Chapter 4
As the sounds of birds began to trickle into Sakura's conciousness, she could feel the warmth of the sun shining through the trees and the sound of leaves brushing eachother as the wind blew through. Slowly opening her eyes, Sakura found that she was still in the forest, a little dazed, but comfortable. She found that she was wrapped in Itachi's cloak. Apparently he had wrapped her in his coat before carrying her swiftly through night for a few more miles. Slowly getting to her feet, Sakura looked around for her captor, and seeing as he was no where in sight, dropped his jacket, turned and made to runaway before she once again bumped into something familiar.
Standing before her was Itachi, looking down at her with a serious face and those dark eyes. Unaffected, he walked around her.
"There is no point in trying to escape. I would catch you before you took a step, and I could kill you in one breath. Don't be a bother."
Acknowledging that her skills were absolutely no contest to him, she turned back and leaned against a tree. Itachi tossed a wrapped riceball at her.
"Eat," he said, picking up his coat and putting it back on.
After she had finished, Itachi tossed her his flask from which she cautiously smelt before taking a sip. After taking back the flask, Itachi took a swig while staring at her with eyes that foretold their next journey, and grabbing her arm whipped her into which direction to go.
"Move," he commanded, shoving her forward.
They continued to walk for about a mile through a relatively dry portion of the forest before coming to a break in the trees. They could hear the sounds of water rushing. Coming out into the open sun, Sakura found herself standing before a river that fell into a waterfall. The sun was setting in the distance, and this was where Itachi planned to buy them more time.
"You first," he said, grabbing her from behind and throwing her over the waterfall into the pool below. Itachi paused for a moment, watching her splash as she landed before jumping down to the pool's edge.
Below the surface of the pool, Sakura began to swim immediately against the current, sticking close to the bottom so that Itachi could not see her shadow. She surfaced behind the waterfall, and climbed into a tiny cave that protected her from its spray. Outside, Itachi was waiting for her make an appearance, but after realizing that she swam away, immediately followed the current down as that would be her quickest way out.
As the sun set over the horizon, Sakura waited a few minutes before coming out into the open. She immediately took off into the forest running in the same direction that they were heading. If Itachi found out that she had given him the slip, he'd definitely be searching for her in the direction they came from.
Sakura ran for about a half hour, and it was now completely dark. It was early spring, and the cold chill of winter was still felt in the night. Sakura finally slowed to a walk and began to turn her direction back towards where she thought was Konoha.
The night grew colder and as Sakura was still in her slightly damp night dress, it was even colder. The wind began to pick up and the chill was biting. Eventually she let out a sneeze. At that moment, there was a rustling noise from behind and before it had even dawned on her Itachi had caught up.
Her chakra was weak. In an effort to escape, Sakura picked up a rock and threw it at him before dodging into trees, but just as Itachi had stated before, she was no match. He grabbed her wrist, threw her against a tree, pinning her wrists above her head.
Itachi's face was a fearsome thing to behold. His eyes were enraged and Sakura felt as though this could be her end. Tightening his grip on her wrists, Sakura let out a small groan. The hard chips of the tree dug into her skin, causing them to bleed. Itachi leaned in to whisper into her ear, "do that again and I won't hesitate to kill you the next time around." Loosening his grip, he threw her again into the direction he wanted to proceed.
Hours had passed and Sakura was now fully dry. The moon had come high into the sky. It was midnight, and now she was freezing. Sakura had now gotten to the point where she was almost deliriously cold, and her head bobbed with threats of unconciousness. She understood. This, was her punishment.
A few more moments passed and when she finally thought that she was going to pass out, she stopped dead in her tracks. Itachi, sensing that this was her limit, took off his coat. Itachi moved around to her front, wrapped his coat around her, and swept her up into his arms. He continued walking with the same pace as before as Sakura lay shivering in his arms. He hugged her closer so that his body heat would reach her quicker. Realizing that he couldn't go on like this for long, he made his way towards a cliff where he found a small cave.
Itachi left Sakura standing in the cave as he went to gather some materials for a fire. Sakura was too cold and exhausted to even think about moving from her spot. Itachi soon returned and made a small pile of sticks and leaves for the fire. Kneeling down, he produced hand symbols that allowed him to shoot a small flame from his lips to light the kindling. Itachi then made his way towards Sakura who stepped back, fearing some kind a physical retribution. Instead, Itachi paused before her, swept her back up, and placed her in his lap as he sat before the fire. Leaning his back against the cave wall, he propped her up so that her head and body leaned against his and tucked her legs into him before wrapping his arms around her. Closing his eyes, he began to fall asleep.
Sakura, enjoying this new found warmth, looked up at his sleeping face. After all that she had done, he was still considerate enough to keep her warm in the end. She was thankful, even after he had been mean to her. She picked up the outside of the coat and pulled it out from under his arm and wrapped it around to cover his; Itachi's eyes opened a little to watch her do this. Then, putting his arm back around her body, Sakura snuggled her head into his neck so that his head could rest upon hers. Itachi, in return, hugged her closer.
"Arigatou," she whispered. A moment of silence passed.
"What is it that Akatsuki wants," she asked, her eyes still closed.
Itachi, not much of a speaker, did not answer.
"I know that you don't have to tell me anything, but please," she said, opening her eyes, "I think a person should have a right to know...before they are killed..."
Itachi let out a miniscule sigh. He had never known a woman's touch. He was only thirteen when he had left Konoha. Everything since then had not brought him in contact with many women. This kind of attention was new to him, and in a way he did not want to let go of it.
"Please," Sakura pleaded, though her voice fell upon deaf ears.
Itachi closed his eyes and fell asleep. Knowing that she would not get an answer, Sakura closed hers and began to dream.
