One Of Us ( Akatsuki Fan-fiction)

Chapter 50

You watched the battlefield. Tendo held his hand toward Naruto and the blonde was pulled toward him. Universal Pull. Gakido held Naruto's arms to make sure he didn't get away. You stood and stared wide eyed down at the battle. Naruto's Sage mode began to recede.

"Naruto, they can't capture you," you began to slide down the side of the giant hole in the ground. You took occasional glances at the battle. Gakido's arms were being deformed, along with the rest of his body, to look more like a frog until his skin turned a moldy green color. Gakido didn't move and Naruto pulled his arms free of Gakido's grasp. You turned away from the battle as you landed among some stones. You jogged to the downhill of the inner circle but fell midway. "Ack!" you pulled yourself up and sat as you grasped your ankle. "Damn it! Why is it every time I'm in a hurry I get hurt?" you closed your eyes and clenched your teeth as you stood once more.

Again, you began to go down the side of the hole but at a much slower pace. There was a limp in your stride thanks to the ankle. Damn. You thought as you walked on at a slower pace.

"You bastard!"

You turned back to the battlefield and saw one of the small toads on a chakra receiving rod. Your eyes widened as Tendo grabbed Naruto's hands, slammed him on the ground, and stabbed both of his hands with the rod. Tendo spoke to Naruto and slowly stood.

"Naruto," you murmured and jumped off a stone onto a flat surface while maintaining your bad foot off the ground.

"Justice? Are you kidding me?" you heard Naruto growl. "Give me a break! You killed my master, and my sensei, hurt my friends, destroyed my village..." HIs master? Your eyes widened once you realized. Jiraiya must have been his teacher as well. "After all the horrible things that you've done... don't you dare talk about peace and justice!" he remained silent for a while. You focused chakra to your ears.

"Then tell me, what is your goal?" Tendo asked.

"First I will kill you! And then, I'm gonna bring peace to the ninja world!" Naruto shouted. Kill him?

"You'd be the same as him if you did that, Naruto," you whispered and faced the ground. 'Killing someone, revenge, more killing... it will only lead to war, and the deaths of those dear to you. Is that what you want? Is that the future of the world you envision? ... That's the not the future I want. It's not the future I want for this world, not what I want to leave for future generations of shinobi.' "The words one speaks... are the first step into accomplishing something. But so far..." you looked around at the village. "Destruction is all that comes around... and there's nothing I can do to stop it."

"...everyone experiences the same kind of pain after losing something dear," Pein said through Tendo and your eyebrows furrowed. "You and I both experienced that pain. You strive for your justice... and I strive for mine. We are both just ordinary men, driven to seek vengeance in the name of justice. And, if one comes to call vengeance justice, then such a justice will only breed further vengeance... and trigger a vicious cycle of hatred." Hatred... 'I will find a way to get rid of hatred. Even if it takes me forever.' "Right now, we live in such a world. I know the past, and can foretell our future. It is the same as our history. So we believe that human beings simply cannot understand each other, and they never will. This shinobi world of ours is ruled by hatred, and hatred alone."

He's right. Your brain told you. "Shut up," you whispered and placed a hand on your head.

"So Naruto, how would you confront this hatred in order to create peace?" Pein asked. Naruto remained silent for a while. "I want to know what your answer."