Here's the next chapter. Hope you enjoy it. Just to keep you from getting the wrong idea this is a SakuSasu fic. Jugo is just going to be a meddling friend that gets enjoyment from watching Sasuke try to ignore his feelings. Anyways on with the story,
Diclaimer: (sigh) i don't own naruto
Ch. 3: Team Snake
She was searching for something. She wasn't sure what it was but she knew she had to find it. Then she saw him. He was walking away from her. He had a bag slung over his shoulder. Each step seemed to take him miles from her. She ran after him.
"Don't leave me. Please," she cried.
No matter how fast she ran she couldn't catch up to him. He didn't eve look back. He just kept walking getting farther and farther away. Tears streamed down her face and she kept yelling his name.
Then everything began to change. She was standing in the forest with Kakashi and Naruto. Someone else was on the other side of the clearing. He looked at her with those cold eyes. She watched as Naruto and Kakashi attacked him. He killed them ruthlessly and started walking towards her with his red eyes looking right into her green ones. This couldn't be happening. He wouldn't to this. He wouldn't kill his comrades. Someone was calling her name but she ignored them. The man started running to her. Right before he ran her through with the sword she screamed.
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"Sakura!" a voice demanded while someone shook her awake.
Sakura sat up abruptly in the bed. She was coated in sweat. She felt hands on her shoulders and began to fight. Fear was still running through her system and she reacted without thought. Whoever it was wouldn't be pushed away though. She felt a hand on the back of her head and an arm on her waist. She collided with a solid body.
"Sakura stop it. It's me," the voice she now recognized said.
"Sasuke, I was so scared. They were dead and then I was about to die," she whispered.
"Shh, it was just a dream."
She just sat there for a moment. Sakura knew it wouldn't last. The moment he believed she was alright he would leave. She was right. He pulled away a moment later.
"Are you alright?"
"I'm fine. It was just a nightmare. I know it couldn't really happen," she said.
"What was it?"
She looked away, "Naruto and Kakashi were killed by someone I trust. I know it couldn't happen. That person would never hurt them. He once promised to never hurt them so I know he wouldn't."
He watched her for a moment. Sasuke didn't want to admit it but he had been scared. When he woke up to hear her scream of pain and fear he felt his heart stop. A thousand things that could have happened to her ran through his head all at once. The Uchiha had run all the way to the bedroom to make sure she was alright. When he saw that she was having a bad dream he felt weak with relief. She was alright. It had just been a dream. He ran over when she screamed again to wake her.
"Are you going to be able to sleep?" he asked her.
She considered this for a moment then shook her head, "I don't think so."
"Alright. Come on."
She stood up and followed him into the kitchen. He pulled down some cereal. She took the hint and grabbed the milk. They ate breakfast in silence. She was thinking about the dream. It hadn't been the first time she had that nightmare or one similar to it. It was one of her greatest fears. To one day find that Sasuke was her enemy would tear her apart. She had been afraid for so long that Orochimaru would manage to turn Sasuke into a monster. Sakura decided it was best not to tell Sasuke that the enemy in her dream had been him. That he had been the one to murder her friends in the dream. He would probably be insulted.
"Let's go," Sasuke's voice cut through her thoughts.
She looked at him and blinked, "Huh?"
He sighed, "I said let's go. My team should be waiting."
"Oh, right. I forgot."
He shook his head at her then headed for the door. Sasuke handed her a kunai and a ribbon on their way. She placed the kunai in her belt and tied her hair back with the ribbon. Before the two of them left Sasuke turned and looked her in the eye.
"I want your word that you won't try to escape."
She blinked at him, "Why?"
"I don't want to have to kill you and Orochimaru will make me if You try to get away."
She smiled in understanding, "Don't worry, Sasuke. I'm not going anywhere."
His eyes softened for a moment. He hadn't noticed until now how worried he had been that she would try to escape. Sasuke had once promised never to let anyone, even himself, hurt one of his comrades. He may not be a part of their team anymore but they were still his comrades.
Sasuke nodded to her and walked out the door. Sakura followed behind him without hesitation. She decided she would stay with him. Maybe she could save him from the path he was on. And if she couldn't she would help him. He wouldn't be alone anymore. She would be right there with him. So she walked beside him with a smile.
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They arrived at the camp a few hours later. Sasuke stood in between his team and Sakura. He didn't want them to attack her before he had a chance to explain. She seemed to understand and stayed behind him. The team all stood up when he walked into the clearing.
