Cherry Bridge
XxXxX
The path he chose led to power – but not to peace.
Chapter 2
"Wow…" Sakura whispered.
Takeshi grinned and waved a hand towards the temple's magnificent gates.
"Like it?" he asked.
"Yes."
The Rokukan Temple was a beautiful building, but rather small. However, Takeshi had told her that most of it was underground.
"That's where the archives and records are kept, along with training rooms." He had explained to her.
Now he led her towards the gates and quickly bit his thumb, swiping it across a circle of seals on the gate's lock. He left a smear of blood behind, that suddenly dissolved.
"Only the Rokukan can enter the temple," Takeshi said. "You could unlock the doors too."
Sakura nodded mutely and followed her uncle into the building.
It was quiet and serene in the temple, with some statues and paintings hung on the walls. There were about a dozen small bedrooms, a spacious empty room all the way in the back, and a meditation room. To Sakura's surprise, some of the bedrooms were occupied.
"Okay, you can basically choose any of the empty bedrooms," Takeshi's voice echoed in the silent building.
"This is a temple?" Sakura whispered.
"Yes, albeit a slightly strange one, I'll admit. Anyways, everyone is probably downstairs…"
With a jolt, Sakura realized that the 'others' were all related to her. She was going to meet some of her family members!
"O… Okay," She managed to say before slipping into the very last bedroom on the left side of the hallway.
A comfortabl, decent sized bed was pushed up against one wall. A simple desk occupied the space between a second door, which led to a small bathroom, and the wall with a window. It was small and neat. She unpacked quickly and changed into clean clothes, feeling rather self-conscious. She wanted to make a good impression on her relatives.
When she finished, she emerged to find Takeshi waiting for her. To her surprise, he grinned at her suddenly and said:
"You're nervous, aren't you? Don't be; everybody will accept you."
Feeling only slightly comforted, she followed him to the large room in the back.
"Again, the underground levels can only be opened by Rokukan blood. Here, look…"
Takeshi led her to the back of the room where a single painting was hung. It displayed a picture of the heavens, with the sun, moon and some stars.
"There's a genjutsu around the painting. I want you to try and open the underground. You'll need to smear a bit of your blood across the painting – it doesn't matter where – and release the illusion."
Nodding, Sakura bit her thumb and left a trail of crimson across the painting. Then she slapped her hands together in a seal and commanded:
"Kai!"
Nothing happened.
"Kai! Kai! Kai!"
Sakura swore, her eyes narrowing, and she burst:
"Dammit; KAI!"
She felt the genjutsu dispell at last, leaving a very different painting behind. Across its front was a seal for teleportation.
"You mean…?" she asked.
"Yes, there is no physical entrance down to the underground temple. You can only get there through one of these seals."
"One of these?"
"There used to be eight of them, but now there are only three. This one, one in Sea Country, and one in Grass Country. Now, touch the seal. You'll be transported underground, and I'll be right behind you."
Sakura obeyed and felt the pull of the jutsu drag her in. A moment later, she was standing at the end of a long, nicely lit hall, having arrived in a whirl of cherry blossom petals. Takeshi appeared beside her after a moment and started down the hall.
Sakura's mind filled with unbidden memories as she walked down the underground hall. But her memories showed a dimly lit, damp, hostile hall. She remembered running down that hall, checking every door she found, and hoping with all her might that she was not too late.
Her memory thoughts rushed back to her.
'Dammit, Sasuke, where are you?'
Her breath hitched.
Takeshi noticed and raised an eyebrow.
"Nothing," Sakura quickly said, plastering a fake smile on her face. She hoped it was convincing enough.
Takeshi just shook his head and stopped in front of a large double door.
"This is the 'social room' where everybody can go if you don't want to return to the surface for a break. Come. They're waiting."
Sakura's breathing inched towards hyperventilation as her uncle knocked on the door before pushing them open. The rush of air from the opening doors hit her and she gaped at the people inside.
There were four people, three males and a female. Two of the males were obviously twin boys, probably around the age of eight or nine. Both of them had red hair with hints of lighter orange, and their eyes were turqoise.
The other male was a middle-aged man, with the occasional gray streaked through his red-brown hair. His eyes were a dark green, nearly black, and his skin tanned.
The woman was probably in her late teens, and smiled brightly at Sakura. Her hair was a shrieking crimson, flaming like a blood red sun, and her eyes were green-gray.
Takeshi broke the silence before it got too uncomfortable.
