Adult-FanFiction.org : Naruto

Winter Release	By : Cepheus Category: Naruto > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 1260 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 17
- 18
- 19
Note: I want to tell
you all that this fic is not even half way through yet, or so I think. To
develop such a chara like Itachi, his feelings, everything, being IC, I need
more than this. So enjoy your visit, you�re gonna have a long way to go with
this.

Thanks to all the reviewers! And
HUGE thanks to my BETA Silence in Nightmares!

Cepheus: so, another
update. I am aware that last chapter was too anime�canon to be really good, but
since it was needed, please forgive me. I realize there is no action in this� sorry;
I didn�t think it would take so long for Naruto to break free. Enjoy!

Note for
you. I think I will start to add something on Itachi from now on, flickering
thoughts and similar things� because from now on, he gets a bigger part in this
story.

��

Next update: really
soon, I promise.

Rating: M (or is it higher?)

Summary: Kyuubi�s secret out. Akatsuki
attacking. Fighting for strength, and falling for your ex�best friend�s
older brother. Maybe Naruto will have to deal with more than he imagined�

Warnings: yaoi,
boy x boy relationship, angsty, torture, and such.
Mental torture as well. Flames will be used to warm up food. OC
warning as well.

Disclaimer: Not own Naruto. Masashi Kishimoto
does.

�Talking�
�Thinking�
�Flashbacks, memories, dreams�

��

Winter Release

Chapter 18: Relief

His hands moved
upwards, eyes still staring into Itachi�s, and, curling a hand around Itachi�s
sash, he let the dark hair loose, watching with inner satisfaction how it fell
and curled around Itachi�s face.

�What�s under
the mask?� he asked then, in a low and calm voice (no louder than a breath)
�even though he didn�t feel calm inside.

Itachi let go
of his neck, and narrowed his eyes with a look that caused Naruto to gasp and
look away in shock, even though he could not understand what it meant.

Then Itachi
turned away and walked out of the room, leaving a distressed Naruto staring at
his retreating back.

�What was that about?�

��

Naruto let his eyes trail down the wall, unconsciously
searching for something he himself wasn�t aware of; his last meeting with
Itachi had left him filled with a foreboding sensation he could not shake, and
the chills running through his skin were disconcerting.

Silence hung around him, more noticeable
now than ever since he didn�t feel like speaking loudly by himself. Every noise
was amplified in the empty rooms of the underground, and Naruto didn�t like it.

And still, his mind reeled with unanswered
questions.

He felt almost bitter, without knowing why
he should feel this way, but he was also a bit pleased with himself, because he
had looked into blood red eyes without fear (if only for a brief second�).

Now he was alone with his thoughts, alone
in the darkness of the undergrounds, with the now familiar feeling of unease,
and Naruto felt as if the walls were towering on him,
the claustrophobic sensation clutching at his throat without mercy.

He had to think about something else other
than his surroundings.

Why had he asked the Uchiha such questions?
The words left his lips without him realizing it until it was
too late, and he felt like he�d broken something that was not supposed to
break� and at the same time, he knew something had shifted in a new direction.

The blond knew that, somehow, by changing
his perspective in order to understand Itachi, he�d also accepted something
else, and he was not comfortable with the sensation, mostly because he could
not understand it.

His muscles twitched, shaking him out of
his reverie, and the blond let out a sigh. Echoing in the empty space around
him, the sigh was amplified before it turned into nothingness.

Itachi had not returned.

Naruto was aware that time had passed,
more than the normal amount, since the last time the Uchiha had been in the
undergrounds; so much time Naruto had fallen asleep and then woke again, and
more time had passed�

Surely it was more than a day�

He wondered if, somehow, he�d managed the
feat of unnerving the stoic shinobi by mouthing off what he hadn�t meant to be
spoken aloud.

Why the questions?

Naruto had lost control of his actions,
gaining back the brash part of him that, until now, had been almost dormant
�probably healing with his body, he pondered amusedly.

The fact was, the more his strength
returned the more Naruto was aware (once again, to his happiness) of his
surroundings and the time. Seconds and minutes were not fused together anymore,
and sensing this, Naruto felt stronger.

His brain was working and reeling at top
speed, aware of everything around him for the first time in weeks.

Naruto was getting a grip on his life
again, and he felt he could finally try to move against the situation he�d been
trapped into; until now, his thoughts about running away unscathed by the
Akatsuki�s grip hadn�t been frequent, because, awaiting for his strength to
come back, he�d been losing himself in what Itachi had asked of him, offered,
demanded, forced (Naruto knew Itachi wouldn�t have forced him, even though, at
the same time, he hadn�t offered Naruto an option, but Naruto wouldn�t have
refused him, either way).

