Sakura Blooms (#1 Sakura Trilogy)

Sakura Blooms: [Chapter 20]

Warning: This chapter has allusions to rape and contains cruel methods of killing and gore. Read at your own expense.

Suddenly, the mist parted to reveal a rather unattractive man with a wakizashi sword. Shorter than a katana, but easier to wield. Close-range fighter, she assessed. Thanks to training with TenTen, Sakura was able to dodge the blade smoothly and, in turn, aim for the back of his head. When hit in the back of the head, it causes a short and painful death, and that's exactly what happened. A quick, remorseless kill. The life of a shinobi.

The mist cleared after the caster died, and Sakura wiped the blood from her kunai off on the shore where she had just fought. She stayed alert, knowing there was at least one other after her. The genin stood up, her ankle throbbing, wondering if Naruto and Sasuke were still sleeping, drained from their tree-climbing exercise.

"I guess you were right. No genin could kill, much less not be in shock. What is your name, girl?"

"Sakura," she replied curtly, detecting the voice to be to the left of her, making the first move.

:::

Kakashi panted, finally done with his share of fighting. He summoned Pakkun, and asked the small dog, "Can you find Sakura?"

"I dunno, Boss. You have anything with their scent?"

The grey-haired man cursed at his own stupidity. He was still injured from his fight with Zabuza, and one of the slashes on his abdomen had reopened. He was delirious with pain and fatigue. Slowly, his knees buckled, and all Kakashi could hear was his nin-hound calling out his name.

She should be fine...for a little while.

:::

(A/N: Play music in media for more effect.)

Sakura felt it this time.

As much as she didn't want to admit it, she felt what Sasuke had the day they fought Zabuza.

Desperation.
Terror.
Anxiety.

The list could go on and on. The swirl of these—emotions. She tried to stop them, but they thundered, and Sakura attempted to hinder the bile rising up her throat, knowing that if she stopped even for a second, she would be caught and killed.

Stabbed.
Tortured.
Blown up.

The possibilities were nearly endless.

The little genin remained calm on the outside, looking as though she was not hyperventilating, and no, don't ask her how she knew, the piece of information popped up in her head just like everything else had.

She had engaged in short bouts of close combat, and he had managed to slice out a small wedge-shaped chunk of her left ear that was now bleeding profusely. After that, all plans went out the window. Fight or flight. She felt like an animal, being hunted down by a predator. He was inevitable, chasing her down ruthlessly, and she secretly hoped for the loud blonde or the haughty Uchiha to save her. They always did, regardless if she could take care of it, which was always, but they did not listen, not then, not ever—

Calm down. Breathe in, breathe out. You had a plan, remember? Sure, the circumstances have changed, but you can adapt...we always have.

Immediately, Sakura cleared the emotions and began running towards the forest where she had been training Genta, hoping to have enough time to at least relieve her throat of the burning sensation from her vomit.

:::

It didn't work. Her taijutsu attacks were nothing when she couldn't conjure enough strength to actually harm him. Her body, despite all the physical training she had gone through, failed her. It was almost as though she wasn't made for taijutsu, like she was too sickly and thin. She had collected herself once, but Sakura was still shaken from the fact that she had gotten injured. All the while, her face remained impassive, even when he had pinned her to a tree, holding her neck and squeezing.

"You're a pretty one, aren't you?" The sleazy yet talented man reached for underneath her mint-coloured clothing, and caressed her uninjured thigh. Sakura stood frozen—she didn't know what he was doing—another, smaller voice screaming it was wrong what he was doing. She was about to comment that her appearance didn't affect her worth as a shinobi until...

He chuckled, removing his hand from her thigh to her small, underdeveloped chest underneath fishnet. Still, Sakura did not understand what he was doing. It hurt, whatever it was he was doing, but nothing compared to the blood flowing from her ear, the deep cut in her thigh that shared the same look of a fish that Sakura had watched being prepared at the market on multiple occasions, a flap of skin opening and closing when she moved too much, and don't forget her broken ankle. When she looked into the man's beady eyes, the pinkette decided she most definitely did not like the look in them.

Fight back, he's going to—

"Yes..." He mused. "When I'm done with you, I'll finish off your teammates. You have a team, right? Yes, they don't have mere children going on missions anymore without their sensei." Black beady eyes turned back to her, and he grinned suggestively, making alarms go off in Sakura's head.

I must act quickly, and precisely. One hit to immobilize and another to kill. A clean kill.

This man...MONSTER is going to ra—

The man shivered, just thinking of what he was going to do. "It'll be so much fun, seeing those dear to you being broken, both physically and mentally, I'll break every bone in their bodies..."

Sakura listened, gathering information on his behaviour so she could make a successful plan. He is violent.

Of course he's violent! You're delusional because of the loss of blood! You need to end the fight quickly, and collect Tazuna!

That old man? What use is he to me?

You have people that trust you! You, of all people, know how hard it is to trust others! It took years for Naruto and Sasuke to break through the barrier, and you barely show any affection to them, and despite that, they still remain your friends!

Rule Number—

I AM SO DONE; HE INSULTED YOUR FRIENDS, YOURSELF, AND WHAT YOU DO FOR A LIVING, AND YOU'RE WORRIED ABOUT SHINOBI CODE?! CHIYU NO CHIKARA! JOIN YOUR CHAKRA WITH MINE!

Sakura felt a tingling sensation that spread to her injured areas, and everything glowed a brilliant green. Everything within a 5 meter radius was engulfed in the light, despite the fact the sun was now setting.

I couldn't heal everything, but your wounds are closed up, and you can fight! I can see that the Will of Fire will eventually burn bright within you, so beat the crap out of that creep!

After the green light died down, the bruises on her thighs and neck were now only a light purple, most of the mysterious energy spent healing the knife wound on her other thigh. Her ear had stopped bleeding, and the wound on her neck had scabbed over, just like the other injuries.

Sakura's eyes burned with resolve, and saw the man that had violated her. Still, with her usual emotionless face, she looked at him and said, "If it is a fight you want, then a fight you shall get."

Rule Number 23 of the Shinobi Code of Conduct states a shinobi must endure.

Sakura's going into boss mode! How will this guy die?

What will happen next?