Categories > Anime/Manga > Naruto > Devotion
Chapter 5: Dilemma
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The first thing Kakashi noticed when he woke up the next morning was that something definitely wasn't right.
What little light came in through the small window wasn't enough to show a normal person an intruder lurking in the room, but Kakashi was anything but normal. He looked around with sharp, trained eyes, scanning every corner for abnormalities. Seeing no one, he sat up quietly and searched for any signs of a trap, also turning up empty handed. After looking around everywhere, he found that the apartment was completely empty...everything was in perfect order.
He shrugged, supposing that it might have been Sakura's absence that had him out of sorts. Her familiar chakra had become a part of life, and everything seemed empty without her.
"No...something else..." he muttered to himself, turning towards the bathroom door and opening it slowly.
Of course, it was spotless. Kakashi had gotten used to cleaning it out, as he'd nursed his own wounds there several times in favor of going to the hospital. Others had scolded him for avoiding medical treatment, but he just couldn't stand them...why go to a hospital when you could take care of yourself?
Nothing seemed out of place. The room was white, clean, and quite boring. He closed his eyes, using his other senses to determine what could be wrong there.
There it was. Another energy...coming out of nowhere. He clearly recognized it and his eyes snapped open as he cursed himself for not realizing it before.
"Orochimaru..."
----
All was quiet in the hospital after Kakashi had finally left, and Tsunade had sent a younger medic, Ichigo, to Sakura's room to watch over her for the night, telling the young woman to call for help if needed. Ichigo had finished her duties around the hospital and settled down with a book at about midnight, making sure not to fall asleep as she waited for the Hokage herself to take over the watch in a few hours. Ichigo didn't know much about Haruno Sakura, but she'd seen her around the hospital plenty of times, and she knew that the Hokage cared for her very much. The young woman didn't want to get on Tsunade's bad side, so she watched the kunoichi carefully.
The clock struck one...and then two...Ichigo began to lose focus on the book and looked around the room a bit, glancing over at Sakura to make sure she was still breathing steadily and wasn't in any distress. The pink-haired girl lay still, her chest rising and falling rhythmically. Ichigo sighed and returned to her book.
A flash of red caught her attention and she frowned, looking up. Her jaw dropped.
Sakura was gone.
No, wait.
Nevermind.
The girl was still there. Ichigo shook her head. Must've been a trick of the light...
But the feeling that something was wrong just wouldn't go away. She stood up and walked over to Sakura's bedside, touching a lock of hair to make sure that the kunoichi was really there and finding that she was. Ichigo closed her eyes, shaking her head again. Stop worrying so much...there's nothing wrong...
At about three she drifted off to sleep, letting her book drop to the floor.
----
"Ichigo!"
Ichigo blinked her heavy eyes, looking up at Tsunade in confusion as the older woman shook her. "What...?"
"Where's Sakura?"
Ichigo looked over at the bed to see the snoozing kunoichi, looking the same as early morning light crept through the window. "Hokage, she's right there...don't you see her?"
Tsunade's eyes widened and she performed a hand sign quickly. Ichigo's eyes widened at the new scene before her.
Sakura was gone, the blood-stained sheets thrown on the floor as if there'd been a struggle. She looked up at the older woman, the distress obvious on her face. "But Hokage...I would've heard...I would've known..."
"It was the Sharingan."
Both women looked up to see the grave copy ninja standing in the doorway, his one visible eye showing a mixture of anger and anxiety. Tsunade stood up straight and turned towards him, knowing that the same look was on her own face. "I expected as much. Do you know where he's taken her?"
Ichigo frowned. "What's going on?"
Both of the older people ignored her. "She can't be far..." Kakashi said quietly, staring at the floor, "You should organize a team to go after them. I'm leaving now." He turned to go but Tsunade stopped him abruptly.
"Take care of my student," she said fiercely.
Kakashi nodded, and then he was gone.
Ichigo stared at the Hokage, wide-eyed, finally mustering up the courage to speak. "W-what's going on...?"
----
"Sakura...Sakura..."
She ran her fingertips over his perfect nose...high cheekbones...flawless skin...beautiful lips.
His dark eye closed as he leaned closer to her.
"Sakura, hurry, wake up!"
She gave into his kiss as he hungrily began to search deeper in the cavern of her mouth, tilting his head and hunching over to gain better access.
"Sakura!"
Her eyes snapped open to look into charcoal black ones as they gazed down at her.
"Sa...Sasuke..." She muttered, her breath hitching in fear. She rose to her elbows and grimaced, realizing that the wounds on her arms were worse than she'd thought. "Get...get away from me..."
