Here's the new chapter! Hope you like it ^^
BBtw, the lyrics at the beginning have nothing to do with the storyline, I just liked the song and it was stack in to my head ^^
PS I do not own "Naruto" it belongs to Masashi Kishimoto ©
Do you know what it's like when
you're scared to see yourself?
Do you know what it's like when
you wish you were someone else
Who didn't need your help to get by?
Do you know what it's like
to wanna surrender?...
"Never surrender" by Skillet
"You sure you can move already?", Sasuke grabbed quickly her upper arm, supporting her as she swayed to one side.
"It's dangerous for us to stay here any longer.", Sakura sighed and straightened her back, stabilizing the body on her feet, "Do we have any money left?"
"Yeah, plenty.", the Uchiha glanced at her suspiciously but went to pack his things.
"I was thinking…Can't we travel part of the road by train or maybe we can find someone with carriage in the same direction.", the girl mumbled as she folded a blanket in her backpack, filling the left empty room in it.
"I don't know about carriage but there is no railway to there.", the boy answered, grunting as he tightened the locks on his rucksack.
"I see. And will you mind telling me where exactly is this there?", the kunoichi imitated his movements and bound the rope on her backpack.
"I'll tell you when we get there.", Sasuke smirked and shouldered his luggage, "Are you ready?"
"Yeah.", Sakura lifted her bag in attempt to shoulder it as well but the other shinobi grabbed it in mid-air, putting it on his other shoulder, "Hey…"
"You can barely move. I'm not allowing you to carry that heavy bag. Seriously…What did you put in it? Bricks?", the Uchiha frowned, adjusting it on his shoulder.
"You'll see.", Sakura smirked devilishly, "Shall we?"
"Let's go.", Sasuke opened the door of the inn's room gesturing at the kunoichi to leave first.
She smiled and passed him by.
"Despite the high risk of exposing ourselves to our common enemies, S.H had insisted on telling you the information I had on Akatsuki's plans. Namely, their leader's intention was getting the possession of all the Bijuus in that number Kyuubi as well. He would attack Konoha with Zetsu and try to capture U.N. alive so he would extract the nine-tailed fox from him despite his promise to S.H. I don't know if you were already aware of this information but she felt obliged to report it. Up until now I know that he had captured seven Jinchuuriki. I wasn't kept in the loop about what exactly was his plan after gathering the Bijuus. The only intel I have on it was that he needed my sharingan abilities to complete it. Now with me gone I assume that he'll be hindered with the execution of it. That's everything that I know about Akatsuki's intentions.
About their leader Tobi, I can only tell you this – do not be fooled! He possesses the sharingan as well. I cannot reveal you his true identity. Not because I don't want to but because I can't. He used some strange sealing method on me. It's not an Uchiha's technique. I tell you this. Otherwise I would have been able to remove it. Don't misjudge his power. The abilities he's shown so far aren't his real ones. I don't know the details but as far as I can guess I think he's using another Uchiha's eye.
Zetsu. I don't know much about this member. He's some kind of hybrid. He can separate his white and black half. Both of them have different abilities. The black one is merged with the lower part of his body and it's using vines to fight. As you may already know, they are poisonous. Unfortunately, I have no information about the venom… About his white half, I only know that he can clone not only appearance but chakra patterns as well, it makes it almost unrecognizable once he's cloned someone. The only possible way to recognize the impostor is to ask him questions about his past. He may clone physical features but not memories. You may have come to this conclusion by now…But Sakura's participation in the tournament… he did it. I've seen him not only transforming himself in other person but he can multiply his numbers as well. The process is long and requires some certain techniques which only Tobi know or at least I don't know anyone else who can execute them.
When you receive that letter, don't send your dogs to trail us. We'll be long gone from where we had resided until now. You mustn't tell this to the Hokage. Only if… things get extremely bad and there is no other way…
PS. I have attached another small envelope. That letter is personally from her to you. It's chakra sealed so proceed with caution when you open it.
U.S.
