So, every 10 chapters I'll be posting a list of songs that I've used as titles. I don't own any of them.
Chapter 1 - With Eyes Wide Shut - Blessthefall
Chapter 2 - Worry About You - Ivy
Chapter 3 - Guilty - Anna Tsuchiya
Chapter 4 - This is How I Disappear - My Chemical Romance
Chapter 5 - Kingdom Come - The Civil Wars
Chapter 6 - Only if for a Night - Florence and the Machine
Chapter 7 - Nothing to Remember - Neko Case
Chapter 8 - Through Glass - Stone Sour
Chapter 9 - Shake it Out - Florence and the Machine
Chapter 10 - Walking Away - ChianoSky
The title of the story is one of my favorite songs Stand by Me by the Brilliant Green. I highly recommend you guys give it a listen :)
anyways, on to the chapter!
Stand By Me
Chapter 10 - Walking Away
''I wanna know what it feels like to be haunted by you, I wanna know what it feels like to be wanted by you.''
Sakura stepped into, what had become, her bedroom. She laid Mikoto's clothing out on the bed and stripped out of her own rags. First she pulled on the pants, they fit like a dream and seemed to hug her form. She'd picked up some weight in this week, she could still count her ribs, but she'd gotten some meat on her and with all her training, she'll be back to her old self in no time, but she was happy for the fast progress she'd made. She pulled the dress over her head. She had no more bindings for her chest and the awkwardness of asking him was something she'd rather avoid, so she went without.
Sakura smoothed the dress down and admired herself in the mirror. She smiled softly before she reached over and pulled the wig, which she had soaked out during the week, over her head, adjusting it to fit and hide her hair. Once she was satisfied she turned away and pulled on the sandals and out of the corner of her eye, she saw something in the mirror...on the back of the dress was a large Uchiha symbol. Sakura felt herself swallow and tried not to dwell on it. She gave herself a quick once-over, before she stepped out of the room.
Sasuke was busy with his maps again.
''When do we leave?'' she asked.
''Later.'' he answer curtly.
Sakura sighed and went over to the table.
''What have you been working on?''
Sasuke glanced up at her, clearly annoyed, his annoyance shifted quickly as he took in her appearance and she saw a foreign emotion pass through his eyes, and then just as quickly it was gone. ''You'll know soon enough.'' the 'now, leave me alone' hung in the air and Sakura huffed and went into the kitchen, opting for a glass of water. She filled her glass and when she turned, Sasuke was behind her. What the hell? He was well aware that two people didn't fit in here together! Sakura squeezed past him, no part of her torso did not touch him. The moment they connected, Sasuke's eyes met her's, and for a moment they locked. Until she made it past him, the moment - whatever it was - was done, as if it never happened. He was probably playing some mind game with her. Bastard. And then it hit her...he must have felt everything because she hadn't bound her chest.
She covered her face in embarrassment, facing away from him. Not a great start to the day.
x-x-x-x-
They left the house around noon after Sasuke had given her a cape to shield her from the cold, through the front door, where she usually could only use the back door that led out to the beach. They walked a few miles into the forest where Sasuke uncovered a tunnel and mentioned for Sakura to drop in. He followed and led her down a maze of hallways and turns, they didn't speak, a lot of heavy awkward silences existed between them and even though Sakura attempted a conversation by asking him if he enjoyed his training with Orochimaru, he gave her a short and closed off ''fuck no.'' that ended the conversation, until he climbed a ladder up. Once Sakura surfaced she noticed the intense look on his face and he handed her a kunai.
''Aim to kill, or they'll keep coming back for more.'' he whispered and Sakura looked up at him, his eyes were red and the sharingan was spinning wildly. She recognized a presence to her left and leapt after it, Kunai ready to strike.
Behind her, she heard the chirping of Sasuke's chidori but she didn't stop.
Aim to kill, she said to herself and then the Shadow came into view and she felt herself feel anger...hate after what they had done to her.
She charged at him, ducking down at the last minute and kicking his feet out from under him. She aimed to bring the Kunai down on his head but she froze...her eyes wide. Could she really kill? Be a predator? Have so little regard for life when shes supposed to be saving it.
