Chapter 14: The Road to Hell is paved with Good Intentions
(BTW, I don't own Naruto)
Important Author's note: If you're not completely up to date with the manga, this chapter will throw you a little.
Sakura allowed a small sigh of relief to escape as they materialized in a small woodland clearing. The Uchiha compound was nowhere in sight, though the medic nin doubted her field of view went very far through the dense under-growth. She shifted uncomfortably, her hands burning from the awkward position the chakra bonds held them in. After the brief assessment of her surroundings, she brought her guarded gaze to meet Itachi's.
"There's no mercy for you now, Sakura," he repeated. "What happens from this point on will be on your conscience."
"I'm not afraid of you anymore, Itachi. There's nothing you can do to me that I'm not ready for."
He stared at her, his expression dark, before he answered. "I'm not going to do anything to you. In fact, I'm going to leave you here for your team to find." At her surprised look he knelt down next to her, aware that his closeness made her uncomfortable. "I would have treated you properly, Sakura," he whispered. "Now you will have to face the fate you've chosen."
"What do you mean?"
He took out kunai—her kunai—and tossed them into a nearby tree; out of reach. "I have given you something, Sakura. Just as I have given Uzumaki Naruto something. When your team comes, do not bother following to the Uchiha compound. You will already be too late."
And then he was gone, leaving her to wait for rescue.
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"There's two trails. We can either follow Sasuke's or we can follow Itachi's. Chances are they're going to the same place." Kiba frowned. "Sakura's scent in intermingled more closely with the older Uchiha."
All eyes turned to Naruto. His jaw clenched, and he tightened his hands in to fists. Who to go after? Sasuke, who'd been his quarry for more than three years? Or Sakura, who'd been his closest, truest friend through it all. She wanted Sasuke back as much as he did. Though his mind was warring, it only took Naruto a moment to reply, "We go after Sakura-chan!"
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Sakura did her best to tune out the forest noises around her. The sounds native to the woodland were too alive and happy compared to how she felt inside. Itachi's departure weighed down on her heart like a dark blanket. She didn't fully understand what he'd been talking about, or why he was doing what he was doing. It seemed like there was so much more to it than Sasuke's salvation. It was almost like he was protecting someone or something. For the life of her, she couldn't put her finger on it. His parting words left her unsettled, and she felt like she'd inadvertently set events into motion that were beyond her control.
She did know, however, that Sasuke and Itachi were about to settle what lay between them, and that nothing she could do or say now would change that. He only hope was to reach the Uchiha compound before one of them was killed. Why do you care if Itachi dies? He's a murderer. He's driven Sasuke to this. If anything, you should help Sasuke. She shouldn't have cared if Itachi died. But a part of her desperately wanted to learn more about his motives. From the moment he'd seen her he'd known her strengths, weaknesses, fears, goals. He'd seen through her, and he'd judged her accordingly. To Sakura, the death of that kind of talent was a terrible shame.
A strong chakra signature interrupted her thoughts. With a sigh of relief, she shifted her position on the ground. Her team had found her quickly. Perhaps they still had time after all.
"Sakura-chan!" Naruto barreled through the brush toward her. His blue eyes flashed as he searched the clearing for Itachi. "Where is he? Where's that bastard?"
"There's no time Naruto!" Sakura said as the rest of the Konoha crew filed into the area. "We've got to get to the old Uchiha compound! We have to stop them before they kill each other!"
Hinata knelt down and cut her pink-haired friend's bonds. "T-the Uchiha compound?"
Sakura nodded. "We've no time to lose; we've got to go right now."
"Alright! You heard Sakura-chan!" Naruto signaled to the rest of the team. "Let's go save Sasuke!"
"It's not going to be that easy, Naruto." Yamato frowned slightly. "We will be unwanted guests to both Uchiha. Let's go, but we're not going to barge in, head first. Kakashi hasn't even rejoined the party. It's bad enough he won't know where we are as it is."
"I've waited years for this moment, and I'm not going to let Sasuke get away again! Come on, Sakura-chan."
Sakura glanced around at the faces of the tired Konoha shinobi. She knew the situation was more urgent than even Naruto made it out to be. "Okay, Naruto. Let's go."
It wasn't long before the rest of the group followed them into the trees.
Kiba's keen tracking ability allowed them to follow Itachi's path toward the Uchiha compound. To Sakura, the trip was painfully long and slow. No matter how fast they traveled in the tree tops, she couldn't shake the feeling that they were too far behind. The uncertainty of what they would find when they arrived made her nauseous. Would she heal Itachi if he were the body they came across? She didn't know the answer to that question. She didn't know if she could heal him, and she didn't know if she could let him die. Although it was a dilemma, she preferred it to the alternative. Even though Sasuke had changed enough for her to doubt him, she didn't want to see him die.
As the ruins appeared in view, the Konoha shinobi slowed their pace and spread out from one another. Silently, they alighted on the crumbled remains of what was once the Uchiha compound.
Nothing but the ghostly aftermath of a devastating battle met their gaze.
Blood was spattered everywhere around the remnants of stone walls. Pools of it lay here and there along the floor.
But no bodies were to be seen.
"There's no one here." Naruto's voice held hints of tightly controlled anger and frustration. "There's no one here."
Sakura's eyes locked on to one large, body-size blood patch. "He was right," she whispered softly. "We were too late."
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"Now do you understand?"
Sasuke refused to look at the masked man before him. The things he'd told him were lies, they had to be. But, in his heart of hearts, Sasuke knew Uchiha Madara was not lying. "I'll help you," he said cautiously. "Just tell me what you need me to do."
Behind his mask, Uchiha Madara was smiling.
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Taking the long way home, Sakura was too lost in her thoughts to notice the eerie silence that surrounded the district of Konoha she shuffled through. Her mind wandered to Naruto. It'd been months since they'd learned of Itachi's death, but only days since they'd learned of Sasuke's criminal status in the other countries. That he'd joined Akatsuki only added more questions to her theory that Itachi hadn't told her the entire story. Naruto, away with the frog sage training, was unaware of this latest development. How he would take the news, Sakura wasn't sure. Naruto had been through a lot lately.
Though immersed in her own mind, the medic's attention was snagged by a strange figure standing along Konoha's wall. It wasn't so much the fact that he shouldn't have been there; it was the way he just stood there as if he was waiting for something. Anticipating. That's what came to mind when she noticed him.
Never mind the black and red cloak that billowed in the breeze.
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Coming soon: Chapter 15 : Great Love Brings Potential for Great Hate