A/N: Welp, guess my story idea has been done before, rip. Oh well. I'll try and make it interesting and different enough. Also the next chapter was done before this one so expect that sooner rather than later.
Chapter 3:
"So you're certain he's dead then?" The copy ninja asked, looking doubtful. To be honest it bothered Sakura greatly that he had so little faith in her. After all, he was the one who left her to fight on her own, you think the guy would show a little bit of pride in her.
"Yes sensei, he's dead. He may have been a puppet but I shoved my fist through his heart, he's gone." She spoke with more authority than she probably had on the subject. Naruto was looking at her slightly star struck and it was hard to keep the blush off her cheeks. In the past he had looked at her like that over anything small she did. For this though, it was warranted and it felt, dare she day it, good to finally have some recognition for her deeds.
The morning had come and with it the questions. Sakura had been unable to sleep anymore but the boys had allowed her time to rest all the same and gather her thoughts. The trees in the clearing glistened with moisture as the early light cascaded through the leaves to dapple the ground. The pastel hue of the sky belied none of the blood that had been spilt the previous day.
Kakashi tore his gaze away from the sky to his female student. His single eye roamed her form before zeroing in on her arm which still had flecks of blood on it and hummed. Naruto finally snapped out of his daze and scowled at their former teacher.
"Is that all you have to say? She goes and kills one of the bastards and all you could do was blow the guys arm off!"
That perked the pinkette's interest, she hadn't heard a peep of what the boys had gone through and she was dying to know. Where was everyone, did they retrieve the kazekage, and what of the blonde akatsuki?
"Only his arm sensei?" Sakura teased but there was a strange tension in both of the men after she said it. Their eyes met and she noticed some form of communication happening between the two. It was then it struck her. They still didn't believe she was who they said she was. Her jaw slowly dropped at the realization and she bristled indignantly. What kind of enemy would pass out like she had among foreign shinobi? From the look of things Naruto believed her, unsurprising given his nature to see the best in everyone. For some reason her previous teacher just could not let it go. Finally she spoke up, sick of the silent war being waged between her boys.
"What will it take to convice you that I'm me?"
Two pairs of hard eyes flashed to her's, one softening and the other narrowing. Naruto's features became less guarded and he opened his mouth to say something when Kakashi beat him to it.
"Would you allow Pakkun to check you?" The man asked flippantly. Sakura stared at him for a moment uncomprehending before she realized what he was getting at. His dogs would know her scent and be able to decern if it was her. With that idea in mind she gave a nod of consent and the dog was summoned.
The small pug walked forward and began to sniff her. Sakura fought to keep a strait face when the pup sneezed lightly and then turned to face his summoner.
"It's her alright." The nin-dog said finally in his low voice. Sakura nearly fist pumped the air, definitive proof!
"But?" Kakashi's voice broke through the satolisfaction she felt.
Pakkun rubbed a paw behind his ear as if scratching the back of his head. He seemed unsure how to put when he had scented on her. Suddenly the girl felt nervous, her lips darting out to lick her lips.
"There's a second scent overlaying on top of her's, I've seen similar to it before." The dog admited, giving his summoner an meaningful look.
Now the boys were staring at her and she shuddered as she recalled his chakra digging into her flesh and bone. No doubt it would leave a mark but she couldn't tell them. Kakashi looked expectant, Naruto looked worried and insenced. Sakura couldn't bring a voice to what happened. It felt wrong. Like she had been soiled in some way and Sakura didnt want her team thinking less of her. The report she had given had been accurate after all, she just... left out a few details that were unimportant.
"He had me wrapped head to toe in a poisoned cable from his stomach." She divulged, a detailed she had left out but was willing to admit. The scent of him and his poison was probably all over her. The idea was vile but would go away with a proper shower.
"I do smell the same poison that we picked up earlier." Pakkun confirmed to Kakashi and that seemed to settle the issue.
Kakashi fully relaxed and Naruto jumped up and the dog despawned.
"Man that guy was a piece of work, good thing you took care of him!" The blonde smiled and gripped her, tugging her up from the ground with him. "Now I can tell you about our fight!"
"I want to hear all about it." She gave a small smile but turned to her captain. "But first I want to know where everyone else is."
