Naruto: Kōkai

by Ken Miyamoto

After the failure of the Sasuke Retrieval Mission the Council of the Hidden Leaf decides to punish Naruto with banishment from the village forcing the hand of Tsunade. Now alone and no longer a shinobi of the Hidden Leaf Naruto decides to take his newfound life into his own hands. Follow Naruto Uzumaki as he tries to find his place in the ninja world.

45. Chapter 45

Yo, It's Ken.

Keeping it brief once again for the note but it's getting closer and closer, and my excitement is at an all-time high, but I won't say anything at the moment for now I'll say that I wrote this chapter with a feeling in mind, and I hope it reaches you all.

Let's get to reviews!

Alexander4443: Thanks bro! Thank you again for reading and I'll see you in the next one!

Kull-Warrior-SG1: Hey there Kull! Fancy seeing you here haha. If it was unexpected then I achieved my goal, that chapter was one that I really put a lot into writing and I wanted it to feel unexpected. As for the meeting, it'll be happening soon just wait for it haha. Thank you again for reading and I hope to see you in the discord! P.S. I'm working on the stuff we talked about I swear haha.

miguel.a. : Yeah, I get it. I appreciate the amount of care the character made you feel though and I'm glad he's able to make an impact! I'm looking forward to publishing more chapters believe me haha. Thank you again for reading and I'll see you in the next one!

Legion19: You know I have to at least try to tug heartstrings haha I'm kidding but I'm glad Boro's presence means something. Thank you again for reading and I hope to see you in the next one!

FJ280: I'm not beating the allegations at this point, am I? Haha, I'm glad you are enjoying the story. Thank you again for reading and I hope to see you in the next one!

LigMcGooche: I'm glad you were able to get so invested in the characters! I wanted to make sure they were all written in a unique manner while feeling like they could exist in Naruto as I will with any and all future characters I write. Thank you again and I hope to see you in the next one!

Reedz22: Shout out to Boro. Thank you again for reading and I hope to see you in the next one!

Lampre8: Regarding a big match between Konoha, The Bandit King, and The Renegades that does sound like a lot of fun to write but also chaotic like you mentioned but I'll look into it! Thank you again for reading and I hope to see you in the next one!

The ultimite deity: I know but sometimes that's not how things pan out as much as we want them too, there's still more to go as they move forward. Thank you again and I hope to see you in the next one!

LurkingReader777: Naming the baby Boruto would be kind of crazy, I'm not going to lie I didn't make that connection until you mentioned here, and I find it hilarious. You bring up a good point about Haruka, but I'll save that for when we get there but I have thought of something.

Engulfing Darkness: I've got reunion's coming up in the coming chapters that I've been excited to get to but no spoilers haha. You are also correct Sasuke has been recovering mostly while Naruto has gone through his training, what does that mean? Well, I'll leave it to you to find out. Thank you again for reading and I hope to see you in the next one!

Ashmole: Thank you for your honesty and I can understand where you are coming from. I do want to add that while A is satisfied with the Bandit King being dead, he is by no means sitting around, he mentions a couple of chapters ago that they'll be making a priority to gather any other ninja that went rogue to take care of them. That being said The Bandit King as an antagonist works in a way as I'm writing him that I can't really explain until the arc is finshed because spoilers but this whole arc has been thought out including him. I hope that helps answer a few of your points but I get what you mean. Thank you again for reading and I hope to see you in the next one!

kdkkslap: I'm glad you are enjoying the story! I wanted it to still feel like Naruto but not at the same time so I did my best to keep to what elements I could while expanding on other elements as well. You also have a good question and the best answer for that would be S-Ranks in general rather than any particular Akatsuki members who I'm excited to get back into writing soon, but I didn't say anything haha. Thank you again for reading and I hope to see you in the next one!

sakurahatake9: I'm glad Boro was able to bring out an emotional reaction, not that I'm glad about tears or anything but it feels nice that Boro was a character that people could care about when push came to shove. Haruka will name the baby based off of many different things but most importantly what means something to her, which is me being coy but you see soon. Thank you again for reading and I hope to see you in the next one!

Samuel Santillian: I'm glad you enjoyed it! While the Bandit King tries Naruto and the Renegades push forward. Boro was honestly a character I have fun with whenever he shows up in my writing so I'm glad the smaller things outside of his comic relief are seen as well. Sasuke being Sasuke is basically expected at this point right haha. Lastly, I can't wait for the next chapter either! As I'm getting closer and closer to that chapter it makes me excited for the future so stay tuned. Thank you again for reading and I hope to see you in the next one!

As always if you have any questions, thoughts, or criticisms feel free to leave a review. I read through all of them and will respond to as many as possible.

So, some last announcements. I'm making a few big updates. First off, the story has been crossposted for a while on AO3 so I'll actually be making updates to the story over there to catch it up and keep them crossposted in case anything happens to Fanfiction or vice versa, Secondly, I'll be making social media and eventually adding that here, but my schedule is crazy so that's to be announced at the moment.

My other announcement is there are officially only 3 Chapters left of the Renegades Arc left, meaning that after the next update there will only be two chapters, and I fully plan on wrapping this arc up with a bang as we move into the next anticipated one so stay tuned.

Thank you all again for reading and I hope you enjoy.

-Ken

Next Time! Chapter 46: Ashes to Ashes

{...}

Chapter 45: For You, My Friends

Petals belonging to glowing orange flowers slowly fell from what looked like an infinitely expanding green colored sky above, the petals landed gently into grass that was covered in multiple different vibrant colors of flowers in a large field.

In a small bed of flowers, a green haired girl was curled up. Her orange colored eyes held a somber stare in them as the petals landed in front of her vision unfazed by their arrival.

"Chomei… Why did he do it?"

Fu asked as the large, tailed beast loomed over her, the somberness wasn't apparent in the features of the beast, but its compound eyes looked delicately at the girl curled up among the flowers. "Fu… I wish I could tell you. I however am not human, I want to understand but I cannot." Chomei said as the girl clutched a flower in her hand.

"Why? Why did he say he would be back? Why did he do it if he knew it was only going to get him killed? Why did he promise he was going to come back only to not do that?"

Fu spoke as her grip on the flower became harder, "Fu, burying yourself in guilt isn't going to change his actions. I'm sure Boro only did what he thought was best. To protect you." Chomei said as a slap of her hand on the flower bed stopped the petals in midair.

"At the cost of himself? What if we wanted to protect him too!? He was supposed to come back, Chomei! He promised! He promised and I let him leave!"

Fu yelled while the 7 Tails stared down at the girl, "Like I said Fu, I don't understand. I do know this, Boro wouldn't want you to feel this way. Just as you have risked yourself for my sake, Fu. I would do the same for you. That's what friends are for." Chomei answered her as the girl exhaled.

"It's so unfair… Why does that have to be the cost? Why in order to protect the people that you love is being taken away from them what needs to happen. Why did he have to go?"

Fu lamented as wings reached toward her holding her against them, "That boy. He wished to give you a chance, I believe. I know it's sad for you, to lose a friend. I wish there was more I could do." the tailed beast said as Fu clutched it's wing.

She held onto it as a tear ran down her face, the girl shook as she sobbed quietly within the seal. Her hands held onto the wings of the tailed beast who watched over her carefully.

The pain she felt losing Boro?

Would she continue to feel it again after this?

The Renegades continued to move forward as a silence had settled over them, Yugito tended to any small wounds the others had received. Her eyes traced to Naruto toward the front as he continued to walk, Haruka had cried herself to sleep in his arms.

Yet his blue eyes only remained ahead.

"Naruto. Let me take a look at you."

Yugito requested while the blond shook his head, he continued to walk as the woman gave him a concerned look. "Naruto." Tayuya said, causing the boy to stop walking. She and Tsubasa went to his side, the gray-haired boy smoothly took the girl from his arms.

"We need to rest for a moment."

The girl said as Naruto gave her a look, "Please don't be stubborn about this." she said as the boy merely nodded at her.

"We were able to make a good amount of distance, I'm not sure how powerful their sensor ninja are but we should be in the clear for now."

Yugito said as she immediately went to Naruto's side to attend to his wounds, "The point was to get as far as possible, as long as we accomplished that then we can sweat the rest later." the reddish haired girl said as the blonde woman dabbed at Naruto's cheek.

Fu could only watch as the rest of her friends were scattered around her, they had no choice but to go on. Yet, she could see how they were all deeply affected by the recent loss of Boro.

Just like she was.

Fu looked off to the side where she saw a brief glimpse of Boro finding something to make the rest of the group laugh even in a situation like this. Her smile faded as the visage disappeared, no matter what she said or did.

He wasn't here with them.

"Fu."

Tsubasa said, gaining the girl's attention as she was suddenly pulled into his chest in an embrace, "Tsubasa… What's wrong?" the girl said as the boy held her closer.

"Stop pretending."

Tsubasa said as Fu's expression cracked a little, "But… If I do. Then it's real… isn't it?" The green haired girl sobbed slightly as the smoky haired boy just held her.

