Thanks so much for the reviews and fav's! You guys are great! I'm so happy you guys love it!!! i want to apologize for any typos in advance. I have finals this week and next meaning I can't catch all the mistakes!
Now this chapter isn't the best. Actually, the whole Kisame and Sakura watching TV isn't my style, but it came to me and I was having a short writer's block so I ran with the idea. I think it ruined the chapter, but whatever. This is just a transition chapter seeing as the teams are now acting like teams.
Let's get some missions going now!!! WARNING: this story is rated M for a reason for later chapters so I don't want you to say I didn't warn you.
Disclaimer…it's just me and Ryuu…
A string of drool leaked from the kunoichi's mouth as she sat up and rubbed her eyes before opening to the bright sunlight shining through her curtains. Pain from the light stretched from her eyes to her temples and she groaned before falling back onto the bed.
Bed?
How did she get there?
Ugh…it wasn't important. Her head ached from all the recent healing and alcohol combination and she was hardly able to think back on the night before where she received her Anbu gear. She pulled her pillow over her face and slowly let her chakra soothe her headache. Today was the first day that she was officially an Anbu…the first from the rookie 12 to become part of the special ops. Unless Sasuke was Anbu for Sound….Nah! He's too busy trying to kill Itachi to care about rank.
Suddenly she heard laughing in her mind and she winced as her headache spiked momentarily before dying down. Do you mind?
Sorry but I couldn't help it!!!
"What are you talking about," she groaned as the sunlight was starting to agitate the pink kunoichi.
Well Naruto just past the Chunnin meaning that the only person left as a genin is-
"Sasuke!" Sakura yelled in realization and a humorous smile brightened her lips. She couldn't help but laugh and didn't take mind in favoring her aching head. The laugh was worth it. She wondered what Itachi's expression would be if she told him that…. Hmmm, maybe she should find out….
Wow how that tables had turned on the prodigy. Sasuke was so power hungry but in status he was as harmless as an agitated cat. Of course she knew it wasn't true but it made her smile none the less. She mentally kept that little piece of information for a rainy day in the back of her mind incase Naruto was ever down. He would get a kick out of it and she could see him taking the opportunity of rubbing it in his face the next time they saw him…
"Hey Teme! Guess who's behind the Anbu mask!"
"..Hn."
"Yup it's me!!...." pause… "Hey-where's your anbu mask?"
Glare. "Shut up, dobe."
Oh, that would be an interesting reunion for sure. Sighing, she sat up, determined to take a shower and get out of the filthy clothes. Quickly she rummaged through the drawers and made her way to the bath room, thankful the guys were gentlemen enough to let her have the master room. It must have been Itachi's doing 'cause Kisame would've claimed it for himself… She thought dryly.
She closed the door behind her and set her clothes down, looking in the mirror and wincing back at her appearance. Only one thing ran through her mind…"I went to the bar like this?" Blood, soot, and dirt covered her shirt front and caked her skin. It was clear that she was in an explosion from the smoky colors around her eyes and down the bridge of her nose. Then came the issue with her once lustrous coral hair. Not it hung in a tangled mess, barely in its original ponytail that she had it in when she was competing in the exam. She hastily turned on the shower and was welcome with the spray of water before pulling her clothes off; having a particularly hard time with her shirt, but she managed while jumping into the shower before the shirt hit the ground.
It was only twenty minutes later when she emerged from her room with her hair hanging in small waves from the water that clung to her wet locks. The pain in her head had died down from her chakra and was now a mild hangover, but she wasn't complaining. It was still an improvement from earlier that morning.
As she turned into the living room, she saw Kisame lying sprawled across the couch while watching television. His head was tilted awkwardly and one leg was over the back of the couch while he held a remote in one hand and a strange concoction drink in the other. It was clearly and act of talent; seeing as Kakashi was the only man she knew who could multitask with his faithful orange book with him all the time. She had always assumed it was the female race that knew such things… An elegant eyebrow rose and she put her hands on her hips. It was then that Kisame noticed her. He flashed his famous toothy grin that would scare many others away that didn't know it was just the way he smiled. His jagged pointed teeth were a fearsome acknowledgement.
"Look who's finally up."
"Finally? What are you talking about?" she asked while looking around for the non-existent clock.
