Part 4 in the Obelisk series: Kingdom of Man, Kingdom of Beasts, Kingdom of Monsters, and Kingdom of Gods.

OBELISK:
KINGDOM OF GODS

Gladiator Boneyard

"I went into the desert to forget about you. But the sand was the color of your hair. The desert sky was the color of your eyes. There was nowhere I could go that wouldn't be you."
Jeffrey Eugenides- "Middlesex"

Her wrists had been burning for days, chaffed and raw from the metal shackles around her wrists. Sakura stared out across the desert lands she had to follow the other slaves through, watching it go on and on and on without end. She would have to trek it all in order to get to the shore where boats were waiting to take them to market.

It had taken them days to get through the hungry lands, where nothing grew. It tore at Sakura's patience more than anything else, to wait in her shackles and see nothing for miles around. To sleep and see sand and wake again only to do it all over again the next night made her mad. She was not meant for endless filler. She had a job to do. She was here in the dream world to find the Obelisk and move on to the next level. That was the whole reason she gave up on her assured happiness.

"Don't drag!" one of the slavers barked, striking out at someone at the back of the line.

Sakura looked back over her shoulder and saw someone smaller than her, younger too, struggling to keep up with the others. The girl was panting and her face was red, if not devoid of details. She wasn't an actor, she wasn't important, but she was suffering.

'What will you do?' the spirits in the wind seemed to tither for her ears. Sakura didn't know how sane she was anymore, or how wondrous the dream was since entering the last gate.

So far, every night for a solid week had been the same. The first day back into the dream she was lost in distortion and chaos as raiders ripped her from a tent in the middle of a grassy plain and folded her into a box with several other bodies. After that terrible night caught in claustrophobia she was yanked out and slammed into a pair of shackles and forced to match behind a band of other slaves.

Sakura tensed in her shackles and rattled them again. She could feel the energy that gave her power in the dream world, in the kingdom of beasts they called it chakra, but inside the shackles she was muted. The shackles kept her power at bay, blocking it and sucking away what was caught in overflow. She didn't know what was worse, not having powers or having powers that were worth nothing.

The line that connected one slave to another rattled and went taunt, forcing the bodies before and after Sakura to still and turn to look at the back of the line. The girl from before was gasping, lips slit and bleeding, eyes crying without tears from dehydration. She had fallen, halting the trek for all those still in chains linked to hers, and it didn't look like she would be getting up again soon.

One of the slavers, a man dressed head to toe in sand colored robes, prodded her body with his foot and then drew his sword. It was long and curved and came down angry. Sakura though it was meant for the chains, to separate her from the rest of them, but there was a wet splatter of red around his ankles as he lifted again and finished severing her hands from her arms. She convulsed and Sakura could only imagine the pain before a second slaver came over with a knife and struck it thorough her neck, cursing out the first slaver for his cruelty.

The broken men and woman around Sakura shivered at the sight, and she knew why he had cut the girls hands instead of the chain. Fear. There were five male slavers and two female, but between the seven masked figures there were over thirty slaves in chains, not including the dead girl.

The slaver with blood all over his legs turned and wiped his sword while watching the slaves in line, scanning their face for fear. He stared extra long at Sakura when she didn't flinch or drop her eyes. Maybe that wasn't a wise thing of her to do while still in chains, but he didn't make anything of it. Instead, he replaced his sword in its sheath and moved to the front of the line.

It was another two night of fear laced trekking through the dry lands before they laid down and made came under a dune of sand and rock. Sakura slept on the edge, but between the faceless people she had walked ahead and behind for nearly eight dreams.

Before she fell awake, she breathed deep and smelled something different in the air.

Salt.

"Do you want a coffee before going back?" Ino asks, tying up the front of her robe as she walks out into the living room where Sakura spent the night again. "I have tea too. You like tea, I remember."

It's morning. The dreamworld of sand and slaves and chains is gone, at least it is for a few more hours. Going without sleep doesn't work forever, and before she's ready, Sakura will have to dream of that world again.

That's what living with a curse is like.

Sakura ties up the laces on her boots and grunts something, because shaking her head hurts too much. It was unfair how the same night out could make her feel like the hunchback of Noterdam with a semi trailer stuck in her forehead while Ino looked like she just stepped off the page of a lingerie spread for Paris Fashion Week. It was an apt comparison, Sakura's seen the glossy prints Ino has of herself hanging and framed in her bedroom.

