Chapter 39: chapter 30 Part 4
So Ibiki took Naruto to the painting room and Naruto laid down on the table while Ibiki etched the seals Naruto wanted on him. While Naruto was busy, Tenten began to think. It made sense actually for them to have a way to call him in an emergency and they couldn't waste time looking for him. While Ibiki was working, her ears caught the sounds of her sisters coming down the hallway. They were shouting and yelling at someone so she stepped out to see Sakura and Ino being dragged toward her. Their escorts let them go when they reached her and Tenten explained the situation. Their anger quickly disappeared when they realized what Naruto wanted to do and they waited.
When the ink dried, Naruto called them over and ordered them to apply their chakra in the right places. After Sakura finished her part, she moved to the front and bent down. She thanked him for doing this and promised that they won't abuse this privilege. Naruto just smiled and kissed her forehead.
Later on, Jiraiya had finally let Naruto sign into the Toad contract which, despite Sakura's objections, proved to be a challenging task for him. Long before, Naruto had decided to befriend the `children' as it were before even summoning the big boss. However, he had taken a liking to a toad named Gamakichi and his younger brother Gamatatsu. In some ways, Gamakichi reminded him of Sakura and the way she acts toward her sisters when they're not being stupid. Gamatatsu reminded him of Konohamaru because of his personality.
As for Ino, she eventually decided to hold off on telling Naruto anything and wanted to wait and tell him everything at one time. Her conversation with the Hokage and Ibiki proved to be a challenging one as she had to explain everything in great detail. She was there for a few hours and was very thankful that she had provided a good enough excuse for being away for so long. If she didn't, he would come looking for her, asking why she was ignoring his calls, and things would be ruined.
For Tenten, it has to be the hardest for her. She never felt so out of place within the family. She knew just how many connections her sisters and master has and she realized just how alone she really is. She doesn't know anyone, she doesn't have the connections with the many different clans they have, but Sakura always told her. `If you want to have connections, the very first thing you need to do is say `hello' to somebody and go from there. Start with Inuzuka Tsume. She's very friendly with us and I bet once you get to know her, it'll be easy for you to talk to other people and get relationships going.'
But it was easier said then done. She knew what kind of relationship Tsume had with the family. She knew Naruto sells his pets to fuck her whenever she needs it. Hell, Naruto forced her to watch as Sakura and Tsume got it on. Despite the extreme age difference, a child and an adult, it was hot to see such feral sex going on in front of her. But with the exams a few days away and her own time training herself, even though she wasn't in the finals, Naruto didn't accept that as an excuse to slack off, she didn't have any time. Maybe after the exams, when things have calmed down some, she'll be able to talk to her.
But lately, she'd been distracted. It wasn't anything physical, like her sisters or her training, but rather herself. She loves her family, she really does, but she just couldn't say it. She just couldn't say `I love you' to Naruto. Even though she knew Naruto loved her, it was hard for her because of what she went though. What if he really didn't love her? What if he just thought of her as an object and wasn't worth any feelings? Well, he does think of her like an object but does this toy deserved to be loved? Like a child's favorite toy. It was that fear that stopped her from saying those three words.
However, one day, she woke up and, like Naruto's fist hitting her head, she realized that her fears were unfounded. If Naruto didn't want to love her, he would've said that to her bluntly. He wouldn't treated her like he does, with love and tender. Hell, he could've left her in her previous state, broken and shattered but he helped her recover. If he didn't want to love her, then why did he do that? A smile graced her face as she hugged the pillow. It wasn't worth moaning and groaning over this. She loves him and she wanted him to know that. If he shot her down, then that'll be that, but if he does love her like she wanted, it would be the happiest day in her life.
Now if she could just get him alone...
As for Naruto...as the days got closer to the exams, he started to train harder and harder. It was strange but Naruto felt a need to push himself harder and harder. Maybe it was because of Gaara and the beast contained within him. There was a drive in him that couldn't be satisfied. It wasn't until later he figured out that because that the protection and safety of his pets fell to him, he wanted to be strong enough so that he can protect them from anything that comes from them. With the threat of Akatsuki looming, he didn't want them to die, but in his drive to become stronger, he did something that he swore to himself he would never do again.
He left himself vulnerable.
