Chapter Twenty-five
Unwanted Surprise
Sasuke felt unwanted within the limestone boundaries of Sand as he walked around the fête with numerous eyes glued at him. Try as he might to ignore them, he still felt unease at their accusing glares. What else do they want? I threw away my pride by coming back. Nothing’s left for me. He silently pitied himself as he trudged further into the line of stalls before him. He was instructed to meet someone at the border by the Kazekage this morning. He acted upon it albeit reluctantly, leaving Sakura in the Kazekage’s residence alone.
He didn’t know how close the two were, Sakura and Gaara.
Last night was a little surprising. He was just about to get some fresh air when he found the two at the kitchen, eating together, from the same plate. It was odd since he had seen no sign of amity between the two when they reported at the Kazekage’s office yesterday. And Sakura had never mentioned anything about Gaara when they were travelling together.
Honestly, it bothered him to no end. The last person he wanted Sakura getting all friendly with was Gaara. He did once try to kill her.
He knew exactly what Sakura would say if he ever brought it up. That’s all in the past, Sasuke. Let it go.
Sasuke cared nothing about whether the incident was from the past or if it could be repeated in the future. He didn’t like Gaara, and that would stay as a FACT.
The sweltering sun burned his skin but never did he pay attention to it. He needed to get to the border soon so he could finish this quickly and rest in his room.
When he reached the border, he was surprised to see who just entered the premises of Sand.
“Naruto?” he saw the blonde wave excitedly at him as soon as he spotted him. Behind him trailed Hatake Kakashi with his nose buried in that ‘Icha Icha Paradise’ again.
“Well, I wasn’t expecting a welcome from you, Sasuke!” the blonde laughed the moment he approached him.
Sasuke smirked and crossed his arms, “Likewise.” When Kakashi fell a step beside Naruto, his gaze settled towards him.
Naruto could almost feel the mist of tension building as he stood between them.
“Sasuke.”
“Kakashi.”
Both nodded at each other and just like that, they started walking, leaving a surprised Naruto behind. That went well. Naruto happily mused as he went to follow. It had been awhile since his last visit and it excited him to see the changes that happened after two years.
Sasuke had his hands tucked at the pocket of his pants as he silently trudged beside the quiet copy-nin. “What brings you here?” he casually asked without glancing at him.
Kakashi lifted his eyes away from the book and drifted toward the Uchiha prodigy. “I received a letter from Konoha. I was told that you and Sakura are hiding here.”
“You mean Sakura’s hiding here,” he said in a clipped tone. It seemed the older jounin was still implying Orochimaru’s fascination for him.
“Hm,” was all he said and went back to reading.
“Ha! I wonder how Gaara’s doing! Man, I haven’t seen him in years—” Naruto continued his rant until they crossed the market and entered the central leading towards the Kazekage’s office.
**
“How long am I supposed to play the damsel in distress?” Sakura absently fiddled with the loose hem of her quilt as she stared blindly up at the ceiling. It had only been a day since she was locked up in here and already she was feeling utterly bored. She knew it was still dangerous to expose herself outside, but all this protection everyone is giving her is starting to choke her badly. She was not a fragile girl—that she knew. But it seemed no one can understand this little fact. She’d done a lot of missions that varies from class-S to class-B. Or in her case, class-D. That was the most uneventful one. She felt degraded in some ways.
She was glad that was about to change…
And then there was a harsh knocking coming from her door.
Sakura’s brows twitched.
Another set came and her mouth started to join her brows in its twitching glory.
There’s only one person who can knock like an ogre, Sakura shot up from her bed with a gasp. “It couldn’t be,” she swiftly ran toward the door and opened it, only to reveal that familiar Cheshire grin belonging to a certain blonde she wasn’t expecting to see.
“Naruto!”
Naruto scratched the back of his head and greeted, “Sakura! Wasn’t expecting me, huh?”
Sakura’s face softened, happy to see her friend again, “No, but that Ogre knocking can’t be mistaken…”
“Gya! Who’re you callin’ an ogre??” the blonde griped.
Sakura waved it off and giggled, “What are you doing here?”
