I do not own the Naruto, for if I did, I would be a rich guy walking around with money by the pound; I would have also made Sakura and Gaara hook up.

Dark Attractions

Summary: Meet Sakura, a hyper, popular, and crazy girl who is hung up on winning the affection of one person: Sasuke. But to do this, she must be anything but herself. She tries to act cool, and relaxed, almost seeming like she has no feelings. Apparently, this is the kind of girl Sasuke likes, and after years of un-fulfilled dreams about him, she is finally asked out. Happy at first, she takes her time getting to know him, and as much as she hates to admit it, she doesn't like that fact that Sasuke likes this "false Sakura". That is, until a new boy comes into school, and she can't help but feel drawn to him and his mysterious past. As she later learns, this boy is just like her. Hiding who he really is. Will these two be able to cope through things, and accept their relationship? And will Sakura be able to accept this guy for who he really is?

Pairing: SakuraxGaara

Chapter 15: Blindfolds and Numbness

"Sakura," he said, his voice ringing throughout the room, "if you don't come at me with the intent to kill, you're not going to get anywhere." She paused in her gathering of breath and gave him a surprised look. "If you don't charge at your enemy, willing to kill, you're not going to get anywhere. You need to be ready for blood with every opponent you come face-to-face with; friends, family, it's all the same. Don't you understand, Sakura? They're all just going to slow you down."

"Y-Yes."

But she didn't believe it.

She sighed, slamming the door behind her as she made her way into the house. "Finally," the blonde exclaimed, "you're here. I've been waiting for hours." Jumping, she blinked and looked the girl in the eyes. "You-" "Yes, I know, I never told you that I was coming for a visit, but that's not the point," she explained. Walking up to her, she took her hand and shot her worried eyes.

"Just how much has he told you?" She was silent, not a single word being muttered from the girl. "W-What do you mean?" "I don't think I need to explain, Sakura; you know what I mean." Sakura sighed. "Why do you care? Was Gaara really persistent enough to get you to act like you care?"

Shocked, Temari gave her a look of dismay.

"You really don't know what you're getting yourself into, do you?" "Oh, like you would know. Stop acting like you know me, because you don't," she retorted. Chuckling darkly, Temari shot her a glimpse of her smirk. "I do, in fact, know," she stated plainly, "I was once a part of the organization. I know more then you do and ever will; if you continue agreeing to be the pawn of Orochimaru, you'll never even have a chance to gain the knowledge I have of him, and the others. You think you're special, don't you? Well think again. He's only using you, and I bet you know that; you're just denying it."

She was silent, for there was no argument that could be thrown back at her. No matter how she looked at it, Temari was right…but that didn't mean she was going to admit that. "I do believe it is none of your business as to what I do with my life."

And with that, she walked off, her back being the only thing that could be seen; there was no way to see her expression, or to guess as to what she was thinking.

"Damn," the girl cursed, "he's winning and she doesn't even realize it."

Time. It was slow. It was fast. There was an enormous amount, and no matter how much of it was spilled out, there was still more; there was always more. To that of a simpleton, time was just something that went and came for each person; its patterns were differently laid out for each individual. It was just there; its presence was so quiet, you couldn't even feel it. The days, months, years, and centuries continued forth without a single person being able to sense it right there, trailing behind them, gathering for the strike.

It was like walking blindfolded.

No one knew where they were going. They just lived. Then they died. And the process repeated over. No one ever realized that a thing such as "time" existed. Tell me; how many humans out there stop to think about time? Lay out the many things it controlled? Everyone regarded "time" as nothing.

Little did they know that it held all the strings.

It kept things together, and controlled as a master to its puppets.

But it had no master.

That's what made it to strong; it was a demon that was continuously overlooked.

But if you could somehow obtain it, control if for even a split second, you had the world. Nothing was in your way; you could destroy everything in just that single moment. No one realized how strong it truly was.

But there were few unknown individuals that knew the value of time; to them it was worth the world. It was important; it allowed them to succeed in everything they did. With time you could get everything.

But you could also take it all away.

