NARUTO IS PROPERTY OF MASASHI KISHIMOTO
"Kyuubi talking"
'Kyuubi thinking'
"Normal speech"
'Characters thinking'
Author's note:
I cried writing this one. Enjoy
Generation Lost
Chapter 9:
"Stare into your empty eyes and wonder
How could something so right turn out so wrong?"
A chorus of labored breaths whispered throughout the forest. The multiple sound of footsteps had halted suddenly, at the voice of Kakashi.
"We shouldn't exhaust ourselves." The grey haired jounin said, his breath even, unlike the rest of his group. "I know we're eager to arrive but we should save our strengths if we find anything."
A collective gasp of gratefulness filled the young ninjas' lungs.
Sakura, now that her legs hit full stop after ten straight hours of dashing through all kinds of terrains, leaned against the same tree Sai was sitting against. It was hard to say due to the lack of light, but Sakura could swear that he looked somewhat paler than normal.
Kakashi looked carefully at Naruto, or more exactly, at Naruto's back. The blond was a few steps ahead of all of them, standing fully straight and looking at the direction of Sasuke's headquarters. From that distance, the only thing the Hatake could made out was his bright hair, since his chuunin jacket and the rest of his clothes were too dark to see. He was expecting for him to say something about the importance of getting there as soon as possible, very much like he had said as soon as they left the village in such a hurry.
Naruto noticed for the first time in their journey that he also had been breathing rapidly, but oddly enough, he didn't felt awfully tired. The Uzumaki had hardly said a word as they ran towards their destination, mind too focused on what they might or might not encounter once they arrived. What Kakashi had said was reasonable enough. Even he was preparing for an unexpected encounter with Sasuke, although the chances were very much null.
Naruto took a night longer than expected to decipher the code hidden in the scroll, thanks to Kiba's outburst. The coordinates were finally revealed to be Sasuke's and Kabuto's whereabouts, which almost made Naruto's heart stop completely as he read over the message.
"Uchiha's currently hiding spot. Time before he moves out: 2 weeks. The kid is going to be thrilled."
Naruto got to be thrilled for about two seconds, as his eyes scanned the paper once more. Then he noticed the date on the note.
He was already three days too late, plus the ten day journey it took to get to Ishigakure, the Village Hidden in Stones, which was just south of the Land of Earth. That Naruto was mad was an understatement; he stormed into Tsunade's office demanding that Team 7's new mission started immediately, along with the best tracking team there was.
Obviously, Tsunade wouldn't give an outdated mission the importance Naruto wanted, but she did granted Team 7 a member of one of the best tracking teams in Konoha.
Hinata was bending over, grabbing both her knees with her hands, trying to catch her breath along with the others. Her cheeks were flushed thanks to a combination of physical strain and the wind whipping against her face unmercifully. She resented not having a mask like Kakashi did.
Team 7 and co didn't even bother to raise tents. The Land of Stone was so dry the chances of rain were very slim. They were also too tired to make a fire; Kakashi ordered everyone to take out their sleeping bags and make the best of the night, since they could only sleep for four hours.
'Good.' Naruto could only sleep three and a half at most. Although that time was stretching at a painfully slow pace. Hinata's part of the nightmare wasn't as vivid as he remembered, but now it was Kiba's turn to appear in his mind.
"Good night." He heard the Hyuuga say in a whisper loud enough for the small group to hear. Sakura and Kakashi whispered a comeback tiredly, while Sai responded in a very polite tone along with a creepy smile.
The girl's pupils traveled rapidly to the blond lying right next to her, but Naruto didn't react to the sound. He had his hands behind his head and his eyes fixed in the starry night right above them.
In the nine days they had been traveling, they only exchanged a few words. One reason was because Naruto's head was too wrapped up about the possibility of still finding a warm trace of Sasuke if they arrived soon enough. The other was because he felt that if he talked to her then the whole Kiba thing might be brought up, and he didn't want to make her uncomfortable or (even worse) depressed.
Kiba had sparked a sentiment of guilt in both of them.
Naruto knew there was nothing to feel guilty about, since he didn't feel anything for her that he knew of. Not even at the time of the kiss. But now he wasn't sure. It was more of a blurry line he feared to tread.
But there was no time to think about that. He'd worry once the mission was over.
"'Night." The blond heard himself muttering. His own words brought him back to reality and he noticed how everyone else had already fallen asleep. His arms were starting to feel cold, so he adjusted them inside his comfy sleeping bag and turned to his left, where Hinata seemed to mutter something in her sleep.
Now that his eyes were very well adjusted to the night, he could see how a dark strand of hair had fallen in front of Hinata's light-colored face, and it was tickling her nose. Once in a while she'd wiggle her nose to try and push her hair out of the way. Naruto was debating on removing the hair himself by placing it behind her ear or leaving it right there just to continue smiling at her unconscious antics.
In the end he didn't do anything. He fell asleep at last, unaware of how much time he'd spent staring at Hinata.
Naruto's body tensed as he jerked out of his dreams. But he didn't wake up with a yelp, as he was used to. At least that was what he thought. The only thing he knew for sure was that he felt like shit; Kiba's nightmares didn't let him rest at all.
He looked around to see Kakashi placing his sleeping bag back into the traveling scroll. Sakura and Hinata were ready, waiting for him and Sai.
"Hurry." Kakashi said to both boys, hiding calmly the nervousness he shared with the rest of his original team.
"Did I speak in my sleep?" The Uzumaki whispered tiredly to Hinata, who offered him a protein bar.
"I don't know." She replied. "I was too tired. Sorry."
Naruto waved her apology away. If she didn't hear him probably the rest didn't, and that was enough for him.
"All right, let's do this." Naruto announced with as much energy as he could muster, but he still felt groggy all over. Placing his chuunin jacket over his shoulders, the blond led his teammates into the rocky mountains that waited for them.
After almost three hours of running at full speed, Hinata activated her Byakugan without waiting for team 7's leader to tell her to. They were approaching the coordinates Naruto showed them. In a terrain like this, they'd be surely looking for a cave much like they had encounter in their last mission together. After discarding a few small caves near the exact location, the young Hyuuga finally led them to a waterfall that hid the entrance of a cave right at the middle of its fall.
"Do you see anyone?" The gray-haired man inquired to the Hyuuga, who was knitting her eyebrows as she scanned the darkness before her.
"Not yet. It is quite big."
Kakashi nodded pensively, thinking for a moment before ordering his team to advance. They walked a few meters before finding a sharp turn to the right. The cave didn't go downwards, instead it expanded before them, snaking along the mountain and gradually widening its walls and roof. Sasuke must've placed a lot of effort into building those headquarters; deep as they were, the roof was so tall now it could hardly be seen in the dark above.
