Unbreakable (Book 1) #Wattys2015

Practice- Erika, Katsu

A few weeks later

"It's done!" Sakura exclaimed, holding up the black cauldron containing the anti-poison. The room was a mess, excess ingredients crushed and spliced against every exposed surface, tools with specific purposes lying about with no clear pattern of organization.

Erika, Tamiko, and Hibiki froze, staring at the fluorescent purple fluid that had finally ceased its unpleasant bubbling.

Erika approached it swiftly to fill up three small flasks with the stuff. "Quick, we must go," she said just after, tucking them away.

"Go?" Sakura asked, following them outside. "You can't possibly still expect to go after them alone."

"Our views haven't changed," Erika said firmly.

"Yeah," Hibiki added, hopping into one of the Red Dear's wooden arms. "As far as we're concerned, there is no other way to get our senseis back."

"But you're just children! Orochimaru- he- he'll- he'll kill you!"

"I know more than anyone how to evade him,"  Erika spat, hopping into the other arm. "We really appreciate everything that you've done for us Sakura, but we have to go now."

Sakura nodded once after hesitation. "You're definitely not ordinary children, I'll give you that."

"Thankya kindly," Hibiki said with a wink.

Tamiko spoke up from where she had slung up and onto the Red Dear's shoulders. "We won't say goodbye," she said quietly. "It's something we don't really believe in. Why say goodbye when it's not the last time you'll see someone?"

Sakura smiled a small smile. "I like that way of thinking. I will see you three soon," she said instead.

"See you soon," they replied in unison.

"OH!" Hibiki remembered as they were loping away. "And tell that Temari girl that we shall meet again!!!"

                                                                                                *     *     *

"Is that all you've got?" Sasuke asked incredulously before his boot unforseenly met the center of Katsu's chest.

As she spiraled backward, leaving her feet, Katsu flung a kunai at him before colliding with the stiff ground. To her frustration, he deflected it and sneered.

"Pathetic."

Standing to dust off her pants, Katsu only glared at him. "I see now why you agreed to let me train with you," she snapped. "You wished only to show off."

"What other reason could there be?" he asked obnoxiously, acting puzzled.

It was their fifth training session with him and Katsu was surprised she had not murdered him with the frustration he was instigating in her boiling blood. She had come close several times but he always managed to stop her before she could leave much more than a scratch on him. Nevertheless Katsu loved the challenge of sparring with Sasuke. It took her mind off of people she didn't want to remember. It forced her to clear her mind and she relished  that feeling.

"I simply thought you were curious as to what it feels like to get beaten by a girl," Katsu answered with a shrug.

Sasuke's eyes sparked in threatening amusement. "Honey, you have not won a single spar."

"Oh, I'm just biding  my time," she lied, stalling for seconds as he circled her stealthily, a shuriken held in the crook of his wrist.

He raised an eyebrow without stopping. "And for what, exactly?"