Akrasia
In what was viewed with equal turns amusement and consternation, it was widely known among the Gods that human's seldom got anything right when it came to their lives. They took small facts or occurrences and blew them out of proportion or fabricated things entirely.
Minato or Zues for instance had never cheated on his wife, he had only one son and daughter and no brothers by blood. Gods after all, were not always born but sometimes created. He had ascended to his position by war, married Kushina soon after and been inducted into the status by her hands.
Occasionally though the mortals did get a thing or two right.
Demeter, or when referred to by her more personal name; Tsunade, enjoyed traveling the land rather than being cooped up on the mount where everything was perfectly boring. In between sowing the earth with seeds and blessing harvests she spent her time gambling, spreading rather salacious rumors about her compatriots just for her own amusement and occasionally performing good deeds-when the rare mood struck her.
It was one such time that'd she'd been traveling with her rather select entourage of a pig and a sloe-eyed woman that she came across a village struck by plague.
"What a shame." Shizune, or Eubuleus as she was titled gave a sigh as they passed through the streets where the dead had been left piled. It was a mystery why anyone thought she was a man-although she supposed it could be because they simply didn't expect a woman to be capable of good counsel. 'Well explain that to Athena.' she sniffed and decided not to put too much stock in the ignorance of humans after centuries of dealing with it.
"That bastard's halls are no doubt full." Tsunade was torn between a smirk and sneer. She had never forgotten the Lord of Death's refusal to let the soul of her mortal lover go. She hadn't cared a whit for the balance even in her youth. With the sudden influx of dead he'd find himself rather busy and she hoped he was miserable every minute of it. 'But probably not.' Rumor was that he liked collecting.
The smell was almost unbearable to her senses and there was nothing to do for the poor souls but give them their ferry fare. Partly out of spite for the dark god and partly out of pity for the dead Tsunade gave Shizune half the coins she carried with her in an unspoken order to place them on the eyes of the deceased. The other half she took herself and with her perfumed shawl pressed over her nose she went from hut to hut of the small farming village to lay her own coins.
She'd won at gambling for the first time in an age but it wasn't like she was hurting for riches with the way that she got devotional offerings.
There in the third hut she entered were two dead adults, a man and a woman. One with hair the color of dark, ruddy primroses and the other that reflected the ochre hues of marigolds. They were already foul smelling when she placed the coins within their mouths, she'd rose to leave when she heard a hoarse cough from another room. Crossing the dirt floors, she threw back the colorful curtain partitioning one room from the other and knelt over the rumpled bedding. "Still alive I see."
Whoever they were they were clearly tenacious. "Let's have a look." pulling back the woolen covers she sighed at the sight of a girl no more than 3 by human standards, her cheeks were flushed dark red with fever and her chest rumbled with every struggling breath. Something tugged at her from long ago, a memory from when Dan had died and she had gone to the Fates for some type of reassurance.
The old Crones voice echoed in her head; A daughter You'll have, of blood but not of your womb. Eyes like fresh spring shoots and hair like eastern blossoms. Tsunade wouldn't have thought much of it, if that girl hadn't looked at her with half opened, very green eyes as she fought for air.
Even alone she was still desperately struggling to live and her hair was distinctly the right shade. The fates had said something else, but drunk on grief and Jiraiya's spirits she never could recall the rest of it. Of their own accord her hands reached out to stroke the child's cheeks, some part of her delighting when the touch was snuggled into. It felt like a snare closing around her heart.
'That's the thing about fate.' Tsunade thought, feeling something warm in her chest begin to take root. 'For all our power and longevity we can never defy it.' All things came at a price in the end.
"Shizune!" She bellowed ordering the willowy goddess to her side. The girl was about as close to death as one could come without slipping over the edge and to save her-no, to keep her, she would have to become something more than human.
Quicker than any human, but not as fast as other gods Shizune was at her back. "Oh, this one is alive!"
Tsunade unwound the chalice that dangled from the dark green cord that cinched her waist. "Fill it half way with ambrosia." she said, holding it up over her head.
Shizune's confusion lasted for only a moment, "You want a drink at a time like thi-oh...wait you don't mean to...surely there are other ways!" turning a human into a god was supposed to be done only after coming to a majority vote among the upper echelons.
"No time for that, besides this is fate at work." Tsunade held the cup out expectantly, fingers wiggling around it impatiently. She'd been denied one life long ago, she wouldn't risk this one by asking for permission even if she had the luxury of time.
Only Shizune's sigh preceded the scent of every fruit man had ever known and some they didn't filling the room, the smell of it overpowering even the rot that pervaded the air. With the weight of the cup in her hand steadily growing heavier as the other woman poured, Tsunade turned her teeth to her other wrist.
