To those who don't follow my tumblr, I have to apologize, a lot! Eighteen days ago we lost power, at the same time my charger decided to it didn't want to work anymore. We lost power for a week, but in that time I was able to order a charger off amazon. Except the PO box I sent it to closed almost a month early and they sent it back. After reordering it last friday I finally have it! SO I will upload this chapter, then the next while working on nineteen. With that, reviews are welcome, and happy reading!
"He's late!"
Sakura leaned against the fence with a smile, watching Naruto pace back and forth. Sasuke squatted against the fence, right next to her legs. She didn't want to, but she healed herself a little bit this morning so she'd be ready for training. Now, at dusk they had been waiting an hour for Kakashi.
With the sound of smoke, she saw Kakashi appear on top of the fence of training field three, hand up in fake sorrow at being late.
"Hey! My bad! My bad!"
"YOU'RE LATE!"
They walked into the field and Kakashi stopped amongst three wooden poles.
"This place is kind of nostalgic, hm?"
"Well, I'm going to see how much you three have approved."
A cling of bells was heard, but this time there were three of them.
Sakura saw Sasuke smirk and rest a hand on his hip before unsheathing his katana she got him.
"So it's us three against you?"
"Come at him, with the intent to kill."
Naruto grinned and shrugged off his black coat.
"Or we won't be able to get them."
Sakura put on her fingerless gloves and adjusted her weapons pouch.
For the first time in a while, team seven was on the same page.
"Exactly."
Kakashi slammed his new perverted book before putting it into his vest.
"Besides, it feels like I'm going to have to be serious this time."
He moved his hitai-ate and retied it, exposing his sharingan. Looking to Sasuke, she caught the moment he activated his, and was surprised to see the third tomoe.
"I have to say, I'm excited."
Naruto shifted his feet beside her. Sakura adjusted her white hitai-ate, the sign of a medic and pulled her hair up into a messy pony tail.
Okay, we should take to the shadows and discuss a plan-
Of course not.
Naruto hadn't waited for the two of them, just like before. And just like before, he ended up in front of the tip of Kakashi's kunai, with Kakashi's hand on his head.
"No change."
Sasuke smirked but Sakura sighed. She rubbed her temples as Kakashi gave his talk about how Naruto was being hasty.
"Well then, let's begin. Start!"
With a puff of smoke, Kakashi was gone.
"Dobe!"
"Oh come on!"
But Sakura wasn't paying much attention to them, no.
Above?
Left?
Right?
Behind?
As a medical nin, she was trained to detect and measure chakra.
Below.
Gathering a small amount of chakra to her fist, she slammed it down on the ground, watching the earth crack up into large chunks, with Kakashi laying on the rubble.
"Kakashi-sensei?"
"Ah?"
"I found you."
She pulled the others into the shadows as the night crept upon them.
"Okay, I have an idea."
They both looked at her intently.
"Kakashi-sensei hasn't finished the book. We grab it, force him to give us the bells before we read the last page."
"Keh, we can keep up with him."
Naruto raised his fist up in a challenge, his eyes gleaming.
Sasuke turned his head away.
"Yes, we can, I'm not saying we can't."
She argued, but before she could talk more Sasuke cut her off.
"He's coming."
"Fine, then my plan's a backup. We only have an hour to do this. Remember, we have a mission tomorrow."
"We do?"
Naruto scratched his head.
"Yes! Ah, watch out!"
She pushed them away as kunai struck the tree behind them.
"Giving up already?"
"No way!"
"Hn."
"Sakura, you first!"
Kakashi attempted to fight her hand to hand, but when her fist slipped and cracked a tree in half, he gave up on that idea, nervous about her new strength and excellent chakra control.
"Tajuu Kage Bushin no Jutsu!"
At least a hundred copies of Naruto appeared around Kakashi.
When they hit their five minute mark, Sakura began to plan. Nodding at Sasuke, she noticed it was best to start her plan. Naruto caught onto her stare as well. Sasuke formed hand seals, somewhat familiar to her.
"Katon, Goukakyuu no Jutsu!"
