Chapter Thirteen

Killed

Everything occurred so fast.

She saw the young employee enter the store, an irritated Sasuke in his stead, and watched as the employee bent to his knees to pick up her fallen bag of coffee when it happened.

For a moment the Uchiha seemed to be just as surprised as she was – and then they both felt the immense pressure of what felt like a thunder wave of chakra. Sasuke stared at her for a split second, still stunned by seeing her in a convenience store of all places, and before she could react he had ghosted out of sight.

She made a noise that was a cross between sheer surprise and pain when the air was knocked out of her throat and her lower mid section erupted into a span of aches. That pain however lasted for only a second when it was replaced by a feeling of panic.

She had been thrown into one side of the store and her body had hit what felt like a supply shelf.

"What?" But her question was drowned out by a heap of screams, and then she knew what was actually happening.

They were here.

Rough hands snaked around her mouth first and then her shoulder blades. Sakura struggled but whoever was suffocating her – only pulled tighter. She was about to use a chakra enhanced head butt on her attacker when they spoke. "Damn it, Sakura-chan! It's only me. Quit squirming!" Naruto hissed into her ear.

"Baka!" She managed to choke out and he released her mouth once he realized she couldn't breathe. "What happened?" She rasped quietly. Somewhere around them, somebody screamed.

"The bastard and I both felt the chakra and by the time I ran in here, he had already knocked you into the back room so they wouldn't get you. Although he could have been a lot gentler," he swore quietly and reached behind himself for something. "…you're bleeding."

The dots that had been swimming in her vision lessened and she was able to see that they were in fact in some sort of stocking room – away from the front of the store.

Her head was throbbing and she would bet money that was the spot that was oozing blood. A quick check to the back of her head revealed that it was tender and the hand that she brought back to her face was covered in thick red liquid.

"Where's Sasuke?" She managed to croak as she healed the fresh wound in seconds. Naruto handed her a cloth he found on a shelf behind him and she wiped her hands.

"Right here," the object of her speech answered as he stepped forward from the shadow of the door. His black eyes roved over her distorted form and they softened in apology once he saw the extent of the damage he had caused in his effort to push her out of harms way. "Sorry…for that," He muttered and then bent to sit next to her.

Outside, the chakra pulsed and then stopped all together. The screaming had passed leaving nothing but a dead silence in its absence.

Before she could object to it, Sasuke had pushed her body so that it was practically sitting on top of his, her back to his chest, and his hand around her mouth. "Don't say anything or I will knock you out," he breathed into her ear, completely serious.

Eyes whirling in their sockets, she searched wildly for Naruto. But when she found his tall form that was bent by the door, his face was just as serious as his best friend's. "He's right, Sakura. Just don't move or make any sounds."

From the crack in the door, the trio of shinobi could make out the entire scene as it played before them. Like a legion of phantoms, six ANBU members stood in the middle of the store while standing on overturned shelves.

And then she noticed that someone was speaking. If she could describe it, she would. But there were no words for it. The voice that was speaking reminded her of someone from an earlier time yet very seductive. The speaker was male and his voice grew colder with each passing word. "I'll ask you again, where are they?"

The one in the middle was the speaker and Sakura gulped when his head seemed to swivel in their direction. Unlike regular ANBU, on their sides they carried tip less tantos. On their faces, they bore porcelain masks of tigers, wolves, and boars.

A pretty woman who he had by the collar, cried out in pain when he squeezed her throat with his free hand. "I don't know…really I don't!" But Sakura could see it in her eyes.

She was protecting them.

Sakura felt her stomach tighten and her eyes sting because she knew what was going to happen next. With a resounding crack, the masked ANBU had snapped her neck into two.

And one by one, every civilian in the store bravely denied their attackers about Team Seven's whereabouts even though they witnessed what would be done to them if they did not reveal the truth.

Sakura could see how it was taking every ounce in Naruto's being not to rush out there and attack their assailants but instead he opted for crushing his head in the wall, his expression hidden from his friends.

