Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.
Summary: To Sakura's dismay, it was clear that they were destined for each other. But if their union would help her protect those who were precious to her, she wasn't going to back down.
Chapter 1: Welcoming Hell
She stared down at the man. He was whimpering, though Sakura couldn't blame him. He knew who she was. He knew why she was there, and he knew what was going to happen to him. Her pink locks, the proud way she had stalked towards him, and her outfit, it all told him who she was. The Kyokugaisha.
Crouching down beside his quivering form, she simply stared at him a moment, before leaning in. "Where is it?"
"W-where is w-what?" the man attempted bravely, aware that she was unnerved by his attempt at innocence.
"The scroll," she explained, her voice low, steady and dangerous. "Konoha knows you have it."
The poor man widened his eyes in devastation. "No one must ever read it!" He exclaimed.
The kunoichi cocked her head. "Is that so?"
"Yes, it contains extremely fatal information should it end up in the wrong hands!"
Kyokugaisha merely snorted. "Good thing I'm here then." She drew a kunai against his cheek. "Now tell me where you've hid it, and I'll consider letting you live, depending on what this extremely fatal information is."
The man swallowed hard, and weighed his options for a few moments. Then he let out an exasperated sigh, and hurled himself at the kunoichi, who without difficulty instantly pinned him against the wall, kunai now cutting the skin of his throat slightly, other hand harshly prodding his shoulder, holding him in place.
"Now, we can do this two ways," the Kyokugaisha whispered into his ear, sending unpleasant chills down his spine. "Either you tell me the location now, or I torture you into telling me." A low soft terrifying laugh emitted from her, turning the man even colder before. "Or we could always go for option three, my favorite. I extend the location right from your brain, which is an awfully slow and painful process, and very, very fatal, even with my expertise."
Shutting his eyes closed, the man did the smartest thing he could in a situation like this. "I-it's in my front vest pocket."
He could almost see the slight pleased smile forming her lips as she used the hand previously holding him in place to acquire the object of her mission. Apparently she found what she was looking for as she quickly hopped back ten feet, making a secure distance between the two of them. She used a seal to turn the scroll into its proper generous size, and rolled it out to observe its content.
She remained impassive while she gazed at it, standing impossibly still, until her head turned towards the man. "Where did you find this?" Her voice low and demanding.
"I stumbled upon it while digging in my new potato-field."
"You mean to say it was a sheer coincidence that you found this?" she asked incredulously, disbelieving.
The man nodded. "Yes."
The moons reflection shone on her mask as she gazed up at the night sky. "I see. Well, since it is doubtful that others have heard of the whereabouts of this scroll, I shall leave you."
The man sighed in relief and wonder, that things had happened as smoothly and with no casualties. "Then all is well, suppose."
The Kyokugaisha's head snapped towards him, and her emerald eyes glinted through the masks holes. "After I've erased your memory, that is."
Normally Sakura would have knocked on the door that led to the Hokage's office with a happy smile plastered over her face. But this wasn't the time for friendly affections. No, this was the time where Sakura had to hold her head high while her leader made the most important decision in Sakura's life.
Sakura wasn't stupid. She was well aware of her responsibilities. The personal responsibilities which she had chosen to take on on her own. The responsibilities of protecting her loved ones.
In a pool of whirling smoke she appeared in front of a worn Tsunade, and held out the scroll towards the old woman, while bowing her head slightly in respect. "Shishou. I have collected the scroll. I advise that you read it at once."
With one quirked eyebrow the mighty leader took the scroll, un scrolled it and eyed it wearily. Knowing that her apprentice already knew of its contents, she didn't bother hiding her emotions as she took in the troubling information. Her eyes narrowed slightly, and her lips formed a straight line.
Once finished, she rescrolled it and set it down on the desk in front of her. "Sakura, I will get straight to the point. This scroll leaves me with no choice but to depend on your strength, as we both know that you are much more capable of this than me."