The old crones's words still echoed through her head. 'Of my blood, but not of my womb.' The ichor in her veins spilled thickly into the cup, golden-green and nacreous as it glowed even in the dim lighting. When it was full the wound mended by her will. Pulling the child to her lap she placed the cup against her lips, the first mouthful was choked on in part due to its otherworldly taste. The rest of it went down smoothly and her breathing evened as the unhealthy sheen that graced her face began to fade.
By ever passing moment her skin seemed brighter and smoother despite the grime that came with sweat and sickness for days on end. Her eyelashes fluttered and too bright green eyes opened wider, more lucid than the last as the magic worked its way through her. "H-hello." her voice was hoarse with disuse and the word was slurred by sleep and the usual speech impediment young children possessed.
Shizune made a noise behind that Tsunade was familiar with, it was the sound one made when they found something adorable and knew in that moment that the other woman would have no more complaints about what had been done.
"What's your name?" Tsunade asked, knowing that she couldn't forever go on calling her Girl and if she didn't ask soon the little one was sure to fall asleep, already her eyes were drooping closed.
The child sighed, head pillowed by Tsunade's arms. "Sakura." She couldn't quite understand it but she felt so much better all of a sudden. The pain that had come with every breath was gone. The woman holding her smelled nice, like cut apples and the fresh green grasses she liked to lay in on sunny days. Even her tongue felt pleasant, the taste of something she couldn't define other than sweet lingering upon it.
'Where's mommy?" Sakura couldn't remember the last time she had seen her. She frowned because when she thought harder she also could not remember when her father had last been to see her either. Tears gathered, something felt bad in a place deeper than her bones all of a sudden.
Trying to explain the intricacies of death to what was formerly a human child was not an endeavor Tsunade was sure she was up to just yet, but Shizune-as she often did covered her blind side.
"I'm sorry to say but they got quite sick and they...well they went far away."
The sleepiness that she had felt was forgotten as she began to panic. "They have to come back!" They hadn't even said goodbye. The tears rolled down her face.
"They can't." Tsunade sighed, tucking the child against her chest to rock her gently."And you cannot go to where they are...I'm sorry but that's the way of things. I'll take care of you." She hoped that would be enough someday.
"We will." Shizune amended, Tonton oinking at her heels.
They waited until Sakura's wailing had ceased, until she had lost the energy to keep awake after her cries and rapid breaths had worn her out to leave, seeking to spare her the sight of her decaying parents and village that more closely resembled an open graveyard.
By that time the sun was descending the sky and given that the one driving it was a loud mouthed brat there was little doubt that word would soon be out that the Goddess of Grain was toting around a child of curious origin.
'Well, let them talk.' Tsunade thought with a huff, she couldn't care less.
It was weeks later, when Sakura was cleaned and dressed in better clothing than she had ever owned, much less seen before meeting Shizune and Tsunade that she was loaded onto a chariot for the first time in her life, arms wound tightly around the woman's neck as she fretted. She'd never ridden on before but Shizune said it flew of all things.
"It's not so bad." Tsunade laughed, holding her tightly as Shizune took the reins. They probably could have walked but their current choice of transportation was by far faster. "And there will be lots of things to see and eat when you get there."
What was probably the most interesting thing to Sakura was that it wasn't a horse heading them but Tonton. She wasn't sure how they expected a pig to pull the chariot, she wasn't all that big even if she was the smartest farm animal she had ever met. At 3 it was very hard to understand the strange turn of events her life had suddenly taken but in the way most children did she simply took it all at face value.
She didn't look when they began to move, choosing instead to hide her face in the curve of Tsunade's neck. Sakura peeked only once to get a glimpse of clouds breezing by, closer than she had ever seen before. They felt cool and damp against her skin. The ride wasn't long, but her thoughts wandered. She missed her parents; the familiarity, the sound of their voices and even the way that they smelled.
Tsunade and Shizune were kind but Sakura had a very basic understanding of death. That people simply went to sleep and the part that made them who they were went away to another realm. She was even more confused about the designation between humans and gods.
Tsunade hardly looked any different than anyone else she'd ever met besides better dressed, cleaner and with a faint glow about her. 'But I have that too now.' She'd only noticed it a few days ago when she woke in the middle of the night and saw the faint silvery glow pulsing beneath her skin.
"Sakura." Tsunade's voice called, pulling her from her pondering. "We're here."
