Love Knows No Bounds

Chapter 28

Sasuke fiend sick from soccer practice, Naruto grumbled but said he would pass along the message. Neji, Konkuro, Shikamaru and Sai would be at the fields. TenTen also had soccer practice. Ino had cheer practice and Hinata said she was going to hang out and study and watch everyone. Temari was going to be with her brothers today and that really and truly meant that Sasuke and I would have the house all to ourselves. I tried not to read too much into it. 

The minute we got home, I went straight to the kitchen to make us a snack. I told myself I shouldn't be nervous and that I honestly shouldn't be thinking about this at all. I finish making the snack, grab a few drinks and walk out to find Sasuke not in the living room. I look up the stairs and my heart jumps into my throat. 

To his bedroom then. 

I take a deep breath, hold it, let it out, shake my head, then trudge up the steps. I open his door, impressively balancing the plates and drinks in my arms, and step in to find him already spreading out maps and notes across the floor. 

Again I sighed, and chastised myself for being so silly. I set the snacks down and knelt on the carpet beside him, letting him lay it out how he chose so I could see where his train of thought was taking him. I analyzed as he moved pieces, and then rearranged them again. 

Still, nothing new was jumping out. Nothing I could use to stop the Akatsuki. The only saving grace was knowing that the true recipe for the serum eluded them and that my parents were no longer in their custody. But that still posed the question of where they were. Why not come here? Something was stopping the Akatsuki from coming after me and my friends, a worry on its own, and I didn't really believe it was because we had a little extra support from the agency. There is the possibility my parents don't trust the agency here in the Leaf, which is fair and valid but at least we would be together and we could figure it out. . . together. 

But that's never really been who my parents are, is it? They want to keep their little girl out of anything dangerous, even though ignorance threw me into the deepest parts of all this. I missed them, but I don't miss them keeping things from me. 

I want to save Naruto and I want to save Gaara. It's messed up what happened to them and it makes me even angrier that my parents had something to do with it. It twists my stomach that my mother probably knew the first time she met Naruto and didn't say anything throughout the years. So many things make a little more sense. 

And myself? What the hell am I supposed to do. What if they find another blood donor that is willing? or, I guess, one that is not and they are able to kidnap? I'd rather not another person be pulled into this but it also turns my stomach thinking about them experimenting on the bags of blood they already took from me. 

"What if we start from the beginning? Just go over what we know?" Sasuke asks, pulling me from my morbid thoughts. 

"What do you mean?"

"It's possible we are thinking too hard, too broad. It might help to break it down and review everything that we know. We've been staring at the bigger picture for so long, that we might have missed something in the smaller bits." 

I nodded, sure that made sense. 

"where do you want to start?" 

"Tell me again what you know of your parents research and the time they spent working with Orichimaru." 

I curled a finger thoughtfully around my chin. 

"I know that the serum was originally sanctioned by the leaf government to combat a fast-acting virus that was sweeping through the city. My parents quickly discovered, by accident, that not only could they slow the virus but they could trick white and red blood cells to overperform in the body and rapidly heal. The leaf then wanted them to isolate the virus combatant and focus on the healing properties as it would be an incredible tool for wounded soldiers and accidents should it be controlled. After performance tests during the isolation period it was discovered that not only did the serum enhance healing capabilities, but it also triggered the brain to release chemical signatures such as dopamine and epinephrine which enhances one body into super strength. Based on their research, the serum had all the chemical properties to be a major success but when volunteers began to test it, everything went wrong. The serum didn't just repair damaged cells, but made the body overproduce things it didn't need and most all the test subjects died. The few who survived, didn't survive very long.