Chapter Text
Sakura breathed unsteadily.
It had been about half an hour of running from unknown ninjas with guns. It didn't help that there was someone as advanced in genjutsu as her. Multiple attempts to hide Toga and Sanako-san under genjutsu had failed because of that. They didn't show themselves, making it hard for Sakura to do anything. She couldn't attack one of them openly, leaving the child and old lady without protection. Since the enemies' guns were designed for long-distance combat, they couldn't even reveal themselves to them. It also didn't help that Toga and his grandmother were unable to conceal their chakra. As civilians, they didn't have much, but it was still enough for their attacker to track them.
They were running, using trees as protection, but it wasn't enough to stop their enemy. Before they approached the next tall tree, a loud gunshot was heard. It landed on a tree, destroying half of its core. Sakura, who was standing closest, was able to cover her face from the dust. She immediately turned back to Toga and the old woman who were standing there in shock. They were between two tall trees and were completely open to attacks. Sakura started running towards them, but a strong grip on her wrists stopped and pulled her back. She faced a familiar figure standing before her. Before she could protest, she was swept up from the place she was standing and carried bridal style in the arms of Itachi. She looked at the place where the family had been standing to tell him to help them, not her, only to see Shisui picking them up and jumping before the next shot was fired. Her savior did the same thing and jumped after them with her in his arms.
She looked at Itachi, who was jumping at very high speed without breaking a sweat. Why had they come back for them?
Before she could ask him a question, a loud gunshot was fired behind them. Thank God Itachi dodged quickly; otherwise, they both would have big holes in their stomachs. Their attackers were also chasing them at high speed and even shooting. As she knew, it took some time and skill to use guns. Whoever their chasers were, they were strong.
She nearly lost her balance when he made an abrupt turn and grabbed his shirt to secure herself. They were heading directly towards the attacker, but with her in his arms, it would be impossible to-
Itachi used his leg to deliver a high hit on the enemy nin's neck, knocking him down. It took him only one move to kill the enemy. Sakura was definitely right about them being strong ninjas, and currently, she wasn't sure if this would be more beneficial for them than dangerous.
After putting some distance from the attackers, Itachi changed his direction and met Shisui, who was now standing alone. Alarms rang in her head, not seeing the other two people he had saved.
Itachi put her down. So this would be the place where they would say their real goodbyes. The protection they had provided meant a lot to the family, and they were thankful for it. But with the fact that they were hiding their true identity, they couldn't meet them and have a normal conversation again.
"Toga and Sanako-san—" she asked quietly.
"They're okay," Shisui glanced toward the tall tree's branch where Toga was sitting and another tree behind which she saw the familiar old woman. Their presence had been sealed. No. It wasn't possible to completely hide someone's chakra. Genjutsu. That's why she couldn't sense them.
"Go west, this time no one will come after you," the older Uchiha said gently. "We will deal with—"
The sound came.
Everyone went silent.
Sakura panicked. She knew this sound. The sound of gunpowder being ignited. It didn't make sense; there was no enemy near them. Unless. Unless he was using his kekkei genkai. She looked at the source of the sound and saw the front side of a long gun. Now that they knew where the shooter was, they could escape the shot that was about to be made. But there was a problem. The gun was not pointed at them.
Sakura froze.
Even without looking, she knew where it was aiming. Her heart sank.
"Toga," she shouted.
She didn't have a second to think as the shot was fired. All of the things she'd done up to this point to keep him alive would be useless if he were to die right now. Could she use chakra to get to him? She was fast, but not twice faster than the shot. She would try. Even though she knew it was not possible, she had to at least try.
But before she could do anything, Shisui's image flickered in front of her and appeared on the same branch Toga was standing.
The shot had landed.
But not on the boy, who was thrown off the branch.
The body losing control and balance was falling from a high tree. The body was caught by Itachi before it landed. He was examining his older cousin's stomach to check the extent of his injury, his eyes stopped at the hole in his stomach. This time, he had done it. By sacrificing himself to save some unknown civilian kid. There was no other way it could end now.
