Chapter Nineteen

"We aren't getting anywhere!" Sasuke shouts in anger in his father's office.

"I told you we need someone with sealing skills to help with the safe, but the only people you trust is myself and possibly Naruto. Even with him training under a sannin who is the sealing master of the Leaf, it will be anywhere between a few months or a year before Naruto is at a level to attempt to break seals. It'll be even longer with either of us attempting to learn sealing." Anakin tries to reason with his clan mate. "Have some patience. We waited this long, we can wait a bit more."

He scowls, "We just found the first solid lead for anything and there is jack all we can do about it! The longer we take to solve this only leaves Itachi more time to grow stronger!"

"It's not like we aren't doing anything. We both are still training and growing stronger ourselves. With Naruto and Hinata getting apprenticeships, you have gained Master Kakashi's full attention when he isn't on a mission even if you have been moved to Master Asuma's team."

"And you are being trained personally by a Hokage while the other two are being trained by sannin. From what I see, I got the short end of the stick." Sasuke grumbles.

"Hey, Master Kakashi is no pushover. He's one of the, if not the, strongest jounin in the Leaf. Not only that, but he is the only one who is able to teach either of us about the sharingan. That doesn't sound like the short end of any stick."

"Maybe," Sasuke huffs. "That doesn't change the fact that he was taken down by Itachi. I need someone stronger."

Anakin shakes his head and sighs. "The Tsukuyomi is no joke. I doubt anyone could resist it once they are caught in it. Give Master Kakashi a chance and not discount him so easily." He gets a grunt as an answer. After checking the time, he gets up. "I got to go. Just think about what I said and you'll know I speak truthfully. We will find answers and confront Itachi about what really happened together. I swear it."

Sasuke watches him leave the office and out of the house. "He doesn't understand. I am the heir of the Uchiha and therefore need to be the strongest, but I fall short to both of the only remaining Uchihas. Having a weak clan head would only look bad to the rest of the clans in the village. While the chance is small, if we have evidence of Itachi's legal innocence in that safe then he could be brought back to the village and take up the mantle of being the clan head with the strength to back it. But that possibility fades with each passing day and I can't afford to get sidetracked for something that may not pan out that way." He then grabs a pen and paper. "This only leaves me one other option, I need to get stronger and there is only one person that can help me. The confrontation with Dope on the rooftop a couple days back shows how behind I am in the current power structure. Dope and Anakin won't be happy about it, but leaving is my only solution."

Anakin pants as sweat falls down his face the next morning. Hiruzen hands his student a towel. "Thanks," He says as he wipes his face. Training under a Hokage with nothing but free time makes for a long day.

"It's no problem. Multitasking is hard, even with the help of clones." The Third Hokage tells him as they look at Anakin's Shadow Clone teaching Sakura how to wield a lightsaber.

"Explain to me why I need to relearn how to hold a weapon again? You've already taught me how to use a sword which seems similar to a lightsaber." Sakura asks him.

"A lightsaber is much more than a weapon." The clone says as he corrects Sakura's posture. "It is an extension of yourself, more so than a sword does. The Kyber crystal inside of it is connected to the Force which means it can connect to a Force user. Because we let the Force guide our actions, the connection to the crystal helps us center our attention beyond the distractions of combat."

Sakura closes her eyes and reaches out her senses to Vader's lightsaber. "I do feel something from it, but it's dark and feels heavy like it is wanting to reject me."

"That's understandable. My Grandfather as a Sith Lord used anger and fear to bend the crystal to his will and bled it. It now only recognizes dark emotions and demands it to be wielded to its full potential." Anakin explains with the lightsaber in his hand.

"So how are you able to use it?"

"I have a cheat by being his grandson, so it is more willing to work with me. But it still makes the same demands towards me every time I ignite it." He stops walking around her at her front. "Are you ready to use it?"

Sakura opens her eyes, "I am." Anakin hands her the lightsaber and the moment she touches it, her surroundings change.

Sakura into a hallway made of metal. In front of her are two figures, one she recognizes as the armored form of Vader and the other is an old man in robes. Vader has his lightsaber ignited and approaches the old man who ignites his blue blade.

"I've been waiting for you Obi-Wan. We meet again at last." The Sith Lord says. "The circle is now complete. When I left you I was but the learner, now I am the master."

"Only a master of evil, Darth!" Obi-Wan says as he makes the first move and the lightsabers clash.

Sakura drops the lightsaber and stumbles back. "It happened again."

The real Anakin comes over as the clone poofs into smoke. "What happened again?"

She sits up and rubs her eyes. "Back during the invasion when I picked up Sidious's lightsaber, I saw him roaring towards four people and killing three of them in a blink of an eye. And now when I touched this once, I saw a confrontation between Vader and Obi-Wan in a metal hallway."

"Sounds like you have Psychometry, also known as a Force Echo." He begins to explain. "It lets you acquire information from the past about people or events from objects by touching it. It's a very rare ability that one can only be born with. Not even my family, as strong as the Skywalkers are with the Force, has this ability."

"It sounds useful, but if this happens every time I pick something related to the Force up then it is a detriment." Sakura says.

Hiruzen makes his way to them. "I may not know the Force as much as you, but she makes a fair point. The entire time she had that vision, it left her defenseless which her enemies would capitalize on."

"There's ways around it, like wearing gloves for example. But a more permanent solution is to train yourself to control when you want to use the ability. I will obviously teach you everything I know about it, but I'm afraid this is going to be something you will have to learn through trial and effort."

