T he S e a s B e O u r s

There was the deafening explosions of canons being fired as the enemy vessel caught their ship off guard, the clang of metal on metal as swords clashed, the desperate yells of orders as the crew scurried to prepare themselves, much too late. But there was a reason why Sakura's ship had such a fearsome reputation, and the crew would not be driven back so easily. They turned to face the opponents that sailed through the air from one ship to another, weapons raised and at the ready.

There was not a moment of time to lose. It amazed Sasuke how quickly the company of pirates snapped out of a slothful state and into one of action and order, and how they mediated only the necessary state of panic that would motivate them to defend themselves properly. One moment the Captain was yelling powerful, impressive words at him — and then next she was stripping off her dress while shouting and Naruto to take him to the brig. "But Capt'n," he protested, unaffected by the layers of clothing that dropped to the floor as she searched around for her pants. "You've seen how he is with a sword, he can help!"

"Not to be trusted!" She spat in reply, pulling on her pants under her under her skirts before tossing off the under robes and slipping on the loose fitting male shirt. "He'll turn against us in a heartbeat." She ripped off the white gloves, throwing them to the pile that began to accumulate on the floor. Sasuke tried to pretend that he had not just seen her undress and redress herself, even if she had done it in such a fashion that he didn't really see much of anything besides the occasional glimpse of pale skin. He stood silently, unsure of what to do. "And he knows too much, Naruto. He knows too much! We can't risk letting him escape. And damn it! Where is my hat?"

"In the windowsill, with your sword." He replied. The sounds of a raging fresh battled roared outside, and for the first time Sasuke wondered who. Who would dare approach this ship, knowing its history? Surely, they had to be aware that they were trying to do the impossible, boarding Captain Hokage's vessel. But his questions would be answered shortly. Naruto took him by the arm and yanked him towards the door of the Captains quarters. "Well then, if the Capt'n says to the brig with you, to the brig with you. Sorry about this, but you brought it on yourself. We'll let you out when we win."

He was in a hurry, dragging him along without the empathy to bother and make sure that Sasuke could keep up. As soon as they were outside of Sakura's quarters, the enemy was made obvious. The military uniforms, which he had worn not too long ago himself, were unmistakable. He didn't even have the chance to deduce who had the upper hand before he was thrust harshly into the brig below the deck and shackled to the wall by Naruto, who sprinted upwards immediately afterwards, calling as he went: "Lets show the bastards what we're made of!" And shutting the door behind him.

C h a p t e r V I I

Battles and Bottles

And I found myself their prisoner once again. My stomach churned in anxiety and uncertainty, this was a different form of torture all together. I might as well have been stricken blind, because I felt hopelessly kept in the dark when I did not know what was going on above the deck. My mind felt ready to explode with the desperate desire to know. How many had been injured, killed? Who was the battle in favor of? How had the naval ship stumbled across Sakura's?

I followed closely the sounds that came from above, but they only increased my frustration. I heard the sounds of jeers and battle cries, and could not tell if they came from my comrades or the pirates. I felt the rumble of the ship as the cannonballs shot from the canons. Who was greater in number? Who was greater in skill? Would I be rescued, however embarrassing the concept might be, or would I be forced to watch what may be my last hope die?

I jumped whenever the sounds came near to the door, hoping that someone would come through to set me free, whether friend or enemy. My body tingled for a piece of the action, for the feel of a sword in my hand, the thrill of the fight. I longed to be a part of it. If only I had the common sense to say something in my defense earlier, to sling lies about my loyalty to Sakura, and convince her to let me fight. Of course, I would turn on her in a heartbeat. But one does what one can. Escape was my first priority.

Or was it? Now that I knew who the Captain was, would it be right of me to let her be? Would it be right of me to force her back to her homeland and condemn her to a fate that could only lead to the gallows? Would it lead to the gallows? There was no doubt that Sakura was an important woman who came from a powerful family, but was she above the law?

Haruno Sakura: The news of her death had set off the biggest outrage of that year. She was the daughter of a rich aristocrat, one who was very well connected with my family, and speculated to have the largest dowry on the west side of the continent. When her parents were safely returned home after their trip to Paris was interrupted by Captain Hokage, they demanded the head of every pirate on the seas, criticizing the military and their lack of success in ridding the waters of criminals. Many others joined in, and the military was commonly labeled as incompetent by the wealthy population.

Her supposed death had brought about the largest indiscriminate slaughter of pirates in history. The higher-ups had no choice but to satisfy the furious demands of rich society, whose money and power held high influence over them. At the time I had not been a part of the military, as I was still too young, but I could remember the enormous line of people that had formed to await their turn at the gallows as I passed by every morning. Not only known pirates, but everyone who was connected to them, or suspected of being connected to them, was hanged.

