INTRODUCTION
Welcome back to the Chronicles of the Seventh. As always I like to begin by stating that I do not own Naruto.
THANK YOU
A special thanks to all those who reviewed my previous chapter: Anonymous-stalker; NarutoBigFreak; ZeroTail29; SenninClaudio; Exor; maxslayer10; LowBatteryLife; airnaruto45; Mudcake; stryker4narusaku; happy everyday life; Konoha's crimson fox; Shauni2420; charles2420; Diamond Man; Kushina's Hell; hideki411; perfect beauty; soccernin19; Silver Senpai; theloverofanime; goldone5; musguian; MyHikari; Minao 0077; The Flying Lion; saveme57; Samiibee; KOSKAORU; Ben Vilhaven & Christina322
RESPONCES
Anonymous-stalker - Lol!. He did indeed.
NarutoBigFreak - Lol! Well, I usually don't like to make a woman cry. But in this case I'll accept the compliment. Arigato!
ZeroTail29 - There are actually two ways to spell it. Although I think you're right and the proper way is "juubi". But I prefer spelling it as "jyubi". It's just a little quirk I have. Thanks.
SenninClaudio - Thanks. Glad you liked it.
Exor - You enjoyed it that much huh? Awesome!
maxslayer10 - Hmm, I think I'll more than likely go in a different direction than FMA. But I think it worked out great. I'm happy you liked the emotion I displayed in the characters.
LowBatteryLife - ALL HAIL THE POWER OF THE CLIFFHANGER!
airnaruto45 - How indeed. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.
Mudcake - I'm glad you feel that way. My hand feels much better now BTW. The curse will be revealed in time.
stryker4narusaku - Thanx.
happy everyday life - So how did you spend your two weeks. I bet they were fun and you didn't even think of my story. Lol! So are you saying that you'll hunt me down and kill me if I kill Sakura? LMAO! Good thing I invested in that new security system. Lol!
Konoha's crimson fox - Thanks dude. As for Sakura she is...well...you'll see.
Shauni2420 - Thanx! It seems someone is excited!
charles cdv - Lol! Thanks.
Diamond Man - I'm glad you liked it. I really thought long and hard about this scene. I definitely wanted to do something where Naruto met his mom but yet something a bit...different and perhaps more meaningful. i hope you like this chapter and make no mistake...Team 7 is back in this chapter!
Kushina's - The only question I have is how similar was that chapter to the story you were telling me you were working on?
hideki411 - Thanx.
perfect beauty - I'm glad you liked the moments Naruto had with his family. I really wanted to make it a sad yet happy moment.
soccernin19 - In my story Nagato did not bring back the ones he killed during his attack on Konoha. As a result Kakashi, Fukasaku, Shizune and all the others who died that day remain dead.
Silver Senpai - Glad you're keeping up with my work Silver and once this is done I can focus on Blade of the Shinigami again.
theloverofanime - Arigato gozaimasu! *takes bow*
goldone5 - Thanx.
muguian - GEEEEZ!What a long review! I LOVE IT! Almost as much as like messing with people's heads and ideas about what to expect in my story. Who knows, maybe I have another one for the final chapter! Lol!.
Ahh, SaixHina. I like it. I don't know why I like it. But I like it! They match well and could really be good together and for eachother.
Glad you like Sakura's new power. i think there are many different applications for such an ability and think it suits her well. For instance, Sakura was able to use her chakra to break Madara's ablity to use Tsukuyomi on Naruto. As for Sasuke, as a powerful Uchiha he was able to resist the effects.
ROFL! What are you talking about! Karin isn't pregnant! Why do you insist on this theory! _
The Curse will be revealed in time. Lol!So are you saying that out of 190+ fanfics read that mine is your favorite. High praise indeed if that's true. I thank you for that if it's true. Thank you for reading.
MyHikari - Ouch! I hope you're feeling better. You really should use sunblock. Aerosmith Huh! Can't say i'm much of a fan. HOWEVER, I did decide to listen to "Back in the Saddle" while writing these responces. I gotta say, not bad. In fact, it has given me an idea for a chapter of Blade of the Shinigami. So i thank you for leading to a bit of inspiration. Glad you enjoyed the chapter.
minato 0077 - Thanx
The Flying Lion - No problem. I'm just happy you're still reading. And I'm glad you're enjoying my epic sauce sandwich! LMAO!
saveme57 - I gotta be honest, everytime I read you name I broke out into singing the opening theme for Smallville! "Somebody saaaaave meeee! Let your warms hands break right through and Sombody saaaaave meeeee! I don't care how you do it just staaaay, staaay, come on! I've been waiting for you! I've made this whole world shine for you! So just Stay, stay...c'mon! LMAO!
Oh yeah, and as for your predictions I'm glad they were wrong. If not then it would mean i'm predictable and all my friends agree that is something I'm not. Hey, if you wnat more Ns fans reading this story then spread the word. I rely on all of you guys to advertise for me. Because it's free and I'm cheap. Lol!
Samilbee - My story is like a rollercoaster. Sure it might make you throw up but in the end you'll enjoy it so much you'll want to ride it again. Lol! As for romance I wanted to make the level of romance realistic to not just the characters but the situation. I think it would have been too strange to have tons of romance between characters while thier fighting to save the world. But there will be more romance before it's all said and done. Lol! Oh, and consider my ass officially hurried.
KOSKAORU - introducing a smarter, stronger and more confident sakura was very important to me. I'm just glad so many of you have loved her depiction. I was also focused on not making her too strong. I think many fans who write fics about Sakura are so inclined to make her strong that they make her so strong that it loses all sence of realism. I wanted progression, more than anything, to seem natural. So you want more NS moments too huh? Well, more will come before all is done. Believe me. As for you're english, it's quite good. I wouldn't have known englis wasn't your natural language if you hadn't said anything.
Ben - Due to his low chakra Sasuke was unable to heal himself completely. Under normal circumstances it would have been a complete heal as you said. But in this case Sasuke was not strong enough at the time.
Sakura is not aware of her ability. Madara, the only one who realizes it, has not told her. But Naruto knows now. I'm sure he'll tell her.
Christina322 - Glad you had time to write the review. My hand and I thank you. It seems my depcition of NAruto in the after life has gone over quite well. That's great.