"Sakura, meet the Rokukan Tempel 'Priests'. The twins are Ken – to the left – and Ran – on the right. This is Eiri," he motioned towards the man, "and Azami." The woman waved.
"Everyone, this is Sakura," Takeshi pushed Sakura forwards.
She didn't know what to think, what to say. The twins peered at her curiously, Eiri smiled gently as if he understood her overwhelming emotions, and, as the sulence grew awkward, Azami said cheerfully:
"Ohayo, Sakura! I'm Takeshi's daughter."
"… Wait a minute…" Sakura swallowed.
Azami winked and answered:
"Yep, I'm your cousin."
A small smile finally appeared on Sakura's lips and she said:
"I'm so glad to meet you…" she let her gaze wander from face to face. "All of you."
All her life, she had wanted to meet her family. She'd seen her mother's side, the Haruno side, but they were all civilians and led a normal, carefree life.
Takeshi grinned and said:
"Eiri is my, um, second cousin twice-removed… er, something like that. We don't really keep track of the details. The twins are Azami's half-brothers from her mother's side."
Before Takeshi could continue, Ken – or was it Ran? – piped up:
"Sakura-san, what's with your hair?"
A blush crept up into Sakura's cheeks and she giggled, relaxing at the innocent question. Normally, back in Konoha, she'd get pissed at the annoying inquiry and yell at somebody, but here she welcomed the familiarity of it.
"It's partially from my mother. She had light pink hair, and I assume from Takeshi-san's appearance that my father had dark red which led to this."
"Oh," now the other twin spoke. "All of us Rokukan had reddish hair and greenish eyes. That's what my Azami-onee-chan told me."
"And right she is," Sakura smiled.
"As always," Azami added in a hushed, mischievous tone.
"Ne, Azami-onee-chan, you're not always right, like the time you –"
Azami swooped forwards, a hand reaching out to effectively gag her poor half brother.
"That's enough, Ken," she warned playfully. But instead of Ken continuing the story, Ran instantly picked up the thread of the narration and told Sakura:
"Azami-onee-chan once told us that Eiri-san always left his room in the morning to train 'til dark. But then when me and Ken tried sneaking into his room at noon to find a scroll, he was still there and kicked our butts."
As Sakura laughed at the story and Eiri chuckled, Azami released Ken and grumbled:
"Yeah, and he got me too when I tried saving the ungrateful littls twin brats."
"We're not brats!" The twins chorused.
"That's enough, you two." Takeshi said sternly. "Sakura is probably tired from her journey, and she doesn't need you two bursting her eardrums. You have enough time to talk to her later, after she's had some rest."
"Oh…" Ken pouted while Ran said:
"Make sure to visit us, itoko!"
The pinkette hid her surprise as the little boy chose to use the relationship term and answered:
"Yeah… see you guys."
Azami winked and towed the two boys away, Eiri stood and politely excused himself, and Takeshi motioned for Sakura to follow him.
The others were no where in sight as Sakura trailed after her uncle down the hallway. Takeshi stopped in front of a door with a sign on it reading:
Training Room 15
"This is your training room, Sakura. Nobody will bother you in here, or your meditation room." So saying, Takeshi opened the door and showed Sakura her training room.
It left her speechless.
"Wow."
It was huge. The middle of the room was an empty floor, and mounted on the far wall was a large rack of many different kinds of weapons, ranging from a thin, elegant black whip to a heavy double-handed scythe. Countless kunai and shurikan were stuffed into a single shelf and many pouches, and about a dozen katanas of different sizes were hung on the wall.
There were many obstacles lined up against the right wall. Hurdles, bars, and some boulders met Sakura's gaze.
"You don't have to be worried about damaging the room – there's a jutsu around it that repairs it overnight." Takeshi's voice caused her to jump; she was so absorbed by the room.
"The door across the hallway is your meditation room – come."
Sakura saw the sign of her meditation room which read:
Meditation Room 15
It was eerily still in the room, which a thick mat placed precisely in the centre of the square floor. Lined along all four walls, and some around the mat, were candles of different sizes. None had been used yet.
"If you wish to switch of the lights when they bother you, then you can light the candles," Takeshi explained.
Sakura let her gaze travel slowly through the room. She was still unsure how she should react to all of this. She was beginning a new episode of her life, one which was so foreign, so strange to her, that she didn't know how to behave.
"Thanks, Takeshi…" she whispered.
