Chapter Twenty-Six: Wolf in Sheep's Clothing
Present Day:
Sakura stared up at the giant hole that had once been a roof above her. All around her, rubble and debris piled up and confined her in the crater of a hole that had once been the ground floor of the now skeletal abandoned building. Next to her lay a body that she could not bring herself to look at.
Just moments ago there had been life flowing through the body of flesh. A beating heart had pushed blood through its veins while its muscles moved its limbs and gave it motion. Now, it lay lifeless like an empty shell that had washed up on the ocean shore.
And she had been the one to end that life.
But was it just one? Or had she killed two people today?
A warmth leaked down her face as her eyes watered for reasons she did not understand. Her vision blurred but she kept staring up. The peaceful clouds that sailed across the sunny blue skies above were unnaturally unfitting for the atmosphere of devastation and death that bore down on her. But despite the lack of appropriateness, it was better than looking at the corpse.
In her blurry peripheral, winged figures appeared at the edge of the cut out hole. Muffled words echoed down to her but they went unregistered. It was not until the figures descended down with feather-like grace that she was able to blink and look away from the sky.
She watched as Kakashi, then Naruto, landed carefully on the rubble and made their way towards her, taking care to not step anywhere treacherous.
She saw their eyes take in the still warm, but very dead body next to her. When their eyes looked back at her, she had been prepared for the guilt that would come with their judgments. What she was not prepared for was the gentle affection and concern that crossed their faces as they looked at her as if she were the victim and not the murderer.
Kakashi kneeled before her as Naruto crouched down beside her. "Sakura," Kakashi said gently. "Tell me what happened."
What happened?
What had she done?
"I killed him," she said in a breath. "I killed them both."
"Both?" Kakashi questioned in confusion.
Sakura stiffly managed to nod her head. "The rogue….and the mortal."
There was no response from Kakashi or Naruto. Just silent staring. And then Sakura lost it. She broke down and cried into her palms as the reality of what happened crashed down on her. She did not just kill someone, she had committed the biggest sin a seraph could.
When she had woken that day, never had she expected things to turn out as they did. Never did she think that she would blindly lead Sai into such a danger. Never did she think that Sasori would turn out to be seraphim. Never did she think she would face such a powerful rogue on her own. And never did she think that she would end a life, let alone two. But most of all, never did she think that today, tomorrow, or any day of her existence would she end the life of a human being.
Yet today, she did all of it.
And as she wept into her hand and felt the warmth of two pairs of arms wrap around her, she asked herself the same question that Kakashi had just quarried to her.
What happened?
Earlier that morning…
A light chime sounded from Sai's pocket and Sakura immediately straitened up in her seat as she looked expectantly at the dark haired boy sitting across from her. With his head bent over the sketchbook laying next to his forgotten lunch, Sai did not make a move or even acknowledge the alert of his cell phone. A second chime of either a new text message or a reminder that he had an unread message sounded from his pocket again. Gripping the edges of the metal table they sat at, Sakura starred intensely at the top of Sai's bent head as she willed him to check his phone. Her knee began to bounce when he made no move again. A full two minutes went by before Sakura could wait no longer.
"Are you going to check that?" she quickly prodded. Her dangerously sweet tone that was edgier than usual caused Sai to look up at her.
"Hmm?" He hummed in question, as if oblivious to the fact that it had gone off.
"Check. Your. Phone," she emphasized through the gritted teeth of a stiff smile.
With motions far too slow for Sakura's liking, Sai pulled his phone from his pocket, slid his finger up to unlock the screen and tapped the new alert icon. Sai silently read the message and then put his phone quietly back in his pocket. Sakura waited for him to say something and when he went back to drawing without a word, she frowned.
"Well…" she prodded.
Sai let out a sigh that bordered on annoyance. It was a recent development and Sakura wondered if this was what it was like for parents with teenagers.
"It was just a reminder text from the landlord about rent being due this week."
Sakura sagged. "Oh," she said in disappointment.
Sai paused in his drawing to look at her. "Why is it so important that he replies back?"
"Because you guys seemed to have really hit it off the other night," she explained. "If you met up again you could become more acquainted and develop a possible friendship."
Sai went back to his drawing. "Why is it so important that I have friends. I already have you," he stated, "why do I need more?"
"Yes you do have me, but it never hurts to have more friends and variety. He can talk to you about other things that I cannot." Sakura answered. "And besides I thought you liked Sasori?"
"I do," Sai said, not looking up at her. "But I just feel-" he paused his hand in shading but remained avoiding eye contact with her, choosing to talk towards the page instead of her- "it feels like you seem to be eager to pawn me off onto someone else."
His admission pulled at her heart strings. Sai always seemed so oblivious to others that it was easy to forget he could be self conscious.
"Sai," she said, pulling on his sleeve until he looked at her. "You know that's not true, I promise. But it's important that you make relationships with others, other humans," she emphasized when he opened his mouth to counterpoint. "A person's worth is not based on the number of friends but the quality. And as much as I value the worth and quality you see in me to be all you need, there are others that can offer what I cannot. You know this."
Sai nodded with understanding. However there was still uncertainty in his face. "But what if he doesn't like me? What if the only reason why he reached out was because of my tie to you?"
This was the difficult part when it came to be Sai's guardian angel. In many ways he was an adult, physically for sure but he also possessed experience most men his age, or most people in general, would never experience their entire lives. But in so many ways he was still a child. Developmentally he was at all spectrums of age groups, toddler, teen, adult, and elderly. Right now she felt she was working with the toddler portion. It felt like she was setting up a playdate. For a person his age it was certainly inappropriate, but for someone at his level of emotional capacity for relationships, it was necessary. Sai would not get far, nobody could get far, without a good friend or two.
Sakura shrugged. "Then he is not a person worthy of your friendship. But that's part of life. Friendships are not much different than romantic relationships," she explained. They had recently gone over the basics of the purpose of dating. "Some people just aren't meant to be friends and that is okay. And if they do, sometimes it depends on a point in a person's life. Some friends are forever and others are just there for important moments and times in your life. They come and go, some bonds are painful when broken while others you may not even notice fade away. But what is important is that you value the time you have with them. You respect them and they respect you. Give and receive, do not take advantage but do not let yourself be used."
Sai's face became strained and he looked overwhelmed. "It sounds complicated."
Sakura nodded. "It can be. But if matched with the right person, it can be really easy. But you won't know if you don't try."
Sai pondered her words then sat up, a determined look on his face. "Then I will try for you."
Sakura shook her head as she smiled softly. "Don't do it for me," she corrected. "Do it for yourself."
The sound of his phone went off and both of them looked down where it stuck out from the pocket of his jeans. With his new attitude, Sai was much quicker to pull the phone out and open the new text.
She watched as his eyes lit up. "He replied!" He said excitedly, at least what was excitement for him. "He said he would like to show me around his studio," he announced as his eyes raced across the screen. He turned the screen to her to read but flipped it back towards himself to reread before she could even focus on the letters. As he reread the message, his face glowed happily with the acceptance he had gotten.
Sakura smiled, happy for him. "That's great! Now ask him when and where," she instructed. "Oh and ask if you can bring anything, it's always good to be considerate and contribute."
He began typing a response then paused and looked up at her, his fingers hovering over the keyboard as he looked nervous. "Will you be coming with me?"
"If you want," she replied. "And only if he is okay with it."
