Chapter 10: The Traitor of Konoha

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. This fanfiction is written purely for fun.

Sakura looked up at her teammate slowly, a blank expression clouding her face like a storm cloud blocks the sun. For a moment a flash of recognition showed in her eyes, then it vanished like the last few beams of sunshine before a storm.

" Oh, hello", she responded quietly.

Naruto stared at her uncertainly. When he didn't say anything more, Sakura slowly transferred her gaze back to the painting of the cactus. After a pause, the blond genin spoke again.

" How are you feeling Sakura-chan?"

She blinked for a moment, seeming slightly startled, then glanced back at him again.

" Well, thank you" was the quiet, polite answer.

Once more Naruto stared at her in uncertain confusion. Finally gathering his resolve, his voice shaking slightly with fear the boy asked: " Sakura-chan… you know who I am… don't you?"

Confusion passed over Sakura's face.

" Of course I do", she protested gently. " You're Uzumaki Naruto, my teammate".

Naruto stared on at her in confusion. Who was this soft- spoken girl before him? So quiet, so lifeless, the sort of person who could easily fade into the background. This was not the loud, forceful Sakura-chan he knew so well and cared about so much! He didn't know the strange girl in this hospital bed.

But Sakura must still be there somewhere! Naruto couldn't believe that she was completely gone. He couldn't give up.

" Sakura-chan… what happened to you?" he almost whispered.

The pink-haired girl looked up at him. Again, a flash of recognition crossed her face, and pain shone from her eyes. But before her teammate could take advantage of this lapse, the blank look was back in her eyes, like it had never been gone.

" I don't know what you mean Naruto", she responded quietly.

The blond boy quietly left the room, tears sliding down his face.

The konoha ninja ate in a heavy, leaden silence that night. Anko, Yamato and Hinata busily averted their gazes from those of Kakashi and Naruto. They all finished eating rather quickly and left together. The oldest three of the now depleted group retired immediately, however, Hinata paused in her doorway and observed Naruto continuing down the hallway. She hesitated, then followed him quietly. The two passed through two hallways then emerged on the roof the building they were lodged in.

Naruto dragged his feet as he strode across the building then sat down on its edge. Hinata watched him from the doorway inside, unsure of what to do. However, Naruto's shaking shoulders and sobbing that reached her ears made up her mind. Naruto-kun had helped her before when she was upset. It was time to repay the favor.

The timid chuunin walked quietly over to the boy she admired so much and took a seat beside him. Naruto looked up, then quickly averted his gaze.

" Oh, Hinata…" he uttered quietly. " Please don't be upset but… I'd like to be alone for a bit".

Hinata nearly got up and left, but she saw the pain in her companion's eyes and knew that he needed somebody to help him. She had a brief internal struggle: to disobey someone was something she had barely ever done in her life. Her very nature and her affection for Naruto competed for domination and affection just barely won.

" N-no Naruto-kun", she replied quietly. " Not when you're like this. Y-you are a friend of mine a-and you helped me w-when I was sad, so I… I'm not deserting you!"

Naruto looked up at her, surprised. Hinata paused, then continued.

" Naruto-kun… we've all been to see S-Sakura-chan and we all know h-how different she is. Something has happened to h-her and… it's painful but… y-you really care about h-her, so I-I don't think you should give up on her so easily!" the girl exclaimed, then lowered her head, unsure of what else to say.

" Hinata-chan", came Naruto's voice quietly, and his companion's head snapped up. A blush was crossing her face at hearing the affectionate honorific attached to her name, but Naruto didn't give her time to be embarrassed. " You're right", the boy responded quietly. The glow of determination was back in his eyes. " I can't give up on Sakura-chan! I haven't tried hard enough!"

He stood up, resolute.

" I'm going to see her right now, and I won't leave her room in the hospital until she's back to normal!"

Hinata stared up at him, full of admiration. He bounced back from defeat so quickly! If only she could be half as strong…

Suddenly an open hand was before her face. Hinata looked up to see Naruto standing tall above her, a smile on his face.
" Thank you Hinata-chan", he told her. " You are… a true friend!"

Again a blush crept into Hinata's cheeks. She took his hand, almost fainting at the contact, and when she wobbled dizzily Naruto reached out and steadied her.

" Are you alright Hinata-chan?" he asked her worriedly. The girl nodded.

" Good", he responded. " Will you come with me to see Sakura-chan?"

Hinata's eyes widened. He wanted her to come with him?

" O-of course Naruto-kun!" she stammered, full of joy and hope. Naruto grinned.

" Then let's go!"

And as the pair raced back inside, Hinata was very aware that Naruto was still clasping her hand.

When they arrived at Sakura's room, the curtains were still open, but it was now moonlight that shone through the window. The pink-haired girl was in the exact same position she had been in previously, still staring at the painting of the cactus that was bathed in shadows. She did not turn to observe her visitors when the entered the room.

