Destiny of the Cursed
Chapter 25: Friend or Foe
Tsunade couldn't help the smile that was shown in her exceptionally young face. It was a good day after all. Her council meetings went well, the elders weren't acting like asses and miraculously, there were no heavy piles of paperwork in her desk! "I'm in cloud nine!" She smirked, walking in a relaxed pace towards the kunoichi's room. Three knocks were sent to Katana's door. "Katana, I'm here for your final check-up!" she yelled enthusiastically from outside.
Minutes passed but no one responded from the room. 'Perhaps she's asleep? She was heavily sedated with painkillers last night…' Sighing, she took out a large ball of various keys. After what seemed like years for her, she finally found the fitting key. Tsunade pushed it in and turned the knob. The door squeaked in protest as she opened it wide. Golden rimmed irises scanned the white-tiled room.
The room smelled of cinnamon and fresh flowers. The bed was neatly made with the sheets folded but the patient was nowhere to be found. "Katana?" called out the master medic in confusion. Approaching the bedside, she found a letter tucked under the piles of roses and 'get well soon' cards and gifts.
It read: 'Dear Tsunade-sama, I went with Katana-chan. There's no need to worry. She's safe with me. And I'm pretty sure you'll kill her anyway when we get back. I'm sorry.
—Sakura'
The blond Sannin only rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Kids…" she grumbled, "so predictable." Getting out of the room, she headed for her office for some sake, knowing that anytime now; ANBU were going to report about tied up guards by the gate.
The afternoon sun was high, illuminating the forest floor. Four hours had passed and still no sign of Uchiha Sasuke. Evident frustration was scribbled on Katana's face. She suddenly stopped in her tracks and groaned, feeling her head throb again. "You idiot of a girl!" hissed her curse, "why won't you stop fighting? You're gonna get us…ME, killed!" Really, she wanted to strangle her double. "Ah, shut up, will you?" she muttered. The curse replied by making the mark on her shoulder sting. She winced, glaring at the source of pain before continuing her trail. "You can't ignore me forever, Katana." It said. Katana snorted humorously. "Wanna bet?"
"Why you—" Their argument was cut short when a twig snap sounded. Hiding behind a thick trunk, Katana slowed her chakra flow as not to be discovered by the two other chakra signatures that popped up from nowhere. Peeking slightly, she caught sight of two humongous white birds with a person riding on each. The two slid down from them. From afar, she could make out red clouds in their dark cloaks. "Akatsuki…"
"See, un? It's no problem at all." Said the first silhouette with blonde hair. The grip on the hilt of her sword tightened. She knew that voice all too well. "Senpai", piped the other one with the mask, "which do we go after? Sasuke or the Kyuubi?" Katana's eyes widened. Sasuke? The Akatsuki are going after Sasuke too? They climbed back up the bird again. "Hmmm, I wonder, un." With a flap of their wings, the clay birds took flight. "Dammit", she cursed, "I have to follow them." She looked ahead at the open clearing. "Looks like I have to take the long way around." Retreating back to the forest, she added chakra to her feet and sped off after them. The tree barks were slippery with moss and the rocks wet from the rain earlier, making it more difficult for Katana to run faster. Come on…! She glanced upwards. The birds were still there.
Determined to not to lose them, she gathered all the chakra to her center and shut her eyes tight. Work with me. Just this once. She pleaded. "And just why would I do that?" was the rude reply of the latter. Katana resisted the urge to snap at her. Because… she tried to reason in her sincerest voice, you know how it feels to lose a friend…You've been with me long enough to understand how much I want to bring back Sasuke. So help me…Because I know you feel the same way. You're me, remember? As I am you… Dark Katana didn't respond. A sigh escaped the girl's mouth. Her eyes opened slowly. "I guess it's worth a shot…" she mumbled disappointedly, again looking up to make sure the birds were still in sight. A sudden burst of energy surged inside her, her eyesight becoming sharper, like a hawk's. Her irises turned into a swirling vortex of black and gold.