Before Anakin could say anything else, a member of the Anbu body flickers beside them. "Lord Third, Uchiha, Haruno, Lady Hokage request your presence immediately."

Hiruzen nods, "Thank you, Cat. Tell her we are on our way."

The three make their way to the Hokage's office to find Tsunade behind her desk as Shizune is healing a bruised Ino. Sakura is quick to run to her friend. "Oh, Kami. What happened?"

"Sasuke has left the village," Tsunade answers.

The three look at her in shock, "What?!"

"It's true," Ino agrees. "I saw him leave last night. I thought I could convince him otherwise since we were on the same team now, but the chop to the neck is what I got in response."

Hiruzen's expression goes stern. "Abandoning the village is a serious crime. For what reason does he have to do such a thing?"

"Power," Anakin answers as they all look at him now. "We talked yesterday and it was mostly just about how he felt cheated out of a teacher when compared to Hinata, Naruto, and I."

Tsunade nods to this, "That's the same conclusion Naruto came up with."

"Where is Naruto? More importantly, have you sent a team to try to retrieve Sasuke?" The Third asks his second successor.

"The answer to both is that Naruto and Shikamaru have been tasked with gathering who they can and head after Sasuke. I would rather send a team of jounin and chunin, but we are stretched thin and have none to spare." The Fifth Hokage answers. "The fact that both Kohai and Sakura are here means they weren't able to get to you."

"Have they left yet?" Anakin asks.

"The Anbu informed me their team left just before you got here, so it is too late for you to join them." She then pulls out a piece of paper. "Though I am able to say that they have Hinata Hyuga, Choji Akimichi, Kiba Inuzuka, and Neji Hyuga with them."

Anakin steps forward at attention, "Lady Hokage, permission to form a backup team!"

"Granted!" Tsunade quickly agrees. "I was going to suggest that you do this anyway as the only other free chunin left in the village. Sakura, are you going along with him?"

Sakura for a second is torn between being with her friend who is hurt and joining her boyfriend in a dangerous mission, but Ino makes the decision for her. "Go. You'll be more useful with your boy toy than worrying about a bruise that will be gone by tomorrow."

Sakura blushes, but takes her spot next to Anakin. "I'm going with him."

"Good," The Fifth smiles before turning to Anakin. "I know the only genin that are mission ready are going to be Tenten, with Rock Lee recovering from surgery and Shino Aburame on a special mission with his father, so it'll leave you only with a three-man team. However I will also be sending Shuzine with a medical team shortly behind you. Now go and bring our people home!"

"Yes Lady Hokage!" The Two say in unison before Anakin turns to Sakura. "Can you grab Tenten and tell her to meet at the gate in twenty minutes? I'd give her more time, but we aren't in a situation to waste any."

She looks at him, "Of course, but what are you going to do?"

"I'm going to grab something so we can track Sasuke," Anakin explains.

Anakin makes it to the front gate of the village where he finds the other two members of his team already waiting. Tenten is the first to notice him, "Is it true Sasuke ran away from the village?"

"It appears so," Anakin confirms. "With luck, the recovery team is already on their way to bring him back. If not, then it's our job to help."

She frowns, "Sasuke may have not been the most pleasant person, but I never figured him a traitor. To go as far as even attacking Ino…"

"We have no full explanation for why he did what he did. For all we know, he was coerced into leaving." He tells them. "Bringing him back will give us the answers we seek."

"How are we going to track them?" Tenten then asks.

Anakin bites his thumb and performs a summons. From the smoke appears a two meter silver wolf that towers over them. He runs a hand along the snout of it. "This is a Loth-wolf, native to the planet of Lothal. What sets them apart from other wolves, other than their size, is their connection to the Force and their home planet."

"I do not believe you have called me for either, have you Jedi?" The wolf asks.

"It talks?!" Tenten exclaims.

"Loth-wolves are capable of speaking, but it's not something they do unless it is important." Anakin explains before pulling a piece of cloth from his pocket. "I hope you don't mind, but it is your nose I'm in need of today, Steel." Steel looks between Anakin and the cloth before taking a sniff of it. Within moments, he already has the scent and starts to follow it. "Looks like we already have a great start. Come on, let's follow. Diamond formation: Steel leads, Tenten and Sakura on the sides, and I'll bring up the rear."

Sakura places her hands behind her. "Oh, you're just looking for an excuse to stare at my butt."

Anakin arches his brow, "As if I ever need an excuse to watch your ass, Miss 'I walk around the house at night with only my boyfriend's hoodie'."

Sakura then flushes, "Why did you have to announce that to the public?! And I did that only one time! All my bottoms were in the wash and I thought you were asleep!"

"Umm," Tenten interrupts their conversation with a slight blush. "Not that I don't enjoy the mental image, but we should probably focus on the mission."

Anakin coughs into his fist. "Of course. We'll continue this conversation later."

"Like hell we will!"

He ignores his girlfriend's shout, "Lets move out!"

They take off towards the wolf and up to the trees once they make it to the wood line. After some time tree-hopping, Steel speaks up, "I made a note to memorize the scent of other individuals that are also traveling this direction, and two of those are just up ahead."

"Good work Steel. Hang back while we take a look." The team speeds past the wolf as sounds of battle are heard ahead getting louder. "I recognize the presence of Choji just up ahead. Let's hurry up." They continue moving towards the fighting and hear a loud crash. They then don't hear any more sounds of battle. "Come on, pick up the pace. We can't risk the silence being Choji's defeat!" They reach a clearing in a matter of moments and see a crater in the middle with a lifeless man with red hair in the middle along with a skinny Choji crawling his way to his headband and picking it up. When he attempts to get up himself, he feels arms wrap around him to support him. "I got you, Choji." Anakin tells him.

