Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Our Lives in the Hurricane Chronicles ❯ Chapter 11

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Orochimaru glared at the girl, who now had a smug-like smirk on her face. Cold sweat ran down his forehead; he bowed his head slightly, causing the liquid to drop to the ground. "How... How could this girl...?" he thought, eye twitching madly. During this battle, Kabuto hadn't been much help at all. All that knowledge stored in that head of his, and it was all for not. This girl... was just too good! Every move, every strategy Orochimaru had made, Mayu only countered, and then attacked. She had some mad skills. "No! I won't admit it!"

Mayu's smirk turned into a giant grin. "That was too easy...!" she said, watching as Orochimaru lifted his head and glared at her. "You weren't even a challenge to me! You're pathetic!" Orochimaru practically hissed at the smug sixteen-year-old. "It's over, Oro-bastard. You lose." Sakura, Naruto, and the others stared intensively as Orochimaru clenched in fist. Sakura knew Orochimaru wouldn't give up so easily, but... it was clear who had won the battle. The Uchiha rolled his eyes with a bored expression.

"Y-You...!" Orochimaru muttered. "W-Who do you th-think you are?!" Mayu turned her head to the side, grin ever present on her face.

"Ishikari Mayu! And I'm in charge, bitch!" she responded, and then looked back at her foe. "Now, say it! Admit defeat, and perhaps I'll spare you of-"

"Shut up!" Kabuto interrupted. The glasses-wearing male was still quite stunned that this... this girl could beat his Orochimaru-sama! There was just no way! "Orochimaru-sama couldn't have-"

"Well, he did!" Mayu interrupted. "Look at him, lying on the ground looking miserable! Truly pathetic! Now, say it, you freak!"

Orochimaru glared up at Mayu, still trying to figure out where he had gone wrong. Mayu raised an eyebrow at him, secretly thinking of how much further she could gloat. The two enemies stared at each other, waiting for the other to crack. In the end, it was the snake summoner who cracked. He bowed his head in shame. "You... You sunk my battleship..." he finally said, causing Mayu to cheer in victory. (A/N: You're probably hissing in fury, aren't you? LOL! I am so evil it hurts!)

"Are you guys finished?" Sasuke asked, semi-annoyed at his teammate's actions. Mayu stopped doing her victory dance, and then turned to the Uchiha.

"But I beat him! I beat Oro-teme!" Mayu declared, pointing at the now sobbing snake summoner.

"Defeated by a me-mere child!" Orochimaru blubbered, while Kabuto tried to comfort him. Sai raised a eyebrow in wonder.

"That sure was odd," he muttered.

"Okay, we get it!" Sasuke stated as Sakura and Naruto tried to stop Mayu from dancing. "Stop that!"

"Mayu-chan... the plot device has finally shown up," Nakatsu stated, pointing in a random direction. Mayu abruptly stopped her dancing, and then rubbed the back of her head nervously.

"Really, then let's get to work!" she said. "Prepare to have your ass handed to ya, Oro-teme!"

"Not this time!" was his retort.

"Yeah, we're so gonna kick your asses!" Kabuto said. "Cuz this is thriller, thriller night! And no gonna save ya from the beast about to strike! You know it's thriller, thriller night! You're fighting for your life inside a killer, thriller tonight!"

"KABUTO!" Orochimaru yelled.

"... er, yeah?"

"STOP INSINUATING THAT I'M THE JAPANESE MICHAEL JACKSON!"

"Lord Voldemort, then?" Kabuto questioned; Orochimaru glared. "... sorry, Lord Mich-I mean, Lord Orochimaru..." Kabuto muttered, rubbing the back of his head.

"I'm going to kill him one day," Orochimaru thought, glaring at the glasses-wearing ninja.

"Whatever... Anyway, that's not gonna happen! Sasuke and I being the main characters and what not will not be beaten! Not mention Naruto. He's also a main character! Sorry, Nakatsu-kun, you, on the other hand... are royally screwed... in the ass." Nakatsu face-faulted.

"She can't be serious...!" he thought.

"Can we please move on with the plot, already?!" Sasuke muttered.
*************************

okay, okay! Here's the real chapter!

**************************


"I'm trouble. Yeah, trouble now! I'm trouble, ya'll! I've got trouble in my in town!" -P!ink
***************************


Sasuke watched in horror as Nana moved further away from him and the rest of the group. "Damn it! She's too headstrong! I can't...!" he thought. Mayu dug around in her back pouch, and pulled out multiple shuriken. Suddenly, Nana stopped, causing Mayu to launch away from the giant cat's body. Mayu's body went higher, and then she flipped, causing her body to fall. "That movement...!" Sasuke thought as Mayu descended, arms crossed over her chest in X formation, eyes closed with the shuriken near her face.

Of course he would recognize that movement. He had seen his own brother do that multiple times when he was younger. Suddenly, Mayu sharply moved her body forward, releasing the shuriken in Orochimaru's direction. Sasuke noticed that she moved fingers slightly. That's when he saw it. "Wire...?" he thought. He looked back down to see that the wire had wrapped around Orochimaru's neck.

Yet, the snake summoner made no move to remove the wire. Mayu made the right hand signs; she stopped on the tiger. "Katon, Ryuuka no Jutsu!" she shouted, still in mid air. Fire shot forth from Mayu, and because of the string, it traveled straight for Orochimaru! Still Orochimaru didn't move. The flames engulfed him. Nana jumped up just in time to catch Mayu.

"What a relief...!" Sakura thought as Nana growled. "From that height, she would have broke something! But what about Orochimaru?" The flames finally disappeared from Orochimaru's body, revealing a very burnt head. Nakatusu's mouth dropped open. Mayu smirked, and then moved her arms into an X. The wires crossed, crossing it to sliced through the neck. The burnt head came clean off!

