Chapter 7: Catching Up To Revenge
Disclaimer: No matter how hard I wish, I will never own Naruto or the others, they all belong to Kishimoto. I only own Kai and my little OC village!
Author's Note: I don't necessarily like this chapter, the events are moving fast to illustrate the rush, the angst, and the importance of everything happening here.
"Kiba!" Naruto exclaimed in a panic. "Where did you catch the scent last?"
"Ugh, it was all convening in one location, but now, it's like it's everywhere." Kiba told the blonde. When the sun had risen so had Kiba and Akamaru with news of a familiar scent in their air. Sasuke's scent. Which meant he was close by, which meant they were all hauling ass through the forest now trying to find him. They were scattered out searching high and low, but so far they hadn't seen a single sign of him.
"There's a small scent straight ahead!" Kiba told Naruto. The two boys and the dog dashed off along the trees only to find a shred of Sasuke's shirt hanging from a branch. A ploy. Naruto didn't have time for games. In between tracking two almost impossibly hard to find people, he had to be quick on his feet. He created a horde of clones that instantly scattered themselves across the length of the forest. Snatching strips of clothing and poofing back to the original with the message. Nothing, nothing, and more nothing.
"Dammit! How is he this close and still out of my reach!?"
"Don't worry Naruto, the clones are working, the scents not as spread out as it was before." The brown haired Inuzuka boy told his friend.
Sakura couldn't stop the racing of her heart. This was it. This had to be it. They were so close. They would find Sasuke and they would bring him home. And that would be the end of it. No more cat and mouse.
On the other hand, Kakashi wasn't so sure that this was going to be the day they brought Sasuke home. It seemed to easy this way. Sasuke wasn't going to give up and let himself get caught. The timing for this just didn't seem right.
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Damn that blonde Akatsuki. This was his fault. If he hadn't been so set on fighting Sasuke, they wouldn't have been in that damned village and they wouldn't be trying to outrun the Leaf now. And in his current condition, this running was agitating him. He hadn't fully recovered from his last fight.
"Sasuke!" He knew that voice. That loud, boisterous voice. Naruto. He unsheathed his katana blade and crossed the ear with one clean slice. The Naruto poofed and disappeared. A shadow clone.
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"I found him!" Naruto yelled. Naruto ran off ahead of Kiba in pursuit of Sasuke.
"Yo! Naruto wait!" Kiba called, knowing full well Naruto was not going to wait. Kiba pondered about whether or not he should go after Naruto, or whether he should alert the others. If he did go after Naruto and Sasuke managed to kick both their asses…well, that wouldn't be good. And not the mention the other tree scents that were with him. There was no telling what kind of people Sasuke had surrounded himself with. Then again, if he left Naruto all alone to face the four of him, there was no guarantee that Kakashi sensei and Yamato could get to him in time. Dammit Naruto! Why did he have to be such a hot head!?
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To say that Naruto was surprised is to say the least. He'd remembered the last encounter he'd had with Itachi Uchiha. It hadn't been a very good one. So why was he here now? Was he really going to try and kidnap him right now? Why was he all alone? He remembered Granny Chiyo's words and he immediately averted his gaze.
"What do you want Itachi," he yelled, "I don't have time for your mind games! I have to find Sasuke!"
"Sasuke." Itachi stated plainly. "What is your obsession with my foolish little brother?"
"What do you mean? He's my best friend."
"Your best friend. Naruto, you need to abandon your task right now. You're interfering with things that do not concern you."
"Get lost you creep! I won't let you hurt Sasuke anymore!" Naruto bit shaking his head.
"What if it is not me that has to hurt Sasuke? What if it's you that has to hurt him?" Naruto's head shot up quickly. He was already in a genjutsu. The red and black scenery. Itachi floating above him carelessly.
"What are you going on about? Stop talking in riddles!" Itachi stared blankly at the boy.
"What if, you had to choose between Konoha and Sasuke? Could you do it? Could you kill Sasuke to protect your precious village?" Naruto couldn't believe what he was hearing. Half of him was sure that it was because he was currently in a genjutsu, but the other half was sure he couldn't believe it because it just sounded crazy. Sasuke would never hurt Konoha. Then again, he was going a bit crazy.
"I wouldn't do it. I would protect Konoha and save Sasuke!"
"Save them both you say? How foolish of you. The day will come when you have to make a decision Naruto Uzumaki, and only then when you're faced with acting on that decision will you truly know your answer."
