Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ The Shinobi and The Miko ❯ To the Rescue? ( Chapter 3 )

Kaguya waited on the bridge, enjoying the feeling of the early-morning sun and the ever-present birdsong. Next to her, she could sense Naruto's growing impatience, as well as the perpetual smoldering anger of the beast. She had noticed the strange duplicity of energies within him, and when she had inquired, he had told her of the nine-tailed fox, much to Tsunade's chagrin. She could understand that information like that was sensitive, but truly, who had she to tell? Still, she surmised that perhaps this mission to retrieve Sasuke was a chance to prove herself. She was not, as she continually reminded Naruto and Sakura, the sort of person who would make a good shinobi, but she could still see herself making a life here, and she would need the Hokage's trust if that were to be possible.

“Ugh. He's late again!” Naruto draped his arms over the bridge railing melodramatically, and Sakura sighed.

“It's always like this,” she explained. “Kakashi-sensei tells us to be here at some really early time, then makes us wait for hours. He says it's to teach us to be patient but-“

“Ha!” Laughed Naruto. “Yeah, right! He's just too busy reading the pervy sage's pervy books all the time!”

A rock seemed to appear out of nowhere, somehow finding its way to a direct connection with the left side of Naruto's head.

“Your patience is a lost cause, Naruto. Perhaps we should work on your reflexes instead?” Kakashi asked in his usual deadpan.

“Hey! What'ja do that for?!” Naruto moaned, rubbing his head.

“Do what? Naruto, now is not the time to be asking silly questions. Our mission starts in a few days.”

Kaguya noticed something, then broke in. “Um…Kakashi-sensei? Is this mission…well, is it a secret? Are other people supposed to know?”

“This is highly confidential, Kaguya. Why?”

“Because there is someone walking toward us. My guess is she'll be able to hear soon, if she hasn't already…”

“Ah. Noticed, did you? Don't worry, she's with me.”

There was the sound of a small twig breaking under someone's foot, and a figure emerged to the right of the group.

“Hey! It's Anko-sensei!” said Naruto.

“Yeah, it's me. How's it going, Naruto, Sakura?” Anko walked toward them grinning, pulling a few pieces of forest debris from her hair and clothing.

“So you're on the mission with us too, then?” asked Sakura.

“Sure looks like it, huh?” Turning to Kaguya, she said, “I don't think we've met. Name's Mitarashi Anko. You're Kaguya- don't bow, please.” She swiftly stuck out her hand, which Kaguya shook a little reluctantly. “Anyway, let's get down to business. Kakashi, you're lead on this, what are we doing?”

“Teamwork drills. This is an…unconventional arrangement at best, downright strange at worst. We need to figure out the best way to make our approach, guard against attack, and fight.”

“Hm… well, we've got a noncombatant, so she probably needs to be the center of a formation…but not dressed like that. We'll sort that out later. One of us should lead, and the other tails. The kids are better off as flanks.”

“You're more familiar with Orochimaru than I am.”

“Alright, I lead then. What's next?”

 

***

The Shuriken landed precisely in the center of the targets with a satisfying thud.

“My, my, you are getting quite strong, aren't you?”

Sasuke pushed back a flare of irritation. Always with the needless interruptions. He allowed his arms to hang loosely at his sides and relaxed into the first of twelve meditation stances he'd modified from something Kakashi had taught him.

“Don't patronize me, Orochimaru. You didn't come here to watch me train. What is it this time?”

“Your friends are coming, Sasuke. They still hope to rescue you.” The old man seemed to find this amusing. Why, he had no idea.

“I have no friends.” Sasuke gave up on trying to meditate with the snake there and instead retrieved the shuriken from the targets. He'd thrown one of them too hard again, and it had bent out of shape. He'd have to watch that. Stowing them away, he drew his otachi. He wanted to practice his new technique, but that was out of the question around Orochimaru. The old man wasn't going to know just how far his apprentice had come. Not just yet.

“Heheh. Good then. You'll understand if I let you kill them then.”

“Fine.”

“Oh, but do try to keep the blind girl alive will you? She is… most interesting. I think there is a special place for that one underground…”

“Whatever.” The sound of Orochimaru's snakelike, wheezing hiss of a laugh could be heard echoing as he left the indoor arena.

Sasuke's sword sliced through the air, bending and twisting at a speed that rendered it almost invisible. He slid through the next few forms in his drill, allowing himself to indulge in visions of separating the snake's head from its body. He was no stranger to violence, and certainly would kill anyone who attempted to capture him- he had warned Naruto of as much- but Kaguya was ignorant of what had happened. Her image of him as a weakling who couldn't control his power had probably changed as little as his of her. And if that was so, then she had no way of knowing how he felt about the Leaf's pathetic attempts to retrieve him. In his mind, that made her innocent- and he didn't kill those who didn't stand in his way.

He'd convince her to leave, and tell Orochimaru she had escaped. That would do. She should just go back to her temple and live peacefully.

 

***

Kaguya was anything but peaceful as she ran in formation with the others. They'd been travelling for a few days. Anko-sensei had assured them that it could only be a couple more hours until they reached Orochimaru's lair, yet Kaguya was deeply troubled. The land around here was unmistakably tainted- she wasn't quite sure how none of the others were finding it difficult to breathe in this air. It seemed almost miasmic to her. Perhaps it was only her sensitivity acting up. Perhaps shinobi were simply better able to deal with adverse environmental conditions. Whatever the reason, she resolved not to be a burden, and pushed on.

