Chapter SEVEN

The binding vow did not require any sort of special ceremony or anything. They simply cut their fingers and let their blood drip onto a sakazuki cup. Rin then poured water over it and Sakura watched the blood mix with the liquid and become a pale red. They then swapped cups and drank from the other.

Yagura then sealed it with a kiss to her forehead.

He then took her hands and the two of them watched the thorn marks spread a little, eating away at her skin as they grew.

It burned a little, but when the pain vanished, it was as though nothing had happened.

Apparently, their fancy clothing was to celebrate her birthday more than for the actual vow, though Rin later pulled her to the side and insisted that it was because Yagura had wanted to see her in cute clothing that was not shinobi attire.

"I know Yagura didn't give you much time to actually think things over a stuff, but he doesn't want anything in return or anything, so you shouldn't worry too much." Rin grinned. "Next time, it'll be me."

Sakura smiled back.

"Now, why don't we go back before he blows a blood vessel?" Rin asked. The two of them giggled before they made their way back to their seats. Then Rin took it upon herself to fill the silence and they spent the rest of the night listening to her talk about the missions she had gone on as a Genin.


It was during lunch when it happened. Hajime had gone to see if she could find Miyuki so that she could tell them something regarding hand seals and she had dragged Kaito with her.

Rokuro had moved up a row to sit next to Sakura. The two of them had just finished and Rokuro had stood up to move back to his row in preparation for the next class when he had frozen in his steps.

Sakura, who had been noting Rokuro's strange behavior since last term, instantly noticed. "Rokuro?" She asked. "Are you okay?"

"Hey, Sakura?"

Sakura turned to fully look at him and tilted her head. "Yeah?"

"I-I don't feel too good." He said. "I..."

He suddenly collapsed, as though his knees had given way. Sakura lunged out and managed to catch him before he hit his head on the floor. The loud clatter of her knocking over the things on her table caught everyone's attention.

"Rokuro!"

Their classmates began talking at once. Iruka pushed through the sea of gathering children at the alarmed cry. "What-" He was instantly by the boy's side. "What happened?" He asked.

Sakura hesitated but did not complain when the man leaned over the panting boy.

"I don't know." She said. "He said he wasn't feeling good, then he just collapsed." She reached out and pressed her hand on his forehead. "He's recently been complaining about headaches and stuff, but the doctor said there was nothing wrong..." She glanced around but neither Yagura nor Rin were around. Either were Kaito and Hajime.

She clicked her tongue and created the one handed tiger seal, knowing that there were days when she managed to do this and days where she could not. Hoping that today was one of her lucky days, she called out.

"Hirake, Yomi e no tobira!" She took a deep breath. "Kyuu kyuu Nyoritsu Ryou!"

Along with a huge wave of chakra and the screeching of an old door only she could hear, a seal appeared in front of her. The lines splitting it down the middle moved to the side, revealing the red and black scenery of the land of the dead on the other side.

"Sakura-sama?"

Alarmed and summoned by the sudden surge of chakra, Kaito and Hajime darted into the classroom.

They both froze at the sight of the land of the dead, which they had only ever heard about in stories, before they caught sight of Rokuro and they darted forward. "Rokuro? What happened?"

"Yagura!" Sakura called softly. She felt a tug on her thorn markings and in an instant, the Fourth Mizukage appeared in front of her, summoned by their link. Sakura's control of the gates slipped but Yagura came through just in time. She fell backwards and landed on the floor, breathing heavily.

"Sakura-"

"Go get someone." She said. "Asahi or Yuuhi, or somebody!" She scrambled to her feet. "As fast as you can."

Yagura eyed her before his eyes glided over to land on Rokuro's shivering form and he nodded. "Very well."

He was gone in a puff of smoke.

Sakura quickly glanced around before she whipped around to face her clanmates. In the mess of everything, no one else seemed to have noticed the name she had called out. She crouched down beside her childhood friend. "Can you hear me? I'm calling someone, okay?"


Five minutes later, Asahi and Yuuhi, both whom had had the day off, appeared at the door.

The students stepped back and Iruka hesitantly drew back as well.

Asahi lifted Rokuro into his arms and shook him.

