It had been several days since Sakura had seen any trace of Kazuki. She had bumped into her former teachers, Kakashi and Tsunade on separate occasions while embarking on a perilous adventure to calm her nerves. Ever since Hiashi had so nicely forced her to teach his daughter, Sakura had managed to only obliterate a wall once. It seemed to be a feat considering that, when tempted, Sakura could destroy a whole village. And the temptation didn't linger as she passed the crumbling gates which represented entry into one of the five villages. Unfortunately it was the village that she was born, raised, and lived in.
She waddled slowly to the only bench that was clearly in view, the rusting edges of the metal evident and foul smell of rotting fish being carried from a nearby shed. Her fingers were slightly wrinkled because she had handled so much water after healing the dramatically inebriated Hokage. She had also heard about Lee and his comrades' mission, but hadn't learned any specific details. Lee had also noted that he noticed a tall, shady figure wander through the obscuring woods, a cloak waving freely, trailing his mysterious form.
Sakura had scoffed at his choice words but was surprised to hear that it had been where the incident occurred. It could have been her sensei but as far she remembered he wasn't wearing an overflowing cape that floated freely through the air, slicing the incoming wind cleanly and telling its own tale of pure youth. Although the wording was a tad bit strange, she had a gut feeling that it was her sensei. That was the exact physical feeling that ate away at her right now. All the other feelings were emotional save for the swirling chakra that circulated quite harshly at the tips of her knuckles, waiting to be freed and spread out like menacing spider webs so it could destroy the structure that connected to it. But the real physical feeling, the abdomen tingling sensation that was nudging her in the wrong direction was overpowering her senses.
Something was up and she knew, but her mind didn't want to know. Her mind couldn't quite grasp the fact that her new sensei, originally known as a respected chemical researcher, was up to no good. She didn't even have a legitimate reason to doubt his activities. It was low and showed no form of respect if she thought that way and it made her tense up. She had only known him for roughly two weeks but they had become accustomed to each other so easily. Unlike her academy sensei Iruka, Kazuki would never have intense nosebleeds when Naruto came by and rudely interrupted their spar to show Sakura a new and highly provocative technique. Unlike Kakashi, Kazuki would never be late and never carried around books to read and mock her while she was fighting him. Last and certainly least, unlike Tsunade, Kazuki would never drink unruly amounts of sake before challenging her to a fight or sentence her to unnecessary amounts of healing on animals that couldn't be healed...just for his own silly amusement.
He praised her when he felt that she deserved it and desired the best effort from it. He would not tolerate anything less and he gave her all his attention during their bouts. It was a lie to say that Sakura didn't enjoy being the only one praised but it would also be a lie if to say that she missed not having two others around. The quarrels, the silence, the love (which came in tightly coiled, barbed wire packages) was all that Sakura, Sasuke and Naruto had shared with Kakashi and she enjoyed it with every fibre of her being. But being the only one taught and shown attention caused Sakura to become an attention needing person. Although she did not enjoy thinking of herself as one, it was all for the best considering that she would go out of her way to gain Kazuki's attention and keep it there for long periods of time.
It was the thrill of the moment that she was caught up in. She had never experienced anything so intense with her other teachers and the new feeling brought much anticipated excitement. Everyone noticed her brightened attitude in the morning and it was something to gossip about because everyone knew that Sakura wasn't a morning person. They could hear her screams as pillows infused with chakra went flying through windows, pyjamas filled with orange books went crashing through roof tops and bodies adorned with spiky orange hair went smashing through doors. Yes, no one needed an alarm clock back then because, when in her prime, Sakura could inflict damage in unheard of calculations. It was not like anyone wanted to be there when she woke up in the morning anyway and Kakashi and Naruto never seemed to get accustomed to that.
But everything changed when Kazuki arrived and asked for a student of high calibre to train under him. Sakura had been under the strict tutelage of Tsunade at the time and she assumed that Tsunade had gotten quite bored of trying to tame the cherry blossom in the morning so she turned her over to Kazuki. He had happily obliged and Sakura had seen his face for the first time, gawking at the sight of it. His pale, mahogany eyes pierced through her as she stared at his face, seemingly entranced by his straight, bone white hair bound into a small ponytail with long bangs that sat freely by his cheeks. He was lightly tanned and that made the gawking all the more obvious as he smiled and walked up to her, bowing slightly and taking her hand in his before kissing it gently. A simple greeting, although he didn't ask for her name at the time.
