Freedom. Chapter 14: Betrayal.
(Note: Here's yet another sad chapter. Enjoy.)
Disclaimer:
I do not own Braveheart or Naruto. Braveheart belongs to Mel Gibson, and Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto. No copyright infringement intended. All copyrights are reserved.
Previously on Chapter 13 of "Freedom"...
The knight dismounted off of his horse, threw the broken lance on the ground, and walked towards the unconscious William.
However, William's eyes snapped open, and noticed that the knight was coming towards him. Abruptly, William grabbed the knight and flipped him over, and was about to unsheathe his knife to slit his throat.
However, as William was about to slit the knight's throat, Kakashi, Naruto and Sakura heard a man's voice screaming under the helmet.
"Wait. That voice... it sounds so... familiar...," Sakura told herself.
Then, as soon as William removed the knight's helmet, Team Kakashi and William were shocked to discover...
That the knight that appeared before them...
...Was none other than Robert The Bruce.
Now...
Chapter 14: Betrayal.
The expressions on Kakashi, Naruto, Sakura and William's faces were full of shock and disbelief. They felt as if their hearts stopped beating, as they were trying to comprehend on what just happened. "Robert... how could you?" Naruto asked in a whisper. "Is this your way... of uniting the clans?"
William began to back away from Robert.
"How could you, Robert?!" Naruto screamed. "Isn't William like a brother to you?! We had faith in you, and this is the thanks we get in return?! At first, we think you're going to fight alongside us in order to beat the English, and then, suddenly, you backstab us by joining Longshanks! Man... some friend you are...," tears burned in Naruto's eyes.
William fell to the ground, as he also had tears in his eyes.
"Did you ever even think about William's feelings, and wondered how he would have felt if you joined Longshanks?! Not only did you betray us, but so did Mornay and Lochlan! How do you think we feel right now, Robert?! Just answer me! Why would you do this?! I thought we trusted you. But now... I don't know what to believe anymore...,"
Robert just sat there in silence, speechless by Naruto's words.
"Why, Robert? Why?" William was thinking the same way. Like Naruto, he felt as if he wanted to yell at Robert, and to maybe slit his throat for betraying him.
"You know... this isn't the first time that Kakashi-sensei, Sakura and I have been betrayed by someone," Naruto said as William looked at him. "A long time ago, our teammate and close friend Sasuke Uchiha betrayed Konoha, our ninja village. He went to an evil man called Orochimaru for power, just so Sasuke could kill his brother Itachi for massacring their family, the Uchiha Clan. I fought so hard to get Sasuke back. I even kept my promise to Sakura to bring him back home, but yet, he left us," Naruto began to cry.
"Naruto...," William thought to himself, as if he wanted to hug Naruto.
"Robert, do you even know the meaning of loyalty and friendship? Loyalty is when you trust someone with all your heart. Loyalty is when you have a friend right at your side, letting you know that everything will be okay, and that you never... ever... turn your back on them. But true friendship is for people who accept you for who you are. They're like family to you, and make you feel like you're important to them. You know, Robert, if you would have been on our side and not Longshanks', then none of this would have ever happened."
Then... rage and hatred appeared on Naruto's face as he shouted:
"This is all your fault! I hate you, Robert The Bruce! I wish you and William never even met!"
That statement that Naruto said to Robert made his heart shatter into pieces, as he felt guilty for what he had done. He was torn on whether he would listen to his father, Robert The Elder by fighting alongside the English in order to become the King Of Scotland, or to fight alongside William, and to see what it's really like to fight the English for freedom.
"Naruto. That's enough," Kakashi interrupted Naruto who looked at him as William noticed that the English soldiers were running towards him, laid down back on the grass, ready to give up. "Look. All that matters is that Lady Tsunade said we have to keep William alive no matter what. Focus on the mission at hand."
Naruto, Sakura and Kakashi focused their attention on William.
"Naruto... Sakura... Kakashi...," William managed to say weakly.
Tears began to form in Sakura's eyes.
"William...," she voiced quietly.
"You were... the best thing... that ever happened to me. I don't think I'm going to make it," William replied.