Here was unlike any place she'd ever seen, it was better than the city Tsunade had taken her to after everything. There were buildings built into the high peaks of a mountainside, bright and shining white with golden roofs. Waterfalls fell from steep crevices to the world below. The same thick clouds that they had cut through on their way up curled about the mountainsides.
"Where's this?" Sakura questioned when the blonde set her on her sandaled feet. She'd never worn those before meeting them and still found them strange.
"The heavenly threshold." Shizune explained, unhitching the pig for a well earned respite. "Or just Olympus if you prefer the more mundane term."
Tsunade had begun the long stroll up the paved paths lined with lush greenery, her hand locked with the child's. "Its boring is what it is."
"Well, I'd be happy to help alleviate that for you." A tall man with thick, bushy white hair and red robes stepped onto the path before them.
"Oh no!" Shizune cried and preemptively covered the child's ears for the trouble that was sure to come.
"Don't you have some maenads to fuck, Jiraiya?" Tsunade scowled.
"Well that was just rude." he huffed. "And you ought to be careful with that mouth now that you're a mommy." He waggled his brows as he peered over his shoulder at the thoroughly confused child. "Awful small even for a human…" he paused taking in the glow. "Or former human...You know you caused a bit of a fuss with this."
Deciding that it was safe to uncover Sakura's ears Shizine grumbled under her breath about impressionable ears and did so.
"All I did was what fate decreed." Tsunade replied haughtily and stepped around him, tugging Sakura along.
"Well fate is fate, for better or worse." Jiraiya intoned at their heels.
They came to the largest of the pavillions where there was a courtyard, A trellis twined with wisteria with a long table laden with food and drink lay below it. "Wait here with Shizune for a bit, okay?" Tsunade patted Sakura on the head.
"But why?" The girl with pink hair wondered, craning her neck to look up at the blonde woman. She wasn't sure why they had come to this place to begin with. Shizune had told her told her she would be meeting lots of new faces but so far she had only met one.
Jiraiya held back a chuckle, despite the glare it garnered him from the busty goddess. " Because we're all nosey." That was truly the only reason for their meeting as far as he was concerned. The thing about living nigh forever is that one became insatiably interested when a rare new thing or event occured.
"That is the gist of it." Tsunade admitted, hand ruffling through the girl's hair. "Eat what you want and don't let anyone give you trouble." It went unspoken between Shizune and herself that the other woman would keep an eye on her as she turned and left for the gleaming building behind them.
"You!" Mei howled on sight of her. "That was a dirty rumour you spread!" her perfect lips were pursed into a pout. "I haven't even been married once! And I certainly would not sleep with that snake." She couldn't think of a single person who liked the god of war and sedition.
"That one wasn't even me!" The goddess of grain and harvest fire back, although she honestly couldn't remember if she had spread that rumour or not. "Besides as the goddess of love and beauty isn't it a bit embarrassing that you're unengaged? Better the mortals think otherwise lest they doubt your prowess." She grinned dropping into her designated seat.
Jiraiya sighed melodramatically. "No need to fight, you're both beautiful." He'd taken his own place in between the two and offered his amphora to Tsunade which she took after a scrutinizing moment.
"Hmph." Mei crossed her arms, stewing over how she would get the other woman back at some point down the road.
Minato was already seated with his wife at the highest dias. "I see we're missing Hades again." he wasn't even sure of the last time they'd seen him in their halls.
Gods, like human politicians had their power blocks and factions. Poseidon the God of Storms and Earthquakes was seated with his own wife, an empty seat between them and Orochimaru. "I wouldn't have expected him to show." Nagato intoned.
"You know how Master Sasori is." Hephestues complained, flipping his blonde hair. "He's not interested in this sort of stuff." or rather he wasn't interested in showing up. Sasori was in fact a gossip monger but he hated leaving his halls to fetch it. Since most, if not all of Deidara's materials came from the underworld they'd long ago struck up a partnership of sorts. 'And I'm stuck sitting next to this snake...I oughta skip too.' he slouched lower.
"We're also missing the youngest three, I guess Apollo, Artemis and Athena are still in time out" Obito the Herald teased. "Probably because they almost destroyed the building when Sasuke learned the mortals think he's a woman." that was a rumour he'd personally spread, that the moon was driven by a lady.
Naruto had laughed so hard the building shook and the two had a massive fight that Karin had interjected herself into.
"Naruto said you picked up a human girl?" Minato turned to the actual order of business rather than address the drama of the last time they'd all been under one roof.
Swallowing the wine, Tsunade nodded her head. "Yes. although she's hardly human anymore."
"My my, isn't that supposed to be put to a vote?" Orochimaru intoned, slitted eyes aglow with something like glee. "How insurectious of you Tsunade."
