Chapter 7
Chapter 7
‘I’m getting really tired of crashing into the ground.’ Sakura thought as she dusted off the dark soil of what appeared to be a tropical rain forest. The gentle patter of rain on leaves and distant thunder felt oddly detached for none of the water or weather reached the ground through the thick canopy overhead. The forest floor was sparse, with such little sunlight that underbrush grew unevenly, with scattered wooden bushes and twisting vines dotting the landscape and providing some cover.
A bolt of lightning arced overhead, piercing the cover of leaves, dousing the area in light and Sakura caught sight of two incandescent blue eyes, the same color as the lightning that danced overhead. The eyes were massive and feline, though the rest of whoever they belonged to was shrouded entirely in shadow. Fear filled Sakura as a crushing weight crashed into her. The wind was knocked from her lungs and her body went numb and began to shake.
The girl couldn’t understand what was happening as her mind flashed through images of her death. A white tiger with glowing stripes made of lightning crashed down upon her, its claws ripping her to shreds and fangs crushing her bones to splinters. Tears beaded at the corners of Sakura’s eyes as she fell forward, catching herself with trembling hands, fingers clawing at the loamy ground.
“Fox touched and out of time. What a curious creature you are.” A voice like thunder rumbled the forest and Sakura looked up, forcing herself to meet the incandescent gaze of the tiger. It was an immense beast, larger then any building she had ever seen and lightning arced through its fur coat. The beast’s chakra was immense and thoroughly suffocating, buffeting Sakura like a storm. “You were looking for your summons yes? But you will find that you have yet to sign their contract child of chance.”
“But I…” Sakura trailed off as she realized she was in the past. She had met Inari Okami in the future and currently her contract with the kitsune didn’t exist. She had never even thought to consider such a thing and now found herself facing down a tiger for her mistake. “Stupid.”
“Young,” the tiger corrected, its voice taking on a note of interest. “But clever and that chakra bound to you, yes you will know war.” The tiger dropped down from the tree and it was even larger up close, yet its fall made no sound. The ground didn’t even tremble with its footfalls and it shifted until its snout was only a few feet from Sakura’s face. “Would you like to sign a contract child?”
“I…” Sakura swallowed and glanced around. “What is the price?”
“You must live true to our virtues. White tigers are emblems of a just ruler, we fight for those who are worthy of leading us. Our summoners are legends, they have shouldered the fate of kingdoms and peoples, they have been born to wealth and poverty both, but all strove to make a difference and bring order to the chaos surrounding them. The world is at war, blood flows as freely as tears. Become someone who can bring an end to such times. Bring peace and balance to the elements once more. That is the price for our contract.” Sakura could feel the history in the tiger’s words.
It might have been her own mind or a genjutsu, she couldn’t be sure but she saw glimpses of battlefields and burning villages. Starving children, dead soldiers and weeping civilians. The elderly buried their young and broken men waged desperate war in hopes of survival, that their family, their clan would be the last ones standing for they knew no other way. War consumed, like flames, it was like a living thing that could grow and expand, consume and die.
“I agreed to be Madara’s friend.” Sakura’s voice wavered and her body was still shaking somewhat but with every word she spoke, she found her courage. “Tajima-san has taken me as a ward of the Uchiha and even told me I can call him my father.” Sakura looked at her hands and slowly gripped the air, as if she was taking hold of a dream that had just been born and might escape if she hesitated. “I want to help them, I want to repay the chance they’ve given me. Madara’s always sad, you know? Sometimes he gets this look in his eyes and I know it’s because of the war so, yes, I’ll help end it. I do not know if I’ll be enough, but I will try.”
“Try your best, commit yourself to it. Burn to the ground the bridges behind you so you can only walk forward.” The tiger’s voice shook Sakura to her core and lightning danced overhead. Thunder roared and a bolt of electricity burst through the canopy overhead, striking the ground and ringing Sakura’s ears with a titanic clap. An afterimage was burned into her eyes and Sakura blinked as the pain slowly receded.
A scroll sat where the bolt had struck, at the center of a scorched crater and countless names were scrawled within it. It was far larger then the kitsune contract, with dozens of names, a few of which she even recognized. Sakura bit her finger and despite the pain, signed her name and left a bloody hand print underneath it. She could feel the tiger looking down at her signature, its hot breath rustling her hair and warming her storm cooled skin.