"I need to get going. I have work."

"You said your boss lost a client and that you don't have as much work anymore, I thought."

Sakura groaned. "No, the opposite. It's nearly tax season and everyone is crazy and there are so many last minute bastards that want six months worth of work done in two weeks. Ugh, I shouldn't have gone out last night."

"You needed it. Gosh, Sakura, you look like you still need some time off. It's killing you to wake up in the morning." Ino sinks down into the seat alongside Sakura and stretches over, hugging her friend's shoulder.

"I can't take time off," Sakura whispered, hating how loud Ino's voice became when it was right next to her ear. "I need to get going. I'll get something on the way."

Sakura tried to shake Ino off, but instead of falling away the blond rose with Sakura, still hugging her shoulders, and followed Sakura all the way to the door. The closer she got, the more weight Ino put into her hold on Sakura, trying to drag the pale girl back.

"You were coughing in your sleep last night and super restless. Are you sure you're okay?"

"Ino, you need to stop being such a creep to other people when they sleep," Sakura bit out before a yawn forced her jaw open again and interrupted her words.

The blond pouted. "That was one time and the guy gets weird about it, turning it into a joke. I just like watching people sleep, it's not hurting anyone. Let me live."

"Let me go."

"Nooooo," the blond mewed, tugging her friend back even harder. "Karin is going to keep you locked up again and I won't see you for days. I'm shooting for a magazine in California next week, I'll be gone for the whole weekend."

"You have a phone."

"It's not the same! I could never do long distance with a relationship, even friends, I have to be there next to them, touching their hands and making sure they're real. Otherwise what's the use?"

"Ino," Sakura sighed, feeling her headach kick. "In another world where I'm not so damn tired I'd tell you to suck a rock and get over it, because you're not four anymore, but right now I really can't fight you on a verbal front so please just let me go. The sooner I get done the sooner I can rest again. Please."

The blond let Sakura go, but pouted loudly. "I'll help you find something else if you need the money. You don't even like your job."

Her head was throbbing and she hated the pressure building up behind her eyes. Sakura wanted to snarl all of a sudden. "Most people don't love their jobs, Ino. That's why it is called a job, and not a hobby. Some of us weren't as fortunate as others and had to settle with what was available."

The reason Ino was where she was now was also the reason why Sakura was struggling to pay bills without any hope of going back to school in the near future.

Maybe it was a bit harsh, but Sakura was too tired and tense to be careful with her words. She had been understanding so far, but if this was the only time she sounded sour about her lot in life in comparison to Ino's, than that wasn't so bad.

Ino would be fine.

Sakura took the stairs two at a time to get to the car port. There was no one else in the hallways, but she always felt watched, but that was how she always felt when she became agitated it seemed.

Climbing into her station wagon Sakura turned on the radio and grimaced when she heard the swing jazz flow easily through her speakers. It made parts of her body vibrate with a pleasant memory. She killed the station and turned it to NPR, never looking behind her to see if Ino was on the balcony watching her drive away.

She didn't believe looking back would do her any good.

Sakura awoke in the dream world to shouting and then she was yanked into running with the group of slaves like they had never run before. There were screams and smoke from far behind them, angry shouting too. Ah, things were happening at last.

She didn't understand the words spoken, there was too much yelling to hear anything clearly, but she understood the urgency. Only three of the slavers were left, the other were absent. Sakura noticed the one who had killed the girl out of mercy was standing closest to her. The one who had chopped the girl's hands off was absent.

In the early morning things were still dark out, but more than the dim there was dust and sand in the air, making it hard to see clearly. Everything was a mess in front of her eyes, but she ran where she was pulled, and didn't think twice of it. As long as she was still in chains, there was nothing she could do.

An arrow killed the slave two bodies ahead of her. Everyone connected to him on the chain snagged as his body became a dead weight to drag through the sand. Another slave was struck in his leg. The wailing from behind her told Sakura there were others who were dying as well. The slavers were cursing, and the mercy killer ran forward to unlock the master link that kept the chain threaded through their shackles. A moment later she heard the click and the slaves on the ends were pulling out, trying to run free.