Sai nodded and finished a response as he stared back at his phone, waiting. A bubble with three dots began to dance on the screen, then disappeared, then reappeared before the chime sounded and a new message popped on the screen.
"He said that would be even better," Sai responded. Another message popped up and he paused to read it. "He wants to know if this afternoon is okay?"
Sakura paused for a moment. It was not ideal, given the new situation with their protocol, but she was sure there would be no harm. Kakashi and Naruto were usually pretty adept in adjusting to changes.
She nodded. "Sure, where are we meeting him?"
Sai looked down at the address that had been sent earlier. "His place is in queens."
Sakura nodded. "If we catch the bus to the train we should be able to make it easily enough."
"Are you sure this is the right place?" Sakura questioned as she looked at the rusty roof and worn brick building.
It looked like an old warehouse that had been converted into loft apartments that had been vacant for at least twenty years. From her peripheral she saw Sai check his phone, switching back and forth between the text and the GPS app that he had used to direct them to the destination.
"It should be," Sai said. "Unless he meant another Red Brick Estates but the next place closest to here of that name is…" he paused for a moment as he searched on his phone- "...is a Brick Estates over in New Jersey."
Sakura shook her head. "No that would not be it." She paused for a moment, tilting her head to the side as she looked at the building with survey. "Maybe it looks better on the inside," she suggested optimistically. "He is an artist," she pointed out. "I guess there's a certain charm and beauty to things that are crumbling. Looks can be deceiving and the interior could be renovated and hospitable."
She looked to Sai who merely shrugged at her suggestion.
"Well let's not delay," she said, setting a course for the entrance. "We can go in and if it is as it seems on the inside as it is on the outside, we can give him a call and get better directions."
As it turned out, the inside was just as rough as the outside. The building was in fact abandoned and practically gutted of anything that made it once a functioning residency let alone a studio business. There was a large lobby in the front with a tall ceiling that was bowed in from water damage. Meanwhile the floor was more cement and grout than tiling. The few tiles that had yet to be cracked and broken were an off-green 70's style that reminded Sakura of pea soup.
On one wall were several rows of mailbox slots, most of which were missing doors. And on the opposite was a front desk that was covered in a layer of dust. In the far corner was a gaping hole that might have once been an elevator that ran up to the second and third floor above. The doors were jammed half way open, revealing that it was now nothing but an empty shaft in the corner of the building.
Leaving Sai on the bottom floor, Sakura braved the stairs that groaned with every step to look at the second floor. At the top of the landing was a long hallway that led to variously sized apartments. She moved down the hall. Only two apartments still had a front door, one of them just barely hanging by one of its hinges.
As she examined each layout she soon found herself seeing the same things. Barren walls with peeling paint and ceilings with water stains and holes that had been created over years of neglect and exposure to the outside environments. The only sign that anything had ever lived or occupied the buildings were the worn abandoned mattresses of a homeless person, or the occasional pile of rat droppings.
Sakura frowned at the mess before she began to make her way back down to the main floor. There was no sense in even searching the third floor because one thing was clear, there was no one here and had not been for a very long time. Sasori had to have sent the wrong address. It was the only explanation. It was obviously just a human error that could easily be fixed once they had called him. But even with this thought, Sakura could not help but feel an unease. Automatically she pushed the idea out of her mind. She was just being paranoid.
As she came down the stairs, Sai, who was taking in the decay and corrosion of the building with a blank face, turned to her. "Why don't you call him," she suggested. "This is obviously not-"
"Sakura, Sai," came a voice from the other side of the lobby.
They both turned to the doorway they had entered from and spotted Sasori's short silhouette in the door frame. He stepped into the building and came to a stop beneath a beam of sunlight that entered the room from a hole in the side of the wall. He wore simple slacks with a dark blazer over a red button up shirt.
"I apologize for my tardiness, I did not realize you would arrive before me," he said, giving them a stiff smile.
Sakura could not help but be hit with another wave of something being off. Before, them being at the wrong building had explained the oddity she felt about the situation. However, with Sasori being here, that meant this was the correct place. Yet, this was certainly no studio. No matter how artistically challenged she was, she knew this to be a fact. And there was something different about Sasori, the way he moved, the way he was smiling at them, it was almost...mechanical.
Despite her unsettlement, Sakura gave him a small nod but could not help but open her mouth and ask, "I thought we were coming to your studio?"
Sasori surveyed her for a moment with a calculative examination before displaying a casual face of what Sakura thought could be an apology. "Ah yes," he said with an apologetic chortle. "I can see now why you are not at ease. I suppose I should have been more specific." He indicated to the crumbling building around him. "This is what I hope to someday be my studio. I recently purchased it, hoping to restore it and make a studio that would feature upcoming artists." He looked to Sai. "Your art spoke so strongly of finding beauty in broken things that I was hoping maybe you could help me," he explained. "Perhaps you could take a look at it and give me ideas of what to do with the design." He looked to Sakura. "I was hoping you could help as well."
Sakura felt some of her anxiety dissipate with his answer. "Oh," she replied, glancing at Sai who was now looking around at the building with a new light, his mind morphing into his artist mode. She looked back to Sasori. "It is an honor that you would share such a thing with us. I cannot say I will be much help, but I certainly agree with you about Sai. I am confident he can certainly make this place what you hope it to be."
Sasori smiled even more widely and this time more genuine. "Oh I think you devalue yourself," he said.
He came closer, taking her hand in his. Sakura felt his thumb rub across her skin, leaving an unsettling feeling. He was looking down at her hand as if examining a fabric to be made into an extravagant garment. She pulled her hand slightly from his grasp and he looked up at her, something in his eyes glinting.
Unsure of how to respond, Sakura was relieved of the task to say anything when a fourth presence announced itself. A presence that Sakura sensed before they had even made an appearance. A presence that triggered her internal alarms to a high enough alert that was impossible to ignore.
The chakra could not be described as anything but explosive, sudden and alarming. Immediately her eyes went to the doorway and she stiffened the moment the fourth person walked into the building with a swagger. While she was not entirely familiar with all members of the Akatsuki, she had no struggle with identifying Deidara the moment she took him in. After spending several hours with the rogue's all too grabby hands on her as they danced, the blond hair pulled into a ponytail and the ice blue eyes were all too familiar.
She moved to open her mouth, to call Sasori and Sai to her but she was stopped when Sasori let out a curse and greeted him.
"Deidara," he growled in an unnaturally deep tone, "What are you doing here?"
Sakura's eyes flashed between the pair. Did Sasori know him? Was Sasori under his influence? If so, what exactly was Deidara planning?
Deidara gave an arrogant snort. "Boss man wanted me to come help, yeah," he said as his icy blue eyes moved around the room, taking in Sai and then moving on to Sakura. He did a double take when he looked at her. For a moment his brow crumpled in confusion as if trying to place the familiarity of her, and suddenly a glint of recognition brightened in his face. "Well, well," he said with a sinister sneer. "Isn't this a pleasant surprise."
Sakura did not even respond, her body was frozen as her mind seemed to be unable to communicate as it was overcome with worry. When was the last time she let her chakra slip?
When she was around only mortals she oftentimes let it flow freely as it was tiring to keep it masked for the entirety of the day. But given more recent events, she had been more cautious. There was no telling when Sasuke could randomly show up. However with his absence over the past couple of days, there was a chance she could have relaxed a little. If she had, had it been recently since they arrived here? How long had Deidara been in the area?