OoOoOoO
`Great, I finally work up the courage to tell him I love him and I can't find the bastard. Didn't Saku-chan say that he was training? Personally I think that's stupid. He needs to rest now so where is he?' Despite her visit to training grounds that she knows Naruto likes to use, the newest slave couldn't find him. She knows he likes to switch things up but this was ridiculous. Maybe he found a new spot to practice in and neglected to tell them. She stopped and let out a long groan. `I take the time to dress nice for him and when I do catch up to him, he'll be too tired to notice. Great job Tenten...you choose a day to tell him you love him and dress up and you can't find him and the worst part, I can't catch his scent trail. He's all over the place.'
The reason she was dressed up like this is because she wanted to surprise him and take him out to dinner where she got reservations to a place that was just perfect for her plans. She even packed soap and extra clothes. It was still early out but it was getting dark. She hoped to catch him before he got too tired but that hope got dimmer and dimmer with each minute that passed. The reason why her sisters aren't involved is because she didn't want them involved. She wanted to do this by herself. She knew her sisters and she knew they'll do things over the top and completely unnecessary.
However, she suddenly stopped, her nose twitching as she caught whiff of a particularly fresh scent. A big smile came onto her face as she mentally cheered. Hope wasn't lost after all and she might even manage to keep her reservations. God the reservations fees were so expensive and nearly broke her but she got enough to pay for their meal. Thankfully the next time she gets her allowance is in a few days, quite possibly after the exams so she'll be alright.
If not, then she can just borrow money from her sisters.
She quickly withdrew a small mirror from her little purse and looked herself over, just to make sure her hair wasn't messed up or her makeup ruined. After she was satisfied, she put it away and continued on her way. The wind was downhill but she was still able to hold onto the scent and follow it. It didn't take very long but the scent got stronger and stronger. It was getting dark but Tenten was still able to see clearly. As she passed a grouping of trees, her eyes laid upon a familiar sight of orange pants and feet and her excitement was nearing its peak. She smoothed out her dress one last time and placed her hands behind her back and continued walking. The wind was getting heavy but that didn't really matter. "Master you there?" She asked, nearly skipping. "I got a surprise for you. I hope you aren't too tired because..." Tenten's voice suddenly stopped, her eyes widening in horror as they fell upon a sight she never wanted to see.
Numerous objects were impaled into Naruto's body, sticking out and covered with blood. His hands were staked to the ground as his jacket and shirt was ripped open. Blood was everywhere, staining the ground where he laid.
"MASTER!" Tenten rushed to his side and dropped to her knees, her hands going to his neck to try and find his pulse. Thankfully there was a pulse and he was still alive but he was near death. `Oh god, how did this happen? Who did this?' Tenten immediately grabbed the stake pinning his hand to the ground and pulled on it, the action causing Naruto to wake up, screaming in pain. "Master...master oh you're alive." Tenten quickly pulled out the other stake. "What happened?"
The boy looked at her, tears brimming in his eyes, as well as hers. "I...so...hurts...so mu-much. He-help m-me."
"I'm here master...I'm here." She comforted him, as she tried to judge on whether or not to pull things out. "Who did this?"
"Pu-pull...pull...out."
"What? You want me to pull them out? I don't think I should." Despite Sakura's tutoring, Tenten didn't have a clue on what to do. All she could think about was Naruto's suffering and his blood on her hands. "What if I kill you?"
"Pull them out!" He grunted, causing the girl to whimper. "I...can't he-heal w-with the-them in."
But Naruto seemed to know what he was doing and what kind of slave would she be if she broke down seeing him like this. She steeled herself and nodded. A quick handseal later and three earth clones were formed opposite of her. "Find some help." She commanded one of them. She nodded and quickly ran off to find someone, anybody who can help, leaving them behind. "Alright, I'm going to grab this pike. I need one of you to immediately apply healing chakra to the wound the instant it leaves the body." The girls nodded as the real one grabbed the largest of the instruments, one clone ready to use healing chakra while the other worked on healing his hands. "Alright...one...two...three!" Naruto screamed as Tenten pulled on it as quickly as she could, the clone diving in and immediately pouring in the healing chakra. As Tenten threw the thing away, tears returned to her eyes.
Who did this? Why did they do this? Were they foreign nin or domestic nin? It didn't really matter right now. All that mattered is getting all this crap out of his so he can heal. She didn't really know that much about this healing but she knew that depending on the severity of the wound determines how long it takes for it to kick in or something like that...or maybe it was how much Kyuubi energy he was challenging at the moment that determined the intensity of his healing. She grabbed another object, which turned out to be a katana and pulled it out, the clone diving in. As she looked over the weapons, she saw quite a number that ninja use and that realization made her wonder. `Please don't die master...I love you so much.' She reached down to the side of his thigh and grasped the handle of a kunai and counted down again. "One...two...thr..."