"There are lit torches ahead." Hinata announced gravely. Everybody's pulse quickened as she finished saying those words. Lit torches didn't mean there were persons still hiding there, but was more than they were hoping for. "Should we keep going?"
Hinata's words hung in the air as Kakashi thought it over. Supposedly, his current team was apt to track and fight off any of Sasuke's minions still lying around in his headquarters, but if they were to encounter Kabuto or Sasuke himself…
Even in the dark and cold corridor he could feel Naruto's gaze burning a hole in his back. He had to admit that Naruto had improved on controlling his emotions and tantrums, but this might be the point where he could snap if Kakashi suddenly decided they were not fit for the mission. 'They might be young, but they're all strong. Specially Naruto. Besides… I'm just as curious as you to know what Sasuke has been working on.'
"Let's keep going." Kakashi whispered. "Keep a sharp eye, Hinata."
The girl nodded firmly, and felt Naruto's supporting hand squeezing on her shoulder. Hinata nodded once more.
After only fifteen minutes of treading slowly through the dimly lit hallway, they started to see huge chambers with different stuff lying around. From dormitories to workshops, Kakashi could only spare less than a minute to peek inside. They first needed to make sure no one else but them was in the cave.
In a swift movement, Hinata raised her open palm, halting the whole team. The serious look on her Byakugan eyes said it all.
They were not alone.
"He's approaching quickly." Hinata told them with wide eyes. "Great chakra."
Before Naruto could ask if it was Sasuke, Kakashi opened his mouth, "Only one?" Hinata shook her head, and Naruto's pulse quickened even more.
"There are other three further down."
The Uzumaki looked at Sakura and they both shared an astonished look in the dark hallway. They both wanted to smile, but the impending danger prevented their lips to move. Sasuke was there. Sasuke was one of the other three, they were sure of it. They had finally caught up.
"Two are running away."
"We need to catch up to them." The Hatake said somberly to his young team. "Get ready for a fight."
"Damn, you stole my exact words."
Every member of team 7 turned their heads to the strange voice. In the far away shadows, a figure started to walk closer to them. His stride was calm and secure, and there was a muscled arm holding a very large, and familiar sword.
"Konoha nins, why am I not surprised." Said the stranger, amused, by the sound of his voice. Kakashi noticed that his other arm was scrawny. The man finally stopped a few feet in front of them, his sword slung on one of his shoulders. "Let's see… we have a Hyuuga, something you don't see every day… the pink-haired one must be Sakura, am I right?"
"How did you-" said pink-haired girl asked with cautiousness, but Kakashi answered for her.
"Sasuke must've told him, clearly." The team leader answered calmly, without taking his eyes off the newcomer.
"Oh! Copy Cat Kakashi!" The man's voice said with genuine joy. "I must say it's an honor to meet you! You were the one who killed Zabuza-san, were you not?"
"He's got Zabuza's sword." Naruto said with a suspicious frown. The last time he'd seen it, he had planted it on top of Zabuza's grave out of respect. "What the hell are you doing with that?"
"Hmm?" Suigetsu mused as he analyzed the boy, then grinned. "And you must be Naruto, the Grinning Demon of Konoha… although you're not grinning now."
"Let's cut the crap, all right?" the Kyuubi container barked at the white-haired sword wielder. "We need to get through him to get to Sasuke before he escapes."
"You're right about that, you know? Oh, I'm Hozuki Suigetsu by the way." Suigetsu said with a smile, showing the Konoha nins all of his pointy teeth. "There's five of you and four of us. It's almost fair. Sure, you all could try and kill me to get to Sasuke, but I'm not as weak as some of you think I am. I'm far stronger than Zabuza, after all."
Kakashi and Naruto narrowed their eyes. Zabuza had been a great opponent, and if he claimed to be stronger than him, it could take a while before taking him down.
"So, how 'bout this?" Suigetsu said amiably, lodging his blade into the stone ground and leaning against the enormous sword. "I stay with you, Hatake. This blade deserves revenge for his former master. The rest can go on and meet their precious Sasuke."
Hinata judged the proposition to be way too smart for her comfort. At first it seemed that Suigetsu was acting on their mission's favor, since it would be advantageous to have a greater number hunting Sasuke. But as she thought more about it he was depriving them of the strongest member of their group and launching the most unexperienced to an unknown hallway with other unknown enemies. All of this while making it seem that he was just pursuing his selfish interest of settling a debt.
Kakashi also seemed to ponder about it, but his face was undeterred. "Naruto, take the lead until I catch up with you."
The blond turned his eyes to him and nodded firmly. "Don't take too long, or you might miss the big fight." None of the rest of the group dared say a word against Kakashi's decision.
"Let's keep going." The blond said, his eyes were fixed in the dark hallway. He started to run in Suigetsu's direction, who was wearing a fixed grin at the turn of events. Just as he was walking past the unmoving enemy, the Hozuki opened his mouth.
"I was also looking forward to cutting you into pieces, but I guess Sasuke will have that privilege." Apart from his taunting words, he only moved his neck to follow Naruto's movements.
"C'mon guys, there's no point in listening to a dead man." The blond snapped back, ignoring Suigetsu and nudging his team to follow. Sakura sprinted forward, followed by Hinata and then Sai.
'A Hyuuga in our very lab… Sasuke's gonna be thrilled.' The sword master thought with a pleased smile as he watched the long-haired beauty run past him. He closed his eyes as a whiff of her perfume reached his nose. 'Oh she smells good.'
Kakashi would've paid for having the power to read the bastard's mind. The man knew exactly who he was but didn't show any signs of fear or caution, and that meant he was either really good or really stupid. He watched Sai's back being swallowed by the dark and hoped they could handle whatever awaited for them.
With a chuckle, Suigetsu turned to Kakashi. "Shall we?" He pointed to a door less than ten steps away from them. As he walked towards it he said, "This room should be big enough."
By the spikes of chakra emanating from behind, Hinata and the rest knew the fighting had started already.
"Do you think Kakashi-san is strong enough to win?" Sai asked calmly, even though they were dashing rapidly through the tunnel.
Naruto scoffed. "Kakashi-sensei's strong to take on anyone." Oddly, he found himself on a good mood. Sure he was nervous but the Hyuuga had just pointed out that they were getting closer and closer to the three remaining persons. One of which was definitively Sasuke. 'At last, teme.' "How far are we now, Hinata?"
