Chapter 17

"Whoever fights monsters should see that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you."

They met again in the other dimension. The first thing he noticed was an unusual amount of fog and blackish smoke on their makeshift battlefield. Even for this place, it was extreme. Sasuke could see that there were many people in the other group—definitely fifty, maybe more—but he couldn't make out their faces. He couldn't see the outlines of the white river in the distance.

Suddenly one of the smaller wolves ran off. Sasuke recognized Hinata. She'd been frightened by something. Well, Hell could do that to a person—or wolf, apparently. But still, he'd warned them about sticking together no matter what. Damn it.

Sasuke was the first to catch up to her, before she could get too far. They rolled over in the white dust, the wolf pinning him down with her legs.

"Hinata," he said very calmly, trying to ignore the fact that she was snarling at him and her fangs were really intimidating, "we need to fight, remember? And I'm not the enemy. We need to do this, for Naruto…"

Well apparently that was the key word. Something changed in her gray eyes and she let go of him. They walked back together toward their group. Deidara sent them a glance but said nothing. She stayed really close to Sasuke, like a dog with its owner. Still frightened, but determined.

For a moment everything was still. A storm was coming. They could smell it in the air. It was like electricity crackling all around. Waiting to burst. Sasuke thought he heard thunder roaring but it was faint.

Then it seemed everyone started talking at once. Louis—fucking Louis was here—stepped forward in between their two groups.

"What is he doing here?" Deidara asked. He'd already unfolded his massive feathery wings and now he unsheathed his long, sharp white blade.

"I'll be the referee," Louis answered.

Temari and Sasori had stepped out of the dark smoke. Temari was pointing at Kurama.

"What I want to know is, what is that doing here?"

Kurama didn't answer because, well, he was a fox. But he seemed to glow with renewed energy. There was a warm, bright aura about him, and he clashed in this darkness. He looked like something that didn't belong here. Nevertheless, Sasuke was glad to have him by his side.

"Very good question," Sasori added sharply. He had deployed his wings as well. All black, with the occasional brown feather.

There was another roar of thunder. And lightning pierced the black sky somewhere in the distance. The wolves were nervous, but they held their ground. Black smoke curled around their legs, but it wasn't hurting them.

Sasuke leaned closer to Deidara. "What's with all the black stuff?"

"That's Sasori. He likes to create an atmosphere."

"Great."

"Why is there a referee?" Deidara said much louder. "There's never a referee. There are no rules."

"That doesn't change, mate," Sasori said like he wanted to make fun of Deidara's accent. Their groups were about ten feet from one another. "There are no rules. Louis jut wanted to be here. He's our new leader, after all, and New York is an important city."

New leader?

Sasuke was craning his neck, trying to see Naruto in that crowd, among all that smoke. Stupid Sasori with his smoke. He couldn't see him. Couldn't see Sai, either. Was that good or bad? Was Naruto okay? He saw Ino, though. She was in there. Just like the others, she looked brain dead. Just like Temari's brothers, Sasuke thought as he saw them both, standing just behind their sister. The tall one and the smaller one; Kankuro and Gaara, he remembered. They looked like zombies. Pale, drained. She had done this to her own siblings. To so many people. And she would do it again. Sasuke took out his sword, the obsidian blade gleaming in the darkness. He had to stop her tonight. He had to. The hilt of his sword, with the small red snake carved around it, cut into his hand from clutching it too hard. But he didn't care. He welcomed the pain. It calmed him.

"The new leader?" Deidara was saying. "When did that happen? I wasn't asked to vote."

"Maybe your vote isn't important," Sasori retorted.

Very mature of him.

Another roar of thunder. This time, the wind rose with it, cold and harsh and carrying the smell of rain along with the familiar scent of burning and ashes.

Louis stepped forward, pointing an accusing finger toward Kurama, much like Temari had done before.

"It should be against the rules. He shouldn't be here. These fights ought to be more rigorously regulated, and I will not stand for—"

Deidara and Sasori spoke at once. "Shut up, Louis."

"There are no rules," Deidara said again in a lower voice. He leaned in to speak to Sasuke. His light blue eyes looked straight ahead, as clear as Sasuke had ever seen them. "This is life or death, mate. Don't screw up."

"I won't." He clutched his sword with both hands.

It was starting, just as lightning stroke once more. And with it came the rain, pouring hard. Immediately Suigetsu and Kiba flanked Sasuke's sides, raising their swords. They were nervous but they were placing his life before theirs. Sasuke's chest tightened painfully. What if something happened to them? That was on him.

