INTRODUCTION
Welcome back to Book III on the End of Innocence! As always I start by saying I do not own Naruto.
THANK YOU
Thanks to those readers who reviewed my last chapter: GravenImage, iiDarkness, airnaruto45, StoryMaster007, dragonshaun9, PJ Hatake, 101FallingRock, Kushina's Truth of Hell, charles cdv, EmpKaylenatye, Serenity Namikaze.
REPLIES
GravenImage - Yep, unfortunately thier reunion will have to wait a bit (sorry airnaruto45) but it will happen. Unfortunately they must get stronger apart before they can be strong together. *hint hint*
iiDarkness - Actually no. i know what you mean. it was intentional. Chapter six was more about character development rather then story development.
As for Hinata's words, the meaning will be explained later. As for the end of chapter four i gotta say i don't see how it could be confusing. From my perspective I thought it was pretty clear. I even read it twice after I read your review and I still don't see it. But Maybe I'll have someone proof it for me again and see if any changes can be made.
airnaruto45 - Demanding aren't we. :P
StoryMaster007 - I give a shit about your opinion. Trust me Sakura wanted to. But this is a war and hard decisions must be made. Perhaps our little flower is growing up.
dragonshaun9 - Well, thanks for finally doing so. :D
PJ Hatake - Thanx.
101FallingRock - Glad you liked Sakura's return. Kabumaru had a few scenes in Book I. Dude you really need to stay away from the beach. That place is dangerous.
Kushina's - I plan to roll on! I'll make you happy right till the final chapter. After that...:(...well you're on your own.
charles cdv - Thanx
EmpKaylenatye - Yes, Sakura is growing up.
Serenity Namikaze - Thanks for all the reviews. First off, unfortunately Sakura is dead. Shikamaru has really taken on the roll of his closest male friend and confidant. I really liked adding Omoi, Karui and Samui and I'm glad Samui's betrayal was a surprise. Does Sasuke have a conscience? Or was this all for his benefit too? Oh yeah...Sakura...she is alive. :P And I'm glad you like what I've done with her. BTW, the reason everyone calls her "chan" no is because of her status in the village. Go back to her talk with Naruto after he comes out of a coma in Book two to see what I mean.
Ok, so thanks again for reading and here is Chapter seven. Please remember to send a review my way!
Naruto: Chronicles of the Seventh
Book III: End of Innocence
Chapter VII: The Message
******Mountain Range just outside the Land of Fire – Several Weeks Ago******
"It would seem," Jugo said, "that you no longer have a reason to go to this mountain." Yamato felt a fire light in the pit of his stomach and had the urge to tear this man to shreds.
Before he could say or do anything, Anko grabbed him by his arm. "Look out," she screamed as she pulled him. Anko and Yamato were able to leap clear just as a several large boulders from the exploding mountain crashed down. A boulder then flew inches from the pair, forcing them to let go of each other. Ymamto turned to try to grab Anko but she was lost in the smoke and haze.
Yamato was forced to leap and dodge as debris from the explosion rained down upon him. Yamato landed on the ground and looked up and saw an incredibly large piece of the mountain hurtling towards him. He quickly made several hand signs and said, "Wood Release: Wood Locking Dome!" Large columns of wood sprung up from the earth on either side of Yamato and created a dome to shelter him as the boulder came crashing down.
A few minutes later, Yamato dug his way out from the rubble and looked around. The dust was still settling around him and Yamato coughed slightly. Slowly he looked around for any sign of Anko. With all the destruction around him he was concerned she had gotten hurt or worse.
Yamato turned as he heard a noise coming from not too far away and as he ran to the spot where the sound was coming from a large snake broke out of the rubble and fell to the ground. Weakened and covered in cuts and bruises the snake began to spit a large object from its mouth. Yamato quickly saw that it was Anko.
As Anko was released from the snakes' mouth, Yamato helped her to her feet. "Are you alright," he asked.
