BLOOD-STAINED CHERRY BLOSSOM

Chapter Twenty-Five: The Sakura Retrieval Squad

Sakura stifled a yawn as she floated into consciousness. She didn't want to wake just yet.

Around her, she could feel the chilly spring winds rush past her limbs, but the body next to her kept her warm. Itachi's arms still encircled her, pulling her close to his torso as they lay together on the ground. She could hear his slow heartbeat and feel his chest rise and fall as he slept. Sakura beamed softly, strangely content. She was aware how much she let her guard down around him. It was dangerous. But yet, she felt so safe with the Uchiha.

Sakura adjusted her head on his chest as her smile faded. Itachi had proved multiple times that he was not going to hurt her, but she still couldn't help but distrust him. He still had plans. Secrets. He was locked in a match against his brother, and she was still his lowly pawn.

But despite this fact, she was finding it harder to convince herself that she might have a bigger role in Itachi's plans than he let on.

Itachi reflexively tightened his grip around her as Sakura moved. He was far too protective of her, too concerned. He actually cared for her. But what was the point? Why was he so attached to her?

Sakura sighed in discontent and tried to focus on sleep again. She probably would never know the answers to her thousands of questions centered on her Uchiha companion.

Before the young medic could settle back into a comfortable position, Itachi suddenly jerked awake. His torso jolted upward, forcefully colliding into Sakura's head.

The pinkette clutched the side of her face and scrambled into an upright position as Itachi stood. "Ow! The hell-"

"Quiet," Itachi commanded, his abyss eyes searching the early morning darkness around the hot springs. He crouched into a battle stance, his hand resting on the hilt of his sword.

Sakura scowled, but obeyed his order. She pulled out a knife, prepared to attack the enemies that Itachi sensed. But as her jade eyes scanned the forest, she could detect nothing.

Sakura scoffed and withdrew her blade. "You're paranoid, Uchiha," she muttered before lying back down on the ground and curling herself back into a sleeping position. "Next time, don't try to give me a nosebleed when you-"

Itachi held out a hand to silence her and withdrew his blade from its sheath. Faint echoes could be heard through the woodland. Sakura stopped breathing as she felt the weak sensation of chakra signatures heading towards them.

Sound shinobi, the pinkette thought to herself as she jumped upright and lowered into a battle position. Whoever these people were, they undoubtedly knew of their presence, and they were traveling fast.

As their unwelcomed guests neared their location, Sakura could hear them shouting. And it sent chills down her spine.

"SAKURA!"

Sakura's eyes widened and time seemed to slow down. She knew that voice. She knew the chakra signatures heading towards them. She knew who these people were.

"No way…" she exhaled, staring blankly in front of her. She must be dreaming. This was unreal. There was no way in hell that they could be here.

Suddenly, Itachi was in front of her. Sakura distractedly turned towards the Uchiha, but the look in his eyes made her focus her full attention on him. They seemed… darker than usual. And she didn't like the way he was looking at her.

His sword flashed as he raised it in her direction. Fear suddenly coursed through Sakura. Itachi was going to attack her. As confused as she was by his actions, she took a step backwards, her jade orbs never straying from the Uchiha murderer.

Itachi mirrored her movement and took a step towards her. "Sakura, stay calm," he ordered, his voice gentle, "I need you to trust me, okay?"

Sakura spared a glimpse at his raised sword. "What are you doing?" her voice trembled. Itachi was almost fully recovered now. He was strong. He could defeat her. He could kill her.

Their voices were calling out to her, closer than they were moments ago. Itachi grimaced, impatient. "Stay still and don't resist," he said before advancing towards her again.

Sakura stumbled backwards, trying to distance herself from the suddenly hostile Uchiha, but he was far faster. He caught her waist and pulled her towards him. Too flustered to use chakra, Sakura uselessly kicked and thrashed as Itachi restrained her.

Sakura felt him lift the blade behind her head. She closed her eyes and tensed her body, waiting for the decapitation.