The boy fell quiet, looking to the older man as well for him to take the lead. Sakura observed this and realized how much more mature an action that was. He had really grown the last couple years. Kakashi as quiet for a moment and she saw the signs of him mentally shuffling his feet.
"When we were able to retrieve the Kazekage he was gone." The silver haired jounin started. Sakura's eyes slipped to Naruto who was avoiding her gaze. She had no real love for Shukaku's host but she knew what he meant to her friend. Her attention returned to her leader when he began again. "Lady Chiyo knew a forbidden jutsu to revive the dead. It cost her life to preform."
That hit Sakura like a sudden weight. The breath left her lungs and she stared ahead blankly. The woman was gone. She had felt a bond in that battle and before. The connection to a mentor like figure, someone she trusted enough to weild her I'm battle. It was a lot to take in.
"Before she did it she said it was possible you were still alive." Naruto said quietly watching the girls reaction. Sakura looked at him without really seeing him. "After Gaara revived he took everyone and started back to Suna and we came looking for you... only we didn't expect to find more than your body."
The boy choked on the last words and the girl snapped out of her melancholy. Blue eyes stared at her in relief and fear. He had been genuinely afraid. Feeling the need to reassure him, she patted him on the back. Truthfully she didn't want to hug him, the suffocating feeling of something surrounding her being to much at the moment but she could still offer support.
The older man watched scene with tired eyes. He knew more happened than she let on but it was now her demon to contend with. As much a she wanted to help her shoulder the burden, he couldn't.
"Alright you two," The man started, gaining the attention of the two teenagers. "Let's get back to the village to rest up before heading out."
"So soon?" Naruto predictably complained.
"Tsunade is most likely expecting us back, and our report." The blonde groaned at the idea of paperwork which made the female of the group smile. Some things never change.
"Come on Naruto," The pinkette called to get his attention. Blue eyes clashed against her green ones curiously. "You can tell me all about your fight on the way."
That got him to hop to it as they broke down the camp and got ready to head back to the village in the hidden in the sand.
As the leaf team hit the dunes the wind began to pick up. Sandy hills glittered in the mid morning sun and they were unlucky enough to be getting caught in the heat of the day. The vengeful star glared down upon anything in its path which happened to be the threesome of ninja. All of them were thankful for the cool breeze coming in from the east to ease the pain of the sun.
They had been chatting the whole way. Or to be more accurate a certain blonde had been chatting while his team had no choice but to listen as he recalled the events of the previous day.
He explained to his pink haired teammate how they had run after the cowardly akatsuki on the bird. How Kakashi used some weird fancy new eye trick to tear the guys arm off, and how Naruto had slightly lost control towards the end. The blonde was less enthusiastic about the last part, shame echoing in his voice. The girl reassured him that the guy probably deserved it, earning her a winning smile from the young male.
Conversation quieted for a moment as each person went of their respective battles in their heads. It was unsurprisingly Naruto who broke the silence again.
"So this is what it's like, huh?" He wondered aloud. Sakura turned to him curiously.
"What's like what?" She asked as the team darted across the desert of shifting sands.
"Being a team again." He said looking into the sky. The pinkette looked at him before looking down at the ground, watching the rolling waves under her.
They had been separated for so long.
"We arn't all together yet." She mused softly, thinking of the raven haired boy she loved. What was he doing? Where was he? Was he okay? All these questions always hit her hard.
"We will be." Naruto spoke confidently. These words were enough to make her believe and give her hope for the future. The shadow of their former teammate would not be all that was left of him if the two had anything to say about it. Unknown to the teens, the older male watched them with a small smile. They would be just fine.
The rest of the trip was quiet and it wasn't until dusk approached that the tired shinobi unit finally saw the walls of the village in the distance. The wind began to howl stronger, whipping up grains into dust devils that danced across the landscape. The moon began to brighten, no longer overshadowed by the sun as it sunk lower on the horizon.
Naruto was eager to see his friend okay once again, Kakashi was wanting to make sure his team was safe and Sakura could only think of hot water and a cleansing rinse to get the grime off her skin, among other things.
