Unspeakable
NG: Gaaah Chapter two. Finally. I've been meaning to update this. Sorry it took so long but GOOD NEWS I am finished exams so expect faster updates.
Sakura: Neko Graphic does not own Naruto if she did do you honestly think she would be writing fanfiction?
Chapter two: Blood Rose
Those words echoed through the Uchihas brain. He was unable to comprehend their meaning to the woman he held in his arms. Sure he was a ninja; he was always being watched, either from enemy ninja or the Root ANBU who watched his every move with dark interest. It was a part of his daily life. But this girl who never even picked up a kunai in her life it looked like…who would be watching her?
Sakura continued to quiver in his grasp. Sobs of terror escaping her dry and raw throat. Her grip on his shirt never slacked as she closed her eyes tight refusing to see the outside world. Sasuke knew without asking that he wouldn't get anymore information from her tonight. He let out a sigh as he pondered what to do, he wished he was still in his bed…but then again, he looked at Sakura who was ever so slowly calming down, could he really have ignored her? With anyone else he wouldn't have given it a second thought. But with her…it was as if he couldn't leave her alone. They were too similar he decided. They had both seen truly horrific deeds, most likely deeds not meant to be committed by humans.
Letting out another sigh he began to rub her back soothingly. It was what his mother did when he was scared when he was small so he figured it could help here. He felt her lean into him farther instinctively getting closer to what she felt as safety.
The wind began to die, but still Sakura made no move to remove herself from Sasukes grip, and wasn't about to let her willingly go. What an odd situation, that thought crossed the Uchihas mind more then once that night. Here he was, the human ice block; comforting someone…the irony didn't escape him. Naruto will have a fit when he finds out. This is more his kind of thing.
"Sasuke-san?" Sasuke looked down to see a mop of delicate pink hair. Sakura shifted in his grip until she could look up at him. Her bright green eyes shadowed as they glinted with fear. She looked imploringly into his own dark ones. Sasuke closed his eyes. He understood. He was the same way once, along time ago.
"Aa," he answered. Sakura gave what could have passed as a smile; she took one last glance outside the window and flinched at the still dark world. The wind howled still, but not as loud as before. Sasuke tightened his grip on her momentarily in some sort of hug.
"It's alright," he told her softly. Sakura shivered at his reassuring tone. "Nothing can get you in here." She nodded once and was still. Sasuke looked down and noticed she was asleep already.
'Who is she, to make me so different around her then others,' that stray thought reflected it's self through his brain again. Reluctantly he let her go, laying her gently down on the bed. He stood up and walked over to the window watching the trees rake across the window pane trying to get in at the sleeping woman behind him. What is it that hunted her?
Sasukes eyes narrowed, Sharingan activated, changing his normally black gaze to threatening scarlet. There, barley seen on the horizon. Was a light, obscured by the still falling rain the dark, almost black, burgundy light wavered in and out of view. Only due to his sharingan could Sasuke see it. The light made his stomach churn with unease. Nothing about it was natural.
The door opened behind him. Sasuke whirled around. Hinata stepped back in surprise to see Sasukes sharingan activated, her hand still resting on the doorknob. In her other was a china mug filled with black coffee. Its aroma was appealing to the Uchiha as it stimulated his sense of smell. Hinata offered the cup to him gingerly. His eyes returning to gray-black he stepped away from the window and accepted the mug with a nod of thanks. He wasn't the talkative type to begin with but that light sent him into contemplative silence. Hinata accepted lack of communication with ease they were all used to the young Uchihas habits and knew when not to push. Her pale orbs rested on the sleeping Sakura.
"You got her to calm down," she stated rather then asked in her own soft voice, "that's good," when the Uchiha didn't respond she looked around the room. Noting the subtle changes in Sakuras room then all the others. First there were books. Apparently the green eyed woman loved to read. Many of the books were medical texts while some were fashion magazines brought by Ino to introduce Sakura to Konoha's fashion seen before she left the hospital. Hinatas eyes trailed to the night table, a small frown made its way onto her moon skinned face.
