~The Morning Of~
"Hey you ready to go Sakura-chan" Naruto questioned her at the breakfast table, Kakashi and Sasuke noticeably absent, alongside Minato, Samui and Shunsui surprisingly, leaving the two of them, Hayate plus Omoi and Karui.
She tilted her head at him in answer "No, this day is going to be a disaster I just know it" Sakura scowled and if she saw that damnable snake he was going to taste her metal arrows, Naruto shuddered in response wondering what she was thinking about.
While Omoi and Karui shared a look with one another "Do you think something bad is going to happen today" Omoi asked, lowering his voice not wanting the jonin in the living room to hear their conversation.
In response Sakura pursed her lips "Come on spill, how can we help if we can help at all" Karui demanded in a near silent whisper that had Naruto and Omoi straining their ears in order to hear but they got the gist of it.
After shooting a look at the door Sakura nodded "Otogakure is going to attack during the final round at some point, I don't know when but here's some food pills, no more than three and I'm also going to pass out some to others as well" the rosette informed.
Pulling a mesh bag from her pouch and distributing three pills each to everyone around her "Then we'll be sure to fight alongside you Leaf guys, seeing as we're allies" the redhead grinned, gold eyes glittering dangerously.
Even Omoi had to agree "Yeah it would be considered doing our part to contribute to the alliance between Leaf and Cloud" the ivory haired teen shrugged, accepting the food pills and storing them in his own pouch.
Naruto sighed however "Why does Team Seven have to be cursed" the blonde grumbled as he finished eating breakfast, prompting a wince from Sakura and then they were headed out the door to the arena designated for the final round.
Upon arrival they already found the Suna Genin along with Shikamaru, many others still absent though when Sakura stood next to Temari the blonde leaned down and on her way back up she dropped something on Sakura's foot.
Sakura shot the older kunoichi an unimpressed look before expertly snagging the note without looking the least bit suspicious, those lessons in balance from Sasori having helped her greatly and then she unfolded the note to read it nonchalantly.
~Kankuro told me we can trust you, so during our fight make it look real, also we found out which match Orochimaru's planning on attacking, Gaara's going to forfeit partway through his match with Uchiha, just be ready, we are.~
She had to give it to Temari for finding out even more information as she oh so casually passed the note to Naruto who passed it to Karui and Omoi, all three of whom nodded seriously in response as the note was crumpled and shoved in Omoi's pouch.
During all this Shikamaru had been watching with a raised eyebrow that Sakura ignored as more contestants showed up, Neji, Shino, and Dosu to her disgust that just left Sasuke who she realized was going to be late.
Way late to her irritation as Genma showed up "Quit your fidgeting, now stand up straight and present yourselves proudly to the spectators, you are the heroes of this final competition" Genma commanded in his oh so smooth tone.
Naruto and Sakura didn't have to be told twice as they both straightened and held their heads up high, hands neatly behind their backs as the crowds erupted in cheers and applause, Shikamaru on the other hand seemed to droop even more in apparent exhaustion.
Karui and Omoi shared grim looks with one another but stood a little straighter while Dosu simply glared, leaving Shino, Gaara, Temari, Neji and Kankuro all of whom looked indifferent and totally uncaring of all the eyes now firmly situated upon their persons.
"Good, now for the first match Naruto Uzumaki and Neji Hyuga, you two stay everyone else can go to the waiting area" the special Jonin ordered, prompting everyone to turn and head for the stands but before Sakura could scurry ahead of the others.
Shikamaru skillfully snagged her wrist "Just wait a moment Sakura" Shikamaru said, holding her back while the others disappeared from sight, Sakura raised a single fuscia brow at the Nara Heir and leveled him her most unimpressed look.
"Care to tell me what this is about" Sakura tapped her foot impatiently, Naruto would never forget her if she missed his match against Neji, because he was undoubtedly going to win, Neji would never see it coming.
Knowing it wasn't wise to mess with this particular person Shikamaru's expression became a little more serious "I want to know what the hell you were passing off to Naruto and those Cloud Shinobi from that troublesome woman from Sand" the Nara Heir demanded.
It startled her a little bit before Sakura sighed "Fine, Otogakure is going to attack us during Sasuke's match, Suna was part of the Coup originally but they've changed their mind, their on our side now" the pinkette explained warily.
"Thank you that's all I wanted" he released her wrist almost immediately and trudged up the steps, leaving her to follow until they emerged at the top where everyone else already was, Naruto and Neji's match had started it seemed but it didn't look like she'd missed much.
