10

Everybody's attention was on a man dressed in a black robe, who was handing animals masks to the freshly graduated recruits. A hundred spectators were attending the ceremony, many of them being relatives or Anbu members curious about the new recruits. Sakura's eyes were fixed on her impatient blond teammate, who was waiting to receive the official mask of the organization. She then looked down, her gaze falling right on the first row where a silver-hair man was standing still—the same one who had passed right in front of her a few minutes ago, pretending not to see her. It disappointed her tremendously. However angry she was at the Tsunade for messing up her life, she had no reason to blame Kakashi, also known as the Godaime's right-hand man. Unless he had something to do with her plight. She felt her blood boiling at the thought but forced herself to look away from her dear former sensei.

As she gazed at the crowd, a familiar red and black fan symbol caught her eyes, one that was unmistakable. It was strange how one always became alert at the sight of this specific symbol, or maybe it was just the most sensible thing to do. She didn't expect to see Uchihas attending the ceremony, seeing as her teammate had been estranged from his kin. Yet, there was no mistake in their identity. Just like her, they were standing at the back of the crowd, as if they didn't want to be noticed.

Her curiosity getting the better of her, she leaned a bit forward, trying to get a better look at them. As soon as she did, dark eyes met hers, which made her bolt her back right away in horror. She knew this man. She remembered seeing him hunt the Sôma girl that dreadful night. But the stress of being recognized soon faded as another realization hit her. She had identified another face, right next to him, as the Uchiha patriarch. Sasuke's father. What was he doing here? Was her best friend even aware of his presence?

She brought back her attention to the main protagonists of the ceremony, who were standing like statues as yet another boring speech was being given by an apathetic elder. Naruto's eyes lit up when the speech-giver suddenly called his name out to hand him a personalized Anbu mask. He was soon followed by Sasuke, whose jaw seemed more tense than usual. Sakura's gaze shifted anxiously back to the Uchiha patriarch, who naturally had his full attention on his son.

"Haruno-san," a voice whispered.

She gasped as she turned to her right, both relieved and horrified at the sight of such blinding white. How did she miss such an ethereal presence so close to her, such white hair and glowing blue eyes?

"Y—ou," she stuttered.

"I didn't mean to startle you," the man whispered. "You see, I find myself in a... dire situation, Haruno-san. One that may require your medical expertise," he squeezed slightly her shoulder, "right now."

She blinked several times until she understood what the Sôma was asking her, "All right. Do you know a private place where I could examine you?"

"Yes. Come with me."

She was surprised at how eagerly she followed the Sôma out of the ceremony room like it was exactly what she had been waiting for. It truly was. She indeed felt so out of place here, in such unfamiliar territory where even the sight of her friends wasn't enough to comfort her. The white hair shinobi led her through the corridor until he found an empty room. As she went inside, she felt somewhat disappointed by the new sight: multiple chairs around a long brownish table in what looked like a small meeting room.

"Will it do, Haruno-san?"

Her eyes shifted to the man, "Er...yeah. For your interest, I don't normally do this... You should've gone to the hospital. Right when it started to hurt. But since you're really in pain, I will—"

"You're too kind," his lips curved outward slightly. "Considering your recent deeds, I'm not in the least surprised."

"My recent... deeds ?"

"Emi-sama," he said like it was the most oblivious thing in the world. "You saved my cousin that night, for which we're truly thankful. "

Sakura cleared her throat, "Right. So, may I see what's wrong with your body? Where does it hurt?"

"Nowhere."

"But you—" her eyes narrowed, "Why did you bring me here, then?"

"I felt like you wanted to leave. Am I right?"

Sakura looked at the Sôma like he had lost his mind, "You felt like— What are you saying?! "

"The Uchiha. He was looking in your way."

"And?" she almost spitted out. "People look, they always do. I'm pretty sure you know yourself what I'm talking about."

"After what you did, they might be tempted to go after you," he explained with a deadpan expression. "We know how they operate, and we know they're not the kind to forgive."

"No! Not this again. They're not going to do anything. N ot now, not ever. Do you know why? Because I didn't do anything at all, " she put her fingers on her temp, "you people, why does everything I say always go in one ear and out of the other? How many times do I have to repeat—"

A sudden noise made her stop in her track and look in the door's direction.