"What is it?" Sasuke asked taking a deep drink of his coffee while watching the outside, also frowning. The light was gone, but that did nothing to settle his uneasiness.
"Those flowers weren't here before," she murmured questioningly. Sasuke turned away from the window to face the younger Hyuuga, a small look of confusion entered his eyes as he followed her out stretched hand pointing to the night side table. Indeed there was a stack of flowers with nothing tied around them to indicate were they come from. They were of the deepest most vibrant red, roses the color of red wine or old blood. Attached to each rose, was a tag.
"What in the world…" the Uchiha trailed off. He had been in that room for hours and he didn't see anybody enter or leave the room. Nor had he seen that the roses were already there.
"They're gorgeous," Hinata whispered reaching out to touch one. Her pale fingers stretched out ready to stroke the delicate looking petals. And inch from the flowers, she stopped, her gaze widened. Steam rose from the petals as they withered and shied from her touch. The leaves turned from vibrant green to ashen gray as the stems sunk into themselves. The petals so plump and full of life died and withered turning a sickened brown.
"What?" Hinata gasped her eyes already as wide as dinner plates. She closed the distance between her and the grotesque flowers grasping them by the stems, only to recoil with a cry of utter pain. Clutching her hand to her chest she stumbled back as if receiving a blow. Sasuke darted forward and caught her. Steadying her they both looked down on her hand.
An ugly burn marred her hand, the flesh blistering still and raw.
"Holy shit!" the Uchiha exclaimed, "We need to get you to Tsunade now! And get those flowers contained." Hinata nodded weakly and stood up, bumping the table as she rose. A parchment card fell onto the floor. Sasuke bent down to retrieve it. Holding it up for him and Hinata to read, they noticed the writing was the same color as the roses.
Dear Blossom,
I hope you come see me soon. Your friends miss you…
"Friends?" Sasuke felt his brows come together in confusion. What friends? She only had them as far as he knew. Looking the roses he noted the tags and gently lifted one of them careful to avoid touching the flower stalk. He felt his eyes widen. Quickly he turned over every single tag.
"What is it?" Hinata asked curious in spite her pain. She looked around him and gasped.
On every single card, was a name.
XXX
"Every single one?" Shikamaru muttered, he picked up the white pieces of cardboard and inspected it gingerly. Sasuke resisted rolling his eyes.
"Obviously if you're looking at them." Neji retorted looking equally annoyed at the Naara genius. Shikamaru shrugged and didn't answer.
"Have we got any leads on who these people are?" Kiba asked from the other side of the room. They were in ANBU head office in the conference room across from Sasukes office. Since the injury of Hinata and the whole idea that the flowers were a threat and the fact that more might be involved Tsunade had made this a top priority case, much to the elders' annoyance.
Shino nodded from the window, "Yes," he told them, "but not much." Naruto perked his head up.
"Well lets hear it." He ordered, serious for once. Again Shino only nodded before speaking.
"As far as we know they are, well, was a merchant party from the land of grass that dispatched to Konoha bringing goods four months ago."
"It doesn't take four moths to travel from Grass to Fire, even for civilians." Tenten pointed out.
"True," Shino amended, "But we have received reports from Grass that the party disappeared two and a half months ago, without a trace right outside our borders.
"Sound!" Naruto snarled. Shino shook his head.
"No that doesn't look to be the case. Oto Nin was seen to be on the other side of Amegakure after the fall of Akatsuki and we haven't had any reports of them near Fire since."
"This doesn't make any sense!" Ino exclaimed! The others made sounds of agreement.
"What puzzles me the most if how those flowers got there in the first place when no one saw anyone enter or leave the room once Uchiha got there?" Neji murmured, "And the fact that there was no 'Sakura' among those dispatched from Grass. Or anyone fitting her description for that matter"
Sasukes eyes glanced at the Hyuuga whom caught his gaze.
