Author's Notes: Thank you for reading, reviewing, favorite-ing, and following this story! I'm so thrilled with the success this story had been having. Ahead we have an epic battle, more banter, and hopefully figure out who the heck that werido with Ryuu is.
Morning came faster than Sasuke wanted and he squinted at the morning rays a little groan escaping his throat as he sat up.
"So, it appears that like Naruto, you are not a morning person." Sai said from the table he was seated at sipping on a cup of coffee with three more sitting un-touched on the table.
The Uchiha blinked at the painter's observation and then shrugged. "I guess not." He admitted as he got to his feet and quickly noticed Sakura missing from the bed. His gaze traced the room noting her gear still intact and the blonde Uzamaki snoring loudly his arms wrapped around a pillow.
"Sakura is in the bathroom. She should be out shortly." Sai said surprising the Uchiha. Was he that obvious or was Sai just that perceptive.
"Oh ok. Thanks." He said stretching before he began to toss the blankets he'd used for his bed the night before back on the king sized bed where they belonged.
"This one is for you." Sai said pushing one of the white cups towards him. It had the Uchiha mark on the lid and he guessed that the painter had probably drawn it himself. "I'm not familiar with how you take your coffee so I just got the regular stuff and brought cream and sugar if you want any." He said motioning to the bag on the table.
Sasuke was surprised by the act of kindness as he moved forward and picked up the cup. "Thank you. To be honest I prefer my coffee black but I don't drink it often." He replied.
"Good to know." Sai said with a little smile.
Sakura came out of the bathroom then clad in her ninja wear and glanced at the cups on the table instantly grinning as she walked across the room to where the pair of pale faced ninja were congregating. "Sai! You bought coffee? I didn't see a shop in town." She said as she grabbed the cup with the Haruno crest on it and sniffed it before grinning at the painter and taking a sip wincing a little as it went down. "Red eye with a one sugar and one cream. I love you Sai."
The painter chuckled, "I just know what you like Sakura. I owe you for the sushi yesterday."
Sakura smiled and nudged Sai with her shoulder. "Don't be like that Sai. If we keep score that way we'll never break even. I haven't given you enough pain to make up for all the time you've called me ugly." She said with a wink.
Sasuke watched the exchanged and made a mental note that she liked red eye with one cream and one sugar. It occurred to him that he wasn't really sure what a red eye was and leaned towards Sai.
"I've never been much of a coffee drinker so I don't know what I red eye is." He admitted. "Would you tell me?" he asked.
Sai chuckled. "It's the sucker punch of the coffee world in my opinion. Black coffee with a shot of espresso."
Sasuke's eyes widened. "Do you have any idea how much caffeine that is?" he exclaimed as he watched Sakura put down her cup and march over to the last member of their team leaning down to get into the blonde's face intent on waking him up.
"I do. It's astounding but I guess that's how she manages to work as hard and as long as she does." Sai remarked.
Sasuke sighed as he watched Naruto received sucker punch to the face. "Doesn't she know that's not good for her body?" he muttered. "That mark of hers…"
Sai nodded. "I know that, we all do. She'd only get angry with her if we tried to stop her though."
Sasuke nodded, the mark of 100's healing required intense chakra control but also shortened the bearer's life span. That along with pushing herself to the limit with long work hours that she clearly needed a major boost of caffeine to get through made him worry for her health. The Uchiha was pulled out his thought by the sound of his name and rolled his eyes as Naruto called out to him.
"Sasuke! Save me! Sakura is going to kill me!" He exclaimed.
"Well, maybe you should double check to make sure the girl in your face is Hinata before trying to steal a kiss." Sasuke replied in a bored tone.
"Shut up! You're just jealous that I've actually kissed a girl!" he exclaimed as he dodged another one of Sakura's punches.
Sasuke sighed. "Keep telling yourself that." He said leaping across the room and catching Sakura's fist as she threw another punch at the blonde. "We're already running late. Can you beat him up later?"
Sakura blushed which made him smirk and pulled her hand from his. "Fine! Get ready to go Naruto! If you don't hurry it up, I'll tell Hinata exactly what happened." She threatened.
The Uzamaki paled a little as he grabbed his bag and scrambled for the bathroom. "Ok! I'm going!" he complained.
Sakura let out a little. "Humph!" and walked over to where her coffee was taking a long pull from the cup.
Sasuke chuckled as he looked at her. She was leaning back against the television stand one knee slightly bent and her torso curved forward as she sipped on her beverage. The way she was standing exuded attitude and he noticed with satisfaction that that part of her hadn't changed in the years they'd been apart.
"What are you smirking at?" she asked him pointedly.
"I'm just thinking that sometimes you're just like the girl from our genin days." He remarked nearly chuckling when she blushed just like he knew she would.
"What's that supposed to mean?" she snapped her chin lifting a little in a gesture clearly meant as a challenge. Deciding that teasing her would be a way to kill time before the whiskered idiot came back out, he accepted her challenge and moved forward.
"Just that you're still a hot headed, know it all, who loves to pick on Naruto." He explained.
She colored even more and straightened up putting her coffee down. She placed her hands on her hips and glared at him. "I'll have you know, that I am not a hot head I'm head strong!" she snapped. "Also, if I didn't keep Naruto in line, we'd never get anything done around here!"
"Is that so?" Sasuke chuckled. "I apologize then."
She wrinkled her nose at him. "You're teasing me aren't you? Why?"
He only smirked in response and moved until he was right in front of her. He placed his hands on either side of her trapping her between them and leaned forward noting how her breath hitched and her pulse pounded. "It's fun don't you think?" he whispered in her ear.
"Sasuke." She said her voice shaking a little. Her reaction was better than he'd hoped and he glanced over at the exposed skin of her neck and was tempted to lay his lips there just to see how she'd react.
"Was that fast enough!?" Naruto exclaimed exploding through the bathroom door.
With the magic broken, Saskue was brought back to reality by the painful sensation of a fist slamming into his stomach. He was thankful that it wasn't infused with chakra but that didn't mean it didn't hurt. He took a step back and glared at the pink haired medic who smiled back.
"Yes. Thanks Naruto. Now we can get out of here." Sakura said sweetly.
Sasuke made a mental note not to tease her as hard next time before moving over to where his things were, slipping his bag over his shoulder.
"Right." Naruto said walking forward and picking up his cup. He took a deep breath and smiled. "Hot chocolate! Right on Sai!" he said quickly downing the stuff making Sasuke cringe. Not only was it sickly sweet but to drink it that fast was gross too.
