Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Bleach, this fanfic is for nonprofit and entertainment only. Although, some reviews might be a nice form of payment. Hehehe, how evil.

Some canon events have been moved around at this point. In fact, I think you'll remember the conversation with Suna back in chapter 474, way before where we currently are in the timeline. I really wanted to incorporate this part, but at the time I wanted to focus more on the political scheme of things. Now it's time for the social. 8D ß that's a smiling face, by the way.

xXx

It wasn't the bone mask, or the sickening growls and screeching that bothered Sakura. She could live past seeing that sight –providing she stopped wondering where the bone came from, that is- since there were far worse things to lay her eyes on; a fat hairy man taking a bath, or flaming meteors landing on a litter of kittens were some of those things. So no, it was not the mask or the sounds that would give her nightmares.

It was the yellow eyes that would keep her up at night. She'd seen them, survived them even, and somehow they would haunt her for the rest of her life.

She simply could not imagine, for the life of her, how the daunting creature she'd seen and Ichigo correlate. One was cruel and cold, while the other warmed her heart. Yet, there was always the possibility she could have misjudged Ichigo. What if a part of him really was like the creature he'd been "possessed" by? The thought sent chills through her body.

When she looked to the unconscious Ichigo lying on the clay floor, all she could see were the bloodthirsty yellow eyes. Her imagine of Ichigo was tainted by what she'd witnessed, and she was unsure if it could ever be reversed. If it could the amount of effort it would take was beyond her. Her thoughts made healing him strenuous, and her concentration was shaky at best. The events from earlier still had her shaken up pretty good.

It was one thing to fight a hoard of raving wolves, but it was another to walk in on your best friend being attacked by the boy you thought you had feelings for, but frighteningly deformed. She understood perfectly well that Naruto and Ichigo didn't get along, but she had seriously considered Ichigo would have, no matter what, respected her wishes and pulled back. If the Ichigo she knew was in there, he would've fought the monster inside. Not only that, but Ichigo had deceived her. He wasn't supposed to be on the mission. He was supposed to be at Konoha, training in his human body!

Though in light of new events, his punishment wouldn't be so severe. In fact, there wouldn't be a punishment at all. He helped rescue Team Asuma and Hinata, even if he did it in the form of a deranged monster… Sakura needed to get her thoughts straight again before she attempted to talk to Ichigo. She didn't want to remember the beast that had replaced him, and in order to eradicate the picture from her memory she would need time.

Thus after healing Ichigo she went straight to tending to Kyomu's wounds in order to take the man back to Konoha as a prisoner. She left Naruto and Chouji to carry Ichigo until he woke, while she and Shikamaru carried Kyomu like a captive with his hands behind his back. She made sure to walk ahead of the others, that way she wouldn't accidentally look at Ichigo and be reminded of what transpired.

Unfortunately, while she was so uninterested in Ichigo's personal affairs at the moment, the others felt quite the opposite. The moment he woke up he was pestered with light conversations and hidden questions about what Kyomu meant by shinigami and why he was so interested in them. Not even half-way there; Sakura was forced to listen to the questions first hand. Luckily Ichigo was bright enough to come up with some vague answers that kept the vultures at bay.

The party took a break under a long canopy of forest trees. Sakura and Shikamaru put the weakened Kyomu against a tree and secured him with Shikamaru's shadow jutsu as he kept watch. Oddly enough, Kyomu was rather calm and polite ever since they left the compound after healing him…it was uncanny.

Before she could ask too many questions, she spotted Ichigo approach from the distance and quickly occupied herself with Ino's company. The blond female rose her eyebrows at the sudden conversation, peering behind Sakura's shoulder at a very confused Ichigo. Not knowing all of the details, Ino automatically assumed it was a lover's quarrel. But with Sakura's menacing glare, she said nothing and nervously pulled at her collar.

Sakura listened closely as Ichigo's footsteps went the other direction, towards a certain loud-mouth Naruto currently enjoyed a good laugh with Kiba. She had an eerie feeling things wouldn't go very smoothly.

xXx

Ichigo, in and out of consciousness, only saw Sakura once. The rest of the times he opened his eyes someone else had been standing over him. Heck, even Naruto took that role a few times before Ichigo finally made it back to full consciousness. They were already walking away from the compound when he rudely awoke with a shudder, falling out of the arms of Chouji and Naruto. He hit the ground, unearthing bits of dust around him.