"I didn't know Mayu-chan was so brutal..." Nakatsu thought as the head fell to the ground. Kabuto didn't move, nor did he show any sign of emotion. Well, he did narrow his eyes a bit. Suddenly, Orochimaru's long neck grew from the where his head used to be! Mayu's eyes widen in shock. Of course, she knew it wouldn't be easy, but she was expecting to at least slow him down.

Orochimaru's new head shot out at her, wearing a giant evil-like smile. He opened his mouth, and instead of his tongue, a snake popped out. "MAYU...!" Sasuke shouted.

"Shit...!" Nakatsu thought. He wasted no time in forming hand signs. (1)"Kaze Danshingu no Jutsu!" he exclaimed. He held his palm towards Mayu, and after a second, he pulled his hand back.

An invisible force pulled Mayu, along with Nana, towards the group. The two narrowly escaped the snake that had come from Orochimaru's mouth. Nana landed behind Nakatsu as Orochimaru's neck moved back to his body, and then started forming a new body! Sakura grimaced as the new slimy body appeared by the old decaying one. The old one turned to dust and was carried off by the wind. "Yes, yes! Very amusing!" Orochimaru chuckled.

"Damn it, Mayu!" Sasuke thought. He knew that Orochimaru had now marked her as a target. "Hopefully... He'll get distracted..." Sasuke glanced at Naruto before moving attention back to Orochimaru. "And it doesn't help that Naruto has already formed the first tail... and the demon's chakra is growing by the second!"

"That was a close one..." Mayu thought, staring at Nakatsu's back. "Wind jutsu...? That's what it had to be..."

"Isn't this sweet, Kabuto?" Orochimaru continued. "More people who want to protect Sasuke-kun... even though he's a traitor. A traitor to both sides. I only wish I saw my Sasuke-kun's intentions from the very beginning..."

"Like I said before..." Naruto growled out. Suddenly, another tail started to form on Naruto's Kyuubi cloak! And then other! All in all, the total was now three! "Sasuke... doesn't belong to you!"

Orochimaru only grinned. Even when Naruto's fangs and claws grew longer. Red chakra spiraled around the container. The power was so great that it even heated the surrounding air. "Don't talk about him..." Naruto continued growling. "... as if he's some toy that you own!"

"What's... that chakra?" Sakura thought, watching Naruto in half fright.

The power of the red chakra pushed Naruto's teammates back a little. "The wind is burning..." Sai thought, holding an arm up to shield his face. Kabuto didn't seemed fazed by the incredible chakra emitting from Naruto. In fact, he only smirked. Nana backed away, whimpering and growling at the same time. The chakra scared her.

"I know what you're feeling, Nana..." Mayu thought, shaking slightly. Suddenly, the giant black leopard disappeared in a puff of smoke, leaving Mayu to land on her feet. "The chakra was too much for her," she thought. Without warning, the wood under Naruto disintegrated, leaving stone. The metal bars and the rope holding the bridge snapped, causing the bridge to wobble. The harsh winds suddenly stopped, allowing the others to put their arms down.

"That's it. The Demon Fox's cloak with three tails," Yamato thought.

"Is this a Jinchuuriki's power?" Sakura thought in mild fright. "Naruto...! I can tell just from the way it feels... How could anyone think of controlling a terrifying power like that?!"

"So this is Uzumaki Naruto's..." Sai thought, not tearing his eyes away. "No, it's the Kyuubi..."

Kabuto suddenly had this bright idea that he could take Naruto on, so he ran towards him with his chakra scalpel in hand. Naruto sensed Kabuto charging at him, and turned around. He shot out a beam of pure chakra, hitting Kabuto dead on! Now because of this massive amount of chakra, the bridge under Naruto crumbled. Kabuto flew back, almost hitting Sakura, but the girl moved her upper body backwards and landed on her hands, just as Kabuto's body flew over hers. The rest of the ninja jumped up to avoid being hit by the flying body.

On the way, Kabuto's body hit multiple trees. Finally, he stopped because one tree was stronger than the others. He slowly sat up and grinned. What a psycho...! "Pure chakra... Pushed me all that way with pure chakra!" he thought.

Back with the others, the entire bridge began to collapse. Naruto fell along with the bridge while Orochimaru jumped on land. Suddenly, a red chakra shaped hand appeared, and grabbed a tree, pulling Naruto up. Orochimaru saw this, and then ran. "What incredible chakra..." Sai thought, narrowing his eyes. "It's like it can think for itself. This is my best chance."

Sai pulled out a scroll. "It's time to start my real mission," he thought. He unwrapped it. Meanwhile, Naruto had gone off to chase Orochimaru.

"I don't understand why he's so angry..." Mayu thought, narrowing her eyes. "But still... because of that demon chakra, he's probably the only one that can handle Oro-teme... Then again, I haven't seen what Sasuke can do." She glanced at the boy in question. "For all I know, Sasuke could be stronger than Naruto even with the demon chakra."

Yamato jumped into action. He formed hand signs as the bridge almost completely collapsed. "Mokuton no Jutsu!" he exclaimed. Wood shot out from the cliff and held the rest of the bridge up. Meanwhile, Sai opened his scroll and began drawing on it.

"Ninpou, Choujuu Giga!" he said. A giant bird flew out of the scroll, and the pale boy jumped on it.

"Sai!" Nakatsu exclaimed. Sai ignored his leader and flew away, towards Naruto and Orochimaru, on his painted bird. Sakura stood up and glanced at her surrounding area. The bridge was almost completely destroyed... by Naruto alone.

"Naruto... He's become so strong!" she thought. "And now he's on the other side with Orochimaru!"

Suddenly, an explosion, or what seemed to be an explosion was heard, causing all heads to turn towards the noise. Of course, it was on the other side of the bridge, but they could not see what was going on. Naruto and Orochimaru had gone too far. Luckily, Sai still had his headset, not to mention he had a bird's eye view of what was going on. "Sai, come in Sai!" Sasuke muttered, holding the button. Mayu heard Sai's voice, as did Nakatsu.