He just wished he could protect everyone. This was insane. He couldn't believe they were actually doing this. And where the fuck was Naruto? He couldn't see him anywhere. His eyes raked Temari's army through the rain, trying to locate him in that crowd of empty-eyed people.

Don't screw up.

He'd wanted to sound confident. But he didn't feel confident at all. He was actually really worried. If he could just find a way to end this quickly. To lessen the damage. He didn't want anyone to die. Well, okay, maybe Sasori and Temari. And maybe Sai. But the others—

He heard a voice in his head, cutting through his thoughts just like lightning pierced the sky.

You need more power.

He'd heard it before. Your brother never used it. Will you? It was the same voice. A shudder ran through him. The battle was starting. The five wolves leaped forward, all fangs and claws, their black fur all wet in this rain. Suigetsu and Kiba were saying something to him but he couldn't hear.

I can give you so much power.

Yeah. Fuck. Whatever. He needed it. He was desperate here.

He breathed in sharply as he felt something rip through him. At first it was painful, but then it felt amazing. Like an adrenaline rush. Kiba and Suigetsu were shouting at him.

"Sasuke, snap out of it."

"Focus, man."

His friends were forced to part when they got attacked by two people from the opposite team. Temari's people had weapons; swords, knives, some of them even had guns. But apparently they weren't very good shots because no one had dropped to the ground yet. Sasuke saw the werewolves going for the ones with the guns to bite at their arms until they dropped their weapons. Smart.

Shit. Kankuro and Gaara were on him. They had no weapons, but they teamed up against him. He tried to fight back, but he wasn't quick enough. The ground was slippery. Almost right away the tall, dark-haired one—Kankuro—knocked his sword out of his grasp with a kick. And already Gaara was grabbing his throat, trying to strangle him. Fuck, Gaara might be small but he sure was strong. Sasuke was on his knees, choking. His slippery hands pushed at Gaara's arm but it was like steel closing around his neck. Well, this was not good.

Take more power. Give in.

And he did. It was so simple. He just closed his eyes, saw red for a moment, and when he opened them again everything was so much clearer. The rain didn't matter anymore. Time seemed to slow down. It was that feeling again. Like nothing could stop him.

He was stronger, and faster. His movements were more precise and calculated.

Sasuke just grabbed Gaara's arm, and he tugged at it sharply. As Sasuke got back up, his knee clashed with Gaara's stomach, knocking the air right out of him. Then he turned and stopped Kankuro's kick mid-air. It was like his opponents were moving sluggishly and slowly all of a sudden. Sasuke's hand curled into a fist and he punched Kankuro in the face, sending him down next to his brother in a splatter of rain.

Slowly, he breathed in and out. The thunder sounded different—less threatening. The colors were different. Brighter. Nothing was black and white anymore. He could see everyone.

Louis was watching with his permanent scowl. Like he was watching a movie that was disappointing him. He could've been sitting on a couch with popcorn. Sasuke saw the wolves fighting humans. He knew the wolves weren't trying to kill them. Just to stop them for long enough. It wasn't necessary to kill them. They just needed to stop Temari.

Sasuke lowered himself in a crouch and grabbed his sword. He leaped back up and made his way to that head of curly blonde hair in the shadows. He was aware of everything else. Deidara and Sasori had met in a clash of blades. Kurama had stopped some of Temari's army with a wall of fire. That warm glowing aura had changed into waves of fire spiraling around him. But he constantly had to fight to keep the flames up with all this rain.

Even though he was aware of everything surrounding him, Sasuke focused only on Temari. He blinked rain out of his eyes as he advanced towards her. Some guy tried to attack him but Suigetsu stopped him, slashing inexpertly with his sword. Well he must have hit because the guy fell.

"Shit I think I killed him."

Kiba was grabbing Suigetsu's shoulder, taking him away. "It's okay, you did what you had to do…"

Sasuke glared right into Temari's eyes, holding his sword steadily. Her irises were a rare shade of turquoise. She could've been beautiful. But her smugness, the way she wanted to have so many people at her feet, doing her fucking bidding, made her ugly to him. Time to end this. She stared right back at him, a smile dancing on her face. Something was different about her. He could feel it and it made him falter. Some kind of aura… something… familiar.

His heart started beating faster—even faster.

