Sasuke got ready for his Chidori.

"Sakura, be my eyes! I'll strike its weak point!"

"Sasuke, Roen is at two o'clock!" Sakura yelled.

While the Chidori was growing his Sasuke's hand, he moved closer to his target. He charged his arm and aimed at Roen's face.

"Sasuke!" Sakura shouted and pushed him away. Sasuke immediately understood the reason; numerous kunai were aiming straight at him.

"Damn it! Who did it?!" he shouted as he heard Sakura blocking every one of them with her katana. The Chidori in his hand dissolved with a crackle and vanished without leaving a trace. They landed on the Hypericum's Shrine's roof, and in a flash, they found themselves surrounded by several shadows.

"Sendo..." Reishi called out to the person responsible for this when he joined the others on the roof.

"Fu, fu, I would never have imagined that Kina was Roen!"

"You're wrong! When Kina loses control because of rage, the seal can't restrain Roen anymore!" Reishi shouted.

"You were the one who spread rumors about Kina being the culprit of the murders..." stated Sakura.

"There is no time left! Please, I'll do anything! Kina will die if I don't seal Roen in the shrine!" Reishi begged them, on the verge of tears.

"Anything? Then give me the Kotaro's recipe!" said Jiryu.

"The Kotaro can be made only inside my body!"

"Reishi, take Sasuke with you and run after Roen!" said Sakura seeing how these thugs weren't listening to Reishi.

"Sakura..."

"I'll take care of these and join you immediately. Don't worry about me. Now, go!"

As soon as they jumped, some clan members dashed at them. With Reishi's guidance, Sasuke managed to use his Fire Style: Great Dragon Fire Jutsu to create a burning curtain between them and the enemies.

"I've been watching you and the Uchiha for a while. You're just a useless bitch!" roared Jiryu Sendo.

Sakura looked around her surroundings; there were five of them to her right, four to her left and two more on the tree of the garden. Including Jiryu Sendo, there were twelve in total.

"Hey girlie, why don't you leave that fellow and join u-"

Before he could finish trying to flirt with her, Sakura threw three kunai, Jiryu got away by a hair, but the two men on the tree fell on the ground one after the other. They had completely put their guard down.

"Enough with the chitchatting."

"Kill her!"

In this kind of situation, she couldn't certainly waste chakra. She needed it to save Kina. One of them dashed towards her, and she avoided his attack and hit him in the pit of his stomach with a punch.

"Ghaw!" groaned the man before hitting the ground.

Bowing her body, she managed to dodge the shurikens of another opponent and, dashed towards him and kicked him right in his jaw. After that, she dodged several kunai, making them pass by the sides of her face, under her arms, and between her legs.

"What the hell are you guys doing? She's just a useless bitch!" shouted Jiryu.

The blade of a sword gleamed above Sakura's head. She managed to avoid the slashes and hit the enemy's stomach with a kick. While he was swept away, the man lost his sword.

Sakura promptly grabbed the weapon and stabbed the opponent behind her back, who collapsed on the ground with a whine of pain.

Without stopping, Sakura drew out her three kunai and sent them in every direction. The enemies screamed. Two of them took the opportunity to flee.

Sakura couldn't stay there any longer and launched herself into Roen's pursuit. Jumping on the tree branches and the rooftop, Sakura immediately reached that evil chakra. She had noticed that Roen stopped moving and saw a purple smoke surrounding him, emitting a sweet scent of cape jasmines.

"Reishi? Sasuke? Where are you guys?!"

"Sakura watch out! Don't inhale! If the Kotaro is absorbed by your body, it'll make you lose your consciousness!"

Reishi, who had momentarily disappeared enveloped by the smoke, jumped on a wall and launched himself at Roen's back. He positioned his fingers for the seal and quickly recited the incantation.

"Roen Kodon!" however, he didn't manage to hit the creature's weak spot. Roen managed to move its tail and hit Reishi.

"Gha!"

Sasuke jumped in the air and seized Reishi's body, and both ended up against a large tree.

"Are you guys o-" Before Sakura could finish her question, she was interrupted by a cannon's blow. She turned around and saw the guards had arrived, shooting cylinders at Roen.

