New ItaSaku Fanfic! Contagious: Prelude
CHAPTER 0: PRELUDE
"Another shochu, please."
The bartender raised a brow at her. That was her third one in the last half hour. His weathered face suggested that if she didn't slow down, someone was going to have to carry her out later. Judging by the thuggish appearance of the bar's patrons, they wouldn't be doing it out of the kindness of their hearts, either. But that was Mist village for you.
"Another," the kunoichi insisted. She needed it too; this kind of mission was tough for her to stomach when sober. It also paid the most, so her liver usually ended up taking one for the team.
"Suit yourself," the bartender growled, refilling the dirty glass.
The young woman downed it in three gulps and sighed. She glanced across the bar at her target once again. He was probably in his late thirties to mid-forties - on the youngish side for a target, and easier on the eyes than most. Her mission report stated he was from Cloud country, and you could tell; his face was a little too soft for Kirigakure. He looked out-of-place. She bit back the sympathetic thoughts. Don't be so naïve. He wouldn't be on a hit list if he was really all that nice to begin with.
She'd studied him long enough; she had a job to do.
Lowering her hood to expose her long blonde hair, the kunoichi shrugged out of her heavy cloak. She wore a low-cut top with matching red miniskirt. Completely impractical clothing for such a humid place, but she needed to look the part.
Ignoring the leers of the men beside her, the shinobi caught her target's eye across the room. She let her gaze linger for a moment before standing and weaving her way over to him, not having to work too hard to exaggerate her drunkenness. She let a hand fall on his shoulder and leaned over, giving him a nice view down her shirt.
"Hey. This seat taken?" she breathed, indicating the empty chair next to him.
"N-no, feel free. Please," he gulped, adjusting his glasses.
She sank into the chair and crossed one leather boot casually over the other. "My name's Ino. You're not from around here, are you?"
"Ah, no, I'm just here for the week on business. I'm Hideki. It's nice to meet you, Ino-chan."
It was an obvious alias - his real name was Nobuhiro Usui - but she pretended to fall for it.
"Ooh, a tourist!" she gushed. "May I buy you another beer, Hideki-san?" She fingered the little packet of powder tucked discreetly into the waistband of her skirt.
"Ah, no thank you, that was my last one...I was actually on my way out," he said. "I'd be happy to buy you another round before I go though."
The young woman shook her head, letting her hair swish back and forth. "No way, I've had too much already!" she giggled, switching tactics. "Do you have any plans for tonight?"
"Um, well, I was supposed to meet someone soon..." he hedged.
"A girl?" She peered up at him from beneath long lashes.
Nobuhiro blushed. "Uh, no, nothing like that," he coughed. "Just a colleague...for business stuff."
The shinobi let her shoulders relax. "Oh good, then you can blow him off and hang out with me instead. I have a business transaction of my own that I'd like to propose...and I'm sure it's more fun than what you were planning..." she trailed off with a smile.
Nobuhiro's jaw fell open. It took him a moment to come to his senses. "Oh. Uh. Tempting as that sounds, I probably shouldn't. I'm new here and this village kind of has a reputation. I checked out of my room already, I wasn't even planning to push my luck by staying another night, you see..."
She bit her lip, winding a strand of pale hair around her finger. "That's a shame. I don't often get to enjoy my job, but I was looking forward to you." She locked eyes with him and let just the right amount of heat seep into her gaze.
His eyes widened. He stole a glance at her lips, then her fingers, still twirling the lock of hair delicately. He swallowed, looking torn.
"I promise to make it worth your while. A generous discount for being so chivalrous...and cute," she added, winking.
That did the trick.
"Well, if you put it that way...yes, why not?..." he mumbled to the table.
"Wonderful!" she exclaimed, allowing him to help her up. Well that was easier than I expected. Either I'm more drunk than I thought, or I'm getting rather good at this.
"But not to your place. A public hotel," he amended firmly.
"Whatever you want. I know of a nice place near the edge of town, not far from here. Follow me."
She brushed her fingers against his arm and led the way out.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Outside, the fog was dense and the air cool. She wished she hadn't accidentally left her cloak behind. It had been worth it though - this mission was turning out to be a cinch. Only a tourist would be stupid enough to trust a pretty girl in this town, no matter how young or what profession.
