When Sakura wakes up the first thing she notices is that the sun has already risen well above the horizon. That mean she was never woken up to take a turn to keep watch. She turns her head and looks through the fire at her sleeping companions. The sight of the two is nearly enough to melt her heart.
Raven has her face pressed into the hollow underneath Fox's throat and her hands are splayed across his chest. His arms are wrapped protectively around the small blonde and their legs are intertwined.
Sakura wishes she could get a picture of the tender moment. She's never seen a couple so comfortable just sleeping in the other's arms. In the world of ninja, such trust is never given easily. It takes years for a ninja to be able to trust someone enough to sleep so soundly beside them.
This is especially true after the war. With all the plant men around, it was hard to know who was an enemy and who was a friend. Sakura reaches up and absently rubs the mark on her forehead. Fox shifts slightly and lifts his head. "Are you awake?" He asks her.
"Yes, but you never woke me for my shift." She tells him, feeling slightly guilty.
"That's because Raven placed seals around the camp that will keep us from being detected." Explains Fox.
"Oh, I see." She responds.
The blonde stirs and mumbles something that causes Fox to chuckle. "If you really don't to wake up I could always carry you, but last time I did that you complained that my back was too uncomfortable." He tells her. Sakura's eyebrow raises slightly in amusement.
Fox leans down and whispers something to Raven that Sakura can't hear. Raven seems to grow offended at whatever he said, because she retaliates by poking him in the side with her fingers. The man jumps slightly at the contact and grabs her fingers. "That's not very nice." He says.
Sakura giggles. She never would have guessed that her guard is ticklish. Raven's body shakes as quiet laughter bubbles through her small frame. She disentangles her hands from Fox's, and stands stiffly. Sakura watches ,fascinated, at how gracefully the blonde moves. It is almost as if the other girl is still dancing, just as she was on the first day.
"Shall we be off?" Asks Fox kindly, as he too stands. Sakura nods and sets a fast pace, leaving the other two to follow. After about five hours of running she hears an impatient sigh before Raven rushes past her and into the trees ahead. The blonde quickly disappears in the sea of green. Fox easily catches up to Sakura and continues to run beside her.
"What's up with her?" Asks Sakura, afraid she somehow offended the small woman.
Fox's steps don't waver. "Going at a speed that is comfortable for you and me is like walking through jello for Raven. It makes her uncomfortable, and kind of twitchy, so I sent her ahead to scope out the area." He explains lightly.
"Wow." Says Sakura. Fox nods his head in agreement. He may have known the blonde from the day she was born, but her speed has never ceased to amaze him. He'd be interested in knowing if it's an inherited trait...
Raven returns almost two hours later. It's already dark, and traveling has become difficult. The blonde stands quietly on a branch, waiting for them. Sakura and Fox stop on branches close to hers before she gives a report. "I found the village, and the team. It seems as though they have been captured, and are being held hostage. They were heavily guarded by about two dozen shinobi at high jounin level. They have the villagers captive in their houses, otherwise I would have tried to free them."
"Anything else?" Asks Fox.
Raven shrugs. "No. At your current pace we will reach the village by tomorrow. We could get there by late tonight but It would be best to rest and the go in early tomorrow morning. It probably won't catch them off guard but It's worth a shot."
Fox nods in assent. "And what do you think Sakura-san?" He asks her.
Sakura jumps a little at being addressed. "I think It's a good plan. It would be even better to add a distraction to pull their attention away from the other team. It might make it easier to get them out, especially if they are injured." She explains.
Raven nods. "So I get to put on a show that is flashy enough to catch their attention, but careful enough to not injure the villagers." She sums up.
Fox nods. "Exactly."
Raven seems to pout. "Does that mean I can't use my fans?" She asks.
Fox sighs. "Just be careful about the blades sharpness and aim." He warns.
Sakura looks between the two. "What fans?" She asks them, curiously. The blonde jumps up and flicks her wrists. Two objects land in her palms. She quickly grips them. Then she flicks her wrists again. The two 'objects' open revealing the two hand fans.
