Summary: In a world where everyone should know where they belong, she is the only one who doesn't.
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Divergent and the cover picture.
Had time to drop by! Enjoy!
Aberrant
by cheerry-blossoms
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Chapter Eight – Assault
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23. Sakura
Today's not my day.
Definitely.
I assumed the heavy feeling and bad mood I had these past few days were merely caused by the initiation taking its toll on me, so imagine my surprise seeing the red spot on my underwear. Ever since I got involved in Shinobi activities, I completely forgot I am still female and has an active reproductive system so I lost track of my calendar which is not a good thing as fights are more intense and frequent now that we have reached the final week of the first round.
Yes, it is ending, and I am still not in the Top twenty.
And so, training with Sasuke had drastically changed. He is stricter on me, always keeping a keen eye on me to make sure I don't slack a second. Our sparring has become more than that. He does not hold back on me anymore, as if we are the ones facing each other in a do or die battle. Even my diet is monitored by him. These last weeks had been hell to me.
Add to my bad luck and suffering is my monthly period. The first two days are enough to paralyze me and send me to bed for an entire day. I would rather be beaten up by Sasuke than menstruating—at least Sasuke can instantly knock me unconscious and I would not feel any pain.
For us female initiates, having your period during the fight weeks spells danger and defeat. I have seen Ino, who is probably the strongest female initiate this year, get defeated by Naruto just because she could not focus well due to the pain in her abdomen. Should I already give the Shinobi life up?
"Taka, Sakura. On the platform, now."
Yes, I think I should.
I lightly clutch on my lower abdomen as pain strikes me there. Worse, my vision begins blurring at little movements.
Shit, I'm not in the condition to fight. Well, what do I expect with Tobi? He is the more unfair one between him and Kakashi.
As I stride to the platform, I meet Sasuke's gaze from the other side. His eyes turn darker, and then he nods at me, surprising me a little.
Then I realize, hey, I can do this. I am specially trained by the Uchiha Sasuke, the top fighter in this batch, and whose strategic prowess is probably second to Shikamaru's. This is the time to prove myself to him, to prove him the hardships we went through at training are not wasted, despite my handicap. I will not disappoint him, even if the troublemaker is my opponent.
With a new resolve in me, I confidently face Taka on the platform, grimacing a little when I see how lax and arrogant he's looking. Why, of course, he finally gets his dream of fighting the 'Forehead.' He must have been thinking he will have an easy win. Let's see.
"What are you waiting for?" Tobi impatiently says.
At that, Taka immediately launches himself at me, carelessly throwing one fist at me. Swiftly, almost instinctively, I duck under his arm, placing enough distance between us.
Considering my current physique, Sasuke mostly focused on enhancing my speed and agility, which is proven effective now that I can easily evade Taka's rash attacks. In spite of the lack of strategy in my opponent's movements, I am getting better at calculating and predicting them.
Baring his teeth, he attacks again, and I continue avoiding while finding the opening I need to land a hit. I've been observing how the others fight, so I will be prepared. Taka is the type who doesn't think of his next actions; he just strikes. And he's ruthless. He'd better be thankful his attacks are powerful.
To people who don't bother reading movements, Taka will easily defeat them. Thus, he did not win his fight against the lazy Shikamaru, who has the sharpest mind among all of us Genin. Shikamaru barely moved around during their fight.
Taka aims for my face which I easily dodge to the right. And that's the opening I need. His other arm is still curled on the back, therefore, his body is defenseless.
Gotcha! Shannaroo!
Smirking, I gather enough chakra on my fist as I thrust my arm and hit his stomach. Taka steps back, his face scrunching in pain. I swear I heard a few bones crack.
Even Sasuke thinks my punches are stronger than his.
Loud gasps and mumbles from the spectators echo in the room. Heh, I bet no one saw that coming. Honestly, though, I am surprised I pulled that off.
"Get him, Sakura-chan! Believe it!" Naruto cheers.
Suddenly, there is one thing weird on Taka when he looks back at me with dark, predatory eyes. I get chills all over my body; I recognize that look on his face as that similar one he gave Idate before he was defeated.
"You bitch!" Taka yells as he dashes towards me with the intention to kill. I almost freeze in my spot.
To my surprise, he catches me by the throat and slams me down on my back, his broad body trapping my arms in between us. Luckily, he's positioned diagonally, so my legs aren't restricted. I bend my knees up, quickly lifting my leg with power to kick the side of his head for him to let go of me.
While the guy is rolling away and whining in pain, I hurriedly crawl to the opposite side of the platform, choking and trying to catch my breath. I silently thank my flexibility for saving my life, for the countless time.
