Clash in the Snow Country: Legacy Version

Chapter 21 – The Reason Why

1:54 pm

Homare

The two teammates had been searching for hours now, taking shelter from the storm only when it had been at its most severe. Even a revenge-obsessed Taigi realized that continuing on would have been suicidal. They had quickly built a shelter using Hyouton ninjutsu that every Snow Shinobi was trained to use in case something went wrong while they were on a mission. The Snow Country could be very unforgiving at times, even to those who called it home.

The worst part of the storm had passed roughly thirty minutes ago and the two continued on with their self-appointed mission. By this time, Homare was convinced that their targets were long gone or had been buried alive in the storm, in which case they would probably never be found.

He was about to insist yet again that they should stop this foolishness when both of them detected two weak chakra signatures just in front of them. Racing over, they came to a clearing and to Homare's utter disbelief, he saw that not only had Naruto-kun's two teammates survived against all odds like Taigi claimed, but they were now fighting each other!

How could anyone be this foolish?

Homare shot a look at his teammate, who looked just as shocked as he was. He knew it wouldn't be long before the Loyalist would recover and act out the vengeance he wanted.

So in that short instance, Homare thought up a way to make sure honor was satisfied. For both parties involved.

2:04 pm

Sasuke

Sasuke was breathing hard at the injustice of it all, seeing yet another Snow Ninja in their path as the cold wind nipped at his skin, howling through the trees like some old shrieking banshee. Out of the corner of his scarred eye, he saw a second Yuki-nin pinning Sakura down on the snow, a kunai to her throat and holding both of her arms with his other hand.

Damn it… what am I going to do? I'm not ready for another fight! Or are they just going to use her life and demand I surrender without one? the Uchiha thought to himself, doing a quick mental recount: he had no shuriken, kunai or exploding tags, and a katana was jabbed through the weapons holster. He had some of the other supplies like wires and maybe some smoke bombs. He was far too tired to utilize his full speed. His chakra reserves were pitifully low, maybe enough for one or two C-ranked attacks. Or a couple of D-ranked ones. And he doubted he'd be able to keep on his Sharingan even for a few minutes. And the Curse Seal was definitely out.

And let's not forget that this guy – whom fought with a sword in his mouth – was apparently after him because he killed his lover. Sasuke had only killed one person so far, and that was the fire psycho freak.

So I'm gonna die because I took down some crazy lady trying to kill me… by someone crazy enough to accept a person like that as a girlfriend? Sasuke asked himself miserably. Just which of the two was the more crazy here? The girl herself or the one that took a liking to her?

That's when Taigi dashed towards him, with no warning or announcement, slashing the two swords in his hands towards Sasuke's chest. He quickly pivoted on his right foot to his sword, both swords just missing him as they came right past him. Before he could react further, that man took a hard left jerk with his head, the mouth sword aiming right at the boy's neck while the two other swords clashed in on him from either side like a pair of scissors. Having no other choice, Sasuke quickly ducked to avoid the three blades as they clashed together, cutting through a few strands of Sasuke's hair instead of his flesh. The man's two arm swords whipped around with a surprising amount of speed in a full circle as they came straight at Sasuke's face, who had to roll backwards to miss the blades.

Then halfway through his roll, while he was still off balance and disoriented, Taigi leapt forward with a fierce knee strike just as Sasuke's face came back around, the man's knee crushing hard into the Leaf Genin's face as he went flying backward into a tree, giving a loud cry of pain as blood trickled from his nose and mouth.

"Santoryu: Biisuto Shuugeki," Taigi growled, spinning the two swords in his hands around as he glared at Sasuke with utmost hatred. "Get up, Uchiha. There is no satisfaction in killing you if you don't offer up some resistance. Or else my revenge will be meaningless."

"We certainly don't want that happening," Sasuke muttered, climbing to his feet as he wiped his face, but the bleeding wouldn't stop. How ironic that someone's coming after me for revenge…

"Santoryu: Biisuto Kyoubou." Taking the initiative once more, Taigi leapt towards Sasuke in the blink of an eye. Shit… he's fast! Reluctantly, he turned on his Sharingan as a series of quick, fierce slashes came at him from both hand swords as Sasuke began dodging as best he could with the least amount of movement. Despite his efforts, he still felt Taigi's blades nick at his arms, legs, and even his right side before he whipped his mouth sword down at Sasuke. Taking a chance, he met the chokuto halfway, his right hand on top and left on bottom, as his hands clapped down on the blade, halting it right in its tracks. With a small push, he shoved the smaller sword to the side as he jumped forward, his elbow ready to bury itself in Taigi's face, who, at the last moment, bent down and let his headband take the blow. The force, however, still made him back off from the recoil.

Whipping through the seals as fast as he could, Sasuke blew out several small fireballs at the man, aiming at his feet. Predictably, he had to jump from foot to foot, each effort keeping him backing off and unable to reaffirm his footing. On the fifth one, he planted his left foot on the ground hard and kicked with his right, the shin guard neutralizing the last of the fireballs.

