I shall be quick; I wish to get to the story.

This story means a lot to me. For a year or so, I would go on and see that this was incomplete. I would get random reviews in emails begging for an update. The worst part is that I've had the story outlined, but never written. No excuses, no begging. I'm just going to say I'm sorry and leave it at that.


Threads of Fate – Chapter 12: Land of Confusion

Rock Lee was in hell.

He had to be in hell. There was no way a human being could be alive and still experience the kind of torture his body was going through.

A dull, aching throb assaulted his head, pounded against the temples like sledgehammers being slammed against his skull. No amount of training can prepare you for this. The young taijutsu specialist thought as he struggled to pull his body up from the small impact crater his fall created. He strained with one arm to pull himself in some unknown direction. Lee tried to open his eyes, and found they were almost swollen shut. A jolt of pain shot through his arm as he tried to put weight on it so he could sit up. The young shinobi ended up face first in the dirt, groaning with grass in his mouth. Once the sharp pain subsided, he rolled over on his back and struggled until he sat up straight. Carefully, he laid his palm down on the ground and gritted his teeth. A silent count of three, and he slammed his weight down on his palm. A loud crack from his bones and Lee groaned as he felt his shoulder resetting itself in the socket. Lee's ragged breathing soon began to regulate itself to a somewhat normal pattern, and the young man leaned his back against a tree.

Konoha's resident taijutsu specialist knew what it was like to put his body through. grueling pain. Even before Gai-sensei took him on as his special pupil, Lee had a knack for pushing himself above and beyond what was expected to be healthy. Over the years, his workout regiments developed into sessions that boardered along the lines of the masochistic. Few Shinobi could stand one of Lee's private workouts and it wasn't as if anyone was lining up to do so. Unlike most people, Lee did not work to simply build up his body and hone his skills. Oh no, that would be too easy. To the young man, broken bones and shore limbs were simply a warm up. Lee's workouts were about creating a new limit for the body. Everything Lee did was meant to push not only past the physical, but also the mental. It was this training that allowed him to run for miles while sleeping or continue fighting a battle while unconscious. Lee felt that if he punished his body hard enough, that he would break beyond what the mind and body was supposed to be limited to. His theory was that if he could break the threshold then he would be able to reach new levels in terms of being a shinobi. Being tired would mean nothing to the young shinobi; he would be the perfect shoulder and be one step closer to bridging the gap between hard work and natural, genetic talent. To Lee, it was an achievement that would be greater than opening the charka gates. It was "Zen Training" as Shikamaru dubbed it one day when Lee tried to explain the theory to his Chunin squad leader.

However, as Lee struggled to prop himself up in an attempt to stand, he was honestly rethinking his ideas for training. There was no way he could duplicate the horrendous feelings brought on from fighting the elder Uchiha brother. Perhaps using pain to measure progress isn't quite so helpful after all. He pondered. Slowly, Lee's left eye began it slit open. The sun stung his eye as they tried to focus on the foliage in the clearing surrounding him. Eventually, he used the tree he was leaning on to prop himself upon his feet. He managed to lean against the tree, but realized he wasn't going to be walking right away when he took a few feeble steps and his legs nearly buckled under his weight.

At some point, Lee's left eye opened enough for him to scan the surrounding forest. He spotted a thick, low-hanging branch that appeared to be partially broken. The shinobi hobbled over to it and shook it to test the sturdiness. Satisfied it would hold, he yanked the branch to snap it free from the tree. A few quick rips of cloth from his already tattered, battle-worn green uniform and Lee had a makeshift crutch. The young man silently cursed as he finally took stock of his situation. I'll probably be taken off active duty again, he thought as he sighed. The Hokage will be think I pushed myself too far again. She always lectures me when I have to visit the hospital after training. Due to his frequent visits for minor (and sometimes major) injuries, Lee knew that he was in for a good earful from Tsunade when he returned to Konoha.

