Recap:
A boyish scream unexpectedly reverberated all over the hallway. I instantly recognized it as Sasuke's voice and threw my gaze back to the two Uchihas.
Itachi had pinned Sasuke on the wall by his throat. The ravenette parted his lips widely, emitting more screams of agony, drowning the reassuring feeling Naruto had put in me.
***
Kisame spoke up, "Being cruel, as usual. He uses Tsukuyomi on his little brother."
Tsukuyomi...?
I took a hasty step forward, preparing to dash towards the guy who held Sasuke by the throat, but I was unfortunately seized by my sister.
"Don't go there, Ayuda! You will get hurt!" Reina told me in a demanding voice.
I snapped, "But Sasuke is the one who is hurt now! We have to help him!"
Suddenly, I was embraced by a pair of slender arms that belonged to Reina. She wrapped her long limbs around my neck from behind and pushed me closer to her chest. She whispered next to my ear with a voice that revealed she was conflicted, "Please, Ayuda, just stay here... for me... and for Sasuke."
"What..." I was cut off by Sasuke's excruciating scream. I apprehensively thought that I would hear more of his screams, but I was proved wrong when I heard nothing afterward. I glanced back at Sasuke who had oddly gone silent.
No... I can't just stand here and watch Itachi torture him. I am... going to do something! But I couldn't do this alone. Plus, there is another person who wants to help him as much as I do.
I spun my head slightly, staring intently at Naruto. The blond boy noticed it and weirdly blinked his eyes at me. I shifted my eyes to the direction where Itachi and Sasuke were located at and returned my gaze back to him in a quick second. Naruto's eyes widened, finally caught on to the hidden message and he nodded with a determined look.
I looked back at Itachi while my right hand moved to my hip pouch. In two seconds, I took out a kunai that was attached to a paper bomb. Without further ado, I hurled the kunai to the one spot on the floor between Kisame and us four.
KABOOM!
White smoke immediately enveloped all of us, except for Itachi and Sasuke. Reina's arms around my neck withdrew that instant and I took that chance to run past Kisame who definitely had his eyesight obscured by the smoke.
I emerged out of the white smoke and zipped straight towards Itachi. Another form came out of the smoke, revealing Naruto who also made a beeline for the Uchiha siblings. The two of us ignored the commotions between Jiraiya, Reina, and Kisame, for our minds and hearts were filled with one purpose – and that was to save Sasuke!
I noticed Itachi spinning his head around, watching us two bolting towards him, when suddenly, our feet were glued to the floor right away, making us incapable of moving our legs. I looked down and was staggered to see my feet being locked in some sort of slimy stuff that I couldn't quite describe. I gasped when I perceived the fact that the entire hallway was now layered by the same reddish gooey thing.
Jiraiya's voice soon filled the still room, "Ninpou Gamaguchi Shibari."
The bright slimy stuff absorbed the unconscious Sasuke inwards and Itachi took his hand back, staring back at Jiraiya who said, "You're out of luck, Itachi, Kisame. You're inside my stomach now. I summoned the esophagus of a gigantic frog from the Myouboku Mountain's rock inn. You two are wanted criminals anyway. I'll turn you two into food for this rock frog."
"Wha-what is this?" Naruto's eyes widened in awe and shock, still could not comprehend everything Jiraiya said.
The white-haired Sannin called us, "Naruto, Ayuda, stay still."
The two of us looked back at Jiraiya who placed both of his hands on the floor. Reina, who stood next to him, reassured us, "Don't worry, this is his technique."
"Kisame," the older Uchiha finally spoke, "let's go."
The blue-skinned man forced his feet and his blade out of the slimy stuff and ran past me and Naruto, heading straight for his partner. The two of them turned to a different hallway, disappearing from our sights while Jiraiya shouted to them, "It's useless! No one has ever escaped from this before!"
Suddenly, a loud explosion was heard not far from us and the hallway shook slightly as if we got a mild earthquake. Jiraiya and Reina sprinted past me and Naruto, making us curious and confused before we went after them.
We turned to the next hallway and halted behind the two adults. My eyes were stretched wide in surprise due to the sight I was beholding. There was a big hole in the very end of the hallway and there were black flames on some parts of the hole. It was something I had never seen in my life. Did Itachi or Kisame do this?
Speaking of them, the two cloaked men had already fled from the building.
After sealing the unceasing black flames in a scroll, Jiraiya turned his gaze to somewhere else, saying, "Now, we have to look at Sasuke."
I hastily scurried towards the said boy as the wall of meat pushed him out of its protection at a leisurely pace. I caught him in my arms when he was completely released and gently lowered him to the floor with the help of Naruto.
Jiraiya slammed his foot on the floor without a word and the hallway reverted back to its normal state in a few seconds. He and Reina sauntered and stood behind me and Naruto.