“You have fine chakra control but your reserves are tiny. You have a kekkei genkai so mediocre most would consider it a medical condition. You are smart but ignorant.” The tiger’s words were not cruel and though it was intimidating to hear her faults laid out in plain language, the beast didn’t seem to be intent on upsetting her. “You can build your reserves. You do not need a kekkei genkai, though you will be forced to confront the eyes of misery due to your bond. Your own kekkei genkai will help ease the stress of a life defined by war and ignorance can be vanquished through knowledge. You will become strong little one, but remember even legends start out weak and you are weak. For now.”
Sakura felt the world fall away and she crashed into the hard packed earth of the training field. A moment later, Madara popped into existence and fell to the ground with a shout. ‘Is that what I look like when I arrive?’ Sakura wondered and quickly helped Madara to his feet. Her friend was shivering slightly, something Sakura could easily sympathize with after her brush with the tigers.
“Well you’re both alive. That’s good.” Akahiko looked clearly worried as Sakura turned her attention to the Uchiha Kunoichi. The woman’s eyes slid to her and Sakura saw a flicker of red briefly before the woman shook her head. “Tajima warned me you had secrets to keep little youkai.”
“Tennyo! She’s clearly a tennyo!” Madara countered and Sakura looked between the two of them, confusion slowly building with her.
“But I’m just normal?” Sakura tried and both Uchiha looked at her like she had clearly lost her mind. “I um, I am though?” It was a lie and Sakura knew it. Even in Konohagakure, she wasn’t normal but she didn’t want Madara becoming scared of her or thinking she was some kind of angel, that would make being friends difficult. Especially when he realized she was just plain old Sakura.
“Well, I suppose you would think you were normal.” Madara conceded, though the rosette was sure he hadn’t really understood what she wanted. Akahiko hummed along in agreement with Madara’s words and Sakura just knew this wasn’t an argument she could win. Both Uchiha had made up their minds and she would have to be content that they still liked her despite whatever they thought about her.
“Well, so long as you’re still my friend.” Sakura said, defeated and Madara blinked before giving her a worried look.
“Why would you think I wouldn’t be? I promised to be your friend and besides you’re really cool! Your hair is pretty and your teeth are awesome and your chakra control is really good to!” Madara spoke quickly and waved his hands in an attempt to drive the point home. Sakura still wasn’t used to how open the Uchiha were and found herself smiling even as her eyes burned with happy tears. Madara was the best friend she could ever ask for and she would do everything she could to help him.
“Alright kids, finish your lunch. It’s time to get back to training.” Akahiko ordered, though her tone was still less guarded then it had been before their little adventure. Sakura gave the woman a guilty look, which actually drew a small smile from the world weary kunoichi. “It’s fine Sakura-chan, just be more careful next time. Kitsune are tricksters after all.”
“I know,” Sakura mumbled, cheeks turning pink from embarrassment. Looking back on it, it was obvious she couldn’t summon foxes before she signed the contract. Of course Sakura missed the obvious counterpoint that she should have ended up with the tigers as she had signed the contract much further in the past with them, but chakra worked in mysterious ways and nobody alive could claim to understand how the contract system truly worked.
***
That night, Tajima didn’t return as he was busy preparing for battle outside Sora-ku. Word did arrive that the Senju were preparing for a major offensive and Sakura watched from the top floor of the keep as people began to assemble in the fortress’s outermost courtyard.
“Um Madara, why are the shinobi wearing armor.” Sakura asked and Madara gave her a confused look. Sakura fidgeted slightly, trying to figure out how to ask the question without sounding stupid or worse, like a time traveling child. Before she could ask Madara pointed down towards the various groups below them.
“The Uchiha shinobi can afford to wear the best armor. In open battle, no amount of speed or awareness can ensure you won’t take a hit and touseigusoko doesn’t limit your maneuverability or speed once you’re used to it. Besides it’s not like we’re trying to blend in with civilians or anything.” Madara explained and in a way his words did make sense. In a battlefield full of shinobi and ashigaru, danger would be coming from all directions and if you had to hold a position you couldn’t just leave it to rest, which meant fighting while tired and thus armor would allow you to survive even if you weren’t fast enough to dodge every hit.
