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Hunter	By : Zelha Category: Naruto > Het - Male/Female > Itachi/Sakura Views: 3374 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, duh. I only own a pair of sleepers, so obviously I don't make any profit with this story.

Chapter List
- 4
- 5
- 6
Chapter 5: Possibly Maybe

“We
couldn’t find the body, Taichou,” Sai said blandly. “Apparently they took it
away.”

“The monk
said they were collecting Chiriku-sama’s head for a bounty,” Yamato added.
“This complies with the Modus Operandi of that Waterfall nukenin we got briefed
about a while ago.”

“Yes,
indeed,” Itachi nodded his acquiescence. “And it seems that the other one has a
taste for blood,” he added, looking at the pink-haired medic that was examining
one of the monk’s mangled corpses, waiting for the survivor to wake up again.
It was past sunset already, and while Sasuke built up a bonfire next to the
stairs and Naruto went about preparing dinner with Shisui, Kakashi and Sakura
went to check on the other monks that fell under the onslaught of those two
criminals.

Out of the
sudden, he saw Sakura trip with her own feet and fall to her knees. Kakashi
walked up to her, extending a hand.

“You OK,
Sakura?”

“Yes...”
she whispered. “I’m just tired.”

“You
shouldn’t have pulled that stunt race, you know,” he said lowly. “Your chakra
reserves are more precious than all of ours. Don’t be so hard on yourself.”

She smiled
dryly. “My stamina is not up for discussion, Kakashi-sensei,” she said
offhandedly. “Besides, it was the healing that took a lot of my chakra anyway.”

“Go lay
down,” he ordered her as she stood. “I’ll finish here.”

“But--”

“No buts,
Sakura. Go.”

She pressed
her lips together and nodded curtly, obeying her team leader. As she walked
towards the little camp, the ANBU Team noticed how her legs were trembling
under her light weight, as Kakashi went to confer with the other masked ninjas.

“We’ll need
another two days to finish up the investigation,” he said in his lazy tone,
turning his head to watch Sakura being engulfed in an embrace from their blond
teammate and steering her to the bedroll.

“We cannot
afford to lose any more time,” Itachi answered smoothly, detailing how she
growled irritably at Naruto and punched him in the arm, chiding him about his
bad manners. “We’ve sent one of Tiger’s ink birds with a request for the Hokage
to send another team to this location. They should be here by tomorrow past
noon.”

“Good
thinking, Weasel-taichou,” Kakashi nodded, feeling a bit impressed by Itachi’s
quickness in handling the matter. “I’ll speak with my team to arrange watch
shifts.”

“Let the
medic rest, Kakashi-san” the Uchiha Heir added politely. “She’s out of chakra. We
can manage with my team as well.”

“I figured
that, Weasel-taichou,” Kakashi replied good-humoredly with a guarded eye crease.
“Thank you for understanding.”

Shisui,
behind his mask, lifted a puzzled eyebrow at his cousin. ‘What’s up with him?’
he mused inwardly.

-X-

Sakura woke
up minutes before sunrise, the sky over the camp red with dawn colors. Yawning
and stretching like a cat, she opened her eyes to see that Shisui was the only
one sitting straight, keeping watch over the slumbering shinobi.

“Ohayo,
Sakura-san,” he greeted her politely in a low whisper. She nodded with a sleepy
smile before swiveling her head to survey her patient, who was asleep next to
the embers that remained from the bonfire.

“Ohayo, Shis-
er... Hawk-san,” she responded, rising to her knees and crawling to the monk’s
form. “No one awoke me for the watch shifts,” she added absentmindedly, gathering
a little bit of chakra to check on her patient. “No fever. Temperature about
normal... chakra pathways are flowing normally. No inner injuries and no other
disruptions that I can see.”

“He’s out
of danger, then?” Shisui asked softly. She nodded with a satisfied smile.

“Aa, he’s
healthy enough. Maybe we can escort him back to Konoha before going to the
Daimyo’s Palace...”

“I’m afraid
we won’t, Haruno-san,” Yamato’s masked voice broke from his cloaked form on his
bedroll. “We need to move out as soon as possible.”

“I
understand,” she said with a frown. “I almost wanted to lead him to the
hospital... but I’m sure he can get back to the village on his own.”

