DISCLAIMER: I do NOT own anything regarding the Naruto or Naruto Shippuden series with the sole exception of my own characters and their story-lines or their involvement within the story. Everything else belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.
-Of Sound Ninja, Vows, and Sakura-
Sakura looks over to Amaya, finding the brunette fast asleep, her posture now at ease as she took deep even breaths. Reaching out, she placed a hand under the cloth on the Minamoto's forehead to check her temperature.
'Must've broke...' Sakura thought with a sigh of relief, removing the damp fabric to hang it with the others to dry. 'If she had gotten sick, I don't know what I'd do...' She added, thinking back to an hour or so previously when the brunette showed signs of a light fever due to blood loss.
Looking back down to Sasuke, she watched as he whimpered in his sleep. The tremors racking his body made it clear that his own fever was still going strong. Sakura sighs worriedly and reaches up to take down another cloth. Taking out a flask of water, she pours it onto the fabric and ringed it out before folding it neatly, placing it on the Uchiha's forehead.
...
Hours pass, and the pinkette slowly began to nod off. Realizing what she was doing, her green eyes snapped open and she shook her head in hopes of waking herself up. 'I can't fall asleep!' She thought to herself, looking around at her unconscious teammates. 'I have to protect these two... And Amaya needs to gather her strength! That shoulder wound looked pretty deep... No doubt it'll hinder her Taijutsu...'
Looking back down at her hands resting on her lap, Sakura's eyes began to droop once more. Only this time she wasn't able to stop the welcoming embrace of sleep as it took over.
Sakura snapped awake with a gasp. She sat up quickly and looked around the clearing frantically for any signs of danger, when she saw none, she sighed in relief and turned back to the three behind her. 'It was just a dream...' She thought to herself before looking back out to the clearing. 'I can't believe it's daytime already...'
"Saa~... So, you're finally awake, ne?" Amaya asked, inevitably startling the pinkette, making her head snap in the brunette's direction.
"Amaya! You're finally awake!" Sakura exclaimed, turning her body to completely face the Minamoto. "Are you okay? How's your shoulder? And how long have you been awake?"
Amaya's eyes widened slightly at the onslaught of questions. Waving her hands in a placating motion, she let out a sigh. "Mah, mah, calm down. I'm alright, though I feel disgusting and my shoulder hurts like hell..." She replied, looking over to peer out of the roots to see sunlight breaking through the leaves above. "And I guess I woke up an hour ago, maybe two?"
The conversation was quickly cut short as a nearby bush began to rustle. Amaya tensed and pulled out a kunai.
Sakura followed suit and slowly began to turn, her hands trembling as they clenched around their own weapon.
Suddenly, a squirrel breaks through the underbrush. It stops and looks at the two females before chewing on a nut it carried in its cheeks.
"A squirrel?" Sakura asked, glancing over to Amaya who was deadpanning. Looking back, both watched as the little critter began to move closer. "Oh man, don't surprise us like that little guy..." She muttered before gasping in realization. The pinkette then threw her kunai at the squirrel, sending it running back in the direction it came. 'That was close...' She thought, glancing back over to Amaya who sent her a knowing look.
...
A few minutes later, Sakura looked over and watched as Amaya gently massaged her fingers with her eyes closed. "What are you doing?" She asked, making the brunette snap to attention and look at her with lidded eyes.
"Getting ready..." Amaya answers cryptically.
Sakura sent the brunette a confused look. "Getting ready for what?" She asked, watching as the Minamoto began stretching her limbs.
"I don't know exactly, but I've got a bad feeling." Amaya replied, going back to massaging her hands.
Sakura watched on, the meticulous and redundant movements making her sleepier. Eventually, she nodded off once more.
Amaya looked back up at the pinkette to say more but stopped herself as she noticed Sakura's sleeping figure. Letting out a sigh, she closed her eyes and leaned her head back against a root, listening for any strange noises.
...
Amaya's eyes snapped open as the sound of rustling leaves. Looking out from the roots and across the clearing, she watched the three Sound ninjas carefully as she pulled out a kunai silently.