Rock Lee may have been injured and distracted, but that didn't affect his senses. His ears picked up the snap of a nearby twig and he was instantly alert. The young man steadied himself on his crutch and tried to adopt some semblance of a defensive stance. His breathing stopped and his body was tense as his lone good eye darted around. His ears once again focused in on a stray sound and he shifted his attention from the direction it came from. It sounds like someone's breathing hard, he surmised. Lee hobbled along toward the direction of the labored breathing he guessed was only a few yards ahead of him. Whatever or whoever it was seemed to be trying to conceal their position behind a bush, yet were failing miserably. Lee took a deep breath and steeled himself before he peered over the bush.

A was a wide-eyed, frantic-looking Ten-Ten stared back at Lee. In her sweat drenched hands, the young kunoichi clutched a bloody kunai. Her clothing and face were bathed in blood and sweat; her hair frazzled and loose from her trademark buns.

"Ten-Ten?" Lee said as he stepped from behind the bush towards her. "It's me, were you attacked again?" The young girl only acknowledged his appearance with slight tilt of her head in his direction. Instead of looking at him, her glazed eyes focused on everything but Lee.

"W-won't let . . . get me. . ." she managed with a horse whisper. Lee took another step closer to Ten-Ten and the young girl responded by balling up in a fetal position. "GET BACK!" she shrieked. "I WON'T LET YOU GET ME!" Her hand's shook violently as she held the blade towards her teammate.

"Ten-Ten, it's me." Lee stopped where he was, the frantic tone of his friend making him forget his own physical pain.

"They will get me. . . everyone will get me. . the eye showed me."

Lee quirked his brow at her incoherent statement. The eye? She must mean the Sharingan.

"Ten-Ten. Everything will be alright. No one is going to hurt you anymore." He inched closer to her and adjusted his voice to be soothing. She must have been exposed to Itachi's bloodline limit.

"Get back. . . please, don't hurt. . me" she pleaded between gasping breaths.

"Ten-Ten. . ."

"GET AWAY!" She lunged out to him as he got closer, sending them both spiraling backwards. Ten-Ten ended up on top of him, her kunai plunged into the young man's shoulder. Lee, to his credit, did not cry out or flinch as the blade tore into his flesh. Suddenly the glazed look in Ten-Ten's eyes started to fade. Her eyes blinked a few times and she shook her head. "L-Lee?" The weapon mistress looked down to see her hand on the handle of the offending weapon and froze. "What have I done?"

Despite his somewhat eccentric personality, Lee was actually a very calm person in tense situations. He was raised to be polite and respectful at all times by his parents, and his idol-worship of Gai taught him that it was unmanly to cry over something like pain. So when he realized that his teammate had come out of her Sharingan-induced craze, he did the only thing that seemed right.

He sat up and hugged her.

Ten-Ten shook in his arms, still not completely sure what was going on. The sudden comfort from her comrade penetrated the haze and the young girl started sobbing on Lee's shoulder.

"Lee, I'm so s-sorry."

"There is nothing to be sorry for." He told her as he embraced his teammate tighter.

"I saw things, Lee. . . it was you. . and Neji. . everyone we know. . even my parents. You were all hurting me. You all were tearing at me, pulling skin, breaking me. . . it was horrid beyond belief." She explained. "All I saw were his eyes. . .I heard his voice telling me to beg for death. . . and I honestly wanted it." Lee listened to his teammate recount Itachi's metal barrage. He could tell by the sound of her voice that she wouldn't be the same after this. The thought that something could break Ten-Ten seriously unnerved the Konoha shinobi. Lee knew he fought along side two of the calmest ninja of his age. Neji was a rock, never allowing anything to crack his mental mask. However, Lee believed that Ten-Ten was even more unshakably strong than the Hyuuga fighter. For Neji, his mental strength came for his family heritage and pride in his eyes. Ten-Ten, on the other hand, had faith in herself to the point that she wouldn't back down from a fight no matter the circumstances. The kunoichi simply didn't care what you threw at her.