This is bad. He was really trying to kill me back there.
Then, as my balance stabilizes, the muscles in my abdomen begin contracting again, more painfully this time.
Fuck, this can't be happening now!
I watch with hazy eyes whilst Taka struggles to get up. I shake my head a few times trying to clear my vision. I can't lose concentration right now.
When it gets slightly clearer, it's too late, for Taka is already inches away, and his bent knee lands on my lower abdomen, knocking my breath out. I begin seeing black spots.
Before he could punch my face, I take steps away from him, dodging all his attacks as much as I could while bearing the flaring muscles in my uterus. However, I cannot keep up anymore. My body is not functioning the way I want it to, I'm slowly getting weaker.
My surroundings suddenly begin spinning and my breathing becomes labored.
The blurred image of Taka charging ahead is the last thing I see.
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I take a sharp breath as the lit ceiling lamp welcomes my vision, the nostalgic pungent scent fills my nose to let me know where I am. My gaze shifts down a little, noting the darkness surrounding the place. It must be around midnight by now, judging from the eerie silence reaching my ears. Even if the clinic is located at the opposite side of The Pit so as not to bother the resting and healing patients, during the day, when Shinobi are up and about, coming in and out the clinic, and considering how loud they can be, the place is almost as lively as The Pit.
Except, people do not really enjoy coming here as much as they do in The Pit.
My eyes search for the wall clock. How long was I out?
All of a sudden, my entire body hurts, especially my abdomen, nose and cheeks. This is the worst I have felt so far. My face is swollen and aching, and at the same time, my womb is punishing me for not making babies during my fertile season. If I use Ino's words, I bet I look like shit right now, because that's how I feel.
My heart almost bursts out from my chest as I catch sight of a shadow of a man from a corner. The silhouette approaches me with steady dramatic steps and I mentally curse when my body does not follow my brain's command to go on defense mode, just when I need it the most.
I have seen and kind of interacted with some of the Yori nurses assigned here, and even recognized most of them (I'm still not allowed to freely talk to them, though), so I know this shadow person is definitely not a nurse.
Normally, I would have screamed for help; however, even in dark shadows, I could easily recognize that chicken ass hairstyle. I know only one person who dons that.
"You nearly gave me a heart attack," I exhale in relief, my clutch on my shirt loosens. For a moment there I really thought 'that person' would come and finally kill me when nobody else is around.
"Hn." The oh-so-mysterious man in a dark cloak finally steps in close enough for the light to showcase his godly striking features. I almost sigh in frustration noticing the dark shadows under his eyes.
Has he been training before coming here?
"You forgot to eat dinner again." I whisper, watching Sasuke soundlessly—almost gracefully—sit on the black chair next to my bed. He's a man, and yet he's more graceful than I am. It's so unfair.
"Hn."
That's one problem with Sasuke's over hardworking disease. He tends to completely focus on his training, thus forgetting that his growing, active teenage body has to obtain sufficient nutrients at the right time. If I weren't there to take the honorable job of reminding him to actually take care of himself, just like tonight, he will ignore his health.
Ironically, he is the one forcing me to eat healthy.
Though, I still could not, for the life of me, accept the fact that despite him doing this to his body, not once since I met him did he look like a zombie. I eat healthy now, but he still looks healthier than me.
Life is indeed unfair.
Tonight, he's obviously exhausted—still handsome—and yet he wastes his energy more by sneaking out to visit me instead of retiring for the night.
It would be a lie if I say I'm not surprised he's here. He had never showed up whenever I get admitted here in the clinic before, and I've been here three times a week, consistently. Hell, we still resume our training even if I'm beat up. So, why must he choose to go here at such an ungodly hour?
Most probably, it is because he doesn't want anyone to catch him interacting with me like this.
Wait, that hurts a little bit.
Still, he's concerned!
"Mou, Sasuke, how many times do—"
My physical suffering must have been evident on my face, for Sasuke's expression slowly darkens. He emits a deadly aura, one which is scarily similar to that of what I have sensed from Taka during our fight this afternoon.
Just remembering Taka's murderous glare is sending chills through my spine. I have never felt this scared for my life before.
What did happen after the fight? I know I lost, but do I really look that bad?
I stare back at Sasuke, while I debate mentally whether I should or should not ask him because I want to know what happened.
I really do.
But I do not.
Instead, I build up the courage to ask him to stay with me, and he surprisingly says yes.
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Shikamaru drags me to go train with them on the raging river. My friends, by the way, are acting very weird. From the time Sasuke dropped me off on my dorm (they did not see him, of course), Ino never lets me move an inch away from her, and she yells at me when I get out of her sight. Even Naruto, Chouji and Hinata are staying on our group's side instead of with the other Shinobi-born.
