DARTHEMIUS AN.

No, believe it or not, I'm not dead. Yes, I know. It's almost been two years since my last update. And many people asked something like "What the fuck, man?! Where is the next chapter?!" Yes, to all of you who still care about me and my work… I'm sorry, I truly am. The thing is… Okay, I could explain why I stopped writing lately, but it will take a shitload of time. So I will only tell you the main reason…

The thing is… Naruto franchise has taken a fatal hit for me. Why? Simple, because of the way it ended. The main plot I mean. Now hold on a minute now! For all of those who's about to yell that it was already fucked up way before that… Yes, I agree. But never, even in my wildest dreams, I could imagine that it will be fucked up THIS MUCH! Fuck, people! Naruto/Hinata is now ACTUALLY CANON! The thing that I dreaded most! Shit, and I can't even… Damn. And all of you who still don't know, I absolutely hate Hinata. Yes, yes here comes the hate in comments. Besides, many people (more than a hundred actually) have asked me why do I hate the poor girl so much? Well here it is! I hate Hinata because she is THE MOST boring, weak and useless character in THE WHOLE DAMN FRANCHISE! Of course I mean among the main cast, not some trash whose name no one even remembers. Just think about it! Her only moments of glory were almost dying at the hands of Neji, almost dying at the hands of Nagato and almost dying at the hands of Obito. And each time she had to be saved! Shit, Sakura is more useful, and that's saying something!

But it was not yet over for me, oh no. I tried to gather my shit up and… And when I thought that it couldn't get worse… Yes, you probably guessed it. 'The Last' movie came out. And it was… No, I'm not even gonna give it an opinion. The fact is that the movie was a complete fan service for Naruto/Hinata fans, and it tried to make their coming together thing interesting and believable. And they also made another attempt to make Hinata look useful and strong… And they totally failed! AGAIN! Just two points! One – when Hinata is hanging from some building, and she's holding onto her scarf. It clearly shows that HER DAMN FEET ARE ON THE WALL! You can walk on walls, you stupid bitch! And when the scarf tears… yep, she falls. And two – when she learns that even with her great self-sacrifice, she still couldn't destroy… I don't even remember what… by herself. A really good way to make your character look strong.

So yes, after that I thought fuck it! Fuck this story… Fuck all my stories! This franchise does not deserve it.

But then… Even after so long… Some of you are still looking forward to the next update. I… It really means a lot guys.

Besides, I kind of got over the whole ending crap…

SO I'LL TELL YOU WHAT!

This story… I'm not gonna write it for myself, I already know how it ends. BUT! And you know that I have never… AND DARTHEMIUS MEANS NEVER ever has asked anyone to leave a review, unlike most people. I think that if a reader likes the story he/she will leave a comment anyway. But this time…

If you really want me to finish this one… Just… Just let me know that you still like my work and… And I'll try not to disappoint. That is all.

...

Chapter twenty: Unexpected gambit.

"Hell Yeah!" – talks.

'Art is a blast!' – thoughts.

"Know your role!" – demon blades.

"Katsu!" – Demonic/jutsu.

...

The Forest of Death. Trish's location…

"Surround her!" Obito commanded, throwing high-level Katon techniques at his enemy. "Do not let her get the initiative!"

"Tch." Trish hissed, gritting her teeth in anger. Her opponents have proven to be way too annoying. Yes, she was undeniably stronger than all of them… Perhaps even put together. But they wisely weren't trying to overcome her with brute force. Instead they chose hit and run approach.

"Annoying pests!" The demoness brought her hands in front of her. "Maximum Voltage!" A great many lightning bolts escaped from her hands, nailing two of her attackers… However her triumph was short-lived when one of them simply allowed the attack to pass through him, and the other simply stood up like nothing happened.

"Oooooh! That was painful!" Hidan exclaimed with some sick joy in his voice as his smoking body was slowly getting up from the ground. "You fucking bitch! I will sacrifice you in Jashin-sama's name!"

"Doubtful." Trish's face twisted in disdain. "You're nothing but a piece of meat that…"

"KATSU!" A big explosion interrupted her line, sending the demoness flying through several trees.

"Ugh…" The girl grunted, getting up and glaring at the sky. "Fucking asshole! I'll rip off your damn hands and shove them right up your ass!"

"Keep dreaming, un!" Deidara shouted laughingly. "You'll have to catch me first!"

Trish's eyes narrowed. Out of all her opponents Deidara was the most infuriating. He just kept flying out of her reach and threw his damn bombs at her! The main problem was that they were almost completely silent and could follow her anywhere.

Well, of course she could use her released form and fly after him, but her pride kept her from doing it… Right until this moment!

"Oh, you're fucking dead!" She shouted, unleashing demonic energy as her body quickly gained new traits, such as claws and body armor. The most fascinating part was a pair of yellow energy wings behind her back… Wings, which she immediately used.

"She's after Deidara!" Sasori pointed. "Stop her!"

"On it!" Kisame's hands blurred through several handseals. "Suikodan no jutsu!"

"Useless!" Trish shouted, batting the projectile away with her bare… armored hand. "Your weak techniques are nothing to me now!"

"Katon: Goukakyu no jutsu!" Obito tried to reach her, but the demoness easily evaded his attack. "Damn, she's too high. Run, Deidara!"

"I'm trying, damn it!" The artist yelled, trying his hardest to fly away on his big clay bird. But despite all his efforts, Trish was on him in mere moments.

"Time to die, insect!" The girl stated, preparing to tear through Deidara with her clawed hand.