He saw through the rain and shadows now, just behind Temari. Naruto and Sai stood there. Sai looked perfectly healthy. Naruto, not so much.

"What did you do?" He clutched his sword so tight that he couldn't feel his fingers anymore.

Temari put a fist to her hip. With her other hand, she beckoned Sai to step closer. Naruto was leaning heavily against Sai. Sasuke noticed Sai had both his hands, but the right one was gloved. Naruto looked like he was about to pass out; dark circles under his eyes, rashes on his skin, dry lips, hair all tangled. Broken, empty, like a shell of himself . Like a dying person, Sasuke thought with a pang. Sai's arm around Naruto's waist made him squirm inside.

They had stolen all of his powers. They must have. And he hated them for it.

Fucking assholes.

"Naruto's been very generous," Temari beamed. "It feels amazing, honestly." She opened a palm and a small flame appeared. But it got killed by the rain right away. "Well, I still need some practice," she said, sniffing. "Sasori insisted we should have a bit of," she waved her hands about, "atmosphere, what with this weather. Very cliché, if you ask me. Oh, there he goes again."

Her eyes gazed past Sasuke and before he could follow her glance, he jumped out of his skin as a terribly loud, bone-chilling sound resonated through the air. Like something out of Silent Hill or something. Fucking Hell. He spun, his boots splashing a puddle. Sasori was using some weird power to trap Deidara in some kind of invisible cage that just came out of nowhere and closed in on him. Deidara's wings were being crushed by those clear walls or whatever they were, and black smoke filled up the tiny space so he couldn't breathe. Deidara was suffocating. Sasuke glanced at Sasori. He looked quite proud of himself, that bastard. How dare he? Maddened with rage, Sasuke wanted to go and help Deidara.

Actually, Kurama beat him to it. The spiraling flames formed a sphere and Kurama directed the attack at Sasori. It was so fast and the dark angel didn't see it coming. He was too arrogant. It was all over his face; Sasori didn't think anyone could hurt him. But when he noticed Kurama's attack hurling towards him it was far too late. The fire caught him and burned him. Sasori shrieked and wrapped himself in his wings, rolling on the ground. The rain was on his side, but the fire still seemed to do a lot of damage before dying out.

The walls around Deidara seemed to drop and he collapsed to the ground, breathing hard. But he was all right. And he still had his wings, unlike Sasori. The latter staggered back to his feet, but where his wings had been now gleamed two red lines of charred skin on his back. Deidara looked like he wanted to laugh. Louis looked annoyed.

But Sasuke ignored all of that. Deidara was okay, for now. It was all that mattered. And okay, perhaps later he would laugh, because it was kind of funny that Kurama had burned Sasori's wings. But not now.

Sasuke turned his head. Temari was touching Naruto now, trailing her red nails across his arm. Naruto's skin was so red and dry under the ill-fitting, thin shirt and pants he wore. And his veins were visible through his skin. What had they done to him?

Temari grabbed him and pulled him closer, so that he stood in between her and Sai. Well, if she wanted to piss him off even more, it was working. He raised his sword, its sharp black tip pointed at the other necromancer.

"Where was I? Oh yes. Naruto's been very friendly," she said.

"I'm going to kill you." He wanted to hurt her. Needed to.

Take more. Take all of it.

So he did. It rushed through his veins like electricity. Everything was so clear and well defined. He was aware of wounded people dropping to the ground, and wolves fighting humans. He heard growls and the sound of fangs biting into flesh. He thought he saw Ino blocked behind Kurama's flames. Good. That was safer. From the corner of his eye he saw Deidara and Sasori shouting at each other. Kiba and Suigetsu fighting back to back. Sasuke felt like no one could possibly hurt him, because he would see them coming miles away. Even the rain seemed to fall more slowly. His sword was like an extension of his arm.

It was like everything surrounding him was in a slightly different frequency.

He moved so fast—his entire body, every muscle, every nerve, synchronizing into this attack—raising the blade and then slashing the air, and just as he was about to cut Temari's neck, he stopped. And he breathed out, shocked.

Naruto had placed himself in front of Temari to protect her. The tip of his sword had almost cut Naruto's neck instead of Temari's.

Sasuke looked at him. His eyes had lost their brightness completely. He wasn't himself at all. He was brainwashed. Gone. Shit.