Really, they should just focus on their training.
For today, Tobi and Kakashi want to personally see our progress in our chakra control by crossing the river. All Genin are currently lined up on the riverbank, waiting for our instructors' signal.
Minutes have passed, nothing comes from the two, so I figure they want us to initiate. The others have the same thoughts, for I see most of them pressing their palms together and start channeling chakra to their feet.
Being the almost selfless person I am, I thought of staying behind and then show off; but, I realize that amongst this group of competitive and skilled people, the last to move will be unnoticed, no matter how good he or she is, except if you're Uchiha Sasuke. If I want to get noticed, I should go ahead of them.
And so I begin stepping on the river. I have mastered this one— Sasuke and I spent tiring weeks trying to cross this raging river without getting soaked—still, I am more careful than before. I have the tendency of failing whenever I get too confident, and that is one thing I do not want to happen. Not right now.
Stepping on water just seems so natural to me now, as if I'm walking on the ground. I do not even need time for chakra channeling. And, the feeling just gets better when I notice I'm the first one to advance.
Then I see Hinata, Shikamaru and Sasuke—I am surprised he's here—walking too without difficulty. A few Shinobi-born follows after a while.
I did not mind the slight ache in my swollen cheeks from too much smiling once my feet land on the other side of the river. I did not trip, and my feet never once sunk! Despite the rough movements of the river, I walked on it smoothly. CHA!
From the other side, I see Tobi angrily slamming a few paper bills on the palm of a smug Kakashi. I sigh; Now I know why they made us do this.
Oh the beauty of rivalry.
But the glare from Taka's group didn't fail to reach me despite my gleeful moment.
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"Sakura, babe, be my girlfriend." Idate casually puts an arm on me and winks at me.
"What?! Say no, Sakura-chan!" Naruto screeches.
Idate's group joins ours for lunch for the first time. Ever since the river scene, Idate gains more confidence to flirt with me, though I think my actions weren't done to encourage him. According to him, he just finds it 'fun.'
Thankfully, Sayu remains at the twentieth spot, that's why she's still civil to me. It's actually a good thing our groups are nice to each other. We are all Transfers, trying to adjust to this new life, who else are going to help each other?
After that scene I caused, what will Taka do to me now? From what I have heard from Ino and Kiba, I'm sure I've wounded not only his ribs, but also his pride, and men do treasure their pride more than anything. Tested and proven.
It's not like we don't take actions against their bullying; we just did not want to commit any offense during initiation. They would not know how much Kiba, Shikamaru and Ino are holding themselves back from beating their group up, despite the others' advantage in numbers.
However, if Taka starts going physical, then I won't be able to control my friends anymore. Or myself. Even if I know I could not really fight them, still.
I've never dreaded going back to the dorms this much before. I don't want to see their ugly faces, I don't want to hear their voices. Hell, I don't even want to share the same air I breathe with them. They don't deserve air.
Okay, that was mean. I take it back.
"I'm gonna beat their ass if they touch a single strand of your soft, beautiful hair, Sakura!" Kiba reassures me, confidently grinning. Kiba also now thought it's fun to flirt with me, unfortunately.
Idate snorts. "Hah, gon' do a better job at that!"
Then again, why should I be afraid? We're greater in number now, because I have Idate's group's support. Also, our friends are higher ranking than Taka's little group. We'll surely beat them.
And so we stride in the room as if the others aren't there. We chat and laugh, like we are normal, like we are not literally fighting for our lives. This is the happiest I've been in the dorm, in the Shinobi.
I should be relieved they didn't try anything that night, but that only makes it more suspicious.
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Today, I am feeling better. I am able to join the early jogging exercise without lagging behind. The bruises are still sore, but they are tolerable now. My face is not swollen anymore. The ointment I borrowed—keep on forgetting to return—is actually very helpful.
Ino gladly accepts my sparring offer. Even though we're friends, this would be the first time we will spar. My partner is usually Hinata (and Sasuke), while she pairs up against Shikamaru or Kiba, that's why we had not gotten a chance to spar until now.
We warm up a little more and then we begin our spar. As expected, Ino is really skilled at fighting. I'm sure she got help from Shikamaru for the strategy developing. She knows when and where to attack, her moves are quite calculated. Moreover, her body's as flexible as mine, so she's equally agile.
My only advantage is my chakra control.
Our training is interrupted when Kakashi's voice echoed inside the training room.
"Sasuke and Taka, you're up."
TO BE CONTINUED
-Yaaaas, I've managed to squeeze this in! How is the update, people? Please let me know! I'm so stressed with work I need an outlet.
cheerry