Now
The fluorescent light bothers Sasuke's eyes, making him close them and turn his face away from the ceiling. He has to blink a couple of times before getting used to his surroundings, but cannot recognize anything on the sterile white walls and floor of the room he is in.
At first, he cannot remember how he got here and what for, but the memory of Tsunade's voice races in his memory, making him almost fall off his hospital bed before covering his forehead with his left hand.
Wait. His left hand...?
Sasuke looks shocked at the white bandages wrapped around his fingers, his palm, wrist and forearm. He looks in shock as every digit answers to his mind, effectively making movements without fail. The discomfort of his stump is gone, and he pulls up his sleeve to get a better look at all of his complete left arm. The bandages stop at his elbow, the rest of his skin uncovered.
It takes him a while to sink in the idea that he has a new arm. But before he can try out any other moves with it, the door opens.
"You're finally awake," the former Hokage walks in holding a clipboard. "The surgery was successful, as you can tell, but there are some other things that we need to discuss."
Sasuke removes his bed sheets, taking notice of his change of attire. He is only wearing hospital pants, his own clothes nowhere to be found. "There's no time for that. Sakura is-"
"Orochimaru sent me a letter shortly after your arrival in my home."
He feels the same desperation return and ignores Tsunade as he gets off his bed, making his way to the door. The older woman, aware of his actions, steps in between him and his exit with a threatening expression.
"You will not leave this room until you explain yourself, Uchiha Sasuke," her tone is low and commanding. They both know that imposing authority on Sasuke is useless, but then again, he thinks that she may be showing that expression because of what's happened to her dear apprentice. "You are too weak to go farther than outside of this building."
He grinds his teeth, feeling his real and fake hands form into fists to contain his anger. "He's taken her somewhere and I need to-"
"I want to get Sakura back as much as you do, but if you don't sit down and listen to me I will prevent you from ever seeing her again. And trust me, I still have enough power to do that."
Sasuke looks behind Tsunade, but before he can use his Rinnegan to transport himself to the hallway outside he starts to cough uncontrollably.
Blood spills out of his mouth while he covers it, and discomfort that comes from his chest is so painful that he has to rest on his knees. His vision becomes blurry and he feels less and less air reaching his head before a stinging sensation pops in his right shoulder. His heartbeat goes back to its normal pulse, he feels nauseated. After a brief moment, the world stops spinning around Sasuke but he fails to stand on his legs unassisted.
"Two days isn't enough to recover from what you have."
His stunned expression is enough to tell Tsunade that he has become more afraid than before. Two days unconscious. Two days without knowing what's been happening. Two days since he encountered Indra.
Two days without seeing or knowing if Sakura is safe.
"Now calm down," her voice resonates in his ears but he has a hard time grasping what she is saying. "I've created the same injection that Sakura gave you before. It's supposed to prevent your coughing attacks from happening periodically. But you still need to explain how you ended up with this condition and its connection to Indra."
Sasuke vaguely hears another set of footsteps entering the room. His pulse is so strong that it prevents most of the sounds from being heard. He cannot stop replaying the last time he saw Sakura in his head and how much he needs to get her back.
He hears Tsunade argue with a third participant but pays no attention to what they are saying. Sakura. Sakura. Sakura. The one person who he needs the most has been taken away from him. He feels his heart shrink and expand on his chest, the sense of loss invading every working vein in his body.
"Sasuke," it's Kakashi's voice. "You may find more answers in the Naka shrine."
He wants to say that he is not going to find his Sakura there. She is far away, who knows where?
"Information on your clan's history may give you some clues," Kakashi continues. "I did some research after your arrival, and your best bet is going there before doing anything reckless."
Tsunade chimes in. "Kakashi, he must explain himself before leaving this room."
How can he if he cannot find his voice? Although the injection is effectively calming down his physical pain, he still feels like half of his life is being ripped out of his body. But he needs to get her back. He needs to amend his mistakes -yet again.
His legs find comfort on the edge of the hospital bed. Sasuke's lips begin to move unconsciously as he begins to speak.
Then
"Ōtsutsuki Indra? Is he related to-"
"Yes."
"But then-"
"That's right."
"Sasuke-kun," she begins, "how does this make any sense? He's been dead for thousands of years, and you're supposed to be his reincarnation. It doesn't add up."
Sasuke looks at her intently, trying to choose his words wisely before he lets out too much. Sakura's frown remains, her mind thinking of how their world is full of impossible possibilities.
"There have been reports of someone looking like him in the north."
"Yeah, of someone. That doesn't mean that it's him."
