Special 1: Insane Bloodlust
My sensei figured that we should arrive in the battlefield in a spectacular fashion. We were already running late from returning to Konoha by a couple of hours. It wasn't necessarily my fault that Kakashi was a heavy sleeper. I told him he should stop reading that perverted book of his before going to bed; he tends to stay up half the night and never gets enough sleep.
From Konoha to the plateau where we stood was about a 3 hour trip. Because of the taijutsu training we've completed over the last month, we managed to actually cut that time by half. We arrived in Konoha close to 1 PM, which means that the third fight was probably finished.
"Kakashi, why are you always so late!" I screamed at my tardy, apathetic sensei.
"Well, Sasuke…When I woke up, I stumped my toe on a pebble and had to perform first aid to recover the damage…hehehe…" Kakashi said. He honestly did not just….
Anyways, we made haste to the stadium. After I was discharged from Konoha General, we were allowed to get a sneak preview of the stadium. In fact, all combatants were allowed to look. The whole purpose of the one month "training" session was to get as much information about your adversary as humanly possible to assist you in your battle. It also did not hurt to get a feel for the terrain. It was Kakashi who decided to scout the terrain.
The stadium was massive. There were seats for about 10,000 people, or about one-third the population of Konoha. The Stadium stood tall at about 132 feet, and about 125 feet in diameter. Inside the stadium, there is a deep incline where the battle field is located. The battlefield is about 50 feet under the stands and seats of the stadium, so that viewers were not injured by stray jutsu or kunai and shuriken. The battles of the Chuunin exams did get hectic, after all, from my experience in the preliminaries.
The battlefield was mostly flat, with occasional outcroppings of rock and some minor forested areas. This was perfect. There was enough space for me to utilize my new jutsu. I can't wait to use it on Gaara, and show that psycho that his absolute defense isn't as "absolute" as he claims it to be.
With prior knowledge of the battlefield in hand, Kakashi suggested we shunshin into the center of the battlefield, despite whether or not a battle was being held. I was firmly against his idea, but I really wanted to fight Gaara. If I can fight and defeat Gaara, that will make me one step closer to killing him.
With a quick hand sign, me and Kakashi disappeared in a vortex of leaves. Using Shunshin for the first time is an odd feeling. It's not the same as moving through space and time, but the sheer speed in which one's body move to another area can be nauseating. The first time I used a Shunshin, I vomited, unable to hold everything in for that time. Fortunately, during our training in the plateau, all we ate were ration packs and energy bars, so I did not have much of a grotesque taste lingering in my mouth.
This time, I was prepared for the Shunshin. It still felt a little queasy, but in a couple of seconds Kakashi and I arrived at the center of the arena. It seemed that we arrived just at the end of a battle, as Naruto, Shikamaru, and some shinobi, I don't quite recall his name, were on the battlefield. As expected, everyone in the field was surprised by the random cyclone of leaves indicating our arrival.
After overcoming his mild shock, the man I did not know finally spoke up. "Your name?" He said with a smirk, playing with the senbon in his mouth. Judging by the smirk, he probably already knew who I was, so I assumed it was standard protocol. It's rare for ninja to randomly shunshin into the middle of the stadium during the Chuunin Exams, after all.
I decided to indulge him. "Uchiha Sasuke." I said coldly. There's no point in me getting excited over this. I'm going to win, no matter what. I have to win. I need to win.
Naruto was staring at me with a huge grin on his face. I presumed he was very excited to see me there. "From your excitement," I began. "You won in the first round?"
"Of course!" Naruto responded, grin still plastered on his face. I gave him a smirk. Truth be told, it did not matter who won the first match between him and Hyuuga Neji. In the end, I'll still be testing my skills against a formidable adversary. Deep down inside, I actually wanted Naruto to win. I said I wanted to fight him and I honestly meant that. I've witnessed his improvement over the last couple of months, and I would be arrogant and ignorant to say that it was nothing short of impressive. Naruto has grown stronger at a rate I found astonishing, and the stronger he got, the more I wanted to fight him.
"Well…" Kakashi suddenly said, earning everyone's attention. "We showed up all flashy and the like but could Sasuke have been…disqualified?" I wanted to fall flat on my face. Kakashi was so confident when he suggested the shunshin, but now I may be disqualified because of his stupid habit? Kakashi, you idiot! "See, you're late Sasuke." He continued, scratching the back of his head feigning innocence. Kakashi, you're the reason why I'm late, you bumbling pervert!