“The allied clans use a mix of armors, but their colors identify them while our ashigaru are all equipped with kikko breastplates.” Madara motioned to the troops dressed in uniform navy blue clothes and wielding long spears, yari and warbows, yumi. Sakura looked over the large formation of soldiers and felt her stomach twist with worry. This people were all like Tajima, they had families and loved ones waiting for them and she knew many wouldn’t be coming home. Konohagakure was full of memories to the fallen after all and as a child of a hidden village, Sakura knew better then most the cost of conflict.
“Won’t the ashigaru be kind of useless?” Sakura wondered aloud and heard a chuckle from Akahiko. The girl looked at the woman who rolled her eyes and grinned.
“Who do you think mans the defenses and keeps watch? Who cooks the food and carries the supplies? Even civilians have chakra and all who march under our banners have theirs activated. Sure they may not use jutsu but they are strong enough and fast enough to kill a tired Senju. Ninjutsu is showy and you could kill a hundred tightly packed ashigaru with a strong enough jutsu but then you’ll be exhausted and an easy target for any Uchiha or the friends of the people you just killed.” Akahiko explained and Sakura felt a pang of discomfort at how cold her words were. The woman’s eyes smoldered angrily, as if her own words tore at a still open wound and she grimaced, sharingan spinning to life.
Akahiko’s hands balled into fists and she took a long breath before exhaling slowly, her fingers forcibly relaxing as she let her anger go. Her right arm idly moved to her stomach while her left remained pressed flat against the floor of the balcony from which they were currently watching the deployment.
“Ashigaru without shinobi will always be defeated and without ashigaru support, shinobi will grow tired and become overwhelmed over a long battle. Together though, they can cover for each other’s weaknesses. Teamwork you see? Everyone does what they can to bring victory.” Akahiko looked exhausted as she finished her explanation and the two children exchanged concerned looks. The Uchiha kunoichi was clearly in pain, the war ripping away her loved ones and leaving her soul broken and bleeding. The flames of her chakra burned hot, nearly out of control and Sakura could taste the sulfuric hatred that wreathed her spirit.
“That’s why summons are so fearsome, they can make ashigaru utterly irrelevant. A boss summons can level a battlefield and only another summoner can counter them.” Akahiko rose to her feet and gave both children a sad look. She knew they would be seeing more war then they could stomach. Such was the fate of those with power. “Don’t stay up too late, you have practice tomorrow morning and I won’t be going easy on you just because you’re tired.”
***
Sakura woke in her bed at home after a long day with Madara and found herself feeling fully rested. It was odd, to never sleep and yet never tired. Sakura’s mind buzzed with the continuous thoughts, yet she didn’t feel off balance or burnt out. If anything that other presence in her mind seemed to be drawing away or perhaps feeding on her mental fatigue. She wasn’t sure what exactly it was doing, but it made her life easier.
‘Thank you.’ Sakura thought to herself, hoping the other Sakura within her, her Inner would accept her thanks.
‘Welcome,’ Inner’s voice was quiet and content, like a sated cat that was sleepy after a large meal. Sakura could almost see her inner self, with razor sharp teeth and vulpine ears, curled up in a comfortable corner of the void that was her mind. It was an almost hilarious image, one Inner seemed to appreciated because Sakura felt her chakra purr.
“Sakura,” Mebuki’s voice drove any warmth from Sakura’s chest and her eyes snapped to the door as her adoptive mother stepped into view. The woman’s blond hair was perfectly done and her clothes were immaculate despite the early hour. “You will begin lessons with Hideki today to ensure your success as a kunoichi. I do not think I need to remind you of the consequences if you do not perform adequately?”
“I understand hahaue.” Sakura bowed low, exactly as Mebuki had taught her. She waited, hoping the woman would find no fault in her reply. Several long seconds passed as Mebuki made the rosette sweat, asserting her superiority through the silence that followed Sakura’s answer.
“Good, see to it you succeed.” Mebuki snapped and then left without another word. Sakura followed the woman’s footsteps with her eyes, her stomach twisting with a mix of emotions that had never been there before. Anger and loathing burned within her, a sudden surge of fiery hot chakra rushing up from her left hand and into her core. Her entire body was soon ablaze with rage and Sakura’s lips pulled back to reveal her teeth as she silently snarled at the door.
‘Be calm Outer, I will share your rage.’ Inner whispered and Sakura felt her mind clear somewhat. The anger was there, but halved and she could control herself once more. Slowly her anger faded and Sakura pulled herself out of bed. She didn’t think as she washed off and then got dressed but once she was ready for the day, dressed in dark blue pants and a gray shirt, her mind turned to what had happened.