“A team
will arrive soon to retrieve him,” Itachi’s voice sounded a bit rough but still
with that hint of cold politeness that made her wince internally. “We will move
out shortly.”

“Hai,” she
answered, knowing when to admit defeat. They had a mission to start and
accomplish, after all. Naruto woke up next and started the usual round of
yawning and whining, lightening the tense atmosphere among them. Kakashi and
Sasuke rose and soon everyone was on their feet.

Approaching
to her aware patient, Sakura smiled slightly. “Souryo-sama, we have to go...
but soon you’ll be retrieved by other Konoha-nins. Please wait for them.”

“I will,
medic-san,” the monk bowed his head. “I will pray to the Gods for your success
in your mission. I am most grateful for your thoughtful healing.”

“It is my
way of the ninja,” she commented with a proud smile. “Be well, Souryo-sama.”

The bald
monk nodded. “May the Gods look upon you all. Thank
you.”

Slipping
her gloves on and the hood covering the pink tresses, Team Seven started their
trek to Fire City, while Team Alpha waited for the
team from the village.

-X-

“Hey,
Naruto, why did no one wake me up for watch?” asked Sakura after a long while
of silence. The blond ninja blinked his azure orbs and glanced briefly to
Kakashi, who was behind them.

“You needed
rest, Sakura,” observed Kakashi lazily. “You were out of chakra.”

“Tch.”

“You
drained yourself with the race,” Sasuke added scathingly. “If a fight broke in
the Temple you
wouldn’t be able to defend yourself.”

Sakura
couldn’t believe her ears. “You are just sore because I won the race and now
you have to apologize to me!”

The young
Uchiha threw a cold glare at her over his shoulder. “I do not have to apologize
for anything.”

The
pink-haired medic’s fists clenched in anger but she didn’t respond to his
taunt. She knew perfectly well what he was doing: baiting her just like he did
with Naruto. Well, she was going to react the opposite he was accustomed to see
from their blond teammate.

“Very well,
Sasuke,” she said calmly. He turned his head one more time, but she had pulled
her hood over her eyes, making impossible to discern where she was looking.

“Sakura-chan,
are you angry with Sasuke-teme?” Naruto came to her side. “Don’t mind him; he’s
just upset because you won that race fair and square... and he definitely needs
to apologize for being such a moron to you!”

“The bet
was for the three of us, dobe,” Sasuke sneered at the front of their group.
Naruto’s eyes widened and stared at Sakura, pouting slightly.

“Really, Sakura-chan? Do you really think we are a bunch of morons?”

“No,
Naruto,” she caught his meaning hastily. “Kakashi-sensei is anything but a
moron, he’s just the most apathetic person I’ve ever met,” Sakura said,
glancing at her back where the alluded Copy-Ninja waved and offered a cheerful
eye crease. “You, on the other hand, are not a moron either. You are an idiot,
but not a moron.”

“Oi!”

“And you’re
also my best friend,” Sakura completed, not paying heed to Naruto’s protest. “I
can’t be friends with a moron, now can I?”

“I don’t
know, Sakura-chan... you dated Neji!”

She let out
an incredulous laugh. “He’s not a moron, Naruto! He happens to be the prodigy
of the Hyuuga Clan! How can he be a prodigy if he’s not a genius?”

Sasuke
muttered something in front of them but she didn’t hear. Naruto, however, did.

“Teme!
Neji might be a pain in the ass but he’s quite strong!”

“And he’s
also an ANBU Op,” completed Sakura, feeling suddenly sadistic and twisting the
jab. “My best guess is that he will be Captain soon enough... so he would be on
par with another prodigy.”

Predictably,
the spiky-haired ninja tensed his shoulders and said nothing.

‘Serves you right, Sasuke-kun,’ her Inner
personality voiced raucously and Sakura couldn’t agree more with her. She felt
undermined and pretty much scorned at the Uchiha right now to see how rigid
with irritation he was. She had deliberately left him out of her explanation,
because she wanted him to know how upset she was with him... and apparently, he
had noticed.

But then,
she saw Sasuke shaking his head minutely and slipping into mission-mode again.

Stupid
Uchiha’s, she thought. She just couldn’t believe how arrogant that family was.
The only one that was salvageable was Shisui, but even him had a prickly streak
somewhere, she was completely sure about that. He could be really nice, but a
bastard when the occasion was at hand.

