CHAPTER 33: SEISHI FOREST

The memory of last night hung to him line vines on a tree and he tried to shake them off as he continued with his journey. The travel seemed endless and dragging Sasuke didn't feel like it was going to end.

He knew he was already within the boundaries of the forest but where exactly he was supposed to be heading to he wasn't entirely certain. The only sure thing was that there was no going back since he had chosen this life. Chose to hurt her.

Were all the Uchihas this stupid and selfish? Or was it just him? He thought his brother was the worst but now he wasn't so sure between Itachi and him. He always remembered Itachi to be the calm and calculated one. Everybody adored and worshipped him especially their father. He seemed to know exactly what to do. But now Sasuke thought perhaps he didn't know anything about him at all. He used to idolize him when he was younger. Wanted to be just like him. And then at an instant, during that dreaded night, that fondness turned to hate. And then years later, the hate turned to doubt. Why does he have to have somebody confuse him so much? And now there's two of them.

Having Sakura in the picture only made things more complicated. Her presence makes him see things in so many different angles – to see what he could have and couldn't, to see the past and a possible future, see gains and consequences. He never wanted to see things in angles, all he wanted was a straight path. Quick and precise, no second guessings. She was his boon and bane.

Sasuke shook his head unsure of himself anymore and tried to force Sakura off his preoccupied mind. To think of something else he recalled what the old fortune-teller told him. She had told him to go to Seishi Forest. He is here but now what? Well, at least he was somewhat familiar with the area. Orochimaru travelled with him there once. The snake villain visited the area from time to time knowing unusual beasts inhabited the place. Its abundance in foliage made it a good place to hide or even catch prey. The Sannin would try to capture creatures of all sorts; experimenting on their organs or whatever their bodies possessed that interested him - be it urine, horns, blood. If it is living and looks unusual, naturally, Orochimaru has eyes on it and the unfortunate beast, or a part of it, ends up at his laboratory. Like a trophy inside a wall of glass.

Interrupting his thoughts, the presence of someone unknown came to his attention. He supposed this was the answer to his recent question as this newcomer was deliberately conveying out his chakra signatures – they were so uncontrolled it was hard to miss. Sasuke wondered if he would have to engage this stranger and deeply hoped he would not. He has no time to be dealing with others if he could help it. Not unless they are of some use to his quest.

As if hearing his thoughts, this unidentified being spoke to him among the trees unseen.

"We are full of energy today aren't we?", said a raspy voice.

Sasuke who had already stopped from his tracks said nothing. He knew who ever this was wanted his attention and although reluctantly, he will just have to give it to him. A man cloaked in black from shoulder to his dark pointed boots, then emerged from behind a tree just a few feet ahead of him, his hair a bristly mess.

His eyes were gleaming red. Sharingan? No. they were bloodshot, the eyes of a blood-thirsty killer. Sasuke can feel the malevolence this man possessed and knew he would end up having to deal with him.

"Step aside" the Uchiha replied. He would rather not have his patience tested."I don't have any business with you".

"Are you sure about that?". The thing before him chuckled, "But didn't the old baba tell you you were to meet somebody here?"

Sasuke frowned. Was this the person he was supposed to encounter? He didn't dwell too much on this though seeing as his unwanted companion sauntered towards him as if observing and calculating.

"Who are you?" Sasuke demanded.

"Should I really tell you?" he asked. His playful tone not really working on Sasuke's patience. "Alright. Just to get this over with. My name is Karasu". Sasuke could tell he was smiling deviously behind his dark mask.

Karasu? Why was this name so familiar.

"Do you have anything to do with my brother?" Sasuke continued, not the least bit intimidated by the man's presence and the fact that Karasu's chakra has been spiking up and down with excitement.

"Your brother?" He ask curiously, "Perhaps not him but his friend. But why don't you try and get me to answer?" And with that, the masked man launched as he slashed the air with his sword where Sasuke stood a second ago. Held in place to his neck by a string, Karasu's cloak flew back as he sped, the tattered seams looking like wings against the wind. Karasu wore no upper garments revealing a pale and bony torso. It was a surprise his saggy pants did not fall off.

Itachi's friend? Who is he talking about?

