A/N: Ooh yes, folks – another relatively fast update! (pumps fist into air)
First of all, MASSIVE thank yous for those heart-warming review! (HUGS and cupcakes) You can't even begin to imagine how much they meant to me. (Those who haven't received your responses, take a look underneath the chappy, yeah?) (grins)
Awkay, as I'm even more impatient than usual with a nice lil' flue incoming, LET'S GO! I really hope you'll enjoy the ride.
WARNING: Due to technical / "lack of time" –difficulties, this chapter hasn't been proofread as well as usually. It was either this or making you wait for almost a full week, so… (winces) I hope this doesn't stink too badly, though! This chapter MAY be re-posted later on.
/ I have been waiting all of my life
for you to come along and make everything alright
My body's shaking right through my bones,
so take me by the hand please dont leave me here alone.
And I wonder if you know just how I feel, I feel. yeah And I wonder how I know if this is real, is real. Cause I need you to save me, just please save me, save me.
Cause I want you to save me, just please save me, save me.
Cause I need you to save me, just please save me, save me.
Cause I want you to save me, just please save me, save me. /
(Darren Styles: "Save Me")
Madara had already almost sunken into eternal darkness from blood loss when steps suddenly approached him. He managed to move his head just enough to see his young apprentice looking down at him with eyes he'd never seen before.
Before any words were voiced, they both knew exactly how this would end.
" You…" He coughed hard, wincing when blood filled his mouth. " That kunai…"
The girl nodded, her expression not faltering. " I gave it to Naruto on purpose – I knew this would happen. And I also made sure you wouldn't have time to recover from being poisoned. You needed to be ready for him." Unable to do anything else, he watched while she pulled out a long, unevenly edged knife he didn't remember seeing in her hands before this. Her burgundy eyes gained a shade of blood when meeting his. " Did you really think I'd never find out what you did to my father – that its because of you he died, sacrificed everything? That you were the one who tore apart my family?"
He smirked, although it hurt almost more than he could bear. " You've always… been a sharp… student."
The girl's eyes seemed to gain a foreign shade, though it could've as well been his imagination. " I had an excellent teacher."
Blade went down, and from thereon he felt nothing at all.
-
After watching her teacher bleed for a while, the Student got up and walked away without taking a single glance backwards.
There was a lot she needed to do.
CHAPTER 16: Save Me
Hinata had no idea of for how long she'd been running until strength finally drained from her legs, and she stumbled pitiably into muddy ground, fresh tears joining the trails of old ones. She emitted a moan and squeezed her eyes tightly shut.
Useless. Too slow. She'd never…
" Please!" she didn't even realize that she was screaming out loud, with her fists balled so tightly that nails dug into skin. " I… I can't lose him – I don't want to lose him…! Please…!"
She didn't realize it immediately, but that bout of despair had effects she would've never known to even imagine. For the emotions she'd always been told to keep hidden – despair, rage, grief, love – aroused something that'd laid in slumber for far too long.
After the death of her mother, Hinata's father had never talked about the woman. But still, the young Hyuuga knew that the woman had possessed a 'special power' – not as mighty as Byakugan, of course, but significant nonetheless. And that day – just when she needed it the most – she became familiar with that gift.e
She gasped when feeling hot tingling travelling everywhere underneath her skin, and her eyes – by then having obtained a shade of brightest sapphire – flew open. She had absolutely no idea of how it was possible for her to control it so fast, but the new power was immediately familiar to her.
With speed that was far from human she sped off towards horizon, praying from the bottom of her heart that she'd make it on time.
Still lingering fever and injuries left from his battle with Madara slowed Sasuke down, but he nonetheless caught up with Naruto after what felt like an endless run. " Naruto!" he all but howled out in a voice that didn't sound exactly like his. " Stop, damnit! Trust me – you don't want to live with what you're about to do for the rest of your life! So stop!"
The his utter amazement the boy indeed did halt, red glow on pale skin growing so strong it chilled him. Unnaturally red eyes turned to look towards him. " If you're trying to save your little friend, you're much too late, Uchiha."
He activated his Sharingan, gritting teeth at how much such gathering of strength hurt. " No", he hissed. " It's not."
The cruel, inhuman sneer he met definitely wasn't Naruto's. " So that is the best you can offer against me? You really are amusing." The creature's expression then changed. " You want to save him?" Red eyes bore straight into his. " Then come and get him."
His eyes narrowed.
If this was the only way…
He attacked.
For several minutes Neji was absolutely sure that his heart would jump right out of his chest. Everything felt surreal.
Gaara's body in his arms, quite clearly no life left in it anymore… Kikyo stood before him, infuriating look of pleasure upon her face…
Without him having any control over them some tears leaked out while he pulled Gaara even more tightly against him. " You killed him…", he hissed, sounding like a rattlesnake preparing for an attack. " You… fucking killed him."
The girl's eyes showed no remorse while she shrugged. " You're a ninja, Hyuuga Neji. You should already know that possible casualties are nothing personal."
His head kept spinning and buzzing.
There… There was no sense in this… Gaara, he couldn't be… This couldn't be…
And then, slowly yet surely, it dawned on him, and his teary eyes flashed with such hope he'd never experienced before.
This – all of this – was nothing but an illusion.
Kikyo's eyebrow arched. " Now how about this – I knew I should've never underestimated a Hyuuga. Perhaps you're worthy of your mighty family name after all."
He emitted a gasp, as though he'd been rising from underwater, when the mirage shattered, allowing him to become face to face with reality. Not that real world would've been the slightest bit more pleasant.
Something that went between electric jolt and ice cold water crossed his whole body when he saw Gaara laying on the floor, blood escaping from several wounds. His eyes flamed when rising towards Kikyo. " What the hell did you do to him?!" He'd have to get Gaara out of here, fast, before…
" You took too long", the girl stated as though it'd been the simplest thing in the entire world. " I needed something to amuse myself with."
As from then, he didn't think, he didn't reason, only felt so much that it nearly suffocated him.