Sai smiled. "Thank you Naruto. I'm glad you like it."
Naruto clapped his hands and grinned as he turned to Sasuke. "Alright! As we planned. We'll head towards The Village Hidden in the Sand! Sasuke, keep your eyes peeled for any sign of that Ryuu kid's chakra."
Sasuke shook his head and smirked at his best friend's enthusiastic demeanor. "Of course." He replied. "I'd rather wait until we get out of town before I start searching thought. I don't want to waste any unnecessary chakra and the further we get from town, the less interference I'll have to sift through."
Naruto nodded as he slipped his back pack on. Sakura clipped her bad into place behind her back as Sai slid his sketchpad into his pack and pulled it into place on his back.
"Team seven. Move out!" Naruto said and in a flash the four ninja were gone from the room and on the roof tops moving swiftly across them until the buildings gave way to trees.
Sasuke activated his advanced eyesight and began searching for any traces of Ryuu's chakra as he leapt through the trees with his team by his side. It felt much better than he anticipated to be traveling this way in his present company. He thought back to his days of being a rouge ninja and remembered now Karin had always made it a point to be close to him no matter the situation. Sakura was different. He guessed it was more out of habit than anything else, but she kept herself in the middle but in particular, she stayed close to Naruto's side. He knew that his blonde best friend and her had been teammates for years. They'd saved each other countless times, fought side by side, and protected one another. It only made sense that she would stick close to him. He'd heard that while they'd been on the moon saving the world that she'd spent three full days pouring her chakra into the Uzamaki dragging him back from the brink of death. He admired her strength and determination more than he'd ever speak aloud. As they moved through the trees he glanced behind watching as Sakura and Naruto looked at one another talking about the village moving in perfect rhythm together, he wondered why she'd refused a place at the Uzamaki's side when she'd clearly earned it. He wondered why she hadn't just let Naruto make her happy instead of pining away for him. He was thankful she hadn't because if so she probably would've let him die like she probably should have after his last actual fight with Naruto but it still didn't make sense to him.
"Hey, Sasuke! Are you alright?" Sakura asked glancing forward.
He blinked and then nodded turning his attention forward again. "I'm fine. Just concentrating." He replied hoping she wouldn't catch onto his lie. From what he could tell they were nearing the village closest to the border of the fire and wind nations and he focused harder trying to pick up on the red eyed boy's chakra. He gasped as he sensed it clear and strong as well as another presence that felt vaguely familiar. "We're close!" he exclaimed. "I can sense Ryuu's chakra and the chakra of something similar to the tailed beast!"
Team Seven was instantly alert all traces of ease and happiness gone from their faces as they shifted into high alert.
"Where?" Naruto demanded.
Sasuke focused again "Directly ahead of us." he replied. "Less than a mile away."
"Let's move!" Naruto instructed and the four shinobi pressed onward with increased speed. As they came closer an earsplitting screech rent the air and they landed staring searching for the source of the sound.
"What did I tell you about following us?" Ryuu hissed dropping down next to the Uchiha with a kunai in hand ready to strike.
Sasuke moved and quickly grabbed the boy twisting his arm behind his back squeezing his wrist until the knife slipped from his fingers and fell to the ground below. He was about to question the boy when a blast of fire ripped through the trees making all of the shinobi jump out of the way. The pair landed lithely on the ground and Sasuke grit his teeth as he saw the creature that had blasted them sanding a few yards away. It was a horse the size of a house with a coat black as night and an electric blue tail and mane with flaming red eyes. It pawed the ground angrily and whinnied as it stared down the intruders. He could see right away that the beast's chakra was immense and it was full of rage.
"What is that thing?!" Sakura questioned from where she'd landed just a few feet behind him.
"A horse? I think." Naruto replied. "The creepiest one I've ever seen."
"Of course it is. That's Flare the demon horse of fire and lightning." Ryuu replied.
"Say what?!" Naruto replied as he leapt over to where the three were gathered with Sai right behind him. "Did you say demon horse?"
Ryuu nodded. "Yes."
The beast opened its mouth and a cracking ball of brilliant orange flames and sizzling blue lightning formed into a ball and then fired at the group with blinding speed. Sasuke mentally cursed knowing that he could save himself if he teleported but that would mean abandoning his teammates and the boy. He was about to activate the power when there was a flash of black and the gleam of metal in the sunlight. The ball of energy was split in two and crashed into the forest on either side of the group of shinobi missing them by inches and setting the nearby trees on fire.
"Is everyone alright!?" Naruto called out. "Who saved us?"
"I asked you politely not to follow us but it seems that you didn't listen. Not that I really expected you to but I have the right to dream right?" A musical voice said from beside the Uchiha. He glanced at the stranger and was surprised to see that most of their mask had been singed off and there was a large burn on their right forearm that was holding curved sword, likely the one that had been used to cut the attack.
"You're hurt!" Ryuu exclaimed wrenching out of Sasuke's grip and running to the stranger's side.
"Are you alright Ryuu?" the stranger replied lifting their free hand to touch the boy's head.
"I'm fine but-" The boy stammered.
"That's all I care about." The figure replied touching a finger to his lips. They then sighed and reached up to tug down the mask obscuring their face. Sasuke blinked in surprise when the black fabric fell away revealing clearly feminine features with full lips, high cheek bones, and slender jaw. She looked like she was a couple years younger than the members of team seven. Sixteen to their nineteen. "I said it before but you Uchiha's really do ruin everything. I left Ryuu in a perfectly safe place and had Flare all calmed down and ready to go back home when she sensed your chakra and went crazy again. Those eyes of yours really tick them off. Not that I really blame them, I wouldn't want to be around someone that could hop into my mind and control my body with their creepy eyes either."
Sasuke's eyes narrowed at the girl. The eyes of the Uchiha clan were a weapon that people had killed to have. Hearing this girl talk about them so lightly made him angry.
The girl sighed and slid her sword back into its sheath on her back. "Well, since you're here you might as well make yourselves useful." She muttered as the demon horse pawed the ground and whinnied tossing sparks as she did so.
"We have some questions for you." Sasuke snarled. "We're not just going to follow your orders."
The girl raised an eyebrow and opened her mouth to speak when she suddenly froze. In another second she leapt towards Sakura.
"What are you doing?" Sasuke demanded as Sakura crashed to the forest floor with the girl in black on top of her.
