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Ghost of Love: Chapter Nine
Slowly, with almost predatory grace, a dark-haired figure approached the girl-shaped lump that lay beneath the thick woollen blankets. He stood in the artificial light which struggled to reach through the open doorway, his indistinct shadow casting her face into darkness. With a strange unwilling tenderness he reached for her, uncertain. Elegant fingers hovered over her head for a long, indecisive moment before dipping down to brush over the soft strands of her hair in the lightest feather-touch. Quickly he drew back, smothering the soft, conflicted expression which marred his usually icy, emotionless façade.
The shadowy figure turned on his heel and fairly fled the room, scarcely noticing the pale-haired shape which raised a perfunctory hand in hello as he sped past, head down, eyes hard.
Sakura shifted slightly, disturbed from her dreams by some unfamiliar presence. She blinked vaguely, a sense of urgency spurring her to waken fully, though her lethargic body was reluctant to do so. She glanced about, throwing her gaze from corner to corner of the room, searching the murky shadows for some sign of life. There was none. Strange. I could have sworn there was someone in here. I'm sure that's why I woke up. One hand went to her head, her fingers drifting confusedly over the long, soft strands of hair.
Footsteps echoed outside her room and Sakura swung her legs over the edge of the bed, ready to fight or run if the need arose.
A silver-haired man with boyish features and round glasses appeared in the doorway. Sakura tensed, her hands curling into fists. What does he want?
"Sakura, how are you feeling?" Kabuto approached the pink-haired girl sitting on the edge of the bed, his voice suffused with quiet indifference. She was nothing more than another of Lord Orochimaru's fleeting interests. A pet with unusual power. An advantage for the snake sannin.
The girl shrugged uneasily and eyed him with open distrust. "Okay, I guess. What are you doing in here?"
Kabuto smiled easily, professionally. "Checking up on you. Lord Orochimaru is impatient to begin your training." He's bored, in other words. No new jutsus to master, two more years before he can undergo the transformation again… no way around it; he's bored out of his mind.
She blinked. "Oh."
She was probably expecting something entirely more sinister, I suppose. Can't say I really blame her. Lord Orochimaru hasn't exactly been a pillar of good intentions when it comes to the girl's village. Not to mention her friends.
"Uh, Kabuto… can I ask you a question?"
Kabuto shot the girl an amused look from behind his glinting glasses. "Other than the one you just did?"
Sakura blushed slightly and crossed her arms defensively. "Um, yeah, apart from that one."
"This question wouldn't be about Sasuke Uchiha, would it?"
The pink-haired kunoichi frowned slightly. Was that really all everyone expected she thought about? Sasuke? Nevermind that her question had, in fact, been about him… It was kind of insulting, really. Still, she set aside her pride in the face of her curiosity. "Yes, it is. Where is he at the moment?"
Kabuto smiled inwardly. Predictable. "He's training, no doubt. He does a lot of that."
"With Orochimaru?"
Kabuto shrugged and leaned comfortably against the wall. "Maybe. Although Sasuke doesn't exactly get along well with Lord Orochimaru."
Sakura frowned. "Why not? He… chose… to come here, right? Surely he'd want all the training Orochimaru can give him?"
She still struggles to accept that her friend betrayed the Leaf Village, I see. "Certainly he chose this path. That doesn't mean he has to like everything that walking it entails. He and Lord Orochimaru just… don't quite see eye to eye, that's all."
"Oh." That could be a good sign, couldn't it, Sakura mused hopefully.
"Well, you should go for a walk around the complex. Stretch your legs and get a feel for the place. You won't be leaving anytime soon, so you might as well familiarise yourself." Kabuto straightened and made to leave, unobtrusively observing the young kunoichi's reaction to that.
Sakura slumped slightly and nodded, more to herself than to Kabuto. "Yeah. That's probably a good idea."
