Nearest Exit [GaaSaku]
Title: Nearest Exit
Fandom: Naruto
Prompt: #07 - Go 100_prompts
Character/Pairing: Sabaku no Gaara/Haruno Sakura
Rating: PG
Word Count: 2610
Summary: “I can see why you would find this advantageous,” Sakura admitted, “but you know, not all girls like to be groped on the first date.”
Disclaimer: Don't own any of these characters.
Authors Notes: Continuation of Dodge and Run; second installment in the Partners-in-shadow series. Expect more where this came from! Suna no Akaoni = Red Demon of Suna.
~~xxx~~
07. Go
A rain of bombs descended on them as they ran through the streets of Iwagakure but Gaara’s cover saved them from the worst of the damage. The fiery explosions actually worked to their advantage, providing light with which to see while running at full speed. The streets filled with flashes of incandescent flames and the smell of burnt gun powder.
As they made their way hurriedly down another lane, jade eyes turned to look over at the pink haired kunoichi who, despite the heavy attacks they were fending off, easily kept pace with him. She became aware of his keen observation and graced him with a slightly amused yet haughty look.
“Keep that up and you’ll end up dead,” she told him matter-of-factly.
“Is that a threat?”
“Not from me,” she replied. As she spoke, she sprinted forward and threw a couple of kunai into the air above them. The knives hit two descending bombs dead centre, resulting in a loud blast. Sparks flew down at them and they were forced to dash to one side to avoid getting burned.
“Such sloppiness when out on a mission,” Sakura tsked once they reached the far corner and continued to run.
“I was counting on you to pull through,” Gaara replied, grinning devilishly.
“Is that so?”
“You watch my back so I can watch yours.” As he said this, he gave her another swift but appreciate glance.
It was too much for her: she openly gaped. But his grin was simply too contagious and she found herself chuckling at his blatant antics. “I’m starting to regret not burrowing my kunai in your throat. Didn’t anyone ever teach you about mission protocol?”
“They tried but I simply wasn’t an enthusiastic student on the subject,” he replied.
“I feel great sympathy towards your tutors. I’d venture to guess you retired them all.”
It was his turn to laugh. “With that tongue, I’d say the same thing about yours.”
“Me?” Sakura asked in exaggerated surprise. “I was a model student.”
“A model in tartness and verbal jabs.”
“You insult me!” she replied. “My jabs were certainly not verbal.”
Gaara sniggered. “With that kick you pulled on me, I’d have to agree.”
“That should teach you to keep your hands off me,” she countered, looking smug.
He graced her with a bold look. “My hands, maybe. My sand however...”
“I quail to think what you were like during puberty,” Sakura said, her expression disturbed.
The redhead was about to respond with yet another sassy remark but they had almost reached their objective. They stopped at the last street corner to survey the city wall, pinpointing out the sentries on the walkway above. They could hear the pursuit of the ninja guard some blocks away in the direction they had just come from.
Hidden underneath the shadow of a slanting roof, they waited for the sentries to turn the other way before moving forward.
“Ladies first,” Gaara remarked once more, signalling towards the wall.
“I’ll take you up on your offer this time around,” Sakura told him with a grin to match his.
Without waiting for him to move out of the way, she charged her fist with chakra and threw a direct punch at the wall. Broken stone blocks flew every which way as her knuckles connected, opening a gaping hole in the middle of the bulky structure. Sakura didn’t wait for Gaara, plunging into the opening as the first of their pursuers appeared at the corner where they had just been standing.
“Impressive,” the redhead admitted while they traversed the width of the wall. “Such a skill must be rather useful.”
“Indeed. It’s quite effective on thick skulls as well.”
“Are you implying anything?”
“Nothing whatsoever,” Sakura answered innocently. “Whatever gave you such an impression?”
“Now it’s my turn to shudder at what you were like with the boys at your academy,” Gaara replied in all sincerity.
She threw her head back and laughed gleefully. “I guess that makes us even.”
They stepped beyond the wall, evading the thrown bombs from the sentries above. Craters exploded all around them but their speed and experience allowed them to cover enough distance to clear the bombardment successfully. Pumping chakra into their feet, they sprinted across the rocky field outside the city until they were out of reach of the sentries’ range.
“Time for me to fulfil my end of the bargain,” the redhead said.
His sand fluttered around them and settled just above the ground. A snaking tendril whipped around Sakura, pulling her towards him once more.
“You enjoy doing this sort of thing, don’t you,” she commented primly as he settled her next to him.