Ichigo's big secrets were out. Ino, Shikamaru, and Chouji all could safely assume he was a shinigami based on the events in the compound. They were skeptical, unsure. That secret was one Ichigo didn't care for. Hell, the fact they knew would make his life easier. It was the secondsecret he worried about. The one Sakura and Naruto were never supposed to uncover. At that thought, Ichigo sighed bitterly. Things were complicated…fixing it would be even more complex. Ichigo was at a loss to decipher just how Sakura felt, and even Naruto's perception was a bit fuzzy. Ichigo, desperate to find closure, repeatedly tried to bring Sakura into the conversation, but she never responded.

Ino was quite the talker, though. At the beginning of their travels she relentlessly flirted. It seemed Ichigo was more of a hero now than ever. He wanted to tell her that he did nothing, that in the end he was too confident in his abilities and they had failed him. The true heros was Naruto and Sakura. Now if only he could find a way to tell her that…

The group stopped for a break, and Ichigo made his intentions clear in approaching Sakura. She barely looked at him before scampering away, to Ino of all people. Dejected, Ichigo retreated to the opposite side. Well, fine, if Sakura didn't want to talk to him then he'd find someone who did.

He took a seat on a fallen tree next to Naruto and Kiba. The two males looked to him quizzically. Naruto, apparently at ease now, scratched the back of his head. He winced, as he had lifted the same arm Akamaru had bitten. It was healing, but the skin around the scar still felt raw. Nonetheless, he continued. "Eh, sorry I stabbed you, Ichigo." He mumbled apologetically. "But you know, you were kind of asking for it." Something deep twinkled in his eye that told Ichigo it was more than that. He didn't blame Naruto, though. If the positions were switched, he would've done the same thing.

At this point Kiba got up and strode away, the ever-so loyal Akamaru following at his side. Ichigo shook the apology off. "No, it's okay. I would do the same thing." He responded, in all seriousness. Naruto had the right to stab him. Not to mention he was perfectly fine and healthy. Fortunately the injury came during the latter half of his hollow state, and most of it had been instantly regenerated before the Hollow went into submission.

There was an awkward silence in which Ichigo rubbed his aching wound and Naruto shuffled his feet. Both boys weren't too sure where to go with the conversation. The tension they had previously, rolled off the moment Naruto saw Ichigo's "dark side", and it was all without their knowing. Ichigo hadn't quite realized it, but the two were more in common than they'd like to think. It was Naruto who was the first that began to dwell on this.

Naruto, treading thin ice, slid down the trunk and arched his back over it so he was lying on the wood. "Listen, Ichigo," he began nonchalantly, "I get why you never told us about that thing. Trust me, it makes sense."

The shinigami's upper lip twitched as he bit back a few unkind words. "You don't know what you're talking about," he finally said, eyes averted.

"See, that's where you're wrong." Naruto barked back. The two had yet to make eye-contact, so to an observer it would appear the two were talking to an invisible wall. "I know what's it's like to fight something like that. Something full of hatred and destruction. It whispers at me sometimes…and before I knew better I let it take control…

"But you can't let it take control like that." Naruto began again after a pause. Now he decided to raise his eyes to Ichigo, who was unnervingly blank. "We can't rely on these powers. I learned that the hard way… Did you know I hurt Sakura once, with the power?" The latter part was spoken in a quite whisper.

At the mention of her name Ichigo flickered into life, head snapping to look at Naruto curiously. The blonde nodded. "Yup. True story. I was told by a wise man then that if I continued to use that dark power, I'd only hurt her more."

Ichigo's eyes briefly turned in Sakura's direction. She had her back to him. Carefully, he turned his attention back to a certain blonde-haired Jinchuriki. "So, uh, what happened?" His voice was hushed.

The teen shrugged. "It just took control," Naruto responded, "and I didn't realize what I was doing. I was filled with the desire to destroy…and I did."

Oh, how Naruto remembered the day. Sai had been new to the team, and Yamato was there to oversee them as they met Orochimaru undercover on a bridge. That foul man had said one thing or another about Sasuke…and Naruto, as usual, got pissed. It was explosives first, logical thinking later in his mind. He'd let the Kyuubi loose, and when Sakura tried to stop him he'd violently swatted her away like a bug. Thathe remembered perfectly well, and regretted. Even the stone-cold surprise and disappointment on her face couldn't change him back. In the end, it was up to Yamato to suppress the beast.

Suddenly Naruto perked up, getting up from his sloth-like position on the tree. "But this doesn't change anything." He spoke up, eyes narrowed. "We may both have some crazy demon inside of them, but that doesn't mean we're friends."

