They didn't call it the Hidden Rain for nothing.
Before they'd even gotten to the village, they'd been faced with heavy, relentless rain pelting their backs and soaking their clothes. It was miserable, and their cloaks did very little to protect their bodies from the cold once they were wet.
The sun had set a few hours ago, taking the warmth of the summer with it. They'd been quietly wandering around the village ever since, being careful so that they'd go undetected. This is when Sakura truly began to feel like a rogue. Hiding in the shadows, travelling silently, leaving no trace behind. It made the experience feel so surreal, and it made her anxiety fly through the roof.
"Someone is watching us," Karin whispered to them soon after they started walking through the streets, "I can sense them circling us every now and then, but they're only observing us. It's a pretty big signature."
"Keep an eye on it," Sasuke instructed as they walked amongst the shadows. "If it starts getting closer, let us know. Until then, everyone else disregard it."
Drawing her cloak tighter around her, as if seeking it's warmth despite the fact that it was soaked, Sakura shuffled closer to Karin. "Any sign of any larger signatures yet?"
The woman shook her head. "Not besides the one watching us. But I'm still—" She paused, turning around and stopping abruptly.
"What?" Sakura asked, alarmed by her sudden change in body language.
"There a new chakra signature. A big one," she spoke a little louder so the rest of their team could hear. "It's… not approaching, but it knows we're here."
"It could be Kakashi," Sakura's eyes widened as she looked in the direction that Karin was staring. "We should go look—"
"No." Sasuke's voice was stern. "Karin, can you keep an eye on both?" When she nodded, he turned back around and began walking again. "We are going to wait."
Before Sakura could speak up, everyone was already walking away. The urge to simply run to see if it was truly Kakashi was overwhelming, but she couldn't risk it in case it was an enemy, or someone from Konoha. She also could jeopardize whatever arrangement she had currently with Sasuke. And if she had to follow his increasingly frustrating orders, she supposed she had to deal with them for as long as it took to dispose of Danzo.
"It's coming this way," Karin blurted out, several minutes later, "the second signature I sensed. It's on the way here and it's moving fast."
"Get ready," Sasuke spoke lowly, and when Sakura turned to face him, he was out of sight completely. Watching as Juugo slinked into the shadows and Suigetsu leaned against a building, both hands clasped tightly around his sword, she figured she needed to brace herself, too.
Bringing chakra into her fists, she mimicked Suigetsu's stance on the opposite side of the dark street. Karin kept close to her side, and for that she was thankful.
"Where is it?" Sakura spoke quietly, eyes flickering across the street, up to the rooftops, and to each intersection and street corner she could see.
"I—" Karin looked nervous, "It just disappeared. I don't know—"
Sasuke was in front of them before Karin could finish her sentence, sword drawn and cloak fluttering behind him. "Get down, now."
Karin immediately listened, backing away quickly until she was hidden in the shadows back toward where Juugo had disappeared, but Sakura wasn't about to back away from a fight. So as Sasuke deflected a couple of kunai and shot up toward the rooftops, Sakura jumped right after him.
The rain wasn't helping her in terms of visibility, but she could see clearly enough ahead of her that she wasn't in any danger of tripping or running into anything.
Thinking that Sasuke would just disregard her presence as she followed him, she let out a surprised squeak when he was at her side, his hand gripping her upper arm tightly.
"Did you not hear me?" He snapped, his voice low. "Get back, now."
"And stay out of this fight?" Sakura tried pulling her arm out of his grip but he simply tightened his hold. "No, I'm coming with you."
"I'm in charge here," he growled, losing his patience, "so you have to listen to me."
"Not a chance," she spat back, yanking once more and freeing herself from his grip.
Before Sasuke could spit back another retort, he was jumping backward in order to avoid a flurry of shuriken being tossed his way. Shifting to her side she turned her attention toward where the weapons had come from, lowering her body and taking a defensive stance. But when she felt a gust of wind behind her, she knew that the shuriken had been nothing more than a distraction.
Tumbling out of the way, she flew forward, rolling until she was back on her feet before jumping to another rooftop. She had just barely heard the sound of a kunai slicing through the air behind where she'd stood. Too close of a call for her liking.
And Sasuke was there again, red eyes glowing in the night. For a split second she thought he was charging at her, but when he wrapped one arm around her waist and pulled her against him while simultaneously lifting his sword with his opposite arm, she gasped.
The sound of metal striking metal almost caused her to jump. Sasuke had his other arm extended, using his sword to keep the kunai from striking him. Sakura couldn't help but feel entirely helpless, being trapped in between this exchange of blows, but for some reason she was unafraid.
