"You like strawberries, right?"
Sakura tore her eyes from the computer screen to see Tobi sitting a drink on the desk. Then, he sat by her side, sipping his own with a big grin.
The trio was at a cybercafe so the woman could try to figure out what book Sasuke had been referring to, though she didn't tell the faux-cheerful man that. Madara was there so she wouldn't be alone, and Tobi followed them both because he didn't have any work to do today but didn't want to stay home.
Narrowing her eyes, Sakura looked at the drink. It was from the cafe in the building, meaning the lid wasn't sealed. That also meant it was possible to slip something into it undetected.
'...I do really like strawberry flavored things, but….' Stealing her resolve, the woman swallowed before focusing on the screen again. She told herself not to trust anyone except Madara and planned to stick to that mindset.
"Haha, you still don't trust me, huh? Here, look," Tobi offered warmly. The man then took the lid off the drink, took a sip to prove it wasn't poisoned, and replaced it with a triumphant look, "There you go, Ku-su-ri!"
The Haruno woman's brow twitched in annoyance at the sing-song way he said her fake name, as though teasing her, but swallowed her pride and sipped the drink. Her anger faltered when the sweet liquid met her tongue, 'Damn it, that's good. …I'll let him off the hook just this once.'
Her boyfriend, or fake husband, said amusedly, "Careful, Dear. He'll realize how easy it is to win you over with food."
"I'm trying to focus, Dear," she retorted, though the soft pink on her cheeks was undeniable.
The trio became silent. Madara seemed to be going through the public records of Konoha's police force, while Tobi was simply playing a shooting game without a care in the world. Sakura sighed, shaking her head before turning her attention back to the screen.
'The Ballad of Senshi; that's not it. We did that for a book report, but it wasn't the right year. Orodoki no Ai…. Sasuke didn't do a report on that one because we chose our books then. It wasn't a group project. What else…?'
Sakura wished she could simply log into her school email to review her previous assignments but couldn't because it might be monitored. If she logged in, the police may be notified of her current location, which would ruin everything. So, the woman was blindly trying to recall all the stories she and her ex-boyfriend studied.
"Do you enjoy reading?" Tobi whispered, half-hunched over the keyboard with his eyes glued to the screen as he played the game with hyper-focus.
She pretended not to hear him because if she didn't, she'd have to bluntly tell him to stop trying to be friendly, which may make things awkward. Also, she may accidentally let it slip that she'd been given a lead by Sasuke when she told him that she hadn't. Instead, she changed her search for the third time.
'Popular books for modern high-schoolers. It's more vague than the others, but nothing's worked yet, so I don't have much choice.'
Scrolling absently through the list of books, the woman sipped her drink with dull eyes. They'd been at it for two days now, trying to determine what story Sasuke had referred to. Nothing popped up that jolted her memory, even after hours of searching, so the trio gave up for the evening and returned to the house.
When they did, she ended up admitting to Tobi what she was looking for. He wasn't surprised and even complimented her for being so cautious.
After dinner, Sakura paced absently in the family room while the men conversed at the dining table.
"Why is this so hard? It's not like we did a hundred reports! Think, Sakura, think!" The woman mumbled to herself, her hands absently moving with her words.
With each hour that'd passed since the call with her ex, the control of her temper slipped further. Tobi's relentless attempts to befriend her didn't help. Luckily, Madara knew better than to bother her when she was focused like this and simply gave her space.
Temporarily, she was distracted by that thought, 'That's one of the reasons we get along so well. He knows when to back off.'
Sakura was reminded of Ino, who'd always done the opposite. The blonde knew when her friend wanted space but chose to betray her by purposefully getting on her nerves.
The Haruno woman froze, eyes wide and hands out in front of her, mid-gesture. 'Betray….'
"Did you remember something?" Tobi asked.
Snapping out of it, Sakura nodded, standing before the dining table excitedly, "He was talking about the book "Betrayal Never Comes From Enemies". I'm sure of it!"
The two men perked up, Madara being the next to speak, "So what is the character's name?"
She paused, wracking her brain before responding, "Obito."
Madara froze but forced his expression to remain passive. The name "Obito" had occasionally come up in the past few years amidst his jobs. If Sakura was right, and that was the name Sasuke wanted them to look into, they may be on the right track.
The name had no face connected to it, no matter who was asked, as the man himself was a legend. That said, the two assassinated higher-ups in Danzo's rival, a group called "Akatsuki," were anything but a myth. Since this Obito person was killing off Danzo's enemies, the crooked man had many of his agents, Madara included, searching for the man so they could potentially join forces.
'The enemy of my enemy is my ally. That's the saying, right?'