MESSAGE FROM THE AUTHOR
Wow, I think it's bee a long time since I've gotten so many reviews for one chapter. Over Forty reviews and over forty replies! Thank you all for taking the time out to share your thoughts. I wonder if it's too much to ask to get the same amount or more. Lol!
And then there was one. I don't really have much to say except: BE HERE IN TWO WEEKS FOR THE THRILLING CONCLUSION OF A STORY OVER TWO YEARS IN THE MAKING. THE FINAL CHAPTER OF CHRONICLES OF THE SEVENTH. THERE WILL ALSO BE AN ANNOUNCEMENT OF SEVERAL UPCOMING WORKS FROM RAMENRENEGADE! BE HERE!
Naruto: Chronicles of the Seventh
Book III: End of Innocence
Chapter XXXVIII: Team Seven
******Valley of the End – Several Minutes Ago******
Sakura winced in pain as she continued to pump more and more of Naruto's chakra into his corpse. Realizing she was close to her limit, she decided to put her all into her next attempt. Steeling herself she poured every ounce of chakra she had left. And that's when she felt it. It was the unmistakable feeling of a heart beat.
Naruto's heart beat once and then again. It was slow and weak at first, but slowly his heart began to beat faster as his body glowed with chakra. Suddenly Naruto's eyes opened wide as he inhaled a large amount of oxygen. His body stiffened as Sakura fought to keep Naruto still.
Slowly Naruto began to take quick, ragged breaths. "N-Naruto," Sakura asked as she stared at him. Her body was shaking from pain, joy and exhaustion.
Weakly Naruto looked at Sakura and smiled. "Hey, Sakura-chan," he said.
Unable to contain her joy, Sakura hugged onto Naruto and laughed as she cried. "Naruto," she said. "Thank God! Thank God! I-I thought I'd lost you!"
Naruto squeezed Sakura's arm reassuringly and smiled. "You haven't gotten rid of me yet," he said. Naruto and Sakura then kissed gently as she stroked his face.
"Don't ever do that to me again Naruto," Sakura said. "I don't think I have it in me to save your ass again."
Naruto stroked the back of her head and said, "Yeah, about that, thank you Sakura! You really, saved my life. I'll never forget it."
Sakura looked at Naruto and turned red in the face. Her eyes were glazed and puffy with tears. "Y-you're welcome, Naruto," she said.
Naruto then looked over Sakura's shoulder and his eyes widened as he saw the massive creature in the distance and the large Mangekyo Sharingan imprinted on the moon. "Don't worry," Sakura said. "I made sure you would be immune to the effects of Madara's genjutsu."
Naruto looked at Sakura and smiled. "Thanks," he said. "I wouldn't expect anything less from your Kekkei Genkai."
Sakura looked at Naruto with a puzzled expression. "What are you talking about," she asked.
Naruto smiled and shook his head. "I'll explain it to you later," he said.
"Right," Sakura said as she dipped into her tool kit. She then pulled out one of her soldier pills. "Here Naruto, this will build up your strength. It's my last one."
Naruto raised his hand to decline. "You eat it Sakura," he said. "You're exhausted. You need it more than I do."
"Shut up and take it Naruto," Sakura yelled causing Naruto to stare quietly. "You…..you're going to fight that thing aren't you? You and I both know that you're the only one who can. You need this. Please…..just take it."
"Sakura," Naruto said as he stared at her. Sakura smiled and said, "I believe in you Naruto. Don't worry about me."
Naruto reached over and took the pill and ate it quickly. Within seconds he could feel a wave of strength wash over him. He quickly got to his feet as Sakura remained kneeling looking up at him. Knowing Sakura lacked the strength to walk on her own he quickly scooped her up in his arms before she could protest and walked with her until he arrived under the shade of a large tree. He gently put her down and she was surprised to see that he was already in Sage Mode.
Looking deep into her eyes, Naruto clasped his hands around her left hand. "This ends today Sakura," he said. "I swear this to you. You are with me in spirit and along with Sasuke, we will put an end to it."
"Sasuke," Sakura asked. "You mean?"
"Yes," Naruto said. "I can sense his chakra in that direction. He is fighting the creature even now. I'm not sure how it happened. But I think the old Sasuke is back. Team Seven is back."
Tears came to Sakura's eyes. "Thank you Naruto," she said. "You never gave up on him. I knew you could do it."
"We did it," Naruto said as he slowly got to his feet. Naruto then turned from Sakura and glared at the massive beast. "And now….we finish it."
Naruto disappeared before Sakura's eyes leaving her alone. Sakura took a deep breath and stared at the creature. The words Naruto had uttered echoed in her mind. "Team Seven is back."
Naruto leapt through the trees moving at a speed that surprised even him. Several times he looked at his own body and was amazed at how fast he was effortlessly moving. Within moments he had almost arrived when he saw a massive explosion ahead of him that knocked him out of the trees and to the ground far below.
As the explosion died away Naruto got to his feet. What was that, he wondered as he sprinted towards the area. Naruto ran through the trees until suddenly the trees opened to a massive smoldering crater. Naruto gasped at the size of it. Did the Jyubi do this, he wondered. Naruto then looked into the crater and found Sasuke, doubled over in pain. Susanoo had been nearly obliterated and the Kyubi wrapped one of it's massive tails around him and lifted into the air until he was face to face with the beast.
Naruto quickly began to create a RasenShuriken in his right hand and was again, surprised at how effortless it seemed. So much so that he decided to create another in his left hand. Naruto then quickly took aim and let one fly and quickly created another to replace it. The attack struck the beast and severed its tail before exploding, which forced the creature to let Sasuke loose.
Sasuke fell to the ground just as Naruto stepped out from the shadows of the tree. "Hey Sasuke," he said. "Get the hell up. Let's get wild!"
Sasuke stared at Naruto as if staring at a ghost. "Y-You," he said. "Impossible. It's just not possible!"
The massive creature got to its feet and glared down at the small blonde human. "Eh," it said. "Namikaze! How can you be alive! You were sacrificed for my Godhood!"
