Clay.

DeiSaku, for old times sake.

Disclaimer: Naruto is the property of kishimoto-sensei.

NEW BEGINNINGS.

The sight of the furrow in the trees above her, punctuated with the splattering of fungal growths protruding from the old tree bark that encased it, was beautiful.

A delicate breeze sent a soft, forlorn whistle through the grove, leading her back again, towards the idea of sleep- yet its bite was surprisingly cold, and she shivered, the tremble following through to her hands against her throat, sending a flickering green glow about the area.

A glow that… she blinked, but as quickly as it had come, it had gone, and after a seconds breadth of silence, she tweaked her lips into a wry, slow smile. This was so nice. She couldn't remember the last time she had actually had the time to do this. Settle down into the green and nature, almost thrumming with her racing heart beat, and watch-

Her thought was cut off as a burning strike of pain hit her, and her good mood wavered as her features twisted into a grimace, as ow. Damn, that was painful, really. Originating from around her neck, she must have cricked it badly, the suffering of camping in the middle of nowhere, she had never fully gotten used to the discomfort of sleeping on a hard surface. Taking a shallow breath; her heart was racing an erratic rhythm in her chest –she really should have noticed that earlier, was that normal?- , she tried another breath as the pain increased, and now more pained then annoyed, she flicked back through her recent memories, incredulous as to what the problem could be-

It hit her in a moment of stupid clarity, as she was slammed with a bloody red flood of burning pain, her mind reeling backwards into a white-hot mess.

Quivering faintly under the painful and shallow breathing of striking blood loss beneath a canopy of dying pine trees, Haruno Sakura was dying. And she couldn't remember why.

Her hands flickered where they rest around her throat, as her chakra supply exhausted- the tips of her fingers were numb from where the nervous pathways had contracted in on themselves from the excursion, so she could barely make out the wound they were clutching. Her throat was cut, partially into the oesophagus, but mainly severing her gullet, if that awful stench was any-fucking-indication; her mind raced, eyes flicking desperately around the cold, expressionless clearing, for any kind of reason- where was her team, had she had a team, was she alone, and why.

An unexpected shadow-blur came to life in front of her, a vicious "Shit!" splitting the mockery of silence like a knife edge; that buckled, the billow of the shadow retreating down upon itself, two fast, slim hands driving out from beneath it in a flitting motion to her neck, with strangely strong and solid presence.

Her eyes squeezed shut, the air choking out in a painful hiss, before the fingers released a little, a portion of air managing to makes it's way into her lungs. It was painful, more so then ever, as a sickening nausea raised bile, and she bit down barely on the convulsion before the vomit would choke up her throat- but he didn't seem to want to kill her.

The thought flickered across her mind, puncturing it's way through the cloud of confusing senses, until it pulled together what was left of her thoughts into an entirety.

Her eyes opened, settling on a dusky blue, the fingers twisting slickly for better grip –and the other hand flew up, a rough ball of clay clenched in between long fingers, raising closer, brushing just past her nose before the wedge was shoved into his mouth. Another cursing hiss, and he seemed to watch her for a moment, his eyes dark on her as he just about made out the shallow rise and fall of her chest, before he seemed to make a decision.

His teeth clenched down suddenly, wrenching into lump, clay dripping between his lips. A trail of thickening saliva escaped from between thin lips, but she found herself unable to compile these details together into a face-

"Shit!" The curse that broke her thoughts was rough, and deep around sounded faintly familiar, although she couldn't place it.

His teeth tore through another mouthful of clay, before a dusky halo suddenly swamped her, a flood of hair sweeping out to widely arch around her, enclosing the weakening green glow of her wrists. She couldn't hold onto the chakra any longer.

The pain in her throat seemed to compact, her muscles contracting with a wet, guttural sound. She couldn't draw a breath, her pulse racing in weak pattering beat, until any semblance of control of reality left her, and she fell into the black depths of chaos.

The strong grip around her neck, alleviated, as her fingers somehow found their way under his shirt to press over the rapidly beating drum of his heart. His hand joined hers, brushing over her skin lightly.

"Are you awake now, 'mm?"

Her eyes widened, glancing sharply to the left; her eyes swam, just managing to make out the bent figure of a tall form before the scene before her whited out, her vision dying quietly to a black. There was a rustle of clothing beside her, and a small shuffle, before she felt the warmth of the others body heat, the other obviously moving closer to her side. The weight of the hand against her throat – as nice as it was – didn't move however. She almost laughed, at the awkward position the man must have moved to, to keep the pose as he did now – and, there was another funny thing, surely if her other senses were as good as they were now, she surely should have been able to see it?