"Haruno-san!" the newcomer yelled. "What did I say about not speaking to anyone under any circumstances? Did you think I wouldn't see you sneaking out!"

"I'm the one who invited her Tojirô-san."

"Ssh!" he brushed him off, making a swift gesture with his hand. "I don't want to know what you were doing here. Please get out. Now. Before I lose my patience."

Sakura didn't have to be asked twice and went past their guard, who was holding the door wide open for them. Despite her now irritate state, this short respite made her forget about the dire situation of her friend. The thought of the tense atmosphere of the room made her feel sick already. She suddenly didn't feel like going back there anymore.

"Thank you for listening to me Haruno-san, it was a pleasure to chat with you," the man whispered behind her. "Seeing as you'll be my cousin's teacher, I trust we'll meet again soon."

She didn't correct him, knowing it would be useless, and kept following Tojirô. As they went back into the ceremony room, she spotted right away her blond friend surrounded by his admirers and new friends, after all, who wouldn't want to be noticed by the famous hero of Konoha? As for Sasuke, he was nowhere in sight, nor his brother or father. There was only one Uchiha left in the room, the same one as before, and he was staring right at her.

"Tojirô-san, would you be so kind as to escort me back outside the head-quarter?"

"With pleasure."

The uneventful road back to her apartments got disrupted when she noticed a bright light shining through her windows. Stopping in her tracks, she stood still for a while, wondering who could have had the guts to enter her home without permission, trespassing on her property. She could think of a few names, but not any that were supposed to be anywhere near her neighborhood right now. She was positive her friends had other things to do than visiting her. Even though, she knew Sasuke had left the ceremony, human company was certainly the last thing he sought at the moment.

Taking a deep breath, she went forward, expecting the worst. When she pushed open the door, the sight welcoming her made her feel rage instead of fear. The Godaime, of all people, was sitting on her couch with her arms stretched open like she owned the place and had every right to be there. Many would feel blessed by such an unforeseen event, their holy leader visiting their home. How lucky they were.

"What do you want?"

Sakura was not naive, after being ignored for so long, she wasn't sure what Tsunade was trying to accomplish by coming uninvited. What she knew, however, was that it couldn't augur anything good, it never did, she became too used to what always seemed to happen when the old woman wanted to discuss. It was always about making her do things she had no desire to do, forcing her to make choices. No, she was not going to bend under her will again, not after what she did the last time.

The blond woman's eyes glinted with mockery, "Is this what you call home now? Did you forget the furniture?"

She sighed, "This would have been taken care of if I didn't have to train every single day because a bitter old woman said so!"

"Mah, I wonder who really sounds bitter right now," she lay her head against the sofa's back. "How's your training doing?"

"Ask Lee," she grunted, knowing with certitude that he reported her progress to the Godaime regularly. Sakura crossed her arms on her chest, "Well? Are you done? In case you didn't notice, it's late."

Tsunade took a deep sigh, " Why this place, Sakura?"

"Didn't you say I needed to make changes in my life?"

"Naruto's been good to you."

"We're not teenagers anymore, Tsunade. He's changed," she whispered. "I have changed. Besides...I never had any intention to live with him forever. You know it was just a temporary arrangement."

"One that I ordered myself," she reminded her solemnly. "Do I have reasons to worry, Sakura? That's want I want to know."

"This place's everything...everything I've ever wanted, I'm not letting you take it away for me."

The blond woman chuckled.

"It's quiet," a baritone voice said suddenly, "I like it."

Sakura, even more exasperated, turned to the newcomer, as she watched him climb in through her windows in the most nonchalant manner, "Kakashi-sensei."

"Don't look at me like that, I was invited as mediator, nothing more . "

"Don't lie. Not to me."

Once the silver-hair man was inside, Sakura closed the windows strongly, she then turned to her dear sensei, "Do you approve of this? Her, taking my home from me? Does it sound right to you?"

Tsunade jumped off the couch, "It's not like you to be paranoid."

"After everything you've done to me, why shouldn't I?" she looked at Kakashi, her voice started to crack, "My...my work, my office, all gone! My job was taken away from me! Just...just because she wants to make me miserable! How could you do this to me?"

