Sakura's skin felt raw.
She'd honed her chakra control finely, so she was awfully conscious of the foreign chakra within her system. As well as that... peculiar energy that didn't belong within the physical or spiritual categories. Nature Energy.
It made her feel powerful, but it also made her scared. Like a farmer hiding stashes of gold, she knew not when to use it, or when to save it. In the end, she went chakra-less to move both boys into wherever had the semblance of safety.
She knew better than to assume anywhere in this dastardly forest was safe.
Now she loathed herself for never plunging headfast into survival. She knew first aid. She knew the theory, the version on paper- but this?! With two unconscious and injured boys- one with a strange marking, and the other that should be dead, Sakura was lost. She thudded her head back against the hollow tree trunk.
She felt tendrils of her old anxiety- thought lost, but never truly- return again, seizing her heart, and with it- her will.
It goes without saying, though, that Sakura wouldn't give up.
'Will' was a very strange term to her, and she usually considered it as an umbrella over various factors that motivate her. But here she realised that, for her at least- that was incorrect.
She felt no personal motive. The only things she felt were physical- pain, adrenaline, the chemical hormones that screamed at this mess in her stead- and mental- obligation, responsibility...
'I'm counting on you, Sakura.'
...Guilt.
Her worries, and feelings of not enough had always been enough to drive her, so it would drive her now. The very fact that Naruto said her given name was enough to hammer home just how serious this was.
Kakashi was correct: Sakura was pathetic. (And perhaps it was fear- No, it definitely was fear- that scrubbed down all the dirty layers of deceit she slathered herself in.)
She lacked the energy to fool herself let alone anyone else- not that there was anyone conscious to be fooled. She could only tremble, and think all the things she ignored. It had taken such willpower to do so- she now realised- because the very thought of putting up an 'independent, strong heroine' front felt exhausting to her.
Kakashi... was correct. That thought resonated within her. It wasn't like she thought they lied, but- But it was easy to twist around their words. To acknowledge, but not understand. To nod in agreement, but not ponder about it later.
"You're either fit, or unfit. Spurring on this signature 'Will of Fire' is more... superficial than people portray it; no one 'fears' death until they're on the verge of."
The words sounded so right at the moment. The Will of Fire didn't change a damned thing. It was just survival- selfish survival. She hid to survive- not even thinking about wanting to fight, or save anyone, or even make an opening. It was all against the textbook descriptions of what shinobi were like!
She was unfit in the way that- as much power or bloated pride she could muster- she would always fall flat when the stakes where truly raised. When she actually met death, her confidence that held felt so true just suddenly disappeared like air in her grasp. In times of emergency, she could only be the support- the voice that cries, the hands that push, the one who sits on the sidelines and pretends that she was just as involved...
Unfit.
She was too scared to be alone against a monster.
Unfit.
Her will was flimsy. Her personal motivation was all but inexistent. She was always like this- reliant on others. ...But it worked, didn't it? And her feelings, her ego, her everything didn't matter as long as she does what other people want. What they need. She did it for others and said it was for herself. She did things for herself and said it was for others. Dishonesty, and delusion.
But what did that matter? And what did Haruno Sakura matter? So long as she completed her duty, everything else could be ignored.
Duty came first. Everything else must come second.
(Pathetic. Unfit. Delusional.)
That was what it meant to be a shinobi.
(She gritted her teeth. Now she remembered why she wanted to quit being a fucking shinobi.)
It took her fifteen minutes to sort, organise, and prepare everything needed. Surprisingly enough to her, Sasuke's condition was more worrisome than Naruto's.
He had a bad fever, and seemed to be in a very unstable condition whilst Naruto seemed... static. He didn't appear asleep, or dead- almost like... in deep meditation. His wounds weren't bleeding, but weren't healing either, and he barely twitched. Maybe he was already dying?
Sakura sat herself down into a seiza besides the two, head bowed as she pushed her mind to think back to the fight. It was all muddied and clouded within her haze of fear, but information was top priority. There was something- Right! Naruto had a healing factor, according to Sasuke (and she was going to ignore how he knew and she didn't-) so that meant that Naruto wasn't dead. Maybe.
