Chapter 42: Sasuke's Success

I open my eyes and can see I'm back in the forest again, safe and away from the soul trap. However, I can feel hundreds of small somethings crawling all over me, and before I can stop it, I scream out loudly. "Ahhh!!!!""Ami!" I hear several voices from above me. "What is it?!""Get them off, get them off, get them off!" I chant out, my eyes tightly shut again as I can feel all the bugs leaving my body. "Oh thank god." I breath out when I no longer feel the creepy crawling bugs on me, and look up and see Shirotsu sitting above mine and Neji's head, sweating profusely and exhausted. "Thanks, Shirotsu." I turn and see Shino is also standing above Kiba and Akamaru, "And Shino.""At least you didn't kill any this time." Shirotsu pants out in exhaustion. "Would have been some thanks for keeping you alive." He plops back to sit fully on the ground, sweat pouring off of him.Before I can do more than sit up, I'm being pulled into a tight half hug by Hinata, who is holding both me and Neji, crying in between us. "Neji Nii-san! Ami Nee-san! I thought I had lost you both! Shino and Shirotsu had to use their insects to keep your chakra flowing, it had completely stopped!" She tells us between her sobs."Lady Hinata." I say softly. I know she had grown closer to Neji, but I've spent a lot of the last three years gone on assassination mission, and haven't had the same quality time with her as he has. I have still joined in on several of their training sessions though, and we have gotten closer, plus she's fun to tease about her crush. I didn't know I meant so much to her, to have her hugging and crying over me equally as she is with Neji."Shirotsu, thanks." I go over to my friend once I can move again, leaving Hinata to fret over Neji. I pat my arms on his back as his breathing returns to normal again."It is not often you are the one in need of my saving, it was an honor. There were too many of you for Shino to keep your chakra moving by himself, my beetle I have on you sent out a signal that you were in danger, so I came." He tells me quietly.I grin at him, then throw my arms around him, giving him a proper hug. Neither of us are big on hugs, but he just saved my life, he well earned it. "You're the best!" I say happily as we part and I help him up. I hug Kiba, Akamaru and Neji as well, thanking them for keeping me safe in the underworld place.We set out again after we are all recovered enough to move, but Neji pulls me back to him, separating us from the group slightly."What was that back there? Why was your body, or soul I guess, like that?" He asks me seriously."I'll tell you, after the war is over, I promise." I promise to him, and we stare at each other for a moment, having a silent conversation that only twins can have.1He eventually nods, releasing my arm he held me by. "You better. That was scary seeing you like that."When we rejoin the others, Kiba also comes over to me, "Glad to see you back to normal, Ami." He says with a smirk, though I can hear the sincerity in his tone. "I need my running partner to actually have legs, ya know?" He teases."Glad to be back. You almost stood a chance of beating me in a race like that." I smirk at him. "Almost, if it weren't for Guy Sensei.""I still can't believe you ran on your hands like that. Never tell Sensei or Lee, we'll never hear the end of it. He'll make it a part of our daily training, even if we aren't a team anymore." Neji groans out. Sensei would still randomly show up at our house early in the morning and force us to do his training with him, even once we were all Chuunin and Jonin. Once a member of Team Guy, always a member."Hey, it helped." I shrug innocently. "Though he is rubbing off on me too much. I even said, 'Dynamic entry' at one of my fights a couple of months ago." I add thoughtfully, and Neji stops in his tracks."No, not you too." He breaths out in horror, his expression fearful.3"I didn't yell it or anything!" I defend myself. "I was cool, and cold, it was badass! I had just shot an arrow through someone, it was a dynamic entry!" I go on and try to defend myself, all the while snickering at Neji's expression as we all ran. I had to stop when we came across more Zetsu's again, and I had to remember we were in a war, and it wasn't time for reminiscing.We continued our route towards the third division, parts of the fifth joining us along the way. We heard from HQ that the first division has defeated all of their reanimations, and that Naruto has helped keep all the fakes away. Before we could meet up with the third, our intelligence contact informed us that the real Madara appeared at the fourth division's unit, and that the Kage are on their way there while the units retreat. The fourth division was the smallest one by design, having only stronger, ranged and genjutsu fighters in it. Shikaku had already planned to have the forces there be the smallest, because inevitably they would be no match for either the reanimated Kage, or for Madara. Shikaku made most of his planning for the moment of when Madara would make his appearance, and had set it up so the Kage get there sooner, rather than later to join forces and fight. Since Tsunade already knows that Obito is not actually Madara, she said she as confident in not falling into the trap of wasting time 'figuring out' who he is.We can all feel a huge tremor rock the entire ground, everyone feeling it all over. I knew it was from the Rinnegan in Madara's eye, using the planetary devastation. HQ sent out word, confirming as much to us. I know we are getting close to the climax of the battling at this point, even if I haven't seen Obito yet. I can only assume he is with the Jinchuriki going after Naruto and Bee. I wonder if Sasuke and Itachi are on their way right now to end the reanimation jutsu, we haven't come across any besides the Sound Four so far in our division, though Shino did break away to fight a reanimated Aburame at one point. This time around, Sasuke shouldn't be going around trying to destroy Konoha while the battle is going on, we talked about him getting to Itachi as soon as possible. Wherever he is, he's too far for me to see at all, not that I would be able to spot him with all these people around.Neji has to scold several of the shinobi in our ranks while we travel. They were getting overconfident and letting down their guards, and almost getting taken out. He and I had to rush in and save the chatty ninja from being ambushed by Zetsu's. I left the scolding to Neji, he's good at that. He often has to scold Guy and Lee all the time, and me after the Pain assault. After Neji was done scolding, we heard and felt another tremor that rocked the ground, and saw darkened clouds off in the distance. It was off in the direction of the front lines, where we were heading. HQ informed us that was where Naruto was fighting the Jinchuriki's, along with Bee, Jiraiya, Kakashi, and Guy Sensei. It clicked in my head, that must be where the final battle will happen. We increase our speed to get there faster as the rain starts to fall.We started to see glowing white balls of light all over from the distance, and shortly after, HQ informed us that the reanimations were all released and undone by Itachi and Sasuke Uchiha. I grin at this, so proud and happy that Inoichi and Shikaku spread the word of who did it. I told Shikaku all about how Itachi and Sasuke were innocent of their crimes, and that they would be the ones to release the reanimation. I'm happy to hear that they are now being praised as war heroes, out loud, to every unit in the war."He did it!" I call out happily."Wait, you knew he would?" Neji asks me skeptically."Of course I knew. Sasuke was never evil." I say confidently."How could you have... you've been in contact with him!" Kiba stutters out, realization washing over him."Where do you think our advanced intel on the war came from?" I ask him smugly. It technically came from me, but many of it was confirmed from him. "He's been a spy this whole time for me.""I can't believe you knew and didn't tell us!" Kiba yells at me, seriously offended I never told him. "We were planning on killing him!""You would have failed, he's too strong." I say nonchalantly. "I just hope the second part of the plan worked out for him..." I say wistfully, thinking about his brother."Second part?" Hinata asks me as we near the front lines."Itachi also deserved a second chance. I created that opportunity for him, I just hope they took it, those bleeding noble hearts." I say to them all. It's a good thing I never told Sasuke that there's a rogue ninja sealed in the black scroll, ready to be forcefully sacrificed. He might not have done it, or Itachi might not have allowed a life to be traded for his. What they don't know, can't hurt them.