Author's Note: Hello everyone! This is a really, really, really overdue chapter, but I rewrote it like three times. (Despite this, I'm still not sure I'm happy with the final product sdfegalknaskjhg I seriously considered bombing my computer more than once while writing this.) I honestly don't know how I managed to still write my usual 6,000+ words _

Thanks again to all those who reviewed/faved/subscribed to this! I know reviews may seem like a small thing, but they are incredibly motivating! I literally squeal with joy when I get reviews – and I have live witnesses to confirm this. Please review if you can :)

On a side note, now that I'm in college, I can work on making these chapters a bit better, but being in college also means that I have little time to spend on meticulous editing. Many of you have pointed out a few grammatical errors, and I really appreciate this, but you have to understand that it's not because I don't understand topics like comma usage or the differences between their/there/they're – it's just that after spending hours and hours with a chapter, my eyes sort of auto-skip over errors. I've tried asking around for a beta, but all my requests have come up (*le sigh*) negative. Pretty much everyone who I PM'd has either told me they're taking a break from beta reading right now or they're working on too many stories at the moment and can't take up a new project. If you are interested in beta reading this story or know a beta looking for a new story to work on, send me a PM! (I promise your PM won't just sit unanswered in my inbox!)

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, and I never will. *weeps in a corner, hugging pillow*

~ Chapter 4: The Guard ~

. . . drip . . . drip . . . drip . . .

"When do you think she'll wake up?"

"Hell if I know – the interrogation squad did quite a number on her."

"Yeah. I know she's from that shithole Konoha, but I can't help but have a little pity for the girl."

"Careful what you say. That kind of talk could get you tried for treason."

The two guards stopped talking, the thought of being persecuted for treason setting a somber mood. One guard looked behind him through the sealed door at the seated girl. After the Raikage ordered her arrest, the interrogation team had brought her down here, warping her mind with genjutsu and taking delight in using scalpels to draw pictures on her skin. They even left some senbon embedded in her, crusting with puss and blood as the wounds became infected. She was crumpled like a ragdoll on the cement floor, weighed down by exhaustion and heavy steel chains around her ankles, wrist, and neck.

The ANBU in him attempted to suppress the pressure in his chest filled with guilt as he gazed upon the crusted blood streaks coursing down her body and the pallor shade of her skin. He knew she was supposed to be "Konoha scum," but he couldn't help but wonder what she had done to deserve such pain. Were all the restraints necessary?

He tried to not dwell on the specifics too much. Since his entrance into Kumogakure's ANBU, he had found that he was quite ignorant of the politics behind his orders. But, it wasn't his job to question what the Raikage thought was best for Kumogakure. Better to be ignorant than doubtful of his leader.

His soliloquy was interrupted as his unfocused gaze of the girl sharpened, noticing her hands attempting to stretch but flinching at the pain the movement brought. Should I mention she's awake? He thought. He looked over at his partner, who by now had seated himself on the ground and seemed to be enjoying a nice nap while lounging against the stone walls. He looked at the girl again to see her attempting to stretch her other joints and finding just as much pain in those.

He put his face close to the interlocking bars of the cellar door, wrapping his hands around the cold steel. "Hey," he whispered. When she didn't acknowledge him, he tried again a little louder. "Hey!" He glanced at his partner, who was still sound asleep. When he looked back at the girl, however, he was surprised to see her head tilted slightly in his direction. He backed away from the bars, suddenly realizing he hadn't expected her to respond and that he didn't really have anything to say to the girl – well, he knew he shouldn't have anything to say to the girl.

The two stayed like this for a moment while his head scrambled, searching for something neutral but very guard-like to say to her. Would you like some water? No, no – too nice!

"Uh, what's your name?" He said, but instantly questioned it. Was asking her name too nice? Names were personal, so would that mean he shouldn't have asked that?

He heard her mumble a response, but couldn't hear her clearly from this distance and her obvious exhaustion. He looked at the sealed door. It was about ten feet from where the girl was. He didn't want to tamper with the seal; he hadn't been present during the sealing and didn't know the parameters of the seal. He looked at the girl again and saw her eyes staring at the ceiling with a glazed focus. He had an idea.