"Don't move!" the girl snapped. The Uchiha froze mid stride and his eyes widened as a bolt of lightning shot through the air going right through the spot where Sakura had been standing only moments before.
"Wow. Did you see that?" Naruto breathed.
"It's like she knew that attack was coming." Sai murmured.
"I did." The girl replied getting to her feet and extending her hand to the pink haired medic. "Sorry about that. I didn't have enough time to warn you."
"How did you know it was about to attack?" Sasuke demanded.
The girl sighed and touched her fingers to her temple clearly frustrated. "Look! I don't have time to explain everything right now. The longer she's in this place the more agitated Flare will become and I don't want her to run amok and hurt anyone."
"She's already hurt someone!" Ryuu growled.
The girl blinked and then looked down at the angry red burn on her arm. "Right. Anyway, you can question me all you want after I send her back ok?"
"Can we trust you?" Sasuke asked.
The shook her head and raised her arms gesturing to the forest going up in flames around them. "Does it look like we have time to sort out crap like that right now?!" she demanded. "I just saved your girlfriend didn't I? Look, all I'm asking is that you keep Ryuu safe for me. You four can handle that much can't you?"
Sasuke was about to argue when Naruto put a hand on his shoulder. "She's right. We don't have time for this." The blonde looked at the girl. "Can you handle this thing on your own then?"
"I can, just get Ryuu somewhere safe and stay out of my way." The girl responded.
"I'm fine on my own." Ryuu protested.
The girl looked down at the boy her lips tugging down into a frown. "Humor me." She responded her tone hard.
The boy flinched at her tone and then hung his head. "Fine. I'll go with them."
"Good boy. I'll be done in less than fifteen minutes." She said patting him on the head as the beast roared. The four shinobi leapt into the trees with Ryuu on Sasuke's back and he watched carefully with his advanced sight as the woman turned to face her four legged opponent. "I heard you! You didn't have to yell at me." The girl said as she looked the demon horse in the eye.
The horse pawed the ground and snorted flames shooting from its nostrils and charged the woman running with blinding speed. The girl leapt into the air and flipped her palm flattening against the creatures back. He noticed a small burst of chakra move from her hand to the creatures back and a seal appeared. It was irritating that he couldn't see her chakra network but he was reassured by the fact that he could see when and where she discharged it. The horse turned and whinnied again and stared down the girl again. He watched as the girl reached behind her and pulled out a wooden staff twirling it in her hands before aiming it at the beast. It charged her again and she leapt into the trees. The beast stopped in the middle of the clearing and bellowed clearly irritated that it couldn't reach it's prey.
"Come and get me Flare." The girl said softly her voice changing slightly. It sounded almost melodic to his ears as she continued. "I know you want to go back home. I have the gate. Let me take you there."
The horse paused it's leg that had been raised in agitation settling back down to the ground. The girl smirked and threw the staff into the ground where it sank a few inches into the soil and stood straight. The horse glanced at the staff and the girl leapt from her perch in the trees and five staffs similar to the first one appeared in her hands. She tossed them with blinding speed at the horse and they formed a loose circle around it. The horse whinnied and reared clearly agitated as the girl weaved signs as she fell from towards the earth. "Five point barrier!" she called out biting her pointer finger and writing a seal in blood in the air. Just as Flare was about to leave the circle, bright white light exploded and sent her flying back to the middle of the clearing.
"What an impressive barrier." Naruto said from where he was perched on the branch above Sasuke. "She did it all by herself too."
Sasuke nodded and then glanced down when Ryuu snorted. "You guys haven't seen anything yet. This is just the beginning of the end." He said his eyes focused on the woman standing outside the circle.
The girl closed her eyes for a moment and then opened them again and Sasuke gasped.
"What is it Sasuke?" Naruto demanded.
"I can finally see it." Sasuke replied. "It's incredible. Her chakra truly is on par with ours." He admitted reluctantly.
"Really?" Naruto asked focusing on the girl. "I could probably see it if I went in to sage mode but…"
"It'll be over by then." Ryuu replied quickly. "She's about to wrap things up here but be careful. Things can get tricky if the beast isn't quite ready to go back yet."
The two shinobi nodded as the girl jumped into the air weaving signs. "Fire!" she exclaimed as a brilliant orange flame leapt from her hands and engulfed the first post. She landed near it and then turned her hands moving at blinding speed as she focused on the next post. "Water." She said as she flattened her palms against the ground and what looked like a geyser sprung up engulfing the second post. Her attention turned to the third post and electricity crackled as she pointed her hands at the wodden staff. "Lighting!" she exclaimed as it discharged and surrounded the piece of wood. Flare whinnied and the girl black flipped to escape a fireball. "Almost there." She muttered "Just be patient a little longer." Her attention went back to the second to last post. "Earth." She said as she slammed her fist into the earth and a shaft of rock encased the fourth staff. "Air!" she exclaimed as she swiped her hands through the air and a whirlwind engulfed the last shaft of wood. She then lifted her eyes towards the sky and pressed her palms together as if praying and began to sing in a strange language that none of the shinobi could understand. Her chakra flared engulfing her in silver light and a hole opened up in the sky. The seal Sasuke had seen the girl place on the creature's back at the beginning of their confrontation lit up and the horse was drawn towards the hole in the sky with the stakes following her keeping her caged even as she tried to bolt. The beast glanced upward and her demeanor changed as she shifted towards the amethyst eyes woman standing below her with sweat dripping from her face, her jaw clenched, and body trembling with the effort she was expending. Flare lowered her head and whinnied once more the sound no longer one of anger but of respect before she vanished into the hole and the stakes fell to the ground. The girl released her hands and the hole disappeared along with all traces of Flare the demon horse.
"What did we just see?" Sakura breathed. "Did she really just use all five chakra natures and open a hole in the sky?"
Sasuke nodded. The amount of chakra pouring from her had been astonishing and to his surprise he'd never noticed the volume of her internal reservoir dip like it should have even though her chakra pathways were beginning to break from forcing too much chakra through them. Now like before, his sight was obscured by something he didn't know or understand. Ryuu immediately pulled from his grasp that had loosened over the course of the fight and the boy ran towards the girl as she fell to her knees panting. The four shinobi dropped to the ground and approached the pair.
"Are you alright!?" Ryuu exclaimed.
"I think so. I'm just tired." The girl murmured as the boy put his hands on her shoulders supporting her.