"Yeah?" he asked.

"What's going on over there?" Sasuke asked.

"... a ball has completely surrounded Naruto," was his answer. "I can not see him. Orochimaru is in a tree, watching the ball. I believe he is being hesitant of Naruto. There is also smoke coming from the ball."

"Sasuke! Have you seen Naruto do this before?" Mayu asked. Sasuke gave her a glance, and then closed his eyes.

"No," he answered. "I haven't seen anything pass the third tail."

"In other words," Sakura began; she didn't hear what was said on the headset, but she assumed it was a description. "You have no idea what's going to happen to Naruto, do you, Sasuke-kun?" Sasuke only shook his head.

"Naruto seems to be more dangerous than Orochimaru," he said.

"I've got a bad feeling..." Yamato thought, narrowing his eyes at the smoke.

He formed more hand signs. "Moku Bunshin no Jutsu!" he exclaimed. Curls of wood came out of his own body, and formed a clone identical to Yamato, which looked extremely disgusting in Mayu's opinion. "Get to it," Yamato told his clone.

"Hai!" the clone responded. He ran, and used wood to get to the other side of the bridge.

The clone stopped, suddenly feeling something coming, something strong! Harsh winds blew towards him, so he quickly formed a wood barrier. Sai's bird didn't stand a chance against the winds, though. The bird transformed into ink, causing Sai to fall! "SAI-CHAN!" Mayu had just happened to see this. Now because of her yell, a leaf had flown in her mouth. The sixteen-year-old started coughing and hacking like crazy, trying desperately to get the leaf out.

"... baka..." Sasuke thought with a small sweat drop; his eye twitch lightly.

"Mayu-chan!" Nakatsu exclaimed, going over to the girl on her knees. He hit her back a couple times. Finally, Mayu spit the leaf out, and then breathed deeply.

"That is the last time I yell out someone's name..." she thought with an exasperated look on her face. The harsh winds had stopped by this time. Nakatsu rubbed Mayu's back soothingly as he pressed the button on his headset.

"Sai! Are you okay?" he asked. There was nothing but static that answered. "Sai!" he tried a second time.

"I'm fine," this time there was answer.

"What a relief..." Nakatsu thought. "What happened?" he asked out loud.

"The ball containing Naruto... burst," Sai answered.

As this conversation took place, Yamato's clone had run towards the conflict. "Nani...?!" Sasuke muttered. He pushed his button, so he could talk to Sai. "What about Naruto?"

"... Naruto..." Sai began.

"Yeah?" Mayu muttered, suddenly having a feeling of dread.

"Naruto... looks like... a miniature Kyuubi, equipped with four tails," Sai finished.

Three pairs of eyes widen at the information they had heard. "Seriously?!" Mayu questioned.

"Seriously," Sai responded.

"What? What happened to him? What's wrong with Naruto?!" Sakura asked, almost frantic. No one responded. "What's going on?" she thought. "Why won't they tell me?"

"Sai-chan! What about Oro-teme?" Mayu asked, cold sweat had formed on her forehead. Sasuke looked back at her and noticed the scared look on her face. Why...?

"Of course..." Sasuke thought, looking back towards the place where Orochimaru and Naruto were. "She wants to kill him... no one else can, only her. We're the same..." It was as if Mayu was Sasuke, and Orochimaru was Itachi. That was the way it was...

"Orochimaru is on the ground... licking himself," Sai answered.

"What?!" Mayu shouted with a look a disgust. "Ew! That's nasty! You really didn't need to tell me that!" Sasuke and Nakatsu both shook their heads.

"I didn't mean like a dog..." Sai muttered.

"Oh..."

"Tell me what's going on with Naruto!" Sakura suddenly demanded. Again, no one responded to her. "Sasuke-kun...! I was apart of Team 7, too! Naruto was and is my teammate! I demand to know what the hell is going on with him!"

"... You know about the Kyuubi inside of Naruto, right?" Mayu asked.

"Of course," Sakura stated, nodding. "He's a Jinchuuriki..."

"Do you happen to know what the Kyuubi looks like?" Mayu asked. "Because that's what Naruto looks like right now. A mini Kyuubi, almost as deadly." Sakura's eyes widen.

"You mean... he longer looks like Naruto?" she asked.

"According to Sai-chan, no more blond hair and blue eyes..." Mayu stated.

"I never thought the fourth tail would appear here," Yamato muttered.

"Ditto... I never thought Naruto would get so mad," Mayu agreed, nodding her head. "Isn't that the trigger, Sasuke? Anger? Isn't that what you said?"

"Hai..." the Uchiha muttered. "Naruto, you idiot!" he thought.

Suddenly, another burst of air hit the group, causing them to put their hands up to protect their faces from stray rocks and twigs. The wind finally stopped, and they put their arms down. "Is Naruto causing this, too?" Sakura asked.

"Yes," Yamato answered.

"Sai-chan?" Mayu muttered. "You still there?"

"Hai."

"Alright. Can you get any closer?"

"No, the way this battle is going, I can not get any closer or I'll die in the crossfire," Sai answered.

"That's good, stay where you are," Mayu ordered.

"Hai, Mayu-san."

Mayu sighed heavily. "It's a shame things turned out like this," she thought, staring at the ground. "I know Naruto won't die... Yasume would have told me, but... Orochimaru..." Mayu clenched her fist. "I'll be the one to kill you!" She began to run towards the edge of the bridge, preparing to jump to the other side, but Sasuke grabbed her shirt, preventing her from leaping.

"What do you think you're doing... baka?" he asked.

Mayu stopped struggling, and then glanced back at him. "If I were you... Orochimaru would be Itachi..." she said, and then turned back. Sasuke released her.

"Now isn't the time, Mayu," he told her. "With Naruto in that form, you wouldn't stand a chance of getting even one punch in. You would only be in the way. Don't interfere with this fight, not this time." Mayu bowed her head, and then closed her eyes.