Unfortunately though Shino appeared to desire some answers due to some rumors he'd heard via his sensei, as he was next to approach "Sakura there is something I wish to ask, why because it's important" Shino intoned quietly.
Her eye twitched "Okay, but wait until Naruto's match is over" Sakura sighed softly and Shino nodded his head in acknowledgement, with that she refocused her complete attention on Naruto who was overcoming Neji little by little.
Neji probably had no idea how he was losing until he'd actually lost against Naruto, who burst up out of the ground and nailed him right in the chin, knocking him out and she couldn't help but wince a little.
Even while she was inwardly thinking maybe Neji would finally change his views and stop being a royal pain in the ass, then she was paying attention again as Genma looked between the two contestants "Winner Naruto Uzumaki" Genma declared, seeing Neji was unconscious.
Cheers erupted from the crowd, many having been skeptical of Naruto until that moment but now he would be acknowledged, just the start of the long road ahead of him if he ever wanted to accomplish his dream that was and then Shikamaru and Dosu's names were called.
Shikamaru let out a sigh but trudged down the steps, Dosu on his heels, Sakura waited a couple of minutes before heading down the stairs herself, Shino following her discreetly "Ask your question Shino" the fuscia haired teen crossed her arms.
Wanting to get this over and done with "Whose side are you on, Leafs or are you a traitor like my sensei thinks you are, why because of who you were trained by" the Aburame Heir questioned waiting for the blow up.
But Sakura stared at him in confusion "Hold on why would your sensei think I was a traitor and how would they know who I was trained by" Sakura furrowed her brow, not understanding why everyone seemed to think Sasori was some kind of bad guy.
"The person who taught you during the academy was a rogue, a traitor from Suna, here you can see for yourself, his name is in the bingo book after all as an S Class criminal" Shino tossed her the book in question.
And she flipped it open until she found Sasori's profile along with what organization he was allied with and her heart stopped dead in her chest for a couple of seconds "I'm a Leaf Ninja, I'll always be a Leaf Ninja Shino" the rosette snapped the book shut, eyes and face devoid of any emotion.
Like that she stalked past the Aburame after handing the bingo book back to him and up the stairs and Shino knew he shouldn't have done that "Hey Shino what are you down here for it's not your turn yet is it" Naruto popped up behind him suddenly.
Returning from having his chakra unblocked by the medics on staff for the Chunin Exams "Naruto, about Sasori Akasuna what do you know about him" the Aburame heir questioned, a sickening feeling in the pit of his stomach.
"Huh you know about Sasori-sensei but how, never-mind and he was amazing, he taught me, Sakura-chan and Sasuke a lot, he was firm, strict, yet kind at the same time if that makes sense" the blonde ticked off his fingers.
That feeling in the pit of Shino's stomach deepened as he realized that none of Team Seven had known what their pre-genin sensei was until he went and did this "I see" Shino grimaced behind his coat collar, starting up the stairs.
Naruto blinked then shrugged and hurried up the steps himself, smiling when he saw Sakura standing in between Karui and Omoi, only to frown when she turned and he couldn't see any hint of emotion on her face or in her eyes at all.
"Everything okay Sakura-chan" Naruto asked squeezing in next to his teammate Karui scooting over a bit to let him in, Shino visibly flinched in response while Sakura gave him a flat smile then turned back to watch Shikamaru vs Dosu.
In the end Shikamaru won of course even if he wanted to forfeit he couldn't let his opponent stay conscious for the Coup his village was plotting, Genma made sure his opponent was out then called it "Winner Shikamaru Nara" the brunet announced.
Shikamaru happily trudged from the field as the next two names were called "Uh I forfeit is that alright" Kankuro grimaced wanting to conserve his chakra for the fight against Otogakure, plus he didn't want to give away all his secrets and fighting techniques.
Genma set his sights on the two kunoichi "Sakura Haruno, Temari Sabaku unless either one of you want to forfeit" Genma called looking at the kunoichi in the stands but they shook their head and appeared in the arena.
Sakura in a flurry of purple cherry blossoms and Temari floated down on her fan "Shino what the hell did you do to Sakura-chan, I know you were talking to her before so what did you say to her" Naruto demanded.
Lips pulled into a scowl but Shino remained silent and he tsked in annoyance then focused his attention on the two below "Let the fourth match begin" the special Jonin brought his arm down starting the match.
Temari whipped open her fan while Sakura started speeding through hand signs, four walls made of earth rising around her just as Temari's jutsu reached her, demolishing the walls, a second later Sakura burst from the rubble and charged head first.
Up in the stand Naruto clenched his hand around the railing as Sakura then twisted narrowly out of the way of the second futon jutsu, before Temari found herself unable to move, courtesy the hands that came up out of the ground beneath her feet and held her in place.
