Disclaimer: Naruto and the rest are Kishi's.

Warning: Fighting. Hysteria. Cliff. Hanger. ಥ⌣ಥ

Beta: Kalafina94

Beta: silverseed

Edit: 1/1/2018

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An hour later, literally out of nowhere, a huge blast of sheer power erupted in front of us. I barely had time to scream in surprise before I felt Sasuke's hand grab on to my own and I reached to grab Naruto's. However, the blast was too strong, and in a matter of seconds, Naruto was ripped away from us and we were sent hurtling through the forest like little pebbles that had been kicked aside by a child.

I twisted my body along with Sasuke and we landed with a thud in a small clearing.

I winced and turned around.

"What the hell was that?" Sasuke asked, his voice low.

"That was me."

Shivers raced down my spine at the slick voice, but it wasn't the voice that terrified me.

It was the killer intent.

That particular intent made Zabuza's look like a purring kitten. The sheer amount of desire for blood to be spilled—for our blood to be spilled—coupled with the amount of power that oozed out, along with the voice—

My stomach heaved and a whimper escaped me.

Kakashi wasn't there, though.

We were on our own.

I didn't even realize I was shaking so badly until I noticed Sasuke. He, too, was shaking with fear, his dark eyes wide with it.

The owner of the voice stepped before us, smiling twistedly. "Why hello, Sasuke-kun."

His eyes—oh sweet Kami, his eyes.

His eyes were like a serpent that had found its prey; like a mad scientist who found a new and fascinating specimen; like an insane killer who found his latest victim.

Us.

I whimpered again, cowering away from him.

Sasuke tore his eyes away from the man towards me. I met his gaze and saw something I did not like. The same small glow of determination in his eyes that he held the day he activated his Sharingan. For a brief panicked moment, I feared he was going to try and use himself as a human shield for me, but that thought was over quickly.

Because Sasuke had reacted already.

In a single movement, he pulled out a kunai and jabbed his leg with it. He grimaced in pain, but he had stopped shaking. Upon realizing what he had done, my only visible eye widened, but he was already on the move. He threw down a smoke bomb and grabbed me.

In seconds, we were flying through the trees.

Sasuke led and I followed blindly, my heart hammering loudly and painfully in my chest. My head was dizzy with fear, and my body sluggish and numb with terror. I didn't know how long we ran, but when we had finally stopped we were out of breath and my fear had subsided enough to think clearly.

We landed on a branch, panting heavily.

"We have to find Naruto," I breathed.

"I—I know," Sasuke said quietly.

"How?" I asked him.

"I don't know," Sasuke answered. "But I—I don't ever want to see another precious person to me die. Even if it is Naruto."

I gave him a weak smile at his attempt to joke, but it faltered easily.

"Who was that?" I asked timidly.

"I don't know," Sasuke responded. "He can't be a Genin. That was too much—"

We lapsed into silence.

"Come on," Sasuke said, standing up. "Let's go and find—"

The tree behind us exploded into splinters and immediately, Sasuke and I leapt back and away from the tree, landing on another one. Where we once were was that man from before. He grinned at us.

"Now that wasn't very nice," he said, his voice sickeningly smooth. "I wasn't done talking."

Sasuke shifted and stepped in front of me. Keeping his voice low he said, "I'll attack. You hold."

My eyes widened, fear already pulsing inside of me. "But he's so strong—!"

"We have to try," Sasuke interrupted, already jumping off from the branch and moving his hands.

I suppressed a shudder of fear and bit my lip. Heart hammering, I forced my chakra out in a burst, shakily molding it and guiding it towards our opponent. My chakra wrapped around him in an invisible thread and he tensed, immediately realizing what had transpired. From the mere push and fluctuation of my chakra, I could already feel the pain rising up in my head, pounding and sharp.

His eyes narrowed as Sasuke finished the last handseal for his Great Fireball Jutsu.

And he broke my hold with ease, sending a searing white hot burning sensation to ride through my mind as he disrupted my control, then jumping out of the way of the ball and swinging his gaze towards me.

My eyes widened with fright as he lunged towards me, dark intent in his eyes.

Heart in throat and vision doubling from my technique, I could do nothing but wait for the inevitable.

Or would have been inevitable had it not been for Naruto.

In a flash of orange, my brave friend leapt out of nowhere, his hand clenched tightly into a fist and rushing towards the man. His face twisted into a scowl as the man dodged him with relative ease, twisting his body as his eyes narrowed.

His original pursuit in me, however, did not go unnoticed and he continued on his path, annoyance dwelling in him.

"I won't let you hurt one of my friends," Naruto snarled, rushing forward again.

My legs wobbled and felt like water. I had to move. I had to get out of the way. Naruto gave me the chance and damn it, I had better take it!

"Especially my family!" he shouted.

