DUN DUN DUUUUUHHHHH! The plot thickens!

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Chapter 21

It was early afternoon when I happened to glance out the window at the cherry tree. I let out a breath that one standing nearby – Sakura was showing me how to wrap my arm in case of an emergency, and she seemed confused as she heard the low whooshing sound – might think was a sigh of relief. But in truth, it was a very old and wise sound, a sigh of hopeless acceptance.

I was going to die.

Five words. Five simple, short words. One would expect that someone's realization of their lurking death sentence would be more elaborate…but in my mind those five words ruled. This was their domain.

I wanted to feel afraid, I wanted to feel sad that my breaths were numbered…but I couldn't find the will to change my expression. I couldn't find any strength powerful enough to give me the ability to change my fate…in the place of denial and horror was a strange sense of calm and curiosity. I wonder…was there a Heaven? Hell? Or did we just…leave? What lay beyond the bright energy of life? What lay beyond that dark pool of death? Would I still be Hikari when I passed through the pool…or would I be Lily once more? Would I see two girls running before me, hands joined, one of them my past life and one of them the brief life as a ninja that had altered me so profoundly?

It was so very different from on that mission months ago, so very different from back then. Back then; I had been a hesitant and scared little girl who knew nothing about death and the duty of a ninja. Death was a frightening and looming figure back then…it still was now, but now I was embracing it rather than running away.

By the time Kabuto was done with me, Death would seem like a blessing sent down from heaven, and I would latch onto its cold fingers…desperately hoping that it would drag me down into the numbing darkness with it.

Sakura would get out of here alive…I could feel it in my bones. I knew that she would manage to find the others; I knew that the village of Konoha would rejoice in seeing her safely home again.

What would be felt about me not returning? I don't know.

Kiba would find out that I was a Sound ninja, and his eyes would harden as his teeth bared angrily. I could hear his voice now.

She tried to trick me…she lied to me! I can't believe that I let her get so close…

No, no! That's not what happened at all! You idiot, can't you see that I'm doing this because I care about you?

But my voice would be silenced by then…my life would be over.

I stared out at the light filled field, and let my head lean on the windowsill. Sasuke had left the room just a few minutes ago, telling me curtly not to leave the room. I assumed that he was carrying out the murder of Orochimaru.

Sakura seemed a bit puzzled by the orders – I had been keeping her close ever since my return to the base, just in case Kabuto got any ideas – but had gone along with it silently. I tried to distract her by asking her to teach me some medical lore, and she responded with such bubbly enthusiasm that I had to smile.

But just as Sakura finished showing me how to tie the knot for a thick bandage, there was a creak as the door to Sasuke's room opened, and my stomach twisted as Kabuto slid into the room. I stood with a short growl, and glared at Kabuto as his gray eyes flickered greedily to Sakura's tense form. I stepped in front of her, and his eyes snapped to mine. I motioned for Sakura to get up, and I turned to her.

"Hana, go and wait for me in the cafeteria, alright?"

"But Hikari, what's–"

"Go!" I snapped, pushing roughly at her shoulder, and Sakura flinched at my harsh tone. It's better this way…it's better than she doesn't get more attached than she already is. It'll make forgetting me that much easier.

Her emerald eyes were glinting sadly as she ran out of the room, and Kabuto leaned back to watch her as she disappeared down the hall.

"So…you're sacrificing yourself? How touching, but so unlike you. I wasn't joking when I said that you had become like your teacher…what changed? You've been acting rather strange since returning from that Takamoto mission…no longer the bright and fiery child, I see."

I didn't speak, and let my gaze flicker down to my feet. I flinched violently when I felt Kabuto's hands on my neck, his thumbs tilting my head upwards. His gray eyes were curious as they scanned my face, and his thumbs ran themselves across my cheeks in a gesture that would've been comforting had it been anyone other than this disgusting monster of a man.

"You really are a beauty, Hikari. Such delicate features, like a flower. But it only takes a bit of that pretty mouth of yours to prove that you're no flower. You're like a fox, beautiful and quick, but also deviously clever."

I was about to shove him away when something flared in between us, and suddenly I was paralyzed where I stood, left only to blink in terror as Kabuto smirked widely.