All around them were modest outcroppings of rocks and rises in the earth, but the easiest path away was one with no cover. Sakura saw a handful run down that way and fall onto their faces with arrows sticking out of their necks. Sakura was free of the chain, but she still had the shackles on that kept her chakra restrained.

Once the chain fell through the loop of her shackles she ran for the largest outcropping of rocks and rolled into the sand, covering herself with dirt and keeping her body as out of sight as possible. She wasn't going to die here after coming so far. She had a curse to beat.

First, she had to see who her enemy was. They had arrows, which meant they had the advantage of long range weapons and the cover of a dusty dusk. She couldn't see much more than shadows way off. She squinted and wanted to spit out the sand she tasted between her teeth. They were tall shadows, large ones too, likely mounted. She was shackled and didn't have a weapon, they weren't worth a frontal assault. She could be smart about this and still win, she had to be.

She didn't know the terrain of her surrounds very well, but she knew how to be adaptive. If there were rock outcrops, there might be something better for cover than what she had first settled on. Sakura crawled on her stomach towards the places where the grass and sand were thinnest. She found more rock under her hands and then a ledge. She turned herself around and lowered herself down, finding plenty of long, thin footholds. She kept climbing down, even after she felt a shelf of sand and grass pass her by. There was a gash in the earth where she could lower herself and hide while still maintaining a decent view of the trail snaking down in front of her rock.

Sakura knew how to wait and that payed off when the cruel slaver, the one who had cut the girls hands, passed by in front of her with a mounted Romans warrior with tanned, leathery skin to his left. Another two horses with mounted riders drew up, but across the rump of their steeds lay an unconscious slave each. Their commander looked unhappy, but maybe he was always that stern.

"It was not an impressive lot this time. I was most disappointed."

"You asked we keep their shackles on. This would have been very different if they were allowed to use their gift."

"The coliseum does not believe in, nor does it allow magic for its fighters. If they are worth anything to us in the ring, they can show it to us now."

"You were mounted and armed. What do you expect of the dehydrated, starved whelps?" The cruel slaver asked with a tone that might have been dismissive, but not disrespectful. He was talking to someone important.

"I expected another Ten girl or boy. The season is dry for my legion and the other units already have impressive fighters. I am dissatisfied."

"The day is not yet up, my friend. There still are slaves to be found."

"Hiding is not fighting. I have no need of a coward."

"I still anticipate your pleasure. Come, we will continue this way." The slaver and the commander turned and Sakura inwardly cursed when she caught sight of the commander's face. Though it was turned away, it was clear and vivid, the way only actors looked inside the dream world. He was a part of the dream she would have to become closer to.

She pressed herself to the rock and waited for them to move out of sight, mulling over their words. They were hunting the slaves as a test, they wanted fighters for a coliseum. He looked like he was dressed in Imperial Roman gold and red, so she didn't doubt the idea that her dream was burrowing from what she knew of the ancient civilization. A coliseum meant gladiators, and gladiators meant fights. It wasn't a stretch to imagine the plot of her new dream.

"Here, tracks."

Sakura's breath caught when she heard a newer voice, one from above. There wasn't much room to move, but there was dust and bits of rock falling on her head. She tried to see up, but it was still dim. A foot came into focus, sandals, and then bare leg. Someone was scaling the wall down to her, and soon she would be able to see his face, meaning he would be able to see her.

Before he could go much further Sakura leapt up and clawed at his leg, dragging him down. It wasn't a far fall, but he landed on his back and struck his head. Sakura didn't stop to check if that did the trick, she already had a rock and was lifting it to smash against his temple.

He didn't have a face, it didn't matter that she killed the man, he was just a part of the dream, he wasn't real.

"Oi?" there was another voice. "Did you fall?" Sakura was out in the open now, still covered by the shadow of the rock-face, but she was still in shackles that gave her limited movement.

The dead solider had a knife on him, maybe something else, but the knife was long and sharp enough for her to work with. When she heard the hurried footsteps she pressed herself up against the rocks where shadows would keep her shaded until a new body moved into view. She didn't hear the words he said, but took the steps to his neck before she had time to think about what she was doing. Sideways into the neck, and then out. Her legs were painted red as she stood over the two bodies.