It was obvious to him this Karasu was just after the thrill of fighting and killing. He was quick enough to attack Sasuke not even measuring him first. Perhaps this is to Sasuke's advantage. Enemies who are impatient usually end up getting themselves killed. But how is it that this predator seem to read every move Sasuke made? Like he has fought him before. The way he evades and how he strikes his moves seems very deliberate. "What is it that you want from me?". He queried between dodges.

"For now, your blood is enough" Karasu replied as he made another swing of his sword, wanting to sever Sasuke's head.

Quick on his feet, Sasuke eluded and tried to counter with his sword. Metals clashing broke the silence in the woods. Sasuke realized he should'nt have this go on for too long otherwise the guy is just going to wear him out. With force, he swung at Karasu's midsection. Slighty caught off guard, he made a backflip to avoid contact but Sasuke was much quicker and moved before Karasu could land on ground. Taking this to his advantage, he made another quick swing of his sword making it come in contact with his shadowy cloak. He could hear the ripping of fabric and then the ripping of flesh.

Karasu leapt, keeping a good distance away from Sasuke. He gave a manic laugh as he looked at the gash by his left shoulder. Blood began to seep on his cloak making it seem even more darker. "This just gets me even more excited". He then took off the mask hiding half of his face, revealing his thin and somewhat pointy nose, and licked his lips in anticipation. He smiled devilishly that it reminded Sasuke of a grim reaper although he has never seen one.

Sasuke kept his eyes on him, reading his stance. He knew he should'nt underestimate his opponent as Karasu seemed wild and somewhat the hell is this guy after? Or is he just some crazed lunatic? How am'I supposed to get him to talk when he clearly isn't interested in any conversation?

Frustrated he decided he had no choice but to fight. The old lady did tell him she needed the person dead. However, although it's very tempting to kill the bastard, Sasuke is not even sure he has engaged the right person. But who else would it be except for him?

"Why does the old woman want you dead?" he tried to test his luck.

He smirked "old women are miserable. They want all men dead"

"But you must be some level of special"

Karasu faked a laugh. "I didn't know you make jokes. That's something I must add to my intel"

Who is this guy? Sasuke wondered again. There is just something about him that seemed familair but he was sure he has not meet him before. But what he said did jog his memory. While trying to focus on not getting himself killed, the Uchiha racked his brain as well trying to remember a piece of information that could be helpful for him to getting rid of this nuisance of an opponent.

Her eyebrows furrowed as she read the reports before her and caramel eyes scanned back to a photo of a female with cerulean hair and striking blue eyes. Just as she thought she was done and up-to-date with reading her reports, another one was just dropped off earlier this morning and Tsunade had no choice but to read through them. She initially deduced this one was another minor problem but based on the people involved and the items mentioned, there seemed to be so much more to this recent incident. And somehow, she feels that this is related to Team Seven's encounter during their mission and well as with Anko's team.

"Shizune" Tsunade called.

"Hai!"

"When did you say that man's body was reported missing?"

"Stolen not missing Tsunade-sama" she corrected, "They reported his body stolen a few days before the attack was done to the village. When family went to visit his grave site, they found that the ground was already disturbed"

Her eyes didn't leave her paperwork as she continued to read once again the report, making sure she did not miss a single detail. "I see. I don't think this was a mere coincidence that these so-called mercenaries appeared on this village looking for the stone a few days after his body was taken". She tried to see if merging both stories and reports would make sense.

"Do you think they are planning to use it on him?"

"I'm not entirely sure as we do not have clues about these men's motives but it is very likely and I do not want to rule that out just yet"

"I see" Shizune replied, "Would you like me to call in Kakashi now? Or do you still need a few minutes?"

The Hokage almost forgot she needed him to come by and so she nodded, "Yes. Please have him come in. Input from him regarding this matter would be helpful"

Her assistant complied and moved to leave the office to fetch the jounin, only to be interrupted by the sudden opening of the office door.

"Shishou!"

"my goodness Sakura don't you know how to knock anymore?" the Sannin reprimanded but was too exhausted from her long night of doing reports to really show her pupil some manners.

"I apologize but I needed to have a word with you as soon as possible"

Tsunade could hear the urgency on Sakura's voice, but could not set aside the importance of the information she is currently trying to solve at this time. Torn between having Sakura escorted out and finishing her report, she decided that perhaps she could spare a moment of her time to listen to whatever she has to stay while waiting for her other guest.

