Sakura dropped two severed heads at Pein's feet. He stared at them blankly.
"Found two traitors and established an amicable relationship with our newest member. He still tried to kill me once we finished but he didn't seem as angry compared to the first time he failed."
"Ah." Pein said. "Good, well done. You know… when you told me you'd bring me their heads I didn't think you meant literally."
"Weapons have no use for hyperboles and metaphors. Everything I say I mean in the most literal sense."
"I see that now." Pein commented. "Well I suppose that's that problem solved. Dispose of the heads; I'll let you know when you have a new assignment."
Sakura bowed and flickered out of the room, leaving Pein to focus on paperwork. With Konan away on a short mission most of her essential paperwork had been left for him to finish. Thankfully his schedule for the afternoon was clear, so it was just him, his work and his rain.
Loud yelling came from outside his door, and Pein closed his eyes as his dream of a peaceful afternoon slipped away. The door burst open and a very angry Hidan stomped in.
"Hey, you're the boss man aren't you? Tell your little pet to stop throwing kunai at my eyes! I didn't join this dumb group to be blinded by a pink-haired twerp!"
Pein put down his pen and slowly looked up to face Hidan. He had two kunai sticking out of his face, one below his left eye and one above his right. The way they jiggled while he ranted was almost comical.
"I assume you're talking about Sakura." he said calmly. "She knows better than to harm Akatsuki members for no reason. Were you perhaps trying to kill her?"
"Of course I was trying to kill her! But she keeps saying she can't let me unless you give me permission and then I end up like this!"
He ripped the kunai out of his face. It wasn't a pleasant sight.
"If you don't want her to throw things at you, maybe you should… stop trying to kill her?"
Hidan glared at him. Pein stared stoically back.
"So what I'm hearing is you won't give me permission to kill her. Great, that's great, is there anyone in this entire village who I'm allowed to sacrifice? What a bunch of fucking heathens."
"You'll get your sacrifices when you get your mission."
"Oh yeah? And when will that be?"
"Tomorrow."
"Tomorrow." Hidan spat back, disgusted. "Well fuck your rules, I can't wait that long."
He turned and stormed back out. Pein heard him calling as he left.
"Sakura! Hey brat where did you go? Let's have a rematch or something?"
Silence.
"Kid please, give me something to kill!"
Pein picked up his pen and got back to work.
"Ino Yamanaka and Kaori Shinzuko, please make your way down to the arena."
Naruto felt conflicted as he watched the two girls from behind the railing. He knew that he was supposed to root for Kaori since they were teammates, but honestly they weren't really friends. She wasn't rude like Sasuke or anything, but Naruto couldn't think of her as anything more than a co-worker. Ino on the other hand, was his close friend, so while he couldn't cheer for her openly like Shikamaru and Choji, he wasn't willing to root against her either.
Honestly, Naruto's mind wasn't really on the match. He was much more worried about Sasuke. That weird mark on his shoulder had almost possessed him in the forest, and if Naruto hadn't woken up in time to yell some sense into him, Sasuke might have done more than break a few arms.
Naruto's eyes darted around the room, searching for where Sasuke could have been taken. Unsurprisingly there was no sign of him, so reluctantly Naruto turned to look at the girls below.
Ino seemed confident, and Kaori seemed nervous. It was understandable, since Ino had always excelled at the Academy while Kaori… well Naruto didn't actually know. Probably pretty average, since she'd never made much of an impression. Even after their time together on Team 7 he hardly knew anything about her.
The proctor began the match, and the two girls rushed at each other. What followed was a short but intense taijutsu battle. Kaori put some distance between them when it became clear that Ino had the upper hand. Both opponents paused for a moment to evaluate the others condition.
Then Ino drew out a kunai.
Kaori quickly followed suit, and suddenly both girls were getting a lot more cuts than bruises. Naruto expected Ino to easily outclass Kaori, but something was up. When she ducked Kaori's slash, a visible chunk of her hair got cut off. Naruto winced when he saw the chop, because Ino would definitely complain about that to him once the match was over.
After a few more close calls in which Kaori managed to slice even more of her ponytail to bits, Ino collapsed on the ground, panting heavily. Kaori began hesitantly moving closer, but Ino made no effort to stand. Now Naruto knew for certain that something was up, because there was no way Ino would run out of stamina that quickly.
