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Covenant
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Synopsis: Everyone is dead or hunted. The Allies lost. The war is over.
Treacherous seal marring her neck as a collar, Madara parades her like a victory trophy.
And though he gave her to his patriarch—betrayed her in the worst of ways—
Here, in The End, Sasuke Uchiha is all Sakura has left.
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2:15. Cooperation
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WHEN IT came time for Madara's speech, it was rushed and lacking.
This show wasn't near as flashy or wordy as the ones he'd put on in Water Country. He seemed short of breath and irritated; the crowd was muted, less than moved. Sasuke stood off to the corner of the raised-earth podium, reading the scroll he'd been handed. Every few minutes, Suigetsu sighed softly beside her. The guards on her back were shifty with the exhaustion of constant travel.
It lacked its usual touch of fanatical. For want of a better description: It was boring.
Not that Sakura was complaining. The more boring, the better. And this time, no sacrificial captives were brought forth. She didn't want to consider what that might mean, so she let herself feel mindlessly relieved about it.
Dangerous as it was, her gaze roamed around the Lightning landscape as Madara pedaled on. Spring here smelled much like fall and winter had—like moist soil and damp wood. More green, though—more life. Ironic, if she were to think about it.
But the slim amount of brainpower she could sustainably access was wholly consumed with Madara's earlier comments.
Madara could do anything to her, anywhere—he didn't need to jump continents to interrogate or torture her. Didn't need to port her all the way back to Water just to kill a handful of people. Especially so when there was a base right here with observers ready and apparently without captives to pointlessly slaughter. If it were about other people, Madara would've brought them here with her.
There was only one reason to go to Sasuke's base specifically.
…Would Sasuke truly ask that of her today?
Could she refuse if he did?
For the past 17 days, she'd tried not to contemplate that problem. Had shoved those unsettling worries into the corner of her mind after Sasuke hushed her inquiries into his soldier pill offering. Those thoughts—ones of Sasuke forcing her to heal his master—only made her stomach turn and her tongue feel thick. Only made her sick with the dawning realization that she couldn't do anything but listen if it came to it.
She didn't want Sasuke to die. It was that simple. It wasn't simple at all.
He hadn't actually betrayed her—probably. He was protecting her from his army—mostly. He was here with her through these travels and the tortures and the deaths—keeping her half-sane, level, and alive.
He kept her alive, forcing her to remain under Madara's thumb because of it. Would soon compel her to repair the body of a man who'd taken almost everyone she'd ever cherished in life. He dug his claws further into her every night they spent together, too. His soft, dark words and gentle, bruising touches scored her soul and body deeper each time.
And she willingly allowed it. Begged for it, even. She couldn't hate him for something she craved more than he did.
"Look how she stands before you all, proudly donning our uniform without shame. How she doesn't run, though she's unrestrained," Madara bellowed. "She holds so many secrets—"
Sasuke was the only thing chaining her to this miserable existence. The last obstacle between her and freedom.
And yet—she didn't want him to die.
As if she'd called out his name, Sasuke looked up from the parchment in his hands and met her gaze from across the podium.
He was so handsome. Divine. Were the Gods angry with his mother when she birthed a child rivaling their beauty? Did the heavens balk at having to send him down? He could've been an angel who'd lost his wings standing there in his Akatsuki robe, hair nearly brushing his shoulders, eyes catching the noon sun. He could've been a God himself.
For her, now, he might as well have been God. Everything about her life here started and ended with Sasuke. She'd given up trying to fight that fate. Or rather, she gave in to it when the moon rose.
Glancing away, he rolled the scroll back up and resealed it. Don't stare at me like that for everyone to see.
Though she didn't think it mattered, her sights dropped to her toes. The seal's endorphins leaked out for her obedience. She didn't know what expression had marred her face for him to scold her, but whatever it was couldn't be worse than what everyone already assumed was happening between them.
As she inspected her sandals, she realized he'd probably heard all her earlier thoughts. Not that she'd tried to hide them; she rarely bothered hiding anything from him anymore. It didn't matter. One way or another, he'd know all—be it now, tomorrow, or next week.
It was easier on her psyche to give it upfront than be disappointed later when she failed to conceal it.
"That's all for this morning. I've arranged for a feast tonight to start at seven. Everyone's dismissed until then," finished Madara. The crowd of at least a few enemies hundred dispersed into the jungle at his discharge. In the shuffles of countless footsteps, Madara turned and approached Sasuke. "Did you send the hawk?"
"I did." He pulled a port tag from his robes, holding it to his patriarch. "Here."
