Chapter Three- A Reason to Kill
Sasuke stared at the pink-haired girl in front of him. It had shocked him greatly to see her punch Karin in the face and send her flying out of distance. He could hardly sense her chakra now, which meant either she was far away, or she may be on the verge of death.
Sakura raised her fist to her side, getting down into a fighting stance. "Surprised?"
Sasuke quickly retracted back into his cool, expressionless outer shell. "Hn."
Sakura glared slightly at the Uchiha. "I'll ask again. Are you going to listen? Or do I have to show you what I did to that girl again?"
Sasuke took a defensive stance. "I doubt you could pull that one on me. Karin was the weakest of us; I'm not surprised you beat her. But you won't beat me."
Internally Sakura smiled hearing Sasuke talk trash about the red-head he called Karin. But she also raged. Even after Sasuke saw what she could do, he still believed that he was the high-and-mighty Uchiha, able to take down anybody.
She'd show him…then she'd drag him back to the village with her and Naruto.
"So you want to fight?" Sakura inquired, already prepping herself to react incase Sasuke lunged at her.
Sasuke smirked. "Fine." In a flash, he was gone. Sakura whipped her head around, expecting him to appear behind her, but nothing happened.
Sakura scanned the area, trying to spot where he was hiding. Her defensive instincts spiked, cautiously keeping an eye out for an attack. Nothing happened.
A moment later she realized what was really going on. "Damn it!" She cursed, whipping her head around to look behind her. "You're not getting away!"
Sakura waited for a moment, concentrating on picking out Sasuke's chakra. She could sense Naruto and the two guys he was fighting, she could faintly pick up the remaining chakra of that red-head, but she couldn't sense Sasuke yet.
Then she caught his chakra. He was headed east from her. She quickly bolted off in that direction. Remembering Sasuke's speed, she ran as quickly as she could in hopes of catching up with him.
She briefly passed over the clearing where Naruto was fighting. She caught a glimpse of Naruto, bruised and bloodied, but, she noted, the two guys were in similar conditions. She trusted him to beat them.
"Naruto!" Sakura yelled. "Sasuke's running! I'm going after him!"
"Right!" Naruto called back, throwing a thumbs-up into the air before Sakura disappeared into the trees.
Suigetsu looked to Juugo, surprise evident on his features. "She's not dead? Damn, what does Sasuke think that he's doing?"
Juugo shrugged. "He may still be toying with her. Do you think she was the one who sent Karin flying like that?"
Suigetsu huffed. "Couldn't have been anyone else. Guess she's stronger than we thought. But Sasuke'll still take care of her." Suigetsu looked over to Naruto. "For now…we still need to take this guy down."
Naruto wrinkled his nose disgustedly. "Like you could."
Suigetsu frowned. "Are you trying to taunt us?"
"Maybe," Naruto replied snidely. "I hear people fight tougher, but at the same time their techniques weaken when they fight angry."
"Oh trust me," Suigetsu stated, holding out his sword, "that's true, but you don't want to try that on me. I'm stronger than you as is, technique or no technique."
"You think so?" Naruto declared mockingly.
Suigetsu's eyes narrowed as he glared at Naruto. Then, in a flash, Suigetsu disappeared and reappeared behind Naruto. Naruto gasped, trying to move, but it was all he could get out before Suigetsu ran his sword through him, easily slicing him in half.
Suigetsu grinned, sure that the blond was a goner, but it quickly faded into shock as the two halves of Naruto suddenly disappeared in a puff.
"A clone?" Suigetsu exclaimed. "Then where's…?" Suigetsu turned towards the direction Sakura had run off and swore. "That little punk!"
"What do we do now?" Juugo asked, approaching the shark-man.
Suigetsu turned to Juugo with an exasperated look on his face. "Tch. All this fighting is tiring me out. I need some water. You go check and see if Karin's still alive."
Juugo nodded and then went off in the direction they had seen Karin's body fly through the air.
Suigetsu turned back to where the two ninja had disappeared. "Well Sasuke…let's see if you're all you brag to be." Suigetsu grinned snidely. "Not that I'm complaining if you get your butt handed to you. You need a good whipping to finally put you in your place…."
'"'"'"'"
Sakura sped through the trees, keeping her attention focused on the chakra she sensed trying to get farther and farther away.