Fu hugged him back tightly as she stuffed her face into his shirt, "You don't really think… that he's gone do you? Maybe he slipped away or used the explosion as a distraction?" The girl spoke as Tsubasa remained silent just rubbing her back.

"I wish he was here too, Fu."

Tsubasa merely said as Fu cried against him, Naruto watched from the other side of the area they were sitting in as Yugito continued to tend to him.

"Yugito… I heal fast, you shouldn't waste supplies on me."

Naruto said as the woman shook her head, "Your healing isn't an excuse to not be treated. Take it from me, healing through care works on the pain better than tailed beast chakra." Yugito said as Naruto nodded his head.

"You know, you're allowed to feel down. You don't have to act strong, Yugito."

Naruto said as the woman stopped dabbing his cheek, "Naruto, I appreciate the gesture but I don't have a choice. I have to remain strong for all of you… for us. An adult shouldn't be breaking down in front of kids." Yugito said as her grip on the cotton ball grew tighter.

She suddenly felt a hand take hers gently, Yugito looked over spotting Naruto staring at her.

"We're all human here, Yugito. Adult. Child. Doesn't matter, you don't get to use that as an excuse to not feel anything."

Yugito took a shaky breath as the words left Naruto's mouth, her hand held onto his a little tighter.

"Alright, it looks like we'll need to continue moving forward soon. Even if they don't have us directly at the moment, a trail will certainly lead them to us eventually."

Tayuya spoke as Fu looked at her from Tsubasa's chest, "We need to be gone within the day, even if it means moving at night." The girl continued as the green haired girl narrowed her eyes.

"What… What is wrong with you?"

Fu asked Tayuya's brown eyes landed on hers, "What do you mean?" The reddish haired girl asked as Fu pulled herself away from Tsubasa.

"Exactly what I asked, why are you so composed? Boro is still back there, he put his life on the line for us! You're just acting like nothing happened?!"

Fu raised her voice as Tayuya glared at her, "Fu." Tsubasa said as Tayuya lifted a hand to stop the gray haired boy.

"I need you to listen to me, Fu. Boro is dead. He's gone. You want time to mourn? To cry for him? We need to do it when we aren't being hunted down. Because guess what? We get caught and his life ended for nothing."

Tayuya said as Fu rushed over to her smacking her across the face, "Take it back! What you said! That's so heartless! Boro loved us! He isn't just something we can ditch to survive! He's our friend!" the girl said as Tayuya snatched her hand out of the air.

"Let me give you a quick life lesson… We are not normal people. Ninja are not noble heroes who save the day, we kill and we die. We don't get to act self righteous. Boro gave us an opening and we have to take it to live. Deal with it."

Tayuya said as Fu gave her a shocked look, the green haired girl took a step back before her fist trembled at her side.

Tayuya's head turned as a punch slammed across her face, the girl hit the ground as Fu straddled her. "You're acting! You're lying! You care and you're not trying to show it! What's wrong with just being honest?! Why is this what strength looks like to you?! I don't get it!" Fu yelled as she punched Tayuya again.

Tsubasa and Yugito dashed over to break it up as Haruka's eyes peeked open at the commotion, the reddish haired girl merely turned meeting Fu's angry gaze with a calm one.

"You haven't seen the world with my eyes, if you did then you would see this isn't an act. Boro's dead and we're not losing anyone else."

Tayuya said as Fu pulled back for another swing as everyone suddenly stopped in place, Naruto calmly walked over to the two girls. Fu slightly flinched at the gentle touch on her shoulder from him, her orange eyes only saw the warm blue of his as he looked at her.

"Come on, Fu."

Naruto said while she looked at Tayuya before she looked at the blond boy again. She slowly stood up as the brown eyed girl laid on the ground. Tayuya watched as a hand reached toward her, "What?" She said as Naruto just stared at her still holding out his hand.

"Don't be stubborn about this."

Naruto said as Tayuya looked at his hand for a moment before she took it, she was pulled to her feet as everyone stood about the boy.

"One thing."

Naruto suddenly said as he turned Tayuya's face toward him, he gently dabbed her busted lip with a cotton ball as the Renegades watched him.

"Let's all say one nice thing about him… About Boro."

Naruto said as they all looked at him for a moment, "Boro was… a good man." Haruka suddenly spoke up as the group looked toward her.

"He was funny, but he was sweet. Even when things haunted him he never failed to still attempt to put a smile on other people's faces despite that. He was a genuine soul that fought even though he complained because he loved us. When he had nothing, he made us everything. I'm forever grateful to him that he found me that day…"

Haruka said while Naruto smiled slightly, "Boro was one of the most interesting people I've ever met. He was a flirt and a bit odd but when it came to things he was serious about he showed his true nature." Yugito spoke as Tsubasa nodded.

"Me and Boro were similar in a way, that's why when we first met even after he had kidnapped Naruto I didn't want to kill him… We butted heads as we were different in more ways, but he understood me. He had my back and I could rely on him to keep up with me when fighting. Boro was truly a man I'm glad I could call my friend. My family."

Tsubasa said Naruto nodded his head, "Boro was someone that I could believe in, who deserved to be free just like the rest of us. He made talks fun and I could help but feel like a normal guy talking to him sometimes." The blond boy said with a chuckle.

"He was an amazing person and someone I'm proud to call family too. When the going got tough, he was there to bring a laugh."

Naruto said as Tayuya stared at the boy before she looked at the ground, "...Boro was a fucking idiot. Truly one of the dumbest people I ever met. He called me names, I would call him names back. He had the charm of a corpse and smelled like a dog at the best of times. He was… he was… He was supposed to be here." Tayuya said while clenching her fist.

Fu looked at the girl before she nodded her head slowly, "Boro always said I was cute. I never had siblings but he felt like a brother. He cheered me up and I could bounce off of him when we made jokes. I always felt so light when I did things with him. He cared about all of us so much… so much that I don't understand why he even did it." The green haired girl said as she wiped her face with the back of her hand.

"I still believe… Even if I'm wrong. That Boro isn't dead! He'll be back because he needs to be there to see the baby too."

Fu said while Haruka rested a hand on her belly with a soft smile, "He'd probably say something dramatic right about now… like. 'Sorry to keep you.' Or 'Dang all these nice words for me?'" Haruka joked while Fu smiled.

"Yeah or 'Why do you guys look so sad? You really missed me huh?' That's just the guy he is."

Fu said with a slight laugh as the others began to join her, Tayuya watched the rest of the Renegades sans Naruto laughing over Boro's antics.

"She got you really good."

Naruto said as Tayuya watched him gently touch her lip and face, "You started this, you should join them." The girl said as the blond shook his head.

"Thanks to you I have to treat your dumb ass. Nice job getting slugged."

Naruto joked while Tayuya exhaled out of her nose, "You looked so devastated earlier… How did you just bounce back?" The girl said as the boy smiled.

"The one thing that not even death can take away are the memories you make with those you lose. People don't die until they are forgotten. I remembered him making us laugh, so I wanted everyone else to as well."

Naruto said as the pair looked at the rest of the Renegades regaling moments from the brown-haired teen. "I'm not cut out for that world." Tayuya said as Naruto gently flicked her head before smiling.

"You've already been here for a while. So it's ok to be here for you too."

Naruto said as that calming effect that he always managed to have over her made Tayuya rest her head on his shoulder.

"Don't worry. I got you."

{...}

Neji was on the backfoot while Lee was sent flying past him, the bowl cut teen smashed into a tree while the white eyed boy dodged attacks from Sasuke. Sasuke's sword cut through the air as Neji dodged, striking at wherever he could in the exposed weak points that he spotted.

However Sasuke was a completely different kind of warrior, not only was he attacking but he was moving defensively at the same time.

It was like he was seeing through the Gentle Fist completely, Neji caught Sasuke's sword between two fingers before catching him with a palm strike to his chest. Sasuke exploded into snakes as Neji twisted around, the black-haired teen was chopping toward his neck with a lightning-covered hand.

Lee spun kicking Sasuke's hand in time for Neji to strike at the teen, the black-haired boy's Sharingan moved between the both of them as they attacked at the same time.

Sasuke caught Neji's arm out of a palm strike, quickly striking him in his side before kicking him into the ground before countering a series of kicks from Lee.

Two of their kicks collided as they pushed against each other's legs, "Sasuke. I don't understand. Why are you doing this? I wasn't there with the details like everyone else, but why are you attacking your friends? Why did you leave?" Lee asked as Sasuke huffed kicking the teen backward.

"What friends?"

Sasuke asked as he coldly slammed a punch against Lee's face, the teen took the punch slamming a kick into Sasuke's form before slamming a Leaf Hurricane against him.

Lee went to continue his attack but lightning spread out around Sasuke, "Chidori Stream!" The teen yelled as Neji spun in front of Lee.

"Eight Trigrams: Palm Rotation!"

Chakra spread out in a dome countering the lighting as Neji stood in front of Lee, "There's no point in talking, Lee. Sasuke's already long gone." He spoke while Sasuke glared toward them.

"I always wanted to face the both of you, you were both the top threats in my opinion back then. I needed to surpass the both of you as well… Guess that's not the case anymore. At this rate that girl is doing better than the both of you combined."