"He doesn't need it since all he calls me is kunoichi," Sakura deadpanned to herself, clearly edgy about Lee and his one-sided encounter with that unidentified person. Her lack of luck was proven when a thought struck her. If she was training with Hanabi all the time, she would not have the time to see Kazuki! Sakura immediately shot up, turning on one heel and running towards the Hyuga manor. If she had learned one thing from her parents before they passed away silently, it was that the Haruno family should not be taken lightly. Don't let their pink hair and soft jade eyes fool you, they could be a force to be reckoned with and Sakura was prepared to prove that to the head of the clan. She didn't care about his infamous title anymore, this was all about her and she wasn't going to kiss his ass for some benefits.
Sakura chose to her way of traveling by jumping on houses because it was literally rush hour in Konoha. The streets were bustling with people, light tunes were carried ear to ear by a light wind, the sweet aroma of fleshly made dango and soumen opened nasal passages and to her delight, no one saw her that she recognised. The last thing she needed was a friendly conversation that blew into the long hours of the night with her previously goal simply forgotten and put to the side. With that in mind, Sakura quickened her pace slightly and turned onto a small shed before bouncing off hastily as to not cause any significant damage. She scanned the area and walked slowly up a nearly desolate street so attention could not be attracted to her. The street she was traveling on was actually classified as a dirt road and it led up to the Hyuga manor. She whistled a soft tune as she strolled along, her feet gently scraping the ground as if it would crumble under pressure. Her sweet tune was stopped when she felt a distinct chakra signature to her right.
"Byakugan I see. Who are you?" Sakura calmly asked although it did seem quite absurd to intrude.
"You can't come onto Hyuga property and ask who I am. What are you doing here, Sakura..." The man trailed off and Sakura shot her glance in his general direction when she saw the leaves rustle momentarily.
"I'm here to speak to Hiashi-sama on matters of utter importance. You know my name so I'm assuming that killing you would be a bad idea. Am I right?"
She heard the man's overconfident huff and turned around to find a slightly battered Neji standing a few feet away from her, his expression contradicting the sounds he was emitting.
"Yea, I am probably the last person you want to see. Is it because you escaped the hospital?!" Sakura accused, pointing a finger in his direction. She stared into his orbs and found a hint of nothing and their staring contest was leading nowhere. He suddenly disappeared and she gasped when she felt rough arms snake around her waist and pulls her back fiercely. She was stopped by a muscular body and a strange sensation pulsed through her; one that she had never felt before. The side of her head was knocked fiercely against a shoulder blade and Sakura's left ear felt the contracting flex of his deltoid muscle. Men always enjoyed teasing her and Neji proved it by holding her tightly than she would have liked. Her skin started to turn a soft red from bruising but Neji did not loosen his hold.
Pulling her ear closer to his mouth Neji whispered, "First of all, you can't kill me if you tried. Second of all, trespassing is not tolerated on Hyuga estate. Lastly, I could care less if it was you or Hokage-sama that stood before me. I fear no one, it's quite the opposite. Oh, and you better be prepared to see me more often since I have just been told that I'm unable to complete any missions in my current state." He held up a bandaged hand and Sakura inhaled, the guilt overwhelming her. "Don't you wish that you hadn't injured Hyuga Neji?"
The warm body that was pressed against Sakura's instantly was gone, leaving nothing but the words tingling on Sakura's earlobe. He had managed to scare her and now he was probably off to savour his victory while she stood there, fuming. He humiliated her and now she was about to enter the Hyuga estate...pissed? Did she want to get herself killed? Contemplating her options, Sakura failed to notice another similar chakra signature curl up beside her. The person tapped her on her side and Sakura literally jumped, suddenly feeling afraid about everything that managed to sneak its way into a five mile radius of her. She looked down to see white teeth beaming at her and mouth muscles stretching to their fullest extent.
