A/N: WooT...another chapter...this is the motorcycle race, btw...I couldn't think of how to make it 'outstnding' without making it totally cliche. We've seen just about everything now a days, so i kept it simple and to the point. Also, I gave her a rep back in Kagure, so be warned!! Kishimoto-san...youa re the bomb for creating Naruto!! (IE, I own no-thing!!)

CH. 22: The Secret of the Ninja

Sakura popped into her grandmother's house, right in the middle of the parlor where her grandmother was sitting, surrounded by eight of Sakura's best outside of SHINOBI. They all drew their guns until they recognized Sakura. She smiled at them and sat next to her grandmother.

"Karin gave me the other half of Ji-chan's letter. He said there was a disk with information that I would find useful. I will get it, then there will be no reason for The Center to come after you. I want you to go to the countryside Obaa-chan. I may need this house as a headquarters soon and Karin is still to unstable to have her around you." Sakura gave her a pleading look and Enzeru nodded her head.

"I will go…but on one condition." Sakura arched one brow at her grandmother and nodded. The old woman smiled at her and cupped her cheeks. "I want to meet the young man who left that mark on your shoulder. I assume it is another like yourself?" Sakura blushed and tried to cover up the mark. Enzeru chuckled and patted her hand.

"It's alright my dear. Hetoshi would have wanted you to find a man like yourself. Being tied down to an idiot is unhealthy for a woman like you…look at poor Youri. She is married to that moronic son of mine." Sakura burst into laughter at her grandmother's words. Enzeru smiled and held up a finger, as if just thinking of something.

"I would like a check up before you leave, my dear." Sakura smiled and went to grab her bag. Everything checked out normal for the little old lady and Sakura helped her pack for her time out in the country. Sakura watched her grandmother get into the car she had called in and watched her men get in with her and drive away, taking her beloved grandmother far away from what was coming.

"Might as well make the most of this…" Sakura murmured and walked into the house once more. She unlocked the safe and took out the disk. She saw several documents and looked at them. They were the deeds and such that Hetoshi had left for Sakura. Sakura took them and put them in her back pocket.

She cleaned out the safe and wiped it down so that The Center would think it was a routine burglary while the woman was out of town. She took several valuable things and blinked to the bank. She walked in and deposited everything she had and then left.

"And so it begins…" she closed her eyes and blinked back to her house to shower and change for the race. She still had about an hour to go.

Gaara removed his hand from Temari's shoulder and looked around Two seconds later Kankuro appeared with a violently blushing Karin, who demanded he put her down before she was forced to harm him. Kankuro chuckled and complied with her wishes.

Karin glared up at him once then went about packing her things. The first thing she grabbed was her laptop, which was surprisingly high tech considering she was supposed to be some rich, air headed heiress. Kankuro was impressed.

She gathered the multitude of other electronics and took a scroll from the small pouch Sakura had given her. She remembered the command that Sakura had told her and started sealing furniture and such in the scroll. Her bed, her dressers, anything she didn't want to leave behind.

A startled gasp drew their attention to a young woman in a maid's outfit. "Karin-chan…" she whispered shutting and locking the door quickly. She ran to Karin and wrapped her arms around the blonde.

"Thank Kami-sama you are safe! I was so worried Karin-chan…your father has been trying to find you for hours…why do you back in secret!?" she asked, her voice quiet. The woman knew if Karin was being quiet about this it was important.

"Lacey…I can't explain this right now…I just need you to get as much of my stuff from throughout the house and bring it to me. Some very dangerous people want me and I'm being protected by the corporation. They won't even tell Daddy where I am because that would put you all in danger. If you want, you can come with me…I'm sure nee-san wouldn't mind…" she trailed off and looked at the red head that was her 'sister', Sakura's, self proclaimed lover.

Gaara stared at the blonde, then at the little red headed maid. The maid stepped between Karin and him, glaring right back. "Karin…who are these people? They didn't hurt you did they?" The little maid surprised them by taking up a defensive stance.

Karin grabbed her shoulder and looked at her, urgency in her eyes. "Lacey…they are my bodyguards. Obaa-chan and Sakura-nee-san want me protected by some of the best the corporation has to offer…these guys are three of the top Hatori PI has to offer. They are protecting me from the ones that would hurt me." Lacey relaxed and smiled at them. She bowed deeply and voiced her gratitude.

