Additional tags: Team seven, Ita/Saku, original characters, Uchiha clan, Adventure/Action/Drama, no Uchiha massacre, slow build
More details regarding what kind of AU this story takes place in.
What you won't find: zombies, alien gods, terraforming , hundreds iterations of the sharingan, reincarnations, cyborgs, advanced technologies.
I want you to picture: "Naruto: the first part of the manga" with more feudal Japan elements, more political conflicts between countries and clans, and "realistic" shinobis that rely both on their ninjutsu and strategy to vanquish their foes.
Prologue
Her naked body was pressed against his bare chest, her soft hands still draped around his neck, while her head was slouched down on his shoulder. The intensity of their intercourse made her sometimes lose consciousness for a while, which gave him a bit of respite to reflect on this madness. Their warm and sweating bodies, which were still joined together, made him even more aware of what had just occurred. He found it strange how clarity would always follow their blissful apogee, emphasizing the feeling of depersonalization that he had been experiencing ever since he met this woman, almost two months ago. His fingers slid through her long brown hair, pulling her face gently to look at her peaceful expression. He didn't understand what she had done to him, but there was no way out of this, every night he came to her, compelled by a strong urge, more powerful than his rational will like there were forces at work that he had no way to repel. He had witnessed such insanity before, weak-minded people losing their minds over another being, sacrificing everything they had, and forgetting all their principles just for one moment of rapture.
Someone like him was not supposed to fall for such tricks, and yet here he was, unable to deny that he had lost control. He lifted the woman off him, feeling her warmness leave him at once, and lay her next to him. The proof of their coitus was flowing down her thighs slowly, yet another reminder of his transgression. Her body started shifting slightly, awakening from its slumber. He then handed her a clean white towel, which she took without saying a word. Despite the multiple nights spent together, they hardly exchange any words, being just strangers sharing their bodies in false intimacy. However, things would be different tomorrow. Indeed, having recovered from his injuries, he had been assigned to a new mission that was supposed to take place far away from the village, away from her.
They both started to dress, sometimes glancing at each other with unabashed curiosity. There was no more reason to be a prude after everything they had done together. Then, like he always did, he left the room first, not giving the woman any chance to suspect anything unusual. He didn't even look back when he left the hot springs inn, knowing that he would never return to this place and that he would never see her again. Ever since the beginning, their meetings, out of time and reality, were never meant to last.
"What're you doing in front of my establishment, young man?" an old woman asked him, "Could it be that you're blind? Can't you read this notice on the wall? It says: Elders only."
"I've never been to your onsen."
"T—True! I've never seen you before! So…what is it that you want?"
Having sneaked inside the place so many times without paying the lunatic owner made him reach his pocket for money, "Found this bill right in front of the porch."
The woman's eye widened, "Kami-sama! Then it must belong to me," she snatched the bill from his hand, "I'm still not letting you in! You young people can't behave properly! That's why I can't allow you inside my onsen—"
He left her to her tantrum and dispelled his henge once he was far enough. It occurred to him that he did not lie to the owner, he truly had never entered the establishment, and no one could ever claim the contrary.
1
" Naruto , I can't believe you're back," she whispered in his neck, feeling his warm body embrace her tightly, almost crushing her. After being away for more than a year, having him right here, back to their apartment, felt surreal, almost like a dream.
"I thought you'd still be angry at me, Sakura-chan."
"If you think you're going to get rid of me that easily, you're very wrong, "she murmured, taking a good look at his face, "You look taller."
He smiled, "Actually...I wasn't sure you would forgive me Sakura-chan."
"You're stupid if you think I have," she gave him another quick hug, "I'm not angry anymore if it's what you want to hear. It's not like it would have made a difference, right?"
"You were pretty pissed off."
She sighed, "I know. Anyway, what's done is done now! Where's your Anbu outfit?"
"Erm, actually..." he chuckled nervously, "I'm not an Anbu yet."
She stared at him, surprised, "What do you mean!? You've been training out there for months already! Wasn't it the point to—"
"There's one last stage we need to complete before being...approved," he explained, "and since we were being called back to Konoha, they had no choice but to... postpone it. It's all stupid paperwork things, you know?"
He was hiding something.
She shook her head, "It doesn't make any sense, Naruto."
Naruto shrugged off his shoulders, "Besides, see the good side of it! We get to see each other again! And we get to go on a mission together, just like the old times!"
