The world is made new

"This is the story of how I never stopped running. This is the story of how, when the wolves knocked, I met them at the door and I became the beast, instead." — Ashe Vernon, from "Little Red," Belly of the Beast

OBELISK
The Kingdom of Beasts
Chapter 2 of 2

Sakura sat with her legs crossed underneath her sprawling skirts, making herself a royal mess on the floor. Karin had changed out of her costume as soon as they got home, and Ami had removed her skirts to stand in a pink and cream french bodice and biker shorts, making Sakura the only one still in her Halloween costume from the ball. A part of her didn't want to let go of it.

Across from her Juugo and Suigetsu reclined in their dorky half hearted halloween costumes. Suigetsu was a ninja and Juugo was a samurai. Actually, it wasn't fair to call Juugo's costume half hearted, because a lot of work went into it and it looked really cool, even if there was no armor. He wore the pelted pants and a simply robe styled top with wide, flaring sleeves and carried a heavy katana that was kept blunt. In contrast, Suigetsu wore all black and tied a black cloth over the bottom half of his face. He had a few paper throwing stars that Karin helped him make, but…he was wearing the same jeans from last week. It was a last ditch costume he put together only after Karin invited the pair of them to Sakura's for games and movies.

Sakura peeked back inside her gift bag to remind her that their trip to the Gramophone ball was not in vain. She got a new watch and complementary earrings in matching rose gold. It was a good score, but the ball had been a bust better off forgotten. As soon as it became possible, the trio made for the exit and agreed to spend the rest of the night playing games at Sakura's. Karin had called the boys to make it a party and even though it wasn't wild, it was nice.

They were finishing up a round of two truths and a lie after 'Never Have I Ever,' and Cards against Humanity.

Juugo was studying Sakura carefully, since she was the person to his left as well as the person he needed to guess on. He made a frowning face. "Okay, please repeat them again, I need to think this over."

Sakura smiled knowingly, proud of her statements. "First, I trained to be a professional mermaid for a summer at a resort aquarium in the city. Second, I've taken kickboxing lessons for five years. And lastly, I was valedictorian when I graduated highschool with Karin and gave a modestly kick ass speech that helped me get into the college of my choice on a scholarship."

Juugo shook his head, groaning in frustration. "I didn't go to the same high school so I wouldn't know, but I could totally see you as valedictorian. But I could also see you training to be a mermaid, cause of….like…your personality is good for a line of work where you have to entertain people and you like mermaids…."

Karin laughed behind her hand and Sakura sent her a glare. Karin didn't think Sakura had a personality for the entertainment industry, but Juugo didn't need to believe that. He was actually pretty sweet in his opinion of her so far. Everything out of his mouth had been flattering and complementary.

Juugo looked up from his hands. "I think you did kickboxing, but five years is a long time…I'm going to guess that one is your lie."

"Wrong!" Karin laughed, falling over next to Suigetsu. "You were really close though."

Juugo threw his hands up in frustration. "How was I close? What was the lie?"

Sakura waved at the two to get their attention. "Actually you weren't really that close. I was never valedictorian, even though I was almost chosen for my amazing intellect, I had some fights on my record from younger years so they didn't want me representing the school."

"The kickboxing makes sense now," Ami drawled, lazily, staring at her nails.

Sakura laughed cheerily. "Oh no, it was a knife fight when I got caught. But yes, the kickboxing did help."

Suigetsu hadn't been drinking, but he sputtered and choked on his own breath, missing how Karin smiled knowingly."A knife fight? What the hell were you into? I thought you were a goody two shoes."

"She was," Karin butted in. "I was the one that wanted to cut her."

"Yeah, but I carried my own knife," Sakura was quick to add, not minding the looks of disbelief being passed between the two males. Ami only looked mildly interested, since she went to the same school and heard the rumors well enough to know of the legendary hate that existed between the two girls growing up.

"Only because I made it necessary," Karin replied. "If it had been up to you, I think you would have stayed to your brass knuckles. Do you still have those anymore?"

Sakura shook her head, pressing her lips together in mock frustration. "Can't remember whatever happened to them. Maybe that's a good thing. I don't need them anymore, do I?" she asked with a wicked smile that Karin knew to be teasing.

"You guys are king of crazy." Ami set her hands down and looked away from her nails. "But you make a decent pumpkin pie. Do we have any of that left or do I need to polish off the cherry?"

"The only one we're out of is the apple," Sakura replied, standing up and teetering on her sleepy legs before heading into the kitchen to serve Ami a slice of pie. She could hear the group putting on an episode of the Twilight Zone and getting everything set up for movie watching. Karin was with them so they would be sure to be extra careful with the furniture that technically wasn't hers.

"Can I help with anything?"

Sakura turned to see Juugo standing at the edge of the kitchen, hesitating on the threshold. When his eyes met hers he smiled in good nature. Sakura handed him a slice of cherry pie and nodded to the slice of pumpkin she was carrying. "This is for Ami, but you wanna hold mine while I give her this?"

"Sure," he said. Sakura didn't doubt he meant it.

He seemed highly agreeable to anything she suggested and she had picked up on it. It took a while to notice his attraction, because Juugo was agreeable and nice and sweet with everyone, but the tip off had been in how he followed her around and sought her out. It was in his choices. He chose to go where she went, he chose to sit down next to her, he chose to play the games she wanted to play and watch the movies she wanted to watch. But he hadn't asked her out yet, and it didn't seem like he was planning on it. There were plenty of opportunities and Sakura had mentally prepared herself to let him down easy with an excuse of school stress and work, but she never had to. Maybe Karin had said something.

Either way, it was better for her this way. She didn't want to have to feel bad about not telling him the real reason she was emotionally unavailable. For a second she faltered in her step and felt the pinch in her heart. Red hair, sleepy eyes, smoke on his lips, ohhh a wicked set of lips…

She shook herself free of the thoughts and returned to the living room where everyone was sitting against pillows or on couches to see the television. Not surprising, Juugo sat down next to her after she handed Ami her slice of pie.

Karin was closes to the wall so she flipped the lights off after pressing the play button on the remote. Tonight their Twilight Zone marathon was going to be about good old fashioned suspense and horror.

The screen began to blur and parts of it became bright in Sakura's vision. She felt the lightness in her head grow and knew she wouldn't make it through the rest of the movie. Not knowing what was happening, Juugo offered her his shoulder and she slipped down against it, resting the side of her face against his samurai shirt. She could see his katana and wondered why the eagle with an arrow through its heart seemed so familiar.

Someone might have just sucker punched her for how it all felt when she slipped deeper than the deep dreams of men and woman. There was smoke, but also frost, filling her throat and she knew where she was going. The Kingdom was calling, and she had finished bleeding for it. There was nothing left to protect her now.

She woke on the hillside of a mountain where grass grew high and thick.

"Sai?"

She waited.

"Kimimaro?"

She stood and tilted. The hillside was covered in high grass, but it was also littered with bodies. Most of the time when a hill or field is covered in bodies they're dead, and this time was no exception, but in addition to being dead, most of the bodies were shredded and in pieces. Exposed skeletons poked out of fleshy bodies of rotting flesh. The left half side of a man's face poked up out of the grass, exposing the outline of his brain and spine.

Her dream belly wasn't full, but she retched in the grass anyway. They smelled old.

There was a soft hand tracing the contour of her shoulder blades and she looked up to see Sai bent over her with a look of concern marking his features. When her eyes met his the concern became hidden in his features, almost as if he was subconsciously hiding his feelings from her.

"Do I look that bad?" she asked with a raw voice that needed water. She shook her head and moved away from her vomit, imagining a water glass in her hand she could tip back. It came a second later and she drank, gargled, and spit, but not in that order.

"You are dressed in the gown from the Monarch Woods."

Sakura looked down and saw that she was still wearing the costume she had sewn together for the Gramophone Ball. While the dress wasn't that identifiable, the headdress was clearly Russian.

"No, this was what I was wearing when I fell asleep. It's a costume. My friends and I dressed up in period costume for this stupid party. I…don't know why I'm still in it."

Feeling the shakes settle in her knees, she stood and let the glass in her hand turn to nothing as she dreamed it away before doing the same with her dress, leaving her in a pair of skinny, black yoga pants and a loose band tee. Her hair was free and loose against her face now. She turned to Sai and smiled. "Better?"

"Do you miss the Monarch Woods? As long as you are in this kingdom you can still go back."

Her stomach rolled a bit at her last memories of the Monarch Woods and whatever was left in her threatened to come up and join her vomit. "No thank you. I don't think that would be a good idea. Let's focus on this world now." She looked back out to the field but didn't look too closely. "Where are we?"

"The Kingdom of Beasts. You are witnessing the devastation of one of the Nine."

"The what?"

Sai waited till she looked at him before continuing. "There are nine great beasts who ravage this land. The world is solved, essentially, when they are all defeated. This is the handiwork of the Shukaku, or the one tailed monster. He is the only one of the nine you will not have to fight. This narrative begins after his departure from this world." Sai hesitated, staring at the less obvious gouges in the ground. "But…you will have to fight him, eventually, just not here."

"Does that mean there are eight left for me to take down?" When he nodded Sakura hummed in good cheer. "Cool, I got a freebee."

"The others will be no easy challenge. I would advise you to learn from your battle with the Elephant Wolf. These creatures are not ones you can take down on your own. You will need companions….actors to aid you."

Sakura looked out over the devastation again. "If the monsters do this much damage I can't imagine the people of this world wouldn't be happy to see them destroyed. Will it be hard to connivence people to fight with me?"

"That is all dependent upon you and how you choose to move through the narrative. With dreamers in the past it has always been an issue, but I have reason to believe that the pride that kept lesser men for seeking out help from others is not something that exists within you. For the first time in a long time I am hopeful for the dreamer."

"I should hope so. I wouldn't have made it this far without your help and belief in me…or your friendship. Thank you. I don't think I've ever properly expressed that." Sakura smiled wryly to herself as she remembered the inherent distrust she regarded Sai with. In the beginning she had been less then friendly with the quiet being of smoke and dejection. "I'm also sorry for the way I treated you in the beginning. That was wrong of me. I should have been kinder."

"You found me frightening," he said with a shrug, as if that explained it all. "Most do."

There was a wind in the air the made her loose hair a wild mess around her face. She grunted, reaching up to move her hair out of her line of vision and pin back against the side of her head with a barrette that with bright and rainbow colored. Sai looked at the colored hair ornament with a raised eyebrow but Sakura just shrugged. "I like what I like."

"As you wish."

Sakura turned her eyes back to the field and looked again, steeling her resolve so that the sight wouldn't disgust her so much. She had dreams of becoming a doctor one day after she had enough money to pay for the medical school her meager scholarships couldn't cover. Dead bodies didn't usually disturb her, but the smell was harder to handle. Breathing through her mouth, she made an effort to get closer to the scene of the fight and examine the bodies.

Based off of what they died dressed in, Sakura could get a better idea of what time period or world theme she had to work with for this level. The first man she came upon was missing half his face, as it appeared to have been sandblasted clear off. The rest of his body was in decent enough condition though. She recognized his means of dress from the way Juugo showed up. This body wore a traditional, Japanese robe styled shirt with pelted pants and minimal armor. A discarded katana lay off to the side.

Sakura looked a few more over and found most of them were dressed the same way. Others have more elaborate sets of armor and a few didn't even wear shirts, or didn't have shirts left after the fight. At the base of the hill were the bodies of a few horses and their riders tossed off in the fall. These men had full sets of armor. Some were more colorful than others, and many of them had customized helmets of varying designs. She reached down to pull free a helmet and inspect the crescent moon welded across the brow.

Sai came up behind her and kneeled. "Does this world seem familiar in any way?"

"A little, mostly from movies, but my dad was stationed at the Okinawa Prefecture when I was born, so even though we're not Japanese, he always loved the culture and tried to incorporate it into our lives. This reminds me of when I was young, before he left."

Sakura tossed the helmet back, not caring for the sandblasted face it had come from. She smiled ruefully. "There's this popular movie called the Magnificent Seven that I've always loved. An important part of the plot of the story is devoted to this character finding and enlisting skilled warriors to protect and defend this village form bandits. And while bandits might not be the same as beasts big enough to knock down horses, it has a feeling of familiarity to it."

Sai hid his frown but Sakura caught a hint of it in his eyes. "You do not sound enthusiastic about the layout to this world," he guessed.

"I'm not. It reminds me of my dad. That means complicated, bitter sweet feelings."

"You are not close with your father?"

Sakura made a face, scrunching up her nose and squinting her eyes. "Nah, it's more complicated than that, but it's not the time for bad memories. Help me figure out where I should go, or where I should look to find Kimimaro. He should be here with you."

Sai didn't look too eager to be talking about Kimimaro, and seemed to ignore it when he answered her. "Where do you think you should go in order to best advance the narrative? One beast is already disposed of, remember."

"Yeah, but I need allies first…I need to build up a team that can help me." Sakura stood on her tippy toes and scanned the horizon. "Where do I go to find the nearest village or town? The people there will know something and I can build off of whatever is there." She turned back to look at Sai pleadingly, not minding how her hair was getting in the way again when the wind picked up. "Oh wise and worthy one, what is the direction I must take?"

Sai let his shoulders sagged and almost closed his eyes to her. Turning, he pointed to a hill that was close by and free of bodies. "Make that your vantage point and decide where you will go. There is more than one path you might take."

Sakura didn't wast any time, and sprinted for the hill that was farther away than what it originally seemed. When she approached it, she understood immediately what Sai meant. Struggling against the wind, Sakura held both of her hands against the sides of her face to keep her hair pinned back as she looked out over the rest of the dream world. Down below was a simple village, but off to what looked like the West was a fishing village that rested on the cusp of the ocean. Further East was another larger village surrounded by forests and beyond that were specks she suspected of being more villages hidden in stone and trees.

"Which one first?" she asked, shouting over the wind to be heard.

Sai was too far away to hear or reply, but she heard his voice in her head all the same. "You must decide."

Sakura woke up in her own bed, dressed in her happy sushi silk pajamas pants and a plain red cami. She rolled over, wincing at the light let into her room, and noticed another body close by. Karin dozed with her mouth partly open, a small pool of drool collecting in the corner of her lips and spilling out onto her chin every now and then.

Karin must have helped Sakura up and into bed before passing out alongside her. Sakura felt bad, and wondered how the others fared when she heard soft footfalls outside the door to her room. Knocking softly on the already opened door, Ami pushed it the rest of the way open and waved with a tired smile.

"I heard you get you."

Sakura blinked and then yawned loudly. "Oh…okay…uh, yeah, wow. Have you been awake long?"

Ami shrugged. "I woke up and then fell back asleep. I just heard you so I decided to actually get up. How did you sleep? You were out like a dead man last night. Juugo had to carry you to bed. He was so nice about it too. Karin was worried, you don't normally sleep so soundly."

"Since when? I always sleep soundly," Sakura said around a yawn. She still felt tired, like she wanted to go back to bed and sleep some more. She dropped her face back into the pillow and moaned against the fabric. If Karin could sleep in, then she could too.

As if being mentally called, the sleepy redhead stirred in the sheets before cracking open an eye. She took a weak glance about the room before cursing and dropping her face back down. Ami poked Karin's legs and moved them aside so she could crawl in between the two girls.

Ami's hair was long black silk across the pillows and Sakura wanted to play with it. She always loved long hair, and had been growing hers out for a while. It was hard to keep long when it was always being dyed and dried out. She got a trim every three months, but often went longer when she felt like it would help her hair grow.

Sakura remembered having shorter hair in high school that hung limp and flat around her face without style. She was young and naive to the world of the internet and fashion bloggers. If she had short hair now she could make it work with a few tricks.

Sakura shook her head and sat up in bed. "Okay, now I can't go back to sleep. What do you want for breakfast, Ami?"

Karin lifted her head with a wounded look. "Meeeeh?" she breathed noisily.

Ami stuck her tongue out at Karin when she thought Sakura wasn't looking.

Sakura pulled her kimono styled robe off the head of her floor lamp and tied it around her waist before heading downstairs. Ami got up to follow without another word, but the smile on her face spoke volumes. Casting a sly look over her shoulder Sakura made eye contact with the younger girl. "Don't look so haughty. I'm putting you to work, young lady."

"Not a problem," Ami replied in sing song. She looked giddier than she had a right to.

"What's got you in such a good mood?"

"Karin and I were making bets about you last night and I lost, but at least I can tell you about them and get my payback. And besides…I like hanging out with you."

Sakura groaned at the harsh light when she opened her fridge for milk and juice. Ami was already pulling back the curtains for fresh sunlight and turning on the coffee maker. It was ancient and gurgled to life with warm water already in the top.

"A part of me wants to know and a part of me knows better than to ask. Are you going to tell me what happened between you and Karin anyway?"

Ami appeared more hesitant as she pulled a trio of coffee mugs down off the shelf. "Oh…well it had to do with you and Juugo. Karin, I think, wants him to ask you out or something. I said I thought the man from the Orchard was cuter and a better fit."

"Neither has asked me out so how did you loose?" Sakura asked, keeping her back to the girl as she pulled down everything she needed for pancakes. She paused withe the contents of the cake mix already in her bowl. "Actually, I take that back. Never mind, I don't want to know. Do you want any fruit in your pancakes. I usually add bananas and blubbery to mine."

"No cherry or strawberry?" Ami asked.

"This is how my grandmother made them growing up. They just taste right this way to me."

Ami waited a moment before asking. "Do you even have any blueberries?"

Sakura turned to look in her fridge and frowned when she pulled out a carton with three miniature blueberries rolling around inside. "Eh, I guess not. Groceries don't stretch like they used to. I'm already at the end of my paycheck and I'm always hungry like this."

"Sounds like you need a roommate," Ami surmised, watching the coffee drip into the mug underneath it's spout. "Someone who would be willing to pay rent."

"I already thought about that, but because this property isn't legally mine, I have to follow my mom's rules in regards to things like that. She doesn't want another person living here in fear of things being taken or damaged and no matter how much I talk to her about it, her mind is an impassable fortress. She won't be swayed."

"Not even if my mother asked her for a favor?"

Sakura paused and looked up from her batter. Ami was smirking and her eyes were full of cunning. Ami came from a blue blood type family that had wealth, power, and respect among most circles. People like Sakura's mom wanted to be a part of that circle. Gaining favor with Ami's mother was something Sakura's mother valued a great deal.

"You could try…" Sakura weakly surmised, letting her gaze drift as her mind whirred with new thoughts. "But yeah, that might work. How badly do you think you can connivence your parents that this is something you want."

"I can do better than that. This is something I need in order to reintroduce myself to main stream society and build up social connections." Ami batted her eyes and played the innocent princess daughter bit. "They wouldn't stand a chance against me, especially not daddy."

"The extra rent money would be nice, but why would you want to live here with me? It's such an out of the way place. It's rural, too. You get bugs and stuff. You hate bugs."

It was a while before Ami answered, and by then Sakura had flipped the first pancake into the glass dish. "You wouldn't understand what it's like to go so long without friends. I'm not good at…being nice to people or being a good friend. It doesn't make sense why the two of you stay around as long as you do. I've been a bitch and I'll always be a bitch, but I'm lonely." She pulled out the mug that was filled with coffee and exchanged it for an empty one that still needed to be filled. "Is it so hard to believe I want friends?"

Sakura flipped another pair of miniature pancakes into the glass dish and sighed. "No, no it isn't, and I understand more than you think you know."

Sakura was back on the hilltop overlooking the world below her. There were a lot more places to visit and explore in this world than in the Monarch Woods. But, that made sense. The Kingdom would naturally be larger than its Gate.

"Have you made a decision, yet?" Sai asked from somewhere behind her.

From the hill Sakura could see the fishing village and watched it as the waves came in and out with more and more single sized boats for fishermen and women. Sakura had been watching this village the longest and noticed the way the villagers would avoid certain parts of the water as if they were magnetized away from the sites marked with floating buoys.

"Is there a beast that torments the fishing village?" Sakura asked.

"Isobu, the three tailed crab, one of the least elusive of the beasts because it's history with the village. Every year they send out a local maiden to 'wed' the beast."

Sakura made a face in disgust, already imagining the rest. It was too typical of the traditional mythology. Virgin girls, every year, get sent out into the water to be drowned and eaten, get sent up to the mountain to be eaten, to the forest to be eaten, down a well, over a wall…the examples stretched on in her memory. There were too many narratives that were like this one. It wasn't hard to see how this would end.

"I think that's a good place to start."

Sakura stood and leapt down, giving no caution to how far she would have to run, because she knew she would never grow tired. Her elevation gave her an advantage. Being as high up as she was, Sakura could jump and neatly glide across the mountain side before touching down and running the rest of the way before jumping out again.

As she ran, Sakura thought back to the other towns she saw while on the hill and wondered what their stories were. Did they all have a narrative so clearly lifted from common mythology as well? What were the other beasts like, and how elusive would they be once she started hunting them down?

It took longer than Sakura would have liked, but just like in video games, it wasn't too long before the closest town came into range. She was almost tired when she slowed to a normal paced run outside the skirts of the village. There were houses and huts scattered in widely spaced plots, but the bulk of the village stood behind heavy low walls made of earth and stone and painted with plaster. The Kanji for Water was written over the arch she had to walk under in order to get into the village. It was all much larger than she first assumed it to be. Just because she could see almost all of it from her perch didn't mean the same could be said when she was in the midst of skinny houses and open markets filled with Japanese men and woman dressed for village life.

A few villagers looked at her oddly, but didn't hold their gazes on her for long before busying themselves with whatever they were doing prior, pretending they weren't interested in her appearance. Visitors didn't seem to be very common. Sakura looked down at the plain black get up she sported and eyed and elderly woman in a yukata. Blinking, Sakura melted her band tee and yoga pants into something a bit more fitting for the culture she found herself immersed in.

The business of slaying the crab beast was important, but Sakura knew she would be useless if she didn't know anything, so she set out to mingle and maybe pick up some chatter. If video games ever taught her anything, it was to always stock up and make friends before a boss fight. (And save so that you don't loose all your work when you eventually loose.)

There were merchants lining the isles of main street and down an ally there was a path marked that would take you to a local smithery judging by the sounds of harsh iron. Sakura saw plenty of food stalls and cloth stalls, most having ocean or sea themes going on, but noticed something missing before too much exploring was done.

It was a reason why a lot of the villagers still gave her looks in spite of her wardrobe change. Old ladies stared at her over their shoulders, pretending not to see, and younger men watched her like she was something that might ghost away. Sakura turned, scanning the immediate area for any sign of them, but found no trace of young females in the village at all. Not even among the children in the streets…there were no young women or girls. Not a single one.

Something must have changed in her expression as the revelation dawned upon her, because a few of the older men started to stand up and move closer. The older ladies turned away and scurried inside and no one minded the children. Sakura saw a young boy curse and throw down the cloth he was using to wipe down his blade before turning and heading back inside. His eyes were angry and his fists were white at the knuckles.

The hair on the back of her neck stood up as the two eldest men approached her, while the rest hung back, forming an impromptu circle in case she tried to run.

"Lovely," she muttered under her breath, backing up towards the ally that led to the smithy. She imagined a small short blade called a tanto used by the wives of Samurai behind her back. Dreaming up a sword would be too noticeable and she wanted to see if she could avoid such bloodshed.

"Gentlemen," she greeted the group, looking nervously between the two elders and the rest of the group. They were all smiling and trying to look inviting. "You are making this young woman very nervous. Is there something I have done to earn your displeasure?"

The shortest man in the nicest clothes stepped forward to speak, smiling around his beady spectacles. "A thousand apologies young lady. We could not help but notice you are an outsider and wanted to properly welcome you to the village of Mizu." In her mind Mizu translated into water. "If you desire food or lodgings, one of our esteemed establishments would be more than willing to extend it's self to you for the best price imaginable."

"I hadn't planned on staying at a hotel here," Sakura answered, wording her sentences carefully. She didn't know what would set them off.

"Then you are visiting someone in town?"

She kept her voice firm, but didn't abandon the sweet tone that reminded them she was a lady. "I'm sorry, but do you interrogate all your visitors in such a manner?"

"You can not fault us for being cautious when a stranger walks in. Our village has a reputation that is unjustly cruel and we are being careful in our efforts to preserve what is left of our village pride. Do you have travel papers?"

Sakura didn't. She could dream some up and pull them out of her yukata, but she had no idea what they would need to look like in order for them to pass as official. Should she show them her papers from the monarch woods? She reached inside her robe, fingertips hesitant before pinching the paper in her hand. She pulled them out halfway when stopped. "I hadn't assumed I would be interrogated so and I'm afraid they might not be in order. I want to head to where I am going and meet with my acquaintance before disclosing my information."

"Oh, and where would that be, traveler lady?"

The sound of angry iron rang out and Sakura prayed she wasn't making a mistake. All she had were her wits to work with. "I was heading to the smithery, of course. Will you let me pass?"

"Of course," the short man in glasses gleefully exclaimed, gesturing with his hand for her to go and walk down the ally ahead of him to where the hammer rang loud. He and another older man walked behind her but the rest of the townsmen dissipated, going off to do whatever they had been doing earlier. Sakura breathed a little easier, thinking she would have more luck outrunning two old men as opposed to ten.

Her steps were short but she ended outside the worn house in no time, hearing the metal hammering coming from out behind the house. There was a small, low fence made of stone along the side of the house with a small opening she could hop over easy enough. She didn't pause or wait to see if the older men could manage that without trouble.

The heat hit her before she was even close. There was a sweltering furnace fed by mighty bellows and next to it stood a long troth of water and a sturdy anvil. It didn't resemble the medieval smithies Sakura was used to seeing in illustrate text books. All the tools were arranged in a streamline fashion and the furnace was simple and low to the ground. On the far row was a wall where katana were hung in their sheets.

In the shade a burly man worked, hammering as loudly as he pleased, folding the same sword over and over again on itself before sticking it back into the fire and turning on the trio with angry shark black eyes.

"What do you want?" He was still crouched down in front of the fire but rose when he spotted Sakura beside the two men. His full height was impressive, dwarfing the two men who couldn't be much taller than 5'4'' and 5'6''. The man who stood with soot on his face was well over six feet, a giant in all respects made up of nothing but hardened muscle and grit.

There was a sound off to the side and Sakura saw out of the corner of her eye a second man look out from the crack between the sliding rice screen door and the wall before the door slid shut again. She almost felt bad about bringing trouble with her, but she had thought fast, not smart.

"Kisame, your dedication to your craft is unpar-"

"Enough," Kisame cut the tiny man off with a glare. "What are you two doing here without a reason? You have not commissioned my services in years."

"Ah yes, but business has been-"

The giant man cut them off with a growl before looking over at Sakura. He stared her in the eye for a second before looking her up and down. He didn't say anything, he didn't ask anything, but he made a grunt like he was satisfied with his observations from the shadows. "I asked a question. Last time I checked we weren't running an escort service, Gato."

The man named Gato coughed before pushing up his glasses. "Ah yes, but this young lady came into town looking for you and, how unusual indeed, we took it upon ourselves to dedicate our time in seeing that she safely reach you before producing papers of certified identification."

The mane named Kisame must have noticed her flinch, since his eyes swiveled over to her figure before settling back on Gato. If it was at all possible, the already impossibly tall man inhaled and increased in size, expanding his arms wide and stepping forward, out of the shadows and into the light. Sakura held back her gasp of surprise to see him in the light and take in the extraordinary condition of his body. He was blue. It was light, but his pale skin was tinted with the color blue.

"What the hell do you need those for? Is my word not good enough for you? My business partners have to jump through hoops for you now, is that it? What kind of village do you think you're running if everyone has to show off their papers to you? We ain't deserving of this!" he roared, taking a threatening step forwards. "I'll give you my papers old man."

"No need-n-no-noneed!" Gato quickly shouted, tripping on his heels as he backed away, chasing after his short friend. He stopped at the gate, holding either side of the stone wall before leaving the rest of the way. "We only wish to see that our visitors are properly treated and cared for. We will be back to make sure."

"Like hell you will!" Kisame roared, and Sakura could see his teeth were filed down to points, or naturally elongated to make his mouth like a shark's.

With Gato and his goon gone, Kisame rounded on Sakura, his anger not yet fully abetted. "And now you…" he started. "Who are you and what are you doing here, you stupid girl? Only an idiot wouldn't know better to make a trip to the village of the bloody mist."

He didn't wait for her to reply, but instead returned to his forge, moving around things he didn't need in favor of things he did need. It was as if he didn't care she was in his yard taking up space and watching him carefully.

"Thank you," Sakura said, swallowing. "My name is Sakura."

He made a grunt as if he didn't care, but then a moment later he spoke. "What are you doing here, Sakura?" Kisame asked from the darkest shadows.

She took a breath with the words ready, but then stopped and re-thought her choice in words. She shook the old thoughts away before speaking finally. "I'm here about the virgin sacrifices. The next one is due soon, isn't it?"

Kisame paused with his hands raised before turning to glare at her from under the shade. "No. You're not here for that."

"The village seems pretty desperate. Do you have a sacrifice ready?"

He stalked out of the shadows and pulled himself up to his full height. "You had better leave. You're not welcome here."

"No, I think I am welcome here, and it's because you're low on options." Sakura chose her words carefully, piecing together what she knew of the village so far. They didn't have any young women left, but they had her. "I mean, it would be awfully convenient if you didn't have to shell out one of your own to meet quota, right? That's not to say I want to be a sacrifice, but it's kind of my reason for being here."

"Are you mental or something?" he asked, sounding sickened. "Who would want that?"

"It's not a question of wanting or not. The sacerfice is happening regardless of whether I want it to or not, and it's going to keep happening until people put a stop to it."

He took a step closer, almost coming out of the shadows, but Sakura didn't flinch, and that must have meant something to him since his face flickered with the changing of emotions. "And you know someone who's going to do that?" he asked cynically. It sounded like he wanted to mock her but couldn't because the subject was to deep for that sort of loose rhetoric.

"I'm going to try."

"You?" He raised an eyebrow, not believing her. "With what? You look too small to hold a dinner knife."

She thought of her fight with Orochimaru, and of her battles with the mad wolves. She thought of the blood and wounds her body knew and wanted to smack him in that moment with the bruised backside of her knuckles. The knuckles she scraped raw on the flesh of her enemies. In an instant she drew herself up, her posture transforming into something that came from her core. Her thoughts were murder and it must have shown on her face because the burly blacksmith wasn't looking at her with anything other than caution.

Her words were laced with ice. "I'm sorry if you thought I was being half hearted or ignorant. But I don't think I'm worth that criticism. Not from you, and not yet, not when you don't know anything of me."

Kisame didn't say anything right away after watching her harden from flower into steel right before his eyes. He slunk back into his shadows and turned his shoulder to her, not willing to look at her straight on anymore. "I'm not a kind person, so don't expect that from me," he gruffly bit out. He glared a her from the corner of his eye. "What do you need here?"

"I'm in the village looking for people who will help me, who will fight alongside me. I don't expect that to be easy, but I have to try. From past experience, I've learned it's not always the wisest to go in alone."

"Hmph, well you have one thing going for you. You don't have a hero complex. The nuts that normally try to kill that demon all think they're Kami's gift to the world and can shoulder it all until they're dead and eaten. Damn pricks…"

Sakura remembered the first time she tried escaping the Monarch Woods without any help. She knew how that story would end. And this time, even with allies, none of them would die alongside her.

"Did you know any of them?" His eyes swiveled over to her, but his body didn't move. "Any of the heroes who tried to kill the crab?"

He turned his body to face her and opened his mouth, but no sound came out. Pressing his lips together he turned and retreated back farther into the shadows before muttering a low, 'Yeah,' and nothing more.

Before Sakura could say anything or express her sympathies the sliding rice screen door slid back and out steeped a figure from inside the house. Sakura turned and thought she saw a woman walking towards her. But the 'woman's' shirt was open and he was clearly male even though his face was too soft and too beautiful and his hair was too long and too silky for masculinity.

He stopped in front of her, in some sort of muted awe before remembering himself and bowing politely with his hands folded in front of him. "Greetings," his soft voice began. It was a low, masculine voice, but there were a learned softness to it that reminded her of zen gardens and patterns in the gravel. "I beg your forgiveness, but I couldn't help but overhear your conversation with Kisame san. You plan to offer yourself up in hopes of slaying the beast."

"That's right…and you are?"

"My apologies. I am Hyōton Haku, and an apprentice here under Momochi, Zabuza, and occasionally Hoshigaki, Kisame."

"Sakura," the girl lamely commented, pointing to herself. "I'm a…doctor of sort, mostly, but um…I do, other things…too."

He didn't seem deterred by her lackluster response. As soft as he was, his words were full of confidence. "As you observed already, this village has no more daughters to offer. It had been my intention to go in place of the yearly tribute, least they resort to crueler methods." He stopped to delicately lay a hand over his breast bone. "If you intend to fight this monster, I will be your first ally."

"Oh, okay, cool." Sakura wanted to smack herself, because as easy as that had been, she was acting and sounding stupid. "I mean…." She coughed and folded her hands in front of her knees and bowed at the waist like she had seen others do plenty of times. "Thank you Hoyoton Haku, it would be an honor to fight alongside you."

"Oi!" Kisame called out, sounding annoyed. "I thought Momochi forbid you, brat. What are you doing encouraging her?"

Politely ignoring Kisame, Haku turned to face Sakura again and bobbed his head a bit. "My sensei will not deter me from this path as he once sought to when I wished to offer myself as sacrifice. It is noble to die in battle and noble to die for the good of others with blood on your sword. He will be our second ally."

Kisame barked something rude from in the shadows but then turned his back and continued working, having given up on the pair of kids.

Haku encouraged her to come inside and meet his sensei, but Sakura felt the familiar pull of the end of her sleep cycle begin to pull her out of her dream. She apologized to Haku and promised she would be back tomorrow to meet Zabuza Momochi, but it was already late and she needed to be somewhere before dark and she was already late.

In her last moments she walked back over to where the line of shadows stopped and stared out at Kisame even though his back was mostly to her. She bowed low and respectful, keeping her head down. "Thank you very much for defending me when you had no reason to. I will not forget this kindness."

Kisame looked up from his materials and she thought she saw inflection or emotion on his face, but then he turned away again, muttering a gruff, 'whatever,' to himself.

She took a few steps towards the gate when Haku stopped her with a light touch. "Come to the house tomorrow before the noon sun in the yard. I wish to speak with you at length alongside my master. Also, bring your weapon."

"I will do my upmost to be there," Sakura replied, not really knowing where she would be the next time she woke up from the real world inside the dream. Still, it was enough for Haku since he smiled softly and let her go.

On her computer, Sakura google searched Japanese blades and came up with a lot of different designs for the katana. There were a few other models and types she looked through, not really knowing which would suit her. Knives and fists were weapons she could use just as well in the real world as in the dream world. Maybe in the dream world she was faster and more accurate for whatever reason, but she knew what she was doing in her mind before she did it. For this new kingdom, the weapon of choice was something she had no idea about.

With nearly an hour left on the train, she pulled up some youtube videos of young men training and studied the motions with a critical eye, pausing and rewinding and slowing down the play so that she could see and know more and more. It looked so easy, but Sakura knew it would be complicated.

When she went back she would attempt to conjure up an old rifle to see if it would work in the era she was working in. Some of these sites mentioned samurai on horseback fighting men with guns. She didn't know exactly what era she was dreaming in, or what that meant she could use, but it wouldn't hurt to try. She didn't want to pretend she could break the rules and pull out machine guns whenever she wanted. She had been in a heightened state and hadn't known what she was doing when she killed the elephant wolf. That likely wouldn't happen again.

She watched the videos until she had to get off and doodled all through her Ethics of Medicine, recognizing the lecture from the powerpoint online and her own readings. It was an easy class that left her with a lot of time to let her mind wander. At the end of the day she had a diagram of all the known Obelisk levels in her notebook alongside a sketch of the blade she wanted when she dreamed again.

Before leaving for the day she stopped in and met with an advisor she scheduled two weeks ago to talk about the classes she wanted for the next semester. She had an off feeling about it as soon as she walked in and when the older woman pulled up her account she saw why.

"What happened to the President's scholarship?" Sakura asked, seeing an amount due at the bottom of her list of classes. "That should cover it all since I'm taking an honor's class."

"Ah," there was hesitation in the older woman's tone. The pool for the President's scholarship has dried up. You should have gotten an email about it."

"When?" Sakura asked, feeling panic settle in her chest.

"Last week or this week. The email will explain everything and provide you with steps for securing new academic scholarships."

Sakura shut her eyes and shook her screaming thoughts away before looking back at her class list. Her bill at the bottom was more she made in a year working part time. She would need to take on a loan if she couldn't find anything last minute. "What classes can I drop without falling off course?" she asked after a minute.

"Well, the hybrid classes all come with an extra fee and are more expensive. If you chose to switch over to full day classes it would bring the cost down a few hundred dollars."

"But I need to take hybrid classes so I can work to pay for this." She wanted to snap at the advisor that it was stupid to have to pay hundred of dollars more to come in less and take up the teacher's time less. It didn't make sense, but snapping at the adult in charge wouldn't help her.

"We offer several loans with low interest rates for honor students. The federal government has a program out now for…" the voice droned on into obscurity in Sakura's ears. It was all cut and paste rhetoric she had heard before. Would her mother be willing to help pay for some of this? How much did she have in her savings? What could she get for scholarships? What about another job or picking up more hours? How could she learn to use a katana quickly enough?

That last thought sent her mind reeling. Stupid, these were real world problems she had to deal with. The stupid Obelisk could wait. She had adult problems.

"So, what would you like to do about the classes?" her advisor asked.

Sakura looked at two of the classes she wanted to take as a hybrid option. They were Human Physiology and Micro Economics, both boring classes she could teach herself with a text book and lecture notes. She didn't need to wast two and a half hours on the train everyday to come in for that.

"I…no, we can leave them. I'll find a loan or something to help pay for this. Scholarship applications are still open. I'll…make something work. Thank you. That's all."

The advisor seemed sympathetic to Sakura's situation, but it wasn't like it was a unique case. Most kids in her situation couldn't really afford college if they were working for it. It wasn't anything new.

Sakura felt sick on the train home and instead of looking at videos or finishing her doodles she pulled her legs up and suck in her earbuds. She put her favorite playlist on shuffle and cried as Lorde and Florence and the Machine sang in soulful tones about ruling the world and running with wolves.

Her eyes were red but dried by the time she made it home. Somehow the drive seemed longer than usual and shorter all at once. She didn't really remember any of it. Not even the times she skipped songs on her ipod or almost crushed a Prius when merging lanes.

She stopped at the base of the steps up to the front door and paused to look sideways at the neon blue mustang that looked like it was a streak of electricity in her driveway next to her station wagon. Wasn't that Ami's car?

"Sakura!"

Called girl looked up and saw Ami hanging out the door with a bright smile and a bottle of peach schnapps. "Guess who's your mom's new best friend. I got a key!"

It took a minute for the words to sink in. "Huh?"

Ami rolled her eyes and skipped down till she was one step above Sakura. "What we were talking about yesterday. I talked with my mom and she took your mom out to dinner and they worked something out. We came by when you were out I guess and I've already moved a few things in. Your mom said she wouldn't want this, but I figured you would take this."

Something was pressed into Sakura's hands and she looked down to see an envelope, inside was a check with the first three months paid in advance. Sakura wanted to make the numbers make sense, but it was enough to pay for just over half of her new college bill. She could work and make the money for the rest of it and maybe pick up a small scholarship or loan. It wasn't perfect, but it was something she could work with.

This would work.

"Oh my god," she choked on her words, feeling light all of a sudden. Ami frowned, looking worried. When Sakura looked up Ami noticed her red eyes.

"Were you crying! What happened? Aren't you happy? Is it not enough?"

Sakura laughed, new tears leaking through her lashes. "No, no, it's all good. You're just sort of a miracle to me right now." She laughed again and reached up to rub her face, a little too aware of how her nose was running and how ugly her skin blotched when she cried. "Let's just eat and drink something, neh?"

Ami looked a mixture of proud and pleased and giddy all at once. Just like a little girl who got praised by her mother she skipped up ahead of Sakura and lead the older girl to a table already decorated with warm food and colorful decorations.

Ami held up the bottle and grinned. "Just for us?"

Sakura took the bottle and found the good glasses her grandmother left behind to pour for both herself and Ami. "Yeah." She handed Ami her glass and made sure their rims touched in toast. "To roommates."

Ami's smile couldn't get any wider. "Roommates."

When Sakura woke up she was on the edge of the sea, crouched on a large rock overlooking the privet cove that smelled strongly of salt and mist in the dark morning before sunrise. It was a smell she knew well and relished. The wind in her hair tickled her goosebumps and when she opened her eyes Sai was there, standing at the edge of the water all in black.

"Sai." She called out to him and he turned to face her. A second later he held up his hand for her to take. "What are we doing?" she asked, taking his hand anyway.

"You should know what you are going up against."

He yanked on her hand and brought her closer, grabbing her side and pressing it flat against his before dashing off atop the waters as if they were solid surfaces. She almost yelped when she felt herself start to slip, but hugged him tighter and shifted her hips so that they weren't digging into his side, pronounced as they were. Together they were fast and before long the shore was a sliver in the distance behind them. Sai eventually stopped but didn't let her go. They were farther out than any of the fishermen dared go before the high sun.

"Here?" she asked, feeling anxious. The waters were dark and deep beneath them. She would have trouble seeing even if she didn't need to breath while in the dream world.

"Here," Sai intoned, dropping her so that she slipped into the folds of ocean like a pin, straight and true.

Sakura thought she would flounder, but underwater her body remembered itself and all the hours of training into becoming a professional aquatic entertainer that one summer. Heels together, she arched gracefully and pointed herself downwards, guiding herself on with her hands folded atop one another to cut herself a path down. Her legs were a tail and her feet a fin. There were fish in the water that swam around her in mass, dividing and collecting as she passed through them.

