GAS STATION

Chapter 2

She could feel Sasuke's stare from across the room no matter how subtle he tried to be about it. Sai was the only one sneaky enough to get away with stealing peeks without her notice, but Sasuke thought he was sneaky enough to be daring.

Sakura ignored him and turned another page, only vaguely listening to the door opening behind her followed by footsteps.

"Wow, you can read all of this?"

Naruto was the opposite of subtle and he didn't seem to care. For better or worse, Naruto knew he was as bright as his freckles and as loud as his sky colored eyes.

Sakura leaned back so Naruto could move closer and pick at one of the pages. It had more diagrams on it than the others, but most of the labels were in an old language lost to the ages. It had been decades since Sakura last saw it herself, but was surprised with how much she remembered when she tried.

"What is this about?" Naruto asked, turning the paper upside-down.

"It's about refining the crude oil. If the oil isn't processed correctly it'll blow out the tanks." Sakura gently reached up to take the paper back.

Naruto made a face. "You mean we can't just put the black stuff from the ground into your rig and be good?"

"Not if your definition of good is the same as mine. Making this place work is going to be a lot more complicated than just flipping on a few switches."

"All of this is on refining?" Naruto asked.

Sakura nodded, reaching for another folder of loose paper. The manuals were starting to get disorganized.

Naruto laughed nervously, cheeks tinting pink. "I barely know how to read common. Sorry, Sakura. I guess we're not as helpful as we promised to be."

That was when Sasuke made his presence known. He stepped out from the shadows of the far hall with one of her books held up.

"Sakura," he called out, earning Naruto's attention as well as hers. "I finished reading what you gave to me. I think your first idea was better than the alternative the authors were discussing. It'd yield more if successful, but is too risky for us to try right now."

Naruto frowned when Sasuke lifted his chin and glanced sideways at the blond.

Sakura pretended not to notice their silent exchange. Harem boys brought too much drama with them wherever they went and it was a headache to try and understand, much less deal with.

"Thanks Sasuke. Maybe in the future we'll feel confident enough to cannibalize the compactor from the junk yard, but for now we can let it sit."

Sasuke leaned against her table, seemingly making himself comfortable in the room as well as the conversation. "It's a shame we couldn't find a use for any of its parts, since we have no need for such a thing."

"We can be resourceful," she answered without looking up from her papers, "eventually, not just right now. It's not priority one."

"So…what's priority number one?" Naruto asked, sounding genuinely confused.

"Survival by establishing a solid shelter."

"We haven't?" Naruto asked.

Sakura paused in her reading to look up. "We've been here a week but this place is far from fortified. It's too out of the way to be an eyesore but we can't rely on luck keeping us safe. If someone rolled in here with their rig and war band, what would stop them from taking what we found?"

"You're worried we might be attacked here?" Sasuke asked. "It's been abandoned for years."

"Yeah, but we made tracks in this direction and I'm paranoid." Sakura looked back to her papers. "I'm not saying it's a huge risk, but it's what my gut tells me to be be careful of."

"I trust your gut, Sakura!" Naruto cheered.

Sakura suddenly felt unbalanced by his too loud cheer and too bright smile. She noticed how his cheeks dimpled when he smiled so wide and made the whole room seem warmer.

"Well, yeah, um, thanks for that I guess."

Sasuke huffed and it was loud enough for her to hear, but Naruto remained oblivious. "We can help with something like that. Even if we can't read old languages, we can do something as simple as constructed a structure."

"The walls around here are a good start," Sakura agreed. "And with the rations and Sai managing the hydroponics garden we won't have to worry about food once that takes off."

"It's perfect," Naruto cheered.

Sakura made a note of agreement but didn't smile or force her expression to change. "It'll work out well enough until your friend gets here. I'm hoping this Kakashi guy has a better idea of how to work this place and defend it."

"He will," Naruto hurried to admit. "I-I'm sure he would. He was smart enough to help us plan our escape in the first place. He's a super smart guy."

Sakura looked back at her table littered with papers and inwardly groaned at how disorganized and overwhelming they seemed to her after only a short conversation with someone else. She needed a break.