"He won't let you hurt me," Temari whispered, but he could hear her very clearly despite the thunder roaring once more. Sasuke thought he felt the ground shaking. Temari had her hands on Naruto's arms. "Why would he? I saved him. He owes me his life. Don't you know how this works yet, Sasuke? Look at those two fighting over there. They don't have to do this." She glanced at Kiba and Suigetsu. They were outnumbered and had some scratches here and there, but they were still fighting. Still alive. "They don't have to be here. But they are. For you," she said, licking her lips. Her mouth was close to Naruto's ear, but he wasn't reacting at all. "You know, Naruto remembered all about you, at first. But I told him to forget. So he forgot, just like that." She snapped her fingers. "In fact, I knew Sai fancied him, so I convinced Naruto to give him another chance."

Right in Sasuke's face, Sai—all smiles—grabbed Naruto's neck and kissed him. And Naruto didn't really respond, but he didn't push him away, either.

Temari said, "Adorable."

Sasuke pushed them away. He just grabbed them both and shoved them to the side so he could get to Temari. And clearly she hadn't expected him to make such a blunt move. But he did. He was on her before she knew it. He tried to stab her but she sort of twisted herself away and the sword only tore her red shirt. Sasuke wasn't the only one who could move fast.

She was behind him, grabbing the gun at her belt.

Still too slow.

Sasuke whirled and crushed her wrist in his fist, bones snapping, making her scream and drop her weapon.

"Fucking hate guns," he hissed.

But she had another weapon. A knife. She took it out with her left hand and plunged it in Sasuke's stomach. His eyes widened in shock and he thought he heard his heartbeat slowing down. She pulled back the knife, and she was getting ready to strike again. He had dropped her wrist.

Doesn't matter. Take more. All of it. Give in completely. Don't look back.

Yes. His heart started beating faster again. And faster. And it was exhilarating this time, even more so than before. This time he felt like he was about to burst. And the pain in his stomach didn't even matter anymore. Everything else was so slow and clumsy. Even Temari. As he looked at her he knew he could do this. He could move faster than he could think. She misinterpreted his reaction. She thought he was hurt. She just held her wrist, looking annoyed.

Also, screw that bullshit about his sword not being a good enough one to kill her. He would make it good enough. As he sliced the air with his sword he thought he saw black and red flames licking the dark blade. Temari barely even had time to be surprised. He slashed her chest. Then he drew back and pounced again, stabbing her in the heart. Her lips formed a scream but only blood came out.

Something moved in Sasuke's palm, so he let go of the hilt. The red snake curled around the blade and jumped to Temari's neck, wrapping its scaly form around it to strangle her. She was choking in her blood, falling to her knees. She looked at Sasuke one last time, and it seemed she couldn't believe her eyes. Sasuke wasn't sure he understood what was going on, either. But this felt good. This felt right. At the same time it felt wrong, which was very confusing. But he ignored that.

The feeling was difficult to describe. But the word euphoria came to mind. This was such a rush. That snake had come to life to finish her off, and now it curled back around the hilt like nothing had happened. Sasuke's fingers closed around it and he pulled it back slowly. Blood gushed out of Temari's wound as she dropped, lifeless. The puddles were red. The battlefield was stained.

Thunder roared one more time, and Sasuke was vaguely aware that the rain was stopping. He swallowed hard, looking at his sword. He felt like if he tried to look elsewhere, he would be overwhelmed. So he just focused on his blade. It was so red now. Drops of blood formed at the tip and fell like red tears on his boots.

He didn't want to look, but he looked anyway. Temari's body. It was gone. Where she had been now ashes and blood heaped on the ground.

The fight sort of stopped. Those people she had brainwashed lost their will to fight. They were just terribly confused. The werewolves backed away slowly, carefully. But they backed away. Louis was shouting some useless crap about something being against the rules and whatnot. Everybody pretty much ignored him.

Ino was on her knees among the confused people. The fire was gone. The rain was gone. She had bruises and her hair was muddy but she looked okay. Sasuke didn't look at her. Not really. He wasn't looking at anyone. Just trying to make sure his friends were okay. Kiba and Suigetsu were clearly exhausted and hurt but they would survive, too. Good.

When he dared to look up he saw Sasori coming his way. He didn't look too pleased. He was quite beat up himself. So was Deidara. But they were now interrupting their fight for obvious reasons. Well, this was a bit awkward.

"How could you do this?" Sasori was pissed. "No, seriously. How? You're not…" he stopped in front of Sasuke after walking around the pile of ashes. "You can't possibly—"

"We won," Deidara called from a few feet away, still down on his knees. He rustled his wings, sending water everywhere. "Deal with it. It's over." He sounded tired, but still somewhat nervous. Sasuke didn't look at him directly.