"Before you three, I was Karin-chan's bodyguard, even though I am dressed as a maid. I would like your permission to watch over Karin-chan, because that was the last assignment Hetoshi-sama gave me. I am to protect her with my very last…even from her loved ones." the little red head continued bowing, but a noise caught her attention.

The little red head disappeared and the four of them looked surprised. A voice brought them out of their thoughts. "I apologize Youri-sama…but you are not supposed to be here. You should have let me do this." a cold voice said from the door, which he wall for Karin's actual bedroom hid.

"Lacey…what is the meaning of this…I will be telling Minotsu about this outrageous behavior as soon as-" She never got to finish because Karin stepped out of her bedroom into her little living area.

"Hello, mother." she said her amethyst eyes sad with knowing the truth about this woman. Youri's eyes widened and tears appeared in her eyes. She made to run to Karin, but Karin flinched away and Lacey tightened her hold on the older woman.

"Karin…what's going on?" the woman asked, tears in her eyes that her own child would flinch away from her. Karin wrapped her arms around herself and looked tearfully at Youri.

"Were you ever going to tell me that I wasn't your real daughter? That dad just brought me home from the lab one day and you never asked questions? Did he tell you that one of his scientists wants to cut me up to see how I function?" Tears were pouring out of Karin's eyes now. There was shock and disbelief on Youri's face.

"No…that's not true…You are my daughter…my baby girl. I don't care how you got here, that's irrelevant. Minotsu would never hurt you, he loves you. What are you talking about? Is this Sakura's doing!?" Youri demanded, tears flowing from her face as well.

Gaara stepped forward at the accusation. He looked her straight in the eyes, his own flashing dangerously. "Onna…if you saw half the things your husband does, you would not be so quick to defend him. He brought Karin home after she was genetically engineered and kept her to spite a mad scientist who experimented on his own children. He does indeed want to dissect Karin because she is the key to a world that was destroyed ten years ago. Before you judge Sakura, look a little closely at the man you married." Gaara nodded to Lacey, who hit a pressure point in Youri's neck. She sat the woman in a chair that Karin told her she wasn't taking with her.

Kankuro saw the sadness in Karin's eyes and went to her. She buried her face in his chest and wept silently. Lacey gathered all of Karin's things throughout the house and brought them to be sealed in the scrolls. When everything was gathered and sealed, Karin kissed her mom on the cheek and turned to Kankuro. Gaara put a hand on Temari and Lacey's shoulders and disappeared. Kankuro hesitated a second before blinking out.

"Karin…she doesn't know what's going on…she may not have done the right thing about never telling you she wasn't your birth mother…but maybe she needed to believe that you were her flesh and blood. Don't hate her for it, kokoro." Kankuro nuzzled the side of her face, then gave her a chaste kiss on the cheek. He picked her up bridal style and disappeared.

The others were waiting patiently for their friends to return. Sakura was the first to appear. Sai immediately glomped her, making her chuckle and pat his head like he was a child. He smiled slightly, then scurried back over to Shino, who had one eyebrow raised at the fact Sai was showing so much emotion.

Sai's face became emotionless as Gaara, Temari, and an unknown red head appeared. They were followed closely by Kankuro and Karin. Sakura arched a brow at the red head, then looked at Gaara. He tossed his head in Karin's direction and then was gone in a swirl of sand, taking Temari with him.

Sakura eyed the red head in the maid outfit, then looked at her sister. "Joji…who is this woman? I have never seen her before…" Sakura's stance became aggressive as she looked the red head over. The girl bowed and answered for herself.

"Hetoshi-sama did well in picking you as his heir…Haruno-sama." with a burst of smoke, the red pig tails turned into one long fire red braid.

She wore mesh netting on her legs down into knee high maroon boots. She had on a short maroon yukata that had slits up to the hips. There was black trim on the boots and the skirt of the yukata, as well as the sleeves. The top of the yukata had been altered to where it was attached to a choker that was fastened around her neck, making it look like a halter top. Sakura could see mesh on her shoulders that disappeared as the sleeves flared out from the underside of the breast area. Around her waist was a cloth band with a metal plaque with the Hatori symbol engraved in it.

