Cherry Cobra

Chapter One : Cherry Blossoms

I hope you guys like this story. I worked really heard on it. Don't forget to review. I'm in the process of writing at least 2 other CCS fan fictions, and 2 Kingdom Hearts fan fictions besides this one.

Disclaimer: I don't own the CLAMP characters in this story.

"Dialog"

'Thinking'

Flashback

She waited with watchful eyes full of patience and an intensity that burned like fire. Sakura had been silent and unmoving crouched on the same cherry blossom tree for hours. She was like a posed cobra full of deadly venom meant for one person and one person only. 'He won't slip away this time.' She silently promised herself. In one of her black gloved hands she held black binoculars in the other was a silver sword. Sure it was an odd weapon for today's age, but sword fighting was what she was best in besides magic. Sakura had been practicing with her weapons of choice the sword and magic in anticipation for this day. Beads of perspiration steadily rolled from her forehead and down her face, and her hands slightly trembled. This would be the first time she would kill.

Suddenly she heard the sound of a car engine pull up in a parking lot. Sakura could see two people getting out of the car. Their voices faintly carried to her attuned ears. She quickly and quietly pulled a green cherry blossom branch back, and held her binoculars to her eyes for a better view. Both were tall males around the age of eighteen. One of them had black purple hair, and wore thin rimmed glasses. He was Hiiragizawa Eriol not the guy she was looking for, but he was high up on the list of people she wanted dead. She moved to the next male focusing her binoculars in on his hansom face. Bingo he was the one she was searching for. Li Syaoran was his name future leader of the Li clan the clan that had killed her family, and now she was ready to start taking her revenge.

They were both moving slowly closer to her hidden position up in the tree. She needed to know if Hiiragizawa carried a weapon before she made her move. Sakura had done her research and was positive that Li would have one, but she hadn't expected Hiiragizawa to be here too. While they were both here she might as well take them both out at once she figured, but that would be dangerous without knowing information on Hiiragizawa. She would have to stay hidden until he left. Until then she would just wait and see what information she could gather about the Li's business.

"So how long are you supposed to be in Japan for?" Hiiragizawa asked as he and Li walked towards Li's apartment complex.

"Oh, about six months. I can't be sure though."

"Yeah there's no telling with your mom in charge of the whole trip."

Li nodded his head. " Yeah she means well, but..."

Sakura crouched down lower to the tree. She closed her eyes. 'Please oh please don't let them have seen me.' Neither of the males spoke for quite some time. Her whole body began to shake.

"What is it my dearest cousin?" Hiiragizawa turned his head pretending to find were Li was looking at. He already knew she was there, but he wasn't going to ruin Sakura and Syaoran's meeting by letting him know that. "Did you hear something or..."

"No, don't worry about it Eriol. It was nothing. I thought I felt an aura coming from that tree, but I guess not." Syaoran knew there was something in the cherry blossom tree, but he would check it out latter after his annoying reincarnated ancestor left.

'Shit, why do I make such stupid mistakes. I can't let my magic slip again or he'll find me for sure. '

Hiiragizawa walked with Li to Li's apartment door. "I guess I'll be seeing you cute little descendent." He started to walk away.

"Eriol if you call me that one more time I swear I'll..." Hiiragizawa was already half way back to his car.

"Huh? Hey are you listening to me?" The black haired boy started up the engine and backed out of the parking lot. 'Eriol is completely crazy.'

Sakura watched as Li looked away from the car and focused on her hiding spot. 'Great, he knows I'm here.' The only thing she could do was to try to make herself as small as possible. Maybe if she made no noise he would think he's mind was playing tricks on him and leave her alone. He needed to die, but if she tried to kill him know he might get the chance to kill her first though they were probably evenly matched in fighting skills. She couldn't allow that to happen. Her family needed to be avenged.

His amber eyes didn't move from the tree. "I know your there." He said in a cold and frosty voice. "Come out now."

Li walked toward the tree. Sakura's heart started to beat franticly in her chest. What should she do jump down and prepare to fight or wait. Just before she could decide she lost her balance in the tree. She started to fall to the ground branches scrapping and bruising her on the way down. It just so happened that she fell on the man she was plotting to kill, Li. Some venomous cobra she was.