"I think I'm going to enjoy myself before turning you into my lab rat…I can't let such a pretty rat go to waste, now can I?"

His hands were tracing everywhere, and I felt my stomach clench when his hands touched my chest, his lips at my neck. My mind went blank as his hands reached into my clothes, and everything was in a blur.

I felt faint, but not in the good way like with Kiba. But in the terrified sort of way, the way that made me want to throw up and scream at the same time. But my body was frozen, and I could only stare straight ahead as tears filled my eyes.

Please…please….save me.

But no one would save me now. Sasuke was busy fighting; Sakura was waiting, unaware, in the cafeteria. The Konoha ninja weren't here yet, they would never find me, because Sakura was their main objective.

A boom made the entire base shudder, and I felt the flare of chakra, both familiar. Sasuke and Orochimaru were fighting. The entire building was trembling softly, building up power as the seconds passed.

Kabuto smirked against the skin of my stomach, and I felt a scream welling up frantically in my throat, but it was unable to be released.

"It seems that Sasuke-kun is trying to rebel against Lord Orochimaru…how foolish of him."

I felt another flare of chakra this time, just outside the door to Sasuke's room, and it made the paralysis go away for a moment as my mouth dropped. It couldn't…it couldn't be! How could he be here?

The door smashed open, and I saw a flash of white fangs before Kabuto was torn off of me, and Kiba was there, standing in the doorway with wide eyes. I felt tears filling my eyes, and I found that I couldn't move. He was the same; he was so familiar…I was…

"Ki–"

But before I could finish that sentence, Kiba was in front of me, his hands gripping my shoulders.

"Why did you…why did you leave, Hikari?"

"I had to. If I hadn't, it would've been Sakura that Kabuto killed."

Kiba's eyes widened. "You were…sacrificing yourself? You stupid idiot! If you ever do something like that again, I'll…" Kiba let out a breath, and I started crying, sobs ripping through my throat. I was so happy that Kiba was here, and I was so happy that I had avoided Death for a little while longer.

"I'm sorry." I whispered, wrapping my arms around him and leaning up to bury my head into his neck. "I'm sorry…I was so scared, Kiba. I was so scared that he was going to…"

Kiba touched my face gently, and a small smile turned his lips upward. "I was scared too."

"I'm so sorry for not telling you earlier…I'm a Sound ninja. I wanted to tell you everything, but–"

Kiba wrapped his arms around me, and let out a shaky breath as he kissed my neck.

"Hikari, to be perfectly honest, I don't care what you are. You're just Hikari to me…and I don't care what you've done or what you think about this whole Orochimaru business. I love you, and that's all that matters."

I smiled at his words; he was so much gentler and more comforting than that creep Kabuto…

Kabuto!

I whirled away from Kiba, only to gasp as I saw the scene before me. The stone was stained deep crimson, and the background sound of dying gasps and gurgles – I had unconsciously tuned them out when seeing Kiba – was absent.

Kabuto was dead. Akamaru's muzzle was bloody, and currently had his teeth buried into the medic's neck. Akamaru's eyes were so fierce and angry that I took an automatic step backward, and the blood that dripped down his jaw didn't help the image. Kiba held me closer, and Akamaru shook his head furiously a few more times to ensure that Kabuto was dead before releasing the body and letting it crumple unceremoniously to the floor.

I let out a shaky laugh as Akamaru approached me with ears pressed against his head in hesitation, and in apology. I smiled widely, kneeling down to hug the large ninja dog around the neck, burying my face into the animal's thick ruff.

"Normally, I would be extremely grossed out by the fact that you have blood all over you…but you saved my life, Akamaru. That kind of balances out the whole urge to throw up." I muttered, and Akamaru growled pleasantly as he butted against my hip playfully.

I pulled away after a moment, and noticed that the entire base was shaking, shuddering and groaning like an awakening giant. I rushed over to Sasuke's weapon shelf, and began strapping weapons to my belt.

"Kiba, who else is with you? Are they getting Sakura?"

