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h-t-t-p-s-:-/-/-d-i-s-c-o-r-d-.-g-g/k5xhu8fR (fill this in without the - in between. I can't post a link apparently.) If you are confused message me and I'll send you the invite link.
Now let's continue:
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"Oh my God..." Sakura gasped as she looked at the village, her old town that used to be whole and lively in front of her, which was now completely destroyed.
"Tobi wasted no time to go after the Leaf Village..." Itachi mumbled.
Somewhere a bit outside, standing on the tree branch, they had a perfect view of the village and how much damage it had suffered.
'Mom...Dad...' Sakura thought. Not only was she worried, but also guilt started to build up inside her.
"You may go back to our base," Sakura ordered the two people standing behind her, Itachi, and two more ninjas. She turned around to face them and continued, "Thank you for your message and for keeping an eye on the village. Miro and Riley will take over. You guys can go and get some rest."
"Yes!" they both answered and left immediately.
After they left, Sakura looked to her left to face the other two sound ninjas who were waiting for her orders.
"After such an attack, they will be on high alert, so be careful not to get caught. If something happens, message me as soon as possible."
"Yes!" With this, they left, leaving Sakura and Itachi alone.
"Are you ready?" Itachi asked. There was a hint of worry in his voice. Sakura noticed that she wasn't the only one who was nervous about sneaking in and seeing up close just how badly the village had been damaged.
'Please...don't do anything stupid...Sasuke...' thought Sakura before nodding at Itachi's question.
XXXXXXXXXX
"ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND?!"
Hearing Sakura's voice echo throughout the whole building, Karin, Suigetsu, and Itachi all gathered in the hallway. All were confused and looked at the closed door where Sakura and Sasuke were busy talking inside the room.
"What's going on?" Karin wondered.
"Whatever it is, it is not a good sign. I have never heard Sakura raise her voice that loud, especially to Sasuke of all people," Suigetsu answered nervously from inside the room.
"Sakura, you don't understand, I—"
"I don't want to hear it!" she interrupted Sasuke and raised a finger at him. "Destroying the Leaf Village and killing the Elders and anyone who would stand in your way—what good would that do?!"
Sasuke clenched his fists, frustration flickering across his face. "You don't know what I've been through, Sakura! These are the people who allowed all of this to happen! They gave the order to have my family slaughtered! They deserve this."
Sakura's heart sank at the rage in his eyes—a familiar darkness that had haunted him since the massacre. She took a deep breath, fighting against her own rising emotions. "And what will this accomplish? More pain? More blood? Do you really think that will bring you peace?"
"You don't understand!" Sasuke shot back, his voice cracking under the weight of his conviction. "This is the only way to make them pay. I thought you would support me."
"Support you?" Sakura's voice trembled with a mix of anger and heartbreak. "I can't support this madness, Sasuke! You're better than this! You're not a monster!"
"Maybe you don't know me at all," he retorted bitterly, his eyes narrowing. It felt like a knife twisting in her chest.
Sakura stepped closer, her gaze unwavering despite the turmoil inside her. "Think about what you're doing. Is this really justice, or is it just revenge? Will it bring your family back? Will it bring you happiness?"
Silence hung in the air like a heavy shroud, and for a moment, Sasuke looked away, grappling with his inner turmoil. He could feel the weight of her words pressing down on him.
"Maybe," he finally murmured, almost to himself. "All I can think about, what drives me mad, are images of people laughing, enjoying their lives in the Leaf Village while Itachi and I are suffering! They are enjoying every bit of it because of US!"
Outside the door, Karin's eyes widened at the exchange.
"Should we go in?" she whispered nervously, glancing at Itachi and Suigetsu.
"No," Itachi replied quietly, his voice calm and steady. "They need this."
"You think that's going to help?" Suigetsu asked, crossing his arms. "They might tear each other apart in there."
"It's better than suppressing the truth," Itachi said. "Sakura pushes him because she cares. He needs to feel that."
Back inside the room, the tension between Sasuke and Sakura was palpable. Sakura's tone softened, her voice almost pleading. "Sasuke, I know I haven't lost people. I know I don't know what it's like to feel that kind of anger and sadness. But you have me, and you have your friends. Your brother. You don't have to do this alone."
"This won't change a thing. Not your past! Don't let Itachi's and your parents' sacrifices be in vain! Don't lower yourself to their level! Don't make the same choices they made! Because right now, you want to slaughter anyone in your path. We both know that since nobody knows the truth, they would do anything to protect the Elders. That makes you no different from the Elders."
"Itachi made that choice! I didn't ask for any of this!" Sasuke yelled.
"Do our former friends deserve to die as well? Kakashi? My parents?!" Sakura asked, tears welling in her eyes.