"Let me check! Please?" the boy begged. "I haven't see you like this in a long time."
"I haven't had to tame this many creatures back to back before." She admitted. "It's really starting to get on my nerves."
"Mine too." Ryuu replied. "Now try to hold still."
"I will but my legs feel like jelly so no promises." The girl replied.
Sasuke watched with curiosity as the boy leaned forward and pressed his lips against the girl's neck over her jugular vein.
"Sasuke! What the heck is that kid doing?" Naruto hissed in his ear his cheeks coloring a little.
"I'm not sure." Sasuke admitted. "I can tell he's using chakra though."
Ryuu closed his eyes for a few moments and then pulled away his brows knitting together with worry. "You over did it." The boy said. "You need rest and lots of it."
"You say that every time I send a beast back." The girl replied quietly.
"And I'm right every time!" Ryuu protested. "Please listen to me. I know why you don't want to stay in one place for long because of him but you can't fight back if you don't have any strength."
The girl groaned and then fell forward. Ryuu caught her just in time and cradled her head tears forming in his eyes. "Please Onchou. Seeing you like this hurts me."
She sighed and reached up to touch his face her fingers trembling with the effort. "I'll do as you say, just don't make that face ok?" she murmured as she brushed away his tears.
Sakura moved forward. "I'm a medic remember. I can help you if you cooperate that is."
Ryuu glared at the pink haired woman but the girl spoke. "I already agreed to answer all of your questions in exchange for keeping Ryuu safe for me." She said softly. "I won't resist. I'm too tired for that."
Sakura nodded and knelt beside the girl. "Can you roll onto your back?" she asked the woman.
"Dunno." The girl admitted. "The last time I felt this rotten I didn't even try."
"I'll help you." Sakura said "Ryuu, keep supporting her head." She instructed as she gently rolled the woman over.
Sasuke watched as his teammate moved her hands over the girl's body her brow furrowed in concentration as she felt with her chakra to see what was wrong. "Your chakra network is damaged but strangely you still seem to have plenty left." Her hands went to the burns. "These are pretty serious, nearly third degree. I'll get to work on them right away."
The girl nodded and breathed a sigh of relief when Sakura's hands began to glow green over the burned places on her arm.
"So, Ryuu called you Onchou. Is that your name?" Sakura asked.
The girl nodded. "It is." She replied simply.
"That's a pretty name." Sakura said with a smile.
"I'm glad to her it." The girl replied. "I think that your name is much prettier though." Onchou shuddered and her eyes grew wide. "We need to get out of here." She said her voice hushed.
"Why?" Sakura asked. "I'm not even close to being done."
"There's a group of four shinobi closing in on us." The girl explained her eyes closing. "They want the Uchiha's head."
Sakura's eyes widened even as Sasuke, Naruto, and Sai's eyes narrowed.
"How do you know?" Naruto demanded.
"We don't have time for me to explain it right now." Onchou replied. "I just know ok? I know that the four of you could easily take them down but I'm injured and Ryuu is just a child. We'd be sitting ducks and these fools aren't above using children as human shields."
"Hey! I might be a kid but I can hold my own." Ryuu protested.
"I'm not going to let you risk getting hurt over something that has nothing to do with you." Onchou retorted her eyes narrowing at the boy.
"Are you saying they're rouge?" Naruto asked.
The girl amethyst eyed girl nodded. "Yes but they weren't hired by anyone. I think they just want to increase their own reputations. Cowards, planning to attack four against one." She turned to the Uchiha. "Use those special eyes of yours. I know you'll be able to sense them."
"I already did." Sasuked replied. "She's right, there's four of them headed this way."
"Where should we go?" Sakura asked. "She can't walk."
"We'll have to carry her." Naruto said simply. He bent down to pick up the girl when Ryuu raised a hand to stop him.
"Wait one second." Ryuu said. He leaned down and pressed his lips to Onchou's forehead and she glared at him.
"Sneaky. I'll get you for this later." She muttered before she fell unconscious.
"Why did you knock her out?" The Uzamaki questioned as he pulled the girl into his arms.
"If we're attacked, she'll try to fight. In her condition that's just too dangerous for her and everyone around her." Ryuu explained.
"What do you mean by that?" Sai asked.
"We don't have time to explain everything right now." The silver haired child protested. "We need to get moving."
"He's right." Sasuke replied. "Let's get to the village and quickly."
"Naruto! You be careful with my patient." Sakura warned.
"Yeah yeah!" Naruto replied as he leapt into the trees with the girl limp in his arms. "Let's get a move on!"
The four shinobi sprinted through the trees with blinding speed focused on the village ahead. They arrived and quickly found a place to stay and laid the girl down in one of the beds.
"What should we do?" Naruto asked. "We can't exactly trust these two not to run off but we can't let those rouges come into town either. I don't really like the idea of leaving one of our own here either since we don't know what we're up against."
Sasuke thought for a moment before he spoke. "I have an idea. Leave one of your shadow clones here with those two. If anything happens here, we'll know right away and can send someone."
"Great idea Sasuke!" Naruto exclaimed.
Ryuu snorted. "I don't need a babysitter and I made sure she won't be waking up for at least an hour. If you can't take care of them in that amount of time then you're pathetic."
"We don't trust you." Sasuke replied simply "Just like you don't trust us. Your friend there promise to cooperate with us but she could've been lying. So it's either a Naruto clone or one of mine. I can tell you right away which one is going to be more fun to have around." The Uchiha said his eyes narrowing.
The boy snorted and crossed his arms over his chest. "Fine! Whatever! Leave one of the blondes here and get out!"
"Smart boy." Sasuke smirked as Naruto made a duplicate of himself and gave it the instructions to look after the boy and his companion until they returned.
The four shinobi then headed out of town moving swiftly through the trees. Sasuke noticed a flash of something metallic out of the side of his eye and drew his katana knocking the kunai out of the air and clattering to the ground. His three companions noticed at once and they dropped to the ground forming a circle.
"You're pretty good." A man dressed in black said dropping down in front of them. "I didn't really expect any less from the last survivor of the Uchiha clan though. Your head will be the crowning jewel of my collection."
Sasuke smirked as the man's three companions dropped from the trees to stand beside him. "You know who I am and you're still dumb enough to challenge me?" he asked his eyes changing to one of blood red and the other vivid purple.
"What do you see?" Naruto asked.
"They're lower-level." Sasuke replied. "We've handled much worse in the past."
