All that was left was the chakra circulating throughout her headspace and her barely beating heart. Just enough to keep her alive. Other than that, her entire body lay lifeless. Somehow, they wiggled their way through her body with their chakra to prevent her from completely coming to an end.
She was now free of restraints, not necessarily needing them any longer. Though her body now sat upward, it didn't make a difference. It's not like she could maneuver her limbs anyways.
Multiple steps patted their way down the hard tile floor. Each step resonated through the echo of the spacious room. Men's and women's voices could be heard in light talks. The voices and the footsteps grew louder as they steered closer.
She heard them come to a stop right beside her bed.
"What shall we do with her now? We've already got what we wanted." A raspy Male voice spoke.
"We could dispose of her?" Another voice suggested, female this time.
"No. We still need her for RNA and DNA replication." A voice she recognized as the doctor to who she was first introduced, spoke assertively.
"But we could just replicate the DNA and RNA tests we already have. What would be the point if we already have access to those samples and reuse them? We've also collected most of her chakra, so she's as useless as it is." He spoke as a matter of fact.
One of the women shifted on her left foot creating a shuffling sound. "I agree. It's of no use to keep her any longer."
Her doctor huffed, "We may want the power, but by all means, I am no child killer."
The man scoffed at her insolence. "We've practically crippled her and you're worried about killing her. Please Yomi, she's as good as dead. Child or not, we are done with this specimen. If you are not capable of ending this organism's life, then I or another doctor will happily do so for you."
The other woman spoke up, "Yes and may I ask why you're so reluctant Yomi?"
Yomi stayed silent, her lips pulled into a line. She hardened her expression and took a small intake of air. "Nothing more than the reasons I state."
Both doctors eyed her suspiciously and then looked back at each other.
"I suppose. This is her first experiment on a child. I'll let it pass. But this girl will be put down." The man said sharply as he turned on his heel and began to walk away. His companion followed suit.
Yomi quickly nodded. She rushed over to where Sarada lay when the doors finally slammed shut.
Yomi dipped her head down to Sarada's ear. She could smell the doctor's vanilla perfume perspiring off of her. Her hair tickled Sarada's cheek. The young girl wanted to squirm.
"Don't be frightened. I will make sure they don't take you away. We will be moving to my personal lab. It's hidden from the faculty. You'll be safe from them there." She whispered hushingly. She stroked back Sarada's ebony locks— like her mother used to do.
Sarada's stitched eye welled up another single tear in the corner of her eye. It was the first time since the surgery that she was truly terrified for her life.
Yomi gently wiped the tear away. "You know. I never wanted to do illegal experiments on people, much fewer children." She paused, still patting back Sarada's hair. "I was supposed to just study ophthalmology. At first, I worked with willing patients legally. Then I met THEC… The Human Experimentation Club. And I saw more opportunities. At the time I didn't think much of how the club's motives seemed suspicious. You see, I wasn't in it for the gain of power. I was in it for knowledge. I was interested in you because of your eyes." She stops for a quick moment to add something of importance, then decides to ignore it and continued on. "I always liked the study of the eyes, it fascinated me. Still does." She muses. "But anyways, I didn't think it was right for them to remove your eyes. In fact, I probably would have researched more if they left your eyes in. But they convinced me I would get a better look if my eyes were removed from their sockets. So I agreed and did the operation. I was careful not to damage any of your nerves, which I'm quite grateful for. We can still have your eyes placed back into you with precise chakra control and a whole lot of focus."
"On the other hand, I was certainly unhappy about the removal of your chakra. But I did it. I took away the chakra. I apologize for that. Your eyes and that father of yours led you to such a saddened state. You don't deserve that. That's why I want to keep you alive."
She sighed. "You have no idea how much I want to leave this job behind. I don't think it's right to destroy a child like this. But I did it. And I hate myself for it. So if keeping you safe is the only way to redeem what I've done, then I will make sure you're well taken care of until the end."
Sarada wanted to scream. She wanted to pound this place to the ground. To make sure of this Yomi would learn her lesson the hard way. She didn't deserve redemption. She deserved to wallow in her self-loathing and suffering. Sarada wanted her to feel her pain. If anything, she was more angered by her sob story than swayed over and ready to forgive.
But no matter how hard Sarada wanted to let the words fall from her mouth, her weakened state left her silent. She was desperate to be found by Konoha soon.
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Sakura could sense her husband's chakra trailing behind her. It's been four days since their fight and she's still not ready to forgive. She knows full well that it's a childish action, but she feels he deserves it.
How could he be so selfish? How could he want to give up on her just like that? They were teammates, and forever will be. So why did he think he had to do everything alone?
She pushed her thoughts aside for now. He was the one who needed to get his shit together. It wasn't her problem. Her focus was her daughter.