"Some lookouts. You're half asleep. At least you don't have to keep watch anymore..." The Sound nin, who attacked Kabuto during the first exam, drawled. His voice snapping Sakura awake, prompting her to look at him as he continued. "What's the point after we've already found you? Now, wake Sasuke up. We want to fight him."
Amaya scoffed lightly and moved to the opening of their little hideaway, making eye contact with Sakura as she passed, the pinkette following suit as she slowly reached for her own kunai before standing.
Sakura sent the three a scowl. "What do you want here? I mean, what do you really want? We know Orochimaru is calling the shots from the shadows." She informs, making the trio's eyes widen as she continued. "What's that strange bruise on the back of Sasuke's neck? You're behind this, too, aren't you? And now you want to fight him when he can't defend himself?"
"Sakura." Amaya calls, making the pinkette look at her. "Don't say anymore. We can't give them too much information." She advises, earning a hasty nod in return.
The Sound nin from before sent a look to his compatriots. "What in the world could he be thinking?!" He muttered, completely baffled.
"Oi!" Amaya calls out a second time, gaining the trios attention. "We don't want any trouble, so I suggest you move on to somewhere else. We don't have a scroll, if that's what you're looking for, so beat it."
The second male of the trio sneered. "I can't stand quiet after hearing you talk to us like that! First, I'm gonna kill this girl, and then I'm gonna kill Sasuke." He said threateningly, standing up on the boulder he was previously sitting on.
Amaya narrowed her eyes and steps in front of Sakura slightly. To the trio, her posture was relaxed and non-threatening, though the sharp kunai in her hand said otherwise.
"Wait, Zaku." The other male replied, locking his one visible eye on Amaya.
The newly dubbed Zaku, stopped and sent the apparent leader a confused look. "Wait? Why?"
The former walked forward and kneeled down. "It's so obvious. This is the color of dirt that's recently been dug up. And this kind of grass doesn't grow in a place like this... You know, if you're going to lay a trap, there's no point unless it's actually hidden."
Sakura's eyes widened while Amaya's narrowed. 'Damn it!'
Zaku smirked. "Hah! You're just a joke! You threw that kunai knife so that squirrel wouldn't spring the trap you set, huh?"
The Sound nin from before titled his head, his eye wide with bloodlust. "Now, we kill them." He said, prompting the other two to follow his lead as they all jump into the air.
Sakura sent the trio a smirk as she cut a wire next to her, releasing a log from above. "A log!" Zaku yelled as he and the others looked up surprised.
"They also set a trap above?! Watch out!" The "leader" yelled, holding out a hand to place it on the falling log. Preforming a hand sign, the log broke into pieces. "Nice try, little girl. Clearly you have no talent as a ninja. Someone like you needs to make a little more effort, don't you think?" He asked, leering down at Sakura, whosever eyes filled up with tears.
Suddenly, Lee appears in a flourish. "Leaf Hurricane!" He yelled out, kicking the three away in a flurry of moves. He then lands in front of Amaya, his hands brought into a fighting pose.
"Wha-what's he doing?" Sakura stammered as Amaya deadpanned at the squirrel on the green clad males' shoulder.
"Looks like you also need to make more of an effort." Lee said confidently.
"Who are you?" The leader asked, staring at Lee slightly surprised.
Lee smirked. "I am the handsome devil of the leaf village! And my name is Rock Lee!"
"Wh-what are you doing here, Lee?" Sakura asked, staring at the male shocked.
Lee glances the two females and sends them a smile. "I will always appear anytime that you are in trouble, Sakura!" He answers before reaching up to the squirrel on his shoulder. "This was really all thanks to you, little one. But now it's time for you to run along." He added, releasing the squirrel, allowing it to run off.
"But right now, in this test... We're your enemy!" Sakura said.
"Sakura, I already told you... I will protect you until the day I die!" Lee replied, reminding the two of the vow he made before the exam even started.
Sakura smiled softly at the male. "Yes... thank you, Rock Lee."
Her acceptance makes large tears stream down his face. 'Yes! She said yes, Gai-sensei! She said yes!' He mentally cheered, and Amaya would've laughed at his expression if the situation were different.