But it never came.

Shaking, she opened her eyes as Itachi stepped away from her. In one hand was his sword, devoid of any blood staining its steel.

In his other hand was a bundle of pink hair.

Sakura lifted a hand behind her head to touch the locks that fell past her shoulders, but they were not there. As her finders inched upwards behind her, she could feel the choppiness of recently cut tresses at the base of her neck.

Before Sakura could question him, Itachi lifted the sword to his own head and cut his entire ponytail off. His unrestrained black hair tapered down his neck and ended at his shoulders as the sharp weapon sliced through.

The Uchiha took his severed strands of tresses and put it in the same hand with Sakura's hair. She watched in awe as the black threads mixed with the pink, weaving together.

Itachi sheathed his sword and raised his free hand into the Tiger seal. Several crows formed from black masses in the air and circled around the duo, awaiting orders from their master. Itachi turned to the confused pinkette as she avoided a crow flying past her.

"Infuse your chakra into here," he ordered urgently.

Sakura reluctantly nodded and placed her hand atop of Itachi's that held their hair, focusing her energy. Itachi did the same when she removed her hand. Sakura could see the threads glow a pale blue as the chakra bound to their hair.

The crows around Itachi perched on his shoulders and arms, each taking a few strands of hair between their beaks before flying off in different directions. Sakura gasped when he realized what he was doing. Since hair was an excellent chakra conductor, their chakra signatures would bind to it for several hours. Itachi was using their hair to set false chakra signatures around the area, confusing their pursuers.

Once the last crow took flight with a bundle of hair in its beak, Itachi grabbed Sakura's hand and began sprinting, dragging her along with him.

"Hurry, they are coming," Itachi stated, pulling the young pinkette forward.

Sakura ran with Itachi through the woodland, not questioning him where they were going. She heard her name being shouted behind them. As confused as she was, she knew one thing: her friends could not find her and Itachi together.

But as fast as they ran, their hunters remained on their tail.

"We can't outrun them!" Sakura shouted to her companion while jumping over a fallen tree.

Itachi grunted, not breaking his stride. "We can't fight them either."

Sakura nodded in agreement. That would not bode well for either group if they clashed. "What's the plan, then?"

"Hide."

Itachi raised his hands in front of him and created a Shadow Clone. Sakura followed his lead and performed her own hand signs as a replica of herself sprinted ahead with Itachi's clone.

They both took a hard left and slid down the slope of a hill and hid in a ditch. Sakura rested her head against the snowy bank and closed her eyes, holding a hand against her mouth to muffle the sound of her labored exhalations.

She heard fast footsteps crunching through the snow, nearing where they were hiding. Sakura felt Itachi's body tense next to her, preparing to battle if need be.

Please, please don't find us…

"Why is she running away from us?!" she heard a familiar boy shout.

"She is being forced to flee," and older man answered, his voice strained in irritation. "Don't worry, Naruto. We will catch up to them."

It seemed like hours before their voices finally faded into the distance. Sakura released a long sigh, but she was far from relieved.

They were here. They found her. If they arrived a week ago, she would have gladly gone with them, permanently ridding herself of the Uchiha she hated most. But now, she was avoiding them. Her friends. Her own family.

She was a traitor.

Sakura rested her sweaty head against her knees. This was too much to handle right now. Too confusing. She was betraying those she loved and cared about, confirming her criminal title. If they knew she was working with Itachi, they would surely disown her. Hate her. But she also couldn't turn her back on the man who saved her life, the Uchiha. He needed her and she needed him. They had a mission to complete, and she had to save Sasuke.

The pinkette felt a gentle hand rest on her back. "Sakura?" Itachi whispered softly to her, "Are you okay?"

Sakura remained in her curled position. "They will find us. They will never give up."

Itachi was silent for a moment. "No they won't," he tried to reassure her, but it was an obvious lie. Sakura knew that he realized she spoke the truth.