"I don't know what your fuss is all about but I'am in a middle of an investigation" She could tell Sakura was about the interrupt and insist but she continued on, "If you really need some of my time, unfortunately, you'll have to share it with Kakashi as well as I have just sent Shizune to get him for me and he will be here shortly"

She hesitated, unsure if it would be wise to share to both of them her issues, but eventually nodded in understanding as she proceeded to tell her what she came in for.

Electrifying lights of bluish white flashed through the forest as Sasuke tried to land his Chidori on his opponent only to have hit the ground unsuccessfully as Karasu jumped nimbly to one of the tree branches above him.

Quick bastard, he thought, the next one won't miss.

He pursued his opponent, slashing with his sword only to catch his cloak once again. As they both landed on the ground, Sasuke could almost hear himself heaving. This guys is definitely trying to wear him out.

As if hearing his thoughts, Karasu gave chuckled, "Tired already are we? Why don't you just let me rip you into pieces that way you may rest all you want"

"For a start maybe you should stop trying to run away"

Sasuke swore he could almost see a vein pop from his masked enemy's temple as Karasu launched angrily at him. He dodged and defended with his sword as Karasu swung his weapon at him. Sparks flew as both tried to deflect each others blows and they both jumped back to calculate their moves once again.

"I'm starting to get bored here. Time to spice things up a bit". With his sinister smile, Karasu then slammed his zanbato he has been carrying on his back to the ground creating huge cracks that snaked its way to Sasuke as if wanting to swallow him whole.

Sasuke jumped to avoid falling into the pits and had a mistake of taking his eyes off the opponent. A fracture of a second was all it took for Karasu to throw multiple shurikens. With his sharigan eyes, Sasuke managed to dodge all of them save for one tip that grazed his cheek as he tried to avoid the flying stars in mid air.

With this Karasu's smile widened in satisfaction. A cut, no matter how miniscule, was still a cut and it pleased him.

Dust formed under his feet as Sasuke landed gracefully back on a much safer ground this time keeping his guard up. He made a "tch" sound as he wiped his right cheek with the back of his hand. He needed to take care of this fiend as soon as possible.

Without a moment to loose, he dashed in lightning speed towards Karasu and this time his sword made another gash to his chest. As his opponent was caught off guard from the hit, Sasuke used that moment again to land a blow to his abdomen using his right elbow which sent Karasu flying backwards into a boulder that smashed on impact.

Dust danced up in the air as rocks crumbled giving Karasu a curtain of concealment. Almost instantly after he fell and was obscured, a metallic clamp like a raven's foot flew towards Sasuke. His eyes widened in surprise but he was quick enough to draw his sword to avoid getting impaled. However, he did not expect another claw to fly towards him and this one painfully caught him on both sides, entramping both his body and arms as his weapon dropped on the ground useless. The impact was so great it pushed him back where it landed and embedded itself along with him on a bedrock. His left arm started to bleed.

Fuck!

As the cloud of dust subsided, he could see Karasu walking towards him with a slight limp. He was laughing at the success of his trap as he proceeded to his prey.

"My, my, that was no fun at all. I thought being an Uchiha you would've put up a better fight"

Sasuke's eyebrows gave little wrinkle. What an annoying person he stumbled on today.

"But as always. I was right with my decision". Now Sasuke has no idea what he is talking about. "You as bait was a good idea"

What the hell is he talking about?

Sasuke eyed him warily as Karasu paced back and forth in front of him, engrossed in his own thoughts. He put a mental note to secure his sword again as he noticed it lying serenely a few feet away from him on his right.

"I gathered all the intel I could find about you" His gleaming red eyes looked at him in evil amusement. You, compared to the other one, were easy to entrance"

He went on and on but nothing about what he said made sense. While trying to find a weak spot, he continued to listen to try and find some meaning into his words.

"I know you've awakened your Sharigan at a young age and how much you've mastered your genjutsu. I know how you've watched your brother train and have always wanted to surpass him to please your father"

By now Sasuke was clenching his teeth

"I also know your brother killed your family and now you want revenge. Although I guess a lot of people in the shinobi world know this. The Uchiha clan is cursed. But your pathetic desire to kill your brother lead you here in this situation and away from your village and away from people who give a damn about you" he paused, as if knowing, "that is, if there is any left at all"

He laughed as he continued to verbally and emotionally torment Sasuke. He noticed his brows are closed to each other although Sasuke tried to maintain a straight face. Internally, Karasu was pleased with himself. After all this is what he is good at. Intel. The more he knows about his opponent, the more chances of winning every battle he has.

