10: Fight for What’s Right
Sakura, bent over a fellow Shinobi of the Leaf Village, worked hard to heal the gaping whole in his stomach. The war had commenced and ninjas were falling on both sides, one right after the other, and it was hard for her and the medic unit to keep up. Their was only four of them, including Shizune. Tsunade was out fighting/ healing, and Sakura wished she could do the same.
Though she was busy, she found herself distracted as she hoped Sasuke was alright. She found herself coming up with all the horrible scenarios that could have happened to him already, and she hadn’t even told him the news of her pregnancy, though even now, she was scared to. She couldn’t decide if he would be happy about the matter or not; her nightmare had scared her for life.
“Thank you, Miss Haruno,” the man wheezed when the hole had disappeared and the blood’s source gone.
Sakura nodded and stepped outside to see if any others were coming. She saw a flash of orange, Naruto, go down in a heap with a bunch of enemy ninja on top of him. He looked really tired, and Sakura didn’t know if he would be able to fend them off. For the longest time, he didn’t move. Sakura couldn’t just stand there and watch helplessly on the sidelines.
Sakura darted out into the dangerous crowd of ninja and ran to Naruto’s rescue, using her jutsu’s to get rid of the ninja. Naruto got up drearily, “Thanks, Sakura, but you should have stayed in the building.”
“Naruto, I feel I’m needed more out here. I can do what Tsunade is doing. Don’t worry about it. I’ll be fine. Where’s Sasuke?” Sakura replied gazing into the crowd, but she didn’t see the raven haired love of her life.
“I don’t know, I lost sight of him at the entrance. Most likely, Shikamaru is with him. No worries. No one is going to be taking him anywhere. Sasuke can handle himself,” Naruto assured her. “I’m going to go find Hinata, I lost sight of her to, and I want to make sure she‘s okay. Just be careful, Sakura.”
Sakura nodded and took off in search of Sasuke, but an enemy kunoichi ambushed her, kicking her in the jaw and sending her sprawling. Sakura maneuvered so that she landed lightly on her feet. She needed to be careful. She didn’t want to miscarry. She knew it was foolish to run out in the open, but she needed to make sure Sasuke was okay. She needed to lay her fears to rest.
The kunoichi used mainly Taijustu, and Sakura tried to distance herself from the ninja, but she came at her harder and swifter. Sakura managed to block all the blows with her hands, but she didn’t think she’d be able to keep it up forever.
Sakura got hit in the mouth and shoulder a few times, but Sakura had dealt even more damage to the Shinobi, knocking her down and out. Sakura ached all over, wondering how on earth she could find Sasuke without getting attacked again, just to make sure he was safe and in one piece. She wouldn’t be able to live with herself if he died out here, alone.
Sasuke had obviously been the target. As soon as the enemy had infiltrated the village, they had swarmed around him, and he wondered how he was going to be able to fend them all off, but his allies helped him. Naruto being his main savior, taking the blunt of the forces for him. Stupid idiot. He could handle himself. Naruto just needed to watch out for himself.
Sasuke just hoped Sakura was safe in the confines of the medic building healing those that needed it and not worrying herself silly about him. He would never admit it aloud, but he worried about her.
Sooner than he had hoped, Shinobi from both sides were falling. His comrades were being pulled out to the medic ward. He had lost sight of most of his friends. He silently hoped that everyone was okay.
Surveying the area, he caught a glimpse of pink hair. Sakura! What was she doing out here? Running to her side, he found her breathing heavily, with a split lip and many bruises over her delicate skin.
“Sakura, what are you doing here?” he asked as they stood back to back blocking enemy attacks.
“I had to make sure you were okay. I couldn’t just sit there and wonder. I needed to know. I want to be by your side,” she answered determinedly.
“You needn’t worry about me. You should be more concerned with yourself.”
“Sasuke, I’m a kunoichi who has excepted the risks that come with it. You need to understand that I don’t find it cute and sweet that you don’t want me to fight. I can handle myself. I’m not twelve anymore.”
Sasuke was about to argue. He hadn’t meant to make it sound like he didn’t think she was strong enough to handle it, cause she was; he just couldn’t bear the thought of losing someone else that was close to him from his life. He didn’t think he’d be able to live through that again.
Somehow, the two were separated, but momentarily. Sasuke quickly found her defending herself. He thought she looked funny, the way she was trying so hard to keep her mid-section so well guarded. But, he didn’t think much of it. He killed the ninja attacking her with a swift slash of his kunei.
Sakura, knowing that they could very well die out here any second, turned to Sasuke, “Sasuke, I want to tell you something. Something very serious.” She wanted to tell him that she was pregnant. Give him something to fight for, to really fight to stay alive for: motivation. She blocked another ninja attack and killed him with a shuriken to the neck.
Sasuke, coming to the same conclusion, said, “I have to tell you something serious too.” He wanted to propose to her, tell her how much he deeply cared for her. How much he loved her. How much he wanted to spend the rest of his life by her side. He wanted to marry her. He sent an enemy flying into one of their brethren. “You go first,” he told her. He was a little nervous. What man wouldn’t be?
“I’m- I mean, we are going-” her scream cut off the rest of the sentence. Turning, Sasuke found her being lifted into the night. Her screaming stopped suddenly, but only to be replaced by his own scream.
He raced off into the forest after them, though he could no longer sense or see them. He ran until his lungs felt as though they would burst. He fell to his knees in defeat. He didn’t know where they had gone. Suddenly, Naruto and Shikamaru were behind him. Naruto, with tears in his eyes, knelt down and placed his hand on Sasuke’s shoulder.
“We’ll find her,” he promised. “Believe it.”
“I have to believe that. I have to,” Sasuke mumbled out loud, more to himself than anyone else.
“Don’t beat yourself up about this either. It wasn’t your fault. It was no one’s fault. It couldn’t have been prevented. You must know this,” Shikamaru told him in his attempt to make Sasuke feel better.
Sasuke just shook his head. He didn’t trust his voice. He wasn’t going to let them see him in his moment of weakness. The two of them weren’t making him feel any better. They were making it worse.
Sasuke suddenly wondered what Sakura was going to tell him. And, he felt a stab at his heart for not blurting out his proposal while he still had the chance. But, he was going to find her so that he could tell her and so that she would have the chance to tell him what she had meant to tell him.