"Well, speaking of that kid, I'm going to go check in on Sai and see how his work is going. It'd be nice to have that food soon."

"Nothing grows that fast," Naruto laughed.

"It doesn't need to be grown to get checked in on," Sakura grumbled.

She stood, pushing the chair back. Sasuke pushed off the table and watched her walk off, but didn't follow her out with anything other than his eyes.

Naruto scampered out after her. "Wait for me!" he exclaimed.

"What do you need with Sai?" Sakura asked.

"Eh, that bastard? Nothing, I just wanted to follow you there."

Sakura kept her eyes from rolling. "You're not busy with something else?"

Naruto whined. "Why don't you want me to stay with you? Do you not like me anymore. I thought I was your favorite!"

"Anymore? What gave you the impression that I liked you in the first place?" Sakura teased with a scoff and flick of her wrist.

"You decided to stay, didn't you?"

Sakura felt some of her attitude shift. "It was a good business move. I'll have a better lot in life if I helped you here."

"Really?" Naruto laughed and it was a light sounding, delightful sort of laugh that made her heart grumble. "Sure, say that if you want but we know better. You stayed because you cared. You're a good person, Sakura."

She forced her face to stay as blank as her voice. "I'm a criminal, or did you forget that?"

"You're still a good person under all that, I can tell. You saved us even when it was hard."

Sakura didn't like the way her ears turned red or how, without her mask, Naruto was free to see how his words made her react. Even if he was too dense to tell, Sakura felt too exposed without the visor and helmet she had lived inside of for so many years. Life had been less hectic when no one could see her face or her expressions.

She had shown them her face once in a gesture of trust and good will, but the next day when she replaced the visor Naruto had protested louder than the others, though neither Sai nor Sasuke had remained silent on the issue. All three of them agreed that wearing any sort of mask unnecessary.

The only reason she listened to them was because they complained too much if she didn't. It's not like she cared any more than that.

Naruto followed her down to the lower levels where Sai had managed to turn on an old pump tapping into an underground aquifer several miles out. The piping was old but there wasn't any rust or decay to taint the water it brought in. The more of the boneyard they explore, the more value Sakura found, the more she worried. They had water, fuel, and a decent shelter comprised of several detached buildings across a semi gated plot of land. Who wouldn't want a piece of this part-way paradise. It was almost good enough to start a community on.

"Sakura."

She looked up when she heard her name and saw Sai watching her. His eyes always seemed to catch her off her guard.

"Just checking in on your progress. How is it going?"

"Nothing to show for my work as of yet, I am afraid," Sai answered.

"Is there anything more you can do here or can I ask you for something else along with Naruto here?" Sakura waved her hand over her shoulder in Naruto's direction.

Sai watched her with a tilt to his head that reminded her too much of a bird watching its potential next meal. It wasn't threatening, but it echoed of a past Sakura knew Sai was struggling to shake in comparison to Sasuke and Naruto. He wasn't dangerous to her, but he could have been.

"Is there a reason Sasuke was not included?" Sai asked.

"He's reading for me. I could ask you or Naruto to help out with that but I think you'd rather put your hands to use."

"Yes please," Naruto cheered behind her.

"What do you need?" Sai asked.

"Well, it's an aviation boneyard, isn't it?" Sakura asked. "Let's put those old birds to good use."

With an old generator they managed to power one of the two ancient cranes left behind on site. The crane was able to take and move the sheered off pieces of different sky birds and stack them up against the dilapidated walls, reinforcing them. Sai welded over sheets together to keep them in place while the rest were good enough being dropped into the ground. Enough of them stood out on their own, pointed up like knives partly sunk into red earth.

It took several days, but they managed to make a silver wall of scrap metal that stretched and then encircled the main compound. The crane didn't move much further and they didn't want to use up all their raw materials on double layered fencing.