Katana smiled widely. "Don't think just because I helped you one time that you're safe from my wrath, you got that brat?" She only laughed as a reply and sprinted faster than she ever did. Katana regretted doing that afterwards. She looked up. The birds were gone. "…I lost them." She mumbled in disbelief. "Well, geez. Good job. What now?" A sigh escaped her lips and sent a hand to pinch the bridge of her nose lightly. "We have to wait for them to catch up with us."
"What if they already landed and you missed them?"
"Then I don't kno—"
A loud explosion erupted, dirt and smoke gushing towards the girl. Deidara! She thought. Waving away the fog, she unsheathed her sword and ran north. It wasn't long before she started hearing voices. "Ah, such malice! I like those eyes of him, Tobi, un!" A sadistic laugh came from Deidara. Curious on what the S-rank nin meant, Katana shifted her gaze forward and gasped inaudibly. Clad in a dark cloak with his eyes red and black, there stood at the center of the explosion, Uchiha Sasuke. His glare was unwavering, cold like the blade of the Death god. Deidara spoke up once more, "This guy's definitely Itachi's brother. Because of the Uchiha bloodline, he was able to kill Orochimaru… Misunderstanding bastard." He sneered viciously.
Since he was too busy talking, he failed to realize that Sasuke already made his move. His sword at hand, he swiped at them impossibly fast. Unlike the bomber, his masked partner was unable to get away in time and collapsed on the ground like a limp sack. "You seem to have no control over your mouth", stated Sasuke in a monotone voice, "so I'll ask you a few questions about Itachi." Inclining his head to his left, Sasuke saw the supposed-to-be dead man stand up from the corner of his eye.
"What are you doing Tobi?" demanded Deidara angrily. "His body flicker technique is too fast for us, senpai!" reasoned out the childish member. The blond man placed his hands inside his clay pouch and pulled them out, hundreds of white eggs on his hands. "Get back, Tobi!" he ordered and threw them at Sasuke. Forming his hand seal, the eggs turned into spiders. Sasuke only snorted, chidori appearing on his hand. He flicked it and dozens of blade-like chakra flew and pinned the clay bombs on trees.
"Damn."
"Senpai! Above you!"
Another explosion sounded. Katana winced. After a few minutes, Deidara jumped out of the smoke. Where's…Sasuke? As if he heard her unspoken question, Sasuke jumped out to the far side of the two Akatsuki members. She exhaled in relief. I've got to get out of hiding.
"Katana."
She froze.
"Why are you here?" Swallowing hard, she stood up, meeting his onyx orbs. They were cold and hard, boring a hole in her soul. But deep down in those dark eyes, Katana saw something flicker. Something like…hope. "Katana." Called Sasuke for the second time, his tone turning dangerous. Remaining unfazed, Katana took a few steps forward. "I'm here to take you home." She declared. He raised an amused eyebrow. "Take me where?"
"Home." Answered Katana, narrowing her eyes. "Back to Konoha." Tension that hung thick in the air was sliced in half when a laugh was heard. Both ninjas turned to Deidara. The blond man was smirking. "Oi", he said, "aren't you the Kazekage's little girlfriend? Ah, so you didn't die of the explosion, un?" Katana eyed him with disdain. "Indeed, I didn't. It's a pity that you aren't dead from blood loss either."
Deidara clicked his tongue against his teeth. "Cocky brat. Anyone who fights me can't continue living." He smirked and looked at Sasuke. "Nor does those who kill my prey."
Katana raised her weapon, going into a stance. "If you come on me with an intent to kill, I will not hesitate to do the same. But I am not here to fight." She glanced at the Uchiha. "I am here to bring back a friend." Sasuke drew his own katana, his Sharingan activated. "I am neither dying nor going with anyone anywhere." The three of them locked gazes, daring each other to make the first move. At last, Deidara took the bait. Clapping his hand together, a gigantic dragon sculpture 'poof'ed out from behind him. The dragon spat out thousands of rounded bombs. "You know what to do Tobi, un!" The masked man saluted. "Hai, senpai!"
