Ch. 7

Our Love Will Never Fade

As dawn broke on the Akatsuki compound, a pair of sleepy eyes slowly cracked open to face the day. The dim light from closed shutters shone into the room, forming streaks of light across the tired face of a young kunoichi. She then proceeded to pull herself out of bed and sit on the edge, placing her head in her hands. The girl gave a shuddering sigh and trudged over to the window, slowly flipping the shutters open. As the weak dawn light poured into the room, she heard a husky grunt of disapproval coming from the bed from where she had just risen. She smiled, the memories of the night before flooding back to her in a rush of awareness.

Pulling on a large tee-shirt she picked up off the floor, she slowly padded over to the small bed. She climbed onto the tall mattress, worming her way under the covers once again.

She sighed, feeling the warm figure next to her pull her into his body. She turned and kissed him, never wanting to leave his side. She ran her fingers through his hair, but stopped abruptly when she felt it end about a foot too soon. Something's not right…

She sat up and yanked the covers off of the bed.

"What the hell…? God, you don't have to be so fucking violent…"

And then she screamed.

Deidara, Sasori and Kisame heard the piercing shriek that had come from the room at the end of the hall. They all yanked their pants up over their boxers and, kunai in hand, ran quickly down to Itachi's room.

And, suddenly, they were all thrown backward by a massive shattering of the stone wall on their left. A body flew past them and slammed into the wall on their right, cracking it a little. They all jumped back up, first turning to look at the body, which they saw was Hidan's, and then to the wall that had burst open only a few moments before.

They sighed in relief when they saw the tense body of a young pink-haired girl emerge from the gaping hole in the rock. She had a large shirt on, which covered her private areas conveniently. She marched over to Hidan, her cheeks flushed and her eyes mad with rage.

"What the hell were you doing in my bed?! Last time I checked it was Itachi's arms I was falling asleep in, not yours, you dirty, scum-filled, filthy motherfu—"

Sasori cleared his throat quite loudly, preventing her from going any further. The young girl turned her head and blinked, noticing the three shinobi for the first time.

Kisame ran over to her, brushing the rubble and dust off of her shoulders. Sasori asked her politely if she was alright, and she told him that she would have been better if Hidan had not appeared, using very colorful language throughout her response.

But Deidara did not involve himself with the young kunoichi. Instead, he walked over, picked Hidan up by the throat, and held a kunai to his chest.

"Why the hell were you in Sakura-san's room, yeah? Decide to pay her a little visit?"

Hidan struggled, telling Deidara to get off. After a few minutes, Sasori came over, tapping Deidara's arm lightly. The blond man grudgingly removed his hand from the taller man's throat, who in turn rubbed his neck where the hand had throttled it. He glared at Deidara, and then turned to Sasori.

"She just made a big deal of nothing. It's not a problem."

Sasori narrowed his eyes, apparent doubt written in his features.

"The whole story, please, Hidan…?"

The burly man sighed.

"Okay, fine. Itachi came out of his room about an hour after you shared Deidara's little news with us, and he asked me why Kazuku hadn't come back to the base with me. I told him that he had been taken by enemy shinobi from his old village, Konoha. So the guy just got up and left, and I assume that he went to Konoha to get the son of a bitch himself.

"Anyway, right before he left, he asked me to make sure she was safe, no matter what. I decided that the best way to do that would be to stay by her side day and night. So I slept next to her…this time." Hidan added the last comment with a husky tone to his voice, playfully eyeing Sakura and grinning stupidly.

Deidara and Sakura both cried out in indignation, saying simultaneously, "This time?!"

Sasori held up a hand in their direction, silencing them and stopping them in their attempt to, yet again, strangle the man in front of him.

"Sakura-san, why don't you, Kisame and Deidara go to the kitchen and fix breakfast? I will finish here with Hidan."

The three nodded their heads, Sakura running back through the hole of rubble, quickly grabbing the sweatpants she had worn the night before. They then proceeded to the kitchen, Kisame and Sakura sitting in their usual places while Deidara prepared them breakfast. The three of them knew, without saying, that Sasori did not wish to be alone with Hidan because of his little trick with Sakura but because he wished to get more information about Kazuku's whereabouts and Itachi's departure.

