"Sasuke! Where the hell are you going?!" Sasuke heard Naruto yell as he flung himself through the trees quicker than he ever thought possible. His heart had begun to pound viciously in his chest, sending poison soaked blood throughout his veins, burning his entire body to the core. His throat had become dry enough for him to choke on air, but that seemed like an easier death than what he had anticipated for his teammate.

He didn't want to admit it, he didn't want to even consider the fact that this emotion could even exist inside of his body. But like the violent red of his sharingan blazing forward ahead into the path he was being pulled in, the truth had become excruciatingly evident.

He was scared, but most of all, he was livid.

As soon as he felt Sakura's chakra leave his body so suddenly, a cold rush of anxiety shot through his body, his limbs shaking with adrenaline filled fury. He couldn't explain it, but something told him that she was in immediate danger, danger that had been added to her forced disappearance.

And he suddenly found himself being pulled from the spot he stood on and into a direction that sent magnetic chills down his spine, his body screaming at him to move in that direction..and fast.

Because somehow he knew that Sakura had tried to reach out to him, and that she was in that direction. The only questions were how was she able to contact Sasuke in such a manner, and where was she?

"Sasuke! What's going on?!" Naruto tried once more.

"Just shut up!" Sasuke replied harshly. "Don't fall behind!"

"But where are we going?! This is completely straying off our original path!" Naruto protested, finally catching up to Sasuke, matching his stride.

"Just trust me, baka! I know what I'm doing!" Sasuke said, scanning the forest ahead with his red eyes. "We're going to find her."

"Sakura-chan? You know where she is?!" Naruto exclaimed, his eyes widening.

No, not exactly. Sasuke thought stubbornly to himself, but he knew that he had to be on the right track. Something was drawing him to an unknown destination ahead of him, and he knew that he had to get there quickly.

"..Just focus on the road ahead." Sasuke said.

"But how do you know where you're going?" Naruto asked stubbornly, his eyes scanning the forest just as Sasuke had instructed him to do.

"I'll explain later." Sasuke said, gripping a kunai in his right hand. "Just be ready."

The dampened oxygen of the forest swelled up into Fuu's lungs as she hurriedly dashed through the trees like an animal, the dew drops on the leaves splashing onto her skin. With every leap, she felt her heart pound quicker than it ever had before, egging her on to get as far away from that horrid cave as possible, and to make contact with Sakura's teammates.

Fuu's eyes began to close as they blurred with fresh tears, her bottom lip quivering as she thought of her new pink haired friend who had begged her to leave her behind in the cave in exchange for her freedom. Fuu remembered looking down at Sakura crumpled on the dirt floor writhing in pain, her eyes pleading with Fuu to get the hell out of there and find her teammates, proclaiming that they would help her.

Fuu opened her eyes, but the image of Sakura refused to banish from her sight as she hopped off of another branch and flung herself forward.

All that could come into her mind was why.

Why was Sakura so determined to protect and help her, a stranger who just happened to be a jinchūriki that nobody had cared for in the past? But then, Sakura did say that one of her teammates was also a jinchūriki, and Fuu had to admit that she was curious to meet him. But, that was not her top priority at the moment.

Fuu clenched her fists as the images of Koichi and Hanako flooded through her mind, seeing their bright and smiling faces melt into the fake and sadistic ones that Joryoku had falsely created.

And that was another thing. Fuu watched as Joryoku jabbed Sakura's forehead, watching as he performed the wretched jutsu that he would use against her to control and destroy her mind. For all she knew, he could be torturing Sakura at this very moment, filling her mind with images that would haunt her subconscious for the rest of her days. Of course, there was a way that Fuu could check in on Sakura, but she had decided against it, thinking to leave their unspoken connection muted for the moment though it absolutely killed her.

Please be okay.. Fuu thought, clenching her fists tightly.