The unsettling delay in hearing Itachi
come back made Naruto think that something was happening. The Uchiha wasn�t
there, and the blond felt a twinge in his chest. It was not normal.

Yes, indeed.

Why wasn�t he coming back?

What was stopping him? It couldn�t have
been his words, he reasoned, even though the blond was aware of the raven
haired shinobi�s reaction to them� something else was up.

This, and the different pace in Itachi�s steps
from before caused Naruto to think that maybe� maybe something was happening
outside.

Something big.

What could keep Itachi away for so long,
since, up to now, Naruto was his only mission? Was Akatsuki�s hideout under
attack?

No, that was not it.

Realizing something he should have
already, Naruto tuned out everything else and concentrated on his surroundings,
and the feeling he got from them.

He could not feel chakra surges anywhere,
and the normal sounds of the undergrounds were not masked, despite the seal to
prevent him from running away; usually, there would be the humming undertone of
the remaining eight members, vaguely disturbed because it was far from him, and
because the shield around the underground was thick.

He could clearly recognize and feel the
massive amount of chakra from eight powerful shinobi and also Itachi, even
without his own chakra, because he was a shinobi and he was trained for this.

But now, there was nothing, not even a
flicker of power.

What could be the reason for them to block
their chakra flows? None, Naruto thought. So what?

His heart missed a beat.

Akatsuki wasn�t in the hideout�

All nine
members were not here.

Naruto�s eyes widened.

Flashes of dark (a white, blinding light followed by shadows
and darkness and pain) and nine forms hidden around him, performing a jutsu
that would mean his death.

The only moment he�d seen them all
together (loathing was clear between
them, Naruto had noticed; there was no trust, no acknowledgement, no respect)�

Cold seeped through his frame, clenching
around his heart and mind as the only possible result of this absence appeared
as clear as crystal in his head, with the sudden obviousness of a face that had
red hair and a crimson kanji (ai �because
I only love myself�) on pale skin.

During the time he�d been in Akatsuki�s
hands, Naruto had never thought they would try to get Gaara; he�d hoped against
everything that, seeing Kyuubi couldn�t be taken away from him, they would just
renounce whatever plan they wanted to carry out.

It had been a childish hope, and he could
see that now. Akatsuki wanted to take Gaara�s demon, and then they would have
all the time in the world to work on Naruto�s. They would not stop until they
achieved their goal�

Blue eyes turned into slits, fiery anger
burning inside them, swallowing every other emotion until he couldn�t even
distinguish his surroundings anymore. The blond tightened his fists, trembling
with fury.

Why Gaara?

Of all the people he knew, Gaara had been
the one that was hurt the most; rejected without anyone to hold onto, seeing
only turned backs, no smiles, nothing but fear, the red head grew up alone and
drowning in the darkness that once had threatened Naruto too.

But Naruto had found friends.

Iruka�sensei at first, and Sandaime, and
then Kakashi�sensei, Sakura, Sasuke (the
name came with a twinge, as it was a word and words can hurt and bring flashes
of painful memories) and all the others�

But Gaara had no one.

Used, hated, hurt.

Why had everything turned positive for
Naruto, but never for Gaara?

Why did he have to be the one hurt in the
end?

Tears of rage and guilt appeared in the
corners of narrowed eyes (�unfair�).
After everything Gaara had done to change (�wrong�),
after his never ending pain (�why?�)�
still, Gaara had to suffer.

Naruto remembered the pain.

The extraction had been excruciatingly
long, and he�d felt as if huge claws were ripping him in shreds over and over
again, blood leaving his body with his life, sanity slipping out of reach
through clouded thoughts and uncertainty.

He didn�t want Gaara to go through all of
this.

Not that pain, not to him. Not to a
friend, never to a friend.

He had to
leave.

He didn�t know how, or where to go, nor
where they were doing it (refusing to
state the name of the ritual as a jinx favoring the
negative outcome) but Naruto knew he could not allow himself another minute
of laziness.

He�d been waiting for an opportunity, and
here he had it. No Itachi. No Akatsuki.

Gaara needed him, now.

Of all that could have pushed him, this
thought did the trick. It was all that was needed.

Ocean eyes burned with sudden fierce
determination, the same that made Naruto learn Rasengan in a week, the same that made him fight with Sasuke at the Valley of End, the same that could make him win
against everything�

He was the only one that could save Gaara
now, and it was up to him.

��

A shape moved onwards, not caring for the
warmth provided by the sun, face unreadable and emotionless as the figure
jumped skilfully among the trees, evading the ground only to reach for higher
branches, only a few leaves moving as he passed.

There was no hurried tone in his pace, but
the figure moved faster with every step, becoming a dark blur among the forest.