"Right," Ichigo agreed. "Not friends. Allies." He held his hand out for a shake, which Naruto enthusiastically shook. During the shake, both pairs of eyes wandered over to a certain pinkette currently arguing with Ino.

Ah, nothing like a little friendly competition.

The boys separated, and within moments the group was on the move again. For a second time Ichigo attempted to corner Sakura, but she dodged and evaded. Ichigo sighed. Maybe it was better this way? He preferred to save such a private conversation for somewhere a little less…open. For the time being he was content with waiting, but bent on eventually forcing her to talk to him.

The team made their way back to Konoha shortly. As it turned out the compound was just on the outskirts of the Land of Fire, which made the trip home relatively short. Within half-a-days time they arrived at the Konoha gates. Upon closer inspection, three strangers could be seen. Ichigo was specifically disturbed, as one of the strangers had long, flaming red hair.

The Suna nin and Renji were back.

xXx

The veteran shinigami stood alone in the large, dome office of the Kazekage. He mindlessly sauntered by the windows, looking at the sandy, bland village. He was becoming tireless in Suna. So much sand, most of which was lodging itself in places he didn't even know was possible. Not only that, but Renji missed the companionship of shinigami in general…

Sure, these shinobi were great people. Gaara was reasonable, Temari was comfortably social, and Kankuro was humorous. For a while they had entertained Renji enough, but now he began to feel lonely. He couldn't talk about the same things with these people, and he wouldn't dare try to explain to them the complexities of Seireitei just for that reason. The redhead ran a heavy hand over his face exhaustingly.

The door opened with a heavy creak behind him, and he turned to watch Gaara singularly strut in and take his seat at his desk. The doors behind him were closed by other shinobi, who waited on the other side. As usual, Gaara wasn't very good at expressing his feelings; thus, Renji was clueless as to what had happened. All he knew was that Gaara had finally returned from a classified meeting with village officials, assumingly it was about shinigami. As usual, the male sat at his desk, a blank slate

Renji swiveled his chair to face the Kazekage, eventually picking it up by the bottom and dragging it in front of Gaara. Renji cleared his throat. "…so?" He inquired, eyebrows raised.

Gaara, leisurely leaning back in his chair, frowned. "It's hard to explain…" He began quietly, scratching his chin. "It seems nobody knows what to do with you. We've never really had a shinigami here, you see."

Smirking proudly, Renji responded. "Well, now you do. So what's the plan?"

For one rare chance in his life, Gaara merely shrugged. "I haven't decided yet." In truth, he was thinking of having Renji do exactly what the shinigami in Konoha were doing; nothing. As far as he knew, the shinigami in Konoha had no real job, and hadn't gone on any large missions there. It seemed like a safe bet, considering they didn't know much about shinigami in the first place. On that note, he quickly inquired about the others.

"You mean Rukia and Ichigo?" A brisk nod told him to continue. "Well, we're not much different. Aside from Ichigo being a little snot, that is." The man grinned memorably as he played around with the various papers on Gaara's desk. "Rukia is really intelligent. Best of our class. But us shinigami, we pretty much do the same thing." Nonchalantly the man nodded his head.

"What would that be?" Gaara asked, folding his hands in his lap.

"Well," Renji stated, "hunt hollows. That's the job of a shinigami, you know. All we do is send lost souls to Seireitei, or as you know the after life."

Thus began Suna's very limited understanding of shinigami. The information Renji had to offer was useful when it came to decided what to have Renji do. In the end, Gaara's curiosity convinced him to let Renji stay with him as a sort of guard, aside from the usual Temari and Kankuro.

However, there was still business to be done in Konoha. Gaara reflected upon the Summit disaster and Sasuke in particular. He felt obligated, as a friend, to warn Naruto of this new Sasuke before the blonde got too involved. When called upon, his siblings agreed. It had to be done. Besides, going to Konoha for this would give him an excuse to further educate himself on shinigami. Suna didn't like to be one of the last nations to learn information.

The group set out after a few hours of Gaara's thoughts. He put the council in charge, packed the necessities, and gathered his team of Temari, Kankuro, and Renji. Quickly the four descended the Kazekage's dome and exited the village. Passersby stopped to bow or wish them safe travels. Gaara barely responded, giving only a head nod; he left the socializing up to the very adept Temari.

When they finally arrived at Konoha, it seemed Naruto was already out on a mission. The Suna nin were left to wait by the gates, on the assumption that soon enough Naruto and his team would arrive. The group was just about to give up on their patience when they finally saw a group emerging from over the hill. Naruto and the team of Konoha nin had finally arrived…but with a criminal… Renji narrowed his eyes.

