Chapter 4 – Genshi

Tsunade leaned on her desk, keeping her back to the door. Her gaze was focused on the window and the bright sunlight glinting off the metal around the windowsill. Her throat was tight.

Kakashi sat up on the other windowsill in the same place he always did, but today he didn't want to be inside. He could feel the memorial calling him. Repeatedly, he would turn his head to look in its direction, even though he couldn't see it.

Finally the knock came that they were both waiting for. It was almost a pounding, and Kakashi knew Naruto was on the other side of the door. When the hinges creaked his entrance, two sets of feet walked in.

Tsunade couldn't turn around.

Kakashi shifted uncomfortably and waited for one of his former team to speak first. Of course it would be Naruto; he didn't have to wait long.

"Alright, old lady. Spill it. What's the urgency?" Naruto chimed, nudging Sasuke with his elbow.

Tsunade still could not turn around so Kakashi placed his feet on the floor and sighed. Both men turned their faces to him.

"Please sit," Kakashi urged.

Naruto quickly tugged a chair noisily across the floor close enough to put his feet up on Tsunade's desk. In his typical fashion, he waited with a smirk until Tsunade would turn to yell at him, but she didn't. As the moment stretched out, Naruto realized something was wrong. He gingerly placed his feet back on the floor and looked expectantly at Kakashi.

"What is it?" Sasuke finally prompted what Kakashi had been dreading.

Kakashi blinked slowly, trying to figure out how to start. "The…Genshi…I'm not sure if you've heard the rumors..."

Both men nodded and Naruto couldn't help but jump in, "I heard she was killed. Is that true? Do you need us to track the killer?"

Kakashi put his hand up. This was harder than he imagined. Heat grew at the back of his neck, and he wiped at the perspiration under the cloth. The weight in his chest seemed to be attached to a cement block dropping through the floor.

"We received word from Mist that the Genshi was killed five days ago in the Rogue Country. She was seconded to Mist to do some tracking of their S-class criminals for the last few weeks. The group she was with was attacked." Kakashi could feel his voice giving out, and knew they could hear it.

Sasuke eyed Kakashi.

"That's it then," Naruto stated obliviously, "We can leave immediately to track the killer."

"Naruto, please," Kakashi scolded gently, frustrated that he couldn't get out what he needed to say. It was hard enough without the interruptions.

Slowly, Sasuke moved to the window beside Kakashi and looked out onto the Konoha that Tsunade stared at. His former teacher's knowing gaze followed him.

"She said it was a medical trip," Sasuke said quietly.

"Hunters never disclose their occupation," Kakashi responded gently. "I'm sorry."

Naruto stood there listening and misunderstanding. Anger flared in his face realizing that there was something important, and no one was telling him. "What the hell are you talking about?"

Sasuke turned to his friend and said quietly, "Why else would the four of us be together for this news. The Genshi is…was Sakura."

Seconds passed and utter silence seemed to bathe the room in electric discomfort like the calm before a storm. Naruto was dumbstruck at first, then stood slowly, took a step and grabbed the back of the chair. With a strained growl of anger, he thrust the seat against the wall, shattering the wood and smashing through the plasterboard.

Sasuke was on him immediately, pushing him against the wall and grabbing his chin to hold Naruto and make him look at him. "She wouldn't die so easily," Sasuke hissed right beside the blonde's ear, forcing immobility with his body. "Don't you believe that?"

Kakashi was on his feet. He wanted to share the same optimism as Sasuke, but he knew Sakura's small group was attacked by the Akatsuki - something not disclosed to his former pupils.

"Are you sure, Kakashi-senpai? Are you sure?" Naruto pleaded as Sasuke loosened his grip but didn't release their contact. Instead, Naruto grabbed Sasuke's arm and they seemed to hold onto each other tightly. Sasuke's head fell against Naruto's shoulder.

"They found a number of bodies…destroyed at the scene. Six hunters were sent out and six hunter masks were found around the area. Her mask was found. Its not confirmed, but no one has had communication with her since the ambush five days ago. We are assuming that she is…gone."

For a moment, the two men still held on to each other for strength until Sasuke raised his head and his sharingan stared through Kakashi. "Permission to conduct an investigation."

"Sasuke. I understand how much you want her to be alive. I'd make my own bargains to have her back, but the obvious is most likely the truth." To send Sasuke out to investigate would surely bring up the Akatsuki and Itachi for him again. They didn't want him to know of the involvement. He couldn't be allowed to go…

"Granted," Tsunade finally spoke. "Report back when you know."