"I also know that you trained under Orochimaru-sama. You should've stayed under his wing and became stronger" he continued, "I thought I was going to get more thrill from you. I'm disappointed. I hope this other shinobi fights much better than you"

"I don't care what you know about me". Sasuke finally interjected tired of hearing a story he is too familiar with. He has also finally come to realize where he has heard of his opponent's name from before. "You think you are special just because you know things? Well you're not the only one with some so-called intel"

"ohh..."

"Karasu huh?" He repeated with disinterest, "I remember you"

When he mentioned Orochimaru, Sasuke then recalled the Sannin had another assistant. He kept him for his spying abilities and great desire to know about his opponent proving to Orochimaru to be an asset. Karasu would be allowed to venture out on his own with a promise to return with valuable information. However, Orochimaru found flaws with his assistant and he had no place for imperfection in his lab and cast him aside. He also recalled being told that Karasu tends to succumb so easily to drugs making him irrational and a loose cannon. Someone as busy as Orochimaru has no time to deal with him in case he becomes a problem not only to others but also to himself.

"Do you now?"

Sasuke smirked, "You worked for Orochimaru for a while but you had some defect didn't you and had to be thrown out like garbage"

"Defect?" Karasu repeated dangerously, "Defect you say? You little fuck I'am a reliable source!"

Sasuke inwardly smirked upon realizing that there may be something that could help him out of his predicament. His foe's history of drug-seeking habits may be to his advantage eventually.

"Is that why you are no longer with Orochimaru?"

"It was my decision to leave. MINE!" He clearly was sore about this and Sasuke thought he could use this to his benefit.

"Yeah keep telling yourself that. You were useless to Orochimaru and that is why he tossed you aside like nothing"

He could see the creases in Karasu's face was more detailed now than before as Sasuke continued, "And that is why he had to replace you with someone else. Someone much better"

"And you think that it's you huh you cocky little shit" he responded with so much loathing that Sasuke could feel the very heat in the air.

"You said that not me"

"No matter. You will be of no use to him once you're dead"

Sasuke knew he was no longer entertaining to his opponent and braced himself for an attack he knew was coming. He counted on this and was ready. Being pinned gave him limited options to fight but he is not about to let this one have his way.

Swiftly, Karasu raced towards him his weapon on his right hand ready to swing with full force. And simultaneously, Sasuke reactivated his Sharingan once again allowing him to see his opponents movements as if in slow motion. This gave him time to calculate his next move despite still being entrapped.

However, his plan to counterattack was hindered as a flash of pink landed powerfully on the back of his charging opponent scattering rubble and burying Karasu a few good inches underground.

Sakura.

She rose to her feet as she regained her composture her target momentarily in a daze. And as if nothing happened, she turned towards Sasuke, her blue pendant glistening as she moved, and started to remove the metal snare off him. Although she still struggled, he could feel the steel loosen with her brute strength and Sasuke noticed she didn't even try to look him in the eye, her face stoic and devoid of emotion and only focused on trying to set him free.

"Sakura what are you doing here?" he stated as he finally found his voice.

"What does it look like?" was her only reply.

Before she could finish freeing him entirely, Karasu has managed to get back up on his feet and wasted no time in trying to get even. Quickly, he threw a senbon towards her direction which she deflected with her kunai. Based on the purple tip of the needle, she could tell this was poisoned. One hit could be fatal. Unconsciously she tucked her necklace underneath her red shirt by the neck for safety.

"Stop!" Sasuke called out as she leapt away to fight his opponent off, "this has nothing to do with you!"

It annoyed him that she was delibrately ignoring him.

Charging towards Karasu, she packed her chakra to both her fists to ensure as soon as she hits any part of him, it breaks.

"My, my…I think I like you better than the Uchiha boy". His voice sent a slight chill down her spine. "And it's not just because of your body"

"Damare! (shut up)" she berated. Sakura was aware of her emotions. She knew she was getting angry and hot-headed and this was not necessarily because of the person in front of him stealthyly evading all her punches.

