Chapter Sixteen
Naruto's Counter Attack: Never Give In
"So, anyway," Naruto began from his perch on the branch. "What was that password again, Sasuke-teme?" He asked with a grin.
"Naruto! Get out of here! You don't know what you're up against! Get out of here!" Sasuke yelled up to the blonde, staring at him with his Sharingan while the woman looked at Naruto with annoyance flashing in her eyes. "Go now! While you still can!"
"So, Naruto-kun, you managed to escape from my friend." The woman mused casually.
'Hmm, I get it.' Naruto thought. 'So that wasn't just nay old random giant snake attack. The snake was sent by her…or it…or…whatever this demon is…'
'He doesn't get it…he doesn't know what he's dealing with.' Sasuke noted when Naruto didn't move, despite his warnings. 'What do I do?'
"Okay, okay." Naruto said. "I don't know what's going on here, but you've been picking on my friends and I don't like that! So you just better slither back into your hole, snake lady, before I make a pair of shoes outta ya."
'Huh?' Sasuke gaped. 'Little idiot! He's just gonna get us all killed! I've got to do something…but what? Kami-sama, Sakura, why do you always disappear when we need you the most?!'
[--
"Kami-sama! Why can I never find them when I need them the most?!" A pink-haired girl growled to herself.
"Who?" A male voice asked behind her.
"Kakuzu, I swear that I will kill yo-!" She stopped, turning around to see her older brother and not the Akatsuki member. "Juhi-nii-san?"
"Yeah…who's Kakuzu?" Juhi asked, raising his eyebrow at his younger sister in suspicion.
"Just…one of the other candidates." Sakura brushed off. "I met him just before the first exam."
"No you didn't." Tsuki cut in with a frown as he jumped into view.
"We've been watching you since all the other candidates entered Konoha, and you didn't meet anybody." Taiyoo confirmed.
"Stalkers." Sakura muttered. "Look, he's just some guy! Nothing big, I swear." She assured them.
"Well…okay then." Juhi gave up, knowing that his sister was too stubborn to fight with about something like that. "Want us to help you find Naruto and Sasuke?" He asked.
"No! I'm fine." She promised. What they didn't know was that she was expecting another visit from the Akatsuki soon, and the criminals didn't usually care if there were other people around.
"So, we'll see ya in the next phase of the exam then?" Taiyoo asked before his twin could yell about how she most certainly was not fine.
"Yeah. Bye." She smiled.
[--
"Taiyoo, she wasn't fine." Tsuki grumbled. The look-alike Hoshi boy sighed and turned his vision to Juhi, wanting the Jounin/Genin-poser to explain.
"Well, it's been four years…we can't really just come back into her life and demand that she tell us every detail of what she's been doing." Juhi elaborated.
"So, what do we do now?" Tsuki asked.
"I think you know." Juhi smirked.
"Oh yeah. We do the only thing we can do." Tsuki shrugged. "Commence operation S.P.Y!"
"What do those letters actually stand for, anyway?" Taiyoo asked with his brow raised. "I mean, that's the codename for every mission we do."
"Well, the letters stand for Secret Plan Yoghurt." Juhi replied.
"…Yoghurt?" Taiyoo repeated with a sweat drop.
"Hey! I was hungry when I thought of it and I needed a 'Y'! It was either Yoghurt or Youth!" Tsuki defended. "And I am nothing like that weirdo with the green spandex!"
[--
"Sakura-chan, I hope you aren't planning to go back with them." A red-eyed man in a black cloak warned.
"Of course not, Itachi-san." Sakura scowled. Itachi looked over her wounds and his eyes narrowed.
"You're still weak." He commented.
"Are you insulting me?" Sakura scoffed.
"No. Merely stating facts." Itachi replied.
"Hn. If I'm so weak, then why are you still bothering with me?" The pinkette glared threateningly. However, unlike his brother, Itachi paid no attention to the glare.
"Two reasons. One is Leader-sama's fondness for you and his belief that you will grow into an acceptable fighter. And two…" He trailed off, taking the younger girl in his arms. "You interest me." The murderer finished, holding the stiff girl in an awkward embrace.
"Get off me." Sakura ordered.
"Why?" Itachi questioned, loosening his grip and holding her shoulders so she looked into his eyes.
"Because I said so." She ground out. Itachi studied her for a moment, looking at her shaking fists, clenched teeth and finally at the emotions flittering in her eyes.
"You're going soft." He realised. "That Kyuubi boy is getting to you. I shouldn't have to remind you that it is your mission to apprehend him for Kisame and I. Nor should I need to tell you that this is the only way to get Leader-sama to dispose of that seal the traitor and him combined gave to you." The teen reminded. Sakura's hand subconsciously drifted to her right shoulder and she bit her lip.
"Fuck off." She choked out. Her cheek stung madly when Itachi struck her in the same place as Sasuke had hit her only a day before. She bit her lip harder and blood began to spill from the cut that was forming.
"Do not use that language or tone with me." He warned with a glare that made Sakura want to run away and hide. Instead, she did something that she would have never done before. She glared back hit his hand off of her shoulder, backing away from him when she did.
"Don't touch me." She hissed through gritted teeth. Biting her tongue so that she wouldn't release a howl of pain, Sakura jumped into the trees and sped off towards her team, trying to ignore the burning pain of her injuries and the remaining sting of her cheek.
