Yo..

Welcome to another chapter of this arc, and I'm sure it will answer some of the questions you had since the past few chapters.

I'm glad you guys liked Mikasa's past and how she is one of the last few members of Yuki clan.

Enjoy the chapter.

Chapter 36

Mikasa Gaiden- The Fallen

Izumo ran quickly through the vast beaches of Miyasato island, sweat was dropping like a river from his forehead. The boy was worried, no he was scared.

"Tiger, what did Kurenai-san tell you?" asked Izumo quickly, as Genma who was also beside him looked away from Izumo.

"Give me a fucking answer, dammit!" cursed Rangiku frustratedly,

Rangiku was really nervous, the 3 soldiers had woken up a few minutes ago only to see Naruto's clones holding a giant barrier until they suddenly vanished with painful screams followed by giant explosions far away from their position. She knew what those explosions were, none of them could ever forget how dangerous tailed beast balls were. It only proved that the malicious chakra they had felt before being knocked out was from a Jinchuuriki, but who was strong enough to knock out so many blacklight members and other regular ninja?

She knew they were not as strong as Naruto, but they too had stood against the Four and Five Tails. But if they were so easily subdued then it only meant one thing.

They were currently in Kiri's territory, so that ruled out the possibility of Eight Tails (Gyuuki) as they knew he was defending Kumo against Jiraiya's charge.

Taki had the Seven Tails (Chomei) but they were staying out of the war, and their female Jinchuuriki was in the village.

The Nibi (Two Tails), Yonbi (Four Tails), Gobi (Five Tails) had been killed along with their Jinchuuriki in this war. The One Tails (Ichibi) was in Suna, as they too were staying out of this war.

That only left the Six Tails and the Nine Tails who were both missing since the beginning of this war. Even if the Six Tails Jinchuuriki had returned to protect his homeland (Kiri) she doubted he would be powerful enough to take out so many of them, and corner Naruto.

If her assumption was true, then...

And the dishearted look in Genma's eyes did show her that something bad had happened with Mikasa's company. It was no secret that Genma liked Mikasa since Boot camp, and right now he looked miserable which suggested that Mikasa...

Her thoughts shifted towards Naruto, in the past few days he had done so much for her. She cared about him in ways more than a friend would, and she knew that she would be lying to herself if she denied this fact.

She clearly remembered what had happened between them before they embarked on this mission...

(Flashback: Few Hours Ago)

Rain heavily fell from the sky as a boy could be seen standing on the edge of a ship. His eyes were currently fixed on an island, a few more ships could be seen beside the boy which also were full of ninjas.

The sound of light footsteps could be heard as a young blonde girl stood behind the boy, her eyes were worriedly staring at the person in front of her.

"Be careful, Naruto"

She was surprised when Naruto stepped down and walked towards her, his face was still hidden by a dark black mask but his piercing dark black eyes intimidated her even today.

Rangiku gave him a warm smile which he returned gladly, she noticed him looking around and after a few moments a satisfied look appeared in his eyes.

"Say, Rangiku...you always wanted to see my face beneath this mask, didn't you?" asked Naruto happily, as a light blush came on her face.

"You still remember that?"

He chuckled a little when he saw how embarrassed she was, he clearly remembered how she desperately wanted to see his face in the Boot camp. It seemed like a century too him, a lot had changed since then but he could never deny the fact that she was as beautiful as ever and with each passing day her beauty was rivaling Mikasa, and most of all she had a good heart.

A heart which had forgiven him for failing his duty of protecting his friend and her lover.

She saw his fists being clenched tightly, she was further shocked when a lone tear slipped from his eyes.

"What's wrong, Naruto?" asked Rangiku worriedly, in all these years that she had known him she had never seen him cry.

Her delicate hands gently grasped his face and wiped his tears, but this proved that he was a person too. Behind the identity of Commander Phoenix, was a boy who was blaming himself for Armin's death. Rangiku had seen how lonely Naruto was since Armin's death,

"I killed him."

His voice was so weak and fragile right now, a few more tears came in his eyes as he tried to get away from her grasp...but she didn't let him go, she couldn't let him go.

"I told you his death was not your fault. You don't need to punish yourself every day," said Rangiku soothingly, as he got even more dishearted.

"You are too kind, Rangiku. I swore to protect my friends, I swore to protect my brothers and my commander. But I failed every single time, I couldn't protect my team (Hisana, Bird, Eagle, Owl), nor Commander Fox, and not even Armin. I know how everyone looks up to me, but I'm just trash who couldn't even save a friend." said Naruto shamefully, as she shook her head in disapproval.

"Is that what you think of yourself? Naruto, you are not trash. The fact that you care so much about Armin proves how much close you were to him. He loved you like a brother. You lead us to victory at Shanxi and Shuri Castle, you gave hope where there was none. You fought for us, you cared for us..." said Rangiku pleadingly, as she looked straight into his dark black eyes.