The shadows from the trees curled around
the form, hiding it from the light of the sun, but that was not necessary.
Around the shape there was a dark aura, so thick and heavy it felt like a
weight, revealing more of the person�s emotions than his face could, so dark it
seemed to dim the light itself.

The figure�s shape was slim and trained,
pale skin clashing against the raven colour of his hair, making the flesh look
even more pallid; he wore a loose white haori tied with a rough rope, and a
pair of black hakama.

His hands were covered with black
fingerless gloves, and on his tense back was tied a long kusanagi katana, that
moved slightly with every jump.

The figure moved swiftly, ignoring
everything that was around him, mind set only on a determined thought and
nothing else, eyes bleeding crimson, partly widened in deep unadulterated rage
that went far beyond deep.

The huge amount of chakra that hummed
around his figure was pure and stunningly fierce, its weight heavy and thick,
marred with the same hatred and rage the crimson eyes revealed, the same that
was pouring out of a three�tomoe tattoo on his neck, standing out against his
pale skin, and clear for anyone to see.

On the back of his white haori, (pure white or dead white? The meaning was lost within the lines of thought) a single symbol stood clear, its colours
clashing against the black hair and the candid shirt.

There was noting recognizable of his origins
at all, no sign that revealed he came from Otogakure, no Sound hitai�ate, no
nothing�

Nothing but the symbol, and it had nothing
to do with his current allegiances or decisions.

The symbol of the long dead Uchiha clan.

Pressure painfully tickling on his curse,
a hand moved to rub the spot where his mark was glowing softly, ignoring
completely what it meant and what he�d done, since nothing mattered anymore but
his rage, as he moved on.

And a desert appeared in front of his
eyes, nothing but sand everywhere his eyes could see.

He didn�t stop.

��

It was different.

Unnerving, strange, and absurd as it was,
something was different, and Itachi felt it.

He didn�t like it.

Concentrating on the jutsu, their chakra
pooling together like before, for the ninth time around, mixing hand seals,
eyes closed, around an unmoving body, hidden in the darkness of a secluded
cave. Nine figures hiding in the shadows.

Nothing had changed, and their movements
were the same, but to Itachi it was different altogether.

The vessel on the ground, all red hair and
pale complexion, had lost consciousness some minutes before after having
resisted for almost twenty�eight hours, and the cave fell into deathly silence;
just like all the other times� except one.

The extraction jutsu continued, but
Itachi�s attention wasn�t entirely focused on what he was doing. His hands were
moving on their own accord, for so familiar were his actions that his mind could
work on other things.

Crimson eyes wandered to where the body
was, contemplating why he felt a strange feeling that could be compared to
unease; the extraction wasn�t different from the others, nothing had changed,
and soon enough Akatsuki would be in control of eight out of nine of the Bijuu.

The raven haired shinobi, if he hadn�t
been controlling his chakra and himself, would have been slightly annoyed with
the disturbing feeling, because there was no explanation for it.

It was
different.

A single image entered Itachi�s mind, and
it was the Kyuubi�s vessel�s face, just as vivid as if the blond was in front
of him, and the raven haired shinobi�s eyes turned into slits, recalling the
questions.

Recalling the tone of the blond
teen�s voice, recalling the defiant look in his eyes. Definitely, Naruto was different.

Itachi frowned ever so slightly, realizing
it was not this extraction that was different.

The unsettling feeling was caused by the
fact that, indeed, the last
extraction had been different� and this one had not.

Why should this bother him?

�Oi, do you think someone will come here
for him?�

Itachi�s crimson eyes turned into slits as
his attention turned towards his companion, who was sitting at his right, hands
forming the Tora seal. Kisame had an
ugly scowl on his face, and Itachi could only guess just how needy the man was
to spill someone�s blood.

If he could have, he would have grimaced
in light disgust at the preferences of the man, but, as he was, his face showed
nothing.

�Hn,� he replied stiffly, turning his
attention again to the Jinchuuriki. A part of him was upset at Kisame for the
interruption in the course of his thoughts, but Itachi was not bothered by
this. He was only thinking about the blond teen, nothing else.

A teen that was different. If not like Itachi, not at
all like him, than still different, without a place, without being settled
into a predetermined position.

He could not understand.

�What colour?� he murmured, voice as cold
as ice.

Confused blank eyes stared at him, �Huh?
What was that, Itachi�san?�

The glare turned towards the shark�face,
who gulped and quickly averted his gaze, feeling the dangerous intent hidden in
the raven�s humming chakra.

Itachi�s thoughts returned sharply to the
words Naruto had uttered to him.

�Why the hatred?�

Hatred. How could that kid know? No one
ever had realized why Itachi had killed his entire family. To the Akatsuki, he
was an emotionless killer. And he was that. Emotionless.