The personal impact had been the smallest on me, it seemed, until I thought about what my life would have been like if she had returned on that rescue ship with her parents. My father expressed his condolences to a glum and crabby Mr. Haruno, who I had remembered as being so kindly and easy-going, and I attended her funeral. I was engaged to Hyuuga Hinata in her stead. But if she had returned, we... Well, we would most certainly be married, as she had said. It was difficult to imagine being married to her, picturing her in the same dress as she sat in one of my chairs at home and read or sewed. Eating dinner across from each other. Sharing a bed at night.

I sighed crossly and banged a closed fist against the wall of the boat, as a cannon went off nearby. What a dilemma I would be in, if only I weren't trapped below deck. But I yearned for my freedom regardless, for the opportunity to have that dilemma and make a decision. Take her with me, or leave her here at to be dealt with at a later time? Of course, Hinata would be brought with me, if this battle would eventually end with my side victorious.

Haruno Sakura. She just had to be Haruno Sakura, of all people!

I was growing fretfully impatient. I fidgeted relentlessly, following closely after the sounds above and searching for any signs of one side overpowering the other. I wondered what she would be doing now — yelling orders at her crew or dueling an unworthy opponent? There was not a doubt in my mind that I was the only other person with a feigning chance of matching her fencing skill. But this thought, however dreary it might have been, did not give me reason to fear. I knew only too well her policies, and although it did not excuse her from a life of crime, Sakura would not kill.

There might have been a shred of humanity left in her yet. Left in all of them, these pirates, who pranced around on their high horses behaving as if they were impregnable. I wished with all my heart that the military would at last knock some sense into them and bring them the justice they deserved. And I wished to be a part of that.

With that the door swung open and a figure emerged. I could hear the sounds of his heavy breathing as he approached and stepped through the darkness, coming slowly into view. My heart leaped at the sight of him. Of course I recognized the man with the unforgettable white, gravity-defying hair and the eye patch who barreled down the stairs to my aid, stopping only feet in front of me and displaying a small, rusted key with a proud smile. "Lieutenant." He greeted cheerfully. "It's a pleasure to see you again."

He freed me, and I spared nothing more than a few seconds to thank him graciously before charging up the stairs. As soon as I reached the upper level, I could feel my heart plummet into my stomach. It was quite easy to see who was winning, as the bodies dressed in uniform lay scattered and unconscious, but not dead, across the deck of the ship. The pirates cried victoriously, pushing back the few brave souls of the military who remained, fighting with all their might, although it was beginning to become obviously a futile effort.

There were a few outstanding members of the crew that caught my eye right away. The odd ball Rock Lee, who was completely unarmed, span and kicked and punched the officers, sending them sprawling to the ground. He used nothing but his fists, which although idiotic, was quite remarkable. He was injured, but unwavering. He fought with the same enthusiasm that performed every day tasks with.

The brunette who the Captain had introduced to me as Tenten was flinging what seemed to be an unlimited supply of weapons every which direction, and even though it looked at first sight to be quite reckless, there was a surprising level of accuracy in her throws. The blond, Ino, hid behind a man with dark hair pulled up into a ponytail on top of his head, Shika-something was his name, I think, and ordered him about as he brandished his weapon lazily. And then there was the ever-conspicuous blond first mate, who shouted crude insults as he evaded the oncoming few that charged after him, challenging numerous other people as he went along. "That's right, come at me, you mangy dogs! I can take on you! I can take on all of you! And you too, you ugly son-of-a-bitch!"

The Captain was at the center of it all, fighting off four or five people with a triumphant ease that sickened me. Haruno Sakura or not, there was no denying that she was talented with a sword. And then the twist in my stomach worsened when I came to realize that one of the people that she currently fought was none other than my Fiancée's cousin — Hyuuga Neji. The ship that had picked up the survivors of the previous attack must have followed in pursuit immediately afterwards. Of course, I criticized myself for not thinking of it sooner. They certainly would have realized the disappearance of Hinata and I and chased after Sakura.

I knew that I needed to rush into action, but was unsure how to do so. Without my sword, I would be of little help to the situation. Of course, the most logical thing to do first would be to incapacitate the Captain of the ship and take it under our control. But without a weapon to defend myself with, going up against her would be suicide.

My train of thought was interrupted when a military personal unexpectedly slashed their sword at me. Instinctively, I jumped out of the way, only barely avoiding a poorly aimed blow. "What on earth are you doing?" I demanded incredulously, turning to him as he stumbled backwards, looking frightened. "Are you trying to kill me?"

