Chapter 6
As Sakura was leaving her apartment, she decided to skip making breakfast for herself and stop at a local bakery to buy a muffin and a coffee. She knew that she may have a busy work day at the hospital and just wanted something quick before she started.
She entered the Tomoko bakery and looked around. The place was quite small and very quaint. To her left were glass enclosed shelves filled with all kinds of baked goods. Straight ahead was the checkout counter with a couple of specialized coffee brewers behind the counter and to her right were small round cafe tables with two or three chairs around each table. It was a nice place to come to and relax while enjoying your favorite dessert either by yourself or with some friends. This was Sakura's favorite place to get anko dumplings or dango.
Sakura walked up to the checkout counter and asked for a blueberry muffin and a caramel hot mocha coffee. She paid for the breakfast and left the bakery behind to go to her office.
After a ten minute walk, the pinkette entered the hospital and said good morning to the receptionist. She climbed the stairs up to the third floor and entered her office. Sitting behind the desk, she pulled her muffin out of the bag that the bakery had wrapped it in and put it to the side. Sakura took a sip of her coffee and started to peruse the patient files that were left on the desk from the day before.
Sakura organized the files in the order of when each patient would be visited during her rounds. She also made sure to leave enough time in the schedule just in case an emergency should arise during her shift. After planning the work day, she took a bite of her muffin. When both the muffin and the coffee were finished, she threw her trash in her garbage can hidden underneath her desk and decided it was time to start her rounds.
A few hours later, the pinkette could be found back in her office. Sakura was trying to rest after having to perform an emergency surgery that left her quite depleted of chakra. I wish I had thought ahead and prepared a bento for myself, she thought. Sakura made a decision to go to the cafeteria after her break to get something to eat, but before she could head in that direction there was a knock on the door.
Sakura opened the door and saw a genin student standing before her. "Hello, what can I do for you?"
"The Hokage would like you to come to her office," the genin said.
"Ok. I'll be right there," she sighed half to herself. "I guess I'll just have to wait to get something to eat later."
Several minutes after following the genin out of the hospital and down the now bustling street, Sakura climbed the stairs of the Hokage tower. She steadily made her way to the door leading to Tsunade's office. Tsunade already knowing that Sakura was outside her door, yelled, "Go ahead and come in Sakura. I know your there."
The pinkette hesitated briefly, turned the knob, then entered the room and stood before her shishou. "You needed to see me, Tsunade-shishou? She asked.
"Yes, I have a mission for you. You will be gone for a month to Suna," Tsunade told her. "Temari has requested your medical services for a kunoichi competition that Suna is going to host. She has also requested Shikamaru to join you as he will be assisting her in this competition."
"A mission to Suna?" Sakura asked in surprise. "A kunoichi competition? Why would they need me? They have their own medics."
"Yes, Suna does have its own medics, but Temari wants a medic who will be unbiased in their treatment during the competition. She will be returning to Konoha in a couple of days to escort you and Shikamaru to Suna. I know you will make Konoha proud as you perform this service." The Hokage beamed. "Here is the mission scroll. I will send for you and Shikamaru when Temari returns."
"Thanks Shishou," Sakura said with a bow. "I'll make sure to do my best."
After taking the scroll from Tsunade, she left the Hokage tower and headed home. She was going to make something to eat and then head to bed. It had been a very long day for her and now she had to get ready to go to Suna.
Hmm… I wonder if I will get to see Gaara while I'm there, she thought to herself.
###
Temari grabbed her storage scroll that contained the information she needed to give to the printers. She walked down the stairs and into the kitchen to grab an apricot and then poured herself a cup of coffee. After finishing her breakfast and washing the dishes, she left to go to the printers.
Matsuri looked over the list she had written up again. She had seen Gaara and Temari return back to the village. That meant that the trials would be starting soon. She would have to make sure to keep a close eye on Temari if she wanted to find out when and where the trails would take place.
After hanging around the Kazekage offices for a while, she overheard that Gaara was in a foul mood. Matsuri decided to keep her distance until the brewing storm had passed. Distance does make the heart grow fonder, she thought. Besides, she had more important things to keep her time occupied.
