-Her scattering tears had passed—the hands of time were engraved in her beating heart… The people around her were gone, even the baby… What meaning was there to life?

Yes! I got another chappie up! Yay me! Okay, there are just three more chapters after this one before this fanfic ends, and then the third installment starts! So you guys, PAY ATTENTION or you'll miss out on some serious action! And also, this one's gonna be super long, so BE PREPARED! I myself think the beginning is a bit crappy, but the rest is nice and juicy, kay? Thanks, and please enjoy!

The hands of time engraved

Into our beating hearts

Were two totally different roads

Floating in the moonlight

~The Fourth Frame~

"You did wonderfully, Hinata-chan!"

"Yeah, you really gave Dickless a run for his money!"

"Oy, Sai! It was me who won in the end!"

"Yes, but only because you had your shadow clone go behind Hinata and put a kunai to her back, right after she won! Now it says so in the books. That's called cheating!"

"What? Uzumaki Naruto never cheats! Why, I oughta—"

"Naruto-kun, take it easy. Sai's just voicing out his opinions, that's all…" Hinata said, defending the ANBU Roots member. "You shouldn't take it so seriously. He doesn't mean anything by it. You did won, after all."

Naruto hmped, crossing his arms. "Yeah…" Why the Hell is she defending Sai? Oh, he'll pay…

"Hey, Dickless, I also read this in a book before, but . . . are you jealous?"

Naruto almost choked on his ramen. "Wha-WHAT? Why would I be jealous? And of you? Ha! As if!"

"There you guys are!"

"Kakashi-sensei!" Hinata greeted the silver-haired jonin. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, a little birdie told me that you actually managed to beat Naruto. Is that true, Hinata-chan?"

Hinata blushed. "W-well, I . . . I almost got him."

"Oh, so you didn't win? That's too bad… I was hoping somebody would give this knucklehead a nice little butt-whooping… He's been getting a little bit careless since Sakura's not around to give him a nice whippin'."

"Oy, Kakashi-sensei! What's that supposed to mean?" Naruto asked.

"Nothing, nothing…" Kakashi quickly shook off the subject. "Well, anyway, I'd say you two are getting stronger everyday now… Pretty soon, you'll be strong enough to bring both Sasuke and Sakura back to the village. Or maybe you've already grown stronger than them!"

"Kakashi-sensei, don't overestimate me…" Hinata replied.

"But I'm not! I know you can do it, Hinata!"

"Yeah, and so do we!" Naruto added. "We'll kick the Akatsuki's butts and that creep Kabuto's too! And we'll definitely bring the Teme and Sakura-chan back home!"

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"Oh, look! She's waking up!" were Karin's words once she saw Sakura beginning to stir.

"Fujin!" Isaribi cried once Sakura opened her eyes. "Oh, thank the heavens you're alright!"

"What . . ."—she coughed as she sat up, Isaribi helping her—"What happened?"

"That damn man shot an arrow at you, and you fainted from blood loss!" Isaribi said, wiping away her tears.

"Man?" Sakura asked. "What man?"

"It was Kabuto."

Sakura's eyes widened, unable to believe her eyes. "But . . . but I thought Sasuke—"

"I thought so, too…" Karin said, gloomily. "But apparently, Sasuke-kun spared him. Once Sasuke-kun left, that creep absorbed Orochimaru's remains and turned himself into a monster!"

Sakura could hardly believe her ears. She slumped back into the bed.

"Fujin!" Isaribi cried again, worried about her mistress's condition. She and Karin both supported the weakened cherry blossom. "You mustn't strain yourself! You must mind your health! You're still not well! If you were to fall ill—"

"Even if I'm not sick then what?" Sakura asked. "There's nothing I can do, there isn't anything to be done… We've missed our chance to escape… Madara and the Akatsuki were trouble enough, but now we've got to deal with Kabuto? He was trouble before, but now he's got Orochimaru's powers too…" She shook her head in disbelief, tears pouring out of her eyes. "We can't fight them at all… Oh, god… Why is this happening to us? What did we do wrong?"