"It's 10:30, kitten." He flipped through a few more channels until he came across his favorite…Ninja Warrior. "Haha!" he barked in laughter. "Have you seen this show?"
Sakura furrowed her brows and looked to the screen. "No. What is it?"
"It's called Ninja Warrior where civilians with no chakra try and do things that we are trained for in the academy. The stupid pansys."
Sakura sat down on the chair and watched it for a moment, laughing with Kisame as someone came out in a Spiderman's out fit-apparently a comic hero from America. After the first round, she couldn't help but hold her sides with Kisame's many crude jokes and cracks about the "talent wasted pansys". She had to agree with him that it was a stupid show.
After the laughter died, she could feel the pain spike and she gripped her head while falling back into her chair.
"What's the matter, kitten?"
"I still have a small hangover," she mumbled.
"Keh. Well there's extra in the blender," he said motioning to his drink he had in his hand. "It's a miracle worker."
Sakura pulled her hand away and gave him a questioning glare. "What is it?"
"A blend of fruit for hangovers that I made…Actually it's Deidara's creation, but the same thing."
Sakura looked warily to his glass in hand and back to the blender staring back at her from the counter. She had tried many other concoctions for hangover-sworn to work-and they had all ended horribly with ingredients she refused to mention. You can see her dilema.
"Would I lie to you?" Kisame asked, seemingly knowing what she was thinking.
Sakura looked to his grinning face. "I wouldn't put it past you," she said while crossing her arms.
A look of mock hurt flashed over his face. "Come on kitten! When have I lied to you?"
Sakura pondered for a moment…he hadn't lied to her but he did lie to Itachi about her wanting to train with him, but it wasn't really a lie. Itachi knew it was just him teasing, but still….No still. There was no argument for it.
"Fine," she said grudgingly and walked to the lonely blender before pulling out a cup and empting the rest of its contents into the glass. She walked back to the chair and sat down while looking fearfully at the strange purple liquid. "This isn't going to kill me is it?" she asked skeptically.
Kisame scoffed. "I'm your team mate now, so you better start trusting me."
"Alright, I get it." She looked long and hard at the liquid before gathering her nerves and taking a healthy sip.
The sweet taste welcomed her and she blinked. "That's actually pretty good," she said as she took another.
Kisame laughed. "All it is, is mixed fruit…And a vegetable here and there." He took his own sip and flipped through the channels. "Damn there's nothing good on!"
"Toss me the remote," she said while holding out a hand. He handed her the remote after a hesitated pause and she turned to one of her favorites.
"UFC?" he asked, never hearing of it.
"Yeah. I was over at Kiba's one day and he was watching it. Since then I was hooked!!"
"What is it?" he asked as he watched two men throwing punches.
"It's a fighting league where they come from all over the world to compete. They have their own ranks and skills in mixed martial arts," she explained while staring engrossed in the show.
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Itachi walked down the hall to the apartment door with two bags in is hand. He had wanted to get some training today but there was too much on his mind to concentrate. His trouble some thoughts were focused mainly on Kabuto and why he had come all the way to Konoha. It was obviously for Sakura and he was aware that he wanted her as an apprentice. She was highly trained by Tsunade and her skills were well known. But why would he risk coming all the way into an enemy village? To the stoic Uchiha it seemed that Kabuto was too confident in not getting caught that there was something behind it. This lead to something else. How did the white-haired medic know that Sakura was going to be in the Anbu exams when no one else in Konoha knew except for himself, Kisame, Kakashi and Tsunade? All of these questions pointed to there being a leak in Konoha…..and it was someone close. It looked like betrayal was already breeding and the first battle had yet to start….
As he reached the door he paused in opening it when enthusiastic shouts were heard from the other side. Why were they yelling…and weren't they sleeping when he left?
Opening the door, he was welcomed with a sight of Sakura and Kisame sitting at the edge of their seats, punching the air and cheering for two men on TV that were viciously toe-to-toe, throwing punches. They hadn't noticed him standing in the door way and he vaguely wondered if they still had alcohol in their systems…Well, he reasoned, if Kisame made the fruit concoction then obviously they would seeing as the hangover drink was basically alcohol and fruit…
Suddenly, one of the men was knocked out and fell to the floor limply while the victor raised his hands in the air triumphantly. Kisame's cheers became louder as he laughed. Sakura's face fell and she fell back into the chair with a pout pasted on in disappointment.
