The YouTube link on the side is just a Naruto flash animation that I find amusing :3

Ashley's POV

"Aaarrgghh!" Naruto suddenly begins yelling, though his spastic dancing makes him trip over a tree root. "Oof! Aaaarrgghh!"

I throw the blonde an irritated look, trying to ignore Sakura as she continues staring at me, her eyes as wide as saucers.

"What the hell are you screaming for?!" I snap. "You're going to let everyone know where we are!"

"But it's the end of the world!" Naruto shouts, covering his head with his arms.

"What?" I ask wearily, just knowing that I'm going to get a stupid answer.

"It's the end of the world..." Naruto repeats, though he raises his head to peek at me, "....Because you laughed!"

Naruto bursts out laughing again at his own dumb joke, lying down on his back and flailing his arms up and down.

I stiffen at his words, my neck slowly wrenching around so I can send Naruto a deathly glare. He cracks one eye open to look at me, only to freeze, his eyes growing wide.

"I . Did. Not. Laugh!" I state icily, pronouncing each word pointedly so that maybe, just maybe, Naruto will get it through his thick skull.

"Uhh....Yeah" the blue eyed male eventually complies, nodding his head vigorously, though a sweat drop appears on the side of his head. "I um, I know you didn't laugh Ashley."

Huh. He's probably just agreeing with me to avoid a beating. Smartest thing he's done so far this week.

Suddenly sensing something directly ahead of us, I rise to my feet, squinting my eyes into the distance. It's difficult to see far however, considering how dark it is in this forest. I see Naruto shiver at the look on my face, no doubt afraid I'm actually going to attack him.

My brows furrow as I continue to stare ahead, with Sasuke and Sakura cautiously glancing over their shoulders now as well. Someone's coming......Someone familiar......

"Move it!" I suddenly cry, bending my knees and leaping straight up into the trees, as the others just look up, sending me questioning looks.

Before they can so much as respond to me, they are suddenly blasted by a powerful, gale force wind that pushes them along the ground and rips a number of plants from the ground.

"What is it now?!" Sasuke shouts over the sound of the wind, as he, Naruto and Sakura all throw up their arms and try to brace themselves against the gale. Watching from a high branch and hidden from view, I watch as my teammates scatter in different directions, just as someone steps into view.

My eyes immediately widen and I duck back behind the trunk of the tree I'm standing on, suppressing a horrified gasp. No.....No, this isn't happening! How can he have found us already? Maybe if we all just remain hidden, he'll pass through and leave us alone.....

'What wishful thinking' I muse, closing my eyes and resting the back of my head against the tree, 'He's not stupid enough to not someone is here.....'

"You two fan out" I hear the Grass Ninja order her two teammates. "I'll take care of these one myself....."

I let out a low, shaky breath and reopen my eyes, as a faint voice catches my attention and causes me to look to my left. I almost turn around and slam my face against the tree, spotting Sakura and Sasuke down on the ground, though still out of the Grass Ninja's view.

I can hear my two teammates conversing from here however, so it's only a matter of time before he tracks them down as well.....

"If only they knew just how much danger we're in right now...." I whisper to myself, looking down and seeing that my hands are shaking again. My breath begins to quicken, heart beginning to beat faster than usual.

"I need to calm down" I mutter to myself, peering back over at my teammates, only to see that Sasuke is now brandishing a kunai at Sakura. "I need to think straight here.....Can't let this.....Fear get the better of me....."

"Stay back!" Sasuke commands, eyeing Sakura suspiciously. "First answer me this, when does a Ninja strike?"

Her face brightening, Sakura repeats the stupidly long password, smiling proudly when Sasuke lowers his kunai.

"Good......" Sasuke sighs, turning his head as Naruto's loud, obnoxious voice echoes through the air. I grit my teeth, watching as Naruto bursts through some bushes and into Sakura and Sasuke's view.

"Hey!" the blonde calls out, raising his hand in a wave. "Are you guys alright? That blast was intense!"

"Don't come any closer!" Sakura orders, frowning and holding out her hand, palm facing a confused Naruto. I stare at the blue eyed Genin carefully, feeling uncertain. They're all being so loud, why hasn't he gone over there yet?.....

"Huh?" Naruto asks.

"What's the password?" Sakura asks, making Naruto break out into a broad grin.