The girl's eyes were narrowed in full concentration. "He's coming fast." According to her Byakugan, there was a turn to the right ahead of them, then another one to the left and a straight path. The very same one the other presence was coming from.
"How do you know it's a He?" Sai questioned from the rear, making Hinata turn around to answer.
"He looks pretty bi-"
A crashing noise, combined with a war howl, reached them in a blink of an eye. At first everyone was confused because there was nothing but solid wall in front of them, but then rock and dust littered their eyes as a big figure dashed towards them. Hinata jumped swiftly to the side, avoiding the flesh train that would've surely crash into her.
By now the low light that was coming from the torches was enough to reveal a muscled man with a really big limb headed straight towards their group. Naruto also spun on his feet to dodge the incoming man, but Sakura had other plans.
"Take this!" The pink-haired girl connected her own right fist with the man's amorphous one. The clash of forces pushed back everyone's hair back, and time seemed to freeze for a second.
In the stillness of battle, Sakura and the rest could see how the man's right arm was blackened to the shoulder, his fingers engorged like a giant's and his forearm covered in equally black spikes that were expulsing hot rushes of air from his elbow to give his punch more power.
"What are you?" Sai seemed to be in a very talkative mood, since his tone to address the man was the same that he would use to greet people on the street.
The orange-haired monster didn't seem to hear him. His eyes were locked with Sakura's green ones. They were still pushing through their fist link.
"He's got Orochimaru's curse seal." Naruto noted with gritted teeth. The man's right part of his face started to get a shade of grey and his right eye turned black, with a lonesome orange iris. Sakura narrowed her eyes even more.
The man's nostrils flared open as he looked down upon the Haruno, and retrieved his throbbing hand as the same time as Sakura took back hers. He turned his head to the left to look at Naruto in the eyes.
"Only the one called Naruto can go through." He said simply in a deep voice. It sounded almost calm, betraying his threatening look.
"Who the hell are you to decide that?" The blond questioned harshly.
"I'm part of Sasuke's private guard." He replied, keeping an eye on the small girl in front of him. "His strongest man. Now get going."
If Naruto hated anything it was people telling him what to do. And he hated it more when strangers ordered him around. He was the temporary leader of the mission, for Kami's sake, why did everyone thought they could command him?
"If you think I'll-"
"Naruto, you take Hinata and Sai with you." Sakura called solemnly, cracking her knuckles as she stared up at the enemy. "I'll take care of Sasuke's strongest man." She said the last part with a smirk that seemed to infuriate the giant, the curse spreading even more across his body.
"Don't be ridiculous." Naruto said, looking seriously at her. "You don't know what the curse seal can do to a person. I can't leave you alone."
"I'll stay with her." Sai interrupted. He had been listening the whole time from behind Sakura. Danzo had spoken with great interest about the so called Curse Seal. He might be able to get some information for him apart from Sasuke's whereabouts. And also…, "I can't leave one of my friends alone if I can help it."
Sakura glanced at him with a smile, which Sai returned. Naruto didn't understand when the two of them had become friends, but it seemed that Sai's words were genuine.
The blond cursed under his breath. This was starting to get pretty much alike the first rescue mission to get Sasuke. Not only their group was starting to split but also they had to deal with some freakish experiment.
"Only Naruto." The nameless man repeated, towering over the Konoha group. "I won't let anyone else pass." His eyes seized Hinata's pale ones, which only served for Naruto to get in a very foul mood.
"Don't bother." Sakura said with a grin. "You already bit off more than you can chew." She nodded curtly, which signaled Naruto and Hinata to get going.
The Uzumaki looked long and hard into Sakura's eyes and imagined just how strong willed she had to be to decide to stay instead of going forward to meet Sasuke after so many years. He very much doubted he could've done that. A new sense of respect grew in him to his childhood teammate.
"I will not let anyone else go through me!" The calm demeanor the man had shown earlier had disappeared and now crazed eyes gleamed at them. As he stared to make his move to go after Hinata, the Uzumaki grabbed her forearm and dragged her just behind him, blocking her view of the giant. Sakura took advantage of his distraction and placed a side kick to the man's stomach that sent him through the stone wall that led to some kind of lab.
"Go." Sakura said with a thick voice to her teammates.
Naruto nodded. "Be careful." He turned his blue eyes to his other male teammate, who was kneeling over his giant scroll. "You too, Sai."
The gentleness of Naruto's voice made Sai look up in surprise, but the blond and the Hyuuga were already gone.
"There're two individuals coming this way."
Sasuke raised his eyes from the kunai he was holding in his hand at Karin's tense voice.
He smirked.
"Don't sound so scared, Karin. I knew Juugo couldn't hold all three of them." He turned the knife in the air to catch it by the handle. "I'm sure one of them is Naruto."
The red-haired woman swallowed as she focused on the approaching energies. "His chakra is amazing! It's… I've never felt anything like that before."
"Don't be so easily impressed." Sasuke stood up and walked towards the dead end of the hallway. "Who's the other person?"
"It's a woman, definitely." Karin answered, following him. "Her chakra is leveled, unlike your ex teammate's."
"Sakura, then." Sasuke easily concluded, opening the hatch on top of him. The light revealed a dark, vertical tunnel. "C'mon. We're gonna take the fight upstairs."
Karin nodded, but couldn't get rid of the sickening feeling that settled in her stomach. It worsened as the infamous Naruto got closer.
Kakashi sent an annoyed glare to the grinning Hozuki as he rested the sword over his shoulders. 'He said he wanted to fight but for the past half hour he's just keeping me at bay.' The boy drank again from his water bottle, smiling once he'd finish with his second one. 'It's incredible that he can create so many water jutsus with just the water in his body.'
"Getting tired, Kakashi?" the younger shinobi asked with a mocking grin.
Kakashi never fell into his enemies' taunts. And this wasn't going to be an exception.
"Kuchiyose no Jutsu." The jounin said calmly, releasing the exact amount of chakra from his right palm to summon four of his biggest dogs. The canines were wearing small ninja uniform, and were already memorizing the Hozuki's scent. "Go."
Sharing a nod between the four of them, the dogs parted ways and surrounded the enemy. Suigetsu watched the biggest one stop in front of him, and the other three blocking his escape.
"Tch. I hate dogs." As soon as he finished speaking, Kakashi's servants sprung forward, jaws at the ready and bearing pointy teeth. Suigetsu dodged the fastest one, then cut the other two in half, and kicked the remaining half away from him. The dogs disappeared in a puff of smoke, but he had been expecting that. What he didn't expect was for Kakashi to disappear as well. "Hey-"
The ground under him crumbled and shook as two familiar hands rose from the solid earth and grabbed him by the knees.
