Finally got another chapter done!

And it's really annoying having reviews at Chapter 2 or Chapter 3 saying "your writing skills suck dick!" or "Naruto/Sakura/Sasuke is too weak!". Christ, read the entire story before leaving a stupid comment like this. I wouldn't really mind the criticism if you've read the entire story... but something like this at Chapter 3? Really?

WaterDrop: You are my new favorite reader ;)

TheOrangeStar802: Glad to see you're back reviewing. I think this chapter will be satisfying for you then ;)

Thanks to WaterDrop, S.R.457, Pen-Name-Kitsune-chan, TheOrangeStar802 and The True Not Important for the reviews!

"Black Chidori!"

Itachi wanted to look up, but he couldn't.

Kimimaro was jumping all over the place, faster than a rabbit. Itachi had to put his full concentration into this.

The sound of wings flapping seemed to have alerted Kimimaro as well, who looked up towards the valley. Taking advantage of his one-second concentration lapse, Gaara's sand wrapped around him tightly.

"Totsuka Blade!"

The mystical weapon jammed into Kimimaro's chest.

With a scream, he disappeared from reality forever.

Itachi smiled, landing on the ground as Susanoo disappeared.

The Kaguya clan was no more.

The flapping sounds grew even harsher.

Sasuke gasped.

Memories came rushing back to him.

Knocked out. Captured. Waking up. Cursed Seal. Appearance. Wings. Naruto. Fight. Chidori.

He gasped again, realizing where he was.

In front of him, the limp form of Naruto grew even limper.

His eyes widening as he now gained consciousness of where his right hand was, Sasuke pulled out, that particular hand now soaked heavily in blood - the blood of Naruto.

Naruto was thrown back onto the statue of Madara, while Sasuke landed on Hashirama.

What had he done?

As his wings disappeared with his dark skin, Sasuke leaped over to the opposite statue and rushed over to his fallen friend.

Naruto had pulled back.

Sasuke held vague remembrance of the battle. Naruto had pulled back. He could have dealt the finishing blow, countering Sasuke's attack with those powerful claws of his own - but instead the bastard had pulled back, and allowed himself to be killed.

The young boy could not believe what had just happened.

Finally, everything became clear once more, and the first word he thought of was the name of his best friend, his teammate. The one lying on the ground at his feet.

I... I killed someone.

I killed my best friend.

These haunting words replayed themselves in his mind.

A tear started falling down his eye, and with it came more. Soon, he was kneeling down, shaking Naruto vigorously with a tear-filled face.

"Wake up... Naruto...! I-I'm sorry! I'm sorry! Please... just..."

Itachi and Gaara poofed into sight with a Teleportation Jutsu.

Both ninjas' jaws dropped.

From an expression of surprise, it turned into one of sadness and shock. Itachi knelt down, like Sasuke, not even daring to check the boy's heartbeat or breath. The gaping hole in his abdomen told him everything he needed to know.

"N-N-Naruto..." He croaked, a tear now running down his cheek.

Gaara felt his body growing weaker. A jolt in his mind prevented him from passing out.

His sadness turned to anger and he glared at the back of Sasuke. "What... what did you do to him?"

"I... I don't know." He replied truthfully.

Gaara's glare intensified. This was the boy he'd come to respect more than his own father, and now his own teammate had mercilessly slaughtered him!

"I-I think I was under the... influence of... this..." Sasuke tapped on the mark on his neck shamefully, his voice shaking.

Failing to see the big picture, Gaara's sand rose from his gourd as his emotions reached a high. "He was your teammate! You could have controlled yourself a little better, you...!"

Itachi stopped Gaara, placing his hand protectively in front of Sasuke. "Gaara... please, do not make this any worst for Sasuke."

His gaze softening, Gaara sighed, starting to tear up as the sand disappeared from sight.

"B-B-Brother..." Sasuke stuttered, fearing the question he was about to ask. "I-Is he... Is he..."

Itachi did not reply, simply resuming the act of mentally punching himself. I am so sorry... Minato-san... Hokage-sama...

"Well, well, well, what a sight."

The three turned.

Orochimaru smirked. "Ooh. It looks like you killed the Kyuubi brat!" He spat out his Kusanagi Sword. "It looks like the Cursed Seal worked well, didn't it... Sasuke-kun?"

Sasuke did not answer, glaring down at the ground. He could care less about Orochimaru now. Immense grief was flooding throughout his body as he mentally repeated how sorry he was to Naruto.

"I am here personally to take you back to our lovely hideout," Orochimaru smiled creepily. "Where is Kimimaro?"

