Chapter TWO

Hatake Kakashi did not know what to expect when him and his team were called into the Hokage's office early one morning. He greeted Namikaze Minato on behalf of his team and dropped into a bow.

"I have a mission for you." Minato said. He turned to his desk and passed Kakashi a scroll. "There have been reports of a disturbance in the area near the River border." His eyes darkened and he linked his hands in front of his mouth. "A Jounin team sent on border patrol to that area has not returned. It's been three days since their departure. I want you to check it out. You leave at noon."

Kakashi recalled the rumors of Hyuga Tsumuji and his team not returning and bowed once again. "Understood, Hokage-sama."

ANBU Team Ro met up at the gates at exactly noon. They departed without words and Kakashi made a beeline towards the border between the Fire country and the River country. His team easily kept up with his rapid pace and it is rather soon when the terrain begins to change.

Uchiha Itachi momentarily break the formation to move up next to him. "Taicho, there are intricate layers of genjutsu laid across the entirely of the area before us." He reported.

Kakashi tensed and brought forth his own Sharingan to confirm what the Uchiha had said. "This is a very strong genjutsu."

Itachi nodded. "Strong as in undetectable." He said. "The genjutsu is so well blended into the environment and its natural chakra."

"It must be someone very skilled." Yamato noted.

Kakashi turned to their female teammate. "Yugao, keep an eye out for any presence. Report back if you sense anything,"

Uzuki Yugao nodded firmly. "Understood."

They travelled on for a little while longer before Itachi drew in a sharp breath. In the next instant, Kakashi himself noticed it. The mouth of a huge stone structure was hidden right before them, blended in perfectly with its surroundings to the point it could not be seen at all. He decided that the uneasy air surrounding them must be a genjutsu too, to keep people from accidentally wandering into the area.

"It's several layers of genjutsu used to hide a single object." Itachi said, and Kakashi could hear the cogs turning as theories flashed through his mind. "I have never seen it be used like this before."

"A genjutsu to hide the doorway, and then another to hide the genjutsu, then several more on top of that." Kakashi nodded. "Unheard of, but certainly very effective."

"The caster has no doubt noticed our presence." Yamato said. "If he's talking this many precautions to hide this location, I bet he would have some sort of sensor seal hidden somewhere."

"Regardless, this is proof that the caster has something to hide within these caves."

"There are two signatures from within." Yugao reported.

Kakashi straightened his mask and gestured for Itachi. "Break it."

Itachi raised a hand towards the empty space before them and the air seemed to ripple, and the scenery began to break and crack. Soon, they were standing at the mouth of the now visible cave. A set of manmade stairs lead downwards and at the bottom, they could see the beginning of a corridor.

Kakashi silently drew a blade. "Be ready." He ordered, then began to descend.

At the bottom, they found a double door. Kakashi threw them open. The ANBU streaked through the entrance and found themselves in a beautiful cave. The walls were highlighted blue green by what looked like light given off from the rocks themselves. There was a quiet sound of trickling water that came from a calm river that cut through the rock floor. In the center of the cave was an raised platform made of rock and a desk like structure that looked like a sacrifice altar.

Before it stood a young white haired teen clad in white robes and empty sockets that seemed to stare right through them. He had a kunai in his right hand and a bundle tucked under his other arm. Kakashi tensed when he realized that the bundle was the limp body of a child.

"Pink hair, around five." Yamato murmured. "It matches the description of the Haruno heir that went missing during the massacre two years ago."

Kakashi nodded slightly. Was this boy somehow related to that tragedy?

"Hello." The teen casually shifted his stance and used his weapon to point towards a corner of the cave. "Is that yours?"

Kakashi carefully glanced over and narrowed his eyes at the sight. Four dead bodies, that of the missing Jounin team, hung from the ceiling with what appeared to be chakra strings. The Hyuga was clearly missing eyes. The white haired teen's missing eyes flashed through his mind, but he put that aside for the moment as he turned back to face him.

"Do not come any closer." The teen warned.

"We are Konoha ANBU." Kakashi called out. "Put the weapon down and release the child."

