Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.
Author's Note: Please note that this is rated M for a reason. There are graphic details ahead. Also, there is a minor flashback - I didn't do italics or a linebreak because it feels too interrupted. Enjoy!
The tower was quiet. Sakura had tracked her target here three days ago. She had been sent to gather intelligence and then report back with all of her findings. The heavy silence called to her though.
Leaping soundlessly from branch to branch, Sakura employed every skill she had ever learned to keep from being detected by her target. The ANBU kunoichi had been hand-picked for this S-ranked mission. Her target darted soundlessly below, skimming the forest floor with utter silence and grace. It was clear his destination was the dark tower ahead. It jutted into the sky, looming with a sinister shadow. It was difficult for Sakura to resist trying to eliminate or capture her target, but orders were orders. Especially when they came from the Hokage. She was merely to track, observe and then report back.
Her target was moving at full speed towards the immense building. He was a blur of movement, yet she followed him determinedly. He didn't even hesitate when reaching the jagged cliff edge; he merely dropped off of it. Sakura had to stop at the edge of the drop-off, remaining hidden by the cover of the forest.
Her sharp green eyes scanned the clearing below. She watched with gritted teeth as her target landed on his feet, only a soft thud to mark his passage. Not pausing at all, he began sprinting towards the eerie tower.
'There is no way I could follow him below. The land is stripped bare of anything that could cover me.'
Feeling thwarted, Sakura retreated back into the shadows of the leaves. The clearing below her was completely barren, devoid of any life. Absolutely nothing grew in the large area encompassing the tower. The ground was ravaged, completely torn apart, even blown into giant holes in some places. From her vantage point, Sakura could discern paper bombs and other deadly traps. Yet her target navigated the land with complete ease. He seemed to know the layout perfectly - jumping, flipping and stepping over all of the traps. Sakura watched as the man flicked his dark bangs out of his face in a familiar impatient movement and stood at the entrance. The doors were nearly twice his height and at least five times wider. It didn't matter. With a shove, Sasuke stepped into the darkness of the tower, closing the door behind him.
That had been three days ago. In the time since, Sakura had scouted the perimeter of the tower, making sure nobody would drop in and surprise her. Always on alert, Sakura had slept in light cat-naps, never taking her eyes or ears off of the tower. After all, ever since witnessing Sasuke enter the tower, the air had been filled with all sort of sounds. Sounds that normally came from a battlefield.
For three straight days and two nights, blood-curdling screams of the dying had ripped through the air. Howls of the wounded had driven any game far deeper into the forest; pleas of those about to be cut-down were barely muffled by the structure's walls. Even the sound of some of the internal structure collapsing had mixed in with all of the explosions and shrieks. The cacophony of noises had assaulted her ears constantly, never letting up. At certain points, Sakura could have sworn the ground was shaking with the force of whatever blows were being dealt.
This third night, a heavy silence had fallen over the tower. It called to her, beckoning to figure out just what had gone on within the menacing tower. Sakura made the decision.
'My duty is to report, with as many details as possible. All I know is that Sasuke went inside, and a battle may or may not have raged on for three days and two nights without pause. I need more information. I need to get in there.'
There would be only one way, one chance to do this. In a blast, Sakura shot off from her position. She moved to the original point where she had witnessed Sasuke dropping off of the cliff. Without any hesitation, Sakura did the same, stepping off of the edge and into nothingness. The air whipped past her, blowing her ponytail of pink locks straight behind her with its force. Sakura focused a perfect balance of chakra into both of her feet and landed in a crouch. Straightening, Sakura smiled grimly to herself. Now just to get across the destroyed turf that lay in front of the jade-eyed operative without being blown to pieces.
'Should be simple.' The ANBU kunoichi thought to herself. Sakura had long been hailed as a genius, possessing an extraordinary intelligence that only the strategist Shikamaru could rival. Recalling Sasuke's intricate pattern of movements took no more than a second. Determined, she moved her body with exact precision, calculating the distance and movements with uncanny skill. Every movement matched Sasuke's perfectly.
'Even Kakashi couldn't have done a better job.' Sakura thought confidently as she landed before the huge solid doors. There was no sign of a lock or any other security system. The door had remained unused in her time watching, Sasuke being its last entrant. Sakura's eyes scanned the frame and archway, making sure there were no other surprises. It looked solid as the doors, with no telltale signs of hidden traps.
The pink-haired shinobi held out her gloved hand and placed it on the rough surface of the door. It opened easily, swinging in a wide arc away from her. Sakura's slim eyebrows drew together, suspicion rising inside of her. This seemed almost too easy, and she didn't want to walk into a trap. Taking a quick look within, she realized it wouldn't matter. Aside from a small scattering of low-burning candles, the entrance room was all shadows. She would be at a disadvantage no matter what she did.