Sasuke said as they both exploded toward him, they attacked at the same time as the black-haired teen blocked from both sides. Sasuke weaved through a series of jabs from Neji as he dodged another series of strikes from Lee on the other side.

He didn't understand it.

These two once outclassed him, they were the ninja he needed to surpass to get stronger and now he's done that.

He's done that for the sake of revenge and now he's far surpassed them both.

So how?

How did Naruto still get stronger than him? How did Naruto win against him when he was the more driven one?

When he had a purpose?

Sasuke suddenly took a kick that sent him flying into a tree, "First Gate: Open!" Lee suddenly got faster as he crashed into Sasuke.

The teen went on the defensive as Lee smashed heavy kicks against his guard, "Sasuke, I want to believe that you aren't beyond reason. For Naruto's sake, I hope that you can be reached!" Lee said as Sasuke blocked a kick, "Then you'll die believing in an illusion!" Lee took a kick to his face as he clenched his teeth.

"Second Gate: Open!"

Lee stomped the ground before smashing another kick against Sasuke who went flying, Lee dashed after him as Sasuke landed regaining his footing.

Neji slid behind him unleashing a palm strike to his back as Sasuke deflected his hand, the teen threw a series of strikes at Sasuke who defended against them as he was kicked in the back by Lee. Sasuke switched between focusing on Lee and Neji as he was beginning to get overwhelmed by their attacks.

Lee kicked against Sasuke's guard while he felt multiple jabs hit his body, "Two palms!" Neji yelled as Sasuke formed a hand sign.

"Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!"

Scattered flames showered toward the two boys as Lee kicked through the air extinguishing flames as he went.

Sasuke took two kicks to his gut before the third and fourth hit him just as fast, the black-haired teen was lifted off of the air as Lee continued to kick him. Lee's kicks went faster and faster until Sasuke felt the impacts get harder, embers came off of Lee's legs as he kicked harder before they became flames.

"Leaf Hot Wind!"

Lee yelled as Sasuke took a flaming whirlwind of kicks before he was kicked down toward Neji who slid, "4 palms! 16 palms!" Neji yelled as Sasuke felt more of his chakra points get struck as Lee crashed down from above.

Sasuke made room between himself and them as he faced his palm downward, "Chidori!" The teen yelled as he rushed toward Lee.

Neji intercepted Sasuke with a rotation, Sasuke pushed against the dome of chakra punching his hand through it as it was knocked upward.

"64 palms!"

Neji yelled striking rapidly against Sasuke now that his blind spot was opened up, Sasuke felt more of his chakra depleting as he was suddenly slammed against by another kick.

"Sasuke! Even if you say it's some kind of illusion, I still want to push to make it true! You aren't gone and if we have to beat you to show you that, then I'll push as hard as I can!"

Lee yelled as his kicks swung faster giving Sasuke little chance to counter as he took the rapid attacks. Sasuke coughed out blood as another kick from Lee smashed against him pushing him toward Neji who was in the Eight Trigrams stance.

"Sasuke... It's not fair to Naruto… but I'll ask him for his forgiveness."

Neji said as Sasuke turned to attack Neji, but he was already being struck, the older teen's attacks struck Sasuke rapidly as his eyes rolled in the back of his head. "Eight Trigrams: 128 Palms!" Neji yelled, landing the last strikes against Sasuke's chakra points, sending the teen into the ground cratering him.

"Stay down."

Neji said as Lee landed beside him, "Neji… Did you?" The teen didn't even get to finish his sentence before the spot Sasuke was at exploded.

Neji reacted quickly attempting to block as Sasuke gripped his hand around his throat, "That's impossible!" Neji yelled as he was choke slammed into the ground.

Sasuke pummeled the boy into the ground with his fist as he lifted a hand easily catching Lee's attack out of the air. Lee looked at Sasuke with shock as the curse mark had crawled up to the side of his face covering half of it before he kicked Lee backward through several trees.

"How the hell am I being pushed this far, by the likes of you?!"

Sasuke yelled as he stomped Neji into the ground kicking up dust as Lee dashed toward him, "Third Gate: Open!" Lee yelled as he rushed Sasuke who dodged his rush, snatching his leg out of the air.

Sasuke pulled Lee into a series of punches in his gut before slamming a knee into his face, blood came out of Lee's nose before he was kicked under his chin into the air. Sasuke kicked Lee several more times before spinning and kicking him heavily in the gut, launching him into the ground.

"Chidori!"

Sasuke yelled as he left a trail of lightning behind him as he crashed down on top of Lee, a palm strike hit him in the face before he could impale Lee. Sasuke flipped landing on his feet, his Sharingan glared toward his attacker as he began to laugh at the sight.

Those same white eyes, however they belonged to someone else.

Hinata stood in the Gentle Fist stance with notable differences from Neji's as Lee panted on the ground, "Hinata." He spoke while Sasuke kept laughing almost manically."

"You all just keep coming don't you?! Fine by me, bring whoever you want! That isn't going to change the fact that I'll bury each and every single one of you!"

Sasuke yelled as he barely got to finish his sentence before Hinata was already attacking him, her strike wasn't like Neji's.

While his was balanced precision, her's was an elegant destructiveness.

She wasn't here to fight him.

Sasuke countered her strike as her white eyes glared heavily at him, a fire burning in them that he could see clearly.

She was there to kill him.

{...}

"Hinata."

Lee spoke while the girl glared at Sasuke who rolled his shoulder, "You too huh? It seriously never ends with you morons." the teen said while the dark haired girl entered into her gentle fist stance.

"Where is he?"

The girl asked while Sasuke huffed, "I don't care who any of you think you are. Turn around and run back to your home. You've been long forgotten. Especially you, unless you think showing off a tin of ointment is going to spark his memory." the black-haired teen taunted as he snatched a palm strike from the girl out of the air.

"Clearly you won't tell us anything we need to know. That means there's no point to any further questions."

Hinata said as she snatched her wrist out of Sasuke's grip, the curse mark enhanced his abilities allowing him to move faster and access more chakra than he regularly could, but he knew Hinata had changed and that she wouldn't be the type to go down easily.

The girl's hands moved through air rapidly as she struck toward Sasuke with chakra flowing through her palms, Sasuke weaved through the strikes. Unlike Neji's which were jabs pinpointing specific chakra points her strikes were meant to use more surface area to more quickly deactivate chakra points.

Sasuke's Sharingan read her movements as he grabbed her wrist twisting it, Hinata rolled with her wrist slamming a palm against Sasuke's chest. Sasuke staggered as she exploded forward spinning as she continued to strike rapidly at him.

Sasuke used Taijutsu to directly counter her strikes as his sword was still out of his reach, he felt himself being pushed back as Hinata aggressively swung. There was no use in trying to confront her using Taijutsu, the Gentle Fist was something that couldn't be countered by any normal Taijutsu.

Not even Orochimaru's style with the way she moved.

Sasuke slammed his foot downward before striking two jabs against Hinata who slid backward before giving the young man a surprised look, "I'll just fight fire with fire then." his Sharingan spun as he adopted Neji's Gentle fist stance.

Hinata glared as the veins around her eyes grew with the activation of the Byakugan before the two teens clashed again.

The scene that Sasuke watched between Hinata when she fought Neji at the Chunin exams went through his head as he deflected a strike getting another jab off against the girl. Her style was aggressive even more so than back then, Neji specifically honed his version of the Gentle Fist to account for that back then, as he would do now.

Sasuke slid forward on one foot taking the offense, he used the mimicked movements to apply more pressure on Hinata who was now on the defensive. The black haired teen broke her guard and struck at her again only for his wrist to suddenly be caught.

The Byakugan stared directly into his Sharingan as Hinata tugged him toward herself, she rolled the teen over her shoulder slamming him into the ground. Sasuke coughed before he was pulled off of the ground back to his feet before Hinata struck him several more times before launching him into the air.

Sasuke flipped, recovering in mid air as Hinata twirled through the air, the chakra from her palms streaming around her in a circle before she swung, the black haired teen countered the strike, kicking the girl to the ground before lightning sparked.

"Chidori!"

Sasuke yelled as Hinata adopted the Eight Trigrams stance, "Eight Trigrams: Protective Revolving Palm!" her hands weaved around her creating streaks of chakra in the air around her.

Sasuke's Chidori struck against it but couldn't penetrate, the teen flipped before landing on his feet.

Hinata adopted a low posture as if she was a lioness ready to pounce on prey, eyeing Sasuke with predatory eyes. Lightning crackled around Sasuke as he watched the girl dash from her current position, "Chidori Stream!" the teen yelled out as lightning flew out around him.

"Eight Trigrams: Air Palm!"

Hinata yelled before she thrusted a palm toward Sasuke, a gust of wind slammed against the field of lightning around him punching a hole into. Sasuke barely had time to react as Hinata was already in the hole she made attacking him.

The girl struck at Sasuke violently as he did his best to counter her, she created a small space between them jabbing into the boy twice.

'Not this again!'

