Naruto: The Uchiha Chronicles Re-Version:
Edit 2-4-22: Hello everyone, just came to update the page breaks for this chapter. Tell me what you think. Also, Chapter 27 is now up on my Pa treon. It's also come to my attention that apparently my name isn't coming up in the search. Apparently with the number of patrons I have at the moment, I won't pop up in their search feature. If you're interested in supporting me, head to my AO3 profile of the same name for an easy copy and paste link. Or do the link for pat reon and add /rinnetaicho.
Arc V: Kusanoka's Vengeance:
Chapter 26: Regrouping
-x-x-x-x-x-x- NTUC -x-x-x-x-x-x-
It happened so fast she couldn't really comprehend it. One second Kakashi had been about to hand over the scroll, the next he was tossed bodily through the air. Sasuki's eyes widened. There was little time to react. She instantly met the Sakura's eyes and frantically nodded at Kakashi. Thankfully her message was easily received. They reacted just in time to catch hold of the grown man and prop him up. She let out a grunt of effort at the strength it took to stop him.
"Hey, what's that weird smoke?" Sakura asked wearily. At the same moment a noise rent the air.
Vwhoosh!
There was a noise like a huge vacuum turning on. Her gaze snapped to the source. She was shocked to see Naruto standing mere feet from them. His bright blonde hair flapped in the sudden breeze. A cloud of bright green smog hovered in the air. The acrid smell burnt her nostrils and made her feel light-headed. At first it seemed the cloud would envelop them, but it rapidly disappeared. She gasped in realization. It must have been poison gas, and that fool was gulping it down to save them! Torn halfway between outrage at his recklessness, and admiration for his quick reaction, she could only scowl angrily.
"That idiot, he's absorbing it!" She growled.
Sasuki almost stumbled as Kakashi pulled himself from their grasp. She'd never seen him as serious as in that moment. Not even during the Wave mission. Underneath the mask his mouth seemed to be set in a rigid line. He'd already somehow pulled up his headband to reveal his sharingan. The crimson iris spun angrily. There was a steely look in his normal eye that almost made her … nervous.
"Quick! We have to get to him!" He ordered.
Before she could even react Kakashi was in motion. He wasn't the only one. The tall man she'd thought to be the client lunged forward at equal speed. Kakashi was quick to pull out a kunai and launched it at the man to try and force him away. The projectile hurtled at unbelievable speeds. 'That should give him time to reach Nar –' Sasuki gasped as she saw something glint within the robed-man's hand. He lashed out. A metallic ring filled the air as the kunai was deflected with ease. In the same motion the man grabbed ahold of Naruto's shirt and yanked him about, placing the object–a wickedly sharp kunai sword–beneath his chin menacingly.
Unbidden she let out a scream of fright. She was terrified the man would jerk his wrist and slice Naruto. Terrible images swam before her eyes. Her friend with his neck slit open, pink flesh taken over by a flood of thick red blood.
She never took her eye off the single acid green eye of the enemy. It seemed to shine beneath his worn straw hat. There was an air of mystery about him.
With a casual air, the man said, "That's plenty far enough, Kakashi. Move another step and the boy is dead. Make a hand sign? He's dead. If you so much as spin that eye, he's dead. You get the idea." His voice was deep, and cold. It was the clinical nature that set her on edge. Zabuza had been intentionally menacing. This man … he spoke as if it was the most casual thing.
Kakashi slid to a stop. Underneath his feet the pebbles crackled and rolled about. Silver eyebrows furrowed in consternation. "Well, I know you're the client, but you seem to have me at a disadvantage. I have no idea who you are." He said cautiously.
The man tilted his head and regarded them coldly. Like a lizard eyeing up a juicy bug.
"Hmm, I suppose I should let you know. After all, that's half the satisfaction." He muttered, seemingly to himself. With a casual motion he swapped his kunai sword over to the arm holding Naruto by the neck. Slowly, deliberately, the man reached up and tore away the veil on his lower face to reveal a black gas-mask with a single cannister.
