Transition

Sakura is perceived from the perspectives of others as she changes during the years into something else entirely. The people near her follows her transition closely and when she starts abandoning everything she held dear - she gets closer and closer to her goal.

Chapter 18

Her Sinful Efflorescence

Through the Eyes of a Fox Boy, the God of Life and an Avenger

The Powerful Alcoholic, Senju Tsunade

"It can't be - you're dead! Sakura killed you!" Naruto's lower lip quivered and his eyes filled with tears. His hand twitched, as if he wanted to reach out and touch the Godaime.

"No, not really. Sit down and have some tea. I'll explain it to you," Tsunade said, her nut brown eyes soft. This wasn't supposed to happen, she thought to herself. But just as well. He had found out. How he had known she was in there, what with wearing chakra suppressant chains around her bulky chest, she didn't know. But this was Naruto - the most unpredictable ninja. He must have smelled her fart or something.

"What? Tsunade baa-chan... I thought you were dead! Everyone does! For fuck's sake-", Naruto's voice broke and he shook where he stood. And not for the first time, Tsunade could see the ostracised little boy in him. She wanted to hug him, really, but she had to sort this out. So the Kyuubi wouldn't take over because of his turbulent emotions.

"Here, here. Sakura only did what was necessary for the village." She soothed, her voice uncharacteristically soft.

"I don't understand! How could you -"

"Sit and drink some tea, Naruto. I will explain everything to you." Tsunade frowned and waved her manicured hand. Naruto trembled as he stood in front of his Hokage. When Naruto showed no signs of sitting down and drinking tea, Tsunade sighed.

"My death was staged, obviously," Tsunade said calmly, sipping her tea with closed eyes.

"Why didn't you tell me. Why the fuck didn't you tell me?" Naruto roared, earning a disapproving look from Kitsune. The librarian didn't appreciate loud noises, Tsunade was well aware of. She had earned several bumps on her head left by heavy books the times her voice had escalated above library whispers.

Tsunade replied calmly, "To avoid accidentally getting the truth out," her eyes hardened as she added, "and obviously, you will not tell this to anyone."

"But -"

"No. Naruto, this is important. If your dream is to truly become Hokage of Konohagakure, then you must know sacrifice, the importance of information, the tactical outcome of your decisions. Do not be a child, Naruto. Act like the Hokage you strive to be." As the former Godaime finished her sentence, Naruto's blue eyes shone. He looked down to his hands, still balled into fists. He understood, somewhere in that easygoing yet so complex mind of his, that what she said was the truth.

"What is Sakura doing? She's... she's really hated, baa-chan. Everyone loved you - loves you and they think she killed you. I don't think anyone will ever look at Sakura the same again. I'm not... even sure I can -"

"Brat! Don't you see? Don't you see how much she has sacrificed for this village? For me? For you?" Tsunade shouted. "Don't you dare look at her differently. Don't you dare! When she comes back, because she will, you will treat her no differently. She's the same as Itachi, just as hated-"

"Itachi? That's Sasuke's brother... How are they the same?" Naruto asked sharply, focusing on Tsunade with an intensity reserved solely for his teammates.

"Oh - shit. I shouldn't have said that. Stupid, stupid..." Tsunade bit her lip, then grabbed the saké bottle standing tall next to her tea cup, and took a swig. She shouldn't have said it, but she wanted to tell him. He deserved it. And it had been like a heavy pressure on her chest, not just because of the chakra suppressant chains, but because it was harsh knowledge on Naruto's rogue teammate's family demise.

"Tsunade-sama. Tell me," Naruto demanded. Tsunade saw the future Hokage in those blue eyes as she swallowed the strong alcoholic beverage. She sighed and frowned, pinching the bridge of her nose, pretending to unwillingly let him know the bloodied truth.

"Well, since you already know I'm alive and all... You know that Itachi was the one who killed the Uchiha Clan and poured the word hatred into Sasuke's heart. The man Sasuke lived to kill was Uchiha Itachi. But that's not all there is to the story. Uchiha Itachi as a thirteen-year-old ANBU was ordered by Danzō and the Council to wipe out the whole of the Uchiha Clan. The Uchihas were conspiring against Konoha and planned a coup d'état, perhaps because the village treated them differently. The village was afraid of their eyes, therefore they kept them on a short leash, giving their Clan house to be on the outskirts of the village. Itachi was given two choices: die with his Clan, or kill his entire Clan with the exception of one person; survive and be hated. Itachi chose Sasuke to survive. Because he probably still loves him, his little brother. He still..." Tsunade said and sniffed. Naruto didn't breathe.

Tsunade could see the hurt swirl inside Naruto's chest. Stabbing, wrenching. Thinking, processing.

"Sasuke."

"Oh, fuck, this story always brings me to tears. Sakura..." Tsunade grumbled and wiped furiously at her cheek, where a tear had slipped from her eye.

"Sakura told you about it?" Naruto asked, blue eyes wide, tears starting to overflow again. But there was also a coldness in his eyes, and that coldness scared Tsunade. It was that small portion of hatred that existed in him. "She knew?"

"Y-yes." Tsunade stuttered and swallowed back bile in her throat. No, Naruto would never give in. She still had him tied to Konoha with love. She straightened up as Kitsune warily watched the Kyuubi container. "Sakura sneaked into the classified ANBU archives and found the report when she was looking through the Uchiha files one night. I would have scolded or punished her for doing this, breaching into a classified archive by using the transportation jutsu and my ID card - and looking through secrets of the Clans. I didn't, though, since I knew she needed the information to obtain her goal. I have to admit, I wasn't aware that section at the ANBU archives even existed. I had no idea, what with me being thrown in the position as Hokage without prior training or information on earlier activities. I think Hiruzen was aware of the mass murder order, at least later on, and he probably wasn't happy with Danzō nor the Council..."

"So Sakura knew? All along?" Naruto looked down on his feet, obviously hurt by the fact that she hadn't confided him this knowledge of Sasuke's past.