Acting immediately, he ripped out his own borrowed katana from the holster as he ran as fast as he could manage (which was less than a third of his normal speed), his blade parallel to the ground as he attempted to strike the man in the chest, only for the man to lazily slap it upward with his left sword. He almost seemed bored. Almost, had it not been for the cold fury etched in his face.

Taigi set his right foot back down as he spun around Sasuke. "A charging attack can be a deadly strike, but it's also dangerous because, used recklessly, it leaves you open to a counter attack more easily, boy. You can't react with a sword as you would with your own body, brat." With that, he slammed the handle of his right sword into the base of Sasuke's neck, who coughed out another large amount of blood as he fell face first on the ground. "Not a move for an idiotic novice like yourself. In terms of speed, strength, skill, taijutsu, even ninjutsu, I'm only average. But as a swordsman, I have no equal in the Snow Country!"

With that, he kicked Sasuke hard into his injured side as he flew into the air, with Taigi right behind him. While in midair, he slashed and attacked the Leaf Ninja all at once with his three blades… only for the boy to burst into a very well cut log a moment later, earning a renewed look of contempt on the Snow Ninja's face at realizing he didn't hit his enemy.

The real Sasuke jumped out from the bushes and backflipped upward through a tree, which he had gotten into the high branches of to conceal himself, panting hard. More than he felt he would be by now. Clearly, this ninja was not one to be taken lightly, made all the more clear as he felt ready to collapse and this guy was fresh. He had to get out of here now! Out of the corner of his scarred eye, he glanced downward to see the second snow ninja still holding Sakura down. He needed to get that man off her so they could both hightail it out of here and somehow cover their tracks to keep these two from pursuing… but how in the seven hells was he going to manage to pull something off like that?

What was he going to do? Think, damn it! Sasuke cursed himself mentally while he subconsciously tightened his grip on his sword. What can I do in this situation!

His desperation to think of a way out of this mess resulted in him shuffling around in his makeshift hiding spot, just enough for Taigi's head to whip around and spot him. Still utilizing the reverse grip for both katanas in his hands, he dashed over to the base of the tree as he loosened his grip on his right hand. Pouring chakra through his palm to the hilt of his blade, the weapon began spinning around madly as he reared his arm back and slammed it into the tree trunk, the spinning blade burrowing into the wood as if it were paper.

The force behind the strike shook the entire fifty-eight meter tall tree, causing Sasuke to lose his balance momentarily. In that split second, the Snow Loyalist quickly tighten the grip on his spinning sword, then gave a dramatic upward slash through the tree, splitting the entire thing in two.

The Leaf Genin gave a startled cry as the two sides of the tree began plummeting to the snow-covered earth as he leapt out of the branches, only to see that his foe was now right in front of him, his eyes screaming in rage as he lashed out with his two arm katanas, easily whacking Sasuke's own weapon out of his hands. Sasuke felt his heart rate shoot up as his neck clenched at the sight of the man's mouth sword coming right at his throat.

Images of being trapped in that frozen hellhole of a lake and the darkness overtaking him flooded into his mind. I'M NOT DYING HERE, DAMMIT! Tilting his head down, his headband intercepted the chokuto's blade, the sound of the two pieces of metal clanging around them. Flashing his hands forward, Sasuke grabbed around of the sword itself, the sharpened edge cutting into his palms as he did. With a sharp kick to the man's stomach for momentum, Sasuke flipped upward, fully intending to plant his right heel into the jerk's spine and crush it.

It didn't work. Before Sasuke could get halfway into his kick, Taigi dropped both swords in his hands, freeing them up. His left hand then clamped down on Sasuke's left leg and pulled him down, causing Sasuke's heel to miss its target, barely nicking the Snow Ninja's side as Taigi's right hand clasped around Sasuke's throat hard.

Gravity took full force as the two fell back to the ground, with Taigi furiously slamming his left fist into the boy's face over and over while simultaneously crushing on the boy's throat harder. The right side of the Uchiha's face began to swell and dampen with blood. Sasuke once more felt darkness beginning to take him once more as his body went limp. Through his pain and rapidly fading awareness, a single thought, one Sasuke never thought he'd ever consciously acknowledge since the night of the massacre, passed through the young Uchiha's mind before the blackness took over completely…

I'm scared…

Then all went dark and Uchiha Sasuke was gone.


Seconds earlier

Taigi

Seeing the boy's eyes close, Taigi quickly released his grip on the child's throat and stopped his beating as his hands formed the six necessary seals. His right hand was then enveloped in an eerie dark blue chakra before slamming it into Sasuke's chest right as the two crashed to the ground.

The boy's heart stopped instantly.

Taigi stood up in a stony silence as his two blades hit the ground on either side of him. "What pitiful vengeance," he said disgustedly as he took the chokuto from his mouth. "Is that really all you are, Uchiha Sasuke? I expected so much more out of you."

"Perhaps if you didn't fight him on his last legs like I said, you would have gotten more satisfaction." Taigi's head turned to see his teammate walking over to him. Seeing past Homare's shoulder, he saw the pink-haired girl out cold on the snow.

