Disclaimer: I don't own GoGo Sentai Boukenger.
No, I have not quit my Shinkenger Wedding Fanfiction, I'm still writing it. I'm just taking a break halfway through the chapter because I don't know if I want to break the first chapter into two or continue it on :P But uh, this was my first favourite Sentai Pairing… and uh, I felt that I wanted to write a Boukenger fic :P hence, I went to TV-Nihon and downloaded the entire series and watched it all over again for hints xD did I have a life during my March Break? Nope, probably didn't. Hope you enjoy!
Chapter 1: A Universal Precious
It had been around six months since Akashi Satoru and Nishihori Sakura left Earth in the modified GoGoVoyager. The search for the Space Precious was proving frugal, with barely any leads or Precious showing up. Satoru was beginning to wonder if there were any Precious out in space at all, while Sakura was starting to think Satoru would be forever oblivious to her feelings. Not that she hadn't tried, she had tried numerous amounts of times, but before she could say those words, something had always interrupted her, whether it was Mr. Voice or an asteroid coming in too close. Whatever had stopped her though had drained all of her confidence at the end of the situation.
Sakura looked over at Satoru, who was staring through the windshield of the cockpit, trying to find a calm belt amidst the rubble of space.
"Pink-san, are you there?"
Sakura pressed a flashing icon on her screen and from it blossomed the digital image of Mr. Voice. "I'm here," she answered.
"Oh good," Mr. Voice's stick-figure arms moved animatedly with relief. "I was beginning to think that you two had gotten struck by an asteroid up there."
Beside her, Satoru chuckled, while Sakura smiled. "We almost did," she said.
"Oh really?" the face looked worried then leaned in and whispered, "By the way, did you tell dense Red-kun yet?"
"Mr. Voice!" Sakura screamed in embarrassment, causing Satoru to look over and ask what was wrong.
"Nothing," she replied, before she hissed to Mr. Voice, "Not yet. I've tried to, but every time, something gets in the way…"
"Daijoubu," the image attempted to console her. "Now, about the Space Precious… Makino-san has been reading some texts that refer to a Precious on Planet Isla. Why don't you go there and check it out?"
"Roger!" Sakura closed the window on her screen that showed Mr. Voice and turned towards Satoru. "Did you hear anything?" she said, hoping that something had perked his interest.
"No, nothing," Satoru stared ahead. "What did Mr. Voice want?"
"Oh," Sakura masked her disappointment and looked hurriedly towards her screen. "He said that there was a Precious on Planet Isla. Isla is only a day's trip from where we are now."
"Excellent," Satoru tightened his grip on the spaceship's controls. "Attack!"
The cockpit's lights had dimmed, while Satoru was still sitting at his seat. Sakura was currently in the shower refreshing herself, leaving Satoru to pilot the ship all by himself.
Satoru yawned widely, and then shook his head vigorously in an attempt to regain alertness.
"Damn it," he cursed. "I have to stay awake or else we're going to crash…"
He looked through the glass windshield and found a calm belt nearby. "Yes," he began to steer the spacecraft towards the calm belt. He yawned again, and said, "Maybe a little break would be nice…"
Flicking on the Auto-Pilot, Satoru laid back in his seat and fell asleep…
Beep-Beep!
The explosive device beeped twice before connecting the wires together to form a controlled explosion two meters away. The woman in charge of the device rose from the ground and moved over to the place where the explosion had taken place. Satoru and another man were already chiseling away at the cracks in the stone wall.
Placing his knife on the ground, Satoru pulls the stone plate out of the wall, revealing a niche within. Resting within was a rock tablet.
"Way to go," the man beside him praised. "You truly are the Immortal Fang."
Satoru smiled, "Found another treasure that was said to be impossible to find, eh, Masaki?"
"Satoru," the woman that had been in charge of the explosives kneeled down in between the two. "They call this a Precious, it's very valuable, isn't it?"
"Yeah, Kyouko."
Reaching in, he grabbed the stone tablet and brushed off the dust that had gathered on top. He smiled again, before hearing a hissing sound coming from the opening.
"It's a trap! Run!"
