Disclaimer: Naruto is not mine!

~Chapter Six~

When's the wedding?

What's the colour scheme?

You two make such a cute couple!

You better treat her right!

Sasuke was fuming. All conversation in the palace that day had been about him and Karin. He didn't want there to be a 'him and Karin'. He'd rather it to be him and a certain pink haired girl.

He shook his head. What was he thinking? His father had set up this marriage when Sasuke was only five years old. All his life he had known he was engaged to Karin, and he tried desperately to like her, knowing that he would have to spend eternity with her. But he couldn't, he just couldn't. She was annoying, loud, bitchy, selfish, and all she ever spoke about was the wedding. His ears needed a break. He wanted to make his father proud, but seriously, Karin did his head in.

He had decided to take a walk. He didn't have a destination, just as far away from the palace as he could get. He would have to go through with this wedding if he liked it or not, it was his duty as a prince of the supernatural world. Karin was a respected vampire from a well known family. In everyone else's eyes it was the perfect match, an Uchiha with a Taka. Itachi was already married to Miyu, who was nice, friendly and the complete opposite of Karin. Sasuke fumed over why Itachi always had the better outcomes.

He found himself walking down a familiar road. His legs had taken him to Sakura's street, and he cursed. She already disliked him for being involved in kidnapping her, even though he didn't know anything about it. His father never told him anything.

He turned around and walked in the opposite direction, not wanting Sakura to think he was a stalker. He wanted to keep her safe from Orochimaru, for the supernatural world's sake and for his own selfish reasons. He couldn't bare the sight of her with him. God knows what the snake would do to her.

A blood curdling scream echoed off the houses. Sasuke stiffened, the hairs on his arms standing on end. He sniffed the air, the scent of blood and cherry blossoms filled his nostrils. He followed the scent, sprinting down the street to a dark alleyway, texting Naruto and Shikamaru his location. Luckily they were in the vicinity – it was their turn to guard Haruno's house. All he could think about was one thing.

Sakura!

Ichirou had run out of milk, so he gave Sakura some money to go and buy some. This was why she was now searching the contents of a corner shop for the white stuff at half ten at night. Ichirou couldn't live without his cup of tea just before bed. The cashier watched Sakura's every move. They closed in about twenty minutes and she probably wanted to get off early to make the most of the rest of her night.

There was only one other person in the small shop. The man looked to be in his early fifties, straight, pitch black hair falling down his back. He was stood in front of the milk fridge and as Sakura leant over to get a bottle he spoke to her.

"Lovely night, isn't it?" The smile on his face made Sakura feel uneasy.

"Yeah, I suppose." She said, wanting to get home quickly so she could watch the end of Family Guy in her nice warm living room.

The shop was a fifteen minute walk away from her house. She couldn't wait to see Hina's wagging tail as she walked through the door, even though she would only have been gone for about forty minutes. She was looking forward to a cup of tea as she had gone all that way in the pitch-black coldness to get some milk. She smiled at the cashier as she paid for the milk, but she didn't return the gesture. She gave Sakura her change and sthe pink-haired girl walked out onto the street. It was a beautiful night; clear skies and the stars were out, shining with all their glory. She would love to lay down on a hilltop with someone and watch them glimmer.

"I'd never thought I'd see you again."

Sakura froze. At first she thought that the king had come to kidnap her again, but it wasn't his voice; it was another's. He sounded oddly familiar. After a glance around her surroundings she decided she was hearing things as nobody was about. She carried on walking, but this time she was more on edge. Instead of looking up and admiring the stars she was peering down every street she had to cross, looking out for anybody in the dim glow of the streetlights.

A figure emerged out of the shadows of a hedgerow surrounding a bungalow's front garden. Even in the darkness Sakura could tell the figure was deathly pale, whiter than Sasuke. His long dark hair caught her attention; it was the man from the shop. He took a step forwards whilst she took three steps back.

"Relax. I'm not going to hurt you."

Yeah, right Sakura thought. Then why are you lurking around in the shadows? She looked at his hands – which were hanging by his side – for a knife or a gun. They were empty. Well, that was something.

Another step forward, three steps back. Sakura's back was pressed up against a garden wall. Now she was the one in the shadows, and the man was illuminated by a looming streetlight. She could see his features; hollow cheeks and unusual yellow eyes set in a long face. He walked right up to her and sniffed the air. She held her breath. He scowled. Sakura didn't smell that bad, did she? She thought her perfume smelt nice.

The next thing she knew, the man had grabbed her by the arm and dragged her into an alleyway, making her drop the milk to the ground. What was it with Sakura and people dragging her into alleyways? The man moved extraordinarily fast, faster than an Olympic sprinter.

"You are human." Sakura didn't know what to say to that. No, I'm Frankenstein's monster. "The rumours are true, what a shame. I think it's time you regained your memories back, Sakura Haruno. Then you will come back to me."

What?

"It won't hurt."

Move.

"Just a little bite." He opened his mouth and his canines were elongated, ending in sharp points that looked deadly.

