Pain of Love

Note: XP me dead laxy...finally me updated...then again....i did update sometime last week...which i might say is a MAJOR IMPROVEMENT...hehe...well at least in my case...*sigh* so here i am...tying this long...well...actually fairly short chapter...tonight...instead of doing my shity hw...XD oh well...i'd pick fanfic over hw any old day....^^; now...on ta de story!

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Sakura shot a glare over her shoulder towards her darkly erotic stranger. She hated him for making her feel this way...making her feel...so weak...so fragile....making her want to fall into his arms...and let him take care of her for the rest of her life. Unconsciously, she wrung her hands nervously. It wasn't suppose to be this way...she was suppose to have cut off all her emotions...all her ties when she became a hunter-nin. She couldn't love anyone...it was impossible...

She had her heart broken once, and she sure as hell wasn't going to allow some drop dead gorgeous guy to hurt her again. Sakura lifted her head with an ounce of pride. She'd learned so much ever since Sasuke had left her for the Sound. As a matter of fact, her friends had worried about her. She smirked slightly. Ever since that fatefully day, Sakura had given up on love...she didn't need anyone...not anymore. She hadn't ever truly smiled again...not once. Oh sure she would smile from time to time...but it was forced...and tight lipped...and never reached her eyes. Eyes that were as dark as the evergreen forest, eyes that were often filled with determination and anger.

The calm musical atmosphere seemed so surreal...so...diaphanous...like a dream. It was amazing how the worst things always occur during the most magical moment of the night. A dream...a perfect beauteous dream. Sakura frowned. When she had been nothing more then a child, she'd always loved fairy tales...the ones where things always seemed to have a touch of magic. It would be amazing...the thought of living happily ever after...

She lowered her eyes in pain. The years as a genii were one of the best years of her life. They've all gone through so much together...they'd laughed together...fought together...protected each other...and...loved...each other. A bitter laugh escaped her lips. Love? What was she? Crazy? Sasuke hadn't ever given a damn about them, they were only a burden for him...something that prohibited him from accomplishing his task...his revenge.

Sakura shook her head slowly from side to side and forced herself to return to the present. She had enough things to deal with at the moment...and she didn't need her brain turning into mush at a time like this. The village was in danger...and it was her job to protect it...at all costs...

She tensed when she felt the wind's ice breath lash against her skin. Ino had lead them back towards the garden...the exact same one she'd run off to...and met...the dark stranger. A soft hiss escaped her throat when she felt the flickers of charka around her. Someone obviously possessed a deadly amount of power...

The trees were torn and scattered about like tooth picks. The once beautifully bright flowers lay dead and dull upon the ground. Sakura frowned, there was something on the ground...something...RED...

She bent down to examine it more...and gasped. Blood...the whole ground was drenched with blood...it looked like as if...the person had been killed violently...had been tortured before they were killed. Sakura closed her eyes in pain. It was bad enough having to deal with a murderer, but now she had to deal with a psychopath...

With all her heart...Sakura wished that it wasn't someone that she knew...someone that she'd been close to... She would be inflicted with so much guilt and remorse...that she probably wouldn't have the will to live. Sakura couldn't help but feel scared...and hopeless...it was only a matter of time...until the truth reveled itself...

All she could do was hope...that fate wouldn't be so cruel...that they would have mercy on the person's soul...

Sakura turned towards the waterfall...it was strange...it seemed...almost like as if it'd been untouched throughout the entire slaughter. She slowly turned and walked towards the sparkling blue pool...almost like as if she was in a trance... Something was beckoning her to go there...all her instincts were screaming at her to investigate...since something...was...abnormal...weird...

Sasuke hissed when he looked down at the ground. So much blood...his eyes dancing with both enjoyment...and guilt. After surviving a few years with the Sound, he'd developed a strong sense of bloodlust...he loved to kill...whether innocent or guilty...his hands were drenched in their blood. And yet...there were times where it felt wrong...where he felt almost a sense of remorse...and self-disgust.

But he'd pushed it away...his conscience was only a hindrance...it made no difference in his life. Sasuke bowed his head and sighed. There were some things that he just couldn't forget...like...the honor that had been branded into his soul...the honor that forbade him to harm an innocent.

Things have changed...he was a hunter...a creature that thrived in the dark...craving others...enjoying the cries of pain. He was what he was...and nothing...and no one could change that... Sasuke stared straight ahead with blank troubled eyes. It was ironic...the fact that he hated his brother...for destroying his life...his family...and yet...he was inflicting the same pain upon others. A bitter smile touched his lips. Oh...there were many that wanted nothing more then to see him whither under them...to see him tortured for every cruel deed he's ever done.

And then there was Sakura...a naive girl that had once fallen head over heels for him. The one that had foolishly offered him her heart... Sakura was as delicate as a flower blossom...bright and cheerful...without a thought about anything in her life. Sasuke had never...ever seen a day where Sakura didn't have a smile on her face...and her eyes...those dark emerald pools that had caught her attention...the eyes that were the windows to her soul.

Sasuke tossed his head, and searched the room for Sakura. He needed to protect her...somehow... His eyes widened with shock when he realized that Sakura was straying away from the group...that she was going...deep into the garden...alone...

He cursed himself for feeling soft and ran after her...taking in the puzzled and mystified expression written on her face. Sakura was up to something...and it definitely wasn't good... His eyes widened when he saw that she'd stopped...right in front of the waterfall.

Sasuke tilted his head in confusion. What was she doing? It wasn't the time to enjoy the scenery...someone had just been MURDERED for heaven's sake! She had to have some sense to know not to wander around!

Sakura reached out towards the water...and frowned...before reaching into the sparkling pool...a mirror of the pain and terror...

She let out a scream of fear...when she felt...something...no...someone underneath the water...someone...very very DEAD... She instantly pulled her hand away...and...saw...blood...so much blood dripping from her fingertips...

It wasn't just an innocent little waterfall pool...it was a grave...a cold...watery grave...

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Note: *sigh* how was tad? I was like in dis really weird mood today when i wrote it...so ya...i was a bit pissed at me teacher today...so de next chapter might be a bit bloody XD hehe...do ya think i should change de rating on me story? ^^; i wanna do a lemon after all de action...*shrug* oh well...until next time :P