But the artist had another idea.

"I won't go down that easy!" He shouted, throwing all of his remaining bombs straight at her. The distance was too short for the demoness to evade, so…

"KATSU!"

BLAST.

And it was not a single blast either. About thirty simultaneous explosions blocked the sky for the remaining Akatsuki members… Only to do absolutely nothing as Trish quickly emerged from the massive cloud of smoke, looking completely undamaged.

"Oh shit!" Deidara exclaimed in shock, covering himself with his hands.

"You said it." Trish replied with s sick grin, and with an instant burst of speed tore right through… Deidara's bird.

The clay user himself looked absolutely terrified and a moment later everyone understood why, when Trish emerged from the other side of the bird, holding… another Deidara.

"Foolish human." The girl exclaimed in smug satisfaction, holding struggling Deidara by the throat. "Did you actually think you can fool eyes of a demon with such silly disguise?!"

"Gh… wait!" A low rattle came out of Deidara's throat, trying to buy it's owner some time…

Trish wasn't selling any.

"Shin-ne!" She yelled joyously, grabbing one of Deidara's legs with her free hand and in one simple motion tore the clay user apart, spraying herself with his blood. "Hahahahahahaha!"

"Oh my…" Hidan whispered, looking up from the ground. "I think I got a boner."

Obito decided not to comment that. Instead he kept his eyes on Trish as the girl slowly descended down on the ground.

"Ah, now that was refreshing!" Trish exclaimed, licking some blood from her fingers. "Who's next?"

"Damn…" Hidan muttered in awe. "Hey, babe? Are you seeing anyone? Because…" But before he could finish the phrase…

BANG.

…A bullet tore right through his forehead, spilling Hidan's brains all over the ground.

"Yes, she does." Sudden cold voice came from behind, making all other Akatsuki members scatter all over the area.

"Hanabi-chan!" Trish exclaimed happily, quickly reverting back to her human form. "You're okay! I knew those assholes were useless!"

Hanabi only looked away shamefully.

"Damn, this is bad." Obito whispered to nearby Kakuzu.

"True. We could barely hold against that one." The Jiongu user replied. "Where is the Uchiha?"

"Right here." Suddenly came from behind, shocking both men. Why? Well, perhaps because the voice certainly didn't belong to Uchiha Sasuke. Instead when they glanced over their shoulder they saw a very smug looking Uchiha Madara. "Surprise, motherfucker!"

SMACK.

Faster than anyone could blink Madara blurred from view and next second Kakuzu was already flying through the air.

Obito glared at his predecessor, taking a battle stance. "Madara…"

"No, I'm Madara." The elder Uchiha replied. "Looks like you've been using Mangekyo for way too long, Obito-chan! Hahahahaha!"

"Enough!" Hanabi shouted in slight anger. "Naruto-sama told us to leave."

"Oh, damn." Trish pouted. "And I was having such a good time!"

"You can have it later." Hanabi growled. "Let's go." She added, immediately disappearing in a burst of flame.

"Damn, why so serious?" Trish asked, shrugging her shoulders.

"She has her reasons." Madara responded. "And she's right. Naruto should be waiting for us already."

"But wait, what about them?" Trish pointed at the remaining Akatsuki members.

"They'll have a very nasty surprise coming very soon."

"Fine, if you say so…" The girl said, immediately teleporting away as well.

Madara was also about to follow when…

"MADARA!" Obito shouted, making his former mentor slowly look at him over his shoulder.

"Hmm?" The man slowly turned his head to look over his shoulder. "Have something to say, Obito-kun?"

"Oh, I've got a lot of things to say to you." The Akatsuki leader spat. "But what I really want to know is this… Why?"

"Hmhmhmhmhm…" Madara chuckled darkly, turning around to face his former ally. "I guess you're referring to 'why did you abandon our plan and joined someone like Naruto, Madara-sama?' Correct?" Receiving only Obito's hateful glare he continued. "Of course it is… Ah, Obito. I knew you were an idiot when I picked you up. Pathetic, weak and totally clueless." He stated mockingly.

"If I'm so pathetic…" Obito began, but out of the corner of his eye he saw that his current allies were trying to surround Madara for an attack, which is why he raised his hand. "Don't! All of us together are no match for him."

"Hn." Madara smirked at this. "Nice to know that the apprentice remembers his place."

"Then what the fuck are we supposed to do?!" Hidan snapped, raising his scythe. "Play with our thumbs?!"

"I hate to say it, but I agree with Hidan." Kisame exclaimed. "He's alone against all of us. The chances are…"

"Nil." Obito interrupted. "I know his power too well. Besides, killing him was never a part of our mission."

"Oh? And what was?" Madara wondered.

"Do you really expect me to tell you?"

The elder Uchiha shrugged. "No, I guess not… So where were we? Ah yes, you were about to ask something…"

"Indeed." Obito's only visible eye narrowed. "If I'm really so pathetic, then why did you need me in the first place."

"Oh, that's easy." Madara's smirk widened. "I needed you because I'm not Naruto… And as sad as I am to admit it, but I'm not even Orochimaru. I mean yeah, of course I tried to find ways to immortality, but unfortunately I failed…"

"Or fortunately." Obito parried.

"Oh, indeed it is fortunately! For me!" Madara stated, grinning like a madman. "Because if I did, Naruto would've never given me this incredible, unbreakable, almighty demon body! It was unfortunate… for you!" He paused. "But a failure is still a failure. And there were only a handful of things I could do before my time is up. So naturally I had to make sure that someone will work on the plan while I'm gone, and then summon me back… Preferably an Uchiha… Preferably a stupid one… Not that there were any clever ones as far as I can remember…"

"You do realize that you're calling yourself stupid." Sasori pointed.