Sasuke kept reading and Sai went back to maintaining his garden leaving Naruto to explore more of the compound and carve out better living spaces for them. Naruto had a good nose for finding things that could be useful. He was probably the one with the best luck out of all of them considering the scores of dry rations and materials he uncovered. By the time he found heavy artillery and a weapons cache Sakura wasn't even surprised.

"How do you use these things?" Naruto asked, mishandling a gun in a way that made Sakura fear for all their lives.

Sai reached over and grabbed for the gun, dislodging the magazine and pulling it harmlessly apart. Without breaking eye contact with the blond Sai slid the magazine back into place and fired off a round into the open expanse. Sakura heard the bullet hit and turned to see a scrap of metal left hanging on one of the larger pieces fall free, pieced through at the thinnest point.

"You know your way around a weapon," Sakura said.

Naruto cheered at the display while Sai easily holstered the small firearm. "More or less."

"We could live off the rations but I'd rather not if we can help it." Sakura then pointed to his gun. "Wanna use that?"

"For what?" Sai asked, voice too even to read.

"Not what you're used to, I'm sure," Sakura chuckled before walking off.

In the evening Sakura met Sai outside his quarters, dressed in her visor and armor. She tossed a spare set at Sai who caught it easily. He didn't need her to tell him to slip it on and he followed without being told once she started to head out.

Sakura pretended she didn't notice the way Sasuke watched them both from the shade of a nearby hallway.

Sakura and Sai exited the compound on a pair of bone bikes discovered by Naruto and fixed by Sakura. There were several more, but only two at a time worked with all the missing components between all the ones they found.

They drove parallel with the gas station, keeping their direction fixed until the dim light drowned the sky in dull colors. Sakura signaled to stop and they parked their bikes in the brush before walking the rest of the way on foot. She forged a path up the red rocks into an alcove that watched the valley below well enough. Then she got comfortable.

"It's not wise to hunt at night. Your visibility is hindered."

"It's the desert Sai, what do you think comes out during the day?"

He was quiet a moment more before answering. "Snakes?"

"They're not as gross as you would think but still not what I want. You live in the desert long enough you learn that it's most awake once the sun goes down and the earth goes cold. I'll be able to see well enough with moonlight. What about you?"

"I doubt I'll be able to match your example."

"I don't know. I've not met a lot of assassins but you're one of the better ones for making it this far on so little."

Sai bristled at her words and it was more refreshing to see than Sakura had expected. He was emotionless too often, it was a treat to see his feelings on his face.

"I'm not. I wore the same gold chains as Naruto and Sasuke."

"A good cover."

"It wasn't a cover."

"If you say so." Sakura didn't know enough to doubt his words, but supposed they could be true. Maybe he really had entered the harems after a life of killing for others. His tattoos were real, but so were his eyes. Sakura knew she wasn't wrong.

"I'm not like that anymore," Sai admitted after a long stretch of silence between them. "The others don't know. Don't tell them."

"I wasn't planning on doing that. It doesn't matter to me whatever you are, just so long as I'm not on your kill list." Sakura smirked under her mask. "Am I?"

"No such thing. I told you I gave that up. I'm not a killer anymore."

"That's a shame. Inside the citadel walls you might have been nice and safe on the bed pillows of a rich woman's lounge, but out here you're nothing more than teeth and steel, honey." Sakura pushed lightly against his chest, creating distance between them. "You think you can remember that or am I going to have to rescue you too?"

Sai didn't move, but watched her keenly as Sakura knelt down and then spread out to rest on her elbows. She had a longer barrel rifle she checked and aimed at the valley below, ready for an opportunity to present itself.

When she didn't say anything else, Sai knelt down and sat beside her in the dust and dirt, keeping his gun holstered. Then, "I'm not someone you have to rescue."

Sakura didn't say anything, but made a sound in her throat, encouraging him to continue.

"I wonder if you resent us for slowing you down. No matter how you look at it, even all together we can't match up to you. You're smarter than Sasuke, stronger than Naruto, and more skilled than me. You have to watch us with everything."

"You think I resent you?"

"Do you?"