"Yes, Shishou," Sakura replied, fighting down the fear and sorrow inside her as her heart wrenched. She needed to be dead-on. She needed to be reliable. She would not let her emotions get the best of her. Or so she wished.
Watching her leaders' torn look as she took in the words that confirmed that yes, Sakura was more suited for this than the one she respected the most, a lump formed in her throat. She tried to swallow it back. She really did. But there was nothing she could do to prevent the tears escaping from her eyes. She hated the way she could stay impassive, emotionless while being the Kyokugaisha, but couldn't hold her feelings to herself while in the presence of her loved ones. Instead, in an attempt to protect her pride, Sakura held Tsunades' gaze, her determination obvious.
Her Shishou let out a devastated sigh. "Sakura, I'm sorry. I'd do it myself if I thought I could. I know I've told you this many times before, but you have the best chakra control of all the ninjas I have heard of, and your abilities are so exceptional that they're unbelievable. Never in my life did I dream of stumbling by someone like you."
Sakura's cheeks reddened at her Shishous' generous rare praises. "Thank you," she said meekly.
"The only problem will be Naruto," Tsunades' eyes hardened. "He will not like this. Not at all. It will most likely be necessary to use force."
Sakura winced. As always when there was a threat against her best friend. "Tsunade-sama," she said, finding the strength to steady her voice. "I would like to be the one to inform him. I believe it will be easier for me to convince him than anyone else."
The blond just watched her for a moment, contemplating. Then she nodded. "Fine. Now go get something to eat, take a nice long bath and rest. Talk to Naruto tomorrow."
A sigh found its way past her lips as her teeth sank into her heavenly sandwich. She tried to form a plan, but it wasn't working to well. She needed to persuade Naruto. She needed to persuade him to let her hold his life in her hands, literally, while risking her own as well as the rest of the villagers' lives. If she failed, Naruto would be ordered to do so, and she knew that he'd refuse. And when he refused, he would instead be forced. That would lead to either him becoming a missing-nin, or him being injured. Which Sakura certainly wasn't going to allow, if she had any say in it.
And then there was always him. That stoic cocky boy who had been her love interest, who had grown into a man, and who had once again become a precious part of team 7. Yes, him. Sasuke would find a way to get in the middle of it, and Sakura wasn't quite sure if he'd take her side, or Narutos' side.
Sakura slid out of her anbu-uniform, and wadded of into her bathroom. As she passed her mirror she couldn't help but sneak a peek at her reflection. Oh, she looked like shit, alright. Days and nights of searching for essential scrolls could do that to you.
Turning on the water in her bath and adjusting it to be just the right temperature, she returned to her sink, and peered into her reflection once again. Dark rings had formed under her eyes, and her skin had sunk in, as evidence of the lack of nutrients she'd had over the last week. And her hair. Her hair looked like some kind of freak show, pink bangs sticking out in every single angle, and the rest of her hair tangled up against her front as she drew it over her shoulders. She eyed it wondering if she should cut it again.
But decided not to. Her waist-long hair was a proof of a new, strong Sakura. The proof of her realizing that it didn't matter to a strong kunoichi whether her hair was cut short or long. Long hair doesn't bother a powerful shinobi. And she liked having something to play with when she was bored.
Sighing, she reached for her brush and as she worked her way through her hair she let her mind go numb. She was exhausted both mentally and physically. She'd think about it after she'd taken her bath, when her mind would be fresher.
But her thoughts seemed to find a way to crawl back to the matters revolving Naruto. So as she sunk into the warm water, letting her tense muscles relax, she leaned her head back against the hard edge of the bathtub and stared at the ceiling. Tears formed in her eyes and sneaked their way down her cheeks, and she let them. Afer all, she was most likely goingto be forced to leave her home, Konoha, and start a new life.
Hell was going to start know, she just knew it.
"Sakura-chan!" Naruto exclaimed happily when he'd opened his front door to find his pink haired teammate there. "Are you here to accept my undying love for you?" he asked, a with his great ear-to-ear signature grin. Then he cringed, expecting the usual fist-to-head from Sakura, but was surprised when it never came.