Naruto grinned at the massive beast and said, "I warned you not to underestimate me Madara!" Naruto quickly threw both RasenShuriken at the beast, striking it head on. Naruto quickly disappeared and appeared in next to Sasuke who slowly got to his feet. He looked at Naruto, whose gaze was fixed straight ahead, in silence.
Sasuke then looked ahead and said, "Sakura right?"
"Yep," Naruto said.
"Mm-hmm," Sasuke said. "She's stronger than I gave her credit for."
"So are you," Naruto said. "It's good to have the real you back…..Sasuke."
"The real me," Sasuke asked. "Tch, you're still too naïve for your own good. Nothing's changed between us Naruto. When this is finished…."
"We still have to see who is stronger," Naruto said with a bright smile. "Once and for all. I….look forward to it."
Sasuke stared at him for a while and then looked straight ahead. He gave a small smile that Naruto couldn't see and then said, "Alright, lets finish this quickly then."
Out of the smoke, one of the Jyubi's legs stepped out and then the entire creature lunged out. "Bastard," the Jyubi yelled. "How are you still alive! How are you so strong!"
"You know, for a while I wasn't to sure myself," Naruto said as he looked at his opened palms. "For some reason, I feel faster, I feel stronger. Despite everything, I feel like I a weight that I've always had to carry is just not there anymore. And I think I realize why. All my life, I've had to devote nearly half my chakra to the seal that kept the Kyubi in check."
Naruto clenched both fists and suddenly began to glow bright red. The wind around him began to rage like a miniature tornado, forcing Sasuke to shield his eyes. "But now that the Kyubi is gone, I can use all of my chakra," Naruto said. "I didn't get stronger. I'm just….fighting at one hundred percent."
Naruto suddenly moved so fast it seemed as though he had vanished and before anyone could react he was up in the air, face to face with the Jyubi. Naruto slammed his elbow directly into the beasts face with such amazing force that the massive creature pitched back and crashed to the ground.
"Such speed," Sasuke said in awe. "He's faster than I've ever seen." The Jyubi quickly got to its feet and fired a beam of chakra from its eyes that Naruto quickly dodged. Naruto kicked the Jyubi squarely in the ribs forcing it back as it yelled in pain. Using his Mangekyo Rinnegan Sasuke quickly analyzed Naruto's power. Wait, he thought. He's not running at top speed. He's releasing quick and sudden bursts of wind to propel him with such speed he's barely visible.
Wasting no time, Naruto moved in with a massive Rasengan, when the Jyubi suddenly swung it's giant paw and struck Naruto in the side, launching him down to the ground. Before he crashed to the ground Naruto released a massive burst of wind to stop his fall and landed on his feet.
"You're power is impressive Namikaze," Madara said. "But you are nothing compared to a God!" The Jyubi looked directly at Sasuke and suddenly Sasuke could feel the world around him changing.
Sasuke grabbed his head and screamed in pain as he fought the affects of Madara's power. Suddenly he found himself in the Death Sleep of Tsukuyomi. He was strapped to a massive cross and was surrounded by millions of others, who were being tortured. In front of him stood Madara with a sick smile on his face. "You're chakra has dropped too low to fight off my Tsukuyomi, Sasuke," Madara said. "Now you too will become part of me."
"Sasuke," Naruto yelled as he ran towards Sasuke as his body crumpled to the ground as though he were a puppet whose strings had been cut. Naruto ran up and slid to his knees as he pulled Sasuke up. "Sasuke, Sasuke," he yelled but there was no response. Sasuke's face was blank. His eyes were open and vacant.
Madara laughed viciously as he looked down at Naruto. "Namikaze," he said. "If you want to be by his side so badly then allow yourself to join with me! Then you can be together for all eternity!"
"Go to hell," Naruto yelled.
"Very well," Madara yelled as the Jyubi raised its paw and swung at him, intent on impaling him with its claws. "Then Die!"
Suddenly someone leapt out of the nearby trees and yelled, "Shaaannaaaro!" The person punched the beast squarely in the chest knocking it back. Naruto was shocked when the person landed and he saw it was Sakura.
"Sakura," he mumbled. But Naruto then looked at Sakura closer. Wait, her chakra is different, he thought. Plus I can still sense her chakra a mile and half away from here. Naruto smiled and asked, "When did you learn how to perform Shadow Clone Jutsu Sakura?"
A mile and a half away Sakura sat exhausted. She smiled to herself as she took a deep, measured breath. Meanwhile, Sakura's clone looked back at Naruto and smiled. "Only recently," it said. "But Sakura isn't good enough at it. She can only create one at a time." The clone walked over and quickly kneeled next to them. "Sakura had a needle with adrenaline on her. The moment you left she stuck herself with it and used the extra energy to create me. She had me follow you as best I could and hide."
"Why," Naruto asked.
"This," the clone said as it looked at Sasuke. "Just in case one of you was taken over by his Tsukuyomi again." Sakura placed her hand on Sasuke's forehead. "I think I know why Madara tried to kill me. It's because of this power isn't it? I have some ability that allows me to break his genjutsu don't I?"
Naruto nodded. The clone laughed and said, "I think I always sort of knew something was different. I don't come from a powerful ninja family, yet I was always strangely good with Genjutsu. Well, at least I could help, like I always wanted to." Suddenly Sasuke's eyes flew open and he looked around frantically. Realizing where he was he calmed down. "You're fine now Sasuke," Sakura said. "His Tsukuyomi won't affect you anymore."
Sasuke, Naruto and Sakura got to their feet just as Madara got up. "You bastards," Madara yelled. "I'll rip you all to shreds! All of you will die at my hands!"
The clone looked at her hands and said, "Well, it looks like I'm out of chakra."
"Sakura," Sasuke said. "Thank you."
Sakura smiled as tears welled in her eyes. "It's alright Sasuke." Looking at Naruto she said, "We're all Team Seven after all." The clone disappeared in a puff of smoke and, far away, the real Sakura wiped a tear from her eye.
The earth shook as the Jyubi took one slow, deliberate step at a time. Both Naruto and Sasuke walked up and stood next to each other. Sasuke took a deep breath and said, "Naruto, you hit him high."
