Meanwhile, team ten plus Naruto and Kurenai reviewed the memory of the fight against the demon brothers. This time, they were to pay attention to everyone's feet.
In the memory, Naruto's feet were fine, but his legs were shaking as he watched, petrified, as one of the two ninja – the one who'd cut through Kakashi like a knife through butter – sprang at Sakura.
She'd seen him come, but Sakura remained planted in front of Tazuna. Her feet were pointed away, as though she was about to run, though at the same time they seemed rooted to the spot. Judging by that, Sakura was just as petrified as Naruto. It was then that Sasuke jumped into the fray. Keeping track of his feet wasn't particularly difficult, as they had a penchant to land on the attacker's face. It was thanks to this that the assailant was taken care of expertly, Sasuke looking almost bored with the situation.
"Have you seen that?" asked Asuma.
"What?" stuttered Ino. Choji and Naruto both shook their heads in confusion.
"You haven't?" Asuma sighed. "Look more closely at Sakura. Kurenai, could you…?"
Kurenai nodded. "I'll replay that part. Pay attention."
Once again, Sakura's wide-eyed face came into view as she stared at the enclosing attacker. Her feet were in a weird stance – two sides of her brain warring between fleeing and protecting. It was then that Sasuke intervened – and Sakura took a startled step back. Her right foot, this Ino hadn't even noticed before, stumbled over a jutting rock, slipped, and then – caved. Ino could almost hear the crunching of bones, saw Sakura's pained grimace.
"That's a terrible sprain!" she shouted, stupefied.
Naruto, too, had seen it this time. As well as Choji. "Can't believe you caught that the first time, Shikamaru," Choji said.
"That's not even the point!" Ino shouted.
Naruto was oddly quiet.
"See now? This is why it's dangerous to fight in foreign ground," Asuma interrupted gravely. "Statistically speaking, a bad sprain can happen to anyone. It wouldn't be the first time that a careless slip like that is the death of a talented ninja."
"He's right, you know," muttered Kurenai. "An injury to the feet is bad news."
Not to forget that Sakura wasn't the only one injured. Memory-Naruto was just then slicing through his hand to get rid of the poison in it.
"Why didn't Sakura-chan say anything?" asked the real Naruto. "We would've turned back!"
"Idiot," muttered Shikamaru. "You've got to have a feel for your teammates. Look at that."
Just then, Illusion-Naruto shouted: "I'll never go back on my word! Do you hear me? That's my ninja way!" By this point, there was a giant gash all across his hand. If I ever chicken out again, this wound, this pain, will remind me: never, ever will I stop! I'll keep my promises, and only then will I be worthy of becoming Hokage! BELIEVE IT!
"Right…" muttered Illusion-Kakashi tartly. "In light of your valiant display, I suppose we should continue. If you're all amenable?"
Sasuke gave a curt nod, Tazuna grinned. Sakura still looked stumped.
Or perhaps terrified at the thought of speaking up?
"You see?" grouched Shikamaru.
Naruto still looked confused.
"Ugh, Naruto, you moron!" Ino muttered. "Since Forehead is an insecure idiot, obviously she'd be embarrassed enough to keep quiet about her sprain after your – and I quote: valiant display!"
Now Naruto looked horrified. "But how was I supposed to know! If I had, I'd have a agreed to turn back!"
"But you see, Naruto…" Asuma chastised. "A large part of the success of a mission depends on your ability to observe your surroundings and henceforth draw conclusions." He frowned. "Do you understand what I meant now? Earlier, Sakura was crying. It could've been out of relief that Kakashi turned out to be alive… but what if it was the pain on her foot that made her cry?
Naruto, for one, looked very serious. "I never realized… I guess observing's important after all, Cigar-Cigar-Sensei!"
Asuma smirked. "Glad you changed your mind. Let's adjourn our meeting for today; it's getting late."
"Right," said Ino shakily. "Watching this is emotionally draining!"
"Not only that," Kurenai chuckled. "It's draining out your chakra. So, technically, you guys are improving your resistance."
"WHAAAAT?!"
It was on a light note that they all parted ways.
TWISTED
Sakura was mad. She'd spent all of three hours searching for food – yet nothing. Why was this so damn difficult?
What is wrong with his forest! Inner grouched. Why aren't there any normal squirrels or something that I can just chug a stone at? She was , she was tired, she wanted to damn well eat!
Suddenly, Sakura stopped dead in her tracks.
"Huh… another suspicious looking mushroom…" she muttered to herself. "Should I eat it?"
Her hunger won over, so she hastily cut it off and stuffed it in her bag. It would join the other dubious-looking mushrooms, berries, leaves and even tree roots she'd managed to dig up.
Sighing, Sakura wiped the sweat off her brow. "Thank Kaguya for small favors!" At least she'd been able to remember bits and pieces about an expert on herbology. What a lifesaver that was!
"What are you talking about?" Inner replied airily. "Thank ourselves! Kaguya doesn't even exist. And I bet not even she has that kind of eidetic memory!"
"Right…" Sakura sighed. "Great. And now I'm talking to myself again." She'd never have fathomed that she'd miss the presence of another human to this degree. "There's nothing poetic about solitude, like all the books say." She plucked another mushroom. "It's unsettling!"
But then, out of nowhere, she realized that her weapons pouch had disappeared.
Nooo! My dubious mushrooms! They're gone!
Sakura hastily turned around, and that's when she saw them: monkeys.
"Hey! Give that back!"
"Those damn thieving bastards stole our food!"
Sakura smashed a stone at them. Naturally, the monkeys scattered before it could hit either of their brown heads. But by that point, Sakura had already leapt in their direction.
"HA! I've got you now!"