"Sakura-sensei, why was Neji-nii-san just hugging you like that?" Hanabi asked, watching the widening orbs of Sakura. Sakura took a dramatic step back after realizing that Hanabi had saw what had just conspired between her and Neji. She quickly replaced her stunned look with a smile and patted Hanabi's head for safe measures.
"Well, you see..." Sakura started, clearly unsure of what to say to the young girl. She didn't want to lie but she didn't want to tell the whole truth either. "There was an ene--"
"Neji-nii-san and Sakura-sensei sitting in a tree, k-i-s-s-i-n-g! First comes love, then comes marriage--" Hanabi ran around Sakura in circular patterns frantically, insinuating that her and Neji's relationship was developing quickly and the last thing Sakura needed was a rampaging Hanabi with the wrong ideas implanted in her head. Sakura easily pursued Hanabi, picking her up and twirling her around with one confident arm while smiling happily. A new sensation powered Sakura as she twirled Hanabi around. It was as though she was missing out on something important. Leaving that unsolved thought in her head, she placed Hanabi down and grabbed her arm. With gentle grace, Sakura lifted Hanabi up and placed the young girl on her back. Then Sakura, sending a short burst of chakra to her feet, ran stealthily towards the Hyuga manor.
The funny sounds Hanabi were emitting was satisfaction enough. She temporarily forgot about her pre-planned encounter with Hiashi but chose not to dwell on it and instead decided to spend some quality time with her new student.
Tsunade stared blankly at the large with obvious face contractions revealing her doubtful expectations. Hopefully it would open swiftly and a cute man would come through with wonderful news and a scroll that held the answers to all her problems. Some of her problems were not in the immediate form of questions but they needed to be answered and, in her intoxicated state, she wasn't able to answer any of them. She was ill-prepared for such a venture into her mind to uncover the answers and in her wailing, failed to comprehend the painful reminders that would soon invade her head, starting with a simple, dull ache. She detested the pain and the misery and although gambling caused most of her problems, sake always seemed to heal them...and inevitably result in twice as many as she originally hope for.
She sat at her desk as the backdrop lightened drastically and the sun seemed to rise slowly over her draping silhouette. She never moved; she always stayed steady and kept her mind in check even though others thought she was slowly morphing into an insane, drunk, old woman. Having held that title for many years under the scrutiny of the elder council and the atrocious antics of one Uzumaki Naruto, she didn't find it all too jarring. It was the fact that she failed to change herself for the better that caused her to twirl into such a state in the beginning. She couldn't take it and no one was there to support her. Jiraiya, who never seemed to be much more than a pest, was nowhere to be seen. Sakura seemed to be enjoying her free time thanks to Tsunade's current state. Her parent like comrade Shizune was also not accounted for which seemed to be the largest surprise, and the biggest downfall for Tsunade's brain cells out of this whole mess.
If it wasn't for the disappearances. If it wasn't for the villagers choosing to be reluctant and not come forward with any information. If it wasn't for the shinobi who could have at least done their duties as watchmen properly. If it wasn't for everyone, none of this crap would have happened.
All of Tsunade's selfish accusations and pointing of all her fingers and then some proved wrong after she realized that her childish thoughts were leading to more disappearances and less productive strategies. She needed a plan but her mind was unable to process the simple information of the missing people. Folders were scattered messily around her, all with separate cards of those who have vanished from her village in a mere two months. Every day to be more precise and add the melodramatic bashing of her head against a desk to her list of things to complete. Tsunade frantically sprawled her hands over the folders directly in front of her and ripped them open, her mouth twitching to reveal the newest victim.
'Aburame Shino'
Tsunade quickly skipped the first couple of paragraphs and a diagram depicting his family tree and confidential info about his bloodline limit.
Birthday: January 23rd.
"How? He seemed to know everyone's birthday. He seemed to know where everyone was located. He seemed to know what everyone looked like. He basically...seemed to know everyone!" Tsunade yelled to no one in particular, grabbing her dishevelled hair in pure aggravation.