"Hey Naruto," she greeted, a small smile spread over her lips. "I need to talk to you."
"Eh?" Naruto was dumbfounded by the sudden seriousness in her voice. "Has-"he started, but was cut off.
"What's happened?" came Sasuke's voice from behind him.
Sakura's heart dropped. Sasuke was here? She didn't want him to be here when she explained the news for Naruto. It would make this so much harder than it already was.
"What?" He asked distrustfully when he saw her immediate displeasure at seeing him.
"Oh, it's not you," she explained quickly. "It's just…" she trailed of, not knowing what to say.
"Well, come in then, we're letting all the warm air escape," Naruto said and ushered her into his small apartment, closing the door behind her.
"Um, so, what was it you wanted to tell me?" Naruto then asked carefully, sitting down in his sofa, mentioning for the other two to do the same.
Sasuke sat down, leaving space between him and Naruto for her, but Sakura stood on her spot in front of the sofa. She eyed Sasuke, whishing for him to get her point and leave. But he remained unmoving in his spot, staring at her with a stoic gaze. He wasn't going to leave until she told him too, and she couldn't bring herself to do so. So instead, she mentally sighed, and thought that he'd find out later anyways, so what was the big deal? Well, his opinions about the whole thing was the big deal.
"Sasuke," said Sakura. "I want you to keep your thoughts to yourself until we know what Naruto thinks. Can you do that for me? No matter what I'm about to tell you?"
He observed her a moment before nodding briefly.
"Thank you," she sighed, and then turned her emerald eyes to Naruto, who seemed to have grown a little nervous and inpatient. "Naruto. This is extremely important. And there are no options for you. I am not going to be asking you of this, I'm going to be ordering you, because this is highly necessary." She sighed and pulled a hand through her hair, while shooting a quick glance at Sasuke, making sure he didn't look like he was going to say anything. But she couldn't read his expression, as he'd carefully turned it blank.
"You both know that Akatsuki are planning something, and have almost succeeded in collecting all of the tailed demons. And they will probably invade Konohagakure." She took a deep breath. "To get the Kyuubi, and if things go their way, you, Naruto, will die and the world will be in danger.
He cringed at this. "What's your point?"
"Well, you both know that I just returned from a mission, last night." Naruto nodded. "I was to retrieve a scroll that contains information about the tailed demons, and especially the ten-tailed demon. The scroll was written by the Sage of the Six Paths' himself."
Both boys were startled by this. It was surreal and overwhelming that the grounder of the ninjaworld and sealer of the ten-tailed beast himself had written the scroll. It had once been said that he was a legend, only a fictional character who would serve as a good bedtime story for small children, but Naruto and Sasuke had learned that the man was so much more, he was a hero.
"Wow, have you read it?" Naruto asked in awe.
Sakura nodded. And grief washed through her, and she knew they noticed. "It's not as glorious as one would think," her voice sounded a little too strangled for Sakura's liking.
"However, that is not the point," she said, as a reminder to herself as much as to them. "The scroll withheld all information about useable seals and summoning of the demons. And pretty much everything else about the demon. And," she took a deep breath," it is going to serve as a savior for us."
"How?" asked Sasuke, breaking his promise to be quiet.
Sakura swallowed. "By extracting the demon out of Naruto," she said, and paused as her boys expressions turned into incredulous, anger and disbelief.
"What?" Naruto asked, edging away from her.
"You mean, instead of letting the Akatsuki kill him, we'll do it ourselves?" Sasuke asked, wondering if Sakura was just being very uncharacteristic and pulling a very, very evil prank on them.
"Yes," Sakura said, and met Naruto's hurt gaze dead on. "But, that doesn't mean he'll die. I would never agree to this if you were to die, Naruto, you know that. And there will be no 'we' extracting the kyuubi. There will only be me. And I will return Naruto back to life."