A large fireball caused Kakashi to move. Sasuke attacked with his katana and Naruto attacked with more clones. Sakura suppressed her chakra to a faint whisper and waited for the right moment. Slipping behind Kakashi as he defended himself, she grabbed the book and ducked out, hiding behind a boulder.
Reading the last page, she turned around and whistled, halting the fight.
"A ninja must read what's the underneath the underneath! Right, Kakashi-sensei?"
Taking a deep breath, she began to say the ending of the book.
"The main character, actually he.."
She saw him cover his ears before realizing he could read her lips. In the mean time, Naruto and Sasuke moved fast, and when the bell hit her palm, she stopped talking.
Kakashi opened his eyes and they all held out their bells.
"Oh. You guys got me."
Sakura giggled and Naruto cheered in triumphed.
Looking at herself, she realized they were all dirty.
"Let's go home shall we? Three of us have a mission tomorrow.
xxXXxx
They sat shoulder to shoulder on Sakura's living room floor, with Sakura in-between.
"Watch out Hime-sama!"
"As long as I live I will use my sorrow, and turn it into strength!"
In a flash of light, the princess had destroyed her enemy, with the rainbow chakra.
"Amazing!"
"Well then, let's go. Beyond the rainbow!"
Sakura made a noise in her throat and Naruto took offense.
"That was a good movie!"
"No, it's not! The only good part was Michi!"
"EH? No way! Princess Fuun is where it's at Sakura-chan! She's so pretty, and so strong! Elegant, yet powerful-"
Sakura thumped him with her first before standing up.
"Yeah, yeah! The movie's over. I get why we were supposed to watch it, but still."
Sakura took the DVD and put it back into the case before setting it on her TV.
Sasuke stood up and stretched, and Naruto followed suit before yawning.
"Promise you'll be on your best behavior tomorrow?"
"I do!"
Sasuke rolled out his mat and placed it as far away from Naruto's as possible. Sakura returned from throwing the rest of the popcorn out and yawned.
"I'll see you two in the morning."
"Goodnight Sakura-chan!"
"Goodnight you two!"
xxXXxx
Our mission is to protect the actress who plays Princess Fun, Fukikaze Yukie.
Protect isn't really the right word. It's more like, escort.
Sakura couldn't sit still, despite her best efforts as the director explained why they were heading to Yuki no Kuni. She was looking having fun looking at the sets, cameras, the lights, and the people. She was also looking if she could spot someone famous.
A quick pinch to her thigh made her sit up straight before glaring at Sasuke. She frowned at him before frowning at herself, noticing Naruto was paying more attention than she was. When they were excused and shown their room Sakura was still pouting.
"What is it?"
Naruto was grabbing the first shower, since they wouldn't have time tomorrow.
She just crossed her arms and sat on her mat, laid between the two others and tried her best to ignore the soft kisses that led from her temple down to a special part of her throat.
Holding back a whine, she instead sighed and grabbed his head, fingers moving to his hair before moving his head from her neck and to her face where their lips met. She smiled into the kiss when he gently bit her lip. With little force she was on her back, Sasuke moving one of his legs between hers. Their soft kiss grew into more, and her hands drew under his shirt. Taking to being home, Sasuke and Naruto wore the typical male ninja clothes of a long sleeve dark blue shirt and dark blue pants with a chunin vest each. So when they were in the room the vests were shed, and it gave her more room to explore.
But it was cut short much to her displeasure as it appeared Naruto took a quick shower.
Sasuke didn't say a word as he made a quick move into the shower next.
"What was that about?"
Sakura just smiled and shrugged.
xxXXxx
She quietly yawned as she slightly leaned on Sasuke's shoulder, as they watched the actress do her job on the ship. They had been up since the crack of dawn, but the actress herself hadn't been up half an hour.
Such a spoiled angry thing.
From what Naruto told them from their private encounter on his way to the shower, the actress was mean. Cold, and not to mention a total bitch when it came to asking for her autograph.
They quickly grew bored with watching the actress, and land was fast approaching. Sakura felt herself become cold but pushed it aside as she put on her fingerless gloves.
