell you what?" Naruto asked.
"That you're a Jinchuriki," Neji clarified.
Naruto's head hung. "You guys hate me now. Don't you?"
"Why would we?" Shikamaru asked.
"Huh?" Naruto asked, looking up in confusion.
"So you're a Jinchuriki, who cares?" Kiba asked.
"Yeah. You're still the same baka we all know and love," Ino said.
"You should have more faith in your friends, Naruto," Shino said.
"Shino's right," Tenten said. "You should have trusted us."
"The fact that you keep the Nine-Tails at bay is a testament to just how strongly the power of youth flows within you, my eternal rival!" Lee said, giving the nice guy pose.
"We're still your friends, Naruto-kun," Hinata said.
From his vantage point, Sasuke was furious. "They still like him? Why would they like him when he has a demon inside him? It just doesn't make sense!" he thought before slipping away.
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As Sasuke entered the Uchiha compound, he was approached by four people. "Who are you?" he asked.
"We are the Sound Four," one of them said, seeming to be the leader, and had a head sticking out the back of his neck. "I am Sakon,"
"I'm Kidomaru," the one with six arms said.
"I'm Jirobo," the one with a mohawk said.
"And I'm Tayuya," the lone woman in the group said.
"What do you want?" Sasuke asked.
"We have come on behalf of Lord Orochimaru," Sakon said. "We bear an invitation to come to him for the power you seek."
"Will I be strong enough to kill Itachi?" Sasuke asked.
"Yes, you will," Sakon said. "You don't have to answer right now. We'll be back in about a week for your answer."
Sasuke stood there after the Sound Four departed, pondering whether or not to go to Orochimaru.
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The next day, Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke were standing on the ceiling of a movie theater watching the newest Princess Gale movie, Fu and Lan Fan with them. Naruto was actually being quiet since Sakura had threatened to subject him to her monster strength if he didn't. Once the movie ended, they went to the place they would meet with Kakashi for their mission. Said Copy Ninja being late as usual.
"How do you put up with that guy always being late?" Fu asked, holding and petting one of his spiders.
"You get used to it," Sasuke said. "Why are you two here anyway?"
"Apparently this mission is a joint mission between our two villages," Lan Fan said, sharpening one of her shuriken.
"Then where's Ling?" Sakura asked.
"He's off on a mission with Utakata-sensei," Fu said.
"Man that movie was so awesome!" Naruto said. "Makes me even more determined to keep a certain someone safe."
Fu and Lan Fan looked at each other and grinned.
"Sakura-chan, please go on a date with me!" Fu said, in a very good imitation of Naruto's voice.
"Naruto-kun, you're so much cooler than Sasuke! Of course I'll go out with you and be your girlfriend!" Lan Fan said, imitating Sakura's voice.
Naruto and Sakura blushed so darkly that they invented new shades of red in response to Fu and Lan Fan's teasing.
"Shut up!" Sakura exclaimed before the sound of a horse's galloping reached them, shortly before a white horse jumped over the fence, narrowly missing Fu and Lan Fan. It was who was riding said horse that surprised them.
"No way, was that Princess Gale?" Fu asked as the gate they were next to opened, knocking Naruto and Sakura down as a large group of armor wearing horsemen rode through after the princess.
Naruto and Sakura got to their feet, annoyed at the horsemen and ran after them, followed by Fu, Lan Fan, and Sasuke.
Princess Gale crashed through some stands in the market place as she rode through the streets, the ninja following from the rooftops.
"Finally, some excitement!" Fu exclaimed. "Too bad Ling ain't here! He loves this kind of stuff!"
One of the horsemen headed the princess off and threw a net at her, which was sliced up by Fu, who landed in front of the princess, holding his scythe.
"Hello, boys! Hope you don't mind if I drop in!" Fu said with a grin as the princess went on her way, still pursued. "Let's play," Fu said, engaging the horsemen he had detained.
Eventually, the horsemen got the princess off her horse and pinned her down, their boss coming up behind them. "We finally got her," he said.
"GET OFF ME!" the princess screamed, throwing the horsemen off and going up in a puff of smoke, revealing herself to be Sakura in disguise.
Sasuke knocked out the horsemens' boss, while the horsemen fled and were detained by Lan Fan and Naruto. They then spent the next few minutes restraining the men.
"Oh dear. What are you guys doing?" Kakashi asked before freeing the men. "This is our client."
"Oh," Naruto said.
"Where's Fu?" Lan Fan asked before sighing. "He must have gone after the princess."
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The princess sat next to a lake, her horse drinking from it while she stared at the water.
"You okay, princess?" Fu asked, getting her attention. "Man this is so cool! Your movie was excellent! Can I get an autograph for a friend of mine?"
The princess' response was to get on her horse and leave.
"You know, that's not very nice, running off without answering my question," Fu said, running beside the horse, easily keeping up.
The princess smacked her steed's haunch to make it go faster, Fu having a little bit of trouble keeping up now.
"You know, you don't seem like you are on the big screen," Fu said after jumping onto the horse, holding on with his chakra.
The princess made the horse go faster.
"That's not really gonna help since I'm on the horse with you," Fu said as a pole ripped off the princess' sleeve. "Uh, aren't we going a little fast?" he asked as a group of kids came into the road. "Look out!" he exclaimed as the princess stopped the horse, though this caused her and Fu to fall off, Fu landing on his feet. "Come on, Ms. Fujikaze, let's have that autograph."
"That's Yukie Fujikaze?" one of the kids asked excitedly before Yukie ran off.
"Get back here and give me an autograph!" Fu yelled, chasing Yukie.
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"Our mission is to guard Yukie Fujikaze, the actress best known for her role as Princess Gale," Kakashi said as they sat and/or stood on the movie set.
"Guard?" Sasuke asked.
"Well, maybe not guard her, so much as escort her," Kakashi said.
"The next Princess Gale movie is the first one that we're shooting abroad," the director's assistant said. "And our leading lady is something of a diva."
"So where are the scenes being shot?" Sakura asked.
"In the Land of Snow," the director, Makino said.