Katana took a minute to study their battle strategy. Is he gonna use those or attack from above? She heard her former teammate snort. "What a pain." Stated Sasuke, charging head on. "Sasuke, wait!" cried Katana, before cursing and running after him. As the two ran ahead, the dragon spat out a smaller version of it, flying directly for them. Alarmed, Katana dove to her left. "Watch out!" The bomb exploded, barely missing the dark-haired teen. But he didn't stop. He ran for the dragon again, shaping another Chidori as a 5-meter long blade. The technique failed as he missed the dragon's foot by a mile. Sasuke waved away the chakra from his hands.
"Nice try, un. But this time, you're mine!" cackled the blond. In an instant, the dragon spat yet another mini-me, heading straight for Sasuke. The second explosion erupted, its magnitude larger than the first. Katana did a quick seal and teleported to a safe distance. She scanned her area. "Peek-a-boo! I see you!" Jerking her head, she saw the bomb intended for her. As soon as the explosive made contact with the grass below, it went off, clouds of flames wildly spreading. Black flames automatically surrounded her body, protecting her from the detonation. A prickly sensation came over her whole body, like having a fever. The strong odor of her chakra overwhelmed her. Katana ran, away from the fresh crater and towards the direction of Deidara.
"—done planting clay mines! " She caught the words of the other Akatsuki, halting just in time before she got blown up into bits. A maniac laugh escaped Deidara. "My C-2 can box you within the land mines and…" Looking at her right, she noticed that his center of attention was Sasuke. Wasting no time to listen to his speech, she did another seal, vanishing and appearing at the bomber's back. "You're too late." Katana spoke up, the cold tip of her weapon pressing on her enemy's neck. Much to her surprise, Deidara faced her with a smirk. "No", he objected, "you're too late, un."
BANG!
Katana dodged the C-1, and aimed a roundhouse kick at him. He blocked, sending another clay bird at her. With a quick flick, it was cut in half before it detonated. "Feisty!" teased Deidara, another wave of bombs targeting her. She swiped, slashed and ducked, her black and gold patterned eyes glaring menacingly at him. Suddenly, she didn't care for Sasuke anymore. She could deal with bringing him back later. Right now, she had to kill this bastard who managed to kill Gaara. A swish of air made Katana lose those thoughts. She rolled to her left just in time to dodge the incoming giant shuriken. Deidara ducked as well, a shocked expression on his face. He jerked back, looking down at Sasuke with his beet red face of anger. "You resort to pathetic tricks like that? You insult me!" he bellowed.
'So Sasuke's making his move underneath…' Another kick startled Deidara and made him fall down. Raising her sword, Katana struck down. He rolled and stood up. "You think you can defeat me so easily?" A ripping noise was heard, and both turned their heads. A chakra blade pierced through the left wing of the dragon, before completely slicing it off. Katana smirked. "Yes." Down below, Sasuke threw a pair of giant shurikens, pinning Deidara into the dragon's back. "Sasuke!" called out Katana. They were falling fast, right above the land mines.
Ten…
He was nowhere to be seen.
Nine…
Where was he?
Eight…
Realization dawned to her.
Seven…
He left her. He left her to die.
Six…
She gritted her teeth.
Five…
How could she be so foolish?
Four…
She closed her eyes and braced herself.
Three…
Something cold and scaly wrapped around her.
Two…
And pulled her away.
One…
The noise was deafening, and Katana swore she felt the whole world shake at the impact. Red and orange clouds formed a giant mushroom-like fire. But she was safe, away from the greedy tongues of flame. Speaking of...where was she? Katana looked up and spoke one word. "Sasuke."
He looked down on her, his eyes not as cold as before but remained unreadable. "Why did you save me?" He left her question unanswered. They landed on a tree branch and both teenagers looked back at the remaining wisps of smoke. "Stupid Senpai!" wailed Tobi from somewhere. "I told you you'd in an explosion!"