As she suspected, she had infinite breath under the water, and didn't need to worry about air. But light was another issue entirely. The deeper she dove the harder it got to see anything, considering the sun wasn't even up in the sky right now. Sakura felt nothing around her, not even fish, and the current was slack and dead about her body so she stopped and drifted for a moment before cupping her hands together an imagining a glass ball full of the gel found in glow-sticks.

If she had been holding her breath she would have lost it all in a moment the light hit the outer shell of the creature half buried in the sea floor sand. Sleeping and doormat, the crab sat among a bed of bones and sunken sea vessels. And even part way buried, he was huge. Sakura doubted even a football field would be able to hold him with the length of his sprawled out tails and folded up claws. He was massive.

Sakura turned down once more and swam for the bodies scattered around his bace, spotting red fabric among the bones. It wasn't attached to a single body anymore, but Sakura could almost make out the spine and ribcage that it had once covered. She tugged on it and it came freely into her hand, prof of her visit.

Skimming the ocean floor, Sakura grabbed the remains of a sunken, single person boat and kicked off, shooting up for a good distance before having to swim and pump her legs like a tail for added momentum. She glanced back down at the crab, being able to see its head and almost stopped. Curled up on his forehead was a young man, sleeping peacefully. As the curls of waves hit him the young male twitched, and it could of been a trick of the light in the waters, but she thought she saw it turn and look up at her, but then she was too close to the surface to care.

She broke with a gasp that was unnecessary, but Sai was there to gather her up all the same. Sakura coughed as the water dripped into her eyes and nose, holding up the fabric for him to see. "I took something."

"My observations were not false. Please hold on," he spoke in monotone, keeping her tight against his side as they cut the waters in the direction of shore.

The sun was already starting to rise but there was a healthy layer of fog they could hid in all the way until the sand beaches. Sakura was still wet when Sai deposited her on the dunes, but by this point it was only really her clothing and her hair. When Sakura flopped down with the red fabric still in hand, Sai opened his mouth to say something before closing it again and turning on his heel. Sakura wanted to call out to him, to stop him from becoming smoke in the mist, but the sound of steps behind her made her hold her tongue.

Out of the mists stepped a pale figure with delicate hands grabbing a basket of herbs. Sakura looked up expecting to see a woman, but there was only Haku. Ah, that made sense. This was the village without women after all, and Haku wanted to be the substitute. She didn't doubt he was trying on some level to be more feminine.

"Sakura san!" he breathed out in surprise seeing her in his path. He almost blushed and Sakura was a little jealous of how delicate and pretty he looked while she was still a damp mess. He took notice of her state quickly enough. "You've been…swimming?"

Sakura stood first before shaking her head. "I wanted to check some things out. What can you tell me about this?" she asked, holding up the red fabric.

Haku set down his basket to take the fabric and hold it up. It was the top half of a very expensive Kimono layer, the kind woman wore on their weddings. By the way the boy's eyes widened and then narrowed Sakura suspected he recognized it.

"Where did you get this?"

"It's what she wore when she was sacrificed, right? It belonged to one of the dead girls at the bottom of the ocean where the crab sleeps. I'm serious about what I said yesterday. I'm no half hearted woman."

Haku looked up with much softer eyes, and in the early morning light Sakura saw they were the color of milk chocolate. "I didn't doubt you, but still this was reckless. What if you provoked the beast and died or was eaten early before the time for the sacrifice? You didn't even tell anyone where you were going."

Sakura thought about saying she wasn't alone, but decided to keep Sai, who always preferred to be apart from the actors, a secret. Instead she put on a mischievous smile and tilted her head to the side. "Ah, it almost sounds like you care about me. Very sweet of you, but I'm fine now so there is no need to worry your pretty face over it."

Feeling brave and a little daring she reached out to pat his cheek affectionately before turning back to the dune where she had been sitting. A black pole stood out among the dunes, wrapped in fabric. Sakura grabbed it by the strap and slung it over her shoulder, ignoring how it clashed with her damp yukata.

Turning back she saw Haku was still where she left him with red on his cheeks. "Are there other errands you must complete this morning I can help you with, Haku kun?"

"N-n-no, this is fine for what I need. P-please come back to the house with me, Zabuza would like to meet with you."

She chuckled darkly at how cute he looked all flustered and uncomfortable. With no women in the village, he probably wasn't used to getting a lot of attention from the opposite sex, especially when he dressed like one. It wouldn't last long, but Sakura wanted to see how much she could tease him before he got used to her. She wasn't normally so mischievous, but maybe the stress was getting to her. God knew that in the back of her mind she was yelling at herself about how bad an idea it was to lead a boy on, least they end up like Kiba, but she didn't feel like listening to her better side at the moment. Sakura was not a good person.

The two walked back to the house and Sakura smelled the smoke before she saw it, rising up over the roof from out back where Kisame worked day after day. His blades were of legendary grade, Hake told her when he caught her staring at the smoke. People paid a lot to have something made by him.

Sakura followed Haku in and took her shoes off at the door before following him inside. He was soft even when crossing the room. Sakura's footfalls were always quiet, but she felt loud next to him. He moved like a geisha across the tatami mats before folding himself like a pice of paper under the low table. On it's surface a tray with tea waited. Sakura felt out of place, stepping in with her damp clothes and covered weapon. Still, she sat down at the open spot to Haku's left and folded her legs like a lady in a yukata should. She hated how it felt and became eager for Zabuza to show up and give her a reason to move.

It was a while before the old man showed up. He ambled out with his charcoal gray hair a mess around his head and his navy and gray yukata half open to show off his chest. One of his hands rested inside the robe like a sling. He turned his bleary eyes onto her first, seizing her up through the fog of too much sleep, before turning to Haku.

"Why the hell are you up so early, kid?"

"The sun is already risen, Zabuza san, and Kisame is in the forge. I told you we would meet with Sakura san in the morning." Haku paused to eye his master over with a critical glint. "You are not appropriate for guests yet."

"Hell if I care," Zabuza growled, falling down on his but before spreading his legs out and leaning on his one elbow to stare at Sakura some more. "So…you're the little demon slayer, eh? Killed anything big enough to eat you."

"To eat me? Yes, but even my monsters were never any where near the size of your beast. How does he not submerge the village when he rises?"

Zabuza looked bleary from sleep and Sakura had no doubt he was still tired, but he took a long time watching her before replying, and his reply was a very simple, if not blunt, 'what?' muttered in frustrated confusion.

Sakura picked at the still damp fabric she was still dressed in. "I thought it would be a good idea to get a estimate on what it is I'm dealing with. It was…larger than expected."

To support her statements Haku showed Zabuza the retrieved fabric and it didn't take as long for him to recognize it as what it was. His eyes were hard on Sakura, but not in a way that made her feel uncomfortable.

"You're either terribly brave or incredibly foolish."

"Funny how those two go hand in hand so often," she said with a shrug, not willing to be intimidated. "But I won't bee caught off guard. I want to kill this thing and stay alive long enough to walk home." Sakura shifted a bit in her seat so she was sitting on her hip with her legs tucked under her, but not as tightly. "Isn't that why you wanted to speak with me?"

Zabuza muttered gruffly to himself before sitting up straighter and clearing his throat. "You look too tiny to be taken seriously, but size isn't everything. Show me your sword."

Sakura reached behind her and grabbed the cloth cover, feeling the hard sheath through the fabric. Showing the sword reverence, Sakura presented it to Zabuza, and he woke up enough to accept it graciously with the hands of a master swordsman. Sakura could tell right away that his body was kin to the blade. He was one of the few who knew the insides of a sword better than the insides of a man.

Zabuza peeled back the cloth sheath and whistled low when he saw what her sheath was made out of. Pure whale scrimshaw, etched with the carvings of her battles. The handle and guard were also carved out of the polished whale bone. It was beautiful and expensive, but was it worth its weight in blood? Sakura held her breath as Zabuza grabbed the hilt, one finger curling at a time until his grip was tight as iron. He breathed deep and the room stilled. The blade was out but Sakura had never seen him move it. There was a sounds as the blade slid like a ghost out of its sheath and then through the air in an experimental swing.

He picked up the red kimono fabric and dropped the silk over the blade without moving it and Sakura watched as two swatches of red fell down on either side of her sword, cut perfectly without effort. Zabuza gruffly nodded before returning the sword to it's holder.

"A near perfect blade, but I've seen better, and it's far too ornamental while still being disgustingly vile. Snakes and wolves and scorpions…what ugly things for such a marvelous blade." He handed the sword back to her alongside the cloth. "Where did you get it?"

"That's a secret. Sorry, but I can't say anything more."

"Can you use it?" He was staring at her hands with the sort of look that told Sakura he already knew she was nowhere near as skilled as she needed to be.

"Not well," she admitted. "But well enough. I will improve."

Haku had poured them both tea and Zabuza moved to take his. After a moment he set the cup down and leaned back on his elbows. "Then Haku will teach you, and you'll be staying here until the time of the sacrifice. If you try to go anywhere else or stay anywhere else you'll regret it." He pushed off his elbows and leaned forward over the table. "How do you plan on killing this thing? This is your only thought. I won't have my trusted apprentice die over a botched hero wannabe. Prove to me you're not and I'll be your second ally, and with me more will come."

Sakura recognized the finality in his voice and knew this conversation was at an end. She bowed her head low and kept her hands on her knees, eyes downcast. "Thank you very much. I will not disappoint you."

Zabuza nodded, turning to look at Haku. Without a word Haku dipped his head in acknowledgment and stood, as graceful as a blossom caught on a wind. Sakura didn't doubt he was an excellent swordsman, but it made her a little envious inside how he could be both more skilled and prettier than her at the same time. It didn't seem fair.

With that burning kindled, Sakura held onto it and followed Haku outside into the yard, ignoring the large blue man who worked in the shadows. Towards the back was a low rack where bound bamboo practice swords sat upright. Haku took two and tossed one to her. He didn't speak, but took a stance opposite hers. Sakura copied his footwork and gripped her sword the same way. She recognized the stance from the videos she watched earlier. This was familiar.

Haku was fast, and it was a challenge to keep up with him, but Sakura didn't get tired the way a normal dream human would get tired. She could block and parry his blows all day long if she didn't make an error. She strained to keep her footwork neat, but avoiding blades was more an issue and required more of her attention. And it was intention well devoted, because she caught it when he slipped up and left an opening. Being too tired to finish the swing in all it's steps, he skipped over one and left himself open for Sakura to take advantage of.

"Point." Zabuza called from the house. Sakura panted, glancing sideways to see Kisame watching from the forge.

Haku's breath was heavier than her's, but he was smiling and his eyes seemed lighter.

"Is that two out of three?" Sakura asked, not knowing what they were going to.

"Something like that," Haku said, tossing a stray band over his shoulder before gathering his hair up into a perfect bun in seconds. Sakura's insides burned with envy.

When they began again it became obvious that Haku was going easy on her, testing her limits. She was good for a beginner, but Haku was playing with her because there was too big an ability gap and that made her hot inside. Her anger was a red stone in her gut and she burned her hands on it, holding it tighter and tighter. She lost the next two points, but after insisting for a third match, Sakura got her second point, though she didn't feel she deserved it. Haku was chuckling after she struck him and it irritated her further.

He raised a hand and called for a rest and Sakura took that moment to realize the sun was high overhead and the pair of them were damp with their own sweat, but only Haku was panting. At least she didn't give him those points without a struggle. "You're better than you let on," he breathed.

She stayed standing, watching him sit in the shade on a stone where water waited for him. "But still inferior, I see," Sakura said, not indicating she wanted to move. Haku was staring at her, unable to take his eyes away from her form. They had been at it for hours, 'how was she not tired?' his eyes seemed to say.

"What's your weapon of choice then?" Zabuza asked, stepping out from the shade of a separate tree. He looked more awake now. "You're fine with a blade, but the Katana doesn't know your body well enough yet. You have the endurance of a fighter, so I don't think violence is new to you."

Sakura tested the weight of her bamboo sword, mentally comparing it to her knives. It was much longer and heavier and had a reach she wasn't comfortable with. "Smaller blades," she finally confessed before looking up with a teasing smile. "And my own two fists."

"That makes you sound like an ally fighter," he said in a disappointed tone.

"Is that what you call it here? I'll tell you now, it wasn't wholly a choice when you grew up in the place where I came from. It was either learn or be taught for the rest of your life."

Zabuza shrugged out of the top half of his yukata, letting it fall around his waist where the belt was tied. His arms were free and unbridled by sleeves, and his chest was exposed to the glare of the sun, showing off how fit he really was. If Sakura had been doing anything, she was sure she would have faltered or messed up or frozen on the spot. Zabuza was not as old as she first assumed him to be, and he was ripped. Damn.

He eased into a fighter's stance and Sakura blinked in surprise. "You want to do this now?"

"I want to see your best," he said, voice even and flat as ever. She was thankful he didn't notice her bug eyed staring.

"Fine."

Sakura rolled her shoulders and lifted her heels off the ground, so she was just balancing on the balls of her feet. She could feel her body click and it was like wearing your favorite pair of jeans that felt perfect all the way around, or a glove made especially for you. She didn't need the anger anymore. She didn't need to burn herself on the fire in her gut for this. He was a grown man, and physically stronger than her, but that didn't mean a thing to her here. She declawed the dream killer, she danced with death, she buried men in the earth.

Zabuza's first mistake was not coming at her with all the he had. He underestimated and it was going to cost him. She pivoted, snaked, and pummeled like her arms were pistons into his side. He wasn't fast enough to keep up and when he was thrown back, there was nothing but satisfaction in Sakura's smile. Zabuza looked at her, and it was as if he was seeing her for the first time. She wasn't a girl, she was a warrior. She was a killer. She was his equal.

He was better about avoiding her the second time around, but she started using her legs to catch him when he retreated, and almost kicked in his knees when he got too close. Zabuza was a swordsman, and a good one at that. With a weapon he would have had her on her back in seconds, no doubt. But this was Sakura's game and she knew it. She arched her leg up high before bringing it down where he had just been with a echoing crack that split the air violently. Her heel left a crack in the earth and it was enough to shake Zabuza.

Her hands were fast and when he tried to retreat again she jumped past his defenses and drove him into the dust on his back. Straddling his midsection, Sakura leaned down on his neck, her thumbs tickling the bulge in his throat that was his Adam's apple. He almost reached her but she applied just a hint of pressure and his hands went down, knowing she had him.

"Still think I'm petty?" she almost purred in delight. She felt like she was glowing.

"I never said you were." His voice was gruff, lower and a bit more reserved in comparison to before. He tilted his chin down to get a better look at her face and frowned. "I yield."

Grinning widely, Sakura leaned back and pulled her knees up to ease up over him and stand off to his side before offering a hand to help him up. He took it graciously, already seeing her in a different light. When he was up he didn't let go of her hand right away, but narrowed his eyes, still looking at her. "And it was knives, you said…the other skill set."

Sakura nodded, dropping his hand. "Knives and fists. Small and easy to carry. No one sees you coming."

"And where did you say you grew up?"

"I didn't."

"Of course," Zabuza coughed, rubbing a hand over the discoloration growing over his ribs. He looked at his bruises and then glared at Sakura's lack of injuries before straightening up and pretending his pride wasn't hurt worse than his body. "I don't envy you for your upbringing. Haku will show you inside for lunch. Afterwards the pair of you will work on stances until sundown. I expect you to stay here as well. Going outside will be dangerous, regardless of your capabilities."

"I can make myself harder to notice," Sakura said, not knowing how she felt about staying with the men when it was hard to tell where she would be when she woke up.

"Regardless, that's not a risk worth taking. I'm not negotiating."

Sakura swallowed, recognizing the no nonsense tone to his voice. She bowed at the waist in acknowledgment. "As you say, then."

Haku was already up and stood an arm's reach away before she took notice of him. He smiled and turned back towards the house, intending for her to follow. She was slower, and took her time measuring her steps, noticing how Zabuza approached Kisame to talk in measured voices that didn't seem concerned about being overheard.

Sakura stepped inside and slid the screen door part way shut behind her, leaving it a crack open to hear the rest of their exchange.

"-Still a long way to go," Kisame said gruffly.

"But at least there's something to work with, like you said. I didn't let her win our fight."

"I know." Kisame then chuckled. "But you should have seen Haku's face when she pinned you down. He was watching her the whole time, but when she was on top of you, that boy would have given anything to switch places with you."

Sakura felt her cheeks burn and she turned to make sure Haku wasn't close by or listening as well. He was putting the tea set away and seemed occupied with that for the moment.

"I was worried about that kid for a while, but it seems there was no need," Zabuza said. "I'll have to keep an eye on his behavior while she's staying with us."

Kisame chuckled low and Sakura almost didn't catch his next words. "And I'll keep an eye on you, Zabuza."

The bruised male must have made a face because Kisame laughed again. "I saw more than just the boy's face when she pinned you down. I saw your's too. Make sure you don't get jealous of our cute youthful apprentice while she's here. You're too old a bachelor."

"I am not, and that's-"

Sakura stepped away from the door, sliding it all the way closed and cutting off the conversation before she heard too much or got caught listening. Haku was waiting for her and seemed pleasant enough to escort her throughou the small house on tour and show here the small closet sized room she would be using. He apologized for the size, but he didn't think it would be appropriate for an unmarried woman to share with an unmarried male.

Sakura didn't miss the pause that followed his words as he waited for him to correct his statement. She didn't because it was true, but it made her uncomfortable to hear it mentioned.

"Haku…san," she wasn't sure how to say his name in accordance with their current relationship, but 'san' seemed pretty safe to stay with. "Since you've already showed me the baths, can you tell me when you and the other men will be using it? I wouldn't want to have our times…overlap."

"You must want to use the baths, naturally. I will let Zabuza san and Kisame san know not to disturb you. Do you have any of your things with you?"

Sakura shook her head, finding it too difficult to come up with a lie to explain all the things she could dream up. Haku never stopped smiling, but his smile almost looked sympathetic, if that was possible. "I have a few things you can use. They are more suited to you than I and will be suitable for the rest of the day. Please take your time. When you are done I will have dinner ready and then for strategy a good round of the generals game. Is that acceptable?

Sakura racked her brain for the japanese word for the game he was talking about, remembering how it was sometimes also called Japanese chess. She didn't play, but she heard and read about it before. Ami had a board set in her house that was made out of expensive wood and other precious materials like ivory and bone.

Realizing Haku was still waiting for an answer she shook her random thoughts aside. "Ah, yes, that sounds fine. I'm sorry to be a bother. I will bring my own things with me tomorrow morning from where I had been staying."

"That is fine. I have more than enough to share. Please let me know if you need anything else."

When Sakura convinced him she was fine, Haku left her to pick up the spare clothes he had been talking about, letting Sakura find the bathes on her own. Retracing her steps, Sakura walked the hallways. On her way she passed a room with the door slid half way open. Zabuza was standing in front of a small alter, but he was looking at a blank spot on the wall with a faraway sheen to his charcoal gray eyes. His hands reached up to lightly stroke his neck around his Adam's apple. His eyes were still far away when Sakura eventually passed by.

Having Ami around the house took a lot more from Sakura. Her energy was constantly being zapped, but not in a bad way. She could tell it had been a while since Ami last had a serious friend, and even then Sakura doubted Ami had been very serious about the relationship.

Ami liked to talk a lot about her dreams and ask Sakura advice and it was clear that the younger girl looked up to Sakura and respected her greatly. It was a total 180 from what their relationship had been during their primary school and high school years. The irony that Sakura's two closest friends used to be two of her most hated enemies wasn't lost on her.

Ami liked taking care of others when it became possible. Before heading out to Orchard or it's secret basement club Root, Ami made Sakura turn around and head back upstairs to change and let her fix the makeup that hadn't been applied enough. Sakura grumbled about being able to dress herself, but Ami pretended she didn't hear any of it when bringing in her oversized MAC makeup set. Sakura thought she looked okay how she was, but wasn't about to put up a fight when she knew it made Ami so happy to be useful.

"I invited the guys too, but I think only Juugo can make it. Suigetsu is working late with Karin and they'll meet us later."

"Oh, is that why you're putting so much effort into this?" Sakura asked, closing her eyes as Ami dusted her lids with a shade of maroon and indigo eyeshadow before accenting it with a white shimmer to make her eyes really pop. When Sakura took a look, she couldn't help but admit it was nice, if not a bit too bold for her tastes. She would have never been able to pull it off, but Ami was an artist in her element.

"I always put my effort into looking perfect. The right kind of outfit or the perfect makeup can give you power. It's like magic!" She then pulled out a tube of lipstick called Bit of Berry that made her lips dark but not too dark that they weren't still inviting. "And yeah, I think Juugo likes bad girl Sakura. The good ones usually do."

"I'm not a…well, no, never mind. Forget I said anything." She liked to think she was a good person, but she couldn't ignore the fact that she kept herself dangerous for a reason.

Ami hurried and finished up the makeup and teased Sakura's hair a little before looking over her outfit. It was a mustard yellow long sleeve dress with a boatneck collar and little black buttons down the back.

"Change."

Sakura's lips tugged down. "But I like it!"

But Ami wasn't listening, instead she began digging through Sakura's closet and pulling out things she saw and liked. After a minute she walked away frustrated. "Here, little black dress will have to do."

Sakura tugged the mini cocktail dress out of her friend's hands and took it to the bathroom to change. She didn't like the lack of color, but she couldn't deny that it paired really well with her makeup and made her look like a James Bond girl. Before following Ami out, Sakura slipped on a rose gold locket that had belonged to her grandmother to bring a bit of her character to the ensemble. Ami frowned at the add on, but Sakura made a face like she wasn't going to debate it and started leading down to the cars.

Ami drove her Mustang to the club, but Sakura took the keys before they could climb out calling dibs on driving back. It didn't take much before Ami would be what you would consider 'impaired.' Sakura wasn't a big drinker anyway on nights when all she wanted to do was dance.

Inside at Root it wasn't long before Ami found a boy she used to know through a friend of a friend from school and the two hit it off, talking at the counter and picking up drinks to take back to their booth on the second floor, because that was the sort of mood Ami was in. Sakura was about to text Juugo when she spotted him chatting up one of the bartenders on the far end of the hall.

Avoiding the dance floor she made a beeline for where he stood. It was loud, so she had to touch his back to get his attention. He turned and lit up once he recognized her. "Hey, glad you finally made it."

"Sorry I lost Ami already. How were Karin and Suigetsu when you left?"

Juugo grinned brightly, watching her step up to the counter beside him. "Fighting as always. They're fine. How was your day?"

Sakura chuckled before falling into the familiar rhetoric before it became too difficult to communicate over the loud noise. She told Juugo she was going to text Ami that they were heading upstairs to hang in the loft above the Orchard's dance floor.

There was a old pack of UNO cards left lying around that they decided to play with until realizing half the deck was missing. Sakura got a text from Karin that she and Suigetsu had finished and were on their way. After showing off the text Sakura told Juugo she was going to go downstairs to buy herself some tea.

She wasn't surprised to see Yamato behind the counter cleaning empty glasses. He grinned seeing her. "Tea tonight, or something stronger?"

"Mmm, a tea with some apple in it please, what do you have?"

"Well, it's not tea, but we do have some of the best apple cider around and it's a perfect drink if you want to stay warm without drifting off to sleep." He eyed her dress and heels. "You're going to Root?"

"How did you know?"

"They're making me put more and more hours downstairs. It's funny how you become able to predict the destination of our patrons based off the funniest things. You seem more like an Orchard girl, though," he said, sounding thoughtful towards the end.

"Oh, is that a type? How am I an Orchard girl, then?" Sakura gave him a look like she was pretending to be offended but it only made him snicker.

"Less obnoxious and less wasted. Let me guess, you're rather play board games with a small group of friends than knock back shots in the dark."

She rolled her eyes dramatically, not minding how he hadn't actually started making her drink or how she never actually ordered anything. "That's not very fair as you've never seen me order alcohol for myself so of course I would seem like an Orchard girl."

"I've seen you order drinks before. But you were here with a different friend and you were dancing downstairs." He looked down at the counter, as if he regretted saying as much. He swallowed and cleared his throat. "But that's not what you want right now. So, was that a yes to the cider?"

"A yes, please," Sakura answered, straining the please as if she wanted him to notice her being polite. It was New York, after all. Being polite was an endangered activity.

Yamato chuckled and set off to prepare her drink. She watched him over the counter with her hand bent under her chin. It didn't take long before he came back with her drink and she handed him her card, but he wouldn't take it.

"You're a designated driver again, aren't you? Non alcoholic drinks are on the house."

Sakura grinned out of the corner of her mouth, trying to hide it. "Thanks. Then I'll see you around, Yamato."

Before she could even make it back to the loft, she caught Juugo staring down at her, except it wasn't her he was staring at anymore. His eyes were dead looking and partly glazed over as he watched Yamato watch her walk all the way back. Sakura felt fear blossom in her chest, and choked it down, telling herself there was nothing to fear here in this place in this reality. She was awake and the horrors were only waiting for her when she fell asleep. Still, the feeling didn't abate until much later when she had nearly forgotten about her cider drink.

Sakura was so much better at the sword than she was when she first started out. Days and weeks had passed and with every lesson and every stroke more and more of the mysteries of kenjutsu became known to her. The art of the sword, or kenjutsu was a lot of hard work that usually boiled down to Sakura repeating the same stroke a hundred times over her head. It reminded her of that story of a master pianists sitting down to practice and running through nothing but scales for all his practice time. Everything came down to simple concepts with kenjutsu, but her body had to learn it before her mind. She needed to be faster than any other body, and move before she thought.

It wasn't long before she started training with Zabuza. Part of it was due to her stamina being unmatched, but another part of it was due to the fact that she was stronger and faster now. She was actually beating Haku when they sparred and he had long since abandoned going easy on her. Now she forced him to try his best with her, and even then sometimes it wasn't enough.

There was one day where she had schooled Haku particularly fast and moved on to Zabuza, giving the younger boy time to recover in the shade. But then with Zabuza she fought and fought and eventually he tired, but she didn't. She could just keep going and he saw that in her eyes before stepping back and holding up a hand.

"That is where I must leave you. Take a short break and then run through your stances." Zabuza rubbed his ribs, looking to Haku. "We can have dinner early."

"Are you hurt?" Sakura asked, sounding concerned. Zabuza did look paler than normal, and there was darkness hanging from his eyes. Instead of answering her he pulled up the cloth that hung around his neck and covered his mouth with it before heading towards the house.

Sakura sighed, readjusting herself for the stances when she noticed Kisame move out form underneath the forge's coverings. He squinted at the light, but wiped his hands on the front of his clothes and walked over to where the practice swords were being kept. Sakura watched, frozen in place, as he picked one up and weighed it in his hand.

From the sidelines, Haku gulped nervously. "Kisama san?"

"Have you ever gotten tired once, Sakura?" the blue man asked, looming where he stood. It was impossible for him not to. He was always impressive, all the time. He couldn't not loom with all the bulk of his body.

Numbly, she shook her head, not trusting her mouth to work when she knew what would come next.

Kisame grinned, and his grin was wild and dangerous. His mouth was full of teeth sharpened to a point. "After today you'll never be able to say that again. Get into position."

Silently, Sakura obeyed, standing opposite him with her practice sword raised. His eyes were dark black like the eyes of a shark and Sakura couldn't help but picture him as a hulking great white on land, ready to sniff out her blood and follow it back to her body for devouring. There was an energy or aura that made her feel small, like prey. He was over her in every way imaginable.

It was only thanks to her training that her body reacted at all to block his first move. He came at her with a wild cry and her mind didn't compute fast enough to keep up with him, but her hands knew what to do. Her arms knew what to do. Her feet knew how to move and her knees knew how to bend.

Kisame was relentless. Haku could be relentless, and Zabuza could be relentless in how they continued to bear down on her with attack after attack, but neither of them were like Kisame. He kept coming at her and there wasn't even the slightest sign that he was going to run out of energy anytime soon.

He was laughing and it chilled Sakura. He just coming at her like a force of nature. Again and again she tried to scream at her blocks, to put more power into them, but nothing could match his power. She tried to counter, tried to twist and turn away before slicing at him again, but he wouldn't let her take the chance. Just like there was no end to Sakura's stamina, there seemed to be no stopping the big blue monster with teeth like a killer's.

She lost track of time, but she was worn and her body was a mess with nerves and fright as she continued to block and guard and evade. Off to the side she noticed Zabuza had come back outside to watch them, and he stood transfixed beside Haku. It was so small an oversight, but it was all Kisame needed to break her guard and get his sword into her gut. Haku would have tapped her, Zabuza might have hit her, but Kisame threw her. Sakura felt like she was thrown back by the force of a car hitting her dead on when she sailed through the air and landed closer to the house.

Haku cried out in alarm and ran to her side. Zabuza was frowning at Kisame who looked high or something with a wicked smile still in place and a faint breath caught on his lips. So he did wear out…

Sakura grabbed her head, sitting up with a little help from Haku. It was late in the evening. Sun would be setting soon. "Wow, now I think my bruises have bruises. Thank you."

"I'm surprised you lasted so long. Your lungs may have stamina, but you need to rely less on your mind and more on your spirit when you wield a medium as fine as a katana," Said Haku.

Kisame grinned before adding. "But other than that, yeah you kinda sucked."

Sakura frowned. "That was my first shot at you, shark face. I'll get better for next time."

Kisama blinked, resting his practice sword over his shoulder and looking lost. "Shark face, is that me?"

"Who else would I be talking to? Yes you. I might have sucked, but I'll work on it. You're just really big and impressive so far."

"And you don't think the three tailed crab won't be?" He took a handful of steps towards her until his shadow stretched out over her. "You don't get a second shot at this thing. You don't get to work on it once the time comes. Don't use excuses on me, they won't get you anywhere."

She knew she shouldn't say anything back. He wasn't really asking a question. He was trying to humble her because there was more for him to loose than her. If she failed his village would suffer for generations to come. But did any of that matter if this was all a dream?

Sakura bit her lip and bowed her head. She didn't move, she didn't look up, and she didn't talk back. Eventually the shadow fell away and she heard his footsteps leading back to the forge where his swords were waiting. Something in her eyes stung and when she eventually lifted her head, the stray tear fell down her face and caught on her chin. She wiped it quickly, thanking her stars that she didn't sound like she had been crying or feel like she had been crying when she swallowed.

"I will continue to practice on my own then," she said in an even tone before taking her sword to the far corner of the yard and practicing her swings.

When Haku eventually came back out to call her in for dinner she shook her head, refusing him. When he came out after dinner with a plate of leftover rice rolls Sakura just kept swinging. She didn't stop to take them, but Haku remained outside, watching her. Even as it grew dark, Sakura kept swinging. She would keep swinging until her dream ended, and then swing some more once she fell asleep again.

When the tingling started up in the back of her neck she eased out of her swings, taking stock of her surroundings before it was time to go. Haku was still outside with her, his plate of rice balls cold and stale on the ground beside him. He looked asleep, and when Sakura kneeled down in front of him, he didn't stir. She touched his skin and felt how cold he was growing.

"Stupid boy," she sighed, pulling out a men's haori to wrap around his shoulders. The kimino jacket was black with a pattern of white birds across the back, and she was sure it was something he would have liked.

When she looked up, Zabuza was watching from the doorway.

"Will you help him into his room?" she asked, knowing she couldn't be expected to life Haku and carry him inside, even thought she probably could with some effort.

"You could just wake him."

She shook her head, letting sweaty strands of pink slap her in the face. "It would be a waste. He should sleep."

Zabuza considered her for a moment more before saying anything. "You're not thinking of giving up?"

Sakura followed through on another swing. "Of course not."

"Kisame didn't scare you off, or do you think you can beat him?"

Sakura almost paused, but followed through with the swing perfectly as her mind went back to the fight. Kisame had been a monster. Something was different about him that separated him from all the other men she fought before. It was as if he was cloaked in an energy that gave him power and strength. It was unearthly.

"If I can learn to wield that sort of energy like Kisame, then I know I can." Her sword came down stronger than before.

Zabuza looked on, curious. "Energy?"

The dream was almost over, but Sakura knew she had enough time for a few more words. "Yeah, he was different. I could almost see it around him in a cloud of blue when he moved. He was just so powerful and I need to learn to be like that too, one day soon."

The next time Sakura dreamed, she awoke in her room before dawn to find Sai sitting in the corner drinking tea. He looked up when she shifted on her futon and met her sleepy morning gaze.

"Oh no, what did I do now?" she groaned into the fabric.

"Nothing wrong, but you were able to pick up on something that will help progress the narrative. I wanted to be here first to give you some insight that might be helpful."

She wracked her brain, but couldn't come up with anything useful. What was Sai talking about? She rolled off her futon onto the floor and kept rolling till she was on her back looking up at Sai who seemed as emotionless as ever. "What did you want to tell me?"

"You mentioned being able to see a blue energy around Kisame during your spar."

"I didn't think it was a big deal."

"That was Kisame altering the dream, but in this kingdom that is called using one's chakra. In other kingdoms it has been called magic or sorcery, but it is a manipulation of the constructed world inside this dream. Mere members should not be able to see or use chakra, but Kisame is an actor. He will want to know how you were able to see his chakra and know if you have any of your own."

"Why?"

Instead of answering, Sai reached out and touched her forehead, forcing images into her mind. It was intrusive, and Sakura resisted at first, but then the images began to make sense, and the audio that rang out inside her brain matched the moving lips and soon everything came together.

It was a much older time, a more primitive time where people wore skins and killed all the time out of fear. Men and women who glowed with chakra energy were clubbed down by their brothers and family members. Whole villages turned on people who could manipulate the waters, breath fire, and make things turn up out of nowhere. It was a rare gift, one no one understood. What people do not understand they fear, and when they were young, people killed what they feared.

A woman closed up a wound on her knee and turned to face her lover, only to see the horror grow in his eyes. Before she could reach for him and sooth his worries with kisses he turned on her, a stone as big as his fist raised high. Sakura watched as the girl screamed his name, even after he crashed that stone against her skull. He was crying too, about his unkind fate, as he bludgeoned the beautiful girl to death.

When Sakura came out of it, she was suddenly very grateful no one had ever seen her pull anything out of thin air before. If Zabuza had seen her make that haori for Haku…

The room spun a little as she grabbed her head in anxiety. "Wait! Kisame can use chakra, so they won't kill me for it. Even if they don't suspect, they wouldn't kill me for it….right?"

"People do not kill chakra users anymore in this time period, although some villages will be more biased about it, you don't have any reason to believe you will be stoned to death for such indiscretions."

"Then, do they know?"

Sai didn't answer, but instead raised his teacup to his lips and took a sip. He kept his eyes closed as the warm water coated his throat. Frustrated, Sakura stood and paced back to her futon before untying her sleeping yukata. Letting it fall off her shoulders she dreamed up a new day one before the old could show off anything indecent. They weren't the easiest to move around in, but it was what everyone else was wearing, so she learned to adjust to the difficulties. Sakura pulled her hair into a high ponytail and then curled it into a bun she tied down with clips and pins.

The sun was nearly up, so she decided to head out and start training on her own. She was a mouse throughout the house, sneaking out the back without making a sound. No one else seemed to be up, so she approached the rack of bamboo practice swords.

Her hand stilled right above the hilt of one before drawing back. She remembered in her vision one of the users healed a cut on her knee, and another made boulders explode with just his fist. She didn't know how that was possible, but she wanted to know if it was possible for her to do any of those things with her own abilities. She could alter her appearance or make things out of thin air all the time, but she never thought much about the how or why of her conjuring ways. If she could do one easy enough, what was stopping her from doing the other?

Sakura dreamed up a small knife and cut the tip of her finger. It could be a paper cup for how small it was, but blood poured out from the slice like perfect ruby beads. She concentrated on the cut, and pretended it wasn't there. She visualized it leaving, of sealing up and knitting itself back together. She concentrated so hard but nothing happened.

Giving up, she stuck her finger into her mouth and sucked the excess blood away. She would practice channeling enough power into her hands to break something, but until she could manage to sneak away, she would have to wait.

"You seem highly dedicated to be up and practicing so early." Sakura turned to see Zabuza standing in the doorway. "You didn't even wait for Haku to make you breakfast."

"I…didn't think anyone would be up this early. What are you doing outside, Zabuza san?" she asked, hiding her finger in her fist and pretending to sound like she couldn't care less what he wanted with her. Zabuza didn't talk a lot, and spoke to her even less. If he was speaking, there was something he wanted to know.

"I heard you practicing."

"I will try to be quieter." She should have started her swings again, but Zabuza didn't move and she felt trapped under his gaze, like it was a physical force. It was still dark out, but light was breaking over the Eastern lands. "Is…that all…Zabuza san?"

"You're nervous."

This time she didn't bother to beat around the bush or pretend she wasn't as agitated as she really was. She lowered her practice sword and turned to face him, squaring her shoulders and lifting her chin. She wouldn't be intimidated even if she was outmatched or overpowered. She schooled her features into an emotionless mask that would not betray the dying bird that was her heart. For all he would be able to see, she was not moved by his presence.

Zabuza narrowed his eyes and stood up straighter himself. "You know."

His words crackled with electricity and she felt the fog roll in, faster than before.

"Know what?"

The fog was a blanket around them, piling up like cumulus clouds on every side until they were ghosts, lost to the world. There was energy in the clouds too, the same way there had been energy around Kisame when they last fought. This was what Sai had showed her. This was chakra.

Zabuza snapped, and that's when Sakura realized she had spoken out loud instead of in her mind like she originally intended to. He was fast, and Sakura was off guard, but somehow she managed to bring up her practice sword to block his fist. Still, the impact pushed her back in the dirt a distance, separating she looked up again he had a short black, blade oddly shaped in his hand. A pouch on his leg was left open and she saw the curved ends of other similar knives.

"Kuni," he said before tossing one at her. Sakura yelped and ducked, spinning out of the way and into the mist. When she righted herself, Zabuza was gone.

"Crap," she said out loud. There was something different about Zabuza now, and it wasn't just the chakra he was using. He had a killer's aura and a murder's eyes. He wasn't playing around anymore. "The hell Zabuza! What are you doing?"

The mist was silent all around her, and Sakura bit her lip, doubting the wisdom of shouting. What if she woke up Haku and Kisame and the two of them decided to try and kill her as well. It made as much sense as what Zabuza was doing. Hell, hadn't he been helping her yesterday? Why was he trying to kill her?

Sakura's eyes widened as the hairs on to back of her arms stood up on end and a shiver bit down her spine. She turned and leapt out of the way just in time to avoid decapitation. A monster blade cut through the mist like clouds before settling on the back of her opponent. Zabuza's face was covered in those bandages again, and his posture was taunt like a drawn bowstring.

"What is that thing?" she breathed, taking in the sight of the oversized butcher's blade that was taller than he was and nearly as wide. She was shocked he was even able to hold it up.

"My apologies, Sakura san. This isn't personal and I truly did like you, but no one can know what we are in this village."

"Know what? What the hell is going on, and why are you trying to kill me now?"

He didn't respond, but stepped back into the mist, melting into it like an appertain without substance. He was silent too. She had hoped to hear his steps and track him that way, but he somehow had mastered the art of ghost walking. And with that huge sword on his back, it was doubly impressive.

She wanted to call on Sai and have him help her, but she didn't. No, Zabuza was different from the others, he wasn't really her enemy. He was an actor, and that made him a planet in her solar system. He existed for her, the dreamer. It was insulting to think he was trying to kill her now.

In her anger Sakura reached out and manifested her scrimshaw blade out of thin air. Folding it against her side, she fell into a stance and readied herself to draw the blade. She closed her eyes to the white world around her and inhaled deeply, tasting the sea and salt in her lungs now.

She felt his energy and drew her sword in a flurry, sending a shockwave through the mist strong enough to push it back and expose where he had been hiding. A colored glow flickered out from the hand that held her blade ad she flinched. There was a lot of this energy inside of her now that she was aware of it. She could see it coiled up in the depths of her and formed her entire dream body. Glancing around, she saw the dreamworld was made up of meeker energies she could reach out an manipulate.

Her eyes throbbed with the raw power that lay trapped within her. Zabuza met her gaze and not a second later he made his advance, leaping out across the grounds to swing at her and she met him head on. His butcher blade went for her and she stopped it with her own, pouring her energy into it to reinforce it's structure. Her blade was significantly smaller and thinner. It should have bent or broken under the impact of his strike, but it didn't.

They grappled for a bit before breaking apart and Sakura thought Zazbua would charge her again, but a hulking shadow grew across the ground between them before something mammoth crashed down, scattering dust and fog alike. Sakura held up a hand to her face to keep the dust out,coughing from the impact. Rising up from the small crater, Kisame straightened his body and then heaved his own mammoth blade over his shoulder, only his was covered in wrappings and hidden from view.

"Kisame!" Sakura exclaimed, but his back was to her and his attention was elsewhere. Zabuza flinched, but didn't back down.

"Mind telling me what the fuck is going on here?" the blue man growled, looking ready to shred his comrade to pieces.

Zabuza didn't sound scared when he answered back."You were careless and let yourself be known. Your thoughtlessness led me to this. She knows about the chakra."

"Obviously. How the hell else do you think she was able to keep fighting with that monster stamina of hers? There was a constant, nearly undetectable thread of it feeding into her body. You just weren't able to see it because you've never encountered someone with such a level of control." Kisame took a step back so that he could glance over his shoulder and see her. "Even now that sword of hers is embedded with her own special chakra."

"Obviously," Zabuza snapped, sounding near irate. "Otherwise my danto would have sliced her clean through."

Kisame growled and heaved his sword up, swinging it around to point it at the other swordsman. "Then why the hell were you attacking her?!"

"Kisame you're an idiot. It doesn't matter who or what she is if she knew about you. Have you forgotten what you have given up for this life? The wrong word out of her mouth and you're back to the old ways, and I'm not about to go down the hell path with you."

