"Veritum dies aperit" (Time discovers the truth)
Chapter 3 Questions
Sakura made her way into the hospital with considerable cheer for her bi-weekly check-up, both on her and the baby. Today would be the day where it would be determined whether she was fit enough to start training, and Sakura suffered no qualms. She had spent the last two weeks carefully monitoring her body, rigidly controlling her diet, vitamin intake, and exercise. She had successfully managed to get her body more in shape while avoiding complete exhaustion, and felt the better for it.
Nodding and smiling politely at the woman attending to the front desk, Sakura made her way into waiting room. Very pleased at the improved ease in which she was able to move around in, and her regained sense of balance that seemed to bless her with a certain amount of grace, Sakura sat down on an unoccupied chair away from everyone else. Looking around blankly, her gaze turned to glance out the window, and it was not very long before Sakura was lost in thought.
She had continued taking the herbs that Tsunade had requested of her, but thankfully, there were not any incidences similar to that of the marketplace. Sakura felt a strange surge of apprehension as she thought about it that she did not completely understand. Happy to let the thought drift away from her, she was confronted with the one that had been nagging her for the last two weeks.
She had done what research she could about Itachi and the massacre while remaining as discreet as possible, which was not an easy task. She was sure that someone, whether Danzo or the council, was watching her every move, and would be especially sensitive when it came to information intake. That guaranteed that all of the items she checked out, looked at, or even touched in public would be removed for examination.
This had left Sakura with whatever books or scrolls that was already within the vicinity of her home. At first she had assumed that only the bingo book would contain any useful information, but it appeared that there were a few scrolls very inconspicuously placed on her shelves that were very Uchiha specific. Sakura could not remember how they got to be there, though, and concluded that this was the second time she was performing such research.
The scrolls, however interesting, did not answer her direct questions, however, and were thus momentarily discarded. One, for example, explained various techniques of the Sharingan, and the advantages and disadvantages that could be found using it. While Sakura was severely intrigued, both at the information and how such a rare and potentially dangerous scroll made its way into her home, nothing was mentioned that had any correlation with the Uchiha prodigy. Likewise another scroll gave a lengthy and detailed description of the founding of the village, the Uchiha's involvement in it, and the stickiness of the politics that ensued following its creation. Sakura read the piece at length, twice even in some parts, but was forced to put it down after it became obvious that Itachi was not mentioned.
Sighing at the window somewhat exasperatingly, Sakura was planning for other ways of obtaining information when the door opened on the other side of the room, and a nurse called her name in a short, clipped voice. Getting up, she made her way towards the door, and followed the nurse inside. Smiling absentmindedly, Sakura was able to appreciate that the nurse attending to her was not a brunette, but had long, beautiful blond hair. Wait...
"Ino-pig?" Sakura asked, startling the nurse out of whatever revere she had been in. Said nurse turned swiftly around, before glaring at Sakura with narrow eyes.
"Only my best friend is allowed to call me that, thank you very much" Ino growled, subconsciously clenching her clipboard in grip that must have been painful. Sakura was struck between being amused, and remorseful. Waiting a few moments, Sakura noticed that Ino's expression had not changed, and that there was an air of seriousness around her that caused Sakura to visibly deflate.
"I'm sorry, Ino" was all Sakura could bring herself to say.
"As if that solves anything" Ino retorted angrily, before whipping back around. "Now if you will follow me..." She was cut off by Sakura's obviously upset remark.
"Don't you dare turn your back on me Ino-pig!" Sakura cried out, suddenly and unexplainably desperate at the result of Ino's retreat. "Don't you dare!" she said again as the girl spun around for the second time.
"And why not, Sa-ku-ra? I assumed that you would be very familiar with the gesture by now. Am I making you uncomfortable?" Ino sniped unpleasantly, her lips pulled back in a scowl, hands now placed on her hips.
"They were going to kill me, Ino. I had to leave" Sakura stated, tears starting to fall through angry eyes, gently and silently as they streamed down her cheeks. Sakura barely felt them in her desperation, her hands clenched together in front of her in frustration.
