Redemption In Your Eyes

Search and Rescue

The air she breathed in carried the mist of the freshwater river rushing below. Sakura gripped her crossed arms and leaned on the red railing. Squinting into the setting sun, she let shame, confusion and fear mix in her belly. Taking in a deep breath for relief through her nose, she noted how much the day had cooled, even at this still early hour. The soft tap of foot steps didn't pull her from her troubled thoughts. It was the nature filled quiet that followed when they stopped that grabbed her attention.

"It took me a while to find you."

Turning slowly, she side-eyed him. Sasuke stood, hands hanging at his sides, shoulders tight, and lips pressed into a thin line. His long shadow spilled onto the concrete and stretched behind him into the water. "You must not know me as well as you think."

He took in a sharp breath. "You're probably right about that." Hesitant, but determined, took a step towards her. "Clearly we have changed."

Directing her gaze back towards the purple and pink sky laced with orange fire, she debated whether to chase him off or humor him. "What do you want? Is there news yet?"

"You are more worried about her than you're letting on."

Shame burned her cheeks. "Do you have any idea what I sacrificed to let her have her brother? And now this has happened... I'm going to be held culpable."

He shook his head and took another step. "I don't think you're shallow enough to only be worried about how this looks."

Hot, salty tears burned in her eyes, and then suddenly, they began to roll down her cheeks. She swiped them away and flicked them into the icy water below. Sasuke's hand was warm against the frozen bite of dusk. He gripped her shoulder and then ran his knuckles down her back.

"We aren't safe here anymore." Her admission brought her back to her senses. "I always thought of this village and its walls as a refuge. I slept too easily and now..." Facing him now, her eyes and wet cheeks glistened in the last of the light. "Who did Tsunade-sama approve for search and rescue mission?"

Breaking away from her stare, he stepped back, unable to watch her shatter like a dropped plate. "No one." She was silent in shock. "There is nothing to go on. A lot of people could be after her, and they left no trace of themselves. No word has come from scouts in the field. She's vanished with no trail."

"That's insane!" Throwing her hands out wildly, she began to pace. "We have some of the best living shinobi and no one in this village can pick up a trail?"

"The jutsu used was very high level. And Tsunade believes whoever has Aster is planning to use her as a bargaining chip."

With the last rays of sunlight at her back, Sakura stopped in the middle of the bridge. "We don't know she isn't already..."

"Tsunade's opinion was that even if we had a trail, it may be too dangerous to follow. It's also unlikely anyone who took her would do anything without first obtaining the baby..." His heart began to pound as he thought of the possibility of his little niece or nephew being used for whatever evil purposes the kidnapper had in mind.

Sakura gasped. "She's going to die. If the kidnapper wants the baby, they will have to kill her to take it or let her die trying to take it to term. They must not know how compromised her health is." It was then that she began to cry in earnest. "I can't say I've loved her.... But this ...."

Sasuke wrapped her in arms and pulled her close to his chest. He wondered what his brother was feeling at this moment. His feelings for the woman in his arms closed his throat. It was unimaginable to him that she could be taken and a search party denied. But now anything seemed possible.