"Fujin…" Isaribi had never seen the girl so in low spirits and so depressed. This only matched her form when she had found out that her parents were both dead. Her tears returning, Isaribi couldn't bear to see Sakura like this.

Karin, too, felt both women's grief—the tears also forming in her eyes. They were now caged birds in a lion's den… They could not escape now, no matter how hard they tried.

"You don't have to worry," the redhead said, wiping away her tears. "No matter what happens, I'll help you two. I won't allow you to suffer in this place."

"You…" Sakura glanced at the girl, unable to comprehend why Karin would help her.

"We're the only women in this place. Anthropologically speaking, we're the weakest of the group and so . . . we girls need to stick to together, through the toughest of times and the easiest…" Karin explained. She was hesitant to continue. "Plus . . . I want to help you. I've wronged you already. I don't want to do that again."

Sakura and Isaribi exchanged glances. Though Karin had attempted to help them before, they still weren't sure if they could really trust her. After all, she was part of Team Hebi—part of Sasuke's group, the group that had killed Konan. Could they really trust her after all she's done?

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"Heh, so you want to join our group?" Madara asked. "I sense an ulterior motive for such a proposition…"

"I have no reason to harm you," Kabuto explained. "Why, I just want to help you. It looks like you could need another hand around here especially with Sakura-san running amok."

Madara weighed his options for a moment. He knew that Kabuto was only after Sasuke but, even if he did join the group, there was no way he'd defeat Sasuke. Plus, Kabuto would only be a powerful asset to Akatsuki especially with what the Uchiha had planned out.

And all the meanwhile, Kisame just listened to the conversation as Madara accepted Kabuto as one of their own. To be honest, Kisame was starting to regret ever stopping Sakura from escaping. How would he be able to face Itachi and the rest of Akatsuki knowing that he had put their precious cherry blossom into such a dangerous situation? He should've let her go… Besides, the only reason why he had stopped her was so that she needn't be on the run from Madara for the rest of her life. He had only wanted to make her life easier. How was he to know that the task wasn't as simple as it sounded?

"So…" Kabuto continued. "What do you plan on doing to the girl and her group? Surely, they'll only bring us down."

Madara chuckled at Kabuto's words. "But, of course, I know that. However, I need the cherry blossom if I am to complete my plan. She seems to hold the key to both Sasuke and the Kyuubi Boy's downfalls. The baby, though, is another issue…"

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

Karin sighed as she felt Sakura's forehead. Still burning… This isn't good…

After a stressful talk, the Konoha kunoichi had fallen asleep but, even though she was seemingly peaceful now, Karin knew that Sakura was in over her head full of worries. If this were to continue then, Karin knew, Sakura's physical and mental health would have taken a great toll.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.

"Isaribi? What is it?"

But the girl didn't answer, beckoning Karin out of the room.

At first, Karin was reluctant, seeing that Sakura was defenseless and helpless right now. If either Madara or Kabuto were to make a move now, she'd fear for the kunoichi's safety. But nevertheless, she stood from her seat and walked over to Isaribi, closing the door behind her.

"What's wrong?" the redhead asked once she saw the midwife's worry.

"Shion and Botan… I can't find them!"

"What?"

"They're not in the room! They're not in the kitchen! I don't know where they could be! I've already searched the whole hideout, but I still can't find them anywhere!"

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"Nice going, Sasuke… We've lost our medic. Now what are we going to do when we're seriously injured?"

"Suigetsu, will you stop pestering him about that?" Juugo asked. "Karin did what she felt right. It has nothing to do with Sasuke."

"Yeah, I guess you're right… But really, now not only do we have that arrogant bastard Madara to deal with, but we've also got that creep Kabuto to take care of! Jeez, it's not going to be so easy anymore with only just the three of us in the group! And—"

As Suigetsu rambled on, Sasuke didn't even realize that there was a conversation going on. In fact, he was thinking things over. Why was he so mad when he saw Sakura injured? In fact, why in the world did he hold back on her? It wasn't like he owed her or anything (though his Inner was saying otherwise since he left her on a bench and whatnot during the middle of the cold night).

