Adult-FanFiction.org : Naruto

Leader	By : mannahpierce Category: Naruto > Yaoi - Male/Male > Naruto/Sasuke Views: 2164 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: This story has some of Masashi Kishimoto's characters from Naruto in a universe of my own devising. I do not own Naruto. I do not make any money from these writings.

Chapter List
- 105
- 106
- 107
Thank you to my beta and muse, Small Fox. This story grew from a plot idea he gave me.
Also thanks to eilidhdawn, Lonelylulaby, Procrastination_is_key, Anon, NobodysAingyl, toosweet05, Moonmoore, SunaoTsuji, maliya, Lixx, Fluister, redtatsu, melissen, ShadyDarling, satterb, sadie237, The horseman of deathfor reviewing after chapter 105 was posted. Readers’ feedback, support and comments mean a great deal to me.

Every comment, review or message is appreciated and treasured.

Two... one....

Leader
Part 10: Endgame
106: Preservation

Shikamaru kept running. Haku was ahead of him. Kakashi passed him, followed by Hamaki, Terai and Fu.
He was only a quarter of the way there when he heard it; an agonised howl of anguish, followed by another and another.
Naruto had not made it in time.
None of them had.
“Sai?” he gasped, not knowing if Sai could hear him via the radio he was carrying or not.
“This is Haru,” a voice replied. “The data we have suggests four casualties. Rin-san is on her way. Gai-san, Asuma-san and Choza-san have doubled back to get her and her equipment.”
It did not sound like Haru; the intonation was wrong. Shikamaru guessed that Sai was pretending to be Haru so that he could speak over the open radio.
Who was the fourth casualty? Madara, Sasuke, the hostage and...
The only other person who had been in the park was Hoshi.
“This is Kakashi.” He sounded grim and weary. “We need Iruka or Shikamaru here now.”
Shikamaru tried to run faster but he knew he was slowing rather than accelerating. The regenerator enclosing this shoulder did not help.
“Iruka here. I have handed over the control room to Ayame and I am on my way.”
Shikamaru did not reply; he needed all his breath for running. Then he heard someone closing behind him. Next thing he knew what little wind he had left had been knocked out of him and he was belly down across the shoulder of someone running very fast.
“Apologies, Shika-san.” It was Gai. Shikamaru craned his head up and managed to catch sight a portable treatment tank, with its inbuilt hover platform, being towed behind them. To his left he could see Asuma with Rin on his back and behind them Choza towing another two of the tanks linked in tandem.
Shikamaru remembered Rin refusing point blank to allow any of the emergency tanks to be moved to Sublevel C so that they could be used to treat the hybrids.
He had never been so grateful that she was such a stickler for proper procedure.
They were getting close; he could tell by the volume of Naruto’s howls. One part of his mind started worrying how they were going to stop; the tank behind them had considerable momentum and Gai had no access to the controls.
He need not have worried. Terai appeared beside them, matching their speed. He called for Gai to release the tank and jumped aboard in a position where he could access the hover platform controls.
How they performed such manoeuvres by eye was beyond him.
Gai slowed to a walk and placed Shikamaru on his feet. Shikamaru straightened and turned, terrified of what he would see.
It was worse than he had imagined. Hoshi was lying on her back with a knife sticking out of her chest. Beside her was Sasuke. Shikamaru saw an open, unseeing eye over a ruined cheek. His torso looked cooked.
He could not see more because Naruto was crouched over them, protecting them. As Shikamaru watched he flung his head back and howled.
“Either you talk him down or we’ll have to risk darting him,” Kakashi informed him.
Shikamaru’s mind flooded with why that was a really bad idea. No drug could fell Naruto quickly enough. The best outcome they could hope for would be that he went berserk and his controller knocked him out.
Then he realised that Naruto wasn’t wearing his controller.
Maybe Rin’s obsession with proper procedure wasn’t such a good thing after all. There was no reason why Naruto shouldn’t wear his controller while tanked, just the rule that patients were put into the tank completely naked.
He took three steps towards them. Naruto’s head whipped around to face him. He snarled and growled a warning.
His mouth, chin, neck and chest were covered with blood. Shikamaru could see bits of flesh between his teeth. Some way away he spotted Izuna’s, or rather Madara’s, body. There was no possibility of him being alive; the head was lying some distance from the torso.