Move!

He brushed her hair away from her neck and tilted his head towards her. His fingers were so cold.

Move! God damnit Sakura, move!

Sakura shoved him away from her and punched him in the jaw. He was not expecting that. As he staggered back she went to kick him, however he recovered quickly and side stepped out of her way. He grabbed her arms and held them behind her back like he was going to handcuff her, pressing her body against the wall, with him behind her. Sakura tried to squirm her way out of his grasp, but he pulled on her arms and it felt like they were going to come out of their sockets. He was so strong.

"Come back to me, Sakura." He whispered as she screamed. The pain was unbearable. It felt like he had stuck two knives in her neck. When she ran out of breath she went to scream again, tears streaming down her face, but he clamped a hand over her mouth. She could feel her blood leaving her body, the warm liquid trickling down her throat. Her life was being drained out of her and there was nothing she could do to stop it. Just as she was about to pass out he loosened his grip and cut his wrist. Sakura fell to the floor, too weak to even lift her head up. The man put his pouring wrist to her mouth. She would have struggled, but she didn't have the strength. She almost gagged when she tasted his blood, but she had to swallow otherwise she would have drowned. The man's determined face started to blur. She didn't know whether that was because she was about to go unconscious or because of the tears spilling from her eyes. Her neck felt like it was burning, scorching with every faint beat of her heart. She wanted it to stop. Please.

The man took his wrist off Sakura's mouth. Or rather, he was yanked off her. She heard the sound of flesh hitting a brick wall and an almighty crack behind her. It didn't sound like bone though; the bricks had cracked from the force of his body.

"Stay away from her!" Even though her mind was fuzzy, she recognised that voice.

"N-Naruto?" She whispered. A falcon flew up above her, screeching. A dark shape leapt over her limp body. It looked like a fox. A deep growl sounded further along the alleyway where the silhouette had disappeared. She tried to move her head to see what was going on but her body wasn't obeying.

"Get away from me, idiotic shifters!" The man cried. Shifters? Was the pain that bad that she was hallucinating? Was she already unconscious and dreaming this entire scenario up? Or was she really tucked up in her cosy bed having a nightmare? Sakura couldn't tell. Her hand felt wet, but warm. Weird. She looked down with her eyes at it resting near her neck. If she could scream, she would have. Her hand was soaked with blood. Her blood.

She was going to die.

Ino-pig and Tenten, you have been the best friends anyone could ever wish for. I love you guys. Naruto and Shikamaru, you two are great. Sasuke… it was really fun at the airfield. Sorry I can't take you up on your offer of watching you and Naruto race. It would have been amazing. I'm sorry for being pissed off at you about the kidnapping. It wasn't your fault.

She was so weak that she couldn't keep her eyes open.

"Shikamaru, go and see how she is! Take her to safety." There was Naruto's voice again, "I'll take care him."

"You will never kill me." The man spat.

"Maybe not, but I can distract you." The growl echoed off the bricks walls again. Sakura sensed that someone was hovering over her, most likely Shikamaru. What were they doing here? Two fingers rested over her neck and another hand was placed over her ribcage.

After a few seconds Shikamaru shouted, "She's going to be okay if we get her out of here. Her breathing is shallow and her pulse is weak, but that's to be expected." Sakura could feel herself slipping away into the unconsciousness. "Sakura, can you hear me?" She attempted to mumble a yes, but it came out as more of a moan.

"Where's Uchiha when you need him?" Shikamaru murmured, placing a piece of cloth on Sakura's neck where the monster had bitten her.

"Right here." Another voice said. Sasuke, he was here. Sakura managed to open her eyes slightly. There was another crack as Sasuke shoved the devilish man into the brick wall. "If you lay another finger on her I will personally rip your throat out." That wasn't Sasuke's voice. Well, it was, but it was almost a snarl. Another crack of the bricks.

"Sakura-chan? Sakura! Talk to me! Where does it hurt?" Naruto rushed over to the pink haired girl.

Before she could build up the strength to answer him Shikamaru spoke for her. "Where do you think, dumbass?"

"Orochimaru could have done anything to her before he bit her, like broken one of her bones." A shadow knelt down beside Sakura. Sasuke lifted her torso up in his arms so that she was sitting up.

"You're safe now, he's gone." He said, wiping the tears that had stayed on Sakura's cheeks. "I won't let him hurt you again, I promise."

She passed out.

"Hey, she's awake!" Naruto said once Sakura had opened her eyes and let out a massive moan. Her neck was killing her. She went to move one of hands to press against it but then someone else's hand grabbed hers, stopping her.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Sasuke said. He let go and walked to the other side of the room, sitting in a very stylish looking chair by the window. "This isn't going according to plan at all." He placed a hand on his forehead.

"Where am I?" Sakura said groggily, looking around the strange room. Silk curtains were drawn across the windows. Was it still night time? It seemed like she was in a bedroom. She was laid on a four poster bed, and there was a grand fireplace opposite her with a carriage clock stood on the mantle piece. It was half past three in the morning.