A faint shimmer on the fans catches Sakura's attention, so she looks closer at them. Raven shifts the fans slightly so that Sakura can see the shimmer again. "They're made of metal!" She exclaims with surprise.
The blonde grins beneath her mask. "Yes, I find that my chakra is more easily controlled using the metal rather than the traditional material. With how dense my chakra can be, the metal is more durable." She explains.
Sakura touches the fan with the pads of her fingers. "Would you like to hold one?" Asks Raven, amused by the girls fascination. Sakura blushes, but nods. Raven hands her the fan. Its weight surprises the pink-haired girl. Raven laughs lowly. "They are a bit heavy, but I have found that with practice they have become light." Sakura hands the fan back to its owner.
"The Kazekage's sister uses a fan too." She tells the girl.
The blonde shrugs. "I know. She actually gave me the idea, along with a few pointers." She admits. Sakura looks at the other girl closely. So she knows Temari? Raven flicks the fans again, and they disappear into her sleeves.
"Does that mean that you have wind chakra too?" She asks.
The blond shrugs. "It's my main and favorite element." She answers. Fox leaps off the branch and begins running in the direction of the village. Raven and Sakura follow him silently. When he finally stops in a small clump of trees the three set up their camp. They don't light a fire, for fear of attracting unwanted attention. This time Sakura watches Raven as she moves around the camp. The blonde places unfamiliar seals around the site, and once she adds chakra, an almost invisible shield appears around the campsite.
Sakura begins to wish that she knew about the seals much sooner. It would have allowed her much more sleep! Raven seems to notice the other girl watching her. "It's a seal I developed about three years ago." She tells her. Sakura's face turns a slight hue of red at the amusement she hears laced in the blonde's voice.
"I see." She says. The blonde giggles.
"Lets get some rest so we can get up early tomorrow." Says Fox from across the camp. Sakura pulls out a sleeping bag and lays it down. Then she crawls into it and shifts until she finds a comfortable position. She stares across the camp to her two ANBU guards. Raven lays her head on Foxs chest and he places his arm protectively around her waist. Sakura feels bad for the couple. She can't even imagine what they have given up to be where they are now. She closes her eyes and lets her consciousness float away.
A slight whimpering wakes the med-nin up. She quickly disentangles herself from her sleeping bag and pulls out a kunai as she leaps to her feet. She throws her chakra out in every direction in search of an intruder. She hears the whimper again. Her eyes are immediately to Raven who is being held gently but firmly in Fox's arms. The blonde stiffens and Sakura hears her whimper a third time. She quickly runs over to the duo thinking that the blonde may be hurt somehow.
"Is she alright?" Asks Sakura worriedly.
Fox shakes his head. "It's a bad dream. She hasn't had one for a while now, but it seems to be back." He tells her.
She can hear the concern laced in his voice. "Can't we wake her up?" She asks.
"No, I've tried many times but past experiences tell me she won't wake until she herself decides to do so." Sakura winces as the blonde cries out. She can hear the young woman begin to sob.
"No. Please no! Please." Begs the blonde in her dream. Sakura's heart breaks for the woman. What has she been through that she has nightmares like these? The girl sits up quickly, causing Sakura to jump away. "Ta-!" She says but is quickly cut off by Fox's quiet "Shush." The dark haired man pulls the blonde to his chest and gently strokes her hair. The sobs begin to fade as she relaxes into his hold.
"Was it the usual one then?" Asks Fox. Raven nods. After a while she takes a deep breath and takes her face out of Fox's chest. She removes her mask just enough to wipe away the moisture that has built up underneath, and then fixes it back into place.
"I'm fine." Says the blonde to the other two. "Lets just go." She tells them when they continue to watch her carefully.
Sakura nods and the trio quickly pack up camp. Raven removes her seals they make their way silently to the village. Sakura gasps as the village comes into view. The villagers are now in plain sight. Even from this far away, Sakura can tell that they are wounded and many are sick. Most of them look like they haven't eaten properly for a while, and there are very few children or elders.
