A Deal with a Devil
Chapter 3: Light and Darkness
It had been a month since Sasuke had come to be at the village that he had dubbed the village of the flies. He had learned that most of the young ninja in this village had come from the hidden village of the stone, and that they had taken all of the village's secrets with them. It was this fact and this fact alone that had been the cause of the village's almost constant barrage of attacks. Apparently, the elders of the Stone had decided having secrets running loose was more a liability than the children's lives were worth. The first attack had been meant to be extermination, but they had horrendously underestimated the skill of the children in this village. However, that was all in the past; before the next attack, after Sasuke had arrived, he made a plan to force the attackers back using their own skills against them. The resulting battle was an utter victory for his new found village, and forced negotiations between the two villages. Finally, they had the official recognition the village deserved. Sasuke, once only a member of the village, had been promoted to Jounin of the newly founded Higure village and given his choice of wives from any of the village. At last he had the chance to restore his clan to it's once proud heritage. However, he could not bring himself to care anymore; as much as wanted to, he couldn't. In the end, Sasuke knew he should be happy and he knew that he was finally at a place where he could start over, where he could live down the mistakes of his previous life, but it just was not in him to do so.
There came a loud knock at the door, it had resonated all through the house, which he had been given as partial payment for his service to the village, like a giant had been stomping on his front porch. However, he knew what the knock was for after all it was the first of the month and he knew this was coming for a long time. Sasuke had agreed to teach at the academy part-time. He lurched from bed as he looked at the clock on the wall. It was way too early for this, but Genbu, who had been named headmaster of the academy, was apparently an early riser and it was his fist knocking on the door. "Alright, already! I'm coming." Sasuke swore as he pulled on a shirt and approached the door groggily. As he lazily pulled the door open, he met a sight he had not come across yet. It was indeed Genbu, but he was not alone. On his shoulders sat a small sized girl with long straight black hair and hauntingly green eyes, while next to him stood a girl that looked like the little girl's twin only much older.
"Hello Sasuke," chimed Genbu, "I don't think you two have met yet. This is Sumire," Genbu pointed to the young woman beside him, " and the little one is Kimiko." he reached up and tickled the little girl on his shoulders as she laughed joyfully. Kimiko could not have been more than one year old, at the most.
"Good morning, Sasuke-sama." Sumire greeted politely with a slight bow. Kimiko tried to imitate her but nearly fell from Genbu's shoulders. Genbu picked the little girl up and handed her to Sumire. "It was nice meeting you, Sasuke-sama." said Sumire as she took Kimiko and made her exit walking off as Genbu stayed next to Sasuke.
"You can't teach school like that! Go get some clothes on!" Genbu gave a friendly nudge as his bald head glistened in the sun light. Sasuke did what he was told with a grunt and went to put some clothes on. Genbu was one of the most enigmatic people in the village, and the only sparring partner in the village that had fought Sasuke to a draw (even then he seemed to be holding back). He was kind, yet powerful; loving, yet collected, and forgiving, but still managed to be stern. If anybody was to become Yamikage of this village it was going to be him, but Kaze was still the acting leader of the village until an election could be held.
Sasuke mulled things over, but in the end decided that curiosity killed the cat and decided that if Genbu wanted to tell him, he would. So Sasuke dressed and met the first friend he made in this village at the front door. Together they walked towards the newly built ninja academy. The silence was not unpleasant and time it took to walk to the school at normal speed did not seem bothersome in the least (a fact to which Sasuke attributed to the young man walking beside him). Genbu waved to bystanders as his luminescent and untiring smile seemed to brighten people's days just by being near him. It got to the point that a question that had been tugging at the corner of Sasuke's mind until he just had to ask. "Why are you always smiling?" he asked without warning or tact.
"because, I'm always happy." Genbu stated simply as if he had answered the question fully.
"I figured, but why are you always happy?"
"I have a beautiful, intelligent, funny wife, and a charismatic daughter... they bring light into my life and chase my darkness away." he seemed to glow brighter as he thought of... of
"Wait..." realization washed over Sasuke, "Those two."
"Yes, are my wife and daughter."
"But Sumire couldn't be older than seventeen."
"That is a story for another time," Genbu stopped walking and stepped in front of Sasuke, "but let me tell you something you look like you need to hear." Genbu placed his hands on Sasuke's shoulders "There is a chakra that runs deeper than anyone has ever commanded. It is stronger than pain, it stronger than despair, and it is stronger than you or I. No demon can withstand it's might nor any curse continue in it's presence. Learn this Chakra, and nothing will stand against you."
Sasuke couldn't believe what he was hearing... demons not stand against it? "Can you teach me?" Sasuke wondered
"No, I can't. it's something you have to find on your own. I know that you are operating under a demon's curse, and know this, what it took from you is retrievable, if you look in the right place." finished Genbu, as he turned and began to walk back toward the academy, "Retrieve what was taken from you and you will find that chakra. Though I've heard the first to use this chakra was in fact a Hokage of Konoha."
"I wonder," Sasuke turned inwards to his own thoughts as both he and Genbu resumed learn this nameless walking in the diection of the school.
"Hmm?"