"Oh yeah" he laughs, shaking his head. He repeats the password perfectly, to which Sakura sighs with relief and my eyes widen in horror.

'Oh no!' I think urgently. 'That's why I didn't see him go over! It's not Naruto! How can't Sakura see that?!'

Sasuke smirks meanly at Naruto, before flinging a swift kunai at Naruto, making me sigh with relief. At least one of them is paying attention.

'Wait' I think sharply, brows furrowing. 'What do I care if they realize or not?'

Naruto darts to the side, easily avoiding the kunai, to which Sakura whirls around, staring at Sasuke through wide eyes.

"What was that for?!" Naruto demands to know. "You coulda killed me you moron!"

"I've got to hand it to you" Sasuke replies smartly, bending his knees a little, "You're a lot quicker than the last one."

"What are you talking about Sasuke?" Sakura asks, sounding both exasperated and a little pleading. "He just got the password totally right!"

"Exactly" Sasuke mutters, his eyes never straying from the Naruto before him. "Do you really think the actual Naruto would remember all that? The Naruto I know would never get it right, not in a million years. You'd have a better chance teaching it to a monkey."

'That's not exactly fair' I think to myself, watching the scene intently. 'Monkeys are a lot smarter than Naruto.'

"Oh yeah....." Sakura murmurs, mouth pulling up to the side in thought as she turns back around to look at the Naruto imposter. ".....You've got a point."

"Besides" Sasuke smirks, as Naruto gives him a dark look, "This one doesn't even move like Naruto. He's too precise. Alright, the shows' over. Who are you?!"

Naruto grins and licks his lips at this, making me scowl. I just know that this isn't going to go down well. If I only I knew what he was up to.....What's his reason for being here and competing in Chuunin Exams?

"Aren't you a clever one?" Naruto asks in a female voice, before suddenly disappearing in a puff of smoke. The Grass Ninja from earlier walks out of the smoke, causing Sakura to take a few steps backward so that Sasuke is ahead of her.

"Tell me" the Ninja begins lowly, "If your teammate is really so stupid, why would you come up with such a complex code?"

"It was more intended to be a trap for anyone who happened to be lurking around and eavesdropping" Sasuke answers with a smug look on his face. "I knew Naruto wouldn't be able to remember the password, and you fell for it."

I can't help raising my eyebrows at this, admittedly a little impressed with Sasuke's train of thought. Not only had he come up with a good password, he'd made it difficult on purpose to trick anyone else who may have heard it. Not bad. I didn't even think of that.

"Well, well" the woman sneers, "It seems as though you haven't dropped your guard at all. This promises to be very entertaining....."

'I don't like the sound of that' I think, clenching my hands into fists despite the fact that they're still shaking a bit. 'Where's Naruto gone? I hope he didn't do anything to Narut-'

I straighten up so quickly at my thoughts that I almost fall right off of the tree branch I'm standing on, my brows furrowed deeply.

'What do I care if he did anything to Naruto?' I wonder irritably, shaking my head. 'What do I care if he does anything to any of them? As long as I survive.....'

Reaching into her pocket, the Grass Ninja pulls out a scroll and holds it up, eyeing my two teammates carefully. Sakura's eyes widen at the sight of the paper, while Sasuke swallows and lowers his head a little, eyes staring hard at the scroll.

"Ahhh" the enemy Ninja chuckles evilly, "You'd love to get a hold of our Earth scroll wouldn't you? It'd go so well with your Heaven scroll."

Dammit Sasuke and Sakura! Shouldn't they know not to give away what they're thinking with their expressions and body language? Surely they learned basic Ninja rules like that at their Academy?

Slowly bringing the Earth scroll up to her face and opening her mouth, the Grass Ninja wraps her long, disgusting tongue around the scroll and pulls it down into her throat. Sakura grabs at her throat as the enemy swallows the scroll, a look of disgust on her face.

"When this is all over" the Grass Ninja hisses, sending a shiver up my spine, "One of us will have both scrolls, and the other will be dead!"

Sakura and Sasuke suddenly gasp, before freezing in place, as if someone had paralyzed them. In a matter of seconds, Sakura lets out a terrified scream, tears filling up her widened eyes.

