Chapter 4

Masyaf


Author's Note: Hey everyone! Krjs here! I'm back and (finally) updating Cherry Blossom! Whoo! [throws confetti to audience] I hope you all enjoy and thanks to my awesome Beta Reader for looking over the rough draft [you know who you are you awesome person you!] In this chapter I have used the tried and true deus ex machina Apple of Eden so that I finally don't need to write Sakura's lines with really horrible grammar and annoyingly grating accent. Thanks to everyone who voted on the poll about what Sakura should do in Masyaf for your contribution to the storyline!

Where Abbas goes flying and Sakura sees a Piece of Eden for the first time.


Omniscient Third Person POV

The desert was surprisingly cool in the light of dawn, which Sakura was quite thankful for. It gave her clothes some time to dry off in the biting wind. Despite the fact that they had taken the two horses that the bandits had taken with them she still would not get on the horse, because she was honestly sick and tired of sitting on her ass doing nothing from her time in the Jerusalem Bureau. Not that she was bored there or anything, Malik was a good teacher and company and the place was always busy making sure that she had no time to be bored. No, it's just that she's really hating how she's had little opportunity to train as of late, and it's been far too long since she's been sent outside even if she's not expected to fight she's just happy to be able to finally stretch out her legs for once.

They didn't go on for too long, after an hour or so of running (in Sakura's part) and riding (for Altair that is) they came across a mountain with a small village at the base and an impressive fortress at the peak, made of the same white stone that she had seen used on the buildings in Jerusalem. She could already hear from her distance that the village was a busy one and quite well populated. The familiar sounds of hawkers, merchants and women going out on their daily grocery shopping was a pleasant surprise, and made her chuckle about how women are quite similar to one another wherever they may be from.

Sakura noticed Altair giving her a look and even though it was obvious by the look on his face that he dearly wanted to ask exactly what it was that she found so humorous the gates of Masyaf loomed over their sight and so he had to keep it to himself for the time being as he rode up to the guard with the two horses' reins in his hand and Sakura jogging by his side.

"Safety and peace brother."
"And to you as well Altair, who is this beauty and why didn't you allow her to ride on one of your horses?"
"I had extended my hand, although she said that she could run."
"She ran all the way here from Jerusalem? That's impossible, even for you Altair, never mind a weak little wench~!"

Before Altair could even warn him the next thing they both knew he was flying in the air with nothing but Sakura's fist as a propeller, landing in the courtyard hundreds of yards away and scaring the novices practicing there.

"WHAT did he just call me? I'll make him regret ever opening his mouth! SHANNARO!"

~…*…~

Altair's POV

There are a lot of things that Altair has seen throughout his life, many of which he wouldn't have believed were possible, but this is the first time he's seen a pink haired woman with monstrous strength punch Abbas to the sky. If it wasn't for the fact that Sakura still had an intimidating look on her face he'd be laughing quite loudly at the absurdity of the situation. As it is he kept his mouth wisely shut in fear of being the next target. He noted with a bit of apprehension and no small amount of awe that when she stomped her way to Abbas she left craters in the shape of her footsteps on the ground and made the ground quake with each step.

Once she stood in front of him she took him by his collar and single handedly lifted him in the air with little to no exertion on her part, her facial expression angry and vindictive. Abbas looked like he was scared, or might even pass out from asphyxiation if his weakening grip on Sakura's hands and the pale complexion were any indicators of his overall health. The novices behind him did not look like they fared any better, one of them actually ran away screaming in fear.

"Who you call weak? Huh?"

Much to his surprise Sakura's voice had changed into a very deep and harsh tone, which only served to make her seem even more intimidating despite the fact that she had just made a grammatical error. Altair noted that one of the novices ran to the fortress with a determined look on his face, surprisingly enough, as Altair tried to get closer to attempt to dissipate the tension.

"Haruno. Put him down."
"He insult me. He deserve hurt for it."
"He is a comrade Haruno; you may well need his skills sometime in the future. I shall repeat myself one last time. Put. Him. Down."

She turned her head to give him a withering glare and disturbingly bestial growl before she finally loosened her grip on Abbas enough for him to drop gracelessly to the ground coughing and wheezing trying to get precious air in his lungs. She didn't even bother to look back at Abbas as she turned sharply on her heel to enter the fortress area and he followed right behind her, knowing that Abbas would not wish to be indebted to him for whatever reason, including and especially this one.

…~*~…

"Ah! Altair welcome back. I believe this is the lady that's piqued the curiosity of many of the novices that had gone to Jerusalem?"
"Yes Al Mualim."
"Tell me child what is your name?"
"My name is Haruno Sakura, nice meeting you Aru-Muarimu-san."

Even though Sakura had bowed low to Al Mualim in the proper way Altair couldn't help but flinch at her mangled pronunciation of the grandmaster's name, although Al Mualim himself did nothing but shake his head.

"I had thought that Malik had taught her how to speak Arabic?"
"He had, and although she's apparently a 'joy to teach' she's still overly formal and has a bit of an accent still."
"Hn…I see."