"There is no honor in fighting him like this," Homare went on. "As I repeatedly told you. And yet you chose to ignore it."

"Shut up," Taigi snapped back, bending down to reclaim his other two blades. "We're shinobi. You want honor, go join the Samurai. We specialize in the dark and dirty. We don't care if our opponent is fresh, ready or not. What matters is that we complete the job. That is our way."

Homare just crossed his arms. "Honor is not limited to just one group of people. It is accepted by many, including yourself. Different lengths and definitions to each of us, but recognized nonetheless. Otherwise you would be celebrating your "victory" as opposed to whining."

Taigi just growled in his throat at the man in response as he looked back at the downed boy. He should be HAPPY that he ended the miserable cur! He got what he wanted! He got his revenge for Shigi and it had been easy! He cut down the boy's life and there was nothing the brat could have done about it!

So why… WHY… did he feel WORSE off!

"I don't want to hear it!" Taigi spat angrily, speaking at last as he pointed a sword right in Homare's face. "I did what you wanted for the girl, so spare me all your honor shit!" He looked back at the boy as he swung his chokuto up and around. "Now I'm going to take a page from Mizore's book and claim a trophy from this!" That would surely bring him the satisfaction he so rightly deserved for his revenge! Before Homare could do anything, Taigi swung his katana down full force towards the young brat's neck.

However, it only slammed into the ground, barely scratching the boy.

The Snow Chunin just stood there, disbelief on his face. What the hell was wrong with him? He was the best swordsman in the Snow Country! How did he miss such an easy swing? The boy was dead! What was the matter with him!

Growling like some feral beast, he just kicked the boy hard in spite of Homare's protests. "Fine. Have it your way," he said savagely to Homare, attempting to save face in front of his teammate as he took out his scroll. "There is a more important matter for me to attend to anyway." With that, he put his three swords back in his scroll and put his hood and facial mask back on. He took a single leap into the nearest tree branch and sped from the place, Homare not far behind. The two were soon gone.


Sakura

The still form of the pink-haired kunoichi of Konoha lay in the snow, much like her teammate not too far from her did as the two left. However, unlike her friend whose eyes remained closed, Sakura's right eye carefully opened as she looked around.

Seeing no one around in the immediate area, she took a chance and carefully got up as her green eyes scanned the horizon for any signs of the enemy. A considerable feat since her head was pounding and her world was spinning around, unwilling to focus for her.

She had been on the verge of panic when the ambush had come and the person pinned her to the ground while Sasuke was forced to fight, tired and weakened against a new foe. The feelings of uselessness and being a burden had sprung into her like a flash flood as the fight had progressed and she had been willing to try just about anything – even if it meant her throat being cut open! – to do something to help out, simply to be able to at least attempt to be useful and help her friend.

The only thing that had stopped her was the man's kunai handle slamming into the back of her head

"If you expect to live through this, you better do exactly what I tell you to and play opossum. There is no honor in fighting your friend like this, so to make up for this, we're going to let you go. But my rather vengeful teammate can quickly forget about that little promise if he sees you rear your little pretty head around him, so you better stay out until we're out of sight. I have slipped a map for you in your weapon's pouch. Go home, girl. Not all missions end in success. Smart shinobi have to know when to cut their losses and live."

Those had been the man's words as he had pinned her to the ground. Honor or not, she didn't understand why he was granting mercy on her like this when they were clearly enemies, trying to bring down the current regime and Doto publically declaring them to be stopped. He clearly didn't gain anything from this and he would miss whatever honor or reward he would most certainly get by bringing her in.

She went along with it because she didn't see what else she could do. He already had her at his mercy and a quick cut would have ended her. Someone willing to let her go was about the best she could hope for under the circumstances, so she had no choice but to go along with it. After all, even if it was a ruse somehow, then it would just go back to what she was expecting anyway: despair and death.

Looking over at Sasuke's still form, Sakura felt her heart miss a few beats, not wanting to believe the sight she was seeing. Completely abandoning any sense of caution, she scrambled over to the boy's side as quickly as she could, dropping to her knees as she looked him. His skin color was shallow and she detected no breathing from him. She quickly grabbed his left wrist, feeling for a pulse.

Nothing.

Fear gripped harder at the prospect. She quickly shook her head so her mind wouldn't think of that dreadful sentence that was hovering ominously in the recesses of her mind. It couldn't be true… it just couldn't! Desperate, she dropped Sasuke's hand as she placed her hands on the Uchiha's chest while her mind was trying to recall every bit of information she had learned in Tsunade's CLS classes. There had to be something she could do when…

She paused as she reexamined Sasuke's chest. There was a sort of constricting feel to it, like it was slowly being crushed. Was that normal? She didn't think so. Carefully, she channeled chakra into her finger tips as she tried to get a clearer picture of what was going on.

After several minutes of touch and go, she understood what was going on. There was a layer of foreign chakra around Sasuke's heart, stopping it in place and preventing it from beating. In addition, it was slowly crushing the organ, much like a snake would constrict its prey to death.

