Sakura's grip loosened; she pulled away. "Are...are you asking...me to...mary...?"
His face was blank, hardened for a split second. Kakashi realized he needed to back off quickly. Looking up at her, he could see what looked like fear and confusion. He couldn't blame her, after everything that had happened recently, and what he'd just told her, this was no time to be asking her for a more affectionate relationship. In less than three seconds, he edited his previous question.
"I meant would you let me date you...more seriously than as close friends? I just want the chance, Sakura."
She definitely looked less like she was deciding whether to bolt or to slap him. Still, she was watching him very carefully. There was no way being with him would bring her any kind of normalcy, or even get her back to lunging headlong into the battlefield. He couldn't bring her jumbled memories back into order, or go on random missions by her side. She'd be targeted far more as his love interest than as his former student by enemies both seen and unseen.
Sakura was also in a weakened state physically and emotionally. This wasn't the time for a decision like this.
"Not now." Sakura whispered, sitting up and facing away from him. "You're asking too much of me right now."
Kakashi reached out to gently grasp her damaged right arm, only to have it smacked away again. "Sakura?"
"Don't touch me," she muttered, her breath unsteady. Was she trying not to lash out at him, or was it that she was trying not to cry because they could never go back to the way things were before?
Kakashi believed she would be justified in both right now. He had acted now, while she was vulnerable without thinking about her calculating mind. She wouldn't allow herself to be impulsive and just say yes and work through it later. She'd over think the problems of his proposal and not attempt to find the good in it. He'd acted far too fast and at a very bad time. And it was too late to stop it, already things were changed between them.
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Running... Running...
Trees were a blur as she passed by them. Her footing slipped several times, even on normal surfaces. Something was off. Something...many things...inside.
Her right leg sent jarring pain with every slight pressure on it. There was a small, yet slightly itchy puncture wound on her left shoulder, a bit of the needle had broken off in her skin. She had fought it, but they got most of the liquid in her before she broke the damn thing. Blood ran down her thighs. Pain flared with each movement of her legs, and in a separate, almost rhythmic way higher up, just under her naval.
She hoped it would stop. If it didn't...
She had tested herself while on the road towards half of her team multiple times, and she had come up positive three days ago. If this didn't stop, she'd have to go through it all again in a couple months, and she wasn't sure she wanted to ask that of Kakashi again.
A flash of black right infront of her, still red eyes darkened again to dark gray as she bumped into him headlong.
"I'm not going to hurt you this time, Sakura," he told her quickly. "Just answer me this. Was it Suigetsu?"
"What?" she asked, confused and backing up. She tripped over a branch and fell on her backside, pain ripping through every hair on her body and causing her to cry out.
Sasuke knelt at her side, eyeing her over. "You're in no condition to fight, or run. I'll leave you if you answer me. Did Suigetsu rape you?"
"No." she shook her head, still confused as to why he was asking her this. "Why?"
"Karin said you are pregnant."
Sakura nodded, clutching at her leg with one hand, and her abdomen with another. "Probably not much longer."
"But you will survive?"
"If...help comes..."
Sasuke offered her a hand. "Whoever's behind me won't help you."
"And you?" she asked, suspiciously.
"That baby's innocent."
She understood, and reached out with a hand. As he pulled her up, his eyes flashed red again, and she realized he was focusing behind her just before something hard smacked her in the head.
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Machigai may not have been as unfortunately named as Kakashi had originally thought. The idiot didn't listen at all when Kakashi told him not to approach Sasuke from the front. Lightning ninja were on their way from the same direction-behind Sakura, and infront of Sasuke. And then Machigai was beat to the punch by an enemy shinobi that attacked Sakura on his way to Sasuke.
The Lightning shinobi was caught in Sasuke's dojutsu just after striking Sakura. Machigai used the distraction to try and attack Sasuke, who then struck Machigai down in one surprise blow from the side with a lightning clone. Kakashi decided he needed to stick with previous partners more than these new kids to the ANBU ranks. They tended to fuck up by not thinking things through quite as much. Then again, Sasuke really was fast.