He stood up and howled in pain, clutching his head and squeezing his eyes shut. She nearly jumped out of her skin, rising quickly instead as she watched him in confusion.
"Sakura, you have to get away from here now!"
The hiss was gone, leaving the voice that she'd known and loved so long ago. She frowned in fear and confusion, backing away. "But why...Sasuke? What's wrong with you? Why are you letting me go? Is this some kind of game!?"
He stared at her, his eyes flashing red before reverting back to black. "No, Sakura, you have to get back to safety while I'm in control of my body..." He lifted an erratically shaking hand, pointing to his left. "That way...Konoha's back that way..." He let out another ear-splitting scream and she turned quickly to run away. A million thoughts flew through her head as she picked up speed. Sasuke's still in there? Protecting me? Is there really a way to get him back...?
His screams echoed around her, slowly getting farther and farther away as she ran and finally collapsed, unable to go any further.
----
Kakashi found his ex-student in a small village outside of Konoha a couple hours later, where some townspeople had found her in the forest and taken her in to rest. They said that she'd muttered to them about random and unexplainable things as they'd taken her to their house, often mentioning ninja. Kakashi quickly informed them that she was from Hidden Leaf and that he would take her back from there, thanking them politely before taking her away.
She slept for a few more hours after he carefully carried her back to his apartment and tucked her in to bed, more tender than he would ever admit to be. Naruto arrived just a few minutes after they got back, agreeing to watch over her while Kakashi went to go and get Tsunade so she could evaluate Sakura's injuries and he could explain the wounds that had decorated Sakura's arms.
After a quick examination, the Hokage informed the two worried men that Sakura was simply exhausted from a lot of running done the previous night...probably through thick brush and briars. "She'll be just fine..." she confirmed, "He doesn't seem to have...done anything to her this time."
Kakashi simply nodded, while Naruto frowned in confusion. "I wonder how she got away..." he murmured.
Both older people shrugged, and Kakashi stood up, stretching his back a little. "Hokage, I have something I'd like to discuss with you...Naruto, you stay here and take care of Sakura."
The blonde nodded firmly and Tsunade led the way out of the room, turning and falling hopelessly onto the couch as the tall copy ninja shut the door behind them. "I can't believe he snuck in right around me...I'm the Hokage, and he still managed to take her right from under my nose!"
"I'm led to believe he planned on her going to the hospital all along," Kakashi muttered, taking a seat across from her. Her eyes widened as he continued. "He was here too...the hallucinations weren't natural, they were brought on my Sasuke's Sharingan. I think that he probably used hallucinations to make her slit her own wrists, as well as have those terrible dreams and the dementia we thought was from all the stress. He never came inside...I've got traps on the windows and doors...but he did managed to put her in trances from outside."
"Damn him..." Tsunade growled, looking resolutely at Kakashi. "We have to find him and bring him down before he can hurt her again. I'm sending a team out as soon as possible-"
"Even I know that that's completely irrational," he said, cutting her off, "This is Orochimaru we're talking about...and he's using Sasuke's body and chakra. The two of them could never be defeated by even our most skilled ANBU team."
She sighed. "Then what are we supposed to do?"
"Well..."
----
Sakura looked around through blurry eyes as she took in her surroundings. I'm back in Kakashi's room...
"Sakura!" a familiar masculine voice said from beside her.
She squinted. "Tone it down, Naruto..."
"Sorry." The blonde sat back a little, but stayed tense in seat, ready to help her with anything. "Sakura, are you alright?"
She groaned. "I just feel tired...what happened?"
He stared at her, his eyes flashing red before reverting back to black. "No, Sakura, you have to get back to safety while I'm in control of my body..."
She gasped and Naruto was on the edge of his seat again at the sharp intake of breath. "Hey, you sure you're alright?!"
Despite the pounding headache that overrode her senses at that moment, she sat up abruptly, grabbing Naruto's hand. "Sasuke's still in there!" she said, her eyes wide and her breath quick. Naruto's expression matched hers.
"You mean...we can get him back...?"
"I'm sure of it!" she said, smiling a little, "We just have to...we just have to seal Orochimaru in there...Sasuke was strong enough to save me! That's how I got away, Sasuke took control of his body again...and he saved me!"
"But he..."
"Everything alright?"
The two young ninja looked over to see Kakashi leaning against the doorframe, concern showing in his visible eye. Sakura turned towards him with the same enthusiasm, but it quickly dissipated when she remembered what he'd said when she'd first woken up.
"But there's no way to get him back."
"Kakashi...why'd you tell me there was no way to get him back?"
His eye widened considerably, but she just continued to gaze at him. He looked from her to Naruto as the blonde followed suit.