Her eyes were a curious slate color, as if a combination of blue and black. She smiled at Sakura and bowed slightly. "I apologize for my rudeness Haruno-sama, but Hetoshi-sama made it quite clear that unless Karin was in danger I was never to remove myself from sleeper status. Now that Madara is after her, I will be enacting as her full time body guard once more. My name is Morino Lacey." she looked Sakura in the eyes and stood her ground.

A fist came out of no where and attempted to strike the young woman. Her eyes glowed neon green for a millisecond and the fist, and it's owner, stopped. Sakura looked over at an enraged looking Lee, who was struggling with some kind of unseen adversary.

Lacey looked at him, her eyes dead and emotionless, her smile gone. "I must also warn you that I am a genjutsu user and master torturer. My kekkei genkai has no name, because it manifests itself as a genjutsu. I call it Venus Fly Trap." when she uttered the words, Lee let out a guttural yell and fought all the harder.

"How...how dare...you use...Ibiki-shishou's...name...you imp-" he never got to finish because her eyes blazed at the mention of that name and Sakura heard her hiss. She grabbed Lee's hair and looked him in the eyes.

"Don't you EVER mention my father's name in my presence again. It was enough that he left me and mom alone for The Center to find us, but when I tracked him down I was too late. Madara had already gotten to him. I didn't spend fourteen years in The Center just to bust out and find my father dead." the red head hissed at him, yanking his hair slightly.

"I have spent the last six years hunting and torturing information on the poison they used on him. Intono Tetsu is the one that utilized scorpion venom to paralyze the chakra system and the rest was all blood, guts and gore. I did manage to get the name of my father's killer from one of the lab techs before I left him in a comatose heap. I now hunt this bastard who goes by the code name Kabuto." she released him and that was when the genjutsu was dropped. Lacey arched a brow and looked over to see a silver eyed Sakura giving her a cold look.

"If you don't believe me then just search my memories...witness the tortures I endured as a fourteen year old girl in a lab room with crazed techs who hadn't seen anything resembling a woman until I was brought in at the age of two. They waited for me, you know...then the true torture began." The red head didn't flinch as she detachedly told them what she went through.

"Madara was the worst...he would cut me with a scalpel along each muscle curvature, defining my muscles. He gave me these unusual eyes, this red hair...none of this is natural you know...I was born with black hair and black eyes. He used drugs to turn me into his living doll. The mesh merely hides the torture no child should ever suffer." there was defiance in her eyes as she described what she'd been through. She suddenly smirked and Lee felt his heart turn over.

"But there was one thing he wanted that my daddy taught me never to give in to...he wanted me to scream. Daddy taught me young that if I separate myself from my body then I won't have to give him his pleasure by screaming." she put a finger to her lips and a kunai suddenly appeared in her hands. She dug a deep wound into her exposed thigh, and though they could tell it hurt her like hell, she never made a noise.

She dropped the weapon and looked down at Lee. She smiled and offered her hand to help him up. He took it and caught her when she swayed after she pulled him up. Sakura walked to her and instantly healed the wound. She also went to put her hands to Lacey's temples but the red head stopped her.

"You can't handle what happened to me...no offense. Hetoshi-sama warned me you'd try, and I won't allow it Sakura-sama. So just go on back to your friends and I'll do my job." The girl waved Sakura away and then looked over her shoulder at Lee, arching a brow and looking at his hands around her waist. Lee blushed and removed himself from her. She giggled and looked at Karin, who was dozing off on Kankuro's shoulder.

Lacey arched her brow again and covered her mouth conspiratorially, whispering to Lee and Sakura. "Awfully cozy with that brunette ain't she Sakura-sama?" Karin's head popped up and she looked at Lacey. If looks could kill the poor red head would be pushing daisies.

"Lacey-chan!! Get your ass back here!!" Karin was struggling in Kankuro's arms while the brunette was trying to hold onto her. Kankuro tripped and fell on top of Karin, who stilled immediately and looked up at him. He had an apologetic grin on his face and scratched the back of his head. Karin blushed at him and pushed on his chest.

"O-oi...get off so I can get my hands on her!!" Karin demanded, trying to look peeved. Kankuro's innocent grin turned mischievous and he whispered to her.

