Man, I've been slacking off in the revision of this fic.
It's taken me freakishly long to get this thing done, much longer than I anticipated.
Well, all I can say is that I try to do a better job in the future.
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Three formidable nin made their way down the blossoming avenue, two silently fuming about the mission a certain pink haired kunoichi had just volunteered them for.
"You know Sakura," the irate Migazaki muttered through clenched teeth, " I'm beginning to think you have a freakishly large masochistic streak."
The random comment caused said girl to turn confused eyes towards her teammate. "Really?" She tilted her head to the side. "How so?"
"All you ever seem to do is complain about our workload. You constantly moan about lack of sleep, lack of relaxation time, perpetually tense muscles, and the shortage of proper meals in you life," Ichigo emphasized each point with a firm poke to her chest. "And yet," he shook his head derisively, "you never hesitate to volunteer for the hardest missions; never hesitate to include us, your socalled dearest friends, for the ride."
"You know what Ichigo," the pensive medic murmured, "I think that you've made a valid point for the first time in your life."
Promptly forgetting his earlier displeasure in light of this grand accomplishemt, the Migazaki, while sporting a goofy grin, warmly thanked his female companion.
"…..that really wasn't meant as a compliment," the roseate girl quietly muttered.
Fortunately for his ego, the preening male had already turned his full attention to their other teammate.
"So Kotetsu," he said amiably to the irritable male, while completely ignoring his dark scowl, "what's your take on our situation?"
"I think," he growled, "that being so freaking talented is a pain in the ass."
"Yeah right!" Chortling at the fierce glare being thrown in his direction, the irrepressible Migazaki male cheerfully continued on in his favorite hobby, aggravating the usually stoic Kotetsu. "You know you just love the attention Kotetsu, especially from the females." Ichigo waggled his eyebrows suggestively.
Kotetsu gave off a disgusted snort. "I think you're confusing me with yourself, man-whore." With that the Jaganshi Clan member proceeded to pointedly ignore the other male, hoping Ichigo would take the hint and leave him alone.
He should have known better.
The rest of the way to the Haruno estate was punctuated with their sarcastic commentary and, in Sakura's humble opinion, pathetic attempts at wit. Occasionally a short, violent brawl would erupt between the two when Ichigo pushed Kotetsu a little too far. The spurts of violence did nothing to deter the incorrigible Migazaki.
Despite her annoying companions, however, Sakura enjoyed the stroll through town. She noted, with an appreciative eye, that the flowers were in full bloom and that the air was, consequently, lightly scented with their fragrance. So beautiful she sighed in contentment, blissfully observing the natural beauty around her. It seemed she had been granted her garden walk after all.
The relative solitude of the trio, however, soon came to an end. As they drew closer to the commerce center of the village, the number of pedistrians increased in number. Pedistrians who couldn't witness the passing of their honored heroes without showering them with praise, presents, and adoration. Pedistrians who tended to be a little rough with their affections.
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Running a hand through her disheveled locks, Sakura glanced down at her teammates stylishly frayed bottoms. "I didn't notice you were wearing shorts, Ichigo."
Tenderly rubbing a section of his scalp that he highly suspected was now bald, he muttered irritably, "they were pants before we hit that mob."
They two,however, roughed up as they may be, had fared far better than Kotetsu.
The unfortunate male looked like some forsaken castaway. His clothes, once a respectable outfit consisting of sturdy pants and a nice longsleeved shirt, had been reduces to mere ribbons.
They, being the compassionate teammates they were, snickered quietly to themselves and drew solace from Kotetsu's discomfort.
At least they thought in good humor we're not nearly as bad off as him.
The Jaganshi male, if the withering glare he was sending their way was any indication, did not appreciate their 'comfort'.
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Finally, after stealthily dodging several overly affectionate mobs, the three reached the Haruno Estate. About freaking time Sakura closed frustrated eyes. If I had to put up with their fucking complaints one second longer…
Well, let's just say Kotetsu and Ichigo were lucky they had arrived.
Upon entering the front gates, however, Sakura's relief was cut short as she was immediately confronted by one of the Mist's seven legendary swordsmen, Kisame.
A Kisame who looked absolutely furious.
"Where the hell were you?" His tightly clenched jaw trembled with anger."You have responsibilities Sakura, you can't just take off whenever you feel like it. What if there had been an emergency?"
He thrust his face within an inch of hers"You're the head of the Haruno Clan," he snarled. Though the words were savagely spoken, Sakura noticed a flicker of fear pass through his eyes. "That title's like a fucking aphrodisiac to enemies, you should always have protection."
Kisame, finally realizing just how much he was invading her personal space, jerked back immediately. Turning his back to her in an attempt to get his emotions under control, he quietly muttered, "Just be more careful next time Pinky, we've lost enough good shinobi".
Oh Kisame. Sakura's heart clenched at his softly spoken admittance. She understood, probably more than anyone else, her comrade's feelings.
