5/17/18 update:
hi everyone, i just wanted to drop by and say hi to all of you!
i just wanted to say thank you for everyone who has been keeping track of 'burden to carry'. I have over 1K views on this story and i'm so overwhelmed cuz it's so amazing how this story can make you guys read and expect for the next chapter to drop!
it's been a while since i dropped a chapter or two (or three), but im here now grinding with some post malone soundtracks on the down low :P
anyways, i wanted to say thank you for the people who had messaged me and communicating with me on my DMs, those were very appreciated :)
shout out to the anonymous READER who dropped some good insights about the story under the review section.
i just wanted to say that there would be more SS interaction, so dont you worry fam it's all laid out :)
its going to go to that route and differentiating miyuki and sakura was kinda hard for me to be honest because i kind of portray sakura as a damsel in distress here but it would be more clearer in the future chapters :) but on the other hand, if you read the prologues, miyuki was manipulated and was basically broken.
shout out to kathlinee for dropping some mad review of positivity-ness that she cant wait for more chapters to come 3 so do i girl, so do i.
i had to actually rewrite this chapter over and over and over again because the feelings werent there yet you know?
i would usually write the chapter at night time to get my creative juices out. and when im commuting to work, i would read it over and over again.
if i dont feel something, i would post it as a draft and make a new one until i get that feeling in my chest that 'this is the one i would publish'.
the story itself is actually "almost done" in my Evernote (it's a note taking software and i used it back in college and it's useful cuz it syncs on your phone also so you can study on the 'go') but i havent touched the story for MONTHS because i dont know how to close it.
i've laid out major events, plots, and now im trying to figure out how to end it; then again anything could change since i always revise the chapters before i publish them.
before i leave, a few more things...
shout out to: killerturtle and hides in sebup , for trying to find my FF user name in our Discord channel, lol
shout out to: everyone, for being an MVP, for continuing reading this story.
update: im writing another story also, a madara x sakura story. i may not publish it but... /shrug who knows. i have a lot of sasu x saku in my evernote ready to be published also :)
ON WITH THE STORY! Reviews are always welcome :)
love you all, yourstrulyhime 3
Harsh whispers and murmurings could be heard in every corner of the underworld. It doesn't usually happen unless someone made a mistake, someone did something very fulfilling, or someone made another human or nymph pregnant for not being careful. The underworld itself is usually not this lively. But today, there was a large audience talking amongst themselves.
sakura on the other hand, was walking with hinata to go to the main hall to eat something but everyone was looking at somewhere while blocking the view. sakura tried to tippy toe to gain some height, but most of the gods and goddess were taller than her, thus obscuring her hindsight.
this time, she tried jumping.
on the third jump, she could see the eldest one's head from the distance but other than that, nothing.
she sighed and rested for a while and just listened to everyone was talking about.
"she's back." one of the god said.
"yeah i saw her." another nymph said.
"i thought she's dead? what's happening here?" this guy sound confused than the rest.
hinata and sakura looked at each other getting more confused as they continued to listen to these immortal beings. so both girls went around them and saw ino and karin standing by the door of the main hallway talking to each other. judging from the look of their faces, it wasn't good.
"what? miyuki is alive?" ino whispered.
"no, it can't be..." karin whispered in shocked.
when the judgement hall's door was opened to everyone, and letting everyone see who was making the big fuss about, there was the girl that everyone was talking about... pink hair, blue eyes, long slender body. she was standing next to sasuke with naruto, neji, and shikamaru also.
everything stopped. sakura can sense something malicious about this person. she could see a dark aura around this person... the lord of darkness has one also, but this one was... manipulated. there was also this tingling pain in sakura's heart. a stabbing pain that wanted to rip her out. the more she looked at this girl, the more she's getting anxious.
when she saw the girl touched sasuke's arm, her heart was ached. like something was wrong. looking at the girl makes her want to just go over there and just tell the eldest one himself to be careful.
when the girl looked up to see the crowd, she locked eyes with sakura and gave her this devious smile.
"keep your distance close to the eldest one an make him believe you that you're alive and that the creator resurrected you."
"yes, milord."