'So that's why they weren't affected by the gas!' She thought. It made sense. Even the small amount she was exposed to had her feeling lightheaded. She had to strain to keep her vision from getting blurry.
A second later, the man tossed away his straw hat. Lank locks of long black hair tumbled down and framed his face. Lastly, he reached up and tore away his gas mask. Her eye's widened at the twisted wreck that was the left side of his face. It was one of the worse burn wound's she'd ever seen, even with the eyepatch covering part of it. Though there was something weird about it. That wasn't a normal burn wound. Some kind of design was seared into the skin. Like the pink branches of a wicked tree.
She was so busy examining the man's face, she almost missed the sharp intake of breath from Kakashi.
"Hiroshi Kusanoka." Said Kakashi breathlessly.
Sasuki's eyes widened. The way Kakashi said the man's name … there was clearly a history. That was never good in their line of work. She felt Sakura shift restlessly next to her. A restless seed of concern formed in the pit of her stomach. Behind Hiroshi his fellow 'clients' still cast mysterious figures in their cloaks.
"Sensei, what's this about, do you know this guy?" She asked.
At the question, the man–Kusanoka–gave a harsh chuckle. "Know me? You could say that little girl. During the Third Shinobi War, you're teacher and I were … rivals, of a sort." He answered. Despite the words being directed at Sakura, Hiroshi never took his baleful green eye off Kakashi. "Now, I believe when we last saw each other, I gave you a promise. Today I plan to collect."
His words seemed to be a trigger. Suddenly there was a tenseness in the air. A heavy feeling of unease. There was just something weird about this. It felt like there was part of a conversation that was halfway unspoken. Kakashi's entire body seemed coiled and ready to strike.
"So that's what this is about." He said. His voice was grim, resigned.
Kusanoka gave a sharp nod in response. "Indeed. An eye for an eye. Things might not have gone exactly as planned thanks to this little brat–impressive reaction by the way–but it's still salvageable." The scarred man gave a threatening smile. "I've come to collect on that promise. Now submit and give me the Sharingan."
To emphasize his point his grip tensed on the kunai sword, and he held it closer to Naruto's neck. The blade dug into flesh, drawing a drop of blood from where it was pressed. Sasuki's heart leapt into her throat.. The sharingan? 'Kakashi's eye is that what he wan -'
Sasuki had no time to process the information. The second the last word left Hiroshi's mouth, Kakashi went into motion. But not to save Naruto. It was only afterwards she'd realize she activated her Sharingan. That's how she saw him move faster than she'd ever seen. Kakashi pivoted on his heel and snatched her and Sakura around the waist. Somehow, in the same motion he threw a kunai that Hiroshi had to deflect. It prevented him from immediately slitting Naruto's throat.
Before she even knew what was happened her vision was swallowed by darkness. It rose up to meet her and soon she felt something damp and musty smelling pressing in on them. She opened her mouth to shout, but quickly learned better when a gritty substance filled it. Even with the terrifying claustrophobia setting in she had only one thought.
'Naruto!'
-x-x-x-x-x-x- NTUC -x-x-x-x-x-x-
She wasn't sure how long they traveled underground. It had taken her a few seconds to recognize what was happening when Kakashi grabbed them. He'd used a seal less jutsu to travel underground. However long it was, it gave her time to realize what he'd done. He'd run away. Kakashi made them retreat like a coward and left Naruto in their clutches! Hot rage burned in her chest. It helped disguise the growing worry she felt.
Finally, the black void disappeared. They emerged into a tiny little patch of trees. Overhead the branches twisted together and choked the light. Only dim shafts reached the mossy ground. Beyond a line of dense shrubs was a grey, rocky landscape. The second they emerged from the ground and fresh air hit her nostrils, Sasuki slapped Kakashi's hand off her shoulder. Her face twisted in a snarl. She was aware of Sakura taking in great gasping breathes of air behind Kakashi, but almost the entirety of her focus was on him. There was no quelling her rage and indignation.