And he attacked.
For some beats Ino was completely paralyzed when feeling the steel against her throat, and watching Sai sneak inevitably towards a trap. But then – with all her training kicking in with a dizzying burst – she moved.
The man threatening her – somewhat old and pierced – was taken by surprise at first, then grinned and met her attacks. " Well how about this… A little girl can fight."
From somewhere quite far, a sickening sound of metal piercing flesh carried into her ears along with the faintest gasp, and it took her all to hold back tears while she attacked again. She bit her lip, only found strength from the taste of blood that came when her teeth sunk into flesh. " Let me show you just how well, asshole."
Her kunai finding a perfect angle she managed to strike the man's cheek, and watched for a blink with stun how thick, dark red blood seeped out. The man also remained perfectly still – until he started to laugh, loud and hard. She shivered when watching him lift one finger and take a taste of the blood. " You really want to save that friend of yours, don't you?" he mused out loud, sounding amused. He outstretched his arms, weapons held in both of them, and positioned himself so that he was blocking the path leading into the hallway where Sai was. " Go ahead and storm past me, then. But hurry – time's running out."
She knew perfectly how dangerous brash attacks could be. But she realized that at the moment she didn't have a choice – it was either this or losing Sai, and the decision was easy to make.
She rushed forth, her fingers already moving in all but hopeless attempt to match the man. She was a flash from finishing her attack when something struck her with a breathtaking force from behind, bringing a surge of such pain that she became completely immobile and emitted a strange, small sound. Very slowly, her gaze travelled down to meet a sword that'd went all the way through her from side. Her chest hiked unnaturally while there was a 'puff' when the clone that'd been stood behind her disappeared.
Oh shit…
She fell down, all her muscles failing.
Her opponent sneered, watching her struggle for consciousness. " You tried hard, I must give you that." The man approached her with lazy steps, pulling out a sword. " Now, it's time to bring an end to this fooling around."
With all her might she tried to will her muscles into moving, but blood loss had already dimmed her mind so that she could do nothing but watch. World started to close around her.
No!, she tried to scream. Not yet, not before…
The sword fell towards her – only to become stopped by another one.
Her head agreed to move just enough to allow her a relatively clear visage of a familiar person. She gasped, dimming eyes widening a bit. " … Sai …"
The boy had severe wounds and he was bleeding, badly. But he was nonetheless standing there with a barely noticeable scowl upon his face, trying…
Her eyes blurred, and based on all the stinging in them she suspected it wasn't only because awareness was fleeing.
Don't…
Her opponent arched an eyebrow. " Aren't you a tough one."
Sai's eyes flashed in a way she'd never seen before. " Don't… touch her."
She tried with all her might, but eventually darkness swallowed her in whole.
The last thing she heard was metal screeching.
Adrenaline flooded through Shino's veins while his mind quickly measured up the opponent holding a blade on his throat. After a couple of seconds he glanced towards the direction of a cave from which smoke was now rising – directly from where he knew Suzume to be. And he made his decision.
He didn't even have to move before he felt the bugs inside him comply his soundless demands. In a matter of seconds the attacker – a male ninja from Kirigakure at the age of about thirty, as he discovered when peering over his shoulder – screamed out loud with pain he could barely imagine, then slumped to the ground, insects quite visibly moving underneath his skin.
At that moment he decided to stop wasting time and ran, hoping desperately that it wasn't too late already.
What he found when following the smoke into now completely shattered hallway was utter disaster. He coughed loudly when dust tickled his throat and lungs. " Suzume! Can you hear me? Where are you?" he managed to wheeze out, heart starting to hammer as though it'd guessed what was coming. " S…!"
Everything – even something as simple as breath – stopped into his throat when smoke finally cleared out enough to allow him to see.
There – slumped to the ground with her back towards him, half buried by her own blood, debris and dust – lay Suzume, so very unmoving that his chest immediately tightened.
No…!
It took him a couple of moments to convince his legs into working and his mind into believing that the sight before him was no illusion. But when he was finally able to move, he did so faster than should've been humanly possible.
His muscles lost all strength when he slumped to Suzume's side, placing a trembling hand to her chalk white cheek. " Suzume, wake up, please." His chest had never been as tight as it became when she only moaned a little as response, not opening her eyes. " You're badly hurt – I'm going to get you out of here, okay?"
Just when he'd positioned his hands so that he could've moved her the girl suddenly placed a terrifyingly weak hand to his chest. " Don't." Her by then open eyes were far brighter than they should've been. She then broke into hacking coughs, her hand grabbing one of his as though it'd been her soul lifeline. When she looked back at him there was blood covering the corners of her mouth. His heart nearly stilled at what he found from her gaze. " Please… Don't…" She squeezed her eyes shut for a moment and winced. " … hurts …"
He refused to believe what her eyes were trying to tell him along with her still surprisingly firm touch. " No." He failed to notice how some tears broke from his eyes, running down his cheeks. Almost wincing himself at how her face contorted when he moved her, he pulled her close, as though hoping that feeling his warmth would convince her into holding on. " Sakura, she… she's out there. She can help you, just…" Words failed him, losing their little power when the sight before him started to sink in.
It was then she noticed his tears, and her eyes softened. " Shino…" She managed to crack a thin smile, and judging by how her muscles moved she would've wanted to wipe the moisture away. " Don't cry."
He'd never heard such a sound before that erupted through his throat while he watched the movements of her chest become slower and uneven, barely noticeable.
Please…
Not knowing what else he could've possibly said or done to make her feel better, he placed his lips against hers – softly and tenderly, knowing much too clearly just how precious this kiss was. Her lips were so cold that he shuddered, clinging to her even more tightly. There was so awfully much he wanted to say, but nothing came out.
They broke apart when her body juddered. She didn't manage to speak until after yet another wrenching bout of coughs that tore his heart apart. " It's… okay." He was mildly surprised when she – visibly using every single ounce of strength she had left – placed her fingers weakly against his forehead. He was almost sure that for a moment, there was this strangest sensation of burning in his eyes. " My last… little gift for… you…"
He frowned. " What…?" No further words willed their way out.
