Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ The Shinobi and The Miko ❯ Across the Lines ( Chapter 23 )

A/N: So you should know this already, but I obviously don't own Naruto. Why would I bother rewriting it if I did? This chapter is for crazykittylover, who has reviewed I think almost every chapter since the beginning. You rock!

 

Kaguya was lost in her misery. She had let him go without question, been powerless to stop him, and now he was almost certainly dead.

 

She willed herself to move, to get up off the floor and do something, anything, but her body paid her no heed. Her mind then realized that there was no point, and so she pulled her knees to her chest and sobbed some more. What was the point in moving anymore anyway? Sasuke was gone, and that meant there was no hope or her. She was certain that his influence was the only thing that kept Madara from killing her, and so she would soon die too. All she had to do was wait, really.

 

Why? Why had he done this? She knew that the path of revenge was one he had chosen for himself. She was not fond of it, but had accepted it as his choice. Now, she mentally kicked herself for caring so much about someone with a goal like that. She should have known it would end badly, and yet… she could not bring herself to regret the time she spent with him, brief and painful as it seemed now.

 

She forced her shaking limbs to be still. This was no way to end her life, just waiting here for someone to find and kill her. Surely there was a way out, a way to escape. She knew that Sasuke wouldn't want her to just die here; why else would he have bothered to protect her in the first place? It was an insult to all he had done for her to give up like this. Fine. I'll escape. But how?

 

Her mind was already formulating a plan when the dimensional rift opened.

 

****

 

Madara watched the faces of the kages closely. This… is going to be fun. They were all so self-righteous; it would do them some good to get a heavy dose of reality.

 

Ah reality. How perfectly ironic. His lips twitched beneath his mask. Those present would have been startled to see it, for it was no smile as they would have imagined. It was twisted, corrupted. The product of too many years spent languishing in an imperfect world. But not for much longer. Oh, no. Soon, the world would be without conflict, without war, and Madara knew just how to make it so. But first…

 

My troublesome descendant needs some help, it would seem. Hmm… the one called Karin probably couldn't handle it. No… this requires a decidedly… gentler approach. I do so love killing all my birds with a single stone.

 

Reaching into his chakras, he pulled himself, the kages (or rather the four that had stuck around), Sasuke, and the girl Kaguya into his dimension.

 

****

 

Before she knew it, Kaguya had been drawn toward the vortex. She felt it as a disturbance in the environmental chakras. What was more shocking though, was what she felt through it. Perhaps it was just her grieving mind playing tricks on her. It was so faint, and yet… it was there. Definitely there. Without so much as a moment's hesitation, she leaped into the portal.

 

****

 

“Heal him.” Madara's voice left no room for argument, not that she was going to argue. The other kages noticed her, but then turned their attention away. Temari was the only one who registered any reaction at all, as far as she could tell. Good. It will make us less conspicuous. She wasn't sure she wanted to be remembered by anyone who might be hunting Sasuke again later.

 

That was, if Sasuke made it to later. She rushed over to where he lay, some distance from the others. His wounds were serious, but it seemed that what was causing the real problem was an almost fatally low chakra level. She heard him groan faintly, and placed a cool hand over his brow.

 

“Sleep now,” she said softly. “Everything will be alright.” She used her chakra to induce a relaxed state, sending him into unconsciousness as peacefully as she could. She had her work cut out for her.

 

The place they were in was strange; it seemed to have no native energy. That was strange, and also troubling. Without any plants or stones or anything with energy, she'd have to do all the healing herself, or take from the other people present. The latter wasn't really an option anyway. She doubted any of them would be willing to give their energy to save him, and she wasn't strong enough to siphon it forcibly from these people even if she wanted to.

 

That meant she'd have to be very careful. She relaxed, falling into a meditative state. Sasuke's chakras were ruptured in addition to being drained; it was something she had seen in only a few cases. They had to be fixed before anything else that wasn't fatal. Which meant that the gash on his chest came first.

 

Kaguya took a deep breath, and let the energy flow outward, hoping that this was enough.

 

****

 

Temari was more than a little surprised to see her there. She had thought that by now the miko would have been either killed or run off. She wasn't sure how she felt about the revelation that neither was the case. It certainly didn't bode well for the girl.

