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Story title: The Price of Love
Main characters/pairing: Sakura + Itachi. Might contain some Deidara + Sakura in later chapters.
Summary: Sometimes, the least expected happenings can turn out to be the most important twists in your life. Sakura finds this to be true when Itachi is suddenly brought to Konoha Hospital, deadly injured and in need of her help. This is how it all begins…
Rating: Rated M for later chapters. Read if you feel that you are mature enough. You have been warned.
Contains: Violence, blood, sexual scenes, cursing, bad language, etc.
Copyrights: I do not own Naruto or its characters. These belong to Kishimoto Masashi. I only own this fanfics and its plot.
Reviews: As a busy author and artist I love comments and reviews. They make me feel that what I do is not useless. Comments usually make me work faster, too. So I would be happy if you commented! ^^
Fanart and illustrations: I will be making some illustrations to this story. You can find a link to my online gallery on my profile (it links you to deviantART). So please go there to see illustrations. If you happen to be interested in making a fan illustration, I would love you! I cannot imagine something that would make me happier. Just remember to tell me through a review or a comment on deviantART. Thanks! :3
Please enjoy!
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Chapter 1: Blame
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Haruno Sakura was not a girl who believed in fairytales anymore. Surely, she once had, but as she had grown older she had come to understand the differences between her own life and the life from the dreams of a young girl.
But had anybody told her what she would be doing later that exact day, she would undoubtedly have labeled it pure fiction; a fairytale-ish story brought to life by someone who had lost their insanity, whether that person was God or Fate or just herself.
But there she was, leaning in over one unfairly handsome, shirtless serial-killer. Her hands, which were placed on to his muscular abdomen, were shaking. Anxiety or rage or just pure fear; the reason was unknown to her. But they were shaking vigorously, and she hoped that he would not notice it, even though she would bet everything that it already was too late hoping. He was no man to be fooled.
The silence between them was unnerving to Sakura. She could hear her quickening pulse rush past her ears, could hear the rain cascading aggressively down upon the rocky landscape just outside, and she could hear her own erratic breathing and the calm and steady breathing from the man before – no, under – her.
Matching the movements of his chest and abdomen, and the sound of him, she could feel how his breath caressed her skin every now and then, sending constant waves of goose bumps all over her skin.
She felt the urge to stop the flow of chakra and refuse to continue, but such action would merely hasten her death. She was sure that this was what he would do to her afterwards; to kill her. Why on Earth should he want to spare her petty life?
Perhaps these thoughts were the reason why she was shaking. And knowing the criminal quite well, this was one fairly good reason to be afraid.
And she only had one person to blame for all of this.
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Sunday morning watches always were so boring. Nobody seemed to bother getting hurt or going to the hospital just this one day, and just like an infinite amount of previous Sundays, Sakura found herself sitting passively behind a desk, waiting for something to happen.
She had been sitting there for hours, staring at the cup of coffee placed before her. She was sure she could identify its every dent and missing chip by now.
Hesitating, like in trance, she grabbed the handle and lifted the cup to let her lips rest on the edge, deciding whether or not to take a sip. She knew that the coffee was cold now. And she hated cold coffee. But she seriously needed something to do. So she took a sip, a small one, and regretted it immediately. It tasted at least as gross as she remembered.
Is if testing her own patience, she put the cup down slowly, trying to be as discrete and soundless as possible. The sound of the cup touching the table barely was audibly.
"Sakura! Get ready to operate – this is utmost urgent!" the kunoichi heard the Hokage shout in her direction as she rushed past. Quickly – perhaps a bit too quickly – Sakura stood up from the chair in one swift movement, knocking the cup over and receiving a slight dizziness in the process.
Ignoring the spilled coffee, she hastily strode along the hallway, through which her mentor had just whizzed, and noticed how a great number of doctors, nurses and medical ninjas also were following the Hokage. Now, her curiosity was playing in the back of her mind. It was a blessing from the Gods that something finally was happening, but this big… It was almost unbelievable.
Sakura headed toward the room which everybody seemed to be aiming for, and once she entered she was taken aback by the rare sight of several ANBU members lined up along one of the walls.