Naruto was unsure how to answer that question. “Well, err… Kakashi heard about your journey here and—”
“What?” Sakura’s eyes flew wide.
“I said, Kakashi—”
“I heard what you said!” she then shook her head violently, “No, I mean, Kakashi’s here too?”
Naruto nodded. “He’s at Gaara’s office right now. By the way, he asked me to fetch you.”
Sakura nodded slowly as comprehension sank in, “I see. I-Just let me change. I’ll be there in a second.”
“Sure.” The blonde looked worriedly at his friend. “Um… Sakura?”
Sakura turned over her shoulder, “What?”
“Are you okay?” his eyes shifted somewhere around the room, reluctant to look her in the eye.
Sakura pulled a tight smile and nodded, “Of course… why wouldn’t I be?”
**
Gaara stared down at the map in front of him. “I received a message from Kankuro this morning,” he told his two guests as he traced a fine line on the map before him, “The bandits hail from Amegakure. They were a group of six men hired to transport whatever their clients ask of them in exchange for an incredibly high amount. It seems someone as powerful as Orochimaru has the capital to appoint them in this mission. That and because it seems Orochimaru’s after something Sakura possesses.” He looked up and directly to the silent jounin who, too, was studying the map. “Are my assumptions right?”
Kakashi nodded, “It’s the only thing he desires right now. Once this plan works well, who knows what he’ll do next.” He wasn’t able to see Gaara pointedly glaring in Sasuke’s direction. Sasuke, however, met his glare dead on.
The battle ended the moment Naruto and Sakura arrived in the room. Kakashi looked up from the map and shifted his gaze toward the pink-haired medic. Sakura entered with her head raised, yet at the same time trying to avoid Kakashi’s gaze. She stood between Sasuke and Naruto as they all gathered around the table.
“Now, doesn’t this bring back memories?” Naruto tried to lighten up the mood but failed miserably. Everyone was so uptight!
Sakura had to admit that it has been a long time since they actually gathered and discussed something with all of them present. After Sasuke left, their team disentangled and the opportunity of having a mission together rarely came. Moments like this should be cherished. She thanked Naruto silently for bringing it up.
Sasuke seemed to look nostalgic as well as Kakashi, who looked somewhere afar.
“Can we discuss this now?” Gaara irritatingly interrupted the little reunion and went on with the briefing, “Temari’s team found out that the group was divided in three groups. One was spotted in the Konoha’s border. The second was in Kirigakure and the third is somewhere in the Fire Country… near Otogakure. They mean no war… as of now. It’s a simple retrieval mission I presume.”
“It won’t take long before they realize that their target is not in Konoha.” Kakashi assumed that if these nins were well-famed for their tactical transport, they’ll see through the deception Tsunade created and backtrack here to Sunagakure. “The only option we have here is to fight them.”
“Of course,” Sasuke scoffed, “Sakura can’t keep running. This is all tiring as it is.”
Sakura agreed solemnly, “This has gone on far too long. I want to end it.”
Naruto noticed something about Sakura that made him feel odd on some point. Something was not right… but for now, he let it go. “Gaara—err, I mean, Kazekage-sama,” despite his mistake, no repulsion was seen from Gaara at all. “What are your plans?”
Kakashi, too, expectantly looked at the young ruler, “This is your fight, too.”
Gaara closed his eyes and looked contemplative, “You’re right. This is not about the retrieval alone. They once threatened my village… and that is unforgivable.” His people suffered greatly for the past months. The nins created havoc, caused a plague and aided Orochimaru in his plans. The crime of the six Amegakure nins must be dealt with. That was why he requested that if ever they are to be executed, it will be done here in Sunagakure.
“We will fight this together,” Sakura resolutely affirmed with the Kazekage, and was glad to see him grin a little in return.
**
Once the briefing was over, Sakura waited until they reached Gaara’s home before she bluntly stepped in front of the silent copy-nin and cornered him.
“We need to talk,” she told him seriously as she watched both Sasuke and Naruto disappear upstairs from the corner of her eyes.
Kakashi wasn’t expecting her to talk to him so soon, and couldn’t help but to agree. Sakura led him to one of the vacant rooms and closed the door behind her.