A sudden thought occurred to her and she looked up at him, asking:
"Ojii, when will you start training me? Now?"
His brow scrunched and he said:
"So soon? Are you sure you're not too tired?"
Emerald blazed and Sakura shook her head energetically.
"No! I came here to train, ojii. I admit, seeing my family is also an immense pleasure, but my main reason is to grow stronger."
Takeshi gazed at her, and she held his probing stare. Finally, he nodded and she blinked. Had she imagined a brief flash of respect in her uncle's eyes?
"Very well, we will start now. Back to the training room!"
Sakura didn't need to be told twice. Rushing back to the other room, she turned to look at him expectantly.
"Please spike your chakra."
The pinkette raised an eyebrow at his strange request, but obeyed, flaring her chakra suddenly.
"Hm…" Takeshi walked forward to perch on one of the boulders along the wall.
"Correct me if I am wrong. You have excellent chakra control, use medic jutsu, are a genjutsu type, and have a second mind. Is this right?"
Sakura's eyes widened. How did he know of her Inner? Nobody knew that.
"Yes, it's right… but now did you know? Did Tsunade-sama tell you about my medical jutsu?"
"No. A person's chakra reflects every single jutsu that person has used. But it's not just the chakra alone. The Rokukan can, if they have a second mind, peer into other beings' consciousness."
Shock tingled up Sakura's spine.
"You have an Inner?" She burst out. "And you were reading my mind just now?"
"Yes and no. I have an 'Inner', as you called it, but I wasn't reading your mind." Takeshi shifted where he sat. "Sakura, what is chakra?"
"The mixture of physical and mental energy."
"And what is this mental energy?"
Realization dawned on Sakura and she asked a question instead of answering his.
"You just read the mental energy from my chakra?"
He nodded and said:
"The Rokukan's second mind allows one to separate the physical and mental energy in chakra. While the mental energy acts much like a record book, physical energy stores information on the person's present state of health. Right now, I can read that you are a little tired – probably from the journey – and that you're nervous, excited and very determined."
A cold shiver entered Sakura's body. She didn't want to admit it… but her uncle was sorta-kinda-maybe freaking her out. This was like mind reading!
Takeshi smiled at her and continued:
"You don't have to be scared of me, Sakura. Already, it's harder to read you than most people."
"Why is that?"
"Because your second mind, your Inner, is valiantly trying to fight me off."
'Hell yeah! Why did you forget about me?'
Sakura shook her head, dazed.
"Takeshi-san, if my Inner is almost constantly annoying me and trying to take over, then why is it protecting me?"
"Because even though it opposes you, it shares your body. If anyone were to invade your mind, then it effects both you and your Inner."
'So that's why Ino-pig couldn't hold onto my mind! You chased her out!'
'Yeah! So don't forget that I'm here, Sakura-no-baka!'
"Furthermore, you were speaking of annoying you and trying to take over. Well, it's an unfortunate habit of the second mind to strive against you. You'll have to tame it if it is to cooperate."
"How, ojii?"
"That's what I'm here to teach you for. The taming of the second mind, also known as 'The Binding of the Minds', might very well take over a week. There's a certain jutsu that allows one to look into their own mind and speak to the Inner."
Sakura nodded, shoulders tensing.
"What do I have to do?" she asked.
"When I start the jutsu, you have to talk with your Inner. Most likely, it won't be happy to hear that you're trying to tame it. It'll lead to a fight, and you're going to have to use your will to batter the other mind into submission. One way is to try to occupy the whole space that you'll see with your mind." His eyes slid closed. "The other way is to talk it into letting you tame it. Now, I'm going to perform the jutsu… are you ready?"
"Hai!"
Takeshi's hands flew through a couple of handsigns before settling on a unique seal. His breath huffed out as he concentrated, and suddenly, a burst of light illuminated the room.
Sakura blinked. She was in a dark void. Inner Sakura, her features negative and the opposite colors of what a normal person's should be, grimaced at Sakura.
"You! What do you want now? You've never been in here with me…"
"Quite right," Sakura answered. "But I'm here now. And I'm here to tame you."
Inner Sakura snarled, growing in size. Alarmed, Sakura remembered that Takeshi had told her to fill the space, the black void. Inner Sakura was taking over!
"I've tolerated having you in control," Inner Sakura hissed. "But that's going too far! I'm taking our body!"
"Like hell you are!"