Gaara only chuckled in response as the sand hardened enough for them to use it as a platform. As they jumped unto it, the shouts of their pursuers reached their ears. They had traversed the hole in the wall already, and after being forced to wait for the sentries’ bombing assault to be over, they were now making their way hurriedly across the open land.
“Watch out!” Sakura exclaimed, throwing a few kunai to intercept another volley of thrown explosives.
As her arm flew out, Gaara grabbed her by the waist. “Hang on.”
The sand underneath them lifted into the air, taking them with it. Sakura’s legs wobbled for a moment at the unusual movement and she found herself sinking her fingers into the redhead’s arms as they lifted farther and farther from the ground. He answered by tightening his hold on her and pumping more chakra into the grains to increase their speed. Soon they were flying above the open country and the city was nothing but a receding silhouette.
When she had finally managed to get used to the movement of the flying sand, Sakura loosened her death grip on Gaara and found her voice. “I have to admit you’ve got your uses as well,” she remarked.
He accepted the complement with a nod. “Where to? Your place or mine?”
Sakura shook her head in disgust. “You really do have the mental maturity of a five year old.”
The redhead replied with his fiendish smirk accompanied by a shrug.
“Konoha is closer. After we cross the border, you can leave me there and I’ll use one of the patrol birds to send my message ahead of me.”
“That signals our parting of ways, then.”
“Yes it does,” she replied firmly.
“Any wager on how long it will take for both our countries to form an armed alliance to fend off Iwagakure?” he asked, a devious glint in his eye.
“Are you implying there’s a chance we will meet again?”
“Not implying. I’m certain of it.”
Sakura rolled her eyes at his arrogance. “What makes you so sure?”
“I take it you’re high up in the hierarchy of the Konoha nin, with you being in charge of this infiltrating mission and all,” Gaara stated.
She kept quiet, not denying his assessment.
“The same applies to me. Do you think Suna would send a simple errand boy to do a job like this?”
“Judging from your manners, it’s highly possible,” she retorted. But she knew he was right. Her face turned serious as her mind focused on the implications of the success of their mission. “Iwagakure’s Shogun really is vent on destruction. He’ll raze any nation that does not bow down to his rule.”
Gaara turned to fully look at her and noticed the grim expression on her features. “Unfortunately, the man won’t be any different than any other tyrant with an army behind him,” he conceded, “all the more reason to stop him sooner than later.”
Sakura nodded in reply. They would just have to trust in the strength of their own forces to put a stop the rising despot.
They travelled in silence for a while, each lost in their own thoughts and the consequences the upcoming battles would have on their respective countries. It was only after they had traversed most of the distance they had to travel that Sakura belatedly blinked down at the arm round her waist.
“You can let me go, you know,” she commented annoyingly.
“You’ll just fall off if I do.”
“I’m not useless. I already got used to the sway of the sand,” came her irritated remark.
“Don’t want to take my chances. It would just slow us down,” Gaara replied in all seriousness. He kept his eyes on the horizon and refused to look at her, but Sakura was certain there was a mischievous glint in his jade orbs.
Sakura glared at him except she instantly realized it was pointless. Men like him were immune to such displays. On the other hand, a punch in the ribs would be much more effective. But seeing as they were now high up above the ground, making him lose his concentration could be rather perilous. So she settled for a verbal assault instead.
After all, now that she got a good look at him, it wasn’t hard to put two and two together. The Suna emblem, the dark crimson hair, the reckless attitude and the shifting sand should’ve been rather evident from the beginning.
“Well, the last thing I would’ve predicted this morning was that I would end the day flying on a cloud of sand with the much feared Suna no Akaoni.”
His teeth flashed. “It seems my reputation precedes me.”
“More or less,” Sakura remarked wryly.
His response was a humorous snort. “Not what you expected?”
“Oh no, quite the contrary, you did end up being a maladjusted sociopath,” she said, all sugar and smiles, “it’s just that I never thought you’d be the groper type. The ‘I’ll skin you and eat you for breakfast’ type would’ve been more my guess.”
Gaara shook his head, stifling a laugh. This woman was really unlike any other female he’d ever encountered before. Anyone else, after having correctly recognized him as one of the most dangerous nin out there, would have preferred to throw themselves off the cloud of sand instead of having to be in close contact with him. Not Sakura, though. Here she was, instead of placating him, throwing thinly veiled insults his way.
