Note: Hehehehehe! I am back again for another exciting chapter! So, we last left off with a revealing story that Kiyoshi was in love with Sakura's mother from before! And now, he decides to go with Sakura to find her father! Now what? Find out in this second to last chapter!
Chapter 8 – Promises
He had lied to her. He didn't know why though, but perhaps it was the realization that Sakura had a lot of burden on her already that adding another story that would shock her was definitely out of the question. He walked a little ways behind her, watching as she led the way down the dark pathway covered in dirt and mud. Even from the back, he could see Sakura's determination. She reminded him of a little bit of himself, when he was very young. A long time ago, he would always find ways to distract himself from the pain he was feeling knowing that Jounichi and Chiharu were finally getting married.
They had already walked two hours and it was beginning to get dark by the time they reached the northern part of the mountain. It was through the mountains that they would be able to reach the next village in a short time.
"Kiyoshi-san…" Sakura called, without turning around to look at him.
The older man looked up from his thoughts. "Yes?"
"What was my mother like when she was my age?"
Kiyoshi thought for a moment, before answering. "Well, a lot like you, actually. She was strong, confident and determined. No matter how many times she's been hurt, she would help herself up and continue on with her journey. The only time she ever asked for help was whenever her burden weighed her down too much." Maybe it was something she would like to hear, but Chiharu would never allow such a lie for her daughter to reach her ears…maybe just this once…maybe it was for the good…
"I'm pregnant…"
Kiyoshi blinked. Where had THAT come from?
"Kiyoshi-san? Is something wrong?" Sakura had stopped walking and was staring at Kiyoshi curiously. When she didn't hear his footsteps, she began to worry and decided to stop and wonder what had happened.
The older man glanced at her. "I'm sorry, did you say something?"
The pink haired girl just stared at him for a few seconds before saying, "Yes, I asked whether there were times that her burden was too much for her that she would fall on her knees and cry? Was she…" She looked away, ashamed at what she was going to ask next. "Was she weak like me?"
Kiyoshi frowned and walked up to her. He placed a hand on her shoulder and smiled at her reassuringly. "You are not weak, Sakura. You are strong in your own way. Please do not be burdened with the thought of yourself being weak."
Sakura looked up and stared into his eyes. There was something familiar about him, but she couldn't quite put it on how. "Thank you, Kiyoshi-san."
Kiyoshi nodded. "You are most welcome. Your mother would hate to see you feeling weak like this. I am quite positive in believing that your mother would blame me for you thinking that way." He laughed and walked passed her. "Come, we must make camp before it gets darker."
Sakura followed the older man silently down the end of the pathway and into a steep hill where a cave was situated just a little bit below the hill. Kiyoshi walked inside casually, as if he has been here several times and kneeled down to set up his sleeping bag. "We will camp here for the night. It would be best to have our energy in the morning," Kiyoshi said. He spread out his sleeping bag in front of him and slipped inside. He set up his backpack filled with rations to make into a pillow and laid down. Sakura did the same and quickly, the fatigue that has been slowly creeping inside her, finally consumed her and she fell hastily into a deep slumber.
"I'm pregnant..." She looked into his eyes. "What have I done?" Tears fell swiftly down her cheeks. "I…I don't know how to tell him!"
It took him a while to register the information of her pregnancy in his head before he reached over and placed a hand on her cheek and caressed it gently. "What are you talking about? You tell him that you're pregnant. He would be delighted with it!"
She sighed and shook her head. "No he won't…I know he doesn't love me the way you…" she stopped and stared into his eyes the moment she said those words. He was shocked at such words coming from her that he dropped his hand and stopped caressing her cheek tenderly.
"What are you talking about? Of COURSE he loves you the way I do…we both love you."
She looked away. "I don't see it. We've been married for a year and yet, he still hasn't said the words I wanted to hear."
He smiled and placed a hand on her shoulder. "It'll take time. This child will bring you two closer together! I KNOW it!"