The room was dark with only the sunlight seeping through the small window as their only source of lighting. From where she stood, she could see his face beneath the murkiness surrounding them.
None of them spoke for a moment and merely looked at each other.
Sakura was happy that Kakashi’s here even if he’s not supposed to be, and that he willingly came here to help her and defied the rules he’d been following. It made her heart flutter to know that he prioritized her over Konoha. Kakashi, on the other hand, was more than glad to see her well and unharmed. He had no idea what he’d do if something bad happened to her.
“Sakura…”
The pink-haired medic shook her head and interrupted, “There’s something you should know… about that conversation with Sasuke—”
“Sakura, you don’t have to—”
“Let me finish.” Sakura silenced him with a plea in her eyes. She had been mulling over this for days and she just had to get it out of her system. “You misunderstood everything and you accused me of something that never happened…” It hurt that Kakashi still found it hard to trust her completely. She was devoted to him and for him to assume that she would discard him over Sasuke made her feel awful. She would never do that to him. Even if it was Sasuke who confessed to her.
Kakashi lowered his eye, afraid at the grief that shrouded Sakura, “He wants to be with you.”
“Yes, that I cannot deny,” Sakura told him truthfully, “But that doesn’t mean that I’ll choose him over you.”
“I don’t understand. I heard everything—”
“Everything?” Sakura scoffed, her hands balling into a fists at her sides, “You didn’t, Kakashi. That’s the problem!”
Kakashi frowned, “What are trying to say?” he asked with his voice dropping low.
“Sasuke he… He loves me but he’s more than willing to let me go!”
The copy-nin’s eye widened a fraction at this sudden outburst. Had he heard them wrong? But he was so sure Sasuke said something about ‘realizing what he wanted in his life’. And he assumed he was referring to Sakura. After that, all hell broke lose.
-
-
“You made me realize what I really wanted in my life.”
“Next time, try not to leave too early… you’re missing a lot.”
-
-
Kakashi let this new information sink in for a moment.
“See! You jumped to wrong conclusions! You don’t trust me and it hurts!” she suddenly erupted.
“I do trust you,” he softly mumbled, more to himself.
Sakura bristled and shook her head, “No you don’t. Sometimes… I wonder if I should let you go, too…” she turned away from him and cradled her arm around her stomach. She never realized how upset she was up until now that words simply flew out of her mouth. She could tell Kakashi was feeling a little worse himself.
“Why?” Kakashi asked, voice sounding weary.
Sakura closed her eyes tightly as if trying to block away his voice. “I—I feel like a burden to you…” It seems her words struck very close to home and it almost paralyzed him.
Kakashi was quiet. He was blindly staring at the woman speaking such words before him.
“If you can’t continue this relationship, I’m willing to compensate. I can’t have you feeling embarrassed all the time when you’re with me. You do have a reputation to hold…” she finally faced him again and softly added, “I understand…” but what she saw surprised her. There was a hard, determined look on Kakashi’s face that was mostly seen in the battlefield. He appeared to be calculating something with great difficulty. And then it occurred to her that he’s not handling this situation all too well.
“Is that how you see me?” Kakashi said tersely.
Sakura suddenly felt tired, “You are a man who is devoted to your country. And that is honourable.” There was thrilling pause before she went on, “This, however, inhibits you from your true feelings. You can’t have both.” She let her gaze fall to her feet. She couldn’t look at him for she was afraid that her resolve would crumble.
Kakashi took the few steps separating them and stared at her, “I can.”
Sakura shook her head, “Kakashi…”
Kakashi drew air sharply, “I can’t change the things that made ME, Sakura. I’m a dog of my village because there is nothing more I want than to save people’s lives without acting foolish! It takes time to change old habits… and I’m learning. Believe me I am. I still stick to the rules… but I will never consider helping my friends as foolish. It was a mistake I made when I was young. I care about the people around me more than anything else and I can’t blame you if you doubt that.