Sakura and her Inner met, their fists raised to punch each other. Both of them dodged the other's punch. Sakura followed with a roundhouse kick, which Inner Sakura caught easily. But while Inner Sakura's hands were occupied, Sakura used her captive foot as leverage to kick Inner Sakura.
It didn't work since Inner Sakura moved safetly out of harm's way.
It went on, both minds struggling to gain the upper hand. They landed no hits, and slowly, both of them grew tired. They panted, limbs shaking, and Sakura knew that she couldn't win this way.
Desperately, she focused with all her strength and tried to will Inner Sakura to stop.
Inner Sakura faltered, then snapped out of it. In retaliation, Inner Sakura's mind stretched out as well, pushing against Sakura's command.
A red haze settled over Sakura's vision, and she doubled her efforts. Inner Sakura screamed, her voice echoing unnaturally in the black void and also increased her resistance.
Back and forth Sakura wrestled with her, striving to force her Inner to submit to her. It was incredibly hard, mainly since Inner Sakura seemed to be just as strong as her, and eluded her control every time Sakura thought she had her.
'This can't go on much longer…' Sakura thought desperately.
"Why the hell do you fight me so hard?!" she screamed.
"Would you like being controlled?" Inner Sakura retorted viciously. "I'd think not! It's bad enough with you pushing me into the back of our body, refusing to let me do anything! Nobody would want to be utterly and completely controlled!"
Stunned, Sakura faltered in her efforts, and Inner Sakura seized the opportunity to give a mighty push, sending Sakura reeling through her mind.
The next thing she knew, Sakura was looking into Takeshi's concerned face.
"Wh… What happened?" the pinkette croaked. Shocked at her rasping and hoarse voice, she cleared her throat and asked her question again.
"I sensed that you were reaching your limit," her uncle told her. "So I pulled you out of the jutsu."
Sakura sighed, relieved. She was drenched in sweat, and her limbs shook with exhaustion. She had no idea that taming her Inner would be so hard.
Takeshi handed her a glass of water, which she gratefully gulped down, and asked:
"So how did it go?"
"Pretty badly," Sakura admitted. "My Inner reacted just like you said it would. We fought for a while, and then I tried forcing my will onto it. It didn't work – I had no idea it was so strong."
"Well, I'm amazed you lasted this long already. Not many can even stand a single blow from their second mind the very first time. You should be proud of yourself." Takeshi smiled.
Sakura returned the smile and tried standing, surprising herself when her knees wobbled, threatening to give way. Takeshi caught her arm, warning:
"Take it easy. You've been at it for hours."
Sakura froze, eyes widening.
"Hours? Exactly how long?"
"Five hours."
A breath huffed out of Sakura. Five hours. She didn't even know that so much time had passed.
She seemed to be slightly dazed from the past events, so Takeshi changed the subject.
"It's evening now. There'll be dinner soon, so we should head to the social room."
Nodding, the pinkette followed him out, her mind whirling with the recent confrontation with her Inner.
While she thought about it, her Inner suddenly gave her a nasty twinge in her mind and spat:
'I hope you've given up. I'll never let you tame me!'
'Urusai.' Sakura ordered flatly in her head. 'We'll see who's stronger.'
Inner Sakura snorted unbelievingly and jabbed:
'You seriously think you can match up and overcome me? Yeah, yeah, give me a break.'
'Oh, I'll give you a break alright. Where would you most prefer it?'
'A miracle! Sakura is using sarcasm!' Inner Sakura gasped with fake amazement.
Sakura sighed, blocking out her second mind's jabbing comments.
How in the world could she tame her Inner?
XxXxX
The next days were busy for Sakura. It quickly became a routine for her: get up in the morning, eat a light breakfast, go out behind the temple with Takeshi to train her already existing taijutsu skills, then eat lunch either outside with her uncle or inside with whoever was present. Afterwards, she would struggle with her Inner until mid afternoon, take a break, fight again with her Inner, then have dinner.
The strain of her training stripped away the last remaining unnecessary fat, leaving her face less rounded and somehow looking a little older, more mature. Her fine cheekbones were nicely defined, her chin slightly more pointed. Her movements gained grace and confidence, and the muscles on her shoulders, stomach and back were more visible now.
Every evening, she fell into her bed utterly exhausted, sleeping like the dead until the next morning's sunlight touched her face through the open shutters of her window.