"No! Don't say that, William! You're not going to die! You can't do this to us! Don't leave us, you hear me?!" Naruto determined with panic in his voice.
William looked at a guilt-ridden Robert.
"Robert. In case I die... promise me... that you will look after Sakura, Naruto and Kakashi... promise me..."
With that, William slipped into unconsciousness.
"No. Oh, William. Please wake up," Sakura begged William.
Robert ran to William, and tried to wake him up.
"Get up! Get up!" Robert cried.
Luckily, Stephen on horseback saw Robert, who shouted to him:
"Get them out of here!"
Kakashi, Naruto and Sakura got on their horses, while Robert gave William's body to Stephen and put him on his (Stephen) horse.
Stephen and Team Kakashi stared at Robert for a quick second.
"Go!" Robert demanded as Stephen and Team Kakashi rode off to safety with an unconscious William with the English in tow.
Afterward, Robert was on the field, alone. Then, he noticed a handkerchief on the ground which was engraved with a thistle on it. He got up off the ground, walked to it, and picked it up. At that moment, Robert realized that this was no ordinary handkerchief. It was a thistle embroidery that Murron gave to William at their wedding.
Naruto's words echoed in Robert's mind:
"I wish you and William never even met!"
"Naruto... William... I'm so sorry." Inside, Robert was hurt and heartbroken after realizing what he just did.
Later that night...
Back at William's campsite, some of the surviving soldiers in William's army were tending to their wounds.
Meanwhile, Sakura was inside of William's tent healing him.
Kakashi walked out of the tent, and saw an anxious Naruto waiting to hear the news of William's recovery.
As soon as Naruto noticed Kakashi, he ran up to him.
"Well? How is he, Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked.
Kakashi gave him a smile, and replied:
"Don't worry, Naruto. William's going to be okay."
Naruto sighed in relief.
"Thank goodness."
Then, Kakashi became sad.
"However... there is something I want to ask you, Naruto."
"What is it?" Naruto wondered.
"Who is this "Murron" that William keeps speaking of?"
Then, Naruto remembered William mumbling Murron's name in his sleep before he met Isabelle and the Battle Of Falkirk.
"I'm not sure, but I remember Sakura and I were hearing him say that name in his sleep before we met Isabelle," Naruto confirmed.
"Well, it turns out you are correct, Naruto," Kakashi responded to which Naruto perked his head up to look at Kakashi.
"Huh?"
"It appears that ever since we've reached William's campsite after the Battle Of Falkirk, he's been mumbling her name in his sleep."
"Does Sakura know about this?" Naruto asked.
"Yes," Kakashi turned his head to the left to look at Sakura tending to William's wounds. "She's over there healing him right now."
After she was done healing William, Sakura started talking to him while he was still unconscious.
"Hey. William? I don't know if you can hear me, but... stay with us. We need you now more than ever. William. I know we haven't known you that long, but... I feel like I've known you forever. In fact, when I first saw you, you changed my life forever. You taught me to believe in freedom, and to stand up for what I believe in. Whenever I'm with you, you make my heart race. Ever since Sasuke left, although a part of me still loved him, I almost feel like you were the one that's been with me longer than he has, and I've... never felt this away about anyone before. Look, William. What I'm trying to say is that... I..."
As Sakura was about to tell William her feelings for him, Naruto and Kakashi came inside of his tent.
"How is he?" Kakashi inquired as Sakura turned her head to face.
"He's still not waking up," she murmured.
"Just give him time. He's still recovering from his injuries," Kakashi told her.
Then, as soon as he said that, they heard a groan.
Team Kakashi looked in William's direction, and realized that he was starting to come to.
"Where am I?" he asked, looking carefully at his surroundings.
"You're back at your tent," Kakashi said.
"William!" Naruto exclaimed with a smile on his face.
"William...," Sakura voiced as tears were about to form in her eyes. He slowly began to rise up, and looked at Team Kakashi.
"William!" Sakura got closer to William's face and embraced him tightly.
"Hey, William! Welcome back, buddy!" Naruto stated with a grin.
Then, he noticed that Sakura was starting to sob while hugging William.