"The Land of Snow?" Lan Fan asked, sharpening a shuriken. "Seems a long way to go just for some filming."
"Yukie's manager, Sandayu recommended it," Makino said, gesturing to the man Sasuke had earlier knocked out, who bowed slightly.
"Wonder what Yukie's problem with going to the Land of Snow is," the assistant said. "It was only when she heard we were going there that she ran from the set."
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Yukie came out of a clothing store in a disguise, pulling a pocket mirror from her pocket and looking behind her through it, seeing Fu waiting for her, leaning on a light pole with a smug grin on his face. Putting the mirror away, she ran into an alley, trying to lose him, only for him to appear in front of her, hanging upside down from a beam, and hold out a pen and autograph card. "Fine," she relented.
Fu grinned and dropped down, handing her the card and pen.
"Who's it for?" Yukie asked.
"Rin Terumi," Fu said.
"Rin Terumi," Yukie repeated as she wrote.
Fu looked her over, noticing a crystal necklace around her neck. "Nice necklace. Don't think I've seen anything like it before."
Yukie reached up to her earring and squeezed it, spraying Fu in the face with something that made his eyes burn.
"OW! What the hell is that?" Fu asked, trying to find the water bottle in his hip pouch to wash his eyes out.
"Pepper Spray, for stalkers," Yukie said as Fu leaned back on a pole and knocked it out, making some rafters and lumber fall on him.
"I'm okay," Fu said.
Yukie then proceeded to rip up the autograph card.
"Aw that's cold," Fu said as Yukie ran off.
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About an hour later, Yukie was drinking in a bar, liking the silence, until it was shattered by Fu bursting in.
"There you are! Do you have any idea how long it took me to get out of that rubble pile?" Fu asked.
"I don't care," Yukie said.
"Man, on the big screen you're cool, but in reality, you're nothing but a spoiled little bitch!" Fu said. "Won't even give an autograph for my friend, who happens to be a little girl."
"Autographs are a waste of time," Yukie said as more people burst into the bar.
"Ms. Yukie! Our boat to the Land of Snow is about to sail!" Sandayu exclaimed, accompanied by Lan Fan and Team 7.
"I don't care," Yukie said. "Get someone else to fill the role." Before she could refill her sake cup, Fu hit her on the back of her neck to knock her out.
"That is for giving me a face full of pepper spray and leaving me buried in rubble," Fu said as he picked up the unconscious actress. "Well then, let's go."
"You know, I could have just put her under with a genjutsu," Kakashi said as they left the bar.
"I wanted some payback," Fu said.
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Yukie woke up in a warm bed, noting the room to be swaying, and Fu was sitting next to her feet, holding a pen and autograph card.
"So, how about that autograph?" Fu asked.
"No. Now get me some water. I feel like the room is swaying," Yukie said. "Pretty crazy huh?"
"Not really," Fu said. "The room really is swaying. Then again, we're on a ship at sea."
Yukie gasped and ran to the deck. "YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!" she yelled, seeing a set being put together. Resigning herself to her fate, she allowed herself to be readied for the camera.
"I don't see how babysitting a pampered little actress is much of a mission," Naruto said, eating some instant ramen.
"Not so, Naruto," Kakashi said. "Big celebrities are targeted all the time. And you never know who's after them. As such, this is an A-Rank mission."
Naruto almost spit out his ramen. "Seriously? An A-Rank mission?" he asked through the noodles in his mouth.
"Naruto-kun, don't talk with your mouth full!" Sakura said, hitting him on the head.
Naruto swallowed the noodles and rubbed his head. "Sorry, Sakura-chan."
"Just don't do it again, Naruto-kun," Sakura said.
"Get a room, you lovebirds," Lan Fan said, sharpening her ever present shuriken.
Naruto and Sakura both blushed darkly.
"It's not like that, Lan Fan!" Naruto said.
"We're just good friends!" Sakura added.
"For now," Lan Fan said.
After the day's filming was finished and everyone went to bed, Naruto went up to the crows nest to think, pondering his relationship with Sakura. He knew they were friends, and that he wanted to be more than her friend, but he figured that she didn't want that with him. He was sure she wanted Sasuke. He was broken out of his thoughts by a voice.
"Naruto, I have something for you," Kakashi said, holding out a small yellow package to Naruto. "A gift from Master Jiraiya."
"Wonder what Pervy Sage would give me," Naruto said, taking the package and putting it in his vest pocket.
"He said it's a good luck charm," Kakashi said, sitting down next to him. "Now then, what seems to have you down?"
"Nothing," Naruto said.
"Naruto, you looked like you were depressed. Trust me, you'll feel better if you talk about it," Kakashi said.
Naruto sighed. "I was thinking about Sakura-chan."
"What do you feel for her?" Kakashi asked.
Naruto blushed. "Well, I... I really like her. I want to be more than her friend."
"In other words, you love her," Kakashi said matter of factly.
Naruto nodded. "Kakashi-sensei?"
"Yeah?" Kakashi asked.
"Have you ever been in love?" Naruto asked.
Kakashi looked at the stars. "I was once. But that was a long time ago."
"What happened to her?" Naruto asked.
"She died," Kakashi said.
"What was she like?" Naruto asked.
"Her name was Rin. She was a very kind, loving woman, but with a temper as short as Sakura's at times," Kakashi said. "You, Sakura, and Sasuke remind me of my old team."
"Can you tell me about them?" Naruto asked.
Kakashi nodded. "When I graduated from the academy at five years of age, I was placed on a team with Rin and Obito Uchiha. Together, we trained under Minato Namikaze, who, as you know, would go on to become the fourth Hokage."
Naruto gasped. "You were the fourth's student?"
Kakashi nodded. "Yes. Naruto, what do you think of Minato-sensei? After all, he did seal the Nine-Tails into you."
Naruto thought for a moment. "Well, I know he wouldn't have used me for the sealing unless he had no other choice. I think he did it for good reason. But I'm still angry that he used me for that."
"His dieing wish was for you to be seen as a hero for containing the Nine-Tails," Kakashi said, shocking Naruto. "But sadly, only those who were close to him, like myself, were willing to regard you as a hero. I think that if Lady Hisana and I hadn't worked together to look after you, then you'd have died as an infant."