"This one?" Toneri shook the bundle in his arms and there was a soft groan.

Kakashi made a few signs behind his back and in the next second, all four of them flashed away from their places.

Kakashi reappeared in front of the teen while Itachi appeared behind. The teen seemed unfazed by their appearance and neatly ducked Itachi's kick. He used the moment of the movement to deflect Kakashi's blow and then swiftly spun around to land a kick of his own on the twelve year old, who flew back with a surprised grunt. Kakashi noted the apparent strength behind the teen's attack and drew a kunai. The teen passed his weapon from his right hand to his left in order to block the attack with minimal movement. The blades clashed right beside the unconscious girl's ear.

In that instant, the girl's eyes flew open and she let out a scream. Her arms came up in an attempt to struggle away from the teen but his grip tightened, forcing the air out of her lungs and leaving her to struggle for breath. Kakashi realized that the strength the teen was using to push him back was causing this and pulled away. The girl went limp again as the teen relaxed as well.

Kakashi would have to admit, he was impressed. Whoever he was, this teen was able to hold back two ANBU level shinobi while carrying a now struggling girl. Still, that was not something he should be praising such a potentially dangerous enemy for.

Kakashi revealed his Sharingan just as Itachi activated his. They began to push the teen backwards, and he had no choice but to use both hands to defend against them. In that moment, Yugao appeared and snatched the girl from his loosened grasp. Yamato appeared to cover for her and she lunged the girl backwards and away from the immediate vicinity of the fight.

Kakashi and Itachi regrouped with them and Yugao nudged Itachi towards the girl before she stood to join the rest of the team with facing the teen.

The white haired boy clicked his tongue in annoyance and made a hand sign. In the next second, there was a surge of chakra and the sound of an explosion. The ceiling began to cave, raining debris and chunks of rock down towards them.

Immediately, Itachi threw himself over the girl as she let out a wail of fear. Yamato grew a wooden structure over them to protect them and a few seconds later, the sound of falling rocks and the shaking stopped. The wooden shield unraveled and Kakashi glanced around the clearing to note that the teen was nowhere to be seen.

"He isn't anywhere within my range." Yugao reported, confirming his thoughts.

Kakashi nodded, then turned towards the girl, who was clinging onto Itachi's uniform and glancing around widely with fearful green eyes. Her gaze finally landed on the four of them and she instantly let go and scrambled away, towards the altar. Kakashi let her hide in the shadows of the altar and after a while, she carefully peeked out at them. "Who are you?"

"We are ANBU from Konoha." Kakashi said. He thought for a moment, before he took off his mask. "We aren't going to hurt you."

The girl eyed them warily. "The white haired man. Do you know him?"

"We don't."

The girl narrowed her eyes before she slowly stood up to move to the front of the altar. "Well, he is not here anymore. What are you going to do now?"

Kakashi eyed the girl's shaking limbs and realized how thin they were. If he recalled, Itachi's younger brother was around the same age as the girl and the differences in the thickness of their wrists were slightly worrying. "You don't have to worry about him anymore." He said, trying to sound reassuring. "Can you tell us who you are and what happened here?'

"I...I am Haruno...Sakura." The girl said, confirming her identity as the missing Haruno heir. "The man brought me here a long time ago, after I came out of the cave."

"Cave?" Yugao asked. She, along with the rest of the team, had taken off their masks as well.

Sakura hesitated, but she nodded. "The Cave of Generations. The cave from which I emerged as heir."

Kakashi noted the girl's polite language. "What did you do while here?" He asked.

Sakura glanced down at her hands, which she hand clenched into her clothes. "I...I did not do much." She said after a while. "I cannot remember everything, but I think it has been a very long time since I have done anything else but eat and sleep."

"You don't have to worry anymore." Kakashi repeated. "Konoha will take you in."

"Konoha." Sakura said, softly, as though testing out the words. "It is...is..."

"A village." Kakashi said. "A Hidden Village."

Sakura nodded, but still did not seem to understand what he meant. "Okay." She stepped down from the platform and slowly made her away towards them.