Sakura glanced up to where Kisame was sitting, diagonally right of her. She gave him a meaningful get out, I need to talk to him alone look, with even a little pleading in her eyes. Kisame stood and, slightly pouting, exited the kitchen. Sakura now sat alone, awkwardly waiting for Deidara to finish. When he turned around, bringing their food to the table, she drew a breath and was about to speak, but stopped when she noticed the ignorant attitude that Deidara put off. He simply ignored her attempts to speak, sitting in silence, eating quite properly.

Sakura sighed. She knew this wouldn't be easy, but she had to try.

"Deidara-kun, you have to let me explain exactly what has been happening with me. I would appreciate it if you didn't tune me out like you are doing now."

Deidara sighed as well, placing his chopsticks next to his noodle bowl (why he had chosen to make noodles for breakfast I don't know) and looking up at Sakura indifferently.

She stared ahead of her at the man she held so dear, wondering how she possibly could have brought herself to hurt him so badly. But Deidara cleared his throat meaningfully, prompting her to start speaking.

"Deidara-kun, when I first arrived here, I hated everyone in this place. Well, I hated you all even though I had never met you. I hated Itachi the most, but I had met him, so I had very good reason.

But then I got to know each of you personally. I began to love all of you; you are all like my family. I would give my life for you."

Silent tears welled up in Sakura's eyes and began to spill over, remembering how she had felt exactly the same way about those she had abandoned. Naruto-kun, Kakashi-sensei, Tsunade, Ino, Hinata, Sai…

Sasuke-kun...

No, he abandoned meI hate him; Itachi would never do anything like that to me.

She closed her eyes, allowing herself to cry freely. Her voice shook, but her eyes, once reopened, did not waver, and her heart did not either.

"He raped me. That part…is completely true. And although my struggle was minimal, I felt my heart shattering over and over again. I was betraying Sasuke, I was betraying my village, all those I loved there, and most of all, I was betraying you. Deidara-kun, I apologize for that.

But what is done can not be taken back. I saw so much of Sasuke in him, and I couldn't help my impending affections. I didn't like how I felt, not one bit. But then…Hidan came. Itachi stood up for me; he protected me…he spoke, for the first time, as if I was his equal. Not just something to throw around. And…I was so happy…it was like all those times Sasuke had done the same, being the gentlemanly Uchiha he was…what did I expect, they are brothers…"

Sakura laughed slightly, realizing that she had been rambling. She lifted her head and wiped the steadily falling tears from her cheeks, and, now wiping her eyes, she looked directly into Deidara's. This caused him to jump slightly; the crystal determination in her eyes was striking, almost to a disturbing level.

"Deidara-kun, I would over all like to apologize for hurting you so badly. I purposely acted as if I enjoyed kissing Itachi in the hall to make sure you knew that it—we—would never be able to happen. It wasn't because I didn't like you; actually, it was quite the opposite. If we had continued our affair, you surely would have been killed. Itachi would never have allowed it. So, again, I am completely in your debt."

Sakura did not wait for Deidara to respond. She knew he would never forgive her completely for breaking his heart so spectacularly, but she knew that they would speak again, in time.

But she stopped at the utterance of her name.

"Sakura…"

She turned, expecting to see Deidara at his place at the table, looking very downcast and trodden on. But instead, she almost collided with his tall form that had appeared directly behind her without her noticing.

The next thing she knew, his large arms were embracing her passionately, and his mouth was covering hers. Her eyes widened, and she stood, shocked, for a few seconds before attempting to break the kiss. She did, and she told him very softly to please let go. But he would not, and he only pushed her hard against the wall.

Her voice rose a pitch when his hand wormed it's was up her shirt, not being as gentle or as careful as they were only a few days ago. She panicked, anxiously trying to push him off while he pulled her shirt over her head forcefully.

She could take no more.

"Please, Deidara-kun, stop! You are not thinking!"She had closed her eyes tightly and started crying when she suddenly felt his immense weight lifted off her. She slumped to the floor in a shaken heap, sobbing violently at the betrayal of her loved friend. But as she cried harder, a warm finger ran across her cheek, wiping all the tears.

She know that touch.

Soft, gentle, full of concern. Not quite love, but something very close.

She smiled and placed her hand softly over the one on her cheek.