----
Kakashi really did have his reasons for telling Sakura that Sasuke couldn't be brought back. He knew that even though her confidence in Sasuke was shattered, it would be brought back in full force with the knowledge that Orochimaru was the one controlling Sasuke's body at the time, and that she as a medic really could do something to help him...it had seemed like the right thing to do to keep it from her.
Now it was coming back to bite him as she watched him appraisingly, waiting for an answer.
"I thought you would've gone after him," Kakashi said simply, making sure that his obsidian eye didn't betray his anxiety.
A growl emanated from low in Naruto's throat and Kakashi looked at the young man in frustration. "There was a way to help Sasuke and you didn't tell us...?" he said through gritted teeth. Kakashi sighed, shaking his head.
"I couldn't have my students going out after a psychopathic murderer...even if he used to be a friend," Kakashi said, a hint of annoyance in his voice. He knew that they wouldn't understand, and he already felt like a piece of shit for keeping it from them. "I was protecting you."
Sakura's eyes narrowed slightly, but she put a hand over Naruto's to calm him down. The young man looked over at her in surprise. "He's right," she said quietly.
Kakashi hadn't been expecting that. Sakura had always been extremely shortsighted and naive in regard to Sasuke, and she was taking this well compared to Kakashi's expectations of her. Maybe she'd grown up after all...
She got up slowly and Kakashi watched with growing concern as Naruto helped her up. "I'm going to spend the night at Naruto's tonight..." she said quietly, not meeting the copy ninja's eyes. "I'll be back in a few days...don't come check on me, I'll be fine."
Kakashi winced inwardly at the cutting tone of her voice. "Just don't do anything stupid," he said, responding in the same tone despite himself.
"Trust me," she whispered as she passed him.
He just stood there as his two ex-students gathered some of Sakura's things and left, slamming the door behind them.
No matter how much he wanted to stop them, there was nothing he could do.
----
Sakura flipped through the pages of one of Kakashi's old medical books effortlessly, not really looking at the information inside as Naruto walked towards her with a steaming cup of instant ramen.
"What's wrong?" he said, quieter than average but loud nonetheless.
She smiled at him slightly, shrugging. He'd matured so much, growing into a little sense of nurturing and rationality. "I don't know...don't you feel...well...betrayed?"
He nodded, frowning. "Everything's changed...I always thought that Sensei would tell us if there were any way to help Sasuke...and Sasuke's going all crazy on us and becoming a missing nin and killing his brother and all that..."
She silently agreed, deciding against correcting his grammar. She'd thought that after how close the three of them had become after Sasuke's departure...especially between she and Kakashi...he would've let them in on any information he had. "I just wish that Orochimaru had never shown up that time at the exams...that Sasuke hadn't...hadn't...." She sniffled quietly and Naruto's eyes widened as he realized that she was crying.
"Sakura!" he said, awkwardly patting her on the back. "Don't...don't cry!"
The kunoichi looked up at him, tears streaming over her porcelain skin. "I...I can't help it...I mean....first Sasuke's good...and then he's bad...and then he's good again! And our sensei...Kakashi..."
Naruto patted her back a little more, setting down his precious ramen to take a try at wiping the tears off her face. "Oh Sakura, it's OK..."
"No it's not," she sobbed, seeming more and more like her old self every second. She blinked some of the tears out of her eyes and flung her arms around her friend's neck, breaking into a fresh wave of crying and burying her head in his shoulder. "Ee isht ee..." she sobbed, her voice muffled in his orange T-shirt. He frowned.
"What? 'Ee isht ee'," he repeated, testing the words himself, "Ee isht...he isst...he kissed you?!" He grabbed her shoulders and pulled her away from him quickly, staring at her. Of course, he knew who she meant...but it couldn't be true... "Sasuke kissed you?" he asked, though he knew that wasn't what she was saying.
"No...it...Ka..."
"SENSEI KISSED YOU?!?!?!?!" Naruto exploded. Sakura drew back, her tears coming silently in the aftermath of Naruto's outburst. She nodded, biting her lip, and Naruto glared over at the door, standing up quickly. "I'm gonna..."
"No, Naruto, stop!" she said abruptly, "I kissed him back." He turned around, his eyes wide, to see her crying again, and he quickly returned to give her an awkward hug. "I just...I'm so confused..."
"It's OK Sakura..." he said, grateful for the slight sense of care that adulthood had brought him, "It's OK..."
----
Kakashi groaned unhappily as he walked down the hall to his bedroom, preparing for another night alone in the apartment.