"What the hell was that coward? You ran away and left Naruto. Those who abandon their friends are lower than trash my ass!" She growled.
Had she been in her right mind, Sasuki probably would have picked up on the icy glint that entered Kakashi's eyes at her words. As it was her anger blinded her. She couldn't get over the sheer hypocrisy. Wasn't this the same man that had lectured them on teamwork and not leaving a teammate? The anger helped her bury her concern. Loath as she'd be to admit it, she was worried about Naruto. Part of her wondered if he was still alive. Her mind was all too ready to provide her with images of him lying prone with his throat slit and blood pooling beneath him.
'No, don't think about that. He's still alive. He has to be.' She thought heatedly.
"Are you done panicking?" Kakashi's cold voice cut through her thoughts like a surgical knife separating flesh. She reeled back as if slapped. It was only temporary.
"Panicking, Naruto might be dead and you're criticizing me for being panicked? What the hell is the matter with you? One little threat to take that eye and you turned tail and ran!" She shot back.
By the end of her rant she was panting with exertion. It almost felt like she'd just gotten done with some heavy training. Despite the heat of her words, Kakashi was unflappable. He gave her a look so thoroughly unimpressed it made her feel small.
"If you'd let me get a word in edgewise, I'd tell you it wasn't my eye they were after." Kakashi said. Those words made her mind grind to a halt. "Oh, and Naruto is almost certainly still alive. There are more important things to worry about." He added as an afterthought. Even though the news that Naruto might be alive was welcome, it left Sasuki with more questions than answers.
"What could possibly be more important than getting him back?" She questioned. As an afterthought, she added "And what's that about not being after your eye? That guy said to hand over the Sharingan, an eye for an eye!"
Kakashi gave a weary sigh and slumped to the ground. He was quick to pull his headband back over his eye. With a hand hanging lazily off his knee, he gave her a rather annoyed look. "For starters, I think clearing the poison out of our system should be top priority."
The simple, blunt response brought her up short. For the first time since Naruto was taken hostage Sasuki noted how off her senses were. Her vision was still blurry. Now that she thought about it, it was odd how tired she was from simply yelling. Her lungs heaved for air. It almost felt like she'd been in a marathon.
Sakura spoke up and cut into their conversation.
"Kakashi-sensei … that gas. It's n-not ordinary knockout gas. It was a poison." Sakura said through gritted teeth. She looked about as good as Sasuki felt. Her skin was oddly pale in the dim forest lighting. Her hair hung slack about her sweaty face.
His mask twitched as Kakashi likely gave Sakura a smile. "Well, at least one of you noticed the effects. It seems they cooked up a special blend to impede chakra use. That's why I got us out of there. No way we could fight like this." He replied.
Chakra impeding poison? She tentatively reached inside to try and use her chakra. It was useless. Her chakra wasn't responding at all. Like a stubborn cat refusing to move. They were right. That's when it hit her. She remembered Naruto performing that wind jutsu. He'd inhaled so much of it! Enough for four people. She shuddered to think of the effects it could have. Even as tired as she was, Sasuki made to get up only to be shoved right back down by Kakashi. It was hard to say which was worse. The bruising the hard ground gave her butt or the bruise to her ego from being manhandled so easily. Her glare did nothing to quail him.
"I'm going to guess you're worried about Naruto absorbing so much. Don't." He said firmly. "Though I can't really get into details, let's just say there's a reason Naruto was so quick to inhale it all. You'd be hard pressed to find a poison that could kill him. Especially a non-lethal one. I don't know if you've noticed, but he's pretty durable that kid."
His words helped to calm her nerves and remind her of just what her best friend was like. That's right. Naruto had always healed well. Come to think of it, she'd never seen him with so much as a cold. That was something that was always rather odd. It wasn't that hard to imagine a resistance to poison.