And timing could not be any better for Sasuke. Irony is playing tricks with him. Just as Sakura is finishing her sentence, he feels how his windpipe constricts the access of air, and the foul taste of his blood makes its way up. He has to calm himself down while not losing his demeanour. When he feels his heartbeat slow down to its normal pace, he swallows the bit of blood that reached his mouth before continuing.
"Orochimaru has kept tabs on the strange chakra that appeared in the north since the incident with the moon."
Sakura, who was reorganizing her medical supplies, thinking of how Sasuke's time in isolation from society might have fucked up a thing or two, turns to her old teammate with a questioning expression.
"What makes you think you can trust Orochimaru?"
He sets the bed sheets aside, taking his legs out of Sakura's bed and landing his feet on the floor. The discomfort of his left arm is almost nonexistent, but the metallic taste is still in his mouth and he has to avert his face before speaking.
"He was once my teacher. I know him better than he thinks, and he would not be so invested in finding out about Indra if the data gathered said otherwise."
She sits back on her chair and crosses her arms, letting out a small chuckle. "So you learned a lot more than jutsu from Orochimaru to know him so well."
This is not where she wished the conversation to go; talking about Sasuke's time with Orochimaru is still a sensitive topic between the two. Though she's never tried to get much out of his mouth, Sakura understands that whatever he answers may or may not hurt her. Before Sasuke left two years ago, they had the opportunity to catch up on certain things, mainly the Uchiha clan and the reasoning behind his actions. Sasuke never said it aloud, but she knew that he was telling her those things as a form of apology for all that's happened.
And she took it as that, as a long overdue apology from all the times that he strayed from her. It somehow made her fall in love a little more with him, however.
"I had to if I wanted to prevent him from taking my body."
But Orochimaru's influence in Sasuke's life is not something he easily shares. Maybe because of the burden it took in leaving the family he had formed in Team 7, or because things did not get easier for him after that. The village would not welcome him with open arms if he tried to return, and the way things would have gone is starting to give Sakura a headache with all the possibilities.
"Did you ever see him more than a means to an end?"
She ponders about the strange sickness invading Sasuke's body and of how that might be influencing his current decisions.
"I've yet to figure that one out." Because that was a very confusing time in his life, and he does not wish to think about it.
And yes, he is still confused about many things. Except that once in a while, they become so crystal clear when they are sitting so close to him.
Sakura finds that the giant imaginary puzzle is slowly building a clear picture. They must travel northward to assess the situation, pay Orochimaru a visit for the information he's gathered, and prepare if they need to face Indra depending on his intentions. She vaguely remembers hearing Indra's name in the folk lessons taught at the Academy, but that was many years ago and her studies have turned in a different direction.
She's fought against his grandmother and a distant descendant, and that is as much as she can say about Ōtsutsuki Indra. If he has truly come back, she wonders how and why. From what she can gather, it's all connected: the Infinite Tsukuyomi led to Toneri's plans, and the moon's closeness to the earth might have shaken the balance of chakra, but now they need to find its link to Indra's return.
"It's all rather confusing, really," she comments after a silent pause. "I'm guessing that the moon is what caused Indra to come back. Our mission, in essence, is to discover how he's come back." Sakura goes on to explain her train of thought, without noticing how attentively Sasuke was looking at her. "It could be possible that part of his chakra was sealed in the moon at some point in his life. I mean, it's been done with Kaguya, and their clan seems to have a sort of close relation to the moon. Maybe Asura or his own descendants wanted to keep part of him alive for a special cause."
When she turns to look back at Sasuke, she finds him with his chin resting on his hand. It is a flashback to when he was younger, when he covered his mouth with both hands and went deep into thought to prevent people from approaching him. The only difference now, though, is that his mismatched eyes are completely invested in her.
"This is why I asked for you to come with me."
Sakura feels her cheeks and the back of her neck warm up, and the room suddenly feels a lot smaller than before. Her heart feels like it's running a marathon and she wonders if Sasuke can hear it. She can count the times he has complimented someone with one hand, and has to process his words repeatedly before answering to them.
"T-There's a lot more to find out before we establish a conclusion. Right now, it's all theory," she offers.
It's not that Sakura isn't confident about her abilities. She is well aware of how intelligent and hard working she is, and how much of an asset she is to a village and has been to an international alliance. Sasuke's words are not even necessary to boost up her self-esteem, though having his acknowledgment was a huge stepping stone in their relationship.
But hearing him praise her still causes things. Things that have evolved over the years along with her mind, heart and body. She still feels the huge urge to say 'I told you so' but refrains, preferring to wait for a much better time to make that claim.
Now
She does not even realize how they end up like this.
First, Indra's words and his fighting stance are in front of her. He practically orders her to spar with him, and Sakura does not believe the sight before her eyes until the same man appears extremely closely to her. She instantly reacts, bending her elbow and sending her fist flying into his chest.
