The Day Ame Cried (Sequel to The Rain-Dancer's Last Dance)

The Breakdown

They were almost six hours out from Konoha when the Haruno Sakura finally grew irked at the Rain-Dancer's periodic crying fits. They weren't loud, but the more that the woman cried, the guiltier that she felt. She already felt a little guilty for letting Granny Chiyo die for Gaara. But there was also a little bit of happiness in that. Gaara was Naruto's friend, and she'd rather not have Naruto be sad for loosing a friend.

'Granny Chiyo lived her life,' Sakura told herself whenever she felt the guilt of that creep upon her.

But the Rain-Dancer... The guilt she felt about that... It was something completely different. And it was strange. From the way the Rain-Dancer was reacting, by her tears, Sakura was able to guess that the Rain-Dancer had a close relationship with the Puppet Master.

She felt guilty about taking Sasori from the Rain-Dancer... at first. But then she reminded herself that she was a shinobi. She was loyal to her village. And her village had decided that Sasori Akasuna was a criminal. Sasori was also a part of the Akatsuki, the very organization that wanted to kill Naruto, her team-mate. Her friend. That wasn't something she could allow.

She had to stop putting herself in the position of 'How the Rain-Dancer views the situation', and start looking at it from the position of a Leaf shinobi. Sakura's empathy towards those that were hurting...

That has always been her downfall.

A sniffle from behind her caused her to twitch. 'I swear to Kami, if the Rain-Dancer starts crying again...' Sakura thought, struggling to keep her face straight. Those next to her saw how the pinkette was running on a short fuse, and inched away. The Haruno paid them no mind.

A choked whimper sounded out, and there was a hiccuping sound. Sakura growled, her eye twitching furiously. The Rain-Dancer was crying again. For the eighth time that day.

Finally fed up, Sakura planted her feet to the ground, and spun around to face the Rain-Dancer.

"Alright. STOP CRYING. Sasori Akasuna was important to you. WE GET IT, ALRIGHT?! And I'm sorry that he's dead, okay? I'm sorry that I killed him, alright? But crying like a little BABY? IT WON'T BRING HIM BACK, RAIN-DANCER. So, give us all a little peace and quiet, and QUIT CRYING. Or I'll give you something to cry about." Sakura snapped at the Rain-Dancer.

The good news? The Rain-Dancer stopped crying.

But the bad news?

- - -

Kōri's POV:

She killed Sasori-sama.

She... She killed Sasori-sama...

SHE KILLED SASORI-SAMA.

The pain in her chest was so great. And the pain grew stronger and stronger. It wasn't until she saw the pink-haired girl turn around and stomp back to her place with her group of team-mates that she realized what that pain was.

It was Jashin-sama! Jashin-sama was communicating with Kōri through these waves of pain!

The pain intensified and grew more, until all Kōri could think about was how much it hurt. And how the pain made her feel. When she was hurting, the pain caused other emotions to intensify.

Her grief.

It grew.

With a shaking hand, she pulled out the scroll on Jashinist sacrifices. Shakily, she continued to walk, reading the scroll quietly. When she finished, she stopped.

She pulled a kunai out of a hidden pocket and threw it at the pink-haired teen. The black-haired boy, who seemed emotionless pushed the pinkette out of the way, cutting his cheek, and slicing part of the pinkette's hair, narrowly missing her cheek as well. The pink-haired shinobi spun around, and stared at the Rain-Dancer in shock.

"Where'd you get that kunai from?!" the pinkette snapped, partially shocked. A clone of Kōri appeared where the kunai landed, and tossed the weapon back to Kōri before dispersing.

She held the kunai with her teeth, and pulled out another kunai from another hidden pocket, and, with a deep breath, she... stabbed herself in the arm.

She shrieked and wobbled, but kept her feet firmly planted. The shinobi watched, confused and a bit flabbergasted as Kōri made a circle around herself with the blood that was pouring from her wound on her arm. She let out gasp, her eyes watering from the intense pain she felt as she dug the kunai deeper, more blood splattering down on the ground. With that blood she made a triangle of blood inside the circle.

Letting out pain-filled breaths, she had made a Jashin symbol out of her own blood. She then tossed the kunai stabbed into her arm away, crying out in pain as she had harshly jerked the weapon out of her arm. She then grabbed the kunai in her mouth, and licked the blood on the weapon. Once she did that, she tossed that kunai away as well.

She didn't seem to notice the way her body changed color, and if she did, she didn't acknowledge it. Then, she pulled out another kunai from yet another hidden pocket. A familiar purple liquid covered this kunai.

"Sasori's poison!" The pinkette gasped out, going into a defensive stance. The other shinobi followed suit.

"Don't try to save me." Was all Kōri said, her voice filled with grief.

'Lord Jashin-sama, I give this person to you as a sacrifice.'

And with that, she stabbed herself in the heart, almost instantly coughing up blood, and collapsing to the ground with a shrill scream heard from miles away.

And for some strange reason, the black-haired, emotionless shinobi that the blood came from did the exact same thing.

Kōri had made her first sacrifice.

Kōri was now a Jashinist.