Naruto and Hinata glanced at each other, then each stood on one side of her bed. At this, Sakura finally glanced at her two companions.

" We need to talk to you Sakura-chan", Naruto told her.

A black-cloaked figure is perches upon the shadowy top of a chimney, his eyes following the progress of Kankuro, the brother of the Kazekage, who is on sentry duty. The figure drops quietly onto the pathway of the guards and trails after the young puppeteer. The figure knows that there is a branch in the sandy path that will come up soon, and it will be easy to drag his victim into this branch and take care of him…

Sakura's eyes met Naruto's, but hers were unfocused and expressionless.

" What would you like to talk about Naruto-kun?" she asked quietly, not seeming to care or be at all interested in what he had to say.

" Sakura-chan", Naruto told her quietly. " We know that something painful happened to you, and that it has hurt you terribly… that you're upset and you need time to heal. But you can't live like this. Sooner of later you'll have to come back, to live again. And I know you, and I know that you have a conscience. Many people's lives depend on the information you have gained. We know that you know something important. And we need to learn what it is so that we can stop these murders."

Sakura started, her face tensed up and she turned away. However, she found the earnest visage of Hinata awaiting her.

" H-he's right S-Sakura-chan", the Hyuuga heiress told her. " We n-need to know. Please… please, come back and help us".

Sakura turned from Hinata and stared this time at her hands folded upon her lap.

Naruto reached over, took her chin and tilted her head towards him.

" Sakura-chan", he asked her quietly, trying to ignore the girl's shaking. " Who is the murderer?"

The dark figure continues after his prey. Kankuro is nearly at the branch in the drafty passageway. It is almost time…

The figure reaches into a pouch of weaponry concealed beneath his dark cloak and strokes the fatal edge of a cold steel kunai…

Mitarashi Anko tosses and turns in her bed. She is unable to find rest, aware that one person has the key to this agonizing mystery. She gets up out of bed, pulls on her cloak and slips out of her door towards Sakura's room.

Sakura looked up at Naruto, pain shining from every line, every angle of her face.

" Naruto, please", she whispers.

" We need to know Sakura-chan", he replied quietly. " And we need you back. You've always struggled, trying to feel that you were strong and capable. Prove your strength. Prove your willpower. I know you can do it Sakura-chan".

The girl's eyes were full of despair as she gazed up at him.

" You don't want to know, Naruto", she uttered quietly. " You'd be happiest not knowing".

Naruto and Hinata exchanged a glance, then looked back at Sakura, determined.

" We must know Sakura-chan", the boy told her. " You know that".

Sakura sucked in a deep breath.

" The murderer…", her voice trailed off, and glistening tears trickled from her eyes.

" Sakura-chan, p-please", urged Hinata.

The girl finally looked up again. " There are only five true suspects", she said quietly.

The figure is intent upon his doomed prey, he grasps his kunai tightly, he bends his legs as he prepares to spring- and then the image of a pink-haired girl sitting in a hospital bed flashes into his mind.

He has left Haruno Sakura alone, unguarded. If she should come to her senses…

The figure whirls around and sprints back towards the hospital as quickly as a breath of wind.

" W-when we fought", Sakura whispered.

" Yes?" Naruto prompted.

" The murderer spared my life although I was vulnerable and almost unconscious. T-that means that… the murderer cares about me".

Naruto and Hinata gave quick exclamations of surprise, then stifled the noise when Sakura began to speak again.

" The only people who care about me are from Konoha", she continued. " They would have to have enough chakra to send clones over here to k-kill and their personalities would have to fit that of the murderer's as well. There is no one back in Konoha right now who cares about me that has enough chakra to send clones over other than Tsunade-sama.

Tsunade-sama has the anger and hurt that I believe the murderer must possess. However, I have studied under her and I believe that she cares so much about saving lives that she would be unable to take so many so recklessly.

Then there is our group that has come here from Konoha. There is one among our number that possesses all of the qualities necessary.

First off, there is me", Sakura continued almost mechanically.

" I have been hurt and upset, but I do not have enough chakra to send clones to Sunagakure.

" I believe it is impossible for the murderer to be Anko-sensei. True, she has enough chakra and she seems to carry much sorrow around with her, but I am convinced that she does not care too much about me. If she were the murderer and I were an obstacle to her she would dispose of me right away".

The murderer skims the tops of roofs as he soars above the shadowy, sleeping village below him. Fear has his heart in an icy grasp, fear of everything vanishing, everything falling apart… He increases his pace.

He is nearly at the hospital.

" Next is Yamato-taichou", enumerated Sakura. " He certainly keeps his emotions bottled up enough that they could explode into violence and has enough chakra to be the killer, but I believe that, like Anko-sensei, he would have no scruples about killing me if he needed to.

Next is you, Naruto".

