Ayuda's P.O.V
I was taken by surprise when a loud explosion took place at the spot where the Hokage and the Kazekage were located at. Kakashi and Might Guy, who had dispelled the genjutsu, began to rush for the Hokage, but they abruptly stopped when four ANBUs flew past us and went in the direction of the two Kages.
I stared wide-eyed in apprehension as an impenetrable barrier was cast by four bright-haired people who were evidently involved in this invasion as our enemies, and in the barrier were the Kazekage who took our old man Hokage hostage.
"Barrier ninjutsu, huh?" stated Might Guy.
Kakashi said, "To think that they could outwit ANBU... they're not just ordinary."
Might Guy and Kakashi were about to run when another ANBU landed on the spot in front of us. I was perplexed as soon as he came into my line of vision and Might Guy voiced out the question in my head, "What are you doing here?! Hokage-sama is in danger!"
We confirmed that the ANBU in front of us was an enemy when four Sound ninjas appeared next to him. The two Jounins also surmised that the same ANBU was the one who bewitched all of the audiences with the genjutsu that coerce people to sleep.
That's when I caught something moving in the background. I shot my gaze back to the massive arena with curiosity. Temari and Kankuro had jumped down there and stood on each side of Gaara who seemed to have an agonizing headache, for he was clutching his flaming red hair tightly with his two hands. Their teacher, who had white cloth concealing the left side of his face, stood in front of them. Genma was also standing before Sasuke as though shielding him from any danger.
Kankuro wrapped Gaara's arm around his neck and, after receiving an order from their teacher, quickly made their getaways. Sasuke followed suit, leaving Genma to take care of the half-masked Sand Jounin. I breathed a noiseless sigh as I watched Sasuke leaping over the huge wall of the arena, tailing the three Sand ninjas. Why is he so hasty and reckless? He should've brought some comrades with him.
"Sakura, watch out!" Kaito suddenly called out; pulling my attention to the direction he was looking at.
There were two Sound ninjas, with ninja knives in hands, jumping down towards the defenseless pinkette. Before they could swing their kunais down her flesh, Kakashi stepped in at the speed of light, killing or rendering the two of them unconscious. However, another Sound shinobi took that opportunity to charge at me and Kaito. We didn't have much time to defend ourselves!
A tall figure suddenly appeared in front of us in the blink of an eye. It had a willowy body, wearing the Jounin's flak jacket, and a short brown hair that reached the shoulder. It took me only one second to realize who it was. The Sound ninja who was hurtling towards us was violently grabbed around the neck by the same figure, preventing him from reaching me and Kaito any further.
"Shiori-sensei!" chirped Kaito.
Our teacher tightened her grip around the invader's neck unsympathetically before she flung him to a nearby Sound ninja with brutish force, knocking the two of them out all at once. Her lips parted to display a tomboyish grin as she turned to us, "Are you two okay?"
I regarded her with a faint smile while Kaito said in response, "We're all good, sensei!"
"Hm?" Shiori scanned the place around us for a quick moment, "Where is Kazuki?"
"Oh, he fell asleep as soon as the sleeping-inducing genjutsu started," answered my green-eyed teammate; his index finger was pointed to our blonde-haired friend who got some shut-eye. He was still situated right next to the fully-awakened Sakura.
Shiori gave out a low chuckle when her gaze landed on him, "Wake him up."
We followed her order without a cavil while she returned to her business which was attacking the group of Sound invaders. After dispelling the genjutsu from Kazuki's head, we headed back to Shiori who had just delivered a finishing blow on a Sound nin. Our arrival triggered an immediate cessation of her series of onslaughts on the Sound shinobis.
"Alright, listen carefully," Shiori started, "I've received reports that the Sound ninjas and the Sand ninjas are ganging together and they are currently attacking our shinobi at the east side of our village, and some parts of this stadium. So I want you three to go to the downstairs storeroom and take Military Rations Pills as many as you can. There are three places I want you guys to distribute them at. One is on the east side of our village, two is on the north side of the stadium, and the last one is on the south side of the stadium. Kaito, you still have all of your chakras, so I want you to hand them out to our people at the east. Kazuki, your place is on the north side of the stadium, and Ayuda, yours is on the south side of this stadium. Try to avoid the enemies, okay? There is no doubt that they are much stronger than you. Just deliver the pills to our people. Got it?"
"Hai (Yes)!"
We immediately made our ways toward the said storeroom. We looked high and low for the Military Rations Pills and once we discovered it, we each took a box of fifteen pills.
"What is this Military Rations Pill anyway?" inquired Kazuki, holding one pill with his index and thumb fingers and stared at them questioningly.
Kaito enlightened him, "These are what some people called chakra pills."
