Yeah, I didn't post it as soon as I thought I would, but it seems you can't predict something that'll happen (such as delays)

Chapter 25: Reversing the Clock

Sakura POV

The shock wore off after a few seconds. Once it did, tears washed down my face. My heart felt like it was being stabbed, over and over. I couldn't escape! "Sauske…!" I cried into my hands. It was too late for me to heal him. There was nothing I could do!

"Sakura, I'm sorry… It had to be done," Naruto's eyes were filled with tears too.

"I know… I just wish… I'm sorry…" I broke into sobs.

"Why are you apologizing?"

"You have to carry around the weight that you killed him."

"Someone has to have it. Besides, all shinobi have to kill someone at some point. I'm just sorry my kill was Sasuke."

Silence hung in the air for a long time.

"I'm going into town; probably stay there for the night." Naruto was glum.

"Can I stay here for a minute?"

"Yeah…" Naruto left me alone with Sasuke… er, his corpse.

I sat in silence, watching Sasuke's unmoving body. I let the tears fall freely. There was no use in hiding them. A part of me wished Sasuke would open his eyes, and he'd tell me to shut up; that I was annoying. "Please, Sasuke…"

Sakura… Sakura… An eerie voice seemed to call my name. It said my name in a long, drawn out syllable. Sakura…... It sent shivers down my spine.

"Who's there?" I yelped. Sakura… come this way….

The voice came from the direction of the waterfall. But, no one was there? Trust me… just find me…. I made my way to the waterfall.

"Who are you…? I stuttered.

A flash of light shot at me. The light was so bright I had to shut my eyes as tight as I could and place my hands over them. Even then, I could see the luminosity.

The light dimmed. I opened my eyes cautiously. There was a pool of water surrounding my feet. A loud crashing sound came from behind me. I spun around to see a blanket of water. Was I inside the waterfall?

Child….come to me… Follow the sound of the harp… I strained my ears. I couldn't hear anything over the waterfall sound.

I walked further from the crashing water and managed to hear a slight melody. I followed the sound, and eventually I could hear its tune completely. The serenade was sad, yet sweet.

I sloshed through the puddles. When the harp's song was at its loudest, I could tell it was coming from behind a huge stone.

Sakura… you have found my chamber… To wake me from my slumber… you must complete a task….. The voice was scratchy, but oddly beautiful.

"What must I do?" I called.

You must locate my scepter….Once you find it, bring it to me… Only then will I grant you what you seek…

I wasn't sure what the mysterious voice meant by that, but apparently I sought something. Well, I wanted Sasuke to return to me.

"How can I find your scepter?"

You will find it on the Cliff of Life… You shall see a sky so glorious… you will want to leap into it…

"And I can find your scepter there?"

No…

"But you said –"

I know what I said…. Sakura, my child…. Learn to take a leap of faith…

"What do you mean?"

There was no reply.

"Please, tell me what must do!"

Again, nothing…

"Please, oh, voice!"

Not a sound emitted from the walls.

In the distance, I could hear the epiphany. Must I follow it again? Since it seemed the voice was ignoring me, I decided to take the risk. After all, the voice told me to take a leap of faith.

X~*&*~X

Before me was a grand sky. The only word to describe the magnificence would be celestial. Clouds were rising from one another in a never ending spiral. The colors were a painted rainbow. The colors bled together, in a perfect harmony.

I found the Cliff of Life. I could hear a chorus of angels singing. I wanted to stay here forever. NO! Inner Sakura screamed, you have to find the scepter! She was right. The scepter was my priority. But… where was it?

I looked down. At my feet were a pile of stones. Most were a soft grey, but one was a pure white. I picked it up and looked at it.

Inscribed in golden letters, a message was written.

Throw me into the Plain before you.
Only then, will a message befall you.

I hesitated. It was so beautiful; I couldn't let it fall into a pit. Then again, I had no idea if what I saw was a pit. After all, the rock called it a Plain. I had to do as it said; otherwise, I could never find the scepter. I held it to my lips before tossing the stone into the clouds.

A beautiful harmony rang out. A shower of sparkles hailed down upon me. It absorbed me into a golden world.

Images flashed by.

A woman with flowing silver hair dressed in a fair blue danced freely. More women surrounded her. They all looked different, yet similar. They all appeared regal, but bore different colors. Each held a staff.

Suddenly, a dark smoke sucked in the silver haired maiden. She cried out, but no one could help her, for they were frozen. The lady was spit back out with everything in tact – except her rod.

After the smoke and the lady's wand had vanished, they all mourned the loss of such an important relic.

As soon as night fell, the cerulean clad woman dispersed into nothingness.

The sparkles lifted back into the sky. I stood there in a daze. "What was that…?"

I wasn't surprised to hear no answer. I looked down at my feet. A new white stone lay next to my toes. I picked it up and read it.

A woman lost all her dear,
But please do not shed a tear.
Do as she says, and do not fear.

I looked over it. I wondered what it meant. What woman? The woman in the sparkles? I thought back. The voice was a woman's! She lost her scepter! The image… could it have been her?

What did she tell me to do? She commanded me to get the scepter…

You will want to leap into it…..Take a leap of faith….The woman's scratchy voice replayed in my head. Had she meant for me to jump into the sky?

Yes, she did.

I shut my eyes and… took a leap of faith.

Softness embraced me. I opened my eyes to see I had landed inside the clouds. They were fluffy. The cloud didn't feel like condensed water. Maybe they weren't. In this place, anything was possible.

The clouds started rotating, spinning upwards. I was being elevated. It was as if these clouds were a moving staircase! The spiral fumes pulled me up until we reached a piece of land. It was jutting out from what seemed to be paradise.

