His chakra trickled through her pathways, coarse and burning, but it was keeping her alive. Without it, Sakura would've been seriously damaged, or worse. How Zabuza had managed to create a complex seal and still managed to give her some of his without suffering was beyond her.

The only normally functioning person of their group was Haku. He was out of the hotel most of the time, but he regularly checked on her and Zabuza. Sakura could only guess as to what he was doing in the town. She didn't care all that much. She was more worried about the seal on her arm and the man sleeping not even ten feet away from her. Sure, they might be in separate beds, but Sakura knew that Zabuza could pounce on her in the blink of an eye. The man looked a little bit less threatening when he was sleeping, but not all that much.

Sakura gasped as the chakra in the seal flickered, sending a small shock of pain through her body. She turned to see Zabuza, now awake, standing over her body. Sakura pushed against the urge to run. Kami, why was she so scared of this man? She is much stronger than she was when they had first met. She should be able to beat him up and escape! But here she is.

Zabuza turned away and walked to where his sword rested. "Get up." He ordered. Sakura's eyes widened. She was actually going somewhere? She slowly stood up, using the bed for support. Once she found that she could stand by herself, she slowly worked on stretching. Sakura hadn't walked in a week, and she'd been bound until yesterday. She desperately hoped that they wouldn't bind her again. Sakura slowly made her way towards Zabuza but she kept a decent amount of space in between them. He had already strapped his sword to his back and was waiting at the door. He looked her up and down once, before nodding curtly and proceeding out the door. She stood, mouth open. Was she supposed to follow him?

She eventually got her mind straight and caught up to him at the end of the corridor. Apparently, Zabuza had not stopped to wait for her, knowing she would follow. He led her down to the street, where they turned left. As they walked through the village, Sakura felt vulnerable without the bindings on her wrists and ankles. And she was still in her sleep clothes. Was she going to be dressed like this forever?

No, not forever, she admonished herself. I will escape. Sakura unconsciously tried to draw chakra, but grit her teeth when Zabuza's came up instead. In front of her, the man almost imperceptibly flinched. Keyword being 'almost'. Sakura filed this information away for future references. Maybe I could use it against him.

A few minutes later, and they were on the outskirts of the village, the wooded side. Sakura found herself in a moderate clearing with a few trees scattered about. I don't understand, why are we h-

A rough shove interrupted her thoughts. Sakura rounded on the person who had the audacity to handle her in such a way, Zabuza. He stood before her in a relaxed stance, but Sakura could tell that he was very much alert. Another moment of staring, and the man sighed exasperatedly.

"Just come at me already."

Sakura blinked owlishly. Come at him? He wants me to attack him? "A- all right." She stuttered. Hesitating for a moment, she stood there before charging at Zabuza with great speed. She extended a fist to punch his stomach, but he had seen the move coming. What he didn't see was Sakura's other fist coming towards his face with alarming speed. Not having enough time to block. Zabuza side-stepped her blow.

The momentum from Sakura's attack caused her to stumble forward. She saved herself by pushing off of the ground with her palms. She easily flipped through the air and landed, slightly winded. Without her usual chakra coursing through her pathways, Sakura's stamina was not what it used to be.

She got back into a loose battle stance, ready to continue their... Uhh- spar? Before she knew it, Zabuza was weaving hand-signs.

"Suiton: Suidan no Jutsu."

Sakura could feel the chakra building up in his stomach. Wait, I'm not that skilled at sensing! How did I-

She leapt out of the way before a large, highly pressurized stream of water could hit her. "How do you even have enough chakra for that, you monster?" Sakura shouted, her eyebrow twitching. Her words did nothing to Zabuza. In fact, it seemed to spur him on even more. He quickly ran towards her and engaged Sakura in an elaborate taijutsu battle.

Duck. Dodge. Hit. Jump.
Repeat.

After a single, heated minute, Zabuza jumped back, swiftly ending all chances of hitting him using taijustu. "You scared?" Sakura taunted. "Finally realized I'm better than you at something?" In her head, Sakura could hear a voice telling her that trash-talking her captor wasn't a very good idea. She ignored the voice. "Come on, coward!" She crowed. "Show me what you've got."

Zabuza gave her a smirk; Sakura's short time with Kakashi gave her the skills to understand what expressions the man was making, even when his face was covered. "Are you sure you're ready for that, girl?"

Sakura wanted to shout, 'No, not really.' but what came out was:

"Bring it on."

Zabuza laughed then, a deep, gravelly, kind of laugh, and reached for the sword on his back.

I'm going to die today, in this very spot.

Sakura's thoughts must have showed in her facial expressions, for her opponent was laughing harder. It was humorless, and it sent shivers down her spine.