Sakura positions her feet on the ground, bringing her chakra charged fists in front of her face for protection. She may have delivered the first blow, but it was Indra the one who made the first move.
"I don't know what your deal is yet," she grits through her teeth, anger forming in every inch of her body, "but don't you dare get that close to me again!"
She forms a seal with her fingers and a shadow clone appears beside her. The two identical bodies sprint towards their opponent, kunai in hand and a determined expression on their faces. Sakura slashes her weapons across the air as she tries to land a hit on Indra, who has chosen to maintain his arms crossed behind his back.
His eyes, however, don't leave hers as she continues to deliver her attacks. When he feels her clone trying to surprise him from behind, he sends a kick backwards and she disappears in a white cloud.
Sakura feels her temple pulsate more and more while she charges chakra in her limbs, preparing attack after attack.
Second, in spite of Indra's order, he does not seem to be taking her seriously. If he wants to follow through with his words and see how strong she is, he will have to start attacking too. Sakura is not one to deliver all the punches without taking a challenge. Besides, giving him a proper fight may just prevent him from suddenly appearing in front of her without her permission.
"Impressive."
She just wants to rip that grin off of his face before he gets too confident.
"Don't take me lightly! Fight back!"
Her leg delivers a strong kick to the ground, causing so much damage that half of the terrace becomes rubble and the castle shakes with a force similar to an earthquake. Sakura takes advantage in this moment, and sends another strong kick to one of the large pieces of concrete, directing it towards Indra.
She sees how he does not divert from getting hit. How the concrete rock smashes him against one of the walls inside of the castle and its surroundings hide behind a cloud of dust and smoke. Sakura knows this is not finished, but gets a sense of satisfaction at seeing one of her attacks reach the legend.
Third, Sakura has to use her arms as cover when the cloud of dust comes in her direction. When it clears out, she finds herself standing in front of a giant made of purple chakra and fails to hide her look of shock. Lo and behold, the first Susano'o that has ever existed has just manifested before her eyes.
And Indra's learned that he cannot take her slightly.
Then
She takes a bit of the ointment she just finished with the tip of her finger and brings it close to her eyes for examination. "So what sort of healing techniques did the Uchiha have?"
Changing the subject might just relieve her dancing stomach.
"I never learned any," Sasuke rolls up his left sleeve. "Nobody in my direct family was a medic nin, but I remember seeing other Uchiha with medic kits."
She has to position her chair until she is sitting fully facing him, their legs touching, her upper body only mere inches from his. Sakura takes more of the scarring cream and begins to apply it to the end of Sasuke's arm. Her touch is gentle and warm, adding an extra layer of a soothing sensation on his skin. Sasuke feels the ends of his hair tingle his neck.
"That's a shame, I would have loved -I mean, liked- to learn them."
She smells of freshly picked flowers, much like the ones Sasuke has encountered during the spring season in the vast fields of yellows, purples, pinks and greens in the countryside.
"The Uchiha had a hidden room under the Naka shrine. In it, there is a vast collection of scrolls with information on my clan's history and culture."
He wonders if she tastes like that too.
Sasuke cannot remember if he's ever been this close with someone before. Fights aside, he's never truly experienced the sensations that come with the warmth that radiates from another person's body. He has always been a very analytical person, observing his environment before attacking. But when it comes to this, to this intimacy, he feels that every sense is even more heightened than in the battlefield.
He's aware of the touch of her fingertips on his scarred skin; of her natural fresh scent; of how her voice vibrates in her and his chest every time she makes a sound; of how much prettier she is when her face is the only thing he sees.
"I'm sure you will find something there."
"But I won't be able to read them. I don't have your eyes," she says.
Her voice sounds so innocent that he questions if she does not know what she is doing to him. His chest feels tightened, the air out of his lungs, but it's not because of his illness. No, it's because of something that he cannot explain with simple words. Heat travels up and down his insides until it settles in a place that is too familiar to him.
"I'll read them to you," Sasuke manages to say as she is wrapping his left arm with a new bandage.
He can see his own reflection in her green pupils, accompanied with the faint redness of her cheeks that makes her even more beautiful. Perhaps she is aware of how close they have gotten, of how dim the light is, of how small the four corners of this room seem to get. It feels like the slight brush of their knees is not enough contact for him.
"That would be wonderful."
A kind smile crinkles the corners of her face and lifts up the corners of her mouth. Yet, her expression fully changes when Sasuke grabs the piece of hair covering part of her face and tucks it behind her ear. There, she looks much better now that he can see her whole and open. All close to him, all vulnerable like him.