"Yes. She didn't tell you because it's still classified - and would you imagine the uproar if the truth came out in the wrong way? Suspicion against the Council, fear amongst the Clans. A riot against Konoha itself would arise." Tsunade calmly assessed, and Naruto nodded curtly. Then he looked up and his eyes clashed with hers.

"We need to - we need to clear his name. Get Itachi back. And oh fuck - we need to tell Sasuke-teme! Or he's going to kill his brother who was ordered to slaughter his own clan - This is just fucked up! We need to -" Naruto started breathing hard and waved with his hands. Tsunade sighed and gently laid her palm on his head. This stopped his ramblings better than any hit would have, surprisingly.

"We'll make it right. Sakura's onto it." She smiled and ruffled his unruly blond locks. Finally touching him, her warm fingers caressing him. Her own little blonde delicate monster boy. "She's onto it."

Tsunade turned to the destroyed wall and wrinkled her nose.

"And you better fix that wall before I kick you outta here."

The Old War Veteran in the Cabin, Kurotsuchi Miura

"Stop scratching."

"It's itching."

"And it's bleeding and it's raw. You're going to get an infection if you continue like that." Miura looked at Sen's arm where her fingernails left pink trails. A few had broken skin. Little marks of blood surfaced and the girl looked at them. She stopped scratching, seemingly unwillingly, and clenched her fists.

"I can't help it, it's just so goddamn itchy." She growled, feline like as she shrugged off his hands. Miura retracted his wrinkly hand.

"You need to get out some energy." He decided. Her mind... Was it breaking? Scratching, inflicting pain and harm to herself. It only proved further he had to help her.

"Yeah, yeah." Sen muttered.

Miura brought his tea cup to his mouth and sipped the hot tea. Delicate bitterness flooded into his mouth.

"I think it's time for an evaluation of your skills," Miura said and watched the pinkette sitting by her sword, leaning against the wall, where she had taken to carefully cleaning it with a cloth. The blade seemed to glow in the early morning light from the window. She had stopped scratching, at least. Seeing her tending to her sword somewhat made him feel even less comfortable than her scratching her arms bloody, he realised, as he watched her green eyes slide across the blank blade's surface. There were so many emotions in her eyes as she looked at it, a mixture of fear and admiration. Miura felt a chill run through his spine. There was something about the sword...

"Sure, it's been too long since I trained anyway." Sen said and abruptly dragged Miura out of his discomforting thoughts.

"After breakfast, we're going to the glade then." He said gruffly and tried a weak smile. She didn't even look at him.

An hour later they sat in the same glade he had found her in. Miura had brought papers and a pen to write down and analyse Sen's current abilities and weaknesses, to thoroughly dissect focus of the day was to assess her abilities to the utmost detail. Since the day Sen found out Miura was a former high class shinobi of a far away village she had asked him to teach her all he knew. He had agreed, somewhat not very reluctantly.

She somehow gave him purpose for all the knowledge he possessed, and he knew his experiences would rot away with him in the old cabin if she hadn't laid bleeding in his path. And from what he knew of her in her short stay so far, her mind was not healthy but she was getting better. And she had most of the tools to absorb his techniques and knowledge.

Sen started out with warming up by walking on her hands while stretching, bending her legs over her face, stretching her other leg up towards the sky. Then quite amusedly she started running on her hands as she stretched her legs up in the air. Miura watched with a light raise of his eyebrow, surprised.

"Peculiar warming up method," he scoffed to himself.

When she had finished ten minutes later, she stood in front of him. Miura raised his pen in anticipation and she nodded in return.

"I'll start with my basic Academy style taijutsu."

After a while as he watched her train, he realised it as he saw her blank expression. The scratches on her arm were quite visible still. Her movements turned slightly more sharp as she concentrated. Violent thrusts, kicks, punches, all would leave nothing alive behind if hit. They were too accurate, as if she knew all of the vital parts of her invisible sparring partners.

"You miss the blood," he whispered. She didn't hear him.

When the evaluation was done three hours later, Sen lay sprawled on her back on the soft grassy ground and Miura sat with his back against a tree. The sun shone in shafts through the foliage of the tree and he felt the rough bark against his bony shoulders. Her heavy breathing filled the otherwise quiet glade and she swept her hand over her forehead, drying the sweat.

"I need to improve on my taijutsu, basically - right now, I make do with my own style, a perfected version of the Academy's general taijutsu techniques. My Genin teacher never taught me any style, and my later teacher only taught me evasion techniques and strength enhancement. I need to improve my stealth as well, my stamina has very short life span. I need to improve my genjutsu; it is child's play to dispel genjutsus, however, casting them is a different thing altogether," she paused for breath, and Miura listened in attentive amusement. "I have developed two genjutsu techniques, but they have only worked once. I call them the Rising of the Blood Moon and the Second Flicker. I need to perfect my kenjutsu, since my animal summoning, Suzaku, is too weak at the moment to teach me anymore of his fire style. I need to find my instincts and try out this improvisation thing. Not in battle of course, since I am a paper ninja after all. I need to invent some more poisons, and make more paralyzing gas…", Sen finished and looked at him with curious eyes. Miura smiled gently and gathered the three pages he had written in a map.

"Listen, Sen. Have you ever heard that shinobi must see what's underneath -"

"The underneath? Yeah. That was drilled into my mind by my team's teacher when I was a genin until I mumbled the words in my sleep."

"Then, did you truly listen to him?"

"Hn? Yes, of course I did. It is good advice."

"Why are you not following those words?"

"I am!" she exclaimed and turned towards him.

"Look here. Your strength is certainly above Jounin level in regard to your taijutsu, kenjutsu, genjutsu and strategic thinking. You have most useful techniques. However... You have forgotten one thing." Miura smirked and poked on her shoulder with his cane. Sen frowned and rolled away to lay on her stomach, defensively looking up at the old man.

