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Heaven: Ch 7

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Chapter 7



The rain fell. Sometimes in steady sheets that obscured the landscape in a grey haze, sometimes only a steady drip-drip-drip that threatened to stop completely but quickly turned into another violent downpour. Every now and again the sun poked a few feeble rays through the dark clouds but still the rain came.

A damp, cold, cave; unrelenting rain, supplies running dangerously low…

And Sasuke, shivering as he mumbled his way through fevered dreams.

Tenten wrapped her arms around her knees, staring despondently out at the lengthening shadows creeping towards the cave mouth. How had it all gone so badly wrong so quickly? The barely leashed panic that had been dogging her heels for the last forty-eight hours reared up inside her; an insistent flash of pure terror, before she managed to suppress it. Struggling to keep her breathing even, her mind clear and unclouded, she turned slightly to look at the Uchiha sprawled on the sleeping mat beside her. Despite the fact that she'd covered him with every piece of fabric they had in their possession, his lips were tinged blue and she could clearly feel the tremors that wracked his frame as he shivered in his sleep.

Her mouth twisted, she chewed her lower lip as she carefully lifted the edge of the makeshift blankets to stare at the white bandages that were wrapped around his ribs. Weeping blood no longer stained the cloth but, though she was no medic, she somehow instinctively understood that it was not a good sign. With evening encroaching she was sure they were safe, no unfamiliar shapes or chakra signatures had come near them in the last twelve hours, so she carefully shifted onto her knees and reached trembling fingers out to unroll the bandages.

She hadn't touched them since the initial wrapping – which Sasuke had done with only a little help from her – more than a day ago. He had insisted that it was merely a scratch, glaring so ferociously when she opened her mouth to insist that he needed a hospital, that Tenten had bitten her tongue and kept her peace. Something she'd come to regret in the last eight hours or so – ever since Sasuke had grown even paler than he had been since the attack that had given him a slice across the ribs. With no other recourse, and barely any knowledge of medicine, she'd tried to make him comfortable; finally insisting that he lay down and the lack of argument from Sasuke had sent alarm spiking through her veins. Gradually, he'd fallen asleep and she'd breathed a silent sigh of relief.

But the relief had been short-lived as it became apparent that his unconscious state had less to do with healing sleep and far more to do with the fever that raged unabated. No matter how many compresses she made by soaking a strip of fabric torn from a spare shirt in the cool rain that fell outside, it seemed to have very little effect.

Now, she winced every time she – gently as possible – rolled his inert form from side to side so she could unwind the bandage; every slight movement resulting in a groan of pain from the unconscious Uchiha. Finally the last piece was pulled away and, though her lower lip felt raw from all the abuse she'd subjected it to throughout the last day, she bit down hard enough to taste blood.

Sasuke's 'scratch' was in actuality a gash – trailing along the line of his ribs, from his side to his sternum. Deep and gaping at the entry point, it lightened as it came closer to the middle of his torso and Tenten thought that might mean that vital organs had been spared, at least.

The problem was the flesh surrounding the wound: raised and puffy; shiny with angry red lines spreading their poisonous tentacles into unmarked and previously healthy skin.

A deep breath, then another, and Tenten sat back on her heels staring at the wound as tears she was unable to stop welled up in her eyes. So far the curse seal had remained dormant, but Sasuke's chakra was steadily weakening – she could feel the increasingly sluggish movements as it ran along his chakra pathways, looking for a way to wash the poison from his system.

Desperately she glanced around, as if the uneven rock walls and ceiling could provide her with a solution. But the shadows crept inexorably closer as the last bit of daylight faded away and the jagged black rock remained stubbornly silent …

What would happen to her if Sasuke died?



48 hours earlier

Spring was in the air; a feeling of hope and renewal more than the physical proofs of the first tentative shoots of green that were pushing up through the dark earth. Mingled fear and excitement coursed through Tenten's veins as she stopped just outside the doorway and stared up at the sky with wide eyes.