I stepped of the cloud and examined my surroundings. The grass smelled sweet, the air was cool. Everything was perfect.

"Where am I…?" I breathed. A stone whiter than the two previous to it fell from the sky. I held out my palm, and the stone landed in the center of it.

Welcome to the Cliff of Life

I stared at the message for a brief second. I recalled the voice's words. You will find it on the Cliff of Life… You shall see a sky so glorious… you will want to leap into it… She hadn't been talking about the Cliff of Life when she said 'You shall see a sky so glorious…' She had meant the place where I found the clouds. That's why she said no when I asked if that's where the scepter was! Everything made since to me!

I looked into the open field set before me. It was time to find the scepter.

X~*&*~X

I followed my instincts. If I were a scepter, where would I hide? In my way was a crossroads. They headed in two opposite directions. I wouldn't have time to follow both, so I needed to choose wisely.

One road was paved with golden bricks; the other was a simple dirt road. The golden road was lined with flowers of beautiful sorts. The dirt one had nothing but ugly bushes or twigs.

If the scepter were hidden, whoever hid it wouldn't want anyone to find it; therefore, they'd hide it where no one would think it would be! One would assume that if the scepter were so important, it must be along the gorgeous road.

In this case, however, I knew that could not be the answer. It must've been hidden – that's why it was up here. So, the road no one would take would be the dirty road.

Unless… they wanted me to think that, so they put it on the golden road. Then again, it wasn't a guarantee that I would think that. My instincts were confused.

Maybe I should snoop a little. I got down on my knees and started searching. I pushed back a random bush, and quick spark of silver flickered before my eyes. Aroused, I pushed aside more bushes. A small pathway was clearly visible now. The path was made of silver powder and lined with flowers of a very pale blue.

I found my way! I crawled on the path, a few bushes catching my dress. I finally made it to the end, where a magnificent marble fountain with the clearest water I've ever seen, stood. I stared at the pouring waters.

I stepped forward, slowly at first. A large rod sprung forth from the depths of the fountain's pool. The handle was pure silver; the orb at the top was a beautiful aquamarine.

The scepter… It was so beautiful… so wonderful… I held it in my arms. It was heavy, but I carried it out through the path. I crossed through to the clouds, and back to the stone.

"VOICE! I have your scepter!" I called.

Thank you… I was glad to hear her again. You may enter now….

The stone split in half and parted. I entered into a lavish room. A large bed with a huge velvet canopy overhead lay in the center of the room. Lying in the bed was a maiden with silver tresses. She was…!

Yes… this is the girl from the image…. She happens to be me. Long ago, my scepter was stolen, and I fell in this state…. I could not retrieve it… until now.

"Tell me more!"

I am the Keeper of Time… I have lived in this waterfall for the past two hundred years… The time flow is edgy… and the man who stole my scepter gained immortality.

"Who is this man?"

I do not remember his name… but his eyes were red and his hair a mountain of black spikes…

"Was his name Madara?"

I cannot be sure… but I know his name was Uchiha….

I gasped. "He…!"

Yes… I know what he has done to the world… His plots are vile… He cannot roam the earth anymore…

"Will the scepter revive you?"

Yes, my dear… and I will grant you a wish as long as it is in my hands to perform…If your wish is not out of my control, I will grant you anything…

I ignored the paradox in her words and headed to her bedside. I placed the scepter across her chest, and her eyes popped open. They were a crystal blue, like the orb.

It was only then that I realized the whole room was decorated with the same shade of blue I keep seeing. "Miss… Can I ask why everything is blue?"

"Aw…" The Keeper of Time sighed, "Hold on a moment, dear. Let me enjoy this moment." She rose. "This feels so good! To move again…!" She looked at me with wide eyes. "Now, what was your question?"

"Why is everything the same shade of blue?"

"Lighter shades of blue are the color of time, my dear…" Her voice was gentle. If I hadn't heard her sing-song voice for myself, I would've never believed a voice could be so kind and beautiful.

"Are there more like you…? I mean –"

"No; I'm the only Keeper of Time; but, there are other Keepers - the Keepers of Water, Fire, Forest, Light, Shadow, Earth, Lightning, and Life and Death. The Keeper of Life and Death is our leader. He is quite… eccentric."

"Are you all women except for him?"

"No, no, no. Technically, we have no gender. We are spirits, if you may. We can choose what we appear to be."

"In the vision, you were all women." I wasn't sure if it was a statement or a question.

"In a way; we are not all 'women' but in the vision, you only saw those who take female shape."

"I think I understand."

"You're a clever girl; that's why I like you so much." I still couldn't get over how sweet her voice was. "Oh, I almost forgot! You get one wish."

"Can you bring Sasuke back…?" It was the first thing that raced through my mind.

"I cannot. Though, I can revise your request. I can turn back time to before he died."

I liked the sounds of that. "Alright," I nodded.

"There is one thing I should tell you, though."

"Yes, ma'am," I was afraid of what she'd say next.

"Even though I will not lose my scepter again, and we both will remember all of these happenings, you cannot come back to me."

"Why is that?"

"It's too dangerous to mess with time too much. We could affect time-space continuum. Even going back once can cause a ripple."

I nodded. "I understand fully."

"Good; now, goodbye Sakura, my dear…"

X~*&*~X

I felt dizzy. I rubbed my head. Before my eyes was Sasuke – alive!

"Something… irrelevant to this fight," Sasuke said. Oh no! I knew what would happen next.

"Watch out!" I yelled at the top of my lungs.

Sasuke looked up and spun out of the way. Naruto managed to hit him, but Sasuke's injuries were not fatal. I smiled – I saved Sasuke!

Sasuke looked up at me. "Sakura… thank you…" He fainted after that.