The only emotion he had ever felt had been
hatred�

But that had been in the past.

Lost and forgotten and moved on from.

�What�s under
the mask?�

Unexpected. Unwanted. Uncared for.

What was the meaning of such questions?
How could he, of all people�

His chakra flickered dangerously, blood
eyes narrowing even more. He could not understand.

��

Naruto was slammed against the opposite
wall with enough strength to break a rib as the chakra energy that had arisen
against him settled down again, fizzling and shimmering with a blue light
before apparently disappearing.

Naruto coughed up a bit, falling on the
ground with a snarl. Fortunately, he didn�t nullify his recovery time with
this�

Ok, so trying to slam against the
invisible kekkai Akatsuki had placed there to keep him in wasn�t a good idea
after all.

Naruto got up again and observed what
looked like an open corridor leading to a flight of stairs that disappeared
around a corner, stretching upwards, but was protected with a binding jutsu that
prevented him from going as much as three steps towards the stairs.

He�d been observing the kekkai for a while
now, and had been whenever he wasn�t been controlled by Itachi, but, apparently,
there was no way to move up there, at least not without his chakra.

Besides, he didn�t know how to dispel that
kind of jutsu. He wished again that Jiraiya had taught him more instead of
going around to peep on unsuspecting, bathing women.

Gaara�s face appeared again in his mind,
and Naruto gritted his teeth in rage. There he was, weeping like a little child
when one of his friends was going through what he had.

He needed to get out from here; who knew
how much time as left until the extraction was completed? Besides, he didn�t
even know where to go from here once he was out (there was no if in his mind,
only a when).

Moving towards the invisible barrier once
again, Naruto let his fingers brush against it, causing a sparkle of
electricity to appear from midair and circle his wrist, tickling his skin
unpleasantly.

�How can I get
out from here? I need my chakra, but�,� blue eyes narrowed, glaring down at himself.

The wards on his wrists and ankles were
still there, looking as good as new, black ink scratched in unknown kanji to
block his human chakra, whilst the jutsu on his stomach blocked out that of the
demon�s.

He could not negate the seal above
Kyuubi�s, and he didn�t know what would happen if he were to try and remove the
wards; Jiraiya had once explained to him that wards often had a counteractive
effect if someone were to take one off without negating its effect beforehand.

But he needed his chakra, and without it
he would never leave� Itachi would come back� Gaara would be doomed� and
everything would shatter again.

He could not lose another friend. Not after
Sasuke. Not after promising everyone he would take the bastard back� not after
promising Gaara he would always be there.

Naruto�s blue eyes turned darker in colour
as he stared down at his wrists, where the sheets of paper that were the wards
were connected to his skin.

Naruto lifted his right hand until his
fingers were curled against the ward on his left wrist, testing the sheet
lightly without adding pressure, eyes scanning the paper and the trickling
energy encircling the wrist as it �felt� his intentions.

The black ink bled crimson, and Naruto
felt a wave of energy painfully twitching in his veins. They would not come off
without pain.

He didn�t fear pain �he�d already felt the
worst kind of pain when Akatsuki had tried to extract Kyuubi, and as for the
mental pain, well, he�d had enough of this as well� nor did he fear what could
happen. He was not afraid.

Because his friends came first; his
friends were more important than anything else.

Naruto bit his lip hard and, mentally
preparing himself, he grabbed a corner of the ward between his thumb and index.

A sparkle of red and black energy coursed
through his arm, and he gasped, feeling it prickle his skin like needles thrust
with force inside his body.

Unconsciously, he bit on his lip harder, making
it bleed under the pressure of his teeth, as he started to carefully pull the
ward away.

It didn�t work. The moment the ward felt
resistance against its action, the sparkles doubled their intensity, and Naruto
fell on the ground, hissing in pain, white spots dancing behind closed eyelids
as pain washed over him.

�No!� he cried aloud, his voice echoing in
the silence amongst the noise of the fizzling ward.

He had to take it off with one pull,
otherwise he would not be able to resist during the waves of current.

Naruto took a shaking breath� and crying
out with all his breath, he pulled. Hard.

His whole frame was surrounded by
electricity as the first ward came off with a sickening sound, taking away the
skin covering Naruto�s wrist as well, blood starting to pour out of the
horrible�looking wound the moment the ward was off.

Naruto fell on the ground on all fours,
clutching the bleeding arm against his chest as waves of nausea and pain hit
him without mercy, red and black chakra leaking around him from the now useless
paper sheet, which crumbled and incinerated itself at the blond teen�s side.

Naruto coughed up and gasped for air, the
shock and the pain constricting his lungs so that he could barely breathe. It
took him some long, excruciating moments of pain before his lungs opened again,
fresh air entering them with the burning intensity of a blazing fire.