In just a couple of seconds Suzume's hand fell, landing on one of his and holding on weakly, the touch telling what she couldn't. ' I love you. You know that, right?' She closed her eyes and allowed her head to fall against his chest, the little strength she'd had disappearing. " … sorry …"
After that, the absolutely only thing he could was watch her pull one more, deep breath and shudder before she fell completely limp in his arms. There was no hope left anymore.
Tears rolled beyond his control while he stared at her, like hoping to somehow resurrect her with his gaze. His lips moved with soundless words.
He didn't have a clear picture of for how long he'd simply sat there holding her until a smooth male voice intruded the fragile moment. " How unfortunate." Whipping his slightly bleary gaze backwards, he met a man with the Akatsuki's cloak, orange hair and chilling eyes. The man gazed at the precious cargo in his arms. " If it offers you any consolation, she was a loyal ninja until the very end."
At that moment, no thoughts of reason could hold him back.
Something he didn't recognize boiling in his veins, he charged for an attack.
Naruto's heart hammered beyond all limitations when Kyuubi snarled while dancing around Sasuke, attacks flying with such speed it took his breath away. Electricity filled the air, along with tremendous amounts of chakra. " I can see you're determined."
To all three of their amazement, Sasuke managed to strike through a heavy blow that sent Kyuubi reeling back some steps. " Unlike you, I have a reason to be."
As response, Kyuubi hurled the Uchiha straight against a tree. For some seconds that felt agonizingly long the boy laid still after hitting the ground, then started to get up – slowly and shakily, but still. Relief flooded over Naruto with such force that he was sure he'd suffocate.
" Naruto…" Sasuke looked at him straight into eyes, quite clearly knowing perfectly that he was still out there, desperately trying to break through. The Uchiha wiped blood from the corner of his mouth, but that didn't diminish the expressiveness of his gaze the slightest. " When I was still with Orochimaru, there was only one thing that kept me sane, and it wasn't the one I'd been expecting." Sound of thousand birds chirping pierced tension filled air when Chidori became activated, making Sasuke's bloodstained form glow with enchanting blue. " And there's no way in hell I'm going to let that thing be taken away."
They whirled around each other again, resulting to both bodies sustaining heavy injuries. Kyuubi's healed easily. " You know, brat…", the demon mused. " I'm not sure if I find this irritating or extremely amusing." Naruto's heart – whole soul, almost – ached when the beast glanced through the raven's injuries. " That's quite pathetic."
Sasuke spat out blood, then snarled. " Do you see me giving up?"
" You're going to die." The words were said so casually and with so little emotion that Naruto whimpered inside his head. " You do understand that, right? You're both going to die."
' Leave him alone, do you hear me you piece of shit?!' his mind screamed, although he was sure no one would listen to him. ' Don't you dare touch him!'
His heart shuddered when he met the look in Sasuke's eyes. " Maybe so. But that's a much better option than this."
He wasn't all that sure why, but he felt satisfied when facing Kyuubi's surprise, almost shock. " Are you really… willing to kill him?"
" No", the raven all but snarled. " And I'll make sure I won't have to."
Kyuubi chuckled, and found his Rasengan so easily that it terrified him. " I'm taking that as a challenge, Uchiha."
He fought with absolutely all there was left of his will, but it wasn't even nearly enough. With him being able to do nothing but watch helplessly, his body stormed towards Sasuke, the twisted mind controlling it having only one goal.
To kill.
While Kakashi's head slowly cleared out from the damage it'd taken when the flood had ran him over, the first thing he met was his opponent. " I must confess that I'm disappointed", the man stated. " I was expecting more of the great Copy-nin from Konoha."
Working faster than either one of them would've expected, his hand moved. A deep wound appeared to the soft skin between two of the other's ribs. " I'm not down yet", he snarled.
The man shrugged. " Maybe not. But let me assure you – you will be soon."
He prepared himself for a fight – only to find that he didn't have to. For just as he'd taken a fighting stance, they felt a force approaching and something he couldn't recognize immediately attacked his opponent, with strength he'd never seen before.
For some seconds he just stared – since there was nothing else he could've done, really – until recognition started to seep through slowly yet surely. Even with all the changes – ominous purplish glow, inhumanly long nails, long hair and now blackish skin… He realized that he knew exactly who the arrival was.
His heart skipped several precious beats.
Rin…?
She'd… Because of him, she had…
The man who'd been fighting him was strong, but by no means enough so to outmatch the Eight Tailed demon. And in what was less than minutes the man had reduced into a blood caked heap.
It was then his muscles finally agreed to move again.
Rin had never killed before. And there was no way he was going to let her get such a burden onto her shoulders because of him.
Even in her current state of mind, the woman shuddered a bit with what felt like pleasure when he wrapped his scratched arms tightly around her, holding her back with all his might. " Rin, stop!" he snarled out, holding on tight despite her resistance. " Stop. He's not going anywhere, and we need his information. So stop – for me."
Slowly but surely the changes faded away, and Rin collapsed towards the ground. He managed to catch her a breath before she would've collided with stones.
Moves uncharacteristically soft, he brushed a strand of hair away from the panting and wincing woman's forehead. " Why did you do that?" His voice carried emotions he didn't bother to hide at that moment. " Why…?"
There was a thin, lopsided smile upon Rin's pained face when she looked up into his eyes. " Aren't you supposed to be a genius?"
Neither of them was entirely sure if it was due to weakness or out of free will, but she slumped forward a beat later, resulting to their lips meeting. They remained frozen for a while, until their lips moved out of their own free will, finally giving in to what they'd been longing after for such a long time.
They'd wasted far too much time already.
Too much.
Their kiss was interrupted without the slightest warning when there was a faint sound of metal, and they pulled apart to learn that the man they'd thought would possibly never rise again was now up with the absolutely last of his strength, holding a long sword on Rin's throat. The man sneered at him through blood. " Move… an inch… and she'd dead. Got that?"
