Author's notes : Okay. another chapter to the edition. Sorry it's been a while, i've been crazy busy these past few weeks. Okay welll on with the chapter. :)

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Shit this girls strong.

Karin thought to herself. She saw Sakura running straight at her, and she was fast! Karin backed up into a tree as she closed her eyes awaiting the impact.

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Sakura yelled as she thrusted her fist forward and her fist collided with the tree as it brokw apart. She looked around as Karin had dodged it. She turned to face karin as she pulled out a few shurikan, she ran full speed at Karin as she jumped off a tree anf flipped in the air as she threw the shurikans.

Karin quickly grabbed a kunai as she deflected as many shurikan as she could. She was cut by a few of them. She winced in pain as she grabbed her leg. She looked up at Sakura as she fixed her glasses.

"I don't see what we're fighting about, Sasuke is mine."

Karin said bravely with a smirk as she jumped up and threw the kunai she had.

Sakura gritted her teeth as she dodged the kunai and jumped off the ground heading towards karin with her fist pulled back.

If I can just land one hit, she'll be done for.

Sakura throught to herself as she swung her fist and Karin dodged it once more as another tree was sent flying. Sakura landed on the ground as she glared at Karin.

"I mean, afterall, he left you didn't he? And you tried to stop him by screaming like a little bitch that you loved him. Hah, and he didn't care, and doesn't care now. It's not you he wants Sakura, when will you realize this and just let him go?" she said as she placed her hands on her hips.

Sakura ran forward yelling as chakra could be seen around her fist, she threw it forward as Karin stood wide-eyed, Sakura had moved so fast she didn't even notice. She just barely dodged it as Sakura's fist made contact with Karin's arm and it was broken right away. Karin fell to the ground from the impact.

Karin grabbed her arm in pain as she looked over at Jugo and Suigetsu who were watching. A smirk formed on her face as her eyes flashed a different colour for a split second.

Sakura bent over and picked Karin up by her collar. She pulled her fist back.

This is it, just one hit.

Sakura said as she glared at her and then finally threw her fist forward.

Karin flinched as she shut her eyes tight but then opened them a few seconds later.

Sakura felt something on her arm as she looked over and saw Jugo standing there holding her arm.

"Jugo, let go. This is our fight."

Sakura said in a serious tone.

Jugo didn't respond, he tightened his grip as he forcefully threw Sakura to the side.

Sakura released her grip on Karin as she was sent flying to the side, she landed with both hands and feet on the ground as she skid across raising dirt.

"Jugo!" she yelled angrily. Suddenly she sensed something above her as she rolled to the side. She looked over to where her body used to be as there was a familar giant blade in its place. She looked up and saw the person that was weilding it. " Suigetsu what are you doing ! You almost-" she didn't finish her sentence as she was, again, rolling to the side dodging another attack by Suigetsu. She jumped backwards putting space between her and them. "What are you two doing !" she yelled as they slowly walked and stopped side by side as she could see Karin behind them with a wide grin on her face. "You!" Sakura yelled as she clutched her hands into a fist.

"Don't bother talking to them, they won't answer you." she said with a smirk.

"What did you do to them." Sakura demanded

Karin let out a laugh. "Why nothing, they're simply protecting me. " Karin's eyes flashed a different colour again as Suigetsu and Jugo's eyes did as well.

Sakura noticed this."You bitch, you used some kind of mind control jutsu on them to fight your battle for you! You coward!"

Karin smirked as her eyes flashed again and Jugo and Suigetsu started forwards toward Sakura. Suigetsu charged towards Sakura as he began slashing at her. Sakura grabbed a kunai as she blocked majority of the attacks, she suffered a few minor cuts here and there. She continuously backed up to avoid the slashes when she was stopped. She looked up and saw Jugo standing behind her. Her eyes widened as he held out his arm and it formed into a large blade. It came down fast as Sakura just barely escaped.

SUigetsu and Jugo turned to face Sakura as they both had long blades. Sakura rummaged through her weapons as she only had two kunai, a few smoke bombs, some wire, several shurikan, and a few explosive tags left.

Shit.

She jumped into the air as she threw down a few circular objects as purple smoke filled the air. Suigetsu,Jugo and Karin all covered their eyes and mouth. When the smoke cleared Sakura was gone.

Karin clutched her hand into a fist as she looked around. "Come out!" she yelled.

Sakura stood on a tree branch not too far away as she watched them. She breathed in slowly as she held her hands out in a certain way.

"Magen: Jubaku Satsu!" she yelled as she dissapeared.