"Ha, ha, ha! Come on! Shoot down that monster!" Jiryu exclaimed excitedly. He had climbed on a tree nearby without Sakura noticing.

'damn, I forgot this bastard ran away like a coward.' cursed Sakura. Sakura threw a poisonous senbon at Jiryu while he was distracted. As soon as the poison went into his body, Jiryu froze up and fell from the tree.

"Paralyzes poison. Will shut you up for the time being."

"Graaaawr!" Roen's roar shook the night.

"Stop that! It will completely go out of control!" Reishi shouted. The rumble of the cylinder, however, didn't show any sign of stopping.

Roen flew into rage, but it was a far cry from being overwhelmed. It went forward without hesitation, its tentacles stretched out to the fleeing guards.

Sasuke quickly put up his hand in position, opened a breach, and unleased his chakra upward.

"Fire Style; Great Dragon Fire Jutsu!"

The energy generated morphed into a dragon towards the sky. The thunderclouds gathered and discharged electric energy, venting in violent thunderclaps.

"W-what are you going to do, Sasuke?" Reishi asked.

"Don't make me repeat myself. I want to knock out this monster!"

The wind rose, bringing rain with it. Sasuke felt in his hands the energy of the electricity-laden clouds.

"Sakura!" he yelled out to her.

"To your right, three o'clock! 165 feet!" Sakura instructed, knowing why he called out to her.

With this, Sasuke focused on his nerves on the point she had told him, following his senses, he positioned himself. The rain started pouring more strongly, and bolts of lightning streaked the night sky. Linked to him, the thunders in the sky were roaring like a dragon while the voltage increased. He aimed at Roen and shouted;

"Don't get too full of yourself! Kirin!"

Sasuke's technique and the bullet of the greater cylinder were shot at the same time.

"Damn it!"

The whole world around Sasuke became so white and dazzling that he couldn't discern anything. A violent explosion made the earth shake. Reishi, Sasuke, and Sakura jumped towards the beast.

"Did I strike him?"

Under the pouring rain, Sasuke kept his eyes fixed on the dust that surrounded Roen. In his ears, the rumble of the explosion kept resounding like a bell.

"What's happening, Sakura? Did I hit him?"

No answer was needed. Cutting through the air, a tentacle tried to seize Sasuke.

"Sasuke!" Sakura screamed and pushed him away. The tentacle instead seized Sakura,

"Ghaw!" Sakura shouted while she was thrown to the ground.

"Sakura! Damn it! It avoided my attack!"

"To your left! Two o'clock!" Reishi shouted.

Sasuke quickly drew his sword and severed the snake-like creature around Sakura with a single blow. He quickly retrieved it and landed next to Reishi.

"Are you okay, Sakura?" Sasuke and Reishi both asked at the same time while Sasuke carefully placed her on the ground.

"Y-yeah I'm okay. It stole a lot of chakra," she answered.

This feeling Sasuke had been having ever since he had gravely injured Sakura was also very confusing for him. If he really thought about it, the first time he felt like this was when Itachi had kidnapped her right in front of her. And now it had become even worse after the fight.

Not like he would ever admit it, but during the entire trip he and Sakura had taken to get his eye drops, he had been pondering not only how he should feel about Itachi but also about Sakura.

He remembered when they stopped at an inn on their way to get his eye drops. He accidentally walked in on Sakura changing her clothes. He quickly turned around and waited for her to finish, but he couldn't help glancing back and forth.

He noticed a scar on her back, a scar he had given her when she blocked the attack meant for Itachi. Deep down inside, he felt somewhat guilty. It had been a while since he felt something like that.

Since that incident, he also realized he had become a bit protective of her. While Sakura was strong and could defend herself easily, he felt the need to protect her.

He also experienced numerous flashbacks of their time as Genin and the training underwent with Kabuto and Orochimaru. Why did he even let her join him?

Initially, he suspected she was lying about her reasons for wanting to join Orochimaru, yet he still accepted her. After killing Orochimaru and deciding to follow his own path instead of returning to the Leaf Village, he gave Sakura the option to go back. Though he offered her a choice, deep down, he felt foolish for doing so. Strangely, he felt somewhat happy when she chose not to return.