"Blink if you can hear me," he said, and was happy when her eyes slowly closed and reopened. But, his joy was short-lived as he once again wanted to repeatedly beat his head on a stone wall. Why would she need to hear you? What point is there in devising a communication system of blinking when you have nothing to talk about? You idiot! He chastised. He could almost picture the wonderful conversations they could have: "Are you alive?" Blink "Oh . . . well . . . stay that way!" Yeah. Great conversations would come of that.

He sighed and returned to slouch against the wall. Why should he even try to talk to the girl? They were probably going to kill her when the Kyuubi kid showed up.

As Itachi followed the faint smear Sakura's chakra left on the branches, he was extremely thankful that she had known the most direct route to Kumogakure.

At first, Itachi reveled in the quiet of the forest, breathing in the crisp wind sighing through the trees. But, the moment was short lived as Itachi's suspicious rose. Itachi hadn't sensed the presence of any other shinobi; the forests were completely empty. Why hadn't he been attacked yet? Not that he was itching for a fight, but from the information Konoha had gathered, Itachi should have run into multiple groups of shinobi stationed along the Kumogakure border. He was well within the borders of Kumogakure and he had met zero resistance. He briefly wondered if it was his changed appearance – if the Kumo shinobi saw "Naruto" was coming and let him pass through without any resistance.

Regardless of the strange absence of guards, Itachi ran forward. However, when he reached Kumo's gates, his suspicion rose even higher as the gate was unguarded. Double-checking his Naruto genjutsu, he pressed forward into the city.

As he walked through the city's cobblestone roads, a stray civilian turned onto the street Itachi was on. He took off his headband for good measure and put on Naruto's signature smile, Itachi went up to the woman, scratching the back of his head in faux nervousness. "Um, ma'am?" he started, a nervous giggle in his voice. The woman looked at "Naruto", startled at first by his voice, but visibly eased when she saw his smiling expression. It's almost too simple to deceive the unassuming. "I'm sorry to disturb you, ma'am, but I'm a little lost," he said.

"It's quite alight, dear," The woman smiled softly, "If you are looking for the festival, it's in the main square."He thanked the woman with a short bow. Festival?

Knowing the city from prior visits, he waited for the woman to turn around a corner before running to the main square. In Kumo, the main square was right in front of the Raikage's building. Closing in on the plaza, Itachi saw the hoards of people and the hum of urgent whispering. Realizing they were packed too densely for him to get a good view from the ground, he scaled one of the buildings bordering the square. He leaned over the edge of the roof.

Civilians and shinobi all crowded around in a semicircle around the Raikage's building. He seemed to be quite lucky in his timing, he acknowledged as he watched the Raikage walk onto the balcony of the Raikage's tower. With his ever-present scowl, the Raikage addressed the crowd.

"Citizens of Kumogakure, I am proud to stand before such a mighty group of people – a superior group of people. I am proud to lead you, and today, I am proud to give you good news. Our grand city is humming with a rumor, a rumor that I am overjoyed to tell you is–" the Raikage paused for a moment, "–true." There was a collective gasp before the plaza erupted with shouts to "bring the bitch out" and "rip her worthless head off."

The Raikage smiled, pleased by the reaction of his people. He waved his hand, and the crowd gradually silenced. "Yes, locked in our dungeons, floating in a pool of her own filthy blood," the Raikage grinned, "is Haruno Sakura, the Hokage's beloved apprentice." A sort of maniacal smile reached the Raikage's eyes. Itachi sighed. He had suspected it was Haruno, but, in a rare moment of optimism, he had hoped she hadn't worsened an already annoying situation.

He left before the Raikage could finish his speech, but the cheers of the crowd could be heard miles away as Itachi ran towards the edge of Kumogakure where their interrogation unit was. He hadn't been to this place since the Second Shinobi War, but the memory of the blood-streaked cement walls and persistent stench of rotting flesh was hard to forget, even for Itachi. He hadn't been interned for very long – a short two days – but the time he had spent in the cells were enough for him to memorize the unit's layout and guard rotation. If the Raikage truly meant the things he had said about Haruno, then he knew she would be held in the active interrogation rooms. The mixture of bloodlust and pure joy in his eyes had convinced Itachi that the Raikage wasn't quite done with her.

He continued running along the perimeter of Kumo until he saw a small cottage. The cottage looked innocent enough, if not for the fact that it isn't a Kumo custom to put metal bars on cottage windows. The interrogation unit was underground, and the cottage was the only access point; there was a sealed stairwell leading to the enormous underground structure. He wasn't going to enter now – he had yet to confront the Raikage as "Naruto" – but it was good to know that Kumo's military bases remained unchanged. If their previous guard rotations were still in place, then there would be three guards around the sealed stairwell. His Sharingan confirmed three chakra signatures in the cottage. So predictable, he scoffed.