"
Kakashi folded the page in half and placed it on the coffee table with trembling hands. Just a minute ago a small bird had flown through the window in his apartment, carrying an envelope tied to its leg. The Copy nin had read the letter twice. The curvy, almost drawn, ink letters on the page definitely belonged to Uchiha Sasuke. The silver-haired shinobi took a deep breath and reached to get the envelope. He opened it carefully with fingers, half-expecting not to find another letter there. When he saw the small envelope his heart skipped a beat. Sakura had really written him a letter. His trembling fingers broke the yellow wax seal, sending a little chakra in it and pulled out the small double folded paper. With held breath and closed eyes he opened the shabby page. Gathering his courage he lifted his eyelids and began reading slowly as if he tried to remember every written word on that old piece of paper.
"Yo!
I know I should probably start with "Dear Kakashi" or something even sloppier or snotty but somehow I cannot write it. It would sound fake and empty to both – you and me.
Firstly, I'd like to assure you that I'm back on my feet. Not as jumpy as I was before but I'll get there… eventually. I know I promised you that I'll be careful but I owed him my life. I'm aware that he had tried to kill me before and that he probably hadn't changed a bit since then but I just had to do it. Naruto would have done the same thing if he was in my place. I'm sure of it. I don't want to sound as if I'm making excuses but I feel that I owe you an explanation about my actions. I can only guess what's going on in your head right now. But even with only guesses I bet that it's a tremendously stupid thing… "
Kakashi humph-ed smirking and continued reading.
"Heh…I wish I could see the smile on your face right now. Oh, you're wondering how I knew that you'd smile? It's very simple. I know you. Now you're probably smiling again...
Kakashi.
I cannot thank you enough for what you did for me. For believing in me. For saving my life. Every time I look through the window at night and see the moon, I remember you. And now writing those words… I miss you so much that it's almost painful. I don't know when we'll be able to meet again. I don't know in what circumstances – like comrades or enemies. But there is one thing that you must know and never forget. I'm your friend, Kakashi. Nothing…noone would change that. As long as my heart is pumping,… no as long as I have blood in my veins I'll be your friend...
There is so much I want to tell you, so many thoughts I want to share. There were times when I needed just to know that you were there next to me. Before, the thought that you were just a few blocks away, was enough to give me strength. The anticipation when I was out on the street, scanning the crowd, looking for a familiar silver hair, the excitement when you entered the same room or sat in the chair next to me, the throbbing of my heart when your hand unexpectedly bumped into mine… I miss all that. And that hole that was left in my soul from all of these missing pieces is now draining away my strength, my confidence and optimism that everything will be fine. I'm lost without you, Kakashi.
I want to come back home. I need to come back to you.
Forgive my selfishness. I don't know why I'm writing this… I cannot change the paper. That's the last one we have. I know you'll suffer from my words but I hope that they'll bring you even if it's just a glimpse of light in your day, Kakashi. I hope that they'll serve you as a proof that I have not given up. I will fight to earn back my place next to you as a Konoha's shinobi. My body may have committed treachery but my heart and soul were loyal to my friends and village. I will prove myself and when I do it I'll face you straight on and confess everything that I haven't told you until now.
Give my love to Naruto and take care of yourself, Kakashi. Because I'm not the only one who's going to make some confessions…
Love, Sakura
"
Kakashi put the letter on the table in front of him and stared at the empty space. He missed her too. And yes, he was suffering but at the same time he was happy. She cared for him as much as he cared for her. She was his friend. The man growled frustrated and buried fingers in his scalp pulling his silver locks. Why did it hurt so much when she wasn't with him? The feelings she described - the anticipation, the excitement, the fast beating heart…he felt them too. Kakashi knew what they meant. He knew it long before she left Konoha but chose to ignore, to suppress those feelings because they were wrong in so many ways.
Now sitting on his couch with her letter in front of him, he couldn't hide from them anymore. The more he ran from them, the stronger they get and now all these compressed sensations and feelings exploded inside of him, drowning him. Kakashi moaned and covered his face with palms. He had no left strength to fight against himself and his desires. He wanted Sakura. He needed her. And, God help him, he loved her.
As the realization was sinking in his mind, the Copy nin missed the loud knocks on the door. The shinobi was glaring at the wall across the room. He loved her. His body swayed to the front and Kakashi supported himself on his knees. His black eye was wide open and the pupil had shrunk.
"Kakashi-senpai, are you OK?", Tenzo's voice seemed to pull out the silver-haired jonin from his trance because he lifted his head and glanced at the unexpected guest.
"Tenzo...", he mumbled, "What am I going to do?"