"What the hell are you talking about Naruto?"
"What! You don't know? Weren't you told about the mission? We're leaving in five days!"
The mission turned out to be a regular escort mission, which consisted in bringing one target to a specific place—or at least that was how it looked on paper. The target was actually a toddler, not older than two years old, accompanied by an old man and a woman—presumably the mother or nurse—whose names were unknown. There were therefore three important targets to protect, the main priority being to keep the baby alive. It appeared to be easy, and again that was only in theory. Sakura suspected there was more to it. It seemed quite excessive to require a team of three shinobis to shepherd them.
The woman, who was holding the baby tightly, did not seem really inclined to talk much. The old man, on the other hand, had a new question for her every five minutes. Further ahead, she could see Naruto who was being uncharacteristically quiet, followed by her other teammate, who hadn't said a word throughout the beginning of their trip. She didn't need more clues to understand that something was up between them. Even asking his teammate about it proved to be completely useless. He just kept acting like everything was perfectly fine—something really typical of him. When it came to the young brooding Uchiha, she did not bother asking him anything, since greeting her like a decent human being seemed too hard for him.
But she knew that he was brooding. When he was in such a state, it didn't matter who you were, he would give the silent treatment to everyone, regardless of how childish it looked. She was already so tired of them and sick of pretending this whole charade made any sense. To top it all, Tsunade had refused to give her any explanation regarding her enrolment to the mission, all she had received was a "don't go against my order or I will take away all your precious books!" Suffice it to say, it made her stop asking questions right away.
After all this time, it just felt like a punishment, she was not an active kunoichi in duty anymore, and however straightforward and uneventful that mission was, Sakura felt like she was wasting her time. She could certainly do more fruitful things in her office at the hospital—surely Naruto and Sasuke didn't need her for such a simple task. Yet, she had a feeling there was more to it. Something didn't click and she would discover what it was sooner or later. In the meantime, she would try her best to act as professionally as she could.
Five hours passed without incident, Sakura could see a bridge toward the end of the path they were going through. She was also sensing something different, chakra signatures belonging to people who weren't trying to hide themselves at all. As they neared the bridge, she started to distinguish silhouettes that were standing against the cedar wood of the bridge. Since he had been walking ahead of the group, Naruto was the first one to reach them, which still didn't reassure her.
However, when they all arrived at the bridge, she instantly felt silly upon recognizing the two strangers as shinobis of the leaf. She identified one of them right away as Itachi Uchiha, her teammate's brother. Having never been introduced properly to him—nor any other member of his family—she was feeling a bit uneasy about his presence.
"I'm Captain Chiho Hyuuga, we were asked to assist you during the rest of the mission," the tall kunoichi explained, dressed in a dark Anbu outfit. She had midnight hair tied up her head tightly and snow eyes that were quite a common feature among members of the Hyuuga Clan, "I'll be taking charge from now on."
Naruto looked at her with a somewhat dumbfounded face, clearly sharing Sakura's views on the odd situation. Reinforcements were probably the last thing they needed, except to make this boring trip even more boring than it already was. Yet, they seemed really serious about joining them.
"Alright," Naruto grunted, making a gesture with his hand. It was odd to see him so complacent. She suspected that his Anbu training had made him more obedient .
"Are they Anbus?" the lady to her side inquired, once the newcomers were far enough.
Sakura nodded, "Hai."
"Shouldn't they wear masks?"
"They only need them when they plan to kill someone."
The lady looked at her with a horrified expression, which made Sakura chuckle, "Don't worry, if anything, you should be reassured to have them on our side."
The woman gave her a weak smile. Sakura glanced a bit behind her back, catching her teammate and his brother walking together, whispering worlds to each other. She had never understood why he refused to make her and Naruto meet his family—although she was pretty sure that, unlike her, the blond had interacted with his brother before. She assumed that it probably happened in a formal context, which was completely absurd considering they were Sasuke's closest friends. Sakura used to invite both of her teammates to her house to enjoy meals with her parents. While Naruto, being an orphan, had obviously good reasons for not sharing information about his family, Sasuke, on the other hand, had absolutely no valid arguments.
She knew that it was best not to ponder on it, but sometimes she just wished her friend would be more honest. She suddenly heard the baby doing some strange noises, which made her stare at him in return.
"Do you have any children?" a quiet voice asked.
