"Naruto, open your eyes"
-
Naruto's eyes fluttered open as he met the familiar sight of the ceiling of his bedroom. It was damaged like so many other things in the city, but the ceiling remained beautifully decorated as always, illustrating the beginning of the world.
Two men facing each other.
And a woman guiding them from above – showing them towards misery. God's hands through the villain hands of a woman. All beginnings in every religion always took the time to explain why women were so viper like.
His body ached so badly.
He groaned and turned the side, meeting the morning sun – someone had entered his room and pulled away his curtains. Naruto's eyes caught the large and masculine body of his tutor. Jiraiya.
A small curse left the weakened Hokage's lips, and he lifted himself up on his elbows, despite the pain. Jiraiya looked down on him with crossed arms and a frown, obviously not pleased with Naruto's happy expression.
He broke the silence.
"I've got news"
Naruto stopped moving upwards, and the smile disappeared, before he dared to even respond to that. "Nothing?"
The Sannin closed his eyes and leaned back against the windows. "First, the search teams found Chouji lying in the forest, apparently having fought an Akatsuki – or so he claims. He's in the surgery room right now, getting his arm removed – he won't be able to use it any longer. Also, there are no reports or anyone ever having seen Haruno Sakura. Some saw her leave the village – but despite that, I believe I can safely presume she's deceased..." He decided to stop and watch for Naruto's reaction – and when finding it proper to continue, he did.
"Akamaru found a large pool of blood in the outer forest areas – We believe it might be Sakura's, and we're currently testing it in the lab. If it is her, then it is too much blood for her to survive without immediate treatment. I believe she's dead and then a forest animal might have taken her body, I do not know – we'll continue the search tomorrow, and see if she's found or not."
Naruto's eyes turned downwards in clear sadness and obvious regret – perhaps he should've said something to her before leaving.
"Second, I've been asked to tell you that Tohru-chan is getting treated in the hospital for minor wounds. She did fabulous in the battles Naruto, you can be proud. Shikamaru has taken your seat temporarily, until you're back on your feet"
Naruto looked as if he was in despair, but then smiled at the mentions of Tohru and Shikamaru. Jiraiya saw it and then turned serious. "The Kyuubi"
The Rokudaime turned his head. "what about it?"
"it's poisoning you."
"..." Naruto went silent.
"Shizune is trying to do some research, finding out to stop the poisoning, but the ache in your body won't lessen Naruto" The Sannin looked undeniably strong as he stood there, the sun illuminating his body, giving him an almost godlike posture. "You've signed your own death sentence by using up that much chakra against Kabuto and the Tsuchikage."
Naruto gave a mild cough, and looked the other way, before sitting up fully. "guess I've got no time to waste then – need to go on and protect Konoha"
"Let someone else do it Naruto, you need to rest – we don't know if the poisoning will worsen if you decide to travel – I would defiantly advice you not to."
Naruto placed a hand on his knee, and pushed himself up, breathing heavily from the pain. "it's my duty as Hokage"
"You start to sound like Tsunade" Jiraiya grinned, rubbing the place where his left arm should have been. Naruto let the sheet slide off, revealing a tattered and scarred body, his chest bandaged from top to toe, a bitter smile claiming his lips.
"I need to redo alot of things too. I need a search team for Sasuke – send Kakashi and Rin-san, and someone from the Hyuugas or Kiba's clan, can't remember their name now." he rubbed his forehead and bent down to take his clothes, and with extreme carefulness put them on. The rough texture against his skin felt uncomfortable.
"I will come with you" Jiraiya spoke with authority in his voice and stepped away from the window. "I need to make sure the Kyuubi doesn't do anymore damage to you"
Naruto's hand still rested on his forehead and looked up at Jiraiya, scanning the older man. "aren't you a bit too old? It's not like you can protect me that well again" A smirk came to the Hokage's face, and the older man laughed ironically.
"It's not like you can stop me kid. Now, get on some clothes and get ready, I'll go and talk with what's remained of the council." and with deep and dark steps he left the room, by pushing the shoji doors aside.
When Naruto was sure the Sannin had left, the smirk fell and he needed to sit, and grabbed his stomach in agony. After years of being a ninja, one should think he was used to being in pain – but this time it was different. Exhausted from the battle, even though it was at least three days ago.
He wished at times that his blessing of enourmes power didn't have so many disadvantages as it had. The Kyuubi in the end was not worth it. At those thoughts, Naruto leaned back and lay down in his bed.
-
"Naruto!" she weakly yelled, and he turned around. "don't worry, I'm not the Rokudaime for nothing"
For some reasons she felt that he wasn't even speaking to her.
-
Shizune's hands moved gracefully over Naruto's body, her fingers tingling with the sensation of the chakra flowing through them. They touched his body ever so lightly, but to Naruto if felt like a thousand knives piercing his body.
It was all the kyuubi's fault.
Her dark eyes gazed worriedly at the smaller girl at her side, who with her limited teachings by her lost mother, tried her best to feel what Shizune felt. Tohru's hands felt a tingling yet bitter sensatation whenever it rested over the blue poisoned areas of his body. Naruto's blue eyes had this dull expression within them – his mind having traveled to places Tohru knew exactly where.