At that moment, Naruto started to remember something that Sakura told him when they got to the battlefield at Falkirk before the war with the Scots and English started again.
Flashback...
While the Scots and Team Kakashi were pouring tar and oil on the battlefield for the English to fall in their traps, Sakura walked up to Kakashi, Naruto, Hamish, Campbell, Morrison and Stephen.
"Um, Kakashi-sensei, Naruto, Hamish, Campbell, Morrison, Stephen. I need to talk to you," she stated.
"What is it, Sakura?" Naruto wondered.
"Sakura, can't you see we're in the middle of something?" Hamish growled in annoyance.
"I know, but look. Just hear me out. I need to talk to all of you alone... without William," Sakura aforementioned.
"Okay," Stephen nodded his head as he, Kakashi, Hamish, Campbell, Morrison and Naruto followed Sakura to another part of the battlefield. Meanwhile, William was helping the rest of the Scots prepare for battle.
"Now then. What did you want to talk to us about, Sakura?" Campbell asked.
"Well, this might be crazy, but..." Sakura replied as she said something that shocked everyone.
"Sakura. What did you just say?" Naruto quizzed in confusion.
"Naruto. I said... I think I'm falling in love with William," Sakura answered.
Everybody was speechless.
Normally, Stephen would say, "Ha! I knew you were in love with William!" to Sakura, but this time he didn't do that. He kept calm, and just remained silent.
"Naruto. Remember that time when William told Robert to unite the clans?"
The words "Unite us! Unite the clans!" as spoken by William rang in Naruto's ears.
Then, Sakura began to speak again.
"That day, you asked me about my feelings for William. I thought a lot about it, and it turns out you were right. I do love him."
Naruto put his hands on Sakura's shoulders.
"Sakura, we're just about to go to war with the English, and now you're already telling us that you're in love with William?"
Sakura scoffed.
"What's wrong with that?"
"Look. Don't you remember the shinobi rule? To never show your feelings during a mission, and to stay focused?"
Sakura took Naruto's hands off her shoulders.
"Of course I do! Just hear me out!" she shouted.
"Look. The reason why I'm starting to have feelings for William is because Sasuke just left Konoha and broke my heart. Instead of telling me that he loved me, he called me "annoying." But William... he made me feel like I was somebody. He never insulted me, and he's always been so kind to me. You could say I started falling in love with him after we won our battle with the English at Stirling," Sakura held out a clenched fist in front of her. "Every single word that William said during his speech about freedom, I believed him. I know you all did too," she released her grasp on her fist. "I know it's so sudden, and Kakashi-sensei, Naruto and I haven't known you all that long. But... I think I realized my love for him when he told Isabelle that she'd be a queen one day, and that she'd open her eyes to the world around her, and it was also because I felt so sorry for him when he started talking about how his wife and family were all killed by the English. Sasuke just keeps breaking my heart, but Naruto, like you, William has also been there for me. No. You've all been there for me... when I needed your help. I truly thank you for that."
Sakura smiled at them.
"Does William know about this?" Stephen inquired as a worried look appeared on Sakura's face.
"No. But please don't tell him. He can never know, because if I do tell him now, he'll never speak to me again and get mad at me. What if he kicks me out of the army? Promise you won't tell him."
"Tell me what?" came the voice of William who appeared behind the group.
"Oh. I was just telling everyone about our plans for the battle," Sakura fibbed with a nervous chuckle while smiling.
"You do know that's my job, right? After all, you weren't the one who gave the freedom speech at Stirling now, did you, Sakura?" William glared at her.
"No," Sakura shook her head sadly.
"Then get ready for battle," William demanded.
Sakura nodded.
"Yes, sir."
End of flashback...
Naruto remembered when Sakura hugged Sasuke after he awoke from his coma during his battle with Itachi who did the Tsukoyomi on him. At that moment, Naruto realized of how much Sakura really loved William.
"Oh William," Sakura wept. "I thought I lost you."
William hugged Sakura.
"Shh. It's alright, Sakura. I'm here now. It's okay."
William was about to stand up.
"No! You musn't push yourself, William! You're still recovering from your injuries!" Sakura tried to help Willliam.
"Where are the others? And Robert?" William asked, looking around the campsite.