Narutos' eyes widened in anger and his brows furrowed together. "NO!" He screamed and jumped up to stand right in front of Sakura, making her take a step back in surprise. "I won't let you!" He shouted furiously.
"Naruto you-" she attempted, since he was obviously jumping to conclusions, but was cut off by Sasuke, now standing next to Naruto.
"I don't approve of this either," he said coolly, his voice disapproving, and then he added in a end-of-discussion way, "there is no way that we will let you sacrifice yourself by using that self-sacrificing technique."
Sakura closed her eyes momentarily and then glared up at the two very upset shinobi. Both of them were jumping to conclusions. "Let me finish. I do not need your approval when deciding things. And I won't be using that jutsu. And, if things work out right, no one will be dead."
"But what of the Kyuubi then?" Naruto interrupted again. "What will you do with him?"
"And what do you mean 'if things work out right'? Then there might be casualties anyway?" Sasuke added.
"Let me finish, damnit," she growled. "This is as hard for me as it is for you! Go sit down!" She ordered, waving her hand at the sofa. "Sit!"
The boys reluctantly obeyed, sitting down stiffly, as they waited for her to continue.
"It will work. I am positive of it. Just trust me, it was a stupid manner of speech, and I shouldn't have said it that way." She said, even though it was a lie. There was no way of saying that this would work out for sure. But her boys didn't need to know that. "I will not die, due to the fact that I'll be using a technique from the scroll. Which I will need help to do," she looked at Sasuke, "since it is kind of a group requiring technique. The technique is actually a transferring technique. And since the object we'll be transferring it to needs to have an immense chakra control, it will be me."
"WHAT!" Naruto roared in rage, towering over Sakura once again. "NO!"
"Naruto," she pleaded, "it is necessary for-"
"I don't give a shit", Narutos voice turned to a growl as the Kyuubi was starting to move inside him as a result of his heavy upset. "Nothing is necessary enough to make you go through that."
Rage boiled in him, and Sakura ignored the instinct that told her to coil back. Instead she took him on, to show that she wasn't going to back down. "Naruto," this time her voice was soft, but firm by determination, "this is necessary enough. Do you know how many lives will be risked if we don't do this? I won't die, I'll just live with the Kyuubi in me."
"Just? Sakura, you don't know what you'll have to go through!" he grabbed her upper arms tightly. "I'll probably end up killing you."
Sakura flinched at those words, but then realized they had come from the kyuubi, and not Naruto. "I told you, I won't die. I'll have you and Sasuke there by my side, supporting me, together with Tsunade-sama and Kakashi-sensei, and Sai and Ino, and everyone else." She wasn't about to let some demon turn her mentally insane.
"Sakura… please, I..." Naruto trailed off.
She sent him a reassuring smile. "I promise, Naruto, that things will end up just fine if you just accept it."
He pulled her into a tight embrace, and held her a while. With her head against his chest, she could hear his hearts' rapid pounding. Someone placed a hand on his shoulder causing him to jump slightly and squeeze Sakura. He looked over his shoulder to find Sasuke there.
"Naruto, you need to accept." He said softly. Maybe it was a good thing he was here, after all.
Naruto just stared at him for a moment, before he stuffed his face into Sakura's hair, and sobbed slightly.
He had agreed at last.
When Sakura had left him he had looked quite drained, empty, as if his life-force had decapitated. Sakura winced at the memory. Maybe it had. If she were in his clothes, she'd be devastated that the one she'd had a crush on was going to take on the curse she'd had as long as she could remember.
Now she was to head for Tsunade's office, in order to find out when the transferring was to occur.
Oh yes, she thought, hell certainly is beginning.
Oops. Mybe I should be working on Conquering instead. Oh well, I couldn't help it, I just felt like writing this.
Oh, and the whole Kyokugaisha thing will be explained better later. And try to ignore failed grammar. English is kinda my second language. So sorry.
Well, everyone, I really appreciate your reviews, so please, review. :)