When her clone revealed that she had sustained severe injuries in the battle against Sasori and was on the brink of death, he felt his heart rate quicken for the first time. He was angry that she had kept such crucial information from him. Right? Was that the reason he was angry?

His heart sank when he witnessed blood splattering on the ground, Sakura's back turned towards him as she pleaded with Itachi not to run away, nearly appearing to take her last breath as she collapsed on the ground. He saw his hand tremble as he looked down to find it completely covered in her blood.

He couldn't rest while she was busy recovering from his attack. She remained unconscious. A whirlwind of thoughts raced through his mind at that moment. Not only was he anxious because she hadn't regained consciousness yet, but also due to the information Itachi had disclosed to him. Was it all true? Was everything just a lie? Whom should he trust? Sakura wouldn't have endangered her life to prevent him from killing Itachi without a valid reason. Every time he glanced at his hand, he felt as though he could still see traces of Sakura's blood on it.

What if she never woke up? What if her injuries proved fatal because of him? And when she had finally opened her eyes, he felt a wave of relief wash over him. However, he lacked the courage to confront her. She was in her current state because of him.

He was more confused than ever. Was he happy she was okay? Was he happy he hadn't killed Itachi? What was his reason for living? Everything he knew so far had been nothing but a lie.

So lost in his thoughts, that he didn't notice Sakura standing behind him until she called out to him.

"Sakura…" he replied and turned to look at her. His eyes were filled with questions and confusion. "Are you okay?"

"I'm completely healed," she answered. She knelt next to him and gave him a hug.

"I'm fine. You're going to be fine. We're going to be fine."

"What is going to happen? What should I do?" Sasuke asked. Not knowing what to do, like a little child, he leaned against her embrace. He felt her warmth around him and the sound of her heartbeat had calmed him down.

She was really okay. For now, at least one of his worries had died down. Now he needed to focus on his brother. What should he do with Itachi? What should he do with the truth?

XXXXXXXXXX

Wrath was growing relentless inside Sasuke. His eyes became restless and his pupils began trembling in rage. Like a shark, a feeling of powerlessness was eating him from inside. His temporary blindness was putting a heavy burden on him and Sakura. They needed to save Kina, but Sakura was also recklessly putting herself in danger just because he needed to be protected. He was the one who needed to protect her! Not the other way around!

"Sasuke…."

Sakura was staring at Sasuke with a confused look. It was at that moment that Sasuke saw himself reflected in her eyes. He could easily distinguish his red pupils; he had regained his sight.

"Sasuke, your eyes…." said Sakura. Sasuke felt strength awaken in his body. His chakra was overflowing.

"Sakura, don't be reckless anymore," said Sasuke and looked at Roen with his newly awakened Mangekyo Sharingan,

"Come on, Reishi. Let's go seal him."

Sasuke dashed towards Roen, inhaled deeply, formed a ring with the thumb and forefinger of his right hand, and brought his fingers to his mouth.

"Fire Style; Fire Ball Jutsu!"

The beast's tentacles were swiftly enveloped by flames.

"Graaawr!" roared Roen in pain with his back on fire.

Twisting his torso, Sasuke jumped on the burning tentacle and took a flight towards the head of the beast. He floated in mid-air for a tenth of a second then nosedived. Pulling back his right hand and aimed at Roen's skull. Numerous tentacles were chasing him like hungry snakes. Sasuke managed to avoid every one of them.

"Chidori!"

The cries of the monster faded in the rumble of the explosion. Sakura, with her curse mark activated, quickly joined and pinned Roen's head, using her monstrous strength, and hurled it on the ground. The monster collapsed on the ground.

"I told you not to be reckless!"

"I can still fight!" Sakura yelled back, "Reishi! Make it calm down!"

Reishi threw his kunai, cutting through that thick dust cloud. Roen, however, warded off the attack and hurled Sakura off of him.

The kunai were rushing at full speed towards Reishi, who, being in mid-air, wouldn't be able to avoid them.

"Shadow Shuriken Jutsu!"