As the days became a week, Sakura noticed a change in her struggles with her Inner. The fights lasted longer and longer, leaving no time for a break in between. She and her Inner fought continuously, strenuously, both trying to batter the other one down. And as the fights waxed longer, Sakura nearly beat Inner Sakura multiple times, though not succeeding because of pure exhaustion.
Her taijutsu levels increased as well, and she took great delight in her newfound speed when Takeshi taught her to flash-step. Now her destructive force was massive, since she could move so much faster.
To keep her medic skills up, she devoured countless medical texts in the endless libraries under the temple. She loved the quiet, serene library with the thousands of candles lighting the gloom. It was just the kind of place she needed to read with concentration. Not even Konoha's library could be compared with the Rokukan Temple.
A few days later, she was introduced to another training.
It started out quite normally with taijutsu one morning when she was sparring with Takeshi…
XxXxX
"Sakura, how about a quick break?" Takeshi called out to her.
Panting, the pinkette nodded, brushing strands of hair out of her sweaty face. Her knuckles hurt from all the ground-shattering blows she had struck, and her legs were sore from flash-stepping so much.
As they gasped for breath, Takeshi remarked:
"You're improving quickly, Sakura. Therefore, I've decided that we're moving on."
"Moving on?"
"Yes. With training your kekkai genkai."
Sakura's spine snapped up straight. Finally! She had never complained, but she really wanted to know about her own bloodline limit, because it wasn't in the library underground.
"The Rokukan's kekkai genkai is called 'Tenshi – the 'heavenly gift'. I gave you a rough introduction when I first saw you in the Hokage's study, but now we're going through the details.
"What we're learning is the Rokukan First Level. That means without influence of the second mind. All Rokukan can master this level.
"There are five categories: Shikaku, Kyuukaku, Choukaku, Shokkaku, and Mikaku. Those are the five senses of the human body, namely – in the order from before – sight, smell, hearing, touch, and taste. Along with those five, there is another sense – the sense of sensing, Dairokkan, if you get my meaning. That's why our clan's name is 'Rokukan' – the Six Senses.
"By performing one of the jutsus, you will have absolute control over the category you invoked. For example, if you performed the 'sight' category, then you enhance your own eyesight and vision while being able to control your opponent's."
A tingle flashed through Sakura and she asked:
"But what if your opponent has a dojutsu?"
Takeshi's gaze sharpened and he said:
"Which dojutsu are you thinking of?"
"Um… well, the Sh – I mean the Byakugan." She didn't want to reveal her past with Sasuke and that her current training was to drag his sorry ass back to Konoha.
Her uncle didn't seem fooled though. She quailed under his knowing gaze and held her tongue.
"The Byakugan… hm, it's been a while since I had to match up against one of the Hyuuga." Takeshi said. "If you face the 'White Eyes', then you can effectively blank out your chakra pathways. They will only see the chakra of other people, unless you know how to slip into the others' minds. Then you can blank their chakra too. But I'm drifting from the subject."
Rubbing his neck, Takeshi continued with a pointed look in Sakura's direction.
"If you face the Sharingan," – 'Shit, he knows!' – "then it can't copy any of your jutsus, and only yours unless – again – you enter the other peoples' minds. Also, the Sharingan won't see your chakra, and none of the genjutsu that are cast with the Sharingan work."
Sakura ran over the conversation again in her head, then asked:
"So basically, you can only effect what the dojutsu can do on yourself. Unless, like you've been saying, you can touch other people's consciousness."
"Correct."
Now Sakura understood why the Rokukan who had a second mind were so much more powerful. She turned the thought around in her head, realizing that with a tamed Inner, she could protect others as well.
"Ojii… am I doing poorly in The Binding of the Minds?"
The wary look that had crossed Takeshi's face when he spoke of the Sharingan melted, surprise taking its place.
"No, and not by a long shot. Why do you ask?"
"It's just…" Sakura counted the days she had been training. "I've been here for a week, and I still don't have any control over my Inner."
"Don't worry, it's normal for The Binding of the Minds to take over a month."
Sakura's heart sank. Would it really take so long? She was in no way an overly impatient type, but time was of an essence now that events were starting to quicken their pace.
Takeshi saw Sakura's disappointed look and ruffled her hair comfortingly.
"I'm sure you'll manage," he smiled.
She couldn't help but smile back at her uncle, and he stood up.
"Okay, so now I'll teach you the seals for Tenshi. First, I want you to start with this one…"
Sakura listened attentively, comitting the long string of handsigns to her memory. She memorized the differences in the five senses, and the last unique seal that only Tenshi required.
