#yagusaku

[stardustandconstellations7]

I absolutely love Touken Revolution by @vesperlionheart. Again this author has blow me way with there stories. Definitely recommend this story.❤️

[thefreckledone]

Sakura is either A. a sea monster with many forms or B. the handler/tamer for sea monsters that costal governments contract to negotiate with said beasts (or just spank them back into the ocean.)

Sakurainhales the scent of brine, bitter and heady, as she lifts her caramel latte toher lips. She’s close enough to the stormy waters that she can almostfool herself into believing that her drink is salted caramel. Sakura casts hereyes out over the roiling waters, lifting her palm just as the sky lets forth adeluge of rain. The rain falls in a globe around her, not touching her in theslightest.

She keeps her eyes on the brewing squall, beginning acountdown in her mind.

3.

2.

1.

Her phone rings.

Sakura glances down at the blocked number and picks up,fingering the wide brim of her hat. “I told you so,” she says, voice dry.

A sigh fills her ear. “I don’t pay you to be right,”Sasori replies, unwilling to concede the victory to her. “I pay you to fixthese messes.”

“Technically, youdon’t pay me anything; Chiyo does,” Sakura says. “This whole event could havebeen prevented if you’d just listenedto me. These entities get riled up in this season, it’s in their nature. If youjust let them—”

“I don’t have time for this,” Sasori snaps. “We have menout in the bay right now who need help. Where the hell are you?”

“Right where I need to be,” Sakura replies, a squall ofher own rising in her voice. “Careful how you speak to me, Sasori. Any deathstoday are on your hubris, not mine. I expect twice the usual payment for theshort notice deposited by sunset today. If it isn’t, I’ll know exactly where todirect my attentions next.”

Sakura ends the call before Sasori can reply, tossing herphone back into her satchel. She stares down into her latte, taking anothercouple long swigs before mournfully placing it on the hood of her car,expanding her spherical umbrella effect to cover it. This done, Sakuramethodically begins to remove her layers, starting with her hat and ending withher black jeans. The chill in the air presses in around her, but Sakura merelytakes a pinch of raw wool, spending it in a quick warmth cantrip. She folds herclothes methodically as the sky booms with thunder and flashes with lightning,ignoring the frantic ringing of her phone. She has no doubt that it is Sasori,impatient that she hasn’t yet solved this problem of his own making.

As if treating with entities of the Deep is a simple,easy task.

Sakura locks her car, disappearing her keys into a pocketdimension, and steps to the edge of the cliff. Below her, the bay and the oceanbeyond are in absolute turmoil, waters twisting and writhing unnaturally. Thebay has taken on the shape of Charybdis, though Sakura knows that Charybdis istouring the arctic waters of the North Pole for the next decade alongside herlover Scylla.

She wonders briefly which Deep entity is stirring up mischief,but she supposes she will soon find out. Sakura stretches her arms out to hersides and leaps from the cliff. She moves her arms above her head, aiming forthe water in a dive. She keeps her umbrella bubble around her as she strikesthe water, angling her body to get as deep as she can with that velocity. Itgets her nearly thirty yards deep and she swims deeper still, her magic seekingout the perpetrators of this storm.

Familiar magic reverberates back to her from beyond thebay, from the unconfined wilds of the ocean.

Sakura frowns slightly, propelling herself forward with aspell, seeking them out not with her sight but with her magic.

The Kiri Court has never come so close to shore.

She was expecting a confrontation with some adolescentkrakens playing chicken, not an encounter with veritable Deep royalty.

She is on good terms with the Kiri Court, as much as anyland-dweller can be, each of her experiences with them taking place hundreds ofmiles away from any land mass. It is unprecedented for them to come so close.

She is still organizing her thoughts, dread settling inher gut, when she gets within a mile of them. Sakura casts dark vision uponherself, blinking against the sting of the spell. It is far worse than thecolor contacts that Ino made her wear for Halloween once, but it is a price she’swilling to pay.

It comes in quite handy as a figure coalesces in thedarkness near her, faintly glowing from her spell’s effect. He has thetrappings of a humanoid, though there is something reptilian about him, alienin such a way that calls her magic to her defenses. He is wearing a guise,something meant to set her at ease though all it does is set her teeth on edge.

“Zabuza,” Sakura greets. “How wonderful to see youagain.”

His head cocks at an inhuman angle as he assesses her. “Youseem well, Sakura. Your respiratory system is still cycling oxygen. Would youlike to try something different?” His smile is sharp, crowded with too manyteeth.

“Again, Zabuza, I will never consent to drowning. Thankyou for your consideration though,” Sakura says with a roll of her eyes. It’swhat passes for a sense of humor, though Sakura finds it lacking. “Will youtake me to the Patriarch?”

Zabuza goes utterly still in that strange way of Deepentities. “Of course, follow me.”

Sakura does so, unflinchingly meeting the gazes of theshadowy monstrosities they pass. Few have a care for Sakura’s humansensibilities and she appreciates their honesty in form.

Zabuza leads her to their leader, the one wearing thesmallest of guises, yet his energy eclipses everyone in the vicinity.

“Yagura,” Sakura greets, bowing to him. “It brings megreat pleasure to see you again. Unfortunately, these are not the best ofcircumstances.”

“Sakura,” he says, voice booming through the crushing,ever pressing water. Sakura’s umbrella spell wavers before she shores upstrength around it, holding it fast. Should she lose it here, at these depths,she’ll be doomed. “We are pleased to be greeted with your countenance. Please,join us for the festivities.”

“Festivities?” Sakura asks mildly. “Is that what we arecalling the squall above?”

Yagura waves a hand. “We are not concerned with theabove, only the below. The only part of the above that we enjoy is you. We wishyou to partake of the festivities. We are adding a member to our Swordsmen, ourcandidates must fight for the honor.”

“Is—is that why you came so close to shore?” Sakura says,swallowing. “To draw my attention?”

“Of course,” Yagura says, his smile a weight uponSakura’s heart.

“It is a great honor to draw your attention,” Sakurasays, treading lightly with her words. “Might we move these festivities outwardfrom here? Say, three hundred miles west? I am afraid that I cannot dedicate myfull attention to these festivities so close to shore. The magics there call tome.”

The storm that enters Yagura’s eyes is quelling andSakura closes her mouth.

“We shall move,” Yagura says decisively. He reachesforward, passing through Sakura’s umbrella spell to touch her skin. His skinlooks human, but his guise does not extend to his touch, his hand cold, wet,and somehow reminds her of the reflection of a full moon. His hand retreats,but his gaze is a brand. “We require your full attention.”

[stonemedusa]

Misunderstandings and marriage proposals- Chapter 1

Pairing: Yagura X Sakura

Rating: ???

Word count: 1567

Summary: "Marry me." He was a sweet kid, a little weird, but sweet all the same. But couldn't he go play ninja instead of proposing to random women he'd only met a few weeks ago? What were his parents teaching him anyway? "Yagura-kun-" "Marry me."

Next Chapter

--

The war may have just ended, but that didn’t mean she could go home yet.