"Geez," the man with the senbon said, shifting from leg to leg. "Your tardiness must be contagious." I palmed my face. Kakashi actually managed to convince everyone in the stadium that I was the reason why I was late. Kakashi, after I kill Itachi…
Shikamaru had a bored, uninterested expression on his face, as if this was all but a drag. I'd have to agree with him on that point. This was a complete waste of time.
"So…" Kakashi said, breaking the awkward silence. "What is it?"
"Don't worry." The unknown man said. "We pushed Sasuke's fight 'til the end. He hasn't been disqualified."
"Ahahahahahahahaha!" Kakashi laughed. "That's good! Good!" Yeah, enjoy your respite now, you asshole…
I breathed a mental sigh of relief. I still got a chance to test the results of my training. Just then I suddenly remembered. Where is the real proctor of the third part? If I recall his name it was…Coyote Gecko? I know for certain he sneezed a lot…
Well, it matters not. I'm about to fight Gaara. I'll beat him utterly, make him understand the true might of an Uchiha Elite.
I found him staring at me from Suna balcony above. I returned his glare. His glare seemed so…cold. Inhuman. Demonic. I felt like wavering the more I stared into this genin's dark eyes. But I can't show any weakness against anyone. I already allowed that snake Orochimaru to see me cower in fear. I won't let some nameless runt do the same. Even if his teammates are scared shitless.
I was brought back to reality by Naruto's sudden words.
"Don't lose to a guy like that." Naruto said. He must have been sharing my same sentiments.
"Yeah," I replied. I won't lose to Gaara. I won't lose to anyone.
After some sudden silence, Naruto shouted my name, trying to catch my attention. Baka, there's no need to shout, I'm right in front of you…
"I…want to fight you too!" He said in such a serious tone. I haven't heard Naruto this serious since the Wave Country mission. He must really want to fight me.
"Yeah…" I said, giving him a half-smirk. His face lightened up with a massive grin. Only the numbskull could smile like that. I guess that's good for him. I wouldn't want him to be as sore as a whipped dog when we eventually fight.
From the battlefield, I could hear the blond harpy screeching my name. I honestly can't understand what she has in it for me. She's annoying, talentless, and pathetic. Even the timid Hyuuga princess can kick her ass. She really needs to stop going gaga over me, I am not going to be interested in the slightest with her (or Sakura for that matter).
Following the blondie's unnecessary words of encouragement, there was a stream of gossip overcoming the entire stadium.
"Hey, is that the Uchiha prodigy?" some said. "The Uchiha fight is gonna start!" others screamed. The praises and chants just continued on. These guys really need to shut the fuck up. I'm not here to fight for their wretched entertainment. I'm here so that I can grow stronger and kill Itachi. It's not like these self-centered, ungrateful bastards can honestly understand what I'm going through right now.
I noticed Shikamaru starting to stare at me. Although I did not return the glance, I figured he's probably as interested in my fight as the others. Lazy ass.
I turned my gaze back at Gaara, but what I saw almost unnerved me. His expression changed into a bloodthirsty grin, as if he wanted so badly to kill me. I could feel some killing intent, even from our distance. But the killing intent was nowhere near as high as Zabuza during the Wave Country. Or Orochimaru in the Forest of Death. Hell, even Naruto had stronger killing intent when he was enveloped in that weird crimson chakra while fighting Orochimaru's summon.
"Gaara, get down here" The proctor called Gaara.
"Naruto, let's go back up." Shikamaru suggested. You don't say?
"Yeah." Naruto responded enthusiastically. Honestly, if the match is about to start, wouldn't it be kinda, I don't know, mandatory for all other noncombatants to leave the vicinity?
"For going up at least, we're going to slowly walk up the stairs." Shikamaru said, bringing his right arm over his shoulders to soothe his neck.
"What? You're still pissed that I pushed you down?" Naruto asked.
…What exactly went down while I was coming over?
After some time waiting, Gaara finally arrived on the battleground. I noticed some minor blotches of blood on his clothing. I paid it no mind; Suna shinobi probably do not have the luxury of cleaning their clothing.
"Now…finally…" The senbon loving proctor said.
Gaara was chuckling maniacally, catching me somewhat by surprise. The bloodlust in his eyes grew exponentially, and his creepy grin did not help the situation. It's enough to unnerve any normal genin. Then again, I'm not any normal genin.