The Sound nin from before stared at the three for a moment before pulling out an earth scroll. "It looks like I have no choice. Zaku... I'll let you have Sasuke. I'll take care of these three." He informs tossing the scroll over his shoulder to the aforementioned.
Lee's brows furrowed as he looked from the two beside him to the Sound nin. 'It does not look like Sakura is in any condition to fight. And the way Amaya holds herself, suggests an injury of sort.'
"The guy with the bushy eyebrows is pretty good at Taijutsu. Looks like I get to have some fun." The nin murmurs before running forward.
As he neared, Sakura threw her kunai, prompting him to jump.
Seeing this chance, Lee slams his hands into the ground, and not long after a large root breaks through the soil, taking the hit. "I am positive there is some kind of trick to your attack! Therefore, I will not waste my time trying to dodge it. After all, I have seen your jutsu before." Lee informs as the nin jumped back. 'Of course, having said that, my odds still aren't good seeing as it's three against one, two if Amaya helps. But I have to take a chance.' He thought to himself, making eye contact with Amaya for a brief moment. 'One at a time, I will attack each of them with all my might!'
Silence blanketed over the clearing as Lee, although keeping his eyes locked on the enemy, began to unwrap the bandages around his arms. 'Gai-sensei, I have to use the lotus now. The condition has been met! I must use the jutsu!' He thought, preparing himself as the nin runs forward once more. "To protect the love of someone precious!" He yelled before disappearing from sight.
"Did he disappear?!" The nin asked himself aloud.
Amaya's eyes widened slightly in realization as Lee appeared once more, landing a kick to the nins chin, sending him into the air. "Not yet!" Lee yelled, jumping into the air himself.
'This jutsu!' Amaya thought to herself, her mind flashing back to Lee's fight with Sasuke. 'We never got it see it in action since Gai-sensei stopped him...'
They all watched as Lee's bandages began to wrap around the nins body, pinning his arms to his side and constricting all of his movement. Lee wraps his arms around the nins immobile body and begins to bring him to the ground.
Zaku's eyes widen. "Oh no, Dosu! There's no way he can break his fall!" He yelled, preforming hand signs.
"Take this!" Lee yelled as he begun to spin himself and the nin around in midair, forming a whirlwind as they neared the ground.
Zaku finishes his hand signs and slams his hands onto the ground as the two made contact.
'Argh! What is this feeling?!' Lee thought to himself as he jumped away, retuning to his spot next to Amaya and Sakura.
Zaku smirked as he stared at his teammates legs as they stuck out of the pushed-up ground. "Hah, got you just in time. That impact could've been much worse for you." He said as the newly dubbed Dosu crawls out of the hole and shakes his head.
Lee's eyes widened. "What?! This cannot be!"
After he regains his bearings, Dosu turns to look at the three. "That is a frightening jutsu. You nearly took me out even though I landed on this soft dirt." He informs before he pulled up his sleeve, revealing a large amplifier-like object attached to his arm. "Now it's my turn."
Lee's body tenses slightly. 'Oh no! My body still hasn't recovered from that jutsu!' He thought, dodging out of the way of Dosu's attack, though he was still affected as his vision wavers, making him dizzy enough to fall to his knees.
"Lee, no!" Sakura yelled worriedly.
Amaya watched the boy sway to and fro, her eyes narrowing. 'It's almost the same as what happened to Kabuto... he's disoriented.' She thought, her eyes locking on Dosu's amplifier. 'It's something to do with that! I just know it!' She added, glaring at the nin with slitted eyes. "What did you do?!"
Dosu laughed. "Your jutsu is indeed fast. But ours is even faster because it travels at the speed of sound." He said before turning to Lee. "Effort alone does nothing. Now watch, we're going to show you something called the wall." He adds, making the two behind him smirk.
However, before anything else could be done, Lee lurches forward and empties his stomach. "Lee, what's wrong?!" Sakura asks worriedly, her and Amaya's own stomachs churning at the sight of blood streaming from his ear.
"M-my...my ear..." Lee murmured weakly, holding the side of his head with gritted teeth.
Dosu took a slight step back, feigning innocence. "Oh, I forgot to mention this little gadget I wear. You might be able to doge my blows, but you can't get away from it." He informs before laughing. "I don't need to strike you with my fists. I can hit you with the power of sound!"