For now, Lee would allow his friend to cry. She had experienced something few survived, something their entire squad trained to stand against, and that was enough.

To see Itachi's power up close is frightening. He thought as looked down at his shaken teammate. I can only imagine what Sasuke is capable of.


Inside the Hokage's tower, Konoha's Mission Office opens up everyday at 6:00 a.m. Anyone wishing to submit a mission request for the Hidden Leaf Village needing to file the paper work would have to wait until then. By 7:00 a.m., most new missions were processed and ready to be distributed out to shinobi cells. This leads to the morning scramble of group leaders racing to the tower trying to get the best missions available.

Unlike most team leaders, Nara Shikamaru did not participate in the morning rush to the tower. Certain facts allowed the Chunin leader to leisurely take is time in the morning instead of making a mad dash over the rooftops in hopes of avoiding gardening or patrol duty. First and foremost, ALL of his team's missions were hand picked and assigned by the Hokage herself. Due to the special nature of his unit, Tsunade wanted to make sure she could account for the eleven members of Shikamaru's group at all times. Second, The Hokage never assigned missions before 10:00 a.m. A notorious night owl, the Godaime liked to sleep in and rarely began her day before 9a.m. unless in an emergency. Finally, his team usually trained until noon, so Shikamaru wasn't even expected to report to the office before then. If the Hokage needed any of them before the afternoon, she usually sent a messenger with the details or summoned them to her office.

So for Shikamaru to even be headed in the direction of the Hokage tower at eight in the morning was an anomaly in itself. Combine that with the fact they the team was supposed to have the day off and one might consider this to be a sign of the apocalypse. For Shikamaru, a day like today was supposed to be spent sleeping in, playing a few games of Go and perhaps an afternoon in the park staring at the sky. I can't believe I'm wasting a perfectly good day off looking for work. I must be out of my mind.

Shikamaru chuckled to himself as pondered his situation. . . and the conversation leading up to it. . . .


"You will lose in ten moves."

"Are you serious, woman?" Shikamaru arched his eyebrow as he glanced sideways at Ino. Her pearl-like teeth seemed to glow as she smiled at him from across the playing board.

"I'm perfectly serious," The tip of Ino's slender finger slid slowly over a game piece on the board before she coiled it into her palm.

"Ino, Asuma-Sensei can't even beat me anymore. You stopped playing me when we were genin. What makes you think you can beat me now?" The girl did not look at him, instead more interested in the pieces on the board than his statement. She bit her lip pensively as she began to play with a few pieces, randomly placing them on the board in mock moves.

"Because, Shika, I can," Ino answered him no differently than if she was talking about the weather. She had come by to visit him this particular evening, nothing out of the ordinary. Finding him involved in a particularly dull game with his father, Ino asked to play him for old-times sake.

"Ino, be reasonable. . ."

"What's wrong, Nara, are you frightened you'll lose to a girl?"

The proverbial gauntlet was thrown to the ground. There were very few things in life that Shikamaru was passionate about. One of them was Go. It was the one place in his world that allowed him to be lazy and still come out on top. For Ino to come into his home and challenge him like this was borderline insanity. I haven't lost a game in two years and she thinks she can beat ME?

"Ok, here's the deal," he began. "If I win, no gossiping or shopping for a week." For the first time, a flicker of uncertainty played within the girl's azure eyes. Take that. Shikamaru though. However, the unsure look in her eyes turned into a hint of deviousness. Ino's mouth curled into a devilish smile as she fluttered her eyes at her teammate.

"And when I win," she counter while sliding the pieces back in place. "You have to adhere to whatever request I desire." Now it was Shikamaru's turn to be afraid. The smug look in Ino's eyes told him that something wasn't right. Still, this was his turf.

"Deal." He told her as he made his first move.


