PROLOGUE

A blonde man stood before her, staring ahead at the beast that was destroying their precious village. Wind carried the hot chakra, intense with negative energy; that much she could sense. Even in starless night, she could see the village engulfed in flames; houses burning forming thick smoke covering the sky. She could hear the cries and wailing sound of the villagers calling for their love ones; crying for those they have found survived or those that have died.

"I need to seal the beast," the man said.

Impossible. With what? she thought. She looked at his back, thinking of the heavy burden that he must carry. Even though he was the one who started it all, he was still just a man.

"You can't do this alone," she argued, "Let me help you."

"For the sake of the village and its people… For peace," he quoted.

It was those damn words again. She hated him for saying it every time. He was willing to risk his life for peace, yet, he was just one man.

"Wait-" she cried.

But he was already gone from her sights.

Sakura woke up, gasping heavily. Her face was beaded with sweat. Her breathing quickens. She couldn't find her voice but her hand was trembling and reaching for…

Nothing.

She glanced at the surrounding of her chamber. Everything was the same as before- no existence of a burning village or a beast.

"A nightmare," she breathed slowly.

Sudden tears rolled down her cheeks and she quickly wiped it away, erasing any trace of her weakness. It was the same dream- a beast destroying a village, a blonde man stood in front of her, telling her that he needs to seal the beast. There was nothing she could do but to witness every moment of death.

A loud knock on the door startled her and she quickly covered herself with the bed sheet. There wasn't a need to guess who it was.

"You're up," said the man who was leaning against the door.

"I couldn't sleep," she answered coldly.

"Get dress. It's time."

Sakura clinched her fist. She hated being used. Unfortunately, this was a deal she has made with him.

"I'm not strong enough and my body is sore. Too much has been taken from me. I need time to mend my chakra."

"There's no need for that. That seal on your forehead is enough. Come, or I'll drag you out, regardless if you're dressed or not."

The man was unfazed by her excuses. He was very slick and his choices of words were too good to be true. Sakura knew that he was the type who could not be easily defeated, especially with words. Everything that came out from his mouth was bad influence. Pain was an example of it. The man had used psychology and manipulation as a weapon to poison other's minds, turning everything that is good into bad. Indeed, that very same devil-

"Obito," Sakura looked directly to his disfigured face, especially at his eyes: Sharingan on the left and Rinnegan on the right. Those eyes could be a blissful gift or a curse, depends on the user. Such luck for someone like Obito has owned both. "You're playing a game that you cannot possibly win."

Obito neither utter a word nor move. His eyes followed her as she moved behind the screen. And when Sakura was finally dressed, he still calmly stood exactly where he was, all gloomy and staring back at her. It was not those eyes that scared her. His silence did. It looked as though he has nothing to say but in truth, his mind was calculating with either strategies or selected phrases that could intelligently make her eat her own words.

"What makes you say that?" he curiously asked.

"Well, first, you're an army of two. If you plan to defeat the current Alliance Shinobi, it is obviously you will lose. Don't you think that make sense?"

"Hmm… You're right. We are short of manpower. But years ago, I managed to tremble the world of shinobi and instil fear with Akatsuki."

Indeed. It all started with the Akatsuki, a group of rogue ninjas. Their sole purpose was to collect the tail beasts. Pain who was blessed with Rinnegan was the leader of that group. He, along with his comrades, had caused chaos throughout not just Konoha but other hidden villages as well. He was the one who attacked Konoha in attempt to take the Nine Tails Beast, and he boldly attacked the village at point zero. But Pain wasn't the real leader. He was just a puppet. Like the others before him, he was used. The one who pulled all the strings was responsible for everything that has happened in this shinobi world. And that bastard was standing right in front of her.

"To collect the tailed-beasts," she added.

"Yes. Collecting those beasts was troublesome and I have reasons. Unfortunately, it came at a price of my fellow comrades."

Sakura scoffed, "what rights do you have when calling those you used as 'comrades'? Was it worth it?"

"I wouldn't use the word 'worth' in a negative way," he cocked his head to the side and grinned. "I would rather call it beneficial because all in all, it came along with war, fear, blood, death and of course, Jūbi."

Five years ago, Obito declared war against the five great Shinobi countries to draw out the Eighth and Ninth Tails Beasts so that he could steal them under the Kages' noses. It was all for the sake of his plan: Tsuki no Me Keikaku, The Eye of the Moon Plan. His intention was to combine everything and use this jutsu so that the shinobi world is him to rule. And to do that, he needed to revive the Ten Tails Beast.

Those were the dark days and Sakura preferred not to discuss it openly. It has brought nothing but a constant reminder of the past. The very reason why she was here with Obito was due to that war itself. She knew it, and he knew her. She lost her cool and threw a punch at him but it went through suddenly caught her arms and pulled her closer to him, eyes were levelled to his. She could feel his breath on her skin. His touch was as cold as the dead.

"Know your reasons for being here," he smiled a devilish smile, "Know your pain and everyone else's, Sakura, for you are my responsibility. You agreed with those luscious lips of yours."

"Stop it! Let me go!"

Obito released her and she clumsily fell to the floor. Their eyes glared upon each other, promising nothing but hatred.

"You know… there is something in you I truly admired about. Something stronger and deeper than the Will of Fire, and I'm very tempted to push your limits to find that out. However, now is not the time. And as mean as you think I am, I shall not fall to that level." He held out his hand to her as she struggled to stand up. She found a strength to brush his hands away. "Stubborn to the core."

"Tell me, Obito. Your plan, Tsuki no Me Keikaku, was all of it a hoax?"

His silence gave it away but Sakura waited patiently for his answer anyway.

"You'll see soon enough," he said and walked away, expecting her to follow.

Sakura watched as he disappeared down the corner of the hallway. She was right. Uchiha Obito was the type of man who could not be easily persuaded or defeated with words or skills. Everything with him was still vague. The time was neither right nor perfect to strike back. Patience for retribution was the key as she has the intention to strike the enemy where it will hurt most.