Despite not trusting Sasuke fully, somehow she felt safe with him in that moment.
"Let her go," a voice boomed loudly above the rain, "Sasuke."
Sakura let out a choked sound as she struggled to turn around in Sasuke's grip, "Kakashi-sensei," the sound fell out of her mouth like a prayer and she fought back a sob, instead the sound emerging like a desperate coughing fit. As she struggled to turn and look directly at her teacher, Sasuke tightened his hold around her, keeping her pressed into his chest.
"Sasuke, let her go or I will kill you."
"Kakashi, no—wait, it's not what you think. Sasuke—damnit, let me go!"
Sasuke didn't release her but he did loosen his hold on her only slightly, just enough for her to turn around and gaze at her sensei.
Kakashi widened his one eye in pure shock at the sight of Sasuke obliging her request, "Sakura, what's going on? Are you hurt?"
"No, no. I'm alright I swear. He's not holding me captive or anything, I promise." Although she was sure their current situation made it look like that was exactly what was going on. "Sasuke," she wiggled further, "seriously—let me go!"
"Wait," he said sternly, "not until I have his word."
"Tell me what is going on," Kakashi demanded of Sasuke, before turning his gaze down to Sakura, "Sakura, explain."
"We need your help," she spoke quickly. "I—I need your help. Please sensei, please. If you don't, they're going to kill me. Danzo," she gasped, "Danzo is going to kill me."
"I need your word, Kakashi." Sasuke spoke lowly, not lowering his sword and not releasing Sakura. She could simply feel the intensity of their glares on one another and it was almost suffocating.
"I'll give you an hour," Kakashi spoke stepping back and lowering his kunai, "But depending on what you have to tell me, that's all of the time you get from me."
Sakura nodded fervently. She wouldn't need more than an hour before she had him convinced; hopefully of course. "Yes, yes thank you." But Sasuke still did not release her. Turning her head upward she looked at his face, finding a stern, angry expression as he glared at Kakashi with red eyes. But he it wasn't his normal sharingan he had activated.
Mangekyou sharingan, she remembered Kabuto pointing it out. Kakashi would likely know what that entailed, and judging by her sensei's reaction to Sasuke's changed eyes, it wasn't a good thing.
But in the blink of an eye he released her roughly, causing her to stumble slightly and turned around, walking away. "Let's go." He spoke quietly, jumping from the rooftop and disappearing down below to the streets.
Standing up straight she immediately threw herself at Kakashi, wrapping her arms tightly around his midsection, unable to hold back her sobs. "I'm so happy to see you," she cried into his own drenched cloak, "I'm so, so happy."
"Sakura, look at me," he spoke the words so quietly she struggled to hear them, "you need to tell me now, while he's not here. Are you in any danger?" She'd never seen such a severe, worried expression on her sensei's face before.
Sakura shook her head, "Not with Sasuke, no. He hasn't hurt me, I'm not a prisoner, I swear." Lifting her soaking wet sleeve she wiped at her face, as if it would hide the tears more than the rain already was. "We have a… an arrangement. But Danzo," her voice shook, "I'm in danger because of him."
Kakashi held her close and she could hear him swear under his breath. "Come on," he pulled back, keeping one arm wrapped over her shoulders, "let's get you out of the rain."
She grabbed the edge of his cloak tightly, so relieved that Kakashi was here and they'd found him and her odds of surviving and maybe even successfully killing Danzo were steadily increasing. She could only pray to whatever gods were listening that he'd be exactly what they needed.
Her life, and the lives of all her friends, were on the line.
The inn that they found was warm. A large wide room with a fireplace in the corner and plenty of extra blankets was more than Sakura expected when they'd walked into the dilapidated-looking inn on the outskirts of the city. The floors were wooden, the blankets were soft, and the pieces of furniture in the room looked almost new.
Wet cloak left forgotten on the ground, Sakura currently sat in front of the fireplace, trying to collect as much heat as possible; at least enough to stop her from shivering.
Kakashi never strayed too far from her side, even now, leaning against the wall beside the fireplace, arms crossed. His eyes flickered from her, to Sasuke, to his teammates and then would end up back on her. He was incredibly tense and Sakura knew exactly why.
"Where's your headband?" He asked her quietly as Sasuke's team shuffled around the room noisily.
She swallowed thickly. She didn't want to say it out loud, that she had defected, that she was—by all means—a rogue ninja, but she knew that she had to be one-hundred percent, completely honest if she wanted Kakashi to help.
