I promised to give this to you guys. If you're reading this, well, I love you. I understand that being away for so long doesn't guarantee that I'll keep the same reviewers I had in the beginning, but thank you to everyone who has been reading this story from the very beginning.

Chocolate Roses

Chapter 34

"I choose…I choose to…" I paused again, contemplating my next action. Orochimaru's yellow eyes bore into mine, cold and calculating, watching my every pause; my every breath and momentary lapse of judgment. Looking down at the blade that was dangerously placed against my throat, I knew that it was futile to try to attack the man. Somehow, I would have to find a way for him to back down or release or loosen his hold on the blade.

"Ten seconds." Orochimaru's lips curled into an ugly, sly smile as the time ticked away. With a heavy sigh, I lowered my head, closed my eyes and said,

"Kill me." I was pushing my luck. With my words, Orochimaru could've taken my head clean off with one swift motion, or he could back away and speak, giving me just enough time to start my genjutsu. Orochimaru smiled widely and took half a step back.

"Interesting," he began. "Surely I thought you would choose to become my slave."

"I'd rather die." I said softly. "But…" I looked up at Orochimaru with pleading eyes. "But you can't hurt my child or Sasuke. You have to leave my family out of this."

"I'm a man of word. You death will be more than enough, so much that Sasuke will come for me by himself." Orochimaru threw his head back with laughter. "He'll want to avenge you, he'll come after me and in the end, and I'll get what I want." With that, Orochimaru pulled his blade away from my throat and waved it in the air. I then realized that it would be futile to try to take the blade away from him. He wouldn't let go for a second. Just as I thought, I would have to use my strongest genjutsu against him, just to save myself for a little while longer.

"Tell me Sakura Haruno," he pointed the blade at my throat. "Do you want a quick death, or a slow one?" he then pointed the blade at my chest. I shook my head.

"I don't care," I lied, hoping deep down inside that he would try to make me suffer so that my genjutsu would work. Orochimaru then knelt beside me and placed his face dangerously close to mine, his breath hot and disgusting and smelling of blood. I squeezed my eyes shut as I felt his long snake-like tongue work its way across my cheek and down my neck. I shivered, resisting the urge to grab his tongue and pull it directly from his mouth. But I sat, back against the wall, and let him. He was beyond disgusting, so much that I could not even bear to fathom how someone could be so downright…evil. Juggling my life and the lives of so many others in his hands for fun, not even thinking of the consequences, of the families; the parents missing their son or daughter, a wife, her husband, a husband, his wife. A child his mother or father, or both. It was all so wrong, so wrong on so many levels that I felt my hands shake, my chakra rising and bubbling with anger. He was so close. I could just kill him right then and there.

"Mmm," Orochimaru whispered, his tongue flicking the base of my ear. "How I wish your lover could see you in this state. Vulnerable, weak, completely under my control. Sasuke would like to believe that you are his, and only his. He thinks that no other man can touch you." With this, he snaked his hand under my shirt. I tensed. "Relax," he hissed. "Tell me something Sakura Haruno, tell me how it feels knowing you're about to die." He chuckled against my skin and suddenly, his hands were under my shirt again, dangerously sliding upwards, agonizingly slow, testing me. "Aren't you afraid?"

"Yes," I whispered, my eyes still closed tightly. As his hands found the clasp of my bra, I tensed again, leaning backwards and using my right hand to lightly push Orochimaru. "Don't touch me." I said. Orochimaru didn't listen; instead he grabbed the wrist of the hand I used to push him with, and bent it behind me back. I groaned in pain; he was going to break my other arm.

"You like this," he whispered. "Me being in control, you like this."

"You're delusional." I spat, compromising my cover.

"Does he satisfy you?" he asked.

"He's the only one," I said. Orochimaru pinned me down then, my right arm still behind my back, my lower body useless because of his straddling me. "He's the only one," I repeated a little louder. I turned my head to the side, averting his gaze. "Get off of me." I threatened. "Get off."

"Ahh, perfect." Orochimaru laughed heartily. "A struggle. It's always better when they struggle." I was rendered completely useless. His body was heavy, completely weighing mine down. My only good arm was pinned behind my back, the other rendered useless as it proved to be broken as well. And my chakra, what little I had left, had to be saved for my genjutsu. But it would all be pointless if he didn't follow through with his plan. One blow through the chest was all I needed. Until then, I could only wait. "You are the most unique vampire I've ever come across, aside from Naruto Uzumaki, the boy with the fox demon inside of him. To be able to bear children is a feat in itself." He chuckled again. "Are you sure you wouldn't want to be my slave?"

