And for You I'll Bleed in Bliss

Chapter 7

Sasuke's POV

'It doesn't feel hot, but it feels like I'm sweating...'

What was soaking my garments was Naruto's blood. I forcefully gripped him and kept him close to my chest as I increased my pace to get to the headquarters quicker.

His head lifelessly hanged past my wrist...

There...the unruly wind blows again.

While he was unconscious, Naruto had a softer face, but when he smiles, his appearance always gets even lovelier.

'I can't stand to look at him any longer, all I did was cause him more pain while he trusted me...'

Blood slowly dripped from his hands as I ran as fast as I could... I'll have to stop now...his wounds wouldn't stop bleeding by themselves...There were no caves or secluded spots here, but I don't think anyone will be able to find us in this darkness, nor would anybody be roaming here at such a time.

Nobody's POV

With a sigh of relief, Sasuke set Naruto down gently on the ground. The chains that bound Naruto's wrists and ankles were a difficult jutsu, which took chakra from the person bound if the person tried to free themselves. With a few swift hand seals and a surge of chakra, the chains dissolved...

Sasuke sat down beside him and gathered chakra till it glowed a dim green in his palms and gently pressed them to Naruto wrists, stopping the blood...It was difficult for him to look at Naruto now, his condition was really different from the morning, when he was smiling, to now, when his face is covered with dirt, dust, and his own blood.

Just as Sasuke was finishing the healing process, a rustling in the nearby bushes caught his attention. He swiftly turned his head to scan the entire area as Sakura emerged from the shadows, her eyes wide with concern as she took in the scene before her.

"Sasuke-kun, what did you do to Naruto?" Sakura's voice was filled with worry as she rushed to Naruto's side.

"He's fine now," Sasuke replied coldly, standing up and distancing himself from Naruto and Sakura.

"What do you mean? He's UNCONSCIOUS!"

"I didn't ask him to get into this mess, he chose it himself. You have no right to interfere, go away."

Sakura's face paled, and her hands trembled. "No, Sasuke-kun, you can't! Aren't you his friend?"

"Did you even know, he has been looking for you from such a long time...or did you even care about him?", Sakura said.

"Don't pretend like you cared about him. You've always been madly in love with me, right?"

Sakura's eyes filled with tears as she took a step back. "Sasuke-kun, please, you have to listen to me. I love Naruto too, and I can't let you do this to him."

'I will save him...I won't let this be his destiny, especially when I am finally powerful enough to help him...if I can't do even this much...I can't call myself his friend...Sasuke was with Naruto from the whole day, even at Ichiraku's. I'm sure of that. I won't let him steal Naruto from me now.'

Before Sasuke could react, Sakura lunged at him with a kunai in hand, her emotions overriding her rationality. Sasuke dodged it swiftly, clasped her hand with the kunai, and twisted it roughly.

"Sasuke-kun, I liked you for stupid reasons, even once you turned rouge, but I can't take it anymore, I-I can't love you anymore."

"So you just redirected your love to somebody else?"

"He actually used to worry for me, unlike you, and I won't let you take him away from me now, when I have finally found someone who cares!", Tears flowed through her eyes as she tried to resist the pain in her wrist and break free from Sasuke's harsh grip.

As she freed herself, her slight smile turned into a smirk as she started attacking him, aiming for his heart...

"You...can't...defeat...me...Sakura.", Sasuke spoke between attacking and deflecting Sakura's attacks.

"I will...continue...to...try..."

Sasuke turned around, trying to spot her, when he finally saw Naruto waking up...

'Thankfully, I had been able to tie him before she came, but why is she so worried about him anyway? She never cared about him when we were younger.'

//Flashback//

"Don't you envy him being alone, not having parents nag at you all the time, he doesn't have to answer to anyone, ever, and it's made him completely selfish!!!If I did the kind of things he gets away with, my parents would ground me for life.", Sakura said, without spending much thought on that.

'How can she? She doesn't even know how bad life can be without them, without someone who cares for you...'

An angry feeling grew in his chest, making his insides burn and ruining his peace of mind.

"You know...because he never had any parents. Don't badmouth orphans, especially in front of one."

"S-sorry Sasuke-kun, I didn't know about that...I-I shouldn't have said that..."

"Set your mind on one thing Sakura, don't fleet from one thought to another just to please others, else you will continue to mold yourself to other's desires."

//Flashback ends//

'She's still the same, changing her goals if one seems unattainable, her mind is always fleeting.'

While Sasuke was lost in his thoughts, Sakura's blade was about to strike.

Terror jumped into Naruto's eyes, 'I can't let him die!'

With a burst of strength that surprised them all, Naruto broke through the chains.
A warm cloak of red light covered him, glowing with immense chakra, as he intercepted Sakura's attack, caught her wrist, and stopped the kunai just inches from Sasuke's heart.

"Sakura, stop!" Naruto's voice was firm as he pushed Sakura away gently. "I can't let you hurt Sasuke."

Sasuke's mind was in a turmoil of emotions when he found out... Seeing Naruto's face so close to his own, their breaths almost intertwined, Sasuke's heart began to thud loudly in his chest.

'H-he could get out? Anytime he tried? He even got hurt, but he could run away easily. When did he get so powerful? Did he know that he could do that before now, o-or he stayed like that for me?'

'But I have failed my mission now...he'll go away...once he has discovered how to get out, he must be regretting his decision from the very second the lock on the cuffs closed.'

"Sakura, I'm sorry, but I never loved you, and I never will."

Naruto's words cut through the tense air, leaving a small tear sliding down Sakura's cheeks. Her face was now slightly pink from the intensity of their battle and her own exhaustion.

With a weary sigh, she gave in to her wounds and fatigue, collapsing unconscious on the ground.

-Mitsubachi sama