A/N: Hey. Sorry for the wait. No more speedy updating, unfortunately. You know, school, studying, grades closing… You've heard it all before. Hopefully, this chapter makes up for it.
Also, I have no idea whatsoever of whether or not my Raikage looks like the actually Raikage, so don't take my descriptions to heart.
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I am simply a girl with far too much time on her hands.
The Face of Deception
Sakura's love life was for from spectacular. Every date she had ever been on had sucked. A lot. Her unplanned date with her silver-haired ex-sensei was no exception. It was up at the very top of that list.
She had very nearly throttled Ino as she saw the distant figures of Genma and Kakashi approaching from down the street, coming from the direction of the Jounin Headquarters. She was completely prepared to turn and bolt, making a beeline for the hospital and her meal of pulverized peas and a soggy turkey salad sandwich when Ino grabbed her shoulder and stopped her, her blue eyes strangely intense and serious as they drilled into Sakura's emerald ones.
"You'll never get an opportunity like this again." She said, pulling back and giving Sakura the opportunity to run.
"He doesn't know, does he." Sakura whispered, pain coloring her voice.
"Know what?" Ino asked, surprised at the raw emotion in Sakura's voice.
"He doesn't know about the date. He wouldn't come otherwise." The hurt in her eyes was overwhelming.
"N-no." Ino said haltingly.
"I knew it." Her voice was filled with bitterness. "Why do I always have to pick the untouchable ones?" Her whisper was so quite that not even Ino, standing only a foot from the pink-haired medic, heard it.
"Yo." Kakashi said lazily as he came upon the two girls standing outside the café. Sakura's head snapped up as she stared at him with wide, panicked eyes.
"Hey." Genma drawled, his senbon bobbing up and down as it glittered in the noon sunlight. Ino grinned and wrapped her arms around he waist, hugging her boyfriend tightly. "Hey." She murmured with a lethargic smile.
"So, what do ya think?" Genma prompted, looking up from the blonde woman in his arms.
"What do I think of what?" Kakashi asked blankly/
"The blind date, man."
"A blind date? With Sakura?" Kakashi asked incredulously. "For once, you're joke is actually funny," he chuckled. Sakura stared with wide eyes, pain squeezing her insides. He had… He really though she was just some kid. He didn't care for her at all. Not one bit.
This time, Sakura did run.
No one stopped her.They never had and never would, for she was always running. Always running from…
Her fears.
Her pain.
Her problems.
Always.
Parties for annoying blonde brats weren't what they were there for. What did giant balls have to do with peace treaties anyway? Sasuke was with the Raikage, chatting; Naruto was becoming fantastic friends with the equally blonde Hideki, the Raikage's son; Kakashi was getting pretty friendly with Hideki's little sister. What was Sakura doing? Sitting in a corner by a group of waitresses discussing Kakashi's physical attributes. Somehow, the conversation always managed to get back to his butt. Didn't they have something better to do?
Evidently not.
Sakura wanted to tear her hair out. She wanted to scream at those waiters to shut up. She wanted to march over to Kakashi and kiss the living daylights out of him. But, most of all, Sakura wanted to drag that annoying blonde and that brunette twit with the wandering hands off of Kakashi. They were practically in his lap. Sakura's fingers twisted into fists in the silken fabric of her evening gown, curling and uncurling with a vengeance, wrinkling the smooth silk. Her free hand was resting against her thigh, her manicured nails digging into her palms.
Damn it…
Language, Inner Sakurachided in a sing-song voice.
What's keeping me from marching over there and protecting his virtue, huh? Sakura ranted. I mean, I'm his team mate, so his chastity should be my business too, right?
Wrong. Anyway, his chastity is a lost cause. He lost his virtue at thirteen. Inner Sakura snickered.
Ew. Sakura cringed. She really didn't want to think about that, since she was very much a virgin.
Hey, you're loss.
Sakura stood abruptly. She wasn't going to be nice and passive and watch the busty redhead by Kakashi's side attempt to undo his tie anymore. She strode purposely toward Kakashi, her back ramrod straight and her steps quick and business-like. "Hello, Kakashi." She said, painfully polite. "It's a pleasure, Carina."