He groaned, running a hand through his hair. "I don't know why I helped her."

This caused Suigetsu and Juugo to stop talking and glance at their leader.

"Oy, Sasuke, you talking about Karin or Pinkie? Most likely Pinkie, right?"

That question only got a glare sent towards Suigetsu.

Yep, most definitely Pinkie… the swordsman thought. He only gets like this when she's brought up.

"Honestly, Sasuke, I don't understand why we had to assist the Akatsuki in bringing her back." Juugo said. "It's not like she'd betray the group her parents created. That was probably the furthest thing from her mind. Her baby sister's well-being was most likely her first major priority."

"Did I ask you?" The Uchiha was almost fuming. Of course, he knew Sakura was incapable of betraying anyone without a concrete and adequate reason. He had already known what she was planning to do—heck, if she was Itachi's pupil then Sasuke had a very good idea of why she attempted to escape Akatsuki's world. For the good of her sister, Sakura was risking everything to try and give her a bright future—something Shion could not have if they were to stay with the criminal group.

"So, really, Sasuke," Suigetsu picked up on the topic. "What are we gonna do about Karin? I mean, she completely left us for Pinkie and her group."

"Just drop it, Suigetsu."

"But—"

"There's no need to go into this any further," Juugo explained. "Karin did what she thought was right. After all, even if none of us managed to land a hit on Konan, we did have a hand in her death. Karin probably feels as though she owes them."

"Ha! Owe them? That—"

The door slammed open then.

"And speak of the devil, lookie what the cat dragged in." Suigetsu snorted. "What? Did Pinkie not accept you and you're just crawling back to us?"

"Oh, stow it!" Karin yelled after catching her breath. "Just please tell me Shion's with you three!"

That surprised the guys.

"Why would you think we have the baby?" Juugo asked. "We haven't even seen her. Why?" He stood up once he realized how serious the problem was. "Is Shion missing?"

"How in the world do you lose track of a baby? For God's sakes!" Suigetsu asked.

"We didn't lose track of her, idiot!" Karin yelled, infuriated at Suigetsu's scolding tone. "We gave her to Botan while Isaribi and I were taking care of Sakura who—may I remind you—was almost on the brink of DEATH!" She glared at Sasuke. "And no thanks to you."

But the Uchiha ignored that sneer. "You were the ones who left the baby with a child," he said. "It's only natural something like this would happen."

"You don't know what you're talking about," Karin snapped. "When Isaribi came to Akatsuki as Konan's midwife, she trained Botan to take care of Shion if ever a situation occurred. Botan would never be so clueless as to lose her! And besides, we can't find him either. It's only natural the girls and I would think something terrible has happened." In that last sentence, she mocked Sasuke.

Suigetsu and Juugo just stayed silent as the two started to argue it out. Really, joining Akatsuki was the worst thing they ever did. There wasn't ever a time of peace—or near peace—anymore.

"I really don't understand what your problem is," Sasuke said.

"My problem?" Karin scoffed. "You're the one with the problem! How could you betray her? Her! Even if she thinks you killed her mother, she can't even bring herself to hate you, let alone kill you! She loves you, no matter how much you've hurt her! You'll never come across a girl like her in a million years! I don't understand how you can bear to hurt her so much!"

"You think I like causing her pain?" Sasuke stood now, towering over Karin.

It was that one sentence that gave Team Hebi a clue as to why Sasuke was so worked up about this whole case.

She smiled a bit. "So . . . you admit it. Even you know this is wrong…"

"Um… Did I come at the wrong time?"

Team Hebi turned to the Sharkman at the door.

"What is it?" Sasuke asked.

"Well . . ." Kisame's eyes shifted to Karin. Obviously, she wasn't wanted there.