"I- I feel hungry o-out of sudden," came Shisui's weak voice. His stomach had been replaced by a big hole, but somehow he had a faint smile on his face. His next attempt at speaking failed with a big flow of blood from his mouth. Then Itachi heard it again; the rapid attempts at reloading a gun. He saw Sakura and the old woman running toward Shisui's body and looked up. He had to deal with the attacker first.
He jumped toward the place where the shooter was hidden, leaving Shisui's injured body alone.
Two women reached Shisui, who was lying on the ground not moving, right after Itachi left to deal with the attacker, Sakura guessed.
"Sa-sakura nee-chan," came the little boy's voice, who was running toward them. "Shisui nee-san... is Shisui-san alright?"
The boy, who was practically unharmed after his fall into the bushes, frantically made his way to them.
Sakura didn't want him to see Shisui's current state, but it was too late since he arrived running before they could stop him.
"S-Sh-Shisui san," the pure shock was displayed on his face. "You- are you—"
Toga was unable to form a sentence, seeing Shisui on the brink of death or maybe a little further.
"I'm f-fine," the voice came rough and husky with all the blood in his throat.
His statement made Toga cry even more.
"It's all my—my fault," he cried, holding his hands. "Don't, please, don't die."
Sakura looked like she wanted to say something and help him somehow, but she was caught in a turmoil of self-contradicting thoughts.
"It—it's not your fault," he forced his throat to say these words. The words that could be his last. But he couldn't let the kid blame himself for what happened. After all, it was his own decisions, and he knew the consequences. "You're a good boy, Toga."
Toga didn't stop crying, and the quiet sobs of the old woman added fuel to his voice. Even his grandmother knew that he was going to die.
A sudden figure landed near them, almost startling every member. Itachi was standing there, emotionless, with blood dripping from both eyes. There was no telling what he had done to the shooter. This was the real face of a ninja. Killers with no emotions.
"I—Itachi-san, help, we have to help Shisui-san and—" the kid was trembling with fear but couldn't allow himself to worry about his own life right now. Not when the man was dying because of him.
"Go," the unusual coldness in his voice unsettled others.
Itachi saw the kid looking at him in disbelief. He wanted to help Shisui. It made Itachi want to laugh out loud. If it were possible to help him, it would have been the first thing Itachi would have done. His medical skills weren't enough to help him when the shot didn't even land on him, and now with the full injury in his stomach that was half burned, his skills were completely useless. He hated the fact that he was aware of every ending he would get attempting to help his cousin and his life partner up until this day. His foolish older cousin who put others' lives higher than his own was now leaving him.
He knew that it was his choice to make, but it made Itachi angry. It was cruel to him. The last thing he wanted to see right now was the family Shisui had sacrificed himself for crying over his body. Is this what Shisui wanted?
The death of a ninja should never be dramatic; it comes fast most of the time. Normally ninjas didn't even have someone to cry for them other than their close family, if they had one. They wouldn't feel needed in the last minutes of their life. He didn't know if his cousin felt good knowing that there were people who would cry for him. But right now, he wanted to be selfish. He wanted to have his cousin's last minutes all to himself.
The kid suddenly stopped crying and stood up, his eyes focused on someone.
"S—Sakura-san, help," he demanded. "Please, Sakura-san, you can help, right?"
The civilian medic could do no better than Itachi in this case. No herbs would close the hole in the vital organs.
Sakura sat silent. She knew exactly what Toga was asking for. But it would put their lives in great danger if she were to act. The feeling of guilt taking over her body was too strong to ignore. She shouldn't let feelings affect the decisions she made. But the reason she was a medic in the first place was to help people who needed it, and the person lying in front of her both deserved and needed her help.
"Sakura-san, why are you not saying anything?" he was bawling and wiping tears on his cheeks. "Use your magic, please. He's dying. He saved us, didn't he?"
Itachi looked at the desperate kid who was blurting out unintelligible things. He didn't have time for all of this.
