(WIP) Suiren, Chapter Fourteen: [UNTITLED] Scene 1 – Draft 1

Aaaaaand the first section of chapter fourteen is complete- i think! Now we shall turn our all-seeing eye to what certain other ninja are doing with themselves on this fine day…

Unfortunately, the second section of this chapter may be slower in coming than the first, as i’m preparing to go on vacation (taken in small chunks over the next few weeks, interspersed with terrifyingly frenetic days of catch-up at work), so i may not have much time to write -_-;…

This isn’t going to be another year-long delay, though; this chapter is actually mostly planned out already (which is rarer for me than a lot of you might think O_o;). I just need to find the time and the enthusiasm to write all of the other characters that just happen to not be quite as much fun to write as Haruno Sakura…

At any rate, this is still only the first section of many, and very much a Work In Progress. The resident ex-monk might have a word or two to say about the ephemeral nature of all human experience, but needless to say, the illusion of permanence held by this little bit of storytelling is somewhat more tenuous than most…

 

 
 

“Are you sure you’ve got all of your gear? They didn’t take anything, did they?” Standing in the doorway of the small security room, Sakura tried to visually locate all of the equipment that Hinata had been carrying the day before.

“It’s fine, Sakura-chan,” Hinata assured her with a nervous smile as she knelt to strap on her thigh holster. “Everything’s here; I checked.” Once the leather case containing the bulk of her weapons was properly secured, Hinata twisted around to slip on the shoulder straps of her backpack and stood up.

Sakura’s own smile was slightly strained as she watched Hinata make her final checks. A good night’s sleep had done wonders for the pale girl’s spirits, but now that she was looking for them, Sakura could detect some hints that Hinata was still more tired than she was letting on. The curse seal was probably putting a considerable strain on her body while it healed.

At least it’s not like the Heaven Seal, Sakura told herself, absently rubbing her shoulder to dispel the pain of remembering that evil mark. As horrible as the Branch Family Seal was, the worst it could do was kill you. ‘The lucky ones are the ones that die,’ Sakura mused with a shudder, wishing she could be happier that Sasuke had survived.

Wrenching herself back to the present, Sakura frowned at the smaller girl. “I told you to just call me ‘Sakura,’” she chided gently, stepping forward to pick at the sleeve of Hinata’s baggy jacket, “and if you’re not gonna wear any weapons or armor under this, you definitely need to get something that fits you better!”

Giving her friend a sly look, Sakura released Hinata’s sleeve, ghosting her fingertips along the inside of Hinata’s arm to cup a handful of well-concealed breast. “Remember, if I can’t see ‘em, I might have to ‘check’ to make sure they’re there,” she warned with a playful squeeze.

Sakura chuckled as Hinata squeaked out a mortified, “S-sorry!” and stumbled away.

Part of her still railed at abusing the poor girl like this, but it was a rapidly diminishing part. Dammit, it’s for her own good! If Hinata could to just get over that shyness, Sakura was sure she would feel so much better about herself! As such, Sakura was determined to grope, fondle, tease, tickle and torment the timid girl until Hinata either learned to appreciate the attention or made her stop. Either way, Hinata would be better for it.

And if I keep telling myself that, maybe I won’t feel so guilty about enjoying it so much. Sakura would kill herself before admitting it to Anko, but having an outlet for her… less ‘inhibited’ side was actually kind of addicting- and while the cat was away…

Knuckling her forehead, Sakura breathed an exasperated sigh. “Don’t apologize, Hinata, I’m just being an idiot again,” she muttered. As much fun as it would be to play with Hinata some more, the other girl really didn’t need any extra worries today. Goddammit Grandpa, why do you always have to be such a dick?

when the men had come to inform them that Kurenai had already been sent away, it had been all Sakura could do to keep Hinata from having a nervous breakdown. And what the hell was with that lame excuse? I don’t remember telling anyone that we didn’t want to be disturbed! Eventually, Sakura had been able to convince Hinata that everything would be fine if she left the next morning, rather than chasing after her teacher in the middle of the night, but it had taken a surprising amount of cajoling.

In the end, it was the pragmatic approach that had finally won her over (though the genjutsu-enhanced puppy-dog eyes probably hadn’t hurt). Osawaramachi wasn’t the closest town, but Sakura knew from experience that it only had one halfway-decent inn. That was probably why her grandfather had chosen it as the meeting place; easier to keep track of the ninja that way. By the same token, it would be easier for Hinata to find Kurenai there as well.

Sakura still felt dirty for picking on Hinata’s nonfunctional Byakugan like that, but she was willing to play the villain if that’s what it took to keep her friends safe. Sending Hinata off to scour the wilderness night-blind, exhausted and alone was unacceptable. Thanks to her arm-twisting, Hinata was reasonably calm and well-rested, and had a good idea of where to start looking- but the ‘alone’ part was still a problem.

“I wish I could go with you,” Sakura murmured unhappily. Her grandfather had requested that she stay at the castle until he selected a representative, but that meant she wouldn’t be able to help Hinata present her case to Kurenai. “I don’t understand why I can’t just go and come back. I’d only be gone half a day, at most,” she spat a bitterly.

“I’m sure your grandfather has a reason,” Hinata consoled her with a bittersweet smile that said she was disappointed as well. “B-But you don’t need to worry about me,” Hinata added with a bit of forced cheer, obviously trying to lighten the mood. “I know Kurenai-sensei will make the right choice.”

