Hey! Thank you for your awesome reviews everyone! They made me so happy! Aaaaaah! I am truly sorry for the late update! I know I was supposed to update like three weeks ago but school just got very busy! Sigh. But I hope you enjoy this chapter and please review! =^_^=
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Sigh.
'What did I get myself into?' Sakura though as she laid on her futon staring at the ceiling.
Her hair was wet and sprawled on the pillow like a fan around her head.
Her eyebrows furrowed once Naruto's snores got louder and then quitted down a bit.
She thought back to her encounter with the girls and their promises of keeping their her identity as a secret.
'I guess I will just have to trust them.' she thought as she sighed once more and turned to her side as she slowly drifted off to sleep.
A few hours into her sleep her peaceful slumber was interrupted by the dream of her horrible past.
She thrashed and whimpered as the memories flooded her mind.
*Flashback/Dream*
"O-Okaa-san..." she mumbled with wide eyes as tears gathered in her eyes.
A man in a cloak was holding her weeping mother by the hair.
Sakura's eyes trailed to the left as she saw a dead body illuminated only by the full moon streaming through the window. This was too much like the experience they had a few months before. The form of her father could not be mistaken. The shaggy dark hair and his favorite dark green yukata with the clan's symbol in the back.
No. This could not be happening again. There was no one who would save them this time she was sure. She took out the hidden kunai from her sleeve that she has carried since the incident. As she was about to charge at the man he suddenly dropped her mother to the floor as he glanced at her. The golden like brown eyes glinted as she saw a small smile spread on the man's face that was now eliminated by the moon.
"R-Run..." her mother mumbled as she was racked by sobs. Helplessly laying on the floor in front of her husband's murderer.
Sakura shook her head slightly. She could not move. She was frozen by the fear by what might happen next. She prepared to charge once again as she came to her senses.
The man's moved his sword with unimaginable speed as Sakura gasped. He stopped an inch from her mother's heaving chest. He turned his head to her. "P-Pleas- Sakura immediately stopped her plea as she witnessed the sword going through her mother's chest. The woman let out a scream and struggled to breathe as blood started filling into her lungs.
Sakura fell on her knees while shaking. Unable to tear her eyes from her mother's form she watched as the light in her mother's eyes began to slowly fade. "S-Saku-ra, take care o-of y-your b-brother. I-I l-love yo- her mother did not get to finish before the sword was twisted in her chest and she let out a scream of pure agony. After her scream stopped she breathed her last breath as her now dull and lifeless eyes were directed towards Sakura.
The man's smile had disappeared when her mother was about to finish her sentence but now it had returned. It turned into a malicious grin as he roughly took out his sword from the woman's chest and looked at the shaking child before him. Tears poured down the child's face as he slowly advanced towards her. She let out an agonizing scream but was soon stopped as the man grabbed her by the neck and lifted her up in the air. Her small hands scratched his arm as the instinct for survival kicked in.
The man stared at her struggling form. His eyes cold and emotionless and his disgusting grin wiped off his face. "Hmmm...I didn't have any orders on killing you. What should I do?" he thought out loud. Her small hands were loosing the little strength they had as she tried to gasp for air. The man dropped her to the floor as she gasped for air and held her neck.
"I guess there is no need for me to waste my time on you. I won't get paid extra for that." he said as he looked down at her. "But let's just leave something for you so you keep your mouth shut." he said as he kicked her in the stomach and she flew into the wall behind her. Once again he was holding her by the neck. He stuck his sword into the wooden floor and took out a knife from his cloak. He grinned as he looked at her.
He pierced the spot between her neck and shoulder deep enough to leave a scar and dragged it through her skin. He stopped after making a line that was five inches long. This whole time the helpless child was screaming from agonizing pain as tears poured out of her eyes. He had roughly taken out the knife and threw her to the side and left her sobbing and whimpering from pain. There was no one to console her. She was all alone. The man glanced at her and disappeared through the sliding doors knowing perfectly that she would not utter a word. If she survived, of course.