Sasori was standing too close. Sasuke realized he should feel scared. The wind was gone. But that smell of storm and electricity and fire still lingered in the air. It was almost too still. Sasuke wondered if everyone could hear his heart beating so damn fast. He was still holding his sword. He realized his palm was bleeding from holding it too tight. His stomach was still bleeding from that wound, too. But he couldn't feel the pain.

He just felt warm and cold at the same time. It felt… wrong.

"What's going on?" he whispered to himself.

Sasori ignored that. He grabbed his own head. He looked like he was going mad. "This wasn't supposed to happen," he shouted. "You have no right. No right."

Louis stepped in. Fucking Louis. "Sasori has a good point. This should be against the rules. Sasuke shouldn't be in possession of a dark angel blade."

"It's not a dark angel blade," Deidara said in a low voice. He was gathering himself up. Some of his blonde hair had come free from the tie.

Sasuke's hands were shaking. He took a step back but immediately Sasori was on him, narrowing his eyes. Brown eyes. But there was no warmth in them. As cold as ice.

"How did you do it?" he hissed. "Was it some kind of black magic? I don't even care. I'll kill you," he said.

He heard a voice in his head, but a very different voice. Softer, kinder. Worried. This time it was Kurama using telepathy.

'I've used up all of my energy. I can't protect you.'

Sasuke was suddenly very aware that Sasori also had a sword in his hand.

He thought he heard someone—was it Suigetsu, or Deidara?—shouting his name. But it was too late. He tried to block with his own blade but Sasori was too fast and sharp. Whatever powers Sasuke had used, they still weren't good enough to rival with a dark angel. Sasori grabbed Sasuke's shoulders and stared him in the eye. His sword was hilt deep in Sasuke's chest. There was nothing. Nothing at all. Only pain. Sharp, and searing, and just pain. So much of it that he didn't even think it was possible. And Sasori's cold eyes staring him down. He choked on his own blood, just like Temari had done before.

Again, he thought he heard someone shout his name. It wasn't Suigetsu, or Deidara, though, it was Naruto, and it was the last thing he heard.

Because then thunder roared one last time, very loudly, overpowering any other noise. And as Sasori pulled back his sword from his bleeding chest, lightning pierced the black sky and stroke Sasuke. It ripped through him fiercely and shattered him, and the pain became too much to even feel. Then there was truly nothing. Only white, then black.

…

People were screaming. They were coming to their senses after Temari's defeat and they were so confused. Some of them were very badly hurt. Some of them were dying. Naruto sat on the wet, dirty ground, clutching his chest. He felt as though he'd just woken up from some horrible nightmare, only to find out the nightmare was all too real. Some of his powers had come back when Sasuke had killed Temari, and it was the only thing keeping him from passing out.

But now he wanted the rest back. He latched onto Sai, pressing both hands to his chest. But he wasn't healing him or anything. He was taking it back—all of it. Coal black eyes stared up at Naruto but Sai didn't try to stop him. He seemed a lot less confident when his blonde necromancer BFF wasn't around.

Naruto felt a surge of energy as the powers came back to their rightful owner. It pulsed through him and already he felt so much better. He could see clearly. His skin was starting to heal. He was still tired, but somehow he felt more awake. Awake in a dream.

He just wanted to find Sasuke and get the fuck out of here. Temari was dead. It was over. The werewolves clearly wanted to leave, too. They had enjoyed the fight, Naruto could tell. It was, after all, in their nature. But now that it was over they seemed to remember where they were, and they got anxious. Naruto couldn't blame them. Taking back his powers had only taken a few seconds. They had just leaped out of Sai and filled a void inside him, like they'd been waiting for him this whole time.

Naruto pulled away from Sai and looked in Sasuke's direction. And he realized what was happening. It wasn't over at all. They weren't safe. Sasuke wasn't safe.

He heard Kurama's telepathic voice.

'I've used up all of my energy. I can't protect you.'

But he was addressing Sasuke. Naruto assumed he heard it because he was somehow connected to the fox spirit.

Before he could even begin to get up, he watched, helpless, as Sasuke got stabbed—again. Oh yes, he'd witnessed the whole thing with Temari earlier. It had been torture. Like an out of body experience. He had no control over his own body. Now he did, but he still couldn't protect his friend. It was so frustrating and infuriating. He heard someone shout Sasuke's name and then he realized it was his own voice.