"No it won't…" She looked back into his eyes and this time, it looked as though she was going to say something else, but instead of doing so, she hugged him gently and walked away without another word.
"Are you going to tell him?" he asked, as she prepared to leave.
She stopped, her hands clenched at her sides, her head drooped down as if looking towards the ground. "I am. I am going to tell him EVERYTHING…Even…" The young woman stopped in mid sentence and walked off without giving him a chance to ask what she meant.
Kiyoshi opened his eyes and stared up at the cave's ceiling. That was the second time he remembered that moment where his, Chiharu's and Jounichi's lives would change forever. He turned his head slightly to the left of the cave opening and noticed the morning sunshine greeting him. He glanced around, wondering where Sakura had gone and found her to be sleeping just below him at the side of the cave. For a moment there, he began to worry, his heart beating and thinking that she had gone off on her own without waking him up. But when he saw her sleeping there peacefully, he was glad that she hadn't left.
She stirred and she too awoke from the sun's rays. She noticed the older man looking at her strangely and she felt a strange sensation of longing for her father at that moment. She looked away and stood up. "Should we head out now?" Sakura folded her sleeping bag and put it away in her backpack.
"Yes, I think it would be safe. But...hold on a second." He took out something from his backpack, walked up to her and handed her something.
Sakura looked down. In her hand was the same medicine bottle he has been giving her for the pain in her wound. "Thank you."
"I took it with me, just in case." He smiled and walked back to his sleeping bag and folded it as well, careful not to crush the rations in his backpack as he stuffed it gently inside. Kiyoshi put in his backpack and led the way up the hill and into the same straight path they were on last night.
Rika stared out the window, pausing from the long story that she has already told the young man sitting in front of her. She could see from the corner of her eyes that the Uchiha boy was more determined than ever to find out more about the history of Jounichi and Sayuri. "I apologize…one must pause at times from remembering such painful memories."
Sasuke stared at her and said nothing. He allowed her time to think before she finally continued on with her story.
"Of course, Haruno-san taught Sayuri-sama all the fighting techniques he knew as a Shinobi. They were growing closer than ever and both were aware of their attractions for one another. After two weeks of training, there was one night that Sayuri-sama decided to let Haruno-san know of her feelings towards him…in secret that is."
The dark haired young man knew what she meant. A young Priestess was forbidden to fall in love with anyone…even an outsider such as Jounichi Haruno. Sayuri was aware of that of course, but how far would they go for a love that was growing increasingly deep within their hearts?
As if reading his thoughts, Rika simply answered, "Oh very far indeed, Uchiha-san." She gave him a look that told him it was the only answer she was going to give him. Sasuke sat there uncomfortably, uneasy with the fact that this middle aged woman was able to read his thoughts so easily. "I have seen many feelings during my day, Uchiha-san that I am able to read thoughts quite simply. As the Priestess' hand maiden, being trained to be able to read the emotions and feelings of an individual through their faces was quite important in the shrine. Most of them who pray in the shrine are usually quiet about their true feelings, so we must be able to understand through their reactions from their faces."
"I see…" Sasuke didn't know how to react to what she had just explained to him.
"As I have said before, they went as far as night visits for their love for each other. I even became the lookout." She chuckled slightly at that thought. "Her father gave no hints whether he knew of their little affair, but one mistake made them think otherwise."
"What mistake would that be?"
Rika thought for a moment, but Sasuke knew that she was trying to figure out how to explain it in a way that he understood. He frowned at that thought, annoyed that Rika would think of him as a child. "I am not as naïve as you think I am, Rika-san."
"Of course not!" She smiled at him. Sasuke was bewildered with her reply, but said nothing. "You are a smart man and you know exactly what you want." She stared at him intently that made Sasuke even more uncomfortable. It was as if she was hinting to him something about Sakura. "Anyway…Yamakage-sama one day found out about their affair. You see, Yamakage-sama did not trust anyone, let alone a man who was no resident of his village. Haruno-san was there to watch over his daughter, to make sure she was safe and sound and even that wasn't enough to trust him. He was beginning to believe that Haruno-san knew what he was up to."