Lee glances up with pained eyes. "Sound?"
Dosu shrugs. "What makes it possible for your ear to hear things? What is sound, really?"
A look of realization crosses Sakura's face. "Vibrations..."
Dosu chuckles before elaborating further. "Give the little lady a prize! Yes, the vibration of molecules in the air creates a sound wave. These vibrations are collected by the ear and then directed to your eardrum, the tympanic membrane ruptures when exposed to sound levels in excess of 150 decibels. Moreover, if the sound is powerful enough to upset the fluid within the deepest inner ear canals, it becomes impossible for you to maintain your balance. Feeling a little dizzy? Nauseous? That's right, best if you don't even try to stand up for a while."
"You see, buddy, that old fashioned Taijutsu stuff won't work against us! Not that you're not pretty good at it, it's just.. what's the point? Compared to our jutsu, that stuffs totally yesterday's news." Zaku spoke up, pulling his hands free from the ground before crossing his wrists in an x as he continued. "See, I can manipulate ultrasonic waves and air pressure. I can do things you've never even dreamed of. I can obliterate boulders or make the ground as soft as a feather cushion. Face it little man, you're up against the jutsu of the future." He finished, turning his hands around to reveal two quarter sized holes, one in each palm which blowed out a gust of air for emphasis.
Dosu looks away from Lee and towards Sakura and Amaya. "Now then. It's your turn!" He exclaims as he begins to run forward.
"NO!" Lee yells, turning his head, still disoriented.
Amaya drops into a fighting stance and Sakura pulls out a kunai. However, before the two could clash with the sound user, Lee runs forward and intercepts Dosu.
"WHAT?!" The nin yelled surprised.
Lee dropped onto his hand, spinning his leg around. "LEAF HURRICANE!" He yelled, however his kick didn't hit its mark as Dosu pushed down on his leg and sent out another wave of sound.
"Hm, not as effective as it was before, is it?" The nin asked, moving back quickly before charging forward again. "Still, its impressive that you can still move at all!... We'll have to do something about that!" He exclaims, aiming a hit at Lee, which he blocked by bringing up his arm. Suddenly a high-pitched sound emits from Dosu's amplifier. "You hear that? This device amplifies the vibrations of the impact. It's forming them into a wave of sound."
"Lee, no!"/"LEE!" Sakura and Amaya cried out as they watched the boy flinch from the sound.
Dosu grinned behind his bandages as he continued to speak. "A sound wave I can channel with my chakra! Focusing all of its energy on the target I desire!" He exclaims, his chakra manipulating the sound towards Lee's ears.
"STOP IT!" Sakura yells out as Lee drops to the ground unconscious.
Dosu stares down at the fallen ninja for a moment. "Alright, little man. Time to end it."
"That's what you think!" Sakura exclaims, throwing multiple kunai the nins way.
Dosu looks up and lifts his arm in front of his face, the kunai ricocheting off into different directions. "Ah.. I almost forgotten about you." He murmurs.
Unperturbed, Sakura throws shuriken next. "Take this!"
Suddenly, Zaku jumps in front of Dosu and sends a burst of wind and the shuriken towards Sakura, who brings her hands up to block her face.
Amaya steps in front of the pinkette and uses her kunai to block the oncoming assault, her eyes watering from the wind hitting her eyes. "That's enough." She said staring the two down.
"Oh, it's your turn, is it?... Well...? Come on then." Zaku replied confidently, readying his jutsu.
Amaya stared the two down for a moment as she assessed her options. 'Like Lee, my Taijutsu won't work well against them... And if he's a wind style user, it'll be hard to get by with any of my jutsu.' She thought before letting out a sigh. "Saa~ You guys really are troublesome." She said aloud before clapping her hands together. "Fūton: Reppūshō!" She exclaimed, feeling the air around her compress before forming into a powerful gale of wind.
Dosu brought up his arms to cover his eyes from the wind as Zaku readied himself to return the favor. He brought his hands up, prompting Amaya to move instinctively.