"Kakashi-sensei if it's not too much trouble, what did you mean they weren't after your eye? I'm with Sasuki on this. That Hiroshi guy seemed to imply he wanted it." Sakura said.
Contrary to the annoyed way he'd been talking to her, Kakashi simply waved away Sakura's concern. "Ah, that. Well, Hiroshi Kusanoka is a member of the Hidden Grass. More specifically, a radical part of one of the factions. It's called the Flowers of Grass. They're intent on strengthening their village by stealing bloodlines and studying them. That's their main objective. Knowing Hiroshi like I do, there's no way he gives up a hostage that might help him achieve the missions goal. They want the bloodline of the Uchiha." He explained.
The explanation sent a chill down her spine. Call her what you will, arrogant, cocky, one thing she wasn't was stupid. Sasuki picked up on what Kakashi was implying rather easily. It wasn't him they were after. They wanted the bloodline not the eye. There was only one person in their village with it. Hiroshi and his group had been after her. Pressure built in her skull. A wave of nausea hit her. Maybe it was the realization of what their 'clients' wanted with her, or a guilty conscience over the fact she was the reason Naruto was held hostage. Either way she felt like she'd throw up.
"With that settled, we need to work as quickly as possible. Likely Hiroshi and his team will be retreating to take Naruto to a more defensible location for ransom." Kakashi said. He turned his head to look at Sakura, and ordered, "Sakura, I want you to come up with an antidote to relieve our symptoms from the poison."
The pink-haired girl shot Kakashi an uncertain look. She chewed her lower lip between her teeth.
"Um, I'm not sure how effective it'll be without a proper sample." She said apprehensively. For just a moment it was like looking at the same uncertain girl who'd annoyed her when they became a team.
"Don't worry, I don't expect a perfect counteragent. Besides, you should have more faith in yourself." Kakashi said. He reached out and gave Sakura a reassuring squeeze of the shoulder.
His words had the desired effect. Sakura's gaze sharpened with determination. After that she was quick to follow Kakashi's command. Sasuki felt the ground vibrate underneath her when Sakura performed a jutsu to make a small area of dirt flat. With a puff of smoke and noise of displaced air, she unsealed a small foldable table. The arms clicked into place smoothly. Several more pop's followed as Sakura filled the table with a variety of vials filled herbs. Knowing how tedious and long the process was bound to be, Sasuki turned her attention away from Sakura and back to Kakashi.
"What about me?" She asked.
Kakashi–who'd been about to begin making hand signs–paused. His visible eye didn't hold the same coldness or reproach as earlier. The skin around it crinkled as he gave her a small smile. Or at least she assumed he did. "Rest." He said firmly. Sasuki opened her mouth to protest, but he silenced her with a raise hand. "I'd tell Sakura the same if she wasn't the only one that can make an antidote. I'll be resting too as soon as I send out the tracking party."
Her teeth ground together harshly. She didn't want to rest. Yet, there was little choice. There was nothing she could really contribute to the search or making the antidote. Her throat tightened worriedly. Sasuki drew her legs up to her chest and sighed in frustration. She had the uncharacteristic urge to cry. Right now Naruto was in immediate danger, and she had to just wait. It wasn't fair!
POOF!
Despite the much larger cloud of smoke, Sasuki didn't bother to look. Heavy pants came in stereo, along with several inquisitive sniffing noises. Amidst the smoke was a pack of dogs wearing blue vests and head-bands. They came in a variety of colors and breeds. Her nose wrinkled at the terrible smell of one of the dogs breath.
"Heya Kakashi, what d'ya need?"
Sasuki recognized the gruff voice as belonging to the lead dog in Kakashi's pack of ninja hounds. A small brown pug by the name of Pakkun.
"I need you guys to find Naruto's scent asap. He's been taken hostage. Report back when you figure out what direction they're headed in." Kakashi ordered.
