Chapter 25: Surprise Attack

The next two days where long and dull for the three conscious members of the Konoha Senshi and they could only hope that the bridge would be complete quickly and they would be allowed on their way. For now though they where stuck with the unappealing job of sitting lazily on an unfinished bridge waiting for an attack that never came. Well, aside from Naruto anyway. It was his day to stay behind and watch over Sasuke so only Hinata and Sakura where on the bridge with Tazuna.

"I wish I was back with Sasuke," Sakura said. "At least there I could find some form of entertainment."

Hinata glanced over at her friend and raised an eyebrow. "Oh? What kind of 'entertainment' did you usually have?"

"Well mostly I-." Sakura's eyes widened. "Hey! That is not funny! I meant training and stuff!"

Hinata giggled and waved her hand in hopes of pacifying her irritated friend. "I know, I know! I was only teasing!"

Sakura huffed, a light pink blush on her cheeks. "You had better be," She muttered.

"Oi," Tazuna said as his shadow fell over the two of them. "Enjoying yourselves?"

Hinata nodded shyly while Sakura wrinkled her nose. "Not particularly," She said. "Honestly I can't wait until this mission is over. It's dull."

Tazuna laughed. "Well perhaps it will get a bit more interesting later on."

"Oi! Tazuna!" One of the workers called. "There's a fog rolling in and it seems pretty thick! We should probably call it a day!"

"Fog?" Sakura said as she looked down the bridge. Sure enough a thick gray mist was rolling in from the main land where the bridge connected to the village. "That's odd…"

"Eh? No, not really," Tazuna said. "We get spontaneous fog clouds and storms on these islands a lot being out in the ocean like we are."

Sakura didn't seem to hear Tazuna as she kept her eyes trained sharply on the mist. There was something very…un-natural…about it. Almost as if someone where making…Her eyes widened. "Look out!"

Hinata, who had noticed the same thing as her companion, quickly launched herself from the bench and into Tazuna's chest knocking him to the hard concrete of the bridge just as a large head-cleaver sword boomeranged over their heads. Sakura cursed as she climbed back to her feet and pulled out a kunai.

"Kuso," Sakura said. "I was hoping he wouldn't recover so soon."

"That boy must be an expert medical nin," Hinata said as her byakugan glared into the fog. "That's the only way he could have gotten better so quickly."

"And of course this had to happen when the boys are away," Sakura sighed as she looked down at her pink nails. "Only one more day and then Sasuke would be better. Such a shame…now I'm going to have to ruin my new manicure. And Rin-sensei worked so hard to get my nails just perfect too."

Hinata nodded as she gazed sadly at her own purple nails. "Still, duty calls. Perhaps the damage won't be too terrible and we will be able to fix them once we get back to Tsunami-san's house."

"You should never turn your attention away from your opponent," An irritated voice growled from the fog. "You get killed that way."

"We can't really take our attention from you if it was never placed on you to begin with," Sakura said as two shadowy figures began to appear.

"Over confidence is a great fault," Zabuza said as he fully materialized.

"Yes it is," Sakura agreed. "You would probably do well to remember that through the duration of this battle." Her features turned hard and focused as she dropped into a fighting stance. "I'll take care of the idiot Hinata. You focus on getting Tazuna-san out of here safely."

"I'm afraid I can't let you do that."

Sakura spun around in surprise at the voice that came from behind her. Her wrist was caught by a sturdy hand and her grip on the kunai she held weakened at the painful pressure it was suddenly being put under. Biting her tongue Sakura held in a cry of pain but she couldn't help the jerky wince that seized her as she tried to pull her wrist back from the grip of the masked boy.

"What the hell!" Sakura said.

"I don't wish to harm you. Please stand down."

"Like hell you jerk!" Sakura's left foot swung up swiftly in an attempt to catch her opponent in the gut. "Let me go!"

The boy didn't even seem to move before he suddenly appeared behind Sakura still holding her wrist firmly. The pink haired konoichi cried out and dropped her kunai as a vicious crack sounded from her ensnared arm. Loud curses flew rapidly from Sakura's lips as she tried to move away from her captor without jarring her now broken wrist.

"Please," The boy said again as he placed Sakura's own kunai to the side of her neck. "I do not wish to harm you. Stand down."

Sakura's chin lowered to her chest and she let out a throaty chuckle. "Like hell you jerk."

The boy sighed and in one swift movement thrust the blade, handle deep, into Sakura's neck.

XXXXXXXXXXX

The door to the Uchiha's holding cell swung open in what seemed to be slow motion as Hikari gripped the back of Itachi's tunic; afraid of what may happen to her baby should their plan not succeed. The soft 'boom' of the metal door hitting the stone wall echoed around the small room and made Hikari jump in surprise. That had never happened before. What in the world was going on?