For those whose blindfolds were kept loose, only pain and anguish awaited them.

Her eyes; they were soulless. She was empty, walking as if she was a living corpse. She could breath. She could stare.

…

But she couldn't talk.

She didn't know why she did it; maybe it was because she felt the urge to. To hold onto something soft; to know it was there.

It was hers.

Nothing seemed of value to her anymore; people were just people. That's all they were.

She cried every night for something… anything.

But the hardest part was not knowing what it was that she yearned for.

:xXxXxXx:

She had never realized who it was that she was collaborating with; she just followed orders without a thought.

But that day really made her think.

"Sakura," he called to her. "Yes?" she replied. "Get prepared. I'm about to fulfill a task, and I want you to come along with." "S-S-Sure."

His voice had never seen that cold to her.

A scream was pierced through the air, blood following along with it.

All of them…murdered.

He smirked, his face revealing sinister enjoyments she had never known he had. It was spinning all inside of her head; she was overwhelmed. The blood…it was everywhere. On the walls, in the carpet…and most importantly, on herself.

She was a murderer…right? She hadn't actually killed them; Orochimaru did. "Come." She listened. They walked past the lying corpses, the hand prints marked with blood on the walls sending chills down her back. All of this just for something they owned? What was it that they had that was so important?

They walked upstairs, the boards of the stairs creaking with their each and ever step. Spotting what it was that he needed, he entered the room, and came out with a gathering of folders and papers.

All this just for some papers? This was cruel. She couldn't stand for it; all of this…it was wrong.

But she didn't say a word.

Deep inside the pit of her stomach, a numbness was spreading.

She was quiet. She couldn't find what to say. Right before her were living experiments. "We try to take strong genes from our best workers and merge them with our volunteers. If this succeeds, our way to power will be much easier."

All of them, trapped inside a giant tank filled with water, lay their, motionless, as if they were dead. But they were all living, and they were all human beings.

She was scared.

Just how far could this man go? He killed people emotionlessly, and even conducted experiments on them? What more did she not know? She had a feeling that there was still a lot left unfound.

She was anxious to unravel what it was, but nervous at the same time. Could she really take much more of this? Her legs shook as she bit her lip.

She had to get out of there.

So she ran, going as fast she could, down the long room out of the door, slamming it closely behind her. She gasped for air, clutching onto her chest.

How could he be so calm about it? It was as if he was inhuman.

He was able to do these cruel things without a second thought, but because of that he became strong, which was what she always dreamed to be.

But could her wishful thinking really take her that far?

She would find out.

She had begged to go to school, even for just a week, and he complied. She tried to enjoy her stay there, though she was immediately thrown piles of work. Her day, however, had improved with her sensei Kakashi's presence. She had actively participated in his class, and even stayed behind to have a discussion about things with him.

She felt that she had changed for the best, even if it was just a moment.

…

And then she lost it all.

She could remember it; the echoes of Naruto's voice as the woman stood behind him, shaking her gently. It was as if she was unconscious; her breathing and open eyes didn't prove anything if she couldn't mutter a word. She wanted to get up, to move, and smile as if nothing had happened.

But she found it all amusing.

Here they were, pretending to care for her as if they had known her for all their life. It brought a smirk to her face and released a chortle.

All their worrying was in vain.

With one swoop of her neck, she snapped her head towards Naruto and shot him a gaze that spoke for itself.

A weed was now growing among the garden of flowers.

And there is your explanation, everyone! As you can see, this is a flashback of the last chapter. I hope you liked it, because I know I found it pretty amusing. I think this chapter turned out okay; as you can see, Sakura is having a struggle with herself. She wants to be someone else, no matter at what cost, and that's why she's slowly losing herself.

It reminds me of the people out there who just can't learn to accept themselves and venture to be someone they're not. Doing so is what usually ends it all; heck, they could even lose their life for it. It just goes to show you just how powerful manipulation is, and how your number one enemy truly is you when you don't learn to accept it.

You decided whether or not you're your own ally or enemy.

It's your choice…

but choose wisely!