Chapter Five
This Land is Mine

It was nearly midnight when Sakura touched down on the eastern side of the Mediterranean Sea. Kakashi was waiting for her, his flight having landed nearly twenty-four hours earlier. He drove her to a nice hotel in the middle of the city, vaguely updating her with what he had learned since he had arrived. There was still a lot to do and some contacts to reach out to, but after traveling all day and barely sleeping the night before, all Sakura wanted was a bath and sleep. And that's exactly what she did.

When Sakura finally awoke the next morning, it was to a dozen new messages. Some were from the usual people - Ino and Kakashi - but most were her contacts and connections, updating her on what they had in stock and how quickly they could get more. Apparently word spread fast that Tsunade was back in the country, and everyone was only too willing to help.

Being back here made Sakura feel powerful. In New York, she was still new, still learning her way around the city and the ports and the underground. But here, she knew everyone and everyone knew her. Sakura was a mastermind at her craft and she was respected enough that the things she needed doing got done without her having to ask.

After answering most of the messages on her phone, Sakura showered. By the time she finished, fog clung to the air and mirror. She used the washcloth folded neatly on the counter to wipe it away only to frown at her reflection.

An ugly bruise had formed over her cheekbone in the night and though the cut in her lip wasn't too terribly deep, the blemish was fairly noticeable against her fair skin. Sakura eyed it in displeasure. Then she got to work on covering them both up.

More messages came in while Sakura made herself ready for the day. The most important of which was from Kakashi, telling her to meet him downstairs in the hotel's restaurant. He was seated at a table near the wide window that gave a wonderful view of the beach a block away.

Sakura admired the white sand and blue water as she slipped into the chair across from him. "You know me too well. I'm starving," she told him.

Kakashi glanced at her over the local paper in his hand. "That happens when you don't eat for an entire day."

She didn't ask how he knew she hadn't eaten on the plane. Only smiled her thanks when the waiter brought her a plate of fried eggs and a salad consisting of tomatoes and cucumbers. Her plate was empty in under five minutes. Kakashi said nothing. Just continued to read his newspaper as he pushed his leftover bread and jam across the table to her.

"So what's first?" Sakura asked once she staved off most her hunger. "You said one of your contacts wants to meet with me?"

Kakashi folded his paper and set it aside. "You remember Anko?"

"She was in your unit with the Marines, wasn't she?"

He nodded. "She says she has some cargo you might be interested in. Her team intercepted a ship coming from China and they confiscated a container or two. All under the radar, of course."

"Of course," Sakura agreed. "What kind of cargo are we talking?"

Kakashi gazed around lazily, more to ensure they weren't overheard than out of boredom. "Military grade rifles, handguns. Pretty much everything you need to please Hashirama."

A low, thoughtful hum rumbled in Sakura's throat. "Well then, it sounds like our first stop is your old teammate."

After paying their tab, they headed into the outskirts of the city to the more dirty neighborhoods. It wasn't poor by any means but the streets were full of crime. Fierce-looking men lurked under awnings with tattoos running up and down their arms like black rivers. They watched everything and everyone that entered their territory.

Sakura stuck out like a sore thumb, but no one dared approach her. Not with Kakashi following her like her shadow and definitely not with the way in which she held herself. She smiled at the boys they passed, her mouth easy but her eyes hard as emeralds.

They slipped inside a small building pretending to be a tavern. In the back was where the real business took place. At this time of day, there weren't many people inside. Only two men and a single woman dressed in street clothes and combat boots. The woman had dark purple hair, almost the color of a plumb. She smiled when she spotted Kakashi.

"You look worse every time I see you, old man," she said.

Kakashi audibly sighed. "You know, Anko, if you keep abusing me I might not come back next time."

"You'll always come back. You love me too much."

Anko stood from the table then and approached him to throw her arms around his neck. She kissed him, right on the mouth. Sakura was pretty sure she saw some tongue in there too. Old teammate, her ass.

When they seemed in no hurry to separate, Sakura cleared her throat purposefully. Anko took her time finishing up with Kakashi before she stepped away and glanced at Sakura. "You must be Tsunade," she surmised. "I've heard a great deal about you."

"Good things I hope," Sakura said pleasantly.

Anko didn't clarify. "Kakashi tells me that you might be interested in buying my store. I hope you have the money. There's someone else interested in bringing the goods to Africa."

That caught Kakashi's notice. He stared at Anko curiously. "Since when do you trade with Africa?"

"Since they stopped shipping their guns into my country," she countered. "I may be trafficking illegally, but I do still care about my country."

"How patriotic," Sakura muttered.