The kunoichi made sure to stumble a bit as they strolled down the empty, cobbled street together through the dimness (street lamps were a rarity in Kirigakure). The pointed heels of her boots echoed off the damp pavement. They both made small talk, each giving their own fake information, as she led the way to the edge of town.
She knew where she was going but had a brief attack of doubt. She'd used the same general area for her last two missions. The abandoned warehouses near the fishing wharf were convenient, but it was dangerous to use the same place more than once. The kunoichi supposed it didn't matter; she had lingered in Kiri too long anyway without making progress towards her goal. This would be her last mission here before she moved on.
"So, Ino-chan," Nobuhiro asked. "Where did you say you were from again?"
"Oh, here and there..." she answered evasively. "My line of work requires me to move around a lot, you know?" She giggled. It was actually true.
"There's really a hotel all the way out here? Are we close?" Nobuhiro eyed the dilapidated buildings and boarded-up windows, wringing his hands.
"It's a discreet place, good for business. Unfortunately the surrounding area is a dump. But fear not! We can take a shortcut through here." She stopped in front of an alley between two warehouses. She knew of an unlocked side door she could shove him through quickly.
"I don't like the look of this place..." he trailed off, taking a step back. "Maybe this was a bad idea."
The kunoichi fought down her annoyance and plastered on a charming smile. "It's perfectly safe as long as you're here to protect me, right Hideki-san?" she purred.
Nobuhiro took another step back, glancing around. It wasn't going to work. She hated doing things out in the open even if no one was around (clients didn't like it), but it looked like she wouldn't have a choice. He was a runner if she ever saw one.
"Hideki-san?" She took a step towards him and tripped over herself.
"Ow!" she cried, clutching her foot and looking up at him from the ground.
"Are you okay?" He asked, stepping forward. She slipped a hand down her boot.
"I don't know...what if it's broken? Can you come look at it? Please?" Nobuhiro edged closer, looking uncomfortable.
She struck. The kunai sliced through the fog and landed with deadly precision right between his eyes.
He disappeared in a puff of smoke.
The kunoichi had a quarter of a second to process the situation. She came to one conclusion.
Oh fuck!
The girl bolted. She dropped her henge and directed the extra chakra to her legs, increasing her speed. She flew across the river and bounded up the wall of a nearby building, leaping from rooftop to rooftop, long pink hair streaming out behind her in the moonlight.
The bunshin's presence indicated only one thing: the mission had been a trap. Sakura had stayed in Kiri too long and they had found her.
A senbon whizzed past her ear, slicing her cheek open. Sakura chanced a glimpse over her shoulder to find no less than six white-masked ninja hot on her trail. Shit!
She leapt from the building back into the street, cut down an alley, smashed through a fence, and ran into...a dead end. Sakura gathered her chakra to her fist, preparing to punch through the brick wall, but four bodies suddenly appeared in her path. Sakura could feel the other two ANBU behind her. She crouched in her stance, chakra flaring. She prayed that none of those masks belonged to people she knew.
"Haruno Sakura," spoke a voice. "By order of the Hokage, you are under arrest for treason against Konoha."
Not again, was the missing-nin's last thought before she charged.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Author's note: Hi everybody! Welcome to the fic. This is my take on ItaSaku exactly as I'd like to read it: fun, with plenty of action/adventure, a Sakura who becomes legitimately strong (outside of just the medical field, which - while cool - is the ninja world equivalent of the kitchen), and as realistic a relationship between her and Itachi as possible. Due to these goals, it's going to be a longish one. Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither is good ROME-ANCE (sorry, bad pun). It will be worth the wait ;) Updated religiously every Thursday evening, guaranteed (yes, including tomorrow!).
FYI, it is compliant with the manga canon up to chapter 350 (just before Sasuke and Deidara fight, but after Hidan and Kakuzu are killed), with the exception of Tobi, who is just Tobi, not you-know-who (no, not Voldemort. You-know-who. And if you don't, ignore me! It's irrelevant for this story anyway). It's largely forwards-compatible all the way up to the most recent chapters as well (past 600).
Be forewarned: this fic will contain violence, character death, naughty language, smut, and fashion faux-paus. If you enjoy any of the above and are tall enough to ride, please proceed. It's going to be a fun one. :D
Credit to making this work 100% better goes to my beta, Eric (you rock!).
THANKS FOR READING! :D