Tears poured out of her eyes at the agonizing pain her small body was enduring. She heard a cry. She immediately recognized it. She flinched and cried out in pain as she tried to get up. Pain searing through her wound. The cries got louder and she did her best to endure the pain and get to her destination. On her way out the door she quickly glanced at her parents' dead forms and immediately regretted it. The image was forever embedded in her mind. She reached the room at the end of the hallway and found her little brother on the futon. She rushed towards him. She gently put her hand on his stomach and gently rubbed it. His cries quitted down at the comforting touch as he looked at her. She let out a sob as she looked at his innocent face. He was left without parents at such an age.
He rolled over and sat up. His watery eyes looking at her in confusion. He put his small hand on her cheek. "Sakua?" he asked and tilted his head to the side. His eyes filling up with tears at the sight of his crying sister. She let out another sob and hugged him tightly to her with her right arm her left one hanging limply at her side. As sobs wrecked her body Yoshirou started crying even louder. 'I'm not alone. I still have you.' she thought. That night she promised herself and to her deceased parents that she would take care of Yoshirou and would protect him no matter what.
*Flashback/Dream End*
Sakura shot up in bed with tears staining her face. She gasped for breath as tears slid down her cheeks. Her body sweaty. She quickly wiped her tears and calmed herself down. She wouldn't cry. She had to be strong. She got up and folded her futon. She quickly dressed and headed to train so she could let everything out. Judging by where the sun was she guessed it was about five in the morning. The district quiet since everyone was still sleeping. She headed to where their daily practices were. She unsheathed her sword and swung letting all her emotions out. She trained for a while until others came to the training grounds.
o.o.o.o.o.o.o
Yoshirou looked worriedly at Sakura. He had come to see her after he had gotten back from patrolling with his group. She has been quiet. Actually she was always quiet but she had this distanced look in her eyes.
"Nii-san? What's wrong?" Yoshirou questioned with concern.
Sakura snapped out of her thoughts as she looked at him.
"Nothing." she answered simply. She cursed for being acting weird and being careless with her emotions.
"Nii-san..." he said as he looked unsurely at her.
"I am fine, Yoshirou. I just didn't get much sleep last night." she answered.
Ne nodded. He knew something was definitely wrong but he would't push her to give him an explanation.
Sakura sighed. She needed to stop thinking about the dream. It wouldn't change anything. She did not want to worry Yoshirou so she tried not to think about it anymore. She put her hand around his head and pushed him to her chest as she put her head on top of his. He gasped at her action. She wrapped her arms around him.
"You know that I love you right?" she asked in a whisper.
His eyes widened in shock.
"Yes." he replied as he enjoyed her warmth and the comfort it brought him.
She let go of him and ruffled his hair affectionately.
"You should go and get some rest." she said as her hand dropped to her side.
"Hai." he replied as he smiled at her and ran off.
She sighed as she looked at the sunset.
She someone call her name. She turned her head and saw Naruto waving at her enthusiastically with Suigetsu and Juugo at his side ready to head out for their patrol.
She got up from her sitting position from the wooden porch and headed towards them.
She just needed to not think about it.
o.o.o.o.o.o.o
A few days had passed after her nightmare and she wasn't thinking about it anymore. Sure her thoughts strayed to it sometimes but she always willed it to the back of her mind. The patrols had been uneventful. The nights were peaceful so they just walked around the village enjoying the starry nights of Konoha. She snapped out of her thoughts as she heard giggles.
A few meters away she noticed someone walking towards her. She was surprised when she looked up and saw Sasuke with a smile on his face. Her mind snapped back to the smile he gave her all those years ago. But he wasn't alone. A girl was walking next to him with her arm latched through his. She had a graceful and lady like walk. She was wearing a beautiful dark purple kimono which was decorated with flower designs. Her hair was long and black which reached her bottom. She had dark blue eyes that sparkled as she looked at Sasuke. She was looking at Sasuke with loving eyes and Sakura was slightly taken aback when she saw the same emotion in Sasuke's eyes as he looked at the girl.
