Stand By Me
Chapter 26 – Halcyon
When Sakura arrived at the encampment's gate, she was surprised to find her team already waiting for her. As soon as she came into view their eyes seem to catch her and lock on her form. All of them were dressed in shinobi garb, the pants and vest combo. The clothes bore no affiliation to any village. She wore the same, but what surprised her was Sasuke. He was dressed as they were. Sakura stared at him, but decided not to say anything that might just make him change his mind. "Glad you finally joined us, Ugly." Sai said and Sakura saw Sasuke's dark eyes flipped to Sai. Sakura gave a nervous laugh. "Yeah, sorry for being late."
"You're not." Gaara said and then nodded. "I see that you're training went well."
"Someones coming." Sasuke said, lowly nodding in the direction of the encampment.
Sakura could see Shizune coming towards them.
"Sakura!" Shizune called, coming towards the main gate.
Sakura looked between her teammates uncertainly before she went over to Shizune, who stood just out of earshot.
"Yes, Shizune-san?"
"Tsunade-sama would've come herself but she was pulled away, so she asked me to come." Sakura noticed the lines of tension around Shizune's eyes. She'd worked with Shizune long enough to know that it was a sign that she was keeping her emotions at bay.
"Is everything alright, Shizune-san?"
Shizune shook her head. "No, Sakura…Im so sorry."
"Sorry?" Sakura heard her breath catch.
"Ino," Shizune closed her eyes and swallowed. "Kiba just brought her in. Sakura," Shizune paused, "I'm so sorry."
Sakura felt herself go numb. She opened and closed her mouth several times, but couldn't form any words. What Shizune was saying did not make any sense at all, what she was saying meant – no. It was madness. Ino couldn't be...she just-
"What's going on?" Sasuke asked, he'd come up to them.
Sakura swallowed. "Where is she?" Sakura asked stiffly.
"At the hospital, but Sak-" Shizune said but Sakura was already rushing past them, running at an impossible speed, she could hear Sasuke calling out to her, but she just couldn't stop. She crashed through the hospital doors, her face wet with tears.
"Where?" she breathed, staring at the nurse who was passing. She pointed down the hall, her face a mask of pity.
Sakura turned, running down to the room at the end of the hall, its door slightly ajar.
Sasuke slid into the hospital after her. "Sakura! Stop!" but she didn't. She crashed through the door. Her eyes found Kiba first, he looked as if he was there, but his eyes were bloodshot and vacant. His face wet with new tears.
"Ino?" Sakura called. She felt Sasuke come up behind her, he tried to hold her back but she shook him off. "Ino?" she stepped into the room. "Come on, Pig. This isn't funny." Sakura whispered. "Please..." it was on Sakura's next step that Ino's face came into view and Sakura let out a whimper, she stopped dead. She knew the swelling would go down but it was obvious, even from where she was standing that Ino's chest would never move again. She lay eerily still and cold. Sakura's knees seemed to give under her and she fell, but she never made it to the floor. Sasuke's arms circled around her, holding her up as she sobbed, shaking against him, and finally she squeezed her eyes shut, turning her head into Sasuke's chest. He wasn't looking at Ino, but his eyes were staring out of the window. A far off look in them. "Sasuke-kun..." she cried. "I..."
His eyes flipped down to her and Sakura seemed to stop crying altogether. She grabbed Sasuke's wrist, pulling him along to Ino's bed. Sakura placed a hand on Ino's chest, it was cold even through her torn shirt. "Sakura-" Sasuke began but she had already started pulling his nature chakra. "Sakura," Sasuke snapped, "Stop it. She's gone." he tried to rip his hand from her grip, but she held on. "Sakura!" he grabbed her chin and turned her to face him. "She's gone, Sakura."
"There must be some way," Sakura could feel her heart beat speeding up, "We can take her to Kalika!" her voice shook with desperation.
"Sakura," Sasuke shook his head. "Don't."
"But Kalika can-"
"She's been dead too long."
Sakura's shoulders seemed to cave as the powerlessness set in. She could see Ino, burned into the insides of her eyelids. Ino, tying a red ribbon through her hair. Ino, teaching her how to arrange flowers. Ino who had been her friend all this time, no matter how they pretended otherwise.
Her hands shook as she turned back to Ino, a green glow enveloping them as she began to heal the swelling on her friend's face. Sakura could barely see through her tears, but she managed. Neither Sasuke not Kiba spoke as she healed Ino. Sakura healed the swelling that would have become bruises, the cuts that Ino could have healed herself. Sakura bit down on her lip so hard it began to bleed sluggishly as she broke Ino's fingers back into place. Once she was done, she took a cloth from the cabinet and wet it in the sink, and the began to wash the dirt off of Ino. Down her arms and legs, over her neck and face. All over until she was clean. Sakura's lips twitched into a small smile as she cut the tie from Ino's hair and began to comb through it with her fingers. Slowly, until it was smooth.