"What was it that he was up to?"
Rika stood up and poured some water in a cup and drank it quickly before answering the younger man. "Yamakage-sama was ruthless in his own way, in which I am sure you already knew of the history of this place."
Sasuke nodded. "The Yamakage may have loved his daughter, but his greed blinded him from his family. That's why his wife died. It was grief that overtook her because of his quest for domination of the other countries."
The older woman smiled. "Correct. You have been paying attention to your history lessons, have you boy?" When he didn't answer, Rika just laughed and continued on with what she was saying earlier. "Indeed, Haruno-san KNEW every bits and pieces of what the Yamakage-sama planned on doing once the scroll was finished and signed by the Hokage. Two weeks after the shinobi who attacked Sayuri-sama and destroyed the scroll and was killed, conveniently enough by the Yamakage-sama, Haruno-san decided to investigate secretly on what was going on in the mind of Yamakage-sama. During the course of his training time with Sayuri-sama, Haruno-san secretly sent messages to the Hokage-sama on what he knew. To my surprise, he told Sayuri-sama on what he was doing and to my even greater shock, Sayuri-sama did not protest that her very own father was being investigated."
"I guess she loved him very much to protest."
Rika nodded. "Yes indeed."
"I think he knows…"
"What?" She looked up and stared into his eyes, making sure whether he was being serious or not and…he was serious. "But…I made sure he WOULDN'T know! That's why we're here!"
He glanced down at her, his arms around her as she lies in bed. She was very beautiful clothed in any garment, even with just a blanket around her. "I know you did your best, but eventually, he would find out about us. That's always the reality." He removed his hand from around her shoulders and rested them underneath his head.
She fell silent for a few seconds before saying, much to his surprise, "I love you."
Jounichi glanced down at Sayuri. He didn't know what to make of that reply. He loved her back of course but… He sat up and stared ahead of him, trying to absorb her words in his mind. "I…" She seemed to have waited for the right answer, because she sat up as well, her blanket wrapped modestly around her chest. "I can't love you."
Sayuri blinked. "Nani?"
He got out of bed and began to dress into his usual Konohan attire. "You heard me…I can't love you."
The brown haired girl frowned and moved into a kneeling position on the bed roughly. "I KNOW what you said! What, so you really can't love me? Why not? I did everything for you! Why can't you say these easy words?"
Jounichi jerked around so suddenly that Sayuri was startled. "Because it's not THAT easy, Sayuri!" He stared into her eyes which were on the verge of tears. The older man looked away, ashamed of himself. "This…this is all wrong. I can't do this anymore. I have caused enough trouble for you…for me…for Rika-san and…" He turned his head back at her. "…for my wife."
Sayuri's eyes widened. "You…you're married?"
He didn't answer.
"Get out."
Jounichi looked at her. He was shocked to see such an angry look coming from her face. Especially, from a woman he has always known to be gently and kind-hearted. "Sayuri, I don't want to end it like this. I can't love you, but we can always stay f-!"
"GET OUT!" she yelled, more tears falling from her eyes. She grabbed a pillow and threw it at him. "I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU!"
Jounichi quickly left, buttoning the last button and looked up to see Rika staring at him in disbelief. "Rika-san…"
Rika frowned. "You love her."
The older man looked away. "Yes, I love her."
"Then why couldn't you say those three words?"
"Because even if I said those words, it wouldn't be a promise I would be able to keep!" He turned and walked away. He loved her very much…that is what was keeping him from saying them to her. He loved her so much that guilt was running all over his body. He was married to a wonderful woman…Jounichi was already promised to her! "Haruno-san! Wait! I-!" Rika stopped dead in her tracks and noticed just ahead of Jounichi the tall figure of the Yamakage-sama. Her eyes widened in fear at the way his face looked. He seemed angrier, like a dark cloud hovered over him and as if he were to raise his hands, lightning would immediately strike down the younger man standing before him.