The Uchiha man could never learn anything other than that his go-to method is to stab the target in the stomach so they suffer unbearable pain before dying. Sure, Madara's murdered plenty of people, but he rarely does it in such a manner. The fact that they'd be dead seemed enough punishment for their crimes. That was how most professionals did it: fast and quiet.
"Obito, huh? I've definitely heard that name. He was the one to do in Orochimaru, right?" Tobi mused with the same face he always had when Sakura was around: cheerful and friendly.
Madara nodded, gazing at his girlfriend, who stared carefully at the other man with apparent unease.
'I know it's a good thing that she's so cautious, but she really doesn't seem to like him.'
A tiny part of the man was relieved. The possessive part that wanted her to avoid all other members of the male species.
Truthfully, it shouldn't surprise him that she was uncomfortable around Tobi because the woman was usually pretty apt at reading a person's body language and expressions. After all, she could tell how he was feeling with ease from the start. It was evident she knew that the positive disposition of his ally was fake.
'He insists he does it because he doesn't want to scare her, but it's doing the opposite,' Madara thought, deciding to tell him when they were next alone that it might be best to drop the act.
Days passed, full of them attempting to find information on the infamous "Obito", emphasizing the word attempting. It was impossible to locate anything when he was free to travel from country to country. The fact that they were stuck in Otogakure and were trying was almost comical, but what else could they do? It was too dangerous to go places with crowds or where individuals may be searched, like airports or bus stations.
On day ten, after they arrived in Oto, Sakura surprised him while they ate dinner, eyes on the television, "Will you train me to fight a little?"
For a moment, Madara was stricken with surprise, but then he realized it was unwarranted. This was a woman who picked up how to properly shoot a gun just by watching movies. She very much fought for her life with all the courage of a lioness.
"Judging by what I saw of Konan that night, do you really need training?" He joked while already knowing how she'd respond.
As expected, the cute woman pouted with narrowed eyes, "The only reason I could do that was because Danzo told her not to injure me. If that wasn't the case, I'd have been dead instantly."
Tobi winked at him from the other sofa before offering flirtily, "I'll train you if you want. He may go soft on you because you're his girlfriend, y'know?"
'That cheeky bastard.'
"No, he won't! Will you, Madara?"
The man in question bit back a smirk before shaking his head, "It'd be a waste of time if I did. How will you learn to defend yourself if the person attacking you isn't giving it their all?"
So, the following evening, after spending the day at a different cybercafe than before since it'd be too dangerous to frequent one place, the trio pushed the furniture to the walls in the spacious family room and lay down mats to practice on.
After stretching, Madara went into teacher mode, "The first thing you should keep in mind, Sakura, is that you're almost always going to be smaller than whoever you're up against."
The woman in question nodded, with a cute look of determination, "Got it."
His heart fluttered, to the detriment of his manly pride, 'She's so focused, like a student at a dojo or something.'
"The good thing is that there are ways to use this to your advantage. A tiny body means you're a tiny target," Madara forced himself to focus, "Dodging will always be safer than blocking, and that's easier the smaller you are."
He verbally gave her tips without physically teaching anything because he wanted her to really retain the information. "Never go on the offensive without first analyzing your opponent's strength."
"If you can't dodge a hit, then angle your body in the same direction it's moving so the impact is minimized."
"No matter the gender or size of a person, their anatomical weaknesses will be the same. Aim for the face, the stomach, the knees, and the groin when possible. Disrupting the sensory organs like eyes and ears can also give you an advantage."
Once Madara felt he'd given her enough information, at least to start, Tobi added, "My advice is not to be afraid to fight dirty. Do whatever you must to survive, even if you have to pull hair, bite, or kick them in the balls."
'He's right. Any person who attacks her will be going for the kill. She can't afford to hesitate.'
Sakura nodded with each tip, "I'll try to keep all of this in mind."
The Haruno woman did her absolute best not to blush when Madara stood before her and maneuvered the fingers on her hand into a fist, "Make sure your thumb is atop your fingers, not under, and pressure them with it so the form doesn't break when you land a hit. There should be no angle between your forearm and your fist, either. Keep it straight if you can. Like this…."
Nodding, she took the knowledge he'd given her and fisted her other hand to match it, earning an affirming nod from her handsome teacher. "Alright, you'll want to keep your body angled, not fully facing forward. This makes you an even smaller target and makes it easier to move or dodge more quickly."
After showing her how to stand and properly throw a punch, he stepped back, "Okay, go ahead and hit my hand."
"Um, I don't want to hurt you."
Madara shook his head, a smirk tugging at his lips, "You won't. Give it your all."
Swallowing anxiously, the woman looked between his face and his hands a few times, suddenly more uncomfortable.