She laughed, a bit taken aback by her question, "I'm too young for that, Lady."
"Nay, she's lying," the old man interrupted with a grumpy voice, "shinobis breed selectively. They practice eugenics to make the best soldiers they can. So if this young lady's unmarried, it can only mean her genes are not strong enough."
Sakura had to refrain herself from overreacting upon hearing such kind words, remembering she just couldn't bash the head of a client into a tree, however how much she wanted to at the moment.
"I meant to say," she started firmly, "that I wasn't interested in having children, Sir ."
He dismissed her with a grunt. The woman, who looked lost in thoughts, then asked her, "What are you interested in then? I've never met a kunoichi before, so I must admit I'm quite curious about the way you live."
Sakura ignored whether that was a good or a bad thing. She had encountered on numerous occasions civilians behaving strangely around shinobis, like they were another specie. The woman seemed ignorant about the world, which wasn't surprising considering that she belonged to the upper class.
Suddenly, a firm voice called out to her, "Haruno," Out of nowhere, her new captain appeared at her side, "Keep your distance with the package. No chatting."
She disappeared swiftly, leaving white smoke behind her, without even letting Sakura formulate any word—to her disappointment. Since distractions were apparently not allowed anymore, Sakura decided to join her blond teammate.
"What a bitch," she whispered to him.
"You know she can hear you, right?"
It was going to be a long trip.
The attack came unexpectedly in the middle of the second night. They identified ten figures, which gave them little time to elaborate a solid plan. The Captain ordered both of her teammates to go east, and disappeared with Sasuke's brother, leaving Sakura alone with the civilians.
"Move this way!" she instructed them, grabbing the lady by the shoulder to lead her into the bushes with the old man. The baby started crying loudly like he could feel the tension in the air. "Please, do something to calm him down."
She knelled down next to them, all of her senses were on high alert, trying to anticipate any threat that could come their way. If the baby kept crying, one of the ten assailants was bound to find their hiding. A sudden noise of explosion resonated through the forest, followed by sounds of branches falling on the ground. There was now an unpleasant smell of burning in the air. Sakura looked around her, still sheltering the woman with her body. A feeling in her gut made her then take a premature decision. However, before she could act, she felt fingers grab her wrist tightly.
"Where are you going?" the scarred woman whispered. "Are you abandoning us!?"
"Please, stay here," Sakura said, without looking at her. "I need to be out there to see them arrive. Just...just make sure to keep quiet and everything will be alright, I promise ."
Ignoring the lady's protests, Sakura left the bushes. She looked around herself nervously, and just stood at guard, expecting the worst to happen. While she trusted her friends, they all had been caught off guard by the unknown shinobis, whoever they were, she feared that she would be forced to face them alone . She couldn't remember the last time she had a proper fight. But it didn't matter, she was simply not ready for anything involving violence. Right now, the only things that made her take her fighting stance were her principles and her honor. Of course, she wouldn't chicken out and let the civilians die. But was she really up to the task?
She looked up, her focused eyes scanning the trees for any sign of disturbance. It only took one second, one moment to make her realize that she had missed the most critical detail. Before she could do anything, she felt her breath leave her lungs as her body hit the trunk of a tree. Right after the impact, she opened her eyes, meeting the furious gazes of two individuals, who were dressed in attires she had never seen before. She couldn't tell to which nation they belonged, only that they likely were part of some rogue group, possibly renegades.
"Where's the child ?" the tallest one yelled.
The child chose this perfect moment to start screaming again. Salura suddenly felt like she couldn't breathe anymore. As she touched her neck, she realized a rope was tight around it, a rope made of raw energy burning her skin and cutting into her flesh, tightening more and more. She started coughing while watching helplessly as one of the men approach the bushes where the civilians were hiding. She tried to remove the rope, ignoring the pain in her palms, but despite her efforts, she couldn't pull it off her neck, not a single leap of strength inhabited her.
She suddenly heard a strident scream. The lady. They had found the baby. The smaller assailant was now holding the crying baby while his left hand was squeezing the woman by the neck. He then pushed her into the ground, making her lose consciousness instantly. Sakura tried to move in a desperate attempt to reach the child, however, the man was already gone, which only left her with one enemy.
"Don't resist kunoichi," his fingers clenched into a fist, which made the rope tighten even more around her skin, he then reached for a short dagger.
