Chapter 5: Sakura's choice

---Evening---

Knock. Knock. Knock. Someone knocked on the door. Sakura quickly grabbed the kunai sitting at the bedside and hid it behind her.

"Come in!" Sakura called.

The door opened and in walked another stranger. He was tall… a bit taller than Itachi. His face was… lets just say…very fish-like. He had gills on both his cheeks.

"Who are you?" Sakura asked. She held her chin cupped in her hands as she sat quietly at the edge of the bed.

"Itachi would like to see you now," he said completely ignoring Sakura's question. "Follow me!"

Baka. I asked him a question. And plus, I'm not waiting for an appointment with Itachi that "he would like to see me now". What happens if I don't want to see him? Inner Sakura yelled.

Sakura got up from where she was sitting and followed him to the door. He stopped right in front of her and looked back with a smirk. He turned her around and tied her hands behind her back with a rope.

"Now you're not going anywhere!" he said.

I wasn't going anywhere anyways fish face Inner Sakura yelled.

Sakura followed him through a little hallway and through the kitchen and then they came to a door where he stopped in front of her and looked back at her.

"Go in now!" he said. "Itachi is waiting for you!"

Sakura slowly twisted the door handle and opened the door. It was dark. The only light came from a fireplace. The room was pretty big. Here was a window, bed, and door leading outside. Sakura walked into the room. She jumped as the door slammed shut behind her. Itachi walked towards her and untied her.

"Sit down!" he said.

Sakura slowly made her way and sat on the couch and Itachi sat in front of her.

"I sent a letter to Konoha informing them of your death." He said.

Sakura's eyes were wide with shock at what Itachi had told her. She was speechless.

"I made sure that they wouldn't suspect your being alive!" he added.

"N-n-nani? Sakura yelled. "Why would you do that?"

"I find interest in you."

"Nanda?"

"Because you're the only one I've met that can look into my eyes without fainting."

"Wakari-masen!"

"See, if you look into my Sharingan eyes, you're supposed to faint." He explained. "You on the other hand, - for some reason – can look into my eyes for countless minutes without reaction. With this mangekyou Sharingan I possess, I can have you look into my eyes once, and then, you'd be able to join the rest of my clan. "

"So! What do you want me for?"

"I can make good use of you."

"How?"

"By training you… it'll help you… but, there are certain conditions…"

I don't know what to do…Sakura thought… if I agree to this, I can finally prove to

Sasuke-kun that I am strong – not the weak girl he thinks I am.

"Do I have much of a choice?" Sakura asked.

"No! Unless you wish to be tortured and put to a slow and painful death… just the way I like it."

Sakura looked uneasy. "But… what good will this do for you?"

"When I trust you enough, you will be a spy for me!"

No Sakura thought I don't want to become a missing-nin…

"Don't worry about becoming a missing-nin," Itachi smirked.

What? Sakura thought he can read my mind too?

The smirk on Itachi's face grew. "Yes to answer your question!" Itachi could tell that by now, Sakura looked very uneasy because of what was happening.

"Because to all of Konoha," he added. "You're dead!"