This is the sequel to "The Kunoichi", which can be read by going to my profile
It was far from peaceful in the forest. It was raining awfully hard and visibility was low. The raindrops were splashing loudly on the ground. Visible only during the sporadic flashes of lightning was a cell of four ninja standing under a large group of trees, their faces hidden in the shadows. A deafening crack of thunder rolled across the forest as a small flicker of light appeared in front of one of the ninja, illuminating the hopeless look on his face.
"CRACK!"
"-here!" The ninja shouted. The first part of his sentence was inaudible due to a loud crack of thunder and the sound of splattering raindrops. He took a drag of the cigarette he had just lit, the ash of which glowed in the night. "We'll — storm passes! Try — sleep –"
The other ninja seemed to understand his command. They set up a few tents and put their sleeping bags on the ground under them. The storm would pass soon. They had about an hour-and-a-half to get some sleep before they would continue on. Two of the ninja fell asleep immediately due to the fact that they hadn't slept in days. The leader of the group stood there silently as he smoked his cigarette. The other ninja who was awake suddenly, and without any reason for doing so, dispersed like a flash into the dark forest. The leader took notice of his absence and let his guard down momentarily while he wondered what he was up to.
Moments later, another flash of lighting and its resounding crack of thunder revealed the blood-spattered body of the ninja leader on the ground, his cigarette still held loosely between his lips. Standing around the body were the figures of three samurai. One of the samurai flicked the blood off of his sword and placed it back in the sheath.
"Go take care of the other two!"He shouted. "They are in those tents over there! Hurry!" The two samurai followed his order and proceeded to silently execute one of the two remaining ninja.
A kunoichi sprang from one of the other tents. She had not made the same mistake her comrades had; she had not let her guard down. It was over in a matter of seconds. Two of the three samurai lay motionless in a pool of blood. They had let their guard down as well. The remaining samurai jumped backwards and avoided the attacks of the kunoichi. The thrusts and slashes of her kunai knife clanged loudly against the sword of her opponent as she dodged the samurai's slashes and attempted to counterattack his moves. She focused her chakra and punched the ground with such force that it created a crater in the ground. The resulting shockwave hurled the samurai through the air. He landed hard on his back. The kunoichi wasted no time in her relentless assault. She was standing over him in an instant, her kunai knife held tightly in her hands, as he pleaded for his life. This wasn't the last time she would kill a helpless enemy in cold blood. She disposed of him quickly and turned her attention back to her comrades.
The war continued on for two years. The ninja alliance had crumbled and the samurai soon overpowered the now unorganized ninja. The first village to fall was Suna, the Village Hidden in the Sand. The sand ninja were defenseless against the onslaught of the entire samurai army. Over time, the other hidden villages began to fall. Among the villages that remained after the war were Konohagakure and Kirigakure.
The kunoichi stood before the Memorial Stone with a bouquet of flowers in her hands. She looked through the names on the list, stopping at a few names in particular:
Nara Shikamaru (Killed in Action)
Aburame Shino (Killed in Action)
Uzumaki Naruto (Missing in Action)
"Sakura," Said a shinobi from behind her. She turned around and faced him. He could tell that she had been crying, as her eyes were very red. He grabbed her hands before continuing. "please cheer up."
"He's still alive, I know it." She spoke to herself softly. The shinobi leaned forward and kissed her on the forehead.
"Let me take you out to lunch, Sakura." He said with a smile. "I promise it will make you feel better!"
"Stop it, Sai." Was her response. The shinobi wore a bemused look on his face.
"Stop what?" He asked. The kunoichi wiped the tears off her cheeks and then smiled at him.
"Stop acting normal." She ordered. "It's freaking me out."
Sai laughed, understand the sarcasm in her comment. He led her to a nearby restaurant where they would sit down and eat lunch together.
"Do you really think he's still alive after all these years?" He asked after wiping his mouth with a napkin. Sakura swallowed her food and then responded.
"Well, yeah." She said. "I mean, Naruto would never allow himself to be captured like that. He was strong." They sat in silence as they finished their meals before Sai spoke again.
"If you really think he's still alive then you should try to find him." He said as he walked her home. "That's what I would do."
"I might just do that." She said before opening the door to her house. "Thanks for walking me home, Sai. I'll see you later."
