Iris [Naruto Fanfiction]

Sasuke

Sasuke let go of Zaku and tossed him onto the floor as if he was a piece of litter. He looked over his shoulder with a devilish smirk across his face. "You're the only one left. Make it fun for me."

My body was jittery. I couldn't take my eyes off of Sasuke's marked body. My mouth was moving, but nothing could come out. I was in shock. This isn't the Sasuke on team 7. He was always very cold, but he was never like this.

My eyes followed him as he walked slowly towards the remaining attacker. I could see in his singular eye that he was terrified of him. He was terrified that he would meet the same demise as his teammate.

I was frightened, as well. No one knows what he would do in the state that he's in. Maybe Orochimaru would know.

Sasuke got closer to the shaking boy. I felt so helpless just sitting there. I was about to watch my teammate be controlled my a mark on his neck. A mark that made him take a boy's arm out of its socket. I wasn't going to let myself, or Sakura, witness Sasuke do the same thing again. Or something even worse.

When they were about two feet apart in distance, I stood up on my feet and ran towards them. I dashed past Sasuke and placed myself between the two of them.

"Sasuke, please," I say soothingly. His sharingan flared at me, but I continued. "Don't do this. This isn't you, you know that. I know that, and Sakura knows. You need to snap out of it. We don't have to deal with things this way. Just stop!"

I reach my hand out to put on his shoulder, but he grabs it. He begins to squeeze it. I could feel his nails dig into my skin. The feeling in my hand starts to go away. But I continue to look back at him with pleading eyes, trying to beg him to stop. I raise my other hand up and place it on top of his.

I fight back all the tears I can and continue pleading for him to stop. "Sasuke, I'm begging you. Just stop it. Please!"

The marks on his skin begin fading away, and his Sharingan changes back to his raven colored eyes. His grip on my wrist loosens and he falls forward into my arms. We both drop onto the ground and sit. I hold him by his shoulders to keep him upright as he pants heavily.

"You're strong," said the remaining sound ninja.  "We can't defeat you, Sasuke, in the state that you're in." He places an earth scroll on the ground as some sort of peace treaty. He picks up his unconscious teammates and places them on his shoulder. "But, if we ever encounter you again during this test, we will not run, or hide." On that note, he turns and walks away into the forest.

Then, Ino, Shikamaru, and Choji came sprinting out of the woods. The male members of the team checked on Naruto, while Ino went to help Rock Lee.  Sakura joined Sasuke and I, and we sat in a small circle. Sasuke was clutching his shaking arm, and asked himself, "What am I?"

Before I could answer and try to comfort him, Naruto finally woke up and came sprinting towards us. "Sakura, what happened to your hair?!"

"Oh, I'm just uh, trying a new look," Sakura said. "I realized it might be easier to get around in this forest with my hair like this."

I just raised an eyebrow at her, knowing good and well that that's not the reason for her new haircut, but whatever.

Tenten came out of nowhere as well, and took Lee out of Ino's hands. To wake him up, she shook him vigorously like a rag doll. And of course, he woke up.

I smile and I stand up and run towards him. He didn't have enough time to react when I embraced him in a tight hug. "Thank you so much," I say. He wraps his arm around me for a few seconds, then jumps quickly to his feet. I stare up at him in confusion, and he's standing there with his fists clenched up and tears streaming down his face.

"But I'm still not good enough," he proclaimed with teary eyes. "Once this test is over, I will do a round of handstands around the village one hundred times so I could be strong enough to properly defend you! Guy sensei and I will train from morning till night to work on a new jutsu that will attack any enemy that crosses my path! I promise, I'll be the best ever at taijutsu and will continue protecting you with my life!"

I could only stare at him with my eyes popping out and mouth hanging open. I eventually sigh and begin smiling up at him again. It really is unbelievable that someone is willing to do all of this for a person they haven't known for barely even a day. But, that's just the kind of wonderful person Rock Lee is.

"Your face," said Sasuke, interrupting my train of thought. He approached me and touched a cut on my cheek, making me flinched from the sting. "That guy beat you up."

"No, really?!" I replied sarcastically. "I haven't even noticed." (I actually did forget that I got beat up back there.) Sasuke took out one of rags Sakura and I had been using to keep his forehead cool.

"Here. Sakura told me that you and her were taking care of Naruto and I. This will make us even." He twirled the fabric around his finger and pressed it onto my cheek. At first I flinched from the sting, but soon I eased into it and let his finger stay there.

"Thank you," I said, and smiled at him. And of course he didn't smile back, he just had that same smirk on his face.

"This rag alone still isn't going to fix the rest of the mess on your face," he said. I frown and laugh sarcastically at his stupid joke. He wasn't wrong though, I thought. I still have a bloody nose and a black eye. Possibly two.

Ino called out to Sakura, telling her that she would just even up her hair. But I know there was way more happening there than a hair trim. I could feel their tension all the way over here. I could even feel their death stares being aimed at me, too. Hmm, I wonder why.

***

After Sakura's haircut, me fixing my busted face, and Naruto and Sasuke being caught up on what happened while they were knocked out, all the teams continued going their separate ways, and Chūnin exams continued.