"Shove off." Tsunade snarled, lounging deeper into her seat. "I didn't have time for that and besides there was a prophecy at work and you all know how that goes." Fighting against the cogs of fate never worked and in the end the measures one used to avoid it often hastened it along.
There were more questions bandied about on whether or not Sakura had presented any powers yet, which she hadn't other than her sudden boom in health. It wasn't unnatural for latent talents to take time to present in those who hadn't been born power and she wasn't concerned. 'Even if she's perfectly ordinary other than eternal life it wouldn't matter to me at all.'
"Well, if that's all there is to this, I think I'd like to meet her." Kushina said when the complaints and questions had finally come to an end from the more boisterous members.
Nagato and Konan had remained silent for the most part as there had been no change in the status quo with the new addition.
The council came to a close and they filed into the courtyard, many of them prepared to depart.
Sakura, in the time that Tsunade had been gone no longer had only Shizune and Tonton for company. The younger gods and Goddesses that resided on the mountain top had caught wind of her and came calling.
"I told you she was cute." Naruto grinned, he only looked about as old as a ten year old boy but his years were many more.
"Was your hair always that color, or did it come with the ambrosia?" His sister wondered.
Sasuke, ever the calm one simply rolled his eyes. "Can't you both see you're being annoying?" the girl was curled into Shizune's lap with wide eyes, the cake she'd been eating slipping from her hands.
"Oh! Look how small she is!" It had been ages since she'd seen someone of that size.
Deidara had no interest in kids of any sort, his life was his art and his hands were itching to craft something so he left as quickly as he could, forgoing prolonged goodbyes. When he later relayed the information to Sasori, the god seemed just as indifferent.
"She doesn't even have a title, much less any apparent talents." The God of Death had said, disinterest in his lazy composure seen reflected through the mirror.
The craftor was tinkering with something or another."For now at least. You never know, things could change un." If anyone were to ask his preferences when it came to his craftsmanship then it would be those of clay or stone but truly anything he made was peerless. Although he supposed half of that was due to the high quality materials from the underworld.
"Nothing ever changes." Sasori disagreed and then the mirror blackened before it returned to being just a normal reflective surface.
The years passed and Sakura grew a bit quickly for an immortal, likely due to her human origins. She'd quickly caught up to the ages of the younger gods as she lost count of the passing years even as she became somewhat wiser in the workings of the universe.
Looking at the age of 15 she'd still not presented any particular skills that set her apart and the humans had taken to calling her simply as Kore. 'The Maiden, how boring.' Sakura thought. 'Mother doesn't seem to mind but what if I can never do anything?' Not to mention there was that one muse who was constantly twittering about it.
'This is why I hate coming up here.' Sakura pouted as she wandered about the limited wilds of Gods were celebrating the end of a century in a week long festival and everyone was expected. Including the ones she had never seen before. The Titans who had once been imprisoned were apparently given leave to attend-or at least some of them and there were whispers that the elusive King of the Underworld would make an appearance.
Tsunade was currently in a long winded dice game against her own sire Hashirama while Shizune attempted to play the voice of reason when it came to their betting but Jiraiya was egging them on and there was very little hope they would stop anytime soon.
Sakura could have spent her time in the company of Naruto and the others but that muse she had a particular dislike of was hanging around. 'Comedy? The only comedic thing about her is her face.' Sakura preferred the fields and forests of the world below to keeping the company of those she disliked.
She would much rather pick flowers with Ino and Hinata than pretending to smile as she was judged and found lacking. It was with that thought that she was seeking her solitude far from the festivities. On Olympus one could always find little alcoves and hideaways. Mei had once told her they were for lovers' trysts although the meaning had been lost on her at the time.
Still, she knew of one such place that overlooked a grotto teaming with honeysuckle and gardenias. The little pavilion was built on top of the water and reached by crossing a series of stones. 'And it's perfect for a midday nap.' or it would have been. "Oh."
Sakura's plans were dashed, there was already an occupant inside. There was a man lounging on the same plush cushions she'd been intending to sleep on. He was dressed in varying shades of black, his only ornamentation was the golden scorpion at his shoulder. The other was bare. It was so lifelike there was little doubt as to who had created it.
He was paler than her and the glow beneath his skin was strong under the shade. From his exposed arms she could see the wiry muscles that made up his frame. It wasn't as if she was a stranger to male physiques considering Naruto pranced around with a perpetually bare chest but she still blushed just a touch, mostly because the man was decidedly lovely to look at with thick lashes and messy hair that curled about his face just so.
"Girl, are you going to keep staring?" A lone eye of honey and amber opened to gaze at her.