"I'm leaving soon," Karin snapped, knowing fully well what the Akatsuki member was insinuating. "But first, I'd like to ask: do you know where Shion and Botan are?"

"Yeah, in the clearing outside," Kisame answered, a bit reluctant to add the last part. "With . . . Kabuto."

That was all Karin needed to run out of the room.

"So . . . what's so important that you wanted Karin out of the room?" Juugo asked.

"Madara has another errand for you three to run," Kisame answered.

"We're not going to chase after Pinkie and her sister again, are we?" Suigetsu whined. "It was hard enough that first time! You saw what happened and Pinkie's reaction! It was hor-ri-ble!"

"Well . . . apparently, Hime's reaction at this one will be much worse."

Sasuke suddenly realized what the swordsman was getting at. "You're not saying…"

"Yeah…" Kisame sighed. "The baby needs to go."

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

"Shion! Botan!" Karin yelled as she ran. She ran as fast as she could, yelled as loud as she could. She could only hope that Kabuto had done nothing to harm the two children especially Shion. Sakura would never recover from that. And so, when Karin came to the clearing, only to see a snake wrapped around Botan, she almost lost it.

"GET OFF OF HIM!"

The snake, scared of the angry woman, did as Karin screamed and poofed away as the redhead ran to the crying child, kneeling in front of him.

"Botan, Botan!" she said, turning his face towards her. "Are you alright? You're not hurt?"

He shook his head.

"Where's Shion?"

"Here."

Karin turned around when she heard that hissing voice. "Kabuto…"

"Give back the little mistress!" Botan shrieked. "Give her back!"

But Kabuto laughed. "You sound as though I'd hurt her." And he threw the baby up into the air.

"SHION!"

Karin took a step forward, only to let out a sigh of relief once Kabuto caught the crying baby.

"You thought I'd drop her? Oh, give me some credit. I'm not like Madara or Orochimaru," the silver-haired freak said. "Here, you can take her."

Karin slowly walked over to the man, afraid of any sudden moves he'd make. And as Shion was passed to the redhead, Kabuto feigned a drop, causing Karin to wrap her arms tightly around the baby who had begun to cry even louder.

"You mustn't do what I just did now," he said. "If you were to drop the baby then it would be disastrous. But saving her won't do you any good. She won't live to see another day."

Karin could only glare at him as he left. Just what did he mean by that?

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

Sakura fell to her knees, unable to cope with reality.

"Fujin!" Isaribi ran to her side.

"God-dad! Please! I'm begging you! Don't do this… I'd understand it if Shion were a boy, but she's not! She's a baby girl! Why must she die?"

"Uchiha Madara, how can you justify killing an innocent child, let alone a baby?" Isaribi asked. "She's done nothing against you!"

"But her sister has," the Uchiha said. "This is her punishment."

"God-dad, please!" Sakura pleaded. "I'll do anything! Just please, don't kill Shion! She's all that I have left! I promise I won't betray you! I promise you won't regret it! Just please, God-dad! Shion's not even a month old yet! Please!"

"What's going on?" Karin asked, holding Shion with one arm while the other hand held Botan's.

"Ah, just in time." Madara said.

Seeing the Uchiha's menacing glare, Karin dropped Botan's hand, wrapping that arm around Shion too and shifting her to hide her from Madara's sickening glance. Her bad feeling just increased tenfold.

In time, Madara shifted his gaze back to Sakura whose tears seemed endless. "I'll give you a few minutes before I send Sasuke in to do the job."

Sakura's eyes widened in horror. Her ex-teammate . . . how could Sasuke even dare to think about hurting her like this? And right after killing her mother! Did he really change that much? But once Madara left the room and Shion resumed her crying, Sakura was knocked out of her thoughts by her baby sister's unique cry.