Suigetsu was ready to cut Kakashi's hands in half, but then another presence came falling towards him, a kunai ready to slash his throat.
The knife went easily through the man's skin. It felt softer than butter, it almost felt like-
"Hm?" Kakashi looked at his now soaked hand, then back at Suigetsu's dripping neck. What had been his head had disappeared into a falling fountain of water. Before Kakashi could recover from his shock, the headless body jumped backwards.
"You really went for the kill there, huh?" Suigetsu said once his mouth became solid again. Kakashi watched him impassively.
"You're made of water." The scarred man stated. Suigetsu nodded proudly.
"Technically we're all made of water." He grinned. "But liquid is my natural state."
Kakashi mused in his spot. He felt the corner of his lips rising up into a smile.
"This makes things easier, then." He said confidently, forming a chidori that illuminated the whole room.
Hinata looked at the back of Naruto's head as they ran through the narrowing corridor. She had announced fifteen minutes earlier that Sasuke and his companion apparently climbed through an opening in the roof and were now out of her sight. This put Naruto even more on edge, his pace quickening.
"Naruto-kun, could you…"
The blond took a few seconds to register her voice and come out of his thoughts. It was the first time in the whole trip she'd spoken so shyly. Slowing down into a halt, Naruto turned his head with a questioning expression. "Yeah?"
The Hyuuga looked up at him, then downwards to their linked hands. Naruto still didn't seem to get it. "Could you let go? It's a little uncomfortable to run like this." She explained, managing to tinge her cheeks with pink even in the midst of the whole dangerous situation.
His eyebrows finally snapped upwards. "Oh, sorry." He immediately relaxed his fingers and freed her hand. "Sorry." Just how long had they been running like that? He barely remembered grabbing her hand.
"It's okay." Hinata said, showing him a small smile. Her now exposed hand felt the terrible cold surrounding the hall. "Let's keep going."
The Uzumaki widened his eyes for a second, almost completely forgetting what they were doing in that terrible cave. He nodded once, then started running again.
"They're waiting for us just ahead." Hinata whispered just after coming out of the manhole. They were so close now that she feared if she spoke hard enough they might hear.
Naruto didn't replied. The girl could see his fists were slightly shaking, and his lips were pursed tight. The light inside the cave seemed more natural than the one the fire torches emitted. The place was huge. The ceiling didn't have a definite shape, since it gave way to the mountain just ahead, but with her Byakugan she had seen the exit of the cave a few meters away.
He didn't need Hinata's eyes anymore. Naruto could feel him himself. His chakra was barely recognizable, but it was his all right. Only filthier than before, which made Naruto wonder what he had done in earlier years to add such shade to his aura. There was another aura with him but it seemed insignificant.
As they finally walked around the last turn that lead to the cave exit, two forms greeted their eyes.
A low but clear chuckle was heard throughout the cave. Hinata recognized it as Sasuke's way of greeting them. 'No. He's only interested in seeing Naruto-kun.' The girl corrected herself, but as her eyes finished analyzing the threatening aura of the strange red-haired girl standing besides Sasuke, she noticed how the Uchiha's eyes were glued on her. He barely even looked at Naruto, but the Uzumaki was so concentrated in analyzing his childhood rival's appearance to notice.
'Holy shit.' Naruto thought, finding it quite hard to swallow how thin Sasuke had become. His face looked very well defined, but it was mostly thanks to the lack of fat on his cheeks and neck. Even before his mind could wonder how the rest of his body might look, the answer came as soon as he looked down to his half opened shirt. A couple of his ribs were poking from within his skin, but thankfully he was not quite a skeleton with bones yet.
"Did Orochimaru starved you this whole time?" Naruto asked, thoroughly concerned about his poor physique.
The Uchiha was still holding a staring contest with the Hyuuga by the time Naruto looked at him in the face. Then to Hinata. Then back again to Sasuke. Before he could voice out his utter confusion, Sasuke turned his onyx eyes to him.
"Naruto." He finally acknowledged in a bored tone. Thankfully, his eyes were much livelier than the rest of his body. The complete blackness of his irises clashed sharply with his pale face. "Of course you'd notice the unimportant details."
Naruto made a distasteful face, as his blood started to boil. Why did he act so uninterested in him? When the last time they saw each other, it was Sasuke who was all over his case… "Is that how you're gonna greet me? Really?"
"Well I won't give you a hug, that's for sure." The black-haired ninja permitted himself a small smirk, while Karin laughed openly at his side. Hinata felt how cold Naruto's aura was becoming.
"Who the hell are you?" The blond questioned, straining to keep his voice levelled. The girl in questioned stopped laughing at once. She could feel just how dangerous he could be, and that boiling aura only made him even more threatening.
"That's Karin. She's none of your business." Sasuke said calmly, from his sitting position. With a lazy finger he pointed at Naruto. "Karin, that's Naruto. And that one is a Hyuuga."
Karin already guessed both of their identities, and although the Hyuuga was a surprise, she was still astounded by Naruto.
"She's got a name!" The whiskered boy said, taking a light step forward, the last threads of restraint he possessed started to snap little by little. The Uchiha didn't react to his words.
"Let me guess, Kakashi's fighting Suigetsu, while Sakura was left with Juugo. Who's the other one?"
"That'd be Sai." The Kyuubi container said. "Your replacement."
"Oh." The Uchiha smiled slightly. "I'm glad you've moved on."
"Shut up." Naruto spat, glaring at his former friend. He seemed so calm about it all, but that only help make Naruto even angrier. He'd been waiting for this encounter for more than three years, and Sasuke seemed like a whole different person. "I'm just gonna ask you this once. Are you going to come willingly or should I take you by force?"
Sasuke got to his feet and smirked before answering. "Neither." He rested his palm on top of the end of his sword. "I'm going to make you pay for destroying the best of my labs."
Naruto clenched his jaw as he spoke. "None of these belongs to you. This was Orochimaru's. You should just cut ties with anything that has to do with him."
"I'll take what I want if it means getting me to the top." Suddenly, his eyes were no longer black. "And right now, a nine-tailed bijuu and a Hyuuga are just what I want."
Before he could entirely process Sasuke's words, he had already invaded his mind, and it only took three seconds for the black haired genius to get to Kyuubi's chambers.
Hinata took a moment to figure out what Sasuke was doing, but once she did she dashed forward, readying a palm to strike Sasuke square in the chest, but Karin appeared in between them with a Kunai in her hand and a ferocious glint in her eyes.