But the warning came too late, as a stream of fire burst out from the opening. Masaki and Kyouko were pushed to one side, while Satoru flung himself towards the cave's entrance.
"Ah!" Kyouko screamed in pain, as the fire seared right above her ankles.
Sakura opened the automatic door and slipped quietly into the cockpit. Looking at Satoru's seat, she saw him sprawled on the seat, sleeping.
"Akashi-san," she shook him gently but he didn't wake. "Akashi-san."
Sakura stood there for a while, looking at the former Chief. "I suppose it can't be helped," she shrugged, and she took off her pink Search Guard Successor jacket and placed it on him like she had before when the Jaaryuu Clan stole the Madness Weather Precious.
She slipped into her seat and deactivated the autopilot system, and slowly began to steer the GoGoVoyager…
"Kyouko!" Satoru called out, attempting to cross the fire that blocked his way.
"Kyouko," Masaki crawled over and pulled Kyouko out of harm's way. "Are you alright?"
Kyouko was still crying from the pain, but she nodded all the same. Masaki turned towards Satoru, "Satoru, take the precious and get out!"
"But, Masaki!"
"Look at us!" Masaki screamed. "We're stuck here and can't get over! Call for help!"
"We're… fine…" Kyouko said, though her face was screwed up in pain. "You'll come back to save us."
Satoru hesitated, but he rose up and said, "I promise! I'll definitely come back and save you two!"
He started to run up the small hill that led out of the cave, while Masaki and Kyouko watched behind him.
The earth rumbled again, and Satoru looked back to see that the flames had came back more violently than before. Spewing from the mouth of the wall, the fire engulfed Masaki and Kyouko, and pushed Satoru out. Their dying screams flooded the air as debris flew and pelted Satoru as he landed on the ground.
Satoru raised himself from the ground and looked back towards the destruction only to find… nothing left intact.
"Kyouko!" he screamed. "Masaki!"
Sakura let out a small gasp as she heard Satoru mumble in his sleep.
"Chief? Are you awake?" she glanced briefly towards Satoru only to find him shifting constantly in his seat.
"No… no…" Satoru cried out and rolled again, causing Sakura's jacket to fall on the floor, exposing his red jumpsuit. "This can't be happening…"
"Kyouko… Masaki…" tears began to flow out of his eyes, as Sakura unbuckled herself and set the piloting system back to autopilot. She picked up the fallen jacket and placed it back upon the now-still Satoru. She turned around and began to walk away from him, until,
Satoru made his way into the SGS headquarters where the others were waiting for him.
"Akashi," Masumi spoke up. "Why are you wearing those clothes?"
"Hmm?" Satoru looked down at what he was wearing and was surprised to see himself still wearing the same battered clothes that he had worn when he was excavating his first Precious with Kyouko and Masaki. "Why am I wearing these clothes?"
"Oi, Akashi!" shouted Eiji from the table. "Where is Sakura-neesan?"
"Sakura…?" Satoru was confused. "What do you mean?"
"I mean, where is Sakura?" Eiji repeated. "Don't tell me she's still out there!"
"Out… Where…?"
"I mean, out there!" Eiji grabbed Satoru's shirt in anger, and pulled him close, his eyes flashing in anger. "Sakura went with you to track down the Space Precious with you! Why are you back without her?"
"That's not possible…" Satoru dropped to the ground and clutched his head. "I would remember her coming with me, I would know it!"
He ran from the room and crossed through the doorway, only to walk into another room. Inside a funeral was taking place.
Satoru looked around and looked down at his clothes and was surprised to see himself dressed back in his red SGS jacket. At the end of the aisle he noticed Masumi comforting Natsuki and Eiji and Souta paying their respects to the casket. He drew closer to the casket and looked down at the body that was resting within.
Tears began to form, as he brushed the hair of the young woman who lay within.
"Sakura…"
"Sakura…"
At the sound of her name, Sakura halted and fearfully looked back towards Satoru, hoping that he wouldn't be awake.
Satoru had begun to start tremoring again in his seat, and with every shudder, the trembling grew more violent.
"Why are they all dead…" by now, his eyes had flooded with tears. "Why did they die…?"