Her own heart beat harder at this discovery as she channeled more of her chakra into his body. So his heart had been forcibly stopped. If she could get rid of that barrier, then maybe she could revive him. It might not be too late. If the thing was restricting, then a few touches of her chakra directly that barrier outward would break…

That's when it constricted even further, sending a chill down her spine as she stopped, praying to any kami that was listening that she didn't make things worse. That didn't work at all! She shot a desperate glance at Sasuke's face, hoping for some sign if was still possible to save him.

Flashes of Shizune lecturing entered her mind. Random words like 'duty', 'concentrate' and 'responsibility' came to mind, but they were fluttering around like butterflies, making her unable to string them together into anything meaningful. She knew she should be calm and proceed carefully; that this was the very reason why she should, because a patient's life was hedging on her being able to not bend under pressure and the stress or risk of losing the patient. Never mind the fact that this was a close personal friend who had served as a large crush and role model for her.

Desperation having a firm root in her now, she channeled her chakra into Sasuke once more. If pushing that barrier outward didn't work, then the only other option was inward! To use the constricting nature's own force in addition to her own chakra. The rapid flow of energy should break open that chakra barrier much like water forcing out through a broken dam.

Or completely crush his heart.


2:30 pm

Naruto

Naruto hung alone in his cell; his face would have easily passed for one of the dead. If one were to look at him, some might have gone as far to claim he was actually dead. Not a spark of life could seen midst the boy's body no matter where you looked, from his singular blue eye down to the tip of his toes. After careful observation, one would be able to make out the slight rising and falling on the young man's chest, indicating his respiratory systems were working. Shinobi veterans of countless missions or service in a war would recognize this young man's symptoms almost instantaneously. A victim of a travesty that had hunted man for as long as history could remember that could destroy an individual so completely that one might as well wish they were dead, rather than continue living.

Complete despair.

Nothing mattered to Naruto right now as the gravity of the situation was sinking into his flesh and bones as surely as one carved them with a kunai. He could still see them, over and over.

A collapsing iceberg on top of a single man that didn't even leave a body behind; a frozen-over lake that trapped two young souls inside its icy jaws of death; a young woman who had already given into her own hopelessness being led out to what he was sure was her own demise and the words of a promise of more to suffer and die at his expense.

He closed his sole working eye. How could they have been so foolish, so arrogant? What made them believe they could accomplish the impossible after ten years of failures, over the lost lives of countless men and women who had tried and been crushed just as he had. How many times had they been warned that continuing this mission was suicidal, that three people simply could not fight an entire country alone?

Why hadn't they listened? Was it simple pride, being unwilling to accept the impossible? Had it been naïve optimism, a characteristic of their youth and inexperience that led them to this bitter end? Perhaps it was an overinflated ego from surviving and accomplishing overwhelming odds before in the forms of the missing nin Zabuza and Haku, to making it to the final portions of the Chunin Exams and bringing down the powerful but insane Gaara, to defeating five of Orochimaru's underlings and bringing Sasuke back home, foiling who knew how many goals and plans that the former Konoha shinobi had?

Or could it have just been his guts to never give up?

He always prided himself on being able to follow through with his promises, even before meeting Bushybrow. To be able to meet any challenge head on and overcome it, no matter the odds. But was giving up necessarily a bad thing? It didn't just mean to stop trying and submit, it also allowed you to be able to recognize a situation, realize you were in over your head and reevaluate your options so you could succeed at another time.

True, there were times were retreat wasn't an option. If he had given up, even temporarily when facing Gaara, Sakura would had been crushed to death, maybe Sasuke as well since the Uchiha had been on the verge of exhaustion. Times where you had to stand your ground even if it meant your own death to stand up for what was right. But that did necessarily apply to every situation out there?

Just how different would his situation be if they did wait just three days for Leaf reinforcements to arrive? Kakashi would have still fallen at the Iceberg, but Sandayuu and his men would surely still be alive… as would be his two… friends.

That's when he realized he heard footsteps coming down the hallway. Nudging his head to the left, his right eye widen in surprise despite what he was currently feeling. Three people were walking down the hall. Two of them Doto's own ninja.

The third was Koyuki.

He almost didn't believe it. A corner of his mind whispered that it was just a trick. That Doto was bringing in a fake just to screw with his mind. While they never actually said they were taking the actress to be executed, why wouldn't they? There was nothing stopping them and she was a symbol to Snow, a symbol that could prove far more trouble to Doto than three little dumbass genin who thought the world revolved around them.

Naruto heard mocking comments from the princess' two escorts. From what he could gather, she had been brought to Doto for a live broadcast so he could show off his niece to his country and crush any lingering threads of hope any of the citizens might have. And he was positive that Doto would have done his best to verbally demolish Koyuki to everyone he could and irreparably shatter the symbol that she was.

He watched in silence was Koyuki was locked back into her cell and the two guards headed out, leaving them alone.

