A/N: It's been a hot minute. I have a bad habit of getting really cool story ideas and start writing. Only for my interest to dry up. Sorry!
Chapter 14: Red Headed Woman
"You fit into me
like a hook into an eye-
A fish hook,
An open eye"
-Margaret Atwood
The words before her blurred together as if she had taken some kind of slow reacting sedative. But it was not any kind of chemical that was making her mind fuzzy with inattention. Despite the importance of the text before her, Sakura simply could not shake her parting conversation with Naruto from her head.
"What do you mean you're too busy? It's Sasuke!" Naruto insisted, eyes incredulous.
"Just because he is back does not mean I get to abandon all responsibility and run to him," she retorted, a little bit of bite slipping into the words.
Naruto shook his head as he stared at her and despite her frustration, Sakura couldn't help but feel guilty at the way he was looking at her.
"I just don't get it. It's Sasuke- he's back. I thought this was everything we have been working for- everything you wanted."
Sakura could feel a headache building in her temple and desperately wanted to snarl at Naruto that they weren't kids anymore. That she had long since realized that Sasuke was someone who she superimposed a fairytale prince scenario on because she was twelve. She grew up .
"Naruto-" she began, but he cut her off.
"- No, never mind. I guess I've spent the last few weeks denying something so obvious. You keep saying you've changed, and now I see it. I just didn't realize before that part of that change was not caring about your teammates anymore," Naruto spat, eyes stormy.
Sakura felt as though she had been slapped, as she watched Naruto storm out of the hospital.
And hours later, an insult that she should have been able to simply dust off her shoulders was still weighing on her. Because the truth was an unsettling burden that just kept getting heavier. After all, in the years that Naruto was gone- hadn't that been what she so secretly and desperately wanted? Her team to return?
Not quite- a snarky little voice that sounded eerily similar to Sasori rebutted in her head.
She wanted them to acknowledge her. Acknowledge her strength; how she had grown, and the power she acquired. And yet, despite all the years of hard work and sacrifice, she felt more out of control than ever. Sasori, a demon , was her new houseguest- one that according to Tsuande needed to be very temporary. She needed to figure how to stuff those sinful eyes back into a mirror that had shattered seemingly beyond repair. She needed to fix her father's ailment. She needed to figure out who the secret organization who attacked him was and what exactly they were up to. She needed, she needed…
She needed sleep.
But sleep was not an option when her life was literally depending upon completing her deadly to- do list.
And yet, as she stared at the book about the legend of Uchiha Madara, emerald eyes slowly blinked shut.
That cautioning voice that normally would have warned her against sleeping in her office when she was obviously a target to those masked men was surprisingly silent as fog swirled around her brain.
And when Sakura opened her eyes again, it was as if she had been transported to another world .
Sand was dancing in curls along the ground; a dry and chilling wind swept about the forlorn walls; stars hung brightly in the desert night.
She was in Suna.
At the sound of footfalls her neck snapped over to the side with a loud cracking sound. Yet the woman walking never paid her any mind- never even glanced in her direction. Sakura's brows furrowed as she took in the figure of the woman who had stopped just at the edge of the gate. She looked strangely familiar. So when the woman glanced nervously behind her, bright eyes gliding over Sakura's form as if she were as transparent as the wind, before slipping outside of the city, Sakura decided to follow her.
The woman was clearly not a nin. Everything from her loud footfalls to her obvious paranoia as she glanced around stated it. As the woman stopped by a outcrop of desert plants, Sakura glanced around curiously. The woman was clearly important- she wore clothing made of rich materials. Her crimson hair was expertly braided and despite living in the desert, her skin was pale and unblemished. If that wasn't enough of an indication, she was also clearly lacking in the subtlety department that even a genin wouldn't have a problem tracking her. Yet no one was here. Sakura glanced at the woman, who was worrying her lip, and wondered at who she thought would be following her? And why would she leave the safety of the city for the harsh desert night?
Sakura's eyes sharpened as the woman sucked in a sharp intake of breath. Her own even breathing stuttered to a halt as she saw the lithe form of Sasori step out of seemingly nowhere. He was lounging against a cactus, studying the red headed woman with a sort of lazy appraisal. Power radiated from him- but it felt different, colder; like a cobra ready to strike.