"No one is an expert their first day on the job. Maybe you had a history before the harem, but my experiences have given me the edge you seem to envy. I've just been around longer and seen more shit. You guys are bright enough, you'll catch on in time." Sakura paused and frowned down the barrel of her rifle. "Well, maybe not Naruto, but the rest of you for sure."

"…Is…was that a joke?"

Sakura snorted into her shoulder, glancing up through her lashes at Sai from behind her mask. "What do you think?"

Sai frowned but kept his words to himself when he noticed the way Sakura's body went stiff. Her attention switched onto something down below in the valley and when he looked he saw what had her on edge. He heard the way she breathed in and held all the air in her lungs hostage, pausing time long enough to squeeze and crack the silence with her rifle's thunder. It echoed through the canyon. The rest of wildlife took off, leaving behind the limp corpse of two desert hares. Both had been shot through the skull with the same bullet.

"Finally, something decent to eat," Sakura said aloud before standing to make her way down and collect her game.

"Where else did you go?"

Sai looked up from his water plants and frowned. "That's it, I told you already."

Sasuke shrugged. "I didn't know if you were done talking or waiting for me to ask."

"You already asked, and that is why I answered you the first time."

"Hn."

Sai bent back down and worked the frown out of his expression, turning his face blank once more. It was becoming harder and harder for him to keep his features in check. Sasuke was the hardest to stay civil around. At least Sai liked Naruto, even if he did find the blond annoying. Sasuke was just a straight up elitist prick. Just because he came from a family with a name he thought he was better than others. Sakura didn't care, so Sai wouldn't either.

"When will she take you out again?" Sasuke asked after a long silence.

Sai didn't bother looking up this time with his reply. "I have no idea, but I assume she will let me know when she's ready."

"And when do you think that is?"

"I wasn't given a plan, Sasuke. Why don't you ask her yourself if you're so worried?"

"I'm not worried."

"Then go ask her and leave me alone."

Sasuke muttered darkly under his breath but pushed himself off the edge of the water bed and stalked off, arms shoved deep into the pockets of his pants.

He checked several of the less likely places before he found her in the main building reading in the office left behind by who was likely the manager or main operator of the gas station. She didn't look up when she heard him, but made a noise that let Sasuke know she was aware of his presence.

Her mask was gone, but a desert cloth was bunched up around her neck and face, obscuring her chin tattoos and lips. Apart from the mark in the center of her forehead, she was most sensitive about the colors on her chin, hiding them more than anything else on her face.

Sasuke's eyes were drawn to the book written in that strange language he couldn't read. "What are you looking at?" he asked.

"The seasons and their days." Sakura pushed the book away from her and met his eyes. "We're done with the Sick Season. We've been in the Dry season three whole days. Your Kakashi should have been here by now."

"Naruto did mention he was a late sort of guy, never on time for anything."

Sakura made a face, tugging up the cloth. "He does know your lives are very much in danger without him, right?"

"Not with you here they aren't."

"Yeah, but he didn't count on me sticking around, did he?"

Sasuke looked away before shrugging. "Maybe…"

Without her mask Sasuke was able to see how her brows drew together. "Sasuke," she called in a warning tone. "What do you mean by that?"

"I suppose there's no use avoiding it now, but it wasn't an accident that led us to your rig. Kakashi… indicated that you might be a better person than most on the road. Our chances were best with you, he said."

He was able to watch her shock bloom across her face, making her eyes wide and her brows high.

"What? I was the mark?" Sakura rubbed at her face and groaned. "What a ripe old bastard this Kakashi guy is. What the hell made him think that?"

"He was right, wasn't he?" Sasuke watched her for any new expressions. "You haven't thrown us to the wolves yet. And it's not likely we would have survived as well as we have if it wasn't for you."

"It makes me feel more paranoid that someone had watched me long enough to form an opinion on me and risk your lives on that gamble. I don't even know who this Kakashi guy is."

"He's a late old pervert, but he's a good guy." Sasuke ventured a step closer to where she sat and touched the book she had tossed onto the nearest surface. "He'll come."

"If you say so. It doesn't matter to me one way or the other, but I like knowing these things." Sakura leaned back and yawned, pulling up the fabric to cover her open mouth.