My own eyes widen with realization, as the two Leaf Ninja fall to their knees, panting heavily and shaking in fear.

"He cast a Genjutsu on them" I whisper urgently, biting my lip in uncertainty. It's not just any Genjutsu. It's a pretty difficult one to get out of, and it's not exactly a nice experience either.

When his opponent looks him in the eye, Orochimaru can cast a Genjutsu on them to make them see their own agonizing and bloody deaths. It's merely a projection into the another person's mind, but to the victim, it feels so real.....

I almost feel bad for my trembling teammates. They're only beginners, so they've never had to deal with anything like this before. It'll be interesting to see how long they can hold up for.

Managing to turn his head, I see Sasuke look over at Sakura. His eyes narrow at the look of terror on her face, tears dripping swiftly down her cheeks. She stares into the distance, shaking violently, to which the Grass Ninja begins laughing tauntingly.

"How cute" she mocks. "You're paralyzed with fear."

His face contorting into a determined scowl, I watch Sasuke struggle to his feet, reaching into his holster for a kunai. Pulling a knife out and holding it up, he glares at the Grass Ninja, to which she tilts her head to the side.

"Hmm, very good" she praises. "Now what?"

Sasuke's eyes widen and I see a sense of urgency wash over him, as the Grass Ninja produces two knives and begins proceeding towards him and Sakura.

Don't worry" the evil Shinobi assures Sasuke, "I'll make this quick.....But you probably already know that don't you? You've already seen your own death at my hands. I expected you to be more of a challenge to be honest......I'm so disappointed."

Just as the grass Ninja flicks her kunai at Sasuke, he uses his knife to stab himself in the leg, the pain breaking him out of his frightened stupor. He quickly dives to the side and scoops Sakura up, before leaping into the trees and narrowly avoiding the kunai.

"So that's how it is......" the Grass Ninja mutters, slowly looking around.

I breathe in and out quietly, trying to steel my nerves. Grimacing, I silently dart away from my hiding place, bounding through the trees and making my way towards Sasuke and Sakura.

I hope he doesn't notice me, because I'm not ready to face him again. I just can't do it and besides, he wouldn't hesitate to kill me. I can't imagine he'll be very happy with me for leaving....

Quickly locating my two teammates, I drop down onto the same branch as them, making the two jump with fright.

"Oh Ashley......" Sakura breathes out shakily, reaching up to wipe the tears from her eyes.

Remaining in a crouched position, I make my way over to Sasuke, with the ravenette wincing in pain. Thick blood drips from the self inflicted wound in his thigh, causing me to sigh and place my hands together, performing a hand sign.

"That's a really deep wound" Sakura whispers, eyes full of concern. "Are you sure you'll be alright Sa- Ashley? What are you doing?"

Quickly wrenching my neck around to glare pointedly at Sakura and make her shut up, I kneels down next to Sasuke, placing my hands over his stab wound.

"Gah!" he grunts loudly, one eye closed in pain.

"Shhh......" I whisper quietly, as a pale green aura envelopes my hands, making Sakura and Sasuke stare in wonder.

I focus on the Uchiha's injury, healing the internal and external damage as best as I can with my own chakra. I'm not an expert at this sort of thing, but I can heal basic injuries pretty well. Anything much more complicated than this, and I'm really no use at all.

"We need to get out of here....." I mumble, my voice almost inaudible. The last thing I want is for Orochimaru to hear me talking. If he hears any of us, he's sure to race right over....

"You have absolutely no idea how much danger we're all in right now" I add softly, the clear worry in my voice earning me a strange look from Sasuke. The ravenette carefully stretches out his leg as I remove my hands, eyes thoroughly searching the ground far below. I can sense him looking for us......We need to move.

"I didn't know you were a Medic Ninja!" Sakura exclaims, delighted that Sasuke's wound has been healed. Staring at her with wide, horrified eyes, I slap a hand over Sakura's mouth and freeze, trying to sense for Orochimaru's presence below.

As expected, I can now feel him running towards us, having heard Sakura's big, stupid mouth. She's going to get me killed!

"I'm not a Medic Ninja" I whisper urgently, forcibly pulling Sakura to her feet, "I just know a bit of Medical Ninjutsu, now we need to leave!"