She was not
going to think about Sasuke’s older brother. She wasn’t. He was just an
arrogant, stupid bastard that needed to hear a piece of her mind. He was just an
idiot that needed some lessons in society. He was--

Gah.

‘He’s just an idiot that happens to be way
more attractive than Sasuke-kun!’ her mental roommate cheered lewdly.
Coughing lightly and pummeling Inner Sakura to the deep recesses of her mind,
she forced the furious blush to recede from her face.

-X-

The
Daimyo’s Palace was beyond the river, Sakura remembered from the last time she
and her team had gone to Fire
City. They had made a
halt in their trek to gather their wits before going to the Daimyo.

“Naruto,
remember the last time we were there,” Kakashi was saying. “Despite how nice
Ieyasu-sama was to you this time he won’t take any joke lightly.”

“His first
son is dead,” Sasuke said. “We need to behave accordingly.”

“Yeah,
yeah, I got it,” the blond replied, annoyed.

“What about
the Alpha Team? Do we wait for them?”

“No need,
Sakura,” Kakashi said in a bored tone. “They are already here.”

Sakura
snapped her eyes to the trees, making a brown cloak among the foliage. She
shook her head, smiling wanly. Damn ANBU.

As they
made their way over the river bank and the water, the four shinobi dropped from
the branches and joined the others in their run towards the Daimyo’s home.

The Palace
was a huge structure that was meant to intimidate. And most of the visitors
were intimidated indeed when seeing such building meant to show off how
powerful the leader of the Fire Country was.

Fire City was also another design meant to
intimidate. This defeated the purpose of Konoha, Sakura thought, because the
lines and streets were devised for functionality rather than secluding all the
businesses in their own zone. The bakers, the artisans, even the oirans had a
special district, making difficult for people to hide their private business
from prying eyes.

It was so
much different from Konoha, where everyone was mingled except for the Ninja Clans.
Ichiraku was a ramen stand that was flanked by an expensive kimono shop for
ladies of the Leaf high society and a book store. It was the villagers’ way, to
build their business where they pleased and where they felt the outcome will be
benefiting for them.

Sakura
smiled faintly under her cloak. Four green figures and four brown ones made
their way to the red and yellow painted Palace, taking in the tall towers and
how the walls seemed to ban all prying gazes from its private quarters.

There was,
however, a small contingent of soldiers in red armor that Sakura didn’t
remember being there the last time she was there. Staying in the back, she
watched Kakashi and one of the ANBU – the Eagle operative – talking with the
commander of the red-clad soldiers. Curious enough, most of the soldiers were
wearing white paint on their faces, as well as a black band on their arms.

Suddenly,
it became clear. They were mourning.

Sakura let
out a deep sigh. This mission would be very difficult for her, she knew that already.
But watching the gate’s soldiers with those blatant symbols of the Daimyo’s
loss was, to say the least, heartbreaking.

She watched
how Kakashi and Yamato got approving nods from the soldier’s commanders. Soon
enough, the eight shinobi were inside the Palace, walking towards a meeting
with the Lord of their Country.

The
Daimyo’s study was a place Sakura never got the opportunity to enter in their
past mission, but she forgot to look at her surroundings when she took in the
pitiful state of the Fire Country’s Lord. Kasai Ieyasu didn’t look like the
magnificent man that received Team Seven back in the day. His hair was all
white now, and his eyes were totally sunk in their sockets. A myriad of
wrinkles were sprayed on his once regal face, leaving him with the appearance
of a nonagenarian man.

But his
eyes were sharp and haunted; Sakura noted when the Daimyo looked up from a
scroll when the ninja entered the room. “Hoods and masks out,” he ordered
sternly and without preamble.

The ANBU
looked at one of them while the other shinobi pulled their green hoods from
their heads obediently.

“My Lord,”
Kakashi began, “ANBU regulations keep ninja from showing--”

“I am
perfectly aware of those regulations, Hatake. I was the one who made them
legal. Thank Kami I don’t force you to remove that mask of yours. Now, I want
to see your faces or you are out of this commission faster than lightning
strikes a tree.”