The pain had numbed his body, and Naruto
felt as if he was moving in a daze as he reached with trembling fingers coated
in blood towards the other ward, ripping it off with the same sickening sound
of broken skin.

More blood fell down, more pain,
dizziness, nausea, and fizzling chakra current, but Naruto�s mind, though
fogged over, remained concentrated over his task �ripping off the last two wards.

He did so with wavering strength before
collapsing fully in a pool of his blood, his mind almost shutting down because
of what he�d done, and because of the searing pain.

But�

He felt it.

The cooling sensation that eased
part of the burning pain, like droplets of cold water on his skin. He felt his chakra pool under the
surface of his consciousness, where he could not just sense it, but touch it
and feel it move through his body like a stream.

It felt wonderful. As if a part of him was
finally back. Relief.

Despite the pain, the mind�blowing
throbbing of his wrists and ankles that were torn and bloody to the bone,
somewhere inside him, a weight had been lifted from his chest, almost a relief
and a pleasure.

He was crying, tears mixing with the red,
thick liquid that was still flowing from his open and scarred wounds, sobbing
and gasping for air, excited and, at the same time, about to faint.

He could feel his chakra.

It was a wonderful sensation, and for a
moment, after he forced himself to tie some cloth above his ankles and wrists,
he remained curled in on himself on the ground, crying and clutching his
bleeding wounds against his chest.

��

Kakashi frowned and changed direction in
the middle of a jump, concentrating on the chakra that was moving in the
opposite direction, towards Konohagakure; a day had passed since the news of
the Kazekage�s abduction at the hands of the Akatsuki, and he and Team Gai were
halfway to Sunagakure.

The silver haired jounin frowned, feeling
as if he should know the chakra, and landing on the grass, he spotted a blonde
who was walking on the main path towards the village. He recognized the teen
the moment he looked at her, since she was one of the Chuunin examiners for the
upcoming exams, and was very well known for her bossy character.

Sabaku no Temari, the Kazekage�s older
sister, Kakashi�s mind reminded him.

�Oi Temari�san!� Lee jumped forwards, landing in
front of the walking blonde and flashing a smile; he was on speaking terms with
her even though they had met only once or twice, because Gaara respected Lee.
To Temari, this was enough to allow those bushy eyebrows to get anywhere near
her without him having to worry about his health.

Shikamaru groaned and lifted one hand in a
lame greeting; he�d been placed as co�examiner with Temari in the Chuunin
exams, which meant he�d been meeting with her for quite a while, and Shikamaru
felt not deprived only of his male status around her, but also of his pride.

Temari loved to make fun of him and turn
bossy on him, and her main source of fun was the lazy teen�s relationship with
the Hyuuga prodigy.

�Shikamaru�kun, Neji�kun, Lee�san,
Gai�san, Kakashi�san,� she greeted them, her eyebrow twitching at the sight of
two green�spandex wearing shinobi.

Kakashi noticed she didn�t seem worried,
so he assumed that, somehow, the news of her brother�s abduction hadn�t reached
her yet.

�Temari, where were you yesterday?�
Shikamaru made his way towards the blond, having reached the same conclusion
Kakashi had.

�I left Suna two days ago to come here for
the upcoming Chuunin exams, why?� Temari looked at him, sensing something was
wrong.

Shikamaru opened his mouth to reply in a
way that would not shock the girl, but Lee spoke before he could, �Temari�kun,
I am sorry to inform you that Akatsuki captured your brother in the early hours
of yesterday. We�re going to Suna to track them down and possibly save your
brother before it�s too late.�

Temari�s face turned ashy as she processed
the words Lee spoke.

Gaara had been captured.

Akatsuki now had her brother as well�

Kakashi looked on as Temari�s face turned
fierce and determined, and secretly admired her strength. He knew she would not
continue towards Konoha, so he motioned for the rest of the team to start moving
again, silently acknowledging her presence in the group as well.

Temari merely nodded in thanks to him, and
the group moved towards Kaze no Kuni once again, whilst Lee and Shikamaru
briefed her regarding the Akatsuki.

All the while, Neji simply moved forwards,
because, as they advanced with their mission, planning on what they would do
once they arrived at the village, his mind reminded him of something he�d not
been considering at all, and Tsunade�s words echoed clearly.

Akatsuki hadn�t attacked Gaara before, and
Neji had assumed it would mean they were still working on extracting Naruto�s
Kyuubi (he hadn�t lost his faith in the blond being alive yet), but now that
Akatsuki had effectively attacked Suna to get Gaara, Neji was faced with a
horrible thought.

What if now� Naruto was really dead?