"SO…this is how you repay me?" He glared at Rika and at the door where it suddenly flew open to reveal a very scared looking Sayuri, dressed only in her robes. The Yamakage's eyes flared with anger and Rika could see the fire burning in them. "You are one smart man, Haruno. You use my own daughter so you could see within the castle grounds how I work around here? All this time…" The Yamakage glanced at his daughter. "Have you declared your love for this man, Sayuri? Well, maybe you should have thought about it more, because this man was just using you go get to me!"
Jounichi said nothing.
"Oh? No words to defend yourself? It MUST be true! Now that you have information on me to decline the peace treaty between our countries, what next? Are you going to come take my daughter away? Promise her a place where you can live peacefully and have a family? Do tell me your intentions, Haruno-san."
"Father, no!" Sayuri ran quickly and stood between Jounichi and the Yamakage-sama. "I…I can't let you hurt him!"
"YOU!" The fire burned brighter in his eyes. He could no longer contain his anger. He stomped towards her and raised his hand, ready to strike her. "How DARE you try and defy me and sleep with the enemy? You WHORE! You are NO DAUGHTER OF MINE!"
Sayuri closed her eyes, a single tear falling from her eyes, ready for the hit. She wasn't going to fight back. She knew she deserved it…no matter how hurt she was right now by the man she truly loves. She heard the slap, but she didn't feel it. Opening her eyes again, she noticed Jounichi staring up at her father with an equal fire burning in his eyes.
"How DARE you attempt to hit your own daughter!" Jounichi yelled, a vice grip around the older man's wrist. He glared up at him without breaking a sweat. The Yamakage did the same, but Rika had seen a little bit of twitch out of the corner of his eyes, confirming to her that he was ready to back down. To her surprise, he did and the Yamakage only continued to glare down at Jounichi.
"All right, I won't hit her, but if you leave, I will continue that promise!" He put his arm down and left without a word. "You have disgraced me long enough, Sayuri…Get dressed and we shall talk about the consequences."
Sayuri watched her father leave before moving in front of Jounichi and glaring up at him with tear-stricken eyes. "You CAN'T say those things to my father!"
"Why not? He was going to hurt you!"
She looked away shamefully and said quietly, "It won't hurt as much compared to the way you have hurt me…" With that said, Sayuri left, tears falling non-stop from her eyes.
Jounichi watched her leave, his fists clenched at his sides, knowing deep down that his love for her was true. But he couldn't…he shouldn't…he was promised to someone else.
"And Haruno-san left without even saying good bye to Sayuri-sama. Heart broken, Sayuri knelt down before her father, apologized and told him everything… even with the fact that there was a life growing in her. He was furious with the news and he immediately asked me to…" Rika swallowed hard, unable to say the words.
Sasuke understood what she was going to say. "You mean to kill the child right after it would be born?"
"Sayuri-sama didn't know of this command from her father, because she thought he would put the child in an orphanage or give it to a couple in the village. Right after the children was born…the twins… I couldn't bring myself to poison the children that Sayuri-sama brought into the earth with love for Jounichi. I hid them secretly inside a large basket and late at night, put them in an orphanage where they could be safe."
"And Sayuri knew what you were commanded to do and what you eventually did?"
Rika nodded. "Of course! I couldn't keep secrets from Sayuri-sama. I told her what her father had asked and what I have done to save the children. Delighted…I saw her die in front of my eyes, with a smile on her face…" She paused and sighed. "Even with everything that has happened to her, she still held a smile on her face, hoping that the children of the man who abandoned her, would be all right. I immediately wrote to Haruno-san, telling him of the bad news, but he never wrote back. At this time, Yamakage-sama was so distraught with his daughter's death and angered, that he decided to blame all of Konoha for the cause of it all. He sent some of his best fighters to attack Konoha, but Konoha was stronger and…well…" She swept her eyes outside the window towards what was left of the Mist village. "It was an ugly battle, but even then, the shrine was left untouched."
