Flash of Red and Black

Chapter XXI

"Kakashi! Why did you leave the—Naruto! Thank goodness," I heard Sakura say near us as Kakashi rushed through the tunnels. At first I thought she was going to yell at Kakashi, but then she just seemed to trail off. I kept my eyes closed, afraid of getting nauseous from all the movement. (Plus Kakashi's face was about the only thing worth seeing in those tunnels, and it was too dark to even see that.)

"Come with us. He needs medical attention," Kakashi ordered quickly, but I could hear enemy shouts closing in on us.

"I'll be right behind you. Leave him to Ino first once you get out," she said before I could hear her footsteps lagging behind us, probably to cover us for a good escape.

"Sakura! I'll take care of them! You take him. He needs healed—" he yelled after her, and I tried to protest, but I guess Sakura understood better.

"He needs you, Kakashi-sensei! Get out of here!" She shouted back, cutting him off before I heard the groans and thuds of strangers behind us. I felt Kakashi hesitate for a second, but then his arms just gripped me a little tighter and he continued running. He wasn't able to continue for long, though, before I heard more enemies coming from both sides.

"Shit," I heard him curse under his breath. He sped up, apparently trying to outrun them, but I could tell that it was futile when he was carrying dead weight like me. That of course just made me get frustrated with myself, but I still tried to concentrate on keeping Kurama's chakra under control. I wasn't used to it yet, so it still required a lot of effort to keep my own chakra reserves so high and to control it well enough to tame the other massive chakra.

"Sorry, Naruto. I'm going to have to put you down for a second," he mumbled to me before propping me up against a rock. Then I heard the screech of Raikiri in front of me. Since we weren't moving, I opened my eyes to see six enemies illuminated by the jutsu surrounding Kakashi's hand.

Barely a second after I opened my eyes, the first three enemies fell. The other three blinked and suddenly had active Sharingan and I started to worry. Kakashi fought them with taijutsu for a few minutes before he managed to get a kunai into the neck of the fourth. The fifth took a while longer to down, but eventually he shot off Raikiri again, leaving a hole where the enemy's heart once was. He was about to do the same for the last one when he suddenly collapsed with Neji standing behind him. Neji seemed like he was about to say something, a frustrated expression on his face, but then he seemed to notice me and his face instantly flooded with relief, though it still held concern. Then he looked back at Kakashi and the two exchanged a quick nod before Kakashi picked me back up and started running again. I closed my eyes again, but thanks to Neji's help, it wasn't long before I could feel sun shining onto my eyelids. Kakashi kept running, though, so I opened my eyes, wondering where we were going when I saw a team up ahead.

Ino and the rest of her team rushed over when they saw us and Kakashi set me down on the grass, turning to Ino.

"He seems to have Kurama's chakra back under control for the most part, but he's exhausted and not healing as fast as normal," Kakashi reported as Ino pulled out her supplies and started looking me over, though she tried to be gentle.

"Shattered knuckles. Fractured wrist. Lacerations cover both arms. Second and third degree burns on ankles, knees, waist and neck. Internal bruising. Two broken ribs," she listed off. She continued naming off every injury I had while the rest of her team along with Shikamaru and the Suna Anbu hovered nearby. Kakashi's expression hardened more the longer Ino spoke, and the color seemed to be slowly draining from his face.

Once she listed off everything she could, her hands started glowing warmly with chakra, and she started healing me. But I didn't need her to waste time or chakra on wounds that Kurama's chakra would be able to heal, so I shook my head, looking up at her.

"Poison's messing with my chakra. Kurama can do the rest," I said to her. It was hard to talk because my throat still hurt so much and I was too tired to try to explain better, but she seemed to understand anyway.

Immediately she nodded and dug through her bag, pulling out a flashlight. Then she checked me over the same way I remembered Sakura doing when Kankuro was poisoned what seemed like ages ago. Once she seemed satisfied she turned to the others nearby.

"Give me your canteens!" she ordered and immediately everyone handed them over before she turned back down to me. "I don't have time or supplies to make an antidote, so just bear with it, okay?" she said gently before ordering everyone to hold me down. I grit my teeth, preparing for the pain to come—I remembered how much pain Kankuro was in at the time after all—but when she started, I was able to manage with just locking my jaw. Compared to all the pain I'd just been put through, it was no worse than a paper cut. However, this seemed to alarm Kakashi and Ino because I could see them glancing at one another, concerned looks on their faces.

Slowly, the amount of the substance dwindled and she stopped, and she pulled back, wiping her brow. I sighed a little when she was done and relaxed back against the grass again.

"How's his chakra?" Ino asked, looking over to Neji. He nodded and activated his Byakugan, looking me over carefully.

"Huge. It's flowing like normal, but…there's so much more than normal, even for him," he said, his brow creased with confusion before deactivating the Byakugan again, looking back at Ino. She just nodded and was about to start healing me, but I just shook my head again.

