Yosh! Before the chapter starts, I just wanna say that…
OHMYGODIJUSTGOT23REVIEWS!! YAYY!! Thanks again to TwilightRaver and Kiri-tan!!
Alright, I FINALLY reached my goal!! Yay!! (Well, actually, my real goal is that this story reaches 1000 reviews eventually… but 20 reviews is my smaller goal!!)
Le HYPERVENALATE!!
Mk, I'm done… Lol…
I'm getting really, REALLY pissed at the fact that my best friend just got a FF and that annoying wannabes at my school copy me!! The only one I will tolerate that has an FF is Nashi411!! Everyone else is annoying. Plus… they kinda think that anime/manga is different…
OH FUCKING WELL!! Ahaha… time to stop my little 'journal time' and start with the long awaited chapter, ne?
Mood: Smart!! Ha-ha…
Status: Just got back from the first night of the play!! Exhausted… but hey! I had fun with my homeboy Tiny… ugh… I don't even wanna hear the title "The Music Man" or I might go nuts…
Soundtrack: It's Not a Fashion Statement it's a Fucking Deathwish – MCR (My Chemical Romance)
Disclaimer: Blah, blah, blah, blah… no own… blah, blah, blah… damnit.
Sasuke stared at the unconscious pink-haired, bloody girl in his arms as they made their way up to tower. Sakura fainted from shock after seeing the decapitated bodies which Sasuke didn't really fully understand since she was the one that… he didn't even want to reminisce on the dead Rain nin. Maybe it's just because that his clan members were found headless on the night they… Itachi…
He shook it off as they stopped in front of the pairs of doors.
Rustling was heard from the trees on the side as two masked men slowly made their way out of the forest.
"You're late," one figure grunted. It was difficult to tell which since they were both wearing masks and looked alike as well.
He chuckled and scratched the back of his head, "Eh, sorry, we… got held back a bit."
"Arigato Kabuto."
He turned around, shocked to hear the voice of the tired girl. Sakura's eyes were open hall-way. She looked and him and frowned, "I don't like you… but you got us this far… so… thanks…"
They stared at each other for a while before Kabuto nodded, "It was nothing compared to what you did, Sakura." He sighed as he rejoined his teammates and stood in front of the door. Kabuto bid them on final farewell, "This is it, Naruto-kun, Sakura, Sasuke-kun… good luck."
Naruto grinned his signature idiotic grin and everything seemed to be forgotten. The atmosphere lightened and Kabuto smiled warmly back. Sasuke even managed to crack a small smirk. Sakura… Sakura was still limply lying in Sasuke's warm, safe arms, too worried and stressed to be smiling the way that she used to.
Kabuto and his team entered into their door, disappearing, as Cell 7 readied themselves at their own door. The seal was broken and they all entered the empty building, finding themselves standing in front of a large sign.
"Well…" Orochimaru smirked, "It looks like I really did pick out the wrong vessel. Whatever's inside that girl would be much more useful than those Uchiha eyes, ne?"
Kabuto frowned and looked away, "I wouldn't say that. That boy was able to stop her in her murderous state at the fight with the Sound… remember? Those eyes must have something to do with it. She was even about to kill her own teammate… We shouldn't stick around to find out what kind of demon she is."
"So you confirm the fact that she's a demon?"
"I'm not denying it," Kabuto grunted to his master, "But something isn't right… You know how when demons are released, they usually show some trait of their animal by growling or snarling?"
"Yes…"
Kabuto frowned even deeper, "She had a look of pure… bloodlust on her face instead of no self control… like the girl knew exactly what she was going to do and how she was going to get what she wants."
Orochimaru grew impatient at the long pause that Kabuto held, "Anything else…?"
"Aa…" Kabuto's voice dropped down to a dark whisper, "… is there any reference of the phrase 'Spring of Crimson Tears'?"
"Eh, Sasuke-kun…" Sakura grunted as she gently pushed his strong arms away, "I'm alright fine now…"
He frowned, but none the less released her, the heavy warmth leaving his arms and around her body. She stumbled on her feet a little bit before steadily standing up.
Sakura tried to decipher what Sasuke just read out loud. Naruto was still squinting in confusion at the board while Sasuke's face was hard and took in the information.
"It's time…"
Naruto and Sasuke looked with puzzled expressions at their only female teammate. Naruto finally broke the strange silence, "Eh… what do you mean Sakura-chan?"
She frowned and pulled out the Scroll of Earth from her hip pack. Sasuke immediately understood and nodded to her.
"Err… e-eh?! What are you doing Sakura-chan?!"
She started to pry the edge of the scroll. What happened to all of those warnings that Kabuto-san gave them just a minute ago?!
"Opening the scrolls, dobe…"
"I understand that, teme!!" Naruto yelled and then pulled out the bloodied scroll of Heaven, "Demo… you sure it's time…?"
