AH! It's been so long, guys!

Sorry bout that, school's been rather suckish lately, and I havent had any time to really work on my stories.

Important Note: I'VE DECIDED TO MAKE THIS A TWO-PARTER! I'm going to label it as completed (with a hated To Be Continued at the end, I assure those who think I'm just ending it) in two or three chapters! The reason for this is that I suddenly switched what i had originally imagined the ending to this story, and so that changes what I plan to do in terms of POV and all that jazz. I cant tell you anything now, but i think it's gonna be interesting to write!

Anyway, on to the story! ENJOY!

Thanks to all that have stuck with this story, and...as always...

PLEASE REVIEW!

Chapter 44

"Evacuate the villagers to the nearest underground base, and do it now!" Tsunade practically screamed the order, and watched as nearly fifty ANBU elite dispersed, and she watched with horrified eyes as the animal summons continued to wreck havoc on Konoha. The bridge where Dan had told Tsunade that he loved her was split in two by a large cat-like creature. The arch above the liquor store – where Tsunade had gone to cry her grief over Jiraiya's death – was already in ruins.

Everything was crashing down around her, and there was nothing she could do but stay back and help from a distance. It hurt her to do so, but in her mind she knew that it was the right thing to do.

"Doing the right thing's like stepping in front of a kunai to shield your teammate. Sure, you might die. Sure, you might be in a shit-load of pain. Sure, you might be going against ninja protocol. But when you look into that person's eyes…well…you feel pretty damn good about yourself. I'd say it's almost like sneaking a peek into Heaven, if it even exists."

Jiraiya's face smiled at her from across the table, his dark eyes unconsciously checking out the attractive waitress who was busy serving tables around them. Tsunade slapped his head, scowling at the peace that was ruined by his perverted tendencies, and he smiled cheekily before returning to his meal.

Tsunade took deep breaths as she moved her hands through the many seals needed for her jutsu, biting her thumb and sweeping it across the scroll with a hiss. In a burst of smoke, Katsuyu appeared, and in an instant separated into hundreds of small slugs.

Tsunade didn't need to explain, and that was one of the many things wonderful about Katsuyu. She was able to access the situation in seconds, and act accordingly. Tsunade let her eyes graze over the village, and Katsuyu immediately moved to attach herself to each and every civilian and jounin.

After the last slug disappeared, Tsunade let out a gust of air, sitting gingerly in the center of the elaborate seal that was surrounded by five ANBU. The woman focused her chakra, and let it separate into each slug. It was a risky technique, but it would allow her to heal any villagers who were injured.

Tsunade couldn't care about her own safety, not when her people were in danger.

Not when the village that all her deceased loved ones had sacrificed their lives for was so close to crumbling.

Sasuke ducked as the dark haired woman sent several kunai at his chest, and sent a few of his own before darting behind a fallen wall, hearing the clashing of various shinobi as they fought the numerous animal summons. His breath was labored in his chest; this woman was more skilled than he had taken her for at first. She had on the cloack of the Akatsuki...but who was she?

Sasuke wasn't sure how to feel about Konoha being attacked. Part of him was expecting it, while the other side of him held an uncharacteristic amount of panic. Sasuke knew that he was losing control of his emotions, and no matter how hard he tried, the control seemed to always evade him. It angered him, but then he remembered Hikari's grin when he teased her, and that anger abated somewhat. Maybe it wasn't so bad to show emotion, and it wasn't like he was suddenly Naruto's sidekick or anything. He still had his past, and his pride, and his strength. He still had his vengeance, but it was softer now.

Now, Sasuke couldn't imagine what it would have been like if Hikari hadn't been there as Madara attempted to tell Sasuke the rest of the truth regarding the massacre. If she hadn't been so stubborn, if she hadn't been his best friend.

What would have happened if he had left her there on the rocks that day? What would he be, if she hadn't changed his life so drastically?

Sasuke let out a deep breath as he focused, but a stray thought slipped into his mind at the last second.

What would he do if she died?

The Uchiha hissed, and with a forceful jerk he pulled his mind back to the task at hand. His chakra pulsed in his skin as the teen focused, listening hard to the sound of the woman slowly walking towards him across the rubble, and with a low intake of breath Sasuke activated his Sharingan, flipping over the wall and sending his sword through the chest of the woman.

