THINGS WE LOST TO THE FIRE Chapter 2
Things we lost to the flame
Things we'll never see again
All that we've amassed
Sits before us, shattered into ash
Years later, living alone in the woods with half a dozen dogs, questionable reading material, and crippling attachment issues, Sakura realizes she turned into her teacher. Agebent Sakura Sensei
There were several small and humble shrines dotting the outer edges of the forest property. Sakura had read about all of them in the summary of the land's retail value, where they were briefly mentioned, before digging deeper into the history of each one.
She didn't remember being religious as a child, and even as an adult she didn't feel anything for the spiritual symbolism, but there was something about seeing the houses broken and forgotten that made her sad. She started with one and then made a little more progress each day, washed, sanded, repainted, and cleaned out, until all eight shrines were back in a state of glory.
"Maybe there is no greater value in cleaning them out, but it makes me feel better to do this," she once explained to a grumbling Dango. The Doberman huffed at that but stayed close, helping when he could.
It had been a while since the shrines were last tended to, but it was more because Sakura wanted something else to do while she waited for the summons that she took the spring water with her in a bucket to the first one.
She set the water down and straightened when she noticed Chainsaw go stiff beside her. The hair on his back along his spine stood up and he barked once, but didn't crouch or adapt a threatening stance.
Sakura looked where he was staring and put in the extra effort to see if she could sense anything from that direction. She didn't notice anything at first, and had to go over the area several times before something tickled her senses. She would have never noticed it without Chainsaw.
"Is it so tiny because it's being masked or because that's what it really is?" Sakura asked.
She reached down to scratch Chainsaw behind the ears. He barked in reply and she had suspected it to be another one of those kids. Whoever it was, they were either a civilian or a child.
"It's got nothing to do with us," said Dango.
"Yeah. If they wanted something from us they'd come out, but I think they're just running around playing hide and seek or something. Are there any others?"
Chainsaw sneezed and it shook his head. Sakura took that as a no.
She cleaned up the shrine, washing it out and picking out the dead leaves and chasing the spiders out after their broken webs. She didn't leave any offerings, but there was a patch of thick clover around the base and there just happened to be one with a pretty discoloration she picked to leave at the shrine.
She made it back to the house and checked for a message but found none and resolved to train in the backyard for a couple hours with the pack before making a late lunch and then washing off the grim and sweat.
She was reading medical texts when Chainsaw barked at the approaching chakra. Sakura looked up from her book and frowned, because she could feel the chakra too. No, Chainsaw barked again and she had to strain to feel for the second signature that was dwarfed by the first.
Sakura almost got up to approach them, but a moment later thought better of it and settled back into her seat. The house was trapped and there were enough defenses around the property that she didn't have to worry.
Besides, the second signature was child sized. She was willing to bet the first one was also a child, abit an older child with natural reserves meant for a monster. They were rare but not unheard of in children destined for great things.
"If they want to wear themselves out playing ding dong ditch they can have at it," Sakura sighed. She turned a page and frowned at the drawing.
"Hmph, brats," Dango huffed.
When Mop whined from the end of the room Sakura looked up again to see both him and Souta at the front door, staring through it as if expecting something. Souta looked back first and whined louded.
"Leave the kids alone," Sakura told the white, long haired Borzoi. "They're fine. They're probably just playing."
"You can't hear them shouting?" Dango asked, pretending he didn't know all their hearing was much better than hers.
Sakura clicked her tongue, closing the book and channeled her chakra to her ears so that she became able to hear the far off voices of two young children screaming into the woods.
"Stupid teme, come on! Where are you?"
"Oi, two-face, where did you go?"
"Come out."
Sakura cut off the flow of chakra. "That's nothing. I told you they were playing a game of hide and seek. What else does it sound like to you?"
Dango huffed, his ears going flat for a moment in reaction. "They sound upset. It's not just what they're saying, but pay attention to how they are saying it. Listen again."
"They're kids. It's in their nature to think the world is ending everytime something goes wrong. It's not a big deal little tykes would be worried when out in the woods with one of their own missing." Sakura flipped to a new page.
'They think the woods are haunted anyway.'
"You don't think anything is wrong?"
"Nah, they're kids. They'll figure it out themselves."
"And if they don't?"
Sakura flipped back a page in her book to compare two different drawings. "If they don't get it figured out then it's tough darts. Not like it has anything to do with me."
She was interrupted by the doorbell and a solid knocking. Mop barked when the knocking turned to pounding and Sakura growled along with Dango when she had to rise out of her seat and cross the room to answer the door.
Sakura stopped at the door, staring at it from the other side and feeling the chakra just beyond the surface. The kids hadn't run like she thought he would. That was the only reason she was so close, after all.
'Give it a minute and he'll run away,' she thought to herself.
But not more than a second later the pounding started up again and he was screaming at her through the doorway. "Hey witch lady, wake up! I'll let you eat me if you help me!"
Dango chuckled and Sakura rolled her eyes. When Sakura had been a kid the rumor about the witch in the wood was about how she needed fingers and eyes for magic jewelry. It changed with each generation and somewhere along the way she had forgotten she was older now and if the kids saw her now they might be mistaken enough to call her an adult.
Sakura opened the door and saw the blond boy with wide blue eyes. His hand was raised as if he meant to knock again but had frozen mid strike.
"Oi, brat, what are you doing disturbing my sleep like this?" Sakura growled with a bit more menace to her tone than usual. She flashed a bit of killing intent for the fun of it, daring him to run at the sight of her.
But he didn't.
Sakura hid her amusement when the boy squared himself firmly in place and raised his hands into little fists in front of his face. He was shaking in fear but he didn't run. Funny guy.
"My-My name is Naruto and I'm going to be Hokage one day, but today my friend Sasuke is missing and I need you to help me find him because this is your forest and witches can find anything in forests."
Sakura crouched down and leaned in, bringing herself closer. "Oi, but you said I could eat you if I help you. How can I do that if you plan on becoming Hokage?"