Leaving Sakura to get in the blondes personal space and snatch her fan "Now the battle will truly begin" Sakura murmured grimly as she tossed the weapon away from her and it embedded in the lone tree.
Temari grit her teeth "Don't think you've won Haruno I still have a few tricks up my sleeve" the blonde glowered not liking how easy it had been for the other kunoichi to throw her weapon like it was nothing more than a shuriken.
Sakura said nothing and aimed a punch at her mid section "Damn" Temari hissed barely dodging what she was sure would have been a debilitating attack, Sakura wasn't finished though as she leaped back flying through another set of hand signs.
"Suiton: Rising Water Cutter" the rosette breathed the minute her feet touched the ground and then she aimed the particularly powerful jutsu at her opponent and Temari was sent flying backwards to hit the ground.
Naruto paled and shot a glare at Shino because he knew the Aburame had something to do with Sakura's current state of mind "Fuck, you know when I said make it real I didn't think you would…holy kami" the blonde kunoichi winced.
Only to backtrack as Sakura came after her again and the ground shattered beneath the younger kunoichi's fist "Doton: Earth Spike Wave" followed by using the rubble that was now raining down on them as a deadly jutsu.
And Temari thanked her lucky stars that the other girl wasn't trying to seriously kill her as she merely acquired a few scrapes before managing to get out of range, Sakura didn't allow her to get to far though.
Considering she was once again charging dead ahead, completely focused as yet another crater was made in the arena and all those watching were reminded of Tsunade prompting a shudder to run down their spines en-masse.
Temari was not happy with her current situation as she realized what Sakura was doing, keeping her from making a move to retrieve her fan "Tch your nothing like that other girl, during the preliminary rounds" Temari scowled.
Peridot orbs glittered for a second along with a small quirk of the lips "Of course not Temari-chan" Sakura intoned flatly, deciding she'd played around long enough as she grabbed her hairpin from her hair and tossed it.
Her opponent wasn't to impressed "I'm so scared" the blonde mocked as the hairpin embedded itself in the ground before her, Sakura smiled flatly then made a hand sign and Temari realized in that exact moment that perhaps mocking the younger girl hadn't been her wisest idea.
Seeing as she found herself in a genjutsu, the hell viewing jutsu to be precise, it was very strong, so by the time she managed to break out of it there was a purple smoke in the air "You'll wake up in a couple minutes" the pinkette mouthed as she lost consciousness.
Followed by utter silence, Genma looked at Sakura, then to Temari before nodding decisively "Winner Sakura Haruno" Genma finally announced and cheers erupted from the crowd just as Temari regained consciousness.
With a groan the blonde sat up as Sakura retrieved her hairpin "Ugh remind me never to get on your bad side" Temari grimaced as she stood as a medic arrived to lead her to where the treatment room was after getting her fan back.
"Good to know" Sakura said in that same flat tone she'd been using during the entirety of their match then she disappeared in a flurry of purple cherry blossoms back up to the waiting area, Naruto met her with a nervous smile.
And got an extremely small one in response before she went back to being utterly expressionless then just as Karui and Omoi's names were being called a flurry of leaves picked up in the center of the arena signaling the arrival of Sasuke at long last.
Kakashi to as the duo were stood back to back, who promptly disappeared in a plume of smoke as Sasuke made his way to the waiting area, Karui and Omoi shared decisive nods with one another and began their walk down the steps.
Passing Sasuke as they went and handing off the note he read it then in a puff of smoke the note was burnt to a crisp then he was stood with his teammates "So did you win your matches" Sasuke asked not noticing anything out of the ordinary yet.
"Course I did Teme, had to punt Hyuga on his ass after all for all the things he's said to Sakura-chan and done to Hinata" Naruto scoffed, eyeing Sakura warily who was watching Karui and Omoi's match.
Until she nodded in confirmation "Okay whats going on, why is she like that" the Uchiha hissed wondering who the hell had upset Sakura to the point where she was actively hiding how she felt, he couldn't even seen a speck of emotion on her face or in her eyes.
Naruto scowled at Shino in answer "Dunno Sasuke but Shino knows and he won't tell me, nor will Sakura-chan" the blonde looked as if he'd eaten something sour because having this kind of Sakura on their hands was not a good thing she was to calculated.
Sasuke echoed Naruto's scowl with one of his own and decided that later on he would make Shino talk if he had to but for now it was better to focus on the then and there, eventually Karui and Omoi conceded defeat against each other to evenly matched.