Sakura resisted the urge to scoff. She didn’t have a lot of personal experience with the woman, but Anko’s feelings on the matter were painfully clear. For Yuuhi Kurenai, the ‘right choice’ would be to send Hinata home. The political calculus of the situation was just too hazy right now to allow for any other option- and Hinata would accept that, because she knew her teacher to be cautious and sensible and wise; well-deserving of her faith and trust.

“Don’t just let her send you away,” Sakura commanded with an unyielding stare. “It’s her mission and her decision, but the only thing she should consider when she makes that decision is whether or not she wants you to participate- as her student, and as a ninja.” Sakura reached up to tap the plate of Hinata’s forehead protector directly over the curse seal. “This is what you chose; this is your responsibility. Make her understand that.”

For a moment Sakura was afraid that she’d said too much, as Hinata’s expression clouded with discomfort, but then a knot of tension formed in the middle of the white-eyed girl’s brow. “Mmm…” Hinata acknowledged with a slow nod, like the frown on her face suddenly weighed a thousand pounds. “I… I’ll try,” she managed in a firmer tone. Hinata wasn’t happy with the idea of confronting her teacher, but she understood that some things needed to be said.

“Good,” Sakura affirmed with a curt nod, as through she expected nothing less. Sakura held on to her stoic mask for a few seconds longer before finally allowing herself a small, challenging smirk. “I’ll see you in a few days, then,” she joked half-seriously.

“Mmm,” Hinata agreed, her lips twitching into the shadow of a rueful grin that would have done Shikamaru proud.

Exiting the security room, Sakura escorted Hinata to the road away from the ferry crossing and the two girls exchanged an awkward hug, with Sakura mostly struggling to reach around Hinata’s overstuffed backpack. Sakura watched Hinata’s departing back until the other girl disappeared over a rise at the other side of the cross-dotted plain.

“Sakura-dono?”

Unsuccessfully suppressing a violent flinch, Sakura spun on her heel, her hand brushing her thigh where she normally kept her weapon holster. “Ah! Itsuki-san, good morning!” she babbled, instantly identifying the man standing behind her as the head of her grandfather’s personal guard. Even in the gloom of early morning, Itsuki Gin’s trademark shaved head and amber-tinted glasses were easily recognizable.

“Does Grandfather need to see me?” she asked, straightening her kimono as she tried to scrape together the pieces of her shattered composure. Dammit, stop doing that, you creepy bastard! Word around the castle was that Gin had once trained as a monk, since he was the third son of a samurai family and didn’t stand to inherit anything, but Sakura was starting to wonder if ‘monk’ wasn’t just a polite euphemism for ‘ninja.’

Gin lowered his head, reaching up to delicately adjust his glasses- a mannerism that Sakura was absolutely convinced he only did because it made him look cool and precise. “The Lord has not requested your presence this morning,” he replied evenly. “However, it has been brought to my attention that you were wearing a sword when you arrived at the castle yesterday.”

The ex-monk delivered this statement with a dispassionate, deadpan expression, but the faint hint of bemusement that had colored Gin’s voice when he’d said the word ’sword’ drew Sakura’s attention to the single katana that was pushed through his sash at his left hip. Oh… Uh-oh…

Though she’d grown accustomed to thinking of it as her sword, the sword Sakura carried was actually a family heirloom, originally owned by her grandfather. Even without that knowledge, there was no way her grandfather’s men would have missed the fact that it was a katana, a samurai weapon; ninja-to had shorter, straighter blades, and were generally of lower quality than the master-crafted swords that were passed down within samurai families.

A bead of cold sweat trickled down the back of Sakura’s neck, and she offered Gin a grimace of discomfort; she hoped the men hadn’t been too insulted. “I can explain-” she began.

The bald samurai held up a hand to forestall her apology. “It is not an issue,” he dismissed without rebuke. “In actuality, this presents us with a unique opportunity: there are many men at the castle now who were not in the Lord’s service when you last visited. As such, you have been the topic of much discussion since your arrival.”

This little bit of information sent a wave of worry swirling around Sakura’s stomach to crest acidly at the back of her throat, but Gin wasn’t finished. “In the interest of giving the men the opportunity to form a better impression of you,” he continued, “the Lord has suggested that we have you participate in the men’s daily training exercises for the duration of your stay- if this arrangement is amenable to you, of course.”

Sakura blinked as her gorge receded; that actually sounded like a pretty good idea, and she had been thinking of getting some help with her sword work. Could it be that her grandfather really did have a reason for keeping her there? The mind boggled. “Um… yeah- I mean yes, that sounds reasonable,” the pink-haired girl replied, correcting her posture slightly.

Nodding once, Gin dipped into a bow of middling respect. “Very well then; with your leave, Sakura-dono, we shall begin immediately.”

“Thank you, Itsuki-san. Please take care of me,” Sakura responded with a deeper bow, a smile of anticipation breaking across her face despite the part of her heart that still tugged painfully in the direction that Hinata had departed.

Sakura still practiced her taijutsu as much as time would allow, but she’d sincerely missed her marathon training sessions with Maito Gai, Konoha’s bushy-browed demon of hard work. Given the high standard that her grandfather held his men to, Sakura fully expected to be too exhausted to think straight by the end of the day, and probably in a lot of pain to boot, but right now that didn’t sound like a bad thing at all.

 
 
 

つづく (To be continued – Chapter Incomplete)