"Your job at the hospital was making you miserable," the Godaime reminded her, "you told me that yourself."

"Wasn't it enough the last time?" she said bitterly, refusing to look at her. "And now...now she wants to send me out there again, she wants me to kill people—"

"That's not what she's asking, Sakura."

She shook her head, "What's with you, guys? Coming in, uninvited. Cornering me like you...like you're my parents ."

"Sakura..."

"You're not my parents," she said firmly. "And I'm not a child anymore."

"When are you going to act like an adult, then?" she poked her forehead with her fingers, "this has the power to save thousands of people."

Sakura's eyes widened.

"What?" she smiled. "You think I didn't notice? Do you think I wouldn't recognize my own creation? The jutsu that not any iryô-nin has ever managed to master. Except for me. And now you. Wouldn't it be a shame to give up on all the lives you could save with such power? All the good you could do? Think of it, Sakura."

"I'm not giving up on anything."

"You've already given up by refusing to do your duty."

"She could give back her headband, Tsunade," Kakashi reminded, "this is her choice to make, one you cannot take away from her. "

"The choice of a coward," the Godaime criticized. She gave a sad look to Sakura and put a hand on her shoulder, "Is this truly what you want? You know I've been through this myself. Hiding for years, refusing to face reality, do you think it helped me? No, it didn't. And I'll not let you make the same mistake I did. I'm assigning you to a new mission starting in two days, and you'll come, or else..." she let out an inaudible curse, and left quietly.

Sakura was standing still, wearing an expression of discomfort on her face, "I'm not killing people, Sensei."

"That's not what she has in mind for you," the copy ninja said.

"But it's still going to happen, you know this better than anyone else."

"Mah, you've always been too clever for your own good, Sakura-chan."

"Hmm," she stretched out her neck from side to side," not clever enough to figure out how to get my freedom back."

"Actually...you could get your freedom."

"And become the laughingstock of the village? No thanks," she commented, before she slumped on her couch, "the way you ignored me earlier was cruel, Sensei ."

"I didn't—"

"Bring me back my stuff from the hospital, and I'll forgive you."

He smiled behind his mask, "Consider it done."

"…Yura Inuzuka, Inose Guzou, Naruto Uzumaki and…Sakura Haruno. Did I get everyone?" the Captain glared at the news recruits, all standing at rest in a perfect line in front of her. "I'll take your silence as a yes. You've been briefed already, but I have to remind you, this mission's taking us into enemy territory. No failure nor mistakes will be allowed there. If you feel like you're not up to the task, now's your time to opt-out. We'll be traveling for three days, straight to our destination, with no breaks, nor rest, I don't want to hear any of you complaining. No whining, no chatting. You're all Anbu now, and you must act accordingly. Am I being clear?"

"Hai!" they all yelled in sync.

"As you may have noticed," she stopped in front of the pink hair kunoichi. "We have the privilege of having our personal iryo-nin. Though she's going to accompany us everywhere we go, she's not an Anbu, therefore, you shouldn't expect her to carry the same objective as ours. If she happens to be in a dire situation, do not intervene and jeopardize your main objective, she'll handle herself just fine. Needless to say, this doesn't apply in the case the majority of our team were to be gravely impaired. But that's a very unlikely outcome with such an exceptional team. Understood?"

"Hai!"

"Finally, you'll be pleased to learn Captain Uchiha isn't blessing us with his presence to evaluate your skills. He'll indeed travel with us, but you must act as if he isn't here, seeing as he'll take no part in our mission, his only purpose being observing my work and judging my competence as Captain. Don't expect him to assist you," she clapped her hands together, "all right, any questions before we depart?" her eyes scrutinized every member of the squad, looking for any sign, "No? No one? Very well. Haruno, come with me."

Sakura felt a lump formed in her belly upon hearing her name. As she watched the squad spread out, she caught Naruto giving her a reassuring wink. Baka . She then followed her Captain reluctantly, the air becoming more and more tense as the woman lead her deeper into the headquarters. At some point, she made her enter inside a changing room.

