Greetings. This is my first attempt at fan fiction so I hope that you enjoy it. Please forgive any mistakes.

Disclaimer: Naruto is the property of Kishimoto Masashi. I am merely taking a few of his characters out for a spin.

Chapter 1

The sounds of screams and cries for help could be heard echoing throughout the spring night. A small fishing village of relative insignificance was caught up in hysteria as the populace realized that they were being raided. Dozens upon dozens of bandits marauded through the streets from every direction. They mercilessly cut down any hapless villager that attempted to prevent their meager belongings from being stolen.

Some of the villagers knew of the futility in fighting and resigned themselves to give the bandits what they wanted. To the horror of those particular villagers – actually, to the horror of all the villagers – it was soon understood that the bandits were not just looking to loot their possessions. The bandits were also after people.

Not shortly after that realization did the stench of death permeate the crisp night air. The villagers fought valiantly to protect their loved ones from being taken. Unfortunately, the villagers comprised only of simple fishermen, artisans, botanists, and shopkeepers. The shovels, pitch forks, and sickles the villagers used as weapons may as well have been bare fists against the broadswords that the bandits carried. They were completely over matched despite having superior numbers.

The village's own militia, a modest 20 men, was totally overwhelmed in the beginning stages of the raid. Those that fought to protect their loved ones were slaughtered like cattle. Those that tried to flee were merely rounded up as such. It was a hopeless situation and the villagers knew it.

Near the center of the village, Kiyoraka Shiro was frantically running back to the shrine that he was responsible for. He had just been at the village square curious to find out the cause of all the noise and why the village bell was rung as if a hurricane was approaching. Shiro had arrived to find several of his fellow villagers in such a panic that he had trouble deciphering what the exact problem was.

When he finally understood what was happening, he left without a second thought. As he ran along the street that lead back to the shrine, the head priest glanced backwards and was able to make out the forms of about a dozen or so bandits quickly marching in his direction. The group of bandits then started to brake off into twos and threes to storm into the other homes and shops that lined the street.

Shiro knew that it wouldn't be too long before they reached the shrine. He also knew that wasn't the only group of bandits making their way from the outskirts to the village center. Fortunately, the bandits he spotted didn't seem to notice him. Feeling the adrenalin rush brought on by his fight or flight instincts, he doubled his efforts to reach his home quickly and ran as fast as his fifty three year old legs would carry him.

After several moments, Shiro saw that he was nearly upon his destination. As the priest ran through the gate of the shrine's grounds, he briefly entertained the thought of closing and barricading it. The stone walls encompassing the grounds were quite high and locking the gate down may at least delay the bandits enough to get his family to safety.

The thought was quickly discarded as he heard the muffled sound of a door being forced open and following a brief pause, a scream echoed out. He squeezed his eyes shut as he fought down the feeling of guilt at being powerless to help his neighbors and then turned away from the gate. Its construction was only meant to be decorative anyway and the flimsy lock it had would not slow anyone down. Blocking out the cries for help that reached his ears, he sprinted towards the south end of the grounds where his family's home was located.

I have to keep them safe! I have to hide them! It was a mantra that Shiro kept repeating in his head as he covered the distance to his home in just under a minute. It was also a minute he knew he didn't have. Nearly out of breath, Shiro burst through the front door scanning for any sign of his wife and daughter.

"Mariko! Sakura!" he called out in between pants.

"Papa!" "Shiro!" was the simultaneous response he received. Both his wife and daughter came running out of the kitchen. Shiro took a brief moment to sigh in relief to see that they were both unharmed. For the moment. At that thought, he took in the worried looks on the faces of his beloved family and decided that he was wasting too much time.

"Hurry – this way!" Shiro grabbed their arms and began leading them to the back of the house.

"Papa? What's wrong? What's going on?"

"There's no time to explain Sakura!" He stopped in front of a door that lead to a small storage closet and opened it.

"Shiro…please. You're scaring us." His wife Mariko was almost in tears as she was attempting to make sense of the situation.

Shiro bent down and began to feel around the out edge of a floor panel. Once he found what he was looking for, he pried the floor panel up to reveal an opening and a ladder that descended into darkness. He straightened back up and gave his wife and daughter a serious look. "There's a lantern at the bottom of the ladder. Now both of you climb down and I'll-"

"Papa, why do we have to go down there?" Sakura didn't even know that room existed before now. She was already nervous with the way her father was acting and all the noise coming from outside. There was no way she was going to climb down into some dark room without an explanation.

Almost immediately after Sakura interrupted Shiro with her question, Mariko stepped toward her husband, placed her hand on his arm and with some apprehension asked one of her own. "Is there a hurricane coming?"

"JUST DO IT!" he thundered, as the stress of the situation got the best of him.

Completely baffled at what just happened Mariko took a step away from Shiro. Never, in all the time she has known her husband, has he ever raised his voice towards her or Sakura. Sakura for her part just stared at her father like he had grown an extra head. That was not the reaction of the father that she's known and loved for the twenty years she's been alive. If she was nervous before, then now she was downright scared.

Realizing that what he had done, Shiro took a deep breath and began again, "Look, I'm sorry I yelled. Please just get into the shelter room. You have to hide before they come."

"Before who comes?"

"Bandits Sakura. Our village is being raided as we speak. Now, please do as I say!" The obvious anxiety in Shiro's voice increased with every word he uttered.

The feeling of absolute dread came over both the Kiyoraka women as they processed what they were just told. Bandits? What do they want? What about the other villagers? A slew of questions bombarded Sakura and Mariko's mind.

Shiro brought their focus back to him. "They're targeting children and young women. The two of you must hide. I can't let anything happen to you." While he spoke, he grabbed Mariko by the shoulders and in an almost dance like fashion, rotated the two of them so that their positions were reversed and she was the one standing in the doorway of the storage closet. "Please Mariko, you have to hurry."