Shizune gave a sigh and moved her hands away. "we're done Tohru-chan"
The smaller girl removed her already rough fingers and placed them in her lap, drying off the small amount of blood on her apron.
The elder woman sat beside Naruto and placed a hand on his forehead to see if he had a fever or not. Naruto eyes flickered shut for a short while, as Shizune reached down and whispered something in his ear, which could not be heard by Tohru.
A figured stood in the door and the girl turned her head to meet the stern face of Hyuuga Neji. He eyed her shortly, before motioning her out of the room. She was hesistant, but did so anyway. As she left the smelly room, Neji's hand rested upon her shoulder.
"I felt you should take a break" he spoke with his hoarse voice. The injuries he had himself was far from healed, and the only reason he could stand today was his persistance.
She dried her hands in the apron again and looked at the floor. Neji's hand pushed her quicker away from the room. "I'll be honest with you Tohru-san" he said with a careful voice, making sure they were the only ones to hear what was about to be said.
"it's the kyuubi. The monster that is inside him that is hurting him" it was said in such a dull voice that Tohru doubted that this fact even had hurt the man walking beside her. She clenched her fists.
He continued. "poison."
She nodded.
"It's the Kyuubi who is trying to finally get control of Naruto. The more he uses the kyuubi the more it has the opportunity to take over the body. Naruto's body may be used to slight kyuubi poisoning when he lets it escape, but this time it is more than what Naruto is used to."
The sun was setting.
"Either he'll have to give in to the kyuubi, or both he and the kyuubi will die together."
Neji didn't understand why she wasn't crying.
"It could be a part of the Akatsuki's plan"
He stopped.
Tohru kept walking.
-
A pair of lips brushed his temple so every lightly. Sasuke opened his eyes and met those eyes of his mother. He was gazing at her, his face reflected in those watery eyes. He closed his eyes in content, when two pair of hands touched his cheeks that didn't feel like that of his mother's. A pair of lips decended heavenly upon his, when his eyes jumped open.
Those eyes were green.
Dull green.
"eight years"
The mouth tasted so bitterly of blood.
"give him back to us"
-
Sasuke opened his eyes and took a deep breath in surprise. His hands clenching the sheet hard.
"shit"
He sat up angrily and pushed away anything that was placed on his nightdesk. One should think that the Akatsuki made sure that every member was gathered at the same place, but no. He was sent to a small foreign village in the lightning, so he could gather information.
He didn't care about that.
He cared about Itachi!
For the first time the eyes that had met him in the dream lasted through the night, wasn't that of his brother, but those of another.
"shit! Leave me alone!"
-
She looked so old.
-
Shikamaru sat beside Naruto, his hand in his lap as he adjusted his clothing. They had been talking for a while – about Gaara, Temari and suna in general. Things were going very well and they had already repaired most of the damages on their city. Naruto could hear that Shikamaru wished to come back to his family.
"I'm sorry" he spoke.
It made the shadow nin look up, but there was no obvious surprise. "you better be. Your job is so tiring. You know how many people who wanted to see me today? It was horrible" he could feel a laughter that never escaped his mouth.
Naruto looked ever so tired. "Temari and Asuma are doing great. She's still hospitalized though. Her inner wounds are completely healed, but her outer wounds are too major for her to return to her job as a ninja."
"gaara?"
"You know him. In the end he is just like you. A workaholic. He has been in his office twenty four seven ever since he returned. He found something very interesting about the Akatsuki you might want to know."
At that Naruto shot his face towards Shikamaru, his eyes widened and his fist glanced. "what?"
"I can't tell you. It is far from safe here. When you get to Suna, he will most likely tell you." Naruto's face grimaced, knowing that it was far from safe where they were at the moment. With less than a week having passed since they won, Konoha was tremendously vulnerable towards enemies.
Something had to be done.
"I'm leaving" Naruto said, to Shikamaru's big surprise.
"I'm leaving so I can make sure our country is safe. I'll go and talk to the countries that rest between us and the rock country. I am sure they will agree to not cooperate with the rock – especially with Suna being on our side, they can't do anything but agree to warn us or protect us against the rock, if that were to happen"
Shikamaru leaned back in the chair. "so what you're saying is that you're forcing me to sit in that damn Hokage chair for a few weeks?"
There was a silence, before Naruto bitterly laughed. "maybe forever…"
This caused the usually calm and bored ninja to finally widen his eyes, and tighten his lips, before he spoke the word that could have been forbidden in so many contexts, but this was Naruto, he could only speak it out loud.
"the kyuubi"
A small ray of the sun fell upon half of Naruto's face, making Shikamaru finally see the damage a monster like the kyuubi could do to a human like Naruto. The scars and the almost painfully dry skin covered the so tattered man.
"you're dying" he said, as if it wasn't that of a big deal.
Naruto smiled. "I am really sorry."
Shikamaru shrugged, before leaning forward, biting his lower lip. "it's a shame that neither Sakura or Tsunade are alive. Shizune is a good medic, but I doubt she'll be able to figure out how to deal with what's going on inside you…" he continued speaking, as if this was his way to comprehend what Naruto was telling him.
"Shikamaru – it's alright, I'm fine"
"…"
"say hi to our friends, Lee and tenten you know."
"I will"
It was such an uncomfortable atmosphere.
-
Open your eyes.
-
A/N: what's going on?