"Of course I do! If I wasn't, I would've let Hashirama gut himself! Stupid motherfucker… Anyway, you asked me why I forsook the plan? Simple. The plan was just one possibility… Just a single one. No alternatives, no choices, nothing. It was a dead end. Oh, and it never included you staying alive." He stated to Obito's shock. "Hey, you wanted to reunite with that piece of trash girl Naruto resurrected, right? And since she's dead, well…"

"You scum…" Obito grunted angrily.

"Hmhmhmhahahaha!" Madara laughed. "Oh, that's rich coming from you! Say, weren't it you who almost killed your sensei's child just to get his attention?! The man who taught you everything, remember?!"

"I should've done it then."

"Yes, you should've." Madara pointed at his apprentice. "A mistake. But, your pain, my gain. Still, I have delayed my answer long enough. You see, Obito-kun, with Naruto possibilities are endless. He actually showed me… everything. And I have seen it!" His grin widened. "It's beyond everything you've ever imagined… A shame you won't be around to see it."

"So it has come to this…" Obito muttered, taking a battle stance.

"Not exactly." Madara said, snorting slightly, turning his head to look at Hidan. "You probably won't listen to me, son, but I suggest you look behind you."

"Heh!" Hidan pointed his scythe at the demon. "Of course I won't listen, you bitch! I'm…!"

"Kusanagi no Ikari!"

"What the…?" Hidan exclaimed in surprise... And that was actually the last thing he did because next moment four Stein Gunners appeared around him and obliterated his entire body in less than a second, leaving nothing but the scythe and a part of a hand that was holding it.

"Haruno!" Kisame yelled in anger, turning to the newcomer. "What the fuck are you…?!" But next words died in throat when he actually saw her.

There stood Haruno Sakura with an absolutely blank look on her face… and with a dismembered Uchiha Sasuke in her hand.

"And that, my dear Obito-kun, was the surprise!" Madara said mockingly, starting to disappear in a burst of flames. "Have fun…"

Obito's eyebrows furrowed. 'Something tells me that this won't be easy.'

"Destroy Akatsuki…" Sakura said in a robotic voice.

'And I hate when it's right…'

Another part of the forest…

"Arrrrrgh! God dammit!" It took all of Naruto's willpower to not scream for the entire Leaf village to hear, but it was beyond even him to not fall down on one knee and spit out a big chunk of blood. "Bhe… Fuck… It's getting harder…"

"Ah, finally getting too much for you I see."

Faster than lightning the Overlord was back to his feet, pointing his gun at the intruder… before lowering it down with a sigh.

"It's you…" Naruto muttered, dismissing his gun and clutching his chest again. "I should've expected that you'll notice. Took you long enough, Alucard."

"Hmhmhmhmhm." The ancient vampire chuckled. "It didn't. You forget that your illusions don't work on me. I've been able to see it from the start. But approaching you about that?! No, I could care less. Live or die, my life won't change much. Won't be as entertaining, but I'll survive. Others, however?! Well it was really surprising."

"Ugh… what was?"

"Girls at least." Alucard explained. "I mean even if you take into account that Tsunade and Hanabi should be immune to your illusions as well, the lack of constant jokes and cola drinking is a dead giveaway. Besides, I was there when you and that pink girl had your little… dispute. I saw it in your eyes when that attack of hers hit. You were not mad at her because she damaged your body. You were mad because you almost lost control." He grinned evilly. "So how does it feel… getting destroyed by your own power? Hurts much?"

"You have no idea…" Naruto whispered, slowly regaining his posture. "At least now I know why no one was able to break their limit without help from the gods."

"And how long ago did it start?"

"About a month after I took that Dahaka monster's power."

"Ho." The vampire smirked. "That must've been tough to endure."

"It was…" Naruto admitted. "And now it's getting worse." He took a deep breath. "It's actually good that you approached me. I was going to speak with you anyway."

"I thought as much. So?"

The Overlord held a small pause. "I've seen it, Alucard… all of it. One thousand four hundred and seventeen patterns. And only five were in my favor… Two are already out since you approached me yourself. Now there is only three. Three chances that the plan will work."

"Hmm. You do understand that if it doesn't…" The vampire started, but Naruto quickly cut him off.

"Of course I understand what will happen if it doesn't! Which is why I'm talking to you right now." The demon stated, suddenly taking off his sunglasses and looking his ally straight in the eyes. "If the plan fails and I will not succeed, I want you to do a couple of things for me. Won't be too hard."

"And why should I?" Alucard asked mockingly. "I don't remember owing you any favors, Naruto. I'm only here because it's fun."

"It won't be fun for long." Naruto stated, narrowing his eyes. "If the plan fails, then I… or at least the thing that I will turn into, will destroy everything… And I mean everything."

Vampire's eyebrows rose. "So you're asking me to…"

"Yes, I want you to end me."

"Heh!" Alucard laughed. "You know I can't do it, no one can."

"With this you can." Naruto stated, suddenly summoning a sheathed Yamato into his left hand. "I will give this to you as a farewell present. With this you'll be able to do anything. But the first thing that you must do is take my life. Otherwise I will erase all those humans you admire so much."

Vampire's grin fell. "Is that a threat?"

"No, that's the actual outcome." The demon stated. "But that's not all I ask you to do. There are two other things. First you must take my link with Hanabi and sever it. Link her to yourself if you must."