He should've been used to it, but Sakura's bright presence, though sometimes very depressed over the week, had changed everything there. Now things reeked of a floral, feminine shampoo that Kakashi strangely found himself liking; medic journals that had once belonged to Rin lay scattered around the living room; and Sakura's absence left him with nobody to take care of and everything to feel sorry about.
It killed him that she was away voluntarily tonight, but he felt better about leaving her with Naruto. Kakashi knew that the blonde was fiercely protective of Sakura, and that he wouldn't let any harm come to her...but at the same time, he was a little jealous.
This brought about all new thoughts. When had he started getting jealous of Naruto? When had he started getting jealous of any other man who interacted with Sakura? He supposed it was a recent development, and that it had probably happened at about the same time he decided to kiss her.
Kakashi knew that he shouldn't have been attracted to her - she was his old student, like a daughter to him, and it was wrong for him to have those feelings, let alone act upon them. But she was a beautiful, smart, and kind woman, and he couldn't help but be attracted to this girl that had suddenly become so much more to him.
Did he love her? No, it was just lust...or that's what he told himself. But he had so many reasons to fall in love with the pink-haired kunoichi...
Had he kept the possibility of Sasuke's recovery from Sakura because he was jealous? That's not like me... he told himself firmly. He would never place himself above his duty. And it was only rational to keep that secret from her...
His conversation with Tsunade earlier that day gave him doubts.
"Even I know that that's completely irrational," he said, cutting her off, "This is Orochimaru we're talking about...and he's using Sasuke's body and chakra. The two of them could never be defeated by even our most skilled ANBU team."
She sighed. "Then what are we supposed to do?"
"Well...if we could somehow catch him unawares, we could seal Orochimaru inside Sasuke...but it would take a skilled medic, and someone that could get close to Sasuke at that."
They were both silent for a long moment before Tsunade looked up at him, her eyes distant and her voice strangely quiet. "I'm sure that Sakura would be glad to do it for Sasuke."
Kakashi frowned, automatically ruling the girl out. "She's been through too much with him...you couldn't ask her to do that..."
Tsunade shook her head. "Again, I'm sure that she would do it for Sasuke...and it would make her happy...I don't know, if it's her only shot at freedom we should try it. We don't want her to live in his shadow forever, do we?" She glared. "How would you feel if she was taken away from us? If she went willingly I'm sure she wouldn't be injured. And Sasuke may be able to control Orochimaru enough to take good care of her and let her perform the seal...you can go and watch over her if you must. You're stealthy enough to get away with it."
"You want to put her in that kind of danger?"
"I trust her, Kakashi. Why don't you?"
Why didn't he trust her? Why couldn't he let her make her own choices? Was it really the paternal instinct he'd gained with his team...or was it something more?
He turned over on his stomach and removed his mask, letting the soft pillow brush against his skin and breathing in Sakura's scent. Phantom hands traced over his shoulder blades and down to his lower back, across his chest and abdomen as he drifted off to sleep, imagining her lips pressed against his jaw and wishing that she were there in his arms.
Definitely something more.
Oh, shit.
----
A/N: I was actually worried that this chapter wouldn't be long enough...but apparently that worked out fine, because it's LONGER THAN THE LAST ONE! YES! So anyway, I have lots of notes about this chapter...
If you felt like Sakura's kidnapping from the hospital was a little rushed, don't. It's all part of my plan...and I know it seemed hasty...but if you can see it I'm trying to make you pity Sasuke. So PITY HIM! He's being controlled by Orochimaru, and he's being forced to hurt the girl he loves. It's sad. So don't be too mad at him, because it's not really his fault.
Second; I might have a few more bit parts like Ichigo. She won't be in any other part of the story, she was just there to be irresponsible.
Last, I got a very helpful review from Riokshte on Ficwad. I guess you guys have seen through my bluff...I honestly don't know much about Naruto and its characters. I've seen what I can of the show on Cartoon Network in the past two months, but that's it. My writing of KakaSaku fanfiction stems from a KakaSaku withdrawal...which stems from an unhealthy infatuation with our beloved copy nin. So I didn't think my characterization would be that great...but Riokshte gave me quite a few helpful pointers! If anyone else has any notes on characterization, I would greatly appreciate it.
On request from this same review, I included more Naruto characterization...I hope it worked out well. : /
Anyways...on another note, I might be getting a beta. Or several, so that I can publish ASAP at all times. If you've noticed, I'm not the best proofreader...and I sometimes don't even go over my stuff again. I just write and post. Because, yes, I'm lazy, and I write for pleasure only. Please don't look down on me. :(
Please review, I love you all!
