Chapter 13
Chapter Summary
"You can lift your head up to the sky,
Take a deep breath and give it time,
You can walk the path along the lines,
With your shattered frame of mind." - Frame of Mind, Tristam & Braken
Chapter Notes
See the end of the chapter for notes
Sakura runs a cloth down the length of her sword, carefully cleaning it of any residue. Her forehead tingles with the power of the Yin Seal, the storage painfully empty, but the seal is directly connected to her other seals.
Even if there's no chakra stored inside, she still needs it active to channel her healing.
There hasn't been chakra stored inside it in over two weeks now, since three days after she was sent to the Iwa border.
There's a war to fight, and a plan to lay the footing for. Fugaku Uchiha, of all people, carefully watches her back now - a looming presence invading the space Akihito used to fill as naturally as if he were part of her.
But Akihito's gone, his life snuffed out as easily as her chakra had been, and Fugaku is what she has to deal with for now.
The man does his job well, she reflects as he moves suddenly. She jolts to her feet, alerted by his motion, and her sword snaps up just in time to swipe a kunai out of the air.
"I don't know why I even bother." Sakura scoffs, tossing away the blood-soaked rag and re-entering the fray.
There's a back against hers that doesn't belong and a hole in her heart, but the war goes on, and shinobi go on with it.
"It's going to be difficult to lay the groundwork." Shikaku noted when the war council had pored over maps and shinobi assignments just over a month ago.
"We'll have to go slow to keep suspicion off. Carefully shift our forces from the Kusa border and down lower." Inori had agreed with a grimace of distaste they all felt.
Going back into Amegakure's territory was the last thing any of them wanted to do. War time or not, it was impossible to erase the memory of what they'd done to that place.
"I'll head south, to the Kusha outpost." Sakura volunteers, reaching out to tap the map. Just between the Kusa and Ame border.
It was about to become the epicenter of the biggest shitshow this war had had yet.
"I approve." Sarutobi says immediately and Shikaku nods, brow furrowed slightly in intense thought. Even Sarutobi was now silently waiting on the man.
Sakura wonders how that would make the man feel. If she remembers right, he's only three years younger than her. Not that old at all.
But Shikaku shows not an ounce of wavering when he speaks. "Fugaku-sama. Would you go with her?"
Sakura blinks.
Fugaku arches a brow but instantly nods. "Of course, but why?"
"She needs someone to protect her now and you're one of our best close-ranged fighters." Shikaku explains. Hiatari, the Hyūga's elderly head, instantly looks offended.
"I approve." Sarutobi repeats, instantaneous and firm, and Hiatari closes his mouth without a sound.
Then he twists it into the meanest scowl Sakura has ever seen. It would be impressive if not so unnerving.
"Sensei?" Jiraiya cuts in, glancing beside him at Tsunade and Orochimaru (whose presence Sakura is still getting used to), and speaks further when Sarutobi turns to him. "We'd like to go to the same area. Perhaps the Shirō outpost." He points just a few outposts south of hers, nearing the middle of the border with Amegakure.
Sarutobi eyes the spot on the map for a long moment before he nods. "Very well. I approve."
"Good." Shikaku says, half to himself. "I can work with that. Tsunade-sama, I hear you've learned a technique similar to the one Sakura-sama uses?" He asks as politely as he can.
Tsunade and Sakura both make odd, unpleasant faces at that. Tsunade for the implication that she's a copycat, and Sakura for… the realization that Tsunade is now a copycat in this world.
A copycat of a copycat of herself.
The universe was a strange place.
"If you have, that's wonderful." Sakura chimes in quickly, if a bit distractedly as she eyes the map. "Together we'll be able to cover a fourth of our military on that border."
"Yes," Tsunade says a bit tightly. "I can use my summons to heal at a distance, now that I have this." She points a thumb at her forehead, which carries a purple diamond identical to Sakura's own.
Sakura flashes her a small smile, trying not to show how uncomfortable she is speaking to the woman, and quickly looks back down at the map. "Getting them to look away from Kannabi long enough to slip a team through is going to be difficult."
"Extremely." Shikaku concurs, frowning intensely. "This idea has merit, however. If we shift our shinobi, they'll have to shift theirs, too. If we do it slowly enough, we'll have an opening - but it'll be small. We need to figure out who's going to attack the bridge."
"I volunteer." Sakura says instantly, faint memories flickering through her mind - about Kakashi, Obito, and the girl Rin who she'd only met the once.