"What? I checked everything, I -"

"Your mind's strength. Don't forego its importance. You have miniscule chakra pools, and that can be changed if you meditate long enough, with enough focus. The streams can be deepened. I also believe you need to scrutinise yourself, take a moment to deepen the relationship with your own mind. You need to realise who you truly are and reconnect with your dreams and passions."

"I don't have that kind of time, Kurotsuchi-san. Plus, meditation is not really my thing. I'm not that… patient." Sen smiled politely.

"Time is fluctuant, a feeble thing created by man. In the waterfalls of Mount Chikara there is no such thing as a ticking clock."

"Are you saying there is no time there?" She looked at him with disbelieving viridian eyes.

"I meditated in the falls of Chikara's tears for seven years. When I opened my eyes and watched the sun in the sky, I realised only seven days had gone by. The fact of the time I had spent in the waterfall was further strengthened when I went to buy supplies in the nearby village Itarakichi when I bought a newspaper, where I saw the date. Time is non-existent."

"How long have you stayed here, hermit? The birds must have pecked at your brain." The young woman smiled with furrowed pink eyebrows.

"See for yourself. Meditate for a day and I will come to get you by nightfall." Miura poked at her forehead with the cane again, and Sen angrily smacked it away.

"As I said, I don't have that kind of t -"

In a blur, he was behind her with a kunai pressed at her cheek. He felt her blood pulse faster through her veins.

"If you want to become strong, then sacrifice that time you do not have." He chuckled. "And you were just killed by an old man. Such waste of time, was it not?" He withdrew the kunai and he saw the burning of her eyes.

In a flicker of petals and wounded shinobi pride, she was gone from the glade. The old man sighed, flash stepped away from the glade, and went to pick up some wooden logs for the fireplace at the back of the cabin, in the little shelter he had built last spring. Winter was at his doorstep and he needed to keep warm during the colder nights that were to come. He didn't worry about Sen. She could take care of herself. Probably, Miura thought, trying to convince himself.

As the night fell upon the little cabin, Miura started his walk towards the waterfall at the edge of the Chikara mountain. It was a lovely transition between day and night. The old man looked up at the bleeding sky as the disappearing sun sighed its last luminescence on the clouds from the horizon, turning them into a fleshy nuance. As Miura trampled his way through the woods, unconsciously, instinctively avoiding breaking twigs. Walking as silent as a mouse, he could hear the soft roar of the waterfall.

As the roaring became louder, the sight of the impressive falls came into the old man's view. The sprinkle of mist reached his wrinkly skin, the cold water a reminder of the still-present snow on top of the mountain. Miura walked up to the shore of the little lake and he could see a figure in a blur, sitting on a huge rock directly underneath the waterfall, taking on the full amount of heavy falling water. Miura felt his lips lift into a light smile. She had listened to his suggestion. And she might have found internal peace, but that was all he could hope.

Sometimes, the best thing to do if your heart was in turmoil was to dig deep into yourself, Miura thought. To find you true will, the true want of the heart. To cleanse away the dirt, cleanse away doubt. Meditation was the strongest asset to an assassin.

Miura knew he couldn't simply rip her out of meditation. So he shuffled to the edge of the shore, little waves reached his feet. Lightly taking a step forward to the water, his feet landed on the water's surface. He took another and began his journey on water towards the waterfall. Water-walking near a raging waterfall tend to be a bit more difficult than most other river streams since the waters are more ever-changing and unpredictable. Miura's chakra in the sole of his feet, however, was in perfect synchronization with the malevolent waters. Miura took his time and walked slowly, enjoying the feel of the cold water underneath him, the roaring cry of the mountain's tears, the scent of seaweed and wet leaves. Then, he felt his skin prickle with hard falling drops of water. He opened his eyes and squinted, seeing the girl with pink hair sit so very still on the mountain rock. The waterfall was directly above her and Miura knew the tons of cold water hurt her body. But she seemed to have gotten used to it.

Miura jumped up on the rock and sat besides the cold girl with closed eyes. He knew she had become cold as ice, straight even into her bones, and the foreign warmth of his hand could make her snap. He turned to look at her face. It was the most peaceful expression she had ever shown him. Even when asleep, her expression had shown a fighting spirit like he'd never seen. But not now. There was no internal fight. There was no pain. Only stillness.

"Sen?" His old voice whispered in the roar of the waterfall, barely audible.

"Sakura." Her clear voice startled him since she had not opened her eyes. It rang, vibrating inside his eardrums. It was as if she had shouted, but she had said it quietly.

"My name is Sakura. That is who I am."

Miura only looked at the girl, feeling the natural energies surround her, as response to her confession. Sakura, that was her true name? It still rang in his ears, her voice echoing. It left such an impression on him he couldn't respond. Power surged through him.

He felt the sudden burst of her chakra gates opening, and they were nothing like they had been before. She was glowing with heat. She poured her life essence out and it seemed unstoppable, ever lasting. She had found the importance of knowing her true name, of who she was. All he could do was trying not to acknowledge the cold sweat on his back. It had taken him seventeen years of finding himself. She had done it within one day. She was frightening him.

What kind of monster was she?

The Prodigy, Hyuuga Neji

By taking up missions he found the pain to numb. He was exhausted to his core, but that was the only way. By training the sweet little devil-spawn Hanabi occasionally and jumping into different teams he could almost numb her out of his head. The annoying blabber of his temporary teammates kept his mind away from her. He had climbed the ranks without himself noticing and now he was called Taichou in every team he was assigned. He almost never rested, and relentlessly asked for another mission. They followed leads on the Akatsuki, they searched for Team Hebi and infiltrated different villages. But nothing they found lead him to her. It was like she had never existed. And every team he was assigned deemed useless. They were so-called Jounin, he scoffed. Their abilities weren't even close to Naruto's mindless tactics.

One late night he came home from a mission that had left more bodies on the ground than what had been anticipated. After reporting the mission details to Danzō-sama, he had been dismissed. Slumping down on his bed, Neji sighed. His muscles were sore and the wounds on his back made a painful reminder. He knew he had to check them up with a medic, but he didn't find it in himself to go to the hospital. His hollow heart didn't allow him to. Hospitals reminded him too much of her light scent of antiseptic.