"Aren't you four a sight for sore eyes," The genin breathes out, before his guard is let down along with his adrenaline which weakens his knees and forces him to collapse into Anakin's hold.

Anakin sets him down against a tree and looks the buy over. "What happened?"

Choji points to an empty glass case. "We followed Sasuke's trail and found that guy and three others along with a giant basket which we believe Sasuke is being held in. Long story short, we got into a fight with them and this one trapped us in an earth jutsu as the others escaped. We broke out and I stayed behind to fight as the others went after Sasuke. I used all three of my pills which increased my powers, but at the cost of my life."

"Choji…" Sakura trails off.

"I promised Shikamaru I'd follow behind afterwards…" He tries to weakly get up, but Anakin pushes him back down.

"Not in your state you're not."

"But…"

"But nothing. You've done your part already. Rest, we'll take it from here." Anakin tells him. Choji is left with no strength but to comply with the command and slips into sleep.

"What are we going to do with him?" Sakura asks the leader. "We can't leave him here in his condition."

"No, we can't," The chunin crosses his arms to think. A solution appears from behind him as a figure with a green jumpsuit and a bowl cut emerges. "Lee? What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be recovering from surgery?!"

"I couldn't sit still as my friends all rushed into danger without me. Besides, I brought my medicine with me!" Lee digs out a bottle to present to them.

Anakin, suspicious about this, takes the bottle, uncaps it, and sniffs it before pulling away from it. "Lee, this isn't medicine. It's alcohol."

"It is?!" He asks before examining the substance. "It doesn't look any different than my medicine."

"Even if it was your medicine, Hokage-senpai made it clear to me that I can't allow you to come with us." Lee goes to protest, but Anakin holds a hand up. "However, it just so happens that there is just the thing you can do to help."

"Yosh! Whatever it is, tell me! I will not come this far to not help in some way!"

The chunin gestures to the unconscious Choji. "He needs to be brought back to the village asap for immediate medical attention. You're the fastest one among us, so can you do this for me?"

"Yosh! I can see there was an epic battle here and I'm sure that Choji was very youthful during it! It would only be youthful of me to repay his youthfulness by saving his life!" Lee then walks over to the genin and picks him up. "Now, onwards to the hospital!" The backup team watches as a blur of green rushes away from them.

"Well that was convenient," Tenten comments.

"I should have figured Lee would do this sort of thing." Anakin face palms before looking at the dead man in the crater. "I recognize this man. He and three others made up the barrier that trapped Master Hiruzen and Master Jiraiya with Orochimaru during the invasion. I can only assume the three others Choji mentioned are the same. This means Orochimaru is the one behind this."

"If he makes an appearance, then it makes recovering Sasuke practically impossible." Shino tells them.

"I doubt the snake sannin himself will come, but his strongest underlings like Kabuto showing themselves isn't out of the question. Which means we may face jounin level shinobi," Anakin analyzes.

Tenten then says, "If Choji is able to beat one by himself, then I need to reconsider my opinion of his strength."

"I'm sure he'll appreciate that," Anakin tells her before calling out to the tree line. "Steel! We're done, come on out and let's resume!" The wolf emerges from the trees and continues on tracking with the others following behind him. It's not long before the wolf stops his tracking and sniffs the air in two different directions. "What is it?"

Steel then answers, "The scents once again diverges. It is three this time that stays while the rest moves on."

Sakura, wanting to prove herself, reaches out with the Force to feel who it is. "I sense Hinata and Neji close by along with another."

Anakin nods, "I feel it as well."

Tenten grabs a scroll, "We're going to help them aren't we?"

The chunin closes his eyes and reaches out to Hinata. He feels her emotions that vary from worry about Naruto and protectiveness for her cousin. He feels as the two Hyugas slowly coverage onto their opponent with one being bait while the other moves closer. Then as if she knows he is close by, thinks 'Go on ahead. Neji-nii-san and I have this one cornered. Help the others and we'll catch up.' Anakin opens his eyes and shakes his head. "We'll be of little help here. Let's head on."

"Wait! We aren't seriously going to leave them behind are we? Their fight would end sooner if we helped," Tenten argues.

"That's true," He agrees. "But we would lose precious time in aiding the others who might not have a two-on-one advantage. We don't need more of our people in critical condition like Choji."

She stands conflicted between staying and helping the others before groaning. "I hate this, but you make a good point. Let's proceed then." They fall back in formation and continue moving. It isn't long before the wolf stops again. "Another split off?"

Steel sniffs around for a bit. "Yes and no. Yes they split off, but it isn't like the last two times. There is a new scent and it appears to have taken the primary target away with only one other scent following behind it. The others also split off in different directions. Two humans and a canine go over towards the cliff while the last two scents are nearby."

Anakin furrows his brow and places a hand on his chin, "This is troubling. Three different trails and only three of us. I had hoped not to split this team too much, but it seems impossible now."

Sakura gives him a sympathetic look. "It's quite alright. We are only meant to be a backup team and right now all three of the retrieval team need one. You go ahead and help bring Sasuke back. Tenten and I will stay and help the others."

He sighs, "I'm the one who is supposed to be the one giving orders, but we don't have much of an option to do anything else. Be safe Sweetness."

"You too, Ani," Sakura replies before kissing him and heading towards the cliffs.

Anakin then looks to Tenten before she shakes her head, "I'm not kissing you." He laughs as she takes off towards the treeline.