Kiba followed my lead and strapped a few deadly looking knives to his waist as he responded. "Me, Naruto, this Root member named Sai, and our team leader Yamato. Sai is searching the entire base, Naruto is getting Sakura, and Yamato is following Naruto as well as tracking each of us with these wood beads he can control."

"Wooden beads?"

"Nevermind, I'll explain later. We need to get out of here, because as Naruto and I were trying to sneak in here, Naruto got sighted, and the Sound ninja started to attack. We couldn't see the Uchiha anywhere, which was–"

"He's fighting Orochimaru." I whispered, and felt another large tremor go through the building. "What happened next?"

"We split up, and I heard one of the higher ranked ninja forming some seal, and he pressed his hand against the wall for a moment, and then collapsed. The entire building started to shake…and then I found you."

I felt my breath catch in my chest, and I felt panic spike through me as I quickly pressed my ear against the thin wall, closing my eyes to listen. Horror washed over me as I heard thousands of tiny little bombs going off, so small that they were almost untraceable, but they were positioned throughout the base so that if the emergency lock-down was initiated, they would all explode, destroying the foundation that supported the base and therefore resulting in the collapse of the base.

We had to get out of here.

I pulled Kiba out of the room, and Kiba didn't question me as he caught sight of my anxious face.

"We need to find Naruto and–"

"Hikari! Kiba!" Sakura's voice called from behind us, and I turned to see Naruto and Sakura running towards us, their faces alight at the sight of Kiba and I running towards them. Another man was with them, but I didn't recognize him. He was much older than anyone present, so I assumed that he was the team leader, Yamato. Naruto's eyes were relieved as he hugged me tightly, and I felt more tears welling in my eyes, but forced them down. I pulled away reluctantly, and quickly spoke.

"Guys, we need to get out of here, now! If we don't leave soon, this entire base will collapse on top of us!"

"What about Sai?"

Yamato silenced Sakura with a look, and Sakura's eyes were torn as they glanced back towards the way they had come. It was where Sasuke and Orochimaru were fighting still, but I didn't have any fear for Sasuke. That boy may be depressing as hell, emotionless, and cold…but he could take care of himself. That much I knew without question.

I pulled the group along, and the walls were slowly crumbling around us. Dead bodies of Sound ninja littered the cold stone floor, and we avoided them as we made our way onward. I yelped as a small, sharp shard of stone fell on my shoulder, slicing the top layer of skin painfully. Kiba's eyes flashed back to mine, but I smiled at him to let him know that it was nothing. Seconds seemed like hours as we ran, and it felt like centuries later that I saw the bright light shining from the main entrance.

Yamato and Sakura were out first, and the rest of us were ten feet away from the bright spring afternoon outside when there was a sickening roar above us. I saw that the roof was collapsing, and my eyes flashed to Kiba's for one…timeless moment.

I think he saw what I was planning to do before I actually did it, and his eyes screamed in fury. No, Hikari!

But I was already doing it, and I sent my foot into Kiba's chest, sending him slamming into Naruto and tumbling out of the base.

Kiba was screaming my name, and it took all of my willpower not to call back to him as I turned to rush to the other side of the crumbling ceiling, running back the way I had come. The rocks quickly rained down in front of the entrance, blocking out any chance of Kiba rushing in back to me, but his scream pierced the air just as the rocks blocked all sound from outside.

"No! HIKARI!"

I hesitated at the sound of his cry. That hesitation would be the end of me. My emotions were always the end of me…damn them. No wonder Sasuke pushed them away like they were a deadly disease.

For in that moment of hesitation, I tripped over one of the dead bodies littering the floor, and I was sent sprawling on the floor, and found myself surrounded by dead bodies. Some of them were draped over each other near my legs, and then I heard the sound of wood planks and loose rocks and mud falling down on top of me.

I screamed, and struggled to crawl away, but the wood pinned my body waist down to the floor, and the rocks and mud quickly followed. My lower body and torso were all but crushed under the pressure, and I realized with a gasp that the dead bodies piled beside me had taken some of the pressure off of me. But it still hurt, and I felt splinters digging into my skin, and my lungs nearly crushed. It was so hard to breathe…so hard to think…

I had smacked my head solidly on the stone with the force of the collapse, and my mind was fuzzy and disoriented as I stared up at the trembling ceiling. It was only a matter of time before the rest of the base collapsed…quite a different death than I had imagined not an hour ago, as I sat and waited for Kabuto to come and collect.