"Leave the rest to Kurama. Save your chakra," I said, and she glanced at Kakashi for a moment before nodding and looking around.

"We should move him away from here for now. There's a stream about a hundred yards from here at two o'clock," she said looking around, and everyone nodded before Kakashi picked me up again. I still really hated feeling so useless, but it was nice to be in his arms anyway. More than anything, I wanted to just hug him and hold onto him until all the memories of those tunnels were washed from my head, but I knew it wasn't possible—especially while everyone was still fighting.

Soon, I was laying on the grass again, this time near a stream. Ino started bandaging me up and Kakashi helped.

"Shikamaru, update me," I ordered, looking over at the man hovering nearby. He frowned, but I needed a distraction from the bandages Ino and Kakashi started wrapping around my arms—not because of the pain, but because I didn't want to think about the wounds I'd accumulated or how they came to be. That was something to sort out later.

"You should just focus—"

"I may be hurt, but I'm still Hokage," I shot, cutting him off before he could finish his sentence. He looked a little surprised, but nodded after a moment.

"We met up with reinforcements twenty-five hours ago. They were informed of the situation and the plan. We all restocked and rested as much as possible and formed six teams. We began infiltration two hours ago with Sai's animals. One hour ago, five of the six teams entered the base. Four of the six teams, along with Sakura, are still inside the base," he reported before sitting down near me in one of those "thinking poses" of his.

I gave a small nod before looking over at Neji.

"Anything from Konoha?"

"Only ANBU and the security captains have been informed of your absence. Only Shikaku-san has been informed of your capture. The rest of the village has been told that you are at home resting," he replied, kneeling down next to me, opposite Shikamaru. I nodded again.

"Resting is exactly what you should be doing, Naruto," Ino said as she started bandaging one hand carefully. I gave a half-hearted nod and stared at the hand she was trying to wrap up as gently as she could.

The longer I stared, the more I knew I should say something, anything to keep from thinking about it, but I couldn't stop myself. I just kept looking at it, watching as the white cloth covered my fingers and wondering why they were talking so long to heal. My entire body was taking a long time to heal, really, I thought. I wondered if my insides were healing just as slowly. I started thinking that maybe it was useless to have been rescued if my insides wouldn't heal, if my hands wouldn't heal. I wouldn't be able to make any seals with useless hands, and that would just make me be more of a burden on everyone else. It would cause someone else to get hurt. So maybe I should've just given into the blackness the first time I thought about it, back in that room, that room where all that pain began. How long was I even in that room? Shikamaru said that they met up with backup twenty-five hours ago, so it was at least twenty-six hours since my capture, and I spent almost that full twenty-six hours in that room.

Twenty-six hours of pain, and now I wasn't healing. I needed to heal. Otherwise I would put everyone else in danger. Otherwise I would make them go through pain too. I knew no one else could handle that pain. Even Kurama could hardly stand that pain. That was horrible. It was a nightmare. No, it was real. Ino was in the middle of covering the evidence of that reality with white bandages. Those bandages wouldn't get rid of the evidence, though. Only healing could do that, but I wasn't hea—

"Naruto!" I heard Kakashi call, his face hovering over mine and my cheek stung. I looked up at him and just blinked, confused.

"What's wrong, Naruto? Are you in pain?" he asked, looking panicked. Slowly, I shook my head.

"I'm just…tired…I'm not healing like I should. I don't want any of you to…hurt because of me," I said, having trouble talking and breathing in general. Ino handed Kakashi a damp bandage then and he placed it on my forehead, which made me feel a little better somehow. Was I sweating?

"We're all fine, Naruto. You'll heal once you get some rest. Just relax," he said calmly, though it was probably a forced calm. Still, I gave a small nod and closed my eyes, focusing on my breathing. I felt him running the cool, damp cloth across my forehead and pushing my bangs out of my face, and slowly I started feeling better, like whatever invisible weight that had been crushing my chest was starting to lighten up.

Once I could tell my breathing was back to normal, I could feel Kurama's chakra slowly doing its work healing my body. It was slower than normal, probably because of fatigue and remnants of the poison, but it was working. Soon, I would have my body back. Soon, I wouldn't be endangering anyone—anyone but Orochimaru.

"Are you okay?" I heard Kakashi ask above me, and I opened my eyes to silver hair shining like a cloud against the blue sky. I gave a small nod and he helped me take a few sips from a canteen, and the water felt great against my sore, parched throat.

"Thanks. Just…don't let me look at my injuries anymore," I said, giving him a small, sheepish smile. I knew another panic attack would do more harm than good, so I just needed to avoid them as much as possible for a while. Once we were all safe back at home with a dead snake left behind, maybe I could visit Inoichi or just sleep for a week to recover, but for the moment, forcing myself to relax was the fastest way to heal.

"Sure," he said, giving a small nod, but I could see the concern swimming in his eyes. And guilt. I frowned, but didn't say anything for the moment since everyone else was still around. I looked at all of them, and they all looked worried too, though some concealed it better than others.