He jumped to his feet. But then there was the thunder, so loud and threatening, making the bloodied ground tremble. And the lightning. Naruto almost fell again as his heart missed a beat. It stroke Sasuke and it was horrifying. It made him feel sick, deep inside, to see him in so much pain. He launched at Sasori, attacking him from behind. He caught him by surprise. Naruto didn't even think. There was no time to think. He just acted. Sasuke was bleeding and he was possibly dead and Naruto just saw red.

So he tackled Sasori and grabbed a handful of his stupid spiky hair. He yanked it back and then knocked his head on the ground, hard. He shouted something that didn't make much sense and he kept hitting Sasori's face until it was bleeding. Drops of water fell in the mess and Naruto realized they were his tears.

"Enough," a voice said behind him. Louis.

Naruto stopped. He removed himself from Sasori, hands bloody and shaking. The black smoke seemed to be clearing up all around. Naruto's whole body was trembling really badly. Sasori was pushing himself up on his elbows weakly, his face bruising up. He wasn't passed out but he wasn't strong, either.

"That's enough," Louis was saying. "This fight is pointless. Well, this was educational, I suppose…"

Naruto wasn't really paying attention. He rushed to Sasuke's side. Deidara was already there, rolling him over, frowning.

"I can't feel his heart," Deidara said, looking up at Naruto, who sat down and pressed his hands to Sasuke's wound. So much blood. Fuck. Okay, he needed to focus. He could do this. He started to feel that warmth in his hands, and that tingle in his fingertips. Good. Naruto couldn't look at Sasuke's face. Otherwise he would just scream, and cry, and go mad. He couldn't do that right now. Not if there was the slightest chance that he could save him.

Damn, this heat was almost too much. He was still so inexperienced with this.

He heard Kurama's voice again. Addressed to someone else.

'What are you waiting for? We need you now.'

Who was he trying to speak to?

Meanwhile Louis was helping Sasori to his feet. "This fight is a draw. No, it's cancelled. This is outrageous…"

Blah fucking blah. Naruto ignored him. He focused on that warm glow spreading all across his body. He used it to keep Sasuke alive—or he tried to, anyway. He hadn't had much practice, but fuck, he would be damned if he didn't try his hardest.

"Is it working?" Deidara whispered, like he was too curious but really didn't want to bother him.

Naruto frowned. He didn't know. But his powers were supposed to be at full capacity. And he could feel them rushing through his veins, muscles, nerves. He just wasn't sure how to use it all.

"I think his skin's healing," Deidara said, tugging at Sasuke's burnt clothing.

This helped Naruto feel more confident. Come on. He could do this.

A new person arrived at the battlefield then, walking past the wolves, and walking past Kiba and Suigetsu, who were both coming to loom over Deidara's shoulder, Naruto now noticed.

He didn't want to look up from Sasuke. He felt like if he lost focus even for just a second he might lose him. But Deidara was right. His skin was healing.

Come on, Sasuke. How many times must I help you cheat death? I thought you were the necromancer.

"Old friend," the newcomer said. Nagato's voice. Somehow, Naruto understood he was addressing Kurama. Though he had no idea how those two knew each other. How old were they really? How many dimensions had they lived in? What had happened in their past?

Naruto kept his warm, glowing hands on Sasuke's chest, but he listened.

"I thought my mind was playing tricks," Nagato said to the fox spirit, "but here you are."

'You're late.' Kurama replied, though only Nagato and Naruto could hear.

Louis wasn't too impressed. He just kept on rambling about the same useless crap. No wonder he was in politics.

"In the future, these fights will be more strictly regulated," he said, "as I'm sure you'll agree, Nagato. For today, the fight is cancelled."

"I don't agree at all," Nagato replied. Naruto could see his black and silver boots and the bottom of his dark red wings. His presence was comforting, somehow. His voice was very calm and soothing.

Nagato went on, "The fight is Deidara's. Sasori's necromancer is dead."

Louis seemed confused. "So is Deidara's."

"No," Nagato said, "he isn't."

…

Naruto smiled when Sasuke opened his eyes.

"Hey."

"What happened?" Sasuke asked softly. He still looked very weak. But at least he was alive.

He was home. In his bed. Safe. Sasuke had locked himself in the bathroom and showered earlier, just after shifting dimensions, but he'd been like a zombie. And he'd passed out in his bed before Naruto could explain anything.