A light knock on the window made him leap up from the bed and activate his Byakugan. What he saw behind the glass was no enemy however, so he relaxed his eyes, but not his defensive stance. The moon shone behind the masked figure, obscuring his face in shadows. The silver hair stood out and was smoothed down by a hand.

"Hatake Kakashi." He said and nodded curtly, politely, yet he knew it was on the brink to rudeness. But he was tired.

"Hello, Neji." The silver haired elder shinobi opened the window and jumped inside Neji's quarters.

"It is late. Why are you here?" Neji drawled and cocked his head.

"Right to the point, now are we." Hatake smiled with his one visible eye and Neji noticed the absence of the neon orange pocket book. It was unusual to have the full attention of Hatake, and it made Neji almost uncomfortable. "I'm here to propose a seat in my team, a leading role. Your recent upgrade to Taichou in every team you've been assigned has made you used to it and I believe your knowledge and skills will benefit us."

"The Retribution Task Force?" Neji asked, with the slightest hint of surprise in the rise of his eyebrow. Since Team Seven no longer existed.

"That's right. I want you in our ranks." Kakashi smiled. Hollowly, ghostly. As if it wasn't truly there. Neji recognised that pleasant grimace. He had seen it in his own reflection when he had tried to smile. He had decided it wasn't worth the effort.

"Your main purpose is to find Sak-the Haruno, right?" The prodigy restrained himself from biting his lip.

"Yes. We will bring her back so she can pay for her crime. For betraying us. For defecting. And foremost for killing Tsunade." Kakashi's expression turned grim and something similar to hate flared hot in his dark eye. As if he couldn't help himself from showing it.

"I know...", Neji mumbled.

"I heard you encountered her with Team Ten a couple of weeks back. I want you to tell me everything that happened, and how she succeeded in defeating you all. To every last minimal detail."

Neji hindered himself from displaying anger at Hatake's obvious show of pity and disdain at their loss. He shrugged instead.

"I can tell you everything I know, of course. But I need... to think about the proposition."

"That's alright. Just don't make me wait too long. Come by the Headquarters tomorrow morning. And you should get those wounds looked at." Hatake finished and nodded with an empty smile. He withdrew and was gone in a flicker from Neji's room.

Neji stood still and looked out the window. The moon peaked out from a large grey cloud, then disappeared in the smoky substance. The stars were nonexistent this night.

The Man of Shadows, Shimura Danzō

He was a simple man. He liked things orderly and clean, and he enjoyed his tea in the early morning at the Hokage's office. He always arrived one hour before the staff at five o'clock in the morning. During that hour he had time to look through yesterday's reports from Root and assemble missions accordingly. He sipped the tea from his plain tea cup. There were no decorations on the ceramic mug, no stylish touches, it was only dull and grey. But the white tea of Tang flooded his mouth and covered it in bitterness and renewed strength. As his now everyday procedure after he was done signing and filing his underground organisation's files, he went to the library. After a few codewords, a jutsu that let him see the door, three different keys, he was allowed inside the murky library.

He found a busty blond woman therein, sitting at the round table in the middle of the surrounding shelves, looking through the reports he had given her the day before. They had come into some kind of agreement and they discussed the different tasks the Hokage work had baffled him with. The boisterous woman looked up at him as he approached and she nodded curtly. Her blond hair was unusually pinned up into a bun and she looked tired, with dark circles underneath her eyes. She seemed to hate the isolation.

"I received a message from her during the night." Tsunade said, straight to the point. She flipped a loose hair strand away from her delicate features.

"Are there any problems?" Danzō asked and sat down in front of her at the table. The librarian showed up behind him and offered tea to the two of them. It was a red tea and Danzō didn't hide the wrinkle of his nose.

The woman serving the tea ignored his facial dismissal and put a steaming ceramic cup in front of him.

"She met with Uchiha Sasuke. He succeeded in taking two of her summons, the dragon Seiryu and the tiger Byakko." Tsunade sighed.

"That was unfortunate." Danzō nodded, his expression emotionless as always. "Any damage done to her?"

"Yes. She is currently recuperating in a old cabin down south, at the Chikara mountain. The loss was hard on her other summons, since they had known each other for a long time."

"Hm. She cannot stay for too long. She needs to start making herself noticeable. Taking down a few missing nin won't impress them." Danzō said and his gaze slithered to the former Godaime's manicured yet recently bit down fingernails, her hands clenching the ceramic cup at her notice of his attention.

"I'm well aware, and so is she. She will head to the village of Itarakichi and wreck some havoc the day after tomorrow after she takes up the mission of a bodyguard to the village Elder Takehiko. He is under the impression some of the Clans in the village are after his head. He is a man of natural paranoia, so it was easy to let him know there was supposedly reason to it."

"Good."

As he stood up from the chair, he stopped when Tsunade raised a finger.

"One thing. It has come to my attention that… Why have you recently visited the Academy so regularly? It isn't in the Hokage protocol. Are you planning on upgrading the Academy's curriculum... Or is it something else?" Tsunade's eyes had hardened, her hazel brown eyes catching him. Danzō cocked his bandaged head to the side, watching her for one moment.

"I care for the children's growth. Is there anything wrong with that?" Danzō said then and gave her a sweet smile that sent shivers through the attending librarians body, and then he walked out. The unused muscles in his face strained. Smiling was unnecessary and discomforting. But necessary for no further questions from that loud woman. How had she noticed? She was stuck inside the library. She had to have someone on the outside, watching him.

Danzō realised he had to be more conspicuous from now on. His plan could not be compromised.

The Avenger, Uchiha Sasuke

He had stopped pitying himself ages ago now. Inside his cage of flames, Sasuke found his rage burning brighter than the fire consuming his flesh. Rage against Izanagi, that lying God who now ruled his body. Sasuke was only slightly aware of the outside world, sometimes catching glimpses of what Izanagi was doing. Watching the moon, conversing with Suigetsu, drinking tea, watching. He was almost always watching, observing. And Sasuke grew angrier.