 

Somehow, Temari couldn't bring herself to believe that the priestess was a co-conspirator in this little plan of Madara's. It may, she acknowledged, look quite a bit that way, but something smacked of deception here. Which begged a question: why in the world was she still hanging around Sasuke Uchiha? As far as Temari could tell, he'd finally crossed the line between puppet and traitor, and there wasn't any going back from that. Whether he actually had or not didn't really matter; point was, he was going to be a hunted man for the rest of his life.

 

It would probably be better if she didn't save him. She'd be able to live a rather peaceful life; it would be hard to blame her for whatever had transpired. And yet, there she was, making herself into a criminal. Temari sighed inwardly. She really shouldn't care. She'd met the girl what, like once? Still…

 

Temari looked at Gaara, who had followed her gaze to the two people on the far side of the… whatever this place was. He nodded slowly, giving her permission to do whatever it was that she was planning. She moved quietly towards the pair. The kages were too busy paying attention to Madara to notice. As long as I keep it quiet.

 

“What are you doing?” Temari tried to make the whisper sound as accusatory as possible.

 

“Temari-san? What-“ the rest of her question was cut off when Sasuke stirred. Kaguya immediately bent over him and shushed him softly.

 

“Why are you healing him?” Temari persisted. “You know that will make you as much of a criminal as he is in their eyes.” She gestured vaguely towards the meeting.

 

“I know, but… I can't leave him like this. He doesn't deserve it.”

 

Temari's eyes narrowed. “There are plenty of people who disagree. What makes you so insistent, anyway?” She was genuinely curious.

 

“I… haven't you ever known someone you had to protect? Because they just take so much on, and you know they're too proud to ask for help?”

 

“He wouldn't do anything this stupid,” Temari replied acidly, then caught herself. Had she really just said that out loud? Had she really just thought about him that way? Hopefully her meaning was ambiguous enough to keep the other girl from guessing.

 

“No, perhaps he wouldn't,” Kaguya mused.

 

Damn, she knows. Wait, I can't think about this now! I have work to do, damn him!

 

“I think… I think I might love him,” Kaguya said simply.

 

Temari was rather dumbstruck by this. It wasn't like the miko was the first person to fess up to “loving” Sasuke, but this was not exactly the same. What was more, to just up and say it like that, and about him of all people.

 

“You know he probably can't even feel that emotion, right?”

 

Kaguya shook her head slowly. “Does it matter?”

 

Temari thought for a moment, and then replied. “I guess not. But you're being foolish.”

 

“I'm going to find a way to stop Madara.”

 

Temari blinked. “How?”

 

“I… I don't know yet, but… I have to. Madara almost got him killed. I can't let that happen again.”

 

Temari nodded. She believed it. “What can I do to help? You need energy, right?”

 

Kaguya's brows furrowed. “I can't ask you to do that. It will make you as guilty as us.”

 

“No, it's a trade. For keeping my secret from that idiot.”

 

“But now you are keeping mine as well. Unless…” Kaguya appeared worried.

 

“I won't tell anyone. But this is payment for all that time up till now. Once this is over, we're even, got it?” The excuse was thin, but it was just enough for Temari to justify her actions to herself. Somewhere deep beneath the layers of cynicism, she really wanted to believe that this girl could do what she said she would, and knew that the goal was worth any sacrifice, let alone something so small as chakra.

 

Kaguya smiled gratefully, and Temari was once again taken aback by the simplicity of the miko's happiness. She extended a hand, and braced herself firmly as Kaguya took it. The release of energy was swift, but not nearly as tiring as she had imagined.

 

“Is that all? Don't take any less than you need,” she warned.

 

Kaguya nodded. “I would never do your gesture such a disservice. It is enough.”

 

“Fine then. Look, I'll tell my brother what you're trying to do, but I can't speak to what the other kages will do, so… watch out for yourself, okay?”

 

“I will. Thank you, Temari.” With that, the girl turned back to her patient, and her expression closed into the passive mask of meditation once more.

 

****

Kiku's corner!

 

So, the plot thickens. Or as my father would say, the thick plottens! Not that it makes any sense at all lol. Anyway, requesting reviews! Please let me know how I'm doing, it makes me really excited to write more of it. Do you guys like this as a reworking of manga chapters, or should I diverge more? Your opinions matter to me, so please drop me a line.

 

Thanks to the readers, reviewers, and those who have favorited. Cookies for everyone! Or at least, I would give them to you if I could. Virtual cookies it is. Hope you enjoyed the chapter.

 

Until next time,

~Kiku~