"BEGIN!" The proctor announced. Immediately, sand began to flow out of the gourd Gaara held in his back. Instinctively, I took a step back. This must be the sand that Kakashi mentioned…the one that incapacitated Lee. If Lee, of all people, can be defeated by such sand, then I need to be on the alert.
Unexpectedly, Gaara clasped his right hand on his forehead, as if he were suffering a large migraine. The sand stopped flowing from the gourd, suspended in midair. I was confused at his sudden halt. He was gaining momentum in the battle, just to abruptly stop what he was doing?
"Don't…get so angry…" He suddenly said. Was he talking to me? Do I really look like I'm angry at the moment? I was starting to get a little irritated, yes. But I was nowhere near angry.
"Mother…" he continued. I looked around. There was no one else in the field except for me, the proctor and the delusional psychopath. I was starting to worry about what exactly he was saying.
"I fed you some nasty blood earlier…" He said. The amount of sand surrounding him increased dramatically. He was no longer gaining sand from inside his gourd, but from the earth itself. He was extracting sand residue from the ground and using it for his own needs. This versatile ability is definitely something towards his advantage. I need to be careful; if he can manipulate sand from any part of the earth, I cannot just stand still and wait for him to attack.
"I'm sorry…" He continued. "But this time it will be delicious…"
I couldn't help but feel a cold sweat roll down my face. Gaara had got to be the most mentally challenged enemy I've fought thus far.
Gaara must have gotten a larger headache, because he suddenly twitched violently, screaming and releasing his hand from his head. His sand also noticeably dropped with Gaara's sudden pain.
When he recollected himself, he stared at me coldly, as if I were an insect that needed to be squashed. "Come" he said, void of any real emotions.
"Here I come," I said. Quickly grabbing two shuriken from my shuriken holster, I threw them at Gaara's direction. He did not even move to dodge the attack; a wall of sand erupted from the ground and stopped the shuriken dead in its tracks.
The sand morphed into a clone of Gaara, holding the two shuriken in his hands. The clone looked just as apathetic as the original, excepted made completely out of sand.
Taking this momentary pause as an opportunity, I dashed forward towards Gaara. The sand clone mildly exploded, launching sand at my direction. Surprised that the clone could actually do that, I leapt out of the way. Gaara was shocked at how high I could leap, easily avoiding the blast radius of the launched sand. His clone quickly retaliated, tossing the shuriken I threw at it towards me. Not only was his sand versatile, but his sand clone as well. Gaara is gonna be one tough opponent, that's for sure.
I tossed two more shuriken at the incoming ninja stars. They collided at midair, giving me ample time to assault the clone. I kicked the clone, which blocked with its arms crossed over its body. Unlike Naruto's clones, this one did not dispel immediately upon impact. But the force of my kick was enough to decimate its hands.
Catching my falling body with my hands, I sprang up and back towards the clone aiming to finish the job. I sent my left fist towards the clone's throat. But the clone merely smirked, and sand began to envelope my fist. I was not about to let him catch me, so I finished off the clone with a palm strike using my right hand.
With no clone left to guard Gaara, I dashed off to deal first blood of the fight. Before my fist connected with Gaara's face, a mini shield of sand appeared right in front of his face. I smirked. That trick is not going to work twice.
Spinning on the soles of my feet, I rapidly rushed behind Gaara. Gaara could not see how fast I moved, and immediately after turning, I landed a solid punch at Gaara's face. Gaara's face cracked and he was sent flying, only for his landing to be softened by that annoying sand of his.
"So that's the armor of sand, eh?" I asked him rhetorically. He didn't reply, just trying to stare daggers at me in some sort of vain attempt to kill me with his glare. Gaara's not about to scare me. I got into Lee's familiar taijutsu stance, hoping to deal some psychological damage to the already mentally impaired maniac. "Come on." I flicked my fingers, inviting him to attack.
He took the bait. He tried to attack me with more sand, but I was merely too fast for him. The second he attacked, I was immediately behind him again. His sand reacted faster this time, trying to halt my advance. I weaved through the incoming sand and landed a roundhouse kick at Gaara's chest, sending him flying one again.
Damage was reduced by his aggravating sand shield and his sand softening the impact of his falls. But I was still satisfied with the hits I was gaining on him.
"What's wrong?" I mocked. "Is that it?" Gaara was undeterred by my petty insults, still staring coldly into my very being.
