The Lineage

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.


The Lineage
By 11


Chapter 10
Blood Thirst: Regenerates

It’s that pensive look in his eyes again. Darkness gaze so far away and I can never hope to reach it. In a way it seems lonely. Family; can vampires have family? Does Sasuke have one then? Did he at one point?

It’s morning now, only an hour or so past dawn. Jiraiya and Sakura are still talking, and with Sasuke here my desire to eavesdrop seems to have died. He’s already been unusually informative, so it’s possible if I ask he’ll tell me the one answer I’m dying to know – live birth? Is that even possible for the dead?

“So, are vampires born?” I wonder.

Sasuke; does not even move; as if I never spoke. It's a bit annoying. I thought he was talking to me? Really!

"Eggs."

"What?"

"Eggs." Sasuke repeats turning to look at me finally. "The female can produce an egg, and a male has to fertilize it. The egg grows along with the creature inside; and when it gets large enough the parents usually tear it open."

"So... you're born, full size?" I wonder, my nose wrinkling itself without my consent.

Somehow I'm thinking of that one movie where a grown man wakes like a newborn baby dripping and gross from his egg-like birth-cubicle and flails around unable to walk. I don't think I liked that movie a lot...

"The egg is broken open, always at the point where the one inside can start to feed, otherwise it is the law to wait." Sasuke shrugged, "After that, the form we take does not usually age. So we can procreate like reptiles and other cold blooded creatures."

Reptiles huh? Said like that it kind of sounds cooler. Alligator babies are awesome; what's better, they don't come out slimy much. And then never look gross or grotesque. Predators never do within their lifetime, I guess.

I don't think I've ever heard of a shark that looked especially ugly or gross, or a lion, or cobra, or killer whale. Predators never enter that frame of 'disgusting' or 'distasteful'.

Even in the moment of kill or covered in blood they all just look deadly and fearsome; that's their existence I suppose. There's no room for the frivolities assigned in the world I left behind. So why do I still think on it so often?

"So you can grow indefiitely old in the eggs?"

"Physically, yes." Sasuke nodded, "Theoretically one can even die within the egg if it is not torn open. But that has never happened; by the time the fetus is large enough to feed outside the egg it usually starts to tear out of the egg itself."

Sasuke, from an egg, was born just as gorgeous as he is now? I can envision it; all pale and spindly limbs belying his strength. His dark hair, perhaps dampened down from the sticky fluids of his personal womb.

All gorgeous and curled in clear liquid and for the first few minutes of his existence no doubt the most vulnerable he had ever been. I wish I'd seen that; just imagining makes me shiver pleasantly.

I look up again. His dark eyes are focused on mine; his expression carefully blank. Then he smiles slightly; as if he can picture what is in my mind. And that image is replaced; no sterile room full of dark and swelling purplish eggs; veins running all along their underside - it's gone.

Instead it's a dark night with a crimson moon so bright it's nearly day; lit in bloodlight. Winter tree branches reaching upward in some sick worship of the night. Sasuke sits alone, desolate; curled, hunched over on himself.

His shirt is gone, and his pants are shredded. He's covered in blood. It's all in his clothes, his hair, and staining pale skin. His neck, his throat; his mouth, his cheek, his eyes; his feet and hands.

It's everywhere, and there's so much of it I can't tell if he's bleeding as well or not. Is it all his blood? It's only in my head, but I still feel like I can reach out and lick him up; it's too much to waste.

His body shudders and his arms curl around him, as if he has to hold himself together or he'll fall apart. And then he arches upward to scream. It's agony, fury; sorrow, and hate; all entwined into one inhuman howl. It tears through the sky and reverberates through my blood and bones.

Even my parasite stills it's coils a moment as if it too senses what I see behind my open eyes. I wrench myself back to where I am; my eyes locked on Sasuke's. His face is blank again, dark eyes giving nothing away.

What was that?