Naruto gasped. "You looked after me?"
"I did," Kakashi said. "And so did Lady Hisana."
"You mean Sakura-chan's granny?" Naruto asked.
"Yes," Kakashi said, "Anyway, my relationship with Rin and Obito was much like yours with Sasuke and Sakura. Rin had a crush on me, while Obito had a crush on her. But I spurned all of Rin's advances. At the time, I believed that the shinobi code was everything, and scorned those who broke it. When I became a Jonin, Minato-sensei entrusted me with leading a vital mission. But when Rin was captured by the enemy, I wanted to leave her behind, while Obito wanted to save her, and managed to convince me."
"How did he convince you?" Naruto asked.
"Do you remember what I told you, Sasuke, and Sakura when you three passed the bell test?" Kakashi asked.
Naruto nodded. "Those who break the rules are scum, but those who abandon their comrades are worse than scum."
Kakashi nodded. "Obito said those very words to me before running off to save Rin. I followed him, and we rescued her, but it cost Obito's life. In his final moments, he gave me his Sharingan, which Rin transplanted to replace the one I lost."
"That's how you..." Naruto muttered.
"Yes. My Sharingan is a precious gift from Obito," Kakashi said. "Since that day, I've had my present beliefs. But I was unable to protect Rin when she needed me most. And then Minato-sensei gave his life to seal away your tenet. Their deaths have made me reluctant to let people get close to me. I'm always late because I lose track of time visiting them at the memorial stone."
Naruto gave his sensei a sad smile, viewing him in a brand new light. "It must have been tough, not having anyone to open up to."
"It was," Kakashi said. "My only regret is not realizing the importance of comrades until Obito died."
"Is that why you drilled it into us?" Naruto asked. "To keep us from making the same mistakes you did?"
"Yes," Kakashi said, standing. "I'm going to bed. You should too in a while."
Naruto nodded. "Sure thing, sensei," he said before Kakashi left him alone. He stared at the stars for a while longer before curling up to sleep.
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Makino's assistant walked onto the deck the next morning, and saw a giant iceberg in front of the ship. "Mr. Makino! We've got a problem!"
The yell brought everyone on deck.
"What is that?" Makino asked.
"When I woke up this morning, I found this waiting. We can't get through," the assistant said. "What are we gonna do?"
Makino's eyes widened. "This is it! We're changing everything!" he said, his assistant wide eyed. "You moron! We're standing on the perfect spot to shoot! It's practically begging us to film here! Cherish this moment! The movie gods are smiling down on us! Everyone prepare to disembark!"
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Once everyone was bundled up and off the ship, they started setting up the film equipment.
Naruto noticed Sakura shivering a bit despite her cloak, and held up his own cloak for her, inviting her to share body heat.
Sakura smiled and moved under it with him. "Thanks, Naruto-kun," she said, kissing him on the cheek with a slight blush.
"No prob, Sakura-chan," Naruto said, blushing as well while they watched the filming, which was cut short by Kakashi throwing a kunai with a paper bomb at a ledge.
"Hey! What do you think you're doing?" Makino's assistant yelled.
"Everyone get back!" Kakashi said, prompting Naruto and Sakura to separate, ready to fight.
A man revealed himself. "Welcome, friends, to the Land of Snow."
"You!" Kakashi said.
"Greetings, Princess Koyuki. I do hope you're still carrying around the Hex Crystal," a woman said.
Kakashi gasped and looked at Yukie. "Princess Koyuki?" he asked as another man showed himself.
"You're as good as they say, Kakashi, but it's not good enough," the second man said.
"Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, Fu, Lan Fan!" Kakashi said. "You five protect Yukie. Everyone, get back to the ship!"
"Fubuki, Mizore, I'll leave the princess to you," the first man said.
"Very well then," Fubuki said, leaping to the attack.
Kakashi met the first man.
"It's been a long time, Kakashi. Hope you're not planning to run, like last time," the man said.
"Nadare Roga," Kakashi said before attacking Nadare while his team ran in front of Yukie.
"Don't know what's in the script, but I've always wanted to be in a movie," Naruto said, drawing the Kubikiribocho. "Don't you worry, princess. Naruto Uzumaki is here to save ya!" he exclaimed, jumping to the attack.
Mizore pulled his snowboard off his back and got on it, using his chakra to propel himself toward Naruto, who dodged him several times before a huge shuriken came at him and was deflected by a barrier around his armor.
"What the hell?" Lan Fan asked, spinning another shuriken.
Sasuke unfurled a Demon Wind Shuriken and threw it at Mizore, the shuriken shattering on the barrier.
Fu ran through hand signs. "Fire Style: Phoenix Firestorm!" he said, breathing out bird shaped fire that surrounded Mizore, who was unharmed due to the fire dissipating upon reaching him.
Fubuki ran through hand signs. "Ice Style: Tsubame Blizzard!" she said, sending ice birds flying at Sasuke, who dodged them and ran through hand signs.
"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!" Sasuke said, breathing out a fireball that melted the ice birds.
Yukie gasped at the sight of the fire, a memory coming up.
"Back to the ship, everyone!" Sakura said before seeing Yukie not moving. "Yukie!"
"Princess!" Sandayu exclaimed, running toward her.
Yukie looked at Sandayu. "Sandayu, what are you..."
Fubuki put her fingertips on the ground. "Ice Style: Ice Prison!" she said, sending ice bursting from the ground at Sasuke, who jumped back, sending another fireball at her, which she blocked with an ice wall.
Naruto barely dodged a punch from Mizore, who took advantage of the icy terrain to punch him into a ice wall.
"Naruto!" Kakashi exclaimed, running toward him, going through hand signs. "Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!" he said, sending a water dragon at Mizore, the dragon falling apart before reaching Mizore.
"Sensei, there's something weird about their armor!" Naruto said, standing back to back with Kakashi.
"Yeah. Be careful. It's chakra armor created by the ninja in the Land of Snow," Kakashi said.
"Chakra armor?" Naruto asked.
"But it's definitely a lot stronger than it used to be," Kakashi said.
