Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto and its characters. M rated scenes and proofreading credits goes to Shirahane Aikawa, thanks a lot to her help and kindly read her stories here in this site as well.
Chapter XLIV
Sitting in his throne Toneri amusedly watches the three uninvited shinobi's.
"Toneri-sama should we do something about them?" One of his follower asked him.
Instead of answering Toneri's mouth twitch upwards, "No…let them be…" he said as his blue pupils darken in shade, "The fun is just beginning."
Sasuke groaned pain woke him up he grumbled underneath his breath before lifting himself up (Ignoring the pain he feels on the side of his stomach)
"Why did you do this oniichan…" Sasuke whipped his body backwards only for his eyes to widen in shock,
In front him is his nine year old self in tears while tugging on his sleeves.
"Why…oniichan…" the boy said while his finger pointing on something. His eyes follow the direction he's pointing to see a fresh trail of blood on to the ground.
His parents, his relatives all the people he knows…dead…
"This is…" Sasuke's voice wavered.
"Why did you do this oniichan!" Sasuke turned to face the child but only to be surprise again when the child become his sixteen year old self.
"I hate you!" his sixteen year old self pushes him down forcefully making him look at the pool of blood beside him only to make him shock when he saw his reflection in it. He wasn't himself his reflection is Itachi.
"What the hell...?"
But then another voice snapped him out of his thoughts..
"Why Sasuke-kun?" Sasuke watch in shock as his former self became Hinata.
"You said you love me…"
"Yes I love you…"
"But then why did you let me get hurt?"
"W-What I…" just then blood drips down his pale cheeks shock he look up to see blood seeping through Hinata's head down to her beautiful face.
"No…" Sasuke shook his head, this is not true this is just a nightmare, "Hinata!"
"Wake up you asshole Sasuke-teme!" With that Sasuke's eyes open for the second time as a painful blow landed on his stomach depriving him of air for a few seconds.
"Okay that wake him up!" Naruto said like he was proud of his work.
"Damn you usuratonkachi what did you just-!" Sasuke said annoyed of the predicament Naruto just put him through. (But was seriously grateful Naruto woke him up from the Genjutsu)
"Shut it Sasuke-teme you were trap inside the Genjutsu and you were not waking up so I have to do something before you die in it! At least be grateful I saved your ass!" Naruto huffed in annoyance. "But why is that you can't get out of the Genjutsu I mean you're expert in that field you have the kekkei genkai for that so why can't break the jutsu yourself?" Naruto asked curiously.
"Toneri's power especially his genjutsu is divine anything happens in it your brain will take it as real and if you die in the jutsu you will die in real world." Shin said without making an eye contact with Naruto and Sasuke.
Naruto paled, "T-That's scary…" he commented, remembering his fair share of genjutsu trap (courtesy of Toneri too)
Sasuke stood up sighing before he started walking slow calculating steps, "I…thank you Naruto…" he said quietly.
"Huh? What did you say Sasuke?"
Sasuke look away (Annoyed) but a blush creep down on his pale cheeks, "N-Nothing let's just go…we wasted enough time already." He said walking ahead of the two.
"Hey wait Sasuke come on say that again!" Naruto said following the raven leaving Shin to follow them.
"Shut up dobe I'm not repeating myself."
Using genjutsu against the strong willed Naruto, Sasuke and Shin brought a searing pain in his eyes and a massive headache as evident by the veins near his temple that bulged after not using the said technique in a long time. Toneri closed his eyes covering them with his hands hoping that the pain will quickly subside but no avail for the pain is increasing by the minute.
"Argh!" He wailed in pain loud enough to be heard throughout his throne room.
Hinata who was walking along the castle grounds with Rin and Sayoko, heard Toneri's cries of pain.
"Hinata-san?" Rin asked raising her head when Hinata suddenly stopped from wheeling her wheel chair.
"Can you hear it?"
"Hear what?" The young raven girl asked in curiosity for she isn't hearing anything aside from the footsteps coming from Hinata and Sayoko.
"Toneri-san…he's screaming in pain. Sayoko-san kindly bring Rin back to her room, I'll check on Toneri-san." Hinata said to the lady companion of Rin and searched for Toneri and check on him.
Although Hinata doesn't like Toneri for taking her away from her husband and locked her in his castle, he didn't treat her as his prisoner. He allowed her to roam freely along with Rin in his castle, provided her with anything she wants and showed genuine concern towards her when she got weak from lack of nourishment she's taking after knowing Toneri's master plan and even let her see Sasuke even for a short time.