"Hokage-sama," Kakashi breathed out in defeat.

"The leader wants to see you," he said.

"Do you want me to go?" she responded.

"We have a vacancy he needs filled. I cannot refuse, and neither can you."

"No."

The fight had been hard, and he'd cut her to prove his point. She supposed she deserved it after gashing his shoulder with a kunai, breaking his rib and knocking down a wall of his precious secure complex in her anger.

But as usual, he stood there impassive and blank as she left.

"No."

That simple word ended it all and caused the fight they would never recover from. In the end, Itachi stood watching as she walked away holding the cut to her abdomen and quietly crying – but not in pain. In the end, he didn't stop her, and didn't kill her. The outcome, even though she had lived, was not what she wanted.

Realistically, they couldn't keep going the way they were going – flying in the face of their respective proprietors. Something had to give.

His gaze was always so cold. As she walked out of his life after a year of building trust and a connection, he didn't seem to care.

"Am I dead?" a soft voice breathed out, waking her. Sakura fought to open her eyes, realizing that it was her own voice straining to be heard. But her eyelids were heavy and her consciousness felt dulled and hazy.

"Not quite," a deep growl of a voice answered her.

Forcing those heavy eyelids up, Sakura took in the bleak outline of a man hovering above her. Silver hair, and darkness around his chin gave her the mistaken impression it was someone she cared about.

"Kakashi?" she strained through a dry and tight throat.

The man laughed a little and responded again, "Not quite."

Trying to lift her hand, Sakura found her body uncooperative and weak. The ache in her side was pronounced and she hissed a little as she tried to move. It throbbed, and she made a noise like a mixture of protest and pain.

"Lie still. You'll re-injure yourself. Do you know where you are?" the voice asked.

Sakura let her body slack against the sheets for a moment and breathed in the pungent smell of mould and dampness mixed with the bite of medical sterility. Such a juxtaposition; she knew she wasn't in a hospital.

"No," she whispered hoarsely. Blinking slowly, and finding the focus coming gradually to her blurred gaze, she looked at a man in his mid sixties, unshaven, and missing a front tooth. He wore a short white medical coat, but it was worn and less than official.

"You lost a lot of blood and went into shock. We've been slowly healing you for five days. Do you know who you are?"

"Gen…G…" she began wearily, "…Sakura."

"Do you know this man?" he added, pointing to a spot beside the bed that she couldn't see.

A deep breath in, Sakura's body tightened resulting in more pain. Forcing her eyes to roll to her right, she could see movement a few feet from the bed. She turned her head toward him and took in the unsympathetic Uchiha watching her closely. Their stares met, and she creased her brow and closed her eyes.

"Yes…" Her voice cracked. "He killed me."

Her eyes remained shut and she waited.

Footsteps let her know that Itachi had risen and she could sense him moving alongside the bed. A light touch ran from her right ankle gently up to her toe. It was such a strange sensation, to feel his fingers grazing her softly like he used to. But the last thing he said before leaving the room gave her the pain she was expecting.

"Have her ready for interrogation tomorrow night."

The door closed and she opened her eyes again to see the medic looking at her in curiosity. Surely this small woman could not be a ninja? He nodded something to himself that he kept silent and then moved to one of the two doors that were off of the room. Water soon began to run.

"What should I help you with first? Food, spongebath or toothbrush?" he asked calmly and professionally.

Sakura wondered what the man had done in his previous life before mixing with people like Itachi. She felt bad for him. He seemed nice.

Sakura finally groaned softly, "toilet."

Hours passed and Sakura became more alert. The pain was increasingly pronounced and she imagined that whatever they were giving her for relief was wearing off. Lying in the hard bed for hours gave her the opportunity to try and work a few things out. Unfortunately, none of them were helpful.

She was cold. Even with the weight of blankets, she felt the chill to her bones. Perhaps it was a slight infection to her wound or perhaps a lack of blood. Whatever it was, she found that the light shirt she wore under her ANBU vest and her panties weren't enough to keep her warm. The bandages around her mid section didn't help in the least.

The room, she decided, was some decrepit hideaway apartment that they took nondescript prisoners to before the big interrogation. The way the plaster seemed like it was crumbling in some places, and bashed in at others gave her the chills. The water stains on the ceiling fanned out in places and at least one was dripping. Pipes or rain perhaps.