"Aa."
Naruto looked up at the dried crust on the kunochi's face and then at her confident eyes. A simple glance at the dark blood got everything inside of him trembling. Everything inside that affected his physical body.
He stared at the scroll in his hand in horror, following the dark trail of blood. Naruto slowly stared back up at her face… arms… legs… the sickening scent of the blood… of those that she killed.
"Naruto."
He broke out of his trance to look up at her green eyes. She said calmly, "It's time to open them."
He stared back at her emerald eyes and then decided that the best place to look down was at his feet, "H-hai… Sakura-chan…"
They both picked at the edge of the scroll and slowly rolled it open, adding to the suspense.
"Wh-what…?"
Sakura stared at her scroll in confusion and muttered out the insignia on the paper, "Person?"
Naruto squinted at the scroll in his hands, "Jin?"
The cogs and workings of Sasuke's mind put the two pieces together and his eyes widened as the paper seemed to bubble up.
"Naruto, Sakura, get rid of those now!"
They looked at each other before throwing the scrolls as far away as possible from them and watched as smoke erupted.
Naruto took a step forward as he recognized the faint figure that was starting to emerge from the clouds.
He grew a faint smile as their former teacher stepped into visible light and out of the hidden smoke.
"Naruto?" Iruka raised an eyebrow as his students' shocked expression and then smiled, "Hey, it's great to see you all again." Iruka then remembered his duties for being here in the first place and reached into his pocket and pulled out a small pocket watch, "And looks like you made it just in time too."
Naruto frowned at his spacey attitude, "What are you talking Iruka-sensei?"
The older chuunin snapped the watch shut and tucked it away again inside the safety of his pocket, "Congratulations, you passes the second round of your exams. Now, I would love to treat you all to Ichiraku ramen, but…"
Naruto didn't even let his former-teacher finish was he was about to say and cut him off by pouncing on him.
"Naruto! What are you…?!"
"YAYY~!! RAMEN~! RAMEN~! RAMEN~!!"
Iruka was about to tell Naruto the 'but' to the situation, but decided to let the hyperactive blonde have his moment. Iruka smiled and shook his head in disbelief slightly. After all this time and experience with missions and in the Forest of Death, he still hasn't matured one bit.
Sakura sighed and felt her legs collapse beneath her. She fell into Sasuke's arms again and then they both landed on the floor.
"You know," he groaned, pulling his arms away from her, letting the exhausted girl regain energy, "You're heavier than you look."
"Aa…" she sighed, cupping her forehead in her head and closing her eyes, as if fighting something back in her mind.
Sasuke was taken back a little bit. The last time he told her that, Sakura went on a full-fledge diet and ran her ass off, starving herself on top of all that exercising. Sasuke stared at her while she had her battle with herself that he was not able to see.
He looked at her, slightly worried, Sakura… why didn't you ever tell us anything… what's going on…?
Sakura wasn't really having a battle with whatever took over her like Sasuke predicted. In fact, more like she was having trouble accepting what she was. Even though it seemed like everyone was able to recover so quickly from what just happened, the events that took place in the forest scarred her.
Now… this must be what Sasuke felt after Itachi killed off his clan… Sakura thought to herself. Loneliness that no one knows… that no one understands… but no one does understand… having someone precious killed is different from being the killer… the one that inflicted the pain…
Sakura shuddered slightly when she thought of the Uchiha Massacre. She just shook it off and assumed that she just was affected because she could relate in a way. That's what she thought… but still. It felt… not right… thinking about how Itachi killed them all… Itachi…
She looked up at the student-teacher reminiscing that was taking place and couldn't stand to watch anymore, "Iruka… sensei, what is that sign on the wall for?"
"Eh? That doesn't matter now Sakura-chan," Naruto frowned at her. Her eye twitched at his comment.
She gritted her teeth and managed to growl out, "It wouldn't be there for no reason, dumb-ass."
Iruka smiled and stared at all of his students, "Sakura's right. You see, Heaven represents the mind. Earth represents the body. If you have and equal balance, you will have less problems and will truly become skilled shinobi and kunochi."
He turned to look at the blonde that was squinting at the sign in confusion, "Naruto." The blonde boy turned his head to his teacher that just called his name. Iruka frowned, "You need to develop your mind more."
"And Sakura," her eyes narrowed at the sound of her name uttered from her former-teacher's lips, "You need to work your body. You're weak now, and that won't…"
Her fist clenched and she felt power starting to engulf her again… before Sasuke interrupted the man, "Mind and body work together creates harmony. We understand."
Iruka sighed, "You were always sharp…"
"Hn. Can we just go on?"
"Wait, be patient," he ordered, "There's still another part of the Second Exam."