"You left your parents! You made that choice!"
"Because of you, you idiot! I did it out of love! Itachi did it out of love! Do I agree with his choices? No! But he did it to protect you because he loves you!" Sakura confessed, exasperated. Seeing no resolve in this argument, Sakura had had enough. She took a deep breath and shoved the paper she had been holding towards his chest,
"One of the sound ninjas got too close to the Akatsuki and went into hiding. I need you and the others to retrieve him while Itachi and I head somewhere else."
Before Sasuke could say anything, Sakura immediately stormed out of the room. Seeing everyone standing in front of the door, she could assume they had heard everything. Suigetsu nodded towards her after noticing she was looking at him, waiting for any response as to what they needed to do.
With Suigetsu's response, Sakura took it as an answer that he understood what needed to be done.
"Let's go," Sakura said, storming out of the building, completely ignoring Sasuke calling her to come back, with Itachi following her.
XXXXXXXXXX
"Are you okay?" Itachi asked, concern etched on his face. "Sakura?"
"Huh? Oh yeah, just thinking about my last conversation with Sasuke..." Sakura answered with a forced smile, but it didn't quite reach her eyes.
They were busy walking around the completely destroyed village. There were no guards around, so it was easy to enter the village. They had decided to wear disguises because covering oneself with a hood would be completely suspicious, especially now.
"Sasuke is in a really dark place, but he's not beyond reach. You made him feel something...maybe even doubt. That's a start."
"Doubt isn't enough," Sakura replied, her frustration spilling over. "Doubt isn't going to stop him from making a terrible mistake. He's angry, and I can't let him take that anger out on innocent people."
"First things first," Itachi reminded her gently. "We need to find more information, and I'm sure you want to check on your parents."
"Sorry for being selfish," Sakura apologized and started to look at her surroundings. The destruction became more apparent. Crumbling buildings loomed overhead.
"Don't be. They are still your parents," Itachi replied, giving her a genuine smile.
"Still...I can't believe Naruto was the one who defeated Pain. Someone capable of doing so much destruction...That's amazing." Sakura exclaimed. She also heard the news about the death of Jiraiya. It must have been a shock for Naruto and Tsunade as well. She knew Naruto was pretty close with Jiraiya.
Despite everything that happened, Sakura couldn't help but notice that the villagers were calmer than she expected. A few temporary wooden buildings were already built. Sakura guessed that, from the familiar attire some people wore, the citizens of the Land of Waves had come to help rebuild the Leaf Village.
"I have found your parents, Sakura, meow!" Hina announced as she jumped up and landed on Sakura's shoulder. With this, Sakura nervously followed the direction Hina instructed her towards and ended up in front of a wooden building. Itachi and Hina offered to stay outside to give her some space. She hadn't seen her parents ever since she had left the village with Sasuke. She wondered how they would react when they saw her. Would they be happy? Mad? Hurt? Resentful?
"Can I help you?"
Sakura slowly closed the door behind her and couldn't help but flinch when she heard her mother's voice after so long. She noticed her mother just came out of the kitchen with food in her hand and her father sitting behind the dinner table. They both stood up and moved next to each other, slightly worried and suspicious of the stranger suddenly entering their temporary house.
"I-It's me..." Sakura announced and removed her disguise.
Her heart raced as she revealed herself. The once-familiar warmth in her parents' eyes was replaced with shock and uncertainty as they took in the sight of their daughter, who had left with Sasuke so long ago.
"Sakura?" her mother whispered, her voice trembling as she dropped the food she was carrying onto the floor. The sound of the dish clattering against the wood echoed through the room.
Sakura took a tentative step forward, her breath hitching in her throat. "Mom, Dad... It's really me."
Tears welled in her father's eyes as he rushed forward, wrapping Sakura in a tight embrace. "Oh, my sweet girl! Where have you been? We thought... we thought we'd lost you!"
Sakura clung to her mother, emotions spilling over. "I'm so sorry I left... I didn't mean for any of this to happen. We were trying to—"
Her mother stepped closer, eyes filled with both relief and concern. Sakura suddenly felt her father's embrace loosen as she noticed her mother now standing in front of her.
"M-mo—" Sakura tried to call out to her but was interrupted by a sudden force to her face that directed her head to the left, along with a stinging feeling on her cheek.
Sakura stood frozen in front of her mother, holding her reddened cheek, stunned by what had just happened. She didn't blame her mother or feel slightly angry; she couldn't—not after everything they had been through. After everything she did, she actually shouldn't even be surprised that her mother slapped her.
Her father stood behind her mother with a slight disagreement on his expression, but he didn't stop his wife—it would be futile.