He didn't so much as glance in her direction. It was as if he too didn't know she was there.
"And what could the esteemed Lady Karura want from a demon?" Sasori questioned, otherworldly eyes scanning the woman.
Sakura's own green eyes widened as she reassessed the woman standing next to her- the late Kazekage's wife. A woman who had been dead for nearly two decades.
"I want-" the woman started, her voice trembling slightly, "I want him to love me."
Sasori cocked his head before grinning, sharp teeth shining against the red of his lips. "Usually when someone makes that kind of request they are not already married."
Karura's brow furrowed, but her spine straightened, "It may just be politics for him, but to me," she wavered, "he's everything ."
Sasori's amusement evaporated and contempt replaced it. Sakura already knew that whatever he was about to respond with would be biting. He never pulled his verbal punches.
"Foolish," he spat.
The woman nodded, "That may be, but we have already had two children. I have done my duty and yet he is still so cold. All he cares about is keeping the shinobi useful, despite budget cuts. He is starting to sound-" she paused, as if remembering her audience and shook her head.
"And what would you give me in return for the esteemed Kazekage's undying love?" Sasori said, words sounding much more cloying.
"Anything," the woman cried.
Sasori's smile grew, "You don't know much about demons do you?"
Karura shook her head, "Anything that is in my power to give you, I'll give it."
The demon cocked his head, "You're pregnant ."
Sakura's stomach dropped as she watched the blood drain from Karura's already pale skin, leaving it a ghostly white.
Sasori rolled his catlike eyes and Sakura echoed Karura's sigh of relief.
"I'll give you what you want- that little boy of yours will even give your precious Kazekage what he so desires," Sasori said, a smirk playing on his lips, as his eyes cast over to the village.
"And what do you want in return?" Karura questioned, hand protectively cradling her flat stomach.
Sasori eyed her, "If I asked for power over the village?"
Karura bit her lip before straightening, "Then I would give it to you."
Sakura's eyes narrowed at the woman. How could she be so stupid? So willing to give over the lives of the villagers? But her own conscience pricked at her- hadn't she done the same? Hadn't she released Sasori upon her own village when it came down to it? When her life was on the line…
"All of this-" he gestured to the village beyond the gate, "You would give up all of this for something as trivial as love?" Sasori questioned.
Kurara fell to her knees, "It's worth it."
Sasori cocked his head again, considering, "Foolish human," he whispered, a scroll appearing in his hand. "So you agree on the terms of the contract?"
Sakura frowned, feeling as if she had heard this very conversation before.
"I agree," Kurara's voice shakily proclaimed.
Sakura watched with uneasy eyes as the Kazekage's late wife sealed her fate by signing her name in blood across Sasori's scroll.
"Alright. Be ready for me to come and collect," Sasori said, smirk pulling at his lips.
"Wait," Kurara called, scrambling to her feet. "I have this for you. It's a way for us to communicate. This way I can anticipate your arrival."
Sakura froze as she watched Karura pull the familiar object out of her robes. Emerald eyes watched as the Kazekage's wife handed Sasori the familiar silver hand mirror.
"A mirror?" Sasori questioned, quirking his eyebrow, but nevertheless accepting the object.
And Sakura knew that along with Karura's, she was also watching the beginning of his downfall- so to say. That this acceptance of the mirror could only result in his entrapment.
She woke up with a gasp.
Her green eyes darted around the room frantically, assuring herself that there was no threat. It was only when both her pupils and chakra detected no signs of another, did she finally relax her posture. She didn't know whether to curse herself for allowing her body to be in such a vulnerable position, or thank whatever gods were allowing her to seemingly catch glimpses of the past.
Sakura chewed on her lip as she packed up her book on Uchiha Madara; perhaps the dream was the result of her contract to Sasori? A way of informing her more about the demon? Frowning, she left her office, waving back to the nurses in the halls unthinkingly. Surely, Sasori could not be purposely sending her these dreams? It would not be like him to be so forthcoming- or to show any sort of weakness he could have.
And yet, there had to be something in the dream that she could use to sever their connection, or restore the mirror... Something that would help her cast one giant problem out of her life. But the only real information that Sakura gathered that she hadn't already known was that Sasori had seemingly wanted to control Suna and that he may have already known Gaara's fate- almost as if he could tell the future ? Sakura suppressed a shudder as she headed back towards the library- that would be a fate too cruel.