The vampire shook his head. "You know I can't do that. We created her together, but she chose to bond with you."

"That's why you must kill me first." Naruto stated, dismissing his blade.

"Cruel…"

"I know. But she's strong. I know she'll be able to move on."

"Hmm…" Alucard paused, thinking things over. "Fine, I will do as you ask. But you said there were several things."

"Yeah, there is one more… Uchiha Sasuke. Kill him."

"Oh?" Alucard's grin returned full force. "Vengeful much?"

Despite his condition, Naruto actually smirked back. "Wrong, Alucard. Vengeance has absolutely nothing to do with this."

Forest of Death. With Akatsuki…

"Yata no Kagami."

"Shit!" Obito cursed. "Run, Kakuzu!"

"Useless." Sakura said in her robotic voice. "Spread."

Obito's eyes widened in shock when one laser beam suddenly became twenty one… And all of them headed straight for Kakuzu.

"GUAAAAAAAAAH!" The oldest Akatsuki member screamed in pain when his body was pierced so many times, that when he finally fell down it was absolutely unnecessary to check for life signs.

His death was obvious.

"Damn it to hell!" Kisame yelled, landing next to Obito. "This bitch is gonna kill us all! We should just run for it!"

"No, it's useless." Sasori stated. "Look in her eyes. She's not even controlling herself…"

Kisame raised an eyebrow at him. "…SO?!"

"Think, you idiot." The puppet master replied. "She was given a command and she will follow it or die trying. Running is useless. We need to figure out a way to stop her now!"

"Imperial Ray!"

"Fuck! Disperse!" Obito commanded, jumping out of the way of Sakura's attack, which now came in form of a huge wave of fire.

"We won't be able to figure out anything at this rate!" Kisame shouted, going through several handseals. "Suikodan no jutsu!"

Next second several water sharks escaped from his mouth and headed right at Sakura… only to crash against her blue energy barrier.

"We need a distraction!"

"Leave that to me." Sasori said, reaching for a scroll on his back. "I'll try to buy us time, but I will be fully concentrated on controlling my puppets." He added, opening right side of his chest and unleashing a massive amount of chakra strings that immediately reached into the scroll. "Make this time count… Akahigi: Hyakki no Sōen! (Secret Red Move: Performance of a Hundred Puppets)"

"Wow…" Kisame muttered, looking up. "That's a lot of puppets…"

"Yata no Kagami!"

"But it won't be for long." Obito stated, narrowing his eyes.

"So, what should we do? Use sneak attack?"

"That'll hardly work." The leader disagreed. "We need to free Sasuke. That's our only chance."

"Seriously?!" Kisame said mockingly, taking a glance at the younger Uchiha. "In his condition he'll be nothing more than a burden."

"Yet he's the only one who can possibly know how to stop his girl."

"Hmm… I see your point." Monster of the Hidden Mist paused. "But how do you suppose we do it?! She's holding him in her damn hand! You know I'm not fast enough for that job."

"Maybe, but I am."

Both men instantly turned their heads towards the sudden speaker, who just happened to be none other than the white haired demon hunter.

"Sorry, I'm late." Dante began, placing his sword on his shoulder. "Did I miss anything?"

"If by anything you mean death of half of our group? Then yes, you did." Obito said angrily. "Where have you been?!"

"Sorry. My injuries were too severe to follow Sakura immediately. That Hanabi chick sure packed a hell of a punch…"

"Doesn't matter." Obito cut him off. "We need to get Sasuke. I can extract him safely, but for that I we need to force her to drop him. Can you handle it?"

The hunter grinned. "Sure, just leave it to me!"

"Alright. Kisame, you help Sasori with distraction. We'll get Sasuke!"

"Got it!"

Meanwhile Sakura actually found herself hard pressed against Sasori's puppets. They hardly possessed any real threat to her, but there were just too many.

"Tsurigi! Shimeshi! Soko!" The girl kept yelling commands for her laser cannons, sending them in all direction, but it was hardly helping. Puppets were coming from all sides, so most of the time she just had to keep her barrier on. Otherwise she would suffer a possible injury.

"Not yet!" Sasori grunted. "Fire!" He commanded and suddenly all puppets extended their hands towards Sakura, firing white hot streams of flames from both hands.

"Shit!" Dante stopped his dash when Sakura's entire body disappeared behind a wall of fire.

"She won't be able to hold it for long!" The puppeteer shouted. "When I release the attack go straight for…!"

"Yasakani no Magatama."

"What the…?!" Kisame exclaimed in shock when four energy spheres suddenly appeared around Sakura, effectively blocking all the damage and easily allowing the girl to drop her barrier.

"Useless." Sakura said absently, actually dropping Sasuke's body from her hand and… disappearing.

"Impossible." Sasori whispered in awe. "She didn't even… Guh!" Next second his eyes widened in horror as he realized that now it was him inside Sakura's barrier. "NO!"

"Wisdom of the divines." Sakura spoke, appearing in midair above the puppeteer and summoning seven energy spikes around her. "This is the power of the Godslayer!"

SLASH.

"SASORI!" Kisame screamed in rage when all spikes pierced through Sasori's body at the same time, leaving almost nothing left. "God damn it! She'll kill us all!"

"I got him!" Dante suddenly spoke, appearing next to his last remaining allies, carrying still damaged Sasuke.

"Well, what the hell are you waiting for?!" Kisame shouted, holding his sword in front of him protectively. "Ask him how to disable this bitch."