I ran at him yet again. I circled around his defense once, avoiding all of the sand he was sending my way. I rolled into his defenses, surprising the Suna shinobi, and smashed his chin with a powerful kick. I wasn't down with my assault though. Grabbing his shirt as he was about to fly into the air, I knocked the wind out of him with a knee strike, forcing him to stumble on his own knees to catch some air. I made some space between me and him, refusing to allow the sand to attack me anytime soon.
Gaara wasn't the only one that needed to catch a breather. Actually, truth be told, Lee's taijutsu is strenuous. The sheer amount of stamina I need to travel at the speeds he supposedly travelled was too much, and I was tiring out quickly. It was not like I was tiring to the point where Gaara can gain the upper hand, but it was still taxing nonetheless.
Gaara struggled to stand, the sand orbiting around him. Forming the seal of the tiger, all of the sand began to gather around him in a protective dome
Though I was slightly surprised, I did not let this new development stop me. I ran at him, determined to finish this fight. As I readied my fist to crack open this new defense, sand spikes emerged from the protective dome, slashing me in several place. My fist still connected, but the dome was compacted densely, and my knuckles ended up bleeding from the impact. Impressive, but not good enough.
An eye began to form outside of the dome. Most likely because he can't see from within the dome, he needed a method to observe the foolishness of his opponent. Well, the only thing he's gonna be seeing is how I destroy his "absolute defense."
Wiping the blood off of my face, I charged at his sand defense again. I kicked the dome with all the strength I could muster, but it would not even dent. That really was some tight defense. I can't even crack it through normal methods. I don't know exactly what he's planning on doing inside that dome of his, isolated from the rest of the world. But, regardless, Gaara is still going down. I still have one more trick up my sleeve.
I backed up as far as I can, even using the walls of the stadium for extra distance. I farther back I am, the more damage I can potentially do with my new jutsu. Rapidly going through the three hand signs for my jutsu, I placed my left hand near the ground and lightning chakra gathered around my palm. I was ready.
Keeping my hand near the ground, I dashed off towards Gaara. The sheer power of the electricity gathered around my palm was enough to destroy the ground my palm was over.
Gaara was not about to let me get anywhere near him, registering the sudden new jutsu as a major threat. He assaulted me with a bombardment of sand and sand spikes from the ground, forcing me to weave through the ground. The attack may seem like a straightforward dash, but Gaara underestimated one trump card I was holding back during this battle: the Sharingan.
"CHIDORI" I screamed as I pierced the sand dome. Gaara tried, in vain, to counterattack me using his dome's spikes, but with the Sharingan, I could see where his spikes came from and I dodged as such.
"I've got you!" I shouted in momentary triumph. Though I usually do not bask in the kill (personally, I have yet to kill anyone at this point in my life), this feeling of victory was too much for me to simply ignore. Throughout this entire battle, I've been the one controlling the momentum. I was the one inflicting all the damage, and I barely received any damage in return. This was my moment, and I couldn't help but enjoy it. It's proof that I am getting stronger.
"What's this warm stuff?" Gaara suddenly asked. He was inside the dome, so it was barely audible, but I could still hear his "conversation" nonetheless. "Mother…what did…"
I felt some blood flow through my hand. I made extra precautions to protect my hand from potential backlash of Chidori, so I knew this was not my own blood. This had to be Gaara's blood.
"UWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Came the bloodcurdling scream from within the dome. "BLOOD! MY BLOOD!" Gaara yelled maniacally. What's the matter with him? He's never seen his own blood before?
The sand around my arm began to tighten hard and harder. It became increasingly difficult and very painful to remove my palm from the sand dome. He was aiming to crush that arm. I won't let him.
I charged lightning chakra again in my palm. It was not a second Chidori, merely a boost of strength using Raiton. I still felt Gaara on my hand, so I sent lightning chakra at him, hoping to disable him and stop him from crushing my arm.
"GYAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Gaara screamed as the foreign electricity coursed through his body. His momentary lapse was more than enough time for me to remove my blood-soaked hand from within his miniature fortress.
As I removed my arm, I was attacked by a massive claw. I managed to jump out of the way, and the claw limped before retracting back inside the sand cocoon. It left a large hole inside, just barely enough to see the contents inside the cocoon. I activated my Sharingan to gain a better view, and what I saw actually shook me to the core.