The man in
the weasel mask nodded to his team. Soon, the faces of the ANBU team were
displayed for the Daimyo and everyone in the room to see.

The Fire
Lord was silent for a moment. “Good. Three Uchiha, the infamous
Copy Ninja and also the strongest medic-nin of all Fire Country. I see
Tsunade was not kidding when she wrote me about sending me her best operatives.”

Poking
lightly Naruto’s side, Sakura and her Team kneeled in front of the Daimyo. “We
are here to help you, Kasai-sama,” Kakashi said serious but politely. Sakura
noted that the other men had kneeled as well.

“I am glad
you are,” continued the old Lord. “I take you have been briefed with all the
factors.”

This was
not a question but a statement. How different he acted from the man they’ve met
long time ago, Sakura pondered as the ANBU Captain took permission to speak.

“The Hokage
informed us of all the happenings within the Fire Palace,
My Lord. We are at your service. We assure you that we are going to resolve
this matter in no time.”

Itachi’s
confident tone brought a little calm to the pink-haired medic’s inner distress.
This was a dangerous mission; if they failed Konoha might as well kiss good-bye
to their budget, and this was not an acceptable destiny for her beloved
village.

“I am sure
we can collect clues from your servants and the scene,” Itachi was saying
softly. A sudden chill went down Sakura’s spine when the Daimyo’s eyes flashed
with despair. Her heart ached for the man’s pain, making her bite her lower lip
in worry.

This,
however, didn’t go unnoticed by the Daimyo himself. His sharp grey eyes slid
from Itachi’s to her emerald orbs as if they were peering into her very soul.

“Haruno,”
he spoke next, with a strained, tired voice. “You will find... my son in his
chambers. I trust you will handle this matter efficiently.”

She bowed
deeply. “I’ll give you my word, Kasai-sama.”

“Do not
insult me, girl,” the man countered harshly, shocking her and her teammates. “I
believe I have granted you permission to address me according to the bond we
created the last time you were here.”

Sakura’s
eyebrows rose in concern. “Of course, Ieyasu-sama.
Please forgive me for my rudeness,” she said, bowing again, deeper than her
last.

“Good.
Hatake, Uchiha, your task begins now.”

With only a
glance at his Team, Itachi got his men bowing to the Fire Lord and retreating
silently from the room. Sasuke looked at Naruto and nodded. Sakura rose with
them, in order to leave the shinobi leaders and the Daimyo alone.

“Uzumaki,”
the Fire Lord’s voice stopped them. “Please stay here. Hatake will take your
place. Uchiha will go with Haruno.”

Sakura
blinked, but bowed again at the man’s orders. It was probably for the best,
seeing how Ieyasu’s eyes seemed to lighten when Naruto kneeled in front of him.

Heaving a
sigh, she walked out of the room, Uchiha Itachi in tow.

-X-

Both their
steps resounded in the enormous hallway. Sakura sighed again, not really paying
attention to the heavy and expensive decorations.

“Is
something on your mind, Haruno-san?” the ANBU behind her asked smoothly. She
glanced at his onyx eyes for a moment before shaking her head.

“Maybe you
will be more useful with Kakashi-sensei,” she murmured, suddenly wishing to be
alone with her impending task. “An autopsy is not a pleasant procedure.”

“I am
merely following the Daimyo’s orders,” he whispered back dryly. “And do not
worry, I have seen worse.”

She chose
not to rise to his baiting as they neared the Firstborn’s chambers. Sakura took
in a deep breath and nodded for the servant to open the big oak doors. As she
expected, a stench of death and deteriorating flesh slapped at her medical
senses.

“Thank
you,” she murmured to the tearful servant. “Please close the doors after we
enter.”

“But the
preparations for the funeral--”

“I’m aware
of the rituals,” Sakura countered easily and kindly. “You will get the Heir’s
body intact.”

Bowing
hastily, the maid allowed entrance to the ninja into the room, closing the door
behind them.

“Kasai
Tsuyoshi, age ten,” she murmured as she approached the bed where the child’s body
laid, untouched. “Presents gashes on his midriff and neck. Wound on the center
of the chest indicates a direct blow to the heart.”

Itachi
merely watched her as she went about her findings, his Sharingan following
closely to her enumerating facts. Pulling her gloves off and closing her eyes
for a moment, she placed a hand on the child’s chest.