I knew what he was suggesting and I scoffed, cringing in disgust. "Why are you doing this?" I asked. "Why don't you just kill me? I chose to die and yet you're…"

"I want to be closer to Sasuke Uchiha. I want to touch what he touches, see what he sees," his hands stroked the side of my face. "Feel what he feels, for soon, I will have his power. He will be mine. That is why you're here Sakura Haruno. You are mine, just as you are his."

"You don't own me."

"Don't I?"

I opened my mouth to respond but my words fell short when Orochimaru reached behind him and grabbed the blade again. "I hold your life in my hands." He stood, no longer straddling my body, and placed the blade directly over my abdomen. "Within any given moment, I could kill you." Using a small amount of force, he pressed the blade against my flesh, the tip puncturing my skin. I gasped, involuntarily reaching out to grab at the sword and pull it away.

"Stop." I rasped.

"This is what I live for; watching the life drain from your eyes, the color from your skin. Watching you squirm and beg and fight for your life, even when you know that you could never be as strong as someone like me." He pressed harder, and I could hear the small popping sound as the sword broke my skin and slowly slid into my belly. I cried out, arching my back in pain. I knew a wound like this couldn't kill me, but it still hurt as if I were still human, maybe even more. "Does this hurt?" he pushed the blade all the way in. I refused to respond to the man, but when he swiftly removed the blade and shoved it into my ribcage, I nearly screamed. Orochimaru twisted the blade and wiggled it, listening to and enjoying my cries of pain. I writhed against the blade, covering my face in shame as I allowed myself to show such emotion.

"Let me see your face." Orochimaru said as he pulled my hands away from my eyes. I jerked against him, throwing my hands upward and slapping Orochimaru. His eyes darkened immediately. Abruptly, Orochimaru yanked the blade from my ribcage and dangled it over my chest. "I believe I've let this go on long enough, don't you think?"

Now. I closed my eyes and carefully activated my genjutsu. I'd only used it once against Deidara during one of our sparring matches. The jutsu was still in its experimental stage, but now was the time to truly test its strength. Luckily, Orochimaru didn't notice that I had already begun to die before his blade came in contact with my non-beating heart. The blade went through and through, and Orochimaru let the sword linger for a moment before he pulled it back out and forced it back in.

The genjutsu caused me to feel no pain, it only allowed me to silently slip away, as if going into a deep, deep sleep. I gasped, unable to let the words that were on the tip of my tongue, break free. I could feel myself slipping. Although most of the feeling had left my body, I could feel the dull throb in my stomach area, and I couldn't tell if it was from the stab wound or something else. But then I felt another painful throb, unlike the pain of the stab wound.

"God…." I whisipered. Before I completely lost consciousness, I could hear Orochimaru's laughter as he began to celebrate. He thought he'd won, and if I could laugh at that moment, I would have.

And then, everything went black.

:

Almost immediately, I could sense that something was wrong. Looking to my left, I ducked and dodged the kunai that was aimed at my head, and then dropped to a knee to swipe the Rogue from under its feet. Taken back, it crashed to the ground, back first, and grunted. I gripped my blade and drove it into the neck of the vampire, severing his head completely. I hopped over the body, and dodged another wave of Rogues.

"Sasuke!" I turned and found Naruto who was finishing match with a Rogue twice his size. He was massive, his muscles protruding through his dirty T-shirt. I walked backwards placing my back against his and sighing heavily. A group of us were finishing the second wave of Rogue vampires. The camps around her were destroyed, fire ensuing in the woods and the cabins around them. The only sounds heard were the clanging of the blades and kunai, the grunts and moans of the dying and those who continued to fight, and the harsh whistling of the winds as a storm formed above, the air pressure weighing down on use like bricks. We were handling the Rogues well, Naruto and I. Looking around, Neji and Shikamaru, and Kakashi and Anko were holding their own as well. We were in sufficient pairs, and luckily, we were all familiar with the combat style of our fellow partner. Naruto and I agreed to take down the group of Rogues on the left side of the field. We broke down that side of Rogues, leaving nothing but a pile of bodies and dust. They didn't stand a chance against us.

"Sasuke," Naruto panted. "Did you feel that?"

"Feel wha—"

"That chakra. Sakura's chakra," I turned to face him, wiping the blood from my katana on my pantleg.