"Hahaaha! Told you the Australian would win!" Kisame pointed out.
"What ever! I think he should've gotten points knocked off when he hit my guy in the back of the head!"
"Don't cry, kitten," he teased.
"I'm not," she pouted and crossed her arms. It was when Itachi chuckled and closed the door that she realized he was there.
"I see you've been busy," Kisame said as he saw the two bags in his hands.
"It's late, but I figured you two would want breakfast," he said simply as he walked to the kitchen and set the bags down. Kisame walked over to the kitchen and started pulling food cartons out of the bags while Sakura watched in confusion. Kisame didn't seem like this was anything new with Itachi going out and getting food. But for some reason, she didn't think that he would do that….Then again he was surprising her a lot lately with how much he focused on the team's health. She had to remind herself that he had been a leader in Anbu when he was younger, so it was only reason to think he always looked after everyone, and from what Sasuke had hinted when they were younger, Itachi had always taken care of him… It was just a different side of him that she hadn't expected to see.
"Sakura, are you hungry?" Itachi asked. Kisame looked over, forgetting all about her as he had already started taking out what he wanted to eat.
Sakura blinked and stood up, apologizing for her being side tracked. Itachi smirked, feeling that it had something to do with him but said nothing as he handed her a plate. Sakura smiled back and took it before following Kisame's idea and start putting food on her plate. She took a seat at the table near the window with Kisame on her left and Itachi sitting across from her. It was silent only for a moment before Sakura took a bite and nearly melted. "This is really good! Thanks Itachi!"
Itachi looked to her and smirked. "There's dangos in the other bag and some fruit that you can help yourself to."
Kisame looked to Itachi with wide-eyes. "You're going to share your dangos?"
"…There's enough of them," he said simply and started eating, leaving a slightly-but none the less- pleased Sakura and a stunned Kisame.
"I wanted to work on your eyes today, if you don't have any other plans," Sakura said slowly, not sure if she worded that right.
Itachi looked to her and blinked slowly while he seemed to examine her for a moment. Sakura could feel his piercing gaze and couldn't help but shift in her seat uncomfortably. Finally he answered, "No. That sounds fine."
Sakura inwardly cheered. She had felt bad about not working on them for the past three days and knew he was in pain. Not to mention that what Kisame had told her only made her feel appreciative towards him. Shortly after they were finished with their breakfast/lunch, Kisame took their dishes and started putting food away in the refrigerator for later meals. Sakura watched in mild interest, never picturing Kisame doing dishes. Meanwhile, Itachi watched Sakura with a knowing smirk as he leaned back in his chair. He knew Kisame's way of "washing dishes" and was waiting for Sakura's expression once she found out. Feeling his eyes, she looked to Itachi and furrowed her brows. "What?"
"…Hn."
Instantly she grew irritated. Sakura rolled her eyes, knowing that he couldn't see her do it. "I thought we were past this! Just answer it like a normal person."
Before he could do anything, the sound of breaking glass broke the pause and Sakura's head whipped around to see Kisame throwing the second plate in the trash can. "Hey!!!"
Kisame stopped before he let the second slip out of his fingers. "What?"
"What the Hell are you doing?!" she said as she spun around in her chair with one hand on the back.
"Are you dense? I'm cleaning up!"
"That's not cleaning you dumbass! You're just throwing away perfectly good plates!"
"And what am I supposed to do?" he asked mockingly with a scowl setting in.
She resisted slapping her forehead. "Uhhhh …. Wash them? With soap and water! I know how you are foreign to soap so at least make an effort!"
"Shit! What's so bad about throwing away the dishes?" he asked while waving the two dishes in the air. "We have a cabinet full of them!"
Itachi watched in amusement with his arms crossed over his chest, wonder how far they would take it.
"Those aren't paper plates! You have to pay for them and it isn't cheap!"
"Then you do it!" Kisame yelled and shoved the plates out for her to wash.
"Fine!" Sakura got up- shoving her chair back- and pulled the plates from him while glaring darkly.