"Good. I'll be there in an hour. Go prepare for my arrival. The rest of you are dismissed until the feast with the base."
Everyone but her and Sasuke bowed as Madara body-flickered away. They straightened when his chakra vanished. Kajura jumped into the nearest tree and disappeared. No one else made to leave.
"We're free to do our own thing, then, Sasuke-sama?" asked Kahyo. The other four guards eyed Sasuke, waiting. "Or did you have additional orders?"
"It's as Madara said, go do whatever. Someone needs to get the tents set up before this evening. Other than that, just be present in the dining hall at seven. Suigetsu—" The nukenin beside her perked up. "Don't leave yet. Everyone else can go."
After another quick round of bows, the five shinobi leapt away. With a sigh, Sasuke made a Snake seal, and the raised ground under their feet slid back into the earth, flattening the landscape to its original appearance.
"What's up, bossman?"
Sasuke crossed the small distance between them, scanning the jungle as he did. "You're coming with us to the base," he said quietly, hand reaching out to lift the deep hood of her Akatsuki robe over her head. "You'll have to cover the port for her to get there."
Suigetsu scowled. "Do I have to? I wanna take a bath and nap before that stupid dinner. Just take her suppressors off and let her port herself."
"Stop arguing. She'll need chakra and hasn't ported anywhere in months. We don't know how much it'll tax her."
"Why can't you cover it?"
"I don't have enough right now to make the trip twice for two people over this long of a distance."
"Why are you so low on chakra?"
"Stop asking questions." Sasuke crossed his arms, vision narrowing at Suigetsu. "You know that I went to train last night."
Last night, he'd brought her another 20 soldier pills. After their steady increments, her byakugou was over a quarter full once more. It brought her peace of mind to feel its power blinking back to life within her—but it worried her that Sasuke was letting himself travel so depleted.
They hadn't been attacked yet—however, that didn't mean they wouldn't be in the future. And he had such frequent contact with Madara; it was dangerous not to be battle-ready. His combat techniques required vast amounts of chakra. Against would-be attackers, it might not matter. Against Madara...
He shouldn't have given her so many soldier pills without taking any if he needed them. Leaving himself vulnerable like this was unlike him.
It was a long port. Although he'd trained over 12 hours ago, he'd had time since to knead and refresh his active reserve. If he still only had enough to make that roundtrip by himself, he'd probably drained himself almost entirely last night.
"Why not take some soldier pills from the captured stockpile?" she asked, frowning. Disliking both that he was running around so weak and that she cared so much about it in the first place. "Or are they not shared between bases? Has this base not found any Allied hideouts?"
Suigetsu's brow rose. "Stockpile of soldier pills? Where's that?"
"Both of you be quiet," snapped Sasuke. "Someone might be around to hear."
"We've been low on those for months, kid. What're you talking about?" Suigetsu scrutinzed Sasuke. "You got a secret stash, Sasuke? You hiding them or something?"
Sakura turned this slip of information over in her brain, dissecting it. Suigetsu's genuine surprise at her recommendation suggested that whatever Allied supplies were found, they weren't being shared with the army at large.
Then was Madara hoarding the pills for himself? Or maybe for himself and his generals? Maybe just himself and Sasuke…?
Did Madara even like Sasuke enough to give him special access to resources like that? Were they something Sasuke was sneaking out for her?
…Were they being saved and given only to her? To enable Hundred Healings for Madara's sake?
"I said shut up—"
"I get from the rest, but even from me?" Grabbing his chest, Suigetsu made a pitiful sound. "I'm hurt! You know I wouldn't ask for too many!"
Sasuke flared his chakra, chin lowering as he pinned a glare on the other man. "Enough, Suigetsu. Don't talk about this again. You either." His gaze jumped to her briefly before returning to the nukenin. "Cover her and come with us. Got it?"
"Yeah, yeah. Give me a tag, then."
Sasuke pulled two more tags from his robes, handing one to Suigetsu. "You two go first. I'll come right after."
"Roger." Suigetsu grasped her upper arm. "Ready, kid?"
Before she could answer, the jutsu was tugging at her navel, his eerie chakra swamping over her. She blinked—and they were standing outside Sasuke's bedroom door. A sharp, strange wave of homesickness hit her as she stared at it. As she imagined the sparsely-filled room hidden behind it.
The weapon grinder. The bathroom opening. The empty weapon's rack. The two sleeping mats, side-by-side. The flowers left untended to.
