…I do not own Naruto…

Chapter 10: …Like a Woman Scorned (part 1)

Sugeitsu smiled as Sakura's green eyes opened to meet his curious stare. The emerald orbs contained no surprise within them, only a look of unfathomable distaste which caught him slightly off-guard. It was almost as if her subconscious had prepared her for what would greet her when she awoke. There was no room for fear in her piercing gaze, and she met his intrigue with an animalistic expression that spoke of dangerous cunning.

The Hebi member's smile widened. To think—she was all his now.

"You can't break those ropes around your wrists. You might as well stop trying." Sugeitsu brought his recently recovered sword to Sakura's throat. "Karin made them specifically to your chakra signature. You won't be able to free yourself even with that strength of yours."

"Where's Sasuke?" The question was growled at him, and held a feel more akin to a threat than a curiosity.

"He's around. Said something about someone following us." He dismissed her words with a wave of his hand. "You're in my care now anyhow."

The medic shifted up onto her knees. She turned her face away from him as she spoke. "I'll speak only with Uchiha Sasuke."

Sugeitsu leaned in toward her. "You're my pet now, Konoha medic." He reached out his hand and stroked her hair. "My pet. I'm the one you should concern yourself with."

"You can't keep me tied up forever."

He regarded her thoughtfully. She was right. There were certain things she would need to do and she would need to be able to move to do them. It would be a burden to have to feed her or carry her. She was able to do those things on her own and it would be less trouble for the swordsman if she was allowed to. But… having a pet meant that he had to take care of her.

It was an unfortunate dilemma. He knew as soon as she was free she'd be gone. He doubted she would try to kill him. She'd come close to breaking his water-form jutsu, and that in itself made her a threat to him, but her medical background did not condone unnecessary killing. So, when all was said and done, she'd simply run away.

There must be something he could do to entice her to stay…

"I can keep you tied up forever," he eventually replied. "And until you give me a reason to think you won't run away, that's what I'll have to do."

"You could just kill her and be done with it," an irritated female voice interjected. "Sasuke-kun already said he doesn't care what happens to her."

"What's the matter, Karin?" Sugeitsu's tone was mocking. "Isn't she what you're aspiring to be?"

"Shut up! I don't know what you think it is that you know, but in reality, you don't have a clue. That trash isn't fit to walk in Sasuke-kun's shadow."

Sakura remained silent. She wasn't sure what just happened. If she took her captor's words at face value, she'd be inclined to think this 'Karin' was a medic-nin. However, the inflection he used, and the reaction he received indicated that something entirely different was going on.

Whatever they were talking about, one thing was clear—certain members of Hebi did not get along.

"Trash?" Sakura heard Sugeitsu speak up. "You're not one to judge, sweetheart. Last I checked, my pet here hasn't screwed with anyone's thoughts."

Karin bristled. "She's done worse. Just kill her and be done with it."

"That's enough." Sasuke landed quietly next to them, Jugo at his side. "Karin, wasn't there something I asked you to do?"

The dark-haired young woman blushed. "Yes, Sasuke-kun, of course!" Before she left, she wrapped her arm through his. "I was just trying to talk Sugeitsu out of his foolish fantasy."

Sasuke pulled his arm away from her. "Get moving."

Chastised, Karin leapt into the trees.

"Untie her."

"What!?! But she'll run away! I just managed to catch her."

Sasuke's eyes narrowed. "I 'caught' her since you couldn't, and now I'm telling you to untie her."

There was a tense moment of silence as the two men glared at one another. Eventually, it was Sugeitsu who backed down, shrugging it off with a lopsided grin. "Fine. You're just going to have to tie her up again, you'll see."

With a casual swing of his arm, the mist-nin severed her bonds.

Sakura stood, rubbing her sore wrists. She cast a covert look of triumph at Sugeitsu before her eyes turned to the tall form of Jugo. She did not look at Sasuke.

Two things intrigued Sakura. The first was the kind look from this silent member of Sasuke's team. The second thing was the slowly retreating seal markings on his arms. It was a similar pattern to the one she'd seen on her former teammate. As she watched him, a little bird alighted on the man's outstretched hand.

How out of place. The pink-haired young woman almost smiled to herself. A gentle soul in the midst of killers.

Without warning, she held out her hand. "Haruno Sakura."

Startled, Jugo glanced at Sasuke before he gently took her offer. "Jugo of Team Hebi."

It was odd to her that he should identify himself so. It was almost as if his current affiliation was the most important to him, and that nothing in his past could compare with the feeling of membership he had there. The odd sadness of it struck Sakura strongly, and she dropped his hand.

"Sakura."

She did not acknowledge the summons at first, but after a moment, she turned her gaze to Sasuke.

It irritated him to no end, her avoidance of him. And when she did turn to face him, her eyes would not meet his. They hovered just below his scrutinizing stare, still on his face, but not allowing him to have access to her in as intimate a way as eye contact could provide.

"I have questions you will answer," he said.

"You sound certain of that." She frowned slightly. "Unless you're coming back with me, I have nothing to say to you."

"Are you still wasting breath on that foolish hope? I thought I'd made myself clear."

"And I thought I had made myself just as clear."

"What are you going to do, Sakura? You can't take me by force. Unless Itachi is in Konoha, there is no reason for me to go back."

"Itachi," she spat the name out like poison.

Something in the way she shuddered slightly at the mention of his brother fanned Sasuke's anger to a higher point. He'd seen them interact. But how much was there he hadn't seen?

"I know Kakashi keeps watch over him," the Uchiha said calmly. "I also know, that right at this moment, the Akatsuki members are no longer detectable. Seems Kakashi is getting lazy in his old age."

"At least he knows where his strength lies and doesn't hide behind his bloodline."

As soon as she realized she'd said the words out loud, Sakura covered her mouth with her hand. She almost felt herself step back across the line she'd breeched. Sasuke was instantly next to her, and his sword swung just close enough to her abdomen to slice open the fabric that covered it.

He'd meant it as a warning, but was unprepared for what it revealed to him.

There, marring the pale perfection of young skin, was a thick line of scar tissue. The size and length were indicative of a blade injury, but how she would have come by such a life-threatening wound perplexed him. It was expertly aimed—in that one area of the body where several organs would be affected, where bleeding would be quick and heavy, where healing would be next to impossible. It was meant to be a killing blow.

The look of shock vanished from her face as Sakura followed Sasuke's gaze down to her exposed skin. She quickly covered the scar from her battle with Sasori. The less Uchiha Sasuke knew about her, the better she felt she would be.

"Who did that to you?"

The words were oddly reminiscent to her. Her answer was vague, yet truthful. "Someone who's dead now."

….To be continued tomorrow…

Author's Note: Sorry for my lack of an update. My dad passed away last week and this is the first moment I've had where I felt inclined to write. I will post the rest of this tomorrow afternoon/evening. I just didn't want you guys to think I had ditched this story.