"Alright Steel," He says. "Let's go get broody back-"

A small explosion is heard towards the direction he needs to head. Without a word, the chunin and wolf rush off to the noise at great speed. They hear voices up ahead as they rush to the action. "Sasuke, you hear me? Talk to me!" That is definitely Naruto's voice. "What is wrong with you?! Have you gone deaf or something?!" A crazed laughter is heard moments after. "Hey wait, Sasuke!" Anakin and Steel burst from the trees into an opening to see Sasuke jumping away and Naruto about to be attacked from behind by a guy with white hair and wearing pale purple kimono wielding… a sharp bone?

"Now die!" That is more than enough for Anakin and Steel to recognize the man as an enemy. As Anakin draws his lightsaber, Steel speeds ahead and pounces on the man and drags him away from Naruto.

"Anakin?" Naruto asks after composing himself from being shocked.

Anakin stands in front of the blonde with his lightsaber in front of him. "Hokage-senpai sent the rest of us to come and back your team up." He eyes the enemy as he shakes the Loth-wolf off him. "Naruto, take Steel and go track down Sasuke. I'll deal with this guy and meet up with you afterwards." The man adjusts himself and studies the chunin in front of him before narrowing his eyes.

"Okay, just be careful. He uses his own bones as weapons," Naruto cautions. The man then brings his bone sword around into a reverse handgrip.

Anakin raises his brow before smirking. "Just bones? Sounds like he has the worst matchup here." He trills around his lightsaber and ends in the Djem So starting position. "You best go on. No need for an audience for a short fight." Naruto smirks as Steel runs to them and they both head back to the trees to chase down Sasuke. The man rushes to stop the blonde, but Anakin is able to keep up and slices the bone sword in half with the lightsaber. "Why don't you worry about yourself before you worry about what my friend is doing?" The man has a shocked look before he is pushed away by the Force.

"What? But how?!" The man questions as he inspects the burnt end of the bone. "I am able to raise the density to be higher than tempered steel!"

"And that's your problem." Anakin says as he resumes his Djem So stance. "You're going to need a material to be a lot tougher than tempered steel to resist my lightsaber."

The man glares for a moment before making a neutral expression. "You must be Anakin Uchiha."

"Oh? Orochimaru mentioned me to you then?"

"Yes. When my team was being sent out to bring back the other Uchiha to our lord, you were labeled as the most dangerous of the group he speculated would chase after your clansmen. Not only that, but if given the chance, your body would be the more preferred choice of him hosting." A bone then comes out the man's shoulder who grabs it and yanks out another bone sword. "However I can tell that your capture is already an impossible task, so he also said that he would still be happy with your death."

"Better men have tried," Anakin responds as he rushes the man down with his sharingan activated. This time, the man moves and weaves out of the way of the crimson blade and doesn't try to block it. Instead he attempts to make Anakin over extend himself and moves to stab the teen in the side. Anakin, seeing it a mile away with his eyes and the Force giving him a warning, grabs the bone with one hand then uses both of his feet to kick off the man's chest. As he hops away from the man, Anakin sees the man's rib cage seemingly pierce through the skin in an effort to stab him. "Well, if I didn't think you were freaky before, I do now."

"This is my kekkei genkai." The man responds as bones start protruding from all over his upper body. "Normally, the human body contains two hundred and six bones. But in my case, that number is somewhat more negotiable."

Anakin resets himself to the Soresu stance. "Having more bones doesn't make you any less vulnerable to a lightsaber."

This time the man goes on the attack and aims his fingers at Anakin. Bones shoot out from the tips, but the Jedi is in the defensive lightsaber stance and blocks them all. The man increases his speed and uses his taijutsu to try and wound Anakin, but the chunin pumps chakra into his legs and is able to weave through all of the bones and slice off the ones he can't. The brow on the man furrows more into a glare the more he loses his bones. That damn weapon is a complete counter to his kekkei genkai! He jumps back to gain distance and to rethink his strategy, but Anakin jumps as well and lands behind him. The man swings himself around to try and take the teen off guard, but is met with just an open palm. A force sends the man flying backwards, but instead of hitting the ground, he lands in sand? Wait, why is there sand in the middle of a forest? He tries to get up, but is surprised when the sand wraps around his arms and legs and holds him down. A look around and he sees a redhead with bags under his eyes and a gourd tied to his back with sand pouring out of it. "You're Gaara of the Desert."

Gaara looks at the man with boredom. "And you're about to be dead. Sand Burial!" Sand fully wraps around the man and tightens into a hard case.

Anakin lets out a breath and jogs over to the Sand ninja. "Never thought I'd be relieved to see someone from the Sand here. Nice work catching him."

Gaara continues to stare at his work before saying, "From what I saw, you were either toying with him, or gotten slower. Also you did most of the work pushing him to me."

A hand covered in black lines burst from the sand. Gaara and Anakin watch in shock as the man crawls his way out the sand, covered in black lines and missing bits of skin, but showing a solid plate of bone there. "If I hadn't grown a membrane of bone underneath my skin, I would have been crushed beyond recognition. I most certainly didn't expect two villages who were at war with each other mere weeks ago to be fighting together."

"More bones, he's a monster, a freak." Gaara states which Anakin cannot refute.

"I underestimate you," He says looking at Anakin before eyeing Gaara. "And that is the only time I will be caught in your sand."