[--
'It's no use.' Sasuke realised as he looked at the creepy grin forming on the woman's mouth. 'There's only one way.' He submitted, turning off his Sharingan and looking down at the branch. "You can have it!" Sasuke called, causing the woman to look at him.
"Have what, Sasuke-kun?" She purred, looking right at him with interest.
"You want the scroll, right?" Sasuke asked, reaching into his hip pouch and pulling out the Heaven scroll. "That's what you want, isn't it? Alright then. Take it and leave us in peace." He commanded.
"Huh?!" Naruto asked in surprise at his team mate's willingness to just give up. "Wha-? Sasuke! Are you crazy or what? We're just gonna hand the scroll over to the enemy?! NO WAY!" He roared. "What's wrong with you?!"
"Shut up and stay out of it!" Sasuke snapped, glaring at Naruto.
"What?" The blonde muttered to himself.
"Very wise. Very sensible." The woman mused. "Sometimes, the prey realises that to save their own skin, they need to distract the predator with something a little more precious."
"Take it." Sasuke bid, throwing the scroll to the woman.
It soared through the air and came closer and closer to her when a blur rushed passed and snatched it out of her reach. Naruto landed near Sasuke, the scroll clasped tightly in his grip.
"Got it." He said to no one in particular.
"Stop being the hero, Naruto!" Sasuke yelled. "Just stay out of this and leave it to me!" He ordered.
"RAWR!" Naruto turned with an angry cry and punched Sasuke in the face, sending the Uchiha back. Sasuke used his hand as leverage and flipped himself onto a branch not too far from his blonde team mate.
"Argh. Stupid fool! You don't know what you're doing!" He yelled in desperation, trying to get Naruto to let go of his pride and admit defeat.
"I may not know the password…but I know who I am." Naruto said through pants. "You're the one I'm not so sure about. How do I know that you are who you day you are?"
"Dobe! What are you talking about?" Sasuke asked in anger at Naruto's 'stupidity'. "What sort of nonsense is this? It's me, you loser!"
"Liar." Naruto growled. "Liar. You may look just like him…you may sound just like him…but…there's no way you're the Sasuke I know! I don't care how tough of a fight you've been through. Surrendering…giving up the scroll…when did Sasuke become a coward?! You keep saying that I don't understand what's going on, but I do! You choked, that's what it is!" He accused while Sasuke gritted his teeth.
"It's sad." The woman commented, standing up and letting her tongue run over her lips. "It doesn't matter." She said, lifting her sleeve to reveal a pattern of two black snakes twisted around her lower arm. "As far as the scroll goes, I could simply kill you and take it." She noted, biting her thumb and drawing blood. The woman smeared the blood in the centre of her mark as Naruto grabbed a kunai.
"Let's see you try it!" He prompted as he ran at her.
"Don't!" Sasuke called, but it was already too late. "Naruto no!" He yelled, trying to stop him. Naruto jumped up and poised himself to attack, ignoring Sasuke's cries.
'Forget Sasuke! I'm going to have to do this myself!' Naruto realised as he descended towards the woman.
"Kuchiyose no Jutsu." She said as strong gusts of wind surrounded her and made Naruto hover in the air. A giant snake appeared out of no where and the woman stood on its head as the snake moved towards Naruto, who had landed on the branch. It moved forwards and its head split the branch he was one, but Naruto moved just in time.
[--
"That is no way to treat a Buddha." A Chunin, who was standing with the two who had posed as Genin, commented as he looked down on the blood-splattered statue of one of the Buddha statues.
"What'd you think? It's some kind of ninjutsu, isn't it?" The one with a bandana asked the man with glasses.
"Whatever it is, it's a problem." The spiky-haired man commented as the glasses-man nodded. "Just when things were starting to run so smoothly, too. What a drag." He sighed, rubbing his head.
"We've gotta report this. Go get the proctor." The man with the bandana ordered.
"Right." Glasses nodded as he jumped off.
In front of the men were three corpses.
[--
"Mmmm. Nothing makes dango go down like a little red bean soup." Anko commented as she sat atop the office outside the Forest of Death with her legs dangling over the edge of the roof, swallowing her soup and eating her dango. She bit off a piece of dango and chewed it slowly before swallowing it and drinking some more soup.
"Nice." She smiled, taking another ball of dango off of the skewer. "Guess it's about that time. As soon as I finish this snack, I'll see how the little kiddies are doing." She bit off the last ball. "The quicker ones will be finishing at about this time. I guess I'll just go and meet them at the tower. There, a perfect Konoha symbol."
She threw her dango-less skewer at the tree trunk where the other fifty three sticks were. Now it formed a completed Konoha symbol when you looked at it from her seat. She grinned childishly at her creation and congratulated herself on a job well done. Only, not even she was sure about whether she was proud of the Konoha symbol she'd formed or the fact that she's eaten fifty four sticks of dango in under seven hours. A puff of smoke represented someone's arrival, but she paid no attention to them as she started on another stick of dango.
"Pardon, ma'am." The glasses-wearing Chunin said as he kneeled in front of the hut Anko was sitting on. "We have a problem."
"What sort of problem?" Anko asked, getting interested.
"Corpses, ma'am." He stated simply. "Three of them."
"Aww, I'm trying to eat here." She complained, chewing on another piece of dango.
"I think you'll want to see. There's something strange about them." He told her, getting the woman to look at him. Anko swallowed and placed a finger on her chin.
"Besides being dead?" She mocked in a serious tone.
[--
Anko stepped forwards and looked at the ninja in front of her, a frown forming on her face.