"I'd much rather you get your hands on me, Karin-chan..." he purred to her. She blushed even more and screeched.

"HENTAI!!" she struggled to get up even more and Kankuro just laughed. Suddenly he was hoisted off the small blonde like he were a disobedient puppy.

"Easy there scrappy...we don't want her pupped quite yet. She still has her uses as an unfertile female at the moment." Sakura wondered at the way this new female talked and sniffed the air. She was met by the pungent odor of canine...wolf to be politically correct. Sakura clamped her hand over her nose and fought the gag.

"You never told me they crossed you with demon blood..." Sakura hissed, a more feline noise than she'd have liked. Slate colored eyes looked over one meshed shoulder and glared at her.

"They didn't cross me...what you're smelling is my mother's native blood. She's a full blooded ookami youkai follower of the seven tailed wolf demon. I am the master's human companion." the girl's words were immediately taken in and processed. Sakura was the first to understand.

"So...you're a jinchuriki...just like me." Sakura cocked her head and looked at Lee, who seemed to stare at the red head. Lacey turned to face her and dropped Kankuro on his ass. She stood her ground and stared at Sakura.

"You could say that. I prefer the term companion because Ookami-sama doesn't live inside me, he only comes to me when I need him. He's the reason I escaped The Center. Otherwise he lives in the village that is hidden far from here and under the guidance of my mother. The only other person who knows its whereabouts that isn't in my clan is dead. I killed him to ensure the safety of my people. They are untouched by society and one of the few clans that get along with their demon counterparts any more." She gave a haughty look at the others, then turned and looked at Lee, who was staring at her.

The red head actually blushed and huffed at him. "What the hell are you looking at bushy brows?" Lee stiffened and glared at her. He turned away from her and snorted.

"I was GOING to give you a compliment...but after that, forget it. I'm not complimenting some demon wolf channeling Amazon that insults me in her spare time." the red head looked at him with wide eyes as he huffed at her irritably. Sakura sweat dropped and then fell over anime style. Several others were trying not to crack up laughing. Lacey blinked several times before a vein popped on her head.

"AMAZON!? I'll show you an Amazon!" she shrieked and ran after him, her fist raised to strike him. Lee blinked and before he could put his hand out to protect himself, he was flat on his back with Lacey on top of him. Sakura whistled and looked away; retracting the foot she'd tripped Lacey with.

The red head sat up and looked down at Lee, blushing and stammering an apology. Lee blushed as well and just laid there, looking into her unusual eyes. Sakura cleared her throat and Lee could have sworn he say little cat ears, cat paws and whiskers as she tut-tutted them to get up.

Gaara and Temari appeared then, changed and ready for the race. Sakura gave him a surprised look and just looked down, noticing she hadn't changed. She squeaked and ran in the house and upstairs to change. She came bolting downstairs in a pair of leather pants that showed off her ass to perfection, which Gaara admired with growing lust.

She had on a long sleeve mesh shirt with a blood red corset overtop the mesh. Her necklace peeked out from between the valley of her breasts and it sparkled, reminding Gaara of her eyes at that moment. Her long black and red hair was in a tight braid, not a hair out of place. Her bangs framed her face cutely and Gaara felt his pants tighten. She had thick black eyeliner around her emerald eyes and red eye shadow to accent her eyes.

She had on a pair of bulky black combat boots and had a riding jacket in her hand, reminding him of where they were going and who would be there. He growled and walked up to her, pulling her soft body against his hard one. She giggled and kissed him lightly on the lips. Everyone just watched the exchange, some blushing, some looking irritated, and one really happy look.

Sakura turned to them and smirked. "Let's go show this bastard what's what." Everyone cheered, except those that deigned cheering 'to undignified' (Neji, Shino, Shika, and Gaara) and most raced towards vehicles and bikes. Sakura hopped on her bike and motioned Karin behind her. Karin looked down at her mini skirt then at the bike. She was about to decline, but the look in Sakura's eyes didn't give her the chance.

Sighing in resignation, she sat side saddle on the bike while Gaara just arched a non brow, looking at Sakura. Sakura's eyes told him everything he needed to know...she was going to make it plain Sasuke was going to stay away from her sister.