"also, once you found my daughter, drug her. escape with her. bring her to me and i will reward you."
risa smiled to herself that the sky god's hunch were correct that his daughter was here. with her being here, she was one step closer to what she wanted, being with the eldest one's side.
sasuke on the other hand, brushed the girl's touch from his arm and kept his distance.
the mist that always follows him started to form and swirling around him giving him strength to regain his consciousness and mind, but the magic power that surround this girl was too overpowering.
eldest one, you need to resist. this is not the miyuki we know. it spoke out.
as each second passed, the magic was getting into sasuke, making it harder for him to resist. his head was spinning and pounding, he cold feel his sharingan going on and off uncontrollably.
he put his hand on his head trying to conjure some magic to relieve his aching head but nothing happened. the more he looked at this girl in front of him, the more his head hurts.
"Leave." he called out.
everyone stopped talking all at once.
"Leave this hallway."
everyone started picking up themselves and started walking away. sakura stood her ground while the other gods and goddesses walked past her. she wanted to go up to him and just tell him to stay away from her, but she was just stunned.
when it was only sasuke and the girl, that's when sakura took up her courage and went up to them, standing behind the eldest one.
"eldest one...? are you ok...?" she asked.
the mist swirled around sakura, giving her some kind of comfort while waiting on sasuke to reply back to what she had asked.
he didnt say anything. he just stood there.
"milord, why don't we... speak privately?" risa asked.
sasuke took a step forward and held out his hand to her. before risa could even reach out, sakura slapped the girl's hand in an instinct and everyone looked at her in shocked.
gasps and murmurs could be heard. karin quickly ran up next to sakura's side and pulled her away, but sasuke looked at sakura and with his uncontrolled sharingan.
"i told everyone to leave, right?" he spat out.
his voice. he never heard this kind of voice from him.
it was cold. striking. and malicious.
it scared sakura because sasuke has never spoken to her like that. it was always careful and caring.
but this time, when this girl reappeared out of nowhere, sasuke changed.
"Leave us." he said again. "take her away from us."
"sakura, let's go." karin whispered to her while pulling her arm.
sakura followed karin out of the hall but before they could close the door, risa was once again giving sakura this devious smile.
that moment upset sakura. the eldest one never talked to her in that way. he was always careful with his words whenever he was talking to her or whenever they were together privately.
she must be the girl that the eldest one used to love before... not it can't be because she's already dead... but why does it feel so... it doesn't feel right.
"sakura, do you want to go to the hot springs and just forget about it?" ino touched her shoulders while giving her a sweet smile.
sakura on the other hand, gave her a curt nod and agreed to her that the hot springs sounds nice right now. but before they could even go past the gardens, risa came.
"you do look like me." sakura turned around and saw her behind her with some guards following her.
"my name is miyuki. you must be..."
"she's the daughter of the sky god and lady tsunade." karin answered.
"ah, the sky god and lady tsunade." she looked at sakura up and down and told her that she could see the resemblance.
"that purple rhombus definitely the sign of the higher ranking goddess like lady tsunade. why are you not with your parents? why are you here?" risa asked.
"i'm here because my mother sent me here."
"ah, really?" sakura didn't follow back on that one.
"i hope milord sasuke didnt give you a hard time. he's very... a stubborn one."
"no, he didnt. he treated me well.."
"i see. just keep your distance from him if i were you since i'm here and alive now." risa took sakura's face and clenching it on her hand while digging her nails on her cheeks.
"what the fuck? who the fuck are you telling someone to keep her distance from someone? you were supposed to be dead!" karin yelled.
risa pushed sakura away from her, making her fall on the ground while hinata helped her up and karin went up to risa to pull her hair.
"you fucking commoner human!" ino and tenten held her back from lounging at her but sakura touched karin's shoulder and shook her head.
"not worth the trouble." sakura whispered.
"che, the eldest one will hear about this." with that, she took one glance at sakura and gave her an evil smile before walking away with the guards trailing behind her.
"her attitude changed..." hinata pointed out.