"Uhh.....You guys?" Sasuke exhales sharply, pointing at something behind us. I whirl around to snap at Sasuke, only to let out a shriek of surprise.

I jump back, shocked by the sight of a gigantic Snake staring right at us. How did I not notice this behemoth at all?!

'You need to quit your panicking you brat' Hakuba warns darkly, 'Or you're going to get yourself killed. And if you die, so do I.'

Before I can retort, the Snake opens its huge jaws and lets out a vicious roar. We all hurriedly leap in different directions, just as the Snake darts forwards and snaps at us, completely obliterating the tree branch we'd just been standing on.

"I can't believe I didn't notice that thing!" I hear Sasuke exclaim as I land on another branch. "I'm losing it!"

'I know the feeling.....' I think to myself, legs shaking as I rise to my feet and hide behind the trunk of the tree I'm in, my back and palms pressed against the bark. I try to take deep breaths, needing to calm myself down so that I won't make anymore mistakes like missing the presence of one of his Summoning Snakes....

Peeking around the corner of the tree, I see the giant Snake coiling itself around another tree. It hisses menacingly at Sasuke, launching itself at the scared looking male.

"Stay away from me!" Sasuke orders, tossing a handful of shuriken into the Snake's gaping mouth. The sharp weapons tear at the tender flesh inside it's mouth and throat, causing the Snake to hiss in pain and fall from the tree. It hits the earth with a ground shaking boom.

Sitting back on his heels, Sasuke pants heavily and watches the Snake carefully, not wanting to get caught off guard by it again.

I pull a face as a small patch of the Snake's skin begins tearing open. I knew it couldn't be that easy. It never is with him.....

I hear Sakura let out a loud gasp as the Grass Ninja rises up from the dead snake's body, a twisted smirk on her face and her eyes focused on Sasuke. Why is he focusing on Sasuke so much? He hasn't tried to come after me yet, and he doesn't seem too bothered by Sakura or Naruto. He's only spoken to Sasuke and his eyes.....They keep staring at Sasuke now.

"I can sense your growing fear and desperation" the Ninja muses, making Sasuke's frown deepen. "It's only natural of course. The prey must not let down its guard, not even for a second, in the presence of its predator!"

Suddenly, the woman's body elongates and she swiftly begins coiling around the tree like a Snake, heading right for Sasuke. Dammit Orochimaru, leave him alone!

Sasuke lets out a fearful yell as the woman's mouth opens, revealing sharp teeth, just as a volley of kunai and shuriken plant themselves into the branch, right in front of the Grass Ninja's face.

I can't help but give a faint smile of relief as I look up, spotting Naruto, who has his hands on his hips. He grins down at Sasuke, blue eyes sparkling determinedly.

"Looks like I made it just in time!" he calls down.

"Naruto!" Sakura cries happily, clasping her hands together. I've never seen her so glad to see Naruto, considering she's usually so rude to him.

"Naruto, you need to get out of here!" Sasuke calls up to his teammate frantically. "I don't know what you're thinking, but you have no idea what you're up against!"

I can't help frowning a little at this, despite the fact that I'm hiding all the way over here. That doesn't sound like Sasuke at all. Between himself, Sakura and Naruto, Sasuke is usually the brave one who can keep his cool in bad situations.

"So, you managed to escape from my Snake friend I see" the Grass Ninja comments thoughtfully. "Well done....."

I blink up at Naruto as his mouth turns down into a scowl. Did he have one of those giant Snakes after him as well? If that's the case, how had he managed to get away from it all on his own?!

"Alright, I have no idea what's going on here" Naruto begins, sounding angry as he jabs an accusatory hand at the Grass Ninja, "But I do know that you've been picking on my teammates, and I don't like that at all! So go on and slither back into your dark little hole Snake Lady, before I make a pairs of shoes out of you!"

"Hmmm, your teammates you say?" the Grass Ninja muses, grinning sinisterly. "Yes, if I recall, you have a fourth one don't you? Where is she?.........Where are you? I know you're out there......."

My blood runs cold as the woman addresses me in a low tone, my body freezing in place and my heart beating rapidly against my ribcage. I stare into the distance, taking short, shallow breaths. I really need to calm down, before I hyperventilate or something....

'Okay, so he knows I'm here' I try to reason with myself,  'Big deal. I don't have to reveal where exactly I am. He doesn't know where I'm hiding, so who says I have to come out? They don't mean anything to me. I don't need to go and help them......'