The medical stranger had come and gone, cleaning her wound and administering pain medication of which she was grateful for. But now, as it had worn off, she found her body accepting some of the commands her brain was giving it.

Spurred to act, one word kept running through her head.

Interrogation.

She had to move herself, heal herself, protect herself. It seemed that she might have a single day before Itachi would come and do what he was going to do.

Lifting her hand, and finding the effort markedly easier, Sakura drew chakra and forced some into the wound through the bandages. The cells began to be repaired; the internal damage was getting better. On inspection, she found that he'd missed almost everything major in the way of organs and vessels with his strike through her body. Small favors.

After five minutes she could do no more. A good start, she would try to work on it every hour. Perhaps, by tomorrow night, she could at least have a fighting chance.

The "medic" had come back to see her in the small hours and tended to her wound again. He cleaned her up with a light sponge bath and helped her to the bathroom again for other things she needed to do, remarking that she seemed much better. A toothbrush was mercifully given to her with a small bowl of water, after she'd devoured a pot of oatmeal.

The sheets were changed while she sat in the two inches of water he'd allowed in the tub, and when she was lifted back to bed, she fell almost immediately to sleep. It was a short-lived rest, but she dreamt of being in her own bed in Konoha.

She managed to wake as the sun crept in the dirty windows above her to begin working on her wound again. She only had the day to get prepared.

Door hinges creaked and woke Sakura from a sleep she hadn't known she'd fallen into. Her body was better. Each hour, or at least what she believed to be each hour, she'd pushed what little chakra she could into her wound, stitching the cells and healing the damage. But it wasn't complete, and it wasn't enough to stand any chance against him. Getting out of the blankets would be a monumental effort. Perhaps adrenaline would be kind to her.

Itachi stood at the foot of the bed, the same blunt stare he usually had. An urge to roll out of bed and take a defensive stance was suppressed by the throb at Sakura's side. She'd never survive the first hit with him - not in her current state.

For a long time, he just stood there. His black hair was tied as usual, and the front was longer than she remembered. No headband on his forehead, and he wore no cloak to mark him as part of a detestable group of criminals. Itachi was just Itachi right now, and that scared her even more.

His black t-shirt hugged his slender torso, and his dark pants hung loosely and comfortably underneath the hem. His arms crossed over his chest and he leaned against the wall for a moment surveying his victim.

"Is it time?" she asked coolly, stifling all the emotions that took over in his presence.

Itachi bowed slightly and closed his eyes once for just a second. When he opened them, they were red. Immediately, Sakura averted her gaze. Their trust was gone.

"I'll ask a question. You'll respond truthfully."

His voice could cut right through her composure.

Sakura swallowed hard and nodded, not taking her eyes from the silver necklace at his throat.

"Who were you looking for?" he began in his smooth muted tone.

"S-class defectors from Mist."

"Why Leaf?"

"The Genshi was seconded to Mist to help track. Akatsuki was not on our list." Sakura glanced at his sharingan. She watched them run along the shape of her body under the covers and she twitched her leg slightly when she tensed.

With each question, he moved closer to her.

"Who have you told about my complex?"

"No one."

Itachi paused. "No one?"

"No one." In this, she was firm. Yes, she'd told Kakashi and her two teammates about their deal years ago, but she never said she knew where to find him. Even now, the idea of disclosing their meeting place seemed ridiculous. She'd never betray him like that. Even with impending death at his hands, she couldn't betray him.

"Your comrades killed one of our members. Two more were killed in the ambush. We have eliminated your whole party."

"I know. They didn't deserve it," she mumbled angrily, "Why am I still alive, Itachi?" Sakura asked, finding some strength in her tone. Thank goodness for the fire that would light inside when she felt indignation. Many times in her life it had saved her.

"I need to know if you betrayed me, Sakura. Nothing more."

"I'd never betray you. I couldn't even kill you to save my own life," she spat back filling with anger at his indifferent tone.

"So I see."

"All that time we knew each other I never imagined you'd think I could send ninja to your complex. You think I want you dead? You never knew me." She pushed herself up from the pillow and attempted to sit as he got closer to her bedside. The moment was coming.

Itachi tilted his head slightly. "Your chakra is depleted somewhat. You've been healing yourself. I know you better than you think."