It turned out Ino didn't beat him in ten moves; she beat him in seven. The shock on his face as the blonde kunoichi made her final move was priceless. The girl knew every move he was going to make, and she was so far ahead of him that Shikamaru never saw her oncoming setup. When he asked her how she did it, the golden-haired beauty simply told him all those years of watching him and Asuma play taught her a few things. Sure she never played regularly, but she knew her friend's skills well enough to predict what he would do. Combine that with the fact that Shikamaru wasn't even trying hard created the perfect situation for an upset.

It was one game that was responsible for Shikamaru being up early in the morning on his day off. Ino's request was that her Chunin field leader would pick her up from her residence and spend the day as her date. This meant, according to her, he was required to pay for not less than two meals at restaurants of her choosing, at least one day activity, and a night of dancing. He was also required to dress for the occasion, as Ino would not be seen with someone who looked like a bum. Knowing Ino as well as he did, Shikamaru knew any place Ino chose would be upscale. So in an effort to comply with said requests, Shikamaru was going to take up a few extra missions for money. He figured he could take at least two quick C-Ranks before the day was over; just enough cash to get him over the top. And while he had complained to Choji about how bothersome the whole arrangement was, the brown-haired teen couldn't say it was an unfavorable situation.

He wouldn't admit it to anyone, but he was looking forward to it.

Shikamaru glanced up as two shadows whisked overhead. Two ANBU members were roof-top hopping towards the tower. That in itself wasn't strange. However, what caught his attention were the ten other members he noticed closing in on the tower from various directions. They usually don't mobilize like that unless there's a meeting or a huge mission. The Nara stopped in the middle of the street and continued to watch as more ninja began to make their way towards the tower over the village's roof-top highway. What the hell is going on here?

"Shikamaru, I was just looking for you."

The Chunin didn't flinch as he already felt Kakashi's presence coming before he landed next to him. He continued to watch the growing number of shinobi mobilizing. "I was on my way to the Hokage's tower. . . why is everyone heading that way?" he asked his sensei.

"As of early this morning, the Hokage has activated all high ranking units and doubled the patrols within the village walls," the silver-haired jounin explained. "Someone broke into the records room last night."


"Hokage-sama, we have found which records have been tampered with." The ANBU soldier wore the mask of a bear and his lanky body looked awkward as he kneeled behind Tsunade.

"Anything missing?" The Godaime asked him as she turned to face him.

"No, Hokage-sama. We found nothing missing from the mission logs. However, the only files broken into were the sealed mission scrolls."

The female Sanin frowned at this new development. She turned her back to the ANBU messenger again and took another look around the room. The Chunin in charge of opening the office came in and found the lock to the room was destroyed. Anything dealing with village records was instantly a Hokage-level issue, so Tsunade was immediately alerted.

"Which ones were opened?" the Hokage asked.

"Only the missions dealing with the Konoha Eleven squadron."

Tsunade didn't show it, but inside her blood began to chill at the mention of Kakashi's unit. None of those files were processed by anyone but herself or Shizune. While they weren't usually classified missions, it was common knowledge that anything involving the eleven members of that unit was not touched by anyone unless ordered to by the Hokage. This bothered her greatly, because whoever broke in had some knowledge of the inner workings of the office. This meant she might have a possible infiltrator on her hands.

"Which ones were opened?"

"Just the most recent mission logs, Hokage-sama." The messenger replied. "It seems they only opened the last three scrolls. However, it appears they also read an unsealed scroll you just filed the day before." Again, the female Hokage frowned as she listened.

"The escort mission I just filed?"

"Yes, Hokage-sama. I believe it is a B-Rank escort mission. . . ."

"Are you sure those are the only files that were tampered with?"

"Yes Hokage-sama."