Anko eyed her. She gave Sakura an obvious once over, noting her nice clothes and perfectly curled hair. Sakura likely looked like preppy high schooler beside the military-trained woman.

"You should learn how to dodge," Anko said, her eyes lingering on her busted lip. "Wouldn't wanna scar that pretty face."

Sakura crossed her arms, ensuring her healing knuckles were visible. "You should see the other guy," she smiled pleasantly. "Now, why don't you show me what you have in those containers and I'll let you know how much money I have to offer."

Anko studied her hands, the look in her eyes shifting minutely, before she jerked her chin at one of the men sitting around the table. He pulled out a thick laptop in a heavy, weather-resistant case and pushed it in Sakura's direction.

Anko left Sakura to study the images while she spoke to Kakashi in hushed whispers. Which was fine with Sakura. Judging by the soft snickers coming from both of them, Sakura didn't want to hear it anyway.

It appeared that Kakashi's old teammate was telling the truth. Anko had quite the arsenal of rifles and handguns. Even half of this would satisfy Hashirama's need. It seemed she had come to Tel Aviv at the perfect time.

Though it didn't sit well with Sakura that there was another dealer looking to buy out of her territory. She thought she had made it clear when she got rid of Gaara that she had no interest in sharing her business or her turf. She would have to send a message before she left.

"So are you interested?" Anko asked.

Sakura took her time straightening from the computer. "I am. But first, I want you to tell me more about this guy looking to buy your guns for Africa."

Anko arched her brow curiously but answered nonetheless, "Not much is known about him. He's a ghost, a shadow. He sends out others to do his bidding and then kills them the moment they complete his work."

"Sounds like a wonderful employer," Kakashi muttered sarcastically. "How does he get anyone to work for him?"

"Blackmail is my guess," Anko shrugged. "He calls himself 'Puppet Master'." She turned to Sakura then with a pointed stare. "Don't bother asking around about him. No one knows who he is."

However, a smirk was already forming in the corner of Sakura's mouth. "Then I suppose it's a good thing that I do."

xx

It took Sakura three days to track him down. The night she approached him, he was at a club infamous for its gang activity and crime.

Sakura dressed the part of a party girl. She picked a red dress that clung to her curves and a pair of heels that clicked against the sidewalk as she walked. The small, handgun secured between her thighs reminded her of its presence with every step. Somewhere, Kakashi melted into the shadows, hidden on a rooftop like a deadly, guardian angel. Her protector. Bless that man.

At the door, the bouncer asked for Sakura's ID. She offered it with a smile. It was one of her fakes. An Israeli driver's licence with an image of her from a few years ago with a Hebrew name she had once dreamed of naming her daughter.

Yeah, like that would ever happen anymore.

Inside, music pulsed through the club like contractions of a heart. It reverberated through Sakura in waves, enticing her to join the crowd on the dancefloor and follow the rhythm of the music. Instead she scanned the large, open room, squinting against the bright, flashing lights that flickered against the walls and over the moving bodies. A cunning smile passed her red lips when she found what she was looking for.

In the back of the room was the VIP area. It was surrounded by windows with silvery curtains, providing those inside with some privacy but still clear enough for them to look out over the club.

The bouncer at the roped off door stopped Sakura. "Sorry, lady. It's invite only," he said in Hebrew.

She fluttered her lashes prettily as she pushed a generous tip into his hand. "I won't tell if you don't."

He eyed the money, silently counting it, before he shoved it into his pocket and looked the other way. Sakura quickly slipped inside, letting the curtain fall behind her.

The music wasn't nearly as deafening inside, making conversation far more easier. There were three tables surrounded by circular couches that sunk into the floor. All of them were half full or more as rich men sat with girls and bottles of liquor.

Even with his back to her, Sakura recognized the Puppet Master immediately, his dark brown a familiar sight amongst all the strangers. She made her way to him, her heels silenced by the lush carpet covering the floor. There were two other men with him, but neither turned in her direction. They were too focused on the attentions the girl were giving them. Especially the one with a girl kneeling between his legs.

Sakura stopped at the top step of the three-step staircase that led down to the sitting area. "Mind if I join you?" she asked pleasantly.

The Puppet Master picked his head up from where he had been whispering in one of the girls' ears to look at her. His forming grin faltered the instant he spotted her. "Tsunade."

"Kankuro," Sakura said pleasantly. She descended the steps slowly to stand directly in front of him. The girls under each arm glared up at her. Sakura ignored them both. "It's been too long."

"What're you doing here?" Kankuro asked flatly.

"Oh, don't say it like that. You'll make me think you didn't miss me," she teased. Then she glanced at both woman, "Girls, do you mind giving us a minute alone. I promise I won't keep him long."