The Uzamaki nodded as did the rest of the team.
"I'll give you one chance to turn around and go back to wherever you came from otherwise, we'll beat you down just like any other piece of trash that threatens one of our teammates." Naruto proclaimed shifting into a fighting stance.
The man chuckled. "You're Naruto right? The war hero? I didn't see any of that myself because all of the smart people were out of town during all of that but you can't be all that scary. I've heard the stories, you're just a reckless little brat with a lot of luck. Luck won't be enough to save you from us."
Sakura shook her head. "So that rumor still exists huh? Poor Naruto."
"I'm not a brat anymore! Right guys?" Naruto protested.
"Yeah… Of course not." Sakura responded slowly.
"Sakura." Naruto whined. "Give me a break here."
"I don't think you're a brat." Sai offered with a smile.
"Well that makes one of us." Sasuke replied.
"Don't ignore us to talk amongst yourselves!" the rouge ninja snapped.
"Oh, you're still here?" Sakura replied glancing at the ninja who glared at her. She sighed and reached into her shirt pulling out the leather gloves she kept there. "I guess that means they didn't take your 'get out of a pounding free card'." She said as she slipped them into place on her hands and wiggled her fingers.
"So troublesome." Sasuke said as he drew his katana. "Let's wrap this up and get back. I have a lot of questions to ask that brat."
Naruto nodded and tightened the leaf headband on his forehead. "I'm with you there." The blonde turned to the palest member of the team. "Sai, there's no reason for you to go all out on them."
Sai sighed. "I'm no good at that and you know it but I'll try." He responded as he pulled a scroll from his hip and grabbed a paint brush.
The man in front of them was clearly irritated his eyebrow twitching as he looked at the four leaf ninja. "You four brats! Who do you think you are!?" he exclaimed rushing at them with his companions right behind them.
Sasuke easily dodged his attack and slammed his fist into the man's stomach releasing a little electric charge as he did so sending the man flying backwards slamming in to the trunk of a tree.
The second on of the group went after Naruto and the Uzamaki jumped to avoid the attack and kicked the man in the chest sending him crashing into the ground.
The third one attacked Sai who slammed a knife hand into his stomach knocking the wind out of him and then slammed his elbow down onto the back of his head making the man eat dirt.
The fourth one came running at Sakura and she smirked. "Let me guess, you figured that since I'm a girl I'm easy pickings."
"You got it girly." The man replied. "I feel bad about harming that beautiful body of yours but if you're going to stand between us and the Uchiha I have no choice."
Sakura dodged the kunai thrown at her and landed in a tree above her opponent. "Seems like the feeling's mutual." She replied balling her hand into a fist. "I can't forgive anyone who wants to kill Sasuke!" she exclaimed leaping down and slamming her fist into the ground barely missing her opponent. It cracked beneath her and the man yelped as the shockwave tossed him into the air.
"Geeze! It sounds like you're in love with that homicidal maniac." He stammered.
Sakura turned her emerald eyes blazing and slammed her fist into the man's face sending him flying across the forest. He cowered as she came closer and she drug him up to her face. "Damn right I am you piece of garbage. Which is why you were stupid to pick me as your opponent." And with that she slammed her fist into his stomach and released him letting him fall limply to the forest floor unconscious. She brushed her gloves off and turned to see each of her teammates finishing off their opponents.
"Geeze, these guys were a total waste of time." She muttered as she walked up to Sai who had just knocked out his opponent with a swift kick to the neck.
The painter nodded. "To think they honestly believed they were a match for us."
Naruto choked out his own opponent and stretched. "That wasn't nearly as exciting as I hoped it would be." He agreed.
Sasuke snorted and released the man in front of him from his genjutsu letting him crumple to the floor.
"What are you?" he stammered. "A demon?"
Naruto walked up and hooked his arm around the Uchiha's shoulder grinning widely as Sakura came to his opposite side and hooked her arm through his. Sai stood beside her and rested his arm on her shoulder.
"This guy? A demon?" Naruto laughed. "No way. He's just part of the legendary team seven that ended the Fourth Great Ninja War."
"Exactly." Sakura agreed. "You're the stupid one for picking a fight with us. Run along back to wherever you came from now."
Sai nodded. "You'll have to carry your other friends home though. Sorry, we're not good at holding back."
The man trembled and then slumped unconscious to the ground.
"Oops. Do you think we scared him to death?" Sai asked.
"No. He just passed out." Sakura said confidently. "Let's get back to Ryuu and Onchou. I really want to get that burn taken care of. They're the injury most susceptible to infection you know."
Sasuke nodded and the group headed off in the direction of the village leaving the four men unconscious behind them. They arrived back at the inn to find Ryuu pulling the scarf from Onchou's head. A waterfall of violet colored hair tumbled free and he picked up a comb from the bedside table and began to work in through the thick tresses.
"So that's what color her hair is." Sakura said as she walked inside the room. "I was wondering about that."
Ryuu jumped and nearly dropped the comb as the Naruto clone walked up and gave the original a high five. "Everything was fine here." He said with a grin. "That kid is pretty good at rock paper scissors."
"Good. I should've stayed here and let you fight those rouge ninja. It was probably more fun being here." He muttered.
The copy chuckled before lifting his hands and releasing the jutsu vanishing in a puff of smoke.
"So, now that that's take care of, we have some questions to ask you." Sasuke said pulling up a chair and sitting in it facing the child.
Ryuu sighed as he put the comb down and moved to sit on the opposite bed as Sakura moved forward to work on the burns on Onchou's arm.
"Fine. Ask what you want but there's some things that only Onchou can answer and she'll probably be out of it for a while longer." He replied looking at his companion.
"Fair enough." Naruto said sitting beside the kid.
"What is your final destination?" Saskue asked pointedly.
"We're going to The Village Hidden in the sand to try to find information on Onchou's father. We don't have any other plans outside of that." Ryuu said plainly.
"So was her father a shinobi from that village?" Naruto asked.
The boy shrugged. "She seems to think so. That's what her mother told her anyway."
"So she doesn't know for sure?" Saskue mused.
Ryuu shook her head. "No. She says she's never met him."
"I see." Naruto said touching his chin. "What about the rest of her family? Her mother, grandparents, siblings. Where are they?"
"Dead." Ryuu said simply.
"All of them? Really?" Sakura asked her mouth agape.
The child nodded. "Yes."
"So what are you to her if her family is dead?" Saskue asked pointedly.