"So you remember," Nadare said. "The armor increases the chakra within the body, strengthening a handful of the more useful jutsu. A chakra barrier gathers around us as well, able to absorb the chakra of our adversaries. As a result, ninjutsu and genjutsu are useless against us." He then ran through hand signs. "Ice Style: Dragon vs Tiger!"
Kakashi grabbed Naruto and dodged, knowing what the jutsu could do from his battles with Dante.
Yukie completely froze up as Mizore sped toward her, firing ropes from his gauntlet, wrapping them around her, though Sakura quickly severed them, standing in front of him.
"Outta the way, little girl!" Mizore said as he moved to hit her, only for Naruto to intercept him, knocking him to the ground. "You little brat!" he yelled, charging at Naruto, who stopped his punch cold, and the second punch as well, holding Mizore in place, his eyes blood red with slitted pupils. "What is this chakra?" he thought.
"Princess, we've got to get out of here!" Sandayu said.
"I won't," Yukie said.
"You must go now! Your life is..." Sandayu said.
"I don't care if I die!" Yukie exclaimed, cutting him off. "I won't go back to the Land of Snow!"
"We don't have time for this!" Naruto said before getting tossed aside.
Mizore launched his gauntlet hand at Yukie to grab her, but Sakura intercepted the hand and was tossed aside and knocked out.
"Sakura-chan!" Naruto yelled, growling as he summoned his One-Tailed Version 1 chakra cloak and charging at Mizore, punching him into a cliff.
Kakashi ran toward them, intent on aiding.
Nadare ran through hand signs. "Ice Style: White Whale Jutsu!" he said, an ice whale emerging in front of Kakashi to stop him.
"Okay, that was impressive. Not Dante's caliber, but impressive nonetheless," Kakashi said, his Sharingan uncovered. "Guys, get everyone out of here!" he ordered, running through hand signs. "Ice Style: White Whale Jutsu!" he said, making an ice whale to take out Nadare's as his squad carried everyone else to the ship.
"Sakura-chan, please be okay!" Naruto thought, looking at the unconscious girl in his arms.
Once everyone was on the ship and back on course, Naruto took Sakura to a cabin and lay her on a bunk before sitting down beside her, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear, smiling at how peaceful she looked.
"Let me have a look," Lan Fan said as she entered, pushing Naruto aside and looking over Sakura's arm, which had been wounded by her landing. "She'll be fine. She just needs to rest," she assured Naruto as she applied healing chakra to the wound.
Naruto sighed in relief as he watched Lan Fan work.
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Sakura woke several hours later, seeing the cabin before noticing that her hand felt warm. Looking down, she saw Naruto's head lieing beside her, his hand maintaining a secure hold on hers. She couldn't help but blush at the sight.
"He hasn't left your side for anything, even food," a voice said.
Whipping her head around, Sakura relaxed when she saw Kakashi. "He's been here since I got brought in here?"
Kakashi nodded. "He brought you in, and refused point blank to leave your side."
Sakura blushed a bit darker and looked at her blond teammate, rubbing the back of his hand with her thumb, making a smile appear on his face. "He really cares about me, huh?"
"Yes, he does," Kakashi said, leaving the room to give them some privacy.
Sakura smiled at Naruto, leaning down and giving him a small kiss on the cheek. "Thank you for caring about me, Naruto-kun," she whispered, before he started mumbling.
"Sakura-chan, you're so beautiful. I'd give you the world if you wanted it," Naruto muttered, still sleeping.
Sakura blushed again. "Wow, he's so devoted to me," she thought, giving his hand a light squeeze, which he returned.
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The next day, they arrived in the Land of Snow, and after learning of Yukie really being the princess of the Land of Snow, and that her uncle was after them, agreed to continue the mission. They headed toward a rebel hideout, stopping so that several guys could take leaks.
"Our hideout's not far. Just through this tunnel," Sandayu said once they were underway again.
"This is a big tunnel," Naruto said.
"Years ago, a railroad ran through here," Sandayu said.
"Railroad?" Fu asked.
"It's iced over by now. But dig far enough and you'll find the tracks lieing there still," Sandayu said.
Once they left the tunnel, the crew started setting up their equipment, when a problem was discovered.
"Yukie's up and vanished again!" Makino's assistant exclaimed.
"What?" Makino demanded.
"Fan out and look for her! Radio in if you find her!" Kakashi ordered.
"Got it!" the rest of the ninja said, heading out to find her.
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Yukie's running was interrupted when she tripped and fell down a hill, finding an annoying face looking down at her when she stood. "Geez. How long are you gonna run from your fate?" Naruto asked before reaching for his radio. "This is Naruto. I found her."
"Copy that," Kakashi said. "Everyone back to the convoy."
Naruto picked Yukie up and started heading back toward the group.
"Why do you keep coming for me?" Yukie asked.
"It's my mission," Naruto said. "You can run, but you can't hide."
"Whatever," Yukie said as they reached the convoy.
Fu's head snapped toward the tunnel. "Those Snow ninja from before are heading this way," he said as the ice on the path melted, revealing the train tracks.
"What is that?" Makino asked.
"Chakra running through the rails, melting the ice," Fu said.
"Everyone hide! They mustn't find you!" Sandayu yelled as he ran up the slope.
"You heard him! Everyone hide!" Lan Fan barked, prompting the crew to start moving for cover.
Soon after everyone had taken cover, a train came out of the tunnel, stopping next to the slope.
"Is this the place?" a man asked.
"Yes. We're sure of it," Nadare said as a number of large logs came down the slope and impacted on the train, only slightly jarring it.
Looking up, Doto saw the ones he sought.
"Hear me, Doto! We've waited a long time for this day of reckoning to come!" Sandayu yelled. "Sandayu Asada and 50 loyal warriors stand before you to avenge our great fallen leader, Lord Sosetsu!On this day you will grieve no more!" he proclaimed, drawing cheers from his men.
"What's that fool doing? He's no match for them!" Fu asked from his hiding spot as Sandayu and his men charged down the slope toward Doto's train.