Itachi and Gaara didn't answer, both glaring hatefully at the Konoha missing-nin.

"Hm? It looks like even he failed then. No matter. Now I am here, I will take my new vessel by myself."

Orochimaru walked over to the three grieving shinobi. Itachi and Gaara took a step back. Sasuke didn't even flinch, still crouching over Naruto's body and crying his heart out. He had been hit hard, and rightfully so.

"You did well killing your own friend, Sasuke-kun." Orochimaru continued, unknowingly throwing salt onto his wound. "It's a very interesting turn of events. The Cursed Seal manipulates your mind - but I had no idea you would go as far as to kill your own friend! Perfect, perfect indeed!"

Itachi wanted to get up, to fight him, to kill Orochimaru, but he knew he couldn't. One more jutsu used, and he would be passing out from chakra exhaustion.

Gaara was only at a quarter of his strength as well.

Orochimaru seemed to find this out from the tired looks on their faces, as well as their bruised bodies - probably explaining the reason for his confident stride.

The evil man inched closer.

Itachi rested his hand on his katana hilt.

Sasuke suddenly spoke.

"I will handle this by myself."

The young Uchiha boy looked up, his intense glare fixed on Orochimaru.

Itachi could not hold back his gasp, the loudest one he'd ever made in his entire life. Orochimaru's mouth formed a small 'o', indicating his own surprise.

In the blazing eyes of Sasuke Uchiha, was the Mangekyo Sharingan.

Orochimaru had to stifle his own gasp.

Naruto's sword was lying on the ground. Picking it up, Sasuke placed it in front of his face, copying the stance that Naruto had so usually assumed when wielding his weapon.

Orochimaru was quickly charged towards, Sasuke throwing caution to the wind. This man had made him kill his best friend - no one in his situation would be thinking clearly.'

"Sasuke!" Itachi yelled. He didn't want to lose his younger brother and the boy he'd come to view as a younger brother all in one day.

Now with Lightning chakra travelling up the blade, Sasuke screamed, venting the anger he was holding towards himself, and unleashing it on Orochimaru.

Getting over his shock, Orochimaru swiftly parried the attack.

"Raaarrhh!" Sasuke roared into his face. Lightning chakra assembled in his unarmed left hand.

Despite the knowledge that the attack could go haywire, as well as extreme exhaustion later on following the use of four Chidori attacks in a day, Sasuke pressed on.

"Chidori!"

The damned Cursed Seal had allowed him to use three Chidori in a row without any setbacks, so why not this time?

However in his rage, Sasuke failed to recognize that he was no longer in the mode of the level two, and his Chidori, as expected, went haywire.

Instead of the Lightning chakra being concentrated in his hand, it flew in all directions, blowing back both Sasuke and Orochimaru.

Orochimaru found himself unable to move, but Sasuke couldn't either.

The Kusanagi wielder stared at Sasuke, who was giving him a glare fiercer than the standard Uchiha glare. If looks could kill, Orochimaru's body would have been dismembered, stitched up, and then dismembered again.

Sasuke-kun... Orochimaru thought. That Chidori of his... failed... but yet he still managed to utilize it. I don't feel pain, like I would feel from a Chidori, but instead, my entire body is numb...

Itachi and Gaara moved forward.

"Stay back!" Sasuke shouted.

They shrank back obediently, with even Itachi intimidated by the tone of his brother.

Well, now that Sasuke-kun has ordered them to stay back, I am fairly safe, Orochimaru couldn't hide his smirk. What a foolish boy. He actually thinks he can take on someone like me. I may be injured, not at my best, but...

Orochimaru's mental rant meant he failed to notice Sasuke's left Mangekyo eye spinning wildly.

He did notice, however, blood slowly dripping down his left eye, almost like tears.

No...! The Snake Sannin fought to move.

"Amaterasu!"

Itachi gasped again, while Gaara watched in awe as black flames appeared on Orochimaru's body.

Orochimaru screamed, deciding he never wanted to feel this pain again. Finally able to move, he crashed to the ground, rolling and writhing around in agony. This pain beat any thing that tortured victims came under.

It certainly doesn't look as intense as my Amaterasu, but... Itachi glanced at Sasuke. The fact that he can even use Amaterasu... minutes after awaking the Mangekyo... Holy crap.

Forcing himself to stand up, Orochimaru backed away, trying his best to ignore the raging pain but failing.

"Chidori!"

Black marks roamed over Sasuke's face, and merged to darken his skin. Wings grew out of his back again, as he charged up his fifth Chidori of the day.