His eyes. His eyes changed. They were no longer teal green eyes surrounded by the black rings of an insomniac. The sclera was completely black; his iris was a strangely vibrant golden color with a cross shaped pupil. It was so inhuman. Everything about the kid was damn inhuman, but this just upped the level by leaps and bounds.
It was a momentary observation, however. His facial features changed back to the normal, human Gaara as the sand dome collapsed on itself. Gaara was holding onto his left shoulder tightly, where I stabbed him and shocked him with my Chidori. He was breathing heavily, unsure of exactly what to do in this situation. Most likely he had never felt this kind of pain before, and the sheer agony of it was causing him to undergo a mental breakdown.
I did not have time to think, however, as the Hokage booth above exploded. I was surprised by the sudden explosion and barely noticed Gaara being joined by the Suna genin and his jounin sensei.
"Gaara, the plan." The jounin said. Gaara could not possibly have heard him, since he was on his knees struggling to keep his migraine from further damaging his already delicate mental state. I was curious as to this "plan," these guys had. Did it have something to do with the cocoon?
"I knew it…" The blond kunoichi said.
"What's wrong?" The hooded shinobi asked.
"Fool!" the jounin sensei screamed. "Trying to transform into your complete state before the signal?!" Complete state? It must be those eyes I saw inside the sand cocoon…
"He's experiencing the side effects, it's impossible to proceed now!" The blond kunoichi said.
"Then what are we supposed to do?!" The hooded shinobi screamed. "Do it without Gaara?"
This was all very confusing. I can hear the sounds of battle from outside the Stadium. The Hokage booth was destroyed, and now these Suna shinobi were discussing some sort of "plan?" The jounin sensei was in deep contemplation, considering the options he had available. What exactly is going on at the moment?
"Abort the mission." He said, to the surprise of the two genin shinobi. "You guys take Gaara and retreat."
The two genin looked distraught. "Damn," The hooded shinobi finally replied after some thought.
"What about you?" The blond kunoichi asked.
"I'll join the battle." He responded. So there was a battle going outside of the stadium. An invasion force? Suna's trying to invade Konoha after our treaty? "Go!"
"Y-yeah," The blond kunoichi said reluctantly. The three genin dispersed from the stadium, leaving me dumbfounded by the situation at hand.
"Is the leader of this party…Orochimaru?" The senbon proctor said after some silence. Orochimaru? Orochimaru is here in Konoha?
"Who knows?" the jounin sensei said with a smirk. "Let's just join the fun!"
This was getting out of hand. I am certain that I have improved over the last month. My complete and utter domination of the Gaara battle is proof of that. But I don't think I have the skills to take on this jounin. Even with the proctor helping me.
"Hey!" I screamed, catching the proctor's attention. "What's going on?" I needed some clarity. An understanding of the situation at hand.
"Sorry, but the Chuunin Exams is now over." The proctor said in a serious tone. "You go and pursue Gaara and the others."
This sounded like a mission briefing. I was told to go and find Gaara, and potentially bring them back to Konoha. Things were indeed going way too fast for me to fully comprehend, but it's not like I have any say in the matter.
"You're already at the Chuunin level." He continued, interrupting my train of thought. "If you're a leaf shinobi, then make yourself useful." In the end, I really did not have much of a say in the matter, did I? The proctor is most likely a Special jounin, so he outranked me and therefore can provide me with instructions and orders. Since I was an active genin, I was obligated to follow his commands. Besides, personally, I wanted to finish the battle I had with Gaara. I won't let anything get in the way of my victory.
I gave an affirmative nod to the proctor and jumped and exited the stadium. I don't understand the severity of the mission at hand, but it seems like I play a vital role in stopping Suna's plans. I won't disappoint. I can't disappoint. Not with my lifelong ambition on the line with my service.
Hey y'all!
Welcome to the first ever Special of True Paths to Power! Now, let me go into a brief discussion on how Specials will work out in my story. I'll release specials only on certain occasions. This special occasion was to mark the 1000th view of this story. What a milestone, I still can't believe I managed to get this far in a month!
Specials will be written in the First Person, as opposed to the Third Person perspective of the story. Specials are designed to get more in depth with certain characters, like Naruto, Sasuke, maybe even Sakura, Kakashi, etc. I plan on having a Special written for the OC that will hopefully be making a reappearance soon. Hell, maybe the mysterious masked man may get a special.