"I won't let you touch him, princess." She said in front of the unmoving Sasuke, who had his eyes fixed on Naruto's and wasn't blinking.
As Hinata started to device an alternate plan in her head, she turned her head to look at Naruto when a gasp escaped his lips.
"You're a moron if you think you can take him away from me that easily." The blond said, sweat shining in his forehead. "Not even you can battle two conscious minds at once."
Sasuke glared at him with blood red eyes, his sharingan sporting a more intricate pattern than three years before.
"Sasuke-kun." Karin called, looking at him from the corner of her eyes while still raising her knife to the Hyuuga. "Suigetsu's out." Sasuke clicked his tongue in annoyance. 'Couldn't even buy us an hour.'
'She's a sensor type, then.' Hinata thought carefully. That meant her fighting abilities were nothing compared to Naruto's or even hers. She turned her head to tell Naruto they could both try to overpower Sasuke, but by the time she found his alarmed eyes staring back at her, a shiny blade appeared in her line of vision.
"Don't move. I'd hate to kill you." Sasuke said calmly right behind her. Now he was being target of Naruto's deep glare. "I'll have to cut our visit short. I'm not eager to meet the whole team today."
"You fucker! This is between you and me, she's nothing to do with this!" The blond seethed, taking a step forward but Sasuke brandished his sword closer to her throat.
"Actually, I'm more interested in her than in you." Sasuke savored Naruto's helplessness. "Kyuubi can wait. Akatsuki will find you eventually, but a pure Hyuuga breed like this…" He gestured to the beauty in front of him, and that was when Naruto caught a glimpse of the look she was giving him. Naruto blinked in response.
"What are you going to do with her?" The blond asked, trying to keep his temper levelled.
"Who knows, I'm sure Kabuto will think of a few things." Sasuke smiled inwardly. "But I'll leave her functional enough for her to bear children…" Hinata's body started to hum beneath his touch. The Uchiha looked down at her only to find her slightly glowing blue with chakra. He wasn't expecting her to try something risky, but he couldn't let her go now that she was in his hands. Deciding to strike a non-vital part of her body, he swung his thin blade down upon her chest, only to have the blade sway in protest by the chakra force she was emanating.
"Kaiten." Hinata whispered as she forced both the blade and Sasuke away from her so she now could have the minimum of space around her to start spinning. Her body began to become blurry under the heavy coat of chakra that was trailing her. Sasuke, seeing as he had lost precious seconds in his exchange with Naruto, infused his sword with lighting and pressed it downward to pierce Hinata wherever it might fall, but neither the blade nor the lightning currents managed to penetrate the Hyuuga's perfect defense.
In the midst of their personal fight, Karin sensed Naruto creating three clones and hurried to warn Sasuke, but he already guessed that Naruto wouldn't wait in the sidelines. He cursed mentally. The Naruto's were too close to create a Susanoo around him and the girl, so he resigned from his initial plan and jumped away from harm's way.
Once she stopped spinning, two Naruto's were already in front of her.
"I'd gladly let Hinata kick your skinny ass." One of the Naruto clones said, starting to form a rasengan in both his hands. "But I've been waiting three years just for this chance." The remaining clone took her by the shoulder and lead her right were the original Naruto was seemingly meditating, sitting cross legged and with his eyes closed. Hinata couldn't guess by the life of her what he was planning to do, but she'd trust him because that might be the only way they would both get away with their lives.
Sasuke managed to pierce the clone in his chest but, as he had guessed, it still didn't dispelled. So he disappeared a few meters away, where the explosion pushed his hair backwards and destroyed a portion of the cave.
He didn't have time for this. Once Kakashi got to Juugo, he'd be vaporized and in no time they'd also appear, making his chances of escape almost nonexistent.
"Fine. We'll do it your way." Sasuke conceded, summoning the top half of his skeletal Susanoo and feeling how his chakra was quickly burning out. "Show me all you've got."
Hinata marveled at the incredible chakra surrounding the Uchiha. The cave was now filled with purple light coming from that awful jutsu. Naruto then opened his eyes, showing everyone that they were bright yellow with horizontal irises. No one else in the cave could explain why his new aura felt so different and powerful; but it would take more than that to scare Sasuke.
"I'll make this quick." Naruto said and only Sasuke could follow his enhanced speed to a spot right behind him, but his jutsu was too slow to turn around in time. No matter, even if he couldn't attack, Susanoo was the perfect defense. But one single punch from Naruto sent him flying into the opposite wall. He was strong all right, but his blows couldn't do anything to his purple servant.
Naruto came again, punching and kicking into the ghost ribs that were in between him and Sasuke, but no matter how powerful his strikes got, it didn't seem to make an opening towards Sasuke… and his time was running out. He dodged one of the skeletons hands but the other managed to grab his left arm. Sasuke seized this moment to launch fire right at him, and read Naruto's chakra to know he had already substituted himself to his right. Just before Naruto arrived to his new location, Sasuke launched one lighting spear where his left shoulder would appear, and a yelp of surprise reached his ears.
"You're no match against my Susanoo." Sasuke said confidently, retreating his jutsu and watching Naruto analyze his new wound.
"Wanna bet?" The blond said confidently, ignoring the pain and creating two more clones. These ones had the same facial features as him, and both of them scattered to surround Sasuke. A powerful whirling started to form around their right palm.
"Take cover, Hinata." He called out before the three Naruto's war cry filled the cave. The girl thought of asking him where exactly to hide, but the remaining Naruto clone that had been with her the whole fight forced her to get down and covered her with his body.
"Rasenshuriken!" Three bright, white spheres, with razor sharp blades rotating around them, flew right towards Sasuke's Susanoo. The Uchiha could feel the power of the attack, so he hardened the warrior as much as he could so they both could survive the explosion.
What once had been a giant cave, was now a pile of rock and rubble. Even the trees surrounding the entrance of the cave had caved under the air pressure and were lying around, their roots facing the sky.
Sasuke's Susanoo was now a broken mess, but it had served its purpose. He hadn't used the complete version of his jutsu since he didn't want the cavern to cave in, but apparently Naruto couldn't care less what became of his headquarters.
Sasuke was intact, but Hinata was still trying to get out from under piles of rocks with the clone's help, and Karin was nowhere to be seen. And Naruto…
"Over here." The Uzumaki's voice was followed by a kick thrown to Sasuke's face, but the Uchiha managed to block with his right forearm. The force made him skid in the ground. "How on earth can you withstand my attacks? You've got no meat on your skin!"