"What?" he asked. Sasuke rested his hand on the desk, his facial expression clearly thinking. Everyone turned their attention to their captain.
"Have
we asked all the other villages about her? Asking if they have any
records of someone like her?" he asked. Neji nodded.
"We
have asked all the villages we dare approach. None have yielded to
knowing a thing about her."
Everyone was silent.
"It is possible that she isn't from a shinobi village," Shikamaru said calmly drawing everyone's attention to him. "It could be that she is from a small remote village near Grass or on the rout here and hitched a ride with them to go somewhere." He stated simply.
"If that's the case we may never know where she came from," Naruto whined.
"We could always ask her," Kiba suggested.
"I already tried," Sasuke answered, "Whatever did this to her made sure to wipe her memories of before the incident clean from her mind. This isn't just so she couldn't go home. He or she did that so whatever happened was the only thing she could remember and she couldn't retreat to happier times in order to lessen the pain. Who ever were dealing with is a person with no mercy."
"Then we should deal with them with no mercy," Naruto growled out lowly, his eyes promising pain. No one said anything to that but they knew that they all agreed.
The silence stretched on, everyone was lost in their own thoughts.
"Has anyone got news on Hinata-chan?" Ino asked changing the topic and lightening the mood.
"Aa, it's not a serious burn but it is strange." Neji answered, "It won't heal. Tsunade has tried everything but the mark won't go away. She's off missions until she recovers from the shock but other then that she's fine."
"Do they know what caused it?" Kiba asked.
"Some kind of acid that is part of the flowers themselves," Neji replied, poison lacing his words, "the flowers were mutated when they were grown to produce acid, but that's not the worst. It seems that the botanical DNA in the acid of the flowers match the people whose name was tagged to them"
"That's just wrong," Kiba placed his heads over his face, "on so many levels."
"So we can safely assume that the merchants are dead?" Sasuke asked.
"Yes," Was Shinos' reply.
"Those poor people," Ino whispered, "I can't imagine what they went through."
"Judging from Sakuras behavior, it was something horrible." Sasuke muttered darkly. Just then there was a knock from the door. Opening it Ino let in Kakashi and Lee. The Copy nin held an envelope in his hand.
"Good morning all," he greeted cheerfully exceeding in lightening up the rooms atmosphere.
"Your late," Sasuke drawled.
"I got lost on the…"
"…road of life," every one recited. Kakashi sweat dropped. Walking over to the Uchiha, the masked shinobi slapped the envelope down in front of him.
"The Lab Techs have finished testing the note found with the flowers. They have found no finger prints on the note and there was no writing sample on file to compare the writing too. Also they have confirmed that the ink used to write the note is in fact human blood."
"Ugh," was the sound Ino made in disgust.
"is it one of the merchants?" Tenten asked as the Uchiha slipped the note out of the bad and read the report the lab technicians wrote.
"No," Kakashi said. "It's…"
"Sakura's," Sasuke hissed out violently. His sharingan activated. Everyone in the room stilled not wanting to anger the ANBU captain further.
"Sasuke, calm down," Naruto said gently facing his best friend. Sasuke did nothing but continued to glare at the note, as if trying to set to a blaze with his gaze.
"Uchiha," Neji caught his attention, "that's evidence. Leave the evidence alone." If everyone wasn't afraid for their lives right now they would have laughed. Sasuke sighed and stood up.
"I'm going for a walk," he told them and left them all there staring at his back.
XXX
Tsunade entered Sakuras room, with a medical chart in hand. She was greeted with the sight of the Hyuuga heiress talking animatedly with the mysterious pink haired girl. A small smile made it's was on the Hokage's face. This Sakura truly interested her. The mysterious circumstances on which she became know to the village was one thing, but the fact that she could smile after being through Kami-sama knows what is incredible strength of will.
Tsunade eyed the bandage that still adorned the Hyuuga heiress's hand. No matter what she did the burn mark would not leave the girls skin. The Hokage was afraid that it might be permanent and that it could have side affects from the acid blood that caused it.
