R E S I S T A N C E

E P I L O G U E

Third Person POV

As Sasuke finally exited the cave with Jugo and Orochimaru in his wake, Ayuka felt a huge weight lift off of her shoulders. She sighed loudly and leaned backwards into Suigetsu who was still positioned behind her. He was startled by the sudden motion, but held onto her firmly as he pressed his chin into her shoulder, his hands steadying her waist.

"Proud of you for sticking up for yourself," he mused in her ear. She made a disbelieving noise in response, but allowed her still-burning eyes to flutter shut at his words.

He was right, after all. Finally being able to tell Orochimaru how she felt was a relief in it of itself. At last, she could put the darkness behind her and move forward with her life, living it the way she wanted with one of her closest friends by her side. Orochimaru would never have the pleasure of being her 'Lord' ever again.

"You know," Suigetsu broke the silence that had fallen. "As much as I would love to hold you like this forever," Ayuka peaked at him from the corner of her eye, amused by his joke. Suigetsu grinned and pulled away, allowing her to stand on her own again. "We really can't stay here."

She nodded and glanced around the cave, staring at the dripping stalagmites illuminated by the moonlight. "Let's head back to the forest," she replied finally. "I know there's some water near that old hide out. Maybe I can make us a shelter in the trees so we can stay out of harms way."

Suigetsu's smile grew wider at the mention of water. "Alright, that sounds better than sitting around here."

And so the duo left the cave, abandoning Kabuto's seemingly lifeless body amongst the rubble.

With Ayuka's sensory abilities, it was easy to avoid most of the conflict that had risen during their time underground as they made their way to more familiar surroundings. However, they couldn't remain so lucky for long.

As their feet finally met the familiar soil of the forest, an army of white zetsu soldiers was there to greet them.

"What the hell! We're completely surrounded!" Suigetsu yelled, reaching for his sword out of habit and cursing when he came up empty yet again. "You couldn't sense them, 'yuka?"

The Yuna kunoichi stood paralyzed, not understanding how she could have missed the chakra signatures of an entire army. That is, until she remembered their encounter with the real white zetsu before the Five Kage Summit. His chakra never seemed to be stable enough for her to read as it changed and combined with the nature around them. He created an unsettling feeling in her, and that feeling was only intensified in this moment.

"Looks like we're going to have to fight our way through, Suigetsu," she said with a disappointed expression, releasing her stage one curse mark. "Let's just try to make this quick."

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Ayuka fell to her knees with a sickly expression. Her mouth was completely full of blood and she quickly spat the vile liquid into the mud below her. Clutching her stomach, she stood as her stage two curse mark receded, looking around frantically for Suigetsu.

The rain had started mere moments after their battle commenced, causing the severed limbs of the soldiers to sink into the mud around them. Suigetsu sat in the middle of a large pile of white zetsus, most of which had their heads blown off by his Water Bullet Jutsu. He was panting and a little bloodied, but the rain was doing wonders for his recovery.

As Ayuka hobbled over to him, they shared a pained look as they both realized just how detrimental this war was. The two of them were powerful shinobi in their own right, but they had barely survived this one skirmish even with combining their forces. If that was the case here, then they could only imagine what their former companions were going through at the front lines.

"We have to go back, don't we?" Suigetsu question with one eye closed, his mouth hanging open as he continued to pant. Ayuka nodded slowly, lifting her head to look up at the sky. The black clouds above them were tinged red now, and she knew that was not a good sign.

"We have to help them," she said, extending a hand down to the mist ninja. He accepted the help and allowed her to throw his arm over her shoulder.

"Just keep holding onto me," she said as he returned to his feet, keeping a firm grip on his hand as she held his arm in place. "I'll funnel you some nature energy so you can recover quicker. We have to be ready for anything."

Suigetsu stared at her for a moment, noticing how the now red moonlight cascaded down her face in the perfect way, creating the most beautiful contrast to her bright blue eyes. He didn't know it then, but the moment he felt her energy enter his body, he felt an undeniable connection to her.

Silently, he made a promise to himself that he would never leave her side, no matter where she decided to go.

Without another word, the two shinobi began walking the way they came before, using the red glow in the sky as their guide. They would find the others, and they would do anything they could to keep them alive.

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A/N

Hey guys!

Acceptance, the sequel to Resistance, will be out soon!

The sequel will be taking place during "The Last" time skip, about a year or two after the war ends. Thank you guys for giving this story so much love. Seriously, I've never had a fanfiction get such an awesome following while it was being written, so thank you guys again for being so loyal to Ayuka's story!

Keep your eyes peeled for the sequel, and feel free to give me any feedback or requests that you might like the see included in the story. You guys are the best <3

xx