"With what, Kakashi-senpai?", the wood-user said confused, looking half-concerned, half-curiously at his ex-captain.
"I love her.", the Copy nin sighed and closed his eye, shaking head.
"Ah...", Tenzo bit his lower lip and sat next to the other man on the sofa, patting him on the shoulder, "Accept it and move on. There is nothing else you could do."
Kakashi let out his breath, trying to sober up his mind, "Do you think she loved me too?"
"I'm sure of it, senpai.", Yamato smiled at the older jonin, "She just didn't know it. You two are terrifyingly the same in that aspect."
The Copy nin smirked, "Aren't we really?", Kakashi cleared his throat and looked at his guest, "Anyway. What are you doing here?"
"I heard you were discharged and came for a visit. We didn't have the chance to talk since the funeral. Rumor has it that you had taken bunch of suicidal missions the past four months.", Tenzo smiled softly.
"Three. The last month I spent, tied to hospital bed with broken ankle. Plus they weren't suicidal. They just had low chance of success..."
"Very low..."
"Well, I've always been lucky. You know that I am the perfect shinobi for that kind of missions."
"Yeah, they required someone who had given up their desire to live...", Yamato raised his eyebrow.
"Don't worry about me. I'm fine now."
"So, you admit that then you weren't..."
Kakashi shot the younger shinobi annoyed glare, "Shut up."
The former ANBU laughed, "I wondered if you would like to hang out with the gang tonight. We're gathering at nine."
"Same place?"
"Yup."
"Is Gai coming?", Kakashi glanced curiously at his companion.
"Do you want him to come?", Tenzo grinned devilishly.
The Copy nin growled and punched him in the upper arm, "Drop it."
The wood-user laughed and rubbed the place where Kakashi hit him. The silver-haired jonin looked at him frowning and mumbled, "No. Seriously... Is he coming?"
"Along with Anko."
"Damn.", the jonin cursed.
"How is he?", the blonde kunoichi asked with concerned expression.
"Well. Overwhelmed at least.", Yamato sighed and slid his arm around Ino's waist, leading her down the street.
"Overwhelmed? By what?", the girl lifted puzzled her eyebrow.
"I saw something on his table...", Tenzo continued, "It was a letter."
"Did you see from whom?", the blue eyes of the blond widened in curiosity.
"If I tell you, you're not gonna believe me..."
"Come on..."
"At the bottom of it, it said: "Love, Sakura"...", Yamato whispered looking around them to see if anyone was close enough to hear their conversation.
"Maybe, she had left it to him before... the accident.", Ino mumbled and her eyes fell, fixing on the dusty road.
"Maybe...what else could it be?", Tenzo sighed and caressed her waist, gripping it gently in attempt to sooth her, "Don't let it bother you...OK?"
Ino nodded with sad smile, "OK."
Naruto licked his lower lip and scratched his neck. Damn it. Kakashi had been careless. He waited till the couple passed him by and the boy ran on the rooftops straight to his former sensei's apartment. Once he was there, the Jinchuuriki knocked on the door and waited for answer. Few minutes and a couple of more knocks were needed so that Kakashi could open it.
"Naruto… What are you doing here?", the silver-haired jonin gave the boy an eye crease and opened wider the door so he could enter his flat.
"Sensei…", the Kyuubi host growled, "Do you have something to tell me?"
"About what?", Kakashi smiled, scratching his cheek.
"Tenzo saw the letter you received from Sakura…", Naruto grunted, slumping on the sofa, "You should be more careful. It's our job to keep her safe and hidden."
"Ah…"
"Don't "Ah" me!", the younger ninja frowned and his whiskers jerked, "What does it say?"
"There were two letters.", Kakashi began, reaching for one of the papers on the table, "One from Sasuke, regarding Akatsuki movements and plans and the other one is personal.", the Copy nin handed the letter to Naruto and watched him reading it.
"So, I assume that Sakura-chan is alright already…"
"Yeah…"
"And what exactly Sasuke means by "another eye". Could it be that there is another living Uchiha for whom we didn't know? ", Naruto knitted his brows.
"Probably…"
"Damn! They were supposed to be slaughtered and lately, one by one a whole army of red-eyed villains emerged out of nowhere!", the boy exclaimed with anger in his sapphire eyes.
"Naruto! Don't talk like that! Show a little respect to the dead…", Kakashi scolded him with shocked expression.