'You think yourself so powerful and intimidating' Hakuba taunts, chuckling deeply, 'Yet you're still such a coward. He will find you eventually, so why not save him the trouble?'

'I'm no coward!' I defend stubbornly. 'I'm just not stupid enough to go and get myself killed like them!'

'Your words say one thing, yet your actions say that you are nothing more than a pathetic, jibbering coward' Hakuba informs me disdainfully. 'All humans are the same. Your words mean nothing......'

Hakuba's voice fades away, leaving me feeling highly confused. He doesn't want me to die so that he can continue to live, yet he wants me to go and confront Orochimaru as well so that I'm not a coward? And on top of that, I think he was just calling me a liar as well!

'Aaarghh!........' I internally groan, reaching up to run a hand down my face. 'I don't know what to do here!'

Remaining hidden, I peek around the tree again just in time to see Sasuke deactivate his Sharingan and reach into his pockets. To my surprise, he pulls out our Heaven scroll and holds it out. I'm not sure why he's offering it up though, seeing as I thought he wanted to pass this test.

Not that giving Orochimaru our Heaven scroll is going to do any good. I can't imagine that's what he's really after.....

"Here, take it!" Sasuke call out, catching everyone's attention. "You wanted our scroll right? Well, here it is. Take it and leave us alone!"

"Are you crazy Sasuke?!" Naruto explodes. "No, we're not handing over our scroll to the enemy. No way!"

"Just shut up and stay out of this Naruto!" Sasuke snaps right back, not in the mood to listen to anyone but himself, as usual.

"Smart choice" the Grass Ninja cackles darkly. "Sometimes, when the prey wishes to save its own skin, it will sacrifice something even more precious."

Looking highly reluctant, Sasuke tosses our scroll towards the Grass Ninja, only for Naruto to jump down from his branch and swipe the scroll away in mid air. Bounding through the trees, Naruto makes his way back over to a furious Sasuke, who steps towards the blonde.

"Stop trying to be the hero Naruto!" Sasuke yells in frustration. "Just get lost and leave this to m-"

Naruto cuts Sasuke off with a strong punch to the jaw, causing the Uchiha to stumble backwards. Glaring at his blonde teammate, Sasuke flips down to a lower branch.

"You stupid idiot!" the ravenette growls, wiping blood from his mouth. "You have no idea what you're doing!"

"I may not know the password" Naruto begins angrily, "But at least I know who I am. You, I'm not too sure about. How do I know it's really you?"

"Don't be stupid Naruto!" Sakura admonishes, looking between the boys with concern. "It's really Sasuke!"

"What kind of dumb joke is this?....." the Uchiha growls. "It's me you loser!"

"Liar..." Naruto replies lowly, shaking his head. "You may look and sound just like him, but there's no way that you could be the Sasuke that I know! I don't care how hard this fight's been for you! Giving up?! When did you become such a coward?! You keep telling me that I don't know what's going on, but I sure do! You've choked! That's what's going on!"

'He's not the only one.....' Hakuba chuckles in wry amusement, to which I frown.

'I haven't choked' I deny. 'I'm not even part of this fight!.....It's not like Sakura's doing anything either. At least I'm not just standing around in the way like her!'

'Using others to justify your own inaction?' Hakuba questions rhetorically, a knowing gleam in his red eyes. 'How low human morality can sink......Perhaps you are not the brat that I remember. She used to enjoy the smell of blood, and the thought of a hard battle excited her. You've become soft.'

I pause at Hakuba's words, knowing that he's trying to manipulate me into doing something. But at the same time, he is right........But I don't fight to help others. I only fight for me. This doesn't make any sense to me.....What am I suppose to do here?

"Fine!" I hear Naruto yell madly. "I'll do this myself!"

Peering around the side of the tree, I see Naruto leap for the Grass Ninja with kunai in hand, as she performs a Summoning Jutsu.

Please don't be Manda......

A huge cloud of smoke suddenly appears in the midst of the battle, before another gigantic Snake rears up out of the cloud, its jaws agape. Spotting Naruto below it, the Snake throws itself towards the ground, wanting to squash Naruto with its long body.