And Orochimaru had mentioned 'its chakra'. Naruto's 'finest card'. What did that mean? Naruto had plentiful chakra as he did already- he had... He had more?! But he doesn't use it because... its... a person? 'Anyone but themselves'... Some sort of entity? Orochimaru had said the chakra hurt the Village, so what-
She shook her head, cutting off her next thought. She should think about Orochimaru. She had to gather her thoughts so that presenting a report would be easier (but she'd have to stay alive to do that, and Sakura wasn't very confident that she wou-). Sannin. The obvious. Snake summons. More obvious. Could not be killed?! Or was it- They'd said it was a clone?
Would he come back?
No. She could sense the amount of chakra he'd emanated, and any decent sensor would be able to even outside of the forest. By now, they surely would've caught up to him.
The Sharingan. He wanted Sasuke's eyes, but he didn't know they were awakened already. But Orochimaru still wanted Sasuke. Well, he was the Last Uchiha, so he was the reason they were targeted.
He had said he was going to give Sasuke a 'present', but she hadn't been able to pinpoint what it was- what happened. She could only hear Sasuke crying out.
Sakura shivered, beginning to feel drowsy as her adrenaline dwindled down.
Then... a squirrel.
She frowned as it neared. Why would it just run into the clearing like that? It wasn't like there were any nuts around her. It was all hard dirt and a hollow tree trunk. Whatever. It worked for her.
She cast it under a Genjutsu, drawing it towards her. Sakura grabbed at a kunai before she threw it down, pinning the squirrel's back to the ground. Head shots would've been ideal, but her hands were still shaking.
As she began to reach for it, she noticed a tag on it- An explosion tag! Sakura slammed her fist onto the ground, creating a hasty, messy dirt dome that smothered the squirrel. After the dull boom erupted, she let it topple, revealing mangled, burnt bits of it. She winced, wrinkling her nose and dusting her hands.
"Wow," A snide voice sounded as three Genin walked out from within the shadows. Sakura's eyes widened; she hadn't sensed them! She cursed at herself- she shouldn't have let her guard down. "So even a spoilt ninja-wannabe like you can detect these traps."
The one who spoke was the girl, the one with the bandaged face appeared to be the leader... It was fine. Even in this state, Sakura was stronger than average Genin; she could take them.
"Wake up Uchiha Sasuke." The bandaged one said. "We want to fight him."
Sasuke? And so soon after Orochimaru had... Might as well gamble-
"I... I know that Orochimaru is behind this." They instantly froze, eyes sharpening onto her. Bingo. "Tell me, and I'll let you fight him: what does he want? What's the weird mark on Sasuke?"
"...The mark..." One murmured.
"Well, who knows what he is thinking."
'Yeah, keep talking.' She thought, more than a little worried now. If they were Orochimaru's minions, then it was a high chance that they were stronger than their rank described. Sakura twitched her fingers minutely, preparing a layered Genjutsu over them. She had all this chakra- Nature Energy even, so she was just going to out and do it.
"Well, after hearing that, we can't let her go." The third member smirked. Snake... Rat... Nearly done- "I'll kill this girl, and then I'll kill that Sasuke guy."
She took inspiration to the Hyuuga Clan's brutality, borrowed Ino's mind piercing accuracy, and honed it under Kurenai's tutoring. -Tiger.
Demonic Immersion: Domain
Chakra spread over her surroundings like a fine sheet. Layers upon layers, targeting individual senses- sight, sound, smell, taste, touch, balance, pain- Sakura resisted the urge to click her tongue; she couldn't go so far as to warp their perception of time yet.
Well. This should be more than enough.
Demonic Immersion: Domain is a chakra-taxing Jutsu she created so her mind could manage all the Demonic Illusion techniques she'd learnt all under one category. It's a layered Genjutsu, with each layer targeting a specific sense which creates a morbidly accurate depiction of reality.
Sakura felt it bind, and not a single one of them noticed. She fought a patronising grin off her face, fingers splayed over her face to cover her expression. She let out a sigh, "You know... protein is good for building lean muscles."
"This girl's a joke-" The kunoichi scoffed, "I really h-"
"And it looked pretty plump as well..." Sakura continued.
"...Pfft, huh?! What the fuck are you talking about?"
"Shut up for a change, Kin. Stop wasting our time and kil-"
"Listen to me!" Sakura snapped. "I wanted to eat that fucking squirrel! "
They stilled then snorted, "What the fuck?"