Did he know what I was thinking? Did he make me think of that? Was that just to scare me? To shock me? Did that actually happen?

The silence and his gaze begins to unnerve me; and I break the silence. "Then reproduction is the only difference between Regens and you guys?" I wonder, scoffing a little. It still does seem like a silly reason to have a war, but then what do I know.

Sasuke shakes his head at me, a small mocking smile playing at his mouth. "Regens and purebloods are not only separated by their lineage and 'creation'." He tells me.

"Regens are far less in control of themselves," he elaborates, "and much more sporadic in their feeding patterns."

"Which is partly why they have been outlawed by the Order."

I recognize that voice; and I kind of wish I didn't. Great. It's the pretty bitch; Sakura's back.

"Yeah, and the other part is that they're all a bunch of pompous jerks." Jiraiya grumbles as he strides alongside the ivory-skinned redhead.

Jiraiya! Love you, master; welcome back!

"A few millenia ago the Order pretty much 'bred' regens for war." The old fart shakes his head, growling slightly at no one in particular.

Emerald eyes flash at him in some disdain. "Yes, a few 'millenia' ago." Sakura stressed the word to Jiraiya and he waved her off. It was a flippant gesture but she did not protest it.

"The regens are creating a new nest, and they're not too far from here." Jiraiya reported, "we've gone over the numbers; there's definitely a nest in the area and it's close. My best bet is somewhere in the sewers, they don't have anywhere else to hide. I've already cleaned out the warehouses earlier last week for my stuff."

His stuff being the 'stuff' he routinely changes in and out of the blood room. The manor simply does not have enough space for him to store all his toys. And I do mean 'toys'.

Now I finally know where he keeps those giant insect beasts and other deadly huge creatures to scare the shit out of his victims. I still don't know where he got them to begin with and I'm not sure I really want to know that specific fact.

"We need to move now," Sakura started, "If we can get to the nest today and get rid of them; there can't be more than thirty or fifty. If we just take out the lot of them now we can get rid of the problem before it gets any larger."

"Daylight is the prime time to attack," Sasuke agreed; it was probably obvious to everyone else, but he said it for my benefit. "They are all new vampires, so if we get their nest and take them out even if they did flee the sun would finish them for us."

"Looks like the four of us are going hunting." Jiraiya grinned.

Sakura looked startled, "The 'four' of us?" She glanced over at me in shock, then back at Jiraiya. "Just how old is 'Naruto' anyway?"

I do love how she says my name as if it's a curse. Really makes me feel respected and forgiven for earlier.

"Old enough." Jiraiya silences her.

"I too can vouch for his fighting skill, I've trained him," Sasuke mentions offhand earning him an expression of shock from the blood-haired girl. "He will not hinder you."

She gapes, and her mouth opens as if to retort; her bod swelling with the will to berate him like she does everyone else around her. But then she merely pauses, she snaps her mouth shut indignant.

She glares at me once in detest before turning away; heading for the door. The rest of us followed her out into the sun. Her cloak rises to shield her skin from the burning glare.

I realize she must in fact still be younger than a thousand years. I know Sasuke and Jiraiya must be older than that though. She glances back at us, still shielded by her cloak.

Her eyes stare and widen in something like horror and rage when she sees me. I haven't even done anything yet, I'm just walking along like the rest of them. Then she turns away and doesn't look back. But really?

Why does she hate me so very much? I only tried to kill her once and this was already cleared up; even if I'm a 'regen' technically; I'm not one of the bad guys!

Is she ever going to let me live that down?!

`

New blood.
It's a fairly easy to scent to identify after I've caught it and they confirm that it is what I think it is.
Like Jiraiya suspected the scent grows stronger as we enter the sewer area. I don't remember how or when exactly, but the four of us just glided apart to take a way down different tunnels.

I trust Jiraiya and Sasue not to die; and I can't say in all honesty that I particularly care about Sakura. Although it would definitely be worth it to see her drenched in red.