Seeing the Snake coming for him, Naruto spins around on his heels and leaps into a different tree, narrowly avoiding being crushed by the Snake.

"You'll make such a tasty little snack for him" the Grass Ninja chuckles. "Be warned though, he likes to play with his food first."

Rising up again, the Snake throws its tail forwards, smashing it straight through the trunks of numerous trees and splintering them into millions of pieces. Naruto falls from one of the trees, landing heavily on the ground.

"Naruto!" Sakura cries, sounding genuinely concerned for the determined blonde.

Narrowing my eyes a little, I feel a strange aura emanating from Naruto, like that time back in the Land of Waves. His chakra begins spiking, and as Naruto rises to his feet and opens his eyes, I see that his blue irises have bled into a furious red colour.

"He's using the chakra of the Nine Tails....." I murmur, hearing a faint scoff in the back of my head. "Your chakra then Hakuba. You know what I mean....."

"Eat this!" Naruto shouts, leaping high into the air and kicking the Snake in its face, causing the reptile to reel backwards. Powered up by the chakra of the Nine Tailed Fox, Naruto begins slamming his fists into the Snake's face, over and over again.

"Whoa, he's going nuts!" Sakura exclaims, mint eyes wide with amazement. "Where'd all that power come from all the sudden?"

Having had enough of Naruto beating up her Snake, the Grass Ninja exhales a huge fireball and fires it at the blonde, sending him rocketing backwards into a tree with a painful crunch.

"Hmph, there's no mistaking that fire in his eyes....." the woman mutters to herself, before turning her attention back to Sasuke. "Now then, let's see how well you do!"

Obeying it's Summoner's orders, the Snake leaps for Sasuke with its mouth wide open. Before he can so much as move however, Naruto suddenly drops down from the trees, piercing a kunai into the tip of the Snake's nose and pinning it down with his own sheer strength.

"You alright?" Naruto pants, smirking over at Sasuke as he holds the Snake back from the wide eyed Uchiha. "Scaredy cat. You're just sitting there like a frightened bunny. Pfft, you're not Sasuke at all!"

Not allowing Naruto to say any more, the Grass Ninja appears before Naruto and reaches out with her incredibly long tongue, wrapping it around his ankle and dragging him up into the air.

"Huh?" Naruto grunts, blinking in surprise. "Ewwwwww! That's gross! Let me go, before I pull this tongue from your head!"

Ignoring Naruto as he begins violently struggling, the Grass Ninja does some complicated hand signs, causing the tops of her fingers to light up with purple chakra.

'What's that Jutsu?' I can't help wondering.

"So, when you get angry, some of the Nine Tailed Fox's chakra is released......" she murmurs to herself, pulling down Naruto's shirt so that his stomach is showing.

"Hmmm, the seal's mark has appeared on your skin" the Grass Ninja murmurs thoughtfully, before pulling her arm back. "Five Pronged Seal!"

The woman jabs her chakra covered finger tips into Naruto's stomach, causing him to writhe and scream out in pain.

I flinch at the sound, watching as Naruto's dazed eyes fade back to their blue colour, the Demon's chakra receding from his body.

'That chakra was making me antsy......' Hakuba murmurs, moving around his prison restlessly. 'I don't like that boy using my power. It makes me want to kill him........'

"Sasuke, please do something!" Sakura begs the motionless Uchiha, her eyes widening as the Grass Ninja retrieves our Heaven scroll from Naruto and tosses him aside like trash.

"There's no way he'll survive a fall from this height!" Sakura cries urgently, pulling out a kunai. "Hang on Naruto!"

That said, she flings the knife at him with surprising accuracy, the knife piercing through Naruto's shirt and pinning him to a nearby tree.

Wow. She actually did something useful. I never thought it would happen, but here we go.

'The score is now annoying pinkette, one' Hakuba taunts me, 'And cowardly blonde, zero.'

'Shut up Hakuba!' I snap, feeling a little guilty for some reason. 'I already know your opinion on the matter!......'

"Sasuke, what's wrong with you?!" Sakura demands to know, staring at the Uchiha, who is still frozen in place. Her brows furrow when he doesn't respond to her.

"Okay fine!" Sakura shouts, apparently losing her patience. "You can say what you like about Naruto! Call him names and make fun of him! But at least he's actually doing something! At least he's not a coward!"