At that moment, Fuu felt a calming sensation ripple throughout her entire body, a cooling rush of chakra flowing all through her body. She felt the forest melt around her into a dim and cool chamber that gusted with an invisible breeze. Fuu gave herself up to the sensation immediately, and found herself standing in front of the giant armored dragonfly-like bijuu that she carried inside of her.

"So, you've made your decision?" Chomei asked her.

Fuu nodded. "Yes, I have."

Chomei nodded at her. "I'll follow you, as I've learned to trust your discretion. But I have to ask you, why risk your life and go back to what you have suffered all this time…just to save a stranger?"

Fuu looked down at her feet, watching as invisible waves rippled out from her feet. "I don't know, it's just something that I have to do."

"And you find yourself compliant with the potential consequences?" Chomei asked her.

"Yes." Fuu looked up. "I can't just leave Sakura behind like that. You saw it yourself, she's different, and I see nothing but warmth inside of her."

Chomei said nothing, and Fuu began to fade away from the damp room and back into the trees of the forest.

"She's my friend, and I will not let her die."

"Then do as you will." she heard Chomei say before she felt a sharp indication of another chakra signature close by, a signature that was eerily similar to her own, and yet it possessed a deeper flare to it that set it apart from all the rest. She reached out to it in her mind, trying to grasp its location when Fuu's eyes suddenly snapped open, and she turned her head to her right.

"That way!" she exclaimed to herself.

Sasuke's eyes hadn't stopped their scan of the never ending forest ever since he first took off in that direction, keeping a sharp eye out for anything that looked even remotely suspicious or alarming. So far, he and Naruto hadn't sensed anything of importance, which Sasuke didn't know whether to consider that a good or bad thing. He still felt the intense magnetic pull of Sakura's chakra calling out to him, and until he reached its source, he would keep going.

"Sasuke.."

His eyes began to burn at that rate that he was going, beginning him to rest.

"Sasuke..!"

He gritted his teeth in anger as a picture of Sakura's face floated into his mind, her laugh echoing throughout his head.

"Sasuke!"

Then, her eyes turned dark and cold, her voice mocking his defeat.

"Goodbye, Sasuke-kun…"

"Hey Sasuke!"

Sasuke snapped out of his angered thoughts, and finally turned to acknowledge the blonde next to him, who had stubbornly refused to leave him to his thoughts.

"What is it?" he asked harshly, turning to glare at Naruto until he noticed Naruto's facial expression, which shut him up completely.

His blue eyes were widened in confusion, looking as though he had seen a ghost. His lips quivered slightly, which made Sasuke reach for his kunai.

"Naruto, what's wrong?" he asked slowly.

Naruto blinked slowly, and his eyes were glued ahead of them.

"Naruto, answer me." Sasuke said more harshly.

"Th-That chakra.." he said slowly.

Sasuke frowned, opening his mouth to ask Naruto what he was talking about, until his senses were suddenly overwhelmed with a chakra so overpowering that it collided with his own, making him almost breathless.

Sasuke's eyes shot forward, and he saw a silhouette dash out from an opening in the trees. A voice full of desperation rang out in the air.

"Matte!"

A/N: Long time no see guys! The period of time when I have no life thanks to school and other affairs is finally ending, so I'll have more time to write! (hopefully)

I know this chapter was short, but I'm saving some of the events for the next chapter, which results in, you guessed it, Fuu meeting Sasuke and Naruto!

See you guys next update, and thanks for being so patient!

Manga Spoilers:

OMG OMG OMG GUYS ITS ENDING THIS WEEK I'M SO NOT READY.

I CAN'T BELIEVE WHAT HAS HAPPENED NOT ONLY HAS SASUKE SHOWN MORE EMOTION TO NARUTO THAN HE EVER HAS IN THE WHOLE SERIES BUT HE LAUGHED AND CRIED AND SMILED AND THAT KILLED ME! Not to mention that THEY BLEW THEIR ARMS OFF…Sakura to the rescue? I hope!