His Mangekyo Sharingan pupils glinting, Sasuke's hand rammed through Orochimaru's gut...

... just seconds after Orochimaru completed his skin shedding technique, and burst out of his old skin's back.

With his Chidori, Sasuke dived through the Orochimaru-styled skin, the black flames still continuing their dance on it.

"It has been... a pleasure to..." Orochimaru coughed violently, and then continued. "... to meet you again, Sasuke-kun. But it appears... I have failed."

Not replying, Sasuke's wings started flapping.

"I must now take my leave." The Sannin hissed. "You have damaged me too much." He placed his hands together as Sasuke flew towards him with a murderous gaze. "Until next time, Sasuke-kun."

Sasuke threw a punch, but all he hit was smoke.

"Teleportation Jutsu..." Itachi muttered. "He got away..."

"We've found Rock Lee, sir!"

The Konoha medic team all turned back. True enough, one of their group had found the jumpsuit-wearing taijutsu specialist, with said ninja in his arms, unconscious. The medic-nin laid Lee onto the ground.

"Alright. Medic team, do your thing." The supposed leader gave orders, and his team got to work immediately.

"Are we going to go on ahead, sir?" One of them asked. "It's already dark. Any further and we might just lose our way..."

"Lose our way? Nonsense," said the leader with distaste. "We aren't kids."

The man who had asked the question turned away in embarrassment.

"But I suppose we shall return to Konoha," he continued with a sigh. "After all, Itachi Uchiha is with the remaining team, correct? With him around, there should be no problem."

"Right."

"What's his condition?"

The team of medic-nin left the boy, and one took up the responsibility of picking him up. "He's not in any critical condition but his body is in bad shape. A week or more in hospital, and he's sorted out."

"That's great. Now, let's go back."

"Where... where am I...?"

Naruto found himself floating in a white, endless space.

He briefly recalled what had happened. Was that the Kyuubi's power taking hold of him - like how the Cursed Seal had done to Sasuke?

And then... he had clashed with Sasuke...

And Sasuke had driven a Chidori through him.

"Yes... most definitely... dead..."

"Nah."

Naruto's eyes widened, hearing a second voice. It was deep and familiar.

The white space turned into one he recognized. Naruto was now in a sewer, with a cell in front of him. Two scary-looking eyes stared at him from the darkness within.

"Is that the Kyuubi?"

"No, it's the Hachibi," the Demon Fox retorted sarcastically.

"Hachibi?" Naruto scratched his head.

"Never mind." Kurama was disappointed that Naruto didn't get his attempt at sarcasm, but then again, he was just a kid. "Any way, yes, you are dead."

"You said 'nah!'"

"Shut up and listen, brat!"

"R-Right..."

"I did just enough to keep your heart from entirely stopping," said Kurama roughly. "You'll live. But next time you go ahead and get yourself killed like that... there's no guarantee I'll be able to be there in time again."

"So... I'm alive?"

"... Pretty much. Just don't be so careless, you idiot," Kurama sighed. "If you die, I'll die too. Remember that when you charge into battle, you stupid little yellow-haired human. There are two lives at stake here, not just yours!"

"Like a pregnant mother!"

"No! No!" The great Fox groaned. His container's analogies were worst than Madara Uchiha's sense of humor. Briefly, Kurama wondered how he'd gotten stuck with such a container. Oh yeah. Madara Uchiha. The man he had been thinking about just three seconds ago. The Kyuubi grunted angrily at the thought of the ancient man.

"When can I... like... you know... wake up?"

"I don't know," Kurama answered honestly.

Naruto shook his head with a sigh. "But being here is boring-"

"Be grateful you're even alive, you brat!" The demon spat.

Naruto sighed and nodded.

"Itachi, report."

Hiruzen Sarutobi was tense. Did they get Sasuke back? Was Naruto okay?

"Y-Yes." Itachi was visibly shaken. Hiruzen did not like the appearance of his top Jonin, not at all. "We got Sasuke Uchiha back... but Naruto Uzumaki... Naruto... Naruto... he..."

Hiruzen gasped as a tear fell down Itachi's eye.

"Naruto Uzumaki... is... dead."

Nah, he's not.

Quite a twist, huh? Sasuke getting the Mangekyo - but then again, he did 'kill' his best friend.

Question of the Day: Who is your favorite member within the Akatsuki? Mine has to be Deidara, that sexy beast. No homo, he's just sexy, really.

In the next chapter, Naruto is magically revived and the mission is concluded. Meanwhile, Hiruzen makes an important decision. What will it be?

See you all in the next chapter.