What if the Akatsuki had finally extracted
Kyuubi, and Naruto died without anyone with him? Neji
felt the same anguish he�d felt before clenching around his heart. He had
broken down once only to be given hope again, and he didn�t want to see his
hope smashed like this.

Even if everything was against him, even
if he had nothing more to use as anchor, he would still believe.

He needed
to believe Naruto was ok�

��

Naruto watched his skin and his bloody
wrists closely as he forced himself to bandage them with pieces of cloth that
were left in the undergrounds; he could already see that the wounds were
healing themselves, and at a faster rate than his previous wounds, but the
blood stains around him and on his tattered clothes were kind of worrying him.

He would have been sick staring at his
wounds, and had he been someone else, he definitely would have died because of
the pain and the shock� but he was relatively fine. The ashes on the floor
reminded him of what he�d done, and he was feeling accomplished.

He knew the chakra rushing through him
again was stabilizing his healing and his normal circulation, but he also knew
that so much blood loss was dangerous. He just hoped he could stop the flowing
of it until it could be replenished with his healing.

His wounds still hurt greatly, but it was
worth the pain now that he had regained his chakra.

He was a shinobi after all, and some
sacrifices were required to continue living, and protecting his precious
people; his skin would grow again, and he could ignore the searing pain of the
tissue over his raw flesh without feeling (too) dizzy.

He was not known for thinking before
acting anyway, and the idea of useing
the seal on the entrance to fight against the wards on his wrists and ankles
didn�t even pop into his head until he was done.

He could feel his blood seep through his makeshift
bandages, and he was glad he�d tightened them enough to prevent death via blood
loss, more so because he hadn�t eaten in the last few� hours (a day and a
half)?

�Tsunade would probably kill him for his
carelessness and rashness, but there was no other way out, and Naruto had
enough stamina and strength to survive this. He�d received worse wounds that
had been healed before, and some ripped skin would not leave any scars after
the healing anyway.

Wiping away the sweat from his eyes,
noticing his trembling hands, Naruto tried to sit up on the ground. He�d been
cuddling in on himself for a long time, nursing his wounds and waiting to
recover enough so as to not faint if he were to stand up, and now he wanted to
move.

Naruto wondered if his chakra could help
him, seeing as everything he�d done before was accomplished using Kyuubi�s
chakra alone. He wasn�t particularly strong, nor was he smart, and despite
everything he wasn�t sure he could manage everything by himself�

�Stop this
useless self�pity!� he scowled at himself. He had to keep in mind that this was not about
him. This was about Gaara.

His chakra was flowing inside him like a
fresh current, and he found no problem in controlling it, concentrating some
over his wounds just like Jiraiya had taught him (ok, he had been learning something useful from the perverted hermit after
all), feeling the pain subside under the cool sensation.

He was ready to work on the sealing.

Ok, the one who made the wall over the
door was probably a genius, and nothing should be able to break it, but Naruto
was also pretty sure that the wall never met his Rasengan.

The only thing was� would he be able to form
one with only his own chakra? He could not remember if he had ever used it with
just his chakra, since he did it without thinking too much�

Naruto blinked.

This was not him. He had never faltered in
his determination, and he was always sure about his capabilities, but after
everything he�d went through, he�d realized there were so many people better
than him, and he had to accept this and do his best.

He would never renounce his words, and he
would never be discouraged, no matter what. This was him,
this was his way of life.

The blond teen felt reassured by this.

Closing his eyes, he blocked off the pain
flaring from his limbs and stood up shakily, his knees weak and protesting
against the sudden weight, but he merely steadied himself and, raising a
trembling hand, Naruto concentrated on his chakra.

It felt easy to gather it in his hand
following the scheme of the rotating circulation, easier than ever, and a
second later he had a perfectly formed Rasengan in his hand, blue chakra pulsing
steadily between his fingers, humming comfortably.

This wasn�t anything new; Jiraiya, in the
few times he�d trained him and not peeped in the hot springs, taught him how to form one
without using a Kage Bunshin. After all, this new way required less time and
effort.

It still felt good to have his chakra
back� it brought him a wave of optimism that overshadowed the last months.

Naruto smirked.

�Let�s get out of here! Rasengan!�

He charged against the invisible wall of
the protection with all his energy, pushing the ball of blue chakra against the
apparently empty space, meeting resistance but not backing away; the
electricity twitched and fizzled against his chakra, sending sparkles
everywhere, but he didn�t stop.

He kept on pushing, closing his eyes and
concentrating to give his Rasengan all the chakra he had, pressing all his
weight into it as well, gritting his teeth at the pain, but not backing away.

The wall was resisting his strength,
trying to push him away, the chakra fizzling around him, but not affecting his
body.