He evaluated his options, in the end coming to a grim conclusion that he had none. Even with all those nearly lethal injuries, that man was fast. Rin would be long gone before he'd complete whatever his mind should come up with.
Therefore he watched – barely managing to restrain his emotions – when the man's fingers danced, then became placed to the top of Rin's head. Rin's eyes looked straight into his – obviously saying ' I'm sorry' – until she screamed at the top of her lungs under something he couldn't even picture, bluish hue taking over her.
What felt like an infinity passed before the man finally pulled his hand away, allowing Rin to fall straight into his arms. The man smirked coldly. " Mission accomplished."
He never saw the man falling to the ground, dead, and turning into dust. There was only one thing his eyes could focus on.
Rin… She was still breathing, albeit shallowly, and when he placed his hand to her chest he found her heart beating slowly. The only sign of physical injuries was a strange, chilling scar that'd appeared to her forehead after the man's handling. But… Her skin was unbearably cold, and her eyes were closed to the world surrounding her. (For some reason, a distant part of him guessed they'd never open again.)
Knowing that there was no one watching, he dared to run a hand down her cheek. " Rin?" Please…
She didn't respond. And for some reason, he felt more alone than ever in his life.
Temari's world absolutely stilled when she watched Shikamaru fall down to the cold ground, laying so limp that it terrified her. It wasn't until much later she realized it was she screaming, over and over again. " SHIKAMARU!"
Her opponent chuckled. " Geez, brat. Do you have any idea of how pathetic that is?"
Temari had never experienced such hatred in her entire life – she suspected what pulped through her was quite close to what Gaara had felt when there was a demon inside him. Her eyes narrowed to slits. " If he dies, I swear…" The rest faded away with a hiss.
The man shrugged with a nonchalant expression. " If he's too weak, isn't losing his own fault?"
That was the last straw.
Her eyes were foreign when meeting the man still threatening her, the mere gaze quite enough of warning for most to stay well away. " I… am going to break every single bone in that rotten body of yours, do you hear me?" she snarled in a low, chilling tone, her breathing pattern changing when something she'd never felt before rushed towards surface. " If you stay on my way for another second… I'm going to fucking kill you. Do you understand?"
At that moment, the man made the worst mistake in his entire life. He underestimated the wrath of a woman. " Yeah right, princess. Go ahead and try."
Oh, she did quite a bit more than just tried. So fast that they were both shocked, she pulled out a kunai and slashed blindly. In a matter of seconds warm, sticky substance she recognized very well dripped to her toes and to the ground, first slowly, then like a small river. For some moments the man stared at her with bewilderment – clearly not having expected a teenager to be able to beat him – then fell down.
Her eyes flashed despite a wave of disbelief tinged queasiness. " I gave you a warning."
Quite soon, her eyes widened just a little while the man's body faded into dust.
What the…?!
She, however, had no more time to stare and wonder, because just then Shikamaru's barely audible moan carried into her ears. Looking to side, she found the boy shuddering a little. He was still laying down with his eyes closed, clearly badly injured, but at least he was still alive and waking up.
Completely ignoring the boy's opponent, who was standing there looking down at his prey, she darted forward, finding herself falling to the boy's side. " Shikamaru?" Something large and soft – her heart, she suspected for the longest time – jumped into her throat when there was no response. " Nara, you damn…" The rest disappeared.
" As amusing as this is, I'm afraid I'll have to bring an end to this." Turning her head, she met the eyes of Shikamaru's opponent. " I'm in a hurry, you see."
She felt something was wrong long before the truth hit her. And when it finally did, it was much too late – the jutsu had already done its trick.
She remained completely paralyzed while the man pulled out a weapon, ready to strike.
Kiba had never considered himself all that lucky. But that day, he finally thought that had changed. For just as he was about to fall into bitter emptiness, his hands managed to grasp onto slippery ground and he remained dangling there, literally holding on for his dear life.
Pushing his remaining strength to extreme, he managed to lift his battered body so that his fingers were on the edge of the hole. However, just before he managed to crawl into safety, he realized that there was something he'd forgotten.
For just then his opponent appeared to hover above him. The man looked at him with his head tilted. " Going somewhere? Because I'd rather keep you right there." Before he could even open up his mouth, the man's foot and whole, crushing weight became placed to his fingers. He screamed with pain despite himself, earning a smirk of satisfaction. " Thanks for the warm up. Goodnight."
Slowly but surely – no matter how hard he held on – his strength ran out, and his hold slipped. Just before falling into oblivion he heard a voice he thought to be his imagination. " KIBA-KUN!"
A gasp left him.
Hinata…!
Darkness enclosed.
I…!
Everything disappeared.
When Ino's consciousness finally cleared, she hoped dearly that all had remained a mystery.
For there – mere steps from her although it seemed like miles away – lay Sai, more unmoving than she'd ever seen him. She had no idea of what damage had been done inside the other, but she could see several sickeningly deep wounds and found her eyes locking to the boy's left leg – or what was left of it – for a moment. There was no way the limb could ever become mobile again. But all her attention was soon stolen elsewhere. What her eyes truly got lost into was Sai's chest. Desperately she tried to catch even the slightest movement, but couldn't be sure if there was anything left.
Her throat emitted an animalistic sound she didn't recognize as hers while her eyes blurred. " … No …!"
Pushing all her remaining strength to extreme and blatantly ignoring her own, potentially dangerous injuries, she crawled forward with determination she'd never felt before, gritting teeth until blood seeped out. It seemed to take ages before she'd finally gotten to where Sai lay.
Tears leaked, stinging unbearably when they hit damaged skin on their way down. " Please…" Her hand barely having the strength it required, she gave the boy's cheek a feeble brush. " Wake up… Please…"
He was so cold, so still…
She tried to reach towards his neck – to find out if there was even a little bit of hope left – but never made it that far, no matter how desperately she would've wanted to.