"Muscle is irrelevant." Sasuke blocked another blow coming from a clone on his left. "I can accomplish the same effects with the right chemicals, and save myself the time it would take to build my body."
Naruto bared his teeth in annoyance. "You sound too much like Orochimaru." After a couple of exchanging blows, a clone let itself be ripped apart by Sasuke's lighting blade.
"Tell that to someone who cares!" Sasuke said with satisfaction, watching the clone turn into smoke, only to have his feet held hostage by two hands coming from the ground.
"Don't forget your basics." Naruto said with a smirk, and placed a perfect punch on Sasuke's nose.
Now lying on his back and seeing himself in deep trouble, Sasuke decided to discharge multiple currents of continuous energy all around him so he could keep them at bay. But Naruto was having none of that.
"You won't see reason even if it punched you in the face." The whiskered boy said, walking straight into the lighting zone, disregarding the painful stings all over his body. Every part of his body tensed, almost paralyzing him, but he forced himself to keep advancing towards Sasuke. Seizing him by the collar of his shirt, Naruto locked eyes with his red ones. "This is a warning."
A hand coated with chakra ran through the Uchiha's stomach, cutting his flesh like it was butter. Unlike his, Naruto's attacks didn't cauterize the same second it reached flesh, so a warm river of blood washed down his pants. Sasuke's jutsu stopped at once, leaving just the two of them under the setting sun.
"Don't go after Hinata again." The blond spoke with gritted teeth, retrieving his hand from Sasuke's insides. The Uchiha survivor winced in pain but still kept glaring at the Uzumaki.
"You wouldn't even know what to do with a Hyuuga." Sasuke spoke through a mouthful of blood. This only served to anger Naruto even more, so he placed another fist right on his already broken nose and let him go wherever gravity might take him.
Sasuke hit the ground, and Naruto's strength finally left him, returning his eyes back to normal. Suddenly, Naruto's wound hurt even more than before, and his chakra was almost minimal. But at least he had beaten Sasuke.
"Karin…" Sasuke called weakly. Naruto heard his faint cry even with his growing headache. But he wasn't about to let him escape now. He started walking towards him, but stopped when he witnessed a veil of chakra disintegrating right in front of Sasuke, and the red-haired woman appeared with a frown upon her face.
"I won't let you have him." She declared, extending her arms on her sides. Hinata appeared just in time to see their exchange.
"Like you can stop me." The blond called back, stepping towards both of them. Then both Konoha nins heard Karin squeak in pain, and a wince appeared on her face. Confused as to what was happening to her, the Hyuuga lowered her gaze only to see Sasuke biting her ankle.
"What are you doing?" The blond asked with a tired voice.
Neither Karin nor Sasuke answered, as they were both too focused on biting and being bitten, so Naruto decided to hurry up.
"Stop that!" He ordered, breaking into a sprint.
"Amaterasu"
Whatever Sasuke had said, Naruto didn't understand. He was more confused by the force of his voice, when just seconds ago he could barely speak.
"Naruto-kun get away!" But Hinata's words were too late, and an intense heat reached Naruto's middle. The blond jumped away from them and towards Hinata before Sasuke could do anything else to him. 'That bastard. That woman must've healed him.'
The fire was black and spreading. Naruto could barely keep his eyes open due to the incredible heat radiating from those blackish flames. Hinata saw how Sasuke's eye had starting to bleed, and how his wound had healed in the blink of an eye, but Naruto was now more important.
His instincts told him not to touch the weird fire that was consuming half of his chuunin jacket. As quickly as he could, he slid off the smoldering jacket, but his upper left arm got caught in the fire.
As a ninja, he thought he'd experienced all kinds of pain throughout his life. He'd been stabbed, pierced, sawed almost in half… he'd even suffered severe burnings from lava fresh from a volcano.
But this… this was in a whole other level. The flame barely covered five inches of skin and he was ready to pass out from the pain. The smell of his own burning flesh was disturbing his senses. Falling to his knees with a mute cry of terror, Naruto was on the edge of being consumed by the pain.
Thinking quickly, like she always did, Hinata took out her knife and kneeled beside the agonizing blond. 'Hold still.' She thought she said to him, but couldn't even spare time to speak. Cutting a slab of burned skin from shoulder to inner elbow in one swift move, Hinata saved Naruto's left arm from being burned to a crisp.
"Naruto-kun." She called, begging for him to listen to her voice over his loud gasps of pain. "It's fine, you're fine."
Naruto closed his eyes and tried to push the different kind of pain away. His mind was focusing solely on Hinata's hand caressing his sweaty cheek. "God." He said in a strained voice. "Fucking hell."
"I know." She said, watching him open his eyes slowly. "You're okay now."
Naruto turned to look at his arm only to see it covered in blood, missing 20% his upper arm's skin, but otherwise okay.
"Take a good look at it." Naruto looked up at Sasuke, who had walked right up to them with Karin in his stride and no wounds in his body. The blond wondered how their positions could've changed so drastically in under one minute. Hinata stood up in front of Naruto protectively, brandishing her bloodied kunai to her two enemies. But Sasuke continued speaking like she wasn't even there.
"Those flames can last a week. Nothing can stop them except me." He grinned at them. "Souvenir from Itachi. Now I'll just take the Hy-"
Even in his tired state, Sasuke could still feel Naruto's remaining clone coming at him with all the speed it could muster. Sasuke ducked from his kick and turned to thrust his sword into the clone's back. The fact that it disappeared in an instant showed that Naruto had run out of fuel.
Sasuke turned around only to find Hinata's arm over Karin's and holding her knife dangerously close to her throat, very much like Sasuke had done with her half an hour ago. He threw a scolding glance to Karin, to which she just looked to the ground, embarrassed.
"Surrender." Hinata ordered, glaring at Sasuke with as much hate as she could summon.
The Uchiha smirked, even though his left eye was throbbing like hell and the pain was reaching his head. "I still can kill both of you in a blink of an eye. Why would I ever surrender?"
"Because Kakashi-san and the others are already coming this way." Hinata said, slightly pleased with herself. "Isn't that right, Karin?"
She twisted her face to watch Karin send an apologizing look to Sasuke, but then she nodded.
"Put down your sword." Hinata continued. Naruto emitted a low chuckle from his place in the ground, thoroughly enjoying just how annoyed Sasuke was with Hinata.
"That's what you get for messing with her." The blond called to his rival. Sasuke looked from Naruto, to Hinata, and he looked positively pissed. As Hinata watched him throw his sword aside, she felt her shoulders relaxing.