Once all the needed medics had entered and the door was shut, Sakura dared nearing the patient – and gasped loudly when she instantly recognized the face.
Uchiha Itachi.
This was unbelievable!
The Akatsuki member was severely hurt, probably on the verge to die, and blood covered most of his face and body. For a moment, Sakura forgot the routine, forgot everything, and all she could do was to stand there and gaze wide-eyed at the Uchiha.
Who… Why…? How…?
"Sakura, help them take off his shirt and heal the bigger wounds," instructed Tsunade, pushing Sakura back into the stream of work.
She mentally shook her head and put on some surgery gloves. Then, forcing her usual self back in the depths of her consciousness, thus bringing forth the total mentality of a medic, she took a knife and began cutting Itachi's shirt open, ignoring the fact that she was stripping one incredibly handsome, yet very dangerous Akatsuki member. His cloak was hanging loosely from his arms and was cropped together beneath him. But nobody cared to take it off him, because his arms seemed more or less okay, and the cloak only seemed to cover his arms. Only his stomach and nearby areas seemed fatally hurt. Plus his eyes. It was easy to see that they had been bleeding.
Sakura wondered if his eyes were hurt to the extent of making him completely blind. If so, he would no longer turn out to be as big a threat as he used to be. Without his deadly Sharingan he was just one incredibly skilled ninja, and those roamed all over the land of Fire. Heck, even she might then be able to beat him in a fight.
It took some time to rinse all the wounds on his midsection. Many of them were pretty deep and would kill him in a matter of hours if he was not healed. Which led Sakura's thoughts forth again, making her wonder. She wanted an answer.
"Tsunade-shisou, why are we saving his life? Is he not an enemy?" she asked, peeling off the gloves so that she could finally let her chakra move freely. And so, she began healing him.
Tsunade, standing a bit away and observing everything very thoroughly, sighed.
"It seems that he and Sasuke have been fighting sometime today. I have no idea why Sasuke left him barely alive, but nonetheless, an ANBU squad found him. Maybe we can get some good information when he is awake and able to talk. Perhaps we can even get to know where Sasuke is. I am sure Itachi knows at least something."
Getting the plan, Sakura nodded, even though her mind continuously told her that Uchiha Itachi was a man too dangerous just to capture and interrogate – especially if his Sharingan still was functional.
It took hours to heal him. Healing his damaged organs, mending every broken or scattered bone, patching up every nerve, tendon and muscle, and finally smoothing out his flesh and skin required incredibly much patience, concentration and chakra. The kunoichi noticed how her chakra level was falling drastically, noticed how several doctors and medical ninjas had been replaced during the process, and how many who yet had to be replaced. The young woman at her side also was slinging a bit back and forth, seemingly not feeling well.
Luckily, most of the missing ninja's wounds had been healed more or less, though none had dared to fix his eyes yet, and for good reason. When he would awaken, why then heighten the possibility of him killing them all? And judged by his state, he would probably wake up during the next couple of hours. By then, they had to get him tied up.
Breaking the silence that had arisen around the operating table, Tsunade placed a hand on the shoulder of the woman beside Sakura with a slight smile on her lips.
"Kagura, go outside and get some fresh air. You do not look too well. I will let Izuna take over in your place." Wordlessly, the woman nodded and left the room. Some silent seconds passed, and a slight frown crossed the Hokage's face.
"Sakura, could you please go out and check up on Kagura? I am a bit concerned about her…"
"Yes, Tsunade-shisou," answered the confused kunoichi. Why did the Hokage want her to leave her work when she still was the best healer around the table despite her lack of chakra? Was Kagura sick or something?
Unquestioning, Sakura followed through the door and spotted Kagura not too far away from the operating room. She quickened her pace to match the pace of the other woman, who seemingly had yet to notice the kunoichi.
