Sakura was sitting on the corner of the bed, checking Naruto's breathing.
She had gone to bed with Sasuke quite late last night and no longer had the strength to look in on her friend. Fortunately, Ino stayed up all night with him.
The girl kept an eye on his condition, stopping the bleeding from time to time. She did a very good job. Sakura was proud of her. A few years ago, as they were going through a nursing course, her friend had a little trouble with this. As you can see, however, she has learned a lot over the past few years.
Putting her hand to Naruto's forehead, Sakura checked his body temperature. It seemed within normal range.
"Still no fever." she informed Ino. The girl sat in the chair next to her, watching Sakura's work with a blank stare.
"Ah, that's good." she replied only, not even paying much attention to her friend.
Sakura had been worried about Ino ever since she found out about the accident. Yesterday, she acted differently and was more in touch. But today she was constantly drifting off with her thoughts elsewhere.
She could suspect that earlier it was all about adrenaline, and when that went down, she began to cope with the death of her friends in her own way. Sakura herself further couldn't define what she felt. It was damn hard for her to put all the events together in her head. However, she knew all too well that she had to focus on the present. After all, she has a daughter to watch over.
But she could be of help to others. Even if it meant she wouldn't get any.
"Do you want to talk?"
Ino pulled down her eyebrows, looking at Sakura puzzled.
"About what?"
"About Hinata and Shikamaru." Sakura watched her friend look very hurt for a moment, only to adopt an indifferent expression a second later.
"There's nothing to talk about here. It happened and that's it."
Sakura froze in shock. She didn't expect to hear such words from Ino. She thought the girl would recoil more at their deaths and finally let all her emotions out after the traumatic events.
"Ino, stop." she grabbed her friend's hands, however, she snapped out of it "Talking will help you. You lost a friend and a person much more important than a friend. I know how it feels."
Ino twisted her face in a hostile grimace. Sakura maybe should not have added the last words.
"That's right, Sakura. Since you know what it's like, why don't we talk about you, huh? So many people died in front of your eyes, so why don't you want to talk to someone about it? Maybe you're the one who should get all your emotions out. Don't you feel guilty?" Ino stood up, retreating to the door. Sakura already wanted to get up, to apologize, to say that she too could share her feelings, but Ino added a final sentence that was like a nail in the coffin, "They didn't die because of me, but Itachi did because of you." she left.
Did she want to annoy Sakura? Say something to hurt her too? Is she acting under the influence of emotion, or did she say it completely conscious of her words after all?
Sakura would like to know the answers to all these questions swirling in her head right now.
"Sakura-chan."
She held her breath. Naruto was awake.
Wiping away a tear, she turned to her friend, with a smile glued to her face.
"How are you feeling?" she asked softly.
"Fine. Just a little sore." Naruto stared at his stump without much emotion.
Sakura didn't want to imagine how much her friend was suffering right now. Both from physical and mental pain. When she thought she had lost Sasuke she was heartbroken to the point that sometimes she couldn't even get out of bed. Naruto, however, under the circumstances could not afford to mourn his beloved any longer. They didn't have time for that.
"I don't have any pain-relieving medicine, unfortunately," Sakura touched the boy's muscles on his other hand "Maybe I can get some." she wanted to comfort Naruto a little.
"It's okay, Sakura-chan, I can handle it." he wanted to rise to sit down, but Sakura stopped him.
"You still need to rest, Naruto." she stroked his head "You should regain most of your strength soon."
"Finally." he muttered under his breath.
"Would you like to be left alone?" Sakura asked.
She longed to get back to her place already, but she couldn't leave Naruto alone if he needed her presence.
"Yes."
Understanding her friend, she left his room. Ino must have been watching nearby, so Sakura did not fear for Naruto's life.
As she walked back through the dark corridors, she kept Izumi, Ino, Sasuke and Naruto in her mind. All four had lost someone close to them. They had to move on, leaving their sorrow behind. Open wounds are hard to close, but even harder to forget. And they had no time to reminisce. War was raging in the world, innocent people were dying.
Entering the room, she saw Sasuke talking to Sarada. Sakura did not expect that in such a short time these two would be united by so strong affection. They were family, she couldn't deny that, but they had no idea about each other for more than five years.
"Mom!" Sarada jumped out of bed, hugging Sakura tightly.
Sasuke also rose from his seat. He walked up to her and kissed her forehead.
"What were you talking about?"
"A secret!" she turned her head to Sasuke "Right, Dad?"
"True." he stroked his daughter's hair.
They stood like that for a while, not speaking, just savoring each other's presence. Sakura couldn't believe that they were together again. Just as they were supposed to be all along.