Sakura knelt down beside Satoru and took his left hand in both of hers. Gradually the shaking began to calm down, as the tears began to slow down and stop flowing.
"Why are you dead, Nishihori Sakura…" he whispered.
Sakura gave another gasp and let go of his hand in shock. Again, the shuddering returned and this time, it flung Satoru to the ground. Curiously, he didn't wake up, but he kept trembling.
Sakura crept over to where Satoru was and gently raised him up and rested him against her body. Entwining both of her hands in his, she whispered in his ears, "I'm not dead yet, Satoru… and neither is my love for you."
And she sat there; with Satoru in her arms like she had always dreamed, smiling at the fact that Satoru unconsciously took comfort from the fact of knowing she was there…
"Akashi," Souta tapped his shoulder. "It's time to go…"
"No," Satoru looked up at the former spy. "I don't want to leave her…"
"You bastard," Masumi stepped away from Natsuki and glared at Satoru, his fists clenched. "You don't want to leave her? Sakura-neesan never wanted to leave you!"
He crossed the room and grabbed Satoru by the collar. "The whole time, Sakura-neesan was in love with you!" he screamed at him. "And now you say, 'You don't want to leave her?' What the hell is wrong with you?"
Masumi threw Satoru down the aisle, while onlookers began to scream and run away. Satoru rose up from the ground, and turned away.
"I never truly obtain the Precious that I really want," he whispered. "And now I'll never get it."
"Kisama…" Masumi growled as he lunged toward Satoru. "She's dead, and you're still talking about Precious!"
"What. Was. She. To. You," he said, as he punctuated each word with an angry punch.
"Masumi!" Souta and Eiji ran up to peel Masumi off of Satoru. "Masumi, stop it!"
"Get off me!" he yelled at them. "I need to know the answer! Akashi! Answer me!"
Wiping off the blood that was streaming from his nose, Akashi Satoru rose up to his full height and said, "Nishihori Sakura was my greatest Precious. She was the Precious called 'Love'."
"And now…" he said sorrowfully. "I'll never obtain it."
"Why you!" Masumi broke out of his captors' arms and punch Satoru again. "This whole time, you never showed it to her, you didn't give any hints. You always ignored her feelings for you!"
"She stopped smiling when she gave up on you!" he screamed.
"No," Satoru shook the accusation off. "That's a lie, she was still smiling…"
"That wasn't a real smile!" Natsuki jumped in. "That was a fake smile, but she still smiled for you!"
"Don't tell me you didn't tell her because you were scared, Akashi," Eiji said. "You of all people? Scared because of a small adventure?"
"Do you remember when the rest of us got trapped beneath the ice?" Souta asked Satoru. "She was the one that encouraged the rest of us to believe in you."
"And now," Masumi said as he began to change form to Satoru's horror. "She's gone."
Satoru screamed and looked over at Eiji, who had transformed into his Ashu form, fangs protruding from his mouth and silver hair flowing from his scalp. Satoru looked over at Natsuki and Souta, only to find that Natsuki was now wearing the black armor of the Questers while Souta had changed into a remnant of the Jaaryuu clan.
"Akashi Satoru," said Masumi as he radiated darkness from his entire body. Clenched in his right hand was the Three Headed Dragon of Darkness Precious, its mystical powers flowing through Masumi as it released all the darkness that was stored within his heart. "BoukenRed and ex-Chief… Die."
The disfigured Boukengers attacked Satoru in unison and pierced through his heart…
"Ahhh!" Satoru woke up from the nightmare in a cold sweat.
"Chief!" Sakura was startled, but she held Satoru down with surprising strength as he flung himself forward. "Calm down!"
"Sakura," Satoru's voice was wild. "Oh… It was just a dream…"
He attempted to disentangle himself from her, but noticed that his hands were entwined with hers. He looked towards Sakura, but she wouldn't look at him directly. Her face was looking towards the ground, in an attempt to hide her growing blush.
"Sakura…" he asked hoarsely. "What happened?"
Sakura shook her head twice, her eyes closed tightly, afraid to tell the truth.
"Sakura," he repeated, adding a little more authority into his voice. "Tell me what happened."
"But," Sakura protested.