"Leave quickly. Head west," suddenly it became harder to breathe as if the air had become dense.
Killing intent.
It was a warning from the raven-haired shinobi. They needed to listen to him and leave while he was letting them go. There was no need to question anything; they would have to run, saving their lives. It was all logical for Sakura.
"I—I can help," a quiet female voice came from Itachi.
He looked at the pink-haired healer sitting with her head down, staring at the ground. Help? She couldn't and she must know that too. As that old healer had once said, once he got a full impact of the shot, no one would be able to help him. The shot had burned the skin and organs around the hole. Closing the hole would be useless with burned organs that couldn't be restored. Not even experienced chakra user medics could do anything in this case.
"The organs were burned, the hole is impossible to close," he informed coldly. "Not even a high-rank healer could help."
There was nothing the civilian medic could do to help him other than putting him out of his misery. He appreciated the family's eagerness to help, but he would have to make them leave if they refused.
The pink-haired female raised her head and looked directly into his eyes. With an emotionless look that Itachi had never seen before, she spoke confidently, making up her mind.
"That's why I'm offering my help."
She raised her hands silently, never breaking eye contact. She took a deep breath and the chakra covered her hands. Itachi froze.
The green chakra.
The medic-nin.
The katana came quickly with the sound of a blade cutting through the air, dangerously close to the healer's neck, whose hands were glowing green.
"Who are you?" Itachi looked at the female whom he thought he knew. The girl who was supposed to be a civilian who despised and was terrified of ninjas. But there she was, sitting and demonstrating medical ninjutsu. She was definitely not who she claimed to be.
"Medic," she answered, her voice not betraying any emotion.
It was definitely not the answer he wanted. The katana made contact with the medic's neck, forming a cut. Blood streamed down her neck, much to her family's horror. Were they even family to her? He looked at the nonchalant expression adorning her face.
"I have no intention nor the need to kill a dying person. Let me help."
She was right. Judging by Shisui's state, he didn't need any additional help to open death's gate. Itachi looked at her, still struggling to understand her motive. His eyes traveled to the cut on her neck, which started glowing green, much to his inner shock.
She was healing herself without using any seals or even her hand.
The cut closed, leaving no marks other than pinkened skin. He had no idea who she was, where she came from, or what she wanted. But a little glimpse of hope appeared, and he was ready to risk it all to save his close person.
He took the katana away.
"Toga, prepare water," she commanded, looking away from Itachi. "Sanako-san, watch his temperature."
With the killing intent disappearing, they forced themselves to move. Still shaking, but doing what they were told without questioning.
She looked down at Shisui's body before lowering her hands to examine.
"One wrong move and you'll—"
"Don't worry," she interrupted his threat with a professional tone. "Please, make sure that Shisui-san stays in his place."
He glanced at her but made his way to his cousin's side and held his shoulders. He saw Sakura nod approvingly.
"Here," Toga's quiet and cracking voice came. He'd brought all their water supplies.
Sakura's palms glowed green again, and with the help of the chakra, she took the water from the flacons and maneuvered with both hands. She held the water over Shisui's injury.
"We're beginning," she informed them and inserted the water into his burned organs.
Shisui's body moved as he screamed in agony. Itachi, startled for a second, took control again and pushed his cousin's body down. He saw a kid coming and holding Shisui's hand in place.
Sakura's hands moved elegantly, controlling the water inside his organs. Itachi's eyes watched her movements carefully as if he'd take his gaze away for a second, he wouldn't be able to keep up with her. He had never seen a technique like that. She put her head on his chest and listened to something. Then her second hand went to the opposite side from where the water was inserted and pulled the water.
The poisoned water.
She was extracting the poisonous powder that made it impossible to heal the injury from a gunshot.
Saikan Chūshutsu no Jutsu.
He had read about it in the high medical technique scroll he found during a mission. A very useful technique while dealing with strong poison types. But not even in clans that specialized in poison had he heard of people using this technique. It was simply not possible for them to use. The chakra control required for it was—
Perfect.