Sarada's stomach rumbled. The girl lowered her head, embarrassed.
"I'm hungry."
And no one was surprised at all. They hadn't eaten anything since yesterday. There was nothing to serve.
Sakura thought through all possible options and was left with only one. She had to go out and get food. By stealing. After all, they didn't have money either.
"I'll be back soon."
Sasuke grabbed her hand.
"Where are you going?"
"Upstairs."
"Are you crazy?"
Sarada went pale. She grabbed her mother's hand, looking into her eyes with tears. She had experienced so much in the past few days. Too much for a small child. She was afraid she would lose her mother, as it almost happened once. Sakura felt her shaking, squeezing her fingers even tighter.
"We need something to eat,"
"Sakura, this is about your safety. Not only have they seen us, but on top of that, you're not a very welcome person anywhere." Sasuke alluded to Sakura's background as gently as he could, "I can't lose you like..."
Sasuke fell silent. Sakura couldn't get over his sad face. She was so pained by what had happened. She blamed herself for Itachi's death. She could have done something, there is always another way out of the situation.
A quiet tap on the door snapped her out of her thoughts. Izumi was standing in the threshold.
"I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but you guys are talking pretty loud." she pushed her hair back. She didn't look her best. The dark circles under her eyes and greasy hair showed what kind of mental state she was in, "I'll do it."
Sakura watched in horror as Sasuke nodded. How did he agree so quickly? Shouldn't he dissuade her from this idea? After all, she was someone close to him.
"Wait, Izumi..."
"I'm agile and trained. I'll be back, easy."
"Sasuke, don't..."
"We need food."
He was quick to change his mind when it wasn't about her. Izumi disappeared, heading for the exit.
Sarada let go of her hand, confident that Sakura had no intention of leaving her. She returned to the bed, talking to herself. Children had a wonderful imagination. They could play with themselves, making up all sorts of stories in their heads.
"Sasuke-kun, I don't know if this was a good idea." he looked at her with misty eyes. This worried Sakura "Would you like to talk? For example, about..." she couldn't even pronounce his name. The damn name.
"Not today, Sakura." he shook her hand, moving away from the room.
He became more quiet than he normally was. When Sasuke's thoughts hooked on Itachi, he was no longer his former self. He closed himself off to the world around him.
And Sakura was afraid that someday he would not return.
Leaving the table, Sakura approached Sarada. She tore off a piece of the roll and gave the rest to Izumi. Sarada was already eating too much anyway.
Two days ago, Izumi came back with food. She brought a lot of it, so there should still be enough for them until tomorrow, but no longer. She will have to go outside again, which involved a lot of risk. Lately Sakura had been afraid that the girl would not return.
Izumi thanked her for the larger portion of dinner. Sakura took Sarada in her arms and they moved away from the rest. On the way to Sasuke, she glanced back at her friend. Naruto was eating in his room. Sakura told him not to strain himself for the next three days. If he wanted to survive, under these harsh conditions, he had to obey the doctor's orders.
Entering the room, Sasuke sat on the bed and looked into the distance with unseeing eyes. He was once again losing his grip on reality. Sakura came up to him and kissed his forehead. He returned his thoughts to her.
"You haven't eaten much." Sakura commented on his leaving the table too quickly.
She understood that he didn't feel like sitting around others when he felt bad about himself.
"You don't have to worry. I've eaten enough."
Sasuke took Sarada into his arms. The girl hugged her dad tightly.
"Mom will set the hot water for you, okay Sarada?"
"But it's still soooo early."
"Early? Mom and Dad are already tired, so how come Sarada isn't?" Sasuke put his daughter down.
The girl looked at her parents. Sakura did not want to deny her daughter. Nor did she want such a life for her. But not everything can be had. Unfortunately.
She approached Sarada and crouched at her eye level.
"Tomorrow is also a day. We'll play together, what do you think?"
"And will we survive until tomorrow?"
Sakura and Sasuke gasped. Children are also too smart and know very well what is going on around them.
Extending her hand, Sakura stuck out a little finger toward her daughter.
"Promises."
How meaningless were the promises now? How many more would she have to break?
"Aunt Ino said I could come see her today,"
"Yes? I didn't hear that."
Sarada played with her fingers.
"Yes. Please?"
Sasuke walked up to them, running his hand through Sakura's hair. She looked at him and saw understanding in his eyes.
"Let her go."
Sakura sighed. She didn't know if Ino wanted to see her, or if she wanted her. At meals, they sat far apart from each other and hadn't spoken since their last exchange of words.
"All right."
Sarada said goodbye to Sasuke. The two of them set off for Ino's room. The room was not far away. They got there after just a moment.