"Chakra pills? So if you eat one of them, you will-"
Kaito cut him off, "That's right! Each pill replenishes one's chakra and also nourishes the body. If we give them to the people who are fighting the enemies, they will get their chakra back and will have higher chances of defeating the Sand and Sound ninjas."
I looked down on these small balls called chakra pills. I'm out of chakra and... I feel like I want to eat one of them... but I haven't received Shiori-sensei's permission yet. Plus, there are more important people who really need this and they are now battling for their lives out there. As soon as I give these to them, I'll go hide in a safe place. I can't fight anyone when I'm this powerless. Shiori-sensei also told us to avoid any enemies.
We hastily split up, knowing full well that most people might be waiting for us, eagerly anticipating the arrival of these chakra pills that would undoubtedly turn the tables. I hastened to the south side of the stadium and was unpleasantly greeted by the view of the harsh battle between the invaders (Sound and Sand ninjas) and a horde of Konoha shinobis.
Suddenly, a huge figure loomed above me, and I looked up with consternation to see a menacing Sound ninja falling over my head with a kunai in his firm grip; the ominous look on his face was all it took for me to perceive his nefarious endeavor. I had no time to take out a weapon, but I was still capable of dodging his assault.
I promptly stepped aside at the last minute on purpose, causing my attacker to fly past me. He quickly recovered his poise and swung his kunai toward me for the second try. Before I could contemplate my next action, a masculine figure emerged out of nowhere, beating the living daylights out of my assailant.
After rendering the Sound ninja unconscious, the Good Samaritan turned to face me. He had a stylishly messy brown hair and a pair of sparkling blue eyes. His tall height told me that he was a few years older than me. He wore Konoha's flak jacket like most Chuunin and Jounin wear. He's cute, but if you compare his look with Sasuke's, you'll realize in an instant that Sasuke is obviously much better-looking than this guy. The corners of his mouth lifted up into a smile and spoke to me, "Are you okay?"
I returned his smile, "Yes, thank you for that. Anyway, I have chakra pills for all of you."
"Oh the pills are finally here, huh?" he walked closer to me; "By the way, my name is Kosuke."
I began, "And I'm-"
But he cut me off, "Ayuda Makino. I watched your match just now and you're awesome."
A proud, genuine smile steadily etched into my face, "Thanks."
"Kosuke! It brings a tear to my eye to see you make a move on a girl, but can't you see what is happening here?!"
A booming voice came from among the horde of Konoha ninjas who were still delivering series of onslaughts on the invaders. Kosuke chuckled, "Sorry for that. Anyway, I'll be taking that box from now on and give the pills to my friends. Thank you for sending this to us. You can go back to safety, Ayuda."
I nodded my head and rushed back to the stadium. However, before I could make it to the enormous building, the muscles in my legs froze, causing me to halt, as I stared open-mouthed at the sight I currently beheld. What... what are those...?
Two animal-looking giants stood closely with each other – one looked like a red toad that wore a large blue vest, and the other looked like a raccoon made of sand with thin blue streaks on some parts of its entire body. The toad held the raccoon's arms in a seemingly tight grip. There was a small part of me that believed that the ginormous sand raccoon was Gaara, but the toad? I couldn't even surmise the reason it appeared there.
I wonder if Sasuke and the others are there too...
I sprinted into the forest at a breakneck pace. I was completely oblivious to the one team that kept an eye on me ever since I arrived at the south side of the stadium. After two minutes of zipping in the forest, I was completely caught off guard when I felt a sharp sting on the right side of my waist as a shuriken swiftly flew past me from behind. I immediately ceased running and spun around, scanning the area to look for an enemy.
A terrible sinking feeling began to form in the pit of my stomach when I caught sight of six Sand ninjas standing on the tree branches above me. Dammit... I'm still out of chakra and now I have to fight them...? And now I regret not taking one of those chakra pills. But now... what should I do...?
Three people appeared in front of me out of the blue with their backs facing me. I couldn't see their faces to identify who they were, but their hairs told me the answers right away. My eyes widened in recognition and disbelief.
"Taiga...?"
"We'll handle them all," the short boy in between the other two guys spoke up without glancing at me, "Now go."
I did not obey his words; instead, I frowned in confusion, "But why...?"
Yushin Ito, my opponent in the preliminary match, replied, "We from the Waterfall Village have nothing to do with this invasion and we have made a decision to help the Konoha since we have no grudge against you people."
I threw my gaze back to Taiga who still hadn't look at me even for a split second. I could tell that he was still upset about losing the battle against me. I wanted to ease his pain. I wanted him to know that he was so close to defeating me and that he should be proud of. I wanted to apologize to him. And so I made the first move:
"Taiga, listen... I-"
But Taiga didn't want to listen, "You have to go. We have no time for sappiness right now."