Since he's nothing but kind to her, Hinata thought she owes Toneri somehow and would return it now by helping him through his pain.
When Hinata reached the throne room and opened the massive door entrance she called his name, "Toneri-san?"
He was surprised she found him when he hasn't brought her to his throne room yet.
"Hinata-hime." He called acknowledging her presence even when he is still in pain and can't see her.
Hinata walked towards him in his throne seeing him covering his eyes with his hands, his body leaning forward and beads of sweat trickles his forehead.
"I heard you screaming in pain, are you hurt?" She asked with concern.
"No." He lied to avoid her from worrying and prevent her from asking questions as to why he is in pain.
She knew he was lying for he wouldn't be screaming in pain if he wasn't in pain and the way he protectively covers his eyes with his hands only shows where he is hurting.
"Please remove your hands from your eyes and let me heal you." She said stuttering nervously.
Toneri removes his hand from covering his eyes but kept his eyes tightly shut.
Hinata saw the bulging veins in his temples the way an active byakugan looks like but also saw reddening underneath his eyes. Performing necessary seals she uses the mystical palm technique and places her now blue colored hands to his eyes.
The cold feeling coming from Hinata's hands through his eyes helped soothe him from the pain he is feeling, and when the pain was gone he held her hands with his and opened his eyes.
"Thank you Hinata." Toneri said smiling genuinely it has been long since someone took care of him that he was happy his hime healed him.
Immediately Hinata withdraw her hands from his hold and turned around avoiding his gaze, "It is my thanks for letting me see Sasuke-kun."
He clicked his tongue out of jealousy and anger when Hinata mentioned her husband, "I'll walk you back to your room before I retreat back to my room."
"It is-"
"I insist." He said in his authoritative voice and pulled Hinata along with him.
After walking continuously for hours in the snowy mountains, the trio finally reached a cave covered by a massive door with the Otsutsuki clan symbol marked on it.
"Let me open this for you." Naruto said enthusiastically with a readied rasenggan in his hand.
Sasuke places a hand on top of Naruto's shoulder, "Not so fast dobe, the door is rigged."
"He's right." Shin said as he places a hand on the door. "I'll open it with my Shinra Tensei, stay back."
When Shin destroyed the door a loud growl and thundering footsteps were heard accompanied by ground shaking.
"It's Toneri's golem, prepare to defend yourselves!" Shin warned.
As soon as Shin warned them, Naruto summoned Kurama to deal with the golem.
"Finish your unsettled score Kurama!" He said to his kyuubi patting his head before leaping off.
The kyuubi growled and prepared to face the golem, however as soon as the golem came into view walking underneath it and flying above it are Toneri's puppets carrying different kinds of weapons.
Naruto looked at his two friends who are now holding their swords.
"Come get some!" Naruto screamed before changing into his kyuubi mode and cloned himself into a hundred Naruto's.
"Behind them is Toneri's castle, do you think you can handle this many opponents Sasuke?" Shin asked challenging the last Uchiha.
Glaring at the rinnegan user for challenging him, Sasuke summoned his hawk and jumped on top of it going directly to Toneri's puppets that are flying above the golem riding puppet doves.
"They are so many, does this have no end?" Naruto complained as he easily disposes the never ending number of his opponents.
"Just aim for their chest." Shin answered as he busies himself with his opponents.
Even if they are hitting their opponents at their chests new numbers of opponents are still coming at them.
"Naruto, distract the enemies away from me while I prepare..." Sasuke screamed from above (While conjuring up some chakra to his palm) and used his Chidori Senbon to dispose of his enemies in the air and dived his hawk to the ground while being covered in Chidori Current to electrocute the enemies around the area where his hawk landed.
"Got it!" Naruto answered and summoned Gamakichi.
"You called for me?" The big toad said boringly and puffed smoke from his cigarette.
"Yes, protect Sasuke as he prepares for a Kirin attack." Naruto told his friend toad.
Gamakichi spits his cigarette away and attacks the coming enemies towards Sasuke with his Fire Release: Flame Bullet.
Kurama who finally got the upper hand over the golem punched its rock hard face with his fists that doesn't seem to be in anyway affected.
"So you are tough? How about this?!" Kurama growled in anger and lifted off the golem and gathered all negative chakra coming from the fallen puppets and positive chakra coming from Naruto in his mouth ingesting it first before releasing a condensed ball from his mouth directly towards the golem.
"Tailed Beast Ball!"