And besides, her mind rebutted, if Sasori could truly tell the future then surely he would have never accepted the mirror in the first place? So perhaps he only had some strange demonic foresight that allowed him to know certain things about other demons? She quietly sighed as she walked past the purple-haired chunin manning the desk; she didn't think she would ever be able to wrap her mind around Sasori's thinking, even if he had been a human man.
As she approached the hidden entryway to the private library, Sakura eyed the seals with apprehension. The last time she had been here an unknown man also had been. Only a limited amount of people knew about the hidden stacks, let alone were granted permission to enter them. Her suspicious mind couldn't help but think that this stranger could be one of the men out for her father, out for Sasori, out for her...
Hands shifting through the seals, she cloaked her chakra as she stepped through the stone, watching as the seam of the hidden entry melted back into stone. The sounds of the library muffled into silence and the cool dampness of the rock brought goosebumps to her skin. It really would be the perfect place to kill someone she thought with downturned lips.
Her feet took her swiftly down the halls, but when she reached the opening to the stacks, she froze. A tall figure was bent at the waist; hunched over the table, clearly reading something.
"Ah, good afternoon Sakura-chan," a familiar voice said, not bothering to straighten his posture or glance in her direction.
Her brows furrowed, how-
"The nose always knows," he lightly stated, masked face finally glancing in her direction. His tone may have been light, but his lone eye was appraising. Clearly he had not forgotten their earlier exchange outside the Hokage's office.
She resisted the urge to openly scowl at the memory of him basically calling her selfish and uncaring for not running back into Team Seven's arms.
"Are you lost, Kakashi?" she finally asked, brushing past him as if he was a rather annoying roadblock, "this place doesn't really contain anything like your usual reading material."
Her ears picked up his muffled chuckle, but she ignored it, eyes glancing along the shelf of foreign poisons. She wanted to return her book on Uchiha Madara, but really didn't want Kakashi to see the title. She didn't need him to get a hint about her research into the sharingan and how it could potentially control demons. Or think that she was returning to her obsession with Sasuke. While that explanation would be more favourable, her pride just wouldn't be able to take it.
"Actually I'm here on a little fact finding mission by the Hokage," Kakashi said.
Sakura could practically feel his eyes drilling into the back of her head. She reached up and selected a book on hallucinogenic funguses found in Mist and hummed a politely uninterested response.
"Yes, it's been quite a long time since I've had to talk to the Hokage about a demon other than the Nine Tails…"
She willed herself not to freeze. To keep breathing. In and out. In and out . But somehow Kakashi potentially knowing about Sasori and her mistake felt even more shameful than when she faced Tsunade. It felt like she was being slapped in the face with her incompetence. It felt like she was twelve years old again .
Grabbing another book on Mist poisons, she glanced over her shoulder to see Kakashi's fully straightened figure staring at her. Lone eye serious.
"Demons?" she questioned, voice unwavering.
"It is quite interesting," Kakashi said, his voice deceptively light, "after your private talk with the Hokage, she asked me to do some research on demons. How to overpower them, how to seal them, how to see if they are influencing a person..."
She nodded her head, but internally wanted to curse Tsunade. Her former mentor had told Sakura to handle it, and handle Sasori was what she was trying to do. But it was hard when all of these additional threats and questions were also popping up. Every layer that she had managed to pull back, seemingly presented more and more challenges. At the same time, Sakura really wasn't surprised that Tsunade would ask additional nin to look into the case. She had watched her do the same thing countless times when the woman wasn't sure about the performance of an operative. And while that unsubtle insult stung, she wished more than anything that it could be any other shinobi than Kakashi.
Still, she wasn't sure how much Kakashi actually knew...
"Are you sure you should be telling me this?" she questioned, turning to fully face her former sensi. She tried to keep her face as masked as Kakashi's. Instead of cloaked in cloth, hers would be a mask of cool interest.
Kakashi cocked his head as he studied her for a moment. "I thought you would be the perfect person to ask seeing as you have direct access to all of this."
Her stomach knotted, "Oh?"
She watched as Kakashi's brow furrowed, "Your father is currently the resident expert on demons. I was told by Tsunade that he was in a coma," he paused for a moment, but Sakura could care less about his stiff politeness.
