Status: Edited September 2011


"The Person We Could Never Have'


Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN NARUTO


Chapter 4: Eternal


Konoha was in darkness. Lightning flashed as it fought to light the village. Everyone was too busy to take shelter and prepare for the upcoming storm heading towards their direction, unlike the three shinobi (namely Sai, Shino, and Kiba), and one kunoichi (Hinata), and one beast (Akamaru), who were on a run tothe village's main gate.

All of them dashed their way on top of the building roofs of the village,unable to detect that they were already being followed by another set of shinobi and kunoichi. There were five figures at their backs, trailing them, and another who was on the street, making its pace near them, trying to zigzag just to avoid the scattered people.

"Hey!" was shouted by the one trailing them on the street, who finally caught up to their pace without losing any stamina. "What kind of youthful marathons are you doing, in this broad darkness?" asked by the bowl-cut, centipede brows in a green jumpsuit.

In no offense, no one dared answer him back, since the four's attention was occupied with their target, the mysterious person at the other end of the village's main gate. In only a matter of seconds, one of the shinobi who was following on the roof, which was Neji, understood where the four were running towards hurriedly.

"Lee, run first to the village's main gate!" he ordered Lee.

Lee didn't much understand why Neji asked him to do that, and so he gave him a curious look. Before he dashed to the target point, "Try and look for Sakura!" Sai added. Lee became more confused, since Sakura was involved in the matter. The love of his life had something to do with how Sai's face cracked openly with emotions, he who wore one mask, and that was his fake smile. Lee then dashed towards the destination, hoping that nothing may have happened to his dear Sakura. "Here I come, my beloved Sakura-san!" he dashed in a speed of light, leaving a big gust of wind trailing him as he went.

The people who were trailing the four, excluding Neji and Lee, were Tenten, Shikamaru, Ino, and Chouji. The other five who were trailing them shared a confused look as they also heard that Sakura was involved in the matter.

The blonde chick, Ino, then tried to interrogate anyone who could also try and clarify to them what was going on. "Hey guys, what's going on?" she asked, concerned that her love rival might have had something bad happen to her. Although, she knew deep inside her what the real reason was for her concerns regarding Sakura. She was the best friend ever, someone everyone opened up to. 'If it's Sakura, it only meant that it was her time,' she deeply thought.

"Sai told us that Sakura was acting strange as she left Naruto and Sasuke's ward. She also happened to be in not-so-good-condition, and lastly, any traces of her just suddenly disappeared. I wasn't able to sniff her scent, same as Akamaru, while Shino's chakra bugs weren't able to detect even a small speck, and Hinata's Byakugan didn't let her see anything that was Sakura's," Kiba informed them. "When did you guys start trailing us, huh?" he then asked the question.

"Team Gai and Team Asuma were teamed up on a just came back, and then we saw the four of you running hurriedly, so we unconsciously followed you then," Tenten answered.

"What do you mean, her traces just suddenly disappeared?" asked Shikamaru, who couldn't even guess away that could happen. There was no way that anyone could just actually disappear into thin air like nothing had happened. Especially if it was Team 8, that specialized in both tracking and locating the smallest things that probably existed in this world, were looking.

Shikamaru's POV

'Does not exist? What the heck am I thinking? How can she possibly vanish like she didn't exist at all?'

'I do think I messed up a lot of things, since I don't take my time to think and act on it.'

'Shit! Shit! Shit! This is pissing me off! She will always be there! She exists! Dammit' He gave a small groan.

End of Shikamaru's POV

Neji was also curious about what they meant, and so he also released his Byakugan in search for Sakura's presence that might still linger in the village. He saw nothing, not even a speck of chakra that could lead him to her. He may not be close to her, like the others, but he felt a precious bond with her, and seemingly, he too didn't understand much of it.

'What the heck?! 'Neji was totally pissed as he thought.

No one was able to answer Shikamaru's question. All of them were dead-silent, since none of them could also think of an answer. Only maybe Ino had lingering feelings that she did know something, but she kept her mouth shut.

Ino's POV

'What the hell are you thinking, Sakura?!' she thought angrily, and also pitied herself because of how useless of a best friend she was.

She tried to remember when Sakura lastopened up to her about something. The truth was that it was at that time when Ino really acknowledged that Sakura was a great friend of hers, for she knew that Sakura wouldn't just tell her secrets to anyone whom she didn't trust.

'I'm supposed to be your best friend.Here I am, clueless about what is happening to you! You should just tell and confide in me. I wouldn't mind.'

'Aargh, I am so damn pissed at myself, 'Ino groaned, with her lack of self-awareness.

'You know, at least you could just give me some time,' she thought, as she tried to calm herself.

End of Ino's POV

All nine ninjas, and one beast, were getting nearer to the sight of the village's main gate, as they jumped and leaped to the next roof and the next, and as they left the district, they went on either the streets with no people, or either leapt into the trees from branches to branches.


YAMATO'S SIDE

Naruto and Sasuke, who was still unconscious,had finally reached a stable condition. Both of them were finally breathing in a normal manner, not harsh or slow, only normal and in a proper rhythm. The two of them were completely unaware of anything that happened from the moments Sakura entered and exited their room, which caused them in such good conditions.

Yamato just sat in between the front of the two beds, thinking of what may have happened. He was able to formulate hundreds of possibilities for what had occurred in the room, but only one thing that he could come up with, and that was-Something did happen between Sakura and the two unconscious boys, and that mightlead them to break then, this time, it won't be Sasuke who will crush the bong that Team 7 made, or Naruto would be leaving again to train, but this time, it would be Sakura who would leave, without anything that could bring her back anymore.

