Naruto : Uchiha : Chapter 84

( Meanwhile, a mile away from the village )

"It's only four hours to dawn." Duy told no one in particular. Eyeing the moon for it's position to gauge the time, he had nothing else to do.

If Sakumo had heard him while he was lying down on the branch above the tree Duy sat under, the silver haired genin showed no signs of acknowledgment.

He himself wasn't in the right state of mind right now.

That idiot, that go forsaken, thrice damned, idealistic and prideful friend of his was off in the village that reeked of blood and death while he was here, lying down doing nothing.

His heart screamed at him to go in, all guns blazing and get that blonde idiot out - knocked unconscious preferably.

But his mind, his training and years upon years of his father's teachings still stood tall. He was doing the right thing, why risk everything for something they didn't even need to do in the first place?

But why hadn't he returned by now?

It had been a long time now, two hours in fact since Naruto had walked into that hellish village.

"You know Sakumo…" his inner turmoil was broken off while he gazed down at Duy, who was sitting there pretending to read a scroll - pretending because it was a sealing scroll that carried their supplies - but had just broken the long bouts of silence between them yet again.

"I feel like a coward." that struck a chord in the listener's heart. Sitting up, Sakumo was now paying rapt attention to Duy and what he had to say.

Rarely, if ever, was the ever youthful boy this serious.

But today, the situations really were dire and complicated to say the least.

So he wasn't surprised.

Not much…

"We are not cowards Duy, we are doing the right thing…" Sakumo's voice was harsh, and it wasn't aimed at Duy. It came out that way because he himself felt the same damn way, as much as he was loathe to admit it out loud.

"We are shinobi." he consoled himself more than he did for Duy, who had once more gone silent. Lacking any signs of his usual enthusiastic fervor right now.

Looking at Duy's slumped form, Sakumo felt even more angrier at Naruto.

Why couldn't he just listen to him and be sensible?

For once maybe?

Was that really too much to ask?

He absolutely hated that part of his usually calm and lazy friend.

Especially, when he'd get all idealistic and become as stubborn as a rock. not caring who was in front of him and would go in all guns blazing as if he was possessed by another reckless soul of sorts.

But it was who he was.

There was no denying that.

He'd be more worried if he didn't do things like that.

"Duy listen to me…" the bushy boy looked up upon hearing the call and saw Sakumo's consoling smile. "…he needs to learn restraints. We can't always bail him ou-" Sakumo's neck snapped straight in the direction of the village while the words died down in his throat.

Jumping down by Duy's side, who was on guard seeing this sudden change of demeanor in Sakumo - Duy felt quite confused in the situation.

Sakumo gulped audibly, a bead of sweat rolling down his temple and stopping at the tip of his chin to show just how intimidated he truly felt.

That sudden upsurge of chakra he was sensing, it was unlike anything he had ever felt before.

How could a human even possess so much chakra?

Both genin's eyes widened in horror seeing the village they hadn't dared to enter light up to life in a bright yellow glow.

Sakumo's mind was analyzing things at a mile a minute.

To power up a technique of that scale, most probably a small battalion of shinobi would be required.

Five teams - high chunin level at the very least.

And that in itself spelt trouble for Naruto.

"Oi Sakumo-" Sakumo looked on at Duy shaking his arm to snap him out of his stupor, while he was fastening his orange leg warmers up tight.

"Duy what do you think you're -"

"I'm going in." just like that Duy's orange scarf was clenched in Sakumo's hand while he glared down at him murderously.

What the hell was wrong with them?

Did everyone he know loved to turn suicidal as soon as they saw a challenge that they knew the couldn't survive?

What the hell were they trying to prove?

But he was shocked when Duy pushed his arm back and made some distance with a new found cold look in his eyes.

The taijutsu user had finally had enough.

"He would do it for me."

Just like that, all the accumulated anger drained from Sakumo's body.

Those words from Duy hit him harder than any enemy could have done right now.