She looked into his light green eyes and saw a torrent of emotion in them. Mariko knew that his only desire now was to keep them safe. Thus, she nodded mutely to show her compliance and began to climb down through the opening in the floor. As she did so, she looked up to see that he had placed Sakura just inside the closet in preparation for her turn to climb down.

Sakura was still facing towards her father but her head was down and her vision seemed to be unfocused. She was thinking that she desperately wanted a hug from him. Whenever her father hugged her, the young shrine maiden always felt safe and that was a feeling she really wanted right now.

Looking at his daughter's face, Shiro could see that she was scared. It pained him so much to see her full of worry and fear. It wasn't fair. She didn't deserve this type of anxiety – this type of fear. The only thing she should be worried about is whether or not that perverted old man from the village library is going to visit the shrine for no reason but to leer at her. Or if there will be a nice young man that she could meet at the upcoming summer festival.

Sakura had her whole life ahead of her. She didn't deserve to worry about being kidnapped by bandits. Shiro inwardly sighed. He knew there was little he could do to completely erase that fear, especially when she realizes what he has planned. But for now, he knew there was something that would ease her anxiety if even a little.

He moved closer to his little girl and enveloped her in a hug.

As soon as she felt her father's arms around her, Sakura returned the embrace and let out a breath she didn't even realize she held.

"It'll be okay sweetheart. Now you must go and hide. Papa will close the floor panel after you've gone down."

At hearing this Mariko stopped her descent into the shelter and looked back up towards her husband in confusion. Realizing that she could not see either her daughter or husband since she was almost at the bottom of the ladder, the elder of the Kiyoraka women began to climb up to find out what Shiro was up to.

Meanwhile, Sakura had pulled back slightly so that she could see her father's face and expressed her confusion on the matter. "Huh? What do you mean? You're coming down too, right?"

"Shiro, just what are you thinking?" Mariko asked. Her head poked through the floor opening. She held her position on the ladder satisfied that she could at least discern her husband's facial expressions. Well, that is if her daughter would move out of the way.

Coincidentally, Sakura did just that and turned her body to glance down in the direction of her mother's voice. Mariko now had an unobstructed view of Sakura's father.

"Look," he began, alternately gazing at the two women, "I'm responsible for the shrine. I have to go and ensure that it's not desecrated."

"What?" mother and daughter both exclaimed.

Sakura continued on further and pleaded with her father. "No Papa! It's too dangerous. Please just hide with us." Tears started to form in her eyes as she thought of the possible consequences of her father not hiding with them.

Fighting tears of her own, Mariko nodded her head in agreement. "She's right dear. You don't need to do that. You should be here with us."

Unable to look at either his wife or daughter, Shiro turned his body slightly to the right and bowed his head. He just wanted them safe. Time was running out and he knew he that couldn't afford to debate the matter with his family. The husband and father of the Kiyoraka family brought his attention back to the women before him. He commanded in a tone of voice that left no doubt that he was serious, "Both of you get down there – now!"

"But-"

"No! No buts Sakura. They are looking to kidnap people and I'm not taking the chance with either of you. I'll go and distract them or something. I'm a just an old priest looking after a shrine. If they think I'm alone then they'll go away. But if they don't find anyone on the shrine grounds then they'll just keep looking and might find us." It seemed that it was Shiro's turn to plead.

Sakura was a bright girl. She knew that his logic was questionable at best. She also knew why an intelligent man like her father would reason in such a way. Academically, Sakura was well aware that in times of stress, people often did things governed purely by emotion. This was especially true when trying to protect those precious to them. For the most part Sakura was a fairly level headed individual. Sure there was the odd occasion where she would lose her temper – sometimes with violent results. Generally, she is the type not to give sway to senseless action when overcome with emotion.

However, she has never experienced a situation like this. She also couldn't bear the thought of something happening to her father – actually to both of her parents. To see her father overcome with emotion pushed her to do the same. Thus, she stated her intention of something that could be categorized as senseless. "Then I'm coming with you!"

The resounding, "NO!", that she received from both of her parents should not have surprised her.

Shiro was now at his wits end. He grasped a hold of both Sakura's shoulders and began to shake her in near hysterics. "PLEASE…STOP ARGUING WITH ME!" Not wanting to see the look of hurt on his daughter's face, he pulled her into a tight embrace and squeezed his eyes shut in an attempt to keep his tears at bay.

The whole situation was just overwhelming and it made him angry. He was angry at the bandits. He was angry that it had to be his village that they targeted. He was angry that he was powerless to stop them. He was angry that his family's well being was threatened. But most of all, after only seeing a brief glimpse of the anguish on his precious daughter's face just now, he was angry with himself for having caused that.

"You are my only child," he began softly, "and nothing – absolutely nothing can happen to you."

Regardless of how tightly he squeezed his eyes, he was unable to prevent the tears from escaping. He felt Sakura tighten her hold and heard the muffled sounds of her sobbing as she cried into his chest.

He let out a shaky breath and continued, "I-I can't…Sakura. I won't let anything happen to you. N-Not…" he paused to take another breath as he remembered the worst pain he ever felt. "Not like your sister. I would rather die than lose another child."

Mariko just shut her eyes as she heard what Shiro had just said. She had taken the death of their first born a lot harder than her husband – at least on the outside. She had grieved for a very long time before coming to terms with what happened. In time, Mariko was able to take all the pain and push it back into the recesses of her mind. She always wondered how Shiro was able to get over the pain so easily. From what he just said, she now knew it was never easy for him. She opened her eyes to see that Shiro was not merely hugging his little girl.

No – this was an embrace that spoke of a goodbye. Time was fleeting.