He specifically picked up on Ichigo, way in the back. (His hair was hard to miss.) The teen looked beaten, as did they rest of them now that Renji noticed. They all had cuts, and bruises, some of the nastiest on Naruto and Kiba. The whole group looked downtrodden, and a part of each and every one of their bodies was wrapped up in gauze. So it was recent…

As soon as Ichigo noticed Renji, the teen sped up. Upon approach the two shinigami patted each other on the back. Renji purposefully slapped his hand down on Ichigo's numerous back injuries, causing the substitute shinigami to wince.

"Thanks…for that." The teen mumbled, rubbing his back exasperatedly.

Renji grinned. "No problem." He took a step back to allow Ichigo some space. "So what kind of mission was this?"

Ichigo shrugged. "Rescue mission."

"What'd you do, rescue a family of bears?" Renji mocked, his eyes soaking in the current state of his friend.

Just then a pink-haired female flew past, her head down and away from Ichigo. Renji, perplexed, asked, "Why's your lady upset, Ichigo?" Renji had seen Sakura before, and any fool could tell there was something between her and Ichigo. But for those lingering looks to suddenly become a look of confusion and anger, and notattraction just felt unnatural.

Ichigo's eyebrow twitched and he rolled his sleeve up. "What?"

The redhead waved his hands in front of him dismissively. "Eh, never mind. I can tell your relationship is kind of on the rocks, huh?"

Shaking off the comment, Ichigo gestured to the meeting currently taking place with Gaara, Naruto, and the others. "So why are you four here?"

"You know. Diplomatic business…or something." Renji mumbled. "I haven't really been told everything, but apparently Sleepy Eyes has an important message for Mr. Whiskers over there."

The nicknames were humorous, and Ichigo was reminded of his life at home, where humor like that was so very prevalent in his civilian friends. Their conversation was thrown off when Hinata and Team Asuma approached, apparently not involved in the private conversation between the Kazekage and his energetic friend. They were happy to meet and greet Renji, who some of them had previously seen when he tackled Ichigo.

Occasionally Ichigo would look in Sakura's direction, and Renji was quick to pick up on it. Something had been left unsolved, and Ichigo was apparently eager to fix it. Even the entrance of a happy Rukia (who squeezed both Renji and Ichigo half-to-death) could not steer his mind away.

As expected, Ichigo quickly asked to be excused and bounded over to Sakura, leaving Renji all alone with his new village friends. The redhead smirked and pretended not to notice Ichigo's eagerness over this one particular female.

xXx

After briefly saying hello to Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro, Sakura strode over to the small outpost near the gates. A Chunin stood under the makeshift roof, papers strewn before him on a desk. Sakura approached, giving a brief and polite smile before leaning on the edge of the table.

Kotetsu was an irresponsible shinobi, thus he'd been placed to check in shinobi that left and entered the village that fine day. Sakura looked at his spiky, unkempt black hair and the usual wrapping around his face (from one cheekbone, over the bridge of his nose, to the other cheekbone) as a sign that he was still slacking off at his duties. She sighed to inform him of her presence, which he quickly picked up on nevertheless. Even when focusing away from Sakura, it was hard not to notice her own head of bright hair.

The man looked up from his work and smirked. "Ah. The rescue team is back." He commented, slapping his hands down on the desk. His eyes raked over Sakura's disheveled appearance, and then to the equally dirtied appearances of her team. "Didn't go too well?" Before she could answer, Kotetsu's eyes had wandered over to Shikamaru and their prisoner. His expression visibly darkened. "Don't tell me that's the guy…?"

Sakura offered a brief nod. "Unfortunately, yes."

"Was he strong?" Kotetsu blurted out, sizing up Kyomu. To him, a man so painfully awkward couldn't pose a threat.

Without him noticing, Sakura's eye had a miniscule spasm. "No, I wasn't there when it all went down. Naruto and Ichigo fought him, and when I arrived…" Her voice drifted to incoherent levels, where her mind was disturbed by the memory of just what she had walked in on. Quickly, Sakura caught herself and shook it off. It would be a while before she could refer to that moment without shivering.

Kotetsu smirked, vaguely doing his job by writing something down. From Sakura's stand-point, it almost looked like a one-sided game of Tic-Tac-Toe… "Defeated by Naruto of all people," Kotetsu playfully joked, looking at Kyomu from the corner of his eyes. "He's probably not very happy about it, that sad bastard."