In her peripheral vision she caught Sasori giving her a curious look. "Do you two already know each other?" he asked, looking between herself and the rogue seraph.
At Sasori's inquiry, Deidara pointed to her. "Oh I most certainly do, we met at a club awhile back. Wouldn't forget a body like that after having it pressed up against me for a good hour," he said, causing Sakura to look repulsed. "Unfortunately that was the night I had to meet up with Sasuke and when I came back she was not to be found." His eyes glinted. "What a coincidence that we met that night and it turns out that you are one of them, yeah."
Her heart leapt in her chest at the mention of Sasuke. If a member of the Akatsuki was meeting with Sasuke, did that mean he was one of them? Would Sasuke do such a thing? She hated to believe he was capable of putting her in danger. Surely if he was involved, he would know this encounter would be taking place. Then again, as she recalled her last words to him, perhaps he was conceding to her wishes. Leaving her alone.
In this moment, all she could think was how she wished he was here. It was like an instinctual knowledge that he would keep her safe no matter what threatened her. Though in this moment, it was hard to imagine, not after the way she had treated him, pushed him away when he so direly needed someone, needed her to give him a chance.
As much as she wanted to immediately begin to question Deidara and find the truth to these answers, there was something else Deidara had said that caught her attention. Something that unfortunately took the president over Sasuke and his possible involvement with Akatsuki.
Sakura's brow creased. "What do you mean, one of them?"
Deidara gave out an arrogant snort. "As much as I would like to oblige any request that came from those pretty little lips of yours, my instructions are to just bring you in," he answered. "I will let the boss man answer what he will, yeah."
Sakura shifted slightly as she widened her stance and curled her hands into a fist. "I am not going anywhere with you," she said firmly.
Subtly she let her eyes dodge around the room, taking note of exit points and each person's position, most importantly Sai and his escape. Sai stood just a few meters away, his dark eyes blankly watching the exchange but Sakura knew him well enough that he was analyzing everything and was more than aware of the danger they were in. As much as she hated his tragic past, she was grateful for the skills that he had learned during those times as they were about to come in handy within the next few moments. At least that's what she hoped.
Taking a few cautious steps, she moved over to Sai and brushed her hand against his. Upon contact, she gave him the smallest of tugs on his sleeve before sending out a small influence for him to run away. It was not so potent that he was forced to take immediate action, but it was enough to nag at his mind. She noticed him look at her slightly from her peripheral and give the smallest of nods, telling her that he understood. It was not the clearest of communication, but it at least kept others unaware that they were even communicating to form a plan of escape. And it told her that when she gave a command, Sai would obediently follow her direction.
Deidara walked over to where Sasori was and Sakura cursed herself. By the looks of it, they were working together, but more than likely, Sasori was under Deidara's influence. Which meant, he was just an innocent mortal caught up in a rogues manipulation and she was torn. Sai was her charge, his protection was her duty and went above all else. However, she could not just abandon a wayward soul, especially to the likes of a Deidara. There was no telling what he would do with him.
She gave the lobby one last sweep, taking in the hallways that led to other parts of the main floor, the pillars that stretched high to the vaulted ceiling, and to where Deidara was sauntering over to Sasori. Her foot shifted and nudged a piece of tile on the floor. She looked down to see it broken in half, the edge of the broken side sharp and pointed. When she looked back up to where Deidara was, she had her plan.
Keeping her eyes on Deidara, not daring to even blink, she squatted down. With her fingers, she reached for the tile. For a moment they blindly searched until her fingers brushed its side and it let out a grainy sound as it shifted. She grabbed it and slowly rose back up, tile in hand.
Deidara let out an amused huff. "Sweetheart," he said with a degrading tone, "I'm sorry but that little tile there isn't going to do you much good, yeah. Why don't you ju一"
Sakura moved into action. Like the many frisbee tossing park goers she had observed in the parks with Sai, she flung the tile towards Deidara. As it spun towards him with a far more lethal speed than he had been expecting, he leapt out of the way. By the time the tile shattered against the wall behind him, Sakura was already pulling Sai towards the exit.
She shoved Sai forward and pushed him towards the exit. "Keep going," she shouted when he hesitated. "I will be right behind you."
Trusting that he would follow her instructions, she paused at one of the supporting columns. It was already damaged, a large chunk of bricks missing as if something massive had taken a bite out of its base. She sent a kick into its opposite side and it fell like a tree being harvested for timber, causing a shower of ceiling to rain down on them. She turned back around to follow after Sai but a pair of strong arms wrapped around her, stalling her escape.
Twisting her head around she caught a glimpse of red. Sasori. She failed to register the strength holding her when in the corner of her eye, she saw a flash of yellow and she looked to see Deidara running out of the exit towards Sai. Her heart leapt and she moved into action. Doing her best to keep Sasori's fragile mortal body in mind, she twisted in his arms and gave him a gentle push. He was thrust away from her and she wondered if perhaps she had overly compensated her restraint in force as he hardly moved a few steps backwards, when he should have been thrown to the ground. However the thought did not process fully as she was already turning back to follow Deidara.
At the sound of her pursuit, Deidara turned around, a small look of surprise and annoyance coming to his face. He reached into the pocket of the trench coat he was wearing and tossed something from it. Sakura watched as it landed near the entrance. She was given just enough time to register the shape of wings and a beak on the small clay figurine before she found herself being thrown back by a heated explosion that erupted in front of her.
She landed on the hard surface of the crumbling tile and cement flooring of the building. After rolling several times she finally came to a sliding stop several yards from where she had been standing earlier. Pain manifested all across her body. The side she had initially landed on ached from the impact while the rest of her body stung from the abrasions that had been scraped into her skin from the rocky ground. And her insides in general felt like jello from the blastwave. When her body finally came to a stop she let out a groan, unable to move from the aftershock of the explosion.
She was not sure how long she laid there but she found herself stirring when she thought she heard someone yelling. A ringing in her ears kept their words from being registered, but she could make out the urgent tone in which they spoke. She focused some chakra to her eardrums and as she repaired the damage, the tinnitus faded. With a grunt she began to sit up, but paused when she heard the unmistakable sound of her name being called out.
She looked to the doorway, or at least where it once was. Now there was nothing but collapsed building and a crater covering the entrance way. Her name was called out again and immediately recognized her best friend's voice.
"Naruto," she called, her voice weak and strained.
"Sakura!" he called back. "Thank the gods, don't worry Kakashi and I will get you out in a second."
She heard something being shifted but opened her mouth to halt it. "No wait," she exclaimed with a wheezing breath, letting out a cough as the dust had yet to settle. "Sai...you need to go after him...Deidara, he was here, he was going after him." She looked at the wall of debris and caught half of Kakashi's face peeking in at her through a small gap. "Go, you need to get him."
"Sakura are you hurt? We need to get you out of there," Naruto insisted.
Sakura shook her head. "I'm fine. Just some scratches and bruising, nothing I can't manage." She yelled back. "You two go, I will catch up with you. I bought some time for Sai but not enough. I will dig myself out then catch up with you but you have to go now!"
From the other side of the wall Kakashi and Naruto exchanged worried looks. "Very well," Kakashi conceded as he looked back at her through the gap. "If something else happens go straight home, we will get Sai but I don't like this. We were set up and their intentions are unclear. None of this makes sense."