Shreds of burnt Akatsuki cloak flew. From the ashes and gray atmosphere, a flying silhouette emerged. "Shut your freaking mouth, Tobi!" barked Deidara, fury etched on his features. Katana stared in disappointment. "He just keeps on coming…" muttered Sasuke quietly. "Katana…look away."
Her head turned to him in confusion. "What?" Her eyes widened and her muscles tensed. It felt like someone was squeezing the air out of her lungs. "Sasuke…your eyes…Sharingan…" she mumbled incoherently, shuddering. His hand reached up and covered her view. "Idiot", he said, "I told you to look away." Slowly, Katana felt herself relax once more. She let out a shaky breath. "Gomen, it won't happen again." Pushing his hand away, she focused on Deidara instead. "What's your plan?"
Sasuke shook his head once. "I don't have any. We must wait." The bomber from above stuck his hand inside his clay pouch. Taking out a fistful of the white substance, he bit into it and chewed. Katana's eyes narrowed. "What is he doing?"
Deidara swallowed every last bit of the clay and did a hand seal, "My most powerful attack yet!" he declared, "YOU'RE DEAD! Get outta here, Tobi!" The orange-masked man obeyed his order and scampered away. With all his might, the blond Akatsuki heaved and threw up the same white stuff that he ate. Katana watched in horror as it took the form of a gigantic Deidara. "W-what…?" A pull made her stumble backwards and jerk to the other direction. "Run." Hissed the Uchiha, sprinting as fast as he can away from the giant sculpture. Katana followed his lead, jumping from one tree to another.
"Running away from my C4? Hah!" Deidara made the final hand seal and the giant inflated, getting fatter and fatter until it blew up. Katana stopped in her tracks. "We weren't…harmed…Is it a fake?" She turned to Sasuke, only to realize that he wasn't there beside her anymore. She whirled around. "S-Sasuke? Sasuke!" She turned back and saw him running towards her with a look of panic. "Get away!" he told her.
Deidara smirked. "Too late un…Sublimate!"
Sasuke's body crumbled into dust like particles. Terror was on his face, desperately trying to save himself. "No…N-no!" he screamed. Katana could only watch as he completely turned into ashes. "Sa…Sasuke…" Mouth agape, she stood in silence for a moment. Slowly, A wicked grin formed on her lips. "As usual, Sasuke…Your genjutsu was brilliant." With that, the brunette did a seal and vanished.
She reappeared on the forest and hid behind the trunk of a tree, watching Deidara and Sasuke. "Where is Itachi?" she heard him ask. The Akatsuki member did not answer. Instead, he stretched out his arms. From his hand-mouths came out two snakes, wrapping around Sasuke's ankle. Remaining indifferent, the young avenger let electricity travel down his body and into the elongated body of the snakes. In alarm, Deidara cut them off, panting heavily. Not long after, Sasuke followed the suit and dropped down to his knees. "Heh. Tired aren't you? Now, we're both out of chakra." The blond let out a delighted laugh. "Now matter what, I'll win the fight." He said with confidence.
Sasuke's only reaction was to glare. "Oi…", muttered Deidara, "in this situation you're in, you could show some fear, don't you think? This time, my art will win…and you'll die." He taunted, throwing his head back in laughter. Again, the dark-haired teen betrayed no emotion. He was unfazed by Deidara's words.
Finally Deidara broke down. "You really piss me off! Exactly like your brother!" he roared. "Stop acting so damn cool! Those eyes…Those eyes make me mad! I can't stand them, looking down at my art!" His fists clenched and he sat upright. "Those eyes of yours without any amazement…criticizing me…I hate them!"
"I don't give a damn about any of this", spat Sasuke, his patience running thin, "just tell me where Itachi is." He deactivated his Sharingan, charcoal orbs appearing behind those eyelids once more. Katana studied him. Without the Sharingan, he looked more sincere…more desperate. It was something she couldn't understand. Deidara gave him a look of disbelief and rage. "You're not going to use the Sharingan anymore? You keep underestimating me…" he seethed through his locked jaw.