Tsunade finally showed a bit of displeasure when she slammed her fist down on the nearby desk. The loud thud caused the buzzing activity in the office to freeze as all the investigators stopped what they were doing to watch the poor oak desk crack underneath the Fifth's massive strength. An administrative worker who was assigned to the records office groaned as he noticed the now broken piece of furniture. Tsunade grunted audibly and the room quickly got back to work. She ground her teeth and began to pace the floor. Someone knew exactly where to find what they were looking for. She thought. But what was it they wanted? What were they trying to find out? Oooh! I HATE when my days start like this! A security breach of this magnitude is not something Konoha needed right now. With different groups on the move and a possible war on her hands, the last thing Tsunade needed was a traitor in her ranks.

"Tsunade-sama!" The Hokage turned when she heard her assistant call her. In Shizune's arms was Tsunade's youngest apprentice. "I found, Sakura headed this way a few moments ago." The Sanin was instantly at her side to inspect her pupil. On the outside, Sakura looked fine, but she could tell by her the pained expression on the girl's face that she had been in a fight. More importantly, the expression also told her that Sakura lost said altercation.

"What happened?" Tsunade asked.

"We have to get to Naruto!" the pink-haired girl said as Shizune helped her sit down. "Sasuke was here last night!"

"The Uchiha was here?" Sakura nodded.

"He's after Naruto. . . said something about needing him to find his brother. I t-tried to stop him. . . ." Sakura lowered her head, unable to complete the statement.

So that's who was here last night! Like a switch being thrown in her head, everything made sense. "Shizune! Get Kakashi here immediately!" She shouted. The dark-hair assistant snapped to attention and gave a quick nod of acknowledgement before dashing off to find the jounin sensei. The Hokage then turned to her younger charge. "How bad are you hurt?"

"No badly, I just need to rest a bit."

"You have an hour; afterwards you need to be packed and ready to travel. You will be accompanying me."

"Where are we going?" The girl asked her sensei.

"We're going to try and save that brat teammate of yours." Tsunade turned on her heels and headed out of the room.


Get away.

He had to get away.

For the last six hours, Uchiha Sasuke had traveled across the Country of Wind and climbed the mountains that served as the boarder between Rock Country and Wind Country. He didn't know why he was going in that direction, but he knew he had to put as much distance between him and Hidden Sound as possible. He hadn't thought much as to what he would do once he stopped to rest but, as he traveled over the dessert landscape on his way to the mountain boarder, he figured he could disappear fairly quickly once he got into one of the most hostile ninja countries. He might be able to travel by sea to the western expanse, a part of the world few from the five shinobi powers dared venture. It didn't matter to him where he ended up, all he wanted was to leave everything of this world behind.

The raven-haired teen instantly ruled out returning to Konoha. Despite the determination of his former friends, he knew he would not be welcomed back by the Hokage and the council. He had already been labeled an S-Class missing ninja. If he was lucky, Tsunade would allow him to pick his burial spot under the prison. And even if he had become powerful in his years away from Hidden Leaf, he knew his chances of fighting a Sanin and surviving would be slim.

As for Hidden Sound. . .

Sasuake always knew he wouldn't stay there. Hidden Sound was never his home, never a place he wanted to be. Otogakure was a means to an end; a way to defeat and kill his brother and nothing more. He had never bothered trying to get to know anyone while he lived there, nor did he entertain anyone's attempts to get close to him. Like his younger days in Konoha, he had his share of women admirers who vied for his attention. As he had been in his youth, Sasuke dismissed the Sound Kunoichi like he did ones from Konohagakure. He had no time to form bonds, nor did he trust anyone from Orochimaru's ranks.

Of course, there was also Orochimaru himself. Above all else, Sasuke knew returning to Otogakure meant submitting his body to the Snake Sannin's will. While it had only been spoken of once, the agreement between the Uchiha teen and Sound Leader had been clear to the young everyday he staed in Oto; Sasuke would be given the training needed for defeating his brother and Orochimaru would receive the young man's body as a vessel. Sasuke traded his life for the means to kill Itachi, but the truth was he wasn't willing to pay the price.