Before they could scratch Reishi's body, Sasuke used the jutsu to sweep away all the kunai. Sticking into the surrounding trees, they dyed the leaves in brown, making them dry in the blink of an eye.

Reishi straightened up and landed next to Sakura. He was short on breath and was shaking violently.

"Are you okay?" Sakura asked worriedly.

"You should focus on yourself! Look at yourself! Your head is bleeding!" Sasuke yelled after landing next to them.

"I'm fine Sasuke." she knew she was lying. She wasn't really okay. Roen had taken almost all of her chakra. She was out of strength. She didn't like this feeling. Her curse mark was also betraying her. It started to deactivate on its own,

"stop focusing on me. We are running out of time. What do we do?"

"Keep it still! Just a second will be enough for me." Said Sasuke.

"S-Sakura can't fight anymore….and I-I…..there is no Kotaro left in my body. The Spiritual Communication of the Tiger and the Wolf has-" Reishi stuttered.

"Stop whining!" Sasuke grabbed him by his collar, "either you make an effort now! Or you'll lose kina! There are no alternatives!"

"Wait, Sasuke, you don't m-" Sakura tried to say something.

With his Mangekyo Sharingan, Sasuke followed Roen's back, which had started to walk again. Sakura forced herself to activate her curse once more, but before it completely took over her body, Reishi suddenly placed his hand on her shoulder, making her lose focus.

"Tell Kina it was me who dried up those people to death." Reishi looked at Sakura.

"W-wait!" Sakura wanted to run after him, but her feet quickly gave out, and she sunk back to the ground,

"Damn it! I don't have any strength left!"

Reishi sped up his space and dashed towards the creature. When he reached it, he took a big jump, but he was immediately attacked by the tentacles. It didn't look like he intended to flee.

"What are you doing?! Move away, Reishi!" shouted Sasuke.

However, Reishi surrendered to the tentacles. If he had really wanted to run, someway he would have been able to. There was no time to think.

"Move away!" Sakura pleaded.

"Shadow Shuriken Jutsu!" coming out with a rumble, the shadow shuriken cut down to the root of the tentacle that was retraining him. They watched Reishi fall to the ground. Reishi quickly pulled out something from his pocket and threw it against Roen's face, covering it in a smokescreen.

"Reishi!" Sakura yelled out desperately. She cursed at herself to move, but it was no use. Sasuke did warn her that even though curse mark would increase their chakra level for a short period of time, the user should at least have some chakra of their own left. Sakura did not have this right now. Roen had taken almost everything and the curse mark also fed up some of her chakra.

Roen shook its head to get rid of the smoke that was enfolding it and, as if nothing had happened, he resumed walking.

"What are you doing?!" Sasuke yelled, gritting his teeth.

Roen suddenly stopped. Swirling violently, its forepaws were trying to send away the numerous green lights that were gathering around its face. From the bushes, from the gardens of the house, and from the treetops, the fireflies, just like a river, had poured onto the creature, completely enveloping its body.

"Well done, Reishi!" Sasuke understood that the substance he had poured on Roen earlier was nothing but the powder crated expressly for Kina.

No matter how much Roen tried to get rid of the insects, it didn't manage to send them away in any way. Sasuke went in front of the creature, pulled out his sword, and jumped on its head. The fireflies scattered confusedly in the air from the shock. He thrust his sword through Roen's upper jaw and, holding his sword with both of his hands, in one stroke, he went as far as piercing the lower jawbone.

With its mouth sewn shut in that way, the beast emitted a choked scream, while blood leaked out of the wound. Beyond the green light, Sasuke perfectly distinguished two red eyes, wide open. He felt his eyes throbbing deep. At that moment, Sasuke knew everything about Mangekyo Sharingan. He felt like a newborn fish, which already knew how to swim without having been taught by anyone. The light vanished from Roen's eyes.

Sasuke opened his eyes and knew he was already in that place. He was in the midst of a dark forest, enveloped by a thick night fog. Despite the deep darkness, he could distinctly see everything.

A red moon, which was shedding bloody tears, was shining high in the sky.

Sasuke had succeeded.

To Be Continued!

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