Specials will be written during milestones, or when parts of the story calls for more analysis of a certain character's...er...well...character. Specials will be written in the style of speech the specific character engages in. For instance, I have Naruto say "ya" instead of "you" (even though ya is more then likely plural). I don't like randomly saying "dattebayo" at the end of sentences, because its ridiculous to say a random Japanese phrase in an English sentence. I occasionally say "believe it" because, in my mind, it works a lot better. If this fan fic was written in Japanese, then I would spamming the fuck out of "dattebayo." With no remorse whatsoever. But you get the idea. Specials will be written in the style of speech of the represented character.
Now, why is this special written about the battle between Gaara and Sasuke? A lot of people asked me why did I not start off the story in that particular sequence of events. I have an answer. The battle between Gaara and Sasuke played out almost exactly like it did in canon. It would basically be a rehash. A retelling. I did not want my story to start as a retelling. So I started at the point where canon and my story actually really split: the Kimimaro battle. This particular battle will be split in two. I don't want Specials to be as long as normal chapters. Maybe 5000-6000 words long. so this is the first part of the special. Don't expect the next part to come anytime soon, though. I plan to release the next part hopefully by the start of the Second Chuunin Exams of my story.
I want to apologize. This chapter was rushed and I did not spend as much time as I should have. I was spending the majority of my time reading Lost Soul by LD 1449. It was so addicting that I prioritized completing that story over working on my own. I'm so bad. I sorry.
This should have been a little longer. It also should have been edited properly. I have not proofread this piece. I will do so sometime this weak, and I'll rerelease this chapter. I promise you guys that.
Now, Week 5 Stats: 21 Favorites, 29 Followers, 34 Reviews, 1 Community, and 1,860 Views. Wow, what a boost of views since last. You can expect the next update to be a continuation of the story. Get hyped: Jiraiya vs. Naruto is up next!
Now, I want to say some final words. I will no longer be writing Author's Notes explaining the feelings and emotions of the characters. I want you guys to find out what exactly is going through the characters minds on your own. Hopefully, this will invite people to ask more questions in their reviews, I would really like that. Speaking of questions, here you guys go!
Q: I thought Shisui committed suicide by drowning and gave Itachi his remaining eye? Or did he get Itachi to actually kill him to gain his own Mangekyo?
A: Shisui was assaulted by Danzou before he gave his eye to Itachi. Shisui's right eye was stolen from him, and he was most likely going to have his left eye stolen from him before he escaped the attack. Shisui gave Itachi his left eye and asked him to keep it hidden, hoping that the power of Kotoamatsukami would not fall into the wrong hands.
Kotoamatsukami is one of the most powerful Genjutsu in the world. I would not say its more powerful than Tsukuyomi, since that Tsukuyomi has not been broken by anyone before (victims of Tsukuyomi undergo psychological relapse, leaving them in a comatose state during and after the period of Tsukuyomi. Tsunade did not break Kakashi and Sasuke out of Tsukuyomi, she just woke them up from their state). Whereas, victims of Kotoamatsukami, although they have absolutely no idea of their being in a genjutsu in the first place, can be broken from their state, as Ao did with Mifune in the Five Kage Summit. However, the implications of Kotoamatsukami are far more severe. You can convince the Hokage to go to war with every single nation in the world, and the Hokage would have no idea that you were the reason why he/she declared war, for instance.
Itachi never wanted to kill Shisui. But Shisui knew his time was up. He couldn't see anymore, and his career as a ninja was over. So he asked Itachi to assist him in his suicide. Itachi complied, and with the death of his best friend, he awakened the Mangekyo. Hope I explained it well.
Q: Are you basically skipping over Dark Naruto, the one Naruto had to face at the Waterfall of Truth?
A: The whole concept of defeating your inner demon to gain strength is a cliche plot device that I do not wish to utilize in this story. I may or may not use it with another character (like Sasuke), but I have no plans for Dark Naruto to make an appearance in this story. That may change, however. I do have the general gist of the plot. I know who's going to live, and who's going to die. I know what event is going to make who snap. I even have the final battle all planned out. However, the majority of the plot is holes that I need to fill at some point. The plot and I are going to change as time moves on. So keep your hopes up.
Once again, I apologize for the rushed chapter. I'll update this as soon as I can, and you can expect the next official chapter of the story next week Monday. Wednesday will be the release of Finding Conviction. June 1st will be Redemption. Hope you guys enjoy this experiment, and I will see ya later, BELIEVE IT DATTEBAYO!
-Blackrazgriz 5/20/2013 1:39PM EST