Sure enough, Ino's triumphant laugh echoed through the room as Kaori suddenly stopped moving. A rope of chakra ran from Ino's hands, through all the hair scattered on the floor, and wound tightly around Kaori's legs. Having assumed the victory was almost hers, Kaori had let her guard down, and now she was stuck, helpless as Ino prepared her infamous clan jutsu.
Naruto watched excitedly as Ino made the hand-seals. It sucked that Kaori wouldn't make it to the finals, but Ino had beaten her fairly in both strength and smarts. As she aimed the jutsu at his teammate, he couldn't help but feel proud.
Suddenly, Ino froze.
Naruto's grip tightened on the railing as her hands trembled. The chakra rope flickered for a few second before breaking, but it didn't seem like Ino even noticed. She was staring at Kaori with wide, unseeing eyes, and for the first time ever Naruto was the one watching someone else hallucinate. Ino didn't even seem to notice as Kaori ran towards her. She was entirely focused on the spot where Kaori had been trapped, staring at it with utter confusion.
"…kura?" Naruto heard her whisper.
Then Kaori's fist slammed into her face, and Ino went down.
The battle ended soon after that, with Kaori managing to land enough blows on a still stunned Ino that the blonde soon fell unconscious. Naruto offered a distracted congratulations to Kaori as they came back up, running over to where the medics were resting Ino against the wall.
She woke up after a few minutes, staring blearily around until she noticed Naruto. He offered her a sympathetic smile.
"I saw her." Ino whispered, her eyes still half clouded from the concussion. "I was about to switch minds and suddenly her hair was pink instead of black, and she was looking at me with so much familiarity. I thought I knew her name, but looking back I can't remember a thing. It seemed like I knew her but I don't."
Naruto handed her some water and let her sit up properly against the wall. She was looking at him as if he knew why this had happened, like he was the expert on random visions of a pink haired preteen serial killer. In a way, he kind of was, but that didn't mean he knew what to do. Judging by her questioning stare, Ino was expecting him to at least know what to say.
"Welcome to the club!"
Ok he probably could have said something a little more insightful, but she was kind of putting him on the spot here.
"Naruto…what the hell is going on?"
"I really wish I knew."
He stood up as the next match was announced, handing her some more water before he went back to his team.
"Just rest up and don't worry if you get anymore visions. I mean, I've had them for years and I'm doing fine!"
For some reason, Ino did not look reassured by that.
"You all have your missions." Pein's deep voice echoed through the dark chamber where the Akatsuki members were gathered. "Would any of you like to take Sakura with you for assistance?"
As expected, there was a resounding silence.
Watching from a well hidden crevice inside the chamber wall, Sakura didn't take it personally. Any member that asked for assistance to complete a mission would appear weak in front of the others, and they were all too prideful to let that happen. Sakura mentally counted back from ten, and when she reached zero Pein spoke.
"Itachi and Kisame. Take her with you to wipe out those bandits harassing the outskirts of Yuki no Kuni. I fear that the rest of you are too volatile to handle the extra help."
Sakura smirked, secure in the knowledge that her face was hidden in the darkness. That comment had bristled, she could tell from Deidara's clenched fists and Hidan's angry expression. Pein's statement was completely true, but not all the members were comfortable with their insanity being judged. Sakura had a feeling that before they joined, anyone who pointed out how unstable they were died shortly after.
She hoped one of them would try something today. Secretly, she agreed with Kisame that these meetings were far too boring. Watching Pein knock one of the more arrogant members around would certainly liven things up.
Sadly, none of them seemed willing to challenge the leader today. Sakura watched them disperse; flickering out to join Itachi and Kisame when Konan gave her the signal.
Once they were outside the cave Kisame picked her up and swung her around. Sakura rolled her eyes while Itachi continued walking, well used to his partner's antics.
"You know, it's been far too long since you've been on a mission with us." Kisame told her as he put Sakura down. "I swear every time I see you you've hit another growth spurt. Soon I won't be able to pick you up at all."