"I don't know, Armin died because of me and I'm prepared to die in order to atone for that sin"

"Do you think Armin would want that?" asked Rangiku flatly, as he averted his eyes from her piercing gaze.

"Maybe not, the truth is I failed. I failed as a son, I failed as a soldier and most of all I failed as a friend. I should have died..." said Naruto miserably,

SLAP

He was shocked when Rangiku gave him a hard slap on his face, and one look in her dark bluish-gray colored eyes showed him that she didn't agree with him.

"How can you talk so cowardly?" asked Rangiku angrily, just when would he stop blaming himself?

Naruto looked in her fierce eyes and saw how much she believed in him and it broke his heart. He admired Rangiku a lot, she was so brave and kind. She was not the strongest ninja in the company, but she possessed something far more greater.

A loving heart.

His respect for her had increased tremendously, even after Armin's death she didn't lose herself and kept on fighting for her friends. While he...

"I'm not as strong as you are..."

"So you cannot live if you're not strong? Wrong. Living and fighting for your friends shows that you're strong, never ever talk of dying and leaving me alone. You mean a lot to me..." said Rangiku tearfully, as a few tears escaped from her eyes.

She was surprised when he lifted his hands and gently wiped her tears away as their bodies pressed tightly against each other. Her hands gently removed his face mask, but her eyes were still fixed on his loving gaze.

His hot breath touched her lips as their faces neared each other, and soon she felt something soft on her lips..

"Commander Phoenix!"

She was surprised when he quickly broke the kiss as Izumo came over the deck along with Kurenai. Her cheeks went bright red as she realized just what had happened between them, it was wrong but at the same time it was also the most passionate thing she had felt in her entire life.

"Naruto, you..."

(Flashback end)

"1st company has secured the northern side of the island with 3rd company's help. But..." said Genma sadly, bringing Rangiku out of her thoughts.

"What happened, Tiger?" asked Rangiku worriedly,

"They encountered Kisame Hoshikage, and Weasel (Mikasa) fought him head on along with Snake (Anko), Deer (Shizune) and Wolf (Iwashi)"

Izumo was shocked when he heard those words, his friends fought with an S-ranked ninja. This was bad, even if they were powerful he doubted they could take on Kisame himself.

"Are they alright? Is anyone injured?" asked Izumo worriedly,

"They defeated and killed him, but all of them are badly injured. Kurenai-san tells me the Hokage himself came and took them to the main medical station.." said Genma disheartedly,

"The Fourth..." said Rangiku in shock, just how did he came here?

"He really saved us again, Tiger (Genma) they will be safe. Phoenix (Naruto) protected us again, he gave Mikasa the Fourth's Hirashin Kunai which he had received at the start of the war" explained Izumo briefly,

"How do you know this?" asked Rangiku curiously, as he gave her a sheepish smile.

"Well, Naruto does spill a lot of his personal problems with me...I'm his friend, after all" said Izumo happily, as a small smile came on her face.

Both of them were surprised when Genma suddenly stopped, they saw the boy looking in a certain direction and their eyes widened in shock when they saw someone lying on the sand.

Rangiku freezed in shock and fear, when she saw it was none other than Naruto himself.

Izumo couldn't believe his eyes when he saw his friend covered in blood along with a large hole in his chest. This couldn't be happening...

"NARUTO!"

Rangiku's scream broke both the boys from their stupor as the girl rushed towards her fallen friend. She quickly rushed towards his side as he looked at her weakly.

Without waiting for a second she started healing him, but the hole in his chest was just too big.

Genma quickly looked away in defeat as he saw his commander in such a state, he knew it was over for him now...

Izumo quickly placed Naruto's head in his lap, as his friend tried to give him a smile but instead coughed up a lot of blood.

"Don't talk, I'll heal you...Hang in there, you are going to be fine," said Rangiku desperately, as more and more tears dropped from her eyes.

"Not again, not again!"

Images of Armin's death started flashing in her mind again, this was not supposed to happen. She just couldn't lose him...

Naruto slowly raised his hand which Izumo grasped quickly, as both the boys looked at each other emotionally.

"Y-you...(cough)...k-know...what (cough)...to...do..." said Naruto painfully, as a lone tear slipped from Izumo's eyes.

"Hai...who did this to you, brother?" asked Izumo murderously, he would not let this go unanswered. The enemy was going to pay for this badly.

"Kyuubi..."

All 3 of them were terrified when he said that word, he went up against the Nine Tails? That explained everything, that malicious chakra they had felt before could only belong to the Kyuubi. So their Jinchuuriki had now turned traitor.

"Where is the Jinchuuriki? We'll make it pay in blood, brother" said Genma furiously, as Naruto shook his head weakly.

"No, secure (cough) this...island. Stick to the mission (cough)...you (cough) cannot...fight...her" said Naruto tiredly, as his vision started to darken.

"But-"

"That's an order!" said Naruto loudly, but he coughed up a lot of blood as Rangiku shot a harsh glare to the boys which instantly shut them up.