His clan, much like her own, had been heavily hit the day of the Leaf attack. Kisame's family specialized in water attacks, so, consequently, they had place their home near the largest river that bordered the village; this positioning had caused them to bear the brunt of the Konoha shinobi.
The clan had fought fiercely; each member, down to little six-year-old Kina, giving their all to take down as many of the fuckers as possible. The resulting casualties, however, had been substantial.
Many had been felled; the bodies so numerous that the handful of survivors had been pressed to ask for help in digging the graves. Among the dead had been Kisames wife and newly born daughter, and his baby sister Kina.
Fury seized Sakura's already vengeful heart anew at the rememberance of the utterly broken look on her surrougate brother's face. Silently, she renewed her vow to bring that damned village, and all the assholes in it, to their knees.
Those three females had been his entire world damn it!
Due to his looks, people had always been a little wary of Kisame; even his own mother, the one female who was supposed to love him unconditionally, shied away from any prolonged contact with him.
But those three never had.
His wife, the most gentle creature Sakura had ever come across, had love him with all her heart. Her soft brown eyes always shone with pure adoration whenever they gazed upon him. And their daughter, darling little Rei, had taken to her father from the very start. Her happy baby gurgles as she lay in complete contentment in her father's arms had never failed to warm the Haruno head.
And Kina, Kisame's self-proclaimed -and overprotective- guardian, had been his first love. Since the moment of her birth, she had been the swordsman's little angel; she never allowed anyone else to cuddle her, never tolerated any behavior she saw as cruel towards her older brother, and acted as Kisame's shadow whenever he was in the village. Though he had often complained about his overzealous stalker, Sakura could tell, by the smile on his face that always accompanied Kina's presence, he loved the little girl.
Ever since then, Kisame had never been the same.
He had become more gruff, almost vicious, towards other people. He no longer cared for acceptance, instead delighting in driving away those who got too close to him, be it emotionally or physically. To those who were already close, he became nearly smotheringly overprotective.
But Sakura knew, even though he carefully hid his heartache behind a façade of malicious apathy, that Kisame was still nursing his wounds. Sometimes, on the nights she found herself suffering from yet another case of insomnia, she would see the light on in his room in the wee hours of the morning.
And the, supposedly heartless, shinobi would be sobbing quietly while going through old photo albums. Sakura never mentioned these moments to anybody.
Her shadowed eyes took in the rigid back in front of her.
Will we never be free? Emerald eyes darkened. Will we always think back to that day at the slightest provocation?
She carefully shielded her emotions and forced a light tone into her voice before addressing her comrade. "Did you miss me that much Kisa-kun?"
Not appreciating her teasing, he grumbled, "As much as I'd miss food poisoning."
Brushing off his comment, Sakura replied breezily, "Well since you apparently can't stand to be separated from me, you'll be overjoyed to know you'll be coming with me on my next mission."
"Hold on just a damn minute-"
Completely ignoring his protests she continued. "We leave tomorrow morning. So," she suggested with a suspiciously innocent smile, "you'd better start packing".
And with that, she walked off, leaving an indignant shark-man behindNow the only one left to tell is Kohaku…something tells me he's not going the be very happy.
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After scouring the Haruno complex for about an hour, she finally found her elusive brother. He was in the southernmost garden attempting to form an unruly bush into the shape of a falcon, his favorite animal. She was, unfortunately, ignorant about the latter.
"That," she said with -obviously fake- awe, "is one handsome bear."
"…….it's suppose to be a falcon."
Sakura flinched. Well…so much for buttering him up. She should have remembered that her brother was about as artistic as a senile tortoise with arthritis.
"Well," she said in an attempt to recover from her blunder, "in that case, it's a very nice falcon."
Kohaku wasn't buying it. "That's got to be your most pathetic attempt at buttering me up to date." He raised a questioning brow, "So when are you leaving?"
She turned startled eyes towards him. "How did you know I was leaving?"
"Please," he scoffed while rolling his eyes. "Every time you leave, you try to soften the blow by being nauseatingly nice. Besides," he added almost as an afterthought,"Ichigo already told me you volunteered to escort Sayoran-sama."
Sakura's eyes turned murderous. Ichigo she thought serenely will soon die a horribly painful death at the hands of a mysterious killer.
A suitable punishment decided on, she turned back to her brother, a loving smile already in place. "Your not upset?"
He waved off her concern. "Of course not. The Mizukage is the most important person in this village, if anybody should protect him it's you and your team. After all," he turned affectionate eyes toward her, "you guys are the best."
She shook her head in pleased disbelief. "Have I ever told you that you're the best little brother in the world?"
"Yes," he replied with a warm smile, "you have."
"You," she said fondly, "are a mouthy brat."
A smile was her only response.
Sibling exchange over, she got down to business.
"We're leaving tomorrow morning at daybreak" she said briskly, "You're in charge when I'm gone. There are several reports that have to be finished, requests to answer, meetings to attend, leaders to pacify, the list of chores is endless so you better not slack off in my absence."
"So…pretty much the same thing as always?"
"I'm afraid so."
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…there's not much left to say.
Until next time.
Later.