Karin stood looking around frantically as Suigetsu and Jugo walked around examining the area for Sakura.

Jugo stopped as a noise was heard and a kunai shot out. He raised his arm that was shaped as a sword as the kunai stuck into it. He smirked as he turned her arm to look at the kunai. His eyes widened as he saw the piece of paper that was burning up attatched to the end of the kunai. An explosion occurred as Jugo fell to the ground holding his, now, wounded arm.

Suigetsu ran over to him as he stopped and bent backwards dodging several shurikan. He smirked as he went to move and then stopped. He couldn't move at all. He looked down as he saw the wire that had been wrapped around him he then saw the shurikan laying on the ground in front of him with something attactched to the end. It was an explosive note. His eyes widened as another explosion was heard. He dropped his sword as he fell to the ground.

Karin watched wide eyed.

She set up traps..but how? She's only been gone a few minutes.

Suddenly the ground beneath Karin opened up as roots shot out and wrapped around her ankles. She tried to run but couldn't. A tree began growing behind her as the braches wrapped around her, tight, and held her in place. Finally a fully grown tree stood behind her with the branches and roots wrapped around her.

"What the hell!" Karin yelled as she was not having trouble breathing due to the tightness of the branches around her chest. She stopped struggling when she looked up and saw the trunk reforming. Her eyes widened as suddenly Sakura appeared. Only half of Sakura's body was sticknig out of the tree trunk. She was above Karin as she held a Kunai in her hand.

"He is MINE!" Sakura yelled as she brought the kunai down, fast!

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Sasuke sat on a tree branch as he looked up at the moon. He closed his eyes as he began to think back.

"Because I don't belong there. No one wants me there anyway." Sasuke said cooly.

"What are you talking about. Of course people want you there. Naruto,Kakashi-sensai...me." she said as she looked at him pleadingly.

He just shook his head. "None of that matters Sakura. I don't belong there, you have your own lives now and I have mine."

Sakura could feel her eyes watering. "What do you mean none of it matters? What about last night, doesn't that matter? Don't...don't I matter?" Sakura said fighting off the tears.

Sasuke sighed as he looked at her. "Sakura, we can't be together. Last night, well that was just a stupid thing to do." he said bluntly.

He opened his eyes as he rememberd the look on her face when he said that.

Sakura shook her head. "Stupid..stupid." she said as she lowered her head.

Sasuke sighed as he looked back ahead of him. "Listen, if you're going to start crying would you mind doing it somewhere else. Maybe on your way back to Konoha." Sasuke said as he closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the wall.

Sakura looked up at him, her eyes watering. She slowly stood as she took a few steps away then looked back over her shoulder. "I can't believe I still love you.." she said as she dissapeared into the forest and she couldn't fight them any longer as the tears began streaming down her face.

Sasuke sighed as he gazed up at the moon.

Why did I say that.?
I lied to her, I lied to myself.
That night did mean something, it meant a lot.
I can't believe how I always treat her so badly, and she still always comes back to me.
She's the only one who's willing to forgive me, to still love me.
Regradless of what I've done and said, she's always been there.

Sasuke stood on the branch as he jumped off and dissapeared into the darkness.

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Sakura brought the kunai down as it was stopped by a sword. She looked up as she saw Suigetsu standing weakly holding his sword to block her attack.

"You bitch, even after they've been injured badly you still make them fight to protect you!" Sakura yelled as she dissapeared into the tree and reappeared standing on the otherside of Suigetsu as she grabbed him and threw him across the campsite. He slid across the ground as he finally collided into a tree as it toppled over onto him.

Sakura picked up her kunai as she walked up to Karin, who was still stuck in the tree, and held it to her throat as she drew some blood.She saw Karin's eyes flash again as she quickly moved out of the way. A large hammer shaped object collided with the ground as a small crater was formed. She saw Jugo standing with a messed up right arm, and a left arm that he had formed into a hammer.

He lifted it again as he swung it down ontop of Sakura. She jumped out of the way as it smashed into the ground once more. She jumped ontop of it as she ran up his arm sending a very powerful kick to his face as he flew back a few meters.

She jumped down. "Release them Karin! I don't want to hurt them." Sakura said as she kept her eyes on Jugo who was standing.

"Funny, doesn't seem like you're showing them much mercy." Karin said as she continued to struggle.

Jugo charged towards Sakura as he swung his hammer like arm. Sakura barely dodged it as it caught her ankle and she fell to the ground. He broke her ankle. She tried to stand as he was now towering over her. He kicked her down as she was on the ground. He brought his hammer down on her other leg as he broke it.

