Hello again! I got such good reviews, I couldn't help but update! I got hooked on writing this fic! HAHAHA!

Reviewers:

Vegasbobcat: Congratulations! You are the first person to review! You should be proud! Hope u like this chappy too!

Wyldcat: Not for that long, right? It's a sea wide! Can they run that long?

Chapter 2: Vanishing

Sakura lay curled up in a ball behind one of the buildings. Tears streaked her face as she continued to fade away. The 'vanishing' as she called it had spread up to her shoulders and her legs had now begun to fade as well.

"Sasuke…" She said in a choked whisper. "I'm sorry…"

The raven haired boy made it to the top of the grassy hill, scanning the area for that oddly familiar colour of pink. He finally found it near one of the buildings. He could see her curled up and from the sounds of it, she had been crying.

Sasuke ran up to his old teammate, lifting her up into a sitting position as he did so.

"Sakura… are you alright?" Sakura shook her head, showing him what was left of her hands. "I know how to get rid of it… but you're going to have to trust me, alright?" Sakura nodded once again.

Lifting up his hand, he revealed the small piece of food. "Here. You need to eat this." Sakura hesitated, squirming slightly away from him. "Sakura… if you don't eat some food from here, you're going to disappear completely!"

"No! Leave me alone!" Sakura made a move to push him away, but her hands didn't make contact with anything. She found this odd, for she could still feel his hand supporting her back. Opening an eye, she looked up to see a perfectly calm Sasuke. Looking down, she realized that her hands had gone straight through his chest. She quickly pulled back and curled up into a ball, blushing slightly.

"Ah… I'm sorry…" She whispered, averting her gaze. Sasuke shook his head.

"Here." Sasuke took the piece of food and quickly placed it in her mouth. Sakura went to spit it out, but Sasuke kept a hand on her jaw. "Chew…" he instructed. Sakura did as she was told. "…and swallow." Sasuke nodded as he removed his hand from her face. "There. You're all better. Look." Sasuke lifted his hand once again, holding it in front of him. Sakura lifted her own hand, slowly bring it to his. She felt her fingertips touch his palm without phasing through, causing her to smile weakly.

"Thank you." She whispered. Sasuke nodded. "I'm so sorry… I didn't make it in time. It's like a sea out there. I couldn't run all that way-"

"Don't worry." He said, pulling her up. "I didn't make it out the first time either." This reply caught Sakura's interest. She was about to ask when Sasuke looked up at the sky. Sakura followed his gaze and she saw what looked like a vulture flying over. But when she focused on it, she realized that it fashioned the head of an old woman with a strangely big nose on it.

"Ew… what is that thing?" Sakura asked, scrunching her nose up. Sasuke, realizing what it was, pushed Sakura into to the wall, hiding her. The vulture-like creature flew in circles over their heads and eventually flew away.

"Yubaba knows you're here." Sasuke told her after stepping back. "If they catch you…" Sakura frowned.

"Sasuke. Who is Yubaba? And what do you mean by 'you didn't make it out the last time'?" Sasuke sighed.

"I can't explain everything right now." He told her. "But I can tell you that Yubaba is the owner of that bath house up there. She knows you're here and wants you for dead. Humans aren't allowed in this realm. The only way to survive here is to work. You understand?" Sakura nodded. "Good. Now follow me."

Taking her hand, Sasuke led Sakura around the backs of the stores, pausing every once in a while as the bird flew over again.

"So… is your brother… gone?" Sasuke paused, but then nodded.

"Yeah… Itachi's dead." Sasuke replied.

"Now all you have to worry about is the restoration of the Uchiha clan." Sakura immediately covered her mouth as Sasuke winced. Bad move. As most people know, the restoration includes doing that with a girl. Sasuke really didn't need that yet.

"Sorry." She whispered. Sasuke shook his head.

"It's alright…" He muttered, looking at the ground. "I know I have to face that some time or other…" Sakura smiled.

The two continued to walk until they made it to the same bridge where they had reunited. There were now hundreds of strange spirits walking across to the bath-house while giant toads with lanterns greeted them. Sasuke formed a symbol with his hand and quickly muttered a small chant under his breath. He then took Sakura's hand.

"You have to hold your breath while crossing the bridge, alright? Even the tiniest breath will break the spell. Sakura nodded in understanding, as the grip on her hand became tighter.

"Alright… take a deep breath…" Sakura did as she was told, "… and hold it." They took their first few steps onto the bridge. Sakura just wanted to dash across, but Sasuke held her back, trying not to look conspicuous. She soon started hearing several of the servants at the bath-house gossip.

"Is it true?"

"Yes! Sasuke-kun is back! And he's hotter than ever!" Sakura glanced at the boy next to her in disbelief. Not only was Sasuke popular in Konoha, he was also popular here- wherever 'here' was…

Either way, her suspicions were aroused. How would they know Sasuke? She scowled as several of the workers waved flirtatiously at the boy beside her. Sasuke glanced over at Sakura, hoping that she wouldn't do something out of jealousy. He squeezed her hand once again to turn her thoughts away from the workers. This seemed to work… for now…

"Master Sasuke! You've returned!"