A smile curving her lips softly, she blinked her eyes, before recognizing the weight on them, the smile falling from her lips as that knowledge fully registered with her brain, and she remembered where she was.

Or, rather, remembered the lack of any idea or memory of where she was, or who she was with.

Shit.

With a burning tang of pain, her brain kicked into overdrive, mind flitting back instantly, sweeping through the blur of red tinted memories of what ever she could remember. A forest- a calm area. Mysteriously quiet and peaceful, and tainted with… red.

With a lurch (and that sound, that must have come from her), any more thoughts were drowned out by another wave of sickness, the crashing chemical flood drowning out her thoughts and senses.

It was funny how the idea of dying like this, choking her own vomit had never crossed her mind before, and was suddenly so important now. Somehow, Sakura had found herself in a position where she could neither move nor defend herself. Unsurprisingly, she didn't like it.

"Take it slow, hmm." There was a hand cradling her head before she had even registered her fall towards the ground, the speed unfathomable with her state, and the warmth radiated a comfortable steady strength against her cheek. "With the bleeding, there was too much and too little time, so I had to use my mouth - for better control, hmn." The voice darkened a little, dropping into some emotion that she seemed to miss. "It's weaker. The clay's only got just enough chakra to keep it together…and I really wouldn't touch it, hmm."

His hand grasped hers where it had stretched upwards towards the wound instinctively to assess the damage, the flickers of green fading as she turned her attention fully to the man that had accompanied her through all this. Her vision was blurred, so she couldn't discern more then a shape, but then the pangs came back, and she had to grit her teeth to prevent the yowl of pain that threatened to slip through. It seemed with every full extension of her ribs, the pain returned – they were broken then, and badly, needing setting.

Her eyes narrowed in blind confusion, her hand twitching to move back to her chest– but the mans grip remained tight, preventing any movement. Her eyes narrowed more, struggling to focus; she didn't understand, just why was being prevented from healing herself?

"…I…" The weakness of her voice made her words faint, emphasizing sharply the deteriorated state of her body, sending another shudder of panic sweeping through her. "I- you- you saved my life? Who are you?"

The frustration of the past ten minutes of confused, nauseated darkness, the dread and fear that had crept steadily through her, settled like poison into her brain. Her racing heart picked up speed as her breaths hallowed, a lightness beginning from the top of her head tingling in a sweep down her arms- his hand caught hers, forcing her eyes back up to him, the features suddenly thrown into sharp relief, as she found a small jaw and high cheek bones – and a cascade of blond hair.

"Of course I did." His eyes changed suddenly, the abrupt blue eyes crystallizing sharply, keenly searching her own, the signs of brief relief gone. His voice was low as he continued, the emotion leaving his voice with the stark change to strict neutrality. A sudden note of danger struck her at the change, settling uncomfortably in her stomach. Somehow, this new tone didn't sit right with this man; the richness of his voice, the vibrancy of hair and personality. The aura was different, more intense, detached... and this man was dangerous.

With an abrupt snort, the man was moving, the posture changed; lean, muscled body shifting easily around her to bring his face closer towards hers, forcing her eyes to his, her breath catching sharply at the impossible intensity in his gaze. Her body tensed instinctively, her teeth gritting as she immediately twisted left from the grip settling across her shoulders. His hold tightened smoothly, refusing to give even the slightest bit, even as her muscles shook, and with a shuddering breath she finally relaxed back into his will.

"I said don't move, Sakura. You'll break yourself 'mm."

The vein of icy fear shot through her like the shock of alcohol, dulling her rational though and sending her heart beat racing like a bullet. Her eyes flashed deeper emerald with the sudden anger. She would not let herself be reduced to this. She'd grabbed onto the last vestiges of her strength, turning to stare with forceful strength straight back into the deep blue hovering above her- when he made his move.

Something warm and earthy crushed lightly against hers, abrupt and uninvited. Eyes wide, frozen, as her involuntary gasp was swallowed by warm breath, a long, warm trail twining up her back as long fingers nestled carefully at the base of her neck, his mouth moving soundlessly into a perusing caress that intertwined with the movement of her own in a suddenly recognizable pattern. There was a soft huff against her lips, the lips tweaking into a grin around hers before with a quick swipe for requested entry, their tongues met, before the contact broke.

With the soft panting of their breath and the huffs of quiet laughter, the humor was warm again in his voice. His eyes met hers, strangely soft. "At least you remember something, 'mm."

The pounding of her heart almost drowned out the words, and as the reality of the situation sunk skin deep, the rose flush branding her skin like the criminal she was, her last hope of reality making any sense left her.

"Just who are you?"

"My name is Deidara."