#other than a hole that you gotta pass the whole dang tail through carefully

[foxgirlplushie]

Tails make clothes complicated huh

[exhausted-dog-mom]

Underwater (2020) Fix It Fanfic

Last year, I was commissioned to write a fix it fic for the horror movie Underwater. I had no idea it was a horror movie until after I agreed to write it, lol. I'm a coward at the best of times and writing this gave me nightmares for months. It's 24k words and almost 55 pages long. I rewrote the whole dang movie, lol. The entire fic is on my Patreon, but here are the first 2k words. 

           Norah followed behind Rodrigo as they picked their way carefully through the debris. Her body shivered uncontrollably, her meager clothing long soaked through by water of questionable quality. The tinny, prerecorded voice of the infographics which once lined the walls echoed in the too tight hallways, skipping as sparks crackled along the broken screens. Great slabs of concrete and torn sheets of metal made their progress slow, their flashlights illuminating little more than water. The hallway they were following to CR-7 was far from a direct route, but it was the only one they were both able to traverse, and Norah knew she wasn’t alone in wanting to stick together—not after closing the bulkheads.

           She dismissed that thought. She didn’t have time to think about that. Not when the path before them suddenly stopped, the way forward cut off by a serious cave in.

           “Can we dig through there?” She asked, watching as Rodrigo crouched down and began moving loose bits of rubble.

           He called back, uncertain but willing to try, and Norah began scanning the area for alternate routes. They didn’t have time to double back and find another way. The Kepler wouldn’t last long and every second they wasted not getting to the pods was another second the entire station deteriorated around them.

           She took a chance and put her weight on a ledge above where Rodrigo was digging, shining her light down a narrow passage that might allow them both through. Maybe.

           “Hey,” she called down to her colleague. “I can fit through there if you can.”

           He came up and looked at her discovery, considering the rough looking tunnel.

           Distantly, Norah heard something. A voice. She had to turn her head to catch it, the hearing in her left ear completely gone, but it was there.

           “Hello?” She called out, hope rising in her throat. “Hello? Can you hear that?” She didn’t wait for Rodrigo’s response, leaving him behind as she clambered over derelict ductwork and dodged sharp edges, shining her flashlight on everything as she searched desperately for any sign of life. “Keep talking, I can hear you!”

           She turned her right ear to the ground, tracing the source of the muffled voice to a pile of concrete slabs, the edges sharp against her hands as she began to pull on them with a strength she didn’t know she had. Rodrigo came up beside her, helping to free whoever was trapped underneath. The first thing she saw as they pulled back a layer of rubble was a stuffed rabbit, the furlike fabric covered in grease and who knew what else. She stared at it, confused, for all of two seconds before joy and recognition filled her with renewed vigor.

           “Paul?” Sure enough, as she took the rabbit from upstretched hands, her friend’s face came into view, his eyes clenched shut against the brightness of Rodrigo’s flashlight. She handed the rabbit to Rodrigo, reaching down into the crevice to get better leverage for lifting Paul’s not insignificant weight. With Rodrigo’s help, she pushed back the final slab, revealing the drill worker in all his bare chested glory, his skin coated in dust and grime. His hand held on to hers tightly and she watched as recognition bloomed in his eyes.

           “Norah?”

           “Hi.” She was as breathless as he was, a shaky laugh passing through chattering teeth.

           Paul smiled up at her, squeezing her hand as he laughed right back. “Oh, you sweet, flat chested elven creature.”

           She couldn’t even be mad at him. She was sure she made quite the sight, in her sports bra and sweats, but it was no better than his.

           She watched her friend breathe harshly for a second, lungs taking full advantage of their renewed capacity now that the weight of the debris was no longer crushing his chest. She knew the instant his brain had reoxygenated, because he turned to Rodrigo, a man he’d probably never interacted with before, like Norah, and asked after his rabbit.

           His concern for his little buddy was endearing, though she knew the stuffed toy couldn’t hold a candle to the real Little Paul, alive and waiting seven miles above them on dry land.

           Getting Paul out of the hole was a process, but they did it, the large man standing before them in nothing but a robe, boxers, and one lucky sock. He cradled the rabbit against his chest like a living animal, his attachment to the thing so much stronger after so long down in the deep.

           Norah lead the way back down the hall, flickering blue lights casting eerie shadows on the walls. “There are pods in CR-7,” she explained over her shoulder, the joy she felt at finding her friend alive tempered by a renewed desperation to get out. “The upper decks are collapsing, so we’ve gotta move fast.”

           She pulled herself up onto the ledge, Rodrigo helping her from below. She caught the tail end of Paul’s whining complaint and she rolled her eyes. Leave it to him to find something to complain about during a life or death situation.

           Paul was much larger than either her or Rodrigo, but, as Norah crawled through the cramped tunnel, she was pretty sure he’d be able to fit. She had little trouble scooting through the dark, her movements sending the light from her flashlight in all sorts of disorienting directions. Everything was grey, with the exception of the odd wire or two, exposed copper stinging her wet skin as she brushed up against it. She turned back to look at her two companions, the men clearly having a harder time than she was.

           “You guys ok?”

           “Yeah,” Rodrigo nodded to her, dust clinging to his dark skin. Behind him, Paul grumbled out an affirming expletive.

           Turning back, she immediately recoiled, flashlight dropping from her grasp and teeth clacking loudly in her skull.

           Closing her eyes against the terrifying sight, she called back to the boys. “There’s-there’s someone up here.” She swallowed thickly. “It’s McClellen.”

           Just like that, the high from unburying Paul was gone, replaced by the grim certainty that his survival was nothing short of a miracle and the odds of finding anyone else alive were incredibly slim.

           How many were left alive? How many more would there be if she had waited just a little longer? How many were dead because of her?

           McClellen had no answers for her, blue eyes locked unseeing on something far in the distance. Norah took a shaky breath, bolstering herself as she began to move past the other woman. Their hands touched as she did, the fading warmth she felt deepening the ever growing pit in her stomach.

           If she’d waited, would McClellen still be alive?

           Would Paul be dead?

           Those questions, like all the others, were tossed aside as she resumed the slow journey forward, eyes locked on the darkness ahead of her. There was no telling what waited out there, just beyond the range of her flashlight, but she didn’t have time to lose herself to what ifs and should haves. There were two men behind her, two living, breathing men, and that was enough. It had to be enough.

           The cramped tunnel let out to an open space—another hallway, by the looks of it—and Norah carefully climbed out and set her feet on the ground. The light here was red, a sign that the emergency systems were working, at least, and she could only hope that the way to the escape pods was open. She led the way, following a mental map of the rig as automated voices rang out overhead. Their flashlights reflected off the tall windows which surrounded the evacuation room, the reinforced glass surprisingly intact compared to the wreckage all around it. Norah stumbled over a rogue pipe, her mind going blank as it struggled to put together what she was seeing.

           “Captain?”

           Sparks flew, the display illuminating Captain Lucien’s back where he sat hunched over inside the closed off rotunda. He made no indication that he’d heard her, his head in his hands as he sat alone in the dark. Norah hit the control panel, but he didn’t react to the obnoxious sound it made in protest. Squinting through the glass, her heart sank as she took in the damage surrounding him, the escape pods they’d all put so much hope in clearly no longer an option.

           “Shit.”

           “Shit?” Paul winced as he came over to stand beside her, looking over her shoulder into the dark. “What’s shit?”

           “The evac pods are gone.” Norah tuned out her friend’s frenzied cursing as she pounded on the glass, calling for her Captain. Could he even hear her through the reinforced windows? They were designed to withstand sudden changes in pressure—likely why they were still intact—but did that mean they also blocked out sound?