Sakura's friend was standing with her back turned, and at the sound of a knock she turned around. She had not closed the door, so they walked quietly inside. Sarada immediately ran up to her aunt. Ino didn't once raise her eyes to Sakura.
"She wanted to come to you,"
"Yhym, I'll take care of her. She can sleep at my place."
"Okay, thank you."
She left, saying goodbye to Sarada on the way. It had been a long time since she had such a dry and hopeless conversation with Ino. She will have to mend relations with her, she was, after all, her friend since childhood. Sakura needed Ino right now.
She quickly returned to the room. Sasuke was just arranging his clothes in a cube on the couch. He was wearing only boxers. He couldn't see Sakura, but maybe that was better. Her cheeks had turned all red. She remembered the last situation in the shower.
"It's stuffy in here." she commented.
"Take off your clothes, it will be better."
It sounded like a proposition. Or only to Sakura it did. She turned the key in the door.
Sakura spent more time with Sasuke, catching up on stories before bed or between dealing with Sarada. They re-learned about each other and tried to live together as best they could, while providing their daughter with what she had always dreamed of - a family.
But they dealt with their emotions differently.
"Maybe you want to help me take off a few layers?"
Sasuke turned to Sakura at last. A smile appeared on his lips. He didn't flinch, but immediately went up and squeezed Sakura's side, kissing her hard.
He rode his hands from top to bottom, enjoying her. Finally, he slipped his hand under Sakura's blouse. Sasuke squeezed her breast gently, savoring the softness. With his thumb, he gently ran his hand over the nipple, letting out a whisper of pleasure from the woman.
Sakura passed kisses from the lips to the neck. She sucked on Sasuke's skin, making hickeys. Using her fingers, she cycled along his stomach.
Sasuke moaned soundlessly as she licked his nipples. Unable to wait any longer, she removed his boxers from the man's hips, got rid of her blouse, and Sasuke helped her with the bottom.
Pushing the Uchihe onto the bed, she sat on him with her arms around. She took his cock in her hands. Sakura moved her palm slowly, too slowly, eliciting moans from Sasuke. She did this on purpose.
And after a while she felt his fingers approaching her clit. Inserting two fingers into Sakura, Sasuke smiled mockingly. She began to move her hips on her own while he did nothing. He was doing it on purpose.
"What, Sakura?" he pronounced each syllable separately "No...ugh."
Taking the head into her mouth, she silenced Sasuke. Leaving his appendage, she moved from his chest to the mouth with kisses. Sasuke removed his fingers from her and positioned himself at the Sakura's entrance. The woman began to slowly enter him.
She was panting heavily, and so was Sasuke. Sakura was rising and falling. Uchiha played with her breasts.
They were so close. So close and...
The walls began to shake, pieces of the ceiling fell down. Deafening sounds came from above. They knew the sound all too well.
They were bombing the village.
Their brains quickly coded what they had to do. Muscles acted mechanically.
Sakura stepped down from Sasuke. She threw her clothes on, taking no time to wash herself. Uchiha got out of bed, but it took him too long to get dressed.
Thinking only of Sarada, Sakura ran out of the room.
"Sakura, wait!" she heard, but didn't stop.
Sakura rushed into Ino's room. Both of them were sitting huddled under the desk. They were shaking with fear. Sakura threw herself at them, embracing them tightly.
Sarada cried into her mother's arms.
"Shh, I'm here."
The three of them waited until it was all over. Sasuke had to stay in the room because he didn't make it here. The sagging ceiling was too dangerous to move around. Sakura managed to scold herself a few times in her head anyway for not thinking of running out when she should have found cover in the earlier room.
"Is it over?"
Ino, despite keeping her cool and dismissing recent events, was shaking with fear. She couldn't stand the vision of losing her friends again. She squeezed Sakura tightly by the arm, clinging to her like a child to its mother. Her palms were sticky with sweat, and although Sakura wanted to reassure her friend, she couldn't get any words out.
The rumbling quieted down, the dust raised by the falling walls floated in the air, the squeaking echoed in their heads. Sakura felt tears under her eyelids, but she could not show weakness. Sarada needed support.
Taking her daughter in her arms, Sakura stepped out from under the desk extending her hand toward Ino. Sasuke had finally arrived. His face showed fear and confusion. Sakura couldn't look at him, knowing that she was the reason he felt those awful emotions again.
"Are you all right?" he asked like a maniac, his eyes encompassing their silhouettes, "Sakura, say something. Please." he hugged them.
The strong embrace made Sakura even more aware of Sasuke's fear. This time she couldn't hold back her tears. She cuddled into him, feeling the gaze of Sarada and Ino. Sasuke stroked her hair still waiting for an answer.