Her chest clenched painfully but she shook it off.
Then he finally looked up.
"Good evening, Uchiha-sama." Sakura said as she looked down at her feet as she bowed.
"Good evening, Tadashi." Sasuke said as he smiled at her.
Sakura was surprised. He hadn't shown any happy emotions for the whole time she has been there and now he was smiling like the happiest man in the world. She quickly looked over to the girl and bowed once again. The girl looked at her and something flashed in her eyes as she giggled. Sakura did not know what it was but she didn't like it.
"Excuse me, Uchiha-sama." Sakura bowed once again.
He nodded and she started walking away in a hurry. She did not want to be near that girl.
"Tadashi." Sasuke's called and she stopped and immediately turned around.
"Call me, Sasuke-sama instead." he said as he smirked.
"Hai." Sakura replied and nodded.
She heard the girls giggles. Something wasn't right about her. She felt a pang in her chest and shook her head. No. She was just jealous. She was sure.
o.o.o.o.o.o.o
"Naruto-san, who is the lady that was with U-Sasuke-sama today?" Sakura asked as she curiously watched Naruto as they strolled through the streets on their patrol.
"You mean Natsumi-chan? She is Sasuke's fiancee." He said as he brought his hands behind his head.
Sakura's eyes widened slightly but it went unnoticed by Naruto. She gave a bitter smile. Of course. What should she have expected? An amazing man like Sasuke-sama would have a fiancee by now. She was one of the most beautiful girls she has ever seen. It shouldn't be a surprise to her. She shook her head. It was none of her business. She was here to protect him and be a loyal soldier to him for the rest of her life. She wasn't supposed to be jealous. It's not like she could ever even become a friend with him. It was impossible. She would watch him from the side and just do whatever was in her power to keep him safe and happy.
"Tadashi?" Naruto asked.
Sakura snapped out of her thoughts as Naruto frantically waved his hands in front of her face.
"What?" She asked as she looked at him.
"There was a robbery. Suigetsu took off after the robbers. I am sure he will need some help." He said in a serious voice.
She nodded as she noticed Juugo standing next to Naruto panting slightly. He must have run here to inform them since they had divided into pairs.
"Let's go." Naruto said as he took off in a run. She followed absentmindedly and then shook her head once again to get rid of the thoughts.
They reached the crime scene as women's wails were heard. They immediately entered the house and found a wounded man in his late forty's laying on the floor of the hallway with a woman and a young girl wailing over him.
"I'll take care of this. Go catch the robbers." Sakura said as the other two men nodded and took off.
Sakura lowered to the floor and started checking his condition. He had a few cuts on his upper arms and a a long gash running across his chest. The women looked at her expectantly and didn't utter a word since they were still in shock from what has just occurred in their home. Sakura nodded to herself. The gash wasn't deep or life threatening but it needed to be properly cleaned so it wouldn't get infected. Sakura looked up at the girl.
"Please bring some hot water, bandages, towels, and any kind of alcohol and ointment you have." Sakura instructed. The girl nodded with wide and tear-filled eyes and hurried to gather the needed items. In the mean time Sakura reaped the man's upper half of the yukata off. It was covered in blood and was ripped so it would be disposed of. She instructed the woman to hold down the cloth over the wound. She needed to stop the bleeding for now.
Sakura put a hand on the woman's shoulder as she sobbed. "Don't worry, he will be alright." Sakura said in a comforting voice. The woman nodded but tears still slid down her cheeks. Sakura sighed. "Where can I wash my hands?" Sakura asked as she stood up. The woman instructed her where to go but refused to leave her husband. Sakura washed her hands in the basin making sure to get rid of any dirt before cleaning up the man's wounds. Flashbacks of that horrible night came in to her thought as the image of her parent's lifeless bodies appeared in her mind. She snapped out of her thoughts when the girl hurried to her side with the gathered items and they headed to where the man was.
