The Power to Heal and Destroy by Phoenixsun

Chapter 27: Savage Beasts Collide

"What is this...?!" Sasuke ask as he looked around for the origin of the incredibly dark aura.

Naruto search for source as well. "This killer intent... It's stronger than Zabuza's... And even Gaara's..." He thought. "The only one that could compare was that Kisame guy..."

For his part, the grieving Ukon started to shake in fear.

As he continued his search, Sasuke's eyes suddenly widened. "Naruto! Watch out!" He screamed, but all the Uchiha could do was stand and watch as his friend turned around right before he was ambushed by a purple blur. The next thing the raven haired teen knew, his teammate stood several feet away impaled to a tree by what appeared to be two white stakes, one in the chest and another in his leg. Looking at where Naruto had been standing moments ago, Sasuke could now see a pale young man dressed in loose purple clothing with a skinny body that donned the unmistakable marks of a curse seal.

"Are you Uchiha Sasuke...?" Kimimaro inquired with a cold voice as he let the large barrel he was carrying drop to the ground and took a step towards the raven haired boy.

Before the Sharingan user could react, the newcomer appeared in front of him, graving him by the neck and picking him up with ease. "Well... Are you...?" He asked.

Struggling against the hold on his neck and the suffocating killer intent, the raven haired teen was able to glare at his captor.

The pale man took a second to regard the younger ninja's Sharingan eyes. "So you are..." Kimimaro commented before tightening his grip.

"Argh!" The Uchiha gasped as the fingers around his neck pressed down.

Casually, the newcomer reached into his disheveled robe and took out a small jar with dark, purple pills inside of it. "Is... Is that the Seishingan...?" Ukon asked timidly as he pressed his back against the trunk of a tree. The blue haired teen's body language indicated that he did not know whether to run away or stay.

"This is a new variant that Kabuto-san created." Kimimaro answered in a monotone as he forced one of the pills down the Sharingan-users throat. "Orochimaru-sama can wait no longer... This new pill will greatly accelerate the process to prepare the Uchiha's body." The older shinobi added.

Sasuke struggled, but try as he might, he was unable to spit the tablet out due to his current predicament.

The effects of the pill were almost immediate. A dark aura suddenly enveloped the Uchiha as the young man screamed in pain. "That... That's not supposed to happen..." A startled Ukon commented.

Ignoring the other Sound nin, Kimimaro simply turned around and started to walk back towards the large barrel, his hold on the genin never loosing. "Open the coffin, now." He commanded in a strong voice.

Ukon jolted in surprise, but hurriedly scrambled to comply, lifting the lid off the barrel. Kimimaro unceremoniously threw Sasuke writhing body into the coffin before making a hand seal. An ominous black fog gathered over their heads for a brief moment before it suddenly fell into the barrel along with the Leaf nin. Warily, Ukon placed the lid back and immediately stepped back. "Incredible... It would have taken all of us in the Sound Four to pull off the Black Fog, but he did it by himself..." The blue haired teen thought as he watched the pale man seal the coffin. "No wonder he was the one Orochimaru-sama had chosen..."

Suddenly, Kimimaro jumped away from the barrel and Ukon. The next second, the place where the older shinobi had been standing burst into black flames. "What the hell have you done to Sasuke...?! You bastards!" Naruto demanded to know as he walked towards the two Sound ninjas, despite his accelerated healing, blood was still running from his wounds. Setting sights on the sealed confine, the blond charged towards it ready to set his teammate free.