So neither one advanced to the second round of matches which meant it was now his turn, Gaara didn't even bother heading down the stairs merely used the body flicker to get down into the arena quicker so Sasuke shrugged and decided to do the same thing.
Genma stared between the two boys "Let the fight begin" the special Jonin brought his arm down starting the match up in the stand Sakura inched over to Shikamaru and gave him some food pills, preparing for the attack.
And though she was upset with Shino, he also got some to just in case, Kankuro did as well, along with six extra to share with his siblings if they needed them "May I ask you something Sakura" the brunet asked when she remained in the near vicinity of him.
"If you want Kankuro" the pinkette nodded shortly, trying to hide the hurt she felt inside, though she was equally as confused, if Sasori was such an S Class criminal why had he come and told her she would be strong, followed by training her and raising her to protect what she cared up.
Kankuro was silent for a moment "How come you three pretended to be ignorant back when we first met, considering what I know now its just strange if you know what I mean" Kankuro frowned not understanding why.
Prompting a sigh from the younger genin "We wanted to be underestimated" Sakura said, tensing as the fight between Gaara and Sasuke escalated, then the moment they were all waiting for Gaara raised his hand to everyone's confusion.
And his voice came out loud and clear "I, Gaara Sabaku forfeit this match to Sasuke Uchiha, he has proven to strong for me, therefor I concede defeat gracefully" Gaara declared, preparing himself as a scream of fury erupted from one of the stands.
This was followed by Otogakure shinobi pouring into the arena en-masse along with white feathers floating down which Sakura recognized as a genjutsu to put the crowd to sleep so she quickly sped through the hand signs to disrupt her chakra.
Disrupting others chakra as she went as she spotted a group of Sound ninja heading out into the village, in a plume of smoke there were three clones of herself heading after them, she also unsealed her latest creation to Kankuro's surprise.
Jumping into the fray by making a hand sign, Otogakure ninja went down courtesy the barrage of senbon that shot out of the puppet like quills from a porcupine, seeing as the puppet was designed like a porcupine anyway, the throwing needles having been dipped in a sedative that would keep them out for a few hours.
Seconds later she was joined by Naruto who made a standard hand sign "Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu" the blonde called creating a literal army of clones, probably over a hundred that were sent out to protect and defend civilians all while escorting them to shelters.
Upon seeing that his teammates were together Sasuke hurried over, punching out a Oto-nin who was trying to sneak up on Naruto, "Right what's the plan" Sasuke asked as the three of them stood back to back with one another.
"Keep them from causing to much havoc or damage really that's all we can do actually" Sakura intoned flatly, so they commenced with the fighting, staying in the arena to prevent the spectators from being killed.
Completely unknown to them Kabuto hid in the shadows ever watching and patiently waiting for a single chance to take his prize, Orochimaru had promised him he could have her after all and he wasn't going to leave without her.
Sakura hissed furiously under her breath as she spotted Ino being surrounded by a bunch of enemy ninja "Go help by waking people up from the genjutsu, chunin to jonin Sasuke, Naruto with me to save Ino" the rosette ordered.
Grabbing Naruto by the hand "Understood Sakura" the current Uchiha heir saluted, dispersing in a flurry of leaves while Sakura and Naruto headed up into the stands and Ino was never more grateful to see them as the one harassing her was kicked.
Quite brutally at that and she was sure she was going to have nightmares from the crunch of his spine breaking in her ears but she was happy nonetheless to see her friends "I don't know where Kiba or Hinata are, Shikamaru's pretending and Choji's cowering under that" Ino rambled.
And her best friends pursed their lips "Leave Hinata and Kiba to me, Ino-chan you….what the hell is that" Naruto began heading to where he felt the duo's chakra, only to be distracted as something purple rose over the booth where their Hokage was seated, alongside the Raikage and Kazekage.
"Barrier Naruto, Lee-san can you help to protect Ino-chan, Choji-san, Kiba and Hinata-chan and Shikamaru if you don't wake your lazy ass up" Sakura asked getting a nod from the weird kid in green spandex before turning her attention on the faker.
Who sat up less than a second at her empty threat "You always know when I'm faking sleeping but fine I'll do my part" Shikamaru groaned, just as Naruto returned with Kiba and Hinata who had been unconscious.
Naruto exhaled "Okay now what Sakura-chan" the Uzumaki inquired, seeing that most of the fighting was being taken care of by the Jonin with a few Chunin interspersed here and there, just his luck though that Sakura would set her sights on the barrier.
As she unsealed her metal bow and a few arrows "If enough force is used I bet we could break the barrier" the pinkette said, taking aim as they got up on top of the stands, followed by channeling chakra into her bow and arrow.