"Hoeee" Escaped from Sakura's gaping open mouth. Li had managed to catch her in his open arms.

He could clearly see the shock in her eyes. He didn't really know what to say to the girl who had just fallen out of a tree. "Umm, are you okay?" He finally forced the words out of his mouth. Her green eyes turned from complete shock to an ice coldness that showed true hate. Sakura pushed away from him which caused Li to drop her anyway. She grimaced as her bottom hit the rock hard ground. He watched her quickly stand and start to dust herself off. The girl looked very familiar to him, but he couldn't place her.

"What were you doing in that tree?"

"Nothing." She snapped. The girl started to mumble incomprehensible words under her breath. 'What should I do? Great...only this would happen to me.' Shacking her head quickly she started to look for her sword, She must have dropped it on the ground.

Li watched her intently. What was she doing? This girl was most defiantly strange. She was now on her hands and knees. He guessed looking for something.

Laying near the other side of the tree was her sword. Light from the sun made the blade glisten. It had been in her family for generations passed down from mother to daughter. Engraved in the hilt of the sword were cherry blossom petals. Sakura remembered the day her father had given her that sword. He had told her that it was her mother's wish that one day she would be able to wield it. She reached for it her fingers gripping the hilt. It fit in her hand perfectly. She had always felt that it had been made specially for her. Sakura jumped back from behind the tree the cherry blossom sword in hand. The blade was inches away from Li's face.

"Oh shit!' Li said rater loudly.

Sakura firmly told him. "It's time for you to die."

The sword slashed down at him. Li hardly had enough time to roll to the side. He sword had barely grazed his arm. The boy quickly drew out his own sword. Sakura quickly recognized it has the legendary Li clan sword. He gritted his teeth. "Who sent you?"

"I sent myself." She made another lunge at him. He quickly blocked. A loud clang rang through the apartment complex.

"Doshite?" (Why)

"Does it matter?" Sakura attacked from the right forcing him to block with his sword. While he was distracted she quickly shoved her elbow into his gut. Li, Syaoran doubled over, but still stood. He quickly regained his composer, and jumped back away from her.

Syaoran opened his mouth to answer. "Hai, I don't want to fight you."

She rolled her eyes. "Because I'm a girl."

"Iee." (No) He replied.

"Hai." (Yes)

"Because there's no reason to."

"There's reason enough for me." Sakura eyed him coldly. "Your clan is the reason my family is dead."

"My clan would never kill unless it was in self defense. What's you name? Tell me."

"Liar, why should I tell you?" She trust her sword toward him and it caught the Li clan sword with clang that echoed through the whole apartment complex. It was a good thing that only a few people lived there and they were all at work today.

Syaoran forced all of his weight on to his sword keeping her from pulling her sword away. Sakura quickly realized he was trying to force her to drop her own sword, but it was too late her grip was already loosened. Li watched as the girl's sword slipped from her fingers to the ground. She reached for it, but he was quicker. A mixed look of anger and shock appeared on her face. She had lost the fight. The boy had his sword pointed at her neck while her own was at his other side. Running was no good besides it was not an honorable thing to do. It would make her family sick if they knew she ran away after losing a fight though they were dead. Magic was no good either. This had been strictly a sword fight no magic had been involved. If she choose to use it now it would be considered a cowardly act. Once you lost a sword fight you were supposed to except you fate, death. As much as she wanted revenge for her family's death she would not do it without honor. Sakura bowed her head not looking up at the Li scum. She would excepted her death.

"What is your name?" He asked again. Her lips remained still, and her eyes stayed fixated upon the pavement. "You're a very stubborn person aren't you? Well I am too. What is your name?" He thought he was sure he knew who she was, but he couldn't be positive. Maybe he only wished it to be her.

Her lips moved to from words, but only a sigh escaped. "My name is Kinomoto, Sakura."

"Sakura?" Both swords clanged against the parking lot ground. It was her. Sakura the girl who was supposed to be dead his childhood friend.

She replied in an icy tone. "Hai, but it's Kinomoto to you."

"I thought so. I haven't seen you in a long time. You've grown a lot." He wanted to tell her how much he had missed her, but he couldn't bring himself to say it. For a moment the pain from her false death surfaced in his eyes, but Syaoran hide it away. He had to keep her from knowing how much he had truly missed her. It seemed as if she didn't even care about him.