Sakura was briefly puzzled over this, and she asked:
"Ojii, why does the taste sense end on the tiger seal? Isn't that the special seal for fire element jutsus?"
Takeshi winked and answered:
"That's right, but here they are strung onto the Tenshi seal, which takes up the rear, so technically, it doesn't end on the tiger."
"Oh."
"Now moving on. I want you to try out one of the sense jutsus. Go on, take a stab at it."
Sakura nodded, raising her hands. Her fingers flew through the different seals and she ordered:
"Tenjutsu: Shikaku!"
Her eyes burned for a split second, feeling as if her very eyeballs were melting, then it was over as soon as it started.
Sakura blinked, amazed.
"Kami-sama…" she breathed, blinking again.
The world seemed so much sharper, as if she hadn't ever focused her eyes properly before. The outlines of objects were defined and clear, while colors shone in intense hues which she had never seen before. But what's more, she could see the grass and trees around her pulsing with light. White light.
"Takeshi," she whispered, turning her gaze to him. She jumped slightly when she saw him with her new eyesight – he burned with the blue light of chakra. And another she noticed was that his eyes seemed to be a pair of spotlights; two yellow paths of light flowed from his eyes, crossing paths in front of him.
Her uncle grinned, and she noticed that there were slight dips and flaws in his skin. His hands, as he held one up, was rough and calloused, which she could tell even from the distance that she stood.
"What do you see?" he asked her.
"I… the plants are alive. They're pulsing. And everything's so… so clear… But why are your eyes shining like two beams, ojii?"
Takeshi smiled and explained:
"With Shikaku, you can enhance your own eyesight, while seeing where exactly others can see. What you are looking at is my field of vision. Now, please disengage!"
Sakura's hands flew up and she ordered:
"Kai!"
Her eyesight faded to normal. For a moment, she was even disoriented; everything was blurry and dull.
"How much chakra did you use?" Takeshi interrupted her musing.
Sakura checked her chakra levels and her eyes widened, surprised.
"… Very little. It takes only a little bit more than Kawarimi no Jutsu."
"Correct. It's because you're performing the technique on yourself, not somebody else. Try another one."
Sakura obeyed, promptly activating the hearing sense.
"Tenjutsu: Choukaku!"
A thump so loud it hurt her ears startled her. Clapping her hands over her ears, she winced as the sound of her hands meeting her skull echoed loudly in her mind.
The thump came again. And again.
"Ojii," she asked, scaring herself when her voice rang much louder than before. "What's the funny thumping noise?"
Takeshi grinned with barely contained amusement and answered:
"That's your heart, Sakura."
"Oh." She felt stupid. Takeshi's voice was also magnified so loudly until it hurt. Also, she could hear the vibrations in the air that sound made, coming in unexplicably fast waves. Casting her eyes around, she realized that she could see the sound waves in the air. Some of which, she noted, were entering Takeshi's ears and disappearing.
'Ha! I'm even better at sound manipulation now that Oto, the Sound Village, itself!'
She winced as she grinned. Even her own facial muscles moving had caused a loud, sort of stretching sound that was just way too loud.
"Ugh," she groaned, "how do I make it quieter? Won't I shatter my eardrums at some point?"
"No, you won't. And to make it quieter, you'll have to put less chakra into the jutsu."
Reducing the stream of chakra, Sakura exhaled in relief as the loud ba-dum of her heartbeat lessened to a bearable level.
"Very good, Sakura. Now try another."
The pinkette couldn't help but grin. This was turning out to be much more than she expected. If she could tame her Inner as well, than she was well on the way to growing much, much stronger.
Her last thought before she performed another technique was:
'I won't be left behind anymore. Never again.'
XxXxX
That afternoon when Sakura entered her training room to confront her Inner, she felt confident for some reason. A plan formed in her mind.
"Are you ready?" Takeshi asked.
"Hai!"
Blinking, Sakura found herself in the black void once again, staring at her enraged Inner.
"What the hell is wrong with you?" Inner Sakura spat. "Can't you leave me alone?"
Sakura saw her second mind preparing herself for a fight, and quickly said:
"Hold up one second – I want to talk."
"Talk? What for?"
"But I need to ask you first: Do you agree to speak calmly and without trading blows with me?"
"Bakayaro. Fine, I'll listen."
Sakura inhaled deeply and started:
"Do you remember when Sasuke left?" The question stung in her throat.