"What?" Ino asked, startled, rapidly losing any anger she had from both Sakura's words and at the sight of Sakura's tears. She tried to fight it, to grasp at the shreds of anger before they left her, but they were gone all too soon, and she was left with disappoint and fear in their place.
"I had no choice" Sakura reiterated, sincerity positively shining from her features. Silence resonated around the two kunoichi for the next few moments.
Then Ino huffed, knowing that she was going to end up believing the pink-haired woman in the end anyway. So instead of attacking her, she asked "Who? Who was going to kill you?" Ino thought that it was an appropriate question. A way to measure the amount of trust Sakura put in her. From her answer, she could determine the direction of their friendship.
Sakura appeared stumped for a few moments, and Ino toke her silence negatively. Turning around, Ino tried to brush off the disappointment and depression that was welling up inside of her, before she felt a hand on her shoulder. Looking back, she glared at Sakura. "What?" she spat.
Sakura nodded slowly several times, before moving to give her a hug. Ino flinched and tried to move back, but Sakura stopped her with a flash in her eyes. Wrapping her arms around the resistant and clearly uncomfortable med-nin, Sakura stated quietly in Ino's right ear, "I have been followed since I was released from the hospital. If you really want to know, we will have to travel to a more secure destination." Giving Ino one last squeeze, Sakura stepped back to look at the blond.
Ino was once again startled, but after she had a moment to collect herself, she nodded in assessment in Sakura's direction. Sakura gave her a nod in return, before gesturing in front of her pointedly with one hand. Ino toke Sakura's hand in her own, pleased to see the surprised smile that crossed Sakura's face, before leading Sakura further into the hospital confidently.
"So what has my Billboard Brow been up to these last... what, two years? Kami, you need to learn to visit" Ino asked conversationally, happiness blooming in her chest to the point that she almost radiated in good-humor.
Sakura had to raise a brow at the suggestion. "You really think Missing-nins have the luxury to visit?" she asked in a disbelieving tone, although she, too, could feel happiness blossom. Absentmindedly, she rubbed away her tears with her free hand, and sniffled.
"I'm sure you could make time" Ino assured Sakura, pushing through a group of interns that were talking in the middle of the hallway.
Sakura couldn't help herself- stopping Ino with a smile, she turned around in front of the group that were by now collectively giving her a dirty look. She walked towards them, strutting confidently. "Excuse me, shouldn't you be working?" Sakura asked through a strained smile.
"How is that any of your business?" one of the guys announced as he pushed himself into the front of the group. He was tall, had short, dark brown hair, and very obviously plucked eyebrows. The others seemed to crowd around him, expressing their support for him by leering at her.
Sakura's eyebrow twitched. Never would she have considered that she would receive such insubordination in her hospital. And by the employees no less. "I will ask you one more time. Why are you not working? And why are you taking up valuable space in the middle of the hallway?" Sakura asked carefully, her voice growing steadily louder as she continued to talk, until she was almost shouting at the finish.
"And I asked you how it was any of your business" the boy in front of her reiterated sarcastically. He stared down at her mockingly, grinning for a few seconds as one of his friends punched him in the shoulder lightly, before attempting to stare down at her. As if it was even possible for her to be intimidated by one such as him, Sakura thought to herself darkly.
Stepping forward, she gave him the chance to see a satisfied smirk cross her face before he was thrown through a hole in the wall with a chakra-powered punch, Sakura's fist already retracted to her side by the time the rest of the interns were able to look at her. She looked at the rest of them, still smiling, with excited anticipation shining in her eyes.
They frittered away as quick as their limbs could carry them, and thoroughly satisfied with herself, Sakura caught up to an amused Ino. "You know someone is bound to hold that against you in the future" the blond stated somewhat sardonically, wrapping her arm around Sakura's. Sakura hummed nonchalantly in response.
"Sakura!" a loud and obviously displeased voice came from the other end of the hallway. Looking over her shoulder, Sakura had resist swearing when she saw Tsunade angrily staring at a recently made hole in the wall.