           The answer was no, they couldn’t, and Norah deflated with relief when Lucien turned around, face lighting up as he recognized first her then the men behind her.

           “Norah,” he called, his voice muffled but still intelligible through the glass as he rushed over. “You’re alive.” He didn’t sound like he believed it, but she could understand the sentiment. “The door’s jammed.”

           Right. Of course, it was. He probably would have left if it wasn’t. Norah quickly moved over to the control panel, mentally apologizing to the machine for hitting it as she tried to find some way to override the lock. Absently, she recognized the Captain giving orders to Paul and Rodrigo, both men rushing to obey, though Paul complained loudly between hissing breaths.

           “On a scale of one to ten, how bad’s my rig?”

           His attempt at humor fell a little flat and Norah looked up at him incredulously as the doors opened. “Uh,” she looked him up and down in the harsh white lights which conveniently decided to turn back on. His left arm was in a sling, miscellaneous bruises and cuts littered across his face. Shit. “Ten. We’re, um, seventy percent compromised—breathe too hard and we’re in trouble.”

           He didn’t appreciate her candor, turning away from her with a grim expression before turning back around and reaching for her face with his good hand, looking at her damaged ear with a grimace.

           “What happened,” she asked through chattering teeth, the two seconds she’d spent standing still reminding her body of how cold it was. “Was it an earthquake?”

           “I don’t know.” That wasn’t what she wanted to hear. “I’m trying to figure it out.”

           She watched, still somewhat dazed, as he pulled a large red med kit out from seemingly nowhere, using his one hand to its full effectiveness as he rummaged through it.

           “I don’t understand.” Her voice forced its way through her tight throat, swallowing only thickening the knot living there. “Why are you still here? There were pods here, you could have left.”

           He gave her a look she was sure he’d leveled on his child a thousand times before. It certainly made her feel like one. “That’s what Captains do.”

           “Who cares?” She couldn’t stop the words or the incredulity which laced them. “You have a kid. You should have gone up.”

           He froze, expression blank as his mouth opened and closed, eyes shut as he tried to find the words to respond to that. Instead, he urged her to sit down, returning to the med kit as though she hadn’t said anything.

           “You know any one of us would have shoved your ass into a pod—.”

           “Listen to me!”

           Norah shut her mouth, staring wide eyed at her Captain as he kneeled in front of her, mouth tense as he glared up at her. His French accent was thicker in his anger, coloring his words as he gestured wildly with his good arm.

           “Everyone is getting out of here alive.” He said it with such conviction, Norah was almost able to believe him. “You here me? I already sent twenty two up, Smith reported seven dead.”

           Warmth spread in her chest at the news that Smith, at least, was still alive. She hadn’t let herself consider any other possibilities but having her old friend’s survival confirmed relieved a tension she hadn’t realized she was carrying. She gave a stuttering report of the dead she and Rodrigo had found before coming across Paul, and she struggled past telling him about McClellen, nonsensical words spilling from her lips—she lived three floors up, I was brushing my teeth, her hands were still warm, I shut the bulkheads on the entire East Wing so there’s definitely more.

           Captain Lucien, to his credit, remained staunchly focused on cleaning her ear, damp gauze coming away from it bloody. Whatever was wrong with it, it stung when he touched it, the pain a welcome reminder that she was alive, only living people could bleed, and a grim one that so many people weren’t.

[gwydionae]

(Keep My) Back to You

A/N: Gosh dang it, I am determined to finish this thing if it kills me, which this chapter almost did. It’s over twice as long as the last two! Action scenes gotta make everything difficult. But yeah, more action, canon divergence, and Sakura in this one, but still a healthy dose of Naruto and Sasuke friendship stuff.

Posted on fanfiction.net >here<. Chapter 1 on tumblr >here<. Chapter 2 on tumblr >here<.

Teaser: Naruto just wants a friend. Sasuke will never allow himself to have one. But heavy burdens carried by small backs feel lighter when the load is shared with others.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. Canon divergence. Rated T for mild language and violence.

Chapter 3: Teammates

"Damn it..."

Naruto's muttered curse hung in the small, dark room as he slowly pushed himself up from the floor, eyes straying back to the figure lying in the corner for what must have been the hundredth time that night. The stark white bandages covering nearly every inch of the body glowed in the dim moonlight, contrasting sharply with dark hair and clothes. After seconds that felt like ages, soft, rhythmic sounds and near imperceptible movement told his heart what his head already knew; Sasuke was still breathing. He was fine. He was alive.

Slipping out of his bedroll, Naruto silently stood and tiptoed his way past his sleeping teammates and out of the shared room. He didn't stop until he'd left the stifling closeness of Inari's house behind, allowing the salty air of the Land of Waves to fill his lungs as he slumped onto the dock, dangling his feet above the calm water.

The day's events had left him exhausted and drained, but every time he closed his eyes he could feel the cold of the ice surrounding him, smell the sweat and blood in the air, see the limp body in his arms. He'd never known joy like when he heard Sakura cry out to him, proclaiming Sasuke's return from the dead, but it hadn't made the experience of witnessing someone he cared about die in front of him any less traumatic. But then, it hadn't just been the sudden death of a teammate that had scared him, either. He clutched at his stomach, unable to keep his hand from shaking.

"Stupid fox..."

Ever since learning of the demon housed inside of him, Naruto had done his best to push all thoughts of it aside. It had often been difficult, the insults following him through the village suddenly taking on a whole new meaning, but he himself had never felt any indication that some great, evil entity had been living in his abdomen his entire life. But that day on that bridge, there was no denying its existence. The anger, the pure rage that flowed through him had been heinous and intoxicating, providing him with the destructive power to bring pain and death indiscriminately. And he had accepted it gladly.

There was some comfort in knowing that the Nine Tails hadn't wrestled away full control. He had, after all, retained enough willpower to stop himself as the masked boy's identity was at last revealed, returning him to his senses. But what if the mask had never been broken? What if he had continued to pour his unbridled hatred into a faceless opponent until it wasn't Kakashi's arm impaling the other boy's - Haku's - chest, but Naruto's?

The mere thought sent a shiver down his spine. He had always known, of course, that shinobi, at their core, were trained killers. The arsenal of weapons and techniques at his disposal were there so he could complete any mission, using deadly means if necessary. He should have been prepared for it, the possibility that a life would be taken with his own still-young hands. But upon witnessing such bloodshed in just one day, whether innocent or criminal, he felt his stomach churn at the thought, the idea of the monster living inside of him someday taking away his agency and restraint physically repulsive.

Naruto gulped down several deep breaths. He would have to learn to control it, overpower it. He couldn't allow himself to be so eager to use the fox's power when presented to him, and with more dangerous missions sure to be in his future, the opportunities to do so would surely rise.

Sasuke's cold and lifeless body flashed in his arms. Sakura's tear-stained face. Kakashi's bleeding chest.

"Damn it!"

None of that would have even happened if he hadn't been so weak in the first place. He wouldn't have been caught in an obvious trap, wouldn't have passed out or known the temptations that came with unbridled fury. Wouldn't have watched Sasuke die.

"He's not dead! He's fine!"

But even that wasn't entirely true. "Fine" was a relative term, but most weren't likely to consider having dozens of unnatural holes in their body a state to be thought of as "fine".

The hours following their ordeal on the bridge had been horrifying in their own way. Sasuke could barely stand let alone walk back to Inari's house for proper treatment, and while Naruto's offered shoulder for support may have kept him from collapsing, it was obvious that any pressure put on a needle caused him further pain. And there had been far more needles than it was possible to avoid.