I notice however when Sakura's presence intrudes on mine, and she is beside me not moments before I sensed her approach. We're still walking, still following the trail; but this is also a confrontation of sorts isn't it?

How on the bloody earth did I wind up alone with Sakura?

"So how old are you?" she asks suddenly, her voice still a tone of haughty discord; conceit. She's lowering herself by talking with me like equals. "How did Jiraiya manage to keep you hidden for a whole thousand years?"

He didn't.

"What?" I feel like laughing at her, and I let my mirth show. She glares at me from the corner of her eyes; green eyes burning in fury with my amusement. "I'm only about maybe a month or so old as far as vampires go."

"Excuse me?!" she hisses, furious.

What? I just told her the truth? Why is she looking at me like that now?

"Oh don't give me that!" she snaps at my expression, as if there's a second message going on here that I myself am not hearing. "Now I 'know' you're lying to me, you deceitful lamprey!"

"You vile bastard!" she curses at me, and I swear I can feel her urge to rip me a new one. "Do you think I'm an idiot? Trying to trick me with such obvious lies?!"

"No it's the truth." I state, i all honesty. I mean, fine maybe I'm a year old - but I really don't think so. How does my age matter anyway?! How is that something to get upset over! Girl's sometimes lie about their age, no one throws fits over that!

"It's an obvious lie!" She snaps back at me, "If you were only a month old there's no way you could go out in the sun or even hold an intelligent conversation!"

"Even if you were a yeard old, you still couldn't go in sunlight;" she spits like a serpent out of pentecoste. "Our communication would not be on the par that it is until you were at least 20! At LEAST!"

"But it is the truth." I defend myself, suddenly feeling very accused - and I am. Where's vindication now? "I drank Sasuke's blood, and I-"

She laughs suddenly, and turns away; obviously having given up on getting any information to her question from me. She acts as if she thinks me insane. "It wouldn't matter if you drank the blood of all three sannin."

"There is no way you could be sane and go into sunlight if you are only a month old." She finishes fiercly. Stating facts, facts every vampire but me would likely know. "Filthy lying regen."

She sweeps onward, ahead of me; but not leaving me behind. I follow her and she no longer seems to care if I'm there or not. As if everything that comes out of my mouth is another lie.

But I'm not lying. I'm really not; and it bugs the hell of me.

But then, how can I walk in sunlight; if it wasn't Sasuke's blood than how? Actually even at the time, didn't Jiraiya seem shocked that I could go in sun as well? At that time, didn't Sasuke also seem like he was trying to stop me from showing Jiraiya?

At that time only I and Sasuke would have known... but Jiraiya accepted that explanation. More accurately, Sasuke demanded he accept it. Jiraiya didn't seem particularly interested anyway.

I wonder if I'm somehow defective...?

Sakura stops only moments before; and I pull myself from my thoughts. My gut coils and shakes, pushing at my sides.

There! They're there!

It screams inside me, lovingly, hatingly, viciously; anxiously. It's anticipation courses from my parasite to me. I can feel them too; pulsing all around us. Sakura's gone stiff and her muscles strain against her skin.

They are our kind, vampires; I know the smell; but there's something fiercer and much sharper about this pungence. It's salty and sweat, but sweet and metal; it's a taste and a sound and view. It's all in one coursing through me.

We know they're there, they know we're here. They're watching us, and their gathering together. It's like watching a plastic balloon swell full of water and swell and swell; until it breaks. Until it breaks and then the fight will begin.

Sakura discards her cloak to the side, and I realize under that cloak among her clothes are several dozen sheaths with various metal weapons incased around her body. She draws one from her leg and another from her back.

One is a short sword with a green gleam along the egde. The other is a broader semi bludgeon semi blade weapon. I feel them moving closer, and my gut writhes in something like joy and thrill as it waits.