'Hm,' Sakura then thought with a calming inhale. What sort of nightmare should she create? Oh right: what was the result of the poll she'd conducted? The one about whether one'd rather die by flames or by hypothermia?
"Burn," She bared her teeth and almost cackled at the expressions on their faces. "I want to eat some good lean meats."
The sun descended onto them, bathing them in flames, and- then, she thought, the fight was already over.
''...I've been watching you. You and that Uchiha fighting against the snake.''
Naruto squinted at the silhouette, thinking- 'Man, the Kyuubi better not be a racist or something. That tone of his when he said 'Uchiha' really put me off for a se-'
''Racist?'' The Kyuubi scoffed mockingly. ''Don't worry; I hate all you meatbags in a similar way. The Uchiha and the Uzumaki are just Clans I personally... have history with.''
''...Is that not racism- Ahem. I mean, like- shit! This is a pseudo-mindscape as well. You can hear my thoughts?''
''I can read your memories, brat.''
''Well... Well shit.'' Naruto then fell silent, feeling slightly awkward. He didn't know what to feel about the Kyuubi; his parents and half the Village died because of him, but that's already passed, and the Kyuubi is now unable to hurt anyone. He just wanted... to live his life separate of the Kyuubi, and he didn't wish to use its power, but-
But Sasuke.
He'd used the last of his Sage Mode powers to transfer chakra to Haruno, but Sasuke was still there, fighting alone against Orochimaru. His panic went up a notch and he began to fumble nervously, closing his eyes to return-
''Don't be a moron.'' The Kyuubi's voice interrupted him. ''You think returning would help? You've been unconscious for longer than you think.''
Naruto frowned, rubbing at his forehead, upset. ''So it's too late? Well, better late than never.'' He then huffed defiantly. ''Haruno would keep Sasuke alive. I believe it.''
''...You really are stupid.'' The fox sighed, the exhale sending a large gust of air clouding around him. Naruto wrinkled his nose at both that and the Kyuubi's words.
''Excuse you?''
''Stupid, I said. Damaged arm, pierced liver, severed artery... You'll pass out very quickly if you leave- possibly fall into a coma.''
''Oh. Why... Why isn't your power healing me as fast anymore?''
As if contemplating whether or not to reply, the Kyuubi paused. ''Most of my powers are bound by seals that are influenced by your emotions.''
And Naruto did not want to use the Kyuubi's chakra like this.
''C-Can you...'' Naruto's hands fisted besides him as his eyes lowered. ''Can you help me?''
The Kyuubi's expression turned mocking and sharp, ''Why should I?''
''Because you'll die if I die.'' He returned bluntly. His body sealed the Kyuubi. His body was the seal. With it broken, Naruto would die, but conversely, if he died, whatever was sealed within him would also perish.
''But that's... That's why you will. Why you have to.''
Naruto was well aware that the Kyuubi could choose to wait until the very last second to heal his body if he wanted. The Kyuubi could choose to wait until it was too late.
''I... dislike that.'' He said quietly. ''That you and I both can dictate each others lives.''
''Then rip off that seal.'' He snarled. ''Release me.''
Naruto inhaled softly, then scoff-laughed loudly, taking on a bratty tone-
''Come on, I've lived my entire life hated and feared by what was meant to be my family for the purpose of keeping you here. I've lived my entire life carrying that burden, and I'm not about to just let you go like this. That's right! This is spite, ya know?! I'm being stubborn!''
It would justify the Village's fear, for one, and it would make all of Naruto's- past and present- struggles be in vain. Naruto wasn't the type to just give up like that.
''Then there's the thing where you'll attack, and you'll be attacked back. Or vice versa.''
The Kyuubi would most likely be caught again because of its importance in politics, and Naruto would never entrust the pain from his life onto another person. It might even be doubled- He was hated for his association with the Kyuubi, but he was feared because his mother, the previous Jinchuuriki, had shown that even the greatest seals could be broken. If he let the Kyuubi go, his father and the next Jinchuuriki would have to take all the following suffering.
''But most importantly, I have things to do... people to live for. Tsunade-baachan would go all emo and depressed again... She can't even use the necklace as an excuse this time, and would- I don't know, think the 'curse' is herself. Shizu-nee would be sad and will have to deal with that...''
