Chapter Eight

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Sasuke took in a deep breath as soon as he came out of the center of the crater. Kakashi reached out to grab the rope and pull him the rest of the way up. Naruto was already there packing away his own climbing gear and cameras. Once Sasuke was unhooked he made his way over to Naruto to see if he could help, while Kakashi started to help Sakura up the rope.

It was surprisingly pretty warm considering they were on top of a mountain. Although the cold was slowly approaching the closer night got to them. The others promised that before it turned dark outside, they would set up camp and make sure there was a fire close by so he could get some of the warmth from that. Now of course it wouldn't be near the amount of heat that he would need, but it would hold off the effects of the cold a few more hours. They were hoping to make it to their vehicle before night fall, but it all depended if they could get a move on.

After Naruto had all of his stuff neat and tidy, Sakura had finally made it up from the bottom and was helping Kakashi get the ropes into his much larger backpack. Once finished, the four started to make their way down the lowest slope with the least amount of obstacles to get past. Sasuke was just glad they were finally moving, standing still was hard considering that he wanted to see how much the world had changed in the years that he had laid dormant inside his much loved home.

An hour had passed and Sasuke couldn't shake the chills that were slowly making their way through his body. He chanced a look in Sakura's direction and saw that she had brought out her fleece sweater and had her arms folded over her chest trying to fight off the chills as well. Sasuke tried to focus on the ever present heat of the sun beating down on them, but it couldn't last for long. He almost couldn't wait to get to the car if it meant getting somewhat warm again.

Trudging onward, they started approaching the clearing where they had left the car. Naruto eagerly passed through the last remaining trees in the way and quickly walked over to the Expedition. It was black in color and sleek in body. Built to travel through rough terrain; Kakashi calmly walked over to the driver's side and unlocked it. Once the locks on the doors were lifted three doors opened similtimiously, and three figures threw their stuff in the SUV declaring where they were going to sit for the remainder of the trip. Kakashi was the designated driver with Naruto riding shot gun, and Sasuke was pretty surprised that Sakura didn't fight him for it. It didn't really matter considering now they would be sitting next to each other.

After everyone was in and the car was turned on, Sakura reached over the seat and blasted the heat on high and wrapped a blanket around herself.

"Are you really cold?" She looked over in his direction and nodded.

"Yeah, I was getting used to the heat in your house." Sasuke smiled then scooted over to Sakura and put an arm around her. She leaned into his shoulder and sighed. It was a little ironic that he was offering her warmth when in fact he was freezing his ass off. Nothing made since to him anymore. Agreeing to do something like what they had suggested was just madness.

"Ah, so how long are we going to stay up here?" Naruto turned around in his seat so he could look in their direction and grinned.

"Long enough for you to see Arizona, it's awesome this time of year, and the temperatures they are freaking suffocating. You'll love it!" Sakura smiled and snuggled closer to Sasuke.

"I'm sure…" Kakashi chuckled lightly then turned onto the main road. It was getting slightly warmer in the SUV now that the vehicle had warmed up. Sasuke could tell that the occupants in the front seat were slowly discarding layer of their clothing trying to stay cool while Sakura was trying to scoot closer still slightly shivering. He wouldn't have blamed her if she was one of his kind, for they always dressed warm whenever they had planned an outing; but Sakura wasn't one of his kind. She was considered to be a normal human so it puzzled him greatly that she was having the same effect as he was when it came to being freezing cold.

Shrugging off the thought, he laid his head against the headrest and tried to relax. Sasuke didn't realize that it was almost impossible to rest when one was shivering themselves senseless. Taking in a deep calming breath he forced the shivering down to a minimum and focused on the artificial heat that was starting to surround the inside of the car. As the shivers eased Sakura started to relax next to him and fell asleep. The last thing he saw before shutting his eyes was the beginning of heavy traffic roaring by with no regards to other people trying to use the same road.

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After a few hours of traveling Kakashi finally spotted the great city of Settle. He figured that it would be better for everyone if they just spent the night there, so they wouldn't have to worry about rush hour; which had officially started twenty minutes prior. Taking the first exit that had a Holiday Inn he carefully avoided the many crazy drivers in their rush to get home before it started to get too busy. He was just happy that the hotel wasn't that far away and that their 'guest' wasn't awake for this part of the trip.

