Unexpected || MadaSaku ||

Unexpected Arrivals

||Karin||

I remembered the taste in my mouth, similar to dampened soil, and the awful pain that came alongside it. My entire body ached, spreading a numbing sensation throughout my upper and lower body, practically leaving everything but my eyelids paralyzed. As the numbing started to fade, I could finally feel the grassy earth below me, tickling my legs as the breeze rolled in. A sigh of relief escaped my lips as I sensed the both of them, no farther than 6 feet away. I opened my eyes to a sherbet sky, thinking that it was the most beautiful sight to see after coming back from the brink of death.

"Is everyone alright?" I asked, sitting upright and crawling over to Sarada's side. "Sarada, are you alright?"

"I-I think I'm okay. It just all hurts," She groaned.

"Here, take some," I insisted, raising my forearm above her mouth. But instead of letting me help her, she held her lips together and used the bit of strength she could muster up to push my arm away. "Stop being stubborn and bite."

"N-No, I can take it," Sarada said, lifting herself up from the floor in an attempt to stand, but she could barely even manage that and fell back on the ground.

"Sarada-" I tried to say, but was cut-off.

"Just leave me alone!" She barked, turning away from me. And amid our disagreement, Sasuke both began to shift and groan.

"Sasuke! Are you alright?" I asked worriedly as I sat in between them, earning a painful nod from Sasuke.

"Did it work?" Sasuke wondered, weakly opening his dark-marbled eyes.

"I'm not sure," I responded, glancing around the unfamiliar landscape. "But where ever we are, it definitely isn't Konoha."

~~~

"Alright, now that it seems that everyone has regained their strength, I suggest that we survey the area and find out exactly where we're at," Sasuke proposed. "Karin, if it's possible, I need you to use your ability and find a nearby village."

"Don't worry, I already took the liberty of detecting the area. We should head north of here about 2 kilometers, there's an assemblage of travelers—or so it seems. If they aren't at a rest-stop, we can always get directions to the closest village." I said, pointing towards the crescent moon. 

"Excellent, then I suggest we get going before we waste any more time."

||Madara||

"I'm glad you came to your senses, brother! This is truly something to celebrate. I thought that title-hungry woman you brought would plague your mind, but it seems I had nothing to worry about," Izuna cheered, pouring us more sake than either of us could handle. "We will wield the torch of our ancestors and lead our brethren to victory. They must taste the wine of winners, while basking in their enemies' defeat!" 

"And so, they will, in time. We mustn't be too rash," I told Izuna.

"Our battalions are on their toes, waiting for our next orders. While Hashirama is carelessly letting his guard down, just as you said. No time better than the present to bring this war to a close. The Senju are greedy, just as power hungry, they treat us as a threat because they can't control us like they can the rest. Why should they be the ones with power? Are the Uchiha not worthy?" He heaved aggressively. "Such an insult to a clan as respective as ours, don't you think?"

"Of course, it's an insult," I spat, swallowing the last of my drink. I drowned the background thoughts of her, erasing every last memory of her voice, her face—I wanted it to be a blur, like a drunken night, much like this one. Izuna was right to be cautious of her, she was but a distraction that clouded my mind and kept me from the duties to my clan. 

"Madara..." He paused. "I think it's time. We keep wasting our resources, our men. I'm sure you understand. While I respect your patience with this ever-growing war, I think we've spent enough time on the defensive."

"So, what are you implying we do then?" I questioned, watching the smirk on his face inch upward.

"A Full Frontal attack on Uzushi—"

"Sir—" 

"What is it! Can't you see we're in the midst of celebration," Izuna rises from his chair, approaching the frightened guard. 

"This better be important," I lightly threatened.

"We've captured three trespassers lurking around the camp," The guard swallowed nervously. 

"Ah, don't you just love visitors," Izuna chuckled. "Make sure our guests are comfortable. Madara and I will come by soon."

|| Sakura||

"H-He just left?" I sat down astonished that he would just leave, without a single goodbye. Was it because of me? I mean it had to be. But this isn't how things should be left. It's not right, there was so much more I wanted to tell him, so much I wanted to thank him for. I-I need to see him one more time. And as if she could read my most personal thoughts, Mito rested her hand on mine, nodding her head in disagreement. "B-But, M-Mito—"

"Madara isn't coming back, and you shouldn't chase after him, "Mito affirmed as honestly and gently as she could. "We need to focus on a way to get you home, your family has waited long enough, don't you think?"

"Y-Yes," I agreed, satisfying Mito's worried thoughts. But truthfully, I still couldn't stand there and ignore it. As soon as she left me to my thoughts, I began gathering my belongings into a small rucksack bag. My family was important to me, but for some reason, Madara was too. I'm not sure why I felt so connected to him; every time we were together, it felt like the moments with Sasuke, so consuming. I knew I couldn't stay here, I knew that better than anyone else. There were more reasons for me to leave than there was for me to stay and I still couldn't make my heart budge. 

An impossible confliction that made me react faster than I could think. Before I knew it, I  was gone, leaving nothing but a note in my place. 

Please understand, Mito. I promise I'll be back soon.

Author's note

A slight update for this chapter 3/30/2019. If you notice, there will only be the 3 of the characters here now, instead of the 4. Hopelly I can clear up any confusions in the next few chapters! Stay amazing.