"We're fine, Sasuke." she replied through tears, "We need to check on the rest."
She handed Sarada to Sasuke, as she was no longer able to hold her. Her shoulders were too heavy and her mind was replaying the events of a moment ago. Once again, she found herself in an apartment in Amegakure and a camp. Sakura thought the traumatic events hadn't taken a toll on her like they had on others, but she was wrong. Her mind locked them far away in a box, somewhere in the distant depths, and tried to keep them from being released to keep Sakura from thinking about things she could have done differently or not done at all, but failed to keep them there forever. They were released whenever similar situations occurred and hurt Sakura even more.
Sasuke and Sarada went to the main room, while Sakura and Ino checked on Naruto and Izumi. The blond man sat crouched on the bed with his eyes fixed in front of him. Naruto was now somewhere far away, in the terrible depths of his head. Sakura helped him up and asked Ino to lead him to Sasuke. She then went to get Izumi, but found that the girl was already there. She didn't look too surprised or scared.
"Do you think they've had this village in mind for a long time, or maybe they bombed it because of us?" asked Izumi.
"There are a lot of options. We can't be sure of any of them." replied Naruto, who snapped back to reality.
Ino joined the discussion. The three of them talked fiercely about the bombing. Sakura did not interfere, analyzing their observations in her head. She took Sarada from Sasuke, seeing how much the girl was shaking. Silently humming, she tried to lull her daughter to sleep. This was off topic for her, but there was nothing she could do. Leaving Sarada alone could lead to death. You never know who will attack again when.
"I suggest leaving this conversation for tomorrow. Right now we should worry about our safety." Sakura stroked Sarada's cheeks as she used to do when she was a child, "We don't know if anyone is searching the village now. Someone might enter our hiding place."
"The lockdown is quite strong." commented Sasuke. Sakura looked at him, asking for support, "However, we should keep an eye on it overnight."
No one had the strength to talk further. Izumi and Ino stood guard, making sure no one uninvited got any further. Izumi held a gun, so if only someone opened an opening, she would shoot that person right away.
"Naruto, go to bed," she said.
"I can stay..."
"Go." with Sakura's doctorly tone, there was nothing to fight.
He left the room. Sakura was still singing to Sarada, who was practically asleep.
"You should go to bed, too." Sasuke stood over her.
"I'll stay."
She had an inner need to sit back and be sure nothing was happening. Unfortunately, it didn't work for Sakura. She fell asleep, and just before her communication with the world was knocked down, she felt strong arms lifting her up.
Sakura woke up in a room with Sarada next to her. Sasuke was nowhere to be found, so she assumed he had spent the entire night by Ino and Izumi's side.
The silence was the first thing that caught Sakura's attention. Even Sarada's breathing was too shallow to be heard.
Getting out of bed, Sakura went to the bathroom. She should have washed herself a few hours ago, but she didn't find the opportunity, and fatigue took precedence over duty. Rinsing her body with water, she washed off the dirt, dust and sweat. She left the cabin, putting on the same clothes again.
Leaving Sarada, though with a whole lot of reservations in the back of her mind about the idea, she set off through the halls.
When she got to the room she found everyone there. They must have been waiting for her.
"I was outside." Izumi said.
"Where were you?" Sakura didn't know how she should feel about this confession. After all, it was the most dangerous thing this girl could do.
"As we guessed before, they were Konoha soldiers." she disposed of the question, "We have to think about what to do now that they've made it all the way here."
"I would run away." Ino said.
"Nowhere is safe." blurted out Naruto.
"We have nothing here."
"We have more than outside."
They argued, not letting anyone enter with a sentence. Sasuke shook his head in resignation. Izumi stood in the corner, and from the look on her face, one could tell that what she was about to say would not be very smart.
"Or we'll kill Danzo and those two." they all looked at her with raised eyebrows "I would at least do that. I'd like to avenge Itachi."
An awkward silence fell, only to be broken a moment later by Ino. Now the three of them were having an argument, not even sure what about. Sakura looked around arranging in her mind what she would like to say. She thought about it in the shower and, if help is needed and the village leader lives and wants to defend his village, it might be the best option of all.
Sasuke suddenly slammed his fist on the table.
"What are you thinking about, Sakura?" three pairs of eyes focused on her face.
"So," she took deep breath "we can't leave this place because we need information from Kakashi, but we don't have food here, and it's dangerous to leave, even more so now." she looked everyone in the eye "If this works out, we'll make a deal with the authority."
"What kind of deal?" asked Izumi.
"It's hard for me to say at the moment, but you guys have military training, right?" they all nodded, though as Sakura surmised the 'training' of some was more domestic than official "Maybe we can do for military aid for them. In return, we'll ask for the necessities of life."
