"Veritum dies aperit" (Time discovers the truth)
Chapter 2 Recovery
Sakura couldn't resist the bright, cheery smile that lighted her lips as she toke in the trees, and the grass, and the flowers. Despite the fact that she was in a wheelchair- the idiot burnette nurse had sweetly insisted- she still felt free. Gazing behind her at the energetic blond who was, perhaps, pushing too fast- he had insisted- she felt rather than saw that her grin was reflected on Naruto's face.
"Slow down Naruto" Kakashi repriminded her teammate lightly from her right as the wheelchair hit a particularly large bump in the road that caused her to jolt. But Sakura didn't care. After being couped up in the hospital for the promised two weeks, she felt such freedom.
They arrived at her apartment a few minutes later, and Sakura gazed for a few moments at the building fondly. She had been pleasantly surprised to find out that they had done nothing with it- such as throwing all of her stuff out and renting the room off to someone else. Upon inquiry Kakashi had said that the owner was paid through the bank, because as a kuniochi she could be gone on missions for months at a time. Apparently she had enough money to stretch it out this far.
Upon reaching the stairs, Sakura looked imploringly at her old sensei, who had the gull to pretend to consider her request before nodding with a smirk. Thanking him with a breath, Sakura pushed herself out of the wheelchair perhaps a little too forcefully. Losing her balance, Sakura hobbled for a few steps, before she was able to right herself. Holding her hands out to stop Naruto and Kakashi from helping her, Sakura started to walk to stairs with a determined glint in her eyes.
She made it to the third floor before she began to breath a little heavier, and frustrated, Sakura felt like cursing. She was ridiculously out of shape, and while Tsunade had not found any cause for it, Sakura was determined to do her own research when she got the chance. Finally reaching her room on the fourth floor, Sakura unlocked the door with an extra key the owner's had kept in the main office downstairs, and had to cover her mouth for all of the dust that seemed to seep through.
Sighing into her mouth, Sakura gave her boys a last wave and a smile, before darting into her room, closing the door behind her. First things first- Sakura opened all of the windows and cracked the blinds as open as they would go. Then, pushing her sleeves up to bunch at her elbows, she got to work cleaning and dusting everything off. It toke hours, and by the time Sakura declared it decent, she was exhausted. Resisting the urge to let out the frustrated scream that had been building up inside her chest all day, Sakura fell like a rock into her bedsheets and slept.
When Sakura came to, she dimly remembered dreams filled with mixed images that didn't make any sense. Pushing herself out of bed, she realized that it was the next day, and morning by the way the sunshine was beaming into her room. Ignoring her aching muscles, and reminding herself that they were inevitable as she slowly regained strength, Sakura got out of bed and headed to her bathroom to take a shower.
Feeling infinitely more relaxed after she was showered and dressed in simple slacks and a t-shirt, Sakura headed to the kitchen while absentmindedly rubbing her stomach. She could only feel the slightest bump, but it still made her smile. Sakura prepared a tea pot on the stove, and ate a piece of fruit that she had brought with her from the hospital. She had cleared what little was left from her fridge and cupboards in the trash yesterday, and planned to visit the marketplace after breakfast.
Sighing, she placed the herbs that Tsunade had given her in a tea cup full of steaming water, adding a few spoonfuls of sugar before stirring absentmindedly. The herbs so far had not been very effective, but Tsunade assured her that this was because she had not moved from the hospital, where all of the sights and smells were the same. Now that she had the power to move around village at will, Tsunade told her that more memories should return. Sakura blew on her tea several times before taking a sip. Mentally, she began to plan.
Her muscles had made themselves a priority, so the library was definitely one of her destinations this morning, before she picked up groceries. She could check out whatever scrolls she figured she would need to research. Among the things she needed to pick up at the marketplace, cleaning supplies were a must. New weapons, if they would permit her to buy them. If they didn't, she would have to smuggle them through. New clothes, definitely- for some reason she felt that her taste in clothing had changed, and was not prompted to wear anything in her closet. Somewhat curious as to what her new look would be, Sakura was dimly excited. Medical supplies that she could keep handy would be a good idea. And then, of course, food. She just hoped that she had enough money for everything that she needed.
Finishing her tea, Sakura set out, a wad of retrieved cash saftely stashed in her left front pocket.
When she got to the library, Sakura toke a large whiff of the ancient tombs and scrolls and smiled to herself. She loved the smell of libraries.
Moving through the few people that mingled in between the bookcases, Sakura went straight to the medical section, located in the very right back corner that was difficult to place unless you already knew where it was. Shifting through the scrolls, Sakura stopped when she found the one she was looking for. The one ironically labeled, Abuses of the Body: Chemical Responses.