She had killed before. This wasn't new. She was no stranger to blood, but that had been too easy.

Sakura checked her breathing and realized she wasn't weary. Like the Kingdom of Beasts, this dream didn't put on her the limitations of the waking world. That was likely one of her greatest advantages, to never slow down or tire in a fight. If she had the shackles off she could see what else she could still do.

Sakura looked down at the bloody knife and tried to fit its point into the lock hole. She understood the basics of lock picking, mostly because she loved puzzles and locks were just a different type of puzzle. But this wasn't so much a puzzle as it was an impossible task. The links between one wrist to the other were five long, enough for her to move around semi freely, but the lock hole was under her wrist, and it was nearly impossible to reach it with her dominate hand.

Her legs were cold where the blood still lingered. Sunlight was coming and the sands were starting to glow with the first hints of light. Soon disability would be better and her defense would be lacking. What did that mean for her? Her gun told her to go after the Romans, one of them was an actor. But she had just killed two of his men and she was still a slave in his eyes. What would he do to her once they met?

"What will you do now?"

Sakura whirled to face the new voice. He was dressed like one of the slavers, but one vertical half his face was covered by cloth connecting to a turban. Sakura saw he had two distinctive, red markings on the right side of his face, the only visible part of his head. They reminded her of Kiba, almost. But just as she studied him, he studied her. He wasn't really a slaver.

"You're not an actor, are you…"

"The guide?" he asked in a rough hum that echoed all throughout his body. When Sakura didn't move he went on to nod. "I'm not like Hayate, a manipulated ghost, nor am I like Kimimaru, a subservient desperate for love."

"And Sai?"

"Nor am I like the Sigh of Dejection, wherever he may be." He shook his head and the cloth barely moved. She doubted she would ever see under it. "No, I am your guide, but now one you can anticipate."

"So you just have a brand new angle, right? What is it for you? Sai wanted to help me, Kimimaru wanted to kill me, Hayate wanted a good story but was caught on a leash for Madara. How will you be different?"

"Once upon a time guides were supposed to be neutral forces, offering support to aid the dreamer, but never directly interfering with the dream. Maybe that is who I am, maybe now. Regarding my council and what I say, you will have to make a choice on what to trust, if anything."

"And what do you say?"

"Seek out the legionnaire. He is an Uchiha, one of the few you will ever meet this deep into the curse. His name is Indra and he is looking for a slave like you to fight for him in the coliseum. I won't tell you if that's the only way to finding this gate's Obelisk, but you can be guaranteed that things will happen if you meet with him now."

"That's terribly helpful," Sakura snorted, sarcasm thick. "How do I know he's safe?"

Baki took another step back, starting to turn away. "You don't, but you are the dreamer." He took another step and there was sand all around him. His body broke down and seeped into the wind, just another handful of desert grains. A moment later and Sakura was alone with two dead bodies and a useless knife stuck in her shackle's keyhole.

At least she knew about her guide in this gate. Over a week of mindless filler dreaming and it seemed like things were finally starting to move. She had an idea of what she needed to do, and where she needed to go.

Sakura picked the knife out of her shackles and started to sprint back up the hill, heading in the direction both men had come from. If they had come from that place, than maybe their horses were still there. Horses had saddlebags with things that might be used as keys, right? It would look better to not have her restraints when she meets the new actor.

Indra Uchiha. Just when she thought she had met the last of them, there was one still hiding out. This was the last gate, and after she passed through she would be in the last kingdom. How many people had died if every actor she had ever met was someone who had died with the curse? She knew it was a lot, but there were too many faces and names to put on that long list of numbers. Poor Haku and Zabuza and Kisame. Poor Kiba and Shizune and Tsunade. Poor Neji and Lee and Tenten. Poor Uchihas, each one more miserable in memory than the last.

Sakura came to the crest of the ridge and saw a pair of horses, left behind with their simple saddles and pretty red ornaments. The gold details that were on Indra's horse were missing, but that was likely because the ones she killed were not as important. Indra was their leader.

The chaffing of her wrists remind Sakura what she is after, and she searches through the bag behind the horses saddles, looking for something she can use. The first horse complied easily enough, but when she goes for the second, it rears and cries out on a loud pitch before settling down enough for Sakura to get into the saddlebag.

Nothing.