Sasuke yelled as he blocked two more jabs from Hinata only for a palm to smash across his face, the black haired teen still couldn't react as he felt the chakra around the girl shift completely.

His Sharingan came into contact with her icy glare as her Gentle Fist stance changed.

Hinata unleashed a flurry of blows into Sasuke, chakra streaked through the air trailing from her palms like flowing water. Each strike she landed was immediately followed by another, an uninterrupted flow of attacks that continued to slam mercilessly into the teen.

"Sasuke!"

Karin yelled while the black haired teen couldn't get his bearings, "You know, Sasuke. While my eyes lingered on Naruto mostly, I was also watching you as well." Hinata spoke while Sasuke tried to break free from her barrage but she deflected his hand slamming another palm into him that made him cough.

"I saw how strong you were… but I also saw how lonely you made yourself. You lost everything and wouldn't allow anyone in, dedicating your life to revenge. Until one day someone didn't ask, they just barged right in beside you."

Hinata's voice was even despite her movements as Sasuke's Sharingan struggled to keep up with her movements to form a counter.

"He fought beside you, protected you, risked his life for you. All because out of anybody in the world, he was the one person who understood you the most… Yet when he had nothing… you threw him away!"

Hinata's voice raised as Sasuke jabbed a Chidori at her face, the girl lifted her wrist blocking Sasuke's arm.

"You! Who was the closest to him when I was too cowardly! I was happy that he had someone like you with him and you just went and tossed that away! I've been wondering for a long time, even though I watched you too. Why? What was so bad about him that you would abandon him after everything he's done for you?!"

Hinata yelled as she slammed several more attacks into Sasuke, "Sadly, I won't get an answer to that. I hope Naruto forgives me for what I have to do, but know this, Sasuke…" the girl said as she pumped chakra through her palm.

"I'll make sure to never throw him away, you're the last time that will happen to him."

Hinata said as Sasuke stared at the girl who slammed her palm into his chest, chakra exploded around Sasuke whose eyes rolled in the back of his head.

"SASUKE!"

Karin screamed as the teen hit the ground roughly, Hinata stared at him as she looked at her palm. "Naruto…" The girl spoke while she clenched her hand into a fist, Karin was about to get up but stopped as her eyes widened looking at Sasuke.

Hinata noticed the flare in chakra before a blade slashed toward her neck, the girl leaned avoiding the blade only to get kicked in her gut.

Hinata crumbled to the ground coughing as electricity covered the sword.

"Your poor bleeding heart. Shallow words, in comparison to those that really cut deep. You're all just in my way."

Sasuke said with blood running down his face as he slashed downward only for a kick from the side to stop him. Sasuke looked toward Lee who attacked him again, the black-haired teen defended against the attacks while a kick pushed him backward.

Sasuke leaned past a spear thrust as he took a kick to the face, "Shallow words?" Tenten spoke as Lee followed up on her attack, smashing another kick into Sasuke.

Sasuke staggered as he deflected a slash before Lee punched him across his face before unleashing a spin kick that cracked him across the other side of his face.

"Our motivation to get Naruto back is far from shallow!"

Lee yelled as Sasuke blocked attacks from them both before he was struck from the side by Neji, "You wouldn't understand since you left it all behind, but Naruto has always made a difference. He's always mattered to us." the older teen said while Sasuke found himself being pushed back by the trio attacking him all at the same time.

Sasuke blocked both sets of attacks from Lee and Neji at the same time while Tenten dashed alongside them, opening another scroll. Sasuke spun kicking Neji backward before looking toward Tenten firing a large fireball at her, his arm then blocked a kick from Lee.

Tenten opened the scroll revealing a large halberd as the fireball exploded where she was standing, the girl then dashed out of the smoke with her weapon in hand.

Sasuke was engaged in close combat with Lee and Neji who had joined back into the fray. Lee threw two hard kicks before allowing Neji to roll off of his shoulders striking a series of jabs at Sasuke.

Sasuke weaved through the jabs before leaning backward to avoid another kick, he narrowly avoided Tenten who stabbed into the ground with her weapon.

He watched her form a hand sign as he looked down, "Fire Style: Exploding Flame Shot!" Tenten yelled as the blade of her weapon sparked before flames pushed out of the ground in streams.

Sasuke backflipped away from the flames as Lee launched him into the air with a kick.

The black-haired teen flipped through the air as Lee pursued.

Lee's skin turned red and green chakra flared around him as he drilled a series of rapid kicks into Sasuke before he spun, launching him into the ground.

The ground exploded as Sasuke slid out of the smoke only to detect another shift in chakra, Hinata struck at him as he avoided her strikes only for Neji to join her. Sasuke adopted the Gentle Fist to try to counter them, but he saw it, Hinata and Neji both adopted two different stances of Gentle Fist as they began to attack.

Neji's balanced stance hit with precision while Hinata's aggressive strikes hit with destructiveness as their attacks weaved around each other landing in succession without intercepting one another. Sasuke took a few more hits as electricity crackled around him, Hinata and Neji were both caught in their attacks momentum as the teen unleashed his jutsu.

"Chidori Stream!"

Sasuke yelled, causing a large field of electricity to come out from around him, but it never hit Neji or Hinata as Tenten flew above them, opening a large scroll.

"Rising Twin Dragons: Tempest!"

The girl yelled as a large gust of wind slammed down on top of him canceling out the lightning, Neji and Hinata separated allowing Lee to launch himself between them slamming a punch into Sasuke.

Tenten swung around her halberd slashing at Sasuke who was trying to manage them both, a sword slash broke through her weapon. Tenten flipped avoiding another slash as she summoned her gauntlets, the shield engaged as Sasuke's strike hit against it.

Tenten spun kicking Sasuke as Lee followed up with an even harder kick.

'What is happening?'

Sasuke recovered from the kick landing as he looked around them. How did they manage to get him to this point?

Was he losing to them?

That couldn't be right, they couldn't catch up to him. They were weak, only destined to fall by the wayside. To fall behind and be forgotten.

He was supposed to get his revenge.

He had to get his revenge.

The marks of the Eight Trigrams covered the ground as Sasuke realized he was trapped between both Hinata and Neji who had adopted the stance.

Sasuke was already being attacked by the time he reacted; they both landed a series of strikes on him from both sides as chakra covered one of their palms respectively as they struck at him again.

"Eight Trigrams: Destructive Rotating Palm!"

They both yelled as the attack landed on Sasuke hitting him hard as he coughed up blood before being launched in the air.

This wasn't real.

It couldn't be.

They were getting so close to killing him, he could already feel it.

He was running off of energy he didn't have, the curse mark fueling him being the only thing that kept him going. At this rate… they were going to succeed in killing him. And for what? These people that he had left and surpassed…

Naruto…

What were they even fighting for? What was it that made them reach this level of strength? Suddenly things seemed to move in slow motion for Sasuke as his Sharingan looked toward the clouds above him. The blue color of the sky, if it was a little darker, would have reminded him of someone.

"Oh."

Sasuke said as the clouds drifted in the sky above him, they moved so calmly as something seemed to finally click for him. That's what they felt like… they felt like Naruto when he fought him back in the Land of Grass. That strength, the strength to push toward something they couldn't see.

Naruto… this entire time. Sasuke had been thinking of surpassing and forgetting about him. Using the fire, he saw in his eyes to motivate him.

But he never took two seconds to think about why he had that fire in his eyes.

"…I know why you're stronger than me now."

Sasuke said as he continued to fall out of the sky, "When you walked away… I felt like for the first time in my life. I think… I finally saw you. Not an obstacle or a fool but you as a person." The teen spoke as he closed his eyes.

"I fight because Itachi has to pay for what he took from me, but you fought because you had something beyond that... Something you wanted to be. You wanted to have..."

Sasuke contemplated as his eyes opened back up toward the large open sky, "Your eyes… They didn't see me at all. They only saw what you wanted. They saw the path you wanted to tread… What does that path look like in your eyes? Could I see the same with mine?" The teen fell toward the ground a little faster as his fist clenched.

"How does it make you so strong? …How do I fight for myself like you do?"

Sasuke asked the air as he was about to crash back toward the ground, the curse mark crawled back to his neck as the red sheen in his eyes seemed to become a little brighter reflecting the blues and greens of the sky and trees.

"Naruto… I can see."

Sasuke crashed into the ground as the four other teens prepared themselves as Karin ran toward where Sasuke was. "Sasuke! I've got you! Let's-" The girl was cut off as she stopped in place, even the four other teens stared toward him in shock as Sasuke was just standing there.

"Why… does he feel so different all the sudden?"

Karin said while Sasuke only looked up into the air before he turned his head toward everyone else with a disturbing calmness.

"I accept it now… Why you're all fighting."

Sasuke said as the rest of the teens stared at the eerily calm boy, his demeanor compared to before had shifted completely, gone was the aggressive and threatening nature. Now they could only see the cold, almost peacefulness from the teen.

"I wanted to deny it, but I couldn't. Instead, you all opened my eyes to something I constantly missed. There's something I want too."