She eyed him up and down like she was pretending to see him as a snack and his shaking got worse. It made her want to laugh but she restrained herself. It was hard but she bit back her laugh and kept her eyes narrowed.
"You-you can eat me after I become Hokage, promise, but I need to find my friend. He's missing and I think he's hurt because we weren't playing Hide and Seek but he's not meeting up with us like he's supposed to. We can't find him and all the trees look the same."
Sakura was close enough to see that his face was grubby with dirt, but there were clean trails cutting through the dirt from his eyes to his chin. He had been crying, recently. When she inhaled she smelled the salt from his tears.
"Maybe that's good enough for me," she grumbled.
Sakura pulled back and straightened before whistling sharply. Dango, Mop, and Souta came out. Naruto gasped at the sight of all the dogs that were bigger than him. When Chainsaw came trotting out a second later Naruto missed him and that pissed off the sensor mutt enough to make him bark angrily.
"Find the kid, sniff him out if you can," Sakura said simply.
There was a chorus of barks before they each dashed off, Souta blurring into a streak as he was the fastest of the bunch.
Chainsaw bounded up a hill and turned around to bark back at her, tail wagging. He already knew where the boy was from when they were out clearing out the shrines. He was excited to show up his brothers.
"Just go," Sakura huffed, mildly agitated that the smaller dog was looking so eager when she had been trying her best to intimidate the child. Naruto wasn't nearly as scared as before. It was hard to be intimidated with Chainsaw.
"Those are all your dogs?" Naruto asked in a tone of wonder.
"Those are my ninken," she corrected.
"You're a shinobi?" Naruto turned to gasp, looking her over once more. "You don't look like one. What are you doing all the way out here where there are no other ninja people?"
Sakura tried to call up some killing intent and roll it off her in waves but it was impossible to manage when he stared up at her with such wide eyes. "Trying to get away from annoying brats like you. Shut up."
"That's cool! How long have you been a shinobi? Have you always lived out here in the forest? Are you special because you're a witch and a shinobi?"
One question came after another until they were streaming out of his mouth and she had forgotten about the tear stains on his face. His voice was annoying.
Sakura reached into her shirt and pulled out the dog whistle and blew it for Waffles. One short blow meant only Waffles should come, and two meant she needed the whole pack.
The large black wolf dog came bounding out from between the shadows and touched down near silent as a wraith beside Sakura, making Naruto stumble back and fall onto his but. The questions stopped and his jaw hung open. Waffles didn't say anything but pressed her face into Sakura's good hand, sniffing and somehow smelling the leftover killing intent.
"It's fine girl, you need to take me into the woods wherever you think there might be a boy hiding. I'm looking for trespassers."
Waffles growled low and Naruto squeaked.
"But don't hurt him! Sasuke isn't a trespasser, he's just lost."
Sakura rolled her eyes. "We're not going to hurt him...much."
"Ah, you are, you are, you are!"
Naruto screamed, jumping back up and running for her only to trip again when Waffles lowered her head and growled. With her teeth bared she looked like something out of a nightmare. She had to place a hand atop Waffles head to calm her.
"I'm joking, Naruto. We're not eating someone so small and pitiful for dinner. Stand up, we're going out." Sakura started to walk and with a handwave Waffles followed.
They were a handful of paces away when she heard Naruto scramble to his feet out of the dirt and shout, "Wa-wait for me!"
"You wanna come with us you have to be quiet or else you'll disturb the ghosts," Sakura warned in perfect seriousness.
Naruto gulped loudly and ducked his head before following them into the forest brush.
Sakura kept an eye out for placemarkers that betrayed their location and quickly found several she recognized from her trip back. She expected Chainsaw to come back in mere minutes to pinpoint the exact location, but she could get close enough on her own.
Waffles paused after a few minutes and turned before bending her head low and letting her ears go flat. Sakura saw the way her thick black fur ruffled in agitation, standing up and making her seem that much larger. Sakura stretched out her senses, pinpointing a chakra signature so small she thought she might have missed it unless she had been looking for it. Something black started to move and she heard Naruto gasp.
"Sai! Did you find Sasuke anywhere?" Naruto hollered, darting forward.
A second child ambled up the meek hill and braced before Naruto launched himself. Sai seemed to expect it, as he didn't grunt loudly or change expression as Naruto impact with wide arms.
"I did not find the two-face, my apologies." Sai pat Naruto on the back and then looked up over his shoulder. "Who is helping you look?"
"Oh, oh, this is the witch from the house you told me not to go to, but she's not a witch all the time, she's also a shinobi like us."
"You didn't ask her for her name and just believed her like that, did you?" Sai asked, sounding stiff in a way that made Sakura think it was typical-normal even- for him to emote nothing.
"Eh, I guess I didn't." Naruto laughed and scratched the back of his head. "Oops, I forgot."
Sai turned and regarded Sakura stiffly before inclining his head in a shallow bow. "Hello, shinobi san, it is nice to meet you. My name is Sai and we are looking for a young boy with black hair and eyes who talks nice to adults but is really a terrible person on the inside."
"Oh, is that why you call him two-face?" Sakura hummed.
"I give all my friends nicknames, that is how I know we are developing and growing a bond of friendship."
Sakura nodded at Naruto. "What do you call him?"
Sai turned to look at Naruto before slowly returning his gaze to Sakura. "I call him Naruto."
"Sai, that's so mean, we live together. You're like my brother."
Sai smiled and it looked so fake. "I sometimes call him idiot because that's what he is, though I've been told it is rude and I should stop calling him that."
Naruto huffed and stomped his foot. "Can't you just give me a nice nickname, like something amazing like Ramen Lord?"
Waffles turned away from the brats and pointed her nose at the ground once, inhaling loudly before looking up and hitting Sakura with her tail, lightly drawing her attention. Sakura turned away from the boys and took a step to let Waffles know she was following.