"I looked through their identifications. Ninja from the hidden grass village." One of the men told her. "All three of them were registered for the Chunin exams."
"They weren't just killed." The man with spiked hair noted.
"All their faces…they're gone." Anko whispered, looking towards the blank patch were eyes, a nose and a mouth should have been.
"Yeah. There's nothing were their faces used to be. Like they've melted or something." He nodded. Anko moved her hand up to the left side of her body, in between her shoulder and her neck when she saw the big purple bow around the ninja's waist.
'No doubt about it.' She noted mentally with her teeth and her fists clenched. 'This is his jutsu. But…why is he here? What is he doing at the Chunin exams?' The woman swallowed and turned. "Okay, I need photos of what these three used to look like." She ordered. "Where're their IDs?"
"Right here, ma'am." The glasses-wearing man said, pulling three IDs out from under his arm. Anko took a look and saw that one of them was the one who gave her back her kunai after she threw it at a blonde kid.
'So, this is the face he stole.' Anko thought. 'Had it already happened when…?'
—
"I was…just returning your kunai." The woman explained slowly.
"Why thank you, good Grass ninja." Anko said with a smile.
—
"We've got big trouble!" Anko told the three Chunin. "Okay, tell Hokage-sama exactly what happened here! And while you're at it, tell ANBU black ops that they'd better get a couple of operatives to the Forest of Death. Meanwhile, I'm gonna go after these guys. Go!" She ordered.
"Right!" The men responded, leaping off to do as they were told. Once they were gone, Anko reached up to her shoulder again.
'He's come…he's here in the Hidden Leaf Village.' She confirmed to herself.
[--
Naruto panted as he looked up at the snake and the woman on its head, who just smiled eerily down at him.
"Well, well…what a tasty little meal you'll make." She taunted. "Careful; he likes to play with his food." The woman warned as the snake's tail came down towards Naruto's branch. The blonde was thrown up and crashed through three branched before he hit a fourth with a grunt of pain.
"Naruto!" Sasuke called out as the blonde began to fall downwards.
"Enough play. Finish him off." The woman ordered as she watched Naruto's decent towards the snake's mouth. Naruto opened his eyes, red with the Kyuubi's influence. He twisted his body in the air and lifted a leg up.
"EAT THIS!" Naruto yelled as he kicked the snake's nose, sending a pulse through the creature. The smile fell off the woman's face as Naruto used the snake to push himself away from her and her 'pet'. It was back in an instant when she saw his eyes.
"But how?" She questioned herself. "It's impossible."
Naruto leapt forwards with a battle cry and began an assault of fists and feet on the snake's nose. The snake just lifted its tongue and batted him away, but Naruto pushed his feet off of a tree trunk and jumped back towards the over-sized reptile. The woman smiled again as she opened her hand and blew weak fire from her mouth. Naruto was caught in these flames and fell back. He began the decent to the forest floor, smashing through branches. Eventually, the blonde hit a thick branch and fell no further.
"That fire in his eyes…there's no mistaking it." The woman grinned.
"Woah…is that…Naruto?" Sasuke wondered unsurely.
'Things are becoming very interesting…' She mused to herself. "Now then, let's see how well you do, Sasuke-kun." The woman said. The snake turned at its master's command and moved in Sasuke's direction, ready to strike, while Sasuke didn't move. An orange flash moved towards the snake.
[--
'This is bad.' Anko thought as she jumped from branch-to-branch through the forest. 'I've gotta hurry…and pray that I'm not too late.'
[--
Naruto was next to the snake with a kunai in its nose, while the snake was biting down on part of the branch Sasuke stood on. The woman just looked down at him with a serine and slightly amused smile on her face as Naruto panted from the speed he had to move.
"I can't…you're not hurt are ya?" Naruto asked. He looked up with his red eyes and a raged expression. "Scardy cat." He said to Sasuke, who just stood in shock. Sasuke's eyes widened when he looked at Naruto's.
'Naruto.' He thought.
—
"Hey." Sasuke called calmly.
"Yeah?" Naruto asked, ready to become defensive. Sasuke looked at him was a mocking smirk.
"You're not hurt, are ya?" He questioned tauntingly. "Scaredy cat."
"Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr! SASUKE!" Naruto yelled, ready to fight him.
—
"Standing there, frozen like a scared rabbit." Naruto growled. "No way; you're not the Sasuke I know."
The woman's tongue slid out of her mouth and wrapped around Naruto's shoulders, then around his chest. Both the blonde and the dark-haired boys allowed their eyes to widen as Naruto was lifted up by the strong tongue and held above the reptile's head, near to the woman holding him there. He began to kick and flail about in disgust.
"Argh! Hey! Disgusting!" He complained as he tried to get out of the woman's hold. "Put me down, you freak! Let me go before I yank this tongue out of your head!" The boy cried. His threats fell on deaf ears as the woman pulled him closer by bringing her tongue into her mouth and she held him two arm lengths away from her.
'Extraordinary.' She thought in glee. 'The nine tailed brat lives.' The woman noted as she made a seal with her hands and brought Naruto closer until they were face-to-face. "I see. When your anger is roused, some of the nine tailed fox's chakra is released." She stated as she held her hand near her waist with the palm facing Naruto. Purple flames lit on her fingertips.
"Let go!" Naruto continued, but she ignored him.
