What Lies Ahead
A/N: Hello. I'm in such a mood to write that I am typing out this chapter mere minutes after uploading the first chapter. I guess it's better to write down what it's my brain while it's fresh. Anyways, please enjoy.
Rating: I should've said this in chapter one, but eh, considering nothing explicit happened. However, this story will contain adult content, such as gore and violence, language, sexual situations, and depictions of mental illness. Please do not read if you are not 18+, although I know my warning means nothing to those who don't care. As always, take care of yourselves.
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, or any characters associated with Naruto. All rights belong to Masashi Kishimoto, blah, blah, blah.
Chapter Two
She felt them arrive in Konoha as soon as they approached the gates. She recognized all chakra signatures individually, of course, but the feeling of Sasuke's always had the hairs on the back of her neck standing up, along with a chill rolling its way down her vertebra.
She lifted her head from the crook of Tsunade's neck, wiping her eyes. Her cheeks were tearstained, but her eyes grew hard once more.
"Have you seen my father?" Sakura's voice broke the silence. Honey colored eyes met dull green ones, and Tsunade gave a soft shake of her head.
No.
Sakura let out a shaky breath, half in relief, half in fear of her father's whereabouts.
"Thank you for taking care of her, Tsunade-sama." Her eyes flickered towards her mother. She swallowed hard, and willed away her tears before standing.
"I must look for my father. There are also people that need our help…" Her voice cracked slightly, and she willed herself to get angry rather than sad.
Sad would accomplish nothing, but she could work with angry.
Tsunade cleared her throat, "Sakura, are you sure-"
"Please, don't." Sakura cut her off, her voice soft.
"Am I okay? Of course I'm not! But I'll be damned if other people die when I have the ability to prevent such casualties. I wish for others to not feel as I do in this very moment." She straightened, hands by her side with her head held high, before bowing at the waist to Tsunade.
"Please Hokage-sama, do not waste the time that we should be using to rebuild our home and help our people on asking if I am alright. Let me begin making rounds and searching for my father, please!"
Tsunade's eyes widened slightly at the determination and honor displayed by her disciple. Her lips slipped into a small smile before her face returned to its slightly distressed state.
"Very well then." Came her soft reply.
Sakura bowed her head.
Sakura turned to her mother once more and approached her cot. She grasped her hands gently before laying a soft kiss on her forehead. Her lips lingered for a second before she stood straight again, gently releasing her hands.
"I love you, Mama." She whispered.
She turned on her heel and exited the tent to begin making rounds.
Tsunade let out a sad sigh, her eyes falling to the body of her apprentices mother.
So much death.
Tsunade lowered her head and allowed a couple of tears to slip down her cheeks. She mourned for the loss of her people.
As Sakura left the tent, the sounds of the fallen world filled her senses. The smell of blood amplified once again, but a new noise begin to fill her senses, slowly building. The sound of grief.
Voices screamed the names of their loved ones, either looking for them, or having found them in a terrifying state.
As soldiers from the front lines returned home, the noises of chaos and loss grew.
Sakura felt dazed by the state of the world around her. She acted mechanically, stopping by the wounded to heal them as effectively as possible.
As she stood taking in the damage around her, her eyes scanned the rubble around her for pink hair.
Nobody to her knowledge knew where her father was.
She wanted to find him.
But, what if she didn't?
A deep feeling of anguish erupted in her core, tears pricking her eyes again.
Is this real?
This has to be a sick nightmare… right?
She felt her world spin, frozen in time. Her hands slid up her jaw and over her ears, fingertips digging into her dirty and dull pink locks.
She clenched her eyes shut, willing herself to stabilize her mind.
Images of her mother floated into her mind. Her shisou's honey-colored eyes filled with sorrow followed. Naruto's gentle smile as she healed his stump, where his arm was once attached.
Sasuke's Mangekyō Sharingan spinning wildly, his Rinnegan flashing angrily.
"I'm sorry… for everything…"
The feeling of a rough hand tightly grasping her elbow ripped her out of her dizzied state. Her body flinched as her eyes shot open. She saw his lips moving before she heard the words.
"-lease! … please save her! I LOVE HER!" The man motioned to a woman about fifteen feet to her left. Her eyes raked over the carnage, the woman's legs and pelvis completely crushed under rubble.
Her body was being shoved towards the dying, if not already dead, woman. His screaming never stopped.
"PLEASE! I'M BEGGING YOU! DO SOMETHING! NOW!" His voice bellowed in her ears.
Her senses felt overwhelmed, her breath catching in her throat.
She was on her knees, her shaky hands extending over the woman that she knew was going to die. A soft green flicker came to life and enveloped her hands.
She sat there for what seemed like an eternity, pumping chakra into the woman as she slipped further and further away from life.