"Yes, I felt it."

Naruto didn't respond to me, only replied with a nod and a heavy stare. "Something's wrong." He said quietly after a moment. "I can feel it, something is wrong."

"Where is she?"

Naruto glanced behind me at the crowd of approaching Rogues, the third wave already beginning. "She's at the underground hospital." I made a step to leave but Naruto gripped my forearm, preventing me from doing so.

"What—"

"Wait," Naruto said. "You shouldn't go alone. Help me with these guys," he motioned towards to the crowd and let his hand drop to his side. "and I'll go with you."

"Fuck…" I muttered under my breath. I closed my eyes and grunted in exasperation. There was no telling what had happened to her; her chakra peaked so suddenly, and then disappeared. If something bad happened to her—

"Sasuke, focus!" I whipped around and faced the oncoming crowd, letting out a battle cry of anger and charging into the crowd head-on. Using my katana, I channeled my chakra into the Sword of Kusanagi, forming electricity around us, filling our ears with the sounds of chirping birds. I swung at the forms of the Rogues, taking them down one by one. "On your left!" I turned to my left side, grunting as a kunai found its way into my shoulder. I used my katana to slice the arm of the Rogue, and kicked him backwards with my feet. I pulled the kunai out of my shoulder and wiped the blood from my face.

This continued for another hour and a half. As quickly as we could, Naruto and I took down the Rogue vampire. Naruto's form became surrounded by chakra, and took on a shape akin to a fox. In this form of his, he was stronger, quicker, as his senses evolved. The moment the Rogues were completely out of sight, Naruto turned to me and growled, cocking his head to the side as if to say 'Follow me'. On all fours, he took off, heading eastward. I followed closely behind Naruto, allowing him to lead me to Sakura. "Please be safe," I whispered. "Please." If I had a heart, it would be pounding in my chest, just waiting to break through the skin. I searched for her presence as we neared the entrance of Rose. According to what I'd heard, the underground hospital was located here, away from the dangers of battle.

Naruto stopped, releasing his chakra, the fox form disappearing as he stood on his two feet. "She's hear," he rasped. "I can smell her." With a heavy sigh, Naruto mumbled something under his breath, placing his hands on the ground. His chakra unlocked a seal that was made in a circle around the ground, and soon, a staircase that descended deep into the ground appeared. Naruto went down first, and I followed him again. There was another wall blocking the hospital and Naruto was having trouble opening the door.

"Open it!"

"I'm trying," he defended himself. "The seal on this door is different from the one upstairs." Naruto cursed and punched the door hard with his fist. "Dammit!" Naruto closed his eyes again and channeled the fox's chakra. I stepped back from his energy, finding it a little too overpowering. Moments later, he formed a ball of energy into his hand and forced it against the door, yelling, "Rasengan!" The door immediately shattered to bits of wood, and without another thought, I broke into a run, passed Naruto, and into the hospital.

The smell of blood hit me like a ton of bricks. I scanned the room, desperately searching for Sakura. I could only see the dead bodies of men, our men, as they lay in cots and unsystematic piles on the ground. "Sakura!" I could feel a lump rise in my throat, the butterflies in my stomach rapidly attacking my nerves. The room was silent, dead silent.

"Sakura!" I heard Naruto exclaim. He trotted ahead of me, moving to the back of the hospital. I remained in the doorway, finding myself unable to step into the hospital. I was terrified of what I might find. I covered my face with my hands and sighed heavily. I only pulled them away when I heard Naruto whisper my name. "Sasuke…" I could hear the dread in his voice. Opening my eyes, I found him knelt beside a form in the very back of the hospital. I swallowed the lump in my throat, and hurried next to Naruto to see what he'd found.

I knew this battle was far from a game. It was real, the most important war in vampire history. Within the five months of official war, many lives had been lost, nearly one thousand. I'd lost my brothers, Itachi, and Sai as well. I was familiar with the pain of losing someone you loved, but as I looked down at the battered, motionless form of my fiancé, Sakura. I was faced with an unfamiliar pain I'd never been faced with before. I was frozen on the spot, my hands clenching and unclenching.

"Sasuke…" Naruto whispered. I shook my head, stopping him from speaking. I sank to my knees, keeping my head low, towards the ground. I could feel a warm liquid envelope around my left hand, and looking down, I realized that my hand was directly in a puddle of Sakura's blood. I fisted my hand, and slammed it against the ground with a grunt. I looked up at Sakura. She looked so pale, paler than she usually was; her skin was a deathly white. I reached out and touched her stomach, feeling the two puncture wounds there, sealed with dried, caked blood. Her plunging neckline on the collar of her shirt was ripped, revealing her bare skin, and two more puncture wounds, consistent with a katana similar to mine. Her skin around the wounds was purple, and I knew that whoever did this laced their weapon with poison.