The ravenette's onyx eyes were still open but lifeless. There were two trails of dried blood running down his mouth to his chin and his left hand was bent in a painful way. His condition had nearly moved me to tears, but I quickly choked back the feeling.
A kunai suddenly winged its way past us and hit the wall. All of us were astounded as we cast our eyes to the sharp weapon that had stuck on the wall. That's when I heard a familiar voice from behind me, "Dynamic entry!"
I looked with wide eyes to see Might Guy kicking Jiraiya in the face. The huge grin on the former's lips immediately dropped when he realized whose face he had planted his foot in.
The left side of Jiraiya's face twitched several times, seemingly a bit upset that Might Guy had kicked him. Might Guy, on the other hand, wore a rueful smile, scratching the back of his head, saying, "I'm sorry I hit you. I was in a hurry and I forgot my mirror. I used my forehead protector as a mirror, but it was blurry, and I mistook your rugged face as that of an enemy, and I let my burning youthful spirit take over. I'm sorry!"
The Sannin, who had a red bruise on his left cheek, replied with gritted teeth, "Is that supposed to be an apology?"
Guy-sensei mumbled under his breath, "I'm not good with words..."
"Forget about that for now," said Jiraiya, "Take Sasuke to a medical squad. His arm and ribs are broken. Also, he took a psychological attack from an eye technique and was knocked unconscious."
Guy-sensei stared at the ravenette and informed us, "Kakashi was affected by the same technique, and he is unconscious right now. We don't know when he will regain consciousness."
I was dumbstruck hearing that. What? Reina and I met Kakashi this morning and he looked completely fine. Now that I think about it, he was standing in front of the restaurant where Itachi and that shark guy rested. So that means... Kakashi confronted them after that.
Guy-sensei added with a serious, hopeful look, "From the bottom of my heart, I wish that she, the medical specialist, was here."
Jiraiya stole a glance at Guy, "That's why we're going to look for her."
"What?" Guy was too shocked he couldn't finish his next sentence, "Are you talking about...?"
Jiraiya smirked, "Yes, I'm talking about her. A Sannin like me, the healing specialist and slug tamer, the woman with the word "gamble" on her back... Tsunade-hime."
***
Jiraiya apprised us that he and Naruto would resume their journeys and Guy volunteered to carry Sasuke back to the Leaf Village. While Guy was busy lifting the passed out Uchiha onto his back, Reina pulled me to the hotel room she booked and said, "Pack your things."
"Eh?" I raised my eyebrows, "Why?"
Reina helped me in packing my bow and arrows while elucidating, "You have to go back to the village with Guy-sensei. I have to stay here because another meeting will commence tonight. Tell father and mother about the meeting, but do not say a word about everything that occurred just now. Alright, Yuda-chan?"
I nodded my head with downcast eyes as I carried my bag, "Will you return tomorrow?"
A smile quirked her lips as she knelt down in front of me and wiped a strand of hair off of my face softly. She answered, "Yes, I will. And don't worry too much about Sasuke. When Jiraiya-sama and Naruto return to the village with Tsunade, everything will be fine. So don't worry. I bet he doesn't want you to worry about him, too."
"Okay..." I responded in a soft voice. When Reina made her move to rise to her feet, I quickly pulled her down, since there was something that had been bugging me, "Wait, Reina-oneesan. Do you remember what you said to me just now? When I desperately wanted us to save Sasuke?"
***
Suddenly, I was embraced by a pair of slender arms that belonged to Reina. She wrapped her long limbs around my neck from behind and pushed me closer to her chest. She whispered next to my ear with a voice that revealed she was conflicted, "Please, Ayuda, just stay here... for me... and for Sasuke."
***
"What do you mean by that, oneesan?" I asked. The burning curiosity within me fired up even more when I mentioned it.
Reina knew exactly what I was talking about. She lowered her head a little bit, avoiding my gaze, as she reluctantly answered, "I will tell you when I return home."
I frowned in disappointment, "But...!"
Reina stood up straightaway, "I can't tell you right now because Jiraiya, Naruto, and Guy are probably waiting for us, so please be patient, okay?"
I sighed, defeated. My big sister took my hand and dragged me out of the room.
Now there are two things I am so curious to know – the meaning behind Reina's words and the promise Sasuke and I agreed on. Now that I think about it, will Sasuke fulfill his promise when he's all healed up?
***
A/N: I wanted to publish the three latest chapters in one chapter but it's too long and I bet some of you don't like to read a very, very long chapter. That's why I divide them into three chapters. Anyway, I hope you all like this. In case you're wondering why Ayuda doesn't do much in this situation, I don't want her to steal the spotlight and fight Itachi and Kisame because that sounds a little bit Mary-Sue and I want to avoid that as much as possible. So... yeah! What do you guys think about this new chapter? Tell me in the comment section below! Thank you! ー( ' ▽ ' )ﾉ