Deciding to continue on despite this, Sakura began searching the entrance room. She had long since sensed that it was deserted. And yet.. Sakura knelt, skimming her bare fingertips over the wet ground. She lifted her hand and sniffed the substance before flicking her tongue out to taste it. Blood. So her previous assumption had been correct - a battle had been waged here. Sakura's guard raised, making her already keen senses sharpen in response.
More aware than ever, the graceful kunoichi stood. There was blood pooled in congealed masses all over the floor of the large room. The walls were spattered with it, and Sakura could even make out patterns of blood spray on the ceiling. Moving soundlessly, Sakura explored the expansive room. Her analytical mind began sorting out what had occurred.
The ceiling and staircase had partly collapsed, and the walls were indented in certain places. The furrows in the wall looked suspiciously as if they were caused by bodies being tossed casually into them. There was further evidence to support just that. Torn bodies were strewn across the floor like rag dolls. Her heart hardened at the sight of them. Just to be thorough, Sakura carefully inspected every single face she came across. All of them were wanted criminals, but she wondered what could cause such a mass casualty.
Sakura moved up the staircase, leaping to cover the distance where it had caved in and left a gaping hole. Floor after floor, room after room, the devastation remained the same. The only that changed were the faces of the bodies and the manner in which they were killed. It also seemed that the further she moved up the tower, the more destructive the battles were.
Sakura's knowledgeable mind coupled with her many years of experience on the battlefield made her able to discern the certain techniques that had been used. One in particular stood out to her. The telltale signs of the chidori were on the ruined walls, floors, and even on the ceiling. Sasuke had been a part of this, but on what side? More importantly, what state would she find him in?
As she reached higher floors, the bodies on the floor began to stand out more. The dead near the top floor were higher classes of criminals, such as renegade shinobi. Some were even members of the Akatsuki.
Holding her breath, Sakura reached the top floor. She let it out softly, flexing her gloved hands in readiness. There was only one more room to search. This was it.
The door had been ripped off of its hinges and lay in broken pieces. She stepped in, instantly aware that she wasn't the only alive one in here. A strange odor bombarded her senses at the same time. It took a long moment for Sakura to recognize it - charred flesh, singed hair, and decay. The source of it seemed to be splattered human insides all over the wall and floor.
"Have you come to take me, Sakura?" A rough voice asked, vocal chords sounding harsh with disuse. Sakura's eyes narrowed, distaste twisting her expression. Sasuke was kneeling on the floor across the room, his head bowed limply. His white shirt was torn into nothing more than rags that did little to cover his emaciated body. He made no movement toward her, or to get away. In fact, he was almost unnaturally still.
'Yet not a single hair on his head is out of place.' Sakura thought scathingly. She wouldn't be lulled into a false sense of safety around this man, nor would she be goaded into verbal wars. Taking slow steps to the side, Sakura divided her attention - the majority of it on Sasuke and monitoring any change in his breathing that could indicate attack. The rest focused on what else was in the room.
A single body lay on the wooden floor. A large gaping hole in the chest immediately gave away the manner of death. Sakura moved closer for a better look, casting a wary eye at Sasuke's form. He remained motionless. Tracing a finger over the killing blow, Sakura noticed something. His heart was missing, as were his lungs. Frowning slightly, she looked at the mass of organs piled near the door. Sure enough, the remains of a shredded heart and lungs were just visible. Why such viciousness with this one?
A glance to at the face revealed the answer to her question. It was Itachi Uchiha. At least, the remnants of him. Not only were most of his internal organs missing, the older Uchiha's eyes had been gouged out. Sakura looked to Sasuke, noticing for the first time his hands covered in dried, flaky blood. She scanned the room until she found them. Two miniscule piles of ash lay charred in front of the bowed renegade. She understood the reason for it - now nobody could learn the secrets of the sharingan through Itachi's death.
"So you've finally managed to avenge your family. Your duty as an avenger is complete." Sakura said, turning to Sasuke. She walked slowly towards him, wariness thrumming throughout her. Now that Itachi was dead, there was no telling what Sasuke would do. He had always been a wild card, but killing Itachi and avenging his family directed him completely. It looked as if most of the Akatsuki was slain as well, and Orochimaru had been killed long before this. "What ever will you do now?" She asked, standing in front of his bowed head.
Sasuke's head raised slowly, until he was looking her full in the face. Blank slate-colored eyes stared into her green ones. His face was devoid of any expression. She had seen rage, anger disdain, arrogance, impatience, and even amusement on his face before. Sakura had never seen him with this emptiness.