Suigetsu stumbled into the wall beside her, pulling her attention back into the hallway. She reached out to him, instinctually checking the pulse on his wrist with one hand, steadying him with a firm grip on his shoulder with the other.
"Are you okay?" she asked, noting the slight sheen of sweat on his temples.
"Yeah, thanks. Sorry." Regaining his footing, he tidied his Akatsuki robe. "Didn't expect it to take so much outta me. But I guess I wasn't porting two people when I made this jump during the last battle, so it was—"
Sasuke popped into the narrow hallway, startling both of them enough that they jumped in unison. He looked mildly amused for half a second before his usual air of apathy fell into place.
Suigetsu crossed his arms. "Madara's gonna wonder why you don't have chakra to bring her… What's your story for that?"
"I doubt he'll notice you came," said Sasuke. "He's starting to show his impatience and growing careless about these little things. He knows I train at night, regardless."
Sakura glanced between the two men, gauging their expressions. Trying to glean any additional clues or hints to an underlying plan. Wanting to see if those statements held anything more than face value.
If what Sasuke told her in the river was true, and she didn't doubt the sincerity of that moment, then he had no reason to hide anything from Sugietsu. But it also stood to reason that Suigetsu was far more likely to simply follow Sasuke's orders to ensure his survival rather than plan for it on his own, which meant Sasuke probably wasn't concerned with divulging everything to him.
Completely unlike Orochimaru, who'd preferred to take on a forward role in ensuring that fate.
"If you say so, bossman. You'd know better than me. Still, should I go lay low somewhere? Send me a hawk when it's time to leave?"
"Aa. Don't fall asleep," Sasuke warned.
"No promises. See ya." Suigetsu patted her head twice. "Good luck, kid." Then he strolled down the hallway, turning out of sight.
Sasuke immediately stepped forward, brushing the spot on the top of her hood that Suigetsu had touched. His jaw twitched once before he finally peered down at her, eyes solemn.
"He wants you to handle the cells he needs to purge." His voice was so quiet it was barely audible.
Even though she'd expected it—known it would happen, eventually—her chest still tightened until it hurt to breathe. "And you're ordering me to do it."
"I'm not ordering you. But—"
"You expect me to."
His mouth thinned into a line. "For now, yes." When it was clear she wouldn't respond, he added, "Just do exactly as Orochimaru did."
"Heal him, Sasuke? Him?"
"Not healing. Only fixing Hashirama's cells enough to reintegrate them for now. Nothing more than what's been happening."
Sakura scoffed. He rubbed the bridge of his nose. The silence between them pushed in, spreading through the cave like a venom. Building between them like a divide.
The moment she'd prayed wouldn't come was finally here.
After a long minute, Sasuke finally tried to bridge the gap. "I need this from you, Sakura. Please. Cooperate with me."
Frowning to hide her shock, she tucked that sentence away in her memories. She couldn't remember a single time he'd ever said the word please.
"...Do you know what you're asking me to do? He—that man—"
"I've done as you asked me this whole time," he interrupted. "For your sake and mine, I need you to listen to me now."
"Bullshit," she ground out with a glare. "What've I ever asked of you? The one thing I did, you won't give me. All I want's for you to let me go! Instead, you expect me to—do this? Sasuke…"
His hand landed on the juncture of her throat and shoulder, thumb gliding over her seal. "And I will let you go, too. I've kept my word when I've given it. This is no different."
She wanted to be angry. She wanted to feel hurt. She should, on both accounts. What he implored her to do was a betrayal of everything she'd fought for for five years.
But his hand was warm and gentle on her skin. The seal under his thumb pulsed in tune to her heartbeat. The hallway was enclosed and safe and muted, and it was so hard to be angry with him in these moments when he was the only one here with her. Hard to be hurt by him asking her to be on his side when she was the only one here with him.
Sasuke rarely asked anything of her. Rarely asked anything of anyone. He ordered her around, sure—but he seldom expected her to do something for him. Now he was staring down at her with poorly-veiled apprehension that she'd ruin whatever secret plan of his this bit of cooperation might further. As if she held all the power in the world over him.
...Was there any point in fighting the inevitable?
"I won't use the byakugou," she murmured, studying how the shadow lightened on his face. "I'll do as Orochimaru showed me, but that's it. If you were giving me soldier pills for that—"
"No byakugou. Tell him it's not recovered enough since the last battle if he asks. Or I will." His hand shifted up her neck onto her jaw and cheek as he spoke. Cupping her face, his long fingers sliding into her hair.