"Are you back in control of Kurama's chakra?" Yamato asked, and I gave a nod.

"As long as I don't use up too much of my own chakra for now anyway. I think my body will get used to it with time, but for the moment, I have to store up as much of my own chakra as possible to keep Kurama's in check," I said, finally able to get out a decent reply.

"Wait, so your chakra reserves are higher than normal?" I heard from behind the small group gathered around me as Sakura walked up, covered in dirt. I nodded again.

"Yeah. I was only able to get a balance between my chakra and Kurama's again just before Kakashi showed up," I said as I watched her sit next to me. She looked at Ino, and Ino just turned to me while Sakura took up the task Ino was doing to that point.

"So now Kurama-san's chakra is doubled, and so is yours?" Ino asked, and I immediately forced my eyes away from Sakura.

"I guess so, but I don't know if I can really do anything with either since I'm not used to it yet," I replied and she nodded.

"How long do you believe it will take to get used to it?" Sai asked, and I could see curiosity lining his expression.

"Not sure. I need to heal up and rest some before I'll really be able to make use of it at all. And the poison's throwing it off too for now," I said hoping another question would come soon so that I wouldn't have to think too deeply on my reply. I wasn't disappointed, though this time the question wasn't directed at me.

"Did you meet up with any of the other teams inside?" Neji asked, turning to Sakura.

"Shino's team covered for me as I headed out. I told them we found Naruto. So far, they hadn't seen Orochimaru, though Shino's bugs had found a trail."

"Should we head back in?" Neji asked, this time looking to Shikamaru. The Nara frowned, thinking before shaking his head.

"Sakura, you rest for now. Leave Naruto to Ino. Sai, Neji you're taking turns with me and Yamato on setting up and maintaining a perimeter in case Orochimaru or his mutated soldiers slip out," he said and everyone except Kakashi nodded. He already understood his orders whether they were said aloud or not: keep me calm and safe in case of an ambush.

Sai and Neji took the first shift scouting. Shikamaru and Sakura set up tents while Yamato used his mokuton to make a small shelter for himself and another for Ino, Kakashi and me. I wanted to scold him for wasting his chakra, but I just left him to rest instead, hoping he would recover it quickly. Ino told stories, mostly gossip from the training school, while she finished bandaging everything.

"You should get some rest too," she said to Kakashi once she finished, and I nodded too, but he immediately refused.

"I will after a while. You rest first. I'm sure we'll need your medical jutsu again soon, once we chase him out," he said, his anger seeping out when he refused to say Orochimaru's name, and my chest ached a little, though it wasn't from the injuries.

Ino couldn't do anything but nod in agreement and soon she left to share Sakura's tent while Kakashi pulled my head into his lap and gently ran his hands through my hair.

"Thank you…for saving me," I mumbled quietly after a while. He said nothing for a while, so I started to grow nervous and looked up at him. Instantly that pain in my chest got worse and my gut felt like it was being twisted when I saw his expression. It was full of worry and guilt and a mix of so many other emotions that I couldn't give a name to them all.

"Sorry for worr—" I started, trying to apologize, but Kakashi cut me off, pressing his fingers against my lips. I just couldn't stand seeing that expression on his face.

"I don't know how many times I prayed that those screams weren't yours, that they weren't leading me to you," he choked out a few silent moments later. He pulled his hand away from my face and moved it to hide what little was showing of his own. It felt like everything hurt even more as I watched his shaking hand. I was at a complete loss. I had no idea what to say or do. I wanted to reach up and touch him, hold him, kiss him so badly, but my hands were still useless and my body could hardly move on its own. So all I could do was cry.

Tears just streamed down my face with frustration and shame, with fear and anger, with worry and confusion.

"I'm sorry," I whispered, turning my head to press it against his thigh more, partially hiding my face. I felt like I couldn't look him in the eyes, but immediately I felt a pair of hands on both sides of my face, forcing me to stare straight up at him and that expression that I never wanted to see him wear.

"Don't apologize! Just don't. Please. Don't ever make me leave you again. I won't ever leave you again. I can't bear it, Naruto," he said, barely whispering. Then I felt little water droplets falling to my face, and I could only watch in agony as he cried too. I clenched my teeth and forced my arm to move and I wiped away some of his tears with the back of my hand, still unable to move my fingers. He jerked at the sudden touch before his eyes went wide, staring at my hand. Then slowly, gently, he cupped his and around mine and placed a light kiss on the tip of each finger before hunching over more and just holding my hand to his forehead. I could feel his hands shaking around mine, and I just continued crying. I was at a complete loss and couldn't do anything I wanted with my body in the state it was.

Eventually, I drifted asleep like that, tears still streaming from my eyes.

I hope you liked it! I should be getting the next chapter up soon. (And please tell me someone else got misty-eyed there at the end. I ached while writing it.)