"You… cough… you can't…" Sasuke whispered barely loud enough for Dante to hear. "Naruto… Damaged vocal cords… Obito… Come closer…"

"What?" The masked shinobi leaned his ear next to Sasuke's mouth and next moment his eyes widened in shock. "You… You mean that all I had to do was…?"

"Hurry, you assholes!" Kisame yelled as Sakura dove right at him.

"Don't worry, it's over." Obito stood up slowly. "As the leader of Akatsuki I'm officially proclaim this organization disbanded."

Sakura stopped not one second later.

"W-What?" She asked, looking around in confusion. "What happened?"

Kisame's jaw dropped. "You…" Next second he appeared right in front of the still confused girl and punched her in the face with all his might. "Are you fucking kidding me?!"

"Kisame, stop." Obito commanded, watching how Sakura crushed into the ground, creating a small crater. And though he had to admit that it was a pleasant sight for his eyes, it was not helping in the slightest.

"You don't tell me to fucking stop!" The man cursed. "This bitch has killed almost our whole team!"

"That she did." Obito admitted with a sigh. "But you know as well as I do that she was controlled."

"Oh yeah?! And what's stopping her from being controlled again?!" Kisame pressed. "You know me. You know I'm not afraid to die for a mission… But not like this! This is bullshit!"

"He's right, you know." Dante added. "What if Naruto can simply control her again?"

"That's a good question." Obito nodded, slowly walking towards Sakura's location. "Can you hear me, girl?"

"Y… Sob… Yes…" She responded quietly from the bottom of the crater.

"Ah, I see you have realized what you've done. Am I correct?"

"You are… I'm… I'm so sorry!" Sakura shouted through tears.

"Your sorry won't bring back my subordinates." Obito said angrily.

Sakura's eyebrows rose immediately. "No, but we can still…!"

"Sakura." Sasuke's pained voice suddenly interrupted. "I need you to heal me. Come quick."

"H-Hai!"

"No, stay where you are!" Obito commanded. "I need to be sure that this won't happen again."

"It won't." Sakura shook her head. "I made sure of it already."

"Oh, that's convenient!" Kisame said mockingly. "You say we should just trust your word?!"

The girl slowly lost all her sorrow. "I don't care if you believe me or not. Because even if you don't, that display just now should've made it clear that you can do nothing against me. Now step aside."

"Fucking bitch…" Kisame muttered to the side, placing his sword oh his back. "I'm out of here."

Obito said nothing as he simply observed Sakura while she walked towards Sasuke and kneeled in front of him.

'What are you hiding, Sasuke?' He thought to himself, slowly disappearing into nothingness.

"Are they gone?" Sasuke asked, looking up at his girlfriend.

"They are." Sakura nodded, starting her healing technique. "Just hold on. I'll get you back on your feet in a couple of hours."

"No need to hurry anymore." Dante stated. "Naruto's party is already at the tower. Which makes us probably the only ones still in the forest."

"Perhaps…" Sakura paused, looking Sasuke in the eyes. "But why did you stop me when I was saying that we could…"

"Bring the Akatsuki back as demons?" Sasuke finished for her. "Is that what you're asking?"

"Bad idea." Dante exclaimed, looking away.

"Indeed it is…" Sasuke agreed.

"But… why?"

Sasuke only smirked up at her. "Because what just happened here was my plan all along…"

The central tower…

"Report, Kakashi."

"Hai, Hokage-sama." The jounin dropped to one knee. "The second portion is over."

The old leader furrowed his eyebrows at this. "What do you mean 'over'? It hasn't even been a full day yet."

"True, but I don't think there is any reason to delay any more." Kakashi explained. "Our teams did their job too well, my lord. There were barely any teams that were able to reach the tower."

"Hmm…" Hiruzen held a small pause. "Naruto's?"

"Hai…" Kakashi whispered, lowering his head in shame.

"Don't be sad, Kakashi-kun." Sarutobi said with a smile. "Our plans are still in motion. Now, please continue."

"Yes, Hokage-sama." The jounin nodded. "A total of seven teams made it through. Two of them are Naruto's, as you already know. One belongs to Kushina."

"Naturally…" Sarutobi exclaimed with a sigh. 'I guess it was too much to hope that this bitch would be out of my hair quickly.' He thought in irritation. "Who else?"

"Well, a team led by Sasuke made it of course." Kakashi informed. "As well as Gai's team and Kurenai's team."

"Kurenai's team?!" The Hokage said with hints of humor in his voice. "Seriously? Never thought they'll make it."

"It's strange actually. They were helped by the last remaining team from Suna." Kakashi explained. "And it's a team of Kazekage's children."

"Hmhmhmhmhmhm…" The old man chuckled, taking a drag out of his smoking pipe. "I would actually find it surprising, but I really don't care at this point."

"M-My lord?" Kakashi exclaimed in surprise.

"Ah…" Sarutobi grinned, exhaling smoke out of his lungs. "You will understand one day, Kakashi. What being a true leader is actually like…"

"Oh, and you would know that?" A very sarcastic voice came from behind.

Hiruzen's grin widened. "Yes, I would, Gai. Or have you forgotten that I've been leading this very village for several decades."

"Of course I haven't." The jounin replied, walking around his leader and stopping beside Kakashi. "But that would just make you a bigger hypocrite. Or have you forgotten all your preaching about the 'Will of Fire'?"

"QUIET!" The Hokage snapped. "Remember who you're talking to."