"What an interesting childhood you must've had." She mused as her tongue lifted his jumper a little so that she could see the seal around his bellybutton. "The spell that seals him in has appeared on your skin. Gogyo Fuin!" She called, slamming her hand onto Naruto's stomach.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Naruto cried out in pain. Smoke rose from the contact and, when she pulled away, spirals appeared around the seal to strengthen it. Naruto's eyes flickered between red and blue until the presence of the Kyuubi faded and his eyes remained his natural colour. He stayed still for a moment before going limp.
'For twelve years, the seal has remained unbroken.' The woman noted to herself. 'Soon the demon's chakra and the boy's will be as one. But, for now, he's just in my way.' She realised as she reached into Naruto's hip pouch and pulled out the Heaven scroll. Sasuke just stood still in shock.
"Get away from Naruto-kun, you filthy, child molester." A girl's voice growled. The woman turned her head in the direction of the voice, only to see Sakura. She was bleeding all over and her right arm was around her waist, her hand clutching her left hip. Her teeth were gritted and a scowl was prominent on her face.
"I was going to let him go anyway." The woman hummed as she threw Naruto towards Sakura. She caught him and gently set him down on the branch, then turned to Sasuke.
"What the hell is wrong with you?! He could have died!" She screamed in his direction. "He may not be the best ninja out there, but at least he's actually doing something! Not you, though! Coward!" The girl accused as a tear escaped her eye. "He could have died!" She repeated, sinking down next to Naruto and grasping his hand in hers. "You're the foolish one!"
Sasuke's eyes widened and he flinched as he remembered another who called him 'foolish' before Sakura.
—
"Foolish little brother." A man with red eyes said. "You can't kill me. Your hate's not strong enough. You're not strong enough. Your life is too precious to you. So run. That's right. Run away. And live in the shame."
—
"No!" Sasuke yelled, his eyes turning into the Sharingan.
'Hm. It's happened at last.' The woman mused. 'His Uchiha blood has finally come to a boil.'
"Stupid Uchiha." Sakura muttered with a glare, seeing that he only chose the moment she insulted him to fight back.
'I think I'll play with him a while.' The woman hummed. 'I'll see the full extent of his power.' She laughed as her snake disappeared with a gust of wind and a great cloud of smoke. Sakura lowered herself onto Naruto's chest to avoid it hurting her eyes. Sasuke, on the other hand, just remained still and glared at the woman with the long tongue.
The Sharingan Revived: Katon: Ryuka no Jutsu
"I knew it. It's finally happened. His Uchiha blood has come to a boil." The woman noted as she and Sasuke both sank into a battle stance. "I think I'll play with him a while and learn the full extent of his powers."
'All I've cared about was surviving in order to defeat my brother.' Sasuke thought as he pulled out a kunai and put it in his mouth. 'What a fool I've been. I see the truth now. Naruto, Sakura. If I haven't got the courage to face this demon, how can I ever hope to have enough courage to face him?' He asked himself.
Sasuke charged as fast as he could towards the woman, but all she did was spread her arms and send a powerful gust of wind towards him. The Uchiha leapt upwards to dodge it and she looked up to where he was as he twisted in the air, throwing kunai at her at top speed. She dodged with ease, causing Sasuke to cry out in frustration.
He kicked off of the trunk of a tree and sped towards her with the intent of engaging the woman in a taijutsu match. His kick was blocked when she crossed her arms in front of her chest in the shape of a 'X', so he flipped over her and twisted his body to land behind her on the branch with his legs spread to move again.
She pushed off of the branch and ran towards Sasuke; only she slowed her speed a little. Sasuke jumped up and tried to kick her again, but she blocked. He lowered himself and tried to sweep her feet out from under her and she jumped, but landed in enough time to block his punch. The Uchiha then spun his chest low and aimed a high kick at her face, but she shifted back and dodged while following through with a punch to his face.
The Uchiha caught her fist batted it away, and then dodged to avoid a kick at his shoulder. She then jumped up and landed behind Sasuke, who turned and saw her moving again. Then, with speed that would make Maito Gai jealous, the woman ran around Sasuke, pushing off branches and jumped up, leaving only a trail of smoke to tell of her travel path.
'I can see.' Sasuke realised as he tracked every quick move. He jumped out of the way when the woman hit the area he was and shattered the branch. 'I can see!' He cheered, preparing his jutsu. Taking a deep breath, Sasuke shot three fireballs from his mouth at the place he saw the woman last. Then, not wasting any time, he stopped and breathed fire in a steady stream passed his lips.
She managed to not get burnt and, when Sasuke stopped his jutsu, she ran forwards so fast that the branch cracked under her. The woman then swiped a fist at Sasuke, but he jumped back to avoid it. He landed a few feet away from her and reassumed his stance, taking a deep breath to steady himself. The woman just looked at him with a smile.
'You're good.' She admitted. 'You anticipate my attacks and your aim is true.' Her eyes narrowed. 'You can see my moves, can't you?' The woman realised.
—
Anko jumped off of a branch and pushed herself forwards, avoiding anything that would slow her down. She jumped up and used her hands to flip over and land on her feet on a sturdy branch. The woman then looked to the west.
'The sun's going down.' She noticed. 'I've gotta find him soon. My odds are bad enough as it is. They'll only get worse in the dark. Still…why now? What the hell could he be after? No matter. He's here. Time to finish this.'
She took one last look at the setting sun and leapt off once again.