Once on land they filmed for another hour before something happened. An explosion on the side of a mountain a few miles away from the crew.
"Sasuke-kun!"
"Stay back, all of you."
Naruto grinned and tightened his hitai-ate.
"Finally, this has gotten interesting!"
A figure appeared from the smoke in a white body suit.
"Welcome to Yuki no Kuni."
"Welcome home Princess Kouyuki."
The woman stood not far from the male, dressed the same.
Princess Kouyuki?
Her eyes followed their gaze and narrowed.
No way, she's an actual Princess?
A fat ninja appeared, in the same ugly white suit, it was three on three, but someone had to guard the Princess.
"Sakura."
Sasuke's voice rang in the quiet.
"Sasuke-kun."
"Protect her. Naruto and I will take it from here."
She was beyond nervous. She had to protect over twenty people, not to mention Sasuke and Naruto would be working together for the first time in over a year.
"Got it."
Turning around, she saw the Princess collapse before turning back to her teammates one last time.
"Sasuke-kun, Naruto, they're wearing chakra armor. It creates a wall of chakra to protect them. The symbol, the ying yang, it's the source. Destroy it and they don't have a disadvantage.
"Got it Sakura-chan!"
"Aa."
"Princess, let's go!"
But something else was wrong with the Princess. She wasn't just scared. Something deeper was wrong, and the woman wasn't budging.
"No!"
"We have to go!"
"I'll stay and die, thank you very much!"
Sakura struck her in the back of her neck, watching her pupils dilate before she fell to the ground, unconscious.
Something struck her back and she winced before it pulled her way a few feet, slaming her to the ground.
"Sakura!"
"We're going!"
Sasuke did a few hand signals, and a large one horned whale appeared, made of ice. She moved quickly, ignoring the pain and grabbed the princess as clones of Naruto and Sasuke retrieved the rest of the crew. The crash of the ocean wave set them off, thankfully away from the ninja.
Sakura panted as sat on her butt. Her vision swam and she realized she had been poisoned. Cursing herself as a medic, she knew she shouldn't put herself in danger. Grabbing her pouch, she winced as someone touched her back.
"Sasuke-kun?"
"It's eating at your flesh. You have something?"
"Yeah. Can you apply it?"
"Aa."
Blushing at the men working around her, Sasuke helped her peel off her top slowly, and she pressed it to her front, covering her chest and stomach. Opening a small vial, she instructed him on just a coin size amount and rub it in deep, no matter how much it hurts her.
Naruto kneeled in front of her and she clung to his shirt, digging her nails in as she grit her teeth. The antidote was more painful that the actual impact of the claw.
When Sasuke was finished, he motioned for the wrap which she handed over, and she assisted him with it, feeling the soothing part of the potion work, finally. Putting the shirt back on, Sakura was helped up by Naruto who motioned for them to get closer.
"We'll have to do shifts tonight. The captain has decided to head to the pier as an alternate place to film."
Sakura nodded and Sasuke looked at her.
"You two sleep first. Naruto will take next shift, then Sakura."
"Why am I last?"
"Sakura-chan, you need to heal. Don't worry about it."
The feeling of being weak and left behind weighed heavy on her heart, but she bit it back and nodded before heading to their cabin to sleep. Naruto wasn't far from her.
xxXXxx
"So she is a Princess."
Sasuke leaned back with a quiet sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose.
Sakura felt like doing the same.
"I expected as much, but you do realize this moved the class of the mission from a C to an A, maybe even an S."
Naruto remained oddly quiet as they stared at the actress' manager.
"Her real name is Kazahana Koyuki."
"Sandayuu-san, her distress on returning to Yuki not Kuni, why did you force her here? I know why she has her reservations, I know the story well."
"Then tell it Sakura-san."
"Ten years ago King Soutetsu's brother Dotou hired ninja to take the village over, and they burned the castle that held the King, as well as the Princess inside. It was thought that the Princess was dead."
"I found the Princess when she was on stage. She said the one who saved her was the masked ninja, Hatake Kakashi."