Although he was much more talented at barriering the seal than she was, and had the chakra to do so, their physical contact was making their connection stronger. It was something she'd realized over the past few weeks. Something that maybe he hadn't, as he was probably always subject to snippets of her thoughts and feelings since she didn't have adequate chakra to wall them off entirely. Something she thought he didn't notice because she doubted he'd initiate contact with her like this if he did.
Because Sasuke was gazing at her with a blank countenance, but she was suddenly fielding the soft touches of being pleased and relieved and—possessive. And below that, the ghosting ache of longing. Of anger and frustration.
None of those emotions were how she felt in this moment—used. So they had to be Sasuke's. The last three, at least, were ones she'd noticed he experienced almost constantly. Even when he buried himself deep inside her, they were there. Festering quietly.
She closed her eyes, tilting her head into his palm; seizing the touch he willingly offered.
This was something else she'd learned over the past few weeks: Sasuke wasn't as averse to physical contact as he presented. In fact, in times like these—times when they were alone, she often found him moving closer or laying a hand somewhere innocently.
…Useless information.
Sasuke was a human, after all. He had depth beyond the mask he wore in public. Just because she was privy to seeing more of what he hid than others could didn't make these small gestures anything beyond that.
Small, meaningless gestures.
"This time, I'll do as you say." It was too hard to do otherwise, anyway. "But don't make me cure him in the future, Sasuke…"
"I won't."
When he spoke in definites like that, it did something to the instability in her bones. He sounded so sure of himself. So confident that the ending he was aiming for would arrive. It reminded her so much of Naruto, sometimes: The way Sasuke steadfastly believed in something.
When he spoke in definites like that, she wanted to fall into line behind him, despite not knowing his destination.
She'd had that once, too, she thought. Hope. Conviction.
Even she'd held belief in something at some point.
...Right?
"I want to believe you. I want to believe that you hate him, too. I really do," she confessed, barely breathing as it scraped out of her. Was it a mistake to tell him this? If he'd been lying all along—if he'd somehow managed to trick her through the seal this whole time—"...I don't think I can survive you turning on me again."
The air above her shifted—something soft and familiar grazed her lips. Her eyes sprung open to find Sasuke not an inch away. Tomoe of his Rinnegan spinning slowly.
"Time and trust, Sakura. You've always had faith in me, right?" his words ghosted on her mouth. Then he was rising and ambling away from her. "Follow me. We'll wait for Madara in the lab."
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Orochimaru's lab was precisely as she remembered it. Everything was in its proper place. The shelves were still full from Orochimaru's last restock. As Sasuke settled into the lone chair in the corner, she approached the operating table, running a hand over its cold metal top. Dustier than it should be—but otherwise a pristine workspace.
She made her way to Orochimaru's desk, pulling open the drawer that held his lab notes.
She'd seen him separate the cells as required enough times to understand how to do it. She knew he had a storage of the solution they needed to soak in already made and ready—sufficient for another four rounds. But she'd never learned the process for actually reintegrating the cells, and she prayed the Sannin had written it down for her somewhere.
As scheming as he was, surely he'd known to do that much.
Finding what she was searching for, she flipped open the notebook to the end. She figured if he'd documented it at all, it'd be near the back, knowing she'd need to look for it. That's where she would write it, at least.
Orochimaru's shorthand was more complicated than most codes she'd seen, so it took time to decipher the symbols and letters. Luckily for her, she was a master of memorization. She needed only to read something once to remember it—learning his code hadn't been difficult. Memorization was wholly different from knowledge, though, so it was still a lengthy task for her to decode his entries.
She sat at the desk, studying the last record of the dead man.
After ten minutes, she was confident from the first paragraph that this was the procedure she needed. However, it'd take her another hour or so to fully break down the entry thoroughly enough to perform it with any success.
But in the middle was a sentence entirely out of place. Its oddity snagged her attention immediately. It was the only one on the whole page that didn't start with Orochimaru's symbol signifying a note on medical procedure.
See entry 39.
Orochimaru's entries were out of order; his shorthand also concealed their numbering. None but those who knew how to read this notebook could ever hope to find entry 39. As far as she knew, that encompassed only her and Orochimaru. Maybe Sasuke.
And the Sannin had plainly left this last page for her. In the context of the whole book, this final entry detailing a single aspect of a specific procedure didn't make sense otherwise.
Sakura turned in her chair. "Sasuke, can we take these lab logs?"
"Orochimaru's?"
"Yes." Remembering someone might be listening that she couldn't sense, she reasoned, "I don't know how to read it yet, but it might have more information on how to handle the cells."
He glanced up from the book in his lap, hand out waiting. "Toss it here."