"she wasn't like this before."
days had gone, and the eldest one was falling and falling deep in love with risa. everyone in the underworld was noticing this change. his time schedule would change also. he usually do his round trip to the lands to visit the earth goddess to drop off some underworld herbs, but this time, he hasn't been doing them lately since risa came.
the magic that the sky god cast upon her was working. she noticed also that the eldest one was ignoring sakura even more and it would make it so much easier for her to just drug her and bring her to the sky god himself. but now, she needs to think about how to separate sakura and the underworld goddess, anri. the mist herself would be her biggest problem.
but as days gone by, sasuke was giving risa more attention as if risa was the real miyuki herself.
they would walk around the gardens with their hands tied together. she would be in his arms while hes taking a break from judging the dead. they would share a kiss here and there. and most definitely, shared the same bed at night time.
that bothered sakura. the feeling in her chest knowing for the fact that sasuke has found the woman that hes been in love for was finally back, it just doesnt sit well for her.
whenever sakura sees sasuke smiling at risa, it would pain her because the eldest one never smiled at her. even in the dining table, she would always sit next to sasuke, but this time, risa would sit on her spot while she sits next to the other goddesses in the table.
jealousy?
maybe.
days had gone by and each day, she would miss how her mom and shizune were doing. she decided that she would go visit them even though she's not allowed, but what harm would it bring if she was careful also? she went to the main garden after taking a bath with hinata and tenten. she waited there until the eldest one was done with his afternoon judging in the main hall.
she sat there patiently but as hours roll by, he wasn't coming out of the hall.
anri, the underworld goddess, appeared next to her by swirling around her body.
my child, it must be hard for you. she spoke out.
"..what? you're speaking in my... mind...?" sakura flabbergasted.
yes, i am. this is how i communicate with people... through their minds. but you must be feeling all kind of feelings after seeing that girl.
"wait... how do you know?" now sakura's attention is on this misty lady.
because i am after all, the goddess of underworld. i could feel any disturbance in each and every one of you all. and with this one... it doesnt fit well. she looked at her straight in the eyes but sakura was too focused how anri's eyes were striking ice blue.
"does the eldest one know?"
he's... currently... confused and... being enthralled. i could feel some dark magic powers floating with that girl making the eldest one fall for her. i need you to talk to orochimaru about this.
sakura stood up from the ground and looked around if he could see the dragon god himself roaming around from the distance like he always does.
he's in his laboratory. south side of the palace, underground.
she stood up slowly and the mist stopped swirling and it turned into it's humanoid form.
the mist smiled at her.
i know you are the only one who can see that dark mist around that girl's body. i know i felt that presence before... but i can't pinpoint where...
"has the eldest one been with a lot of girls before?" sakura asked.
a lot of girls clung to him before so i got every single girl's scent and life force sample from each and everyone of them. but this one... is masking it's true identity. but in retrospect, the eldest one had a few before... discreetly. when he needed a sexual outlet.
well, that wasn't the answer that sakura found very favourable. but it did answered her that this girl was masking something about her, like how her consciousness is telling her.
she started to move towards the south side of the palace but she could feel the eldest one's life force coming towards her in a very quick pace.
but before she could turn around, sasuke bolted towards her and grabbed her hand and pulled her around.
"...eldest one?" her voice squeaked. her heart pounded. she was nervous all over.
"you... i let you stay here and kept you under my protection... and you did her wrong?" he told her.
"...what? what do you... mean?"
"miyuki said you pushed her. you dont push my lover like that." he warned her again. "don't come any closer to her."
he let go of her arm and pinched the bridge of his nose again.
"...but i didn't even touch her!" she gasped out defending herself.
"DON'T EVEN LIE!" he yelled out.
sakura took a few step away from him from the shock and a lot of things were running through her mind.
"...eldest... one?"
"anri, let go of sakura." he looked at sakura and anri who was still swirling around her.
the mist started swirling around faster around sakura and refused to let her go.
"anri." he warned out.
no.
"i am being summoned by the sky god and you will come with me."
...i refuse to be part from her.
"anri." he warned with his sharingan now swirling.
you may be the underworld god right now, you are nothing without me.
sasuke turned his back around and walked off in a different direction, away from her.
when he was out of sight, sakura quickly went towards orochimaru's lab without anyone noticing her going there.