Everything faded into a merciless, cold black hole.
Shino had been in several harsh battles before. But never had he faced an opponent like this one – so merciless, so insanely strong.
He emitted a moan when hitting the floor, sound and hellish sensation of bones cracking striking him completely paralyzed for quite a while. As soon as some feeling returned, his fears were confirmed. His arm was broken, and he was nearly sure so were several other bones.
He was already badly injured. If he'd go on like this…
Steps approached him, slowly and with unwavering confidence. " How disappointing", the man commented. " I was hoping you'd turn out to be at least a little bit of a challenge."
The man, of course, couldn't know it while preparing to strike again, but he found such changes in him that he gasped.
What felt like fire sped through his veins, and if one looked closely his skin could be seen sparkling just a little bit. New power howled with life inside him. His heart hammered with fright and confusion until Suzume's words resounded in his buzzing head.
/ " My last… little gift for… you…" /
His eyes widened when he understood.
Hot burning appeared into his eyes while his fists balled, bristling with newfound strength.
For you…
" Well, brat…" The man managed to bring him back into reality. " It's time to finish this."
He grit his teeth, preparing himself. " Yeah", he all but snarled. " It is."
The following events scrolled by so fast that he barely managed to register them. He got up – with such speed he surprised even himself – and faced the man in less than a blink. It took for at least thirty seconds before he realized that his fist had slammed straight into the man's chest as soon as he'd gotten up, glowing with electricity Suzume had granted him and bugs also flowing out.
They looked into each other's eyes for the longest time – the man's gaze filled with what can only be called disbelief – until the other's chilling orbs glazed over, and the man slid to the floor.
Shino had absolutely no clue of for how long he remained perfectly still – widened, watered eyes directed to the corpse – until he finally managed to convince his body into moving. He found himself turning towards where Suzume still lay, so unmoving that it made his gaze blur all over again. And at that moment all strength disappeared from his muscles.
Using every single ounce of strength there was in him, he crawled towards the one he'd cared about beyond absolutely anything else, and forced his broken, hellishly pained arm into wrapping around her. His body fell limp as soon as he'd managed to pull her close. Breathing becoming ragged, he tried to take in her scent he'd never feel again.
I love you.
Some tears he was blissfully unaware of slipped to his cheeks while he opened up his mouth for words that never came and closed his eyes to spare them from the sight.
I'm sorry.
His head fell to rest against hers.
I'm so sorry.
It was almost fortunate that everything faded away just then.
As a teacher, Iruka had always been quite familiar with facts. That's why he knew far too clearly what his fate would be while his hopeless battle against the pierced attacker continued.
His former injuries were still far from healed, and he'd received several new ones during this battle. There was no way he could survive through this.
That thought became even further proven when he was hurled against a rock, with such force he was stunned he didn't pass out or break bones. He lay down for a while – his head spinning so badly that he couldn't even think – until he managed to become coherent enough to look up at his opponent. At that exact moment the man's katana was placed to his throat, a flinch from striking a fatal blow. " If it offers you any consolation whatsoever, you fought remarkably well for an injured schoolteacher. But that wasn't good enough."
His mouth opened – to form what, he had absolutely no idea – but even the slightest breath didn't manage to come out. Then, less than a blink before it would've been too late, his opponent exploded into dust right before his disbelieving eyes, became carried away by wind.
For what he suspected to be close to five minutes he remained completely still, until such a strong sensation all but overwhelmed him that it chased away all stun. As fast as his barely functioning legs allowed him to, he struggled up and started to make his way towards a direction he had no clue of.
In a couple of minutes he found himself from the stony shore of a small river. What he saw broke his heart into pieces.
There – fallen to his knees – Kakashi was hugging unmoving Rin tightly, protectively, against him. The ninja was much too strong and proud to cry, but the look in the man's visible eye told that the story was much different on the inside.
He had absolutely no idea of what to do, how to react to such pain when his own chest was aching almost more than he could bear. Therefore he stood perfectly still, as though wanting to go unnoticed, and wished from the bottom of his heart this nightmare would end.
Temari's heart hammered madly while she stared at the man preparing for an attack she wouldn't be able to defend herself against. A part of her already prepared for her fate – until what she could only call a miracle occurred.
There – right before her very eyes – the man she'd thought invincible exploded into dust.
Another one…?!
She kept looking at what was now only empty space for what must've been several seconds until she finally realized that there was something a lot more important to think about.
Her chest performing an add movement, she whirled around to where Shikamaru lay. She missed one breath when he moved and winced, and found herself flying to his side. " Shikamaru?" He moaned, but didn't open his eyes. " Shikamaru, you damn lazy ass, open up your eyes, do you hear me?" She refused to care about how tight and wet her voice sounded, and figured that Shikamaru didn't probably even notice.
" My… back…" The boy winced, eyes cracking open ever so slightly. " It hurts…"
Was that terror speeding through her veins? " That's good", she forced herself into forming in lack of anything better to say. " That's good. It means you can still feel all your damn bones." Furiously gathering the scattered pieces of her rationality, she got up to a pair of shaky legs. " I'll… go and get help, okay? Just stay awake." To her surprise, instead of letting her leave the boy grabbed her hand, tightly. She groaned a bit – more out of frustration and anxiety than annoyance – when looking back towards him. " Now what?"
" I… was supposed to… tell you." He blinked sluggishly, clearly just barely awake. " … 'love you…" With that he fell limp once more.
She blinked furiously, a tickling lump forming into her throat. " Damnit, Nara…", she murmured, wishing with her all that she would've dared to pull him closer from his injuries. Her eyes felt strangely watery while her hand squeezed tightly around his for a moment before she ran away as fast as she possibly could.
She'd never wanted to find another person that badly.
Hinata's head was spinning so badly that she could barely stand while she stared at the hole into which Kiba had just disappeared, feeling detached from reality.
After what must've been at least two full minutes she screamed with the power of all her desperation, her eyes growing hazy. " KIBA!"
