AN: Hey, readers! Guess who's back?
Well, I guess that's kind of obvious. Anyway, here's my revised version of chapter 1!
For those of you who were fans of the original story, thank you so much for reading and giving me feedback.
This revised story is going to be quite a bit different than the original, so hopefully it will come out as a fresh, new take on the original.
As always, please review!
In order for me to improve as a writer, I'm definitely going to need your help.
Tell me what you liked, what you didn't, any ideas, and whatever else is on your mind.
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.
Tsunade sipped her tea, her eyes detached and calculating as she scanned the paperwork Shizune did the night before. Her eyes skimmed over the documents, hands fumbling, the damp ink smearing with every hurried flip of a page. The hunch of her shoulders, the tension in her back, and the headache forming behind her eyes seemed to worsen each second. Tsunade's sunken, tired face contorted as she sighed a deep worried sigh. Her fingers, black with smudged ink, pulled out the document she was looking for – the mission roster from the night before. Tsunade's hand swept across the table, knocking over her empty sake cup and causing the unwanted papers to drift to the unswept floor.
Tsunade's hand slammed the paper onto her desk as she reached for her brush. The haste in her writing caused the ink to appear scribbled and barely legible. She drew a giant, sweeping x over the entire paper and stood, nearly running towards her door, which she threw open and screamed,
"Shizune! Get in my office now."
Shizune, wearing a worried expression and carrying another stack of paperwork, entered the room almost instantaneously. With surprising speed, she was at Tsunade's desk.
"Yes, Tsunade-sama?"
"Who filled out the mission roster last night?" Without looking, Tsunade grabbed the paper from her desk and waved it in front of Shizune, "Fire them, immediately."
Shizune took the mission roster and examined it, looking for any sign of a problem. She then noticed the first mistake, a genin team assigned to a B-rank mission.
"I think team Ebi will be just fine. Tsukure is a good shinobi." Shizune reasoned, hoping to calm Tsunade.
"Keep reading."
Brown eyes scanning methodically, Shizune still couldn't find what angered Tsunade, until she read the three last missions.
"Sakura…"
Tsunade shook her head, heels clicking as she walked towards the cabinets on the far side of her office. She threw the doors of one of the cabinets open, nearly breaking the hinges off. Pulling out a large bottle of sake, she turned back around to regard Shizune.
"What are we going to do, Tsunade-sama?"
"I don't know. Part of me thinks she can handle it, but…"
"With all due respect, it's an S-ranked mission. It was meant for a four-man cell! We can't let her try this on her own." Shizune sat down, dropping her head into her hands. Tsunade walked over to her desk, sake and cups in hand. She poured two cups, handed one to Shizune, and downed the other in a single gulp.
"Find out who assigned Sakura an S-rank mission right now. I want to meet the idiot that thought she could handle a reconnaissance mission, alone, in upper fire country."
"Alright, Tsunade-sama."
Sakura's eyes opened, revealing blue sky, nearly blinding sun, and a spinning sharingan. Confused, Sakura blinked several times, hoping to clear her blurry vision, but the eyes staring at her became more intimidating as her eyes adjusted to the sun's glare.
"Sasuke..?" Sakura's voice sounded foreign to her. Scratchy, rough, and deep, she didn't recognize the voice she heard.
"No, but you're close."
Sakura sat up, and the haste of it caused a headache. The glare from the sun lessened slightly, giving Sakura a good view of her the clearing she sat in, and of her guest. Horror crept onto her face as she realized she was sitting face-to-face with Itachi Uchiha.
"Why are you here?" Sakura asked, struggling to keep her voice level, "Don't you have… Akatsuki things to do?"
"What makes you think I'm not here on Akatsuki business?"
Completely tense, Sakura fell silent and examined Itachi. His relaxed stance worried her. He wore the usual Akatsuki uniform – the infamous black cloak adorned with red clouds. Itachi kept his cloak buttoned completely, making it impossible to tell what he was wearing underneath. Among the few things she saw, a necklace hung around his neck. A simple one, adorned with several small circles. Sakura couldn't help but feel like running. Her mind kept reminding her how wrong sitting among her enemies would seem to the council, god forbid they ever heard of this.
Sakura knew that running made for the worst idea possible, though. She sensed that he wouldn't be there unless wanted her for something, and running would cause a chase. She did not want to engage in combat with someone as lethal as Itachi.
She watched in fascination as the red in his eyes receded, leaving an onyx color. Without the sharingan, he looked like a completely different person. She noted how different Itachi looked than Sasuke. His hair, longer. His eyes, narrower. His face, more angular. His body, leaner.
A cool, masculine voice cut through her observations. She looked to Itachi, who turned and began walking away.
"Sakura Haruno, come." He said.
Sakura, against her better judgment, followed him. They walked for miles before Sakura started getting nervous. Her calves hurt and her mind reeled with fear and apprehension as they walked further away from the clearing. She stared at Itachi, who walked slightly ahead of her at all times. Arrogant, she thought, as she could run at any time.