Shiro opened his eyes to find Mariko looking at him with a melancholic smile. Judging from the look that she gave him, he knew his wife understood and accepted what he had planned. The right side of his mouth rose ever so slightly in the barest of smiles. Mariko was always loving and supportive of him. He felt privileged for having her in his life. Oh, how he wished that he had more time. But there was no more time. With his gaze locked with hers, he mouthed the words that he has said to her on so many occasions. I love you.

"Shiro…" whispered Mariko. Of course, there was so much more she wanted to say to him. But the situation wouldn't allow for it. Instead, she opted to simply return his sentiment and mouthed the exact same words to her husband of 36 years.

Shiro decided that it was time to let his daughter go. He pulled back slightly and then gently kissed her forehead. As he took a step back, he looked directly into Sakura's eyes and said, "I love you so much. Always remember that."

"I-I love you…Papa," she said as her voice trembled.

He lightly cupped her cheek with one hand and said, "Remember, the village is going to need your help with healing all the injured when this is all over."

Sakura merely nodded her head slowly.

"Okay, now get down into the shelter and don't come out until tomorrow."

Mariko had once again disappeared from view as she climbed down the ladder into the emergency shelter intended to weather hurricanes. As she reached the bottom, she felt the ladder mildly shake and looked up to see that Sakura had started to descend. She changed the direction of her gaze and searched the ground for the lantern that Shiro had mentioned. Locating it without difficulty, she took the box of matches that were lying beside it and then proceeded to ignite the wick.

When Shiro saw that Sakura had reached the bottom, he noticed that his wife had the lantern and had managed to light it. Satisfied that they would not be floundering around in the darkness, he lowered the floor panel to cover the opening. With an audible clunk, the panel was back in place and the floor was whole again.

Once again, the closet was simply a small storage space with various household items placed on wall shelving and a broom propped up in the right back corner. It would be enough to fool those that just gave the closet a fleeting glance. He hoped a fleeting glance is all the bandits would afford once they saw nothing of interest.

After he checked to ensure that the light from the lantern was not spilling out from the seams of the floor panel, he closed the closet door and turned to meet his fate.

Sakura listened as the sound of her father's foot steps faded into silence. With a sigh, she lowered herself and sat on the cold surface of whatever it was that made up the ground of the shelter. The twenty-year-old shrine maiden brought her knees up to her chest and silently prayed for her father's safe return.

Sakura watched as Mariko set the lantern down in front them and then felt an arm come around her shoulders as her mother snuggled beside her. She stared into the flickering light of the lantern, content for the moment to be mesmerized by its faint glow. No words were spoken for several long moments. Finally, Sakura broke the silence. "Mom?"

"Yes dear?"

Sakura really didn't want to ask the question that was on her mind. She really didn't want to vocalize it for fear of the answer she might receive. However, she asked anyway – or at least tried to. "Do you…" she trailed off.

"What is it honey?" Mariko knew what her daughter wanted to ask. Truthfully, she didn't know the answer. But Kiyoraka Mariko knew what answer she would give to her only child.

"Do you think Papa…will be…alright?"

Without hesitation Mariko answered, "Of course he will be. He is a head priest to a holy shrine in Fire Country. Those bandits wouldn't dare to bring that kind of bad karma upon themselves."

Technically Mariko lied. Those that knew Mariko well knew that she made it a habit to not lie – at all. Such was the way of enlightened spirituality. However, Mariko knew this was a case where she could make an exception and she figured Sakura would forgive her. She was also aware that Sakura was simply looking for reassurance. In that regard, the lie benefited both of them.

Sakura, for her part, was grateful to her mother for saying what she wanted to hear. She had hoped hearing something like that would quell her desire to go and search for her father. It did, if even a little.

Nevertheless, she still felt as though her father would need her help. It was odd. Sakura was fully cognizant there was really nothing she could do in a confrontation. Yet, deep down something tugged at the back of her mind. Something that told her she really wouldn't know unless she tried.

Could it have something to do with what happened three years ago? The "Divine Intervention" is what everyone in the village had dubbed the incident. Could she do something like that again? An image of a glowing green light emanating from her hand flashed through her mind. Perhaps it's all related to those dreams?

"Sakura?"

Startled out of her reverie, she sheepishly looked over at her mother and saw concern written all over her face.

"You've been so quiet since I spoke, I wasn't sure you heard what I said."

"Oh – yeah…sorry," she apologized. "I hope you're right Mom. But I still can't help worrying though."

Mariko leaned her head on her daughter's shoulder and whispered, "Me too dear…me too."

"Mom?"

"Hmm?"

"I love you. You know that right?"

Mariko lifted her head and placed a soft kiss on the side of her daughter's head. "I know…but it's nice to hear," she said as she once again placed her head on Sakura's shoulder. "I love you too, my cherry blossom."

Three bandits stood in the courtyard of the shrine discussing their next course of action. One of them did not look happy. That particular one voiced his frustration, "What do you mean you can't find anyone? Someone has to be here. There should be a priest or something. Go back and look again!"

The shortest of the three complained, "But Kenji, we've already checked!"

"I don't care. Go. Check. Again. NOW!"

Before either of Kenji's two comrades could object further, a voiced called out to them.

"There is no need to look further. I am the head priest of this shrine," calmly stated Kiyoraka Shiro.

The three bandits brought their attention on the figure that stood just at the entrance to the shrine. He was clearly in his fifties, with graying hair that still had spots of red or brown. It was difficult to tell as the available light was dim against the blacken night sky. He also appeared to be wearing garments that were traditional to kannushi[Shinto Priest] found throughout the elemental lands.

Kenji gave the priest a sinister smile and approached slowly. He came to a stop several paces in front of older man. The bandit nodded his head slightly in a way that looked to be like an extremely lazy bow. "Thank you for saving us the trouble old man. Now where were you hiding?"