Anko nodded and said, "Yes." She then turned to the snake and bowed slightly. "I'm sorry for causing you so much pain," she said to the snake. "But I thank you for saving my life. Please, go and rest." The snake did not say a word but rather disappeared in a puff of white smoke.
Anko looked around at the destruction around them. "Damn," she said. "This seems to be pretty over the top just to kill one girl."
Yamato looked around sadly. "Sakura," he whispered.
Anko looked at Yamato. Even though he and Sakura weren't very close, they were still former team mates. "Any chance that big bruiser got caught in the blast," she asked.
"I doubt we'd be that lucky," Yamato responded. "He probably used the explosion to make his escape. In any event he's no longer our concern."
"Right," Anko said. "We should start looking to see if we can find Sakura under all this. Maybe she's still alive."
"Yes," Yamato said somberly, "You begin searching over here and I'll start over there." Yamato then walked away. Yamato, though he hoped for a miracle, in his heart knew there was no hope. Sakura was presumably at the heart of this explosion. How could she possibly survive? Anko knew it too. Despite her words of hope there was no sound of conviction in it.
They weren't searching to find Sakura alive. They were searching to find her body, so that they may give her a proper burial. Yamato quickly made some hand signs and his shoulders began to expand and two wood clones grew out. "You two know what to do," Yamato said and without a word they began to dig.
Meanwhile, Anko spread both her arms out and dozens of small snakes began to slither out from inside her sleeves and began to squeeze into any cracks in the rubble it could find.
After nearly an hour of searching, Anko walked up to Yamato who, along with his clones, were still digging. "Yamato," Anko said, "I think we should stop for now. Chances are Sakura did not survive this and…."
Before Anko could finish what she was saying they heard a loud crack coming from under the ground nearby. Suddenly the ground broke open and Anko and Yamato were left in awe at what they saw.
******Mountain Range just outside the Land of Fire – One Hour Ago******
"Sasuke," Sakura yelled as Sasuke and Madara disappeared. All around her little mini explosions were going off and she knew she had only a few more seconds to escape. Sakura tried to get to her feet but every muscle in her body burned with pain. Even if she could get to her feet she knew she couldn't run or jump so there was no point to it.
At this point Sakura knew she had but one shot. I have to use that jutsu, she thought to herself. But, I'm not sure if I have enough chakra left. I'll likely have to use almost all of the chakra for my stamina as well. If I end up using it all, I'll die. But if I don't do it, I'll die anyway. It was at that moment Sakura remembered the day her sensei taught her this jutsu.
******Konoha – Residence of Tsunade – Several years ago******
"All right Sakura," Tsunade said, "It's time for you to learn another jutsu." Sakura stood several feet away from Tsunade. She was bent over with her hands on her knees and gasping for breath.
"Sen…..sei," Sakura said, "Can't….we….just take a little break. I've been training non-stop for hours!"
"Ha," Tsunade laughed, "Sakura you should know by now that it's when you're at your most tired that I like to push you!" Tsunade's face then grew very serious and she said, "Besides, this jutsu is one I can only teach to you Sakura. I believe you have the ability."
Sakura became very serious and waited as Tsunade produced a large scroll. She laid it on the ground and opened it. Within, she saw several dozen names and directly underneath each these names were a blood stained handprint.
"Sakura," Tsunade said, "what I am about to teach you is the Summoning Jutsu. But first before you can learn it, you must sign a contract with your summon." Tsunade stepped away from the scroll and said, "As my apprentice I will have you also learn to summon slugs." Tsunade then bit her thumb and wiped the blood on her right palm. "Summoning Jutsu," she said as she slammed her right hand on the ground.
In a giant puff of smoke a large slug appeared. Sakura smiled and said, 'Lady Katsuyu!"
"Hello Sakura-chan," Katsuyu said.
"Ok," Tsuande said, "Let's have you sign a contract Sakura."
"Great," Sakura said smiling. But then Sakura suddenly realized something. "Wait Sensei," she said, "I can't sign a contract with the same animal as you can I?"