Sasuke's legs were tended to first. He stood, one hand gripping a table while Naruto had hold of the other, a kunai handle wrapped in cloth clenched between his teeth as Kakashi carefully extracted the senbon one by one. Body shaking at the pain and effort to stay upright, Sasuke had grasped his hand so tight his knuckles turned white, muffled grunts of pain only occasionally sneaking past his normally stoic facade. Sakura had been shivering as well, uttering reassurances to both Sasuke and herself as she tried to focus on her task of applying the first aid to the newly opened wounds. It had taken every ounce of effort for Sasuke to not crumple to the floor the second they were done, still shaking as Naruto helped lower him. And that was only his legs.

His shirt had been removed in pieces, allowing for less pull on the senbon and access to the wounds in full. The sight of his small, bare chest, back, neck and arms covered in large needles with thin trails of dried blood leaking from each caused Naruto's breath to hitch in his throat, and Sakura had kept furiously wiping her eyes to keep them dry so she could concentrate properly. The pile of bloody senbon kept growing, achingly slowly but disturbingly large. Sasuke's breath grew more ragged with each extraction, Naruto's hand going numb in his grasp. When Kakashi had finally reached his neck, the kunai had needed to be removed from his mouth as violent coughing fits had begun to dye the fabric red. There was no hiding the agonized gasps and moans after that.

Mere minutes after the last of the bandages had been applied, Sasuke had passed out and was carried to their sleeping quarters by Kakashi. Naruto would never have thought it possible for him to look so young and fragile. Sakura had sat there in a bit of a trance, her gaze remaining on the doorway the rest of their team had left through. A moment passed before she had rather mechanically begun cleaning up the mess, but Inari's mother had stopped her, told her to rest. She would handle it. Said it was the least she could do.

If anyone had noticed that Naruto had managed to come out of the battle completely unscathed despite the many holes in his jacket, they kept it to themselves.

Raising his arm, he pulled back the sleeve to examine his skin. It was clear, unblemished as if he hadn't been in a fight for his very life less than twenty-four hours ago. No puncture wounds, no scratches, not even a bruise marred its surface. A far cry from the state he should have been in. A far cry from the state Sasuke was currently in. He supposed this was another gift of the Nine Tails, another reason to be tempted to unleash its power.

What if they did notice? What if they asked? What if Sasuke asked? Sakura and Kakashi had been distracted by their own life or death matters, but Sasuke, he was there. He had seen him fall unconscious. He had stood in front of his battered and worn out body and taken a blow meant for him because he had been too weak to protect himself. Of all people, Sasuke deserved the truth; he had more than earned that much. But...

"...damn it..."

He was scared. He could take down mob goons, use himself as bait in a deadly trap, and stand up to cold-blooded killers, but the thought of Sasuke, the rival he'd worked so hard to keep a connection with for five years, rejecting him, shunning him, calling him a monster?

"Damn it, damn it, damn it!"

The sudden creak of a footstep signaled that someone was approaching, having managed to sneak up on him while he stewed in his worries. But before he could turn around, Naruto felt a lithe but athletic form slowly lowering, seating itself behind him, and resting its back gingerly against his own with a stifled grunt. In an instant it was as if he was transported to a very different dock, one that lived in his memories as both peaceful companion and stinging rejection.

Which would this be?

"You should be sleeping."

"I slept all day." Sasuke's voice was quiet and raw, but the tone was matter-of-fact, as it usually was.

"Someone bandaged up like a mummy should sleep all day."

Expecting a bit more than the typical non-committal "hn" he received in response, Naruto waited for Sasuke to continue, explain what exactly he was doing there, but seconds turned into minutes with only the sound of light waves to break the silence. He supposed that Sasuke had always preferred peace and quiet, but it wasn't as if he hadn't been getting that back in their room. And coming to sit with Naruto almost assured he wouldn't get it for long.

"...how're you feeling?"

"Fine."

It was Naruto's turn to answer with his own wordless response - an incredulous snort - as he pulled a knee up to his chest and leaned against it, frowning as he stared at the water below. He felt Sasuke shift behind him as well.

"You said so yourself. I'm fine. I'm not dead."

Naruto tensed, unable to stop it despite knowing that Sasuke would likely feel it as well. Inwardly he berated himself on his lack of ability to just simply be quiet thanks to years of conditioning his voice to be as loud and obnoxious as possible. He always seemed to catch someone's attention when he didn't want it. He only hoped he hadn't said anything else out loud that he preferred not be overheard.

"Yeah, well, you coulda been."

"But I'm not."

It was hard to pinpoint what was more infuriating, the words Sasuke was saying or the fact that he was saying them so casually through a raspy, sore throat that had been coughing up blood mere hours ago.

Even so, he couldn't deny the fact that having him there with him, feeling the warmth from his very much alive body, hearing his damaged voice, was doing far more to calm his nerves than sitting and moping alone had done. Naruto didn't exactly have a lot of experience with accepting support from others as it so rarely had been offered, but the comfort another physical human being radiated was greater than he'd ever imagined it'd be.

...was - was that why Sasuke was there?

No, no, no. That was definitely not the reason. But then... maybe? It wasn't impossible, was it? Well, it sure seemed impossible, from Sasuke of all people. But, maybe because it was Sasuke, of all people...

The two weren't friends. They didn't hang out or play together like other kids. Heck, they didn't even train together until they were forced to. And their conversations weren't exactly what others would call cordial, if you could even label their antagonizing as "conversations" in the first place.

But beneath the goading was a strange mutual respect. Over the years an unspoken agreement had seemed to form between them, ever since that day on the dock. Naruto would draw others' attention away from Sasuke, and Sasuke in turn was one of the very few to never bully him. In fact, there had been more than one occasion during which Naruto had suspected Sasuke may have had a hand in decreasing his daily abuse, though he never had been able to prove it.

And after becoming teammates, it felt as if something had changed. Maybe it was due to the fact that they were suddenly forced to actively work together, but Sasuke had seemed... less distant. He was still a brooding loner, of course, but Naruto had noticed him doing things such as offering a hand to pull him to his feet, agreeing to eat lunch with the team, and even once or twice diverting the attention of clients a bit less than thrilled to see a "monster" fulfilling their request onto himself.

Even without any of that, what other possible reason could Sasuke have to drag himself outside and sit purposefully near him only to ignore any attempt at conversation? Because as all of this churned within Naruto's brain, his lone companion sat quietly, seemingly content to simply share a space. If he was about to give him the third degree about what had happened on that bridge, as Naruto had thought he might, he was sure taking his good, sweet time bringing it up.

The longer they sat, the more Naruto felt himself relaxing, the foreign acceptance of comfort turning natural. And the more natural it became, the more he knew how painful it would be if he ever had to give it up.

Naruto looked back down at his unblemished arm. Sasuke was here. He was alive. But it had been due to the compassion of their opponent and nothing else. If he wanted this feeling of comfort to go beyond this singular moment, he couldn't afford to sit idly on a dock cursing the failings of his past.

Nor could he be afraid to use every advantage at his disposal, no matter how volatile.

His fingers curled, clenching into a tight fist.

"I'm gonna get stronger."

There was a shift of movement behind him as his words filled the night air with his resolve, but Sasuke remained silent, listening. Naruto sat straight and looked into the star-filled sky, determination etched into his face.

"I'm gonna train every day until I pass out. I'm gonna keep getting stronger and stronger and stronger so I don't need you to protect me anymore. And even then I'm not gonna stop. Because I swear I'm gonna keep you and Sakura-chan and Kakashi-sensei and all of Konoha safe. I will be the Hokage, and the Hokage has to be strong enough to protect everyone. No matter what."