A sudden chirping of birds rang out in the clearing. Naruto recognized that sound from Sasuke's lighting attacks, and turned to look at him just to see him grinning in place with his left hand pointing to both girls and a blue flash of solid energy emerging from it.
"That's what she gets." He said with a satisfied nod. "I'll find me a Hyuuga elsewhere, and I'll…"
Whatever Sasuke had said, the blond had already forgotten. In fact, he couldn't hear a word he was saying. All his remaining energy focused on turning his head around, to where Hinata had been. They were the longest three seconds of his life.
First he saw Karin, looking utterly betrayed and broken with a 3 inch slash going through her chest. Something must've been seriously damaged because it had started to bleed, even with the cauterization of Sasuke's attack.
Then his irises slowly reached Hinata, who seemed she was still figuring out what had just happened.
He had gone through both of them. Sasuke didn't even think twice about killing his trump card just to get back at Hinata. And Karin was taller than her, and the wound was just beneath Karin's heart, and Hinata was now turning to look at him, but they were both starting to fall down and-
Naruto forgot how to blink and how to breathe. It appeared his brain had shut down and things seemed to move in slow motion right before his eyes. But if that's what Naruto was feeling, how must Hinata be experiencing her last seconds on Earth.
"Hinata." He croaked as his eyes adjusted again, only to watch her hit the ground. 'This is not real.'
Why wasn't she speaking? Karin was moaning all over, but Hinata…
His legs finally moved, but he was only strong enough to carry himself on his knees. Was Sasuke still there watching him crumble all over? He didn't know. He was coming for her. He wouldn't let her die.
The girl was looking at the darkening sky right above them, with her back against the ground. That's when Naruto caught sight of her chest and his own heart skipped two whole beats.
If Karin had been dripping, then Hinata must be like an open faucet, because the ground quickly became sticky with her blood. Reality hit Naruto like ton of bricks.
"Hinata!" He said with a pathetic whine, not even noticing how he had been holding his breath for the entire minute. "Oh my god Hinata." He was finally at her side, and her eyes moved so slowly to look at him, but she was still conscious. 'She's so pale.' "Hinata, can your hear me?"
He didn't feel the pain in his arm or his own shoulder. He didn't seem to feel anything at all. He was in a bubble, right there with Hinata. Grabbing her shoulders as gently as he could, and not even caring if his blood tainted her hair, Naruto cradled her into his arms and placed the back of her head on top of his gaping wound. 'She can't. Oh Kami she can't die.'
"Naruto…" Her voice was so weak. It was so weak but she was still looking at him, and for the life of him he couldn't understand why she was smiling.
"Hey, it's okay." The blond said, trying not to shed tears in front of her so she wouldn't be scared. "Sakura'll be here in a minute… right? You'll be fine."
"Naruto-kun…" She whispered again, and Naruto had to be so close to her face so he could hear what she was saying. He forced his eyes away from the bloodied mess that came from her heart. He forced his mind away from the blood that was now soaking through his pants and shirt.
"You're… here." She finally said, after seconds of struggle trying to speak.
"Sure I am, c'mon. I couldn't leave you." His voice broke like a little child's, and hot tears, almost as hot as her blood, were streaming down his face and onto hers. "Just hand in there all right?" Her hand reached his cheek but she was having a hard time lifting her fingers, so Naruto grabbed it and squeezed it tight. "Hand in there, Hin. I won't let you die, all right? You just have to (choke) h-hang in there."
His body started shaking, and tears started to run faster. But he didn't stop looking down at her.
"I…" Her voice cracked in that final time of lucidity, and Naruto noticed how her hand just wasn't squeezing no more. "I'm… sorry."
He wanted to tell her not to apologize, like she always did even when she didn't do anything wrong. And this time it was his fault he couldn't protect her. He couldn't protect her from himself, and he couldn't protect her from Sasuke. He was such a terrible friend.
"N-n-no" He started but his voice betrayed him, so he shook his head and closed his eyes shut. "Don't say t-that, okay?" There was no response from her. He opened his eyes just to see how her head was now lolled sideways into his chest. "Hin, hey." He shook her gently and the only thing that moved was her hair. "Hin!" The woman wasn't breathing, and Naruto feared to check her heartbeat knowing that he wouldn't find any.
His breathing became faster, and he felt his control slipping. "Don't. Please. Please don't. You can't leave me." He was sobbing now, burying his nose in her hair that still smelled good. His shoulders shook uncontrollably. 'Please.' "Don't leave me, Hin."
"She's gone." Karin said weakly from her own puddle of blood, but there was still life left in her. "The others won't take long to arrive."
But Naruto wasn't listening to her. He was still speaking with Hinata in choked out words. How could he let this happen? Hinata was his responsibility. She'd taken care of him so many times, saved him from death, even from himself, and in a mere second he had let her down. 'I can't let you die.'
The tears had reached his hurt arm now, and stings of pain registered in his mind. Painful enough to create some conscience back to Naruto. 'Karin…'
"Karin." He called softly, still talking to himself.
The woman wished she could die faster, so that the memory of Sasuke laughing as he slaughtered her and the Hyuuga was erased from her mind.
"Your name is Karin."
"Huh?" She replied dizzily.
"You can save her!" Naruto said in sudden realization, as she took Karin by the arm and dragged her towards the girl's body. "How does it work?"
"Don't touch me!" She tried to scream but the pain in her chest shut her up. "I won't help you."
But she couldn't do anything against Naruto's strength as he accommodated her next to him and the girl. If he could make Hinata bite her, the same thing that happened to Sasuke would happen to her. Opening Hinata's jaw with one of his hands and holding still Karin's weak struggling arm, Naruto pressed her chin up until Karin's skin was pierced.
"Stop it." Karin continued to struggle. Naruto ignored her, and stared avidly at the girl in his lap. She's too far gone now. Just let her go for Kami's sake."
Naruto knitted his eyebrows and shook his head at Karin's words. He continued to hold Hinata's jaw in place.
"Nothing's happening."
But Karin knew Naruto couldn't feel it. A tiny amount of her chakra was slowly channeling to the dead girl at her side.
Naruto swallowed hard, trying to shut his ears to Karin's terrible words but whatever hope there was in his heart was quickly fading. The possibility that Hyuuga Hinata was really dead in his arms was slowly gaining more force in his mind, and that terrible realization made his hands lose strength and let the girl rest in his lap with nothing more than a few drops of Karin's blood on her lips.
Still wondering how the Hyuuga could swallow chakra from beyond the grave, Karin felt gentle stirrings coming from the girl's fingers. And so did Naruto. It might have been his imagination, since Hinata still had his eyes closed.