A hand came up to punch her but she caught it and crushed all the fingers that she caught in her fist.
''Im doing you a favor,'' she said and pressed her hand over his heart.
Sasuke knocked her off of the Shadow and stabbed his katana into the it's heart.
He didn't miss a beat. ''Lets go.''
Sakura got to her feet and followed silently.
''In this world, hesitation means death.'' was the last thing he said before they set out on the path.
Sakura watched his back and felt a familiar feeling creep into her heart. Envy. She felt as if time had rewinded itself and here she was again. Thirteen, and watching Naruto and Sasuke's backs as they advanced and she was left in the darkness of their shadows. She clenched her jaw. Why did she keep finding herself here? She had trained under Tsunade for three years! Couldn't she protect herself? Maybe she hesitated, yes, but that did not...make her weak. Sakura bit her lip. One thing about Sasuke - he always succeeded in making her feel weak and useless.
She was a medic-nin! She was supposed to be saving lives not taking them...but- if the Shadows were coming at her with killing intent then of course she'd only be practicing self-defence. But she knew this was more about making a point to Sasuke, she was not weak.
Sakura stopped when she noticed where they were. ''What are we doing here?'' she asked, clearly offended.
Sasuke barely glanced at here. ''We're meeting Naruto.''
''Wasn't he supposed to meet us?'' she asked as she looked around the offending buildings, offering signs like ''Wild girls, 24 Hours!'' and ''Nude - Nude - Nude live girls!''
''Yes, that was the message I gave him but knowing Naruto, he's probably mixed up the message in his head by now.''
Sasuke turned into the street where the Pleasure Palace waited at the very end.
Sakura clenched her jaw. ''You can not be serious.''
Sasuke ignored her and continued to the establishment.
x-x-x-x-
Naruto paced around his room.
Nightfall or daybreak...he might have missed his chance already! Dammit Sasuke! That bastard knew that Naruto wasn't good at memorizing things, and mentioning ramen when it had been so long...that's just low.
Naruto narrowed his eyes. Sasuke wasn't stupid of course, he knew that Naruto learned through experience. So he must have known that the blonde would be unable to remember. Meaning that Sasuke would be coming, and Sakura-chan too! Naruto grabbed his stuff and left the room, Sasuke would want to keep a low profile so they'd probably meet him inside. Naruto entered the bar. He heard a familiar voice, sounding angry and then there he saw someone being shoved forward and then...all hell broke lose.
x-x-x-x-
Sakura entered that Palace and Sasuke told her to wait while he took care of something. Sakura narrowed her eyes as he ducked out of the door and she, being as nosy as she was, followed discreetly. He went into the alley next to the building and did a summoning Jutsu.
Sakura saw the large hawk soar up into the sky and she felt a shiver run up her spine. She'd seen that hawk before - with Temari at the Valley of the End when they were hiding form the Shadows.
She saw him attach a scroll to it and send it off before she turned away and went back inside.
He entered, looking as apathetic as ever, walking past the reception and entering what appeared to be a bar. Sakura clenched her fists at her sides. How dare he? Had he been following her...since Kalika's? Is that how he knew about Kakashi-sensei being undercover? Sakura's thoughts sent her over the edge and she stormed after him. He was already half way across the room when she caught up to him, catching his wrist and yanking him around.
''So, how long?'' she demanded.
Sasuke's eyes narrowed. What the fuck was her problem now?
''How long have you been keeping tabs on me?'' she clarified and watched his eyes narrow.
''Now is not the time.'' he told her, keeping his voice low and pulling his arm free before walking off.
''Come on,'' she said loudly. ''If you want to know all my secrets just ask, I mean we do know each other intimately since we did try to kill each other.''
Sasuke hesitated, and without looking back at her, her continued on.
Sakura growled and launched herself forward, shoving him hard.
Sasuke stumbled forward, into a large man at the bar.
''Fucker!'' the man yelled, clearly intoxicated and swung a punch, Sasuke - being quick enough, dodged and the punch sent another guy face-first into his drink.