And once every soul apart from theirs had been killed, they surveyed the store through their porcelains masks. Never once did the rouge ANBU's eyes rove over their hideout, and it took Sakura a moment before she realized that Sasuke had them hidden under a genjutsu.

Either she wasn't as good at genjutsu as she had previously thought or Uchiha Sasuke was just that talented.

And once they had ghosted out of sight and both males were sure that they were gone, Sasuke released her from his grip. Naruto's shoulders were shaking and Sasuke's eyes were fierce.

The Uchiha got to his feet and glanced down at her. He offered his left hand to her and she could only stare at it. He sighed. "Sakura, take my hand. We have to go. Put aside whatever hate you feel for me and let's go."

She hesitated…and then took his hand.

Tsunade was shouting orders left and right so fast that Sakura was sure she was getting whiplash.

"You!" The blonde pointed a perfect finger in the Uchiha's direction. "I want Sakura reinstated as your visiting nurse. Hinata will no longer be assigned to your care. I want zero objections and one hundred percent tolerance. Understood?"

The dark-haired male nodded in assent as he squeezed her fingers. That was definitely something that was bothering her.

Ever since she had accepted his hand back inside that convenience store – he had never let her go. And all throughout the Hokage's orders and shouts, he remained solidly at her side.

She didn't know what to make of the situation.

Her mentor fixed Sakura with a stern gaze and sighed. "I understand that Ino is staying with you?" The petal haired medic jutted her head. "She has to go. I don't want more people involved in this. If possible, I just want the three of you to remain targets. It will make this matter much easier to assess. Not that any of their motives makes sense in the least. If they wanted Uchiha, they could have gotten him….."

Sakura felt Sasuke's fist clench against her fingers. His anger – which she was close enough to feel like a second heartbeat – thrived throughout her own body but she was much more adept at handling it than she had been some months ago. Instead of feeding off of his emotions and growing angry, she simply buried it beneath another strong emotion – worry. Which wasn't hard, seeing as her life was being threatened at every corner.

"You've been practicing," Sasuke noted in a whisper as Tsunade was about to release them.

"Something you would have noticed had you been around," Sakura whispered back, a bit frostily. He said nothing but she could feel the deep rooted regret as it rolled off of him in waves.

The Godaime cleared her throat and they both glanced up to find her looking at them with appraising eyes. "If you two are done whispering to each other like a couple of academy kids, then I would like to tell you that you can go. Just stay vigilant, understood?"

Naruto was the first to the door and Sasuke tugged her along – his fingers still interlaced with her own. "Oh!" Shizune rushed in, mouth set, with Tonton pressed firmly into her chest. "Your mother called, Sakura, and she wants you to stop by because she says your father is feeling under the weather."

"Thanks, Shizune," Sakura said, offering her second mentor a smile. The pretty brunette returned the gesture and then pushed her way into the office to presumably help Tsunade with restoring order.

"That's weird," Naruto muttered as the three of them descended the stairs towards the exit. "I don't remember your mom ever calling for your help. I thought that she usually took your dad to the hospital."

Sakura considered his words and frowned.

"What's wrong?" Sasuke asked into her ear upon sensing her shift in mood.

"Naruto's right. My mom never calls for my help, she always says that I'm too emotionally attached to be of some actual help. But anyways, this is where I turn." The pink haired medic gestured towards the right fork in the street.

Naruto snorted. "You mean where we turn. We're not letting you wander around on your own, Sakura-chan."

"The dobe is right-"

"Did you just say I was right?" Naruto asked, a bit smug.

" – and that would be extremely stupid of us to just let you prance off," Sasuke continued as if his best friend had never spoken.

"Are you sure you don't mind?"

"What do you think?"

It took them only several minutes to find her childhood home which was covered in a light mist of snow. The lights were out or at least they appeared to be from behind the thin material of curtains that laced each window.

There was no need for her to unlock the door. She tried the handle and it gave way almost as if it had been forced from place.

Naruto was the first to find the light switch and he flicked it on with ease. "So where are your parents?"

"They are probably upstairs in their room," Sakura answered over her shoulder as she approached the staircase, arms already extended towards the railing.