"miyuki you say?"
sakura told orochimaru all of the things that anri told her to tell him and now he's looking at all of his notes to see if he could help out in any way shape or form.
"the eldest one did came here days before after she came here that he was feeling a little... weird. at that time i couldn't help him because i don't know what's going on out there as i am couped up here in my lab all the time."
sakura sighed and anri just formed herself into a humanoid form and looked at orochimaru.
"it's good to see you in your humanoid form again, anri." he smiled.
thus, i miss having a physical body sometimes.
"i bet you do. but saving the eldest one was very bold of you."
he's the only one who i could count on. with his current situation, he was... ravished during the summit and the sky god's birthday by this water nymph.
"water nymph you say..." orochimaru went to the bookshelf across from them and took a book out. when he laid it down on the table and started flipping through them, he pointed out in this one passage that the water nymph's saliva if left evaporated in any part of the body of non water people, can be enthralled.
"...could be enthralled? but... how is that possible?" sakura asked.
"it shouldn't affect him that much but since both of you are seeing black mist around her body, it could have an effect." he flipped though the pages even more and wrote something down on the other book. "for the mean time, i will... investigate this." he looked at her and smiled.
"thank you... dragon god." she stood up and walked towards the door.
"before you leave... why dont you ask anri to transport you back to where your mother is? anri's presence can mask out your life force while you're up there also."
with that, orochimaru just gave sakura an idea how to visit her mother and shizune.
i will guide you back home to your mother.
before leaving, sakura went back to her room and took off the blue yukata that sasuke gave her for her own protection down in the underworld.
she neatly folded it and placed it on the sofa.
he wouldn't noticed that she was gone, she thought. it would be better this way.
anri opened up a portal to the lands and sakura stepped in and closed the portal behind her without looking back.
little does sakura know, risa on the other hand was trying to look for her and taking advantage of how the eldest one was away from the underworld. she wants to take this opportunity to drug her and bring her back to the sky go before the eldest one comes back.
but she had no luck as she went to sakura's room, she was not there.
"eldest one, a moment if you please."
sasuke turned his head around after meeting with the sky god talking about some nonsense matter and he met up with the dragon god himself.
"you are long overdue with our weekly session."
"that one can wait, i'm about to see someone else."
"mandatory." orochimaru pointed out.
whenever people say it's mandatory, sasuke will not let it pass.
"very well. let us be at the gardens then."
orochimaru led sasuke to the garden where they talk about their weekly sessions about the underworld and how he's mental health is doing as well as physically. the more sasuke answers him, the more orochimaru understands what anri and sakura were talking about.
he got up on one of his chairs and went to the tea cart to brew some tea that he prepared before their session.
"drink this. let me know if you like it."
sasuke on the other hand took the tea and drink it in one go.
"impatient aren't we? you're not going to ask me what kind of tea it is?"
"no." he stood up from his chair and walked away.
"that tea... will make you realize and open your eyes that you are being deceived."
"the sky god himself brought me here agian so i can be with you."
both of them were in risa's private chamber, naked after a long session of making love.
but what she said set an alarm on sasuke's thoughts and she continued.
"he knows that i love you a lot so he heard me. he granted my wish and here i am, with you." sasuke immediately stood up and put his clothes on.
realization was finally hitting him. everything was making more sense. it just didnt felt right.
miyuki on the other hand questioned him. "milord? is there something the matter?"
when he got all of hsi clothes on, he commanded her to get up without even looking at her.
"milord...?"
"get up."
she stood up, walked up to him and smiled at him.
"what's the matter, love?" she asked.
sasuke on the other hand wrapped his hand around her neck and started choking her while lifting her up.
"the sky god? i remember you telling me that you were afraid of him. now you trust him? tell me. who are you."
risa was now choking and her true appearance was slowly revealed to her. when her facade cleared up, he recognized her.
the girl from the party during the summit. the water nymph.
he dropped her on the ground and she was coughing and gasping for air while holding on to sasuke's pants.
"and now we see her true identity. tell me, why did he send you here for?" sasuke activated his sharingan and looked at her to see if she was lying.
"no! i was really looking for you!"
"really."
"yes!" he wrapped his mist around and her and teleported them to the investigation torture hall where ino was.