The man who's been fighting Kiba chuckled. " Geez, you people really are pathetic."
She grit her teeth so tightly they made a screech, balling her fists. " I'm going to save him, do you hear me?!" In any other occasion, she would've been stunned by the fact that she didn't stutter at all. " I'm not going to let you kill him!"
With those words she charged for an attack, even managed to get some heavy punches through until the man's surprise faded. She choked desperately for breath when a huge, stony fist was wrapped around her throat so tightly that her windpipe was nearly crushed. " Face the facts, brat", the pierced ninja snorted. " He's dead. But you can stop worrying – you'll accompany him soon enough."
With those words, she was flung through the air, towards a destination that was still a mystery to her.
She screamed – with all there was left in her lungs – while everything disappeared from around her.
Soon enough she felt, heard or saw nothing more.
-
As soon as she'd fallen, the man fell into dust when the body controlling it became destroyed by Shino.
Heaven knows, Sasuke was one of the most skilled ones in Ninja world. But he was fighting against a demon even the Fourth hadn't managed to entrap without paying the greatest price. And he was dangling on a losing ground.
Kyuubi – seeming to notice his distress – chuckled. " What's this – are you having enough? Too bad; I'm just getting started."
He emitted a groan of such pain that didn't even fit into his sense when Kyuubi's nails became slammed through the skin between his side and stomach, and indescribable force threw him against a tree. The impact was made even harsher when the demon's full force smashed against him, no longer held back by the limitations of Naruto's body. He hit wood so hard that blood stained the back of his skull.
Kyuubi's red eyes gleamed with something he couldn't name while gazing straight into his Sharingan while the demon remained so close he could feel its breath. One hand remained inside his wound. " I can't believe your family was really foolish enough to think that something like that would be able to slow me down", the demon mused. He couldn't help but scream a little when the beast slashed the nails of its free hand over one of his eyes, making it blur completely. Warm blood rolled down his face. " Goes to show how pathetically arrogant you humans can be."
Sasuke's head spun while he gasped, his eyes barely able to see while turning to meet those red, inhuman ones. Hard as he fought against it, a tiny gasp escaped when the demon twisted its claws that were still inside the wound on his side and brought unimaginable agony, nearly enough of it to make him black out. His eyes narrowed against hellish pain, and a wince appeared.
Damnit…!
" Didn't I already tell you?" the demon said, head tilting to side. " You'll die."
-
Naruto's whole consciousness screamed while he watched his body starting to finish the work of killing Sasuke. In only a matter of seconds…
Had he not been so worked up by other things, he might've found hope from the fact that some tears leaked, free of Kyuubi's hold.
Uzumaki Naruto was many things. Weak wasn't one of them.
And that day, the mighty Nine Tailed demon learned its lesson of its container's willpower and love.
-
Sasuke was already blacking out when his eyes spotted something that gave him courage and strength despite everything.
Amidst crimson, there was a flash of blue – a cry for help.
At that desperate moment, he lost all control over his own actions. He barely knew what he was doing while determinedly lifting a hand to the boy's cheek that was still glowing with red. " Naruto… Don't give up, do you hear me?"
They kept staring at each other, the Kyuubi for once perfectly silent, expectant. Then, slowly yet steadily, all red disappeared, leaving him staring into blue, widened and tear filled orbs. Out of exhaustion and, as they both suspected, from something else entirely, the blonde threw a pair of arms tightly around him. After a moment, he was almost sure there was a sound of sobs. " … so sorry … I never…", was all his ears managed to catch.
He wished he could've spoken, touched, anything that would've convinced Naruto that none of this was his fault. But even a single one of his muscles wouldn't work.
Right then, he understood that the moment he'd been awaiting with dread had finally arrived. He couldn't know if it'd kill Naruto or do something even worse, but he couldn't just let the blonde live like this, either.
He'd seen what Kyuubi did to Naruto. It had to be stopped.
His legs losing all their strength he fell to the ground, taking the blonde down with him. It took several moments before he found enough of breath to speak. " Naruto…" Their eyes met. " There's a way…"
Just one look revealed that no matter how much of a dobe he was, Naruto understood exactly how dangerous the measure he was about to take could be. But the blonde nodded anyhow with a sob, some tears still rolling. A hand squeezed tightly around his. " I trust you."
Although moving was almost too painful for him to bear, he managed to reach out enough to be able to pull out the scroll Tsunade had given him. Their eyes followed intently while he folded it open, then pulled one bloodied finger all the way through it and started to perform handseals.
His heart ached, and his jaw tightened while he fought to keep emotions from showing. Yet even with all the struggle, his good eye blurred significantly.
Forgive me…
With that thought, the jutsu was completed.
For a couple of seconds nothing happened. Then, even he could feel how energy started to gather everywhere around Naruto while the boy screamed heartbreakingly, holding his hand so tightly it hurt. A couple of blinks later an explosion like surge threw them both backwards.
He released a snarl when his head met the tree behind him once more. Everything blurred.
Even with Kisame's help, the group trying to fight against the army from Kirigakure soon understood that they were facing unconquerable overpower. Her whole chest pounding, Sakura realized that she'd never been that scared in her entire life.
And things, apparently, were still heading steadily towards downhill. Because in the middle of the cruellest fight, they heard a nearly animalistic scream. Sakura wasn't sure if it came from Naruto or Sasuke, but the shudder crossing her frame told that whichever it was, that sound did not mean anything good.
Looking to side, she found Juugo tensing up completely before casting a look towards her she could only call pleading. In some other occasion, she might've been stunned by the realization of just how dear Sasuke had become to his new team.
She went through the options. They would've needed Juugo fighting right here, desperately, but… Could she really live with what holding the boy back could cause?
" Go", she finally all but screeched from between her teeth, feeling her chest perform odd movements. " Make sure they'll be alright, do you hear me?"
Juugo nodded, quite clearly understanding just how important this was to her, then ran. Watching his distancing back, she could only hope he'd make it before it'd be too late.