"Don't even try to lie to me," Sakura spat, raising her head to face Itachi, "This is my fault! It's only a matter of time-"

Sakura stopped herself as soon as she noticed the crimson covering his stomach, staining his clothes. Itachi seemed unfazed when her jade eyes widened in shock at his injury.

"I might have overexerted myself a bit," he casually replied.

"Damn you! Sit here!" Sakura yelled at him for the fifth time. Itachi sighed in irritancy, but obeyed her command and sat down by the base of a tall pine tree.

"You could stop shouting at me, you know," he muttered as Sakura knelt next to him and began rummaging for medical supplies in her backpack. "It's hardly my fault-"

The pinkette silenced him by swatting his arm. "Of course this is your fault!" she countered, "You are still weak! When is this going to stop?! You said that the effects of Mangekyo Sharingan should wear off in a couple days, but you continue to hurt yourself because your body can't heal properly! I can't deal with this anymore!"

Itachi easily detected the double meaning of her words. Yes, she was angry at him for being so careless, but she was also worried. Which was understandable. He was troubled as well. The aftereffects have lasted longer than usual. He was running out of time.

He was distracted from his thoughts as soon as Sakura began removing the clothing on his torso. She roughly stripped his jacket and began pulling his bloody sweater over his head.

"Be careful," Itachi hissed while trying to raise his arms so she could better take off his pullover. Manhandling him was not going to help their situation.

"If you are going to act reckless, then I am going to treat you recklessly," Sakura murmured under her breath.

Itachi scoffed at her illogical reasoning. "That's a strange rational for a medic."

"Shut up," she snapped, finally pulling the sweater from around his head.

Itachi shivered as a cold wind passed, but threw his clothing to the side. As he observed his injury, he noticed that the scar he received from the falling ceiling shrapnel when Sakura destroyed the hideout was now opened once again. Blood streamed slowly from his wound and down his abdomen. It probably occurred when they were sprinting through the forest. Itachi wanted to curse aloud, but kept his composure. This week-old injury shouldn't still be this sensitive.

"I healed that a week ago," Sakura stated, thinking the same thing he was.

"It's fine," he tried to calm her, "Just stop the bleeding. Please."

Itachi could see Sakura's mouth pull into a thin line, but she began dabbing his wound with her sweater sleeve. But once the blood was cleaned away, she hesitated.

Itachi turned to her to see why she stopped. Her face was lowered, still gazing at the bleeding injury, but her eyes were glassy. Sad, he realized.

"What if I can't heal your Sharingan when the time comes? Will you die because of me?" her voice shook, eyebrows arched in worry.

Her concern for him always baffled the Uchiha. What goodness did he ever do to deserve such compassion from the person that should hate him most?

"You never seemed like one to doubt yourself, Sakura," he commented. "Why now?"

The pinkette bit her lip, still avoiding eye contact. "Because if you die, I will never be able to forgive myself."

Without thinking, Itachi reached out and lifted Sakura's small chin so she was facing him. Her green eyes were watery, threatening to spill tears at any moment. Again, he was shocked at her concern. But despite how confused he was by her reaction to his death, he felt strangely comforted by the thought that she cared about him.

"I trust you, Sakura. I'm not going to die. I promise you," he vowed.

Sakura's expression softened at his assurance and a small smile graced her lips. Itachi found the corners of his mouth lifting slightly at her pleased appearance. Her smile was contagious.

But their grins quickly disappeared as they turned back to the forest. Footsteps were nearing their location once again.

Shit. Not again, Sakura mentally swore.

She pulled the Uchiha up from his sitting position, helping him stand while he used his other arm to clutch his bleeding stomach. Sakura instantly felt bad for wasting their time talking when she should have been healing him, but in her defense, she was not expecting her pursuers to locate them so quickly.

"How did they find us so fast?!" Sakura fretfully whispered to her companion.

"Your friends are no fools, Sakura," Itachi responded, "They probably saw through my plan."