"And you hit him low," Naruto said. Both men took off in a sprint, zig zagging their way towards the Jyubi. The Jyubi fired a massive blast of chakra towards them. Sasuke leapt in front and raised his hands and the beam of energy struck an invisible shield that protected the two of them. Naruto immediately leapt into the air and fired a blast of wind underneath him to propel himself skyward. As soon as he reached the Jyubi's face he created a massive ball of energy. "Giant Rasengan," he yelled as he struck the creature.
Down below Sasuke quickly created his fully formed Susanoo and fired a massive arrow covered with black flames at the creature. Both attacks struck simultaneously, resulting in a massive explosion.
"You think we got him," Naruto asked as he landed next to Sasuke.
"Do you really need to ask such a stupid question," Sasuke answered. As the smoke and debris settled the Jyubi walked out and growled before sprinting towards them.
Naruto sighed as he pulled his last kunai out. "Any chance this could be easy," he asked as he ran towards the beast.
"When is it ever easy," Sasuke responded as he ran behind him.
"Now Sasuke," Naruto yelled as Sasuke once again created Susanoo. This time Naruto leapt onto its shoulders as it closed in on the Jyubi. The Jyubi swung at them and Naruto easily leapt up to avoid the attack while Sasuke used Susanoo's shield to block it. While high in the sky Naruto threw his kunai and made a hand seal. "Shadow Kunai Clone Jutsu," he yelled as his one kunai turned into hundreds that all fell, impaling the Jyubi and the ground all around it.
Naruto then immediately vanished and appeared by one of the kunai behind the Jyubi. Making another hand seal he said, "Shadow Clone Jutsu !" Suddenly he had created two hundred copies of himself and each copy then vanished and each appeared by one of the kunai. Suddenly the Jyubi found himself surrounded by hundreds of Naruto clones.
Each clone then created a Rasengan and reared back, ready to leap. "Ha," Madara yelled. "I'll destroy all of you before you can harm me!"
"Don't be so sure of that," Sasuke yelled as he fired a blast of black flame, hitting the Jyubi in the face, blinding it. Using the opening Sasuke created, all of the clones leapt at the Jyubi, hitting it with a barrage of Rasengan all over its body. The Jyubi crashed to the ground, yelling in pain and Sasuke quickly ran towards it and once he was close enough he said, "Shinra Tensei!" The beast was struck by his attack and was launched back crashing into the ground and uprooting dozens of trees.
Immediately several chakra arms spouted from the Jyubi's body and attacked both men causing them to leap back and dodge attack after attack. The massive arms created small craters in the ground with every strike as Naruto and Sasuke avoided each deadly assault.
Then out of each arm small balls of concentrated chakra began flow out and exploded like small paper bombs. Sasuke and Naruto, their clothes singed, leapt back out of the smoke and landed next to each other prepared to defend themselves. Seeing that his coat, his fathers' coat, was burning Naruto created a blast of wind to put out the flame and then he took it off and set it aside. Meanwhile, the dozens of chakra arms the Jyubi created was reabsorbed back into its body and the beast rose to its feet and Madara laughed. They could see that the wounds they had inflicted on it had already healed. "That thing is healing every attack we hit it with," Sasuke said.
"Then we just have to keep hitting it with attacks it can't heal," Naruto said. "Eventually it will reach its limit."
That's easy enough for you to say Naruto, Sasuke thought. Between my fight with you and the amount of chakra I used before you got here I'm already reaching my chakra limit. And despite all your big talk, you look like you're starting to feel the effects of using so many big attacks too. You don't have the Kyubi to replenish you anymore Naruto.
"Hey Sasuke," Naruto said as he took deep breaths. "I have an idea. You wanna try a little combo technique I've been thinking up?"
"What do you have in mind," Sasuke whispered.
"How many shadow clones can you create right now," Naruto asked with a smile.
Madara looked on as the two men quickly created their plan. "Worthless," he yelled. "All of you're plans are worthless against overwhelming power!"
Naruto then slipped his hand into his tool kit and pulled out about a dozen smoke bombs and threw them to the ground, obscuring the Jyubi's vision. Then out of the smoke, Naruto and Sasuke sprinted out towards the creature.
Sasuke took the lead as Naruto ran behind with a small scroll in his hand. Naruto un-wrapped it and there was a seal on it. He placed his hand on it and summoned a large Fuma Shuriken. "Idiots," Madara screamed as he looked at them. "Do you really think I'm so blind not to realize you two are clones! The real Naruto and Sasuke are still hidden in the smoke. I can see the difference in your chakra!"
The Jyubi fired a thin beam of concentrated chakra from his eyes at the two running towards him but to his surprise Sasuke created an invisible force of energy the block the attack. Naruto then leapt and threw the shuriken at the Jyubi. "As if such a thing could damage me," Madara said as the attack came at him. Madara then swung out and knocked the shuriken away but it was then he realized his error. In the shadow of the shuriken Naruto had created a RasenShuriken that continued towards him. "What," Madara yelled as the attack struck him and he was engulfed in light.
The Jyubi's body was badly burnt as the explosion died away but it instantly began to heal. "Damn you," Madara said contemptuously as the beast glared at the two clones. The Jyubi opened it's mouth and fired a ball of energy that obliterated the clones and then he looks at the smoke where he could see the real Naruto and Sasuke hiding.
"Have you pulled up enough energy," Naruto asked.
"Yes," Sasuke responded. "But you should know that I'll be using a massive amount of chakra for this Naruto. This plan of yours had better work."
Naruto smiled just as the Jyubi fired a massive blast at them. "Don't worry," Naruto said as he placed his hand on Sasuke's shouldered. "This will end it." An instant before the blast struck Naruto and Sasuke vanished. The blast of energy hit the ground and exploded with earth shattering force.
"Did I get them," Madara asked.
"Not exactly," Naruto said as he and Sasuke stood to the Jyubi's left.
Before Madara could respond he heard Naruto's voice also coming from the right. "But I really should thank you Madara," Naruto said. Madara turned and saw Naruto and Sasuke standing to his right. And again before he could respond he heard Naruto's voice behind him. "If you weren't so damned full of yourself, Sasuke and I wouldn't have had the time to pull this off," Naruto said.
So I'm surrounded huh, Madara thought.
"Ready Sasuke," Naruto asked.