“I’m over that phase,” he replied without missing a beat, “got bored of it after a while. The skinning took too much effort.”
“I see. So you just settled for the sexual harassment approach instead.”
“It has its advantages,” the redhead remarked. To prove his point, he shifted his arm slightly to pin her to his body more effectively. Now her entire front was plastered against his right side, his leg between hers.
Sakura clucked her tongue and looked down to where their bodies met. She had to admit he was in excellent shape. Being a connoisseur of male ninja, she had to give Suna no Akaoni his due: there was firm muscle everywhere on him. Nonetheless, limits were limits.
“I can see why you would find this advantageous,” Sakura admitted, “but you know, not all girls like to be groped on the first date.” As she spoke, she lifted her hand and buried her index finger right where his neck met his shoulder. She pumped a streak of chakra into him, knowing very well it would be amazingly painful.
Gaara groaned in surprise and grit his teeth but after a few moments he relented, lowering his arm from around her waist and letting her go.
Taking a step back, Sakura patted him on the shoulder. “That’s better.”
Jade eyes narrowed at her but didn’t lose their devilish glint. “Your significant other has my deepest sympathy.”
She laughed loudly again. “He had sympathy for himself as well, which is why he went out for groceries one day and never came back.”
“Scared shitless of you, was he?”
“Indeed, especially when he realized I’d found out he was cheating on me,” Sakura remarked, shaking her head, “took the easy way out, the coward.”
Gaara turned to look at her, his jade eyes thoughtful. “You don’t look particularly upset over it. But I guess, if the bastard was cheating on you, he wasn’t worth your time.”
“Exactly the conclusion I came to myself,” Sakura conceded with a smile.
“A maladjusted sociopath might be more worth your while,” he told her, a grin made of sin on his face.
She couldn’t help a laughing fit from overcoming her. This man really was something else. “How do you figure that?” she finally managed to ask when she found her voice again.
“It’d give you more of a challenge; keep you on your toes.”
“Like that’s exactly what I’m looking for,” she replied cynically. “My life as a kunoichi doesn’t give me enough of that already.”
“Well, you did choose the profession for a reason,” Gaara said. “There must be something you get out of it.”
“Yes, saving my country and the lives of the innocent people residing in it.”
He looked solemn for a moment but not for long. “True, but where’s the fun in living off honourable deeds all the time?”
Sakura clucked her tongue. “You really are incorrigible.”
“So my psychiatric medics tell me.”
They had reached the Konoha border by then. Choosing to land at the edge of a towering forest, Gaara lowered his sand close to the ground. When they came to a stop, he created a series of steps leading down to the grass, gaining a raised pink eyebrow in the process.
“Such chivalry,” Sakura teased when she was on solid ground again.
“Never let it be said that sociopaths don’t know how to treat women,” Gaara countered, still standing on his floating sand.
Her laughing emerald eyes sobered after a moment. “Do you think they’ll try to pursue us any further?”
“Not likely,” he replied. “In the commotion, I don’t think they were able to get a good look at our emblems and even if they did, they know chasing us won’t prevent the information we gathered to reach our leaders. It’d just be a waste of resources.”
“True. We’d better make sure the intel reaches the right ears, then.”
He nodded in agreement but said nothing. They looked at each other then, standing beneath the shifting shadows of the trees. It was a charged moment filled with unexpected familiarity, as if they hadn’t encountered each other for the first time in their lives a few short hours earlier. Neither knew what to make of it, deciding not to speak of it lest the spell be broken.
“Well, you’d better get going then,” Sakura finally said. “You’ve got some ways to go yet.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Gaara replied in mock obedience. His sand started to lift once again, rising up into the sky.
“Thanks for the ride!” she called out.
“Don’t mention it,” he answered, “it’s your turn to drop me off next time.”
This elicited a trill of laughter from her. Saluting her one last time, the redhead pumped more chakra into his sand and picked up speed. Soon he was nothing more than a dark speck in the distance.
Sakura watched him go, thinking over what he’d said and realizing he just might be right. If war was coming their way, there was a high probability for their paths to cross again.
Somehow, this prospect didn’t seem so bad. She wondered what kind of antics he’d pull on her next time. The man certainly was reckless and unpredictable.
For now, she had a message to deliver and a report to convey. She mused about what her superiors and peers would say when she told them she was on speaking terms with the infamous Suna no Akaoni.
Chuckling at the likely reactions of fright and incredulity, she turned into the forest and started to make her way home under the familiar protection of the tall trees.