--Kat
P.S. Almost forgot to thank Fallen Deity 7 for the chapter name. Thanks! :D
----
The first thing Kakashi noticed when he woke up the next morning was that something definitely wasn't right.
What little light came in through the small window wasn't enough to show a normal person an intruder lurking in the room, but Kakashi was anything but normal. He looked around with sharp, trained eyes, scanning every corner for abnormalities. Seeing no one, he sat up quietly and searched for any signs of a trap, also turning up empty handed. After looking around everywhere, he found that the apartment was completely empty...everything was in perfect order.
He shrugged, supposing that it might have been Sakura's absence that had him out of sorts. Her familiar chakra had become a part of life, and everything seemed empty without her.
"No...something else..." he muttered to himself, turning towards the bathroom door and opening it slowly.
Of course, it was spotless. Kakashi had gotten used to cleaning it out, as he'd nursed his own wounds there several times in favor of going to the hospital. Others had scolded him for avoiding medical treatment, but he just couldn't stand them...why go to a hospital when you could take care of yourself?
Nothing seemed out of place. The room was white, clean, and quite boring. He closed his eyes, using his other senses to determine what could be wrong there.
There it was. Another energy...coming out of nowhere. He clearly recognized it and his eyes snapped open as he cursed himself for not realizing it before.
"Orochimaru..."
----
All was quiet in the hospital after Kakashi had finally left, and Tsunade had sent a younger medic, Ichigo, to Sakura's room to watch over her for the night, telling the young woman to call for help if needed. Ichigo had finished her duties around the hospital and settled down with a book at about midnight, making sure not to fall asleep as she waited for the Hokage herself to take over the watch in a few hours. Ichigo didn't know much about Haruno Sakura, but she'd seen her around the hospital plenty of times, and she knew that the Hokage cared for her very much. The young woman didn't want to get on Tsunade's bad side, so she watched the kunoichi carefully.
The clock struck one...and then two...Ichigo began to lose focus on the book and looked around the room a bit, glancing over at Sakura to make sure she was still breathing steadily and wasn't in any distress. The pink-haired girl lay still, her chest rising and falling rhythmically. Ichigo sighed and returned to her book.
A flash of red caught her attention and she frowned, looking up. Her jaw dropped.
Sakura was gone.
No, wait.
Nevermind.
The girl was still there. Ichigo shook her head. Must've been a trick of the light...
But the feeling that something was wrong just wouldn't go away. She stood up and walked over to Sakura's bedside, touching a lock of hair to make sure that the kunoichi was really there and finding that she was. Ichigo closed her eyes, shaking her head again. Stop worrying so much...there's nothing wrong...
At about three she drifted off to sleep, letting her book drop to the floor.
----
"Ichigo!"
Ichigo blinked her heavy eyes, looking up at Tsunade in confusion as the older woman shook her. "What...?"
"Where's Sakura?"
Ichigo looked over at the bed to see the snoozing kunoichi, looking the same as early morning light crept through the window. "Hokage, she's right there...don't you see her?"
Tsunade's eyes widened and she performed a hand sign quickly. Ichigo's eyes widened at the new scene before her.
Sakura was gone, the blood-stained sheets thrown on the floor as if there'd been a struggle. She looked up at the older woman, the distress obvious on her face. "But Hokage...I would've heard...I would've known..."
"It was the Sharingan."
Both women looked up to see the grave copy ninja standing in the doorway, his one visible eye showing a mixture of anger and anxiety. Tsunade stood up straight and turned towards him, knowing that the same look was on her own face. "I expected as much. Do you know where he's taken her?"
Ichigo frowned. "What's going on?"
Both of the older people ignored her. "She can't be far..." Kakashi said quietly, staring at the floor, "You should organize a team to go after them. I'm leaving now." He turned to go but Tsunade stopped him abruptly.
"Take care of my student," she said fiercely.
Kakashi nodded, and then he was gone.
Ichigo stared at the Hokage, wide-eyed, finally mustering up the courage to speak. "W-what's going on...?"
----
"Sakura...Sakura..."
She ran her fingertips over his perfect nose...high cheekbones...flawless skin...beautiful lips.
His dark eye closed as he leaned closer to her.
"Sakura, hurry, wake up!"
She gave into his kiss as he hungrily began to search deeper in the cavern of her mouth, tilting his head and hunching over to gain better access.
"Sakura!"
Her eyes snapped open to look into charcoal black ones as they gazed down at her.
"Sa...Sasuke..." She muttered, her breath hitching in fear. She rose to her elbows and grimaced, realizing that the wounds on her arms were worse than she'd thought. "Get...get away from me..."