"Yugao, will you take her?" Kakashi asked. The woman nodded. "We will return to Konoha and report to the Hokage." He told his team. "We will keep an eye out for the white haired teen."

"Will we head out now?" Itachi asked, tilted his head towards the sky. "It is soon sunset."

The girl's head snapped upwards and her eyes widened. "Sunset." She repeated. "The time of day when sunlight fades." Her tone softens and she closes her eyes. "I have never seen it before."

Yugao glances worryingly at the girl, then at Kakashi. "What do you mean by that?" She asked.

"As per clan traditions, all children are to remain within the compound until they are of age." Sakura said, almost as though she were reciting something. "Even after the ceremony, the only view of the outside I had was the hole in the ceiling that let in natural light. I have never seen the whole sky before. A cousin of mine once snuck out of the compound and upon his return, told me of the sky. He vanished a few days after and I never saw him again."

Shinobi clans had dark secrets, ones like the Hyuga and their binding seal. The Haruno clan were known to be even more secretive and in addition, was a clan of another village altogether. Kakashi decides to leave the questioning to a later date.

"Should we explore the cave?" Tenzo asked.

"I'd say there are no life forms here, but I can sense very faint chakra scattered all throughout the place." Yugao aid. "It's not an individual signature, it's almost like the entire cave, the rocks themselves, are radiating chakra."

Kakashi turned his focus to the closest glowing wall but he could not pick up on anything. It must be very faint.

"We can explore the immediate vicinity." He decided. "Sakura, do you know how deep these caves go?"

The pinkette shook her head. "The man went there sometimes." She said. "I do not know what he did in there, nor do I know where they lead. He left sometimes, but I believe there were wards around the altar to keep me from stepping off of the platform."

Kakashi nodded and accepted her answer. The teen had kept Sakura captive here for two years: it would be fair to assume that he had taken measures to make sure she could not escape.

"We'll scout the area before the sun goes down." He ordered. "We'll head back to Konoha tomorrow morning."

Sakura's first steps out of the cave were wobbly. Itachi noted the girl's lack of shoes and glanced around the terrain. For the moment travel would be made over grass, so it should not be too much of a problem. The forest would be slightly more unsafe for bare feet but Itachi assumed one of them would carry her through the trees. Kakashi had already sent a summon back to Konoha to request aid with the bodies of the Jounin team and they could afford slow travel.

"This is grass?" Sakura asked.

Itachi turned his gaze back to Sakura, who was carefully poking at the grass with her foot. "It is." If what she said was true and she had spent the first five years of her life underground, having something not cold stone under her feet must be an entirely new experience altogether.

That thought filled him with pity for her.

"It is...different." Sakura noted. "Ticklish, but not unpleasant."

Unsure of what to say, Itachi nodded. A few seconds later, Kakashi, Tenzo and Yugao appeared from the cave.

"We've sealed the cracks so they don't collapse." Yugao said. "We can go now."

Kakashi nodded. He eyed Sakura's curious prodding of the ground. "We'll walk for a while, and then you'll have to be carried, Sakura."

The girl looked up hesitantly but she nodded. "Okay."

There was no drastic change in the scenery on the way to the forest but to Sakura, everything was new. Itachi could tell she was trying her best to refrain herself but occasionally, she slowed to glance at one thing or another.

"I'm sorry." She murmured when they had paused for a break. "I-I have never seen.." .She glanced down and hesitantly bit into the ration bar offered to her

The children in her clan only ate rice, apparently.

"Everything is new to you." Yagao said gently. "Don't worry, we understand. It must be fascinating and overwhelming."

Sakura tightened her grip on the wrapping. "As a child, I did not know and as an awakened, I did not care. It is because I am now head." She said. "That is why curiosity is plaguing me."

Itachi glanes up to see his teammates sharing a look. What did she mean?

Kakashi asked just that.

Sakura hesitated but did not speak and Itachi understood. As a member of a clan, it was forbidden to share clan secrets and inner workings. However, now, Sakura was the clan head and even more. She was the last of her blood.