No, Sakura Haruno still had a job to do and she wasn’t planning on leaving the medical camp until every last patient was healed enough for the trip back to their respective village.

It was a very slow work, but every patient that walked out the door on their own two feet was still progress. With Naruto still comatose in a highly guarded tent further in, and Sasuke imprisoned around the same area, she was glad she was able to stay put and help out.

She didn’t want to leave her teammates here on their own, they might do something stupid again.

Even if it meant spending so long in the middle of nowhere.

She’d been here for three weeks, with no one to talk to but the strange little boy who’d made it his business to visit her at least once a day. It started when he was escorted in by Mei-sama, the pinkette only being told to look him over and make sure he was healthy, that he had no lingering jutsu affecting him or damage.

She had been a little confused, especially as to why a child was on the battle field in the first place, but she went along with it. Mist was a different place after all, and she’d heard the tales of their child soldiers many a time. After clearing out the unneeded entourage, she’d spoken softly to the silent boy and tried to start a conversation.

It had taken awhile, but he’d opened up a little, telling her his name with a bow before the Mizukage hurriedly escorted him out, eager to get him out of the pinkette’s sight.

Yagura.

The little boy was very polite, refined even, and Sakura had to assume it was because he was from a clan. Clan children were always so polite to their elders.

But yes, it had been a little strange to find him peering into the tent the next day, watching her work with a critical look in his pupiless pink eyes. Odd, but after she’d invited him in and out of the bustling make due road outside, she’d started up another conversation, working quickly on the sleeping patient before her.

It went on like that. Each day she’d find him watching her, and each time his gaze would be a little friendlier, a little more inviting. She didn’t even need to invite him in anymore, and the kind boy would also bring her lunch or a snack if he saw she’d skipped a meal in favour of treating her patients.

He was very kind-well, to her at least. She’d catch him ordering the mist nin around sometimes, but gave it no mind. If the nin were going along with it, it didn’t seem like an issue.

Strange, but not her problem, Mei-sama would have done something by now if it was causing problems.

The more they spoke, the more she learnt about the strange boy. Nothing very informative, but each conversation brought new things to her attention. From his diplomatic way of speaking, to his sudden exasperated outbursts if he though her to be teasing him in any way.

Okay, so she was teasing him most of the time, but only because it was fun to get him to act like the child he was.

That all brought them to today, with Sakura sitting in her make due office, filing paperwork while discussing her scheduled departure next week.

“I’ll miss talking to you Yagura-kun, it’s not very often that people come to visit me at work. Sure Naruto does, but that’s only because he wants me to buy him ramen…”

The strange boy just looked at her slightly saddened face sharply, the odd stitching on his left cheek glaring at her, her fingers just itching to fix it properly.

He’d never let her though, the little brat.

Sakura knew he only said no because it was his private way of getting back at her for her teasing. Yagura really knew how to get under her skin sometimes, and he’d always smile while doing it.

Brat.

“Sakura-san, will you be happy back in Konoha?” His voice pulled her away from her plotting, the many ways to trick him into letting her heal the scar fading from her mind.

Would she be…happy?

He was worried for her, how sweet of him.

“Yes, I’ll be happy. Maybe not at first, with all the reminders of the lost still around, but I can cope and adapt. It’s what shinobi do right?”

“You deserve to be happy all the time though, you’re a very kind person. Possibly too kind, but then again, Konoha shinobi have always had bleeding hearts.”

“…Yagura-kun, you’re weird.” She sighed and put her pen down, her mind too scrambled to comprehend what she was signing anymore. She needed a break. “I’ll deal with it though. I will miss you, how am I going to get through the days without my conversation buddy?”

“I am not your ‘Buddy’.”

With an exaggerated smile she looked to the tents roof as if pleading with kami to let her keep him.

“However am I going to survive without you?”

His exasperated expression quickly turned calculating, his eyes sharpening with intelligence as she turned her slightly saddened smile back to his seated form.

She really would miss him.

He was nice company, no matter how young.

Yeah, she’d definitely miss-

“Marry me then.”

- Wait… “What?”

“Marry me.”

“Uhh, Yagura-kun, I think you’re a little too-”

“Marry me. I know you heard me, you are neither deaf nor stupid. A marriage between Konoha and Mist would strengthen ties even more than the war did. You could also move to Mist and not have to worry about constant reminders of those you’ve lost.”

“Yagura, you are weird.”

He was sweet for looking out for her though, he was probably just trying to say that he’d miss her too.

“Sakura-san, I would rather you not be upset. You’ve done a lot for Mist and its shinobi, and I shall repay you however I can. It’s not very often that I find a woman that can catch my attention like you do, and I’d rather not lose you if given the option.”

Well spoken, but still off for a kid like him.

Why in the world did his parents teach him things like that?

“Look-”

“Marry me.”

“Arrgh, fine, but only if you go bring me a few sweets from Bee’s stash. I have a killer headache and need a boost.”

“If that is what it takes.”

Not five minutes later, her desk was covered in sweet wrappers and candy, the pinkette amused and grinning at the slightly exasperated boy before her.

She hadn’t expected him to go that overboard…

“You shall marry me now and I shall not take no as an answer. I have completed your task and have met your expectations in every challenge you’ve handed to me. Customs say that we can now be engaged without issue, even if your means of evaluating my worth were a little strange. I’ll never understand women…”

“Yeah, sure,” The pinkette stuffed another hard sweet on her mouth, poking her tongue out a little as the child rolled his eyes at her, his mouth quirking into a small grin of his own. “I’ll ‘marry’ you.”

He was such a sweet kid, she couldn’t say no to him.

He’d forget about it in a day or two anyway, probably find something else to play pretend with.

Maybe she could get him to play ninja next time? He was pretty cute acting all determined like this, and she could only imagine what he’d looked like on the ‘mission’ she’d sent him on.

Maybe she could invest in a camera for next time…

“…Thank you Sakura-chan, you shall not regret giving me this opportunity. I’ll be a wonderful husband, I promise.”

--

“Haruno Sakura!” Tsunade’s voice rang through the camp, her earth shaking footsteps thundering into the pinkette’s tent, said girls sleeping form scrambling from bed in a panic as her teacher ripped the blankets from her body.

“TSUNADE-SAMA! W-what’s going on, are we under attack again? Is Naruto alright?!”

“Naruto? NARUTO?! You should be more worried about yourself!”

“…huh?”

“Haruno Sakura, my little apprentice, do you have any idea why I was just handed a marriage contract?”

“…Huh? What does a marriage contract have to do with me?”

“Oh, I’m sorry, I mustn’t have been clear. Let me try again.” Her teacher’s eyes blazed with anger and worry, Sakura’s own eyes widening as her teacher and Kage tried to stay collected. “Why was I handed a marriage contract from the forth Mizukage just a few minutes ago, stating that you’d agreed to an engagement him after he had completed the customary courting trials you’d set for him?”

“…Who?”

“Sakura…the forth Mizukage, the short guy you’ve been hanging out with for the past few weeks!”