"If it doesn't work out?"
"That's what we'll worry about later." Sakura stood up, resting her hands on the tabletop "I'll go talk to the leaders. I'm good at this."
"Sakura..." Sasuke began, but she interrupted him.
"You will come with me, covering me."
She asked Izumi for the gun. She handed it to Sasuke, and he slung the rifle over his head. Sakura smoothed her hair and adjusted the clothes a bit, then she was ready to go. She didn't look gorgeous or cover her hair. She had to show that she wasn't afraid. For too long she had lived in fear. She asked Izumi in passing if anyone was outside.
"I didn't see anyone,"
"That's good." she waved to Sasuke "Let's go." Sakura turned to Ino "Could you take care of Sarada?"
"Of course."
They left. The streets were in complete disarray. Debris, pieces of roofs, smashed furniture or corpses were strewn everywhere. The sight brought shivers. In the distance, people gathered in groups. Some were crying, despairing for the dead, while others could not produce a single tear. Sakura walked through the streets with Sasuke, with bitterness in her heart. She had seen similar sights before. She had experienced similar things. With each new casualty of this war for power, with people who were mentally unbalanced, many more people suffered. People were dying, but not only those killed. It was loved ones, lovers, friends and children who were left with a hole in their hearts that will never be patched again.
Several dogs tangled underfoot. Sakura noticed the sad faces on their animal muzzles. They were grieving for their owners buried in the rubble of their homes. A quiet howl stirred her.
Walking along, a little girl was sitting in the corner of an apartment building, only half of which had subsided. She must have been not much older than Sarada. The image of a whimpering child holding a toy and looking around for her parents, most likely dead, shattered Sakura's heart. She grabbed Sasuke's hand, and in her mind, instead of the unknown girl's face, Sarada's face came to life. She unraveled in Sakura's mind, summoning a wave of fear and sadness.
"I promise it will never happen." Sasuke said, as if reading Sakura's mind.
"Promise is too big a word for now."
"I promise." he repeated louder.
Sakura was grateful to have him by her side again.
They arrived at a large building surrounded by soldiers. The navy blue uniforms and caps were all dirty, and the men looked frightened. Sakura followed first, stopping Sasuke.
"I should go alone," she said.
"No way."
"Sasuke..."
"Sakura..."
He looked at her with the same eyes as she looked at him. She couldn't say no to him.
"Okay, come on."
They both approached the guards. Those pointed their guns at them, their fingers slipping on the surface of their pistols. Sweat under their arms made stains on their clothes for some.
"Who are you and what are you doing here?"
"We came to talk to your leader. We don't want to hurt anyone." Sakura assured.
"Aren't those the ones?" asked one of his colleagues in a whisper, the man on the right, "Yes, yes, certainly."
The arrival of the two of them caused a little commotion. They argued among themselves, unable to determine what they should do in this situation. The smaller man expressed more interest in getting rid of Sakura and Sasuke, while the larger wanted to listen to them. The third claimed that they couldn't see their leader, while the fourth said it was better to let them in. They carried on this conversation until the eldest, with gray hair sticking out from under his cap and wrinkles surrounding his entire face, shouted for them to shut up.
"Search and disarm." he issued the command.
Sakura did not resist. She gave the man, though he looked more like a boy who had just turned eighteen, to search her. He carefully touched her pockets, pants and blouse, checking for weapons. Sasuke wasn't too convinced by the idea. Out of compulsion, he left his weapon behind when he noticed Sakura asking him with a hand gesture to obey orders. Then the 40-year-old guard maced him all over his body, which sent shivers down his spine.
"One wrong move and you're dead."
The eldest put his gun to Sakura's back and began to lead her deeper into the room. Sasuke followed closely behind with a rifle attached to his head. They passed through three corridors and reached a small room. The room was dark, and a man with brown hair and equally dark eyes was walking in circles. The woman next to him stood silently, reviewing documents. When Sakura and Sasuke appeared inside, the man stopped and looked at them suspiciously, but with madness in his eyes.
"Who is it?"
"They wanted to talk."
"About what?"
Before the guard could answer, Sakura interjected, artfully coughing to attract attention.
"I am Sakura Haruno." she saw no point in hiding her identity here. She did not, however, introduce Sasuke. And so it was possible to guess by appearance alone who he was "I came here to make a proposal."
She waited for some kind of reaction from the man. The village leader was still walking restlessly. He picked up a coffee mug and spilled it on the table. He laughed mechanically and then wiped the drink with his sleeve. How much had he drunk of it already?
"We're listening to you." answered the woman for him.