She turned her eyes towards the woman's companion, and cleared her throat.
"There's nothing I can do, her injuries are too extensive." Her chakra retracted from her hands. They were still shaking.
"NO! YOU HAVE TO DO SOMETHING, DAMNIT!" His hands grabbed the collar of her shirt and pulled her forward, his breath hot and angry on her face.
The man let out a sob, "Please, you have to do something! Anything! I love HER! Don't you understand? HAVEN'T YOU EVER LOVED SOMEONE BEFORE!?" He shook her with each word.
Her eyes were wide, her breath shallow.
This is what I wanted to avoid.
She felt guilty for this mans suffering.
"I-" Her voice was dry, but she continued.
"I'm sorry…" She gave a thick swallow.
"I'm sorry… for everything…"
Her mind continued to taunt her.
When the mans grip on her tightened, she gave a harsh push against him before standing to leave.
"P-p-please…anything! I-I'll do anything a-at all!" His voice cracked, his sorrow sending a rush a guilt through Sakura's heart.
"I can't. I'm sorry." She turned on her heel and continued down the path she was on, doing her best to block out his screams.
Naruto and Sasuke, having split off from the rest of the group rounded the corner at the Konoha hospital, heading towards the tent they sensed Tsunade in. They walked in silence, a grim expression on Naruto's face. Although Sasuke's face appeared uninterested and flat, he wasn't unaffected.
Tsunade exited a tent as they rounded a corner, eyes immediately clinging to the pair.
She stood waiting for them to approach her.
Her eyes raked over the form of the duo, cringing as she saw the damage done to their arms.
"If it isn't you two. Always leaving Sakura behind to go off and do your own dumb shit!" She raised a fist, face angry.
Her eyes flickered to Naruto, an expression of disappointment clear as day on her face. Her eyes settled on the Uchiha.
"You, Uchiha, have some nerve even showing your face after what you did to my student." She seethed. Her eyes glanced down at his arm once more.
"If you're here to ask if I'll heal your arm, Uchiha, then you better think twice." His eyes slightly narrowed at the hostility in her voice.
"I have caused many people pain, and done unthinkable, unforgivable things…" His voice trailed off as his jaw clenched.
Words were never easy for him.
"But…I no longer wish to follow the path of hatred. I don't deserve forgiveness on any level, and your feelings towards me are undeniably valid… but, if you'll have me… I wish to offer my services as a shinobi of the leaf, once more…" He raised his chin slightly, eyes meeting the Hokage's.
Tsunade stared him down with intensity, not a flicker of emotion visible on her face, or within her eyes.
"Uchiha. Although you are unable to be reinstated as a shinobi of the leaf at this moment, your efforts in the war have help bring us the gift of peace, however momentary it may be. For that reason, I will see what I can do about your sentence. I'm sure you're aware that you will be tried for your acts of treason and abandonment against Konoha, as well as other crimes you've committed among the hidden villages. With that being said, you are already on contact Anbu watch, even as we speak. You are not permitted to leave the leaf village without specific approval from myself, the Hokage of the Hidden Leaf Village. Understood?"
Tsunade raised an eyebrow, eyes still set in a fiery glare.
"Understood." His voice was smooth and low.
Tsunade gave a nod before turning to Naruto.
"If I were you I'd find Sakura and make sure that girl hasn't worked herself into a grave…" Her eyes filled with sadness for a second before hardening again.
"Don't Uchiha out of your sight, either."
With one last glance at the pair, Tsunade turned on her heel and walked into a different tent.
Naruto let out a sigh, his usually bubbly personality as boring as Sai's currently.
"Let's go find Sakura-chan, Sasuke." He grumbled.
"Hn."
Sasuke wouldn't admit it out loud, but he dreaded facing Sakura after what he did to her.
As you should.
A voice echoed in his head.
Her breath was labored, her limbs shakier then before. She drew in a shaky breath, her lungs screaming at her in exhaustion. She focused on mending the broken body beneath her, pulled from underneath rubble.
She still hadn't found her father.
Instead, she found many injured citizens. Some dead, some barely clinging to life. She let out another shaky breath as she pumped chakra into the little boy's chest, who lay beneath her with a serious chest wound.
Her chakra weaved throughout his skin, closing up the wound and fixing internal damage along the way. Sweat fell profusely from her brow. Her chakra was dangerously low already, but she couldn't stop.
I won't stop.
She pulled away after a few more minutes of work, satisfied with her work. She smiled at the young boy's mother, who was thanking her through broken sobs. She laid a hand on the woman's shoulder and offered an empty smile.
When she stood, the first sign that exhaustion was setting in was the sway in her balance. Her breath became shortened again, her skin pale.