“Guy? Hokage-sama, you’re mistaken, I’ve been hanging out with Yagura-kun, and he’s-”

“27 years old, and your fiancée now according to Mist customs.”

Tsunade let out a tired sigh as her apprentice’s body hit the floor with a loud thud, already knowing some of the problems this would cause.

Wait until Mei found out…

Or Naruto for that matter.

She needed a drink.

[vesperlionheart]

Dream Sweet in Sea Major 2

When considering traditional standards of beauty or masculine charm, the features that made Yagura recognizable were not often considered. A notable scar below the one eye, irises colored bleeding pink, and a diminished stature that confused him with children if viewed from behind. No, Yagura was not what tradition would call beautiful, but he was other things.

Among those things he was old, considerably old, and in all the years of his long existence he had learned how to be. He knew what angles worked for him, what lighting suited his features, and how to lower his tenor to a velvet edged voice that could turn razor sharp in a second.  He knew how to hold himself, how to dress himself, how to carry himself. He knew his worth and his worth was pretty damn high. The world was meant for him and was his. He acted as haughty as he pleased and the world slid right into his palm.

It gave him no little delight to be proven time and time again that the world was his to manipulate and take from as he pleased. The woman in the doorway seemed to do nothing more than stoke his already engorged ego.

There was blood across the floor and a dead hand under the toe of his designer shoes. Yagura leaned his head to the side and lowered his lids before lifting a rolled cigarette to his lips and cupping the end. A small burn of red and the end caught and began to smoke.  

With the toe of his shoe he poked under the dead hand and kicked it up so it flopped back down onto the face of the corpse just as he took a long drag to exhale in semi dramatic fashion. The woman in the doorway didn’t move, and her eyes were still glued in appreciation to his figure even though half the other employees were scared and hiding.

“That’s enough for now,” he said to the other boys, turning away so the tail ends of his jacket flapped like a cape behind him. It made his walk all the more purposeful as he walked past the hungry woman and left her wanting. He didn’t even glance her way as he called out to the boys behind him.

“I think they got the message here. We’ll be back in the hour though if they step into our turf again.”

“You think we needed to leave so few alive?” Haku asked in a clear voice that reminded Yagura of the ice.

“Ao?” Yagura grunted before exhaling smoke again.

Ao came up behind Hake and purposefully stopped to turn and look behind them before pulling his gun out from the front breast pocket of his gray pinstripe. He aimed in less than a second and recoiled only slightly when the shot rang out and sank into the woman in the doorway’s forehead.

Slowly, purposefully, Ao put his gun away and reached for his hat instead. The rack had all their hats, as well as a few others that would never be worn by their owners again.

Yagura fit his fedora and pulled the front down low over his eyes before stepping out. A thin mist had settled and every so often the rain would come and wet the world further. It was perfect weather and the Mizu boys were all the stronger for it.

Haku begrudgingly followed his betters out and kept his head down, least his questions lead to more avoidable bloodshed. One woman was too risky to leave alive if she sported a handgun in the belt on her thigh? Apparently.

Ao drove, but Yagura rode from the backseat and was the real directioner for their group. If he didn’t want to go back to Mei’s place than they didn’t have to. She was technically their boss and really the only person that could handle Yagura enough to boss him into doing things for her.

It didn’t take long before they were back in the circle outside the estate. Before the rain could let up the trio exited their car and made it inside where the redhead of thought showed herself.

“And?” she asked, brandy tumbler in hand and eyes expectant. “How did it go?”

“As expected.”

“How many loose ends?” she asked, lips on the rim. Ao moved to stand close to her nearly behind her.

“Around four or seven. We shot the mole from the gentleman’s club.”

“I knew you would,” Mei sighed, shaking her head almost fondly.  “I won’t ask why or bore myself with the details. Say what you have to say and move on. I have my own business to attend to.”

Yagura paused. “Your own…what?”

He was being brushed off.

“There has been a development and I am putting more of my efforts into rooting out the black market dealers in the Barren District. They’ve been…concerning me after tonight.”

“Why. They’re of no consequence to us.”

Her back was to him as she looked to the far wall where a map of the districts was drawn up and put in simple black ink on tempered rice paper. “Someone claimed they were selling mermaid tail again.”

“Tragic. Since when were we bleeding hearts?” He reached to light another white cigarette but kept his hands from reaching, knowing  Mei didn’t like the smoke in her presence. She hated the smell, too.

“They’ve been on my nerves even without this last incident. They’ve become emboldened and tried to bring in what they shouldn’t have from the deep places. They mess with the ancient things and they will feel a swift and just wrath.” Mei looked away from the map and glared at something on the desk. “I don’t want to be swept up in their undertow when justice comes calling for them.”  

He frowned and almost glared at the women he considered too hesitant to take on an entire district in management. He almost regretted sleeping for the last thirty years and leaving the position of leadership vacant for whoever could grab it best. He had no desired to be in charge again, the responsibility was too burdensome and he enjoyed his freedom too much to chain himself to an idea, but Mei irked him. She settled under his scales the wrong way.

“Are you planning on involving myself and the others in these concerns or do you still want me gone?” Yagura asked, shifting the weight of his body from one leg to the other. He was ready to move one way or the other, not that he cared.

Mei turned back to look at him and the red of her hair flickered brilliantly as it reflected the healthy glow of the nearby fire. There was a crackle of charred wood breaking down between them before she found the words she wanted and nodded. “No. You may go. These matters need not concern you. I apologize for keeping you longer than need be. You may do as you please.”

He was dismissed so easily. She could have, but she didn’t ask for his help, even after he brought it up. Could she really be so foolish to ignore his aid?

Fine.

“As you say,” he muttered curtly before turning on his heel and making for the exit.

Yagura slept for a day or two, longer than usual, and woke feeling a bit less confrontational, but not fully rested. There was still a beast inside him that wasn’t done pacing. His agitation took him down to the garage.

“I’m sorry, but the car is out,” Suigetsu said, meekly ducking into his shoulders as he tried to shrink.

“What do you mean the car is out? Who took my car?”

It wasn’t really his car, but no one would dare touch it without him and he had come to grow found of the automobile. No one had ever taken it on their own before. It was unexpected.

“S-sorry sir. Um, Mei told Haku to take Sakura out shopping for some clothing supplies and other needs.”

He blinked only once in the silence between them. “…Who?”

“Oh, it was Haku.”

“No, who did Haku take out? I know who Haku is you dolt.”

“Sakura?” The younger boy’s fear didn’t fade, but Yagura watched as it faded into something more relaxed as Suigetsu smiled to himself and answering.  “She’s Mei’s guest, but Kisame brought her back and she’s been here since. She’s really nice.”

“And I have no car because Haku took her shopping.” Yagura clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth.

“Th-there are other cars you could use.”

“Not interested.”

Yagura went back to his room to sleep again for less than a day before coming back out again to seek out Zabuza and rope the older man into a patrol of the district they ran.

“He’s out with Ao in the Barren District,” Haku answered without looking up from his novel. The boy’s tone was light and faded, like it was air between them. “Should be back in a few hours.”