"H-huh?" Sakura stuttered. "Wait, no! I wasn't!" she protested, waving her arms about nervously. "I've just never seen you before is all." He was only older looking than her by a bit, but that didn't mean much when it came to immortals. He could be older than her by a hundred years or by more than she could count. 'Which is very high.' In the end there was no guessing who he was. Although if asked she might had said the God of Sleep, she'd yet to meet them either.
Sasori didn't know her which meant she probably belonged to someone's entourage. 'Probably looking for some place to have an affair.' he thought, eyes sliding closed. She'd just have to find another spot.
Feeling effectively dismissed with her plan all ruined Sakura heaved a sigh and looked around. "Damn it, now I've got to figure out some other place to lay low." and this was literally the only spot she knew of.
Curiosity made him ask, "Why does a girl like you need to hide?"
"I'm not hiding!" Sakura's lips twisted into a frown. 'Okay maybe I am but that muse never lets up and she gives me a headache.' Unfortunately the last time Kin had made her so angry she'd tried punching her only to break a few knuckles in the process. They'd healed right after but it had still been mortifying to fail. "It's just loud and there are too many people, most of them drunk. Even Pan is here and you know how he is." the cretin was more brazen than Jiraiya who was mostly all talk and eyeballs.
"If you're quiet you can stay." It was simply that he understood the desire to avoid the crowd that he allowed it. 'But if she makes a nuisance of herself she might find herself rolling down the mountainside.'
Sakura's face brightened instantly. "Really? Thank you!" she all but threw herself onto the cushions opposite him, splayed on her stomach as she pillowed her cheek against her arms. The faint frown on his lips when she cheered kept her from saying more. Instead she dropped into a peaceful silence, content to listen to the larks and the faint sound of someone strumming a lyre.
He took a good look at her while she slipped into her daydreams. Eyes like the green gems that clung to the caverns of his real and unfettered, waist length hair that fanned about her shoulders and torso. She was prettier than a nymph or a dryad but she lacked the adornments of even a minor goddess.
She had none of the trinkets or baubles that Deidara was so often busy with, though there was a small band of braided flowers wrapped around her wrist most likely kept fresh by magic. 'Though they'll likely shrivel in due time.' The most luxurious thing she wore was the green cloth embroidered with golden flowers that wrapped her waist, the length of it mingling with her white skirts.
Perhaps what Sasori knew best of her was that she was young, at least by the standards of immortality since she clearly had no idea who he was. If she did she probably would have left the moment she came across him. 'Unless she's like that other nymph.' The one whose name he could never quite recall. 'Unlikely unless falling asleep has suddenly become a seduction tactic in the time I've been below.'
It wasn't long until she was well and truly sleeping that he decided he'd better show his face before Deidara or someone worse sought him out for something or other.
Later in the evening after the sun had set and the lamps and lanterns had all been lit he caught sight of her again among the younger of their number. She was scowling at the Muse of Comedies and while he appreciated art he'd never been one for her sphere of influence finding her humor to be low brow.
Deidara stopped in the middle of his complaints that simple pottery had become quite boring and that he was thinking about something more explosive in nature to follow where Sasori's attention had fled. "Oh thats Sakura." he said as if it explained everything.
The name sounded familiar to him but before he could inquire the girl's voice rose higher in pitch.
"I've had enough of this from you!" and her unsandaled foot stomped into the ground. He would have found it petulant and childish if it weren't for the great quake that followed. The ground cracked and split, gapping open several feet in width. One of the columns supporting a mansion went askew and looked dangerously to knocking down another.
Kin's leg sunk into the chasm as wild grasses and flowers began to creep over her, growing voraciously as Sakura watched on in horror. The world had gone utterly silent and still except for the blooming plants and Kin's shrieking.
Sakura pressed trembling hands to her lips. 'Did I do that?' she hadn't meant to.
"Oh well that was just divine." Deidara mumbled breathlessly. Destruction and creation all at once was his aesthetic.
Sasori couldn't disagree. She'd been pretty before but even in her shock she was beautiful, eyes wide and face turning red.
It was the sound of raucous laughter that truly broke the hush the world had fallen into. "Oh Tsunade, your girl was simply a late bloomer!" Hashirama of the southern pillar had been so surprised by the sudden display he'd thrown the dice right into his brother's face. "She even takes after us in affinity."
"How destructive." Mei tsked. "I bet even the mortals felt that." on the other hand the display had garnered the girl quite a bit of male attention. 'And from some rather unlikely suspects.' her keen eye did not miss a thing and even Hades was staring. While it was true she could inspire romantic feelings in humans it was much harder to influence those of her own calibur. 'but my hands are clean of this.' for now at least.