Altair could see that Sakura's face was surprised when the old man behind the desk started rummaging in the many compartments looking for something. It seems that she had expected this reaction. When Al Mualim brought out the Apple Sakura visibly tensed, and even Al Mualim noted that she reached for her weapons pouch and her expression had hardened and sharpened as he tried to placate her nervousness with soothing words and tone.

"Peace child, this is an instrument that would help you learn our tongue."

Sakura didn't looked like she believed him one bit, if the fact that she had pulled out one of her four-sided daggers were any indication of her trust. Her following words only served to cement that impression as she all but growled out.

"That…instrument has the same amount of chakra a biju would have*, I not berieve that it not harm me."

Al Mualim and Altair shared a look, one that said that Altair had a lot to answer for, but Al Mualim kept trying to calm Sakura nonetheless.

"It's alright child, I promise I will not use it for anything other than to help you learn Arabic. If you like you can even touch it yourself?"

Sakura gave him a look that clearly communicated exactly what she thought of that idea and her opinion of his mental state, one that said 'That's a stupid idea!' and 'Are you crazy?' However when Altair gave her a warning glance she reluctantly relaxed her stance slightly, though it was obvious by the way that she held her dagger that she still didn't believe Al Mualim. Altair could only sigh in exasperation at Sakura's antics. Al Mualim is the Grandmaster of the Brotherhood, does that not say anything about his integrity and honor? At least enough for her trust him?

Al Mualim motioned to Sakura to touch the Apple, which she did, but only after a not-so-gentle shove from Altair, and even then she would only touch it with her index finger with great and obvious reluctance on her part. A bright white light lit up the room when the Apple activated, making Sakura cover her eyes with her hands. Though the flash of light was only for an instant it was the longest moment that Sakura had ever experienced.

"Argh!"
"Calm down Haruno."

Both Altair and Al Mualim heard her low grumblings as clear as day, which they noted was much more fluent than it used to be.

"I'll calm down once I get my eyesight back, you irritating son of a…"
"Excuse me?"

The guilty look that flashed through Sakura's eyes was quick and barely discernable but was most certainly there before she straightened herself and bowed.

"I apologize; it's just that I was caught unprepared for the…side-effects of your instrument Al Mualim-san."
"There's no need to apologize, my dear, but would you be as kind as to allow us a glimpse of your skill?"
"Certainly. What do you wish to see?"
"I have heard many things about your strength. If you would fight one of our brothers in a spar in front of the whole Brotherhood we would be most grateful."
"Not a problem, but can I ask for one thing?"
"And what would that be?"
"If I have to fight someone, I want it to be someone of my choosing."
"Depending on whom you choose I may just grant your request."
"In that case, would you allow me to fight against him?"

Just as Sakura finished her sentence she points at Altair right next to her, surprising both him and Al Mualim. Her curious choice has the novices and the other brothers in the fortress tittering, some of the voices curious while others were outright laughing behind her back, believing that she was no match for him.

"Well Altair? Will you fight against her?"

Altair's eyebrows did not lower as he nodded absently to Al Mualim, still not quite over his surprise over Sakura's choice of himself as a sparring partner. Of all people to choose, he hadn't been expecting himself to be chosen.

"But…why me?"

"I've been itching to fight you ever since I saw you in action yesterday with the bandits. I'm warning you right now however…" At this Sakura brings out her gloves once again and pulls them over her hands with an excited grin on her face. "You better not underestimate me."

"Trust me Haruno, after seeing you uproot a tree with your bare hands yesterday the last thing I'll be doing is underestimating you." Altair couldn't help the dry drawl of his words, still seeing in his mind's eye her doing just that from the day before. His words only made the voices even louder and questions were raised in the background as Sakura's grin became a very wide smirk when he finished.

"Smart man."
"…Wait Grandmaster, don't tell me I have to fight her so soon? We've only just gotten to Masyaf and I'm sure that
even she's tired after the long journey."
"Yes, of course, that's right. How rude of me. I'll give you both a three days to prepare yourselves, on the 23rd you must both report to the sparring ring for the fight."

Both Sakura and Altair gave Al Mualim a deep bow for his considerations before they departed the hall to find a place to rest on Altair's part. He was looking forward to going to his room to drop dead on his wonderful, comfortable cot for at least 3 days before he even thinks about getting up again. Sakura however looks disturbingly happy with the hopping gait that she's adopted and the large grin on her face makes him wonder whether he should be afraid for his life in the upcoming match…

…~*~…

Although they are his brothers, in creed if not in blood, sometimes Altair wishes he could just kill them just to have some quiet time alone. The other men of the Brotherhood can cackle just as loudly as the peafowl's in the garden, and twice as loudly as the girls that inhabit it. Especially when it comes to new persons that visit Masyaf, and now that he has come with the curious woman that the whole fortress had been whispering about for months he will now be considered by his fellow brothers as a veritable fount of information about her, and it certainly didn't help that he had spoken about the events of the bandit ambush last night either.