Kisame turned back on his heel to regard Sakura more fully. She tensed at the stern expression on his face. "Oi, girlie, were you planning on letting it slip we're chakra users just like you?"

The images from Sai's vision flashed through her mind. Sakura felt her lip curl. "What the hell would make you think I'd do that? What the actual fuck made you think I would ever do that?" she asked in a roar, feeling her heart thunder in her chest as anger roared in her ears. Her blood was agitated by the insult. "I thought you guys were my friends. I would have….I…"

Her throat closed up a bit and she felt the stinging in her eyes. She lowered her sword to be able to wipe of face with the back of her arm. Into the fabric of her garment the boys heard her utter 'fuck' once or twice, making them blush. She swallowed the stone in her throat and fixed her eyes into a glare again. Her voice was strong again when she decided to speak.

"I would never betray my friends."

She didn't wait for them to say anything, but turned on her heel and ran back into the house. She passed Haku in the hallway, but didn't stop to say hello or meet him with a greeting before beelining it to her bedroom and slamming the door behind her.

Her throat tasted like salt from the tears she choked back and when she turned around, looking for Sai, he wasn't there. It was probably better that way. She didn't want him to see her crying over something so stupid. Maybe she was just scared after being almost killed. She was in shock, she was crying because of the shock, it wasn't like she actually…thought she was a part of their family or anything like that.

But even if she had, it wasn't that unreasonable a thing to believe! Zabuza had been incredibly kind to her since her stay with them. He taught her for many days and ate dinner with her nearly every night. If Haku was the one training her he would bring out her lunch and make Haku go inside for his own spring rolls or bento while he waited outside with a knowing smirk and a mischievous glint in his eyes. When Haku would eventually came back out with a lunch to eat with them, they were almost always gone, hiding on purpose to make the poor boy panic.

Zabuza was silent and gruff at times, but Sakura felt so proud of herself when she caught him smiling at her or playing jokes with her. It was like he let her in on a great secret when he showed emotions in front of her that he didn't share with anyone else.

His words echoed in her mind. "My apologies, Sakura san. This isn't personal and I truly did like you, but no one can know what we are in this village." He thought she would be a traitor to them, even with her situation being what it was. He thought she would…do that to them.

When a soft knock broke her from her musings, she noticed the sun had reached near its peak in the sky. She had been in her room for hours?

"Sakura san, are you decent?" Zabuza's muffled voice drifted through the wood. "I'm asking you for entrance, please."

"It's your house, do as you like," she answered back, not caring if her voice sounded cruel.

The wooden frame grazed the surface of the floor as Zabuza pushed the door back and entered. He shut the door behind him and approached Sakura who stood in the center of the room before bowing as low as possible. When Sakura turned, she found him on his knees with his forehead pressed to the floor.

"Zabuza san?"

"I humble beg for you forgiveness. I have made a grave error and betrayed your good faith in me as well as my own heart. I ignored me intuition in favor of foolishly eliminating the potential for discord. I should not have acted in such a way. I have examined myself and find my action unjust and unworthy of forgiveness."

She felt uncomfortable all of a sudden and dropped to her knees, kneeling in front of him. She slipped her hand under his jaw and lifted his face up so he could see her. "Don't do that." She let go of his face and fall back onto her butt, letting her shoulders sag. "Don't look at me like that…so formally."

"I can not apologize enough for what I have done. I will regret them forever."

"Were you really going to kill me?" He flinched and Sakura felt her heart twitch again. "Why? Would people really try to kill you if they knew? I thought people got better about this stuff with time."

"Our situation is different. Kisame is especially strong, and in my youth I…killed many men for my country. There was once a man stronger than the others who hunted down people like us for his village. He…this organization poses a treat to our lives and I was willing to sacrifice you to protect that."

"Would working for such a guy be bad?" she asked, not knowing what was so wrong about wanting to kill the tailed beasts. Wasn't that what they were training her for?

A dark look came over Zabuza. "I…do not want to be the bloody puppet for anyone ever again. The same is said for Kisame."

Sakura tried to imagine it with her mind's eye. Being controlled by anyone sounded like a nightmare. "And Haku?"

"They would have taken him as well. He is young and can not do much, but he has great potential if he ever wishes to tap into it." He paused before saying anything more. "I swore to protect him."

Sakura nodded, feeling numb still, but…fuller. "I understand then. But Zabuza san, I would have never said anything to anyone, especially if you had explained to me in the first place. I…I know I'm not Haku and I haven't know you as long as Kisame, but I…I felt like this was a place for me and I…I really liked it here and I thought you liked me being here as well. I'm here to train, but I thought of you guys as my friends, as treasured people. I still do. It hurts, but I want to forgive you."

"I don't deserve it."

"I think that's why they call it grace." She shook her head. "We all do things we regret when we're scared. And in a way, I can understand your actions. It was because you cared about your family and wanted to protect them. In that respect, I can't accept your apology because what you did wasn't wrong."

"It was wrong because it was you." Sakura looked up and saw that Zabuza wasn't looking away any more. His stare was confident and unflinching. "I will always protect my family and never apologize for that, but you were a part of my family. It was wrong because it was you."

Sakura felt the tips of her ears turn red and her face burned a little hot. She looked up again when she heard him chuckle. If possible, she felt her face burn brighter. "What?"

"No, it's cute."

Sakura thought she was going to overheat. She reached up and covered her face with her hands, looking down and heard Zabuza laugh louder. "Don't call me that!" she muttered through her fingers. "Stooooooop." She wanted to sink into the earth or burrow under bed covers for the way he made her feel like a child.

There was a banging on the door just then and it slid open to reveal an extremely annoyed Haku. His chocolate colored eyes were narrowed into deadly slits when they landed on Zabuza. "What are you doing to Sakura san?"

Not one to be intimidated by a child Zabuza just chuckled darkly and shook his head. "And here it comes. The protective wrath you've earned for yourself, Sakura." Zabuza eased out of his crouch and climbed to his feet, dusting his knees as he straightened up. "In light of all of this, I think it would be a fine idea to take that trip we've been talking about."

Sakura looked up from behind her hands, forgetting her embarrassment. "What trip?" Haku looked equally confused from beside her.

"I told you that when I was ready to fight alongside you that others would join. We are going to retrieve them as well as develop that raw technique you've been working with. You need a finer teacher for chakra manipulation than I can be."

Haku looked back and forth between the two, his eyes widening and then narrowing. "What, Sakura san can use chakra? When did this happen?"

She shrugged, not minding that the young boy took advantage of the opportunity to sit down beside her, scooting closer than she would normally allow. "It helps bolster my stamina, but I can't do very much more than that and I don't even notice it when I use it. I've never been formally trained."

"I can teach you the basics!" Sakura jumped when she felt Haku's hands on her own. He pulled her palms closer to himself and she didn't resist. "And then Kisame can teach you the advanced stuff. He's pretty good about it to, even if he is a harsh teacher."

Zabuza moved towards the door and stopped before leaving. "You two can take the rest of the day off. We'll set out first thing in the morning before the sun comes up, so make sure you get to bed early."

When the door slid back shut Sakura looked down to see that Haku was still holding her hands. When Haku caught her looking he made a sound in his throat like a squeak and let go extremely fast, bobing his head and apologizing. Sakura chuckled lightly and shook her head, thinking his actions fine. She reached up to undo the ponytail she had gathered her hair into when Haku cleared his throat.

"So, you're like me. You can use chakra."

Sakura closed her eyes and focused on pulling all the strands of her hair up into one fist so she could retie her hair. "Yeah, that's what it sounds like, but this is sort of the first time I'm really hearing it called chakra. I always just thought of it as energy."

Haku got up on his knees behind her and took her hair out of her hands, pulling it back and brushing it with his fingers in ways she couldn't. She let her hands fall to the sides, knowing he could do a better job…and it felt good. When he spoke again his voice was low and close to her ear, so that she could feel his breath on the shell of her earlobe. "Thank you for the haori."

"It was nothing," she answered back, trying not to let his voice send shivers down her spine.

"I'll treasure it. Ah, there you go. All done. You're very pretty." Haku leaned back down onto his heels and Sakura turned around partway to watch him as she felt the ponytail with her own two hands, smiling at how smooth it felt under her fingers. Haku watched her, his smile easing off his face. "Sakura san, will you come with me for today? There is a place I wish to show you."

Sakura nodded without thinking about it. It was a free day. Sai probably wouldn't show up again, and there was nothing else for her to do. He packed a lunch for both of them and she followed Haku out of the house onto the streets, and out of the village into the lands surrounding it.

Eventually Haku led her off the beaten path into the spaces in between trees, going deeper and deeper into the uncharted lands. She followed without saying a word even though Haku was always opening his mouth to say something like, 'watch your step,' or 'be careful there.' After a while they eventually reached a long lake fed by a natural spring.

"What are we doing here?" Sakura asked, only a little impressed by the view.

Haku set their stuff down and pulled a scroll out of his bag. Unrolling it, Sakura saw seals and passages she couldn't understand, but before she had a chance to better inspect the writings, Haku dragged his bleeding thumb over one of the areas and there was a poof as smoke spilled out of the scroll. Sakura blinked, looking away to keep the smoke out of her eyes. When she glanced back there was a pair of skates sitting atop the scroll. She didn't know what to comment on first, the need for skates or the appearance of the skates.

"Um…Haku…"

"Wait, wait, I haven't gotten to the best part. This is my family bloodline limit and my speciality." Haku sounded excited as he reached his hands into the water and Sakura felt a spike in her heart as the air around them dropped and energy grew from Haku's hands. There was an angry cracking and then a grand sweeping sound as the lake was turned to ice, perfect for skating on.

"Oh my," Sakura breathed, reaching out to touch the ice. It was solid under her hand. Would she be able to do something like that with her own chakra? "What do you mean when you said is was your bloodline limit?"

"Chakra is the manipulation of the world around us, but not everyone with chakra can do everything. Some need special bloodlines to alter specific elements…some of the strongest forces in existence. Not to brag, but my Ice release jutsu is a huge deal."

"I can see that," Sakura murmured, running her fingers over the ice again. "It's amazing."

Haku went back over to the skates and pulled his pair on before helping Sakura's with hers. He insisted he aid her, even though she felt a bit queasy about the way his hands lingered on the skin above her ankle. She swore she could feel his fingerprints, his touch was that light. When he looked up over her knee, his face was a bit flushed but he smiled before offering her his hand and leading her out onto the ice.

Sakura knew how to skate, she grew up in a place cold enough to be found of it, but she wasn't confident on the uneven ice in the way Haku was confident. She wobbled and tripped a few times, and nearly fell more than once, only to be caught by Haku who came skating over to her rescue. At one point she was beyond saving and ended up taking him down with her. They laughed about it over lunch when they ate on the shore above the lake.

Haku told her about his family, about how they were killed for their abilities and how Zabuza took him in at a young age and cared for him, and how they came across Kisame who had to hide away from the world because of his skin and deeds. Kisame was a powerhouse and there were people in the world looking for powerhouses to manipulate and control. Sakura in return told her a bit about her life, her real life with her real mom and her real troubles.

It was the afternoon and neither decided they wanted to go back on the ice. Both were tired and content to lounge out on the grass next to each other. Haku was staring at her when he spoke up. "Sakura, do you mind if I ask you something personal?"

Sakura shrugged, rolling over onto her back and draping her arm over her forehead.

She heard Haku gulp before progressing. "You're older than I…and well past the marriage age for women in most villages. By now you should have taken a lover, so why are you alone." When she didn't answer he quickly tripped over his words to come up with an explanation to his question. "Even if our village is a special case, there are not many wandering women your age without men. It's just…rare."

Sakura let her arm drift down and rest over her eyes, making the world around her dark so that her memories were that much more clear as they replayed in her mind.

"Sakura….kiss me."

She sucked in a breath sharply and rolled over onto her side, away from Haku. From behind her she could hear him apologizing profusely, trying to get out of the question.

"I've never been married, and I've never been engaged," Sakura finally answered, speaking slowly. "And I've never accepted any man's…courtship except for one's…but I don't think it actually counts since he died in my arms before I could give him a proper reply. He loved me and made it known, but I never returned his feelings until the end when he left this world." She rolled back over to look Haku in the eye and he saw a coldness there not unlike the ice they danced over earlier. "The last thing he asked of me was a kiss, and he died under my lips and I haven't been open to another man since. What does that make me?"

Haku looked a little sick, like he regretted what he asked. Hesitantly, he reached out to touch her hand, in a gesture that should have been comforting, but Sakura rolled away, closing her eyes and sitting up.

"It's late, we should head back."

Sakura stood in the apple orchard by herself, her dress flapping about her knees as she stood on the crest of a dwarf hill where several surviving trees still bore fruit. It was nearly the end of the season, and the apples left were the reddest and ripest of all the apple to have come before. She cupped one in the palm of her hand, feeling it's shape before twisting it off the tree and bringing it close to her chest. It was so red. So terribly bright and red.

'"Oh god," Sakura sobbed, trying to put pressure on the wound and will it shut. She imagined it sealing up, of fusing back together, of mixing and cross weaving skin on skin, of blood rolling backwards into his sacred body, but none of that happened. The knife at her side, the one that dug into her hip bone, was gone as well.

She bit into the apple, breaking skin and carving out a place for her teeth in the fruit. Sweet juices ran down her lips and off her chin as she chewed and swallowed. Running a thumb under her chin she collected the juices and guided them back to her mouth to suck clean. It was nature's purest sugar, sinfully sweet and utterly tantalizing. The last apples of the season were always the best. Nothing could rival their taste.

"Sakura."

She fell silent and became terribly attentive to his face as he tried to find her with his eyes. She knew the moment he did because the corner of his lips turned up. "Kiss me."

She bit into the apple again and pretended she wasn't crying.

The Land of Tea was a village close to the Village Hidden in the Mist, but not close enough that it had reason to fear for its ladies. It was a resort styled village with plenty of inns and spas and pretty places where one could observe flowers in the spring. It took almost an entire day of travel in the back of merchant's cart, but it felt even longer since Haku wasn't beside Sakura to distract her with silly words or nonsense sentences. Haku still watched her, but it was like there was a wall there now and she had a pretty good idea of where that wall came from. Maybe she had been too morbid when talking about Sasori's death.

Geisha walked down the street at twilight, the first few paper lanterns coming on to cast a haunting glow on their otherworldly beauty. One caught Sakura staring and winked. Behind her she heard Kisame sigh in agitation.

"Really?" the blue man grumbled from underneath his wide straw hat. "Even the chick gets more action than me."

"I apologize Kisame san. I'm sure you would be plenty popular with the ladies if you could get them to talk to you. Your personality is what I like best about you."

He laughed from underneath his straw hat, but didn't say anything more. Behind him, Haku and Zabuza shifted nervously.

They eventually disembarked in front of an inn a distance away from the red light distract where the geisha ladies swayed on the street. When the reached the front counter, there weren't any words or monies exchanged. The old woman at the front desk nodded to them and handed Zabuza a card with his key dangling from it as he passed.

The walked a little bit before stopping in the hallway. Sakura heard loud laughter and cheering as men on the other side of the door to the main room played gambling games with dice and sticks. "I'll wait here," Kisame grumbled, nodding to the main hall.

Zabuza looked to Sakura, addressing her. "You should stay with Kisame until I find our friend. Then I'll introduce you."

Haku glanced between Sakura and Zabuza before taking a step closer to his master, still watching her, only with his head slightly bowed. Kisame took notice of this, but didn't say anything until the two walked off. He leaned down and rested a arm on her shoulder.

"I thought lady pants over there would beg to stay with you. He also wasn't his usual cherry self today. Did something happen yesterday that I wasn't told about?"

Sakura shrugged his arm off her shoulder and headed into the gambling room. "He took me ice skating, nothing major."

Kisame chuckled mischievously, following her to a table in the back where they could order drinks. "Ah, did he propose courtship or something? No? He looks totally rejected. He asked you something, didn't he?"

Sakura growled in annoyance, removing her cloak and letting it fall off her back to pool around her on the cushions. "He asked why I wasn't taken already, but that's not the same thing. He's just shaken because of what I told him, it was probably uncomfortable to listen to."

A waitress came to take their orders and Kisame asked for a jug of rice sake. "Oh, so what did you tell him, Sakura san? Why don't you have a lover in the night time? That's something I'm curious about myself. It's unusual to see a girl your age so free and unattached."

Sakura felt annoyance build a pyre to set on fire in her stomach. Every word on this subject was just another layer of kindling. There were stray sparks scattered all throughout her heart. Would one catch fire and set her ablaze?

Sakura felt her words sting before they even left her mouth."I've never had a lover or anything like that. The only guy I ever had any real feelings for…died in my arms before I could do anything about it. I told Haku about it in a bit more detail and he hasn't looked at me the same since, so don't press the matter unless you want to stir my ire."

The waitress came back with their drinks and Kisame didn't hesitate to take his fill, but he paused before offering some to Sakura. She waved it off and so he retracted his arm with the bottle. After a minute Sakura stood, making Kisame look up in surprise.

"Where are you going?" he asked from under his hat.

"I need to take a walk. Don't mind me."

By the look on his face, he would have liked to have kept her by his side, or at least in eyesight, but Sakura felt irritated and walking had always worked to help alleviate agitation in the past, so there was no reason it shouldn't help her now. The pyre in her chest was high and there were flames licking its base. It took a concentrated effort on her part to keep the wood resistant and her emotions under control. Her hands itched and her fingers wanted to twitch.

The floors were covered in gambling mats and rings where petty men and villagers leaned in, hoping to win their fortune with a lucky roll of the dice or sticks. There were a few games she didn't recognized, being Japanese in nature, but all the games seemed pretty confusing…or was that just her head making everything messy for her eyes.

"You old hag!" an angry villager who had more muscle than teeth hollered, pointing a finger at the woman who sat opposite of him. "What the hell are you saying?"

Sakura followed the villager's line of sight to see an older woman well passed her prime but still elegant with strong eyes and a taunting smile. Her hands were thin and Sakura could see the veins disturb the once smooth surface underneath the knuckles as she fanned her dice with a worn fan.

"Everything else is shit so tonight luck is taking me home. Why not play with that sort of confidence, eh? You're turning people off with that worried face of yours."

"I'll show you old cow," he bellowed, reaching out and grabbing the dice.

The man reached towards the tiles on his side and laid a few out on the mat and the old woman did the same. A cup was overturned for each player, signaling that they were done placing their bets, so the man mustered up a great show of effort and rolled the dice theatrically, never once letting his face break from it's grimace.

Sakura watched with the crowd as the dice spun, turning wildly on it's point before falling down on it's side, showing off a japanese character. The crowd broke up in a loud noise, one half clearly excited at the roll while the other half moaned loudly and cursed just as loud.

The man who rolled was likely the loudest of them all. No one even bothered to try and stop him when he roared and ripped across the ground towards the old woman. She cackled and raised a fist to catch his. Sakura felt the world tilt a little when she saw the smaller woman with wrinkled hands catch a fist as big as her face as if it was nothing. The man recovered quickly enough, reaching back and then taking another shot at her, one she blocked just as well. This time she pushed him back and while he was off balance she reeled and let her own fist fly straight into his chest.

If Sakura hadn't been dreaming, she might not have believed it even though she saw it all with her own two eyes. The man over twice her size with a body made for killing, sailed through the air, crashing clean through a wooden pillar as thick as Kisame, before rolling through a crown of men, and continuing to sail into a table that broke under his weight on the opposite side of the room. Such a distance….and with just one hand. The old woman hadn't even put her shoulder or any of her body into that move.

Too many people rushed to the fallen man's side to help him up, only a few stayed behind to keep their eyes on the older woman who picked up her things and carried her winnings out with her, looking only a little pleased. Sakura dashed out to follow her. No one else dared. Sakura followed her down a hallway and around a corner leading to the outside before the blond stopped and turned to look behind her. Sakura didn't try to hide, that wasn't her intention.

"What do you want? The winnings aren't worth it, kid." The blond woman blinked, and then as if seeing Sakura for the first time, made a low whistle. "Not that it looks like you couldn't make that on your own. A Mizu woman?"

"How did you know I came from the village hidden in the mist?"

"You smell enough like the sea for there to be no doubt. It's in your skin and hair, a few days won't wash that out of you. Now it's your turn. What are you following me for?"

Sakura swallowed, preparing her words before they left her mouth. "You used chakra just now to throw that guy. And you're using chakra right now. You're in a glimmer and I can see through it."

Nothing happened for a heartbeat and then the woman straightened herself, letting the illusion fall off her face. She was older, maybe the age of Sakura's own mother, but this blond woman wasn't a crone or anything close. A few crow's feet in the corner of her eyes, but nothing more to betray her lack of youth. A black diamond rested just above the spot between her brows. She smirked and it was somewhat bitter. "A chakra user yourself, are you? What did you hope to gain by following me out here?"

"I want to know how to fight hand to hand combat with chakra infused strength like that." Sakura held up her sword, separating it from the side of her belt. "I can use my chakra on this, but I've always been a better hand to hand fighter."

The woman didn't seem impressed. "And why do you need such power? Just bat your eyes and a pretty boy will gladly bend over backwards for whatever you need."

"I intend to kill the virgin stealer, the three tailed crab beast of Mizu."

For a breath the world was mute and only each other existed. Then the spell was broken by a short bark of laughter. Sakura frowned, controlling her anger and saving it for later.

"Ho, how funny, little girls with nothing better to do than fix the world. Go home to the bed of your lover and wait in his arms for something better to do. Don't speak to be with any of that self righteous bullshit."

Embers snapped at the dry wood in her heart and she felt heart as parts of her caught on fire. "Don't look down on me like that!"

"You expect to be taken seriously?" The blond woman inclined her head. "Then show me what you have that's worth boasting about."

Sakura didn't wait for a second invitation. Leaving her sword behind, Sakura sped towards the woman and rolled into a punch that hit her square in the stomach, but didn't deal enough damage to be worth mentioning. Sakura reeled back just in time and pulled away to avoid a fist that swung like lightning past her face. She dodged again and again, eventually falling backwards and having to roll away to avoid another hit. There was a dull crack and boom as the ground where she had once been standing spit under the force of the woman's heel drive. Craters were left in this woman's wake. Sakura was landing more hits, but her hits weren't dealing very much damage. One strike from the woman, however, and Sakura was a certified goner.

"Damn," Sakura whispered under her breath, bringing her arms in and rolling around the woman's punches.

She knew how to play this game, how to dance this dance, but that didn't mean she would be coming out of it unscathed. Some of those punches were hitting pretty close. Each one that sailed past her cut through the air like a knife through smoke, there was no resistance left over from the chakra. This woman was controlling the energy in her body perfectly. Chakra in the body moved on a frequency like a station on the radio and most people she fought could only manage static. This woman made her chakra sing in perfect pitch.

"That has to be hard," Sakura said aloud, rolling out of rang. Before the woman could charge her again Sakura held up a hand. "How to you make it perfect like that? Your chakra is ultra refined and you're not wasting any of it."

"Stupid question to ask when you're doing the same thing." The woman took a step back to look Sakura over again. "I never met someone who used her chakra as well as me, but you're not even aware of how difficult that is, are you? Of course, you're a fool after all."

Sakura mind went back, all the way back to the beginning of everything. In her mind's eye she saw her self holding the obelisk before it was ever unsealed or unsolved. The thing that started all of this was Sakura's love of puzzles. Her mind was built to handle puzzles. Something about them just always appealed to her. This chakra fiasco was just another puzzle.

Her mind began to burn as hard as her heart, but her mind was easy to manage. Her mind could always get her out of trouble. Her heart got her into trouble. Shapes and angles, frequencies, a balances, control…it all came to her and her mind sorted through it like a machine, figuring it out one piece at a time.

The blond woman made a face and then yelled before charging her with her fist raised high. She was faster than before and closer then ever when she twisted her whole body into the attack. A dull boom echoed in the back of her eardrums as Sakura's chakra clashed with the woman's. People were running out to watch but no one was brave enough to draw close when they saw that the pink haired girl was holding the fist of the monster woman.

Sakura's lips quirked up in a smile when she saw the older woman's look of surprise. "How did you…?"

"I copied that frequency. I didn't know if it would work, but I'm glad the gamble paid off.

The blond disengaged and stood back from Sakura, but not too far back. The woman was looking Sakura over with new eyes. "Who are you?"

Sakura inclined her head in an almost bow. "The name's Sakura, and I'm no one special."

The blond huffed. "Somehow I doubt that very much, if those four are watching you like they know you."

Sakura looked back over her shoulder and saw Haku, Zabuza and Kisame standing at the front of the crowd with a forth member. The rest of the people were starting to wander back inside the inn, pretending they hadn't seen a fight between two equally powerful woman. The forth man with them was a boy a bit older than Haku with shoulder length white hair and whiter eyes. A long wide sword was hung over his back.

When Sakura turned back to look at the old woman, she nearly took a step back, the woman was that much closer. The blond smirked, seeing Sakura's reaction. "You can call me Tsunade, the slug princess. I think it would be a good idea if we had a drink in my room, Sakura."

Sakura watched with her back to the wall as Haku paced back and forth in agitation, complaining to Kisame how everything was a bad idea and how bringing attention would only put Sakura in greater danger because of their proximity to Mizu.

"God, does that brat shut up?" Mangetsu growled, pinching the bridge of his nose with two fingers. Before anyone could answer him he tossed a thin senbon needle at Haku's face. Haku caught it easily enough, but it got him to shut up and that was all it was really meant to do.

"No fighting inside the Lord's suite," Tsunade growled before tipping back another dish shaped cup of sake. "Honestly, men can't ever…"

Mangetsu glowered with his arms crossed over his chest, but said nothing as Haku mutely folded his legs and sat down beside him. The white haired boy peeked over at Sakura and she smiled a little smile, trying to be friendly. Mangetsu made a grunting sound and looked away, angry. Ah, well it was worth a try.

"Tsunade hime," Zabuza spoke up, addressing Tsunade as princess. "Were you in this area by any chance to hunt down the six tailed slug, Saiken?"

Tsunade huffed. "Sneaky bastard as alway, bloody demon." If Zabuza was offended by the title he didn't show it, but Sakura thought he would be based off of what she knew of him.

Tsunade huffed and turned her attention out the window. "Yeah, I tracked it's host Utakata down to this area. Apparently that brat missed the place where he came from, as all lonely souls eventually do. But he's smart, so there isn't a lot left for me to track."

"That's surprising to hear, considering your connection to the monster. I would have thought Saiken unable to hide from your eyes." Zabuza's tone was even and respectful, but the unspoken words that passed between him and the older woman were biting. When Tsunade turned to glare at him, his eyes did not waver from her gaze. Haku made a displeased sound in the back of his throat and Mangetsu looked like he wanted to hit something.

"Don't worry, Zabuza san, I'll deal with my monster before you deal with yours. Hn, and speaking of which…" Sakura stiffened when she felt the older woman turn and set her eyes on Sakura. "You're the one who so arrogantly stated you were going to kill the virgin stealer. Have you ever hunted a tailed beast before?"

Sakura shook her head but didn't answer, feeling like her voice would disturb something in the room. She felt so small under Tsunade's gaze.

"Not many have, but that's to be expected, especially among women. Nah, I can't remember the last time I fought or saw another kunoichi." The japanese word translated into 'female ninja' in her head. Kunoichi, was that what she was?

"Kunoichi don't use swords, Tsunade hime," Zabuza added rather forcefully. He sounded like he was defending her honor, like being called a kunoichi was a slur or a negative identifier.

"Ah, but kunoichi are the ones who use chakra. Your silly swordsmen code of conduct or whatever you call it prohibits such an unfair advantage, isn't that right?"

"Times have changed."

Tsunade smiled slyly, pouring for herself another drink and holding the cups of to her lips, letting the alcohol settle into a mirror before knocking it back. Sakura couldn't see Kisame who hid in the corner where the shadows were longest, but from the expressions of the other males present it was evident that more was being said with every exchange. Sakura could feel it too, how the atmosphere was heavy and choking at times, charged with venom.

Tsunade was the daughter of a powerful Fudal Lord, and the granddaughter of the last emperor through her mother. Though there were plenty of cousins and second cousins who could also make that claim, few were revered as highly as the blond woman on account of her own accomplishments in the world.

Sakura heard the whispers when they passed in the hallways after Tsunade had let down her disguise. The diamond tattoo on her forehead that gleamed like a jewel was marker enough for even the servants to recognize. They called her the slug princess or slug hime, based off of how she had managed to form a contract and tame a wild beast from the slug clan with her chakra.

Unlike most who were looked down upon for having chakra in their blood, children and grandchildren of the emperor were revered for it, like it was their birthright. The double standard was distasteful, but at least it made sense. It was just another way for the people in power to keep their power.

With a powerful name and reputation, as well as the chakra strong in her blood, Tsunade stood like a god among men. The best foods were set before her, the best rooms reserved for her, and the kindest words uttered for her. Her clothes were all of the finest quality and her coin purse was heavy and bulging. By all accounts Tsunade should have been a happy woman, but Sakura found her bitter and a little more than just passive aggressive.

Finishing her sake Tsunade set the cup down and leaned back on her hands, staring across the room at Sakura, even though it was Zabuza she addressed when she opened her mouth. "You'll leave the girl with me. She'll spend the night in this room with me, and in the morning she will help me track the monster while I train her. Regardless of the outcome, you can have her back in a month."

"Eh?!" Haku exclaimed, sitting up fast and speaking out of turn. "You're taking Sakura?"

Tsunade chuckled darkly. "What, you can't stand to be parted from the pretty female? You're handsome enough, find yourself a girl under the red lights, boy."

"That has nothing to do with it," Zabuza bit out, ignoring Haku who blushed red and drifted back down to his knees. "Sakura san has been in training with us and her skills are not yet proficient enough for either I or Kisame to feel comfortable letting her go."

"Her skills with the sword don't mean anything to me. I plan on teaching her how to manipulate her chakra in hand to hand combat as well as medical jutsu."

"Still, her training is incomplete."

The blond woman scoffed darkly, "You just don't want to loose your bait." Her head tilted down, making the shadows around her eyes dangerous. When she smiled, it was the smile of someone who was used to having her way and knowing the power behind why she got her way. "Sorry, but this really isn't up for debate. She's coming with me. If she wants to go back to you once the month is over then that is her prerogative, but until then, you have no say over her fate."

The way she spoke made it sound like Sakura was being used by the males, but she knew that wasn't true. Sakura wanted to be there more than they wanted her there, she was sure.

"Tsunade sama," she ventured, addressing the woman with the upmost respect. "I was the one who sought Zabuza and Kisame san out in the first place. That was my decision, not theirs."

"And you don't think you're being taken advantage of?" she laughed, clearly not asking it as a actual question, but in sarcasm. "No, don't overestimate the manipulations of men, though subtle they may be. Maybe you do want to be there, but don't be fooled into thinking you're the only one who benefits from such an arrangement."

"I think you are too harsh," Sakura whispered, keeping her face bowed and her eyes down. She didn't know how far she could go with voicing her opinions to this woman of power.

"If that is how you see it, then so be it. Let yourself see the situation thus and I won't loose sleep over it." She reached for her jug of sake and found it empty. Frowning, she set it back down on the low tray and waved it away, pretending she wasn't wanting more. "Speaking of sleep, I'm tired. Sakura will stay with me, the rest of you can take your leave of us. There is little more I wish to discuss with souls before the night grows old."

Sakura watched silently as the boys filed out. Zabuza was the first to leave, obviously in a hurry to get out of her presence along with Mangetsu. Haku looked back at her, but Sakura wouldn't raise her eyes for him. She didn't like the way he looked at her after sharing her story of Sasori. She felt wrong for telling him now that this was how he treated her. Kisame prodded Haku out with his thumb before following the younger kid, but he paused on the threshold to stare back and her, and this time Sakura lifted her eyes. His gaze wasn't pitying, but challenging.

'You are strong, prove it to her.'

And then he was gone.

Like Tsunade said, the night was late, and it was almost past time for her to wake up, but for whatever reason, she still had a little bit of time, she could feel that in her bones and in the air around her. There was still something here for her to do.

"Did you turn that one down?"

"What?" Sakura looked up, a bit startled to be addressed so casually.

Tsunade shot her an annoyed look. "The boy, the one that looked at you like a kicked puppy. You dump him or turn him down? What's the story with that one."

Sakura didn't think it was really any of Tsunade's business, but telling her that wasn't worth the stress. "Haku…was never, we were never involved. I don't know why he's acting like that, but it's because I told him something I shouldn't have." When Tsunade sent her a demanding look, Sakura knew she wouldn't be allowed to get away with being vague. "Before…I came here…I was never a married or courted woman, which is what he asked, but there was a man I came to care for deeply. By the time I came to love him it was too late and he was dead. That seems to have disturbed Haku."

She fell silent and became terribly attentive to his face as he tried to find her with his eyes. She knew the moment he did because the corner of his lips turned up. "Kiss me."

She swallowed hard and swore to herself that this would be the last time she saw that image in her head or summoned it with her words. She was done digging up that stupid memory and suffering with each second of the retelling.

When she looked up, Tsunade was watching her harder than before. Sakura felt herself being stripped away under the gaze until she was naked and vulnerable, no matter how hard she tried to hide. It was like, just by looking at her, Tsunade knew everything about Sakura's situation. So when she asked, "Did you kill him?" Sakura knew what Tsunade was really asking.

'How did you know he was killed?' she wanted to ask, but when she opened her mouth, the words that came out were, "No, but I cut off his hand and now he'll live the rest of his short life as a pariah because of me."

Tsunade smiled, at it was the last thing Sakura saw before waking up, but it stayed in her mind the rest of her waking day. Her smile was too genuine to be just appreciative.

Ami had moved into one of the less furnished rooms and had already bought a few things to make the space feel more like her own. Some of these things included another clothes rack, a floor mirror, her desktop computer, and a huge stack of fashion magazines.

Sakura walked into her roommate's room and recognized the suitcase sitting on the edge of the bed.

"You going somewhere?"

Ami poke her head out of the tiny closet. "Not for long, cause my dad is pretending he's going away on business, but I know it's cause they're really fighting and he needs to go off to another country where he she can't follow him. He asked me to come along so the rest of the family doesn't think he's going off to see a mistress."

"Your family life sounds so fun," Sakura dryly commented.

Back in high-school, it wasn't a stretch to see that Ami's parents weren't as perfect as they pretended to be, but after coming to know their daughter more, Sakura had a better idea of just how damaged the relationship was. It was only the extremely traditional extended family that kept the husband and wife from getting a divorce, according to Ami.

"Join the club, we're all from messed up families. I mean, not Karin, but those guys aren't her real parents…so."

Sakura nodded as the memory surfaced. "They had a son who died when he was an infant. Kushina is her real aunt, so they were always involved in her life in one way or another. They took her after Karin's mom left one day and never came back. Months later they found the woman in a trash bag. It messed Karin up, but having a support system made out of people who love you unconditionally like that…it made her stronger."

"I bet." Ami stood out of the closet with a few things in her hands. She had a worried expression on that made Sakura chuckle.

"What? Can't decide what to take?"

"No, it's you. Are you going to be okay without me?"

Sakura felt the soft smile fall off her face. "What do you mean?"

"You're having nightmares or something a lot of the time. You were crying in your sleep last night. Will you be fine without someone here or like…someone to talk to? I mean I'm not that much of a help and I haven't done much, but I always thought the offer was open with me."

Sakura had been crying in her sleep? Was that because of Sasori? "It's nothing. I just get nightmares. It's normal, and I deal with them like an adult. I'm not a kid anymore so I know they're just dreams. Don't worry about me and enjoy France."

Sakura opened her eyes and found herself surrounded by expensive sheets and dressed in a silk sleeping kimono of deep emperor's blue. Her hair was a loose mess around her face, sticking to her cheeks. There was light coming in from outside her window, and on the other side of the wall she could hear the muffled snores of the woman from last night. Tsunade was still asleep.

Judging by all the empty sake bottles left over from her drinking binge, it was likely best for Tsunade to stay asleep for as long as possible in hope of putting off the hangover that was sure to rip into her at the first possibility. It was one of the reasons Sakura wasn't considered a drinker. Once was enough to connivence her it was never worth it to indulge in angry vices like drowning your sorrows in Jack Daniels. Maybe sake was more forgiving than whiskey.

She rolled over in her sheets and tried stretching her arms out to push herself up on, but something akin to a spasm made her elbows buckle and fall back into her sheets. She groaned, feeling the tingles run up and down her arms when she tried moving them again. It wasn't terrible, but it was as if her arms had fallen asleep on her, and it was always weird to feel pain in a dream. As an experiment, she kicked her legs out around her and tried to move them as well and nothing really happened. Exploring her body's limits, she found the majority of her pain centered around her elbows and wrists and even her knuckles, but nothing seemed damaged aside from some light scraping atop her hands from when she used her fists.

"What the hell is this?" she asked aloud, flopping back into the sheets and dropping her arm over her eyes.

It was a while before she noticed it was too quiet.

Tsunade had stopped snoring.

Ignoring the pain, Sakura forced herself up and hobbled over to the wall that separated her from the older woman's room. There certainly wasn't any snoring anymore, but there were voices. That meant more than one. She pressed her ear to the wall and held her breath, stilling her heart as much as she could so that no sound existed between her and the desired conversation she was convinced existed. Closing her eyes and concentrating, the rest of the world fell away.

"…No reason to think it would be any different from the last attempt." It was a male voice, calm and controlled.

"It's always different. Every time we fight we change, for better or worse. He's wounded now."

"Making it that much more difficult to find."

"I can find him," Tsunade sneered a little louder. Sakura heard the woman hiss, maybe about a headache.

"Please, hime sama, rest your efforts until you are recovered."

"From my hangover? It'll be gone in an hour. By then I'll have something to eat and be ready to check out. I can't waste time now, I have the edge I need."

There was a pause before the male voice ventured another phrase. "The girl?"

"She has chakra control like I've never seen before, maybe even better than my own. Her reserves are a national wonder in and of themselves, but she uses it like a child, effortlessly. It's like she doesn't even know how difficult it is what she is doing. She could be trained as a medic and travel after Utakata with me while he's still wounded."

"He will recover shortly. I would never doubt your skills, but a pupil can not be so easily trained."

Tsunade snorted. "That's the beauty of it, she doesn't need much. The swordsmen of Mizu were training her before I insisted. She doesn't need much but a bit of guidance."

"And you thought it was fair to bring a new soul into this venture. She could die."

There was the sound of rustling sheets, like someone tossing blankets across the room. "It's not something she didn't ask for. She was training with those freaks so she could kill the three tailed crab. If she was willing to go after that tailed beast she can help me with mine. It's not more powerful and in it's wounded state, no issue to me."

There was another pause and then the male spoke up again, this time his voice was more stern. "You should not let your thirst for revenge stain your hands. Are you so hungry for vengeance that you are willing to endanger innocents?"

"She's hardly a child, Hound," Tsunade snorted.

"She's young. She's at the age of foolish reveries and this is just an issue she doesn't understand. The risk and loss are too great."

This time, instead of a snort it was an actual laugh. Tsunade's voice was sharp and venomous with an under layer of sarcastic mirth that the woman had long since mastered. "Don't speak of loss when you don't even know her name. She might be a little less doe eyed than you first assumed her to be. If I didn't know better, I'd say you'd already romanticized her from a tiny peak under the moonlight. Ho, is that it? She remind you of someone cute and lovely?"

"Hime sama…"

"You and Sickle were both oddly obedient when I told you I was taking in a guest. I was wondering why you weren't questioning my decisions and now it's clear. Sorry, Hound, it's been too long since you've seen something cute and pretty. Nothing but whores and tired geisha under the red lanterns, am I right?"

There was another deep sigh and Tsunade laughed scornfully to herself. "Fine I'm going to dress and take care of this migraine. You can decide with Sickle who wants to go in and wake the girl. I plan on leaving soon. She should be ready sooner."

Sakura pulled herself away from the wall and backed up, wondering how long it would be before someone came to her door. Hound or Sickle…those sounded like code names or nick names. It wasn't long before there was a light tapping at the sliding door that led her outside and a moment later it slid sideways a crack, before the man kneeling down pushed it the rest of the way open, staying on his knees and keeping his head down. It was her first time seeing this man, but there was something familiar about him, aside from the fact he was wearing a white full faced mask with the eye slits painted in red.

"My apologies, the hime sama wishes to speak with you. Will you please make yourself ready for her audience?"

"Tsunade…wait, who are you? What are you doing here? There was no one else in the suite last night when I went to bed." Sakura almost let her voice trailed off as she remembered falling asleep somewhere other than her room, and in different clothes. "Oh damn it," she hissed, looking down to see if she was still at least wearing her underwear. Dream or not, she didn't want perverts peeking at her bod. The conversation from earlier started to make sense. "Who touched me?!"

On the other side of the wall Tsunade roared loudly and the man at her door lowered his head as the older woman reveled in Sakura's outburst. Sakura sighed, running a hand through her hair, feeling her cheeks warm as the laughing continued.

"I…will leave you to prepare yourself," the man at the door weekly supplied, keeping his masked face down as he slid the door shut and scooted away.

Sakura turned to face the far wall and un did her sleeping kimono. As it fell away from her body she envisioned a hybrid of a traditional haori robe over a modern bodysuit of black that was easy to move and run in. She tied the bronze jacked detailed with black koi fish tight enough to show her figure, but loose enough to not be constricting when she bent down or twisted. She tied her hair up into a high ponytail that reminded her how much her hair had grown.

When she stepped out of her room, a woman from the inn was leaving food at the table with her head down. Another girl scurried out from behind her with more food, and between the both of them there was enough luxury food for more than just two woman and one mysterious disappearing man. Considering that Sakura didn't even need to eat, it was a waste of food in a land where the hungry outnumbered the fed.