Sasuke stated as the Konoha ninja clenched their collective fists prepared to attack, the black-haired teen seemed to sense this and merely gave them a look as his curse mark crawled back to his neck.

"I'm going to find Naruto now… All of you can no longer find what I'm looking for. The man that you used to know is dead."

Sasuke said as Tenten growled, "You're still talking like that!" The girl yelled as she quickly summoned a Kusuriyama.

The brown-haired girl threw the blade toward Sasuke, the black-haired teen watched the blade before easily leaning away from it.

His eyes still disturbingly calm.

Tenten swung the chain furiously while Sasuke moved evenly through the barrage of slashes, not being hit once. He allowed the weapon to wrap around his arm as he then grabbed the chain, lightning shot through it destroying the chain and knocking Tenten backward.

Sasuke's eyes then flicked toward Lee who spun launching a powerful kick at him, the black-haired teen dodged the kick.

Lee kept kicking at Sasuke who kept moving through the attacks, "I can see. I've always been able to." He spoke as he grabbed Lee's leg out of the air. Lee felt himself get spun around as he was slammed into the ground by Sasuke's foot, the older teen coughed as Neji struck at him.

'His demeanor has completely changed! His movements have changed dramatically as well!'

Neji yelled as he struck at Sasuke using the Gentle Fist rapidly but the tomoe in his Sharingan spun as he rapidly adjusted to each move, in Sasuke's eyes Neji was moving even slower.

Neji felt himself being countered as Sasuke adopted Hinata's style of Gentle Fist slamming crushing jabs into him.

The tomoe looked sharper in Sasuke's eyes as they spun around his pupil, his vision was deeper than before. Every pulse of chakra, every small movement in their muscles, every adjustment being made in the middle of a technique.

Sasuke's eyes have never been keener.

Neji couldn't find any footing as Sasuke's movements flowed like water breaking through the balance of Neji's attacks against him. A palm strike to his chest knocked the air out of Neji sending the boy crashing into the ground, without looking at her Sasuke was already dodging Hinata's strikes.

It was as if it was happening in real time, but he was already seeing beyond that, Hinata's next moves were projected to him. Even if she tried something new those attacks had already been foreseen by him.

She could no longer touch him.

The Sharingan… a technique unique to the Uchiha also known as the Mirror Wheel Eye.

"I don't think even after my third tomoe appeared, I ever utilized it properly."

Sasuke said, turning to face Hinata catching her wrist out of the air, "Chakra, the way it moves it moves and flows down to the smallest changes. I've never tried to see it this closely." The teen spoke as Hinata pulled her hand back from him.

She rapidly struck at him only for Sasuke to move through the attacks, Hinata continued to increase the speed of her attacks, but they still didn't reach him.

Her furious Byakugan could only see the calmness of his red eyes.

"The smallest twitches of chakra as muscles move in attacks, the flow of it when a technique is performed, the spaces in between those flows. I have to see it… I have to see it all. Otherwise, reaching you Naruto… Would be impossible."

Suddenly a hand chopped into her neck, Hinata coughed before she took a strong palm strike to the abdomen. Tenten spun over Hinata pulling out her sword slashing at Sasuke who avoided her slashes, he then deflected her strikes as he jumped backward.

Tenten blasted forward as she unleashed a series of strikes but each of them was deflected and countered by Sasuke who merely moved a single hand with his sword in it as if she wasn't even there.

"Sasuke!"

The brown-haired girl yelled as she jumped into the air pulling out two more scrolls, "Rising Twin Dragons!" the scrolls unleashed a shower of weapons. Sasuke was undeterred as he seemed to walk through the weapon shower barely needing to move to dodge the blades. He lifted his hand stopping a spiked ball in the air before lightning crackled destroying the sphere.

Tenten quickly moved to summon another weapon but could only see Sasuke's Sharingan staring into her eyes before she felt herself being unable to move, she struggled to make a single adjustment but couldn't even budge under his gaze.

Lee exploded attacking Sasuke from his blind spot aggressively, his Taijutsu was always faster than his Sharingan could keep up with, but that speed didn't matter if he had already read his movements. Lee watched as Sasuke swayed through each one of his attacks even with the Eight Gates pushing him further, Lee felt his punch slide off of Sasuke's guard before he was blown toward where Tenten was frozen.

The brown-haired girl noticed his sword was now and he started to move with it an odd pattern of movements before Sasuke landed on one foot gracefully, "Wind Stance: Dancing Gale" the teen said before faster than her eyes could register the swipe of his sword broke her blade before the gust of wind lodged both herself and Lee into a tree.

Sasuke saw a visage of Naruto in the same stance next to him for a moment before his eyes calmly lifted to look toward the two teens again. He watched the tree fall apart as Tenten and Lee pulled themselves out of it, the girl coughed as Sasuke looked around at the beaten group around him.

Another visage of Naruto looking down at him in the Land of Grass entered his vision, once again he saw the boy turn his back and walk away from him before disappearing.

Blood freely ran down past his eye from a cut on his forehead as his Sharingan deactivated, "Compared to Naruto, not a single one of you comes close. Go back to the Leaf." Sasuke said as he turned away from them.

"Sasuke! Don't just turn your back! What do you mean by that? Have you seen him already?!"

Lee yelled as Sasuke came to a stop before he turned, "No… the Naruto I'm looking for isn't the same as the one you called your friend once. I haven't seen him, I've seen who he's become. That's who I'm going to find." Sasuke explained as he continued to walk leaving Lee and the others confused.

Sasuke suddenly stopped again; this time his shadow was connected to another one from a further distance away.

"I see."

Sasuke said as Shikamaru landed along with Ino, "So you're all the way out here too huh? Talk about a crappy reunion, what a drag…" the teen said while Ino gave him a look.

"Sasuke… is that really you?"

Ino asked as the teen looked at her as if he was seeing through her, "Ino, focus. He's not here as a friend. He's an information asset now." Shikamaru said as Ino gave him a look before looking back toward Sasuke.

"Fine by me. Hey Sasuke, guess what? I'm over you! I've got other things to do other than think about stupid boys whether you're hot or not, so your pretty face won't receive any mercy from me if you don't tell us what we want to know."

Ino said with a stomp of her foot as Shikamaru sweatdropped while Sasuke still had a calm look on his face.

He was drained and injured; he didn't have the energy to make an escape at the moment, but he'd bide his time.

"Why do you look so calm?! This is an epic reunion, you're supposed to be shocked or something."

Ino said while Sasuke looked toward Shikamaru, "You're wasting my time." The teen said while the other black-haired teen sighed.

"Are we? Seems like you and your sensor friend on the ground over there have a pretty clear objective."

Shikamaru said, pointing out the hiding Karin who looked surprised, "Shika, I'm healing the others." Ino said while Shikamaru nodded.

"Well? Are you just going to stare at me?"

Sasuke asked while Shikamaru sighed, "I can't ask any questions until everyone gets here. We've got people here who would just love to see you." The teen said as the sound of a puff caught his attention.

"Long time no see… Sasuke."

Kakashi spoke while the teen eyed his former teacher, "Late as always I see." The teen quipped, surprising the man as he pointed at him.

"I expected you to be more feral, seems like very little has changed."

Kakashi eye smiled as Sasuke rolled his eyes, "Where's Sakura?" Shikamaru asked while the man gave him a look.

"I had her run a quick errand… if we're going to question him then we need to do it before she gets here. Her reaction might not be the most helpful for what we need."

Kakashi said while Shikamaru nodded, "So let's stop wasting time. Where's Naruto?" The teen asked as Sasuke scoffed.

"You aren't going to find him."

Sasuke said while the teen groaned, "Look, let's make this simple. I'm already aggravated for a lot of reasons concerning you, I want this to go as easy as possible." Shikamaru said while Sasuke huffed.

"Easy? That's what you want?"

Sasuke said while Lee walked over, "Sasuke said something about Naruto being different now." He asked while Hinata rushed over.

"You need to explain! Is it why they're calling him the Blue-Eyed Demon? What happened?!"

The girl asked as Sasuke looked around at them before a chuckle came out of his throat then he began laughing.

"What's so funny?!"

Tenten raised her voice as Sasuke sighed, "You still don't get it. Have you ever thought even once about what would happen if Naruto changed?" the teen asked as they all looked toward him.

"Do you know how long he's been out here? What he's lost? What he's gained? What he had to experience to get to the place he's at?"

Sasuke asked while they stayed silent, "Of course you don't, while you were all living your days in the village missing him. He's been constantly fighting for his life and growing up in this twisted world." The teen spoke while Hinata shook her head.

"Naruto wouldn't change! He's strong and he never gives up! You're lying!"

Hinata spoke as her words died in her mouth looking toward Sasuke's even expression.

"The Naruto you're looking for is a fantasy now. That kid died on the road, who he is now is beyond that. Beyond all of you. Even beyond me."

Sasuke said while Kakashi's expression dropped slightly even behind his mask, "I have to find him… If I'm going to kill Itachi. I have to find him. I have to know how he did it… and what are all of you looking for him for?" Sasuke asked as his eyes narrowed slightly.

"Guilt."