She ran forward, and once she reached the nin, she dropped to the ground and slid closer, using her leg in hopes of swiping his out from under him. Zaku jumped away from the attack but wasn't ready for the harsh kick to his chest that followed after, sending him backwards.
Dosu's eyes gleamed as Amaya came for him next. "Another Taijutsu user, I presume? I'll admit, you've got guts for wanting to fight me after what I did to your friend over there." He said, almost tauntingly, as the brunette aimed a few kicks and punches, which he was barely able to dodge.
Seeing that she was getting nowhere, Amaya switched over to weapons. Pulling out a kunai, she twirled the weapon between her fingers quickly before charging forward.
...
Sakura watched with bated breath as the brunette made multiple swipes with her kunai, all of which were either blocked or quickly parried by Dosu. 'She's going to open her wound again...' She thought worriedly, noticing the girls gritted teeth.
Suddenly, Dosu let out a mixed cry of both pain and outrage, making everyone's eyes widen at the sound. Amaya had finally landed a blow and used it as an advantage to stab her kunai into one of the holes in his amplifier.
Amaya then went to move back but Dosu was faster. He charged froward and gripped onto her left arm, unknowingly agitating the injury she received hours prior. The Minamoto let out a cry of pain, causing a dark look to fill the nins eye as he flipped her over onto her back. "Oh no, looks like someone's hurt..." He murmurs, his voice dripping with fake concern as he looked up to his compatriots, who smirked in return. Looking back down, he took a step forward and placed his foot on Amaya left shoulder, pressing down with all of his might. "Maybe you should get that looked at." He advises with a dark chuckle.
Amaya's eyes went wide as her face turned a sickly color. White spots clouded her vision and she thrashed violently under the nins foot, making him press down harder with the click of his tongue. Amaya's mouth opened though no sound would come out as searing pain flooded her system.
"Now, now. Moving around will only make it worse." He patronizes with a dark chuckle.
Sakura moves to help but is stopped as the only female of the group approached from behind, grabbing a fistful of her hair. The nin then pulled her down roughly by the pink tresses, earning a grunt of pain from in return.
"Don't touch her!" Amaya spat, finally finding her voice as she began struggling even more.
The nin shot her a smirk and turned back to Sakura. "My, my, what soft and shiny hair. But you know what? If you spent a little less time shampooing and a little more time practicing your jutsu, you might not be in this fix...!" She criticizes, pulling Sakura's hair harder with each word she spoke. She then looked up to Zaku with a vicious look. "Hey, Zaku! I know what would be fun! Let's make miss beauty queen watch while you finish off that Sasuke guy!"
Zaku grinned devilishly. "Why not? Sounds like fun to me." He replies as he began to walk forward.
Sakura tried to move towards the two unconscious boys but was pulled back by her hair. "Don't even!" The female nin snaps, sneering down at her.
Amaya gripped and dug her nails into Dosu's ankle as a menacing growl tore from her throat. "LET HER GO! I swear, if you touch any of them, I'll tear you to pieces!"
Dosu pressed his heel deeper into her shoulder, chuckling as she let out a pained cry. "I don't think you're in any position to be making threats."
At the sound, Lee slowly came to and opened his eyes. 'Amaya!' He thought to himself weakly, his eyes widening at the sight of the Minamoto. Still unable to move his body, Lee, with difficulty, turned his head in Sakura's direction, watching as silent tears fell onto the girl's lap. 'Sakura...!'
...
Sakura made brief eye contact with Amaya before looking down to her lap. 'It's no use... I have no strength left...' She thought, clenching her fist as she continued silently. 'Way to go Sakura! You let everyone down again! What good are you? Even now, when the others really need me... I cave! How many times have they saved my neck? You'd think that maybe, just this once when it's life or death... You'd think that just maybe, I could come through!'
"Okay, let's do this!" Zaku exclaims happily as he made his way closer to the small alcove.
Sakura briefly up at his voice before locking eyes onto her holster. Pulling out a kunai she turned slightly to face the female behind her.
"Come on! It's pointless, that won't work on me." The nin informs, looking down at Sakura as if she were stupid
Sakura looks up at the nin with narrowed eyes, a smirk coming to her lips. "It's not meant for you." She replies simply.