He glanced at her calm face, working with the extracted poison. Who actually was she?
She quickly dropped the poisoned water on the ground and collected water again. She repeated the same process, extracting all the leftover poisonous powders. Now was the time for work.
She covered her hands with strong green light and started closing the injury. The muscles started restoring under the warm chakra, astonishing the kid and the old lady. Itachi furrowed his brows. The speed of his cells' regeneration was not normal. He had seen a lot of people closing different types of wounds; from their clan's head healer to the old lady who was called a "life saver," and he was sure that this young girl was doing it twice as fast, if not faster. The only person whose skills were supposedly at this level was the current Senju leader, the slug princess Tsunade Senju.
Itachi looked at the concentrated pink-haired medic's face. The girl who claimed to be a civilian turned out to be a ninja medic and a highly-skilled one. Clans would start wars to obtain this power, and he wasn't foolish enough to let this go. First, he'd have to make sure that his cousin would live, and then he'd deal with this mysterious young girl.
He switched his attention to his cousin's wound.
Overall, it took four hours to extract the poison and close the big hole in Shisui's stomach.
The last week's sleepless nights and restless hours were finally catching up with her, making her feel tired.
She was almost done saving the man who had nearly died protecting Toga. It was a moment for her to feel proud and relieved because of her excellent work. She should see Toga's face light up with hope and happiness.
Too bad Sakura didn't share those feelings.
The idea of Shisui dying would definitely upset her deeply as well. But now, when he was no longer standing at death's door, she was reminded of the seriousness of the decision she had made earlier. Her shishou would have killed her if she discovered that Sakura not only told but also displayed her skills to save a stranger.
She knew how important medics currently were. Being a medical ninja meant having a lot of eyes on you. Especially in another country, she was in massive danger if people were to realize who she was. She played the role of a civilian girl to avoid any suspicions. But now, with these two ninja knowing her secret, she was not safe. She didn't know what Itachi would do after she finished healing his cousin.
Kill her?
She somewhat doubted it. He wouldn't kill her, at least not immediately. Judging by his reactions, he was aware of how high-ranked the jutsus she used were. 'Probably interrogation,' she thought. Earlier, from attackers, she found out that they were also foreigners. She hoped to lie to them enough to let her go. She knew it wasn't going to be easy, but she could think of ways it could turn positive for her. One of her main concerns was Toga and Sanako-san. She hoped that the two shinobi would be considerate enough to let them go without harm.
The glow of her hands was gone, and she had finally saved Shisui from dying.
Now she needed some rest to think about the lies she would tell to Itachi. Up until this point, she had been one step ahead of them, planning every step (except her interactions with Itachi). She would just do the same.
Hell broke loose when she raised her head to face Itachi.
The red eyes were spinning dangerously.
Her eyes widened.
'Sharingan' was her last thought before she collapsed.
She was stupid.
No, more than that. She was probably the unluckiest ninja in the world. From all the people in the middle of the west, how on earth had she met a ninja from the east? Not just any clan, but the Uchihas.
The realization that she had helped her own enemy escape came to her very quickly. She should have known. But again, she blamed all the circumstances. Of course, she should have known if she used chakra on them; she should have known if they used their chakra to fight.
Now, as she was regaining consciousness, the first thing she noticed was that it was nighttime, and no one was around her. Which didn't make any sense. Where were Toga and his grandmother, and had the Uchihas really left her behind?
Sakura knew it wasn't true. Especially with all this chakra presence surrounding her. Genjutsu. Of course, it made sense that he would put her in a genjutsu first. With their dojutsu Sharingan, they were great genjutsu casters. Their fight mostly was not physical, which was quite the opposite of her style. There was a saying that if you happen to see a Sharingan even for a second, you're no longer in real life. Luckily for her, she was naturally a genjutsu type, and this wouldn't work on her as they thought.
She made a sign with her hands together and let out her chakra, breaking the illusion. The surroundings changed to daytime, and she was still sitting there.