Lightning flashed and chirped, and Sasuke yanked his blade out roughly, only to find that the woman was melting into hundreds of squares of origami paper. There was a deep sigh behind him, and Sasuke's crimson eyes read her movements easily, flicking up his sword in order to block her kunai. His Sharingan eyes clashed with her pale gray ones, and the woman didn't seem fazed at all, instead jerking away and attempting blows to his form so quickly that if Sasuke hadn't had his Sharingan activated, it would have been slightly harder to block them.

"A pity, boy."

Her voice was melancholy and sad, and Sasuke frowned, not bothering to ask what she meant as he tried to send his fist into her jaw, but she swayed gracefully out of the way.

"You shouldn't have angered him. Madara's never been one to forgive easily…and he won't stop until everything you hold dear is destroyed."

"What are you saying?" Sasuke hissed, his Sharingan gleaming dangerously as he pushed the woman against a wall, his hand clenching around her neck. She disappeared into a paper clone once more, and Sasuke turned to attack her, the two of them exchanging several minutes of blurred blows before she spoke again.

"Madara Uchiha is a dangerous man, Sasuke Uchiha. Hikari was wise in choosing not to trust him. But in doing that, she created an enemy, an enemy that will stop at nothing to see both of you burn."

At the mention of Hikari, Sasuke's anger snapped, and he suddenly slammed the woman against the ground so fast that her eyes widened in shock. He pushed chakra to his hands; the Chidori chirping as he held it inches from her stomach.

"I am his target, Hikari has nothing to do with this! If you so much as touch her, I'll–"

The woman's eyes were sad as they stared up at him, and he felt a thrill of panic trace through his system as she suddenly disappeared, and materialized above him, her movements slowed down by the Sharingan. Her kunai was at his throat as she whispered.

"It's not me you have to worry about."

Sasuke's vision flared red, and before he could slam his Chidori into her stomach, someone familiar yelled to his right, and suddenly the woman was sent flying. A large boulder had flown in from the side, and Sasuke looked up to see a familiar kunoichi staring at the Akatsuki woman with hate, her lips twisted into a scowl of concentration. Pale pink hair was in disarray, and her hands were glowing with chakra. Tensed arms were held stiffly at her sides, the muscles toned and strong, her legs spaced firmly apart to brace herself. The dust was rising around her like a cloak, and he couldn't but help admire the view he never thought he would see.

Sakura Haruno had never looked more beautiful.

Sasuke couldn't help but stare, because in that brief moment, all their past experiences were put aside. She was the woman he could have fallen in love with if their destinies had been slightly altered. Sasuke would take that realization to the grave and whatever came after that, but it didn't diminish its existence. Here, she wasn't the lovesick girl she had been when she was twelve, or the smiling and playful fifteen-year-old watching Naruto eat ramen, her nose wrinkling in disgust. This was Sakura as the kunoichi; this was his female teammate on the field of battle.

The sudden feeling faded into nothing as her emerald green eyes flickered to his face, her eyes softening in that slightly annoying way. Sasuke moved to her side, sliding his sword back into its sheath. The teen medic scanned him worriedly, her teeth worrying her lower lip.

"Sasuke-kun, are you alright?"

"They're after Hikari." Sasuke gritted his teeth, and before he could run off Sakura's hand wrapped around his wrist. He wanted to push her off, but the worry in those emerald eyes made him stop.

"Wait, what? The Akatsuki have always been after Naruto, that's–"

Sasuke snapped. "It's not the person attacking the village. It's someone else, someone…"

Onyx eyes met confused green, and Sasuke realized that Sakura didn't know anything about the Madara Uchiha situation. Three years ago, Sasuke would have bluntly explained without concern for her feelings, but now, as he stared into those desperate eyes…he found himself putting his hands together and disappearing in a blur of smoke. Sakura could handle herself just fine against the enemy kunoichi; Sasuke knew that with wonderful – and slightly unnerving – certainty.