Picking it up, Sakura made her way to the front of the library where she greeted the head librarian by name, before asking to check out the scroll. After it was safely stowed in her pack, Sakura smiled at the woman behind the desk politely, before making her way out of the library, and towards the market.
Somewhat startled by the bombardment of noise that hit her as she got closer to the clusters of people, Sakura started to breath meditatively. Not quite able to grasp why so many people made her uncomfortable- she didn't remember acting like this before- Sakura toke the few steps that led her to the marketplace.
Picking out a stall that was selling cleaning supplies, Sakura was able to bargain her way through the basics relatively inexpensively. She stopped before heading to the weapon's stall, however. Looking around warily, Sakura was able to pinpoint two ANBU that were placed relatively inconspicuously, but Sakura knew better. She had felt them following her since she left her apartment, and inwardly smirking to herself, Sakura shook her head. The council might have as well screamed out their insecurity at her presence. Figuring that asking Naruto or Kakashi for weapons would be easier than the trouble she could get into otherwise, Sakura headed instead to the stall that bore a short, but large-breasted women shouting out prices for kunoichi clothing. She had tanned olive skin, curly dark brown hair, and a somewhat crooked nose.
At her approach the woman gave her a wink coupled with a knowing look, and announced slyly, "You in need of new clothes? I got sales."
Sakura attempted to ignore the way the woman's breasts bounced slightly against her red shirt as she moved towards Sakura imploringly. Instead, Sakura looked the woman directly in the eye, nodded, and steeled herself to begin bargaining.
"Ah, but you have child" the woman stated almost reverently, looking at Sakura's stomach with widened eyes. Sakura was somewhat disturbed that the woman knew this, but nodded in assessment. The woman's grin grew. "Clothes on me" she announced instead, before very quickly going through piles, throwing chosen pieces at Sakura as she found them.
A bemused expression dominating her features, Sakura caught all of the clothes the woman threw her way and gave each of them an assessing look. All of the clothes, strangely enough, were exactly what she was looking for, and in some variation of the colors of red and black . Still confused, but smiling shyly, Sakura asked the woman, "Are you sure?"
"Course!" the woman announced enthusiastically, before pushing the young woman from her booth. "And feel free to visit Nokia-san anytime" she finished, before waving gaily as Sakura walked away, a large pile of clothing in her arms. Sakura decided not to over-analyze the situation, and stopped to stow the enormous bundle of clothes in her pack. Barely able to click the pack closed comfortably, Sakura ran fingers through her long pink hair before heading to a stall that was selling medical supplies.
Absentmindedly buying supplies, and foods that she seemed to have a craving for, Sakura gradually relaxed out of the state that her reaction with "Nokia-san" had caused her. For some reason, she found the woman's presence very comfortable, even when there were so many things about the woman that disturbed her. There was no mistaking the glint of intelligence in the woman's eyes, however, and Sakura was left wondering how much of the woman Nokia-san displayed was an act. Shaking her head slightly, Sakura forced the slightest amount of chakra into her arms to help carry the groceries without it being too much of a strain on her muscles.
Walking out of the marketplace towards her apartment, Sakura stopped as she spotted an ANBU stationed on top of a building to the right of her, but the outfit of the shinobi put her off for a second. It wasn't regulated ANBU wear, she noticed with displeasure. It belonged to a member of ANBU Root.
Wincing suddenly and violently, Sakura was assaulted by a barrage of images that threatened to overwhelm her. Falling to her knees in favor of toppling over, Sakura could feel her head pulsating painfully until finally the images suddenly came together, and much like blanking out, Sakura was attacked with a stream of memories that made her cry out silently.
"Haruno-san, you are under arrest. Stop now, or we will be forced to take action" a masked ANBU Root member proclaimed impassionately to the Hokage's apprentice, who was currently standing an the division wall that protected the village. It was night, and the only source of light was a waning moon that illuminated both bodies.
"And who ordered the arrest?" Sakura asked drying, a deep scowl bringing her lips down into a frown. Her back was starting to ache slightly at the weight of her enormous pack, but she shrugged it off.
"Danzo-sama" the man stated, "And the council." He waited, body tense, for her to make a move.
Sakura sighed to herself, and toke the time to briefly run her hands through short pink locks. "Under what charges?" She asked somewhat lazily, forcing any feelings of anxiety or fear down before they had a chance to show through her eyes and change her facial expression.