Mostly, Izanagi watched with interest the poverty stricken parts of the villages they went through. The war ravaged parts. The hollow eyes of beggars on the corner to a grocery stand. The drunken mercenaries outside of a bar. The little child with a large bruise covering half his face, walking limply through the street with a loaf of bread in his arms, clutching it tightly. A filthy and scab covered homeless dog, breathing shallowly on the ground in the burning sun, its ribs protruding and there were wounds infected at its head. Its eyes were swindling, large and brown and broken. A beautiful woman calling for him from a window to a brothel, trying to hide the cough that would be her death.

Sasuke couldn't do anything, and that was what angered him the most. Not that he had been fooled to Merge and offer his body to a long forgotten God. Not that he was burning. Not that his body moved without his command. But that he was helpless. It was a new sensation to him.

No, not new. He had felt it once before. When he had stared at his mother's and father's corpse.

His breath hitched. The onyx eyes reflected the dancing flames and he wrinkled his face into an unhidden grimace of wrath. He decided then, without sanity in his mind, what he was going to do. And he would enjoy it, every last part of it. The feel of his thick blood on his fingers, trailing down his skin.

He was going to kill a God.

The God of Light, Izanagi - currently residing within the Avenger Uchiha Sasuke

Izanagi stopped in his tracks. The shared mind with the boy confused him, since a few of his memories were so powerful that they overruled him sometimes, but mostly they amused him. And Izanagi recognized the feeling. He couldn't fight the memory, so he decided to simply enjoy a peek at the boy's more powerful recollection of his past. He let his hand touch the hilt of the katana, his former prison.

A light memory slipped past him. It caught him unprepared, shining so brightly he almost needed to catch his breath. Darkness. Someone was laughing loudly, madly, revelling in blood. Breaking one arm, two arms. Was it him? He laughed again. He didn't care. He felt powerful. He could do anything. He could hurt those who raised their fists against him. Strength surrounded his eyes, blotches of red covered his vision, buzzing and vibrating. Someone called for him, but he didn't care. His enemy laid in front of him; all he needed to do was finish it. Blow out the fire. Show the world he was made of more than flesh and bones.

"Sasuke!"

Warmth against his back, fingers delicately gripping around him. Not in a hurtful way. Warmth. He felt her breath against his neck. His senses slowly crept back. He was in a forest, the grassy scent reaching his nose. And a metallic scent. And a scent of fear. He slowly turned back to see who had brought him such warmth, who had touched him so lovingly. But when he saw her, her face was blank. Who was she? Blackness covered his vision and pain seared through his body from his neck. And then there was nothing.

Izanagi opened his eyes and realised something dripped from his cheek. He scoffed. The mortal body of his was so fragile, so emotional even though the boy suppressed his feelings.

Izanagi had hungrily studied the world. And his vision had clouded with deep disappointment. In its current form it was a disaster. Humans were selfish creatures, shallow and dirty. Humans were the failure of the evolution he had once started. They were slowly destroying the Earth, destroying themselves. He felt no pity for them.

It was time for him to contact the Priest. It was time for the world to change.

The Old War Veteran in the Cabin, Kurotsuchi Miura

"I can give you my makimono collection of jutsus. I can teach you the Cloak technique. I can teach you Nightshade. I can teach you Stealth Step and Mouse Step. But I can't teach you which path to take."

In her kneeling position of seiza, she nodded.

"We'll start training tomorrow. Sleep well."

"I will." Sakura nodded and rose, then flashed away to her room.

Since last night, Miura had seen a drastic change in the girl. She was calmer. Her eyes had become a darker, moss green shade and her shoulders weren't rigid as she went to her sleeping quarters.

Sakura. That was her name. Miura thought he somehow recognized the name, but he couldn't place it. Pink flashed in front of his retina. During his time in his old village he had seen a little girl on the street with pink hair. He recalled the occasion now, since the name rang quiet familiarly in his ears. Someone had called for her, a woman. Sakura-chan. The little girl had turned around and bumped into him, whispered she was sorry and covered her hand over her forehead, and then ran to her mother. A few girls had laughed behind her as she scuffled away and Miura hadn't thought more about it.

But there was a possibility. Could it be... That Sakura belonged to Konohagakure?

The Fox Boy, Uzumaki Naruto

If anything, the boy with a fox sealed inside him, was not one to idly sit by when important stuff happened. For a while he had almost forgotten his goal, his goal since childhood - to become the Hokage of Konoha. In order to become it, he realised when he had met a very alive Tsunade, was to work for it. And not just physically. Not just physically tearing walls apart, not just physically making everyone listen to him, not just physically saving the village.

Sakura-chan was fighting her own war in some kind of conspiracy. Sasuke-teme was fighting an internal one. Naruto had to fight too. That was simply who he was - he would never leave his teammates alone to deal with their issues on their own. And he knew that if he became Hokage, he would have all the power to do so. By himself he was strong, dattebayo. He had the Rasengan, he had the Kage Bunshins and he... kind of had Kurama's power. Kurama-chi he was working on, since he was all bitchy and hate-filled for humans still. Naruto didn't just want Kurama's power, he wanted the fox to realise there were more to humans than what he thought.

But Naruto knew it wouldn't be enough with his own strength alone. With his troublesome teammates, he had to become Hokage. With that power, political power and in soldier wise strength, he would be influential and people would finally listen to him.

Plus, he was getting annoyed with Danzō. Being the bandaged bastard he was, the Hokage work seemed to bore him and he left most of the paper work to an exhausted Shizune with a team of newly recruited administrators from his shady organization. Lately the bandaged bastard had taken to visiting the Academy a lot. It didn't really disturb Naruto, but he didn't like the looks Danzō gave the children when the Kyuubi container visited Iruka once a week. That look, it was filled with interest. When Naruto noticed it, it had left a dry taste in his mouth. He didn't know why. He had told Tsunade of it, in case it was something weird.

