Chapter 3

Sensing the monstrous chakra Sakura surged to her feet, sleep hazing her mind. "Who are you?" asked the chakras host who had seemed to come out of thin air. The kunoichi blinked in trivial astonishment at the man who interrupted her slumber. Kisame Hoshigaki the monster of the hidden mist and member of the prestigious Akatsuki the same Akatsuki she was sent to destroy was standing just above her on a fractured branch. Sakura grinned silently thanking the heavens for her luck.

"Are you mute girl or just stupid?" the shark man smirked attempting to get a rise from the aberrant pinkette.

"You don't want to mess with me fish face" Sakura sneered at the shark man while gripping her kunai pouch "I was having such a good dream." Kisame's grin faltered at the girls insult but it returned more cheshire cat like then ever. He suddenly lunged sword swinging while Sakura sighed with annoyance and equipped herself for the fight to come.

Brief Time Skip

The screech of metal and the splatter of blood being shed was all you could hear in the clearing as the two ninjas fought. The fight had been going on for a good 20 minutes and both the ninjas chakra were clearly drained. A humungous crash echoed through the trees and surprised birds zipped away as the kunoichi and fish man slid across the clearing away from were they clashed.

Sakura panted sweat beading on her ashen face under her mask. She glared at Kisame who was somehow still standing and grinning even after getting hit many times by her attacks. Pain made her nerves twitch and she put a glowing hand over her ribs, which had been broken.

"I have to finish this quick" Sakura mumbled, "My chakra is almost all gone." Gathering the last bit of chakra into her fist she lunged at her opponent who seemed bemused with something behind her. Before she realized what was going on she felt a sharp tug on her scarf and was wrenched back, loosing concentration on her chakra-strengthened fist. The firm pull on the scarf had made it start to constrict around Sakura's neck as she kept being drawn back. She struggled to get loose but the movement just made the constriction worse as if she was hanging herself. Finally, with one last jolt from behind the pinkette plunged backwards towards her foes feet.

Trying to tear the crimson scarf away from her throat with her shaky hands she looked up at the intruder. Sakura froze her lost breath forgotten. Instinctively she grabbed for a kunai only to feel her scarf get tighter cutting off any chance of air and her vision blur as she descended into unconsciousness. The last thing she saw was red.