Sasuke glanced outside. It was true…the shrine was the only thing standing firm a top a steep hill. He was shocked to hear that even Konoha would brutally retaliate against a weaker village.
"Oh, it wasn't Konoha's fault that everyone died…no, no." Rika shook her head and smiled reassuringly at Sasuke. He had forgotten she could read minds. "Yamakage-sama felt he could no longer fight the losing battle so he…" She stared at him, hoping that her eyes would show everything she was hoping to tell him instead of saying it aloud.
"S-so…" His eyes widened in shock. "So he sacrificed EVERYONE BUT the shrine to drive away Konoha's shinobis out of the village?"
Rika nodded. "Yes. To him, it was the only thing he could do to release his insanity."
"With his wife dead and then his daughter, it's no wonder he had driven himself mad," Sasuke added, standing up to walk over to the kitchen window to stare up at the lonely shrine. "And the twins…did they survive?"
"What do you think?"
Sasuke closed his eyes, and then opened them again, his eyes scanning the deserted area of the village. "I figured as much…why else would they decide to take away Jounichi at this time? They found out about their birthright and decided to go after him."
"Well, what are you going to do now? Are you going to go after them?"
Sasuke nodded. "Yes. I intend to keep the promise for her. Seeing her sad face is the last thing I want."
Rika smiled. "I admire your courage, young man." She stood up and walked over to the sink and opened the bottom cupboard. She reached in and took out something small. Sasuke watched as she walked to him and handed him a black string. Attached to this string was an odd shaped, shiny white pendant in the shape of a half moon. "This was the necklace Haruno-san gave to Sayuri-sama. I didn't see this until I was asked to clean out Sayuri-sama's things from her room. I kept it to remind myself that Haruno-san DID love Sayuri-sama no matter what they were both facing."
The dark haired man glanced down at it, then at Rika. "Why are you giving this to me?"
"Because whenever you look at this, it would remind you what you must do. It will keep you from going astray. This necklace will reflect the face of that woman you love and it will keep you going."
"Arigatou…" Sasuke stuffed the necklace gently in his pouch. "I should get going then. Thank you once again for your generosity." He turned and walked towards the door.
Rika smiled, following behind him closely and opened the door for him. "Be well, my boy. I pray for your safe return…" She watched as he stepped out of her small home and journeyed towards the top of the hill to where the shrine would be.
"Why is he taking so long?" Kasumi stomped her feet impatiently and glanced at her twin brother sitting casually at a chair made of wood.
"Why can't you have a little bit of patience, neechan?" Yamato sighed and glanced over to where Kayo was standing near the window and glancing outside. "Any sign of him yet?"
Kayo chuckled and pointed outside where a shadowed figure was walking cautiously towards them. "I believe that's him." He glanced at Kasumi, who was already drooling at the thought of Sasuke coming to them.
"Good." Yamato straightened up and dusted off his long robe and stood up. "Kasumi…prepare otousan. I'll go and greet Sasuke-kun welcome. Stay where you are Kayo. Pretty soon, you'll be able to greet Sakura-neesan as well."
"Awww, why can't I do that?" Kasumi stomped her feet once more and folded her arms across her chest angrily.
Yamato calmly turned his head at his twin. "Neechan, he's here to rescue otousan anyway, so you'll be able to welcome him as well!"
Kasumi thought about what Yamato said and nodded. "Fine. But I want to be able to play with him once you're done."
The older twin nodded. "Of course! I would never forget about my neechan!" He smiled and with that said, he turned and left to meet up with younger boy. Kasumi left Kayo alone to go fetch Jounichi.