"I'll see you around, then," the medical ninja smiled inscrutably and retreated through the open door, leaving it ajar invitingly as he walked away from her room.
She seems to have accepted her situation quite well. Lord Orochimaru will be pleased.
Sakura sighed and rolled her shoulders to loosen the knotted muscles. She was rather tired of being constantly on guard during her waking hours and haunted by strange dreams while asleep. Not to mention her room was beginning to feel mighty small. Kabuto's right. I should get to know this place, although not for the reasons he thinks. If I'm going to get out of here, I need to know the layout well. Not to mention the daily routines of everyone who lives here.
Or I could just make a run for it.
No, that is a monumentally stupid idea. I'm not back to full strength yet and I can feel the chakra starting to build up again. I'm going to need to get rid of some soon. I wonder what would happen if I just let it keep building and building inside me? Would it eventually kill me? Or would it break the seal on the band first? I guess… whichever's weaker would go first. Me or the band. I don't think I want to find out which.
With a vaguely resigned sigh, Sakura pushed herself slowly to her feet, wincing as her muscles gave a cry of painful protest. Evidently they were still sore from the intense, wracking tremors that had plagued her during her overload of chakra. She made her way through the door, uncertainty plaguing her every step. A thought occurred to her as she passed through the doorway. This door was open when Kabuto arrived, but I'm sure Orochimaru shut it last night – or whenever it was – when he left. Someone must have been in my room- I wasn't imagining things then! I wonder who it was… and why?
An apprehensive shiver ran down her spine and Sakura pulled the door shut after her, beginning to feel the stirrings of paranoia. I have enough to worry about without some stranger coming into my room when I'm sleeping. Another thought popped into her head then; Maybe it was Orochimaru? For some reason this idea was slightly less terrifying than if it was someone unknown - and that concerned Sakura deeply. I should be terrified if he's coming into my room while I'm sleeping, but… somehow it doesn't scare me all that much. At least, not when compared to some stranger wandering in. Especially considering the type of weirdos that are probably roaming around this miserable place.
Resolving to put the matter out of her mind for now – to be further examined later – the young kunoichi turned her attention to her surroundings. She wandered slowly down the hallway, mindful of her abused muscles and took in everything about her surroundings that she could. The compound gave an overall impression of grey. There was really no better word for it- it was comprised mostly of concrete and steel and shadows. It lacked any warmth or colour and after living virtually her whole life in the warm, friendly, vibrant Leaf Village, Sakura found it alien and rather depressing. There were very few people around and those that she did encounter simply stared with unfriendly gazes and moved on, ignoring her instinctive smile and hello. Eventually she stifled her ingrained urge to be polite and began carefully observing the dull, equally grey inhabitants of the Sound Compound. She had no wish, really, to communicate with them. She didn't want to know why they had chosen to serve Orochimaru, though she was fairly certain the stories behind the majority of his small army of sound ninjas were overall very sad. Why would you give yourself over to such a monster, if not because you had nothing else to live for, to fight for? Sakura blinked, uncomfortable with the turn of her thoughts. She was never afraid to understand other peoples' motivations – it often proved to be useful in her line of work - but she found herself feeling rather too sympathetic towards people who were undoubtedly murderers and traitors. She frowned and shied away from the thought that she, too, could be called a traitor. Albeit one with good intentions.
After that Sakura made a concerted effort to force her thoughts down some other, less disturbing paths. Unfortunately she was rather limited by her precarious situation. With a heavy, resigned sigh the pink-haired kunoichi continued her less than enthusiastic exploration of what was apparently the Sound Village's base.
I guess I should get to work on that escape plan…
AN: Sorry, no Orochimaru/Sakura interaction this time around. Next chapter there should be, though XD Let me know what you think, or if you find any errors/inconsistencies!
Thankyou to:
Oorochimaru's Cherry Blossom
Echo Uchiha
Yushi1994
ReginaSlytherin
For their kind reviews and encouragements!