Sasuke also knew that she could handle the knowledge of who was behind the attack, but he couldn't find it in him to place even more on her shoulders. It was so strange to say that to himself, and he knew that a year and a half ago, he wouldn't give a damn about her feelings; he'd almost savor her confusion and fear. There were many unthinkable things he would have done a year and a half ago, but now they blended into a strange haze of gray that was his past.

Because a year and a half ago, Hikari had fallen into his life, and now that she was here, everything in Sasuke's life was spinning out of control.

Madara Uchiha paced, a few miles away from Konohagakure, his face shielded by the orange swirling mask and his one visible Sharingan eye glowing with satisfaction as he saw the dust and heard – faintly – the cries of the animal summons as they wrecked havoc on the village.

It was all going according to plan.

Konoha would be destroyed, but that wasn't his only motive at this point.

Madara smiled slightly under his mask, and paused in pacing for a moment to glance up at the clear blue sky. Then, he resumed, his cloak deadly in its quietness as it whipped around his ankles.

Hikari. He knew exactly what to do with the little spit-fire once Pain captured her. He had been planning it for some time now. Sasuke would be so crushed, but that was a good thing. The boy was a fool for daring to go against him, and he needed to be shown what a grave mistake he had made.

He wouldn't kill the girl. Oh no, that would be far too simple.

Madara hated the girl, but something in him wanted to focus on Sasuke. He wanted to see Sasuke suffer in the worst possible manner; he wanted the boy to feel every single ounce of suffering that was mentally possible. Physical pain was too quick, too fixable. Mental scarring, however, remained and tore at the soul for as long as the recipient lived. Take Itachi, for example. The fool had been plagued by his remorse for his entire life, not able to forgive himself…not wanting to forgive himself. There wasn't a mark on him to show what he had done, but one only had to look into his eyes to see the pain and remorse there.

Itachi had tried so hard to keep Madara from telling Sasuke the truth. And he had succeeded, in some way or another. Something had happened between Hikari and Itachi…Madara could sense it. There was something in Hikari's expression when she spoke to him that set off an alarm.

But then again…Madara could just be reacting to the fact that Hikari looked almost identical to Minato Namikaze. Naruto's resemblance seemed washed out in comparison. Those blue-gray eyes were the precise shade that Minato's had been, and the same level of loathing was in them, the exact same. Madara knew that Minato hadn't had another child – for Minato and Kushina had died the night Madara attempted to control the power of the Nine-Tailed-Fox – and there was no way that it could be his sister, because the girl was too close in age…it wasn't physically possible.

But if that wasn't an explanation…then what else was there?

He would have to do some tests when she came into his possession…because Madara prided himself on knowing all there was no know about what was genetically possible, and in this rare instance where he didn't know the details of Hikari's particular genes…well, naturally his curiosity was piqued.

Suigetsu sent his sword flying into the leg of the nearest…whatever the hell it was. The water ninja couldn't decide whether the creature was a centipede or a giant rodent with way too many legs. And frankly, Suigetsu didn't particularly care at this point. All he needed to know was how to kill it, and fast.

But even with that in mind, Suigetsu hesitated. There was no need to hasten the process, why not enjoy it? It had been so long since he had been allowed to kill something; and the absence of it had been itching at Suigetsu's skin like a bad bug bite ever since stepping into this pathetic village. Konoha had never been a big fan of rogue water ninja such as himself, and Suigetsu returned the dislike with an even greater passion.

If so, why had he even agreed to follow the Uchiha here in the fist place?

Oh yeah, it was because of Hikari. She was his friend, and he wanted to be kept as such, even if it meant living in Konoha.

Suigetsu had taken to the girl; there was no use denying it. She was beautiful, fiery, and had spunk. What wasn't there to like? She provided almost constant entertainment, and she was easy to talk to. Unlike a certain red haired bitch who Suigetsu couldn't stand the sight of. Where was Karin, anyway? Shouldn't she be cowering in a corner somewhere, crying for the Uchiha in that whiny way that was more comparable to nails on a chalkboard than to an actual human utterance?

Suigetsu let his sword bite into the thick skin of the nearest leg, and couldn't help the whimper of delight that escaped him at the lush tearing of flesh and the satisfying jerk as his blade severed the appendage completely. Ah, that was better. The screams of the animal as blood rushed forth was like music to Suigetsu's ears.