She looked at her hands with a furrowed brow. They felt heavy for some reason, and something was wrong with her chakra. She was able to break the genjutsu, but the amount of chakra used for that wasn't what she intended. It was almost like her chakra was sealed.
"You are awake," a voice came, startling her.
Busy trying to find out what was wrong with her chakra, she hadn't realized that she wasn't alone. Itachi. No, Uchiha was standing there watching her.
She didn't answer. He was alone. She couldn't sense anyone else. He was not attacking, but it didn't mean that he wouldn't. She would have to think of ways to avoid a fight if possible, but if not, she could use the momentum and attack him first. But the strange feeling in her hands was distracting her attempts to make a plan against her enemy.
Enemy. Of course.
The Uchihas were always enemies to such a degree that even hearing their name would wake your fighting reflexes. Merciless, emotionless shinobi that wore their clan symbol proudly. They brought disaster and tragedy everywhere they went. Along with their fire-related high-ranked ninjutsu techniques and taijutsu skills they were taught from a very young age, their dōjutsu granted them the ability to read opponents' movements and, with exceptional genjutsu skills, made them very dangerous ninjas on the battlefield. No one would voluntarily get in their way if they valued their life.
"I have a few questions that I want you to answer."
Not while she was alive. There was no way she'd give any information to an Uchiha. She was a loyal ninja to her clan.
Right. Her clan.
With their insane power, the Uchihas were described as a clan that had no equal. The enemy going against them never had a good ending. However, there was a clan powerful enough to equal the Uchihas. The clan that had rivaled the Uchiha since the very foundation - the Senju. Their history of fighting each other still continued, being a well-known legend among other clans and countries. The hatred that each clan held for the other ran in their blood. Not everyone knew how their conflicts began hundreds of years ago, but it still continued without losing its flame. Every piece of information she shared could be used against her clan, and she couldn't allow that under any circumstances.
She stared at the ground, avoiding the onyx-eyed male's gaze. She doubted that he would understand that she was not going to tell him anything and let her go. Uchihas weren't like that.
Her thoughts were confirmed when the certain Uchiha walked towards her and sat so his face would be at the same level as hers.
"Sakura," came a low voice in a whispering manner.
The fact that he was using her name like that told her that he probably wanted her to look up and be imprisoned by the Sharingan again. It wasn't going to work, no matter how—
The long slender fingers gently touched her chin and raised her face. It took Sakura by surprise, but her gaze was still pointed down.
He moved forward, totally invading her personal space. His calm and deep breathing tickled her ear.
What the-
"Sakura-chan," he murmured, "would you like me to make you speak then?"
Her eyes widened. Was he trying to-
Seduce her?
From all of the exchanges with the Uchiha clan she had, she never realized that they'd try to seduce the victim. They were too proud to engage in those types of activities with the enemy, whom they thought were much lower than their level. Maybe she was terribly mistaken, as this Uchiha was actively trying to make her speak using his charms.
He raised his arms and caressed her cheek with the back of his hand.
Sakura flinched. It was too much. She had to stop him somehow. The pink-haired medic caught his hands and tried to break contact between her cheeks and his hand. She couldn't help but notice that her wrists felt heavier than they should've been. He had really caught her hands and locked them to the tree above her head with one hand.
She panicked. If she didn't do something, she was going to be assaulted, if nothing more. His hands felt cold against her skin, but the weather was warm enough for a person to maintain their normal temperature.
Right, a human's average temperature.
Suddenly it all made sense; her wrists feeling heavier than usual, her chakra flow being restricted, the Uchiha male alone with her. She sighed. She should've known better. She was too distracted by him to notice the slight change in the chakra flow.
Genjutsu.
She formed a sign with her hands locked to a tree and let her chakra out to break the illusion.
"Kai."