"T-The only things I found were towels. We d-don't have any bandages." the girl said.
"That's alright. May I rip these towels?" Sakura asked the woman. She nodded when the lady gave her consent.
Sakura quickly cleaned up the gash and the man let out a sound that clearly meant that he was in pain. "Please, hold his arms down." Sakura said and the women complied. She cleaned the wound with the alcohol a second time just to be sure that there wouldn't be any danger of infection. She covered the outside of the wound with ointment so it would't itch and wrapped the bandages around the man's chest. She disinfected the cuts and covered them in bandages. When she was done she breathed a sigh of relief. The man opened his eyes "T-Thank you." he said in a hoarse voice. Sakura nodded with a tiny smile on her face. The women cried tears of relief and incessantly thanked Sakura. "May we have the name of our savior?" the woman asked as she grabbed Sakura's hands and held them tightly. Sakura was surprised at the woman's actions but answered. "My name is Tadashi." she said and the woman smiled. The girl blushed slightly since she just noticed how handsome the man in front of her was.
The sound of foot steps was heard as two men entered the house. Sakura looked up and stood and then bowed to her superior. Neji had entered the house with Juugo behind him. "Good evening, Neji-sama." Sakura said as she stood up from her bow.
The man nodded as he looked at the women and the man lying on the floor. He looked at her with a questioning look. "I have cleaned up the man's wounds. He wasn't severely wounded." Sakura answered to the unasked question. Neji nodded.
"The others caught the robbers and the back up is taking them to the prison. Your shift will be over in an hour." Neji said as he nodded to the women and headed towards the door. Their cue to leave. Juugo put the stolen items which he was carrying on the floor.
"Juugo-san, please help me take him to a room." she asked the man as he walked up to her. "I can do it myself. I am sure you are tired." he said with a small smile as he carefully followed the girl. Sakura looked at the woman. "Let him rest. The wound should close up in a few weeks but don't let him out of bed for at least two weeks. Wash the area around the wound with warm water and disinfect once a day. The ointment needs to be applied four times a day." Sakura instructed. The woman gave her a grateful smile as she thanked her again. As Sakura waited for Juugo to come she told the woman to buy some herbs that her husband should drink to lessen the pain.
Juugo finally came out of the room and they left as the two women thanked them.
Sakura and Juugo walked in silence until they met up with Naruto and Suigetsu who were also on their patrol. Naruto was boasting about kicking those robber's butts.
"Tadashi! You should have see it! There were at least ten of them and I beat them up so bad they scurried away from fear." Naruto yelled.
"Yeah, right. More like I covered your sorry butt." Suigetsu muttered.
"We should split up." Sakura said as the others nodded and she was again walking with Naruto as he described the fight.
Sakura didn't pay attention and just walked while lost in her thoughts.
"Ne, Naruto..." Sakura started absentmindedly.
Naruto immediately stopped talking as he looked at her curiously.
"Sasuke-sama looked so happy today..." she said as she looked somewhere with a distant look.
"Yeah, teme gets that way when he is with Natsumi-chan. She had been visiting her relatives in another village for over a month so he was in a bad mood this whole time." He said as he chuckled.
Sakura nodded. Then that girl meant a lot to him. She heard that Sasuke Uchiha was cold and emotionless. And she had seen those things for the time she was there. So that girl made him show all of those emotions. If that girl made Sasuke-sama happy she wouldn't be jealous she told herself but it still didn't stop a painful pang in her chest to appear each time she though of them together. No. She would be happy and content as long he would be safe and happy. That's all she needed. Though she did not know at that time how painful it would be after her feelings for him grew to much more than admiration and the kind of love she had for him right now.
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Well that's it for now. Please review! I will try to update as soon as I can! Ja ne! =^_^=