“What are they doing there?” Yagura asked in annoyance.

“Whatever Mei asks them. She said she told you she was looking into the movements in that district, didn’t you?” Haku looked up from his book for the first time and cocked his head at an angle to one side, eyes wide and innocent. “Or did she not fill you in on her plans because you were sleeping? I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have bothered you with the distraction.”

Haku was almost worse than Mei with the sass sometimes. Zabuza let the kid get away with too much, and it was Yagura’s friendship with the old man that kept Yagura from swiping out and backhanding he kid out of his seat. The mental image was pleasing and the idea of violence made his very bones shake and then settle.

But he didn’t slap Haku. He took his agitation back to bed and slept again, suspecting things would be better the next waking day.

He was standing in the kitchen, staring into a densely packed fridge with one glaring absence.

“Who took my cannoli?” he seethed, slamming the door and storming out with a heading set for Kisame. The man ate like a tank and was in the kitchen more than anyone else. He would knew better than Yagura who the thief would be.

Yagura found the blue giant in the map room, helping Mei assemble pins on the board attached with scrolls wrapped up tight around the pins. Both looked up when he stormed in, but neither shrank or flinched. Mei didn’t need to and Kisame was a powerhouse in his own right. Kisame was likely the only other one who could go  toe to toe with Yagura and not suffer a horrible loss in the first twenty minutes of a fight.

“Who?” was all the shorter male ground out.

“What are you talking about now, dear?” Mei asked in a soft sort of voice best suited to mothers and lovers. Mei was neither to him and they both knew that. She was just his agitator.

“The kitchen. My cannoli.”

Kisame looked up. “Those weren’t yours. That was a run I made, and you were asleep and never asked for any.”

“There are always cannoli for me. Everyone else received their usual. Where is my cannoli, I can smell where it should have been.”

“Like I said, those weren’t for you. Sakura wanted to try one and she liked them, so I gave the rest to her,” Kisame admitted, ducking his head as he leaned over the table even further. Along the high ridges of his cheekbones and the shell of his ear his skin flushed a mellow shade of purple through his blue skin.

“Sakura?” he hissed the name.

“My guest,” Mei added. “Don’t be mean, she won’t like you.”

“I don’t like her, so that’s fine,” he snapped, feeling the static around his face charge. “When is she leaving?”

Kisame looked up suddenly and turned his eyes to Mei who rolled her lips against each other before leaning back away from the table and crossing her arms. Her eyes were on the flags, but she answered him in spite of her split attention.

“She may leave when she wishes. For as long as she has need of it, I will offer her shelter under my roof.”

“What is she contributing?”

Mei looked up sharply and her eyes were knives all on their own. “That is no business of yours. I will not speak on this matter further. You may run out yourself and buy any treat you wish, but leave me to my plans. I must meditate on this a while longer. Kisame? Grab me those cards.”

Mei’s attention slid off Yagura to the cards Kisame was handing her, blank except for a few names and addresses she was adding to the map. Just like before, he was so easily dismissed.

Fine.

That was… just fine.

He didn’t think he would, but the next day he heard the stranger ahead of him, stumbling about in the kitchen looking through the fridge. He stopped in the hall, finding himself at the crossroads of a choice. He had no plans that would take him into the kitchen, but the stranger they called Sakura was in there, and he had half a mind to scare her off before she ruined any more of his life.

Yes, it would be necessary to scare her a little.

He turned into the kitchen, feeling the agitation around his face as he rounded the corner and stopped with his feet firmly planted. Arms crossed he watched the shadow of her as she bend behind the door to the fridge and dug.

“What are you doing, you thief,” he hissed, voice deep and sharp, like a knife from below.

He saw her flinch and stumble backwards out from behind the door, still gripping its side. He could tell right away by the size and shape of her wrist she was small, thin, maybe malnourished, and less a threat to any odd room then he would ever be-even at his weakest.

He held onto his glare like a lifeline when she looked up at him, green eyes wide and glassy. She was a mess, a young, scared mess, and it took the fight out of him.

He growled, hating the feeling he sensed at her reveal. The source of his agitation was before him, but scaring her or intimidating her would do nothing but agitate him further.  

She stepped out further and he noticed how she carried herself on unsteady legs, the unusual angle she moved at, and how thin her ankles were with bare feet and miles of bare legs. She was wearing a dress, but it was too small to consider appropriate for anything other than sleepwear.

With a small sort of horror he realized the hour was late and the sky was dark beyond the windows and that fancy white lace was exactly what he thought it was. He had caught her in her sleeping things like some sort of pervert.

Didn’t she know better?

He looked away, cheeks red up to his ears. “What are you doing here?”

“Food?”

Something curled up in his chest and he almost doubled over from the surprise of the feeling. Her voice was like a memory in his heart and he knew instantly that she was one of the mer folk known for their voices. There was no way she could be anything else. Additionally, Mei mentioned mermaid tail being sold again. No one told him, but he figured it all out.

“You need something to eat, then?” he grunted, voice less sharp and melting fast.

When she nodded he hated how it made her seem smaller than she already was, like she was shrinking away into nothingness. He took a step towards her.

“Then eat something. What are you looking for? There is plenty to choose from.” He came up behind her and glared over her shoulder into the fridge. “There are cookies and cake and frozen pasta. All excellent choices.”

“…No cannoli?”

“Ah, well, I guess you just have a more refined taste than the others. No, there is no cannoli. The only one who eats it is me.”

Sakura wilted at the confession, but nodded in agreement. “Oh. Okay.” She looked to the fridge and then over at Yagura. “Thanks anyway.”

“You’re not going to take something else?”

Sakura shrugged. “I-I’ve tried some other stuff, but it all made me sick so far. Mei said I would adjust in time.”

“So you can’t keep anything else down,” he mused, thinking how horrible that must be. No wonder she was so thin. She hadn’t been properly taken care of.

“Come on,” he said, leading her by the arm. “The bakery operated on a 24 seven schedule. Go change and meet me in the garage. I was heading out there on my own anyway, and I guess it wouldn’t be too much trouble if you tagged along. You wouldn’t be able to get them without me anyway at this hour.”

“Change into one of the new dresses? Will it be…long?”

“Not truly, at least not at this hour. Go, that’s not appropriate to be seen in. When you come out in the future you should wear a robe. Has no one told you how you could cover up or even why?”

Sakura hook her head before nodding once awkwardly and hopping off to change. She came back after several long minutes in a plain gray and blue pinstripe pattern. It was modest, neat, and somehow she made it look like the opposite of what it had been intended for; simple wearing. She clutched a small purse, too thin to hold much.

“You won’t need that,” he grumbled, turning and stalking into the garage with a backwards wave meant to encourage her to follow. “It’s unthinkable to accept the pennies of the poor. Save it.”

He stopped when he realized she wasn’t following. He turned, glower fresh.

“What is it?”

“You’re Yagura right?”

“Huh, what of it?”

Sakura dipped her head and the loose strands of coral pink slid over her shoulders. “Thank you. I’m Sakura.”