—
The woman turned and slammed her fists on the thick branch, sending a gust of air at Sasuke. He skilfully twisted himself to avoid the blow by jumping up onto one branch and then flipping back onto another. The air hit the branches he jumped from and split them from the tree. Sasuke jumped up and used chakra to push off of a branch above him, falling towards the woman.
Sasuke grabbed her around the waist and she joined his decent at top speed, only she had her head facing the ground while Sasuke's head was pointed up. She yelled out as they moved downwards, towards a sturdy branch. The Uchiha noticed this too and held tighter, wrapping his legs around her chest as they landed heavily. Her head slammed into the branch. She shook and her eyes widened as her teeth clenched and her body went ridged and stiff.
Her arms fell limply around her head and Sasuke's hardened face relaxed a bit as he let go and jumped back. The woman's legs fell as well and Sasuke's shoulders became less tense. However, then the woman began to shift and that creepy smile worked its way back onto her face. She melted into a pile of mud and Sasuke realised his error too late.
"Kawarimi!" He yelled. A kunai sped passed him and sliced his cheek, giving him a cut identical to Naruto's. More kunai hit the tree as Sasuke preformed a back flip to dodge. He leapt over the side of the branch and pulled out clear-wire, using it to swing himself onto another branch. This turned out to be a bad idea when the woman appeared in front of him and punched him between the eyes.
Due to the surprise speed of the attack, Sasuke was behind the fight and unable to dodge a hit to the stomach, causing him to double over and leave a gap for another hit to his shoulder. A knee connected with his gut, sending him back, only to land heavily a few feet away from his stronger and more experienced opponent.
"Sasuke!" Sakura called, lifting Naruto in her arms and moving to the branch next to the one Sasuke was fighting on encase he called for her, or desperately needed her.
"What a disappointment you turned out to be." The woman said in a tone that clearly showed boredom. "Your ancestors weep. The Uchiha clan should thank me for killing you. Silly little worm." She insulted. Sasuke opened his eyes in just enough time to see the three small bombs he had placed on the back of the woman's clothing to explode, sending her to her knees with a cry of surprise.
Sasuke jumped up and away from the woman while Sakura rolled her eyes and shook her head. In her mind, it was just typical for Sasuke to make a move like that. Meanwhile, Sasuke threw shuriken with wire attached to them around the woman. He held two wires in his left hand, two in his right and two in between his teeth. Using the wires, he controlled the shuriken so that they moved around the tree.
"Incredible." The woman remarked. "It's a Sharingan windmill second attack." She realised. The wires tightened at the shuriken landed in the trunk of the tree, tying the woman tightly to the trunk. When she was securely tied there, Sasuke preformed a short series of hand seals.
"Katon: Ryuka no Jutsu!" He called. Flames came out of his mouth and set the wires on fire. The flames quickly travelled up and surrounded the woman in their heat and scorching tongues. She cried out in immense pain.
The Uchiha released the flame and rested his hands on his knees, panting at the effort he had put into that fight. Pulling Naruto up and over her shoulder, Sakura jumped across the gap between the branches and landed next to Sasuke, putting Naruto down gently as she did so.
"Good job, Sasuke." She said, not looking at him. Sasuke grunted and looked at her eyes.
"Where were you?" He asked.
"Huh?" She voiced, looking at him.
"You disappeared after the explosion." He began. "Naruto could have died when he went out looking for you. I almost died because you weren't here to help and, more importantly, you could've died because you worked too long with Naruto on your training and not enough time building up teamwork skills with me. If we had trained together more, then we could have beaten the ninja who set the bomb before he even had a chance to lose the Henge."
"Me? What about you?!" Sakura yelled. "If you actually accepted Naruto as a team mate within the first week of becoming Genin, we might have been able to build up our teamwork together. Me, you and Naruto."
"Why is it always about Naruto?!" Sasuke shouted at her, causing the pinkette to step back in surprise.
"Excuse me?" She asked.
"You're always talking about Naruto. When we actually did train together, you always wanted to try a technique that you had done before with Naruto. When the three of us are training with Kakashi, you refuse to pay any attention to me and focus on Naruto. When I ask you out, you're busy, but you're never too busy to go out with Naruto." He counted off.
"You are such a spoiled brat!" Sakura yelled. "Naruto and I have more in common that you could even imagine. We were both ignored and abused, by everyone around us. Naruto had it worse than me, I can admit that, but at one point you had a loving family."
"They never loved me!" Sasuke cried.
"Your mother!" Sakura said quickly. "I know from talk around Konoha that your mother loved you. Your f…father. He may not have paid much attention to you, but when he did his attention was all on you and that was because he was proud of you when you accomplished something."
"Your parents were probably the same." He muttered, glaring at her.
"No! My mother was killed because she didn't inherit the bloodline trait and my father…he only saw me as a tool. I wasn't his daughter. I was a weapon that he could use against his enemies. Why do you think I ran away from Yukigakure and came here? Because I was from one big, happy family?" She asked.
"Your friends love you." Sasuke pointed out with a glare. "And so does your brother."
"I know. And it nearly got them killed." She laughed humourlessly.
"Is that why you're so afraid to get close to people?" Sasuke asked. The pinkette was silent. "Well?"
"You want the truth?" Sakura asked. "Yes. I'm afraid. I'm afraid that if I get too close to someone, they'll get hurt. It was a chance I took with Hinata-chan, but there were so many precautions with that friendship that I can't even name them all."
"And Naruto?"
"Naruto…he's not a friend. But, I wouldn't say he's less that a friend. I'm confused as to where Naruto is on my acceptance scale." Sakura admitted.