"Well, look who decided to show up," Suigetsu commented.
"Shut up, Suigetsu," Karin ordered him. The smiled flirtatiously at Sasuke, "Hello, Sasuke."
Jugo looked over and nodded his head. He was the first to notice the girl standing behind their leader. She seemed to be looking at them with both nervousness and curiosity.
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Sakura looked at the group gathered around the fire with wariness. They were definitely and unusual group.
The first one to speak was a guy carrying a large sword that she recognized as Zabuto's. He had silver hair that came just below his shoulders and bangs that fell just below his eyes. He wore a purple sleeveless shirt and white pants. He made her skin crawl a little bit but she dismissed it for the moment.
The one that told him to shut up was a girl. Her long dark red hair was in an odd style. Part of it was neat and straight but another part was spiked a little and layered. She had eyes the color of rubies. The smiled she gave Sakura made the pink haired kunoichi glare a little.
The silent one was huge. She didn't mean like Choji big. She meant muscles galore big. The man was probably the most muscular man she had ever seen. To tell you the truth it made her slightly nervous. He had blonde hair that spiked up and blue eyes. He gave her a reassuring smile when he saw her wary expression. She relaxed and gave him a shy smile.
"Who's she?" the girl asked in annoyance.
"Her name is Sakura. You're not to touch her," Sasuke stated.
"Why not?" the silver haired man asked. He was giving Sakura a funny look. She was beginning to wish he would look away.
"I'd have to kill you if you did." Sasuke turned to Sakura and began to introduce everyone, "Sakura, the girl is Karin. The big mouth with silver hair is Suigetsu. The big guy is Jugo."
Sakura smiled a little, "Hello."
"Why is she here?" Karin asked Sasuke completely ignoring Sakura.
"Because Orochimaru ordered me to take her with me. Live with it," Sasuke said in a tone that told everyone that the subject was closed. He changed the subject, "Orochimaru gave us a new mission. He wants to know what Noruto Uzumaki has been up to for the last three years."
"Alright then. Let's get going. I was getting bored anyway," Suigetsu said.
The rest of the group agreed. Sakura watched them pack up. She didn't have to pack anything because she had never unpacked to begin with. Her bag was slung over her shoulder. She saw Jugo was having a few problems getting all of his stuff to fit. She walked over tentively.
"Do you...want some...um...help?" she asked slowly.
He glanced up at her. Jugo gave her a small smile, "If you don't mind. I've always had problems with this. I think it's because everything I own is giant sized."
Sakura smiled and set her bag down, "Here."
She unpacked his bag and smiled when she saw the problem. He folded his clothes wrong. Why was it all the guys she knew had problems folding clothes. Naruto and Sasuke had a hard time figuring it out too. According to Ino so did Shikamaru and Choji.
"Here's your problem. You need to learn how to fold clothes," she said with an amused smile.
Jugo glanced at the wad of clothes. He grinned sheepishly at her and rubbed the back of his head.
"I guess you're right. I never got the hang of that."
She smiled at him. He wasn't so bad. The pink haired girl showed him how to fold his clothes and helped him pack the rest of his stuff. They stood up and joined the rest of the group. Sakura was about to walk over to Sasuke but she saw Karin flirting with him. He wasn't responding but it still bothered her. So Sakura chose to stay close to Jugo. He didn't seem to mind. They walked side by side in comfortable silence.
Jugo was the first one to break that silence, "Why did Lord Orochimaru want you to travel with Sasuke?"
"So he can kill me if I escape," she replied.
Jugo glanced at her in confusion, "So you're a prisoner?"
She smiled, "Yup."
"You're an awfully cheerful prisoner."
She considered this for a moment then said, "I guess I am. I just can't bring myself to be unhappy about this."
"Why not?"
She looked at him in consideration. She didn't know if he could be trusted. Sasuke said that they would tell Orochimaru if they found out about her connection to him. Surely this man wouldn't.
"Promise not to tell anyone? I could cost me my life."
He thought about it for a moment then said, "I promise I won't tell anyone but you should know that I have a split personality issue."
She tilted her head, "Does your other personality know everything you do?"
"No."
"Then it's safe to tell you isn't it?"
"I guess it is. Yes."
She smiled, "Then I'll trust you. I've been searching for Sasuke-kun for three years. Now that I've finally found him I'm just happy to be by his side."