Minato could be seen wincing at the damages from afar.
"Perhaps rather than Kore they ought to call her Persephone for the destruction she could bring." Karin mumbled half jokingly, not knowing that the secondary name would soon gain popularity.
"I uh...didn't mean to do that." Sakura squeaked and wondered if she should help Kin out of the hole she was stuck in or not. The vegetation had finally stopped growing but the muse was still well wrapped within it.
After the shock had passed Tsunade took stock of the situation. Of course she was proud to see her daughter come into her own power but there was something deeply unsettling about all the attention she had suddenly garnered. Before that moment Sakura had barely existed for most of the Pantheon.
What truly horrified her was what Jiraiya said next, "Won't be long until the marriage proposals start coming in."
Of course she hadn't been blind to the fact that Sakura was no longer a little girl but she was also still very much her child. ' and marriage? For every happy one of those among the gods there 10 more unhappy ones fraught with infidelity or cold tolerance after desire has waned.' and then there was the problem of heartbreak that came with falling in love with humans.
No, no, no. In her opinion Sakura was better off staying permanently unattached and free to do whatever she pleased, unbothered by messy entanglements.
'Oh dear.' Shizune fretted, hands wringing as she saw the process of thought play out over her companions face. It was the look that always preceded trouble of some sort.
It was obvious by Hashirama's statement who Sakura belonged to now. "Deidara," Sasori began tonelessly, "You said she was boring." he supposed this was what he got for relying on him for information
Deidara blinked at the statement "What? No. I said she didn't seem like much and you know she was like…" he gestured low to the ground "This big. She really grew like a weed." To be honest he hadn't taken much notice of her before himself.
'A weed is not what I would use to describe her.' Sasori thought.
Currently Sakura was being cuddled by the sun charioteer, praises being heaped upon her. "We should get married." Naruto said not for the first time since he met her.
Except that it suddenly sounded so much more ominous to Tsunade then it used to."I quit." she abandoned the game, dropping what she owed without preamble and separated the two. "We're going to bed." hopefully by morning the giant crack would be fixed and everything would be forgotten.
"But I'm not tired." Sakura mumbled even as she was dragged off.
Originally he'd planned to attend only the first day but considering how entertaining the first day had turned out Sasori reevaluated his plans and decided to stay a little longer.
The second day came and despite Tsunade's attempts to corral her daughter, Sakura had managed to give her the slip during some discussion the woman had been pulled into by Mei. If Sakura were a bit more suspicious she would have sworn the Goddess of Beauty had winked at her but it was a bit hard to tell when only one eye was ever visible.
The sun was just rising, which meant Naruto was busy with his own duties and if he wasn't around then Sasuke typically made himself scarce. She did manage to find Karin for a bit but she'd been a bit busy plotting revenge on some human who proclaimed she could weave better than the Goddess of Wisdom and Handicraft.
"I'm going to turn her into a spider." Karin seethed, her temper inherited from her mother. She had not been born from Minato's head despite the rumours.
Sakura never understood how fragile the egos of God's could be even though she had spent more of her life as an immortal than not. "She only said she was better than you." Even with all her power and wits Karin still found herself thrown into a frenzy over something so small. "Why don't you just prove that she's wrong in a contest?"
Karin's eyes seemed to glow even brighter. "Yes! And then I'll turn her into a spider. Want to come with?"
Sakura hissed from behind her teeth. "Tempting but I'll pass."
"One of these days there will be someone you want to smite and I'll be the one judging." Karin fluffed her hair as she prepared to depart.
"Doubtful." Sakura couldn't imagine such an event ever happening, she hadn't even meant to hurt Kin...much at least. 'I mean turning someone into a spider or a snake-haired monster is way worse than just punching someone.' Or terrifying them with plants.
Karin was gone soon after and she found herself wandering about looking for something else to spend her time on besides drinking or feasting because she would certainly not be partaking in the less...decent activities that were enjoyed by the less scrupulous characters. 'Well to each their own.' she thought.
"No."
It took her a moment to place the voice but when she rounded the corner the speaker was recognized immediately. It was hard to forget a peerless face like his. 'Well the murderous look is new.' and it was solely aimed at some poor naiad.
A sad fact of life for Nymphs was that they had rather tragic lives more often than not. They had a tendency to be loved by the wrong immortal or to love the wrong one. 'And this looks like a case of the latter.' Since he had been kind to her the other day Sakura decided to repay the favor and sidled up to his side. "Is there a problem here?" her arms slid through his, watching as the Nymph's face shifted from longing to fury.
"Who are you?" The look was almost enough to make Sakura cringe.