Killing really was the best sport. Never any rules, just pure, raw skill and instinct. Survival of the fittest. The winner walks away, and the loser never walks – or breaths – again. Simple as that. There was no annoying shades of gray; only black and white. Right, and wrong. Good, and more good. Bad, and worse than bad. Worse, and much worse.

Suigetsu sighed in mock disappointment as blood splattered on his shoes, and with a lazy – but lightning fast – swing, another leg was dropping to the ground at his feet, and the creature slumped forward, put dangerously off-balance. Suigetsu ignored the screams, and continued to dart around, almost a blur, until the creature was without legs altogether. Blood coated Suigetsu's arms and neck, and with a smirk he turned to face the animal, watching as its eyes began to glaze over, watching it's slow and painful death with an expression that could be accurately described as unadulterated bliss.

Pale purple eyes met equally purple eyes, and Suigetsu grinned before flipping out a kunai and stabbing it into the large surface of the eye. The material was firm and gooey under his knife, and the creature howled weakly. Suigetsu slowly twisted the metal, watching the animal squirm and twitch as the metal tore even more at the eye.

Suigetsu wondered what it felt like, to be bound to one shape. He could melt away from the knives without fear, he couldn't be cut with any physical weapon. It was a silent and secret curiosity, the feeling of being injured by knives and other sharp objects, and a small part of him lamented the lack of solidness to his body. There really was no fun when there wasn't a chance of Suigetsu possibly being dismembered or beheaded.

Suddenly, all the delight seemed to fade, and with a bored sigh Suigetsu ended the beast's life by swinging the sword down, the head lolling off to the side and staring up at the cheery blue sky with those eerie purple eyes that held within their depths darker rings of purple.

"So lame…isn't there anything fun to kill around here?" he mused to himself, and he turned to see a tall cloaked ninja – those robes were the same red cloud pattern that was worn by that Uchiha Madara guy– holding up a slim, dark haired woman by her throat, his other hand on top of her head. She was staring up blankly, her mouth opening in a scream. Suigetsu caught sight of a blonde girl with a bandage on her shoulder and a boy with spiky black hair running towards the cloaked ninja, their yells joining the woman's scream.

Suigetsu didn't bother to step in and save the woman, for he knew that look in a man's eye. It was the look he always saw in Kisame when he was about to kill someone for information, and an expression that Suigetsu found himself adapting as time passed.

With a sharp jerk, the cloaked ninja raised his arm upwards, and Suigetsu's eyes widened as he saw a shimmery ghost-like apparition whoosh out of the woman's mind, her eyes glazing over in death as the apparition – Suigetsu assumed that it was her life force, her soul, so to speak – disappeared into the cloaked man's mouth.

Woah…creepy, much?

Suigetsu liked creepy. It always added something to the fight.

And so, with a cocky grin, Suigetsu stepped forward, snorting as he saw the spiky haired boy prepare to attack.

"Save it, kid. This guy's mine. You step in, and I'll kill you too. It doesn't make a difference to me."

Suigetsu turned back to his opponent, and felt his muscles tensing in excitement. The cloaked ninja – he had the same ringed purple eyes as the animal summon, and had various face plugs decorating his sallow skin – stared back at him, and seemed to be debating whether to stay or flee.

Well, Suigetsu wasn't about to sit back and give him time to decide.

And so, with a growl of challenge, Suigetsu leapt at the man, swinging his sword with chilling precision.

Patience was one of those words that Suigetsu knew the literal definition of, but never found the reason to put it into practice.

What was the point? If you waited too long, life would pass you by, and if it was one thing Suigetsu hated, it was being left behind.

Maybe that was why he had followed Hikari. Because he had become comfortable with the bond that had been created…because he had become almost dependent on it. Before meeting Hikari and her Uchiha, life had been filled with strange and sometimes painful experiments at the mercy of Karin, filled with killing, determination, and hatred. Well, the killing was still there, and the determination. But the hatred had been dimmed somewhat, and now a frightening new word was encroaching on his walls of security.

Friendship.

Suigetsu cringed at the sappiness of that statement, but was forced to tuck those thoughts away as the enemy ninja joined in the fight with almost blinding speed.

Chapter 44