DISCLAIMER: Ohayou gozaimasu, my fellow readers. For now on my disclaimers will say "I don't own Naruto, you will not sue" for the disclaimer to keep it short and non-obnoxious. So, here it goes. I don't own Naruto, you will not sue. Now that it's over, you may enjoy this chapter of Melting.
Once Sakura had got into town, she stopped running and sat down outside of a bar. She gasped, like a beached fish, for breath. She hadn't run so much in a long time. Inhale, exhale. Inhale, exhale. Something caught her attention however. It was a conversation between two men. They sounded like they were just around the corner, in the alley next to the bar. She controlled her breathing and strained her ears to listen.
"Ah, so it's going to be public?"
"Yes. I had originally planned for it to be discreet, but it is most important I win the favor of the villagers…they will be quite pleased to see justice done."
"Very wise. When is the Anbu arriving?"
"Around noon. He plans to do the killing by decapitation. It will be quick and painless, yet the blood will be quite a show. The villagers will love it."
"Indeed. So, what is the sum of this Haku character?"
Sakura let out a small gasp. Haku was still alive, but he wouldn't be for much longer if she didn't do something. She had messed up her chance earlier, but this time, she would not cry. She wouldn't hide in fear of what might happen. And so, she stepped out into the alleyway.
"When and where is the execution taking place?!?" questioned Sakura hurriedly. The two men looked at her intensely.
"You sure are excited about it…" said the man on Sakura's right, "Why are you so anxious to know?" His voice was eerily soothing. Sakura couldn't make out his physical features due to the shadiness of the area.
"B-because I have never seen an execution before!" Sakura lied.
"Ah, so you want to see your first blood…I understand. The execution will be at twelve o' clock sharp at the village square. Don't forget it, and run along now. There's nothing else to hear from us old men."
"Yes," said Sakura, quickly running away. When the two men saw that she was gone, they resumed their talking.
"That kid…did she seem a bit suspicious to you?" asked the man opposite the one with the soothing voice.
"Nah, she was just your run-of-the-mill teenybopper scooping up the latest gossip. Nothing to worry about."
"But Yamaguchi san, you saw the headband she wore with the Hidden Leaf symbol on it…what if she is allied with the boy?"
"I doubt it. She didn't seem the type. Besides, she's just a kunoichi. What is she going to do, stop an Anbu using shampoo and eyeshadow?"
"Good point…I guess I got too worried. Forgive me older brother."
"All is forgiven. Now, are you going to finish that beer of yours?"
Sakura leaned herself against a no longer functioning fountain. She still couldn't stop breathing heavily. I pulled that off perfectly…if I had done that any differently, they may of suspected me of plotting or something… She glanced up at a clock on the side of a nearby building. It read nine thirty. That's still two hours and thirty minutes…I have to find some way to save Haku…but how? If they're sending an Anbu out to dispose of him, then it's going to be near impossible to help him…but still, I have to try. First off, how does the Anbu dispose of enemy shinobi. Sakura strained her mind trying to remember how the Anbu disposed of shinobi. She sure hadn't read anything about it in the textbooks (the school board made sure to leave the gory details out of Ninja Academy textbooks). She was also sure that Iruka-sensei never told her either. But what about Kakashi sensei? He had been an Anbu once, but she couldn't go out and ask him for fear of being locked up again in that room. Sakura furrowed her eyebrows in concentration. That's when Inner Sakura spoke up.
"You big dummy! You should of paid more attention back at Tazuna's house!" Inner Sakura snarled, "When Kakashi was healing from his battle wounds, he said that they used crows! Duh!" Then, Inner Sakura retreated to the recesses of her host's mind. Sakura smiled, and began to devise her plan.
Now go find your real purpose and live! Those words kept echoing in Haku's mind, insulting his very existence. He couldn't find his purpose if he was going to die soon. No amount of contemplation could do it. But had he already found it? No! If I don't want to go to hell, then I can't be someone else's tool! Sure, living for Sakura's love was a purpose, but it couldn't be his only purpose. What if she were to die? What would keep him going? Haku cringed at the thought. He still hadn't found his true purpose, and the fact that he was about to die didn't help. Life could be so cruel. But what if by chance I am able to live? What if the executioner somehow doesn't kill me?I may still be able to find it…Despite the darkness of the room, there was a small flame that illuminated the gloom. It wasn't of a candle or a torch. It was the hope in Haku's heart that he may be able to get through the mess he was in and see a brighter future.
"Hey, Kakashi sensei, don't you think that we should just give up this wild cherry blossom chase? Sakura wouldn't be escaping from us if she didn't have a good reason…" Naruto commented noisily.
"She may be thirteen, but she still isn't mature yet. She can't make rational decisions like an adult can," retorted Kakashi, pacing around the front of Tazuna's house.
"Hey! Hey!" said a young, boyish voice. Kakashi and Naruto turned their attention to a young boy who was running full force towards the Tazuna household.
"What is it?" asked Kakashi.
"There's going to be an execution at the village square today at twelve o'clock! Some Anbu from the Hidden Leaf village is going to be executing some bigshot shinobi! Rumors say that he's an expat from the Village Hidden in the Mist!"
