Thanks for all the reviews! I'm glad to see I still have readers following this story even though I haven't been updating. Honestly, I've forgotten what I originally planned for this story, so it has taken a completely different route...I think. I hope it'll turn out decent! As a token of apology and appreciation, here's an extra long chapter. Just to avoid shrieks of horror at any abysmal spelling or grammar errors, I'll say in advance that this chapter has yet to be beta-ed. I'll post the corrected version up when my beta sends it back to me. Cheers and enjoy.
Disclaimer: No, no and no.
Chapter 9-Blue Ice
It was a quiet night. Izuo yawned as he half-heartedly patrolled the palace grounds, completely relaxed. Glancing up at the dark sky, he wondered how many hours it was away from dawn. He couldn't wait to get off duty and go home. Looking into the long, narrow corridor that was the back entrance - All clear - he smiled to himself a little as he remembered his newborn baby girl.
Turning away, he was wondering what flowers his wife would like when something moving in the dark caught the edge of his eye. Frowning, he gripped the hilt of his sword, ready to pull it out from its scabbard. He shouted, "Who goes there?"
No reply.
He circled in closer, eyes fixed on a particular spot. He drew his sword out and cautiously ran it through the patch of bushes. Nothing. Maybe it was some harmless forest critter…
Shrugging his shoulders, he was about to turn when his vision suddenly burst into all too bright colors. Collapsing under the blinding pain, his sword fell noiselessly to the moist green ground. Struggling to reach his sword, he managed to resist the overwhelming urge to close his eyes for only a moment – long enough to see a shadow looming over him. A weak "Who…? Stop…" was all he managed to moan before slipping into the waiting darkness.
XXX
Sasuke silently watched as the guard's eyelids fluttered close, taking care to keep his face hidden. Once he was sure the unfortunate man was fully unconscious, he dragged him by his feet towards the bushes, where he was safely obscured from view. Bending down, Sasuke murmured a soft "I'm sorry." Slightly relieved there wasn't any blood, he straightened.
Eyes steely with resolve, his gaze shifted upwards to stare at the softly shining moon. "This is it," he promised. "There's no turning back now. No more sneaking around, no more trying to please Father. I'm going to find Naruto, and that idiot better have a damned good reason for deciding everything on his own." Pulling down the hood of the cloak Itachi had given him over his face, he strode off, determined. "From now on, I'm in charge."
XXX
Iruka tried arguing with himself that he wasn't impressed. Losing the argument as Kakashi effortlessly silenced yet another guard without actually harming them, he remarked. "You're pretty good at this."
Laying the guard down on the floor, Kakashi replied, "You know what they say. Practice makes perfect."
A frown. "Practice?"
"Yes. Unless you thought that babysitting Sasuke was all the king have me do?"
"No…" Iruka slowly replied, not sure he wanted to know what Kakashi's other duties entailed. The man was very smooth at this…sneaking around and breaking in business; his lack of hesitation spoke volumes that this wasn't the first time he was doing this. Of course, Kakashi didn't kill anyone – or at least, he hadn't actually seen the deed in action. Still, he was far too good at this.
So far, they had encountered about seven guards and Kakashi had knocked out six of them with a single swift blow to the neck. Iruka handled the first: the man managed to choke out a muffled warning shout before passing out. After the first, Kakashi had told, no, ordered, Iruka to stay back and let him handle the rest. The others went out silently: none of them even saw it coming. Thanks to that, they remained undetected.
They darted swiftly from shadow to shadow. They were almost clear of the courtyard now. There was another guard. Without even pausing, Kakashi shot past Iruka and delivered the precise strike Iruka was now accustomed to seeing.
Iruka suppressed a shudder as he watched the limp form crumple to the ground. Iruka may be superior in terms of speed and strength, but he lacked the precision and skill Kakashi possessed.
His companion was human, but he was a deadly. Humans were less in control of their emotions than his kind, and that was only because vampires had a much longer life span than them. And Kakashi was frightening, the way his personality easily morphed from one to another to suit the situation.
Iruka wondered how he ever managed to dismiss Kakashi as just a shadow to the second prince. His ability to smoothly blend into the background at will reminded Iruka of a chameleon.