Jingling brought everyone's attention to the fact that the cats were running out of the house, followed by Akamaru, who shut the door with his mouth. Hime jumped into Karin's arms and sat there, ready to ride. Ichimanako transformed into her larger form and made it quite clear she was running beside the bike to watch for Hime.

Gaara arched a non brow, then jumped in the passenger seat of Sakura's SUV, Neji at the wheel, with Tenten poking her head in between the two seats. Choji and Michi were sitting in the very back, side by side, with Cheela and Eto sitting beside them. Lee allowed Lacey to climb in before him, careful to avoid staring at her ass, as she seemed she'd seriously harm him should she catch him.

He climbed in after her and was followed by Shino, who pulled Sai in behind him, even though the artist didn't like vehicles. Sai blanched, but Shino pulled him closer and allowed the dark headed boy to burry his face in Shino's coat. Lee arched a brow, but said nothing. Lacey had little hearts in her eyes.

"Awww...you're such a loving team mate, sheltering your scared companion. Kawaii!!!!" she purred and smiled the whole time she was looking at them. Shino blushed, but only Sai could see it because of his coat and mask. Sai blushed for him though, snuggling closer.

Akamaru climbed in and sat by Tenten, who stroked his white fur. Kankuro gave Karin one longing glance before hopping into the SUV and plopping down by the big white dog. Naruto smirked at Hinata and grabbed her hand, taking her to his Vulcan 1600 Mean Streak and giving her the small riding jacket he'd given her for her sixteenth birthday. She smiled shyly and put it on.

Temari drove into Sakura's driveway with Shikamaru in the passenger seat. Sakura could hear giggling in the back of the car and chuckled when the top was let down to reveal Ino cuddling up to Kiba, who blushed at the looks he was getting. Ino ignored it and continued cuddling up to him.

Sakura handed her red jacket to Karin and the girl put it on. Hime climbed into the pocket and stuck her nose and eyes out. Karin giggled at the small cat's actions and knew she must ride with Sakura a lot if she was accustomed to this. Sakura gave Gaara a lustful smirk and took off out of her driveway, Karin holding on for her life.

Kankuro yelled out the window for Sakura to slow the hell down before she scared Karin to death. Gaara smirked at his brother and looked ahead towards where they were heading. He couldn't wait to watch his mate kick the Uchiha's ass.

Sasuke was pacing impatiently. He wanted her here, now. He would show her, and her pet sand man, who was superior. He just wished he'd been able to ensure his victory. He heard the sound of a motor, a high revved motor at that. He looked up to see two vehicles and two motorcycles coming his way. He smirked as his body stirred at the thought of dominating the one woman that he feared, if only a little bit.

The red bike pulled in and slid to a stop, kicking dust up on him. He ground his teeth and hissed at her. "That was uncalled for, crazy onna." The woman on the bike smirked evilly at him and flipped him off.

"I know it wasn't...I just wanted to piss you off." she smirked again and turned to the other person on the bike. He noticed long legs, stuck out behind Sakura side saddle. He leaned over to see the hottie from earlier on the bike behind the woman he lusted after. She was small, tan and blonde. She had long legs encased in a black leather mini-skirt and a pair of what looked like Prada stilettos on her small feet.

She wore a red leather riding jacket that was zipped up just above her obvious cleavage. He heard a menacing growl and looked up from the blonde's chest to see enraged silver eyes glaring at him. He gulped, then smirked to hide his nervousness.

The others pulled up behind them and Gaara was instantly by Sakura's side, making it obvious whom she was with. Sasuke growled and turned back to his bike. Kim was sitting there like she owned it and him, but she quickly moved with one glance from him. He climbed on his bike and wheeled it over to them as people piled out of the vehicles. Sakura had her own little gang there, he noticed.

Sakura went to the girl on the back of her bike and took something from her. A brunette man flounced over from the red SUV and grabbed the blonde around the hips, lifting her from the bike. She blushed and smiled at the brunette, who smirked at her and put his arm around her. Sakura strode back over to him, a small calico kitten in her hands. The cat hissed as he looked at it.