Tsunade smiled and said, "Actually you can. But that's not what's going to happen in this case. The reason I summoned Katsuyu was so she could bring the slug that you'll contract with."
It was then a small white slug with a large pink spot on its back crawled from behind Katsuyu. Sakura suddenly blushed and threw up her hands. "Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God," she yelled as she scooped up the small slug and cradled it like a baby. She then began to run around frantically. "She's soooo adorable! I can't believe how cute you are! I wonder what I'll name you! Do you have a name already! I can't believe….."
"Sakura," Tsunade interrupted, "Please try to control yourself!"
Sakura froze and then stood at attention. "Right sensei," she said, "Sorry sensei."
"Now as you can see, Katsuyu just recently had babies," Tsunade said. "And this is one of them. Please introduce yourself little one."
The slug looked at Sakura and said, "Hello Sakura-sama. My name is Kotetsu."
Sakura smiled, "Kotetsu. That's a beautiful name. But wait, Sensei. Kotetsu is so small. How will she be able to help me?"
Tsuande smiled and said, "Don't worry Sakura. Slugs grow a lot faster than other animal summons. Just wait and see. In a few years, she'll be all the help you'll need."
******Mountain Range just outside the Land of Fire******
Well, Sakura thought. Here goes nothing! Sakura slammed her palm to the ground and yelled, "Summoning Jutsu!" A large cloud of smoke appeared next to her and as it cleared Kotetsu, several stories in height stood.
Kotetsu instantly moved over Sakura's body to shield her from the falling debris. "Sakura-sama," Kotetsu yelled. But Sakura did not respond. Her body lay still and her eyes were closed.
As the mountain continued to fall around them Kotetsu absorbed Sakura's unconscious body into herself as everything went dark.
******Mountain Range just outside the Land of Fire – One Hour Later******
"You," Yamato said as he and Anko saw Kotetsu break free from under the rubble. Kotetsu quickly fell over next to them. "I can't believe it," Yamato said and he and Anko ran up to the large slug. "I'd heard from Lady Tsunade that Sakura had learned the Summoning Jutsu, but I never thought….."
"Please," Kotetsu said weakly, "Sakura-sama needs your help." Sakura's unconscious body was then slowly released from Kotetsu into Yamato's arms. Gently he lowered her to the ground. "Sakura-sama used too much of her chakra," Kotetsu said, "She needs help. I tried to heal her as best I could but I had to focus too much of my chakra on protecting us from the explosion. I'm sorry I couldn't do more."
"It's ok," Yamato said. "You've done plenty already." Kotetsu then vanished in a cloud of smoke.
Anko kneeled next to Sakura and placed her hands on her chest. Anko's hands began to glow as she inspected the damage. "She's right," Anko said. "Sakura's chakra is practically at zero. She's also been severely burned, has multiple broken bones, a concussion and may have in internal bleeding. She's going to need major medical assistance and even then there's no guarantee she'll survive."
"Can you help her," Yamato asked.
"I'll try," Anko said, "But I'm no full fledged medical ninja. But working with Orochimaru over the years allowed me to learn some things. First thing's first, we'll need to get her to a safe spot. My hideaway is only a few miles from here. We need to hurry."
******Some time later******
Sakura's eyes opened slowly. She wasn't immediately sure where she was. The first thing she saw was the wooden ceiling above and the light streaming from the nearby window. She could hear the chirping of birds and the sound of running water, perhaps a waterfall.
Slowly, painfully, Sakura sat up and her body ached and she could feel her singed skin tingling all over. Sakura looked at her arms and chest, legs and face and realized she was heavily wrapped in bandages. One of her legs and arms was wrapped in a cast and she could tell through her labored breathing that several of her ribs were broken.
Sakura then heard someone nearby say, "So you're awake?" Sakura turned to see Anko walking towards her with a cup of water. "That's good," she said as she allowed Sakura to sip the water. "You were touch and go there at the beginning. I wasn't sure I had enough skill to prevent you're death. Then after that you fell into a coma. We were scared you might not come out of it. But your will to live is surprisingly strong."