While there was the possibility that the Haruno girl could be on the verge of death, Itachi couldn't just barge in without exhausting all peaceful means. Tsunade surely wouldn't appreciate a Third Shinobi War that could have been avoided. In this situation, "peaceful means" meant signing the supposed treaty as "Naruto."

He perched himself in a nearby tree, considering his next move. How would Naruto approach the Raikage? Like a complete blithering idiot, that's how, Itachi frowned. As tactless as Naruto was, Itachi was supposed to be impersonating him and that meant appearing and behaving like him, unfortunately.

During the few missions Itachi had been on with Naruto, the blonde almost always ran head first into any situation without a single thought of strategy. If Naruto were really here, Itachi theorized that Naruto would have gone straight to the Raikage's tower, bursting through the door and demanding ridiculous things. Itachi would have to do this, no matter how undignified it was.

He jumped down from the branch he was on and began his trip to the Raikage's tower. As he passed through the city for a second time, the atmosphere was completely different. What had been a silent, abandoned village was now vibrant and apparently celebrating. With all the clumsy dancing and music, it was rather easy for Itachi to go unnoticed by shinobi and civilians alike.

As he approached the Raikage's tower, he reached into his pack and put Naruto's headband back on. If his identity wasn't enough for them to summon the Raikage, his Konoha loyalty surely would. He opened the large wooden door, and stood in the center of the room for a moment. In those short seconds, no one looked up at the new presence. It wasn't until the receptionist looked up, saw his headband, and screamed that he was finally ambushed by Kumo shinobi. What would Naruto do? Itachi thought,almost laughing at the sheer ridiculousness of that question. Is he skilled enough to fight off this kind of attack? Itachi realized that he should have gone on more missions with Naruto because it was becoming clear that he didn't know much about the boy's fighting level. As he exchanged a few basic taijutsu attacks with the shinobi, Itachi decided that in this situation it might be advantageous to let the men apprehend him.

The Kumo shinobi noticed he had backed down and decided that was their opportunity to apprehend him. He let them force him to the ground and restrain his hands with chakra-sealing ropes. He frowned at the ropes; those had not been apart of the plan. Chakra-sealing ropes weren't especially difficult to get out of, but they had particularly annoying and unavoidable side effects on the body. Great, he sighed.

Considering how nonviolent and compliant he was being, the shinobi dragged him with rather unnecessary force to the Raikage's office. He was thrown to the ground as one of the shinobi stepped forward. "Raikage-sama, we found a Konoha shinobi within the tower. What are your orders?" At this point, the Raikage had turned around, and his eyes glinted as he saw "Naruto."

"Well, what a surprise! What can I do for you, Naruto?" The Raikage sat at his desk, rocking the chair back and forth as he spoke.

"Teme! Where is Sakura-chan?" Itachi yelled, but the voice that came out was Naruto's. Too much? he wondered.

"Not to worry, Haruno-san is . . . alive," the Raikage said, "But enough about her. It seems you got my letter."

"Yeah, we got your fucking letter," Itachi said, "What do you want?"

The Raikage's hands clutched his stomach as he roared with laughter. Itachi's eyes narrowed; he didn't understand what was so funny. "Oh, my dear boy, why rush into such boring matters? We ought to have a little fun first!" The Raikage said through his laughter. A few moments passed with the Raikage's crazed laughing when Itachi caught a slight hand movement. The Raikage, while doubled over, casually snapped his fingers. The guards grabbed their katana and smashed the hilts into his head. It was only a second before his vision went black.

The guard continued to stare at the pink-haired girl in the cell. His partnered looked over at him, giggling. "Don't worry, I'm sure the Raikage will let us play around with her when he's done. Be patient." He looked over at his partner, disgusted at such a notion. He definitely didn't share the constant animalistic need his fellow ANBU had somehow manifested during their service. Far too many times had he seen guards take advantage of female inmates, using their supposed superiority as an excuse to overpower them. He swallowed down a bit of bile as memories of the frail women flooded his mind. Their eyes were the worst part – the way they stared at him as he stood on the side, lost and submissive.

