A/N: Thank you so Sapphire Rivulet

Because of some fervent protests, I decided not to give up on this story...

Thank you for reading... Even though this story embarrasses me extremely.

I have a new story up now^^, Please check it out.


Chapter 29

Sakura knew that she couldn't be Sasuke's wife. Why was he still keeping up his little façade? She shook her head, determined not to think about it. There were too many other important things going on at that moment.
"Of course not, Sasuke Kun," Kabuto called across the expanse to where Sasuke was cradling Sakura to his chest. "I was merely going to skip past her and kill Kakashi."
The sound of a snapping limb broke across the plain, and Sakura cowered into Sasuke's arms, knowing that Kabuto had just ripped off his arm so as to save himself from Amaterasu. Sakura could feel fear creep into her bones. Kabuto knew that she was pregnant! What if he said something? What if Sasuke were to find out? There was no telling how he would react. But there was no time to think about that now. She turned her head slightly to see Toshi walking towards Kakashi, killing intent glinting in his eyes.
"No!" she cried out, struggling against Sasuke's arms to go and help Kakashi, but Sasuke held on to her firmly, hugging her from behind and refusing to let her go.
"Sakura..." Sasuke buried his face in her soft, pink hair. "Always so compassionate..."
"Sasuke, please don't let him kill Kakashi Sensei," Sakura begged him, her knuckles tapping against Sasuke's hands. "Please, please, please, I... I don't know what I would do if... I ..."
To both Sakura and Sasuke's dismay, she started to cry. It wasn't just soundless sobs that were being emitted from her throat, either. This was an all-out wail, ripping from her chest and filling the air with noise.
Remember the strawberry look? Times it by about ten and that's how Sasuke was staring at her.
"You can stop crying, Sakura," Kakashi called out to the girl, and Sakura immediately began to wipe away her tears and stifle her sobs. Through her blurry vision, she was able to decipher three new, hazy blobs, and upon closer inspection she was able to recognise one of them. That was Gaara, and Sakura could feel relief well up inside her. The other two were very largely built, and one of them had the word 'Raikage' written on his cloak.
When Sakura stopped crying, the whole place became a lot quieter.
Sasuke chuckled and nuzzled her hair. "My little Sakura. Always so dramatic."
The Raikage spoke first. "Hokage, you sure were in a pickle. Battling against Sasuke and Kabuto?"
Kakashi didn't respond.
The Raikage spared the other two Kages a glance. "Nobody objects if I kill them, correct?" he asked, though everyone could tell he was only asking out of formality.
Sasuke sneered. "You can try."
At Sasuke's comment, the Raikage began to charge, fury seeping out of his body. "Raikage," Kakashi yelled. "I think we need to establish the fact that Sakura doesn't have anything to do with... Anything."
Suddenly, the smaller but equally as muscular guy yelled, "Bro! We've already got a hostage, is this whole thing necessary? Yo, let's bring 'er out, see what they've all gotta say!"
"Silence, Bee!" the Raikage bellowed. "That hostage is necessary. She'll ensure our victory."
Sakura has never heard anything so strange in her entire life. "Is that rap?" she wondered aloud, but shot a curious glance at Sasuke.
"Apparently it's Edo rap. I walked through one of his concerts when I was traveling. He sounds horrible," Sasuke whispered against her ear, before catching her lobe affectionately between his teeth.
Sakura wanted to glare at Sasuke for being inappropriate, but she couldn't turn her head, and she guessed that Sasuke could do pretty much whatever he wanted wherever he wanted.
Killerbee yelled, "You little brat don't appreciate fine rhyming! Now you've reached the end of your... err... Time-ing!"
Sakura wanted to tell Killerbee that his brother and the other two Kages didn't like his rhyming either, but she knew that only Sasuke would have the guts to say so and not fear the consequences.
But something clicked in Sakura's brain, igniting her curiosity. "What hostage?"
Kabuto laughed, the sound a disturbing hiss. "Toshi San, it seems that the honorable Kages have taken your precious wife as a hostage."
The Raikage snapped his fingers, and a figure was brought out by a fellow guarded ninja. It was Ruka. Her mouth was gagged and her hands were tied with thick rope, which the ninja was leading her by. When her eyes alighted upon her husband, hope flashed in their depths.
"Ruka!" Toshi's eyes flickered with true fear, and he immediately turned to the Kages. "My wife doesn't have anything to do with any of this. I beg you to release her."
"HELL N -"
"Trade me for her!" Sakura yelled, not giving anyone time to object.
Everybody looked at her, curiosity and surprise showing on their features.
"My dear little Sakura, what are you doing?" Sasuke asked her calmly.
"I'm already a hostage. I wish to trade myself for Ruka-San," she said quickly, hoping that Sasuke would understand her desperation.
Everyone else found her outburst to be quite ludicrous, as Sakura was possibly one of the least convincing hostages anyone had ever seen. "Sakura is the last of Tsunade Sama's legacy. She was her personal student and is an asset to leaf. We can't lose her," Kakashi told everyone.
The Raikage snorted. "I don't car -"
But he was interrupted a second time, because Ruka had collapsed.
While the guard quickly checked up on the women, Sasuke whispered into Sakura's ear, suspicion coating his voice, "What are you planning?"
"Ruka San saved my life when I was captured by Toshi and Kabuto," Sakura told him. "I cannot let her die."
Sasuke frowned. "You were captured? Why wasn't I informed of this?"
Sakura could foresee many of his subordinates getting their fingers snapped over the issue.
The guard checked on Ruka's body and reported to the Raikage, "She had a cyanide pill concealed in her mouth, Sir. She is dead."
Sakura wanted to cry.
Toshi, overcome with sadness and grief, let out a helpless wail and charged at the guarding ninja. The ninja flung a kunai towards Toshi, obviously expecting him to dodge it with ease. But he didn't know that Toshi wasn't a ninja. The kunai went right through Toshi's chest, and the old man collapsed on the ground, the warmth that once swam in his eyes and heart for his wife fading like a candle in the wind.
Kabuto cackled like a maddened sadist as he watched the destruction play out before him. "Sasuke, I guess that you are the leader for the Land of Waters now."
Sasuke made no sign to indicate that he had heard Kabuto. Instead, he turned towards Sakura and said, "Sakura, come with me. We are going back to Rivers."
Sakura shook her head. "No," she protested. "I need to stay in Konoha. The village needs me; the damage they caused was too -"
Kakashi collapsed before Sakura could finish her sentence.
Sakura gasped. "Kakashi Sensei! He has been poisoned, he -"
"I'll take him to the nearest medical camp," Gaara quickly offered, and used his sand to gently lift the Hokage up.
As Kabuto began to retreat, he hissed out, "Sakura Chan, it's almost three months now, isn't it? Your belly is starting to show. Oops! Dear me, did you not want Sasuke Kun to know that you're pregnant? Hahahahaha!"
Both Sasuke and Sakura went pale.
The Raikage and Killerbee charged to pursue Kabuto, leaving Sasuke and Sakura standing on the grass field, with the cold bodies of the other couple who was once so in love.