"Lieu-Lieutenant!" He stuttered. He must not have recognized me, seeing as I was dressed like one of them. "I'm so sorry, I thought that..."

"Give me your sword." I demanded, outstretching an open hand towards him.

"B-but," he protested, holding it loosely in his shaking hands as he moved it about uncertainly. Towards me, and then back towards him. I recognized his face as someone who had only been recently accepted into the military, who was still quite young and unexperienced. I severely outranked him, but I could understand his reasoning. If he were to give his sword to me, it would leave him defenseless.

"Just give me the bloody sword, if you want any chance at all of being on the winning end of this fight!" I snapped, and he jumped in surprise before hastily relinquishing it to me. It was a poorly crafted sword, uneven and too short in length for my liking, but it would have to do. I blindly burst through the crowds of warring people, and ran towards the peacock feather that protruded up from the sea of heads.

It was then at last that she noticed me, shock flashing through the green eyes that shone from beneath the shadow the hat created. "Who let him out?" She bellowed in a voice intentionally kept lower than her own. "And damn it, who gave him a sword? Somebody, stop him! Naruto!" The blond whipped his head towards me, and immediately disregarded his other opponents, jumping into my path. I skidded to a halt, nearly tripping over the unconscious body of one of my fallen comrades.

"Can't you stay put??" He demanded loudly, knocking his sword harshly against mine in an attempt to fling it out of my grasp. I kept it firmly in my hand. I advanced on him, avoiding making potentially fatal blows, as my intention was to get him out of my way and not kill him, not yet. He blocked all of them. But it had already been made clear in our last fight that he was no match from me, and I was pushing him back. The others who had been chasing him knew better than to interfere, and steered clear of us.

I was on the verge of knocking him off of his feet when he pointed dramatically to something over my shoulder. "HINATA!" He shrieked.

Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. I was humiliated as I looked over my shoulder to see nothing and felt the sword torn from my hand and tossed over the side of the boat, creating a loud splash as it darted into the water below. He chuckled. "Get's 'em every time..." I stood horrified as he pointed the blade of his own sword against my throat. "Alright, back to the brig with ya--"

But he didn't get to finish, because he was interrupted by the men who had been onlookers to our duel, who jumped in to defend me. I took the opportunity and bolted, careless of my lack of arms, towards the Captain. I caught sight of her again, but she was much too busy to notice that I was headed in her direction, not this time. Now even more had crowded around her, and they moved about so continuously that I couldn't count the number of bobbing heads that surrounded her. She was being pushed back into a corner, fighting with the same desperation that I had seen when I fought her for the first time.

And suddenly, the image of her dressed in that pretty gown looking out over the empty waters with that miserable expression on her face dominated my mind. She was a woman, damn it, regardless of the fact that she was the pirate of the Captain ship, and I had to do something! Thoughts of escape were erased from my mind, completely wiped away by the powerful instinct to do something, even though I wasn't quite sure what.

A sharp whack with the blunt end of her sword, and she sent one solider toppling over, bringing two others with him. Now it was just her and three other opponents, dodging swiftly around the unmanned helm. Hyuuga Neji was still among them, quite clearly leading the other two in their assault. My legs no longer seemed to be connected to my body, and seemed to run forwards on their own as I watched the fight intently, my heart beating wildly in my chest.

Sakura was too focused on fighting off the other two men who I could not put names to, although I recognized their faces, to notice when Neji crept around behind her. It was compelling and compulsive, a motion that I had no control over, and when Neji junged forwards to run her through, I stopped his blade with my bare hand.

It was a sharp, hot pain that struck me forcefully before dimming into a constant sting. I gritted my teeth as warm blood flowed down my forearm, grasping my wrist with my other hand tightly and drawing it back into my chest. Fortunately, Neji had recoiled before any serious damage was done, his pale eyes wide, his mouth hanging agape with surprise. "Uchiha?" He spluttered.

Within this time Sakura had already defeated the other two men, and they lay groaning, but immobile at our feet. Now she span on us, and with the advantage I had unintentionally gave her by throwing Neji off his guard, knocked him down to the ground, her sword pointed in between his eyes. He did not look at it, but continued to stare at me in horror, until he realized the implications of my actions, and his face twisted into disgust. "You bastard..." He muttered under his breath. "Traitor."

"No," I said. "You don't understand..."

But I was interrupted when the Captain raised her voice loudly above ours and called out to her crew. It was then that I looked around and came to accept the horrible truth. The battle was over. We had lost. "And that's that, gents!" She laughed. "Take this one to the brig, he bears an uncanny resemblance to our young Ms. Hyuuga that I'd like to investigate. Then get the rest of this garbage off of my ship, and sink theirs!" And then she turned to me, a disturbing smile curving her lips. "And you." She said. "Are in trouble."