With a serene expression on his face, Shiro answered, "I was not hiding. The grounds of the shrine are quite large and I'm afraid that my body does not move as quickly as it once did. Now, what is it that you want? This is a holy place. Unless you seek to atone for your past misdeeds, I must ask you to leave."

Kenji snorted. "Atone for our misdeeds?" he said incredulously. "We'd be here for a long time if that were the case. Why don't you just tell us were the other shrine maidens are and we'll consider leaving." As he said that, he signaled the other two bandits to flank both sides of the priest.

Although Shiro appeared calm, inwardly he tried to suppress a panic at the mention of shrine maidens. "The shrine is closed for the night. There are no miko[shrine maiden] on duty."

"Really now?" asked Kenji in amusement. "Well then, I'm sure you won't mind if we take a look around." He turned to address his comrade to the right. "Kenta – go search the shrine again." He then returned his focus to the priest with a look that was not promising. "Itsuki…"

Without warning, Shiro found himself restrained from behind by the shortest of the bandits. He felt a cold touch of steel as Itsuki drew a tantō to his neck. The priest watched with wide eyes as the bandit known as Kenji approached closer while cracking his knuckles.

"I'm going ask again, where are the shrine maidens?"

"I-I told you, there are none on duty."

His eyes narrowed, Kenji seemed to contemplate something. He made to turn around but suddenly lashed out with a punch to the priest's stomach.

Shiro would have doubled over breathless if not for being restrained from behind. Instead, he broke out into a few coughs and then panted to regain his breath as best he could.

After a few moments, Kenji again questioned him. "You'll make it a lot easier on yourself if you cooperate. Now, where are they?"

"Why are you after them?"

Both Kenji and Itsuki laughed outright at the absurdness of the question. Kenji smirked as he replied, "Let's just say we think they'll make amusing toys."

Shiro paled at the implications of that statement. Bile threatened to rise from his throat when thoughts flashed through his mind of his daughter experiencing slavery…and probable rape.

He forced the feeling down and with as much calm as he could he addressed Kenji evenly. "I'm definitely not going to tell you where the miko of this shrine live. You'll just have to check every part of this village."

Incensed at the lack of cooperation he was getting, Kenji again struck the priest in the stomach. Immediately after, he followed up with a backhand across Shiro's right cheek.

This time, the one restraining him allowed Shiro to drop to the ground. He tasted his blood that was slowly welling up in his mouth and quickly spat it out. With his teeth clenched, Shiro struggled to get up from his position of all fours. He then yelled out in pain, when he felt Kenji lash out with a kick to his ribs.

Kenji, for his part, greatly enjoyed seeing the priest writhe around in agony. If it were up to him, those that were weak deserved to be kneeling on the ground before him – or squirming on ground like worms. It was all the same to him.

The bandit examined his handy work for a moment longer before he spat on the face of his victim. "You know, I was giving you an opportunity to make things easier. We already know there are six shrine maidens that attend to this shrine. One of your fellow villagers gave up the piece of information quite quickly."

A frown formed on Kenji's face as he continued. "Once they realized what we were after though, the others suddenly became very stubborn." He gestured to the area around him. "We've pretty much been through every building in the village. Luckily, we have found four of your precious shrine maidens. Now we just want the other two."

In the midst of his agony, Shiro opened his eyes enough to see Kenji smirking as if to emphasize his pride at the knowledge of four innocent young women being captured. He wanted to shout out at the injustice of it but was prevented as he was still out of breath. Shiro's thoughts wandered to which of the shrine's female attendants were now in the hands of these heartless bastards.

A tiny amount of guilt crept up as he thanked Kami-sama that his Sakura was hidden safely away. He knew that the other shrine maidens were not deserving of what has happened. But as much as it shamed him, he was glad that the others were found instead of the one shrine maiden he called daughter.

Shiro was snapped out of his musing about his hidden daughter when heard Kenji speak up again.

"We know there are lots of places to hide so that's why I came here. Figured they might come to the one place they probably feel safest. You know – servants of Kami and all." Kenji cocked his head as he regarded the man at his feet. "You wouldn't happen to know any good hiding spots in the shrine would you, kannushi-san?" he asked mockingly.

"Go to hell," Shiro defiantly replied.

A deep bellowing laugh could be heard throughout the shrine's grounds as Kenji was obviously amused at the notion of a priest telling him to go to hell. In truth, he actually admired the guts this priest was showing. In the end though, he was weak and the weak were deserving of very little. The response that Kenji gave to the remark that amused him so was equally succinct.

"You first." He then commenced to kick the helpless priest.

"STOP IT!" a feminine voice cried out.

Kenji and Itsuki looked up in shock as a shrine maiden stood before them on the north side of the shrine. The shock then turned to satisfaction. One of their prizes was only a few paces away.

They took the opportunity to briefly admire the wholesome beauty. The girl could not have been older than twenty and was probably around 160cm tall with a petite build. Her shoulder length hair was dark and seemed to be a shade of purple, if the way the dim light from the surrounding lanterns reflecting on it is any indication. The pale blue eyes that stared at them in trepidation were filled with tears. She was dressed in a white kimono shirt with a red hakama – the traditional garb of a miko. The two bandits both unconsciously licked their lips with the thoughts of what kind of fun they could have with this particular shrine maiden.

"P-Please…d-don't…hurt Kiyoraka-sama…a-anymore," stuttered the young girl.

Kenji slowly approached her. "Come here and we won't hurt the old geezer."

The girl retreated a few steps when she saw Kenji closing the distance between them. She cursed herself for coming out of her hiding spot even though she could not help it. Not when she could see Kiyoraka-sama being beaten to such an extent. Now she was unsure of what to do. Should she try to run?

As if he read her mind, Kenji warned, "Don't try to run. It'll only make things worse."