Sasuke cautiously walked up the hill. He felt no powerful chakra around him, indicating that one of those men who attacked them a few days ago were there. He knew there was something odd about the shrine. Most likely, Jounichi would be in there. Where else would the children of Sayuri and Jounichi be to show their father anger and despair that they were abandoned at birth? The shrine was where the Priestess' body would most likely to reside, alongside her father who would be asked to be buried next to her and his wife. He paused in front of the shrine. Sasuke blinked. Instead of a shrine, he saw a tunnel leading to the very bottom of the hill.
Without light, it would be too dark for him to explore, but now he could feel Jounichi's aura deep within, along with the three shinobis and he had no choice but to bring some fire with him to search the deep, dark depths below.
Sasuke looked around for any sort of wood debris from the shrine and to his luck, he found a piece of wood, light enough and big enough to make a torch. He picked it up and with just the right amount; he used his fire jitsu and set fire to the tip of the torch.
Slowly, but surely, the dark haired man stepped inside and made his descent down the steps to the darkness. Inside, Sasuke realized it was even more impossible to walk around without light, but it was also difficult even with fire burning in the piece of wood he had in his hand in which he made as a torch. He glanced slightly to his right and noticed another path leading to a downward slope of darkness, while the path to the left, preferably leading to the bottom of the stairs made it more of a possible choice for him. Sasuke made the decision and continued on down the stairs. The smell of decay fumed his nostrils and the sound of running water, as he reached the very bottom of the cemented stairs, tickled his ears.
"Ahh…welcome, Sasuke-kun!"
Startled at the familiar voice, Sasuke whirled around, the fire almost going out at the impact, but he managed to keep it burning even as he faced Yamato. "Yamato…" he mumbled under his breath.
Yamato looked at him, surprised. "Oh, so I see you finally know the history of this place; the place where we were born and where our mother was left abandoned by the man whom Sakura-neesan calls her father." He lifted up his arms as if to indicate the tunnel in which, Sasuke was pretty sure they created themselves.
"Where is Jounichi?" Sasuke released his chidori, his eyes changing from dark brown into a deep shade of crimson, the black insignia surrounding the pupils.
Yamato shook his head. "Sasuke-kun, that chidori of yours will not work in this place." Suddenly, he appeared behind Sasuke. Surprised, Sasuke dropped his made up torch and attacked. He could feel Yamato dodging every single attack he could muster, but Sasuke could tell the older man was playing around with him. "Hm…very impressive! Even in the dark, the great Uchiha Sasuke is able to fight back. But…" As Sasuke made one kick, he was caught off guard when Yamato grabbed his ankle, stopping it just in time from hitting his right cheek. "I have seen much already of that technique, Sasuke-kun, that I am able to understand where and how you would attack."
Sasuke clenched his fists and hit both of them towards Yamato's chest, surprising him. Yamato let go of his ankle due to the impact and backed off a couple of steps, giving Sasuke a chance to get away. "I want to know where Jounichi is before I kill you…" the dark haired man spoke with a deadly tone.
Yamato blinked for a couple of seconds, before throwing back his head and laughed. "So you think you can kill me as easily as Yai? I don't think so!" He charged.
They had finally arrived. Kiyoshi was correct that the pathway through the mountains took shorter than the original pathway in which Sakura thought she knew. She was shocked to find, that as they stepped into the village, there was no sign of life anywhere. It was quiet around them and the only sound they heard were the vultures high above them, searching for any scraps left by the humans. The pink haired girl felt herself shiver at the thought of dead bodies with vultures surrounding them, picking with their beaks at the human meat.
"There was a battle that happened between this village and Konoha exactly 23 years ago, which led to the destruction to this village."
Sakura looked ahead and noticed a shrine painted in white at the very top of the hill. It looked as though nothing was touched inside. "Not all the village." She nodded to the shrine.