As a shinobi, it wasn't very often he saw beautiful things; what beauty he did find, he wanted to cherish.

He looked over at the girl again, imagining what she must have looked like before they tortured her. One by one, his mind cleaned her of the wounds, blood, and bruising. He imagined if a river was covered in pink roses, her hair were look like that – ethereal and warm. He erased the black and blue marbling on her skin, until her skin was smooth and milky. He remembered her eyes and how amazing they were even now, strong and incandescent, reflecting the world around her with an emerald filter.

He frowned. It was such a waste for a goddess like herself to be battered like this. If his comrades were planning to have "fun" with her, he would have to find a way to protect her from their eager hands.

The echo of hurried voices pulled him from his thoughts. He looked at his partner, who was equally as confused as to who could be visiting this part of the unit. Fixing their uniforms and ANBU masks, they scrambled to their feet.

Two men were jogging down the corridor, carrying a blonde guy. His partner was the first to react. "What's this?" his partnered asked one of the officers, nodding to the body they were carrying.

"It's another Konoha shinobi, we have orders from the Raikage to put him in the cell next to the Haruno girl. Open the seal," one of the officers ordered.

They stated to assume positions to unseal the door, but paused to turn to the officer. "We aren't able to open it, sir. It was done by an entire sealing team – there's no way the two of us can open it," his partner said.

The officer laughed, "Is that what they told you? Oh, boy. Look, guys, it's just a simple C Rank seal. We don't have the resources for anything fancier than that right now." They let out a barely audible "Oh" and proceeded to form the basic seals needed. Within moments the seal was dropped.

They undid the chains around the lock and the two ANBU threw the blonde guy into the cell. The man slumped onto the cement floor. The officers slid the barred door closed, the metal crashing against the cell's rusted frame. Wiping the rust off their hands on their pants, they returned their attention to the two guards. "Oh, and the Raikage said to let one of you leave. They'll be passed out for a while, so it'd be a waste to have you both on active duty."

"I'll stay!" he said, immediately chastising himself for sounding so eager. Who ever wants to stay on duty? He probably sounded ridiculous. The officer gave him a strange expression but nodded nonetheless. His partner thanked him and started to pack his things, shoving things in his bag with an eager forcefulness.

The men left as quickly as they came, laughing as though they weren't in the basement of an interrogational unit. As the last trances of the men disappeared, the hallway became eerily silent.

He was alone. Well, except for the two half-dead Konoha shinobi, but that wasn't very comforting.

He lowered himself to the ground, leaning his side against the door of the cell. Resting his head on a horizontal bar, he returned to gazing at the girl. The officer had called her "Haruno," making him wonder if that was her clan name or her first name.

He looked over at the man in the cell beside her. The guy had absurdly bright yellow hair, spiked in way that defied all laws of gravity. Geez, you need to lay off the gel. His obnoxious orange suit was rather impractical for a shinobi. The guy might as well carry a sign saying, "Please attack me! I want to die!" Konoha shinobi were supposedly really stupid, but were they really that stupid?

His eyes flickered between the two of them. He knew it was foolish, but he hoped they didn't know one another.

Ignoring the new addition to the cells, he sat the way he was for hours, looking at the pink rose on the floor. He shuffled around, stretching his legs, but the next two days passed with relative ease and silence. A guard had come once to let him sleep and another to bring him a meal and that was all. He just sat there. But, he was content to do so.

On the third day, though, the Raikage had announced there to be a national holiday, to celebrate the capture of the two Konoha shinobi. The whole town roared above ground, and the lone guard in the interrogation unit was quickly forgotten. No one came to check on him, and he was given meals in advance so no one had to deliver food. The partying above ground lasted three days.

Initially, he thought his mind was playing a trick on him. After days of imagining fictional conversations with the woman, he thought he had finally gone loopy. It wasn't until she spoke with an almost inaudible croak that he realized he wasn't hallucinating.

"Hello?" she said with a raspy voice.

He panicked. Only a few days ago he had hoped to talk to her via blinking, he had never imagined she'd speak – or at least be healthy and conscious enough to do so. He turned from his position to fully face the cell, grasping the bars with both his hands. He swallowed a few times before finally finding his voice.

"Uh, hi?" he said. She attempted to sit upright but groaned in pain.

"Where am I?" she said, croaking again. Maybe I should get her water? He thought. He reached for his water but frowned at the bottle's emptiness.

