The Strength of the Weak {A Naruto Fanfiction}

The Strength of the Weak - Chapter 24

Third Person P.O.V.

"Ready to die?"

The chilling words coming out of Satomi's mouth sends shivers up everyone's spines. From beside her, Sasuke scowls, looking at Sakura once again.

"I asked, who did this to you?" he demands. Zaku chuckles, raising his hand in the air.

"I did," he reveals. Sasuke turns his glare to him, while Satomi continues glowering at Dosu. Dosu, in turn, gives Satomi a wary look, trying to find an escape.

Neji frowns at the scene below him from his place on the branch. Though he's only known her a short amount of time, Neji can tell that this definitely wasn't who Satomi was. Something major must have happened in their last battle, that she said was with someone who wasn't a genin.

"I'm not scared of you, you half dead bastard!" Zaku calls, pressing his hands together in preparation for a powerful jutsu. The twins smirk, their sharingans blazing crimson in their eyes.

"Super Sonic Slicing Wave!"

Within the blink of an eye, the whole clearing in front of Zaku was demolished. Smirking in triumph, Zaku puts his hands down.

"Must've blown them to bits."

"Who?" Sasuke asks darkly, appearing behind Zaku. He had grabbed Sakura and moved out of the way, while Satomi had grabbed Naruto and body flickered beside Neji and Tenten.

"I trust you to take care of Naruto. This will only take a minute," Satomi muses, laying Naruto down next to them.

"Satomi. This isn't you," Neji says, stopping Satomi from jumping down. She scowls and glares at him, a dangerous aura surrounding her.

"What?"

"This isn't who you are. This power... it's evil, and it's not yours," Neji tries, gauging Satomi's reaction. Her face seems to quiver, as if she were having an internal battle.

"N-Neji... help... me..." Satomi mutters out, her curse mark receding for a few moments before reaching across her limbs once again. Neji narrows his eyes, now certain. This power was somehow controlling her against her will.

Meanwhile, Sasuke had performed his Katon: Hosenka no Jutsu, to which Zaku blew the fire away, only to reveal shuriken which cut his limbs. Flashing behind him, Sasuke grabs a hold of his arms and places a foot surely on his back, a sick smirk quirking his lips.

Within an instant, Sasuke snaps Zaku's arms, the sickening crack resonating throughout the clearing. The crack seemed to have snapped Satomi out of her daze, the curse mark receding back into her shoulder.

"Satomi? Are you alright?" Neji asks, slowly approaching Satomi. She glances around in a daze before making eye contact with Neji, moving her lips to say something although no words come out.

Deactivating her sharingan, Satomi closes her eyes and falls down, out of the tree. Neji curses and jumps after her, cradling her to his chest before she can hit the ground. She was knocked out cold, her breathing labored and sweat dripping down her face.

The fresh bruises on her neck and stab wound in her shoulder, as well as the exhaustion overwhelmed her to a point where she couldn't function anymore.

"Neji! Is she alright?" Tenten asks, jumping down beside them. She gazes at Satomi's pale and dirty face, as well as Neji's seemingly troubled one.

"I don't know."

Sasuke, not having seen Satomi collapse, turns his attention to Dosu. He was prepared to finish off the team once in for all. As he takes a step, however, a pair of arms wrap around him from behind, causing him to stop in his tracks.