"Oh, I remember." Gai muttered, mimicking Kakashi's pose. "Everything's ready. We can start with the next phase at moment's notice, but I would still suggest that we wait for the morning at least. Some of the teams require rest…"

"Yes, you're right." Sarutobi nodded. "Then again, we did inform everyone that the test will last five days. No reason to change it now." He thought for a moment. "Yes, I believe that is best… What about our Akatsuki 'friends'?"

"Almost completely destroyed." Kakashi lowered his head again. "Only two survivors. And I doubt they will be as eager to fight for us again."

"That's even better." Hiruzen said in contempt. "They outlived their usefulness."

Kakashi's eye narrowed at that slightly, which got completely unnoticed by the Hokage… but surprisingly wasn't missed by Gai.

"Aren't they still our allies, Hokage-sama?"

The old leader resisted the urge to snort at that. "It's surprising to hear something like this from you, Kakashi-kun. But if you really want to know about our 'allies' and their actual role, I suggest you speak to Sasuke." He smirked at that. "I'm sure it will be… enlightening."

The grand hall…

"You're late." Naruto stated emotionlessly as the last member of their group arrived. "Any problems?"

"Nope." Madara replied with a smirk. "I just wanted to make sure that your little doll did her job right."

"And?"

"She did remarkably." Madara grinned. "Brutal and efficient."

"Excellent. Then I suppose Akatsuki is out of the game." Naruto said, nodding his head. "Then…"

"Not really." Madara suddenly interrupted. "Two still remained."

Naruto raised an eyebrow at this. "Really now? Who?"

"The blue freak and Obito-chan." Madara said and chuckled. "|Hmhmhm… You might not believe it, but your dear friend Sasuke saved their poor souls."

"Sasuke?" Naruto's face suddenly lost all playfulness. "How?"

"He told Obito to disband Akatsuki. The girl stopped immediately after that."

"Hmm…" The Overlord held a long pause. 'That is troubling…'

"What is?" Yamato commented in his head. "You can't possibly think that he's a threat NOW."

'No, not really.' Naruto replied. 'Besides, that's not even about Sasuke.'

"What then?"

'There… There was no such option.' The blonde concluded. 'I can sense interference.'

"Oh…"

'Yeah, oh…'

"Umm… Is everything okay?" Madara's voice brought Naruto out of his daydream. "You just spaced out."

"Nothing you need to concern yourself with." The Overlord said, waving his hand dismissively. "Anyway, the exam is over for us, but we still have four days until its conclusion. You may do whatever you wish, just don't attract unwanted attention… yet. I'm going to retire to my room. Tell everyone that I'm not to be disturbed."

"Of course."

Another corner of the hall…

"Yugito-chan?"

The girl in question turned her head to see approaching Hanabi.

"You look so down." Hanabi spoke gently. "Is something wrong?"

"N-No, of course not, Hanabi-san!" Yugito replied hastily. "It's just…"

"Don't worry…" Hanabi smiled, placing one hand on Yugito's shoulder. "You can tell me."

"I…" Yugito hesitated. "I just don't know what's going on. Why is Naruto-sama mad at me?"

Hanabi's eyebrows rose. "Is he?"

"Well, he's… He's always so snappy when he talks to me. I…" The blonde girl looked lost. "I don't even know what I did wrong?! I'm always…!"

"Shhhh." Hanabi interrupted, rubbing Yugito's shoulder soothingly. "Don't worry about it, Yugito-chan. I'm pretty sure that you are not at fault here."

"Then why?!"

Hanabi closed her eyes and sighed. "Naruto-sama is going through a very difficult time. I'm surprised he's not snapping at everyone around him."

"Really?" Yugito's eyes widened. "Is he in pain?! Can I help? I'll…!"

"What are you talking about, Yugito-chan?" Hanabi replied, smiling again. "Of course you can help. In fact, that's exactly what we're doing right now."

"O-Oh…" The blonde girl frowned. "I'm sorry, Hanabi-san. I understand that Naruto-sama can't tell me all his plans, I just wish… I wish I could do more!"

"Don't worry yourself so much. Besides, to be completely honest, Naruto-sama barely tells me anything at all. That's just the way he is."

"I… I guess." Yugito finally smiled. "Thank you, Hanabi-san. I needed that."

"Don't mention it." Hanabi nodded. "We all need to be…" She suddenly stopped.

"Hanabi-san?"

"Sorry, Yugito-chan. I just need to do something quickly."

Yugito's eyebrows rose. "Wait! Take me with…!" But before she could finish that sentence, Hanabi has already blurred out of view. "…you. Damn, I seriously wish I could do that."

Naruto's room…

"Ugh… Made it." The demon muttered, finally closing the door behind him.

"I'm doing all I can, Naruto." Yamato said in his head.

Naruto shook his head. "Yeah, I know… Oh shit!" He only managed to say before another chunk of blood erupted from his mouth. In fact, the pain was so strong that he would surely fall down right on his face… if a pair of soft hands didn't hold him up gently.

"It's okay, I got you." Soothing voice whispered in his ear.

"Gh… Hanabi?"

"Who else." The girl muttered, carrying Naruto's much bigger form over to the bed and sitting him down. "How bad is it?" She asked, kneeling in front of him.

"Nothing I can't handle."

"Uh-huh." Hanabi replied, sarcastically before producing a handkerchief out of her hair and wiping the blood from Naruto's mouth with it. "Now tell the truth."

"Hmhmhmhm…" Naruto chuckled. "Since when do you give me orders?"