Lowering his gaze, his voice became thick and heavy as he forced out one final promise.

"I won't just watch you die again."

The stillness of the night gathered around them once again as Naruto's words hung in the air. He had not so long ago made a very similar vow after freezing up at the start of their journey. That one, however, had been sworn out of shame of his own cowardice, watching Sasuke and Sakura risking their lives while he stood by and watched. This one, this one was made with full understanding of what his weakness could lead to and the people that would pay the price for it. The first had been selfish, an inward desire to prove himself, but this new promise was sown for the sake of others, out loud, a witness present to hold him accountable.

His witness slowly got to his feet and, keeping his back to Naruto, broke the silence.

"Catch up to me before thinking about becoming the Hokage."

It wasn't an insult.

It was a challenge.

Naruto grinned.

"Watch me."

Hopping to his feet, he trotted over to where Sasuke had begun slowly limping his way back to Inari's house, pleased to find that his injured teammate didn't protest when he offered himself up as support.

"How'd you even make it out here all by yourself? You can barely walk!" Naruto feigned an exasperated sigh. "You're lucky I'm here to help you get back. You might've fallen straight into the ocean!"

Sasuke did not seem quite so ready to be teased for his predicament.

"You're lucky I don't shove those senbon into you until I figure out why you don't have a scratch on you."

Their walking jolted to a stop as Naruto's fears from earlier suddenly reared to life. He had noticed. Of course he had. There's no way he wouldn't have. There really was no simple way of explaining the mysterious disappearance of over a dozen small holes in his body in a matter of hours, possibly minutes if Sasuke had realized it before they'd even left the unfinished bridge.

But he couldn't tell him the truth. Not yet.

"...can you wait for the answer?"

The question was quiet but firm, and Naruto glanced over to look Sasuke in the eye, refusing to flinch and give away how much weight his response would hold. He returned the gaze, dark eyes searching for something hidden behind the blue, but after only a brief pause, he closed them with a light sigh.

"As long as it doesn't hurt the team, I won't ask."

The tension again eased out of Naruto's shoulders, a smile returning to his face as they resumed their walk back.

"Thanks."

"Hn. Usuratonkachi."

"Jerk."

The decision was made. He would learn to control the Nine Tails, both for his team's sake and his own. Perhaps he would even ask Kakashi about it in the morning. He had never liked secrets, and the sooner he was comfortable sharing one as massive as this the better. Of course, he doubted he would ever truly feel ready for that conversation, but if he had to have it, then the least he could do was make sure he was able to say with confidence that he was, in fact, not a dangerous monster. ____________________________________ 

"Damn it..."

Sasuke absently reached up to rub at the mark on his neck as he headed back toward the stream he and Naruto had caught fish in earlier. Four days - four days they'd been stuck in this giant, monster-ridden forest, and they hadn't so much as attempted to take a scroll from another team. The attack by that Orochimaru had come before they'd had a chance to strategize, leaving them unconscious and open to an ambush by the Sound which in turn left them so injured they needed several days to recuperate. The exam would be over in less then twenty-six hours, and they didn't even have a solid plan.

His fingers massaged his neck as he pulled out the water bottle in order to refill it. He had gotten better at hiding it, but even now a constant, dull pain emanated from the place he'd been bitten. On several occasions he'd caught Sakura staring at him, a look of worry and guilt on her face before forcing a stiff smile. He couldn't stand that look. It made him feel weak, reminded him of how helpless he'd been when faced with a truly deadly opponent. Naruto, however, remained oblivious to the true nature of his injury, Sakura keeping his secret for now. He was grateful for that. The last thing they needed was for all three of them to be distracted with something they couldn't do anything about. The best he could do was to remain alert at all times, ready to deal with any threat as quickly and efficiently as possible.

A serpentine eye peering out from behind a half melted face flashed before his eyes, Sakura petrified, tears streaming down her cheeks, Naruto hanging unconscious.

"...damn it."

Sasuke plunged the water bottle into the stream in frustration. He had to focus. Keeping himself and his teammates safe had to be the priority. He would need them to pass the exam, of course, but more importantly, passing would in turn give them an added layer of protection. A return to D rank missions filled with gardening and babysitting would only lead to impatience, and the more impatient he became, the more enticing the dangerous burst of power from the mark on his neck would seem. The more enticing a new set of eyes would seem.

He had sworn to defeat Itachi without becoming him. He could not allow failure during some survival test to tempt him into doing otherwise.

Clearing his mind of unsettling thoughts, he concentrated on his surroundings, reaching out with his senses for the smallest sign of a threat. He needed to keep his guard up, especially while on his own, and no sooner had he regained his focus than his muscles tensed in anticipation. There was a well-hidden, unknown chakra not far behind him, announcing a presence he'd been too distracted to notice sooner.

Sloppy, careless.

Turning with lightning speed, Sasuke flung the now full bottle in the direction of his silent observer, quickly reaching for more deadly weapons as a follow up. However it wasn't the ease at which his assailant dodged the projectile that worried him. It was the position his hands had been in before Sasuke had forced him to move. His pointer fingers and thumbs had been touching, leaving a triangular hole that he'd been watching Sasuke through with narrowed, hazel eyes.

The Mind Transfer technique, a staple of the Yamanaka clan. He'd seen Ino use it at the academy. But he didn't know much apart from the fact that the user could enter a target's mind, and this wasn't Ino. Had he reacted a second later, his body would already be in another's control, set to easily secure their Earth scroll for the enemy. Leaving Naruto and Sakura, even for the smallest of moments to clear his thoughts, could have doomed them all.

Sloppy.

Careless.

"Damn it!"

Keeping a close eye on his attacker was essential, unsure of how much time such a technique required to complete. Kunai in hand, Sasuke ran at the other boy - a teenager, slightly older than him, with auburn hair pulled into a ponytail, a tanto being unsheathed from his back - intent on forcing his opponent into close quarters hand-to-hand combat. He only hoped this one couldn't use single-handed seals.

The sound of metal clashing against metal rang out as Sasuke knocked away the incoming blow from the tanto. He quickly sent a fierce kick aimed at the other's head, but it was dodged effortlessly and followed up with a slash to his abdomen with the knife, Sasuke nearly unable to back up in time to avoid the attack. Rushing forward once more to make sure his opponent's hands stayed occupied, the two continued to trade blows, but it didn't take long for Sasuke to realize that while the ninja before him may specialize in intelligence gathering through stealth and cunning, his skill with the tanto was far above that of a normal genin. Each attack, each block, each dodge was made with the accuracy and finesse only rigorous training could provide.

He had always been confident in his taijutsu, but his lack of experience with weapons outside of shuriken or kunai left him at a disadvantage when faced with an expert. Normally his solution would be to create distance, relying on his sure aim and misdirection, but such a tactic would risk freeing up his attacker's hands. The increasing cuts in his shirt and sores on his body from the relentless blows were giving him few other options, however, the latest swipe managing to nick his arm. He ignored the trail of blood, concentrating solely on his opponent's movement in search of an opening.

With a determined parry of a slice aimed at his abdomen, Sasuke pushed enough chakra out from the soles of his feet to propel him swiftly away in a backflip that would have been more graceful had the mark on his neck not sent a stab of pain into his shoulder. Grimacing, he fought to remain focused, hands instantly grabbing for several shuriken from his weapons pouch. With practiced ease, the blades flew through the air, and as predicted, the auburn-haired shinobi dodged the seemingly frontal assault. Sasuke smirked, manipulating the shuriken's path with the attached wire like a skillful puppet master, sending it around a nearby tree with the intent to bind his nimble opponent to it.