She breathed in and then loosed her arrow, it shot through the sky, hitting the four corner sealing barrier with enough strength to put a dent in the damn thing, her eyebrow twitched so she grabbed another arrow from the quiver.
Channeling more chakra into it this time, this created a tiny crack as she managed to hit the same spot as before and the third arrow did it's job by shattering the barrier but that's where good things ended as she was taking aim at the second barrier.
A dull thud reached her ears and she looked down to see Naruto unconscious before she could see who the attacker was or even defend herself she was chopped on the back of the neck so by the time Sasuke came to find his teammates Naruto was waking up.
"Ugh what the hell who hit me" Naruto groaned rubbing the back of his neck while simultaneously healing it, Sasuke jumped down in front of him and they both looked around in confusion.
Dread pooled in their stomachs "Dobe where's Sakura" Sasuke inquired, not sensing his female teammate, before Naruto could answer a glint of metal caught his eye and he wandered over to it to find Sakura's prized bow.
The sick feeling increased "I don't know someone hit me from behind and I lost consciousness before I could see who" the blonde admitted, growing paler by the second, even if the fighting was dying down.
He looked to see that the barrier was down around the Kage Booth just as they were joined by Baki and his students "Where's Sakura" the brunet questioned looking around in equal confusion and the boys glared at the roof they were stood on.
"We don't know, by the time I got here she was already gone and Naruto was unconscious" the current Uchiha heir scowled, sharingan activated to see if he could find a hint of Sakura's chakra in order to follow it.
But the chakra he saw made his blood freeze "This is bad" Sasuke felt sicker than ever before as he recognized the secondary chakra via his sharingan and he knew he had to get to Kakashi who was on the roof with the Hokage, Raikage and Kazekage.
It was who else that was stood there that made him speed up "SASORI-SENSEI" Naruto shouted the man's name upon seeing a splotch of red stood next to the Hokage, Kazekage glaring at the man but Sasori tilted his head in acknowledgement.
"Kabuto took Sakura" Sasuke informed hastily making the Kazekage and all around them pause as Sasori turned to face two of his students, face thunderous, then he looked to Hiruzen who nodded shortly before the redhead was simply gone.
The Kazekage snarled furiously "HOW COULD YOU ALLOW A KNOWN CRIMINAL TO ENTER YOUR VILLAGE" the man raged at the Hokage, shocking Naruto and Sasuke who obviously hadn't known in the least.
But the Hokage was having none of it "Kazekage enough, Sasori came to us, to me and asked for protection in return for becoming a double agent, he has saved this village from danger and he has earned my explicit trust" Hiruzen stated.
Holding his stomach, Sasuke and Naruto saw this so stepped forward hands glowing green with medical chakra "And what you didn't think that I wouldn't like to know where one of the rogues of my village was so that I could keep tabs on him" the Kazekage spat.
Chakra fluctuating dangerously "That would have just drawn unnecessary attention to Sasori" the Hokage informed, grateful of the two boys "By the way just who do you think it was that informed us of the coup" the wizened old man said.
And Baki interjected himself "A young boy actually, he had purple hair and orange eyes, he gave us a message that told us that Orochimaru was planning to kill Kazekage-sama to impersonate him" Baki announced.
Naruto and Sasuke shared amused looks "Yeah that was Sakura in her alter ego form, who probably got a letter from Akasuna-sensei to tell you what that Sannin was plotting" the Uchiha snorted letting the medical chakra fade from his hands.
Seeing as there wasn't much more he could do "Outsmarted by a little girl how humiliating" the turban wearing Suna Jonin groaned looking as if he had a headache it was something they often dealt with when it came to Sakura.
"By the way how long has Sakura had a disguise" Kakashi grumbled wondering how he had missed that while Minato chuckled lightly, knowing the situation was serious, Sakura had been taken after all.
With that in mind he glanced to Hiruzen who tilted his head in answer and he to was gone inwardly cursing himself for not having marked the girl with his seal "For awhile now Kakashi-sensei, Sasuke and I have disguises to" the Uzumaki answered with an innocent smile.
Kakashi glowered at them in response while Ay threw his head back with a laugh "Gutsy little brats aint'cha, Darui, Cee go assist in the retrieval of the pink haired brat" Ay barked having a soft spot for the kids.
Both of his subordinates were gone in matching plumes of smoke leaving them to start the cleanup though Kakashi itched to run off and rescue his student he knew having to many people would interfere with whatever plan they came up with.