"Umm Hinata-san?" Sakura asked shyly in her soft voice. She tucked a strand of her soft pink hair behind her ear.
"Hai, Sakura-chan?" The violet haired kunouchi responded.
"If you don't mind me asking, what happened to you hand?" Sakura asked curiosity filled her gaze.
Tsunade froze in the doorway, not knowing how this would affect Sakura. She hadn't been told about the flowers. They had been removed from her room by ANBU before she awoke and destroyed after the tests.
"Umm," The Hyuuga struggled to find the words she needed her eyes slightly panicked as she too worried about Sakuras reaction to the news of the flowers.
"I ah," she paused, "I got burned in the lab. Some sort of acid they were testing was knocked over and some got on my hand." She was surprised how easily the lie came, even if was only half a lie.
"Oh?" Sakura looked shocked, "Are you all right?" she asked worriedly.
"Hai, Hai I'm fine Sakura-chan," Hinata reassured her. Sakura looked thoughtful. After a few moments she looked down at the bandaged hand again. She gently picked up the injured body part and began to unwind the gauze.
"S-sakura-chan?" Hinata stuttered. Sakura flashed a bright smile.
"It's alright Hinata-san," she told her, "I just want to look. I know a lot a lot about burns. I saw them a lot…" she trailed off as her gaze darkened. Pain flashed passed her eyes as unwanted memories surfaced within her mind.
Slowly the gauze fell away leaving the shiny dark purple wound open to the air. Hinata hissed quietly as it stung from exposure to fresh air. It has been days since the incident but the wound was still raw and painful. Sakura visibly winced in sympathy. She trailed her pale, delicate fingers over the wound, feeling the agitated skin, studying its texture.
"This is more then just a normal acid burn," she murmured under her breath her eyes suddenly sharp. She eyes the burn with distaste.
"This is a Blood Burn." She stated professionally. Hinata was taken aback by this side of Sakura.
"A what?" she asked. Tsunade frowned confused. She was the best medic in the world and she had never heard of a 'Blood Burn'. Sakura blinked, the sharpness leaving her eyes soft and kind of apologetic.
"O-oh, gomenasai," she said her voice back to its original shyness, "A blood burn is quite serious. It's not actually a burn, well it is, but not what people normally think it is." She explained hesitantly.
"Then what is it?" Tsunade asked. Both girls jumped and Hinata flushed at not realizing that the Hokage had been standing right behind them. Sakura looked a little pale at facing the most important person in this village.
"Umm," Sakura was at a loss for words. Tsunade sighed and smiled a small grin. She walked into the room.
"I don't think we've been properly introduced yet Sakura-chan," Tsunade said placidly the smile not leaving her face.
"I am Tsunade, the Godaime Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato. Welcome to my village." Sakura bowed from her kneeling position on her bed.
"I am honored to meet you Hokage-sama." She said respectively, "I am truly grateful of your kindness in letting me stay in your village." She looked up with pure gratitude in her emerald orbs. Tsunade waved her comment off.
"Don't worry about it girl," she said, "It's no problem. Things were getting boring around here until you came along. We need some excitement in this crazy village if it's to survive." Sakura nodded slowly, not quite understanding what the Hokage meant but that last comment. But Hinata was nodding too so she must agree with what the busty blond said.
"Now then," Tsunade continued her eyes serious again as they gazed at Sakura, "What is this Blood Burn?" Sakura gulped and looked nervous again. She hesitated trying to find the words to best describe what it was.
"Um a Blood Burn is created when the blood of a dead person is used to curse someone." She said.
"Curse?" Hinata looked scared.
"Yes, you can only get a Blood Burn when you physically touch the object that it's made into. The blood is collected and then something is added to it to make it malleable. Or they paint it onto something. The objects become the carrier of the curse but they don't last long."
"What are the effects of the curse?" Tsunade asked pulling out a pad of paper and a pencil. Jotting down what Sakura said. The green eyes girl shrugged.