"Kill them all," Doto said, prompting turrets and panels to deploy and begin rapid firing salvos of kunai, quickly bringing death to the rebels.
Lan Fan looked away for a moment. Even as a kunoichi of the Mist, where such bloodbaths were encouraged when attacking, she had never seen such complete and total genocide. Once the salvos stopped, Lan Fan saw that Sandayu, while his men were dead, was still standing, albeit on his last legs. He had been hit in several spots and was badly bleeding. Her medical mind estimated he'd be dead within minutes without medical attention, and if he wasn't finished off. Which a single salvo aimed at him was intended for.
Right before the salvo hit, a green barrier rose around Sandayu, the kunai salvo bouncing harmlessly off it, followed by Sasuke racing across the area while throwing a bomb kunai at the train, damaging it.
While they did that, Fu dropped one of his spiders onto the small peak above the train and made a hand sign. "Metsu!" he said, detonating the spider and causing an avalanche to start burying the train, which had to ditch all but one car to get away.
After the danger passed, the ninja approached Sandayu, who was slumped against the side of the barrier.
Sakura made a one handed hand sign. "Kai!" she said, dispelling the barrier, allowing herself and Lan Fan to reach Sandayu and start healing him while the rest of them looked over the dead.
"How cruel," Fu muttered, bowing his head and giving the dead men a silent prayer.
"Sakura, I've got Sandayu. Give the rest proper burials," Lan Fan said.
"Right," Sakura said, running through hand signs. "Earth Style: Stone Plate Coffin!" she said, having the earth cover the dead men and pull them underground, the bloodstained snow and fallen weapons being the only sign that there had been bloodshed.
"That's what comes of never giving up," Koyuki said bitterly, getting the attention of the others. "If they hadn't stood up to Doto then none of this would have happened."
"You could at least show some respect for the dead!" Naruto said. "They gave their lives for a cause they believed in!"
"Don't you get it?" Koyuki asked. "Spring doesn't come to this country! Our hearts have frozen with the cold!"
"Aren't you the only one with the power to change that?" Fu asked. "At least, that's what Sandayu believes anyway."
"You're all a bunch of idiots!" Koyuki snapped.
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Doto looked at his underlings. "Alright. We're going to abduct Koyuki and her pink haired escort."
"Why the escort as well, milord?" Fubuki asked.
"You saw how that blond boy reacted when Mizore knocked her out. If we use his apparent devotion to her against him, then he'll be more inclined to cooperate in the event that the Hex Crystal that Koyuki is carrying is a fake," Doto said.
"Crafty," Nadare said.
"Now, let's do it," Doto said.
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The ninja looked up as a blimp rose from the valley next to them, the train car from earlier attached to the balloon. Taking advantage of the surprise, the snow ninja took the opportunity to quickly grab Koyuki and Sakura. Sakura tried to fight them off until Nadare slapped a device onto her belly, over her chakra coils, that made her scream in agony as it absorbed her chakra.
Naruto's blood boiled as Sakura's screams reached his ears, but before he could act to save her and Koyuki, the blimp took off out of reach. "SAKURA-CHANNNNNN!" he screamed at the retreating blimp.
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Sakura glared at Doto as she started molding chakra in her wrists to break her restraints, only for the device on her belly to suck it up rather painfully, making her scream.
Doto chuckled. "By all means continue struggling. That device completely seals away your chakra."
Sakura's glare turned into a smirk.
"What are you smiling about?" Doto asked.
"My blond haired teammate is very protective of me, and is no doubt plotting how to give you an extremely painful death," Sakura said.
"He's no match for us," Doto said, turning to Koyuki. "Now, Koyuki, hand over the Hex Crystal."
Koyuki took her necklace off and handed it to Doto, who looked it over before crushing it in his hand.
"It's a fake," Doto said. "Fortify the castle defenses. No doubt the kunoichi's team will be coming, and bring the crystal with them.
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Naruto was absolutely livid as he started walking in the direction the blimp went.
"Naruto, calm down. We will save them," Kakashi said.
"They kidnapped Sakura-chan. I will kill those guys while I rescue her!" Naruto snarled as he started transforming into the Nine-Tails state, his murderous intent scaring the film crew as he entered the version 2 form, growing six tails. "Snow ninja... PREPARE TO DIEEEEE!" he screamed as he grew the Nine-Tails' arm bones, shoulder blades, spine, and skull from the chakra cloak.
"NARUTO!" Kakashi yelled as said Jinchuriki ran off toward Doto's castle. "Let's go!" he barked, going after Naruto, followed by Sasuke, Fu, and Lan Fan.
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The Snow ninja grunts were starting to get bored, waiting for some action and bitching about the cold. Though one was telling his buddy about his girlfriend.
"When I get home, I'm gonna ask her to marry me," he said before a roar rent the air. "What the hell was that?"
One guy got ripped in half before any of them could react. "SON OF A BITCH!" the guy next to the dead one screamed before his head went flying.
"Intruder!" one guy yelled before Naruto ripped the guy's skull out and started beating him with it. "THIS DOESN'T SEEM PHYSICALLY POSSIBLE!" the guy screamed before he was killed.
Naruto roared as kunai were fired at him, only to bounce off his chakra cloak. "DIE!" he screamed as he started moving again, so fast that the Snow ninja couldn't keep sight of him with their kunai rifles, and were quickly slain before Naruto moved into the castle, running straight toward where he felt Doto's malice coming from. "DOTO!" he roared as he burst into the throne room. "WHERE IS SHE?" he screamed.
Doto remained calm despite the transformed, murderous Jinchuriki standing before him. "So this is how you defeated the guards. You're a Jinchuriki."
Naruto was about to jump at Doto before a light fell from him and rolled on the floor before burning away, revealing a tag with the word "suppress" in the center of a sealing array, followed by the Nine-Tails cloak vanishing. Before he could react, Naruto was restrained and a chakra sealing device was placed on him, draining him of his chakra.
"Take him away," Doto said as Naruto passed out.
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Naruto awoke in a cherry blossom field. "What the? Where am I?" he asked before he heard a voice.
"Hey there, sleepyhead," Sakura said as she gave his nose a gentle flick with her finger.