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Sasuke wasn't quite sure why, but Naruto and the others had seemingly stopped pursuing him, or at least they'd lost track of him long enough for him to slip away from their grasp. Now he could get back to his task. Killing Itachi. He was totally and completely ready for this. He knew the rendezvous point. He knew the dangers, he knew what he had to do. Yeah, he was one hundred percent ready for this. Or was he? He would never openly admit it, but there was a small piece of him that was cowering in fear. The small boy that he used to be. The small boy that had never truly opened his eyes to the real Itachi. The small boy who stilled cried out for his big brother some nights.
The new Sasuke was smothering that boy now. The last thing he needed to do was choke up and freeze during the middle of their fight. Still, he couldn't quite shake the feeling that he was preparing to do a terrible thing. Even as he stared down the large blue man who was to stand guard to ensure that this fight went uninterrupted. Even as he walked past his teammates, Suigetsu who was being Suigetsu, Jugo who, even though he wanted to go with Sasuke, was quietly staying put, and Karin who wore a face of confidence for Sasuke. A face that masked the one he wore despite the difference that hers was real.
'Get a grip Sasuke. It's now or never.'
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Kisame plastered a wide sharp toothed grin across his face as he stared at the three teens before him. One tall, rather large boy with orange hair, one tall sassy looking red head, and then the younger Hozuki brother. What a peculiar bunch.
"Well, well, if it ain't Kisame Hoshigaki." Suigetsu purred. "And oh look babe," he added nudging Karin whose faced darkened, "he's got Samehada with him."
"Yea pause, when Sasuke isn't around don't touch me. As a matter of fact, even when Sasuke is around, touch me as little as possible. Freak."
"Wait, what did you just say?" Jugo gasped.
"Hey c'mon Karin! You're blowing it!" Suigetsu exclaimed.
"Oh shut up! I'm perfectly convinced that once Sasuke kills this guy, he'll be ready to settle down with me. I can totally wait a couple more minutes, beats continuing to pretend like I'm shacking up with you." Karin shrugged.
'What the hell?' Kisame thought.
"Sasuke and I- this whole time we thought you two were- ewe." Jugo grimaced. "No offense Karin, but you can do so much better than Suigetsu."
"I know right? Besides, Suigetsu's too public for me."
"Too public?" Suigetsu frowned. "What the heck does that mean?"
"You like to do that whole public display of affection stuff, I don't like it. You do it too much. It's annoying. I'd rather keep it all behind closed doors." Silence. Crickets. More silence.
"I'm not sure I'm comfortable with there this conversation seems to be headed." Kisame stated.
"Hold it fish face," Suigetsu exclaimed throwing a hand up to Suigetsu, "Karin, I have to admit, I think I was actually starting to like the whole you and I dating thing."
"Yea right Suigetsu!" The red head yelled. "You only liked the whole 'servant' portion of the deal!" Suigetsu pulled out his water bottle and slurped on his straw for a moment.
"So? That's the best part of this whole thing." Karin deadpanned and smacked the bottle out of his hand. Suigetsu frowned and glared at the red head and proceeded to insult her on her looks and everything else he found annoying about her as a way of payback.
Kisame watched hesitantly as a fight proceeded between the two with the red head winning. If these were the people Sasuke surrounded himself with, Kisame was sure that Itachi would come out of this battle within minutes, possibly unscathed.
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Sasuke couldn't believe it. After all his efforts, after practically crushing Itachi, the man just wouldn't die. He was exhausted. He didn't have enough chakra for any other moves. He no longer had his curse mark. He had no escape plan as he elder brother walked towards him. His right arm extended, fingers ready to snatch out Sasuke's eyes. How had he managed to talk himself into this? All he felt now was fear. Total and absolute fear. He didn't want to die here, not like this. He hadn't avenged his clan, he hadn't made Itachi pay for his crimes. He had abandoned his friends. He'd caused Naruto and Sakura so much grief. He'd failed Kakashi sensei as a student. And for what? For this pathetic death. To be killed by a man who could barely stand up straight.
Sasuke found himself backing up into the wall more and his eyes screwed themselves shut and then, then he felt two fingers on his forehead and his eyes snapped open. Itachi either had impeccably bad aim right now or he intentionally poked him in the forehead. The same way he did when they were children. When Itachi was playing the good brother. When he was pretending to care about Sasuke, pretending right?
"Forgive me Sasuke." Itachi whispered. His lips curled into a soft smile. "But there won't be a next time." And then it snapped. His heart.
"Itachi!"