"I think we're far enough from—"

"Listen, you ignorant girl," the woman hissed, pushing her on the chest forcefully," if you fuck up my mission once again, I swear I'll make your life miserable!"

Caught off guard, Sakura raised her hands, "I—I don't mean no offense, Captain, but…I already have my lot of problems."

"I don't care!" she threatened, thin bulging veins appearing around her eyes, "What are you smiling for!?"

"Captain, I swear—I've no intention of ruining your mission, our mission. I won't do anything without consulting you first."

"Will you!?" she barked.

"I understand that—I shouldn't have taken reckless initiatives that time, I won't do it again," she said sincerely, "I promise."

"You better, Haruno. You fucking better."

She left in a huff, leaving Sakura slightly dumbfounded, even though she was already well aware her Captain had no sympathy for her. A mutual sentiment. Not even three seconds later, large fingers popped out from the thin opening of the door, "Er…Haruno-san, I thought I was clear enough the other day. No wandering under any—"

"—circumstances, yes! I wasn't by myself Tojirô-san!"

"Er, so I presume you were in Chiho Hyuuga's company? She looked quite…upset."

"She's just paranoid."

He held the door for her, "Come, I'll escort you out."

"You don't seem to have much sympathy for Captain Hyuuga."

"She hates me for no reason, why should I not reciprocate the feeling?"

"I'll have you know she isn't so popular within the organization," he revealed in a lower voice.

"Really? How so?"

The old man smiled, "Well, people found her rather bad-tempered and despotic at times."

"I would've never guessed!"

"Still, you do have something in common..."

She shook her head, "No, I don't think so."

"...being both judged unfairly."

" In her case, it seems to be totally justified," Sakura corrected. "What do you know about me? I refuse to believe someone like you listens to gossip—"

"It was against my will, Haruno!" he protested. "Of course, I do not have any inclining for hearsay. Although your reputation seems to cause a rather distinct distress among all males in reproductive capacity."

Sakura chuckled, "So you do believe them."

"I never said I did," Tojirô stopped walking, "Oh, we've arrived already! I wish you good luck with your mission."

"Thank you," Sakura bowed in front of him, feeling like she was going to need more than luck.

There was something foul in the air, something that made her feel goosebumps on her skin. The damp soil was starting to hug even more her feet, slowing down her motions even more and feeding on her energy. They were walking quietly between trees, forced to travel on the ground, as there was nothing to climb into, no way to jump through the air like they usually did. Those tall trees were like large pillars reaching the sky, even though nobody could see anything through the thick leaves at their top. Almost no light could go through them and so there was truly no way to know where was the sun. In this place, there was no notion of time anymore.

Sakura didn't know how long they had been walking through this cursed forest, like the rest of the group, she kept going forward mechanically, stuck in a deep silence, one that none dared to break. Her hair felt incredibly heavy on her head, gorged with invisible water droplets. People always tended to assume the country of Rain had precipitations every day of the year, while the truth was a little less dramatic. Everything about this land's climate felt humid, but they had not encountered any rain yet—thankfully. She had a feeling they would sooner or later experience the worst this land had to offer. They were far from Amekagure, far from civilization, traveling in a place that looked devoid of any life, even the ground was completely barren. It was odd how many different places there could be within one country as small as this one.

Sakura had traveled to many lands in her life, though her count paled compared to the numerous itinerant merchants that came to Konoha's market., and who had many secrets to share from their travels. Naruto's deceased sensei, Jiraya, had surely seen more than anyone could see in one lifetime. But one didn't even need to cross seas to see novelty, even in the Land of Fire, there were thousands of places she had never seen. Sakura had, for instance, never visited the glorious capital - not that it would be her first choice as she had no desire to witness the gluttony of the wealthy. Most shinobis belonging to a country's military organization simply didn't have the luxury to travel wherever they wanted to. They went wherever they were ordered to go, and in most cases, it was anything but restful. Even civilians didn't have such freedom, they indeed would not fare well in hostile places such as this lifeless forest.

Captain Hyuuga lifted her arm, "Halt!"