"He's playing with us," Itachi whispered. "Trying to intimidate us. It's only a mind game."

"Yeah, well, it's working!" Hikari whispered back as she pressed herself closer to the comfort of her husband's body.

"Shh, be calm Hikari."

"Easy for you to say, you're intimidating," Hikari muttered before finally falling silent.

"Sso," Orochimaru said as he entered the cell, the heavy door swinging closed behind him. "You have finally decided to tell me what I wish to know? Why the ssudden change of mind?"

Neither Uchiha answered his question perfectly aware that he knew exactly why; his sickly grin proved it.

"You will not harm our child in any way. Not mentally, not physically, or any other way a sick and twisted being like you could come up with. If you do you will be greatly punished."

Orochimaru threw his head back and laughed long and hard at the arrogance in Itachi's voice before he snapped his gaze back towards the younger nins. "And how would you propose to punish me? You are completely helpless." His grin widened and he licked his lips as he eyes landed hungrily on Hikari's still flat stomach.

Itachi easily stepped in the way of the snake man's sickly green stare. "If you as much as gaze at my child, I assure you, you will feel the consequences."

"Very well," Orochimaru said with a grin. "I will agree to your terms for now." He tilted his head to the side and his long black hair hung in strings around his pasty pale face. "Now, where are the corner brats?"

"Sunagakure no Sato," Itachi said firmly. "They were sent to the Village Hidden in the Sand."

Orochimaru frowned. "That," he said. "I already know."

Hikari's eyes widened in fear as she realized she had lost the one chance she thought her baby had had.

XXXXXXXXXXX

"Geez teme," Naruto pouted. "You just had to go and get injured at a place Sakura-chan couldn't fix. That totally sucks! I could be out defending the bridge with Hina-chan right now but nooo you just had to go and get your stomach bruised up real bad. Man!"

Sasuke of course said nothing to his best friend's irritated words since he was still under the effects of the second syringe of the day. Naruto sighed in irritation as he watched the clock tick down the minutes until he could 'shove another needle into the teme's arm' as he had so kindly put it just before Sakura and Hinata left that morning; of course earning himself a nice big lump on his head courtesy of Inner Sakura.

Sighing, the blond boy rolled off his back and onto his knees so he could crawl across the floor to Sakura's medical bag. Next to it Kyuubi-chan lay curled up, fast asleep. His white tipped orange-brown tails curled tightly under his nose. Naruto stifled a giggle at how adorable the self proclaimed 'scourge of the world' looked curled up like a cat. He was just reaching into the medical bag to grab one of Sakura's pre-ready syringes when Kyuubi-chan's ears suddenly gave a violent twitch. Instantly alert Naruto dropped his hand and listened for any unusual sounds coming from anywhere near by. He was just about to pass it off as Kyuubi-chan's dreaming when the little fox jerked awake and leapt to its feet growling.

(It looks like we have company kit.)

Naruto simply pulled out a kunai and waited for whatever was coming to arrive.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Obito growled as Kazahana-san once again grabbed his arm and jerked him off balance causing him to only just be able to dodge the katana aimed at his throat. More and more attacks came from all sides of him but the cowardly Kazahana just clung to him making it more then difficult for him to defend them both. He stifled a growl as he pushed the man out of the way of another strike only to be forced to take it himself on his upper arm.

The cut wasn't too deep but the fiery pain Obito felt lacing through his arm was enough to tell him that the blade was poisoned. He didn't know exactly how potent it was, that was Rin's area of expertise, but he had picked up a few things from his wife and he was sure that this poison was not meant merely to paralyze.

Attack after attack Obito dodged and countered but his movements where hampered by Kazahana and with each move he made he could feel his muscles seizing up while his vision began to blur. He knew quite easily that he wouldn't be able to finish this battle. If he wasn't so busy he probably would have chuckled at the irony of this being his last stand. For some reason he had always thought he would have died in a more prominent fashion, not in the middle of nowhere defending some nobody.

All at once he found his world abruptly turned upside down as a high kick caught him in the chin and forced him through the air and onto his back painfully. Combined with the effects of the poison the impact jarred him so heavily that he lost his breath and found him body momentarily stunned; unable to move. Closing his eyes in defeat he awaited the final, painful blow. Obito's eyes suddenly flew wide in surprise as he was greeted by the sound of metal on metal instead of pain on flesh. Through his blurry vision he barely managed to make out what seemed to be a giant monkey deflect a kunai with one held in his tail before darkness overcame him and he fell into unconsciousness.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

"Kyo, what are still doing here? We can't just leave them there. Especially not now that we know they have a child. Besides," Kairi's voice lowered slightly. "What if Yondaime-sama is still alive? What if he is with them too?"