As I lowered my head, I couldn't help but notice the dark puddle that gathered on Sakura's pants. I narrowed my eyes reaching for the button on her pants. Glancing at Naruto, I signaled for him to look away. He did. I pulled down her pants, grinding my teeth as I saw the streams of blood flowing from her crotch area. "Oh God," I whispered. I touched Sakura's stomach once more, fully examining the area, noticing, now, the bump. It was subtle, but nonetheless, there. "Please no."

"I don't know what the fuck is wrong with me Sasuke. I swear I must be pregnant or something."

"You've done numerous things that went beyond all the rules. I don't think another…baby is entirely impossible."

"What if you are pregnant?"

She closed my eyes and sighed quietly. "I don't know what I would do."

I grabbed a handful of my hair and hunched over. This couldn't be happening, this couldn't be happening. She couldn't have been pregnant, she couldn't be dead.

"Sasuke—"

"She was pregnant." Even uttering the words were hard, nearly impossible. Sakura was pregnant with my child, and even after the thoughts first crossed our minds, I never would've imagined it to be true. Yes, it had been nearly two months since we last had sex, but after she had Avi, I deemed it impossible for her to become pregnant again. I just couldn't wrap my head around it, how? How and…why? "She was pregnant." I could hardly wrap my mind around the fact that Sakura was dead, but her baby, our baby was gone as well. The lump in my throat returned, and I felt myself choking back tears. It was completely out of character for me, and I refused to let my emotions break free so suddenly.

But then a thought ran across my mind: who killed her? Who would dare to lay a hand on my lover, to beat and mutilate her body? I was disgusted, and I thought for sure I was going to throw up, no matter how impossible it was. And then, my answer came slithering next to me. A long snake with scales tinted purple and black, slid beside me, jutting its tongue outward, taunting me. I grabbed the snake and examined it, knowing right then and there that it belonged to Orochimaru. Exasperated, I threw the snake against the wall, killing it instantly. "Orochimaru did this." I said more to myself than to Naruto. I heard Naruto's large intake of breath, and I turned to look at him. He looked beyond upset with his glassy eyes and fluctuating chakras.

"Where is he?" he asked.

"He can't be far." I looked back to Sakura and covered up her bare body. Leaning over, I kissed Sakura's cold lips, wishing that there was some way that they could kiss me back. I lingered for a moment there, unable to part ways with her body. "I told you I would protect you," I whispered. "I told you I would be there, and I failed. I'm sorry." I dropped my head. "I'm so sorry." And then I could feel the traitorous tears leave my eyes. I wiped at them, placing the heel of my palms into my eyes. She couldn't be gone, she just couldn't. The last thing I said to her…the last thing I said to her was 'Stay safe'. I should've grabbed her and lifted her into my arms, spinning her around, squeezing her tightly and telling her over and over that I loved her. It hurt that I wouldn't be able to do that again.

Standing, I bent down and lifted Sakura in my arms and walked in the direction of the door. I could feel her blood soaking my clothes and I bit down on my tongue. I carried her back above ground. The camp was silent, eerily silent. Naruto emerged from underground and sighed heavily.

"It's over, for now." He said. "We should take her to Kakashi and Anko," He whispered this. "They can give her a proper burial."

"Yeah." I completely checked out, not even realizing that I was walking back to the cabins, being led by Naruto. I saw Shikamaru first as he ran forward, eyes wide with shock and despair. Looking at him, I saw his lips move to form a question, but he stopped. He knew. Neji was next, his clear eyes lowered as he watched silently. I carried her to our cabin, placing her in the very same bed Sai died in.

I could feel my knees buckle from underneath me, and I was beside her bed, clenching the sheets and screaming into the covers. Blinking back the tears, I could feel my Sharingan activate itself because of my overflowing emotions. This was my fault and my fault alone. My failure to protect her resulted in her death, but only one person murdered her and our unborn child. Orochimaru. He had no obvious reason to harm Sakura, she was virtually harmless, and never even knew of Orochimaru himself. She stayed away from trouble, aside from the Akatsuki that is, and she never picked unnecessary fights. So why target her? Why murder her? Unless…unless he was trying to get my attention. Orochimaru and I had history, though non-violent, we had many altercations before. It all became clear to me that he did this to send me a message. I scoffed.