He didn't know.
"Tsunade said you are often here, so I figured I would ask you directly," Kakashi finished.
She nodded her head to prove she was listening. "To be honest I don't know too much about what my father was researching. I haven't paid it much attention since I was a child."
"That's a shame," Kakashi said, still staring at her unnervingly, "and it seems like all the information on demons that is usually here is gone…"
The weight of the very books in her bag made that statement ring true.
"I can let you know when he wakes up," Sakura said evenly.
"I would appreciate that," he responded, but Sakura didn't like the appraising look in his eye. "Well, now that your shift is over and you have your books, perhaps we could visit your house? I'm told that your father has several documents in his study."
Her heartbeat stuttered to a halt. He wanted to come to her house ? Sasori was at her house! And while the demon had obliged in hiding himself from Tsunade's summons, something told her that Sasori's pride would not allow for him to be shoved off in a random closet while her former sensei snooped around the house.
At her prolonged silence, Kakashi continued, "Ma, Sakura-chan, you can't be that upset at having your old sensei around?"
Her lips thinned as she detected slight suspicion in his tone. He may be on a mission, but it also seemed as if Kakashi wanted to spend time with her. Did he want to suss out if she could be trusted? Or did he want to convince her to rejoin Team Seven now that his favourites were back, a nasty little voice in her head whispered. If it had been half a decade earlier she might have felt more welcoming.
"Of course not," she replied, voice stoney.
"Excellent," he said, turning towards the door. "Lead the way."
A sour taste was on her tongue as she brushed past the silver haired man and out the door, his silent footsteps following hers. She knew that Sasori would be able to sense her return and her company. But she had no idea how he would react- he was too unpredictable.
"Do you know who was responsible for your father's condition?" Kakashi questioned, voice low, as they stepped outside the library.
Sakura spared him a smile, as if they were discussing the weather and not assassination attempts, "If I had known, than I would have told the Hokage."
Kakashi hummed in response, pulling out a familiar orange book, "So no familiar faces?"
Sakura couldn't help her eye roll at his questioning, "No. But I'm fairly sure they are still in my back garden if you would like to check yourself."
She determinedly looked away as she heard his rough inhale. Nervousness was making her tongue loose. And as much as she wanted Kakashi to acknowledge her strength, she didn't want him to think she was sadistic. Especially since she technically didn't kill the men that Sasori decapitated the other night.
Thankfully though her former sensei remained silent on the rest of their walk to her house. Yet, in some ways his silence unnerved her even more. Without her petty anger, there was nothing to distract her from the suspense of what awaited them at her house. Her anxiety mounted when they reached the laneway and her eyes fixed on the door.
Kakashi must have caught on to her unease as she saw his hand disappear into his weapons pouch, "Expecting another visitor?"
She forced herself to relax as she met his dark eye, "No. I was pretty specific with my traps."
"Oh," he said, removing his hand, "Expecting a date?"
The irony of it made her lips curl sardonically. Because it was a male that was causing her to internally squirm with all sorts of tension. Just not the kind he was thinking.
"Let's just get this over with," she replied.
Kakashi nodded and Sakura reached for the doorknob. She let out a quiet breath when the door swung open to a familiar empty hallway. She half hoped her devilish companion was not here, and half dreaded the thought of what he could be doing if he were gone.
Her heart beat a staccato rhythm in her chest as they climbed up the stairs. With each step she waited for Sasori's potentially naked form to apparate into existence. And with each moment that he didn't, her nervousness only grew. She knew how much he loved to provoke her and this really would be the ultimate way to do so.
Kakashi moved in front of her as they reached her father's door. One of his pale fingers traced down a deep gash in the wood. A clear kunai mark.
"No one got in?" he questioned.
"No, he has some pretty sophisticated seals."
Kakashi nodded and respectfully turned around to give her privacy as she unsealed the door. When the last seal was down, she swung the door open, and waved her former sensei in.
"I'm going to put these away while you look around," she said from the doorframe, holding up her bag full of books.
Kakashi turned from where he was examining a rather violent painting of a demon beheading an ox to look at her. "You don't want to supervise?"
Sakura shook her head, "His work is property of the village after all."