Leading Ino towards her teacher, Sakura responded, "Yes, shishou?"
Tsunade looked pointedly at the hole in the wall, before turning towards Sakura. "Do you mind explaining this?" she asked through clenched teeth.
"A group of interns were taking up valuable space in the middle of the hallway to socialize. I asked them politely, twice, to vacant themselves, but they resisted from doing so" Sakura stated, dimly irritated at the amount of amusement that was coming out of the blond attached to her left.
"That is all right and fine, but it doesn't explain the hole" Tsunade stated through narrow eyes, crossing her arms together underneath her chest.
"Well, he was the one who made himself a ringleader, and thus he was the one that I had to make an example of" Sakura pouted. Tsunade had to resist from rolling her eyes in exasperation.
"You will personally make sure that this hole gets patched, do you hear me? I want it so well done, that it looks like there was never a hole there in the first place" Tsunade ordered with a frown.
"Yes shishou" Sakura responded immediately.
Shaking her head tiredly, Tsunade just gestured that she and the blond follow her. "Your check-up will be here" the Hokage pointed at the room in front of her. "I will be checking you personally after Yamanaka-san gives you a simple physical. Understood?" Tsunade asked the two girls in front of her.
Sakura nodded her assessment, and Ino replied with a bow, "Yes, Hokage-sama." Shaking her head, Tsunade walked away.
Sakura sat on the cold and paper-covered examination table, scarcely dressed in a green hospital gown, with extreme displeasure. Frowning angrily at the ground, she had to resist huffing when Ino stepped into the room assertively carrying a clipboard, amusement practically shining off of her.
"This will only take a few minutes" Ino reminded Sakura with a smirk, setting the clipboard on the counter before approaching the pink-haired young woman with a stethoscope. Sakura only scowled. Sighing, Ino began to ramble about bits and pieces of gossip she had recently picked up in hopes of distracting her patient as she began the movements of a typical physical. Sakura listened with half an ear, letting her mind wander
"And that horrible woman was sentenced to three years of jail-time, although if you ask me, that wasn't enough by far. She deserved at least five; ten if you had a heart, which of course the jury..." Sakura searched the ceiling, ignoring the uncomfortable tension that grew in her arm as Ino calculated her blood pressure.
"You have heard about the recent village petitions, right? Well, this one guy was upset about the fact that his neighbor's cow kept escaping from its pen in order to eat his lilac bushes, so he wants to push for a law demanding villagers to have a more secure control of their animals, even though his own chickens are known to wreak havoc up and down his street. And a village woman was complaining about the Uchiha Compound, saying that a perfectly good plot of land was not being used, and without good reason. Guess the effects of the massacre have finally worn off..." Sakura's internal musing stopped the moment she heard Ino say the Uchiha Compound, and she found herself unable to not interrupt her.
"The Uchiha Compound?" Sakura asked with interest, all traces of her previously fowl mood vanished. Inwardly, Sakura was practically bouncing on the balls of her feet with excitement. What a better place to research than where it all started? Mentally reprimanding herself for not thinking of it before, Sakura was already starting to form plans about how she would be able to sneak into the compound and conduct her research without the notice of the ANBU.
Ino rolled her eyes. "Typical Sakura. Anything Uchiha related, and you are as attentive as a hawk. Yes, the Uchiha Compound. Some village women want to get rid of it."
Sakura narrowed her eyes. "What?" she asked tersely.
"You heard me" Ino said, acting nonchalantly even as she observed Sakura closely with intelligent eyes.
From deep within her, Sakura felt an unexplainable burst of rage at the notion, and she tensed her fists tightly as she stated, "I will not let them". Bright determination glinted in her eyes following the declaration.
The intensity of Sakura's statement startled and surprised Ino greatly, and she unconsciously crossed her arms under her chest loosely in confusion. "Why do you care so much?" Ino asked with bemused facial features.