Sakura glared at him but he merely shook it off. The questions needed to be asked even if they were harsh.
"I don't know what I am to her." Ryuu admitted. He glanced over at the girl sleeping and his expression warmed a smile touching his lips. "To me though, she's everything. She saved me and we've been together ever since."
"Saved you? From what?" Naruto asked.
The boy sighed. "I might as well tell you from the beginning, of my life anyway." He said. "I don't know who my parents were or if I even had any. My first memories are of looking at a blonde man wearing a white coat through a wall of glass and beside him was a girl with purple eyes and hair looking at me with sadness in her eyes."
Sasuke's brow furrowed. "You sound like some of the test subjects Orochimaru had."
"Orochimaru?" Ryuu repeated his brow lifting. "You know him."
Sasuke nodded. "I was his pupil at one point."
"So you were a lab rat too." Ryuu replied though his tone was one of sympathy not offence.
Sasuke took a deep breath. "I guess you could say that. Anyway, were you one of Orochimaru's subjects? He was very obsessed with the eyes of my clan so it's possible that the color of your eyes was part of a failed attempt to recreate the sharingan."
"No, I was not one of Orochimaru's test subject." Ryuu replied. "I was the test subject of a man named Takuma. He was once a shinobi from a village in The Land of Wind but that's all I really know about him."
"How do you know about Oroichimaru then?" Saskue pressed.
"Because he and Takuma were similar in their desire to create a perfect body that was immortal and retained everlasting youth." Ryuu explained. "They met up every once in a while and since I was one of Takuma's favorite subjects he took me and showed me to Orochimaru once."
"I see." Sasuke said his eyes lowering. It didn't surprise him that there were other men like Orochimaru out there in the world but it made him nervous knowing they met up. "So Onchou was with you during the time you were with Takuma?"
Ryuu nodded. "Yes. She'd been there for two years before I… came along I guess is how you would put it." He said scratching his head.
"So are you human?" Naruto asked.
"Naruto!" Sakura hissed elbowing the boy in the ribs.
"Ouch! Common Sakura! It's an honest question." He hissed.
The boy glanced down at his hands. "I think so, at least mostly anyway. I have some abilities that most wouldn't consider normal though. Orochimaru is considered human right? I think the things he does are way more inhuman than what I can do." He clenched his hands into fists. "And I'm not like the Dolls."
"Dolls? Do you mean puppets?" Sakura asked.
He shook his head. "No. Puppets are controlled by chakra strings and are created from wood and other materials. Dolls are different." He said his brow furrowing slightly. "It's a little difficult to explain. I guess you could call them soul-less humans."
"Isn't one of the defining characteristics of being human having a soul?" Sakura asked.
Ryuu shrugged. "I told you it wasn't an easy concept to explain. They look human and do all the things a normal human would but they don't have any emotions."
"How can you be sure?" Sasuke asked.
"Onchou can tell." Ryuu replied. "Don't ask me to explain because that's her thing not mine." He replied his brow knitting. "Anyway, as I was saying. Onchou and I were Takuma's favorite… possessions I guess is the best word for it, so we ended up spending a lot of time together with him. She was… so kind to me. Takuma looked at me like the lab rat that I was. I was his favorite of course, but I was still a rat. She was different, she held me, talked with me and sought me out even when were weren't required to be together." He smiled at the memory. "She made me feel human. After about three years though, Takuma started to look at her differently, like he was angry with her. I didn't really understand why until I found her with Akira."
"Akira?" Sakura asked.
Ryuu nodded. "Yes. He was like Onchou. He was born to a normal family like she was and then kidnapped too. He was a little older than her and they became very close. It was different from what she and I have. To me, Onchou is like a sister… no more like a mother. Akira was something different to her. She always wanted to please him and be there for him. Nothing made her smile wider than when he praised her or complimented her."
Sakura's eyes softened. "She loved him didn't she?"
Ryuu nodded. "I think so. She never came out and said it but I could tell. Anyway, Takuma seemed angry about it and started keeping them apart more and more. I also noticed that he was rougher with her when performing his experiments on her. I hated when she went into the lab because then the screams would start and they wouldn't stop for hours on end." He shuddered at the thought.
Sasuke looked down. This man sounded crueler than Orochimaru and more twisted.
"One day, Akira came back sooner than expected from his mission and came looking for Onchou. He heard her screams and rushed into the lab. I followed him and…." He cringed placing his hands on his head. "Onchou was on the table screaming. One of my abilities is that I can sense the body's condition through touch. I slipped forward and felt her wrist and I could tell that he was trying to force her chakra network to its limit and break it open so he could force his own chakra into her body."
"Why would he want to do that?" Sakura asked. "I put my chakra into other people's body when I heal them and Naruto has done it to help others."
Ryuu nodded. "That's different because you're not causing any harm. You're trying to heal or strengthen them. Your chakra is pure and untainted by evil. Takuma's reeks of evil. I'm not sure but I'm fairly certain he was trying to make her into one of his Dolls."
"Well that's creepy." Naruto murmured. "Why couldn't he do that?" he asked.
"Well, Akira interrupted him so that was part of it but it's mostly because of this." He said walking over to Onchou and tapping a spot in the center of her chest. "There's a seal here. It's been there for as long as she can remember. My guess is that he couldn't get past this."
Sasuke's eyes narrowed. "It makes sense to me. That's the same thing that distorts my vision."
Ryuu tilted his head to the side. "Really? That's interesting. Anyway, Takuma was really angry with Akira after that and locked him away for a while. Onchou and I snuck down to visit him whenever Takuma was away and he suggested that we try to run away."
"Did you make it? Is that how you got to this point?" Sakura asked.
Ryuu shook his head sadly. "No. The day before we'd planned to run Akira was found dead in his cell."
Sakura's eyes widened. "How horrible! Who killed him?"
The boy wiped a tear from his eye. "We don't know. Onchou thinks it was one of Takuma's loyal rats, the ones that came to him willingly." He glanced at his companion. "After Akira died, she was like a completely different person. The light went out of her eyes and she became almost like the Dolls. She ate, trained and slept and that was all. I could snap her out of it sometimes and she'd smile and laugh like she used to but it was never for very long."
"So how did you get to this point?" Sakura asked.
"I'm getting to that. About a year and a half ago just before the fourth ninja war was about to start, I noticed that Onchou started to act more like herself. She had more fire in her eyes and laughed like she had before. I asked her why and she said that she sensed that the world was about to change and that she'd heard a beautiful song pass by that reminded her of Akira."