Sasuke couldn't help but chuckle. "I'm sure you do. Speaking of knowing things, do you plan on going out hunting tonight or even any time this week?"

Sakura yawned again. "No, I'm too tired for any more of that and it's not good to hunt so often. The wildlife needs time to recover. Why?"

Sasuke was quiet a moment longer. "Is…is there a reason you only take Sai out with you? I get why you wouldn't take a loudmouth like Naruto but…"

Sakura caught herself from leaning back too far and held herself stretched out, watching Sasuke's cheek color in real time. Slowly, she eased her chair back into an upright position.

"There's no special reason past the obvious. He already knew his way around a weapon fairly well and it was something he could do with his free time. You were helping with the research and Naruto…well, you were right about the hyperactive part. Were you interested in hunting?"

"I-I thought I might be decent at it. I've not used a gun before but I've seen the guards enough to know how they work I think."

Sakura pushed her chair back and stood, rounding the desk and heading for the door. She tapped Sasuke on the shoulder as she passed and waved him along.

"Come on," she called.

He hurried to follow her out to the stock room where several different gray colored crates were padded for weapons from a long ago time. Sakura took out a shotgun and a small handgun, passing both off to Sasuke. He held them awkwardly, as if they were pieces of glass that might combust on him without warning.

"The safety is on and they're not loaded," she explained before leaning him outside.

It was early afternoon and the sun made the earth hot. The sky stretched on forever, naked of cloud and bird. They walked across the grounds until they reached a ground sky bird. Sakura climbed up on of the broken wings and started to set up a number of cans and bottles she had picked up along the way. She arranged them along the wing and then hopped off.

"Is this…?" Sasuke gestured to his guns.

"Yup. You're gonna learn. Even if it's not to go hunting, it's better you know the right way how to use these things." Sakura joined his side and guided him several paces back. "First, always treat a gun like it's loaded. Never be a jack ass about it, yeah?"

Sasuke nodded obediently as Sakura listed a few basic instructions before even showing him how to check for the safety. Then she modeled how to load and unload the gun before making him practice. She had him try several times more before turning him around to face the can collection.

"This is a handgun, but you're allowed to use both hands here."

Sakura came up behind Sasuke and moved his arms and then his hands for him, showing him how she wanted him to hold his weapon. She heard him catch his breath and ignored it. They were close enough with her arms over his.

"Like this?"

"Good." Sakura fit her hand over his and curled his fingers for him. "When you're ready, I want you to squeeze here. Aim and watch for where it travels. Ready?"

He swallowed and nodded. She felt how he adjusted his stance and fixated on the targets. His body was tense, but not so much that she was worried. It was good that he took weapon handling seriously. If he was a cocky asshole about it that could be his undoing just as easily as the wolds or the men from the bush.

Sasuke inhaled and squeezed, discharging the bullet. It cracked and shot out, biting the metal right underneath the wing.

"Adjust your aim. Higher."

Sasuke tried again and nicked the edge of the first can, but needed two more shots before he could shoot it off the wing. Sakura moved back and guided him through the end of his ammunition. When he succeeded he turned to her with a smile, honest and wider than she was used to.

"Now try the rifle."

Sasuke practiced more with the rifle, doing better with the handgun overall. Sakura had him drill each morning with her and again when no one was out and he was free. He showed himself to be a quick learner, but not so quick that he wasted bullets. He really was more than just a pretty face, after next thing she taught him was how to cast his own bullets and pack his own shells for the guns he used.

"What about the other guns in storage?" he asked her.

"I can't make bullets for those. It's better not to get used to something you're going to have to give up. The world doesn't fashion parts for them no more."

"Can you shoot with them?"

Sakura just shrugged. "Let's hope we never have to find out."

There you go, more Sai and Sasuke and Naruto in chapter 2. Chapter 3 is getting polished for this week, so that will be out soon. Chapter 3 has all the best parts though, just to warn you. :)

You might remember this from Tumblr, but I've come back to it and I have two more chapters on what happens next. So have fun!