"STOP!"
Tenten's hands immediately flew off the handle when she heard the stop command and looked up just as a squad of medics dropped down followed by her clones. `Oh thank you god. Thank you so much!'
"We'll take it from here." One of them said as they started unpacking their kits.
Tenten quickly nodded and moved back as they surrounded him. "You'll be alight master. Help is here." She spoke to him as the medics started working, but his only answer was to scream in pain, causing her to let out a choked sob, her hands covering her mouth. Every instant told her to look away but she couldn't. The sight was too horrible to look away from. Her clones rejoined her by her side and they held each other. "It didn't take me long to find somebody." One clone whispered as the looked at the screaming Naruto as they continued pulling stuff off of him. The seconds ticked by and the only thing Tenten could hear was Naruto's screaming and whimpering. They wanted to know how he was doing and quite frankly, they weren't sure what was going on. "Is he going to be alright?" One of the Tenten's whispered. Two clones had already dispersed as they weren't needed anymore.
"It's too early to say." A medic answered. "But you did a good thing what you did. That may have saved his life."
Despite the uncertainty in his voice, they couldn't help but be slightly relieved. They didn't really care if they were lying. They needed hope right now and hope they have. Suddenly, the wind shifted and a completely new smell came into their noses. "What's that smell? It's behind us." The two remaining clones looked behind them and looked at the ground where a large, ripped, green fabric laid on the ground. The real Tenten walked up to it slowly and picked it up. It looked like a chunnin vest but the smell..."It smells like blood, Naruto's blood. There's a heavy scent on it as well along with other scents." As the realization entered her mind, her horror got replaced by anger and madness as evident as the lips that thinned and the fists that clutched themselves, but mostly because of a feral snarl that escaped her lips as the wind blew across her face. "I can smell them. Stay with him for as long as possible." She ordered her clone who nodded and handed her the vest for the authorities and Inuzuka's.
She started to walk forward. The scent was really strong and fresh too. It couldn't have been more then 30 minutes old. If she was lucky, they were still together and save her the trouble of hunting them down one by one. She prayed they were that stupid. She soon turned into a jog and then burst into a run, following the group of scents. With every step she took, she was getting madder and madder. Nothing was going to stop her bringing Naruto's attackers to justice. Growls escaped her lips as she bounded past the trees, the adrenaline was pumping in her veins. The fangs were growing in her mouth and her eyes had narrowed into silts, making her seem like a feral girl.
Suddenly, the smell trail split off and Tenten stopped, her nose sniffing, trying to figure out which way to go. One trail was smaller then the other so she decided to follow the larger smell, heading into town. She followed the trail into a series of secondary streets and ran past the people heading home. They were shocked to see a blood soaked girl run past but because of how fast she ran, they thought it was a trick of the light. The smell grouping got fresher and fresher so she must be getting closer. Suddenly, she turned the corner but screeched to a halt, jumping back to the cover of the building.
There was a group of people there, laughing about something but Tenten could smell them from here because the wind was blowing right into her face. It was them, they were the ones who attacked Naruto, she was sure of it. With the smell, she could hear bits and pieces of their conversations and what she heard confirmed it for her.
It was them and they were all alone and Tenten was out for blood.
Letting out one more growl, she stepped out of the corner and walked up to them, her fists balled up. The group paused in their laughter and merriment as they noticed the blood soaked girl walking toward them. "You attacked my master." She said, her head down and her hair hiding her eyes. "You tried to kill him." There was silence for a minute before the group burst out laughing. They started taunting her, saying that even if they did, she had no proof. They were just a group of friends having fun and that she should lay off the sake, but they went silent when Tenten lifted her hand and pointed it into the group of civilians and chunnins or more specifically, the chunnin that had part of his vest ripped off. "You should've picked up your rags when master tried to defend himself."
The chunnin snorted. "We did you a favor. Now just run along."
Tenten smirked and growled. That was a confession and now she was well within her rights granted to her by being Naruto's slave to avenge him to kill them. The instant the chunnin realized his mistake, it was too late as Tenten disappeared from view and reappeared with two katana's in hand and sliced off the chunnin's head.
What happened next was a slaughter. The two katana's in Tenten's hands was all she needed to murder everybody. She targeted the ninja's first as they were the biggest threat. Using her skills, she cut their tendons, removing their ability to move. After cutting off their escape, that's when she started to kill them in horrific and painful ways. Even though it was dark out, the lights from the lantern illuminated the massacre, enabling Tenten's victims to see the true meaning of `hell hath no fury like a woman scorned'. The girl could only be described as a demon in a girl's body. Her nails elongated, her fangs razor sharp, and her red silted eyes the last sight they see before their life ended.