Raven quickly becomes angry. "I was unable to see all of this yesterday." She hisses. Then she looks at Fox. "I will not leave these people here to suffer like this." She tells him.
The man sighs. "Do whatever you must to take the enemy out. Our mission is a search and rescue. It just so happens we need to rescue more than planned. I will send a message to Lady Hokage to inform her of our situation." He agrees.
He looks at Sakura. "Once the team is well enough to travel and defend themselves, you will be in charge of taking them back to Konoha. They should not have to linger here any longer than they have already been forced to."
Sakura nods. "I understand."
"Then lets get started." Says Raven before she jumps right into the center of the village. Sakura holds her breath as the blonde stands there, waiting for the enemy to sense her presence. It takes a minute before the first man notices. He quickly calls an alarm. Half of the men break away from their posts to run to the first man's aide.
They gather in a rough circle around Raven and pull out kunai in anticipation of the upcoming fight. The blonde's aura completely changes. Instead of the light, carefree, one it's coolly calculating. Totally unlike what Sakura is used to around the smaller woman. Sakura is only able to watch in silent awe as the blonde fights.
Raven flicks her wrists and the fans appear in her waiting palms. The first man throws a kunai at her back but she turns and deflects it with one open fan. The deflected kunai hits a different man in the throat, sending him to the ground, dead. Another man attacks the blonde from the side. He uses taijutsu and is actually very fast, but still not as fast as Raven. She catches his downward kick with her wrists and sweeps her legs across his ankles to knock him to the ground.
It doesn't take the man very long to get back up and rejoin the circle. A third and fourth attack the blonde together. One uses a fire jutsu, and the other earth. Raven pushes wind chakra into her fans and uses it to manipulate the earth jutsu in a way that redirects the fire away from herself, and towards a different section of the circle.
Only one man from that section is spared as he uses a water jutsu to create a protective layer around himself. Sakura watches the other woman closely. She knows how much skill it would take to use wind in such an effective way, and against two types that are by no mean weak to wind. Another swipe with the chakra laden blades in the earth users direction cuts the man's jutsu in half and instantly kills him. Now there are only five men left.
These men all attack together. "That was a mistake." Whispers Fox.
Sakura looks at him before she looks down on the fight below. "Why?" She asks. In the current situation she probably would have done the same thing.
"Because Raven is three times better at close range fighting than she is at long range." He explains.
It only takes a moment to see what the man is talking about. Subtle hints of the girls wind chakra is placed into her fans, making them sharper and more deadly. Every time she moves, a wind blade is shot at an enemy. One man tries to block it with his sword but it is cleaved in half moments before he is. The last two men are visibly panicking.
The shorter of the two uses a water type flooding jutsu and runs in the other direction. He disappears into the village. Sakura assumes it's to warn the rest. The last man uses a lightning jutsu to electrify the water. Sakura can feel as Fox tenses beside her. Raven crosses her arms at the wrists in front of her and stands perfectly still. Fox shifts, as if to prepare himself to jump into the fray, but Sakura grabs his arm. It's easier to heal one team member than two.
He doesn't seem to notice the contact and his eyes stay locked on the blonde. Moments before the electrified water touches her, she sweeps both of her arms down. Her wind creates two gouges in the earth like a large 'X'. The water goes into the 'X' and completely misses Raven. Sakura hears Fox breathe out a sigh of relief and quickly releases his arm.
The two of them jump behind the last man and Sakura delivers a quick finishing blow to the unprotected muscles in his neck. The man slumps to the ground in an undignified heap. Raven jumps over the remnants of the water. "You guys protect the villagers and our other team, I'm going to make sure that these men don't get away." She orders.