"Altair! Is it true that she really uprooted a tree with nothing but her hands?"
"Impossible! No man is so strong, never mind a woman…"

The fool novice couldn't finish his sentence when unexpectedly Altair clapped his hand over his large mouth, looking around as if to check for someone.

"Don't you dare say something like that, especially in front of her, because woman or not, she's monstrously strong, as any of the novices training this morning and even Abbas can clearly attest to. If you want to keep your fool head attached to your body you'll be wise to keep such comments to yourself. And as for her uprooting a tree, yes, she did just that as well as swung it around as easily as we would wield a short sword and crushed our enemies to the ground with it."

"…I wouldn't say I crushed our opponents exactly, more like winded them or possibly throwing them off into the horizon, but certainly not crushed. Far as I could tell their internal organs were still well and whole and their skeletal system still intact."

Altair and his brothers who followed after him and the novice jumped at the sound of a familiar feminine voice, scanning their surroundings but not able to find the source of the amused and thoughtful woman that had spoken. Her laughter was loud and tinkling as she watched from her perch, and it only got even louder when the novice with Altair's hand over his mouth gasped in surprise as he stared at the ceiling straight at her. The others noticed him making a sound of surprise and followed his eyesight which led to other gasps and shouts of amazement. Altair's eyebrows shot up to his hairline as he saw Sakura standing on the ceiling like it was land, for all the causality that she seemed to exude. Her left hand was resting on her cocked hip and giving a large and obviously delighted smile on her face, with only her short pink hair following the laws of gravity as it hung down to the ground, shaking as she laughed.

"Ha! Ha! Ha! You look like you've seen a ghost!"
"Forgive us for being surprised, but it isn't exactly normal to see a woman standing on the ceiling Haruno."

Although he's only known her for a short amount of time he's seen her do enough feats that his voice has already accumulated a dry tone every time he highlights the difference between her skill sets and his, or even making note of how she's able to do things he had once believed impossible for a mortal human to accomplish. His comment made Sakura cock her head to the side, making her hair move and only served to underline how different she is.

"No?"
"No."
"Huh… Back in my country even genin – pardon me, I meant novices, can do this with their eyes blindfolded. If you want something really impressive, remind me to show you water–walking some time."

With her odd statement made (confusing everyone except her) and a wide amused smile on her face at their puzzled expressions, Sakura crouched on the ceiling before launching herself off of it with all the ease of a bird launching itself to flight. Twirling gracefully in the air in ways that even Altair himself hadn't known was physically and humanly possible she tumbled down to earth garnering more gasps and shouts only for them to hush as she landed as agilely as a jungle cat to the ground before she took Altair's hand to drag him outside.

"Show me around Kaname-kun! I've been feeling far too cooped up in the Jerusalem Bureau for too long and I want the excuse to stretch my legs!"
"There are many brothers who would be more than happy to do so, why have you chosen me to be your guide?"
"Because you're the only one I trust."
"…."

Altair couldn't find any words to rebuke her statement, confounded that anyone would even trust him any more since that faithful day though knowing well that he wouldn't be able to wring himself out of her grasp if she didn't want him to. It could be because she's a foreigner and knows nothing about that disastrous day that he had been responsible for the deaths of many, but it doesn't explain her complete trust in him when they've only known each other for a small amount of time. Although for some odd indiscernible reason he gets the feeling that she knows more about him than he's comfortable with…

~…*…~

Sakura POV

Kaname–kun is just too easy to read. That hood may cover his face but it doesn't keep his reactions and emotions from me. Just because I can't see his face doesn't mean I don't know what he's feeling. His eyes are almost as expressive as Naruto's even though his personality is so similar to Sasuke's…

Sasuke who she had loved, no, whom she still loves…
Sasuke who she had confessed her love to…
Sasuke who had almost killed her…

'No! I'm not going to start thinking about that now of all times! I have a new place to explore and Kaname–kun to pester! I'll have plenty of time to cry later!' and with that though in mind Sakura plastered a completely fake smile on her face after shaking off the bubbling tears in her eyes before turning back to Altair to start on said pestering. Being a medic–nin, she knows that this isn't a healthy way to deal with her emotions and the trauma of past events but she honestly can't say that she knows of a better way to deal with it either. Not in this beautiful and fragile world where people can't walk up ceilings or on water and where a single punch from her would be enough to kill someone, even without the added chakra.

Maybe someday in the near future she'll be able to think about him without tears coming to her eyes and deal with her emotions in a healthier and not-so-potentially emotionally traumatizing way but for now ignoring the glaring problem by forcing it to her unconscious will have to do…


Japanese Term

1. biju: "tailed beasts" - nine giant monsters of various sizes/skill sets and species that are all inevitably monstrously strong and more often than not are usually sealed inside something so that they don't go on a rampage to destroy all of Creation, the items being used to seal them can span from a human infant to a teapot