--

It was stupid, I know. Only the most thoughtless and reckless people would reach forwards and grab onto the blade of a swinging sword. And there was nothing that was going through my head at the moment that could excuse that behavior.

"So what, think you're trying to be heroic, saving the damsel in distress?" She demanded, yanking the bandages much too tightly and causing me to wince. "Well, I regret to inform you that your efforts, however valiant they may be, are wasted on someone who can take care of herself." She tied the ends together, and gave my hand a firm and scolding pat. I winced again. "You're glad he didn't lop half of your hand off, you imbecile."

"Are you regretting that I saved your life?" I asked bitterly, tearing my hand free from her grasp and holding it tenderly and protectively close to myself. "If so, we at last find something we have in common." I found myself once again sitting on the edge of her bed while she tended to my injuries. Outside I could hear the sounds of cleanup, the clunk of a hammer on nails as someone repaired the minimal damage to the ship, the laughter and boasting of the crew members. I scowled.

"I would have been fine." She insisted haughtily. "Those men were no match for me! You did nothing but make yourself out as a fool."

"He would have impaled you." I replied.

"He would not have." And of course, she would stick to her ridiculous claims. "And now I am left with nothing but a useless, injured, stubborn boar of a man. What good are you two me with the use of only one hand? I don't want to carry around your dead weight. Maybe I should toss you overboard, leave you with the other insolent military swine who dare opposed me, to hope that a ship passes by to pick you up soon."

"By all means, go ahead." I grumbled in a spiteful monotone. "I'd be much obliged if you did." She was pacing back and forth across the room, her white shirt billowing as she moved. The pile of clothes that was the dress she had been wearing early that day remained scattered across the floor in disarray, and the rest of the contents of her foot trunk overturned in a more collected lump nearby it. On the top of it I spotted the package wrapped in red satin that she had been so intent on keeping out of my possession only a few days earlier.

"You know very well why I can't, as much as I'd love to have you out of my hair. It's your own fault, you know. Sticking your nose in other people's businesses. I can't very well let you strut off my ship now that you know full well who I am. You've lost your last chance of me ever letting you free." She said, turning her back towards me and pausing to look out the window. "Though, I do suppose that you do only owe me one life now, instead of two. If you're so hell bent on believing so."

Even though her face was turned the other direction, I could tell that she was tensed and thoughtful — bothered by something. After a few more moments of silence she whirred, her lips pressed together and eyes narrowed. "Why?" She asked finally. "What on earth possessed you to do it? Both you and I know you'd love nothing more than to see me hang."

I sighed, irate. "Things... changed." Her face crumpled into a look of fury. "Sakura..."

"Don't call me that!" She hissed through clenched teeth. "Call me by my first name again, and you'll lose your vocal chords. It's 'Captain' to you."

"Sakura." I said. "Sakura, Sakura, Sa-ku-ra, Sakura. You know who you are, I know who you are. I was not going to stand by and let you be killed. I'm taking you with us. I have to bring you back alive, now. You should have figured as much."

She picked a paperweight up off of her desk and whipped it at my head, so blinded by anger that she missed me entirely. "Nothing has changed!" She yelled. "Nothing at all, can't you see that? I'm still the same person! I'm not Haruno Sakura, daughter of the noble Haruno family, any longer! I'm Haruno Sakura, Captian of this goddamn ship! I'm the Captain! You should have let me be! I'm the Captain of a pirate ship, not your obligation!"

I sat, silent. She was fuming as she stormed over to the pile of her old clothing. She picked up the red package and unwrapped it, pulling out a stack of paper. "Letters. Notes." She said. "All of them. I was planning to run away long before Tsunade rescued me, but I never had the guts to leave them for my parents to find and actually up and leave. But I kept them, in case I found need for them again." She rolled them up into a tight cylinder, grabbed an empty rum bottle off of her desk, and shoved them inside. Then she wandered over to the open window, and chucked it into the sea.

Splash.

Next she began to gather up all of her clothing, stuffing it carelessly back in the large chest. She snapped it shut, and struggled to lift it off of the ground, and then carried it out of her room. Silence, silence, and then another deafening Splash.

She stormed back in and turned to me. "I haven't been that mindless doll for years. That Haruno Sakura is dead."

A n d B y O u r P o w e r s

So thankfully, this chapter is a bit longer than the other two. The writers block seems to have lessened, a bit, but I'm still not entirely satisfied with the way this turned out. Thank to all of you awesome reviewers for your reviews and suggestions, it really kept me going!

On a more depressing note, I have decided the discontinuation of this story.

... Heheh. Sorry?