It had been so long since she'd seen anything but the depressing stone of the Sound base she couldn't help but freeze in place. The sky above was the pale blue of a robin's egg, dotted with wispy white clouds that drifted lazily across the expanse. A slight breeze ruffled the newly emerging leaves high above her head and Tenten suddenly couldn't contain the sheer joy of freedom that welled up inside her. A soft laugh bubbled from her lips and, unable to resist, she took a few quick steps until she was amongst the trees proper. A slight pause, a few turns as she took in the world, reacquainted herself with so much vast space, the smells of dark earth and new life.

A shadow fell across her own, blotting out the sun, and abruptly all enjoyment fled. Sober now, Tenten turned obediently towards Sasuke, awaiting the orders she could almost feel him burning to give. For Sasuke there was no enjoyment; no joy. Sadly, she wondered if he would ever be able to take pleasure in even such simple things as the advent of spring, or if the corrosive darkness inside him had consumed not only his sanity but his humanity as well.

"West," he grunted, turning in the direction he mentioned; so sure she would follow that he barely waited for her acknowledgement before taking off into the treeline.

And why would he doubt that she would follow unwaveringly, Tenten wondered bitterly as she hurried to catch up. She could run – but what purpose would that serve? It was more than likely he would catch her before she went too far (and such rebellion would undoubtedly result in further restrictions of her already scant freedom) and even if she managed to evade him, he had only to unlink the seal, use a single Chidori and wait for her to collapse.

A single leap brought her up to the branches of the nearest tree and her heart sped up with the sheer pleasure of running again. There had been a time when nothing would have made her as happy as to stop running – when Gai-sensei had run them ragged, literally. But after so long cooped up inside, her only exercise life-threatening sparring sessions with Sasuke, it felt incredible to be outside and moving again.

She had no idea where they were going, of course. Or why. Or what Sasuke hoped to accomplish once they reached their destination. Or what her role would be when they got there…

With a vicious shake of her head, Tenten forced everything she didn't know to recede – for now she was being allowed an unprecedented level of trust and freedom and she would do everything in her power to ensure that she not only kept what she'd earned, but added to it as well.



She was quiet, focused. A trait Sasuke had come to appreciate in the kunoichi. After Sakura and Karin it was only a relief to be travelling with a female who wasn't trying to flirt with him at every opportunity.

Truthfully though, he was at least slightly suspicious of the way she was conforming to his will. Of course, it was exactly what he'd wanted: a human weapon that would follow obediently wherever he led, but he hadn't survived on his own for so long by being naïve and trusting. It seemed slightly off, her sudden malleability. And he would be foolish if he believed that the seriousness of the injuries she'd sustained from his Chidori had suddenly resulted in a desire to please him. There were many things Sasuke was unsure of … but he was sure of one fact: he wasn't foolish.

So he kept watch, waiting quietly for her to make the stupid move she was undoubtedly planning. It was wearying, though. Frustrating. He had better things to do than keep an unruly kunoichi in check from dawn to dusk.

Her convalescence had gone well; every bit of trust he'd grudgingly given had proven that she deserved it, and finally they had begun to settle into a sort of comradeship. It didn't mean that he was under any illusions about where her loyalties truly lay, though. The better part of the fall, and the entire winter, had been spent in getting used to each other. Slowly progress had been made until Sasuke was satisfied that they could fight well together; that Tenten could hold her own in the battles they would undoubtedly face in the future. The delay had grated on him, but after her injuries there had been no choice but to wait for her to heal. Without a medic it was a painfully slow process.

The base had been left behind with absolutely no regret. The first breath he'd drawn – knowing that he was leaving that hell-hole and would never be back – had tasted of pure freedom and he'd been hard pressed not to join the silly girl in her impromptu little dance of joy in the middle of the clearing. Instead he'd suppressed the wild happiness at being free of the dank cellar-like rooms and started to run.

If they kept this pace up they would be in Rain in two days.



They had come out of nowhere – and Tenten cursed herself for having grown complacent. ROOT didn't give up; they didn't let go. She'd been stupid to think that Sasuke was the only problem she faced.