He stood up and howled in pain, clutching his head and squeezing his eyes shut. She nearly jumped out of her skin, rising quickly instead as she watched him in confusion.
"Sakura, you have to get away from here now!"
The hiss was gone, leaving the voice that she'd known and loved so long ago. She frowned in fear and confusion, backing away. "But why...Sasuke? What's wrong with you? Why are you letting me go? Is this some kind of game!?"
He stared at her, his eyes flashing red before reverting back to black. "No, Sakura, you have to get back to safety while I'm in control of my body..." He lifted an erratically shaking hand, pointing to his left. "That way...Konoha's back that way..." He let out another ear-splitting scream and she turned quickly to run away. A million thoughts flew through her head as she picked up speed. Sasuke's still in there? Protecting me? Is there really a way to get him back...?
His screams echoed around her, slowly getting farther and farther away as she ran and finally collapsed, unable to go any further.
----
Kakashi found his ex-student in a small village outside of Konoha a couple hours later, where some townspeople had found her in the forest and taken her in to rest. They said that she'd muttered to them about random and unexplainable things as they'd taken her to their house, often mentioning ninja. Kakashi quickly informed them that she was from Hidden Leaf and that he would take her back from there, thanking them politely before taking her away.
She slept for a few more hours after he carefully carried her back to his apartment and tucked her in to bed, more tender than he would ever admit to be. Naruto arrived just a few minutes after they got back, agreeing to watch over her while Kakashi went to go and get Tsunade so she could evaluate Sakura's injuries and he could explain the wounds that had decorated Sakura's arms.
After a quick examination, the Hokage informed the two worried men that Sakura was simply exhausted from a lot of running done the previous night...probably through thick brush and briars. "She'll be just fine..." she confirmed, "He doesn't seem to have...done anything to her this time."
Kakashi simply nodded, while Naruto frowned in confusion. "I wonder how she got away..." he murmured.
Both older people shrugged, and Kakashi stood up, stretching his back a little. "Hokage, I have something I'd like to discuss with you...Naruto, you stay here and take care of Sakura."
The blonde nodded firmly and Tsunade led the way out of the room, turning and falling hopelessly onto the couch as the tall copy ninja shut the door behind them. "I can't believe he snuck in right around me...I'm the Hokage, and he still managed to take her right from under my nose!"
"I'm led to believe he planned on her going to the hospital all along," Kakashi muttered, taking a seat across from her. Her eyes widened as he continued. "He was here too...the hallucinations weren't natural, they were brought on my Sasuke's Sharingan. I think that he probably used hallucinations to make her slit her own wrists, as well as have those terrible dreams and the dementia we thought was from all the stress. He never came inside...I've got traps on the windows and doors...but he did managed to put her in trances from outside."
"Damn him..." Tsunade growled, looking resolutely at Kakashi. "We have to find him and bring him down before he can hurt her again. I'm sending a team out as soon as possible-"
"Even I know that that's completely irrational," he said, cutting her off, "This is Orochimaru we're talking about...and he's using Sasuke's body and chakra. The two of them could never be defeated by even our most skilled ANBU team."
She sighed. "Then what are we supposed to do?"
"Well..."
----
Sakura looked around through blurry eyes as she took in her surroundings. I'm back in Kakashi's room...
"Sakura!" a familiar masculine voice said from beside her.
She squinted. "Tone it down, Naruto..."
"Sorry." The blonde sat back a little, but stayed tense in seat, ready to help her with anything. "Sakura, are you alright?"
She groaned. "I just feel tired...what happened?"
He stared at her, his eyes flashing red before reverting back to black. "No, Sakura, you have to get back to safety while I'm in control of my body..."
She gasped and Naruto was on the edge of his seat again at the sharp intake of breath. "Hey, you sure you're alright?!"
Despite the pounding headache that overrode her senses at that moment, she sat up abruptly, grabbing Naruto's hand. "Sasuke's still in there!" she said, her eyes wide and her breath quick. Naruto's expression matched hers.
"You mean...we can get him back...?"
"I'm sure of it!" she said, smiling a little, "We just have to...we just have to seal Orochimaru in there...Sasuke was strong enough to save me! That's how I got away, Sasuke took control of his body again...and he saved me!"
"But he..."
"Everything alright?"
The two young ninja looked over to see Kakashi leaning against the doorframe, concern showing in his visible eye. Sakura turned towards him with the same enthusiasm, but it quickly dissipated when she remembered what he'd said when she'd first woken up.
"But there's no way to get him back."
"Kakashi...why'd you tell me there was no way to get him back?"
His eye widened considerably, but she just continued to gaze at him. He looked from her to Naruto as the blonde followed suit.