"Naruto…"

"It's bad." The Overlord has finally stated. "My power is ripping my body apart, and my willpower is the only thing that's keeping it together. But soon… Soon it will fail."

Hanabi looked down. "How soon?"

"Doesn't matter." Naruto shook his head. "If my plan fails…"

"How soon!"

The demon held a pause. "A month… two at best."

Tap… Tap… Tap…

"Hanabi?" Naruto asked in slight shock at what he saw.

"Tell me… Is that the reason why you cut me off?" The girl asked with shaking voice.

"Look, I'm…"

"Tell the truth!"

Naruto took a deep breath. "Yes."

"Gh." Hanabi bit her lip hard enough to draw blood. "Why? Our link goes both ways! If you told me how much pain you were in, I could…!"

"No." Naruto cut her off. "You don't know what you're talking about."

"Yes, I do! I can take the pain! You know it!" She yelled, finally looking up at him with her tear stained face. "I almost died several times, so I can take anything."

"Do not be stupid, girl." Naruto shook his head. "There are things worse than death."

Hanabi gritted her teeth angrily. "Do it."

Naruto just stared into her eyes for a moment and actually felt bad about something for the longest time. No, not about what he saw in Hanabi's pure pale orbs. He only saw care and concern there. But that's exactly the thing. For all the people that cared about him… that he made care about him, he never cared back. He thought he cared, but did he really? His only concern was when they were taken away from him. Was that what you can call caring? No, that moment Naruto realized that he never cared about anyone but himself. Did he feel bad about it?

He didn't.

Should he? Questionable. Would've it made things better? Easier? Doubtful. Could it make everything worse? Definitely. Why?

'Because they have failed me.' The Overlord concluded gravely. 'They have all failed me. Everyone except…' He looked down again and… suddenly covered Hanabi's mouth with his hand.

"Wha-mmfh!"

"Forgive me." Naruto gritted his teeth and…

"MMMMMMMMMMMMYYYYYYHHHHMMM!" Hanabi screamed into his hand with as much force as she could muster. She, never even in her wildest nightmares, could think that such pain was possible. Her body immediately lost all control, twisting and convulsing repeatedly, forcing Naruto to pick her up with his free hand.

Thankfully the pain stopped almost as soon as it started.

"Shhhh." Naruto whispered, hugging the girl close to himself and laying them both on the bed. "It's alright."

"Oh… god…" Hanabi muttered, now crying openly. "You… You're experiencing that…"

"Every second."

The girl just sobbed silently, hugging him back. "Tell me… Tell me that you have a backup plan for this…"

The demon just rubbed her back silently.

"Naruto…"

"I don't." He finally stated. "If it fails then I'm done for."

"Then… Then I'll stay with you. Till the end." Hanabi whispered. "No matter what happens." Her grip on him tightened. "Open the link again."

"Why?"

"You took a girl that nobody wanted and turned me into a woman I am today. You saved my life more than once and gave me purpose." Hanabi said, crying into his chest. "And now, after all that, I can do nothing to help, so… Let me at least share it with you."

"Sigh…" Naruto closed his eyes.

"Urgh!" The girl grunted, pressing her face harder into Naruto's chest to muffle her screams.

'How fascinating…' The Overlord thought, rubbing her head gently. 'Why does she willing to suffer so much for me? Why do I hate so much to see her suffer? Would I really care if there was anyone else in her position? Would I?' His eyes narrowed. 'I would not. And if so…'

With Sasuke…

"I've done everything I could. How do you feel?"

"Excellent." Sasuke replied, flexing his new regenerated arm. "Thanks, Sakura. You're a miracle worker."

"No, I'm not…" The girl frowned. "If I was, you wouldn't have been in that situation from the start."

The Uchiha sighed. "We'll talk later about this. For now…" He turned his head, facing another person. A person he was not really expecting, or willing to see. "I believe we should pay some attention to our guest. Though to be quite honest, I have no desire to chat with you."

"The feeling is mutual, believe me." Kushina stated, folding her hands in front of her chest. "Unfortunately we don't always get what we wish."

"True." Sasuke replied, standing up from his bed. "So, what do I owe?"

"I have come to warn you, Uchiha Sasuke." Kushina's eyes narrowed. "Your services are no longer required."

The Sharingan wielder raised a single eyebrow in confusion. "I beg your pardon?"

"I'm talking about your pointless pursuit of rivalry with that monster."

"Ah… I see." Sasuke glared at Kushina dangerously. "I guess this is the part where you tell me that you already had everything planned and it's just a matter of time before…"

"No, it's not." Kushina cut him off sharply and glared back. "We already had everything planned before coming here. Now we only need to remove any possible distractions. And you are the biggest one."

"Hmhmhmhmhahahaha…" Sasuke chuckled at that, making Sakura look at him worriedly. He probably didn't realize it himself, but his laughter really sounded like Naruto's own. "And this is the part where you expect me to say that only I can kill him and that it is you who should back off, right?"

Kushina made no sound or movement to show her surprise, but the slight raising of her eyebrows told Sasuke everything.

"Indeed." He grinned. "Now I see why he always found it so funny…"

"What are you…?"

"Doesn't matter." This time Sasuke cut Kushina off. "What does matter is that you say you have a plan against Naruto. Well, the only thing I'll say about that is… good luck."

The older woman looked at him in confusion.

"Huh?"

"Why so surprised? You wanted me out of your way and I gratefully accept." Sasuke stated, making a mock bow. "Or what, did you actually hope for a confrontation."

"I… no."