Only she hadn't. She'd never had thought a bunch of stray monkeys could outmaneuver a certified ninja, yet apparently, Sakura had given them too little credit. The monkeys flailed and jumped through the trees, nimbler even than Kakashi-sensei himself.
Sakura, by contrast, strenuously pranced after them, the clanking of her heavy armor resounding across the forest. It was then that she realized that she stood no chance against them in this shape. It was then that she realized that, unless she learned how to move around in that heavy piece of lead armor – and fast – she'd be fried. Coming to a halt, she gave up.
Downtrodden and tired, Sakura mourned the loss of her weapons pouch. Her weapons themselves were thankfully still with her, but she'd basically managed to lose all of her food, all of her savings, and all of her remaining dignity.
In another time, another reality, Sakura might've sat down and cried, but this time she only sat down, period. Crying over this? After everything she'd been through? Zabuza would be insulted if she did!
So Sakura bravely held in her tears and concentrated on regulating her breathing. She was panting, whether from exhaustion or hysteria was a mystery.
After a long while of just sitting there, something made her look up. It was a squirrel. The squirrel, sneaky beast that it was, picked up a stray mushroom that had apparently fallen off Sakura's weapons pouch during the chase. Sakura felt too drained to fight for a lone mushroom, so she let the squirrel eat in peace.
And thank heavens she did! A while later, the squirrel began behaving strangely. Shortly after it was dead.
"That could've been me…" The thought made Sakura want to retch as bad as the squirrel had. She'd been lucky after all. If those monkeys hadn't stolen her stuff, Sakura would probably be retching to death now.
Still, Sakura's stomach grumbled.
TWISTED
Team ten and Naruto were preoccupied watching the memories of the Wave mission. The very next morning, they met earlier than usual to do just that.
Things seemed fine after the demon brothers – but they weren't. Zabuza happened, to team ten's collective horror. All of them looked on as Sakura tripped over herself (her sprained foot) in an attempt to flee. They also all looked on as Zabuza caught up with her.
After that, it all became a blur of adrenaline and panic:
Kakashi, looking frazzled but ready for anything.
Zabuza, a threatening shadow.
("It's either the girl or the mission, Copy Nin. I'm not trying to be your enemy. Hand over the bridge-builder and I'll let you walk away peacefully.)
Sakura's pleading eyes.
Tazuna's brave cause. His struggle for his village, for his country. For those precious to him.
("Sakura! Hang in there!"
"Such a gentleman you are, Sharingan no Kakashi. But that won't cut it. The girl is dead!")
Their teacher's loyalty.
("Kakashi-sensei!")
("Sensei!")
Their only and last line of defense, Kakashi Hatake, caught helpless in a water prison.
Meanwhile there was Sakura, pale and unconscious on the hard ground.
Naruto's trembling hands, but the memory of his scar:
("It's up to us, Sasuke!")
Kakashi, shouting at them.
("Stand back, Naruto, Sasuke! Take Sakura and run!"
"You heard your teacher, boys. Leave. I'll spare you.")
But not Kakashi. Not Tazuna. Not the Wave Country.
TWISTED
"What would you have done?" Asuma looked at his own team inquisitively.
The three swallowed.
No answer was given.
In the heavy silence, Asuma sighed, turning away. He'd proven his point.
"Naruto, you and Sasuke disobeyed your commanding officer and stayed to fight. In this case, it all went well in the end, but not everything ends like a fairytale." Asuma looked pained as he said it, but everyone understood why he did anyway.
They kept watching.
TWISTED
Sakura's haunted face. The deep eye-bags. Her shallow skin. The wide jade eyes, bloodshot.
"Zabuza is alive." A whisper in the darkness.
The surreal moment in which they all realized that the nightmare hadn't ended.
TWISTED
"Was that really Sakura?" Ino croaked once they were outside of the illusion. "She looked terrible!"
"Hey! Leave Sakura-chan alone!" Naruto shouted, though it was weak.
Even Asuma was caught of guard. "Missions can take a strong psychological toll on anyone, as exemplified by Naruto's teammate. An otherwise intelligent individual might start making unfounded, paranoid claims, which only create instability. High risk situations are dangerous to the mind as well, you know."
"But that's the thing!" Naruto shouted. "Sakura-chan was right! Zabuza came back!"
TWISTED
Meanwhile, the real Sakura in question was ambling through the forest of death in a hunger-plagued trance.
She hadn't eaten anything substancial for days. It was almost noon already, and Sakura had managed to wander into an area of tall grass, where nothing edible grew. No dubious mushrooms for her.
To make matters worse, Sakura's armor clung to her skin uncomfortably. Her feet seemed to cling to the ground. Sweat clung to her forehead. It was all so horrible that Sakura almost didn't blink when a snake leapt out of the underbrush. In comparison to Orochimaru's pet, it looked really cute.
It was also trying to bite her ankle. Belatedly getting alarmed, Sakura realized that she'd probably stepped on its den or something. Thankfully, her reflexes held true, and she managed to avoid the viper's assault by a mere inch.
But then Sakura realized something else: snake meant food!
Twenty minutes later found Sakura Haruno, pretty girl extraordinaire, stewing a dead snake on a stick. It was the grossest thing she'd ever tasted. But it was food.
A/N
Soooo… how was it?
So many people have been telling me they like this story! It makes me incredibly happy :D I honestly can't even explain. Anyways, some of you wondered what Sakura's armor might look like… well, the answer's shabby and like nothing special. Though if you'd like a more romantic impression, feel welcome to picture it like this:
http/orig15./c960/f/2013/162/9/9/samurai_girl_in_armor_sumie_style_by_mycks-d68mwbb.jpg
About updating, I truly doubt I'll be able to until the month is over because that's when I'll finish my exams…
So… I'll see you then!