Foundations

Chapter 8

Sasuke waited impatiently outside the mine shaft, pacing back and forth as he hoped Sakura was all right. With any luck, Menma and Kakashi would come looking for them, and they'd be able to help with the situation. He couldn't help but worry about letting Sakura go in there alone. The logical part was telling him it was a stupid idea for her to go alone and that they should have gone back for help, but the proactive part of him was trusting she'd be just fine in there.

Sakura had to focus. Was it a Genjutsu? Maybe not, but... If she could focus in the same manner, it ought to help. It ought to break her out, right? She concentrated her chakra, focusing and blocking out the two ninjas smothering her with their murderous intent. It was enough to force her hands to move into the sign, dispelling her chakra. It wasn't a Genjutsu, but the focus of doing that was enough to break her free and activate her body's fight-or-flight response, prompting her to turn and run back toward the entrance.

Sasuke felt the shift in the air from outside the shaft, though he was more equipped to handle what was about to happen than Sakura was. He rushed to the boulder, trying to see past the corners covering the entrance, but he couldn't make out any details. His heart was racing, knowing Sakura was in there with whatever was producing that intent.

Sakura was racing up the mineshaft, reaching the boulder and trying to scramble to the top. She kept slipping, too distracted to maintain her chakra to climb toward the top. Hearing footsteps behind her, she turned to see the two large figures shuffling toward her, the sound of metal clinking between them. Their intent was growing stronger and stronger, starting to smother her again.

"Sakura! Focus!" Sasuke yelled from the other side. He was doing his best not to start panicking, but he was afraid and worried. They had managed to get themselves into a situation that was far more dangerous than either of them were expecting, all because of his call. Even right now, he was kicking himself and wishing he hadn't made that call. He shouldn't have sent Sakura in alone. They should have gone back to retrieve Menma and Kakashi before investigating anything outside the village. His ambition and need to prove himself had put them in this situation, minute as it was.

Hearing Sasuke's voice, Sakura tried to focus, whimpering as she looked around in desperation, frantically looking for a means of escape. There was nothing around her she could use. Standing upright, she watched as Meizu raised his gauntlet with a dark chuckle.

He shot forward, aiming right for where Sakura stood. In a last-ditch effort to preserve her own life, Sakura moved, making herself the smallest possible target by ducking and curling into a ball near the corner of the entrance. It was at just the right timing that in the darkness, Meizu wasn't able to readjust his forward motion, striking the rock hard and causing it to shatter. The force caught Sakura in the blast, sending her reeling out of the tunnel to land hard on her back and roll across the ground until she landed face-down in the dirt.

Sasuke, who had been standing in front of the rock, was also sent flying by the impact, though he was able to twist in the air and regain his balance, landing on his feet. His gaze flicked over to Sakura, who was groaning but still visibly conscious; that was good. She appeared uninjured except for a few scrapes and bruises from the impact. He quickly put himself between Sakura and the duo, a single kunai in hand as his Sharingan activated. He remembered Kakashi's instructions with the Sharingan and focused on their movements, trying to read the motions they would make and predict their next moves based on those clues.

"Gozu, it looks like we might get a toy each to play with." Meizu's gaze was terrifying paired with the thick sadism in his tone. "Which one do you want? The boy or the little girl?"

"I don't know, Meizu. They both look interesting... The girl might scream more, but the boy's screams would be richer. It's a tough decision."

Meizu chuckled. "How about we take turns tormenting them? I think that would suffice. It looks like they're with those shinobi that came into town earlier. Taking two of them out would please Gato, and it would just leave us the other brat and their teacher to handle. Much easier. We could even leave them to the boss."