It is as impatient as those other 'vampires' just beyond our range. What is so different about them from Jiraiya, Sasuke, and Sakura I wonder? The smell? It's something...

Sakura's grip on her blade tightens. It draws my attention, and then I realize: I have no weapons.

A fierce animalistic cry lets loose. It jarrs itself like lead nails straight to my bones. The group attacks.

They're wild. They're eyes are flame and ice. Their bodies move in no decided pattern. It is as if they have no control. I can believe that. They are crazed, they are wild. They are insane creatures withough will to control themselves.

Their skin is pale but dark by filth. Nails have grown to claws. They catch at my arm and throat. I roll away, and am forced to make do with my body alone.

It's comforting that these - vampires? They're more like nosferatu - carry no weapons. They too must use their claws. Their teeth.

But that is no comfort when a grisly face closes to mine. Jaws wide. A crushing scream tears out that throat into me.

My hand acts of it's own accord, my fingers slamming through the soft part under the chin that slides straight into his skull cracking against the inside of his brain. Slimy wet noodles, that I grip and tear out as I whirl away.

I toss the corpse to those following after me. A tornado of claws and feet and hands, and malicious growling faces I cannot decipher.

Yes!

The voice inside me enters a state of esctasy. I can feel that one's blood coating my hand and wrist. It's insane, but it becomes almost fun.

They're simple creatures in a way. Their movements are random, but their attacks are obvious. I can lure one away; thrust my hand through her ribcage. Her heart is there a useless organ that no longer beats anyway.

She doesn't need it, so I rip it out. Toss it to the ground, it looks like a used peice of hamburger.

But what's better. Is that they fight back.

The second doesn't give me an easy win. His claws catch at my hair and his body lurches forward at odd angles. But his inhuman howling no longer sets my nerves on egde. I can only hear my parasite, like a comforting voice against my ear.

Yes! That's it! Quick! He's going for the throat! Yes! Look; he's so confused! Put him out of his misery! There! He's left himself wide open!! NOW!!

I turn my body from his attack. I'm fast enough he doesn't know that I'm beside him until my hands have penetrated his throat and torn out the connectors. He falls to the side, and howls pitifully as he tries to stuff the blood and the bits of flesh back into his neck.

Yes!

It hisses inside me, but only for a moment; because another one is upon us. I didn't know I could still get adrenaline rushes, but apparently I can. And my foot caves in a skull. Someone slashed my cheek though; I'll have to rip their head off for that.

I've never felt more alive than now - which is ironic, since according to most rules I'm probably considered 'dead' or 'undead' whichever term is pertinent.

They are not human. But they're very strong. I learn almost immediately, I do not want to let any of them get a firm grip on me. One grabbed my wrist, and I could not immediately wrench it back.

He lunged for my throat. So I tore out his eyes. I tossed them to those that would have flooding over me. He still howled as he held me trapped to the wall. He couldn't see at least.

I only lowered my head for an instant. So that I could detach his hand with my teeth. I bit harshly into his wrist. He howled and released me. I drew back in time to duck away. Another lashed out to sever my throat, he caught the other instead.

For that moment I could swear I felt my heart beating again. A wild ravaged thing inside me; thick with adrenaline and fear. Because if I had been unlucky then; I could have died twice.

I know, these are not victims here. They are insane, crazy, wild; inhuman and insanely strong. Strong enough that as I am I cannot break their grip.

I whirl and slam my foot into a gut. I knock my attacker away from me; he takes some of his friends with him. I turn to catch the screaming attack of a female. I lunge past and grab her hair.

She howls as I tug on her scalp pulling her to the ground. My foot slams into her throat, crushing her windpipe. Already there's another one on top of me.

It doesn't end. My parasite, keeps ordering instructions; and it's all I can do to keep up. I'm listening intently at every instruction. That thing inside me once again is the only thing keeping me alive.

I know now, I'm doing all I can to stay alive now. I am now fighting just to live. How many of them are there? How many? Seventy, one hundred? Didn't we figure it would only be around fifty tops?! How can there be so many?!