It would be so much easier if she could just think up a key to fit into her lock, but the shackles keep her from using any of her abilities. It had been such a long time since she last dreamed up something out of nothing.

"What are you doing?" Sakura turned and spun away just in time to avoid an arrow to the foot. The horses had wandered only a hair's breath away, but when they heard the arrow they reared and ran, taking their cover with them. Sakura was out in the open with only her knife and the blood on her legs. She couldn't even see who was shooting at her.

Time seemed to slow down as she spun and took in the new details of the land behind her shoulders. A shadow, not mounted, sand in the air, no cover; the thoughts flashed across her mind like they were cars on a subway line and she was standing still on the platform. The distance between her and the guard wasn't something she could cover before he fired another arrow, and he was already notching another as she turned.

Her arm snapped into motion and she remembered what it felt like to throw a knife with all the muscles of her body. It should have hit his neck, she had excellent aim, but the shackles on her wrist threw her off and the blade landed in his shoulder. He screamed in pain but remained standing. She saw him move for another weapon and she knew she would have to go in close if she hoped to leave with her life.

Sakura was running for him and used the chains between her wrists to her advantage, even when they had been the reasons she had to fight up close. He had a dagger out, much like the one she had just thrown, and he took a swipe at her before she could raise her hands. It tore a shallow stream through her abdomen, but the blood was thin; it was nothing she would have to worry about.

He brought his knife up again and she forced the rest of her body to be faster as she raised her hands and brought them down around his neck. Sakura slide in the dust and sand to stand behind him and pulled the chain between her shackles taunt. He choked on a crushed windpipe and went down in seconds. If she had tried to choke him the long way he would have likely gotten free with her dagger and she would in trouble.

"Don't move or the arrow make a home in you thigh."

Sakura froze, feeling the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. She was in trouble regardless of what she did.

"Keep her from running, she's the one he'll want."

"Don't lower your arrows, fool."

There were two more men, making a total of three voices surrounding her. Slowly, Sakura raised her hands above her head, palms up in a gesture of surrender.

"Don't move, we have our points on you, slave."

Sakura snarled to herself, hating the feeling of loosing. She had fire in her blood and her front was stinging. She needed to keep moving, she needed to fight her way out, but… She started to turn and the sound of a string's snap came before the fire bloomed from the place where the arrow grazed her ribs. She bit her lip and drew blood in her mouth.

"Don't, you kill her and he'll have our heads!"

"She's already killed one of our men. You want to be next?"

"Did you forget the whole point of our mission out here?"

"I was careful."

"You," the last voice finally called out to her. "Rest the chain behind your head and keep your hands up. Move in a way we don't like and it won't go well for you, otherwise you don't have a reason to fear."

Sakura did as she was instructed, wincing when the tear from the arrow in her side made her wince. She was bleeding from two new places, not counting her mouth.

One of the guards came to stand in front of her and she didn't see anything about his face to make it worth her memory. The guard in front of her her had s short sword and he used it to turn her around and make her walk. She followed the two Romans in front of her as they led her around another cropping of rocks down to a path where more figures waited.

Sakura wanted to scowl and spit when she recognized the slavers. At their feet were the bodies of three different slaves with arrows making their backs look like pin cushions. Their slaughter was excessive, but she wasn't one to judge. She had the blood of just as many on her hands.

"What is this?" a sharp voice asked.

Indra.

Sakura looked up and saw the only one with a face sharp with details. He was staring down at her like she was just as clear. Maybe she was. Maybe that was how actors saw dreamers. Either way, his stare was still fixed on her with no sign of it venturing off elsewhere.

The cruel slaver smirked to himself, taking a step towards Sakura and slapping her elbow. "This…" The slaver circled and she could feel his eyes one her. "Is what you were waiting for. How many did your Ten girl kill before you brought her in?"

"Two, but she injured others," a meeker voice added, speaking to the commander and not to the slaver. Their leader grunted in acknowledgment.

"But was she chained and restricted from using any chakra?" the slaver pressed, sounding tense.

"What good is the history, tell me what she is worth. They only saw one body," the Roman leader replied, pressing his heels into the side of his mount so he could stand closer to Sakura, still staring down at her.

