(Three Days Later)
"I have a surprise for you all," said Kakashi, doing the eye smiley thing Sakura thought was just a little creepy.
"What? What is it? Are you finally going to teach us some kick ass jutsu Kakashi-sensei? You know for supposedly knowing 1000 jutsus you're really stingy about sharing them with us."
"Now now Naruto if I just wanted students who shot around jutsus I'd get myself a chakra trained monkey. He'd probably pick them up faster than you anyway,"
"Hey!"
"-but what I've got for you is much better."
He paused then, letting the tension build. Sakura rolled her eyes and crossed her arms unimpressed by his antics. Sasuke had one eyebrow partly raised in mild interest and Naruto looked equal parts resentful and skeptical.
"So what is it?" Naruto asked dubiously.
"I'm so glad you asked. I've nominated Team 7 to take part in the Chunnin exams taking place in six weeks. Here are the forms to sign up," he said handing each of them a stack of documents.
Sakura scanned them briefly while thinking that she didn't really know what the Chunnin exams entailed. The forms were basic 'yes I agree to take this of my own free will' and 'yes I accept that I might be injured or worse during the exam' type forms. It didn't tell her much about what they might be facing.
"What are the Chunnin exams?" asked Naruto looking at the papers in his hands with a decidedly unimpressed look on his face.
"They're the exams Genin take to become Chunnin," she deadpanned. Seriously it was right there in the name.
His eyes widened and quickly surprise turned to excitement. "Oh hell yes! Once I become Chunnin I'm one step closer to becoming Hokage. Oh this is going to be awesome," he bubbled looking at the paperwork again with renewed interest.
"Now there's a few things you need to know. The exams are dangerous so consider it seriously before accepting. It's not uncommon for there to be deaths during the exams. We'll also be hosting teams from other ninja villages so you'll be competing against allies and enemies of unknown capabilities,"
That was a surprise to Sakura. She personally thought it sounded like a foolish security risk to let so many foreign nin enter Konoha. Since she'd had her 'incident' Sakura was becoming increasingly paranoid about things like security and covering ones tracks. Still if the Hokage had approved of this there must have been some good reasons for it.
"Of course it will be up to each of you individually to decide if you want to take the exam. You each need to make up your own mind if you want to participate or not."
Sakura wasn't a powerhouse but she was intelligent and she had been trying increasingly hard whenever they were with Kakashi-sensei to see 'underneath the underneath'. He tended to hide important information in carefully chosen words and actions just like he was doing right now. He'd implied each of them could choose to take the exam individually without actually saying so but that flew in the face of his previous statements. He said they would be competing against teams from other villages. That meant that if they wanted to enter they would have to do it as a team. The obvious assumption he wanted them to make about the structure of the exam was a ruse.
"Of course I'll participate," said Sasuke, his voice sounding surprisingly eager.
"Oi! Count me in of course, I'll show everyone just what I can do, dattebayo," said Naruto enthusiastically.
All three of the males on her team turned to look at her. "So what about you Sakura-chan? Are you going to enter too?" asked Naruto guilelessly. It didn't surprise her that he had missed the implications of what Kakashi-sensei had said. Sasuke was also looking at her like he was interested in what she had to say but wasn't terribly concerned about it either way. She realized that Sasuke had also missed Kakashi's little oblique bit of misinformation. Now that did surprise her a great deal. She almost couldn't believe Sasuke had missed it, it hadn't been all that difficult a hint to pick up on.
Sakura shared a look with Kakashi-sensei, hers saying why are you putting me in this position? and his saying They're idiots, what do you want me to do about it?
The pinkette considered it. Even a week ago she might have balked at taking the exam but it's surprising what a short time of intense training can do for your confidence, not to mention your skills. She felt reasonably certain she had the skills to at least survive the exam especially with a certified genius and a stamina freak with Kage Bushin on her team. The only problem was her condition. Her plan of hanging around near the hospital had so far been unsuccessful and her 'hunger' was already starting to become a problem again. She didn't know what would be involved with the test or how long it would take. It was a risk and she wasn't willing to let anyone in on the secret of her new 'abilities' yet. For her own interests the smart thing to do would be to say no.