Sakura raked her eyes over his muscular forearms and bulging biceps, then raised an eyebrow sceptically. Kisame let out a booming laugh and picked her up again, swinging her onto his shoulders. She rested her arms on the crown of his head for balance, and they set off.
"Isn't this great?" Kisame bounced her slightly. "Sakura and her two favourite uncles off to kill some bandits! What a fun weekend we're going to have."
"Uncles?" Sakura almost laughed. "Kisame-sama, the Akatsuki is hardly a family."
"Please, I've known you since you were just a little runt no taller than the Leader's knee." Kisame grinned. "The way you trailed behind Konan's cloak with such a serious expression was adorable. Reminded me of a kid imitating their mother to seem more grown up."
"I'm their weapon, not their child."
"That's not how I see it. Whatever they raised you to be, they still raised you. You're as close to an adorable nuclear family as any of us will ever get."
Itachi paused for a second at a crossroad, then turned left. Kisame followed, still arguing with Sakura.
"When I was five years old Konan ripped my thumbnails off because Pein wanted to test me. Even before that I killed a large amount of defenceless civilians. They've never been parent material, and I've never been a child."
"Meh, whose family isn't a little messed up, am I right Itachi?"
Itachi was silent. Kisame kept talking anyway.
"When I was around that age the Mizukage made me fight my uncle to the death. We all know what happened to Itachi's family, and I'm sure growing up in the Third Shinobi World War meant that Itachi also had his first kill pretty young."
"Correct."
Sakura was surprised Itachi had said anything, but the man continued walking calmly. If he was bothered by Kisame's chattering, he certainly didn't show it.
"See Sakura? We're all fucked up here. You're not special just because you were born into the Akatsuki instead of joining like the rest of us."
"I wasn't born… alright fine I give up. You win, you're my uncle."
"Your favourite uncle?"
"Yes Kisame-sama, you're my favourite uncle."
Kisame faked a shocked gasp.
"Human talk Sakura? What will Leader say when I tell him his precious weapon has feelings?"
"Don't even joke about that."
Kisame chuckled, and seated on his shoulders where no one was watching her face, Sakura let herself smile.
Being around her was still painful.
Itachi remembered the conversation he'd had with one of his handlers about Sakura during his first post-infiltration report. The man had made it clear that regardless of what Itachi or Sakura might want, Konoha had no place for a brainwashed, unstable child soldier. Even though her parents were probably still holding out hope, Itachi understood that their daughter was dead. He remembered seeing the innocent joy of a child in the photos he'd been shown, and the Sakura who belonged to the Akatsuki was an entirely different person. Much as he wished he could save her, he understood where his handler was coming from.
That still didn't make it easy interacting with her, but Itachi carried heavier sins than this. As it was he tried his best not to scare her and to treat her as a human, which was all he could really do for her.
Kisame enjoyed needling the girl, getting her to act in ways Pein would disprove of. Itachi normally didn't mind, but he found it cruel to taunt Sakura about family. Regardless of what Kisame was insisting, the Akatsuki were not a family, and trying to convince Sakura that the abuse Pein had dealt her was somehow similar to raising a child was nonsensical. Perhaps it was just because he knew that her real loving parents were out there looking for her, but trying to argue that her childhood had been in any way acceptable, even as a joke, didn't sit right with Itachi.
He would have said something, but he didn't want to raise any suspicion with her. If she asked him something directly he would answer as honestly as he could, but he wouldn't try and deliberately provoke her the way Kisame did, not with the danger she presented to him.
It was ironic really; that out of all the dangerous criminals he worked with the one with the power to blow his cover was the most innocent of them all. After years of careful observation he was almost certain that no one, not even Sakura, was aware of the being trapped inside her mind. That was a relief, because that inner version of her had seemed far too interested in Sasuke, and if it looked like there was any sort of communication going on between the two Sakuras Itachi would have to kill her.
He didn't want to kill her. He would rather she stay alive and healthy for as long as possible, but Itachi was aware he rarely got what he wanted. If she became a serious threat against Konoha, or showed any interest in going after his little brother, he would end her life.
But for now, she showed no signs of being a threat to him. She was a loyal, brainwashed weapon, and if she had an ulterior motive she was even better than Itachi at hiding it. He could allow himself to feel sympathy for her, as long as he was also keeping an eye out for any trace of her inner self.