"A song?" Sakura asked confused.
Ryuu sighed. "Yeah… I'll have her explain that one to you because it's not my thing but the bottom line is that it gave her hope. Then The Fourth Great Ninja War broke out. Takuma wanted to observe the war and took Onchou and I out of the hideout to watch with him. Onchou seemed really on edge the entire time and I could tell she wanted to tame the ten tails. I asked her why she couldn't and she replied that there were too many Uchiha's nearby and that it had been under their control for too long for her to force it back. Anyway, during the fighting something flew from the battlefield and struck Takuma in the chest knocking him out." The boy furrowed his brow. "It was like a blue ball of air and light. I'd never seen anything like it."
Sakura glanced at Naruto. "That sounds like a rasingan to me."
Naruto shrugged and scratched his face. "Hey! It was a battlefield ok? Some shots are bound to miss their mark."
Ryuu raised an eyebrow before continuing. "That was the day we ran away." He said. "We just took off and didn't stop until we collapsed. She swore to me that she would protect me and I promised to do the same for her. We've been on the run ever since."
"So, what does this have to do with you going to The Village Hidden in the Sand?" Sasuke asked.
"That's just the place that Onchou said her father is supposed to be from. Her mother and grandparents are dead and the village where she was born and raised was completely destroyed many years ago. I was born in a laboratory so we really don't have any other place to go." He explained. "We're just trying to figure things out and I think that her seal has been bothering her. Maybe she's hoping if her father is alive that he'll be able to help her. That's her stuff though, you'll have to ask her." He said holding up a hand as Sasuke was about to speak. "To be honest, I don't really know much of anything. I'm following her because I trust her more than any other person in this world. I don't know the details nor do I need to know them." He yawned and stretched. "I'm really tired. Would you guys mind if I took a nap?" he asked.
"No not at all." Sakura said with a warm smile.
"Thanks." He said moving to crawl into bed next to the violet haired girl and curled up against her side.
"So what do you think of his story?" Sasuke asked after the boy had fallen asleep.
"I don't know." Sakura replied. "I mean it's all possible given what we've seen from Orochimaru, Donzo, and all the other creeps that experimented with humans. His story was just choppy."
"Well it makes sense. He's only a kid after all." Naruto said laying a blanket over the boy. "If we want better answers, we'll have to get them from her." He said motioning to the unconscious girl. "She clearly seems to be the one running the show."
Sai nodded. "I agree. The boy seems to just be a follower in this situation."
Sakura turned to Sasuke. "Do you know anything about this Takuma guy?" she asked.
Sasuke thought for a moment and wracked his brain as he returned to that time in his life. The memory of a man with blonde hair accompanied by a toddler with silver hair and red eyes carried in the arms of a girl with sad purple eyes and violet haired flooded his memory. It was near the end of his stay with the pale ninja during the time where he rarely stayed in the hideout. He'd only come back for medicine that Kabuto had prepared to him.
"Is that your new vessel?" he heard the man ask Orochimaru as he walked past.
The snake sannin nodded. "Indeed. He's the youngest Uchiha left."
"What a fine catch." The man replied with a smirk. "You even managed to get him to come to you willingly."
"Well anyone can be persuaded if given the right motivation. Particularly children." Orochimaru replied.
The blonde chuckled. "True enough."
"Who are these two?" the snake Sannin asked the man. "I thought you were following the same route I am?"
"My new vessel is in the middle of training right now." He explained "Besides, these two are much more exciting."
Saskue found himself leaning against the wall curious about the two children and the blonde man. If he was a friend of Orochimaru and he wanted to know if he'd be the type to avenge his death. After all, he was planning to kill the snake sooner or later.
"Are they now? Do enlighten me." Orochimaru said with a sly smile.
"This boy was created combining the DNA of a human and a dragon." He explained.
Sasuke cocked a brow at that and the Sannin's eyes widened. "How did you manage that?" he asked.
"I summoned one. It was hell and nearly took all my chakra but I did it and managed to get some of its blood. It was awful, but worth it given how well he turned out." He said touching the toddler on the head. "He's too young to transform but once he gets a little older, he'll be a force to be reckoned with."
The Sannin nodded. "Indeed. You'll have to share your notes with me." He looked at the girl next. "And what about this child?"
The man grinned. "Oh, this girl is a rare find. That last of her kind as far as I can tell. Rarer than your Uchiha I dare say."
"Oh really? Who is she then?" Sannin asked. "Being the last of something doesn't always make it more valuable." He said skeptically as he looked the girl over.
"True enough." The man replied. "However, this one's different." He moved obstructing the Uchiha's view of the girl and he heard Orochimaru's small gasp of surprise.
"Where on earth did you find her?" The sannin exclaimed. "I've combed the world looking for any survivors of that clan. I thought that they had been annihilated for sure. Are you positive this girl is really…"
The man moved away from the girl who Sasuke could tell was now uncomfortable and chuckled. "You want a demonstration don't you? Well we'll see. How do you think I survived that encounter with the dragon?"
"You've had her for a while now haven't you? How rude of you not to share." Orichimaru pouted. Then his eyes lit up his gaze flickering to his pupil. "Hmm… I wonder…"
The man snickered and glanced back at the Uchiha leaning against the wall. "Me too. The notion is quite temping isn't it?"
Sasuke mentally cringed, he knew what that look meant. Oroichimaru was probably concocting some experiment to perform on him and at the moment he wasn't interested. He promptly strode away without saying a word curious about the mystery man and his 'children' though he quickly pushed it aside as he exited the hideout and walked out into the sun. He glanced up at it and was reminded of a mess of blonde spikes and a wide toothy grin. Irritated, he looked away only to see cherry blossoms drift through the air and land at his feet. The color reminded him of a little girl he once knew. The last time he'd seen her, she'd been close in age to the child he'd just seen. He briefly wondered about how she looked now. If she'd grown her blush colored locks out again or if she'd kept it short. He cursed at the thought and leapt into the air. Those days were over, he didn't have time to waste thinking about the people he'd left behind now.
He was pulled out of his memory by the sound of Naruto's voice. "Well Sasuke?" he urged.
Sasuke nodded. "I'm pretty sure I saw him once." He replied. "In fact, I'm also fairly certain that those two were with him at the time."
"Are you serious?" Sakura gasped. "Why didn't you recognize them?"