Not that Kakashi didn't want him to see the city, but because he was afraid Sasuke would start to feel panicked with all the traffic that was surrounding them, not having experienced this kind of thing. It was easy to find a parking spot for the lot was empty safe for the two cars that were parked next to a couple of the ground floors.

The Inn was smaller than what Kakashi remembered it to be, but that didn't matter. What did matter was jumping into his comfy clothes and claiming one of the beds the hotel had to offer. Walking in through the front doors, Kakashi made his way up to the front counter and rang the little bell for service.

"Coming!" Shouted a man to be in his late fifties as he made his way up to the counter. "What can I do for you?" One look at the man and Kakashi felt something was off about the way he held himself. Straight posture, expensive watch, slick backed hair, and formally dressed. He wasn't something that Kakashi would have expected to work at a holiday in. Especially in the afternoon hours.

The man cleared his throat waiting for an answer from Kakashi, and Kakashi had to make a swift decision. Either stay and chance it, or try out a different hotel. There was bound to be a motel Six around there somewhere, if only they could make it to the next exit.

"Listen sir, I don't have all night. Do you want a room or not?" Kakashi just about turned on his heel and left when a beautiful woman came through one of the elevators sporting a maid outfit and cleaning supplies.

"I'll take two rooms, one with two beds in it, the other just needs one." Slick Willy grabbed two keys and placed them on the counter.

"That'll be $158.00 sir. How will you be paying?" Kakashi reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet.

"Is cash all right?" The man nodded his head yes then held out his left hand. Kakashi counted out one hundred and sixty in twenties and handed it to him. He took the money then counted back the change.

"Two dollars even is your change. Enjoy your stay." Kakashi thanked the man then went back to the Expedition to wake his sleeping companions. Sasuke was already awake looking out the window taking it all in with a blank expression. It looked like he was shivering again and that wasn't a good sign. When he opened the passengers door Naruto almost hit the pavement before waking up and grabbing for the seat he was currently falling out of. Kakashi chuckle lightly then went around to the driver's side to grab his night wear.

"Damit Kakashi, why'd you do that? You could have just woke me up a different way!" Kakashi sighed.

"Naruto I remember the last time I tried shaking you awake. Apparently you thought I was some kind of beast that had 'come to finally eat poor little you' and I suffered a kick to the side because of it." Naruto laughed sheepishly and climbed out of the black SUV.

"Oh, I kind of forgot about that."

"Of course you did." Kakashi said as he reached for Sakura's pack. "Hey Sasuke, could you be so kind to help dear Sakura to her room. I think the excitement from the trip had finally worn her out." Sasuke nodded then opened the door to step out. Once out he leaned back in and placed his arms under Sakura lifting her out of the seat. She mumbled something Kakashi couldn't make out but had Sasuke smiling. After Sasuke had Sakura placed in his arms comfortably, he looked at Kakashi asking him where to put her. Kakashi handed him the key that led to 201, and he took off in the direction of the stairs.

"So Kakashi, how long do you think we got?" Kakashi stopped in shutting the door and looked in Naruto's direction.

"How long do we have until what exactly" Naruto shrugged.

"I don't know… until Sasuke turns into a pile of rocks?" Kakashi sighed then shut the door waiting for Naruto to do the same.

"Well it all depends on how much heat he is exposed to. If we did like we did today I estimated that we should have at least a week with him."

"Wow, a week? That's pretty long." He nodded his head and started up the stair to room 205, with Naruto by his side.

"Well, not when you have to travel for long periods of time. For all we know the process could have already started." Naruto cocked his head to the side silently questioning his smart friend. When Kakashi didn't answer Naruto decided to voice his question.

"What process?" Kakashi paused halfway up the stairs then continued.

"The process of turning into solid rock…" Naruto stopped in his tracks and followed Kakashi's progress up the stair with his eyes. When Kakashi noticed Naruto's hesitance he stopped and turned around.

"Kakashi? I don't think we should have taken him away from his home. If he dies then it's on us and I don't like that at all. If anyone finds out about him then there's no telling what would happen to him."

"Listen Naruto, it was his decision and he knew the risks. There's nothing we can do if something happened to him." Naruto clinched his fisted so the white was showing from the force.

"But Kakashi, it was my idea!" Kakashi sighed.