"For your physical assault on Danzo-sama, and the accusation from the council that you have crucial and confidential information about the village that you have been leaking to outside sources" the ANBU Root stated without infliction of any kind. Sakura briefly considered the cruel techniques that would be necessary to create such a life-less shell, before she considered the accusations.
"So, basically, I am being charged with treason" Sakura stated, before crossing her arms together under her chest. The action was familiar, and gave her some small shred of confidence.
The man just nodded. He was positive now what actions the woman would take. Treason was punishable by death, so to stay would be nothing short of suicide. Gripping a kunai in his right hand, the ANBU Root prepared himself.
Sakura saw his movements, and smiled. Danzo-sama, she thought to herself sarcastically. What a load of bull. He and the council were just a bunch of control-crazed murderers. In the far reaches of her mind Sakura felt a stab of pity for Sasuke and Itachi, and the Uchiha's in general.
Tilting her head slightly, she performed the last seal for the transportation jutsu that she had started when her fingers were in her hair. Still smiling, she could just make out the irritation on the man's face before she disappeared into the night.
Sakura gasped at the memory, prying her hands away from the brown bags, before setting the groceries down in front of her, shaking. Interesting, she thought to herself. The herbs worked.
Still disorientated, Sakura toke measured breaths until she could feel her heartbeat and pulse relax. Now that she was confident that she could rise without toppling over, Sakura gathered the groceries in her arms, and stood up with a groan. It would not do to show such weakness in public, she berated herself. She needed to make her way home, raising as little suspicion as possible.
Walking slowly, she made herself take small, relaxed, and paced steps. After a few minutes, and after eyeing the ANBUs steady presence, however, Sakura figured she could use the illusion to her advantage, and immediately began to slouch, walking almost as if it was physically causing her pain. Which wasn't so difficult considering the muscle aches that continued to rack her body.
Finally reaching her apartment, and ignoring the throbbing that resulted from her journey up the stairs under so much weight, Sakura let down all of her packs with a sigh. Methodically putting the food away, she toke time to consider what she had learned from her regained memory.
Her intuition had been right. The council was certainly up to something, and apparently she was wanted dead for knowing too much. That in itself was not an oddity- she had heard of executions ordered by the council for less. Danzo's involvement didn't really surprise her much either. She had always despised the man, even if it was just for the creation of people like Sai. In any case, this memory was an reminder that she should keep to her toes, just in case.
The only part of the flashback that had caused her any sort of confusion was the mention her brain had made to the Uchihas. She had often felt pity for Sasuke, for losing his family and hating his brother, but since when had she felt pity for Itachi? He murdered his clan, destroying innocent lives without even a just cause. It didn't make any sense, and as Sakura started packing one of her empty medical packs with supplies she figured that this was probably going to bother her for awhile. She had to have found out something about the Uchiha's that said something about Itachi's involvement in the massacre, or perhaps, lack thereof.
Brows furrowed in bemusement, Sakura sighed, and added Itachi and the massacre to her list of things to research. In the mean time though- Sakura threw all of her new clothes in the wash, and sat down comfortably on her couch with the scroll she had checked out of the library. Abuses of the Body: Chemical Responses.
Distantly making a resolve to brew some tea after she was finished, Sakura went immediately to the bottom of the scroll where she could remember a chart listing symptoms and their causes. Looking for anything associated with disintegration of muscles, Sakura was surprised at what she found. Snake Venom. Sakura frowned as she considered that. She couldn't make any assumptions until she could find the report that stated the toxins injected into her at the hospital, but just in case Sakura looked it up and kept reading.
The rest of what she read was not helpful. It listed symptoms she did not have, and then went into detailed instructions about what not to do if someone you know was bitten by a snake. The only possible remedy listed was an anti-venom solution that was common enough to find, but was useless unless you knew what type of snake you were bitten by.
Giving out a huff of frustration, and feeling somewhat better for it, Sakura wrapped the scroll and set it back inside of her pack. Setting her wet clothes out to dry, Sakura went about brewing tea, and making a lunch that she determined to be nutritionally sufficient. In any case, she reminded herself, there were vitamins that she could take that would help her muscles grow without any serious side-affects. Protein especially was important to consume before training.
With a bubble of contained enthusiasm in her chest, Sakura contemplated the start of her training. For the next two weeks she would practice warming up, and strengthening her muscles, but there was so much more that she could be doing. Reminding herself of the importance of patience, Sakura toke a calm breath, and made a cup of tea with a smile.
Collecting the now dried clothes, she set them on her bed to sort through later, failing to notice the small and indistinguished sign of the Uchiha clan stitched to the bottom of every piece.
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters. Crying Shame.
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