She didn't use just her swords. No, she used every weapon available to her. When a katana leaves her hands, the nails were sharp and long enough to pierce the skin and nick a blood artery. In addition to her hands, she used her mouth as well and the fangs that grew. Her face was soaked in blood as she dove in and, like a vampire, bit into their necks right above the major blood vessel. She closed her mouth as best as she could and pulled out, taking a large lump of skin and muscle with it, the man screaming as he clutched his neck, dying rapidly from the blood loss. She turned her head to look at a woman, trying to drag herself away. She snarled and turned her body, walking up to her. The woman noticed and she started screaming hysterically as she increased her efforts to escape.
Tenten stepped on the woman's foot, preventing her to moving away. The blonde haired woman looked at the demon-possessed girl, her body trembling in fear for her life. "Pl-ple...please h-have me-mercy." She begged, those red silted eyes staring at her, at her soul. The girl's body was blood soaked from head to toe and her mouth was dripping blood from those necks she bit into.
"I am Master Naruto's slave." She said. "Anyone who attacks one of us, declares war on all of us and I do not take prisoners." Tenten raised her hand, aiming for the woman underneath her. She was aiming for her heart and she wasn't going to miss. She paused, letting the realization that this woman was going to die really sink in and in an instant, she shoved the katana down and buried the sword in the ground, piercing her heart in the process. She panted as she stood back up, her other hand still clenching the blood covered sword and looked around.
Every one was dead, slaughtered. Tenten gave no mercy and was sadistic in her killings. They deserved it. They nearly killed Naruto and no one was going to stop her from getting vengeance. She didn't care if she went to jail for the rest of her life. This was personal and no jury or judge or nobody was going to tell her otherwise. Sakura had told her about the rights they had as Naruto's slaves. They had the ability to kill in cold blood but that's only if someone found out about Kyuubi and was threatening to tell everyone. She wasn't sure what was going to happen to her now. She was definitely going to jail, that's for certain. She just massacred everybody in front of a lot of witnesses and if the ANBU surrounding her took her to jail, she wouldn't resist.
She perked up when she heard feet shuffling toward her. She didn't move save for her breathing as they approached her on her left side. The sounds stopped and Tenten could sense somebody right besides her. Suddenly, the ANBU reached down and tried to pry the katana out of her hand. She relaxed her hands, letting the ANBU take the sword. "I just got word Naruto has been taken to the hospital. Go and we'll take care of things here."
Tenten dumbly nodded and turned around and walked away. She was surprised that he let her go. She was certain that she was going to feel cuffs being slapped onto her but instead he let her go and she was extremely grateful for that. Even if she got arrested later, at least she got to talk to Naruto before she got sent to Ibiki. The girl could feel the blood on her, coating her like a second skin, but she didn't care. All she wanted was to see Naruto and make sure he was safe and alive. She continued walking, passing by the late night stragglers, ignoring them when they stopped to look at her. The hospital was close and she reached it at no time at all. She ignored the shocked nurses and doctors as she walked through the doors, stepping into the waiting room, and stepping up to the shocked receptionist. "Uzumaki Naruto?" She asked.
One woman started stammering at the sight. She had seen bloody bodies before but none that walked up to her. The other one, a wise old male who is quite used to these sights, checked the roster. "He had just been admitted and is in surgery."
"Thank you." She turned around and walked toward one of the chairs, the other occupants staring at the bloody girl, and sat down.
However, a couple of seconds later, the doors burst open and rushed into Tenten's sisters. They had just got word of what happened and rushed to the hospital. They paused, their eyes looking down and saw the blood trails and followed it to the reception desk, the guy there pointing to the side, and was barely able to make out the form of Tenten. They slowly walked up to her and walked around the row of chairs and finally saw all of her. "Oh god Ten...are you okay?"
"Not my blood." She answered, her eyes holding that vacant stare. "It belongs to them...the ones who tried to kill him."
The two girls sat down on both sides of her, taking her hands in theirs, comforting the girl. "What happened sister? All they told us is that he had to go to the hospital."