If Shino was captured, the culprit must be someone of high intelligence and scoping abilities and a damn great shinobi. What if they weren't even male? All Tsunade could do was assume. That was all she was able to do and all her mind would let her. She had the innate ability to solve this problem and send them into oblivion with one animosity filled punch but her mind wouldn't let her accomplish her vile dreams.
The dreams she so desperately wanted to turn into realities. But no, her mind decided to go awry with the unheard of amount of sake input with each thought. She was drowning herself in it and enjoyed every moment of it excluding the squeamish aftermath. Her mind just didn't want her to find the spot where all the answers were, covered and shielded with deadly sins. It was that spot in someone's brain where answers to questions that weren't necessarily the best answers camped, quiet and silent. Only few uncovered this spot and used it to their advantage and it's safe to say that those people are dead. Tsunade felt compelled to let herself be overrun with easy and problem solving thoughts even though the consequences would be dire.
Shikamaru. She needed him and she needed his skills right now. She stood up and wiped the cascading tears from her eyes before putting on the best face she could present herself with. Walking to the door, she was surprised when Genma came bursting through without notice. He stopped right in front of her and bowed hastily and Tsunade looked down when his eyes failed to meet hers. He was grabbing his knees with white knuckles and panting heavily although he had gone through a tough day of training and it worried Tsunade. She placed a cool hand on his back and chakra surged through her veins, relaxing his acing back muscles. Suddenly feeling as though a weight was lifted off his shoulders, Genma slowly stood back vertically to look Tsunade in the eye with a clearly strange face.
"It seems as though Nara Shikamaru has gone missing," Genma huffed, still quite tired from his long sprint towards her office. Tsunade's eyes widened and she stepped back, clearly apalled at his blunt statement and mad all the same. What luck she was having.
"His birthday is in September, how could something like this have happened?" Tsunade quickly retorted, wanting a full explanation from someone who didn't even know half the story. Throughout all of the sudden news, she failed to even consider that the cases might not even be related. It was when Genma's face turned serious that she realized that he had probably acquired some new and important piece of information.
"Here." Genma dipped his hand into his Jounin vest and pulled out a small scrap piece of paper with the initials BB scribbled on the front. Tsunade tore it from his nearly cold grasp and opened the note.
To Hokage-sama,
Yes, you're confused now aren't you Hokage-sama? Believing that I, BB, would be stealing your villagers from right under your nose using their birthday date as a reference. I'm more clever and cunning than you perceive me to be Hokage-sama. Yes, you probably just asked Genma why Shikamaru was captured. It's quite simple really. He's smart and you're not so you were relying on his help. Of course, he's currently not in your possession anymore and there's nothing you can do about it so please...save us all the effort and give me what I want.
With love,
BB
Tsunade tore the paper into shreds before letting out a grunt and sitting back by her desk. She looked at Genma and he understood her completely, leaving the room with the door hanging off its hinges. He needed to find Sakura and quickly and Tsunade needed to quickly figure out what he wanted.
It didn't take long for Genma to find Sakura but it was certainly a surprise to find her with Hanabi. They were both on the medic training grounds and Sakura was crouched down to meet Hanabi's gaze as Genma watched both their right hands turn a green colour. He hadn't thought of Sakura as a teacher and it made him happy to know that more medics were being trained under one of the best. He had his own experiences without the abilities of a medic so he was one to know how much Konoha needed more. His gaze was averted to a kunai that went whipping past him. It easily embedded itself into the tree inches to his left and he looked up to find a, suddenly extremely tall, Haruno Sakura staring down on his crouching form. She offered him a hand and he gladly took it, jumping up so that she now had to crane her neck to look at him. Not letting his ego overtake his conscience, he smiled as a form of greeting and began to explain.
"Hokage-sama requests your assistance. She asks that you go to her right away so that the problems can be taken care of quickly and efficiently. She will explain everything once you're there but she would like to let you know that if you accept the responsibility of handling such secret information then you must also accept the risk of missions, call-ins and such..." Genma finished, proud of his work partly due to the fact that Sakura was wearing one of the funniest faces he had ever seen.