"That's an order," he said, to which Sakura flinched as though he had physically hit her.
"I'm sorry," he said, softening his tone. "I promise I won't get mad at what you tell me."
Withdrawing her fingers from Satoru's hand, she looked at him and said, "You fell asleep, Akashi-san. You started to flail around. Other than that I can't tell you more."
Satoru cocked one eyebrow and sighed in amusement, "Overly serious people like you," he said. "Are interesting."
"Akashi-san," Sakura began to twiddle with her thumbs. "You were also… talking in your sleep…"
"Really?" Satoru glanced over nonchalantly. "What was I saying?"
Did she hear me, he thought in his head. Did she hear me call for her in my dreams? Did she hear me say that she's my Greatest Precious?
"You were calling for 'Kyouko' and 'Masaki'," she answered. "And you also asked, 'Why are they all dead,' and…"
"And?"
Sakura shook her head, "Nothing, that's all I heard."
"Sakura," Satoru picked up her SGS jacket and folded it neatly before giving it back to her. "Thank you. For everything."
He quickly hugged her and returned to his seat, leaving a dazed Sakura in his wake. "How long until we reach planet-fall?" he asked. When no reply came, he looked back around the seat, "What's wrong?"
Sakura shook her head and returned to her seat beside Satoru's. "Nothing," she replied shakily. "We have ten minutes until we enter Isla's atmosphere," she paused, unsure if she had the courage to ask the next question. "Um… Akashi-san?"
"Yes?"
"You were also moaning another name when you were sleeping…" she shyly confessed.
Satoru gripped the controls tightly. "Who was I crying for?" he asked, though in his heart he already knew the answer to his question.
Sakura hurriedly hid her face, "You were crying for me, Akashi-san," she answered. "You were asking, 'Why was I dead', and... you were crying too."
Satoru glanced over, "Anything else you want to tell me?"
Sakura nodded miserably, thinking that she had lost all hope. "You were having a sort of seizure as well," she said. "After you called out for Kyouko and Masaki, you started to shake violently, but when I held your hand, you stopped."
She faced Satoru, "That's why when you woke up, we were like that," referring to the situation he had woken up to.
"I see," Satoru stared towards the incoming planet that loomed before them, while Sakura tried to busy herself with the preparations needed for the search in a feeble attempt to cover her tears.
Fifty miles until touchdown, the computer system informed him.
At that moment, Satoru made his decision. Yanking the control yoke upwards, he pushed the engines to propel the GoGoVoyager back into the starry expanse above. Caught unawares, Sakura was sent flying backwards until she was caught by Satoru's outstretched arm.
"Sakura," he said, looking down at the girl in his arm. "What else did I say when I was sleeping?"
"Nothing, Chief," she replied back, not looking at him.
Satoru made a 'tsk' sound, causing Sakura to look up at him. "What is it?" she asked.
"You called me 'Chief'," he said with an annoyed look on his face. "I thought you finally decided on calling me 'Akashi-san' by now."
"You noticed?" Sakura steadied herself and placed herself against the wall. "I thought the whole time I was calling you 'Akashi-san', you never noticed…"
"I didn't notice at the beginning, for the first two months," Satoru admitted. "But then I noticed that you were becoming more… at ease with me."
"You weren't as overly serious as you were before, you acted the nearly the same as you did around Souta and Masumi," Satoru smiled. "Of course, you didn't act like you did with Natsuki."
Sakura blushed, remembering the antics that she did with the yellow boukenger.
"Are you mad at me?" she asked him quietly, fearing his answer.
"Mad?" Satoru looked at her in surprise. "Why would I be mad, don't you remember what I said?"
He leaned in and kissed her, "Serious people like you are interesting."
When they broke apart, Sakura looked in wonder towards Satoru, "How did you know?"
"When I was dreaming," he explained. "the dream-Masumi told me. The dream took place at your funeral, and I didn't want to leave you."
"Masumi, being like he is, began to punch me, saying that 'Sakura-neesan was in love with you,'" he said, referring to himself. "Eiji was there too, saying that I was a coward, and I should've taken the adventure of telling you."
"They started to tell the hints that you were in love with me," Satoru told her. "And then, when they were all done, they all transformed into… monsters, and killed me."