The camp had been set up in a small clearing, not unlike the ones she'd utilized the previous summer. Sasuke had taken first watch and after a day of hard travelling she'd been so exhausted she'd fallen almost immediately into a deep, dreamless sleep. It had felt like mere minutes, though she must have been asleep for hours, when Sasuke shook her quietly awake. He held a finger to her lips to indicate silence but it wasn't necessary. The moment she'd opened her eyes, seen the red of his swirling in the darkness, she'd known that something was amiss.

She could feel it.

A malevolent oppressiveness in the air, like a net being drawn tightly around them.

"They appeared about an hour ago," Sasuke whispered harshly as she pushed herself into a sitting position, words underscored with the tones of pure anger, "I thought they'd pass us by but they've been circling closer ever since."

The fog of sleep cleared quickly, her pulse leaping and jumping with the fear and adrenaline that ran rampantly through her body, and Tenten quietly and efficiently started to ready herself for the fight that was sure to come. From the corner of her eye she could see the way Sasuke compulsively pushed the hilt of his katana from its sheath, how his eyes roved the foliage surrounding them.

"ROOT," she breathed as she gave her scrolls a final pat to ensure they were there and took up her place standing next to the Uchiha.

He shot her a quick glance but remained silent and Tenten nearly groaned aloud. The look on his face – even in the darkness – said it all: she would have some explaining to do once they'd finished this confrontation.

Somehow it never occurred to her that a ROOT Anbu squad could ever stand a chance against Uchiha Sasuke.

"Three squads," Sasuke told her quietly, drawing the katana though it still dangled carelessly by his side, an extension of his arm. "They'll be here in the next few minutes. No trackers among them or they'd have been on us the moment they caught our scent."

Tenten nodded though fear kept her tightly bound in a crushing grip. Three squads? It was unheard of. Did they know she'd been captured by the Uchiha? Why else would they send so many?

The first shadows to breach the protective ring of the trees froze almost as soon as they stepped into the clearing. Stopped in their tracks by the feel of Sasuke's chakra, the sight of the most wanted S-class criminal still alive, or by a technique of the Sharingan, Tenten didn't know or care. As soon as they stood still she loosed a couple of kunai – hitting each of the men solidly in the jugular. Darkness was no impediment to accuracy; Tenten could feel any target she wished to hit. They were dead before they hit the ground – a slight gurgle the only sound of their passing.

A second wave of Anbu warriors replaced the first, before Tenten had a chance to suggest a strategic retreat because she rather suspected that Sasuke would not take kindly to a suggestion of 'run for your life'. These were better prepared; they had circled around and tried to sneak up from behind. But they were no real match for the Sharingan, especially not in the dark. Tenten tried to assist where she could, finishing them off as soon as Sasuke had delivered the fatal blow.

But she couldn't shake the feeling that they were being played. Toyed with. Two squads, dead within minutes… too easy. Almost as if they were being fed cannon-fodder to make them complacent.

No sooner had the thought occurred to her than the real attack began.

It was chaos and confusion – blood and exploding earth and falling trees, flashes of brightness as the full moon glinted silvery off of Sasuke's blade. The sounds of flesh hitting flesh and grunts of pain filled her ears and it was all Tenten could do to try and get out of the way long enough to gain a strategic vantage point from which to launch her attacks. For the first time in her life Tenten could have cared less about accuracy. From experience she knew that it was damn near impossible to hit Sasuke. Years of being constantly hunted had made him almost paranoid about looking over his shoulder and the characteristic came to good use in a battle – as if his senses had been so attuned to anything coming close that he could sense it long before it hit.

So, she merely anchored herself against the solid trunk of an oak tree that even ninjutsu would be hard pressed to dislodge from the earth and let wave after wave after wave of weapons fly into the melee.



It was glorious.

Solid blows, flowing blood and a free rein for the anger that always swirled just below the surface, like a volcano just waiting to erupt. Kusanagi raged for blood, every time the blade bit into an unprotected piece of skin it almost felt as if the steel shuddered in pleasure.