The Sand ninja spreads his feet apart and claps his hands together. "Sand Tsunami!" Anakin watches as sand erupts from the ground and barrels towards their foe like an actual tsunami. The man is seemingly able to avoid the sand, but the tsunami becomes so large that they cannot make out anything but the treetops as the terrain changes into nothing but a mini desert. Gaara places his hands to the ground, "Giant Sand Burial!"

Anakin whistles, "Boy, you sure have gotten stronger."

Instead of answering, the redhead grunts. "Why won't he give up?" A tentacle raises in the air from the sand which makes Anakin ready his lightsaber once again. They see a purple figure appearing as well which makes Gaara focus his sand to surround it. "Sand coffin!" It has little effect as the figure breaks out and charges them. It looks as if the man has changed his form to having thick bones sticking out his back with the supposed tentacle actually being his tail. Gaara tries to direct his sand to cover the man again, but this new form is proving to be too fast. A wall of sand goes up around them as a last ditch effort to stop the man. It isn't enough as the man is able to break through it and knock Gaara away. Anakin swings his lightsaber at the man who transforms his left arm into a giant bone lance and blocks it.

The man answers the silent question going through the Jedi's mind as they lock eyes. "This bone is my strongest." He then rips out his own spine like a whip and has it wrap around Gaara who is using his sand as a shield. "It will bore right through your defense- *cough*" Small bits of blood escape the man's mouth. He pushes Anakin back and rushes Gaara who sets up a mound of sand shaped like his tailed beast. "I will prove to you why Lord Orochimaru favored me, the last of my clan, as his original first choice as his new host." The attack proves to be useless when the bone lance breaks seconds after trying to drill its way through. "It's so strong."

"You're the last of your clan, eh?" Gaara taunts. "Your clan dies today."

"That might very well be the case. My body has weakened. However, I will still live on." The man states proudly. "My existence has been subsumed into Lord Orochimaru's ambition. That means a part of me will still survive in Lord Orochimaru's heart forever."

"Orochimaru has brainwashed you well," Gaara says as he brings his hands together. "You sad little pawn." The man's eyes go wide as he realizes he has been caught in Gaara's quicksand. He struggles to break free from the quicksand as it grows bigger. "I will bury you two hundred meters below the surface of the earth. Under pressures so great, you won't be able to move a finger. Imprisoned there until the end of time." After a time, all they can see is an area of sand where the man once stood.

"Gaara," Anakin calls to his help. "Do not let your guard down. While I do not doubt your skill, this man has proven to be beyond the limitations of others when it comes to being buried under your sand."

The caution is proved correct as they both hear from under the sand, "Bracken Dance!" From all around them, they see a multitude of sharp bones protruding from the ground. Gaara quickly moves sand under both of their feets and lifts them into the air as the ground becomes fully covered in bone spikes.

"Tsk," Anakin clicks his tongue. "This guy is proving to be a real pain in my ass. Thanks for the save, Gaara."

Gaara holds his arm to the ground to steady himself. "My strength is gone."

Anakin pats him on the back, "You did good. I'll take back over from her-"

"You are wrong!" The man appears behind on with anger, "Lord Orochimaru is the one who gave my life meaning!" He goes to stab Gaara, but Anakin blocks the attack with his lightsaber.

"Did you forget about me?" Anakin challenges the man.

The man scowls at him, "You became meaningless when my bones managed to resist your weapon!"

Anakin looks him in the eye, "And what gave you that impression?" Suddenly, the world around them starts to fade away, leaving only the man to question what is happening. He blinks and finds his view spinning through the air before a hand grabs his hair. He looks around to see that the area has reverted back to when he busted through the wall of sand to knock back Gaara. However, the thing that has his full attention is his body standing in front of him without his head and missing his left arm that he attempted to use to block the lightsaber. His view turns around to be face to face with Anakin and he can see that the teen is the one holding his head. Anakin waves a finger with his other hand holding the lightsaber. "Tsk, tsk, tsk. Haven't you heard that you should never make eye contact with an Uchiha? Got you in a genjutsu for that. Now I know severed heads remain alive for a bit after being removed, so I would advise that you look back on your life and decide if it was worth wasting yourself like this." Anakin tosses the head away and jogs over to Gaara. "You alright?"

The Sand ninja nods, "Yes. I wasn't quite sure if I would have actually won that fight if it went on any further."

The Leaf ninja pats his back, "Well you don't need to worry about that. Now come on, let's go check up on Naruto. My wolf summons reversed himself after a quick scuffle and I thin-" He cuts off when he feels an aura of hateful chakra. He looks at Gaara who nods understandably.

"The Ichibi inside me is reacting to the chakra as well. It's definitely the Kyubi's chakra," The redhead confirms. "We best hurry." Anakin nods and they both take off in that direction. Sounds of fighting, jutsus, and disturbed water can be heard in the distance. They can feel the power coming from the battle continually building even when they stop for a quick second to dodge an odd kunai that has been thrown.

"Faster Gaara!" Anakin calls out. "We can't let Naruto build up many chakra tails otherwise the Kyubi will try and take over."

Gaara then asks after kicking off a tree branch, "How much is too much?"