“Na-chan, you have to put them in the tanks,” he explained. He pointed to where Rin was preparing one of the tanks. “It’s their only chance.”
Naruto growled again.
Shikamaru took a deep breath and went closer.
Naruto lunged and snapped at him. Shikamaru heard Kakashi whispering commands.
He had less than a minute before the elite fighters intervened and there was another round of carnage. He told himself that snapping rather than killing meant that Naruto knew it was him.
“Na-chan, you have to save them by putting them in the tanks.”
This time he saw comprehension in his friend’s eyes. The bloodstained whiskers twitched. “Save them?” he queried.
“Save them,” Shikamaru repeated firmly. “Put them in the tanks and save them.”
“Hoshi first, Naruto-san,” Rin instructed. “Lift her gently.”
Shikamaru had to admire her courage; she spoke as if they were in the infirmary and Tsu-chan had hit his head.
It worked. Naruto placed Hoshi in one tank and Sasuke in the other. Shikamaru watched him carrying Hoshi but, when it came to Sasuke, he could not bear it.
He sat on the ground, looking the other way. Asuma and Gai were a little way away treating Yukie Fujikaze. It looked that they were going to take her through the gate and hand her over to one of the teams from the medico school.
That was fine by Shikamaru. He did not want to have to think about her, never mind speak to her. It reminded him of his failure.
Someone sat down beside him; Kakashi.
“Well done.”
Shikamaru flinched; if he had done well Sasuke and Hoshi would not be... ...dead?
“It was his decision to go through the gate,” Kakashi pointed out. “You and Neji told him not to do it.” He looked towards the tanks. “I think Hoshi will make it. I am almost certain the knife missed the heart and the aorta.”
That was good. “Sasuke?” he whispered.
For a moment Kakashi said nothing. Then he sighed. “It depends how long it is since he stopped breathing. Nanobots can only do so much. It was a laser rather than a knife. It might make a difference. Less blood loss.”
Shikamaru risked glancing over. Rin and Naruto were at Sasuke’s tank. Hoshi appeared to have been abandoned, but Shikamaru knew that was not the case. It was a good rather than a bad sign.
As he watched, Neji arrived; he slowed and stopped a few paces from Hoshi’s tank.
Naruto’s head came up and he looked across. Shikamaru scrambled to his feet, worried that Na-chan might react badly to someone being so close to Hoshi, but Naruto merely twitched his whiskers and went back to looking at Sasuke.
Shikamaru thrust his hands into his pockets and sauntered over. Neji was staring through the regen gel at Hoshi; at the obscene sight of the knife sticking out of her chest.
“You told her to come back to the household,” Shikamaru reminded him.
Neji shook his head. “As if she would. As if she wouldn’t stay and try to save her Papa.”
Rin left Sasuke’s tank and walked over to them.
“Time to get rid of that,” she stated. “The extra nanobots will be in place by how.” She reached both hands down into the gel, put one palm against Hoshi’s chest and closed her other hand around the hilt.”
They watched as the knife was carefully withdrawn along its path of entry.
“Sasuke-sama?” Neji asked.
“The oxygen supply to his tissues has been re-established,” Rin answered. “I won’t know how many of which cells are dead until I can run proper diagnostics.” She considered. “The damage could have been much worse.”
Shikamaru’s gaze went to Madara’s body. Yes, there were definitely degrees of worse.
Haru arrived next and Naruto reacted to his presence: holding him tight; being his To-chan. That was good because if Sasuke didn’t make it...
Shikamaru turned to Rin. “Even if he’s too far gone to ever recover, don’t admit it. Keep him in a tank, like Natsuhi. That way Naruto will keep hoping.”
Rin frowned and opened her mouth to object, only to close it again. Her eyes went to Naruto and Haru.
“Think of the triplets,” Neji added.
She considered for a few more moments and then nodded.

Haru guessed things could be worse. Hoshi and Papa were tanked, so Rin-san must think she could treat them. Madara was most definitely dead.
Iruka-sensei had arrived and was gently suggesting what To-chan should do. It was working. To-chan had wiped off most of the blood and gore. He had put on his controller and the wide leather collar bearing his plaque, both of which Rin-san had brought. He put on his tags from the bag Haku-san had prepared for him, followed by the pants and jacket.