He trails the ends of his fingers down her jawline slowly, taking in every inch of her soft skin. Sakura tilts her head towards his hand, as if she was following his touch and yearned for more when his fingers end up on her chin. She does not avert her gaze from his, and the closer she gets the more she closes her eyelids. Sasuke finds his world turning dark as his other senses replace his sight.
The first thing he feels is the softness of her bottom lip on his. As he presses slightly, her nose brushes his and he has to tilt his head in the opposite direction to accommodate. He feels his muscles relax as he inhales, but contract when one of her hands lands on his right knee. She may not know what she is doing either, and he wonders if he is her first kiss as she is his.
He feels her lips move over his and responds similarly, trying to figure out how it is actually done. Sasuke never had the time or motive to learn this side of being human; his life has always been filled with an ulterior goal. Now that the goal is gone, now that he is on a journey to find himself, he finds that all roads end up in the same place and that place is beginning to look a lot like Sakura.
And all the uncomfortable feelings, the alarming sensation that he may get a coughing attack at any moment, are thrown out of his mind as Sasuke feels entirely consumed by her.
Now
Although it all happens in a series of events, it feels like a sudden flash in her mind before she finds herself pinned down, her back on the cold material, and the warmth of Indra's body on top of her. And what baffles her the most is not that his knees as straddling her hips, or that his hands have moved her arms over her head, or that his face is so close to hers that she can only see the red of his Sharingan.
No, it's the fact that she can feel his heartbeat palpitate on her chest. And how it becomes in sync with hers. Susano'o is long gone, so is the power of her seal. What remains now is just two bodies, their limbs knotted together almost beyond recognition, and Sakura's growing determination that she cannot let this end with Indra winning.
"You're very strong."
She tries to get out of his grasp, but she begins to find herself getting lost in his eyes.
And then, as if her own body was feeling everything, she finds herself with her feet welcoming the beach's soft waves while looking at the blues and oranges of a sunset. She has to tuck her long hair behind her ear with one hand, while the other rests on her side in a relaxed manner, feeling the silkiness of her one of her many formal attires.
Another set of footsteps is heard from the side, and she turns her head to find a tall, young man with long dark hair. He looks familiar, yet stares at her with such disbelief on his beautiful features that she wonders where she's ever seen him before.
His face begins to blur as he gets closer and closer, her without moving.
Sakura finds herself thrown back into her conscious mind, at first puzzled from the flashback that had appeared in her mind. She looks up, finding Indra's face still close to hers. The confusion invading her mind increases when she notices that his features have softened in that same nostalgic way she's seen it happen before.
Indra is remembering something. And whatever he is remembering is suddenly feeling a lot more familiar to her own memory. As Sakura's eyes blink, she sees flashes of different scene perform behind her lids.
A meeting.
A conversation.
A touch.
A kiss.
Sakura cannot recall those memories vividly, but rather feel them. She does not know how they go or in which order, but her skin remembers the feeling of his in close proximity. Her muscles relax under his grip, which consequently loosens on her wrists. It feels like a set of new moments is replacing all her life's recollections. For a moment, it's all crystal clear for her, but it is quickly replaced by the sense that there is something missing.
Her breathing becomes heavy as another flashback of a kiss manifests. The sensation of those lips caressing hers with affection and passion. Everything she inhales, her chest meets his before letting out air and repeating. The warmth of Indra's body is reaching every corner of hers, and it's beginning to get too difficult to concentrate and keep those random flashbacks from popping in and out of her mind. She finds her mouth running dry, as a new question, one that she has never asked Indra before, begins to articulate in her raspy voice.
"Where have I met you before?"
I am truly, truly humbled with all your feedback :') It's great knowing that you folks are enjoying this story as much as I enjoy writing it! Your reviews are so inspiring, and I love answering your questions and reading your theories. There are a couple of other things I wish to publish here, but this is turning into such a fun thing to write waahhh.
So here we have lots of action happening! At first, this and last chapter were supposed to be one, but then I noticed how there was just TOO much happening at once that I needed to reorganize my outline. This is also the longest chapter yet, and I can't wait to show you what else I have planned kukuku.
In regards to the steamy part, I guess it wasn't as steamy as I wanted it to be but it's still a lot of progression with the two couples. So yes, Sakura got some sort of action with both of them. You go girl! Make me proud. We will see the result of this in the next chapter, which will clarify a lot of things for Sakura.
I listened to Hozier while writing the SasuSaku kiss by the way. Just thought you'd find it interesting. What sort of music do you like to listen to when writing or reading fanfics about your OTP?
Out of curiosity, why do you folks think that I decided to name this story King of Gods?
Any questions and concerns can be addressed if you send me a PM or review this chapter ;) Thank you soooo so much for all your support!
Sincerely,
MSM
Ps: HAPPY 100 REVIEWS, KING OF GODS :3