In the meantime Sasori had made great headway after honing in on his former subordinates chakra, Yakushi would pay for touching Sakura, soon enough he was joined by two blondes and a dark skinned shinobi "We were sent to help" the onyx eyed blonde said.
Not wanting to leave Sakura in the hands of the enemy for to long who knows what they would do to her "I came on my own because Naruto would never forgive me if I let something happen to Sakura" the blue eyed blonde announced.
"So what's the plan Akasuna, Yakushi has been a thorn in the Kid's side for a long time" the ivory haired Jonin inquired, muscles bunched up in anticipation, Sasori exhaled softly grateful for the backup from both the Hokage and Raikage surprisingly.
Then he nodded "Kabuto is no push over it won't be easy but if we can get him to hold still long enough for me to get my chakra strings attached to him we can get Sakura which means someones going to have to act as a distraction" Sasori explained.
Expression furious, he was more enraged than they expected him to be "Leave being the distraction to me, Cee-san you should probably remain hidden, you're a medic and we don't need you being taken out understand" Minato looked to the other blonde.
Formulating a plan as they went, slowly gaining on Kabuto who had Sakura "Very well" Cee nodded knowing the former Hokage was right, Sasori forced himself to calm down a little being angry wouldn't help Sakura after all.
As they got ever closer Cee suppressed his chakra and began lagging behind the others to play his part in the rescue plan and then they were practically right on top of Kabuto who spun around looking irritated that he'd been caught up to.
"Return the Kid peacefully Yakushi or we'll take her back by force" Darui demanded unhooking his folding cleaver blade from his back, eyeing Sakura who was still unconscious, then he saw the tear in Kabuto's shirt and blood.
Which indicated that Sakura had been awake and had tried to fight but couldn't get away in time before she was once again knocked out, Kabuto snarled "By right she is mine, Orochimaru-sama said so" Kabuto snapped.
Unwilling to part with his reward "SAKURA IS NOT A POSSESSION" Sasori roared before managing to reign in his anger once again though it was clear to the others he was a second away from exploding again.
Kabuto's eyes widened as he recognized Sasori as his former master "So you were the one she called sensei huh Sasori-sama" Kabuto scowled clutching Sakura tighter against his chest causing her face to scrunch up in pain.
Sasori felt his blood boiling "Either you give her back willingly or you die" the redhead said eerily calm all of a sudden, readying himself for a fight, it wouldn't be pretty, it would be brutal but damned if he left his student in Kabuto's clutches.
Minato tensed in response as did Darui, Kabuto seemed to realize they were gearing up to face him, turned tail and ran but he didn't get very far as he had to duck under a three pronged kunai and the former Hokage was stood in front of him a second later.
"I don't think so, my son would never forgive me if I let you take her" the Fourth Hokage shook his head holding up another kunai before lunging, Kabuto dodged and tried to run in the other direction, grip tightening on Sakura because he refused to give her up.
Again he didn't get very far as the dark skinned shinobi swung his cleaver blade at him stopping him in his tracks "Kid isn't going anywhere with you so stop delaying the inevitable Yakushi" the ivory haired shinobi informed.
Doing his best along with Minato to get the man in a suitable position for Sasori to attach the chakra strings to Kabuto who wasn't making it easy on them until a flash of light blinded them and Kabuto was stood frozen in a daze.
"Knew if I waited to cast that genjutsu things would help" the onyx eyed blonde appeared as he reached Sakura first, snagging her from Kabuto as gently as he could manage and getting back in time as Kabuto snapped out of the illusion.
Only to become enraged as he realized Sakura was no longer in his clutches, and knowing there was no way he was going to get her back being outmatched four to one he turned tail and ran managing to get away this time, seeing as the others were more focused on Sakura.
Who didn't wake up even when Cee healed her "We should get her back to the village and the hospital" Darui grimaced, attaching his blade to his back again, Sasori looked like he wanted to go after the bastard but instead before Cee could lift her.
He gently gathered Sakura into his arms "It's okay Sakura I've got you brat and you'll never be in danger again like this I swear it" Sasori vowed solemnly hating how he'd gotten attached then with him in the lead they began their trek back to the village.
"Akasuna we can get back to the village quicker if you'd like" Minato informed all prepared to use his flying thunder god seal so that Sakura could be treated for whatever else Kabuto had done to her.
For a moment it didn't look like Sasori had even heard him until the man nodded "Good" Cee breathed eager to get Sakura to the hospital and a moment later they were stood outside said building and Sasori headed in alone and soon Sakura was taken away and put in a room.
And as much as he wanted to stay with her he knew he couldn't because there were things he had to do so he made his way to the Hokage Tower where Hiruzen, Rasa and Ay had gathered "Sasori-kun is Sakura…" Hiruzen trailed off uncertainly.