''Oooh, you're gonna fucking pay for that!'' he growled and laughed himself at the first guy, causing them to bump into another guy and soon everyone was fighting someone.
Sasuke appeared in front of Sakura and grabbed her shoulders.
''I told you to let it go!''
''Yeah, well I'm not good at that!'' she spat and then she narrowed her eyes. ''I know how you love making notes, so why don't you make one on how it felt to have your hand around my throat trying to crush the life out of me.'' she said in a deadly tone.
Sasuke glared but Sakura didn't back down.
''Guys, as much as I am enjoying this, we need to go.'' Nami said as she grabbed Sasuke hand that was clenching Sakura's shoulder.
''Whats the password?'' Sasuke asked Naruto, who laughed and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.
''Ninki -'' Sakura closed her eyes, trying to remember the exact words, ''It is a good chance when a large number of enemies are making a scene, there are no hide outs even in a quiet place. It is important for a ninja to know the right time. The time when the enemy is tired and has his guard down.'' she recited perfectly.
''Wow, Sakura-chan-''
Sakura had already turned away and left the room.
''What did you do?'' Naruto asked Sasuke with narrowed eyes.
Sasuke didn't give him an answer, he followed simply Sakura's lead.
x-x-x-x-
Once they had returned to Sasuke's safe house, Naruto had gone to clean up and Sakura had begun preparing dinner. Sasuke did Kami only knows what. And at the moment Sakura couldn't care less.
She made a traditional dinner and it was while she was chopping the tomatoes that Sasuke came in, Sakura moved so fast that she didn't even know she possessed such speed, she threw the knife into the opposite wall and in the next second she had Sasuke pinned to the wall.
''If you make one move, just breathe betrayal then I will kill you in ways you never even thought little Sakura was capable of.'' she whispered icily. Yes, she was still pissed off at him, but this was serious, this was about Naruto. The fact that he was alive was their trump card.
For a moment, he stared at her, taking in her threat and then in the blink of an eye their positions were reversed and Sasuke had her blocked in with his body. Sakura was prepared for this, until she felt his hand snake around her neck. A terrible reminder. Sakura tried not to show him how it effected her and how many times she had nightmares about it, but she was never good at hiding her emotions.
''I hesitated before, if I wanted to kill you then you would be dead.''
''You're lying!'' she interrupted, shaking her head.
Sasuke just stared at her.
''You...you were trying to kill me. Don't lie to me. You were gonna use my own kunai!'' she yelled, tears pooling in her eyes.
''You know I could have killed you before Naruto saved you, be honest.''
''No...no, you- you couldn't see! Why are you doing this...!'' her tears fell down her cheeks now.
''Don't ever threaten me again little Sakura we both know that I am in charge here, you shouldn't have seeked me out if you didn't like it. I decide whether you live or die, since that day your life is mine since I didn't take it.''
''Get off me!'' Sakura cried, shoving him off, getting ready to fight him again. ''You don't own me Sasuke, you don't!''
She watched him smirk slowly, sadistically. Sakura froze, wiping at her tears. She'd pushed him too far...
''You were actually the one who promised herself to me. Didn't you say you would do anything for me?'' he asked, that smirk staying on his face.
His sudden change of attitude scared her, and chilled her entire body and she regretted her actions immediately.
Sakura, still narrowed her eyes and swung a fist at him in anger at his sudden cruelty, how dare he bring up that night? Maybe she brought this on herself for bringing up that day. The day she'd tried so hard to forget and then Sasuke had to bring up that night, that he'd left her. He probably didn't like her rehashing the past either, and this was how he retaliated. A wall, so he wouldn't feel anything if he lashed out.
Sasuke caught her fist in his hand and her strength vibrated up his arm and he let out a hiss - not expecting it.
Sakura immediately felt her heart drop.
''Sasuke...I'm sorry, let me-''
Sasuke stared down at her, for the first time hearing her, how she'd dropped the familiar honorific from his name.
''Don't threaten me again Sakura.'' he said, his voice once again emotionless before he left the kitchen.
Sakura fell back against the wall and slid down in, holding her face in her hands. Everything had just become to much, and she felt herself crumble in her hands.