Sasuke nodded as he and his other two clones made and hand seal and snapped his eyes shut and concentrated. Then, simultaneously, all three Sasuke's took a deep breath and blew out a massive, dragon-shaped column of fire and ignited the fire even further covering them with the black flames of Amaterasu. "Blaze Release: Dragon Fire Amaterasu!"
Madara was shocked to see three large dragon-shaped, columns of Black Flame headed towards him. He quickly took and deep breath and blew out a massive blast of black flame to consume Sasuke's technique. That's when a smile came to Naruto's face as he made several hand seals and said, "Just what I wanted!"
All three Naruto's then said, "Wind Release: Heavenly Tornado!" Each Naruto released a massive spinning vortex of wind that struck the Sasuke's black flames. The flames quickly absorbed Naruto's technique and grew even larger. "When wind is used against fire, fire just gets more powerful," Naruto said.
Madara suddenly found himself surrounded by three massive dragons made of black flames. The dragons easily consumed Madara's attack and then consumed the Jyubi. Madara screamed in pain as the flames of Amaterasu engulfed him and turned him into ash.
Sasuke's clones vanished as he doubled over in exhaustion. He was taking deep breaths as he fought to compose himself. "Damn it," he said. "Creating those clones and having them each create that technique almost drained me completely."
Naruto staggered away from him as his clones vanished as well. After he took a few steps he fell to the ground. He didn't want to admit it but he had been pushed near his limit too. "Well," he said. "The important thing is that it's over. Now we can get back to finishing up our unfinished business."
Sasuke looked at him and couldn't help but smile. "Right," he said.
Naruto smiled and looked up at the blue sky. "But luckily for you I'm willing to give you some time to get your strength back."
"I don't want you to have any excuses when I kick…..your….," Naruto said as he felt his voice trail off and all energy drain from his body. To his horror he saw Madara standing behind an unsuspecting Sasuke. Madara was partially transformed into the Jyubi and had a wide, sickening smile spread across his face as though he were a cat enjoying it's prey.
"Sasuke, look out," Naruto yelled as he got to his feet. But it was too late. As Sasuke turned Madara plunged his arm deep into Sasuke's chest and out his back. In disbelief Naruto yelled, "Sasuke!"
Madara raised Sasuke's body up into the air and then tossed him aside. Naruto began to tremble with rage as he saw Sasuke's body tumble to the ground like a discarded rag doll. "Sasuke," he yelled.
Madara laughed as he looked at his blood soaked arm. "H-How," Naruto stuttered.
Madara looked at Naruto with a quizzical look. "Why would you ask me such a thing," he asked. "As a former host you should know the answer? Oh, that's right. You never spent much time learning all the different abilities that come with becoming a perfect Jinchuriki did you?" Madara tore a stray piece of cloth from his tattered shirt and used it to wipe away Sasuke's blood. "One of the more amazing abilities is the ability to switch places with severed limbs of the Biju." Naruto's was astonished as he remembered that he himself had cut off half of one of the Jyubi's tails when had first arrived. "I believe the Eight Tails Jinchuriki had used the same trick on Sasuke a few years back," Madara said as he crossed his arms and shook his head. "Tch, tch, tch, some people just never learn. I have to admit though, that combination would have done some serious damage if I had been caught in it."
"Now," Madara said as he began to release a massive amount of chakra. "Where were we!" Suddenly Madara transformed again into the massive Jyubi and glared down at Naruto full of hate and malice. "Namikaze," the Jyubi yelled. "You're time too has come!"
The Jyubi quickly fired a massive blast of chakra from its mouth but Naruto released strong vortex of wind from both palms that launched him high in the sky and over the blast radius. But the Jyubi was ready and it swung and struck Naruto with its massive paw. Naruto was launched down into the ground with such force his body created a crater in the ground.
Naruto moaned in pain and grimaced as he looked up. The Jyubi raised two of its tailed and pointed them directly at him and thrust down intent on crushing him. Naruto suddenly disappeared and re-appeared next to one of his chakra blades several yards away. Wasting no time the Jyubi turned and fired a beam of energy from its eyes at him. Again Naruto vanished and appeared by another of his blades. Again the Jyubi turned and fired and again Naruto teleported away.
"Enough," Madara yelled, clearly frustrated. The Jyubi suddenly raised his head up looking towards the sky and began to create a massive ball of dense chakra. The chakra was so heavy it was driving the beast into the ground.
Knowing what was to come, Naruto quickly created a hand seal. "Wind Style: Living Tornado," he yelled as his body was surrounded a tornado about twice his size and began to run as fast as he could.
Madara dropped the chakra ball onto the ground causing it to explode completely obliterating the surrounding area and all of the chakra blades Naruto had created. Naruto leapt out of the smoke and debris. His arms were crossed in front of his face to shield his eyes. His shirt had been shredded. His bare chest and arm and were burned and his pants were tattered.
Naruto landed on his back and rolled to stop on his stomach. He was breathing heavily and drenched in sweat. Damn it, Naruto said. I barely survived that one. The Jyubi walked closer to him and had a sinister smile on its face. Its eye began to glow and it fired a beam of energy towards Naruto when, much to both their surprise, Sasuke appeared in front of him and blocked the attack with an invisible wall of energy.
Before the Jyubi or even Naruto could react, both Naruto and Sasuke seemed to vanish. The Jyubi began looking about for some sign of the two but he could not sense them. "Eh," Naruto said as he looked around the dark space. He was sitting still and his hands could feel something warm, squishy and wet. Not only that but it was moving slightly. "Where are we?"
Sasuke was kneeling next to him, clutching the wound to his chest. It was still bleeding, but not as much as before. Sasuke was gasping for air and he was making a low whistling sound with every inhale. Naruto could tell that Sasuke's lungs had been damaged. "We're…..inside….a chameleon summon," Sasuke said. "It was the best I could do on short notice. I commanded it to run and hind in the forest. It'll take some time for Madara to locate us."
Naruto sighed heavily as he leaned back. "We're really in some deep shit huh," Naruto asked. It really wasn't a question but more a statement of fact. Sasuke remained quiet as he tried to think through any options they had.
"At this point its clear that we'd lose in a contest of stamina and endurance," Sasuke said.
"He heals from every attack within seconds," Naruto said. "Even burning him alive with our combo attack was useless."