A burned face, jaw slack and eyes wide, melted away, turning to mud, leaving merely a scarred tree trunk and loose wire as the same snake-like figure rose from the branch in front of him, baring its fangs, neck elongating as he could only stand there, paralyzed -

A roar of frustration left him as the hesitation from the terrifying memory was just enough to allow his prey to escape his trap, running not at him but toward the surrounding foliage. He was trying to hide, attack from the shadows. Sasuke couldn't allow it.

The Sharingan at last blazed to life in his eyes, his opponent's movements seeming to slow instantly. However no sooner had he reached to grab another kunai then his whole body seized up, sharp pain like lightning shooting out from his neck, tightening his muscles, holding him in place. He could feel the mark burning, the scabbed bite wounds throbbing, but no cry escaped his constricted throat, and his lungs refused to expand. His skin was on fire, every beat of his heart pure torture.

He could smell the putrid breath from the demonic head on the twisting neck, see the saliva hungrily glistening on its sharp teeth -

"A proud Uchiha, paralyzed with fear? Surprising. But it will make my mission that much easier to complete."

His attacker's first words sounded distant, blood pounding in his ears as if demanding to be freed from his fragile body. He gasped for air, silently begging for the pain to stop, for his body to move. But neither did as he wanted. He was frozen in place once again, merely waiting for the final blow, incapable of saving himself, let alone others.

"Sasuke!"

A warm, firm back bumped up against his own, a ringing of struck metal and grunt of annoyance proof that for once, Naruto had arrived just in time. His eyes returned to black, feeling slowly returning to his limbs as air filled his lungs. He leaned into the comforting presence behind him.

"Late as always."

"Hah! Thought maybe you drowned. Shoulda known you'd need me to bail you out!"

Sasuke allowed himself to crumple to the ground as the familiar popping sound of multiple shadow clones appearing from thin air met his ears.

"Sasuke-kun!"

Sakura appeared at his side, looking at him with that same expression full of worry he hated so much. As Naruto left to confront his attacker, she reached out to steady him. He didn't have the strength to push her away.

"Are you alright? I knew it shouldn't have been taking so long! We should have been here sooner! Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine."

Her anxious expression told him that she didn't believe his words.

"It's that mark again, isn't it?"

He didn't answer, shamefully realizing that he'd subconsciously been rubbing at his neck since collapsing. There was some relief as her eyebrows furrowed in consternation at his stubbornness. Any look was preferred to her pity.

"Sasu-"

"Where's Naruto?"

Pushing himself back to his feet with Sakura's help, his eyes fell upon multiple Naruto's engaged with the mysterious shinobi, puffs of smoke dissipating into the air as he expertly cut down clone after clone. It was unsurprising that Naruto's taijutsu abilities were no match, having always been a step behind his own, but the sheer amount of shadow clones had at least done the job of buying enough time for backup. The three of them would be sufficient for their single opponent. What worried him was the idea of two more waiting with a well-timed ambush.

"He can use the Yamanaka clan's Mind Transfer technique." Sasuke lightly pushed away from Sakura as he drew some more shuriken, noting the look of recognition on her face. "His teammates were probably waiting to use that to their advantage before showing themselves. We can't be careless when dealing with him."

The confident smile he got in return was not what he had expected.

"That technique has to be precise," she said, arming herself with a kunai. "If he were to miss his target, his body would be at our mercy for over a minute. It's best used on a stationary target, so as long as all three of us can keep moving, he won't be able to use it."

Sasuke knew that he shouldn't have been surprised. She had always been the only one to consistently beat him when it came to written tests, and on top of that she and Ino had at one point been close friends. And yet her weak points, a distinct lack of physical ability and stamina compared to even the other females in their class, always seemed to overshadow her strengths in his mind. Taking in her newly shortened hair and still healing wounds from when she had watched over both him and Naruto, he nodded back at her, resolving to finally stop underestimating the third member of his team.

"Then let's move."

Hiding the lingering discomfort, Sasuke took off at a run, quickly scaling a nearby tree in order to support Naruto's frontal attack from above. He noticed Sakura hesitate for a fraction of a second, glancing his way before dashing off to flank their opponent from the opposite direction, a look of determination on her face. She was trusting him, believing he'd keep it together despite the somewhat alarming state they'd found him in. He could only do the same for her.

The number of clones had dwindled drastically in the time it had taken Sasuke to regain his composure and use of limbs, but five Narutos were still fighting valiantly as his shuriken began raining down. The assault hadn't been entirely unexpected, their foe dodging both the projectiles and Naruto's punches with relative ease. The late addition of a kunai from the direction the ninja had been heading had their foe backflipping out of the way, using chakra to kick off from a large, gnarled tree as he barreled into one of the remaining clones with his tanto. Seeing his opening, Sasuke grabbed a kunai and jumped, managing to repay his attacker for the nick on his arm with a slice of his own as the ninja attempted to roll out of the way.

"Hey, hey, not leaving so soon, are we?"

Naruto struck their opponent with a forceful kick, a sinister grin spreading across his face, but the unknown shinobi retained his calm demeanor. Too late Sasuke recognized a quick series of hand seals, and in a burst of smoke, the enemy ninja's body was replaced by one of Naruto's who blinked up at his original and Sasuke in surprise.

"Over there! He used Substitution!"

Sasuke bolted before Sakura even had a chance to finish her warning, giving chase to the quickly retreating tanto wielder.

"Stay focused! It might be an ambush, but we can't let him out of our sight!"

The fleeing ninja was fast, and the effort to keep up was making his neck throb. He could hear Naruto and his three remaining clones crashing through the forest behind him, Sakura's much quieter pursuit a bit further back. Gritting his teeth, Sasuke's eyes darted around. With all the noise, there was more to worry about than just one potential team of three, and they didn't have the time nor the energy to waste.

A cry from Naruto, however, forced him to halt in his tracks, whirling his head around right as one of the four crashed into a tree and clutched his arm in pain. The blow had come from a topless male figure wearing a strange mask, a tanto strapped to his back. His skin looked as if patches of it had been dyed an unhealthy purple.

"Ahhh! Wh-what is - "

Sasuke watched as terrified horror washed over the struck Naruto's face, the injured hand he held up shaking violently as it too turned purple before starting to bubble, as if it were being boiled from the inside. A vice seemed to tighten around Sasuke's heart until at last, with a loud pop and hiss, the clone disappeared. The screams of pain, however, continued to echo throughout the forest surrounding them.

"Don't let this guy touch you!"

Ripping his attention away from the now unoccupied space, Sasuke looked up to see the three remaining Narutos all frantically dodging the newcomer's punches.

"That purple stuff is, I dunno, poison or something! Don't let it get on you!"

Unlike the auburn-haired shinobi, this one seemed to prefer weaponless fighting, his strikes powerful but lacking the same finesse. The comparison, however, instantly reminded Sasuke of the dangers of standing still for too long, and praying that Naruto was fast and skilled enough to stay out of their new opponent's reach, he again took to the trees, jumping through the branches as he searched for any sign of the ninja they'd been following.

It didn't take long to find him. Below in a small clearing less than fifty yards from where Naruto and the purple-skinned ninja were fighting were not one but two tanto-wielding figures. The attacker with auburn hair was speaking to another slightly younger male with black hair and pale skin who was dipping an enormous paint brush into ink. A half-finished painting of a tiger adorned a large, unfurled scroll in front of him.