"Eww. If you hear strange noises, don't ask questions, just run," Naruto sniggered. She threw the handsome blond a glare but giggled nonetheless.

Only the soft thumping of her boots against the carpet could be heard as she padded towards the master room. The door was ajar so she pushed it with her palm and called out to the darkness. "Heyyy! Mom? Dad?...Anybody awake?"

A quick check around the room revealed that there were no occupants other than her. Quickly, with unexplained hysteria, she ran back out into the hall. The sound that had drawn her attention to the hallway bathroom was a faint thumping.

"Mom? Are you locked in?" Sakura, feeling even more panicked than before, she yanked the door knob from the door and threw the twisted piece of metal on the ground.

Behind her, she could hear Sasuke and Naruto bounding up the stairs, calling for her to stop at once. Even if she wanted to – it was far too late.

The door groaned and then swept to the side when Sakura pounded it with her fist.

She screamed.

From a rope of some kind, her mother swung back and forth, partly because of her own body weight and because of the large bay window that was left completely open to blow in gusts of wintry air.

The smell hit her dead on – death and bile. She was in shock. She had to be. Her limbs and her mind just weren't matching up. It was like one of those bad dreams where she would try to run but everything would happen so slowly.

And she couldn't get to her mother fast enough. Her mother – pink hair plastered to her face and shoulders, mouth slack, lines of blood trailing her clothes, eyes wide – swung again.

Sakura reached and tumbled but was knocked into the opposite direction. "Let me go!" The pink haired medic screamed or at least she thought she did. She didn't know what was happening anymore.

"No," Sasuke growled as he fought to keep hold of her. Never had he ever faced her immense strength but now it was taking all of him just to keep her down. "Dobe! Help me."

In seconds, Sakura felt the pressure of Naruto's chakra join Sasuke's. "God, she's so strong!"

But the fight was leaving her anyways so it was a mute point. Her mother was…dead. Had she been tortured? Or had she just been left to struggle from the ceiling with the chair kicked out from underneath her?

"My mom…" She tried weakly but the tears overtook her words.

"I know, baby, I know," Naruto crooned into her ear. Carefully, she felt him release her when he was sure she wasn't going to bolt. She heard his footsteps trail off into the near distance, possibly into the guest bedroom.

He returned, though Sakura dared not look up, and whispered something in the Uchiha's ears. And despite his effort to keep his tone hushed, she heard his words as clearly as if they had been screamed at her. "I found her father…or what was left of him."

Sakura moaned, and then shoved as hard as she could on Sasuke's muscled chest. He stumbled backwards, shocked, and Sakura gripped the carpet as her previous meal ascended through her throat.

When time came to mean something again and the numbness started to morph into something deeper, darker – she noticed that they were not alone. Apparently she had been so out of it - she had missed the Hokage's arrival and the swarm of jounin that flanked her.

"Sakura? I promise you that when we find these monsters, they will be dealt with accordingly," Tsunade promised. It took Sakura several moments to realize that Tsunade had been talking to her for quite some time.

Was she really that deeply shocked?

"It's time," Something in the Hokage's tone demanded her attention. Sakura felt Sasuke's arms around her tighten and she suddenly knew that he was well informed about what she was going to say. "…For you to know about that missing year and a half that you were comatose."

TBC

A/N: Hello everyone! Surmise is back on track and more creative than ever. This chapter had been finished quite some time ago but my laptop was getting fixed from a virus. The horror! Anyways, I know that this chapter was really angsty but it all serves a greater purpose. Next chapter will be up quick. And then maybe three more and this story is finished. All these loose ties are coming together. Thanks for the reviews and please continue to stick with me. Conceiving With You will be updated when I finish this story so that I can devote my full attention to it.

All of your questions will be answered in these last few chapters, the most popular being: Why Genma, of all characters? How exactly does the binding jutsu work and what is the extent of its abilities? What is Root's main goal? Who's really behind this? What happened while Sakura was in a coma? Why is Sasuke being such a coward? And where the hell is Kakashi? LOL.

Surmise