Hey guys! Here's chapter 6 for you all ^^ Thanks for all the reviews from the last chapter! I hope you all like this one as much or more =) They will start to like Sakura more soon, but not this chapter. It's either next chapter or the one after that when everything is uncovered... But Gaara's still unconcious when that happens, and Sakura asks them not to tell him anything yet! But don't worry, I won't make you guys wait too long for him to find out =) Promise.
Disclaimer: I do own Naruto! He's hanging on my wall as we speak, right between Sasuke and Itachi posters!
Gaara and I were fighting a strange man name Kimimaro, one of Orochimaru's cursed sealed minions. Gaara had a massive wall of sand in front of us, but all of a sudden, the transformed Kimimaro slammed into it so hard he broke through. "Gaara!" I screamed in alarm when I saw Kimimaro swinging his massive tail towards the man I had grown to love. Without any hesitation, I threw myself towards Gaara, slamming into him and knocking him out of the way just in time for the tail to slam into me. It collided with me so hard that when it slammed me into the sand wall, I went right through it, despite it being as hard as steel. I was flung into the grassy earth several feet away and laid there, almost paralyzed by the damage to my ribs, barely able to breathe as I started to slowly heal my ribs just enough to stay alive.
I was running alongside Kakashi, my arm over his shoulders and his arm around my waist to help me keep up. That's right… I mused as I thought about my memory. That was only a few months after he fought with Naruto, and he had already changed so much… We had worked as a team to take out Kimimaro with Lee, and there wasn't any hesitation between us. I trusted him with my life, and he trusted his with me.
And then I had sacrificed myself to save him, thinking the blow would kill me. I survived, and healed myself up enough to move, albeit in exceptional pain, and continued to help him and Lee fight. That fight was when we realized we loved each other… We started dating after I got out of the hospital and we returned to Sunagakure… I closed my eyes for a moment to hold back tears at the memories. We won't be able to make it in time, will we? I wondered as the pain was still crippling, but not nearly as bad as before.
"There are people up ahead." Shikamaru announced as we descended from the skies.
"It's Team Gai." Kakashi informed us as we leapt from a tree branch and landed on the water just behind a group of four shinobi. "That's a five-point seal." Kakashi said to announce our presence. The four of them turned around, and Lee immediately smiled at me. I weakly smiled back.
"You're late, Kakashi." Gai said and Shikamaru frowned.
"How did you get here so fast?" He asked and Neji looked at Kakashi.
"He sent Pakkun ahead to tell us where to go." He stated and Shikamaru nodded.
"All right. We need to get rid of this barrier and fast." Kakashi said before the conversations continued and Temari and Naruto tried to strangle someone.
"Let my team worry about that. Neji?" Gai looked at the teen beside him expectantly. After searching with his Byakugan and pointing his teammates in the right directions, Gai handed them all radios and they split up.
"Ready?" We heard Gai's voice from the radio around Kakashi's neck ten minutes later. I was standing on my own as Kakashi leapt up onto the boulder, using Chakra to hold himself on the barrier, when suddenly the pain disappeared. I froze, my eyes wide. What… No… NO! I yelled in my mind, searching as Kakashi pealed the seal, the barrier evaporating. I searched and searched, but the pain was gone, and the light faded with it… Gaara was gone.
"No!" I screamed, pulling my hand back and slamming it into the massive boulder as Kakashi barely jumped away. The boulder crumbled and everyone ran in, but I froze at the sight of Gaara's body on the ground in the cave. No… Oh god, no… Please tell me I'm wrong. Maybe the herb just fell out of his mouth, right? That must be it. I thought, frantically searching for some excuse, for some reason to explain the absence of chakra in my mind. I don't know how long I stood there, but I focused when I saw Naruto, Kakashi, Temari, and Shikamaru rush past me.