Naruto sighed over the dusty old scroll Tsunade had given him of Konoha's old politics. The dust whirled away and some of it came menacingly into his nose. He sneezed violently.

The library was, in all truth, a hateful hellhole.

With words everywhere and mind-wrecking sentences, he could puke all over the place. But then that Kitsune woman would chomp on his head, he was sure of it. That librarian did love her books and she would fight to her death for them.

Naruto sneaked a glance at the scary librarian at the end of the table who noticed his glare, and glared right back at him with her blank grey eyes looking over her glasses that had fallen a bit down the bridge of her straight nose. Naruto felt the compulsion to stick his tongue out at the dusty librarian, but he didn't. He was too scared of getting his head chomped off. Those teeth of her were eerily similar to Kurama's.

Focus, brat.

Uhmph. Naruto responded to the monster in his belly, who had decided to make his life even more hateful by observing his battle with the scroll. I hate this scroll. Can't we just burn it? And free the words.

I'd happily burn this village down to the ground as well, but do I get my way? No. So, go on and read about Hashirama's reign. Maybe he will inspire you to think for once, brat.

Dirty. That's dirty, Kurama-chan.

What did I tell you about using that suffix? The fox growled, making the bars in the cage vibrate.

That you will eat your way out of my stomach and gouge my eyes out, yes, yes, I know. It's getting old now though. You could be a bit more creative in threatening me Kurama-chan.

You don't want me getting creative in that department, boy. Now, what did Hashirama decide to do about the economic crisis in regard to the bad harvest combined with a blockage from Kirigakure's trade of rice and fish?

You're killing me slowly, Kurama-chan. Oh, wait, didn't he establish a neutral section of old economic dudes who set new rules for loans and that inflation stuff? That section which later became Konoha's City bank. And then old man Hashirama called for a meeting about the blockage and threatened Kirigakure's Daimyo that Konoha would no longer provide its services to them until the trade was once on track again.

Correct. Another use of words mayhaps, but all the same, correct. Now, next paragraph.

I need to pee.

No, you don't. You went just ten minutes ago. Hell, are you aware that you're the most childish man who has ever aspired to become Hokage?

You're just jelly, Kurama. I'll become the most awesome Hokage Konoha has ever seen!

Screw burning Konoha to the ground, you'll make even worse by yourself as Hokage. You'll be Konoha's downfall. I'm going to sleep now.

You just said I'll become Hokage! See, you trust me. Now, mind hug! Come let me love you-

I will eat you.

Nah, I'm too sweet for you, Kurama-chi. You like things bitter.

The Old War Veteran in the Cabin, Kurotsuchi Miura

In the early morning they stood in front of each other on the little lake. The water swirled underneath their feet with the diminishing force from the waterfalls a few kilometers away, and Miura drew his blindingly normal and plain-looking weapon from the scabbard strapped diagonally on his back.

"A chokutō?" The girl raised an eyebrow.

"Oh? You know its name?" The old man chuckled. "Not many do nowadays."

"Those chokutōs are not really handy, though. Its blade is straight and it doesn't have a curve, and it's only one-edged. They aren't useless really, but curved blades are more lethal." She said and drew her own sword. The light reflected in its blade and blinded Miura for one second. He blinked.

"Ma, don't talk like that about Musashi. She's still as sharp." Miura smirked. "Enough talking, more sword clashing."

"One thing, Miura-san. If my eyes turns white, run."

"What?"

Sakura's sword came down hard on Musashi's blade as the old man protected his chest, and Miura felt his chest flutter. It had been a long time since he had clashed swords and he felt happiness spread through his muscles.

"This is Nightshade." Miura whispered as he jolted towards her with his sword held at his side, sprinting fast. Sakura widened her eyes and watched carefully, gripping her sword harder. Then Miura whispered the jutsu without having to make the seals.

He felt half of his face coil and his vision turned dark. The flesh moved, changed. Sakura gasped. His body filled with chakra and his skin crawled. Then his whole body jolted with electricity from his jutsu and he knew it was complete.

"What-", Sakura shouted and her eyes went everywhere but on Miura. In the reflection of her eyes, he was gone. The old man smiled and swung Musashi at Sakura who had become part of the Nightshade jutsu. The whistling sound of the chokutō made Sakura look in his direction and he could see her instincts take over. In an instant she fell through the surface of the water and succeeded in avoiding getting her torso cut in half by Musashi. The water sloshed at his chakra laden feet, and the currents of her disappearance into the deep murky water made a little ring pattern.

Miura almost laughed, but he didn't. She said she wasn't intuitive? He waited for her to emerge from the water, but nothing gave away where she was since the waters were dark.

Suddenly, he felt a hand grip his feet from underneath and he was dragged down with the force of a snake gripping its prey. He gulped air before he was swallowed by the water. The coldness hit him hard and he opened his eyes in the water to see a blurry Sakura under him, confusion visible in her light green eyes as she swam steadily in one spot. Bubbles from her nose reached his form and slid along the fabric of his worn haori to reach the surface.

That lit a spark in the viridian pools of her eyes and she dragged him down further, slashing at him with her katana. He met her fluently with Musashi, bemused she could pinpoint his location even though she couldn't see him and use that much force in her strike underneath water. He kicked her hand away and swam up to the surface, jumping out of the coldness. He sputtered out water, then he saw her emerge. She dripped with water soaking her whole body and her expression was priceless.

"How... How can I fight you if I can't see you?" She asked thin air. Miura smirked. He wondered how long of this fight it would take her to evolve.

Sprinting towards her, she didn't react in time. Musashi grazed her side with a feather light touch and she bit back a shout, jumping back and holding her side. Blood started seeping shallowly from the light cut. But he wouldn't let her rest.

He went after her and Sen's eyes became frenzied, scared. He had expected a similar reaction, but he had never seen that kind of expression on her face before.

"Miura-san?" She croaked as she jumped further away, unconsciously avoiding Musashi biting her leg. It seemed her senses were on edge, and she looked hastily around. Miura almost felt that he needed to say something, but he bit it down. This was the harsh training she had asked for.