A pleasure Sasuke wholeheartedly shared.

Weeks of forced inactivity; the voices – the ghosts – growing ever more vociferous had him on edge. He didn't know who these ninja were; he didn't care. Whether they were after Tenten or himself made no difference; they were the outlet he'd so desperately longed for.

Over so quickly.

Barely any challenge, but the blood-lust had been sated for the moment and Sasuke turned to look for Tenten as soon as he'd kicked the second man off his blade. Kusanagi had gone deep… right through the man's stomach and out at his back; the masked face had fallen forward onto Sasuke's shoulder and deep down he'd known that it was wrong to feel elated by the last bit of unnecessary violence.

Sometimes his mother spoke at inopportune moments.

(What have you become, my darling little boy?)

Maybe it was that - her voice - that propelled him into movement; an instinctive denial of the disappointment in him.

All Sasuke really knew was the present. He was breathing hard, blood still dripping from his blade, having just caught sight of Tenten at the opposite side of the clearing. Weapons littered the grassy expanse, clods of earth had raised a cloud of dust as the weapons and feet trampled the ground and she was still wreathed in slowly dissipating smoke from her last summons. Sucking in deep breaths of air, wide eyed, she was staring at him as if she'd never seen him before, but that wasn't what had the monster inside him sniffing the air again.

There was still one left.

A short, slight man, judging by his build – only a few inches taller than the prey he was sneaking up behind. Tenten was oblivious to his presence, looking so disoriented and confused that Sasuke wondered if this had been her first real battle.

He moved without really being aware of it.

She was his. He'd trained her, made her into what she was.

A good ninja looked after his weapons.

Vaguely he could recall Itachi telling him something along those lines when he'd received his first real kunai…

Sasuke was naturally fast. He'd trained himself to be faster.

But this time he could already see he was too slow. The stupid girl wasn't moving, frozen into place by whatever it was she was thinking or feeling, and he was too far away – the enemy already too close to her.

The best he could hope for was to deflect the blow… Maybe save both of them from a fatal wound.

He ignored the sound of his mother's pleased murmur inside his head as he flickered back into plain sight; his body a human shield between Tenten and the kunai aimed straight at her heart.



The present

His chakra was weakening more by the minute. And hers with him. Finally, Tenten gave up… gave in to the crushing fear and despair that had been threatening to overwhelm her ever since Sasuke's collapse.

She didn't want to die; wasn't even close to ready.

As if opening the floodgates had finally given her leave to see clearly again, the tears dried up, replaced by a cold, stony determination.

Don't you dare die on me, Uchiha. Not now. Not after everything...

The kunai was in her hand, such a part of her being she almost couldn't distinguish between cold steel and warm flesh. Still, her hand trembled, wavering prisms of light reflecting off the blade as she slowly inched it towards the jagged wound decorating Sasuke's pale skin. Laboured breaths puffed past his lips; the fever had already burned through the compress she'd placed on his forehead only minutes before.

For a long moment, Tenten stared at Sasuke, taking in his features wreathed with pain. Despite the ravages of the infection he looked different like this. Younger. Not so much a granite block as a living human being subject to all the same human mistakes as she was.

He muttered incessantly.

She could catch only a word here, a phrase there, but it was enough. He mumbled things that made no sense; things about Konoha, and killing, and his parents. The torment that filled his voice when he raggedly groaned that Itachi hadn't deserved it, to be a scapegoat made Tenten's throat tighten with emotion. Clearly, he was so far gone that he was living in a make-believe world where conspiracies surrounded him.

She'd dreaded it, though she expected it; having had a brush with what Sasuke dreamt about previously. And she was right, eventually he was less angry, less aggressive; there were fewer thrashing movements but the muttering continued. All she could really make out was that he was asking his mother to forgive him; as if he was to blame for the fate that had befallen Uchiha Mikoto.

Perhaps it was that thought that decided her. She couldn't stand anyone being in pain; her own survival aside, she couldn't simply sit back and not even try to help. They were in the middle of nowhere – Tenten had no real idea which part of nowhere Sasuke had led them into but she did know that her lack of direction could likely kill them both if she attempted to go for help.