A soft hand on her back steadied her, and Hinata's face came into view.
"Sakura-san! Are you alright? Your chakra…" The Hyuuga's eyes were full of worry, and Sakura let herself absorb the calm that Hinata brought alongside her.
"Can you do me… a favor? Please." Sakura placed her hand on the bicep of the arm touching her back, and gave a little squeeze.
"My father is missing…I…I haven't been able to find him and there are so many people to help…" She felt tears threaten to fall again.
"If it's not too much trouble…Hinata…"
Hinata pulled Sakura into a small embrace before pulling back, her hands on her shoulders.
"Of course Sakura-san. I'll search the area for him and report back to you soon." She gave a small smile before disappearing.
Sakura's thoughts floated to Naruto.
You're lucky to have a girl like Hinata loving you, idiot.
Sakura took a couple of deep breaths before moving onto the next victim she saw.
As she knelt down to check his vitals, an explosion from behind knocked her forward, debris raining upon her and everything around her.
Screams ensued and her ears rung almost painfully. She would surely go deaf sooner than later.
When the debris settled and nothing but an ashy film remained around her, she lifted her head, green eyes rapidly scanning for the source of the chaos. The screams were coming from all directions, the noise suffocating.
Her eyes narrowed when they picked up on a flicker of movement, her body going still.
An iron fist came flying out of the dusty air in front of her, connecting with the side of her face sending her flying into a building, her body creating a crater on impact.
She let out of a low moan, spitting blood from her mouth.
She didn't see at all, the entire world a blur. She let out a cough, more blood spewing onto the ground before her Byakugō no In released.
She looked up with fuzzy vision just in time to lean to the right, her attacker's iron fist smashing the concrete wall the rest of the way. She propelled off the ground into the air and landed a way's away, creating distance.
Her attacker wasted no time once again, charging at her. He was irregularly large, with iron fists and a human body. His eyes were brown and lifeless as they watched her from beneath his long curly brown hair.
He should wash that greasy mop of his.
She felt a strong current of wind as he swung at her. She slid beneath his punch and rebounded, fist charged and engulfed in green, she swung.
"CHAAAA!"
She felt her fist make contact before her eyes widened.
What?
She gasped as the man's abdomen engulfed her hand, turning to sludge around her wrist.
He twisted her arm, cleanly breaking her wrist where it was embedded in his abdomen before releasing it. She let out a small scream of pain, her chakra immediately mending the broken bone.
Her breath left her lungs with a wheeze as his fist made contact with her diaphragm. She flew backwards once more, crushing through a building and landing in a body-sized crater in a second one.
This time, she did not attempt to get up right away. She wheezed as her seal allowed her to heal her internal damage, starting by reconstructing her lungs and ribs.
She let out a small whine as her entire body was engulfed in pain. Her green eyes slowly began to focus as she turned her head to the side, desperate to breathe.
She glanced around at her surrounding. Her body was badly beaten, blood caked to her hair and clothing. Her eyes travelled amongst the rubble around her and she felt her heart stop as she choked on a gasp.
She let out a cough, sticky blood dripping onto her hand. Her heart pounded so harshly in her chest it hurt.
She took a shallow breath before letting out a shrill scream.
Then another.
And another.
She heard the heavy footsteps of her attacker approaching through her screams, but she couldn't move.
Couldn't breathe.
Couldn't feel.
Everything was numb, numb, numb.
She heard her attacker raise his fist or some form of weapon towards her.
She waited for it to silence her screams, but she never stopped.
The sound of metal hitting steel and the color purple took over her senses.
Her screams ceased, her mouth ajar, tears freely falling.
She was surrounded by Sasuke's Susanoo, as she had been during the war.
The Uchiwa fan staring back at her confirmed her thoughts.
"I'm sorry… for everything…"
She clenched her eyes closed as it became quiet due to the enemy being neutralized, before swallowing loudly.
She opened her eyes again, releasing more tears as she shakily took a breath. He was looking at her now. A soft expression on his face, one that said, you're okay now.
He didn't say anything, and she didn't expect him to.
Her eyes went wide again when another wave of agony washed over her, and she let out another sob. Her eyes drifted to the head of her father lifelessly staring back at her a mere twenty feet away.
Her sobs turned to choked gasps before she screamed once again.
She screamed and screamed and screamed, until her throat was raw.
When her anger wilted into despair once more, she felt a pair of arms slowly turning her in the opposite direction of where her father's head lay.
She felt Sasuke flinch before deciding to carefully pull her into a loose embrace. Her small hands fisted his cloak tightly, and she cried into his chest until she passed out.
A/N: OKAY. That's all of chapter two. I hope it was enjoyable, even though it was angsty. Anyways, until next time.
- fishily