Matsuri left the Kazekage office and headed out to get something for lunch. On her way to her favorite restaurant she spied Temari leaving the printers with her arms full of scrolls. Hmmm, I wonder if those are for the trials? She decided to go over and say hi to Temari.
"Hi, Temari," said Matsuri. "It looks like you have your hands full."
"Hello Matsuri. Yes, I sure do have my hands full," she laughed. "How are you doing?"
"I'm fine. Do you need some help?" Matsuri asked.
"That would be great. I was actually going to find a genin to help me, but you will do. I need to distribute these scrolls to the kunoichis who are participating in the Kazehime trials. Do you think you could deliver some of these for me?"
"Sure. I don't mind helping you, Temari," Matsuri responded with a smile.
Matsuri couldn't believe her luck. The information that she needed was just being placed into her hands. She knew staying close to Temari would pay off. After taking about half of the scrolls from Temari, she walked in the opposite direction.
When she was out of Temari's sight, she rounded into an alley and dropped the scrolls on the ground. She picked up one of the scrolls and unrolled it. There in plain sight was all of the information she needed. The trials were going to start in two weeks. She quickly put the scroll in her back pouch and picked the others up. This also would be a great opportunity for her to size up some of the competition. She walked out of the alley and started to deliver the first scroll in her hands.
Thankful for Matsuri's help in distributing the scrolls, Temari delivered the last of the scrolls. The other scrolls would be delivered to the kunoichis via hawk. When the blonde finished her work of delivering scrolls, she went home for dinner and decided to watch a movie before going to bed. In a couple of days she would be leaving for Konoha to start the next phase of her plan.
###
Three days later, Temari grabbed her pack and slung it over her shoulder. She made her way to the Kazekage offices and entered Gaara's office.
Gaara looked up from the scroll he was reading. "What do you need, Temari?" he asked his sister.
"I'm just here to let you know that I will be gone for a little over a week," Temari told him. The council is sending me on a confidential mission to Konoha. I should be back by the beginning of next week."
"The council is sending you to Konoha? Whatever for and why was I not informed of this?" Gaara angrily spat out.
"I just told you it was confidential. I can't tell you anything without upsetting the council. You know this," Temari sighed while rubbing her face with her right hand.
"I don't like it, Temari. The council is not to be trusted. Just be safe."
"I'll do my best, Gaara," Temari grinned.
Gaara just sighed while he watched his sister leave. He was starting to feel abandoned. First the council forces his hand with the Kazehime Trials. Then, he had to give up the one girl that he had a crush on and now his sister was being sent on confidential missions by his very own council. He didn't know how much more he could take. Drowning himself in his work was not helping him to deal with his moody behavior.
After traveling for three days, Temari finally made her way to the gates of Konoha. She signed in at the gate check house and then walked to the Hokage Towers. She climbed the steps up to the floor that contained the Hokage's office. When she reached the correct floor, she walked over to the door of Tsunade's office and knocked on it.
Tsunade, feeling the foreign chakra presence, called out, "Enter" in a raspy voice. Temari entered the spacious office and stood in front of the Hokage's desk. "Welcome back, Temari. I presume that you are here to take Sakura and Shikamaru to Suna?" She already knew the answer to her question. She just wanted to continue to play along with Temari's ruse. "So how goes the planning for your little kunoichi competition?" She had a grin on her face.
Temari looked at the Hokage and saw her grin. Could she be suspicious of my true intentions for Sakura, she wondered to herself. She hoped that was not the case. She had only confided in Shikamaru and she didn't want anyone else to know her true intent. If too many people knew the truth, then her plans would be ruined and Gaara's future marriage partner may be in jeopardy because of the council's plans.
"Thanks and yes to answer your second question," Temari responded. "The planning is going fine. I just finished sending the information packets to the participating kunoichis before I came here."
Tsunade then yelled for Shizune to come to her office.
"Yes, Tsunade-sama, you called for me," Shizune gasped out after running into the Hokage's office.