"It's in the village," she mumbled, pulling the blanket tighter around her and staring into the fire. "I left it there. I couldn't take it with me."
"So you left." Sakura didn't want to look up at him, didn't want to see the disappointment that she was sure he had in his eye. "Okay."
She blinked and looked up at him finally. "Okay?"
He simply nodded at her. "Okay. You're a smart girl, Sakura. I know you have your reasons."
"I need your help," she pleaded quietly, "I need you to help me, Kakashi-sensei. I'm sorry I—I had to go. I had to leave. I need to help the village, it's in danger I just I know it is!"
"I know."
She blinked her tears away and looked at him, confused.
"What do you know?"
Sakura would've jumped if she wasn't so used to Sasuke appearing out of nowhere all of the time. She looked over her shoulder, finding him standing a couple of feet behind her, staring at Kakashi with an unreadable expression.
"Perhaps not enough that you two do," Kakashi spoke, "But enough to know that you're right Sakura. The village is in danger with Danzo around."
Shooting up onto her feet, leaving her blanket behind on the ground, she stared at him, completely shocked. "Then… then why are you here? He sent you here for a mission right? To get rid of you? Why are you going along with it all!? Why didn't you stay? Why—"
"Sakura," Kakashi pushed off of the wall and approached his two ex-students, "I'll tell you what I know, but you need to calm down. Give me time to explain." He looked over her head toward Sasuke and Sakura watched his gaze harden. "But first I want you to tell me what's going on. Why are you two together? I need to know what arrangement you two have."
When several seconds passed and Sasuke remained silent, Sakura answered for him. "Sasuke-kun wants Danzo gone, too."
Kakashi didn't seem convinced. "And why would that be?"
And then Sakura's mouth ran dry. She couldn't say it. She couldn't tell him about how it was Danzo's fault everyone Sasuke had once known and loved were dead.
"He is responsible for the massacre of my clan." Sasuke spoke finally. Sakura could hear the vitriol in his tone despite his face remaining entirely neutral.
Kakashi's eye widened as he dropped his hands to his sides. "What do you mean?"
"I mean exactly what I said. Danzo and the rest of the council ordered Itachi to decimate the clan. They were orders, from Konoha."
"That's… how do you know this?" Kakashi eyed Sasuke skeptically, trying to choose his words carefully.
"I have my sources," he spoke cryptically. "Believe me or don't, but I would have no other reason to target Konoha's council. If they hadn't killed my clan they would've never been a thought in my head."
And Sakura agreed with him fully. Although she had been raised to respect the council and never question their judgement, she had never once actually thought of them as people who could do vile things. As a child they had merely been nothing more than a concept to her.
"So you're working with Akatsuki to get more revenge?" Kakashi asked, standing straight and watching Sasuke with a doubtful look.
Sakura's eyes widened. "Akatsuki?" She turned toward Sasuke. "Who in the Akatsuki are you working with?" This was something Sasuke had completely left out when they'd made their deal with one another and when she'd began to follow his team. She suddenly felt betrayed.
"Konan had mentioned that Akatsuki's leader would probably get in touch with you, but I was hoping she was wrong."
"Who's Konan?" She glanced at Kakashi. "What are you talking about?" She asked, turning back toward Sasuke.
She watched as he clenched his jaw shut tightly, his glare severe. "I am not working with them."
"So for them, then."
Sasuke activated his mangekyou sharingan in an instant, taking a step forward toward their old sensei. Without thinking, Sakura turned, placing her hands against his chest, as if she could stop him from attacking if that's what it came down to. But to her surprise, Sasuke stopped abruptly, her fingertips pressed firmly against him, gently holding him in place. "Stop," she muttered to him, unable to tear her eyes away from his eyes.
"I am not affiliated with the Akatsuki," he spoke slowly. Sakura held in a shiver at the deep sound of his voice, the threat implied underneath his words. "If you're taking information from Konan then you have more connection to the Akatsuki than I do."
"Not likely. We both know she's defected."
If Sakura was thinking of the same woman they were talking about, then she was glad this Konan was on their side; Sakura won't soon forget the way the paper-winged woman tore through the streets of Konoha like a tornado out of hell on that day so many weeks ago. She'd never asked Naruto directly, but judging from what she'd heard, they owed it to her friend that the woman had suddenly disappeared from the terrorist organization.
Kakashi ended the silence with a firm question. "Why do I have information that you're working alongside Madara?"