"Unconscious, the medics are taking care of her now" the redhead grunted, lowering himself into the unclaimed chair like he use to all the time but it felt like years instead of months had passed since that time.
The Hokage sighed quietly in relief at that "Now what to do with you Akasuna" Rasa immediately turned his attention on the s class criminal from his village and was surprised when Sasori raised his head to glare at him.
"I'm staying here Kazekage-sama with my students, you can't touch me here so long as I don't leave the village again" Sasori informed, he refused to leave again, he'd already left Akatsuki after all and Leaf needed him more anyway.
Rasa spluttered "You mean Uchiha, Uzumaki and Pink brat, heh care for them do you" Ay snorted cutting the Kazekage off before he could demand the older man to go back to Suna and pay for his countless crimes against the village.
"Of course I fucking care Raikage, those three little brats are….their important to me" the crimson haired former double agent scowled, before his expression softened as he talked about his students and their importance to him.
Hiruzen could have guessed considering how reluctant Sasori had been to leave in the first place "What will you do about Akatsuki, surely they'll question your absence" the Hokage blew out a puff of smoke.
Sasori scoffed "Already dealt with I staged my betrayal that way brat Uchiha's brother isn't put under suspicion of being a double agent himself, plus he has Hoshigaki on his side, your side anyway, as proof my ring" Sasori announced.
Placing something on the Hokage's desk, his Akatsuki ring with the symbol for jewel "You betrayed Akatsuki for a bunch of children" the Kazekage seemed to realize the significance of the moment and why it was even happening.
In response Sasori rolled his eyes "Children who will go on to be great take Sakura for instance she has the chakra control to someday surpass Tsunade Senju the Legendary Medical Ninja herself, Naruto he will be Hokage I know it and Sasuke well he'll lead his clan into a new era" the redhead snorted.
Hiruzen chuckled "Speaking of Tsunade-chan I plan to send Naruto-kun with Jiraiya after her to bring her back to be the Fifth Hokage, she might be needed if Sakura doesn't wake up as well" Hiruzen frowned a second later.
Worried over the young girl "I only came to tell you this but I'm going back to be with my student" Sasori stood a moment later having done what he came there to do and in a swirl of sand was gone to sit with Sakura who was still unconscious, medics unable to find out the cause for it.
"My men and I will stay for a week or two in order to help with the reconstruction of your village Hokage" Ay was the next to leave, making his way to the Uchiha Compound not considering anywhere else as a possible place to stay, Rasa was the last to leave.
During this time Minato, Darui and Cee had returned to a somber house that was until Naruto caught sight of his Father "Dad you got Sakura-chan back right….right" Naruto jumped up only to realize Sakura wasn't with him.
But his Dad did nod "Yes Naruto-kun but she won't wake up so Akasuna-san took her to the hospital" Minato explained, taking a seat on the couch next to his son who slumped onto the furniture looking more depressed than ever.
"How come she wouldn't wake up Cee" Sasuke glanced to the only other medic in the house besides himself and Naruto a lot of good it did them now though if Cee couldn't properly heal Sakura what chance did he or Naruto have.
The man grimaced "At some point she must have fought Yakushi and he might have damaged something that's beyond my healing capabilities Sasuke-san" Cee admitted knowing better than to hide the truth Sasuke would find out anyway somehow.
Sasuke sighed then trudged off to inform his parents of the situation "Boys really do care for her don't they" Darui winced in sympathy, taking a chair for himself, the one Sakura usually sat in if he wasn't wrong.
Across from him Kakashi nodded "When I first met them Sasuke and Naruto were very protective of Sakura-chan, kept directing me from asking her questions about her parents, wouldn't do anything without her approval first" the Copy Ninja announced.
Wanting to go check on Sakura but he was unsure how his presence would be taken by Sasori in the hospital room "You think she'll be okay" Karui asked, wanting Sakura to be alright considering the blooming friendship between them.
"But wait what if there are no medics competent enough and she never wakes up" Omoi piped in with one of his fears, Sakura had welcomed them with open arms, Naruto cringed in response and got a glare from Karui.
Before Samui scuffed the boy over the back of the head "That's enough of your over-worrying Omoi, there is a competent medic she'll just have to be brought back to the village" Samui informed thinking of the Sannin the Legendary Medical Ninja Tsunade Senju.
"Correct Samui, I don't know when but Hokage intends to send someone out to bring Tsunade back if anyone can get the pink brat up and running it's that woman" Ay announced his arrival by responding to Samui, behind him was Sasuke and Ino.