The other contents of the bag were interesting: To-chan’s knife, a medico kit, a radio, a fold-up laser rifle, a laser pistol, a garrotte and a spare knife. Haru decided he definitely wanted Haku-san on his side in a fight.
The medico kit was open on the ground where Hoshi and Papa had been lying. Two empty hyposprays were beside it. Haru recognised the red labels; in every first aid session he had ever attended, Rin-san always said the same thing, “If you think it’s bad, give them the red one.”
People might think that To-chan couldn’t think when he turned all foxy, but Haru knew better.
He thought of going to talk to Shi-chan but Iruka-sensei shook his head slightly. Haru got the message: stay close to To-chan; give him something to focus on other than Papa in the tank.
They should probably unpod the triplets; looking after them would keep To-chan busy.
Things were happening. Asuma and Gai came back from taking Yukie Fujikaze through the gate. Terai and Fu scraped Madara’s remains together and put them in a bag. Choza retrieved Papa’s knife and brought it to To-chan.
Sumaru-san arrived, coming from the direction of the gate. He was bruised, bloody and so exhausted that he could barely put one foot in front of the other.
Haru saw how all the other elite fighters were avoiding him; even Gai-san wouldn’t look at him. It wasn’t fair. Haru was sure that Sumaru-san had only been following Papa’s orders, like he was meant to do.
Then Kakashi-san went over to him. He put a hand on his shoulder and spoke to him. Haku-san picked up a medico kit and went over to join them.
Sumaru-san looked better after that. Haru suspected it was Kakashi-san’s words rather than the hypospray Haku-san gave him.
Finally they were ready to move Hoshi and Papa to the infirmary. To-chan walked next to Papa’s tank with Haru beside him.
Neji-san walked next to Hoshi’s. Haru didn’t know why that was interesting but it was.
Rin-san explained that Papa and Hoshi would remain in the portable tanks for now, until their conditions had stabilised. Iruka-sensei suggested that the tanks be in the same side room. Haru saw that she was about to disagree, her rule was one patient per side room, but then she nodded.
To-chan settled down on a chair placed equidistant from each tank.
Haru wanted to talk to Sai; he might be worried. “Rin-san, shall I put your office back the way it should be?”
Rin-san looked to him. “That is thoughtful of you, Haru-kun.”
Haru felt guilty; he had only offered to do it so that he could speak to Sai. “Then maybe I could help you clean up the side room where To-chan was in the tank.”
She actually smiled at him.
He plugged in his interface and began rewiring Rin-san’s system.
“Sai?” he subvocalised. “I am sorry to have been so long.”
“I have been monitoring the situation,” Sai replied. “Do you want to know the details of Sasuke-sama’s and Hoshi-kun’s injuries?”
“No,” Haru replied quickly. “Sometimes us flesh-and-bloods prefer to hope rather than know.”
There was a pause. “Is that optimism?”
“I guess so. Thank you for your help, Sai. It would have been much worse without you.”
“It would have been different,” Sai acknowledged. “Is the emergency over?”
“Yes.”
“So I must obey the rules again?”
Haru wondered, not for the first time, whether Sai got bored. He would have to speak to Shi-chan about it. “Yes please, Sai.”
“So Sumiko-chan will be unpodded soon?”
“I should think so.”
“I miss her. Will you be mending the wireless?”
Haru suddenly felt very tired. “Tomorrow, Sai, even if it’s only enough for you to stay in contact with me, Shi-chan and Su-chan.”
There was a pause. “Iruka-san summoned everyone home. Ran will be here soon. He will hold you and you will feel better.”
That would be nice. Haru checked the chronometer. It was still only mid afternoon.
How could so much have happened in so short a time?
He really didn’t want to speak with Sai anymore, so he used the excuse that he had promised to clean up the side room where To-chan had been tanked. He got a mop and a bucket from a cleaning cupboard and made his way there.
It was difficult to know where to start. It turned out that a tank held lots of gel and now it was all over the floor and drying out to form a substance that resembled glue. He wet the mop and made an investigative swipe. The mop barely moved.
This was going to take a long time.
“Do you want help with that?” a voice asked.
It was Ran. Haru tried to speak to him but he couldn’t. Next thing he knew he couldn’t breathe properly either. He wanted to cry but he couldn’t because even one sob and To-chan would hear it.