Naruto cocked his head to the side like a puppy, "What are you talking about?"
Iruka groaned, shaking his head, "Jeez… you guys really are the question-askers, but never really the listeners, are you?"
Sakura stood next to Sasuke in the mob of Rookie Nine and what looked like to be the Sand and Sound nin among the cluster. She marveled at how many that actually passed. According to Anko, there's usually just about ten or less, but in the stadium, there were twenty-one students.
"Looks like every rookie from Konoha is here," she whispered to herself.
So many, ne?
Sakura stared at the menacing emerald pair of eyes gazing at her, making the atmosphere uncomfortable.
Wh-what?
So many in our way…
Sakura looked out again at the students that surrounded her. Twenty-one seemed like a small number in her mind, but it turns out to be a lot more when you have twenty-one people.
She bit on her thumb, "I guess that means I have to kill again…" Sakura suddenly caught her words, "W-wait… did I just say 'kill'?"
Darkness surrounded her consciousness again.
What's wrong with me?! Why do I always think about killing?!Cold breath was right on cue.
We don't have a place in the world, Sakura-chan. We have to MAKE a place. That's what we were born to do. Kill… why else would we be here, living? We're different Sakura-chan. We're different because instead of giving life… we take life… why are you acting this way? What happened in the forest was not our first kill… you should remember that…
Shut up…
We have to kill…
S-shut up…
We were made to kill…
"SHUT UP!!"
Sakura clutched her head and gritted her teeth. What was with her?! What was this voice that kept invading her thoughts?! She couldn't think straight…
Blood… death… harm… revenge… hatred… those were the only things that went through her mind. She wasn't herself… and she didn't know what was wrong.
"Excuse me?"
She looked up to see the Hokage himself along with the jonin leaders staring at her like she was a demon. Sakura blushed lightly and then looked away, "Gomenasai… Sandaime-sama…"
The Sandaime coughed before grunting, "Alright then, shall we continue on with the tournament?"
"Hai Sandaime-sama!"
The Sound nins never guessed that they would be there. Sakura damaged Kin and Zaku very seriously. In fact, she managed to slice through a major tissue and on top of that, blinded Zaku, not that it was a major problem. All he needed to get revenge was his ears, arms, and legs.
Zaku growled at the sound of her voice and touched the cloth that covered his eyes, "It's that bitch's voice…"
He dropped his arms and clenched his fists so hard that he could feel the blood draining out of it and his hand growing cold and slightly numb.
"I'll make her pay… for my eyes…"
Sakura looked down at her arms. Sasuke glanced at his pink-haired teammate with hard eyes. He couldn't let her fight. This was for everyone else. Her massacre state seemed to be triggered when she was in battle. He couldn't risk letting her go out there and just slaughter people without a second thought.
He slowly started walking forward, ready to report to the Hokage that she was able to battle with a tiny tug on the hem of his shirt.
Sasuke looked back to see Sakura, her head tilted to the ground, not letting him see her face.
"Don't do it."
He frowned, "I don't think you should be the one talking, Sakura."
She whispered so that he could barely hear her, yet her voice was crystal clear, "You don't tell on me, I won't do the same to you."
"What are you talking about?"
Sakura grimaced, "That mark, on your neck… it isn't just a tattoo… You don't tell on me, I won't do the same to you, Sasuke-kun."
He glared at her, his hand moving up to trance over the symbol that was given to him. Sasuke frowned. He knew she was right. They were both unstable at the moment, but both wanted to compete, didn't they? It would've been a waste… working hard to get all the way to where they were only to forfeit.
Sakura studied as his face softened and his body pulled back, no longer stiff, and pulled her hand back, now seeing that he understood why she did what she did.
"Attention!"
They returned their attention to the new shinobi that now stood before them, coughing.
He lowered his hand after finishing with a last cough and introduced himself, "I will be the judge for the preliminary rounds of the Chuunin Exams. I am Gekkou Hayate and allow me to explain the rules."
One after another… another victory… the winner was announced by the diseased judge… another round would continue after the other… more injures… more pain… the scent of rust and salt cloaked the auditorium… in Sakura's mind.
They were all reunited with their leaders once again, but instead of feeling at home again, she only felt lonelier than before.
While she was standing the in crowd, she thought that Kakashi-sensei was looking at her, wondering why she was cloaked with red. Maybe he would ask if she was injured or even if she fell into a berry bush, but nothing. His eyes marveled at how Naruto and Sasuke grew.
Maybe that was one of the reasons that lead on her bloodlust. Of course, no one asked anything. No one asked why her eyes were a bright red, why she was holding herself, why she was shaking and breathing unevenly. Not one question.
Maybe that was another reason that provoked her.
She didn't know. No one knows. All she knew, was that she wanted to see red… the warmth of it splatter her face… the sound of pained cries.