Now Naruto handed him a glass of water and Sasuke took it. He sat up in the bed and winced, clutching the sheets against his chest. He was all healed up, though, even if his body was clearly still sore. It was a miracle, really. Naruto had no idea how he'd done this. It was all so blurry now. It all seemed like a bad dream. The early sunlight shone through the window, warm and comforting. Sasuke's bedroom was clean and tidy as always; the laptop was at its usual spot on the desk with some notes scribbled on lined paper around it.

After Sasuke drank his water, Naruto started to explain. How he had gotten his powers back, healed him, and how Nagato had showed up to save the day.

"Louis and Sasori just took off in some weird black portal. Leaving us behind to clean the mess. Classic villains." He shook his head in disbelief. He looked up as the curtains were rustled by the refreshing wind. Naruto had showered too while Sasuke was asleep. And he'd borrowed some clothes from Suigetsu. Just normal jeans and a thin white t-shirt. He just didn't want to ever wear the clothes Sai had lent him, ever again—in fact he would probably burn those.

He felt more comfortable now. This was nice, just sitting on the bed with Sasuke. It was calming. Back to normal. Naruto needed this.

"Deidara and Nagato helped everyone to get back. The werewolves are fine. I thanked them. I thanked Hinata." He nodded, more to himself. "I know she did it for me. I can never thank her enough. I told her we'd be friends from now on. I think that's all she ever wanted, you know?" He shrugged, and scratched his damp hair. "Suigetsu and Kiba are asleep. I kinda… healed them, actually." He looked at his own hand almost timidly. "I'm still not sure how it works but… it works, so. Um, so yeah, Kurama stayed behind, said he was waiting for Heaven's verdict, or something like that. Whatever that means. He kind of sounded like he was joking, but I never know with him. Hope he's okay. Anyway, I think Deidara stayed with Nagato, after everything. He needed to rest, and heal, you know. So do you, by the way. You should go back to sleep. You did it, Sasuke." He bit his lip and smiled. "You killed her. You saved everyone."

Their eyes met. Naruto's smile faded slightly. Sasuke looked… off. He didn't know how. He just didn't look himself. His dark brown eyes were the same but they were… the eyes of a stranger. Wait, no. That didn't make any sense. Naruto shook it off. There. Weird feeling gone. Of course something was off. Sasuke had just been to hell and back. Literally. They all had. Crazy stuff.

"Are you okay?" Naruto asked him, lowering his voice.

Sasuke breathed out, and seemed to relax. A smile curled his lips slowly. He raked his fingers through his hair, hiding his face partly behind his arm.

"Yeah," he said softly, "yeah I am. Thanks to you. Thank you. Everything's fine. Everything's… perfect actually."

Naruto smiled back. He wanted to reach out and touch him, his shoulder maybe, or his neck… He just wanted to pull him close. But something held him back. Maybe he should just let him rest, he told himself.

"Yeah," Naruto said, "everything's gonna be fine. You should go back to sleep, okay?"

Sasuke nodded. "Okay. Thank you," he said again.

"You would've done the same for me," Naruto said quietly as he walked away from the bed. He closed the door and let Sasuke rest.

This was for the best. There would be time to hang out later. Right now Naruto wanted to go home and be with Itachi.

…

Hours later, Naruto was starting to feel like the rush was slowly fading. Everything was okay. It was over. In a strange way, it was almost depressing. He didn't want to think that. But he couldn't help it. He just sat alone in his bedroom, curtains draped over the window and hiding the light. He was still wearing the clothes he'd borrowed from Suigetsu. And he wondered what this uneasiness was all about.

He had texted Sasuke but he hadn't texted back yet. He was probably still sleeping.

Something was weird though, wasn't it?

His chest tightened. Suddenly cold, he wrapped his arms around himself, clutching the thin fabric of his t-shirt.

Sasuke hadn't asked him if he was okay. Hadn't asked him what had happened with Temari and… Sai.

Oh, it had been fucking horrible, and Naruto didn't even want to tell him. Ever.

But. Sasuke didn't ask. What if he didn't care?

Still, never mind. Naruto shrugged it off. Sasuke would ask later. He would wake up and remember everything. He just needed to rest, and Naruto needed to leave it alone. He was just being ridiculous and paranoid.

In fact, Naruto needed to get his sleep, too. He craved sleep really badly actually.

So he flicked off the lights and crawled under the duvet and sheets.