Sakura raised her eyebrows. She would say the opposite. In fact, ever since his falling point (Kyomu being impaled by his own table) Kyomu had been a sort of happy person. He was reasonable on the trip to Konoha, and didn't show anything but the highest respect of his captors; not to mention he was an amazing listener. "Actually, he's been really great …" Sakura mumbled, earning Kotetsu's confused glare.

"That's a little weird," Kotetsu brutally pointed out. His eyes flickered back over to the group at the gates, focusing more on a certain orange-haired teen that was currently walking their way. "Well, I guess I'll just have to ask Mr. Brooding what happened."

"Huh?" Sakura responded, turning to Kotetsu's focus. She frowned upon seeing Ichigo, and immediately turned back. 'Brooding' was an understatement. He was obviously distraught, and not to mention focused. The female gulped, quickly taking her first steps out of the danger zone. "Fine. Cool. See ya."

It was too late; by the time Sakura had attempted to make her escape Ichigo had descended upon her like a heavy weight. She stopped as to not be rude when he came to the two of them and asked, "can I talk to you privately?"

The roseate nodded glumly, allowing Ichigo to lead her away from Kotetsu by the arm. Ichigo offered a fleeting nod at the man, who simply shrugged and went back to his "work". Sakura could only frown at how helpful Kotetsu was. He could have at least given her an excuse as to not be taken away by Ichigo.

The two found a nice quiet spot well off from the group. It was a stone alley between two recently reconstructed houses, but was surprisingly well lit and sanitary. Unknowingly Ichigo stood in the way of Sakura's only exit.

The two stood awkwardly in the other's company. Sakura was tempted to bite her lips nervously, as Ichigo was to tap his foot against the ground. It was hard to believe how drastically things between them had changed. Only days ago they had been on their first date, a pleasant occasion when random women weren't beating on Ichigo. He remembered that date clearly as joyous and intimate, as did Sakura. Things, however, had somewhat changed. That was during a time before Ichigo's "secret" had been revealed.

Sakura, who may have been fairly disturbed by the Hollowfication, felt more betrayed. Now that she had the time to cool down, and rise over the initial shock, she felt as if he had went over her head. Not once did he suggest he had something so big and dangerous hiding inside of him. This big secret of his had failed to be shared, and irritated her. She thought that after how close they seemed to be growing he would have had the decency to mention it. Rather, he kept it quiet and allowed it to blow up in his face, as Sakura intended to do now.

Now becoming more of a habit, she viciously jabbed at Ichigo's chest, causing the male to take a step or two back. "Why didn't you tell me?" She barked her voice at a mercilessly high decibel.

The shinigami exhaled, astounded. "Tell you about what? How could I possibly have told you about it?" Her general anger with him was contagious. "In case you haven't really noticed, becoming a bloodthirsty beast isn't exactly something I can just randomly say!"

"Sure it is!" Sakura rebounded, gesturing wildly at the air around her. "When we first met it would've been helpful if you at least said 'Hey, butImightbecomearagingbeastwithoutwarning.'"

"How in the hell could I have said that without you taking it as a joke?" Ichigo responded, fuming. "You would've thought it was funny and laughed in my face."

"It may have seemed like a joke, but at least it would've been a warning!" She stressed the word 'warning', the word ending with her voice strained.

A vein popped in Ichigo's head. "I never wanted this to happen! This was the last thing I ever thought couldhappen!" He ran a hand over his face exasperatedly. "I knew the moment you found out you would be anything but calm."

"Oh ho ho," Sakura sassily responded. She shook her head. "You don't get to know how I would react. Of course I'm angry now; you lied to me by not telling! I would have appreciated a warni-"

"Why? So you could just hold me at a distance like you are now?" Ichigo blasted.

It was true, after the initial impact of her finger to his chest, she had strayed further away. With each word spoken, Sakura had slowly gravitated to the wall, making the space between them larger. She didn't seem to notice until Ichigo had finally said something. With the realization, her anger faded and was replaced by the realization.

Sakura was eager to make this quick; she needed time to consider what had happened. Calmingly, she took a breath in. "Listen, Ichigo. I'm not sure what I saw…and I'm not sure what that means for us yet. So until I do…"

"You want me to stay somewhere else, don't you?" Ichigo interjected.

She grimaced. "Yes."

"And you want me to give you some space and time, right?" He asked again, fully knowing what her answer would be, and how horrible it would make him feel.

