Sakura Beifong

The Fateful Alliance

Hey everyone, hope you all are ready for the next chapter, enjoy!

...

Normal pov

The usual bustle of the city was absent, replaced by the faint rustle of leaves in the night breeze and the occasional distant bark of a stray dog. Sakura and Iroh moved swiftly through the labyrinth of alleys, their steps muffled on the cobblestones. Despite their speed, Sakura's thoughts lingered on the palace, on Zuko standing defiantly before Azula, and on the peril he now faced alone.

"I can’t believe he stayed behind, that idiot! He’s stubborn, reckless-"

"And brave."

Iroh interjected gently, his voice steady despite the strain of their flight, he then glanced at her with a calmness that belied the tension of their situation, he knows how she feels, what she's feeling right now, but he spoke with a calm voice as they slowed down before stopping. Sakura clenched her fists, the tension in her body her jerky and stiff after what Iroh said.

"Zuko made his choice to protect us. We must honor that, and find a way to help him."

"But how? Azula has the Dai Li wrapped around her finger, she's basically now in control of Ba Sing Se, who knows what she did to the King!"

"We must start by finding those who share our cause."

Iroh lightly rested both his hands on Sakura's shoulder, his touch was steady, a grounding presence against the storm of her thoughts. Sakura had taken a deep breath to calm her down, and waited for Iroh to speak.

"The Avatar and his friends, as well as your sister Toph, are here in the city. We will have to track them down and get them to help us to stand a better chance to rescue Zuko."

The mention of Toph brought a flicker of hope to Sakura's heart, it has been so long since she last had seen her baby sister, and had had been missing her a lot. Heck she even misses Toph's trash talks and jokes she used to make her smile and laugh.

"Toph... it had been awhile since I last seen her, she is the reason why I came here in Ba Sing Se anyway."

"Sakura? Mr. Kakashi? What are you doing out here?"

Both of them tensee up abruptly, turning toward the source of the familiar voice. From the dim light of a lantern emerged Jet, his expression having a blend of confusion and concern. He stepped closer, his dark eyes scanning them critically as he saw the way they looked, messy.

"You two look like you've been through a fight. What's going on? And where's Lee?"

Sakura tensed, the question cutting deeper than she expected. She exchanged a glance with Iroh, as if asking permission, who gave her a slight nod, silently urging her to speak. Taking a deep breath, she turned back to Jet, her heart pounding as she carefully measured her voice.

"Jet, it's a long story, but go got to trust me what I am about to day, believe me we were planning on telling you the truth."

".... The truth? That sounds ominous. Spill it, Sakura."

"Okay, well, you know that they are Fire Nation and fire benders, but..."

Jet raised an eyebrow, his arms crossing over his chest as he stared at Sakura, curious what she was going on about, and why she looked so tensed and uneasy. Taking another deep, Sakura kept her voice steady, despite the tightness in her chest, and spoke again.

"Lee and Uncle Kakashi... those are not their real names, they are actually called Zuko, the Crown Prince, and Iroh, the Dragon of the West, also the general of the fire nation."