She'd found an ointment in Sasuke's pack. The small bottle was painfully familiar; the same medication he'd used on her after Chidori had nearly burnt her to a crisp. She'd spread it around the wound, hoping to stop the creeping feelers of red, but even Tenten, with her lack of knowledge regarding anything medical, knew enough first-aid to know that the poison inside the wound had to be cleansed before healing could be promoted.

White teeth bit into the already ragged cut on her lower lip but she steeled herself and quickly brought the fire-blackened blade to the wound. A quick slice, thankfully her hand didn't shake too much, and she'd opened it again. A mixture of pus and blood seeped thickly from the gaping mouth of the gash and Tenten swallowed against the nausea as she used a tin travelling mug to scoop water out of a natural shallow stone basin in the floor. Nearly half an hour later the wound had been washed clean – pure red blood weeping from the cut. A thick layer of the medicinal unguent and Tenten finally rewound clean bandages around Sasuke's body.

He was quieter now. The initial moans of pain – as she cut into the infected flesh and washed it out – had subsided gradually until she could only pray that he was merely truly unconscious and no longer feverishly asleep. It might have been her imagination but the bright spots of color high on his cheekbones were lighter; his forehead no quite so warm.

A few deep, shuddering breaths and Tenten stood, stretching aching muscles as she made her way outside.

It was pouring again.

For the first time she didn't mind; it was a better alternative than burning the clothes she'd been wearing throughout the operation. So she merely stood, letting the water soak through to the bone, washing blood and filth out of the fabric. How much time passed she couldn't say but finally her throat was raw and her eyes puffy from the tears and she was shivering with cold.

Back inside the cave, Tenten mechanically stripped her wet clothes off, spreading them over rocks near the fire she quickly rekindled. She was exhausted; mentally and physically.

The battle, the fear, facing her own mortality …

She laid a hand on Sasuke's forehead to check that it hadn't been her imagination, that he was winning the battle against the fever now the poison draining his strength had been leached from his body. The last of her strength was spent in dragging the Uchiha, sleeping mat and all, closer to the fire.

Her legs gave way and she sank down next to Sasuke, glaring at him through renewed tears.

"Why did you do that?" she whispered, anger rising higher at the impotence of her words, "why didn't you activate the seal even though it was a battle and you were in danger?"

The makeshift bed looked impossibly inviting and she was so bone-weary …

Resolving to think about the conundrum again once she'd had some sleep, Tenten carefully wriggled her way into Sasuke's cocoon of blankets, ensuring to keep as much space between them as the narrow mat allowed.

Her eyes drifted shut and the thoughts ran haphazardly through her mind, and she couldn't help but wonder …

Fever aside, Sasuke's crazy conspiracy theories had been uttered as if he believed in their absolute truth.
Heaven: Ch 7

Unholy alliances led Sasuke down the path of destruction but he'd always known one day he would have to pay his dues. Through a twist of fate Tenten becomes his ticket out of a hatred ravaged existence as she struggles to make her way home. Ninja-verse AU.

Couples: SasuTen & some NejiTen.

A/N: Thank you so much for all the lovely reviews! I'm so sorry I'm late with the update, to be honest I'm not entirely sure where August went xD I hope you'll enjoy the chapter thought! And please let me know what you thought?

If you like my work, please add to your :+fav:s! To be updated on the new chapters, please add me to your :+devwatch:.

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~Nokito-chan :star:
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cas42's avatar
I am not ashamed to admit I squealed with glee when I saw these next few chapters were up. :squee:

I am still amazed by your world building and even more by your psychological insight into Sasuke and Tenten. You are doing an wonderful job setting up their relationship in a slow, natural seeming way.

These lines of yours:
Sometimes his mother spoke at inopportune moments.

(What have you become, my darling little boy?)

Zowie... I mean that statement right in the middle of all of Sasuke's carnage... That's such a great internal turning moment for him to have.

Wonderful chapter.

-Cas