“If you think that I consider this relationship a burden, then I’m disappointed in you. You knew me better than that. Yes, it made me uncomfortable, but that’s because I was afraid of how people will treat you if they learned about this. I’m not afraid about what they will say of us. Let them gossip for all I care. I just can’t stand the fact that this situation may affect you and your profession negatively.
“Shinobis like us can’t love. An emotion such as that is crucial. It can destroy us one way or another if we’re not careful. I… I myself was a victim.”
Sakura questioningly raised her gaze towards him, wanting him to elaborate more for her to understand him better.
Kakashi ran a hand down his face and started pacing towards the single window of the room. “You being Orochimaru’s target worries me.” A pause and then soft words were spoken, “I’m… I’m afraid that you’ll just fade away like everybody else.”
Somehow those words made a huge impact on her, feeling her insides burn in a way that made her want to melt entirely. Her feet instinctively brought her toward him as her warm hand sought his arm. Kakashi closed his eye, hoping that nothing will make that hand leave the tingling sensation it gave his skin, albeit covered by his shirt.
“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry… I didn’t know,” she regretfully whispered, her grip tightening in each parted word.
Kakashi shook his head, “Don’t. If there’s someone who should apologize, that would be me.” He turned and took the smaller hand into his. “I’m sorry.” The sincerity was there, but something still felt not quite right. He suddenly removed his head band and pulled his mask down, much to Sakura’s surprise, “I apologize… for everything. I hope this makes me look more sincere.” A boyish smile grazed his lips and Sakura found herself smiling fondly back.
Silent tears dripped down her cheeks but her smile never faded. Kakashi’s smile fell as he immediately reached out to cup her cheeks and wipe the tears away with his thumbs. Her green eyes looked at his and saw nothing but love within them.
I always make you cry, Kakashi bitterly mused as he tried to calm her down. Don’t cry for me, Sakura. Don’t…
“Oh Kakashi!” she threw her arms around him and he gladly received her.
He whispered soothing words against her ear, something that she was grateful for. But the last few words that left Kakashi’s lips made her cry all the more. “Don’t fade away from me…”
Sakura gave a nod, “Never.” I hope…
**
Gaara watched the two leave his study until they parted by the limestone stairs. Kakashi said something about discussing mission proper with Naruto and Sasuke and left. Sakura remained by the stairs, waiting until he was out of sight.
“How long are you going to put up with this?” his voice sounded eerie within the darkness.
Sakura was a little surprised to see him there. But then again, Gaara did have this weird habit of appearing in every shadowy corner. “Whatever do you mean, Kazekage-sama?” she tried to sound innocent but she knew the man would not buy it.
“Aren’t you glad that he’s here?”
“No,” Sakura answered, “She never told me she’d inform him… I thought she would keep my friends out of this.”
“It was his decision to come here. No one forced him.”
The medic lightly laughed, “He’s been like that these days…”
“You’re flattered?” he asked tonelessly, in what had to be the biggest understatement of the year.
Sakura smiled at the term. “Yes,” she told him truthfully. “Honestly, I’m really happy that he came here. At least I get to talk to him before…” at that, her gaze dropped on the floor.
Gaara crossed his arms and looked at her as if he was years older than her, “I surmise a peace between you two…”
Sakura nodded, hoping that he did not notice the red puffiness of her eyes, “Yeah… we’re good. But I was hoping to end it while I’m still here…”
Gaara refused to explore the latter part and asked instead, “Then it’s easier for you to continue the mission?”
Those words made her stiffen on some point. Gaara just hit the right button to press. “I’ve always been ready. I just wanted to clear the grudges before I… you know what I mean.” She didn’t want to talk so openly about it and she knew the Kazekage understood. He was one of the few people who knew about the current mission she was in.
“They’re coming very fast…” he meditatively noted.
“Aa…”
“You still have a day to change your mind.”
Sakura wanted to laugh out loud at that, but decided against it. It was as if she’s choosing between life and death. And then she realized that this must be his way of showing his subtle concern towards her. He’s a human being after all. “The moment I had that conversation with Tsunade-sama, I was determined with my decision. I will do this…”
Gaara nodded solemnly before walking past her, “Very well…”
When he left, Sakura took that moment to think everything over.
TBC