Sakura nodded. "Yes, I promise. Don't worry about me, I will be fine, just get to Sai."
She received a single nod from Kakashi before he disappeared from sight. The sound of running feet and the flapping of wings followed, telling her they had left for Sai. The dissipating sound of rustling wings gave her enough comfort to adjust her attention from Sai and focus on her injuries.
Nothing seemed broken but there were several tender contusions on her hip and ribs where she had landed. Abrasions covered the bare skin of her arms and legs where her clothing did not cover, most small surface wounds but there were a few deeper cuts. And while her insides felt abused, nothing was severely damaged. Assessment finished, she went to work healing herself.
While the swelling receded and the bleeding stopped, she was still covered in smearings of blood but there was nothing to be done about that until she had a bath. Getting to her feet, she moved her body around as she began to take a few steps. After confirming that everything seemed to be in order, she quickened her steps into a run.
Just as she prepared to take a leap and let her wings burst from her body, she felt something warm and tight wrap around her ankle. Before she could fully register the odd sensation, she felt both her feet being pulled out from under her and again, she crashed down onto the sharp ground.
Her chin cracked against the cement and a radiating pain traveled up her jaw as a trickling warmth began to run down her chin and neck. As she pushed herself up to her hands and knees, she wiped at the warmth, adding another layer of blood on her forearm as she shakily transitioned from her hands and knees to sit down and look at her foot.
Wrapped around her ankle was a thin cord, the blue tint of its glowing hue giving her skin an eerie look. There was no questioning the makeup of such a material. Her fingers automatically moved to the coil of chakra only to note the string trailed from her ankle along the ground. With her eyes she followed the thin line to where it ran along the floor then dipped down into the crater left from Deidara's explosion.
She now understood why she had tripped but what she did not understand was who's chakra was this?
Her confusion was only expanded when she saw the top of a red head rise from the crater, followed by the rest of Sasori's body. In all of the confusion and distraction, she had completely forgotten about the mortal. But there was something off, he seemed to be injury free, not a single scratch across his skin nor a single hair singed. Her brow crumpled, she could have sworn Sasori had not been standing far from her, how he could have survived the explosion, let alone not even get a single injury….had he managed to move? If so, how did he manage to move away so quickly? Or perhaps maybe she was remembering wrong and he had been farther away than she thought.
As he managed to escape the crater and stand at the edge, looking at her with a blank face, she registered something that caused her to shake her head in disbelief. She really had hit her head harder than she thought, because she could have sworn she could see chakra streaming from the tips of his fingers...but that was impossible.
She refocused her eyes and found herself not mistaken. And not only was the chakra streaming from his fingertips, but pooling down by his feet and running across the space between them in thin strands to where they were sneaking around her ankles and wrists. Sakura quickly yanked herself backwards, snagging her arm away from one tendril that had been just about to snag her right arm but her left was not fast enough. Like around her ankle, the string snaked around her wrist, tightening its hold with an uncomfortable warmth.
Alarmed, she looked up to Sasori whose face contorted into a mechanical smile. "So you can see them?" he said with a fascination in his voice. "You are a curious little mortal aren't you. I apologize for the damage, I did not wish to see such harm come to you. I prefer to preserve such beauty but unfortunately my partner does not seem to share the same ideas."
Sakura furrowed her brow. Was Sasori working with Deidara of his own free will? It was not unheard of mortals being involved within the seraphim world on their own free will, but it was still rare. However even as she thought of this, she took in the chakra. No mortal could manipulate chakra...at least not to her knowledge. Which meant Sasori was not a mortal. But yet, she could still sense something mortal within him. It was muffled and faint, but still there.
Then the unthinkable happened. A pair of wings burst from his back and her eyes widened as she took in the arched appendages and she felt her stomach lurch at the display. She could tell by the soft and delicate feathers that began at his shoulder blades that these were wings of a once blessed seraph, but it was the only recognizable trace of what this seraph once was.
Her own black feathers and even Kakashi's tarnished grey wings had always been unique. Never had she been able to look at her ebony wings and think they were normal. But as she took in the sight of Sasori's, for the first time, she felt hers were as normal as any others.
Apart from the scapular feathers where the shoulder blade met the wing, his wings were nothing but a perverse mechanical copy of what represented a seraph. Where smooth and soft feathers should have made the body of wings, castings of steel with razor edging had replaced the feathers. Obviously this was a case of a seraph who had lost their wings, either by an inflicted wound or a curse from a vow that had been bent. Sakura could not even stomach the thought of someone intentionally switching out what was so precious to a seraph for something so barbaric.
With a mechanical sound, Sasori raised his wings and spread them out for full display. "Do you like them? They are my own creations," he informed her as he gave her an unhinged smile. "By the look on your face you have never seen such things. They are unique, are they not?"
Sakura took in the frightening scene as her mind went into panic. She was far over her head. She had been trained to fight, trained to defend herself and if it came to it, defeat another of her kind. However, could Sasori even be considered seraph anymore? Could such atrocities even produce flight? If not, what purpose did they serve?
"What are you?" she questioned.
Sasori gave her a tilted look. "Nothing your little mortal brain could ever comprehend," he said with a sinister tone.
As her mind whirled, Sakura was struck with only one life preserving thing. Sasori had called her mortal, he still believed she was mortal. It was not the best advantage, but it gave her something to work with. She just had to time it right.
A tightening around her ankles and wrist reminded her of the strings he caught her with. With the slightest of movement, she pulled at them, testing them without drawing too much attention to the action. They were strong, the chakra that they were made of was obviously well controlled, but if given enough force she could hopefully sever the strings with her own.
It was risky but what else did she have? She needed to free herself then flee. If Sasori was a seraph and working with Deidara, that meant he was more than likely the same status as any other Akatsuki member, something she was certain was far above her ability to best on her own. With no other ideas presenting themselves, Sakura moved into action. She would only have one chance at this, once she released her chakra she would be exposed. There would be no masking it, not with the amount she was calculating would take to sever his strings.
She slammed her fist down, the force of chakra leaving her body equal to a mortar exploding, causing an eruption of cement, dirt, and structural metal to become disrupted as it flew in all directions. With another force of chakra she yanked at the cords wrapped around her skin as she leapt into the air. Her wings exploded from her back and immediately she began to furiously flap them, the momentum projectiling her through the debris that was raining down around her as parts of the building shook loose from the small tremor caused by the impact of her fist. As plaster and brick fell away, it created holes in the sides and roof of the building, letting in pillars of light. She spotted a particularly large hole that would allow her body to get through and sped towards the opening.
She was nearly there when she felt something catch around her ankle. She looked back, expecting to find another string of chakra and preparing to yank herself free. Instead she found Sasori just below her, his hand clasped around her in a vice grip as his face was contorted into a disfigured glee.
It seemed that his heavy wings could provide flight. That was the only thought she could process before she felt her body being yanked in the opposite direction as she was hurdled through the air.
Her wings flapped wildly in an attempt to regain her control but she collided with a wall before she could manage to even reorient herself. Through drywall and timber she crashed through until her back hit a more solid wall of brick. It cracked and crumbled slightly but remained sturdy as she slumped against it. As dust and mortar settled around her she stayed still, like a bird flying into a closed window, she felt stunned and unable to move.
