A/N: Here is chapter 3! Let me say beforehand that this is a sasusaku story, so there's no need to worry about Naruto, k? Obviously, he is Sakura's best friend here, so she does love him (duhh) but it's not that kind of love. Also, I don't have the love I had back when I started this, but I will finish it regardless, though the lack of motivation may show in my writing and I apologise for that.
There are no honorifics in their names because this is an AU. It's Egypt, so even if I like Naruto calling her by Sakura-chan, it is what it is.
P.S. The name of each chapter shows the age range of Sakura through the story, if you missed it for some reason. We're finally about to enter the adolescence arc :)
Sacred
(3)
Sakura's eleven when she proposes the unusual idea to her mother, and twelve when she finally acquiesces, when she finally gives in to her daughter's pleading eyes and incessant questions.
Sakura's just turned thirteen when she's let inside the Palace, all mighty and grand, and her steps are slow and steady so as to let her take everything in; the tall columns, the startling height of everything, and the amount of flora everywhere in a place where she had always thought to be dry and gloomy are things nothing short of stunning.
The immensity of the place, so far out of reach for her a few months prior to this day, is now at the tip of her fingers. And even if her mind is focused on her duties and her vision is centered in marveling at the architecture of the large Palace, her heart betrays her as she subconsciously looks, ever since she steps past the threshold of Palace grounds, for a blond mop of spiky hair around every corner.
She's led inside by a pair of men in light armour, past the threshold of the tall gates and past the main building where the Uchiha reside. She's quietly led into a field of sand with a stone path that moves toward the sharp edge of the hill—where the Palace lies in the very centre of the village—and breaks off into three different paths that lead to temples, located right by the gates that surround the cliff's edge. She should be terrified that she's going to live right by a very steep cliff, but she's rather preoccupied by other matters.
All the way there, her distracted eyes betray her as she looks, discreetly so as to not alert the guards or the onlookers, for her blond, incredibly loud friend.
As she stands in front of the three sun-kissed, far-away temples, she suppresses a disappointed sigh from escaping her lips, though it is difficult. The temple situated in the middle is the largest and most intricately decorated one, with two statues of what she thinks are clones of Sekhmet—god of war and healing—standing proud and strong seven feet from the ground.
She never really finds Naruto amongst the people who come watch her delve into the culture of the Gods, mostly due to the fact that she has no time to stop and wander about the premises, but she manages to find Sasuke instead.
He's one of the many who stand on the sidelines—people with fine robes and silks, most of whom she has never seen before, watching her with careful eyes and distrustful glances here and there. He stands beside his older brother during the entire ceremony, and she never really gets to talk to him, but she appreciates the little details in his changes from the distance between them.
He is taller now, and that is the first thing she notices when their eyes meet from across the gardens; his dark eyes are still ever-so large and his pale cheeks are still round and full, and she has the urge to smile at him the moment she spots him in the crowd of whispers and looks—just because it has been five years and, apart from the subtle difference in height, he still looks like the Sasuke she remembers.
The guards ahead of her start walking once again along the rocky path, signaling her to start trailing behind them too, so she glances away from her other childhood friend and moves forward. She nears the three temples at the end of the southern gardens all-too-soon, in her opinion. None of the people watching her—workers, royal family, and noblemen alike—dare speak, but she hears the confusion and admirable stares anyway.
The life of a priestess is not an easy one, as she has heard her mother try to explain to her for days, months, years. After all, the priestess falls right under the title of High Priest in the country, which falls under the title of Pharaoh—ultimate ruler in this life.
It was no easy feat to get her inside the Uchiha premises to begin with, either, but her mother is a very trusted and respected healer in the Palace, and she had finally talked to the High Priest after many rounds of pitiful begging from Sakura's side—something she's not quite proud of, but she understands it had to be done to achieve these results.
After one full, long intake of breath, she smiles to herself as the men in front of her take a turn on the fork that separates the three temples, moving instead to the one on the left—smaller, but still breathtaking, with sand-covered steps that reach three feet up onto a smooth surface, the entrance in itself lined with several columns that seem to touch the skies. It's simpler than the middle temple, but it's in no way bland.