Sakura let out a cry in pain as her leg broke. He brought his hammer down once more as she puched it and he stumbled backwards. She used this oppurtunity to try and crawl away but he stepped on her legs as she stopped and let out a cry of pain.

He them stepped on her arms to hold them down as he brought his hammer up once more right above her head.

Karin watched with a smirk on her face as the branches began to loosen their grip, Sakura was running out of chakra.

"NOW JUGO!" Karin yelled.

Jugo brought his hammer down quickly. Sakura closed her eyes.

She opened them a few moments later as she saw someone standing between her and Jugo blocking Jugo's attack.
"Sasuke.." she said softly.

He held out his sword as he blocked the hammer. He delivered a swift kick to Jugo's torso as he flew a few metres away and landed on the ground. Sasuke held his sword at his side as he looked around. He saw Karin stuck in a tree, Suigetsu knocked unconcious laying under a broken tree and Jugo and Sakura on the ground. He then quickly turned and helped Sakura up. He supported her by putting her arm around him. With his free arm he sheathed his sword.

"What the hell happend here." he said in his monotone voice as he averted his gaze to Karin who was struggling to break free.

"Ask Sakura." Karin said coldly. "She started it."

Sasuke looked at Sakura. She was bleeding and in pain.

"I started it with you, that is until you used a mind control jutsu and brought Jugo and Suigetsu into it." she said gritting her teeth.

Sasuke's eyes widened. "You put your teammates in danger so that you could protect yourself." Sasuke scolded.

Karin stopped struggling as she looked down at the ground in shame."I..I'm sorry Sasuke-kun."

Sasuke near rolled his eyes as he heard the suffix she had used. He slowly placed Sakura on the ground as he walked over to Karin who was stuck in the tree. "If you ever bring harm to her again, I will kill you myself." he said coldly as he stared into her frightened eyes. He turned and walked towards Suigetsu. "Sakura, free her from that." he said coldly as he began picking up the debree that had fallen ontop of Suigetsu.

Sakura sighed as she held her hands together. "Kai." she said as the tree began to dissapear and Karin fell to the ground.

Suigetsu and Jugo began to gain conciouness as they looked around. Suigetsu saw Sasuke as he slowly stood. "Wh..what happend?" he said rubbing his side.

Sasuke didn't answer as he walked towards the lake and stood at the waters edge looking out into no where.

Sakura sat on the ground as she mustered up her remaining chakra and began healing herself.

Karin sat in guilt near the fire as she stared at the dancing flames.

Jugo and Suigetsu walked over and stood beside Sasuke.

"Sasuke, what the heck happend. Why am I in so much pain, and why is everyone wounded?" he said looking at Sasuke. "All I remember is Sakura and Karin fighting and then Karin looked at us and I blacked out."

"She used a mind control jutsu and made you fight Sakura instead." Sasuke answered

"I never knew Karin had that kind of power." Jugo said as he looked out over the lake.

"None of us did." Sasuke replied.

Suigetsu started to laugh.

"What's so funny." Sasuke said as he turned and looked at him.

"It's just, Karin got the crap beat out of her by that chick, Sakura." he said with a wide grin.

They all turned and looked at Sakura, who was healing her wounds.

"I don't see why you're laughing, so did you two." Sasuke added with a shrug.

Suigetsu stopped laughing. "What, you're joking right?"

Sasuke shook his head. "How do you think you ended up burried under a tree and in so much pain. And the fact that Jugo's arm is all messed up. It was all her doing."

Jugo glanced down at his bleeding arm.

"I never knew she was that strong. I mean, after all the stories we heard about her. She was the weakest member of your team though, wasn't she?" Suigetsu asked contuing to look at Sakura amazed.

Sasuke nodded. "It's been a long time since then. Her strength matches that and probably surpasses Jugo." he said as he turned and walked towards Sakura.

"It's amazing how someone that small, someone who seems so weak could be that strong." Suigetsu said as he crossed his arms. " I still don't believe she could've beat me." he said as he sighed.

"I have a feeling there's strength in her that we haven't seen yet." Jugo said.

"What do you mean?" Suigetsu asked uncrossing his arms.

"I wouldn't want to be the one she unleashes her full strength on." he said as he walked away.

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Author's notes: WELLL. another chapter for you. I know, it wasn't that long but i could only make the fight so long. Well review and tell me what ya think :)

next chapter: Sasuke's replacement.