To-chan had enough to worry about without him behaving like a baby.
Then Ran’s arms were around him. Haru tried twisting away because Ran would be feeling his emotions and that wasn’t fair because Haru knew how much they hurt. Only Ran held him tight and Haru decided to give in and let him.
Ran didn’t say everything would be fine. Haru appreciated that.
Then Dan-san was there and he suggested to Ran that they go into a little treatment room where they could be alone for a bit. Ran sat on the floor in a corner with Haru curled up half on him and half against him.
After a while Haru felt a lot better; more optimistic.
He was about to suggest that they go tackle cleaning the floor when he heard voices.
It was Kakashi-san. He was talking with, or rather to, Rin-san.
“I’m not asking, Rin. This is an order. You get Kuuya out of stasis now. You treat him for the virus. If giving him the second treatment is going to prolong the process, don’t do it.”
Haru felt sick. He tried telling himself that Kakashi-san was just being sensible because there was no way Papa would be out of the tank in a few days.
He would keep telling himself that. He would be optimistic.

Shikamaru wanted to be with Naruto and Haru, but it wasn’t an option. He and Neji had to get back to the incident room and begin damage limitation.
Kimimaro had slaughtered five people. Of the surviving witnesses, Yuki Fujikaze was staying silent for now, perhaps because she was in a tank, and the minstrel, Sabu-san, was nowhere to be found. Unfortunately the third was taking full advantage of having a story to tell.
Every media channel had him talking about Kimimaro’s murderous spree and how Sumaru had stopped him.
Kimimaro having been sworn to a full blood Uchiha was bad; it made Uchiha responsible for the deaths. Sumaru killing him was good; Uchiha had reacted quickly and appropriately.
Them having a recording of ‘Izuna Uchiha’ ordering him to kill all the witnesses was bad in all ways but one; it made it a lot easy for people to believe that ‘Izuna Uchiha’ was actually Madara.
Neji prepared a simple statement. It started with what Sasuke had said the day before; that Uchiha had just started investigating the claim that the individual they knew as Izuna Uchiha was actually his brother Madara. It then went on to acknowledge that Madara Uchiha was responsible for the deaths. It finished by offering condolences to the families and promising to pay compensation.
It went further than was strictly necessary, like Sasuke had always gone further than was strictly necessary.
They were discussing whether they should send it or not when Kakashi walked in. Shikamaru knew immediately that he had taken command.
“What have you got for the media?”
Neji handed him a copy. Kakashi scanned it and nodded. “Add that the individual recently known as Izuna Uchiha, who is now known to be Madara Uchiha, died this afternoon. Then send it.”
He turned his attention to Shikamaru. “Find a way of getting a message to Yukie Fujikaze. If she is conscious I want her to get it now. If not, I want her to see it first thing when she wakes up. She’s the only outsider who knows that Sasuke-sama and Madara fought. Offer her anything reasonable to consult with us before she talks to the media. Threaten if you have to.”
Shikamaru knew the perfect person for the job. “I’ll get Sakura onto it.”
“Fine. Just get it done. Meanwhile, Neji-san and I will make a list of loose ends. Neji-san?”
“The expedition,” Neji said promptly. “I recommend Ino to manage that, at least in the short term.”
Shikamaru listened with half an ear. The point between his shoulder blades had started to itch. To his dismay, it had started when Kakashi had walked into the room. His behaviour was certainly off but surely that was to be expected; Sasuke was, in all ways that mattered, his son.
That did not explain the itch. He would have to talk to Neji and to Iruka.
“Sai-kun?” he subvocalised.
“Shika-san,” Sai acknowledged immediately.
“Are Sakura-san and Ino-san back?”
There was a momentary pause. “Haru said I had to go back to obeying the rules because the emergency was over.”
Shikamaru sighed. Having Sai as his constant assistant was more than useful but Haru was right; it made the secret less secure.
“However, I have two pieces of information for you that I obtained before I began obeying the rules again. All members of the crew residing in Tarrasade, even Moegi-san, have returned to the household. Also there is a stranger in the household side of the park. Based on available data, I believe it to be the minstrel, Sabu, and that he is hiding in the onsen.”
The obvious thing was to tell Kakashi. Shikamaru was about to do so when the itch intensified. Part of his mind whispered that Kakashi could not eliminate Yukie Fujikaze, her public profile was too high, but that no one would be surprised if an elderly minstrel died.