Again she frowned. "Yes." The whole mission had thrown her life a curveball, and until she hit it, she didn't know what to tell Ichigo. Except for that she needed her space. As typical of the female persona as it was, it was true. In fact, judging from their brief little "disagreement", it was apparent to her that they both needed the time equally.

"So I guess I'll be seeing you around, then?" Ichigo asked, masking his feelings with a glazed-over look. Sakura nodded to him, and weakly attempted to give him a hug but paused mid-way. Her hands rerouted to his, and rather than a hug he got a weak handshake.

"Yeah," she mumbled, quickly retreating. Sakura snuck past Ichigo and exited the alley without looking back.

xXx

Naruto was always happy to see his allies from Suna. Despite his various injuries, and the fact his whole torso and shoulder were covered in bandages, he was still in a chipper mood. When he arrived at home Gaara and his entourage were awaiting his arrival.It was quite a sight to see, how easily Naruto's face brightened and how much faster his pace became, despite the pained limp he had picked up.

"Hey! Gaara, Temari, Kankuro!" Naruto called, waving and walking ahead of his group. At that moment Renji had detached himself to speak privately to Ichigo. For a brief second Naruto wondered if Renji possessed the same inner demon like Ichigo, and if that was the norm for all shinigami. Even so, that was just a meager thought in the grand scheme of things. The Village Hero was more focused on his Suna allies.

"Shouldn't you be at the hospital?" Kankuro asked first, taking notice of the wraps around Naruto's body.

Naruto waved off the suggestion. "No, I'm okay." He responded, by waving his arms and torso around dramatically, and without wincing. It was true, he felt fine. Nothing hurt, and the injuries were all gone; save for a few scars here and there. He didn't even need the wraps on anymore, and on that note he began to pull them from his arm and torso.

"Jinchuriki heal fast." Gaara generally stated monochromatically, (it was a known fact that the Kyuubi, especially, had nearly instant regeneration) quickly changing the direction of the conversation when he stated, "But we're not here to share battle stories. We're here to talk about the Summit."

Naruto's face quickly fell, his upturned smile turning to point south; by "Summit" Gaara quite simply meant "Sasuke". Naruto had come to terms with things, yes, but he was in no way prepared to start talking about it. Especially not when he'd just come back from a traumatic rescue mission. Lightly, Naruto mumbled, "Sure…"

"Naruto, this upcoming war will be one to protect the Hachibi and the Kyubi, in other words, you." Gaara bluntly said with his expression stoic.

Naruto's reaction was anything but solid. He was lividly disturbed with that statement. The last thing he wanted was to be protected. He preferred to be the one who did the protecting. Things didn't feel right if he was suddenly an asset and not a soldier; a precious safe and not the bank that surrounded it. Naruto, the Village Hero, was going to be fought over and safeguarded in a war? Even the words, which he repeated in his head, didn't feel right. They left a sour taste in his mouth.

Gaara paid no mention to the disturbance in Naruto's countenance. "For the sake of the ninja world and as the Kazekage, I will protect you with my life." He said his voice deepening as he continued, "If as a member of the Akatsuki, Uchiha Sasuke stands in the way of the Ninja Coalition, I will show no mercy."

Ah, as expected it came to Sasuke again. Naruto's eyes avoided Gaara and were downcast. He had no response, at least none that was verbal. His body language perfectly portrayed that of a betrayed brother.

The Kazekage paused. Unbeknownst to his party, his jaw was clenched tightly from the "livid" topic. He wasn't getting much of a response out of Naruto, as expected. It seemed an appropriate time to lay down what he had learned from his confrontation with the Uchiha at the Summit. "Sasuke doesn't even see you. He longs only for his own darkness." Gaara informed.

It was instant. Naruto's eyes snapped open and they shot to Gaara and his silent company. He still couldn't bring himself to believe that. Yes, he was aware that denial could only get him so far. Until he saw this for himself, however, he would choose to believe there was still a part of Sasuke that cared.

"Naruto, you once told me you would become Hokage." Gaara relayed, Naruto's face falling yet again to a pit of self-pity. "I have become the Kazekage. If you are prepared to bear the title of Kage, then do what you must," Gaara stepped forward to lay a gentle hand on Naruto's shoulder, "as Sasuke's friend."

With his own hand raised, Naruto apprehensively responded to Gaara. Yet he couldn't bring himself to pat the teen on his shoulder. The news was too grim, too unbelievable. He could not reciprocate Gaara's comforting hand. Rather, his hand retreated to the area before his chest, fingers curled in.