"Nothing has happened; you can't beat yourself up for something that hasn't even taken place. Naruto, I don't think anything is going to happen either. Nobody knows except for us, and the only other person who will be able to meet him personally will be our closely trusted friends." Naruto unclenched his fists and took in a deep breath.

"I know, I was just thinking if anything did happen then we would be responsible." Naruto chuckled a bit then looked back up the stairs toward Kakashi. "It's just I already see him as a friend and it's only been three days. I mean he can be a bastard and unreasonable at times, but I feel that I can trust him and that doesn't just happen overnight." Kakashi smiled knowingly and turned to continue the trip up the stairs.

"It's because he didn't shun you isn't it?" He didn't see Naruto's reaction to his question but he could just imagine the genuine smile plastered on his face.

"Maybe." Finally reaching the door that led to their room Kakashi pulled the key out of his pocket and placed it in the mechanism. The door opened instantly, and without incident. Kakashi quickly turned on the first light he came to and walked into the room fully.

It was nice for what they needed, but he would never book a room there ever again. He could tell the room was old and over used, paint was flaking off the walls, and the carpet had some oddly shaped smoke burns decorating. Naruto wrinkle his nose up and set his stuff down on one of the beds. "Did you have to get this room?"

"Hey it's not my fault. It's not even that bad." Naruto laughed sarcastically and flopped down on the bed.

"Yeah right, I bet some pretty lady conned you into staying. What did you pay for the rooms anyway?" Kakashi rubbed the back of his neck and exhaled loudly.

"It doesn't matter; now get comfortable while I go check on Sakura." Naruto waved his hand in a gesture that clearly said whatever, so Kakashi left to venture down the hall to Sakura's room. When he got there the door was open and Kakashi didn't see anyone inside. Now curious as to where the both of them had gone, he silently walked into the room and peered around inside. It wasn't until he was all the way in that he noticed a decent sized lump on the full sized bed, with pink and black hair sticking out. Kakashi smiled and turned to leave. He didn't want to disturb the light snores that were coming out from under the heavy blankets.

On the outside Kakashi was calm, with a slight smile gracing his lips, on the inside he was jumping for joy at the turn of events that had just taken place. It was about time Sakura found someone after her nasty breakup with her ex. Kakashi had tried in the past to find Sakura someone who could meet all of her demands and keep her happy, but his success level was terrible. Two turn downs and one flat out rejection. If there was one thing to know about Sakura it was never interfere with her love life. Kakashi had to find out the hard way, and almost lost her friendship in the process.

Walking into the room Kakashi was assaulted with loud snores coming in waves off of his sleeping companion. He had tried many things in the past to try and stop Naruto's obnoxious snoring but nothing was successful. That must have been a pattern for him, try to help a friend and it end up exploding in his face. Shaking his head, Kakashi sat down on the side of his bed and slowly took off his hiking boots. They had seen better days, that was for sure; but they were just perfect for facing the tough challenges of rock climbing.

After taking a quick shower Kakashi made his way over to the inviting bed and fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.

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Light shone in from the window as Sakura forced her way back to consciousness. She didn't remember much from the night before, but it didn't matter. She was tucked in beside a warm body and she couldn't find the right words to describe how comfortable she really was. It was almost refreshing waking up feeling completely toasty warm. Sakura didn't want to leave the warm confines but she knew if she didn't get up at that moment then she would happily fall back asleep.

Trying to move slowly as not to wake her sleeping companion, Sakura eased out of his arms and calmly slid off the bed. When her feet hit the carpet she tip toed her way to the bathroom and quietly shut the door. Once the door was shut she finally noticed that she was already shivering, and she was so warm. Closing her eyes she quickly turned on the shower water and proceeded to undress.

When her clothes were removed she stepped into the shower and just stood there. Sakura just couldn't get over what happened the night before, and she was honestly surprised that he didn't take advantage of her. Although she had scolded Naruto about mentioning such a thing earlier, but the thought did cross her mind as soon as Sasuke climbed into the bed right after her. After he had pulled her closed and rested his chin on her head and sighed contently she had snuggled closer and wrapped her slim arms around his waist.

Sakura couldn't figure out what was wrong with herself, but she had felt completely safe lying there in his warm arms under that huge comforter. She just kept telling herself that it was just the lack of sleep that had caused such a reaction out of her. Sakura just couldn't understand she had only really known him for three days and it already felt as if they were a couple or something.