"What the-?!" The nin exclaims, catching the others attention as Sakura brought her hand up to chop her hair off, making the nin fall backwards from the sudden lack of grip.
Sakura stood slowly. 'I've always considered myself to be a true ninja. I claim that I'm madly in love with Sasuke. And I'm always lecturing Naruto, acting like I know so much more. I've even went so low as to look down on Amaya for not acting more girly, because she preferred to train or hang out with boys more than girls. But it's all empty words. Because they're always in the lead and I watch them from the background. Why is that?' She thought, her mind flashing back to all of the times the trio helped out. 'No matter what... They're always there, those three. Protecting me. And Lee, you did more than say you like me. You proved it! We're not even teammates and you put your life on the line for me!... All this time, you've all been teaching me something. It's about time I learned the lesson!' By this point Sakura was standing to her full height, her eyes locked on Zaku's form. 'Okay! No more caving! Now it's my turn to take the lead! And all of you can watch me from the background!'
"Sakura be careful...!" Lee grunts out weakly before passing out a second time.
"Kin, finish her!" Zaku orders as Sakura began to make hand signs, prompting the female of the team to pull out a kunai.
Zaku smirks and makes a sign of his own. 'Hmph, I know that hand sign!' He thought, watching as Kin rammed into Sakura's back.
Suddenly, Sakura's form disperses with a pop, leaving a log behind to fall to the ground in her place. "A substitution jutsu!" Kin exclaimed, although Zaku wasn't worried as his smirk deepened. 'Heh, you think you can fool me with that lame Ninjutsu? I'm on to you, in fact I'm way ahead of you!' He thought, his eyes locking on a sprinting Sakura as she ran up behind Kin. "Kin, get out of the way!" He ordered, prompting the female to jump out of the way of his jutsu.
Sakura throws a kunai as she ran, causing Zaku to let out a smug laugh. "Pathetic! Thanks for the present! Hope you don't mind if I return it!"
Sakura's run comes to an abrupt halt as she prepares to make more hand signs. 'Again with the hands?' Zaku thought to himself before making a sign. "Zankūha!" He yells, his jutsu sending a supersonic burst of wind and the kunai back to the pinkette who substitutes a log in her place on impact. "What a surprise... Okay where are you now?" He asks, looking around the clearing before glancing up, seeing the pinkette attempt to make hand signs as she neared from above. "You really wanna keep playing this? Cause I've got news for ya, I'm not falling for it!"
Zaku pulls out a few kunai and throws them, expecting Sakura to use the substitution again. However, much to everyone's surprise, she doesn't. The pinkette brought up her arms to protect her face as the kunai embedded into her arms and legs.
The nins eyes go wide. 'Wha?!- No! This time it's actually her!' He thought as Sakura slammed him into the ground. She pulls out a kunai and stabs one arm while biting the other. "What are you crazy or something?! Get off of me!" Zaku yells, bringing back his fist to hit Sakura in the head.
The other two Sound nin refuse to move as their minds try to process what just happened. "Somebody get this crazy girl off of me!" Zaku yells out again, becoming increasingly frustrated at the lack of help. "Get her off!"
Amaya lets her tears of frustration fall. "S-Sakura..." She mumbles out weakly, flinching at the sound of the pinkette getting punched repeatedly.
Sakura loosened her grip on Zaku somewhat, though that was all the nin needed to throw her off. "Now you're gonna pay!" He spat, pulling the kunai out of his arm as he stalked forward.
Sakura slowly lifts herself off the ground, her eyes remaining narrowed. 'It's all on me! There's no one else!' She thought as she stared up at the approaching nin.
Suddenly, a blur rushed out from the underbrush, and Amaya couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief as she recognized the familiar pineapple hairstyle out of the three arrivals. "Shika..."
Shikamaru looked over at the sound of the nickname. He sent the brunette a small, comforting smirk before looking back to Zaku.
"Heh, so what's this? The second string?" Zaku asked, his scowl morphing into a dark smirk.
Sakura stared up at the blonde blocking her from harms way. "Ino..."
The Yamanaka looked over her shoulder to the pinkette and turned back. "Surprised? I swore I'd never let you show me up, didn't I?"