"Well—for now, I'll keep reading—I mean, trying to read—"
"If you want to take it, toss it over now."
His sights narrowed as she pursed her lips. It was true that sometimes the way he spoke made her want to believe—other times, though, it made her want to argue. He could be such a domineering prick for no reason.
"Fine," she conceded, launching the book across the room more forcefully than necessary.
Sasuke snatched it out of the air with ease, tapping it on his wrist a second later, rolling his eyes. She gave him her back again, searching the scrolls above Orochimaru's desk for something to occupy her time with now that he'd taken her first choice.
Madara popped in a short time later, doubling over in coughs as soon as he appeared. She whipped around to face him, not missing the crimson on his glove as he dropped it back to his side.
Witnessing him perform as an untouchable leader base after base had nearly made her forget that Madara wasn't well. That he hadn't been well for years, according to Orochimaru.
Madara pivoted to Sasuke, ignoring her completely. "Well, nephew? Has she agreed?"
"Aa, but she never learned the reintegration process."
Ugh! Do you have to listen all the time?! she thought, scowling. If Sasuke heard the complaint, which she was certain he did, he ignored her all the same.
"I can probably do that part on my own. I only need someone to deal with the cleansing."
With his back to her, Sakura couldn't see what Madara was doing. But his head ducked, arms fiddling with something around his stomach, and Sasuke looked away with a grimace. When Madara turned around half a minute later, he held a white, blubbery mass laced with blue veins.
He dropped it on the operating table and finally acknowledged her. "So was Sasuke being honest, medic? Will you take care of this for me?"
She didn't know how to answer without cursing or crying, so she stood and approached the opposite side of the table instead.
It was a slightly larger mass than she'd seen Orochimaru work with before. But the procedure wasn't complicated: separating the veins from the white cells. She didn't even need chakra for such a thing. If Madara could handle the reintegration, she wasn't sure why he couldn't handle this part, too; but it wasn't like she planned to ask.
Pulling out the roller tray from under the table, she selected one of the smaller scalpels, opened and tugged on a pair of gloves, and set to work. The faster she finished, the faster they could leave this place—the faster she could escape Madara's company.
The Uchiha patriarch watched her start slicing for only a moment before she felt his study leave her.
"How did you get her to agree?"
"I only had to order it," Sasuke replied, sounding bored.
"The seal's already that strong?"
"I don't know. Guess so. She's doing as I told her, isn't she?"
"How often are you strengthening the seal?"
Sakura's hold on the scalpel faltered.
Just work fast and stay quiet. I got it, Sasuke assured. "Often enough," he voiced at the same time.
"Well? Are you enjoying it, nephew?"
"It's not unpleasant. They offer many unknown comforts, as you said."
"Not unpleasant indeed. Seems she's grown rather attached to you, too. What about you? Have you developed a fondness for her yet?" Madara chuckled. "You know, according to the old laws, she's technically part of our clan now. Should we prepare for an Uchiha resurgence?"
"Don't joke with me. We're not married," he growled. "And Infinite Tsukuyomi will be cast before we need to worry about any of that."
"True. However, you didn't answer my question. Are you growing attached to her, Sasuke?"
The tone of Madara's voice had changed. The air prickled with a warning.
Sakura kept her stare locked on the cells under her, carefully controlling her movements to not bring Madara's attention her way. She pulled the scalpel through the fat-like substance, hugging it as close to a thick tendril of blue as she could manage. With chakra, she could've afforded to be a bit quicker and careless, as she could heal any nicks as she went. Without required more caution.
"Why would I? It's just sex."
She tried to let those words flow in and out of her ears. Told herself not to let them sink in. Reminded herself that she ought to have the same outlook—that it was just sex. That it was merely a bit of comfort two people in adjacent cages fell into occasionally.
"But she feels differently. So differently to obey an order to heal me?"
"Yeah?" Sasuke tsked. "Why are you asking me that? Ask her yourself if you're curious. All I know is I ordered it, and she's doing it."
"You're her owner. You should know enough about your pet now to answer for it."
Sakura bit her tongue.
"It's been almost four months now. That's plenty of time for the seal to set in," explained Sasuke. "Most of the time, she's without chakra to impede its effects."
"And that was enough for her to fall this quickly to you?" Madara sounded slightly suspicious.
"Don't know. Like I said, ask her if you're curious. Orochimaru did say the seal takes better when there's an underlying baseline of attachment." Her eyes darted up to him unconsciously, brow creased. His side of the seal was locked tight, so she couldn't deduce whether that statement was real or made up. "And as you're already aware, she was once my teammate. Perhaps she was holding on to some delusion of her childhood since then."