"You got it!" Pakkun answered.
For a moment, the clearing was filled with the sound of paws beating the ground and nails scrapping rock. The noise quickly died when the dogs disappeared into the into the trees. It left a deafening silence in their wake. As the adrenaline ebbed away, Sasuki felt the poison gasses effects all the more. Her thoughts were like molasses. The stifling summer air didn't help that.
Scrrt, scrrt … scrrt, scrrt
The rhythmic sound of Sakura's mortar and pestle grinding lulled her into an odd sort of waking-sleep. She hovered on the edge of consciousness. One second she'd be sitting with her back against the rough bark of the tree, the next she was lost in an odd collection of memories and dreams.
Sunlight danced across her face. Her feet pounded the ground as she chased after a boy with spiky blond hair. There was something clutched in his hands. Something she wanted.
"Hahaha, want the tomatoes, you gotta find me first Sasuki!" The boy jeered.
Her breath caught in her throat at the sight of electric blue eyes glittering mischievously. Naruto! Not the Naruto as he was now. His face was still chubby with baby fat. She was so surprised at his appearance she was slow to react as he disappeared into the forest.
"You gotta find me …"
Sasuki shook her head fiercely. It took all her focus to keep from being lost in the dreams. An annoyed grunt rumbled through her throat. 'Have to wake myself up somehow.'
She pressed her fingers to her arm warmer and pushed some chakra into the seal. It was her first time experiencing the sluggish feeling of her chakra due to the poison. Poof!
A heavy weight dropped into her lap as she unsealed her aluminum canteen. She was quick to unscrew the cap and took a quick sip. Cold, smooth water wet her parched throat. Sasuki let out a sigh and poured some more water into the palm of her hand to splash her face. The droplets tickled her skin as they ran down her cheeks.
Her attention was drawn back to Sakura, who was hard at work making the antidote. A gleaming black microscope had joined the list of tools while Sasuki was dozing. With her brow furrowed, Sakura called out to their sensei.
"Hey, Kakashi-sensei, I want to ask you something." She said.
Kakashi grunted and lifted his chin off his chest and regarded Sakura with a groggy eye. "Oh, what's that?" He asked curiously.
The way Sakura chewed her lip had Sasuki raising an eyebrow. There was a tenseness in Sakura's shoulders. As if she was worried how the question would be received.
"Um, well, that Hiroshi guy. What was the deal earlier. It seemed … personal with you two."
Sasuki sat up a little straighter. Now that the man was mentioned, she found herself thinking of Hiroshi as well. It was important to know as much as possible about the man if they were going to chase him. The man's presence was ominous. His scar had also caught her attention. When Kakashi started to speak she leaned forward eagerly, drawn in by his words.
"Ah, him. Well … I suppose it is personal." Kakashi muttered. As he spoke, his gaze became unfocused. Like he was looking at something that wasn't there. "During the Third Shinobi War, the fighting was pretty fierce. There were a lot of battles in the Hidden Grass. Their country was one of the major battle grounds between the Hidden Leaf and Hidden Stone. Naturally this led to them picking one side. They chose to side with the Hidden Stone.
"During the war, my team under Minato Namikaze frequently clashed with both villages. That's where I encountered Hiroshi. He was the son of their leader, a skilled sensor who could cancel out any jutsu by harmonizing his chakra to the jutsu. It made him my natural opposite. Not to mention, we were very similar in personality." Kakashi's eye gazed into the distance.
Sasuki's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "What do you mean you were similar?" She asked.
The idea was fairly foreign. Kakashi seemed about as opposite of Hiroshi as it got. He chuckled at her question. "I know it's hard to believe, but I used to be a real by-the-books sort of guy. The mission was the highest importance for me. That was before I'd learned the value of teamwork. Hiroshi was the same way, though a little colder. He never was one for much emotion. We had many battles over the course of the war. Despite my youth compared to him I could hold my own. Then, I got my Sharingan."