Kiyoshi, seeing this for the first time, was surprised at this revelation. "Hm, that's odd. I don't really know what led to the reason of having a battle between Konoha and Mist, but someone told me it is because of the Priestess in that shrine that lived there. She was the daughter of the Yamakage."
The pink haired girl stared at the shrine, but said nothing. She noticed a shadow moving near it. "Hey! Someone's there! Hey! Wait! Sasuke-kun!" Without thinking, Sakura ran towards the shrine, hoping it would be Sasuke, who could lead her to her father.
"Sakura!" Kiyoshi yelled.
But Sakura wasn't listening. She followed the figure up the hill and to the shrine where she expected the figure would be waiting for her, but he had disappeared. The pink haired girl glanced down at a dark tunnel. She could hear fighting below. "Sasuke-kun?" she called quietly.
"Sakura!" He caught up to her finally and placed a hand on the young girl's shoulder. "Are you out of your mind?" Kiyoshi forced her around and stared into her eyes. "What made you run off like that and follow a completely stranger?"
"That was Sasuke-kun I saw!"
Kiyoshi sighed. "If it was Sasuke, then he wouldn't have run off like that, right?"
Sakura thought for a moment. Kiyoshi-san was indeed right, but she couldn't just sit there and let whoever that was run off like that. She saw the way the older man's forehead wrinkle with worry. Why was he worrying himself so much for her wellbeing? It couldn't be just because Sasuke-kun asked him to watch out for her. She turned back around to face the dark tunnel. "Kiyoshi-san…I think this time I'll go alone. Thank you for taking care of me." She clenched her fists at her sides and readied to step down the stairs, but Kiyoshi's hand on her shoulder stopped her.
"NO," he said firmly.
Sakura turned her head towards him, her face contorted into an odd frown. "You are NOT my father! You can't tell me what to do!" She jerked her shoulder away from his hand and continued on down.
Kiyoshi frowned. "You're right…I'm not your father…"
She knew it was a bad idea to go down the stairs without light, but Sakura was too determined to care about anything like that, now that she was almost at the bottom of the stairs…hopefully. She moved her arms around, feeling the side walls beside her. She winced when she felt something slimy and warm touch her fingers and immediately let go. It was a bad idea, however, when she suddenly began to fall, losing her balance from a slippery ground. She grabbed on for dear life, hoping to find anything stern to stop her from falling. Sakura screamed, closing her eyes, praying to God that someone was there to help her.
Suddenly, she stopped and she felt large and warm hands grabbing her own tiny ones. She looked up and noticed Kiyoshi's large hands protectively encased around her fragile ones. "Kiyoshi-san…"
"I may not be your father, Sakura but I am not about to let the daughter of my best friend die without seeing him first." The older man pulled her up gently until she was back at the top.
Sakura looked down. There seems to be no bottom to where she was going to fall. "Gomen nasai…I didn't mean to yell at you earlier." She stood up and patted away the dirt from her skirt.
Kiyoshi shook his head. "What's done is done. Let's not dwell in the past." He suddenly lit a fire with a match he took from his pocket using a large brown twisted paper from his backpack as a torch and pointed the light towards a flight of stairs. "I think that is the right way towards Sasuke, Sakura…"
Sakura blushed. "R-right…"
"Shall we?" Without giving her a chance to answer, Kiyoshi led the way down the stairs.
"Yes." The pink haired girl followed the older man quietly down the stairs.
They had reached the bottom of the stairs quicker than she expected. She could smell death and what seemed like bile. Kiyoshi stepped aside to allow Sakura through. The tunnel eventually led them at the bottom of the sewers where people's garbage wastes were thrown without a care in the world that the water would carry them to the ocean.
