Chapter One
An explosion ripped through the black night. There were screams coming from the people on the Eastern side of the city. The ninja and ANBU were there in a matter of seconds. The stench of blood and smoke lingered in the air. It reminded everyone that war was upon them.
The Rennin collided with the enemy. The sound of metal clashing against metal filled the smoke enriched air.
A young woman who's bottom half of her face was hidden behind a spandex black mask, slashed a man across the chest. Her long rosette hair was splashed with blood. She tried her best not to grimace. This was war. There would be much more blood than this.
A man in the same uniform as her flashed to her side. "Captain, we cant keep fighting like this. The villagers will be caught in the crossfire."
She nodded. "Tell everyone to spread eastward but to make sure that they stay within range of each other."
The man nodded and was gone in an instant. She began pushing the enemy outwards with the rest of her comrades. Eventually she and two other ANBU were alone with six enemy ninja.
One launched himself at the captain. She reached for her kunai pouch and pulled one out to deflect him. It worked. The ANBU to her right drove his katana through the mans heart.
Then the group erupted in a hand to had battle. The captain was handling two of the enemy nin and her subordinates were tag teaming with the other two.
The captain finished one off quickly and was left with one last opponent. The red haired nin circled her eying her like a piece of meat at the market.
She glared back at him getting into a defensive stance.
The man charged at her. She through a punch but it was met with air. She looked frantically for him.
"You who," a taunting voice chirped. The pink haired woman ripped her head around to see him sitting on a tree limb, relaxed.
He suddenly vanished, reappearing behind her. She whirled around, but her attack missed. This man was fast too fast for her normal vision.
She closed her eyes. Just remember what Tou-san told you. Focus on your life gate and unlock the first seal. She opened her eyes to reveal new crimson iris's with a ring of amber around the pupil. Her clans blood trait; the Kage no Sosa.
Her vision was completely altered. Every thing the was not a shadow was completely white. The living beings shadows were crimson where as the others were black. It seemed like everything slowed down. She could see the world around her. But more importantly, she could see the man coming up from behind her.
She spun around, kunai ready, and pierced through his chest. She could see his eyes widen.
"Your eyes," he croaked. "You're a Haruno."
She smirked. "I am. My name is Haruno Sakura. I thought you would want to know the name of the person who killed you."
The red haired man fell.
"Captain!" one of her comrades called. "We need to return to the village! The Haruno District is under siege!"
Upon hearing that, Sakure took off like a bullet towards her home. Was this the real reason of the attack? To distract the ANBU and ninja just to attack the Haruno clan?
She flew across the roof tops until she reached her home. When she saw it, time stopped for a moment. Despite the sound of the battle around her, the houses were calm and quiet. They looked as though they had been untouched.
Sakura slowly stepped forward. With her blood trait, she could see through the walls. There were bodies littered through out the streets.
Silent tears began to fall. "Kaa-san, Tou-san." she extended her arm towards the building as if she reach them.
"Tsk, tsk. I thought I killed everyone of you damn shadow users." a smooth, slightly taunting voice said.
She froze. That voice… no, it couldn't be. "Oji-sama." she almost couldn't hear her own voice.
The voice snickered. "Yes. Its me Sakura-chan."
She turned and stared at him with her crimson eyes. "But, why?" That was all she could get out of her mouth. She was petrified. Her uncle, her oji-sama, had killed his own clan. His own family. What kind of sick bastard was he?
He smirked. "I wanted to start fresh. Wipe out this pathetic village and start over, you know? Hideki-sama has already promised me the village so long as it is under my control."
"You sold out your own family, your own home for some war lord who gave you an empty promise?" she ragged. She clenched her fists and stepped forward to attack. "I'll kill you, you scum!" she moved to attack, but before she could get in one step he plunged his hand through her chest.
"Once I am dead, the Kuroshima clan will be no more. Good bye Sakura-chan."