Sakura was the clan itself.

When they move onto the trees, Itachi offered his back to Sakura, expecting her to climb on just like Sasuke did, sometimes without invitation.

He paused when she did not. "Climb on." He said gently.

"Climb on?" Sakura repeated.

Itachi gestured for her to come closer and helped her place her legs around his waist then her arms around his neck. "Hold on." He said. "We will be moving much faster."

Despite the warning he had given her, when they began moving, Sakura still let out a gasp of surprise and tightened her grip around his neck. She looked up after a while, though, and she let out a soft gasp beside his ear. "Wow."

Itachi glanced up from the corner of his eye and watched the fascination run over the girl's face. "How is it?" He asked softly.

A strange look passed over her face as she paused in her rapid glancing around to look down at him. "It is beautiful." She said, and there was something a little off with her tone, but Itachi decided not to comment.

Team Ro and Sakura passed through the gates just as the sun was beginning to set. They immediately headed over to the Hokage Tower to hand in their report. Sakura, who had fallen asleep a little while ago, had woken up at the sudden commotion. Her head shot up and she glanced around rapidly, taking in the buildings and the people."What-"

"Welcome to Konoha." Itachi told her softly.

Sakura seemed to take in his words and slowly let them sink in. "Konoha." She repeated. "The Hidden Village of Leaf."

The Hokage let them in the moment they arrived.

Kakashi dropped into a bow and the team followed. Itachi gently placed Sakura on the ground and felt the girl quickly step behind him to hide as he lowered to the ground as well.

"Welcome back."

Kakashi stood up. "Team Ro has returned.

Namikaze Minato smiled. "Remove your mask, Kakashi, all of you."

Itachi felt Kakashi sigh but do as told. Itachi and the team followed suit. Their team leader then proceeded to give Minato a run through of their mission, starting with the chakra sensors and the illusion around the cave, then the Jounin team and the white haired teen, and finally, Haruno Sakura.

Itachi felt the girl tense at her name and he gently nudged her out from his shadow. Sakura stubbornly clung onto him for a few more seconds before she allowed herself to be moved forward. Minato's previously stern expression melted into a gentle smile. "Hello Sakura-chan." He greeted. "I'm Namikaze Minato, the Hokage."

Sakura eyed him for a while before she dropped into a unfamiliar, yet surprisingly humble and respectful bow. "Hokage-sama." She acknowledged. "I am Haruno Sakura."

Minato suddenly looked uncomfortable. "Uh, Sakura-chan-"

Sakura stood up and glanced gim over, like she was searching for something. "You are unlike Senri-sama." She finally decided. At the confused looks she received, she gave a shirt explanation. "Senri-sama was the head of the clan. He was my predecessor, my to be mentor." She smiled softly. "But I guess that is now but a tale of the past."

Minato asked Itachi and the Uchiha clan to take in the girl, at least for the first night, until arrangements could be made. He ordered the youngest member of Team Ro to bring in the girl tomorrow then dismissed them with the exception of Kakashi and, the moment they had all left, he turned to his student. "Is there anything else you can tell me?"

Kakashi nodded. He relayed the conversations they had had with Sakura, of the glimpses of her clan life and what she remembered of her time in the cave with the teen after its massacre. "There is something strange about the Haruno clan." He said. "Sakura implied things, but I cannot be sure unless she confirms it with her own words."

Minato nodded slowly and placed her head on his linked hands. "I will have Inoichi present tomorrow." He decided. "I don't want to do this to a girl, but-"

Kakashi nodded in understanding. "It is better to get it over with."

Here's chapter two~

Darque: Like people have noticed, this will take a slightly less humorous/light route through the story.

Raven: We'll be taking a similar pathing to the original, though, so...I guess you could look forward to that?

Darque; Yeah.

Raven: Uh...yeah, then.

Read and Review~

Dear Readers,

Happy New Year~ (A little too early, or a little too late, maybe.)

Thank you for everything up to this point, and we hope you continue to support us throughout 2018.

Sincerely,

Darque and Raven.