"... Hai..." she replied, frowning, her fist still clenched at her sides.

"It seems Sasori won't be coming, after all," a voice caused all heads to turn. Kabuto was walking towards them.

"So... Naruto didn't manage to kill you with that attack, did he, Kabuto?" Sakura muttered, glaring at the enemy. Mayu pulled out an arrow and readied her bow. Her target, Kabuto, was in sight.

"It seems Sasori won't be coming, after all..." Kabuto said again. Mayu looked confused for a moment, and then glanced at Sasuke, who looked equally confused.

"Didn't he... just say that?" Mayu thought.

"More proof that he likes to hear himself talk..." Sasuke thought, suppressing the urge to roll his eyes.

"He was the only one who should have known I was coming here today," Kabuto continued, unaware of Sasuke and Mayu's thoughts. "He didn't even tell the rest of Akatsuki. And yet, your groups from Konoha showed up. I seriously doubt you forced that information out of him through interrogation. In which case, he must've told you voluntarily. I assume he hoped Konoha would pry information out of me and use it to destroy Orochimaru-sama." He closed his eyes and smirked. "The Akatsuki are after him as well, you know." He opened his eyes. "Your disguise earlier was... flawless. Someone in your group must have met Sasori in person to have been able to do that. And that's when he gave you the correct information about today, correct? Of course, he probably thought the mind-control jutsu he'd placed on me was still in effect. That Sasori bothered to tell you about today means that he's acknowledged your strength. Sasori hated Orochimaru-sama and was always talking about how he wanted to get back at him. He wouldn't have handed the task over to you unless he was unable to do it himself. In other words, he's either being held captive... or he has already passed away."

"Hate to tell you... Actually, I don't... it's the latter," Sakura answered, still glaring. "Kakashi-sensei, Ino, and a ninja from the Sand defeated him." Kabuto only smirked.

"Excellent..." Kabuto said.

"Look here, bitch!" Mayu began. "I suggest you wipe that stupid smirk off your face if you don't want something other than a snake up your a-"

"-Mayu!" Sasuke interrupted. "Are you trying to make people throw up?!"

Mayu glared at Sasuke for interrupting her, and then turned her attention back to Kabuto. "So am I right in assuming that you and Oro-teme came here to kill Sasori?" she asked. "You're trying to get rid of Akatsuki, too, aren't you?" Kabuto smirk grew wider. That only caused Mayu to glare. She released her arrow, and it sped past Kabuto's head. "Oops... didn't meant to do that," she said sarcastically. She pulled out another arrow. "Hopefully, I won't lose this one."

Kabuto didn't find this funny, but Mayu sure did. Suddenly, another explosion was heard causing the others to turn their heads. Sasuke and Mayu kept their eyes on Kabuto. Sasuke knew that Kabuto might try something, while Mayu just wanted to taunt him with her grin. But Kabuto seemed to be focused on the explosion like everyone else. "Did Naruto do that, too?" Sakura muttered.

"Probably..." Mayu answered, not tearing her eyes away from Kabuto. The glasses-wearing ninja stared at that area where the explosion took place.

"I'm sure that I saw..." he thought. "Orochimaru-sama's Triple Rashoumon... And in that one second... I never thought he could come this far."

"Naruto's coming your way fast!" Sai's voice came through. Mayu, Sasuke, and Nakatsu's eyes widen.

It was as if something was pushing something heavy through the forest. It finally stopped near the bridge, but dust blinded the others visions. Mayu slowly let go of the string that held the arrow. She put the arrow back in her quiver. "Is that... him?" she thought, trying to see.

"... Na-Naruto..." Mayu heard Sasuke muttered. She opened her eyes fully to see that the dust had cleared, and there was Naruto with a long sword stuck in him.

"Naruto!" Sakura whispered.

"He's more like the Kyuubi than ever," Kabuto stated.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious!" Mayu groaned, rolling her eyes. She looked to see that how long the sword was. It reached all the way back to Orochimaru who had it in his mouth. A sudden idea came to her, causing her to grin evilly. She slowly backed up, so that she was near Sakura. "Oi! Sakura! Listen closely," she whispered.

The pink-haired ninja tore her eyes away from the Kyuubi Naruto. The others were just too focused on Naruto to notice Mayu whispering something Sakura's ear. "Are you crazy?!" Sakura asked in a whisper. "How could you possibly know that Sasuke-kun will-"

"Because I know Sasuke," Mayu interrupted. Sakura stared at Mayu for a moment before nodding her head.

"Of course..." she thought, looking at Sasuke's back. "Those two... Sasuke-kun and Mayu-san... are..."

"On my mark, Sakura," Mayu whispered.

"Hai!"

Meanwhile, the sword in Naruto gut didn't seem to be affecting him much. It most likely only slowed him down some. After a short while, Orochimaru seemed to push the sword deeper into Naruto. "Naruto!" Sakura exclaimed in concern.

"Haven't seen the Sword of Kusanagi in a while," Sasuke thought, looking from Naruto to Orochimaru's head, and then back to Naruto. "It leaves him at a disadvantage whenever he uses it... That sword... won't even pierce that skin, or rather, that armor."

Suddenly, a clawed hand wrapped its fingers around the sword. Naruto didn't hesitate to throw the useless sword away from him. Kabuto had to jump up to avoid being sliced in half. The Konoha shinobi had to get out of the way to prevent themselves from being hit. The five landed right behind Kabuto. Well, actually, Sakura and Mayu landed near the giant sword's tip. "Instead of a battle between ninja," Kabuto said. "... this is more like a battle between monsters."

Mayu bared her teeth as she watched the dust settle. "Oro-teme is the only monster here," she thought.

"Naruto..." Sakura thought, gulping. That's when Mayu noticed the sword moving away from the smoke.

"Sakura, now!" she exclaimed, running towards it. Sakura nodded and ran alongside Mayu.