Sakura's gaze fell, and she became abruptly quiet. Why was she so upset? What importance did the compound have for her except for a source of information? It couldn't be for Sasuke- Sakura had let go of him years and years ago. But what Ino had said about her attentiveness towards Uchihas... she was over Sasuke, right? Sakura racked her brain for the memories she knew had to be in there somewhere, but was coming up with naught. Sakura quickly became frustrated, but keep trying while Ino waiting patiently for her to say something.
An uncomfortably familiar sensation washed over Sakura, and yelling out, Sakura instinctively resisted the pressure that was threatening to wash her away. Closing her eyes and gasping as enormous pains in her head started to explode; Sakura grasped the edges of the examination table as tightly as her hands would allow her as an assault of sounds, lights, and smells crashed into her.
Within moments the attacks came together, and Sakura quickly felt removed from the hospital, spiraling into what was sure to be another memory.
Sakura could feel the blood trickle down from the corner of her lips, to her chin, and finally to the forest floor. Panting laboriously, and ignoring the throbbing of her various wounds, she began to look around herself meticulously for the last especially elusive hunter-nin. Sighting the slightest of movement a few feet northeast of her, Sakura stepped away from the security of giant oak cautiously, stepping over the battered and bleeding bodies that littered the forest floor.
The round kick to her head surprised her for the few moments her mind allowed her to be surprised, before practice toke over consciousness, and Sakura arm came up to block the blow. Retaliating with a kick to the shinobi's unguarded side, she had to avoid wincing as his block painfully connected with a bruise that was growing on her shin. Making a swipe as the man's shoulder with her right arm, Sakura gathered chakra into her left fist and plowed it into the now unprotected chest area. The man's bone and muscle tissue crunched together with an uncomfortable sucking sound, and Sakura was thankful of the few feet he had flown as blood began to spout from the cavity.
Crouching into a defensive position, Sakura quickly scanned the area for any chakra signals she could have missed, and then listened attentively for any shinobi that might be masking their chakra. Sensing and hearing nothing, Sakura slowly sank to the ground beside her medical bag, after checking to make sure that all of the bodies that littered the ground were without life.
Pumping just enough chakra into her body to assess it for any medical extremities, Sakura gave herself a few moments of rest before standing and slinging her bags over her shoulders with a grunt. Taking a few steps forward, Sakura began to head off in a direction she hoped would have a water source, before a prickle at the back of her neck stopped her. Absentmindedly rubbing some blood that had pooled on top of her cheek, she warily turned to face the direction that the sense had come from.
It did not take long for the source to make itself known, and when she saw them, she had to bit her lip to keep from swearing.
Two cloaked Akatsuki, their bamboo hats carefully hiding any distinguishable features, slowly made their way towards her, and Sakura had to resist the urge to flee. Instead, she crouched into a defensive position and waited as they came closer. It was only when they were a few feet away that Sakura was able to recognize them. Uchiha Itachi and Hoshigaki Kisame. Taking a deep breath, Sakura worked to steady and calm herself.
She stared at them, waiting, tense as a kitten ready to pounce, but they just stared back. Seconds went by, and then minutes, and in frustration, Sakura stood from her defensive position. Sighing loud enough for them to hear, and ignoring the voice in her head that told her she was a fool, Sakura toke a few step towards them and asked in what she hoped sounded like an assertive voice, "Do you know where the nearest water source is? I am not very familiar with the region."
They both gave her what she toke to be an odd look, although it was difficult to decipher underneath their hats, and looked at each other solemnly. Communicating silently, and without gestures, Sakura watched the exchange gravely. It was over in under a minute, and Sakura was somewhat startled when they removed their hats. Kisame turned around away from her, and Itachi looked at her briefly before saying, "Follow us" in a voice so soft Sakura had to strain to hear it. Than Itachi too turned around, and together to pair shot off into the forest.
Brushing off her astonishment, Sakura used the six months she had spent as a Missing-nin running around to her advantage, and was able to keep up with the Akatsuki pair, albeit painfully. For ten minutes they sprinted in what direction she guessed was east, towards Rain, before the pair abruptly stopped. Looking around them curiously, Sakura could she the sparkle that reflected off of the stream's surface as it was hit by the sun. She approached the water somewhat tentatively, crouching and allowing a few fingers to brush the surface. Pulling her fingers back in surprised wonder, she realized that the water they had brought her to was warm. The lasting effects of a dying hot springs, she concluded to herself.