"You look like hell," Koyuki stated.

"Yeah? So do you," the blond retorted.

"I know."

Naruto didn't bother to respond to that comment. Somehow, seeing that she hadn't been put to death was giving him a second wind. Someone was still alive… he hadn't failed everyone yet. Maybe Team 7 had made all the wrong choices, maybe they should have done something else, maybe it didn't matter. Naruto just knew that right now he had to get out of here, keep at least her alive. He'd worry about his earlier actions later.

"There's no spring in this country."

The fact Koyuki had spoken those words caught the one-eyed boy off guard, making him temporarily forget his regained determination to break free. "You said that before. What do you mean?"

Koyuki didn't seem to be looking at him when she replied. "'You'll see when spring comes, Koyuki.' My father used to say that. Because of the perpetual winter in this country, I had never seen spring as a child. It was as distant and foreign to me as a child's fairytale story. Even so, I was curious. He told me to close my eyes, to imagine myself surrounded with flowers. To run as fast as I could. That, he said, was spring." Her face darkened a bit before continuing. "And he told me that if I never gave up, if I believed in the future, then spring was sure to come."

She paused for a moment, then, for the first time, she looked directly at Naruto with those soft, empty brown eyes of hers. "But you should realize the truth by now: this country has no spring. My father died. I fled from the Snow Country and I stopped believing. I was always running, always lying to people… though mostly I was just lying to myself. My life has become one big charade. Becoming an actress was about the only thing I was cut out for in this world."

The boy was silent as she finished her little tirade. Then he nudged his mouth into his collar and bit down, pulling out a filer. Using his arm strength, he pulled himself up and began filing away on his chains.

"That's not going to change anything, you know."

Naruto ignored her as he continued his work. He worked on it for several long minutes, then when he was halfway through the first link of the chain, the file snagged on something and he ended up dropping it to the floor.

"Told ya. In the end, all you can do is give up. If you had done so earlier, you and your team would still be alive. All your work, all your struggling made no difference. Doto still won," she said, putting her face against her knees.

"… if I gave up, it would mean acknowledging they were right."

Koyuki's head jerked back up.

"My home had labeled me an outcast. Something to be despised and hated. For a long time, I had no one I could call on as a friend. The coldness of their eyes all told me to just give up, to roll over and die." At that, the princess noticed that fire coming back in his eye as he began pulling on his chains as hard as he could. "If I give up now… or anytime… it would mean accepting what everyone labeled me!" At this time, that chakra device began flaring up, painful electric bolts zapping Naruto all over his body as he gave a pained cry.

"Stop!" Koyuki shouted, unable to help herself as she stood up right at the bars.

"I REFUSE to accept it!" Naruto was livid now, almost as he was reminding himself why he never gave up as well as Koyuki. "I refuse to believe that I should have just taken the coward's way out and died alone in some back alley!" He gave another yell. "And. I. AM. NO. COWARD!" With that, the chain broke and Naruto hit the floor as the chakra device powered back down to its dormant state.

"… Naruto…" Koyuki asked hesitantly.

Slowly, Naruto picked himself up and got back to his feet. "And because I persisted, good things did happen. When you give up, your dreams and everything else… THEY'RE GONE!"

Those last two words echoed down the hallway, as if the ghosts of the past were all agreeing with the orange-clad youth with a singular eye and whisker-like markings.

Naruto began examining his cell, remembering very well not to touch the bars as he shot Koyuki his trademark grin. "And I'm going to show you that your father and Sandayuu weren't wrong."

With that, he sat down on the cold hard floor, crossing his legs. He put one elbow on his knee and resting his chin in that arm's palm, his head nodded downwards slightly with both eyes closed. The other arm is at ease by his side as Naruto was now lost in thought. As Koyuki watched him, she felt something start boiling within her. A feeling she had thought was long since dead.

The power to believe.


2:58 pm

It was warm. And soft. It was quite comfortable. A feeling of contentment that hadn't been felt in a long time.

That's when his eyes burst open. He could still the raw soreness of his wounds and that of his face greatly. He was back inside that snow shelter he had built. Several questions popped into his mind. How did he get here? Why was he here? Why wasn't he dead?

"So you've come to at last. I'm glad," he heard a feminine voice speak, a mixture of awe and relief in it. "Welcome back to the land of the living."

Sasuke became immediately aware of his present circumstances and just why he felt so comfortable. The thought of which made his face redden ever so slightly.

His head was resting on Sakura's lap.

Almost like a primal instinct, Sasuke was one millisecond from bolting upward from his position, but Sakura was quicker, placing a firm hand on his head keeping him in place. "None of that. You need to rest and recover." He heard the tone of finality in her voice and complied.

Besides… it wasn't too bad lying here.

It took Sasuke a couple of moments to form the words that allowed him to ask what happened since he had been out. Sakura explained the ending of the fight, Homare's words to her, how she had rushed to his side when the two Yuki-nin departed, how she was able to get rid of the barrier stopping his heart and then bringing him back to their homemade shelter to recover.