"It's nearly impossible to trick him," Sasuke said. "That eye of his can see nearly any attack and has a full three hundred sixty degrees of vision. Not to mention he has complete knowledge of nearly every jutsu in existence."
"So what do we do," Naruto asked.
"We could run," Sasuke said with a half-hearted smile.
"No," Naruto said flatly. "Not an option."
Clearly Naruto didn't get the joke. But joke or not, Sasuke also knew they couldn't run even if thy wanted to. He had the chakra left to call forth the apparition and heal himself. He could run. But then what? Eventually Madara would complete his Ultimate Tsukuyomi and every man, woman and child on earth would be his slaves. There would be no where to hide. Not only that but Naruto and Sakura wouldn't run. He knew that. They would stay and die fighting.
There was really only one option. The realization of it made Sasuke tremble a bit. And then a smile came to his face. Suddenly he recalled that night when everything changed forever. "Foolish little brother, if you wish to kill me, hate me, detest me. And yet survive in an unsightly way. Run, run and cling to life, and when you have the same eyes as mine, come to me."
For the first time Sasuke could remember the tone of Itachi's voice. It was flat, lifeless, but yet there was a slight trembling to it. He could remember the tear in Itachi's eye as he turned to face him before fleeing the village.
Ahh Itachi, brother, Sasuke thought as he looked at Naruto now. Is this what you felt that night? I'm afraid, yet my resolve is strong. I feel so much hate, sorrow and yet, I feel optimism. I thought for so long I understood you; even after we finally spoke I believed I understood the truth about you. But….
Sasuke could remember Itachi's words to him just before their final showdown. "People live their lives bound by what they accept as correct and true," Itachi said. "That's how they define "reality". But what does it mean to be "correct" or "true"? Merely vague concepts … their "reality" may all be a mirage. Can we consider them to simply be living in their own world, shaped by their beliefs?"
Sasuke took a deep, calming breath. Brother, he thought. Those words to me weren't just your attempt to lift the veil covering my eyes to the truth of our past was it? It was also to guide my future. And yet still I didn't't see it. I didn't't learn the final thing you wanted to teach me in life until now. I think now, I finally see the reality of our existence and not the reality I created for myself. Brother, for the first time, I think I truly understand your heart.
"Hey Sasuke," Naruto said. "What's with the smile?"
Sasuke shook his head and his face once again was stern. "Nothing," he said. "Hey Naruto, do you think you could hold off Madara on your own for a while?"
"Why," Naruto asked. He looked at Sasuke suspiciously and said, 'You not really going to run away are you?"
"No I'm not going to run you moron," Sasuke yelled. "I have a Jutsu that I can use. It was my ace that I was saving to use against you if I had to."
"Will it work," Naruto asked.
"Honestly, I'm not sure," Sasuke said. "I never planned on using it against something like that monster. But I have to try."
Naruto looked at Sasuke's wound on his chest. It was still bleeding and he needed medical attention. If only I could get him to Sakura, Naruto thought. "Do you think you have the chakra to pull it off?"
"Don't worry about that," Sasuke responded. "Just give me two minutes to gather he chakra I need."
"Right," Naruto said.
Sasuke reached down and placed his hand on the Chameleon's tongue and energy pulsated throughout it's body. The Chameleon, after swallowing both Sasuke and Naruto had run off and hid in the nearby woods as commanded. I had currently stuck itself to the side of a mountain range when it received Sasuke's command. The Chameleon leapt down to the ground and quickly made its way back to the edge of the forest line. Beyond the forest was the large open area where The Jyubi remained looking about for Sasuke and Naruto. "Where are you," Madara yelled impatiently.
The Chameleon became visible and lowered it's mouth and opened its tongue releasing Sasuke and Naruto and then it vanished in a puff of smoke. Sasuke took a deep breath and then looked to Naruto. "Remember I need two minutes," he said. "You think you can last that long?"
Naruto laughed and made a hand seal. "Two minutes," he asked. "Heh! Now that I got my second wind…..two minutes will be a piece of cake. Shadow Clone Army Jutsu!" Sasuke stood dumbfounded as Naruto created hundreds of clones that surrounded him and encompassed a massive portion of the wooded area.
"This is," Sasuke Sasuke said. "Incredible. There are at least six or seven hundred clones."
"Heh," Naruto said proudly. "You weren't the only one with an ace up his sleeve."
Madara was about to transform back into a human when he heard what sounded like hundreds of voices coming from the nearby forest. The Jyubi turned to walk in that direction when to Madara's surprise what appeared to be a tidal wave of Naruto clones began swarming out of the forest towards him.
"What is this," Madara said in disbelief as he was nearly bowled over as the wave of clones crashed into him. The clones began punching, kicking, hitting the creature with Wind Style techniques, even biting. The Jyubi reared back and screamed in pain and frustration. "Damn you, you little pests," Madara screamed as he began knocking the clones away.
Far below Sasuke remained hidden behind a large ridge. He remained in deep concentration as he held one hand seal and fought to ignore the pain he was in. C'mon Naruto, he thought. Just hold out!
Madara, even in his Jyubi form, found himself nearly covered head to foot in clones. Clearly angered he yelled, "Enough of this nonsense!" Chakra arms began to sprout from all over his body and began attacking and destroying the clones. And once he had destroyed about half the he then released a massive amount of chakra from his body destroying all the remaining clones and throwing the real Naruto to the ground with incredible force.
Just another minute Naruto, Sasuke thought as he remained in his stance gathering chakra. The Jyubi instantly began to attack Naruto who was clearly at his limit. The Jyubi raised its large paw and brought it down intent on crushing Naruto. Unable to get up in time Naruto rolled out of the way just in the nick of time. Again the Jyubi raised its paw and brought it down and again Naruto rolled out of the way.
Damn it, Naruto thought as he was finally able to stand. The Jyubi then created chakra spears from its body and they launched at a surprised Naruto. Naruto tried to leap clear but one spear pierced into is upper thigh and he fell to the ground. Naruto yelled in pain as he fell to the ground. He could feel his leg seizing and suddenly he could feel his whole body spasm. Shit, he thought. The chakra is poisoning me.