Taken out of her thoughts, Sakura lifted her chin and was welcomed by the sight of wide-open and huge black gates. They were connected to walls, that were surrounding what looked like a compound made of several buildings. The fog made it difficult to distinguish exactly what was inside. Nevertheless, she knew nothing alive would be found inside. Something had led its inhabitants to abandon it a long time ago, maybe even long before the last war.

"Don't get mistaken by the look of these ruins," the Captain made a sign to Inuzuka, "The bag. Quick."

Sakura looked behind her Captain, who was facing her, taking in the sight of a strange tree, which had several iron spikes wrapped all around its trunk. There were several wooden platforms at its top, making it look like some sort of watchtower. If there were one here, there were surely others all around the compound.

"Here," Hyuuga said, pulling out several gas masks. "Our source's report claims a curse has taken this abandoned place, making the air unbreathable, poisoning your lungs. We don't know what it does, only that prolonged exposure will kill you. This is why nobody must go inside without wearing one, do you understand me? "

Everyone nodded silently.

"I'm giving you thirty minutes to investigate this site. Inzuka, you and your partner will keep watching around the gates," she turned to Sakura, "Haruno, go somewhere less exposed and get ready to do what you're here for—"

"There are platforms up the tree," she informed, indicating the direction with her finger. "I'll go there."

"Good. Let's go."

In truth, they knew something crucial about the poison inhabiting this place. Its origin wasn't natural at all, someone had made this to keep people away, to make sure nobody could what secrets were hidden inside. Konoha never sent men away from its border without good reason. It really all started when some reports claimed that shinobis from Kumo had been spotted wandering inside this forest. While Konoha wasn't at war anymore with Kumo, it didn't mean they should let them acquire more ways to arm themselves -though nowadays the Land of Lighting seemed to have more conflict with its south neighbor, the Land of Water. Strangely enough, they hadn't encountered any shinobi from Kumogakure yet.

Sakura pulled her medical supplies out of her bag, assessing what she would need in priority if someone were to get hurt. Gas masks never filtered everything, there were still some particles going through the filter, ready to disable any healthy body, even one belonging to the toughest fighter. As long as they didn't stay inside for too long, they would be fine. However, she still had to get ready for the unexpected.

"You should go higher."

Sakura narrowed her at the suggestion, "Are you going to drown me if I don't?"

She hated herself for not being able to keep pretending this abject fellow wasn't just here with her, at arm's reach, when absolutely nothing had obligated him to follow her up this platform. And she refused to believe he didn't know exactly what he was doing by forcing her to acknowledge his presence.

"Do you believe this was my intention?"

"What else would it be?" she gritted between her teeth. "Do you think I'd forget the way you forced me underwater? You didn't even do it once, but twice . Twice! Aren't you going to apologize?"

"Your drunken state was clouding your mind," he said like he was speaking to an unruly child. "You needed to be taken out of this state."

"No, definitely not," she sighed, trying her best not to show him how upset she was. "You just needed to mind your own business! I could report you for this. I should do it—"

"Nobody would believe you, Haruno-san ."

What?

Sakura stopped moving at once, bewildered by his words. She was so grateful for the masks hiding their face. She didn't want to see his empty eyes on her, but above all, she didn't want him to see the truth on her face. There weren't any witty words she could send him back, simply because he wasn't entirely wrong. There were absolutely no reasons for them to engage with each other, and even fewer reasons for the great Itachi Uchiha to take advantage of his brother's teammate. The whole idea would be absurd, yet it was exactly what happened.

She realized that she should have listened to his advice by climbing up onto another platform. As far as possible from this man. However, as she started to gather her medical supplies, she heard barks coming from the ground. She looked down at once, narrowing her eyes in concentration, but the thickness of the smog made everything blurry. Out of habit, she turned around expecting to see Sasuke's brother, instead, she felt a plunge of fear when she realized that she was alone.

She saw the platform fracturing itself under her feet, and disappear, destroying the last frontier standing between her body and gravity. Expecting to meet the ground, she didn't fight her fall, swiftly infusing chakra under her feet to absorb the incoming chock. Yet, to her surprise, it never happened, she just kept falling endlessly, like there was no physical reality anymore.

"Shit," she bite her lip several times, and then took things to the next level by puncturing the skin of her hand with a kunai. Once again, her expectations weren't met.