"Wait," Sakura turned back toward Kakashi, still keeping her hands against Sasuke's chest, "Madara's Akatsuki?" She turned back toward Sasuke. "What the hell is going on?" She asked him, her confusion turning to impatience. "You never once mentioned being around Akatsuki, or that Madara was Akatsuki—"
"Whether or not Madara is in the Akatsuki means nothing," he snapped at her. "I am not in the Akatsuki. I do not do their bidding. I am not their ally." He stepped back, Sakura's hands falling back toward her sides. "I don't take orders from anyone."
For a long moment, Sakura stood there, watching the two men glare at one another. Her eyes fluttered around the room and she was surprised when she noted the Karin, Juugo, and Suigetsu had disappeared. Sakura supposed that they'd return once their talk with Kakashi was finished, but for some reason as she wished at least Juugo was still there. She wouldn't put it past the two sharingan wielders she was standing between to begin to fight.
She hadn't known when Kakashi had pulled his headband upward and activated his own mangekyou sharingan—probably after Sasuke had activated his—but they now stared intensely at each other, as if waiting for the other to back down first.
Kakashi was the first to turn off his mangekyou.
Relaxing his stance he sighed, rubbing the back of his neck tiredly as he shook his head. "Do not make me regret swapping information with you." He glanced toward Sakura, "I trust you, Sakura. And I know you trust Sasuke, but I don't." He turned his attention toward Sasuke. "If this information gets to the Akatsuki, you're no longer an ally and I'll have no choice but to kill you."
"As if you could," Sasuke replied dryly. "Fine. Now tell us what you know."
"You first," he instructed as he backed up before sitting in a nearby chair. Lifting a leg, he propped his ankle against his other knee and leaned back, as if waiting for them to talk. "Like I said, you probably have more information than I do. I can add on to what you have when you're done."
Sasuke looked irritated but Sakura didn't give him the chance to snap back at him.
"What do you want to know?" She asked, stepping fully away from Sasuke to sit back down in front of the fire, facing the two men. "Because frankly, I don't know where to begin."
"How long have you been out of the village?"
Quietly, she thought to herself, trying hard to piece together her time since she'd departed Konoha. "Three weeks now."
"Why did you go to Sasuke?"
"I didn't—I mean it wasn't on purpose." Despite her frustration at the assumption, she knew that he was simply going off of what he thought was likely—what everyone had apparently thought was likely—and that she'd left to immediately search out Sasuke. Her face flushed red and she frowned, thinking of how little the people in her life really knew her, if it always ended up coming down to Sasuke-kun.
They must've really thought she was a shallow, stupid girl, and the idea upset her more than she thought it would.
"I ran into him while I was escaping ANBU." She spoke confidently, blinking back frustrated tears and hoping no one could tell how upset she was. "I had been travelling alone and Naruto and the others had found me and I—I incapacitated them and then ANBU attacked and they took Naruto and Hinata by force, and—and Sai was there and he helped me 'cause he must know and then I ran and found Sasuke-kun and—and," she swallowed thickly as she attempted to regulate her breathing, "and he told me the truth and now—well, now we're going to kill Danzo together."
It was the shortened version of what had happened, but it was all that was necessary in that moment.
Kakashi nodded once. "And who are the others?"
"My team." Sasuke spoke, folding his arms over his chest.
"So they follow your orders?"
Sakura could immediately tell by the twitch in his brow that the question did not sit well with Sasuke. "I do not force them to do anything," he clarified, a hint of annoyance in his voice, "they don't do anything they don't want to."
"Right," Kakashi said, not concealing the fact that he didn't for a minute believe Sasuke's words. Sakura watched as Sasuke's form stiffened further—she was surprised he could get more tense than he already was—and quickly changed the subject.
"They're sending all of you away," she blurted out, allowing the warmth of the fireplace to warm her back. "All of you special jonin. It's on purpose, isn't it?"
Kakashi nodded. "Yeah. Danzo has always been a very dark presence in the village—we've always known that. And when he immediately took control and we started getting missions, we knew that something was wrong."
"Why?" Sasuke asked, voicing Sakura's own thoughts out loud. "Why not just kill you?"
"Executing dozens of shinobi of our skill set would be nearly impossible. Even with ANBU assistance. And using dirty politics to indict us would be too complicated to achieve. Sending us on these missions for an indefinite amount of time is… the neater option. And it makes covering his tracks a breeze."
"Have you had any contact with Konoha at all?" She hoped the desperation in her voice wasn't too obvious, but she didn't care too much if it meant Kakashi had answers for her.