"Wait." Kakashi stopped and held out a hand, motioning for Iruka to stop as well. "Someone's coming."
He nodded, though Kakashi's warning wasn't necessary. He could feel them coming; this presence was completely different from what they had encountered so far.
"Well, well, well. What have we here? A human and a vampire. Interesting. Mind including me in your little game of hide-and-seek?"
Both spun around at the voice. Kakashi still had his hand out, and Iruka didn't know whether to be offended or amused at Kakashi who was evidently trying to protect him.
"Show yourself." Kakashi commanded, cautiously looking about for the owner of the voice.
"Over here." He stepped out from the shadows. The pure unadulterated evil emanating from him permeated the very air. Warning bells were set screaming through Iruka's mind instantly. The man, if he could even be called a man, was downright terrifying to even look at. That eyes…those arms…what happened to him?
Slit snake-like eyes studied Iruka with mild interest. "Umino Iruka," he suddenly murmured, causing Iruka to jerk back in surprise. How did he…?
The – man? Creature? – continued, "Born of a respectable lineage who has served the Uzumaki for countless generations. Loyal Guardian of the 27th heir, Uzumaki Naruto." He smirked at Iruka's stunned expression, "The Guardian conspiring with humans? Oh, how the revered name of the Uzumaki has fallen; to be tainted with human filth."
He turned his attention to Kakashi, who responded by stepping closer to Iruka, guarded.
The longhaired man sneered at that. "Hatake Kakashi, background unknown. A mysterious figure found wandering on the streets fifteen years ago. Trusted spy of the king, and the second prince's mentor. Of course," he laughed cynically as he stepped closer, arms dangling uselessly, "you're best known as the king's heartless assassin, code name: Kurenai Yaiba. I wonder, how many have you killed, hmm? A hundred? Two? Or do you not bother to keep count at all?"
The revelation left Iruka shocked, though it shouldn't. Even if he already had his suspicions, it was still disconcerting to hear it stated loud and clear in the open. An assassin. He stared at Kakashi's back. Though unable to see his face, his enhanced vision enabled him to note the way Kakashi's neck muscles tightened ever so slightly.
"Just so you know, I'm always honored to meet an admirer. Since you obsess over me so much, why not introduce yourself as well? It's called courtesy, though I can't say I feel like stalking something as ugly as you. Sorry." Kakashi's tone was clipped and not the least bit apologetic.
"You bastard."
"Actually, I'm not," Kakashi shrugged nonchalantly, "my parents are wedded. Or at least, they were. Obviously, not only do you look like you wake up on the wrong side of the bed every morning, your information gathering ability is out of the question as well."
The stranger's eyes narrowed dangerously as hissed sharply, "You will regret that." He was stepping closer and closer, voice dripping venom, "Or have you forgotten the reason you have to wear that mask?"
"You! It can't be…Orochimaru?"
Orochimaru's yellow eyes were bright with malice at Kakashi's faint gasp of disbelief. "It seems your memory isn't completely addled after all."
Regaining his composure, Kakashi shot back, "You must understand it was quite hard to recognize you. You've…changed. I see someone made certain, ah, adjustments," his eyes glanced deliberately at Orochimaru's arms, "and I must say, it's quite an improvement from your previous look."
Iruka watched in confusion at the scene unfolding in front of him. What's going on…? Orochimaru? That name sounds familiar…
He watched in horror as Kakashi suddenly keeled over. "Kakashi-san! What's wrong?" He bent down and tried to pull Kakashi's hands away from his face – no, his mask. Realizing Kakashi was clamping both hands shut over where his left eye was supposed to be, Iruka glared at Orochimaru. "What did you to do him?!"
"Nothing." He gave a snort of derisive laughter. "After all, what can I do with these 'adjusted' arms that won't move?
"Stop that!" The silver haired man had managed to tear his mask off and the scraps of cloth now lay discarded on the damp soil. Iruka desperately tried to pull Kakashi's hands away. Kakashi's frantic scratching was causing bloody cuts on his hands but he didn't care; they were already healing, he was more worried about Kakashi digging his own eye out. "Listen to me!" Kakashi's face was contorted with pain and Iruka wasn't even sure if he was still aware, but he had to try anyway. This is bad. How do I stop him? "Stop it!"