"Hey wait shinobi lady!" Naruto hollered, jumping up and running to her side. One of Sakura's strides was long enough for Naruto to have to struggle to keep up with.
She heard Sai follow a few steps behind, grateful for his efforts to keep quiet.
They walked a few minutes more before a howling far off drew her attention. She recognized the bellow as belonging to Mop. If she strained she could hear Chainsaw too, but Mop's low howl traveled further.
She picked up her pace, holding herself from racing off the way she knew she could. If she drew too far ahead the other two trailing in her dust would be left lost in her forest. Still, she raced ahead, putting enough distance between them that they were close enough to see her, but not reach her.
The shrine from earlier came into view and then blinked back into the shadows as Sakura jogged past. She was close to where she had first sensed the child.
The howl came again and this time she recognized another voice from her pack, Dango, adding his voice in loud barks that sent birds flying. Beside her Waffle growled and Sakura let her chakra flare in anger.
Her pack wasn't alone with the boy they had found.
Sakura didn't care about the boys behind her anymore, but started to peel out in earnest, racing off in flickers she knew they couldn't keep up with. The closer she got the tighter she drew her chakra to herself until it was so thin it was undetectable to all but a highly trained sensor.
She burst onto the scene with a snarling Waffles to see a single shinobi male with a short sword raised. Half his face was covered in a visor like mask that left his mouth and nose exposed.
"Shit, you're not the brother," he grunted before raising his sword.
Sakura didn't respond but slipping into position as Souta came crashing into the clearing and attacked first, darting just out of sword reach with his impressive speed. The rest of her pack moved like a single unit, layering their attacks one after the other until Sakura was next, launching off Waffle's back and twisting in air enough to charge her left leg for a heel drop that shattered earth.
The individual cursed and rolled away, bringing up his sword to deflect fang and claw. Every attack that was launched at him showed up as a reflection in his silver visor and Sakura wondered how effective something like the sharingan would be on a person wearing a visor like that.
It was the worst timing, but between one strike and a block Sakura put the pieces together.
"My-My name is Naruto and I'm going to be Hokage one day, but today my friend Sasuke is missing and I need you to help me find him…"
Shisui made a face. "No, that's Sasuke. Look Sakura, this is Itachi, my best friend and a newly appointed animal companion. We're breaking him into the polish ranks gradually you know."
Shit, someone was trying to abduct an Uchiha.
"Don't kill this one if you can," Sakura snarled to Dango before biting the finger of her left glove and pulling it off. She turned her wrist around and less hand and more blade she launched herself with renewed vigor.
His hands were up in a seal and she felt his chakra before the ground rose up in a stone wall separating her from him. That was easy enough to punch through but on the other side Chainsaw barked a warning that saved her.
Underground
Sakura ignored the illusion in front of her and instead turned towards the ground and reeling back with her other hand to shatter the earth under her. She saw his form in the rubble and struck out with her blade dripping something nasty and green.
He stuck a tag onto the rubble beside her head and she pulled back before she could properly see it, only to curse when it popped spores into the air. She hadn't missed how his mask slid down and covered the rest of his face now.
"Stay back," she barked to her pack while pulling up her shirt over her mouth.
His hands were forming more seals and she ran for him again only to feel the ground under her go soft. She had just enough time to launch herself into to trees before the land, once solid, went soft like melted chocolate.
She aimed her left wrist in his direction and from her wrist launched several senbon, one right after the other. Unlike typical, the stream of metal needles assaulting him rained mercilessly, not ceasing until his slipped behind a tree and out of sight.
Sakura cursed. Whoever she was fighting he was strong, skilled enough to take on ANBU at least. If he had been waiting out to ambush Itachi or Shisui he would have to be confident in his skills or else-
The tree she had been holding onto shattered at the base and she was barely in time, leaming away before a second figure in a silver mask, identical to the first, pulled his hand out of the charred trunk, still crackling with lightning. It made her think of chirping birds, but when she blinked the memory was gone, along with her hesitation.
Waffles rebounded off a tree and came down on the newest nin with snapping fangs. The arm that had once been sizzling with electric light crunched loudly under her jaws. The scream was impossible to misunderstand.
'Good girl,' Sakura thought as she signaled to the rest of the pack.
A moment later four more jaws were clamped down on the figure's form, snapping ankle and wrist alike. They then proceeded to tear him to shred the way wild things tended to.
Sakura dropped down from her tea and approached the first figure. As she assumed, he was already wavering on his feet. Her poison only needed forty five seconds to work and she had been counting them painfully one by one before dropping down.
He crumpled on his own, falling paralyzed to the ground with minor convulsions and twitches.
"This won't kill you, don't worry," Sakura cooed. She reached for his mask and broke it in hand before peeling pieces of it away one by one. "But it'll sting a little as it keeps you paralyzed. Wouldn't want you to go numb on me and forget what pain feel like, after all."
"Y-you, you're not-" his eyes were wide and mouth taunt, "-the Uchiha."
"Super disappointed, aren't you?" Sakura flicked her left wrist and it was more hand than blade once more. "But We should all be braced to face some disappointment in life, like how I'm disappointed someone would be stuuuuupid enough to try anything in my forest. Who gave you the idea to try something here, buddy?"
She put pressure on the pop of his throat and he choked. "No-not gonna tell, you'll just kill me anyway."
He glared and Sakura felt like slapping him for it. Instead she turned his face to the side so she could see his partner being pulled apart by her pack.
"You are right, you are going to die," she said slowly. "But do you want it to be quick right here at the neck, or should it last for hours as they pull you apart….limb….from...limb?"
Mop had part of the arm in his mouth as he shook it free and muscle and skin flapped free off the end. It hadn't been a neat cut and leaked everywhere.
"What's it going to be?"
"You weren't supposed to be here. We didn't even send the scroll to the compound. No one was supposed to be here," he blurted. Sakura approved of how his voice shook.