“No chakra
was involved in this wound...”

“Look at
his head.”

Opening her
own emerald orbs, she stared at the Uchiha’s red ones, as her chakra moved to
the place he had suggested. A spark of recognition and surprise lit her
features for a moment. “I see a disruption of chakra in his brain.”

“It can
be...” she trailed off as she placed her other hand on the spot he pointed at.
She emitted a thoughtful sound. “Hmm... this is the remains of the child’s
chakra. When a person is killed by surprise, a little amount
of chakra hides in the center of the brain, in order to act like a last resort
for the brain to keep functioning. This reflex allows for the medics to
keep feeding the brain with chakra pulses while others restore the body and the
heart.”

“So you can
reanimate the child?” Itachi asked with a little hint of curiosity in his flat
tone. Sakura shook her head.

“I can’t do
that. I don’t have enough chakra for a massive energy insertion, and the
patient isn’t a ninja. He doesn’t even have a heart, it got ripped out. I can’t
heal something that isn’t there.”

“I
understand,” Itachi nodded, walking slowly to the bed. “Do you need
assistance?”

“No thanks,
I’ll just clean the body and perform the autopsy.”

Itachi
grunted, but didn’t move from his spot. Sakura’s hands retrieved a roll of
gauze from her pack and looked around for something.

“Can you...
ask the servant for some water? Warm, if they can?”

Itachi
glanced at her briefly before walking decisively to the doors and issuing the
order curtly to the maid.

“Oh,
child,” Sakura murmured sadly, looking to the closed eyes of the Fire’s
Firstborn. “You got caught up in a political maelstrom just because of your
heritage. I truly hope your soul gets rest soon, Tsuyoshi-kun.”

“We will
make sure of that,” Itachi answered for him as he placed the lacquered bowl
full of warm water on the nightstand. “Is there anything else I can do?”

“No,
Uchiha-san. Thank you,” Sakura whispered, her eyes full of tears as she dipped
the gauze on the water. “I’ll take it from here.”

He stood
next to the bed, while Sakura started her procedure, placing a metal case with
surgical instruments next to the boy’s head. Sharingan eyes surveyed the room
inch by inch, as he listened to the pink-haired medic’s attempts to clear her
throat full of sad sighs, among the sound of the water being squeezed out of
the cloth as she cleaned the blood off of the
corpse.

He didn’t
say a word. And for that, she was suddenly grateful with him.

-X-

“... Oh, Kami.”

Itachi’s
eyes slid from their spot in space to land on the child’s bloody chest, waiting
for an explanation from the kunoichi. It didn’t take long.

But he
didn’t expect to be inwardly taken aback by the sudden fire that soared from
the depth of her emerald eyes.

“This was
made with a large weapon, a broadsword or a... scythe,” she reported, looking
angry, pointing at one of the wounds. “I saw these kinds of wounds from the
monks we found in the Fire
Temple.”

“So this is
the handiwork of one of those nukenin from the Akatsuki criminal organization,”
he concluded, his brain already making connections and building theories. “What
else?”

“It
looks... as if the child drove a knife to his own heart,” Sakura mused out
loud. “But that’s ridiculous, who can provide this child with a knife? He was
the Heir; there was no need for him to be armed.”

“Clean up your
hands,” Itachi ordered suddenly. “We need to confer with the Hokage.”

Sakura
stared at him for a moment but her hands obeyed his command on their own
volition. “Uhm... how--oh, the communication jutsu.”

“Indeed,”
he nodded curtly, pulling out a little scroll. “This is the hand-seal sequence.
Make sure you apply enough chakra to the last ram seal, otherwise it won’t
work. Take a seat.”

Joining him
on the floor next to the bed after a light hesitation, she unrolled the scroll
and studied the signs. “It looks like the summoning jutsu, but it ends
differently.”

“Yes. But
the amount of chakra employed for the Kuchiyose
no Jutsu is greater than the communication jutsu. You will need to enter a
meditation state quickly. Can you do it?”

Sakura
nodded, shooting him an exasperated glance as she lifted her hands. “Yes, I
can.”

Their hands
flew in sync through the same seals, remaining in the last one, two fingers
raised between gathered hands. Sakura’s senses jumped in surprise when she
found herself in the Hokage’s office, looking at her mentor’s smug façade.