The distance between them decreased even more as the girl seemed to take the warning to heart. When he was but a few paces from reaching her, he lunged out, grabbed her arm and jerked her towards him.

Caught completely off guard, the girl stumbled around as Kenji positioned himself so that he stood with her arms locked behind her back. She ceased struggling as her arms felt like they might snap off.

"Please…you're hurting me." she whimpered out.

"As long as you don't struggle or try to run, I won't hurt you…" he paused and then added, "much." Kenji chuckled at his clever response and then proceeded to take in the scent of the female in his grasp. "Hmm, you smell really good."

"Hey Kenji, what do you say to having some fun with her before bringing her back?" Itsuki excitedly asked.

The girl's eyes widened when she realized what they were talking about. "N-No…please…" she begged.

Kenji grinned at what Itsuki was suggesting. He bent down a bit and whispered into her ear, "Shh…don't worry. You'll probably like it." As an afterthought, he added, "But not yet."

There was still work to be done and their orders were specific. The shrine maidens were to be captured unspoiled.

Itsuki sighed dejectedly when it appeared he would have wait to enjoy the spoils of this raid.

Shiro fought the urge to pass out as he struggled to position himself back on his hands and knees. Thankful for the reprieve, he tried to make sense of what just occurred. Someone called out and the beating stopped. The voice sounded like it belonged to a girl.

Although his vision was blurry, Shiro slowly looked up. His attention was drawn to the sight of a figure a short distance away. He shook his head slightly to clear the haze that muddled the image. The fog that plagued his vision began to lift and to his horror, the familiar red and white of a shrine maiden's garb came into focus. He directed his gaze to the face of the person that filled out those clothes. He gasped when he recognized who it was.

"Ami!" he cried out.

"Let her go!" Shiro demanded with a look of pure contempt directed at the person restraining her.

Ignoring the protests of his aching body, Shiro scrambled to his feet. Before he could do anything else, his right knee buckled from a kick he received from Itsuki. Situated on one knee, he again felt the sensation of a blade being pressed against his neck.

"No, please don't hurt him anymore," Ami squeaked out.

Kenji ignored her plea. "You lied old man. I hate it when people lie to me," he chided.

Shiro couldn't help but laugh at the absurdity of that statement. "I didn't lie. I had no idea she was here. But even if I had known, there was no way I would tell the likes of you."

"Well that's too bad for you. Itsuki beat this man senseless until he tells you where the other one is hiding."

Itsuki slammed the butt of his tantō against the side of Shiro's head. He continued his assault by raining down kick after kick.

Ami twisted her head away from the gruesome site and openly wept. All she wanted to do was help Shiro but ended up making things worse. She didn't know what else to do.

Kenji took advantage of Ami's despair and began to bind her hands. He debated if knocking her unconscious would be necessary. After he finished with her hands, he struck the back of her neck deciding that it would be easier to bind her feet if she were unconscious.

He glanced over to Itsuki and the prone form of the priest. "Itsuki – that's enough. The stupid priest passed out." Kenji shook his head as Itsuki's over enthusiasm.

"What? Oh – shit, sorry," stammered Itsuki. "Uh, what do we do? He didn't saying anything about the other girl."

"It doesn't matter. Kenta should be back any second. If he hasn't found her, then we'll spread out and search the grounds. This girl didn't come from inside the shrine."

"What about him?" Itsuki asked, pointing to the unmoving Shiro. "Should I just kill him?"

Kenji considered that for a moment while he secured Ami's feet. He shook his head and said, "Nah – just tie him up for now. He may still prove useful if we can't find the last girl."

Sakura stared at the spot on the ceiling that was the entryway back into the house. She kept hoping that it would open to reveal the smiling face of her father. However, she knew not a lot of time had passed since he left. It could not have been any more than ten or fifteen minutes. Yet to her, it felt more like several hours. She groaned in frustration.

Mariko turned to examine her daughter's face. She could clearly see the worry etched into her features. "Sakura, please try not to think about it."

"I can't stop though." Sakura stood up and started to pace. "What if something's happened to him? What if he's been cap-"

"Sakura stop," interrupted Mariko. She rose from the ground, grasped Sakura's shoulders firmly, looked into her eyes and said, "You can not think those things, okay? Try to remain positive."

"I'm trying Mom," whispered Sakura. "I just have this feeling that…that he'll need me."

Mariko said nothing further. Instead, she simply pulled her precious daughter into a hug and offered comfort in a way only a mother could.

That was when they heard the sounds of footsteps. They pulled apart and listened intently as the footsteps became louder. Whoever it was seemed to be walking throughout the house. Both Sakura and Mariko realized that if it were Shiro, he would have come directly to them.

Mariko brought her index finger to her lips in a motion to keep quiet.

Sakura nodded her assent and lifted her head to follow the sounds. Her heart was beating rapidly as thoughts of what could have happened to her father began to plague her mind once again. She reached for her mother's hand and gave it a squeeze. I'm scared.

Mariko squeezed right back in response to Sakura's unvoiced message. I am too.

Both women took an unconscious step back when they heard the sound of the closet door opening. They concentrated solely on the entryway – and waited. Neither of them thought to extinguish the lantern to prevent any light from attracting the attention of the intruder.

Fortunately, for the two Kiyoraka women Shiro had already made sure that would not happen. They let out a collective sigh of relief as the sounds of movement indicated that the person was walking away.

Shaken from the close encounter, Mariko dropped to her knees and clutched her chest with both hands. She watched Sakura slowly approach the ladder and craned in a gesture that suggested she was still listening for movement. After a moment, her daughter sat on one of the lower rungs and held her head in her hands.

"It looks like they left," muttered Sakura.

"Thankfully…" was her mother's response.

