𝐒𝐀𝐊𝐔𝐑𝐀 𝐁𝐋𝐀𝐃𝐄𝐒 ☴ CROSSOVER [ON HIATUS]

『𝑪𝑯𝑨𝑷𝑻𝑬𝑹 𝑰𝑰』

2一 𝘱𝘭𝘶𝘤𝘬𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰𝘰 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘺

*･☪·̩͙ ·˖✶

THAT NIGHT SHE HAD A NIGHTMARE, a nightmare that rendered her unable to fall asleep once again. A nightmare that frightened her to her core and put the waterworks in function.

Her hand reached for her face, hastily whipping the tears away as her chest rose and fell with unnatural speed. Her breath was labored, deep and uneven. She was having a panic attack and she didn't know why.

With one of her hands clutching at the material above her chest and the other keeping a firm grip over the sheets of her bed, she desperately took smaller and smaller breaths until she was left with only tears.

Why was she... crying?

Taking another deep breath, she flung the covers off of her and stood up, her feet coming in contact with the fuzziness of her carpet. She moved around her room, searching for her gear.

03:25一The clock on her bedroom wall read, telling her that it was, indeed, the dead of night.

A sound akin to a sigh left her lips, yet it was too shaky and whisper-like to be classified as one. Strapping her kunai pouch to her leg一just for precaution一she left her apartment building.

She walked aimlessly around the city, the silence of the night almost deafening to her tired mind. Her feet, without her even noticing, dragged her back to the forest from earlier that day. And suddenly, she felt at peace. She couldn't explain it, why she no longer felt like running away from everything; why all of a sudden she wanted to stay and never leave the massive holt before her; and above all, why she felt like she belonged among the trees. It confused her greatly, this inexplicable want for freedom.

The pinkette dove deeper into the forest, getting lost in its scenary of green. With the moon seeping through the tall branches of the saplings around her, barely illuminating her darkened path.

She walked and walked, her feet dragging her into the heart of the forest, where she stumbled upon a crystal clear lake whose surface reflected the bright moon in the starry dome. But the water was rippled, for in its center an object hovered just above it, creating waves at its slight contact with the liquid.

It was a sword, one who held a strange pull over Sakura's soul, beckoning her to step forward and claim it. Its hilt was a pristine white with indigo colored diamonds, with a jade-like purple charm hanging from it; its guard was round shaped, yet hollowed out to picture the branches of a sakura tree; and its sheath, a midnight black with red ribbons wrapped around it.

Sitting down and bringing her feet up so she could hug them, the kunoichi fixed her gaze onto the sword, as flashbacks of her nightmare replayed within her mind. She was suffocating, drowning, desperately clinging to whatever air remained within her lungs before, not long after, her heart gave out from the lack of oxygen. She shuddered. What a horrible dream.

She continued to stare down the imposing sword as it floated, noting its intricate designs and aerodynamically-ty. 'A fine katana,' her thoughts mused. Beautifully crafted and she didn't even see its sharp edge. But she didn't need to see the blade to feel its potential to kill. A sword such as this, as if crafted by the greatest sword smiths from Kiri, was sure to mark the world.

Should she take it? She thought, glancing around her, checking if there were any signs of a living, breathing person, but none came, so she continued to stare.

Should she take it? There was no-one to miss it, and it was left there, almost as if a curse had been placed upon it. Although, as strange and terrifying as it was, it wouldn't have been the strangest thing to hear.

Should she take it? Even if she would wind up cursed, could she really give up the chance of owning something as beautiful as this masterpiece?

Would she risk her life to take it? She stopped, dead in the tracks of her mind, a baffled look on her face as the immediate answer was 'yes'. Her body froze, eyes narrowing at the lake.

Would she not care if she died?

No. She wouldn't.

Swallowing the lump of stress from her throat, she stood up, dusting her pants clean of any dirt, and directed chakra through her feet, fearlessly walking on the water.

Why was she so pulled to this blade? So keen on having it between her fingers even if it meant loosing her life in exchange for it? So desperate to hold it in her hands and call it her own? Why should she go though the trouble of一

The instant her fingers grasped the hilt, the world came crashing down, chakra no longer cursing though her feet, and she came falling through the surface of the water, a chilling cold seeping through her clothes. She tried swimming back up to the surface, but her limbs refused to co-operate, standing stiff as a board, so she was left staring, eyes becoming more and more unfocused as seconds flew by, the light of the moon barely reaching her at this point.

Her hands clutched her sword tighter, opening her mouth to yell for help, but the only thing she got in return were empty lungs and a increasing migraine.

Eyelids feeling heavy, she stared one more time at the dim light that came through the vast amount of water.

Did she regret taking the sword?

Not even one bit.

°:°:°

The next time she woke up, it was to the light breeze of the wind, the soft feeling of grass underneath her feet and the warm rays of the sun beating over her bubblegum pink hair.

Was she dreaming? She had to be, otherwise she shouldn't have been able to breathe, much less feel.

Warily, she opened her emerald green eyes and in an instant, her gaze was swept by pink. More specifically, pink petals. Sakura petals, dancing in the wind, shining under the glisten of the sun as if they were thousands of tiny blades.

It was a beautiful sight.

She was snapped from her serene atmosphere by the sound of crushing dirt and swaying grass, and from behind her, the most peculiar person appeared.

A man, dressed in a lilac hakama and an equally lilac haori with white and black strips, a white sash whose tips faded in pink tied at his waist. Having a red and gold armour strapped over his clothes and his black 一 almost purple 一 long hair tied up in a high ponytail; a red, gold and black oni mask concealed most of his face's features, only his stormy grey-blue eyes visible from behind the whites of the mask's irises.

Surprised, but mostly confused, Sakura indignantly asked the man, "Where am I?"

But instead of being offered an answer, the samurai-like man stood silent while the sakura petals gathered behind him, forming a small tornado of glistening shades of pink. Said tornado lashing out at her from multiple directions.

She, of course, evaded them, though barely at times as they continued to gradually increase their speed, making her feel dizzy with their sudden movements.

When they had stopped, she was covered in a few small cuts, mostly on her legs and arms, a few on her face too, nothing too severe, yet noticeable enough to see that damage had been dealt to her person.

Sakura was beyond confused. So confused that she couldn't even make out the reason she was brought here, in this cherry blossom clearing. Yet the words that the strange man spoke next had her tripping over her own sanity.

"Training has begun. I expect you to hold nothing back, little sakura blossom."