He didn’t fluster, but maybe Yagura did go a bit red in the face, embarassed to be thanked so directly.

“Whatever,” he muttered, turning his back to her and walking on. “You’ll need new clothes too. Next time we’ll replace those drab things Haku chose for you. Nothing even came with a hair ribbon. Really, they should be ashamed of their hospitality.”

She followed silently, but with a smile.

“What is that?”

“What does it look like?” he barked. 

Mei frowned, looking down at the bag of hands, some still fresh with wet blood. “It looks like a mess. Where did they come from?”

“You won’t find anyone willing to cut up a mermaid tail for food any longer. “

[flowersmist-blog]

Happy Birthday Yagura | Present

It’s Yagura’s birthday today! How could he not receive a kiss as a present from Sakura?

NOTE: This is a rough sketch, I will work on it later.

[thefreckledone]

Please write some KiriSaku!!

“Sakura, earth to Sakura!”

Sakura blinks, turning her attention to Karin. “Sorry,what was that?”

“Are you coming to the party tomorrow?” Karin asks,looking her over.

“I mean, I should be able to,” Sakura says. “Where are wemeeting?”

“The pool,” Karin says. “Aunt Kushina had one builtrecently and it is amazing! She seriously pulled out all the stops.”

“A pool?” Sakura repeats, biting her lip. “I’m not sureabout that…”

“C’mon Sakura,” Karin wheedles. “The weather’s well intothe triple digits now; where else are we going to host a party?”

Sakura looks up at Karin, catching sight of the gatheringclouds in the sky. She squirms in her seat, uncomfortable. “Listen, I’ll thinkabout it,” Sakura says, pulling the brim of her baseball cap down snugly. “Ihave to go. I’ll text you later.”

Sakura,” Karin says, catching Sakura’s elbow as shestands.

Thunder booms and Sakura flinches out of the soft touch.

“Got to go,” Sakura says, grabbing her backpack. Shekeeps her eyes to the sky as she waves goodbye and sprints off down the block.

She hears Karin protest, but Sakura’s attention is on thequickly darkening sky.

No, no, no, no!

She doesn’t think she’ll make it home before it begins torain.

Lightning streaks through the sky, a herald to the rainabout to come.

Sakura runs, managing to make it three blocks before thefloodgates of the sky open and the rain sallies forth.

Sakura bites down on her lip to keep from screaming asthe rain falls in sheets, whipping at her face and clothes. She could not careless about the rain itself.

It’s the visions that accompany the raindrops thatconcern her.

There’s a flash of a blade, then another. The gracefuldance of warriors as they engage in combat. She’s seen enough of these sorts ofthings to know that this is non-lethal combat, a spar of sorts. Sakura’s feetslow to a stop as she catches sight of a glittering emblem that seems to be theshape of…

The blare of a horn startles her out of her watching andSakura realizes that she stands in the middle of the street, staring blanklyinto the rain. She hurries out of the way, closing her eyes until she makes itto the sidewalk. Then, knowing that she has to navigate, Sakura opens her eyes,keeping them downcast.

It’s worse in a way as the torrential downpour pools intofull puddles. Beneath her feet, a scene unfolds, the two warriors she sawbefore shown from further away. They are both tall, well-muscled men, withinhuman skin tones, one gray and the other blue. Sakura’s seen them before andshe isn’t sure if the waters just distort them or if her hallucinations justhave a bent sense of humor.

She thinks it’s the second.

They fight in an arena and a crowd is seated around them,one man in particular seated high above them upon a shimmery throne. He wears acirclet of antlers upon ashy hair and in his hand he holds what looks to be ashepherd’s crook. Around him are gathered warriors, all of whom Sakura has seenat one point or another. She’s never seen them gathered together before and itpuzzles her for a moment, but she returns her gaze to their leader.

His bright pink eyes meet hers directly. He sits upstraight from his indolently lounging position and says something apparentlydirected at her.

Sakura startles, kicking the puddle until the imagedistorts and disappears. Goosebumps raise across her skin, having little to dowith the summer storm above.

No one has ever noticed her in these visions.

Sakura looks around frantically, hating the strange,disorienting images that bombard her from the falling rain. She ducks into thenearest store, a small coffee shop, and orders a coffee, ignoring everythingoutside. She rubs at her arms, trying to get warm as she waits out the rain.Once it’s over, she can make it home and hop in the shower (never the bath, shelearned that very early on)…though,if the specters can see her now, maybe not. Sakura sighs, closing her eyesagainst the rising anxiety welling in her chest. She doesn’t know what to do.

The barista places Sakura’s latte on the table and Sakurasighs happily, looking at the steam rising off of it. She looks down at thecute artwork inside and takes a sip, eyes blissfully sliding shut. The coffeewarms her insides and she nearly melts into her seat.

Sakura opens her eyes and looks down into the cup. Sheblanches as she is met with fierce pink eyes.

“Woman, we need to talk,” the man says, voice tense andlow. “We need your help.”

[thefreckledone]

Pompeii 44

Sakura bit her lip. “You aren’t worried about getting in trouble? I know that the Senju are your family.”

Tsunade snorted, looking to Shizune with a fire that simmered over. “Blood of the covenant is thicker than water of the womb.”

“How...human of you,” Sakura said, picking her words cautiously as she rolled the proverb over in her head.

In Pompeii, she knew, family was the deepest bond; the roots that entangled and ensnared an individual’s very soul. People didn’t speak out against family, which left people like Sakura, Kin, Yamato, and Zaku falling through the cracks. Unwanted. Unneeded. No value.

Tsunade’s lips twisted and her flashed with emotion. “Humans, for all their failings, have much to offer us. Their lives are fleeting; the snap of a Polaroid before they are gone, fallen as dead leaves.” Sakura suddenly recognized the emotion for what it was: pain. “They burn brightly, brilliantly during their lifetimes. How can one like us keep from being drawn into their light like moths unto a flame?”

“Tsunade…” Sakura began, knowing there was a story in that agony, there had to be.

Tsunade merely held up a hand, shaking her head. “Unlike the rest of this town, my coven interacts with the world beyond our borders. We embrace the places without magic, learn from them, and the greatest lesson I’ve learned thus far is that there is a little magic in all places. Perhaps not the supernatural kind that my brethren are so accustomed to, but a different sort. An ordinary sort.”

Sakura nodded, listening closely as Tsunade’s cadence took on that of a teacher as Shizune watched them both with a pleased expression. It was nice to discuss something other than the doom and gloom of Pompeii’s situation.

“You’ve a magic of your own,” Tsunade said. “It isn’t loud certainly, subtle in comparison to the cacophony that is Pompeii.” Her gaze went distant and remote and, for a moment, Sakura felt like Tsunade saw right through her. Her neck prickled uncomfortably as something washed over her. “It’s a natural form of magic; steady and slow. Nothing like the violence of the forest.” She sneered. “If those fools at town hall would just listen--” She cut herself off, shaking her head. “In any case, there is no doubt in my mind that, though you are a fool, you are not cruel.”