"And…me?"
"You…You're just a team mate." She shook her head. "A selfish, big-headed, egotistical team mate that needs his opinion of himself straightened out…and that's all. I don't think of you as a friend, or something more…you're just…Uchiha Sasuke, team mate."
Before he could say anything more, the Grass ninja broke free from her bind and stumbled forwards slightly. Part of her face, around her left eye, seemed to be peeling off. She preformed a hand seal and Sasuke and Sakura flinched in pain.
"No…impossible." Sasuke muttered.
"Such mastery of the Sharingan at such a young age. You're a true Uchiha after all." She mused, but as soon as she said 'mastery', her voice seemed to deepen into that of a man's. "Yes, you'll do nicely." He mused, revealing his Hatei-ate, which now displayed the symbol for Sound.
"AHHHHH!" Sasuke roared, trying to break the genjutsu on himself.
"You are defiantly his brother." The man mused. "If anything, your eyes are even keener than Itachi's."
"Who are you?!" Sasuke demanded. "What do you want?!" The man chuckled and flipped team seven's Heaven scroll in his hand.
"I believe that dearest Sakura-chan could give you that small piece of information. Am I right…Saku-chan?" He mused.
"Don't call me that, you sick, twisted basterd." Sakura hissed at him.
"Now, now, don't keep names to yourself." He scolded, frowning at the pinkette. Sakura's eyes widened and she grabbed her right shoulder, screaming in pain. The man stopped frowning and she gasped in air greedily.
"You bast—AHHHHHHH!" She screamed again, still clutching her shoulder.
"Sakura?" Sasuke asked in concern.
"His name…is Orochi…Orochimaru." She panted with tears in the corners of her eyes.
"Very good, Saku-chan." Orochimaru smiled. "But…as to what I want, that will have to wait until we meet again, which wont happen until you finish this test with the best score at all." He stated, singeing the scroll with green flames.
"The scroll." Sakura muttered, her right arm going limp from the pain in her shoulder.
"First, you'll have to defeat the Sound ninja who serve me." Orochimaru told them.
"Who-?"
"Long-hair, Fur-back and Butt-grabber." Sakura growled, interrupting Sasuke as she did so. He still looked a bit puzzled. "I only know that Butt-grabber's name is Zaku. As for Long-hair and Fur-back, your guess is as good as mine."
"Butt-grabber?" Orochimaru echoed. "I must have a little chat with Zaku soon."
"Great! Why don't you go and have that chat?" Sakura suggested in mock politeness. "If we never see you again, it'll be too soon!" She yelled.
"Oh, but Sasuke-kun and I will meet again." Orochimaru promised, using a jutsu to elongate his neck. He moved his head forwards and bit Sasuke on the neck, causing Sakura's eyes to widen.
"No!" She called, but it was too late.
Orochimaru pulled his teeth out, leaving marks and dots of blood. He pulling his head back to his body and his neck shrunk back to its normal size. Near the bite, three tomoe appeared, circling each other. Sasuke grabbed the mark in pain ad Sakura scowled at Orochimaru. The man just smirked at her.
"Now you might have someone to talk to about the pain…if he lives that long." Orochimaru mused.
"You basterd!" She yelled. "Why did you do that to him?!"
"I just gave him a little parting gift." Orochimaru grinned. "Pretty soon, Sasuke will seek me out. The desire of my power. Just like you, ne, Sakura-chan?" He chuckled as the girl glared. "In the meantime, I enjoyed the demonstration of the powers he already possesses and I have most enjoyed seeing you again, Saku-chan." He said as he sunk into the branch of the tree he was standing on.
Sasuke screamed out in pain, such pain that Sakura understood. She kneeled next to him and rubbed his back, keeping her eyes on Naruto the whole time. Neither would be in any condition to fight for at least one day; that much she knew. The Uchiha cried out in pain again and Sakura pulled him to her, letting him squeeze her hand. Her eyebrows twitched when she remembered how she had gone to the Akatsuki in the first place.
—
"Hello, little girl." A man with long black hair, pale skin and purple markings around his eyes said with a smile. Sakura frowned at him.
"Who are you?" She asked, sinking into a fighting position. The man just seemed amused by this.
"My name is Orochimaru. I am a part of the Akatsuki, and I was sent by my Leader to talk to you." He informed her. "You are Haruno Sakura, correct?"
"I am, Orochimaru-san." She replied, dropping her stance and standing casually in front of him.
"Foolish." He commented, jumping forwards and biting the nine-year-old on the neck. He pulled back and a seal appeared on the right side of her neck, near her shoulder. It was black and shaped like three tomoe circling each other.
"What did you do to me?!" She screamed, holding her neck in pain.
"It's a simple Curse seal. The Heaven seal, to be precise. Come and find me when you're ready, Saku-chan."
—
Sakura was training in the woods when three rogue ninja attacked her with grins on their faces. She threw kunai at them, but when one hit her across the face with a shuriken, something took over. A red design that looked like flaming petals in the wind spread over her body and dulled into black. Once they had spread, her eyes became slit like a snake's and she became stronger than she usually was.
—
"I'm looking for Orochimaru." Sakura said, fidgeting with the high-collared jackets that hid the mark on her neck. The redhead in front of her sighed and gestured for her to follow him.
"I am Sasori. I assume that you're Haruno Sakura." He stated casually.
"I am." Sakura confirmed.
"Welcome to Akatsuki."
