Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

"Hinata," Naruto said, his voice tight with concern as he cradled her in his arms. "What do you mean it's a trap?"

Hinata's lips trembled. Her voice was hoarse from hours of screaming, barely more than a whisper.

"I-It was all to lure Sakura here," she said, her breath ragged. Her face was a mess of blood, dirt, and tears—haunted and hollow.

Just the sight of her made Naruto's stomach twist. He wanted nothing more than to tear whoever had done this to her limb from limb. But he stayed rooted, kneeling at her side. She needed him to be calm. And he needed answers.

"I don't understand," he said slowly, eyes scanning her battered form. "Why take you?"

Hinata winced as she shifted, pain flashing across her features. "Team Eight was tracking down a lead on the stolen medical supplies. We ran into rogue ninja... all of them marked with the cursed seal." Her voice faltered. "Kiba and Shino—he threw them aside like they were nothing. But me... I was taken."

Naruto's jaw clenched. "Taken to distract us?"

She nodded weakly. "Y-Yes. I was never the target. I was just the bait. Haruhi—the mastermind—is after Sakura."

"Why?" Naruto asked, heat creeping into his voice. "What does he want with her?"

Hinata's shoulders sagged. "He hoped the medical supply raid would force Konoha to send her. When they sent us instead, it ruined his plan... at first. So he improvised. He kept me alive. Hurt, but alive. Just enough to draw you and Sasuke out. He knew..." Her voice cracked. "He knew Sakura would come after me."

Naruto swore under his breath, the curse sharp and furious. "That rat bastard..."

A new voice cut in—calm, but grim.

"And it worked," Sai said, glancing back at them. "You and I came straight here. Sasuke and Karin are headed to the mountain's core. And Suigetsu, Juugo, and Sakura—"

"J-Jūgo?" Hinata interrupted, her voice suddenly tight with fear. "Jūgo is here?"

Naruto blinked, caught off guard by her reaction. "Yeah. Sasuke called in Team Taka for backup. Their base is nearby, so—"

"Not a coincidence," Hinata hissed, struggling to sit up despite the pain. "Naruto, Jūgo is not here to help. He's the one who took down Kiba and Shino. For Haruhi."

"What? That doesn't make sense—why would Jūgo—"

"Because Haruhi can control him." Her voice trembled with certainty and dread. "Just like the others marked with the cursed seal. Jūgo is not himself. He's a puppet."

A heavy silence settled between them.

Naruto's grip on her tightened.

"Then we're walking straight into this Haruhi's hands," he said, eyes hard. "And Sakura-chan is already with Jūgo."

Footsteps echoed down the stone corridor—uneven, hurried, and accompanied by ragged breathing. Sai stiffened, hand inching toward his kunai. The air was thick with tension, the sound bouncing off the damp cave walls like a warning.

But when the figure emerged from the shadows, red hair wild and chakra flaring erratically, he relaxed.

"Karin," Sai said, his voice measured but relieved.

"S-Sasuke..." Karin gasped, barely able to catch her breath. "He's taking on an entire cursed seal army... alone. He's deep in the mountain—at the core."

She stumbled, barely catching herself on the cave wall. Her eyes fell on Hinata, and for a second, concern softened her usual sharp demeanor.

"They really messed you up, huh?" she muttered, stepping forward and yanking up her sleeve. Without hesitation, she thrust her arm out toward Hinata. "Here. Bite me. It'll speed up your recovery."

Naruto's eyes widened. "An army?"

Hinata nodded weakly, already sinking her teeth into Karin's arm with practiced precision. Her body shuddered as Karin's healing chakra surged through her. The cuts and bruises began to knit together, but her eyes remained dull and sightless.

"Haruhi's puppets," she confirmed, her voice steadier now. "He's been collecting ninja—runaways, missing-nin, even those who were presumed dead. All of them marked with his version of the cursed seal." She pulled away from Karin's arm, a small apologetic smile playing at her lips. "Haruhi has a talent for preying on the forgotten."

Naruto's fists clenched at his sides. His gaze shifted to Sai, sharp and resolute.

"Take Hinata and Karin and get them out of here," he ordered. "Get them to safety. I'm going after Sasuke and Sakura-chan."

"Naruto—" Sai started, but Naruto was already moving.

He vanished in a flash of movement, the cave briefly illuminated by the flicker of lightning as he sprinted toward the chaos waiting at the mountain's heart.

"That's the last of them," Sasuke muttered, his voice low and harsh as he drove his blade through the final enemy.

The cursed seal shinobi crumpled to the stone floor, joining the hundreds—no, thousands—who already lay defeated around him. The stench of blood, sweat, and scorched chakra clung to the cave air like smoke after a wildfire.

It had been years since Sasuke had pushed himself this hard. Not since the war.

These cursed seal warriors… they were more than mindless drones. They fought like they had nothing to lose. And without Karin to watch over or protect, Sasuke hadn't held back. His chakra had flowed freely, sharp and dark, a storm unleashed. He hadn't needed to worry about restraint.

And now it was over.

For the moment.

He reached down, grabbed one of the surviving shinobi by the throat, and slammed him against the damp cave wall. The man choked, feet kicking against the rock.

"Talk," Sasuke demanded, eye blazing with the remnants of his Sharingan. "Who created you? Orochimaru? Kabuto?"

The ninja's head lolled slightly. His expression was vacant—eyes glassy, mouth slack. No fear. No awareness. No resistance.

Sasuke's grip tightened. "I said talk."

Still nothing. Just silence.

"Oi!" a voice called from deeper in the cave.