"What are they planning?" Sasuke thought as he watched Mayu's hair color changed from black and blue to bubblegum pink. The two teenage girls grabbed a hold of the sword, and then pulled, stopping the sword from moving. Kabuto's mouth dropped open in shock. No one had ever had the audacity to do that! Sasuke smirked. "That's my girl," he thought.

"NOW!" both girls shouted, and then moved the sword higher up.

On the other side of the bridge, Orochimaru was trying to figure out what the hell was going and why the hell it was causing his neck to move in this weird way. Sai watched Orochimaru's long neck move, and knew right away something was happening. "I wonder..." he thought, from his hiding place. He felt an urge to contact the rest of his team, but he knew that there was a higher chance of being spotted if he did.

Back with the others, the two girls had succeeded in lifting the long sword above the trees, along with lifting Orochimaru's body from the ground. "Shimata...!" Mayu muttered. "It's a lot heavier than I first thought..."

"Keep going!" Sakura ordered. Mayu frowned, and then nodded.

"Hey! Quit that!" Kabuto shouted. He took one step forward, but only one step. Sasuke saw this one second, and the next second, he was on Kabuto like girls on NBA players... Wait... that didn't come out right!

Sasuke at pinned Kabuto down, and had his sword at his throat, preventing the medic from moving. Sakura watched in amazement. "She was right...!" she thought. "Mayu-san! Let's stop playing around!" she said out loud.

"Who's not playing around?! This thing is heavy as hell!"

"We can do it, Mayu-san! YOSH!"

"What...?"

"N-Never mind... Just toss!"

The two girls released a fierce battle cry, and finally tossed the sword over their heads, along with Orochimaru. Now because they did it the first time, it seemed to get easier, so they were just tossing him back and forth. That forest to this forest, this forest to that. "Or-Orochimaru-sama!" Kabuto cried out, watching his master getting tossed in the air like a rag doll on a string. And it didn't help that both Sakura and Mayu had evil grins on their faces.

"That's enough, you two," Yamato commanded with a sweat drop.

"So... strong..." Nakatsu thought, wide-eyed.

The girls looked at each other, then nodded. They moved the sword back to it's original place, leaving Orochimaru at his original position. They let go of the sword, and then rushed over back to their group. Sasuke calmly did the same. "Oro-Orochimaru-sama...!" Kabuto cried as he stood. He didn't even care about the Naruto Kyuubi at this point. The sword slowly retreated back to its owner.

Mayu watched it go in slight disappointed. "Of course, Oro-teme wouldn't die from that!" she thought, frowning. Naruto had been quiet up to this point, and decided that it was time for people to pay attention to him, now. He growled, causing everyone's attention to be diverted.

"Just look at that thing," Kabuto started. Sakura threw a rock at the back of his head. Kabuto continued while rubbing his head. "Getting so angered by Orochimaru-sama's taunts that he was willing to turn into that just to kill him? What a pathetic ninja."

"What?!" Mayu shouted. "You damn hypocrite! You serve under a guy who would turn his body into a snake like structure for power! I he's never been with a woman!" Sakura covered the girl's mouth to prevent her from saying anything else.

"He even lost control of his own body. What a said child," Kabuto said. Sasuke sighed heavily.

"Anytime would be great, Yamato," he said, looking at the leader of Naruto's squad. Yamato looked at Sasuke for a moment before nodding his head.

"Sawatari... Back me up," he said. Nakatsu nodded his head, and then formed hand signs.

"Kaze Danshingu no Jutsu!" he exclaimed. He held out his palm to Kabuto, and then lurched his arm in a random direction. Kabuto didn't stand a chance against the invisible force. He was throw into the forest, allowing Yamato to run towards Naruto. As he ran, he formed hand signs, and wood suddenly surrounded Naruto, and kept his body and tails still. But Yamato wasn't through yet!

He formed more hand signs. "Hokage-Shiki Jijun no Jutsu!" he exclaimed. "Kakuan Nitten Suishu!" he held out his palm to Naruto. There was a kanji on it and it said 'Be Seated.' He ran to Naruto and put his hand on Naruto's chest. When he pulled away, a stream of blue light followed his hand. Wood with spikes appeared all around Naruto, causing the Kyuubi container to growl in suspicion. Whatever Yamato did, it seemed to be pulling the chakra from Naruto body!

Mayu watched all this through blurry eyes. Using Sakura's strength had began to take its toll. She sank to her knees, alerting Sasuke, causing him to turn. "Mayu-san! What's wrong...?" Sakura asked, kneeling beside the girl. Sasuke walked over and knelt in front her. He saw that her nose was bleeding.

"Either you're thinking naughty thoughts, or you're straining your body again," he said, wiping the blood away. Mayu have Sasuke a weak smile.

"Shut up..." she muttered, closing her eyes, and panting. "I'm lucky this time... I'm not coughing up my blood. I'm getting used to this again. I'm... glad." Sakura sighed in relief, and then focused on Naruto, who was slowly gaining he's original form.

"Naruto..." she thought, almost happy. "Hinata-chan would kill me if anything happened..."

"So that's the Kyuubi's power...?" Nakatsu thought. He then push the button on his headset. "Sai, come in..." he waited a moment before trying again. Sai wasn't answering. "Mayu-chan, Sasuke! I can't get in touch with Sai."

"You think something happened to him?" Mayu muttered, standing up.

"I can't be sure..." he answered. "He might have been caught..."

"Naruto!" Sakura exclaimed, alerting her group, and causing their attention to be turned. Yamato had made the surrounding wood around Naruto go back into the ground, while Naruto was on his knees. Sakura ran and caught Naruto before he hit the ground. She dragged his body over to more stable land. "His skin... it's completely red..." she muttered, staring down at his body. The others rushed over to them; Yamato calmly walked over.

"His body is severely damaged," Nakatsu stated, kneeling next to Naruto. "And yet, I see that its already healing..."