The team picked up the pace, racing across the sand to arrive at their destination. At the gate to the village stood several ninja whose headbands indicated their alleigence. Upon seeing the leaf team a few stiffened before looking upon them and allowing them entry, but not before letting the standing orders be known.
"The Kazekage wishes to see you before you do anything else." One said stiffly while the team nodded and made their way into the village.
The towering buildings greeted them, the efforts to begin rebuilding what had been blown up obvious despite the streets being largely empty. It was clear the attack startled a lot of them as they chose to stay inside rather than partake in the villages nightlife. The beige tones of the surrounding cityscape was tiresome to the eye but to the weary travelers it meant saftey and a place to rest. As they all made their way to the center of the town to the leaders tower the full weight of their mission began to ware on them all.
As they checked in to the tower and made their way up the stairs Naruto silently marveled at how Gaara could go back to work after being dead so quickly. Sakura was in silent agreement even though she didn't know it, believing that the man probably needed rest just as much as they did.
As they opened the door to The Kazekage's office they were greeted with three bewildered looks form the sand siblings. Temari had her arms crossed obviously in the process of scolding her littlest brother who was standing by his desk which was mercifully empty of paperwork. Kankuro was off to the side sporting crutches and looked like he was trying his best to be helpful in the apparent argument but careful not to be involved in the interuppted spat.
It was Kakshi who broke the awkwardness silence with a light cough.
"Are we interuppting something?" He asked politely, feigning obliviousness.
"Holy shit, Sakura you're alive?" Kankuro was looking at her like she was the one who had risen from the dead and not his brother.
"Believe it!" Naruto grinned as his signature phrase fell from his lips. "She kicked his ass!"
Sakura flushed as all eyes fell on her. The urge to look away sheepishly was strong but she held her ground. She was a powerful shinobi who beat and S-rank missing ninja. She looked back at the stunned faces of the people in the room and gave an affirmative nod.
"Well," It was Temari who broke the silence, turning to her baby brother. "Now that they're safe and sound will you go to bed?"
Gaara visibly sagged under the weight of exhaustion on him as his gaze held relief. The team from the leaf village was safe and whole. He wasn't going to admit to the pressure that was on him of the idea that he had cost his best friend his first love. The second he had seen the pink hair his hackles had risen, thinking it was some form if trick but everyone was at ease if not exhausted from their excursion. He would be lying if he didnt want to know how the girl survive but it could wait. For now everyone needed rest.
"Temari," He rasped, eyes tired. She was glaring st him to get some rest. His every fiber rejected it but he couldn't hear shukaku screaming in his mind anymore. It would be fine for one night. "Show them to the guest rooms."
"Only if you promise to get some rest." She nagged and the red head was silently thankful for it. He nodded solemnly. The girl let out a huff but was satisfied as she turned to lead the leaf shinobi out of the office.
"Come on you guys, you all look like hell." She snapped, not unkindly.
Sakura's eyes landed on the puppeteer in the room and he gave a thumbs up implying they would talk later. She was certain he would want to know about the fight, badly.
She left the room with her teammates and was lead out of the building and into a new one.
After being put in a small room with her teammates nearby the girl let exhaustion nearly take her, wanting little more than to shower and head to bed. Thankfully there was a bathroom attached to the guest room that was sparsley furnished with a bed a dresser and a desk. Eagerly she stripped and jumped into the tub and turned on the water letting the icy liquid hit her before it slowly got warm. Dirt, sand and dust fell off of her in rivulets and were washed away. Already she felt better but as she started scrubbing, she could not get rid of the phantom feeling of strings dancing along her skin.
As her flesh turned pink from the scrubbing she despaired at the feeling would never fully go away. It didn't help that she still felt dirty on the inside. A morbid thought crossed her mind of ripping it her organs to scrub them. Maybe then the tainted feeling would go away.
Turning the water off, Sakura hopped out and re-dressed. While not the most comfortable thing to slip into she had little else and was too tired to fight the pull of sleep anymore, especially having not slept well the previous night.
As she collapsed into bed she knew it would be different tonight.
As her conciousness faded and mind and thoughts became blurry, Sakura felt like she was falling again. Her chakra felt alive as it flared out. She wasn't panicking yet, someone would catch her, they always did.