Jugo looked at the girl next to him. Everyone he had ever met hated the Uchiha. The boy had no mercy and was one of Orochimaru's strongest fighters. Not to mention the boy had a bad attitude. No one could stay near him very long because of his sharp tongue. Yet this girl was happy to be with him. Jugo wondered if Sasuke realized what a prize he had in this girl.
"You're a odd girl," he stated.
She grinned at him, "You should meet my best friend. Her boyfriend is the laziest ninja in our village and is constantly calling her troublesome."
Jugo smiled, "Sounds interesting."
"You have no idea."
They both laughed. Jugo caught Sasuke looking back at them with narrowed eyes. He mentally smirked. It looked like his friend was just a little on the jealous side. This could be interesting. He turned to his pink haired companion.
"So, how long have you known Sasuke?" he asked.
"I've known him since we were children. He had a fan club full of girls that wanted his attention and I use to be one of them."
"Use to be?"
She blushed slightly, "Well, I'm not fan girlish anymore. I still want his attention but...it's different now."
"How so?"
She grew thoughtful, "Back then I didn't know the difference between a crush and the real thing. Now I do."
"Do you not love him?"
Sakura looked at Jugo. It had been three years since anyone has asked her that. Most people were afraid to hear her answer. They didn't want to know that she still loved him. Naruto had been the only one that understood what she was feeling. Jugo looked like someone who would understand too. She wanted a friend here. Sasuke wasn't much for the talking thing and she wanted to be able to talk to someone.
"I think so. I...When he left the village I was heartbroken. I'm not sure if I ever got over it. Actually I know I didn't."
Jugo could just shake his head at Sasuke's stupidity. How could he let this girl get away. Oh well, Jugo would make sure his friend wasn't that dumb a second time. He liked this girl. She was interesting. Her voice broke through her thoughts.
"Jugo, I can trust you right?" she asked him.
He glanced at her and smiled, "Of course."
She smiled, "I'm glad. I was hoping for a friend."
"I'll be honored to be your friend."
He glanced up and saw Sasuke was looking back at them again. 'What are you thinking, friend?' he thought. Jugo was really curious about what was going on behind that dark gaze of his. Sakura was smiling at Jugo and telling him about some of her friends from home. He chuckled at some of the things she told him. The girl never mentioned names but used discriptions like troublesome girl or the blonde knuckleheaded ninja. It was amusing.
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When they set up camp Sasuke walked over to Sakura. She was sitting next to Jugo. She has set up her sleeping bag near him.
"Come with me," Sasuke ordered her.
She didn't hesitate. Sakura stood up and followed behind him. He let her to a clearing a fair distance away from the camp site. She wondered what was bothering him. He didn't say anything and kept his back to her.
Sasuke couldn't understand what he was feeing. He just knew that as he had watched Sakura talk to Jugo he had wanted to strangle the big man. He hadn't felt that way before. It didn't make any sense. He had brought her here to ask her about Naruto but he found himself asking something completely different.
"What is going on with Jugo?"
She blinked in confusion, "We were just talking. He's become my friend which I'm glad for. I was afraid I'd be alone here."
He turned to face her, "Friends?"
She nodded, " He said he would protect me from the other guy….Suigetsu. That guy makes my skin crawl. I'm not sure why though."
Sasuke just stared at her. Sakura was beginning to wonder what she had done wrong. The girl wished he would just tell her what was bothering him. She thought about it for a moment. The only thing she could think of was jealously but that couldn't be it. Sasuke didn't even like her…did he? She decided to play it safe and clear that problem up anyway. Her green eyes met his onyx ones. She walked up to him without taking her gaze from him. She placed one hand on his cheek. He covered her hand with his own. She thought he was going to pull her away from him so she spoke quickly.
"There's nothing between me and Jugo other than friendship. I don't even have a boyfriend right now. I refuse all the men that ask me out."
He stilled, "Why?"
She took a deep breath. What difference did it make if she told him? He couldn't do anything to her. The worse that would happen was he would be disgusted with her. That would hurt but she could live with it. As long as Sasuke was happy she would put up with anything. She released the breath in a shaky sigh. She smiled up at him.
"I already told you once. I love you, Sasuke-kun. Only you and that won't ever change."
Sasuke's onyx eyes seem to see right into her soul. She didn't look away and continued to smile at him. He stepped back. She seemed to understand because she still smiled at him.
"Let's go back to camp. Dinner should be ready."
She nodded and followed him.
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