The last thing she saw was her uncle's sick smile before being pulled into darkness.
A nineteen year old girl was rushed into the over crowded hospital in Konoha. Her once rosy hair was now a dark red. The hole in her chest was bleeding profoundly. Doctors and medics swarmed around her.
The female, blonde haired medic standing over her glared at the girl. She didn't mean for her glare to be directed at Sakura. It was out of spite for Haruno Sano. That damn man… how could he do this to his niece? To his family? He would pay dearly. She would make sure of it.
"Tsunade-sama, please, Sakura-sama is going to die." one of the medics said over the noises of the operating room.
Tsunade placed her hands over Sakura's heart and began letting her life gate release. The energy flowed through her arms and into Sakura's wound.
The first thing Tsunade discovered was that Sakura's heart was located on the right side of her chest. A birth defect that saved her life. If the heart would have been in its normal place on the left side, she would have been killed instantly.
Healing her wound proved to be no difficulty to the skilled medic. The attack missed her main arteries and no bones her broken. Though there was a scar on her chest and back that would be there the rest of her life, Sakura would make a full recovery.
"Everyone else out," Tsunade barked. The nurses and medics retreated, leaving Tsunade and an unconscious Sakura alone in the operating room.
Tsunade approached the girl. They had stripped her of her torn and bloodied uniform and put her in hospital sleepers. Her pink hair still held the red tint of the blood.
Tsunade sighed. Poor girl. To have your family ripped away from you and have your uncle attempt to kill you? It seems so unreal. I'm so sorry, Rin. She began examining Sakura's body. She placed her hand on Sakura's forehead and let her energy flow through Sakura's torso and extremities. She was checking for minor injuries.
Everything seemed to check out except for an obstruction in her lower abdomen. Assuming it was just a small internal injury, Tsunade moved her hands down to her abdomen. When she observed the obstruction, she stumbled back a step, accidentally knocking a tray of utensils to the floor.
The ruckus was enough to awaken Sakura, who sat up, arm up in a defensive position. Upon seeing it was Izumi, she lowered her fists. "Tsunade-shishou, you startled me."
"Sakura," Tsunade struggled for words. "You're…" she couldn't seem to pronounce the word.
Sakura cocked her head to the side. "What is it, Shishou? I'm what?"
"Pregnant." Tsunade almost didn't feel the word escape her lips.
Sakura's eyes widened. "I'm pregnant? How can that be?" her voice was incredulous. There was only one person she had ever had those kind of relations with, and he was a traitor now. How could she explain that to her peers?
"Sakura, who's the father?" Tsunade asked cautiously. She gazed at her pupil's shocked face, and then at her stomach. She knew the answer to her question, but she had to hear it from Sakura herself.
"You know who," Sakura snapped.
"Damn it, Sakura! What the hell is wrong with you? You know he's a traitor." Tsunade barked.
Sakura winced. "I know that. Better than anyone." she whispered.
"Then why the hell did you do it? He defected from this village six years ago! When did you even meet him?"
"On my last mission to Rain," she responded.
"That was three months ago!" Tsunade erupted. "Sakura, what the hell?"
"I can't help it!" Sakura exclaimed, fresh tears streaming down her cheeks. "I've been in love with him since we were eight. And the he just left in the middle of the night, without so much as a goodbye. Naruto-kun and I were the two people he was closest too, and he just cast us aside. And then he finds me six years later and apologizes. What was I supposed to do?" Rin folded over and sobbed into her lap. Everything was too much. Her family, her uncle, her child… Her walls of security that had been in place since the day she was born had crumbled. Her world had fallen to pieces before her eyes and she could do nothing but watch.
Tsunade placed a hand on the sobbing girls back. She could only imagine the hell Sakura was going through. Her entire clan slaughtered by the man she admired. It would have broken anyone.
Suddenly, the door burst open and a tall man with blood stained blonde hair and bright blue eyes rushed in. "Sakura-chan, I heard what happened! Are you alright?"