"After yesterday's events that shook this village and us, I thought of a certain arrangement." she sat down on a chair next to the desk to get more attention from the leader "I have four trained people, and I myself am a doctor. We can help when more attacks occur. You will have more people on duty, the village will be safer because of it."
"Extra people... not enough duty... even fewer soldiers." he said to himself, evidently analyzing Sakura's words in his head, "Help... Yes, yes... that's a good idea."
The woman listened while jotting down something in her notebook. When the man stopped muttering to himself, she took a seat opposite Sakura and looked deeply into her eyes.
"How well trained are they?"
"They've gone through official training." only two of them, with one of them not having a hand.
No one needed to know.
"You're a doctor by what?"
"By profession." in theory. She always had a nurse listed in her charts, and the fact that she did surgery was another matter.
"Availability?"
"All the time." here she was not lying.
"What do you want in return?"
"Food, medicine, fluids..."
"I see." she wrote down Sakura's answers, tapped her pen against her lips and finally spoke, "We agree. If you prove yourselves, we'll make a deal. But first I want you to heal everyone you can. Then we'll give you what you need."
"Of course." Sakura smiled in spirit, "Send the people here. It will be easier for me to treat them."
The woman gave orders to the two guards. Sakura turned to Sasuke with a big, happy smile. He approached her placing his hand on her head. One less problem to worry about. And only another ninety-nine others ahead of them.
Naruto was setting out the paper plates they had received as furnishings for their temporary residence, and cutlery. The table was nicely set, and serpentine and confetti decorated the floor. Sakura asked the ruler to deliver it all to them yesterday. They had to make it in time before Sarada became too interested in why she couldn't leave the room. Ino sat by her side, occupying the girl's time, but she couldn't hold her indefinitely either.
Over the past two months, they had completed three small missions. The village was attacked, and through a small radio they got earlier to communicate, they were informed to help fight the enemy. Twice they sent Sasuke and Izumi, making excuses that the two could handle it. This relieved the burden on Ino, who didn't want to participate in fights or anything related to violence, and Naruto, who, despite already being in good health and having learned to use only one hand, wasn't much suited to killing. Though they had to send him out once. It didn't go well, but he tried.
Sakura, for that matter, did medical assistance, which they didn't have here at all. She treated the wounded and also sometimes simply provided assistance with medical issues.
With that, they earned an official place in the ranks of the army and got everything they needed.
"Put it here." Naruto pointed to the center of the table.
Sasuke returned carrying a cake. A small one, without any fruit, but a cake. Sarada deserved to have her sixth birthday celebrated. She was still a child and no one wanted to take away her joy.
"They didn't have candles,"
"That's okay." Sakura replied, preparing whipped cream.
A plain sponge cake layered with chocolate, she intended to decorate a bit herself. She looked through the drawers finding three cookies. She arranged them on top of the cake, and used the cream to make something à la flowers.
"I don't have anything to wrap the gift in,"
"So you will give a gift to Sarada at the end. It doesn't have to be packed."
Sakura knew Sasuke was stressed. This was their daughter's first birthday party that he would be attending. In his hands he held a plushie and a doll. It was hard to ask for toys, so Sakura finally opted for minimalist items. Sarada would be grateful for anything anyway. She never fussed.
"What if..." Sakura approached Sasuke, shushing him.
"Don't worry about anything." she placed a kiss on his cheek "Izumi, could you help me with this salad?"
The girl approached the countertop quietly. She hadn't spoken to anyone since yesterday. And just as it was normal for Izumi to isolate herself for a long time, avoiding everyone was strange. She didn't even look at Sakura, she immediately set about slicing. First the cucumber, then the tomato. When she tackled the bell pepper, the knife accidentally slipped and cut her finger. Blood flew down her hand.
"I'm sorry." she said with remorse in her voice.
Without waiting for the others' reactions, she disappeared. Sakura heard her go to the bathroom. She looked at Sasuke, who was getting ready to move after the girl. Sakura stopped him.
"I'll check on her." she walked to the door and quietly knocked, "Izumi, will you open? Please?"
She waited a moment. The girl did not want to give way at first, but finally let Sakura in.
It was the first time she had seen Izumi crying openly. She held one hand to her mouth, has an injured finger wrapped in paper, and had the other hand on her stomach.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to ruin anything. I'll be right back." she wiped away a dripping tear every now and then.
"Izumi, what's wrong?"
Sakura captured the girl's cheeks. At first Izumi avoided her gaze, but quickly gave in.
"Nothing..." she pressed her lips into a thin line "Oh my god... I... Two months ago." she began to shake "Two months ago I miscarried."