I can't talk some sense to him when he's still this angry. I guess I have to go then.
"Thank you," that was my last words to them as I turned around and fled the scene.
I thought I was free of any trouble now. I thought I could help Sasuke without any problem. I thought there were no more obstacles to prevent me from doing what I thought was right. But I was sadly mistaken when I detected a stinging pain on the right side of my waist. I took a quick glimpse of it to confirm what it was.
I choked back tears when I spotted a medium-sized cut with blood dripping from it. The reason why I could see the wound without lifting my shirt was because a small spot, where the cloth covered my right waist, had been cut off too as the shuriken wheeled past me, leaving a bloody laceration on my waist.
Ignoring the agonizing pain, I firmly glued my gaze on the two monsters while I leapt from branch to branch cautiously, scared that if I didn't keep an eye on them, I might get caught in their brutal battlefield and die because of my carelessness. However, when I was halfway to my destination, the two giants vanished one by one – first to vanish was the sand raccoon, followed by the giant toad.
The coast is clear now. Now I can go there without the fear of being stepped on by a monster.
Two minutes had passed and I was still jumping from branch to branch. I hadn't caught anyone in my line of vision, and this was starting to make me worry a little. I pressed forward while paying no heed to the gnawing pain on my waist. However, this time, I gripped a fistful of my shirt and pressed it gently against the cut to stop the bleeding, staining the cloth with the fresh blood,
Another minute had passed and I began to think that I was indeed lost. That was until I saw a pitch-black object not far from me. I narrowed my eyes in an attempt to see more clearly, and I was beyond delighted to see it was Sasuke Uchiha. I only took a brief look at his duckbutt hair and I instantly knew it was him, even though his back was facing me
I raised my voice, "Sasuke!"
The said boy briskly put a halt to his urgent run and spun around, looking at me straight in the eye. I produced an audible gasp when I saw his entire body up close. There were some unpatterned, black marks spreading across his body, especially his face. The sight of those marks brought my mind to a short flashback of that time when he first activated the cursed mark at the Forest of Death.
"Ayuda...?" he uttered my name in confusion, probably bewildered why I was there.
As soon as I landed before him, I queried, "Why did you activate that cursed mark?"
"I had to use it," he replied almost instantly as if he had predicted I would ask him about that first, "If I didn't, I wouldn't stand a chance against Gaara."
I blinked my purple eyes, "Now that you mention him, what happen to him?"
"He's with Naruto and I'm heading there right now."
With that said, Sasuke led me to the location where he saw the redhead and the yellow-haired boy fell at. It was such a dreadful journey for me, for I had to endure the sharp pain on my right waist while desperately tried to stop the bleeding with my shirt. Sasuke took many glances at me as if he knew I was in some sort of trouble. I didn't want him to know about the wound.
It's too late to go back to the village now. I have to endure this pain until we reach there...
"Ayuda, are you alright?" he asked, "You look unusually pale."
I quickly dismissed it, "It's nothing. I'm just tired after my match with Taiga."
Sasuke only stared at me in response as if unconvinced, but he made no attempt to ask more about it since he directed his gaze onward, and I was truly glad for that. He didn't even notice the red stain on my shirt. It could be because he was on my left side and the red smear (which was on the right side of my waist) didn't appear in his line of vision. I deemed this as my luck.
Wait... did he say I look pale? Am I losing a lot of blood...? I feel a little lightheaded too...
We finally found Gaara and Naruto, both lying flatly on the ground – Gaara on his back, and Naruto on his stomach. Fresh blood poured out of their foreheads and flowed down their faces. Their bruises were as plain as the nose on their faces. I discerned the sluggish movement Naruto made as he dug his chin in the dirt and dragged his body towards the redhead. Gaara only gawked at him with disbelieving look played across his face, listening to the words Naruto lowly uttered.
Sasuke and I soundlessly landed next to the unaware Naruto. The ravenette crouched down and spoke, "That's enough, Naruto..."
Naruto turned his head to look at his teammate. Sasuke added, "Sakura is okay. This guy's chakra must have been depleted as well. Sakura's sand crumbled a long time ago."
"I see..." Naruto passed out afterward, resting his head on the ground with his eyes shut.
Two figures landed in front of Gaara. I looked to see it was Temari and Kankuro. Their eyes warned me of the possible upcoming fights between us. Oh please... not another battle... My eyesight began to blur and shook from side to side. I was starting to see three Temari and three Kankuro. I would've laughed if the excruciating pain on my waist never occurred.
"Ayuda, are you okay?" Sasuke's voice resonated across my mind. I felt heat coming closer to my left side. I couldn't see well with my blurry vision but I could still make out the outline of his body standing just beside me. My eyes rolled upward, my sight was filled with the color of blue and white, as I lost control over my body.
And then everything turned black afterward.