Sakura said nothing else. Her mind was preoccupied with her father's situation. One of the bandits obviously found their home behind the shrine. Did that mean they captured him? Whomever it was that walked through the house did not seem interested in looting. That meant they were searching for her and her mother.

Papa...I hope you're okay.

It was then a muffled voice drew their attention.

Sakura and Mariko could barely hear it. But it was still loud enough to make out what was said.

"Come out miko-san! We know you're in there somewhere! We have the priest! We saw the pictures in the house so we know he's your dad or something! If you want him to live, you better come out!"

The blood in Sakura's veins ran cold. Without thinking, she scampered up the ladder to get to her father.

Only to be stopped halfway when her mother grabbed her foot.

"No Sakura! It's too dangerous," Mariko whispered loudly.

"I don't care!" Sakura frantically yelled.

"Please…don't go out there. Your father wanted to keep you safe," replied Mariko as tears formed in her eyes.

"Mom let me go! I have to go to Papa. He needs me…I know it!"

"No! I won't let you go. I love you too much to let anything happen to you. Think about what your father would want. Think about how I feel. Please…" begged Sakura's mother.

Deflated at her mother's reasoning and shamed she was only thinking of her father, Sakura stopped resisting and took a tentative step down.

"If you're not out here in the next minute, the old man dies!"

The disembodied warning shocked Sakura out of her shame and caused her to be overwhelmed with panic. She gave her mother a regretful look and softly said, "I-I'm sorry Mom."

"No Sakura!" Mariko futilely called out as her daughter broke free of her hold and scaled the ladder desperately. She numbly watched her only child thrust open the floor panel covering the entryway and disappeared from view.

Consumed in her reckless endeavor to save her father, Sakura sprinted through the house and flew out the front door. She then gasped at the scene before her. Several meters away stood a tall figure covered in ratty leather armor. At his feet, were the prone forms of her father…and Ami?

Kenji smirked to himself that his plan succeeded. He watched as the missing shrine maiden appeared from the front door of the house and ran towards him – or rather to her father. Much to his amusement, he noted that the girl was quite oblivious to him. He also noted that the girl was quite attractive. As she approached, he studied her attributes. The girl had long red hair that fluttered as she ran, beautiful green eyes that were slightly marred by her tears, and stunning facial features that, despite the anguished look, would make even the sexiest geisha envious.

Sakura skidded to a halt, dropped to her knees, and gently rolled her father onto his back. To her relief he was breathing. She then noticed all the bruising on his face and the ragged state of his clothes. Not knowing how serious his injuries were, she drew upon her modest medical training and started to diagnose his condition.

Seconds after she started checking her father, Sakura found herself yanked up into the meaty arms of his captor. Not fully aware of her predicament, she fought to free herself and cried out at being prevented from treating her father. "Let go! I have to treat him!"

"Girl…he should be the least of your concerns," Kenji said dangerously.

It suddenly dawned on her that she was in serious trouble. Distressed with the peril she and her loved ones faced, she gave in to despair and sobbed inconsolably.

"Let go of my daughter!"

Kenji spun them around to face the source of the inane demand. A few meters away, he saw a much older woman dressed in a plain yukata. She held a flimsy looking broom in front of her and stood in, what he would describe as, an amateurish fighting stance.

Terrified of the danger her mother has placed herself in, Sakura yelled, "Mom go! Run! Get away!" She then noticed a second bandit rapidly closing in on Mariko. "Look out Mom!" she tried to warn. But it was too late.

In their haste to reach their loved ones, both women failed to notice the bandit that stood off to the side. It was, of course, understandable given the circumstances. It was also unfortunate – especially for the older of the two women.

Sakura witnessed her mother easily disarmed and quickly restrained. She heard her mother whimper when a blade flashed out and placed against her throat. Her mother's gaze locked with her own and Sakura's heart shattered at the frightened and defeated look she saw.

"Mom huh? She should have stayed hidden. You're the only one we wanted. Oh well…" sighed Kenji.

"Hey Kenji…I checked the north end of the – Oh! Ha, looks like you've got them," Kenta laughed as he strode up to his team leader.

"Yeah, no thanks to you," Kenji spat. "Itsuki and I have been doing all the work."

Kenta frowned at the criticism. "Hey man, I was doing exactly what you told me to do. 'Check the temple Kenta'. 'Look on the north end Kenta'. At least we've got both of them."

"Yeah, yeah…whatever." Kenji then gestured towards Shiro, "Look, just take care of the geezer there."

At the proclamation, Sakura's head shot up. She looked over her shoulder into the dark eyes of Kenji and pleaded, "Please don't. Y-You've got me…just leave him alone."

Kenji ignored her and nodded toward Kenta. "Do it."

Before Sakura could continue to appeal her case, Kenta drew his tantō and in a swift motion, plunged it into the belly of Kiyoraka Shiro.

"No!" roared Sakura and Mariko.

Kenji shook his head in disgust. "My god…can't you do anything right? Such a huge unmoving target and you choose his belly?"

Mariko wept hysterically at the site of her murdered husband. She knew it would soon be her turn, yet she did not care. The only thing she felt was grief. The man she had loved for over thirty-five years was gone. The pain she felt – the only thing that came close to it was when she lost her first child. At the thought, Mariko took some solace. Shiro my love, soon we'll both be able to see little Rei-chan again.

Sakura was strangely quiet after her initial outburst. She stood perfectly still and simply stared at the wound on her father. All she saw was how the blood poured out. How it spilled onto the ground and stained the stone walkway. Sakura did not hear the anguished cries of her mother. Nor did she hear the bandit named Kenta defend his choice of stabbing his target in the gut. All she focused on was the blood and its rich deep color. Red…all she saw was red.

"Just shut up Kenta! Itsuki, would you please show this useless piece of shit how it's done?"

That was when Sakura snapped.