Sakura spotted the masked man from earlier and glared a little. His head hung lower as if a weight had settled around his neck. Absently, he played with his fingers a bit, pushing his index fingers against one another in an idle manner. She refrained from calling him a pervert under her breath, even though she didn't know for sure he actually saw anything or did anything. He just reminded her of a guilty dog that had been caught with the stolen cookies in his mouth. It didn't hurt that his mask looked like the face of a dog. Sakura assumed this was the person Tsunade called Hound. It would make sense.

"Comfortable?" a throaty voice asked from behind her. Sakura turned to see a bleary eyed Tsunade leaning against the wall outside her room. Her arms were folded under her chest, but she held herself in a manner that was deceptively alert. Her eyes were glassy and half caught in sleep, but she looked as if she could snap someone over her knee at the drop of a hat.

"Considering how much you drank, I didn't expect you to be awake so early, much less up and out of bed," Sakura casually commented, not caring if her words were a bit more direct and informal. Tsunade was a princess in the eyes of others. She likely wasn't used to being talked to in such a way.

The blond laughed, not at all offended. "Such a thing…no, not at this point. There isn't a drink brewed strong enough to keep me placated for long. That…and I filter the alcohol out of my blood in the morning with my chakra. If I didn't, my kidneys would be dead."

"You use what?" Sakura blinked, trying to think back to what chakra was and how it was used. Could it be used to filter the blood? Could it be used to used to heal broken bodies? "You can use chakra to heal yourself?"

"Not typically, it's a rare craft. Most brutes only use their gifts for destruction because hey, that's easier. It's infinitely more difficult to heal or fix any part of the body with chakra control because it requires perfect control." Tsunade pushed off the wall and approached the food, sitting down in front of it. "I haven't met many men or women who could use their chakra so flawlessly for the medical arts. If you try and it goes bad…you end up doing more damage than good. Sound like something you're interested in?"

"Considering my attraction to danger, that sounds like something useful. What do I have to do if I wanted to learn how to heal like you? Do I have that ability?"

"The only reason I'm talking to you about this is because I plan on making you my apprentice, like it or not. There are too few medic in the world to deprive it of another."

"Like it or not?" Sakura played with a piece of food, feeling no real need to consume it. "What if I had said no?"

"You wouldn't have."

Sakura tried to dredge up some anger, because she knew she should be rightly offended, but it was hard to feel anything fiery or mad against this woman. "There's no way you could have known that. There are people in this world who will tell you no. You just haven't met enough of them."

"And you won't be one of them," the old lady snapped, raising a single brow as if to challenge Sakura.

"Am I?" Sakura baited.

Tsunade narrowed her eyes, looking the girl over. The man called Hound stiffened in the corner, but didn't raise his masked face or move from his place. Still, the tension was enough to be felt by even him.

Finally Tsunade smiled and laughed, reaching over and plucking up a sushi roll to plop into her mouth whole. Licking the rice caught in the corners of her mouth she narrowed her eyes in Sakura's direction again. "This time, girl," Tsunade said before repeating it once more. "Just for this this time."

Sakura took a sushi roll for herself and mimicked Tsunade's actions, plopping it into her mouth and licking free the rice caught in the corners of her mouth. "Fair enough. This isn't a time where I'm being forced to do something I don't want to."

"Speaking of such things….Sickle, when are you going to bring that man in here?!" Tsunade called out loudly.

Sakura turned to look over her shoulder at the door leading out to the hallway where there were two looming shadows visible through the rice door screens. One was much larger than the other. The door slid back and Sakura almost gasped when she saw Kisame standing there, looking grim in the face as a much smaller, skinnier boy held a katana out between them. Kisame didn't look threatened, and entered without invitation, marching right up to their table and falling down behind Sakura.

"Kisame," Sakura breathed, a little lost for words as she watched him reach over and help himself to the food, not bothering to ask if that was okay. Sakura tried turning around to get a better look at his face, but he wouldn't meet her eyes. "What are you doing here?" she tried asking.

"Eating."

"Why are you in this room that belongs to Tsunade when you knew I would be left here with her?"

Kisame stuffed two sushi rolls into his mouth and chewed viciously before swallowing with a dish cup of what smelled like sake. "I came to follow you."

Sakura blinked, a bit taken aback by the answer. "Why?"

He drank more sake without meeting her eyes. "Cause I think you're going to die if you go with that old woman after a tailed beast. The way you are now, you won't survive the fight, and you made a promise to kill our tailed beast already."

Sakura felt a little corner in her chest swell with something close to happiness. It almost sounded like he was worried about her and didn't want to admit it. Could that really be his reason for seeking her out even after Zabuza and Haku left with the new guy?

"He was worried you'd die before you could throw your body in front of his own problem," Tsunade muttered, looking down at the grains of rice stuck to her fingertips. She licked them clean one by one. "Don't get sentimental about a guy. If it's not the one thing, it's something else they want to use you for."

Kisame looked over at the reclining woman and glared. "We're you the one just talking about using her as you as liked, regardless of her choices?"

"Not denying it, I see," Tsunade hummed coyly. "This is why I don't trust men."

"You trusted those dicks enough to let them carry swords around you," Kisame snarly dryly before leaning in closer to Sakura. "And don't generalize half a population because you're too bitter to get laid in your old age, hag."

The two retainers, Hound and Sickle seemed to stiffen and even Sakura wanted to gasp at Kisame's words. Forget about being rude, Tsunade probably never got insulted so directly by anyone. Sakura glanced back and forth between the two figures, trying to figure out if Kisame was a goner or not. So far, Tsunade seemed unreadable.

Finally, her lips parted and the room seemed to lean in to hear the words from her mouth. "Ah, and here I thought the boy was the whipped one, but at least he left. Seems that was something not even you could do, but that's understandable. When was the last time a woman came to you willingly for any reason at all? With a face like yours, I doubt you have many friends, much less lovers."

"What's wrong with your head you senile, old woman?" Kisame coughed, reaching for more food. It's like you heard last night. Sakura isn't finished training with us, and we don't feel comfortable letting her go so easily when we know the work we began in her is unfinished. You have a complaint about me sticking around?"

"Depends on how clingy a bastard you turn out to be. Did you bother asking Sakura if she even wanted your company? I won't object to it if she asks, but I'm not one to open my arms to cocky bull shitters who think they can get away with spitting nonsense." Tsunade switched her gaze to land on Sakura. "Eh, what do you say, girl? He worth your time?"

From beside her, Sakura could feel Kisame stiffen, as if he was suddenly anxious or on edge for her response in a way he had never been when conversing with Tsunade. Did he think she would honesty say no and have him thrown out? Was he bracing for rejection?

"Of course," Sakura quickly answered, not wanting to drag out the silence any longer. "Kisame is my friend. He's helped me many times and I owe him a lot. If he wants to, I would appreciate it if you could accept him into your group along with me." She finished with a short bow of her head and shoulders.

Tsunade hummed into the heel of her hand as she leaded her head against her palm. She looked back at the men named Hound and Sickle before her eyes tracked to Kisame's guarded expression. She smiled secretly when she saw something on his face, but Sakura didn't turn around to see what it was. "Fine," the woman finally said. "He'll come, but I won't have him interfering with any of your training. I only have you for a month and before that month is up I will kill the six tailed slug, Saiken, which brings be to my next point. Eat quickly because we are departing soon."

The blond woman huffed and took a plate full of food from the table and stood to leave for her room with it. Hound got up to follow her, but the male named Sickle remained seated in the corner, watching Kisame from behind his white ferret styled mask.

Kisame didn't say anything to Sakura, and she didn't start anything. Together the pair ate in silence before Sakura excused herself to get up and see to her things and make sure she was ready to leave. She was standing up when Kisame's hand on her wrist stopped her. She froze and looked down at the blue fingers wrapped tight.

"Hey." His voice brought her attention away from his hands and up to his face. He was looking straight at her and his expression was a bit more serious. "Listen….th-thank you for accepting my company. I will work hard so as to not disappoint you."

Sakura tried for an easy smile. "It's only natural, right? There shouldn't be any reason to thank me. I kind of owe you my life anyway, for saving me from Zabuza."

"That's not something you need to feel like you have to repay, and you were never in debt to me. Oi, just listen when a person thanks you properly. You don't owe me nothing, so don't think like that in the future."

He let go of her hand and Sakura smiled, realizing that it hadn't been so bad, (his hold), and that she wouldn't have to worry about bruises. "Alright," she agreed before heading to her room. "I'll keep that in mind for the future."

Sakura rolled out of bed feeling like she didn't want to leave it, which wasn't unusual once the seasons started getting colder. It was an old house she was living in, after all, so the mornings tended to be a bit on the nippy side. Still, today's feeling had less to do with the cold and more to do with her dreams.

"What the hell am I doing?" she sighed aloud, running her hands through her hair to keep it away from her face. She felt the ends get caught up in her fingers and pulled her hands away to let it all fall back to her face. When she opened her eyes again she caught her reflection in the mirror.

It was stupid how she almost expected to see the high ponytail and kimono styled jacket she had been wearing in her dreams…but that wasn't reality. That world was just a dream. When she was awake she was in the real world. The real world was the world that mattered. Not the dream world. The dreams are only dreams. They mean nothing.

"Ami?" Sakura called out suddenly, forgetting that her friend was away. When silence greeted her Sakura cursed and reached over to turn her ipod on and shuffle for her morning music. She had things she needed to do and feeling sorry for herself wasn't one of them.

She showered, got semi dressed, and logged onto her class website to finish the assessments she had been taking all week. There was a lot of homework to catch up on since she liked to let it pile up and take it all out in one sitting once the semester was nearly finished. Halfway through, her resolve to be a perfect student started to falter and she began to look more and more like all the other students who were worn out and couldn't give a crap. Sakura still gave a crap, enough to pass with an A, but less of an effort was being put forth on her part.

Ah, but this semester was nearly over, and she still needed to find more scholarships for the next year. If she didn't start now, all the good ones would be gone, forcing her to pay most of the way again. Even with Ami renting, money was tight. Work was drying up too, little by little. And didn't her phone bill go up again?

"Shit," she said out loud, holding the side of her head.

A call from Karin made her phone cut out the music and start playing the theme music from the Wizard of Oz when the wicked Witch of the West shows up. It was something Karin made her do for Halloween, but since that was done, Sakura would have to change it to something else.

"Yo?" Sakura answered, putting it on speaker so she could continue to type out her discussion form post.

"Wanna come to the arcade with the boys tonight? We're punishing the new kids by giving them the heavy shift," Karin laughed.

"You know I was thinking about changing your ringtone back, but this witch music makes a bit more sense now."

Karin chuckled and it sounded almost like a witch's laugh. "Duh, that's what they called me all through high school, right? So, will you come?"

"I don't have a lot of gas."

"Is that a no?"

Sakura saved her work and moved her fingers over the touch pad so that her cursor hi lighted the green submit button. She clicked and the loading bar came up. A second later it lit up all the way and her 3,000 word submission was sent. "Nah, I'll come, but I want you to feel guilty about it. Let me have some pizza for it or something."

"I'm surprised you're not sick of our food, considering how much of it you eat."

"I could say the same for you," Sakura said, closing down her computer and turning off the desk lamp. "Let me get changed into something nicer and I'll be there by five."

"Something nicer? Are you in sweats or are you trying to impress someone?"

"I'm actually not wearing any pants at all right now. You think that's okay for the boys?" Sakura joked, leaving her phone on speaker as she struggled out of her long sleeved, flannel tunic.

"I'm sure they would appreciate, but that's really not the point here. I'm hanging up, get decent and meet me at the Crown when you're not so much of a man killer."

The line went dead just as Sakura finished pulling on her high waisted sailor jeans. She had a red button front shirt that had faded over the years to a dull rose. It sort of looked patriotic alongside her white flats. She rolled her hair into a bun and tied it up with a bandana before painting her lips a bright red but left her eyes undone aside from the winged eye liner she applied earlier that morning.

"Why did you paint on your eye liner when you didn't think you were going out?" Sakura asked herself in the mirror as she clipped on her starburst dangle earrings.

Her voice was low and an imitation of a male before switching over to a high falsetto. "Cause I wanted to feel pretty, asshole. Hmph, and damn if it's not on point today. Killing it!"

Little things helped her remember this was the real world. Little things helped keep her grounded. Feeling good made her feel awake.

The Crown arcade wasn't far from the pizzeria. A block and a half at most, it was a favorite place for the girls to walk to and hang out when the stress couldn't be solved any other way.

The Crown was never very busy, and made most of its money off of the snacks and drinks it sold, but that never seemed to bother Old Man Jacob, since he had no other family to look after or provide for. His wife died of cancer when she was still young, and years later all three of his children died in accidents one way or another. Sakura didn't know of a person that had worse luck than the owner of Crown, but for some reason the grief never consumed him. He opened up an arcade out of his old, Greek restaurant, and made it a safe place for teenagers to hang out in.

Sakura remembered the old man being especially kind to students who would come in looking to make trouble or steal something. Jacob would sit with a lot of these youth and talk to them in a manner much like a parent's. Of course, that wasn't an insta-fix for all of them, or even most of them, but Crown was one of the few places that never saw any trouble with vandalism or theft for one reason or another.

Sakura parked behind Karin's place and walked over. She could hear the group inside before she could see them. They were all playing racing games. There was a set of four for a game called Grand Prix 10000 with recliner seats and a race track that was more pixilated than most people's phones. It was an old classic.

Without greeting, Sakura slipped into the last free seat and dropped in a quarter to start the game. Wordlessly, she entered the virtual world and shifted into gear to keep up with the lesser models of her own ride. Juugo crashed early on, but Suigetsu and Karin were both in first place in their respective games while trying to beat the other's time. Sakura was in the middle of her own track when Karin started hollering loudly. Suigetsu groaned and fell onto his wheel, fake sobbing. While the two complained about a second of difference, Juugo came over to lean against Sakura's seat.

"Rough week?" he asked, smiling down at her with sympathetic eyes.

"Not at all," she answered. "Just a weird set of dreams, if that makes any sense."

"For creative people it does."

Sakura felt a smile forming and decided not to fight it. "You think I'm creative?"

"Yeah, always. I've never…like, read anything you've written or seen your art work, but it…it's in the little things. Like, napkin doodles or conversations about book characters and Hogwarts Houses. You just seem to think creatively."

Sakura didn't try to fight off the blush or the feeling of pride swelling her breast. She felt lighter and happier, even if she just fell to third place. "That's a nice thing to say."

Juugo laughed, rubbing the back of his head. "I try to say nice things."

"You're a very nice person, Juugo. Don't change too much, K?"

Juugo leaned his head down so that it was hidden behind the headrest of Sakura's seat. Before she had been able to see his face in the glare on the screen, but now it was out of sight. Still, she heard a muffled, "Mmhum, okay."

Sakura's race car spun off the track and pitched over the side of a cliff into the ocean. She laughed as the tragic GAME OVER sign flashed across the screen. "Ah, it's been so long since I last played this game. Come on, Juugo. I want to try one of the fighter games. You can try and beat me at Mortal Kombat."

Sakura awoke with a start and rolled violently out of the way, her body reacting physically before her mind had the chance to catch up with what was happening. She just narrowly avoided Tsunade's fist in the face. Where her head had been was a fist sized crater and the angry woman's glowing knuckles.

"What the hell!?" Sakura whined, backing up and jumping out of the way when Tsunade charged at her.

So this is what she meant when she said first thing in the morning. Be prepared from the moment you first open your eyes, brat. Sakura felt like screaming in frustration.

Tsunade chased her, and Sakura ran from the campsite, forgetting to cry out for help and wake Kisame or the others…not that she thought Hound or Sickle would ever bother to help her. No, it was probably better that Sakura stayed quiet. This was something she had to do on her own.

"The number one rule for medics…they must always avoid all attacks. Never let your opponent hit you. You have to stay alive to heal others. Yours is a life more valued," Tsunade roared, swinging her fists faster.

Sakura cursed and ducked. Tsunade was fast and it was getting harder and harder to keep out of the way. Sakura didn't get tired, but she was starting to get dizzy. Where were the punches coming from?

Sakura needed distance, so she kicked low into the dirt to send a cloud up between them. Tsunade jumped back to avoid it in her eyes, but Sakura used it as an opportunity to run away, father from the campsite and the woman was was deadly at close range. Sakura needed enough distance to compose herself and get ready to go on the offensive. If she wanted to be able to-!

Sakura screamed as the earth under her broke apart and rose upwards out of the ground. Whole fissures split apart the earth and giant chasms opened up around her. Sakura fell on her hip and scrambled to keep from sliding down into the chasm.

"Where the hell did this come from?" Sakura screamed before seeing the shadow grow around her. She looked up to see Tsunade with her heel raised falling down towards her. It was all Sakura could do to roll away and jump out of range before the earth was split a second time. This time, Sakura felt the force of it as she was knocked aside, hitting a tree and gasping for breath.

'Not possible,' her mind screamed as she looked up to see the level of destruction this woman brought about. The earth was dominated and left in shattered fragments of rock and dirt. 'With just her body and some chakra…all this.'

"How did you do that?" Sakura asked, standing up and holding her side. Her ribs weren't broken, but they were bruised and hurting.

"Watch and see if you can find out." Tsunade lifted her chin and then her body was moving again, fist raised high in the air. Sakura watched intently as the hand flowed a faint blue, filled with a perfect frequency of chakra, before coming down hard into the earth. Sakura saw it, at the last second, the chakra was let out, released perfectly into a super punch.

It was hard to get away, but this time Sakura was grinning. "I can do that."

Sakura pulled back her own fist and summoned the hum of energy called chakra into her left arm. It was wild and snapping at first, but Sakura straightened it out like a needle in her arm, not leaving any room for excess or waste. Perfectly preserved in her arm, She raised her fist and brought it down. At the last second, she let it out and the earth crumbled in a shallow, misshaped crater under her knuckles. She squeaked in surprise, and then in fear when a chasm opened up right under her. She almost fell down it too if Kisame hadn't reached out to grab the back of her hatori and drag her back.

"Damn it, so early in the morning," he half roared half grumbled. He looked pissed and tired.

"Oi, blue face," Tsunade shouted out, across the rubble. "This is her fight, don't interfere."

"She would have fallen, you heartless witch."

The blond was only mildly annoyed, and his insult wasn't the reason for it. "She would have learned then, for next time not to make the same mistake."

Sakura scrambled to her feet, ignoring the way her knees bled through her pants or how torn her palms looked. "But I don't know what my mistake was. How were you able to control the earthquakes? I didn't see that part."

Tsunade frowned harder and jumped off the fragment of earth raised up above the others. When she landed, it was right in front of Sakura. "Honestly," she began with a tired voice. "I'm surprised you were able to copy me at all with only watching it once. That's not normal."

"Obviously," Kisame growled, stepping closer to Sakura. "So don't expect so much out of her first thing in the morning. You're a hack if you call that training. What kind of teacher tests without teaching first?"

"Shut up, fish breath. I wanted to see what she could do."

Kisame took a step in front of Sakura, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "Oh, seen enough?"

Tsunade made a face like she was considering challenging Kisame, but then she shook her head. "No, that's enough for the morning. Sakura, see me if your ribs are cracked. Otherwise, get yourself some breakfast. We're heading out again in the hour." Tsunade turned and took off with a sudden leap, disappearing into the spaces in between trees.

Once she was gone, Kisame turned to look Sakura over. "Did she hit you?" he asked, kneeling down so that he could look at her abdomen better. His stubborn fingers ghosted over her ribs, counting and checking them. "Nothing is broken here. Looks like you were just thrown."

"You didn't see that?" Sakura chuckled, feeling the bruises when she breathed. "Ah, I was pathetic."

"You're alive, which is more than can be said for a lot of the other guys she's gone after. She has a reputation, you know. If she wasn't a princess or miracle healer, she would be locked up in a prison for the number of atrocities she's seen fit to placate herself with. Ah, you'll live."

Sakura straightened up and pat down her shoulders and the front of her outfit, shaking dust and dirt free. Her hand brushed the empty space beside her hip where her sword should have been. She hadn't thought to grab it when she was shocked away.

Maybe it was better she was learning this way of fighting. In the past she had trouble summoning weapons when she was in certain situations. It was a weird science she couldn't figure out or understand, but she knew enough to know that she wouldn't be able to always rely on her ability to form objects out of thought.

Her fists would always be there.

"I just wish I knew how I could control the output. The input was the same, I was on the sam frequency as her."

Kisame lifted his shoulders before dropping them. "Maybe it would be better if you ate something first."

Sakura looked up at Kisame who stood against the early morning sun, cutting it out and hi-lighting the edges of his frame. He towered over Sakura, he always had, but for some reason that didn't really intimidate her as much anymore. The idea that he was scary, something that had always been present during her first few meetings with the swordsman, were only a memory now.

"What are you doing here, Kisame?" she asked.

The blue man blinked. "What? I thought I explained it already. You needed the help."

"People need help all the time. Why did you want to help me, especially when it took you so far out of your way?"

His shoulders did that thing again when they raised and dropped in an imitation shrug, almost like he was trying to throw off his worries. "Not everyone is worth helping. You want me to explain every little detail for you?" he snapped, turning suddenly and walking away. He stopped after a couple of steps and glanced back over his shoulder. "Just…get some breakfast before it's gone."

Sakura stayed where she was, watching him walk off on his own before she finally decided to move. When she did, she caught sight of something white between the trees. She hadn't been fast enough to catch it with her eyes, but she was almost positive it had been one of Tsunade's body guards.

By the time she made it back to camp everyone was already packed up and had finished eating. Only a little scrap of food had been left out for Sakura on a blue handkerchief. Little fish were painted around the edges, and Sakura recognized it easily enough even though no one bothered claiming it as theirs.

It took almost a week's worth of nights before Sakura finally managed to pin Tsunade down and make her explain her earth shattering technique. It was annoying, since Tsunade never took the initiative to offer information up or instruct Sakura in anything. Sakura had to ask for everything.

The blond woman finally relented, stopping for the day and taking Sakura to a secluded area where they could tear up the earth without it hurting anything else. Once again, Sakura was dwarfed by the power.

"Here," Tsunade said, pointing at the unsettled ground. "This is done by building up and releasing the stored chakra with precise timing upon impact, making it effortless for the user to decimate any target. The trick you need to worry about is in letting it release in a controlled manner. When you expel the chakra through your fist, don't just let it go, send it out. You weren't directing it, that's why it went wild. And while it's impressive for you to be able to do what you can in so short a span a time, the way you are now makes you more of a threat to your allies than any help."

"And how do I do that?" Sakura asked, looking down at her hands.

Tsunade shrugged her shoulders and stared off into the distance, her face one of not caring. "You should figure that out on your own. I gave you the theory. Have fun practicing."

"Wait!" Sakura jumped over the rubble to get closer to the aloof blond. "That's not enough. I need to know more, to have more instruction. I can't do it without-ow"

The blond had reached out and flicked Sakura's forehead with her index and thumb fingers. It wasn't anything major, but it was enough to make Sakura stop. "Girl, who do you think showed me this when I invented it? Experience is the best teacher. Do what you can and join us for dinner when you're exhausted."

"I don't have time for that," Sakura hissed, rubbing the place on her head where she had been flicked. "I need to kill these beasts as quickly as possible so that I can move on."

Tsunade didn't look back as walked away, but there was a little half wave tossed over her shoulder to compensate for the lack of acknowledgment.

"Fine," Sakura grumbled, feeling the corner of her lip break when she bit down on it. "Five days of waiting and this is all I have to show for it? Fine. Just one more tough break to deal with."

Sakura raised her arms and then brought them in, tucked and ready to jab. The chakra was there, growing, running, flowing. Sakura pulled on it and it came easily, flawlessly, effortlessly. It filled her arms and funneled down her arms into her fists. She jumped and into the air her body launched. She soared up, higher than any reality could let her reach, and turned, facing the earth. With her decent she pulled her arm back and put everything into her fist.

The trick you need to worry about is in letting it release in a controlled manner. When you expel the chakra through your fist, don't just let it go, send it out. You weren't directing it, that's why it went wild.

'I'll show you wild,' Sakura snarled right before impact. There was air and wind and falling and then nothing. A breath before impact and Sakura felt it, the rush of chakra leaving her hand like water out cup. It flowed naturally on it's own, but Sakura knew better now. Instead of water from a cup, it came out like water from a faucet, pressurized and propelled.

'Wild.'

Unlike the last time, the earth shattered like glass under her fist, sending up huge slabs of earth all around her on every side in a perfect circle. The destruction was far reaching too. Her first attempt had been pathetic in comparison.

She landed without difficulty and straightened right away to turn and observe her handiwork. It was obliterating, but it wasn't directed in any particular direction. If Sakura was facing an enemy in front of her and used this attack, it would harm everyone around her, regardless of what side they were on. There still wasn't that level of control.

You weren't directing it, that's why it went wild.

"Once more," Sakura said to herself, jumping away to find a new plot of land she could tear asunder.

It was dark by the time Kisame came to get her.

She was a sweating mess in the dirt, coughing and shaking with blood dried in the corner of her mouth from an overly abused lip. Both of her arms hung limp at her sides. It appeared to be too much effort to lift either when she fell to her knees and sank onto her bottom.

"What is it?" she breathed, the syllables riding out on individual breaths.

"I thought you didn't get tired." Kisame crouched down so she didn't have to lean back to look at him, but he still towered over her. "You look terrible."

"It's chakra…all of it. I don't know how, but that seems to have been the reason for my impressive endurance. And now I've used up most of it. It…most of it anyway, not all." Sakura hissed as something sparked in her chest, making her flinch inwards.

"Careful. Chakra exhaustion can make a person sick, and you're not used to being without all that chakra to begin with." Kisame hesitated, but then he reached over and felt her forehead, brushing aside the sticky strands that clung to her skin with sweat. "You're running a fever now, too."

"I don't like this. I couldn't even make it work." Sakura breathed out loudly and then fell over onto her side. "I hate it when I suck at something. I just wanna level up already."

She heard the breath of irritation but couldn't be bothered to turn her head and see the expression on Kisame's face when he spoke. Judging by his tone, he wasn't too annoyed with her, but the irritation was there. "You're being a bit melodramatic for one day of effort. I'd hate to see what you think of others if you call this sucking."

"But I'm supposed to be different," she breathed into the dirt.

Her head hurt and she didn't care if she sounded full of herself. She meant what she said. This was her dream, this was her curse, this was her world. Things were supposed to be easier for the dreamer than the actors. The whole reason this world existed was for her. It was built out of her memories and her subconscious desires.

Where was Sai and Kimimaro? She missed Sai, and wanted to see Kimimaro. Why hadn't they come for her yet?

Kisame's voice was gruff. "You sound a little bit like an asshole."

"Tired people are a little bit like assholes. Sorry."

His breath was heavy when he exhaled. "Kids these days, think they have to have everything right away and that it should come easy. It won't. You have a lot of hard work ahead of you. It's amazing you've been able to grow as much as you have so quickly, but most people take years to master stuff like this. Tsunade's a bit of a loon to think you can get so much in just a month."

"She hasn't even tried teaching me medical stuff."

He did that awkward almost shrug with his shoulders again. He nodded towards the upturned landscape. "It's called jutsu…it means 'the art of.' I teach ken jutsu, the art of the sword. Tsunade is teaching you a bit of tie and nin jutsu. It's martial arts and chakra manipulation."

Sakura shook her head, closing her eyes. "I'm too tired for this. I don't care. It's…ugh, yeah I think I might be sick."

Kisame backed away quickly, waving his arms. "In the bushes, in the bushes, get away from me!"

Sakura didn't vomit, but she did end up laughing at his antics. It only got worse for her when he wouldn't come back near her, even after she convinced him she was fine. Apparently he didn't like puking, even though he could stand the sight of blood.

Sakura's pearls of laugher died out when she noticed the white hiding in the trees. She looked up and saw one of Tsunade's body guards. It was the one with the weasel mask. He didn't make any move to hide or leave her line of sight, even though Sakura knew Sickle knew she had spotted him.

"Kisame?" she calmly called.

The large blue man heard the change in her voice and turned, forgetting his antics from earlier. He followed her eyes to the tree line and saw the man as well. His expression darkened as he jumped forward to stand in front of Sakura. She wanted to protest, but she knew that in her state she was not fit to stand, much less fight.

Once Kisame was in front of Sakura, the man named Sickle jumped down from his branch and landed gracefully at the roots of his tree. He stood, watched them for a moment, and then started walking towards the pair of them. Kisame didn't tense, or fall into a defensive stance, but the way he stood in front of Sakura was unmistakably protective.

Sickly stopped in front of Kisame, eyed the large, blue man up and down, and then sidestepped around him to stand in front of Sakura. Kisame shifted, but didn't move. Sickle reached inside the vest of his jacket and drew out a black pouch. He pressed this into Sakura's hands, making sure she held it correctly, before stepping backwards and flickering out of sight, a blur of black headed back into the trees.

"Creepy little weasel," Kisame muttered, taking a step away from Sakura. He eyed the black thing in her hands. "What did he give to you. It doesn't smell, does it?"

Sakura untied the knot and the ends of the cloth fell away to reveal three perfectly shaped onigiri all in a row. "Dinner."

"Ah, you missed it with all of your redecorating. I'm surprised anyone beside me noticed."

Sakura eyed the blue cloth sticking poking out of the folds in Kisame's clothing and smiled coyly when she smeled the food hidden inside. Kisame tracked her line of sight and grunted when he saw what she was looking at. Muttering something that sounded like, 'spoiled brat,' he turned and stormed off the battlefield. He made it to the tree line before turning around and waving at her. "Oi, slow poke. Back to camp. I'm not carrying you if you pass out."

Sakura didn't have to wait another five days for Tsunade to give her a lesson. When she woke up in the dream world the next cycle, it was still a dark and early morning. Everyone in the camp was asleep aside from Tsunade and one of her retainers. Sakura squinted into the darkness to see the details of the mask, but his face was turned away. She guessed it was Sickle, since Hound had silver hair that stood out, even in the dark.

Once Tsunade took notice of her she waved Sickle away and crossed the campsite to kneel down beside the younger girl. "Get up, we're going fishing."

Sakura didn't ask questions, but tugged on her cloth shoes and followed the older woman down to the river bend where Kisame and the others had been fishing for dinner last night. Tsunade waded right into the water and struck at something beneath the surface, pulling out a wiggling fish in one hand. Bringing it back to the bank, she climbed out of the water and set the fish down before making a thin incision with her finger down the fish's side.

"Breakfast?" Sakura asked, watching the fish slowly loose its life.

"Training," Tsunade corrected. "Heal it."

"Eh?" Sakura sputtered. "You just killed it! What do you want me to do about that?"

"Seal it up, heal it. It's a fish, not a human, so it should be easy, right?"

Sakura sputtered, thinking about all the times she had tried healing herself after an injury. She always tried and it never worked. "I can't do something like that," she protested, kneeling down in front of the fish anyway. It flopped maybe once every thirty seconds now, but it looked nearly dead.

"Prove it to me then. You haven't even tried, brat. I wanna see what you think you can do or can't do." Tsunade sat down with her back to a tree and sagged a bit, ready to wait for what seemed like a long time. When Sakura didn't move, the blond raised a single brow and gave the younger a pointed look.

"Fine," Sakura huffed, bending down to hold her palms out above the dying fish. She felt her chakra and shivered a bit by how warm it was. She wanted to pour it into the wound and fix it, knit it back together, reattach the separated seams one molecule at a time. She imagined it becoming whole again. With her eyes closed, she could see the process and how it should go. Only when Tsunade made an excited sound did Sakura open her eyes again.

The fish was flapping on the ground, fully healed and bearing only a faint pink line down it's mostly gray body. Sakura squeaked and fell backwards as the fish flopped higher and higher, towards the river until it fell into the waters. When Sakura turned around to see Tsunade's expression, the older woman was grinning like a cat with its saucer of cream.

Sakura felt a little hot in the face and wanted the older woman to stop smiling. "I-I've never been able to do that before, and I've tried!"

"Obviously. Healing humans is a lot more complicated than healing fish. And you only worked on a surface wound. There are other elements to medicine such as repairing damaged organs, sealing broken bones, extracting poisons, cleaning out pathways of circulation, and so on and so on. Flesh wounds are the easiest. Even if you didn't have perfect chakra control, some nin can do that much." Tsunade reached inside the folds of her robe and pulled out a small jug of sake she lifted to her lips. "But still…I should have known you would ace it on your first try. Having a protege for an apprentice isn't so bad after all."

Sakura bit her lip, tasting the old blood that was a testimony to her frustrations. Tsunade saw this but didn't mention it. Instead she just chuckled.

"Don't be frustrated, it doesn't suit you. You may only have a month with me, but that's long enough for the basics."

Sakura thought back to the Monarch Woods where her blood saved dozens and how how her thoughts purified Nageto back in the Kingdom Of Man. If she could do that then, why couldn't she do more complex stuff now? Why was this all so frustrating?

"What do I do next?" Sakura asked, finally.

"Ah, next you should practice knitting back flesh of carrying animals. I'll see what the boys can shoot down for lunch and we'll go on from there."

Tsunade stood and turned back towards the camp. "But if you want to do something now, try healing that fish again, but this time keep your eyes open."

A minute later, Sakura was left on her own. Discarding her shoes and socks, she waded into the waters with the folds of her robes folded up and belted back. Her reflection in the water shivered as the current distorted the image. There were fish there, just beneath the surface, but she couldn't bring herself to reach for one. Instead, she thought of a small box cutter and grabbed it out of the air.

Fish were useless. Animals would be useless. She drew a line with her knife across the inside of her arm above the elbow. It was shallow and short and would be easy enough to hide or explain away if someone in the real world saw it. She dropped the box cutter into the water and it became foam on the surface. Using one hand full of chakra, Sakura closed her eyes and poured her warm chakra into the wound, imagining it closing. She would fix it, knit it back together, and reattach the separated seams one molecule at a time. She imagined it becoming whole again. With her mind's eye, she could see the process and how it should go, leaving behind nothing but a shiny pink line as evidence.

With her hand feeling hot, Sakura opened her eyes and saw her wound just as fresh as before, bleeding down her arm. Nothing about it had changed, nothing had healed or even lessened.

Cursing, Sakura reached out to wash the wound site with a cloth to stop the bleeding. Once it was clean she tied a bandage around it.

"Sai?" she called out, searching the riverbank. She felt like sinking to her knees and letting the river take her away. "Sai?" she called again. Her eyes felt heavy and even though the sun was coming up, she felt like going back to her covers and staying there.

When she opened her eyes again there was a pair of sandals standing on the surface of the lake as it it was something solid to stand on. Sakura looked up and saw Sai staring down at her with a confused expression. "You called?" he asked innocently.

"Sai!" her voice was breathy as she jumped up to hug him tight around the waist. He grunted from the strength of the squeeze but didn't try to pull away.

"Sa-Sakura chan, you called for me after so long, finally."

Sakura let him go and fell back into the water. "Stupid. You never came! I didn't see you anywhere and you never tried talking to me. Where have you been all this time? It's been weeks since I saw you last."

Sai reached down for her hand and pulled her up onto the river before leading her back to shore where they could both stand on the bank. "Forgive me. It is much harder for me to move around in this Kingdom, even more so than it had been when we were in the gate world. Sometimes I fall asleep and when I wake days have passed. If I didn't hear your voice, I'm not sure when we would have next seen each other. I…I should have come sooner. Are you well?"

She took a step back to look him over. Sai was always pale, but now the bags under his eyes were more pronounced and tinted in purple like from a sickness. He seemed thinner too. "Sai, are you alright?" Sakura asked, feeling his face for a fever. "You don't look like your self, and you're being extra nice to me. Apologizing twice over? What have you done?"

Sai shook his head and her hands fell away. "I am just tired. I am using more of an effort to stay here. You know this is not my kingdom and I shouldn't be here."

"I…yeah, but I didn't think it would hurt you like this. I'm sorry, it was a stupid request. I should have left it alone, then you wouldn't have to feel this way."

He swayed a little, but Sai managed to stand in place and made an effort to shake his head. "No, if you had left me in the Kingdom of Man I would not have a place here at all. For already that kingdom and gate have both passed away. Nothing exists of it anymore, and the actors have all been recast and resorted into new roles. I am not an actor. My fate would have been oblivion…so I am glad to suffer a little grief for this. I want to be alive."

"So…I can't go back to any of the worlds like I used to? When I was in the Kingdom of Man I could go back to the Marble Gardens."

"The Kingdom and the Gate of one side on the Obelisk are connected and essentially run together to be counted as one. When you are in a kingdom, it is always possible to return to the kingdom's gate, but never to another kingdom's gate or even a different kingdom. For example, if you wished it, you could return to the Monarch Woods and the narrative there would be active enough so that there would have been time passed from when you left to now. However, if you wanted to go to the Marble Gardens because it's quiet, there would be no way for you to do so."

"Why would I want to go back?" Sakura asked, thinking back to the way she left things in the last gate. She was sure Kiba was suffering and poor Neji never got his dance. What about Hungry and the Tzar's son coming to the city? If the story kept going and time kept flowing in that world without her, she really didn't know what she would walk in on.

"Sometimes…it is a tactic best used to escape enemies in this kingdom. The Dream Killer, for example, can not follow you there. The dream killer is too, shall I say…big to fit in such a world."

She sighed. "This is confusing. I don't think I can keep all or even most of this straight. What happened to Kimmimaro and do you even know who the dream killer is in this world? Is it still Snake Eyes?"

"The Dream Killer is a role, just like my own as the Sigh of Dejection. There is a new, different person to fulfill that role every kingdom or every gate. In this world…I do not know who your dreaded enemy will be. Be vigilant. For all you know, it could be Kabuto again."

Sakura remembered the boy in glasses who stood up after being hit by Deidara in his car. The memory made the hairs on her arms stand up. He was a freak and she hoped to never have to meet him again. "I don't want to ever meet him again. How do I beat this kingdom as quickly as possible? Help me out here, Sai."

Sai didn't show a lot of expressions, but Sakura was sensitive to even the slightest changes in his eyes or on his face. She caught the tension in this jaw as he held back the frown before it could stretch his lips.

"What is it?" she asked, feeling dread.

"…Nothing of consequence. I know this is only your second kingdom, but this kingdom is very different from the first in the sense that it is much larger. Most men and women who fall prey to this curse don't make it much father than the second world, and less still make it to the third world. You shouldn't treat this realm lightly. You may loose your life here."

"It doesn't seem much different from the Kingdom of Man, other than…like….the obvious things like it being Japan and there being huge crabs and slugs I have to kill."

Sai almost frowned again, but didn't. "Do you remember in the beginning when I was first explaining the details of how the Obelisk's curse works…I mentioned that the worlds start to break down after several years of a dreamer inhabiting them. That was an intentional component of the curse because it took the captives so long to get through each gate and kingdom. In a few months, not even half a year, you've managed to conquer a whole kingdom and two gates."

"But the first gate only took me one night and you were there to help me."

"True, the first gate is the shortest and the first kingdom is the easiest. From there on, it only gets harder. I don't want to discourage you, but this world might take you longer to conquer."

Sakura felt something unpleasant settle under her skin. Her body felt like one big itch she couldn't scratch away. "And when you say longer you mean…?"

"Years."

"I don't have years to do this, though. I have a real life outside of this that I need to get back to working at. I've managed well so far, but…I'm an emotional mess when I hear do-wop songs now. I can't look at husky dogs anymore,even though they've always been my favorite. I'm having trouble connecting with my friends past a certain degree, even though I hide it very well. I won't be able to hide how messed up I really am for years. I…I was hoping by the end of the semester or even the school term if it came to that."

Sakura thought back to how she caught herself wandering in her thoughts during the day. How she took walks out to the old orchard to eat apples and think about what it felt like to kiss a dead man. She wasn't a wreck like she could have been, but the damage was still there, simmering beneath the surface. At a moments notice, Sakura didn't know if she was going to break down and cry over it all.

"Sakura." The said girl looked up, and saw that Sai's eyes were hard and focused on her. "Please don't focus on the time it takes you. If you rush, you will die. You have to take your time and carefully tackle only what you can, not more. This is your life you are playing with, and anything less than your very best will not bode well for you in the morning. I…no one wants you to be injured here, much less die from this world, so please do't try to rush through it all."

Where would she be in a couple of years? Would she be finished with her degree? Would she be working, or in debt and working? Would she still have friends? What about new friends? What about a boy friend? Oh forget boyfriend, that wasn't happening any time soon.

What about boys in this world? Lots of them were hot and attracted to her because she was the dreamer and the whole reason they were even awake. And yeah, some of them were tempting to think about as potential whatevers….but they were all dead souls captured by the Obelisk curse. They weren't real, but she was making them feel real things and she was feeling real things for them. What was she supposed to do about that? In addition to risking her life every night, what about her sanity?

"Sai just make it stop." She dropped her chin at the top of her head dipped to bump his chest. "I don't want this to keep going."

"You have to."

"This sucks."

She felt his touch her face so she looked up. He wasn't smiling, but she saw the ghost of a smile in his eyes and knew that was what he felt. "You will beat this. You're exceptional, in more than one way. I've never met a person I believed in more. If I didn't, I wouldn't be here." There was a twitch in his eyelashes, ever so subtle, she nearly missed it. "I don't know how, but I promise I'll follow you as far as you can go, and I'll help you reach the last point of this curse."

A thought scared her like icc in her heart. "You…won't I be able to take you to the next world with me like last time?"

"I shouldn't even be here now. Kimimaro is the intermediate for this face on the Obelisk. By all rights, I should have faded away by now. Only your will preserved me this far."

Sakura remembered the white haired boy who took her hand so timidly on the top of a church roof. "I'll take both of you anywhere if I can, and I'll find a way too. It's a promise. I won't leave without you."

Sai smiled this time, and it was a real smile, on that stretched his lips honestly. "It's a promise then."

Sakura felt light when his pinky wrapped around her own. It was childish, and she wasn't sure how much this meant to her, but it made her feel right.

