Stripped Bare (kakashiXsakura)

chapter 11

Sakura wasn't surprised to find a text message from Kakashi waiting for her when she finally had the chance to check her phone after the club closed. She had figured he would call an emergency meeting to discuss in detail her encounter with the mysterious man as well as how to proceed. The only problem was sneaking out of the club unnoticed when all girls there were forbidden to go out alone or risk another abduction.

The club closed late as it was and it took another couple of hours for everyone to wind down enough to go to bed. Once Misaki and Miyabi were settled however, they fell asleep with surprising speed. Sakura was a little jealous as she lay listening to their even breathing. She was exhausted as well, but for her, sleep would be some time in coming.

There was the off chance that one of them might wake up and discover her missing, leading to all sorts of complications upon her return and Sakura wasn't willing to take such a risk. Once she was absolutely certain her roommates were asleep, she slipped into the bathroom and made the hand seals for a clone jutsu, producing an identical copy of herself whom she instructed to simply go to bed and carry on normally if she didn't return before the others awoke.

She hoped that wasn't the case because she really wanted to sleep at least a little. She was already in the habit of sleeping until noon. If this kept up, she wouldn't be waking up until three or four in the afternoon.

Her clone left the bathroom and crept back into the room, giving Sakura the chance to escape, sneaking down the stairs and to the front door.

Even though it was incredibly late, or rather, incredibly early in the morning, Dajaku still had the light on in his office. Chances were, he had already seen her coming through the one way window that overlooked the whole room. Her suspicions were confirmed when he appeared in the doorway, looking almost like a disgruntled parent whose child had stayed out too late.

"Leaving at this hour?" he asked skeptically, arms crossed over his chest.

"There's something I have to discuss," she replied, not bothering to mention with whom since there was only one person she could possibly be sneaking out to go see.

"Won't you be missed if they discover you're gone?" he asked, seeming more concerned about her cover being blown than her welfare.

"I've got it covered," she said, sliding the deadbolt from the heavy main doors.

"Just make sure you're back for the show," Dajaku said, walking over to lock up after her.

Sakura nodded before melting into the shadows, a little miffed that he was probably most worried about the money he would lose if she didn't show up to strip for tomorrow's performance. How typical of the money grubbing man.

She was practically invisible in her dark sweats and hooded sweatshirt that hid the brightness of her hair. The sky was once again overcast, allowing almost no starlight to light her way. It didn't really hinder her considering the technologically advanced town had street lamps everywhere, but the artificial light only pushed the shadows away a few feet, allowing her plenty of darkness for cover and she reached Kakashi's motel without drawing the attention of any of the loitering thugs and drunkards that still occasionally cruised the streets.

Stopping in front of the gated entry, she dialed Kakashi's number. It only rang once before he picked it up.

"Hello?"

"I'm here," she said in a hushed whisper.

A click on the other end signaled that he had terminated the call but moments later, his shadowy figure appeared to unlock the gate and let her in, even though she could have punched through the rusty lock with minimal effort.