Sakura sat up and shifted the blankets as she scooted to the opposite side of the bed from him. But as she moved, his hand reached down and tugged the blankets away to toss them on the floor. His eyes moved over her half-clothed body again, and it filled her with suppressed rage.

"I'm so sick of your cold exterior! I'm so sick of how you hide everything until you want something from me," she shouted now, managing to stand up on the opposite side of the bed, but grasping the wall for balance. The pain was excruciating. "And why did you try to kill me but then keep me alive?"

Itachi seemed to dip his head a little, and his red eyes caught hers. But Sakura met them with fury. He'd tell her what she wanted to know, or she'd go down fighting. She wasn't taught to give up.

"I attacked you because I was ordered to. The Genshi has been on our elimination list since she first became known."

"List?" Sakura echoed and looked down momentarily. When she looked up, he was right in front of her and she gasped before his hands pushed her firmly against the wall.

His fingers were warm. Her breath was heavy as she stared into his sharingan.

"Why wouldn't the Akatsuki eliminate those they saw as threats? Your hunter squad was successful in cutting our numbers." Itachi's voice was quiet as he leaned closer to her. His breath tickled her cheek and she shook in his hold. "When you left two years ago, the leader also put you on the list."

"Why would the Genshi and I both be on the…" Sakura stopped. Her brow creased. "You didn't tell them it was me."

"We are a group of individuals, Sakura. I do what suits me. Kisame would not betray me so it stayed between us."

"So why am I alive? Why didn't you kill me for your precious Akatsuki? I know you are capable. Killing me would be easy for you." Her eyes burned with her fight not to cry. Useless body, she thought angrily. Her emotions were always her weakness.

Itachi's body was near to hers and warm on her cold skin. His hands held her tightly as his cheek grazed hers. His mouth was right beside her ear. If he wasn't holding her up, she was sure she would fall. Her legs were weak from his touch.

"Interrogation is necessary to assess future threats. I know you understand this…Genshi. I had to be sure that you posed no more danger to me." His breath was warm on the shell of her ear. She swore his lips touched her earlobe. His voice was deep and even. Emotionless. Stating facts.

"Interrogation," she hissed. "I'm ready, Itachi. Shall we start with the sharingan? Physical torture?" Her voice showed her obvious lack of stability as she cried. Her body trembled with mixed anger and fear.

Leaning back just enough to see her face, Itachi released her arm and moved his thumb to wipe one of her tears from her face. Darkly he remarked, "Is this not torture enough?"

This time, her knees gave out and he pulled her against him firmly before lifting her to the bed and lying her down.

"Your wounds will be healed in a day or two. Go back to Konoha and be the good girl you want them to think you are. If you come near the Akatsuki again, they'll kill you. You are a valuable target."

"You mean you'll kill me," she corrected.

Itachi looked at her for a long moment then moved to sit down on the bed. Placing hands on each side of her, he leaned close to her face and his eyes changed to mangekyou.

In his muted voice, even and serious he told her, "You are incorrect. I would not find killing you easy, Sakura."

His crimson gaze paused at her mouth and traced the line of her jaw. He looked like he was inspecting her for some dark purpose. But Sakura knew when he paused, or his inflection was less than cold, his mind was working.

And he never lied.

Finally, the mangekyou met her eyes and they stared at each other for a moment. His face held no anger or emotion whatsoever, but his eyes turned black again.

"You will wake in two days. Heal your wounds and go home."

Sakura lifted her hand to his face and he allowed it. "Why didn't you kill me?"

Itachi didn't answer. Rather, he seemed to ignore the question. Instead, he closed his eyes for a second and then revealed the mangekyou again. "Next time, finish your opponent."

"You won't ask me to stay with you this time?" she whispered as his hand came up and removed hers from his face.

"Not this time." Itachi creased his brow a little and Sakura recognized that he was preparing to use his eyes on her. She took a deep breath in and stared back, making it easy for him.

Before she saw the spin of his irises indicating the chakra molding, he breathed out softly, "You could never have been Akatsuki."

Sakura smiled softly, sadly. It had all gone wrong and now he would slip out of her life forever. How had she made so many choices that all pointed toward ruin. Run home, run back to Konoha and live the shell of a life that could one day be worthwhile. She would have to believe that to make it through her days.

Up to now, she had convinced herself that being a hunter and having a less than fulfilling tryst with Sasuke was the answer. Now she could never argue that properly in her head again.

As his eyes began to spin, dragging her from consciousness, she breathed out softly, "Itachi…please."