Through the dust and plaster that particled in the air, Sakura heard a spine chilling sound echo around her. She looked up to see the form of Sasori's mangled wings and body appear as he strutted towards her through the hole in the wall she had just created with her body.
"Isn't this a surprise," he said as his manic laughter died down. "And here I thought I was the master of deceiving people for what I am...but this...this is too good," he finished, stopping in front of her as he took in the ebony feathers of her crumpled wings.
With a wariness, Sakura managed to rise to her feet, using the brick wall to support herself. She ruffled her wings, shaking free the plaster and dust that had clung to the feathers.
"To think a fallen angel such as yourself is still working with those heavenly vultures," he said as his eyes ran down her wings, taking in the rich darkness with admiration. "I must know what you did to rid yourself of their colors yet still keep your feathers?" He indicated to his own wings. "As you can see I was not as able to preserve mine, but you...I must know."
"I am not fallen," she growled. "I would never betray my duties nor the heavens."
Sasori tilted his head to the side. "You mean you still live in the heavens? They allow you to dwell there even after defiling their sacred symbol of purity?"
Sakura frowned at what he was insinuating. "I didn't do anything," she said. "I was born this way, there is nothing wrong with me."
Despite the centuries she had spent wondering what was wrong with her shadowed wings, she now firmly defended them. The affirmations from Tsunade, Naruto, and Kakashi that she was no lesser of a seraphim, resounded in her ears more than ever. And for the first time, she fully believed their words were of truth and not just comfort to ease a troubled mind.
"Interesting," Sasori commented. "Unfortunately we do not have time to praise such natural beauty of defiance, my master is eager to speak with you. And given the certain change in circumstances, we should make haste, he will not like the news of your heritage to be postponed."
Sakura narrowed her eyes. "I think I already made it clear to Deidara I did not want to go anywhere with him, the same goes for you."
Sasori let out a heavy sigh. "I was wanting to avoid such things." He gestured around the rubble that had already formed around them. "This building will not take much more of your resistance to cooperate, surely you can be a good girl, and for the sake of this building, come willingly."
Sakura gave him a hard look in response.
Sasori sighed again. "Very well," he announced with a tired shrug.
The moment his shoulder finished its descent to normal posture, he was moving again. His wings flared out as he propelled them forward around his body. Sakura's eyes went wide as razor sharp feathers were thrust towards her, slicing through the air like knives. She focused chakra to her feet just in time to jump out of the way. The moment her feet landed she was forced to move again as another wave of feather knives were shot towards her and she was forced into a backflip, twisting and turning to avoid the sharp metal. With every small sting she felt, she knew she had failed to avoid one.
She landed again and slammed her fist into the ground, sending a slab of concrete to break into pieces. As one half was forced deep into the ground the other rose up and formed a barrier to deflect the final wave of knives.
Taking advantage of the pause, she peeked around the wall to where Sasori was still standing in his original spot. The tingling of metal against rock rang through the air. A metallic glint caught her eye and Sakura spotted the scattered feathers that had been thrown at her move across the ground towards Sasori. Like a magnetic wave, they were drawn to him, connecting and forming back into the shape of wings on his back.
Sakura narrowed her eyes, unsure of how such a thing worked but she assumed they had been infused with his chakra in order to manipulate them as such. His brown eyes began to scan the area and she quickly drew back behind the safety of the wall.
"Sakura," he called. "I do not have time to play games of hide and seek. Come out and let us settle this as seraphim. You and I are not all that different after all. I can now assume you are Sai's guardian?
"You know I too was once a guardian," he continued. "I understand the bond, the need to protect. We both know he won't outrun Deidara. Come with me and I will take you to him. You know that he will be safer if you are there. While my master wanted the both of you, I believe it was you that he wanted most. I cannot promise Sai will be okay if it is just him. But if you come with me now, I promise you he will not be harmed."
Sakura listened to him and did her best to ignore his words. Kakashi and Naruto were going after Sai, she had to believe they would get to him in time. She cast her eyes around and she tried to think. She had promised them that she would be okay and she would keep that promise. She had been trained to fight, not to give up, therefore she would fight.
With this firmly in her mind, she reached out to a large piece of debris. It was a section of foundation with rebar sticking out of it. A person with average strength would barely be able to budge it, let alone lift it. But Sakura was not of average strength.
Wrapping her hand around a suitable hand hold, she prepared herself. She heard footsteps coming towards her, announcing that Sasori was nearing and coming around from the left. Breathing in deeply, she began to anticipate when to make her move. She took in two more breaths before she took action.
Standing up, she rounded the wall and hurtled her weapon like a hammer throw. Sasori had just enough time to turn towards her before it connected to his body and he was sent flying, just as she did moments before, through several walls. With each additional damage to the structure of the building, it gave out a groan and more fragments of the building fell down around her. She avoided them as she ran towards him, taking advantage of her strike as she moved to attack again. Summoning chakra to her fists and feet she leapt into the air and prepared to strike down at him again as she used her wings to propel her more forcefully.
Sakura avoided the latest shower of cement and debris, jumping to the side and taking cover near a sturdy pillar at the edge. She watched as the last of the three levels, including the roof, collapsed in the middle to form a large pile of rubble. A dusty film filled the air and the ground shook beneath her feet as the integrity of the foundation was compromised, sinking slightly into the ground. As the dust took its time to settle, Sakura darted her eyes around the enclosure, looking for any signs of Sasori. She had lost track of him when the roof collapsed and she was forced to land to avoid being caught beneath the debris.
The sound of rocks shifting to her left caused her to start but it was only rubble settling. She ducked down anyways and hid behind a sheet of rusty metal that once served as part of the roof. Using the holes made from the corrosion of rust to peak through, she kept an eye out for Sasori. As her eyes scanned the rubble, her mind raced for an answer of what to do. Her side had a severe wound from when one of his feathers had impaled her but she had healed it enough to stem the flow of blood. She had a few other wounds that would need more than her natural healing but at the moment they were not what worried her.
She was getting tired and chakra was running low. That is where her concern resided. She could try to slip away like before, but Sasori would most likely follow. If he did, that meant their battle would only commence somewhere else, possibly somewhere more populated with witnesses. The risk of innocent bystanders getting hurt was not something she was willing to take.
Her first strategy had been to stall as long as possible until reinforcements came, but she was now seeing a flaw in that plan. There was no telling when Kakashi and Naruto would return and she was not sure how much longer she could last. This meant she needed to handle all of this herself. And handle it fast.
Naruto and Kakashi had always been the ones to do the killing, an idea she was not comfortable with but capture was not an option, not when it was just her. This left her with only one option. She knew this day would come, she just never thought it would be today.
There was movement at the top of one of the rubble piles and Sasori appeared, his red hair dulled by the grey cement dust that had covered everything like a fresh dusting of snow. He had long ago discarded his blazer and his dress shirt was missing several buttons, causing it to fall open and expose his chest.
Peeking through a hole as she watched him look around. Her eyes narrowed when she noticed something on his chest. Straining her eyes, she focused on a marring on his otherwise smooth skin. To some they would think it nothing more than a scar or tattoo, but having lived long enough among the seraphim, she recognized those marks. They were marks caused by a seal, and if memory served her correctly, they were the sealing marks of a mortal who had been possessed.
Possession. So this was Sasori's method of survival in the mortal realm. She now understood why she had sensed a mortality about him. And it was also why she had never suspected him before as his seraphim presence had been hidden by the mortality of the human boy he was possessing. It also answered why his wings had been so...altered.
