DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto or any other characters belonging to the Anime series. However, I do own the characters that were created by me – they will make their appearances in the later chapters.
Summary:Sakura and Tenten – both FBI Agents – are on a vital mission to eradicate one of America's largest and most feared Mafia Gangs. Sakura has no memory of her past. What happens as she finds the missing pieces when she encounters the mesmerizing, drop-dead attractive, Sasuke Uchiha, leader of the gang?
WARNING: This Fan-fiction contains VERY explicit content in later chapters. If sexual content, mild violence and aggressive language bother you, then it is advised that you discontinue reading this fiction immediately.
NOTE: 'Inner Sakura
'Thoughts' (Except for the short preface at the beginning of each chapter & Flashbacks)
Narrator's POV
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
The Demon Shadow of the Streets Pt.2
Itachi recognized the man who tried to piss Sasuke off earlier. His name was Suigetsu Hozuki of the gang called Basilisk. Itachi was glad that Sasuke did not do anything rash and instead, kept his mind clear and set on the race. He heard Sakura sigh beside him. He could tell that she was getting tired – tired of waiting and tired of holding up Kagerou who would fall off if she was not properly held. Kagerou had fallen asleep on her mother's lap.
"Would you like me to hold her for a while? You look tired," Itachi said to Sakura. Sakura nodded and gently placed Kagerou onto her uncle's lap, being careful not to wake her. Kagerou was still wearing the cap her father had given her. She refused to take it off when Sakura tried to in order to let her sleep properly. Sakura noticed that Itachi always softened up around Kagerou. He loved her – Sakura could tell.
Itachi glanced across to where the other gang members of the other gangs were waiting. He noticed that Kabuto could not keep his eyes off Sakura, looking sly as ever. But when he met Itachi's gaze, Kabuto adverted his gaze immediately. Kabuto knew that messing with the Uchihas was definitely a wrong move; a move he did not wish to make if he wanted to stay alive and carry on with his business.
Sasuke looked at the fuel gauge. He had enough gas to last until the end of the sprint. With his eyes on the road ahead of him, he tried to recall the racers that were still on track. Some of them had been caught by the cops, but the rest were still on his trail. Sasuke knew – from his GPS – that he was in lead. But still, he kept going at a constant high speed. Turning a very sharp corner, Sasuke nearly hit his side of the Audi, causing him to slow down in the process. From his side mirror, he was able to spot a white Viper GT catching up to him on his right side. He also got a good glimpse at the person driving it – Suigetsu, the guy he encountered at the beginning of the race. The Audi regained speed, making it harder for Suigetsu to make it to the front.
Sasuke looked at his rearview mirror to determine how far his opponent was and saw that Suigetsu was not very far. In fact, Suigetsu had the chance to overtake Sasuke, but he did not. Instead he continued to bumper the Audi.
"Hn, so that loser thinks this is a game, huh," Sasuke said, smirking. Ahead of him was a large concrete slab which was approximately one meter high and a little more than twelve inches thick. The slab separated two one-way lanes on the road which took citizens in the same direction; no change in destination. On seeing the slab, Sasuke smirked again and accelerated seeming as if he was aiming straight for the slab. Then when he was close yet far enough, he got out of the way, angling the car into the left lane. Again, Sasuke looked at his rearview mirror, just in time to see Suigetsu's Viper crash into the concrete slab. Once again, Sasuke was in lead…with only one obstacle ahead of him…
"Fuck…the police!" Sasuke cursed on seeing the road block of police cars.
"Bring your vehicle to a halt and get out of the car!" ordered a police man via a black, horn speaker.
Beads of sweat trickled down Sasuke's forehead. He kept his speed high and was quickly approaching the road block but he did not have a plan – not this time.
Tenten's body tossed and turned on the bed, in search of a comfortable spot. She had been at that for nearly three hours; she could not sleep; she was not tired, for some reason. No, her mind was to preoccupied to be tired; too preoccupied with thoughts of the man with the name of Kabuto Yakushi and she just had the urge to do some sort of research. She could not just wait for a next update from Izumo – waiting killed her. She tossed the covers off her and got off the bed, and then made her way to Neji's laptop. It was safe to carry on with her secret dealings as Neji did not seem to be in the hotel suite at the moment. And if he did by chance walk in on her using his laptop unpermitted, she could easily make an excuse. She flipped the laptop and a blue screen appeared, requiring a username and password.
'Dammit! It's password protected!' Tenten cursed and then closed the laptop softly. She sighed. Now what was she supposed to do? There was nothing else to do but wait like she had been doing all along. The day for the engagement ceremony was the day after tomorrow. She picked up her towel and walked over to the bathroom to change into her bathrobe. She knew exactly what she would do, seeing that she could not sleep and Neji was no where around.