Orochimaru watched and only laughed.
XXX
Sasuke snapped out of his trance the moment the gaunt, creepy man began laughing. He had been hiding for quite some time, just observing. He had already confirmed the two on the ground was Kakashi and Iruka, and that they were in trouble.
Dashing out, he delivered a well-aimed kick at the laughing man. He stopped laughing immediately and dodged Sasuke's kick just in the nick of time. Landing on the ground, Sasuke immediately twisted and kicked at him sideways; this time, he connected. Orochimaru stumbled backwards, hissing.
"Sasuke!" Sasuke threw a glance at Naruto's guardian. "Be careful of Orochimaru!"
Figures his name would be as creepy as he is. Sasuke merely nodded and trained his eyes on Orochimaru, warily watching him.
"Finally…the rat comes out of hiding. It bites harder than I thought. I was wondering if you were going stay there until dawn, quivering."
Sasuke's eyes narrowed coldly. "What the hell do you want? What did you do to Kakashi?"
Orochimaru merely chuckled. "It appears vampires and humans have more in common than I thought: so simple-minded. Like I told him," he nodded towards Iruka, who glared back at him, "I didn't do anything. Not deliberately anyway. Let's just say it was a...standard reaction he got for trying to resist."
"Resist what?"
In a blink of an eye, Orochimaru was right in front of Sasuke, their faces just inches apart. Sasuke blinked in shock. When did he get here?
"How rude. I don't believe you're in any position to be asking me questions…" He frowned as he took a closer look at Sasuke. "You," he began, "you're the second prince…Uchiha Sasuke…" he trailed off for a moment before shrugging, "first prince, second prince, it doesn't mean a thing to me. But something is different about you…what is it…?"
"Sasuke!" Out of the corner of his eye, Sasuke saw Iruka helping a drained-looking Kakashi to his feet. To Sasuke's relief, Kakashi had stopped struggling and appeared to have finally regained control. Good. One less thing to worry about.
"It can't be that you're actually…"
Sasuke jumped a little as he felt ice-cold breath on his face. Orochimaru was staring at him, a look of wonder and amazement on his face. Suddenly, he threw his head back and began laughing madly. "I see…so that was how things were…I see it now!"
"Sasuke, get away from him!"
That was Kakashi's voice. He was definitely back to normal. But Sasuke couldn't move; he was frozen to the spot, as though he was paralyzed. Then, as suddenly as he began, Orochimaru stopped laughing and his yellow eyes latched onto Sasuke's. "Yessssss," he hissed, "look into my eyessssss. Don't move. Don't blink. Just look. Yessssssss…"
Sasuke looked into his eyes. He didn't move. He didn't blink. He just looked, and continued looking. The hypnotizing eyes came closer and closer until they vanished from his sight – and the next thing he knew was a searing pain originating from his neck.
"Sasuke!"
Sasuke was sleepy.
He was hot.
He was cold.
No, that wasn't it…He was burning. It felt like he was ice on fire. From the bite on his neck spread a feeling of chilling numbness, rippling outwards like a continuous wave. The waves came pulse after pulse, and they were getting stronger, faster.
The fire was dying out now. He could see it. The fiery dancing flames were dimming; they were getting weaker and slower. Slowly, slowly, it was getting darker.
Darker…darker...darker…
The last of the dancing flames died out and it was completely dark.
And now it was too bright. It was bright, and it was cold. So cold. The blood in his veins was turning into ice. They were crystallizing, flowing slower, slower…slo…wer...until suddenly, they couldn't flow at all. His blood was cracking now. Like spiders craftily weaving their web, cracks were carving an intrinsic dance onto his iced blue blood. But blood isn't blue. So his blood wasn't blood. But it was ice.
There were cracks everywhere, a beautiful pattern. The cracks completed their sketch on his iced blood. From a distance, he heard howling; it was deep and mournful, sad and lonely, furious and anxious all at the same time. It reverberated throughout his body, and his iced blood shattered to fine powder. They were glittering diamond dusts now. And like dust, they were blown away.
He had no blood now. His veins were hollow, and he was floating. The empty space was dark and endless. But he wasn't floating anymore. He was falling. The empty space was now an abyss. The abyss was still dark, but it wasn't endless. He was falling.