Kisame matched it, clearly pissed at expecting to actually "wash" the dishes instead of throwing them away. Sakura stomped past him to the sink while he watched her back darkly before muttering a small "Bitch" under his breath…
Sakura stopped in her tracks and sloooowwwwllly turned to face Kisame who watched her daringly. She set the plates down in the sink and cracked her fist when he just grinned. "What are you going to do kitten? Scratch me?"
Obviously he thought that because he was on her team, he was safe from any abuse. The previous "flick" from a few nights ago had been long forgotten…
"CHA!"
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Out on the sidewalk, a young couple walked out of a store clearly having a bad day. "I can't believe that guy ripped us off!"
"We should call him in."
"We can't do that! They won't do anything to him!"
"Man I hate days like this!"
Suddenly, a "CHA!" was heard and a loud crash followed before the wall in front of them exploded as a body rolled out with dust and debris covering their view. The couple watched wide eyes as a young girl with pink hair walked through the gaping hole and pulled the body off the ground before shaking him roughly and cursing.
"I think our day is pretty good…." The girlfriend said quickly, earning a shaky nod from her boyfriend.
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Kisame sat on the couch with an icepack to his forehead and the tv long forgotten. All he wanted to do was sleep off this hangover…
"It serves you right," Itachi said after hearing his groan.
"I didn't do shit! She didn't have to jump down my throat about it."
Itachi didn't spare him a glance from his spot at the table next to the gaping hole in the wall. A few people walked by while looking long and hard inside the apartment, but it only took one glance at the Uchiha to make them keep their distance.
The door opened and both men looked over to see Sakura walking in. "Tsunade said that she'll have some people come over and fix the hole later this evening," she explained.
"How long will it take?" Kisame asked.
"It's the same guys that fix her holes at the Hokage tower so it should be done by tomorrow," Sakura went to the kitchen and pulled a plum from a bowl and took a seat next to Itachi, too focused on Kisame's displeased frown. "It's your fault, you know."
"You're just over dramatic," he said bluntly.
Sakura smirked and took a bite from the plum, surprised at how juicy it was.
"So are they going to keep us up all night?"
"No," Sakura said with a shake of her head. "Shishou said that we have a mission that we have to leave for tonight."
"When is the meeting with her?" Itachi asked before Kisame could comment.
Sakura looked to him as if she just realized he was there. "…After I work on your eyes. I plan to catch up a lot on what I missed so it should be considerably better." She took another bite.
"Do we have time for that?"
"Yeah. She wanted me to work on them today anyway and when I asked she said that it is an Anbu mission," she explained while looking at him. He seemed to be contemplating something but didn't say anything.
"Anbu? Do I have to wear a mask too?" Kisame grinned from his seat at the couch.
Sakura shook her head. "Nope. None of us do. We kind stick out if you hadn't noticed…"
Kisame stared at her blankly, making it clear that he didn't understand. Sakura sighed. "Itachi has the Sharringan, you're blue and have a big sword, and I have long pink hair…"
"Oh. I get it now…." Sakura shook her head and took another bite while a stream of juice ran from the corner of her lip and to her chin. She raised her hand to wipe it off, but a thumb that wasn't her own had stopped the trickle. She looked to Itachi who seemed to be focused on the bead of juice as he traced it back to the corner of her lips and pulled his hand away. His eyes weren't the normal black but instead the bright crimson and he seemed to be lost in thought. After a moment he looked back to her emerald eyes and deactivated his bloodline before standing up with a smirk. "I'll be in my room when you're ready."
Sakura watched him leave the table completely confused and she could feel the heat slowly fade from her cheeks from the blush she didn't know she had. Looking over to Kisame, he was too busy picking at a stain on his shirt to have notice. Sakura took this time to leave, knowing that she had a lot of healing to get done before they went to the meeting for the mission information.
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"Lady Tsunade!!! This is important!"
The urgent pounding on the door woke the dozing Hokage from her nap. She looked to the door while rubbing sleep from her eyes, wondering what these people wanted. She had just fell asleep shortly after Sakura had left and knew she would be the only one coming into her office, but whoever was trying to break down her door at the moment was not Sakura.
"Lady Tsunade!!!"
"What is it?" she asked, agitated that the knocking was insistent.