"I woke up, and then I saw that most of it was true, except for one thing," he looked towards her. "For someone that is serious, why would you fall in love with a teammate?"
Sakura shifted uncomfortably. "It's an ugly defensive habit that I picked up when I was a child. You know that I'm the only heir to the Nishihori Financial Corporation."
Satoru nodded, imploring her to go on.
"I wasn't allowed to show what I was feeling; I wasn't allowed to say what I felt. I couldn't be emotional," Sakura smiled. "You remember what I was like when we first met back at the Self Defense Forces training centre."
Again, another nod came from Satoru. "But, that doesn't answer my question."
"I'm getting to it," another small smile from Sakura. "At the Self Defence Forces, they claimed that I was too rigid and too by the book. I wasn't much fun to be around, but my sempai liked me. One of them liked me a lot more than was necessary. I flat out rejected him, but for the first time, my mask had slipped and out came an emotion that wasn't needed."
"The female sempai had a theory soon after that," she continued. "They said that if anyone was able to break through my mask, I would fall in love with him. Three weeks later, SGS approached me to become a Boukenger," she grimaced at the memory. "That man was a womanizer, and I ended up filing a complaint to SGS, along with a sweetly worded refusal," she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.
Satoru chuckled, "That man was soon transferred afterwards to SGS Transport," he revealed. "The directors thought that his method was too… flamboyant for SGS Recruitment."
"Is that so?" Sakura smiled, relieved. "I never saw him again, but two weeks later, you came to recruit me."
Sakura bowed her head, "What my sempai said became true, the man who broke through my mask was you, Akashi Satoru. Through all the missions that we went through, I would fall in love with you a bit more every time."
"I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner," she apologized and then she asked, "Why did you want to know now?"
Satoru pulled Sakura close to him again, "I don't want to lose you again, Nishihori Sakura."
And under the expanse of stars, he kissed her again.
"Actually," he said when they had broken apart. "It was because of the dream I had."
"So you're superstitious now?" Sakura nudged Satoru playfully. "You are the most unromantic man I've ever known."
"Maybe," Satoru slipped his hand into Sakura's, causing her to gasp at his cool touch. "But when we get back to Earth, you want to go out with me?"
"Eh?" Sakura looked at him in surprise. "You ask me now? After you've kissed me twice?"
"Was I not supposed to?" Satoru asked her. "I thought, you know, you might want it to be official."
Sakura smiled the smile that Satoru loved so dearly. "How about that patisserie shop that's by the corner of SGS?"
"Anywhere you want," Satoru replied.
"We can't let the others know about this," she said.
"I know."
"Especially Natsuki," Sakura laughed.
"Whatever you say," Satoru leaned in once more…
They couldn't put it off any longer. Sakura knew that as much as Satoru loved her, he also wanted to find the hidden Precious that was on Planet Isla. They would have to be separated for at least three hours, because Satoru was needed to stay aboard the GoGoVoyager while Sakura would be able to search for the Precious. Satoru looked out towards Isla through one of the windows and made a surprised sound.
"Three rings and a glowing light for a planet," he said. "Looks like we have a Precious."
Footsteps echoed softly behind him as he turned around and saw Sakura walking towards him. He smiled as she approached him and looked out the window.
"Is that it," she whispered. "Is that where the Precious is?"
"Looks like it," Satoru turned towards her. "I wish I could go out there with you-"
"But you can't," Sakura cut him off before he got too reckless. "And someone has to stay behind to watch the ship."
Satoru sighed, "I know," he said, as they began to walk towards the opening hatch from which Sakura would descend onto the planet. "But I still want to go with you."
"I'll be fine," she assured him. "Besides, I can communicate though my Accellular. Nothing bad will happen anyways."
She kissed on the cheek in an effort to calm his fears. "You worry too much, Satoru-san."
"Satoru…san?"
"If I'm going to date you, I should start calling you by your first name," Sakura looked back to see Satoru staring at her. "What?"
"Say it again."
"What?" Sakura was surprised.
"Just say it again."
"Satoru-san?"
"Satoru-san," he repeated under his breath. "I like it."