The Roman who had led her away with his short sword at her back poked her again and she flinched, taking a half step forward. He waved his sword at her legs where the dried blood was dark and flaking. "There may be others. She has too much blood on her legs for peace and hiding." He looked up at his leader and saw the dark haired Uchiha was still watching Sakura. "Indra?"

Indra looked over Sakura's shoulder at his subordinate and glared. Sakura suspected he didn't like being addressed by his first name, but he could have been in a sour mood for other reasons. "She'll have to do, that's not in question, but price is still the objective. Is she worth as much as my brother's girl?"

"That depends on how many she killed," the Roman at her back replied, lowing his sword. "How many men have not reported back, including the ones we know to be dead?"

Sakura saw out of the corner of her eye, the expression that took over the partially covered face of the cruel slaver. He looked like the cat that got the cream and it made shivers run up and down her spine. He looked smug, like things were going the way he said they would. They were going to buy one of his slaves, so why shouldn't he look smug? He was going to make money off of her, she was going to make him richer. That smug look was for her. After days of her in his chains, he was finally going to make her into something.

Something that tasted like ash and rage made her belly hot. She moved fast enough that no one expected it when she slammed her bound hands down and grabbed the short sword for herself. The Roman she took the sword from was still too shocked to react as side stepping with the blade and launching herself into a spin that carried the full force of her downward momentum into the face of her cruel slaver. Her short sword sunk easily and she knew she had hit her mark when a gusher of red coated her hands.

There was shouting all around her and she dropped the short sword and kept her hands up before bending to rest on one knee. Around her people were shouting as the other slavers rushed to their dead friend. One looked disgusted and the other looked ticked off.

Sakura grunted as she was pushed into the dirt and a pair of bodies stepped on her, putting pressure on her neck and hands. There were a number of new blades drawn out around her as well, in case she should true to move again. She wouldn't, but they didn't know that.

"Who is in charge of finances now?" Indra asked, voice stern as he rode his horse over.

From where her face was pressed into the ground Sakura could see hooves and little else. She tried to turn slightly and blood bloomed on her neck from where a Roman pointed his arrow's tip. There was a clink of heavy metal and gold pieces spilled down in front of Sakura, drawing her attention back. The commander's sandals were down in the sand and walking towards them.

"Get off of her," he barked, and someone went flying. "Kotetsu, take her and put her on my horse. You and Izumo will flank me."

Sakura was rolled over and two new faces came into focus as the new men dressed in red and white helped her up. Sakura felt herself wince from the sharp throb from her open wounds. But even her wounds couldn't keep her from staring when she was able to make out the sharp details of the two faces in front of her. She assumed they were Kotetsu and Izumo, but whoever they were, they were actors. One wore his hair long and pushed back, while the other had his combed to one side to hide an eye. Both had similarly dark eyes and matching weary expressions.

They began to turn her around, no doubt intending to do as they were told, but Indra called out to them once more. Sakura looked up as the Uchiha commander approached. Indra stopped in front of her and pinched her jaw, turning her face one way and then the other.

"Do you know you're the most expensive slave I've ever bought?" he hummed, watching her with vivid red eyes that seemed to spin.

"I'm not a slave," Sakura bit out, remembering what it felt like to burn with the hate that set her insides on fire.

"You are for now, because as cruel as you are, you were weak enough to earn these shackles." He tapped her wrists. "This is your punishment, life will do that. Until you are stronger you are property: my property."

"I'll kill again."

"I hope you do. You are my champion. My brother holds a weapons expert who was worth 10 gold links, so we called her ten. I do not wish to give you a name. You are slave, or you are girl. You will not be called by a name until you earn it with your first victory in a ring." His fingers left her face and he took a step back. "For you I paid double what the last girl was worth. Do not disappoint me."

He turned away from her and walked without looking back.

.

AN: Kingdom of Gods is finally happening! More was supposed to happen in this first chapter, but I decided to stop it here instead of later on because I'm currently fighting a cold and can't keep my eyes open long enough to write, but I wanted this done for today.

So, this is the first part, but more exciting things will happen next where Sakura meets both old and new faces and let me tell you...it's starting to get hard to find Naruto characters I like that haven't been used yet. The original plan was for no character to be used twice, but as you can tell, that didn't last long. There are a few I'm really looking forward to trying my hand at, though.

I hope you enjoyed. Please review.