Standing up straight, Sakura turned until she faced the pair that were staring at her with guarded expressions. Giving them her brightest smile, she said, "Thank you very much." The pair gave her another odd look, before Itachi nodded towards her politely. Ignoring any warnings or concerns that were bubbling to the surface of her mind about nonchalantly allowing herself to be in the presence of such assassins, Sakura turned back to the water. Washing the extremely blooded parts of her body, clothes and all, she dismissed Itachi and Kisame, figuring that if they were there to kill her they would have done it already.
Sighing loudly to herself as she finished, she turned to find that the two shinobi had sat down comfortably beneath the shade of a tree a few feet away. Itachi had an arm on one knee, the other leg stretched out, and was gazing at the surface of the water with a bored expression. Kisame, on the other hand, was sprawled out on the grass, eyes closed, and hands crossed underneath his head. Sakura had the strangest urge to smile in amusement as she saw them.
Approaching the Akatsuki pair with slow and considerate steps, Sakura plopped herself down unceremoniously a few feet away from them. Without stopping to see their reaction, Sakura unbuckled and untied her many straps that kept her bags from coming off of her, and set them down on the ground beside her. Reaching into her medical bag, she pulled out bandages and disinfectants to wrap around the wounds she determined shallow enough to heal on their own. Stretching her arms out in front of her, Sakura sighed contently as a breeze, warmed from surface of the water, passed to caress her face, before she got down to work repairing herself.
After she was determined that she was appropriately wrapped, Sakura gathered healing chakra into her right hand, and slowly, but efficiently worked to heal the larger and more serious of the cuts. After they had disappeared from existence altogether, she put her supplies away and reached into another pack for some food that she had saved from the visit to a village marketplace she had made a few days ago. Setting the food around her like a picnic, and she mused to herself at the thought, she looked over at the brooding pair. Itachi was still gazing pointedly at the water, but Kisame had sat up and was staring at her curiously.
"Would you like some?" she asked them politely, gesturing towards the food in front of her, looking at Kisame when she asked.
Kisame grunted, scooted the few feet towards her, and picked up a piece of bread warily. Giving it a critical glance, and sniffing it, he evidently determined in sufficient as he plopped the piece into his mouth. Sakura smirked at him as he did a similar inspection to a piece of fruit, before looking over at the sulking Uchiha. "Itachi?" she asked imploringly.
Itachi turned to face her, before shaking his head politely, and turning back to look at the water. "You should eat" Sakura reiterated, her voice a tad harder as she toke in the Uchiha. He was extremely thin, fit, but his body mass was bordering on unhealthy, even sickly. He evidently wasn't eating enough, and Sakura's medic-nin side was quick to take over as she considered how she could get an unwilling patient to cooperate.
Itachi ignored her this time, and Sakura turned towards Kisame in exasperation. "What?" the blue man asked through a mouthful of food, clearly stating that this was her problem. Sighing, Sakura determined that forcing someone as powerful as Itachi was nothing but foolhardy, so instead picked up an apple and threw it at Itachi hard enough to hurt.
Itachi caught it with astounding speed, and turned to look at Sakura with a raised brow.
"Eat" Sakura stated, her own brow raised in expectation.
Itachi appeared to consider her request before determining that an argument wasn't worth it. Taking a deep enough bite out of the apple to prove a point, he turned back to the stream. Sakura smiled in self-satisfaction, before taking a sizable bite out of a piece of cheese.
They ate in relative silence, until the food was all but depleted, mostly because of Kisame. Sakura did not mind, however, and was happy when Itachi appeared willing to eat a few more pieces of food she flung his way. Packing up what was left in one of her bags, Sakura was at a loss for what to do. It seemed as if Itachi and Kisame had approached her for a reason, although she could be wrong. In any case it didn't feel like she was simply allowed to walk away. So she sat there, waiting, gradually taken to watching the canopy of leaves above her dance in and out of the light whenever a breeze hit.