Sakura heard the sound of several footsteps. It sounded as though someone was fighting just ahead of them and the pink haired girl wasted no time wondering what it was as she ran towards the noise. She ignored Kiyoshi's calls and continued to follow the sound. This eventually led her to two men fighting in the distance. She could tell by the way they moved from the shadows that indeed they were two men and one of them she recognized clearly as Sasuke's. "Sasuke-kun!" She ran to the two figures, but something was not right…
"Ahhh, just in time, neesan!"
The pink haired girl paused and noticed the same red haired man glancing at her. Sasuke turned to her, but Sakura could tell something had happened and he didn't seem like the same Sasuke she knew.
Yamato turned to face her. "Kasumi-neechan! Neesan is here!"
Confused, Sakura stared at Sasuke.
A second figure approached the two men. Sakura recognized the figure to be a woman, the same one who tried to seduce Sasuke. She walked up to Sasuke and put her arms around him. "Why hello, Sakura-neesan!"
"…"
Sasuke turned to look at Kasumi and put his arms around her waist. He growled in her ear. Sakura winced as Kasumi giggled, completely ignoring the pink haired girl. Yamato smiled and noticed the way Sakura was clenching her fists at her sides. "Calm down, Sasuke-kun…we have a guest."
Sakura glared at Yamato. "That's not Sasuke-kun! What have you done to him?"
Yamato's grin grew wider. "Why…nothing at all, neesan!"
The pink haired girl knew he wasn't going to answer her straight, so she asked him a second question that he would surely answer. "Where is my father?"
Just as she expected, Yamato replied, "He's somewhere around here. Don't worry, you'll see each other soon enough."
"Sakura!" Kiyoshi appeared quickly at Sakura's side and was shocked to see Sasuke whispering sweet nothings into Kasumi's ear. "Sasuke? Wha-?"
"Sasuke-kun…what do we do about her?" she purred into Sasuke's ear.
Sasuke shrugged. "I don't know, what do you think?" He kissed her lovingly and Sakura felt her eyes sting. No…this wasn't Sasuke-kun…that WHORE was controlling him! She was controlling him! He would never give in to her!
"Bastard!" Sakura heard Kiyoshi yell. "What have you done to Sasuke?"
Yamato glanced at Kiyoshi. "Who are you? Nevermind that…Sasuke-kun, I want you to attack them!"
"Niichan! I want to tell him!" Kasumi yelled, stomping her feet like a brat.
Yamato sighed. "All right, all right, go ahead."
Kasumi giggled excitedly and licked Sasuke's cheek. "Lover…I want you to kill the bitch!"
Sasuke smiled and stared at Sakura maliciously. "My pleasure!"
With that answer, Kasumi and Yamato disappeared, leaving Sasuke alone to handle the two of them.
Kiyoshi sighed. "Sakura…I know I told you I am just a medicine man but…I think it's time that I stop lying to you…" He grabbed something from his pockets and put it on. Sakura noticed they were meshed gloves.
"Kiyoshi-san?"
"You've come this far already and I don't want you to stop searching for your father just because of one little distraction. Let me handle him while you go and find your father."
"What? But you're no fighter! Sasuke-kun is quite strong!"
Kiyoshi chuckled. "I WAS once a Konohan shinobi you know, so don't underestimate me! Besides…Sasuke is under the influence of that woman so I think I can find a weakness somewhere in his brainwashed mind!" When she didn't move, Kiyoshi glanced at her and smiled at her reassuringly. "I promise you, I will bring Sasuke back to normal. Don't worry, I won't hurt him…much."
Sakura nodded.
Sasuke charged and Kiyoshi positioned himself into a fighting stance and yelled, "NOW!" Sakura nodded and ran as fast as she could. Confused, Sasuke decided to go after Sakura, but Kiyoshi blocked his way. "No, no boy…you're fighting me!"
GoodGurl: gasped So…Sasuke is under control…again! ; Next chapter, Kiyoshi and Sasuke showdown! Sakura finally meets her father, but finds him tied up with Kayo just waiting for her! gasps What surprises meet the star-crossed lovers in this final chapter of this story?