" - no more time. If capture is no longer possible, then - "

Sasuke didn't wait to hear their conversation; the element of surprise was too precious a commodity. Drawing more shuriken, he threw several down at the shinobi and another with wire attached toward a branch opposite him, correctly anticipating the one he had fought earlier to skillfully dodge backwards as Sasuke swung from his hidden perch, aiming for that spot. His foot collided with his opponent's jaw, and he quickly followed it up with a series of punches and kicks, forcing the other to block with no time to draw the tanto on his back. Sasuke's attention, however, was divided, with one eye on the third member of the team at all times. The black-haired boy's lack of concern for his teammate, swiftly returning to his painting instead of defending him, was more disconcerting than if he had joined the fray. He either trusted in his comrade's capabilities, or that tiger was a far greater threat than it appeared. Likely both were true.

Sweat covered his body as each jab, each kick seemed to drain him of a lot more energy than usual. His shoulders felt heavy, a stinging pain shooting into his neck, while his opponent deftly absorbed his blows. This wasn't working. His attacks were wearing himself down faster than they were his enemy, and the painting would be finished soon. He needed to be precise, quick, create an opening.

He needed his Sharingan.

His heart pounded at the thought, remembering what had happened mere minutes earlier when he'd attempted to use it. He desperately wanted to believe that the timing had been a fluke, that his most powerful weapon wasn't locked away behind a wall of suffocating paralysis. Behind that cursed mark. But the feeling of his chest and muscles tightening, the inability to even gasp for air was fresh in his mind, and that made him hesitate, and the more he hesitated, the closer the tiger came to completion.

The fourth leg showed the beast ready to pounce.

Punch, punch, kick, punch, block.

His lungs were constricting; he couldn't breathe.

The tail was added with a graceful flourish.

Kick, dodge, counter, punch, punch.

His veins were on fire, the pain utterly debilitating.

The stripes were added one by one, the tail the last area left -

A loud clink pulled his gaze fully away from his current opponent and toward the painting shinobi where the ink pot now lay tipped over, its black contents spilling out and marring the tiger's snarling jaws. A kunai rested near it, and glancing up, he saw Sakura running to engage the painter.

His moment of distraction cost him. A swift kick to his gut sent Sasuke tumbling to the ground, knocking his head against a thick tree trunk.

"Sasuke-kun!"

Blinking the stars out of his eyes, he quickly wobbled to his feet, doing everything in his power to brace himself for another blow. But no blow came. Instead, the auburn-haired ninja was darting away from him, heading toward -

"Keep them busy. I'll make sure the other one can't interrupt."

- toward Naruto.

"Damn it!"

Sasuke immediately made to follow, fearing it would be impossible for Naruto to survive a concentrated assault from both the tanto expert and poison user, but something caught him around the ankle, causing him to fall back to the hard ground. Turning to look, a strange black and white snake was wrapping its way around his leg, and a quick glance showed several more springing from a small scroll in the painter's hands. His paintings were coming to life, and if snakes six feet long were coming from such a small scroll, he was grateful he never had to lay witness to the tiger.

With a growl of impatience, Sasuke grabbed a kunai from his pouch, but before he could use it, another flew from Sakura's hand, hitting its mark and dispelling the snake instantly.

"Go!" She fended off her own snake before landing another hit on one of the three headed in his direction. "I can take care of this - help Naruto!"

He hesitated only a fraction of a second before nodding his thanks and racing after the fleeing ninja, kunai still in hand. His limbs ached, begging him to stop and rest, but instead he pushed on harder, faster. He had to make it in time. Naruto's life was at stake, and if the painter was anywhere near the level of his teammates, Sakura would be in danger as well. He had to find a way to end this and soon.

The dead bodies of his parents, his clan spurred him forward. He couldn't lose anyone else.

The auburn-haired ninja had vanished into the forest, but at last, up ahead he saw a flash of orange propelling itself from tree to tree, dodging purple projectiles of some sort and firing kunai back in turn.

"Did you seriously just try to hit me with a frog? Ha! Idiot!"

Naruto's obnoxious voice ringing through the forest for once gave Sasuke a slight sense of relief. There was still time. Just a little farther.

But then it clicked. The purple-skinned ninja's attacks weren't as random as they initially seemed. He was driving Naruto, leading him toward a large tree that had snapped in half, a hollow space in the trunk well hidden amongst its dead branches. A single remaining sturdy limb protruded near the shadowed opening, a brief glint of metal the only indication of the danger lying in wait. Heart pounding, Sasuke watched as his teammate leapt toward the branch, oblivious to the trap about to be sprung.

The nightmarish vision that played in his mind ever since that fateful night five years ago - the blood of loved ones coating the blade that struck them down and spattering like fireworks across the ground - was about to no longer be a memory.

"Naruto!"

He wasn't going to make it. Unless his timing was perfect, more spilled blood would be added to his grisly collection. That couldn't happen. No matter the cost.

Forcing chakra out through the soles of his feet, Sasuke launched into the air, Sharingan burning red in his eyes right as the ambusher raised his weapon to strike. Time seemed to slow as upon reaching the branch, Sasuke barged into Naruto, pushing him out of the blade's path, blocked the tanto with his kunai, and struck their attacker in the chin with his palm, sending him falling toward the ground below.

Sasuke could sense the pain coming as if he were a lightning rod in a storm, managing to land safely on the ground right as his muscles seized up for the second time that day. The hand he had braced against the tree was rigid, his body trembling as his lungs once again refused to expand, black dots forming in front of his vision. It felt as if the only way to end the agonizing torture was to give in to it.

"Sasuke!"

Naruto's voice was the last thing he heard before the pain suddenly dulled. It wasn't a slow easing of suffering like last time, however, and some part of him knew that his body had not yet been released from its paralyzed state. Instead it felt as if he had relinquished control, retreated further into his mind to escape the torment.

But someone else was still feeling it.

A silent scream was vibrating around him, the pitch both earsplittingly shrill and impossibly deep. The one suffering in his place wanted to writhe and claw at his throat, but found his limbs frozen and useless. With a last futile gasp for air, the other voice stilled, and darkness swallowed them both.

A stabbing pain in his neck caused his eyes to fly open once more, his lungs gulping the air around him hungrily. He collapsed to his knees, limbs again having gone numb, allowing the trunk of the tree to keep him from falling prone. Body still shaking, he turned his head just enough to see the auburn-haired shinobi lying face down a few feet away. He appeared to be unconscious.

"Watch out!"

The warning from Naruto could merely act as harbinger of what was sure to be his very painful demise. Sasuke didn't need to look up to know the ninja whose body was somehow poisonous to the touch had decided to focus on the easy, downed target, and as much as he begged and pleaded for his legs to move, move, move, his body had not yet recovered enough to obey.

The mark on his neck burned, extending its foul miasma, hissing of his weakness, promising brutal death to those that would dare attempt to cut his life short.

He needed more strength, more power. He had to survive, to live on to complete his goal, to avenge his clan, his family. Double-edged sword it might be, but the curse on his neck could provide him with what he needed.

...just this once.

He could give in just this -

"Sasuke!!"

The forest was suddenly flooded with chakra, deep and ancient. It wasn't like anything Sasuke had ever felt before, its oppressive nature barely controlled, fighting to run wild. A searing heat seemed to boil the very air, and the weight of it pressed him harder against the tree until suddenly it vanished. Manifesting in its place were dozens if not hundreds of Narutos, circling him, creating a protective barrier between him and the promise of death.

"You aren't laying a finger on him, you bastard!"

Sasuke could only stare in shock as one after another the clones threw themselves upon the ninja with purple skin, sacrificing their existence for a single, solid blow each. But as stunning and incredible as the spectacle was, relief, pride and jealousy all churning within him at the gaudy display of will and stamina, a lingering unease clung to his insides.