After changing into her bathrobe, she made her way to the room opposite it. She remembered the host from the lobby telling her that this suite had a Hot Spring in it. She slid the door open and looked to find that the Hot Spring was already prepared. The room was dark and Tenten did not even bother to put on the lights. The water was warm and soothed her skin wonderfully. Because the water was murky; and because of the dark atmosphere, Tenten was not able to the portion of her body that was in the water.
"I take it you were unable to sleep," said a familiar voice opposite her. Tenten jumped a little from the fright Neji caused her.
"N-Neji…I'm sorry…I didn't know you were here," she apologized quickly.
"It's alright, Tenten. I was just leaving," he said, getting out of the spring. Tenten could help but blush deeply as she got a slight view of his abs but was thankful that his abs was all she saw at the same time. It was a good thing the steam made it impossible to see…
Shikamaru was still pondering on why Sai had left so suddenly. Sai was monitoring surveillance over the sprint course via Satellite on his laptop. It seemed as though he had seen something strange and left abruptly to see to the matter or investigate it. Shikamaru moved over to Sai's laptop and it was only then did he understand why his friend left in such a hurry – there was a road block which made an excellent obstacle for Sasuke.
Sakura looked at the time on her watch – 10:55 pm. Sasuke had not returned. No one had made it to the finish line just yet in fact. She cursed herself for not telling Sasuke that she loved him and for not cautioning him. He could have very well been dead for all she knew. If she only knew that the race would be this dangerous, she would have done everything in her power to prevent him from part taking in such an event.
Itachi saw the tense look on his sister-in-law's face.
"Sakura, do you not have faith in him?" he asked; his arms still around Kagerou and his eyes never made contact.
"I never said I didn't," she said, the tension being removed from her face slowly. She felt a little guilty for not having faith in Sasuke. But then again, she did not really know Sasuke due to her memory loss so she was unable to tell the things he was capable of. But nonetheless, she was learning about him little by little.
Itachi felt Kagerou shift a little in his arms. He lowered his head to see if she had awakened – she had. Her eyed were opening slowly and very soon a pair of bright emerald orbs was visible. She said nothing to Itachi or her mother. Whatever the situation, Kagerou never complained. At the sound of the small child's grumbling tummy, Itachi knew his niece was hungry.
"Sakura, she's hungry," Itachi said and placed the child into her mother's outstretched arms.
"Is there a café or food court anywhere nearby?" she asked Itachi who nodded.
"The Diner is opened 24/7. I can get something for her to eat from there…but you'll have to accompany me," Itachi told her. Sakura, remembering Sasuke's warning, complied with Itachi. He informed Kisame of the situation before leaving with Kagerou and Sakura.
Ino picked up her ringing cellular phone as soon as she parked her car.
"Hey Mom," she answered.
"Ino sweetie, where are you now?" Ino's mother asked her. Ino sighed
"Mom, I told you that I was going to Oakwood to visit grandma…I heard she's not feeling very well," Ino answered.
"Oh yeah, why don't I know about that?" Ino's mother asked.
"Maybe if you and you're mother-in-law got along once in a while, then you would have known about her illness. Anyways I can't avoid this – she is my grandmother after all," Ino replied, "Look, I'm already in Oakwood and I'm really hungry. I'm gonna get something to eat at this place called The Diner. Later!"
And then Ino disconnected the call before her mother could even say anything else. She got out of her car and made her way to the café.
Once she got in, Ino wasted no time in checking out the menu. She did not want anything unfamiliar to eat since she was under a diet to maintain her figure.
"Excuse me," Ino called out to the attendant, "Hi…can I have one of those cheese pies. Thank you!"
She collected her item and her change and turned around to head over to the exit when someone she did not expect to see caught her eye. It was a woman with strange yet familiar pink hair. The woman was about Ino's height and size. She was exiting the café with a little girl with a black cap on and accompanying her as well was a tall guy with long, onyx hair tied in a low ponytail. Ino could not believe who she saw. She knew that she could not possibly be mistaken.
"S-Sakura?! Sakura!" Ino hailed out. The woman stopped in her tracks but did not turn around.
Sakura would recognize that voice anywhere – she was sure; positive as to whom it belonged to. 'Ino,' was the only thing that ran through her head.
"Sakura, do you know that woman?" she heard Itachi ask her.
"Yeah…she's from the FBI," Sakura whispered in reply. Itachi nodded and took Kagerou into his arms as they quickly made their way through the crowd of people. Sakura made sure that there was no way Ino could have seen the direction in which they went.