Sasuke said while they all gave him looks, "You claim he's your friend and he's important to you but that's not why any of you are here. You're all here because you feel guilty, guilty that you couldn't do a thing as once again he was isolated. It's funny really, all the kids that used to ostracize him are coming running to get him back and call themselves his friends." The teen said as they gave him multiple looks.

"Isn't that right… Sakura?"

Sasuke said as the group all turned toward the pink-haired girl standing further away than the rest of them looking toward Sasuke with shock.

"Especially you of all people, I'm sure the guilt of how badly you treated him is what is really driving you to bring him back. It's not because you're his friend, you just don't want to be left behind. Sadly Sakura, that was always going to be the case no matter what you did."

Sasuke said with a bite in his voice as Sakura took a deep breath, "Sasuke… Why won't you come back? Why did you guys have to hurt each other? Why couldn't you just tell us anything!" The girl raised her voice as Sasuke looked back calmly at her.

"You still don't understand, that's why you'll always get left behind."

Sasuke said, causing Sakura to fall to her knees as Shikamaru glared at him, "That's enough." he said while the black-haired boy huffed.

"All of you, you're all going to fail. I can already see that because not a single one of you is thinking about him or what he wants. If you knew then you'd leave and stop looking. You'll see, once you get one look at his eyes now. You'll know."

Sasuke said before he suddenly moved, the Sharingan spun in his eyes as he jumped backward away from them.

"Crap, I lost focus!"

Shikamaru said as Sasuke stared toward them, they all performed hand signs only to be stopped as a hole was punched into the dirt by his feet. Sasuke looked toward Kakashi with shock as the man quickly covered up his Sharingan, "That eye…" the teen spoke with surprise as Kakashi narrowed his eye.

"Last chance, Sasuke. We can take you back to the Leaf or the next time you see this eye of mine will be when I'm forced to put you down."

Kakashi said as Sasuke took a breath, calming himself down as he scoffed, "Eye of yours… I'm not coming back to the Leaf. Next time you'll have to kill me, you can try. I have a goal that I have to achieve no matter what." Sasuke said while they all glared at him.

Karin appeared in a puff of smoke catching him as he collapsed in her arms, "Sasuke, wait!" Sakura yelled as he weakly looked toward her green eyes.

"Why? You still haven't answered me?! What is it about revenge that you have to bear with it all on your own? What happened with Naruto?!"

Sakura yelled as Karin lifted up a paper bomb ball as Sasuke's black eyes stared deeply into hers.

"Ask him yourself."

Sasuke said as the ball in Karin's hands shined brightly before exploding into a bright light that blinded them temporarily.

Then Sasuke was gone…

"Damn… He was just biding time until he had enough energy to move and stalled me out."

Shikamaru said while Kakashi put his hand on his shoulder, "Don't worry about that. We need to continue on the trail, before it's too late." The man said while he looked at the rest of the teens.

Sasuke's words had shaken them, "Naruto… he couldn't have changed that much, could he?" Hinata asked while Tenten was quiet along with Neji.

"Guys! What are all of you doing?!"

Lee yelled, getting everyone's attention, "Sasuke… I don't know what he saw but why give up hope? Naruto has experienced a lot, yes but we all know his heart and his character! He wouldn't break apart; he would fight and he's still fighting. We have to find him and bring him home!" Lee exclaimed as they all looked toward him.

"He's right."

Sakura added while she walked over to him, "Naruto is a lot of things but someone who breaks isn't one of them. We can't waste any more time, I have something I need to tell him… I won't stop until I do. We need to keep going." The girl said while Lee gave a thumbs up.

The others slowly agreed while Hinata wiped her face as she nodded, "We've gotten this far, we're too close to stop. I got something to say to that idiot too." Shikamaru said as Lee pumped his fist in the air.

"Naruto! Hang on, we're almost there!"

The teen yelled out as he dashed in a direction, "Lee, wait! You're going the wrong way!" Tenten yelled as the others followed.

Sakura had a somber expression on her face while Kakashi suddenly wrapped an arm around her shoulder giving it a little rub to comfort her. It was a silent exchange but they both knew what the other was trying to convey, Sakura thanked her teacher as they moved forward.

They have to catch up with Naruto, no matter what.

{...}

The Renegades continued to travel as the sky grew a little darker, Naruto kept his eyes ahead as Haruka remained quietly in his arms.

She looked at him as he moved, she could tell he was still keeping calm. Even in this crisis Naruto never failed to find a way to look ahead, she always admired that strength of his… Even if…

A visage of Boro made her close her eyes as Naruto looked down toward her.

"Guys, we're making camp here."

Naruto said as the rest of the Renegades stopped, "Naruto, you don't have to-" Haruka was cut off mid-sentence as the blonde gave her a small grin.

"You need some sleep, we all do."

The blonde reassured her as Haruka reluctantly shook her head, Yugito motioned for the others to make camp as they quickly set everything up.

"Hey, I'll make sure we have proper kindling."

Naruto said while Yugito shook her head, "No need, I'll take care of it." the woman said as she created a small mouse out of her blue flames. The mouse jumped out of her hand into the stone pit before being a medium sized blue fire.

"Cool!"

Fu chirped while Yugito looked at the fire, "This should give us light and warmth without creating smoke. The bad news is its still chakra so it is detectable but this much should be difficult to spot." the woman said while Naruto nodded.

"Thanks, Yugito."

The blond said as the woman nodded her head, "Naruto, I'm taking first watch." Tsubasa spoke up as Tayuya nodded her head, "Me too." the girl said as Naruto shook his head.

"Nope. You're both getting rest. I'm taking first watch and I'm not arguing."

Naruto said as the two teens gave him a look before Tayuya huffed walking toward her sleeping bag as Tsubasa went to his. The boy gave them a small smile before he jumped into the air landing on a tree, he sat down on a long branch as his eyes closed.

His chakra sensing capabilities have been improving but they were still pretty weak, he had range issues unless they were really prominent. However, with a small army running around they shouldn't be hard to detect even with his current limits.

If they even got a little close, he would make sure he knew.

The teen continued to focus as the forest remained still, the blond kept his eyes shut until a small smile grew on his face.

"Shouldn't you be sleeping, Fu?"

Naruto asked while the girl squeaked before suddenly appearing next to him, "That's cheating… besides I don't think anyone is really sleeping right now." the girl said as the blond sighed.

"They really should be, being on edge really isn't going to help us right now. Keeping each other's backs through the night is the best option hands down. They need rest."

Naruto said as Fu stared at his face, he seemed calm at the moment. It brought her ease, but it also made her feel like something was off.

"Naruto… Do you think Boro is dead?"

Fu asked as the boy looked at her, "I don't know… I would hope not. I don't want him to be. I also think that Tayuya had a good point earlier though." Naruto said as Fu gave him a look.

"You heard what she was saying, how did she have a point? She was actively just trying to push what happened down just to get us to keep moving forward. Like he didn't even matter."

Fu said as Naruto nodded, "I get that, but you have to hear everything that she said. What happened affects all of us, but what doesn't change is the fact that Boro made a decision. Whether we agree or not doesn't matter. Boro wanted us to live. Tayuya said that we aren't losing anyone else." the boy explained as the girl looked off to the side.

"Tayuya isn't well versed in feeling things, but she does feel them. She doesn't communicate as easily as we do but she does care."

Naruto said as Fu clenched a fist, "She sure doesn't act like it. She doesn't make any sense… none of this stuff makes a lot of sense." the girl stated as the boy nodded his head.

"It's not my business to say so I won't go into detail but, once me and Tayuya were enemies. She stole my friend, and I wanted to hurt her. Then I met her again after a long time and she was in a pretty dark place… If you think about it hasn't been that long since then. Not everything is going to be settled by then."

Naruto spoke while Fu placed her hands in her lap, "Why focus so much on the past when she has all of us? She has friends that she can rely on now, she doesn't have to do these things alone anymore so why continue to live in the past?" the girl asked as the blond raised his hand in the air slightly.

"Everyone lives in the past a little bit, Fu. It's always going to be a part of who we are, we can't run from it or forget because things are different. We have to embrace it and learn from it as we move forward. That's how you live."

Naruto said as Fu stared at him, "...I haven't thought much about my past since meeting you guys. I thought that having friends would change everything, that the days would be brighter and no matter what happened we'd still have each other… Still even with friends nothing prevents us from losing them." Fu spoke while Naruto looked back into her eyes.

"Fu, I was so happy when I met you. I don't know much about Jinchuriki, I just know that we're hunted and treated like monsters. Yet, you shined like the sun. Even if you were hiding stuff beneath the surface, I still knew that I met someone like me that didn't allow their scars to hide them away from others."

Naruto said as Fu's eyes widened at his words, "I was happy too… So happy... You embraced me and I felt like I had somewhere to belong. That still doesn't change the fact that it's at stake now." the girl said as Naruto took her hand in his.

"It also doesn't change the fact that we were glad we met either, it's in the past now but it still makes us happy it happened. That's how it works. Nothing in the world can take that from us. I'm sure Boro was thinking the same thing when he stayed back to protect us."