"Someone who could stomp you into a plant," Sakura pressed her cheek against warm flesh, savoring the scent of cloves and perfumed incense. "So off with you." she waved her hand, hoping the bluff would take because she really had no intention of doing so. It did, the nymph retreated with a few furtive backward glances as if expecting someone to call her back.
"I didn't need help." Sasori stared at the crown of her pink head. "Yesterday, today...I'm starting to think you enjoy getting into trouble."
Sakura scoffed. "Just the opposite really, I just thought I would repay the favor for yesterday." She let his arm go wondering if it would be rude to ask outright who he was.
"It was nothing." Because letting her share his space that day had been nothing of consequence.
She shrugged. "Then this was nothing too." and set about on her way. Or she would have if he hadn't caught her by the wrist.
"Where are you headed?" Sasori questioned, noting that she still lacked any footwear. Apparently she had a thing against shoes.
She wasn't headed anywhere which she said truthfully. "What do you have in mind?" In the back of her mind Sakura realized she probably shouldn't go wandering off with a stranger. 'That's how you get abducted.' she shuddered. "And who are you by the way?"
Maybe it was because he liked the guileless way that she looked at him without knowing who he was that he replied with "Hiruko." Rather than his real name or title.
The days passed like that, Sakura sneaking off and inadvertently meeting him, or rather thinking that she had met him accidentally. It had begun that way at the start but he found himself making excuses to run into her but always in lone company.
He wasn't ashamed of who he was. He took pride in the orderly way that he managed his kingdom, that his numbers would always outspan those of the living. He was a necessary guardian to the balance that kept the universe running smoothly, as he preferred.
Warriors and poets, the rich and the poor alike passed into his domain. Even those of the greatest intellect could not escape his grasp, each one came to him in the end. 'And since humans die in droves every day there is something new to hear.' He probably knew when a war was on the horizon before anyone else did.
For all his riches and his knowledge, the prisoners he kept and the denizens he collected with every passing moment there was something he was realizing that he lacked in the Underworld; Companionship and not of the superficial sort. 'That doesn't mean just anyone will do though.' Quality was more important than quantity.
It was over a series of Petteia sessions that had lasted well into noon on the last day of festivities that he came to a conclusion. [1]
Sakura had captured five of his eight pieces but was left with only two of her own in the process. There were very few people that could beat him at the game, much less come so close. He was steadily enthralled by her skills that seemed to grow with every consecutive game. It felt like she was reading his moves before he made them. "You've done well." he admitted after pinning the last of her pieces to the corner of the board.
"I still lost...for the third time in a row." She was pouting, cheeks puffed in annoyance. 'I thought for sure I had him this time.'
"You get better every round." Sasori watched as she began resetting her side of the game, his hand reached out to envelope her wrist. "Enough for now. Today's the last day you know." His thumb stroked over silken flesh, watching as color bloomed in her cheeks. "You haven't asked once what I preside over."
It had become a game of sorts her guessing and him denying, Sakura had started with Morpheus to his amusement-afterall death and sleep were rather closely entwined. Her last guess had been Phobus to which he'd laughed and said he didn't enjoy dismembering himself for pleasure.
"Hiruko, it's no fun if you just tell me."
Sasori was getting sick of hearing that name from her lips rather than his own.
Sakura hadn't told anyone she was meeting with him. Ever since she'd stomped the ground open her mother and half the people she knew had been acting oddly. Mei kept giving her mysterious, mischievous smiles. 'And Kushina gave me that talk about acceptable bride prices-apparently property is far better than coin.' of course she had also said that about cattle saying they provided continuous gains.
Naruto was being especially ardent and Deidara of all people had spoken to her for the first time in her life. 'He even offered to make me a hairpin without being asked.' The whole week had been rather bizarre, the most calming thing had been her present companion.
The one who was still holding her wrist and staring at her like it was the most normal thing in the world. It wasn't lost on Sakura that technically her meet ups with him had been a bit...indecent even by the loose moral standards her kind were often able to get away with. Proper, unmarried girls her age were not supposed to be meeting with men alone as she'd been doing all week.
'This is probably the most wicked thing I've ever done.' She realized with a start but did not try to pry herself away. There was a certain thrill that came with knowing she was being rather rebellious. When he looked at her with low lashes over sly eyes as he moved a piece on the board, her insides twisted strangely.
He said something that she hadn't quite heard, only knowing because she'd been focused on his lips. "Hm?" Sakura blinked and focused on somewhere more proper.
Normally Sasori would have scowled at having to repeat himself but for her he would make an exception. "If you don't ask now you might not get a chance. I depart tonight."