Everything's fine. Everything's… perfect actually.

Even Sasuke said so. Everything would be okay.

…

Sasuke woke up in darkness. He caught the smell of metal and rust, and something else—something that stuck in his lungs and made him feel sick. Death, he thought. It smelled like death. He heard the sound of chains rattling. He realized the chains were attached to his wrists and ankles, and they rattled the damp, cold metal floor as he struggled to sit up. His clothes were ripped and dirty. His dark hair was matted and fell in his eyes messily.

It was taking some time for his eyes to adjust. But he thought he heard other people in the darkness. Moans. Whispers.

Sasuke tried to raise his hand to touch the back of his neck. Something was pulsing and throbbing there, and it hurt. A deep cut, maybe? The chain cuffed to his wrist was heavy, but he managed to press his fingers to the back of his neck, just below his hairline. He winced and when he looked at his pale fingers he saw blood.

His eyes were adjusting to the darkness now. He heard footsteps coming closer and he looked up, frightened. Two hooded figures were approaching. There was a line of people chained to the wall. They all looked hurt. In pain. Some of them had really bad burns and wounds.

The two hooded figures stopped right in front of Sasuke. They looked clean and nicely clothed. Their long capes were black velvet. Except for the inside of their hood. That was red. It made their eyes gleam red in the darkness.

"You might want to leave that alone," the first one said in a low, masculine voice. "Until it heals, at least."

Sasuke looked at the blood on his fingers again. Dread spread across his chest like a cold poison pulsing from his heart.

He heard a moan coming from the person chained to the wall right next to him, and he turned his head as he thought that voice sounded familiar.

A young man. Skinny. Beautiful despite the countless wounds covering his body. Tawny hair, long and tangled, clinging to his bloody neck and shoulders.

"Kurama?" Sasuke whispered, a lump forming in his throat.

"Don't worry," the man spoke again, and as Sasuke looked up he saw red eyes glaring at him from beneath the hood. "We've had our fun with him already. He's allowed a little break now. It's your turn, Sasuke. Number 667." He produced a little note pad and pen and scribbled something down. "Oh," he added, motioning to the person standing next to him, "I apologize in advance if my colleague is a little… inexperienced. You see, she just got hired. So I'm showing her the ropes."

She pulled back her hood a little and Sasuke saw a halo of wild, curly blonde hair as she grinned at him.

"Hello, Sasuke," Temari said. "Welcome to Purgatory."

...

Author's note: This is the first part of a two-volume story. This is not the end. I am currently writing the sequel. Let me know if you're interested in reading it. Your opinion really matters to me. Review, yeah?

Let me know what you think of the new summary. I just changed it and would love feedback :-)

...

If you're a fan of my writing:

A little more about this story: I originally wrote this story as fiction. Then I adapted it to fan fiction because I wanted you guys to read it and enjoy it. It was a way for me to get a bit more feedback for my writing. I'm doing this for free and I really value reviews and constructive criticism.

It was more difficult than I thought, though. I had to change all the names and I've let quite a few slip. Thanks to the people that pointed them out to me. I think I went back and fixed everything by now. If not just let me know, lol. I apologize for those mistakes.

It's not even just that, though. I had to change a fair amount of details. Take out some bits that didn't work anymore. Remove some aspects of the characters I originally created. And I'm not saying I regret it, but in the end I realized that the original version is better, in my humble opinion. It's more genuine, at the very least. The characters feel more real. I think I tried too hard to please you guys but that took away what was special about my story.

So I've decided to put the original fiction version of my story out there. I haven't decided where yet but feel free to message me if you're curious about it. I am writing the sequel as fiction also. And it will become increasingly difficult to adapt it as fan fiction because I will go more in-depth with the characters, and with some new characters as well. And I'm very aware of the fact that if there are too many 'OCs' in a fanfic it becomes, well, a shitty fanfic. Not exactly my goal.

So hey, whatever you decide, thanks for reading. Lots of love to every single one of you guys. I'm aware that some of you (most of you?) aren't comfortable with reading anything other than fan fiction. And I respect that. If you really insist, and if you'd really like that, I'll definitely adapt my sequel to fan fiction as well, because hey, why not? If that's what you'd like. If that's what I decide to do, I'll need beta readers to help me with the proofreading for sure.

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Update (1/9/2015) : I am currently posting the story on the website gayauthors under username LieLocks, story title 'Necromancer Legacy' and the sequel should be uploaded on there as well soon.