He shrugged. "It was only one meeting and it wasn't very long. Ryuu was only a toddler and Onchou was young too. People change a lot in four years especially the younger ones."
"True enough." Sai agreed. "So did you remember anything else important?"
"Onchou is the only survivor of her clan if I remember correctly." He replied. "And Ryuu has DNA from a dragon mixed in with his own."
Sakura blinked in surprise. "Well that's exciting." She muttered.
"You don't seem terribly taken back." Sasuke replied.
"Well, Naruto has a giant fox inside him, you can conjure up a man the size of a small mountain, and I've seen Orochimaru throw up a snake who threw up another Orochimaru so…. Yeah a little dragon DNA is nothing." She admitted.
Sasuke smiled at her. "You've really grown up haven't you?"
She rolled her eyes. "You say that like you're surprised."
"I am but in a good way." He assured her. He watched as she looked over at Onchou her eyes soft and sad. Seeing her like that was something he didn't like at all.
"Do you want to come with me to find something to eat Sakura?" he asked suddenly.
She rasied an eyebrow. "What? Why?" she asked.
"Well, I figured that Naruto and Sai could stay here with those two while we went and got dinner for everyone. Even after she wakes up she won't be able to go anywhere. We might as well get something now." He replied trying desperately to keep his motives hidden. He just wanted that expression off her face or at least to find out why it was there and pray that it wasn't because of him.
"Alright, that sounds fair enough." She replied. "Let's go."
They made their way to the street in silence and he sighed. "So, what's on your mind?" he asked suddenly stopping to wait for her to catch up. He was so used to being alone that it was sometimes hard to him to match his pace with someone else, especially when that someone else had much shorter legs than he did.
"I was about to ask you the same thing." She replied wincing as a rowdy bunch of children ran past knocking her off balance.
"Careful." Sasuke said reaching out to steady her with his arm. "Here, walk beside me." He said slipping his hand in hers and pulling her towards him until they were side by side. He didn't miss the blush that came to her cheeks and decided that he wanted it to stay. It was much better than the sad expression she'd been wearing before. He kept his hold on her hand and continued down the street. "I was just wondering why you looked so depressed when you were looking at Onchou." He said deciding to answer her question.
"Oh that." She replied her blush still in place on her cheeks. "I haven't heard her entire story but it reminds me a lot of yours. Being used by an evil man, losing her family at a young age, living life on the run. Then hearing how the person she loved was murdered like that, I guess it just makes me feel sorry for her." She sighed. "I could just imagine what she felt like. I was afraid of something like that happening to you. That one day I'd wake up and find out that you'd been killed. She actually experienced that. It's quite depressing."
Sasuke nodded. "It's true. Our stories seem to be similar. It's unfortunate. No one should have to go through what I did."
Sakura nodded and then bumped into him as another child ran past nearly knocking her over. She clutched his sleeve and blushed a pretty shade of pink. "I'm sorry Sasuke." She murmured. "These kids are crazy."
"Don't be." He replied. "I don't mind."
He noticed the small smile on her lips and smiled himself as they approached the eating district of the village. The place where most of the locals seemed to be gathered around was the ramen shop and the pair of seasoned travelers knew that the places locals liked were generally the best.
Sakura sighed. "Should we throw Naruto a bone or keep looking for something else?" she asked the Uchiha.
Sasuke chuckled. "He was pretty helpful today."
"True." She replied. "Ramen it is."
They took their places in line and Sasuke glanced around noting the curious looks they were getting. A group of girls approached and he braced for impact when they began whispering amongst themselves.
"Do you see that? He's holding hands with that pink haired girl." One of them whispered.
"Yeah. She's pretty cute too." Another replied.
"They look really good together." The third girl acknowledged. "We should leave them alone. They're probably on a date or something."
"Hmm… a date with Sasuke Uchiha. What a lucky girl." The first one mused before brushing past with her friends in tow.
Sasuke smiled a little and then stiffened his grip on Sakura tightening as a group of local men started talking.
"You see that pink haired chick?" the first one said. "She's a cutie."
"Yeah she is but she's taken." The second one replied with a sigh.
"Huh? By who?" asked the third one craning his neck to get a better view.
"The dark haired guy next to her." The second man replied. "He's holding her hand, can't you see it? He looks like a shinobi too and those guys mean business."
The first and third man sighed. "Yeah you're right." The first one replied.
"Lucky guy." The third one muttered.
"We should do this more often." Sasuke muttered under his breath.
"Do what?" Sakura asked looking up at him.
"Ummm…. Spend time together like this." He replied quickly. It wasn't really a lie but he didn't want her to know he was talking about holding hands to keep the annoying members of the opposite sex away. She'd probably take it the wrong way, and to be honest he really was enjoying the sensation of her hand in his. If felt just right, a little smaller and a little warmer than his own hand. They approached the counter and ordered enough for their entire team plus the newcomers to go. Shortly after they were handed bags of food to carry.
"Umm… Sasuke, you're going to have to let go of my hand." Sakura said apologetically as she looked at the four bags that needed to be hauled.
He reluctantly let go of her hand picked up the two heaviest bags. "Why did you order so much?" he asked as they walked.
"You know Naruto is with ramen." She replied with a smile.
"I know. It's so nasty." He replied shuddering at the memory of the Uzamaki stuffing his face with food.
Sakura laughed. "Yeah, it's pretty crazy. I guess I'm just used to it though." She replied. "Anyway, your fangirls didn't bother us at all. I'm surprised."
Sasuke snickered. "Your fan club didn't either."
She blushed and then moved closer to him blushing a little a smile playing at her lips.
"What are you smiling about?" he asked curious.
"Oh nothing. I'm just happy." She replied. "I was afraid I'd never be able to walk by your side again but here I am." She said with a smile.
He blinked and then smiled at her. Just like always, it was the little things that made her smile and made her happy. "I'm glad that you're happy." He replied softly. She glanced over at him and he felt a little blush tinge his own cheeks. "What? Did I say something wrong?" he asked worriedly.
"Not at all. It's just the opposite." Sakura replied. "Thank you Sasuke, for everything." She said before bounding into the inn.
He smiled at her bubbliness considering his little personal mission a success and then followed her inside.
P.S. Holy long chapter Batman! . I was not expecting this chapter to be this long or information packed but it was. I'm try to pick up the pace of the story a little so we can get back to the fluff. My bad! I hope you enjoy it though! I doubt the next one will be as long but we'll see. Thanks for all your support!