Sakura pulled her knees to her chest as she shivered; the pink-haired medic knew she should close the window, something she told herself to do over an hour ago. A cold breeze of night air blew in through the open window causing a way would strand of hair to tickle her cheek, almost as it was trying to snap her back to reality she bated it away only for it to return instantly. Her eyes widened as she felt worm fingers brush over her cheek as they captured the stray strand and tucked it behind her ear.
"Kakashi-kun."
"I wanted to make sure you where all right." his voice was dry, like there was something missing.
"Why did you…" her voce trailed off as the wind howled outside.
So she did not see it. He sighed to himself, Kakashi wanted to keep the pure horrors of the Wyrm away from her, he knew she was not innocent being a ninja the lifestyle would not allow it, but even to a young Garou like Kakashi knew what maddening horrors lay in the darkness.
"Because I had too, don't worry I made it look like a pack of stray dogs got in." his fingers still rested gently agents the skin of her cheek.
"But we did not find anything out." she leaned back into her sofa, the heat of his hand seeping into her skin.
"I found an invoice, I have an address." he said at length.
She turned to face him in a whirl of pink "Where!?"
"I can not tell you that Sakura-chan."
"Why not!" her eyes narrowed.
The gaze of his lone eye drifted away from her face, "I don't want to see you hurt."
"So you think I'm weak!? I can take care of myself Kakashi-sensei!"
"Its not that Sakura-chan, what I'm fighting is totally different from even high ranking shinobi."
"Don't you think I know that?" she yelled at him now standing with her hands balled into fists at her side.
"Sakura," the Garou sighed as the wind began to howl again, "you have.. Things to take care of here."
Kakashi slid his hands into his pockets as the pink-haired medic glared angrily ay him, trying to hold back the tears that where threatening to fall. So he was going to leave her too, just like the others.
"Please Sakura, take care of things here and let me fight on the front line."
Sakura hung her head, pink locks covering her face not really knowing what she should be feeling but she was hurt and angry, why did he want to push her away? Again it felt like she was 12 being left behind feeling useless, helpless, whilst the boys went off and did grand things. Sakura sighed, her hands not relaxed at her sides as the smoke from Kakashi's teleport jutsu cleared from the room, with another shuddering sigh she headed for her bedroom. Her mind trying to form a plan to prove herself to him.
--
"A week? This is unlike you Hatake." the honey eyed Hokage razed an eyebrow at the copy-nin.
"It won't take that long Hokage-sama I will probably be back in three days." the silver-haired man gave his distinctive happy eye crease.
"But still, asking for a weeks leave outside the village is unlike you."
"I know Hokage-sama, but some… family business came up." he almost wanted to kick himself right then and there for saying that, for all his deception skills as a shinobi and a ragabash he could not outright lie to the Hokage.
"Family?" her eyebrow lifted higher, "you had a one night stand?"
"NO!" the copy-nin said sharply.
The look the Hokage gave him demanded that he say more.
The silver-haired werewolf scratched the back of his neck "Its something that started with my father that I now have to take care of." ok on second thought maybe he should of gone with the one night stand excuse.
"Your father?"
Kakashi just nodded.
Tsunade leaned back in her char, "Ok, you have a week, no more." she sighed.
"Thanks you Hokage-sama." he bowed before disappearing in a puff of smoke.
Tsunade closed her eyes and sighed, that man was a headache lately but he has stared acting a bit more 'normal' after coming back from his last mission with Sakura. Wait a moment, Sakura! No, no it was not like that, damn that man and his perverted influence! A nock on the door brought the Hokage out of her ramblings.
"Here are the reports you asked fore Tsunade-shishou." Sakura said as she pushed her was through the door with an arm full of papers.
"Thank you Sakura." she then mumbled something under her breath, trying to dispel the thoughts that Kakashi un-intently stirred up.
"Something the matter Tsunade-shishou?"
"Hmmm, no nothing, Kakashi was just in here to ask for some time off to travel outside the village, and you know what he can be like."
Sakura's eyes widened, "He what?"
Tsunade razed an eyebrow at her apparentness " he did not tell you?"
Sakura bowed to her sensei "Tsunade-shishou, I have a favour to as of you."