"That's quite interesting," said Kakashi, rubbing his chin," Do you know who, exactly?"
"I think it was Hako or Hachi…some guy with an H name," the boy answered.
"Thank-you. We'll be sure to be there," Kakashi said. The boy nodded his head, and then ran back towards the village.
"Kakashi-sensei, why are we going there?" questioned Naruto, cocking his head slightly.
"If Sakura willingly met up with Haku earlier, and since she escaped us a few hours ago, I believe that there may be something going on. I want to ask Haku a few questions before his execution. That's all."
"I see"
In the village square, nearly the whole population of the village was gathered around an elevated wooden platform. On the platform was a table and a couple of harnesses. According to the clock in the square, the time was eleven thirty. Sakura made sure she stood as close to the platform as possible. Her canteen, which she always carried with her, was full of water. She grasped it tightly in her hands. Sakura's plan was to throw the water at Haku when the Anbu arrived so that he could strike down the ninja with some water jutsu of his. She just hoped that they wouldn't tie up his hands. That would cause some problems.
The door to Haku's cell opened and two burly men entered. "It's about your time kid," said one of the men.
"Alright," replied Haku. One man popped the restraints off Haku.
"Sit up," commanded the other. Haku did as he was told.
"Put your arms behind your back," said the same man. Haku put his arms behind his back. The man tied them together, making sure that the rope was extra tight. He took Haku's hair, pushed it to the side, and fastened a collar to the boy's neck. Next, he attached a leash.
"Now get up and start walking," said the man who put the leash on him. Haku stood up and began to walk towards his fate.
Kakashi stood in the back row, next to Naruto. Sasuke was sleeping in and Inari's family had chose not to come.
"When is Haku going to come?" Naruto asked, bored.
"In about ten or so minutes. Be patient," scolded Kakashi.
"Do you even think we'll get to ask him anything?"
"It's worth a shot. If not, we can just continue searching for Sakura with the ninja hounds."
"Make way, make way," said a loud, yet soothing voice. Sakura, and the rest of the crowd, turned their head in the direction of the voice. A thin, wiry man, who was completely bald and only had a little patch of hair on his chin made his way through the crowd. He was followed by a short man who looked as if he could be his younger brother. The two stepped up on the platform. The thin man adjusted something on his collar and waved to the crowd.
"Hello, my fellow townspeople," he spoke, "I know how much suffering we must go through each day. For such a long time greedy businessmen and cold-blooded bandits have brutalized this village. They have stole our money, stole our wives and killed our children, all of the things dear to us. Well fear not my brothers and sisters, for today is the beginning of a new era! This is the era of justice and I, Jin Yamaguchi, will lead you into a new era! No longer will we deal with lowlifes who feed off us like parasites! No longer will our wives have to hide in their houses for fear of being raped! No longer will our innocents be slaughtered! Today marks the beginning of the era of justice, and we shall start it by repaying our blood with theirs! Today, I bring you a foul traitor of this village! Yes, you heard me, a traitor! The vilest of the vile! The worst of the worst! I bring you Haku the Traitor of the Village Hidden in the Mist! Behold this abomination!"
The whole village square went silent. A creaky door opened, breaking the silence. Haku stepped out, followed by two large but strong men. The crowd made a path for them, and began to boo and hiss. One man picked a half-eaten apple off the ground and lobbed it at the boy. It Haku square on the cheek and left a bluish-black mark. Other people joined in and threw bits of trash at him.
"You foul vermin! You deserve to die!" shouted one lady. She stepped out of the crowd and shoved Haku with such force that he fell to the ground. He fell headfirst and banged his forehead against the shoe of a man. He felt some blood trickle down his forehead. The man holding his leash yanked his collar. Haku stood up and an insidious voice chuckled in his head. Still have hope, do you? Haku furrowed his eyebrows and thought in reposne Shut up! The evil voice came back. Do you honestly think that you're going to be spared? You're going to die. Just face it. Somebody punched Haku on the side of his face where he had been hit by the apple. The bruise ruptured and dribbled blood. The man with the leash pulled again.
"Get up the stairs," he said. Haku followed his orders and climbed the platform's stairs. Next, the two men led him over to the table, laid him down, strapped him in, and removed the leash and collar. Jin's brother pulled out a pocket watch.
"Eleven fifty-seven. He should be here any moment," he mumbled. As if on cue, a poof of smoke appeared on the platform. When it cleared away, a man in a wolf's mask stood standing. He wore full Anbu attire.
"You may begin," said Jin. The Anbu nodded in response and pulled out a scroll from his uniform. He unraveled the scroll, and pulled out a small canister containing a red fluid. Blood.
"I have to act fast! It won't take long if he's using a summoning jutsu!" Sakura murmured. She tensed her arms, getting ready to throw the canteen. The Anbu pulled the cork out of the canister and smeared its contents across the scroll. Sakura positioned herself to throw.
"Tora tora ushi tora tora inu tora tora hebi tora tora hitsuji," chanted the Anbu. At least two dozen little poofs of smoke appeared in the sky, which were subsequently replaced by crows. The crows charged towards their victim. Sakura threw the canteen. A loud spattering noise resounded throughout the village square.
TO BE CONTINUED…