I do not own, nor will I ever own Naruto.
Italics indicate thought.
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Just Ludicrous: Chapter 15
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"What happened to YOU?!" demanded Ningyo at the sight of Sakusen. The teenager had staggered into the inn after the scuffle, and had arrived covered in dirt, water, and blood. Sasayaki was there, too, and her eyebrows shot up at the sight of her mangled teammate.
The sensei fled from the hallway, dragging Sakusen behind her, then began rummaging in her luggage. Sasayaki followed them into the room, and shut the door behind her.
Ningyo returned, carrying a first-aid kit, and she got to work, patching Sakusen up. He fought a little, saying that he could do that himself, but Ningyo ignored his protests, and eventually he gave in.
He sat silent, only wincing as Ningyo dabbed at the cuts with an alcohol pad before putting bandages over the deeper cuts. No one said anything until Ningyo had finished, where Sakusen stood, bowed and thanked Ningyo, and left for his own room.
Ningyo and Sasayaki sat silently for a while after he had left. Then Ningyo spoke.
"What do you think?"
Sasayaki pondered the question for a bit. "This must end soon, before on of them does something stupid. The sooner we know what the Akatsuki wants, the better."
The woman nodded. "Yes, you're right. And it's about time we started to pull out."
Sasayaki raised an eyebrow. "And how do you plan on doing that?"
"Don't worry, I have it all thought out. Now it's about time for bed, don't you think?"
Sasayaki grunted, and left it at that.
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Neji hauled herself upright. Last night had been awful. After Sakusen had been beaten up, she had been summoned by the Mama-san, who had shouted at her for hours. The shouts rose in volume as Mama-san had ranted about attracting men who couldn't pay, and how it was Neji's fault that the brothel house was now doing so poorly, with her poor conduct on that first day, and that the business would completely fall apart all because of her, and it would just do her better to throw the useless girl out into the street to be raped with no dignity at all, like a starved, beaten dog. Her fury had brought Neji to tears, no matter how hard Neji had tried to hold them back. To have such outright anger directed at her terrified her, and she had bitten the tip of her tongue, doubly praying that the pain would stay the tears a little longer, and that she would not say anything to anger the woman further. This didn't work for long, however. She had had to choke out something, a coherent word, though, because the woman, in the midst of her rage, would turn on her, demanding compliance, which, if not given quickly enough, would send the woman into violent attacks. The tears also seemed to enrage the woman further, and she nearly hit the girl when the first one had tumbled from her eye. The girl felt lucky to be unscathed by the time the woman had lost interest in her and had allowed her to scuttle to her bed, a futon that she shared with Iruka. There she cried in a mixture of anger and fear towards the woman, and horror at the treatment Sakusen had received.
Iruka, later released from her post in the front, soothed her, patting her head and hugging her, rocking gently from side to side. The motion and warmth soothed Neji, and eventually the tears stopped. She wondered if the jutsu caused tears to flow more easily than when she was male.
She had dreamt of Sakusen, again lying on the ground, covered in cuts and blood. But in the dream, he had been dead, and she had been outside the brothel, desperately shaking him, begging him to be Sakura, begging him to say something, begging him to be alive.
She had woken with someone shaking her shoulder, whispering urgently, "Neji! NEJI!"
"Uh-yeah?" she muttered, rubbing her eyes groggily, noticing that they were wet.
Iruka was looking at her worriedly, the moon shining over her shoulder as she asked, "Are you okay? You were crying in your sleep, saying the word "Sakura" over and over. Was it a name, or were you dreaming of death?"
"Both." Murmured Neji.
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Japanese lesson: Sakura means Cherry blossom, but is used for all kinds of symbolism. One of these is a symbol for death.
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REVIEWS DEMANDED FROM READERS . . . please. They help my AP Chemistry Exam flogged ego.
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And . . . MORE ANGST!!
But don't worry, it gets WAAAAAY better in the next chapter. Humor returns!
YAY!
And I'm really sorry it's so short. That's just the way it is written. It looks a lot longer on the sheets of paper, I swear.