Kill.
Wh-what…?
You've been thinking about it. I know. Your opponent… you will kill.
Demo… why would I…?
It's the only way to stop it… Sakura-chan. You're shaking… can you understand? We're threatened… you're reacting, ne? How do we stop that? Kill.
… I have to…
Maybe if Sasuke was there, maybe he would've been able to snap Sakura out of her state. Maybe he would've asked her all those questions that no one asked her before. Maybe he would've worried about her, or make sure that she was alright, or ask why she was like this after just two matches…
No, three matches.
Sakura didn't even look at the panel to see who the next match was between. She stared at the damage on the arena.
"My opponent… I will kill…" she whispered so no one heard.
She felt a large hand on her shoulder and looked up to Kakashi.
He pointed to the screen, "I don't think this is the time to be spacing out."
Sakura turned her head and looked at the two green names… hers… and then…
"Ino-pig…"
Who could forget the time when Sakura and Ino stuck like glue? How Ino would defend Sakura when she was teased?
Then, who would've guessed that Ino would be the one to be that exception to Sakura's personal vow. It seemed that no one remembered the events that took place in the Forest, well except for a few…
… and by few, Shikamaru was one of them.
He took his teammate by the shoulder and spun her around to have her face-to-face with him.
"Ino, you can't go against Sakura," he whispered harshly, "Just forfeit."
Her cerulean eyes hardened, "We didn't go all this way to quit, Shika-kun."
"Are you forgetting what happened with Sound?!"
Ino looked away and frowned, "Of course not… but… maybe that was just with people that she didn't know… because…"
She looked up at his worried eyes, "I've never seen her like that."
He sighed, giving up, but because he also saw her point. Sasuke was able to stop her, and he had a connection with her. Ino has never experienced her rival like that, and Sakura would probably work as hard as she could to beat her former-best-friend.
"Just… just be careful…"
"… Hai…"
He released his grip on her shoulders and let Ino walk off to get ready.
"Ne, Shika-kun?"
Shikamaru looked up to see her smiling a soft, true smile.
"Thanks for worrying."
Ino made her way to stand in front of Sakura. She noticed that the pink-haired girl's face was blank. Gekkou called for them to start fighting, but neither of them moved.
Sakura tilted her head up to get a good look at Ino, and memories flooded back. She couldn't… she just couldn't…
"Hit me."
Ino backed up and widened her eyes, "Wh-what are you talking about Forehead-Girl?!"
"I want you to hit me. I… I want you to get the chance to compete… but I don't want to hurt you…"
Shikamaru frowned from the stands, "Kuso… what is she planning…?"
Ino growled and raised her fist, "Don't take me so lightly, Sakura!"
Sakura gazed at her fist that was charging at her. She felt Ino's knuckles collide with her face. Of course, it hurt, but she could forget all of that in exchange for Ino's safety.
She didn't care. Sakura let Ino land one hit after another on her. She didn't want to kill her. She couldn't kill her.
Sakura was knocked on the floor and slowly stood back up to let Ino land hit after hit on her.
She assumed that if she let Ino continuously hit her, she wouldn't have to kill her.
Naruto gripped the bars of railing and wondered out loud, "Sakura-chan! What are you doing?!"
Kakashi glanced at Naruto and then looked back at Ino, who was using all of her strength in kicking and punching Sakura.
"What are you thinking, Sakura?"
Everyone watched the unusual fight take place: Sakura, not making a move, unless to stand, and then Ino, trying to beat the crap out of Sakura. One after another, they listened to the echoing hits. Sakura would get knocked down, but then stand right back up. She wouldn't do anything else.
Gekkou wondered if he should just say that the pink-haired girl forfeited, since she isn't making a move, but like everyone else, he presumed that she was had something panned.
As long as it lasted, no one person got tired of watching. They all thought that Sakura had some trick up her sleeve, and didn't want to miss it.
Sakura didn't have any trick or plan. Ino didn't fall into any trap, because there was no trap. Everyone just assumed. They didn't know. Sakura didn't care for winning. She didn't care for being a chuunin anymore… she just wanted Ino to be able to fight her, but not get hurt.
"THAT'S IT!!"
Ino threw her arms down and panted, "You're using all of your chakra for defense, so punching you over and over would be useless!!"
The blonde-haired girl raised her hands up in a seal.
R
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Well, I guess I kinda lied. It wasn't really the full fight between Ino and Sakura. It was more like the rising action…
I just got the Naruto art book!! Yay! I saw one weapon that Masashi Kishimoto draws a lot for Sakura, so I might use that for future chapters.
Well, I'm tired as hell. Only a few more days of school left, so test and exams!! Oh well, at least I'm getting some time to spend with my friends…
Hugs and Kisses,
Lilium :X