This wasn't the work of an amateur. Whoever had created the genjutsu wanted to keep her imprisoned inside as long as possible. Sakura was starting to become more anxious, knowing that time had no meaning anymore, she had no way of knowing how long she had been trapped already. It could have been seconds or minutes, or worse. Her teammates were still out there, and while she didn't doubt they could handle themselves, this toxic place could change the outcome completely.

A guttural sound reached her sense, one that didn't come from her current reality, which was a hopeful turn. She heard more noises of fighting, grunting, and animal growling, until she finally hit the ground. Taking in her surroundings, she understood that she was nowhere near the gates of the ghost compound. There was no enemy, or at least not any that she could perceive within the fog. When she heard footsteps to her right, her muscles tightened and then an awful smell of wet dogs reached her senses.

Inuzuka's pet.

There was blood around its mouth, painting its light brown fur in red. The beast stood there for a few seconds, before escaping into the mist. Sakura then noticed something brushing against her feet. Her eyes widened when she identified what kind of gift the dog had left her. It was a freshly severed hand.

Without hesitation, she grabbed the limb and started to inspect it. She had seen more than a fair share of blood and flesh during her career to be fazed by one hand missing its body. The reddish skin didn't look familiar, it certainly didn't belong to her current team. She lifted her shin, looking at the direction the dog had taken, which had to be the one leading to the ruins. But as she was about to move, the figure of an unknown kunoichi appeared in front of her.

She had a tight uniform, and her hooded mantle was completely hiding her face. What caught Sakura's attention the most was the blood on her clothes and her right arm pressed against it. She could see the bone coming out of her wrist, the bloody flesh out of the open air, and part of its skin missing, like something had chewed on it.

Sakura then looked at the severed hand between her fingers like she had discovered a revolutionary cure. There were now really only two options available, one that wouldn't be agreeable judging by the large sword the stranger was holding, slightly tilted in her direction.

She decided to take her chance, and just opened her palm, arm extended, like she was trying to feed a wild and dangerous animal. Sakura wasn't trembling, she was just looking straight at the stranger and hoping she would be wise enough to make the right decision. And then, in the blink of an eye, both stranger and severed hand were gone.

"Haruno-san! Are you all right?" a woman exclaimed, running in her direction. "What are you doing down there?"

"I'm trying to figure that part out," Sakura admitted, a bit numb from her recent spike of adrenaline. "One minute I was sitting on the platform up the tree and the next... Wait—how long has it been since they went inside?"

"Hum...I don't know," she said while spinning a kunai between her fingers. "Maybe half an hour or so. Did you see a woman coming your way?"

"Yes, she..." Sakura hesitated for a second, "she ran past me. She didn't look like she was in any condition to fight."

Though the auburn hair Inuzuka wasn't giving her the cold shoulder—or at least not yet—Sakura deemed fit not to give out more details. She could easily picture a very dismayed Captain Hyuuga telling her how giving back a limb to its owner was treason.

"Hai. She was trying to use a genjutsu on me, but Yuri got her good," the dog trotted to its master's side, "Right, Yuri?"

Her loyal companion barked and started running in the direction they came from.

" We should go head back to the gates."

Sakura nodded, "What's happening exactly?"

"Four individuals left the compound. They weren't hostile, except for the kunoichi. I think they were trying to gain time."

"Which means they may have found what we were looking for."

"Hai."

"Ah, ladies!" Inuzuka's teammate waved to them, "I was about to go look for you!"

"Did you find anything, Zamaru?"

"Nothing of use," he coughed and cleared his voice. "We should have pursued them."

"Agreed, but we don't know what's happening inside. There might be more."

Sakura stared at the opened gates, cursing the damn fog troubling her sight. Naruto and Sasuke were still inside, and this place...this place was dangerous. No matter one's strength, not a living thing could survive without proper oxygen. She felt like ignoring her promises to go find them. Even without a proper mask, she knew she could handle the toxin—at least for a short while. But the risks still remained. Just like they never seemed to trust her ability to protect herself, she needed to trust them too.

"I'm Zamaru, from the Gotsuhi clan."

Sakura looked at the man, who was now standing between her and the gates, obscuring her sight with his large body.