--
It took Kakashi less then a day to reach his target, a nightclub on the edge of Rain called The Phantom, an unlikely place for one to find baby food but the Shadow Lord knew that this was just a front, he rain just hand through his silver hair feeling a bit out of place not wearing his normal jounin outfit, in its stead he wore black jeans with a long sleeved black shirt, his headband replaced with a simple eye patch but the mask still constant. With firm strides he made his way for would passing the somewhat tiered looking bouncers, slipping into the building he saw where it got its name. The Phantom was a converted opera house, the beat of the music rumbled through his body as the darkened haze of the club was lit up by flashes of colour in time with the music, the silver-haired Garou made his was through the crowd of sweaty, heated dancing bodies as his own form became nothing more then a shimmering blur as he activated his Gift Blur of the Milky eye.
A door marked 'Staff Only' pointed him in the desired direction as he moved unseen under the influence of his spiritual gift, the heavy beat of the music still thundered in these somewhat quieter corridors. Moving unseen was child's play for the veteran shinobi and cunning ragabash, using both his ninja skills and new-moon Gifts to pass by staff and effetely open locked doors until he finally came upon the main office, surely he would be able to find something here, some small clue as to where the source of the Wyrm tainted food was. Approaching the nearest file ling cabinet he dispelled the Gift keeping him hidden and used another to open the draw.
"I would leave that be if I was you," a deep voice rumbled from behind the copy-nin "The Red Lady wishes you see you!"
Kakashi let his hand fall to his side as he turned to see who was making demands on him. It was one of the bouncers on the door, he had a Katana hanging in its sheath at his side but by the way he was standing he was not planning on using it.
"Follow me!" the man grunted at he turned to walk down the corridor.
Kakashi followed, not because he had to mind you, he was intrigued by this 'Red Lady' so like a good boy he followed, they where only human anyway, what could they really do to him?
The bouncer stopped by one of the curtains that acted as a door to one of the boxes. The man nodded his head towards the curtain, telling the copy-nin to go in; with a sideways glance at the bouncer Kakashi pushed aside the curtain and stepped in.
The box held two seats one occupied by a very beautiful woman. She had long smooth black hair that stood in sharp contrast agents her ivory white skin, she wore a low cut red dress, blood red, her nails where painted the same share of red.
"Please, sit down." she waved her had at the empty seat, she did not look at him as she spoke, her gaze fixed on the dance floor below.
"So you are The Red Lady."
"I am, and who might you be?" she looked at him as she asked, her lips the same share of red as her dress.
"I am no one important." the copy-nin replied.
"I beg to differ there, you entered a area off limits to you and proceeded to snoop around some very important documents" she shifted forwoulds on her seat as she leaned towards him, placing a hand atop the copy-nin's knee, "so ill ask you again, who are you?"
"I am here investigating some food that was shipped out of here." he said plainly.
"Oh the baby food?" she sighed as she leaned back, " I knew that would land me in trouble sooner or later."
"Care to tell me?" the Garou inquired.
"This night club does not use all the space that this old opera house provides a lot of it is unused, and because of my late husband we have.. Lets say a few tips to pay off." she looked down on the dance floor ones again.
"What happened to him? If you don't mind be asking."
"He was one of them adrenaline junkies, lets just say he jumped off a 12 foot bridge with a 13 food rope," she sighed, "I rented the unused space out, that is where the food is, but ill tell you now its not made there."
"Whom did you rent it to?"
The Red Lady smiled at him a sly, seductive smile as she got up and walked over to him, brushing her hand up his arm as she went. "Now that would be telling." she whispered into his ear.
"What would it get you to change your mind?" the Shadow Lord asked.
The Red Lady looked up over the dance floor again, the flash of lights highlighted something of interest to her, a flash of pink making its way through the crowed, a smirk crossed her crimson lips, "A friend of yours?" she grinned.
Kakashi stood up and peered over the side to see the familiar pink hair of his cherry blossom. His visible eye widened when he saw three of the Red Lady's men making there way towards her, like lions making there way to pry through long grass.
"Ill call them off and tell you who I rented the rooms out too if you give me one simple thing." she pressed her front to his back, her lips brushing the shell of his ear.
"What thing?" something was not right, there was something missing, she felt…. Cold.
"A kiss," her lips traveled down from his ear to his neck, "just a simple kiss."