"There," Sakura murmured. "It's not exactly how you liked it, but this is the best I can do for now." Her tears dripped down on to Ino's face and she wiped them away quickly. "Sorry. I'm getting all emotional." Sakura made herself step away, and with a lot more effort, she turned her head away too. She went over to Kiba, kneelng in front of him.
"Kiba," she said and his eyes flipped up to her's.
"Did you take care of them? Did you avenge Ino?"
"They're in pieces." he answered. His voice empty.
Sakura closed her eyes. "That's all I wanted to know." she reached out and took his hand. "Get some rest Kiba. Give her a chance to say goodbye."
Kiba squeezed his eyes shut and Sakura saw more tears roll down, tears he was trying to hide.
Sakura got up and turned to Sasuke. "Let's go."
He nodded once and she followed him from the room without looking back.
x-x-x-x-
"My lord, we have broken through their first defense barrier."
Madara turned to the Shadow. "Good. How long until we break through the next?"
"We estimate another few hours, but it will be done."
"Do what ever you need to. Kumo will fall before the next full moon. I want the Raikage, alive."
"My lord, we've already sent Shadow in to take him out."
"Call them back. I will take care of him myself."
The Shadow nodded and pushed himself to stand.
"And another thing," Madara said, "Stop the search for Haruno. Bring me Hyuuga Hinata instead,"
The Shadow nodded and retreated from the room.
x-x-x-x-
Team Sakura had set out from the encampment with a new set of orders. Defend Kumo. The order had been sent out to all the teams. They rushed through the trees, hopping from the branches at full speed.
Sakura saw Sai drop down from his summoned bird. It exploded into ink as he did.
"The first patrol is up ahead." he informed her.
"What are your orders?" Gaara called.
"We'll break through." Sakura said, loud enough for them to hear before she dropped down from the branch. She could hear the thumps behind her as they followed.
This patrol was why Ino had to go around. This was why she died.
"You," the Shadow called. "What are you doing out here?"
Sakura stepped forward and threw her hood off.
"Haruno Sakura...?!"
"Sakura!" Gaara hissed under his breath but she disappeared.
"Fuck," Sasuke drew out his katana and rushed forward. The Shadow drew out a kunai and their blades clashes, sending sparks flying. Sasuke slammed a fist into the Shadow's mask, it cracked and crumbled away. The Shadow twisted his kunai away and slashed again, but Sasuke swung his katana, "That is the incorrect way to block my katana." he said. "Sharingan!" the Shadow seemed to be tapped in his gaze and then he let out a groan and slumped to the floor.
"Homo, I brought you another one." Sai dropped another Shadow at Sasuke's feet.
"Oh, you can't call him 'Homo', since he's banging that Sakura chick." Suigetsu said, from where he was leaning against the tree.
Sakura hopped down from the branch, holding another Shadow in a head lock.
She ignored Suigetsu's previous statement. "What the hell are you doing here?"
"Feisty," he said, "I like that in a woman."
"Suigetsu," Sasuke said in what Suigetsu had always referred to as his "authoritative voice".
"I have something for you." Suigetsu pulled the scroll from his bag. "Read it or don't read it, but I would suggest that you didn't."
Sasuke grabbed the scroll from Suigetsu and rolled it open. His eyes skimmed over it and Sakura saw something change in them. He refused to look at her as he put it away, into his bag.
Sakura looked away. "Sasuke, finish on the rest of the Shadows please," she said. "We have to keep moving."
Gaara appeared then, with two more Shadow, who both seemed to be on the verge of passing out. He dropped them at Sasuke's feet. Sakura saw Gaara staring at Sasuke, she saw the warning in his pale eyes. Sasuke looked down at Gaara nonchalantly, before he bent and continued working on the Shadow.
"You can go, Suigetsu." he said, his tone bored. Sakura swallowed and she saw Gaara turn to look at her, wondering if she, too, had noticed Sasuke's shift.
Suigetsu huffed and slipped back into the trees quitely, just as he came.
Sakura watched as Sasuke finished on the Shadow. He dropped the Rock Jounin of the ground and turned to look at her, his eyes as empty as they had been when he'd tried to kill her.
"Can we go?" he asked.
"Sure," she said tightly.
She handed one of the Shadow a scroll. "Someone will meet up with you at these co-ordinates."
The female Jounin looked close to tears as she nodded and thanked Sakura.
"Let's go."