Quickly rinsing out her hair, Sakura turned off the water and grabbed the first towel on the rack. After she had wrapped it around herself, Sakura walked out of the bathroom and stepped into the bedroom. It looked as if Sasuke was still asleep so she found her bag at the end of the bed and pulled out black jeans, a red long sleeved shirt, and a dark brown sweater. Picking the stuff up, she entered the bathroom once again and dressed quickly. The cold air was finally getting to her. When she came back out again Sasuke was sitting up against the head board with the comforter wrapped firmly around him.

He still looked a little groggy but otherwise coherent. "Good morning Sasuke." He looked up at his name being called and gave Sakura a once over before answering.

"Morning, how long did I sleep?" Sakura shrugged her delicate shoulders and started to rearrange what was in her pack.

"I'm not sure. What time did we get here last night?" He considered her question for a minute while she finished up with her packing.

"I thought I heard Kakashi say somewhere around six o clock." She sat on the bed next to Sasuke, then looked at the clock next to the bed.

"Well it says eight right now so about fourteen hours."

"Really?" Sasuke looked kind of shocked for a moment before he schooled his features and moved to get up.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing, it's just that I have never slept in that long before." Once he stood Sasuke headed for the bathroom and shut the door. A few minutes passed and Sakura didn't hear anything, it didn't sound like the water was running, and it didn't sound like he was moving around either. She got off the bed and stepped up in front of the door.

"Sasuke, you're okay in there right?" She heard some shuffling around and assumed he was walking over to the door to open it. When the door opened Sakura was greeted with a pale faced Sasuke in nothing but black sweatpants barely hanging onto his hips. "Are you okay? You look a little pale." He nodded then opened the door all the way so she could come in. Sakura hesitated for a second before she saw Sasuke stumble and place his hand on the small sink placed in the corner to steady himself.

She rushed over to his side and ordered him to take a seat on the edge of the bathtub. He obliged and sat down holding his head. When she placed a hand over his forehead to check his temperature, it was cool to the touch. That's when she noticed the violent shivers racking through his body as he sat there holding his head and teetering over to lean against the wall. "Sasuke tell me what's happening."

He opened his mouth to try to speak but was forced to close it as new tremors racked his freezing cold body. She quickly turned on the water to the tub and turned it to the hottest setting that was there and waited for it to heat up. Sakura hoped that it would work considering if it didn't they would have to take him home right at that very minute. As soon as the water was scalding, she put the stopper in and waited for it to fill.

"You wait here and keep an eye on the water to make sure it doesn't over flow, I'm going to go get Kakashi." He nodded his head in understanding as she walked out of the door. A few doors down she was banging on it to get someone to the door, rather it be Naruto or Kakashi she didn't care, as long as someone would answer. It was her luck that Kakashi answered. She didn't even explain what was happening before she pulled him out into the hallway in nothing but thin pajama pants and a white tank top.

"Sakura what's going on?" She didn't pause in her strides to face him, but instead turned into her room and headed right into the bathroom where Sasuke was still leaning against the wall holding his head.

"Something is wrong with him." Kakashi walked in slowly and assessed the situation.

"Did you check his temperature?"

"Yes, yes he's cool to the touch." Kakashi hummed then turned the hot water off.

"Sasuke do you think you could get in the tub by yourself?" Sasuke nodded slowly then proceeded to get up with Kakashi supporting him. Once he was standing he teetered again but Kakashi was strong and caught him before he could fall and hurt himself. Sakura was standing right behind them ready to offer help where ever they needed it, but Kakashi looked to have a pretty good handle on things.

When Sasuke placed his first foot into the scaling water he gasped and quickly placed his other foot in taking in the heat immediately. After he was covered in the hot water from his neck down he breathed a side of relief. Sakura could already see the color making its way back on to his face. Once Kakashi saw that he was out of the woods for now he motioned for Sakura to follow him out into the hall so they could get some things sorted out.

"What exactly happened Sakura?" She took in a deep breath and studied the wall behind him.

"Well, when I came out of the bathroom he was sitting up in the bed question how long he had slept. Once I told him he made a comment on how he usually doesn't sleep that long." Kakashi nodded while rubbing his chin in thought. After a few minutes of silence Kakashi quickly looked Sakura in the eyes.

"This is just as I feared. The effects are already taking place." Sakura gasped and grabbed ahold of his shoulder.