The sudden burst of chakra drew their attention immediately. It was from the place where the pink-haired medic was sitting under the genjutsu. Two males quickly made their way towards the mysterious girl who had saved Shisui's life twice. She was placed under genjutsu by Itachi to prevent anything she might try after it became clear that she was not a civilian. It also gave them time to think after Shisui was awakened about what they would do with this female.
Shisui took a deep breath. After his first injury from that mysterious weapon, it had been a month since his breathing was this steady. He had jumped in front of the kid, knowing what he was getting himself into. The only thing he was upset about was the fact that he couldn't say more to his cousin before his death because of the hole in his stomach. He comforted the little kid who was crying for him, and it made him feel good. He saw Itachi drawing a katana on the kind-hearted pink-haired girl but had no strength to stop him; his hands felt numb. Then his gaze caught the green light coming from her hands. She was a ninja too. What a great story of ninjas pretending to be civilians. He wanted to laugh at their situation, but again had no strength. His eyelids felt heavy, and he knew that even if the pink-haired medic could use chakra, there was no saving him. He regretted trying to convince his asexual cousin to keep a distance from the pinkette because they were from different worlds. They would have made a good couple.
His cousin needed someone who he could protect from the cruel life of a shinobi.
He lost consciousness with regret for his own actions. What he didn't expect was to wake up not feeling any sort of pain. His first thoughts were of the afterlife. But his surroundings were too normal to be the afterlife, since people normally describe it as a heavenly place, and also, what was his little cousin doing with him in the afterlife? The answer was that he was very much alive. Not only was he not dead, but the hole in his stomach along with the scar from his previous injury had disappeared. Was he blessed by the gods? He could think of no other logical way it was possible. But from his little cousin—who was visibly relieved at the fact that he was okay—he found out that the one who had blessed him was none other than the pink-haired medic who had been pretending to be a civilian. He was amazed, and he saw that his cousin was also impressed by her high-ranked techniques. He saw the interest in his eyes, but it seemed like he wasn't going to do anything about it. It also didn't help that his foolish little cousin had put the girl, who had spent four hours saving his life, under genjutsu without exchanging a single word.
She was currently under strong genjutsu because of his foolish little cousin's extra safety measures since he didn't know what she was capable of. The chakra that had been released just now was almost like an attempt to break the illusion cast by his brother, but if he wouldn't decide to release it, there was no way she could have-
The emerald eyes were wide open, much to the two Uchihas' surprise. She had broken the genjutsu cast by Itachi. There was no telling how she would react after what had happened.
"Who are you?" Itachi asked emotionlessly. They didn't know why she was here and how she had healed better than the high-ranked medics. There was a chance that she had been sent by someone in the west who wanted to control them. They needed to know if she knew who they were and her reason for saving Shisui. Her answers at this point could be guessed; she must have been sent by a west clan that was enemies with the ones with the stick, and that would explain her behavior.
"Why would I tell you, Uchiha?"
The air suddenly tensed. Her response took the Uchiha males aback. Did it mean that she was-
A kunoichi of the East.
She spoke in the Eastern language, and it was evident that she knew who they were. Maybe more than just knowing, judging by her tone betraying hatred towards their clan.
"You would if you wanted your companions alive," Itachi responded quickly, recovering from the surprise.
His statement made her check her surroundings in hopes of finding the kid and his grandmother. She returned her gaze to him after not finding them nearby.
"Where are they?" she demanded.
"Why do you care? It's not like they're your real family."
Sakura tensed. Of course, he knew. He probably questioned Toga and Sanako-san, but she was scared about what he could do with them, it's not like they knew something about Sakura except the little information she had given. She needed them to be safe and this man was the only one who knew where they were.
"Don't worry, they are safe," Shisui responded. "But we need some information, you see."
Sakura looked at Shisui, who was no longer injured and in good health. As a medic, she felt proud of her work, but as their enemy, she felt humiliated for not realizing she had saved an Uchiha of all people. Maybe it was because he felt grateful for her help, but still, Sakura found his attitude suspicious. However, it was not like she had choices other than trying to cooperate with them.
"I'm a medic-nin," she stated, an already obvious thing for everyone.