“How did it
go, Itachi?” she heard Tsunade asking, hearing her voice faintly as if she was
shouting in a windy field.

“She
managed in the first try,” she heard his calm answer and felt ridiculously pleased
with herself. “Report your findings to the Hokage, Haruno-san.”

“Hi,
Shishou,” she started shyly, her senses picking up Tsunade’s proud smile.
“Uhm... Tsuyoshi-kun’s body presents gashes and some markings that indicate
restraining of his limbs.”

“The child
was bound?” she heard the blonde ask. Sakura nodded.

“Hai... the
marks look like wire bindings, but they didn’t cut the skin. It was more like
regular threads... also, the gashes, Tsunade-shishou, the boy presents the same
wounds that I found in the casualties at the Fire Temple.”

“I’ve seen
the results of your investigation already, Sakura, thank you for leaving those
clues on the monk. But that means that the Akatsuki is responsible for the two
assassinations.”

“We have
enough evidence to conclude that these particular works belong to two ninjas,
one from Waterfall and the other from an unknown village. Their names are not
disclosed just yet, but it is certain that one of them carries a large scythe.”

“Remind me
to dispatch a full request for a copy of the Bingo Book in Waterfall when you
get back, Itachi,” Tsunade spoke quickly. “You and Sakura did a fine job with
this. Keep me posted, please.”

“Hai,” both
ninja agreed and lowered their fingers, breaking the connection. Sakura opened
her eyes slowly, perceiving a gray-white expanse of fabric in front of her.
Blinking to gain focus, she lifted her gaze and looked straight to Itachi’s
Sharingan eyes.

They stared
at each other for a long moment, but Sakura was the first to lower her eyes.
Feeling a warmth seeping on her face, she cleared her
throat and stood up, returning to the child’s body.

“I have to
finish,” she said offhandedly, sticking her hands on the now cold water bowl
tinged with red. Itachi stood up and went to the door.

“I will
send one of your teammates to you. I need to speak with the Daimyo. Good job,
Haruno-san.”

Sakura’s
mouth opened in a gape as the door closed behind him. Did he just compliment
her?

...But, why an Uchiha felt the need to praise a
regular mortal, especially the Uchiha Heir?

-X-

Sasuke
found her in the Firstborn room when Kakashi said he would find their female
teammate. Standing in the door, he watched closely how she wrapped a white, clean
sheet on the dead boy’s body, her viridian eyes betraying how sad she felt due
to the decease of said child.

“Sakura,”
he said, watching how she flinched when hearing his cold tone. “Kakashi wants
you to finish here as soon as possible. We’re holding a meeting with the other
team in our assigned quarters.”

“I’m
already finished,” she murmured, nodding to the awaiting servants. “He’s
already cleaned up with water, but the incense and the other cleanings hadn’t
been applied.”

“We are
thankful for your help, Sakura-sama,” the maid answered, bowing deeply to the
pink-haired medic. “We will take it from here.”

“Yes, of
course,” she answered, tracing a finger on the child’s covered forehead and
walking to the door without looking back.

Another
servant led the two jounins to the quarters that the Fire Lord had assigned to
the shinobi. When he opened the door, a tanned, anxious face lifted from the
circle of sitting males.

“Sakura-chan,”
Naruto called softly, standing to embrace his best friend protectively. “Are
you okay?”

“Yeah,” she
said with a deep breath, noting the eyes of the rest of the others on her. “I’m
just emotionally drained.”

“Please
take a seat, Sakura,” Kakashi said lightly, pointing at a spot next to him.
Yamato offered her a cup of tea, which she took with a nod of thanks.
“Uchiha-san has explained everything to us. Do you want to add anything more?”

“I don’t
think so,” she murmured, letting out a deep sigh. “It’s obvious we’re dealing
with the assassins of that Daimyo Guard in the Fire Temple,
although I don’t know why they felt the need to restrain the child if they
caught him in his sleep.”

“Explain
the chakra reflex,” Itachi said suddenly. She frowned at her tea cup, enjoying
briefly the warmth of the cup seeping into her hands. It was a reassuring
sensation.

“It’s a
medical theory – all people possess chakra, but only we shinobi know how to
focus and mold it to our necessities.”