The boy in question gave a start.

" Naruto, you have more than enough chakra. However, your personality is at odds with that of the murderer's. You are too open and you care too much about Gaara to kill the occupants of his village".

The figure lands softly on top of the dark hospital roof, and hurries through the deserted hallways as swiftly and silently as he possibly can.

What if? What if? What it? Repeats his brain.

The figure speeds up a little.

" That leaves you Hinata, and Kakashi-sensei", resumed Sakura.

" What?!" exclaimed Naruto. " Sakura-chan, you've got to be mistaken, I've known both of them for years and they would never-"

" Wouldn't they?" argued Sakura, a bit of her old passion creeping into her voice. " You should know, Naruto, how it feels to have pain and anger bottled up for all of your life! Every day of her life Hinata has been trodden on and insulted! Every day more pain has been added to the enormous amount of it that is already weighing down upon her! And she doesn't do anything about it! She is meek and polite and I'll bet", here she turned to Hinata, " I'll bet that it starts to add up, and it starts to make you angry!"

Hinata flinched, and she held up her hands. " Sakura-chan-" she began. But the girl wasn't finished. " I'll bet that sometimes you are almost upset enough to commit murder! But…" Sakura groaned and lowered her head. " These past years you've slowly begun to develop more confidence. You've begun to earn respect. You've begun to get much stronger. And furthermore… you don't have enough chakra to send clones all the way here. That leaves-"

The door burst open, and a black cloaked figure sprang into the chamber. Sakura looked up and addressed him calmly, though the tears kept trickling down her face.

" -Kakashi-sensei", she finished grimly.

For a moment everyone was still, their eyes fixed upon the intruder and the kunai that glimmered in his hand. Then Naruto whispered: " No. Sakura-chan, it can't be! Kakashi-sensei… he's always been here for us. He's always-".

" Sorry Naruto", uttered the figure. " But haven't you learned by now how often Sakura is right?" He raised a hand and slowly reached backwards until he took hold of the hood that obscured his face. Folds of cloth fell back and the all too familiar visage of Hatake Kakashi showed, concealed behind the usual blue cloth mask.

There was a long, agonizing pause.

" I often wish you weren't quite as smart as you are, Sakura", the jounin told her quietly, one of his kind smiles crinkling the edges of his eyes.

Anko reached Sakura's chamber quickly. She extended her hand to turn the handle when she hears a well-known voice saying: " But did you figure out why I murder?"

Anko clapped a hand over her mouth to stop herself from screaming. That voice! That was- but no, it couldn't be! Not him… not Kakashi, of all people… he had just announced that he was the murderer!

Sakura nodded quietly. " Of course", she responded quietly. " There was only one explanation that made sense. It was f… for Anko-sensei".

The woman in question turned to the door in bewilderment. What had Sakura just said? Why would Kakashi-

" Someone is blackmailing you", the young medical ninja continued. " Someone has full control over her life. And you can't let her go".

" No", whispered Kakashi. " I can't let her go. She is… everything. Everything that is beautiful and kind and clever and good. She is like the sun to me. If she were gone, I… I couldn't live. Do you understand?!" he exclaimed suddenly. " You must understand! Without her life that was a tropical rainforest is a barren desert, the world loses all beauty and good because I can't see her and listen to her and maybe touch her, because the sight of her is food to me and the sound of her voice is my drink! I couldn't live, I couldn't appreciate anything beautiful knowing that she was gone and I hadn't saved her, the most beautiful of all! Do you understand? Can you possibly understand the agony of looking at her and loving her and knowing that in a split second she may be gone, like a delicate, gorgeous, radiant flower that must be nourished with blood?! I may be evil and dark and horrid because of the crimes I commit, but I will be evil and dark and horrid if it means she lives! I will do anything for her- anything! Even if it means giving up all my principles and everything good in my soul except my love for her!"

Here, Naruto, Sakura and Hinata realized, was the true face of Hatake Kakashi, which had hidden behind the façade of the mild-tempered teacher for so long. Bottled up passions had finally forced themselves out of hiding.

The three only wished that those feelings had stayed bottled up forever.

" Don't you understand?" uttered Kakashi, suddenly losing all forcefulness. He was trying desperately to justify himself to the three, trying to show them that he was not really a monster, just a man who loved very much and was inspired to commit horrific crimes to breathe life into the object of that desperate, ardent love.

" Don't you understand that I can't live without her?" he whispered, averting his eyes guiltily.

Suddenly, the door swung open and Mitarashi Anko stepped into the moonlit room, tears shining from her eyes.

A.N.: Hello everybody, I'm sorry it took so long for me to update! However, this is by far my longest chapter ever, so I hope it was worth the wait! My school play is over, so I'll have more free time to write now (until the next production, that is, but I'll warn you when it comes up). Thanks for reading, and please leave some of your wonderful reviews!