"Not officially, no. But I have my ways." When Sakura saw the mischievous glint in his eye, she felt her excitement grow. "Pakkun has been my unofficial messenger. My link to all that's going on in Konoha, if you will."
Sakura scrambled over toward Kakashi, stopping only to kneel before him. "What have you heard? Is the village okay? What about Naruto? Have you heard anything about him recently? My parents are okay, right?"
"Sakura," he placed a hand on her shoulder. "Calm down, okay? I can only address one thing at a time."
"At least tell me about Naruto, nothing bad has happened to him, right?"
Kakashi sighed. "I knew that your teammates and friends had been sent to retrieve you. And when most of them came back incapacitated—I'm assuming by you—Pakkun paid closer attention." He paused for a few seconds, glancing at Sakura before averting his eyes. "He doesn't know where Naruto is. Or Hinata for that matter."
Sakura's heart sank immediately, worst-case scenarios springing to mind. "No," she whispered, letting herself fall back slightly, so she was sitting on her feet, "no."
"So what? Are they dead?"
With the nonchalance Sasuke asked his question with, Sakura immediately turned around and glared at him, tears threatening to fall. "Stop it," she hissed angrily, "they aren't dead. There's no way." She turned back to Kakashi and dropped her glare. "They aren't, right?" Her voice broke as she stared into her sensei's face, noting the saddened expression he held.
"I don't think so. He wouldn't harm Naruto—not with the kyuubi inside of him—and I doubt he'd be stupid enough to kill Hinata. He'd have to deal with Hiashi and the rest of the Hyuuga if that happened."
"So they're still alive?"
"Possibly," he spoke quietly, "but again, I don't know for sure."
All he had to offer her was a sense of false hope, but at this point in the game she'd take any hope she could get. She'd never known desperation like this before in her life.
God, she missed her old life.
"What other information do you have?" Sasuke asked. "What's Danzo doing?"
"The last I spoke with Pakkun was three days ago. I'm not scheduled to summon him again for another day and a half. We have to be extremely cautious since what we're doing is technically treason."
"And what do you plan on doing?" Sasuke asked, cocking an eyebrow. "Just spying on them from a distance? Watching Danzo take apart your precious village?"
Even though Sasuke words were meant to taunt Kakashi, the man surprised them by smiling at them behind his mask, the corner of his eye crinkling in amusement.
"Oh, no." He chuckled. "I don't just have a link to Konoha. I've been communicating with the Jonin all across the nations. Of course, summoning and reverse summoning back and forth along huge expanses of land isn't simple, but it's the safest method of communication we have." He cracked his neck, stretching his arm slightly as he spoke. "But don't worry, we're handling this in our own way."
"Which is…?" Sakura asked, surprised and elated at his revelation.
"We're planning a coup."
Hearing the words spoken loud and clear did nothing to ebb her confusion. She almost asked Kakashi to repeat himself, but it was unnecessary.
"Do you think that's possible?" She whispered, suddenly afraid. Her friends were back in Konoha. Her family. Staging a coup d'état was dangerous, and if they went through with it, people would die.
"Yes," he answered her question with as much seriousness as he could, "it won't be pretty, but it can be done."
"You're going to get the village destroyed in the process." Sasuke spoke critically. "Aren't you trying to protect your village?"
"Buildings can be rebuilt, it's the villagers we're worried about." Kakashi shot a slightly irritated look at Sasuke before looking back to Sakura. "We know there are going to be casualties, but it has to be done. Unless," he glanced at the both of them and leaned back in his chair, "you two have any better ideas."
Sakura shook her head. "It just… I don't know." She frowned, curling in on herself slightly. "I don't like the idea."
"Neither do we," Kakashi said, "but if we can't think of anything else…"
Sakura understood. Something had to be done.
"But it would help immensely if we could prove Danzo's crimes. Sasuke, you have a big accusation here. You'd need to prove it."
Sakura watched as Sasuke's fists clenched. "Just ask them. Danzo, the council. They know all about it. Planning a coup is what got my clan murdered. I don't know why you guys would be naïve enough to think it would work in your favor."
Kakashi listened intently to Sasuke and Sakura could tell that despite his composed demeanor, her sensei was still reeling from the revelation. "No one that I knew was aware of a coup."
"The only reason they knew was because Itachi was a double agent. He was the reason the council found out in the first place. But it couldn't be stopped and to avoid a civil war, they decided to decimate my clan. The council and even the Sandaime are responsible for the massacre."