"I'm sorry, sensei, but it's just too complicated and messed up. And those gaps of information that we're missing… It drives me crazy…"
The Copy nin sighed and patted the boy on his head, "Me too. Me too.", the jonin cleared his throat and took a deep breath, "So…Tell me. How have you been lately?"
"Can't complain.", Naruto grinned, "Now that I know Sakura-chan's alive I just can't stop smiling. Things with Hinata are going well. Slowly but steadily. I can't complain."
"Good. Good. Keep up the good work. You deserve it. And don't give up on Sakura. She hasn't given in yet so we mustn't as well.", Kakashi gave him an eye crease.
The Jinchuuriki returned the smile and stood up, pulling the hem of his top, "I gotta go. See you tonight at the party?"
"Nah. I'll just sleep it through.", the Copy nin waved with his hand.
"As you wish. See ya!", Naruto grinned and ran out of the apartment, closing the door after him.
Kakashi took a deep breath and eased his back on the sofa, grabbing Sakura's letter. He opened it and scanned the words again. Her handwriting was messy as if the pen was slipping out of her grip. Maybe her wounds were still severe when she wrote it. Or maybe she was just being her usual emotional uncontrollable self. He imagined her, holding the pen with trembling hand, with frowned face from the physical pain she felt. His heart jerked and skipped a beat.
What lied ahead of them? More tears? More death? He understood the reasons standing behind her actions but still he wished she would have come to him. Things would have been different. Kakashi clenched his fist, crumbling the paper between his fingers. He mustn't abandon himself to despair; it was still too early to talk about giving in. He was alive and he was strong. That was all that it mattered. The Copy nin closed his eye.
Confessions, ha? A smug expression spread on his face. He had a lot to admit to her indeed. He had lied to her and to himself about his feelings. If destiny decided to give them a second chance, he wouldn't even think about wasting it with stupid worries about society's approval, needless fear of breaking her heart or that he didn't deserve her... But for now he had to focus on the war that was knocking on their door. He had to prepare mentally and physically. If what Sasuke said in the letter was true, so that meant that Tobi intended to use Zetsu's abilities to create an army. His former student didn't say how long I would take for them to complete it. If he had to guess he'd probably go with not less than six months. That was enough time for Konoha and Kumo to unite forces and face the common enemy together.
Kakashi sighed and lifted his feet on the sofa, stretching them. He felt so tired. The Copy nin slid down, lying completely with head resting on the softly upholstered armrest. He placed hand, holding Sakura's letter, over his chest and smiled. Confessions…
Sakura wrapped her arms around her stomach and gazed at the slowly changing landscape around her. As the small wooden carriage creaked and swayed on the stony road, the scenery around it gradually altered. The dense forest thinned down and the brown-greenish broad-leaved trees bit by bit were replaced with high coniferous ones. Their spines were forming small sheaves on the bottom of which newly sprung still greenish cones were barely noticeable. The kunoichi smiled as she recognized the pine, the fir, the spruce and the cedar. She had seen them only in pictures since the climate in Konoha wasn't suitable for them.
To someone uneducated they might look even the same but Sakura saw the small things that gave away their differences – the shape and placement of the cones, the number of spines on each branch, the height of the trunk and so many more. She enjoyed it. The same went with the herbs and plants. For most of the people it was just grass or weed, but she knew every little detail about their structure and how to put them into practice in medicine. She knew which leaf could prevent a cut wound from infection or which flower petal could help her stop the bleeding. As well as she knew which blade of grass to use if she wanted her enemy to be paralyzed or simply poisoned and killed. Nature fascinated her and the kunoichi stared overwhelmed at the surroundings.
Un-wooded plains took turns with thick coniferous forests. The tall trees covered up the road and when Sakura tried to look up at the sky she only saw hanging branches. As much as she enjoyed the view, she couldn't help but feel a little intimidated. This mountain road was narrow and rocky, the longer they travelled on it, the spookier it got. She caught herself looking forward to go in the field again. The open country was making her feel somewhat lonely but at least at ease. There was no verdure on these plains, only naked soil.