Like a rat trapped in a corner, she became still. Her breathing escalated and she closed her eyes, her body almost vibrating. Miura took a step on the water and Sakura blindly backed away. He raised Musashi and ran towards her, quietly. But Sakura still had her eyes closed. As Musashi reached her shoulder, almost touching her skin, she squealed and raised her katana instinctively. The swords clashed fiercely and Sakura was pushed back by the force of it.

She had realised it, Miura sighed in relief in his mind. She had to trust all of her senses except her vision.

Hearing, tasting, smelling, feeling. And instinct. Those were the sense she had to focus on, and she did. Sakura sniffed and stepped forward, rolling down on the water as if it was solid and at the same time as Miura reacted with a slash of his sword, and she thrusted her katana towards his feet. Miura jumped over her, avoiding the thrust that would have embedded her sword into his ankle, and spiralled through the air.

They continued to fight and Sakura continued to keep her eyes closed until the sun bled its last rays into the sky. They weren't even, since Sakura couldn't attack him and barely avoided Musashi's sharp blade. All she could do was almost counter. Miura came to realise he had become tired and the technique he used was very taxing and he couldn't hold it for as long as he could have when he was twenty five. In one swift movement, he appeared behind the pinkette and let Musashi rest on her neck. She stopped moving. The sharp blade cut shallowly into her neck.

"And you're dead." Miura said and disabled the technique. He felt the tiredness settle in his body, making every twitch of a muscle feel as heavy as a stone weighing him down. The adrenaline left his body as the technique drained from his being. He lowered his sword and sheathed it into the scabbard on his back. Sakura turned around and opened her eyes. They were pale green, eerily much a shade lighter than usual. Miura wondered if she had a blood line, but shook off the thought of it. He had never heard of white eyes except for the Hyuuga Clan's kekkei genkai, and she had none of the traits a Hyuuga had.

"Nightshade is an illusion combined with physical chakra alteration where I turn myself invisible." Miura nodded tiredly and it seemed he had confirmed her suspicions with his statement. Sakura looked intensly at him, as if he was going to vanish at a moment's notice.

"I saw your footprints on the surface of the water when I was underneath. I wouldn't have seen you otherwise, in the beginning. But then I felt you. Not your heartbeat or your breathing, because you used Mouse Step and Silence of the Heart. But I felt... The vibrations in the air as your sword cut through the wind." She said and breathed deeply. The cuts had dried on her skin, the crisp blood a darker crimson nuance. It was then that Miura realised how badly hurt she was. She was as pale as a ghost.

"You have lost too much blood. Let's head back to the cabin."

"No, I'm fine. Teach me the technique, please. I need to know how it functions, the body's chakra distribution-"

"You're not invincible only because you know your true name now, Sakura-san. You need to rest. As do I."

"But-"

"No. Tomorrow, maybe. If you don't look like a corpse and have regained some colour to your cheeks, I'll teach you the hand signs and correct chakra distribution."

"Fine." Sakura sighed and frowned. When she took a step towards the shore, she staggered. Miura was old and tired, but he wouldn't let her fall.

When Sakura staggered again and fell towards the water, Miura took a steady hold of her.

"I'm okay, it's-", Sakura tried to tell him off weakly but then her eyes swam and she fell unconscious. Miura sighed and gathered her into a bridal style lift. He walked strongly all the way to the cabin carrying the limp girl and put the pinkette into her guest bed. Miura slowly and throughly cleaned her wounds, bandaged them and then he slumped on his wooden chair beside the fireplace. His old bones pained him and he gnashed his teeth. As he was about to fall into a slumber, something caught his eye.

It was her katana. It disturbed him and yet... It seemed to invite him. He had put her katana at the feet of her bed and it almost seemed to glow in the dark. He felt a sudden urge to touch it. Feel the weight of it in his hand. See the blade shine from the dancing flames at the fireplace. Hear the soft and metallic sound of it being freed from the scabbard. Without caring about his tired body protesting the movement, he rose and walked up to the end of the bed. Slowly, he reached for the sword, without really even knowing what he was doing.

And when he touched the handle, he fell down and everything was consumed by darkness. He blinked but he couldn't see. Why was everything so heavy? He wondered, as he felt as if he had been drugged, his head pounding. His heartbeat escalated and he was afraid. Inside the maze of darkness, a pale shape appeared in front of him.

"Priest."

A voice echoed inside his mind and he saw a beautiful black-haired woman emerge from the nothingness, hovering in the air surrounded by swirling grey smoke. Her pale heart shaped face was fully turned towards him and her eyes caught him in her coldness. Her white kimono seemed to give off the same fragrance as the moon and she smelled like rotten flowers.

"Izanami-sama." Miura breathed and he simply couldn't believe he had been this lucky. It must have been fate leading Sakura to him. And ultimately to the Goddess of Death.

The Cloud Watching Boy, Nara Shikamaru

Shikamaru had somehow been dragged away from his peaceful cloud watching to hectic missions with Chouji and Ino. Without giving it much thought, he was successful in every mission. Ino seemed happy but Shikamaru knew she was still devastated. Her work at the hospital had become more serious now and she had her hands full, but she still made time for their team to go out eating and taking up missions. Shikamaru however enjoyed spending time with Chouji. He was always calm and ate his snacks without asking how Shikamaru was doing, and the Nara was grateful for that.

Ino told him that Neji had joined the RTF. Shikamaru knew Hatake needed the Hyuuga prodigy, not only because he knew Sakura well, but because of his abilities. Shikamaru ruffled his hair which was let down for once, and he wrote down the last words of their mission report. Neji would do well. They had talked about Sakura a few weeks ago, and they had agreed that something was wrong with the whole thing. They knew her. That was why Shikamaru suspected she had been set up and fled the village since all the evidence was against her.

The Nara finished up the mission report and stood up, walked out on the veranda and fished up his pack of cigarettes from his pocket.