More from Lightning were showing up, and Sasuke turned back to Sakura. Kakashi jumped out from his observation point then, between Sasuke and the immobile Sakura. There was no telling whether or not Sasuke was still willing to help her.
Surprisingly, Sasuke just stared at him for a moment, then turned around to face the enemy. Kakashi's and his enemy.
"Get her to some help," was Sasuke's only words before taking off back towards the rest of his team.
Kakashi didn't take the time to contemplate the younger man's strange behavior. Instead, he snatched Sakura up as fast as possible, and took off back the way he had come.
Sometime later, Sakura awoke slightly, crying out and giving away their position. He had to set her down and bring out the dogs for protection. He only got one word from Sakura durring that time. Miscarrying.
From his understanding, she had actually become pregnant about three months before this, but felt secure enough to continue working for a while more. Chemical tests showed that she wasn't pregnant, but more accurate checks showed she was, especially with her three months of missed periods in a row and the ultrasound pictures starting to show a little form inside. Why she bothered to keep using chemical tests, he didn't understand. She refused to ever confirm the pregnancy even to him.
And now...
Pakkun whined, pressing his nose to Kakashi's blood soaked hand. "Another one, boss?".
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Sakura woke up gasping for breath. She could literally feel the cramping in her abdomen, the throbbing in her leg, and the hit to the back of her head in her dreams. And there was something else. She could practically taste cum in her mouth. Cum and dirt. Not to mention the feeling of hand shaped bruises on her hips, thighs, and neck.
She could still hear the voices of the men in her head, as if it were more of a bad memory than a dream. It was like the dreams she had of Sasuke several years ago when he first left, and again when they met up intermittently. They were always little variations and replays of their meetings, but they never strayed far from the truth. Did this mean she was dreaming of past rapes? When she lost the baby?
She didn't remember much about that part yet. Were these actual memories? Or were they just vivid, smashed together ideas of the truth her mind was actually trying to tell her heart?
It probably didn't matter, only that there was truth to it. And that was the scary part. Her inability to defend herself after so many years of being a kunoichi was wrong. She shouldn't have been allowed to pass even for a genin.
"Forehead!" a singsong, feminin voice floated from the other end of the hall. "I've got something else for you to swallow! Are you up yet?"
Ino. That's right. Ino was bringing in another test mixture to get her chakra back in line. Sakura hurried to pick up the mental pieces as her bedroom door opened, revealing the peppy blond.
"Ah, you are awake," Ino smiled, sitting on the bedside. "Ready for this one? I added a little something from Mist this time. The Kage herself spoke with me by radio and gave some ideas. It seems she likes you now."
"Or, maybe it's because we have the same taste in men," Sakura grumbled back. "I hear she has a thing for Uchiha and doesn't want their gorgeousness gone forever."
"Don't you go making eyes at my boyfriend, Sakura," Ino warned.
"Wouldn't dream of making eyes at anybody right now. Least of all him. You can be the mother of the Uchiha clan. I don't want it anymore." Sakura looked away.
Ino pressed the small vile into Sakura's hands. "You sound just as bad as Kakashi-sama today."
Sakura's head popped up quickly, "You've seen him today?"
She nodded, "Duh. I had to help out with the anual check ups this morning while this cooled down and settled. Seriously, it's two in the afternoon. What are you doing still in bed?"
The pinkett shook her head, then downed the bluish liquid. Making a sour face, she replied, "Had a hard time getting to sleep. Nightmares, too. I think some of them were partial memories."
"About the rape?"
"Yes. And Kakashi finding me."
"I think he's been focusing on that, too. Kurenai and her son were in the waiting room across from him. He looked at them a lot and seemed very sad."
Sakura took a second to think about her next words. "He was almost a father once. A real father. She died in his arms the way I almost did."
"And now he thinks he's in-love with you, I bet," Ino concluded.
"He asked me to date him, but I think his original intention was for marriage, yes."
Ino's eyes went wide. "Holly shit, Sakura! What happened?"
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"Can't do it, sensei," Naruto smirked. "You can't punish me with a D-Rank tomorrow. Mitchi-san asked me to cover PE for him at the school."
"The civilian school?" Kakashi asked, worried for the children there. "You accepted it?"