Realizing Naruto's predicament Sasuke ran out into the open while still holding his hand seal and gathering the chakra. Damn it Naruto move, he thought. Move you fucking moron! Naruto tried to move but his muscles refused to follow his commands. The most he could manage was to turn and sit up facing the evil monster.
"And now, the final blow," Madara said as two more spears protruded from his chest and launched at Naruto and pierced him in the heart and stomach. Naruto made an animal like gurgling sound as he spat up blood and leaned forward. His eyes were vacant and lifeless. Just then Naruto faded away as though he was a mirage. "What," Madara yelled in confusion. "What's going on?"
Just then Madara saw Naruto standing, several yards away, unscathed. Naruto was looking at his chest and stomach in complete confusion. "What just," he asked. "What happened? How am I?" Just then he turned and looked at Sasuke. And it all began to make sense.
Coming to the same realization Madara turned to Sasuke. "You," he yelled. "When did you learn to use that technique!"
"Looks like I made it," Sasuke said. He was breathing even heavier now and he was dripping in sweat. His wound was bleeding more now. Naruto looked at Sasuke's right eye and noticed that the tomoe in it had turn a milky white and his eye closed partially.
Madara laughed. "My, my Sasuke," he said. "Did you sneak into my private labs and get hold of some of Hashirama's DNA? And you then learned how to use Izanagi?"
"I warned you not to underestimate me Madara," Sasuke said.
"Hmmm, but the price to use that technique is great Sasuke," Madara said. "And you can only use it once more!"
He's right, Sasuke thought. I only planned on using that technique once! I can still see in that eye thanks to the Rinnegan. But once the Rinnegan runs it's coarse that eye will be permanently blind!
Suddenly to both Naruto and Sasuke's surprise the Jyubi leapt high into the air and landed just behind Sasuke and prepared to strike. So fast, Naruto thought as he sprinted towards them. Before the Jyubi could strike Sasuke opened his hand and in his palm was a small black sphere. The orb quickly floated up to eye level of the Jyubi and began to glow. Madara looked at the orb in shock and said, "That's…?"
"Chibaku…..Tensei," Sasuke said as the sphere began to glow and pull everything to it including earth, debris and the surrounding forest. The Jyubi felt a massive pull and it dug all ten of its tails into the ground in hopes of anchoring itself. "Oh….no…..you….don't," Sasuke yelled as he forced more chakra into the technique and the Jyubi began to rise into the air as it's tails were dragged out of the earth.
Naruto stood in amazement as he watched the scene playing out before him. He'd never seen anything like this before. He had leapt out of the radius of the technique and stared in amazement as large chunks of rock and dirt tore free from the ground and began to form a large circular orb. Trees were being uprooted and the chakra being released was nearly over whelming.
The Jyubi was pulled into the orb as it fought frantically to get free. It fired beams from its eyes and mouth as it tried to blast free. "No," Madara yelled. "This can not hold me!" Which was true. Despite Sasuke's efforts the Jyubi was slowly fighting its way free. Naruto could tell Sasuke's chakra was dropping.
Damn it, Sasuke thought as he coughed up blood. I-I don't have enough…..chakra. Just then he felt someone's hand on his shoulder. Looking back he saw it was Naruto.
"Use my chakra Sasuke," Naruto said with a smile. "Use all of it if you have to."
Sasuke nodded and began to siphon chakra from Naruto. Suddenly the two exploded with power and the technique grew stronger than ever. "Impossible," Madara yelled as he poured even more power into freeing himself. Sasuke and Naruto looked and saw that the imprint of Tsukuyomi which was imprinted on the moon faded away.
******Meanwhile******
Tsunade gritted her teeth and tried to picture herself back in her garden behind her home tending to her flowers. She was at peace, she was safe, she was happy. She tried to convince her self of this as Madara continued his torture. Again he stuck his blade into her side for what seemed like the millionth time. "I am your God," Madara said. "You will love me unquestioningly. You…will…praise…."
Tsunade opened her eyes when she heard Madara's voice fade away and saw that he was gone. Looking around she found that all the visions of Madara were gone and the everything suddenly turned white.
Tsunade gasped as she breathed the fresh are and saw the pale blue sky above her. Her body felt heavy and weak. She could hear the birds chirping and the sounds of others slowly waking. Am I alive, she wondered. The Genjutsu…has it been broken?
Willing herself to sit up she looked about to see the entire army fallen around her. Slowly everyone began to get up. Some began to ask if others were ok. Some moaned as they fought through the affects. Some were clearly shaken by the experience and were crying and terrified. "Lady Tsunade," Gaara said as he sat up. "Are you ok?"
"More or less," Tsunade said. "Raikage, how are you?"
"Having that bastard in my head is something I never want to feel again," he said. "The real question is, why did the genjutsu break?"
"Madara wouldn't break it willingly unless it had taken full affect," Gaara said.
"Are you saying we could all now be his slaves," Tsunade said.
"No," Shikamaru said. Everyone looked to see Shikamaru walking up. He was leaning on Temai's shoulder. Both of them looked haggard and exhausted. "I don't think the jutsu worked. On some of us it seemed like it was close. But all I know is I want to kill Madara so bad right now I'm shaking. I couldn't possibly be under his Genjutsu."
"So what happened," Tsuande asked.
Just then a member of the Hyuga crawled next to them and said, "Incredible,"
"What are you seeing," Tsunade asked.
"In the distance," the man said. "I can see the monster, the Jyubi, being pulled into a large piece of floating rock!"
"Floating rock," Gaara asked.
"Chibaku Tensei," Tsunade said. "But who…?"
"I can see Naruto," the Hyuga said. "And next to him..." The man gasped. "Uchiha Sasuke!"
"Sasuke," Shikamaru said. "Sasuke's helping Naruto!"
Gaara laughed. "Of course Sasuke is helping Naruto," he said. "It seems Naruto has done it again!"
"That's all well and good, but we need to get there to back them up," the Raikage yelled as he forced himself to his feet. He tried to run, took two steps and tumbled to his knees.
"First we need to get our strength back Raikage," Tsunade said. "Then we'll go."