"Sakura-chan, where are we?" Naruto asked before he noticed that he and Sakura looked much older, around 23.
Sakura giggled. "Silly, you brought me here for our date," she said, her left hand curled into a loose fist as she held it against her cheek while she giggled.
Naruto gasped lightly as he saw the rings on her ring finger: a simple diamond ring, and an unadorned gold band next to it. Looking at his own left hand, he found a gold ring on the ring finger.
"You okay, honey?" Sakura asked, feeling his forehead. "Did you forget? It's our three year anniversary. Remember? This field is where you asked me to marry you. I was so happy when you asked that I cried."
Naruto slowly recovered from the shock. "Wait! There's something important that I need to do. But what is it?" he thought before Sakura pushed him onto his back as she wrapped her arms around his neck, making him blush as he felt a certain pair of soft objects pressed into his chest. "She really filled out in all the right places," he thought.
"I did this when you proposed too," Sakura said. "We started making out, then you took us home and we made love," she said before pressing her lips to his.
Naruto was shocked again but quickly kissed back, running his hands on her back, all other thoughts quickly leaving his mind.
"Naruto! Naruto!" a voice in his head yelled. Naruto thought the voice was vaguely familiar, but ignored it. "Naruto! Wake up!" the voice yelled again, but was once again ignored as Naruto and Sakura rolled so that he was on top, trailing kisses on her neck, liking the moan that came from her throat. "DAMMIT NARUTO! WAKE UP!" the voice roared as a shock ran through Naruto's body, making him pull away from Sakura.
"What's wrong, honey?" Sakura asked, concerned for Naruto's health.
"None of this is real! You're in a genjutsu!" the voice yelled as the world vanished.
Naruto opened his eyes again, finding himself hanging from a ceiling in a dungeon cell, his feet shackled as well.
"You were placed in a genjutsu, but I broke you from it," the Nine-Tails said. "It will take time for me to recover from breaking you out of a genjutsu with my chakra locked away. Once I recover, I will destroy the device that binds your chakra."
Naruto nodded, looking into the cell across from him, seeing Sakura in an identical set up, probably under a genjutsu as well. Of the same sort that he had been in he supposed, given that a huge blush adorned her cheeks, and she was moaning lightly. "Sakura-chan!" he muttered, pulling on his wrist manacles, trying to summon some chakra, only for it to be painfully ripped from him.
"Patience. I require only a few minutes of rest, then I can free your chakra, and you can rescue the princess and your vixen," the Nine-Tails said, the vixen comment making Naruto blush, but he nodded, waiting.
"Serves you right," Koyuki said from her cell next to Sakura's.
"You too," Naruto retorted. "No spring. You said there was no spring. You gave up on your dreams didn't you?"
"Dreams don't come true, kid," Koyuki said.
"I'm a Jinchuriki," Naruto said. "You know what life is like for us?"
Koyuki shook her head. "No. I don't"
"Basically, it's a living hell. Most people think we're demons in human form, treating us like vermin at worst, and weapons at best. But we're not demons. We're living, breathing prisons for demons. The Tailed Beasts," Naruto said.
"How many of you are there?" Koyuki asked.
"There were nine of us. But one of us got her beast extracted, and it killed her. Looks like I'm gonna have to live my life watching my back. Cause the one's who did it are a group of criminals," Naruto said. "No one ever cared about me before. I used to think there was no place in this world for me. But I still found friends. I kept at it and didn't give up. And good things happened. When you give up, your dreams and everything else... they're gone! I'll show you that your father was that strong!"
"I'm ready," the Nine-Tails said, sending a huge surge of its chakra into the chakra sealing device, the pure demon chakra overloading and destroying it.
Naruto summoned the version 1 Nine-Tails cloak with a single tail and broke his manacles off. "Now to get you two out," he said, ripping the bars out of his cell and jumping across the gap to Sakura's cell, ripping the bars off as a guard ran at him, only to get his neck snapped and his keys stolen. Naruto got rid of the chakra cloak and unlocked Sakura's manacles before taking her in his arms to let the Nine-Tails start channeling its chakra through her to get to her chakra seal. The chakra going in small amounts to avoid hurting her. The chakra seal actively absorbed the chakra, shocking Sakura and making her whimper in Naruto's arms, hugging him tightly. "It's okay. I'm here, Sakura-chan," he whispered, rubbing circles on her back. The device overloaded and broke after a couple of minutes, allowing Naruto to remove it as Sakura opened her eyes. "Are you alright, Sakura-chan?" he asked.
Sakura blushed as soon as she realized she was in his arms. "I-I'm fine!" she said quickly, rubbing her arms in an attempt to warm up.
Naruto unzipped his jacket and put it around Sakura's shoulders.
"Naruto-kun, you'll freeze without your jacket!" Sakura said as she put her arms in the sleeves.
"It's alright, Sakura-chan. I'll be fine," Naruto said, gesturing to his long sleeves. "Let's get the princess and get outta here.
Sakura nodded. "Right!" she said as an explosion rocked the castle. "Must be the others."
"Yeah," Naruto said, summoning his chakra cloak and ripping the bars off Koyuki's cell and freeing her of her manacles. "Let's go!" he said, heading for the lift with them and heading to the upper levels, where Kakashi intercepted them. "Kakashi-sensei!"
"Sorry to keep you waiting," Kakashi said, tossing Naruto a hip pouch and Sakura a medical pouch, and cloaks for both of them. "You look alright, princess."
"Yeah," Koyuki said. "You switched my Hex Crystal for a fake without telling me, didn't you?"
"Yeah. I apologize for that. But I figured it was what he was after," Kakashi said, pulling out the crystal and tossing it to Naruto. "Keep it safe, Naruto."
Naruto nodded as he put the crystal in his hip pouch. "Alright. Let's take down Doto."
"Naruto, you can't beat Doto!" Koyuki said.
Naruto just looked at her and gave her one of his heart warming smiles. "I'll definitely beat him. Just have a little faith in me," he said as Doto dropped onto the catwalk unexpected behind Sakura, who drew a kunai and stabbed him as she turned, quick as a flash.