Then again looking at the faces of Naruto and Sasuke she knew she couldn't do that to them. She couldn't crush their hopes because she was afraid of what might happen. Besides Kakashi-sensei said people died in the exam right? If things got desperate enough…
Sakura surprised herself with that line of thought and shuddered slightly. Ever since the personality change had happened the first time she realized she had become a good deal more blasé when thinking about death. It was a tid bit that disturbed her and made her wonder just how much she had been affected.
When she realized she had been silent too long and everyone was still starting at her Sakura ducked her head and blushed slightly in embarrassment for leaving them waiting while her mind wandered. "I'll take the test. We'll go together as a team," she said.
Apparently it was the right thing to say since it made Naruto try to jump in to give her a hug and caused Kakashi to relax almost unperceivably. With Naruto she pushed him away along with giving him a lighthearted fist to the head and she wondered if Kakashi had purposefully let her see him relaxing and if this was another one of his mind games. Even Sasuke cracked a small smile before turning away. It felt really good. She gave a small smile of her own. Despite all their problems Team 7 felt like they were growing closer and closer.
She just had to hope her condition wouldn't screw them all over during the test.
Kakashi released them hours early that day and that was perfect for Sakura. For the first time since she'd decided to do some research she actually had a block of time to go to the library.
Since her home was on the way she decided to stop by and grab something quick to eat. That's when she noticed there was an unexpected surprise waiting for her.
"Otousan!" said Sakura spotting her father sitting in the kitchen table with her mother nearby.
"Sakura! Come here," he said, all good natured smiles.
Sakura did and threw her arms around him in a hug. Her father's work in the Haruno clan kept him away from Konoha at least two or three weeks out of every month and even when he was in town he had a very busy schedule. Sakura loved her father who tended to dote on her and spoil her just a bit.
"So good to see you dad. How have you been? Where did you go?"
"Oh I've been good, been good. I was actually in the capital of Wind this time trying to hammer out an agreement to supply the noble houses there with our wine. They can't grow anything worth turning into alcohol there and their wine makers there are amateurs at best. Fire Country produces the best wine by far you know," said Haruno Ikari happy to share his trip with his daughter.
"That's great daddy," she said beaming.
"So how have you been Sakura-chan?" he asked. She told him, albeit heavily edited in some parts, and he seemed happy to hear about her life. Sakura's mother smiled at the scene from where she was working in the kitchen happy to see such a rare domestic scene in her family.
The talked for a while until Sakura looked at the clock on the wall and noticed the time. She had lost track of time catching up with her father. If she didn't leave soon she wouldn't have enough time to get a lot done before the library closed.
"Sorry dad I have to get going. But we'll catch up some more later ok?" she asked hopefully.
Ikari waved her off as if it was no concern. "Go, go you have things to do I know. A ninja's work is never done. I'll see you later tonight."
"Sounds good. Bye otousan, kaasan," she said. Quickly grabbing a rations bar for an unappetizing lunch she headed out the door and towards the library.
(Hours later)
She supposed she should have expected something like this. In many ways it could be said that Kekkei Genkai were one of the trump cards of the village so it made sense there wouldn't be an overabundance of information about them accessible to mere Genin. At least there was something even if the information was so vague as to be almost useless. What was said about each ability amounted to only a sentence or two.
Sharingan. Dojutsu of the Uchiha Clan. Grants the ability to see through an enemy's techniques.
That's it. That's all the information that was publically available. While technically correct the description would hardly help anyone who wanted to figure out how to counter the Sharingan which she supposed was the point. From having both Sasuke and Kakashi-sensei on her team she knew there was a great deal more to the Sharingan than just that.
When she thought about it Zabuza had seemed to know a great deal more about the Sharingan that was in the library. It made sense from a security standpoint but it hammered home the point that any information she did find was going to be severely redacted.
Still her research was giving her a lot more knowledge about Kekkei Genkai than she'd had before even with carefully worded descriptions that were probably common knowledge to the more experienced Shinobi. Thinking that she may have a Kekkei Genkai herself it was interesting to read about others. Currently she was looking at scrolls that talked about Kekkei Genkai known to exist in the Land of Fire.