"It's the demon's chakra," Sasuke stated. Nakatsu pulled the zipper to Naruto's jacket down, and then placed his hands on Naruto's chest. Green chakra emitted from both hands, and instantly, Naruto's skin began to return to normal.

"I'll help!" Sakura stated, placing a hand on his chest, and the other on his forehead. Green chakra emitted from both hands, and Naruto's skin healed at a much faster rate. "I'm so glad I had Shizune as a master," she thought.

"Naruto's skin should be normal in about three minutes," Nakatsu stated, still concentrated on healing Naruto.

"Baka..." Sasuke thought, staring at his former teammate's face. "If he keeps this up, I'll have to resort to using that..."

"Yamato-san..." Sakura began. "That jutsu you stopped Naruto with... Would you be willing to teach it to me?" she asked.

"That's impossible Sakura-san," Nakatsu answered for Yamato. "Seeing as how Yamato-san has the DNA needed to perform that technique. He's the only one that can. You can't simply learn it from him."

"He's right," Sasuke agreed. "That's the reason Naruto was paired with him. That coming straight from the Hokage's mouth."

"Sasuke-kun...! That means you know...?" Sakura asked, looking at the Uchiha. Sasuke nodded.

"The ability to supress the chakra of the Kyuubi by force..." Yamato said. "I'm the only one alive that can achieve that." Sakura nodded her head, and then focused completely on healing Naruto.

After about another minute, Naruto released a groan. He sat up, and then looked around. "Naruto...!" Sakura exclaimed with a smile.

"What... What happened?" he asked, stilling looking around. His eyes stopped on Sasuke. "The last thing I remember is... attacking Orochimaru." Sasuke walked over to Naruto, and then held out his hand. The blond took it, and was lifted off the ground. "Sasuke...?"

Sasuke released Naruto, glared, and then punched in on the top of his head. "... Sasuke-kun...?" Sakura was not expecting that, neither was Naruto.

"Itai! Itai! Itai! Sasuke-teme!" Naruto shouted.

"Stop tapping into Takeshi's chakra if you're not going to control it!" Sasuke said, crossing his arms. "Who knows who you could've hurt!" Naruto glared at Sasuke, but then bowed his head in shame, for he knew that the Uchiha was right.

"Takeshi...?" Mayu thought. "Who's that?" Sasuke put a hand on Naruto's shoulder.

"Even after all these years, Naruto, you still can't control your temper... dope," he said. "If that happens again, I'll be force to take you out."

"I know... Thanks, Sasuke..." Naruto responded.

"They really are like brothers...!" Sakura thought with stars in her eyes.

"What the hell...?" Mayu thought with confusion in her eyes. She could have sworn she saw flowers and sparkles surrounding the two boys, not to mention the pink back round. She closed, and then rubbed her eyes to get rid of that image. "Okay, that's enough of that!" she shouted. "You're creeping me out!"

"Hey! Speaking of creepy... Where's that pale guy at? The one on your team?" Naruto questioned.

"Sai..." Sasuke muttered, taking his hand off of Naruto.

"I still can't get into contact with him," Nakatsu stated. "It's like his thing is jammed." Yamato touched his ear. After a few moments, he stopped.

"Sai... is talking with Orochimaru," he said.

"What?!" Nakatsu yelled.

"My clone can't hear what exactly is being said, but... it looks like that boy, Sai, is trying to give Orochimaru something..."

"Yasume didn't say anything like this..." Mayu thought, narrowing her eyes. "We have to go get our teammate!" she said out loud, pointing to the other side of the bridge.

Her team looked at her like she was insane. That's when Sasuke noticed the blood on her hand. He looked to the other one to see that it was also bloody. "No doubt that's from when she held Orochimaru's sword..." Sasuke thought. "May-

"Mayu-san! Your hands are bleeding!" Sakura exclaimed, going over to the girl. She had unknowingly interrupted Sasuke, causing his eye to twitch in slight irritation. Sakura placed her hands over Mayu's, and then green chakra started healing them.

"Arigatou, Sakura!" Mayu responded, examining her palms.

"It's really no problem," Sakura said with a smile. "Even with Master Shizune teaching me, I don't get to heal things that often, so I'm glad to!"

"Things...?!" Mayu thought, her eyebrow twitched once.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, Kabuto jumps out, grabs Mayu, and then jumps to the other side of the bridge. "What in the hell?!" Nakatsu shouted. "Where did he come from?!"

"Mayu!" Sasuke shouted. The Ishikari struggled to get out of Kabuto's hold, but that only caused him to paralyze her.

"... Can't move...!" she thought as her body went limp. Kabuto wasted no time in tossing her other his shoulder. "I swear if this guy farts, I'm gonna kill him!"

"Kabuto...!" Sasuke practically growled.

"Gomen, gomen... Sasuke-kun," Kabuto called over with a smirk. "If you want her, come and get her!" Kabuto then ran away. Sasuke bared his teeth, and prepared to go after him, but a hand on his shoulder prevented any movement.

"Matte...! Sasuke-kun!" Sakura exclaimed. "He's leading you into a trap!"

"I don't care!" he tried pulling away, but Sakura held a firm grip.

"We should at least wait until we're at our full strength! Going after Kabuto and Orochimaru could be fatal to us if we don't!" Sakura tried to reason.

"I said I don't care!" Sasuke grumbled, this time, he did manage to get away.

"Forgive me for saying this, Sakura-san," Nakatsu said as Sasuke jumped to the other side of the bridge. "But Mayu-chan, as well as Sai are our teammates. And in our little group, we follow our orders and rules. You are not apart of this group." Nakatsu began to run. "Your team can do whatever you please, but Sasuke and I will save Mayu-chan!" He jumped to the other side of the bridge, and followed after the angry Uchiha.
*********************************


"Doshite...? Doshite? Doshite?!" Yasmine thought as she continued. "WHY THE HECK AM I BEING CHASED?!" She looked behind her to see a fully clothed Hyuga Neji still chasing after her, and he showed no signs of stopping. Yasmine turned her head back. "What did I do to deserve this?!" Neji had been chasing Yasmine for about ten minutes now. Three minutes around town, two minutes hiding, and somehow they had ended up in a forest.