It took a couple of minutes, but Tenten finally told her tale. "I love him." She started, causing the girls to blink at the sudden confession. "I really love my master. I love what he does to me and I love that he brought me closer to you, the sisters I never had. I wanted to tell him, tell him the words he really wanted to hear. I spent the entire day preparing. While you girls were out training and playing, I made reservations at one of his favorite restaurants and I spent the day prepping." Tenten paused, tightening her grip on her sister's hands. She didn't need to turn around to see the shock on their faces.
"Why didn't you say anything? We would've helped and we...master..."
"I knew you two would overdo it, like you always do." She interrupted, shaking her head and lowering it at the same time, snapping herself out of her shell-shock. "I wanted to do this by myself. I didn't want you two bimbos screwing this up."
"Makes sense." Sakura said, nodding. "I know Ino has a tendency to fuck things up."
"Hey!"
Sakura smirked. "Anyway...while I'm glad you can finally say the words `I love you' and actually mean it, but I'm interested in the state you found master in."
"I thought he was resting. He wasn't in any of his usual training spots but I was able to catch his scent, just barely though."
"See? And you thought that you wouldn't be able to handle yourself." Ino complimented, speaking of Tenten's hesitation, but the girl shut up when Sakura glared at her.
"Yeah, well, I had no clue what was behind the tree." Tenten sniffed and wiped her eyes, completely unaware that her hand was still bloody and thus wiped her eye with more blood. "I wanted to surprise him. I even had fresh clothes for him after he got cleaned up, but what I saw will remain burned in my mind forever."
Tenten sniffed again, this time Sakura placed a comforting hand on Tenten's shoulders, ignoring the blood coated on her. "It's alright sister. Take your time."
"All the time in the world can't help me." She whispered, the tears starting the flow. "I thought he was resting, I saw his legs and I thought he was just taking a rest considering how hard he had been training himself. I was going to jump out, surprise him, but I was surprised. I saw numerous objects impaled in master, his hands staked to the ground." The tears increased as she heard the girls gasp in shock.
"He...he was impaled?" Ino asked, her voice cracking and tears swelling up to her eyes.
Tenten nodded. "Yeah and he was still alive. I could feel his pulse. It...it was like something out of a horror movie. I...I was...scared, b-but I-I had to help him." The tears started falling like a waterfall while the girls stared at her sister in shock. "I-I d-did w...what I cou...could wh-while m-my clone r-ran for he-help." The scarred girl burst out crying now, unable to speak anymore. The sisters snapped out of their shock and comforted their poor sister. They didn't get much detail but they didn't need it. They got all the detail from just those few words.
But the thing they were most confused about is why the girl was covered in so much blood.
It wasn't hers or Naruto's, that's for sure. That much blood loss, anyone would be dead, no matter what kind of healing you got, but they were patient. When Tenten was ready, she would continue and despite her state, nobody bothered them, not even hospital security. The seconds rolled by with not a peep from the doctors. Tenten was still crying her eyes out but it wasn't as bad as before, but for the sisters, they were horrified. From the few coherent thoughts Tenten had, Ino was able to glean something of her. She saw the images Tenten viewed and relayed them to Sakura.
It seemed like forever, but somehow, Tenten managed to calm down with the help of her sisters. It was strange, but the crying had washed off the blood as the tears raveled down, making her look like some weird puppet. "Ten-chan, I know that things are hard for you right now, but could you finish the story? We're wondering why you're covered in blood." Sakura asked.
Tenten nodded, her hand trying to clear her eyes but finding the task to be difficult. "Af-after the m-medics came, I-I didn't k-know what to do, b-but a very s-strong smell c-came to my nose. It was v-very distinct a-and I found a-a ripped p-piece of green fa-fabric. It wasn't master's, I-I was sure. I-I don't know wh-what happened next but something came over me. I felt rage, a desire to kill, and..."
"Insatiable bloodlust?" Came the sudden and correct guess from Sakura. The girl looked at her confused, wondering how she knew how she felt the bloodlust take over her. "Believe it or not Ten, I was taken over by the same emotions. When those thugs tried to kill him, all I wanted was to protect him at the cost of my own life, no matter who got in my way."
"That's how I felt." The brunette girl answered, actually happy someone knew how she felt. "I couldn't stop myself and I didn't want to. All that was running through my mind was who to kill and what was the best way to do that, all those who hurt my master. I even resorted to biting and ripping out people's necks."
"I actually reached down and literally ripped off dicks off of them." Sakura shared. "My nails were long and sharp enough to do the job. Somehow I even managed to fist a woman to death. I barely remember it. All I can remember is a red haze and screams."