Hearing her words, Sasuke slowly closes his eyes and bows his head. Who knows what's going through his mind right now? I can't imagine he'd like being compared to Naruto like that.

Soon reopening his eyes, I can see that Sasuke has now activated his Sharingan. Looks like he's about to get serious.

"That's more like it" Sakura whispers, smiling to herself.

The Snake suddenly vanishes from beneath the opposing Grass Ninja in another large cloud of smoke, as she drops down onto a thick tree branch. Sasuke immediately pulls out a kunai, and the two Shinobi lunge at each other.

Managing to catch the Grass Ninja in his cleverly hidden trap, Sasuke is able to secure the snake like woman to a tree with strong threads of wire, the ends of them held firmly in his hand.

"Fire Style: Dragon Fire Jutsu!" he cries, exhaling a huge flame down the wires towards the Ninja. They reach her in a mere second, her screams of agony echoing through the forest as she is engulfed and consumed by the ferocious flames.

"Yeah!" Sakura cheers, jumping up and down excitedly. "He did it!"

Sasuke bends over and leans his hands on his shaking knees, panting heavily. He'd thrown around a few Jutsu in that fight, and the Grass Ninja hadn't made it very easy for him, so I'm sure he's really tired right now.

"You beat her Sasuke" Sakura smiles reassuringly, running over to the ravenette and gently placing her hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry, it's all over now....."

"It's never that easy with him Sakura...." I whisper to myself, looking away as the burning Grass Ninja steps forwards, easily breaking free of her wire bonds. She slaps her hands together, reactivating her Jutsu from earlier. Sakura falls heavily to her knees, as Sasuke lets out a cry of pain, one eye scrunching closed.

"N-No......" Sasuke manages to say. ".....It's....impossible......"

"Such mastery of the Sharingan at such a young age....." the Grass Ninja drawls, her female voice dropping into an all to familiar male one that sends a cold shiver up my spine.

'Why does he have to be here?' I wonder pitifully, squeezing my eyes closed. 'Why can't he go away? Why can't someone just kill him already?......'

"You're a true Uchiha" the man hisses, making my eyes pop open and my breath catch in my throat. "Yes, you'll do nicely......"

"No........" I whisper, realization washing over me like a wave of freezing cold water. "No, no.....It can't be...... He's still after it. I thought he'd.....I thought he'd give up."

I stare straight ahead, unable to bring myself to look back and see his face.

"You're definitely Itachi's brother. If anything, your eyes are even more perceptive than his....."

"Who are you?!" Sasuke shouts furiously, not happy that his brother's name has been mentioned. "What the hell do you want from us?!"

"Not Sasuke......" I whisper, hugging my arms to myself and shaking my head. "not Sasuke.....Leave him alone....."

Sucking in a deep breath, I slowly and carefully peer around the tree I'm still hiding in, barely able to suppress a squeal of horror at the sight of his pale face. His sickly green eyes are focused on a tired Sasuke, his mouth pulled up into a distorted grin. The skin of his face is partly melted, due to the fire, and hands from his face grotesquely.

I watch as he holds up our Heaven scroll, before it suddenly lights up with fire and turns to ash, useless.

"My name is Orochimaru" the tall man hisses, his name sending another shudder up my spine. "You'll have to wait until the next time we meet to find out what it is that I want though."

I don't know if I can do this.....I had just hoped that this day would never come. Facing him again.....I don't know if I can do it....

"Hey!" Sakura cries. "Our scroll!"

"First, you'll have to defeat the other Sound Ninja that serve me" Orochimaru explains to my teammates mysteriously.

"I have no idea what you're talking about!" Sakura yells at him angrily. "But, if you're done, why don't you just get lost! If we never meet again, it'll be too soon!"

"Ohhh, but he and I will meet again" Orochimaru chuckles lowly, bringing his hands together in a strange hand sign. A very familiar one that immediately makes me panic, my eyes widening.

'It's now or never brat' Hakuba smirks evilly, as I shake my head.

"No......" I whisper.

Suddenly, Orochimaru's neck elongates and his head shoots towards Sasuke, large fangs bared.

"No!"

Trying to swallow my fear, I launch myself away from my hiding place, heading straight towards the person I fear more than anything else in the world....