"Sakura Haruno," she answered reluctantly like he didn't already know who she was.

It occurred to her that, she had not seen her companion ever since the attack. She turned to Inuzuka, "Uchiha-san...he was with me earlier. Have you seen him since—"

Zamaru laughed, "Are you worried for Captain Uchiha? He's the last person you should be concerned about!"

"I'm not concerned , Zamaru-san," she said sternly "Everyone bleeds, he's no exception."

"She got a point, Zamaru," Inzuka looked at Sakura. "But I think he was just trying to say that Captain Uchiha will never be the first one to bleed."

"No, he doesn't bleed. Period."

Sakura rolled her eyes behind her white mask. Blind idolatry would always cloud people's minds. She had learned that the hard way herself.

"Sakura-chan!" a voice yelled.

She dashed at once towards the familiar voice, like she had done so many times before, bumping into Zamaru's shoulder in the process. Her teammate was carrying someone on her back.

"Quick," Naruto said. "I think he's still breathing, but—"

"Let me see," Sakura helped him lie down the man on the ground, infinitely relieved not to see Sasuke's black-jet hair on his head.

The young man's unconscious body was warm, with no sign of fever nor visible tremors. She found that his nervous system seemed compromised, as the muscles in his legs were numb like he was paralyzed—something a poison could be responsible for.

"Fuckin' asshole stole his mask," he spat out. "You 'seen any of them?"

"Hai," Inuzuka said. "Though, they're gone now."

"Who!" Captain Hyuuga asked, slightly breathless, as the rest of the team finally arrived. "How many did you count? Did you see their faces?"

"There were five, Captain. All hooded and likely heading north. I got one of them. They didn't look like they were from Kumo."

"Good job Team B. Anything else to report?"

"We found the hiding under the temple and that's when they attacked us," Tozen's partner reported. "They were already inside, not looking for a fight. Except for what they did to Tozen, they just ignored me. I'm positive whatever was inside is in their hands now. Or else they wouldn't have been so queen to leave."

Inzuka cleared her throat, "If you allow me, I could go ahead and track them down. One of them's bleeding, Yuri isn't going to forget their smell!"

Thoughtful, the Captain nodded, "Haruno, what's his condition?"

"He's stable, Captain," she informed, still knelled at the man's side. "But he must be treated properly, and somewhere safer if you want him operational again."

"All right everyone, we're leaving. Right now!" she shouted understanding time wasn't on their side. "Inuzuka, you take the lead. We must get closer to them. Uzumaki! Keep carrying Tozen until we find shelter!"

Nobody protested, and they all scattered swiftly, except for Sakura.

"What are you waiting for, Haruno!"

"I need to find my medical pack. It got lost when they—"

"Hurry up. I'm not waiting for you."

She wanted to retort something about how Tozen wouldn't be healed properly without them—although it was half a lie—but the white hair woman was already gone. Sakura cursed under her breath and then trotted to the heap of debris right by the towering tree.

She was bent down, scanning the mud, branches, and debris on the ground, when she noticed black shoes slightly covered in dirt and a bag, her bag , hanging above her... She bolted up, only to end up face to face with a certain missing man.

Her bag, he had her bag! Naturally, she grabbed it, uttering a faint spontaneous thanks regardless of her dislike for the man, but met right away an unexpected resistance.

"Do you wish to see me bleed?" he pulled the bag toward himself. "What else are you planning with the Sômas?"

Sasuke's brother always managed to say to most unlikely things at the worst time possible. Was he even aware of how preposterous the words coming out of his mouth were? What both confounded and unnerved Sakura the most was how serious he was about it. He was a man on a mission who truly believed his own bullshit, and as such was treating her like the criminal he believed her to be, no matter whether it was true or not.

Sakura was at a loss for words, however, her anger and outrage weren't at rest and made her pull the bag harder against her body.

"Haruno!"

Itachi let go of her bag at the sound of Captain Hyuuga's voice, which, in turn, made Sakura fall unceremoniously on her bottom, right into the mud.

After a short moment of pondering, Sakura lifted her head and said solemnly, almost like a promise, "You're not prepared for what's to come, Uchiha."