Naruto said while Fu felt the warmth of his hand over hers, she held onto it tighter as tears rolled down her face, "I don't want to lose anyone else, Naruto." Fu said while the boy nodded his head.

"Me neither, so let's do our best. I'll protect you guys. I swear on everything."

Naruto said as Fu suddenly hugged the boy, she drove her face into the crook of his neck as he felt her tears against his skin.

"It's alright, Fu. Let it all out. I still got you."

Naruto said as the girl quietly sobbed while holding onto him, his hand rubbed her back as she cried. "Thank you, Naruto." the girl managed to speak as he nodded.

"You're welcome."

Naruto said as Fu continued to hold onto him, a little further away Tayuya leaned against another tree. She had a hand on her face massaging her temples with her fingers as she took deep breaths. Her other hand gripped the tree tightly as she continued to breathe.

{...}

Morning came as Fu opened her eyes to Tsubasa standing over her with his hand out, she slowly looked into the boy's eyes as she blinked adjusting to the light.

"Morning."

The girl said as Tsubasa took her hand, "I hope you rested well. Naruto decided to let you sleep in a little more, so camp is already packed up." the gray-haired teen said as Fu's eyes widened.

"Huh?!"

Fu exclaimed as she looked at Naruto who had his map open while speaking to Tayuya, "He wanted me to tell you that it's ok. We're planning out our next route anyway." the boy said as Fu groaned.

"I should have been up; I could have helped and stuff."

Fu complained as Tsubasa's hand gently touched her shoulder, "Fu, it's ok. You deserved it. Now we can get going, the sooner we find somewhere to secure Haruka the better." the boy said as Fu leaned her head against his chest.

"Ok. You're still so warm."

The girl cooed while Tsubasa smiled at her, "Yeah, well you are kind of cold, so." the teen joked as Fu playfully smacked him. She looked around camp as it was being packed up by everyone, she couldn't help the nostalgic feeling that swept over her as she watched everyone move around.

Boro wasn't here with them, but she still couldn't help but cherish the sight of the rest of her friends still alive and well.

Was this what Boro was thinking about?

Fu spotted Haruka and walked over to her, "Oh Fu." the girl said as the green haired girl smiled at her before extending a hand toward her.

"Lucky for you today, I'll be your pilot on Air Fu. I figure keeping you off the ground would be best for a little while, the best part is you and the baby get to fly!"

Fu excitedly said as Haruka smiled at her, "Fu, I… Thank you." the girl said as the slightly shorter girl nodded with a grin.

"I won't go too fast, or anything so don't sweat it!"

Haruka couldn't help the smile on her face as Fu's was so infectious, "Then, I'm in your hands." the brown-haired girl said as the other girl fist pumped.

"Alright then let's get you settled in!"

Fu said as her thoughts went to wherever this safe place was, she thought about Haruka giving birth and how they would throw her a big party for the child. That they would always be there to make sure to protect her and they would all be alive.

To keep Boro's purpose alive for him.

Yet.

It still seemed like it was too good to be true.

Fu was about to take Haruka into her arms but the tiny hairs on the back of her neck stood up, her orange eyes widened as her wings suddenly sprouted from her back covering over Haruka quickly as a series of fireballs suddenly rained down on the campsite.

"Haruka!"

Fu yelled as the girl coughed slightly, the green haired girl took her in her arms as she flew into the air. "Damn it! How did they find us?!" Tayuya yelled as Naruto shook his head.

"We need to go now!"

Naruto yelled out as the Renegades rushed into the forest, Fu flew overhead holding onto Haruka tightly as the girl in her arms looked at her burned shoulder. "Fu! You're hurt!" the girl yelled as Fu focused on flying.

"Don't worry! Let's just get you out of here!"

Fu said as a large fireball suddenly flew past them, the girl twisted and flew through the air as a series of jutsu were being fired at her from the ground.

An explosion happened on the ground as more jutsu fired toward her, they were exclusively targeting her while trying to lead the others away. Fu flew a little faster as she continued to avoid jutsu, she placed a hand on the back of Haruka's head as she flew.

"I'm going to go a little faster, can you hang on?"

Fu asked as Haruka nodded her head, the girl then sprouted two more wings as she flew faster completely avoiding projectiles.

She couldn't allow anything to happen to Haruka or anyone else.

She wouldn't let it.

Fu continued to fly faster as the visage of Boro entered her mind as he left to face the rest of the men at the village. The girl gritted her teeth as she flew forward. That couldn't happen again, she won't let it happen.

No matter what she wouldn't.

"Fu…"

Haruka said weakly as the green haired girl noticed the brown-haired girl in her arms was struggling to breathe, she was flying too fast for Haruka to even breathe. Fu hyperventilated slightly as she looked at the girl in her arms who was catching her breath.

"Haruka! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to!"

Fu yelled while Haruka shook her head, "Fu, stop. It's ok. I'm still alive. I'm breathing now. Don't start sinking. It's alright." the brown-haired girl reassured her as the green haired girl began to even out her own breathing.

She was panicking in a situation she couldn't panic in, yet Haruka still trusted her even with her life. She couldn't risk that. She had to protect her.

A fireball slammed into Fu's back, suddenly sending the two girls plummeting toward the ground, smoke billowed from Fu's wings as they fell downward. "Fu!" Haruka screamed out as the green haired girl winced in pain.

"Damn it!"

Fu exclaimed as she tried to move her recovering wings, yet they were still on fire from the attack. The ground got closer and closer as the girl tried to think.

"Fu!"

The sudden yell from Tsubasa caught her attention as the others were beginning to catch up to where they were falling to, Fu stared toward the rushing group as she looked at Haruka again who gave her a look back.

"Tsubasa! Catch her!"

Fu yelled as Haruka gave her a shocked expression before she tossed toward a jumping Tsubasa. "Fu! No!" Haruka yelled as Tsubasa caught her safely in his arms. The green haired girl meanwhile violently crashed into the ground.

"Fu!"

Naruto yelled as he rushed toward where she crashed landed, he was interrupted by a ninja trying to stab at his side. The blond quickly countered as Tayuya dispatched another ninja. Yugito looked toward where Fu landed with a panicked look as she fought off several more ninja.

Tsubasa landed before running toward where Fu had cratered into the ground, "Fu! Are you alright?!" Haruka asked frantically as they both caught sight of the mangled girl.

Multiple bones had been broken, and her limbs were twisted in ways they shouldn't have been, blood ran down her nose as the sound of cracking filled their ears.

"Fu! Hang on! Don't you dare die!"

Tsubasa yelled as the unresponsive girl laid there as the other two teens looked over her mangled body.

...

The space around her was suddenly dark, Fu looked around herself as she found that she was sitting in a seat. It wasn't just any kind of seat but one from a movie theatre, she quickly stood up noticing that she was in a showing room.

The projector rolled showing multiple memories of the Renegades on the big screen, Fu was about to walk away but the crunch of popcorn stopped her. "You know… It's pretty neat that your delusion of me is inside of a movie theatre. Guess you really were listening to me huh?"Fu slowly turned around at the sound of the familiar voice, she felt a sob in her throat as she caught sight of him.

It was Boro with a bucket of popcorn.

"You missed some pretty good stuff in this film, I think it's at least top 10."

Boro joked as Fu suddenly hugged him, "Jeez gal… You're treating me like I'm real or something." Boro said while the green haired girl sobbed a little.

"I don't care."

Fu said while Boro smiled before rubbing her back, "Yeah, I miss you too." the teen said as the girl pulled away from him.

"If you miss us so much then why did you do it!?"

Fu raised her voice as Boro stared at her, "Do what?" the teen asked as the girl glared at him before pointing to him.

"You know what! Don't act dumb!"

The girl yelled as Boro sighed, "Fu, can you just take a second to just see something? You're in the way of the movie so just sit… please?" the boy asked as Fu glared before she gave in, taking a seat next to him. Her eyes looked at the screen as the memories played.

The visage of the kitchen in the compound showed as Boro laughed and pointed, "You remember that?! When we tried to cook. Naruto was almost puking his guts out and Tayuya was pissed! Haruka being the angel she is forgave us for messing up so badly. Not to mention Yugito and Tsubasa acting all cool trying to eat the food anyway." Boro said as Fu watched it on screen.

Fu and Boro continued to watch different memories as they played on the screen, the time when they cleaned up the compound, the times when they trained outside, the walks they would take. The shopping trips to the village nearby.

Fu felt herself smile before she forced it down, these memories were just memories now. Times that are now gone just like…

"This doesn't answer my question, Boro."

Fu spoke while the boy gave her a look, "Geez, I didn't take you for the concrete evidence type. Maybe the cute face deceived me." Boro joked while Fu looked down at her lap.

"Boro… right now. You're gone. We're being hunted. And for some reason no matter how much good we try to do it feels like the world is always trying to punish us. Like it's wrong that we even live. I don't understand that. Was being born into this world so wrong that no matter how we try to live something will always take that good stuff away?"

Fu said as Boro gave her a look, "Fine… I'll do my best to answer. I'm not really him after all… but If I was then… I did it because I loved you guys more then I feared the Bandit King, I guess. Or even death." the boy said as Fu gave him a look.