Gaara took his own hand away as Temari began to speak, visibly gesturing to the road ahead. "Come on, we've said everything we came to say." At this point Renji had returned to the Suna nin after detangling his arms from Ino's social clutches.

Indeed, they had said everything. After Kankuro, Temari, and Renji, Gaara began to back away from Naruto and Konoha. He stopped, his back facing the ally when he was still in earshot.

"I used to think "friend" was just another word, but when I met you I realized what was important to the word's meaning." Eerily, the teen half-turned to look back at Naruto. His insomnia-stricken eyes were deep. "Think about its meaning, and what you're trying to do for Sasuke."

Without adieu, the Suna group was off. Naruto found himself standing alone on the path to Konoha, his friends (and Shikamaru with Kyomu) had all retreated into the village. Some of them had probably gone to the hospital to be checked, while he suspected Shikamaru had the incapacitated Kyomu taken to the Hokage for interrogation.

Just then a familiar presence snuck up on him. Ichigo took a place to Naruto's right. The teen gazed out to the horizon, like Naruto did, at where the Suna nin had departed. They both had just given inadequate goodbyes to their friends and allies, and were equally faced with their own personal problems.

"I think Sakura…dumped me." Ichigo mumbled, not to say they were already dating.

Pleased, but not satisfied, Naruto answered. "Good."

"She's avoiding me."

"Even better." There was a trace of a smile.

"She has Kon, and all my civilian clothes." By now Ichigo thought he had figured out how to cheer Naruto up.

Naruto happily 'huffed'. "Sucks to be you."

xXx

( Konoha: Location Unknown )

It was dark, and cold. Kyomu quietly sat on a steel fold-out chair, with his hands and legs restrained against the shiver-inducing surface. He consistently glanced around the hard planes of the walls and floors. This was new to him. He may have been comfortable with underground caves, but this was nothing like his base. It was cold, and empty. Whereas his base had been warm and filled with "life".

Kyomu had yet to acknowledge what he had done was wrong. In fact, there was a part to him that would never fully accept the thought. However, he was slowly coming to terms. That damn ring was so possessive…so blinding… His finger now free, he felt like he could see again. He was reborn, but with a cost. With this new rebirth came the revelations of what he had done, and why he had done it…

Though the details behind his actions were fuzzy and he had no way to fix it. Certain parts of his memory were clouded with uncertainty and some filmy substance that, when he tried to think back, all he saw were colors immersed in a fog. He was blinded by something.

There was a pattering noise outside the heavy metal door that led out of his current detainment room. Kyomu tensed, eyes widened. He struggled in his chair, attempting to scoot back; very simply put, he did not like the sound of those booming footsteps approaching his door, getting closer and closer until they fizzled out completely at the door. Kyomu felt uncomfortable, his eyes gazing straight ahead at the door that hadn't opened yet…but he knew there was somebody behind it. What were they waiting for?

Finally, the door was pushed open. A faint light from beyond illuminated the walls of the rooming, allowing Kyomu just a little more light to see with. A woman followed the light inside, and was flanked by two others wearing animal masks and hoods. Kyomu felt his blood run cold when he saw the tanto attached to their belts, with their hands lingering over them.

The woman attracted his attention first when she slammed her hands down on the steel desk before him. She slapped a file down on the surface, the lack of light in the room giving her face a dark, eerie shadow. From what Kyomu could tell, she was blond, and busty. None of those details, however, seemed important compared to the large dent her hands left on the table. (Why exactly would Tsunade be doing the Interrogation instead of Ibiki?)

The woman craned her neck to finally look away from the files and to Kyomu's face. She was a pretty woman, sure, but her face was contorted with anger and disgust. She directed all her distasteful emotions to Kyomu in one single look. He visibly shuddered.

"Senju, Tsunade. Hokage." She mumbled briefly, grinding her teeth together. With the look she was giving him, he expected to be chewed up and then spit out. Slowly, the Hokage sat down at a chair opposite Kyomu, her fingers twined together thoughtfully in front of her face. "Who are you?" She inquired, one masked ally behind her preparing a notepad for answers.

Tsunade didn't particularly like being there. Kyomu's name alone gave some shinobi the shivers. It wasn't because of Kyomu himself, but because of what they assumed to be his old master. It came naturally to think that if Orochimaru once had that base, and Kyomu had it now, the two must be related somehow. Orochimaru, being Tsunade's old teammate, is the only thing that brought Tsunade into this. Although Ibiki was probably better suited for the role, she took the reigns and would ignore the consequences. It was likely village officials wouldn't like what she was doing.

