Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ The Shinobi and The Miko ❯ Darkness and Light ( Chapter 21 )

Focus! Sasuke berated himself. This fight should never even have happened. The plan had been to get in, get vengeance, and get out. Maximum efficiency, minimal interference. That was Sasuke's MO these days.

 

He blocked a relentless barrage of punches. The Raikage, for all his bluster, had the strength to back it. A particularly shattering blow sent Sasuke skidding backwards for a few yards, though he managed to keep on his feet. This is pointless, he thought.

 

He wondered when it had become like this. Before he had killed Itachi, revenge had consumed him, yes, but it had also given him drive, the will to be stronger. He still sought strength, but as a matter of necessity. You weaken, even for a moment in this business, and you die. Gone was his internal fire, his ambition. Now, revenge, like strength, was necessity but nothing more. He was an avenger, this was his job. And yet, he felt less and less inclined to do it.

 

So, you are quite possibly afraid of dying doing something that you don't care about all that much, simply because it is what you are, he mused to himself cynically.

 

He was interrupted by a massive blast of chakra from the Raikage, which he deflected easily, only to catch a blow straight to the stomach. This can wait. It's time to do the only thing I do well.

 

Tired of being on the defensive, Sasuke sprang forward. His large opponent was oddly agile, and moved like a stinging insect. Snorting inwardly at the metaphor, he used his own chakra to short-circuit the Raikage's defenses, causing the man to step back in surprise. Sasuke let him. No matter what side he worked for or what he thought of his mission, the teenaged ninja always relished a good fight. He wanted to see what the Raikage would do now that he had the man's attention.

 

To say that his underlings were surprised was an understatement. Sasuke would have smirked, if he allowed himself such public displays of emotion. Instead, he watched as they conferred among themselves and braced himself for the next round.

 

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

 

Kaguya was surprised to suddenly sense Madara's chakra in the next room. It was odd that he let it radiate so obviously. This wasn't the artificially weakened Tobi, this was Madara in his entirety. His chakras were impressive, to be sure, but somehow they weren't quite what she had expected. Perhaps fear of the unknown had caused her to believe him stronger than he was, but she was fairly certain her own levels were about equal with his, and that those of Sasuke or Naruto surpassed him easily. Perhaps it was merely another layer of the deception? He did seem… incomplete, somehow.

 

Shaking the thoughts from her mind, she made her way over to where he had appeared. Every bodily instinct she possessed screamed at her to turn around and run, but she ignored them. As much as she distrusted Madara, he was likely to have news of Sasuke, which was more important.

 

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Sasuke struggled to focus his vision. It was rapidly becoming blurry, and he could feel the blood seeping out of his eyes. The double mangekyo was useful, but could be just as burdensome on occasion. He'd have to stop playing around soon.

 

The Raikage seemed to reach the same conclusion, for his next set of attacks were the most powerful yet. Having expected his opponent to bide time, Sasuke was completely overwhelmed. Nothing this man did made sense. Clearly, his vision was getting worse, why not just wait until both eyes were acting up and then attack? He managed to follow and avoid most of the blows, but the last one knocked him to the ground. He was preparing his defense for the finisher when he stopped.

 

He had been covered by a wall of sand. Initially confused, it took him a few seconds before he realized what had happened. Of course, he thought, Gaara is the Kazekage now. That explained the Sand-nin's presence here. What it did not explain was why the sand was protecting him.

 

The sand receded, and Sasuke stood to face Gaara and his siblings, careful to remain aware of the Raikage's exact location. He wasn't generally one for judging someone by “the look in their eyes,” but even he could tell that Gaara had changed drastically from the last time they had met. For one thing, he was missing Shukaku. This much Sasuke had expected. The Akatsuki would have started with the one-tailed after all. What he was not prepared for was the complete lack of hatred or animosity in his former opponent's expression.

 

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

 

Madara was impressed. He'd just given Sasuke's little friend a full dose of rather unpalatable information and watched her swallow it whole with nary a grimace or gasp.

 

“I don't believe you.”

 

That explains it. Kaguya's face was impassive, her voice flat. The denial of his words was complete. He shrugged noncommittally.

 

“You don't have to believe me if you don't want to. Just wait until he comes back, and you can ask him.” Technically, Madara supposed, he was breaking his end of a bargain with Sasuke by telling the girl what was actually going on, but he doubted it would matter in the long run. It was more important for Sasuke to be rid of her influence. Frankly, she was lucky he hadn't deemed it more convenient to kill her.

 

Madara needed her to leave voluntarily, preferably after denouncing her once-friend for his deeds. That would be, he decided, the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back, the final arbiter of Sasuke's defection to his will. Well, actually, the proverb didn't work too well. It would be more like dropping an anvil on a bug. Sasuke's resistance to his destiny would be utterly obliterated.

 

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

 

A sliver of light, huh? Sasuke shook his head cynically.

 

“I have long since closed my eyes to the light,” he told Gaara.

 

“Forget it,” he heard Kankuro say.

 

“He has no future,” added Temari acidly.

 

No light, no future, nothing. These were the things he'd given up for revenge. Perhaps that was for the best. What need had he of a future?

 

“Don't for a minute think that nobody will care if you die.” The voice sprang unbidden into his thoughts. “I… Come back safely, Sasuke.” What had she been about to say? Some part of him was inexplicably irritated by the fact that he did not know. And why was he thinking of this now?

 

The wall of sand came at him swiftly, accompanied by attacks from the other sand siblings and the Raikage's underlings. Sasuke reached inside himself for the chakra he knew would bring forth Susano-o, his own defense.

 

Light… perhaps…

 

He watched with inner satisfaction as the sand and other attacks swept by him harmlessly. Within Susano-o, nothing could harm him.

 

He remembered something Kakashi had told him once. The jounin had been feeling a bit philosophical that day. “Without light, shadow and darkness hold no power. Just as light is nothing without shadow. Only when both are present does either have any power. Essentially, something dark is only powerful when something light is there to provide balance.” So light and darkness make each other stronger, do they? Sasuke felt a corner of his mouth twitch upward. Well, in that case…

 

“My defense is even more absolute than yours, Gaara.”

 

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