She leaned forward intently. He'd never told them of how he got the eye. The only thing that quelled any suspicions she might have had was the fact her clan would never let someone who forcefully took a sharingan to keep it. "It was on the mission where I finally appreciated my teammates. Too little too late. When we were rescuing our third member, my teammate Obito was crushed under a boulder after saving me from it. With his dying breath he told our teammate Rin to give me his eye to replace the one I'd lost that day.
"With my sharingan, the next time we met I was more than a match, and in the battle I managed to overwhelm him. It was during that battle that his student died." A dark look flashed through Kakashi's eye at the last part of the story.
Sasuki's eyebrows shot up. "His student died?" She asked. Kakashi nodded slowly.
"Well, more specifically … I killed her. She took my Lightning Blade to save him. That's where he got the scar. Hiroshi was never one for much emotion. I didn't think he had it in him to care for a teammate. For whatever reason her death actually affected him. He promised revenge. I guess he finally decided to act." He answered grimly.
Sasuki felt the breath catch in her chest. At her workstation Sakura gave a surprised gasp. Damn. No wonder it was personal with the man. Her mind raced as she thought the story over. It made her uncomfortable to realize she could actually understand how the man felt. After all, she wanted to make Itachi pay for what he'd done. If only she could make him feel a fraction of her pain.
'Wait …' Suddenly, things clicked into place. Her heart plummeted and her body flooded with panicked heat.
"An eye for an eye … a student for a student. That's why he's after me?" She gasped.
The question was mostly rhetorical, but she got an answer anyways. She had to bite back a shout of fright as a weight settled onto her shoulder.
Her head snapped up to meet Kakashi's firm gaze. "It's not only that. Yes that's a big part of it, but it's also a mission for him. Like I said earlier, his faction of the Hidden Grass seeks to strengthen the village by gathering bloodlines. None of that matters though. What matters is planning our next move." He told her.
Sasuki nodded mutely. Kakashi was right. That was the only thing that mattered.
"All done!" Sakura cheered.
Four tiny vials were clasped in her hand, filled with a translucent scarlet liquid. Each was capped by a yellow head. From experience, Sasuki knew the heads were actually caps for a hypodermic needle. For the first time since they'd fled, she felt a smile stretch her face. Yes. They were going to track the group of Grass ninja down. The words from her daydream floated through her head again.
"You gotta find me."
-x-x-x-x-x-x- NTUC -x-x-x-x-x-x-
Hey everyone, so first off I have some big news. Prior to posting this I'm launching my pa treon. That's why I've changed my page breaks. It's easier given their format for text posts, and why this is a bit late today. Had to re-post all the chapters before this. These breaks are mostly temporary because the ones I went with disappeared when uploaded to so I'll need to replace it and find a better one.
You can find it by searching pa treon and rinnetaicho. I'll be posting another chapter there in the next two days, so patrons will always be a couple weeks ahead on updates. I'll also be posting all the other chapters there so there's a proper backlog. My is where you'll find lots of exclusive content like one-shots and teasers. There are a limited amount of spots right now but that might change in time.
Anyways, about this chapter! This chapter was about Team 7's experience after the ambush, next chapter is about Naruto's. I know Kakashi comes off very harsh and out of character in this chapter, but keep in mind this is one of those no-win situations he mentioned in cannon. They were all crippled and unable to fight facing unknown enemies, and given what he knows of the enemy, it's unlikely Naruto would be in immediate danger. That being the case it was best to remove the main target from the situation and regroup. As for how he talked to Sasuki, time was of the issue and there was no room for coddling her. Not to mention with her personality she's more responsive to a blunt approach.
Well, hope you enjoyed and everyone is doing good. Tell me what you think of the new page breaks. I'm willing to keep working on it if they're too annoying.
Until Next Time,
RinneTaicho, Signing Off!