To her surprise, Sasuke grabbed his stomach and began howl with laughter. It was an eerie sound, coming from his broken vocal chords. She watched, hesitating to say or do anything. It seemed as if Sasuke wasn't quite right in the head. 'Then again, when was he ever.' Sakura waited patiently for the shrieking man to quiet, wondering if she should just abandon him to his madness. 'That wouldn't do though.. The Hokage would have my head for leaving such a dangerous shinobi loose. I have to bring him back to Konoha. There's no other way.'
He ceased his rough laughter, still holding himself as if he was in danger of falling apart. Eyeing his current state, Sakura wouldn't disagree with that at all. Meeting his eyes, Sakura stated very quietly, "You will be escorted back to the Hidden Leaf Village by me." She waited for some sort of protest, a snarl or retort, even a smirk in reaction. Nothing. His face remained blank, his eyes vacant. Sasuke stood slowly, moving as if every action caused him pain. When he finally finished, he looked down at her and nodded simply.
'Sasuke needs healing, or we'll never reach Konoha with him alive. If I heal him though, how do I know he won't do the same to me that he did to all of these men.' There was nothing to do but trust the one who had betrayed everything.
Sakura put her hands on her hips, and told him matter-of-factly, "You need healing, or you'll die. Likely before we even get past that clearing. I need you to promise me that if I heal you, you will not run. You will not fight me. You will not trap me." She knew that the request was naive, that he could leave or refuse at any time. He most likely would. But it was important to phrase the request, although she couldn't explain why. Silence met her request as jade eyes stared into onyx. Sasuke inclined his head, seemingly in accordance with the terms.
"You should probably lay down." Sakura murmured, already roving her thorough medic eyes over his form. A strange light came into Sasuke's eyes, something that Sakura couldn't recognize. "I bet you've been dreaming about this moment forever." He said harshly, lowering himself painfully to the floor. Sakura ignored the jibe, kneeling next to the injured man. Something inside her hesitated, and the kunoichi paused for a long moment.
"I promise not to bite." Sasuke broke her hesitation with his words. They were uttered with a rough edge of anger and derision. Sakura narrowed her eyes, "Save that energy you have. You're going to need it." She said sensibly.
Summoning her chakra to her skillful hands, Sakura concentrated on the man in front of her. Despite the carnage all around them, Sasuke's injuries weren't nearly as bad as they could have been. There were very few surface wounds, a collapsed lung, three cracked ribs, a torn ligament in his knee, two shattered finger bones, and a blown ear drum. 'He'll probably lose consciousness.' Sakura thought grimly to herself as she began her Mystical Palm Technique. A familiar emerald glow enveloped her hands, held over Sasuke's thin chest.
'I'm going to have to use the slightest excess amount of chakra in order to combat his wasted body. It has to be executed perfectly or he'll go into a coma.' She thought grimly to herself.
Sasuke watched the pink-haired kunoichi through hazy eyes. He had known that she was tailing him on his journey here; he simply didn't want to waste any time or energy taking her out. Itachi was the prize, and in the end Sasuke had made the right decision. Sakura seemed different now. Before, she would have ignored all orders given to her and gotten in his way immediately. The Sakura from seven years ago had never had this confidence, or this pragmatic attitude. In fact, she didn't even seem happy at finally having him caught in her clutches. The thought was relieving.
A strange feeling came from inside, something hovering between the line of pleasant and yet, not. Sasuke could feel the controlled amounts of chakra penetrating his body. The healing process was speeding up his natural one, and as such he could feel things mend within him. It was odd and somewhat painful. As her delicate hands moved closer to his face, Sasuke's vision began to blur more. He blinked a few times, trying to clear it.
Sakura noticed Sasuke's movements while she focused on healing his right ear. Ignoring them, she concentrated the precise amounts of chakra needed. After his hearing was restored, Sakura moved her hands down to his knee. Sure enough at the final surge of chakra, Sasuke passed out. The observant kunoichi watched as his body finally went limp. It was the most relaxed Sakura had ever seen him. She finished the healing, sitting back with a weary sigh.
The ANBU shinobi hadn't even wanted this mission in the first place, but the Hokage had insisted. 'Guess that means he'll have to love this little surprise.' Sakura thought ruefully, rubbing her forehead in exhaustion. 'Now I need to get us out of here. It stinks too badly of death to rest.' Sakura wrinkled her nose. There were just some smells nobody wanted to cozy up to. "No offense." She said out-loud to Itachi's corpse.
Author's Note: There we have it, first chapter is finally finished. I have an idea of where this story will go, so please tell me what you think.