She had yet to personally handle a case in which a mortal was possessed. The duty of exorcism was usually left to seasoned archangels as it was a task that required meticulous precision as things could go south very quickly.
Possession itself was a delicate technique. Like a parasite, the seraph would latch on and merge their soul to the mortal body. As bodies were only meant to host one soul, one would suppress and dominate the other. Usually the seraph took control but on the rare occasion the mortal would win the battle, causing the seraph to become entrapped and unable to move to another host.
When done correctly, it was the best way for a seraph to survive the mortal realm without collecting souls as they fed from the host. However when possessing a body, a seraph was limited to only what a mortal was capable of. It was why so many rogues sought out alternative means to survival. But it seemed Sasori had found a way around such limitations.
As she took in the markings on his chest, Sakura did her best to recall everything she had ever read about exorcism. The most popular method was to force the demon out of the body where you could then fight the seraph in his true form. But this took certain skills she had not been trained in. However there was one other, more difficult method. If the place in which the demon had attached himself was known, one could break through the seal to where the essence, or seraph's soul, lurked within the mortal. In this case, the center of Sasori's chest. The essence was then destroyed when extracted.
If she could break through the seal and destroy the essence of the seraph, it would be an instant kill. Something she was in desperate need of. There would be no telling just how much more powerful Sasori would be out of the confines of a mortal body.
If she were to get close enough, she could manage to do this. The only problem was that anytime she came into close range, she was forced to retreat by Sasori's feathers. However there was always a lag when he had to summon them back. But that was when he would use his chakra strings. Already she had several red rings around her arms, wrists, and legs from when he had managed to catch her. Each time she was able to break free by manipulating her own chakra to sever the tie. But she was running low, too low.
Sakura bit at her lip as she tried to come up with a plan. Sasori fluttered his wings with an agitation as his eyes scanned around the rubble. He let out a low growl of her name. It ricocheted and echoed before dying down. When he only received the breezy wind in response, his face contorted with anger.
The sound of rubble shifting on the opposite side of the building caused him to whirl around and send a wave of feathers towards the source. They sliced through the air before penetrating into part of a still standing brick wall. They quivered for a moment before suddenly being yanked out and magnetized to him.
Sharp metal against metal sounded as each feather latched onto the metal frames on his back until they reformed his wings. And as Sakura watched this, she was struck with an idea.
It was dangerous. If it were to fail, this fight would be over and she would be captured. Or given the agitation that Sasori had gained, she would be dead. The action not being put past him now that she had spent a good hour going against him. There was no one else around, who would ever tell his master? However despite the small chance that she could properly carry out this plan, it was all she had.
He always flung them in three waves, each wave made up of his different feathers. The primaries, secondaries, and finally the corverts. With this in mind, she put her strategy into action. The moment she came out of hiding, Sasori whirled around and sent his first attack flying.
The first wave she maneuvered through. While the largest, they were also the fewest and dullest of his feathers. They were designed more for impaling than slicing. Twisting and turning, she dodged the sharp points as they shot past her and embedded themselves in the metal sheet she had been hiding behind.
As she tumbled and rolled back up onto her feet after the last feather of the first wave cut past her, she grabbed up a piece of plywood as she stood. No later did she manage to get a grip on it and Sasori sent the second wave of attack. As she dodged through the shower of Sasori's secondaries, she used the plywood as a shield against the ones she could not move out of the way for. The plywood gave out a dull thud each time it was struck and a pointed tip wedged through to the other side.
The third wave started before the second even finished. This wave was the sharpest and had the most obstacles for her to avoid. Like spray of machine gun bullets, they shot towards her. She flung the plywood at an angle, clearing a portion of them as she slid to the ground to avoid others. The stinging of new cuts announced that some were still unavoidable. For the second time that day, her thigh and forearm were practically skinned to the meat as she slid across the floor. By the time she came to a stop, the thunder shower sound of metal striking against rock and wood had fallen silent.
She squeezed her eyes shut at the flaming pain that burned at the abrasions. Gritting her teeth she forced herself to prepare for her next move as it was the most important. The tickling warmth of the chakra strings winding around legs and arms was he cue to make her next and hopefully final move.
Bolting upright, Sakura grabbed the strands that were reaching out to her with her left hand. As soon she grabbed them, they began to wind around tightly. Looping around her wrist and forearm before constricting with a tightness that made her arms burn as the skin was twisted at odd angles as the multiple strings made their own attachment.
In a swift motion she collected the strings in her hand and pulled on them until they were taut. As soon as the strings were tense, she gave a hard yank. Sasori, who had been unsuspecting and unprepared, jerked forward. Catching up the slack of the line, she yanked on it again, this time with a strong force that had Sasori careening towards her.
Caught off guard he had no chance to react or stop himself as he was pulled towards her. Reaching back, she charged her free fist before thrusting it forward. She had timed it perfectly as her arm reached its full extension just as Sasori came close enough for her to make contact.
The skin beneath the seal shattered like wood instead of flesh and bone. And her hand grasped around something of a viscous material the size of a baseball. She pulled her hand free, the body of Sasori crumpling to the ground. Within her hand was a glowing orb. Automatically her hands squeezed and a purple essence began to leak out like blood, only this blood did not yield to the laws of gravity. It dripped upwards like rainfall in reverse where it collected into a ball above her.
Sakura gave out one final squeeze. The orb disintegrated as the light leaked from her grasp and rose to join into a swirl of purple and blue light. It spun around into a vortex, a current of wind being caught up and whipping her hair around wildly. With a thunderous crack, it collapsed into itself.
Following the implosion, there was an unnatural stillness left in the area. Sakura stared wide eyed in disbelief as her breaths came in and out and sounded far louder in the silence. A drip of sweat ran down her back and made her shiver. She blinked, unable to believe that she had done it, that it had actually worked.
However as the thought struck her, there was a sound near her feet and she looked down to see Sasori's body moving. Her eyes widened at the movement. How could he still be alive? Surely that theatrical display hadn't been nothing.
But then his eyes opened and Sakura found herself falling to her knees as she leaned over Sasori's body. Looking into his brown eyes, she could tell that something was different. His gaze was panicked and pained but also...soft and grateful. It was then that Sakura saw it. The flicker of his soul, growing brighter as it awakened. This was not Sasori, this was the mortal he had possessed. She looked deeper into his eyes, past his irises and the deep pupils. Straight into the nonphysical depths where his soul was kept.
It was like candlelight, small and flickering. But the integrity of the light was still warm and clear. It was a lonely soul, the type found in neglected children who did not want for much except for the love of a parent. She had seen such souls far too often and too many times these events caused a soul to go down a wayward path.
But not this soul, not this mortal. It was the soul of a good spirit. Someone who lived their life with others in mind. She could see the compassion and care that flickered in those flames. They reached out to others, giving them what he himself never received in return.
She pulled out of his soul's eye when his body gave out a ragged cough. Droplets of blood flew from his mouth, some spraying her face and clothes while the others sprinkled upon his all to pale skin. He took in a ragged breath that sounded like he was drowning and it was then that the reality of what was happening struck her with a jolt.
The mortal was alive but he was in the process of dying. She looked down at his chest where the seal had been only to find a gaping hole. Blood seeped from his chest with every weak heart beat that his body gave.