"Hin?" He asked gently, feeling just how tired he was and how his eyes were stinging from all the tears he'd shed. Her head moved to one side then to the other. "Holy shit." He whispered in disbelief.
His voice, combined with his usual cursing, were enough stimuli to make her open her eyes again. It was too blurry to see him right, and before her eyes adjusted to the land of the living again, her sight was drowned in a sea of golden hair, followed by a bunch of muffled words that she couldn't understand.
"Naruto-kun?" She noticed her mouth tasted of blood, and then she remembered everything that had happened until she closed her eyes.
"You're really alive!" He cried once more besides her ear, finally raising his head to take a closer look at her again. Hinata saw how his eyes were filled with tears, which would explain the wetness on her cheeks and forehead, and how he was giving her the most beautiful smile she'd seen until now. "I can't believe I almost lost you."
He was hugging her again, and pulling her hair out of her face and showering with wonderful words, until finally Hinata had the need to say something. Raising a hand to his cheek and making him stop talking, she asked, "How?"
Naruto almost forgot the question, since he never thought she'd caress his cheek ever again, but after a moment turned to Karin, who was still looking at Hinata with a questioning glance from her place in the ground.
"I made you bite her arm." Naruto explained, finding Karin's crimson eyes and smiling.
"Without my permission." She clarified, sending a weak glare to the stupid smile of the blond.
"Thank you." Naruto said, placing all his feelings of gratitude in those two simple words.
"Thank you, Karin-san." The Hyuuga also replied, not able to see her but still conveying her gratitude. Hinata's voice forced his head back to her like a magnet, and grinned again as she placed her shiny eyes on top of his. "You too, Naruto-kun."
"Please don't thank me." He sniffed slightly, trying to regain his calm. His eyes closed tightly, as he leaned closer to her soft hand. "It was my fault."
Hinata felt too weak to speak, so she just pressed her palm tighter against his cheek and gave him a sympathetic smile. Naruto suddenly realized just how much she meant to him. And he felt so devastated that she had to die for him to notice. 'I'm such a fucking moron.' He chastised himself.
"I'm tired, Naruto-kun." She said softly. Her eyelids seemed to weight a ton.
"Sleep, then. I'll be right here." Naruto assured, kissing the palm of her hand before it fell slowly on top of her chest. "Just promise me you'll wake up." He didn't even mean it as a joke. He needed reassurance.
"Promise…" the girl breathed before being consumed by the welcoming darkness.
'I hope Kakashi-sensei finds him.' Sakura wished inwardly, careful not to speak her words out loud, fearing Naruto could turn his thoughts to Sasuke again.
Right now he was sitting next to a sleeping Hinata, an arm propped against his bent knee and a pensive expression resting on his face. His temper was radically different from three hours ago, when she'd find him next to a paled-faced Hinata and a estrange woman who said she wanted to die.
At first he didn't want to explain anything that had happened between Sasuke and himself. But as Kakashi had ran past them, ordering Sakura to stay with the wounded, she demanded some answers out of him. After all, her dreams of seeing Sasuke once again had been crumpled over, so she needed some first-hand information.
She could sense it was bad, since Naruto was so keen on keeping silent, but she prodded until he snapped. His claims against Sasuke were horrible. Every time Naruto used a word to describe him made no sense to the pink-haired medic nin. And then the Uzumaki claimed he had actually killed Hinata and left his comrade half dead in the process. She didn't know what to fear more; the new image that she had of her beloved Sasuke, or the red eyes Naruto was sporting as he narrated his horrible tale.
If it weren't for Hinata in his arms, the blond might've joined Kakashi in his search (and destroy) for the Uchiha. 'I can't believe it.' She repeated on her head once again. Sasuke would never play by Orochimaru's rules, he just wanted the strength to kill his brother and go on about his life. He'd never kill one of his comrades over revenge, or try to use a former villager as a guinea pig.
And yet…
"You should have ended my misery back there, you bitch." Repeated once again the weakened prisoner lying between Sakura and Sai. Incredibly, the red-haired woman still had enough life force in her to survive Sakura's ministrations, but her demeanor said different. Her soul was broken, and her eyes were constantly filled with tears as she muttered for Sasuke under her breath.
'How could you Sasuke-kun?' Sakura thought yet again, ignoring that Karin was thinking the exact same thing over and over again. The whole atrocity of it still hadn't reached Sakura yet, as she could only relate to what Naruto had told her. But actually killing one of their friends, someone who all of them had spent time with… it was unimaginable.
"He's won't get to him." Karin said, her voice void of any sentiment. Her eyes were looking at the darkness beyond the trees, where the light of the fire didn't reach.
Sai and Sakura turned to look at her. "How can you tell?" the pale man asked kindly. He had a bandage over his forehead and blood all over his right hand. The orange-haired brute had smashed Sai's head against his knee and crushed his painting hand with his own. Sakura took a while to heal all the broken bones.
The red-haired woman kept looking away from them, but didn't say one more word.
"He's got a head start on sensei." Answered Naruto, absentmindedly placing his hand on top of his bandaged arm. The skin he'd lost hadn't been recovered; Sakura could only heal the damage on the surface, but he'd need skin regeneration once he reached Konoha. "It's enough to get away, even with the dogs behind him. Sasuke's sure to have a few tricks to hide away."
The gray-haired Hatake had been the first one to arrive at the scene. The sickening amount of blood just beneath Naruto and Hinata alarmed him beyond measure, but the blond assured him there was nothing to worry as long as Sakura could patch them up. When Kakashi asked about Sasuke's whereabouts, Naruto didn't have any information for him. The blond couldn't even tell how long had it been since he was gone. A wave of embarrassment washed over him, but Kakashi didn't have time for his apologies.
Naruto was sure Kakashi would come back soon. Empty handed.
"I would've like to meet him." Sai said wistfully, smiling at the ground. "Sakura-san says I look just like him."
Naruto frowned as a fresh new image of Sasuke's grinning face stared back at him. He shut his eyes tightly. 'Forget about him for a while.' He forced the image away with some effort. He didn't want his blood to start boiling again. Truthfully, he was too tired, and Hinata's thick blood staining 80% of his body was almost too sickening for him to bear.
"I don't want to think about him just now." The blond said, permitting himself a sigh that showed just how exhausted he was. "I just wanna go home." His eyes fell to Hinata's sleeping form and calm face.
He wished they were alone again, so he could go back to holding her in his arms.
Author's section
(1000 good intentions – Rise Against)
Thanks for reading!
Leave a review if you liked it.
- Paty