But it was a moment in time and time never stands still. He looked up suddenly, as if startled and then started to dissipate, the edges of his body breaking down into smoke. "Someone's coming for you."

Sakura turned to look over her shoulder and see who it was, but when she didn't see anyone, she turned back to say something more to Sai, only to find him gone. He was like a vapor in the wind; one moment there, and the next, no one remembers it's existence.

Sakura turned back towards the tree to look again and caught sight of white hidden between two trunks, trying to blend in. Sakura had a feeling if Sickly wanted to stay hidden, that was still very possible for someone as skilled as he. When his mask caught sight of her watching he stepped out, into plain view, and started walking towards her.

Before he could reach her she began pulling something out of the sleeves of her haori. In her hand she held the black, handkerchief he had used to wrap up her dinner in. It was washed and neatly folded atop her palm, pinned down with her thumb. He stopped when he was close enough to reach out and take it, but he didn't.

He watched her in silence for a moment before moving, and Sakura kept her voice to herself in turn, waiting for him to offer words of explanation as to his visit. Still hidden behind his mask, he hesitantly took the cloth back from her hands, and then quickly replaced it with a small scroll he had been hiding behind his back in a satchel for such ninja gear.

"From Tsunade," he said, and his voice was young, but polished and polite. He didn't sound younger than her, but there was something to his voice that sounded un-aged about it. There was no trace of a childhood in it.

"Why?" Sakura asked, breaking the seal and unrolling the scroll. There were drawings of different animals inside frames of text and around each there were unrecognizable makings that looked similar to kanji. "What do I do with this?"

"It's a summoning scroll. You are to practice healing the corpses summoned in order to improve. To summon a corpse, the seal must be paid in blood. Prick your finger and smear that across the image to complete the summon."

Sakura bit down hard on her thumb, breaking skin and drawing blood. It was something she was proud about doing, since in the waking world, her friends would all say she was super metal to be able to bleed on command like that. But here, it was nothing, so she smeared the blood across the picture of the rooster without another word. The moment her blood touched the page she felt a suck and tug on her chakra, like the scroll was eating it up. There was a pop and explosion of smoke, before a weight cause Sakura to drop the smoking scroll. Once the cloud passed, she looked down to see a dead rooster with it's side slashed open. Tsunade's message was clear. 'Heal this.'

Sakura looked up with her expression in check, biting the inside of her cheek to keep from scowling. Sickle hd no expression to gauge. He still wore his mask all the time, making it a challenge to read. He inclined his head, almost nodding towards Sakura, before turning and taking a step away. He stopped, turned on his heel, and then walked back to press something new into her hand.

"Not from Tsunade," he said, before he was gone.

Sakura looked down and saw another cloth bundle with rice poking out. She inhaled and smelled the heavy scent of rice buns with a meat center. It was breakfast.

It seemed like such a long time, but before Sakura knew it the world out the waking was frosted over and drowned in white ice and Christmas carols. She had never been more grateful to avoid a part time career in retail. Most New Yorkers were hard enough to deal with on their own. New York shoppers during the holidays were a whole new breed of people.

Sakura had one of the windows the the second story opened and dangled one leg over the sill while the other was folded underneath her. She snuggled deeper into her heavy cable knit sweater, inhaling the freshness of the almost winter world. In her hands rested a fat green mug of pipping hot apple cider.

"How the fuck are you not freezing?" Karin hissed, coming into the room with a heavier coat and scarf wrapped around her neck. The red head cursed a few more times before approaching the window where Sakura dangled.

"I'm cold, but it doesn't bother me as much. I've always loved the cold…and besides, I have a warm drink."

"It's akmost fucking December you little shit," Karin hissed, pressing her shivering body against Sakura's. "Close the window and come inside."

Sakura knew better than to ignore Karin when she dropped an F bomb every sentence. The red head didn't have much patience left. Ami was taking more and more trips overseas with her dad, and Karin was using it as an excuse to come over and hang out more and more.

"You could just move to a warmer room, like downstairs next to the stove. I told you this place didn't have good heating, you shouldn't have bothered coming over if you were just going to complain about the cold."

Karin glared at her friend. "Shut up, just be grateful I want to hang out with you at all."

Sakura chuckled, folding and unfolding her legs so that they dangled into the room again. She slipped off the sill and turned to pull the window down. The cold became cut off, but the chill still lingered, so Karin scampered downstairs towards the kitchen. Karin was waiting for her when Sakura sauntered in.

The red head scowled and Sakura had to laugh at the expression. "What?"

"You're showing off or something. You're like, all leggy now and you walk differently. Have you been training or working out or something? It's annoying, whatever it is, knock it off."

"I train habitually with a blue skinned, shark faced swords master and a drunk princess who can crack the earth in two. Duh, of course my booty's going to look great."

Karin just rolled her eyes, obviously not believing Sakura's story. "Drama whore."

Sakura shrugged, not offended by the language. "You're the one who invited me to Christmas dinner. Don't act like you don't care about me."

Karin stuck a candy cane between her lips and sucked. When she removed the red and pink stick it made a pop sound on her lips. "Just don't bail or disappear on us. I don't want to be left with my relatives all on my own."

"I won't," Sakura hummed, stirring the cinnamon stick in her hot cider.

"Yeah, that's what you say now. Just see that you stick to it, bitch."

Sakura nodded, but her attention instantly snapped to the buzzing of her phone. She swiped the screen to unlock it and looked at something real quick before setting it down again with a sigh. Karin made a face.

"Were you waiting for something?"

"Test results. In addition to finals, I'm applying for a few more scholarships and some of them wanted test scores in order to qualify. I took a drug history assessment at the CDC clinic last week and I'm waiting for my results. If I scored high enough I am eligible for one thousand dollars in scholarship. That would help me out a bunch."

Karin shrugged, looking out the window and away from Sakura. There was a crease between her eyebrows. "A thousand dollars would help out anyone. College is crazy expensive. I don't know how you manage it, or why."

"Yeah, but I really want this," Sakura whispered. "I mean, at least this much. I don't think med school is an option anymore, but this gets me close."

When she had been younger, her dream had been to grow up and be a female doctor. In high school it was to become a nurse. In college, she just wanted to be a pharmacist. A little bit of her dream died with each new stage of life. Adulthood and reality weighed her down.

"When do you think you'll get your test results? I thought those took weeks."

"Normally, yeah. This test was not as big of a deal, though. That…and it was all multiple choice aside from one essay question. That shouldn't take them too long to grade."

Karin muttered something more under her breath before finishing her own drink and then getting up to pour herself a fresh cup of coffee. Sakura waited at the table, scrolling through tumblr pages until another email popped up. She swiped to open as soon as she saw it and her heart hammered when she saw it was from the testing agency. It took her to their website, and she typed in her log in with trembling thumbs while Karin added a handful of the pastel marshmallows that had gone stale in Sakura's pantry. Karin was complaining about something, (probably the marshmallows) but Sakura didn't hear her.

Karin, not being one who enjoyed being ignored by her best friend, walked over and shook Sakura roughly. "Oi, earth to Sakura, what are you doing dozing off? Didn't you hear me?"

Sakura quickly turned off her phone and flipped it over, face down. She stretched out a smile and faced her friend with a waiting expression. "What?"

"I was going to ask you if you wanted to go shopping with me later on in the week. I have a shift tonight, but dad said he was going to give me some time to buy presents. You haven't done all your shopping yet, have you?"

"I should actually see if I can pick up any more work with the Visiting Angels. Some of the clients get extra needy this time of year and it would be good if I could…if I could pick up some extra hours before they…go away." Her voice almost wobbled, and her eyes started d to turn red in the corners. She tried to laugh it away. "Sorry, it's just that my head hurts all of a sudden. It's stupid."

Karin frowned. It seemed like Karin was always frowning, but this frown was deeper than the others. There was also a knowing glint in her eyes as she watched Sakura try to swallow. "If you don't know what to get people don't sweat it. You can just make me cookies. I'll take it. I'll be happy with anything you get me."

The red head swallowed before glancing down at her mug. Hesitantly, she reached down and hugged Sakura with her free arm, dragging Sakura forward into the embrace. The older girl made a sound that might have been in protest, but Karin hissed a 'shut up,' putting an end to potential complaints.

"Sakura, you're the smartest person I know. You're also the strongest person I know."

Sakura had her green eyes screwed shut, but that didn't stop the wetness from seeping out onto Karin's shoulder. Silently, Sakura nodded, and deflated into the hug, accepting it as best she could.

She still felt terrible when she woke up in the dream world. She had failed the test by two points and the scholarship she had been so confident about securing was now outside her reach. With one avenue burned off completely, she was scrambling to make ends meet. Waking up to Tsunade throwing the summoning scroll at her face and shouting about ape tissue wasn't what Sakura needed.

It was early morning, and the campsite was stirring. Sakura peered over and saw that Kisame was still asleep inside under his straw hat and Hound was laid out under a tree while Sickle stood watch. They slept in shifts most of the time, and Hound stayed up first last night.

Tsunade was saying something but it wasn't making sense to Sakura as she pushed back the covers of her sleeping sheet and folded her legs underneath her. She took a breath to calm her heart, but couldn't swallow the hurt she had carried over from her failed test in the waking world. In the background Tsunade kept on rambling. By this point Sakura guessed the older blond woman was getting annoyed with the lack of response from Sakura, but she didn't care.

"That's enough."

Tsunade's ramblings stopped, and when Sakura looked up through her lashes, the blond woman was frozen mid step looking stunned. When was the last time someone told her off?

"Excuse me?" she enunciated. Sickle was awake and stirred Hound into waking.

Sakura stood, rising to her feet in one tired, weighted motion. "I said, that's enough. I'm not doing anything today for you. I won't waste my time."

"And why do you think you get to do that?" Tsunade asked, her eyes narrowing into slits. Hound and Sickle were tense behind her, now both fully awake.

"Because I want to. I'm taking time off for myself. I have that much right especially when I've done everything you've asked of me. Never mind I still can't heal my own paper cuts." Sakura started to take a step away but the sound of metal stopped her. Glancing back over her shoulders she saw the blond holding out a kuni.

"You think you're good enough to walk away from me without a scratch?"

"You're not going to get anywhere with that," Sakura said, not taking a step in spite of her nonchalant attitude.

Tsunade smirked, but it was a bitter stretch of her lips. "Take a step, sweetheart, I dare you."

Sakura drew her katana out of thin air and took a step all at once, drawing out her blade just enough to deflect the projected metal and counter with a swooping arch that kept the older woman at bay. Hound and sickle tensed, preparing to leap in and assist but a scale covered sword longer than either of their bodies arched out in front of them, blocking the path.

Kisame leered darkly at the both of them, promising blood. "Don't bother, boys. You touch her, I kill you."

Tsunade was fast, but she was older than Sakura and that gave the younger girl an edge. It was a sliver of an edge, and one that wouldn't have been there at the beginning of her time in the Kingdom of Beasts, but Sakura was faster than ever before in her dreams. Her body was a blur that couldn't be punned down. All those days and weeks and months of training made Sakura into something stronger, something upgraded. She was on a whole new level.

"You're not allowed to quit here, not when you've come this far," Tsunade snarled, throwing a punch Sakura dodged with ease.

"As if I could!" Sakura roared. She swung her blade and a huge wave of wind leapt form the blade sending Tsunade backwards. "There is no end to any of this! I'll never get to leave, never!"

And though it was something she should have never done, Sakura channeled more of her chakra into her sword and brought the butt end of her hilt down to strike the earth, releasing chakra at the last second in a controlled, directed burst that cracked the earth in two. Tsunade countered by striking the ground around her and standing up a slab of stone to protect her. Sakura roared and struck the stone with her sword, slicing it in half. By the time it fell apart, the space was empty and Tsunade was gone.

"Behind you."

Sakura was fast to dodge the hit, but not fast enough to escape the destruction of the mighty woman's fist in the earth. Sakura screamed, turning over in air before recovering and landing in a tree. She raised her sword, ready to strike again, but froze when she saw Tsuande's pale white face.

The earth trembled again, but not from either woman. Sakura glanced over her shoulder and saw the white, slick body of the six tailed slug.

"Sakura!" Tsunade screamed. The pink haired woman leapt and missed a descending tail just in time. She landed within an arm's reach of the older woman. Tsunade looked stricken. "Save it for later?"

"Fine, I needed something to wail on," Sakura grit out, taking a stance.

The slug was a gigantic mass of white covered in a secreted mixture of what looked like goo. Instead of a body that ended in a single tail, the six tailed slug, Saiken had a pinwheel of tails on its back. In its head, Sakura saw a diamond marking that blocked out the star shaped shadow of a body.

When it roared, the earth trembled.

Sakura didn't waste time and took off first, ready to slice it down before her fear could manifest. She was too pissed off to be scared right now, especially of a giant slug. Elephant sized wolves were one thing, slugs were a whole other ball game. With a grunt she swung her sword and a blade of wind followed.

It landed and slash tore of the side of the slug's body, making it cry out in agony. Sakura drew closer, but then was sidelined by Tsunade just in time to avoid being hit by a wad of spit that sizzled like acid when it hit the ground and ate through the rock. Before either girl could recover, Saiken bloated up and then deflated, secreting a white green cloud of poison around itself.

"Don't touch, it'll burn you," Tsunade warned. Sakura resisted the urge to roll her eyes at how obvious it was.

A weight landed behind her and Sakura turned to see Sickle on their tree branch. A ways back stood Hound, sword at the ready. Below them landed Kisame, sword out and already dirty.

"It doesn't look too bad," the blue man grunted.

"It's highly poisonous. Get close and you're dead. I developed an antidote to its older poisons, but it's evolved and now I'm practically useless. We'll need to rely on long range." Tsunade pulled out another pair of Kuni between her fingers. "Try to get height before launching projectiles. The fog eats anything that enters into it."

"What about disturbing it's footing?" Kisame asked in a grunt. "Use that strength of yours to take it out."

"Saiken can separate into six separate bodies and then attack us independently in such a scenario. I've tried it, it always goes worse for us that way."

Kisame looked sullen. "No wonder you needed help. Is there anything you can do aside from throw a few knives?"

"Watch your tongue if you don't want it rolled up as sushi, fish face," she snapped.

Sakura swung her sword out and looked down at the blade. "I can cut through the fog. Maybe it will be enough for a direct hit."

"It will be enough to get our own attacks in, at least," hound said, looking to Tsunade and then Sickle.

Sakura didn't wait for a confirmation. She jumped from her tree branch and leapt into the sky. She poured her chakra into her blade and heaved her arms up to channel the power. She started to fall fast and just before she fell into the fog she brought her blade down, cutting the air like a knife and slicking through the poison cloud. A wad of spit just barely missed her when she landed, but some of the after spray hit the side of her leg and she cried out in pain. She could hear her skin being eaten away.

She didn't think she was dizzy, but a new set of arms wrapped around her middle section and dragged her back. Looking up at the slug she could see it bleeding heavily from it's side, and panting from the pain. The shadow in it's skull seemed so much darker.

"Sickle?" she guessed before turning around to see his masked face. He felt warm and his scent was one of forest and wood. It was enough to inhale blissfully, but she didn't dare in the moment.

He touched her leg and she flinched. It was bleeding in spots and looked like someone went wild with a acidic pepper shaker on her leg. Kisame was running towards her while Hound drew it's attention elsewhere, avoiding acid spit better than Sakura.

"Once more, Sakura!" Tsunade roared, kicking up stone that shielded her from more of the spit.

"She's fucking hurt, bitch," Kisame roared, reaching her and crouching down over her so she was swallowed up in his shadow. Absently, Sakura marveled at how different Kisame was now in comparison to when they first met. He had pushed Sickle away and was pulling Sakura towards him with his free arm.

"It's fine," Sakura lied, believing it as she forced herself to stand. It hurt like hell but she didn't bother to truly feel it. She wasn't pissed anymore, but she desperately clung to her old anger, hanging onto it to help numb the pain. "I can do it once more." She looked up at Kisame. "Help me."

The blue man made a face. "I can't expel pure chakra like you can, but you got it. I'll see what I got."

Hound cried out, getting hit in the shoulder and that spurred Sakura on. She ran out, closer to the fog and shot her blade full of roaring chakra. Beside her she could feel Kisame's chakra as well. When she swung there was an arch of wind that cut through the fog, followed by a edged wave of water that was strong enough to topple the slug and give Tsunade the opening to hurtle a jagged bolder straight into it's head, severing the face from the neck. Sakura watched in awe as the face fell and Tsunade roared for 'once more' over the poison cloud that was closing in on her.

Once more, Sakura filled her blade with whatever was in her, gasping at how empty she was starting to feel, and swung an arch at the star shaped shadow on the slug's severed head.

It was only a moment, but for the briefest breath of time, Sakura saw through the smoke to the body of the boy climbing out of the slime. He had black hair, chin length and straightened with a healthy shine. She couldn't tell what color his eyes were, but she knew they were wide and full of white before her blade of chakra tore his body in two.

Sakura turned and retched onto the rubbled beside her, feeling like she had just been separated at the torso. The bile that came up stung her worse than the acid on her leg.

Utakata.

"You did it," Kisame quietly said behind her, not touching her as she dry heaved over the stone, but waiting till she finished. It was better than running off like he planned to do the last time she felt partly sick.

"There was someone in there." She gasped, feeling her body spasm. "A person!"

Kisame was quiet for a while, and when he spoke his voice was not as gruff as it could have been. "That's what the tailed beasts are. They take human hosts to control and manipulate. They…the boy wasn't….you couldn't save him. There was nothing left to save. They're hosts…empty."

Tsunade was crouched down in front of Hound, healing his injuries, but Sickle stood back, watching her, waiting for Kisame to move. There was a little blood on his hand from stray spray.

"Sakura," Tsunade barked. "Come here and heal the rest."

Something burning inside her flared up again and Sakura looked up to glare at the older, blond woman. "Like hell I'll do anything for you!" Her stomach kicked again but she had nothing left to give. The bile on her teeth was like acid in her nostrils.

She had just killed a person. A real person. A person with a name and a face and a life and family. He was a person she had never seen before, but he was a person as real as Sasori…and she had killed him. Not even Orochimaru, who she hated with everything in her, was someone she wanted dead. She hadn't been able to kill him with all that hate, but the boy called Utakata was dead because of her.

She killed a person. She killed a person. She killed a person. She killed a person. Holy shit, she just killed a person. She killed a person. She killed a person. She killed a person. She killed a person. She fucking just killed a person and it doesn't matter that this is a dream or that he wasn't even alive to begin with, she killed a person.

"Sakura!" she was shaken harshly by Tsunade and when she opened her eyes again the woman was hovering over her. Apparently Sakura had fallen backwards and started to shake. It must have looked like a seizure, but she was just in shock. Sakura's eyes couldn't focus, making the older woman frown. "You're going to have to carry her back. She's out of it and completely useless to me as is. Sickle, support Hound, we need to make it to an inn for tonight.

Sakura felt numb as Kisame lifted her into his arms and folded her up like a doll against his chest. It was a solid surface for Sakura to lay her head against, and with her ear pressed against his breast she could hear his heart thrum with every beat. The rhythm felt like a mantra to her.

She killed a person. She killed a person. She killed a person. She killed a person. Holy shit, she just killed a person. She killed a person. She killed a person.

There were poppies in her vision the rest of the dream.

"I wake up and the anger has been waiting for me, has been bleeding into my mouth, caustic and vile, rotting my teeth to points."
— Emily Palermo

Sakura woke up, went through the motions, went to school, attended lectures, filled out homework packets, took the train home, and climbed back into bed. Through all of it, not once did she feel awake.

She climbed under the covers extra early, ignoring the buzzing of her phone or the lights from incoming text messages.

When she opened her eyes again she was back indoors. They had made it to an inn, it seems, and someone had changed her clothes again. She was clean again. Blinking, she rolled over and looked to the corner where she saw Kisame reclining, his back to the wall and his sword propped up between his bowed legs. His eyes were shut and light snores drifted out through the gills on his neck instead of through his nose, like she expected them too.

Sakura stood and the fabric of her covers fell around her ankles in a pool of wrinkles. Glancing down she saw her leg was bandaged, but even with it wrapped up, she could see the stains from where blood well underneath the wrappings. She had almost forgot she had been hurt. It wasn't much, only enough to case ugly bruising and a little scabbing in the real world. Any other day she might have freaked out about it, but there was something in her soul that was so off that things like leg pain belonged to other people.

Her toes and the bottoms of her feet were naked against the hardwood as she cross the room to where a sliding screen led outside. It was very much like the first inn they stayed at, a large suite with many adjacent rooms. This inn was much closer to Mizu, however. When Sakura breathed, the sea rushed into her lungs, and she could taste salt in the air. They were close to the waters of the Mizu sea.

"He had been heading home," Sakura said aloud, remembering a detail about the boy she killed. He had been from Mizu originally, before being taken over. Somehow he remembered home enough to miss it and make the effort to travel back. Even as a mindless host, he still seemed to think and feel.

"You're up."

Sakura turned to face the voice and a second screen door slid open. Inside Tsunade crouched in front of the door, opening it traditionally. Behind her on a mat of bamboo and light cotton rested Hound. His head was turned to the side, but his face was partially uncovered. A black mask obscured the bottom half of his face, but his dog mask was gone. There was a heavy sheen of sweat on the patches of exposed skin, and he seemed to be breathing heavily.

"Is he going to be okay?" Sakura asked, feeling more guilt sting her heart.

"He needs to work the poison out of his body. Oddly enough, what you got hit with didn't seem to slow you down aside from the actual burn. Your body took over the toxin and eradicated it on it's own before I could do anything. That's an impressive immune system you have there. You've been asleep for almost two days now."

"I didn't heal myself, if that's what you're getting at. Most poisons don't have much of an effect on me, I've taken so many vaccines against them. I was just lucky this time."

"Maybe." Tsunade closed the door behind her and crossed the room to a low table where a bottle of sake rested, as if waiting for her. She drank without pause. When she set the jug down her eyes were more tired and her voice less firm. "I knew you didn't heal yourself. Even before you said anything, I knew."

Sakura felt her eyes narrow. "How did you know."

"Simple: you can't."

"I could have told you that much already," Sakura grumbled, padding over and sitting down across from the woman who seemed less biting and bitchy.

"That's not what I mean. You can heal anything I give you, meat, flesh, ape, chicken, pig, and even human. But it can't be your own flesh you knit back together. It can't be your own bones you fuse back into place. Anyone else's and you could probably do it, but never for yourself." She took another long pull of Sake and then set the jug aside before reaching for a knife inside the folds of her robe. Sakura held her breath hostage as Tsunade slashed her arm and then held the bleeding cut out. "Heal it."

"I can't I-" A look from the older woman rendered Sakura silent.

Biting her lip, she pulled on the green energy inside of her, and let it flow out of her hands and into the cells of Tsunade's arm. Just like when she worked with the ape and pig wounds, Tsunade's cells began to respond and knit themselves back together. When Sakura drew her hands back, the blond woman's arm was completely healed.

With wide eyes, sakura tugged at her bandages and peeled them back far enough to see her burns. With her chakra humming in her hands, she stimulated the burn site and poured her energy into the wound. She let it flow out, visualizing the knitting process. She saw her skin returning to normal, pink and fresh as a peach peel. When she opened her eyes again, her burns were still there, stinging from the air.

"I don't get it. I've never been able to heal myself. Your wounds should be impossible for me if I can't do my own self!"

Tsunade said nothing at first, only sipped her sake. "I was afraid of this," she said at last. Sakura glared and the older woman sighed, setting her drink down. "It's nothing to do with your technique, you're doing a fine job. You can heal as well as anyone else and better than most with your perfect chakra control, but there's something wrong with your head." She took another pull of Sake. "You don't think you deserve healing."

"Bullshit." Sakura felt her insides turn. "That doesn't make any sense. No one wants to see me healed more than me. I hate being in pain."

"But you think you deserve it."

"That's stupid, no I don't," she choked, feeling her face turn hot. Tsunade was meeting her eyes without flinching, and the unwavering stare made everything else in the room spin. "I don't…I've done nothing worse than…I don't deserve it."

Tsuande's exhale was a breath full of judgment. "You're lying to yourself even now." Tsunade didn't touch the sake. "I've never seen it myself, but when people live through trauma, it leaves scars and debilitates them almost worse than a physical handicap. A man once lost his ability to self heal after he failed to reach his home village in time to prevent an outbreak of plague. There was nothing he could do, given the circumstances, but his guilt manifested into a block that kept him from healing himself and only himself. He was a famous doctor aside from that, but the story still stands as a single credited case."

"What have I done or what's happened to me that's been so bad that's kept me from being able to heal all this time? The boy Utakata's death was only yesterday. This has been going on longer than that."

"I can't answer that for you, and I can't connivence you that you're worthy of being healed. Only you can do that. I have no power over you." Tsunade's hand reached for the jug, but stopped before her fingers could touch it's exterior. "But I'm sorry. It's not fair, and you don't deserve it. Your pain is real enough, and I'm sorry I added to it."

When Sakura looked up, enough time had passed for Tsunade to leave the room without a trace of her visit. The room echoed with silence, but Sakura felt a presence behind her back. Knowing who was still sleeping and who was still lying down sick, she guessed that the only one who could make her hair stand up on the back of her neck was the man called Sickle.

Sakura stood up on her own without looking back and turned towards her room, heading there with her legs like weights in the water. She padded across the floor and slid back the rice door to the room she had been sleeping in. Kisame was still propped up against the wall with his oversized sword leaning against him. She could see the discoloration and surface his body took from the fight. There were cuts and bruises littering his skin.

Sighing, she kneeled down beside him and played with the chakra in her bones before channeling it out into her hands. The glowed green with a warm light and she pressed that warm light into his wounds. Instantly, his skin reacted and began to knit it's self back together. Sakura moved her hands and more and more of his body began to heal. The areas of flesh she hovered over showed up clean and clear of damage. Even the discoloration from his bruises seemed to fade.

Kisame grunted in his sleep before shifting and cracking open a single eye part way. He sighed again and the gills on his neck expanded with the release of breath. She moved her hand over more of his damage body, but he didn't move or acknowledge her presence. He sounded like he fell back asleep, as the snores returned.

A shadow stretched across the bamboo wood floor to settle beside Sakura. She didn't turn around to face Sickle when he spoke. "You're still exhausted. You should save your energy for yourself."

"Why, because I can't do this for myself?" she asked, her tone dry.

Sickle's voice was calm like velvet in her ears when he spoke to her. "I did not mean to overhear, but that makes no difference. Chakra exhaustion can be deadly when one does not know their own limits. Please rest."

"He deserves to be fixed."

"So do you."

Sakura lowered her hands and let the chakra she had been holding onto snap back into the recesses of whatever depth it came from. She could feel less of it in her body, even though the fight had been so long ago. She had assumed her stores of chakra would have returned to normal, even with what little healing she did on Kisame.

"Why are you watching me?" Sakura sighed. Her hands felt numb, and she wondered if it was because of the chakra or because of the trauma. For a long while she just sat there, feeling the heat from the sun rising up her back as it climbed the sky.

"To see if you are well," he finally answered.

"Obviously I'm not, but there's nothing you can do about that, so it's not worth your time, I would think. Go back to Tsunade. She's the one you should be watching."

There was a shift in the shadow beside her, but Sakura never heard him move. His shadow had grown and when he spoke his voice was closer than before, just like his presence. He had never said so much to her before, or stayed at her side for so long. He was a shadow in the shade, just like Hound.

The was the sound of something hard like a bowl scraping across the floor and Sakura looked over to see the white and red painted mask of the Sickle Wheasle face up on the floor beside her. She didn't move, even though if she turned around she would be able to see his face. When he spoke again his voice was cleaner, unmuffled, and possessing an element of familiarity.

"With the death of the six tailed slug, my obligations to the lady Tsuande are fulfilled. I am no longer in her service." His voice was clear and a ghost to her memories. Sakura had to squeeze her eyes.

"You're name," she whispered, her eyes still shut tight. "You have a true name now, don't you?"

"I do," he answered.

When Sakura looked up he spoke it.

"Uchiha Itachi."

The first thought that fired across the receptors in her brain, oddly enough, was that this was just one more pile of shit she didn't need to deal with. It was one crazy reveal after another. As if killing someone for the first time wasn't enough, now she has to deal with the fact that Itachi Uchiha was sitting behind her in the Kingdom of Beasts when he should have been stuck in the Kingdom of Man. How was he here now, and did he remember anything of their time spent together as greasers?

Stiffly, Sakura turned her head to the side to glance over her shoulder and see the outline of his face. She narrowed her eyes and the lines of his face came into focus, erasing any doubt that she might be dealing with an impostor. The same handsome features that made him a gem among men still made up his face.

"Do you know me?" Sakura whispered, remembering him and Shisui in the dance hall when she fought Orochimaru. "Do you… remember me?"

Itachi closed his eyes before answering, not daring to look at her when he spoke to her. "I've known you since Tsunade san took you in, but that is too short a time for memories. I like to think I know you well by now. I've watched over you enough for that."

"So, you don't remember seeing me or meeting me before Tsunade and I met?" Sakura asked again, seeking clarification.

"No." His tone seemed sorry, like there was something he should have been apologizing for.

A knot formed in her throat and she struggled to swallow it down as the memories came back.

"Don't judge us too harshly." Itachi intoned, meeting her eyes without shame. "We did what we thought was best for our family. Our clan comes first. The Morning Rovers were not a threat without Nageto."

"Take your excuses and suck 'em, Itachi," Sakura breathed. "I don't give a damn. You betrayed us. You turned your back on all of us and spat on our friendship. We trusted you." She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to fight back the pain that was growing as her adrenaline wore off. "I don't want to ever see you again. I don't care if you come begging back to Pein, don't ever show your face in front of me." She paused to take another breath, because they were getting harder and heavier.

"Sakura?" Itachi's voice went from apologetic to concerned. She felt his shadow move before she saw the shift on the floor of an outline of his arm reaching for her back. His fingers were a ghost over her shoulder and she flinched, jerking harshly to the side to avoid his touch. "Ah…. You're shaking."

Sakura moved away, crawling onto her knees and scooting away from his shadow so that he couldn't touch her again. His hand made another reach for her, but this time there was a heavy thud as Kisame's broadsword game down between Itachi's hand and Sakura's crumpled frame.

"Oi," Kisame's voice was a scarred tone of gravel and grit. Low and menacing, he peered up from under the hood of his brows at Itachi. "What do you think you're doing here?"

Sakura felt a weight and then a tug as Kisame pulled her closer with his free hand, not once letting his gaze waver or take his eyes off of where Itachi knelt. "He try something funny?" Kisame asked in a whisper to her.

"No, he just made me stop healing you."

"She needs rest," Itachi's tone was adamant. "She is not well and will exhaust herself further if she continues to push herself without any regard to her own limits."

Kisame's grunt of agreement sounded sore, but it was enough for Sakura to look up in surprise at the blue man.

"Kisame?"

"Fine, she'll take her time to rest, but that's no concern of yours. We did what we came to do. Tsunade's had her month with Sakura and the six tailed slug is dead. You have no other business with us, so you should leave, Sickle."

Itachi reached for his mask quickly, putting it back over his face and hiding his features from Kisame, even though it was too late to truly hide anything. "I am no longer a retainer of the slug princess." Itachi's voice was muffled again. "You need not think of me in such a way. I am my own."

"Ronin are just as dangerous. Leave us be. Sakura and I are heading back to Mist today. It's been long enough since we've been away." When Kisame shifted his sword scraped across the floor and made a distracting sound that reminded the other male in the room of it's deadly existence. "You should go now."

Itachi's masked face turned towards Sakura's but then dipped as if in apology. He backed out of the room and slid the door shut behind him.

"Kid," Kisame grunted, deflating a bit from the pain he hid well. "What are you doing up? You're as white as the moon and cold as the dead. You're not better so fix yourself before you look at me. Kami knows I've faced worse."

"I can't," Sakura whispered. When Kisame made a face Sakura went on to describe the conversation she and Tsunade had earlier about her healing abilities. He asked a few questions, about why, about her past, but Sakura didn't have answers for him.

"Fine," Kisame finally sighed, shifting his sword to the side. "I don't care. You'll stay with me and you won't have to worry about something like that. I told you I was looking out for you and I meant it. Get up, we're telling the old bag goodbye."

"You're still sore," Sakura protested, watching as the blue man rose with the help of his sword, using it to pull himself up like a cane. "And hurt…"

"It's bruises, nothing worse worrying about. I've lived through worse." To illustrate, Kisame pulled back the folds of his yukata and showed off the pale white blue scars that made a pair of spirals on his pectorals. When Sakura winced he chuckled, enjoying the face she made. "Don't look so surprised, kid. You have your own set, don't you?"

Sakura felt her cheeks go red. "How did you know that!"

"I didn't," he laughed. "But now I do. What was it, what were they aiming for?"

Sakura folded her arms across her chest, standing up to follow him out. "As if I would tell you."

Kisame pulled back the screen and saw Tsunade sitting down in front of a low table piled with food. Across from her sat Itachi. He was still wearing his mask, but it was obvious he looked up when the pair walked out of the room. Tsunade didn't look up, but it was obvious she was addressing them when she spoke.

"I have some information you might find useful if you're still thinking about killing more than just that three tailed monster crab you have to deal with." She took a bit and chewed before continuing. "There is a group rising up calling themselves the Akatsuki that have hunted down the five tailed Kokuō horse. I don't know if they've managed to kill it, but they are warriors dedicated to the eradication of the tailed beasts. While you were sleeping we received a formal invitation. Interested?"

"That's information for another time," Sakura answered, feeling suddenly awkward standing before the older woman with the words of departure stale in her mouth. "Today there are more pressing matters awaiting me in Mizu."

"The virgin killer?" Tsunade laughed. "Yeah, I guess so. You shouldn't have too much trouble with it if you were able to face the six tailed. Just don't drown."

The blond woman tossed something into the air in front of Sakura's face and she reacted quickly enough to catch the small glass vile filled with white fluid. "What's this?"

"Acid from the slug. Think of it as a thank you gift from Utakata. He would have been grateful, much as you would hate to think it, that you killed him and ended his slavery to the slug. Beat yourself up over it if you want, but you don't deserve it."

Sakura swallowed and clutched the vile in her fist. "We'll be going then."

"Get out of here then. Don't stand around talking about leaving, just do it!"

Sakura hesitated, but a breath later she turned on her heel and exited the room. She heard Itachi stand but didn't turn around to see it for herself. Kisame was at her side, pulling back the screens for her to walk through like a gentleman. They were outside on the street before she paused again. He didn't press her to move on, but slouched against the building's side, watching her.

"You're crying again."

Sakura reached up to feel her face for tears, but her fingers came back dry. "No I'm not. What are you talking about?"

"Not with your eyes, kid," he sighed, tugging his hat down and turning down the street. "Mizu is this way…not far."

Sakura followed, but paused when she saw some of the people around them pausing to point and stare at something from behind them. Against her better judgement she glanced back and saw Itachi in the dirt, prostrating himself with his face to the earth, bowed as deeply as he could manage in her direction. She almost missed a step.

'Did you really not remember?' she thought about asking when she felt the tears from Sasori's death in her eyes again.

Itachi looked up, still wearing his mask, and Sakura turned sharply back to catch up with Kisame.

They didn't reach the house until the next day early in the morning, and Haku was the first to see them coming. The boy cried and ran to embrace the both of them, staying stuck to Sakura after Kisame threw him off. Zabuza came out to investigate and behind him was the boy Mangetsu. Kisame talked with both of them as Sakura and Haku took their time rejoining the main company.

Haku was an emotionally compromised boy with a throat full of apologies for her, asking her to forgive how rude and standoffish he had been to him when they left her behind with Tsunade. She told him there was nothing to forgive, but he didn't seem to believe her.

They talked the rest of the day about the six tailed slug, the fights, the training, the earth shattering chakra techniques, and the old woman's horrendous drinking habits. Sakura wanted to bad mouth the slug princess, but there was an unexpected warmth in her heart when she thought of Tsunade now. As harsh as she was, Sakura felt connected to the woman, some way, almost like she was taking a part of her with her.

"Why did they wear masks all the time?" Haku asked Sakura, stirring her from her thoughts.

Kisame reached over the low table for their own homemade sushi rolls made up of messy rice and sea flavored fish shreds. "That's to keep their identity a secret for when they change owners. Nin for hire are just as dangerous as ronin. They do whatever they are told for whoever owns them until they are released from bondage. Then they need new masters and when that happens, the new master can't know that their potential employe was once an enemy. Tricky, neh?"

Sakura didn't have an appetite and she didn't feel like faking it, so she avoided the food. "I don't think Tsunade was going to let go of Hound or whatever his name was. Just It-just Sickle."

"You saw his face, though. Why he do that? Did he want you to buy his services?" Kisame asked in a sullen tone. "Or did he just want to show off his pretty face?"

Sakura faked a teasing smile. "You thought his face was pretty? I hadn't noticed."

Kisame sputtered and Haku laughed while Mangetsu and Zabuza looked on with hidden smiles. The blue man roared about how they were wrong and that he was just a bit more sensitive about vain men getting away with stuff because other people thought they looked a little nicer, that's all.

That's all that Sakura remembered before she woke up in the real world.

The shops were franticly pushing a holiday spirit through every register wreathed in garland and every sales associate dressed up as an elf. Sakura didn't mind it, but she remembered being more into the holiday mood last year by this time.

When she readjusted the ear pieces on her ear buds, the music came back in loud and clear. The sad strings of a violin quartet tempted her heart to cheer in the pop-ish melody, but she couldn't find the drive for it.

'When I go back to sleep tonight, we're going to talk about killing my second beast. With one already gone before the kingdom began and another potentially x'ed off the list, that means there are only six left of the original nine.'

Sakura tucked her feet in as a passenger on the train stood up to leave, climbing over her.

'I know what Sai said, but I think I can keep this pace up and be out of there before too many months pass. I won't be in that kingdom more than a year. It won't take me that long.I won't be stuck in there so long.'

Sakura drew her sword with her wrist, snapping it to attention like an added joint and leveling it with ease. Haku circled her, knees bent, form improved. While she had been away he hadn't been wasting his time, it seemed. He struck first, but she countered, and soon they were twirling around one another, blades singing and grating with each passing and every meeting.

She exhaled and threw her body into the movement and he took advantage of it to strike at her back. She was just barely fast enough to avoid the blunt but of his sword knocking into her ribs. She countered and he caught her sword with his own. Push and pull, they were two equal forces struggling against each other, but Sakura had something Haku didn't. Before too long, Haku's endurance began to waver and Sakura snapped down on it like gravity, crushing him under her superior strength. Haku fell backwards and Sakura closed the distance to straddle him with her sword at his throat. Both were breathing heavy when clapping interrupted their stand off.

When Sakura looked up she saw Zabuza. "Good, but that was without chakra. I hope you aren't thinking of holding back when we face the three tails."

"It was something we agreed upon before the match began," Sakura said, stepping back and offering Haku a hand to help him up. "And it was mainly because I didn't want to fight against his Ice attacks. Maybe I'm fast, but I have no real defense in that sort of situation."

"And I didn't want to be obliterated," Haku chuckled, eyeing a distant crater in the earth from a past spar.

Sakura smiled sheepishly before turning to look back at Zabuza. "Have you and Kisame decided on a good day to temp fate with our monster?"

Zabuza shook his head. "We're still working on training Mangetsu, and neither of us are comfortable with our current level to provoke the beast."

"We're running out of time, though," Sakura said.

"Maybe, but I don't want to overplay our hand. I'm in no hurry to die." He rubbed the back of his neck and glanced sideways at Haku who was still breathing heavily.

The budding anger fed by frustration and impatience dulled when she caught the meaningful look between master and apprentice. For some, there were fates worse than death. Having to survive a child or student wasn't an experience Sakura envied.

With a sigh and some half baked excuse for time alone, Sakura walked over to her towel and water bottle to wipe her face dry. She didn't need water, but her throat felt dry and drinking helped ease the roughness that was more annoying than painful.

She found Kisame watching Mangetsu train from a dark stretch of shade where the color of his skin was nearly indistinguishable. He eyed her and huffed in acknowledgment of her presence, but didn't get up or say anything.

"Have you heard anything more about that rouge ronin group that was hunting down the tailed beasts?" she asked, kneeling down beside him.

"Just rumors. It was confirmed, at least, that someone has hunted down the five tailed Kokuō horse and killed it. I don't know if it was them, but at least they're not taking credit for the slug we buried." His expression took on an edge of bitterness. "Though, it's not much better having the slug princess get virtually all the credit for it."

Sakura waved the comment off, pretending it didn't bother her. "I don't care about that. Let the people talk. I just wanted to know more about these Akatsuki people. Where did they come from, who are they, what do they want?"

Kisame was watching her when he added on to her list of concerns. "Are they trustworthy, are they people you can work with?"

Sakura shrugged. "I never made my intentions anything but clear. The tailed beasts need to be killed, and that is what I seek to do. If there are people who can help with that, all the better."

"Oh…Is that what we were to you, just people to help you kill a tailed beast?"

Sakura didn't flinch. "Yes…at first that's what you were. When Zabuza tried to kill me that's what I thought you were. But I'd like to believe that we've at least grown into something more than I think of you guys I think of you as friends, not means to an end."

"But you'll still leave when this is over."

She almost chuckled. "I'm not supposed to enjoy my life. I told you I was cursed, didn't I?"

"I don't believe you."

"Believe it."

Kisame's lips were thin, having been pulled tight with a grim expression. "I believe life is what you make of it. If you think you're a cursed child, you are a cursed child. If you believe you are free, you are free. And likewise, if you believe you are strong and fearsome, that is what you are."

"What are you, Kisame?" Sakura paused before continuing. "What do you believe you are?"

The words hung between them, neither bothering to look away from the boy training and look at each other. It was a moment more before Kisame answered. "I'm tired."

