Sakura Petals

The Scroll

3rd Person POV

The Land of Waves

Sakura was trembling. She had just witnessed the death of two people, whom she believed were only just misunderstood. Caught in the world of shinobi and did what they had to do in order to exist. She would even go as far as to believe that if they were given the opportunity to join Konoha, they would.

Should it have been a different time or place or different circumstances, they might have been allies, and it was for these reasons that Sakura had walked up to both Zabuza and Haku's body and kneeled.

She could distinctively hear the sounds of the villagers fighting against Gatō's men, but she payed it no mind as she looked into Zabuza's lifeless eyes, recalling the way he had previously inflicted terror into her very soul, but now, she was just glad to have been given the opportunity to have met him and seen the change in his very being as Haku died for him, and then proceeded to kill the very man that had hired him for so openly disrespecting him and his fallen comrade.

She slowly raised her hand to close his 'lifeless eyes', only to jump in surprise when something clamped over her wrist. She stared into Zabuza's not so lifeless eyes as he took something from his ninja pouch and pushed it into the palm of her hand.

"It chooses it's master." He croaked as blood spattered from his mouth, making Sakura cringe, but pay attention despite her want to look away from the gruesome scene.

"W-what?" Sakura asked, startled beyond imagination. Wanting to desperately yank her hand from his grasp but unable to do so due to her fear making her almost paralyzed.

Clearly, she wasn't expecting a man who she believed to be dead grip her wrist with such strength that almost made her believe he was faking his death defying, weakened state.

He was a Shinobi.

Defined and strong till the very end, even halting Death at his doorstep, almost mockingly telling him to wait till he was done.

This was the life she had unknowingly and blindly signed up for, unsure if this was truly what she wanted to do with her life now that this was what she was faced with.

"It chooses it's master, it chooses you." He said clearly despite spitting up blood along the way.

"What are you talking about? Who chooses it's master? Who chose me?" She asked again, only for Zabuza to shake his head. His shark like teeth stained with blood as he continued to speak.

"The key isn't needed if it chooses you. Take care of it little girl. Only greatness will come of this, should you use it right." Sakura wanted to ask more questions, only to stop in her tracks as his once firm grip on her wrist loosened and fell against her thighs.

Death clearly had enough of his resilience and pulled him to the hell she was sure he was going to.

She looked at his calloused hand that rested on her body. Small scars littering all over as a clear sign of his profession as a rouge-nin and a previous member of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist.

Needless to say, she was stunned.

What just happened, and what was he talking about?

She shook out of her stupor when she heard cheerful yells from all around her as the rest of Gatō's men had been defeated or ran out of town as soon as their supposed fearless leader was killed.

Shaking, Sakura took Zabuza's hand off her thigh and gently set it back down by his side before closing his eyes like she had originally planned, waiting to see if he'd pop back to life again.