My vision was blurring as I stared up at the ceiling, and I closed my eyes as I felt my pulse pounding in my ears, felt the blinding pain in my chest as the mixture of wood, mud, and rock slowly crushed my body. I felt the peaceful bliss at being able to see Kiba just one last time…to see Sakura's emerald eyes sparkling in the sunlight outside.

They were all outside…they were safe. That was all that mattered…right?

I smiled as it all slipped away into nothing.

Sasuke wiped his sword on his pants as he sheathed it once more, and his dark onyx eyes stared down at the dead white snake before him, the snake that had been Orochimaru's true and final form. Blood covered the floor, and Sasuke felt the surge of energy within him, a result of absorbing Orochimaru's power.

The teen glanced up at the clear blue sky – Orochimaru had smashed through the ceiling and blown away the entire upper layer of earth – with a frown, a part of him recognizing that someone had set off the lock-down jutsu.

He automatically tensed in preparation to jump and leave the base forever, but something made him pause. Something…was not right. He should've been pleased that he managed to defeat and absorb Orochimaru…but something was off, something was so very wrong.

What was it?

"Forget it…someone like you would never understand."

"Someone like me…and what am I exactly?" Sasuke had said her name at the end of his question without thinking, it was automatic. Her name fit her so well; there was no way to deny that fact. Light. Not light in the assumed sense of battling against dark…not light in the assumed role of being good. But she was just…a light that was something that couldn't be ignored. Light wasn't afraid to light up the shadows, light had so many different intensities…sometimes soft as the gentle spring rain…and sometimes so bright and blinding that it left one scrambling for cover.

Blue-gray eyes shining brightly in the darkness of night, so fierce and strong as they accused him. So different from Sakura's gentle and caring eyes.

Hikari.

Sasuke branched out his chakra, searching for her chakra signature, the action surprisingly frantic as he moved to stand by the door of the room where Orochimaru's body lay. The hall was scattered with bodies, and his feet took him down the hall, his chakra branching out.

His chakra suddenly sensed her, and the Uchiha froze in front of a large collapse of the ceiling, and a warm glow lit up the places where light streamed in from the cracks in the upper layer of earth.

The light shined on golden hair, and it was strewn around her head in waves.

Sasuke felt true fear rush through him for the first time in two years, and he was kneeling beside her before he could fully comprehend what he was seeing.

The collapsed ceiling was crushing her chest and lower body, and one of her hands was resting on the earth that was crushing her chest, the other limply lying beside her head. Her face was oddly peaceful…as if preparing for a long sleep.

Sasuke stared down at her, and slowly leaned down to check her pulse. He found it after a second, and the relief that rushed through him was slightly unnerving, and he stood with a cold determination to his face.

Hikari was too strong to die here…she couldn't die. She was the one constant in his life, he couldn't just leave her.

The Uchiha put his hands together furiously, making several elaborate hand-signs, and the earth beneath Hikari lifted slowly, all the earth except for the earth that Hikari was lying on. The other material covering her was slowly lifted upwards, and Sasuke slowly pulled Hikari out from under the debris. Her skin was like ice, and he quickly and carefully pulled her into his arms.

Blood stained his white robe from the wounds in her chest, and those dark eyes narrowed as they scanned her form. Sasuke didn't know much about healing, but he knew enough to save her.

He needed to send a clone to the separate chamber that held the other experiments instead of going himself, he could recruit Suigetsu into his team…the team that would track down and kill Uchiha Itachi.

Hikari's hand clenching around his shirt distracted him from his dark thoughts, and he put a hand up to create a solid clone of himself. The clone teleported away, and Sasuke stared at Hikari's peaceful face, and let his eyes flicker to the slender fingers that had automatically tightened around his robe.

Sasuke let the tug of teleportation surround him, and cradled Hikari close to him as they were both pulled away from the base. Not a second after Sasuke disappeared, the entire ceiling of that hallway collapsed, and there was no one alive to care that the world was crumbling around them.