"Last time, it only took three." Anakin answers before narrowing avoiding crushing a random bird's nest. "Hopefull-" A high pitched bird sound echoes from ahead along with a sound of concentrated energy which makes him frown. "Shit! They aren't seriously going to use…" The two exit the tree line to see Naruto in a red chakra cloak with a Rasengan leaping from the left of the lake towards Sasuke with pale-purple skin and handwings who is also leaping towards the former with a black and white colored Chidori. "STOP-" Anakin's command is too far away and too late for the pair to hear it in time. Their jutsus collate and for a moment, time stands still until a black sphere forms around the pair before cracking and releasing a wave of energy. Gaara quickly surrounds himself and Anakin with his sand for protection, but when the sandshield starts cracking, Anakin throws up his skeletal Susanno for an additional layer of protection. All they hear is white noise from behind the sand before everything goes silent. They both release their protection to find a near empty lake at the bottom of the famous Valley of the End where the battle took place. And in the middle of it, is an unconscious Naruto with Sasuke standing over him. Anakin and Gaara waste no time rushing towards them. Sasuke notices them and jumps back takes a fighting stance as his handwings expand in intimation. The other two stop at Naruto and Gaara immediately checks on his first and best friend. Anakin, filled with worry and anger, yells out, "Sasuke! What the hell did you just do?!"

"The dobe is still alive, for now, if that is your worry," Sasuke smugly announces.

This only upsets Anakin more, "Hey shithead, this isn't time for childish antics! Do you have any idea what you have done? First you attacked Ino when she caught you trying to leave, then after a team was assembled to bring you back, I found Choji near death fighting one of the people who took you. Not to mention that I felt the others hurt when my team followed shortly after. And now you just about killed someone who considered you a friend!"

Sasuke looks confused, "Yeah, and? This was the only option I had left. Did you even read my letter?"

This time it is Anakin that is confused, "Letter? What letter?"

"I left a letter in your mailbox for you to read. It described in detail why I am leaving the village and why you shouldn't chase after me." He explains before shrugging. "If you check your mailbox more often then perhaps dobe and the others wouldn't be in this state." Sasuke then locks his now three tomoe sharingan eyes with Anakin's mangekyo sharingan. "Although, if I want any chance of beating Itachi when I finally confront him," He begins the opening signs of the Chidori, "Then perhaps I should be merciful and put Naruto out of his mis-" Sasuke jumps back when a tendril of sand pounds the ground where he once stood.

"You try to do anything else to Naruto," Gaara fumes as a visible layer of sand forms on his skin, "And I promise that you will be my slowest kill." The three stare each other down for what feels like hours before voices are heard from behind Gaara and Anakin.

"Tsk, you guys aren't worth the trouble." Sasuke proclaims as he turns to leave. Gaara starts manipulating his sand to pursue before Anakin holds out his arm.

"Just leave him Gaara. Enough people have been hurt chasing after him." The Jedi tells the sand wielder.

"But what he did to Naruto," Gaara counters as he points to a bloody hole in the blond's chest.

Anakin stares at the wound and he can feel the rage boil inside him. He tries closing his eyes and releasing his emotions into the Force, but they only get bounced back to him. He feels the kyber crystal in his grandfather's weapon call to him for vengeance as his hand inches closer to it. In a need to vent his rage before he does something too dangerous, Anakin lifts Sasuke up with the Force and hurls him across the now empty lake. However, Sasuke in mid air manages to weave his hands fast enough to release a giant fireball at the three. It was bigger than Anakin has ever seen, no doubt charged by whatever is giving Sasuke his current form, and impossible to dodge in time. Gaara tries to shield them with his sand, but the sand starts turning into glass before it can much. Anakin sends the Force out to protect the three of them, but even with a Force shield, the heat from the fireball is almost too much for them to bear. If only the lake didn't get evaporated from Naruto and Sasuke, he can easily whip up a water jutsu to shield them better. Anakin can feel the hairs on his arm singe off as the jutsu inches closer. In a last ditch effort to stop the jutsu, he focuses his chakra and tries to funnel it outside himself and surround the fireball. To Anakin's surprise, his chakra funnels through his mangekyo sharingan and instead of surrounding the jutsu, it enters it and infuses itself into it. The three are in shock as the fireball hovers midair as if it is frozen. Anakin can still feel his chakra funnel into the jutsu, so he attempts to use his chakra to push it away. His eyes widen even more as it obeys his command. Anakin then uses his full might to hurl it over the cliff above him and cuts off the chakra pathway from it after the strain becomes too much for him. They hear a faint boom in the distance as Anakin drops on his hands and knees from the amount of chakra wasted doing that.

Gaara kneels next to the chunin and grabs his shoulder. "What in the world was that?"

Anakin, still trying to come to grips with what he just did, comes up with the only answer he can think of. "I- I think I just hijacked someone else's jutsu." He looks over to where Sasuke had landed and watches as the genin loses his form. But what catches Anakin's attention more is that as he watches, Sasuke becomes slightly blurry as he changes back. He sees him reach for something he can quite make out in the blur and tosses it towards them. When it comes into view, it becomes literally clearer that it is Sasuke's headband with a cut across the Leaf symbol. The voices can be heard getting louder as they are no doubt closing in on Anakin's position, but he isn't able to find out who they are as he collapses to the ground in chakra exhaustion.

Anakin opens his eyes to find the familiar white ceiling and walls of the hospital. At this point, Anakin wonders if he should change his residence to the hospital. As he sits himself up, a voice on the other side of the room takes notice of him. "Ah, I was wondering when you'd wake."

"Master Hiruzen?" Anakin questions before his eyes focus to confirm that is who he thought it was. "What happened?"

The old man pulls a chair next to his bed and starts cleaning his pipe. "Well that all depends. What is the last thing you remember?"

Anakin racks his head for a bit before answering. "Gaara and I found a beaten Naruto and encountered Sasuke. After a few choice of words, I hurled him away using the Force and in return he used the Great Fireball Jutsu on us."

Hiruzen nods along as if he has heard it already. "That lines up with what Gaara reported. However it's what you did afterwards that caught our attention. Do you remember?"