Faster…faster…faster…!
He reached the bottom. But he wasn't floating, he was falling. He had no blood, but he was ice. So he shattered. And that was when the pain truly began.
"AHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!"
XXX
Iruka managed to catch Sasuke as he crumpled to the ground and checked his vitals. It was slow and barely there, but he was still breathing, which was always a good sign. Iruka frowned as he felt Sasuke's skin. The ebony-haired boy was sweating profusely, but he was icy cold and clammy to the touch. Sasuke curled up into a fetal position, and his closed eyes were scrunched in great discomfort.
Kakashi was glaring at Orochimaru, eyes glittering dangerously. Iruka could see that one eye was very different from the other: blood red with three midnight commas swirling round and round in a never-ending cycle. He demanded, "What did you do to him?"
Orochimaru smiled – it would give Iruka nightmares the next day – and drawled out lazily, "That boy is my key. Fate is on my side tonight. This is an unexpected though welcome discovery." His grin widened to expose sharp canine-like teeth. "He is mine."
Iruka stared. "You – you're a vampire? But," Iruka shook his head in denial, "it can't be. I would have been able to tell. What are you?"
Orochimaru sneered at him. Disgust and contempt laced his voice. "Don't compare me with your kind. Vampires? Hah. How can I be part of a species who cowers from humans and hides away in their little caves, forests and other secluded places? Humans are supposed to be your food. You can kill them within a blink of an eye; drain their body of every single drop of blood, yet you don't. Why?"
"Because it's meaningless to do so!" Iruka cried out in protest, "Vampires only need to drink blood when their injured, ill or when they're still maturing, and the amount they need to take lessens over time – some of the older vampires don't even need to drink at all."
Orochimaru wore a look of disdain. "How utterly foolish and pathetic. Meaningless? You don't need a meaning to kill if you can; humans should prostrate themselves before such power! No," he shook his head, "I an no weak vampire, and neither am I a fragile human." He mocked, "Can you guess what I am?"
Just then, Sasuke's eyes shot open; their glassiness told them he was still unconscious. He began trashing around wildly; screams of intense pain pierced through the silence of the night.
"Sasuke!" "Hold him down!"
Orochimaru chuckled in perverse delight as Iruka pinned Sasuke down and Kakashi rushed over. "Well, that took longer than I thought. Don't worry, Kurenai Yaiba. He won't die." His grin grew wider at the petrifying glare he received. "If you pray hard enough, maybe the vampire gods will take pity on your foolishness." Retreating, his laughter resonated in the air, "I'll come for him when he's ready – my key."
"Wait!"
More laughter, fainter this time. "Don't get caught now. It'll inconvenient me."
As Orochimaru vanished from sight, Kakashi looked towards Iruka and urgently said, "Hate to admit he's right, but we have to go. After so much noise, the whole palace will probably come after us. Can you take Sasuke?"
The shouts and thudding sound of people running were getting louder. Nodding, Iruka scooped up the still trashing, but no longer screaming Sasuke. "Let's go."
XXX
"Kakashi-san, here's fine." Iruka set Sasuke down on the grassy patch under an ancient tree. Sasuke's trashing had completely stopped and he seemed to have dropped into deep restless slumber. He figured it was best to just observe before trying anything. And there where other matters to consider – like where to place the two humans, what to do next, the complications arising from within both the royal family and his own kind as well. "It's remote but there's a waterfall nearby so – are you okay?"
Leaning against the tree with one hand clamped over his eye, Kakashi tried to smile but his normal eye only managed to crinkle tiredly. "It's nothing new – don't worry, it'll pass soon enough. More importantly, are you sure we won't be discovered here?" He glanced around warily; his posture screamed fatigue. "The guards aren't a problem anymore but the is the vampires domain and despite what one might think," Kakashi was practically falling asleep standing, "but dying wasn't exactly my objective of going through all that trouble of escaping the palace and then turning back to retrieve Sasuke."
"Sit down." Concern knitted Iruka's eyebrows. "It's all right. I don't know if you heard about it, but there's a legend about a forest guardian…"
Kakashi shook his head. "I think I heard something about a mystical beast protecting this forest…never gave much thought to it, but is it really true?"