"Shizune, I need for you to summon Sakura and Shikamaru here," Tsunade commanded. "Tell them they should be prepared to leave for Suna as soon as I have met with them."
Shizune left promptly to find a couple of genin to help her find the individuals that the Hokage requested to see. When Tsunade saw that Shizune had left, she pulled out her hidden sake bottle and poured herself a glass and started to offer some to Temari. Temari just shook her head. "No thanks. I want to keep my wits about me as I travel back to Suna."
Tsunade just chuckled at her. "You don't know what you're missing," she told Temari. "Besides, I think Konoha is getting the raw end of the deal you made with me."
"W-whatever do you mean by that?" Temari questioned.
"I know there is more to you just requesting for Sakura to go to Suna for your silly, little competition. You wouldn't be the first representative from a foreign country to pull this stunt of yours." Tsunade couldn't help the snicker that fell from her lips.
"I'm still not sure what you are talking about, Lady Tsunade. I hope I have not offended you in any way?"
"No. No, I am not offended. I am kind of interested to see how this all plays out, though."
Temari just nodded her head and bowed to the Hokage. Just as she finished her bow, Shikamaru and Sakura walked into the office.
"It's about time the two of you showed up," bellowed Tsunade. "Temari is finally here to take the two of you to Suna. I already gave you both your mission scrolls. Since you both will be gone for a month, I do expect to receive updated weekly mission status reports. Do you have any questions?"
"No," both Sakura and Shikamaru responded at the same time.
"Then be off with the lot of you. I still have a lot of work to accomplish," Tsunade said while waving them off as though shooing a fly away.
The three youngsters bowed to the Hokage and left her office. Temari looked at her travel companions and said she would take point. Sakura could be in the middle with Shikamaru following behind. She didn't expect any trouble to come their way, but wanted to be prepared just in case something did happen. Temari also wanted to make sure that Sakura stayed safe. If something did happen to Sakura, then her whole plan would fail and the council would get their way. She was not going to let that happen.
The trio made their way to the gates and started to head out toward Suna and to the awaiting trials. Two of the people knew what to expect when they arrived and one was just oblivious to how her future was going to change.
XXX
Three days later, the trio walked through the gates of Suna. Temari led the group to her home. When she entered the house, she yelled out, "Tadaima" and slipped out of her shoes next to the door. Sakura and Shikamaru followed suit and left their footwear next to the door as well.
Noticing that neither Gaara nor Kankuro were home, Temari decided to show Shikamaru the direction of the guest room. She informed Sakura that she wanted a girl's night after they all had dinner and Sakura would be staying in her room for the night.
Sakura looked forward to the night and hoped to be able to get a good night's rest, since traveling for the past couple of days had been rough. Temari didn't feel like cooking and suggested that they go out to eat. Both Shikamaru and Sakura agreed to the suggestion.
After eating their dinner, they slowly walked back to the Kazekage mansion and decided to watch a movie before going to bed. Temari went into the kitchen and put a bag of popcorn into the microwave and grabbed some drinks from the fridge. Once the corn was popped, she poured it into a bowl, then grabbed the drinks and the bowl of popcorn and walked into the living room. She put the bowl and the drinks on the coffee table that was situated in front of the couch. Temari sat next to Shikamaru on the couch while Sakura sat in the recliner with her legs propped up on the leg rest.
Shikamaru found an action movie on tv that he thought they all would like. Sakura grabbed a handful of the popcorn and one of the drinks and sat back in the recliner. The rest of the night, they all watched the movie and laughed at some of the scenes they felt were overacted on. Once the movie was over, Sakura stretched her back out while she yawned. Shikamaru said goodnight to the girls and headed to his room for the night.
Temari and Sakura got up and walked to their shared room to go to sleep. Before going to sleep, Temari informed Sakura that they were going to spend the next day together. She wanted to take Sakura shopping. She knew there would be things that Sakura would need for her month long stay in Suna.
Secretly, Temari wanted to make sure she purchased things that Sakura would need to survive out in the desert. This would be the perfect time to get those supplies without raising Sakura's suspicions. After talking to each other for another half hour, they said good night and soon fell fast asleep.