Naruto gave a pained grin, ''And dying anyway... I- I don't want to die. I want to live.''
Those words tasted strange on his tongue.
'I want' as if he could ever dare to voice his opinions. And 'to live' was a privilege that he apparently didn't have. He could only exist. He could only survive, day after day, grey and lifeless.
''So...''
He'd realised something: Naruto didn't know when exactly, but the Kyuubi and him... There wasn't one that had less rights than the other. Not in this situation. Both of them caged up, both of them hated-
The difference was that the Kyuubi had a history, and Naruto did not, but there was no point to indulge in 'what-if's or the past because who was Naruto to care for history right now? He had to look forwards, always look forwards. He had stumbled once, glanced back with fearful eyes, and it had taken three pairs of arms to haul him back.
Right now, they were both at each other's mercy.
After meeting and talking with Katsuyu, he wondered. He watched animals kill each other, and wondered what would happen if he stopped them. He wondered what humans thought of the Bijuu, and what the Bijuu thought of humans.
What was redemption? What needed to be redeemed? Who had the right to dictate something like that?
And what did it mean to kill exactly? What did it mean to hate? Did killing for vengeance mean a progression in human lives and their emotions? Was it like a food chain where by stopping one, everything else would collapse on each other? Was this survival or was this blind hate? Was the cycle bad? Was the cycle unnecessary?
He didn't know. He couldn't for sure.
But something that he found a definite answer to was- Should it be stopped?
And he'd found, over and over, that yes.
Of course the cycle of hatred should be stopped. Even if it would fall and crash onto him if he tried, he'd bloody try all the same! Even if stopping it meant having to rebuild everything from bottom up, he'd still do it!
And it wasn't for this 'Village' or for anyone else, really. It was for himself because he couldn't just do nothing, and being selfish just made him feel like shit. It was for himself because-
Because he hated that!
It took a long time to pinpoint what about his- his entire life he felt uneasy about, but it was simple!
The hate that someone pushed onto him, and the hate he felt that wanted to lash out. He didn't want to be hurt, and he didn't want to hurt. So he'll just stand still and stop it to help himself if no one else was going to.
And it started with this. This Bijuu... and how the Kyuubi took a role in his life just as much as his birth parents did. A beginning of sorts. So if... If Naruto and the Kyuubi, right now, were on equal terms, and Naruto wanted the Kyuubi to help him-
He let his knees collapse underneath him as he sunk into a seiza. Two hands pressed against the floor in front of him.
''Help me.'' His forehead met the cool surface of the water.
''Please.''
Isn't this how it should go?
(Burning red chakra rushed out of the bars in reply.)
He reached out through the bars, lowering his claws over the boy's body, wondering if he'd even twitch.
The boy did not.
Chakra rushed through the bars, flooding the dim yellow lights with dark red, like oozing blood. He watched, and sensed, as the boy's consciousness wavered yet again. His chakra was not always malicious, but it did always have an 'effect'; such was the way with primordial beings and ancient chakra.
At the base, it had simply been 'energy', able to become anything- do anything. Only through the corruption of humanity did he- and all Bijuu- become characterised by emotions or affinities- trivial things that named him as a mindless embodiment of hatred.
So yes, the Kyuubi's chakra could anger, terrify, could make one rage.
But through his chakra, the Bijuu told the boy to sleep instead of anything else, clouding his mind, driving his body into fully focusing on recovery. Being the first Jinchuuriki to be sealed upon birth, their presences were more or less intertwined: manipulating his vessel's body wasn't too hard granted his current mindset.
Rest. He pushed out as much chakra as he could, pressuring the boy so much that it must've been suffocating. He didn't move from his position. Recover.
The boy listened, and-
And Kurama... smiled.
''Rest assured, Uzumaki Naruto.'' He spoke into the quiet. ''I will wake you when the time is right.''
And the fox could've sworn- even though Naruto wasn't meant to have heard him, even though he hadn't meant for Naruto to hear him- that the boy replied-
Thank you.
"Oh, I see." The kunoichi hummed as she poked at her charred stump of an arm. "This is a Genjutsu. Looks like you have something inside of that pretty skull."