The guards ahead of her stop suddenly, halting her steps in the process as well. They wait for the High Priest to come out and welcome the rose-haired woman inside for her inevitable training, and as Sakura looks at the temple in all of its splendity, she knows—this will be hers.
Sakura starts every day of the week with incense so as to wake the gods. Specifically, the goddess she has vowed and sworned several times to look up to, to worship and adore.
She wakes up and lights up every candle in the temple, moving to the shrine only at the end. Her ritual white linen tunic and white papyrus sandals are never traded for anything else—she wears these everyday, washes them and wears them again, and owns three pairs more.
She bows before Isis, ruler of the protection and magic that comes with motherhood, crown high above the statue's head—though she is not the main God being represented in this temple.
The building where she remains day and night belongs to Osiris, the deity in charge of the life that will come after this one, and a very important aspect of everyone's lives in the present, in turn. But she is training to become a young priestess, and so she is given a room for her worshipping in the back of the temple where she takes care of Osiris' wife and sister, Isis.
In her mind, she can't help but think that this woman had fought tooth and nail to bring her husband back from the dead when murdered, and that she healed him with magic and love and bore him a son soon after. She can't help but think that she should be standing next to her husband at the front of the temple, not in the back like some forgotten deity.
She worships her anyway, proving to her master just how good she is at her job, cleaning the entire room everyday and taking care of leaving tokens of her appreciation by the sandy feet of Isis without fail.
Said blonde appears a second after she finishes thanking the Goddess, hand on the umbral's material.
"Are you done?"
Sakura widens her eyes at the unexpected visit, but otherwise nods curtly, standing and facing her master: the High Priestess—whom she thought was priest before being baffled at the revelation of a woman on her ceremonial day, a few weeks back.
This fact had only given her more motivation to rise up in the ranks. If a High Priestess existed, that could only mean she would have no problem taking her position in the future.
"I am," she responds, voice small and insecure before this imposing, intimidating woman. "Do you need me for something else?"
"I do, kid," she says, and the familiarity startles Sakura for a moment. It hasn't even been a month since she got passage into the temples.
Tsunade crosses her arms in front of her chest, accentuating her very unusually large, barely covered breasts. Everything she had thought to know about the High Priest had been butchered and erased from her mind ever since she started working alongside one of her caliber. Tsunade doesn't care about much; she pays tribute to the Gods like no other, gives orders to the other caretakers at the two leftover temples, and wears whatever attire she desires, nevermind the rules and the norm.
Nobody ever tells her anything either, which only makes Sakura doubtful and curious at the same time, though not enough to investigate further why this woman is given so much freedom in such line of work.
"What is it?" She asks when the blonde doesn't speak for a few more seconds than considered normal, and looks at the polished floors when said woman only raises one eyebrow at her impatience.
"I don't know if you think worshipping the Gods is what you'll be doing here," she starts, and Sakura lifts her eyes to regard her. "It's not the only thing."
Sakura frowns against her better judgement. This she had not expected to hear, and her next words only leave her even more confused than before.
"You must learn the art of healing, and I will teach you," Tsunade explains, uncrossing her arms and pacing around the pristine, small room. "All my priests and priestesses know the basics, and you will be no exception."
Sakura speaks before she can make up her mind.
"Is my mother not the healer of the Palace? Is she not in charge?"
As if expecting this question, Tsunade answers her without a pause.
"Of course. But when she is not here, any of us can help in case of an emergency and," she winks, smiling a little when she mutters the next words. "Who do you think taught your mother to begin with?"
She widens her eyes in bewilderment. Just how old is she? She certainly does not look the part. Her mother is younger and she already has several wrinkles and frown lines marring her features, whereas her mentor still looks young and carefree.
It must be the makeup, she thinks, as she follows her master through the hallways and into another room full of vials, concoctions, and scrolls.
Sakura's thirteen when she's admitted inside the Palace and assigned to one of the temples, and fourteen when she's finally allowed to go outside.
After much training in the art of worshipping, cleaning, paying tribute, muttering the right prayers, decorating the place everyday, and healing from time to time, she's trusted enough to be allowed outside of the temple's walls.