—
"Orochimaru, how do I gain partial control over her?" The Akatsuki leader asked Orochimaru as both men watched her train with Itachi.
"Simple. Place a third of your chakra into the seal. It will remain the same, but you shall have an equal amount of control over her as I do."
—
"She's coming with me." Orochimaru grinned as he fought his way out of the Akatsuki base with a nine-year-old child in his arms.
"She's staying!" Kisame yelled, swinging his Samehada at the snake sanin. Orochimaru was forced to let Sakura go and run.
—
"Don't worry, Sasuke. The pain will be gone soon enough." She whispered to the Uchiha. As soon as he heard her soothing voice, Sasuke went limp in her arms.
[--
Orochimaru rose from a branch and straightened himself up, that same sadistic grin still plastered on his face.
[--
Anko ran through the forest as quickly as she could.
'I can feel him.' She thought to herself.
[--
The snake contractor cracked his neck from side to side, his eyes closed and his skin peeling.
[--
She jumped off of one branch and kicked off another.
[--
He sunk into the trunk of another tree.
[--
'He's somewhere close.' Anko realised as she jumped down and kicked off another tree branch. She jumped forwards and saw him, half way into a tree trunk. Orochimaru opened his eyes and looked at the woman as she landed and took a few steps forwards, stopping metres in front of him. He chuckled.
"Well, well, Anko-chan. It's been a while." He mused. "It seems like I'm running into so many old faces today."
"This is no time to reminisce. You're an S-class criminal." She said to him in a firm tone. "You've got to be taken down and it's only fitting that I'm the one to do it." She told him as senbon came out of her sleeve and she held them in between her fingers. "Because, after all, you're the one who taught me everything I know. Right, sensei?"
"Not quite." Orochimaru stated. She threw one of the four senbon at him with a grunt of effort, but he countered by launching his tongue at her. Anko jumped and avoided it, and it crashed through the branch she was standing on. She stuck to a trunk with her chakra, but was too slow to dodge his tongue and he grabbed her wrist, causing her to drop the remaining three senbon. Orochimaru then pulled her off of the branch, but she managed to get a grip on the branch below before he could pull her towards him.
"Sen'eijashu!" Anko called, holding her hand with her fingers pointed right at him.
Four green snakes came out of her sleeve and twisted around her arm before leaping towards Orochimaru, still with the end of their bodies in her sleeve. The snakes latched onto the areas around where Orochimaru had situated himself and Anko tugged her arm.
"Come out of there!" She yelled, pulling the trunk apart and thus bringing Orochimaru into the open.
He was pulled towards her and she moved her arms so that the snakes slammed him into the trunk behind her. She then called the snakes back into her sleeve and held his hand to the wood, plunging a kunai to hold him there, but the kunai went through her own hand as well. Anko flinched and took a deep breath with Orochimaru eyed her curiously.
"Heh…I gotcha." She muttered. "Now then, let me just borrow your left hand." The woman said, taking up his free hand. Her index and little fingers pointed upwards while his fingers curled around her knuckles and his visible eye widened.
'That hand sign…' He realised, allowing his eye to widen before he narrowed it in Anko's direction.
"Right." She smirked. "It's over. You and I are going to die here." Anko closed her eyes and took a deep breath. 'Sojasosai no Jutsu.' She thought, not even being able to say it out loud. Upon hearing Orochimaru chuckle, her eyes widened.
"I'm afraid you'll die alone, Anko-chan." He mused, rising from the branch behind her. She turned slowly to look at him as he pulled off the melted face, revealing his own pale skin. "That's right…Kawarimi." The man said as the sun began to set. Anko, in a panic, looked to the body she was holding, only to see it melt into a pile of mud.
"No." She whispered. Orochimaru laughed sadistically as Anko's hopes melted away with the substitution, and she looked down with her eyes closed.
"Of course. You're one of the elite now." Orochimaru stated. "A righteous warrior. How naughty of you to be using the forbidden jutsu I taught to you." He continued as he stepped closer to her. Anko pulled the kunai out of her hand and turned around, throwing the weapon at him. He just caught it between his middle and index fingers. "It won't work on me, Anko-chan." He used one hand to use the tiger seal and Anko froze in pain while Orochimaru dropped her kunai and calmly walked over to her.
"Why are you here?" She asked through laboured breaths.
"I'm disappointed. I expected a friendlier reception after all this time. Not even dearest Sakura-chan greeted me nicely." He chuckled.
'The girl with pink hair?' Anko thought curiously. "Don't tell me, you've come to assassinate Sandaime Hokage-sama." She guessed.
"No, not yet. I don't have quite enough followers to attempt that." Her former sensei said with a shake of his head. "But, I've heard such good things about this village that I thought I might want to make it mine."
"Argh." Anko groaned, holding her neck and sinking to her knees in pain while sweat trickled down her face. Orochimaru didn't seem at all phased by her hurting, but rather that he was entertained.
"Aw, it's the mark, isn't it? Saku-chan handled it so much better than you ever could." He remarked with a grin. "Saku-chan got hers when she was nine and I put that same mark on a young man a little while ago. He's a very promising prospect and no one should steal him away from me like a certain group did with Saku-chan."
"You haven't changed, I see." Anko spat. "He'll die before he serves you!"
"Very possibly." Orochimaru chuckled. "I'd say the odds are…one in ten against him. The kid may survive, as you and Saku-chan did."
"Sounds like you want him badly, huh?" She commented. The woman gasped when Orochimaru placed his hand on her cheek and rubbed it gently.