The weather was definitely getting colder and the pinkette shivered as the cold northern breeze blew at her, forcing her to rub her hands and hide them under her armpits. She looked at Sasuke who had eased his back on the edge of the carriage. His head was hanging down as if he was sleeping. How could he be so relaxed at time like that? She stared at him and bit her lower lip. Well, he hadn't got much sleep the past few days. Probably he was tired. Suddenly, the back wheel under Sakura's side, bumped into a bigger stone and the carriage rocked jerkily. The kunoichi hissed as her muscles tightened instinctively. Her injury was far from healed and now she swallowed a groan of pain that was threatening to escape her throat.
"You OK?", Sasuke's voice startled her.
The kunoichi glanced at him and their eyes met, "Yeah."
"You can lean on me. I promise I'm warmer and softer than the wooden side-board.", the Uchiha smiled.
"I'm fine. Thanks.", Sakura looked at the man, sitting with his back turned to them, who was carting the carriage. He hadn't said a word since he agreed to give them a ride, "How long are we going to use this?", she whispered afraid that the owner of the conveyance might hear her.
"We agreed that he'll drop us in the next village which is about two hours away.", Sasuke answered, cracking his neck, "Once we get there, we'll need to find a place to spend the night and then we'll go shopping."
"Shopping?", Sakura raised her eyebrow, "What are we going to buy?"
"Winter clothes."
"But it's just the beginning of the September!", the girl objected.
"Even worse. We'll need boots too. We can't use ours in that weather.", the Uchiha nodded in direction of her ninja sandals with open toes and heels.
"Is it that cold there?"
"Let's say that being surrounded by mountains isn't exactly giving you a cozy feeling.", Sasuke smiled.
"I hate cold.", the kunoichi mumbled unpleased.
"I bet you'll like it there.", the dark-haired shinobi spread a smug expression on his face.
"What are you betting?", Sakura grinned, rubbing her upper arms with hands, trying to warm herself up.
"One of your world-known massages.", Sasuke raised his brow challengingly.
"And if I don't like it?"
"I'll be your slave for a week."
"Since we're going to be there longer than a week, make it a month.", the kunoichi smirked with devilish spark in her eyes.
"Fine…", Sasuke licked his lip.
"…And I'll put a collar on your neck…".", Sakura chuckled with light blush spreading on her cheeks.
"Oh, You'll keep me on a leash… I didn't know you had such desires…", the boy teased giggling.
"Do we have a deal or not?", the pink-haired medic gazed at him provocatively.
"Ok. Deal.", Sasuke said confidently and stretched his body, "Ah, I can't wait for you to give me the massage."
"Don't try to eat the soup before it's served, kiddo.", Sakura lowered her voice imitating Jiraiya's.
Sasuke laughed and leaned back again, looking at her without saying a word. She seemed livelier and brighter than before. The three months, she spent imprisoned in that cave, had taken away the sparkle in her eyes but now, seeing her smiling and laughing, he felt at ease. Their lives were on the line, her thoughts might still be lingering on Konoha but at least she had regained her will to fight. She had hope and a goal to follow. That was enough for now. He was going to help her with the rest. Sasuke closed his eyes and let his body align with the swaying of the carriage. They had nothing but time…
Tsunade swayed on her chair and played with the big golden trophy in her hands. It seemed as if it was just yesterday when Sakura was elected to participate in the event. Had it really been nearly five months since then? The statuette was heavy and the Hokage placed it on the desk, staring at the reflections on it, coming from the window. The afternoon orange-reddish sky was softening the cold feeling that the white metal was emitting. The blonde kunoichi sighed deeply. Konoha was a winner but she felt as if she had lost something precious.
Staring daily at the trophy was nearly as hard as it was to look at Naruto and Kakashi's faces after she disbanded Team seven. The words the Copy nin told her in the hospital were still echoing in her head. She sent someone to kill Sakura? No. That wasn't her intention. She simply wanted to bring her back to the village. Using Sasuke for a pretext was her way of reaching Sakura. If she was once again in the village, Tsunade could save her. She could even think of a top-secret mission that she had been assigned in order to excuse her actions. But as long as the kunoichi evaded Konoha, there was nothing much that the Hokage could do except to pray for the other villages not to find out that she was alive and on top of that hanging with Uchiha Sasuke.
"Damn you, Kakashi!", the woman cursed mentally and looked through the window behind her.