The force coming from the seal pushed him
backwards, but he stopped himself, moving forwards again.

He had no intentions of failing.

�I�ll get out of here!� he yelled.

His Rasengan exploded against the barrier
with a tremendous noise, the explosion sending him flying in the air, but he
was rewarded greatly for his efforts �the blue sparkles died away with a wave,
disappearing altogether with the binding seal.

Falling hard on the ground and rolling
over a few times, Naruto started to laugh again, blue eyes flaring up with
excitement and pleasure at the sight of the broken barrier; he had been right,
forcing such a powerful attack against the seal caused it to break!

Naruto relaxed his sore muscles and
breathed deeply, waiting in order to gather back some of his energy before he did
anything else, then he stood up again.

Even though he was still hurt, even though
he felt faint and weak, he still felt better than ever.

��

�What do you mean, he�s gone?!�

A flash of fear sparkled in the young
man�s eyes as he stared in shock at the Oto�nin who had reported to him,
glasses dropping slightly on his nose.

Of all the things he was expecting from
the man, this hadn�t even been considered on the list; even though he�d given the
four shinobi the job of following his master�s puppet everywhere and reporting
back every once in a while, he hadn�t been expecting such a disrespectful act
from Sasuke, not now, not after two and a half years of complete and utter
obedience.

To say he was pissed would be an
understatement; the medic�nin was ready to kill the man in front of him with no
remorse or guilt, but he had to restrain himself �after all, the one they had
been stalking was stronger than them and had killed three out of the four
shinobi in order to run away.

Had he run away then?

Narrowing his eyes, Kabuto pulled his
glasses back up, gritting his teeth in anger, feeling his muscles tense up;
this was not good, not good at all.

Of all the times Sasuke decided to ignore
his master�s orders and leave Otogakure, this was the worst.

Kabuto knew he would have to report to
Orochimaru about Sasuke�s action, and he knew just how vicious and unmerciful
the Sannin could get if he hadn�t gotten what he wanted; Sasuke couldn�t be thinking
of defecting, ne?

He wasn�t strong enough to take on his
brother, and it would go against his deal with Orochimaru.

Sasuke had to remain for three years under
Orochimaru�s training, so as to make his body stronger, and to make him the
perfect vessel for the Snake man�s desires and needs, in exchange of the
possibility of killing off his brother, the sole reason for the Uchiha
massacre.

Kabuto knew that the plan Sasuke believed
to be true was just Orochimaru�s trump card to get his vessel; the Sannin had
no reason to go up against Itachi, because, even though he would soon get the
body he wished for, he would still be weaker than the older Uchiha. Itachi was
a genius, after all.

It would take him years to gather the
techniques, strength, and training necessary to even think about facing the
Akatsuki member, and besides, it wasn�t his goal at all.

The moment his soul entered Sasuke�s
willing body, all thoughts of such petty revenge would vanish, and on that day
Sasuke�s mind and soul would be lost.

No need to respect that part of the pact;
Itachi didn�t matter in Orochimaru�s plans� it was only something he�d used to lure
the Uchiha�s remaining member to him, as the boy was looking for power.

The first bait had been his bite curse;
that showed Sasuke just how much power Orochimaru had to give, and that showed
him how pitiful Konoha was.

Now Orochimaru had his desired body in his
hands, and he could get on with the second part of his plan�

Well, Kabuto realized,
only if Sasuke hadn�t decided to defect.

A part of him knew it wasn�t possible;
there was nothing in Konoha for the Uchiha to go back to, and the only thing
that could possibly have called him back was Naruto� but they told Sasuke he
was dead.

So why had he suddenly decided to leave
without Orochimaru�s consent only to disappear from the Sound country?

�Kabuto, there is no need to get worried,�
a silky voice commented from his left, dripping venom and malice at each
syllable.

�O�Orochimaru�sama!� Kabuto felt his muscles spasm in
need to attack the spot the voice came from, but he restrained himself, and bit
his lip hard enough to make it bleed. So Orochimaru knew already�

Clear eyes watched in fear and
apprehension as the old man walked calmly up to him, staring unblinkingly at
the shinobi who was now kneeled in front of his master, even as Orochimaru wore
a pleased expression.

�I already know of Sasuke�s escapade, and
as I said, there is nothing to worry about,� Orochimaru dismissed the Oto�nin
with a wave of his hand and stared smugly at Kabuto as the younger retainer
gulped in distress.

�But� what if�,� Kabuto�s voice faltered
in his speech as he stared in Orochimaru�s eyes. They held so much raw and pure
malice he felt sick just by staring into them.

Once again he was reminded of how
dangerous the man really was.

