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Naruto

Chapter 18

Waiting for Madara to allow him to come into his office, Sasuke contemplated the decision he had just made. Was he right in rejecting Sakura's offer to go with her and leave Madara? Saying yes would have meant abandoning his vengance on Konoha, and he knew that he couldn't abandon that goal. Could he?

"Enter," Madara finally consented.

Sasuke cleared his head and entered Madara's office.

"You've returned so soon?" Madara asked. Sasuke could tell that behind the mask Madara was surprised to see him back at all. "Just you?" Madara asked trying to look around Sasuke for Sakura.

Sasuke nodded. "Sakura has betrayed you."

"This doesn't surprise me," Madara laughed. "She always was on Itachi's side when it came to his silly ideals."

Sasuke said nothing and left the room. The comment bothered him, though. Was Madara saying that Sasuke was the one that had chosen to go against what Itachi wanted?

Sasuke fisted his hands and rubbed his eyes while letting out a growl of frustration. He was always so confident in his decisions, so why did he feel like he had been doing everything wrong recently?

He shook his head. He needed to stop thinking like that.

If Madara thought that Sakura was the one that was loyal to Itachi, he was wrong. Sasuke was doing what Itachi would have wanted and that was final. Sakura could try and make him feel guilty about not going with her, but he didn't need her or her lies.

You would be dead without her...

Sasuke scoffed. He could take care of himself.

Kakashi groaned as he tried to get comfortable on the lumpy hotel bed. Sometimes hotel matresses were worse than sleeping on the forest floor! He punched his pillow a few more times in hopes of getting it fluffier though he knew he was fighting a losing battle. His stomach grumbled and Kakashi resisted the urge to groan again.

Ramen for seven days straight, and they hadn't gotten any information about the Akatsuki's hideout!Could it get much worse? When a spring poked out of the mattress and into his back, Kakashi decided that it could get worse.

Just when Kakashi was about to doze off after five hours of lying awake in discomfort, Naruto let out a very loud snore and fell off of his bed.

"Wha-s it?" Naruto asked drowsily. Kakashi ignored him and tried to get some sleep much needed sleep.

Tap

Just ingore it, Kakashi thought to himself. It's just some stupid kid throwing rocks at the hotel.

Tap tap tap

Or it was just some annoying kid knocking on his window.

Tap tap tap tap tap

"That's it!" Naruto shouted shooting to his feet with a kunai in his hand, and Kakashi nearly let out a shout of indignation. Naruto stalked to the window and threw it open. "Knock it off will ya- Ouch!"

Kakashi turned in time to see a black bird pecking at Naruto irritably.

Naruto grabbed the bird and tried to throw it out the window. The bird rebeled and latched onto Naruto's hand and stuck out its leg.

"Cut it out you dumb bird!" Naruto yelled brandishing his kunai at it.

"Wait, Naruto!" Kakashi intervened. He had spotted something tied to the birds claw. Naruto spotted the note as well and untied it. The bird saw its job was done and flew away.

"Good ridance!" Naruto shouted before unraveling the paper.

"What's it say Naruto?" Kakashi asked.

"'Twenty miles southwest from here and then ten miles west. The cave in between the two mountains. You'll find what you're searching for there.' What's that supposed to mean?"

Kakashi examined the note with squinted eyes before answering. "I think we may have just gotten a lead on the Akatsuki."

Naruto couldn't contain the smile that brokeout on his face.

Sasuke sighed. He had made the right decision. He knew that. He shouldn't feel guilty and he shouldn't, dare he say it, miss her.

He let out a yell of frustration. He wanted to go beat somebody up, but for some reason he couldn't bring himself to go to the town because he knew Sakura would be disappointed.

This was so messed up.

What was right and what was wrong anymore? He thought he had been right to leave Sakura behind, but everything in him was telling him that was the wrong decision

But going after Sakura would mean abandoning everything he ever thought to be right. Was abandoing his desire to wipe Konoha off the face of the earth really what Itachi would have wanted?

Deep down he knew the answer to that question.

Everything he had ever done was because of Itachi. He wanted to be a better shinobi because of Itachi, he wanted recognition, revenge, answers, vengance all because of Itachi. Now that Itachi was gone he didn't have anything to go by. Sakura was right. He had never made a decision on his own before.

It was time for that to change. He just had to suck it up and face the consequences of his decision.

"So we're just going to follow some nameless lead that we got from a bird that came from who knows where?" Naruto asked readjusting his pack on his shoulders.

"That's pretty much it," Kakashi sighed.

"But isn't that just a bit-"

"What else do we have to go by?" Kakashi asked. This was the only lead they had about the Akatsuki and - trap or no trap - Kakashi was going to take it!

Sasuke looked at the mouth of the cave he had tracked her to. He took a deep breath. There was no going back now. He had made up his mind and no one was going to change it.

He took another deep breath and entered the cave. A second after his first step into the cave Sakura was right in front of him ready to attack.

Sasuke put his hands up, "It's just me."

She looked at him curiously. A slightly surprised look crossed her face, but she still hadn't dropped her guard.

"What are you doing here?" Sakura growled.

"I came after my renegade slave," Sasuke smirked. She glared not appreciating the "joke."

"You made a joke," she said, her voice monotone, "but you also made a choice; you chose them."

"What if I changed my mind?"

"Then what's to stop you from changing it again?"

He smirked; her quick rebuttals were one of the things he liked about her. "You are."

Wait. What did he just say? What did he just think!

"You're wrong, Sasuke," Sakura smirked, "I won't stop you if you try to leave. You can't just walk back to me and expect everything to be alright and forgiven. You betrayed me! After telling me everything you told me and acting like you wanted to change, you betrayed me. Now, you've come back and expect me to accept and trust you again without so much as an apology?" Sakura took a breath before finishing. "You're dreaming if you think I am."

Sasuke watched as she stormed off and for some reason, he felt his heart drop. He should have just apologized, but couldn't bring himself to. He had gone this far and couldn't even say two easy words?

"You never were good with women..." A voice chided behind him.

Sasuke immediately stiffened. That voice...

"...Foolish little brother."

That may be the cliffiest cliffhanger I have ever done. Muahahahhahahha!

Sorry for the late update! When was the last time I updated, anyway...? I just haven't had a chance to write this and post it.

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