"Yeah, I use the Force to shield us from it, but when I realize we'd end up getting burned just by it being so close, I attempted to use my own chakra as an added layer." He notices that his master has stopped all moment and has his full attention on him. "However, instead of my chakra forming a shield, it infused itself into the fireball and completely took over it. Like-"

"Like you hijacked it?" The twice retired Hokage finishes. "Gaara said those were your words to him before you passed out."

"Yeah, that sums it up," Anakin confirms. "The jutsu just stopped all its momentum and did as I wanted it to. Though I couldn't hold it too long as I had to continuously feed it chakra."

"Which explains why you were found depleted of chakra." He answers himself as he goes back to cleaning the pipe. "Has this sort of thing happened before, or was this the first time?"

"The first time."

"And how exactly did you manage to send your chakra to it? From your fingertips? If so, you may have accidentally created a chakra thread that the puppeteers in the Sand village utilize." The old man asks, already trying to study this new technique as his nickname 'The Professor' would suggest.

Anakin shakes his head. "No. It was through my eyes"

Hiruzen eyes the teen. "Your sharingan, you mean?" When Anakin nods, the man lets out a breath of relief.. He notices Anakin begin to form and tries to explain himself. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that. What you have done is extraordinary and to my knowledge, never happened before. There have been records of similar things happening, like absorbing jutsus or someone redirecting a jutsu with one of their own, but nothing like this. I was merely worried that this technique may have been something anyone can do with a little training. If that was the case, then there wouldn't be much reason to continue using and developing new jutsus if everyone can steal it away from each other. However, if it can only be used using your eyes," He points to Anakin's eyes, "then it is something unique to this village and can be a strong ace to hide up our sleeve until we get into a situation where it is absolutely necessary. Our enemies would never expect it and could turn the tide to our favor immediately."

Anakin blinks a couple times just processing what this master just said. "Even retired, you still have the mindset of a Hokage."

"Hmmm," The Third hums in agreement. "I spent more of my life behind that desk than I have doing everything combined. This village's wellbeing is my thought, my reason, and my mission. I fear that will never change no matter what my station is or how crippled I may become." He finishes cleaning his pipe and starts to stuff tobacco into it before remembering where he is. "I best put this away before the current village leader wrings my neck for smoking near a patient." He puts it back into his robes and stands up. "Speaking of which, I better let Tsunade know you're awake. Sometime after you're discharged, we'll have to study more about your new technique." He opens the door and a head of pink comes through. "Oh, hello Sakura. You're here just in time. He just woke up."

"Thanks!" Sakura tells him as she enters. As the door closes behind her, she wastes no time climbing into bed with Anakin and wrapping her arms around him.

He raises a brow, "Not even going to say 'hi' or something?"

She shakes her head on his chest. "This happens so often that we both can just skip the theatrics and get to the bonding faster."

Anakin smirks and wraps his arm around her. "I'm certainly not complaining."

They remain in silence for several minutes before Sakura speaks. "Just so you know, you're one of three of us that required staying in the hospital. It's only been a day though. The other two are Naruto and Choji. Naruto has his fast healing and the hole in his chest has already healed. He is still out, but he isn't in danger. Choji however worried everyone. Tsunade immediately underwent intensive medical treatment with him the moment Lee returned to the village with him. Since they started treating him so soon, they were able to prevent any permanent damage and Choji will be able to continue his ninja career after he is fully healed. The Hyugas both ended their fight with broken bones and numerous cuts, but they seemed to have covered each other from anything life threatening. Tenten and Shikamaru came out with virtually little injuries with Temari seemingly cleaning up their fight."

Anakin frowns, "You forgot to mention you and Kiba. Are you hiding injuries from me?" He starts to move his hands to feel her body.

"Geez, if you wanted to feel me up, you shouldn't give an excuse for it." Sakura tries playing it off with a flush after hearing herself. A glance to her boyfriend shows that he is not falling for the bait. She huffs before lifting her shirt to reveal a bandage on her abdomen. "Kiba and I had a tricky opponent. Twins that had a Kekkei Genkai to be able to merge with each other and once they used their cursed seal, could merge with other people. Kiba and I had to stab ourselves when they merged with us to get them out. This was the only serious injury we took as they seemed to gang up on one person at a time, but that was hard for them to do between Kiba, Akamaru, and I making sure there is at least two on two. When Kankuro arrived, our victory was pretty much assured as his puppets were a direct counter to their Kekkei Genkai."

Anakin places a hand on the bandage and feels it for a moment before stopping his hand at the top of it and noticing how dangerously close the wound and his fingers are to her sport bra. He quickly retracks his hand in a blush as she matches his speed to pull her shirt back down with a blush as well. Anakin scratches his cheek, "Um… Looks like the wound is healing nicely."

"'Um… yeah it is." Sakura meekly agrees. Unable to think of what to do next, she positions herself to sit quietly next to him. The silence is both awkward and comfortable as their hands meet each in between each other. They share a smile before leaning into each other.

Anakin is released later that morning and is walking home with Sakura. As she is unlocking their door, he recalls what Sasuke said and checks his mailbox. Sure enough there is a letter in there. "A letter?" Sakura asks as they walk in the house. "That's weird. Yesterday was Sunday and the mailman usually doesn't come by till three. Who's it from?"

"Sasuke," Anakin answers as he opens it and sits on the couch. Two pieces of paper are inside.

"Sasuke?" She asks, confused. "Why would he bother writing a letter to you before he leaves?"