Neji had called out to her several times, but Yasmine's respond had always been the same. "I'm not Yaya-chan! Leave me alone, Neji-san!" she would always say. Neji narrowed his eyes at her retreating back.

"It's been almost thirteen minutes, and yet she's still running," he thought. He really was going to chase her until she got tired, but that didn't go as planned. "Her stamina is as great as any ninja... I'll try one more time." Neji sped up slightly. "Yaya-chan! Please, stop! I only want to talk to you!"

"I'm not Yaya-chan! Why can't you see that?!" Yasmine called back. Neji sighed. He was really starting to get annoyed, which was saying something because Neji was usually a patient man. Play time was officially over! He jumped up, did a small flip, and then landed in front of Yasmine's path. Because he did this so quickly, Yasmine didn't have time to react, so she crashed... right into him, and then fell to the ground.

The girl sat up, grabbing her head. "Damn it...!" she thought, frowning. "Looks like Neji isn't going to let this go!"

"Yaya-chan..." Neji muttered. "Why did you run?" The girl glared up at him.

"She's not Yaya-chan!" she said. Neji narrowed his pale eyes.

"You switched with her," he deducted.

"Sometimes I force Yasmine in her own mind, allowing me to take control," Yasume said. "I only do that when the situation becomes something she shouldn't see or hear. I've only had to force her away once before, Neji. What you're doing is stupid!"

"Nani...?!"

"What I'm saying is... stop trying to convince her that she's someones she's not!" Yasume continued, standing. "I didn't think you'd remember... I thought that if I didn't say anything, everything would be fine... But now that you have remembered... you must be dealt with... Neji! Just forget about that little girl you used to play with! That little girl that you knew is gone! Get over it!"

"You're saying that you know that she's Yaya-chan!" Neji protested.

"She's not Yaya-chan!"

"Yes, she is! That scar on her back proves it! Not only that, but... her movements, her attitude are the same as I remember," Neji stated.

"She isn't!"

"Yes, she is!"

"No, she's not... because... I'm Yaya-chan..." Yasume muttered the last part, but Neji still heard.

"Nani...?!" he said. "You're definitely not her..."

"Actually, I was created from her... from those memories," Yasume said. "I am what keeps the memories from Yasmine, which makes me Yaya-chan... Neji-Meji..." Neji's eyes widen at the familiar nickname. Yasume crossed her arms. "Ever since Yasmine's mind created me, those, along with certain other memories, have been locked away... in me. She doesn't remember you because she doesn't want to. Please, Neji, give up on her."

Neji frowned, and then narrowed his eyes. "But I have to apologize! I can't move on unless that happens!" he said. "For more than three years, I've been trying to find her, and now that I have, I can finally do that... She has to remember, so that I-"

"-Don't be selfish," Yasume interrupted him; Neji closed his mouth. What was wrong with him? He wasn't usually so... frantic. But then again, he'd finally found what he was looking for, and he was getting denied by a crazy alter ego. "For someone as soft as Yasmine, she's already been through enough. She was pretty screwed up before she met you... all those years ago."

"All those years ago..." Neji repeated, closing his eyes. Yasume saw this, and grinned.

"He's having one of those fucking flashbacks again. Now's my chance!" she thought, and then ran away, leaving Neji to his flashback.

A four-year-old Hyuga Neji walked alongside his father, Hyuga Hizashi. There destination...? Well, they really didn't have one at the moment. Neji's father was only showing the young boy around the village. "Father..." Neji began. "Forgive me for asking, but... Why are you showing me around the village?" The boy had been quiet up until now, so he felt that he could ask his question.

Hyuga Hizashi stared down at his son, causing the boy's gaze to waver. "Neji..." he began. "A shinobi must always be aware of his or her surroundings. If not, the entire mission could go wrong. You, being my little genius and a Hyuga, must learn this earlier on." Neji nodded his head with a smile on his face. He loved to hear his father praise him.

"Hai!" he said, turning his eyes, but this time, took in everything in range. Hizashi chuckled lightly at his son's tactics.

The two continued to walk around the village, side by side. Pretty soon, it was almost noon, and Neji's stomach began to growl. He knew lunch time was a half a hour away, so he didn't say anything. The young Hyuga blushed in embarrassment. Hopefully, his father hadn't heard that... Hizashi stopped, causing Neji to stop, also. "I'm going to get us lunch, Neji," he said. Neji looked up at his father in question. "I want you to go to Chigiri Park, and wait for me there. After we eat, we will continue with our observations."

"Demo..." Neji muttered.

"What is it?"

"You've never... left me alone," Neji stated. "Doshite?"

"Because I know my genius can handle it. You were paying attention earlier, right?" Hizashi asked. Neji nodded his head rapidly. "Then wait for me at Chigiri Park."

Father left son, alone, in the middle of the street. Neji watched his father's departing figure until he completely disappeared with the crowd. "I won't let you down, father!" Neji thought, turning his back. With a determined look in his eyes, the young Hyuga set off.

Hyuga Neji panted lightly as he sat on one of the park benches, near the playground. "Maybe I should've asked for directions... I would have gotten here a whole lot sooner," Neji thought, finally catching his breath. He had been searching for about fifteen minutes for one park. Once he realized where the park was, it also dawned on him that his father might be wondering were he was. After all, in his little mind, he was late.

Neji looked around. His father was no where in sight. Maybe it was his father who had gotten lost...? Neji instantly shook his head to rid himself of such thoughts. "There's no way father would get lost! He's the greatest!" he thought, nodding his head. To pass the time, Neji looked around the park, the playground to be more specific, and noticed a bunch of kids, his age, playing. He felt a sudden urge to go play as well, but no! He had a duty. A duty to wait for his father.