In a flash, he ripped off his fishnet shirt and exposed a stitched wound right on his heart. One of his mouths cut open the thread and pulled it out roughly. A set of sharp razor teeth was seen as the opened wound turned out to be a mouth. He stuffed some of the clay inside it. Chakra nerves on his body strained and swelled up; his skin seemed to crack under the extreme pressure. "This is my ultimate art! Death will make me a piece of art. It's an unbelievable explosion that will shake the Earth, and finally, my art will have the praises it deserves!"
'Guh…This guy…He's going to blow himself up?' thought Katana, as she moved out of hiding place. "It has a radius of 10 kilometers, there's no way you can escape!" The swollen veins were starting to get darker and darker on his pale skin. It focused on his heart, the chakra in there building up. "Now admire, despair and shout! Because my art…" Katana snatched Sasuke's arm, dragging him into the teleportation jutsu. "…is a bang." A blinding light filled their vision and everything was engulfed by the tremendous sound of explosion.
Katana opened her eyes. She was in a different place now. Inclining her head to the left, she saw Sasuke's staggering figure and supported him with her remaining strength. "You okay there?" she murmured, wincing as his weight was brought down on her. He looked exhausted and dead tired but he nodded. She scanned the area. They were in the heart of the woods. Gently, she laid him down on the soft grass and sat down beside him. Katana let out a sigh. "Finally…" she said and turned to him with a smile. The sharp blade of his sword glinting right in front of her cut off her temporary relief. Her breathing became shallow as she glanced up at his bruised face. "Sasuke", she droned out slowly, calmly, "what is the meaning of this?"
"This is where I say good-bye." Onyx eyes narrowed and the cold steel inched nearer to her throat. She snorted despite her position. "Don't joke around, Sasuke. You can barely fight. And I'll admit, I'm out of chakra too." She looked away. "So sit down…"
To her surprise, he did. He sat down on a rock, sheathing his sword. A moment of silence was shared between them. "They're going to be here soon." said Katana. "Naruto…Sakura…Kakashi…they're all com—"
"It doesn't matter." Cut in Sasuke and Katana turned to him. "My companions are going to summon me back to them."
"I won't let you." Was her sharp answer, unsheathing her own weapon. He met her eyes. "You can't do anything." It was true. She knew it was true. Her grip on the sword shaking, she threw it aside in fury. The metal clanked on the ground noisily, echoing throughout.
"Y-you…" she began, "Why can't you just go back to us?" Katana all but yelled at him. Grey eyes glared at him with desperation, begging him to answer. "You told me to take care of them…You told me to tell them you're sorry…You cared for them, Sasuke!" The young man didn't have any reactions. "You cared for them! You cared…for us." He was looking down on his feet. Her shoulders hunched in sadness. Her voice dropped to a whisper, "Why can't you just go back? It'll be like the old times", she told him, "You, Naruto, Sakura, Kakashi-sensei and me…Team seven. We were always a family, weren't we?"
For a while, no one said anything. Sasuke sat there stiffly, still looking down as if contemplating on an answer to give. Katana stared at him, waiting for his response. "I can't." he said. Katana felt her hope crumbled down and her chest contract painfully. He looked up at her. "I thought you understood." He stated, standing up. He put on his cloak and took a few steps towards her. "I can no longer go back, Katana. Nothing can ever be the way it was before." Her fists clenched. He took another series of steps, this time away from her. Then he stopped. "When I told you to take care of them…I thought you knew that it meant protecting them away from me. I trusted you Katana. So please...don't let me down again." He vanished.
"Katana…!" Voices were heard from a distance. Her team had found her. "Katana!" exclaimed Sakura, hugging her quickly and checking her up and down for any sign of injury. "Are you alright?" She asked. "Where's Sasuke? Did you find him?"
Katana glanced up, Sakura's green eyes shining in excitement. "Well?" Katana smiled sadly and faced the rest. "Team 7…Sakura, Naruto and Kakashi-sensei…I think I may have made a mistake." A lone tear fell from the corner of her eye. "Sasuke isn't coming back."
End Chapter