He had known Naruto for years, paid far more attention to him than anyone knew or he cared to admit. They'd been assigned to the same team, going on missions and training together for months now. He had witnessed Naruto gathering and using chakra countless times.

The chakra that had saved him wasn't Naruto's.

There was no doubt that it had come from Naruto - the plan to simply outlast his enemy with an army of shadow clones could come from no one else. But Naruto's chakra had always been bright, mischievous, and obstinate. There was almost a warmth to it, like rays from the sun. If asked to visualize it, he'd describe it as a neon yellow, a color generally associated with cheerfulness turned up to an insufferable degree. But this chakra had been red, a dark crimson filled with anger, hatred, and torment. The utter wrongness of such heavy energy bringing so many Narutos to life was unsettling; he didn't want to think of what hidden part of the outwardly hyperactive facade such fearsome chakra had come from.

"What the heck was that? You'd think you wanted the guy to poison you or something!"

The words were meant to come across as their typical casual ribbing, but the worry lacing them drew Sasuke's attention out of his thoughts and onto the figure crouched beside him. Naruto - the original, he assumed - wasn't doing a very good job of hiding his concern, wearing a look very similar to the one Sakura had been directing at him the past two days. Sasuke instantly broke eye contact, anger and shame filling him as his legs still refused to support his weight, gripping his neck so tight his fingernails were digging into his skin.

A warm hand settled on his back.

"Hey, you ok? What happened? Why're you - "

"I'm fine."

The words were an obvious lie. All the defiance in the world couldn't mask the fact that his body was still quivering, heart still pounding, lungs still gasping. Couldn't mask the fact that he was weak.

"Sasuke - "

A yell of frustration put them both back on full alert, the number of Narutos having already severely dwindled as their opponent aggressively fought against the onslaught. The damage he was taking from each clone, however, was beginning to add up. Cuts from kunai covered his arms and chest, and his breathing was labored, sweat dripping down his chin. But still he continued, slowly working his way toward his actual targets.

With a grunt of pain and stiffness, Sasuke at last made it to his feet, Naruto quickly reaching down to help support him. Doing everything in his power to keep his hand from shaking, he reached into his pouch to fish out one of his last remaining shuriken.

"Lead him to this tree."

Naruto passed him a confused look until he glanced down and noticed the wire attached to the weapon in his hand. Understanding brightened his face, and with a confident nod, a group of clones clustered in front of them, blocking the view of their approaching foe. As one of the clones assumed Sasuke's crippled form - a sight that further deepened his shame as he saw firsthand how completely helpless he appeared - the two originals slowly backed away from the tree, slinking into nearby shadows to lie in wait for their opening.

It didn't take long for the purple-skinned ninja to barge his way back into view, eyes locking instantly with the fakes that had been left behind. Sasuke raised his arm, and as their opponent's fist connected with their decoys, used every ounce of energy he had left to send the shuriken flying around the trunk, grimacing in pain as he used the wire to guide it until their enemy was pulled flat against the tree, wrapped in place. Naruto reached out to help steady his shaking hands and pull the line taught until the body jerking to free itself finally stilled.

"I see. You have already defeated my companions."

Both boys' heads whirled around to face the indifferent sounding voice. The painter Sakura had been holding off was sitting on the back of a large black and white bird, sweat mixing with the mud and ink staining his pale skin. What few remained of Naruto's clones took position between them, the newcomer barely seeming to notice as he glanced impassively at his fallen teammates. With a hand, he reached back and pulled both a Heaven and an Earth scroll from his pouch.

"These are what you are after, correct? Do you still need one?"

Sasuke's eyes narrowed while Naruto blinked in surprise.

"Uh, yeah, we - "

"The Heaven scroll."

They watched the other boy pocket his Earth scroll again while he held out the Heaven scroll toward them, neither his countenance nor posture showing any sign of nerves or resentment.

"I will give it to you if you allow our retreat."

"Sai!"

Sasuke kept as tight a hold as he could on the wire as the captive shinobi began to writhe once again, but the painter had already tossed the scroll at their feet.

"You two are in no condition to continue, and I have very little chakra left myself while this one - " he nodded toward Naruto and his clones, " - seems to have more than enough to spare. Their companion will likely be along shortly as well. We have failed in our objective. The belief that an alternative outcome would be acceptable without proper orders is not an assumption I am willing to make."

Without waiting for confirmation of their agreement, the boy apparently named Sai casually walked over to the ninja with the auburn hair and hoisted him onto the back of the giant bird, Sasuke watching him apprehensively the entire way, preparing for the double cross. However once he and his unconscious companion were appropriately situated, the bird began to flap its wings, hovering just low enough to the ground that its claws could reach out and grip around the arms of their remaining teammate.

"Would you mind loosening his bindings? I don't need the entire tree."

"Oh. Uh, sure. I guess."

Naruto let go of the wire, and lacking the strength to continue holding on alone, Sasuke followed suit, allowing it to fall slack around their captive. He braced himself for an assault, but as promised, once freed, the bird took hold of the disgruntled third team member and lifted them all into the air. With a last glance their way, Sai directed the bird upwards, steadily rising until they cleared the tree tops and were out of sight.

The look of confusion that had taken up residence on Naruto's face finally melted away into a cocky grin.

"Heh, yeah, that's right! Beat it, you bastards! I'll let you off easy this time, but if I so much as - "

"Sasuke-kun! Naruto!"

The sound of his missing teammate's voice was enough to finally lift the weight of anxiety that had settled in his stomach ever since he was first ambushed. Adrenaline fading, he felt his knees buckle from exhaustion, nearly taking both him and Naruto to the ground with his dead weight.

"Hey!"

"Sasuke-kun!"

Sakura hovered beside him as Naruto carefully lowered him to the ground. His legs felt like they were made of jelly, and the mark was still sending arcs of pain through his neck and shoulders. Closing his eyes, he concentrated on his breathing - inhale through the nose, exhale through the mouth - trying to bring his heart rate back under control while desperately trying to block out the worry he'd seen etched into their faces.

"Geez, Sasuke, what's wrong with you today? That's the second time you just kinda went all rigid in the middle of a fight. I can't be expected to save your butt all the time, you know!"

The same hint of concern he'd heard woven into Naruto's previous words was back, loosely hidden under a thin layer of bravado. It crawled through Sasuke's ear and down his spine, reminding him that it was there because he was weak, powerless in the face of a tiny, black mark on his neck. He was subconsciously rubbing it again. Both hands were moved to his lap, fingers curling into tight fists.

"I'm fine."

"Sasuke-kun."

He couldn't help glancing up at Sakura at the quiet call of his name. The worry, the pity was expected, but there was also a determination on her face that caused his eyes to linger as she opened her mouth to continue.

"Secrets shouldn't be kept from your teammates."

His gaze hardened, but Sakura refused to look away.

"Secrets? What secrets?"

Naruto didn't need to know. It would only cause him to worry more, and Sasuke was already getting enough of that from Sakura. He didn't need their concern, and there was no one he wanted pity from less than the person whose back he was begrudgingly starting to associate with comfort and stability.

"Nothing."

"Sasu - !"

"I said it's nothing!"

Sakura snapped her mouth shut as if he'd slapped her. Her eyebrows remained furrowed, but with a defeated sigh she eventually turned away, leaving a pit of guilt in his stomach. The uneasy silence that followed felt like it stretched on for hours, the tension palpable.

Only one hand was still in his lap. He was massaging the mark again.

"As long as it doesn't hurt the team, I won't ask."