'You can do this. You have to do this, or you'll end up a liability if/when something happens in the future.'
More than anything, Sakura never wanted to play the damsel in distress again. It meant the world to her that Madara was willing to risk life and limb for her sake, but if she'd had proper training back then, she might've been able to escape on her own. Then all those people wouldn't be dead, and the police wouldn't be after her.
So, forcing her nerves to take a backseat, the woman punched her boyfriend's palm. He took the hit with ease, obviously. Stepping back, she shook her hand to relieve the knuckles from the sting with a blush as she awaited feedback.
Madara tilted his head, "I know you can hit harder than that. You busted Sasuke's lip, remember? That punch wouldn't even leave a bruise."
'Well, shit. I guess I ended up holding back anyway,' she thought, frowning. "That was different. I hated him then, and he was trying to hurt me. I didn't have a choice."
Tobi piped up, making her regret speaking her thoughts aloud, "If you need to be angry to properly throw a punch, then maybe I'd be a better target, hm? I don't mind."
Sakura glanced at her boyfriend, who nodded, "It's not a bad idea. You can practice this way, and then we'll work on being able to do it without having to be provoked."
Even more anxious than before, the woman watched Madara move off to the side, and Tobi took his place before her, lifting his palms, "Whenever you're ready."
Again, when she punched, her boyfriend wasn't satisfied and offered some tough love, "If you can't get serious, then we're wasting our time here."
"No, I can do it!" Sakura said, lightly slapping her cheeks as though trying to wake herself.
"You shouldn't expect much from a woman, Bro," Tobi mused, waggling his brows at the Haruno woman's surprised face.
'He's trying to piss me off. I get it.' Since she understood, she let it happen and returned to a fighting stance, "Again."
"Are you sure you don't wanna quit? We won't judge you. Women are more suited for cooking and cleaning than this type of stuff anyway."
Okay, he might've been making misogynistic comments just to help her, but Sakura honestly became offended, her chest tightening with anger. This time, when she threw her punch, Tobi hissed with a grin, shaking his hand, "There you go! Just got to get a little heated, huh? Another."
The woman practiced throwing punches until her arms hurt, her teachers offering small tips and corrections.
That night, after showering, Sakura and Madara lay in bed. She thought about all the fighting tips she'd learned in just one day, feeling a little overwhelmed but also hopeful. If she kept it up, maybe her fear of being a burden would be completely avoidable.
"Have I said how much I admire you, Sakura?" Madara suddenly said, tearing the woman from her thoughts.
She reached over to intertwine their fingers as they lay side-by-side on their backs, "Not out loud, I don't think so." 'But it's pretty easy to see how much he respects me. That's one of the reasons I fell for him.'
"Any other woman would've hidden here to wait out the storm, but you're trying to meet it head-on," he lifted their hands so he could kiss the back of hers before allowing them to fall to the bed between them again, "You're stronger than you think."
Sakura scoffed, "Yeah, right. I can't even properly throw a punch at you."
A long silence followed.
Eventually, Madara replied, "If having the inability to hurt your loved ones is a weakness, then the strong people on this planet are few and far between." The woman turned to look at him, only to realize he'd been staring at her profile all this time. He continued, "Can I let you in on a secret?"
She nodded curiously.
"I cried the first time I ever punched someone. It was my brother, Izuna. We fought pretty often since he was only a year younger, and we were forced to share everything. I don't remember what the fight was about, but he hit me first. I hit him back and ended up giving him a bloody nose."
Sakura smiled, trying to picture a young Madara fighting with another boy.
"Izuna started crying, and he was always Father's favorite, and I knew I'd be the one to get in trouble, so I cried and begged him to shut up."
She giggled, beaming at the cute, nostalgic expression his face offered, "And what happened? Did he end up telling on you?"
The man nodded, "I had to do his share of the chores for a month, that brat."
Sakura sighed, closing her eyes while snuggling closer, "Poor little Madara. It must've pissed you off if you're still not over it."
Madara chuckled, lazily tossing an arm over her side, "I am over it. I just thought you'd find that story comforting after today."
"...I did. Thank you for telling it to me. You seem a little more human now that I know you have normal childhood moments like everyone else."
"More human? As opposed to what?"
Sakura hummed happily into his warm chest, feeling sleep approach after a long day of research and training, "I don't know. Some kind of indestructible hero or something."
There was a long pause before Madara spoke softly into her hair as though he thought she was already asleep and wouldn't hear it, "I'm no hero."
Rather than try to argue a battle she knew she'd lose, the woman simply shook her head, held him tighter, and thought, 'One of these days, I'll make him happy enough that he can start to forgive himself. That's another one of my goals.'