With inhuman strength, she tossed a very surprised Kenji over her shoulder. A befuddled Kenta could only yelp in surprise as Kenji's form smashed into him.

Itsuki was shocked at what he just witnessed. As Kenji and Kenta fell into pile of tangled limbs, he futilely tried to call out them. However, Itsuki really should have focused on the cause rather than the result.

The next thing he knew, the girl who was several meters away a mere moment ago, now stood beside him. Before he could process what was happening, Itsuki felt his arm jerk and with a sickening snap, his wrist broke. Racked with pain, he barely noticed the clang that indicated he was no longer armed. Then the next and last thing he felt was a fist connecting with his head.

Mariko was confused. She looked around and tried to make sense of what she just saw. Her daughter had some how freed her and it happened in a blink of an eye. She could not fathom how her little Sakura-chan moved with such speed. She could not understand how her petite daughter disabled that man. A man twice her size. Her confusion was momentarily forgotten when her gaze fell upon the man in question. Seeing what remained of the man's head, Mariko emptied the contents of her stomach.

With a groan, Kenta managed to push his annoying team leader off him. He slowly rose to his feet and looked around. The blood drained from his face when he caught site of Sakura standing over what was left of Itsuki.

"You bitch!" muttered Kenta in disgust.

This aroused Kenji's attention from where he lay and turned his head in the direction that Kenta was looking. To his horror, he saw Itsuki dead with his head completely caved in.

Sakura twisted towards Kenta and recognition set in. He was the person that killed her father. Enraged, she launched herself at him with dizzying speed.

Kenta reacted by flinging an old rusty kunai at the crazed girl. Unfortunately, Kenji was correct – he really was useless. The kunai missed its target and barely grazed Sakura's ribs.

Sakura felt a slight prickling sensation on her side but it did little to slow her down. She noticed that Kenta was fumbling with his broadsword in an effort to mount some sort of defense. She dodged the horizontal swing of his sword and then drove her fist into his stomach.

As Kenta crashed through the stone wall of the grounds, Kenji charged at Sakura with his sword drawn and swiped at her head. Shrine maiden or no, she was dangerous and Kenji decided she was not worth dying over.

Sakura saw the attack from the corner of her eye and dove into a roll.

Pressing his advantage, Kenji lashed out with a well-timed front kick to her face. To his satisfaction, her head snapped back from the force of the blow and propelled her half a meter backward.

Sakura landed with a thud but shrugged it off and scrambled to her feet. Half way through the motion, she pushed off into sideways shoulder roll to avoid a downward swing from Kenji's sword.

Sakura straightened out of the roll but relative to Kenji's position, her back was exposed. Kenji took advantage and slashed her back with a backswing. He smirked as she cried out and stumbled forward. The wound looked shallow but it had to have been painful. Confident that the wound he inflicted would slow her down, he continued his assault.

Bruised and bloodied, Sakura regained her footing and quickly turned to face her opponent. She cursed when she saw he was already on the move with a front thrust aimed at her heart. Managing to barely side step the attack, she grabbed Kenji's extended arm, yanked him towards her and delivered a right cross to his jaw.

Kenji's head whipped around and the momentum carried him a few paces away from Sakura. He knew he was lucky that he only felt dazed. If she still had the level of power that she used against Kenta, he would have been dead. After collecting his thoughts, he lifted himself off the ground, readied his sword and attacked again.

Sakura was thankful for the few moments to catch her breath after she punched him. She doubted she would have been able to dodge Kenji's subsequent attack otherwise. As she kept her distance and repeatedly evaded Kenji's sword strikes, she wondered where all her energy had gone. Her movements had slowed significantly and she was tired. She knew it was only a matter of time before she received a fatal blow.

"Just keep still!" shouted Kenji in frustration.

Broken out of her reverie, Sakura didn't bother to respond as she concentrated on avoiding another swipe at her head. She managed to avoid Kenji's sword but failed to see the round kick that followed. Struck on the side of the head, Sakura plunged to the ground.

The blow to the head was devastating as she struggled to keep conscious. Slowly, she tried to get to her feet but most of her strength was gone and she could hardly move. By the time she located Kenji, she knew it was too late. He was already upon her with his sword raised, ready to deliver the final blow.

As Kenji looked down on the defeated girl, thoughts of his orders flashed through his mind. He paused for a moment and considered sparing her.

The delay proved to be costly as he suddenly found a tantō shoved into his gut.

Kenji clinched his teeth and grunted out in pain. He staggered a few steps while he slowly pulled the dagger from his stomach. He quickly studied the wound and let out a relieved sigh. Incredibly, the wound was not immediately life threatening. He would survive as long as it was treated promptly. Before he lost too much blood, he needed to end this soon.

Kenji discarded the tantō in order to have a free hand to cover his wound. He was surprised as he looked over his shoulder to identify the culprit. He glared at Mariko with murderous intent and stalked toward her retreating form.

Mariko was confused and scared. Her moment of defiance did not go according to plan. The man walking toward her was supposed to die after she stabbed him. The decision to target the stomach was obviously a mistake and she cursed her foolishness. But she was desperate to get to him in time to save Sakura and only had a split second to act.

"Stupid bitch…Die!" he screamed as he thrust his sword toward her.

For Sakura, time slowed as she watched Kenji bring his arm back in preparation for the forward motion of the thrust. Fueled with desperation to save her mother, she grabbed the dagger her mother had used to attack Kenji just moments before, rushed to her feet, and charged at the man.

Sensing movement behind him, Kenji pivoted around to meet any oncoming attack. He saw Sakura's clumsy approach, smiled to himself, and directed the point of his sword into her gut. As he felt his sword puncture her abdomen, the smile he briefly wore turned to shock as a flash of steel caught his attention.

He cursed himself for essentially handing the mysterious young girl a weapon before feeling the dagger plunge directly into the center of his chest. Ironically, Kenji's last thought as his he took his dying breath was that girl could teach Kenta a thing or two about where to stab someone.