Kakashi ran a hand through his hair. "But we need proof Sasuke. In order for the aftermath of the coup to go well—and that's assuming that it will—we have to have a valid reason to remove him. Something incriminating that we have physical evidence of."
"That's what I have," Sakura spoke up, standing once more and moving herself in between them slightly. She could feel Sasuke growing more unstable every second that their conversation continued, and she knew it was better to jump in sooner than later. "I can prove that he killed Tsunade."
"Physical, undeniable evidence?"
"Yes," she spoke with confidence. "Medical reports, ANBU guard schedules, and video surveillance."
Kakashi perked up at that. "Video surveillance?" She nodded. "I didn't know there were cameras in the Hokage offices."
"Not many people do. Tsunade had them put in about a year into being Hokage. Only Shizune and I knew. At first they were put there because she was getting frustrated about her sake going missing," Sakura allowed her a little half-smile at the memory, "but they remained after that and I took charge of keeping them working and swapping the tapes out. I don't know why I did it, Tsunade never asked me and she stopped caring after a few months, but it made me feel important at first." She shrugged, spacing out slightly. "I never thought I'd catch her murder on tape."
"Do you have them with you?" Kakashi leaned forward slightly, at full attention.
"I have the originals kept with me, all sealed away in a scroll. I also have multiple copies hidden around the village. It would be incredibly unlikely for them all to be found."
When Kakashi looked at her fondly, giving her a gentle look, he sighed. "You did good kiddo. That's just what we need." He then looked around her at Sasuke. "We'll find evidence of the massacre after all of this is said and done, Sasuke. It's not that I don't believe you, but no one else will. We'll take back control, find evidence, and try the council. Either way, your clan will get the justice it deserves."
Sakura stiffened at the mention of trying the council, knowing that it was in no way Sasuke intention of letting anyone that had anything to do with the massacre live. She knew he wasn't about to mention it either, and Sakura felt guilty for not speaking up.
It's for Tsunade, she continued to tell herself, quieting her conscience.
"There's more," she spoke, reaching into her shirt and retrieving Sai's message to her, "I don't know if this will work, but," opening it she lifted it toward the fire and hoped the light or the heat—or perhaps both—would help reveal the message. It didn't take more than a few seconds before the invisible ink appeared and she smiled. "Sai gave this to me when ANBU attacked me." She turned it toward Kakashi so he could see better before handing it to him.
Lifting his headband again, Kakashi read the message with both eyes, most likely memorizing the entirety of it with his sharingan. "Sai gave this to you?" Sakura nodded. "Do you know what this is?" He asked, pointing to the map that seemed to be what the paper had started off as.
Sakura shook her head, glancing at Sasuke over her shoulder to see him looking just as clueless as she did.
"It's the Land of Iron."
Sakura frowned. "I've never heard of it."
"That's because it's not a ninja village."
"Samurai." Sasuke spoke.
Kakashi nodded. "You've heard of it?"
"Passed by it once while travelling." Sakura wasn't surprised when he didn't elaborate. "It's not close."
"Okay so what about it?" Sakura crossed her arms and bit her lip.
"Danzo will be in Iron Country soon. I don't know how soon, but there's going to be a Kage Summit to discuss the Akatsuki." He scratched at his mask. "It's the most recent information Pakkun's given me, and probably some of the most important."
"What about attacking him there?" Sakura asked. It would be the perfect opportunity. Away from the village so no one would be hurt, and with all of them plus the jonin Kakashi was in contact with, it should be a breeze.
"Can't. We don't know the exact date they'll be there and we lack other vital information. Also, it wouldn't be smart to attack one Kage with others present. Going against Danzo is one thing, going against Danzo and multiple Kage will be nearly impossible."
Sakura sighed out of frustration. Well, that idea was shot down quickly.
"His absence is good for us though. With Danzo gone it'll be easier and safer for Pakkun to gather information."
Well, that was a plus she supposed. It was still disappointing that a perfect opportunity was slipping through their fingers. Pushing the frustrating thoughts aside she looked back toward the message. "I don't know what it means when it says thirty days after the solstice, but that date has to be important somehow," she spoke, shuffling her feet as she frowned.
Kakashi nodded in agreement, "I'll see what information about that date that I can find." He then let out a breath of air, shaking his head. "He must've gone through a lot of trouble to get some of this information. That's incredibly dangerous for him to do."
Sakura knew and didn't even nod in confirmation. Sai would be killed immediately if Danzo knew what he'd done. She could only hope that he hadn't been found out yet. She prayed he was still alive.