"You're talking about your genin team with the jinchuriki?"
"Aa."
"Honestly, I'd forgotten about the third member," admitted Madara, smirking. Sakura let her vision drop back to the table. "My, my! How poetic! And you were so ready to kill her months ago... Quite cruel of you, nephew—when she held your memory so dearly in her heart! Ha!"
"What does that matter? Our random placement under the same sensei means nothing." Sasuke scoffed, tone turning lethal. "All of them were and remain loyal to the village that abandoned my brother. He turned on our clan for them—and they made him a nukenin for it. They're all scum. Anyone who serves that place is my enemy. This kunoichi's no exception."
"Yes, yes. No need to go off on another rant. I've heard it many times now."
"Then don't make irrelevant comments to provoke me," Sasuke growled.
"Ahh. In times like these, I miss your shishou, despite his greed. At least he offered intelligent conversation."
"Intelligent, you say? Freeing a captive was foolish."
"He merely read the writing on the wall. Your pet was about to break. Another few goes with the Yamanaka, and I'd have gotten the jinchuriki's location—mark my words."
"Is that what he told you?"
"More or less. In the end, he admitted he didn't want me to complete the Infinite Tsukuyomi. To dream until he died wasn't immortality at all, he said. If I never found the jinchuriki, he could continue his quest to live forever." Madara sighed. Sakura finished another cut; the mass disconnected, jiggling into a fourth piece. "And he was right enough, I suppose. Though now that I've killed the bastard, I wonder if he's rethinking his choice."
"Doubtful. A corpse has no thoughts."
The blunt way Sasuke said it had Sakura holding in an unexpected giggle. It was a dangerous discussion over the decaying cells of her greatest enemy. It certainly wasn't funny, nor was the fact of Orochimaru's death. But, well, captivity had a way of jading those caught in it like that.
"A very astute observation, nephew," ribbed Madara.
With that, Sasuke returned to reading. Madara took the desk chair, inspecting her work. His attentiveness made her sweaty and anxious, but she continued meticulously cutting through the cells. When she finished separating the parts as needed, eight small portions were divided on the operating table. Breathing in unnatural synchronization.
Madara sat beside where she'd need to get the soaking solution from. She'd have to walk right in front of him to get it. Swallowing dryly, she set the scalpel down and braced herself.
Sasuke suddenly pushed out of his chair, striding across the room and opening the correct cabinet. He pulled down a jar of solution, turned, and placed it on the table before her. Sakura was careful not to let any expressions slip across her face; in her periphery, Madara was staring at Sasuke with a smirk.
You shouldn't have done that, Sakura thought, reaching for the jar.
Doesn't matter. Hurry and finish. "I read your scroll, but it didn't give any timelines. When are we leaving for the next Lightning base?" Sasuke asked, swiveling to Madara, hip leaned on the metal edge.
"Two days. For your obedience today, medic, I won't kill anyone at the next base either."
Sakura dropped the first blob into the solution, giving no reaction to his words. Madara stood and stepped to her side, hand smacking the table beside her work.
"Perhaps you didn't hear me. I said I won't kill any Allies at the next base, either."
Thank him, Sasuke ordered.
She gritted her teeth. "...Thank you."
"You're welcome." Madara walked behind her, sending a shiver up her spine as he retreated to the far side of the room. "Your interrogations will resume on the third base, however. Remember how I'm rewarding you for this compliance when we get to it, little medic. No one else needs to die, do they?"
His inspection was hot on her downturned face. She knew he was waiting for a reply when the silence extended past a minute, and he remained still by the chair Sasuke had abandoned.
Placing the last portion of cells in, Sakura bit out, "No, they don't," to appease him.
"Glad to hear we're on the same page. Take her back to the Lightning base when she's finished, Sasuke. I expect you both at the dinner tonight."
"Aa."
Madara ripped a page from the book Sasuke had been reading, scribbled something on it with a pen he pulled from his wrist, and popped out of the room with that.
Sakura released a breath as she closed the jar. It hadn't gone as poorly as she'd prepared herself for—but it was just as demeaning and disgusting as she'd imagined helping Madara would feel. Sasuke seized the jar and put it back in its place.
"You did well," he praised.
Kneeling, he bit his thumb and touched the ground. Black summoning circles spread out around him. Then a hawk appeared on his shoulder with a soft chirp.
He pulled a small scroll from his robes, tying it to the bird's leg. "Go find Suigetsu."