Who marched forward and took a seat next to Naruto looking like she was trying to be brave and not cry all at the same time "She'll be fine Sakura-chan's strong after all" Ino intoned seriously grabbing the younger blondes hand to hold and ground herself and Naruto relaxed a little.
Meanwhile at the hospital Sasori had situated himself firmly at Sakura's side and refused adamantly to move even when ordered by medics to do so "Not a chance" Sasori shook his head as they threatened to ban him from the room.
"At least let us change her Akasuna-san, surely you don't want to see Haruno-san in an undressed state" the medic finally snapped, eager to get the man out of the room so the girl could be changed into one of the scratchy hospital gowns.
Sasori scowled but marched from the room temporarily and was back ten minutes later to Sakura changed into the gown complete with an iv drip "Don't ask me to leave again" the redhead commented sitting his behind down in the lone chair again intent clear.
And that's where he stayed for the entire night as medics came and went checking on their patient to see if there had been any change not that there was considering how closely he was watching and soon it was morning.
Just as he was contemplating leaving to see his other students for a short time a knock came on the hospital room door "Ah Akasuna I'm here to see Sakura-chan, has there been any change in her condition" the Copy Ninja popped his head through the door.
"No but come on in, I was about to go see Naruto and Sasuke make sure they weren't behaving in any unseemly way" Sasori snorted knowing that the boys wouldn't do that while Sakura was in such critical condition.
Kakashi chuckled lightly "Uchiha Compound, I believe their waiting for you" Kakashi explained taking the only just vacated seat to watch after Sakura for a bit while Sasori disappeared to see the boys he had taught.
Sasuke spotted him first "Bout time Akasuna, Dobe has been driving everyone crazy" the current Uchiha Heir intoned exasperatedly, getting an offended hey from Naruto who threw a sandal in response only for it be dodged.
"Am not Teme and if anyone is driving people crazy its Shisui-san" the blonde sniffed delicately, Sasuke nodded in agreement shooting a glare at his annoying older cousin who sulked at being ganged up on by the two almost teenage boys.
Sasori rolled his hazel eyes and tapped his foot impatiently until both Naruto and Sasuke were giving him their undivided attention "Naruto, Sasuke know that I am proud of you both and that I can't express my apologies enough in leaving like I did" the crimson haired rogue said.
Minato was surprised when Naruto scowled "Course not Sasori-sensei, Sakura-chan was crushed and she's never been the same, of course she wasn't the same after her parents were taken but your leaving really messed with her" Naruto snapped harshly.
"That's right it was only just recently that she started admitting to people that she missed you, wouldn't even so much as say your name without crying and you have the nerve to come back" Sasuke was also not happy with his pre-genin sensei.
And he should have guessed the brats would act like this but Naruto wasn't finished "Lets not forget that you're a criminal Sasori-sensei do you have any idea what finding that out would do to Sakura-chan's mental and emotional state" the blonde drove the knife in deeper earning a wince.
Sasuke just had to go and make it worse "Yeah for all we know it could have been your fault that Sakura's parents were targeted and taken in the first place" the Uchiha glared, complete with sharingan activated in his anger.
Sasori flinched in response "Well you might not be wrong Sasuke I could be my fault in fact I've always believed it was my fault and I know Naruto but even if Sakura and you two hate me, I'm here to stay for good this time" the redhead grimaced.
Inwardly proud of how grown up the brats had become in his absence even if he'd missed it "I think your going to have to start worrying about that whenever she wakes up Akasuna, Sakura-san already knows about your status as an international criminal" Asuma showed up a second later.
Bursting their bubbles and Sasori spluttered "Who the fuck told her" Sasori snapped, utterly irritated and now all he wanted to do was get back to Sakura and never leave her side again, every time he did it ended in catastrophe.
Asuma grimaced "One of the Jonin sensei's told their students, one of whom told Sakura-san" the raven haired Jonin informed, Naruto frowned and then it was like a light bulb clicked on overheard.
"It was Shino wasn't it, I caught him talking to her after my match and Sakura-chan was very scary afterwards even during her match" Naruto looked the older man dead in the eye earning a nod from Asuma.
"Joy" Sasuke groaned flopping down in his preferred chair, things would be like hell whenever Sakura woke up he was certain of that with that Sasori decided to return to the hospital and there he stayed even when Jiraiya and Naruto were sent out to bring back Tsunade.
Even when Kakashi and Sasuke joined Sakura in the hospital because of Itachi, and Sasuke had went off half-cocked, one thing was for certain though no matter what he wasn't ever leaving Sakura's side again.