The only cries that sound normal, are those of my own; and Sakura's. I can only tell from her voice that she's still alive, and the occasional glances that my location allows me to steal.

She's all a bloody fury of red and steel. She attacks with a vengeance; her body twisting and turning; the flashes of metal and the thudding of cut limbs and severed heads and the pained howls of her opponents drowning in thier own blood or bile.

She's a fierce goddess; and her hair stains dark at the end. Her clothes gone dark with crimson. Pearly sharp vicious teeth shine through gritted in a snarl as they are. Her face is contorted in fury and unadulterated hate and rage.

Somehow as ugly as it makes her; I still feel like staring; because it so beautiful. Does she see vengeance here? Or is it her way of forgetting; of venting the repressed anger and sorrow she must have felt then.

She strikes me as the repressed type; so quick to leap to anger. But she leaves herself open. Yet her speed is such that she has not yet been cut down. That, and despite a few obvious openings; these new ones don't see them - I know they're new.

They're barely a week old, their bloodlust is too strong and their eyes show some of the insanity I must have felt before Sasuke found me. I was stronger than these, my will is much stronger.

Sakura cries out and my attention turns from my attacks to her. She's been seized on either side. Her arms are useless, despite the blades they carry. There's a third one that lunges for her.

I'm moving before I've fully realized it. My own attacks stand confused wondering where they're prey is gone. Sakura's opponents do not notice me until I am upon them.

I snap the lungers neck and turn to slash out one of the other's throats. With her other hand free Sakura cleaves the other's skull in two. Our backs slide together as the group closes in.

Sakura says nothing to me, before she launches herself once more into battle. For a moment she paused and I thought she was going to say something but she didn't. I follow suit throwing myself again into the fray.

Surely by now we've already killed fifty? I know I've taken more than thirty at this point; I lost count around 35, but I know I've killed more than half that again. Unless we're not killing them?! No, there're the corpses, they're dead.

Sakura screeches again. Her body is already half-turned, she just cleaved another; but there's a second one thats already on top of her. In another .5 seconds he'll have cleaved through her guts and spilled them all over the ground.

I didn't know I could move that fast. Shit.

His hand is buried in my gut now, but I caught his wrist, he can't cleave me like this. I snap his wrist and break off the limb, still buried in my side. Then I tear through his throat, and toss his body back to the others.

This gives me a moment to glance back at Sakura - emerald eyes wide in a shock I wouldn't have associated with her. She looks too innocent like that; like a child who has just discovered some profound truth of hers to be proved wrong.

I paused to look at her too long. Sakura was already against the wall, that leaves me between her and a horde of angry crazy new vampires driven crazy with the smell of blood.

A few have already dropped off to feed on the blood of the dead, but that still leaves around seventy vampires still willing to attack the fresh meat. I'd glance down to examine my wound, but I don't risk it.

I catch the first that lunges at me. I knee his guts, intended to toss him back in order to hinder the other attackers.

But the movement drives the dismembered hand farther into my gut. I start and my body freezes with the tangible pain that twists in my guts, my organs and my muscles.

My parasite screams in agony and it fills my mind as well. I can't think!

Three, four of them are lunging at me again; and I realize that there are filthy blood encrusted talons just a second away from my throat. I'd start, but I can't; I don't even have time to rip her hand off before she tears through me.

I'm going to die again?

Then her hand goes to peices as if it was cleaved into separate sections by a master chef. She howls and snatches her arm back; the whole think chopped to tidy little bleeding bits all the way up to her elbow.

She howls again, and the group pauses in shock - they know, there's a new attacker. I freeze as I catch the slight gleaming of a thin nearly invisible threat that moves like metal on the air and whips back to the side.

Garrote wire, trained and fashioned like a whip. There's only one person I know who uses wire...