As time passed Sakura began to relax, and sat back on the grass, letting the grip she had on the straps of her bag fall loose. Resisting the urge to doze, Sakura sat there comfortably, until a soft voice reached her from a few feet away. "What happened?" Itachi asked, looking at her slashed hitai-ite with what could have been a spark of curiosity, although it was quickly masked by a determinedly bored expression.
Sakura was surprised by Itachi's question and it toke a minute to process in her mind, simply because it was something that Sasuke would never have asked, and therefore unexpected. But, Sakura scowled at herself mentally, this is not Sasuke. This is Itachi, and should be treated as such. Therefore she toke the time to stop for a moment and ponder the question, before responding simply and with one word. "Danzo."
Sakura could see the beginnings of intrigue light Itachi's eyes, and could sense strongly that he was going to drill her for information until he was satisfied. If she had been in his place, she was sure that she would have done the same. Therefore it came as little surprise when he stated, his smooth voice still barely above a whisper, "Elaborate please."
Sakura gave Itachi a quick, assessing look, before replying, a smirk curling her lips back sardonically. "Danzo convinced the council that I was withholding precious information about the village that could have only been found in the locked and restricted sections hidden in the walls in one particular council room that was never empty. He also eluded that I was handing out mentioned information to other countries."
Itachi raised his a brow in reply.
"Needless to say" Sakura continued, fingering the slash in her hitai-ite as she spoke, "I was put under a warrant for an arrest that would have assuredly led to my execution." Chuckling darkly, Sakura added, "Being declared a traitor to my village, and threatened with death was certainly a strong enough incentive for me to leave."
Itachi toke a few moments to reply, and when he did, his question sounded almost hesitant. "Did you break into the council room?"
Sakura's smirk grew almost wolf-like. "Of course I did" Sakura stated, staring at Itachi with excited eyes. "Doesn't mean that they had any physical proof that I had done it, though. I had strongely disagreed with Danzo in the past about his methods of training, and when a bill came out that would permanently disband his gang, I jumped on it. It didn't get passed, but I managed to turn many politicians against him, and so he seeked to get rid of me."
Sakura paused long enough to notice a butterfly hovering over the water, before she continued, "His first attempts were innocent enough. Subtly encouraging the Hokage to send me on various diplomatic missions that would take years to complete. Pressuring the council to up the standards in the hospital, so that, as head supervisor, I would be required to oversee that all of the changes toke place smoothly. Eventually his threats grew more intense."
Sakura tilted her head, and finished with, "It led to him jumping at a rumor that had spread around the village about select individuals possessing knowledge that they could not have possibly possessed. Danzo figured that in my distraught state over Sasuke's bullshit I would have wanted all of the information pertaining to the Uchiha's that I could, and he accused me of such." Sakura looked towards Itachi expectantly for a response of any kind.
Itachi expression was guarded as he clarified, "Sasuke's bullshit?"
Sakura had to resist smiling as she heard the swear word leaving the Uchiha prodigy's mouth, but managed to respond to the question seriously. "He was my genin teammate, before he left for Orochimaru looking for power in order to kill you. Naruto, me, Sasuke, and Kakashi, Team Seven" Sakura finished half-heartedly, making a peace sign to herself with her fingers somewhat absentmindedly.
"Then he left us, and started to act even more like a cocky, arrogant bastard. And if that wasn't enough, he tried to kill us at one of Orochimaru's bases a few years ago" Sakura said, unable to stop her hand from curling into a fist. "Bullshit" Sakura reiterated, looking Itachi directly in the eye as she said it.
"You sound pretty bitter" Kisame said from his place a few feet away, his eyes still closed, and his hands sitting protectively over his stomach. Sakura smiled in response.
"So shouldn't you be mad at Itachi?" Kisame asked casually.
"Why?" Sakura asked with a tilt of her head and a bemused expression dominating her features.