"You're in . . . Kumo," he said slowly. He wasn't exactly sure where to say she was. He could have lied and said she was in Konoha, but she probably would have seen through that. However, if he had said she was in Kumo's Interrogation Unit . . . Well, she probably wouldn't have reacted positively to that either. Being told you're in what was essentially a torture unit isn't the best thing to wake up to. "What's your name?" he said, in hopes that it would distract her from focusing on her location.

Sakura looked at the masked man. She had no idea if he was telling the truth, but she did remember her current situation. She was talking with the Raikage and was attacked by his men. They had tried to torture answers from her, but the rest was a blur. She vaguely remembered waking up for a few moments, but her memories stopped there. Was she still in the interrogation unit? And if so, was this man part of the squad? Was he going to continue where the others left off?

She sighed. Too tired to dissect his motives, she decided that it was entirely plausible that he really did just want to know her name. "Haruno Sakura."

There was no answer, but that didn't surprise her. Placing her hand under her, Sakura tried to push herself up again, but was met with a searing pain in her back. After gauging that she had no chakra – and wouldn't be able to use it anyway since they never removed the chakra seals – she opted to just roll over to see outside her cell, which was painful enough. Oh kami, what I would give for a few drops of medical chakra right now!

As she lay on her side, she looked outside the bars of her cell. There was the masked man seated outside her cell, but it seemed like she was the only inmate in this section; the row of cells across from her were dirty, but empty nonetheless. Although she couldn't see them due to the large cement walls, she assumed the cells next to her were also empty judging from the silence.

Her lack of chakra and impaired condition was truly the most frustrating part of this entire situation; she was so damn tired. There was nothing she could do at the moment, so she just closed her eyes, thinking of medical ninjutsu to pass the time; she assumed she'd be here a while with nothing to do, so distracting herself with medical ninjutsu seemed like a practical way to keep her sane in this situation.

While going through the removal of a pulmonary mass, she had only gotten to opening the thoracic cavity before her imaginary OR was interrupted by the screech of the metal door moving.

Opening one eye, Sakura was shocked to see the masked man within her cell. Her body coiled away from the man as he approached her.

She had no chakra and no energy to fight off the man, and to top it off, she was injured; all Sakura could do was try and drag herself away, which is exactly what she did. She twisted her body, throwing her hands out to grasp anything she could use to pull herself away with. She managed to move herself a few inches away from the man, but he closed that distance with little effort. Her exasperated pulling was no match for his fully working legs.

He slowly extended his arm out to her but stopped in time for his hand to hover near her face.

Her heart was racing, panicking, and despite her best efforts to appear strong and confident, she probably looked like a frightened child. It was like her genin years all over again; helplessly waiting for someone else to protect her.

The man watched her for a few moments, following the tremors that rippled down her spine and watching her chest expand and contract with short breathes. She watched as his eyes took in the various bruises shadowing her skin. For a second, Sakura thought he was actually going to touch her, but he clenched the hand near his face and retreated to outside her cell. Leaning his back on her now closed cell door, he trained his attention on cells across from her.

Silence took over as both were absorbed in their own thoughts. Sakura's mind was deconstructing what had just happened and psychoanalyzing this man's moves. Why had he almost touched her? What had he been thinking? What had stopped him?

All she knew about this man was that he was a part of Kumogakure's ANBU . . . and that was it. Sakura realized that wasn't much to go off of as far as psychoanalysis goes, but it didn't stop her curiosity from reaching out.

"Are you a part of the integration squad?" she asked, thinking it'd be nice to know if this man was going to be torturing her later. He never turned around, but she could tell he shook his head. She frowned at his silence; he seemed okay with talking when she woke up not long ago. Accepting that he would stay silent – and that she didn't want to play twenty questions with a silent man – she moved on to more productive matters like moving. If she could figure out a way to move her body, she could get in a seating position that would allow her body to heal itself without chakra and without the added pain of a lying on a cement floor.

Remembering the pain from her back the first time she tried to sit up, Sakura realized that knowing her injuries would probably be a good starting place. But, thanks to the chakra seals, she had so do the exam manually instead of directing her medical chakra to various areas. She looked down at her arms, figuring out which was less injured and therefore which she could use. Her right arm felt – and definitely looked – broken, so she opted to use her left arm, which was tucked underneath her as she lay on her side. Of course I would be lying on the good arm, she sighed. Biting her lip, she moved her body to lie on her back. Initially wincing from her injured back making contact with the unforgiving floor, she shifted around until she found a position where her pain level was at its dullest.