Something suddenly burst from the trees, frightening Sakura for a moment before she saw the familiar orange clothing and blond hair.
"Naruto," Sakura declared as he fell into step with her. "Did you beat those guys?"
Naruto grinned like his old mischievous self. "Nah, I gave them the slip. We're going to catch Sasuke together, right?"
Sakura stared at the blond for a moment, then smiled and focused back on Sasuke's retreating chakra. "Yeah…let's move."
Up ahead with Sasuke, he occasionally threw a glance over his shoulder, checking for any signs of his pink-haired pursuer. Unaware that now Naruto had joined the chase.
Sasuke looked ahead with a scowl on his face. He never expected to see such strength out of Sakura. When he'd last seen her in Orochimaru's lair he vaguely remembered her lunging at him with a fist ready. Now he understood that if he hadn't countered or dodged it, he probably would have been knocked out in one blow.
Sasuke also thought back to when he briefly whipped past Suigetsu, Juugo, and Naruto. None of them had noticed him fly past, but he had a moment to see them. Naruto seemed to be holding his own very well against Suigetsu and Juugo, a fact that surprised the Uchiha. He knew Naruto was able to grow at a fast rate, so he had no idea just how strong Naruto was now after so many years.
Sasuke smirked confidently. He still thought he could take them, though. He only ran in hopes that Suigetsu or Juugo may have stopped Sakura and pulled her into Naruto's battle, but when he sensed her chakra still pursuing him, he knew it had failed. Now he simply ran in hopes of finding a clearing where they could actually fight and he could take her down.
Then Sasuke caught it, he recognized Naruto's chakra, and it too pursued him at Sakura's side.
Sasuke swore. One at a time he knew would be no problem, but both of them at the same time may be trouble. Though, he noted, Naruto was injured, and he didn't think Sakura could have gotten that much stronger. He weighed his chances, and determined that he still had a chance.
At that instant, Sasuke emerged into a clearing, where he quickly hit the ground, skidding to a stop around the middle of the clearing. There he'd have plenty of room to fight. He quickly retreated a little farther back into the trees on the opposite side of where he had emerged. With any luck they would try to cross the clearing, and then Sasuke could easily launch a surprise attack and take out one of them, assuring a victory for him then.
A minute later Sakura and Naruto burst through the leaves, but instead of continuing, they both screeched to a stop around where Sasuke had.
Sakura looked straight towards where Sasuke stood. "I can see you, Sasuke."
"Yeah! Quit running you coward! Face us!" Naruto exclaimed.
Sasuke snorted. Naruto hadn't changed much, but Sakura definitely came forward with much more confidence than before. He came forward, stopping when there was still a good fifteen feet between them.
Naruto grinned. "Finally decided to show yourself to us, eh?"
Sasuke didn't say anything, slowly inching his hand towards his sword.
Suddenly, moving so quickly Sasuke hardly registered it, a kunai whizzed dangerously close to his hand that had almost reached his sword.
Sakura retracted her outstretched hand. "There's no need for that, at least not if you listen to us."
Sasuke looked coldly towards the two. "Who said I was going to listen? Say as many touching words or send as many Anbu as you want…none of it will persuade me."
"So you're just going to throw your life away?" Sakura retorted.
Sasuke scoffed. "I haven't thrown it away. I told you before, we walk different paths. What's right to me may not be right in your eyes, but it makes perfect sense in mine."
Sakura retracted back slightly, a little stung by his words as images of the night he left flooded her mind. He had said that to her that night.
Naruto shot Sasuke a foul look, sensing the tension coming from Sakura. "What happened to you, Sasuke? You never used to be like this! Sure, you're arrogant and self-centered and a braggart, but you're no idiot! What you're doing is stupid! You already killed Itachi! What more can you want?"
Sasuke glared at the blond. "You would never understand."
Naruto scoffed. "Like I haven't heard that shit before…Teme!"
Sasuke appeared unmoved, and began to reach for his sword again. Sakura caught his movement, and began to reach for another kunai, but she reacted too slowly. Sasuke unsheathed his sword, disappeared in a flash, and reappeared again behind her. The sword loomed dangerously close to her neck.
"Sakura!" Naruto gasped. "Don't do it, Sasuke!"
"Like I've said…" Sasuke whispered by Sakura's ear, "I'll kill anyone who tries to get in my way."