"Well, yeah. It can't be that hard, can it? He said just to have them do a couple warm-ups inside, then stretch out a bit and go run laps around the field."
"I thought you wanted to finish up the requirements for joining ANBU. If you're going to do that, you'll need to complete your Genin requirements with five more D-rank missions in-city before I can officially make you a chunin. Then six more C=ranks to complete official Jounin. You've got all the B and A requirements to a jounin now."
"Then why can't you count this one as a C?" Naruto questioned.
"Because Mitchi-san didn't go though the right channels to make it that way. Sorry, Naruto-kun, but I'm going to make sure you do this right."
Naruto's eyes narrowed. Do this right? Kakashi had never really cared how things were done as long as they were done smart and worked. Not only that, but Naruto had gotten smart and looked up the records of several Jounin he knew. 80% of Kakashi's C and D rank missions were done with teams he was training, not when he was a genin himself. He was promoted due to skill and need, not in a by-the-book manner the way he was pushing Naruto.
"Come on, Kakashi-sensei, you know you don't have to make me do this! You didn't have to!"
"And I also am known for being a genius, unlike you..." Kakashi mumbled before declaring, "I'm in charge now, not your father. Things that fall under my jurisdiction will be done my way. Seeing as we are not in as great a time of need as we were at my promotion, I refuse to let you skip ranks. You'll be working closely with Hyuuga Hinata as well. She is taking on her first genin team. You'll be working on their D-ranks with them to complete your requirements... after you finish your obligation to Mitchi-san."
Well, at least he was being kind enough to send him under a gentle lead rather than forcing him to work under someone like Kiba. That would suck. Then again, with how much trouble Kiba often joined him in, Naruto was surprised that the Inuzaka wasn't being forced through this, too. Oh, that's right, he had already passed chunin years before Naruto had.
"Just trust me, Naruto. This is for the best. If you're going to succeed me as Hokage, you're going to do it by impressing everyone on the council just as much as you have the rest of the village," Kakashi leaned forward a bit, "And there's another problem we both have to face."
Naruto's ears perked at that. Something was expected of him AND his teacher?
"Since Ino's pregnancy has been announced and the council told about Sai's heritage, they've decided that it's time our genetics were passed on as well. Our own bloodlines and kekke genkai are down to the two of us just like the Uchiha."
Naruto looked blankly back, "Meaning...?"
"Get yourself a girlfriend and get her pregnant. Mary her first if you have to, but do it soon."
The blood looked horrified. "What if I don't want to have a baby? I've never even had-!"
Naruto cut himself off, hands clasped to his mouth at the near full admission of never even having had a sexual relationship to date.
"Do we have to go by any requirements like was set for what Ino and Sakura were doing?" Naruto asked once he calmed down and realised that Kakashi wasn't going to comment-despite the evil grin he sported.
"I think they trust us to make high enough quality decisions of our own," Kakashi answered. "I only ask that you stay away from Sakura. She may not be able to toss you across town again yet, but that doesn't mean she won't find someone else to do it for her."
Naruto advanced, surprising Kakashi, "Don't lie to me. I saw you with her yesterday. You were on a date. A serious date, it looked like. If she's so un-ready for a real relationship and a kid, you wouldn't have been like that. Why are you guys hiding your affair?"
Kakashi shook his head, "There is no affair. She said no, and she gave a lot of good reasons why. I'm backing off, and you shouldn't even bother."
"You still want her, though."
"You don't? Please tell me I'm not going to have to fight you over a woman who was already pregnant with my child not long ago."
"YOUR CHILD?" Naruto exploded, reacting the exact way Kakashi had hoped.
"Like I said. Stay away from her on this."
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"Ino! Ino! Pig, where are you?" Sakura tore through the halls of the Yamanaka compound, yelling the whole way. "I know you're here!"
Ino promptly appeared three doors ahead of where Sakura stood, emerging from the door to her father's study. She closed the door behind her, making sure Sakura couldn't see inside. She looked the exact opposite of how Sakura felt. Instead of elated, she was shaken and pale. It still hadn't dawned on Sakura yet.