So the young Hyuga settled to just watching the other children play. That's when he noticed someone else. A lone child, sitting by herself, on the edge of the sandbox. Neji continued looking at the girl, and noticed that every so often, she would glance at the other children. Neji stared on in curiosity. Never before had he seen someone with that skin tone. Her skin was darker than the soft dirt she was sitting near, perhaps even darker.

The girl had short dark brown hair, and from what he saw when she turned, light brown eyes. She was different. Very different. The girl suddenly turned towards Neji, almost making him jump, but he kept his eyes on her. The girl on the other hand, quickly diverted her eyes. Neji was slightly shocked by her reaction, but didn't look away. Seconds later, the girl turned her brown eyes back to Neji. He gave her a friendly smile, and surprisingly, the girl returned it.

The young Hyuga found himself getting up from the bench. His small feet moved towards the girl. As he walked over to the girl, she stood, and dusted her shorts off. "O-Ohayo..." the girl greeted.

"Konichiwa," he responded, nodding his head. The two were silent for a moment. "You remind me of... chocolate."

"Ch-Chocolate...?" she repeated.

"Hai! I've never seen so many shades of chocolate before, not on a person," Neji answered. After that, the two were silent again.

"Ano... Your eyes are weird-looking..." the girl muttered, staring at Neji.

"They're not weird-looking!" Neji protested. "My father says that with these eyes, I'll become a great genius!"

"A genius?"

"Yup! And what about you?" Neji muttered. "You're the weird-looking one... Are you a... a... for... for..."

The girl waited patiently for the Neji to find the right word, and for that he was grateful. What was that word, anyway? It was on the tip of his tongue. "Foreigner! That's it! Are you a foreigner?" Neji finally said. Wait till his father finds out he used a big word! He'd be so proud! "Well, are you?"

"Kohage... I mean, Hokage-sama said that I was..." the girl answered. "I'm not sure what it means, though. Do you?"

"Hai! It means you're not from around here," Neji answered, proudly. He felt so smart! "My name's Hyuga Neji! What's yours?"

"I'm... My name is Ya-Ya... ano... that is..."

This girl reminded Neji of his cousin. Shy and timid. But that wasn't all that was there... "Yaya...?" Neji muttered. "Yaya-chan! I like it!"

"Demo...!"

"That's a nice name," Neji continued; the girl stared at him for a few moments, and then shrugged.

"Arigatou, Neji... kun?"

"Hai," Neji responded, nodding his head.

"Neji! Where are you?" a voice called. Neji turned his head to see his father not far from the playground.

"Sumimasen..." he muttered, giving a bow. The girl hesitantly bowed back. Neji turned and ran. "I hope I see you again, Yaya-chan!" he waved.

"Sayonara...!" the girl known as Yaya, said, waving.

"That's right..." Neji muttered. "I assumed that her name was Yaya, not giving her a chance to tell me her real name." He opened his eyes to see that Yasume was no longer in front of him. "Yasume...? Yasume!" he called out. No answer. The girl had dipped out. "She left...!" he thought, frowning. He narrowed his eyes. "No matter... I won't stop."

Originally, Neji had planned to just apologize, and be done with it... but this new information that he'd received from the brash personality was quite... intriguing. How could a person transfer memories. It was strange, and yet... Hyuga Neji was drawn to it, wanting to find out the mystery. "Just like when we first met... Drawing me in..." Neji thought, looking up at the sky. "So many shades of chocolate...? What the hell was I thinking back then?"
****************************************


"Matte...! Sasuke!" Nakatsu called after his teammate. His shouts were all in vain. Sasuke didn't even glance back in his direction. "Come on, Sasuke! You don't even know where you're going!"

"Oh, and I suppose you do?!" Sasuke called back. Anyone could tell he was after, even though he said this with such a calm looking face.

"Uh... yeah, I do!" Nakatsu shouted. Sasuke skid to a halt, almost causing Nakatsu to bump right into him. Sasuke turned around to face him.

"Are you serious?" he asked.

"That's what I've been trying to tell you!" Nakatsu stated. "Here, take a look at this," he handed Sasuke a device as big as his hand.

It looked like a miniature television. The screen was a black grid, and on the grid were blinking numbers. 1, 2, 3, and 4. Numbers 1 and 4 were close, but numbers 2 and 3 were away from them. 3, being closer to 1 and 4 then 2. "A tracking system...?" Sasuke muttered.

"Hai," Nakatsu answered. "1 and 4 are you and me. 2 is Mayu. 3 is Sai. Judging from where the numbers are, and the info I got from Yamato... Sai has abandoned headset and his team and is following Orochimaru-" he pointed to 2. "-Mayu on the other hand is being transported. As long as they don't destroy her headset, and we give no reason for them to... we can find her."

"Alright, let's go," Sasuke said.

"Just a second!" Nakatsu said, holding up a hand.

"What now?!" Sasuke muttered.

Nakatsu pulled something out of his backpack, and held it out to Sasuke. "I found this as I chasing you," he said. "Is this Mayu-chan's?" Sasuke stared at the item.

"No, that's Sai's picture book," he answer. "He must've dropped it."

"I found it back there where Naruto did a lot of damage to that forest," Nakatsu said, putting the picture book back in his bag. "There may never be plant life there again..."

"Okay, listen..." Sasuke began, causing the older male to look at him. "I... don't really care right at this very moment. Cry over the plant life later, and let's go!" Sasuke took off without waiting for a retort. Nakatsu sighed heavily, and then followed after the Uchiha.
**************************

"You remind me of... chocolate," -younger Hyuga Neji

(1) Dancing Wind Technique

It's been a month, hasn't it?

Well, to tell you the truth, I've been running out of ideas... which is very bad, seeing as how I love working on this story. Hopefully, it won't take as long for the next chapter, but it probably will since the demand for chapters to my other stories have gone up.

Please review...