For a while the pair sat in silence, content to watch as the younger swordsman trained his form to perfection. It was a nice cool day that smelled like the ocean even among the forest trees. Later there would be mist.

Before Mangetsu could complete his forms, Sakura stood and brushed the dirt and grass off her knees, making to go back. Kisame watched her out of the corner of his eye, making Sakura pause.

Tilting her head to one side like a bird's she grinned. "You should sit outside of the shade sometimes. I like it when I get to see your face."

He didn't say anything, and Sakura didn't wait for him to before walking off on her own.

On the way back Sakura detoured and took a path closer to the water where there was still some mist. It was cold in the mist, like it was always cold. There didn't seem to be much of a season change in the dream world even though in the waking world there were already snow flurries and nights that dipped below freezing. Seasons seemed to be regional in the Kingdom of Beasts.

Sakura stopped suddenly, feeling something tug on the hairs of her spine, sending tingles all through her body. She turn, drawing her sword like it was an extension of her body. By now it was second nature, she didn't even have to think about it.

A figure emerged, barely distinguishable in the mist. Sakura could see that he was wearing traditional style clothes with long loose sleeves and a semi open front that left the upper part of his chest exposed for attack. His own sword was drawn, and when he stepped closer Sakura saw it was bone white…no, a sword made of bone.

Her gasp caught in her throat as her eyes snapped up to search his face and find it familiar. "Kimimaro?"

Another step and there was no doubt as the mist swirled around him.

"It is you!" Sakura gasped, reaching forward to pull him into a hug, forgetting about their swords. "You're finally here. Did you hear me calling for you?"

"You…called for…me?" he asked, his voice sounding distant and thin. He didn't hug her back.

Sakura let go and pulled away to see his face and found it paler than usual and somewhat sunken. His eyes were painted with red around the corners, but there was another layer of natural redness around his eyes. "Kimimaro, are you well? You look sick."

"I was very sick when I died….I remember that now. When I was sacrificed to this curse, I was a burden upon my family." He reached for his chest and hand grasped the skin over his lungs. "Breathing…I couldn't breath. There was…water in my lungs when I died. I am sick here."

"Is there anything I can do?" Sakura asked, her hands already glowing green and reaching for his lungs in an effort to remove the liquid in his lungs.

"No," he pushed her hands away. "This is how I am cursed to be. This is how I was. This is how I….am."

Sakura felt her own lungs hurt at the sound of his voice. "I'm so sorry. I wish I could save you from that."

The pale boy with heavy lungs wouldn't meet her eyes. HIs shoulders hung heavy on his body. "You shouldn't waste such wishes on my sake. You have made many mistakes." He looked up and in his eyes Sakura saw conflict. "I did something for you that I should not have, but it is a parting gift. The men who are of the Akatsuki are your allies. They have been assembled before their time in order to aid you in your quest. Seek them out once you are free. I can do no more for you."

"What are you talking about? You sound like you're about to die, but you can't if your like Sai, this is your world, this is your kingdom, you're not…like the actors. Why are you talking to me like this? This is the first I've seen of you and you're talking like you're going to never see me again."

His eyes were heavy as he watched her. "That is what Orochimaru sama wishes of me."

Sakura felt her heart kick inside of her chest and almost choked. Snake Eyes, Kimimaro was talking about Snake Eyes. Why was he talking about that dream killer? Why was he speaking of that murderer?

"What?" Sakura's voice came out weak and brittle. "What did you just say?"

"I must follow my original purpose. Your kindness, while appreciated, was ill placed. Never before has a dreamer treated me with…no, anyone treated me with such concern. I'm truly grateful to you for that."

"Kimimaro," her voice hurt. "Don't do this."

He shook his head, his mind made up. "Thank you, but the next time we meet, I will kill you. The almighty serpent see this and deems it so."

"Kim-jus, no. No, please don't-"

He reached out and cupped the side of her face, and ice crystals formed where his flesh met hers. An almost smile was on his lips as he watched her. Being so close, she noticed the color of his eyes for the first time. Though rimmed in red, his eyes were like shards of foamy green sea glass. Green like hers, but much more brilliantly so.

"I'm sorry."

She felt herself shaking. He leaned in and kissed her once before he was a wind of ice on her lips and moving through her hair.

It seemed like forever until Sai found her, still stuck in the mist with her sword drawn and her lips frostbitten. He made a face and the tips of his fingers glowed like there was fire trapped beneath them. He rubbed his golden red thumb over her lips until they were flush pink again, and then massaged his fingers against the side of her face that was starkly white and showing off veins.

"He said he was going to kill me."

Sai paused, but then continued massaging her face, moving on to her ear. "I'm not surprised. He was one of the snake's most loyal. What was honestly so surprising was how long he followed you around without killing you. He wasn't like me. He needed Orochimaru to feel valued. You couldn't change that in him."

"But he said he would follow me here, and he did something for me. He cared, he didn't want to kill me. Why does he have to?"

"He doesn't, he made a choice, same as I did."

Sakura felt like collapsing and Sai noticed, collecting her into his arms as she hunched up and tried to bury her face. She could feel him patting down her hair. Her insides felt like mush. "What did I do wrong?"

There was a long pause before Sai finally answered, and not once did he pause in the brushing of her loose hair. "You thought he could be saved."

Christmas came and went. Sakura spent it with Karin and her family, as her own mother refused to celebrate the holiday on religious reasons, or lack of religions reasons. Regardless, one of the biggest holidays of the year began with a sunrise and ended with a sky just as dark as the day before. Nothing seemed to separate it from all the other days in December, November, October, or even September. It could have been her birthday and she wouldn't have noticed.

She only realized this when she was stuck in front of a mirror brushing her teeth before bed. Karin was getting the extra bed ready in her room and somewhere else in the house Karin's parents were putting themselves down for the night.

"That's right, I'm sleeping over," she whispered to herself out loud. She spit into the sink and then looked up at her reflection, checking her lips for excess toothpaste and spit. She couldn't feel it on her lips, but she saw it so she wiped her face with the back of her wrist.

"Did you say something?" Karin asked, poking her head into the bathroom. She frowned at the distracted look in Sakura's eyes. "You okay?"

"I'm talking to myself, when is that ever a good sign?" Sakura asked, spitting again and then rinsing with a handful of cupped water.

"That's nothing new, but you seemed out of it today. Was it really that bad, spending Christmas with us?"

Sakura frowned, putting her toothbrush away and turning the light off. "Why would you think that? You should know me better than that. I'm just a bit….dazed at the moment. I've been thinking about things." Like killing a monster and saving a friend who claims to be beyond salvation.

"You okay?" Karin actually sounded worried, which wasn't like her. Karin was gruff and blunt and dishonest about how much she cared about things. For her to sound so honestly worried meant Sakura wasn't hiding her troubles well enough.

"I just kind of wish mom would have at least called me, today. That's not too much to ask or hope for. I know she doesn't believe in gifts, but…ah, whatever." Sakura shrugged and acted like it didn't matter, because that was the truth. "I don't care. Let's sleep."

"Your mom was making you like this?"

Sakura made a face, hoping her lie was believable. "No, it's…I don't know why I was thinking about it. Forget it. I don't know why I'm tired or spacing out. Just pretend it's an overactive imagination or something." She sighed, shaking her head and pretending she didn't know what was really bothering her.

She had blood on her hands and one lost friend.

Karin reached over and knocked her forehead hard against Sakura's shoulder. Sakura stumbled a bit, put off balance, but laughed when Karin straightened up. Karin's face was contorted into a pouty scowl that made her look almost cute.

"Don't make me worry, bitch."

"Whore," Sakura hummed.

"Jerk," Karin hissed.

"Slut."

"Shut up and get to bed!" Karin stalked forward then stopped, turned on her heel and lifted a pointed finger. "And be glad that my dad didn't hear you. He already knows I'm a hellcat with the mouth of a sailor, but for some reason he still believes that you're a precious angel who farts butterflies."

"I'm pretty sure he never believed I farted butterflies."

"Just go to sleep already you skunk."

Sakura grinned to herself, tying her hair off to the side in a short braid before following Karin under the heavy comforter that protected the pair of them from the December cold. Even with all the blankets and all their fighting, Karin's hand found Sakura's and pulled the older girl closer. Over the covers Karin glared ver at Sakura, daring her to complain before tugging Sakura even closer and cuddling up to her for warmth.

Typical Karin.

Sakura closed her eyes. This time, sleep came slowly and not as harshly as before.

There was arguing downstairs. Sakura opened her eyes and saw the room was dark and the sun was still sunk beneath the horizon. It was early morning and there were voices harsh and angry coming from the downstairs. She held her breath and then crept to the door, sliding it back a crack so that she could peer out.

There was Zabuza and another man Sakura didn't recognize in the doorway. A villager!

Sakura reached for the green energy flowing through her body like river water and redirected it to her ears the way Tsunade had showed her to. All at once the world came into harsh clarity and all the sounds intensified. Even with the door closed, Sakura could hear them perfectly.

"You don't think I have anything to loose?" Zabuza asked, his voice low and harsh.

"You don't know the threat of loss like the rest of us otherwise you wouldn't be acting this way. We're terrified and everyone is doing whatever they can to help except this household."

"We make our own preparations. And tossing flowers on the open water isn't much of a precaution, if you ask me. Pretty things won't make a monster pause."

"They're to let him know his bride is on her way…to wait. Already the waves have begun to churn and rise. Fishing is nearly impossible in those waters. We are loosing our livelihoods. What more can we do when you are the ones harboring the only possible sacrifice?!"

Sakura felt as well as heard Zabuza slam a closed fist against the door frame. When he spoke again his voice was as low as a demon's. "Watch your words, scum."

The villager was startled, but in time he recovered enough to meekly reply in a voice much diminished. "We can see her, and hear a woman's voice, even if you choose to hide her. Does she know what her selfishness will cost her. All our lives will be lost at this rate."

"You're a worm and a coward to be talking to me like this, to be suggesting a young girl is selfish for wanting to live. You're a man, aren't you? When did you ever stand up to fight? Where is your wife? Why isn't she a sacrifice?"

"Don't speak of my wife like-ack kuk kuk!"

Sakura held her breath, knowing that Zabuza had done something to keep the man from saying anything more. Maybe Zabuza caught him by the throat. That sounds like something he would do.

"Don't you dare come back here. If I see your face, or hear that you tried to approach her, the virgin killer is the last of your worries, old man."

Then there was loud sound, like a body hitting the ground, and then a scuffle. Sakura could picture it all in her mind, how Zabuza threw the man out and watched as the villager ran away in mild fear. She pulled back away from the door and let her chakra go, returning to its natural flow within her body.

The three tailed crab was starting to stir and the boys knew it. Soon, regardless of how ready they were, it would be time to face it. And this time, the battle would be tremendously different from when she fought the slug. This time, they would be on open water, his domain. The fighting would be that much harder for just one reason.

Sakura looked to her scrimshaw sword in the corner of the room. Would her tiny blade be enough? Her hands were pale and white with not nearly enough scars for her labors. She could level the earth, make the surface of a forest uneven, she could ruin stone, but would that be enough? Would one person ever be enough? Sai had told her she would die if she tried to face this threat alone, but was that just him being overprotective.

Sometimes in the dream world Sakura felt above all things, like this was all truly a game and she was just another action hero that was blessed by some author or creator to make it to the final round no matter how poorly she deserved it. So far her survival rate was 100%. Would that ever end? Was it even in danger?

'Don't tempt it,' a new voice spoke out inside her mind. The reasonable half of her brain kicked her for thinking like a child. If she thought she was invincible she would surly fall asleep and never wake up again. And a death in the dream world was likely worse than a death in general, since she would become an actor like Kisame and Sasori and Kiba all were actors trapped in a scripted cycle for every cursed dreamer.

"I should be training," Sakura said aloud, looking out the window to the silver lines on the horizon where a hidden sun was burning through the mist. Taking up her sword she dressed for the day and left the room.

Kisame found her much later practicing her stances under the dark shade of a tree. He nodded towards the tree shading them from view and she noticed, but didn't interrupt her stances to reply.

"I thought the darkness was mine. What are you doing here, hiding?"

"I heard the man at the door this morning." Her sword fell through the air and stopped abruptly in the completion of a stance that used all the strength in her arms to control. Her heartbeat kept the rhythm for her.

"Oh."

Her sword fell again, and again, and again, and again. Over and over her body went through the stances till her mind was white and void. Her body took control and followed through with the movements without her having to think about it. Kisame took a seat behind her in the shade where no one could see his blue skin and waited.

Her sword fell again, and again, and again, and again

It was a good while later when Kisame eventually spoke.

"The host inside the three tailed beast Isobu is my former apprentice. His name was Yagura."

Sakura's sword swung through another stance, but she didn't set herself up for another swing. Kisame saw this and took is as his cue to keep talking. "I think….we are as ready as we can be for destroying a beast like the three tailed crab, but Zabuza is concerned about the mental toll it will take on all of us. Haku and Yagura were friends once."

"Why are you even doing this then?" Sakura asked, remembering her freak out when she killed the boy inside Saiken, the six tailed slug. She hadn't killed a monster or a beast, she had killed a boy who wanted to go home. A boy with a name. She had killed Utakata. How much harder would it have to be for Kisame to kill someone he knew and mentored and cared for?

"Because it is our responsibility. Yagura was never an…ill seeking child, the kind I would watch out for when considering an apprentice, but he was impatient and did not like to acknowledge his limits. These were traits I thought we could fix with training and discipline."

Sakura lowered her sword, recognizing the story for what it was; a lesson. She turned and knelt down in front of Kisame, intent to learn from it. His face was tired and aged looking as he spoke, having to fight a small battle for every sentence.

"Ah…but they led to his undoing. These beasts…can not stay in our world long without a host. They can visit and terrorize, but they can not remain least they use up the chakra and die, that is why they need hosts. In the past there were stories of warriors strong enough to conquer these beasts and harness their chakra for their own. Whole clans with red pinwheel eyes who could bend monsters to their will."

"Is that what Yagura did? Did he try to harness the three tailed crab?"

"Yes, and for maybe a month he was its master, but he was a child and his dedication was not so well refined. It was only a mater of time before the crab consumed him and began to terrorize the land. We should have killed Yagura then when we had the chance. We didn't and dozens of women are dead for it…you might be one of them, too."

"I won't die from this." Sakura thought of the Elephant Wolf and her knife fight with Orochimaru. Even her battle with the six tailed slug was a trail she had overcome. "You'll be there with me, right?"

"Obviously," he huffed gruffly, sounding like a stiff old man. "As if I would let a younger woman face my monsters without me. Don't count me out yet."

"I wasn't planning on it." Sakura shrugged. "I just…it would be nicer if you were by my side, cause I don't want to die either."

Kisame looked over at her for a long while, watching her. It would have been uncomfortable if Sakura didn't feel as close to Kisame as she did and trusted him as much as she did. Something about fighting alongside of him, training under him, sharing secrets with him…there was a bond there for better or worse and she didn't see it as romantic, but still very close.

Eventually he broke the gaze, closing his eyes and sighing. "Naturally," he grumbled. "Don't worry about that. I'm not leaving you and you're not going to die." There was conviction there too, even though his tone was light. Kisame meant what he said.

Sakura grinned and nodded. "It's a promise."

The next night when Sakura laid down to dream she woke up well before the sun once again. Instead of wasting time in thought she went out with her sword to practice her stances. Under the branches and before the sun, there was no real shadow when everything was equally dark, but it was still a place she wanted to train, knowing that it was out of the way. In this place she wouldn't disturb anyone.

There was a noise behind her and she didn't bother to turn around or move, thinking it was Kisame. Her sword fell and then a breeze made her heart seize. 'Not Kisame,' her body told her.

She whirled on a swing and the end of her blade was under the chin of a child with wide eyes and watery tears cutting trails through the grime on his face. Under the blade he began to cry again. Sakura cursed, putting her sword away and moving over to comfort the boy. The boy only cried more as she moved to pat his head and whisper sweet words.

"Don't wanna!" he made out through his tears.

"Shh, shh, you're fine, it's okay. You don't have to do anything you don't want to. I'm sorry, there's nothing to be afraid of anymore. You're safe."

Still crying the boy reached into his shift and then pulled out a piece of paper, waving it out in front of him as if it were there to protect him. Sakura saw writing on it and a part of her mind began to race. She recognized it from somewhere, Itachi had those things…they were…

The paper exploded in a cloud and Sakura's throat seized up. Her body went numb and poppies began to bloom behind her eyes as she fell unconscious to the paper bomb.

She could feel hands reaching for her, dragging her, pulling her away. She could feel her body being stripped as heavier robes were layered over her shoulders. She heard metal too, not armor, but jewelry. They were dressing her with flowers and jewels …like for a wedding.

Not a wedding, a sacrifice.

With no armor and no sword she fought against the drugs and tried to move, tried to speak, tried to open her eyes and see. Her ears could hear at least when they complained.

'She's moving, she's waking up.'

'More of the drug, in her neck, there!'

She felt it when the cold metal tore a hole in her neck and rushed in drugs that made her sleep harder and farther away from the world.

'They can't do this to me. Zabuza warned them, Kisame promised me! They took my sword, they knocked me out. I can't fight like this, this isn't how it's supposed to go!" Inside her mind she was screaming.

Her blood was boiling and the chakra was a torrent in her body, rushing with anger all throughout her system. She could feel the drug in her veins, see the leaves of the root they drew it from. She attacked it with her own chakra and tried to eat at it the way she ate at everything before. She could feel it giving way, breaking down and dying against her antibodies. Nothing so far could keep her down and so surly not this. Her end would not be here.

'Are you done yet, women? Her face will be of no use in an hour's time.'

'Almost. Don't rush it. To appease a kami is not easy work, boy.'

'She's almost done, prepare the boat.'

'The boat is ready, just bring her out.'

'I think she's starting to wake up. Get me another needle.'

'Don't bother with it. It is no matter, the drug will keep her from moving for another hour more. That's all he needs.'

'She's ready, take her!'

Sakura felt herself being lifted and fought the urge to thrash and free herself, to make for her sword and run. She needed to fight the battle in her blood and free her body before she went face to face with the monster under the waves. 'Yagura.'

She was set into a boat, laid down like a corpse as old woman weaved flowers into her hair and filled up the boat with floral blossoms. She could smell it strongly and knew anything else out there on the waves would be able to smell it too. It was probably more so for that fact they adorned her with flowers and less so because it was something to make a bride more appealing on her wedding day.

'Today you wed death,' an old woman said with a voice more brittle than paper.

Sakura set herself on fire, feeding her chakra to the poison in her blood with greater haste. A slow burn nibbled away at the poison, but a blaze of fire tore at it in huge mouthfuls. She was wasting a lot of the chakra she needed in order to fight, but it was unavoidable. If she didn't she would be dead anyway.

'Sai! Come find me if you can!' she mentally called. She almost called for Kimimaro, but caught herself, knowing that he likely wouldn't show up to help her even if he was summoned.

Tears spilled out over her lower lashes, and she could feel the color cream they used to paint her face with. Her boat was drifting closer and closer and all she could do was barely lift her lids to cry. Her fingers and toes twitched a little, then her wrist. She could feel her wrist and ankles coming back to her and suddenly she had control of her head and neck. She looked up at saw an early sky, still faintly colored with silver and gold through the mist. She was far from the shore, and drifting closer to where the monster slumbered beneath the waves.

Another minute later and she could move her arms, followed by her chest and torso. She had almost enough strength to sit up when she felt the first rocking waves. She was close to the crab.

"Damn it," she cursed, still crying as she pulled herself up. She could do that much but her legs were still beyond her control. She was crippled in a rowboat. "Sai, Kisame, someone…Damn it, I'm not supposed to be doing this alone."

Another rolling wave and she felt a zing of control, but still no legs. Sakura closed her eyes and felt for her chakra, finding her levels lower than she liked. She had near perfect control, but all this frantic burning was causing her to waste a lot of it. She had to calm down and take more control over the situation. She needed her legs and she needed a sword.

Holding out her hand she felt a ripple as she tried to imagine a sword not unlike the one she trained with. Her chakra kicked and there was pain behind her eyes. She couldn't summon anything. Not now. It was just like when she panicked in the middle of a fight and couldn't do anything.

"Don't panic," she told her body before trying again. The kickback was less painful, but once again there was no sword and she still couldn't move her legs. "Don't panic, don't panic, don't panic."

The surface of the water rolled and then with a rush and a roar it broke and out from beneath the waves rose the massive body of the blue gray three tailed crab.

'Fuck.'

It's mouth was long and crowded with razor teeth that didn't fit perfectly. Sakura saw that mouth part, open and smelled the stench of decay he feasted on. Right in front of it, the last thing on her mind was how little it actually resembled a crab. It fell towards her, groaning, teetering, looming, a shadow of gray as long as a mountain with teeth as long as her whole body.

"Yagura!"

Her boat was a mess of splinters on the water's surface and she felt herself sinking, weighed down by the heavy cotton of her dress. Oh, it was very pretty for a wedding kimino. It searched the water for her and then saw her sinking before chasing her, below the surface, into his domain.

Something her body remembered was how to turn and twist with a mermaid's tail for an audience last summer with other actresses at a hotel resort. He reached for her with splintering claws thick and rough, but she weaved out of his reach, shedding a layer of silk and another of cotton. Her legs were still useless, but she remembered what a tail felt like.

More and more jewelry fell from her body like scales shed until she could float upwards without having to swim like mad. He was big, but that wasn't so great a thing when he was looking for something as small as his tooth. She was able to slip in and around him, heading up behind his head towards the surface.

Before she could even break free, there was a hand there, reaching for her. She took it and was heaved up onto the back of Zabuza as Haku slid past them, freezing the water surface for their battle. Mangetsu was running in step with Kisame before both cam down with their oversized swords to sever clean through the water.

"Took you long enough," Sakura coughed, still feeling her legs hang limp. She was also cold now too because of all the layers she had to shed.

"Sorry," Haku gasped, his cheeks and eyes both red. "We won't let you down now."

"Obviously," Sakura laughed, feeling her lids lower as Zabuza set her down on the ice. She shivered but still couldn't feel her legs. "I can't stand."

Zabuza growled reaching for her neck and running a thumb over the hole from their needle. He must have known what it meant. "Watch her," he barked to Haku. "You're back up. Projectiles to the eyes and sensitive areas only. Don't draw it's attention."

"Got it!" Haku placed his hands down on the ice and glaciers rose up for cover and spikes for shooting off.

Nodding Zabuza heaved his cleaver shaped sword onto his shoulder and took off to follow Kisame and Mangetsu.

Sakura was like. This fight wasn't anything like the one with the six tailed slug. There seemed to be no openings and the three males had trouble staying upright and finding footing from where to launch their own attacks. It was hard to watch, and Sakura's heart ached every time it looked like one of them wouldn't make it. The three of them weren't enough.

"Haku." He looked down at her when called. "Help me stand. I can feel my legs again."

"You shouldn't! It's too soon and if you rush it the drug could be fatal-"

"I've filtered most of it out of my body. It's not even there anymore. Help me stand!"

Haku hesitated, but then reached for her. "What are you going to do?"

She felt like a newborn fowl on the ice with her legs being mostly made of jelly. "I have enough chakra for one good hit. It will be enough to break through the shell. You need to let the others know that will be their chance. With the shell destroyed Yagura will be exposed. That's your only shot at ending this. Can they do it?"

'Can they kill their friend?'

"That's what we're here for," Haku answered, his voice harder and stronger than Sakura ever heard. Haku seemed much older all of a sudden.

"Get it's attention and some thing I can launch off of."

The ice underneath Sakura began to grow and she lurched before recovering and crouching. Haku would shoot her up into air and then it would be up to her to recover in time and strike the shattering blow.

Haku watched her get into position before an aresonal of projectiles rose up out of the ice. There was a hardness there in his eyes before he set off the first volley with a defiant war cry. They hit hard enough to grab the crab's attention as well as Zabuza's. The entire fighting party turned towards Haku who was shooting off volley after volley of ice spikes that were sometimes as long as Sakura's torso. It was taking a lot out of Haku's chakra stores, she could tell. Zabuza looked angry, and Kisame seemed just as frustrated, but both shared teh same look of panic when the crab turned and started lumbering towards Haku and Sakura.

"You had better get clear," Sakura warned.

"Don't worry about me. You're up next."

Sakura braced and before Zabuza or Kisame could swear at either of them she was in the air, shot up like a rocket she climbed fast before the crab was a fist sized creature below her. She felt her body peak, and then gravity, greedy and cruel, began to pull her back. She turned, twisting over herself, drawing everything she had left in her body into her fist. She tumbled over herself, gathering speed. She could feel the ends of her body shudder with the loss of life as she pulled at all of the chakra left within her. She would be exhausted after this, if she was able to wake up at all.

The crab was growing bigger and bigger by the second. She was so close and the wind rushing against her was bitter as she tumbled one last time before straightening out. She was a spear in the wind and her fist was the hand of God.

"Shannaro!"

Contact.

Harder than earth, the crusted exterior of the crab's back shattered, splitting out like the arms of a spider web that stretched. Like thunder the break roared out audibly across the waters before the broken puzzle like pieces began to slide away and fall into the water.

Her vision flickered in an out of focus, beating like a heartbeat, clean and then unclear. She wasn't soaring anything, so was falling along with the shell pieces into the water. She couldn't feel anything as she sunk beneath the surface and the waters closed over her. Her vision flickered again and then violently went black.

This time, there were no poppies blooming behind her eyes.

"But you see, there is a graveyard in my mouth filled with words that have died on my lips."
-Emily Palermo, from Untitled

Sakura was surprised when she woke up in the morning, or at least grateful for it. She had felt so utterly emptied after that last fight she wondered if what they told her about chakra depletion being deadly was true. If she was still waking up than maybe not.

She shifted in bed, and the world turned. She made it to the tile in her bathroom but couldn't reach the toilet before her stomach emptied of bile. Her head was burning up and everything seemed to be caught on fire. Her body was a nest of pins and needles and she knew this was the worst fever she would ever have in her life.

When she dreamed at night it was nothing but fog and fir trees. There were fires burning and druids singing. Birds made out of paper who turned into books when they landed under stone arches. It was nothing but fairytales for two whole nights. Sick as a dog, Sakura spent her Christmas break on the couch watching Twilight Zone re runs with Karin in between puking sessions. Ami was still away but she sent a care package of food Sakura couldn't stand to smell least she vomit again.

It wasn't until the third day when the mist in her dreams parted and the wood ceiling came into focus.

She turned her head to the side and saw Kisame leaning up against the wall with his sword leaned up against his shoulder. There was a bowl with a wet cloth right beside her futon bed. When she turned her head the cloth on her own forehead fell down her face. She reached up and felt crust around the corners of her nose and mouth. Scratching, her nails came away red.

'Dried blood, fun.'

"Awake?"

Sakura turned to the opposite side in time to see a shadow move the rice paper door back. Tsunade stood there with a tired expression pulling down the corners of her face. Sakura blinked, having a hard time believing it.

"Tsunade?"

The older woman sighed, and she resembled a deflated balloon. "Took you long enough."

Sakura took in her surroundings again. "I'm still in Mizu. What are you doing here?"

"Bringing your sore ass back from the dead, apparently." She nodded over at Kisame. "That one said he would slice me to ribbons if I didn't do everything humanly possible, but there really wasn't much I could do apart from keep you stable while your body replenished it's own stores of chakra. Nothing too complex about that, but if I didn't have perfect chakra control I might have lost you at some point. Say thank you."

Sakura glanced back at Kisame who had dark bags under his eyes and shallow breaths. He looked like a ghost. Keeping her voice down, Sakura turned back to address the older woman. "That still doesn't answer my question as to why you are here? Weren't you in a game house somewhere?"

"That was the plan, but funny as it seems, I almost got recruited by an interesting bunch." Tsunade held out an offered hand for Sakura to take in her efforts to stand. "Walk with me?"

Sakura took the offered hand and followed Tsunade out, weaving slightly as she had trouble walking straight. Sakura had to pause often to keep the world from spinning, but Tsunade was oddly patient and waited without complaint while Sakura tried her best to follow the older woman out. They passed neither Zabuza or Haku, but Sakura thought she saw Sickle hiding out of sight when she turned her head to the side and looked back over her shoulder.

"So…?" Sakura looked up, expecting an answer.

"An interesting bunch of fellows asked me to join them and help them destroy the remaining tailed beasts, claiming it was their divine mission from the heavens or something like that. They had a snazzy name and everything."

"Akatsuki, they've been busy."

"They took Itachi, and they asked about you and Kisame. I told them to fuck off."

Sakura yawned, pausing to let her lungs fill with air. "I thought you knew what I wanted was to kill all the tailed beasts. Why would you say something like that?"

"Because they were dangerous men and I didn't like the look of them. Also, at least one of them is a known murderer who's killed dozens of people. I don't like the look of that crowd, so I thought it best to warn you."

"Should I? You said Itachi joined their ranks." Sakura watched the older woman for a reaction, waiting to see if there was a flinch or flicker in the face. Tsunade was stone faced.

"I think he only joined because he knew he would have an excuse to see you again. He's…tender hearted, that one. We could see his childish crush budding a mile away, but poor sap that he is, it was obvious he didn't know what to do about it. He didn't ask you to take him on, did he?"

Sakura remembered his bow and the last time she saw him how meek he seemed. He was different from the Itachi she knew as a Morning Rover. "No, I don't think he did. Sorry for the troubles."

"I have nothing better to do with my life now." Tsunade seemed to sigh with her whole body when she let out a breath. "What will you do once you accomplish your goal?"

Sakura thought of the worlds and almost dreaded the idea of another gate as large as the last one. "Find another goal I guess. You?"

"I'm working on gambling my life away. It's been fun, but I think shooting myself out of a cannon would be just as fun sometimes. Hey…." She stopped seeing something wrong with Sakura's face. Tsunade cursed. "You've done too much, this is your limit. As your doctor I insist you rest here before we turn back. It will still be a few days before you're back to your old self."

Sakura nodded numbly, stopping to lean against a tree trunk. They weren't far from the house, they were actually still in the yard, but it felt far to Sakura. She heard chopping close by and wondered if it was Haku or Zabuza.

"The old one wouldn't even come into your room when you were sleeping, but he waited outside your door for nights. Blamed himself for not making the decision to attack earlier on, or letting you get caught. Don't be too harsh on him. He's beat himself up over it enough and on top of that he has to see you go."

"You knew I was leaving."

"Everyone knows. They think it's because they're not good enough company, don't let them believe that."

There was a commotion and Sakura heard loud cursing followed by a thud. Tsunade chuckled. Sakura was having a hard time keeping her breathing even so she closed her eyes and listened as Kisame roared into the empty house before flying out. She heard him yell at Tsunade and then stop short when he caught sight of Sakura. She felt his embrace crush her before she could open her eyes to see him.

"Damn you!" he cursed, holding her tight, but not tight enough to snap her in half like she feared he would. "Don't do that! Don't disappear like that." He let her go and then stood back, composing himself. "Ah, er….um, when did you wake up?"

"An hour ago?" Sakura asked, turning to look at Tsuande for conformation in the form of a head nod. "…But I was planning on going back to bed soon. I'm too tired to walk it seems."

Tsunade waved a hand in a dismissive manner. "You should carry her back up, she's not in the condition to push herself so far so fast. Keep her in bed and make sure she rests."

Not minding it, Sakura raised her arms up and let Kisame pick her off the ground and carry her like a doll back into the house and back into her bed. She didn't see Haku or Zabuza, but heard the chopping wood.

"It's Zabuza. Haku took Mangetsu back. He will return shortly. He was too worried about you to be useful around here."

"It wasn't anyone's fault. It would be stupid to blame yourselves."

"I guess so, neh?"

"I was talking about you too." Sakura narrowed her eyes. "I'll be fine by tomorrow at this rate. Don't think this is the worst thing that's ever happened to me."

He carried her back into her room and laid her down under her covers, replacing the cold compress even when she made a face. He hesitated before moving away though.

"What was the worst?" She blinked, confused. "What's the worst thing that ever happened to you?" he repeated.

Feeling sleepy, Sakura snuggled down into her blankets and told a watered down cliff notes version of her adventures in the Kingdom of Man and the Monarch Woods. Kisame told her of his fall from fame, of his past as a deadly mercenary, of his radical change of character after the massacre of his adopted village, the only one that didn't seem to fear him for his color. He told her of his whore mother and his too short childhood. He told her of how he used to work with Mangetsu training the kid to be a deadly swordsman of the mist before he quit and took on Yagura as a swords smith and apprentice. How Zabuza soon followed him once he found a boy abounded in the snow and decided to name and raise him. He told her many things. He told her of loss, of loneliness, of despair, and she listened.

"What will you do next?"

Sakura was warm under all the covers and it made her eyes heavy even if she didn't want to sleep. "The curse compels me. I will seek out those hunting the tailed beast and do my upmost to rid this world of them."

"Even thought they are killers and dangerous men."

She smiled, reaching out to touch his hand. "Not all dangerous men are bad."

"That doesn't leave me with much of a choice then."

"Hm?" She was drifting.

"You're not leaving without me."

"Mmmmkay." Her eyes were already closed and nothing Kisame said made sense, but it sounded pleasant in her ears.

The next time Sakura dreamt her body was whole. She stood without complication, and when she walked the world didn't sway. She dressed in her simple robes and tied her sword to her side. Looking out the window it was dark and she knew the others were too tired to be up at this hour. Emotionally they were all exhausted.

Would they want to say goodbye? Was that even a good idea?

There was a heavy mist across the grounds so Sakura conjured a second cloak to drape over her shoulders and a straw hat like the one Kisame always wore.

The two closest tailed beasts were the Matatabi: the two tailed cat and the Son Goku: the four tailed monkey. The Son Goku was closer, but Tsunade told her that the Matatabi was being targeted by the Akatsuki next. A two tailed demon cat that led men down to the dead lands where she made her home…it was almost scary enough to discourage Sakura.

"Sakura?"

She turned away from the gate to look back and see Haku. He was still in his sleeping robes and his eyes were blurry with not too distant dreams. "What are you doing up when it's not even dawn?" he yawned while stumbling towards her. When he was close enough to reach out and touch her he did, grabbing the fabric of her new cloak. "Come back inside."

"I'm not coming back," Sakura whispered, closing her eyes as mentally bracing herself.

Haku stilled and looked down at the fabric he clung to as it was his first time seeing it. "You're leaving." Sakura nodded. "You're going away. Why?"

"I have to kill the other beasts and you all knew that before I even started training here. We knew I wasn't going to be a forever thing."

Haku's breathing picked up and his cheeks turned red. "Th-then you can marry me!"

Sakura froze, struck by his words. "What?"

"I-I want you to marry me, Sakura. I was going to ask you later…when it was more romantic and just the two of us, but…I had a speech and…a proposal for your hand." He took a deep breath and the color in his cheeks lessened. "I-I know you haven't had much luck with love in this life so far, and you've been hurt before, but I promise to do everything possible to make you the happiest woman alive. I'll never let you cry and I'll take care of you forever and love you always. P-Please become my wife."

Sakura thought of Kiba and her heart pinched. The way Sasori whispered in her ear and kissed her neck made pieces of her heart seize. Every boy that cared for her had a bit of her heart, but she had never felt like she could ever give it all away. Maybe with Sasori she could have, but she never got the chance, did she?

"Haku I'm sorry." When she looked up the sadness in his eyes was almost enough to silence her, but he laughed.

"No, don't be. I knew this was coming. I would have been surprised if…it was different. It kind of felt like proposing to the wind. No way I could keep you, neh?" He smiled in spite of the water collecting in the corners of his eyes. "Zabuza said I had as much luck, but at least I tried."

Sakura leaned over and kissed the side of Haku's face. "You were very brave."

His pink cheeks turned red. "You'll stay safe."

"Always."

Haku nodded, resigning himself. "Then maybe one day, when your curse is all played out, you can come back and I'll take you skating."

Sakura stroked his cheek with the back of her knuckles, the way her father used to when she was a child. "You're a sweet soul, Haku kun, don't ever change."

With her parting words spoken, Sakura turned and left. The mist swallowed her like a hungry animal and she couldn't help but feel a little cold and devoured.

She was traveling maybe an hour before she thought to call for Sai, the lack of company becoming unbearable. Sai never answered, and she feared it was because he was too weak. She almost called for Kimimaro but stopped herself, because he was now her enemy and she didn't want to cross swords with him.

So lost in her loneliness she almost didn't draw her sword in time to block the buster blade that cut through the mist out of a shadow. She grunted and skid backwards from the shock before swiping the air and pushing back the mist. It cleared in the gust and left Kisame standing there with an angry expression and his sword drawn.

"What-"

"Damn it!" Kisame roared, swinging his sword again and this time Sakura didn't try to block, she just jumped out of the way. "I told you to fucking wait for me! I said I was going with you, did you think I didn't mean it?"

"What, when was that!?" Sakura screamed, feeling nervous. Kisame looked pissed. "Ssh-okay, put the sword away and just talk to me."

"Did you try skipping out on me?" His voice was a yell.

"N-no? I didn't know you actually wanted to come with me, or that you could be serious about something like that."

"Why would you think that?!"

Sakura froze a bit, her sword still out. Why did she try leaving without Kisame? He would have been a huge help she could take advantage of knowing any actor she was around too long was susceptible to suggestion from the dreamer. She could have easily manipulated him into following her. Why didn't she?

"You could get hurt." She finally said something. Kisame relaxed instantly, the hard lines of his body smoothing out. "You could even die." Sakura bit her lip, not knowing if she said the right thing.

"You'll fix me. You can do that now, can't you?"

When she nodded he lowered his sword and crossed the distance between them. Stopping right in front of her he dropped his heavy hand on her head and ruffled her loose hair. "That's enough for me then." He sighed deeply. "I told you I was coming with you, and I always meant it. You're not going anywhere without me from now on."

"…You're not following me into the women's bath."

"You!" Kisame sputtered, his cheeks turning purple in blush. "You think I'm some sort of pervert? Oi!"

Two weeks and six days later.

New Years came and past.

Sakura traced the high curve of her cheekbone with the back of her hand, glancing discreetly over her shoulder for the shadow of her partner. It was late and the forest around them was as dark as it was quiet. Kisame had left to take a moment for himself and Sakura was starting to get worried in his absence. There was something off about their surroundings. They were hunting the Son Goku and they could almost smell the giant ape by this point. Sakura knew they were close because the forest was silent around them. No birds, no bugs, nothing dared stirred.

There was a spike in temperature behind her and Sakura could feel the heat on her back. Stiffly, she glanced behind her once again and saw that this time, instead of empty space, there were large yellow eyes of a wild ape staring at her from in between the trees.

"Mmm shit," she whispered with a forced smile before the fist came down.

She was fast and managed to dodge in time. Turning over herself she recovered and drew her sword. This was it, after days of stalking and sacrifice, she was in front of the beast. This time she was ready. Chakra ran into her blade, extending its reach as she swung. The forest quivered under her power as her strike connected. The four tailed monkey howled in agony, holding up its severed stump of a hand, bleeding a river of blood.

'Just like Kill Bill,' Sakura hummed to herself as she dodged another attack and went after it with her sword again. There was chakra in her feet and in her legs as she skipped from the surface of one tree to the other, jumping off their trunks and swinging her blades. She struck again and a dark slash opened up across his chest, not deep enough to be deadly. She cursed and jumped out of the way to avoid it's other fist and then it's foot and then it's tail. It was wild with her, giving her no time to right herself and prepare another attack. It was taking all she had just to keep out of his range and avoid getting hit.

His tail missed her, but one of the four ends caught a huge ceader, wrapped around it, and snapped it in half before flinging it her way. Jumping into the air to avoid the projectile, she could hardly pull up her arms in time to block the other end of the tail coming back to strike her.

She cried out in pain, feeling it on her arms. She landed and then fell down, too dizzy to stand again. She looked up and saw the Son Goku towering over her, his stump of a hand still bleeding and his eyes yellow and wild. It cried out before bringing it's good hand down on the branch where she knelt and she barely made it in time to an opposite tree. It turned to follow her with it's good hand but before it could, right at the elbow, a larger meaner sword than hers sliced through the huge trunk of his arm.

The tailed beast wailed and Sakura saw Kisame ready his sword for another attack and she did the same. Together they launched from their positions and cut into the beast's heart, slicing through him like a knife through butter.

Sakura closed her eyes and looked away, but Kisame watched as the host body fell from the Son Goku corpse, also sliced through. The dead host body fell with a wet thud on the floor below and the sound made Sakura sicker than all the blood from the felled creature.

Kisame landed beside her. "You okay?"

"That took forever," she laughed. Her laugh must have sounded worse than she thought since he almost grimaced when he took in the sight of her face. She tried laughing again and he reached out to cover her whole face with only one of his hands. It was enough considering their size difference.

"Just don't let me see you make that face anymore." He sighed and then moved to drag her under his arm. "You look like a wreck anyway with all that blood on your face. Someone might die of shock."

"I'm sure you've seen me worse than this," Sakura muttered into his shirt, remembering the last time she got sick on him after killing the six tailed slug.

"Either ay, I don't want to see your sour face right now. It's making me feel weird. We should set up camp soon. We're both exhausted."

"Is there no inn nearby?"

"Not close enough," Kisame answered gruffly, ruffling her hair and walking past her towards the direction of the river where the could set up camp. Sakura followed dutifully, feeling heavy from the chakra she used up during the fight. It had lasted long than she expected, only because she had to run around and dodge so much. If she had tried to take it on without Kisame as back up she likely would not have survived…even if the Son Goku was equally exhausted from being stalked and trapped and baited for four days straight. Sakura hated to imagine what he would have been like well rested.

'No, no thank you!'

It was easy enough to set up the same camp they had survived in for the last three week nearly. Sometimes they got lucky and found an inn they could rest in, but Kisame didn't like spending Sakura's imaginary money, even though she tried to tell him she didn't have a limit. There was something about the honor of a man who was treated by a woman being lessened.