Kakashi hummed and stepped more fully into the office. Sakura sighed as she inched away from the doorframe. With one last parting look at the masked nin, she silently hurried down the hall to her bedroom. Opening the door, she hastily flung her bag on the ground, while looking around.
There was no demon.
Panic made her face feel hot as she rushed down the hallway and poked her head into her father's bedroom. Still no Sasori.
She forced herself not to think of all the things that Sasori could get up to while he was out of the house. And while she knew better than to trust his word, she really had thought he would stay inside her home.
Drifting down the stairs, she checked the family room and sunroom- empty. Her throat felt tight. She wandered into the kitchen and grabbed a glass of water, mind furiously trying to decide how to find him. Just as she filled up her glass, she felt large hands curl around her waist.
"You have been gone all day ," a familiar voice harshly growled into her hairline.
The glass hit the sink with a loud thud, as Sakura whirled around to meet crimson eyes glaring down at her.
"Keep your voice down," she whispered back, sending a cautious glance towards the staircase.
"What, you don't want your old sensei to know I'm here?" Sasori said, backing her up against the counter.
Sakura frowned, "It wouldn't be beneficial to either of us if he knew about you."
"Why is he here anyway?" Sasori hissed, sharp nails beginning to dig into her hip. "Visiting when your father is gone, and you are all alone…"
She goggled at the demon for a moment, "Are you actually jealous?"
It wouldn't surprise her if he was. Everything from her nickname of 'pet' to his treatment of her as if he were some sort of possessive dragon and she were part of his hoard indicated it.
"He better not have touched you," Sasori whispered, and fingers that were gripping suddenly became light, drawing circles on her waist.
Emerald eyes bore into crimson, "You know I wouldn't let him." The thought of Kakashi touching her in any way that could be considered sensual was ludicrous.
"So there is someone else you would let touch you..." he parried, fingers finding the inside of her shirt, trailing up to the undersides of her breasts.
She sucked in a breath as a finger brushed over her cloth covered nipple. She needed to stop this. Kakashi was in her father's office upstairs looking up information on a demon, and here she was downstairs being felt up by one.
She gasped when he pinched her nipple, "Is there?" he insisted, voice black velvet.
It was hard to focus on his question when she was so thoroughly distracted by his teasing fingers.
"No- no one else," she breathed, watching as his lips curled up in satisfaction.
"Good," he decisively claimed, his face dipping down towards hers. Otherworldly eyes stared deeply into her own before he moved in.
Sakura's breath halted as his lips came nearer and nearer, knowing she needed to protest and yet she was so damn curious . If he truly was her dream lover then she had kissed him before. She had kissed him in ways that had made her lips drunk for more, kissed him in ways that made her blood burn and body sing. And yet, she had never felt his lips on her in real life.
She shouldn't want this. She craved it.
"We can't," she whispered, as his lips hovered just out of reach. The faintest brush almost bringing them together in a hint of touch. Her words sounded feeble. Her resolve was sand in the wind.
"Oh pet, yes we can." The smirk in his voice was echoed in his eyes. Until the emotion behind them shifted, and a look of utter intensity captured her. She felt like prey and something primal roared to life within her. He held her captivated and everything else seemed to disappear.
There was only him. There was only this.
"Sasori," she whispered, voice guttural.
And then his lips were on her. Lips that were both cool and hot as they utterly captured hers. It was not a sweet kiss. It was hungry- demanding.
She made a noise in the back of her throat when his hands started roaming. Large fingers wound through her hair, and gripped at her waist. Her body felt on fire when his mouth shifted and his tongue demanded access.
The sound he made when her tongue twisted against his own sent a jolt straight to her core. He tasted- he tasted like the apples in the back garden her mother would always scold her for eating. Tart and sweet- a taste that always left her mouth watering for more because she knew she wasn't supposed to have it.
As his tongue roved over her teeth, Sakura let her nails bite into the fabric on his shirt, pulling him closer.
And in that moment the tenor of their kiss changed.
Sasori hoisted her on top of the kitchen counter. She didn't have time to even gasp, before her legs were being pushed open and then his hips were there- right there, don't stop. Please- please don't stop.
That desperate ache between her legs made her curl her toes as his cloth covered erection met it. She wanted to rip the clothes off her body and spread herself dripping and bare for him. She wanted him hot and hard and filling her.
"Sasori," she cried, as his body rubbed up against hers.