He just watched Duy run into the village as fast as he possibly could, without giving away his presence while he stood there - dazed out of his wits, and hitting a complete blank at the moment.

Naruto really would do it for Duy - no, not just for Duy.

For Tsunade, for their sensei, for any Leaf shinobi - he'd lay down his life without a thought if he knew there was even a sliver of a chance that he could help them.

He had proved it a few hours ago, he'd even do it for complete strangers - allies or not.

Naruto would do it for him.

Without another thought, he took off right before Duy.

His father and family's training and ideologies be damned, his friend needed him - and he needed him now.

All senses of logic and fear lay forgotten while only one thought chanted in his mind like a stuck record;

Over and over and over again …

"Hold on until I get there. Don't you die on me you reckless fool!"

...

( Hayakawa village )

In an unknown alley

A golden blur ran through the streets, agility and thoughts like that of a frightened rabbit - Naruto ran as if his life depended on it.

He had picked up his pace when the clone he had substituted with - he had substituted as soon as the girl had fallen down on her knees and told him she was there for him - had, in fact, been the right choice on his part.

If she was here for him, then he was in a trap.

And the only thing for him to do in this situation was run and escape this village.

He had, after all, gotten all the information he needed from her.

She was an Uzumaki, no doubt about that.

If her chains weren't a dead give away, her massive - almost inhumane chakra reserves she had used to spear his clone with a couple dozen chains even after their exhausting bout certainly had sealed the deal for him.

That was no ordinary Uzumaki girl either.

Since, as far as he knew - all Senju's and Uzumaki's were, in fact, blessed with such stamina, reserves and healing abilities.

The Uzumaki's taking the advantage in quantity of their chakra while the cousin Senju's had the potency of chakra more so than them in a few rare cases but both had a healing factor that was completely a random phenomenon as to who had how strong of a resilience.

Even the density of chakra varied with person to person.

But this girl's reserves already surpassed his grandmother's by a fair margin and even then he knew she was, in fact, only just getting started.

So there was only one thing left for him to do.

Get the information;

…and run.

And run he did - just as he passed another corned to get out of this village as soon as he could before she caught on to his escape plan.

But his eyes snapped down at his feet when his Sharingan picked up on a small interference on the ground. A change that made him halt his movement for a minute to analyze it further.

Narrowing his eyes on them, he focused on that strange thing before they widened to the point of turning a bit comical just as soon as realization struck him.

"Shit!" the curse slipped past his lips when he finally realized what that black marking that had appeared on the ground truly was.

Kanji.

And that could mean only one thing - from as much as he had learned about his opponent , it could mean only one thing right now.

She was an Uzumaki.

So the thing underneath his feet was in fact a seal.

Rushing out the dark alley to escape it, his eyes didn't lose their widened state when he frantically stared back and forth the path to see the whole middle street covered in Kanji.

In fact, if his guess was right - then the range of this technique covered this entire village.

"A village-wide sealing technique! I was in checkmate as soon as I entered this damn village!" his mind screamed in anguish and defeat.

But he took a calming breath, no point in thinking of the obvious.

What would Tobirama do if he were here? What was the right course he could take?

He couldn't escape the village in time, any second now she'd activate her technique and he would most likely be trapped like a hamster in her palms.

And seals were a powerful asset if the caster had the time to prepare it first hand.

She certainly had taken her time for this, seeing, she did in fact go through the lengths of covering the whole damn village in it!

..

..

"Every technique has a weakness. There are no exceptions - So, calm yourself down."

..

..

Years ago, in a training ground when Tobirama had trapped him down in a low level seal - he had been six if he remembered right.

He had heard those words from the strict master.

..

..

"Analyze the technique, you have your Sharingan to help you, and a sharp mind to go with it.

Accept that you are trapped, break down the opponent's techniques' - straight down to the basics and devise the most suitable counter even if it isn't perfect.

Your priority is containment of the technique and fortification of your survival…"

...

"...by any means necessary." he whispered the last of his mentor's words and closed his eyes for a moment before glaring down at the ground.

He still had the advantage.

...

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