Sasuke turned his head, eyes narrowing.

Suigetsu stepped into view, dragging three bloodied figures behind him. Team Oboro. Suigetsu looked worse for wear—clothes ripped and ragged, his chakra flickering like a spent fuse—but his smirk was intact.

"These three tried to slow me down," he said casually, heaving their unconscious bodies onto the pile of fallen cursed seal shinobi. "Guess they were meant to keep me busy while the others went after Sakura."

Sasuke's brow furrowed. "Went after her? Why?"

Suigetsu's smirk faded. "That's the part that doesn't make sense. Their orders weren't to kill her." He wiped blood off his cheek and nodded toward the prisoners. "They were told to retrieve her. Alive."

Sasuke dropped the limp ninja he was holding, his thoughts shifting sharply.

"Alive…" he echoed. Something twisted in his chest. "Why would someone need her alive?" A sudden, ice-cold realization sank into his gut. He stepped past the bodies, eyes narrowing as he looked toward the deeper tunnels. "We need to find her. Now."

"Whoa, hold up," Suigetsu said, arms crossing as he leaned casually against the wall, though his stance was tense. "You're forgetting she's not alone. Jūgo's with her. He'll keep her safe."

"That's what you should be worried about," a new voice cut in, firm and laced with restrained fury.

Sasuke and Suigetsu turned just as Naruto landed in a crouch, dust swirling around his feet. His cloak of Kyuubi chakra burned around him like a second skin, golden light crackling in the dim cave. His expression was tight with urgency, his blue eyes locked on Sasuke.

"Sasuke, we need to go. Now."

Suigetsu straightened. "Wait—what? Why?"

Naruto's jaw clenched. "Because Jūgo's not himself. This guy—Haruhi is controlling him. He took down Kiba and Shino under Haruhi's influence, along with some other rogue ninja. And now he's alone with Sakura."

The silence that followed was thick and suffocating.

Sasuke didn't waste another second. "Tch. Damn it."

He launched into motion, his form a blur as he tore through the tunnel, chakra flaring like a vengeful storm.

Naruto followed close behind.

Suigetsu stared after them, jaw slack. Then, with a muttered curse, he hefted his sword over his shoulder and ran after them.

The cave was dim, lit only by the cold, artificial glow of chakra-powered bulbs embedded in the cave walls. Sakura's breaths came heavy and labored, her back pressed against the wall, one hand clutching a kunai—though her chakra reserves were almost depleted. Dust and sweat clung to her skin. She wasn't sure how much longer she could stay awake.

"What is happening to me?" Sakura panted, glaring up at Haruhi.

"I injected you with my medication while you were unconscious," Haruhi said with a smile. "I've always admired you, you know. Haruno Sakura. Medical prodigy. Heroine of the Fourth Shinobi War. So determined, so good. You never even noticed me, did you?"

"Where is Hinata?" Sakura spat, eyes narrowing. "What did you do to her?"

He chuckled, slow and quiet. "Oh, Hinata was never here. Not really. That voice you heard? Just a recording. Clever how we looped it through the tunnels, isn't it?" His eyes glinted, pleased with himself. "It got you running right into my hands."

Sakura's grip tightened on her weapon. "You manipulated us. You used her to lure me—"

"To get your attention," he said, stepping closer, hands spread as if explaining a work of art. "Do you know how long I've been trying to reach you? I applied to work under you in the Konoha Medical Corps. You turned me away. Too average, you said. But I studied everything. Your reports. Your methods. Your chakra mapping techniques. Until finally, I could work side by side with you. And then, as you left Konoha for your little Sunagakure expedition, I begged you to take me as an apprentice."

He stopped just out of reach, gazing at her like she was both a puzzle and a masterpiece. "But even as you accepted me, you wouldn't look at me. Only him. That traitor to Konoha. So I had to do more. I dove into my experimenting… altering mood stabilizer compounds, developing a blend of neurological suppressants that target impulse control and memory recall." His smile was almost childlike. "It's remarkable what the mind will allow once you loosen its grip."

Sakura's heart pounded.

"Jūgo," she whispered, glancing at the ninja in question.

"Ah, yes." Haruhi's voice took on a singsong tone. "He was my first success. He was already unstable, volatile. With a bit of pharmacological persuasion and cursed seal stimulation, he became the perfect test subject. He's been fetching me all sorts of supplies. Your little stockpiles of antivenoms, chakra amplifiers, neural suppressants—so useful for my research."

"You're sick," Sakura growled.

"Maybe," he said lightly. "But effective."

He stepped forward, faster than she expected. Before she could react, he plunged a syringe into her neck.

She gasped, staggering back, the kunai clattering from her hand. Her limbs felt like they were wrapped in cotton, her thoughts sluggish, heavy, slipping through her fingers like water.

"You bastard—!"

"You'll feel dizzy at first," Haruhi said conversationally. "Then warm. Like you're falling asleep. That's the second drug taking hold. Just a little something to soften your will."

She tried to summon chakra, but it was like trying to grasp a fistful of smoke. Her knees buckled.

Haruhi crouched beside her, brushing a strand of pink hair from her face with disturbing gentleness.

"Now that I have your attention, what are you going to do?" he whispered.

Sakura's vision blurred. But her jaw clenched.

"I'm going to… make you regret ever laying a hand on me."

Haruhi smiled.

"No, Sakura-sama. You're going to work for me. Your skills, your brilliance—it all belongs to me now."

Darkness crept in around the edges of her vision, and still, she fought it.

"You belong to me now."

Somewhere far away, she thought she heard her name.