The hawk chirped once more then popped away. Sasuke eyed her hunched over the operating table, counting her breaths. His cool, calculated consideration made her frown.
He was entirely too calm for the vileness this moment held.
"What?" she snapped.
"Nothing." Straightening, he strode to one of the shelves across the room, picking up a bottle of disinfectant and a small towel folded beside it. Then he returned to the operating table, sprayed it with the citrus-smelling cleaner, and began wiping it down. "You and Suigetsu will go to the Lightning base without me. I've got some things to take care of here. Make sure you stick with him."
She nodded, watching his hand move in small circles. "You'll be back for the feast, though, right?"
"Of course. You heard Madara."
She had heard Madara, but Sakura was still puzzling out just where Sasuke's loyalty to the man started and ended. He hated Madara, but he needed him healed for now. He didn't want to follow Madara's commands, but he still did so to a tee. He hadn't exactly lied to Madara, but his responses were never entirely forthright.
But she wanted to believe him. She had to believe him—or what she'd just done was unforgivable.
"Okay," she whispered.
.
.
Sasuke returned two hours before the feast was to start. Suigetsu had sequestered her in a tent, grumbling about how he couldn't nap while stuck on guard duty. But he'd kept her company nonetheless, digging out a deck of cards from someone else's tent for them to pass the time.
He was terrible at cards. He was also a sore loser. In a sense, he reminded her of Tsunade.
It was a tender kind of connection when she made it. The kind that made her want to smile and fall apart at the same time.
Though when Sasuke finally ducked into the tent, she was happy to be rid of him; and Suigetsu was happy to be relieved. He sped from the camp within seconds of Sasuke's appearance.
Sasuke filled Suigetsu's spot beside her, offering her another 20 soldier pills. She was even more curious now about where he was getting them—how, and why, and who else knew they existed—as it was clear he hadn't told her everything the first time he'd brought some. But she'd already inquired into it, and he'd already evaded giving a complete answer.
All that meant was he had no intentions of telling her.
Sakura knew him well enough now to understand by pressing him any further on it, she'd wind up frustrated, bitter, and without any additional clarity than she'd had before digging. And she didn't feel up to being frustrated with him today. She rarely did anymore.
Plus, he looked tired. There was sweat on his temple. He leaned back on his palms, eyes closed, breathing evenly as if counting his inhales.
"What kind of interrogations does he have planned for me?" she asked when she started on the seventh pill, breaking the comfortable silence.
"I haven't been told. Back to physical stuff, if I had to guess. He's got no other leverage on you now."
Even though she'd asked, even though she'd known that was the likely answer, her gut still sank in dread. "...Got it."
There were worse things than physical torture. Seeing Ino get brutalized was far worse—watching as groups of Allies were slaughtered was second.
But it still terrified her to know it was coming. It was still torture. It would undoubtedly be unbearably painful, no matter what Madara had planned. And she was out of practice with handling it; it'd been weeks since her last rounds of real interrogation.
Sasuke sighed dramatically, interrupting her doom. She glanced at him as he scooted sideways onto the sleeping mat beside him, lying down with a huff.
Then his hand shot out, wrapping around her calf and yanking her towards him. "Finish those later. Let's take a nap."
"...A nap?"
"Yes, a nap. I'm drained. I need to restock some chakra."
Sakura held his gaze, weighing that admission. It was true that sleep would help expedite his chakra production—but what had he done between here and Water to leave him with no chakra? Would he tell her if she asked?
Did it matter?
Why did he need her to nap with him? Couldn't he nap by himself?
Did he still harbor ideas that she'd try to run? Where could he possibly think she'd go?
...Was there something he was hiding—something that made him genuinely believe she could escape if she tried?
Was it safe to just…fall asleep out here in the middle of nowhere? Suigetsu hadn't thought so—
"You're so loud, Sakura. Just lay down with me," he mumbled, eyes a bit hazy now that she was looking closely. "I'll wake up if anyone tries to attack the camp."
Her heart fluttered treacherously. "Alright…"
It was awkward slipping in beside him when the tent was this bright with sunlight—with him watching the whole time. When her legs made it under the covers, he lost his patience with her slow movements and tugged her the rest of the way down. She landed facing him: her nose on the base of his neck, her sights on his Adam's apple.
Before she could turn around, his arm encircled her, palm resting low on her back.
"This way is fine," he said.
She was certain anything she might want to respond with would only come out as an embarrassed stutter, so she sealed her mouth firmly shut. They'd slept together every night for the past almost-three weeks. Had slept together over half that time. Most days, she woke up wrapped up in his arms—this wasn't anything unusual. Not really.