She took in a shocked breath and immediately began to fumble around. Her hands pressed down on the hole and she began to flood his chest with healing chakra. However this only caused the boy to give out a cry of pain. Her flow of chakra faltered at the sound and she looked up to see his face contorted in anguish.
She moved to continue again, putting her chakra into his chest, trying to knit his body back together and replenish the massive amount of blood lost. "Stop!" he begged. "Please stop, make it stop."
"I will, I will," she assured but even as she said this her chakra was beginning to sputter out. "I'm sorry," she said with anguished sobs. "I'm so sorry."
She felt his hand come to her wrist in a weak grasp. The gesture made her pause and look up at his face. He gave her a weakened smile, blood staining his teeth pink as it collected at the corners of his mouth. With shaking hands she cupped his face and gave him a reassuring smile.
"Don't worry, I will help you. I just need...it'll be alright," she assured him. "My friends will be here soon and they can help."
He shook his head. "No," he said weakly.
She shook her head and opened her mouth to assure him again but she was cut off.
"Thank you," he said. Sakura stared at him in confusion as he repeated the gratitude. "Thank you."
He opened his mouth a third time but only a gurgled breath left his lips as his body went limp. His hand slipped away with a dull thud as she continued to clasp his head between hers. She stared down at him, taking in his blank stare and the flecks of blood that smeared his cheek. Then her lip began to tremble and a dry sob escaped her lips followed by tears. They ran down her cheeks and dropped onto his face, mixing with the still wet blood and causing red lines to draw across his skin as her tears ran down his face like rain on a window pane.
How? How could she have been so negligent? She knew Sasori was possessing this body. She should have taken the mortal into account. This was why it was meant for higher seraphs, for more skilled seraphs. Not for someone who was so careless to neglect the most important factor when it came to exorcism, that there was a mortal involved.
She continued to stare down. Her hands shifted to pat down his curly red hair, leaving a bloody handprint on the side of his face. Not just any blood, his blood. His blood that had poured from his chest. His blood that covered her hands like a pair of crimson gloves.
She took in a shaky breath, her chest straining with a tightness.
She did this. This was all her fault. This innocent and pure soul was lost to the world because she had driven her hand through his chest. She had not even given the mortal any regard when she had attacked with killing intent. She had just done it. She murdered an innocent.
She fell back onto her haunches as the reality of what had just happened seeped even farther into her mind. A breeze rustled her hair and the chirp of a flock of birds caused her to look up at the hole above her. The walls of the building surrounded and towered over her like a colosseum. Blue skies stretched out above her with fluffy white clouds that meandered the aqua canvas. In the center, the midday sun touched her face and it surprised her when the heat of its rays penetrated the numbness of her body and heated her skin.
It was calm and peaceful. And it was all wrong. Everything about it. But she supposed that was what made this so real. It was how reality worked. It did not rain and cloud over like in the movies to set a mood or tone. It was just life. It went on as if nothing happened. As if she had not just committed the most unforgivable sin.
She kept her head down as she recounted the battle and Sasori's demise, not looking at Naruto or Kakashi as she kept her eyes trained on the red coat of blood that stained her hands. It had begun to dry, leaving her hands feeling sticky and stiff.
As she finished, she felt a warm hand gently touch her chin and lift her head. She met Kakashi's single eyed stare.
"That was not your fault," he said firmly. "The mortal would have died no matter what as soon as Sasori was no longer possessing his body. Spirit possession is a very dangerous art which is why it is forbidden of our kind. It's parasitic, the longer and deeper a seraph has threaded and attached itself to a mortal, the more reliant that human becomes on that attachment. Sasori had infected that mortal's heart. Poisoned an essential part of a human body.
"So be it you today, or him willingly detaching himself from the mortal's vessel, it would have ended in the same. His suffering was not the injury you had given him, but something far more painful than physical pain. It was the reality of the deeds committed by Sasori while in possession of his body."
"But he could have at least lived longer," Sakura said, causing Kakashi to shake his head.
"If anything, you did the mortal a favor by ending his life. You freed his soul from the torment of being suppressed and trapped in a prison that was worse than hell. He was not living, he was watching someone else live for him while he sat in a prison within himself. Because you killed Sasori, you freed his soul and let him pass on. Given the description of the soul, I would say he found himself entering the god tree."
Sakura sniffed. "So he is at peace now?" Kakashi nodded and Sakura's shoulders sagged slightly in relief, her conscious feeling lighter.
It fell quiet as she took in several deep and calming deaths. As her mind began to calm, she was able to focus better as she began to process the day. Suddenly, her head snapped back up as she looked at Kakashi in alarm.
"Sai?" she pressed. "He is alright?"
Kakashi nodded and as if on cue the sound of someone approaching caused her to look in the direction of the noise. Sai was walking towards them through the rubble as his eyes took in the destruction around them. Apart from a heavy sweat and messy hair, he looked fine.
He looked to Kakashi for a moment. "I know you said to wait until all was clear but you…" he drifted off when he noticed Sakura and the dead body. "Whatー"
He was cut off when Sakura sprang to her feet and wrapped her strong arms around him. After a moment she felt his arms reach around her and give her an awkward pat on the back.
"Are you okay?"
She nodded into his shoulder and held him tighter before releasing him and standing back. "Yes," she said.
"Then why are you crying?" he asked.
She could not help the small choked laugh that escaped her as she quickly wiped away the few tears that formed as she hugged him. "I am just relieved that you are okay."
He nodded. Not looking like he understood but at least accepting it. She then looked to Naruto. He pulled her into a bear hug and when he released her, he kept one arm around her as he turned to Kakashi.
"What do we do now?"
Kakashi looked around the building. "Given the state of the building before, I guess we can leave it. The mortals will assume there was a structural problem that finally gave out. They are usually good at finding reasons that make sense to them when it comes to the unexplainable.
"As for the body," he said, looking down at the lifeless shell of what once held life, "we will bury it, out of respect for the mortal."
He looked to Sakura when he said this, seeing that the suggestion seemed to lighten the burden that she held in her eyes. It would take awhile for that to be fully eased, if it ever did. No one truly gets over killing another, at least not someone who truly values and cares.
Sakura was certainly one of the people who did care. She valued life both good and bad, always trying to find a way to redeem even the lowest. It was a nice idea, but Kakashi did not quite hold the same belief. There were some that were far too gone, the trick was to know how far was too far.
Sakura came out of the park bathroom looking far better than she felt. After Kakashi gave her a petal from a preserved god tree bloom, she was able to restore enough chakra to heal the largest of her injuries as well as the few Kakashi and Naruto had sustained. Scratches and half healed scars still marred her skin from the battle and she was already debating on if she would heal them all the way or keep them as a reminder.
As she walked past the garbage that propped the door open, she shoved the clothes she had been wearing earlier into the bin as she adjusted the flimsy shirt that she had bought from the corner store.
Silently she walked over to where the three men were waiting for her. Looking down at her now clean hands she noticed a spot of blood she had missed and quickly rubbed at it. As she approached, Kakashi, Sai, and Naruto broke from their lowered conversation and looked at her. They each gave her their own different versions of examinations and sympathetic looks.
She hated it. Despite what Kakashi said, she still could not fully take away the blame from herself. She clutched her hands, suddenly struck with the sensation of having the mortal's blood on her.