"Oh, what scroll?"
"Fr-front pocket."
Sakura looked for a trap or a trigger but found none. Inside was a small scroll, no longer than her index finger. She broke the seal easy and let it roll free. The message was simple and short.
Your brother won't survive long. Come alone or let the earth consume the Uchiha's youth.
"That's lovely poetry. It sounds like you were after the little brat's brother. What did you think you could do with a twelve year old?"
"He's not just any twelve year old."
Sakura chuckled dryly and pinched his nose. "He would have beaten you both. Really, the work was pathetic on your part. No stamina. What did you think you could do, beat him?"
"He wouldn't be able to use his-"
"Shinobi are more than their jutsu, and even without those stupid eyes I was able to take you down. Who would want a pair of pretty reds these days anyway? Which village are you poaching for?"
"None."
Sakura leaned in, smiling threateningly. "I've got five dogs with big appetites and your friend was skinny. Try again or they start taking away the pieces of you one by one."
"No village, no outside village, not from outside!" He tried to move but there was no use. Her toxins would circulate through his body for the rest of the hour. "No, it wasn't from the outside it was official, I had orders."
Sakura felt herself recoil in disgust. "You mean the Hokage issued this?" She thought he was a senile old fool, but this plan didn't fit his image. It wasn't his stye. "I think you should try again."
He was nearly vibrating under her, still paralyzed but struggling with all his might against the poison. She spread her fingers around his throat, keeping one finger atop his Adam's Apple and let the others press in enough to bruise before lightening up.
She leaned in.
"I said, try again," she cooed in another sweet tone, fake smile in place
"Orders."
"Who's?" she applied pressure.
"Can't-seal won't let us."
And then something happened with his eyes. The fear melted away and a distant look toko over his gaze. The shaking stopped and the tension drained out of him. Sakura went stiff, stretching out her senses for a trap or backup, but there was nothing she could see to explain the sudden calm that took over his fear.
"No, no, no, NO!" Sakura grabbed him at the collar and shook him. "Name, tell me his name, tell me it was him!"
He opened his mouth and something on his tongue started to burn and soon the rest of him from the inside out went up in flames too. Behind her Dango shouted a warning but she didn't need it, because she was jumping away in time to miss the ripple of explosion she had come to expect with suicide cell members.
Souta found and reached her first, licking at her face and neck. She groaned and pushed herself to sit up when Mop came over to paw at her legs, checking to make sure she wasn't broken in places. His muzzle was still thick with red and gore but he whined for her.
"You think it was ROOT?" Dango asked.
"You don't?"
Dango didn't say anything.
Sakura shot up, remember her original mission in coming out into the woods. "Where is the kid? Was he-?"
"Safe," Dango assured. "He wasn't that close to the blast, but he's incapacitated and buried not far from here. Come."
Sakura stood and followed her dogs out from behind the trees, grimacing at the blackened battlefield where the barest remains splattered the trunks of nearby trees. Nothing else remained of the bodies.
"Waffles, go find those two boys from earlier and lead them here. We'll take the other one back to the house and I can check on him there to see if he needs anything."
Sakura reached up to run her hand through her hair and only noticed her missing glove when the mechanical fingers were in front of her face. She winced and quickly cast a low level genjutsu. She didn't want to freak the kids out anymore and she could already imagine what sort of story they would give her disability.
Chainsaw was already ahead of her, barking at something in the ground at the base of an ancient tree. The roots were exposed and a weaving mess of overlapping components that would be easy to fall through if you were small enough. Sakura saw the signs of a trap in the way dirt still clung to the roots. Someone had staged the area to make it look like it was all solid ground, when really there was a wide opening under the tree beneath the roots.
Sakura knelt at the edge and looked down. At the base of the trap there was a small child, thin and bleeding from his hip. She slithered in under the roots and reached for the child to see if his wounds were really that bad or simply superficial.
There was a long scratch that was deep enough to stain his shirt, but it wasn't anything difficult that she couldn't fix. It had already started to cot over but she was more worried about infection based on how dirty the rest of him looked.
His dark black locs were scattered across his face and she reached to brush them apart and hummed low to herself. He looked a lot like Itachi, she was sure he was an Uchiha.
"SASUKE?!"
Sakura looked up and glared to where a blond head poked through the roots. Naruto's face was wet with more tears as he cried for the sight of his friend. Beside him, Sai watched on calmly.
"Shut up, kid," Sakura snapped before turning and looking back down at the Uchiha. His eyes were wide and blinking. Sakura pulled back her hand from his face and huffed. "Never mind, I guess he's awake now. No point bothering it."
"Wha-?" Sasuke croaked. His lips were chapped and his voice sounded raw.
"Shhh, don't try talking until you have some water. You're safe now. Those knuckleheads lost you and made me track you down. There is a scratch on your side I want to heal, but you don't have any broken bones, which is good."
"Who?"
Sakura almost rolled her eyes. She had just told him not to talk but of course that was too much to ask for from a kid.
"My name is Sakura, I live out here in the woods. You've been ding dong ditching my house if you can remember back that far. Now shush, I need to look at this."
He didn't say anything as Sakura pulled up his shirt and ran a glowing green hand over the long red scab. She burned away the infection first before retracing the path with her hand once more and sealing the broken pieces of flesh back together. After a couple more passes there was nothing more than a pink scar running down his side.
Sakura reached over and picked up one side of his shoulder before scooping the rest of him into her arms bridal style. He reached to wrap his little arms around her neck, pulling himself close. Sasuke made a sound of protest but she ignored it. He wasn't about to leap through the hole in the roots on his own, so he would just have to put up with it for now.
When she emerged Chainsaw was barking happily and running around in circles while Mop and Souta still whined and sniffed at her legs, checking once more to see if she was okay. They could both tell that something was still wrong with her, but she would have to wait until later to tell her it was all about ROOT and some of her worst fears.