"Uh…" Their captive answered. "Yamada, Kyomu."

"Where are you from, Kyomu?"

"Himitsu village, on the border of the Land of Fire." He gruffly answered.

Tsunade shook her head. "There's no 'HimitsuVillage' on the map. You're lying." The two masked ANBU behind her stiffened, their hands poised directly on the handle of their tanto. No doubt they were preparing for a quick execution; Kyomu gulped.

"No, there is, I swear! But it was destroyed!" He responded, his hands straining against their bindings. He still didn't have much control when he mentioned Himitsu, after all those years.

"Then why isn't it on the map?" She continued on, leaning forward stiffly.

"Because it's hidden with Genjutsu. It has been for years."

Tsunade never ceased with the questions. "And who did that?"

He bit his lip. "My father, and then me. He was only protecting the village from outsiders." Kyomu quickly added the last part.

Raising her eyebrow, she asked, "But what about you? Why did you hide it?"

The truth was going to spill out, and Kyomu felt his heart pace faster as he came to his own frightening realization. "Because it was going to be my master's new base…" He coughed on his sudden uncertainty, eyes threatening to water. He didn't like what he was seeing in his head, the things that had been blurred out were returning. "He needed a base that nobody would find…and I didn't want…"

The intensity of the room rose to new levels, "Who was your master, Kyomu?" She barked, opening the file and pushing photos forward. The photos weren't really photos but masterfully created pictures done by Sai under the direction of Shikamaru and Chouji. She pushed them forwards, letting the corpses and the destruction sink in. "And did he do this? Did he brutally mutilate and experiment on these corpses?"

Kyomu shook his head, arms convulsing heavily now. His foot shook nervously. "No, Orochimaru didn't…didn't do that." He stuttered, his chest feeling heavy. By now his eyes were brimming. All his history in that village, it hurt when he thought about it…

"Who did?"

Whimpering, Kyomu turned his head away from the pictures. The faces were too familiar… He managed to mumble, "I did." His voice was so quiet, only he could hear it.

Tsunade's voice became louder. "Who did this, Kyomu?"

The male took a shaky breath in. He didn't want to say it again, it was too shameful.

Angrily, Tsunade swept the photos off the desk with her arm, her face coming in closer. "I'm going to ask you again," she said, "Who did these horrible things to these people?"

A tear broke loose and rolled down his cheek. "Ididit!" He barked back, his head snapping to face the Hokage. "I did that to them! I took the survivors of the village and did what had to be done. For the sake of science."

Tsunade froze, her mouth limply hung open. She couldn't put her finger on Kyomu. But what from she could tell from his writhing form, he was unstable. Most of all, however, it was one part of his confession that made his insanity all the more clear. Not the sake of science, no, but the very beginning.

"…Survivors?" Tsunade questioned.

The man shuddered, hanging his head low to stare blankly at his knees. "Yes, survivors. The village was destroyed."

The Hokage, esteemed for her endless strength and short fuse of a temper, sat back in her chair unexpectedly calm. She crossed her arms. "Did you destroy your village?"

Glumly, Kyomu nodded. "I burned most of it to the ground, buried the dead under the ashes. And then I went back for them when I ran out of…of victims." His hands became fists, straining against their bindings so that his skin became white.

Tsunade nodded in response, and quietly spoke to her subordinates behind her. She waved them off, watching as the two left the room. Kyomu wasn't a threat to her now. Not in his state. His state of confusion would be a good opportunity to get answers out of him, but not with two eerie henchmen in the room.

"Tell me your story," Tsunade said as the other two left the room. "From beginning to end."

Slowly, Kyomu looked up to the woman, distraught. "Well…" He closed his eyes momentarily, taking a deep breath in. "I guess it started when my mother died." From therein he delicately described everything, all the while avoiding making eye contact with Tsunade. He didn't deserve her mercy.

Kyomu wished that Ichigo would have killed him, rather than face the atrocities of his life.

xXx

A/N: There you have it. The lead-up to Kyomu's origin chapter. Sorry for the lateness. I originally wanted to post this on the 18th, my birthday, as a gift to you all. But life kind of gets in the way of my writing sometimes.

I'm feeling a little better now, than I was when I wrote this. So don't worry about me~ And if you do worry, worry about poor Kyomu. He has a long road ahead of him… (And no, this means I will not be killing him off like I originally thought.) As of this moment, Kyomu has become one of the lead characters (behind all the main canons, of course).

~ Dahlia