Once she was finished, he gave her a nod, though in truth he was lost in his own mind. If his heart really had stopped, didn't that mean he had been dead? Even if only for a short while until Sakura revitalized him? Just what did one say when that happened? Somehow, just a simple 'Thank you', didn't seem enough or appropriate.

"I see. Thank you. Guess it's my turn to thank you for saving my life," he said at last. Kami, he was lame if that was the best he could say!

The girl merely smiled at that as she stroked his head in an almost motherly fashion.

"I'm sorry for… earlier." The words were out of his mouth before he realized what he was saying and immediately grew concerned that he was provoking the sleeping lion rather than letting the matter lie.

Sakura gave a slight jerk of the head as it took her a moment to grasp what he was saying. "It's alright. Maybe that's just what I needed all along: confronting the issue rather than avoiding it." She gave a slight grin to him.

Sasuke breathed out through his nose at that. That hadn't been so bad after all.

"But if you try a stunt like that again, I'll rip your head off." There was no change in tone in her voice, but Sasuke heard her meaning very clearly.

Like an obedient puppy, he just nodded at the young pink-haired girl's words. "So do you have your answer then?"

Once again, Sakura was taken back by his comment as that particular question had eluded her given everything that happened during the last half hour. What hurt worse was that after all of it, even coming close to losing Sasuke for good throughout it, she still didn't know. The downed look on the kunoichi's face told Sasuke all he needed.

"Let's start over."

Sakura looked down at him, not understanding.

"Let's start over," Sasuke repeated. "Put it all aside. Forget if it's love, hatred, all of it. Let's start anew and see where we'll go."

Sakura's brain had to process what he was saying. Start over. Go on as if nothing had happened. At first, she thought he meant just forget about the incident entirely as if it had never happened but then understood that wasn't the case. It wasn't that they would forget what had happened, but stop letting it impact them. What's done was done and it was time to move on in life, start fresh.

They would go back to being just teammates for now. Where that would lead, they didn't know. Maybe it would just stay at the friend stage. Maybe they would grow apart, to the point where they were strangers to each other. Maybe that would go further and become more than just friends in the future. It could take anywhere from a matter of weeks to years.

But whatever end that journey may take, they would start it together with no ill will between them, so she gave her nod of agreement to Sasuke's proposal.

"And I have a way to start things," Sasuke said, bringing her gaze down on her once more. "Remember that favor I mentioned for keeping silent about your little mishap?"

That sinking feeling she had felt when he had said that the first time returned full force. Had this been the Sasuke she knew from the Academy, she wouldn't had been worried. The worst he would have asked of her then would had been to stop bugging him for dates. Now she wasn't so sure. The past events of recent times with her proclamation of him being her best friend, the entire issue with his leaving and all the chaos between them on the ship swarmed through her mind. Part of her feared that Sasuke would take advantage of all that. That she should dissolve her friendships with Ino and the others, to never work alongside him again so they could sort everything out. Part of her was scared that Naruto's little "prank" he had done on Sasuke awoke some little squirming pervert inside of him and made him curious to see the real thing.

"… what do you want?" she asked, her hand subconsciously reaching for her shirt. Might as well get this over with.

"… I want you to help me through this."

She stopped. "Huh?"

Sakura could see he was having trouble forming the words, and not just because he made several false starts to explain what was on his mind. It was so apparent, he might as well have written 'Completely Confounded' in large print all over his face. Finally, he spoke.

"Ever since our little… mishap… things in my mind… just seem to be sprawling… out of control." A strained look overcame his face and she noted he avoided looking at her in the face since his own was starting to color. "Emotions. Thoughts. Some concerning you. It's been driving me nuts and I need… someone to help me sort them all out and what they mean to me. Someone who I can trust not to laugh and be truthful with me on them."

She wasn't entirely sure she heard right. It almost sounded like he wanted to pour out his soul to her and let her help explain what it all meant. And just what type of thoughts about her had he been having? All it took was one look at his face to realize how hard it was for him to admit such a thing: that he, Uchiha Sasuke, Number 1 Rookie of the Year and last surviving member of the Uchiha clan, needed help understanding thoughts and emotions that were completely foreign to him.

How could she say no? "I'll help you."

Hearing that seemed to relieve him greatly as he let out a long breath of relief. "Can I ask you something then?"

"Sure."

"… what are those night terrors that the shapeshifter mentioned?"

The question caught her completely by surprise, and it was one she didn't know how to readily respond to. "It's stupid," she said at last.

"Tell me," he urged.

She looked down with those bearing emerald eyes of hers before a look of shame came about. "It happened when I was six. I wasn't the most… strong-willed girl around. Always needed Ino to look out for me and bail me out." She gave a hollow laugh as she shook her head. "My self esteem was so low, I always slept with my parents, never wanting to get a room of my own for fear of the boogieman or some random monster I knew was hiding in my closest."