Asuma-sensei was dead. Shikamaru blew out the smoke through his nose, hating the feel of the toxins in his lungs. But the smell soothed him. The heaviness settled on his shoulders and he felt as if the world acted against him.

Akatsuki was not only troublesome. They were the first thing in Shikamaru's life of whom he truly hated. There were no words awful enough to describe them. Darkness laid a filter covering his vision, the light diminishing and the colors changed. It was eery how hatred could change one's vision of the world, Shikamaru thought.

He had to do something. He let the cigarette fall to the ground and squished it with his foot, then he sharply turned to face the Hokage Tower which was a little distance away, and yet it was so visible amongst the roof tops of the village, standing out so proudly. He was paying Hokage Danzō a little visit about the issue. With the mission report in his hand, he jumped up on the roof tops and sprinted through the still night.

Danzō needed him. Shikamaru's intelligence and his ability to plan and strategize was necessary, and Danzō would see that. Shikamaru let out a heavy breath. And since he had accepted T&I's offer of joining their section fourteen days ago, he had the authority to lead a team.

The Old War Veteran in the Cabin, Kurotsuchi Miura

"Sakura."

She snapped her head his way, and the hawk which perched on her arm flew away into the early morning at the mention of the pinkette's name. Miura watched the predator bird fly in the air with steely determination, heading north-east. It was, without a doubt, a messenger hawk.

"Good morn', Kurotsuchi-san." She smiled sweetly. "I didn't know you were up."

"I heard you sneak away, since you haven't fully mastered Mouse Step yet. I thought you were going to exercise." He cocked his head, questioningly.

"I am. Would you like to join in?" She asked as she flexed her muscles. Miura looked up into the sky and noted the absence of the hawk. It was fast, more so than other normal hawks. Only specialised hawk messengers had top speed. That urgent? He wondered.

"Am I allowed to know what message you wrote to send away on that hawk?" Miura asked blatantly.

"No." Sakura shook her head, her petal hued bangs covering her eyes momentarily. "If you knew, you would compromise my mission."

"I see. You would have to kill me." Miura nodded. Ice formed in his stomach. Her mission must have top priority, in that case.

"Yes." She said blankly. "And that would be unfortunate."

"Truly." Miura smiled. "If your mission is that important, what are you doing here with an old man like me?"

"I needed to stay low for a while. And I needed to... Recuperate, as well. I was recently betrayed by two summons who were close to me. And a man I have chased for years proved to have become darker than what I anticipated..." She looked down. She confided in him, and Miura found himself biting down a shiver. He knew it wasn't because she trusted him, but because she was lonely.

"I see. Will you be leaving soon?"

"Yes. I have to." Sakura nodded, shook away the emotions in her eyes. "I will never forget your kindness, Miura-san." She looked him straight in the eye and he understood the importance in her words.

"You have proved to me that there are still selfless people out there. That there are people who will take care of strangers. Provide food, knowledge and strength. I will never be able to thank you enough."

"Now, now. You sound too sentimental, Sakura. Anyone would have done what I did. And there are selfish reasons. I wanted to pass down my techniques to you since I have no offspring of my own. You'll continue the practice of my Clan and my own developed techniques. That in a sense is a selfish thing to wish for." Miura said and tapped her shoulder with his cane, then left it to rest there lightly. Sakura let her fingers touch it, and she smiled. Genuinely. It shocked Miura to see it that much he almost dropped the cane.

It was the first time he had considered her to be beautiful. It wasn't one of her practiced smiles where she knew the right muscles to activate, and to come off as true and friendly. It had confused him first, but with his experience in the field of deception he had recognised it. Not in her expression, but in her eyes. And now, her face almost came off as soft. Her eyes were calm and warm. Her genuine smile made her nose wrinkle slightly, and it was adorable.

"Those are some heavy words." He commented and took away his cane from her shoulder. Sakura fidgeted.

"It's just... I am scared, Miura. I feel like... There is no value to my existence. I feel useless. That's why I need to- I have to prove myself. I have to prove myself worthy. Not just to stand proudly and without doubt beside my comrades, but to myself. For my own sake, I need to know there is a reason to my existence. That everything is not pointless. That there is a reason for every heartbeat."

"Is that why you have devoted yourself to your village, to your mission? To prove yourself?"

"Partly, yes, that is the reason. The other reason is a desire... To solve things. It's in my nature, I can't control it. In the Academy, when we had tests, I almost always knew the answer to every problem. I had a solution. And if I didn't, I'd cry myself to sleep over it. It's an overwhelming desire to have the answer to every question, the right equation to every issue. Because, back then, my knowledge and ability to answer any question was my worth." Sakura said and Miura understood. Her intelligence was her greatest asset and if it was questioned, what was left of her? The pinkette looked over her shoulder and her gaze turned blank. As if she didn't see the beautiful sun emerging from the horizon.

"When I was assigned to my team as a Genin, I hated it. One of my teammates was a troublemaker and I couldn't handle him. The other one was a, uh, love interest. I cherished him as a child would. He was cool, handsome and dark. I could stop listening to the lectures at the Academy only to admire his beautiful profile. But he was difficult. I did everything I could to solve the problem of him not noticing me. Not acknowledging me. No matter how much lip gloss I wore, no matter how perfect my hair was, he never looked at me. It was a difficult time for me. But near the end, I felt like I could solve things. It became lighter, our team got together somehow and I was- I was filled with happiness. At that point, everything fell apart. And he... He left. Without even giving me the time to solve things. I was devastated. And lonely. The troublemaker left later as well, and I realised I missed him."

"What did you do then?", Miura wondered.

"I wanted to solve the first issue closest to myself, I broke every problem down and prioritized, and that was my loneliness. But... When I realised the loneliness wasn't the largest problem because it was selfish and did no one any good, I made a list. Because that's the kind of person I am, I need structure and a definite set of words and problems on a paper. I made a list of impossible goals... And I decided to solve all of them. And in order to do that, I had to change. I had to change the equation that would decide the fate for the ones I cared about."