Byakugan. Dojutsu of the Hyuuga Clan. Grants increased field of vision.
Mokuton. Kekkei Genkai known to appear in the Senju Clan. Most famous user was the First Hokage. Allows for creation of wood and other flora.
The next entry on the list made Sakura do a double take. She couldn't have been more surprised if Kakashi suddenly decided to give up porn and act like a responsible teacher.
Chen Chakra. Chakra Chains. Kekkei Genkai of the Uzumaki Clan. Tends to manifest only in female members. Enables user to create chains of pure chakra.
Uzumaki clan? There was only one Uzumaki that Sakura had ever heard of and that was Naruto. But Naruto was an orphan. Could he be a different Uzumaki, same last name but not of that clan? And what had happened to the Uzumaki clan? Could Naruto be the last survivor of that clan? But that didn't make sense. Sasuke was the last of the Uchiha's and he was treated like royalty. If Naruto was the last of a famous clan wouldn't he had been treated the same way?
Sakura made a note to research the Uzumaki's a bit more when she had time, out of curiosity if nothing else.
Shortly thereafter the list turned to Kekkei Genkai that no longer existed in the Land of Fire.
Shinkiro. Kekkei Genkai of the Ueno Clan. Enabled users to create realistic illusions. All users presumed dead.
Akasan. Kekkei Genkai of the Otsuka Clan. Enabled users to produce a strong acid. All users presumed dead.
Muketsu-no. Kekkei Genkai of the Sakamoto Clan. Enabled users to take massive damage without bleeding. All users confirmed dead.
It went like that for a dozen entries. That so many clans with bloodline limits had gone extinct over the years was troubling. Probably at some point they had been targeted for their Kekkei Genkai and been killed. Still there was so little information there to go on. For all she knew some of these clans had existed and been whipped out five centuries ago or last year. All of that was vaguely troubling assuming she did have a Kekkei Genkai of some sort.
Still she hadn't found one entry that sounded anything like what had been happening to her. Sakura let out a huff of disappointment at not having found anything useful. Well that wasn't exactly true. At least she'd found out that with so many extinct bloodlines out there it wasn't impossible to think some of them might have survivors out there somewhere. It wasn't earth shattering information but at least it was something.
As she rolled up the scrolls and put them back where they belonged it occurred to Sakura that she should look up the known Kekkei Genkai from other countries as well. The pinkette walked over to the reception desk and asked the retired nin on duty where she could find that information.
"I'm sorry but that information is restricted to Chunnin rank or above. If the information is mission critical your sensei can fill you in on any details," the older man told her.
There wasn't much reason to stay in the library after that. Feeling discouraged at not having found any clues as to her condition Sakura left and went to try and do something about her rising Hunger.
Lee was training with his team and for a change he had been paired with Tenten while Guy-sensei was giving Neji a real challenge while sparring with him in taijutsu. Tenten was unloading her weaponry at him as part of their practice. While Neji would stand in place and use his superior eyesight and coordination to bat every projectile out of the air Lee had to resort to the more traditional methods of running around trying to dodge. It was a challenging exercise for him especially with his newly increased weights. Lee thought Tenten just enjoyed throwing sharp weapons at people no matter what the occasion.
Eventually Tenten ran out of weaponry and they had to take a break for her to recover all of them. Being the gentleman he was Lee bent down with her to help her pick up all her weapon. Tenten gave her teammate an appreciative smile. While she liked working with Neji he never bothered to help her pick up all her weapons.
"Hey Tenten," said Lee sounding unusually shy.
The girl looked over and saw a blush coloring her teammate's cheeks. What was that all about?
"Yes Lee?"
"How… ugh, how do you, you know, … a girl…"
Now Tenten was interested. Lee was never anything but loud and confident and over the top. And what was this about a girl?
"Just spit it out Lee. I promise I won't bite," she said with no malice.
"How do you um… get a girl to like you? And how do you ask a girl out?"
That stopped Tenten in her tracks. Lee? Lee of all people was interested in a girl?
"Who is this 'girl' we're talking about?"
"Well you see… her name is Sakura," he said, blush intensifying, "she was watching me and Guy-sensei in our morning training one day and Guy-sensei invited her to start training with us in the mornings."