He felt her lips press agents his cloth covered neck, then the tip of something sharp being dragged over flesh ripping his mask, his breath hitched as the tips pierced the skin 'Vampire' his mind screamed as his rage snapped, instantly shifting into Crinos form.
The howl was easily heard over the pounding of the music. Sakura looked up at the boxes to see the somewhat filmier sight of Kakashi is his war form, panic spread throughout the crowed like wildfire as they rushed like freighted cattle towards the exits, that's when she noted that a few where keeping there cool, and heading right for her.
Kakashi tore the leech from his neck and throw her like a rag doll down to the floor below when his eyes fixed on Sakura, with a snarl he jumped out of the box and landed on the man nearest to her, bones crunching under the werewolf's 800-pound bulk.
"Get out of here!" he growled.
Kakashi felt the sting of a blade cutting into his flesh, the wound was nothing to the raging Garou, the blade was normal steel and not silver. With a snarl he sunk his claws into the flesh of his attackers torso and racked them across, gutting him like he was nothing more then a fish. Trying in vain to stop his lifeblood from flooding out the man fell to the floor grasping the gaping wound. The silver furred werewolf razes himself to his full height, easy concealing Sakura behind him.
"Go now! No argue!" Kakashi snarled, his rage braking is speech.
"I can take care of myself!" she yelled back over the music still playing.
The music did not go un-noted by Kakashi or the fact it was most likely drowning out his orders to his ex-student. The ragabash wrapped his long clawed hand around the arm of the last man who was after Sakura and hurled him at the sound equipment of the stage, with a crash the music stopped. Kakashi turned to face Sakura, his snarling maw just inches away from her face.
"Go now! No argue! Not human!" he barked.
Almost to prove his point The Red Lady was upon him, red painted nails now claw-like and her lips set into a snarl reviling her vampric fangs. She had grabbed onto the longer fur around his shoulders as she tried to bite the left side of his neck, but Kakashi had blocked her by pressing his right hand across her neck and collarbone. The two beasts snarled at each other, using a tribal Gift he was able to seize the edge and throw her off him, trails of silver fur flying into the air.
"My fight!" he barked.
She could not stop herself from feeling angry with him, or maybe it was at herself. She had come here to help him, to show what she was really made of. Not to be pushed to one side damn it!
"Fine!" she barked back, "I'm going out back ill wait for you out there."
The Garou grunted in a basic reply before charging the vampire as Sakura made her way towards the back fire exit, the large heavy metal door opened easily as the medic-nin stepped outside, a shiver shot down her spine. She knew Kakashi would be ok, but what was this feeling?
"H-Hay! You there, are you ok?"
Sakura looked up to see two men and what appeared to be there dates.
"Did you see that monster in there!?" one of the men asked.
The Red Lady looked up at the Garou towering over her, his clawed hands set in the sign of the tiger. The vampire panted for not needed air, old human habits dieing hard.
"Wait! Wait! Ill tell you what you want to know." she gasped trying to crawl away from the Shadow Lord.
"Talk!" Kakashi snarled.
"You will spare me if I do?" she asked, looking up at him.
Kakashi just growled.
"Ok," she put a hand up in a sign of surrender, "his name is Zakmive, I have heard his men call him a Black Spiral Dancer, but I swear I don't know what that is, I was told to keep an eye out for you and your friend."
"The food!" he snapped at her.
"He gets some humans to bring it here before it's moved on to small shops, that's all I know!"
Gold and red eyes fixed on the undead, if he pressed harder he would get more, and much needed details. But his Garou and Shinobi instincts screamed at him that he has been here for too long, made too much of a seine and that he needed to end this and move out as if he stayed any longer he would draw attention from things far worse then gossiping humans. Taking a deep breath Kakashi moved his hand from the formed sign to his mouth.
The Red Lady's eyed widened "NO! We had a deal!"
A blood-curdling scream split the air as she was engulfed in the fire jutsu.
"I agreed to no deal." he growled as he shifted into his wolf form and went off to meet with Sakura.
The pink haired medic winced slightly as a drop of sweat dripped into her eye, it all happened so fast. But she had managed to take down one of the females, the remanding three stood there, katana in hand as they grinned evilly at her, readying themselves for another attack.
"If we kill you The Red Lady will reward us greatly." one of the males grinned.