"Girls!" Ino shouted, stopping them from sharing stories of ripping off body parts while they were in a hospital. "Can we get back on topic?" Tenten started whispering. "We got a problem. If Tenten did what she said she did, then once they find out she murdered god knows how many people..."
"Twenty plus." Tenten added.
Ino froze mid-move and stared at Tenten. "Really?" Tenten nodded. "Anyway, she's going to get arrested and quite possibly sent to jail for life. Not even you can get away with that Sakura."
"They already know." The girl said to Ino's horror. "He let me go so I could come here."
"Well...we're fucked."
"I'm not so sure Ino." Sakura added. "If he let her go, then he's either confident she won't leave or he knows something we don't. At the very least, he would have sent an escort along with her. Who was he anyway?"
Tenten just shrugged. "Don't know. He had his mask on all the time."
"Ibiki." Ino suddenly said.
"No, it wasn't him. He's too short to be him." Tenten said, looking at Ino.
The blonde just shook her head and pointed. "No...Ibiki's here."
"Ah crap..." Sakura muttered, turned around and saw the man whom she considered a mentor coming into the waiting area, his eyes looking straight at them. "I'll take care of him." Sakura stood up and immediately and with haste, intercepted Ibiki before he could reach Tenten. "Ibiki-sensei." She said, stopping in front of him, stopping him in his tracks.
"Sakura..." He acknowledged. "I need you to move."
"I'm afraid I can't do that sensei. What Tenten did was out of pure instinct and she shouldn't be incarcerated because of it."
"Sakura..." Ibiki tried to speak but Sakura interrupted him.
"They attacked him and she did she is supposed to do, avenge him. How she found them is quite simple, she just followed the stench. You know how well our tracking abilities are and you know he trains us to make sure we don't make any mistakes. Tenten loves her..."
Without warning, Ibiki grabbed her and started to drag her toward the stairs. She struggled a little as the man opened the door and threw her in, shutting the door behind him, most likely to have some privacy as Sakura's shouting was starting to attract some attention. "I have a job to do Sakura. She has to answer for what she did."
"I know that Ibiki, but I'm not going to let you incarcerate her. You remember when I went feral? This is exactly the same situation."
"Sakura, I just want to talk to her. I have no intention on jailing her just yet. I just want to get her side of the story."
Sakura blinked, a little confused. She knew the procedure so why isn't he taking her? "You just want to talk to her? You should be trying to get her in cuffs."
"Trying?" Ibiki asked, his eyebrow lifting a little, a soft smirk on his lips.
"You know what I mean. She just butchered a bunch of people, so what's going on?" Sakura paused, looking at her mentor with suspicions in her eyes. "Do you know something I don't?"
"I just want to talk to her." He repeated, not answering her question. "Just a friendly, civilized conversation."
At that Sakura snorted. "I know what your idea of what a `civilized' conversation means and I don't need her anymore scarred then she is right now."
"I'm just doing my job dear Sakura."
"I know I know...but (sigh) alright, but I want to be there with her, just to make sure things go well. I'll go see if I can find an empty room."
Just as Sakura started to move, Ibiki stopped her by saying the words she didn't want to hear. "I'm afraid I have to take her with me. I can't question her here."
"Absolutely not!" Sakura snarled. "I don't want any of us too far from master. You can question her here can't you?"
Ibiki shook his head. "Protocol Sakura...I have to take her to my department. I'm being generous and letting one of you sit in, but that's how far I'm willing to go."
The girl let out a growl of frustration at how stubborn Ibiki was being. She didn't want Tenten out of her sight, not after what she went though. She needed to keep an eye on Tenten's physical state and Ino needed to keep an eye on Ino's mental state. There was no telling what kind of long term changes would result because of how feral Tenten became, but if Tenten really had to leave, then Ino would have to go with her as she can keep an ear in her mind. "Fine, but Ino comes with her. Can I at least clean her off? Blood smells horrible."
"Alright, I'll be waiting for her."
Sakura nodded and stormed out of the stairwell and slammed the door shut, causing everybody's eyes to move toward her as she huffed in anger. Even the two girls stared at her, wondering just what they talked about got her so riled up. Sakura, however, didn't notice the doctor talking to her sisters as she walked up to them. "You alright Saku-chan?" Ino asked as Sakura stopped in front of them.
"Yeah I'm fine." Sakura huffed. "Ibiki's being an asshole as usual. He wants to have a `civilized' conversation with Tenten, but he won't question her here."
"Is she in trouble?"
Sakura just sighed and shrugged. "I don't know. He says he just wants to get her side of the story, but I'm worried he's going to lock her up or worse." She sighed again. "But the good news is that he's going to let you go with her."