"Perfect! Then I'll tell you this. If it's Naruto's death you seek, then I will respectfully let you do your thing." He waved his hand. "Hell, I'll even help if you ask me anything. Is that agreeable?"

"Hmm… I guess." Kushina straightened. "Very well Uchiha Sasuke. I'm glad that you saw the light so quickly. I'll tell you if we'll require any help from your men. But remember!" She pointed at him with one finger. "Whatever you do, DO NOT get involved yourself! Do you understand?!"

Sasuke's grin widened. "Perfectly."

"Good." Kushina nodded and went towards the door. "Make sure it stays this way."

"Hmhmhmhmhmhm…" The Uchiha chuckled again, watching her retreating back.

"Please don't do that." Suddenly came from the side.

"Sakura?" Sasuke turned his head in confusion. "What do you mean?"

The girl looked down. "That laugh… Please don't laugh like that again."

"Why?"

"Because… It makes you sound like him." The girl whispered.

"What?!" Sasuke exclaimed in slight anger. "You're comparing me to Naruto?! You of all people?!"

"Sasuke, please!" Sakura rushed forward, wrapping her arms tightly against her beloved. "Can't you see what you're becoming?!"

"What are you talking about?! I'm perfectly fine!"

"Are you?" Sakura asked as tears started to appear in her eyes. "You're making plans to sacrifice our allies. You tell people things they're about to say. And that laugh! Sasuke, can't you see what you're becoming?! Is Naruto's downfall really worth it?!"

"Yes, it is!" Sasuke gripped her shoulders tightly. "Don't talk like you know everything, Sakura! You don't know squat! Destroying Naruto worth any price! I'll…!"

"Sasuke! You're hurting me!" Sakura yelped in pain, shocking Sasuke out of his anger.

"I…" The Uchiha immediately released his grip. "I'm sorry, Sakura. I just…" He sighed and hugged her gently. "Alright, I'll try not to do those things anymore. Perhaps it is for the best…"

"It is." Sakura whispered, hugging him back. "This world doesn't need two of him."

Four days later. The grand hall…

"Well, first of all… congratulations on passing the second test!" Sandaime Hokage began, trying his hardest not to laugh. 'Really now. This farce isn't fooling anyone… well maybe Kurenai's team.' He thought.

'Twenty ANBU squads and fifteen jounin.' Naruto counted, looking around the room. 'Did he really think it'll help if a fight breaks out?'

"Perhaps not." Yamato commented. "But what else did you expect him to do?"

'Point taken.'

"Attention everyone! Hokage-sama will now explain the third test." Anko stated. "Please, Hokage-sama."

"Yes." The old man began. "As most of you already know, the third test will take place one month away from now. The purpose of it all…" He suddenly stopped, taking a drag out of his pipe. "You know what, I will not be explaining that to you. If you want to know the purpose of chuunin exams then ask your sensei or read some books."

'Ahahahaha!' Naruto laughed quietly. 'He's not even trying.'

"Besides, the purpose of this particular exam is very different, so without further delay… Hayate!"

"Hai!" A single man in jounin vest appeared in a puff of smoke. "Thank you, Hokage-sama. Now for everyone that passed the second test congratulations again. However, since the third test cannot be allowed to last too long, we must limit the amount of participants to at least ten. Therefore we will be having a set of preliminary matches right now."

"Say what?!" Kiba exclaimed loudly.

"What's the matter, dog boy?" Trish mocked him, as he was standing right beside her. "Afraid of some little competition?"

Said boy blushed at this. And not because of mocking. Naturally, he was a growing teenager and Trish was smokin' hot… But Akamaru thought differently. In fact, he crawled inside Kiba's jacket as soon as they entered the hall, but now he was scared shitless.

"Akamaru, what?" Kiba asked, and, after hearing a quiet whimper, gulped the lump in his throat. "Umm… Sorry to bother ma'am."

"Oh, don't call me that." Trish said playfully. "It makes me feel old, and I'm only two thousand and twelve!"

"R-Right…"

"Remember what my mother told you, Uchiha." Minoru whispered to the Sharingan wielder. "We will not ask again."

"Oh, I wouldn't worry about that." Sasuke replied with a smirk.

"Are you alright, Hinata?" Gaara whispered gently.

"H-Hai…" The girl smiled. At first she was wary of sand genin, but soon got comfortable with his presence.

"Enough already." Neji rolled his eyes. "Just get this over with."

"Hmm… very well." Hayate began, taking out a clipboard. "Now I'll explain the rules. The test will consist of a set of one on one matches. The rules are simple. Two people's names will be randomly chosen and appear on that big screen behind me. The match itself will last until one of the participants either unable to continue, unconscious or dead."

"D-Dead?" Hinata muttered fearfully.

"Indeed. Death is allowed in this portion." Hayate stated. "Of course you can forfeit at any time and if I myself decide that the match is over then you must stop immediately or be disqualified. Is that understood?"

"Yes."

"Good. However…" The jounin studied everyone with his gaze. "Those are still death matches, and there will be other chances in the future. Therefore, if you feel weak, uncertain or scared you have this one chance to forfeit right now. Anyone?"

Hinata's heart skipped a beat. Slowly but surely her hand began to rise and…

"I…" A single voice echoed through the hall, making absolutely everyone stare at the speaker in shock and confusion.

"I forfeit." Naruto stated with a sly grin plastered on his face.

...

And that is all I have for today. Again, please let me know if you'd like me to continue.

And once more… for old times' sake…

FUCK LIKE HELL AND SLEEP WELL!

Darthemius.