‘I felt Madara’s chakra.’ Sakura thought, her eyes focused on her left hand. She could feel the faint wisps of Madara’s chakra within, though it was barely there now, earlier it had been far stronger, like a raging wildfire. The rage had been so potent and all consuming that Sakura had been overwhelmed by it. ‘If that’s what Madara feels…’ Sakura remembered the warnings the white tiger had given her. ‘I need to find a way to help him. When Tajima gets back…’ Sakura nodded and made her way to the breakfast table.
Neither of her parents were present, though Hideki was waiting for her. The shinobi had clearly shown up to observe her morning meals and ensure they were passable. He looked over the fish, rice and miso with tofu, before giving the meal a nod.
“Add eggs to the rice.” He told the family’s chef before turning his attention to Sakura who was eating in silence. “Still struggling with grains?”
“Yes,” Sakura said quietly after swallowing the food she had been meticulously chewing. She ate slowly, she knew that but being reminded of it was just reinforcing how different from everyone she was. Even the Uchiha noticed how odd she was, though they never made her feel unwelcome, unlike the people of Konohagakure.
“You could use chakra to fill in the gaps between your teeth. Not yet perhaps but maybe once you now how to tree walk.” Hideki offered and Sakura looked at the man, stunned. She would never have thought of that, maybe, to be fair she was only four. Still, the fact that chakra could be used to help her eat quicker planted a seed in Sakura’s young mind. If chakra could be used to crush food, what else could it do? It made her stronger and she could already stick leaves to herself so perhaps she could stick herself to a tree the same way. It was something to try out at least.
After breakfast, Sakura glanced at Hideki who was just watching her for now. Instead of saying anything to him, she walked out of the dining room and up to one of the many trees in the garden. Gathering her chakra, just like she had for the leaf sticking exercise, Sakura focused on the tree and matched its chakra. It was the same exercise, at least to her mind and slowly she reinforced her own body as well, just in case.
Sakura pressed a foot onto the tree and felt her chakra latch onto the bark. It wasn’t an instant process, but that was fine since she was still learning. The second step was awkward as she shifted from standing normally to standing horizontally. The muscles on her stomach and back began to feed steadily on her chakra, using the extra fuel to power themselves since they weren’t strong enough on their own.
‘I can do this.’ Sakura thought and took a third step, then a fourth. It was a slow process but she reached the top of the tree and then looked down to find herself rather far off the ground. Hideki was watching her with a blank face though his chakra was absolutely frantic. Taking a deep breath, she turned, carefully then walked back down the way she came. Returning to the ground, Sakura released her grip on her chakra and felt most of it return to her core.
“Well, it would seem I underestimated you. Did you ever try that before?” Hideki asked and Sakura shook her head no, her pink hair momentarily cutting off her vision.
“I just thought, it’s like sticking a leaf to yourself. Except, you know, a tree. So I um, walked up the tree by sticking my feet to it.” Sakura did her best not to mumble but Hideki felt different now. He was no longer the easy going, friendly man who had been her history tutor. His eyes were sharper and almost hungry in a way her parents occasionally looked at her. It made Sakura feel uncomfortable, afraid really and though she knew showing her fear would only make things worse, it was hard to be brave.
“Very intuitive Sakura-chan, now we have three months to get your skills where they need to be. I hope you’re ready?” Hideki asked and Sakura swallowed her fears and gave him a firm nod. She wanted to be a shinobi and lessons here would allow her to better help Madara in the past. She needed to get stronger after all and if Hideki was willing to teach her, she’d do her best to listen.
“Yes sensei,” Sakura answered and watched the man carefully. Hideki fell into a stance she didn’t recognize and Sakura shifted into the stance Tajima and Madara had her practicing. By now she was feeling comfortable with it and brought her fists up in a guard.
“That…” Hideki frowned and looked over the girl’s guard. “You should stand taller.”
“Um, but what if someone grabs me?” Sakura asked and Hideki raised an eyebrow. Sakura felt fear rise up in her stomach but she knew she was right. Tajima had explained why you didn’t stand tall, someone could tackle you.
“You just stab them then, with a kunai or strike their back with an elbow. Did you learn that stance from a book?” Hideki asked and Sakura gave a hesitant nod, her nerves hiding the lie as she trembled in fear. She had talked back to an authority figure and while she was trying to be brave her little rebellion had shaken her badly. “The problem with historical styles is they exist for a world that doesn’t exist. Nobody wears armor anymore and while flack jackets can stop slashes, either from a kunai or a sword, they won’t stop a thrust.”