Her mother raised her hands once more. Thinking her mother would slap her again, Sakura closed her eyes, preparing for her cheeks to burn and turn red. But instead, she felt someone embracing her.
She opened her eyes and looked first at her father; he had a genuine smile. She then looked at her mother who was hugging her. Sakura could hear faint sobs coming from her mother. "Do you have any idea how worried we were?" her mother spoke through her sobs, "I thought you hated us..."
"No! Never!" Sakura quickly replied, clinging to her mother as emotions spilled over, feeling tears swell in her eyes. Her father approached them and gave both of them a hug, happy to hear this.
"How are you? Are you taking care of yourself? Why did you leave? Are you back?" Her parents asked many more questions. Sakura was very hesitant to answer their last question.
"I...I j-just..." Sakura hesitated, carefully choosing her words, "I heard that Pain from the Akatsuki came and attacked the village...I came back to see if you guys are okay...t-the village is in the worst state I have ever seen..."
Her mother sighed and stepped away from her. "So you snuck in..."
"Yamato was kind enough to build houses using his wood-style for shelter before rebuilding the village..." Her father began, "Come upstairs before someone walks through that door and sees you."
Stunned by what her father said, Sakura watched both her parents walk upstairs before following them. Her parents seemed normal about this, even though she betrayed the village, and they should report her.
"Explain yourself," her mother started, folding her hands together. "Suddenly, early in the morning, we heard from your former teacher, Lady Hokage, that you defected from the village along with your former teammate, Sasuke Uchiha, and joined Orochimaru. A traitor."
"..." Sakura looked down, thinking long and hard about how to explain everything to her parents.
"Is it that Sasuke boy?" her father asked calmly. Sakura looked up and slowly nodded.
"I-I love him..."
"Sakura!" Sakura flinched as her mother yelled. Her father raised his hands to stop his wife from continuing to yell at her, waiting for Sakura to explain herself. Sakura took a deep breath before telling them everything that had happened so far: the night Sasuke left, how she tried to stop him and had no choice but to join him, how she was poisoned and cured herself, and how they were done with Orochimaru.
Sakura waited for her parents to respond, but neither of them could find the words.
"You always said it's a ninja's job to protect the people they care about...," her voice echoed with desperation,
"I saw him slipping into darkness. I pleaded and pleaded, but nothing got through to him. I had no choice but to join him. Get stronger and be by his side, preventing him from slipping further into darkness."
Seeing her parents staying quiet, she continued, "I couldn't stand back and watch him leave. I couldn't leave this to Naruto and beg him to bring Sasuke back. I always stood behind and watched Naruto and Sasuke take the lead on every mission, protecting me every time...I just had enough."
"He is a good guy!" Sakura started to yell. "His hatred and Orochimaru's manipulation just got the better of him—"
Sakura stopped talking when her father placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder and smiled genuinely. Her mother also approached her and placed her hand on her daughter's shoulder.
"We know you, Sakura," her father smiled brightly. "If you say that he is a good guy, we will believe you."
Tears ran down her cheeks. She couldn't hold them back anymore. She was truly thankful for having these wonderful parents who loved her and understood her no matter what.
"I missed you guys so much!" she sobbed, hugging them tightly.
"If your home isn't here...it's going to be hard, but we will support you..." Now her mother started to cry.
"I'm glad we talked this through; however, you really shouldn't have come here," her father interrupted the moment of solace, his eyes filled with concern,
"The village...things have changed so much..."
XXXXXXXXXX
Itachi walked through the crowd. The village was in complete ruin, but he noticed the people hadn't given up. Everyone worked together to rebuild the village. Even people from other countries had come to aid.
Itachi noticed Sakura followed her parents upstairs inside the house. She must have told them that she snuck in. He waited around the house for her to finish. He also noticed Hina left after Sakura entered the house. Where was this cat going?
They should leave right after her talk with her parents. The longer they stayed, the harder it would be to leave before being exposed.
Itachi noticed Sakura signaling him to come inside. He did so and entered the house. When he closed the door, he transformed back into himself but froze when he heard two loud gasps behind him.
He quickly turned around and saw both her parents standing next to Sakura. Itachi looked at Sakura, waiting for her explanation.
However, she just looked at the ground and slowly backed away, away from her parents and him, leaning against a wall. Had she betrayed him?
He noticed her parents approaching him, but what was he supposed to do? Attack them? No—people would hear everything. Genjutsu?
He closed his eyes, concentrating to activate his Sharingan but froze when he felt someone embracing him. He opened his eyes and saw Sakura's mother hugging him, even sobbing on his shoulder.
"Thank you for your sacrifice. Thank you for maintaining peace in the village," her mother started, letting go of Itachi and wiping away her tears with the back of her hand. "I'm sorry you and your little brother had to go through all that...I'm sorry for the death of your clan."