----
Kakashi really did have his reasons for telling Sakura that Sasuke couldn't be brought back. He knew that even though her confidence in Sasuke was shattered, it would be brought back in full force with the knowledge that Orochimaru was the one controlling Sasuke's body at the time, and that she as a medic really could do something to help him...it had seemed like the right thing to do to keep it from her.
Now it was coming back to bite him as she watched him appraisingly, waiting for an answer.
"I thought you would've gone after him," Kakashi said simply, making sure that his obsidian eye didn't betray his anxiety.
A growl emanated from low in Naruto's throat and Kakashi looked at the young man in frustration. "There was a way to help Sasuke and you didn't tell us...?" he said through gritted teeth. Kakashi sighed, shaking his head.
"I couldn't have my students going out after a psychopathic murderer...even if he used to be a friend," Kakashi said, a hint of annoyance in his voice. He knew that they wouldn't understand, and he already felt like a piece of shit for keeping it from them. "I was protecting you."
Sakura's eyes narrowed slightly, but she put a hand over Naruto's to calm him down. The young man looked over at her in surprise. "He's right," she said quietly.
Kakashi hadn't been expecting that. Sakura had always been extremely shortsighted and naive in regard to Sasuke, and she was taking this well compared to Kakashi's expectations of her. Maybe she'd grown up after all...
She got up slowly and Kakashi watched with growing concern as Naruto helped her up. "I'm going to spend the night at Naruto's tonight..." she said quietly, not meeting the copy ninja's eyes. "I'll be back in a few days...don't come check on me, I'll be fine."
Kakashi winced inwardly at the cutting tone of her voice. "Just don't do anything stupid," he said, responding in the same tone despite himself.
"Trust me," she whispered as she passed him.
He just stood there as his two ex-students gathered some of Sakura's things and left, slamming the door behind them.
No matter how much he wanted to stop them, there was nothing he could do.
----
Sakura flipped through the pages of one of Kakashi's old medical books effortlessly, not really looking at the information inside as Naruto walked towards her with a steaming cup of instant ramen.
"What's wrong?" he said, quieter than average but loud nonetheless.
She smiled at him slightly, shrugging. He'd matured so much, growing into a little sense of nurturing and rationality. "I don't know...don't you feel...well...betrayed?"
He nodded, frowning. "Everything's changed...I always thought that Sensei would tell us if there were any way to help Sasuke...and Sasuke's going all crazy on us and becoming a missing nin and killing his brother and all that..."
She silently agreed, deciding against correcting his grammar. She'd thought that after how close the three of them had become after Sasuke's departure...especially between she and Kakashi...he would've let them in on any information he had. "I just wish that Orochimaru had never shown up that time at the exams...that Sasuke hadn't...hadn't...." She sniffled quietly and Naruto's eyes widened as he realized that she was crying.
"Sakura!" he said, awkwardly patting her on the back. "Don't...don't cry!"
The kunoichi looked up at him, tears streaming over her porcelain skin. "I...I can't help it...I mean....first Sasuke's good...and then he's bad...and then he's good again! And our sensei...Kakashi..."
Naruto patted her back a little more, setting down his precious ramen to take a try at wiping the tears off her face. "Oh Sakura, it's OK..."
"No it's not," she sobbed, seeming more and more like her old self every second. She blinked some of the tears out of her eyes and flung her arms around her friend's neck, breaking into a fresh wave of crying and burying her head in his shoulder. "Ee isht ee..." she sobbed, her voice muffled in his orange T-shirt. He frowned.
"What? 'Ee isht ee'," he repeated, testing the words himself, "Ee isht...he isst...he kissed you?!" He grabbed her shoulders and pulled her away from him quickly, staring at her. Of course, he knew who she meant...but it couldn't be true... "Sasuke kissed you?" he asked, though he knew that wasn't what she was saying.
"No...it...Ka..."
"SENSEI KISSED YOU?!?!?!?!" Naruto exploded. Sakura drew back, her tears coming silently in the aftermath of Naruto's outburst. She nodded, biting her lip, and Naruto glared over at the door, standing up quickly. "I'm gonna..."
"No, Naruto, stop!" she said abruptly, "I kissed him back." He turned around, his eyes wide, to see her crying again, and he quickly returned to give her an awkward hug. "I just...I'm so confused..."
"It's OK Sakura..." he said, grateful for the slight sense of care that adulthood had brought him, "It's OK..."
----
Kakashi groaned unhappily as he walked down the hall to his bedroom, preparing for another night alone in the apartment.