"Aren't you going to kill me. Just get it over with." She looked up and her eyes met his.

"No, I'm not going to kill you. Why?"

Sakura rolled her emerald eyes. "Why... I just lost a sword fight to you. You're supposed to kill me that's tradition. I'm sure you know all about that from your dear elders."

"Do you really want to die that badly." A smile played on his lips. His eyes held a playful gleam in them. "Maybe Sakura's gotten a little crazy in her old age. You certainly have gotten grumpy."

Sakura just shook her head and sighed. "Stop acting like your my best friend, and start acting more like my enemy. I just tried to kill you. You do know that don't you? I hate you. I want you dead." He stared deep into her eyes and smiled again. " Don't look at me like that."

"Like what? Like I used to when we were friends. Well I'll tell you something I'm still your friend. I hope you know that. Would you really have been able to kill me? I know I wouldn't have been able to kill you even if part of me wanted to, because you would still be that little girl I used to play tag with in my front yard. You know the girl who used to climb trees with me, hide from my sisters when they wanted to play dress up with us, and the girl I used to lie on my back and watch the clouds go by with. You where the only friend I really had back then. . Please tell me that that girl is still inside you somewhere." He ran a hand through his messy brown hair waiting for her answer.

'Maybe, I didn't train hard enough. There's a part of me that wants to trust him. There's a part that wants me to believe him, but I won't fall for his stupid silly tricks. We were friends once about three years ago so what? This Li bastard is my enemy now.' Sakura made sure she glared at him. "I would have killed you, and If I still had my sword I would right now."

The wind blew through her auburn hair, and cherry blossoms fell from the near by tree. Syaoran grabbed her warm hand then hastily let go. "You know some how I don't believe you. No even one bit." She opened her hand and found that he had slipped a cherry blossom inside of it. "You know if you really do want to kill me all you have to do is pick up that sword. Go ahead it's not a trick. Sakura, just pick it up."

She did as she was told dropping the cherry blossom to the ground to replace it with the cherry blossom sword. Sakura held it up high. Syaoran bowed his head. He had faith in her. He knew there was no way she could. She wouldn't be able to do it. 'Come on Sakura. You can do it. All you have to do is drop the sword down. Was all that practice and training for nothing? No, It wasn't.' Sakura brought the sword down.

It missed Li's head by an inch. She couldn't do it. He knew she wouldn't be able to. "It wouldn't be fair. I want to beat you in a real fight. That way I would get my revenge for my dead family that your clan killed."

"What are you talking about? I've already told you my family would never do anything like that to your family. Sakura, you must be mistaken. Our family were and as far as I know the best of friends, and still are."

"Have you forgotten Li they can't be they're dead."

"Sakura," The boy looked strait into her emerald eyes. " Your just confused, and have been given false information. Do you know that my family has been helping the police since your family's death to find out what happen to them. Everyone thought you must be dead since we haven't seen you inn years though your dead body of course was never found. Your cousin Tomoyo cried for months mostly for you. She couldn't eat or sleep. Meiling kept to herself for the longest time. Sakura can you even image what we... they went through?"

"Syao... Li I couldn't have ties to people anymore not even Tomoyo and especially not a Li. I had to become strong. I had to be able to protect myself. I'm.. I'm so helpless. My family died right in front of me. The only thing I could do was watch." Sakura could fill tears rising. She felt confused. In her heart she wanted to believe that the Li's hadn't killed her family, but she had rock solid evidence that convinced her other wise. Syaoran looked away from Sakura. He couldn't look into those eyes anymore. They were filled with hatred toward, but there was also something else something that was disappearing.

With a somewhat chocked voice she continued. "Your lying anyway like... I...I...said I watched them. I watched my family...die. I saw a Li kill them." Sakura began to regain her voice. "This person wore the Li clan insignia, traditional battle clothes, and wielded a Li clan made sword. It has also been confirmed to me by a reliable source, Li."

Silence consumed them. There was only the rustle of the softly blowing wind. Syaoran couldn't even here that sound of Sakura's steady breath behind him.

"What reliable source?"

"..." No answer. He slowly turned around. Kinomoto, Sakura was missing. She sure was clumsy, but she could disappear like a ghost if she wanted to he reasoned.