She can go out into the sand, the gardens on the other side of the Palace, or into the Palace itself—with restrictions as to exactly where, but this does not matter when she can go inside at last.
When they tell her the news, she only nods and thanks her mentor for letting her have such freedom after only a year of training under her tutelage. But the next day, she leaves the temple and has to do everything in her power not to run toward the imposing building several feet away.
She finds him next to Sasuke, out in the courtyard doing passes with their infamous ball, almost looking downright bored, if she's honest. She skids to a halt as soon as she lands her eyes on him; on his tan complexion, his contagious smile, his sparkling blue eyes, and the expensive garments that adorn him. He has, like Sasuke a few feet in front of him, grown since the last time she saw him.
And when he turns to retrieve the strayed ball and looks at her for the first time in years, she loses all ability to breathe.
"Sakura?"
His voice is the same high-pitched mess she remembers, though a little raspier and deeper, and it's a moment later that she's running, forgetting all of her duties as a priestess in training and all that is expected of her as she runs.
His arms envelop her like a second skin, and she feels at home, for a moment, as she buries her face in the crook of his neck.
After so many years, so much hardship, so many days spent crying, devising plans, and looking forward to this exact moment, she has it; she finally, undoubtedly has her best friend in her grasp, and no one—not even the guards eyeing her with caution and at the edge of separating them—will stop that anymore. Not now, nor ever.
She pushes back the tears that are threatening to spill when they let go after several minutes, and the smile that erupts on her face feels foreign but so, so much needed.
"I can't believe they finally let you out!" He exclaims, placing his hands on her skinny shoulders and squeezing with excitement, and Sakura keeps smiling even though she finds this statement strange.
"You knew? You've known all along?" For a fleeting second, she looks as Sasuke kicks the ball aside and approaches them slowly.
"Sasuke told me last year about your new job," he wiggles his eyebrows then, chuckling when she only gives him a sour look. "But I'm not allowed to visit, so I've just patiently waited for you to be let out."
"She's not a dog, idiot," a voice behind her startles her for a second, and she gives a little jump against her best wishes. She only sighs in relief when Sasuke moves to their sides instead of choosing to stand behind her. "And more like begged every known high official for it every single day."
"I did not! Sakura, don't listen to this buffoon."
At Sasuke's eye roll, Sakura can only do so much in containing her giggles before she laughs. She can't help herself, and apparently neither can Naruto. When she looks to her left in between fits of laughter, she sees that even Sasuke is sporting a light smirk.
She grabs Naruto's hand before she can stare for too long.
"Forget about that, tell me everything you've done here. I have to go back soon."
They walk to one of the benches lining the Palace. While he speaks, she tries to ignore the image of Sasuke walking away, clearly not invited but always welcome.
Naruto tells her all about his adventures, all about the world that he had only dreamt of before. She knows being considered a Prince now helps in his lifelong dream of becoming Pharaoh—she remembers from when they were little, talking about their lives and their dreams like they were twenty—even if he's not a true blood or a candidate to the throne.
His giggly laugh and shining eyes only make her listen more intently, and she explains everything she has learnt about her position as well, though she doesn't mention how the entire reason for it is because she'd only wanted to see him again. Maybe that had been a childish action in her part, but not really, not when she finally has him beside her.
She thinks it's all been worthwhile when she sees him everyday, at every moment that she can, and he's always waiting on the outskirts of the temples, sometimes with Sasuke and sometimes alone.
She sees her mother whenever she has to do her weekly check-ups on Sasuke and Naruto—and Itachi's toddler up in his chambers on the highest floor, whom she has never seen—as well, and watches as she uses herbs and ointments when needed, as part of her training too.
She's nearing her fifteenth birthday when Tsunade grants her the official title of Priestess of the Uchiha rule, and she's escorted outside of the Palace's grounds and down the hill until they reach the closest, secluded side of the river Nile.
As per ritual for every new priest, she bathes in the pure, cold waters on the official day, and swears to the worship of the Gods for the rest of her short life.
She has more responsibilities and duties from then on, and sees Sasuke and Naruto fewer times; few and far in between.