Sakura did not expect him to turn around like that and could not react fast enough to avoid the sword. Although she realized that this would not end well for her, Sakura was determined to remove the threat to her mother and followed through with the downward strike of the dagger she held. A searing pain shot forth from her stomach.

Attempting to ignore the pain, she focused on her target and to her relief Sakura saw that her aim struck true. The man named Kenji was already falling backwards and by the time he hit the ground, he was breathing no more.

Knowing that her mother was no longer in immediate danger, the flow of adrenaline subsided and she dropped to knees in exhaustion. Sakura cried out in agony as the action jarred the sword and aggravated the wound. She looked down to examine the broadsword that remained imbedded in stomach.

The image of a sword buried into her body was almost surreal. The kimono top was fast becoming as red as her hakama. The increasing pain of being impaled spread throughout her body as her miko attire soaked the blood that flowed from her wounds.. Despite fighting the onslaught of both mental and physical fatigue, she knew that trying to remove the sword herself would be ill advised. Sakura simply framed both of her hands around the entry point of the wound to try to stem the loss of blood.

"Sakura! Oh god…Sakura…honey…"

Sakura just noticed that her mother was kneeling beside her and had her arms wrapped around her shoulders and torso. She turned to face the older woman and gave her a weak smile. Sakura wanted to tell her mother that she was glad she was all right but was prevented with a series of coughing fits. Thankful that her mother was holding her, Sakura fell limp as what little strength she had finally left her.

"Sakura…please…I can't lose you too," Mariko sobbed.

"Mom, I-I'm…s-sorry," Sakura barely managed to whisper.

Sakura for her part, found it more and more difficult to stay awake. She knew though that she would probably not wake up this time around. Strangely, she found herself not frightened with the prospect of dying.

Instead, there was disappointment. But why? Surely she had lived a good albeit, short life. Perhaps it was because she was robbed of the chance to experience the joys of falling in love, being a mother, and later a grandmother. Yes, that was it. Disappointment because she still had so much to live for. Yet, why did it feel like it was more than that? It was there – just in the back of her mind. There was something important she needed to do.

Before Sakura could ponder those thoughts further, Mariko began to call out, "Sakura stay with me! Don't leave me…please."

The younger woman felt her mother gently rock back and forth while cradling her, begging her not to die. There was some small bit of comfort that eased over Sakura. Being in the arms of a loved one was certainly not a terrible way to pass on. With a shaky breath, Sakura prepared what she thought were to be her last words.

"Mom…I'll… always be…with you."

"No! Don't talk like that. I won't lose you too. Fight Sakura…please. I know you can fight. You're stronger than this," Mariko frantically countered.

"So tired…I'm sorry…love you so much…"

Mariko squeezed her eyes shut futilely attempting to stop her tears. She held her daughter tighter to her body and responded the only way a mother could to such a statement. "I love you too."

The older woman could not believe the unfairness of it all. She had already lost one child years ago, her husband a few minutes ago, and now is about to lose her remaining child. Was Kami-sama punishing her? How could her family – a family of a head priest – be subjected to this?

Lulled by the rocking motion from her mother, Sakura was about to succumb to the pull of unconsciousness. That was when she felt a presence. No, it was more than one. Several that seemed to be getting closer. They pulsed with a feeling that she was unable to describe yet somehow found it to be familiar.

"Someone's coming," she whispered.

Mariko looked up to see if anyone was approaching. Her fear was that more bandits were going to appear. Surveying the surrounding area, she saw nothing but the three bodies of the bandits and the prone forms of her husband and Ami.

Suddenly, four figures landed in front of her. Startled, she shut her eyes thinking they were bandits there to finish the job. For the second time that night, Mariko resigned herself to the fate that she would not live to see the morning. At least she would not be left alone she mused.

"Hana! This one needs immediate medical attention!"

Shocked at what she just heard, Mariko opened her eyes to see a young man crouched in front of her. He was not dressed as the bandits were, but instead was dressed in some dark attire with a greenish vest and a headband with an engraved symbol on it.

"It's okay. We are here to help. We're Konoha Shinobi," the young man explained.

Upon hearing those words uttered, Sakura opened her eyes to locate the source. A slightly blurred image of a man met her. He stood up to make room for his female companion who replaced his position and now knelt before them. Sakura tried to focus on the woman's face but her vision was impaired and her eyelids felt so heavy.

"What are you doing?" questioned Mariko as she observed a green glow emanate from the hands of the strange woman.

The female shinobi looked up to the older woman and said, "I'm a medical ninja. My name is Shiranui Hana. I'm performing a diagnostic jutsu to see how bad the wounds are."

Hope began to grow within Mariko's heart. "Will my daughter live?"

"I'll do my best to save her," answered Hana in an attempt reassure her patient's mother. Inwardly, she was not sure about the girl's chances. The wounds were very serious and there was a lot of blood that was lost. In fact, Hana was surprised that the girl was still alive.

"You hear that Sakura? Just hang on okay?" pleaded Mariko.

Sakura merely nodded her head. Despite wanting to comply with her mother's request however, her eyes began to close. She just felt so tired and she just wanted the pain to go away. She was vaguely aware of her mother telling her not to give up but there was no more strength left in her.

Curiously, as the world around her began to darken, Sakura could faintly hear another voice overlap her mother's. It was a male's voice – one that sounded familiar and comforting. It sounded so close, as if the person was next to her whispering.

"Sakura-chan…just hold on…"

She knew that voice. The person's name was somewhere in the recesses of her mind. Then for a brief moment, clarity dawned on her. However, the moment passed and just as the last vestiges of consciousness slipped away, she whispered a response to the disembodied voice.

"I'm sorry…Naruto."