"A coma," Sakura asked. Suddenly the memories all began to flood back to Sakura. She remembered going with Sasuke, fighting him, the pain, Kotetsu, then darkness. "How long was I out," she asked.
Anko kneeled next to Sakura and began to check her wounds. "Almost ten days," she said. "You have multiple bone fractures and burns all over your body; not to mention a concussion. You're lucky to be alive. If it wasn't for your Slug….."
Sakura smiled lightly and said, "Yes. Kotetsu was a life saver. Thank you Anko-chan. Where are we?"
"My hideout," Anko said. "Yamato and I brought you here after we found you. He's off checking the perimeter."
Much to Anko's surprise, Sakura attempted to get up only to scream in pain. Anko gently guided Sakura back down and said, "You shouldn't push yourself Sakura. It'll take weeks, if not a month or two for you to get back on your feet."
Sakura closed her eyes tightly as she fought through the wave of pain that hit her. Slowly a vision came to her of Naruto, Sasuke and Madara. Something bad was coming soon….she knew it. "No," she said through gritted teeth. "I can't afford to wait that long. I need to get back as soon as possible."
"But Sakura…..." Anko said.
Sakura quickly interrupted her and said, "Listen Anko-chan, I'm not sure what their planning…..but Akatsuki…..there're going to making their final move soon, I know it. I need to be ready. I need you to do something for me."
Anko sighed deeply. As much as she wanted to protest she knew Sakura was right. The way things had been progressing lately proved Akatsuki was becoming far more aggressive. If Sakura could get back on her feet quickly, Anko had to help make it happen. "Fine," Anko replied. "What do you need?"
"I need you to cook for me," sakura said.
Anko immediately recoiled in horror. "C-cook," she stuttered.
"Yes," Sakura replied. "Take this list of ingredients down and have Yamato go out and get them. I'll also need as much food as you can spare."
Over then next few days Sakura spent her time eating as much food as she could. The ingredients she had Yamato collect were for Anko to make her specialized Soldier Pills. Anko and Yamato sat in awe as Sakura consumed food and Soldier Pills endlessly. I haven't seen anyone eat like this since Choji, Yamato thought to himself.
As the days passed, Sakura's strength grew and Anko marveled at how quickly she was recovering. In two days Sakura was able to stand on her own. Within five her broken bones were all nearly healed and ten days later many of her scars were beginning to fade.
Nearly a month had passed since her run in with Sasuke as Sakura stood on the small terrace in Anko's home. Anko's place was a small wooden, three room house, suspended on a large tree overlooking a waterfall. Sakura took a deep breath and took in the fresh crisp air. As she looked out at the waterfall she could see a faint rainbow and birds and butterflies flying about. The place was a small paradise. Anko had covered the placed with lots of foliage so that even from close by a person had a hard time noticing the place.
Sakura looked at her hand and balled it into a fist and squeezed. She then looked on the inside of her blouse and saw that the small purple diamond had returned just above her heart.
Anko walked out onto the terrace and looked at Sakura. I can't believe it, she thought. Her wounds would have taken anyone else two months or more to heal from at least. And she's practically one hundred percent in just about two weeks. Yamato wasn't kidding when he said Sakura has finally surpassed Lady Tsunade.
"Sakura," Anko said, "It looks like your back to fighting form."
"Close," Sakura said, "I'm not fully healed yet. But I think I'm good enough for me to make my way back to Konoha."
"About that," Anko said, "Yamato and I have been talking and we don't think it's a good idea for you to go back just yet. Come inside, we need to talk."
Sakura followed Anko inside where Yamato sat waiting. "Ok," Sakura said, "What's all this garbage about me not going back to Konoha?"
"Calm down Sakura," Yamato said. "Look, I think it's fairly obvious that Danzo was responsible for setting you up."
"All the more reason to go back," Sakura said. "I can take him down!"