The blonde girl smiled, glad her teacher let her go but she was smiling for another reason. "That is good news, but I have even better news. The doc came out when you and Ibiki were arguing." Now that perked Sakura up, because there is only one good news that Sakura wants to hear right now. "Naruto-sama is out of surgery and is stable."
A bright smile came onto Sakura's face. "He's alright? No permanent damages?"
Ino shook her head. "No, both the surgeon's efforts and his own healing ability kept him alive long enough for the damages to heal. He's in his room, right now, resting comfortably."
Tears started to leak out of Sakura's eyes as she heard the absolute best news of all time. Naruto was all right and he's fine. Now sobbing, he grabbed ahold of both of her sisters and cried her heart out, the sadness finally taking over her. She hadn't had time to feel grief and sorrow but now, she has all the time in the world, but right now...she still has a job to do. Drying up her tears, she looked at Tenten, who looked like she wasn't sure what she should be feeling. "I need to get you cleaned up girl. All you have to do is tell him what you told us but in much more detail. He knows something that he's not telling me."
"You need to take a shower too Saku. We all do as we're currently covered in blood."
Sakura took the time to look herself over and found Ino was right. Her clothes are stained with blood from when she hugged and held Tenten. "Ah well, I needed a shower anyway. Come on, I don't want to keep Ibiki waiting."
OoOoOoO
The only sound was the beeping of the monitor as Naruto recovered on the bed. His stomach rose and falls with each breath. His face looked peaceful, even with the nasal cannula running across his face. There weren't any scars on his body besides the old ones on his back and some on his front. He looked like he was just sleeping and if Sakura didn't know better, she would've believe that his body wasn't impaled just hours ago.
`I can't even remember the last time he was this hurt.' Sakura mused, her green shrubs too big for her, sitting next to him in that big comfy chair they always put in the rooms. `The only time he spends in the hospital is for check-ups.' The girl sighed, pulling up the blanket over her and covering herself. It's been a couple of hours since Ino and Tenten left and she couldn't help but wonder what exactly is going on over there. It shouldn't take this long should it? Well, no sense in worrying about it now. It would only cause undue stress to her and cause unsightly wrinkles on her brow.
So hopefully, Tenten wasn't locked up and Naruto would wake up in the morning like he always does.
Sakura actually fell asleep but her senses were well aware of the outside world. This skill was taught to her a long time ago and had long since practiced it every night. If something happened, she would jolt awake and immediately figure out what's going on. Even if one of her sisters have a nightmare and is shifting and rolling in the bed, she would know and wake her up and snap her out of it. Even if someone had a wet dream and the moans and grunts came into her ears, her mind would snap awake. But sometimes it was difficult to practice this skill considering how sometimes they fall into a deep sleep and despite their efforts, they can't just stop their senses from falling asleep.
But the person that can never really practice this skill is Naruto. Every single time he falls asleep, it's nearly impossible to wake him up after a certain amount of hours have passed. A nap is different but still has that same violent reaction that occurs when he wakes up. Sakura had theorized that because of the constant exhaustion and the imprinting, his sleeping habits had changed to make sure he gets the rest he needs to function. Ino had put out the theory that Naruto had adopted Kyuubi's sleeping habits as his own. Considering just how powerful and how big he is, small things rarely wake him up and always slept soundly.
"Hey forehead bitch, we're back!" Sakura gasped and snapped her eyes open, looking at the door as her beloved sisters stepped into the room. Immediately she shot up to her feet and ran up to them, grabbing them in the tightest hug she could muster. She was really happy to see them. Not only was she worried about Tenten, she was worried that they would lock up Ino was well for some stupid reason. "Ack...Saku...you know...ack...we won't go...gasp...down easy."
"Doesn't stop me from worrying though." She responded, still holding onto them for dear life. She eventually let them go before she broke any bones. "So how did it go?"
Ino grunted as Sakura let her go, breathing as to recover her lost breath. Sakura's grip was always hard and her hand always had a certain sting to it whenever she slaps her around. "Ibiki did what he said he was going to do. He questioned her with his usual intensity and let her go when he was done."
"Did you learn anything new?" Sakura asked.
"Well, the only thing new I heard was that someone confessed before she slaughtered everybody, but that's about it. Ibiki refused to share anything else, but he did say we're going to get a copy of his report so that's good."
Sakura nodded. "That is good."
"So...any change?" This time Tenten spoke.