Taking her newly freed left hand, she started with her head and worked her way down, thoroughly palpating the skin to feel for any irregularities beneath. And, oh my, were there irregularities.

She wondered how the hell she was conscious but eventually chalked it up to over-productive adrenal glands.

Her right arm and two of her ribs were broken, not to mention she felt muscular bruising along her abdomen and spine. After checking her vitals, she realized her labored breathing was from one of the broken ribs protruding into her left lung. She didn't want to even count the number of topical bruises and lacerations she found pretty much everywhere. She also found a number of senbon still embedded in her skin, but she didn't dare touch them; by removing them, she could leave herself vulnerable to an infection from the open wound it would leave behind.

Once again, Sakura found the irony of her situation almost laughable. Here she was, a top level medic-nin – not only extremely knowledgeable about her field, but also resourceful in her approach to treating patients – and she wasn't able to heal herself.

After a bit of self-loathing and pouting, she became aware of her surroundings again. As she looked up, she noticed that the masked man had been watching her during her self-exam. That wasn't creepy at all.

The masked man quickly looked away, perhaps out of bashfulness, but more likely because of the voices approaching them both. The man quickly got up, resuming a more guard-like position. Sakura didn't bother moving at all; there was no real advantage to being in a specific spot in this cell until she knew more about her situation.

Two Kumogakure ANBU stepped in front of her cell and addressed the masked man. They exchanged simple greetings, and the new ANBU apologized for something, but Sakura didn't understand what they meant.

"I see the pink one's awake. Has the other one woken up yet?" one of the guards asked, looking at the obviously awake Sakura. Other one? There's someone else here? Sakura had no idea who it could be, but she assumed it was just some prisoner from the war.

"No, he hasn't moved," her guard said, fidgeting with hands in an anxious manner, "Um, well, I think we should – not that we have to, but I think it would be advisable to heal them a little bit." There was a silence that prevailed for a few moments. The two men gave her guard a blank expression. "Healing them would ensure they don't die on us, since their deaths would mean we no longer hold any leverage over Konoha," he continued. The two men looked at each other for a moment, his words.

"Okay, Gaku. But you're taking responsibility for this. We can't let them leave the interrogation unit, and we can't spare any healers at the moment. If you can find a way to heal them despite that, go ahead," the ANBU said, already turning away to leave. They said their goodbyes while their voices diminished in the halls, shrinking until the men were out of sight.

Uh, what just happened? Sakura thought. Were they allowing her to have her medical chakra? What was this man – Gaku – up to? And who was the other prisoner?

Gaku turned to her, and they stared at each other for a long time before either person moved. Eventually, Gaku's shoulders sagged from a long sigh. "Were you listening?" he asked. Seriously? She was like ten feet away. It would have been hard not to. She nodded, and he sighed again. Her eyes narrowed.

"Do you know who I am?" she asked. Her voice was a bit tentative; she wasn't sure she was allowed to speak. Apparently, she could since he didn't change his demeanor. In fact, he seemed to deflate even further.

"You're a Konoha prisoner. That's all I know for sure. Oh, and you're name is Haruno Sakura." He said, sounding rather defeated. He mumbled something to himself that sounded vaguely like, "but that won't help," but the volume of the words made them more for himself than her. He paused and turned to look at her for a long moment. "Should I know who you are?" he eventually said.

An unintentional scoff left Sakura's throat. She didn't intend to sound condescending, but in this situation, her identity wasn't just a fun fact; it was pretty damn relevant. "You don't know who I am?" she asked, trying to sound more neutral this time. He shook his head. A sigh left her this time. "Did the Raikage tell you anything?" This man must know something; he was ANBU. At least in Konoha, being ANBU automatically meant you were informed of anything and everything relating to the village. Perhaps Kumogakure was different?

Gaku shook his head again. "Raikage-sama is a very private man." Great, Sakura mentally scowled. She was dealing with not only this ignorant ANBU, but probably an ignorant country. Psh, "private man." What a load of bullshit.

Keeping this Kumo ANBU in the dark wouldn't benefit her in anyway. She knew she could make it out of her with her skills, but her escape would happen at a pace she couldn't afford at the moment. Sakura hoped that his ignorance meant he was also malleable. Now the question is: where to start? Sakura pondered. He obviously didn't know anything, which meant Sakura had the distinct advantage of choosing what information he received.