Sakura grimaced. "This isn't good. We can't evade them."

"We can try."

They started running, but their shouts were getting closer. Sakura saw Itachi stumble, but he managed to catch his footing and continued forward. She knew that it was a pointless attempt to outrun them. Itachi was still hurt.

Sakura narrowed her eyes. It would be bad news if they found Itachi. She knew that they would undoubtedly fight each other, and Itachi was in no condition to battle. But she knew of a way to save him.

Sakura stopped running, causing Itachi to halt as well.

"Sakura, what are you doing?" Itachi called to her. "We have to keep moving."

The medic turned to him, her chin held high. "I will stay here and distract them. You have to escape. Go somewhere safe. I will catch up with you."

Itachi frowned and remained where he was. "I am not leaving you alone."

Sakura matched his expression. "Go! Now!"

"No."

They were getting closer. "Please! We can't be seen together or they will-"

"I don't care. Once they find you, they won't leave you alone. I have a plan," he stated.

Sakura was about to protest more, but three males emerged from the hill above them. One blonde. One with silver hair. One bald-headed monk. All with wide-eyed, enraged expressions.

"SAKURA!" Naruto shouted, bolting down the hill towards the duo, Kakashi and Kuma trailing in his wake.

Before Sakura could react, Itachi came up behind her, pinning her arms down with one hand. The other held a knife to her throat. The trio instantly stopped in their tracks.

"Let her go, you bastard!" Naruto snarled at the Uchiha.

Itachi ignored him. "Follow us again and she dies."

She could see her teammates scowl, but they remained still.

"What do you want with her?" Kakashi questioned, but Itachi disregarded him as well.

Sakura cast an annoyed sideways glance at the Uchiha. "This isn't going to work," she whispered to him. "You are only making them angry. Let me talk to them."

Itachi began walking backwards, pulling Sakura along while keeping his eyes on his opponents. "They are already angry. Besides, I rather not have us seen as allies. They would question your loyalty."

Sakura nodded. Although she could care less about her reputation, she thanked the heavens that they weren't fighting each other.

"You could at least make this hostage situation more convincing. They will see through your bluff."

"I think I have an excellent poker face."

"Whatever. Run on three?"

"Fine."

"Okay. One, two-"

Suddenly, the frozen ground beneath them cracked and exploded all around them. Itachi suddenly released his grip on her to stop an attack behind him. Sakura tried to turn around to help him, but she was pulled into someone else's arms and carried away from the battle.

"No! Let me go!" she shouted at the person carrying her, fighting against their hold.

"It's okay, Sakura. It's me," Naruto adjusted his grip to restrain her. "We are here to save you."

"I don't need to be saved-" she tried to object.

But the blonde wasn't listening to her. "Stay here! I'm going to assist Kakashi! Kuma! Protect Sakura!"

The monk nodded and stood in front of the pinkette as Naruto sprinted into the battlefield. Sakura saw Itachi parrying kunai attacks from her former sensei while her old teammate began forming Rasengan. Itachi stumbled backwards as a kunai grazed his arm, but he lifted his hands to form seals for a Fire ninjutsu.

Sakura grit her teeth. Damn it, she was trying to avoid this! But there was only one way she could think of to stop this fight. It involved defending neither group and attacking both.

Sakura took a deep breath and concentrated the chakra flow to her hands. Once she felt her fists shake with controlled power, she let out a cry and plunged them into the ground. Large fissures emerged and stretched all around her several meters, the earth shattering into pieces.

The force of her attack caused everyone to lose their footing, effectively halting their attacks. The only person left standing firmly on the ground was the pinkette.

"Okay everyone!" Sakura shouted, crossing her arms as the dust began to clear, "No one is going to make a move! Try anything and I will punt them into next year! That means you, Naruto!"

"What the hell are you doing, Sakura?!" the blonde yelled, trying to regain his balance.