Itachi stopped, his abrupt halt causing Sakura to stumble a little. He turned and began walking towards a long row of trees that marked some kind of forest. Sakura looked for any sign of life nearby. Smoke, houses, footprints, anything. She then noticed the faint prickle of a jutsu. Itachi seemed to sense it, too. He began performing hand seals and whispered something under his breath. Sakura watched as a small wooden house appeared about 50 feet from where they stood. Itachi walked towards the newly formed building, but Sakura didn't move.
"I will not hestitate to use force on you, Haruno."
With that, she walked towards the building at an agonizingly slow pace, and with every step, she wished more that she ran away while she could.
As they approached the front door, Sakura took in the brightly colored flowers that wove around the simple, wooden porch. They walked up the obviously old, creaking stairs, and Itachi opened the door, walked through, and held the door for Sakura as she followed him. She wondered if any of the other Akatsuki members had manners. At that, a small smirk crept its way onto her lips.
The inside of the house resembled a traditional Japanese home. The tatami floors and shoji doors reminded Sakura of her own apartment in Konoha. Paintings depicting fields full of flowers and beautiful women adorned the walls, and vases of flowers and small plants sat around the house. She followed Itachi through a labyrinth of hallways, and wondered if he actually knew where he was going. To her relief, Sakura saw and heard nobody else in the house. Dealing with one Akatsuki member proved to be more than enough for one day.
As they rounded another corner, Itachi finally turned into a room. She followed his swift movements, and found herself in a room that looked familiar. The room was a sterile white, with a wall of white cabinets and a counter. The white floors matched the white walls and the white cot that was pushed up against the far wall. A window sat above the cot, the blinds open, showing a bright, beautiful, sunny world outside. Boxes of depressants, cotton swabs, and rubber gloves sat on the countertop, and Sakura wondered if anyone ever used the fully-stocked medical room. It resembled the check-up rooms that she used for civilians at the hospital in Konoha.
Sakura walked into the room, opening the drawers and cabinets to examine the materials he had available.
"Sakura Haruno, I want you to fix my eyes." Itachi cut right to the chase. He turned to look at her, his narrow onyx eyes glaring with an air of intimidation.
Sakura gaped. Her eyes widened and stared at him for a couple of seconds before regaining her composure.
"Why should I heal someone from the organization that is vying to kill my best friend?" She sat on the hospital bed, struggling to act calm.
"Your life is in my hands right now, Haruno. I think it is in your best interests to do as I ask." Red began to seep into Itachi's spinning eyes as they started forming into the familiar mangekyo sharingan pattern, reminding Sakura of the power Itachi held over her.
Sakura couldn't argue with that. She bit her lip and weighed her options. She could either agree, betray her villiage, become a criminal and live, or decline and probable die. Sakura felt herself getting dizzy with uneasiness. She shook her head, trying to compose herself.
"I'll fix your vision, but only if you agree to my terms," She began, "First, my villiage must never hear of my forced betrayal."
Itachi nodded, inviting her to go on.
"Second, I must remain alive after your eyes are healed. I will be set free."
Itachi, though hesitant, nodded again.
"Lastly, You cannot go after Naruto."
To her utter shock, Itachi laughed. His laugh was small, more of a chuckle, but it was an expression of humor. Sakura stared, mouth ajar. She didn't know what to make of the laughter.
"Haruno, it was never my intention to capture your jinchuuriki friend."
Sakura tilted her head like a confused puppy and sat silently, still staring. Itachi quirked an eyebrow at her.
"What are you talking about? The Akatsuki's goals are to capture the tailed demons. That goal wouldn't be achieved without Naruto's capture and the nine-tail's extraction."
"You are a perfect product of Konoha. The goals of your village are the goals of you and your peers. I wouldn't expect you to understand my reasons for anything." Itachi said.
"What do you mean?" Sakura's voice, again confused, rang out.
"Just because I am a part of the Akatsuki doesn't mean that I share the same goals," Itachi paused, turned away, and walked towards the door, "I will be back tomorrow morning, 9 am. You will start treatment on my eyes at that time. Familiarize yourself with this room before exiting. Your room is directly across the hallway to this one. Do not leave unless told otherwise. A meal will be brought to you shortly."
Itachi slipped out of the room, closing the door behind him. Sakura finally sank into her surroundings, her head spinning with confusion, fear, and unease. She laid back onto the cot, allowing herself to finally relax and take in everything that happened. Unanswered questions swirled in her brain, gnawing at her mind like rabid dogs.
Itachi wanted her to fix his eyes. Why? Why Her? Someone else, with more experience working with eyes would probably do a much better job. She knew very little of the chakra in eyes, let alone sharingan eyes. How did he expect her to learn?
What about the rest of Akatsuki? Would they be dropping by? Would they expect her to heal them? Would she make it out alive?
Sakura got up and left the white, sterile room. She crossed into the room Itachi called 'hers.' Equally bland, the room held a bed with a white blanket, two white pillows, and a dresser with a neatly folded pile of clothing. Suspicious, Sakura walked over to the dresser and examined the clothing. A black shirt, black drawstring pants, and a pair of socks.
Sakura left the clothes on the dresser and threw her body onto the bed, letting the fatigue of the day take over.
AN: So? Is it better/worse? Can it still use improvement? (of course it can!)
Review, let me know what's up.