She had to remind herself to stay calm and be level-headed, however, this reminder came a little late as Karasu's Zanbato landed on her right shoulder and slashed across her chest down to her left side. Although the injury was superficial, the wound stung. She winced as she inwardly scolded herself for being so impulsive and charging ahead with no fool-proof plan of landing a hit. She thought she had given herself a good mental briefing already prior to arriving on the scene. She was well aware the effects Sasuke still has on her and she cannot deny the antagonism that boiled as soon as she saw his face. Mixed feelings she supposed - anger, shame, guilt, fear and hurt. If she cannot keep her emotions still she will surely be killed.

"Sakura god dammit stop!" Sasuke called out urgently. "This is not your fight! Just get this thing off and…"

"Be quiet Sasuke!" How annoying. "You don't get to tell me what to do!". Oh how she wanted to just yell at him some more.

Shit!

This was on him. He knew it. And he hated himself for bringing her into this situation. Seeing her blood drip to the ground made things even worse. And yet she continued to fight.

Hearing his voice yet again distracted her and she can't have that. She has to focus on this mission now. After that report she had with the Hokage, finally things have fallen into place and made more sense. These were pieces of the puzzle she was missing all along and now that she has them, she can finally put an end to this ridiculous situation everyone is in.

She willed her feet to be more agile, focusing chakra in all of her limbs. Her opponent was stealthy and his chakra is almost erratic. Is he in some sort of killing mode? She should be more careful with foes like him. Finally able to keep up with his movements, she landed two punches on each side of his face which stunned him. That moment was enough for Sakura to make a turn and packed a force to her legs, her left steadying her weight as she pivoted and kicked her opponent's torso, sending him flying to a tree breaking it in half.

She huffed in satisfaction only to have a puff of smoke dissipate the feeling. Kawarimi no jutsu. Damn it! After all those hits!

Her eyes widened as she noticed a shadow right above her and realized this was all it needed for him to make his move. She gave a little yelp as a sudden jolt of pain inflicted her left shoulder. She realized this looked like the same senbon Karasu sent flying earlier although this time the tip was coated in green. Without a doubt, there must be some drug in it. And almost instantly, she began to feel weary and dropped on one knee. This must be some potent drug.

"I didn't want to end this so soon but you are beginning to be quite the handful. Ganryuu wouldn't like it"

"Sakura! You have to go now!" She heard Sasuke call out sensing the urgency in his voice.

Sasuke had a feeling this wasn't just about him now. Why does it feel like Karasu was expecting her to show up? This thought made him quite uneasy as he continued to struggle with the metal contraption that was preventing his movements. Just a little more and he could be rid of it.

She was feeling a bit dizzy and out of breath but she couldn't let Karasu use this as a turning point. She almost had him and she is not about to lose. Not when she is this close. Gathering her strength, she charged back at her opponent and swung her kunai at him. He dodged every swing and every attack she attempted.

"I would just stay still if I were you" he said, taunting her.

To his surprise, Sakura then lifted a boulder ten times her size like it was nothing and threw it at his direction. Her cloaked opponent then jumped to avoid the massive ball of stone but Sakura, this time was quicker than him. With chakra concentrated yet again on her fists, she charged at him as she leapt and landed a blow on his temple. Karasu landed back first on the ground his cloak scraping the rough earth beneath him. He staggered but couldn't bring himself to get up from the blow he just sustained, half of his head now bleeding. Sakura was inwardly still pissed off he didn't even pass out despite knowing she fractured his skull for sure.

Tch. Maybe one more hit. This time he's dead.

She was about to land a finishing blow but the next thing she heard was Sasuke calling her name and then a sharp pain to her midsection. She heard the ripping of her own flesh and coughed as she realized she was choking on her own blood. Sakura, unbelieving of what just happened, looked down at her body to see the piercing tip of something metallic, almost half the size of her fist, protruding from her abdomen. The blow was swift, powerful but clean that she did not even see it coming. Slowly as she turned around to see the face of her unexpected adversary, she noted that the weapon, a metal chain whip, connected and traced back to another person, his voice cold and uncaring.

"You are quite a handful aren't you"

A/N: How is everybody doing? I hope you're all is still here, well and sane what with all this Covid19 situation going on.

I hope this Chapter brings you some entertainment even for a short time. lol See you next year (or earlier?) hopefully! lol

let me know what you think?