Shivers raced up her spine at the sound that came out of his mouth as he tilted her head up and latched on to that sweet spot on her neck.
"Sakura?" Kakashi's voice rang out from just beyond the kitchen. She froze as Kakashi's strangely audible footsteps came nearer.
And just before the familiar shock of silver hair entered the kitchen and found her in the most compromising position with a demon, Sasori vanished from sight.
Sakura's legs that had just been wrapped around Sasori's hips fell with a thud against the kitchen cabinets the second Kakashi stepped into the kitchen. She turned to face the masked man and noted that his eye widened at the sight of her. She internally groaned at what her appearance probably looked like.
"Are you okay?" Kakashi asked slowly, as if he wasn't quite sure how to react.
Sakura didn't blame him. She reached into the sink for the fallen glass, wincing internally as she noticed that a large piece of it was broken. "Yes, just grabbing a drink…"
Kakashi stared and Sakura knew that she had to meet his eye to sound convincing. But it was hard when her blood was still rushing as if caught in an electrical storm and the ghost of Sasori's touches hadn't quite left her body yet.
"Right," Kakashi said, clear disbelief in his voice.
Sakura tried not to flinch at his stare. She couldn't believe her own stupidity at letting herself go that far. At becoming so thoroughly distracted by Sasori while a nin of Kakashi's caliber was in her house.
"Well I found some scrolls that look interesting, so if you don't mind, I am going to take them home to be looked at," Kakashi said, holding his handful of scrolls up.
Her body shook the last remnants of desire as her eyes zeroed in on the scrolls he was holding. Her father had talked to her about Sasori's summoning scroll going missing just before he was put in a coma- the one she was sure the masked men were after.
"My father said that a summoning scroll for a demon went missing before he was put into a coma," Sakura told him, wondering if Sasori would be angry with her.
Kakashi's eye narrowed as he examined her face. "Good to know. Do let me know when your father wakes up."
Sakura nodded and watched as he turned to leave. She was fairly sure that her father would get into all kinds of trouble for having summoning scrolls, despite his research project.
"Oh and Sakura," Kakashi said pausing, "you might want to heal the bite mark on your neck."
She swore under her breath as Kakashi disappeared in a cloud of grey smoke. Her hands reached up to the spot Sasori had bit down on and when she looked at her fingertips they were covered in blood. She internally cursed the demon- it was like he couldn't resist marking her for Kakashi to see.
Sliding off the counter, she left the kitchen and wandered back up to her bedroom wondering if Sasori would be waiting to corner her there and finish their tryst. She had half a mind to give him an earful for biting her, but also knew that he had an infuriating way of so thoroughly distracting her.
When she opened her bedroom and glanced around the room, it was empty. Wandering over to her vanity, Sakura froze at the image staring back at her. Her hair was a mess, pink tendrils thoroughly tousled. Her eyes were dark, pupils still wide, and her lips were swollen. But the most significant addition was the bright red bite mark staining an otherwise unmarked pale throat. She frowned at the sight of it.
Bringing a glowing green hand of healing chakra up to it, she flinched as another forign chakra stung her at the touch of it. Moving closer to the mirror, Sakura examined the teeth marks. She couldn't feel any other chakra in her system. But then again- perhaps Sasori's chakra had been there all along, or at least since she signed over her deal and got her miraculous healing abilities. And yet something in his bite mark was resisting letting the skin heal. Her eyes narrowed at his very obvious way of branding her.
"Sasori," she called.
She waited. No one answered.
"Sasori," she called again, her voice stronger.
Nothing.
Hours passed and still Sasori never showed up. And with each passing minute, anxiety bit at her.
She tried to do more research. So far all she had discovered was that Uchiha Madara was bitter about not being appointed Hokage. She wished more information on the sharingan was available, but like any dojutsu, there wasn't any public access to it, even for the Hokage. Her father must have discovered something though, if his scrap of paper was any indication. Danzo, appointing her father to look into it may have also come to the same conclusions. The unsettling idea that a village elder may have interests in either the sharingan or demons for purposes beyond preventative measures was unnerving. Could the people who had stolen Sasori's summoning scroll all those years ago be working for Danzo and against the Hokage? Did Danzo want to attempt to control another demon, or did Sasori have some kind of special ability that made her village want to seek him out specifically?