"milord." everyone bowed including ino.
"ino. investigate this... intruder." the mist dropped the girl and was now wrapped around a torture bed.
"...what? who is she?" ino walked up and looked at the girl who was crying her eyes out.
"one of jiraiya's water nymph. investigate what her agenda."
"yes, milord."
sasuke was now walking briskly towards sakura's room and when he reached her door, he didnt even knocked, he just went straight in.
he noticed that the fireplace was not lit. the bed was still made. and the blue yukata that he gave her was neatly folded in the sofa.
he searched the room and he didnt find her. he called up on the underworld to find her, but he couldnt feel her presence nor anri's.
'where the hell are you, sakura' he thought while running towards the front doors. but before he could even turn to the hall towards the door, a maid stopped him.
"milord, i was looking for you.. she's gone." one of the maids said.
now sasuke was panicking. heart racing, head spinning.
"find her." he commanded.
how can he be so foolish and weak to fall into that kind of trap.
all these times, he has been ignoring sakura and she was by herself.
he walked towards the front door and he saw hinata and tenten standing there, watching karin and suigetsu walk off. when they turned around, they bowed to him and greeted him.
"milord."
"where is sakura." they both looked at him and were now confused.
"sakura? the last time i saw her was in her room a few hours ago." hinata answered.
"we took a bath together before we left her in her room." tenten answered.
at this time, he wants to just lash out at someone but he was trying to keep it cool.
he walked back to his study room and sat down on his chair.
there was only one place where she could back, it's her home back with tsunade.
"sakura? what are you doing here!?"
shizune and tsunade ran up to her and hug her when the portal that anri opened up.
"oh mom. shizune. i missed you guys so much." she hugged them also.
"what about the eldest one? where is he?" tsunade asked while looking at her face.
"he's not here."
"did he let you go?"
"no, i went by myself... with anri." she noticed that shizune frozed and looked at sakura as anri was swirling around her.
sakura on the other hand gave her a pleading look and shizune understood. not to tell the eldest one if he ever communicated with her through telepathically.
"come. let's go inside." tsunade led sakura in and gave her favourite blanket to wrap around and hot milk to calm down.
"you must be exhausted from traveling through the void, especially borrowing powers from the underworld goddess herself. why dont you take a bath or a shower after drinking that, ok my child?"
sakura nodded.
tsunade kissed her forehead and left the room. shizune on the other hand sat next to her and told her that the eldest one was looking for her and that he's currently asking her through telepathically.
"dont tell him... please."
"why, what happened?"
sakura shook her head and said it was nothing. shizune hugged her and told her that it was good to have her back.
a few minutes had passed after she drank the hot milk that her mom gave her, sakura took a shower and went to her room.
she noticed that her room was still the same and she also noticed the pink flowery branch that the eldest one gave her was still alive. she didnt dare touch it but she threw the vase on the floor and she laid down on her bed, crying.
crying how pathetic she is.
she doesn't know if she's in love with her based off her real feelings... or because of some distant memories that plague her mind?
she wants to believe that this is her real feelings.
but does the eldest one feel the same way also?
it has been a couple days since she last saw him.
she was helping her mom tend the plants while tsunade cloaked her with her powers so no one can sense her.
when someone was approaching, sakura would turn invisible with the help of anri and tsunade.
tsunade and shizune both cant risk their lives and sakura's if someone saw her in their vicinity since everyone knows that sakura is currently 'missing'.
tsunade told sakura that there were times her father himself would come to visit to see if sakura was really here but would always turn away quickly when he doesnt get what he wanted.
as a goddess herself, no one dares lay a finger on tsunade when she's mad.
"has the eldest one communicated with you lately?" she asked.
sakura didnt answer.
"is there something i dont know about that's going on?" still she didnt answer.
shizune put her hand on tsunade's shoulder and shook her head and prompting her to just give her some space.
they both walked away and just looked at sakura slowly tending the plants with zero interest in her eyes.
"she looks like she's lifeless... and i'm so upset and worried what's causing her to feel this way." tsunade said with pure concern in her voice
"just give her sometime. she just misses to be with us and she hasnt seen the sun in so long."
"or maybe she's in love with the eldest one..."