" I… can't believe this!" Kankuro's openly disbelieving filled voice managed to claim all her attention.
Looking towards the same direction as the boy, she couldn't keep herself from first gasping, then smiling brightly despite everything.
Kisame grinned toothily. " Well isn't this a lovely surprise."
Only steps away, was a rather huge group from Konoha, filled with ninjas she could mostly recognize very well. The troupe from Kirigakure fell like hey in a storm.
While approaching them Gai, who seemed to be leading the group, flashed one of the smirks that didn't manage to irritate them at the moment and performed his usual pose. " Tsunade-sama figured you could use some help. We decided to arrive to the rescue."
Inside the cave, Kikyo sneered at the look of all consuming rage upon Neji's face. " My goodness… And here I thought you wouldn't be capable of feeling a thing."
He cast one sideways glance towards Gaara and felt everything inside him turn into ice. There was no time to waste. His eyes were hard and determined when meeting Kikyo's, their great gift activated. " I'm not going to let you kill him", he snarled, then stormed forth again.
They spun around each other for what felt like ages, like two hurricanes trying to out power one another. But eventually they stilled, and it became so silent that even the faintest breath could be heard.
His face twisted into a grimace while he felt hot blood run from where the other had plunged a kunai into his side. " See?" Kikyo stated in a voice that sounded chillingly amused. He could feel her shudder with pleasure when he whimpered ever so slightly while she pulled the blade away, bringing tremendous pain. " This is what you get for attacking with hatred."
Fighting the urge to gasp with pain, he looked towards Gaara, who still hadn't moved an inch. And at that moment – feeling how the sight affected every single cell within him – he found something from him he'd never faced before.
He'd always been fast and his attacks nothing but well targeted. But never before had he managed to pull out a performance quite like the one he did at that moment.
Kikyo only managed to gasp before the kunai was out of her grasp, securely in his completely steady hand. " This isn't hatred, not even close. This…", he stated in a voice that didn't belong to him, his gaze moving from Gaara's body into the girl's eyes. The blade moved, and he felt a slash of nausea when feeling metal pierce straight through still beating heart. " … is something you'd never understand."
For just a couple of seconds the girl stared at him with eyes that didn't seem to understand as hard as she tried, then fell loudly and heavily to the floor, as though a switch had been flicked.
For this long moment he stared at the body before him, eyes widened by the realization of what he'd done. Then, so sharply that he shivered, his attention shifted elsewhere.
Gaara didn't move at all when he all but fell to the boy's side, stroking the other's cool cheek with a trembling hand. " Gaara?" He swallowed thickly when receiving nothing as response. " Gaara, can you hear me?"
No amount of prayers and desperate wishes managed to give what he would've wanted – needed – the most.
Every single one of his muscles shuddering under distress he could've never imagined feeling, he slipped his arms gently underneath the redhead and picked the boy up as though a piece of most fragile porcelain. He didn't even notice his own injuries.
He took one more look towards Gaara's face, and could barely keep himself from wincing at how ashen they were. " I'm not going to let you die here, do you hear me?" he all but whispered in a voice he'd never used with anyone before. If possible, he pulled the redhead even closer, although he couldn't be entirely sure if the other heard or felt him. His eyes blurred, but at the moment that failed to concern him. " I'll take you to Konoha. Just hold on for a little while, okay?" Please, please, please…
Without wasting another second he started to dash forward, blood boiling in his veins.
I haven't asked a lot, but now… now…
Once again his eyes strayed to Gaara's face, and his heart broke a little when he found an expression of tremendous pain.
If… If you take him away from me, if you make me lose this…
Something wet he failed to recognize fell.
I'll never forgive you.
Once the battle was over and done with, Gai found himself approaching Kisame, who was observing the rather horrendous sight spreading all around them with eyes he couldn't read. It was weird for him to see the man wearing pants and a shirt instead of the Akatsuki's cloak.
" So you're leaving?" he more stated than asked.
" Yup", the other confirmed slowly, voice stunningly calm considering the situation. " It's high time for me to find something new and interesting."
He nodded. Silence remained for quite a while before he heard his voice speaking. " Are you planning on coming back?"
Kisame smirked in a somewhat chilling way. " It wouldn't be any fun if I told you, would it?" The man then searched for something from his pocket, and handed it towards him. " Before I forget… I found this from Itachi's things. You should give it to Sasuke."
Once he took the object, his eyebrows furrowed with confusion.
What…?
It was a tiny, flawlessly white paper crane.
He lifted his gaze to find Kisame walking away, huge sword hanging carelessly on one shoulder. The man waved a hand without looking over his shoulder. " Until next time."
He wasn't sure if he wanted to grin or frown at the unmistakable promise behind those words.
No matter who's opinion you would've asked, no one would've described Kankuro as overly emotional or sensitive person. That's why it would've baffled anyone watching to see the expression upon his face when he witnessed all the destruction around him while slowly walking through bloody scene after another. He didn't even notice the pain radiating from his wounds.
So much blood… And somewhere out there, his own siblings…
Just then his thought became cut when he felt someone looking at him.
Turning around extremely slowly, he found Izumi standing a couple of steps behind him. Although the girl was blind, he had a feeling that she was very much aware of the horrors around them.
For a couple of seconds they simply looked at each other, as though not really believing they were there. Then – slowly and without saying a word – Izumi walked up to him and wrapped her arms around him as tightly as possible. After having remained frozen for almost a minute he returned her hold – first clumsily, then tightly – and buried his face into her shoulder.
It was the first time in his life he cried without feeling humiliated by it.
In the meantime, the Student appeared to a small opening in the middle of the thickest forest and frowned upon discovering no one.
Soon enough, however, she felt a presence. A shudder of pleasure went through her when lips brushed the bare skin of her neck. " Is it done?"
" Yes. The Akatsuki's been destroyed – they never even saw it coming", she murmured, turning around to meet glass-covered dark eyes. " And I'm sure Kyuubi will take care of Sasuke. Your Master has almost been avenged."