The air was leaving her lungs, she couldn't breathe nor think and could only watch in horror the weapon getting closer and closer to her chest. But as suddenly as this whole mess had started, a silver blade came out of the body and heart of the man, making blood crash on her face. As oxygen came back to her, Sakura started coughing violently. The rope, the burning, the turmoil, and rogue-nins were all gone. It was over at last. But the man, he was... dead. She had sworn to never take a life ever again. Yet, because of her, the cycle was starting again.
A firm hand suddenly reached for her arm, making Sakura gasped both in surprise and relief, "Sasuke-kun!"
He saved me, as always.
" Sakura , the woman needs care."
She nodded and walked to the lady, trying her best not to look at the dead man on the ground. When she touched the woman's neck, she found that she could still feel her pulse, which reassured her instantly.
"You were not supposed to guard them, brother, " Itachi Uchiha said, appearing out of nowhere. He gave a quick glance to the unconscious lady, "It's no wonder you failed to pass the Anbu examination."
"Naruto was–"
"What the hell's going on!" a newcomer interrupted, slightly out of breath. She took in the scene in front of her, "You!" she shouted at Sasuke, "you will go back to Konoha at once, the contract needs to be reassessed!"
"Are you saying that we're liars!?" the old man roared, coming forward like an enraged bull. "You're the people who weren't able to protect a child, you are the incompetent ones, you are the ones responsible for this mess. So go fix it right now or Konoha won't get any compensation! I thought Uchihas were the best shinobis around here, but… clearly, the rumors were exaggerated!"
She expected the Uchiha heir to snap like Sasuke would have done, but he didn't. Instead, he literally ignored the civilian's tantrum. She had seen that kind of typical response before, which was mostly a pride thing. In such context though, it looked more like a way to establish who had more power or authority, clearly Uchihas believed they had more value than civilians.
She suddenly felt the need to intervene, "We—we're going to get him back, Sir."
"How dare you speak! You—"
"Quiet!" Hyuuga yelled at both of them, while crushing the pen she was holding in her hand, "I need you to be quiet for a while.
"Take her with you, Sasuke."
She turned around, ready to protest and explain why the lady was in no state for traveling. She might look alright, but her head had still taken a hit, which meant she could suffer from a minor concussion. However, the hard gaze that met her made her froze instantly. It was the first time that he was actually looking at her and it felt as uncomfortable as she had thought it would, especially because she couldn't read anything in his unexpressive black eyes. Yet, as she understood his words, she experienced a sudden feeling of deja-vu.
Hesitant, she turned to Captain Hyuuga, "Captain, must I leave as well?"
"Aye," the woman said in a stern voice, focused on the report she was writing.
Before joining her teammate, Sakura took something out of her pockets and handed it to the old grumpy man, "This should help with the pain. No more than four per day."
Hyuuga let out a sigh, "Luckily, we're not far from Konoha. It should take a few hours of travel," she stared at Sakura, "if you don't waste time. Here, Uchiha. We shall meet in Kayotaki."
Sakura was starting to feel an awful pain creeping through her legs, which was a direct consequence of the fast pace they had been traveling at for the last hours. She knew that she was the faulty one here, being unable to keep up with such a rhythm. Despite her past training, her sedentary lifestyle had made her unprepared for any kind of mission involving high speed. She wasn't usually the one to give up this easily, but things had changed.
"Sasuke-kun!" she called out.
The man remained quiet, though she was certain that he had heard her alright. She could almost see waves of anger emanating from him. If he had been brooding before, now she didn't have any words to describe his irritated state. She couldn't help but wish that Naruto was there, at least he would still be the epicenter of Sasuke's anger. Still, she knew that she was entirely responsible for the aftershock and that he was now definitely angry at her too—thanks to the recent events.
Another spike of pain hit her, forcing her to slow down, "Sasuke-kun!"
Seeing as the Uchiha kept ignoring her, instead of jumping on the next branch, she headed for the ground and walked toward the first tree on her path. She then put her backpack down against the trunk of a cedar tree and started stretching her legs. It took a long couple of minutes for him to suddenly appear right in front of her.
"What're you playing at?" he spitted out, eyes narrowed.
To think those were the first words he had said to her since his return from his one-year Anbu training... It annoyed her more than she would have thought. But because she didn't want to fight him, especially when he was in such a state, she decided not to let her frustration get the better of her.
Keep to the facts.