“Oh, are they not metal?” Sakura asked and Hideki shook his head.
“No, they’re kevlar. Chakra forged steel armor is too bulky and expensive for the village to afford to equip everyone with. The Akamachi are wealthy enough to forge their own and the Uchiha clan supposedly have a few sets, though they rarely use them these days. You’ll find that skills and styles form the warring clans period are uncommon now for a reason. Kenjutsu has been supplanted by shurikenjustu since without armor to worry about, kunai and shuriken are far more versatile, easier to carry and cheaper to make.” Hideki lectured and Sakura wondered why armor was considered so expensive if the Uchiha could afford to equip their whole clan with it. Obviously there were things she didn’t know and she wasn’t about to ask since the whole visiting Madara in the past was a secret.
“Okay, so if I stand like this normally, how should I stand?” Sakura asked and Hideki looked at her, eyes considering for a moment before he chuckled.
“If I’m not mistaken, you’re using the old style of Uchiha stance and you’ve practiced it a bit. Enough to start building muscle memory but nowhere near familiar.” Hideki let out a sigh. It was harder to unlearn things then learn something new, which in this case meant building off what little Sakura had taught herself rather then scrapping it entirely. “I suppose it’s fine, I’ve taught enough Uchiha brats to bring your taijutsu up to genin level with their modern style.”
“Oh,” Sakura blinked and it finally clicked in her brain that the same Uchiha she knew in Konoha were the descendants of Madara’s clan. She already knew that academically, but hearing that the style she’d been learning was the ancient form of a modern style really drove it home. “History is confusing.”
“Indeed it is, now let’s begin.” Hideki chuckled and began guiding Sakura towards a more modern stance. What Hideki showed her was actually something she’d already seen Akahiko do just yesterday or was it last night? It was a stance more focused on mobility and speed then defense. One meant for using a flurry of strong, quick punches, kicks or knife strikes to overwhelm an opponent who wasn’t likely to grapple for whatever reason.
Hideki was far less intense then Tajima or Akahiko, though Sakura still threw her all into training. The man watched her, correcting her frequently and forcing her through kata rather then have her practice on a tree or training dummy. The kata helped build flow and muscle memory, at least according to Hideki, though it did nothing to train her body for the impact of her own strikes.
After an hour of practicing her strikes and movements, Sakura was exhausted and Hideki switched to teaching her the history of the village. It was a quick overview of important people and facts. Konohagakure was founded by the Senju brothers, Hashirama and Tobirama along with Uchiha Madara. The name gave Sakura a flutter of hope, Madara would see peace after all, though that was the last she heard of him in Hideki’s lecture. After the mention of the Uchiha, the rest was all focused on the Senju clan and Sakura had to try not to bristle.
‘Stupid Senju, making the history all about themselves even after the fighting stopped.’ Sakura thought as Hideki spoke on and on about how the Senju clan did this or that during the first war. The Senju clan wasn’t even a clan anymore, she knew that much from her prior lessons while the Uchiha clan were still around and powerful! Even now she could feel their blazing chakra from where she was standing.
“Where are the Senju?” The thought caught Sakura off guard so suddenly she had spoken aloud.
“The Senju clan fragmented itself after the first war. The main family retained the name while the other branches all took on their own names. Without a kekkei genkai, besides the mokuton which only the Shodai manifested, they had nothing to identify them except their name. Senju were targeted by the other villages during the first war and lost half their number in the fighting. The solution was to abandon the name. Nidaime-sama came up with it.” Hideki explained and something about that answer twisted Sakura’s stomach.
They had just willingly shattered their clan, as if the ties between them were that light. As if they weren’t true family. Sakura could understand abandoning the name of people who didn’t love you, she would be more then happy to call herself Uchiha Sakura rather then Haruno Sakura but an entire clan sharing such sentiments was just tragic.
“Now where were we? Ah yes, the Sandaime took over after the Nidaime died in battle…” Hideki began to explain the events that had lead to the current state of Konoha. Sakura listened, soaking up the history for it was alive to her in a way that nobody else could claim. She was living the past after all and while she was walking in times before the village, knowing who was who and what events lead to what results could be helpful. Also she was a naturally curious child and the desire to know how it would all end was overwhelming.