"I know," Sakura smiled again, as she ran quickly towards Satoru and kissed him goodbye. "I love you, Akashi Satoru."
"I love you too, Nishihori Sakura," he said as he breathed in her scent. "You are my ultimate Precious…"
Sakura dropped alone to the surface of the rock world. Bending her knees to absorb the impact of the fall, she rose and took a quick look around her.
"It looks okay," she reported in to her Accellular. "Nothing out of the ordinary, Satoru-san."
"I know," came the short reply. "Things always look good from the start, but they turn ugly quickly. And it's 'Red' during the mission, remember, Pink?"
"Understood," Sakura placed the device back within her belt pouch and began to move towards the centre of the temple.
She jumped several feet in the air, thanks to the low gravity of the planet, and looked around.
"It should be around here," she murmured, searching the vast expanse in front of her.
She consulted her Accellular and looked at the Hazard Level Indicator, which was beeping at a swift rate.
"This is…?" she cried in shock, as the ground beneath her began to rumble, and cracks began to form. The fractures began to grow as something resembling an intricate temple floor rose from beneath.
"Hazard Level: immeasurable!" she said into her Accellular.
A flash of light burst from the ground, as Sakura covered her visor in an effort to block out the flare. Something flew out from below as Sakura screamed in pain and her Accellular was thrown to the ground.
Hearing her shout of pain, Satoru slammed on the communication button, in hopes of reaching Sakura.
"What happened, Pink?" he shouted into the microphone. "Pink!"
And then he broke his golden rule.
"Sakura!" he screamed. "Sakura!"
He rushed out of the cockpit of the ship, dashing between the hallways at a furious speed. Checking the console by the door for oxygen in the planet's atmosphere, he leaped out of the giant machine and soared towards the pillar of light.
"Here goes nothing," he muttered as he entered the intense light.
A green spirit was born from the light as Sakura attempted to shield her eyes from the dazzling light.
"My name is Pacha Kamaq the 12th," it said. "I am taking your body."
The being entered Sakura's body, as she screamed from the pain.
Satoru, she screamed in her head as darkness enveloped her mind.
"Sakura!" Satoru dashed up towards Sakura's body.
The entity possessing Sakura's body turned and faced Satoru. Smirking, it calmly raised Sakura's SurviBuster to her helmeted head, a crude death threat with no loose ends, as four sneering red eyes blazed through the black visor.
"Do as I say, and I'll release the female," Pacha Kamaq said, in a mixture of both Sakura and his voice. "If not, I'll kill you and her."
He tightened his grip on the trigger, "You wouldn't want to her die, would you? Surely, not your Precious Sakura."
Satoru curled up his fists into balls of seething anger. "I'll do as you say," he vowed through gritted teeth. "As long as you release Sakura when I've done all you need."
"Of course," Pacha Kamaq dropped the gun to its side. "I will have no need of this body when I have what I need."
Walking away from him, the being spoke again. "The things I need are two crystal balls, hidden away on a planet called Earth. You used to live there, didn't you?"
"Yes."
"I need to get there fast. Plot a direct course towards the planet, and I promise you will have the female back by the end of the week."
"Fine."
Pacha Kamaq nodded slightly, and began to walk towards the GoGoVoyager, leaving Satoru behind.
"You bastard," swore Satoru. "Just wait for me, Sakura. I'll save you, or die trying."
"I promise."
So… no inspiration for this whatsoever… except… at the end of Jyuken Sentai Gekiranger vs Boukenger, did you sense any hints of a relationship? xD lawlz, I look at the small things so deeply. Argh, that was long… on the other hand, one of my fastest chapters yet, only took me around a week and a half-ish? Hmm, anyways, hope you enjoyed it xD I was looking around and couldn't find a lot of SatoruxSakura stories… so I decided to create my own, partially because Boukenger was the first Sentai I watched, and partially because I was bored to death over my March Break :P Again, thanks to Lisa and Pearl, my delightful editors, who (sometimes) hit me… and to my Final Editor, my student teacher, Ms. Chan, Gutsy I know right? Chapter Two to come later, probably after my Shinkenger Fanfiction's first chapter has been posted xD