"The palace. You're going to stay here while you recover. Don't worry, we've phoned your dad and given him an excuse as to why you won't be home for the next few days. He thinks I've had a family emergency and you're staying at mine to help me out." Naruto explained. Sakura's memory was fuzzy of last night. All she could remember was milk, black hair, a fox and a falcon. What the hell had happened? Had the animals escaped from the zoo?

Two people were stood at the end of the bed: Naruto and Shikamaru. Sasuke was sat in the chair, and in the shadows near the door was a silhouette of a tall man. He obviously didn't want to be noticed, so naturally Sakura stared at him.

"Er, Sir?" Naruto asked the dark figure. It took a step forwards into the light of the small lamp on the bedside table and continued to walk up to the end of Sakura's bed. The waves of light reflected off his face and she gasped, bringing the duvet up over her face so that she was peering over the top. She'd always wondered why people did that, it wasn't not like a duvet is going to save you.

"Sakura, it's okay." Naruto reassured her. It was the man from before. The one with the crown on his dark head of hair. The one who had told her she had killed his father. The Ruler.

"You were supposed to not let Orochimaru get his hands on her. Any suspicious activity and you were to report to me or the SBI." The man said.

"I know Sir, but we didn't know Orochimaru was going to ambush her." Naruto said.

"We didn't even know he knew Sakura was alive." Shikamaru backed his friend up, scratching the back of his head. He didn't seem to be bothered about being told off by this man who had high authority.

"Spare me the excuses, you should have thought of all the possibilities and created a plan for each scenario. Shikamaru, with your strategic abilities I thought you would have done better. You all need to try harder! We can't afford for Orochimaru to get a hold of her." He turned to the boy in the chair who had his head in his hands. "Sasuke, I expected better from you. I'm disappointed." The man walked out of the room, not seeing Sasuke's shoulders slump the tiniest bit at his words.

"You enrolled at KHS to protect me? Who do I need protecting from? Why didn't you tell me someone was out to kill me?" Sakura questioned, her voice becoming louder with every word.

"Who do you think?" Sasuke snapped at her. "Are you that stupid?"

She was taken aback. "Hey! I-"

"The man who attacked you, his name is Orochimaru." He paused for Sakura to take in the piece of information. "He tried to turn you so you would regain your memories. He wants you back."

"I'm confused. Turn me into what?"

"Start from the beginning, Sasuke." Naruto scolded him. "Two hundred –"

"No! Baka, not yet." Sasuke interrupted. Sakura saw a flash of something white from her memory of last night; something white and sharp. Something important that she should remember.

"When then?"

"When she's ready." Something to do with teeth.

"When will she ever be ready? She needs to know."

"Just not yet, okay?" Fangs.

"Vampire." Sakura whispered. All three of them heard her. Shikamaru's vacant expression turned to one of surprise, Naruto jumped up to her side and stared at her, and Sasuke nearly fell out of his chair.

"What?" Sasuke choked.

"This Orochimaru person, he was really fast and strong. And he had fangs. He bit me." Sakura paused for a moment, thinking. "He bit me!" She sat up sharply but had to lie back down again as the room spun.

"You've lost a lot of blood, Sakura. Try not to move much." Naruto rested his hand on her shoulder.

"There was blood everywhere, my blood, all over my hand. I was going to die. He bit me!"

"Sakura-chan –"

"He was going to turn me into a… a vampire! Does that make me a vampire now? I don't want to be! Take me home! I want to go home! Where's my dad? HE BIT ME!" Sakura sat up again, ignoring the dizziness.

"Sakura, calm down!" Naruto shouted over her hysterics. He pinned her down by her shoulders.

"Get off me! GET OFF! Are you a vampire too? You're going to kill me!"

Shikamaru poured ice-cold water over Sakura's face. She gasped, catching her breath.

"No, I am not a vampire. You are not a vampire. You're dad is fine, sleeping at home. I've told you, he thinks you're at mine. Everything is taken care of, and you're safe." Naruto said. Sakura stared up at him, breathing hard. Now that she had stopped being hysterical she felt as though she was going to faint. "Listen to me. You have lost a lot of blood and you need to rest. We are going to leave you here and we expect to see you here in the morning, got it? Don't go wondering about. Goodnight, Sakura." Both Naruto and Shikamaru exited the room. Sasuke lifted himself up out of the chair and walked past the bed towards the door.

"Sasuke?" Sakura whispered. He stood still, awaiting her question. "Did I imagine the fangs?"

He gently shook his head and walked out the room.

Well, damn.

I enjoyed writing this chapter! More to come soon.

It was my 19th birthday yesterday and I got a nintendo 3DS XL & Animal Crossing: New Leaf! I can't stop playing on it, it's such a distraction when I need to be studying for my exams next week. Four more days and then it's the summer holidays! xD

Please review, I really appreciate it and it encourages me to write! :)