p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Haruno Sakura was a storm in motion, a hurricane in human skin. Her moods always built around her, tangible as a change in the air, and those who were wise ran for cover. You could not change her direction or cause her to dissipate, you could only weather her and hope she left you intact. She was building into an impressive low-pressure system that morning. Her car had arrived at her house 30 minutes late, which meant she was late getting to the studio, her bra was pinching the tender skin on her ribs, and she'd spilled her first cup of coffee on her white shirt. On top of last night's events, she was struggling to check her temper. -Struggling was a generous description.-/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanUnfortunately-or maybe not-she was going to face the only person who would face the storm and win: her boss./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"As her SUV finally came to a stop outside of Senju Entertainment, Sakura took a deep breath to prepare herself, filling her upper lungs and then pulling air all the way down into her diaphragm, slowly. In front of and behind her SUV, two other vehicles came to stops as well, one sleek sedan and one equally sleek truck. Outside her blacked-out windows, she could see the crowd of news outlets and paparazzi, all vying to get a look at her, to ask her a question. Sakura forced the anger off of her face and took another deep breath. She had been working on her temper lately. She counted the seconds by tapping her fingers on her handbag. 12 passed before her door was finally opened, letting the crisp fall air rush in and fill her lungs. It almost felt nice, except for the cacophony of shouting from the crowd that came with it. An unpleasant side effect of her existence. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Sakura's heels smacked the pavement as she ducked her head and stepped out. She took a moment to smooth out her silk mini skirt, making sure it hadn't ridden up to expose her ass. A new coffee cup, Starbucks, was passed into her hands by the same person who had opened her door. Her body man, Kakashi. His eyes crinkled from above his ever-present mask, which concealed the entire lower half of his face and disappeared into his shirt. Sakura didn't return the smile, just squared her shoulders and lifted her chin. His expression returned to disinterested indolence as she swept by him. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Kakashi and his partner, Genma, took up positions in front of and behind her, while extra company security blocked her sides as she strode for the massive glass rotating door that led into the highrise. While she didn't answer any questions, she did give all the cameras her most a style="mso-comment-reference: CP_1; mso-comment-date: 20230830T1332;"angelic/a/spanspan class="MsoCommentReference"span style="font-size: 8.0pt;"!- [if !supportAnnotations]-a id="_anchor_1" class="msocomanchor" href=" #_msocom_1" name="_msoanchor_1"[CP1]/a!-[endif]-span style="mso-special-character: comment;" /span/span/spanspan style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;" smile as they pushed through, hiding the storm under her skin and lipstick. Sakura made directly for the building without slowing down, her footsteps echoed by her teams'. A line of more security pushed the reporters back from the building, making space for Sakura and her men to slip inside. It was like riot control had suddenly been sent to her workplace. The doors whooshed as she pushed her way into the marble lobby, while the extra guards remained behind to block the door./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"The glass chandelier above her head tinkled softly as the breeze from the door disturbed it. The lobby had a European classic feel to it, all arches and creme with colorful hints here and there. Other people rushed about, and some sat on the sofas, waiting for one thing or another. Everyone became hushed as they noticed the pink haired singer in their midst. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Sakura went straight to the security desk. The guard, Ebisu, stiffened as she approached, straightening in his chair while simultaneously looking like he wished he could disappear under his desktop. Sakura rolled her eyes and didn't break her stride. Ebisu scrambled to slap the button to unlock the gate as she reached it. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Kakashi and Genma followed behind, their footsteps quieter than hers, well trained. They were to be rarely seen, and never heard, though she did occasionally hear them conversing. Sakura had begrudgingly acquiesced to Tsunade's insistence for the protective detail, but only after a stalker had gotten too close a little over three years prior. And regrettably, last night. Now she had a team of four, emfour/em, men, while her fellow artists typically had two or three. It had taken a very long time for her to get used to having additional shadows around the clock. The guards took shifts, so Sakura was covered around the clock. Mostly. There was no doubt in her mind that was about to change. Internally, she was screaming over it./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"She sighed out loud as they entered the elevator, the chrome doors sliding shut to show her her reflection. She ignored the two dark outlines with her, one slightly in front, the other behind, and leaned forward to inspect her lipstick. Soft pink, to match her hair. Almost perfect, but for the cut marring her upper lip. She scowled and lifted her fingers to gently touch the mark, before dropping her hand with a hiss from the pain. The swelling around it had already gone down, thanks to an ice pack, but she was unhappy with the little imperfection. A literal crack in her figurative armor. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"The elevator slid to a stop on the top floor, the twentieth, and the chrome doors rolled back to reveal Tsunade's private offices. The entire floor was dedicated to her business and had been designed by her own hand. Tsunade had a grand taste. That was a given, of course, since she had hired Sakura, but was also obvious in her lush decorating choices. Another desk sat front and center from stepping off of the elevator, all flawless black marble. The floors were made of the same, giving the appearance that the desk had grown from it, while the furniture in the waiting room was bone white leather. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Other office doors, all the people Tsunade kept directly in her reach, were open, people coming and going carrying documents and tablets. Anyone who made it beyond the front desk had explicit permission, either working for the company directly or doing something for those who did./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Shizune made an exasperated noise at the sight of them walking towards her. "You're late, Sakura." She chided, her dark eyebrows drawing downwards as she spoke. "Go directly in." /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Sakura huffed but went on as instructed. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"She was stopped halfway down the hall by her manager, and she felt the pause in the activity on the floor. Her current manager, a smarmy bastard by the name Kabuto, gave her a white smile before opening his mouth. Sakura didn't give him the chance. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""You're fired. Be out of this building by 10, or my men will remove you." She waved a hand over her shoulder at Genma and Kakashi. Kabuto was fit, but he was no match for these two, handpicked by Tsunade. Veterans. Unlike her other two unfortunate guards, who had been sent by some security company in the city. If she were being honest, despite her protests to her security, having the large and dangerous men backing her up gave her a rush of power. Not that she needed men to be powerful. She was a force of nature all on her own./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Sakura began to strut by and mentally begged the man to take his dignity and go. But she shouldn't be so lucky. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""You- you bitch! You spoiled brat!" Sakura stopped walking and turned on her heel, watching him with cool, bored eyes. She waved a hand, encouraging him to continue his tirade. She knew everyone else on the floor was listening, Shizune cringing from behind her desk. "I do everything for you!"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Sakura withheld another sigh. She looked down her nose at him, despite her short height. This was a trick she'd mastered by the age of 14. "You are responsible for running interference with the press when things the publicist didn't approve of happen. Clearly," She waved her hand at the windows, gesturing outside, the pink bracelets at her wrist softly jangling, "you failed. This is not a small mistake. This mistake makes me look vulnerable to other psychos. So," Her voice had gotten colder with each word, dropping the temperature in the hall. "You're fired." From a hurricane to a blizzard. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Again, she silently begged him to take his tattered pride. Again, he did not. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""It's unbelievable that you've tricked the entire country into making you its sweetheart! The world should know that you're really a spoiled child!" A muscle in Sakura's jaw twitched at the use of that word. Not spoiled, but child. She hated being infantilized, just for being younger. News flash, wisdom did not always come from age. She was young, not naive. And she knew a lot of older adults who were more immature than she was. She took a deep breath, and reminded herself that being a spoiled pop star was perfectly fine, that her age was nothing against her./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""I will remind you once," Her voice was freezing now, her eyes glinting green steel. "You signed an NDA upon beginning your employment. And if you break it," Now her tone was sugary sweet, and she grinned viciously at him. "We will sue you until you are begging for mercy, and while we're at it, we'll take down your professional reputation. Other companies won't hire a snitch." Maybe she should have defended her character instead, but that was probably a waste of her breath. Sakura had a short temper and a sharp tongue that often got the best of her, even when she didn't mean to let it out. Oh well./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Without giving him the time to reply, she turned around again and strode to the very last door down the hall, passing framed records and movie posters that lined the walls. Several of the movie posters depicted her band, FireDrive, in a popular movie franchise that she, Naruto, and Sasuke starred in. emThe Ninja Way, The Ninja Way 2: The Will of Fire, The Ninja Way: Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow! /em/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Sakura made it to Tsunade's door, with its gilded handle shaped like a leaf. The entire Senju building had subtle leaf motifs, a nod to the city and the family's hand in its founding. Inside, Tsunade sat at her desk, a drink in her right hand and her eyebrow twitching with barely restrained ire. She had clearly heard the conversation in the hall. A wall of windows behind her showed the city skyline, the buildings reflecting the blaze of the morning sun./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""It's a little early in the morning for liquor, Tsunade. You should take better care," Sakura said, eager to speak before her boss could. She completely disregarded the previous interaction, like it had never happened. What's one silly manager? "Surely my lateness isn't that heinous. I texted you to let you know." She gave her her best smile, white teeth flashing in the morning light. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""Cut the shit." Tsunade said. Sakura's hand tightened around her forgotten coffee cup. In an effort to hide her irritation, she lifted it to her lips and took a sip. The coffee, at least, was perfect, though the lid bumped the hurt on her lip. "Sit." Tsunade barked. Sakura obediently sat in the plush leather chair opposite Tsunade, crossing her legs to avoid flashing the older woman her green lacy panties./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;" Sakura couldn't even hear her guards standing by the door, though she usually couldn't. She knew from experience that in Tsunade's office they would stand there in perfect silence, or slouch, and stare boredly at nothing. Elsewhere they were just as bored and disinterested in what happened around them as long as it wasn't a threat, but they would occasionally exchange quiet words./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""What-in the loving fuck- happened last night?" Tsuande gripped her own drink with equally held back anger. Sakura was relieved she didn't care about her firing another staff member. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Sakura sighed for the umpteenth time that morning and sagged back into her seat./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"A really determined little shit, that's what," She closed her eyes and tipped her head back, suddenly exhausted. She also didn't want to meet the intensity in Tsunade's stare./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""Really determined? That's the understatement of the year. He knocked your other two guards unconscious and nearly killed you!" There was real fear in her boss's voice. She was right, of course. It was an understatement. This was the second time in the last few years that a stalker had gotten so close. And the smaller incidents had been becoming more frequent, too./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"He'd broken into Sakura's house in the middle of the night after hitting her two guards over the head with a brick. Genma and Kakashi were her daytime detail, so they weren't present. Besides, Kakashi had Tuesdays off entirely. Sakura had woken to the sound of the breaking glass and had dialed the emergency number immediately. But that had still left her inside with a psycho for fifteen minutes. They had struggled, the stalker having tried to chloroform her, but Sakura had knocked the soaked rag away, and fought her way to the kitchen, where she grabbed a steak knife from her drawers. It had been just enough to keep him off for the police to arrive. Her night shift guards had gone to the hospital. She didn't know how they were doing. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"She did not rehash any of this to Tsunade because Sakura knew that her boss was already aware. First, because Sakura had told her on the phone, and second, because it was front page news everywhere. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""We're tightening your security-"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""No!" Sakura's eyes popped open, and she whipped her gaze to the other woman's. She would never have any privacy again. Never be alone. Four guards day and night was already excessive for one little woman./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""Yes." Tsunade's voice was cold and left no room for argument. But Sakura would be damned if she didn't try. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""Can't we just-"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""No. We're increasing your number of guards, at least one of them will be inside the house with you, emand /emyou're going to learn to defend yourself as well. We have to protect our investment." Tsunade smiled at the end, but Sakura knew it was a fake. The room seemed to shrink around her. She had no choice because she had a very thorough contract. And she did not want to go home if she breached it./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Tsunade must have seen the fight die in her eyes, snuffed out like a candle, because her smile became less forced, and more genuine. "Now, I'll see about your new guards. Maybe six?" Tsunade looked over Sakura's shoulder. "This time, Kakashi, I want you to hand pick the team. I trust your background." Sakura didn't care who picked, all that mattered was that there would be more. Her hope shriveled up. More strangers watching her, when she was already in the public eye every second of her life. She lived under a microscope. She supposed Kakashi and Genma had been with her so long they weren't exactly strangers, but it didn't make her feel much better. Before those two had come along, she'd only had guards when she was out and about. Now it was even when she was at home, and it was going to be even more oppressive now./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Tsunade returned her attention to her. "But you need to get down to recording, your band mates need you." With a flick of her manicured hand, Sakura was dismissed from one of the most powerful women in the city's office. Tsunade was the rock against which the surf that was Sakura broke. She was eternally indebted to the woman, and she knew, deep down, that Tsunade was looking out for her. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;" "Oh, one more thing," Sakura froze at the doorway. "Shikamaru has recommended you try to make a few headlines with something fresh, and non-life threatening. Everyone wants to be involved in your life, but they don't need to see incidents like this. Not the press we want. We need to erase this horror, and remind the world you're okay, and nothing can keep you down. Keep that in mind and work on it." Shikamaru was probably the best publicist in the world. He was an unparalleled strategist, and his law degree helped him to help them avoid sticky interactions. And control things like the NDAs everyone who was around Sakura signed. When he said 'jump' public figures said 'how high'. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"A horrible headache was forming in her skull as she and her guards descended to the 7th floor in silence, as they always did. Just because Sakura had to be baby sat, it didn't mean she had to engage with her security. Positive publicity? New guards? Nothing could keep her down? /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"emspan style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Image. Image. Image. Image./span/em/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"She was tempted to slam her head against one of the walls. Since she'd blown up on the charts as both the singer for FireDrive and as a solo artist, her image had become her most valued possession. Her name. The way the world viewed her was carefully manicured, just like her nails, and it was all that mattered. And even she would sacrifice her personal desires for that image. The storm was tempered, at least for the moment. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"~/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"The recording floor, one of many, actually, was a hive of activity. Other idols and their managers and handlers moved about. Ino nearly crashed into Sakura as she was coming out of one of the lounges, her blonde hair swinging as she made contact with Sakura. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""Oh, poor forehead!" Ino pulled her into a crushing hug, which Sakura returned despite the insult. Ino was her favorite artist to collaborate with, and if anyone understood the stalking, she did. Ino was a mirror image of Sakura, the other side of a glamorous coin. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;" When she pulled back, she took Sakura's jaw in her hand and examined her battle scar from last night. "I've got the best scar prevention cream. I'll have it sent to your dressing room immediately." she said, nodding her head with conviction. Sakura thanked her, she knew firsthand how good Ino's creams were, and then continued to the recording booth where her bandmates were. The technicians outside stiffened as she went by. She ignored them./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Upon entering the soundproof room, her guards left outside, Naruto and Sasuke both shot up from where they'd been sitting. Sakura averted her eyes from Sasuke, a blush heating her cheeks and an ache settling in her chest./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""Sakura-chan!" Naruto bolted forwards and began to examine her from head to toe, inventorying every scratch and bruise. "That motherfucker! Did you kill him?" His blue eyes were wide and angry, which was an uncommon look. Sasuke stood quietly behind, also checking out her condition, but remained silent, exuding indifference. As he had since their breakup two months ago. They hadn't dated long, and he hadn't been the most doting boyfriend, but it still hurt./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""No, of course I didn't kill him." She frowned. The idea horrified her. It went against every inch of her being to even consider ending another person's life. She had a bad temper, sure, but she wasn't apathetic. Well, not entirely. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Naruto smiled. "That's good, Sakura-chan. But I hope the police punish him," He patted the top of her head, like they were still children, and stepped back to pick up his guitar. Sasuke took his place back up behind his drums without saying anything, and Sakura moved to stand beside the microphone. She picked up her headphones and slid them over her ears, muffling the other sounds, then she grabbed her bass from its stand. She played 4 instruments; bass, guitar, piano, and violin, but for her role in this band, her voice and bass were her weapons./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"She, Naruto, and Sasuke had been making music together since Sakura had arrived in the Land of Fire. While they all did plenty of solo projects, they still preferred to work together. A family. Even when Sasuke and Sakura had broken up, they had decided no bad feelings would get in the way of what they had as a band. Even though sometimes when she looked at Sasuke something inside her twisted. Even though the internet was ablaze with the news of their split. Even though Sasuke had been distant./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"The booth technician's voice came crackling through her headphones, telling them that everything was set. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Sakura closed her eyes, shut off her raging thoughts, and opened her mouth. This, her art, was everything she was. She lived and breathed for this music. Sure, she modeled and acted on the side, but her true passion lay in creating beautiful sound, so much so that it invaded every waking and sleeping moment. She was not talented at forms of art like drawing or painting, but she had been extremely blessed with musical talent, and let it bleed and gush forth from her like paint dripping from her fingertips. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"~/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"They worked on the recording of the first song of the new album for hours. A single song took dozens of recordings, then hours of tweaking in the sound booth followed by more recording, mixing their different sounds together, Sasuke and Naruto's voices joining hers. By lunchtime, Sakura wanted to go home. They had nearly perfected the sound, but her throat needed a break, and she knew the guys were getting tired. Besides, Sakura's phone strongdinged /strongand reminded her she had another appointment today. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"As the three of them poured out of the booth and into one of the lounges, Sakura told the boys they should call it quits for the day. Naruto wanted to know where she was going, his blue eyes wide and imploring, but Sakura deflected the question by suggesting the boys go get ramen for lunch. That was a success because Naruto started tugging Sasuke towards the door instantly. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Back down to the lobby she went, guards in tow as ever. She mentally braced herself for the onslaught of the paparazzi as they crossed the floor from the elevator bank. Ebisu didn't meet her eyes as they went by, and again the lobby hushed. This was a common occurrence when she entered a room. She was over it./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Sakura was relieved to see the crowd outside had thinned significantly, as it was a waste of time for too many news crews to wait outside all day when they didn't know what time she'd be leaving, and now the news wasn't so fresh. Especially with Shikamaru commanding a team of publicists to carefully control the flow of information. There wasn't much more to tell anyway./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Security safely escorted her to her waiting black SUV, and Kakashi slid in the backseat with her, causing Sakura's eyebrows to shoot to her hairline. Genma had split off to drive in a separate car in front, as he usually did. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""What are you doing?" she asked, annoyed at the loss of her alone time in the car. She began to reach around behind her, her hand slipping under her shirt. The back of her vehicle was designed like a limousine, with wall-to-wall seats facing one another. Leaving her looking directly at her guard./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Kakashi's eyes crinkled in confusion as he watched her but answered "Tsunade's newest orders. Someone in the house. Someone in the car. Get used to it." He said pleasantly. Sakura's eyebrows couldn't get any higher, but if they could have they would have. She certainly hadn't expected him to have such an attitude. Maybe that was what his mask was for-helping him keep his mouth shut. He slouched back in his seat, his posture something she was familiar with./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Sakura narrowed her eyes at him but said nothing. Instead, she unclasped her bra, shimmied it out from under her blouse, and tossed it at him. It landed on his head, draping down his face. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Her tender ribs felt much better unimpeded. She had taken a few hits to the area last night and had decided to remove her bra earlier. Tossing it on her bodyguard was simply a plus. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Kakashi blinked slowly, and she noticed, not for the first time, how handsome he was, as he lifted a hand to remove her undergarment from his shiny silver hair. With the mask and the scarred eye, he was a sexy and mysterious figure. She'd have to be blind and brain dead to miss his beauty. She wondered briefly how he'd received the scar, and then discarded the curiosity, uninterested. The personal lives of her guards were not important to her, not when she was constantly running around with her own problems./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"She turned her head out the window to watch the city go by, but turned back when she heard rustling. Kakashi had pulled a small, orange covered novel from emsomewhere/em on his person, and had begun reading, as he often did. emSome real vigilance/em, Sakura thought to herself. She pulled out her headphones and drowned the world out with music. The sound filled her mind and drowned any other thoughts. She could practically see the notes dancing before her eyes and tapped her fingers against her thighs in time with the beat. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"In less than thirty minutes they reached their destination, and again her guards took up their positions in front of and behind her, Kakashi leading the way. Fortunately, there was no paparazzi, because why would anyone think she would be headed to a government building? Her foreign nationality wasn't a secret per se, but she did her best to keep the status under wraps. She didn't like to talk about it, and it was fortunately a part of her the public wasn't terribly interested in. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Head held high, she marched inside the drab gray structure, and followed Kakashi to the directory, where she scanned briefly before informing her guards "Ground floor. 1006." /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"The word 'IMMIGRATION' was written on the fogged glass window of the door numbered 1006, in large black letters. Sakura had not been born in the Land of Fire, but she chose to pretend that she had been. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"She had an appointment, so it took no time to be let into one of the back offices with an agent, Kakashi stepping inside with her while Genma waited outside. She took a seat while the guard stood behind her, his presence as unchanging as her own shadow./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"The older agent across from her laced his fingers on top of his desk, and smiled warmly at her, before he broke the news. "Your visa expires in 2 weeks, Miss Haruno." Sakura blinked. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""Well," She gave him her thousand watt smile, the kind that had earned her the title of nation's sweetheart. "Let's renew it right now, shall we?" She reached for her purse to grab a pen. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""I'm afraid that isn't possible," The man said in a light tone. Sakura had just snagged her pen, and she raised her eyes to his, the pen gripped so tightly she felt it snap. Her eye might have twitched. "You will have to return to your homeland," Ink was dripping down her hand, and was it spilling in her eyes somehow? Her vision seemed to be getting dark around the edges. Panic, raw and powerful, was wrapping its way around her throat./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""How is that possible? My work visa is always renewed on time." She beseeched the older man, her smile faltering. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"He looked at something on his computer screen and frowned, brow furrowed. "Well, I left several messages with your manager, letting him know about the impending count down. No one ever replied." He cocked a brow at her. "This meeting was barely arranged through another person at your place of employment." /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Sakura restrained her facial expression, while inside all of her had gone taut with rage. Kabuto had fucked this up for her. "And it's entirely too late for a fix?" She asked, a bit of hope lacing her words./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""I'm afraid not," The agent said, his mouth an unhappy laugh. "Unless, of course, you're getting married to a citizen in the next two weeks," His smile never changed. Sakura's brain was shutting down with her terror, and she felt like she couldn't draw breath. She tried to return home as little as absolutely possible. She'd had a student visa, and a work visa, but they weren't endless, and they weren't true green cards./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Kakashi shifted uncomfortably and put a hand on her shoulder like he was offering comfort. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"A neon sign exploded to life in the back of her mind./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""Actually, I am." Sakura straightened her spine. The agent lifted his eyebrows. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""Really? I haven't seen anything about it in the news. To whom will you be getting married?" he asked, clicking a pen and posing it over a note pad before him./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""Hatake Kakashi." /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanUnfortunately-or maybe not-she was going to face the only person who would face the storm and win: her boss./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"As her SUV finally came to a stop outside of Senju Entertainment, Sakura took a deep breath to prepare herself, filling her upper lungs and then pulling air all the way down into her diaphragm, slowly. In front of and behind her SUV, two other vehicles came to stops as well, one sleek sedan and one equally sleek truck. Outside her blacked-out windows, she could see the crowd of news outlets and paparazzi, all vying to get a look at her, to ask her a question. Sakura forced the anger off of her face and took another deep breath. She had been working on her temper lately. She counted the seconds by tapping her fingers on her handbag. 12 passed before her door was finally opened, letting the crisp fall air rush in and fill her lungs. It almost felt nice, except for the cacophony of shouting from the crowd that came with it. An unpleasant side effect of her existence. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Sakura's heels smacked the pavement as she ducked her head and stepped out. She took a moment to smooth out her silk mini skirt, making sure it hadn't ridden up to expose her ass. A new coffee cup, Starbucks, was passed into her hands by the same person who had opened her door. Her body man, Kakashi. His eyes crinkled from above his ever-present mask, which concealed the entire lower half of his face and disappeared into his shirt. Sakura didn't return the smile, just squared her shoulders and lifted her chin. His expression returned to disinterested indolence as she swept by him. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Kakashi and his partner, Genma, took up positions in front of and behind her, while extra company security blocked her sides as she strode for the massive glass rotating door that led into the highrise. While she didn't answer any questions, she did give all the cameras her most a style="mso-comment-reference: CP_1; mso-comment-date: 20230830T1332;"angelic/a/spanspan class="MsoCommentReference"span style="font-size: 8.0pt;"!- [if !supportAnnotations]-a id="_anchor_1" class="msocomanchor" href=" #_msocom_1" name="_msoanchor_1"[CP1]/a!-[endif]-span style="mso-special-character: comment;" /span/span/spanspan style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;" smile as they pushed through, hiding the storm under her skin and lipstick. Sakura made directly for the building without slowing down, her footsteps echoed by her teams'. A line of more security pushed the reporters back from the building, making space for Sakura and her men to slip inside. It was like riot control had suddenly been sent to her workplace. The doors whooshed as she pushed her way into the marble lobby, while the extra guards remained behind to block the door./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"The glass chandelier above her head tinkled softly as the breeze from the door disturbed it. The lobby had a European classic feel to it, all arches and creme with colorful hints here and there. Other people rushed about, and some sat on the sofas, waiting for one thing or another. Everyone became hushed as they noticed the pink haired singer in their midst. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Sakura went straight to the security desk. The guard, Ebisu, stiffened as she approached, straightening in his chair while simultaneously looking like he wished he could disappear under his desktop. Sakura rolled her eyes and didn't break her stride. Ebisu scrambled to slap the button to unlock the gate as she reached it. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Kakashi and Genma followed behind, their footsteps quieter than hers, well trained. They were to be rarely seen, and never heard, though she did occasionally hear them conversing. Sakura had begrudgingly acquiesced to Tsunade's insistence for the protective detail, but only after a stalker had gotten too close a little over three years prior. And regrettably, last night. Now she had a team of four, emfour/em, men, while her fellow artists typically had two or three. It had taken a very long time for her to get used to having additional shadows around the clock. The guards took shifts, so Sakura was covered around the clock. Mostly. There was no doubt in her mind that was about to change. Internally, she was screaming over it./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"She sighed out loud as they entered the elevator, the chrome doors sliding shut to show her her reflection. She ignored the two dark outlines with her, one slightly in front, the other behind, and leaned forward to inspect her lipstick. Soft pink, to match her hair. Almost perfect, but for the cut marring her upper lip. She scowled and lifted her fingers to gently touch the mark, before dropping her hand with a hiss from the pain. The swelling around it had already gone down, thanks to an ice pack, but she was unhappy with the little imperfection. A literal crack in her figurative armor. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"The elevator slid to a stop on the top floor, the twentieth, and the chrome doors rolled back to reveal Tsunade's private offices. The entire floor was dedicated to her business and had been designed by her own hand. Tsunade had a grand taste. That was a given, of course, since she had hired Sakura, but was also obvious in her lush decorating choices. Another desk sat front and center from stepping off of the elevator, all flawless black marble. The floors were made of the same, giving the appearance that the desk had grown from it, while the furniture in the waiting room was bone white leather. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Other office doors, all the people Tsunade kept directly in her reach, were open, people coming and going carrying documents and tablets. Anyone who made it beyond the front desk had explicit permission, either working for the company directly or doing something for those who did./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Shizune made an exasperated noise at the sight of them walking towards her. "You're late, Sakura." She chided, her dark eyebrows drawing downwards as she spoke. "Go directly in." /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Sakura huffed but went on as instructed. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"She was stopped halfway down the hall by her manager, and she felt the pause in the activity on the floor. Her current manager, a smarmy bastard by the name Kabuto, gave her a white smile before opening his mouth. Sakura didn't give him the chance. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""You're fired. Be out of this building by 10, or my men will remove you." She waved a hand over her shoulder at Genma and Kakashi. Kabuto was fit, but he was no match for these two, handpicked by Tsunade. Veterans. Unlike her other two unfortunate guards, who had been sent by some security company in the city. If she were being honest, despite her protests to her security, having the large and dangerous men backing her up gave her a rush of power. Not that she needed men to be powerful. She was a force of nature all on her own./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Sakura began to strut by and mentally begged the man to take his dignity and go. But she shouldn't be so lucky. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""You- you bitch! You spoiled brat!" Sakura stopped walking and turned on her heel, watching him with cool, bored eyes. She waved a hand, encouraging him to continue his tirade. She knew everyone else on the floor was listening, Shizune cringing from behind her desk. "I do everything for you!"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Sakura withheld another sigh. She looked down her nose at him, despite her short height. This was a trick she'd mastered by the age of 14. "You are responsible for running interference with the press when things the publicist didn't approve of happen. Clearly," She waved her hand at the windows, gesturing outside, the pink bracelets at her wrist softly jangling, "you failed. This is not a small mistake. This mistake makes me look vulnerable to other psychos. So," Her voice had gotten colder with each word, dropping the temperature in the hall. "You're fired." From a hurricane to a blizzard. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Again, she silently begged him to take his tattered pride. Again, he did not. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""It's unbelievable that you've tricked the entire country into making you its sweetheart! The world should know that you're really a spoiled child!" A muscle in Sakura's jaw twitched at the use of that word. Not spoiled, but child. She hated being infantilized, just for being younger. News flash, wisdom did not always come from age. She was young, not naive. And she knew a lot of older adults who were more immature than she was. She took a deep breath, and reminded herself that being a spoiled pop star was perfectly fine, that her age was nothing against her./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""I will remind you once," Her voice was freezing now, her eyes glinting green steel. "You signed an NDA upon beginning your employment. And if you break it," Now her tone was sugary sweet, and she grinned viciously at him. "We will sue you until you are begging for mercy, and while we're at it, we'll take down your professional reputation. Other companies won't hire a snitch." Maybe she should have defended her character instead, but that was probably a waste of her breath. Sakura had a short temper and a sharp tongue that often got the best of her, even when she didn't mean to let it out. Oh well./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Without giving him the time to reply, she turned around again and strode to the very last door down the hall, passing framed records and movie posters that lined the walls. Several of the movie posters depicted her band, FireDrive, in a popular movie franchise that she, Naruto, and Sasuke starred in. emThe Ninja Way, The Ninja Way 2: The Will of Fire, The Ninja Way: Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow! /em/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Sakura made it to Tsunade's door, with its gilded handle shaped like a leaf. The entire Senju building had subtle leaf motifs, a nod to the city and the family's hand in its founding. Inside, Tsunade sat at her desk, a drink in her right hand and her eyebrow twitching with barely restrained ire. She had clearly heard the conversation in the hall. A wall of windows behind her showed the city skyline, the buildings reflecting the blaze of the morning sun./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""It's a little early in the morning for liquor, Tsunade. You should take better care," Sakura said, eager to speak before her boss could. She completely disregarded the previous interaction, like it had never happened. What's one silly manager? "Surely my lateness isn't that heinous. I texted you to let you know." She gave her her best smile, white teeth flashing in the morning light. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""Cut the shit." Tsunade said. Sakura's hand tightened around her forgotten coffee cup. In an effort to hide her irritation, she lifted it to her lips and took a sip. The coffee, at least, was perfect, though the lid bumped the hurt on her lip. "Sit." Tsunade barked. Sakura obediently sat in the plush leather chair opposite Tsunade, crossing her legs to avoid flashing the older woman her green lacy panties./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;" Sakura couldn't even hear her guards standing by the door, though she usually couldn't. She knew from experience that in Tsunade's office they would stand there in perfect silence, or slouch, and stare boredly at nothing. Elsewhere they were just as bored and disinterested in what happened around them as long as it wasn't a threat, but they would occasionally exchange quiet words./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""What-in the loving fuck- happened last night?" Tsuande gripped her own drink with equally held back anger. Sakura was relieved she didn't care about her firing another staff member. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Sakura sighed for the umpteenth time that morning and sagged back into her seat./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"A really determined little shit, that's what," She closed her eyes and tipped her head back, suddenly exhausted. She also didn't want to meet the intensity in Tsunade's stare./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""Really determined? That's the understatement of the year. He knocked your other two guards unconscious and nearly killed you!" There was real fear in her boss's voice. She was right, of course. It was an understatement. This was the second time in the last few years that a stalker had gotten so close. And the smaller incidents had been becoming more frequent, too./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"He'd broken into Sakura's house in the middle of the night after hitting her two guards over the head with a brick. Genma and Kakashi were her daytime detail, so they weren't present. Besides, Kakashi had Tuesdays off entirely. Sakura had woken to the sound of the breaking glass and had dialed the emergency number immediately. But that had still left her inside with a psycho for fifteen minutes. They had struggled, the stalker having tried to chloroform her, but Sakura had knocked the soaked rag away, and fought her way to the kitchen, where she grabbed a steak knife from her drawers. It had been just enough to keep him off for the police to arrive. Her night shift guards had gone to the hospital. She didn't know how they were doing. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"She did not rehash any of this to Tsunade because Sakura knew that her boss was already aware. First, because Sakura had told her on the phone, and second, because it was front page news everywhere. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""We're tightening your security-"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""No!" Sakura's eyes popped open, and she whipped her gaze to the other woman's. She would never have any privacy again. Never be alone. Four guards day and night was already excessive for one little woman./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""Yes." Tsunade's voice was cold and left no room for argument. But Sakura would be damned if she didn't try. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""Can't we just-"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""No. We're increasing your number of guards, at least one of them will be inside the house with you, emand /emyou're going to learn to defend yourself as well. We have to protect our investment." Tsunade smiled at the end, but Sakura knew it was a fake. The room seemed to shrink around her. She had no choice because she had a very thorough contract. And she did not want to go home if she breached it./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Tsunade must have seen the fight die in her eyes, snuffed out like a candle, because her smile became less forced, and more genuine. "Now, I'll see about your new guards. Maybe six?" Tsunade looked over Sakura's shoulder. "This time, Kakashi, I want you to hand pick the team. I trust your background." Sakura didn't care who picked, all that mattered was that there would be more. Her hope shriveled up. More strangers watching her, when she was already in the public eye every second of her life. She lived under a microscope. She supposed Kakashi and Genma had been with her so long they weren't exactly strangers, but it didn't make her feel much better. Before those two had come along, she'd only had guards when she was out and about. Now it was even when she was at home, and it was going to be even more oppressive now./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Tsunade returned her attention to her. "But you need to get down to recording, your band mates need you." With a flick of her manicured hand, Sakura was dismissed from one of the most powerful women in the city's office. Tsunade was the rock against which the surf that was Sakura broke. She was eternally indebted to the woman, and she knew, deep down, that Tsunade was looking out for her. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;" "Oh, one more thing," Sakura froze at the doorway. "Shikamaru has recommended you try to make a few headlines with something fresh, and non-life threatening. Everyone wants to be involved in your life, but they don't need to see incidents like this. Not the press we want. We need to erase this horror, and remind the world you're okay, and nothing can keep you down. Keep that in mind and work on it." Shikamaru was probably the best publicist in the world. He was an unparalleled strategist, and his law degree helped him to help them avoid sticky interactions. And control things like the NDAs everyone who was around Sakura signed. When he said 'jump' public figures said 'how high'. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"A horrible headache was forming in her skull as she and her guards descended to the 7th floor in silence, as they always did. Just because Sakura had to be baby sat, it didn't mean she had to engage with her security. Positive publicity? New guards? Nothing could keep her down? /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"emspan style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Image. Image. Image. Image./span/em/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"She was tempted to slam her head against one of the walls. Since she'd blown up on the charts as both the singer for FireDrive and as a solo artist, her image had become her most valued possession. Her name. The way the world viewed her was carefully manicured, just like her nails, and it was all that mattered. And even she would sacrifice her personal desires for that image. The storm was tempered, at least for the moment. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"~/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"The recording floor, one of many, actually, was a hive of activity. Other idols and their managers and handlers moved about. Ino nearly crashed into Sakura as she was coming out of one of the lounges, her blonde hair swinging as she made contact with Sakura. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""Oh, poor forehead!" Ino pulled her into a crushing hug, which Sakura returned despite the insult. Ino was her favorite artist to collaborate with, and if anyone understood the stalking, she did. Ino was a mirror image of Sakura, the other side of a glamorous coin. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;" When she pulled back, she took Sakura's jaw in her hand and examined her battle scar from last night. "I've got the best scar prevention cream. I'll have it sent to your dressing room immediately." she said, nodding her head with conviction. Sakura thanked her, she knew firsthand how good Ino's creams were, and then continued to the recording booth where her bandmates were. The technicians outside stiffened as she went by. She ignored them./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Upon entering the soundproof room, her guards left outside, Naruto and Sasuke both shot up from where they'd been sitting. Sakura averted her eyes from Sasuke, a blush heating her cheeks and an ache settling in her chest./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""Sakura-chan!" Naruto bolted forwards and began to examine her from head to toe, inventorying every scratch and bruise. "That motherfucker! Did you kill him?" His blue eyes were wide and angry, which was an uncommon look. Sasuke stood quietly behind, also checking out her condition, but remained silent, exuding indifference. As he had since their breakup two months ago. They hadn't dated long, and he hadn't been the most doting boyfriend, but it still hurt./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""No, of course I didn't kill him." She frowned. The idea horrified her. It went against every inch of her being to even consider ending another person's life. She had a bad temper, sure, but she wasn't apathetic. Well, not entirely. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Naruto smiled. "That's good, Sakura-chan. But I hope the police punish him," He patted the top of her head, like they were still children, and stepped back to pick up his guitar. Sasuke took his place back up behind his drums without saying anything, and Sakura moved to stand beside the microphone. She picked up her headphones and slid them over her ears, muffling the other sounds, then she grabbed her bass from its stand. She played 4 instruments; bass, guitar, piano, and violin, but for her role in this band, her voice and bass were her weapons./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"She, Naruto, and Sasuke had been making music together since Sakura had arrived in the Land of Fire. While they all did plenty of solo projects, they still preferred to work together. A family. Even when Sasuke and Sakura had broken up, they had decided no bad feelings would get in the way of what they had as a band. Even though sometimes when she looked at Sasuke something inside her twisted. Even though the internet was ablaze with the news of their split. Even though Sasuke had been distant./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"The booth technician's voice came crackling through her headphones, telling them that everything was set. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Sakura closed her eyes, shut off her raging thoughts, and opened her mouth. This, her art, was everything she was. She lived and breathed for this music. Sure, she modeled and acted on the side, but her true passion lay in creating beautiful sound, so much so that it invaded every waking and sleeping moment. She was not talented at forms of art like drawing or painting, but she had been extremely blessed with musical talent, and let it bleed and gush forth from her like paint dripping from her fingertips. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"~/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"They worked on the recording of the first song of the new album for hours. A single song took dozens of recordings, then hours of tweaking in the sound booth followed by more recording, mixing their different sounds together, Sasuke and Naruto's voices joining hers. By lunchtime, Sakura wanted to go home. They had nearly perfected the sound, but her throat needed a break, and she knew the guys were getting tired. Besides, Sakura's phone strongdinged /strongand reminded her she had another appointment today. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"As the three of them poured out of the booth and into one of the lounges, Sakura told the boys they should call it quits for the day. Naruto wanted to know where she was going, his blue eyes wide and imploring, but Sakura deflected the question by suggesting the boys go get ramen for lunch. That was a success because Naruto started tugging Sasuke towards the door instantly. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Back down to the lobby she went, guards in tow as ever. She mentally braced herself for the onslaught of the paparazzi as they crossed the floor from the elevator bank. Ebisu didn't meet her eyes as they went by, and again the lobby hushed. This was a common occurrence when she entered a room. She was over it./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Sakura was relieved to see the crowd outside had thinned significantly, as it was a waste of time for too many news crews to wait outside all day when they didn't know what time she'd be leaving, and now the news wasn't so fresh. Especially with Shikamaru commanding a team of publicists to carefully control the flow of information. There wasn't much more to tell anyway./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Security safely escorted her to her waiting black SUV, and Kakashi slid in the backseat with her, causing Sakura's eyebrows to shoot to her hairline. Genma had split off to drive in a separate car in front, as he usually did. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""What are you doing?" she asked, annoyed at the loss of her alone time in the car. She began to reach around behind her, her hand slipping under her shirt. The back of her vehicle was designed like a limousine, with wall-to-wall seats facing one another. Leaving her looking directly at her guard./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Kakashi's eyes crinkled in confusion as he watched her but answered "Tsunade's newest orders. Someone in the house. Someone in the car. Get used to it." He said pleasantly. Sakura's eyebrows couldn't get any higher, but if they could have they would have. She certainly hadn't expected him to have such an attitude. Maybe that was what his mask was for-helping him keep his mouth shut. He slouched back in his seat, his posture something she was familiar with./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Sakura narrowed her eyes at him but said nothing. Instead, she unclasped her bra, shimmied it out from under her blouse, and tossed it at him. It landed on his head, draping down his face. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Her tender ribs felt much better unimpeded. She had taken a few hits to the area last night and had decided to remove her bra earlier. Tossing it on her bodyguard was simply a plus. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Kakashi blinked slowly, and she noticed, not for the first time, how handsome he was, as he lifted a hand to remove her undergarment from his shiny silver hair. With the mask and the scarred eye, he was a sexy and mysterious figure. She'd have to be blind and brain dead to miss his beauty. She wondered briefly how he'd received the scar, and then discarded the curiosity, uninterested. The personal lives of her guards were not important to her, not when she was constantly running around with her own problems./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"She turned her head out the window to watch the city go by, but turned back when she heard rustling. Kakashi had pulled a small, orange covered novel from emsomewhere/em on his person, and had begun reading, as he often did. emSome real vigilance/em, Sakura thought to herself. She pulled out her headphones and drowned the world out with music. The sound filled her mind and drowned any other thoughts. She could practically see the notes dancing before her eyes and tapped her fingers against her thighs in time with the beat. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"In less than thirty minutes they reached their destination, and again her guards took up their positions in front of and behind her, Kakashi leading the way. Fortunately, there was no paparazzi, because why would anyone think she would be headed to a government building? Her foreign nationality wasn't a secret per se, but she did her best to keep the status under wraps. She didn't like to talk about it, and it was fortunately a part of her the public wasn't terribly interested in. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Head held high, she marched inside the drab gray structure, and followed Kakashi to the directory, where she scanned briefly before informing her guards "Ground floor. 1006." /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"The word 'IMMIGRATION' was written on the fogged glass window of the door numbered 1006, in large black letters. Sakura had not been born in the Land of Fire, but she chose to pretend that she had been. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"She had an appointment, so it took no time to be let into one of the back offices with an agent, Kakashi stepping inside with her while Genma waited outside. She took a seat while the guard stood behind her, his presence as unchanging as her own shadow./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"The older agent across from her laced his fingers on top of his desk, and smiled warmly at her, before he broke the news. "Your visa expires in 2 weeks, Miss Haruno." Sakura blinked. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""Well," She gave him her thousand watt smile, the kind that had earned her the title of nation's sweetheart. "Let's renew it right now, shall we?" She reached for her purse to grab a pen. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""I'm afraid that isn't possible," The man said in a light tone. Sakura had just snagged her pen, and she raised her eyes to his, the pen gripped so tightly she felt it snap. Her eye might have twitched. "You will have to return to your homeland," Ink was dripping down her hand, and was it spilling in her eyes somehow? Her vision seemed to be getting dark around the edges. Panic, raw and powerful, was wrapping its way around her throat./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""How is that possible? My work visa is always renewed on time." She beseeched the older man, her smile faltering. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"He looked at something on his computer screen and frowned, brow furrowed. "Well, I left several messages with your manager, letting him know about the impending count down. No one ever replied." He cocked a brow at her. "This meeting was barely arranged through another person at your place of employment." /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Sakura restrained her facial expression, while inside all of her had gone taut with rage. Kabuto had fucked this up for her. "And it's entirely too late for a fix?" She asked, a bit of hope lacing her words./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""I'm afraid not," The agent said, his mouth an unhappy laugh. "Unless, of course, you're getting married to a citizen in the next two weeks," His smile never changed. Sakura's brain was shutting down with her terror, and she felt like she couldn't draw breath. She tried to return home as little as absolutely possible. She'd had a student visa, and a work visa, but they weren't endless, and they weren't true green cards./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"Kakashi shifted uncomfortably and put a hand on her shoulder like he was offering comfort. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"A neon sign exploded to life in the back of her mind./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""Actually, I am." Sakura straightened her spine. The agent lifted his eyebrows. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""Really? I haven't seen anything about it in the news. To whom will you be getting married?" he asked, clicking a pen and posing it over a note pad before him./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: normal;"span style="font-family: 'Arial',sans-serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;""Hatake Kakashi." /span/p