"Here…" she said, her voice hoarse from her screams. She stood up, her hands reached out for Shion. "Give her to me…"

And Karin quickly did so, curious about what was going on. What job was Sasuke to do? And it suddenly hit her once she saw how tightly Sakura held Shion, how much she shook. It couldn't be…! Madara plans to…

"We can always run again… We can always fight them…" Isaribi suggested in a quiet voice, her eyes filled with sadness as she watched the two sisters. She took the words right out of Karin's mouth.

But Sakura only shook her head. "What good would that do? Would that do anything…? No… It wouldn't… We won't even come close to being their match… We'd all just die… For everyone's sakes, I can't allow any of you to die… Botan's still so young, and we all still have our lives to live…"

"But so does Shion!" Karin argued. "She's only a newborn! She still has her whole life ahead of her! She—"

"YOU THINK I DON'T KNOW THAT?" Sakura shrieked, her head whipped up to meet Karin's gaze—her angry emerald eyes held an eternal helplessness in them. "My baby sister . . . not yet even one . . . is condemned to death…" Her voice shook as she spoke. "But even if she were to live . . . I can't give her a life that she'd want… A life that would suit her so… Living would be worse than death… She won't even survive in this cruel fate…" She looked down at the baby. The kunoichi seemed as though she didn't notice her ex-teammate's entrance. "Of course, I want her to live… She's the only thing I have left of my parents… And she's my sister… I love her so much that I can't bear it, that I can't even stand it… She looks like so much like Mama…" Sakura continued, her voice barely above a whisper. "She's so adorable… So small, so defenseless… I can't understand how she was born into this world as my sister… Her existence . . . though so small . . . has affected me so much… I can't even thank her for that…"

Konan sat up on her bed, caressing Sakura's face and combing away her hair. "Mama's so sorry… You don't know how much… I wish I could give you the life that you deserve, but instead you're stuck in a kunoichi's existence. There's so much I regret, so much I wish I could redo…" She glanced at Shion. "I don't want to keep on making mistakes that I'll regret later on… My experience with you has taught me so much. I hope that you can help me make better decisions for your sister. I don't want her to suffer life like you did. I don't want to see that for a second time. It'll be tough, but I promise you that I'll make it work out. After the invasion, I promise you I won't do anything else to hurt you…"

"I can't even give her the life our mother wanted for her… I'm so useless… My apologies to her stretch farther than the oceans… I want so much for her to live… So much for her to stay with me…"

The people in the room including Sasuke felt horrible for Sakura. Her baby sister's life would soon end… How could she keep so sane? Perhaps she had already went mad…

The Uchiha sighed. "Sakura…"

But the kunoichi only scoffed at reality, cruelly laughing a bit. "It's always been my wish that the child will grow up to be as strong as your brother and you…"

That statement shocked the Uchiha. Had she noticed him?

"Not like me . . . so weak… Unable to protect my precious people…" she continued, a smile on her face as she watched her sister play with her hair. The scene made Sakura's heart drop. Her sister was so innocent, she didn't even know what was coming.

"Isn't that right, Shion? You'll grow up to be a beautiful and strong kunoichi, won't you?"

"Sakura…" Sasuke said again. "You know you can't see the child grow up."

Sakura's smile fell as she met the Uchiha's eyes, her tears dried up. "Sasuke-kun…"

"In this world, there will always be cruel twists of fate. My brother ended up murdering our family in order to save Konoha, and your sister will have to die even before she speaks her first word."

"Sasuke-kun! You can't be serious…! She's just an infant! I can't let you do this! I—"

"You, as a woman and her older sister, must be heartbroken at this fate… I, on the other hand, need to carry out my orders as a shinobi and to fulfill my duties to my clan. Hand me the child."

Sakura could hardly believe it. Was there no way to save her sister? Her tears started again to fall out of her eyes as she placed Shion on the bed, caressing the baby's cheek. The reality she had so desperately wanted to avoid, the fate she had feared . . . she had no other choice.

"I'll do it by my own hands," she said, her heart breaking as Shion's small little hands grabbed hers.