Itachi was still startled by what had just happened and even more now after hearing this. Her parents knew the truth. He looked at Sakura, hoping she could explain why she told them the truth.
"Don't worry," her father spoke this time, placing his hand on his shoulder. "We bear no ill will against the village. I do feel there should have been another way. We won't tell anyone this secret."
"It is, and will always be, our home," they both said simultaneously with a smile. Satisfied with this answer, Itachi smiled back. He understood why she told them the truth. She wanted them to understand why she did what she did and didn't want to leave them behind with a bitter bond between them or a misunderstanding.
"Take care of my daughter," her father said quite sternly.
"I will, but..." Itachi said, looking at Sakura, "she's strong. She can take care of herself."
Her father looked at his daughter and nodded. Itachi and Sakura transformed into their disguises and walked out of the house. Casually walking through the village, Itachi noticed Hina was guiding them toward a different location.
"Where are we going?" Itachi wondered.
Sakura motioned for him to go somewhere where nobody was around. Looking at her surroundings to see if it was safe, she took a deep breath and looked at Itachi.
"There is another reason why I told my parents the truth, Itachi," Sakura looked a bit uneasy before proceeding,
"Danzo has become the new Hokage because Tsunade hasn't woken up yet. His first order of business was..."
"Sakura? Don't tell me..." Itachi replied, concern in his voice.
"He has ordered that Sasuke and I are officially missing-nin." Sakura answered, her voice softening, filled with concern and sadness,
"This way, you also have your answer about what would have happened if you had proceeded with your plan to get killed by Sasuke. Sasuke would hopefully be seen as a hero who killed off the traitor of the Leaf and came back to the village, right? Now you see, Danzo wouldn't have left Sasuke alone."
"Rumors about me being dead, thinking he was finally free of my threat, and fearing Sasuke might know the truth or trying to prevent him from finding out, he would rather cut Sasuke off," Itachi finished for her.
Sakura nodded, her heart heavy with the weight of the situation.
"If...not if...WHEN Sasuke hears this, it might motivate him once more, or EVEN MORE, to go after the Elders." Sakura paused and looked at Itachi, clenching her fists,
"This time, I don't think I can stop him...and honestly, I don't think I want to stop him."
Itachi's heart sank as he absorbed Sakura's words. He had always feared this moment would come. Sakura's gaze pierced through the shadows of the village, resolute yet conflicted. They stood in silence, both grappling with the weight of their unspoken fears—the knowledge that the road ahead would be one fraught with emotional turmoil, heartache, and perhaps even violence.
"Danzo is preparing for the emergency meeting of the five Kage," Sakura explained. "If he somehow convinces everyone that Sasuke and I are a threat, then there's no one able to stop him. It's best to inform Sasuke and see what—"
Sakura was cut off when she suddenly felt a chill down her spine.
"Sakura?" Hina jumped and rested on Sakura's shoulder, her ears perked with concern. Hina must have felt the same thing. They nodded in agreement, and with a frustrated sigh, Sakura made her way to exit the village.
"What's wrong? Are you alright?" Itachi asked, quickly following her. She, however, remained silent until they had ended up in the forest just outside the village. Sakura wanted to head where Tsunade was resting. She wanted to say what state Tsunade was in and how Sakura could help her. She felt guilty for leaving the village and Tsunade just like that. She managed to talk it out with her parents and wanted to do the same with Tsunade.
However, that was impossible. She was the Hokage, too close to the Elders. It would only endanger Tsunade, but also herself. Sakura wanted to at least heal Tsunade, return the favor of Tsunade looking after her before she left, and also hoping that if she healed and woke, maybe Danzo would have less power. Since she suddenly felt something was wrong, Sakura was forced to change her plans and needed to confirm something first.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
Waiting for it to finish, Denka popped up after the smoke died down. Denka, who was supposed to be with Sasuke and the others, escorted them where the sound ninja were waiting. Sakura suddenly felt the presence of Denka disappear for a moment. He must have forced himself to summon back to Nekobaa. Nekobaa had informed Sakura that she had backup scrolls just for the ninja cats. If something were to happen, they could use a reverse summoning jutsu.
"Denka!" Sakura called out to her cat worriedly after he showed up, "What happened? I suddenly felt your presence disappear for a second."
"Sasuke! He is in trouble! He was busy fighting the Eight-Tailed Beast!" Denka confessed desperately.
"W-what?!" Sakura and Itachi both yelled at the same time, confusion plastered all over their faces.
'Why? Did he get persuaded by Tobi once again? Is he working with him now? Have I failed?'
~To Be Continued~
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