"I'm sorry I don't know it's different each time depending on what the caster wants it to do." She said apologetically she cast her eyes down towards her clasped hands.
"Is there anyway we can get rid of it? We've tried everything." Tsunade pushed. She was grasping at straws here; she was fond of the quiet Hinata. Sakura didn't raise her head. Information ran though her mind as she thought.
"When is the dark of the moon?" she asked softly. Tsunade looked at her puzzled.
"Tomorrow night why?" she questioned. Sakura nodded and looked up.
"Please, I need you to listen carefully…" and she told them all she knew.
XXX
The Uchiha walked back into the conference room after returning from his walk to the market and causing six fan girls to faint from his presence alone. He scarfed down what was left of his tomato and ducked as a coffee mug was hurled at his head. He looked up and raised an eyebrow at the scene before him. Desk chairs were thrown back and papers scattered and strew across the table. Lee was holding back Naruto who was fighting his grasp as he tried to get a Neji. The Hyuuga was sitting back in his chair grinning triumphantly looking pleased with himself. Kiba was helping lee while the others watched from the sidelines. Kakashi was found at the other end of the large table sleeping with his Icha Icha book open over his face.
"What the hell?" he muttered closing the door behind him. He walked up to the still smirking Hyuuga.
"What did you do?" he asked. Neji looked up and grinned.
"The usual," he replied.
"Aa," Sasuke looked up and the still fuming but calm Naruto, "By the way Hyuuga I just got word from Tsunade-sama." The room turned their attention to him.
"It's about Hinata,"
"What!? Is she okay? Did something happen? Is she sick?" Naruto bombarded Sasuke with questions. Sasuke ran his hand though his raven locks and sighed, refraining from hitting his blond second in command.
"Shut UP! Idiot!" Kiba snapped. Naruto turned and glared at him for a moment.
"Nothings wrong guys," Sasuke told them, "Tsunade has just found a way to get rid of Hinatas burn and she'll be alright." A small sigh of relief escaped some of them while the others just looked like a weight was lifted from their shoulders.
"Do they even know what that thing was in the first place?" Tenten asked curious to what had hurt her friend. She chomped down on a granola bar and chewed happily. Nothing could get that girl down for long.
"Yeah something called a Blood Burn or something, I don't know many details but apparently Sakura knew about it and told them what to do." Sasuke told them. He sat down and leaned against the table. His hand in the familiar pose of folded in front of his mouth. A position he took often when he was thinking. His eyes narrowed.
'What exactly does this girl know?' he pondered. He, like Tsunade, found Sakura very intriguing. She was a mystery that just wouldn't crack. No matter what he tried. She was constantly on his mind, not giving him a moment's peace.
"Oi, Teme?" Naruto called at him, snapping him out o f his reverie. He glanced at the blond. Judging from everyone looking at him. The dobe had been calling him for a while.
"What dobe?" Sasuke sighed and rubbed his head.
"I asked about what we are doing now." The blond asked. His face serious. Sasuke looked thoughtful for a moment.
"We get Sakura out of that hospital and focus on getting her memories back." He told them.
XXX
It was night again. Sakura slept quietly in her bed in the hospital. Her pale pink hair was washed out from the silver moonlight filtering into her room though the white window shades. They had placed them in her room to block out the sight of the trees outside so she wouldn't freak out at night anymore. Imagining things that weren't there.
All was well.
Suddenly her face scrunched together as if she was fighting off a bad dream. Sweat broke out on her brow as her breathing drew ragged. Small whimpers escaped her mouth as tears trailed down her ivory white skin.
Outside her window, yellow eyes watch in sick glee.
"Have you ever felt like you were being watched?"
End of chapter
NG: THERE! Chapter 2 done…aw only 3896 words. I was hoping for 4000 again. –sigh- oh well.
YO k.c91/ PuRpLe SlUrP PM me we need to talk!
Until next time
ciao