The next morning, Temari woke up first and got her shower. When she walked back into her room, she noticed that Sakura was just waking up. "Good morning, Sunshine," Temari jested. "It seems you didn't need my wake up services today," Temari jokingly said, reminding Sakura of her wake up call back in Konoha.
Sakura just grinned at her. "You four will get yours someday and I'll be laughing when it happens. You know, I also noticed there isn't any birds to wake you up here." Sakura knew Temari was grateful for that and figured she would get her digs in where she could. Then, she got out of bed and made her way to take her shower. Temari just left the room, so she could start making breakfast.
While in the kitchen, Temari noticed that Gaara had already left for the office and that Kankuro was still home. She decided to make pancakes for breakfast. She got the ingredients out of the cupboard and fridge and started mixing the batter. Then, Temari poured the batter on the griddle and let them sit for a few minutes before flipping them.
Shikamaru came down to the kitchen just as Temari was working on her second batch of pancakes. He grabbed four glasses from the cupboard and placed them on the table and then continued to place the rest of the place settings on the table as well. Temari took the platter of pancakes and placed it in the middle of the table. Kankuro smelling the pancakes, seated himself at the table. He started to grab for the platter of food when Temari slapped his hand away. "Wait for Sakura to come to the table," Temari commanded.
Sakura finally came down the stairs and sat at the table. "Thanks for the breakfast, Temari," she said. Temari just nodded at her while she picked up the platter of pancakes and handed it off to Shikamaru.
After breakfast, Temari asked Sakura to go back to their room and get ready for a full day of shopping. When she heard the door to the bedroom click shut, Temari turned to Kankuro and told him he was not to tell Gaara that Sakura was in Suna.
"Sakura and Shikamaru were given permission by both the Suna council and the Hokage to assist with the Kazehime trials," Temari explained. "By order of the council, Gaara is not to know that they are here. So help me – Kankuro, if I find out that you told Gaara that Sakura and Shikamaru are here, I'll take all of your dolls out to the training field and shred them with my fan," she growled out at him.
Kankuro threw his hands up in defense. "He won't hear a thing from me, Temari. I promise. Just don't touch my puppets," Kankuro protested. "It took me years to work on that collection."
"Shikamaru, I give you free reign of the house. Sakura and I will be out shopping," Temari informed her crush. He just gave her a lazy nod and headed back to his room.
Temari picked up the dishes and placed them in the sink for Kankuro to wash and put away. She then went to her room and told Sakura she was ready to go shopping.
The first place Temari took Sakura was to a clothing store. She wanted Sakura to try on some desert-appropriate clothes. Sakura purchased three outfits and Temari purchased two outfits in Sakura's size, unbeknownst to Sakura. After clothes shopping, Temari and Sakura stopped to get lunch. They stopped at Temari's favorite cafe and ordered veggie wraps and lattes to drink.
When they finished their lunch, Temari told Sakura that she needed to pick up some things from a few other stores. Sakura continued to enjoy the time she got to spend with Temari. After buying everything that Temari felt she needed, they went back to the mansion. Sakura was worn out by the time they made it back to the house. She wearily climbed the steps to Temari's room and decided she would take a nap.
Gaara, having worked almost a full day in his office, decided to go home and relax before dinner. He rolled up the scroll he had been reading and put the seal back on it. He said good night to the receptionist on his way out and walked back to the Kazekage mansion.
While walking home, he thought about the newest project the council was requesting money to be set aside for. What a waste, he thought to himself. The only people who would benefit from this latest project would be the wealthiest. The council should be looking for projects that would benefit all of Suna, not just the wealthy. Gaara was so busy thinking, he missed seeing the extra pair of shoes by the door when he slipped his off. He continued to his room, walked over to the corner of the room and sat down to meditate.
Sakura woke up from her nap. The smell of dinner was wafting up to the bedroom. Sakura left the comfortable room in order to fill her hungry stomach. She sat at the table just as Temari was laying the food in the center of the table. Sakura filled her plate and started eating the dinner that Temari and Shikamaru had made.