"Zip it and listen!" she growled to her teammate. She also sent a vexed glare at Kakashi, who was eyeing Itachi as if he was going to attack again. Kuma was still stumbling around in front of her since he was closest to her and therefore took the full force of her attack. Now that Sakura thought about it, she found it strange that he was here. But that was beside the point.

"Now I know that this looks bad, but you guys have this all wrong," Sakura continued, "Itachi is not our enemy here."

She could see the Uchiha grimace from the corner of her vision. "Sakura, no-"

She held up a hand to silence him. "Please, Itachi. They need to know the truth. This fighting has to end."

Sakura walked over to her Uchiha ally and stood by his side, facing her three friends. "I am helping Itachi, and he is helping me. We have an agreement."

Naruto's jaw went slack while Kakashi glared at them skeptically. Kuma looked like he was experiencing motion sickness as he fell down again.

"Sakura, you do realize that you are being conned," Kakashi stated, still gripping a kunai knife in his fist. "This man cannot be trusted."

The young medic clenched her teeth at his tone. "You don't understand."

"Then you better start explaining," her sensei demanded. "Give us one good reason why we don't kill him right now and take you back home where you will be safe."

Sakura's fists clenched reflexively. "Because I am not the same person I was before!" she shouted angrily, "I can't go back home because Konoha doesn't accept criminals like me!"

"We don't care!" he bantered back, "The world may view you as a criminal, but we know you are innocent! Have you forgotten? We promised to protect you from the Akatsuki!"

Emotion was starting to get the better of Sakura. She was stressed beyond belief. Everything that she didn't want to happen was happening, and she didn't know how to fix it. Sakura felt like she was going to cry, but tried her best to remain scowling. "Just… just leave! I don't need your help!"

This time, Naruto spoke. "We are not leaving you here with him," he stated, sending a pointed glare at Itachi.

Sakura turned to the Uchiha. He was clutching his wound on his torso, but his expression showed no trace that he was in pain. However, his eyes were cast downwards, as if he was sad.

"You are going to have to, Naruto," Sakura addressed her friends while still facing Itachi. "I am not going anywhere without him."

Sakura was sure her teammates were stunned, but she refused to face them. Itachi lifted his head in her direction, his abyss eyes locked onto her jade. She gave him a small encouraging smile, but he did not return it. In fact, his frown unexpectedly deepened.

Without warning, he hobbled in front of her, confronting the Leaf shinobi. They lowered their stances, ready to attack the Uchiha traitor.

"Take her," he said.

Sakura's smile instantly disappeared. At first, she couldn't comprehend what he was trying to say. Everything they worked for, everything they endured together, and he was going to let her leave now? Free her now when they were so close to Sound? When they were so close to completing their mission?

"What are you doing?" Sakura asked her companion, her voice breaking as she spoke.

Itachi marginally turned his head behind him to acknowledge her. "Righting what I did wrong," he responded, his voice hushed so only she could hear. "Giving you back your freedom. I can do this without you. I can't watch you betray your friends for my sake."

"No! You can't do this!" Sakura protested, her voice rising.

This time, Itachi turned to her and smiled. His strange, slightly-crooked half-smile. The smile of an Uchiha. "Goodbye, Sakura."

And then, he vanished.

"Sakura! Slow down!" Kakashi called from behind her, but she ignored him and kept sprinting forward.

The sun was setting and they were losing light fast. But she was not giving up. She was going to find him.

She couldn't pinpoint his chakra since he used his crows to scatter their chakra-infused hair, but if it took all night to track him and possibly be attacked by Sound shinobi, then so be it. He couldn't have gotten far on his own, not in his injured condition. He was somewhere in this forest, she was certain.

Kakashi appeared at her side. "We already lost Kuma and Naruto back there, thanks to you. I instructed them to find a safe place to rest and wait until we get there," his tone was a bit edgy, but Sakura could care less if he was mad at her.