The attack destroyed the golem and created a huge crater underneath the land where it hit.
Shin stopped from attacking when he heard a thunder roll and looked up at the sky seeing it turned completely into black.
"Naruto, Shin stay away at a good distance from here!" Sasuke screamed at his teammates who used amaterasu he hit directly at the sky to produce a storm.
Naruto un-summoned Kurama and Gamakichi and pulled Shin at a good distance away from the storm Sasuke created.
"Kirin!"
A loud roar of thunder is heard as a dragon shaped lighting appeared out of the storm, under Sasuke's chakra control the dragon landed at the ground with a bang completely destroying all of Toneri's puppets with the powerful jutsu.
Toneri watched everything that happened in his room through his crystal ball admired Sasuke's skill and power.
"Interesting, you may have a chance against me Uchiha." Toneri said and smirked darkly.
Sasuke was on his knees covering his left rinnesharingan eye that bled from using too much amaterasu to produce a storm big enough to engulf all of Toneri's puppets.
"Hey teme are you alright?" Naruto asked placing a hand on top of Sasuke's shoulder.
"Yes." He said weakly, he used too much chakra already from the techniques he used in succession.
"We should camp out for the night for you to recover." Shin suggested while looking at the destruction Sasuke left.
Sasuke stands up on his feet and grabs Shin's collar and said seethingly, "We won't camp and waste time."
"You pissed me off…" Shin said coldly.
"The feeling is mutual." Sasuke growled in anger but Shin's next move got him off guard as a heavy blow hit his stomach rendering him unconscious.
"Sleep for a while."
Sasuke was glaring coldly and was gripping Shin's neck tightly the instant he woke up the following morning. Holding him back last night and knocking him unconscious.
"Sasuke, what are you doing?" Naruto asked panicking when he saw what Sasuke is doing and forced the two apart.
"You know why I am angry Naruto and I don't care even if you consider him as your friend." Sasuke snarled while continuing to glare at Shin.
Naruto having enough of Sasuke's flippant attitude since they left Konoha together finally snapped at his best friend and punched him with just enough force to put some sense into him.
Sasuke who wasn't expecting Naruto's fist was not able to evade the punch that hit his face which is not strong enough to put some damage to him but he was taken aback by what his best friend did.
"We are on the same team with the same goal here Sasuke-teme! Your wife may be taken from you but Hinata-chan is also my friend…a special friend of mine. While Shin's sister Rin is also there with her in that castle being imprisoned by Toneri. (Naruto scratches the back of his head out of frustration on Sasuke's attitude) You are not the only one who has someone important taken away by Toneri we are as frustrated and mad as you are but we are keeping our calm unlike you who practically hates the world now."
"Naruto you don't have to defend me from him, besides if I am in his situation I will also be like him." Shin said who broke his silence not wanting Naruto to defend him from Sasuke's cold treatment of him.
"I am not just defending you Shin, but Sasuke must know that he is not in this journey alone that he can rely on us to help him." Naruto said crossing his arms.
A man of few words Sasuke didn't say anything but he's grateful for the two of them helping him in his journey. Naruto who knew him so well knows that Sasuke listened to He says and placed his arms around Sasuke's shoulder that the raven instantly shrugged off.
"Sasuke will always be Sasuke." Naruto thought with a smile.
"This doesn't change anything." Hinata said while clutching her head that hurt after seeing too many memories of the fallen Otsutsuki clan when Toneri brought her to the room of the Otsutsuki Clan Archives.
"I am not asking you to change your nindo or anything I just want you to understand that I am not the villain here." Toneri said calmly and placed a hand on Hinata's shoulder.
"But still, it is not right to destroy mankind just because you are following Hamura Otsutsuki's celestial decree." Hinata argued.
"Doesn't matter for I will rebuild the world perfectly this time."
"No…I will not allow it."
Toneri was about to say something but he felt the intruders arriving in his castle.
"It seems that your husband is foolish enough to think he can take you away from me." Toneri said smirking.
"Sasuke-kun's here?" Hinata's face blushed when she heard from Toneri that her husband is already here for her.
"I'm sorry Hinata hime but I can't allow you to return to him." He said as he produces a green orb in his hand hitting Hinata's chest with it and entraps her soul in a stain glass portrait of her inside his room.
Toneri carried the unconscious body of Hinata in his arms and set his maze active with his tenseigan.
Author's Note:Thanks for the reviews, follows, and favorites and to those reading SH. Thanks for the 300 plus reviews that makes a humble fan fic writer like me happy.