They traveled until the moon was high before Sakura suggested they rest for the night. No one objected so they set up a small camp. Sasuke hadn't so much as looked at her since Suigetsu's unwelcome arrival. Whatever he'd given to Sasuke had set him off, and not in a good way. Sakura watched him arrange his sleeping bag, but something told her he didn't have sleeping in mind. And didn't involve her either. "I'll take the first watch." she said.
"I will." Sasuke said, there was something intimidating in his gaze, Sakura didn't flinch – she couldn't. "No," she looked right into his eyes as she said it. "I'll be fine."
He didn't seem angry at her refusal. He shrugged it off as if he didn't care and turned back to his sleeping bag.
Sakura felt Gaara's gaze on her but this was her problem. She would handle Sasuke – if he needed to be handled. She would be lying if she said she took watch just because of Sasuke. She wanted to avoid sleeping altogether. If she fell asleep, she'd go to the Void, and even if she knew Ino was...gone. Facing her there would just be too final.
Sakura chose a spot near Sasuke's sleeping bag, where she could watch him. As he settled into his sleeping bag, she could feel his glare on her and her lips twitched into a smile, one she knew he could see but she couldn't seem to care.
The night sounds were all around them, and Sakura relaxed. She knew it was when the sounds stopped that she needed to be worried. She sat quietly playing with her kunai, swinging it around her fingers until even Sasuke's breathing evened out and he seemed to have finally fallen asleep. Tomorrow they would arrive in Kumo, and she knew she needed to rest, but she couldn't risk it. Not tonight. A part of her wondered what she would do if Sasuke deserted them again. Would there team be fine? Generally speaking, yes, but then again – Sasuke and his Sharingan were the core of their team. The main question was...would she be fine? Sakura felt her hands clench into fists. She bit down on her lip, no – she wouldn't be ok. She knew she'd gotten too used to the idea of him being around, but she honestly needed him now. She'd already lost Ino, but somehow his betrayal would be worse than him dying, because she knew she couldn't forgive him again.
Hours later, Gaara had woken up and asked her to take over but Sakura had shaken her head.
"You need some rest, Sakura."
"I'll be fine, really. Go back to sleep, Kazekage-sama, please."
Gaara seemed as if he wanted to protest, but he sighed instead and said, "Just, Gaara is fine." when he turned away, Sakura saw Sasuke move and her eyes turned to him.
"Go back to sleep." she whispered.
"Take your own advice." he narrowed his eyes. "Why are you being stupid?"
Sakura smiled. "Just go back to sleep, please, Sasuke," she paused and murmured the -kun.
Sasuke stared at her and then shook his head, before settling in again.
x-x-x-x-
Sakura sat at a near-by stream the next morning, filling their water containers. She hadn't gotten any sleep the previous night after being on watch the entire time. She wouldn't go as far to say that she was exhausted since she pulled many all-nighters at the hospital, but she was more tired than she expected to be.
"Ugly," she only heard his approaching footsteps after he spoke, Sakura didn't have the energy to correct the nickname, "Ohayo, Sai," she said and took a sip from her water contained – mistake.
"Sakura, what does "sex" feel like?"
Sakura spat the water out in an embarrassing spray and turned to Sai, her cheeks blazing, wondering if she'd heard him right and from the expectant look on his face – yes, she had.
"Sai...what?"
"I heard the fish face say that Sasuke-san had been "banging" you. I derived this as a proper synonym for intercourse."
Sakura was still staring at, her eyebrows high on her forehead. Sai was waiting for an answer and Sakura didn't know how to give him one. Banging was a strong term since it implied an ongoining thing, as where she and Sasuke hadn't done it more than two , if she went into the actual feeling of it with Sasuke. She was sure it was a lot better than what other girl experienced. I mean, it was Uchiha Sasuke – everything with him turned out to be an experience. Mindblowing or not, which it definitely was.
"Sakura, you're spacing out." Sai waved a hand in front of her face.
"What's going on here?"
Sai turned to Sasuke with a bored look on his face. "I was just asking Ugly-"
"for his water container." Sakura interrupted, showing Sai's bottle into his chest – hard.
She didn't look at Sasuke as she tossed his bottle over her shoulder, he caught it a second later.
"Where's Gaara?" she asked turning to Sai.
She saw Sasuke's eyes narrow from the corner of her eye.
"Back at the camp site." Sai answered and Sakura nodded, "we move out in five minutes." Sai nodded, going on ahead to let the Kazekage know.
Sakura picked up her water container and stood, but something behind her made her freeze. A glint, a shimmer of sun on a kunai. She turned around, her eyes immediately landing on the weapon n his hand. Sakura looked up at his eyes, and his eyes looked right into hers as he came closer.
"Sasuke-"
"Shut up." he snapped, his eyes narrowing.
"Is this about-"
her voice cut off mid-sentence as he lifted the kunai.
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