"Waffles, I hate to ask, but those two can't keep up with us. Would you mind?" Sakura asked, looking to the largest of her pack.
The big black wolf dog settled down and bowed her head, waiting for the two boys to mount her back. She was big enough to carry Sakura so two eight year olds were no problem.
"We get to ride the dog!"
Naruto screamed in delight, forgetting all about Sasuke for a second as he launched himself at the wolf and scrambled up her back. Waffles grunted in annoyance when he slipped and pulled at her coat, but didn't growl or bite.
Sai looked between Waffles and Sakura, before bowing to the shinobi and then making a much smoother mount onto the wolf dog's back.
"Look at us Sasuke, I'm riding the witch's dog! Woohoo!"
Sakura clicked her tongue at the title. "I told you I'm not-oh never mind. Come on, back to the house." her eyes drifted to her pack members and then back to the boys on Waffles' back. "Feeding time I guess."
Without waiting for short legs to catch up, Sakura took off with Sasuke in her arms and the rest of her pack kept up easily. More than usual, the dogs ran faster for the food that waited for them once they were back at the house. It was almost their dinner time.
The trek took little to no time at all and everyone arrived back without further incident. As much as Sakura wanted to relax and breath easy, she dropped extra trigger traps along the way and sent off Mop and Souta to dust the perimeter with extra traps and sensing seals.
Naruto was still whooping as Waffles brought him and Sai into the house. With a huff the female ninken lay down atop the rug in Sakura's living room and waited for the boys to dismount. Sai left easily on his own, but when Naruto tried to argue he should be allowed to stay, Waffles rolled over with him still on her back, squishing him just enough to be playful but not enough to be harmful.
"She doesn't like to be clung to. Get over here, brat, and tell me what you can eat," Sakura called from the kitchen. Dango's ears stood up at the word 'eat' and Chainsaw went stiff, drooling from the mouth. She had deposited Sasuke onto the couch but since then he hadn't moved, content to watch from his seat.
Naruto was the first to react, racing into the kitchen and skidding across the dirty floor in his socks to stop just shy of her refrigerator.
"Do you have any ramen?"
Sakura scoffed. "Of course I have ramen, but is that what you really want before I take you back?"
"Ramen, ramen, ramen," Naruto began to cheer, jumping up and down in place.
When Sakura looked over she saw Sasuke still seemed a bit stunned, absently petting Chainsaw who had climbed up into his lap while Sai watched on. Neither boy seemed half a lively as Naruto or as willing to share what they wanted.
"Fine, ramen it is," Sakura sighed.
She assembled the materials, insisting on adding vegetables to the otherwise sodium heavy meal. While the water heated on her stove Sakura got out four eggs and a package of ham that was still good. She added these to the noodles once they softened and then replaced the ramen lids atop the bowls.
When Sakura turned around with four bowls on a tray she saw that the rest of her pack had joined them and Sai, Sasuke, and Naruto had each amused themselves with one or more of them.
Waffles moved away whenever Naruto reached for her, but Mop was happy enough to sneak in an steal any pets that might have been meant for the much larger ninken. Somehow Sai had found one of Souta's combs and was brushing through the slender dog's coat until it shone. Souta looked happy all over while Sasuke continued to scratch and pet Chainsaw from the couch.
"Oi, to the table you three. I need to feed the dogs."
Mop howled first, his tail wagging so hard and fast it shook his whole rear end. Souta pulled away from Sai and started to run in circles. Dango shared a look with Waffles that Sakura guessed to be something condescending about the younger pups.
There was a secondary freezer she kept prime cuts for the dogs in the mud room. She set these out and made sure Chainsaw was eating his regular 'puppy kibble' in place of the tougher food.
When Sakura came back into the room Sasuke was the last one climbing into his seat at the kitchen table. It was barely big enough for the three of them, but when Sakura sat down it was even more crowded. She picked up her bowl and pushed her chair back enough to rest it on her lap.
"So, I know where I'm bringing you," she said while pointing to Sasuke, "but where the heck am I going to take the two of you?"
"The Shimura's orphanage," Sai answered for Naruto. "We're both wards there."
Sakura felt the heat of the bowl through her fingers but suddenly there was a new feeling all throughout her body. She felt numb all over. "What?"
"The Shimura Orphanage, it's a place where kids go who want to become shinobi like me, cause one day I'm gonna be Hokage!"
Sakura forgot how to rage. Her anger rolled under the surface like a leviathan trapped beneath translucent ice. She felt her face go still and cold as all the angles on her went straight.
"Your history with Councilman Danzo Shimura is unfortunate, but reprimations have been made and he is still an esteemed council member and I am still the Sandaime."
The Hokage had claimed that Danzo disbanded ROOT, but villains like that didn't change their tune after being caught and forgiven. Danzo had put on a good show for his old friend, washed his hands in the light before hiding them out of sight behind his back to do the devil's deeds.
Sakura didn't doubt that the orphanage was some sort of front to cover another cell of ROOT recruits. And if that was true then it meant the boys are her table, minus Sasuke, showed promise somehow.
Sakura stretched her chakra out, running it over the two orphans and Chainsaw perked up when he caught sniff of what she was trying to do. He barked at Naruto, making the blond laugh. Between the two of them, he was the easy powerhouse with as much chakra as he already had. Sakura couldn't remember ever feeling so much chakra in a person, much less a person so small. The further she pressed the thicker his chakra seemed.
"Tell me about this orphanage," Sakura said with false nonchalance. It was wasted on children who couldn't appreciate how well she lied.
"It's boring and stupid, that's why Sai and I always run away," Naruto answered first. "I've only lived there for a little while. I was at a different orphanage before and I didn't do nothing there, but at least I get to train to be Hokage one day."
He babeled so easily.
"What's your last name, kid?" Sakura asked, hating how a thrill in her gut told her she wouldn't like what she heard.
His smile was so wide it took over his whole face. "Naruto Uzamaki!"