"Ino, it's working! Whatever you gave me, it's let me heal myself some! Isn't it great? You found a cure!"
"Please leave, Sakura," Ino said softly. "I need some time alone right now."
Sakura knew that sentence was a full lie. Ino was a social butterfly of the highest quality. The only time she chose to be alone was sitting on a toilet, and even then she was only alone in the manner that she wasn't seen by anyone. There would always be texting going on if she were at home, or chatter through a door if at someone else's. She never went to the bathroom alone when at the mall or any dinner.
"Feeling sick again?" Sakura asked, providing an excuse.
"No." Ino replied shakily. "Family matters."
"Ino what's behind that door?" Sakura advanced, staying just out of the other woman's reach.
"Please. Don't. Just go find Kakashi-sensei and tell him your news. Bring him back here. I need time."
"Screw this," Sakura gathered her confidence and pushed an oddly weak Ino away from the door and opened it.
She opened it to a bloody mess. Blond hair and bits of fatty tissue and bone were all over the room, a nose being the only solidly identifiable object of the deceased Inuzaka member inside. Looking back at Ino, Sakura saw that the only blood on her friend was on her shoes. Not the killer, nor present at the time of the crime. Sakura stepped back out of the room as well, falling to her knees beside Ino.
"Is it Dad?" she asked.
"I don't know. He wasn't supposed to be here."
"Where is the rest of the family?"
"Setting up for the engagement party," Ino sniffled. "Sakura... do you think... could that be...Daddy?"
She wanted to say no with all her heart. Inoichi was like a second father to her when her own father left Konoha for business and never came back one day. Sakura and her mother had actually moved in with the Yamanaka clan for a time while her father's estate was settled. For a while, it even looked like Ino and Sakura would have become step-sisters, until Sakura's mother died in a construction accident six years after Mr. Haruno had died. That was when Sakura was officially adopted by the whole Yamanaka clan. Legally Inoichi was her guardian, but the whole clan took her in and raised her with almost as much love.
The door Sakura had left wide open when rushing in with good news earlier closed a bit harder than the house's new occupant wanted, evidenced by a hushed curse before the man called out, "Ino-chan? Are you still here?"
Ino and Sakura shared a look.
"Daddy!" Ino shouted, bolting to the entrance.
"Dad!" Sakura ran on Ino's heels.
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Kakashi sighed happily. Finally he had an excuse to get out of the office that half the council was also using and the whole council was accepting. Yamanaka Ino's and Sai's engagement party would be host to much of the village. And here was Inoichi, ready to collect him so that they could both go back to the Yamanaka compound and change for the party.
"Ino thinks she's on to something with Sakura-chan's condition," Inoichi commented off-handedly as they neared his front steps.
"I'll believe it when I see it," Kakashi answered. "I don't want to get my hopes up just yet. Also, is your door usually wide open like that?"
"The girls usually leave it like that when they're in a hurry, maybe Ino's still home," Inoichi said as they walked inside.
Kakashi pulled the door closed a bit hard and cussed. He hated it when doors swung easier than they appeared they would.
"Ino-chan?" Inoichi called out, rolling his eyes at Kakashi, "Are you still here?"
There was silence, then "Daddy!" and "Dad!" were screamed from the back of the house, and two pairs of feet were thudding hard in the men's direction just before a blond and a pinkett slammed into him.
"Woah! You two aren't little anymore!" Inoichi yelled at them, fighting to stay on his feet. "What's wrong with you?"
The women backed off, still ignoring Kakashi. Sakura answered for them both.
"Come on. You have to see this."
"Would it have anything," Kakashi asked, making his presence known to the women, "to do with the blood on your feet?"
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Naruto stared at the note the teacher's aid handed him. This would be rough for the kid. He had no idea how to handle this.
"Thank you Aki," Naruto patted her shoulder before addressing the class that was just now into the first set of warm-ups. "Everyone, Miss Aki will be taking over class for the day. Yamanaka Jiro, come with me, please."
"Uzumaki-sensei?" the teen approached cautiously. "What's wrong?"
"We're going back to your uncle Inoichi's house," Naruto said quietly, even softer he added, "Your father is missing, and a body has been found in the main house that could be his."