It was a mixture of several expressions, none of which could be identified solely as happiness. Genma could sense the disruption in her chakra and took a small step back for safe measures. He did not want to be the target of her onslaught of rapid punches and kicks. If anyone should be, it was Kakashi considering Genma literally had a tooth to pick with him over the lack of Kakashi's wallet when he and Genma were done their nightly intakes of food and drinks.
Hanabi noticed Genma's miniscule step back after wondering why Sakura's chakra was doing back flips and belly flops. She stealthily followed suite but inched closer as Sakura's chakra started to flow evenly through her veins. They both looked at her for a moment and happened to exhale dejectedly at the same time. It created a larger sound and Sakura heard, snapping out of her fight with her inner self. Sakura had a gut feeling--intuition if you will, which told her that her sensei had something to do with it. Although she didn't want to openly admit that her heart was tainted with such thoughts, she knew that her intuition wasn't usually wrong.
Genma tapped Sakura's shoulder lightly and she snapped up, nearly knocking his chin into the air along with the rest of his body. He smiled and reminded her of what she had to do. He then politely asked Hanabi to go home and she nodded her head and left, after glomping Sakura several times and naming off all the techniques she wanted to learn the next time they met. Once the third party was out of sight, Genma and Sakura jumped to the roof tops and made their way to the Hokage's mansion.
They made it safely but the damages they caused with their chakra infused feet was troublesome. Genma didn't really care because he was known for being light on his feet but Sakura did because she knew that, when troubled, her chakra distribution was simply out of control. She didn't attempt to fix it and neither did anyone else. The reason being because they couldn't. If they mentioned one of Sakura's incapability, she would send them through the roof.
Genma walked up to the door and was about to knock when Sakura's mouth was covered by a gloved hand. She tried to fend off the person but stopped when she heard the familiar chuckle of her sensei. He let her go and she whipped around, smiling sheepishly at him. Kazuki gently tapped her forehead and she pouted, clearly uneasy about the bland recognition.
"Kazuki-sensei, have you been called by Tsunade-sama?" Sakura asked, looking into his mahogany eyes. They seemed paler for a few moments but once he blinked, colour was restored and he looked just as handsome as any other shinobi bachelor in Konoha. He smiled and Sakura returned it just as equally but with more emphasis on the dimple creation.
"Kunoichi, it really doesn't matter what I'm up to. Have you started taijutsu training with anyone?"
Sakura looked at him and covered her mouth when it dawned on her. In all her wallowing in despair, looking for a trainer, training someone, and crashing into totally strange acting Hyuga Nejis, Sakura had forgotten about the simple task of actually getting someone. Her mouth twitched and Kazuki took it as her non verbal reply to his question.
"Well, in that case you should ask a Hyuga. I've heard that their Jyuken style is very pleasing and requires excellent chakra control which you have."
Sakura grinned at him until the implications set in. Why did everything come down to the Hyugas? Sakura seemed to be having extremely bad luck or it was karma for beating up Naruto when Hinata was around. But seriously, she didn't deserve such a punishment. Sakura wasn't able to wish such a harsh consequence on anyone else because the thought of spending extra time with that family caused her to sweat bullets. If that wasn't hard enough to endure, then the fact that her I'm-so-cool-everyone-should-idol-me-like-Sakura-does sensei offering her the suggestion would be. She couldn't back out now unless she wanted to be the center of shinobi and kunoichi failure attention.
As Sakura was about to respond, the door creaked opened to reveal a worried Tsunade, holding a bottle of water. Water. That alone surprised Sakura immediately. Sakura was interrupted from saying hello to her when she noticed the electric gaze between Kazuki and the Hokage herself. Genma stood there, chewing gracefully on his senbon needle and fondling it, too busy to notice the showdown between Sakura's highly respected teachers.
Now Sakura really had her doubts about her sensei. The Hokage with a water bottle, staring at a man with pure animosity laced in her eyes. If that couldn't convince Sakura that something was wrong, then nothing would.
TBC
Note from akbar1111112: TBC officially stands for The Bitchin Cat.
Note from Baka Kunoichi: Eh...