And then he was moving. If Sakura thought Zabuza was fast before, he was now on a whole new level with his sword. And she had to be extra careful. Without any chakra or weapons, Sakura couldn't block. It was dodging and weaving from now on.

The fight is like a dance to Sakura and she know the routine by heart. Her and Zabuza dodge and hit, duck and slice, all in perfect sync. But dances always come to an end. Sakura soon found herself wearing down. Her movements became more sluggish and her reflexes were much slower.

I need to do something. Sakura thought as she arched her back underneath a swing of Zabuza's sword. If she had been in this situation at any other time, she would've loaded her fist with pure power and punched the earth into pieces But she couldn't do that. Sakura thought back to her observation on their way to the field she was currently fighting in. Maybe I can...

In a split-second decision, Sakura brought all the chakra she could into her right hand. The pain was intense as Zabuza's sharp chakra came up once again. But this time she knew it was coming, and she embraced the pain as she stood up straight once again and pushed herself to keep moving. To finish what she had started.

Looking up and focusing her eyes, Sakura fixed them on her target. Only, Zabuza was on his knees, sword forgotten, shaking in pain. Sakura almost released the chakra in her hand, her shock was so great. She slowly approached the swordsman, every step measured, even though the pain threatened to cripple her. She stood over his body, and Zabuza looked up, directly into her face.

No words were needed in the moment. Anyone from the outside would have seen a confident, strong and brave girl, finally able to defeat the stubborn monster of a man. They wouldn't see the terrified, crumbling, oh-so-tired stare she gave the crippled, hurting man who gazed up at her with shame and useless defiance. He couldn't do anything anyways. Crouching down in front of his body, Sakura lowered her hand and gently laid it above his heart. She couldn't bear the thought of his last feeling being pain. With one last determined look, she released the raw power from her hand. One pulse, and it was over.

Thump.
Thump.

Stop
~

Thump.
Thump.

Sakura stumbled back and landed on her rear, propped up on her elbows. Zabuza's still-open eyes flickered to hers. The shock was apparent on his covered face. "W- why didn't it work?" Sakura stuttered, her eyes wide. "Your heart should have stopped, and then you would've been dead in ten seconds, and then I would be free and I could go home, but you're still here and all my strength is gone so I am defenseless again and Tsunade-shishō would be so disappointed in me because I couldn't kill you-"

"Girl," Zabuza gasped. "Shut up." Sakura looked up into his eyes, not fully comprehending what he had said. Her breathing quickened and she began to hyperventilate. Zabuza couldn't do anything about it; his body was practically paralyzed.

And then the after-shocks hit. Sakura cried out and Zabuza grit his teeth as an excruciating pain crawled up their chakra pathways. "W- why is this h-happening?" Sakura wheezed. Zabuza couldn't even grunt in reply. The pain rose to a crescendo and he cried out, his voice raw. Sakura's cries grew louder.

And then it was over. The pain subsided and their pathways were left raw and throbbing. Sakura started to lose her balance, her body was too exhausted to keep itself up. Shoot. was her last coherent thought before she passed out and fell forward onto a very disgruntled and still-paralyzed Zabuza.

So he laid there, in the middle of a secluded field near Ōbokeyōkai, with an unconscious girl laying on his chest. Haku wasn't near to help him in his situation, the young boy was headed to their next destination. The one time I let him go, and I need him. Zabuza thought, morosely. With a long, drawn-out sigh, he waited for what seemed like hours to gain mobility again.

It actually did take hours. It was afternoon when Zabuza was able to stand up with Sakura thrown over his shoulder. He casually walked (more like limped) through the town back to the hotel. He laid Sakura on the bed gently, not that he would ever admit that he was able to do anything gently, and slowly packed the hotel room up. When he finished, he turned back to the coral-haired girl resting on one of the beds.

Zabuza groaned out loud when he realized that he would have to be the one to carry her until she wakes up. Sighing in resolution, he opened a storing scroll and stored Kubikiribocho inside. He then went to try and rouse the girl. No luck. Carefully picking her up, Zabuza placed Sakura on his back, mimicking how Haku had carried her. Not a single sound came from Sakura, indicating that the girl was still knocked out cold.

The swordsman took a deep breath before leaving through the window, headed towards his safety.

{O}

{O}

Word count: 1,182

I know, I know, okay? This is a short chapter, and it took forever. And I really wish I had a good reason for delaying this, but I don't.

Also, IMPORTANT!
I will not be posting as often (and it already takes me forever...), for I do not have as much computer access as I used to. Honestly, I might be required to delete my account... I won't go into details, but I am really sorry. I wish I had the time and privilege of writing and posting more often, but it looks like that won't be happening any time soon...

I will continue writing, but my posting will be super spontaneous. And that sucks for both of us. Thank you for reading my latest chapter, and I hope you enjoyed it. Feel free to tell me what you didn't or did like about it!

~Rus