Sakura smiled, heart lightening. “If that’s the case--if you know definitively that it isn’t me--can’t we tell the others?” Her stomach sunk as both Tsunade and Shizune shook their heads. “What? What’s wrong?”

“They won’t believe it,” Shizune said. “They’re willfully blind.”

“I’m an outsider, despite my familial ties to the Senju,” Tsunade said. “Besides, there’s quite a bit of circumstantial evidence stacked against you; the Uchiha brat has fallen ill.”

“Sasuke?” Sakura asked, heart heavy. Even though they’d parted ways with bitter words, she still cared. “How is he?”

“He’s doing poorly,” Tsunade said, blunt as always. “Worse even than the Uzumaki twins. Tobirama is quite ill as well and his brother is baying for your blood. The ones who are the worst off--Sasuke, Itachi, Menma, Tobirama--have had public disagreements or altercations with you. People who have had private disagreements with you, such as myself, have been left untouched. It’s heavy-handed and crude, but someone is setting you up.”

“You think someone is framing me?” Sakura asked, aghast. “What would they have to gain? I had little status in the town even prior to the onset of the illness.”

Shizune and Tsunade exchanged unreadable looks. “Perhaps it has to do with your position?” Shizune ventured. “The previous doctor...well, you heard of him from other residents. He was cruel and capricious, treating patients inhumanely and experimenting on them without consent.”

“Kabuto Yakushi,” Tsunade muttered. “He was the star pupil of Orochimaru a few centuries ago. Pompeii ran him off, but he wasn’t killed.”

“You think he’s responsible for the trees?” Sakura asked.

“It would make sense,” Shizune said, warming to the topic. “Tsunade wasn’t in Pompeii at all during Kabuto’s residency, but I was. He is an expert in creating toxins of all sorts. He specialized in airborne ones, but I saw him use water as a catalyst at least once…”

“He was responsible for the pollution of Lake Icarus,” Sakura said, realization striking like lightning. “He hurt so many people...but what did he have to gain from the lake?”

“A practice run,” Shizune said, eyes hard and cold.

Sakura shivered.

“Enough,” Tsunade said, clapping her hands to dispel the silence that had overtaken them. “There is naught to do with such speculation. I am a woman of action and I believe I promised you some assistance.” Sakura nodded hesitantly. “Come,” Tsunade said, stepping past her further into the clinic. Sakura exchanged a commiserating look with Shizune at the way Tsunade swept through the clinic, smiling despite herself. She followed Tsunade, obeying as she patted the examination table. “Let me take a look at that seal on your stomach.”

Sakura tensed, hands splaying to cover the dead seal in an almost protective gesture. “Why?”

“According to Shizune, it was drawn upon you by Minato,” Tsunade said with a surprising wealth of patience. “All seals are imbued with some of the sealer’s energy. Even in a dead seal, Minato can still track you.”

“Really?” Sakura asked, frowning down at her stomach. “I thought only the sealer could remove it.”

“I’m a Senju and a witch besides,” Tsunade said, pride curving her mouth into a grin. “Namikaze is no match for my skill.”

With a brief glance at Shizune who nodded her encouragement, Sakura lifted her shirt, leaning back against the table. The ruined seal stood out starkly against her skin, an unspoken symbol of her current status within Pompeii.

Tsunade brushed her knuckles over it, shaking her head as she tsked. “This has Namikaze’s signature all over it: clumsy and blunt, no elegance.” Her eyes shifted from honeyed brown to a brilliant gold as Sakura’s stomach began to tingle. “He’s certainly been keeping tabs on you, though it is faint. He can only tell if you are in or out of Pompeii. If Mito or Kushina completed the seal, they would’ve been able to truly track you.” Sakura’s skin warmed beneath Tsunade’s fingertips and she resisted the urge to squirm. “A few minutes more and there will be nothing left.”

Sakura watched silently as the black lines of the seal began to curl away at the edges, collapsing in on itself around her bellybutton before winking out of existence. “It’s gone?”

“Minato will be most displeased,” Tsunade said, a satisfied grin upon her face.

Sakura sighed, putting her weight onto her elbows. “Undoubtedly this will be considered a part of that ‘circumstantial evidence’ of theirs.”

Tsunade laughed, slapping Sakura’s knee as she hopped to her feet. “Oh, to be sure! I’ve no doubt they’ll be calling another town meeting soon enough.”

“Just another reason for them to hate me.” Sakura frowned as she straightened her clothes.

“You don’t have to stay here,” Shizune said softly, after casting her mentor a dark look. She smiled, warmth and encouragement in her eyes as Sakura looked up, startled. “There are other places to call home. More welcoming ones, certainly.”

“Moving requires money and a stable, paying job,” Sakura said, bustling around to tidy up the examination room. She kept her eyes down, embarrassed to speak about her finances. “Of which I have neither in abundance.”

“That can be changed,” Tsunade said, clearing her throat. “You don’t work as a physician for a number of centuries without making some connections. I could...put out some feelers, call some friends and see if there are any jobs on the market.”

“If not, we will make some,” Shizune said, chin jutted and stubborn.

Sakura bit her lip again, gaze wavering between the two women. Something hot prickled her throat as she nodded. “Yeah, that’d be great.”

“Sakura.”

Sakura tensed, clutching her bag and journal closer before looking up at the interloper. Sasori’s cool gaze met her own, an elegant brow arching at her defensive position. She’d brought the bag up between them almost as a shield.

Sakura coughed, scooting to the side of the bench so he could join her. She wasn’t used to people coming out this way, being as it was between the town proper and the logging front. This had once been a garden, but it’d long been abandoned and overrun with a bounty of dandelions. It was nice and it was peaceful, away from the prying eyes of the town. Except, apparently, it was not.

“How’d you find me?” Sakura resisted the urge to wince at her accusatory tone.

Still, Sasori sat down with an unearthly grace, head lolling back slightly as he regarded her. “Wasn’t too hard to do,” he replied, choosing not to let her know that he’d tracked her a few times as she made her way through the forest. He was unaffected by the presence in the forest and he needed to collect wood for his art. If he happened to trace along Sakura’s path to the abandoned logging town, well, that was his business. “You’ve been avoiding town recently.”

Sakura chuffed, a bitter, crackling sound. It hurt something deep within Sasori to hear it. She was sallow, gaunt. The stress of the town’s suspicions upon her was clearly leaving its mark in the dark rings beneath her eyes. “I wonder why,” she murmured, hands clenched white around her phone case.

Sasori swallowed, though it was a gesture that was merely symbolic; a last vestige of his humanity. “I am sorry for how you’ve been treated,” he said softly.

“As am I,” Sakura said, finally turning her gaze to him. Her expression was just as flat as his. “What are you doing here, Sasori?”

Sasori stayed quiet. Why was he here? Something had been gnawing at his gut for weeks, months even. Ever since that fateful decision to stay his hand with the genesis tree…

Guilt.

It festered within him, unfamiliar and heavy within his gut. He hated it, the way it gouged him out and left him empty. Well…emptier than usual.

