AUTHOR'S HEARTFELT ACKNOWLEDGEMENT: I would just like to give my million thanks to Blitz Magnus and Aikuchi Shikaku, who, helped me make this fanfiction possible. Thank you so much! I wish I could repay you for your kindness someday.
BE UPDATED! Homebound Chapter 20 is done. And it's very long. Imagine Chapter 10's length doubled. Now, THAT is the size of Chapter 20. I'm starting to write Chapter 21 and hoping that the peak would be in this chapter, if not, then, it goes to Chapter 22.
…Estimated chapters, all in all: More or less, 30 Chapters. WHOPPING!
AUTHOR'S SPECIAL MENTIONS: Okay, these people are the regulars in reading HOMEBOUND, so I would like to thank the following:
neon kun (I thank you for really watching out for every single chapter!
Akira Ruyiko I'm honored to be in your Alert List!
Byakugan VS Sharingan
Ayumi-Aldaba
I hope that you will all still continue reading this fic! And for those who aren't mentioned, I also want to thank them. I LOVE YOU ALL!
Without any further ado…
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(From the last chapter…)
"W-where am I?" Sakura asked.
"You're in the Hidden Mist Village." The woman replied.
"And… who are you?"
"Of course you don't recognize me! We haven't seen each other for a long, long time, cousin dearest!" the woman cheerfully answered, "I'm Haruno Kashime, your cousin!"
Sakura touched her head and realized that her head was bandaged. Her head started to ache a little, but she also asked, "Who am I?"
"Oh, snap." Kashime thought.
(Chapter 10 – Living in Denial)
"… In order not to cause insanity in your cousin's mind, you might want to change her name…" The doctor's words rang through Kashime's ears.
"Y-you're my cousin." Kashime replied.
"Yeah, but what's my name?" Sakura asked more calmly.
Kashime swallowed the lump on her throat and sighed to get rid of the nervousness and fear she's feeling inside, "Your name is Ayumi. Mikiyo Ayumi."
"Mikiyo Ayumi…?" Sakura repeated.
"Yeah, you're uhm… 19 years old and you were born here, in the Mist Village." Kashime smiled.
"Is that so?" Sakura said.
"Yup!" Kashime assured.
After 1 hour…Kashime sighed in relief, "Now I have to remember all the things I've said… Her name is Mikiyo Ayumi… Mikiyo Ayumi… Mikiyo Ayumi… Sheesh, I have to get rid of the name 'Haruno Sakura' in my memory... Harsh fate…"
Sakura went back to sleep after interrogating Kashime about her identity.
"So?" it was the doctor Kashime talked to earlier along with another doctor, "How was she?"
"She's fine." Kashime sighed in relief, "Well I think she is. When is she going to be released?"
"Tomorrow's fine." The doctor replied, "A little home treatment for her will be enough. She should stay in bed for 3 more days however, you should stroll her around the town on the 4th day, okay?"
"Yes Doctor." Kashime stood up and whispered to the doctor, "Can you do an 'eye checkup' on her so that when I buy her contact lenses, she'll think the purpose of those things are for her eyes and not for her protection? I changed her name to Mikiyo Ayumi, by the way."
The doctor smiled and nodded, "As you wish."
"Well, I have to do a major shopping now for her clothes and stuff." Kashime smiled, "I guess I'll be spending my big salaries after all. Goodbye, Doc! Take good care of her, okay?"
The doctor nodded. Kashime left and the doctor, who was unknown to Kashime, grinned to himself, licked his lips and hissed in his mind, "Your prey is still alive… My dear Sasuke…"
The next day…"Okay." The doctor said as he wrote something on his clipboard, "Miss Mikiyo, you'll be needing optical wear. It would be advised if you use contact lenses, though."
"Why? What happened to me anyway?" Sakura asked.
"Hmmm…" The doctor prolonged, "You fell into a trap pit while you were walking with your cousin, Miss Haruno Kashime near the forest."
"Oh… That must be very clumsy of me. But uh… How did I get amnesia and how what caused my eyes to need optical wear when I see very clearly?" Sakura asked.
"You got amnesia because you fell into the pit. The pit was around 6 to 7 feet deep and that gave you scratches, cuts, bruises and your head continuously hit the walls of that pit, resulting your brain to shake tremendously causing a severe concussion thus resulting into unconsciousness and amnesia. The dust from the pit has entered your cornea, but just in time, it seems like you closed your eyes while falling into the pit because you didn't want to see any of what was happening to you." The doctor explained.
"But Doctor, I can see very clearly-"
"Ohohohoho..." the doctor warned, "You may be saying that but later on, you may experience blurred surroundings. I'll also prescribe an eye cleanser just to purify your cornea from those dusts. I'll just hand over the prescription to your cousin. I think Miss Haruno will be taking you to her residence for some beauty rest."
"Ooh… Okay." Sakura smiled.
The doctor smiled back, "I'll be leaving you now, Miss Mikiyo. You may rest a little while you wait for Miss Haruno to pick you up."
Sakura nodded and waved goodbye.
At the Mizukage's office…"You summoned me, Mizukage-sama?" Kashime bowed before the old Mizukage.
"Indeed." The Mizukage replied, "I'll ask you to deliver a message to the Hokage and the Kazekage. I'll also ask you to do a mission while you're at it. This will be in 2 weeks time."
"I accept, Mizukage-sama." Kashime replied.
"Oh and…" the Mizukage prolonged, "How's your cousin?"
"She's fine."
"You've been lying to her, haven't you?"
The words of the Mizukage silenced Kashime. She knows very well that he was her sensei ever since she was still a genin and that he hates liars.
"It's a necessary procedure, Mizukage-sama." Kashime nervously replied.
"I don't mind you lying to your cousin. The doctors told me that she needs a very slow process to regain her memory. Lying and hiding her real identity is a must. But let me remind you, Kashime, Sakura is not from our village. She's a foreigner. And you must know, just like you were my student, Sakura was a student of the current Hokage."
"I don't understand, Mizukage-sama." Kashime said.
"As your mentor, it would be very hard for me to take that you die in a mission. I'm not only your master, Kashime, but I AM also your teacher. The same way goes to Sakura. If Sakura dies, the Hokage will be depressed because Sakura was her student." The Mizukage explained.
"So you're saying that I must do everything to protect her? Because if she dies… it's possible that the Hokage will hold hate against us and a casualty may rise… of bringing war? I mean, the Hidden Leaf versus the Hidden Mist?"
"EXACTLY." The Mizukage firmly answered, "Well, you should get going now."
Kashime stood up and nodded. She bowed before her sensei and left the Mizukage's office.
TBC…