"nothing. I was just thinking about an idiot friend of mine. It'd be just like him to be able to use it without knowing."
VVV
Naruto sneezed. A small hand stretched out with a small cloth grasped tightly in it, and before he knew it, Sasu had wiped his nose. "Jeez, I wish you wouldn't do things like that." Spat Naruto under his breath. The past month had been like a dream for him, a dream he compared it to only because he could see the faces of Konoha softening toward him. Maybe it was granny Tsunade who had been adamant from the start that he be treated like the person he was, or maybe it had been the speech he had given at the chunin exam which, thanks to amplifiers, everyone in the arena had heard. Whatever the case, Naruto was gald for the shift in mood around him, but more importantly he had been glad for the company that Sasu had been to him. Sasu just shrugged in a way that was very much like Sasuke, and turned her attention back to waiting for their teacher and pink haired classmate. It was strange, Sakura was never late; in fact she was often the one who arrived first. Naruto did not even notice the look of sheer frustrastion on the face of the Raven haired beauty next to him; for that matter he did not even notice that she was almost sharing his seat, nor the way she was inching closer and closer to him.
On this particular morning, Naruto and Sasu were in the process of doing what they were always doing this early in the morning, lazing around waiting for Kakashi to show for their early morning training. He was a hour late, but that was nothing new. As his thoughts grew more and more wild (images of Kakashi bounding through the streets on his tip toes while chaseing girls as a substitute for the next volume of Icha Icha paradise, Which had not made it out on the bookshelves yet.) Sasu grabed his attention and lead him to meet her eyes. "Naruto," Sasu almost moaned, "When?"
"W-When?" Naruto gluped nervously as he gazed into Sasu's Obsidian eyes.
"Yes," She cooed seductively as she pulled Naruto closer than; Naruto's lips inches away from her own. "When are you going to stop playing games; we won't be young forever." She made it a point to have her breath caress his lips softly, as if meaning to tease him with her every word.
It was at this point in time that, Kakashi, their top grade ninja instructer, poked his head through the bush only to be met with the smiling and strangely attentive face of the young Sasu Uchiha. Whatever she had been moments before was completely masked behind a wide cheshire grin that betrayed nothing of any sort. However, the look on Naruto's face, or rather his all together dumbfounded, layed out position on the ground with a bright crimson streek across his whiskered cheeks, said it all. The girl was pure and unadulterated darkness, but wasn't she sopposed to be Sasuke's better half? In any case, one question burned across the Jounin's mind, Where was Sakura?
VVV
The Kunoichi in question was not far indeed as she was in the Hokage's quarters panting heavily as she braced herself on the wall. Tsunade looked at her, scanning the pink haired female ninja from floor to brow. "Pretty good," Tsunade gave a proud huff, "You even managed to scratch me."
"Thanks," Sakura replied between labored breaths, "I think."
But as soon as the conversation took place, the mood changed. Tsunade became stern and athoritative, she walked over to Sakura looked her straight in the eyes. "You need to rest, sit." With that Sakura collapsed to the ground and slumped against the mat wall. Suddenly, Tsunade's expression changed once again. This time it was more a motherly, caring expression, as if she was worried about what might happen to her child. "Sakura, it's not easy saying what I'm going to tell you right now." Tsunade didn't know why it wasn't easy, she had told every class of graduateing kunoichi the same thing since she signed on for this job but somehow to this girl, this pink haired girl, it was harder.
Sakura lent her head up to see her sensei's face, "What's wrong?"
"Female ninja are something of a rare breed, it takes dedication to become one. After that things have the potential to get much worse. What I'm going to tell you now is something that was not scheduled to be told to you until you where to be seperated from your jounin instructor."
"Sensei?"
"Female ninja, to utilize their utmost ability, must not only be ninja, but, first and foremost, women. What I'm trying to tell you is that if you go out on your own and are captured; it is most likely that you will be tortured, and, being a woman, that torture will most definately be rape."
"What.. What?" Sakura had never even considered that she would be captured; after all, she always had Sasuke or Naruto by her side protecting her, watching over her. What Tsunade said had merit and Sakura knew it, "So... Wh.." Sakura gaped as if trying to take in even more air into her lungs than what was already there (much like a fish out of water).
"Shh," Tsunade quited the girl and whispered, "I saying that if your still a virgin then, as part of your training, I can not teach you anything further until you've reached a decision." Tsunade rose to her feet and gently slipped from the room, leaving her student to ponder things. Sakura knew what Tsunade ment about ' reach a decision'; she knew that it was Tsunade giving her an ultimatum. Either get on with her life and let things like being a ninja float away on the morning breeze, or go all in and throw away the chance of having a normal life. Sakura stayed on the floor there and pondered things, for the rest of the day she did not move one inch...
End Chapter 3
AN: Whoa, had no Idea I could be so dark there at the end, but I had to find away for Sakura to stay in the story, because I still have plans that she is going to be apart of. As for the lack of an update since the Dinosaurs roamed I am very sory. That's really all I can say at this point. Another thing, I'm currently working on another story that explores Naruto's parents and the scandal surrounding his birth. It's a three parter and I've already got 2 of the 3 chapters finished. So keep an eye out for that.