The words came out and Sakura could no longer unsee Kushina in his smile. She hadn't seen her child since he was spirited away the night of the nine tailed fox attack, but Sakura had heard the rumors. There was a special cell designated with monitoring the kid as it grew while the rest of the village was banned from every speaking of the event.
'Because suppressing the truth is always the answer for these sort of things.' Her mind sounded like it was full of acid.
There is only so stupid one can be allowed when they are in charge of an entire village. There had never been an overabundance with the authority in power or the Hokage personally, but when she considered the facts that Danzo was raising the Jinchūriki...she felt more and more of her chip away. Soon there would be nothing left of her aside from her rage.
Sakura forced her eyes down, staring at the noodles of her ramen when Mop came up behind her and sniffed at her heels. The rest of her pack could tell she was distressed about something and she knew she needed to be better at hiding or else have half them howling at her.
"Sasuke, can we sleep over tonight? I don't want to have to go back again if you're going to go missing," said Naruto.
"Dobe, no way is my family letting you do that," Sasuke grumbled, ducking his head.
"But you let Sai sleep over in the past."
"Sai isn't loud and annoying."
Sai smiled over his half finished ramen. "You forget, idiot, that we have training in the morning with Kinoto san."
Sakura suppressed the growl. "What is an ANBU level jonin doing training eight year olds?"
She saw Sai's reaction and clued into it like a bloodhound with a scent. He had flinched for some reason and was trying to cover it up.
"Ah, I'm not sure what that means, but Kinoto san is like our older brother and helps some of us train once a week."
"It's the only time we get to train," Naruto adds. "I've only done it a few times."
"How long have you been at the orphanage, Naruto? Can you remember the number of days or months?"
Sakura tried to look casual by moving a heavy chunk of noodles into her mouth to slurp the rest of the way up. At her heel Mop whined for a different reason so she bopped him on the nose with her toe.
He looked thoughtful for a moment before looking back at her. "I think it's been three months almost." Cause I still need to wait for a bed. I'm still sharing with Sai all the time and he says I kick too much in my sleep."
"What are you thinking?" Dango growled at her, low under her breath. He kept his voice low but it didn't help, the others still heard him. Sakura reached behind her to scratch behind his ear but he pulled away.
"I'm not thinking about anything, just that maybe I need to make another trip," Sakura growled back, using human speech.
With a huff she got up to deposit her empty bowl in the sink. She ran the water turned it over to clean better when she came back. She was surprised to see Sasuke waiting at the sink next to her with his empty bowl. He offered it to her and she took it with a short nod of acknowledgment.
"Are you going to take me back home soon?" he asked as she washed his bowl in the sink.
"Yeah, as soon as those two yahoos finish their food. Why?"
Sakura looked back over her shoulder to see the youngest Uchiha staring at the dogs under her table. He wasn't too unlike his brother. She remembered Itachi being fascinated with Chainsaw.
"I'll take the pack with us, they usually travel with me wherever I go. Chainsaw even stays inside my jacket most of the time."
Sai came over to hand off his and Naruto's bowles. Naruto was under the table trying to catch Mop's paws. Every time Naruto reached for one the shaggy wolfhound would move it just out of his way.
When they got outside Sakura had Naruto and Sai mount Waffles again before turning to Sasuke. She didn't think he would want to be carried again, but none of the other dogs were really suited to carrying.
Sakura knelt down and pointed to her back. "You mind if it's just me? It'll be faster this way and you'll get home sooner."
Sasuke nodded politely and climbed onto her back while Souta ran around them in a circle, eager for the race. The sleek white dog was the fastest, after all.
As a unit they moved together, pressing into the wing like they were desperate or something. Sakura didn't feel like taking a slower pace once they started moving. She wondered, absently, it maybe that was because thoughts of Danzo and the rebranding of ROOT made her so angry.
For whatever reason, it wasn't long or late when Sakura touched down on the fence outside the outermost limits of the Uchiha districts. She remembered when the Uchiha had been scattered throughout the village before they had been issued orders to relocate as a collective in predesignated areas. Obito would have hated it if he was still alive to see it. She knew Kakashi sensei had hated to watch it all happen.
'The Uchiha are just as bad as any other can that's locked away and forced to face themselves exclusively. They're not going to be interacting with the rest of the village as much.'
'And is that a bad thing?'
"Maa, well, we shall see.'
The memory made a bruised part of her heart ache but she ignored it in favor for stepping over the fence into Uchiha territories. She felt the eyes on her instantly, whereas before they had been fairly hidden.
"It's Sakura senpai!"
Sakura suppressed a groan as she turned with Sasuke still on her back to face the incoming figure. Behind her Sasuke huffed in agitation as well.
"He always steals my big brother away for stupid training," Sasuke supplied.
Shisui stopped right in front of her and smiled wide. He did a good job ignoring the dogs circling him and her, looking to Sasuke first. "I see you brought back my troublesome cousin. We were almost worried about him, but we figured he was with his friends."
Sakura grunted. "Ah, about that. I need to talk to your uncle about it." The scroll was still heavy in her pocket and she hoped that Fugaku Uchiha was still willing to talk to her like he had when she was training under him.
"Uncle?" Shisui looked over Sasuke, or what little he could see of his cousin, before his eyes trailed to Naruto and Sai on the large wolf's back. "I can take you there but those two will have to wait outside. I can stay with them if you promise to come back for them," he teased.
"Fair enough," Sakura grumbled. "Lead the way."
It was all for formality's sake, since she knew where Fugaku lived and how to get to his house, in spite of only having visited it once since the big move years ago. She doubted it was as nice, but any home with Mikoto would be pleasant.
"Is Itachi nii back home yet?" Sasuke asked, leaning over Sakura's shoulder while they walked.
"Ah, I think so. He was busy this morning through. You might be able to find him if you look really hard." Shisui grinned a little too hard and his smile seemed fake. "You want to get off Sakura senpai's back now?"