"No you can't Sakura," Anko said. "Take it from someone who knows, Danzo is slippery. You don't have any actual proof of his guilt and without it you can't do anything. And besides, if you return, not only will Danzo know you're alive but so will Akatsuki and they'll try to kill you again."
"So what do you suggest I do," Sakura asked.
"Right now I think its best you lay low," Yamato said. "As you know Tsunade and the others are planning to go after Danzo. I think we should wait for that moment and then we can strike."
"What," Sakura said, "But it could be another few weeks before they're ready. Do you guys just expect me to sit around and hide!'
"Of course not," Anko said. "Yamato and I were thinking we could use this time to take out as much Akatsuki forces in the area as we could. It's not much but it's something."
Sakura thought about it for a few minutes and then said, "Fine. I'll go along with your plan for now."
"Great," Yamato said. Yamato then threw a package at Sakura's feet.
Sakura picked it up and opened it. "This is an ANBU uniform," she said.
"Yes," Anko said, "What better way to move about without risking someone recognizing you." Anko then pulled a small paper seal from her pocket. "You'll also need this," she said.
"What's that," Sakura asked.
"It's a standard ANBU seal that masks chakra signatures," Anko said. "This will prevent ninja who can sense chakra from spotting you."
Sakura picked up the seal and looked at it. No one who can sense my chakra, she thought to herself.
******Border between the Land of Fire and Land of Sound – Now******
Sakura sat and stared as the last of the fire began to die out in their make shift campfire. When the sun had set Anko had suggested they stop moving and get some rest in anticipation for what lay ahead. Since she couldn't sleep anyway, Sakura volunteered to take the first shift.
As Anko and Yamato fell asleep Sakura leapt up to a high tree branch above them and sat watch. As she did her mind began to wander and she recalled all the things she had been through over the years, and all the trials and tribulations since becoming a Genin. And throughout it all she kept coming back to Naruto.
No matter how hopeless the situation, Naruto smiled. No matter how dark the times, he smiled. When their backs were against the wall, he smiled. And when she was at her saddest, he smiled.
And yet, Sakura couldn't help but wonder how many times his smile was because of her. Because of something she had done or said. No matter what she did or how much she tried, Sakura always felt like she couldn't help him. Despite what she had said to Hinata, about having faith, in her heart all she wanted to do was go to him, to help him. And yet, she couldn't, once again she felt useless. Naruto was hundreds of miles away, thinking she was dead. Who knows what was going though his mind.
Sakura then recalled a moment that happened so long ago. She, Naruto, Yamato and Sai had gone after Orochimaru, hoping he'd lead them to Sasuke. It was then she saw it for the first time, the power of the Nine Tails. She remembered the fear she felt and the anguish.
"It's always been like this," Sakura said back then. "The only things I seem capable of doing for Naruto are so small."
"It's not about the size of what you do for Naruto that's important," Yamato replied, "But how you feel about him that's important."
As Sakura sat on the branch and looked up at the stars she rubbed her hand over the temporary seal placed on her left shoulder. "Only small things," she whispered to herself. At that moment Sakura made a decision. There was something she could do, even though it was small, for Naruto.
Sakura looked down at the temporary seal and peeled it away. Meanwhile, just below her, Yamato was laying on his back and looking up at her. Seeing her peel away the seal, Yamato smiled and closed his eyes.
Sakura had decided, no matter the cost, she was going to this little thing for Naruto. Closing her eyes, she focused on her chakra and forced all of it to flare out. Sakura was intent on sending Naruto a message. A message only he could understand.
And, several hundred miles away, in a small cell, sat Naruto in meditation. As he has been doing for the past month, he has been training his Sage chakra. Suddenly Naruto's eyes flew open in surprise, they were focused and steely. A light had flickered in the darkness and suddenly went out just as quickly. But it was enough for him to understand. And with that understanding a smile slowly crept along his face.
Message received.
End of Chapter VII
Next Time: Madara's Betrayal