"For the love of Kami, stop summoning me at the most inappropriate times!" Sakura snapped hotly. "Firstly, you don't give orders around here, I do. Secondly, this is the only way we can talk to you," Yun spoke sagely. "Really? What about when I was looking at Kyoshi's statue? Do you know how suspicious it looked? Mako clearly sensed the change of your horrendous chakra, try to keep the hate to yourself," she shot back. "I'm sorry, I can't seem to control myself when I face the person responsible for my death and making my life meaningless," the dark-haired man replied blatantly. "I'm not the one who lied to you that you were the Avatar. I'm just trying to get back home," she said sourly. "I respect that which is why you will if you manage to help me kill the Avatar," Yun said.

Sakura rolled her eyes. She had been having this conversation for as long as Kami knew. "What about you, why aren't you saying anything?" she said to the other resident of her body. Or more specifically, Father Glowworm. The eyeball was the size of her head with a green pupil and countless red veins making it appear bloodshot. Several green tendrils gave it the impression of an octopus if it floating in the air was anything to go by. "I only want what's best for the spirits. As the only person who is able to hold me within them, I can guarantee you that if you help me unite with the spirits then I send you back to your world. That is what we agreed after all," Father Glowworm spoke.

"But reports are saying that spirits are wrecking havoc everywhere and they can't be controlled, plus the stupid gang of benders you made me form. They're doing are really good job at it," she said bitterly. "That is their job after all. They'll be turning away the attention from you whilst you penetrate their ranks, getting closer to achieving this idiot's goal," the eyeball replied. "I'm still surprised that you and Yun have the same goal. I didn't peg you two to be buddies," the kunoichi pointed out. "We're not buddies!" Yun exclaimed. "We simply have the same goal. I have a bone to pick with the Avatar," Glowworm replied. 'If he had a mouth, he would be wickedly smirking right now,' she thought.

"You know I can hear your thoughts."


Sakura woke up with a start. She was in alone in the room. She was dressed in her police uniform, a blue robe neatly folded beside her. She looked at the window showing that the sun had already set. With mildly stiff limbs and replenished chakra, she left the room in search for her teammates. It didn't take long for her to find them, Bolin's boisterous voice was the loudest among all of them.

"-And when I thought we were going to die, I had this very strong urge to solidfy lava! And you know what happened?! Being the awesome guy I am, I jumped in front with a wicked earthbending move! And guess what! It worked!" The entire room exploded into bouts of laughter and Sakura couldn't help smiling herself. "Sakura! You're awake! I was just telling these guys the first time I had to bend lava," he said as he patted the space beside him. She entered the room and sat beside the dark-haired boy, shooting Mako a greeting smile who say opposite Bolin. There were several children huddled beside Mako and the girl she had seen earlier, who had identified Mako as the Avatar's teammate.

As if sensing eyes on her, the girl turned to her. "Hello," the pinkette greeted. "Hello, I never knew the Avatar had another female teammate," she said as she stood up went to seat at the unoccupied spot beside Mako. "I'm new plus I'm not the Avatar's team, I'm with Mako and Bolin on a police investigation," she replied. "Oh," was all she said. "My name's Sakura, what's yours?" she asked. "I'm Makimi, I'm actually Suki's granddaughter, the oldest one. I spent all of my life hearing stories about the Avatar that I couldn't help but grow to admire them. Since I didn't live through Avatar Aang's time, I turned to Avatar Korra," the girl replied, the candles' light dancing in her brown eyes. "Do you like Avatar Korra?" the pinkette asked.

"Like her?! I love her!" she exclaimed earning a look from Mako. "N-Not like that. In a hero-worship way, sort of," she clarified. "From what I've heard, Korra's the only one who actually wanted to become Avatar and the duties associated with it. She even goes as sacrificing her relationships with her friends for the sake of the world," Makimi said, shooting a glance at Mako who had stiffened slightly. "Though I'm not sure about Avatar Kyoshi, I don't think she wanted to become an Avatar but the way she handled her responsibility was different from all the Avatars I've known. Avatar Aang ran away from home when he was told to that he was the Avatar, though it worked out in the end. Avatar Roku died because he was betrayed by his friend on whom he was very lenient, indirectly causing the war. But Avatar Kyoshi actually killed one of her friends," she said letting her words hang in the air. "Please go on," Sakura urged her. She had never heard the other side of the story, only Yun's side.

"During her time, the next Avatar would've been an earthbender. There was a boy named Yun who was seen as the next candidate and he was trained in every aspect from politics to diplomacy and fighting skills. He would've made the perfect Avatar except he wasn't. After discovering Kyoshi as the Avatar, he was abandoned as people began to focus on the new Avatar. Feeling disowned, he went ok a killing spree and killed his teachers and some members of the esteemed Beifong family. But Avatar Kyoshi stopped him by killing him, even though they were best friends," she finished.

There was silence at the table as the kids had left, leaving Sakura, Bolin, Mako and Makimi. "If you were the false Avatar, would you have done the same thing?" she asked as she looked at Makimi. "No, obviously. I would just accept it as my fate though I would have been very hurt for being lied to and tossed aside after all that," the girl replied honestly. "What about you?" she looked at Bolin. The earthbender cleared his throat before replying. "I don't know, maybe I would break a few bones," he answered with a contemplating look. She looked at Mako. "I would just learn to live with it, maybe," he said. "What about you Sakura? What would you have done?" Makimi asked, her eyes glowing eerily. "I would have done the same as Yun," she replied without missing a beat.