Anakin reads through the letter with narrowed eyes as Sakura sits next to him waiting. Once he finishes, he skims through it again before speaking his findings. "One's a formal letter stating that he has relinquished his title as Heir to the Uchiha compound and all of its properties and passed it to me. Everything our clan owns is being passed to me. He even took the time to get a lawyer to sign and make it official."

Sakura jerks her head back in shock. "Um… Wait, what? How and why did he take the time to do this only to later try and kill Naruto and you?"

He holds up the second letter. "That is somewhat explained in this letter. He states that he is unhappy with his progress of power he is receiving in the village, along with the thing he and I have been working on, and have decided to accept an offer Orochimaru made to him. He wishes me luck on my investigation as he seeks other means of information. He asks that we do not attempt to follow him or bring him back as it would be a waste of time and he'd be forced to treat us as an enemy, even if it meant our deaths."

"That son of a bitch!" She fumes. "In what right mind does he think writing a letter and dropping it in someone's mail on a Sunday is the right way to leave?! Doesn't he know we are going to be required to chase him down regardless of the way he declares his desertion?! Even if we don't chase him immediately, he will be labeled a missing ninja and be hunted by every hunter on this continent! And a letter can't make up for the state Naruto and Choji ended up in! I can't believe I used to have a crush on that piece of shit!" The table in front of them is pushed away by her rage.

Anakin grabs her shoulders and makes her face him. "Sakura, you got to calm down. All that rage is going to do is allow the Dark Side to have easy access to you. Remember what I taught you. Breathe, and center yourself. Acknowledge your rage and control it. Release your emotions into the Force if you have to." Sakura closes her eyes and does what he has told her. A minute later, she is calm and Anakin can sense her rage has receded. "Better?" She nods. "Good. Glad to see you're taking my lessons seriously. Meditation is an important tool when dealing with the Force for a number of reasons. I'll teach you how to get a quick meditation in if you are in a fight and have an opportunity to do it. Centering yourself in a fight gives you a calm and clear mind which makes it easier to make decisions faster and better for fights."

Sakura opens her eyes. "Of course, Master."

"You're lucky you're cute Sweetness, otherwise I'd make you work off that cheekiness out on avoiding Issillda and her sisters."

She kisses his lips, "As if. She likes me too much to even follow through with your threat."

"Hard to believe you're going to be gone for three years." Hinata tells her boyfriend at the gate of the village. It has been a week since the failed Sasuke retrieval mission. Everyone has been discharged from the hospital, although Choji is currently wheelchair bound until he regains his strength, and the Konoha Twelve along with Tsunade, Jiraiya, Shizune, Hiruzen, the four jonin, Iruka, Teuchi and his daughter Ayame have all shown up to see Naruto off.

"I'll be back before you know it," Naruto assures her. "If we are going to save Sasuke or help Anakin defeat the Sith, this training trip is a must for me." He then kisses her cheek as she blushes for the public display of affection.

"They are so cute for each other," Sakura whispers to her own boyfriend.

"Agreed. They easily make Konoha's second cutest couple." Anakin whispers back.

Hinata shoots them a playful glare, "As if we'd ever play second fiddle compared to you two!"

Anakin is about to say a clever comeback, when his pervert detector goes off and he sees Jiraiya watching them with a notepad out. "If you are thinking about including a scene in your book about two couples attempting to rival each other, I have one word for you: contortion." He holds his hand out like he is gripping something and twists it.

Jirayia quickly rips the paper out of his notepad and rips it up. "Well would you look at the time. Naruto, time to go!" He grabs the blond by the collar of his chunin vest and starts dragging him away.

"Hey what gives Pervy-sage?!" Naruto protests. He looks to the people he is leaving behind and waves. "I'll see you all later! I love you Hina-chan!"

"I love you too Naru-kun!" She replies back with a slight blush.

Anakin gets a mischievous look and shouts in a high pitch voice, "I love you too Naru-kun!"

"Burn in hell 'Ani'!"

Amusement shines in Kakashi's lone eye as he copies the Uchiha, "I love you too Naru-kun!"

The guys all share a smile with one another and start joining in. "Love you Naru-kun!" "Naru-kun, I love you too!" "Naru-kun!"

"Fuck you all!"

Author's Note: I'm still alive! Sorry about the half a year wait! My computer bit the dust along with all my work back in September. It really killed my writing spirit for a while and I didn't have the money to fix or replace it. However I now have myself a new laptop and will be back to updating this story again! Anyways, to the story stuff. Yes I did wrap up the Sasuke Retrieval arc in one chapter, but since their was only one actual fight, I didn't see the point to drag it on longer than I should. Otherwise I'd have a repeat of my other arcs where they end up being finished in the beginning of the next chapter with the rest having little to do with it. The biggest reveal in this chapter is Anakin's new Mangekyo ability. I wanted him to have his own unique ability and have bounced multiples ideas with my co-workers until we decided on this. It has limitations, which includes how much chakra it uses, and isn't as broken as Kamui. More details will be explain in future chapters. Also, this is the last chapter that will follow the regular Naruto canon. Granted there will be some things the same here and there, but the timeline will branch here. I will also not be doing the full three-year time skip. It will stop every so often as the going on in the village will change the future, for better or worse.

DS2010: I think we all need a vacation.

mareed0389: Glad to see you enjoying this! I hope it meets your expectations!

Anyways that's all from me. I know I'm bad at keeping promises for updates, but I swear you all will not have to wait as long for the next chapter. Even if that means I have to write it out by hand! Thanks for reading and I'll talk at y'all next time!