Kyo's back was to his wife as he leaned against the wall, supported by his forearm. "Do you honestly think that I want to leave my students in such a position? That I want them to continue suffering as they most likely have for the last five years? Well guess what." He pushed away from the wall and turned to face Kairi with a fierce glare. "I don't. I don't want them to suffer. I don't want them to die. How do you think that I feel? Knowing now that they where alive all this time and I didn't do anything to help them?"

Kairi didn't say anything as she continued to stand next to their bedroom door, her arms lightly folded across her chest as she leaned her shoulder on the door frame.

Kyo sighed and ran a hand through his hair before turning away once more, this time to face the window that led to the garden where his son and Hanabi where playing. "But what can I do now? Now that Orochimaru is so completely settled in Konoha? He has had five years to build up defense for an attack. He'd be expecting anything. Everything. We don't have a plan for either. It would take months to even come up with a workable one."

"How many?" Kairi asked softly.

Kyo sighed and shook his head. "I don't know. We would have to have an idea of what we are up against before we even begin to plan. With all of the recon and structural planning we would have to incorporate I would have to say six, seven months, at least."

Kairi nodded slowly before she looked to her right and then crossed the room to her dresser. "Well then," she said as she pulled out a black stealth suit. "I suggest we begin now then."

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Something wasn't right. He wasn't sure how he knew it, he just did. It was something so small, quiet, but it was telling him, warning him, that something was going to happen. Something terrible. Something he had to help with. His friends needed him. He couldn't let them down.

But he was so tired. His eyes felt weighted down with bricks. His body felt covered with wet sand. He didn't want to get up, but he had to. He had to wake up. If he could just open his eyes…

Slowly onyx orbs opened, squinting slightly in the dull light of the lamp above him. He shifted under the covers slightly, trying to return feeling to his muscles when he heard a hard, serious voice from above him.

"About time you woke up teme. Care to join the party?"

End Chapter 25

Kaliea: Hi! Been a while huh? Baaaad writer's block let me tell ya. Thank goodness I managed to make it through this chapter unfortunately that means that now I just have to go and work on the next one. Goody.

Review Answers:

Skanna-Sakura-Haruo: Thank you! I'm glad you liked it!

Onna Ooji: Mayyybe. I'm not tellin. Besides, Hikari is about to have a baby and he is going to have an element to. Though which one you'll have to find out later.

Sakura's Hope: I'll try my best but I am making no promises. Keep reviewing!

Shadow: Like I told Sakura's Hope, I'll do my best but I promise nothing.

Haku-sasukelover: Me too, lol.

fRenZ4EveR: Actually she can, she just doesn't know that. However this will be explained better at a later date.

Tears like Crystals: Well, it wasn't Sakura watching him but something happened anyway. That's almost as good right?

Jays Arravan: The baby will be fine, that I promise. His parents on the other hand…

So-kun: Sorry it wasn't as soon as you most likely hoped but an update is an update right? (begins to sweat) right?

Sakura's Hope: Yes I know, and finding that out greatly irritated me. How was I supposed to make this work if her blood type was compatible with everyone else's? It was very vexing. So, I changed her blood type. To what though, I'm not sure. I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.

sharingan-x-blossom: Uhh, I dunno, are you? Anywho, I'm glad you liked the chapter, it was a killer of a filler though.

Danny-171984: She has to make up for her lack of physical abilities somehow so why not make her overly intelligent? Not Shikamaru smart of course but she can certainly give Sakura a run for her money…and then take it all. ;P

Dragon Man 180: I am not saying anything, and I am definitely not telling that Kane has the ability to 'disappear'. Nope. Definitely not saying anything.

A Crazy Girl of Many Names: Thanks, and I must say that hunting has so far been the bane of my existence. Fortunately I have found the school I wish to attend.

Shinobi Darkbeak: I'll try my best!

kellyvan5543: A boy, as for his name that is absolutely confidential. Coughkanecough ;). Thanks for the review.

edakumi-sama: I'll try, though I doubt it will be very soon at all.

Kaliea: Thanks so much for your reviews! In other news, I'm trying to get my parents to let me go to the Matsuri-con and if I succeed I am planning to dress up as Hikari. So, as fair warning to all of you who will be there dressed up as Itachi, prepare to be glomped, glared at, and yelled at for your betrayal of Konoha and then glomped some more cause I will be perfectly in character; including the ditzy rambling that she tends to do just a tad bit more then from time to time. Ja ne!