Naruto's words hung thick in the air as memories of a quiet, painful night in the Land of Waves washed over Sasuke, where two boys sought comfort in the other's presence under a blanket of stars after a terrifyingly brutal day. The mystery surrounding Naruto's miraculously fast healing had as of yet gone unsolved, but in the months that followed, not once had there been any indication that whatever Naruto was hiding was a threat to those around him. Even today, whatever that sinister chakra was, its appearance had very likely saved his life.

It was a truth he couldn't in good conscience keep denying. Naruto's secrets were his own and no one else's. Sasuke's was a burden that belonged to every member of Team Seven, whether they knew it or not. And the longer it took for them to find out, the heavier and more deadly it would become.

Head bowed, Sasuke took a deep breath as he reached for the cowl of his shirt and tugged it aside, arching his neck so the mark would be plainly visible. Naruto cautiously leaned in, eyes widening as they fell upon the three black tomoe.

"What the heck is that? Where'd it come from? And what - are - are those bite marks?"

Quickly shielding it from view once more, Sasuke studied the rocky ground for fear of closing his eyes and seeing the melting face with sharp fangs behind closed eyelids, bile rising in his throat as the answers pushed their way past his lips.

"Orochimaru, he... did something to me. The mark reacts to my chakra somehow, causing pain whenever I use it. The Sharingan especially. Activating it for even a second causes my muscles to seize up."

"Wait, that creepy snake guy did this? But, why?"

It's a gift. Sasuke-kun will come to me seeking power.

"I don't know. It is powerful - it activated once, gave me strength I'd never had before, but - " His eyes darted towards Sakura. " - but I can't control it, and if I try to use it again, it's possible it could take control of my mind."

Naruto cocked an eyebrow and frowned as he crossed his arms.

"When did that happen? And whaddya mean it could 'take control' of your mind? Is he, I mean, can he, like, make you do stuff or something?"

"It happened while you were unconscious two days ago." Sakura answered the question, her green eyes glancing in Sasuke's direction nervously as she continued. "The mark activated somehow, and Sasuke-kun was... he wasn't acting like himself. But as soon as it stopped, he was back to normal."

Her last words were pushed out quickly but forcefully as if to assure herself that the situation was not as alarming as it sounded. Sasuke hoped that it worked on her. It hadn't worked on him, the pain in his neck having returned to a dull throb, constantly beating out a reminder of the mark's existence.

Looking back and forth between the pair of them, Naruto unfolded his arms, rubbing a hand nervously over his stomach. Sasuke didn't like that the frown remained in place. It didn't suit him.

"So... so if you use any chakra at all... you'll either be suddenly paralyzed or start acting super weird?"

The simple and straightforward summary barely seemed to scratch the surface of everything the cursed mark had done - and would continue to do - to him, but such details were best kept to himself. Sakura had been right; Naruto needed to know how it affected the team, but he didn't need to know the full extent of both the physical and mental torture he'd experienced so far. That burden was his alone to bear.

Sasuke sat up straight, met his gaze, and nodded.

"Yeah."

A silence filled the air between them following his answer, allowing the implications of his predicament to fully sink in. Finally, after a deep breath, Naruto abruptly jumped to his feet with a grin that didn't quite reach his eyes, roughly smacking Sasuke's back.

"Well, then it's a good thing I've got plenty of chakra for both of us! We've already got the scrolls we need, so all we have to do is head to the tower - easy!"

Holding in a wince, Sasuke swiped away the offending hand as Naruto held up the Heaven scroll for Sakura to see.

"You got their scroll! That's amazing!" Relief shone in her face before quickly being replaced by a light scowl as she bonked Naruto on the head. "But that still doesn't make it easy! You can't just use Sasuke-kun's Sharingan for him, and there might be more people desperate for a scroll waiting in ambush! We'll have to make sure we stay on alert the entire way there. We can't afford to run into anyone else right now."

Her glance in his direction did not go unnoticed. Heat crawled along his skin, disgust and embarrassment for his current burdensome state thankfully overlooked as Naruto continued to predict their assured victory. Their conversation faded into background noise as thoughts of his vulnerability plagued him, mocking and berating his open display of weakness. The battle hadn't even lasted that long and yet he could barely move, unable to overcome the effects of the mark.

He hadn't been strong enough to handle the situation alone. He'd needed others to save him.

His father would be too ashamed to call him his son if he had still been alive to do so.

"Hey, Sasuke?"

Naruto's voice broke through his thoughts, dragging him back to the present where he noticed that the other boy had again sat down next to him while Sakura seemed to be hunting for salvageable weapons. Turning to face the one addressing him, Sasuke found his blue eyes instead locked on Sakura who was pocketing a stray kunai. Naruto seemed strangely subdued after his loud boasting, his mouth pressed into a thin line, hand again clutching at his stomach.

"When this whole exam is over, can - can we talk? There's something I wanna tell you."

A blink was the only outward sign that the request had taken Sasuke by surprise, hiding his curiosity behind years of experience at keeping himself closed off from others. When he spoke, his voice was even and apathetic.

"Does this have anything to do with the strange chakra you used to make a hundred clones today?"

Naruto's body tensed visibly at the question, and at last he tore his gaze away from Sakura to shoot a nervous grin his direction, anxiously scratching the back of his head.

"Guess that was pretty obvious, huh?" Sasuke's eyes bore into him, and when he refused to offer up a response, Naruto sighed and continued. "It's not - well, it doesn't affect the team or anything, not really, but - but I just - you trusted me with all this Orochimaru stuff. That - it - I mean, it means a lot. To me. And I want you to know that - that I trust you, too."

The frank admission caused conflicting emotions to collide violently within Sasuke's chest. That part of him that would likely forever be that lonely little boy crying over the loss of his entire clan felt lighter, warmer, stronger than it had in years. Despite the belief that such an acknowledgement was unearned, Naruto had offered it up freely anyway. His words had nothing to do with his worth as an Uchiha or a shinobi, but merely his existence as Sasuke. Naruto had somehow always been the one to see that side of him.

But he also knew that there was nothing more treacherous than being trusted by someone so completely. Mere minutes ago he had nearly given in to the temptation of the power Orochimaru's gift provided, despite only having an inkling of the rewards and consequences. Imagine if, under the control of the dark curse placed upon him, he gave in to another temptation, a temptation for powers he knew could match Itachi's. Or if one day he was at such a loss that he didn't even need Orochimaru's influence to convince him to heed his brother's parting words. If today had proven anything, it was how far he had yet to go to reach his goal, and knowing that someone had such trust in a person made them an easy target. It was the last lesson his brother had taught him.

His face, impassive as ever, showed no signs of the war waging within him. Instead he did his best to bury all emotions, all of his doubts and fears in the deepest depths of his soul. He simply couldn't worry about it now. There was too much at stake, too much else that needed to be dealt with in the single remaining day of the test. Shifting his position, Sasuke turned away from Naruto, resting his weight fully against the other boy's back as he closed his eyes, shamefully seeking a comfort he knew he didn't deserve.

"You'll tell me after the exam?"

Naruto's response was instant and resolute. "Yeah."

"Then let me rest so we can hurry up and get out of here."

An annoyed huff met his ears.

"Jerk."

"Usuratonkachi."

As Sasuke sat quietly, Naruto behind him and Sakura close by, he silently cursed his cruel fate, that the only two people capable of making him feel safe were also the two people who never should have so willingly offered him their trust. ____________________________________ 

A/N: I almost put a "believe it" in here and that thought slightly horrifies me. Also my ff.net account is officially 20 years old! Should I be proud or ashamed? lol

As always, critics and grammar police are appreciated!