"Well," Iruka settled himself on the ground, taking care not to disturb Sasuke's limp form. Kakashi obligingly slid down next to him. "That is correct. For centuries, there's a legend about a terrifying, powerful creature that lives in this very forest. Your people always warn their children not to wander into the forest for it is said this fearsome beast is very protective of it's territory and if angered, it is capable of crushing the entire kingdom just by lashing out with each of its nine tails."
"I'm sure it's very scary and I'll be sure to mind my manners if I ever meet it but what has it got to do with us being safe?"
Iruka shot an annoyed look at Kakashi. "I'm not done yet." Kakashi thought it should be a crime for anyone, human or vampire, man or woman, to have a nose that looked that cute while frowning. "As I was saying – " In fact, it should be a crime for a nose that cute to be in existence at all. Still, his nose wasn't the only cute thing about him, Kakashi noted as his eyes trailed over the narrating vampire. Yes, he decided, Iruka was cute, even if he didn't have that pert nose. And Kakashi also wryly noted that it would be he without a nose if Iruka ever knew what he was thinking… Wait, vampires can't read minds…Can they?
" – And that's why Kyuubi – hey, are you following me?"
Uh-oh. "I was just wondering how this legend started," Kakashi smoothly lied, "and about, ah, whether this 'Kyuubi' had a cute nose – "
" – I beg your pardon?"
Didn't mean to say that. Oops. Now what?
"How dare you wonder about personal things like that, foolish mortal."
Kakashi's eyes widened with shock, aches and pain momentarily forgotten. There, just a mere few feet away from him, a nine-tailed fox stood in an arrogant stance. Intelligent slanted eyes were fixed condescendingly on Kakashi. "I could sue you for sexual harassment. And of course I have a cute nose."
Dumbfounded, Kakashi stared. He found his tongue after a few minutes of silence as Iruka respectfully greeted the fox. "He – he talks!"
At Kakashi's exclamation, the orange-golden furred fox elegantly rolled his eyes, "No shit, Sherlock. Whatever gave me away?"
"And it has a sense of humor!"
"Are you mentally-affected for one so young? I'm being sarcastic, not practicing as a stand-up comedian. Honestly. Kits these days."
"Kakashi-san," Kakashi turned towards Iruka, and Iruka had to fight the laugh that was refraining to break out at his befuddled expression. "Meet the fearsome Kyuubi-sama, the nine-tailed foxed, guardian of the forest."
Somewhat recovering from the shock, Kakashi doubtfully eyed Kyuubi. "He's definitely nine-tailed but…fearsome? He's a bit…small."
Bristling, the fox growled, "You have a problem with my size?"
"Oh, no, no, no!" Kakashi hastily protested. Small or not, those glinting teeth looked sharp. "I just thought you would be a bit bigger…" he finished with a mumble, "and scarier."
"Scarier? Who, pray tell, would want to be scary? I very much prefer to be small, silly human. Why, how am I supposed to protect the forest if I were bigger? I would be destroying my home just my flicking my tails if I were to be bigger-sized."
"That does make sense."
"Besides, I look so much more adorable this way."
"…." Kakashi wasn't certain whether the fox truly did possess a sense a humor, but he was certain he didn't want to find out.
"And besides, little one, if I were to be in my larger form, there would be humans flocking around me day and night and the forest would know no peace. While it's only natural to desire worshipping an almighty, powerful, beautiful, magnificent creature such as myself, I very much prefer to be able to eat, sleep and terrorize the peace."
"Of course. How silly of me not to think of that. Please forgive my foolishness, o almighty, powerful, magnificent one."
"You forgot beautiful."
"Oh, the sin I have committed. Pray forgive my insolence, almighty, powerful, beautiful, magnificent one." And not to mention vain, narcissistic, stuck-up, arrogant.
"Well," his nine-tails swished about in consideration, "since you do know how to make a befitting apology despite your foolishness, I'll show mercy and not subject you to my wrath."
"Why, thank you." Kakashi wondered how long it had been since he felt like kicking something just by being provoked vocally. Kyuubi's words replayed in his head and he blinked. Wait – "Your larger form?"