For one thing, Sasuke still wanted to revive his clan. He knew no amount of reasoning would convince Orochimaru to allow him time to find a suitable mate and enough time to raise at least one child. If anything, the reptilian man would only take pleasure in refusing the young man's final wish. If wasn't as if either of them felt committed to each other as master and apprentice. Even though he had offered his life and loyalty to the snake man, it had only been for show. Sasuke defied Orochimaru every little way he could. The Uchiha refused the Sound Village headband when presented with it, and for almost a year, he refused to wear the gear provided to him. Instead he preferred to wear his tattered Konoha clothing until it fell apart. He would never voice it but he took pleasure in being downright rude to the Orochimaru. This was a sticking point that got him into more than one confrontation with. . .

"Hello, Sasuke-kun."

Sasuake sighed as he stopped his forward progress. The biting wind blasted his face with cold air and his feet sunk into the snow on the ground. He turned around slowly, not wishing to see the smiling face of the Sound shinobi he knew would be behind him.

"Why are you here, Kabuto?" he asked in a wary voice.

"I'm here to protect Orochimaru-sama's investment," he stated with a calm demeanor. He started to walk around Sasuake with a slight bounce in his step.

"Orochimaru must have been short on men if he actually sent you after me." Sasuke told him. If the quip from the younger man bothered Kabuto, he didn't show it.

"Orochimaru-sama provided me with a means to make sure you don't get too far away."

"You still cannot beat me, Kabuto. It's pointless for you to even try. I've already proven that you can't stand against me."

"Ah, but you misunderstand, Sasuke-kun," the smug Sound ninja stated. "I don't have to beat you; Orochimaru has made sure to that."

"What are you talking about?"

"Do you really think Orochimaru would let you loose without a leash?" Kabuto asked him. Sasuke gave the man a dark look. Kabuto's almost jovial mood was grating on Sasuke's nerves. "Lord Orochimaru knew you would try to leave without holding up your end of things. So you had a fail safe in place for your eventual betrayal."

"It's hard to betray someone you were never loyal to in the first place."

"That was always your problem, wasn't it, Sasuke-kun!" The mask that Kabuto wore finally cracked as his eyes flashed their displeasure at Sasuke. "You were always so insolent."

"Enough for your bullshit, Kabuto. Orochimaru and his petty vendetta's mean nothing to me," he emphasized his words by poking Kabuto in the chest. "And you're pathetic brown-nosing mean even less than nothing."

"Sasuke, Sasuke, Sasuke," Kabuto chuckled as he shook his head. "You don't understand the gift that Orochimaru has given you. He gave you a means to achieve your dreams and given you so almost limitless power. Most of all, he has offered you eternal life."

"You call sacrificing my life and freewill for the greater good of Orochimaru a gift? Preach your brainwashing propaganda somewhere else." Sasuke turned away from the med-nin. "I grow tired of you, Kabuto."

"I can't allow you to have your way." Kabuto pushed his glasses up on his nose before reaching into the small pack strapped to his leg. From it, he produced what appeared to be a large crystal in a sinister-looking violet hue. Almost immediately the crystal began to emit a lavender light. Sasuke instinctively reached up to the seal on his neck as his nerves began to prickle. He turned to face a triumphantly grinning Kabuto holding the stone in the air by its chained necklace.

"What. Is. THAT?" The teen spat thru gritted teeth. His hand started to shake as he pointed at the stone in Kabuto's possession. Sasuke blinked a few times once he noticed his vision beginning to blur and fade.

"This is the crystallized form of the cursed seal," the Sound lackey explained as he moved closer to the now kneeling Sasuke. "Lord Orochimaru needed a way to keep his creations in check, so he found a way to harness the power of the seal and infuse it with charka. Once a person exposed to Orochimaru-sama's mark comes in contact with this crystal, they become weakened and have their charka drained. By now your body should be feeling rather heavy." Sasuke took inventory of his senses; indeed his arms and legs started to feel like lead weights. And as suddenly as he felt his life force being drained from his body, he also felt a new sensation. He doubled over and groaned as a wave of nausea overtook him.