It was strange, as everything she had learned from her dreams drew Sasori to be more in connection with Suna than Konoha.
When midnight came and passed, Sakura was tempted to go out looking for the crimson haired creature. But she paused- how would she even find him? He disguised any sort of chakra he had, and could seemingly disappear at will. He was a being that she had no experience with, despite her familiarity with him.
"I wish you would come home," she whispered from her bed, half wondering if this was a low handed manipulation technique, or a legitimate plea. Her eyes slipped shut.
She was in Suna again. She was sure of it.
"I didn't know he was going to control the village through the tanuki," Karura insisted, tears streaming down her eyes. Her belly was now swollen large in pregnancy.
Sakura watched as the former Kazekage gazed down at his wife.
"Never mind that now. If anything the demon is keeping the shinobi program up and running. The daimyo cannot cut my costs with it stampeding around," Rasa assured.
"So it was a good thing I went to him?" Karura asked.
"Perhaps- although I do not know why he enjoys infuriating the One Tail. But Karura, we cannot allow him to keep control," Rasa intoned.
Sakura watched the woman nod, her tears finally stopping.
"I gave him the Whispering Wind Mirror, just incase."
Sakura watched as the stern face man sat in contemplation before a wide grin split his lips, "Then we will trap him in the mirror."
"How?" Karura asked nervously. "He is a demon, he would suspect something amiss."
"I know the seals. Contact him and say you want to add a condition onto the contract. When he appears in the mirror, we will seal him in it. We will find a solution, my love."
Sakura watched as the man took the silver hand mirror- the same one that had shattered on her floor, and with white paint drew a circle, with a line through the middle and three lines on the side. He picked up red paint and drew a larger circle around the white. Green eyes watched as the man summoned his chakra and pushed it into the glass. The colours turned black before flashing brightly and fading into nothing.
The scene changed. Sakura blinked as she saw Karura alone in her bedroom, pregnant belly looking as if she could give birth any day. Her eyes followed the woman as she inhaled deeply before picking up the mirror. Sakura caught the figure of her husband standing off in the shadows.
"Sasori-sama," the woman called, gazing into the mirror. "I want to add something onto our contract. Something that would allow you power over other foreign villages and get your help for my new baby."
Sakura watched with bated breath as the woman's reflection melted and a familiar face peered out of the mirror. The instant Sasori's face appeared, the mirror glowed a bright white, and then red. Sakura held her breath when the glow abated.
The demon's face had twisted into unholy fury as he realized her trap. Even in the safety of this dream state, she felt her heart rate pick up in response to his rage.
"Woman, unseal me," Sasori said in a voice so chilling, that Sakura's chakra jumped about her insides like lightning.
"I can't," Karura said, hastily setting the mirror down. "I can't let you control things any more. The tanuki-"
"The tanuki is a mere pest compared to what I'm capable of," Sasori hissed. "And as long as I am in here, you will know his rage. The only way to control him is free me, or seal him. Seal him into that child."
Sakura could feel her heart thump. Clearly the demon thought that the couple would decide to unseal him. And he was nearly right, as Karura reached for the mirror again. A hand clamped down on her wrist.
"You can't," Rasa protested.
"But the baby," she cried.
"If we let him out he will kill all of us. The baby will live with the tanuki inside of him. It has been done before."
"But are you sure your wife will?" Sasori's voice crooned out of the mirror.
Sakura watched the man flip over the mirror before the scene changed again.
A dark haired woman was now standing in the same bedroom, gazing out the window. Sakura watched her with a frown wondering who she was.
Both women turned as the door opened with a bang.
"Where is it?" Rasa demanded.
"Where is what?" the woman asked.
"The mirror!" Rasa shouted.
Sakura watched as the woman flinched before her face smoothed out.
"I sold it. A traveller came into town. He was talking about Whispering Wind mirrors and a silly story of a demon possessing one. I thought I'd use the money to buy presents for the children," the woman said, turning again to face the window.
Sakura watched as Rasa harshly turned the woman back around, "That mirror-"
"- belonged to your dead wife! You think I like having all the reminders of her around. I am your wife now!"
She watched as the Kazekage's arm pulled back.
Her eyes opened, as her ears still echoed with the sound of the slap.
"Having interesting dreams, pet?"
Notes:
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