“What do you want, Sasori?” Sakura demanded, the bite of her voice drawing Sasori out of his reverie.

“I...I want to apologize,” he said.

“For what?” Sakura asked. “You haven’t been involved in this...upheaval.”

“The upper echelon of Pompeii is blind,” Sasori scoffed. “You aren’t connected to what’s happening in the forest. I, on the other hand, think that I might be involved.”

Sakura stiffened, getting to her feet. “You did this?”

“Not this exactly,” he said. Sasori caught her hand, not caging her precisely, but trying to keep her from running. “I do, however, think I may have catalyzed this event.”

“How?” she asked as she pulled her hand away from him. “Why?”

“It wasn’t purposeful,” Sasori snapped, tetchy at the way she shied away from him. “I think that this all may have started with the genesis tree.”

“The genesis tree?” Sakura said. “That was months ago! What the hell does it have to do with the recent events?”

“I didn’t exactly cut down the genesis tree,” Sasori revealed. “I may have used another in its place.”

Sakura blanched. “Why on earth would you do that? The genesis tree is important. You were the one who told me that!”

“I…” What could he say? The genesis tree had reminded him of her. It was a paltry excuse in the face of her exhaustion and frustration. “The significance of the genesis tree was lore; a myth told throughout Pompeii to celebrate the Senju legacy.” His lips twisted. “Who truly believes that a tree can embody the Maiden and her sacrifice?”

“Well look what’s happened since then,” Sakura said, gesturing around her to the trees. “Obviously there’s some truth in the protection offered by the genesis tree!”

“I know that now,” Sasori replied.

Sakura scowled at him, shaking her head. “Have you told anyone else about this?”

“No, not yet.”

“You should,” she said. “Tell the Senju or the Uzumaki or someone. There’s very little I can do with this information.” She moved to go, jaw clenched. “You should attend the town halls, speak up there.”

“Sakura, I’m...I’m sorry,” Sasori said.

Sakura turned back to him, eyes flinty. “Sorry isn’t enough, Sasori, not for this.”

It remained unspoken but understood between them that the decision he made those many months ago might have completely unmade Sakura’s life in Pompeii.

Sasori watched her go, something burning at his eyes. It was an unknown sensation and Sasori brought a hand up to his eyes. His face was dry but he knew that, had he his old body, tears would streak his face. As it was, Sasori stared after Sakura, long after she was gone, futilely cursing the clearness of his vision.

Now, more than ever, Sasori knew the differences between him and the others.

Was this...regret?

“What business do you have with the Sound degenerates?”

“Good to see you too, Yagura,” Sakura said drily, closing her journal. She hadn’t been getting very far on the pros and cons list in any case. She ignored the way his eyes drifted over the movement with interest. “You seem well. How may I assist you today?”

Yagura flushed a bit beneath Sakura’s steady, unwavering attention. “I’ve received information that you’ve been visiting the old logging grounds. What business do you have with the transients who reside there?”

“What business do you have asking me such questions? Or tailing me as you’ve apparently been doing,” Sakura snapped, disliking the arrogance with which he strode into her clinic. She may be nearly run out of town, but this was still her territory. “What do you want?”

Yagura scrutinized her for a moment, before sauntering forward and taking a seat in front of her. “You’ve changed.”

“I don’t know if I’d say that,” Sakura replied, leaning back and examining him in turn. “I’ve been under constant speculation and allegations by this town and its people for the past few weeks. What I am is tired. And angry. And perhaps even a bit fed up with people coming into my clinic and making demands and accusations of me. So yes, Yagura, perhaps I am, in fact, a bit different from the woman I was when you last saw me. It’s been months since we’ve last interacted in a meaningful way.”

Yagura bit his tongue. Sakura’s anger didn’t burn hot and bright like his own or those of his colleagues; instead it ran cool and steady, the rage of a waterfall rather than a flame. She was distant, timeless in an inexplicable way.

In this moment, Yagura felt utterly inadequate and foolish in the face of Sakura’s composure.

“I...apologize,” Yagura said, voice soft, his earlier irritation extinguished. “I have heard of the goings on in town but I did not know they’d reached this extent.”

“What has Kiri been up to recently?” Sakura asked, frowning. “I haven’t seen anyone from your side of town in quite some time.”

“We’ve had some dealings out of town,” Yagura replied, crossing his arms. “Been working with some Kappa to clean up the pollution of Lake Icarus which has been a hell of a mess. Between the magic necessary and the legal tape we’ve run into with jurisdiction issues…” He sighed, shaking his head. “It’s no matter.”

“And no one has fallen ill?” Sakura asked, curious despite herself. “No one’s fallen victim to the forest?”

“No,” Yagura said. “The only sickness we have has sprung up from interacting with the polluted water of the lake.”

“Strange,” Sakura murmured. Something niggled at her. “About the lake...I believe the pollution may have been caused by Kabuto.”

“Kabuto,” Yagura said, eyes flashing. “Thank you for the tip. I’ll look into it.” Sakura shivered. “As for the lack of sickness, we’re a hardy folk,” Yagura said, a proud tilt to his chin. “Not weak and lily-livered like the Senju and Uzumaki in town.”

Sakura nodded absently, her frown thoughtful. An entire branch of Pompeii was unaffected by the encroaching sickness of the forest. There was something important in that fact, though Sakura was not sure what it was.

“Have you told the others?” Sakura asked. “Revealed this information at the town hall meetings?”

“Why would we attend those meetings? They’re set up to stroke the egos of the Uzumaki and Senju. I refuse to pander to them.”

“Would you consider it?” Sakura asked, hating the near begging quality to her voice. “Please? I think it might help.”

Yagura frowned at her. “Is it truly so bad as that?”

“It certainly isn’t ideal,” Sakura replied, stung but resigned to his callousness. She should have known better than to expect anything different. “If things continue as they are...I don’t believe I’ll be able to call Pompeii my home. Not any longer.”

Yagura scowled, looking down at his fisted hands. He wasn’t used to the buzzing, nagging feeling within his gut, urging him to do something, anything, to keep her near. He didn’t understand it, but Yagura was disinclined to ignore his wants. “I will see what I can do,” he said finally. Sakura’s smile in return was more than payment enough. “Be careful, if you do choose to carry on with the Sound transients.”

“Why?”

“They’ve a chip on their shoulders,” Yagura replied, standing and draping his coat across his arm. “Whether or not it is deserved is a question for debate another day. You know as well as I do that the people of Pompeii hold grudges longer and deeper than the very foundations of this country. Do what you can to avoid being caught up in it.”

Sakura sighed, her breath crystallizing in the chilly air as she opened the door for Yagura. “I’m afraid there’s no avoiding it now.” She shivered and ran her hands over her arms. “They need help and I will gladly give it.”

Yagura stepped close, cupping her face in a warm hand. His eyes were sad as he said, “Do not give more of yourself than you have to offer. You’ll burn yourself out far too quickly like that.”

With that, he bundled into his car, leaving Sakura feeling cold and bereft.