Kabuto smiled in a way that'd long ago stopped chilling her. " Good." His eyes then changed a little. " Now let's go. Zetsu's already waiting for us."
Never in his entire life had Sasuke's body hurt as badly as it did when his head cleared out little by little, with him coughing desperately and his vision spinning sickeningly.
Naruto's voice caught him just before he managed to slip back into darkness. " S – Sasuke…" Although he would've never admitted it out loud, it absolutely broke his heart to see the tears streaming down the boy's face, to notice just how badly the blonde shuddered from still raging shock. All traces of Kyuubi vanished right before his eyes. " S – Sasuke…", the boy all but gasped. " I… I'm…"
No matter how little he wanted to see what he'd caused, he let his eyes search through the boy. So many injuries, most of them still bleeding… Pain in Naruto's eyes that had nothing to do with the injuries…
Kyuubi had been defeated. But… Was Naruto nonetheless lost?
It quite visibly required all the boy had, but miraculously enough the blonde managed to crawl over to him and slumped into his arms, lacing a pair of weak, quivering arms around him. " Sorry… So sorry…"
Feeling utterly exhausted, he leaned even more heavily than before against the tree behind him, taking deep breaths to rid pain. His already foggy eyes met Naruto's, firm and free of questions.
It's not your fault, you dobe.
For several seconds they only looked at each other, until Naruto did something neither of them could've expected the boy to have courage for. Catching both of them off guard, the boy pressed a pair of warm lips tenderly against his, too weak to deepen the kiss despite apparent desire. After having remained paralyzed by shock for a while he responded, pain and dizziness having wiped away all reason from his head.
-
Naruto's heart hammered beyond any control while the kiss continued, Sasuke's taste and essence filling him. Only the pain still surging below his skin and growing exhaustion confirmed that this wasn't a dream of some sort.
All of a sudden the moment was cut when Sasuke fell completely limp, consciousness fleeing. He slumped into the boy's lap when support disappeared, as though seeking for shelter.
Worry pierced his heart. " … Sasuke…" Barely having the strength to lift his hand and defying dizzying pain, he touched the other's slightly bloodied face. " … Please…"
He fought with all he had, but eventually pain and exhaustion took the best of him.
He drifted into pitch black oblivion.
The events following the battle's end were a haze to Sakura. There were so many people who needed her help, most of them dear friends, and there was so very little she could do for them…
Eventually – while kneeling beside Ino's still unconscious body that remained injured despite all her attempts – she was so exhausted that world spun right before her eyes. She would've undoubtedly fallen right down if it wasn't for hard, experienced hands grabbing her from behind. " Damn brat… Are you trying to get yourself killed?" After several seconds she felt new strength flowing into her body, and her eyes were sharp once more. " There. Do you feel any better?"
Quite slowly, she turned her gaze to meet a woman with long, red hair and fiery burgundy eyes. " Yeah. Thank you." Had her mind not been so worked up by everything else, she might've cracked a smile. " I'm Sakura."
The woman's eyes turned slightly warmer, almost familiar in some way. " Kushina." The woman mused for a moment. " I can tell you're a skilled medic, but you also have your limitations. Go and get some rest." Seeing her look of utter reluctance, the woman added. " Don't worry – I'll look after your friends."
Leaving was the last thing she would've wanted to do, especially with so many precious lives hanging in balance. But she knew the woman was right – with staying she'd only cause more trouble.
Steps heavy and slow she walked away, not daring to look over her shoulder in fear that even one glance would change her mind.
Once out of the cave she squinted her eyes against bright, blinding light. She frowned a bit when seeing a badly blurry figure approaching, but grinned despite everything and relaxed completely when hearing a familiar voice. " Here you are – I've been looking all over for you."
Her grin widened even still, worries chased away, when Lee's face became clear. " You're really here, aren't you?"
The boy smirked. " I couldn't just stay in Konoha when you're out here."
Not saying a word they took a couple of steps closer, allowing their hands to tangle. On the edge of collapsing she leaned her forehead against his chest, enjoying this moment of peace when she could almost convince herself that everything would turn out all right.
Silence must've lasted minutes until Lee spoke. " So… It's finally over?"
" Yeah", she breathed out, inhaling his scent. " It's over." Almost, at very least…
Their moment of serenity wasn't allowed to last long, for just then there were approaching steps. Turning their heads, they both ended up making small sounds of shock.
Not too far away, Sasuke's new team was approaching with grim expressions. Suigetsu was holding unmoving Naruto, who seemed to be barely breathing, while Juugo held equally still, badly bloodied Sasuke tightly against his chest.
Sakura felt colder than ever in her life.
TBC, un!
A/N: Awwww crap… (dodges yet another storm of weapons)
My defence this time? The same as previously – I'll try my very hardest to update FAST! So no killing, pwease? (screams when even more sharp objects fly)
Until next time! PLEASE, leave a review, even if it's to scold me for yet another demonic cliffie storm.
Be nice!
Three chapters to go, counting in the epilogue.
queserasera: I couldn't possibly agree more – NARUSASU RULEZ THE UNIVERSE! (waves bonbons until is forced to run away from Sasuke's Sharingan)
Gigantic thank yous for the review – I'm overjoyed to hear you've enjoyed the story! I hope you'll keep looking forward to the updates to come in future.
XxXx
realityfling18: You… keep looking for new updates for this ficcy? And considered this as a top favorite?! WOAH – goodness! (blushes madly) Thank you so much!
Madara's on his way to where he belongs all right, but Naruto indeed needs help. I REALLY hope Sasuke will reach him on time, too – Naruto would never be able to handle butchering someone in cold blood! Amen to that – our beloved boneheads REALLY need a break! Ah, the idea of the raven returning indeed sounds nice.
MASSIVE thank yous for the absolutely amazing review – I'm thrilled to hear you've enjoyed the story thus far! I really hope you'll like the rest as well.