Sasuke shook his head and buried his chin in her hair.
"Little brat."
"Leave it alone, Shisui. He's no worse than you."
Shisui whined playfully. "How am I so terrible?"
Sakura kept her gaze focused on where they were going. "I'm pretty sure you remember more than you let on. Last time we met you had a hard time not hanging on, yourself."
"What does that mean?" Sasuke asked, staring a bit too intently at his older cousin. Shisui's smile faltered just a fraction.
"Nothing minors need concern themselves with," Shisui muttered under his breath before increasing his pace and pulling ahead.
"What is a miner."
"No idea," Sakura lied easily. "Maybe he thinks you're going to go work in a mine or something one day. Is that why you all have such dark hair, from the mine's coal or something?"
He sounded like she had said the most offensive thing possible and she wondered how deep his pride was at such a young age when he began to wiggle on her back. "No, I'm going to be a shinobi like my brother and all the others, not some stinky miner!"
"Yeah, Sasuke is going to be a shinobi like us," Naruto cheered.
"Dobe, not like you. I'm going to be like my big brother who is so much cooler." There was color high on his cheeks when Sasuke spoke about his brother.
Sakura almost stopped when she sensed the familiar chakra, but kept walking until they were at the house. When they stopped it was Fugaku who was at the door to greet them.
"Haruno kun, it's been a long time. I see you found my wayward son." Fugaku Uchiha turned to look at Sasuke and frowned. "Sasuke, we will talk about running off for such long periods without warning later. Go now and wash vegetables for dinner with your mother. It will be your job to set the table.
Sasuke dropped his head mournfully. "Yes otou san."
Sakura let him slide off her back but caught him by the wrist before he could leave to go inside. "Actually, Fugaku san, there's a little more to it than just running off to play. Might I come in to have a word with you…" she inclined her head, "in private?"
The clan head glanced over to the dogs where Sai and Naruto were sitting. Shisui stepped in and waved his uncle off. "I got it, I'll watch these kids outside while you talk. Sakura can pick them up later," he winked at her, "from me."
Fugaku's gaze was frosty. "Don't embarrass the good name, Shisui," he sighed. Fugaku sounded like a man who had exhausted himself on worthless warnings. With Shisui, that wasn't hard to believe.
"Haruno kun, inside please."
She followed him in with only Chainsaw in her jacket, knowing where they would go. As expected, Fugaku Uchiha took her to a back room pre painted with silencing seals to make it as private as chakra could guarantee.
Before he could sit down behind the desk Sakura tossed the scroll at him. Fugaku caught it before he knew what he was doing. When he unrolled it the red of his eyes glowed.
"Where did you get this?"
"Off the body of what I suspected to be a ROOT cell agent. He was ready to go up against an Uchiha and he claimed he was acting on orders from the inside."
"That….does sound like ROOT. How do you know he was not lying? They are not known for divulging their secrets."
"You're right, he couldn't say much more than that because of some seal, but he did kill himself before I could get anything more out of him. I don't have proof, just what my gut tells me."
"I remember your gut being very accurate back in the day," he hummed while rolling the scroll back up.
Sakura tried to forget how frustrated she was on the inside from how the nin died so quickly and so easily. "It's been a while and gut feelings aren't going to do what solid proof could do."
Fugaku Uchiha stared past her at the door and Sakura saw his expressions go tight from the thought of something. "Sasuke...was he… did you find him without injury?"
"He was a little scratched up, but that was from the rough handling. I'm guessing his sharingan isn't something they would want to steal at this age, correct?"
"Sasuke has not awakened it, no, but Itachi has. They were after that."
"I'm not surprised. You're more fortunate than the Hyuga in that regard, since their dōjutsu kekkei genkai can be stolen at any age. At least Uchiha with sharingan are typically Uchiha who can defend themselves." Sakura paused before adding, "They underestimated Itachi if they thought they could get him with such weak cell agents."
Fugaku sighed. "Indeed."
Sakura noticed the deep lines of stress that had only grown longer and more pronounced since she last saw the Uchiha clan head. Gray hair, which was so uncommon in the Uchiha until very late in life, started to creep along his temple.
It they were making little Itachi into an ANBU operative it was only because of his skill. No was was eager to promote the Uchiha until public favor swayed more their way. Sakura didn't doubt Itachi was letal in his own way.
"This has not been the first incident by a long shot, and I doubt it will be the last, but it is one of the most troubling. They targeted Itachi because of his age, thinking he would be weak. They didn't even pause to consider his position as clan heir."
Sakura's intel wasn't the best because of her one laziness, but she knew enough to know that fewer and fewer promotions were being made for the Uchiha. They were also granted less and less access to the training fields and resources. One argument for this was that the Uchiha were too privileged and didn't want to share resources, and yet the Hyuga were entitled their central compound lands and training facilities without issue.
For as fair as he liked to believe Leaf was, the Hokage was blind to the inconvenient injustices right under his nose.
"There isn't a lot of low hanging fruit to pick from if someone is really fishing for the sharingan. How many kids in your clan are there with the sharingan developed?" Sakura made a face and then waved her hand. "Never mind, don't tell me that, I don't want to know."
"You were only trying to help. I'm grateful, Haruno kun. Will you stay for dinner? I feel we must thank you with more than just words this time."
"As lovely as that sounds I'm afraid I can't. I have two bite sized snacks I have to return to the orphanage, but once I'm back to semi active duty I'll be sure to drop in for a dinner with your family."
"I do not envy you your chore. While I doubt you'll have to engage with Danzo, the establishment his family runs is just as pleasant as he is." Fugaku chuckled when he saw the dark look cross Sakura's features. "Ah, and while I understand how it might seem, the orphanage is part of the restatutions he is required to make to the village. His work there is under heavy surveillance and nothing untoward has been done about Kushina's child. Too many eyes are watching for even Danzo to try something."