The doors burst open and in stumbled Izumo and Kotetsu with a man who looked dead on his feet. Tsunade stood from her desk-knocking her chair down- and rushed to their side. "What happened?!" All traces of sleep were gone.
"When we were on guard at the gates, this man came running out of the forest," Izumo said, with a hand keeping the said man steady on his feet. Burns scraped half of his face and down his throat with blisters and blood oozing from his dried skin that wreaked a foul stench. Dirt and soot covered him where the only thing that stood out was the whites of his eyes and fresh scarlet blood weeping out of a gaping wound in his chest.
"T-the village…" he gasped exhaustedly.
"Get him a chair," the blonde ordered and Kotetsu obeyed immediately. The man fell back into the chair and Tsunade started to heal the wound that continued to breed the dark blood. Izumo ran to the hall and brought back a cup of water to the gasping man with Tsunade letting him get a drink but started focusing on healing him as best as she could. His heart rate was racing in distress and she was starting to sweat, knowing that this man wasn't going to make it. Blood continued to seep across her floor and her clothes, but she didn't take notice.
"What do you need us to do?" Kotetsu asked, wanting to help.
A long look in her eyes and a shake of her head said it all. Turning back to the man, she calmly asked, "Can you tell us what happened?"
She could almost hear the pounding of his heart in a beat-beat-beat. There was hardly a distinguished paused between the beating.
"M-my village…just a few miles from the border…of Sound, was at-attacked. A small shinobi camp tore through it…No one else survived…" Tsunade frowned at the news and could feel his heart slowing down as he started to leave her. She tried to push more chakra to close up his wound, but he had already lost so much blood.
The beat continued to slow to a beat...beat...beat.
"Do you know where they were from or what they were doing?"
"They w-were Mist-nin and Sound-nin…" He took a long shaky breath. "They are setting up camps…to attack Konoha. Th-they said that…they were spreading out…"
The heart continued to slow…Beat-beat…beat-beat…beat…
"And how accurate is this?" She wanted to make sure that the enemies weren't sending a false message to trick the village.
"I over heard…….them….talking to each other… Before I….got away…"
….beat-beat……
Silence.
"Send in Shikamaru and Zetsu."
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It had been nearly two hours that Sakura had been working on his eyes and she was proud to say that she was making more progress then she had thought. His chakra channels were clearing away smoothly, letting the stress from his bloodline melt away. She really couldn't wait till a few more days when he would be able to see in perfect sight…. Of course after his sight returned she would have to keep up the sessions to keep his sight from going bad again-or ruin all the work she put into it.
With this in mind, she tried to wrap it up, knowing that they had to leave in a short while. Of course she also wanted to finish because she was more uncomfortable then normal with him, not because of anything in particular. Hell, she couldn't place it. Perhaps it was due to him cleaning her chin from the plum? ….Whether or not it was because of that, she knew that had a part in it. Why had he done it? And why didn't she pull away? Maybe because it caught her off guard? A single eye cracked open from her musings and she looked to see his eyes shut. He look so peaceful, but she knew that he didn't always feel like that. There had to be some level of guilt he had for killing his clan, right?
He was just so hard to figure out! Itachi was a master illusionist. He would hide his thoughts and emotions behind ice that was cold. If you were to reach out, you would retract your hand at the sharp frigid temperatures but you would never be able to see past the surface through the ice. He saved her life twice, kept her secret from her friends, (according to Ino when she went to talk to Tsunade) had taken her home after drinking, and even went out to get breakfast….How did that mix with the cold, stoic man who massacred his family, left his brother alive to suffer, betrayed Konoha, and killed countless people? The answer was simple: it didn't. One side was true and the other was a mask…But which? Was it possible for him to mix?
Maybe he was cold and stoic because he was a killer. He was trained since 4 to be the perfect weapon and tool. Would parents like that be loving and understanding too? Probably not. Killing people was just their job and ninja, but killing his family was what through the whole thing out of balance. If it didn't add up then there were pieces from the equation missing…
"Why are you so quiet?" His voice shook her from the many thoughts and she opened her eyes to meet onyx.
"What do you mean?"
"Normally you take this time to ask about Sasuke and my clan. I was curious why you hadn't asked," the question was simple.
Sakura furrowed her brows. "You won't tell me anyway."
"But when has that stopped you?"