Inner Sakura flinched, her expression becoming pained.
"Of course I do, moron."
"Do you remember what it felt like?" Sakura felt her own emotions come rushing up to the surface. Hurt, guilt, dispair.
Inner Sakura obviously was feeling the same, and small wonder: Sakura remembered that when Sasuke had left, that had been one of the only times when she and her Inner agreed on something – namely the bottomless anguish that tormented them both.
"Why are you asking me this?" Inner Sakura whispered.
"Because I want to sort things out. We've always avoided thinking about Sasuke's betrayal – both of us, don't deny it! – so we've yet to unravel this mess."
"You know as well as I do what I feel."
"True, but I would like to hear it all the same."
Inner Sakura closed her eyes, turning away. With a choked laugh, she said:
"We suffered… for who knows how long. It was the worst feeling ever."
"Aa. And I decided to start my apprenticeship under Tsunade-shishou. Now, tell me what we felt when we encountered Sasuke in the Sound Base."
"…"
"Come on, out with it."
"Disappointment, most of all, I guess. We weren't strong enough."
"Right." Sakura felt a knot thicken in her throat, making it hard to speak and urging tears to come down. Closing her eyes, she remembered how that had been…
Flashback
She rushed towards him, fist raised and chakra already gathering in her fist in preparation. He didn't even look up to acknowledge her as a threat.
'Why you!'
Just before her fist could make impact, Yamato shouted and dashed in between. For a moment, she couldn't think, didn't understand what had happened. Then bitter disappointment rushed up inside her. Did her taichou really believe her incapable of fighting Sasuke? She was the Hokage's apprentice, for kami's sake! She had trained hours on end, all just for this one chance, and now it was gone.
Glaring into Sasuke's cool, blank eyes, she felt her rage grow. How could he just not care? He would kill his old teammates and not even bat an eye.
'Next time, I'm gonna pound some sense into you!' she swore viciously to herself.
End of Flashback
Tears were rolling down Inner Sakura's face as they both remembered.
"We were so disappointed…" Sakura whispered.
"Aa, we were."
"With both ourselves and Sasuke."
Inner Sakura sniffled and suddenly turned agressively on Sakura.
"Why are you bringing this up?" she demanded. "All you're doing is making us both upset!"
"Gomen, I'll get to the point." Drawing herself up, Sakura stared at her Inner.
"We share the same body, you and I. Even if I never realized it, you have helped me multiple times. I know it's because you wanted to protect yourself as well as our body, but you have my thanks as well.
"Consider the current situation. Sasuke is well on the way to killing Itachi, and I have a bad feeling that he won't come back even afterwards. He's too deep in his own little hellhole to come to his senses. And, I know this sounds so cliché, but unless I get stronger, than I'll never get even close enough to pull him out. To do that, I need to knock some sense into that pretty head of his, and for that I need you.
"Without you, I won't master the next levels of the Rokukan kekkai genkai. You heard our ojii just as well as I did in training. You know that if I tame you, that, yes, you will be controlled, but it's not like you won't have any freedom. If I tame you, I swear that I'll treat you right and you won't suffer. I'd never allow that."
Sakura finished her conclusion and watched her Inner. All she could do now was wait.
XxXxX
A/N
And there you have it! Chapter 2 is fini. It's a cliffie, hehe, my bad.
I have to apologize that Sasuke-teme isn't showing up quite yet; at the moment he hasn't met Deidara yet and he's still running around with Team Hebi looking for good ol' Itachi.
Itachi: "Did you just call me old?"
EE: "Uh, hehe, old? Who said old?"
Itachi: *activates Amaterasu* "Die."
EE: *screams and runs away*
Please Read and Review, even thought Itachi just killed me! (Then why the heck am I still here? Ha! Itachi, you didn't get me!)
EbonyEye
XxXxX
Itoko – Cousin
Ojii – Uncle
Onee – Older sister
Shikaku – Sense of Sight
Kyuukaku – Sense of Smell
Choukaku – Sense of Hearing
Shokkaku – Sense of Touch
Mikaku – Sense of Taste
Dairokkan – the Sixth Sense (Intuition)
Kai – break, release
Tenjutsu: Shikaku! – Heavenly Art: Sight!
Tenjutsu: Choukaku! – Heavenly Art: Hearing!
Kawarimi no Jutsu – Replacement Technique
Baka – idiot (such a beautiful word XD)