"Itachi-kun…"

All at once, she felt the air around her expand with chakra. A very unfriendly chakra. But one she was also familiar with. She snapped her eyes open and closed her hand tightly around the one under it, yanking the attached arm down. The body came with it.

The man she suspected it had been was now at eye level with her. She knew it was him. She knew it was, but at the same time she couldn't bring herself to believe it. She froze as she studied him. He had grown…not just taller or more muscular, but he had just…grown. His hair had gotten longer, long enough that he could hold it back, which he did. It hung loosely, the band wrapping around it just below the base of his neck. It looked just like his brother's.

His brother Itachi's.

"Sasuke…kun…"

She cried harder, but was not realizing it. Her face remained the same: wide-eyed, pale and tear-stained. She felt her tears falling onto her thighs and knees, but she did not acknowledge them.

She only stared into the abyss in front of her. His eyes were not the same. She shuddered as she examined them. They were now a deep shade of purple, with tiny black slits to replace his pupils. But she knew they were not his eyes anymore, and she grasped the hand she held tighter, feeling the blood from her grip run down her arm. But the man before her did not take notice of this; he thrust her once again against the wall, violently licking her neck. As he bit her, she stopped crying.

Her eyes looked frantically around for a route of escape. She saw a hole in the wall opposite her that he had obviously come through; but she did not hear him make it as she had been screaming to get away from Deidara. Her mind then fogged over with blind hatred, and she knew that she would have to kill him.

This is not Sasuke-kun. This is Orochimaru.

She breathed harder, trying to vent all of her frustration.

He thinks he can take the man I love…

She kicked him hard in the groin, causing him to let go and stumble backwards.

…then barge into my home…

She caught sight of a blood-drenched Deidara and screamed; not out of fear, but out of anger, hatred and frustration. She picked Sasuke up and threw him with all her might against the wall, then sprinted over to where he was embedded in the wood, punching him as hard as he could in the stomach. He coughed blood all over her shirt.

...kill my friends, ruin my kitchen…

He was about to raise his head and his fists, but she caught both of his arms in hers and ripped them out of his shoulders as hard as she could. The blood spurted all over her face and clothes, and he screamed. She threw his arms onto the table, and then kicked him hard in the neck.

…but worst of all…

She laughed crazily at the sound of his neck cracking under her shin. She had lost control. She was laughing so loudly that it called the attention of Kisame, Hidan and Sasori, who were all the way on the other end of the compound. As a matter of fact, it was more of an amused shriek than a laugh.

…he thinks he can touch me.

She walked slowly over to Sasuke's lifeless body before her, her laughing stopped. She picked him up by his hair, and saw the rest of his body turn in the air, as it was no longer held straight by his neck. His face was splattered with blood as well, and she licked it off, wanting to see her love's face once again before he was gone forever.

Then she kissed him, holding his cold body close, and threw it to the floor, causing more blood to spew out of his wounds and onto the floor and her legs. She took a kunai out of her leg wrap that she always wore, and removed her shirt and bra. She then found where her heart was in her chest, and she pointed the end of the small knife at it.

The three shinobi, who had stood aghast and disgusted at the scene before them, now moved as quickly as they could towards the girl. They would not let her kill herself now, not after what she had done. They had to keep her alive, for their own personal reasons and reasons that would over all benefit their organization.

But she turned her head slightly to look at them, and they stopped in their tracks as they saw her blood splattered face, that was normally so elegant, contorted with sorrow.

She dug the knife into her delicate skin, but she did not stab herself. She turned the knife so it would act as a sort of scraping edge. She began to carve the character for darkness, not making a sound as the sharp metal sliced and scraped her skin. The blood ran down her stomach, dropping into a puddle on the floor below her.

When she was done, she once again walked over to Sasuke's body, removing his shirt as well. She repeated the same action, but this time she carved the character for pure into his chest.

Hidan, Kisame and Sasori did not understand this ritualistic behavior in the least. When she was done, she merely got up and left, handing the kunai to Kisame as she walked out the door. All three of them, even Hidan, averted their eyes from her bare chest as she walked by. But not one of the three did not glance at the character that was now a permanent feature on her. As the strong scent of blood filled their nostrils when she walked past, they were all thinking the same grave thought. The mark would scar, and never fade.