"How long Kakashi? How long until he forms into a rock?" Kakashi sighed then rubbed his left eye.

"I don't know, two days… maybe three if we're lucky." Sakura let go of his shoulder then looked over to the room.

"Then we have to take him back, there's no way we'll get him to Arizona and back before the effects take that much of an effect." Kakashi nodded.

"I know, we'll get everything packed then get back on the road by at least ten?" Sakura rubbed her own eyes and nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, that sounds good. You should go get Naruto up."

"All right, we'll eat breakfast here though so we don't have to make another stop." Sakura nodded one last time then went back into the room to grab some warm clothes for Sasuke to wear. Before Kakashi had made it back to his room Sakura was asking him to bring some of his clothes so that Sasuke wouldn't have to sport some girly clothes, at least that was what Naruto always called them.

When Sakura walked back into the bathroom to check on Sasuke she noticed he had fallen asleep again. The water still had steam floating off of it but she could still see the slight tremors racking his body. She reached over the side of the tub and shook him awake. His eyes looked dazed, as if he couldn't know exactly where he was until he noticed Sakura standing there still holding on to his shoulder.

"Are you okay?" He closed his eyes and took in a deep breath.

"Yeah, I just can't stop shaking." Sakura pulled her hand away to land it on her hip in thought. She couldn't think of anything else that would help him overcome cold that was literally threatening to take his life; and the more she thought about it, the more hopeless it seemed.

"Is the water cooling? I could add some more heat to it." He shook his head no then moved to get up, Sakura placed her hand against his shoulder again and tried to get him to stay put until Kakashi brought in some of his most warm clothes. Of course Sasuke wouldn't wait and found that in lifting from the water, his black sweat pants barely clung to his hips and threatened to show more than what was necessary. Before they fell off completely Sasuke used one hand to hold them while the other was used to support his weight on the shower wall.

Sakura stepped into the tub to offer her support, but decided to pull the drain stopper and turn on the shower head. After the curtains were shut so the water wouldn't make the ground too slippery Sakura let Sasuke lean against her under the scaling water. "Does that help?" He smiled tiredly then slowly let his trembling legs collapse, sinking down to sit against the wall. Sakura sat beside him in the narrow tub, trying to offer any kind of body heat that would help.

As soon as Kakashi stepped into the room and opened the curtain, a small smile graced his lips. "Well, don't you two look comfy?" Sakura raised a questioning eyebrow in his direction before he gestured for her to examine her position. She was practically sitting in Sasuke's lap because of the small tub, with wet clothes clinging to every curve. Sakura blushed lightly then cleared her throat.

"Kakashi, we have more serious things to worry about. Set those clothes down on the counter, and go get dressed. We need to be leaving as soon as we can. Is Naruto up?" Kakashi set the garments down just like she asked and started for the door.

"Yes he's up and packing. While you two get dressed in dry clothes I'll go get us some food from the café across the street." Sakura frowned.

"Okay, but please don't bring back any muffins. I feel if I eat one more this week then I will surely combust." Kakashi just chuckled while Sasuke smirked.

"All right, I'll be back shortly." With that he left the two alone to get dressed. Sakura stood up from her position and helped Sasuke back to his feet before turning off the water. When she stepped out, Sakura handed Sasuke a white fluffy towel while grabbing herself one.

"Okay, dry off and get dressed while I go into the other room to change. Don't come out until I say you can, okay?" He gave a nod then proceeded to climb out of the tub, as soon as he started to stumble, Sakura was there lending her help. After she got him seated on the tub she nodded to herself then left the room to change.

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AN: My goodness the longest chapter I have ever written, EVER! This is awesome. :) However, I didn't reach my 50k word count by today, so that sucks; but hey it was worth starting this amazing story. Just to let all of my readers know, I do have plans for this story and I can't wait to write them. There is much in store for all of us, I can't promise the updates will be fast but I will try to have a new chapter out every two weeks. I found out while doing NaNoWriMo that I need to place deadlines on when chapters are going to be published. When writing this I tried to have a new chapter every Monday, so my new goal is going to be a new chapter every other Monday. Depending on what my classes are going to be like next semester.

Anyway as always, thanks so much for reading. I would still love to hear from all of you so don't be afraid to drop by a comment, or a suggestion. I love to hear other people's opinions on my writing so I can improve. Happy writings/Reading.