"We know where his allegiance lays at least." She spoke confidently, accepting the note back as Kakashi lowered his headband once more. "That means that there could be more ANBU against Danzo's policies, too."
Kakashi nodded, thinking hard to himself. "I doubt there's a way we can find out without being exposed, but it's a good thing to know. Having even a few ANBU on our side could help everything be much easier than it would be originally." After a long, tense silence, he spoke up again, "So Sasuke, where exactly does your allegiance lie?"
"Nowhere," he spoke without hesitation. "I don't hold loyalties to anyone. Not to Madara, not to Akatsuki. I follow my own lead. That's it."
Sakura could tell that Kakashi hardly believed him, and she understood to an extent. For Sasuke to be in contact with Madara and associated—however reluctantly—to Kabuto, that wasn't something that could be taken lightly or overlooked.
"I can't tell you anything more about the coup," he spoke decisively. "Not now at least. Sakura," she nodded, giving him her full attention, "I want you to stay with me. Whether the rest stay is their choice. But you need to stay with me. You said ANBU is after you? We—the other jonin here and I—can protect you. That way when we put things into motion you can come back to the village with us, we can regain control, expose Danzo, and things will go back to normal."
Hearing his plan was incredibly relieving, and made it feel as if an incredible weight had been lifted from her chest. Letting out a breath of air, allowing for some tension escape her, she allowed her shoulders to slump and nodded. This was exactly what she needed. Finally, things were going to be okay. Her defection hadn't been pointless, and with her actions validated so thoroughly, tears sprang to her eyes.
But before she could speak, she was cut off.
"We'll consider it," Sasuke spoke firmly, shocking Sakura when he grabbed her wrist and pulled her toward him slightly. Caught off guard by the motion, Sakura almost stumbled, turning and clinging to him in order to keep herself on her feet.
She didn't even stop herself when she asked in a low voice, "What on Earth are you doing?"
But Sasuke disregarded her question. "I'll talk to my team about it and we can give you an answer in the morning." He didn't release her wrist, but he did loosen his hold, perhaps to make it so that she wouldn't panic. Sakura wasn't sure, but she needed to find out what he was doing.
Turning toward Kakashi she sent him a small half-smile and nodded. If she could get Sasuke and his team to agree, it would give them the edge that they needed. "I'll talk to him, sensei."
Kakashi nodded and stood. "I'll be back at sunrise for your answer. That gives you a few hours to talk it all over." He smiled down at Sakura, "I'm sure that's all the time you need."
She smiled back, the comfort of his presence still borderline-overwhelming for her. Pulling away from Sasuke for a few seconds, she leaned forward and wrapped her arms tightly against him, sighing as she embraced him. "Thanks, Kakashi-sensei."
As he hugged her back she felt as calm as she had since before the Akatsuki had attacked Konoha months ago. Things would be okay, she just had to trust her sensei and hope things went well. A coup wouldn't be easy to pull off, but they could do it.
Within minutes, Kakashi was gone and Sakura was left alone with Sasuke once more. Turning toward him, she pulled a curious look on her face only to find that he wasn't looking at her. Instead he was staring into the fire, completely disregarding her. The crackling of the fire was the only noise in the room besides the soothing sound of rain lightly hitting the windows. It would be incredibly calming if it weren't for the fact that they'd just talked about planning a coup d'état to overthrow the current Hokage.
In the back of her mind she wondered where the rest of the team was, but the thought was easy to push aside. The way Sasuke was staring into the fire was concerning her. Usually when he thought about things intently like this, he had an almost blank look on his face.
As the fire reflected off of his dark eyes she could see the emotion in them.
Taking a step toward him, she lifted a hand slowly and placed it on his shoulder. "Sasuke-kun?"
"We can't stay," he spoke, not removing his gaze from the fire.
Sakura bit her lip. She'd feared that his response would be that, but she tried hard to hide her disappointment. She told Kakashi she'd talk to him, and she would.
"It's smart," she spoke softly, "we have a better chance at pulling this off with Konoha on our side."
"If we stick with them and participate in the coup, do you really think they'll let us kill Danzo or even the elders?"
There was silence for a long moment, the fire continuing to crackle before them.
"What are you saying?" She spoke slowly, attempting to place the pieces together, but she knew she was missing a vital piece of information.
"Kakashi won't let you get anywhere near Danzo. That's what. You aren't even going to get a glimpse of him, let alone get a shot at fighting him if Kakashi has it his way."