~~xxx~~
Fandom: Naruto
Prompt: #07 - Go 100_prompts
Character/Pairing: Sabaku no Gaara/Haruno Sakura
Rating: PG
Word Count: 2610
Summary: “I can see why you would find this advantageous,” Sakura admitted, “but you know, not all girls like to be groped on the first date.”
Disclaimer: Don't own any of these characters.
Authors Notes: Continuation of Dodge and Run; second installment in the Partners-in-shadow series. Expect more where this came from! Suna no Akaoni = Red Demon of Suna.
~~xxx~~
07. Go
A rain of bombs descended on them as they ran through the streets of Iwagakure but Gaara’s cover saved them from the worst of the damage. The fiery explosions actually worked to their advantage, providing light with which to see while running at full speed. The streets filled with flashes of incandescent flames and the smell of burnt gun powder.
As they made their way hurriedly down another lane, jade eyes turned to look over at the pink haired kunoichi who, despite the heavy attacks they were fending off, easily kept pace with him. She became aware of his keen observation and graced him with a slightly amused yet haughty look.
“Keep that up and you’ll end up dead,” she told him matter-of-factly.
“Is that a threat?”
“Not from me,” she replied. As she spoke, she sprinted forward and threw a couple of kunai into the air above them. The knives hit two descending bombs dead centre, resulting in a loud blast. Sparks flew down at them and they were forced to dash to one side to avoid getting burned.
“Such sloppiness when out on a mission,” Sakura tsked once they reached the far corner and continued to run.
“I was counting on you to pull through,” Gaara replied, grinning devilishly.
“Is that so?”
“You watch my back so I can watch yours.” As he said this, he gave her another swift but appreciate glance.
It was too much for her: she openly gaped. But his grin was simply too contagious and she found herself chuckling at his blatant antics. “I’m starting to regret not burrowing my kunai in your throat. Didn’t anyone ever teach you about mission protocol?”
“They tried but I simply wasn’t an enthusiastic student on the subject,” he replied.
“I feel great sympathy towards your tutors. I’d venture to guess you retired them all.”
It was his turn to laugh. “With that tongue, I’d say the same thing about yours.”
“Me?” Sakura asked in exaggerated surprise. “I was a model student.”
“A model in tartness and verbal jabs.”
“You insult me!” she replied. “My jabs were certainly not verbal.”
Gaara sniggered. “With that kick you pulled on me, I’d have to agree.”
“That should teach you to keep your hands off me,” she countered, looking smug.
He graced her with a bold look. “My hands, maybe. My sand however...”
“I quail to think what you were like during puberty,” Sakura said, her expression disturbed.
The redhead was about to respond with yet another sassy remark but they had almost reached their objective. They stopped at the last street corner to survey the city wall, pinpointing out the sentries on the walkway above. They could hear the pursuit of the ninja guard some blocks away in the direction they had just come from.
Hidden underneath the shadow of a slanting roof, they waited for the sentries to turn the other way before moving forward.
“Ladies first,” Gaara remarked once more, signalling towards the wall.
“I’ll take you up on your offer this time around,” Sakura told him with a grin to match his.
Without waiting for him to move out of the way, she charged her fist with chakra and threw a direct punch at the wall. Broken stone blocks flew every which way as her knuckles connected, opening a gaping hole in the middle of the bulky structure. Sakura didn’t wait for Gaara, plunging into the opening as the first of their pursuers appeared at the corner where they had just been standing.
“Impressive,” the redhead admitted while they traversed the width of the wall. “Such a skill must be rather useful.”
“Indeed. It’s quite effective on thick skulls as well.”
“Are you implying anything?”
“Nothing whatsoever,” Sakura answered innocently. “Whatever gave you such an impression?”
“Now it’s my turn to shudder at what you were like with the boys at your academy,” Gaara replied in all sincerity.
She threw her head back and laughed gleefully. “I guess that makes us even.”
They stepped beyond the wall, evading the thrown bombs from the sentries above. Craters exploded all around them but their speed and experience allowed them to cover enough distance to clear the bombardment successfully. Pumping chakra into their feet, they sprinted across the rocky field outside the city until they were out of reach of the sentries’ range.
“Time for me to fulfil my end of the bargain,” the redhead said.
His sand fluttered around them and settled just above the ground. A snaking tendril whipped around Sakura, pulling her towards him once more.
“You enjoy doing this sort of thing, don’t you,” she commented primly as he settled her next to him.