"And she accepted?" asked Tenten incredulously.
"Yes. It's been about a week and she's very dedicated. She's so nice, and gentle, and full of youth, and she tries really hard…"
Now Tenten had a big smile on her face. Despite the oddness of a girl agreeing to join their insane four AM workouts it was clear that Lee-kun had a crush.
"Is she cute?" Tenten teased.
Lee turned so red his face could have passed for a tomato. "Y-yes, she's very cute," he said.
"And you need advice on how to impress her, is that it?"
Lee looked like he might die from the embarrassment of having this conversation with her, but he nodded in the affirmative.
"I want to ask her out, and I want her to see me as a man, but I have no idea how to do that," he admitted.
This was just so precious. Tenten felt like a big sister giving her little brother advice. She took it seriously and tried to think how she could help her teammate.
"Well the first thing you have to know about girls is that we all find confidence attractive. I'm guessing from how you're acting that you get really shy around her don't you? That just won't do. You need to be assertive and confident in front of girls or they won't take you seriously," she said.
To her amusement Lee had taken out a small notepad and was furiously scribbling down notes. "What else Tenten-sensei?" he asked face suddenly very serious.
Tenten thought about it but the truth was she wasn't exactly an expert on love. She'd never had a boyfriend and she had always been more concerned with weapons and training than any sort of 'girly' activities. Still if this girl was dedicated enough to train with those two early in the morning then Tenten thought she and this 'Sakura' probably had a lot in common.
"Well," said Tenten drawing the word out, "you said you wanted to impress her and get her to see you as a man right?"
Lee nodded vigorously at this.
"I think you have a great opportunity for that coming up. She obviously cares a great deal about becoming a stronger ninja if she's training with you guys in the morning. I think that if you make Chunnin in the upcoming exams she will probably be very impressed and will definitely see you as more of a man. If you ask her out after that and show her that you are really confident in yourself I think you'd have a great chance," she said feeling confident in her reasoning.
"Really?" asked Lee, a surprised and hopeful tone to his voice.
"Absolutely. I can't think of a single girl who wouldn't be impressed by that," said Tenten sincerely.
"YOSH! THEN I HAVE TO MAKE SURE I TRAIN THREE TIMES AS HARD IN ORDER TO MAKE CHUNNIN! COME ON TENTEN, LET'S GET BACK TO TRAINING," he yelled at the top of his lungs and then he became a green blur picking up all her weapons at a speed that left Tenten impressed.
From where he was training his other student Guy had to wipe some moisture from his eyes. How brightly the youthful torch of romance shined! Though he would never interfere in his students' love lives he vowed to do all he could to help Lee achieve his goal of becoming Chunnin. Such vigor! Such drive! Such amazing Youth!
Sakura sat under a tree in the tiny park right behind the hospital. She had been there for the last few hours making bushin after bushin in an attempt to master doing it without hand signs. So far she had made progress and was ecstatic about it. Now she could do the bushin with two hands seals and drop the third seal entirely. Still not there yet but it was definite measurable progress.
However her other more serious problem had not been resolved. She looked at the hospital in front of her with frustration and the stirrings of panic. For the last three days she had been spending two or three hours each day in the small park practicing whatever she could that would not draw much attention. Her hope that she could feel and 'feed' off whatever deaths happened in the hospital had so far been for naught. She had not felt so much as a stiff breeze and her Hunger was growing.
Sakura stared hard at the hospital as if it would give her the answers she needed and thought about her current problem. The issue was that she didn't know the range that she could absorb at. Given her memory of the incident at Wave her best guess was maybe a hundred and fifty feet. That only covered a relatively small section of the hospital from where she was sitting. It was possible it was just a range issue. However there were so many unknowns. Could she even absorb from a person she didn't kill herself again? What if her range was only horizontal and not vertical? Did it matter if there were walls and windows in the way?
What would Sakura do if this plan didn't work? The thought left her feeling cold. Her only options would be to kill again or to turn herself in and hope that somebody could help her. If she was brave she would choose the latter option without hesitation but the truth was that Sakura was increasingly scared.