"Ah…jealous." He smirked, still rubbing her cheek. "Is that it? You can't forgive me, can you? For using you and then tossing you aside." The man stopped rubbing her cheek and removed his hand. "In some way, the boy has even more potential than you had. You see, he's inherited the sublime abilities of the Uchiha clan. And his physical condition is excellent. He might just be heir I'm looking for. At the very least, he makes things interesting." He said, standing up. "Whatever happens, make sure no one stops the exams early. Three of my followers are also candidates. I look forward to seeing how they do." He stated, walking away.
"Wait!" Anko called. Orochimaru stopped. "What about the girl? Sakura, you said her name was." She said. The snake-nin smiled at the mention of her name.
"Unlike you, she hated me from the start." Orochimaru told her. "The potential she has greatly outweighs both you and the Uchiha, but she has stronger loyalties and I am not the only one controlling her." He said, disappearing in a purple flame.
[--
Near a stream, team Gai were thinking. Neji was sat a little way from his team while Tenten leaned on a rock and Lee sat near to the river, all of them wondering how to get a scroll while taking a rest with food and drink.
"Alright." Neji began. "That's enough resting up, I think." He stated, moving a kunai between his fingers. "The other teams will be calling it a day soon, and that means that it will be time to strike. You know the plan, right? We split up and fan out. Whatever happens, whether we make contact with another team or not, we meet up back here in this spot." He declared, throwing down his kunai so it stuck into the ground. "Got it?"
"No sweat." Tenten sighed. 'I hope I meet up with that pink haired girl sometime. In this round or the next, I don't care. Just as long as I get to fight her.'
"Roger." Lee replied, saluting the Hyuuga boy and standing up while Tenten straightened herself out too.
"Alright then." He said, raising his hand. "Let's move!"
The ninja of team Gai all leapt away in separate directions.
[--
Sakura kneeled in between Naruto and Sasuke's forms, looking between the two with worry. She had moved them into a large gap where a few thick roots were above the ground for shelter and was now fretting about what she had to do. Sasuke groaned and she felt his forehead, letting go of a breath of relief when he settled.
"At least he can't feel too much pain while he's unconscious." Sakura sighed, removing her hand and turning to Naruto. "Oh man, now I wish I paid more attention to my brother when he tried to teach me medic-nin stuff. I they've both got high fevers…and…I'm so tired. Maybe I should have kept my mouth shut and not aggravated that snake basterd into using my Seal against me."
[--
'I've wasted enough time. Somebody's got to tell Hokage-sama.' Anko thought as she bandaged her hand. She got up and began walking, but stopped in front of a bush. Her eyes narrowed when a tiger growled at her from inside the bush. Another two came at her from either side and the three giant tigers surrounded her.
"Guh, I don't have time for this." She complained. Her neck began throbbing and one of the tigers roared before falling down. The other two roared in pain and began to fall as well. "Wha…it's a paralysis jutsu.
"So, there you are, Anko-san." An ANBU black-op called from a tree not too far from her. She looked up at him and his partner. The two jumped over to her, one landing on the rock behind Anko and one on the ground in front of her.
"Man, you ANBU goons took your time getting here, didn't you?" Anko said in an unimpressed and slightly irritated tone.
"Well there's no need to get snippy." The one behind her stated. Before she could reply, the pain in her neck flared up again and she stumbled back.
"ARGH!" She screamed, falling to her knees and digging her fingers into the mark on her neck. The ANBU behind her jumped down.
"Anko-san, are you alright?" He asked. "What is it? Huh?" He said, seeing the mark on her neck. "That curse mark appeared…but, then…that means…Orochimaru." He realised.
"What, here? No." His partner disagreed.
"Hurry, let's get you up." The first ANBU stated, hoisting Anko up by putting one of her arms over his shoulders. "We'll carry you to Hokage-sama if we have to."
"No!" Anko panicked. "No…take me to the tower."
"What're you taking about?" The second ANBU asked as if she were crazy, which he thought she was. "You know that we have to raise the alarm at the first sign of Orochimaru. It's more important than the Chunin exams."
"I know, but…" She tried to find an excuse, but none came to mind. "Well, alright then. Summon Hokage-sama to the tower. I'll explain everything there."
[--
The three Sound Genin looked down from a tree branch towards Sakura, who was half asleep from tiredness and injuries. They knew that she wouldn't be able to fight up to her full standards, just as their master had planned when he fought with team seven previously. Give her enough pain to weaken her, but not to kill her.
"Found you." Dosu said with a chuckle. "Alright, just as Orochimaru-sama ordered. We strike at daybreak, to get a little more of a challenge out of that pink-haired one."
"Her name is Sakura." Zaku muttered, looking away from his team for a moment as he looked down at the weakened pinkette. 'Why does it hurt to see her like that?'
"Remember, our target is the Uchiha." Dosu reminded them.
"Yeah, but if the other two get in our way, we take them out, right?" Kin asked snootily. Zaku frowned at her.
"The blonde, yes. Pinky, no. Orochimaru-sama was clear to tell us not to anger her too much while she has over half her chakra. She'll either use her kekkei genkai on us or something much worse which he didn't specify." Dosu told her with a huff.
"Her name is Sakura." Zaku muttered again.
"Something to add, Zaku?" Kin questioned him when she saw that he was whispering to himself.
"Nothing at all." Zaku said, glaring slightly at the dark-haired girl.