"Fujin!" Isaribi was crying too. Karin looked away, shielding Botan's eyes. and ears

"Don't do that," Sasuke said. He didn't know why he said that, though. He didn't care about her. No… In the end, he convinced himself that he just didn't want to see another pair of siblings break their relationship.

"I'm her sister… Since my fate is intertwined with this child, I should be the one to send her away with my own hands."

"Sakura…"

"It wasn't long ago that you've killed your brother. The burden must still be as heavy as then… I can't allow you to carry another burden so heavy such as killing an innocent baby." Her hand slowly moved towards the pillow. She held it above the baby, and soon Shion was crying harder than her sister.

For some reason, Sasuke wanted for her to stop forcing herself to do this. But for some reason, he couldn't stop her himself. "Sakura… Don't—"

"Even now, I can't bear to see you… I won't allow you to take away the last of my family…"

Sasuke suppressed a sigh. He couldn't argue with that. She still blamed him for her mother's death.

Sakura's hands shook as she took one last glance at her child. "I'm so sorry, Shion… You'll have to go to Mama and Papa first… Remember, I'll always love you… Have a safe journey…" Her hands continued to shake, and it took a while before Sakura could actually bring herself to place the pillow right on top of her sister's small body. Don't worry, Shion… After you've gone, I'll follow you shortly afterwards. I won't let you suffer alone in darkness… With as much strength as she could muster, Sakura pressed down hard on her own flesh and blood.

As everyone else turned away, Sakura felt her baby sister struggle against her hold. She watched as the baby's hands moved up and down. She couldn't even shut her eyes or look away. She could only watch as her sister's movements slowed, and she watched as Shion finally stopped moving.

"My sister…" she cried. "My poor sister…"

"Sakura, Madara wants to see the body…" Sasuke explained.

"Please go out first…" she said. "I need to send her off in proper clothing…"

"Fujin…"

"Because of her cruel fate, she died by her own sister's hands, but I will send her off in the clothes our mother prepared for her lest they go to waste…"

Sasuke sighed again, nodding his head before he left the room. Not to his surprise, he found Madara and the rest of the gang there.

"Well?" the older Uchiha asked.

"She killed the child with her own hands. Right now, she's dressing her up in funeral clothing," was Sasuke's answer.

Juugo and Suigetsu were left speechless. Zetsu only disappeared away while Kisame could only shake his head. If Itachi had been alive, he could've stopped this. Kisame could only lament on how angry Itachi and the other late Akatsuki members were with him.

✿｡.:**:.｡✿

As Sakura finished dressing the child, Madara came into the room. However, she didn't notice him because something else preoccupied her attention. Her baby sister… Shion's chest, was it moving?

Karin, too, could feel the baby's chakra fluctuating. Isaribi, on the other hand, did not know. Wondering why the tension, she placed a finger below the baby's nose and, to her and the Uchiha's shock…

"The baby's still breathing!" Then she realized her mistake. But by then, it was too late.

Sakura's gaze went to Madara.

"What's going on?" he asked. "How could the baby still be alive?" His plan wouldn't work if the child was not dead. "If you can't kill her then I'll do it."

"NO! God-dad, I can't allow her to be killed twice!" Sakura yelled.

"She needs to be killed! Don't you know the kind of fate she was born with?"

"What kind of fate? No, I don't know, and I don't care!" Sakura argued, yelling again. "From the start, I had no idea what was what and why was all this happening to me… I didn't understand… Why does my sister have to be born with this fate? I kept asking myself that… But I don't care anymore! She's my sister! I won't let her die!"

"Sakura, the child needs to be killed!"

"You can't be trusted!"

"What?" Madara, like Karin and Sakura, turned his attention to Isaribi. "What did you say?"

"Are you sure you're not plotting for something bigger? Something towards your own gain?" the maid asked. "Konan had warned me! You can't be trusted!"

"You wretch, how dare you insult me!" And with that, Madara took out a kunai and stabbed her in the back.