Her hands slowly slipped from Izumi's face. Sakura stood as if she had been struck. She couldn't move. She had expected everything, but not this. To lose a child that one clearly wanted is the worst thing for a woman. Even more so when that child was to be the last line connecting you to your dead partner. Sakura, when she was pregnant herself, was afraid that she would lose the opportunity to have Sarada. Anxiety ate at her every day, settling in her heart and refusing to let go. Back then, Sarada was supposed to be the last thing Sakura had left of Sasuke.
And now Izumi was to have nothing left of Itachi. The guilt hit Sakura again. It was because of her that Itachi was dead, and it was probably because of her that Izumi had a miscarriage. Because how else? Her knees buckled under her.
"Forgive me, I beg you." she couldn't control herself "I didn't do it on purpose, I'm sorry."
She felt Izumi sitting down next to her.
"I don't blame you." she said softly, "I knew Itachi like no one else. I know why he saved you."
"But if I hadn't been in danger at the time, he would have been alive."
"Sakura." Izumi leaned against the edge of the sink "I can't say I'm not sad. Every day I beat myself up with thoughts of what might have happened if I had gone there with him, or if I hadn't shown your picture to him and Sasuke at all. And I feel terrible about it. How can I think like that, after all, I saw how much Sasuke is suffering." she took a deep breath "And I've often thought if I'm sure I'm not angry at you, but believe me I'm not. You shouldn't blame yourself for anything either. Itachi always thought of others first and then himself."
"Izumi, anyway..."
"I'm jealous." Sakura shot a shocked look at her, "I came to this after time. I'm jealous of you and what you've managed, despite the odds, to get back. You are here now with Sasuke and Sarada and you all love each other. You are like a family. And I feel lonely." she raised her hand up "Yes, you could say I have you guys, but you know very well what loneliness I mean. And that's why I acted like this. I couldn't come to terms with what happened to me, but then I thought about it longer, and actually we're all on equal footing. Terrible things happened to us."
Sakura pulled Izumi close, squeezing her tightly.
"Thank you for telling me," she snorted "And I'm so sorry."
"I've come to terms with it. It only hurts sometimes. When I am reminded of what I could have had."
"If you want to talk, I'm always here."
"I know."
"And thank you for your support. Your words mean a lot to me."
"Eventually you have to stop blaming yourself, Sakura." Izumi cuddled into her even more "I know you do." Sakura laughed through her tears "Look at us. We're sitting crying in the bathroom like some idiots." now Izumi smiled.
"If you want to cry again, like idiots, call me. I'll come for sure."
She laughed. Sakura wiped her tears, trying to look reasonably decent.
"Come on, it' better not to keep Sarada waiting too long."
They came out of the bathroom at the perfect time. Ino had just brought Sarada in, and everyone boisterously began to sing a happy birthday. Sakura gave Sasuke a fleeting glance saying that everything is fine, then focused on her daughter.
Everyone sang, wished Sarada well, ate cake and laughed as if a personal tragedy had not just played out. The world is a funny place, Sakura thought. One minute your life is crashing down on your head, and the next minute you're smiling as if all the drama is playing out elsewhere and doesn't concern you.
You look for happiness in even the smallest thing to avoid being consumed by tragedy.
Sakura lay with her head resting on his lap. Sasuke saw her slowly falling asleep.
"You know that exactly a month ago was my birthday." Sarada, not sensing fatigue, ran up to them happy.
"Ah, yes?" muttered Sakura.
"Yes, I counted each day on a piece of paper."
Sakura sat down, taking Sarada on her lap. Sasuke stared at them, still unable to believe that he is here with them. A glimpse of Itachi ran through his head and, looking away, he imagined his brother standing next to him and smiling at the sight of them. He shook himself off quickly, however, knowing that he was losing touch with reality again.
This was happening to him more and more often. With his body he was here, and with his thoughts he was far away. Sasuke couldn't control it.
"Let's take a nap Sarada." Sakura said sleepily.
The girl scoffed, as if sleeping during the day was only for small children.
"I'm already six years old not five."
"And you are still my sweet little girl."
She gave Sarada a wet kiss. Sasuke also received one. Sakura leaned back and lay down, all the while holding her daughter in the arms. Sasuke sat next to her leaning his back against the wall. He felt two hands grabbing his blouse.
With them, he felt so peaceful.
"Sasuke, Sakura."
He momentarily opened his eyes. Naruto was standing in the doorway with a terrified look on the face. He was gasping while holding his chest.
"What's up..."
"Konoha, Danzo, they are attacking." he summarized "They need us."
Sakura and Sasuke sprang to their feet. Sarada was confused. They all ran to the main room. Izumi was talking on a walkie-talkie.
"How many?"
"A lot, too much. We need all four of you."