Oh, so that's her name. Kakashi thought, glancing at the pretty blonde.
"Oh, so you know Kashi-kun?" Carina asked, clinging tighter to his arm. Kakashi had long lost the feeling in his left arm and the pins and needles were slowly creeping along the rest of his body, immobilized by several females.
The look in Sakura's green eyes practically scoffed – Kashi-kun? – as she silently laughed at him. Kakashi wanted to let the grand open up beneath him and swallow him up as he shrunk beneath her slightly mocking gaze.
"Mm." Sakura hummed out an affirmative.
"Are you his girlfriend?" She prodded.
"Yep." She said in an offhand way. "Now, I would really appreciate it if you would get off of him." Her tone was painfully civil and clipped. They scrambled off of him, eyes wide as they apologized profusely. Naruto had obviously been bragging about her prowess as a ninja.
"Oh, and when were you going to tell me about this?" Kakashi asked, obviously amused.
"Hey, I can always call them back…"
"No thank you." He said, a bit too quickly.
"That's what I thought." She said crisply, turning and disappearing in the crowd.
Kakashi sighed and grabbed a glass of champagne from the nearest waiter and brought it to his lips, taking a sip. He wandered off to go and visit the Raikage, finally able to do his job for once.
The rest of the evening passed in a relatively boring haze. Kakashi and Sasuke stood by the Raikage, laying it on thick as Naruto bounced from one political figure to another, shaking hands and patting backs, Sakura fluttering about, attempting to be as charming as possible, smiling and laughing the delicate, chiming laugh she had practiced to perfection for this occasion. It was nearing midnight and Sakura's feet were sore, but she had put too much time in learning how to charm and giggle and walk in stilettos to throw the towel in now.
The Raikage pounded a crystal glass with a spoon, and a hush fell over the crowd of shinobi. Sakura had only ever seen someone use that method to get attention in movies, and she was rather surprised that the gentle tinkling had gotten the raucous shinobi to shut up and shut up fast. The elderly man cleared his ragged throat, raising his dull black eyes to appraise the gathered crowd of formally dressed elite shinobi.
"Now, I have a special treat for our guests from Fire." He rasped, waving his hand as a waiter came out, carrying a tray bearing four intricate porcelain tea cups, followed by another holding the tea. "This tea is made from tea leaves found only in the mountains of Cloud and laced with the juice of a special type of tiny berry grown only by the Hakuyaza Waterfall with a picking season of only twenty-four hours. This is a rare delicacy in Cloud, and I hope you enjoy." He broke into a coughing fit. Sakura instantly rushed to his side, but he waved her off. "I'm fine." He wheezed, leaning heavily against the wooden pillar behind him. She nodded and pulled away.
The waiter carefully took the porcelain teapot and poured the steaming, golden concoction into the tea cups, offering them to each of the ninja. Sakura brought hers to her lips, stopping to inhale the sweet aroma when an alarm sounded in the back of her mind. She let tendrils of chakra snake around the tea cup, delving into the sweet-smelling beverage. Her chakra picked up the presence of the potent poison immediately, and her hand snapped out, grabbing Naruto's wrist just as he was about to take a sip.
"Stop." She ordered, Naruto looking at her in confusion. She ignored him, turning to face the startled Raikage. "What is in this tea?" She demanded calmly, her eyes narrowing as she studied the Raikage's haggard features. His cheeks were hollow, as if something was slowly eating away from him on the inside, his robes hanging off of his then frame, clothes that should have fit him perfectly ridiculously big, his eyes dull voids of black nothingness, cold and empty, retaining no warmth. There were dark purple bruises beneath his eyes, as if he had not slept at all in months, his skin wrinkled a sallow, but he was only in his mid-forties. There was something wrong. This man was lifeless; a puppet. How had she not realized before?
It had finally hit in Cloud. The parasite had struck, and they had been too late to prevent it. They were all at Its mercy now.
A/N: Oooh. Cliffy. Sorry, yet again, for the shortness. But, this story will get intresting pretty soon, so bear with me, please.