The summer was gone and the autumn was painting the trees in her hues. Most of the branches were now naked and leafless in difference with the soft delicate leaf-covered grass floor. Tsunade glanced at the small bench under the big oak tree just in front of the Hokage tower entrance. Sakura would just sit there with book in hand and a plastic cup of once hot coffee which now was forgotten and growing cooler and cooler with every page she turned. Sometimes Naruto would emerge from somewhere and would pull her for the hand towards the Ichiraku's, ignoring her loud protests and on other days Kakashi would sit on the grass on the opposite side of the oak, hidden behind its wide trunk to read his own novel. Whatever was the cause, the three of them somehow always managed to hang around each other, subconsciously or not, it was irrelevant.
Tsunade frowned with pained expression on her face. Sakura fleeing Konoha, Sasuke leaving Akatsuki after their war declaration, the poison cases, Mizukage's strange behavior during the tournament, the competition itself… Could it be that all of these were connected? What was the meaning behind all this? The blonde woman bit her thumb's nail and tch-ed. She could bet her hidden bottle of mature red wine that Kakashi knew the whole story. What should happen so that he could spill everything out?
"Ah, you sly copycat…"
The white-haired, big-bosomed assistant handed over folded papers to the Raikage, "The reconnaissance patrol just turned in its report."
"Anything interesting?", A asked without averting his gaze from the pages of his novel.
"Yes.", the kunoichi nodded, "The team captain claims that he saw a girl in her early twenties who corresponded exactly to the description of Haruno Sakura."
The Raikage froze and slowly glanced at his secretary, "Where?"
"In a small village on our north border. She was waiting for someone in front of a shoe store."
"Shopping?", the Kumo leader lifted his eye brow, "Is she on holiday or something?"
"The team couldn't give any further information about that. Actually, they weren't supposed to stop in the village but one of them had an emergency need of stomach medication.", the assistant answered calmly, "When the team captain recalled seeing her, she was already gone."
"I see.", the Raikage murmured, "We mustn't jump to conclusions yet. First I need to have a serious chat with the Hokage.", the dark-skinned blonde man looked at his assistant, "Send a hawk to Konoha. Meanwhile, dispatch another team to the village to search for clues. Include Darui in it. He knows her better than any of my other people."
"Understood.", the woman bowed, "Anything else?"
"Call B."
"Hai.", she turned around and left the office.
The Raikage closed his novel and threw it annoyed on the desk. Sakura? She was supposed to be dead, but still…how many girls could match her description? There must be a reason for this. Henge no jutsu, or something? Who was she waiting in this village in the middle of nowhere?
Damn that Tsunade. Was she aware that her protégé was alive this whole time? Was she protecting her? He needed answers and he needed them fast or else he might not be able to keep his mind in check and think soberly about the situation. If it wasn't for his recently developed close relations with Konoha, he would have already given an order to prepare the Kumo army for attack on the Leaf… But now things were different. With the war declaration knocking on their doors he couldn't take any rash methods.
That Tobi's objective was capturing the Kyuubi and the Hachibi. He couldn't let that happen. The Raikage sighed heavily and ran fingers through his hair. The best way of entering that war was to hide somewhere safe B and Naruto. He needed to talk to the Hokage about that. The Nine-tailed Jinchuuriki was Konoha's best shinobi and a hero who protected the village. If his character was only a tenth of how bad B's was, the Slug princess would have some serious troubles in preventing him from rushing to the battlefield. The Hokage had a soft spot for the boy. Everybody knew it. She was even grooming him to become the next Hokage. The blonde troublemaker hardly ever obeyed any order she had given him and in result he rarely received a punishment for disobeying. Probably because he always took the right choice. But this time the battle would be tougher, fiercer and more dangerous than any previous one the boy fought. There was no room for failure, the stake was too big.
The Raikage growled silently and leaned back in his chair. It was going to be a rough week.
Sakura trimmed on some root hidden under the snow-drift. She lost balance and swayed dangerously to one side. Suddenly an arm gripped her tightly for her hand and helped her regain her posture. A steam escaped her mouth as she sighed relieved from the sudden shock.
"Watch your step.", Sasuke's annoyed voice reached her ears under the ear-caps she had bought. The dark-haired boy let her hand and readjusted the two packs on his back.