******Meanwhile******
The Jyubi fought to get free but was slowly losing the battle. "No," Madara said. "I will not be denied my destiny. I will not fail. I….I…!" Looking down at the two men Madara thought, How? How could they? But, looking at Sasuke's eyes…..and Naruto's body….it's almost as if I'm looking at the reincarnation of….The Sage?"
"No," Madara yelled. "I will not be denied!" Madara suddenly released all the chakra he had and began to tear free. Just then he felt as if all strength had left him and the sealing increased in power. "What! How?" Instantly Madara realized it and looked at Sasuke. The tomoe in his left eye had also gone white.
"I used Izanagi to make you believe you can be sealed," Madara said. "I have changed your reality!"
Just then the two giant statues of Hashirama and Madara tore free from the mountainside and was pulled up. The Jyubi stopped as Madara looked at the stone face of Hashirama Senju. Hashirama, Madara thought. Is this the power of the Will of Fire I have always mocked? Brother, was everything we sacrificed for nothing?
Finally the Jyubi was completely sealed in the giant floating rock and began to rise into the sky. Sasuke and Naruto guided it higher and higher until it reached the moon and combined with it. Just as it did the chakra Sasuke and Naruto were using flared as it grew unstable and finally exploded knocking both men away. Naruto crashed to the ground and tumbled to stop as everything went black.
******Meanwhile******
Tsunade along with Raikage, Shikamaru, Temari, Gaara and Kankuro were sprinting through the forest towards Naruto. "Over there," Temari yelled as she pointed to a clearing. Everyone looked and saw someone struggling to pull themselves up onto a fallen tree.
"Sakura," Tsunade yelled as they ran up. Tsunade kneeled and caught her exhausted pupil as she collapsed into her arms. "Sakura are you ok?"
"Master," she said weakly. "I'm fine. I just need to rest."
"Where is Naruto," Shikamaru asked.
"He's up there," Sakura said. "Are you all who came?"
"We were the only one's with the strength to come," Gaara said. "Madara's Tsukuyomi took a lot out of the others."
"Master," she said with a smile. "He did it master. He did it. Naruto….he woke Sasuke up. Sasuke….he's Team Seven again. Naruto….did…it." Sakura fell asleep in Tsunade arms with a contented smile.
"We should keep moving," the Raikage said. "Have the medics come pick her up."
"No," Tsunade said with a smile. "We'll stay here and wait for Naruto."
"What," the Raikage said. "Why should we do that? Naruto could need…."
"Lord Raikage," Tsunade said. "If Naruto were in danger, Sakura would not be sleeping. She knows he'll be fine. So we must have the same faith."
******Meanwhile******
Naruto felt as though he were sinking in water and no matter how much he fought and struggled he could feel himself sinking deeper and deeper into its murky depths. It was if he were being pulled by some invisible force that he could not fight against. Just as he was about to give up hope and allow himself to be consumed by the darkness he felt a hand on his back and heard his mothers' comforting voice. "Naruto," she said.
Then he heard his father call his name as he felt his hand on his back. Then he heard Kakashi, Jiraiya, Nagato. So many voices. He could feel all of their hands on his back, propping him up, stopping his decent and then, he felt himself rising higher, higher. He could see light, and then…..
Naruto woke up with a start and gasped for air. He could see the blue sky above him and he could see the reformed moon floating away from the sun. The sun shone bright under the cloudless sky and he felt as if he had awoken on a new day. He groaned as he sat up. His body ached and his head was throbbing.
Looking about he saw Sasuke, propped up against a fallen rock. He sat in a pool of blood and his eyes were closed and his face pale. "S-Sasuke," Naruto said as he struggled to his feet and staggered over. Naruto fell to his knees in front of his friend and gritted his teeth.
Just then he heard someone's foot step and a half dead voice. "And so the last Uchiha passes from this world." Naruto's eyes grew wide as he slowly got to his feet. Looking back he saw what looked like a living corpse standing a few feet away. It had only a few strands of white hair on its head. Its skin was rotted and its eyes were yellowed and it smelled like death.
"Uchiha Madara," Naruto said in disbelief.
"Don't be so….surprised Namikaze," Madara said with a sickening smile on his face. "My will to live is everlasting."
Naruto calmed himself and glared at Madara. "You separated yourself from the Jyubi before it was sealed."
"Yes," Madara said. "It was painful. But I endured it. I always endure. I always survive. And in time I will find a way to retrieve that power and once again be complete."
"I'll stop you," Naruto said.
"No," Madara said as he pulled out a kunai. It was one of Naruto's kunai. "You will die here, just as the Sage of Six Paths died. Just as your mother and father died. Just as Hashirama died. They all died. Yet I remain. I will always remain."
Madara ran at Naruto with the kunai at the ready. "I will always remain. Because…..I am….immortal!"
Naruto grabbed Madara by the wrist with his left hand, stopping the kunai as it came an inch from his face. "No," Naruto said as he created a Rasengan with his right hand. "You're just old." Naruto plunged the Rasengan into Madara's chest blowing a massive hole through his chest. Madara had a stunned look on his face as his body began to break down and turn to ash. Naruto held his wrist until it too turned to ash in his hand and was blown away by the wind.
Naruto fell to his knees in exhaustion and looked at Sasuke who remained deathly still. "It's over," Naruto said as he looked into the sky. It was finally over. But there was no parade. There was no celebration. No laughter. There was only his fatigue, and the sound of his beating heart. He looked around at a land that was once lush and green now turned desolate and perhaps forever scarred. And he could feel a cold lonely wind that sounded like the whispers of all the lives lost.
End of Chapter: Thirty Eight
Next Time: The Seventh Hokage
"All men dream; but not equally." Shikamaru said as he read from the scroll. "Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds wake in the day to find that it was vanity; but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act out their dreams with open eyes, to make it possible. I did this." Shikamaru closed the scroll with a satisfied smile and looked at Naruto. "Well," he asked. "What do you think?
"I think," Naruto said. "That I have no clue what that means. What was the point of reading to me a quote from some two hundred year old anonymous writer?"
Shikamaru's expression grew dark and foreboding as he looked at Naruto. "Naruto I know you better than most," he said. "I know what you're planning to do. You're planning to search for the truth. I can't say I blame you. But you have also heard the warnings. The moral of that quote was simple. Be careful what you wish for. You just might get it."
The Curse…is coming.