Kisame seemed unwilling to clarify himself, and waved at her lazily a few times as if trying to tell her to forget it. Sakura attempted to answer his question anyways.
"Sasuke is his own person. He chose to be a jackass. Itachi didn't teach him to be one" Sakura said assertively, looking towards the Uchiha to see his reaction. Itachi seemed to be ignoring her, looking into the distance beside her head. Sakura huffed in mild irritation to herself, before crossing her arms underneath her chest due to habit. She surmised that she was impatient because the people she chose to hang around with before she left Konoha, mainly Naruto and Ino, were loud mouthed and would never miss the opportunity to refute anything she said. She just wasn't used to quiet, non-committal responses given by the two in front of her.
"So is that what you wanted?" Sakura asked, trying to relax her suddenly restless legs.
This time, both men turned to look at her square in the face. "Who said we wanted anything?" Kisame grunted. Itachi seemed to agree with Kisame's question without saying or doing anything.
"No one, I guess" Sakura said awkwardly, suddenly feeling very foolish and childish all at once. Displeased with the feeling, Sakura stretched out on top of her stomach, picking at the grass with her fingers. Deciding, together, that she strangely enjoyed the silent company of the Akatsuki pair, and that she did not have to feel so bored, Sakura got out a medical scroll and began to read.
Barely an hour passed before Sakura's conscience got the better of her. Sitting up and putting her scroll away in one of her bags, she decided that waiting for Itachi and Kisame to announce the reason for their presence was impossible. And, she reasoned, they had stated that they didn't want anything from her. While she did not believe them in the slightest, she recognized that their answer gave her permission to leave whenever she felt necessary. Sick of the anxiety that had begun to pool in the pit of her stomach as a result of her ignorance, she got up and made way to leave.
She had barely taken a few steps away from the stream when Itachi's smooth voice stopped her. "Kunoichi" he called, and Sakura turned around to face him expectantly. He paused, unnecessarily she thought to herself, for a few minutes before saying, "We require medical assistance."
Sakura brows furrowed. She was sure, after watching them, that neither Itachi nor Kisame had any grievous wounds, at least none that would need any immediate attention.
Itachi seemed to understand her confusion and stated,"One of our comrades. He is located in a base close to here. We were sent to find someone who could assist him- when we left he was bleeding profusely."
Sakura appeared dumbfounded for a few moments, before her surprise dissolved and her lips curled back in anger and irritation. "We have been here for hours" she breathed through clenched teeth, "And you ask me now? Who can say if he is still alive?" Out the corner of her eye Sakura could see Kisame grin, but maintained her stare towards Itachi, who raised a brow.
They said nothing.
Sakura growled.
After a few moments, Sakura's frustration got the better of her, and she asked, "So where is he?" Itachi looked at Kisame for a second before looking back at her.
"You are going to have to close your eyes" he stated aloofly, stepping towards her. Sakura bit her lip as a wave of anxiety shot through her at the idea of not being able to see in the presence of the Akatsuki. It was a matter of trust, she thought to herself bitterly. She could potentially help a seriously injured person, more than likely saving his life, which was something she had promised to herself that she would try to do for anyone without discrimination. The circumstances put her at risk, however; she could easily be captured, tortured, raped, or killed with little say involved.
"Kunoichi?" Itachi asked as he came to stand beside her.
"Sakura" Sakura responded, swallowing hard and closing her eyes. He did not respond, but put one hand over her eyes and another behind the small in her back. His hands were pleasantly cool, and helped to calm the strange torrent of anxiety and anticipation that had begun to sweep her away. She had barely a few moments more to relax, before she felt a strange pulling sensation, Itachi's hands pressing more forcefully into her skin. Then, a sudden jolt in her head, a loud dizzying sensation...
Sakura awoke from the memory slowly, a lingering coolness, almost like water, over her eyes where she remembered Itachi's hands being, and a strange jolt disturbing her stomach. As she became more aware of her surroundings, she noticed Ino and Tsunade peering at her barely inches away, both with very concerned expressions covering their faces.