What troubled her more was that aside from her four companions, she could feel no human life in the area. She wasn't in range of the central fortress yet- but she should still be able to sense perimeter guards or…someone. And yet, there was nothing.

She relayed this information to Kakashi-sensei behind her, and he nodded, but said nothing. This did little to assuage her fear, and she lapsed into the active meditation that was her protection against unnecessarily strong emotion. She didn't want the others to know she was worried. They were good people, and they would likely be concerned for her when they should be focused on other things. She slipped into the rhythm of footsteps on tree branches and allowed her mind to wander, but never so much that she lost awareness entirely.

At length, Kaguya felt something on the edge of her perception. A medical ninja, she guessed, due to the obvious conscious manipulation of the body's chakra to protect the vital organs. He was about fifty yards from the main fortress, so she was able to sense more people within a few seconds. One was definitely Sasuke, and the other possessed a chakra system so convoluted and abnormal she supposed it could only be Orochimaru. There were several other shinobi present, though none with particularly defining features. She relayed her observations to the others, who responded by pulling various weapons from their places and readying themselves to fight. She dared not mention the things she could feel below, half-conscious things that may or may not have been human once, whose twisted agony she tried to repress with happier thoughts even as it threatened to make her sick.

“Right.” Kakashi made a few bounds to run alongside Anko, leaving the back of the formation largely unprotected, but reinforcing the front. Kabuto came into view just as the maneuver was completed, and Kakashi halted his team.

“Welcome to Lord Orochimaru's home,” said Kabuto, his tone a parody of graciousness. He stood on a branch directly in front of them, arms behind his back, a decidedly devil-may-care attitude about him. “I'm sorry, but he isn't really seeing guests today. Perhaps there's something I can do for you?”

“Rrr…Kabuto! Give Sasuke back! Now!” Naruto yelled.

“Oh, so sorry Naruto, but that's just not possible. Lord Orochimaru would prefer very much that he would stay. If you can get past me, I suppose you could ask him yourself, but…” He used a finger to push up his glasses, letting the challenge hang in the air.

“Why you-“ Naruto started, but Anko raised a hand and cut him off.

“I've got this one.” She grinned wolfishly. “Try not to kill Orochimaru until I get there, ok?”

The others nodded, and rushed past. Kabuto seemed content to let them go.

“Well, if it isn't Anko. You know, Lord Orochimaru has missed his apprentice.”

“Hmph. Don't try that bullshit with me, Kabuto. I know a snake when I see one. Let's go!”

 

***

The sound of metal on metal could be heard behind them, but the rescue party pushed on.

“There's about ten men up ahead!” Shouted Kaguya.

Sakura reached for a Kunai, steadying her nerves. She'd gotten used to trusting Kaguya's strange instincts, even if she didn't quite understand them. She'd been assigned the duty of protecting the strange girl, though she personally didn't think it all that necessary. Sure, Kaguya wasn't exactly the fighting type, but she managed to take care of herself pretty well.

She turned to look for Naruto, and wasn't surprised to find five of him looking back at her. “Geez, Naruto, leave some for the rest of us, will ya?”

He grinned. “Sorry Sakura.”

Kaguya noticed movement and reacted; a shuriken whizzed by the two, pinning the nearest of Orochimaru's ninja to a tree.

“Focus, Naruto! You too, Sakura,” admonished Kakashi.

“Right. Thanks, Kaguya!”

“You're welcome.” She smiled wanly, and Sakura couldn't help but feel as though she looked a little sick.

They reached the nearby clearing, and Kaguya incapacitated the pinned man with a blow to the head, using the back end of a kunai she'd borrowed from Anko. Her clothes were borrowed too, a long green tunic with no sleeves and a pair of battle-friendly black pants. She was glad of the loan though; they were considerably easier to move in than her kimono.

Naruto and Kakashi whizzed by, taking out an opponent each as they went, and engaging multiple men at once shortly thereafter. One made the mistake of charging directly at Sakura, she laid him out with a blow to the nose. Another made to go for her side, but Kaguya stepped in and tripped him, bringing her heel down on his exposed back afterwards. No more managed to make it past Kakashi and Naruto, however, and the battle was soon over with.

“I should think they won't be waking up for a while,” remarked Kaguya, feeling a strange rush, a result of her proximity to Naruto and Sakura, no doubt.

The two ninja laughed, but they all quickly returned to formation.

“How's Anko?” Kakashi asked.

Kaguya focused, seeking out Anko and Kabuto. They were both wounded, but seemed to be pretty evenly-matched. “Holding her own for the moment.”

Kakashi felt slightly troubled, so she continued, “Barring a major mishap, she'll win.”

The four at last came within sight of the fortress. It would've been hard to penetrate, so Kaguya figured it was a good thing they likely wouldn't have to.

“They're just ahead.” The other three tensed noticeably, and she felt her own heart rate spike as well. It occurred to her that Sasuke might not be the same person he once was, might not even remember her. She didn't know much about Orochimaru, but what she did know frightened her.

They came to a stop just in front of the gates.

“Sasuke!” Sakura cried.

“Sasuke!” Naruto echoed.

At a nod from Orochimaru, Sasuke stepped forward and drew his sword.