"Of course. Unless you thought this was my true size? How utterly foolish. Whoever or whatever gave you that nonsensical idea?"
Kakashi was speechless. It was you…!
"As I was saying before Kyuubi-sama showed up, we will be safe because it is well-known, to my kind anyway, that this place is off-limits." Iruka interrupted their conversation with no small amount of regret. It had been truly entertaining to see Kakashi being teased but Kakashi's hand had been twitching closer and closer to his throwing knife and Iruka had had enough fighting for a night. Whatever happened to minding his manners?
It worked. Kakashi's attention was now redirected at Iruka. Curious, he asked, "Why?"
"Simple. Because it was Kyuubi-sama's wish."
"That scary pack of blood-thirsty creatures actually backed off for this puny thing?"
"Ahem."
"Oh sorry. I mean almighty, powerful, beautiful, magnificent one."
"Apology accepted. Again."
Ignoring the interruption, Iruka nodded. "Yes. Anything Kyuubi-sama demands, we comply. Without his protection, we wouldn't even have a home."
"Do you understand the true extent of my greatness now, little kit?"
"Of course I do, you –"
"And," Iruka overrode Kakashi's comeback, "the reason why Kyuubi-sama wanted this place to be left untouched is because this is Naruto-sama's favorite spot. He always pulls a vanishing act to come here when he's upset or angry. Once the others discovered where he hid, there was no end to the stream of council members harassing Naruto-sama with petty problems even here. Although he is too proud to admit it, Kyuubi-sama has a soft spot for Naruto-sama and declared this place forbidden to the vampires."
"I do not have a soft spot for him. That loud, insensitive, brash one is infinite times more mischievous than the previous heir. Why, he even had the nerve to lay a finger on my lovely, holy self, more precisely, my tail. And it wasn't just a finger – it was the whole hand. How shocking that he should be allowed to live after pulling on my tail." A tail flicked in annoyance, "And this place is forbidden."
Iruka bowed his head in deference, though the edge of his lips curled upwards. "Of course it's forbidden." To Kakashi, he whispered, "But he chooses to ignore Naruto-sama's presence each time he comes here."
"Ungh…"
Sasuke's low moan stopped their conversation short. The pale boy was even paler than usual, and his clothes were heavy and damp with sweat. He was beginning to fidget, and Kakashi sincerely hoped he wouldn't start screaming again. He wasn't in any condition to play wrestling with the unconscious boy.
Kyuubi ambled towards Sasuke's body. Circling him, he took a sniff before wrinkling his (cute?) nose in disgust. "The foul stench of evil has masked his scent. What has happened?"
Iruka worriedly tried to think. "I better fetch Naruto-sama," he decided. Eyes falling on Kyuubi, he hesitantly started, "Kyuubi-sama…These humans…they have nowhere to go. I know I am not worthy to be asking such favors but…"
"No."
Iruka's heart sank to the very depths of the deepest ocean. "But –"
"You stay. I'll go fetch that impertinent kitling. You are an honorable child of the night – much more so than most – and for you, I shall grant them sanctuary."
Relief flooded through Iruka. With Kyuubi on their side, the situation was finally looking up.
"But," the fox's eyes glinted sternly, "I expect a detailed and acceptable explanation. Those who live on the outside may do as they wish, it concerns me not – but for those under my protection…being kept ignorant of their actions displeases me."
Shuddering slightly, Iruka bowed and respectfully murmured, "As you wish, exalted one."
Satisfied, the fox broke his intimidating eye contact with Iruka and leaped off.
Kakashi stared after the fox in slight awe. For a moment there, the nerve-grating miniature puppy-like thing had actually seemed scary. Oh wait. It's the almighty, powerful, beautiful, magnificent one. Right. Kakashi wasn't entirely convinced the fox was all that, but it couldn't hurt to flatter it just in case. Not that he was scared or anything of course. Besides, it spoke – its tongue alone gave Kakashi reason to avoid making an enemy. And although he was proud to proclaim he had many more enemies than an average person, none of them was quite so annoying. Plus, they were actually human... Or at least, they were human-like.
Anybody has any idea what the king's and queen's name should be? Preferably something that sounds pompous and stuck up...They are royalty after all...and human. Please give me sugguestions! Thanks!