"I need you on the border." Shikaku refutes and Sakura shakes her head.
"You need me there to start. But you need someone keeping an eye on the operation from a distance." Sakura clears her throat, making sure she has Shikaku's full attention before she continues. "That team will be on their own out there, without any back up - but we can't afford this mission to fail. So I'll stay on our side of the border and help them from afar if they run into trouble - and if they run into too much for me to heal, I'll create a diversion and retreat. Perhaps back to the Kusha outpost." She suggests.
Shikaku's uncomfortably intense stare holds hers for a long minute before he looks back down at the map. After another moment, he looks up at the Hokage. "It has merit." Is all he offers.
But that's all it takes.
"...Very well." The Hokage repeats. "I approve."
Sakura brushes the blood off her sword again and frowns down at the bodies. Iwagakure, all of them.
"Well." She starts, stops for a moment, and then looks at Fugaku and exhales a breath. "At least we know it's working."
A month into their careful retreat to the Ame border, leaving a token force to hold ground at the Kusa border. A month into their plan.
There's two more months to go, and then Sakura has her own plan to follow.
She smiles and Fugaku nods his head at her, unknowing of the plot forming in her mind.
She's just glad he won't be joining her on her endeavor.
A month goes by, and then a second, and then Sakura and Fugaku return to Konoha for the next war council.
"The team has been chosen." Sarutobi, with Minato Namikaze at his side, announces.
Minato's been busy raising hell on the Taki border, drawing more of Iwa away from Kusa, and has been making a name for himself. "My student, Kakashi Hatake, has just passed his Jōnin Exam with flying colors." he explains with the confidence of a practiced public speaker.
Sakura's slightly impressed, but she can't help but remember him as a scrawny teenager getting training from Kahan.
"He'll be leading the attack in three days. The team leaves at dusk."
Sakura arches a brow, glancing at Sarutobi. Under the cover of darkness, hm?
"Yes, Sakura-hime, you will be joining them - and then retreating to the Kusha outpost for the rest of your three-month assignment."
"Yes, Hokage-sama." Sakura agrees with a nod.
She doesn't share that there's a good chance of her simply never coming back.
"I should be going with you." Kushina mutters furiously as she paces. Sakura carefully packs her bag, nodding at the appropriate places and frowning at the others.
"Someone needs to lead the Clan."
"Yeah, sounds like a job for the Clan Head."
"The Clan Head is a very busy woman, with many responsibilities." Sakura says airily.
"You're joking! You never joke. Are you sick? You must be sick, you can't go on the mission." Kushina says in a rush, moving as if to touch Sakura's forehead, but Sakura shoots her a look and the woman stops abruptly.
"I'm not sick. And I joke." She says defensively.
Very grim jokes, on the rare occasion, but she jokes.
Though not so much since Akihito passed.
But she feels lighter than usual as she packs her bag. She feels…
Strangely upbeat. Like there's a light on the horizon suddenly shining down on her.
Which is likely not good for her state of mind, as she's heading towards what might well be her death, and most of her plan is to play it by ear.
Kushina's muttering brings her back to the present.
"I need you here, Kushina." Sakura says heavily. "Holding down the fort. Keeping the Clan together."
"You never had Akihito do that." Kushina points out mildly enough that it only stings a little.
"Akihito delegated." Sakura fires back dryly.
Kushina's nostrils flare. "It's not my fault! They never do it right! I have to do it or it ends up a mess!" She says almost shrilly.
"I believe you." She actually doesn't. "But there you have it, Kushina. So I need you here, to make sure things go right and don't end up a mess."
"Are you mocking me?" She demands.
"No, Kushina." Sakura sighs loudly. "I'm pointing out that I need you here. I have other people to watch over me out there, Kushina, but no one else to watch over my people. Our people."
Kushina grimaces at that, glancing away and crossing her arms - but after a moment she looks back, deflating right before Sakura's eyes. "Fine. Fine, I'll stay here - again." She huffs. "But I'm going to find someone to do my job so I can go next time, just wait." She turns around to march out.
"Don't pick on anyone again, Kushina!" Sakura calls after her, the door slamming moments later. "I don't want a repeat of last time!" She shouts louder.
The front door slams, too.
Sakura's still feeling oddly upbeat when she meets the team at the gates.