He was right, and the realization that she would get what she wanted, only indirectly, made her more frustrated than she thought it would. She hated Danzo. More than Kakashi, more than the rest of Konoha's shinobi, probably not more than Sasuke, but damnit, she deserved to be the one to take him down. And she knew Sasuke was right. She would never get the chance if she stayed in Ame.
She was nothing more than a chuunin with no outstanding characteristics outside better-than-average medical ninjutsu abilities. No way she'd be allowed to fight Danzo.
"Come with us." His voice pulled her out of her thoughts and when she looked at him again, he was finally staring at her.
That caught her off guard. For a moment she opened her mouth and closed it a few times before finding her voice, "I—I can't." And she couldn't. She'd finally gotten what she wanted. She was with Kakashi, she had the help she'd sought out when she'd began her journey almost a month ago. Everything that she'd left Konoha for was currently resting in her hands. She'd be stupid to let this opportunity slip through her fingers. "I—why would you want me with you guys anyways? It makes more sense just to leave me here."
She had him there, and she knew it. There was no edge she offered them. Nothing to contribute other than the plus of having another medic on the team, but Karin appeared capable enough to fill the role on her own. He had nothing more to lure her with.
Or so she thought.
He moved slowly, giving her more than enough time to back away or avoid the contact, but when he reached out toward her with rough hands, one wrapping around her waist, the other trailing along her neck before letting his fingers run through her hair, pausing as he held the back of her head.
She should move, she knew it. She should step back, disentangle his fingers from her hair, deny his request and go after Kakashi. It wasn't just the better choice, it was smart.
But that was her problem. She wasn't as smart as everyone thought. She was selfish, foolish, and in way over her head. She always had been. Sakura had dreamed of being held like this by him for as long as she remember, and a part of her knew that she'd be stupid to pass up the opportunity.
So stupid.
He leaned in slowly, watching her carefully, as if to witness any other reaction other than acceptance.
She held her ground and closed her eyes before his lips met hers.
The kiss was soft at first, nothing like their first kiss all those nights ago. Instead of his hand gripping her neck roughly, he cradled her head softly, fingers moving softly through her hair as he moved his lips against hers.
Not knowing what to do with her own hands, she lifted them and rested them on his shoulders, holding tightly as she tilted her head slightly. This kiss was neater, their teeth didn't click together and there was a noticeable lack of unbridled hunger.
Sasuke was being gentle with her, and the thought made her knees quiver and shake.
When he pulled her against him, kissing her a bit harder—it was hardly noticeable, but Sakura couldn't miss the increase of pressure—he brushed his thumb against the bare skin between her shorts and her shirt. The gasp was involuntary as she broke the kiss and moaned softly. She was dizzy as he placed chaste kisses against her neck and across her jawline.
"Come with us," he growled quietly against her neck.
Sakura gasped again. His words were so deep that it shook her to the core. Warmth began to spread through her and she knew that there was no way she could put up a fight like this.
"Sasuke-kun… I…"
Cutting her off, he captured her lips once more, kissing her harder this time and pulling her closer against him. In the back of her head she knew that this wasn't fair, that she was being manipulated, but god did this persuasion feel so, so good.
When he slipped his hand beneath her shirt, fully pressing his hand against her bare skin, he moved his hand upward slowly, stopping at the edge of her bindings before running down her back again.
Moaning again, his name slipped through her lips. Moving her hands from his shoulders, she wrapped her arms tightly around his neck and kissed him harder.
"Come with us," he whispered again in between kisses. With he lightly pulled at her lower lip with his teeth, she let out a squeak. "Come with me."
Sakura knew she was a goner.
Leaving the Hidden Rain within the hour wasn't just disappointing to Sakura, but to all of them. They were tired and hadn't even gotten the chance to rest their eyes for a moment before Sasuke had tracked everyone down and ordered them to gather their things.
After several minutes of very persuasive kissing, Sakura had finally agreed in a haze of passion and want. The moment Sasuke had gotten her verbal agreement, he'd broken their kiss, whispered "good" and left the room in search of the rest of their team.
Here they were, no more than twenty minutes later, running back through the rain and out of the village as quickly as they could.
Sakura knew there was no way they'd get out undetected but she didn't know if they'd be stopped or not.
As they moved she tried hard to ignore the feeling of eyes on her back. Eyes that she knew were no doubt filled with disappointment.
She was the one almost disappointed when Kakashi didn't stop them. Her hope that he'd intervene was what she'd been counting on, but when he stayed hidden amongst the shadows, her heart ached terribly in her chest.
Convincing herself that this was the right idea was going to be nearly impossible.