"We don't even know if they can use chakra. Bet I can kill more of them than you."
"I'll take that bet."
"I knew you would. What about you Itachi? Think you can kill more bandits then us?"
He considers Kisame's question, deliberately drawing out the silence to irritate his partner.
"I'll kill as many as I have to so that our mission is complete. I doubt any of them will be strong enough to actually be worth the kill."
"Ugh, you're no fun. Congratulations Itachi, you have less personality than the girl who's been trained for years to suppress all her emotions, am I right Sakura?"
"No, but if you want I can lie."
"You're taking his side? I thought I was your favourite uncle? This weekend is going to be a disaster!"
And so life went on.
It took them two days to clear out the infestation of bandits troubling the normal villagers. A few of the tougher ones could use chakra but for the most part it was just as easy as killing civilians. Kisame got the highest kill count, but Sakura wasn't too far behind. Itachi seemed content to let her kill the ones he subdued, so in the end his score was quite low.
"You know I dislike this game Kisame." was all he said when questioned.
"He's a sore loser." Kisame whispered to Sakura, and she nodded in false agreement.
By the time the last of the bandits had been dealt with it was almost night, so they retired to the village to receive payment and rest. The grateful innkeeper gave them the rooms for free, not even questioning Kisame's skin or Sakura's hair.
Itachi booked two rooms, a single and a twin, despite Sakura's insistence that she would be fine sleeping on the floor or even out in the snow. Eventually Kisame just picked her up and carried her to her room, much to the innkeeper's bemusement.
It had been a while since she'd slept on a bed this nice. She found herself dozing off easily, her eyes drooping shut soon after her head hit the pillow. Just as she was about to fall asleep, she heard a voice.
Sakura?
She shot up immediately at the sound of an unfamiliar voice inside her mind. It sounded like a young female, but it wasn't anyone she recognized. Were they under attack?
Sakura.
Oh. This voice was familiar. On instinct, Sakura's hand went to her shoulder, and to the communication seal that had been branded into it all those years ago.
Pein-sama.
You have a new mission. A similar group of bandits terrorizing the neighbouring land. Notify the members.
Yes sir.
It was silent then, and Sakura focused on getting her breathing back to normal. Pein often used the seal to communicate, so she really shouldn't have been so surprised. It was just that the first time he'd said her name, his voice had been completely different.
Of course, she had been half asleep at the time, plus there was a genjutsu master in the room next door. There was most likely no one trying to trick her mind, and this was all due to her paranoia and oversensitive instincts.
Still feeling a little on edge, Sakura went to tell the members about their latest assignment.
"How's the training going?"
Naruto slid over so that Ino could sit next to him. He took a second to gulp down the last of the precious Ichiraku ramen before grinning widely and giving her a thumbs up.
"Let's just say that Sasuke is going down!"
"You know you'll probably be facing other opponents as well as Sasuke, right?"
"Yeah, yeah forget about that right now. How are you? Have you… uh…" Naruto coughed. "Have you seen the old cat knocking around?"
"…What?"
"You know," he glared at her. "I'm talking about that weird cat with the pink fur."
"Oh. No I haven't had any hallucinations since the match. Pretty sure it was a one-time thing."
"Inoooo" Naruto whined. "Use the code!"
"What code? We never came up with a code! You just started talking about a cat out of nowhere."
"Excuse me."
They looked up and found Teuchi staring down at them. The owner's usual smile was gone, and instead he looked worryingly serious.
"I don't mean to pry, but as I was cooking some more ramen I overheard some of your conversation. Naruto, you kids aren't doing drugs are you?"
Oh boy.
Ino sighed and gave him a pat on the shoulder before leaving Naruto to deal with the well-meaning chef.
"No no, I wasn't saying any code words for drugs! I know what it sounds like but you see… it's a funny story really… there actually is a cat with pink fur, and its name is Mr Whiskers! This story begins a few months ago, when Ino and I saw this cat prowling down the street, and I said…"
When they checked into their new inn, Itachi once again ignored Sakura's protests and got them two rooms. Kisame went to get them dinner, while Sakura explained everything Pein had told her about their latest assignment.