She had the sinking suspicion that it was far too late to take heed of his advice. “At least I’ll burn out in a blaze,” she said to herself in a paltry attempt at comfort, before moving back into the clinic.

“Where are you going?”

Sakura turned to Yamato and Sai. They were all in the living room, watching some of Sakura’s favorite Christmas movies as they began to wind down for the evening. All were dressed in their coziest of pajamas, Sakura even donning her poker playing dog robe over hers. Currently, The Nutcracker Prince was on.

“To the kitchen?” Sakura said, her answer coming out as a question in response to Yamato’s nearly angry tone. “I was going to check on the brownies.”

“Not that,” Yamato said, body positioned like he was about to pounce. “You’ve been looking at other jobs, other cities in other states.”

“I saw the pros and cons list you’ve been making,” Sai added, jaw tight with anxiety. “You’re leaving.”

Sakura glanced between the two of them, taking in their frustration and fear. She slumped across the couch across from them. “It is something I’ve been considering,” she admitted.

“Why?” Sai asked.

“The situation here is getting more tense by the day. The clinic has been attacked and, soon I’m afraid, I believe I will be as well.”

“Let them try,” Yamato growled, a rage in his eyes that startled Sakura.

“No,” Sakura said. “I’d rather they did not. There’s little that I can do about the situation. Pompeii is a magically founded and magically run town.” She ran a hand through her hair. “I’ve looked into it. The jurisdictions that apply to most other places don’t carry over here. What human government will stand before a supernatural population and attempt to curtail them? Many have tried, and history remembers them as some of the greatest tragedies.

“If something happens to me, the punishment, if any, will be but a slap on the wrist. And, with so many people falling ill, I fear that the extreme solution, eliminating the perceived threat, becomes more and more attractive.” She curled in on herself, tucking her hands into her flannel robe. “I don’t want to die.”

Two sets of arms were thrown around her. The movements were a bit awkward, certainly hesitant, but they were warm.

Sakura looked up into Sai and Yamato’s resolute faces.

“We won’t let you die,” Sai said.

“We’ll fight for you,” Yamato said. “We’re family.”

Sakura nodded, throat a bit too tight to respond. Instead she relaxed into their embrace, enjoying the simple sensation of being held. They huddled together in silence, basking in each other’s presence.

“If you leave, we’re going with you,” Sai said abruptly.

That caught Sakura’s attention. “What about your jobs?” Sakura scrambled to sit upright. “Pompeii has been your home for centuries. I can’t be your reason for leaving that all behind.”

“There isn’t much to leave,” Yamato said, voice warm but firm. “Nothing ties me to Pompeii aside from the two of you.”

“If you leave, we’ll follow,” Sai said in that matter of fact tone of his, tucking his cold nose against the back of Sakura’s neck. “Pompeii is just a place. You are our home.”

[stonemedusa]

Misunderstandings and marriage proposals- Chapter 7

Pairing: Yagura X Sakura

Rating: ???

Word count: 883

Summary: “Marry me.” He was a sweet kid, a little weird, but sweet all the same. But couldn’t he go play ninja instead of proposing to random women he’d only met a few weeks ago? What were his parents teaching him anyway? “Yagura-kun-” “Marry me.”

Previous Chapter   Next Chapter

--

The first week of her stay was hectic.

Sakura couldn’t even remember half of it, having been running on fumes as she fought to erase all the bad habits the medical staff had developed. And needless to say, some weren’t very happy to have a leaf nin march in and start ordering them about.

Sure, there were a few that were happy for the help (more than likely having been to a hospital outside of mist at some point or another.) but it had still been an uphill battle, one that she was proud to say she’d won (Or at least made considerable progress on).

She’d seen very little of Yagura during that week, and she was honestly thankful for that. Her feelings, or potential feelings, had needed time to settle in as to not overwhelm her.

They had, after a while, and she had warmed up to the idea of a relationship with him during that time.

She’d give him a chance, she deserved it just as much as he did.

Her second week?

Almost as busy as the first.

Her second week had been spent weeding out any unfit medical nin or doctors- either sending them back to study more, or just kicking them out with no second chance. You couldn’t afford to have unfit medics, as they usually killed more than they saved.

During this week, she also began implementing new routines and practices. Slowly though, as to not overwhelm everyone. Also included in this week, was the first ‘courting gift’ she’d ever received.

A nice collection of medical herbs that grew only in and around Mist- with a neatly written note informing her that her ‘intended’ had thought she’d find them useful and to come to him if she was in need of any more.

It was a very thoughtful gift, one she found herself smiling idiotically about while working with the other medics.

Yagura was…he was something else alright.

Her third week in mist was…unnervingly calm.

The hospital was more or less in order, and all she had left to do was train the medics in more up to date ways of dealing with things.

Tsunade had agreed to this much at least, with the stipulation that Sakura was not allowed -or to be pushed to- teach the mist nin any jutsu they didn’t already know.

Konoha needed some advantage in case things fell apart again after all, and these habits were hard to kick.

Her third week also included her first date with Yagura, the man having approached her about it rather hesitantly earlier on after finishing up on a progress meeting.

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Step 6. Take her on a date- Now I know what you’re more than likely thinking ‘This’ll be easy!’ right? Well, it will be, if you’ve been paying attention to her likes and dislikes. If not, I’m sad to say that this step may not work out well for you. Remember earlier how we told you to get to know her? Well, use that information, and incorporate her likes into the event. Make sure not to go too overboard though, as it may make your love interest uncomfortable!

Dress smartly and make sure your personal hygiene is up to scratch, because no woman wants to go out with someone that stinks of sweat. (Yes, this is directed to all you ninja out there. Please try to avoid scheduling a date for right after you’ve finished training, I can’t stress this enough.)

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He’d decided to take her out for lunch to a small tea house he’d visited beforehand. She’d confessed her love of sweats to him before, and to his knowledge, this place had the best dango around.

“Yagura?” His intended asked him after finishing off her plate, a nervous edge to her voice that he disliked hearing directed at him.

He didn’t want her to feel uncomfortable in his presence…

“Yes Sakura-chan?”

“Why…why did you pick me? Why me, of all the women who would have thrown themselves at you?”

And that was the question, wasn’t it?

Why her?

“Because…” It was hard to put into words, but he wold try his best. “Because you’re… You treated me like everyone else, and it was rather refreshing. You smiled at me, you greeted me, teased and tormented and joked with me. You didn’t fall in my lap when I announced my intentions, and you didn’t let me order you around. I think that if you’d just accepted everything from the start, I wouldn’t have felt as strongly for you as I do now. So I chose you because you’re…you’re you, and I like you just the way you are- ”

“Thank you.”

“Pardon?”

“Thank you, Yagura.” He didn’t quite know why she’d gotten teary eyed at his admission, but he could understand that his words had touched upon something.

Something he wanted to address immediately.

“There’s no need to thank me, I was just being honest. I don’t want you to change who you are for me.”

And he didn’t, he truly didn’t.

He loved her as she is, and he’d never force her to change, no matter what Mei or the council tried to insist.

She was perfect, and he wouldn’t let them attempt to influence her.