Before Sakura could think of her first question, he asked something first. "Who are you?"

Sakura's eyebrow rose, "I'm Haruno Sakura. You already know that."

He shook his head, "No, who are you really? Who were you in Konoha?" He may be ignorant, but at least he had some semblance of a brain. Sakura repositioned herself against the wall. She knew his question opened countless branches that he would no doubt explore. She accepted the fact that she would answer them all, and she wouldn't lie. If he found out she was withholding information or lying, he wouldn't trust her anymore, and she would have to think of a new plan of action.

Sighing, she began telling him about being the Hokage's apprentice, about being an expert medic-nin, about coming to Kumogakure to seek peace. He was quiet the whole time, patiently absorbing all this new information.

When she finished, he allowed her to ask question, but his answered told her what she already knew. He had no idea why she was down here, why the war began, or why the Raikage suddenly hated Konoha. She knew just as much as before they began speaking.

There was a lull in the conversation before he spoke again. "Do you know that guy?" His hand lazily motioned toward the cell next to her.

"No," she said, shaking her head, "Do you know who it is?"

"Nope. He's just some Konoha shinobi–"

"What did you say?" She interrupted him. Konoha shinobi? Her mind scrambled. Who was it? Was it someone she knew? Her heart sank at the possible answer to that.

"That I don't know him?" He said slowly, startled by her sudden eagerness.

"No, the other part, the part where – oh, forget it! What does he look like?" Her words rushed out, impatiently waiting for this man to get to the point.

His boy language reflected his understanding, but Sakura swore she saw some hesitance in his posture. The wavering could have been from something else, but Sakura's mind immediately gravitated to the idea it was someone she knew.

"Well, he's blonde. I'm not really sure what he's wearing, but it's orange for some reason. Ring any bells?" Ring any bells? Right, like the man you just described doesn't have an international reputation. As sure as she was, she had to confirm it. She didn't want to worry over some other orange-clad idiot.

"Does he have lines on his cheeks? Like this?" She used the index finger on her good arm to draw invisible whiskers on her face. He nodded.

Sakura sank into the wall, her shoulders curving so her body caved in on itself. She felt nothing. She didn't want to feel anything. Naruto was here, and he had been this whole time while she was yammering away with some pathetic excuse of an ANBU operative. A shaky sigh left her lungs in jagged bursts, as she called her mind. Escape plans were quickly thrown away and replaced by the urgency to see Naruto and make sure he was breathing. But what if he isn't? What if he's just as injured as I am, or worse? Sakura cursed her damn brain for going there.

Gaku stood up in front of her cell. "Hey, are you okay?" Sakura's silent response was a pained smile; the irony of his words was not lost on her. Biting her lip hard, she focused on the sting of her teeth cutting through the pliant flesh of her lips. The familiar taste of salt and metal seeped into her mouth. Focus, Sakura. You need to get to Naruto. This is no time to wallow in unnecessary woes.

Gaku repeated his question, and this time Sakura looked up. He saw her lip, reaching out to her through the bars, but the movement only showed as a slight twitch as he stopped himself. "Are you okay?" he asked for a third time, more insistent. His eyes left her bloody lip, and gazed down at the older wounds. "You're not okay. You need to be healed." He answered himself, "Aren't you a medic-nin? Why haven't you healed yourself?"

With a breathy laugh, lifted her good arm in the air and gave it a good shake, causing her shackles to rattle. He understood her meaning, releasing a frustrated sigh. Sakura looked with confusion at the man, wondering what he was thinking about to cause his eyes to stare with such intent at the cell bars.

"If . . . If I let you have some chakra . . . would you promise to use it just for healing?" His voice was slow and methodical, like he wasn't sure what repercussions his words would have.

As much as Sakura wanted to eagerly agree, she had to accept that her body wasn't the only one she had to worry about now. She had to somehow get to Naruto, and this opportunity was too good to not exploit. Adopting his same tentative tone, Sakura spoke. "Are we bargaining?"

It was his turn to laugh this time. "'Bargaining', huh? It would only be bargaining if I got something I wanted in return."

Author's Note: This was a tricky transition chapter (my apologies if it was a tad boring), but the next chapter should be a little easier (and much more exciting) since it doesn't need any set up like this one did.

If you can, please review!