Kagura was heading for the roof, apparently, since she followed along the hallway and turned at the corner to the stairs. This made Sakura wonder. It was a common rule among the nurses that only smokers went to the roof, and it was only allowed to smoke in the official breaks. If Kagura needed fresh air then why did she not just go out through the front door which was closer to the operating room anyway? And why had she not answered Tsunade when being dismissed? This was also a common rule, due to respect. Perhaps she was just so ill that she could not think straight. But nonetheless, it irked Sakura's paranoid consciousness, so she sneaked behind her.
Swaying a bit, Kagura hastily climbed the stairs and proceeded through the door which led to the roof. She never noticed Sakura, who followed behind her the moment the doors were closed.
Climbing the stairs as well, the kunoichi finally reached the top and opened the door as silent as possible.
For the second time that day, Sakura found herself gasping loudly, jaw hanging and her mouth and eyes wide open.
In front of her, on the middle of the roof, sat Itachi, crouching in pain and with his arms wrapped around his stomach. He had trouble breathing. However, the moment he noticed Sakura, he was behind her, no hesitation at all. The girl barely had time to react. His hands, shivering a bit, held her neck tightly, ready to snap it and lead her to an instant death.
She stopped breathing.
Beneath them, in the hallway, sounded panicky voices. The Hokage's voice rung throughout the hall, demanding people to find the escaped captive. Sakura figured what had happened. Some sort of a body switch jutsu. Had she been less frightened, she would have admired his ability to perform such a technique without anybody noticing before it was too late. But her thoughts were elsewhere; rather, they were nonexistent that exact moment. Everything stood still for her eyes, and all she could feel were Itachi's hands around her neck, ready to kill her, and her blood rushing to her head, making her dizzy.
Then, without any warning, everything darkened before her eyes, and her limp body fell to the floor.
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"Wake up, girl."
Ouch…
Her eyelashes fluttered slightly by the pain.
Ouch!
Groaning in discomfort, the kunoichi opened her eyes and sat up. Her head was throbbing painfully, and she instinctively let her hands cling to it, groaning again.
It had become almost dark outside, providing no light around her whatsoever. In addition, she felt like she was sitting inside something, even though it was cold around her. The ground was rough beneath her bare legs.
It took her some moments to regain total sight.
Then she remembered everything. The hospital. Itachi. The jutsu. Perhaps it was because of the pair of Sharingan watching her closely, intensely, that she remembered. They followed her every movement.
Sitting across the… room?... was the Uchiha prodigy, stoic and observing. And bare-chested. And glistening wet. He was leaning back against the wall, his Akatsuki cloak open and his shirt now nonexistent.
Suddenly, he stood up. Judging by his movements, Sakura figured that it hurt when he moved too much. He stopped in front of her, his eyes never leaving hers in the process.
"I want you to heal me," he said darkly. For some reason, Sakura was taken aback by his words, reason beyond her.
She merely glanced up at him.
"What makes you think that I will comply?" Had he expected that she would just accept and help him? Even though she had done it before, the circumstances had been different. Now, he was no longer under the care of the Hokage. Helping him now was a crime toward her beliefs and village.
Moving with a speed that Sakura had not expected him to be able to mobilize in his current state, the missing ninja quickly grabbed her chin tightly, forcing her face closer. Their eyes met again; jade against crimson. She witnessed how his pupil expanded and took form as something that could frighten even the strongest ninja. The Tsukuyomi.
Sakura swallowed the lump that had begun forming in her throat.
"Do I need to convince you?" replied the man coolly. Instinctually, Sakura reached for her right thigh and thus was reminded that she was still wearing her hospital coat. Swearing inwardly, she concluded that attacking him was futile. It was a question about seconds before he could trap her in Oblivion. She had to talk herself out of the danger.
"If you were to use Tsukuyomi on me I would be in no shape to heal you at all."
She remembered how Kakashi had been in the hospital for more than a week after being trapped in the Tsukuyomi. She definitely did not want to end there. However, it was only a matter of seconds before her world turned red, black and white anyway.
She found the tip of a katana resting on her collar bone, puncturing her skin lightly thus bringing forth a tiny trail of blood. It stained her white uniform. But this was her smallest problem that moment.