And from outside the door, the rest of the Akatsuki could hear Sakura yelling, "God-dad, are you crazy? What are you doing?"

Botan's "Neechan!" came shortly afterwards.

Sasuke went in the room—Juugo, Suigetsu, and Kisame following behind. Their eyes widened when they saw the bloodied kunai in Madara's hand and Isaribi on the floor injured, Botan by her side, crying, and Karin trying to heal her.

"What's going on?" Suigetsu asked.

"Shion…" Sakura answered. She didn't care if there were other people in the room. She went to the first one she knew the most. "My sister's still alive, Sasuke-kun! My baby sister came back to life…"

As with everyone else's, Sasuke's eyes widened. He stared at the child on the bed.

"Once maybe, but it won't happen again…" Sakura continued. "Please, Sasuke-kun! Please save her!"

"Sakura…"

"Please! Save her!" Sakura fell to her knees. She didn't know why she was begging her ex-teammate who had tried to kill her once. She was just desperate—she was just that desperate. "Sasuke-kun! Please . . . save her…"

"Sakura…" Sasuke said, helping her up. "Please don't do this."

Karin, Botan, and Isaribi could only watch the scene play out. They worried for the Konoha kunoichi and Shion. They had a feeling this would not end well…

Shaking her head, Sakura couldn't stop the tears from coming out of her eyes. Was there really no way to save her sister? She couldn't bring herself to believe that, no matter how fast it was coming true.

"At the age of twelve, you shunned me away. At the age of thirteen, you left me. At the age of fifteen, you tried to kill me. Now . . . I'll be the one to leave you," she said to Sasuke. "If you're going to kill my sister then . . . kill me first."

"Sakura, stop doing this." Kisame tried to reason with her. "It's just going to make it harder for you to part with your sister."

Sakura glared at him then stared at Sasuke. Would he not help her? It would seem so. In all her sorrow, she took out her kunai and held it to her neck.

"Fujin!" Isaribi and Botan yelled. She tried to stand with Botan's help but couldn't.

Madara almost smirked behind his mask. This was getting a bit interesting. Now he wanted to see Sasuke's reaction.

"What are you doing?" Kisame asked. "Don't do anything foolish! Put away the kunai…"

But Sakura backed away from him. "Even if you take this knife now, I will die… After Shion's death, I won't even have the will to live…"

"Sakura…" Sasuke finally spoke.

"Life without her is too sad to imagine…" Sakura's gaze met his. "I won't be able to bear the hell you're living through right now with your brother dead… I can't live like that… Please . . . send me with her…"

Sasuke sighed. She was still as naïve as she was from when they were genin. She still hadn't changed. If her sister were to die, he knew she would too. But what he did shocked everyone in the room. He . . . hugged her and allowed her to cry against his chest, quickly taking away her kunai.

He sighed again, stroking her hair. "Why can't you stop being so annoying?"

Madara's eyes narrowed. This was unexpected. And in that second, he knew that Sasuke would be unable to carry out his orders. But he took matters into his own hands. With a small blade in his hand, he walked over to the child.

"What are you doing?" Sakura asked, trying to escape from her ex-teammate's grasp.

But she—and everyone else—had noticed too late. Madara had already stabbed the small child. At the sight, Sakura collapsed.

"Shion… My baby sister… You're too cruel, God-dad…"

"If I didn't do it then your ex-teammate would have had to do it." Madara explained.

"I saw no reason as to why the child could not live," Sasuke said.

"If that's the case then what would happen to your vow to destroy Konoha?" Madara asked. He turned towards the rosette. "If I had allowed the child to live, she would only have been a burden. You may despise me today, but you'll thank me in the future."

And done! Please don't ask me what Madara said to Sakura to get her to see that Shion had to die. I couldn't think of one, so this came out. And like some of you may know, this scene is loosely based on the scene from Ja Myung Go. Thank you and please review!

(P.S. Read my new onshot, LOVER!)