Tsunade's eye brow twitched. What a dumb question. Who would be alright after the night she's had. "Naruto, shut up."
"But Sakura-chan is-"
"Going to be alright. She healed fine.." Tsunade answered in an annoyed tone.
"Naruto-kun," the small heap beneath Tsunade's hand whispered.
"Yes, I'm here." he answered softly.
In a fraction of a second, Sakura launched herself into his arms, hiding her tear streaked face in his chest.
"Sakura," he stroked her back soothingly. "Sakura-chan, do you remember the fifth law of the ANBU code?"
Sakura froze. She lifted her head to look him in the eyes. Such innocent eyes for an assassin. "The fifth law, do no show emotion. If you allow tears to be spilled it only proves your inability to control them." she recited the code they had burned into her mind since childhood.
"It's what you use to tell me when I would cry about the children teasing me." he smiled.
Sakura found herself smiling back. Even after all of the traumatizing events of the evening, she still had Naruto, and Tsunade, and even the child growing in her. She still had plenty to smile for. Plenty to live for.
Tsunade stood from her spot on the bed. "Sakura, please come to my office. We have much to discuss."
"I'd imagine so." Sakura stepped around Naruto and walked towards the door. "And Naruto,"
Naruto turned towards her.
"Thank you," And then she was gone. As Naurto watched her retreating figure, he had no idea the next time they would meet would be on the battle field. But, even more so, that she would not be on his side.
"Are you sure about this?" the blonde headed woman asked, analyzing her students features, waiting for her answer.
"Yes." There wasn't a hint of reservation in her tone.
"And what about Naruto?"
The rose haired woman winced as she thought of the hell that would be unleashed as soon as Naruto found out about her decision. Still, she stood by her verdict. "It's better this way. The less he knows, the better he'll be. In his eyes, like the rest of the village, I'll be a traitor."
"But, is that what you want? What if you run into a group of Leaf nin? They'll try to apprehend you."
The rose haired woman smirked. "And after five years, I'll let them."
The blonde released a long sigh. "This is extremely reckless."
"But necessary."
"You're a moron, but I won't stop you. You have a maximum of five years. If you aren't back by then, I'll have to officially classify you as a rogue. Then the Hunters will be after you." the blonde stared at her pupil with hard eyes.
The rose haired woman bowed. "I won't fail you, Sakura-shishou."
"I wouldn't worry about that. You're the biggest success of my life. Just don't die out there. Same goes to your kid." Tsunade turned her chair away from the other woman, silent tears gathering in her eyes.
The woman turned and padded towards the door. She turned back once to take one last look at her mentor, a soft smile playing on her lips. "Thank you, shishou."
Izumi turned around, but the doorway was empty. She smiled, sadly, as the tears spilled. "Be careful, Sakura."
Haruno Sakura moved through the black forest without make a single noise. Not even the ninja patrolling the area spotted her, or even showed any hints of minor detection. It almost made her feel unsafe living in that village.
Soon, she would be out of Konoha's boundaries, and in the enemies territory. She could fight off any enemy ninja for the time being, but in two months she would have to go into hiding until her child was born. Any type of battle between then could cause potential harm to her child.
She had an idea of where she could go. A small village on the outskirts of Rain. She was sent there to treat a string of flu outbreaks. She could live there for a few years. But first, she would have to visit other villages, so if anyone was looking for her, they would have a difficult time actually locating her.
She turned in the direction of Mist. That would be her first stop. Then she would go west towards to Suna. After that she would loop around to Rain. Hopefully, she wouldn't have anyone following her too closely to track her there.
Sakura touched her stomach. She could never let her child know who it's father was. He was a traitor, a rogue. She didn't want that weight on her child's shoulders.
There was also a lingering thought in the back of her mind. If he found out that she bore his child, would he take it from her? When he was still with Naruto and herself, he said he wanted to restore his clan.