The kitten's irritation caused a low rumbling from a dark figure to the left of Sakura's motorcycle. He looked towards the noise to see a large grey panther with one eye and an intricate eye patch covering the obviously missing eye. Sasuke gulped and took a step back as the large cat approached.

"Uchiha, Ichimanako. Ichimanako, Uchiha. Now that you guys know one another, let's talk about this race." She continued petting the kitten as her friends gathered around them. His little gang crowded around as well, much to his distaste.

Sasuke arched a brow as he took in the make of her bike. "You're racing me with a Ninja ZX-14? And you honestly think you're going to beat me with it?" there was a haughty note in his voice as he mocked her. She smirked wickedly at him and turned to look at her beloved bike.

"That baby may have a ZX-14 frame, but my little Ninja has a few serious secrets, as you found out earlier. My bike is tamper proof, Uchiha…in my line of work, you can never be too careful. Assassins are few and far between because most think they are untouchable…I don't. I never take unnecessary risks, not even with my toys. I may be the youngest assassin in Kagure, but I'm also the best…which is why I'm still alive." Her revelation seemed to disturb him. She chuckled wickedly. It was Neji that stepped up to her and glared.

"Sakura-sama…it is not wise to flaunt your station in the midst of commoners. I do not want to have to explain to the board why Hetoshi-sama's heir is all over the tabloids claiming she's an assassin." Neji gave Sasuke a calculating look before deeming him 'harmless'.

"At Hatori PI, we prefer the term 'operative', not assassin. Technically, we track and monitor. Only if our team is in danger do we take drastic action." He glared at Sakura as he said this. She chuckled and put her hand on his shoulder. Sasuke could tell who the boss was quite clearly, even though the dark haired boy was scolding the girl.

"Neji-kun…you worry too much. Besides…if they decide to tell… we can always kill them." she had an evil glint in her eyes and everyone took a collective step back, even Sasuke. She burst into laughter and everyone around her joined in. She wiped tears from her eyes and motioned for Karin to join her.

The blonde walked up to her and held onto her arm like a scared ten year old. Sasuke's eyes started traveling over her once more, only to be met by an oncoming fist. He could feel his teeth shift and his ears were ringing. His vision was blurry and he felt blood leak from the corner of his mouth.

He stood up to find Sakura, here eyes brilliantly silver, glaring daggers at him. "I told you to keep your eyes off my little sister…next time I won't merely shake it up…I'll remove the little fuckers…GOT IT!?" she hissed, her hand bunched in the material of the neck of his shirt. His riding jacket was gaping open, exposing some serious stomach flesh. Kim fainted from the sight she'd never seen before. Hinata and Ino cringed and buried their faces in their guys' shoulders. Both had seen more of him than they ever wanted to again.

She threw him down and walked her sister over to the others. She took her jacket from her sister and Kankuro put his own over the blonde's shoulders, blocking Sasuke's view of anything. He growled at not getting a view, even after Sakura's warning. Kankuro flipped him off and bundled the little blonde closer to him.

Sakura turned to her sister and smiled gently. "Karin…I want you to hold this for me. I know you'll keep it safe, and don't be afraid of it. We are linked somehow, and this necklace will always tell us when the other is in danger. Keep it hidden, never show it…it would put you in great danger should anyone ever see it." She took the necklace off and put it around the blonde's neck, tucking it into her shirt. A couple of cat calls erupted from Sasuke and his crew when they noticed it. One glare from Karin shut them all up. Sasuke sweat dropped at the similar attitude they had.

"Just my luck…they'd have to prove themselves sisters by having the same fucking bad attitude." he grumbled and glared over at them. A little louder he added "Are we racing or not?" Sakura arched one brow and smirked.

"In that big a hurry to get your ass kicked Uchiha?" she taunted, earning an offended grunt from said dark haired boy. He gave her a wicked grin and then looked back at his crew, who were looking at her like she'd lost her mind.

"OI, wench! Sasuke-san has been in the racing circuit for four years and has yet to be beat…what could a little girl like you know about racing?" A large guy with sharp looking teeth and spikey black hair demanded, giving her a speculative glance.

"Any of you guys pay attention to the news in Kagure?" she asked, calmly looking at her nails. They all nodded their heads. "You know the only biker to race straight through the Kagure Courthouse and never be caught?" They nodded again, not understanding where this was going.