In spite of his words Sakura could hear the cut of thinly masked sarcasm from Fugaku when he spoke of Danzo. He trusted the elder as much as she did.
"There's no way to get him out of there?"
"He's not really up for adoption, no."
"Shame he has to endure such a fate then."
Fugaku chuckled. "Why? Thinking of slowing down and picking up a kid or two of your own?"
Sakura's glare wasn't truly as threatening as it normally was, but it was one that insisted on the end of jokes.
"You're not your wife, so watch it, Uchiha san."
In spite of their situation and the dower news Sakura brought with her, Fugaku managed a mischievous grin. "Oh, it's 'Uchiha san' now, I'm sorry Haruno kun. I didn't know it was so sensitive a topic."
"You wouldn't understand the complexities of a maiden's heart."
"Maybe not, but I did marry one. Are you sure you don't want any free advice?"
Sakura groaned but turned towards the door. A small part of her heart was greatful Obito's older cousin was still able to joke around with her in spite of his situation, but she didn't let it show. He was still treating her like a kid.
She made it to the front where she left her sandals before she heard something. The front door was still closed but she could hear Shisui speaking on the other side. She only noticed because she heard her name. When she glanced back over her shoulder at Fugaku he was grimacing.
"You really wanted to give me pointers?" Sakura huffed. "You think I need them?"
"Pointers for the right sort, Haruno kun."
Sakura rolled her eyes and then stood. When she rolled the front door back Shisui didn't even flinch.
"And then her sensei finally showed up, but by then we had already been chased by his pack all through the red li-ah, Sakura chan!"
"What stupid stories are you filling their heads with?" she growled, hands folded across her chest.
"Ah, they wanted to know how I knew you and what sort of person you were because someone didn't believe you were really a shinobi because you weren't wearing your headband when you picked these brats up."
"Hey, we're not brats!" Naruto hollered.
"Shut up kid," Shisui hissed, hardly looking back at Naruto at all.
"I'm not wearing one because I'm technically retired and not on active duty," Sakura said, looking around Shisui to where Naruto hid between Waffles' front legs. Sai was laying down on her back, content to stay there lightly brushing back thick tufts of fur.
"Does that mean she's a ton older than you?" Naruto asked innocently.
Sakura screwed her eyes shut to keep from glaring or looking sideways at Shisui to see his expression. She didn't care about being called old, she really didn't, she really didn't, shereallydidn't.
"Come on, we're dropping you brats off and then I'm heading back home."
She walked past Waffles and stuffed her hands deep into the pockets of her nin trousers, loose around the thigh and tied up around the ankles.
"Wait, Sakura, I wanted to ask you if you would-"
"Shisui, I need you to retrieve Itachi."
"But-"
"Urgently. I won't ask again."
Sakura smirked to herself as she strolled out with the boys who were mostly helpful about providing her with directions back to the orphanage.
It didn't take long, and before the equivalent of dinner time, Sakura had picked out the place not far from the Hokage tower that served as the prohanage. As she suspected, surveillance was high. Even if it was Danzo, anything done nearby would be noticed.
"Danzo isn't even here most of the time, I don't know what you are making that face for," Naruto huffed, watching Sakura's face as it contorted at the sight of their home.
Sai turned to Naruto to correct him, even as he slid of Waffles' back. "It's Danzo sama, not Sanzo, so remember to be polite."
Naruto groaned loudly and threw his hands behind his head. "Ugh, I don't want to and you can't make me!"
Someone from inside called out to the boys and a woman with facial scarring appeared in the doorway, wiping her hands on her apron. She wore a simple yukata and had her hair pinned up in a low bun. Sakura asses her in a moment and considered her a low threat. No doubt she had some shinobi background if she looked like that and was working for Danzo, but Sakura didn't sense a large store of chakra or any particular aura of danger from the woman. Chainsaw didn't seem to mind her either.
"Alright, that's it for me, babysitting is done for the day. Stay out of my woods next time," Sakura grumbled with her shoulders hiked up. She turned and started to walk away.
"Thank you witch shinobi san!" Naruto hollered loudly, waving and jumping. Sakura just hiked her shoulders up higher to hide the color burning her ears.
"You don't think he is in any danger there?" Dango asked once they were far away enough.
"Not with the surveillance on the place looking like that. But who knows how lax it may grow in time. There's no telling."
"Once Naruto graduates from the academy he won't need to live in an orphanage. That's only a few years from now if he has any talent."
Sakura glanced down at the doberman and pursed her lips. "What are you getting at?"
"You're the one that tells others to look underneath the underneath."
Sakura felt something race up her spine, something like a thrill. "And?"
"Put that brain of yours to use. I know you still have it."
"Don't patronize me, mutt. I'm not so pathetic as to deserve your teasing. I know, I know. Just like you I heard what Naruto said."
Danzo isn't even here most of the time…
Naruto wasn't worth it if Danzo wanted to make him into a ROOT member, but he was useful for one thing. With all the crazy surveillance watching to make sure he didn't try anything with the Jinchūriki, no one really paid so much attention to what Danzo did elsewhere.
"Shit."
AN:I did have this uploaded yesterday but FF was crashing all day long so I used the mobil app to take it down and wait for today so that it might not get buried in all the other crap that has piled up. I apologize if this has created any unintentional confusion (because I know someone will complain about it) but this is just chapter 2 and I'll have chapter 3 up soon since it is shorter. :)
You know how I said there were seven-ish chapters? It's more like eight depending on how I cut them up. I'm making them longer than usual because I just...am. I have no good reason.
Sakura's Pack!
Mop- Irish Wolfhound He's the teeth of the pack
Souta - Borzoi (Russian Wolfhound) He's the speed of the pack
Dango- Doberman pinscher- He's the voice of the pack
Chainsaw- Jack Russell Terrier He's the sensor of the pack (and the baby)
Waffles- Wolf She's the terror and the stealth of the pack