Sakura leaped from tree to tree. Greenery washes past her vision in blurs as she sped by. She presses on her heels, sending spurts of chakra to the palm of her foot. Setting off for higher speed. She glides through the thick forest. Coming to an abrupt stop when she feels an unusual spike of chakra. A good-sized chakra, a shinobi's most likely. It felt menacing. She knew this couldn't be her husband's. His chakra stood still the moment she came to a halt.
She felt Sasuke flicker by her side. Alert and reaching for the hilt of his katana.
"Don't." She whispered.
He gives her a look. But he obliges, only keeping his hand on the handle.
"It doesn't feel right," Sakura says to herself more than to Sasuke.
Both Sanin decide to stay low. They mask their chakras and slowly try to sneak their way past the overbearing chakra signature.
Suddenly, before the both of them come to realize it, the enemy appears behind them. Sasuke is the first to react. Activating his Sharingan, he ducks at the incoming sebon soaring by his head. Sakura is ready for the second weapon that comes flying her way. There's a hint of moldy fumes permeating the air. She recognizes it as a common poison plant. A couple mixed together to create a deadly poison. She dodges it as it sheaths its way into a tree.
Their enemy lands with a barely auditable tap onto a tree. They're hidden beneath a cloak. Masked and hooded, their identity is completely hidden from the eyes of the two shinobi.
Sakura and Sasuke waste no time when the ninja lunges at them with incredible speed. A large burst of chakra surrounds their attacker. An agonizing feeling spreads throughout the area. It feels as if the air is burning. The unknown shinobi creates a more immense sweltering sensation in Sakura's direction, while Sasuke gets the brunt of an oncoming close-range attack.
Sasuke unsheaths his katana from the hilt of its case. He coats it in a barrier of electricity formed with his own chakra. He swings the weapon to block the barreling roll of the attacker's forearm swinging toward him.
Stupid move. He thinks to himself. In one clean swipe, Sasuke slices right through the ninja's arm. The limb falls to the ground— down to the abyss of bushes and shrubs.
The attacker doesn't so much as scream or groan in pain. In fact, not even a hint of blood poured out from where Sasuke decapitated the arm. Again, the nin went in for another attack.
By now, Sakura was beginning to burn up. Her skin was bubbling and her knees buckled. She felt like she was being burned inside and out. Her skin started to welt and blisters began to form on the surface of her arms and legs. She tried to send chakra to different parts of her body, but it felt as though every chakra point was being blocked. Her head spun and finally, she fell to her side— hugging herself to rid the pain. She couldn't think straight with the unbearable fire being etched into every part of her. She could vaguely hear the muffled sounds of a blood-burning scream and the clang of weapons being hit against one another.
Sasuke heard his wife scream in agony. That was all he needed to get his attention. He hurriedly created a Susanoo. Shielding him and his wife from the aggressor. He swiftly scooped Sakura into his arm— swinging her over his shoulder and making a B-line until they were far enough away he could shut down his Susanoo and create a portal.
Adrenaline fills him as he opens up a portal. A familiar throb finds its way to his right eye. He throws himself and his wife into dissension filled with rocky terrain. The portal is gone as quickly as it was created. He heaves a labored breath and looks tiredly at his wife's inflamed blistering skin.
Sluggishly, he flips her onto her back. Her usual shining eyes are hooded and exhausted with fatigue. Her consciousness quickly slips.
"Sakura, can you heal yourself?" He asks. The question goes unanswered. This worries him.
He recalls what she showed him about searching for injuries and finding what the issue is before healing. So he does just that. His hand lightly roams her body, searching for the major injuries first. He comes to realize that some of her vital organs are inflamed. He searches a little more and finds her chakra passageways are disrupted. Which explains why she couldn't heal herself.
He's no professional (much like his wife) when it comes to the art of healing. But she taught him enough over the course of their marriage, to know at least the basics of medical ninjutsu. So he works for his hand until he feels the cooling of the inflamed organs. Enough just to ease the strain on her body.
He sits there healing her for about two hours before the final wave of chakra depletion hits him like a bullet to the head. He feels his eyes weighing down. He figures he did enough healing to keep Sakura from any sort of internal bleeding. With one last check to make sure he got every organ, he lets his hand fall to his side. He finally lays down and twists a strand of his wife's hair between his fingers. A sort of comfort to keep in mind that she's okay and here beside him. He slowly but surely lets sleep consume him.
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A/N
I know, I know. A lot of Sasuke and Sakura in this chapter. (But I'm in love with this couple so who wouldn't lol) But I want to describe their struggles along this long journey. There will be more Sarada coming your way. Oh also, that enemy will not be going away anytime soon. He/she will be a vital part of this story. 🤭
Anyways, I will add some others from the Leaf village. No, it's not just going to be an Uchiha family story. We gotta pull others from the new gen in this story as well. Annnnd some of the og's. We love them all.