'What is Ino doing here?!' Sakura thought as Itachi drove off…
Sasuke stopped his car a long distance away from the road block. Never had he come across a situation like this. There was no way he could bust through the road block without facing two consequences: one – getting severely injured and two – getting busted by the cops. His Audi would definitely get crumpled like paper if he drove through. He gripped the steering wheel hard and growled. Just then, he heard the sound of what seemed to be a speeding truck. He looked behind to see a red Volvo VT Truck approaching quickly. He could not see the driver. He assumed that it was a normal citizen. But why would a citizen drive at such high speed?
As the truck came closer, the person driving it became more visible. Sasuke was surprised to know that the driver was none other than Sai. Now things became clearer. It was obvious that via the surveillance which Sai was monitoring, he had seen the road block. And that was when he decided to give Sasuke a hand. That was one of good parts about Mafia racing – they could bend the rules a little.
Sasuke watched as the truck drove past his car, accelerating by the minute. He knew Sai was driving with the deadly intention of forcing his way through. He knew that Sai could not care less about the officers' lives or if they were the only ones to support their family. Sai was one hundred percent emotionless due to his rough childhood.
The cops warned Sai to stop the truck or they would shoot, but Sai stayed headstrong and continued to move. The police, on realizing that Sai would not stop, scrambled into their vehicles. But by the time they had done that, Sai had already reached up and all they could think about was feeling their bodies levitate and the pain that came after. Sasuke wasted no more time after Sai's breakthrough and drove through the clearing that was forcibly made…
HALF AN HOUR LATER
Sasuke slammed the car door shut after he exited it while his eyes searched wildly for two people; two people he could not seem to catch sight off. The lady who took the pink slips before the race informed him that he was the first to return to the Start/Finish point – he had won and he owed Sai a great deal.
"Excuse me; have you seen a little girl and her mother anywhere?" Sasuke asked the woman who answered by shaking her head. She had not seen either.
"Deidara," Sasuke called out to the blond from Akatsuki.
"Yeah," he responded.
"Where are Sakura and –" Sasuke was cut off in mid-sentence.
"We're here, Sasuke," said the voice he wanted to hear. Sasuke glared at her and she took it as her cue to explain.
"Kagerou was hungry so Itachi took us out to get something to eat."
Sasuke nodded, indicating that he understood. Akatsuki and Onikage decided not to wait for the other racers to arrive in order to avoid unwanted conflict. After reloading the Audi with fuel, Sasuke took Sakura and a sleepy Kagerou back to the mansion.
"C'mon, Kagerou…let's get you to bed," Sakura said, taking her by the hand. But then Kagerou shoved her mother's hand away. Sakura looked at the girl, dumbfounded, as she rushed over to her father and grabbed his hand, pulling him into the direction of her room. Instead, Sasuke scooped her into his arms and began to walk.
"Sakura…I'll meet you in our room," Sasuke said to his wife. By now Kagerou had gotten her own room which was not too far from her parents'. Sasuke read his daughter's actions clearly. He could tell that there was something bothering her – something she wanted to talk about. Since Sasuke was the one who basically raised Kagerou, she felt more comfortable opening up to him rather than Sakura. When he got into Kagerou's room, he laid her onto the bed and sat at the side. Kagerou took off the cap her father had given her to keep for him and handed it to him.
"Hn," he said in place of 'thank you'. Kagerou looked at him as if she wanted to say something.
"Daddy…a-are you and Mommy fighting," Kagerou asked her father, timidly. Honestly, Sasuke was surprised at Kagerou's question. What on earth made her think that he and Sakura were having a dispute?
"No, Kagerou," he answered without letting any hint of curiosity falter his tone of voice. "Why did you think that?" he asked, now rising up from where he was seated.
"Nothin'," the child answered and pulled the covers over her tiny body, "Good night Daddy."
"Hn," Sasuke responded before exiting the room and closing the door behind him. He did not want to pressure the answer out of her. He thought that maybe Sakura herself knew the answer to that.
Luckily for him, Sakura was still awake when he got up to his room. She was fully dressed in her white, silken nightgown and was already under the covers. Sasuke could not deny the fact that he was extremely tired and so he did not even bother to bathe. Instead, he just took off his shoes and shirt and climbed into bed next to Sakura. He wrapped his arms around her slender figure and felt her tense once again.
"Sakura," he whispered into her ear, sending electrifying shivers up her spine, "tell me…"
"Tell me – why is it our daughter thinks we're fighting?" he asked, his lips brushing on her earlobe, making her wish that he would just bite her.
