🌸The Journey🌸

Day 12

Sakura felt herself beginning to fall over from exhaustion, "please... Tell me we're almost there."

"Hey." Sasuke chuckled, "you're the one that insisted we keep walking overnight." He rubbed her back, "do you see that?"

She peered through the grove of trees until she spotted what looked like rain, "is... Is that it?"

"Yep."

"Finally." Sakura let out a sigh of relief and took Sasuke's hand, "come on, maybe we can find a good inn there to stop at. Just watch, I'll be out in less than a minute."

"I don't doubt that at all."

As Sakura and Sasuke walked, she hummed thoughtfully to herself and swung her arms, "don't you feel strange?"

"Strange in what way?"

"Well..." she leaned her head back, "being who we are, I feel as if we should be doing something more productive, you know? But at the same time, we should be able to find time for ourselves. We just got married after all."

"Also being who we are, we never have time for ourselves, as seen from the past few months of being constantly chased." Sasuke looked around, "even to this very moment, we can't let our guard down."

"Right." Sakura nodded briefly before stopping, "do you...?"

"I knew this was too good to be true." Sasuke froze in his place and set his hand on the hilt of his sword, "Sakura, stay where you are."

"I'm going to help you."

"Not in your condition, you won't."

"I'm fine, Sasuke."

"Sh..." He looked around cautiously and slowly drew his sword from its sheath, "Sakura... Whatever you do... Just get out of here."

Sakura lowered her voice, "I'm not leaving you, Sasuke."

"Well, you'll have to. To keep the baby safe."

Her hand instinctively moved to her stomach, "I'll... We'll be fine."

Sasuke bit his lip as his hand trembled with uncertainty. He wanted to trust her, but he knew her condition and how she was feeling. One glance at each other and they knew each other's minds. They understood each other. And at that moment, he could tell she was terrified, just like she knew Sasuke was terrified. They both were. They were terrified for their child's safety.

There was a daunting silence before the ring of kunai flying through the air echoed all around them. Sasuke blocked whatever was on his end while Sakura struggled to evade her own.

"Sakura!" Sasuke moved back to cover her, "we need to get out of here."

"Where?"

"I don't know. Just run--"

A kunai flew right past Sasuke's face, slicing a cut through his cheek, and piercing the wood of the tree that Sakura stood against. She panted hard as she stared at the handle of the kunai, hanging from it was a charm with a symbol she recognized all too well, "n-no way..."

"Sakura, move!" Sasuke grabbed her hand and pulled her aside, "get on my back."

"S-Sasuke...!"

"Do it, now!"

With slight hesitation, Sakura did as she was told and clung tight to her husband.

"We need to get out of here. Now." Sasuke glanced back as he started off quickly away from the Hidden Rain village.