"What clan are you from?" Itachi asked, a question that leads either to a peaceful agreement or a bloody battle. The first variant was not the case for them.
"I have a civilian background," she said nonchalantly.
"Do you belong to any clan?" Shisui decided to clarify his cousin's question. Even if she was from a civilian background, they needed to know what clan she was under. Even ninja from a clan couldn't have learned from scrolls, especially the high-ranked ones. She must have had some training from someone. Especially now when they knew that she was from the east too, they couldn't no longer avoid her.
"That I can't tell."
The sound of an unleashed katana was heard, and Sakura felt cold metal against her neck. Itachi looked at her harshly, warning her about the consequences of her answers. They needed answers and she was refusing to give any, so they needed to try every other way to get them. No matter how much hatred she had towards the Uchiha clan, she must value her life. He saw her staring into space; thinking, maybe.
"If you have a tinge of gratitude for the help that I provided," she started.
They did feel grateful, of course. Even if it looked like she was helping them because she wasn't aware of their clan. But they needed to know how she ended up here pretending to be Western. If she wanted to make them feel pity, it was not going to work.
"Do it not in front of Toga," she stared directly into Itachi's eyes. The series of emotions that her eyes used to display were hidden under a cold and emotionless gaze.
She was not asking for their forgiveness or hoping that they would feel bad about their actions. She didn't want Toga to see her death. Did she really think that they would be monstrous enough to do such a thing in front of the kid? Both Uchihas exchanged looks.
"We are not planning to kill you," Shisui said.
Sakura slightly raised her eyebrow, sitting with the katana dangerously close to her neck. Also, with the handcuffs that she had received from Tsunade-sama in her hands blocking her chakra, they were not going to kill her. She knew how cruel Uchihas could be.
"I can't and won't reveal anything more, and I also doubt you have other options," she replied.
The pink-haired medic seemed to accept her fate casually, as if she gets killed every day.
"We won't kill you. Not now," Shisui tried to sound positive.
Sakura knew what he meant. They were taking her as a hostage. No, a prisoner medic maybe. She didn't know why those ninja were following them with guns, but maybe there was a probability of them coming back and they wanted her until whatever mission they had here was done.
"You're going with us, and in exchange, we'll send your fam—Toga and his grandmother to the village you wanted. If not—"
Sakura furrowed her brow.
"If you touch one hair on their heads—"
"Sakura-san, you're awake. You lost consciousness after healing him," he sent a quick glance at Shisui. "We were worried."
Toga came running to her. Immediately, she checked if he had an injury or traces of being tortured, but luckily, other than the knee injury he had yesterday, he was alright. Sakura visibly relaxed, but now she had to ensure that he would be in a safe place, even if it meant going with those Uchihas.
"I'm fine, Toga, don't worry," she smiled, patting his head.
"Th-they told us to head to the village without you in the morning," it was already morning. "Sakura-san, we cannot leave you here. I'm sorry, it was my fault, I asked you to—"
"Toga," she said, interrupting his self-blaming speech. "It was my choice in the first place, so don't blame yourself."
"But Sakura nee-chan—san," he protested. "Now you're forced to go with them, it's my fault."
Sakura looked at the kid who was about to cry. He falsely took all the blame despite his age, and it reminded Sakura of someone she knew.
"I'm going with them willingly," she blatantly lied. "You know I can't live with you, Toga, you're a big boy."
No, he wasn't. He was merely six. But she knew that he tried to act more mature than his actual age.
Toga was silent for some time, then hugged her suddenly.
"I'll miss you. Promise me to visit me," maybe deep inside, he knew from the very start that she was not going to stay with them.
There were two types of promises that ninja made, and she didn't know which one she was giving right now. She gently pressed her hands with glowing chakra on his injured knees. The injury was completely gone in seconds.
Shisui's eyes widened. So that's what his cousin had told him. That was the reason Itachi saw the necessity of taking her with them.
He looked at his cousin, who was also watching her.