Yamato's POV

'Of all times the times, why did she choose this time, when she knows that her precious teammates are all bed-ridden.'He then gave a large sigh.

'All I know is that, after you left this room, you also left your heart, you only took your body along with you.'

Yamato groaned in anger. It made him remember the time when one ANBU had also left their team.

'Why do both of them always choose the wrong time?'

'Why do the people who I now finally accept in my life do this? They just suddenly go.'

End of Yamato's POV

All Yamato could do in this point was just to check up on the two, unconscious heroes, while he was on the verge of trying to pull all his hair out of his head in his grief.


SAI'S SIDE

"Hey!" Kiba then asked, drawing everyone's attention, especially those at the back, Neji, Tenten, Ino, Shikamaru, and Chouji. "There's another we don't have any leads to Sakura, we found something weird or interesting. Maybe you've noticed it, Neji?"

Neji was a little bit surprised that Kiba had given him any attention, with the people he was with. "Just that I saw two people beyond the main gate who have a rare type of chakra, more like the same with the jinchūriki. Unlike Naruto's red chakra, theirs are white ones," Neji informed.

Overhearing the new development, "What? Did you say two?" Shino asked.

"Yes, there were two," Neji answered straightly.

"A moment ago, it was just one," Hinata interrupted.

All were tense about what or who they would meet beyond those gates.

"Hope that Lee won't do anything stupid," Tenten just suddenly blurted out.

All of then dashed inaneven faster pace, trying to catch up with Lee, although everyone knew Lee would already have arrived at their destination five minutes ago.


LEE'S SIDE

As he had reached the target destination, he wandered his eyes all over the place, trying to look for his beloved. Since he wasn't able to get a glimpse, he tried snooping around. Even though he knew he wasn't from the Inuzuka clan, he tried to sniff around his way to look for Sakura. The coming ninjas who either entered or exited thought that Lee was like a pervert. Lee then became self-conscious, but it didn't stop him from looking for some clues. He also did know the fact that he wasn't from the Hyuuga clan, but he tried to beam through things, as if glaring them to , he wasn't able to see any clues.

Lee didn'teven have a single clue what this reason was to be sent here in the first place. All he knew was that it was something so dreadful that Sai's mask of emotionlessness had fallen away. It didn't sway made him more motivated and pumped up as he went looking for Sakura aimlessly in the area.

Lee felt a little shudder as he felt that there was someone who might be looking at those looks of bewilderment from his village, but rather, from outside. He knew that stepping out of the gate would be a big problem, especially being a shinobi without any permission from the Hokage. Stepping out meant he would be considered as a missing-nin, and that had a big punishment along with it.

Lee's POV

'Could it possibly be Sakura-san who is outside? Staring at me?' As he thought dreamingly that Sakura was drooling over him.

'I know. If I put my feet just a little bit on the border line, I know I would get punished, but still…'Doubt overflowed in him.

'Still, I believe in the power of youth!' he thought, his eyes burning with youthful passion.'I must go beyond, and look for my Sakura-san!'

End of Lee's POV

As Lee was about to step forward and go straight ahead, two hands clasped down on his shoulders, Tenten and Neji.

Tenten gave a big sigh. "Glad we caught you in time, before you did anything stupid, blockhead," she said, as she smacked Lee straight on the head.

Sai looked around aimlessly beyond the gate. It was not only Sai, but every one of them. Both Hinata and Neji used their Byakugan to look more closely in the depths of the forest beyond the gate. They saw the two figures. One of them was big and bulky, a man, they thought, whom they hadn't seen before, and the other was quite petite in size,a woman, whom they were familiar with. They knew that figure, and that figure was coming nearer. The bushes rustled as she passed through them. She was standing there just infront of the gate.

All saw them were trying to approach her, but they couldn't. They knew that it was impossible for Shikamaru to hold them against their feet from the ground. They knew nothing about why they couldn't move. She hadn't made any hand seals,nor did the other man she was with.

Sai desperately tried to come near her, but he couldn't. He couldn't budge an inch. He was there, stuck.

Lighting flashed. Sakura's face was clearly seen. It was her, they thought. Her body and appearance were right, but something was off. It wasn't the same Sakura whom they used to know. It was a different Sakura. She just stayed there, watching them, and they did too at her. Time had likely stopped to them. Doubts may have come…

"Sakura!" Ino shouted, trying to get her best friend's attention. "What the hell are you doing there? You promised me something! Why aren't you doing it?" she shouted desperately.

Something drew across Sakura's face that none of them could understand. It was a mix of pain and anger.

"I'm sorry, Ino, but TIME is up…" Sakura answered in a low manner. Her knees buckled, making her fall on the ground, kneeling in her position. The man behind her was there to try and help her to stand up, but she didn't. Sakura continued kneeling. "I'm so, so sorry," she cried.

Sakura felt a sharp pain in her heart, knowing that itwas breaking her, but it was TIME for her to go. She needed to give them a proper goodbye, and so she did. She gave a most formal bow while she was kneeling. The others weren't able to react, or reach for her. At that same moment, they saw the man with her making seals – transportation seals, and went forward to touch her. "Sayonara, and Arigatou gozaimasu" she said in her cracked voice, as the man reached for her.

A moment later, when Sai was able to get free from the hold, he ran past the gate to get her, to hold her, and to bring her back to his side. Sudden hands grabbed him, and threw him away to the opposite side of the gate. No one noticed that the gate was closing, the last thing they saw was that the moment the gate was about to shut, the man had already reached her, and took her somewhere else.

Kakashi was just standing there in front of them. Eyes shut. And moments later, there were other jounins coming to his side, guarding the gate away from them.

In that same second, Sasuke finally made his eyes open, and Naruto was stretching his aching body.

To be continued...


AN: Please do review!