Sakura was starting to get agitated. It wasn't his tone of voice, but the fact that he seemed to know so much about her but she knew nothing except what he showed…
"I'm not going to waste my breath if you're just going to give me "Hn" as an answer," she replied with a small offence tossed in.
Itachi only smirked but didn't reply. Sakura watched him for a passing moment before she asked. "Would you tell me about your clan?"
Itachi looked to her and stared, but Sakura stared back, refusing to look away. Minutes seemed to tick by before Itachi's smirk widened just a touch. "Hn…" he waited and wasn't disappointed by her sudden glare, but he continued. "What do you want to know about the clan?"
"Why did you kill them?" she asked bluntly.
"I can't answer that."
Sakura crossed her arms over her chest. "Why not?"
"….You don't need to know."
"Then what will you tell me?"
"Anything else."
Sakura let her arms fall and she stared at Itachi, trying to figure it out. He does feel guilty about it…she mused sadly. He wouldn't have avoided it if he didn't…
"I want to know the history of them," she said, hoping to find out what was so bad about the Uchiha's that the scrolls left out.
Itachi sat up now that they were finished with the healing. "Before the Shinobi villages, the Uchiha's were a clan of hired mercenaries that traveled everywhere. There was one other clan that was a rival known as the Senju clan." Sakura nodded, knowing that part of it. "The leader of the Senju clan offered a peace treaty with the Uchiha's because he was tired of the fighting between clans, so when they came together they formed Konoha."
"But I thought that the Uchiha's were always friends with the Senju."
"No. It was quite the opposite."
Sakura seemed to ponder over that for a moment. Why would that information be taken out of the scrolls that she had read? If it wasn't important then why lie about it so others didn't know the truth?
"Madara Uchiha was powerful at the time and had taken control over the clan, however he didn't have enough control to make the decisions. When Hashirama offered the treaty, Madara had refused, though was ignored when the clan agreed. Madara's pride was hurt and his anger only grew and things got worse when the Senju took over as Hokage."
"But they had a right to be Hokage." Itachi gave her a curious look and she tried to explain. "I mean, it was Hashirama that brought the treaty to them, wanting peace."
Itachi smirked; glad to see that she was a kunoichi of logic. "Madara didn't see it as such. He was convinced that they were only trying to keep the Uchiha's subdued and when he voiced this, the entire clan turned their backs on him. It was clear to the Senju clan that Madara's ideals were going to effect the trust the Uchiha's had in them sooner or later so they gave my clan full control over Konoha Military Police."
Sakura pondered it over, remember what she had read and just how different it was then whaat Itachi was telling her now. "What else happened?" she asked.
Itachi knew that if he went too much further then it would only lead to things she didn't need to know. If she found out too much then her own life would be in danger….
"Another time." He brushed off and stood off of his bed gracefully. "We still need to pack."
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"There is a village just a few miles from the Sound border," Tsunade explained with a hard expression. She had changed her clothes from the man but hadn't cleaned the floor yet seeing as Zetsu and Shikamaru had arrived sooner then expected. Then again she had told them that it was an urgent mission. "From a victim of the attack, it is said that the village is now destroyed and used as a military camp."
"When did this happen?" Shikamaru asked; all laziness replaced by determination.
"The exact time is unknown but believed to be around 500 hours this morning. As for the scum who attack a civilian village, their loyalties are with Mist and Sound…" She paused and looked hard at both men in front of her. "Is it clear what needs to be done?"
"Yes." They said in unison before Shikamaru clarified. "Sneak in and get information with what they are planning then report back here."
"And don't engage it needed." Zetsu added.
Tsunade nodded. "If you are forced to come into contact with them, then I give you full permission to do what ever is necessary to get out."
"When do we leave?"
"Now."
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It was shortly after that Shikamaru left the office with Zetsu that they ran into Sakura half way out of the Hokage tower.
"Shikamaru," Sakura greeted as she jogged to him.
He gave his normal half grin and stuffed his hands into his pockets. "What are you doing?" he asked while looking warily to Itachi and Kisame who were walking towards him.
"We have a mission and we have to leave tonight," she smiled.