'Old fashion stuck up fool.'

She set out the bed rolls and he started the fire. She cooked, and he drew water for their tea. Sakura stared absently into her tea mug, knowing Kisame was watching her more closely. "I'm fine," she said, faking another smile.

"Bullshit."

"It's not bullshit." She took a sip. "Fine isn't the same as great or good or even decent. I'm not perfect, and I may not be well, but I'm fine enough to function. Fine isn't a good thing to be, but that's what I am."

"I don't know…" Kisame's eyes darkened and his voice trailed off. "Is it better to become hard and hurt no more, or stay soft?"

Sakura laughed humorlessly. "Do we have a choice in how we were made? If so, I would love to change. All this blood and death makes me sick."

Kisame sipped his tea and then ripped into his fish, his eyes downcast. "Sorry."

"It's not your fault." Sakura stayed quiet until she finished her dinner and downed the last of her tea. Kisame still watched her and she knew he would see her if she as much as quivered her lip. He was like that. Attentive to a fault. He took care of her like a father would, and it was nice in comparison to the romantic advances from the other actors she was used to. It was a different kind of love. She didn't have to love him back like a woman loves a man. She didn't have to change for him and that made her feel safe.

Kisame set the traps around their campsite and burrowed down into his sleeping roll, showing signs of exhaustion. Sakura dragged her bed roll closer and snuggled in, reaching out a single hand to touch the ends of his blue hair. He twitched, but didn't protest when she pet it back. After a while of stoking she felt his breath even out and knew it had lulled him off to sleep. It made her proud that she could do that for her friend.

Sakura laid her head down but sleep wouldn't come to her and the dream still felt deep around her. She closed her eyes but there were no poppies. Something was wrong.

'Sai!' she mentally called. She could feel the strain of his distance and knew his presence was one she could rely upon. It was getting harder and harder for him to keep up with her. She also noticed him looking more and more weary with every encounter. She bit her lip, sitting up, scanning the woods around them.

"Something's out there." Did someone follow them after hearing the Son Goku fall? Was it another monster beast?

"She's perceptive, that one."

Sakura's heart stopped.

No.

"Shut up, you just gave away our position. Now!"

Sakura kicked out her bed roll and threw it into the air to send the black wires off course. Kisame was awake in an instant and his sword was not slow in coming up to block the next volley of wire. She heard him curse.

A red scythe with three curved blades slashed through the air on a chain, catching Sakura's sheath before being thrown to the side. There was a familiar chuckle and Sakura's heart almost stopped when she saw Hidan step out of the shadows. His smile was just as wide and dangerous as she remembered it being.

"Hey precious, care for a spin?" he laughed, twirling his scythe over his head. His eyes narrowed. "Damn, you're actually really hot now that I see you up close."

"Hidan, don't get distracted," another man snapped. Sakura saw he was covered in a long black cloak that had a collar that came up to cover the bottom half of his face. The rest was concealed in a mask hat ensemble.

"Shut the hell up, Kakuzu. I can say whatever the hell I want to, bastard!"

"You have a job to do."

Kisame swung his sword and the man named Kakuzu had to back off.

Hidan cursed again and then switched his eyes to Sakura. They were glaringly beautiful while reflecting the low campfire light. "If I let you live wanna ditch the blue freak for a night with me?" he flirted further before throwing his scythe out.

Sakura caught it and redirected it with her sword. Before he could pull it back Sakura kicked it deep into the earth and raced along the length of the chain till she was in front of his face. She swung and he dodged in time. She didn't relent and struck again, slicing a long line down his chest that was just shallow enough that it wouldn't kill him, but the blood loss might.

He cursed again and this time it didn't sound angry, but excited. He looked up at her and his eyes were dazzling. "My kind of girl!" he laughed.

Sakura made a face. She was low on chakra, but she wasn't about to let him leave her with just a shallow scratch. She could really kill him for all he knew. Why was he so excited? Was he conceited?

Something clicked and Sakura ran up her tree, away from the fight, sending out her senses and finding the other bodies with her chakra the same way bats found prey in the dark. There was something large flying about her, another two bodies off to the side, and a third close to where Kisame fought. If there were others they were too well hidden.

"Kisame, Silver Tail!"

Sakura leapt free of her tree and Kisame looked up in time to see her pose. He disengaged the enemy and made a swift retreat just in time to avoid the impact of Sakura's chakra charged fist eating the earth. The ground shook with an earthquake and the surface ruptured, sending the enemies back with the rubble, but Sakura wasn't finished.

With her bare hands she picked out a bolder twice her size and hurled it up into the sky, striking the large scenery bird that had been following them. She felt the chakra off to the side again and raised her heel high above her head before bringing it down, sending a fissure into the forest where the two figures from before watched. It hit something, but she doubted they were so slow they were the things hit. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Kisame level his word at someone.

There was slow clapping. Heaving, Sakura turned to glance back over her shoulder and saw a woman in the same black cloak with red clouds as the masked man. "Impressive," she spoke.

Sakura's heart hurt. Before the woman could pull her cloak away Sakura knew the face. "You were testing us, Konan."

The blue haired woman blinked before opening up her cloak. "Doubly impressive. My reputation proceeds me?"

Sakura looked past Konan at the man behind her. Pein scowled lightly, his shoulders dusty. Hidan laughed behind them as a pair of figures walked out of the tree line. Sakura saw at the end of Kisame's sword a bored looking Itachi. Sakura looked back to the tree-line to see the two figures coming up to them and her heart hammered.

"Damn it, it didn't even detonate like I wanted it originally to," Deidara whined.

"For which I am thankful, considering we were still passengers." Sasori's voice was a knife in her heart and it must have shown because Kisame had rushed to her side.

"Apologies, you two. We like to know the potential of members before we accept them into our ranks. I've been impressed enough to extend more than one invitation tonight. We could use your strength in the Akatsuki."

"Most people would ask before going after our tired asses," Kisame growled. "What makes you think we would want to shack up with a lot that just tried killing us?"

Konan seemed unfazed by his retort. "Necessity. You want the same thing we want. It would be easier if we combined our efforts." She tilted her head to the side. "And to be honest, you were never in any real danger, were you?"

"Doesn't negate the fact you're a bitch about all this. I wanted to sleep!"

"One must be ever vigilant with beasts in the world."

"No shit." Kisame growled. "What do you want from us? Are you even giving us a choice in joining?" He gestured to how they pair were surrounded by nin on all sides. Both Kisame and Sakura were low on chakra after their fight with the four tailed monkey.

"I'd like you to come willingly." Konana looked to Sakura who was frozen like stone behind Kisame. "I've been a fan of your dedication and work ever since I've heard of you from Tsunade and the Uchiha. A young woman with so much power was something I had to see for myself. You were truly magnificent, Sakura."

Sakura looked up numbly, not seeing Konan but looking straight at her. Konan frowned at the gaze and nodded to her partner, Pein.

"Apologies. I didn't intend to agitate you when you were already in a weakened state. Please, allow me to make it up to you."

Konan held out her hand and her fingers unfurled into pieces of paper with secret writings on them. The papers flew as paper cranes to land around Kisame and Sakura. Before either could protest there was a rush of chakra and the pair were somewhere new. When the light from their transportation dimmed the pair found them no a bridge joining one traditional single story palace to another. Sakura gasped, seeing the imperial looking grounds all around them. Only Konan was still with them.

"These are my lands and my home. You may rest her tonight and in the morning we will talk."

"Do we have a choice?" Kisame growled, pulling Sakura closer to his side even as a pair of older woman maids approached them.

Konan smiled and she was a lovely as an angel when she did. "Not at all."

"You look terrible again. I know the first week of classes can't be that bad."

Sakura looked up and saw Ami waiting for her on the porch. It was evening and Sakura still felt trapped in the same daze she woke up in. She didn't remember driving home or anything from her classes that morning.

"Just tired. I think I might be getting sick again. No kisses."

Ami pretended she wasn't blushing as Sakura walked past her into the hall and dropped her book bag next to the stairs. Sakura noticed the discarded shoes in the hallway and looked up with a raised brow. "Visitors?" They were male shoes, so she was a little curious.

"Juugo and Karin are out back. Juugo is fixing a…a pipe or something. I don't know what it is he's doing, but Karin dragged him over. You gonna say hi?"

"It would be rude not to," Sakura chuckled, following the sound of chatty conversation. Juugo was in one of the rooms that used to be a back porch playing with some exposed electrical wires that needed caps. He was fitting one of the last ones when Sakura knocked on the door to the room, getting both his and Karin's attention. Both smiled at her.

"Hungry? I'll make something for us," Sakura offered. "Thank you, Juugo. I didn't know these needed fixing."

"Ah, no, it's just yeah, for safety it's no trouble. And yes, I would love to stay for dinner. What are you planning on making."

Sakura made a face, trying to recall what was in her kitchen she could use. She had frozen vegetables, some peppers, eggs, apples, some turkey… "How about I surprise you? Will you be working on that much longer?"

"No, I'm nearly finished," Juugo answered.

"I had better get started then. Wish me luck."

Karin hopped off the ladder she as sitting on and followed Sakura into the kitchen where Ami was already waiting, filling a kettle with water for tea. The girls used the turkey and frozen veggies to make the main part of the dinner while Sakura worked on mashing a few potatoes for another side. Juugo came in not much later and together the group made dinner and set the table as a team. Ami found some canned cranberries in the pantry and they served that as well.

Talking together over dinner, laughing about inside jokes, feeling like a mixed up family, it was almost enough to make Sakura forget.

Almost.

Sakura was dressed in expensive silks when she woke. The room around her was reflective of her sleeping dress, as it was large and ornately decorated with high end Japanese antiques and finery. Sakura's bed was large with posters and curtains, smelling of sweet flowers.

Sakura ran a hand through her hair and slipped out of bed before going to the window. The house was right on a lake or something, since there was a body of water teaming with koi right under her window. Looking out, the property looked more like something out of historical Japanese drama about long dead emperors and princes.

"Damn," Sakura said to herself, mildly impressed.

Turning away from the window she shed her expensive silks and dressed herself in a dreamed up black outfit she could wear a plain bronze haori over. There was an ornate kimino laying out on a stand that was likely meant for Sakura, but there was no way she was dressing up while in the enemy's house. She tied her hair up into a high ponytail before heading out into the hallway.

"Awake already?"

Sakura turned quickly to see Pein of all people standing just a few feet from her door in the same hallway. He was dressed traditionally with his black and red cloak absent from his persons. Clothing aside, he looked just as Sakura remembered him from the Kingdom of Man. His eyes like the sea after a storm, gray and wave tossed, bore into her.

"Pein."

"You are too familiar, Haruno san."

Sakura couldn't help but smile out of the corner of her mouth. "I'm also a pissed off guest being held against her will. Wanna see where that takes me?"

Pein almost looked concerned. "There are none here will any ill intentions for your or your companion."

Sakura thought back to Hidan during their fight and how different he seemed, crazed and wild. Hidan from the Kingdom of Man could get like that in a fist fight, but not to such a degree he lost himself. And he was never quite so lewd in addressing her. Just like Itachi, this world's Hidan was changed. Did that mean Pein was no longer the same?

Sakura glanced back over at Pein and frowned, feeling loss well up in her chest. "You don't remember me, either?"

"I am quite sure we have never met before, Haruno san."

His reply was just like Itachi's and it made sense. New world, new dream, new actors. Just like real actors who stepped in and out of roles, the actors who lived in the dream world didn't exist. Kiba's suffering wasn't real, neither was Sasori's death. His goodbye kiss was just as empty.

"Haruno san?" Pein sounded concerned. Sakura reached up and felt her face, finding it damp. 'Stupid.'

"I'm going to be in my room. Don't call for me if you don't want to get hit," she hissed, turning on her heel and heading back into the room she had woken up in.

"Wait!"

She didn't. The sound of the door sliding shut and latching into place was harsh enough to cut the man's protests short. He didn't linger, and he didn't try to fetch her. Sakura watched as his shadow hovered for a moment before disappearing down the hall.

"Sai, I know it's hard for you, and this probably asking a lot…but please, if you can," Sakura screwed her eyes shut, banishing the tears that wanted to seep free. "Please," she whispered to herself.

Shadows grew across the floorboards and no one came. Sakura's eyes were long since dried when she eventually stood and lit a candle for the room. She burned a stick of incense left behind and placed it in its holder. With the stick burning she closed her eyes and called one more time. "Please, I know it's too much to ask of you, but please I want to see you. Just to see you is enough."

When she turned around he was in her bed laying down on his side, breathing a bit too heavily. Sakura cursed and ran to him, seeing how dark the bangs under his eyes were and how pale his already white skin had become. He looked withered.

"What happened to you?" Sakura bit her lip and cursed at the sight of him. He was straining just to even manifest in physical form.

"This might be…the last time," he whispered into the sheets. Sakura knelt down beside him and brushed the bangs out of his eyes. "Kimimaro….keeps me away from you. I can't….not anymore."

"Did he hurt you?"

Sai weakly shook his head. "He couldn't, but he tried. I'm weak from fighting him all this time."

Sakura felt sick all over agin. "Damn it, then why would you bother to come see me? Even thought I was stupid and asked you, it would have been better if you ignored me."

"You said you wanted to see me."

"I know, but it wasn't important. I just wanted to see you."

Sai heaved another heavy breath and Sakura could hear the rough exterior of his insides with his every exhale. In spite of this, he managed to smile. "That's why I came."

"Stupid," Sakura muttered under her breath. "I'm the stupid one for saying I would take you with me when it's obvious I don't know how to do anything. I said I would take care of you both and now Kimimaro's fighting you all the time. I ruined it all and now…now the others are here and it's like I never existed in their life at all."

"They are all dead, Sakura," Sai whispered, sounding sleepy. "They died long before you ever met."

"Does that mean everything we went through together, everything we did together….was it all without meaning? Was I the only one who thought…?"

Sai reached out and touched the side of her face, stopping her from looking away. His hand fell limp back to the sheets right after contact though and he shuddered through another breath. "You are not…stupid. This world, these actors…are for you. They exist and feel for you, they will be whatever you desire them to be."

Sakura thought back to that last kiss and how much her heart hurt. It tore at her even more when she thought about how little it even meant to a ghost like Sasori. It was a dream, after all. It was stupid to think of it as anything more. Nothing in her sleep mattered to anyone.

Sakura dropped her head onto the bed and let it bounce a little. Sai reached up to pet it once and she fought back the tears again. "I don't want them to be actors, I don't want them to be dead, and I don't want you to be hurt. I don't want these dreams to always be nightmares." She turned her face so that she could better see Sai. "You're the only one who remembers me. Not even Pein…"

"Then you need to make them remember, one way or another. I've never heard of it being done before, but no one's ever tried before. If it's you, I think you could do it Sakura. Work with them, fight alongside them, remind them who you are and they will see you again. They have all been gathered together like this for your gain, use it to your advantage."

"Will that help heal you in any way? What can I do to help make you better, Sai?"

The young boy shrugged, his face still tired looking without any expression in particular. "If you believe in me that will be enough." He shuddered and then sat up. "I need to leave before he follows me here and put you in danger. Please stay safe this time, Sakura." He looked down at her stomach where once before a knife had made its home between the folds of her flesh. She still had a scar in the dream world, but it was largely faded by now.

"I will," Sakura nodded her head and whispered her reply. When she looked up, the edges of Sai's body were already smoke. Before his face could burn away she caught the corners of his lips quirk up in a secret sort of smile.

'I know you will.'

Sakura stood, feeling for the limits of this night's dream. She still had a long way to go before she had to wake up. The end was beyond her reach at the moment, meaning there was still a lot of work she could get done. And Sakura was the type of person who got work done.

In the hallway there was no one. They had taken her sword from her and all the other weapons had been left back at the campsite, but that didn't stop her from dreaming another simpler sword with a smooth black sheath. Tugging nervously on her pony tail she turned down the hall and began searching for Kisame or Konan, since she seemed to be in charge of the organization this time. It reminded Sakura a lot of the Morning Rovers and how that gang was made up. Konan hadn't been the leader that time because Nageto was sick and it was easier for Pein to…

Sakura stopped looking for Konan. It was just a hunch, but Sakura reached out with her chakra for someone different and found a corner of the castle cut off from the rest, dead to her chakra senses. It was just a gut feeling, but she wanted to follow it and see where it took her. This was a dream, after all.

Sakura ran for the dead zone, taking care to avoid the hallways with voices and bodies and chakras. If she was right there was a good chance some of them would try to stop her. Instead of sliding rice paper doors there were hinge doors that folded in. There were dragons and wards all over the doors. Passing over the threshold, even if she could get the doors open, would trigger something.

The wall on the other hand, came down easily enough without triggering anything. 'Don't understand why they don't do that in the movies.'

There was a startled gasp that sounded painfully shallow from somewhere inside. The interior room was dim and lit by only a handful of modest lams all turned down low. Without the light from outside the room would have been hard to see in. Sakura narrowed her eyes to see better in the dark and the shape of a giant Buda head came into focus. It's mouth was open, and on it's tongue was a med where a pale man lay. Sakura saw the differences, but recognized him from the last time she healed him.

"Nageto, wasn't it?" Sakura asked, strolling in without any concern to him rising an alarm. It was obvious they were alone and the traps he had set were all on the door.

The pale man raise a hand and a box off to the side began to rattle. Sakura cursed, seeing it's lid fall of sideways and a body half raise, covered in bolts. Nageto seemed to be controlling it, Sakura could see his chakra inside the dead body, but just as it was about to step out of its box the bedridden man gasped painfully and collapsed back into his sheets. The body fell just as well. Nageto was wheezing hard, struggling to breath.

More cautious than before, Sakura approached the sick man as he hacked up blood onto his bed sheets. His body looked like a set of bones with skin stretched over it like plastic wrap. This Nageto was far sicker than the other. While he was being distracted with breathing properly, Sakura channeled her chakra into her hands. Nageto flinched, but the blood in his throat prevented him from doing anything.

"Just know I could take your life right now, old man," Sakura grumbled, before placing her hands onto his back and feeding her healing chakra into his damaged lungs. It felt like pasting shreds of tissue paper back together, and Sakura winced at how extensive the damage was.

"What are you doing?" Nageto asked, voice rough.

"Trying to piece your lungs back together, but they feel all shredded. It would be easier to manipulate brand new cells than try and work with the damaged ones you are already using. God, how long has this been going on? You shouldn't even be able to move like this."

"I can't," Nageto coughed. He looked over at Sakura as she worked "Who are you and what are you doing here? You are a doctor…but Konan did not invite you." As if to support his claim he eyed the hole in the wall she made. "Konan will know I tried to summon my puppet bodies. She will arrive shortly."

"Doesn't matter, does it?" Sakura asked, her voice like a hum as she worked. "You're the one that runs things around her, aren't ya? You're the one that calls the shots."

Nageto's expression darkened. "What do you want?"

"Nothing at the moment, but me and my partner were taken against our will and held forcibly. While you haven't done anything we don't like yet, I still don't like the idea of being a captive in your hands. Can you understand that?"

"Fair enough. Still…." He let his voice trailed off as he breathed more deeply. "What do you hope to achieve with this little stunt of yours?"

"Better standing in negotiations." Sakura patched a hole in his lungs and added another layer to the cell structure to reinforce her new work. "There, does that feel better? Tell me if it's easier for you to breath now."

Nageto breathed deep and Sakura counted his ribs as the skin stretched thiner. At least this time there was no blood when he exhaled. With those holes patched, it would be easier for him to breath again.

"What was your name?" he asked in a softer tone of voice.

"Sakura, Haruno Sakura."

"Spring child, how fitting with that hair color of yours. Konan did not take you because you are a doctor, is that right?"

"If she knew, she didn't let on. No, we were picked up for our efforts in killing the six tailed slug, the three tailed crab, and most recently, the four tailed Son Goku monkey. Apparently beast killing is something you guys like to capitalize on."

"That is our objective. Konan most likely would want your efforts to aid our own in killing the seven tailed beetle Chomei and the nine tailed fox."

"What about the eight tailed bull?"

Nageto waved his hand as if it wasn't a matter worth discussing. "We have a team set aside to deal with him. The other two have proven problematic in the past whenever we engaged. Both hosts have managed to secure partial control over their beasts, making them that much stronger and harder to track down. The Eight tailed beast is still a dumb animal."

Sakura leaned back, crossing her arms over her chest and shifted the weight of her body from one let to the other. "That's fine with me. It was always my aim to try and kill all the tailed beasts with whatever help I could get, I just don't like being bullied, kidnapped, or blackmailed." Sakura paused to trace the underside of her jaw as she listened to the halls outside their room. "Also, since we're on the subject, Konan, why don't you join us and add your own input?"

Black sheets of paper seeped out from the shadows in the walls to form a woman who stood seething on the spot. Behind her ran a few more bodies, drawing closer. Sakura recognized Pein and Itachi through the hole in the wall. Konan paid them no mind as she continued to glare at Sakura and her proximity to Nageto.

"How did you know about this place?" she hissed, ready to attack should Nageto give her the signal.

Sakura pretended the glare didn't faze her. "Ah, just chalk it up to a gut feeling. Where is Kisame kun?"

"He is eating. What are you doing here?" The cold woman's gaze shifted off of Sakura and onto the man beside her. There was blood on the front of his shirt and the sheets around him were dirty. "Nageto, are you hurt?"

"Konan," the dark haired man called her name in a strong tone. In response, Konan and Pein both flinched. "You are being rude. Sakura has not harmed me but rather quite the opposite, she has done a sufficient job in healing most of my lungs from their deteriorated state. Did you know she was a medic when you called her here?"

Sakura watched as some of the fire in Konan's eyes dimmed and her hard features softened. "A…medic. No, I did not know. I knew she studied under Tsunade, but I had assumed it was only for combat reasons." She glanced behind her at Itachi who watched the scene with eyes locked solely on Sakura's form. "Itachi, did you know this?"

"Yes. However, I had no knowledge of her level of skill."

Pein took the opportunity to step forward, into the dimly lit room. "Nageto nii san, are you lungs fully healed?"

Before Nageto could respond Sakura raised a hand, intending to answer. "No, they're not fully healed, and they won't ever be fully healed if one goes about patching and fixing what's already there, which is what looks like a medic has done in the past, correct?" She waited for Nageto to nod but saw Pein and Jonan incline their heads as well. It reminded her of the family story the three shared while in the first kingdom. Perhaps in this world they were still orphaned children together. "As I figured. I already told Nageto this, but he needs new lungs, or rather newer lungs should be constructed in part by manipulating cells already in his body. All the lung cells are coming out sick, so I would take a cell from somewhere else and rewrite it. That would be a more permeant fix."

"You can heal Nageto?" Konan asked in a soft voice, forgetting her anger from earlier.

"I didn't mean to, but yes, this much is in my capabilities."

"But no one has been able to do that so far, and Tsunade refused to see him," Pein said, glancing sideways at Konan as if in need of confirmation.

"I'm pretty sure no one in this time period knows what a cell is, much less how it is made and altered. But that's beside the point. Konan, you brought my partner and I here against our wills. In spite of that I have not sought out vengeance against you, even if it was within my power to do so. You original aim was to recruit us as members of your organization, correct?" When Konan nodded Sakura continued. "I can not speak for Kisame, but I don't take orders from anyone. I am willing to work alongside you and lend you my strength, but I will never be your subordinate. I will always have my freedom, and in exchange, I promise to help Nageto's body heal."

"What of Kisame, then?" Pein asked, sounding almost eager. His eyes were less harsh as he glanced sideways at his female companion.

"I would ask the same privileges be extended to him as well. You would take us on as contract workers unless he asks otherwise. I just ask you give him the choice."

"How…willing would you be to work with us, Haruno san?" Konan asked, her tone still hesitant. Sakura could see by the harsh outlines to her shoulders and other areas of her body, she was still tense. For all she knew, Sakura was going to hang back and watch the rest of the gang go out and kill their monster without her.

"I can't give you a perfect answer, but I can tell you it's my intention just as much as it is yours, to kill these monsters as quickly as possible. I won't be an idle weapon in this fight." She turned her eyes from Konan to Pein to Itachi. "Do you think my words are false?"

Konan and Pein looked over at Itachi who still watched Sakura without wavering. When he answered, his voice was a manifestation of confidence. "No." He addressed Pein and Konan. "She was honest and diligent under Tsunade's tutelage. You will not find fault with her."

Feeling satisfied, Sakura uncrossed her arms and stood up straighter. "Take your time to discuss it among yourselves. You have much you can talk about. Itachi will show me to where Kisame is and you can get back to me with your answer then."

Itachi bowed to both Konan and Pein before turning and following her out, but Sakura simply nodded, not one to show meekness before others. It wasn't long before Itachi's steps drew even with her own. Even when their shoulders were even, She could feel him watching her with more than just his eyes. All of him was aware of all of her.

"How have you been?" he asked, his voice the same soft velvet as before. This time there was no mask to muffle his words.

"As well as can be expected. Yourself?"

There wasn't an answer right away, but Sakura could almost hear the inner workings of his mind as he searched for an answer. Itachi in this world was different from before. When Sakura first met Itachi in the Kingdom of Man, he had been cold, mature, and calculating. This Itachi seemed…young.

"I have been well. You did not wear the kimino set aside for you. Was it not to your liking?"

Sakura almost laughed, remembering the bulky garment that would have taken two ladies to dress her in. It was very pretty, and Sakura had admired such dresses in the past on others, but it didn't make sense for a day like today. "It wasn't practical. If I needed to fight to defend myself it would have been a hinderance."

"You were never in any true danger."

"Thanks, but I can't trust just that. If I was wrong-"

"I wouldn't let that happen." Sakura almost missed a step when Itachi cut her off. His voice was stronger, older, darker. When he looked down at her she suddenly noticed the height difference. "Forgive me, I spoke too boldly."

They were stopped outside of a large room with double sliding doors. Itachi reached to ease them open while Sakura numbly shook her head, waving it off. "No, that's fine. Don't apologize to me."

The screens rolled back, showing off a large interior room with several low eating tables and a large square counter in the middle of the room overflowing with food. Kisame sat at one of the tables eating while glaring at Hidan who sat opposite of him on the other side of the room. Both looked up when they heard the doors open. Sakura saw Kisame's eyes light up but she also noticed the wicked gleam that came into Hidan's.

"Sakura!" Kisame cried cheerfully, a shrimp tail hanging from his mouth. He waved and made to get up, but he was too slow. A blur of black and flesh darted across the room stopped only by Itachi's strong hand. Hidan grunted, having being shoved back.

"What that fuck was that for? I was just saying hello!" Hidan complain, rubbing the spot on his bare chest where Itachi had shoved him.

Itachi's eyes were like mirrors reflecting a midnight winter sky. Even thought they weren't directed at her, Sakura felt chilled when Itachi spoke. "Watch your language. Also, your breath is foul. Do not approach out guest so casually."

"You're an ass, Uchiha. I was just trying to be friendly." Hidan turned his scowl off when he switched from looking at Itachi to Sakura. His grin stretched wider across his face and he struck a semi casual pose that showed off his bare chest. "It would be rude if I failed to entertain our guest. So, how about it? You have a man back home? Don't tell me you came with the blue looser."

"Oi!" Kisame was up and grabbing for his blade. Sakura recognized the dark look that came over his eyes.

Sakura looked away from Hidan, pointedly ignoring him. "Kisame, were you here this whole time eating? Was I really the only one worried about our safety? You left me to make all the negotiations on my own."

Kisame still glowered, but approached her with a bit more control in the lines of his arms. It didn't look like he was going to swing wild and destroy the eating room any time soon. "Che, no one told me anything when I asked. The one with the freaky eyes said if I was here he would bring you."

"Freaky eyes?" Sakura looked up at Itachi and then made the connection. "Ah, you mean Pein. Yeah, I kind of freaked him out when he tried getting me earlier today and ran away."

"What did you do?" Kisame asked, an almost smile hidden in his grin. It was now Hidan who glowered on the side, obviously upset about being ignored. The white haired man glared at Kisame as the blue man approached Sakura casually, also ignoring the others in the room. Itachi at least didn't seem to mind.

"Oi, you didn't answer my question!" Sakura glanced at Hidan casually out of the corner of her eyes, not even bothering to turn her face towards him. "You-you're ignoring me?"

Kisame scoffed with a sarcastic grin. "What, that your first time, prick?"

There was an angry rash of blood across the handsome man's face just underneath he surface of his skin, staining his cheeks a pretty rose color. He did look pretty in a blush and Sakura thought back to something Sai said, about how all the actors around her were bent and compelled to fill a desire. Was that the reason so many of them felt infatuated with her? Was that the reason so many of them were attractive? Was that her doing?

Sakura pushed those thoughts away and pretended they didn't bother her. "Where is the other one, the partner Kisame fought with?"

Hidan still look ruffled, not used to being coldly rejected or stood up to by a female like Sakura. "Kakuzu is…working. What would you want with someone like him. He's old."

"You seem to be under the false impression that motivated by something other than my professionalism. I'm here because it aligns with my objective, which is to kill the last three tailed beasts. Your dick has nothing to do with that, so I've elected to ignore it. Unless you have something else to discuss with me…." She let her words hang, her eyes hooded as she stared at him with bored eyes.

Hidan showed her a movie of emotion in just a few short seconds. She watched the feelings play across his face, one right after the other. Shock, anger, confusion, betterment, more anger, then wonder, questioning, resentment, questioning, and then finally, contentment. He regarded her again with less narrowed eyes, his blush and smirk also discarded.

"Where are you from? Sorry if I'm curious and horny at the same time, but you really want to fucking blame a guy for trying to figure out where someone like you is coming from? What's you angle in all of this, tits?"

Sakura grimaced at the name, hating being talked to in such a dehumanizing manner. Damn if she wasn't proud of her body, but that didn't give him license to capitalize on it in his comments. "Sakura."

He grinned a little bit. "I got your name."

She stood up to him, rising up to her full hight, which wasn't even enough to touch his chin. She narrowed her eyes and thought of black thrones and thorny crowns and monarch gowns and murder. She was powerful and she was fearsome. "Good," she hissed. "Use it."

Not waiting for Itachi or Kisame to follow, she turned on her heel and made her exit.

Later she met with Konan and Pein, Nageto having taken to his bed for rest. The two agreed to Sakura's proposition and offered her a place to stay. Kisame agreed to the same terms as Sakura and added that he would be following Sakura around before he followed their orders.

When Sakura and Kisame left, Itachi was outside waiting to show them to their rooms. Sakura didn't want to sound needy, but she couldn't help but ask about the other members. Where were they, and when would she get to meet and see them?

When Itachi told her it was rate than any of the members saw or interacted with each other aside from beast missions, her heart sank a bit. When she retreated to her room the sound of Sasori's voice was a cursed echo to her brain. All she could hear was his voice, even as she fought to connivence herself that he wasn't real and that his feelings for her weren't real. He didn't truly care for her. She was in love with a lie.

She should have known the night she resolved to avoid him would be the night she dreamed about him. Nageto had invited her to tea and she had healed parts of his lungs before he got too tired and let her go for the day. It was all very formal, just the way he liked it, so Sakura looked a lot nicer than what she was used to seeing in her it was nothing major, one of her maids had pulled back her hair and painted her eyes before dressing her in a floral pattern kimino with a black background.

She was shuffling back to her room when she turned a corner and stopped. The pair opposite her froze as well, even though there was plenty of room between them. She had heard arguing, but it had been muffled and unrecognizable and now she saw why. Deidara wore a bandana around the bottom half of his face and was tugging on it. Seeing her stare, he pulled at the knot in the back and ripped it free.

"You're not a maid!" Deidara exclaimed, pointing at her. Sasori looked annoyed and a bit like he wanted to slap himself.

Sakura closed her eyes, taking a deep breath before inclining her head to be polite. "How observant of you. It is no wonder you are the eyes of this organization, Deidara kun."

The blond stuttered and took a step back, health color coming into his cheeks as he scrambled for the right words. "You know me?!" From beside him, Sasori glared at Sakura. It shouldn't have, but it almost physically hurt her to be looked at by him in such a way.

"Idiot," he hissed under his breath, referring to Deidara and not Sakura. "She's the kid that came in with Kisame of the Mist…the one that threw the rock at us."

"I would like to think of it as more of a bolder and less of a rock," Sakura interjected, raising a single eyebrow. Her tone was even, but her heart was rioting in her chest. "A rock would have been far less trouble to throw."

Sasori huffed, looking unamused. "Granted."

"Ah, Leader sama told us to be aware of you. Yeah…she said you were a new member, along with that Kisame guy, but that you weren't going to go on missions with us for side jobs, or something like that."

Sakura briefly considered telling them that she was busy with her own privet side job of healing Nageto, but it was something he and Konan both asked her to keep from the other members, as they did not know he was so sick or in anything less than god like condition. Nageto had a god complex if ever Sakura saw one, and that was funny considering how he was dying.

"I am contracted labor of a sorts," Sakura finally said, keeping her eyes down. In addition to combative aid, I am also a medic. Should you need treatment, I am not opposed to extending my services in the event that you seek me out."

"A medic would have been handy to have on any number of our past missions," Sasori intoned. His glare was still on her.

Sakura swallowed and lifted her eyes, finding his to be already on her. They were the same, sweet colored carmel eyes she remembered them being from the last Kingdom and it was almost enough to break her. "You do not like me, Sasori san. Have I offended you in some way?"

The redhead blinked and the glare eased up, but didn't disappear. She could tell there was still a layer of displeasure there, she could feel it if nothing else.

"You have done nothing," Sasori lamely replied. Deidara rolled his eyes from beside his partner.

"Don't bother with him," the blond chimed in. "Sasori has a stick up his ass and is like this with everyone pretty much."

"Deidara," Sasori grounded out. It was a warning, but the taller blond didn't heed it.

Deidara grinned, his outlook jovial. "Nah, Sakura chan, you should have lunch with us. If Sasori gets moody and leaves in the middle you can just say it's a date! What do you say, un, my treat?"

"What does that have to do with killing the tailed beasts?" Sasori asked, his voice heavy. "That's the only reason she's here. Your companionship is not necessary." Before either could protest, the red head stormed off, brushing past her. Their shoulders almost collided, but he pulled up at the last moment, avoiding the connection Sakura was sure would have hurt more than a simple bruise.

Beyond her control she felt something in her throat tighten and knot. 'Where is Sai? I need to see Sai.' The image of his ashen face filled her with shame. No, she couldn't ask any more from him.

"It seems," She whispered, not trusting her voice to remain intact. "That I would be most unpleasant company for your companion. Forgive my rudeness if I have offended your organization in any way. While it is true I came here with the sole purpose of killing the tailed beasts, I never had any intention of creating discord among your ranks."

Deidara made a frustrated sound and rubbed the back of his neck. "No! Don't, don't apologize for him. It's not you, really it's not. Sasori is just an ass, he's the only one who thinks like that. I don't think like that. I want to hang out with you and get to know you better, um, if that's alright with you, un. The blue guy won't get…jealous will he?"

"Kisame and I are not promised, nor does he see me that way." Sakura almost smiled in memory of the awkward, 'I'm not looking for a relationship' talk they had, had weeks back at the beginning of their journey. Kisame and Sakura were close companions, but they were not romantically compatible and that was fine, since he was like…twice her age. "Don't try to hurt me, and he should be okay with you."

"I don't want to hurt you, I just want to get to know you. Um, I've ask to take lunch on one of the verandas. I'll lead you there." Deidara gesture and Sakura followed.

The place he led her to was beautifully secluded and overlooking the lake on three out of four sides. A narrow, covered bridge connected it to the main floor plan of the house, but aside from that it stood apart. The table was low and surrounded by cushions meant for reclining. Deidara sat down eagerly enough and pat the cushions beside him, waiting for Sakura to join him with eager smiles.

"Have you been with this organization long?" Sakura asked, pouring for herself a cup of Sake. Deidara picked up his own smooth saucer and Sakura filled it for him.

No, only a year. I joined just after they took down the one tailed beast. Back then there was a whole army and it was a mess. Leader sama and Pein sama realized that instead of an army they needed men who could fight like an army. That's why they started looking for people like me and Sasori. We can both take down dozens of men without breaking a sweat. It's cause of our chakra, un."

"The change in tactics seems to have gone well for you. There now remains only two tailed beasts to pose a threat to the world. Will you deal with them the same way?"

Deidara shrugged. "I guess so. I'm not one much for planning, but Itachi is good with that stuff. He told me about how you fought together to defeat the six tailed slug. I want to hear about the three tailed crab though. What happened there, un?"

Over food, Sakura shared her story of the three tailed crab as well as her own version of what happened with the six tailed slug, plus her training with Tsunade. It was late before she even mentioned the Son Goku and Deidara had drunk enough Sake to make him loose.

A pair of maids came to clear away the dishes and Sakura left Deidara to the foot men who said they were instructed to carry the 'young master' back to his room. On the way back she noticed Hidan sulking in a window, his back to the outside world. He looked up when he noticed her pause.

His scowl was half hearted. "What?"

"Shouldn't I be asking that?" Sakura hummed, approaching him with caution. "You look like you ate something bad."

Hidan rubbed the back of his neck, looking away. "I heard you talking to the-to Deidara."

"Oh." She waited for him to say more. When he didn't she started to turn, preparing to leave.

"You asked Pein if he remembered you. Why?"

Sakura was a bit stunned, and turned quickly back to find Hidan watching her. "Why would that matter to you? It was nothing and he said so himself. I was mistaken."

"I've had a dream about you." He almost looked embarrassed, but he kept talking. "You seemed so familiar when we first met I couldn't control myself and I tried showing off like a damn fool. But last night I had a dream about you fighting with me and we were using only knives, and when we were done you laughed and helped me up like we were friends. I don't know what that has to do with anything, but I liked it…the dream."

Sakura heart hurt and her head was a thundercloud of thoughts rumbling and roaring as they fell over themselves. Hidan remembered her. He was talking about their time back in the Kingdom of Man when she fought him with knives and taught him how to use his whole body when he swung. Those were real memories she had of him and he was having them too, only as dreams.

"I've had dreams like those before," Sakura confessed, trying to sound calm. "I seem to know people before I even meet them."

"Was I in any of your dreams?"

"Some."

He seemed lighter at the confession. "Who else?"

"Pein and Konan and Itachi and his cousin who's not alive anymore. There was also Sasori and Deidara and…other people. We played in a gang not unlike this one. It's foolish isn't it? A silly dream makes me think I know you."

"But they're not just dreams. They're something more, aren't they? If I had to guess, I would say…past lives."

Sakura shrugged. "In a way."

Hidan was quiet for a moment before exhaling. "You should ask Itachi about the first time he dreamt of you, cause I'm sure he did, Pein too. If you dreamed of other guys, maybe they have had dreams too." There was a pause. "Sakura?"

"Yes?"

"No, it's nothing, I just wanted to try calling your name. Un, let me know if you need anything, and don't be weird around me. It's just a dream, and I'm not going to make lewd comments about you anymore, so feel safe around me, okay."

Sakura just nodded before he hopped down off the window ledge and started off in the opposite direction.

Itachi wasn't difficult to find once he returned from mission. He always lingered close and she had a feeling if she called his name, wherever he was, he would come running. Before he could greet her or say anything, she was opening her mouth, asking about the dream.

"You've dreamed of me, haven't you? Of me in another time and another place. You have, haven't you?"

His face answered for her. There was pain in his expression too. She knew he had dreamed of that night in the dance hall when his eyes went straight to her stomach, to the place Orochimaru stabbed her.

She wasn't wearing a kimono today, so before he could pretend he hadn't looked, Sakura undid the sash around her hatori and as the folds fell away she lifted the bottom part of her black long sleeve. She heard his sharp intake of breath when he saw the faded scar that was nowhere near as defined as it had been a kingdom ago. Embarrassed, she dropped her shirt before he could see too much.

"It wasn't a dream." His voice was a breath.

"No, it was," Sakura corrected. "That just happened in a past life of sorts, not this life.

"You were hurt because of me. That's why you shrank from me. You…hate me."

Sakura's mind went back to the dance hall to the party dress, to the heels and the knife fight and Snake Eyes and his severed hand. She had paid dearly for that severed hand, just like he had paid dearly for Sasori's stolen life. Did that mean she hated Itachi? Maybe at on point she did, but not anymore. She didn't have the anger to hate him anymore.

"It was a dream, Itachi. It's all in the past, and I've since…forgiven you for it. Is that why you bowed to me when I left with Kisame?" He nodded, not meeting her eyes.

"I know my actions are unforgivable, thought their exact nature are unknown to me. Whatever my transgression may have been, I humbly apologize and seek a means to make amends."

Sakura thought of Sai's words. "Then you need to make them remember, one way or another. I've never heard of it being done before, but no one's ever tried before. If it's you, I think you could do it Sakura. Work with them, fight alongside them, remind them who you are and they will see you again."

Had her desire made this happen? She had wanted so desperately to be remembered, for her time with them to mean something. What Sai said made sense.

Sakura looked up at Itachi and saw him for all his differences. His eyes were younger, less aged by hate, even though Sakura was sure he had seen more blood and horror in this kingdom. Physically he appeared to be the same age, but this Itachi appeared to have less character. He was so stiff and polite and uniform. Itachi from the Kingdom of Man had a maturity akin to the weary parent of a gaggle of children. Funny how circumstances changed him.

"Will you listen to a story about our past lives?" she asked, nodding to another hallway that led out to the veranda on the lake.

It was a silly question, because Itachi would have followed her anywhere with that beaten puppy dog look in his eyes. Sakura ate with him and told him stories of her adventures in the Kingdom of Man. She thought about skipping around her romance with Sasori, but for some reason she included it, refusing to look away when she spoke of how he held her, whispered to her, and died under her.