Blinking, I realized that one of the enemies and Gaara's body were gone, and I turned to follow the others. I was stopped by a hand on my shoulder. "Sakura, no. They'll get him back, and then we'll figure something out. We need to take care of Sasori so we can go and help the others." Chiyo said urgently, and I numbly nodded. Yes… We can fix this… No… I narrowed my eyes, shock fading. No, I can fix this. I thought as an idea struck me. I turned around and faced our opponent with newly born determination.
"Well, well, well… This sure is an interesting partnership." Sasori chuckled deeply, and I looked to my old mentor in confusion.
"That isn't him, Sakura. He's hiding in his puppet…" Chiyo explained, and I smiled weakly.
"Well, in that case…"
The fight dragged on, and dragged on. I had no idea how long I had been fighting, with Chiyo using her puppets and me using strength to fight and protect Chiyo when needed. Finally, I managed to crush the puppet and the real Sasori came out and started to fight us, his face shrouded. When he summoned a puppet, I heard Chiyo gasp. "It can't be possible…" She breathed out in shock, almost fearful.
"What is it? What's wrong?" I asked her before the smoke cleared enough for me to see the puppet. My eyes widened with shock. "The Third…?" I breathed out, my eyes wide as saucers. I was staring into the face of the man who was going to raise me, and he was a puppet…
"Heh… Well then… How about we get started, hm?" Sasori chuckled, pulling off the thing hiding his face. I inhaled sharply, stumbling backwards in shock.
"Chiyo-sensei?" I was in my mentor's living room, four years old, looking at a picture of a red haired boy beside two adults.
"Yes, Sakura?" Chiyo had asked, and I pointed at the picture.
"Who's that?" I asked curiously, somehow drawn to the boy in the picture.
"Oh… Sakura, that man is your-"
"Father." I breathed out.
"Oh… So you did tell her, grandma?" Sasori asked in amusement, and I stared at his face. It was young and boy-like, with a child-like expression. He smiled, and it hit me how insane he looked. Stop, Sakura… He captured and killed Gaara, almost killing Kankurou in the process. There's no reason to hesitate. I thought before narrowing my eyes.
"Of course I did. A child has a right to know who their parents are, whether or not they are murderous psychopaths." Chiyo said offhandedly, as though it didn't really matter. "Even if I never told her your name or that you were my grandson..." She added and I looked at her with shock. Chiyo is my great-grandmother? No wonder... I thought back on how I was told she never left my side as a newborn, making sure I would survive, and that she had trained me.
"I was so proud when I heard you followed in my footsteps, Sakura." Sasori purred, and I glared at him.
"Chiyo-sensei, that's a human puppet, isn't it?" I asked her, and she nodded.
"Smart girl… Would you like me to show you how they work?" Sasori questioned, and before I could tell him off, the puppet of the third Kazekage suddenly flew at me, blade swinging at my abdomen. It was so fast I didn't even have time to blink, but Hiruko's tail appeared between us and I was yanked backwards. Chiyo? I wondered when I regained my footing and saw chakra strings attached to my body.
"Take this!" Sasori laughed as thousands of hands suddenly flew towards me. Chiyo moved me in an incredibly awkward manner, but I decided to trust her to protect me. A good decision, I realized when all the limbs slammed into the ground, barely missing me. I quickly smashed them with my hands and escaped. Because I could even lad, a large cloud of black smoke surrounded me. Poison! I thought immediately, holding my breath. Suddenly, two ropes with kunai flew towards me. I tried to dodge them, but they swung around, pinning my legs together and my arms to my chest.
Shit… I can't die here. Not yet! I thought as I grabbed an explosive tag from my bag. Fuck! I cried out mentally when it exploded, dispersing the poison, but burning me. I was sent flying, and felt Chiyo catch me. I coughed heavily, but managed to regain my footing and stand on my own. I nodded gratefully at Chiyo, glaring at my 'father'. "You bastard… Mark my words, Sasori. No matter what, even if it kills me, you will pay for what you did to Gaara and the Third. I will make you pay!" I shouted as several kunai were flung at us from the human puppet. My vision was clouded with smoke as Chiyo summoned her puppets, blocking the kunai.