"W-what have you done to me?!" he managed to stutter as he tried to recover from the reeling dizziness. Kabuto only chuckled as he leaned over the runaway shinobi.

"The mighty Uchiha Sasuke: So smug, so arrogant, and unable to show any humbleness to those who have helped him." A swift kick in the side from Kabuto sent Sasuke rolling in the snow. "I seem to remember you breaking my hand a little while back. I think it's only fair I show you the same kindness. . . tenfold."


"Uzumaki-san, please sit down. I know the doctor allowed you to wait here, but you are still a patient in this hospital. You still need to rest so you can fully recover."

Naruto ignored the nurse who tried to get him to sit down in the waiting area. For three hours, the Konoha ninja paced across the carpeted lounge with a worried expression. The various beeps from the equipment within the hospital had served as a cruel time keeper. Each drop from a nearby fluid pack or buzz from a monitor only emphasized the minutes that passed while his teammates were behind the ER door.

He had traveled with the Sunagakure medical team assigned to bring in Hinata. The trip had been torture for Naruto, who couldn't help but sneak glances at the Hyuuga girl as she lay on the stretcher unmoving and covered in blood. Upon arrival, he caused a scene when he was separated from Hinata and taken by a group of doctors assigned to check for injuries. Only Gaara's influence kept the blonde shinobi from trashing the examining room. It was Gaara who now waited patiently beside Naruto, choosing to allow his brother Kankuro and his advisor Baki to take over his political duties.

About an hour after the doctor's cleared Naruto, the Suna hospital was abuzz again as the remaining three teammates who helped escort him were found and brought in. He managed to speak to Lee briefly before the dark-haired boy was whisked into the ER. The young man looked much worse than he sounded –and, to Naruto, Lee looked like crap. Despite having broken bones and a stab wound in his shoulder, Lee managed to flash his trademark smile and signal a thumbs-up to his friend. All at once, Naruto felt better about his teammate going into surgery; after all, it wasn't like it wasn't a fairly normal occurrence back home. Lee had logged in more time in the emergency room in their home village than anyone cared to admit.

Ten-Ten, and Neji on the other hand, had been another situation.

Like Hinata, Neji had been brought in on a stretcher. He was unconscious with various splints and braces all over his body. Apparently, he received the worst physical beating of the three, which was something Naruto found a bit odd. Of the three, he figured his mission leader would have been the one to take the lightest beating. Just as his friend was bustled past and into the ER, Naruto heard a shrieking wail coming from down the hall. He turned to see Ten-Ten struggling against a few nurses and doctors as they tried to bind her in a straight jacket. The color ran from his face as Naruto watched the young girl kick and struggle against the men on either side who were restraining her arms. All he could hear her scream was "Don't let him get me!" over and over. Somehow, seeing Ten-Ten in such an emotional state was unnatural. Things are night not right with the world right now, the young man thought as he shook his head in disgust. He didn't know how he would do it, but he would make Itachi pay in spades for harming his friends. I'll repay him for this: For Neji, for Lee, Ten-Ten and especially for Sasuke and Hinata.

His mind wandered to the indigo-haired girl who was laying on an operating table somewhere in another part of the hospital, away from him. Each time he tried to calm himself down, the vision of Itachi's blade sticking out of her abdomen chilled him and stood his nerves on end. He tried to occupy his mind by talking to Gaara and sending word back to Konoha of the situation, but he could only feel her lips growing cold as he replayed the kiss in his mind. He presses his finger to his lower lip and glanced down at it. How the hell could he have not saved her? Why wasn't he able to save all of them?

How cruel it had been to discover love on the battlefield? All his life, Naruto had been a stranger to attention, but it appeared that the love he so dearly craved had been right up under his nose. He replayed all the events that involved him and Hinata and he slowly pieced together all the signs. The late night visits to check up on his health, even the home cooked meals and late night conversations at his apartment. She really put a lot of effort in me, he pondered while reminiscing about one particular night where he fell asleep after a meal with the Hyuga girl. Hell, the more he thought about it, the more he realized that Hinata's affections predated their Genin days.