Yuuhi, who knew some medical ninjutsu, knocked the boy out and his suffering face slowly relaxed. "We'll bring him home." He said. "Maybe Maya-san can-"

"Shouldn't you bring him to the hospital?" Iruka asked.

Asahi eyed the man. "There's nothing they can do for him." He said. "Because they don't understand how we work."

"Sakura-sama, why don't you and your cousins finish school first?" Yuuhi asked. "I'm sure we can have Rokuro-kun stabilized before you return."

Sakura glanced over at Hajime and Kaito. Both of them looked pale and they imply blinked at her. "Okay." She said.

Sakura did not understand the pitying look Yuuhi and Asahi sent her way.

Not then anyways.


For the first time in her life, Sakura truly came to understand where the name 'Reaper child' came from.

It was the first time someone from the clan had told her about herself and it was also the first time Sakura wished she could continue to be ignorant.

Her ability to open the gates of the Yomi no Kuni at will gave her an almost endless source of knowledge.

However, large amounts of power always came with a price, and what scared Sakura the most was that she wasn't the one doing the paying.

She was the reaper. She was the one that took, the one that stole off the people around her.

She need a fuel for her powers and the the payment was the lifeforce of everything around her, and so she simply reaped off the life of those around her to fuel her own abilities, which didn't seem so much of a gift at the moment. The longer they spent around her, the higher chance of them dying.

Sakura wanted to vomit.

And the worse part of it was that no one within her clan drew away from her. They simply acted as though nothing had happened.

Rokuro's mother greeted her with a smile every time she saw her and his father always gave her small gifts from the other villages he had gone to for missions.

Hajime and Kaito stuck around, as close to her as ever, as though they weren't afraid that they would be the ones dying next.

It was as though they had all known, and they all understood, and it only made her feel worse.


'The Harunos don't fear death.' He said. 'We are raised to not fear death. That makes us so much more superior on the battlefield, because we are not held back by the possibility of dying.'

"Because we know that death isn't the end of the road?" She asked.

He nodded. 'We are free to wander even after our physical bodies die off. We have a second world where we can live our lives without dying.' He said. 'So no Haruno truly fears dying. Some believe death is a better alternative to living, because then, we become truly free.'

"Aren't you angry?" Sakura asked.

'Not really.' He said. 'We all understand the weight and responsibility placed on your shoulders. We tried to keep you unaware, but I guess that didn't turn out so well. Besides, I'm still here, aren't I?'

"So you all knew, and you all didn't tell me."

'I guess.'

"What am I even supposed to do?" She asked. "What is the purpose of the Reaper Child?"

'You don't have to worry about it yet.' He said lightly. 'You just keep living the way you are and enjoy it.'

"Does everyone know?"

'They do. Most of them anyways.'

Sakura closed her eyes.

"Why do they understand, when not even I do?"

'Because you're Reaper child. It's kind of our job to make sure you're fueled.'

"Why was it you?" She asked. "Why did it have to be you?"

'I was just lucky, I guess.' He grinned. 'Cause in a way, I was your first 'kill'.' He reached out. His hands went right through her wrist but Sakura knew what he wanted. She raised her arm and held it out. His fingers traced over the thorn marks on her wrists. Alongside the black markings of Yagura were white thorn markings.

'I think you need time to accept it.' Rokuro said. 'Then we can do the vow of binding and can truly be together forever.'


So, the Haruno clan seems to be more evil and dark than we first originally thought, hm?

Darque: Just so you know, it was Raven that wrote ^That.

Raven: What? It's the truth.

Darque: I dunno. You sound like a creep.

Raven: Do I?

Darque: You do.

Raven: I don't think I do.

Darque: Of course you don't. If you did, would you have said that?

Raven:...No.

Darque: Exactly.

Raven: Is that how logic works?

Darque: Yup. Didn't you know?

Read and Review~


WE ARE LOOKING FOR A STORY...PLEASE TELL US IF YOU KNOW IT.

- Sasori x Sakura, we think.

- High school AU

- They prank someone (Ino?). They knocked her unconscious and dump her in a bathtub full of dye, or something.

- Sakura says something about not really being friends with Ino and the others, and that they only want to be picked to go on an 'adventure', or something.

PLEASE TELL US IF YOU KNOW/FIND IT!