She paused as the old memories of the past returned to her. "A few months after my sixth birthday, I overheard a conversation with Ino and her parents. How proud they were of her, how lucky they were to have a daughter like her." A reluctant smile appeared on her face as she looked at the ceiling. "I envied Ino in so many ways and that was just another one on the list. I wanted what she had: parents who could look at their child with pride and happiness. I thought to make my parents proud, I needed to show I was a strong girl like her… so I went to my parents and asked for my own room.

"It was a shock to them as they insisted they didn't have a problem with me staying in the same room with them. I convinced them that I was ready to be a big girl. I think the fact I was able to say something like that made them happier than me wanting to grow up. So they prepared the room for me that they meant for me to have two years earlier and that night I went to bed alone for the first time… and I heard it."

"Heard what?" Sasuke asked, unable to stop himself.

"A small whimpering sound," she replied. "So small and quiet, and yet still able to pierce all the way to my brain. I didn't sleep at all that night. I just stayed awake the entire time, clutching my blankets as tight as I could, telling myself 'there's no such thing as monsters' over and over. I didn't want to get my parents. Didn't want them to know that that same 'big girl' I talked about cowered on the very same night she made that proclamation.

"Mom and Dad asked me if I had trouble sleeping last night since I was walking around like a zombie and nodding off every five minutes. I lied and said that I was too excited for a friend's birthday coming. For an entire week, that went on with me hearing those sounds at night and me just trying to fight them off. My parents could tell I was lying and that something was wrong, but I was too stubborn to let them come in. Always saying there was nothing wrong. Finally my father came into my room anyway to check on me and to my amazement, he said he heard something. He held me in his arms as Mom called for an ANBU member to check things out."

Sasuke stopped himself from speaking up this time as the look on Sakura's face was becoming more and more ashamed along with the hint of tears to be falling soon.

"… it was a puppy. Barely a month old. It had snuck under our house and gotten stuck. For an entire week, it cried out for help and I ignored it." At that, a few tears did start to form. "It was… lost and hungry. Alone in the dark, starving to death. Desperate for anyone to come to help him, to reassure him. To love him." More tears came now. "Who could have been saved if that idiot of a girl had said something even one hour earlier that night but choose to ignore him and leave him to that fate."

She attempted to laugh. "P-pretty… pa-pathetic… huh? You and Naruto… both have such tragic pasts of being alone. No one to h-h-help you. Having lost your family or never having one to begin with. And all I have… is a s-sob tale of a star…ving puppy who I could have…" By this point, she buried her face in her hands, barely seconds away from losing it completely.

"It's not stupid," Sasuke said. He had an overwhelming urge to embrace and comfort her, but couldn't find the will to move from his spot (and it wasn't because he was resting in her lap, it wasn't!) as he was completely enthralled in her face and completely dumbfounded on how he could have been so idiotic to ask her about such a painful memory.

So he did that next best thing he could think of. He told her of the last night he had a family. The girl listened in silence, not speaking once as he spoke of it. He didn't know if it was because he had already talked about it with Naruto or the fact the two of them were finally reconciling, but the words describing the event came out much more smoothly than the first time. He spoke of the panic he initially felt when arriving at his clan's district, how it rose as he desperately searched the homes for anyone, the encounter with his parents and the confrontation with his brother that followed. The only thing he didn't tell her was the parting words of Itachi and to kill his best friend, since when he tried, he found the words lodging themselves in his throat, refusing to come out.

When he finished, Sakura took her time in responding to him. Finally she said, "I had no idea of the hurt you've been going through."

"Time heals wounds. I'm not nearly as bad as I was back then," Sasuke replied automatically. He may be willing to talk about that night, but that didn't mean he wanted pity. Pity didn't bring back the dead.

Sakura slowly shook her head. "No. That's not what I mean. I mean what's the most painful to you. What you're still suffering with even after all this time."

Sasuke didn't respond as his eye focus shifted from her to the ceiling.

"It's alright to admit you were close to your brother…"

"I'm not!" Sasuke snapped quickly. "He's a monster! Always was! I should have seen it!" Images flashed through his mind: how his brother became more and more distant, when the Police Force had come to him over Shisui's suicide, Itachi throwing a kunai at their clan symbol and that glimpse of that morphed Sharingan. "All that we shared… was a huge FUCKING lie! He means nothing to me!"

Sakura waited patiently for him to finish. "But he did at one time. It's alright to say you were fond of your brother. You two had a bond and he threw it aside; not you. Just because he did, it doesn't mean you can't remember the good times. Remember the bond you did have, not what it is now. Its okay to admit his betrayal hurt you badly. You don't have to keep that buried down."

"I'm still going to kill him."

"I didn't say you shouldn't, only don't forget the times you did have with him. They were important to you. They're still important to you. You're only hurting yourself by trying to convince yourself otherwise."

Sasuke began breathing out harder as new memories came to replace the ones that had previously surfaced. His brother spending time with him, helping him with target practice, blowing off his homework to play with him, carrying him on his back when Sasuke had hurt his ankle. At these images, Sasuke felt his eyes water and immediately covered his face so she wouldn't see. He didn't understand! He never felt his low when he thought about that monster, so why did he feel so… weak and vulnerable now? What did she say that made the damn difference! He didn't feel anything for his… brother… he didn't…

"You know, Sasuke," Sakura said kindly. "It's alright for boys to cry sometimes."