"I'm sorry.", the kunoichi murmured a little embarrassed by her clumsiness. She took a deep breath and made a careful step forward. It was so damn freezing. On top of it all her abdomen was hurting too. She couldn't heal herself in the village, afraid that it might give her out. She couldn't risk it. Not with all those Kumo nins sniffing around. And now they've been walking for almost eight hours straight uphill on the naked snow-covered mountain without any trees or shelter for them to rest and hide from the chilling blizzard.
"Are you OK?", Sasuke murmured falling into step with her.
"I'm fine.", Sakura answered and buried her nose in the wrapped scarf around her neck. Sasuke shot her a distrusting glance but said nothing else.
The kunoichi made another step forward and felt her leg sinking deeper than expected. An adrenalin rush filled her body and she quickly jumped to the side, avoiding the hole, hidden under the snow. The sudden movement forced her muscles to contract and now a sharp pain pierced her frozen knee joints and stomach. She turned around to see if Sasuke had avoided it as well. Her wide open emerald eyes met his black ones, who were popped out. "What?", she asked confused.
The Uchiha looked into the hole that her leg made and then lifted his gaze to her again, "How did you know to jump aside?", a surprise tone was clearly distinguished in his voice.
"I didn't want to fell into the hole that's all.", she answered and moved back to him to see what was so curious about something so trivial.
"That's not a hole, Sakura.", he whispered and the kunoichi noticed the small drops off sweat rolling on his forehead, "It's a bear trap." The pink-haired medic knitted her brows and looked down. The jaw-like mechanism was rusty from the snow but it still looked as if worked properly. She lifted her eyes to Sasuke's. "The pressure that the cutters can apply to your leg can snap it in two…", Sasuke explained with a slight tremble in his voice.
"What is it doing here in the middle of nowhere?", the girl sighed, looking around her.
"The place I'm taking you is not a ninja village, Sakura. People there hunt with primitive traps and weapons. It's not unusual to see traps like these or even pitfalls all around here. We need to be careful. We're close.", the Uchiha stepped forward, taking the lead, "I walk in front, you follow my every step. Understood?".
Sakura nodded and pulled down her jacket, preparing to start walking again. What was that village, would they be safe there? The kunoichi looked to the west. The luminous winter sun was falling slowly behind the horizon but its glow wasn't golden as it was in Konoha. The lucent halo around the sun was as white as the snow covering the mountain. Its last sparkling rays were reflecting on the blanket of snow and it seemed as if the ridge of the hill was covered with millions of tiny diamonds. The medical ninja smiled under her scarf. It was beautiful. "I wish Kakashi and Naruto could have seen this…"
Suddenly she bumped in Sasuke's back. The Uchiha cursed, swaying to the front. Sakura gasped for air and grabbed his jacked, stabilizing him on his feet. He turned slowly his head and glared at her, "Pay attention, please."
"I'm sorry. I was daydreaming.", she smiled blushing.
"I can see that.", he murmured and pulled her to stand next to him, "Look. We're here."
Sakura stood on the edge of the crest and stared speechless at the breath-taking view that spread in front of her. Dozens of small cozy wooden cottages were placed randomly in the valley. There was no road leading there. The village was surrounded completely by mountains, isolated by the surrounding world. The chimneys were smoking, invitingly suggesting the warmth that the fireplaces inside were giving away.
The shadows that the mountains were casting on the valley, forced the people to lit up their gas lanterns and now the cottages were like a Christmas lighting bulbs. Sakura let out her breath that she had held in her lungs, "It's amazing.". Her eyes travelled to Sasuke. The Uchiha smiled back and pulled out a letter from his backpack. He made a few handseals and summoned a small colorful bird looking like a nightingale. The songster grabbed the scroll and flew away.
"Shall we go?", Sasuke patted Sakura on her back and started climbing down the hill.
The kunoichi knitted her brows, "Sasuke!", the dark-haired shinobi turned around looking at her questioning, "If they find us here…", she paused slightly, "We'll be cornered. With no exit… We'll be slaughtered like dogs…"
The Uchiha sighed barely noticeable and walked back to her, putting his arms around her shoulders, "We'll be safe. Nobody's going to find us here, Sakura. And even if they do, I'll be right there, protecting you. So for now, just focus on your health.", he smiled warmly at her and readjusted her ear-caps, "Let's go." The dark-haired boys grabbed her for the hand and pulled her after him.
"Yeah… That's right... He's with me.", the kunoichi smiled to herself and hurried after her ex-teammate.
TBC