The week with Sasuke, she'd spoken, babbled on like the old days, and he had never spoken to her unless when he had no other choice. And she had been so stupid.
Sakura took a deep breath, trying to sort out her contradicting thoughts.
She'd forced this on him, he own anger and insecurities wanting closure for something unconsciously. Even when Sasuke had made it clear he had no intention of discussing it, she continued to push and push until he retaliated in the only way he knew. He hurt her.
He'd tried to tell her, and he was telling the truth. If he wanted to kill her that day he could have. The possibilities were endless. Chidori. Snapping her neck. Crushing her throat - all could have been done before Naruto came. By pushing her back and taking out a kunai - he was buying time.
She knew, in the back of her mind that he had no interest in her, she was simply tool to call out who he really wanted to fight that day.
Hearing him say it...that he had no real intentions of killing her...it gave her a sense of calm. Yes, she knew if she had continued that day he probably wouldve had no qualms about killing her.
The only reason she continued to push him now...was that she wanted a fight, she was angry that he'd followed her and she wanted to fight with him and she knew he would not discuss that so she'd chosen something else, that would anger him.
Sakura lifted her head. Sasuke was not trying to play any bad guy, she was just portraying him as one, forcing him to be someone who he clearly had been trying hard not to be.
Sakura wiped at her tears. What had she become? Why was she so selfish? The fight made no real sense. Yes, she'd gotten some kind of closure, but why did she have to push him...into that?
Sakura swallowed and stood up. This was not who she was, the world basically ending was no excuse for her to act like a child. She would suck up her pride and apologize, but first she needed to finish dinner.
x-x-x-x-
To her luck, he came to dinner, but he did not look at her once.
Naruto ate his dinner like he hadn't seen food in a year, wolfing it all down and then having an annoying case of hic-ups.
Sakura told him how to get rid of it but had to help him anyway.
She collected the plates and began to wash them when Naruto asked, ''So, what's the plan?''
Sakura saw Sasuke pulled out the last map he'd been working on and rolled it out on the table.
Naruto leaned in to see, Sasuke had marked a certain spot with a red X.
Sakura came over, she could feel Sasuke's eyes on her. She dried off her hands and traced her finger on the lines he drew.
''What exactly am I looking at?'' Naruto asked.
''This,'' Sasuke tapped the X and leaned back in his chair. ''Is a cave,'' he smirked smugly, ''He had no idea that I knew where it was.''
''Whats so special about this cave?'' Naruto asked with a bored stare.
''This is where he would be keeping the tailed beasts sealed away.''
A silence dropped around the room.
''But...shouldn't he have executed his plan by now?'' Sakura asked, and Sasuke shook his head.
''He needs the full moon.'' Naruto said, with a frown. ''He missed it, so now he's waiting for the next one.''
Sasuke nodded. ''And this,'' he tapped the line that Sakura had been tracing, her eyes flicked up to his and for a moment they held before he turned them to Naruto, ''Is the only accessible path there.''
Naruto let out a deep breath slowly. ''You're saying all this because you want to give me a choice...''
Sasuke nodded.
''A choice?'' Sakura asked, worry dripping from her voice.
''He wants to seal the Kyuubi back into me, right Sasuke?''
Sakura's eyes turned back to Sasuke, a desperateness in them.
''Ah.''
''Naruto...'' Sakura whispered she was fully aware that without the Kyuubi, Madara could not complete his plan, but if they did this...''It could kill you...''
''Im already dead to the world, Sakura-chan...'' he said, a sad expression in his blue eyes and then he turned them on Sasuke. ''When do we do it?''
''If falling is so easy then why am I crying, its not supposed to be like this...I wanna know my place, come on invade my space - I wanna feel like I'm needed...im needed - by You.''
Yup, Chapter 10 done.
Team 7 decides to screw Madara over. Hell yeah!
Anyway! Review! I need to know what you guys think!
Seriously, how am I supposed to update without reviews guys?
I can't write without reviews...I'll become completely unmotivated...and lose my mind -.- or something xD
especially in love with this week's title song! ChianoSky's voice is awesome! And the song is completely Sasusaku!
Zana-Lee
xoxo