�A spy reported to me that Akatsuki
captured the Kazekage of Suna two days ago. Sasuke heard of this, and decided
it was time to see whether he was strong enough to pull off his revenge; he
will find out that he still lacks strength when meeting with his dear brother,
and when he realizes that�,� Orochimaru�s smirk widened as his tongue licked
slowly at his lips, �He will truly realize the real hopelessness of his
situation.�

Kabuto swallowed hard again.

�Aren�t you worried Itachi may kill Sasuke
this time?�

�Itachi has a soft spot for his brother. I
can�t claim that I understand how his mind works, since I am aware that
insanity is common in the history of the Uchiha, together with skills. But I am
certain he will never kill him, as he had the opportunity to many times over in
the last few years, and he never took it,� Orochimaru looked almost pleased at
that.

Itachi did not care for Sasuke at all, but
for his own twisted, and absolutely not understandable reasons, he would never
kill him. Orochimaru didn�t care to know why anyway.

�What about the Kyuubi�s Jinchuuriki then?
Won�t Sasuke realize you lied to him, Orochimaru�sama?�

Orochimaru�s eyes narrowed, but his smirk
didn�t change from its predatory appearance. He didn�t care what his pupil
would think. He was lost already.

Sasuke would be his, and nothing was going
to stop that.

��

Naruto stumbled up the stairs, his heart
beating fast in his chest with the excitement he felt. He was moving towards
the exit of this place (or at least somewhere close to the exit, since he�d
never seen what was after the stairs), and he couldn�t wait to see the outside
again.

Everything was pushed into the back of his
mind as he moved upwards, everything blurring away in his hurry, breath erratic
and eyes glazed over as he run, only one word echoing through his mind, over
and over again, to the point of obsession.

�Out out out out out
out out out
out,� incessantly, like a mantra.

He fell down on the stairs, but didn�t
stop to pick himself up again and resorted to digging his nails into the dirty
stairs just to keep moving forwards, ignoring the pain in his wrists and
ankles, ignoring the throbbing ache on his chest, ignoring the ripping sound of
his already tattered clothes scraping against the ground.

Ignoring everything and just moving.

Maybe it was just his adrenaline working
in him and keeping him from fainting, but Naruto had never felt this good, this
alive, ever before.

His heart thumping in his chest,
overwhelming any other noise that could have been around him.

The flight of stairs ended abruptly and he
fell face first on the floor, spitting a mouthful of
dirt as he stood up again, eyes betraying his hurry and his determination.

In front of him was a long corridor of
stone, lit by more light than he had seen in the undergrounds; he took a second
to look around, eyes darting into every direction to decide where he should go
before he started to run again, the need to get out even more pressing now that
he had his freedom in front of him.

Unconsciously, he pushed some of his
chakra under his feet like he�d been used to doing in the last few years, and
the renewed sensation of power for the returned chakra filled him again.

He passed many empty rooms and closed
doors made of wood and stone, of which he cared nothing about; searching for a
way out, his claustrophobia driving him again.

Naruto didn�t know how long he ran,
frantically searching for the exit, and he didn�t know how many wrong turns he
took in the maze of corridors and rooms, running back and changing direction, and
if asked afterwards he would not remember anything of it, nor what he�d seen
while running.

One thing was clear to him in the end,
when he reached the final corridor that took him to the light of the day� and
it was pure, utter absolute relief.

Light exploded around him as he reached
the end of the corridor, blinding his darkness�accustomed eyes so much that it
brought forth tears, forcing him to shut them close to prevent the pain.

When he could open his eyes again, blue
orbs stared around in shock; he was standing a few feet from the end of the
mountain, as it seemed the hideout was hidden in one, and below him was a steep
fall down onto rocks and sand with nothing to hold onto to descend.

The sky was free from clouds, its deep
blue so intense and wonderful Naruto was left breathless, simply staring in a
daze at it for who knows how long; the sand and the landscape he could see from
his spot was a type of beauty he could have never thought possible, the yellows
and browns clashing against the azure sky, creating a mix of the various shades
until he could not tell where one finished and the other started.

His lungs breathed deeply of the fresh and
clean air, so different from the heavy air of the undergrounds, and the sun
against his uncovered skin was pure bliss, a warmth
he�d missed dearly in the hours he spent trying to sleep.

He was overwhelmed by the wonderful
sensations of finally be able to see the outside, like he�d been dreaming and
now was finally awake from the nightmare.

He was out�

The relief was short-lived and vanished
quickly, as a flare of chakra reached his senses, coming from another mountain
in the north.

Blue eyes narrowed and pupils turned into
slits.

And he started moving again.

��

Cepheus: well, hope this chapter satisfied you enough. Please,
drop me a review so I know what you think of it, and see you next chapter!
- 17
- 18
- 19
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

Winter Release