It almost felt like a sharp kick to the gut, yet not in a bad way either as he knew that irritable habit that he had been plagued with since this mission started would not be bothering him ever again. With that, for the first time since the tragedy almost five years ago, Uchiha Sasuke cried his heart out.


One hour later

Haruno Sakura quickly moved through the shelter opening back into the snowy white forest. Sasuke had cried into her lap for almost a full forty minutes before finally going back to sleep. She made him comfortable next, knowing that he needed his rest more than ever in order to start recovering. From both the fight and his memories. She had only paused long enough to write a note for him should he wake up before she returned.

After quickly scanning the horizon, she reached into her pouch and withdrew the map that the Snow ninja had given her. According to it, there was a town only 10 kilometers northeast of where they were now. The closest port was half a day away and Doto's castle was several hours to the west. It was time to see if this map was legit or if this was somehow the enemy's trap, though as before, she couldn't see why this would be a trap when he could have just finished her off earlier.

Wrapping the tattered remains of her cloak around her, she looked up at the sun and got her bearings before proceeding to where the town was. As she walked, her mind drifted back to the conversion she had with Sasuke, part of her hardly believing she had said the things she had. Especially with the subject of Uchiha Itachi.

Maybe I should take my own advice, she told herself as she thought of that poor puppy. She was only hurting herself by trying to convince herself otherwise that it wasn't hurting her, just like Sasuke was with Itachi. But why did admitting to your past pains have to hurt so much?

She shook her head, knowing this wasn't the time to think of such things. She had a much more urgent matter to attend to now. It took her twenty minutes to find the town, and during that time, she had been arguing with herself about something she really didn't want to do.

Coming to the forest edge, she saw the town down the slope. It was a fairly average size with people going about their daily lives. She saw several food stands, clothing stores and what looked like a clinic. She didn't see anything that looked like a weapon's shop, so she probably wouldn't be able to replace their kunai and other accessories, but the basic needs had to be tended to.

And since she had no money, nor could she risk revealing herself to these villagers, she was just going to have to take what she needed; a thought that made her stomach turn. She wasn't a thief, but she knew she had no choice. If she didn't, she and Sasuke would likely die from their injuries and lack of food.

Her and Sasuke or them. Right now, there was no middle ground.

With a final resolve, she steeled herself for what she knew she had to do as she henged herself into a dark brown-haired adult woman and made her way down to the town to begin her work.

Being a ninja could be more demanding in ways she never even considered.


(Author's Note) Another chapter done! I thank you all for your patience and hope this lived up to your expectations. Life got very hectic for me during the last month with the loss of my laptop and other things but I won't bore you all with the details this time around. Let's just leave it at that, shall we?

Little action in this chapter and I hope it wasn't too bad. Lot of talking, soul searching and internal reflections. Do let me know how all those turned out because I hope none of them seemed forced or childish. I sincerely hope it all touched you, my readers, on some level because that would mean I did my job right. And if I didn't, then I'll have to try harder next time. You be the judges.

Santoryu: Biisuto Shuugeki-Three Sword Style: Beast Charge/ A multi-prong sword charge attack. The opponent will first charge with the two hand swords pointing outward in an attempt to skewer the enemy. Should the enemy dodge, Taigi can use his mouth sword to cut the opponent, moving him back to a vulnerable position and slice with both hand swords. On the off chance that this strike misses as well, it does leave the opponent open to another thrust or physical strike from Taigi. (Low B-Class Kenjutsu)

Santoryu: Biisuto Kyoubou-Three Sword Style: Beast Frenzy/ A simple multi-slash attack where Taigi will wildly swing all three of his katanas in seemingly random and chaotic directions in attempt to confuse the enemy and make an opening. Taigi will sacrifice accuracy for speed for this move, all but ensuring he will hit something even if it is only a minor cut. (Low C-Class Kenjutsu).

Hinankunren-Disaster Drill/ Taigi loosens the grip in one or both of his hand swords. Utilizing chakra, it spins the blade exceptionally fast within his loosened grip, adding sheer power and torque to it, allowing the sword to drill through things like wood as though it were just paper with devastating results, all of which can be redirected into a slash movement afterwards. (Mid B-Class Kenjutsu)

Haato Joumae-Heart Lock/ After the necessary seals, Taigi inserts some of his own chakra around his opponent's heart that will constrict and crush the organ within about five minutes of application. As it is delicately intertwined with the victim's heart, removing it is a very risky process as it can easily fail and one wrong move can lead to immediate death. Requires physical contact on the opponent's chest in order to use, or else the chakra will go astray and fail. (High C-Class Ninjutsu)

I do not own Naruto. It belongs to Masashi Kishimoto. Also, any jutsu that Tellemicus created that are used in this story belongs to him. Big thanks to Paintball-Gamer for beta reading this!