The pink haired girl only shook her head. "No, he's resting comfortably. I don't really expect him to wake up until tomorrow morning."
"Well, good thing the exams don't start until three more days. Plenty of time for him to recover." Tenten said with a chuckle. "How about you? You ready for your match?"
"More then ready."
"Have you figured out what you're going to do if you find yourself facing him?"
"I'm just going to forfeit. No matter what he says, I can't fight him. Even if I get punished, I don't care. I just can't fight him." Sakura sighed, turning around and looking at the small boy. "I hope he understands though."
"He's not going to like your decision you know?"
"I know I know, but it's what I have to do. So how are you doing?"
"Ino-chan did something to me." Tenten answered, looking at the blonde girl. "Don't know exactly what she did but she lessened my emotions somehow. Helped a lot with Ibiki though."
Sakura chuckled and adjusted her scrubs. "Well, piggy here wants to be a torturer, but at the same time, a mental healer. So are you staying tonight?"
Ino and Tenten smirked. "You have to ask? Of course we're staying. I'm going to see if I can find some cots." Sakura nodded and Ino turned and left, going on the search to find something to sleep on. Nobody was going to stop them from staying at Naruto's side, not even if the Hokage himself told them.
After Ino after, Sakura turned and returned to the chair, covering herself with the blanket as Tenten sat down on a smaller chair. "You think he'll be alright?" Tenten asked.
"I'm sure he'll be alright. Master is a tough boy."
"That's not what I'm worried about." The brunette said, causing Sakura to look at her. "I'm worried about the long term effects of what I did. I just murdered a bunch of people in cold blood with a bunch of witnesses. I'm worried about what people will think of him being married to a murderer."
"Naruto-sama won't care. What they think is what they think. When you're eventually married to him, it won't make any difference. All that matters is that we love each other and we have each other."
"I know, I know, but still...I ended so many lives tonight its not even funny." The brunette looked at her master. "Do you think he'll forgive me? I'm afraid that he'll get shit about it."
"And he'll give it back tenfold. He's not the weak boy he was in the past. He doesn't let anyone walk over him...well, actually, not as much as he used to would be the correct answers. He still won't do anything about the glares and the occasional spit at the feet. I told him but that boy just won't listen. He keeps saying that they'll learn in time. What time I say! He keeps this up, I'll kill him myself!" Sakura finished with a huff, causing Tenten to be a little worried. Sakura seemed to have forgotten the original conversation she was in and started to rant. "And you know what? Despite our constant humiliation and torture, he needs to get a cold dose of humiliation, just to remind him he's still human. Even if he has to be sent to the stocks in the nexus, it would be good for him to be reminded that he can still feel. He's still human right now and that's going to stay that way." To Tenten's surprise, the girl started crying. "If he can't accept he's still human..."
"You ranting again?" Ino asked, coming back with a couple of cots in tow.
"So what if I'm ranting? It's good for you to let these things out." Sakura retorted, her hair hiding her face as Ino joined them, preventing Ino from seeing the tears. "I bet you got loads of things you want to say, but you don't have the guts to say anything in front of him in the fear you say the wrong thing."
"I'm not the one who can get away with shit!" Ino shouted, getting in Sakura's face, poking her in the forehead. "We both know that the only reason you're like this is because you have gotten hooked on the power."
"I'm hooked?" Sakura shot up, ignoring the pants falling around her feet. "Who's the one who intentionally starts fights just so we have to give you a beat down? And not to mention how much you enjoy twisting the mind. Every single time you go in me, and Tenten as well, the experience is terrifying what you do to me. I don't need to be a mind reader to know how much you savor the experience."
"At least I can sing." Ino gave Sakura a rather harsh poke to the chest. "You can't sing to save your life and when you try, he hates it." Sakura's fists were clenched and she was just about to draw her own blood. Ino was really pushing her buttons, but she didn't see Ino's smirk. "In addition to my singing, I'll always be taller than you. God, you're so small. It's no wonder you haven't died from all the fisting we do to you."
Sakura's eyes snapped open. That did it. Sakura screamed and delivered a powerful punch to Ino's cheek, the blonde girl actually lifting off the floor and crashing into the wall on the other side of the room. The fuming girl walked up to her and hovered over her, shooting the nurses who came running a look that said stay away, and looked back to the blonde on the floor and took a deep breath. She actually felt better now. That rush of madness swept away her sadness and snapped her out of it. "If that's your way of making me feel better...thanks, it worked." The blonde girl chuckled and gave a thumbs up before slumping to the ground, unconscious.
That punch really hurt.