Scroll 3: The Third Uchiha [Naruto]

Chapter 81: The Uchiha Prodigy [Shippuden]

"What the..."

"Lady Tsunade!" I turned just as Choji landed on the roof, stumbling as he stepped forward.

"I thought you were aiding the Akamichi with the retaliation?" I questioned and I noticed his eyes glance to the side and he seemed to swallow a lump in his throat.

"My Father and I attempted to aid Kakashi Sensei and Rin in their fight against Pein, we failed" He explained.

"What?"

"My father and Kakashi-Sensei have both fallen" He clarified and he closed his eyes briefly as he took in a slow breath.

"And Rin?" I asked cautiously but he merely pointed to the pillar of black chakra.

"Wait, that's Rin?" He nodded.

"After Kakashi-Sensei died Rin just kind of lost it, she didn't even sound like herself and her eyes were black" He attempted to explain. It matched the reports from Kakashi and the teams that tracked the three-tails. She wouldn't be coherent or herself, sending others there would be suicide, and the only person we know who was capable of reversing this was dead.

"Lady Hokage?" One of the ANBU called, gaining my attention.

"Until we have more information Rin will deal with Pein alone, Naruto will be here soon" I said firmly.

"Now, what information do you have?" I asked.

"We managed to discover one of the enemies' profiles, he's male with six piercings in his nose and seven studs in each ear. His ability is a jutsu that simulates magnetism, he can attract objects to himself but can also repel all ninjutsu attacks" Choji explained.

"He can repel all of them?" One of my guards asked.

"Yes, however after he uses either of those jutsu theres a five-second interval in which he can't utilize another jutsu" He finished and I nodded.

"Thank you for reporting this, it may help us suffer fewer casualties" I replied.

"Now that we have this intel Lady Katsuyu will alert everyone" I ordered.

"Right!" My guards agreed.

"Of Team Choza and Team Rin you're sure you two are the only ones who survived?" I asked and he attempted to speak but his voice failed him. So instead he nodded, holding in the tears. I released a slow breath and focused on Katsuyu as she crawled over Choza.

"You must go back to Choza and get him to the hospital, he can still be saved," I said gently and Choji jumped to his feet.

"Pa's still alive?" He asked and I nodded as he thanked me over and over again.

"A-And Kakashi-Sensei?" He asked, his voice more hopeful. I looked towards the battlefield, at the swirling vortex of dark chakra that lashed out at an unseen opponent. Even without Katsuyu, I knew the answer.

"Just hurry, Choji"

=============================================================================================

Naruto

I nearly slammed into Lord Fukusaku when I sat up. The concern in his eyes also concerned me. We had just attempted to merge but the nine-tails interrupted the process.

"Are you alright Naruto boy?" He asked and I nodded slightly.

"I-I saw something" I said slowly trying to recollect my thoughts.

"The nine-tails" He stated and I shook my head.

"No, i-it was Rin"

"The Uchiha girl?" He questioned.

"Yeah, she was covered in dark chakra and her eyes were black. She felt...:" I paused trying to find the right words.

"Afraid" I settled on.

"How could you know?" He asked.

"It's just a feeling, I think she gets them too. At least every now and then" I replied as I leaned back on my hands. I felt a sharp pain in my palm and quickly sat straight. Fukusaku took it and we both stared at my palm as a dark mark faded into my skin.

"What's going on" Fukusaku mused but I was lost in thought as I stared at my palm.

"Rin's in trouble" I said firmly.

"She could be on a mission" He pointed out but I shook my head as I got to my feet.

"No, this is different. It's happened before. When we were after the three tails. She lost control of her dark chakra" I tried to explain.

"She's in danger, real danger, and needs my help" I stressed on the words as I got to my feet.

"You know she would want you to finish your training Naruto, she was among those who agreed that the sage mode would be an advantage against Pein" He reminded.

"More people than her are counting on you" He said gently and I sighed as I faced him.

"Okay" I said slowly.

"You're right" I agreed. I followed him to begin another exercise, trying to distract myself with what was to come. Even as I walked I found myself staring at the palm that mark had appeared on. I just couldn't shake the feeling that something was terribly wrong.