Why was he thinking like that?
He listened for a moment. Kakashi was informing Neji that he was dispatching Fu on the Dart to fetch Konohamaru and Kamatari from Skyburrow. Sasuke would have never done that. He would have sent someone else or Terai and Fu together.
“Not Hikaru-kun?” Neji queried.
“No. Bringing him back might compromise Kuuya’s position as heir in outsiders’ eyes.”
It was the wrong decision. At a time like this, Hi-chan belonged with Naruto and the rest of his litter.
Only Neji did not say anything more. At least he had queried it, which was more than Shikamaru himself had done.
He found himself standing up. Kakashi’s one eye was on him immediately. Shikamaru had to stop himself shrinking away.
“I think it would work best if I spoke to Sakura face-to-face. About Yukie Fujikaze.”
Kakashi frowned slightly and then nodded. “Don’t be long. I may need you.”
Finding Sakura and briefing her only took a few minutes. He always wondered why she did not query his in-depth knowledge of her character and capacities. He guessed it was one of the advantages of being a typed-seven genius; no one ever queried why he knew things.
Then he was off into the park. If Kakashi queried it he would be vague and say he was feeling bad. If the worst came to the worst, he would hide behind Iruka.
He decided to call out as he approached the onsen.
“Sabu-san? It is safe to come out now.”
The old man’s face appeared around the edge of the door.
“I am Shikamaru.”
The minstrel looked relieved. “Sasuke-sama’s fix-it man.”
He could not help smiling at the description. “Yes, Sasuke-sama’s fix-it man.”
“How is he?” Sabu asked. “And the girl? She’s a brave one.”
Shikamaru was glad he had not informed Kakashi; it was obvious that Sabu had seen a lot, possible everything. “We don’t talk about such things with those outside Uchiha,” he explained. “Sorry.”
The old man looked at him with wise eyes. “I understand.”
“It may be best not to let anyone else know you were here,” Shikamaru added. “I thought I would escort you to the gate.”
Kakashi’s piercing stare when he returned was unnerving, although the itch had subsided somewhat. Shikamaru did not comment; if Kakashi wanted to know where he had been he would have to ask. To his relief Kakashi let it go.
He hoped it wasn’t going to continue like this; it reminded Shikamaru of when ‘Izuna’ had been in charge.
“Iruka-san has suggested that we have the evening meal at the usual time and that everyone attends,” Neji informed him.
Shikamaru checked the chronometer; he had time for a few more tasks. “Is there anything specifically you would like me to do, Kakashi-san, or should I check the data streams?”
Kakashi frowned. “Yes, scout about for anything we have missed,” he confirmed.
Neji made sure he was not late. They entered together and took their usual seats. There were four unoccupied chairs on the other side of the table: Sasuke’s, the two to the left of it and the one to the right.
Kakashi entered after them. There was no sign yet Iruka or Naruto. Shikamaru did not think that Naruto would leave Sasuke; at least not this evening.
Shikamaru wondered where Kakashi would sit. Among the elite fighters as he usually did? In the place next to Sasuke as he did when times were hard?
In Sasuke’s place? Shikamaru hoped not.
There was a ripple of surprise. Shikamaru followed it. Iruka had just entered and behind him, in the doorway, was Naruto.
He looked... ...good. He walked around the table the other way to Kakashi. On the way past he paused and tapped the regenerator that encased Shikamaru's shoulder.
Looking up, Shikamaru was caught in those amazing blue eyes. Then Naruto was walking on.
He took the chair to the left of Sasuke’s. Iruka sat to his left. Kakashi paused for a moment and then took the chair to the right of Sasuke’s.
Shikamaru sighed. He turned to Neji, to discover him looking back. Neji gave the smallest smile.
Yes, an empty chair was better than seeing someone sitting there.
Then, magically, Naruto started putting things right. Terai was going with Fu. Hikaru was coming back on the Dart. Kuuya was going to be in the tank the extra days it would take for him to have the lifespan-extending treatment.
It wasn’t that he queried any of Kakashi’s decisions. It was as if his mere presence influenced Kakashi to modify them.
The power of those eyes and those whiskers.
They would be fine. However long it took Sasuke to recover, even if he didn’t, they would be fine.
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