Hidan came to join them, and listened to the stories as well. He said he wanted to get Deidara and Sasori to come over as well, but they all agreed that only those who admitted to having dreams should be privy to the information. Sakura tried asking Pein subtly about any weird dreams he might be having and got a cold shoulder. Konan was not as rude, but there was a layer of frost there whenever they communicated.

Kisame got mildly jealous about all her lunch sessions out with the boys, especially once he found out Hidan was one of the few she chose to entertain with her stories. He didn't believe the idea of any of them having past lives, but liked listening to her stories anyway.

It was odd how it all turned out. Before, Sakura had been distant from Itachi and Hidan most of all in the Morning Rovers, but in this world, this Kingdom, they were her closest allies. Sasori and Pein, who were never shy about desiring her attention, were now colder towards her than any of the others.

Eventually a team was dispatched to remove the eight tailed bull from the world and Sakura had to hang back and wait for their return with Nageto, prepared to heal the injured and tend to the wounded. The only other one who stayed behind was Pein, but he kept his distance and never approached her. Only when she moved to heal Nageto's lungs did he step out of the shadows and make his presence known.

Sakura was finishing up a new section Nageto's lungs when Konan entered the room, wet with rain and bleeding from one cheek. She looked ashen and ready to collapse when Pein rushed to her side. Sakura stood up to follow as he carried her tenderly to a table and laid her out. Sakura assessed the cut on her face and found trace amounts of poison. The extraction process was quick, only because so much of it was already absorbed and beyond removal.

"I have to set up a quick blood transfusion to counteract the poison already in you body. Was anyone else infected like this?" Sakura paused, waiting for Konan to answer. When the blue haired woman shook her head Sakura set about preparing the blood transfusion, confident that she wouldn't be needed for anything as taxing. She could feel the limits of her chakra and knew she would have to sleep soon.

She didn't mean to, but she caught sight of Konan reaching for Pein. He offered her his hand and she grasped it tight, squeezing it for strength. The smile on her face when she had that contact…oh. Sakura didn't dare look up at Pein's face, afraid of the affection she'd find in his eyes as he watched his partner. Oh, so that's how it was.

Sakura felt a pinch in her heart and fought back the chuckle. Of course things were going to be different this time around. She didn't even like Pein that much, so it didn't make any sense for her to feel….jealous of their bond. The idea of it made Sakura sick. Was she the day care bully that hogged all the toys for herself and never shared with the other kids? Was that who she was?

"That should be enough," Sakura said, avoiding eye contact as she pulled the needle from her arm and watched the last of her blood drip down the tube. She ended early and knew it, but they wouldn't. "You'll need to rest now. Too much was already absorbed and your condition only aggravated the symptoms. Sleep for now. It should be a few days before you use your chakra again."

"She will do that," Pein answered for Konan. The sound of his voice made Sakura want to laugh and cry.

"If you'll excuse me then." Sakura stood, bowed slightly, and turned to leave.

In the hallway, the last person she wanted to see at the moment blocked her path. In her hurry to get away from the confusing scene, Sakura nearly ran him over, and the irritation flashed in his eyes.

"S-sorry," she confessed, backing up to get out of his way.

Sasori just glared at her, drawing his cloak tighter before turning to continue where he was going. Sakura saw his back and it was more than she could take.

"You don't have to be so much of an ass, Sasori!" He stopped at the sound of her voice, but didn't turn around. "I said I was sorry, okay. I don't know what more I can do with you to clear whatever ruined idea you have of me. You think I'm a terrible person, don't you?"

"You have no grounds for such an accusation."

She missed the way he wanted her. She missed the way he watched her and smiled when he caught her eye. She missed the way they touched and talked. She even missed the way he would drive her around town in his car. Simple things, but the meant so much to her.

Sakura anger seeped into her words. "Bullshit, I'm not the only one who's noticed. Everyone else can see it to, so why not just be honest, save us the time of arguing over it, and tell me what it is that makes you treat me like an ass."

"There is no such reason." He turned his head back enough that she could see his eyelashes but not his eyes. They were lowered and just as long as she remembered them being. "You simply fill me with an unpleasant feeling whenever present. I do not like you, and there is no reason for it, I just don't. Do not bother me with this again, girl."

Blood, there was so much blood, and Sasori wasn't standing anymore.

He wasn't standing anymore.

He was down, in the grass, on his side, leaking red into the soil.

Sakura struggled to breath out, remembering it all too well in too much clarity. It was all in the past, but it was happening again in her head and she couldn't look away, she couldn't forget how she felt, and she couldn't stop the images from coming.

"Sakura."

She fell silent and became terribly attentive to his face as he tried to find her with his eyes. She knew the moment he did because the corner of his lips turned up. "Kiss me."

She was stupid, but now she was alone in the hallway with red eyes that refused to cry.

Her body moved on it's own and she was a passenger along for the ride. She watched her body move, walk to the map room. Her body bent over the table with the markers that looked like miniature beasts. There were three, one for the bull, one for the beetle, and one for the fox. Underneath the table were seals written on white sheets of paper. Transportation seals.

Sakura watched as he body drew one and channeled chakra into it. She was low on chakra, weak from blood loss, and emotionally unstable, so it didn't make sense for her to be doing what she was doing, but she couldn't stop it. There was white light and then smoke. When that blew away she was standing in front of a large cave that was more trench than cave, with all the cracks that ran up to the surface.

Sakura heard humming.

Someone behind her grasped their sword belt.

"A visitor, at this hour? I would have never expected one to come to me so weak and wounded."

Sakura turned numbly to face the man who hummed like a nest of bees. The name was on her lips and rolling off before she knew she was even speaking.

"Shino."

The boy behind the black glasses didn't grin, but there was something pleased in the way his straight lips nearly quirked. He nodded his head and grabbed for his sword, drawing it out slowly. It came out with a scrapping hiss that ended in a breath of relief when it was free. Shino, a name for the sound a sword makes when it is drawn. Shinnnnnnnn-oh. Yes, this was where he belonged. This was where he was from.

"What are you doing here, little girl? Come to kill me?"

Her body didn't answer, it just moved.

She didn't have limits, chakra or physical to consider. She didn't need companions, she could do it all on her own without having to make friends and form stupid bonds that weren't even real.

"It was real to me!" she cried out loud, confusing her opponent as she parried a blow and turned to meet another.

He was wearing armor, so a lot of her hits were countered when he moved his shoulder or arm out to catch her blade, hold it, and swing with his own. Sakura always managed to make it out, but the second time she stumbled free she knew she wouldn't get lucky a third time.

Her body became encased with the iron scales and plates of an antique Edo period Japanese samurai. When he attacked again she caught his blade with her forehead, and the metal protector she wore there fell away. She dreamed up a full sized helmet complete with the mask of an Oni to cover everything below her eyes.

Shino grunted in satisfaction. "Impressive. I've never seen such a skill set."

Blood was coming down her face and she blinked it away, finding her lashes heavy with it. He took that opening and her sword was useless. She caught his blade with her hands and the piecing reminded her how a saint bled.

They fought together some more and it became apparent that Sakura was not equipped to take on Shino in her current state. She was failing and fading fast and he didn't even look like he broke a sweat. There was blood on her body too, from a wound somewhere she didn't remember receiving.

"Where will you hide now?"

She saw his blade go up.

There was onyx and Obelisk and darkness and the blue, blue eyes of a too clever fox. She felt drowned, seeing everything through a haze as another figure stepped in. A figure with black hair and red eyes. Why did she think they had been blue? She was shoved back, shoved down, and the onyx was eating her up. Back through the kingdom to the gate, bleeding and broken, she fell.

It was odd, going from one kingdom to its gate and then back to a kingdom.

Thankfully, when she woke up in the real world the scars and wounds were far less than what they would have been. For whatever reason, her time in the Monarch Woods had helped speed up the recovery time. Only a thin line that was easy enough to hide with her hair and some marks on her palms remained visible. What was on her torso was easy to cover up.

Still, it felt like Karin noticed, so Sakura went only to school and lied about all the homework she needed to get done. She stayed home, did her puny homework assignments, watched Steven Universe on Cartoon Network, and drifted off to sleep again.

When she walked back into the Kingdom of Beasts, it was right outside Shino's cave. High above the cave, on an outcropping of rocks, lounged a black fox. It opened one eye to observe her before yawning. There was no sign of Shino.

"You're the nine tailed fox," she said, feeling no doubt in her words. "What happened to Shino?"

"He was going to kill you and you care what happens to him, do you?" The voice didn't come directly from he fox, but Sakura knew it's place of origin was the creature in front of her. The fox yawned before saying anything more. "He was tasty enough for a host, but all those bugs nearly made me sick. You should thank me. I ate him for you."

Sakura felt her lip curl. Her side was bruised, but she was alert this time around and ready for a fight. "Why would you do that? You're a beast as well."

The fox sat up, yawned again, and when it closed it's mouth to look at her, its smile was human. A moment later the fox was a man dressed all in black with cunning blue eyes that flashed with a shadow of red. Sakura couldn't help but gasp.

"Naruto!"

The dark haired Naruto inclined his head and smiled mischievously. The scar whiskers on his cheeks stood out prominently with the action. Over his black robes he wore a shawl of gray fur. "Close, but no. Naruto could be called my twin, but he is not me. I am Menma. Uzumaki Menma, remember it."

Sakura straightened and reached to hold her katana sheath even. She could draw it in a moment if she needed to. "You're still a beast. You are my enemy."

"Do I have to be?" he asked, smiling widely. "I may not be a good guy, but I could be what you need, because let's be honest, if it weren't for me, you would have died back there with bug for brains. Why would I do a nice thing like that?"

"You want something?" she guessed.

Naruto's double shrugged. Sakura still had a hard time seeing him as the character Menma, but it was apparent this character was nowhere near as sweet or kind as Naruto had been. Menma watched her with clear eyes that saw everything. It made her feel like there was something underneath her skin.

"I've heard it through the grapevine that you're not to be taken lightly. You've killed my kind before, not like me, but still…that's impressive. But what has me interested is how you've managed to manipulate the white snake's scum into doing your dirty work for you." He watched as shock came over her features and laughed. "Ah yes, seems you were not oblivious. The poor scab is in for a century of hurt now. Not only did he manipulate the Akatsukie into fighting for you, Kimimaro kun took care of the dream killer for you. Have you noticed?"

Behind her there was sound and when Sakura turned she saw Kimamaro impaled on a pike. Barely conscious he struggled to breath. Sakura screamed at the sight and rushed to his side. Menma barked something and black fire-fox fire- cut her off from Kimimaro's body. She turned, fury in her hands.

"Calm down, he's not dead, and it's not like he could die any more than he's already died. Once he is extinguished he will start over for a different dreamer in a different world. And really, you should be more worried about yourself…and this guy."

Sakura's voice was shrill when she saw the shape hanging from Menma's hand. "Sai!"

"Oh please," Menma laughed. "Not this one too. He came to me, he was the one who asked for this. He wanted power, the kind I could offer him."

In Menma's opposite hand a new flame sprang up, flickering black and purple and red at times. Sakura felt sick as the flames crystalized. Obsidion, onyx, evil, curses. Sakura's eyes hurt to look at it. That was what she needed to advance to the next world. That was the Obelisk.

Sai screamed something ungodly as Menma thrust those flame crystals into his body. Sakura's voice was too high pitched to hear as she watched Sai's body convulse and crystalize at the entry point. Those shards seeped into his body like ink. Under his skin, white alabaster coloring turned pitch with curse. Sai's eyes went white, too wide, and then the blackness seeped into them. Menma huffed and tossed Sai's limp body to the side and wiped his hand.

"There's your precious exit portal." Menma shrugged. "Yeah, I used to have it, once I killed Shino it came to me because that's how the story is supposed to go, you kill me, progress on to the next world, maybe you die, maybe you don't. But like this, you don't have to kill me to go on to the next kingdom. That guy over there, he was dying anyway so why not make use of him? Sacrificial lamb for dinner. In fact, I can do it for you."

Sakura felt dizzy. She fell to one knee, steadying herself. "What did you do?" Her voice sounded like it was coming from somewhere else. "Sai."

Menma crouched down behind her and she felt his hands on her shoulders. "He said he believed you could do it. You had the potential to go the whole way. I've seen a few worth watching, and I don't think he was wrong when he chose to side with you." Menma nuzzled the side of her face, much like how a cat or dog would when desiring pets.

Something occurred to Sakura then. "How could you do this…you're an actor."

He hummed. "Yes, but you brought awareness to the Kingdom of Beasts, you clever vixen. You willed it." At the look on her face he laughed loud. "Oh, you thought it was just your friends who started to wake up? No, for every good there is evil. It wouldn't be fair if everything was perfect for you, right? Tis nature." He reached out and licked the side of her face and chuckled darkly. "You still taste like wolf."

"You want to come with me, like Sai did," Sakura finally said, feeling detached from the words. When she turned to see his face, Menma was grinning. His fangs stood out, gleaming brilliantly. Feeling the pain of it, she looked to Kimimaro. "But why would you hurt them?"

"Because he was going to hurt you. Also, I didn't like the idea of you forgiving him and taking him with you once the other one expired into ash and smoke. No, I'm much more suited to following you into the void, into the unknown. I was always stronger."

Across the ground from where he was thrown Sai stirred. Sakura gasped, getting up to run to him, but was pulled back down by Menma. She cried out in protest.

"No!" Menma hissed, pulling her back to his chest and holding her hostage. His face was right next to hers, his lips on her ears. "Not unless you're ready to kill him."

As if on cue Sai reared up and roared with something that wasn't human from within his chest. His eyes were still spilled ink, two glass beads in his eye sockets. Demon eyes. The edges of his body began to burn. When he exhaled the cavity of his chest glowed red, like a dying ember. His human shape began to fade in and out, curling out and away into smoke. A curl of smoke pulled away from his arm and where it touched the cave surface it became a crawling snake that hissed in warning. A host of spiders grew out of his feet, crawling towards her.

"Not so fast," Menma laughed. His own fix fire reached out and sent the spiders back, destroying the ones that were too slow to escape in time. Sakura felt him kiss her neck and he hummed in pleasure. "I can't let him cut this short. I want to enjoy our time together."

"Sai, snap out of it!" Sakura screamed, struggling against the hold Menma had on her. "SAI!"

Who was she supposed to call to when the person she always called to for help was the one that needed help?

Looking up she saw Menma sharped a curl of black flame into a bolt to throw. He grinned rakishly and pulled back, ready to throw it straight at Sai. Even if Sai was now trying to kill her, Sakura couldn't resign herself to it.

"No!" She screamed and shoved Menma off her just as he reached back to throw the black bolt. He growled, recovering quickly.

Sakura took one step towards Sai, armoring herself from foot to knee, another step, knee to belt, another step, belt to neck, another step, arms and hands. She reached for Sai but before she could touch him there was fire between her and him. Not Sai's, but Menma's.

"Are you crazy?! He's going to try and kill you now!" Menma scowled, spitting something out of the corner of his mouth before making symbols with his hands. His fingers were a blur and then the ground became uneven. A dragon of water, a dragon of fire, a dragon of earth all rose up out from underneath her and writhed before heading towards Sai.

Sakura screamed again but Menma was behind her, pulling her from underneath her chest backwards. She struggled, but he was unforgiving. "Not today, little kit," he whispered in her ear before the ground rushed out from underneath them. Suddenly they were above it all, on the back of a large black fox. Menma laughed and pinned her down, grabbing fistfuls of fur before kicking the fox like a horse to make it run. Over his shoulder, Sakura counted nine black, swishing fox tails.

A moment later, even though they were so far away, Sakura could still hear it when Kimimaro cried out for the last time. Something in her heart shattered, knowing that the battle between Sai and Kimimaro was finally over. "You left them there on purpose," she breathed. "Sai killed him."

"As well as he could. Kimimaro will come back, he's not truly dead, or rather, he's not truly alive." He chuckled darkly. "But that shouldn't matter to you now. You have bigger things to worry about. You are coming with me."

She was stupid.

Sasori didn't want to talk to her, big deal. No one remembered her, big deal. The dreams were hard, but so was life. She was selfish, she was stupid too. All this time, all this time she had been going about this all wrong. Wrong motivation, wrong outcome.

"If it's you, I think you could do it Sakura."

"No."

Menma didn't seem concerned, but he did smile regretfully down at her. "Don't worry, you'll like it with me. I'll help you more than any of the others ever could. We can remake the world in our image. You'll have anything you wish. They'll all remember and want you, but you will no longer be a girl, but a goddess who travels between worlds. Isn't that what you want?"

What was she doing here?

"No." Her voice was stone. Her voice was steel.

"Yes it is," he laughed.

Menma reached for her again but she was faster, drawing her katana and rolling off the back of his fox. She heard him yell and she curled in on herself. She hit the trees first, and thought it hurt like hell, it saved her from falling to her death. Menma's fox skid to a halt and turned around, to come back for her, but she knew better than to let him have his way. No more.

She drew the symbol into the dirt and the pushed her chakra into it. Menma was close but not close enough to stop her from transporting in a cloud of smoke.

"NO!"

"I look at you, Masha, and it is like drinking cold water. I look at you and it is like my throat being cut."
— Catherynne M. Valente, from Deathless

What was once simple became terribly complex: Kill all the tailed beast, go on to the next level.

But now Menma wasn't a part of the problem, Sai was. The Obelisk, like it existed inside of Nageto when she healed him, this time it existed inside of Sai the Beast Spawn as he was being called.

The Akatsuki was still focused on finding and killing the nine tailed fox, but Sakura's heart wasn't in it anymore. She healed, she helped, she even went on smaller side missions, but she never felt like a part of any of it. She was in her body for a ride.

Sai hunted her almost as religiously as Menma. Not even the Monarch Woods was safe to escape to. Because, while Menma couldn't follow her into the gate, Sai could.

Slowly, winter faded, outside in the real world and inside the dream as well. She had spent months here. From October to to January to March. The white snow faded and the buds on the trees came out.

In school Sakura struggled through classes she should have been able to pass without any effort. Assignments came in late, papers never got finished, and more than just a handful of classes were missed on her part. Having to struggle to find scholarships became a much more suspenseful hunt once her perfect A grade started to drop in a couple of classes.

When she met with an advisor, there was no way she could make the numbers work for the next semester.

'Do you still want to sign up for classes while on this loan?'

Sakura's head felt numb when she shook it. She told the advisor she needed time off to work, and the woman behind the computer seemed to understand, but Sakura doubted it. There was a plan she had followed ever since high school. She was supposed to be done in another year and a half. Now, she didn't know if she could finish. Would the curse allow her that? Now she was beginning to understand why it was a curse.

In addition to how largely screwed up her regular life was, there were other things in the dream world that gave her reason for concern. The sky looked bruised in places. Sai once said something about how it was dangerous to stay too long in one kingdom or gate and Sakura wondered if maybe she was approaching the limits of this world with only a few months spent in it. Nothing had happened so far, and really it wasn't a big deal, but Sakura felt uneasy whenever she looked up and saw purple and green smeared behind white clouds like an angry bruise.

"Ready to leave with me?" Menma asked, sitting on a rock in his fox form while Sakura knelt to fill her water skin. If she ignored him he usually left, if for no other reason than to avoid the men she traveled with. They would still kill him if they found him, even if Sakura wouldn't.

"Sakura, are you finished?" Itachi asked, coming out of the trees.

When she looked up to the stones there was no fox.

Itachi didn't seem to notice her concern, but accepted one of the water skins she had filled. There was little Itachi didn't notice, but he was respectful of her feelings to the degree that he didn't call her out on anxieties. He nodded to the other skins in her hands. "Who are the others two for?"

"Deidara and Sasori."

There was a stiffness in Itachi's eyes when he nodded. Normally Sakura ignored it, but seeing Menma again had made her agitated. Talking with her consoler had made her agitated. Karin getting pissed off had made her agitated. The blood under her nails made her agitated.

"What's with that face?" she asked, narrowing her eyes at Itachi. She used a tone he knew not to argue with. He could try and disengage, but that would earn him the cold shoulder for a while, and Itachi hated the cold shoulder.

"You treat him so softly and yet he has been nothing but harsh with you. Why do you endure it?"

She understood the other thing he didn't say. 'Why do you still care for him when he doesn't love you?'

"He doesn't remember me, there's nothing to be done. Forcing him to remember will only incur other…negative side effects. It's better this way. I don't need the distraction." She glanced backwards looking for the shadow of a fox that had been stalking her for weeks and found it between the branches high in a tree.

The breath Itachi took in before speaking was deafening, only because Sakura was so sensitive to it by now. She cold be beside a waterfall and hear the shift of his eyes when he searched for her. Something about the way he existed made her hyper sensitive to his existence. "If you asked I would do that for you."

"I know."

Itachi shook his head, not willing to push the sore subject. "How are your hands. They were all scratched from the fight earlier and you can't heal yourself yet."

"The water helped," she easilly answered, letting him fall into step beside her. Halfway to camp they found Kisame cleaning the scales on his sword. He looked at the water skins and stuck his tongue out at Sakura. "None for me?"

"Your skin is huge, do it yourself." Even as she said the words Kisame was handing his oversized water skin over to Itachi who held out his hand, offering his services wordlessly. Sakura huffed, biting her cheek. "Itachi! He's being lazy."

"I don't mind," Itachi answered over his shoulder, heading off towards the waters again. When Kisame cackled Sakura kicked him with the side of her foot.

Sakura turned to find Sasori and Deidara finishing the set up of their tents. A hole had already been dug for the fire pit and Deidara had pulled over some fallen logs to sit on while around the fire. The whole site looked very built up. "Are we staying here that long?" Sakura asked, handing the water over to the blond first. Sasori was still inside one of the tents.

"Thanks, Sakura chan. Yeah, there were signs of several recent fights in the area. I think the Spawn and the Fox are both close. We'll call Hidan and Kakuzu to join us in the morning." Deidara paused to take a drink and smiled when he pulled away. "The best!"

Sasori emerged from his tent and Sakura took a few hesitant steps over to were he stood with his water in her hand. He took it, their fingers brushing, but he didn't say a word. His hands were cold, he was always cold, but when they touched Sakura thought of smooth wood and not flesh. Still, he was beautiful.

"Let me know if you need more," she said, looking at Sasori.

Deidara looked up and Sakura glanced backwards in time to meet his eyes. She smiled, and he smiled back. Neither was convinced though. By now it was well known that Sakura had a 'thing' for the redhead of their group, but aside from Hidan and Itachi, no one could understand why. Sasori was the least likable suitor after Hidan, but even Hidan was soft for Sakura and kind in her presence. Sasori seemed to be the only one who seemed to dislike Sakura out of the entire organization. Kakuza and Konan were indifferent to her existence, but only Sasori was cruel to her.

"When I need water I will retrieve it myself," Sasori lazily replied, turning away and heading over to the fire.

"I'll go get dinner then." She should have taken Kisame, or let Itachi know to join her, but what she really wanted was some time alone, some solitude for proper thinking.

Before she was out of the rang of hearing, but behind enough foliage to be hidden, she heard Deidara throw something down in anger. It clattered loudly. Sasori's voice was bored as he commented on the display.

"Do no be childish with you anger. Find something constructive to do."

"You did it again, you ass!"

Sasori's tone stayed flat. "I do not know to what you are implying."

"Sakura. She's been nothing but sweet as an angel and you treat her with contempt every chance you get. I don't know why Itachi lets you live, but he's not the only one who wants to murder you every time you're mean to her."

"You're saying useless things again."

"You know some of us would kill to get that kind of attention right? It doesn't make sense why she has to watch you, why she has to worry about you, to ask about you, and think only about you. Maybe I could stand it if she liked someone reasonable like Itachi or even Kisame, as ugly as he is. At least they care for her, not like you. Damn, it's wasted affection."

"This conversation is a waste of oxygen. I'm under no obligation to return her misguided affections, should they even exist as you claim they do. Unnecessary as it may be, in my defense, that woman has always filled me with a sense of dread."

"Maybe that's because you're a puppet and don't have balls anymore."

"Reproductive organs are irrelevant."

"Your face is irrelevant. I'm not a eunice so I know a good thing when I see it, and you're an ass, Sasori."

"As you has said before."

Deidara threw something again and stormed off. Sakura didn't move to turn around and check, but knew well enough that is likely what happened. This wasn't the first conversation between the two she accidentally overheard. And just like all the others, this one hurt just as bad.

She needed to get away, so Sakura walked. Walking was good, it let her thing and gave her time to she was outside the range of the campsite she remembered why solitude was something she hadn't experienced in weeks.

"Chicken okay?" the fox asked, dropping a few dead birds at her feet. She moved around the birds, ignoring them but stopped when he materialized as a human in front of her, dark whiskers and all. "Not to your taste?"

"I don't eat, you know that." The moment the words left her mouth she regretted them. Menma's eyes twinkled with mischief, knowing he had her attention now. Normally she ignored him, but sometimes that got too exhausting. She cursed out loud, turning her face away.

"You thought about my offer recently? We could kill him together."

If the thought of killing Sai didn't make her want to vomit, the idea of doing it with Menma did. As kind and thoughtful as Naruto was, Menma was just as devious and selfish. A part of her wanted to strike him down just to be rid of his presence. Menma noticed her displeasure and chuckled. It was as if he enjoyed her being in the pain his presence brought.

"Laugh if you want, but you're not going anywhere like this. I kind of hate you."

Menma shrugged. "But I'm useful. In the next world the dangers will be that much more intense, and without the Sigh of Dejection to guide or protect you, you will be more vulnerable than ever before. You'll need me. You can't do it on your own." He coxed his head to the side. "Don't believe I can be useful, should I prove it to you?"

Sakura didn't know what he had in mind, but she knew it made her uncomfortable. Menma's ideas were always bad ideas. She drew her sword and slashed at the air between them. Manma drew back just enough to be missed by the halfhearted gesture. "Don't talk to me."

"I can just show you then." His head was still cocked and his grin was still infuriating. "You don't need to like me, you just need to need me."

He was gone in a whirl of fox fire and ash.

The smoke left behind made her think of Sai. Because of her, he was now a single minded monster.

'I want Sai to be who he once was. I want him to heal, to be better.' Sakura looked down at her hands, the ones she used for healing and felt helpless. She couldn't even fix herself, how could she fix Sai?

And poor Kimimaro…she had failed him. Even if he turned his back on her, she gave up on him. Did she even try to reach out to him after that? What was he feeling?

Something Sai had said to her got stuck in her thoughts. 'If it's you, you can do it.' She had somehow been able to make Itachi and Hidan remember her from a past world. That wasn't supposed to be possible, but she had somehow managed it. Manifestation wasn't always allowed, but somehow she had summoned a gun out of tine when fighting the elephant wolf. She was more powerful than she gave herself credit. This was her dream, this was her world, and she was its master. If she wanted Sai back he would come back to her. She would will it so.

Her knees became damp from the soil and grass that seeped into her pants where she knelt. Eyes squeezed shut, hands clasped in prayer, she remembered the power of her will. She saw it in her mind's eye. The monster Sai was became something else, something broken became whole, the animal, the beast became man. She would will it so with everything at her disposal. She would remake the world for this. She would, she would, she would. Eyes wet, knuckles bruised, she prayed harder.

She felt it. The skies cried out, bruises growing. She was breaking down the dream world and rearranging the matter that made up dreams. Her will reached out like hands and suddenly there was thunder under her veins, making her bones shake. Then it was the rest of the world that shook.

Sakura looked up, falling onto her hands in an effort to keep herself steady. There was a spray of dirt and trees ripped up by their roots were flying through the air. Massive trunks came crashing down to earth like angry giant steps.

A moment later Itachi and Kisame landed down on either side of her. "It's the fox," Kisame said.

"He's fighting something," Itachi added.

Something felt stuck in the back of her throat. "The spawn?" she asked, but in her head she said something else. 'Sai?'

"Likely," Itachi said with a nod.

In the distance overhead she saw the large clay bird Deidara had crafted out of his chakra flying towards the fight sight. Sasori road the bird behind Deidara. Itachi moved to follow them and Kisame heaved his sword over his shoulder, taking off first. Sakura stood, but watched numbly as the pair raced off ahead of her, disappearing between the trees before she could right herself. She still felt the thunder in her marrow, angry and echoing.

She drew her sword and the feel of a weighted blade in her hand helped ground her. Maybe there really was something angry in her body as a result of her trying to remake the dream in her image, but she wouldn't let that stop her. The others were all up ahead without her, doing God knows what. She needed to be with them.

One foot in front of the other, one step at a time, she began the walk that became a sprint that evolved into a run. Arms behind her, she cut into the wind, soaring over the earth until she emerged from the forest into a clearing made by destruction.

Kisame and Itachi were alternating between long and short range attacks as a swarm of ink animals came at them while Deidara and Sasori tried taking on Menma who toyed with the pair of them, having already crippled Deidara's bird and slashed through Sasori's shoulder.

'Two roads diverge in a yellow woods, one to a cunning trickster fox who fights my ex, and the other towards my fallen friend who I'be been trying to make human again.'

Menma laughed and then, as a huge fox, reached out to crush Deidara underfoot. Sakura didn't understand why she could only watch as the blond who was her friend was reduced to a body of crushed bones for Sasori to step over. Alive or dead, made no difference to the redhead. 'Not my Sasori.'

Sakura charged for Menma, launching into a sword dance that didn't hide how much she wanted to exterminate the fox fiend. One of his tails knocked Sasori down and another swept over Sakura, causing her to duck. Menma was there waiting for her, on the ground. His smile was criminally wide.

"You didn't want the red head, did you?" he asked coyly.

She shouldn't had, but she turned in tip to see Sasori pinned down with the mouth of the giant fox over his face, jaws open, ready to tear and crunch.

"No!" her voice was shrill and broken even as Menma reached out to hold her around the waist. A pair of fox tails descended around them like a curtain, blocking the rest of the world out. She heard the pain of Kisame but couldn't see if he was hurt or hit.

Hid fingers dug into her waist, demanding her attention. Menma's eyes were red like blood now. "I didn't mean to, but your Sigh of Dejection provoked me. I won't kill this one, since he means so much to you, but I want to ask for a promise from you. You'll promise me something, won't you?" The fox behind her growled.

"I'm not taking you with me, not after this, are you crazy?"

"Not even for him?"

A portion of the tail parted to show Sasori bent over on the ground, looking like his body had been snapped in several places. He was struggling on his hands to pull his body along, away from the snapping snout of the fox. Beyond him Deidara lay lifeless.

Sakura didn't answer, Her sword turned upwards inside Menma's body; a swift and decisive blow. When she turned to face him her eyes were burning. "That's for Deidara."

She didn't bother to watch the expressions on his face as they flickered through. When she pulled her sword free it was only to strike him down once more. Behind her the fox faded, the chakra that kept him sustained no longer in existence. With a hole through his heart and slash along his breath, Menma still choked on the last bit of breath left in him. It almost sounded like a laugh, so Sakura kept her sword ready.

He was looking at her as he died, blood falling down his throat as he pushed the words out. "Next time…, don't call me… Naruto."

The light left his eyes and she knew he was as gone as he could be. Maybe in another kingdom, in another world, they would meet again, but that was a worry best saved for later. Looking up, she saw Kisame holding one arm limp and blood soaked and Itachi bleeding from his eyes. There were smoke monsters everywhere and Itachi's long range attacks were useless.

"This will end today," she said to herself, hating how easy it had been to kill Menma. Sai, her precious Sai, dearest friend and companion would have to go. Blood dripping from her sword, she turned towards Sai and began the trek.

"Haruno."

She froze in place. Behind her she could hear Sasori gathering himself together, trying to stand. He sounded like a wooden doll, hallow and wooden. When she turned to look behind him, she saw exactly what she had lost his cloak and discarded much of the clothing that hindered him from moving. What was left of his body was built of wood. He was missing one who leg and his right arm was split from wrist to elbow. Cracks ran through his body like a spiderweb on canvas. Where his heart should have been was a meaty canister lodged in his chest with veins sprayed out. That part was the only part that bled.

"What…are you?" she asked, sprinting over to him to help him sit up. He grunted at the touch, but didn't push her away. Sakura reached for the red canister on his chest and lightly brushed her fingers over it, glowing with healing light. Sasori hissed, color rising to his cheeks. It had been the only thing about his with warmth in it.

"That's your heart, isn't it?" She had never seen it before, partly because of clothing and also because the wooden cover that hid it from view now lay destroyed into two pieces beside his hand. It was apparent that the absence of this cover altered him in some way.

"I traded my body for this immortality. Please do not touch me there again. I feel…uncomfortable with this proximity."

Frowning, Sakura reached out and stroked his heart canister intentionally, dragging her fingertips up and down the edges. With both his arms damaged, he couldn't really stop her no matter how red it made his cheeks. He bit his lips and a hazy look overtook his eyes.

"This is the only part of you that's left capable of feeling, and you haven't felt anything in years, haven't you?" Sakura asked, watching his darting eyes for the answer he likely wouldn't admit to her. She wanted to tease him, to unsettle him and make him as uncomfortable as he made her, but she also wanted to kiss him, so she did. She took his lips with her own and memorized the shape of them. When she pulled away, Sasori looked breathless. It was enough to make her grin. "You actually liked that, didn't you?"

At a loss from his senses, Sasori leaned in to her, eyes half lidded and woozy with stars in them, but Sakura pulled away. When he whined it almost made her want to spoil him. She pushed his face away and kissed his heart before standing and backing away. He watched her, frightened.

"Sakura." He never used to call her name before.

"Sorry, I have a friend I need to save."

Kisame and Itachi were wearied and broken as she ran to them. They had exhausted themselves with endless waves of smoke beasts, but Sakura wasn't going to fall to the same folly.

Fist first, she upturned the earth and cleared a path for her straight to the source of the creatures. Sai opened his mouth and tried to spawn another fox, but Sakura's sword cut upwards, straight through the smoke head growing out of his mouth. The creature exploded into ash that rained down between them.

She swung and he became smoke before her blade could connect. "Damn it Sai, quit it!" she screamed, cutting through a deer that seeped from his sleeves. Majestic antlers tangled into ash under her feet. "Stop and wake up, it's me!"

Bats. Sakura poured chakra into her blade and cut the air, watching as the shockwave rendered them flightless. She slashed again, but this time she followed the cut to get close. When Sai threw up reindeer to take the blows, Sakura was there waiting behind the curtain of falling ash. The only thing he could do was pull a saber of his own from the smoke and meet her blade with his.

Switching her sword over to her right hand, Sakura let her left palm glow with healing light before reaching under their hilts to touch Sai's chest. He convulsed violently at the touch and dropped his sword, falling back on himself with animalistic screams. Sakura sheathed her own sword before falling on him again, both palms glowing.

"Sai, Sai, come back to me. Listen to my voice, this isn't you."

Something began to separate from his body and the edges and boundaries of his person began to become more defined. He started to feel solid again as the black obelisk rose from his breast like the point of a sword. She was pulling at that black obsidian, knowing it was more than just her ticket to the next world. It was Sai's salvation.

"Sakura." She almost faltered when he called her name. It was tired but it was the old Sai talking. "You…" his words trailed off.

"It's going to be fine, hold on. I'll save you. I'll take it out of you and-kuk!"

His hand, black and gloved, gripped her around the throat and cut her air supply off. She felt her lungs flutter like a butterfly's wings before Sai jerked hard and threw her to the ground, face first. She coughed and then inhaled deeply, sucking dust and smoke and dirt up into her breathing passages.

Palms braced against the dirt and grass she tried to push up and stand again but Sai's knee was there between her shoulder blades. She cried out at the biting pain, but couldn't push him off.

"What are you…?"

His hand reached out and grabbed at her hair, pulling on it and turning it around in his hand before yanking hard. Sakura's head followed and her throat arched, exposed and bare for his claw tipped hands to trace. "None of that," he hissed. His voice was thick with the emotion of abhorrence. "Deceiver. You will dream no more than this."

She felt the blade at the base of the back of her neck and spasmed, drawing a tanto blade out of thin air to dig out behind her. With his hand in her hair she couldn't properly reach enough to stop or hurt him. Sai was going to execute her.

"Why, Sai?" She could move her head just enough to see above her at the shadowed face of her friend. This wasn't right. His eyes, always black, were pits without end. Not Sai.

"In place of the dream killer, I must do the will of the great serpent."

He raised his blade and there was no time to mourn, no time to grieve, not time to regret. Sakura pulled hard and reached up with her tanto to slice through her hair where it knotted around his fingers. The blood from his cut fingers fell onto her face as she turned, free at last. One strike was all it would take, but Sai already had his blade up to break her draw. Sakura kicked and the earth became uneven. Sai roared and the shadows around him became a great mass. The shadows and smoke curled over Menma's dead body and a moment later he became the black fox.

Behind her Kisame cried out her name. He struggled with only one arm and behind him Itachi was blind and bleeding. Sasori was propped up against the trunk of a tree, crippled as well. It was just her.

"On your own you are nothing," the smoke fox cackled. "Not even enough for one salvation." The fox stood and found Deidara's dead body, stomping down on it for emphasis.

Before Sakura could feel the grief the fox reared up and sprang for her. She tried to jump back, but the shadow stretched on forever around her and the fox found her. Sakura threw her sword up, but a monster sized beast such as Sai's was too much for her own powers to block all on their own. 'This is not the end!'

The ground under her cracked and she sank into it, her hands stretched above her, straining under the weight. Sakura was buried in the earth, stomped into it, but somehow she wasn't up there was a blade of black smoke crossed with hers, providing support against the fox's assault.

"Sai?"

'Not quite,' a voice echoed in her ears. She felt warmth and knew it was him. 'What you knew as Sai is no more. The White Snake has corrupted my body. I am afraid I can be of no greater use to you that what I do now. There is no more time for explanation or goodbyes. You must kill him.'

"What about you, Sai?" Sakura asked, feeling her elbows burn as they wanted to bend under the weight above her. "What will happen to you? Where are you now?" She didn't want to sound frantic, but it was hard.

'The form you see now is all I can manage. This is as far as I go with you as the Sigh of Dejection, however a part of me will always be with the dreamer, same as Kimimaro.'

The ground under her feet cracked again as she sank deeper. Her arms burned. "God-you-you're saying goodbye, aren't you?"

'Perhaps, but today is not a day for you to worry about such. Today you must survive. Take all you have earned thus far and make your wrath feared, dreamer."

"Sai-"

'Now!'

Sakura screamed and the world trembled. She was a supernova with teeth. The short curls of hair that were left after her sheering flared up around her like a rose colored halo as the chakra in her body surged out. She was using all of it, manifesting it into a weapon around her. It was enough to push the black fox off and send him tumbling. When Sakura emerged from the hole in the ground there were green flames of excess chakra burning out of her pores.

Sai's body righted the fox and prepared for another attack but Sakura was ready. Roaring, she blazed brighter and her chakra manifested once more in a new and terrifying form. Larger than the black fox who stood amove the trees, Sakura now rode the head of a silver wolf with ten tails swaying behind him. It wasn't truly Hungry, but she felt the spirit of him as if it were.

Sai's face contorted in a unbridled rage that was so unlike him Sakura couldn't help but feel free to strike him down. That body wasn't Sai. She leveled her sword and Sai made one of smoke for himself.

"This ends here."

Sai roared, Sakura screamed, and with the momentom of their war cries the pair launched themselves at each other. Hungry tore at Sai's fox, ripping it to smoke shred while Sakura leapt from the head of her wolf to meet Sai with her sword. He blocked and they exchanged blows, but Sakura was burning and there was no way she was going to loose. She had never been so powerful before.

Hungry tore through the fox's throat and Sai lost his balance, giving Sakura the only opening she needed. There was no hesitation, only fury as she dropped her blade and severed Sai's head from his body. The Obelisk poured out and Sakura felt her chakra ebb away as a warmer light engulfed her.

Sai was in her ear as the world turned over. 'I knew you could do it. You are the one who will ruin these awful kingdoms. I believe in you, Sakura.'

"The sky quivers, the earth quakes before me, for I am a magician, I possess magic."
Pyramid Texts, utterance 472 (§ 924)

The Monarch Woods came to an end. The Kingdom of Beasts came to an end. All the actors with all their roles were swept up in the light as the curse reset.

Through it all, Sakura drifted.

AN:/ Shit. It is one in the morning, I have an early day tomorrow that is going to last forever, so of course I'm gonna stay up and write an AN to finish this baby, that's what writers do: make poor life choices. :) I embrace the label.

So yeah. Here it is, my baby. I don't know how I feel about it yet, because it's much longer than the others but it also felt rushed towards the end. I wanted to write about so much more and go into the backstories and talk about Konan and Pein and Kimimaro killing the dream killer for Sakura and all that he went through and I couldn't do it all!

I wanted so much more, but God I was so done. After this I'm taking a little break. The next Kingdom is going to be my favorite, (spoiler alert, speakeasy era Uchiha mafia boys in suits) but the gate world is one I haven't really fleshed out yet...and that sort of comes first. I might write the next Obelisk as chapters and update them once a month. Oneshots and twoshots are killing me. I love it, but I'm dying.

I hate to sound like a whiner but it is worth noting that 2014 was the worst year of my life and I've never been so sick emotionally with all the anxiety that decided to make a home in my body. I'm a mess, a terrible mess that is still healing. I won't get into it, but school was just really bad and I was put in a position where the teacher who was mentoring me was borderline verbally abusive. I kept getting stressed and messing up and that made it worse and it all snowballed into a big pile of shit. It's nothing compared to the troubles of others, and I don't know why it was so damaging to my psyche. At least I have my work to show for it; I have my Obelisk stories.

Thank you for supporting me and reviewing. Knowing you guys read and like my work just makes me want to sing. It does so much to heal my heart. I love you guys, all of you. Thanks for the trip. When I was done I would go back and read reviews and make myself cry. I hope to keep doing this in the future. I love writing and I love making something worth reading. Cheers to a new year guys, lets make it a good one.

Vesper chan

(Side note, my fave part was when they were passing the geisha ladies and Sakura gets the flirts and Kisame is all "Really? Even the chick gets more action than me.")