Kakashi, staring flatly and judgmentally up at her, Rin looking at her with almost adorable shyness, and Obito glancing between her and Rin with a frown. Minato towers above them all, smiling faintly at her. "Everyone, I'm sure you remember - this is Uzumaki-sama. Uzumaki-sama, this is Kakashi, Rin, and Obito." Minato re-introduces quickly.
Sakura bows faintly at the four - the most her 'stature' will permit her. "A pleasure. If you could all please hold out your non-dominant hands for me?" She asks politely.
After a couple confused blinks, they do so, and Sakura goes about quickly applying her seal to their wrists. Obito's, in particular. His left arm sticks out to her, and relief tickles at her mind. It was his right one to get ruined, she remembers. The seal won't be broken in the rockfall.
"This will let me heal you from a distance." Sakura explains and Rin immediately looks at the seal with new interest. "So long as you don't break the seal, it'll work. I'll remove it once the mission is over."
Kakashi and Rin silently nod, but Obito looks at his seal and mutters, "Cool," under his breath.
Her lips twitch slightly before she straightens and looks at Minato. "Shall we?"
He offers a faint half-smile, more bitter than pleased, and inclines his head.
"Let's move while the night's still dark." Minato says firmly. "We've got three days to get to Kannabi. Let's make it count."
"You disapprove." Minato determines hours later, the two of them lingering at the back of the group while Kakashi leads it with stern ferocity.
"I do." She confirms without needing to ask. The children are young - thirteen for Rin and Obito, but a mere nine for Kakashi.
"You suggested a new team to fill the role."
"It's the smart decision." Sakura agrees flatly, folding her arms across her chest. Her arms are bare, the dark green dress she wears sleeveless, and there's a slit down the front and back of it to allow movement. Under that she wears a mesh shirt, carefully tucked away, and black pants. Her silver Uzushio hitai-ate is framed on her forehead, and her black Konoha one is around her hips. "We can't spare the exceptionals." She reminds him. "All of them are spread out on the front lines to divert attention. All but you, me, and Hokage-sama."
"Wrong." Minato corrects quietly and she blinks, tilting her head to the side a bit so she can look at him. His brow is furrowed slightly, lips pressed hard together with something akin to concern. "Almost all of our… exceptional shinobi, as you say, are on the Kuso, Ame, and Taki border. The rest are fighting Kumo. But Kiri's stirring things up to the east."
"Damn." Sakura murmurs softly. "A mess, then."
"Yeah." Minato concurs. "Hokage-sama went to the Kiri front lines himself, along with Ino-Shika-Chō's current line."
"Ah." They'd been due for the Taki border, but Kiri was just as well. "Well. We'd better hurry this up, then, so our esteemed leader can get back to work without all our best holed up here."
"They'll just be holed up somewhere else, anyways." Minato sighs heavily. "This war…" He trails off, looking out to the side, and his eyes narrow darkly.
"Welcome to war, Minato. It's miserable. Be glad that even two of your students were spared their childhoods." Sakura says mildly, reaching up to adjust the shoulder of her dress. "They went into this war as Chūnin. That alone gives them an advantage over other shinobi."
"I know that." Minato sighs heavily. "I haven't forgotten the Second War."
"You weren't there for the start of it." Sakura points out grimly. "If you had, you might understand that your team is, unfortunately, lucky to be getting into the deep of it now. In the Second War, they would've been thrown into the tides at the first sign of combat."
"Sounds pleasant." Minato mutters.
"Konoha's a strangely gentle place sometimes." Sakura muses, frowning. "Konoha always tries to spare her younger shinobi, even when it's unfeasible."
"Uzushio didn't do that?" He asks, glancing at her curiously and she offers a faint shrug.
"Uzushio was small. She needed every shinobi to stay strong. And it worked, for a very long time." Sakura murmurs. "I was on the battleground the first day Kumo marched on Konoha, and I was on the battleground until the day Iwagakure signed the treaty." She narrows her eyes a bit at that. "Though you can see how much good that does us." She says darkly as they steadily approach Kusa.
Minato's silent for a long minute before he looks at her with hard eyes and a set jaw. "One day, treaties will mean more than the paper they're written on." He says quietly but firmly. "One day, we'll have actual, genuine peace."
She blinks, taking in his fierce expression and feeling her heart clench painfully.
He looks so much like Naruto that it hurts.
She swallows thickly. "Yeah." She agrees, looking ahead, and then she wonders.
Maybe changing the world won't be as difficult as she thought.
Maybe all they need is for Minato to live past his twenty-fourth birthday.
Maybe all she needs to do is make sure that happens.
But how?