Sakura chuckled and put on her red riding jacket and turned so that the back faced them. It had a white 'O' on the back and the kanji for survivor on the back. "Look familiar boys?" she asked as she looked over her shoulder with a wicked gleam to her eyes. The guys on the other side faltered and their eyes were wide.

"Shinku Akki…" the guy who'd spoken before looked at Sasuke, who didn't really look like he knew what was going on. The guy sweat dropped and looked at Sasuke, serious for the first time.

"Sasuke-san…Good luck…you're going to need it." with that the guy hopped on his bike and left, not willing to piss off the Shinku Akki. Sasuke arched one dark brow and looked back at the girl before him. So she had a popular riding jacket, there were replicas everywhere…even if hers did look more authentic than he wanted to admit.

Gaara gave Sakura a looked that mean 'Explain'. She chuckled and walked up and nuzzled him, much to Sasuke's irritation. "When I was younger I was far from a good little girl. I never brought dishonor to my grandfather because I was never caught. To this day, no one can keep up with my bike, not even the new police cruisers. The engine was custom built by a guy on my payroll. It's street legal…barely." she chuckled at that and went back to her bike. She hopped on and gave Sasuke a maniacal look.

"Ready big boy?" she chuckled when he stiffened. She burned out right there, spitting dirt and dust behind here and she raced straight at him. He dodged and landed in the dirt, face first, right beside his bike. He growled and got on his bike, shoving his helmet over his ebony locks.

Sakura looked down into the old quarry they were racing in. It looked extremely dangerous…she couldn't wait.

Sasuke pulled up beside her and saw the glaze over her eyes as she looked down. He smirked at her and decided to taunt her. "Scared? I thought you could take on anything?" When she looked up at him his eyes widened. What he'd mistaken for fear was actually a maniacal glee he couldn't fathom.

"Ji-chan always taught me that fear is the mind killer…I fear nothing Uchiha…I relish putting you in your place…" she gave him an evil look and waited for the flag to drop. Kim stood between them, far enough from the edge she wouldn't fall in, but close enough the two racers couldn't touch her.

She smirked and dropped the flag, sending both racers off in a spurt of dust and dirt. Sakura popped a wheelie and rode it to the bottom before zipping ahead of Sasuke. Sasuke growled and revved his engine higher, taking off after her. Sakura thrilled in the feeling of absolute freedom she felt when racing like this. Saiki seemed to enjoy it as well.

'Cub…the boy approaches from behind…he means to play dirty.' Sakura used her abilities to sense him behind her and build a mental image of what he would look like. He was coming up on her slowly and had every intention of pushing his foot into the back wheel of her bike to send her skittering off course.

She gave a feral smirk and put on the brakes abruptly, sending Sasuke shooting past her just as he threw his foot out to kick her back tire. He went down, hard, and his bike skittered a few yards away. Sakura took off once more, not sparing him so much as a glance. She felt, more than saw, him limp back to his bike and start it back up. She could also hear him trying to catch up to her.

She saw the finish line and slowed down until she was side by side with him. He glared at her and shot forward a few feet. She smirked, knowing she had already won. Sasuke was only about two feet from the finish line when he felt wind to his right. He looked over to see nothing, but when he looked up, he saw Sakura sitting behind the finish line, her jacket open and her helmet on her knee. He skid to a stop and cursed colorfully.

She smirked at his choice language and patted her bike. "I warned you Uchiha…this baby has more secrets than a clan of thieves. This…is my Ninja." She smirked as he tore off. She knew he would keep to their bargain…only question was, how long?

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O.O AHHHHH...the race is over!! Will Sasuke honor the terms of their agreement? Will he prove he's a lying bastard? Will the couples get some quality time together!? TT even I don't know!! My muse was kidnapped by Ares and now I have to go save her!! BRB!! coupla hours go by BACK!! And my muse is with me!! Ares is such a horn dog!! Poor Ariana/consoles black haired muse. EH...yeah...Read and Review..."

ch. glossary:

kokoro--> heart

yukata--> informal summer kimono

kawaii--> cute, adorable

Shinku Akki--> Crimson Demon (nickname Mayor of Kagure gave the biker who left skid marks in the courthouse-i.e. Sakura)