Gaara only chuckled in response as the sand hardened enough for them to use it as a platform. As they jumped unto it, the shouts of their pursuers reached their ears. They had traversed the hole in the wall already, and after being forced to wait for the sentries’ bombing assault to be over, they were now making their way hurriedly across the open land.
“Watch out!” Sakura exclaimed, throwing a few kunai to intercept another volley of thrown explosives.
As her arm flew out, Gaara grabbed her by the waist. “Hang on.”
The sand underneath them lifted into the air, taking them with it. Sakura’s legs wobbled for a moment at the unusual movement and she found herself sinking her fingers into the redhead’s arms as they lifted farther and farther from the ground. He answered by tightening his hold on her and pumping more chakra into the grains to increase their speed. Soon they were flying above the open country and the city was nothing but a receding silhouette.
When she had finally managed to get used to the movement of the flying sand, Sakura loosened her death grip on Gaara and found her voice. “I have to admit you’ve got your uses as well,” she remarked.
He accepted the complement with a nod. “Where to? Your place or mine?”
Sakura shook her head in disgust. “You really do have the mental maturity of a five year old.”
The redhead replied with his fiendish smirk accompanied by a shrug.
“Konoha is closer. After we cross the border, you can leave me there and I’ll use one of the patrol birds to send my message ahead of me.”
“That signals our parting of ways, then.”
“Yes it does,” she replied firmly.
“Any wager on how long it will take for both our countries to form an armed alliance to fend off Iwagakure?” he asked, a devious glint in his eye.
“Are you implying there’s a chance we will meet again?”
“Not implying. I’m certain of it.”
Sakura rolled her eyes at his arrogance. “What makes you so sure?”
“I take it you’re high up in the hierarchy of the Konoha nin, with you being in charge of this infiltrating mission and all,” Gaara stated.
She kept quiet, not denying his assessment.
“The same applies to me. Do you think Suna would send a simple errand boy to do a job like this?”
“Judging from your manners, it’s highly possible,” she retorted. But she knew he was right. Her face turned serious as her mind focused on the implications of the success of their mission. “Iwagakure’s Shogun really is vent on destruction. He’ll raze any nation that does not bow down to his rule.”
Gaara turned to fully look at her and noticed the grim expression on her features. “Unfortunately, the man won’t be any different than any other tyrant with an army behind him,” he conceded, “all the more reason to stop him sooner than later.”
Sakura nodded in reply. They would just have to trust in the strength of their own forces to put a stop the rising despot.
They travelled in silence for a while, each lost in their own thoughts and the consequences the upcoming battles would have on their respective countries. It was only after they had traversed most of the distance they had to travel that Sakura belatedly blinked down at the arm round her waist.
“You can let me go, you know,” she commented annoyingly.
“You’ll just fall off if I do.”
“I’m not useless. I already got used to the sway of the sand,” came her irritated remark.
“Don’t want to take my chances. It would just slow us down,” Gaara replied in all seriousness. He kept his eyes on the horizon and refused to look at her, but Sakura was certain there was a mischievous glint in his jade orbs.
Sakura glared at him except she instantly realized it was pointless. Men like him were immune to such displays. On the other hand, a punch in the ribs would be much more effective. But seeing as they were now high up above the ground, making him lose his concentration could be rather perilous. So she settled for a verbal assault instead.
After all, now that she got a good look at him, it wasn’t hard to put two and two together. The Suna emblem, the dark crimson hair, the reckless attitude and the shifting sand should’ve been rather evident from the beginning.
“Well, the last thing I would’ve predicted this morning was that I would end the day flying on a cloud of sand with the much feared Suna no Akaoni.”
His teeth flashed. “It seems my reputation precedes me.”
“More or less,” Sakura remarked wryly.
His response was a humorous snort. “Not what you expected?”
“Oh no, quite the contrary, you did end up being a maladjusted sociopath,” she said, all sugar and smiles, “it’s just that I never thought you’d be the groper type. The ‘I’ll skin you and eat you for breakfast’ type would’ve been more my guess.”
Gaara shook his head, stifling a laugh. This woman was really unlike any other female he’d ever encountered before. Anyone else, after having correctly recognized him as one of the most dangerous nin out there, would have preferred to throw themselves off the cloud of sand instead of having to be in close contact with him. Not Sakura, though. Here she was, instead of placating him, throwing thinly veiled insults his way.
“I’m over that phase,” he replied without missing a beat, “got bored of it after a while. The skinning took too much effort.”