But it was unusual for it to happen with the sun still out. Assuredly unusual for him to ask her to come to him. She was normally first in bed; he typically joined, then did whatever he wanted. This was… Odd.
A worry passed over her, settling her nerves adequately for her to ask, "Are you okay, Sasuke? Are you hurt?"
"No, I'm not hurt. I'm angry," he grumbled.
Her brow furrowed. "Angry about what?"
"That you did this." His palm pressed into her back. "I wish you weren't here."
Her heart clenched as she frowned into his chest.
There were multiple ways to interpret those words—but one way, in particular, applied exceptionally well in the context of them lying together in bed. So well that Sakura had a hard time thinking he could mean anything else. Not when he was obviously tired, slightly defenseless, and not minding his speech like he usually did.
He was probably talking about them having sex. He had to be.
He was admitting he was angry she'd used the seal to encourage it—angry that she'd wielded it well enough to slip under his guard to such an extent that he was lying beside her now by choice.
Angry that it wasn't really a choice for him at all.
Sakura swallowed back bile. "Okay then." What else was there to say? She had no counter to those accusations.
They were true.
"That's—" Sasuke sighed again. "Sorry."
"Why are you apologizing so much lately?" Even when they had sex, he'd occasionally mutter the word into her ear as it started, throwing her off-balance and out of the mindset for a moment.
"...Sometimes it feels like it's my fault you're here."
That revelation alone validated her assumption that this was odd. This wasn't normal behavior for him—he was in a strangely candid mood. Just what had made him so exhausted?
If it were anyone else, she might've lied or minced her words to make them feel better—but there was no lying to Sasuke. Had he warned her Madara's army was on their way—if he'd come when she called out to him—if he'd found her before Suigetsu and Madara did—
"It is your fault I'm here."
"Yeah... I should've never trusted the snake."
"You should've never joined Madara," she corrected. And then, because she wasn't sure if she'd ever get another opportunity to say it, she leveled him with, "You should've never left Konoha, Sasuke."
He didn't answer. Maybe he had no answer. Her chest was still too heavy with his earlier admission to let him rest that easily, though. If he got to saddle her with something like that, she should get to do the same.
"Do you even remember the night you left?"
His chest rumbled in what might've been a soundless chuckle, except it wouldn't make any sense for him to laugh about this. "Aa."
Steeling herself—because she wasn't sure if she'd ever get another opportunity to ask it—she blurted out, "What did you mean by thank you?"
He hesitated so long that she just knew he wouldn't reply. Louring, she tipped her forehead into his clavicle, ready to accept this small comfort of his after all. She was drowsy too, anyway.
And she'd gone ten years without knowing the answer to that question. It wouldn't kill her if she didn't find out today, either.
"...I don't remember what."
His voice surprised her out of near-sleep. Of course, she thought tiredly. Of course he wouldn't remember. But she'd been expecting him not to remember the exchange entirely if she were honest.
"Then what do you remember?"
This time, his response was almost instantaneous: "My resolve nearly being shaken."
Sakura tilted her head back to look at him, shocked. His eyes peeked open as she moved, studying her with evident fatigue. It almost made her feel bad for pushing it. Almost had her letting the matter lie.
Almost.
"By—me?"
The corner of his mouth lifted so slightly she might've imagined it. "Who else?"
Her sights darted between his mismatched irises, wishing for him to take those two words back before they settled into the universe. Praying to find some hint of a trick or tease in his gaze. Something to kill the awful emotion budding inside her like a cherry blossom tree.
But the turning world was slowing to a halt, and she was suddenly positive that lift wasn't imagined, and all she found was a deep weariness in his quiet regard.
Hope.
A horrid surge of hope was threatening to drown her.
Hope was dangerous. Detrimental. Destructive. She couldn't handle that sort of thing right now. All hope led to devastating disappointment.
Hope would have her chained in this tent with him forever—
"It's confusing when you say things like that, Sasuke…" she professed, burning with the beginning of tears she didn't understand.
Leaning down, he pressed a chaste kiss on her lips before shutting his eyes and pulling her against him. "Then stop asking questions and let me rest."
Covenant will take a break for the rest of the month :)
Weekly updates will resume July 3rd!
(yes-there are 3 parts planed, hehe)
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there's a DISCORD for this story, if anyone wants to join to chat about it,
or just wants to chat about sasusaku in general!
the invite code is: WV62DCrCqM
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thanks for reading, as always.
and thanks to Leech for beta-reading