She grasped her knee, "I need a few minutes, alright?"
Before she knew it, her dear teammate suddenly yanked her by her arm, making her stand straight, which, in turn, made her lose balance as pain flared in her knee.
"What's wrong with you!" she screamed, forgetting everything about not letting her temper take the lead.
"What's wrong?" the grip on her arm tightened, "You've humiliated me in front of my brother, Sakura. Both you and the stupid dumbass! All you had to do was to shut your mouth and not mess things up, but even that was too hard for you. You just always have to ruin everything!"
She didn't know whether she should laugh or cry, but they weren't children anymore, long gone were the days when she would always agree with whatever was coming out of his mouth. She had worshiped him long enough to know he was the last person anyone should worship.
"Of course, out of all the things you should worry about," she started, looking straight at his angry eyes," such as how a baby got taken away from his mother, all you care about is yourself ."
The air suddenly left her lungs as she felt her body slam against the tree. She gasped, more out of surprise than pain, and looked up worryingly at her teammate who stood frozen over her body, both of his hands still holding her in place.
He let her go at once like being close to her was suddenly akin to touching fire. It seemed she had underestimated whatever was going on with him. However difficult it was, she reminded herself that she wasn't responsible for his issues.
"Five minutes," he finally said, before turning around and leaving her by herself.
Team seven, she thought bitterly.
"How foolish of them!" Tsunade cursed, as she read the letter. "They thought they could trick us that easily! Fools ! I knew something was up, and that's exactly why I had to send words for the nearest team to help you."
Sakura frowned at her sensei's tantrum, while Sasuke remained quiet, standing still like the good soldier he was.
"Erm…is it your way of saying Team Seven couldn't have handled whatever was going to happen, Shisou?"
"The nerve of those civilians! Sadly, the contractor has ties with a minister which removes the possibility of aborting the mission," she looked up from her letter to her student, "I have no doubts Naruto could have handled two dozens of shinobis by himself. But protecting some civilians. Unlikely. This report speaks for itself."
And that was the only nudge Sakura needed to finally speak the thoughts that had been tormenting her since the beginning of the mission, "I want to be discharged from the mission, Shishou."
"I'm afraid you'll have to retrieve the baby. Alive," She put the letter down and grabbed a piece of blank paper, "I'll send you more reinforcements if the mission proves to be more troublesome than it already is. Just make sure to remind all of your teammates that failure isn't an option, the last thing I want is the Damyou's minister on our back."
"Did you hear what I just said?"
"Uchiha! Out!"
"He can stay!" Sakura protested, "I don't have anything to hide!"
"Out!" she roared again.
Sakura, whose arms were crossed on her chest, watched her friend leave the Kage's office. When they finally were alone, Tsunade slammed her hands on the desk, "Have you gone mad?"
"I should ask you the same!" Sakura retorted. "Two years ago, I told you I was done doing missions, and you...you accepted my choice. Why are you doing this to me now!?"
"You're such a stubborn ungrateful brat! It doesn't matter what happened years ago. Right now. I need you on the field! And because I'm your Hokage, you'll do as I say."
Sakura's eyes narrowed, "Don't you understand? I'm a liability to the team. The kid got caught because of—"
"I don't care whose fault it is Sakura!" she sighed. "But I can guarantee that I won't allow you to keep doing your research at the hospital if you refuse to do your duty!"
"I'm more useful at the hospital! Don't try proving otherwise! I don't understand why—"
"This isn't the topic," she hissed. "Out of my sight now, I'm not arguing with you."
"This is unfair Shishou," she murmured.
Tsunade laughed and just stared at her, shaking her head in disappointment. Sakura understood then that there was nothing else she could do or say, and walked through the door, without forgetting to slam it as strongly as she could.
The road back to the meeting point, a village named Kayotaki, went shorter than expected. They had to hurry after all. They were now approaching the unguarded gates of Kayotaki, being a crossroad for travelers, the place was generally peaceful, which was perfect to lie low for a while. Sakura hadn't uttered a word to her teammate since his unforeseen outburst. She nonetheless felt she had to do something before they went past the gates. She was convinced that she wouldn't get any other opportunity to be alone with him after that.
"Sasuke-kun," she said firmly, as they went through the entrance of the village, "I want you to know that…I'll do my best to impress your brother, and… I'll also talk to Naruto. Even though you're an asshole."