Would they punish her extra severely for having waited this long before informing anyone if she came forward? Would anyone even believe her if she told them she killed a man against her will? What if they decided they wanted to experiment on her or worse, breed her for her 'ability'? Normally Sakura wouldn't think anyone in Konoha would do something like experiment on her or force her to have children but her imagination and paranoia were getting the best of her. She'd heard whispered stories of how some places, especially Kumo, would force women with Kekkei Genkai to essentially become breeding mares for the village. It was even somewhat irrational but she couldn't help but picture every worst case scenario that might play out if she decided to come forward.
The other option of killing in secret did not appeal much either. Not only was she unwilling to go around killing civilians, even dying ones, but this was a Shinobi village. If she continued to do that eventually someone would catch on. Then it really would all be over for her.
Sakura sat there running everything again and again in her head. She rolled every option in her head and tried to look at things as dispassionately and objectively as she could. After a long time of consideration she realized she really only had one option. If this idea of sitting near the hospital didn't work out she would have to turn herself in and throw herself at the mercy of the Hokage. There was no way she would become a mass murder just to hide her secret. Logically it was the best option to come forward even if some of the possible consequences could lead to death or even worse. The alternative was getting caught after having killed who knew how many people. In the end it was really no choice at all.
The pinkette was thinking all this in resignation when she felt it. It was the same sensation she had felt before of her body absorbing something she couldn't describe. Then from her hara chakra exploded out and rapidly flooded her system.
Sakura was so relieved it had worked she even cried a few tears right then and there. She really hadn't wanted to have to throw herself to the wolves and hope for the best. The chakra flooded her system and she felt relief, precious relief from the pervasive Hunger that had been growing inside her for the last few days.
Calming down a bit after a few more moments Sakura analyzed herself. Her relief quickly turned to apprehension as she noticed something. Though the absorption and the flood of chakra had been the same the amount of chakra she gained was considerably less. Also the physical and psychological pleasure she gained form the absorption process had also been diminished and she found to her dismay that part of her was extremely disappointed the rush had not been stronger. After taking careful stock Sakura estimated that the boost she had gotten had been perhaps a quarter to a third as effective as it had been when she had killed that man in the hospice.
What did that mean? Was it the distance she was from person who presumably had just died inside the hospital? Or was it something about killing the person herself that somehow made a difference? She didn't know how but somehow she suspected it was the latter.
Feeling part relieved and part disappointed Sakura left the small park and headed home. She didn't exactly understand what was happening but she feared absorbing deaths from outside the hospital like this wouldn't keep her satisfied for long.
Haruno Aiko sat in at a small table in the bedroom she shared with her husband, looking through an old expensive looking wooden box. She gently fingered the contents therein. Mostly they were just old notebooks and scrolls. The woman sighed sadly as memories from her past assailed her. Gingerly she withdrew one particular item and fingered it gently. Her eyes were distant as she remembered its previous owner.
"Aiko, what are you still doing up? I thought you were going to sleep," came her husband's voice from the door. When he saw what she was looking at his gaze softened. "Is it still troubling you?" he asked.
Aiko nodded. "I know chances are slim since she is a girl but… I can't help but worry. That curse should stay dead and buried. I can't imagine it happening to my baby girl."
The woman paused and ran her fingers along the grooves of the object in her hand. "She's about that age you know? And already going out on C-Ranked missions. She said there weren't any deaths in her first one. I guess I'm just worried about the next."
Ikari went to his wife and put a comforting arm around her shoulders. She leaned into him grateful for his comfort. "Don't you think we should tell her?" he asked.
Aiko shook her head without hesitation. "Some things are better off being forgotten. She probably has nothing to worry about. I don't want to burden her with that bloody legacy," she said.
Iraki was not convinced of that argument but he had always agreed that this issue was his wife's to deal with. "If it does happen we'll deal with it. It's not like we'd be the first in history to have to do so," he said softly.
"I know," Aiko replied and leaned into her husband. She took in his warmth as she looked at and softly stroked the object in her hands, an old Iwagakure headband.
AN: Would love to know what you think. Good, bad or ugly I'm willing to hear it. Hope you enjoyed. Thanks for reading!