Apparently more annoyed with Naruto than with me, the man's lower half melted away into a slithering form. He rested on a branch before his tail-like body swung around and slammed into me. It seemed to come at me faster than I would have thought possible, and I didn't have enough time to properly dodge it. It connected against my chest, forcing the air to rush out of me in a painful whoosh. I flew away from it and my head hit a tree. Sharp pain arched through the back of my head and darkness dotted my vision. Vaguely, I could see the man rushing towards Naruto.

But I was already falling to the forest floor.

I blacked out before I even hit it.

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When I awoke, it was to the strangest sight. My mind was muffled and honestly, I couldn't really tell you what I was properly thinking. My memory of that moment was incredibly blurred. At best, I could only tell you I was feeling accurately. Like before with Haku and Zabuza, my mind felt on the verge of teetering. Only instead of a gentle slope like with them, I felt like I was hanging above a vast and horrendous cavern. Like if I took one more step, I would fall and it would not be a pretty sight.

Naruto was dangling from a tree branch, unconscious and a little battered, but other than that he appeared to be okay. The forest around us was thoroughly damaged, singed and shattered. The ground I rested on was slick and sticky with my blood and my vision was blurred.

A little ways from me was Sasuke, panting heavily, and on his knees. And smirking a little ways from him was the man. His face was burnt off, revealing something else. Something (terrifyingly) familiar.

I struggled to see his face as my vision slowly refocused into clarity. His familiar, familiar face.

And I saw it.

My heart pounded loudly in my chest and my breath stopped.

It all rushed back to me. In one horrible wave. All my memories of my past life flooded through me and I knew who he was. I knew what was going to happen and I knew what I had to do, but it was so much more than that. Because I rememberedeverything and then—and then I was—I was—everything was—

My lungs were burning.

(I couldn't breathe! I couldn't breathe!)

Tattered, tattered and beatenbeatenbeaten.

(Tossed about like a rag doll)

My mind was slowly descending into chaos as the old memories fought with the newers ones and one moment, I was here in the forest and the next, I was struggling against the—

There was a line, a single line of thought that broke through it all, because I saw ThatManWhoJustWon'tDie take a step towards Sasuke(Jaymie), and I froze.

Orochimaru was going to hurt my family.

It was that thought that finally pushed me over the edge. Anxiety, fear, panic, hysteria bubbled into me and I thought desperately about what I could do. They were too far. Too far. I couldn't do anything. I couldn't do anything! Again!

They were too far. They were too far. Too far. Too far. Toofartoofartoofartoofar.

I couldn't attack; I was so very dizzy. Dizzydizzydizzy. But they were so far. They needed me. Sasuke needed me. Naruto needed me. He needed me!

If Sasuke left, Naruto would be hurt. They would all be hurt. ItachiDanzōEldersMassacre. GaaraKazekageKageSummit. HokageTsunadeLeafPeinNagatoKonan. AkatsukiAkatsukiAkatsuki.

MomDadBabybrother.

Hurthurthurt. Deaddeaddead. They needed me, and I couldn't be there.

I was going to lose them all.

I had to reach them. Had to protect them. Had to protect. Had to defend. Hadtohadtohadto.

I was delirious, my emotions were out of control, and I thought and prayed and begged to be able to do something. For my body to move. I had this wonderfulamazinglybeautiful chakra, so why the fuck couldn't I do something with it? My body was so sluggish and I knew I had lost too much blood, but I had to move because I needed to move, but I couldn't do anything more than struggle to sit up.

I was hyperventilating, and for a moment, I wasn't in the forest again; I was fallingfallingfallingagainagainagain.

(No! No! I don't want to! Please! I don't want to die!)

TheHandWasTooFar.

Shaking, my vision still blurred, and frantically, I grabbed at my chakra. My body couldn't move, but it could.

I willed it. I forced it. I ripped it.

Panicpanicpanic.

My mind snapped.

A black hole appeared beneath me as Orochimaru's neck elongated and his head shot towards the vulnerable Sasuke.

Hadtoreachhadtoreach. Hadtohadtohadto.

For a heartbeat, all I saw was blackness, and all I felt was coldness, and all I heard was the gentle huuusshh of the—

Then it was gone and I was shooting out of a black hole that had appeared right in front of Sasuke. My arms snaked out and wrapped around him and I threw myself on him.

Sharp, horrible pain sliced into my neck and I screamed.

Protectprotectprotect.

Burning. Like lava being poured through my veins. It raged through my entire body, blinding me and blanketing my mind. Only sheer pain and agony ripped through me and I screamed. I screamed and I screamed.

Even as darkness edged my vision once more, all I could do was scream and scream.

Ihadtoprotectthem.

Becausetheyweremyfamily.

Andbecause—because—

It was my fault to begin with.

(I'm so

sorry)

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Yeah. What she was experiencing shouldn't really make much sense to you. Yet.

Cliff hanger. ಥ⌣ಥ

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