Sakura smiled brightly before nodding.
"Kakashi-sensei is our squad leader, as well as my cousin."
"The infamous will of fire hidden inside the shinobi of Konoha."
"It would've been better if I had died."
"Don't say that."
Her manager looked sad. Sakura clenched her fists at the slightly older woman. She was getting annoying.
"My heart is already dead, there's no use in continued to live like this."
"You need to overthrow your uncle, and become Queen. It is your birthright."
"No. It's not my problem."
Sakura skid back her chair and slammed her fists on the table.
"You are one ungrateful bitch, you know that?"
Gasps were heard before Sasuke pulled her arm, motioning her to sit down.
"Excuse me?"
"Do you know what's going on in your own country? There's famine, homelessness, orphans in the streets! Kakashi-sensei saved you to give a future to Yuki no Kuni, instead you stomp on it with your big feet and act as if all of it is beneath you. Your father's dead, so what? Nothing can change it! But you can change how living beings live! In fact, I will protect the crew of this movie, you are on your own!"
With that Sakura got up and brushed past the shocked Princess.
"Cut! That was perfect!"
xxXXxx
"I won't do it."
Naruto stomped his foot in protest.
"Sakura-chan! She's missing, and she in the mission! They won't attack the crew, they only want her!"
"Don't be stubborn, we have to go, now."
Sasuke latched the radio onto her throat and stuck the piece in her ear.
Officially, Sasuke did lead this mission.
"If you find her, radio in."
"Got it."
She just nodded. Taking one last look at each other, they jumped off the cliff towards the forest where she most likely headed.
But Sakura didn't leave, she let the boys go while she stubbornly stayed with the crew. Not long after they left, Naruto had found the Princess.
Just as the call came, a crack was heard and the train tracks were seen.
Putting her hand on the metal, she drew back.
"The chakra melted the ice? Everyone, run!"
Once she saw that everyone had ran to the group of houses the manager had dubbed their allies, she turned back to see Sasuke in front of her. With a surge of chakra, she was thrown off guard as a body barreled into her. Thankfully she only stumbled back, but Sasuke was thrown off his feet comically as Naruto had barreled into him.
"Dobe! What the big deal?"
"Ah! Don't be like that! I just ran for out lives!"
Sakura steadied the Princess on her feet before turning back to her teammates.
A train barreled through in the next seconds before coming to a stop.
Tree logs barreled through the train, revealed to happen because of a village army. Sandayuu was leading, and after a beautiful speech, they rushed to Dotou who revealed himself at the top of the train.
"Stop it!"
Sakura rushed forward to stop them, but Sasuke pulled her back. Frustrated, she turned to the Princess.
"Do you see this? These people are risking their lives for a better future of others, something you can't do!"
The train doors opened to reveal hundreds of slots. Before she could figure out what they were, thousands of kunai flew out, tearing through the small army of fifty men leaving the snow stained red. She couldn't even speak for a moment. Dotou was laughing in the silence before Sasuke snapped three bombs onto the carts, forcing the train to go, Dotou laughing along the way.
"It's their own fault."
The Princess' words were cruel. So Sakura decided to speak up.
"What?"
"If they didn't try to overturn Dotou-"
Sakura slapped her. And she didn't regret it. Sasuke pulled her away and Naruto got in between the girls.
Frankly, a slap could've killed the Princess, but Sakura was careful to dull the chakra warming her body.
A roar was heard over the mountain, leaving them alert. But that was their mistake. A claw hook reached out and grabbed the Princess, who instantly grabbed Sakura. Before she could realize what was happening, they were in the air, hundreds of feet from the ground.
Her eyes widened and they were pulled into the blimp, something hitting her neck, and knocking her out.
xxXXxx
Her eyes opened, and she felt sore. Feeling the shackles on her wrists, and looking around, she noticed she was in a jail sell. Biting her lip, she concentrated.
"Nawake no jutsu!"
Screaming out in pain, she looked down at the device stuck on her skin.
A chakra blocker.
"It can't be taken off."
Snapping her head to the right, she saw the Princess sitting with her knees to her chest.