Their glares darkened but they left upon Kankuro's nod.

Alone, Sakura slipped onto his lap, her thighs on either side of his, drawing the hem of her dress tantalizingly high. She made sure he could feel the blunt pressure of her gun as she settled herself comfortably against him. His hands fell to the couch beside her calves, almost touching but not quite.

"Puppet Master," Sakura said as her hands smoothed out the collar of his black, button up shirt. "I have to say I like it. It's quite adorable."

His dark eyes stared right back at her. A little impatient. A little wary. "What do you want, Tsunade?"

Her smile took on a menacing note. "I heard a funny, little rumor that you were trying to traffic guns through my neighborhood. Now I know that can't possibly be true, so I thought I'd come and clarify the issue myself."

When Kankuro didn't speak, she slipped her hand around his throat. Not hard enough to cut off the air supply but with enough pressure to make the threat ring clear. "I would have thought you'd learn from your brother's mistake," she whispered dangerously. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't kill you now."

"I need the weapons," he told her quietly, though that anxious expression still hadn't faded from his face. "There's a group causing me all sorts of problems in Cairo. They're part of a new gang called Akatsuki."

Sakura's interest piqued but she didn't speak as he continued, "Last week, one of my warehouses was blown up. I lost nearly two dozen guys and almost half a million US dollars in weapons. You know I would never-."

"Shut up," she said sharply. "Tell me more about Akatsuki."

Kankuro blinked. "Uh...it was two guys, Deidara and Sasori. I don't know much about them other than Deidara is a fucking psycho pyro maniac. He was the one who blew the whole damn place up."

"Why? What did they want?"

"Fuck if I know," he said. "I had a load ready to head towards Morocco and they blew the damn ship out of the water."

Sakura ran her fingers down the tendon on Kankuro's neck, caressing the soft skin as she thought. In the sudden quiet, she heard the lewd noises of one of Kankuro's men still getting deepthroated but her mind was a million miles away.

"Good news, darling," Sakura eventually said. "I'm not going to kill you."

Visible relief swept across Kankuro's face. He settled his hands on her thighs, his fingers playing with the hem of her dress. "You're not?"

Sakura smiled. "No. Because you're going to go back to Cairo to find out exactly what Akatsuki was doing in Egypt. And then you're going to report back to me. Consider this your apology for attempting to steal my guns."

His fingers inched higher under her skirt. "Are you sure I couldn't just apologize another way?"

Just then, Sakura heard the man behind her moan low and broken. She didn't have to turn her head to know that he had finished. It seemed the sound had affected Kankuro for the bulge in his pants grew slightly.

Sakura almost laughed. Kankuro always was a bit of a masochist.

She smiled provocatively but didn't answer as her phone vibrated. Sakura pulled it out of her bra and dropped her gaze to unlock the screen. The message was from Kakashi.

One text, two words: Get out.

Then another, one word: Now!

Sakura didn't question it, didn't reply. She simply slipped her phone back into her bra before standing. "Find out what you can on Akatsuki and I won't kill you," were her parting words. Then she left.

Not entirely sure what was going on, Sakura headed for the back entrance, pushing her way through the crowd until she reached a narrow staircase. She wasn't even halfway down when the music cut off abruptly and shouts in both Hebrew and Arabic filled the room.

Sakura didn't stop. Just burst through the stairs at the bottom. It let her out into an alley, where blue lights flashed against the brick walls. The police!

"Shit," she cursed.

Quickly Sakura turned, intent on making a dash for the opposite direction. Only there were blue lights that way too. There were no stairs, no windows low enough for her to climb into. If she was fast, she might be able to slip past them before they secured a parameter.

But she wasn't taking any chances.

Pulling out her gun, Sakura began disassembling it as she ran. She threw one piece into a half full dumpster, another into the second story window and the rest of the smaller pieces into the weeds sprouting up from cracks in the pavement. She wedged her fake ID into an invisible crack in the wall.

"Tawaqqafi!"

Sakura cursed again as she heard the shout to stop behind her, but she kept running, her heels pounding against the street. She wasn't getting out of this, she realized.

With that revelation, Sakura ran a rough hand through her hair and raked her nails across her upper arms as she bit at the healing cut in her lip until she tasted blood. The pounding of footsteps behind her drew closer.

"Tawaqqafi! Anti qayd al-i'itiqal!"

Sakura drew to an abrupt halt. She raised her hands in the air as she recognized the first phrase she had ever learned in Arabic:

"You're under arrest."

to be continued...

special thanks to caffeinated-writer and arashian155 on tumblr for translation help! And thank you Rhearenee for your wonderful review!