Sakura smiled bitterly. His clan was being restored. But he will never gain knowledge of that.
'
Naruto was angry- no he was livid. What the hell was Sakura thinking? Abandoning the village like their teammate before them. And she didn't even give a reason.
He stomped towards Tsunade's office only to stop when he heard two familiar voices conversing. The first he recognized as Tsunade's, and the second was Yamanaka Ino. He knew her as Sakura's best girl friend.
He inclined towards the door to hear better.
"But, Tsunade-sama, if she was pregnant, why did she leave?" Ino asked, obviously confused.
He heard Tsunade release a sigh. "She had to protect her child. She knew it wouldn't be save for her to stay here."
"Why not?"
"Because, her uncle will be looking for her soon, and a child will defiantly be a liability."
"Who's the father?"
Naruto held his breath.
"Uchiha Sasuke."
Naruto put a hand over his mouth to prevent himself from screaming. Sakura was pregnant by that bastard? Why didn't she tell him? Naruto would have gone with her if she just would have told him.
"That traitor? What the hell was she thinking?" Ino said with distaste.
"Yes. I'm only revealing this to you because you were her closest friend next to Naruto. This way, if anyone from your group ever meet Sakura, you can stop them from engaging in battle. Don't worry about her. She knows what she's doing"
"The hell she does," Naruto spat and flew out of the Hokage tower.
Ino snapped her head around. "Did you hear that?"
Tsunade raised an eye brow. "No, what are you talking about?"
She shook her head, thinking she must have imagined it and that the long hours were causing her to hallucinate. "Nevermind. Thought I heard someone."
Uchiha Sasuke moved through the brightly lit streets of Rain. The past months had been extremely plaguing for him, as his had been infected by thoughts of his pink haired teammate.
That night that happened so long ago was still fresh in his mind. When he first saw Sakura, walking down these same streets, he almost didn't recognize her. The twelve year old girl he had thought was the most grating creature on earth had blossomed into a gorgeous woman.
Her once short rosette hair had grown past her exposed creamy hips. Her figure had grown curvaceous and womanly. Her chest had even filled out beautifully.
And when her smoldering viridian eyes caught his, he forgot the need to breath. Her mouth had parted and she uttered his name. Sasuke had never heard a more beautiful sound. It was then that he knew he needed her. Her touch, her voice, her love. He hated it, but he could do nothing to stop it.
As Sasuke walked by a group of men, he heard the name of the woman he had thinking of.
"Haruno Sakura wasn't killed. She's been spotted near Mist. Rumors say she's pregnant with Uchiha's child." a man with short brown hair said.
"Are you sure? Where's you hear that? Last I heard, her uncle killed everyone, including her." another said.
"I heard it from a boy with spiky blonde hair." the brunette replied. Suddenly, the brunette was pinned against the wall.
"This boy, did he give his name?" Sasuke's blood limit was activated, making his once coal black eyes bleed cold crimson.
"Uchiha-sama," the man gasped under Sasuke's hold. "I heard the villagers refer to him as Naruto."
Sasuke's eyes widened and his arm went limp, dropping the man. Sakura, she was pregnant… with his child? "Where is she?" he whispered.
"I heard she was heading west near Mist. But, you might want to be careful, if you plan to track her that is, her uncle is looking for her."
"Why?" Sasuke almost spat.
"He killed the Haruno clan, sir. She was the only survivor and now he's hunting her."
Sasuke froze. Sakura's whole clan, the strongest clan next to his, was dead? By her uncle? None of it made any sense. Why would her uncle, a Haruno himself, kill his own family? He needed to find Sakura. If she was indeed carrying his child, then she needed to be protected from this man. Naruto was already hot on her trail and Sasuke needed to reach her before anyone else.
"Tell no one we have spoken." Sasuke muttered as he stalked towards his apartment, thoughts swarming his mind as to how he was going to find Sakura.