"I see." Itachi said when she had finished. "Thank you Sakura-san."
"I'm just serving my purpose." she replied.
There was a silence in the room. Sakura hesitated to ask the question that was on the tip of her tongue. But Itachi clearly knew that she had something on her mind, and she didn't want to test his patience, so after a minute she gave in and asked.
"Itachi-sama… why do you always speak so politely to me? Surely Pein-sama told you that I'm not human. You should treat me like a weapon."
"It's true; the Leader did tell me about your role in the organization." his voice was always quiet and steady. "However I disagree with him. Out of all of us, you, Sakura-san, are the most human."
Sakura felt a chill pass through her. She wasn't sure what answer she had been expecting, but to be called the most human of the group was certainly not it.
"Why-why would you say that?" she struggled to keep her voice even. "I operate entirely based on Pein-sama's will. There is nothing human about me."
"But you see there is something. It's something simple, but it makes you far more human than the rest of us."
She waited, trying not to seem rattled by his words. How could she argue that she wasn't human if challenging that statement was enough to leave her shaking?
"You fear death, Sakura-san."
She knew she should disagree, but the words wouldn't come out.
"I can see it every time you fight, because you always fight to live. Kisame and I, we know death is coming for us, and we don't fear it. We have accepted that it will catch up with us some day, when the time is right. But you, you are not ready to die, and when your time is up you will still not be ready. Every action you take and every decision you make is based on survival, and it shows me how human you truly are."
He was right. Every part of his speech was right, and yet Sakura still floundered for a way to convince him otherwise.
"What about Sasori or Kakuzu? They clearly don't want to die either, so what makes me more human than them?"
"You are right, they don't want to die. But that doesn't mean they fear death the way you do. There are those like Kisame and Deidara and I who aren't afraid of the inevitable. Then there are those such as Sasori, Hidan, or even our Leader, who once were scared and human, but now have deluded themselves into thinking that they are invincible. No Akatsuki member fears death, whether it is because we don't mind the thought or because we don't believe we can die. You don't fit either of those categories, do you?"
The room fell silent. Itachi waited.
"…No." she whispered at last. "I don't."
"And that, Sakura-san, is why I consider you to be human."
Sakura was shaking. Why had she even asked? She never thought he would expose her so thoroughly. She thought she had done a good job hiding her weakness, burying her fear so deep that even she could ignore its existence. But Itachi had seen right through her all along. She was just a scared little girl trying to survive in a dangerous world.
"Are you going to tell Pein-sama?"
If he was, she might as well get a head start now. She had no doubt that Pein would find her and kill her, but running would delay the inevitable just a little bit.
"I doubt our Leader cares about my thoughts on his favourite weapon. We have different opinions on you, but he is satisfied with what he sees. It would be pointless for me to challenge that."
He wasn't going to tell. He would let her keep pretending.
"And besides Sakura-san, I never said I thought being human was a bad thing. You are not weak for feeling the way you do; in fact to me you are quite the opposite. Emotions can be very powerful when channeled correctly."
Kisame chose that moment to barge in, causing Sakura to jump slightly. He was carrying a small mountain of shellfish in his arms and it all smelled delicious. He tossed a boiled crab at Sakura and dumped the rest on the floor.
"I love when our missions are based in port towns! The local vendors here have a wonderful seafood range. Look Itachi, I even got you some onigiri with seaweed."
While both men were distracted combing through the food, Sakura grabbed the first thing she saw and escaped back to her own room.
Her head was ringing with panic she hadn't felt in years. Old memories of her earliest days with the Akatsuki were resurfacing, of the pain and punishments she had experienced every time she succumbed to her basic, human instincts. Itachi may believe that her humanity was a blessing, but all of Sakura's memories screamed otherwise.
Why are you crying? Weapons don't cry. Do I have to make you kill more of these innocent people or will you stop those tears?
I saw the fear in your eyes. Are you afraid? As long as you die serving Pein-sama your existence will have been worthwhile. Jump off that cliff again, and I better not hear you scream.
I can tell you feel bad for this boy. Empathy is pointless in a weapon. Make his death slow and painful.
It took a long time for Sakura to fall asleep that night.