The young man felt foolish for being so ignorant of Hinata's emotions. How could he have not seen it? How painful must it all have been for her; each hug he pulled her into. . . all the times he could grab onto her hand when he was upset; Even the off times when she would lay her head on his lap and sleep after a long day. He never once questioned her intentions. He would have treated all the girls in his squad with the same respect. Hinata had been in her own category, but for the most part Naruto was a gentleman to all of them.

Which made his obliviousness all the more patronizing.

He groaned as he finally took a seat and covered his face with his hands.

"Gaara, how could I have been so foolish?" The burgundy-haired teen turned to watch his friend.

"It was not your fault Itachi attacked your team," Gaara stated.

"That's not what I meant," Naruto's arms waved of the statement, even if he was feeling a bit of guilt from that as well. They wouldn't have been injured if Itachi wasn't looking for me. . "I mean how could I have been so careless about Hinata's feelings?" Gaara stared at the blonde boy with confusion in his eyes.

"Did you do something to hurt her?" he asked. Over the last two years, Gaara's growth in interacting with his fellow man had been staggering. But he still had a long ways to go before understanding matters of the heart.

"Yes. . . I mean, not really. . .well, sort of," Naruto's ramblings were not helping Gaara understand any better. "While we were out fighting Itachi, Hinata defended me. I was caught in a genjutsu and she tried to save me."

"It sounds like she is a worthy teammate."

"It's not just that," Naruto explained. "Before she faced off with Itachi, she told me that she. . . s-she loved me." The smile she had flashed him before turning to battle played in his head and he adopted a sullen expression.

"So she has feelings for you?" the sand vessel questioned. Naruto nodded.

"When she charged Itachi, I've never seen her look for powerful or so beautiful. . . and just like it was nothing, he cut her down."

"Am I to assume that you care for her in the same way she cares for you?"

"I think so. . . I hope so. Until now I've never thought about it. I was completely oblivious to her until she told me that she loved me." Naruto sighed and slumped down in his seat.

"I'm not sure how love works," Gaara began. "I know that I care for my brother and sister. I care for their well being and I only desire to protect them. I also care about my village and the people who inhabit it. I would gladly give my life of the sake of my home. Would you do the same of this girl?" Naruto perked up at the question. As he pondered his answer, his lips formed a small smile.

"For her, I would gladly give up my dream and my life."

"Wouldn't that mean you love her like she loves you? It must mean something if you are both willing to sacrifice so much for the sake of the other"

Naruto grinned at his fellow demon vessel.

"Gaara, I thought you didn't understand love." Again, the look of confusion flickered in the young Kazakage's emerald orbs. "You might have the best insight of anyone I know."

"I don't think I understand what you mean." Naruto chuckled as he gave Gaara a pat on the back.

"You seem to know more about love than you realize, my friend."

"I'm happy to be able to help. . . . even if I don't understand how I did it."

For the first time in almost a day, Naruto laughed.


First of all, a Huge thanks goes out to "I'm Not Telling" for being a wonderful beta reader for this last chapter (and for putting up with my rambling emails.).

When I started this story, I had certain ideas as to how I wanted to write everything. I was also three years younger. What I thought was acceptable then I don't completely agree with now. After going back and reading the original chapters, I'm very disappointed in them and myself. I still love the overall story and some sections of them feel right. The grammar makes my eyes hurt and a few things could be cleaned up. I had to give me self a concession in the beginning I had no beta and barely did any revising.

So until I'm able to go back and revise the original eleven chapters of this story, it will be a huge blemish to an overall good idea. I will still finish it (and work much harder and faster to do so.) because I can't let this one go without an ending. No matter how many revisions and outlines it takes, this will be completed. To those who choose to read, I thank you.