Sakura stared forward, unmoved by Sasuke's motion. "I've told you…we just need you to listen to us. Besides…I know you won't do it."
Both Naruto and Sasuke seemed taken aback by her statement.
"Sakura…" Naruto murmured with a concerned edge, worried about what her words could evoke from the Uchiha.
"And what gives you that notion?" Sasuke questioned, pressing the steel of his sword closer to her neck.
Sakura cocked her head slightly to see Sasuke out of the corner of her eye, just barely avoiding grazing the edge of the blade with her neck. "It's never really suited you…the role of a man who would kill needlessly…let alone kill a woman. You're an avenger, right? You don't kill without reason."
Sasuke's grip on his sword tightened slightly. A movement that didn't go unnoticed by Sakura.
"I knew it…." Sakura muttered.
Then, without any sort of warning, the sword flew from Sasuke's hands, and Sakura tackled Sasuke, sending them flying in the opposite direction of his sword.
"Naruto! Cast a clone, and make sure it doesn't let Sasuke get his sword!" Sakura ordered as she and Sasuke hit the ground.
Naruto nodded and immediately set to work summoning a clone, who then ran to Sasuke's sword, picked it up, and disappeared into the trees.
The position they had been in when Sakura gave her order was that Sakura had been on top of Sasuke, but as Naruto had cast his clone and sent it towards Sasuke's sword, Sasuke quickly lashed out at the kunoichi. His hand wrapped around her throat, and he easily reversed their position.
Sakura stared up at Sasuke in surprise at his action, quickly sending her hands to where Sasuke's were clamped around her throat in an attempt to pry his fingers off of her.
Sasuke leaned in a little over Sakura so their faces were close to each other's. He smirked. "I'm surprised you could deduce that, Sakura. You seem to have changed while I was gone." His grip on her neck tightened slightly, causing Sakura to gag for a moment as he pressed on her airway. "But don't think I won't kill you…because you are in my way…that is my reason."
The two stared into each other's eyes for a moment. Sakura's betrayed the fear she felt inside over the thought of Sasuke really killing her, while Sasuke's were hardened, radiating his seriousness in that he would really try to take her life. The feelings Sakura got seeing his expression were like a thousand tiny needles pricking painfully at her heart.
Sakura tried again to pull Sasuke's hand away from her throat. Channeling her chakra into her hands, she began to succeed. Sasuke's eyes widened as he realized she was overpowering him, and without much more warning, Sakura shoved his arm away and she rolled, causing Sasuke to lose his balance on top of her, and for the second time she was the one on top.
"Sakura!" Naruto called, almost as surprised as Sasuke to see Sakura overpower the Uchiha.
Sakura's eyes flicked to the side briefly at Naruto's call, but then she realized that was a mistake to do. However, it was too late. Sasuke grabbed hold of her shoulders and shoved her up then back down to the ground.
"I've had enough of this wrestling match." Sasuke hissed.
Sakura's eyes widened as she felt a charge of lightning chakra course through Sasuke's hands. It started as a tingle at first, but then it quickly ramped up to a stabbing pain as his jutsu shocked her. Sakura let out a pained cry.
Then an instant later, Sasuke was suddenly thrust to the side. His jutsu no longer affecting her, Sakura bolted up into a sitting position as Naruto skidded to a halt just between her and Sasuke.
Naruto stared Sasuke down. "You're gonna have to go through me if you want Sakura!"
"Naruto…" Sakura whispered as her hands came up and ran over her throat and shoulders where Sasuke had pinned her.
"Leave him to me, Sakura. It seems I need to beat some sense into him before he'll listen to us!" Naruto growled, not taking his eyes off of the Uchiha who now picked himself up off the ground to return Naruto's harsh stare.
Sasuke smirked. "Bring it…I'm actually interested to see just how much stronger you've become…Dobe."
And we're cutting it off here! For those of you reading this for the first time, I guess you're interested to see what happens. For those of you reading this for a second or third or however many times because you may be reading this re-written chapter, you're just trying to take in anything that's new. (Like Sasuke and Sakura's extended wrestling match.) And for the new people not knowing what I'm talking about, well, you don't have to worry because you get to read the improved version rather than the older version and then this version. So anyway, on to the next chapter!