He should've been used to it, but Sakura's bright presence, though sometimes very depressed over the week, had changed everything there. Now things reeked of a floral, feminine shampoo that Kakashi strangely found himself liking; medic journals that had once belonged to Rin lay scattered around the living room; and Sakura's absence left him with nobody to take care of and everything to feel sorry about.
It killed him that she was away voluntarily tonight, but he felt better about leaving her with Naruto. Kakashi knew that the blonde was fiercely protective of Sakura, and that he wouldn't let any harm come to her...but at the same time, he was a little jealous.
This brought about all new thoughts. When had he started getting jealous of Naruto? When had he started getting jealous of any other man who interacted with Sakura? He supposed it was a recent development, and that it had probably happened at about the same time he decided to kiss her.
Kakashi knew that he shouldn't have been attracted to her - she was his old student, like a daughter to him, and it was wrong for him to have those feelings, let alone act upon them. But she was a beautiful, smart, and kind woman, and he couldn't help but be attracted to this girl that had suddenly become so much more to him.
Did he love her? No, it was just lust...or that's what he told himself. But he had so many reasons to fall in love with the pink-haired kunoichi...
Had he kept the possibility of Sasuke's recovery from Sakura because he was jealous? That's not like me... he told himself firmly. He would never place himself above his duty. And it was only rational to keep that secret from her...
His conversation with Tsunade earlier that day gave him doubts.
"Even I know that that's completely irrational," he said, cutting her off, "This is Orochimaru we're talking about...and he's using Sasuke's body and chakra. The two of them could never be defeated by even our most skilled ANBU team."
She sighed. "Then what are we supposed to do?"
"Well...if we could somehow catch him unawares, we could seal Orochimaru inside Sasuke...but it would take a skilled medic, and someone that could get close to Sasuke at that."
They were both silent for a long moment before Tsunade looked up at him, her eyes distant and her voice strangely quiet. "I'm sure that Sakura would be glad to do it for Sasuke."
Kakashi frowned, automatically ruling the girl out. "She's been through too much with him...you couldn't ask her to do that..."
Tsunade shook her head. "Again, I'm sure that she would do it for Sasuke...and it would make her happy...I don't know, if it's her only shot at freedom we should try it. We don't want her to live in his shadow forever, do we?" She glared. "How would you feel if she was taken away from us? If she went willingly I'm sure she wouldn't be injured. And Sasuke may be able to control Orochimaru enough to take good care of her and let her perform the seal...you can go and watch over her if you must. You're stealthy enough to get away with it."
"You want to put her in that kind of danger?"
"I trust her, Kakashi. Why don't you?"
Why didn't he trust her? Why couldn't he let her make her own choices? Was it really the paternal instinct he'd gained with his team...or was it something more?
He turned over on his stomach and removed his mask, letting the soft pillow brush against his skin and breathing in Sakura's scent. Phantom hands traced over his shoulder blades and down to his lower back, across his chest and abdomen as he drifted off to sleep, imagining her lips pressed against his jaw and wishing that she were there in his arms.
Definitely something more.
Oh, shit.
----
A/N: I was actually worried that this chapter wouldn't be long enough...but apparently that worked out fine, because it's LONGER THAN THE LAST ONE! YES! So anyway, I have lots of notes about this chapter...
If you felt like Sakura's kidnapping from the hospital was a little rushed, don't. It's all part of my plan...and I know it seemed hasty...but if you can see it I'm trying to make you pity Sasuke. So PITY HIM! He's being controlled by Orochimaru, and he's being forced to hurt the girl he loves. It's sad. So don't be too mad at him, because it's not really his fault.
Second; I might have a few more bit parts like Ichigo. She won't be in any other part of the story, she was just there to be irresponsible.
Last, I got a very helpful review from Riokshte on Ficwad. I guess you guys have seen through my bluff...I honestly don't know much about Naruto and its characters. I've seen what I can of the show on Cartoon Network in the past two months, but that's it. My writing of KakaSaku fanfiction stems from a KakaSaku withdrawal...which stems from an unhealthy infatuation with our beloved copy nin. So I didn't think my characterization would be that great...but Riokshte gave me quite a few helpful pointers! If anyone else has any notes on characterization, I would greatly appreciate it.
On request from this same review, I included more Naruto characterization...I hope it worked out well. : /
Anyways...on another note, I might be getting a beta. Or several, so that I can publish ASAP at all times. If you've noticed, I'm not the best proofreader...and I sometimes don't even go over my stuff again. I just write and post. Because, yes, I'm lazy, and I write for pleasure only. Please don't look down on me. :(
Please review, I love you all!
--Kat
P.S. Almost forgot to thank Fallen Deity 7 for the chapter name. Thanks! :D
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