"Big mistake," Sakura said before his hand closed around her throat, choking her as he pulled his robe off, revealing black chakra armor beneath it.
"Now then, Jinchuriki, hand over the Hex Crystal, or I'll snap her pretty little neck," Doto said, lightly squeezing Sakura's neck to make a point as she struggled.
Naruto glared as red chakra started swirling around him.
"Stop!" Doto said. "You change... she dies." The threat made the Nine-Tails settle down.
Naruto reached into his hip pouch and pulled out the Hex Crystal.
"Naruto no!" Kakashi said.
"I have to," Naruto said, placing the crystal in Doto's waiting hand.
Doto grinned sinisterly as he threw Sakura into Naruto before grabbing Koyuki and fleeing the castle as it collapsed.
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After getting out of the castle, Naruto entered his three-tailed version 2 form and ran in the direction of Doto's malice.
"There he goes again..." Kakashi muttered. "Sakura, go back Naruto up. Fu, Lan Fan, Sasuke, we're going after Nadare's group."
"Right!" Sakura said, running off in the direction Naruto went in, finding a bunker in her path after a while. "Might as well keep Doto from getting backup. I need to blow off some steam anyway," she muttered as she walked over to the solid steel door.
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The snow ninja guarding the bunker door looked up as it started bending and groaning. "We're in a perfect ambush position," one said as they took positions
"Can you ambush someone who's trying to punch through a steel door to get to you?" another one asked as the door was finally punched off its hinges into the opposite wall, revealing a grinning Sakura.
"Okay, so who's first?" Sakura asked with a grin as she cracked her knuckles.
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A grunt looked up as the alarm sounded. "What's going on?" he asked before Sakura's arm shot through the wall next to him and grabbed his throat, slamming him into the wall and kicked the wall segment into another wall, crushing the grunt.
Another one tried to shoot her with a kunai gun, only to be disarmed, punched in the gut, thrown into another grunt's nuts headfirst, and punched through the wall with the other guy.
Sakura grinned as she headed toward the other grunts, slamming two of their heads together, punching one in the gut as the other tried to shoot her, only to get punched in the chest, breaking several ribs, before she kicked another one in the head, breaking his jaw, disarming another one, punching him in the gut, delivering several punches to his face and chest before kneeing him in the gut, forcing him to the ground, grabbing his leg, punching him in the nuts, and kicking him away before grabbing another guy and snapping his neck. "You guys rely way too much on that armor. It may protect you from ninjutsu and genjutsu, but it doesn't look like it does the same for a good old fashioned ass kicking."
"Hey sweet cheeks!" a grunt yelled as he threw a kunai at her, which she dodged, and drew a sword. "Bring it on!"
Sakura grinned as she started walking toward the grunt, only for a huge crate to drop between them.
"Hey! I was supposed to distract her!" the grunt yelled from the other side, prompting Sakura to turn and see another one on a pile of crates.
"You ratted me out you son of a bitch!" the grunt yelled as he threw a bomb kunai, which Sakura dodged. "Oh shit!" he yelled before Sakura rushed him, elbowing him in the face, grabbing his leg, smashing him into the floor several times, and throwing him into the crate, snapping his neck as several others came at her.
Sakura just ran at them and disarmed one, throwing him by his own weapon, elbowed another in the gut, hit him with the kunai gun, kicked another in the chest, caving his chest in as he flew into a wall, kicked another in the nuts to knock him down, and took aim at his head, pulling the trigger, only for it to be out of ammo. "No prob," she said, hitting him in the head with it to snap his neck before a crate dropped onto her.
"We got her!" a grunt exclaimed before Sakura started lifting it up, still grinning.
"Monster strength, dipshits!" Sakura said as she threw it at them, crushing them.
"You killed my friends, you little bitch!" the sword wielding one from earlier yelled as he rushed her, slashing at her head, which was dodged and countered with a punch to the face. Sakura dodged an overhead slash and kneed him in the gut, punched him in the face, dodged a stab, grabbed the sword holding hand's wrist, twisted it, kicked him in the knee to break it, and kicked him in the head, breaking his neck and knocking him away from her, and leaving his sword in her hand. She then grabbed another guy and ran the sword through his heart before throwing him into a wall. She then kicked another attacker in the nuts and slammed him headfirst into the ground, leaving his gray matter trickling out of his skull. "It's been fun, but I have somewhere to be," she said before throwing a bomb kunai into a crate pile full of paper bombs, blowing them up and killing more guards, though she took a moment to position a concrete barrier for one to land on crotch first, sliding off in pain as she left.
At that moment, the leader of the group came into the room. "What the hell happened here? I go to the can for five minutes and you let the place fall apart?" he asked as he ran over to the sole survivor of Sakura's rampage. "What the hell happened?"
"Pink haired demon of death, and pain!" the grunt said in a voice that was about ten octaves higher than normal.
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Sasuke and Lan Fan dodged kunai that caused ice spikes to come up, courtesy of Fubuki.
"20° left in five seconds, 30 meters out!" Lan Fan said, throwing kunai with wires attached that covered an area between some tree branches while Mizore was speeding toward Fu, who started throwing kunai at him.
"Come on, don't make me laugh!" Mizore said as the kunai were deflected by his armor and he jumped off his snowboard, finding that the kunai had been carrying innumerable paper tags, which now surrounded him.
"Now... you're in range," Fu said as he made a hand sign. "Metsu!" The collective explosions combined into one huge one that blew Fubuki into the wires that Lan Fan had set up, knocking the wings off her armor.
Fubuki broke the wires and jumped back. "You're dealing with the ninja of the Snow here! It'll take more than that to bring us down!"
"Probably," Sasuke said as he appeared behind her. "Lions Barrage!" he said as he grabbed her and subjected her to his original combo and knocked her toward the ground, where Mizore stumbled from the smoke of the explosion, right before Fubuki collided with him. After their armor seemed to react, it blew up, killing them both. "What just happened?" Sasuke asked.
"Their armor must have reacted in some negative way," Fu said.
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Elsewhere, Kakashi stood on a cliff opposite Nadare.