"Sasuke." I breathe. I turn to look at him; dark eyes burning with something not unlike fury.

He rushes forward with a curse; leaving his shadows and dodging the immediate trail of new ones that flood after him with screeches of anger and bloodlust. The female whose arm he took; cries out, approaching from the opposite side and lunges.

Her one still-there hand tearing through at his abdomen. Sasuke leaps away, to stand near me and Sakura. He curses again; and I scent the fragrance of sweet thick blood; dark and haunting as it flows like a wine or a delicate brew.

It's his blood, Sasuke's blood... I feel heady a moment before I bring myself back; my parasite still purring over the smell. Sasuke is bleeding. He was hurt just now. My eyes turn to that female, and she grins nastily.

Her breath heaves, and her body shakes in something like rage and something like pride. Her one hand is red at the tips, Sasuke's blood drips to the ground. A horrible waste of his essence. If it were me I'd never waste any of it.

Idly I feel the urge to rush to her, and tear that arm from her; so I can take that blood from it; not waste even a bit. But I kill that thought as the group swells again and Sakura comes t stand beside us; to meet the attack.

"Sakura, stop being emotional about this." Sasuke hissed at the girl. "Keep your head clear, damn you."

"I will." She growled back, just as the sea of them swelled and the three of us took into the thick. I caught the flash of Sakura's blades; and the slight shine of Sasuke's wire.

My parasite purred and danced and writhed and laughed; it urged and shouted at me. Order, wants, desires. Some not entirely appropriate...

I'd think about them later though; they were all fun to think about, but not when I'm trying to kill off all the vampires I can without getting killed myself.

I found that female that sliced Sasuke's perfect abdomen; and I killed her. Snapped her neck, and crushed her skull, filled her lungs with her blood, and ripped out her tongue and tore off her ears.

It was probably overkill; but I did them in that order, so she had a quick death at least. Provided she was dead for all that... hm.

You could fuck him when we're done here. There's only ten more left. There's so much blood; and it smells so good!

It squeals inside me like a child let on a spree at a candy shop; where the child is extremely horny and the candyman is an unbeleivable hottie. No, that's not such a great mental image; ew.

You could screw him in that blood; and then lick it all off of him; and then his wound. His blood's probably just pouring out of it right now; but it'll stop soon if you don't hurry and lick it up.

Shut up. I order in my mind; wishing the stupid thing could hear me.

Aw. Okay. Later then.

It pouts. And I internally sigh, yes, later; I agree before I tear off the top part of the skull of the last in my attacker's party. Blood flows to the ground and his body falls.

Sasuke and Sakura stand nearby, they've just finished with the last of theirs too. There's nothing but blood and bodies on the ground. My heart still beats a steady rythm in my skull.

Of course I have no heart, but that's how it feels; this constant pounding in my head. A headache, I suppose. Can I even get headaches I wonder?

Now?

Shut up. I order it. My parasite rises up indignantly and then seems to turn away and remains petulantly silent. Is it over?

"Sasuke." I lick my lips, they're slightly cracked, and my voice sounds hoarse. Dark eyes look up at me, and emerald follow; if only out of curiosity. "Let me check your wound; it's pretty deep, right?"

"I'd be more worried about you." Sasuke seems to laugh, as he stalks over to me. His hand wraps around the dismembered hand still sticking in my side. With one hard yank he plucks it out.

Pain shoots through my guts again, and I gasp out trying to keep from shouting. My parasite is not so silent, and again ringing fills my skull, a persistent drone intent on making me deaf.

"Sakura, ointment. To stop the blood flow." Sasuke orders.

"Ah, but... that doesn't work for... does it?" She seems puzzled as she picks something out of her belt.

"Just give it to me." he insists, and she hands it to him. Sasuke peels up my shirt, and his fingers annointed with some chilled liquid he presses it into the open gape in my stomach.