To both Sasuke and Sakura's surprise, a frog in a blue kimono leapt up in front of them. Sakura shrieked, then winced.

"What? A human!"

Before the frog could say another word, Sasuke whacked him on the head with a kunai, sending him flying across the bridge.

"Run!"

Sasuke sprinted across the remaining length of the bridge, dragging Sakura along as he did so. They turned a corner and leapt over a vine-covered fence, out of view from the panicking spirits.

Sakura leaned back against the fence, her knees pulled up to her chest. Sasuke, who sat diagonal from her, glanced at the pink-haired girl in worry.

"Sasuke… I'm sorry for breathing. That frog scared me…" Sasuke sighed and shook his head at her apology.

"Don't worry." He said, smiling weakly. "He surprises everyone." Sakura smiled at his statement, when something caught her attention.

"Sasuke… how do you know about this place?" She asked, crawling closer to him. "From what I've heard, you're known quite well around here." She added darkly, thinking back to the flirtatious women on the bridge.

"It's a long story." He replied, closing his eyes. "I'll tell you some other time. But for now…" Sasuke sat up fully, placing a hand on Sakura's shoulder. "You must listen to me if you want to live." Sakura nodded, her eyes showing her focus. "When everything calms down…" Sasuke started, glancing at the door where the silhouettes of the workers ran back and forth, crying his name. "…go through that gate over there." He gestured in the direction of a small, wooden gate hidden in the bushes. "Go down the stairs until you reach a door. Go through it to the boiler room. There, you'll meet Komagi, the boiler man."

"Komagi?" Sakura questioned. Sasuke nodded.

"Ask him for work. Even if he refuses, you must insist. Say that… I told you to. That might work." Sakura nodded once again, the nagging question in the back of her mind becoming even more annoying. Despite this, she refrained from asking.

"Sasuke… thank you." Sakura smiled softly at the raven-haired boy, who nodded. He removed his hand from her shoulder and stood up.

"I'll talk with you later, alright?"

"Alright." Sakura said quietly, rubbing one of her eyes. Sasuke started to walk when something caught his hand. He looked down to see Sakura clutching it tightly.

"Sasuke… you won't forget about me… right?"

Sasuke was taken aback by this. Why would he forget about her? Sakura was his teammate… his friend… he couldn't possibly forget about her!

Crouching down, the raven-haired boy pulled Sakura into a warm hug, leaving her in a state of shock.

"Don't worry… I won't forget." He whispered, letting her head rest on his shoulder. Sakura sniffled slightly.

"Thanks…" She choked as he pulled back. Sasuke gently wiped the tears off of her face with his thumb.

"Now… I have to go. Just wait until everything dies down."

"Okay." Sakura smiled. "Komagi, right?"

"Komagi." He replied with a nod. Sasuke glanced at the door once again, letting out a small sigh as they listened to the panicked voices. "I should get going now…"

"Alright…" Sakura looked down at the grass. "Bye…"

Sasuke nodded before opening the door. One of the workers… a male from the sounds of his voice, spoke to him in a panicked tone.

"Master Sasuke! Yubaba wants to see you."

"I know…" Sasuke growled as he closed the door behind him. He didn't bother to glance back at her, in fear that his actions would give her away. Sakura smiled slightly as the door slid shut.

"Sasuke…" She whispered, smiling. She hugged her knees, remembering exactly how it felt when Sasuke hugged her. It was such a wonderful feeling. He was so warm! She loved that about him. The back of her head where Sasuke's hand had rested still tingled from his touch. He was such an amazing guy. It was no wonder that everybody crushed on him at home.

Home… she had forgotten about Konoha. How were they supposed to get back? It was like an ocean: impossible to see the other side. Well, from what she could tell, Sasuke had been here before. She had no idea when, but he had definitely been well known. Sakura frowned once again, thinking back to the flirtatious women on the bridge. If they had seen her, those women would've probably attacked her. Not only because she was 'human' as they said, but because she was with their Sasuke! What was with them! She then remembered all of the girls in Konoha. They were no different from these women… all except for the fact that these women were spirits and the girls from Konoha were shinobi.

Sakura sighed once again. She looked up at the bathhouse, straining her ears to see if there was any panic. From what she could tell, everyone realized that Sasuke was there. It was quiet again.

With one last glance at the building, Sakura crawled over to the gate, silently lifting the latch and pushing it open. She crept through and closed it quietly behind her. She looked down at the stairs, gaping at the height. It was massive!

Biting her lip, Sakura took her first few steps down the steps, unsure what would be at the bottom.

Sasuke walked silently through the decorated halls. As he reached each set of doors, they would open for him. He didn't find this as a surprise. This was always expected from Yubaba. It was one of her many ways of intimidating you.

The last door opened as he stepped into a large room. He looked around to find that nothing had changed at all.

"Ah… so you've finally returned, Sasuke."

The raven-haired boy turned calmly in the direction the voice had come from.

"Yubaba…"