If Sakura was randomly targeted, why not just stab her once through the heart? I shuddered at the thought. She was stabbed twice in the stomach area, the undoing of our baby, and twice in the chest. She suffered a broken arm, meaning she didn't have enough chakra to heal herself during the battle that ensued. She wore her finger-less gloves, suggesting a serious battle; she never put them on if she wasn't serious. Her clothes were tattered and stretched, and her bra was unclasped, her breasts uncovered. I clenched and unclenched my fists, grinding my teeth in my mouth. He touched her, violated her.

I became blinded by my anger, and before I could even stop myself, I was on my feet, running out of the room. I pushed passed Kakashi and Naruto and grabbed my katana from the front yard of the cabin.

"Sasuke! Where are you going?" I heard Anko exclaim.

I froze for a moment, seriously contemplating my actions. Was it wise to go, being fueled by nothing but heartbreak and anger? Should I wait? But for what, why wait when the only person I lived for, the only woman genuinely worthy for me was gone. She was gone. I picked up my pace, gripping my katana again. "I'm going to kill him." I whispered to myself. I wasn't sure if Anko heard me, but all that mattered was my new mission. I would avenge Sakura and our baby, even if it costed me my own life. Tonight, Orochimaru was going to die.

:

I didn't know how long I ran through those woods. It had been three hours, maybe four. It was dark, eerily silent, and I was alone. I stopped for rest, gathering my chakra. I had no idea where Orochimaru was, but if he really wanted me, he could find me himself.

"Orochimaru!" I exclaimed. "Orochimaru, get out here!" I closed my eyes, focusing my ears on the noises around me. Naturally, I received no response, but I knew he could hear me. Why wait if he wanted me so badly? I navigated to the ground, placing my bottom on the soft mire. Holding my head in my hands, I saw the face of Sakura. She was smiling widely, laughing even, her voice echoing in my ears. She held Avi in her arms and—

Avi. What the hell was I going to tell Avi, how? How was I supposed to tell him that his mother, his only mother, was dead? I could hardly imagine how distraught he would be; his crying, hysterical form appeared in my head. I would have to raise him alone as well, and I wondered how I would be able to balance both the war life, and raise a son at the same time. I couldn't do it without her. Sakura was—

"Mmm what a sight, Sasuke Uchiha right out in the open." I jumped to my feet, my katana in hand. Scanning the area, there was no sight of Orochimaru. With my Sharingan, my senses were more acute, but I was still unable to sense Orochimaru's chakra.

"Come out!" I exclaimed. After receiving no answer, I did the seals, Rat, Tiger, Dog , Ox, Rabbit , Tiger and proceeded with using my Phoenix Flower Jutsu on the brush in the area. I was suddenly in a ring of fire as the woods caught ablaze, and it was only a matter of time before Orochimaru was weeded out. I kept my sword tightly gripped in my hands as I scanned the area repeatedly. It was as if Orochimaru was never here. "Fuck!"

"Now, now Sasuke. You aren't upset are you?" I hardly had enough time to spin around before Orochimaru had a kunai at my throat and his foot was on my back, forcing me to the ground. I writhed against him, causing the sharpest point of his kunai to pierce my skin. Feeling the blood trickle down my neck, I froze. "I suppose you came after me to avenge your loved one, Sakura Haruno. Mmm, while we were together in that hospital, as I was piercing her with my blade, I was hoping that you were there to see her face."

I threw my elbow up, jabbing Orochimaru in the jaw. He stepped back, giving me enough space to wiggle away from him and jump to my feet. Grabbing my katana, I turned and rammed the blade into Orochimaru's chest. "She was pregnant you son of a bitch!" I seethed. Before my eyes, Orochimaru dissipated and transformed into a bundle of snakes. Cursing, I turned, and scanned the area for Oro once more.

"I wish I knew that." I heard him say. He was a mere 50 yards away, still smiling at me. "If I knew that, I would've waited, and killed her right in front of you."

I narrowed my eyes, and in the instant that I blinked, Orochimaru was directly behind me. Placing one hand around my throat, he threw my head to the side and whispered, "You let yourself be fueled by anger, revenge. You couldn't even calm down long enough to fight me properly, therefore, you've lost."Before I could react to such words, Orochimaru's fangs sunk deeply into my neck.