"Rangiku..."

"I'm right here, I'm right here...you will be fine, j-just...please don't give up," pleaded Rangiku tearfully, as a small smile came on his face.

His entire body was drenched in blood, his clothes were torn and they could see many holes in his hands and legs besides the one in his chest. There was a pool of blood beneath him and the light in his eyes was fading away with every passing second.

"Th-ank (cough) you...for...(cough)...everything..." said Naruto happily, as she desperately tried to heal the whole in his heart...but he knew there was nothing she could do now, it was already time.

"Don't talk, Baka (idiot)..." said Rangiku sobbingly, as she was not succeeding in healing his wounds.

Izumo watched painfully as his friend's breathing slowed drastically and his eyes started to close. He tightly grasped one of Naruto's hands to offer his friend comfort for the last time.

Genma knelt down beside his friend, as both of them looked each other in the eye. It was true that both of them shared different opinions, but they were comrades and there was no other soldier whom Genma respected more than Naruto.

"It was an honor to fight beside you," said Genma proudly, as a small tear came in his eye when he saw a weak smile appearing on Naruto's face.

"The honor was mine...asshole"

Rangiku's eyes widened in terror when his breathing stopped, as life vanished from his dark black eyes. She felt a terrible pain in her heart, her hands tried to pump his heart again and she quickly kissed him in order to pass air into his lungs.

Again

Again

Again

She was harshly stopped when Izumo grabbed her hand, as she gave him a tight slap on his face.

"No..."

Genma sadly watched as the girl tried again and again to bring the dead boy back to life, but it was already too late.

"He's dead, Rangiku..." said Izumo devastatingly, as the shaking girl shook her head stubbornly.

"You're lying, he's stronger than all of us...he can't die. I won't let him die!" said Rangiku passionately, her heart was not able to accept this fact. She just couldn't lose him, he had done so much for her...

Without another word she again started her CPR, but this time she started hitting his chest more harshly than before. Alas, the result was the same...

Izumo quickly came forward and wrapped her in a tight hug, she tried to struggle but he didn't let her go. After a few more moments her struggling stopped as she started weeping loudly.

Genma came forward and closed Naruto's eyes, he then took out a small cloth from his pouch and covered the body with it.

He activated his communication device which was placed on his ear, as he steeled his nerves. Ghost company had emerged victorious again, but this time the price was too high.

This victory was earned in blood.

"Blacklight command, this is Tiger from 1st company"

"Go ahead, Tiger. What's the status on the ground?" asked a stern voice, and it didn't take Genma a second to realize it was none other than the scum Baku.

"Miyasato islands have been captured, Commander. The enemies have been neutralized, and the missiles have been seized. The Konoha flag is now flying high on this island," said Genma flatly,

"You're late in accomplishing your task. The island should have been captured 3 hour ago...you disappoint me, soldier. And where the hell is your commander?" asked Baku disappointedly,

Genma had to use every ounce of his will power to prevent himself from cursing this scum, did this man have no respect for his soldiers?

Izumo shook his head firmly and signaled Genma to keep his calm, as he knew taking Baku head on without Naruto would be suicide. And they had suffered enough losses already.

"Apologies, Commander. But we ran into stiff resistance, we were up against Kisame Hoshikage and the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki" said Genma truthfully, and he heard a shocked gasp escaping from the old goat's throat.

"What did you say?" asked Baku in shock, this was great news...he could capture and bring the Kyuubi back to the village.

"Weasel (Mikasa) and her team have eliminated Kisame, but were heavily injured in the battle. Their chances of survival are very less..." said Genma sadly,

"It doesn't matter, they were expendable...though I'm surprised they took down Kisame. They were at least useful for once," said Baku nonchalantly, and Izumo had to use all his power to restrain Rangiku from grabbing the communication device.

He quickly put a hand on her mouth as she continued hurling curses at the despicable commander, even he was having trouble in controlling his feelings. But Naruto was dead now, and Mikasa's survival was also not certain. Ghost company had lost two of their most powerful ninja today, Naruto and Mikasa were the only ones who could take Baku head on but now everything had changed.

His friend lay dead on the sands of the beach, while the other was fighting for her life.

Genma noticed Izumo's expression and decided to get the conversation finished before things got out of control.

"Commander Phoenix went up against the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki, they fought fiercely but Phoenix was injured in the battle, while the Kyuubi has fled from the island." explained Genma briefly,

"Damn it, this was a golden opportunity for us to get the Kyuubi back. I should have known that brat was incapable for handling such a task...where is that fool?" asked Baku furiously, he was sure as hell going to punish the boy for this atrocity.

"He won't disappoint you further, Commander..." said Genma harshly,

"Why so?" asked Baku curiously,

"Commander Phoenix sacrificed his life to save his soldiers and fell in the line of duty"

Author's Notes: End of chapter.

I have also published a new NarutoXAnko story, it is called "The Survivors"

Feel free to check it out.