"This hunt has gone on long enough," he continued once she refused to respond. "We will be ambushed soon, I guarantee it."

Sakura remained silent. No way in hell was she leaving without Itachi.

"You can't ignore me forever, Sakura," Kakashi stated, "I will take you home kicking and screaming if I have to. Tell me why you are searching for the Akatsuki member that ruined your life."

She didn't want to explain anything about the Uchiha and their mission. If Kakashi knew he was damaged by the Mangekyo Sharingan, he will surely use it against him. In her sensei's eyes, Itachi was still a threat to Konoha and herself.

The pinkette bit her lip, enraged as her thoughts switched back to the Uchiha. How dare he just leave her. He had no right to take off like that. They had a mission to complete. They had a deal. Now he was going off to fight his brother in his weakened state. He would not survive. Hell, he won't even survive tonight, roaming around enemy territory injured and alone. He may be an Uchiha prodigy, but he was still human.

"Sakura, are you listening to me?" Kakashi interrupted her.

"I know you don't want to do this, so go back home. I can do this on my own," Sakura hissed at him. "I don't expect you to understand."

Kakashi was silent for a few moments, but he remained at her side. "I would if you give me a chance to," he sighed, his tone softer.

Sakura's scowl waned slightly. She wasn't being completely fair to him. The Uchiha he knew and the Uchiha she knew were two completely different people. She could at least try to convince him that Itachi was not the evil, murderous traitor of Konoha.

"Itachi, he… saved my life," she responded slowly, not willing to give him too much information.

"What is that supposed to mean, exactly?" he asked. She could tell that Kakashi was still wary about trusting Itachi.

"It means that he is not going to hurt me. Or you. Or Naruto."

"Sakura, he is with Akatsuki. Their entire existence is about capturing Jinchuuriki. Isn't that why they caught you? Because of your relation with Naruto? Now I don't know your history with Itachi since you were taken, but I do know that he is an ambitious man with a strategy. I don't want to see you get hurt - or worse, killed – because of him."

Sakura's jaw clenched. A month ago, she already thought about all of that. But a lot has changed since then. She knew who Itachi was. He was her teammate, just as much as Kakashi and Naruto were to her. And although he never said it aloud, but Sakura was fairly certain that he cared about her as well. Everything they endured together, the obstacles they overcame, it was not for nothing. They may have made an agreement to go on this mission together, but clearly there were emotional ties being formed in the process.

"I know that this is hard for you to accept," she spoke, her voice firm, "It's hard for me too. I hated him for the longest time and I still have every reason to. But when he captured me, he protected me. He saved my life. He cares about me, and I care about him. Now it's my turn to return the favor. We are friends. And I will not abandon him, for those who abandon their friends are scum. That is what you taught me, Kakashi-sensei."

Again, Kakashi was silent for a long time. Sakura tried to get a glimpse at his face, but his expression was unreadable underneath his mask. What was he thinking?

Finally, he spoke, his visible eye flashing in the last rays of the setting sun. "I taught you well, Sakura."

Her sensei faced her, and she could tell he was smiling under his mask. She returned a grin, her previous anger and frustration dissolved. "Thanks, sensei. It's good to have you back again."

A/N: Hey everyone!

Hope you readers have been enjoying your summer so far! I know I have. I wanted to get this chapter out before school started again and I become bogged down with soccer and schoolwork. So, ta da! A fast, action-packed chappie with a smidgen of fluff. Hopefully it is to your satisfaction.

Don't hold your breath for the next update, though. I still have to plan the chapter out, and I'm going to be busy. We are approaching Part Three of BSCB pretty soon, and I'm super excited to finish Part Two because it is going to be epic, ha ha.

By the way, I'm not sure if my PM is working, so if you guys are sending me messages, I don't know if I am receiving them. I sent out a few messages to my reviewers but I have not received any responses. So I apologize if you were waiting if you did respond. But I think I'm just being paranoid…

Please review! It really makes me happy to connect with my readers!