"I-I d-d," she stuttered much like Hinata. Sasuke smirked and moved his left hand from her abdomen and slowly trailed down her leg, moving them underneath her garment. She felt him breathe on her neck; she felt the warmth radiating from how close his lips were to her neck. She groaned.
"Hn…" he said, smirking, "It's a simple question, Sakura." Sasuke knew very well what he was doing to her and he had to admit – he was enjoying it. But he shook the feeling off. Now he wanted an answer; now he was serious.
As if reading his mind, Sakura answered, "I don't know what made her think that…honestly. She told you that?"
"Hn…"
So it seemed that Sakura had no clue as to what was going on. Considering it something minor and unimportant, Sasuke dropped the subject and decided to move along with his ministrations – he definitely wanted his way tonight, seeing just how easily Sakura was giving in…
Neji walked into the bedroom of the hotel suit and placed his car keys onto the bedside table. He had just received the news that Sasuke had won the race. Neji's eyes were piercing – more piercing than usual. Onikage's success was not all that he had been informed of. No, there was something else as well. Naruto told him that one of the extra gangs that part took in the event was Basilisk – Kabuto's gang – the gang that was swimming way out of their depth with the Hyuugas. Basilisk – the gang that tried to kidnap Hinata Hyuuga.
Neji removed his jacket. He needed to meditate; to stay focused. The day after tomorrow would be the day he and Tenten would finally get the mission over and done with. After that, he knew that he would finally accomplish his long awaited goal. As he walked further into the room, he saw Tenten's sleeping figure on the bed. He walked over to her and pulled the covers over her body. He was still curious about what was stated in the diary. So far, from what he gathered together, he understood that Tenten had a hard childhood – far worse than his own. And because of that, his level of respect for her had grown increasingly.
Slowly, he made his way to the corner of the room and got into the position to meditate…
Ino let her body fall backwards onto the bed. She decided to rent a motel room for the night, fearing that she would get herself into some sort of accident after what she had seen. Yes, that was definitely Sakura – her eyes could not have deceived her. What was she doing here in Oakwood? Who was that child? And who was that man…her husband perhaps? Ino groaned. Her head was beginning to spin. Things were happening way too quickly. She picked up her phone and dialed the number to Danzo's office at the Bureau. Shizune answered.
"Hi Shizune," Ino said, "Can you inform Mr. Danzo that my grandmother is extremely ill and there's no one to look after her. Is it possible to prolong my little vacation?"
"Just a minute, Ms. Yamanaka," Shizune replied, "Mr. Danzo is giving you three weeks extra and hopes that your grandmother gets well soon. He says however, if your time is up, no matter what the situation is you'll have to return to the Bureau."
"That won't be a problem," Ino said before ending the call.
"That old geezer," Ino muttered to herself.
"Sakura…what are you up to?!"
Sakura rolled over to her side of the bed, panting, and her skin moist from the sweat – both hers and Sasuke's – the aftermath of their love making.
"Sakura you're hiding something from me," Sasuke said plainly. Sakura nearly allowed her eyes to widen but thankfully her inner warned her just in time. Had she actually given off that much body language?
"What are you talking about, Sasuke?" she managed to ask without any hint of guilt or any other emotions that would contribute as evidence.
"Hn…nothing," Sasuke said before closing his eyes.
"Okay," Sakura responded before following Sasuke's actions. Inwardly she was panicking. Sasuke was almost able to read her…like an open book. But that was not the only thing that bothered her, no. Her chance encounter with Ino was traumatizing as well. What if Ino had caught up with her, Itachi and Kagerou? In fact, what was Ino even doing in Oakwood? It had been a while since Sakura contacted the FBI, surely they would suspect her and Tenten. Would it be wise to contact Kakashi?
Sakura let the thought rest and gave in to her slumber. It had been a long day. And she knew that tomorrow would be a long day as well. Sakura had made her decision – she would meet with Guren even if she hated the idea of keeping this a secret from Tenten...
I really intended on writing more. But after reviewing this chapter myself, I realized there were some things I needed to cut out for the plot's sake. Don't worry; those little scenes will be put into later chapters.
So we now know that BOTH Sakura and Tenten are hiding something from each other. AND the plot thickens as Ino makes her 1st MAJOR appearance!
With 15 reviews for this Chapter, the reviews should sum up to 242.
Thanks to those who reviewed and subscribed! Thank you all for reading! Please excuse me if there were any errors…I'm really sleepy…
--Isabella Meredith Winchester.
NEXT CH: JULY 18th (If you don't get an update by then, it means this chapter did not get the required amount of reviews!)