I do cry out when he touches me. I can already feel the blood streaming down my stomach into my pants. And his fingers pressing that cold to my skin; it starts to burn. As if it's searing the whole shut. But the pain... the pain is...

"Augh!!" I jerk away from his touch; as much as I may have desired it at any other point in time.

"It's done." Sasuke states, and already I can feel the pain receding. It's a dull stinging ache now; and I glance down where the skin is already sizzling shut. Amazing...
Sakura stares too; as if this was not the expected reaction.

"How...?" she breathes; but Sasuke's eyes silence her in a single instant. Her mouth clamps shut and she looks away. She doesn't seem to understand; and neither do I. Perhaps both Sakura and I are very young even to the world of vampires.

"You've seen mine," I start, taking the ointment from Sasuke, "Now show me yours." I order. Sasuke freezes a moment before he stops me from using the bottle; I now realize that he was wearing those gloves, even while he was touching me.

Why gloves?

"Not now." He says, taking the bottle back and passing it to Sakura. I can still smell it though; that sweet intoxicating scent; that is so much more addictive to me than alcohol ever could have been.

"Sasuke, you're still bleeding too." I start, and reach for the edge of his shirt. He draws away and dark eyes seem startled. Afraid?

"Not now." He insists, almost coldly, but definitely; no room for question or protest.

"Sasuke," I tell him, "You're being a real baby about this."

Sakura snorts, and I turn my attention to her; sometimes with Sasuke it's like talking with a rock. "What?" I wonder at her.

"He's 'Sasuke'... and you're..." she snorted again. It was the first time Naruto had seen her smiling; even with blood in her hair and on her clothes; it made her beautiful.

She looked like the kind of girl he'd have liked to go out with if he'd met her in high school or at a coffee shop. Her face wasn't made for cold, for snarls; and as gorgeous as she looked in the throes of battle; her smile was infinitely more drawing.

"Yeah, whatever." I realize I'm sulking. But Sasuke won't let me touch him and Sakura's just laughing about some kind of inside joke - 'He's 'Sasuke' ' what does that mean?

And Sasuke... he even applied the ointment to him with gloves. When has Sasuke's skin ever come into contact willingly with my own after that first night when he took me to feed?

Never. He doesn't even seem to want to touch our bare skin, hands or otherwise. When his hands clenched in my hair, he never touched my scalp. Why? Is he so averse to contact? Why?

"Sorry." Sakura coughed.

"It's okay." I snorted. She could at least tell me why she was laughing, you know?!

"No, I'm sorry. About before." she starts again and I look at her. I notice it now, but there is something kinder in her eyes. She doesn't... hate me?

"And thank you for helping me before as well," she glances at the battleground, and I know what she's talking about. "You saved my life; you're not so bad a guy." She admits.

She does so almost grudgingly, but she doesn't seem like she holds any real enmity towards me in any case. "You're still a regen, and a liar;" she shrugs, "but we're even as far as you trying to kill me." she sniffs at this last part, haughty again.

I wonder if she purposely puts on that facade to try and cover her own insecurities and shortcomings. it's possible, she strikes me as very repressed. Actually... so does Sasuke.

"We must have made quite a racket down here," Sasuke states, and stares around; watching and extending his presence tentatively to try and sense any more new regens before they attack us. "It's possible, others may have noticed us."

"It's a whole hive nest down here," Sakura shakes her head. "I hope they haven't noticed us just yet. We need to get Jiraiya and get out. We know the nest is here; based on that group there's probably over 400 of them."

"The smell is strong enough." Sasuke agrees, and the three of us move in unison down the tunnels quickly; away from the last battle, and hopefully towards Jiraiya and daylight.

"We need to call in back up from the Order." Sakura started, but the three of us had to stop then; and her voice died.

It was only the echo of a cry, but still a cry - more new regens. Their skeletal screeches unmistakable.

Then they were upon us. With screams. That tore into us, from all sides. Just before, their claws, and teeth, were to follow.

---

Review.