After burying him in an unbefitting shallow grave, they had begun to make their way down the streets until Sakura noticed the stares. It was then when she reflected on how she must look, covered in blood, torn clothing, and limping. Kakashi had insisted she go back with Naruto and he would see to Sai, but she refused, not willing to let Sai out of her sight until she knew he was home safe. So they stopped at a corner store and purchased some clothes then went to the nearest public bathroom for her to change and clean herself up.
As the three of them fell silent and watched her, she knew they had been talking about her but she ignored it. She looked to Kakashi who was giving her a nod as he took in the T-shirt that proclaimed her love for the Big Apple.
"I think it would be best that we take Sai to a safe house," Kakashi announced. "Deidara and Sasori had been after both of you. Since Deidara got away I don't want to take the risk of him showing up at his apartment. We can take him to Yamato and he can stay there for the time being until we sort things out."
Sakura nodded. She was familiar with Yamato. He was an old friend and contact for Kakashi when he needed information about the underground seraphim world. Yamato was the result of when the human world and seraph world got too integrated. His mother was a mortal who had been involved with an unknown seraph.
It was not often that such an interaction produced children but it did occur on occasion in the situation when the mother was mortal. If the mother was seraph the child would not survive. It was a situation similar to the mortal condition of RH incompatibility. However instead of having opposing blood types, the chakra in the seraphs body would attack the child. It was not instant but over time, the longer a fetus was exposed to the chakra, the mortal side of it could not handle the exposure. This, in accompaniment to the taboo of having relationships of the romantic nature with mortals, was the reason for such children to be rare.
With the exception of being slightly stronger or having a slight prolonged longevity, children born of such circumstances had no defining seraphim powers. They could not manipulate chakra nor could they produce wings. It was hypothesized that they could possibly influence other mortals but it had no concrete proof that it was genuine influence or just good charisma. Thus said, they were no different than mortals.
Sakura nodded her consent to the proposal and Kakashi's eyes lingered on her for a moment. "We will all go together and once he is settled we will report back." He looked around at the group, checking that they all understood.
After it was decided they began to walk in the direction of Yamato's home. As Naruto and Sai walked ahead, Kakashi slowed down to fall into step with Sakura. For a block they walked in silence. Sakura clutching her arms around herself while Kakashi casually walked with his hands in his pockets.
"Sasori of the Red Sand," Kakashi suddenly said, causing Sakura to look at him in confusion. He looked at her before expanding. "That was the title he was once known by. He earned it during the first war, back when the Egyptians were still building their pyramids. He was one of the most proficient on the heavens side. It was because the color of the sand was stained red after he had slaughtered a battlefield."
Sakura frowned at this image but Kakashi continued.
"I should have made the connection sooner." He shook his head and let out a sigh. "We always suspected he was a part of the Akatsuki but we could never confirm it as his true form has not been worn for millennia. I was just a kid, my wings were not even fully developed when he left the heavens. He blamed the blessed for being corrupt and proclaimed them hypocrites. But I think it always went back to his parents." He fell quiet for a moment before adding, "It was my father who killed his parents, back when he…"
He drifted off and Sakura knew exactly why. Kakashi's father was a delicate subject. He had betrayed the heavens during the wars then at the end came back. However the guilt of his betrayal had been too much and he had taken his life with his own seraph blade. A lot of people, mostly the elders, held a prejudice against Kakashi. They were suspicious that he would follow in his father's footsteps.
Kakashi did not talk about it much and always seemed like none of this bothered him but occasionally, Sakura saw through his mask and glimpsed the pain. Even after thousands of years, it seemed to have an effect on him.
"Why are you telling me this?" Sakura finally questioned. If he was trying to make her feel better, it was a strange way to do it.
Kakashi gave her a long look then looked ahead to where Sai and Naruto were arguing about flavors of Ramen. "Sasori was a powerful enemy. And you defeated him," he said. "Death is not something to celebrate in callousness but if there is something to be taken from it, know that what you achieved was a great accomplishment.
"Be it luck or smart strategy, you were able to prevail because of your obligation to your duty to Sai. It was not for your survival but to be at the aid of another. As long as the reason you end another's life is for the greater good of others, and not for your own personal gain, you will never be at fault for ending a life. Mortal or immortal. The greatest sin is to impend on the free will of others. What Sasori was doing was the epitome of that. If not, crueler."
Sakura considered his words for a moment then finally nodded. As a somber silence fell between them again, Sakura's thoughts recalled something. It was a piece of information she had gleaned just a couple of hours ago but it seemed like days now.
Her head lifted with a jerk, drawing Kakashi's attention to her. "Deidara mentioned something about meeting with Sasuke," she quickly blurted. "He wouldn't...Sasuke couldn't be a part of the Akatsuki...could he?"
Kakashi frowned at this information. She looked at him eagerly, almost desperate for him to confirm the impossibility. Unfortunately the sigh that escaped Kakashi's lips was not reassuring.
"I would like to think him incapable of such a thing," was all he said.
"No fucking way," Suigetsu exclaimed as he stared down at the group making its way through the street, or more so the woman within the group. At first he had not thought much of it until the dawning of recollection hit him. He had seen that face before, seen that hair. "Is that who I think it is?"
He looked back to where Sasuke stood near the rooftop entrance. His arms were folded coolly across his chest with his head bowed and eyes closed. "Hn."
"But how is that possible?" he questioned. "I thought she died?"
"Reincarnation," was the only answer Sasuke gave.
"She is like a flower," Jugo gently commented as he too peered over the ledge.
Suigetsu looked back down to the streets and looked at her again. There was movement to his left and fire red took over his peripheral as Karin came to the edge of the building and looked down as well.
"Hmp," she said after a moment. "She's not that pretty."
Suigetsu gave her a side look. "Compared to what? The mother goddess?" he asked in a snark reply. "If so, where does that put a troll like you in the line up?"
"Shut your trouty mouth before I chop you into ceviche with your own sword!"
Suigetsu gave her a sneer. "I knew I shouldn't have bothered tracking you down."
She folded her arms across her chest. "I am not sure why he even called you. He doesn't need you, I can give him everything–"
"Shut up you two," came Sasuke's sharp and finalizing command.
The pair instantly stopped their squabbling as they looked at the Uchiha. With slow motions, he opened his eyes and took in the pair with sharingan eyes. And then pushed off from the wall he was leaning on and made his way to the edge. Without a word to them, he peered down at the crowded street, his eyes finding their target instantaneous as they were pulled automatically to her.
"The three of you get ready," he instructed. "It's time."
*inhales deeply...releases a pterodactyl screeeeeeeech!* Oh my goodness I think this is the longest chapter yet and made want to lose my mind with how much I kept having to rewrite and change then rearrange. I hope the final product satisfied. I tried to pay a little homage but fight scenes are difficult.
Let me know what you thought! Also I could use some help, I am in need of brainstorming some derogatory terms/names that seraphs would call each like what a demon/fallen would call an angel/blessed. Or ideas for the rogue seraphs as well. Just drop it with you comments and thoughts and I will feature them in the future. I would be grateful.
You are all excellent and I hope you stay well! Take care of yourselves and check in on others, reach out if you need someone to talk to! Next chapter I think will be present day...which I am excited for but it may be back to the past I haven't decided yet and need to work on both of them to figure out the order so bare with me. Regardless we will have sasuke and sakura interaction!