The Uchiha stared emotionlessly at her, slowly letting the sharp blades slide down, merely ripping her clothes, until it stopped. Then, in one quick, swift movement, the katana pierced through her stomach. She cried out in pain, her voice being all husky and hoarse. Pain. Pain everywhere. It was like an infection, spreading its burning throbbing all over her body and threatening her to suck out all life force and let her die.
Suddenly, her world returned again, real colours and lots of rocks surrounding her. She clutched her throat. Why was it so difficult to breathe all of a sudden?
"That was one stab. Your sensei underwent thousands of stabs. I could let you undergo the same treatment if you do not agree to heal me right here and now."
She then clutched to her stomach and was relieved to see no blood whatsoever.
Right. The Tsukuyomi merely is an illusion. Only the pain and mental state remain once the jutsu is released…
She whimpered as she raised her narrowed gaze to look at him, her teeth gritted and jaw tightened in pain.
"I," she breathed, "I win never heal you."
The girl was annoyingly stubborn, the Uchiha mused and decided that there was no other option. Once again, he let his eyes take the form of Tsukuyomi, and the kunoichi found herself frightened again, trying to back away but was trapped between the killer and a wall.
"Okay, fine, I will do it!" she then said, her voice dripping with fear and hatred, "But I do not have much chakra left. My help is limited."
Wordlessly, Itachi took off his cloak and used it as a mattress as he lay down on the floor. Sakura hesitated before she leaned in over him and placed her hands on his midsection. She noticed how he had reopened some of his wounds when travelling. She guessed that he had had troubles carrying her to… Where were they anyway?
She took a moment to look around. They were in some sort of a cave. When she looked left she could see outside. No sooner than now did she realize that it was raining outside. Even though she could not really see the raindrops she had no trouble hearing them. They pattered against the cave and ground outside, sending waves of cold in through the cave entrance. She shivered. She was only wearing her hospital coat; a plain white dress reaching the middle of her thighs. All of a sudden, she felt great discomfort. Itachi was only wearing a pair of pants. She was only wearing a short dress. They were alone out in nowhere. And he was a reckless killer and criminal, merely doing what he felt benefitted him.
"You are hesitating," stated Itachi monotonously, his gaze firmly fixed on her. The air was caught in her lungs. Silently, she summoned the chakra to her hands and focused on once again mending his wounds. Had he been someone else, she would have lectured him to be careful not to move too much just after being healed. But she supposed that she, who merely was a silly little kunoichi in his eyes, was in no position of telling him what to do and what not to do.
She noticed how his insides were more messed up than she had expected. But of course, he had been running with an unconscious woman over his shoulder, probably pushing himself as much as possible in order not to get caught by the horde of Konoha ninjas who might have been chasing him, thus straining himself far too much.
She shuddered. If they found them, found her healing a criminal without orders from the Hokage, she would be thrown into prison. If she had not already been killed by that time, that is.
Sakura cursed inwardly. Why was she easy to manipulate with? Why was she, an adult kunoichi, said to be one of the strongest female ninjas in the whole Fire Country, so afraid of pain that even the smallest wound could persuade her to do crimes and betray everything she believed in? She was swimming in a deep sea of misfortunes now. She was not even sure that she would make it away alive. And if she did, would she be imprisoned?
It was all her fault. She should never have chased Kagura – or rather, Itachi – in the hospital hallway. She should never have gone to the roof with him. And she should have stayed loyal to her village and kept on refusing helping Itachi now that he was on the loose again. Now, he would probably kill her once she ran out of chakra and was of no help to him anymore. And then she would die, disgraceful, a traitor and in no state of defending herself. Weak. She would die weak. The word she hated the most. Weakness. That exact moment she felt like the resemblance of weakness itself. Like the old days…
Biting back tears, she continued healing him, trying not to notice his unnerving stare plastered to her, reading her, anticipating if she would attack or run away.
The only thing she could feel was fear. And exhaustion, chakra drainage, pain. And how her death seemed closer than ever before.
Surely, Sakura only had herself to blame for all of this.
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Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed the chapter… ^_^
So, what do you think about the story? Something you did not understand?
Love~
Louise