Sasuke listened, knowing that they have no way to send so many people. Ino will refuse and no one will argue with her. Naruto, though he shouldn't, will go, so will Izumi and Sasuke, and by missing one person, they will have to send Sakura. Sasuke believed in her skills, but he was absolutely sure that fighting at the front was too much for her. That made him all the more afraid. More than he would like to admit.
Losing Sakura would change him irrevocably.
"We'll be right there."
Izumi ended the call. Naruto was already getting ready to leave. He took his pistol, bulletproof vest and magazines. Izumi only put on the rifle. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted Sakura weighing the gun in her hand.
"Are you guys ready?" she asked. Sasuke wanted to object, wanted to dissuade her from the idea. As if he could, he would have shouted how stupid it was. But he couldn't, they had made an offer and accepted it. If they wanted to be able to live another five months, she had to go "Sasuke?"
"Aa."
"Mom, dad, don't go." Sarada squeezed the plushie in her small hands.
Sakura crouched in front of her daughter, sending a weak smile. She tucked her dark hair behind the ear, gazing at Sarada. Perhaps she wanted to keep her in her memory forever?
"Before you know it, we'll be back."
Sasuke put his hand on Sarada's head, adding support to Sakura.
"I have one more thing to do, remember?" he winked "We're not going anywhere."
She didn't believe them, Sasuke saw it in her eyes. So similar to his own and Sakura's. And he knew that Sarada was hiding all the pain in them, not wanting to show her true feelings. She was growing up too fast. She was starting to act like them. Hurt on the inside, tough on the outside.
"...Okay."
Sasuke took the rifle, putting on his business attire. Black material encircled his body, and a vest protected him from being shot. Sakura walked toward the exit.
"Sakura-chan, are you sure?" Naruto clenched his jaw "You know, I don't want to lose you like this... Just like... Hinata."
Seeing his friend's face twisted into a grimace and his voice breaking at the name of his beloved, Sasuke's heart ached. He admired Naruto. He held on as best he could. He couldn't imagine the scenario of another one of his family members dying.
Sakura hugged him. She embraced her friend's frail body, melting into his arms. She whispered something in his ear, but Sasuke could not hear it. Moving away from Naruto, she extended her hand toward Sasuke.
"Listen to Ino." he said to his daughter in passing, then joined the rest.
There were soldiers running around. Ordinary residents hid in the basements of undestroyed houses. The enemies were easy to distinguish, they wore uniforms and were much better equipped than they were. They did not resist shooting, killing every person they could. Sasuke shot one soldier along the way. He was running after Sakura when Naruto and Izumi split up. They went to assist other sides of the village.
Sakura kept firing, trying to hit enemies, but most of her shots landed far off target. Sasuke always hit the enemies she didn't kill. Together they headed for the main entrance, the most occupied of the Konoha.
Danzo sent more men than always, but not many. They lost, unfortunately, quite a few of their own, as Sasuke noted, however Konoha had more losses. The soldiers in this small village were well-trained. Better than he realized. They killed without resistance.
Sasuke ran away from Sakura, helping the two women who were fighting their enemies. All he could hear in the distance were men's screams. As long as it wasn't Sakura, Sasuke would somehow be fine.
He got rid of the two soldiers with help. The women ran further away.
"Mom!" cried the little girl.
Sasuke's heart froze for a moment. She sounded similar to Sarada, but when he turned around, it fortunately turned out to be someone else. However, what was the child doing here?
Sakura spotted an enemy earlier than him. Sasuke saw her kill someone. He heard two gunshots. Turning to the left, another soldier was standing there. Sasuke quickly took aim at his head.
The distraught mother ran to her daughter. Sakura stood looking at the moment, while Sasuke fought on. The situation was getting better and better. He could see Naruto returning from the south side in the distance. Izumi should soon appear from the west. The screams and gunshots slowly quieted down.
They killed four more people.
"Sakura, we are retreating slowly!"
The rest would be taken care of by the village army. They were only tasked with fighting the enemy.
"...I'll come right away." she sounded weak.
Why? Sasuke turned around. A pool of blood made a large stain under Sakura's feet. She supported herself against the building, clutching her right side.
All the sounds around him fell silent. He didn't even remember how he got back to the hideout anymore. He knew that he ran to her, took her in his arms and ran as hard as he could. In flashbacks, he saw Sarada standing in a corner with tears in the eyes, shaking and not making any sound - frozen in place with a teddy bear dangling along her small, frail body. Ino also dawdled in his mind. She instructed him where to put Sakura, but Sasuke saw panic in her eyes.
Sasuke also associated Naruto and Izumi running out after him. But then darkness, breathing problems and his heart beating too fast, pain in his chest and head.
He was consumed by darkness.