It was awkward from then on. In a matter of minutes, they had finished dinner and had gone to their rooms. Makimi bid the group farewell before going to her room. Bolin fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow. Sakura motioned for Mako to sit on her sleeping bag. "I wanna try something," she told him. The firebender obliged and sat on the sleeping bag. He removed his jacket and shirt until he was down to his vest. He put his hand out and looked at her expectantly. Sakura immediately put her hands on top of his right arm, sending chakra prodding at his coils.

His chakra coils were burned and clogged. Though she could feel the difference in his chakra and the chakra of a ninja, the similarities were appalling. "You said you electrocuted your hand, correct?" she spoke. "A lightning bending move gone wrong," he clarified. "Okay, I'm going to try to unblock your Chi paths. I know it's gonna be painful considering the last time we tried but I'm sure you can handle the pain now," the pinkette told him. He grunted in reply. She sent her chakra to his coils, pressing down from different angles so that they could even out.

She pressed her chakra and she felt the firebender stiffen beside him. But she was almost through. It was a long and tiresome process, sweat illuminating their features but they persevered. After a good two hours of nonstop working, Sakura's chakra died out. She let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding. "Are you stiff?" she asked as she looked at him with bleary green eyes. "Yes, my neck and back especially," he replied with a barely concealed grimace. "Figures," she said as she crawled over to kneel behind him.

She brought her hands to his neck, massaging gently with her chakra. All the tension in his shoulders loosened incredibly. He had to refrain himself from moaning in satisfication, that would be very awkward. She made him lie on his stomach and she massaged the back muscles with chakra. In a matter of twenty minutes, she was done. "How do you feel?" she asked him as she popped the muscles in her back. She had moved back to her original position in front of him. "All the pain is gone. Thank you," he said, sending her a grateful smile. Sakura blinked twice before returning his smile. "You know, you should smile more often. It makes you more attractive," she beamed. "Is that a compliment?" he said, completely taken off gaurd. "Yeah, you've never had anyone compliment you?" she asked, her eyebrows raised in question.

"I did, but not very often. It took me by surprise actually, considering we barely know each other," he replied. "I'm pretty sure we're past the stranger/acquaintance phase," she mused with a knowing look. "Does that mean I'm attractive without smiling?" he asked deadpan. "Duh," she said in a matter of fact tone. "You're not at all embarrassed? Most girls stutter and are shy when complementing a boy, even Korra is no exception despite how tough she looks," he told her. "Well, it does take a lot of courage but if a guy can do it, then so can I," she retorted with a smile.

"If you can do it, then I can do it too. You're not bad looking yourself," Mako smirked.

Sakura laughed. "Okay, I don't know if this is you trying to be cool and all but it's not working. You could have just told me plainly instead of beating around the bush," she said as she stifled a giggle. Mako's cheeks burned with embarrassment and a bit of indignation. He huffed and turned his head to look away. "You're not being shy, are you?" she said with a coy smile. He didn't answer. "If it makes you feel better, I'll say it again so it won't be awkward. You're attractive," she said, her eyes almost glittering. The two locked gazes with a heavy silence between them. The only sound in the room was the sound of crickets outside and Bolin's snoring. As if a spell had been broken, Sakura blinked. "Well, at least in my opinion you're attractive. I'm not sure if other girls see it that way," she said as she feigned a cough.

"If I were to look past the lightning bolt shaped eyebrows and the stern gaze that could probably haunt me in my dreams, you pass as eye candy," she spoke. "So we're going from complementing each other to insulting each other in a single sentence?" the firebender said, amusement dancing in his eyes. "Last time I checked, it was mostly me complementing and you trying to be a prick about doing the same," she shot back. "Now I'm waiting for you to say it," she said as she crossed her arms, her facial features serious. Mako hadn't really given himself time to look at her, as in really look at her. He had never really noticed how beautiful she was. No, beautiful wasn't the right word for it. Asami fit the description more.

But she did have a certain beauty to her which was unique, exotic. Everything about her face was striking. Her face was a pale ivory, glowing as she was illuminated by the lamp in the dimly lit room. Her eyes, nose and mouth all seemed to be in perfect synchrony with each other. The pink hair and green eyes added more to the look. He let out a large exhale. She raised an eyebrow expectantly.

"You're...angelic."

There was a beat of silence as the two stared at each other. Sakura's face matched the color of her hair. She cleared her throat. "W-Well, that was...u-um...I don't -" "I mean it," he cut her gently. Sakura touched her face. It felt hot. She hoped that the lights wasn't enough to show her blush. "I-I...thank you. I'm usually used to being told I was beautiful and pretty. But angelic? That's just..." she trailed with averted eyes. "Then get used to it," Mako said snarkily. He wanted to sound intimidating but he guessed that he sounded rather sincere if the grateful smile on the kunoichi's face was anything to go by.

"Thank you, honestly."

"Same to you."

"You can just say 'you're welcome and thank you '."

"..."

"I'm waiting."

"... you're welcome and thank you."

"Much better."


Sorry for not updating in a long time. I hope you enjoy the fluff at the end, though I have to admit it was embarrassing for me to write it, I'm too shy! Hopefully, I'll be able to get back on track with updating most of my stories. I haven't forgotten or abandoned anything. Thank you for those who find time to read and review, following and favouring this story. I really appreciate you.

Tozoonana

AfricanFire