Shikamaru glanced at her black shirt and pants with her red sash around her waist. Her trusty kunai pouch was fastened tightly to her thigh and her katana to her back that her ebony cloak kept hidden with the exception of the hilt. With a quick glance to the other two he saw that they were wearing the same cloak as a way to hide their appearance and their hoods pooling down their backs.
Shikamaru looked to Sakura and her smile faded at the serious expression. "Listen to me Sakura," he said in a low tone so only their group could hear. "I want you to be careful. There was an attack off at the borders and that means there will be more so keep an eye out."
"Attack?" Sakura stayed quiet for a moment. "Where are you going?"
"We've been sent to check it out but should be back soon….I want you to be careful," he said with his brotherly mode coming out.
"I'll be fine." She said as he started walking down the stairs. "You better come back without a scratch!"
He didn't say anything but waved a hand over his shoulder to show that he heard. Itachi walked with Sakura and Kisame back to the office and opened it to see Tsunade standing by her desk and looking through some papers. She looked up to the three and set the folder down. "Good, you're early."
Kisame closed the doors behind them and stepped behind Sakura and Itachi with Samehada over his shoulder.
"You're mission is highly secret. There is a man in Grass Country and he is currently a middle man between us and a few other villages. If there is movement, he will let us know. You're mission is to pick up a scroll with valuable information and afterwards, give him this…" She pulled out a 2 ft long cylinder with a shoulder strap. "There are two scrolls inside that he will deliver. Tell him to take it to Ame and Suna as soon as he can."
"Are those scrolls letters to explain what happened with the village near Sound?" Sakura asked.
"So Shikamaru told you?"
"We just ran into him before we got here," Kisame explained.
"To answer your question; yes it is and now you can understand the severity of this task." She handed the cylinder carrier to Itachi who pulled it over his neck and should to rest against the back of his katana under the cloak. "If any of the scrolls fall into enemy hands you know what to do."
"Burn the information," Itachi answered.
"That's right. You are dismissed…"
Kisame led the way out of the office with Itachi following. Sakura looked back to Tsunade who was clearly stressed. It had to be hard knowing that one of the biggest Shinobi Wars were breaking out and she was in charge of protecting a village of people who depended on her. "Hey Shishou," Sakura said quietly, gathering the blonde's attention. She smiled and pointed to the top of a large shelf. "There's a bottle of Sake behind that vase."
Amber eyes lit up and she looked to where her student pointed and grinned. "Thanks Saku-"
But the room was now empty of anyone except for her.
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"Did she take it Kabuto?" Orochimaru questioned the medic who walked into his training room.
Sasuke leaned against the wall while watching Karin and Suigetsu spar in the center; not paying a glance to Kabuto.
"Not exactly," Kabuto grinned and pushed his glasses up higher on the bridge of his nose. "She was quite resistant."
Orochimaru grinned, showing a sharp fang. "Did you underestimate her?"
"I hadn't expected her to be so determined, is all. To be honest, I was convinced she would've broken down in tears."
Sasuke listened intently while still keeping his eyes on the two sparring. He wasn't sure who they were talking about but he couldn't help let peak his interest in her. If Orochimaru was interested and Kabuto so persistent, then surely this person was important or skillful.
"So you failed, then. You should've had it under control," Orochimaru turned back to see Suigetsu hit Karin, making her stumble back. He hadn't expected her to leave herself open, but she would learn…
"Actually," Kabuto said with his grin widening. "She took it, but she doesn't even know yet…"
"How so?" Sasuke asked levelly. "And what is it that she took?"
Orochimaru chuckled. "It is a tracking device-or liquid-that seeps into your skin like a poison. It takes a skilled medic to remove it and we will know where ever she is."
"All we have to wait for her to do, is reach into her kunai pouch to come into contact with it and it will take effect." Kabuto explained.
Sasuke thought about it for a moment before he asked his next question. "And who is she?"
"Kukuuuku…You'll have to find out, Sasuke-kun…"
Yay!!! All done!! So how was it? You like? You hate?
We are getting into it deeper now!! Who thinks they know what will happen?
The beginning wasn't what I was planning-because I didn't have a plan-so it may be a little awkward and I apologize. But I had a small case of writer's block soooo….
I won't be able to updat till next week sometime because of finals and my other story...but I won't forget!!
Please Review!!!
Or I won't update!!!