Sakura and Fox both nod their heads and get to work. Sakura breaks away from the other two and runs quickly to the first house. She opens the door, but is quickly met with resistance. A male villager throws a plate at her, but it misses. She stands dumbly in the doorway before she catches onto the mans reasoning. She throws her arms in the air, in a show of surrender. "Wait! I'm from Konoha! I'm here to help!" She exclaims.
The mans eyes widen with hope. "Please help my son, he is sick and I don't know what to do." He begs.
"Okay, where is he?" She asks, relieved that the man doesn't throw another man points to the bedroom behind him. "Alright, I'll do what I can. Go out and gather the others. If they are sick or injured bring them inside, but if not then I need them to stay in the clearing. Steer clear of the fighting too." She orders.
"Thank you." Says the man. Tears of relief appear in his eyes but he quickly dashes them away, and a look of determination takes their place.
He runs out of the house, and Sakura runs into the room. The boy has a fever, is dehydrated, and malnourished. Sakura runs to the kitchen in search of food and water, but quickly finds that there is neither. She runs back to the room and quickly grabs her canteen to give the boy what water she can. Then she reaches into her pouch and pulls out a granola bar. She shakes the boy awake and gives him the bar. He eats it slowly and then quickly falls back asleep when It's gone.
It doesn't take long for more people to start coming into the house. Fox pushes his way to her. "Raven and I are done. The other team is mostly uninjured, so you should be able to go back tonight." He tells her.
She glares at the man for moment. "I will not leave these people here while they are so sick." She tells him.
"I know, but they are not as sick as they are hungry. Raven and I will stay behind and help them start the crops and bring in water. We need you to finish the mission." He tells her.
She looks around the small house and knows the man is right. "Fine." She bites off.
That night she leads the three men back to Konoha. It takes twice as long returning than leaving due to the minor injuries they sustained while being held captive. Once they arrive she takes the men straight to the hospital and then walks leisurely to the Hokage tower to give her report. She fills out the necessary papers and takes them with her when she walks into the office.
Tsunade is in her chair, facing the window. When Sakura enters she turns and faces the girl. "Sakura, I need you to keep what has happened this week to yourself." She tells her without so much as a second of hesitation.
"But why?" She asks, confused. Surely the mission was not an S-rank.
"Because the two ANBU with you are not registered as regular ANBU. They were my shadows and as such it is essential that even their hidden identities remain as secret as possible. On your report, only fill it out as 'the ANBU' or something equally as non-descriptive." She orders.
Sakura's eyes widen with surprise. "But I thought your shadows are only here to protect you." She exclaims.
Tsunade shakes her head. "They are, but there is a shortage of ninja and I trust you to know the gravity of our situation. They went by my request, although Raven especially didn't want to comply with my wishes. I must ask you to keep all of this a secret. You can say that you were on a mission with two ANBU, but you can't say who with. " She tells her.
"Alright, but who will watch over you now?" Asks Sakura. It would explain why Tsunade and Raven were glaring at one another the first day. She never would have guessed that the ANBU she was traveling with are the shadows, though!
Tsunade picks up a piece of paper from off of her desk and allows Sakura to read its contents. "They resigned in order to help the village you three rescued the other team from. My new shadows have already been appointed, although I will not be told who they are, just as I do not know who those two are." Explains Tsunade.
Sakura nods her head. "I understand. I'll keep this to myself." She promises.
XD XD XD XD XD XD XD
Ok, so funny story. I was at band camp last week and (Because we are competing regionally (and hopefully nationally) this year) have been mainly focused on my feet and my music (It's MARCHING band, guys. Our regular band consists of too many people that play for an easy A). I wasn't able to update then, and actually forgot to update yesterday. ^.^;
I plan on updating every other Monday, because
A.) I hate Mondays, and it will give me something to look forward to.
B.) These chapters are WAY longer than what I'm used to.
C.) Regionals and then regional finals in a month.
D.) School is starting in a week. I'm a Senior in high school, guys. I have to get my grades up and then keep them up so the insurance on my car is more manageable.
Thanks for all the comments so far, I really love the feedback!