"Even if what you did would hurt us? A part of ourselves is missing with you."

Fu said as Boro nodded, "Crazily enough Fu, even if it would hurt you guys… as long as you could live long lives then I would do it again and again. Pain isn't forever, even if you feel it, you can still find a way to heal and become happy with time." the boy said while Fu gripped her shorts.

"It's so easy for you to say that right now because you don't feel it."

Fu said while Boro chuckled, "I don't huh? I just left my friends behind leaving them to the world as I fight to give them a chance, I won't even know if that will really mean anything. I get it more than you know." the boy said as the girl looked at him.

"...Was it worth it?"

Fu asked while Boro smiled before he placed a hand in her hair, "I'm looking at you and you're alive. So yeah, it was pretty damn worth it." the boy said as the girl felt more tears roll down her eyes.

"I… don't want to lose anyone anymore… you're all so precious to me that I'm scared."

Fu said while Boro nodded, "That's good. That means you're being honest. You've grown a lot. While it's ok to be scared just remember, while good times never last. They also never stay away. So, no matter where you go or where I go. You'll always have me, and I'll always have you guys. All with the memories we made on the way." the boy said as Fu looked at the screen.

The flash of the picture being taken of them at the festival filled her vision as she felt a tear roll down her face as she laughed a little, "Oh… there go the credits. Think there's another scene?" the boy asked as Fu was standing up beside him.

"Boro."

Fu said as the boy nodded his head, "Ah, looks like I'll have to find that out on my own huh?" he said as Fu hugged him again.

"I'm going to miss you. Always."

Fu said while Boro hugged her back, "Yeah, me too." the boy said as Fu's wings sprouted from her back. She let go of the teen before she flew out of the roof breaking through it.

Boro watched as she left as he looked at the ending credits as the light of a new scene showed itself to him.

"Oh… What a twist."

Boro said as the theatre disappeared.

...

In the outside world Tsubasa and Haruka watched as Fu's body jerked, chakra ran over her as her bones cracked back into place and her wounds closed right before their eyes, the girl continued to heal until her eyes shot wide open.

"Wait here."

Fu said while Tsubasa stood up, "Fu, wait you're still-" he didn't get to finish his sentence as the girl had already blasted toward the others.

Naruto dispatched several more ninja as Tayuya and Yugito covered him, "On me! We can't let them get closer!" Naruto yelled as more ninja approached, only for a large gust of wind to blow them away shaking most of the forest with it.

"Fu!"

Naruto yelled as the girl smiled down at them, "Let's go!" Fu said as she took their hands, moving them away from the Bandit King's men pursuing them.

"Scatter Scale Cloud!"

Fu yelled, sending a bunch of scales into the air before she pointed her fingers at them, "Burst!" the green haired girl yelled as the scales exploded into an extremely bright light.

"We don't have a lot of time."

Fu said while Naruto nodded, "Great job, Fu. Let's get the others and-" the blond was cut off as the girl shook her head.

"Not this time, Naruto."

Fu said while Naruto, Yugito, and Tayuya gave her looks, "No… Absolutely not." the boy said as Fu sighed.

"I'm not asking."

She said as Tsubasa carried Haruka over with him, "What's going on, we need to go." the teen said as Fu smiled at him. "I'll buy you guys as much time as possible, but you seriously need to go, like now." Fu said as Tsubasa's eyes widened, "Fu, we're not doing that!" the teen raised his voice as the girl looked at all of her friends.

"I know why he did it now… The worst part about it is that I miss him, but he was right. The priority is all of you. To make sure you all get to live."

Fu said while Tayuya growled, "We don't have time for this shit! Let's go Fu!" Tayuya said as the girl smiled at her.

"I'm going to come back. I'm going to make it back alive so that I can see all of you again. All my friends and the cute baby too. So, rest assured, I keep my promises."

Fu said with a bright smile as Naruto's expression dropped, "You… Can't." the boy said as Yugito took a step forward toward Fu.

"I'll make sure of it then. That she keeps her promise."

Yugito said as Naruto gave her a look, "Yugito!" the teen said as the blonde woman pointed. "Move that direction and stay in it. Keep as low of a profile as possible and no chakra unless it's dire." Yugito pointed out as the boy stomped his foot.

"I'm not leaving behind anymore of my friends so just cut it out!"

Naruto yelled while Fu smiled, "You aren't leaving us behind. We're always with you, all of you guys. Plus, when you see us again it'll be a fun little reunion won't it?" the girl said as she walked toward the group.

"Haruka… Tell me what his name is going to be. My last favor."

Fu said while Haruka gave the girl a sad look as the girl leaned closer to her, "Whisper it to me though… I want it to be a surprise for everyone else." the girl said as Haruka nodded before whispering to her. A gentle smile appeared on Fu's face.

"That's an amazing name, Haruka. He's going to love it. So, you go be mom and I expect to hold him when I see him!"

Fu exclaimed as she looked at Tsubasa, "You don't have to do this…" the boy said as she could clearly see the emotion in the boy's eyes as she stared into them.

"Fireworks."

Fu said while Tsubasa gave her a look, "What?" he asked while the girl stared into his eyes with a gentle smile on her face.

"You once told me that your eyes were like cold flames that could only see death, but I didn't agree with you… I never told you what they looked like to be because I couldn't think of the word, but I got it now. Your eyes are warm and beautiful, Tsubasa. Like fireworks."

Fu said as the smoky haired boy's breath hitched as he suddenly embraced her, "Fu… I… I just wanted to-" Tsubasa struggled with his words as her hands suddenly touched his cheeks. Tsubasa felt his head being pulled down toward hers.

Fu pressed her lips right under Tsubasa's lips on his chin, the boy was frozen as she pulled away from him. "...I'm not well versed in this stuff, but I think you missed." the boy said as Fu chuckled.

"Let's save the real one for when we see each other again, that's a reason for me to come back alive. As for one final promise… Save me a dance, would you?"

The girl said as Tsubasa closed his eyes and gritted his teeth before nodding, Fu noticed the light was beginning to go out as she sighed.

"You'll be a good mother, Haruka. I expect to see him nice and big when I return."

Yugito said while Haruka nodded sadly, she then noticed Fu walking toward the front and went to join her.

"Oh, and Naruto."

Fu said, getting the boy's attention as she gave him a bright smile, "One day. I wanna be a ninja just like you! You're the greatest ninja I've ever met! Thank you for being my friend." the girl said as Naruto clenched his eyes shut.

"We'll see you soon. So, keep moving forward. I expect great things from you, Naruto."

Yugito added as she and Fu faced the dying light slowly revealing more and more of the enemies waiting behind it.

"Wait… I said wait damn it!"

Tayuya spoke up as Fu turned toward her, she could see the distress on the reddish haired girl's face as she struggled to keep it down, "I… I just- I couldn't-" Tayuya struggled with her words as Fu smiled to herself before giving the other girl the brightest smile she could muster.

"Love ya, big sis!"

Fu chirped immediately silencing Tayuya who stared at her, it was the small moments between them. Making sure she was eating, humoring her jokes, the gentle nudges, the bright energy, the sheer amount of loudness from her.

Tayuya saw the visage of the girl smiling at her after she kicked the wall down at the compound.

Fat tears rolled out of her face as she was tugged by Naruto, "Fuck… FUCK!" Tayuya yelled through the tears as Naruto took her away along with the rest of the Renegades.

"Naruto we aren't serious going to-"

Tayuya's words were cut off as she caught a glimpse of the boy's expression, he was trying his best to stay calm but even through her tears she could see it in his eyes. The way they looked so heavy with an expression that wasn't one she would have seen on Naruto.

Like something was cracking in him.

Fu watched them leave along with Yugito as she looked toward the woman, "I took up all of your time to say anything. My bad." the girl apologized as Yugito chuckled.

"We'll see them again. When we do, I'll have plenty to talk about. For now, I'm going to make sure you're taken care of… Are you scared?"

Yugito asked while Fu, who nodded her head, "Yeah but I realized something." the girl said as the light faded and the Bandit King's men spotted them again.

"What's that?"

Yugito asked while a single flaming tail sprouted from her back, Fu smiled as wings sprouted from her back unfurling outward elegantly.

"Even if it's wrong. Even if being born into this world but never being meant to live in it is our fate… Then I'm going to live anyway because no matter how cruel it is. Living in a world where all of you live makes it the most beautiful place ever. That's all the reason I need."

Fu said as Yugito could only look at the girl next to her with pride, "I lived my whole life looking for something to die for. My mission, my master, my land. But all of you and the thought of seeing you all again has given me something in my life to live for. So, well said Fu." the blonde woman said as the large group of ninjas charged at them.

"Then let's keep our promises, shall we?"

Fu said as Yugito nodded before they both charged into the small army of men clashing violently with them as the rest of the Renegades got away.

Orange glowing petals fell onto a single patch of grass that had flowers growing from it, in the middle of the patch of grass was a single object tucked safely in its leaves and blades of grass.

A single picture of the Renegades together.