While eating, Sakura thought about how she would organize the infirmary for when the wounded kunoichis would arrive. She wanted to be prepared in case any real emergency arose. When she finished eating, she thanked both Temari and Shikamaru for a wonderful meal and excused herself from the table. Sakura went back to Temari's room to go through her medical supplies.
Gaara ended his meditation when he started smelling dinner. He exited his room and heard the door to Temari's room click shut. He thought that maybe Temari had just returned back to her room and shrugged it off. He made his way to the dinner table and sat down to get something to eat. He looked up from his plate of food and found Kankuro grinning at him. "What?" he questioned his brother.
"Oh, nothing," Kankuro responded while he picked up his plate and left for the kitchen. When he walked into the kitchen, he told Temari that Gaara was out at the dinner table and Shikamaru should hide himself if he didn't want to be found. Temari continued to wash the dishes and nodded for Shikamaru to hide himself.
When Gaara finished eating, he picked up his place setting and took them into the kitchen. He found the kitchen empty and placed his dishes into the sink. He remembered the last scroll he was reading and decided to go back to the office to finish reading it. Not wanting to waste time, he transported himself to his office.
XXX
The day had finally arrived. The day that Temari had waited for. The day that she would put the last part of her plan into action. So far, so good, the blonde thought to herself. They had gotten lucky last night with the near misses Gaara made. He almost found out that Shikamaru was in the village. Temari didn't like lying to her brother, but this was for his own good. She couldn't wait for the end of the trials.
Temari shook Sakura awake and told her to get ready. She was going to take Sakura to the arena where the infirmary was going to be. While Sakura was in the shower, Temari pulled out a pack that she had started to put together. She had already put some supplies and storage scrolls in the pack. Sakura would need these things in order to survive her time in the desert. When she heard the water in the shower turn off, she slid the pack over by her desk and finished preparing herself for the day.
When they had finished breakfast, Sakura followed Temari to the Suna arena. The place had a few offices, a couple of conference rooms and the arena floor. Most celebrations and concerts were held in the arena. Temari led Sakura to the first floor conference room. She opened the door so Sakura could walk into the room first.
While Sakura had her back to the door, Temari dropped the pack she had prepared for Sakura and then closed the door. She locked it and then placed a chakra absorbing jutsu over the walls and the door. She couldn't let Sakura out of the room just yet. After placing the jutsu, she walked away. She had to meet with the participants of the trial.
Sakura looked around the room and found it to be empty. "Temari, what is this? There is nothing here," she said as she turned around. "Where did Temari go?" She walked over to the door and went to open it. When it wouldn't open, she started getting worried. "What is going on? Why is this door locked?"
Sakura started pounding on the door with her fist, but it did not budge. She then tried to break the door down with a chakra laden punch, but it was just absorbed by the jutsu that was in place. Shocked by what had just happened, Sakura couldn't believe her eyes. What just happened? She thought to herself. Why did Temari lock her in this room?
Temari made her way to the arena floor. She watched as the participants were signed in and each given a monitor to wear. Unbeknownst to her, Matsuri had bypassed the line of kunoichis and snuck into the back of the arena. She tried to hide herself amongst the taller kunoichis. She needed to hear Temari speak without being seen.
Temari saw that all the participants had made their way onto the arena floor. She walked to the front of the group and asked for silence. "Welcome to the Kazehime Trials. Before the trial starts, I would like to go over some things," Temari stated.
"First, when you signed in, you were each given a monitor. This monitor will track your movements in the desert. It will also track your health. All information will be fed back to computers that are located in one of the conference rooms here in the arena." Temari started instructing. Each person in the room started looking at the monitor they were wearing and at each other. A small hum of voices was heard as the participants started talking amongst themselves.
Again, Temari asked for quiet as she continued with her instructions. "Second, as participants in this trial, you should be respectful of each other. You may not kill your competition. You will be required to battle each other until either one is knocked unconscious or can no longer battle. The monitor you are wearing will notify us immediately if you are knocked unconscious or if you are in imminent danger. At that time, you will be removed from the trial and be considered a defeated opponent. You will be brought back here to the arena for medical attention and will not be allowed to leave until the end of the trial."