“That’s
nonsense, Sakura,” Sasuke scoffed derisively. “Only ninjas have focusing
energy.”

Sakura
lifted a brow. “Are you sure, Sasuke? What about the Fire Guard, Chiriku? Or
the Souryo I healed back in the Fire
Temple?”

“Lay down
your weapons, children,” Shisui said good-naturedly, placating. “I agree with
Sakura-san, I saw the monk’s chakra pathways myself. But what’s that has to do
with the ‘chakra reflex’ Itachi referred to earlier?”

“Like I was
trying to say, people’s chakra tends to convert into energy when the subject is
not a ninja,” Sakura relayed, closing her eyes and remembering the Firstborn’s
picture on his bed: bloody and mangled. Brows furrowing in a hard scowl, the
medic-nin opened her eyes again and stared back at Shisui. “But then again, the
chakra reflex is just a medical term for the last jerk of the body when it
dies. I’ve seen quite a lot of subjects that were reanimated –only ninja
patients, though– by triggering that spark of chakra inside their brains.”

“Interesting
concept, Haruno-san,” Yamato piped in. “So you perceived a chakra spark on the
child’s head?”

“I didn’t,”
she answered, looking at Itachi, who was looking out of the window. “Uchiha-san
did. After the autopsy, I managed to identify the scythe wounds and the thread
binding markings.”

“That nukenin
of Waterfall was certainly involved in this murder,” Itachi said from his post
near the window without turning. “The other one is the scythe-wielder. We need
to keep looking for clues –I feel we are not the only shinobi in the Palace at
the moment.”

“Do you
think they’re here?” Sasuke asked,
wide-eyed. “What are we waiting for?”

“Not so
fast, Sasuke-chan,” Shisui added after a glance from his young ANBU cousin.
“There are a lot of civilians in the Palace. And we have to protect the Daimyo
as well, and the rest of his family. We can’t simply jump into a battle because
we want to maul those fuckers.”

Sakura
gaped at Shisui, not really believing he had cursed in a loud voice. He gazed
briefly at her and smirked.

“I believe
there still are Uchiha that can keep you in your toes, Sakura-san, am I wrong?”

She
snorted. “You are impossible, Shisui-san!”

“We will
deploy in the phoenix formation,” Itachi interrupted the light banter tersely.
“The medic stays near the Daimyo while the others scout the Palace. We don’t
have any more time to lose.”

“So like
the perfect lady I am to stay back and watch?” the pink-haired jounin asked
sarcastically. “I can tear this Palace down with a flick of my wrist and I
can’t take part in the battle?”

“Sakura,
you are our medic, you need to protect the Daimyo,” Kakashi said hastily,
watching how the Uchiha Heir turned to look at her over his shoulder with
narrowed eyes. “Besides, we need to come to you if we’re injured – how we can
stand a chance if you’re unconscious or injured as well?”

“Stop
making a scene, Sakura,” Sasuke added, but Naruto jumped next to him caught him
in a headlock.

“You need
to shut your trap, teme!” he shouted. “Demo, Sakura-chan, Kakashi-sensei is
right... you are safer inside with Ojiji-sama,” he added awkwardly, scratching
his head.

“Well,
since everyone is against the feminist movement, I guess I shall stay indoors
avoiding all harm,” she sneered derisively, looking back at the elder Uchiha
brother. “In fact, I think I’ll have some tea with Ieyasu-sama--”

A
thunderous crack and an explosion resounded throughout the entire Fire Palace.

“Forget the
tea, Haruno-san,” Itachi said in a flat tone with a hint of sarcasm. “We are
under attack already.”

-XxX-

AN: HEEEEE!! BATTORU!!! 8D

Sorry for
the wait, folks! I was dealing with some work-related issues.

I hope you
liked this chapter, though. As many of you know by now, I took the Shogun
Tokugawa’s first name for the Fire Daimyo. I thought it fit for his character. Kasai, though,
means “Fire”.

As for the
chakra spark thingy I pulled out of my butt, I assure that you will see more
about that later.

As always,
much love to my lovely beta, Sometime.Usagi, for her awesome insights and
opinions! Thank you so much, Bunny Lady!. :3

Thanks for
reading!
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