Crimson Ties

Chapter 1

Sakura ran down the road attempting to keep up with Sasuke and his brother Itachi. Tsunade had given them a simple mission. They were headed to a small village a few miles from Konoha to investigate a group of rogue ninja attacking the villagers. Sakura was sent with the brothers to heal any of the villagers who may have been seriously hurt in the attacks. 

  "Hurry up Sakura. We will never reach the village in time if you can't keep up." Sasuke said to her as the brothers had to stop every few minutes to give her time to catch up.

   Itachi glared at his little brother for his comment. Itachi hadn't mind the entire trip about stopping for her. He enjoyed taking his time. The village wouldn't be going anywhere. 

   "Now, Sasuke, we were not given a time that we had to be there or even a day. I am perfectly fine with stopping for her if I have to. If I hear you speak to her like that again, I will send you home and you will have a not completed mission in your file. That can severely effect future missions." Itachi threatened as he watched his brothers face contort in anger. 

  Itachi never like threatening his brother, but he would not allow him to disrespect a teammate. She may very well be the person to heal his injuries in the future. 

   Sakura smiled softly at Itachi. It was her quiet way of thanking him. She regained her breath and walked along side the brothers. They were only a few hours away from the village. 

  

    A few hours later, they had finally reached the village gates. Sakura walked inside with her mouth hanging wide open. The houses were destroyed and blood littered the ground. 

  "Sakura. Run and look for anyone you can find. Help anyone you can, but please, don't over do it." Itachi said to her. 

  Sakura nodded and took off through the village. She finally came across an injured male laying against a building. 

  "Hey! Are you okay?" Sakura asked as she sat down beside the man. 

   Sakura began healing him and took notice of his features. His hair, long and black, was tied up into a ponytail similar to Itachi's. His fair skin held many cuts and a scar above his right eye. He finally opened his eyes as she finished healing him. 

  "I was sent from Konoha. I healed your injuries. Can you tell me what happened here?" She asked as she helped the man sit up into a better position. 

   "I was helping people from the buildings when a group of people ganged up on me. I don't know whe they were or where they came from, I'm sorry. They destroyed everything and killed off half of our villagers. Women and children, they didn't care." The man explained. 

  Sakura cringed at the story he told. How could someone just destroy half a village, an innocent village? 

  "Do you want me to take you to the medical area?" She asked. 

  "No, I will be fine. Go help everyone else." He said to her. 

   Sakura nodded and took off again. Her blood boiled at the thought of what happened here. As she ran she could see bodies of men, women, and children. Tears threatened to spill from her eyes at the sight. 

   "Sasuke, we are going to split up. Search for clues and question anyone you find alive." Itachi commanded. 

  Sasuke nodded and took off. He knew Sakura was more than likely questioning anyone she has healed. From the looks of the village, she wouldn't find many alive. The village was in ruins. He spotted Sakura healing a child below him and headed for her. 

  "Sakura, any luck?" He asked. 

  "No. No one seems to know who they were or have even seen what they look like. A woman I healed a few roads back told me that they were mixed in styles of jutsu they used. Most of them used fire though. The rest either used wind or earth jutsu. They came out of nowhere and wiped out half of the village. This child is only the third person I have found alive." Sakura said as she finished healing the small boy. 

    Sasuke nodded as he took off again. He could see the bodies that littered the ground. Most had been stabbed. 

  "Help! Someone please help me!" A woman yelled. 

  Sasuke immediately changed course to help the woman. He could see her running down the street. Her clothes were covered in mix of blood and dust from the buildings. He jumped in front of her and stopped her. 

   "Oh please help me. My son is stuck under debris. I can't lift it off of him." She said, clearly panicking. 

  Sasuke followed her to the building to where her son was trapped. He could hear the little boy crying from beneath the debris. Sasuke lifted the deris as far as he could but the boy still couldn't get free. 

   

   "There is a woman with pink hair not far from here. Run and get her and bring her here. I will need her help to move all of this." He told the woman. 

   She nodded and took off running. A few minutes go by and she finally returned with Sakura. 

   "Sasuke, what's wrong?" Sakura asked him. 

  "There is a little boy trapped under here and I can not move the debris to get to him." He said. 

   Sakura nodded and moved him to the side. In no time at all Sakura had removed all of the debris herself. Sasuke stared at her wide eyed. She helped the little boy get free and healed his wounds. 

  "I am not helpless anymore Sasuke. Tsunade made sure of that with her training. If I lift a tree then I can sure as hell lift debris."  She said as she stood up.

  The little boy and his mother thanked them both and ran. 

  "They were only the fifth people I've seen alive so far, Sasuke. This doesn't look good. I can't find anyone else. I've searched everywhere in this village. I'm hoping they made a break for it into the woods." Sakura said. 

  Sasuke sighed and turned towards the buildings. Only three still stood tall. 

  "Come on. We need to find Itachi and let him know what we have found out." Sasuke said as he lead her to find his brother.