Temari looked over the room at each and every participant. Matsuri listened intently and tried not to make eye contact with the elder Sabaku sibling. She decided that she was going to forego the monitor for now. She would however make sure to take one from a distracted participant when she made it out to the desert.
Temari continued her lecture. "You all signed a confidentiality agreement and medical form before entering this room," she said. "You will not be able to talk about the trial until after the Kazehime has been chosen. If you are found in breach of the confidentiality agreement, you will be stripped of your kunoichi status and will be listed as a Suna civilian in the Suna civilian records. Are there any questions before we start?"
Everyone looked at each other to see if there were any questions. When no one spoke, they all shook their heads at Temari and waited for her next instructions. Temari turned to the back of the arena and nodded her head at the male shinobis who were waiting for her sign to go ahead and proceed with the next step.
After nodding her head and turning back to the kunoichis, the male shinobis stepped forward and grabbed the arm of a kunoichi. They performed the proper hand signs for a transportation jutsu and transported each of the kunoichis to different locations in the desert.
One of the male shinobi transported himself into the empty conference room where Sakura was located. He found her in the room with a dazed look on her face and sputtering angry curses. He picked up the pack that Temari had prepared for her, slapped the monitor onto the top portion of Sakura's left chest, and then grabbed her to transport her out to the desert.
Sakura did not like the fact that she was being manhandled and started yelling at the young shinobi. He just rolled his eyes at her. Once they were out in the desert, he dropped her on her ass and told her "Good luck. You'll be needing it, Princess." Then, he was gone.
Sakura, noticing that she was alone, starting yelling curses at the top of her lungs. "How dare he just drop me?" If she wasn't mad before, she was now more than furiously pissed off. What was Temari thinking locking me in a room and then throwing me out into the desert. What the hell was going on? I'm just supposed to be in Suna as a medic. Sakura started pounding the sand beneath her with her chakra-laden fists. She wanted answers and she wanted them now. She tried to calm herself down and saw the pack that the shinobi had dropped at her feet.
She picked up the pack and hoped that the answers that she needed would be found inside. The first thing she found in the pack was a cloak; then a desert survival guide book, a tarp and some storage scrolls. She pulled out the first scroll and found that it contained some of the outfits that she had bought with Temari the day before. She also found goggles, lip gloss and a scarf. The second scroll contained some food supplies and canteens filled with water. It also contained supplies to make a fire at night.
Sakura didn't find the answers she needed inside the pack. Temari must have put this pack together for me knowing that I was going to be out here. Well at least she did that. Sakura was still angry with Temari and there was going to be a lot that Temari would have to answer for once she got back to Suna. Sakura pulled out the compass she found in the pack and since there was still some daylight left, she started walking north.
When dusk reached across the desert floor, Sakura decided to stop for the night. She unrolled the scroll with the food stuff and took out the fire-making supplies. She first started a fire and then pulled out a heavy sweatshirt from the other scroll. She put the sweatshirt on and then draped the cloak about her shoulders. She laid the tarp on the desert floor and sat on it. She found a granola bar amongst the food supplies and ate it.
When she finished eating, she took a couple of sips from a canteen and decided to rest for the night. Sakura was going to have a long journey back to Suna and wanted to make sure she didn't overexert herself. She had been in the desert before, but she had always been with others. This was her first time in the desert by herself. She looked up to the stars and hoped that she would be able to survive this new challenge. She closed her eyes and fell into a light sleep.
Author Notes:
Well, this is my longest chapter yet. Sorry for the lateness in posting this. There was a lot going on in this chapter and it took some time to type and edit. I hope I didn't go too overboard with this chapter.
I appreciate all the reviews, follows and favorites. If there's anything you think I can do better, please let me know. This is my first fanfiction story and I am challenging myself on my writing skills.
If you are interesting in being a beta, please PM me.
Toodles!