"Oh." The sky was already darkening which meant he'd be leaving very soon. "I'll have to guess the next time we meet. There is the harvest festival towards the end of the year held in Mother's honor." that one Sakura expected she would be attending.
He avoided that assembly simply for the fact that Tsunade hated him. 'Still holding a grudge for that time no doubt.' normally he could appreciate the spiteful nature since it was one he shared at times but in his opinion she was being ridiculous about the whole thing. Sasori couldn't or rather refused to let just anyone leave the Underworld. It would have set an awful precedent.
He was tempted to attend, if only for her but Sasori would make no promises in that regard.
Sakura's breath caught when she heard her name being called not far off from their hiding place. It was her mother's voice but his hand was sliding from her wrist, thumb trailing against the palm of her hand in a way that made her shiver. She took a good look at his face one last time, envying how composed he always was.
Her teeth sunk into her bottom lip nervously before she made a swift decision, the fact that she wouldn't have to face the repercussions of it until much later made Sakura braver than she would normally be. It was the barest press of her lips against the corner of his mouth lasting only a fraction of a moment, a simple chaste thing that made her heart flutter. She fled then, refusing to look at his face.
That very action sealed her fate. What he needed wasn't just a companion 'A wife.' Sasori decided it in that moment and made no move to chase her, lost in making his plans.
It was sometime later that Deidara got some rather odd requests from his supplier and contentious friend. "You don't have enough hair for these pins, un." and he didn't wear delicate little bracelets and anklets. Or girdles for tiny waists. 'Disturbing imagery.' He shuddered.
Sasori had also been very specific about the materials and motifs to be used. Rubies, dark hued amethysts or emeralds to be accented with obsidian or diamonds. The pieces were to mimic flora for the most part, although some were meant to reflect Sasori's own imagery of scorpions. 'If it were just one piece I'd say he had a lover but this is more like a treasury!' Deidara would be busy for a while with all the work.
"Then it's obviously not for me." There were secrets in Sasori's eyes if Deidara read them right and a smirk on his lips.
"Who in Hades managed to catch your eye, un?" Deidara could hardly think of a trousseau that rivaled the one he was tasked with. "Don't tell me it's Aphrodite? You know she'd complain endlessly down there." Judging by the faint look of disgust Sasori gave him he knew he'd chosen wrong.
"If you swear by Styx to keep silent I'll tell you." Otherwise Deidara would go on guessing forever, supplying even more ludicrous options.
Curiosity got the best of him and Deidara found himself swearing by the sacred waters to tell no one.
"I'm planning on taking a wife." and when he said taking he meant it rather literally. "Sakura, to be exact."
Deidara spilled the ore he'd been carrying all over the floor. "How? Tsunade hates you!" that woman would never allow such a union. 'She practically threw me over a table when I even talked to Sakura.'
"Better to ask forgiveness than permission." There was something faintly impish about the statement coming from the man in the reflective surface.
There was very little Tsunade could do to Sasori in the end. Taking a bride by conquest was common practice and the marriage ceremony he had planned was more primordial and binding than the feasts and pompous ceremonies his kind had taken to practicing. The cut over his chest rent by his own hand still stung as a dark reminder of it.
It would take time for that fruit to grow, something to wait for even if he hated it. The soil of his home made growing things slow and arduous. Impossible without magic. Having an almost endless supply of time didn't mean patience was forthcoming in the least.
So while humans didn't have every little detail correct they were right that Hades staged an abduction.
Akrasia, meaning ones lapse of self control -looking at Sasori-
Me bastardizing greek mythos worse than Disney ever did: this is fine…The idea that the gods just run around spreading slanderous rumors that take on lives of their own amuses me okay?
[1] petteia was an ancient board game. It ended when one person collected all the pieces or made their opponents incapable of moving. Not unlike chess.
If you go back and read Awful edges I was toying around with comparing Sasori and Sakura to Hades and Persephone at the very start lmao. the painting on the wall was originally written as Rembrandt's Rape of Persephone.
I don't intend for this story to be particularly long, 3-5 chapters at most.
So a quick rundown of roles;
Jiraiya- Dionysus
Tsunade-Demeter
Kushina-Hera
Minato-Zeus
Naruto-Apollo
Sasuke- Artemis
Athena-Karin
Aphrodite- Mei
Poseidon-Nagato
Amphitrite- Konan
Hephaestus- Deidara
Aries- Orochimaru. (Basically all the deities in classical greek mythology hated Aries...except for Aphrodite who slept with him for some reason lmao.)
Hashirama- Krios, Titan of the southern pillar
Obito- Hermes