“I see. So you just settled for the sexual harassment approach instead.”
“It has its advantages,” the redhead remarked. To prove his point, he shifted his arm slightly to pin her to his body more effectively. Now her entire front was plastered against his right side, his leg between hers.
Sakura clucked her tongue and looked down to where their bodies met. She had to admit he was in excellent shape. Being a connoisseur of male ninja, she had to give Suna no Akaoni his due: there was firm muscle everywhere on him. Nonetheless, limits were limits.
“I can see why you would find this advantageous,” Sakura admitted, “but you know, not all girls like to be groped on the first date.” As she spoke, she lifted her hand and buried her index finger right where his neck met his shoulder. She pumped a streak of chakra into him, knowing very well it would be amazingly painful.
Gaara groaned in surprise and grit his teeth but after a few moments he relented, lowering his arm from around her waist and letting her go.
Taking a step back, Sakura patted him on the shoulder. “That’s better.”
Jade eyes narrowed at her but didn’t lose their devilish glint. “Your significant other has my deepest sympathy.”
She laughed loudly again. “He had sympathy for himself as well, which is why he went out for groceries one day and never came back.”
“Scared shitless of you, was he?”
“Indeed, especially when he realized I’d found out he was cheating on me,” Sakura remarked, shaking her head, “took the easy way out, the coward.”
Gaara turned to look at her, his jade eyes thoughtful. “You don’t look particularly upset over it. But I guess, if the bastard was cheating on you, he wasn’t worth your time.”
“Exactly the conclusion I came to myself,” Sakura conceded with a smile.
“A maladjusted sociopath might be more worth your while,” he told her, a grin made of sin on his face.
She couldn’t help a laughing fit from overcoming her. This man really was something else. “How do you figure that?” she finally managed to ask when she found her voice again.
“It’d give you more of a challenge; keep you on your toes.”
“Like that’s exactly what I’m looking for,” she replied cynically. “My life as a kunoichi doesn’t give me enough of that already.”
“Well, you did choose the profession for a reason,” Gaara said. “There must be something you get out of it.”
“Yes, saving my country and the lives of the innocent people residing in it.”
He looked solemn for a moment but not for long. “True, but where’s the fun in living off honourable deeds all the time?”
Sakura clucked her tongue. “You really are incorrigible.”
“So my psychiatric medics tell me.”
They had reached the Konoha border by then. Choosing to land at the edge of a towering forest, Gaara lowered his sand close to the ground. When they came to a stop, he created a series of steps leading down to the grass, gaining a raised pink eyebrow in the process.
“Such chivalry,” Sakura teased when she was on solid ground again.
“Never let it be said that sociopaths don’t know how to treat women,” Gaara countered, still standing on his floating sand.
Her laughing emerald eyes sobered after a moment. “Do you think they’ll try to pursue us any further?”
“Not likely,” he replied. “In the commotion, I don’t think they were able to get a good look at our emblems and even if they did, they know chasing us won’t prevent the information we gathered to reach our leaders. It’d just be a waste of resources.”
“True. We’d better make sure the intel reaches the right ears, then.”
He nodded in agreement but said nothing. They looked at each other then, standing beneath the shifting shadows of the trees. It was a charged moment filled with unexpected familiarity, as if they hadn’t encountered each other for the first time in their lives a few short hours earlier. Neither knew what to make of it, deciding not to speak of it lest the spell be broken.
“Well, you’d better get going then,” Sakura finally said. “You’ve got some ways to go yet.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Gaara replied in mock obedience. His sand started to lift once again, rising up into the sky.
“Thanks for the ride!” she called out.
“Don’t mention it,” he answered, “it’s your turn to drop me off next time.”
This elicited a trill of laughter from her. Saluting her one last time, the redhead pumped more chakra into his sand and picked up speed. Soon he was nothing more than a dark speck in the distance.
Sakura watched him go, thinking over what he’d said and realizing he just might be right. If war was coming their way, there was a high probability for their paths to cross again.
Somehow, this prospect didn’t seem so bad. She wondered what kind of antics he’d pull on her next time. The man certainly was reckless and unpredictable.
For now, she had a message to deliver and a report to convey. She mused about what her superiors and peers would say when she told them she was on speaking terms with the infamous Suna no Akaoni.
Chuckling at the likely reactions of fright and incredulity, she turned into the forest and started to make her way home under the familiar protection of the tall trees.
~~xxx~~