"Sakura?" Tsunade was the first to ask. Her tone was hesitant, and Sakura had to wonder why, dimly, in the back of her mind behind the syncopated throbbing.
"Hm?" was her noncommittal response as she suddenly became aware of a pulsating sensation in her hands. Looking down she noticed that they were still in a deathly grip with the table edge, and Sakura pried her fingers loose with a wince. A few minutes of silence passed before, impatient, Sakura demanded, "What?"
This response seemed to satisfy the two women, and Ino rushed to give Sakura a hug before she left the room. Tsunade closed the door behind her before approaching Sakura.
"Is that the first time this has happened?" she asked in a cool tone, which managed to sound more like a statement.
Sakura shook her head.
Tsunade frowned in displeasure. "Didn't I tell you to find me and talk to me about it?"
Sakura looked Tsunade square in the eyes as she responded. "You did, but I didn't have anything to tell you. Everything I remembered was pretty obvious- Danzo and the council were successful in getting rid of me."
Tsunade just looked at Sakura for awhile, almost as if she were debating whether to give her words merit, before she sighed loudly. "So what did you learn this time?" she asked, placing a chair in front of Sakura and sitting in it, her body strained with obvious exhaustion.
Sakura resisted curling her lips in irritation. She would have much preferred to go over the memory by herself, in minute detail, before discussing it with anyone. Realistically, however, she realized that she didn't have the luxury. "A lot" she stated vaguely.
Tsunade evidently didn't have the patience. "Explain, Sakura" she commanded, sitting up from the chair slightly as she asked.
Sakura explained the memory, a distant part of her brain able to appreciate Itachi's polite treatment of her, which she admitted was refreshing considering the temperaments of all of her companions in Konoha.
Tsunade listened patiently, and Sakura resisted from fidgeting after she had finished.
"Well" Tsunade said to fill the silence, before pausing. She sighed and continued with, " I don't understand some of your actions." Sakura just stared at her mentor, and Tsunade realized that she would have to elaborate. "How could you possibly act so nonchalant with those people? Especially Itachi- I thought you hated him. Hated him because he murdered his clan. Hated him for poisoning Sasuke."
Sakura's brows furrowed and she continued to look at Tsunade with a slight tilt of head. "I don't blame him" she finally said, sounding tired as she said it.
"How do you not blame him? What other information do you have?" Tsunade pressed, and as Sakura thought, her headache grew. She didn't know why she had felt so comfortable with Itachi in her memory. Tsunade was right- she used to hate him. What had changed? What else was she missing? Even now, when Sakura thought about Itachi, without these supposed facts, all she felt for him was compassion and understanding.
There was a missing link- she could feel it. With a strong sense of urgency, she realized that she needed to find out what it was. Suddenly remembering the idea she had had earlier about researching in the Uchiha Compound, she looked to Tsunade and said, "I don't know. Those facts weren't included in my memory. But I know somewhere where I might be able to figure it out."
Tsunade raised an eyebrow in expectation, and crossed her arms underneath her chest, leaning back in her chair.
"The Uchiha Compound" Sakura announced, an urge to visit it already welling up from inside of her.
Tsunade just looked at her for a few minutes, before sighing again and approaching her with a stethoscope. She finished the physical, and then felt around with the stethoscope on her stomach for a few minutes in search of the baby. She stopped on the area just above of a belly button, before nodding to herself. Looking up at Sakura she said, "I will see what I can do. In the meantime, however, continue to take your vitamins, your herbs" here she stopped to give Sakura a pointed look, "and I suppose after that display in the hallway it would be unfair for me not to allow you to train."
Sakura could not help but grin in response.
"At the moment, though, I am ordering you to go home and rest" Tsunade asserted sternly, although she could feel herself soften at the sight of the young girl's smile.
Sakura nodded, still smiling, and hopped off of the table. Wobbling a little as she lost her balance from the pain still in her head, Sakura gave her thanks, waved, and turned to leave the hospital.
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters. Would be lovely. But no. I am denied.
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