"Well, apparently, Morrison died from his injuries. As for Campbell, he's with Hamish. However, I don't think Campbell is going to make it," Kakashi replied, sadly.
"And Robert?" William questioned.
"He's gone. When Stephen came to come get us, Robert lifted up your body on Stephen's horse, and the five of us escaped the English while you were unconscious. I'm not sure where Robert went though," Naruto stated.
"I see," William understood.
"Wait. If I try to heal Campbell, then he'll be okay, right?" Sakura questioned.
"You can try, but like I said before, Sakura, I don't think he's going to make it," Kakashi repeated himself.
And so, Team Kakashi and William went to join Stephen, Campbell, Hamish and the rest of the Scots at the campsite.
While Sakura was healing Campbell, Stephen brought some water in a bowl to Hamish to try and heal him.
Campbell began to cough.
"I'm dying. Let me be," he managed to say weakly as Team Kakashi, Hamish, Stephen and William all looked at him.
Hamish shook his head in disbelief.
"No, you're going to live."
"I've lived long enough to live free; proud to see you become the man you are," Campbell muttered to Hamish.
"Campbell... you were like... a second grandfather to me," Naruto added as he looked at William. "And you were also like... a father to William."
With a smile on his face, the last words that Campbell spoke to them were:
"I'm a happy man."
By that moment, Sakura stopped healing Campbell, and everyone realized that he had passed on.
Hamish began to mourn for his father, while Naruto and Sakura hugged Hamish as tears also appeared in their eyes.
It was an emotional day for all of us.
William had an army of 6,000 Scottish men, while Longshanks had an army of 15,000 men. I knew that there was no way we could beat the English.
Over 2,000 Scots were killed at the Battle Of Falkirk along with 1,000 English soldiers.
However, our victory was not successful as it was last time.
Then, in the midst of it all, Robert betrayed us.
After Campbell and Morrison died, Naruto, Kakashi-sensei and I felt like we were reliving the moment when the Third Hokage was killed by Orochimaru at the time when he attacked Konoha five years ago. Many other Konoha ninja lost their lives against the Sound and Sand ninja.
At that time, Gaara was evil. But because of Naruto's ability to change people, Gaara no longer became the murderer that we all knew. Because he, along with his siblings Kankuro and Temari and the rest of the Sand ninja back in Suna changed their ways while becoming allies with the Leaf ninja in Konoha.
However, when it came to Team Kakashi protecting William, I tried to focus on the mission at hand, but I couldn't hide my feelings any longer.
So, that night, Naruto and I mourned the loss of Campbell, who was such a close friend to us, that he was like a grandfather to Naruto and me, as well as a father figure to William.
(Note: Every time I watch the scene in "Braveheart" where Robert The Bruce betrays William, I almost can't help but sympathize with William and what he's going through. It's like, you can tell on the excpression on his face, in his mind he's thinking, "Why?!" This may seem kind of odd, but whenever I heard the word "betrayal", the first thing that comes to my mind is when in the Bible, Judas betrayed Jesus. But religious stuff aside, although I was kind of mad at Robert for betraying William, there is a part of me that can't help but feel sorry for him (Robert) because he's so torn up inside. In a way, he's kind of forced to choose between his father and William. But in my mind, I'm glad that Robert followed his heart. Hence the part where he tells his father (when referring to William), "I don't want to lose heart! I want to believe... as he does. I will never be on the wrong side again." It's so heartwrenching, which is why in a way, Sasuke reminds me of Robert (who is another one of my favorite "Braveheart" characters). In my mind, William is Naruto, Robert is Sasuke, and either Sakura or Hinata is Isabelle, and either Sakura or Hinata is Murron. I guess Sakura would be Isabelle, while Hinata would be Murron. Anyway, I kind of wanted to give Naruto the spotlight when it came to him giving that speech to Robert about betrayal and about Sasuke. Don't think that William is the only one that's good at making speeches. Sorry if the chapter's kind of sad though, but I hope you all enjoyed it! Anyway, in the next chapter (Chapter 15), William and Sakura are going to have a moment together, so stay tuned! Read and review, please! :D)