"Oh… You brought those." Sasori said in an unamused tone.
"I did… The first puppets you ever made. 'Mom' and 'Dad'." Chiyo said calmly.
"What do you plan to do with those? I made them. I know all their tricks. It'll be boring…" Sasori said in almost a disappointed tone.
"Well, Mr. Genius, I'm pretty sure we plan on killing your psycho ass with these." I hissed and he looked at me boredly. I watched as the two puppets held hands and then pulled them apart, wires between the fingers now. They leapt forward at incredibly high speeds, spinning around the massive group of arms and slicing them to shreds. The three puppets collided, Chiyo controlling two and Sasori controlling the Kazekage puppet. After a moment, the puppets pulled away.
"This is getting boring. Let's finish it up, already." Sasori said with a sigh, and I watched as he made a hand symbol, the puppet's mouth opening. Black sand poured from the mouth, and Chiyo narrowed her eyes.
"Oh… shit." I whispered, my eyes widening. Iron sand.
"You'll be dead in no time with this." Sasori chuckled. "Oh, but not you, Sakura. No, I think it's about time we became reacquainted, hm?" The sand took on the form of bullets, and the 'Mom' puppet grabbed me and pulled me away.
"Uhg!" I grunted as I collided with the ground, the puppet's arm wrapped around me. The smoke slowly cleared, and I saw the 'Dad' puppet in front of Chiyo, protecting her.
"Seems you've tinkered a bit with them. A shield of chakra, hm?" Sasori mused in his bored tone. I watched as Chiyo tried to move her puppet, but to no avail. "Hehe… You know very well that you can't block the attack. You dodge it… Had your hands full getting the girl to safety, eh?"
"Damn it, Chiyo!" I hissed under my breath. I know everything that she knows. I appreciate her saving me before, but I could have gotten away from this attack myself.
"…You're annoying me…" Sasori murmured suddenly, and I watched the sand gather up. Suddenly, the sand flew at both of us in long spears, too fast for me to react. I felt the collision with the ground and knew the 'Mom' puppet had protected me. Chiyo, I thought in alarm, looking over to see, much to my surprise, her protecting herself with her own chakra shielded puppet arm. Sasori smirked as Chiyo's arm smoked and trembled, the iron sand clogging the joints so it couldn't move, breaking it.
"It's just your arm, but… Turning your own body into that of a puppet… Well, as puppeteers, we are bound to think alike." Sasori chuckled darkly.
"I see… So that's why you haven't aged." Chiyo commented calmly as she detached the arm.
"Well, you're all out of puppets… What now?" He asked with a chuckle and I watched with wide eyes as the iron sand melded together to make two massive shapes in the cave. A triangle and a rectangle.
"…Even for someone at my level… I'm at a loss for this one. In any case, Sakura, it's time for you to leave." Chiyo said, glancing at me calmly. I narrowed my eyes, clenching my fists.
"No." I said, grabbing my obi and untying it. It fell to the ground, my white and red knee-length and long sleeved yukata falling to the ground with it. Underneath the yukata, I was wearing a red camisole, red short shorts, and fishnets on my biceps. Strapped to my leg was a sword going from my hip to just past my knee. "Chiyo, use me as a puppet." I said in determination, stepping in front of her. I felt her stare at my back for several seconds of hesitation.
"…I can only use one arm. I won't be able to help you like before." Chiyo warned as I felt her connect chakra strings to me.
"Let me worry about that, Chiyo. Don't forget I surpassed your training almost eight years ago." I reminded her, and I knew she smiled.
"Yes… Let's hope you picked up a trick or two."
Ta-da! Things are cooking up! Who would have guessed Sasori to be Sakura's father? I came up with that idea long after I started writing bout how her mother died and her father left, so that wasn't actually based on Sasori. I didn't even decide on it until last chapter xD Hope this doesn't annoy any of you D:
Please review ^^