"This is nothing." Her teammate scoffed. "Orochimaru-sama put us through stuff way harder than this-"
"Zaku," The bandaged one snapped. "Shut up. And Kin, you should really know better being the Genjutsu specialist out of us three: this is bad. Don't you recognise the complexity of this Genjutsu? It cannot be broken at your level. Pathetic, really."
"You overestimate this chick, Dosu." 'Kin' snickered, quickly covering up her look of humiliation and shock. "Look at that squeaky clean face; boy-chasers like her only last so long in endurance; I bet this is pressing on her chakra reserves. And besides, complex Genjutsu have a toll on the caster's psyche as well."
Sakura scoffed derisively, hiding her surprise at how unfazed they were. "Maybe you two should grow a pair of ears; this 'Dosu' is the only one out of you three that isn't trembling. Your resistance doesn't mean immunity."
"Was that a challenge?" Kin narrowed her eyes. "I'll play your game, sweetie."
"You aren't doing any playing." Sakura shot back. "This master of yours will."
"...Orochimaru-sama?" Zaku snorted loudly, "She's so stupid. I bet we could beat her up in her own Genjutsu." He raised his arms and let out a violent gust of wind that... pushed right through her. "...Oh."
"Idiot!" Kin whispered sharply.
"Let's see... Orochimaru, the snake Sannin, known for his scientific and medical achievements and ambition in obtaining greater knowledge... charged with crime of desertion due to the discovery of his human experimentation projects on Konoha, non-hostile, passive civilians..." Sakura smiled amusedly, pretending to consider.
"They call it the greatest sin, and Orochimaru had done it to Konoha civilians. So I wonder what he'd done-"
The scenery melted, and a lab rose from the ashes. Snakes hissed within the shadows casted by the dim, flickering lights. They were stripped bare, hung from rusting chains with the brown crust of long dried blood. The temperature plummeted as breath became a fog in the air.
"To insignificant gutter rats like you?"
A knife gleamed before it split skin.
Now, all three of them were shaking.
As soon as Naruto processed consciousness, he bolted to sit up straight, chakra erupting wildly as he swung his head side to side.
Never had he ever felt so undefended.
Sasuke was besides him, unconscious, and with an alarmingly weird chakra presence within him, but he was alive. Now for the other-
"Hey, Harun-" Then his eyes widened as he was met with the gory scene of two messily killed Genin and one, badly mutilated, writhing under Sakura, crying and gasping. His lips parted and his inhale didn't seem to gather enough air.
Then the stench of fresh blood hit his nose and Naruto let out a choking sound as he scrambled to stand up, disoriented, stumbling towards the two. Tendons, nerves, arteries-
She knew what she was cutting.
"Oi, Haruno." Naruto stood behind her, staring into their opponent- or rather, her victim's?- terrified eyes over Sakura's head. "What are you-..."
"Oh, Naruto!" Sakura twisted her neck around to stare at him, and the blood clashed against her skin and hair, eyes alight and face flushed. "You're awake!"
The unrecognisable Genin underneath her gurgled, and more blood spurted from where a kunai had dug into their trachea.
"Let me just-" She twisted out her kunai, eliciting a painful, croaked sound from the Genin and stabbed back down through their eye socket, killing them. "Alright. You have perfect timing. Now we can all head towards the tower, and we'll be finished-"
"What about Sasuke?"
Sakura rolled her eyes. "He's fine."
"Haruno," Naruto gritted out. "There is something in his chakra system, and his body looks like it's about to crumble into pieces. There is no time to discuss your complex, or your... ineffectual eliminations. Just give me the answer straight."
"I didn't say I wanted to discuss those things." She rolled her eyes again. "Sasuke is fine. He had woken up a bit before you- just after I finished my main attack. The less than good state of these henchmen was reassurance enough to Sasuke that he fell right back asleep."
"Oh," Naruto's eyes slid over the three corpses, then lowered his gaze. He still felt remorse- What sort of individual needed to be killed like that? Was it torture for information? He averted his gaze- Even though it was wrong, it was within the boundaries of the Forest of Death contract; he wasn't about to complain.
"Okay. I'll carry Sasuke- I'm not going to rely too much on chakra, and you carry everything else. How much chakra do you have left?"
"Not much, but it's plenty enough."
Of the second phase, Team 7... passed.