"You really think you've got a shot? Maybe you outta turn tail and run like last time," Nadare taunted.
"I didn't have a choice last time. But this time, I can show you one of my original techniques," Kakashi said, making hand signs and grabbing his wrist, his hand crackling with electricity.
Nadare grinned and made hand signs as well. "Ice Style: Wolf Fang Avalanche!" he said, forming snow on the slope next to them into wolves as Kakashi charged, jumping over several as one charged at him.
"Lightning Blade!" Kakashi exclaimed, going right through the wolf with his attack and hitting the power source on Nadare's armor, damaging it.
Nadare jumped back, still grinning. "Almost had me there," he said as the avalanche from his jutsu knocked them from the cliff, Kakashi grabbing onto him from behind. "What!"
"Even without ninjutsu and genjutsu, a ninja always has taijutsu! You rely too much on this armor!" Kakashi said before slamming Nadare headfirst into the ground, killing him.
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Doto landed in front of an altar in the center of a ring of cliffs and tossed Koyuki aside as he walked up to it, inserting the Hex Crystal into a key hole, which made it light up and spread to the cliffs, making them glow. After several minutes, the glowing ceased. "I don't see it. The treasure, where is it?" he asked as the ice and snow started melting. He and Koyuki both noted the increase in temperature. "A heat generator? This is the hidden treasure of the Kazahana clan?" he asked in disbelief.
"DOTO!" a demonic sounding voice yelled.
Doto turned and saw Naruto charging at him, stopping on the opposite side of the island the altar was on and dispelling his chakra cloak. "You just don't give up!" Doto said, running through hand signs. "Ice Style: Black Dragon Blizzard!" he said, thrusting his hand forward, forming the ice into a black dragon that flew at Naruto, knocking him into the air.
"NARUTO!" Koyuki screamed as Naruto landed hard. "That's enough! If you don't stop, he's going to kill you!"
Naruto slowly got to his feet. "I told you. If you just have a little faith in me. I promise you, I won't lose!"
Doto glared and ran at Naruto, intending to take his head off with a punch, until Sakura intercepted him and threw a chakra enhanced punch at him, damaging his armor. He quickly punched her away, her landing in front of Naruto.
"Sakura-chan!" Naruto exclaimed as he held Sakura.
"Naruto-kun... I fractured his armor," Sakura said, her vision blurring. "The rest... is up... to you..." she said before slipping into unconsciousness.
Naruto glared at Doto and made a familiar hand sign. "Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu!" he exclaimed, making a large number of Shadow Clones and having them attack Doto.
"Come on you little half wit!" Doto said, running through hand signs. "Twin Dragon Blizzard!" he yelled, sending two ice dragons out, forming a black cyclone that took out all the clones. "This rediculous little fuss is over!"
"Not yet it's not!" Naruto snapped, forming a Giant Rasengan with the aid of a Shadow Clone while another clone held Sakura. "I'll end this," he said, running toward Doto with the clone as the sun rose over the mountains, reflecting off the heat generator plates and making the Rasengan glow with rainbow colors.
Fu, Lan Fan, Kakashi, and Sasuke arrived in time to see it. "Rainbow chakra! Just like in the movie!" Lan Fan said, dazzled by it.
Doto took a swing at Naruto, only to hit the clone, dispelling it.
"Giant Rasengan!" Naruto yelled, slamming it into Doto, soon overloading his chakra armor and sending him flying into one of the generator plates, cracking the layer of ice on it. As his body fell from it, some of the ice did as well. The effect was immediate. The country began thawing, ice quickly giving way to grass, cold giving way to warmth. Naruto's Shadow Clone carried Sakura to him and dispelled after handing her to him.
The sunlight on her face made Sakura stir. Opening her eyes, she blushed as she found herself in Naruto's arms. "Um, Naruto-kun, you can put me down now."
Naruto blushed and set her on her feet, at which she gasped in pain. "Sakura-chan! What's wrong?"
Sakura's hand glowed with green chakra as she ran it over her chest. "Doto's punch cracked four of my ribs," she said as she started healing the cracks.
"Believe in the future. If you do, the spring will surely come," a voice said.
Looking up, the group saw a giant recording of the former daimyo, Sosetsu Kazahana, and a young Koyuki.
"What will you do when it comes, Koyuki?" Sosetsu asked.
"I'm going to become... a princess," the young Koyuki said.
"Oh? What kind of princess?" Sosetsu asked.
"Let's see. One's who strong. And who's kind. And most of all, one who fights for justice!" young Koyuki said.
"That's some dream," Sosetsu said with a chuckle. "Well, as long as you believe in your dream, and never give up, one day you'll be that princess." He then put the Hex Crystal around Koyuki's neck. "You can see her can't you? There's a beautiful princess standing right there in front of you," he said, looking at what seemed to have been the camera with a somehow knowing look.
"No way. Did he know this would happen?" Fu asked no one in particular.
"No telling," Sakura said as she finished with her ribs with Lan Fan's help, though she remained in Naruto's arms.
"But, I have sort of a problem. There's something else I want to be," young Koyuki said.
"Really? What's that?" Sosetsu asked.
"An actress!" young Koyuki said, causing Sosetsu to laugh with her.
Koyuki laughed too, shedding tears for the first time in years.
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After Koyuki was inaugurated as the Land of Snow's daimyo and Fu got an autograph for Rin, the group bade her and Sandayu goodbye and returned to the Leaf Village, where Fu and Lan Fan parted ways with them to return to the Mist Village. Once they delivered their report to Tsunade, Squad 7 went their separate ways: Kakashi to the memorial stone, Sasuke to his house, and Naruto and Sakura to her house to hang out and eat.
Sasuke was seething as he entered his home. Once again, he'd been outdone by Naruto and Sakura, who he still refused to believe were stronger than him.
"So, what's your answer?" Sakon asked as he and the rest of the Sound Four revealed themselves.
Sasuke smirked. "I'm going with you."
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Finally. Another chapter done. Longest one yet if I'm not mistaken. Hope you enjoy it. For those who care, Naruto beating a guy to death with his own skull, and Sakura's rampage in the bunker, are references to Red vs Blue.