Sakura knew they where not ninjas, she could not feel any use of chakra from them, but despite that they where easily able to keep up with her. Where they the same as what ever Kakashi was fighting? Are they not human? Griping harder on there blades they latched themselves recklessly into another attack. Sakura felt something brush agents her leg as an all to familiar sight unfolded before her. Kakashi had leaped upon one of the males, fangs already sunk into his neck as the two fell to the forest floor. The man chocked out a gargling scream as he tried to free himself from the death-grip of the silver-grey wolf. His friends unable to help as a full pack of wolves had set on them.
"I could have taken care of them!" she huffed at the wolf as the shadow clones disappeared.
"I know, but my way is faster." he said as he licked the blood from his lips.
His form shifted again, this one somewhere between his Crinos and Lupus form. A large brutal looking wolf about the size of a horse, he walked over to her and lowed his body slightly.
"Get on."
"I can walk Kakashi! And anyway I'm not dressed for riding!"
It was true; the lovely black she had on would mean riding side-saddle or have it crumbled around her waist, possibly reviling her underwear. Kakashi rolled his eyes as he stepped back and readied himself for a bold move; he pushed his head between her legs forcing her onto his back. Sakura gave a yelp of surprise and smacked him on the top of his head.
"Well if your going to be like that." she grumbled as she set herself up.
As she guessed her dress was pushed up around her waist to the point it looked more like a belt as she settled herself just below his shoulder blades, she could not help but blush as his fur brushed her inner thigh, Kakashi felt it too, it almost make him forget that he was angry at her. Without waiting for any word from Sakura he set off at a speed much faster then he could of ever hope to achieved in his human form, long limbs taking grand strides, his large paws falling silently, quite as the shadow of a passing cloud. Sakura fisted her hands in the long fur around his neck, all wounds crated by the vampire already healed, she bared her face into that mane of fur, to protect her face from whipping limbs of low hanging branches she told herself.
Kakashi slowed down to a trot as they where nearing Konoha, the distance they traveled in a short amount of time amazed him, but he knew not to use the form to much, it was too easily remembered. Stopping e sat down to allow Sakura to get her feet onto firm ground, she readjusted her dress as Kakashi's body slipped back into his human shape, his clothes shredded as he had neglected to enchant them like his normal jounin outfit.
"I told you to stay behind! This does not concern you!" he snarled, an angry aura coming from him.
"I told you I can take care of myself!" it sounded stupid for her to tell him the same thing over and over again, but she would keep on telling him till it got it.
"Fighting another ninja I do not doubt that, but fighting something like me, Sakura-chan… you would be killed." it hurt him to say that, she was a powerful and able kunoichi, but he knew he could take her out if he used his Garou powers, and there where things out there that could easily kill him.
Sakura's hands balled into fists at her sides, her lips pulled in a tight line as she glared at him, maybe it was not the best thing considering his nature, but she did it. Sakura punched him square in the jaw, his mismatched eyes looked up at her in shock. Kakashi winced as he touched his face, even silver would not hurt as much. A shiver ran through his body followed by another and another till he was looking up at her through his wolf eye. With out a word the silver-grey wolf headed off into the forest.
--
"So the club was ran by a vampire?" the chocolate brown wolf tilted his head to one side.
"Hai, it was being used at some sort of halfway house" the silver-grey wolf replied in wolf-speech, "she said something about a Black Spiral Dancer, what are they?"
Caller-or-rats' eyes darkened slightly, "Let me tell you about what they really are, but you wont like it."
--
Sakura had cried herself to sleep, something she had not done since Sasuke left, but she could not truly understand why Kakashi was affecting her so much. The pink-haired cherry blossom always put it down to the fact that he was the last member of Team 7 and now he had an increased risk of never coming home, and they had parted ways but her punching him and not saying a word.
Sakura felt the bed dip around her that stirred her out of a deep sleep, in that sleepy haze she could feel the four slender legs of a wolf either side of her.
"Kakashi-kun?" she mumbled.
"Not quite." a deep gravely voce replied.
Sakura's eyes shot open to see a large jet-black wolf with bile green eyes looming over her, its ears seemed bat-like and its fangs jutted from its mouth in all directions.
"Hello there Sakura-san, we have come to have a word with you." it grinned as the rest of its pack made their way into her room.