Without my chakra, I couldn't even sense her.
Taking a deep breath, she braced herself and put and image in her head, something happy. In a quick second she gathered chakra and pulled at the shackles, but she didn't get far before going limp.
Catching her breath, she ignored the Princess telling her to stop before gathering up her energy and doing it again. After the third attempt she was dead tired but she knew that Sasuke and Naruto would be coming for her. The idiots didn't look at or ever remove her radio
"Princess, please press the button on the right side of my neck."
Unlike Sakura, the Princess wasn't shackled. Doing as she asked, Sakura heard the sounds of Sasuke and Naruto talking but apparently not together.
"All done here!"
"Aa. Here too."
"Sasuke-kun, Naruto!"
"Sakura!"
"Sakura-chan!"
"We're underground, the basements. Hurry."
"We're here."
"We're coming for you Sakura-chan!"
At her nod, the Princess pressed the button again.
"Get back."
Gritting her teeth, she grunted as the chakra quickly drained from her body, but with a last effort she finally pulled her wrists free and fell to the ground. Catching her breath, she started to laugh almost in a crazy way. The Princess quietly brushed her hair aside and Sakura felt the breeze cool on her sweat.
"Play dead."
"What?"
"You're an actress right, play dead. Now."
The Princes fell beside her, shallow breathing making it appear she was in fact dead. Closing her eyes, she felt the guards walk in, startled at their state, and she kicked them, before punching them in the back of their neck, knocking them unconscious. Grabbing the keys, she unlocked their door and pulled the Princess out.
"Sakura-chan!"
Naruto grabbed the Princess and pulled her on her back, and Sasuke grabbed her, pulling her on his back.
"Sakura, she has a chakra eating device on her!"
Sasuke tensed beneath her, but they had no time.
"How did you get in?"
"Paper bombs. Everywhere."
They entered a room, and there was Dotou, looking arrogant as he stood in an advanced form of the armor.
Sakura got off of Sasuke, as did the Princess off of Naruto.
She watched as the Princess ran past her, and towards her Uncle.
In horror she saw the Princess hold out the crystal around her neck. In an instant she was in front of her, holding her arms out.
"What are you doing?"
"Quiet girl."
With a sharp slap, Sakura was thrown off the small stage.
"I see the chakra absorber is doing well."
"Yeah, it is. But it's not my chakra you should've repressed."
The ceiling started to collapse, and Dotou released wings taking off into the air with the Princess. Sasuke grabbed Sakura and as a team they left the castle as it burned.
Sasuke tucked Sakura behind a tree, and she heard the two ninja who had followed them were two out of the three from before.
"Chidori!"
"Rasengan!"
I hope they remember where to aim on the suits.
In an explosion, she assumed they had. Distracted by the two, she didn't feel the person in front of her until he was gripping her throat tightly.
"Ah, to be young."
His hand latched onto the device on her, and pulled. She felt the tendrils release from her skin and she screamed out. Her eyes saw white spots before she heard the crackle of electricity hit the guy holding her, and she fell into a pair of arms.
"Sakura-chan! Are you okay?"
"Y-yeah. Let's go. The Princess-"
"Aa."
Sasuke took her into his arms and they ran towards where she told them she felt Dotou's chakra.
xxXXxx
When they arrived, Sakura ran for the Princess, not noticing the warmer climate and grabbing her, puling her behind a large ice statue.
"Don't worry."
She panted, the Princess quietly pushed her against the ice, seeing Sakura was bleeding out of her torso.
"Sakura!"
"I'm fine. Sasuke, Naruto, they'll win."
"How do you know?"
"I trust them. I love them both, they'll save the day. It's the ninja thing to do."
Her vision was fading, but she struggled to stay awake.
Suddenly the energies clashed, and in that moment of the suit cracking that spring came. Grass was green, and the air was warm. Flowers bloomed and on was under her hand. Removing it, she saw it spring forward. A rainbow cast a glow around the ice statues which did not melt. She smiled at the Princess' laughter, and closed her eyes.
Just for a moment.
xxXXxx
End!